"Iowa is such a great place to live"

Great quote from Mark Egly and others in this Newsweek article:


Whether they've lost homes or businesses, many Iowans still feel blessed because they survived--and have good neighbors.
Jamie Reno
Newsweek Web Exclusive
Updated: 8:01 AM ET Jun 18, 2008
The flood waters have yet to recede or the damage to be totaled, but Iowans are already exchanging tales of how they coped, and expressing gratitude for the help and support of their neighbors. Says one, whose business is still under water, "Iowa is such a great place to live." Newsweek's Jamie Reno spoke with five survivors. Excerpts:
MARK EGLY--DES MOINESThe levee in North Des Moines that burst early Saturday morning is within eyeshot of the Des Moines Driving Range owned by Mark Egly, 52, a golf professional who purchased the facility six years ago. He says that when he bought the property, he was told that it would never flood the way it did back in 1993, when Iowa was hit by the most devastating flood of modern times --until this one.
"I was told by every agency you can think of that it wouldn't flood here again because of the levees, the new improvements at Saylorville Dam," Egly tells Newsweek. "The city of Des Moines put a pumping station next to me to supply Ankeny and Saylorville with water. They said I was in great shape; that this place would never flood. The building next to me is the Des Moines Waterworks. Their management, and Polk County Supervisors, all said it would never flood here again. The sad thing is they started developing in this area, within 600 yards of my place. I just saw a real estate sign halfway underwater. Why develop there? It's horrible to think that developers will continue to develop in harm's way. For the last five days, roads have been closed in and out of this area, and they will be closed another five days, I'm sure. The media can't even get in here, neither can the police. But I can because of my Hummer. Some of those people will not be able to send pics to FEMA, but I've been taking pictures of the entire area, I'm sort of the historian here.
"We were among the very first businesses to get hit. We first got hit at 8:30 on Tuesday, I was teaching golf classes when the sheriff's dept. person said that at 10:00 they will be letting water out of the dam and that I had to evacuate now. I was able in an hour to get a lot of stuff off the ground at my business, and get my employees out for their safety. We were building a new green, it's destroyed now. We moved a John Deere, but the other John Deere and other equipment are now floating around at the end of the range. I don't know yet if they are destroyed."
"I was able to drive on roads no one else could drive in. On Thursday, I went through the deep water and back into my driving range, there was water inside the building. I was able to sandbag around the building; having the Hummer, I could go in backwards so when it came time to leave, I could plow out. When that did happen, I had water coming over the Hummer's hood. I had to take a chance. But I was careful; it was an educated risk. I have a nice home and do well, but if I didn't save my business, financially it would have been devastating beyond all belief. I had another person in another truck watching me. Our parking lot was the deepest part -- I'm 6' 3" and the water was up to my waist -- that's when I decided to get Hummer back up to building. I did it five times with five loads of sand. I refused to let anyone else do that sandbagging, though, for safety reasons.
"I live two miles north of the driving range, in Ankeny, and we're safe and sound up here. My driving range is still underwater, Only thing I know for sure is that I have five target greens and two putting greens, they are built up, the tips of the greens are still above water for now. I still see some of the equipment sitting on green, that green is ruined, but the green saved my equipment.
"This state, well, it's been devastated. It's a disaster, with tornadoes and floods at the same time. It's like Armageddon, but Iowa FEMA is doing a good job here and our governor and the National Guard are saving lives. This is not a Katrina situation by any means. There is massive volunteerism going on, the friendliness of the people in this state, the way they will give anything, it makes you realize that we are the lucky ones. Why would a golf pro with high credentials stick around in a place where I can only really work for 7-8 months a year? Because I'm a single dad raising three kids here now, and there's not a better place in the country to raise a family. And this is a perfect example of why Iowa is such a great place to live. Disasters can and do happen anywhere. We've had snow or rain straight for almost six months. We've not had a break. This disaster is not the last week, it's been building up the whole year.
"As bad off as we are right now, and even though my business is underwater, I am the lucky one here. We are devastated, and a lot of people lost businesses and homes, but in Iowa there is a place to stay, people are doing things to make lives improve immediately. "It may look like Armageddon in Iowa right now, but you just can't believe what our Governor Culver, his staff, the National Guard (A couple young guards even stopped by to see that I was ok, many just getting back from overseas), area Mayors, Army Corp of Engineers are all doing. If Louisiana was run by Iowa people and volunteers it would have been a much more positive outcome."
SUSAN DAVISSON--IOWA CITY Susan Davisson, who lives with her husband right on the Iowa River in Iowa City, was evacuated; their home suffered severe damage and may not be livable. "We have every intention of moving back even if we have to rebuild," she says. "We had a creeping evacuation over the last week and consider ourselves very lucky to have been able to get our things out. We started by just moving a few things up stairs then decided to get some pictures out of the house then moved everything upstairs then moved everything for the most part out. Then the boys took our delivery van and helped move all the animals out of the shelter on Thursday and Friday to the fair grounds. Friday afternoon we helped sandbag at a friend's business until one of the boys hurt his back.
"At this point we are at a loss as to what is going to happen to us. My husband and I are in our mid 50's, had five years to go on our mortgage and started a new business in February with our sons; [we were] hoping to work hard and be able to wind down by our 60's and having more free time. Fortunately we have flood insurance that will help. We are working harder now to maintain life than we ever have in 30-plus years of marriage. We constantly have to tell ourselves how lucky we are and remind ourselves how much worse it could be.
"We are currently staying with family and friends, considering volunteering at the fairgrounds at night to help the animal shelter and have a place to sleep. My closet is in my car so I can stay anywhere! Another issue is our three dogs and a cat named Val. They are not happy. Poor kids."
TAYLOR BROWN--IOWA CITYIn Iowa City, home of the University of Iowa, hundreds of homes and other structures have been damaged by flood waters from the Iowa River. The university has felt the brunt of the flood waters because so much of the university campus is along the riverfront. Taylor Brown, a senior at the University of Iowa, spent most of Saturday sandbagging the library and other buildings on campus. "A few of my friends and I went out Saturday to help sandbag the campus. The number of people that came out was really impressive, although it seemed difficult to effectively use all the manpower, we just kinda jumped into line and passed sandbags down in front of the library, which is right across the street from my apartment. The Army corps of engineers had us move because the levee was close to breaching and they didn't want to put any volunteers at risk. As far as it looks right now, my apartment should be okay but the whole city is pretty well covered in sandbags so who knows how this will end up. My friends in Cedar Rapids have a real difficult time getting from there to Iowa City, and getting around the city is tough with most of the bridges closed. Driving back to Des Moines, farms look like lakes and it feels like Iowa is a wetland."
BOB SAAR--BURLINGTON"Unfortunately the waters are still rising," says Bob Saar, a writer and musician in Burlington, which is in the southeast corner of Iowa on the Mississippi River. "It's just starting here. I spent all day Saturday sandbagging with a lot of other people. And it isn't even close to what Cedar Rapids and Cedar Falls are going through. We'll get all their flood crest sometime tomorrow. The levees north of us started breaching last night. I have some blisters from sandbagging. But I do not have the wear that many others have after several days of struggling to keep the river out of their businesses and homes."
PATTI IRELAND--HOME EVACUEE (Ireland, 56, lives on a peninsula in Lake MacBride State Park, between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City.)
"On Thursday, when the reports came through that the levels had been underestimated, I left work at 11:30 AM to go try to move some furniture from the first floor to the second floor of my house. My friend Sara came to help me, and while we were moving furniture, the sheriff showed up to discuss a "voluntary evacuation". He said they expected the road to be flooded sometime in the next 3 days, and that once it did, we wouldn't have access to any emergency services for a while.
"I hadn't thought about leaving yet, just wanted to make sure some of my good furniture was protected in the event that the water did come high enough to reach the house. At that point, the water had risen over a foot on my dock in the space of an hour, and I decided it might be wise to leave that night, thinking we'd only be out for a few days. Sara and I continued to move furniture, and I was packing a bag with a few clothes when a friend who works for the Corps of Engineers stopped by to advise the road would probably be flooded by morning, and that I should think about leaving soon. At that time, we didn't think it would be for long, and determined the water was unlikely to reach the second or third floor, so thought it would be OK to leave the cats with a lot of food and water, plenty of clean litter, and we took off.
"By that night, the reality of the underestimation for the situation in Cedar Rapids became clear, and the predictions for the reservoir and Iowa City were getting more dire. At 7 AM on Friday I got a call from a neighbor who had not yet left, saying the road was going under, so I went back, and wrestled 5 cats into cages to haul them out as well. I have lived in that house on and off for over 40 years- my son was born there 35 years ago, and I really didn't get hit with the gravity of the situation until I had the cats loaded, grabbed a few extra pairs of jeans, and hit the main breaker to turn the power off. My friend Sara has a house on high ground about 3 miles from my house as the crow flies, but about 15 by road, because so many of the small roads are flooded.
"She has graciously taken me in, as well as my three cats, and I'm safe, well-fed, and dry. I've been going through the gamut of feelings one reads about in these situations, but trying to maintain my sense of humor. I had to turn off the TV as the 'gloom and doom' gets really wearing. I jokingly tell friends who call or email that it is a good thing I am an old hippie - it was practice for being homeless and living out of my car at the age of 56, relying on the kindness of friends.
"I have been driving over to the lake each day to chronicle the rising of the water, and today I snuck through the barriers at the field campus across the lake from my house and hiked in about a mile and a half to the now underwater boat ramp to try to get a few photos with a 300 mm lens and see if the water reached the house yet. I am lucky - it appears that my house may be dry - the water is at the top step to my dock (about 5 or 6 feet above the dock), and one of the railings on the stairway appears to be gone, but the house looks like it is OK. I took photos of as many of the houses as I could see from that point, and it appears a few may have taken on water, but most are high enough to be OK. It is nothing like the devastation in Cedar Rapids or parts of Iowa City. I feel blessed by that!
"We still do not know when we will be able to return, and it is simply a day-to-day experience, I have been inundated from calls and emails from friends all over the country, and offers of help, etc- it's amazing how people do come together in a disaster. I will return to work tomorrow, and knowing that my house is fine, will try to do what I can for those whose houses are not, and may never be. The real issues from this flood have not even begun to come clear --the cleanup is going to be incredible. But, as Iowans always do, we will pull together and come through."

Class of 2008

It finally feels like Spring and students are preparing for Spring Break activities. Graduation will be here before we know it.

The Des Moines Business Record recognized the 2008 Forty Under 40 class. There are 40 more great stories and examples of indivuduals who have chosen to live in Iowa.

I would encourage you to take a few minutes to read each of their stories and the videos!

Happy Friday!

Where are you dancing in Iowa today?

It Started Here in Iowa

"I love Iowa a whole lot!" said Governor Huckabee as he opened his Iowa caucus victory speech last night. The lines to get into caucus locations were literally out the door into the cold winter night. Flooded with celebrity and polical figures speaking on behalf of the candidates, Iowans were eager to have their voice heard.

Most of the news media and campaign staffs left the state in the middle of the night (literally). Those that spent the past two to three months expericing Iowa enjoyed their time here as you can see from this news story from KCCI.

The opportunity to be first in the nation was not taken lightly and living here definitely has its advantages.

On your Mark, Get Set, Go!

Santa has come and gone and now the presidential canididates are in the fast lane here in Iowa. As my nephew (2 years old) said this weekend "Ready, Set, GO!" was his saying as he rode on my shoulders across the house.

This afternoon I had the pleasure of hearing Fred Thompson speak to a group of 150 people in Urbandale. He exudes confidence and experience as a lawyer and senator. His speech focused on leadership and his ability to understand foreign intelligence.

It was great to see the variety of people attending the event over the lunch hour. Junior high students volunteering, college students on winter break, workers on their lunch breaks and retirees. It was quite a diverse crowd who came out to rally around Fred's message of conservatism.

I also hear that Bill Clinton is touring Northwest Iowa in the Spencer/Great Lakes area. Between now and January 3rd is crunch time in Iowa.

I have narrowed my choices on who to caucus for, however there does not seem to be a clear cut favorite. Its been fun to be the center of attention for a few months, but the Des Moines Register and Jason Walsmith of The Nadas put together an interesting video that kind of sums it all up:

I am not sure if the Greater Des Moines Convention and Visitors Bureau would particularly endorse this video and not quite sure the depth of Kyle Munson's notes during the video shoot.

Participation in the process is important and living in Iowa has its advantages of leading the way to selecting the next President of the United States in what most have been saying is the most important election of the last two generations.

Sold!

Two weeks from tonight the Iowa Caucuses will be completed. Many celebrities and business leaders have been circulating the state to garner support for the candidates.

This evening the Greater Des Moines Partnership's Young Professionals Connection along with the Women's Chamber Alliance hosted a "Candidate Conversation" downtown Des Moines with Meg Whitman, President and CEO of Ebay.

I have been impressed by the activity that is occuring on Court Avenue recently. It is difficult to find a parking spot (especially on a Thursday night at 6pm) and the restaurants (Dos Rios, Spaghetti Works and Court Avenue Brewing Company were buzzing). This has been a change in the last few months, from what used to be a ghost town of an area where you could literally play in the streets because everyone escaped downtown after the work day.


Whitman spent the day in Des Moines campaigning for Governor Mitt Romney for President. Fortune ranked her the most powerful woman in business in 2005 and the most powerful woman in American business in 2004; and Business Week has included her on its list of the 25 most powerful business managers annually since 2000.

An "intimate group" of just 17 local young professionals had an opportunity to learn more about Ebay as well as why Whitman believes that Romney is the best choice in "the most meaningful election of our generation". Iowa State MBA students to insurance and healthcare industry workers as well as state agency employees and lobbyists were in attendance.

Topics that were discussed included affordable health care, education, immigration and the efficiency of the federal government.

With over 16,000 employees across the globe, Whitman leads an organization that is just 10 years old. Living in California, Whitman mentioned that this was her first trip to Iowa. Like most first time visitors, she was impressed. Earlier in the day she met with the Technology Association of Iowa and cited some experiences that she said she could take back with her to Ebay.

With a Paypal location in Omaha, Nebraska along with owning Skype there some great things that lie ahead for this company.

This was a great opportunity for a group (small) of young professionals in Iowa to listen to a great international business leader. Next time Meg Whitman returns to Iowa (she said "maybe if Mitt Romney wins the Iowa caucus") I encourage more young professionals to participate in learning from leaders such as Whitman. These opportunities are priceless and taking advantage of these conversations is what makes us all stronger.

Shhh...Don't Tell Anyone!

Darn it! Our cover is blown. The recent article on Des Moines in the New York Times tells the world how cool it is to live here.

As Iowans we don't do a good job of telling our story. Then, we we do have a story to tell, we are often too modest to tell someone.


Click here for the full story.

Photo Credit: Eric Thayer for The New York Times