IOWA

Keeping it local and fresh is the goal for Roots in Bloom, a new florist in Marion. Owner Cassie Hammarmeister sources flowers locally and domestically only. Corridor Business Journal

Debra Backes has been presented the Daisy Award, a nationally renowned recognition program for nursing professionals. Backes has worked at UnityPoint Health-Allen Hospital for more than 38 years. Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier

Heidi McKay Casto balances two important careers: motherhood and art. This serious Iowa City ceramic artist and serious mother — like many of her peers — finds the balancing to be harder than it looks when you work from a home studio. And yet, Casto is convinced having kids around can enrich a professional artist’s home studio life by offering inspiration and a much-needed connection to the real world. Iowa City Press-Citizen 

Tracy Johnson has opened Walls of Books, 613 N. Ankeny Blvd. in Ankeny. The 2,200-square-foot shop sells used books of all genres for all ages, Johnson said. Des Moines Register 

When the Yellow Cup Cafe celebrated its soft opening, it was a dream come true for Shannon Hayden. “This has been my dream for about 12 years,” she said, standing in her new cafe in Story City, which still bustled with customers close to closing time. Ames Tribune

NATIONAL

New economic research suggests that the attitudes toward a woman when she is born have a lasting impact on how much she works, and earns, as an adult. New York Times 

Less than 7 percent of restaurants in the United States are led by female chefs. This statistic from a 2014 Bloomberg study came as a huge surprise to Joanna James, a journalist-turned-filmmaker who is also the daughter of a female restaurateur. NPR

Washington, D.C., is one of the best places for women-owned businesses, according to a report from Beacon, and is also one of the best for minority-owned companies. AdWeek

Little boys are a ball of energy, and little girls are early talkers. Parents often describe the different sexes this way, but now new research suggests that fathers may be encouraging these generalizations. Childtrends.org 

Native American women suffer sexual violence and are killed at some of the highest rates in the United States. And while no one is sure exactly how many Native American women and girls have gone missing or been killed, Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.) says it’s an epidemic. Heitkamp, along with other lawmakers, is bringing national attention to it with a new bill. AP News