Welcome back, Monday.

🌤️ Weather: Mostly sunny, with a high of 69 and a low of 45.

🎂 Happy birthday to our member Mary Gillaspey!

Today’s newsletter is 673 words — a 2.5-minute read.

Iowa has one of the nation's lowest participation rates for food assistance among eligible seniors, per Nicole Grundmeier from Midwest Newsroom.

Why it matters: Older Iowans living on fixed incomes are especially vulnerable to rising food costs, and recent federal changes to SNAP could make accessing assistance even more challenging.

By the numbers: Only 19% of eligible Iowans ages 65+ participated in SNAP in 2023, the third-lowest rate in the country, according to the National Council on Aging.

• Meanwhile, food prices rose another 3% nationally between June 2025 and June 2026, following a nearly 10% spike in 2022, per Midwest Newsroom.

Zoom in: In Storm Lake, 65-year-old Toni Keller receives $304 a month in Social Security benefits after spending much of her adult life caring for a sick child.

• A breast cancer survivor, Keller tries to maintain a healthy diet, but fresh fruits and vegetables are expensive.
• She relies on SNAP, Double Up Food Bucks and a monthly food pantry at her senior housing complex to make ends meet.

Plus: Linda Rufus, 67, who lives in the same complex, said she's swapped expensive cuts of meat for ground turkey and cheaper packaged meals.

• "I'm thinking about how I'm gonna rob Peter to pay Paul because food prices are extremely high," Rufus told Midwest Newsroom.

What they're saying: Seniors may feel a stigma around public assistance that deters them from applying for SNAP, per the Des Moines Register.

• The application process can also be confusing, especially for those who are less technologically savvy, and Iowa requires periodic eligibility verification.

The big picture: Advocates worry that changes to federal SNAP eligibility, including expanded work requirements for older adults, could worsen food insecurity.

• Older Americans often receive less attention in conversations about hunger than children and families, Jessica Johnston of the National Council on Aging told Midwest Newsroom.

What we're watching: New SNAP rules this month expanded work requirements to adults through age 64, requiring 80 hours of qualifying activity monthly unless exempt.

Go deeper: High food costs exacerbating hunger for elderly Americans (Midwest Newsroom)

Older adults are increasingly choosing to share their homes with housemates.

Why it matters: As rents climb and homeowners stay put, seniors are trading space for affordability, companionship and safety.

The big picture: Across the country, older adults are turning spare bedrooms into lifelines, for themselves and for renters priced out of the market, the New York Times reports — think: real-life "Golden Girls."

• Around 55 home-share groups now play roommate matchmaker nationwide, vetting applicants and brokering the delicate stuff: pets, parking, chores and thermostat preferences.
• Several states are weighing "Golden Girls" bills to loosen rules on unrelated adults living together.

The intrigue: Iowa was the first state in the country to pass a "Golden Girls" bill all the way back in 2017.

• Former Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad signed a bill prohibiting cities from setting rental restrictions based on familial relationships.

Walter Lauridsen, a Des Moines-based real estate investor and philanthropist died last week after he was hit by a vehicle in southern Iowa. Lauridsen was also Rob Sand's brother-in-law. (KCCI)

💵 Democratic U.S. House candidates outraised their Republican opponents in Iowa's 1st, 2nd and 3rd congressional districts during the latest fundraising quarter. (Des Moines Register)

📊 A new analysis looks at how President Trump's slipping approval ratings could complicate 2026 campaigns for Iowa Republicans, including U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson. (Axios)

📶 Des Moines officials said vandalism caused Metronet internet and phone outages. (WHO-13)

Spirit Halloween is haunting the shelves of former big-box stores again this fall as it opens 1,500 locations nationwide, including several in the Des Moines area.

Zoom in: Here in Des Moines, the Halloween retailer has taken over the former Big Lots near Merle Hay Mall and Buy Buy Baby in West Des Moines.

• Really puts a new spin on "bye-bye, baby," huh?

Zoom out

🚲 More e-bike rules: Des Moines is considering a bike ordinance this morning during its 7:30am City Council workshop.

This newsletter was edited by Chloe Gonzales.