Submitted by: Carl Voss, Des Moines City Council; Emily Webb, Broadlawns board of trustees; Eric Burmeister, executive director, Polk County Housing Trust Fund; Leah Rudolphi, Des Moines community volunteer; Matt Unger, CEO, DMARC; Tim Lane, Iowa Department of Public Health, retired; Tyler Weig, Des Moines community volunteer 

On Dec. 31, the Business Record published the guest opinion “It is truly time to have perspective” by Jeff Russell, CEO of Delta Dental of Iowa.

Within Russell’s editorial there was a link to a video that compared 2020 to life in the last century. It references “the hardship of four wars with millions killed, the loss of life from the flu pandemic, smallpox and polio, and the suffering of the Great Depression,” and states, “we don’t have much to complain about today when our biggest challenge in this pandemic is watching Netflix from our couch and ordering from Amazon Prime.” 

The author comments that it is a good message and we need to be grateful, even during the pandemic, for the slew of advances humanity has experienced in the last 100 years.

As famous radio broadcaster Paul Harvey used to say, we’d like to share “the rest of the story.”

1. PUBLIC HEALTH IMPACT
More than 425,000 Americans have died. Locally, COVID-19 has claimed more than 4,490 Iowans’ lives. That is five times the 869 lost in the Vietnam War. And more than the 3,576 Iowans who died in World War I.  

Intensive care units are bursting at the seams all across America. Some hospitals nationally are rationing care due to overcrowding. Providers and public health professionals are tired and overworked. The cost of this stressful time will not end with the defeat of the pandemic. There will be ongoing needs for those who have recovered and mental health repercussions for millions of people impacted by this crisis. Our public health and care providers may need post-traumatic support. We will need to care for those who cared for us!

2. JOBS
Thousands of Central Iowans have lost jobs or lost wages due to reduction of hours or furloughs – with some jobs gone forever following business closures. Many have now become child care providers in addition to their day jobs. According to Greg Edwards, president and CEO of Catch Des Moines, an estimated 50% of hospitality workers in Des Moines are not currently working.

3. FOOD INSECURITY
Fifty-eight thousand unique individuals visited the DMARC food pantry network (14 pantries and 30 mobile pantry sites) in 2020. One in four were first-time users. For families who previously relied on school nutrition programs and have children learning remotely, they now have additional meals to provide.

4. LOCAL HOUSING
Eviction filings for rental delinquencies in Polk County have exploded. Since September, the Polk County Housing Trust Fund and Iowa Legal Aid have prevented more than 1,600 individuals (including more than 700 children) from losing their homes by standing with them in eviction court and paying over $1.25 million in rent owed. High housing costs, relative to income, have increased the number of families who have to navigate the rocky waters of obtaining housing assistance. 

Let’s create a community where we can be optimistic AND realistic. Living through this pandemic has been very challenging for so many people in our community. Yes, at any time in history we can point to a date a hundred years prior and list advances. Access to technology, social resources and wealth have shielded some from the very real impacts of this crisis.

But many aren’t so lucky.