(Spirit Lake)– Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, Dickinson County will be offering a series of informational programs in coming weeks. Human Sciences and Master Gardner Coordinator Susan Boettcher says one of those is titled “On Their Own and Okay” and is geared toward younger people…
“So we’re going to do activities and conversations on recognizing ways to safely fill their time. So like scheduling, what should be done, what are different family roles. We’ll actually do some role playing as well. Yeah, we’re going to explore some healthy snack options, we’re going to do safety guidelines and what you need to know when home alone, and emergency preparedness and what to do in an emergency. And then we are going to also touch on some internet safety.”
Another, titled “Preserve the Taste of Summer”, is geared toward food preservation…
“We have a one on one class, Food Preservation 101. These are some online programs that are one hour long but they’re going to talk about canning, freezing and drying foods at home safely. So just some basic principles, especially if you’re new to food preservation, so those are, we’ve got several dates available so if you check our website or reach out to us at our office we can get those dates and times to you. There’s quite a few different times available. And then we also have coming up jam making basics and salsa making basics. Those are coming up in April and May and June. So those are for basic water baths canning.”
Boettcher says another is on an extremely important topic: suicide prevention…
“The program is called Question, Persuade, Refer. And really it can be for ag professionals, meaning ag bankers, it could be insurance agents, really it’s anybody that’s working with the public. This gives, they’re free virtual trainings. It’s every Tuesday from 12 to 1 March 2nd through April 27th. So just like you’d take CPR and learn the heimlich maneuver, this gives you tools in how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to question, persuade and refer someone to help. We know there’s a lot of stress related, especially around farming, but really with COVID so many people are stressed. This will let you as a professional if you see someone that is really struggling, what are some of those questions and how can you persuade them and refer them to some help.”
More information on any of the programs is available by contacting the ISU Extension and Outreach Office in Spirit Lake.
