WJI Blog 2022, May 31 PM – Experiencing the “Iowa nice”

This past weekend, a woman asked me during an interview if I knew what the phrase “Iowa nice” meant. Prior to this afternoon, I had no clue.

As my broadcast video team and I were tasked with finding sources for our “Cows with GPS” story, we immediately thought of calling the local farms. But our high hopes were soon met with voicemails and disconnected phone lines. To which we got in the car and decided to drive.

Stumbling upon a farm, I went up to the house and knocked on the door. About 30 seconds later, a man opened the door looking slightly confused. I guess I would be too if two girls wearing business casual clothes should up to my door randomly on a Tuesday afternoon.

However, it didn’t take long for him to be the “Iowa nice” that people talk about. We explained how we wanted to create a stand-up for our TV broadcast piece in front of the calves that he had, and with little convincing, he said yes.

But it didn’t stop there. The man invited us into his home, introduced us to his daughter, offered us coffee with his homemade goatmilk, and even told us part of his life story.

I concluded this act of kindness he showed us even though we were two complete strangers, was the “Iowa nice.” It was refreshing to say the least and left me with a smile on my face ­— thinking there’s more hospitable people in this world than we think.

After returning to Dordt and eating dinner, Mr. Pitts surprised us with a movie night at the theater, watching “Top Gun Maverick.” Let’s just say, I’m not a fan of action movies — but I promise this was a good one.

I can’t wait to see what surprises the rest of the week brings.

- Lauren Shank