04
May
2004
• The Quad Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau (QCCVB) is now offering bicycle rentals from its offices in downtown Davenport (102 South Harrison Street) and downtown Moline (2021 River Drive). The hours for rentals from both offices are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. From the first Saturday in June to the end of September, the Moline office will also be open for rentals on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Bikes can be rented by the hour or by the day. Different sizes and kids' bikes are available, and each rental comes with a helmet. Rentals will be available until November 1. The QCCVB is partnering with On Two Wheels in Bettendorf for the bike-rental program. For information on bicycle rentals, trails, and the Quad Cities area, contact the Quad Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau at (563)322-3911 or visit (http://www.visitquadcities.com).
• Friendly House, at 1221 Myrtle Street in Davenport, offers affordable summer child care for children who have completed kindergarten through 5th grade. Day care is held from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. June 3 through August 27. Children participate in activities such as gardening, arts and crafts, games, computers, ceramics, swimming, and educational field trips. Breakfast and lunch are provided for a portion of the program, and snacks are provided throughout. Preference is given to parents who are working or going to school. Fees are on a sliding scale based on family size and annual income. For more information or for an application, call Heather at (563)323-1821.
• Iowa-based filmmakers Scott Beck and Bryan Woods have placed in the Project Greenlight Top 50 Directors Competition, sponsored by Bravo Television and Miramax Pictures. The contest was created three years ago by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. For more information, visit (http://www.projectgreenlight.com). Beck and Woods wrote, directed, and shot a three-minute scene entitled "Amber" for the first round, and were selected out of 1,700 submissions to continue in the contest. Then, they created a three-minute biography video, which placed in the top 50. The top 10 directors will be named on May 12. Beck is currently a freshman at the University of Iowa, majoring in cinema, while Woods is a student at Scott Community College in Bettendorf. Both live in Bettendorf. To date, they have written, directed, and produced 11 short films and two feature-length movies. Their last three productions - "Yearbook," "Prism," and "Remembering November" - have won five awards at national film festivals.
• Local martial-arts instructor John Morrow has unofficially broken the world record for the number of pushups done in 60 seconds. Morrow, who runs Morrow's Academy of Martial Arts in Moline, did 139 pushups at an open house Saturday. The previous record was 133. Videotapes of the feat are being sent to representatives of the Guinness Book of World Records for verification.
• The River Vision Steering Committee is comprised of the cities of Rock Island and Davenport, DavenportOne, Renaissance Rock Island, River Action, and the Riverboat Development Authority. Together they are developing a plan to enhance the Mississippi as an attraction for residents and visitors. The hope is to develop a riverfront that integrates recreation and leisure activities as well as commercial use with the natural strengths that come with a river. A convenient place for residents of the Quad Cities to express their ideas and opinions to the task force is located at (http://www.rivervision.org). Interested parties can also comment at a public meeting with Hargreaves Associates on May 12 at 7 p.m. at the Mississippi Room in the River Center in Davenport.
• A law signed by Governor Vilsack and going into effect July 1 requires Iowa children through age five to be secured in a safety seat or booster seat. Those who are younger than one and weigh less than 20 pounds must be secured in a rear-facing seat. Children between the ages of six and 10 will be required to at least wear seat belts. Under current law, children through age two must use safety seats, and children six or older can ride unrestrained in the back seat. The law marks the first time in 18 years that the state has made a significant change to its child-restraint regulations. Crashes are the leading cause of injuries and deaths among children. Experts say safety seats greatly reduce the risk. One study showed that securing children through age seven in a booster seat cut the risk of injury by 59 percent. Police won't start writing tickets right away for violations of the new safety-seat requirements, which apply to about 400,000 Iowa children younger than 11. Warnings will be given instead over an 18-month-period starting July 1. The penalty for violating the law will be a $25 fine, effective January 1, 2006.
• The Habitat for Humanity-Quad Cities ReStore has been honored by the Putnam Museum & IMAX Theatre's Environmental Stewardship Award for 2004. This award recognizes an individual, organization, or business that serves as a model initiative taken to protect and preserve the environment in the Quad Cities region. The Putnam Environmental Stewardship Award was established in April of 1999 and reflects the museum's role as a center for science education. Habitat for Humanity ReStore is a not-for-profit re-sale business operated by Habitat for Humanity-Quad Cities. Open to the public Wednesday through Saturday, ReStore diverts useable building products from the waste stream. Operated largely by volunteers, ReStore diverted more than 192 tons of building materials from the landfill in its first year of operation. The business has recycled more than 15,000 pounds of cardboard, paper, metals, and wood, while also serving as a collection site for used printer cartridges and cell phones. Habitat ReStore has supported housing needs in the community by supplying materials and $50,000 in funds to Habitat for Humanity. Donations of materials are accepted at 3629 Mississippi Avenue in Davenport during store hours: Wednesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• The outstanding public debt of the United States as of April 30 was nearly $7.2 trillion. With a population of roughly 294 million, that means each citizen's share of the debt was $24,431.04. The national debt has continued to increase an average of $1.87 billion per day since September 30, 2003. You can see up-to-date numbers at (http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/).
• Friendly House, at 1221 Myrtle Street in Davenport, offers affordable summer child care for children who have completed kindergarten through 5th grade. Day care is held from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. June 3 through August 27. Children participate in activities such as gardening, arts and crafts, games, computers, ceramics, swimming, and educational field trips. Breakfast and lunch are provided for a portion of the program, and snacks are provided throughout. Preference is given to parents who are working or going to school. Fees are on a sliding scale based on family size and annual income. For more information or for an application, call Heather at (563)323-1821.
• Iowa-based filmmakers Scott Beck and Bryan Woods have placed in the Project Greenlight Top 50 Directors Competition, sponsored by Bravo Television and Miramax Pictures. The contest was created three years ago by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. For more information, visit (http://www.projectgreenlight.com). Beck and Woods wrote, directed, and shot a three-minute scene entitled "Amber" for the first round, and were selected out of 1,700 submissions to continue in the contest. Then, they created a three-minute biography video, which placed in the top 50. The top 10 directors will be named on May 12. Beck is currently a freshman at the University of Iowa, majoring in cinema, while Woods is a student at Scott Community College in Bettendorf. Both live in Bettendorf. To date, they have written, directed, and produced 11 short films and two feature-length movies. Their last three productions - "Yearbook," "Prism," and "Remembering November" - have won five awards at national film festivals.
• Local martial-arts instructor John Morrow has unofficially broken the world record for the number of pushups done in 60 seconds. Morrow, who runs Morrow's Academy of Martial Arts in Moline, did 139 pushups at an open house Saturday. The previous record was 133. Videotapes of the feat are being sent to representatives of the Guinness Book of World Records for verification.
• The River Vision Steering Committee is comprised of the cities of Rock Island and Davenport, DavenportOne, Renaissance Rock Island, River Action, and the Riverboat Development Authority. Together they are developing a plan to enhance the Mississippi as an attraction for residents and visitors. The hope is to develop a riverfront that integrates recreation and leisure activities as well as commercial use with the natural strengths that come with a river. A convenient place for residents of the Quad Cities to express their ideas and opinions to the task force is located at (http://www.rivervision.org). Interested parties can also comment at a public meeting with Hargreaves Associates on May 12 at 7 p.m. at the Mississippi Room in the River Center in Davenport.
• A law signed by Governor Vilsack and going into effect July 1 requires Iowa children through age five to be secured in a safety seat or booster seat. Those who are younger than one and weigh less than 20 pounds must be secured in a rear-facing seat. Children between the ages of six and 10 will be required to at least wear seat belts. Under current law, children through age two must use safety seats, and children six or older can ride unrestrained in the back seat. The law marks the first time in 18 years that the state has made a significant change to its child-restraint regulations. Crashes are the leading cause of injuries and deaths among children. Experts say safety seats greatly reduce the risk. One study showed that securing children through age seven in a booster seat cut the risk of injury by 59 percent. Police won't start writing tickets right away for violations of the new safety-seat requirements, which apply to about 400,000 Iowa children younger than 11. Warnings will be given instead over an 18-month-period starting July 1. The penalty for violating the law will be a $25 fine, effective January 1, 2006.
• The Habitat for Humanity-Quad Cities ReStore has been honored by the Putnam Museum & IMAX Theatre's Environmental Stewardship Award for 2004. This award recognizes an individual, organization, or business that serves as a model initiative taken to protect and preserve the environment in the Quad Cities region. The Putnam Environmental Stewardship Award was established in April of 1999 and reflects the museum's role as a center for science education. Habitat for Humanity ReStore is a not-for-profit re-sale business operated by Habitat for Humanity-Quad Cities. Open to the public Wednesday through Saturday, ReStore diverts useable building products from the waste stream. Operated largely by volunteers, ReStore diverted more than 192 tons of building materials from the landfill in its first year of operation. The business has recycled more than 15,000 pounds of cardboard, paper, metals, and wood, while also serving as a collection site for used printer cartridges and cell phones. Habitat ReStore has supported housing needs in the community by supplying materials and $50,000 in funds to Habitat for Humanity. Donations of materials are accepted at 3629 Mississippi Avenue in Davenport during store hours: Wednesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• The outstanding public debt of the United States as of April 30 was nearly $7.2 trillion. With a population of roughly 294 million, that means each citizen's share of the debt was $24,431.04. The national debt has continued to increase an average of $1.87 billion per day since September 30, 2003. You can see up-to-date numbers at (http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/).
