How to contact me: beth.dalbey@patch.com
Beth Dalbey, a longtime award-winning community journalist, is Patch’s national editor. She has been with Patch since 2011 when she launched sites in Iowa and provided national Iowa Caucus and swing-state general election coverage. She worked as a regional manager before moving to the national desk in 2017. Throughout her time at Patch, she has reported and written about local topics of national interest and is currently focusing on exclusive Patch content, including Block Talk, an only-on-Patch neighborhood etiquette column for which readers supply advice.
Dalbey and the newspapers she has edited have earned numerous awards for news, feature and government coverage, editorial and column writing, and overall general excellence from the Iowa Newspaper Association, the National Newspaper Association and the Associated Press Media Editors. In 1992 in Iowa, she led the weekly Dallas County News to win the INA's prestigious Newspaper of the Year award, competing against metro newspapers many times its size. She was the youngest recipient ever of the INA’s Distinguished Service Award in 1994. At Patch, she received the Todd Richissin Award for Excellence in Reporting and Writing for the “Menace of Bullies” project.
In Iowa, Dalbey’s byline has also appeared in the Fairfield Daily Ledger, where she was editor for five years; and in the Des Moines Business Record, Cityview, dsm magazine and other publications under the umbrella of Business Publications Corp., where she was the editorial director for several years. Dalbey also freelanced for the Des Moines Register and other print and digital publications
Dalbey grew up in Missouri and majored in journalism at Northwest Missouri State University. Except for a three-year stint as communications editor for a scientific institute doing ape language research, she has spent her entire career in community journalism. At the former Great Ape Trust of Iowa, she wrote about the world-famous resident bonobos Kanzi and Panbanisha.
In Grand Rapids, tour one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s most elegant Prairie masterpieces. Don’t miss the 42-pound “La Grand Vitesse.”
The daily habit could cost Americans close to $200 more a year as prices for the nation’s favorite beverage continue to rise.
The FDA finds more ground cinnamon products have elevated lead levels; Amazon’s on the hook for its third-party sellers’ hazardous products.
Bullies, conspiracy theories and politicizing everything can suck the fun out of interacting on community social media forums, readers said.
![Community Facebook Page Etiquette: The Good, Bad And Ugly [Block Talk]](https://patch.com/img/cdn20/shutterstock/790386/20240802/014940/styles/patch_image/public/shutterstock-2452654291___02014637882.jpg)
The Minnesota State Fair, or “The Great Get-Together,” and Minnesota’s stunning waterfalls also make for great road trip getaways.
Amazon is legally responsible for about 400,000 hazardous products sold by third parties on its platform, a federal agency has ruled.
Pay attention to text messages while the order is being filled or you may end up with 48 boiled eggs or pool floatie-sized pork roast.
![Let’s Talk Weird Online Grocery Order Substitutions [Patch Survey]](https://patch.com/img/cdn20/shutterstock/790386/20240730/033847/styles/patch_image/public/shutterstock-2003741861___30153751853.jpg)
Centers for Disease Control data shows 188 cases in 27 jurisdictions, with seven states reporting their first measles cases of 2024 in July.
The sky is expected to be alive this week as two meteor showers peak at the same time the northern lights could dip far south.
Earth-directed geomagnetic storms intensify, creating ideal conditions for aurora borealis displays in places that usually don’t see them.
An Amazon delivery contained a dirty diaper; it stinks for the third-party sellers, too. A giant inflatable IUD tours the country.
![Whale Tips Boat; Hot Sand Melts Tourist’s Skin [Weird News & Oddities]](https://patch.com/img/cdn20/shutterstock/790386/20240726/030233/styles/patch_image/public/shutterstock-editorial-1192045a___26150204417.jpg)
Red Lobster, which closed dozens of restaurants and planned to auction off its equipment, is purchased out of bankruptcy by its creditors.
National Sneak Some Zucchini Onto Your Neighbor’s Porch Day is approaching as the summer produce gives and gives and gives.
Your community’s social media page may bring out the best in your neighbors. Or the worst. What’s the best way to keep discussions civil?
![What’s The Etiquette For Community Facebook Pages? [Block Talk Survey]](https://patch.com/img/cdn20/shutterstock/790386/20240725/035118/styles/patch_image/public/shutterstock-2459771611___25154504590.jpg)
Federal regulators step up oversight of Southwest Airlines after a string of safety mishaps, including three planes flying dangerously low.
Also, road-trippers who can’t spend much money can take a 110-mile loop starting and ending in Providence that costs hardly anything.
Probably not, but the jokes are better with the assumption the buckets are an end times survival kit rather than one to ride out a storm.
Just who are these people, readers wondered, and do you really want to know them if they’d keep packages delivered to them by mistake?
![Not Your Package? Will You Keep It Or Be A Decent Human? [Block Talk]](https://patch.com/img/cdn20/shutterstock/790386/20240719/031456/styles/patch_image/public/shutterstock-2304605183___19151130092.jpg)
A new CDC report underscores the complexities of tracking foodborne illnesses such as E. coli, listeria, salmonella and others.
The buck moon this weekend is the last regular full moon before a string of supermoons, incuding August’s true blue moon.
