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Our focus has shifted slightly it seems to how we can get students and school staff back in class safely in the coronavirus era, and for good reason. It’s something we shouldn’t miss the boat on.
Nodaway Valley released its Return to Open plan Monday, and you can see the plan in this week’s newspapers. It is available online via the school district’s Facebook page as well. Please note the parent meetings that will be happening 6 p.m. Aug. 11 in the high school gym and the next night at the same time in the middle school gym in Fontanelle.
None of this is easy. We’ll all have differing opinions on these things and none of us will be right. That’s the crazy part of it all. Great job to the school leaders for coming up with such a comprehensive plan under what I can only imagine is a ton of pressure. Now is our time for being understanding and flexible.
Make sure to give the Return to Open a careful read, especially on the back page. The information is divided up so it’s as easy to locate as possible.
Keep on
Supporting Local
Governor Kim Reynolds lifted awhile back the restriction of 50% capacity on restaurants, but my observation is that it’s still hard for restaurants to go full bore if they have to keep people 6 feet away from each other. I get the health concerns, but we as consumers and diners should remember that there are still a few restrictions in place on restaurants, so my point is to keep on getting take-out and supporting them.
I have a few restaurants in the area where I’m friends with the owner. I trust them a lot more than I do a restaurant owner I don’t even know and would gladly go in and eat at their establishment tonight.
This was a sentiment that Stacie Hull, Chamber/Main Street and Development Executive Director, brought up in a conversation I had with her last week. I feel like I can get a decent pulse of how things are going in the area at businesses from talking to the owners, but Hull talks to even more of them than I do on a regular basis.
“What I hear from the community is that businesses are thankful the community is supporting them so much. We hope everyone’s being patient because for our business owners, this is all new for them too,” Hull said. “We ask people to be understanding and patient through this because we’re not out of it yet. I think we’ll see some permanent change on some levels of how we do business forever.”
Cases rose a little over the last week, but hopefully we are out of the woods for worst of the COVID-19 pandemic here. Time will tell. It’s like they told us when we had fire drills in elementary school, we need to be cautious but calm. For the sake of our mental health, we need to be careful of how much information we’re bringing in, even if it’s solid, fact-checked information.
The List
I found a really good list that a friend posted on Facebook this week of “adult pro tips” and I wanted to pass it along to you this week as The List.
1. Thank You cards: You never know when someone will lend you a helping hand and you can brighten their day with a card to say thank you.
2. A sturdy hobby: The things you enjoyed in high school are probably still cool and I encourage you to grow in them. A hobby that makes you feel improved and empowered is a must.
3. Books: Your continued education is a must. Education didn’t stop being important because you graduated. Keep asking questions and finding answers to them.
4. A good array of friends: Most adults find it’s harder to keep large amounts of friends. Be careful to invest in the friends who will be the most rewarding, even if they might take more effort than another one. Having friends that are different than you and are admirable to you is key.
5. Self-patience: Just because you’re grown up doesn’t mean you’re done growing. Give yourself grace when you need it.
6. A rehearsed story: Socializing happens. Have a good ice breaker story that you rehearse in the car or shower once and while. It will help you feel less awkward and help you make friends.