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.
Exclusively on Patch: Tiny dancers; a banana a day; coming out on the other side of grief; is 50-year educator really retiring this time?
At a time when even mortgage companies prompt tips, there’s a new wrinkle: self-serve checkouts that prompt a fat gratuity for your trouble.
Loud music, trashy yards and gawking neighbors are annoying, but what do you do when a dog lifts its leg and mock pees on your inside pup?
![The Definitive List Of Traits Of Annoying Neighbors [Block Talk]](https://patch.com/img/cdn20/getty/790386/20230518/070132/styles/patch_image/public/gettyimages-889507050___18185727669.jpg)
The effects of an El Niño are usually felt most in winter months, but some typically hot areas of the country could see cool temperatures.
While the largest U.S. cities mostly increased in population, only about half of mid-sized metros saw growth. Small towns saw uneven growth.
The cost of a view ranges from $1.5 million or more in Rhode Island and New York City to about $4 million in Washington and Washington, D.C.
Cities with vigorous and growing high-tech sectors topped the list — but how will layoffs affect future Milken Institute rankings?
The Centers for Disease Control issued the mpox health alert as health officials in Chicago investigate a cluster of a dozen cases.
Teachers make school cool; “ribbeting” story of a frog with celebrity; a cop who ducked in to save the day; shattered glass near dispensary.
Do your neighbors keep you awake, start power tools at dawn’s break or lack modesty? What annoyances get in the way of your quality of life?
![Annoying Neighbors: What Bugs You, And What Do You Do? [Block Talk]](https://patch.com/img/cdn20/getty/790386/20230512/023440/styles/patch_image/public/gettyimages-185283127___12143119212.jpg)
No Bully hosts a free seminar to help educators understand the unique differences between face-to-face bullying and cyberbullying.
Blood donor eligibility will be based on a risk assessment under rules replacing a “discriminatory” prohibition on donations by LGBTQ+ men.
Sports betting is now legal in 37 states and the District of Columbia, and more states are expected to join them. But there are problems.
Patch readers say great teachers help students think critically, explore their passions and develop the mental toughness to meet challenges.
The best chances to see the northern lights displays are in far northern regions of the country, but they could dip farther south.
Even with the log construction and rustic decor, you’d be way off base to refer to these upscale homes as “cabins.”
Patch and T-Mobile are partnering to shine a light on awesome moms in the Brick area. Meet Tiffany Reynolds!
Patch and T-Mobile are partnering to shine a light on awesome moms in the Brick area. Meet Lynne Cosgrove!
Patch and T-Mobile are partnering to shine a light on awesome moms in the Berkeley area. Stephanie Reiser left a big impression.
Patch and T-Mobile are partnering to shine a light on awesome moms in the Berkeley area. Meet Mil Penn!
