WATERLOO, Iowa (KCRG) – A group of National Guard Soldiers are headed to southeast Europe. Iowa National Guard Soldiers of Detachment 1, Company C (Medevac) deployed Friday morning out of Waterloo on a NATO peacekeeping mission. But before they took off, their loved ones got to be a part of a special send off event. Scott Fulk, of Atlantic, was one of many in attendance to see off his son. He told KCRG-TV knew this day was coming for a while, but he still expressed a mix of emotions just hours before his son was deployed. He said among pride, reassurance, and sadness, he and his family also feel appreciated.

“We have a lot of support from our home town also. We live in Atlantic, we live in a small town so a lot of people are aware of Jared leaving, but the support’s incredible and there’s a lot of people behind him,” said Fulk. During the sendoff ceremony in Waterloo, Army Chief Warrant Officer (CW) 2 Jared Fulk expressed similar emotions. “A lot of emotions just about being a part from my family and my wife. It’s nice to feel supported today,” said CW2 Fulk.

While in Kosovo, CW2 Fulk will pilot one of the helicopters used for medevac. Being a part of Iowa National Guard Soldiers of Detachment 1, Company C (Medevac) means providing constant support, including air transportation to the hospital. “They will provide live medevac support and coverage for the Kosovo forces while in Kosovo, and for the NATO sources that are stationed there,” said Commander Grant Grosskruger.

Leaders say events like this are important to not only the family members and loved ones of those who are being deployed, but to the soldiers themselves. “It shows solidarity between the organization and the community and the state as a whole. It’s an opportunity for everybody to come together, show their support for what these folks and these soldiers are about to go and do,” said Kruger. According to NATO, their international peace keeping mission is one that’s focused on local and regional stability within the country and Eastern Europe.

(Radio Iowa) – If you made a New Year’s resolution last (Sunday) night, you may need to genuinely focus on making the change in order to keep the pledge. Alison Phillips, a psychology professor at Iowa State University, says our approach to making resolutions usually sets us up for failure. “I’ve seen two different statistics, one is that 80% of resolutions fail by the second week in February,” Phillips says. “The other is a bit less depressing and that’s 40% of us are still hanging on after four months. Either way, long-term efforts at changing our behavior generally fail.” Phillips, who studies behavior change and habit formation, says to focus on how to make changes that will lead to creating a better version of yourself.

“This is important because behaviors that do stick around are those that become part of our self-identity, it’s how we see ourselves,” Phillips says. “They’re usually things that we’re proud of, that we’re good at, and they make us feel like we’re competent at something.” Zero in on things you can become good at and that you see yourself doing and take pride in, she says, as those are the kinds of things people won’t give up on.

“Habits form as you repeat them in a stable context,” Phillips says. “Pick a time that’s pretty regular that you could do it and that will help you form a habit more quickly. Also, pick something that you relatively enjoy. You might not like exercise at all but pick something that you hate the least and that you would be proud of yourself to do.” If better physical fitness is your target, Phillips says it’s important to aim for specific goals that focus on behavior and not on certain outcomes, like a number on the scale.

“If you prefer bicycling to running, by all means, go for the bike,” Phillips says, “even if it’s in the gym and the stationary bike isn’t awesome, maybe try a spin class until the weather is nicer.” Everyone fails, she says, so plan ahead and rehearse how you will cope when you run into barriers. Also, social support is important, so in addition to having a workout buddy, make sure your family is on board, too, and will encourage you as you create new, positive habits.

(Radio Iowa) – The historic Hahn Bakery in Middle Amana closed its doors for good Sunday after more than 150 years of baking breads and coffee cakes. Doris Hahn and her husband Jack took over the bakery from Jack’s parents, Carl and Emilie Hahn, in 1968, and ran it with their friends and family. Doris told K-C-R-G T-V there was a bit of a learning curve at first. “It was hard for me to learn how to make bread and coffee cakes, because I never did that before. And then Jack said to me, you’re gonna learn fast. And I did,” she says. They baked together for around 30 years, until Jack died, and Doris learned some more, and kept the baking going for more than 25 years.

“I just felt that was my job, was to take care of my customers,” Hahn says. She baking was something she really enjoyed. “I loved every day that I baked,” she says. Hahn says retirement will include seeing more of her family. The heart of the Hahn Bakery is its hearth oven- a ten feet by ten feet structure that can bake up to 100 loaves of bread at a time. Doris’ grandson, Grant Rozeboom, tells K-C-R-G T-V the customers are going to miss the bakery and the conversations they had there as his grandparents knew the vast majority of people that were coming in and out of the bakery.

“Both people who would come in from the community just to say hi, but people through the sales room. Tourists, especially that they would see every year,” he says. Rozeboom says among the millions of cinnamon rolls, loaves of bread and coffee cakes, the Hahn family has made millions of memories.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports one recent arrest and two citations were issued. On Sunday at around 12:18-a.m., Kari Lynn Wilkinson, of Creston, was cited into court for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia (A simple misdemeanor). Separately, Joshua Robin Lantham, of Shenandoah, was also cited into court at around 6:36-p.m., also for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.

Friday night, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested 29-year-old Arrington L. Blackwell, of Omaha, for Domestic Assault/2nd Offense. Blackwell was being held without bond in the Montgomery County Jail.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak report a traffic stop at around 11:15-p.m. Sunday, resulted in the arrest of 42-year-old Ashley Marie Hall, of Red Oak. Hall was arrested for Driving Under Suspension, with bond at the Montgomery County Jail set at $491.25.

Republican candidate Ron DeSantis is asking his supporters to ignore what he refers to as a “media narrative” that suggests Donald Trump will easily win the Republican Party’s 2024 presidential nomination.

Polls suggest DeSantis and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley are battling for second place in the Iowa Caucuses. In early December, DeSantis predicted he would win the contest. Last (Sunday) night, DeSantis talked about a political process he called messy.

Several hundred people who back DeSantis gathered in a West Des Moines hotel ballroom for cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and an 11 minute speech from the candidate on New Year’s Eve.

DeSantis said…

DeSantis was the only G-O-P candidate who campaigned in Iowa Sunday.

A single-vehicle accident Sunday afternoon in south central Iowa claimed the life of a woman from Davis City. The Iowa State Patrol reports the crash happened at around 4:18-p.m. on southbound Highway 69, north of 120th Street, in Decatur County. Authorities say a 2006 Honda Accord driven by 45-year-old Amanda Beth Zelasko, for reasons unknown, left the road to the left and entered the east ditch, where it struck a tree.

Authorities say Zelasko, who was wearing a seatbelt, died from her injuries at the Decatur County Hospital.