DES MOINES – The state’s first care center for sexual assault survivors is expected to open this fall. KCCI-TV reports the Sexual Assault Forensic Exam Center, or SAFE Center, is expected to open in October. It will be inside Des Moines University’s clinic tower after lawmakers approved $1.5 million to support the effort. The project is still roughly $700,000 short of its final goal.
DES MOINES – A welcome home ceremony will be held next week for 140 soldiers returning back to the United States. The Iowa National Guard reports members of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team and 34th Infantry Division are scheduled to return to Des Moines soon. They have been serving as part of operations in Iraq and Syria. An additional 200 soldiers remain overseas from the Iowa units.
MADISON COUNTY – An Iowa inmate serving life in prison for the death of a Des Moines man died in prison. KCRG-TV reports 47-year-old Gerald Parker of Creston was found guilty of first-degree murder for the incident in 2020 and sentenced in 2021. Parker shot Jonathan Hoffman to death. A cause of death has not been released.
PELLA – Big crowds are expected again in Pella for the 91st annual Tulip Time celebration. The annual tradition features parades, Dutch dancing, traditional Dutch foods, and more. Due to the warm spring, very few flowers remain, but several activities will bring in visitors from across the Midwest.