31
Jan
2006
• Parents of premature and sick babies born at Genesis Medical Center in Davenport will be served by a new partnership between Genesis and the University of Iowa. Board-certified neonatologists from the faculty of the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Iowa Roy J. & Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine will be assigned to Genesis to provide care for babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Genesis Medical Center on East Rusholme Street in Davenport. The physicians will practice at Genesis on a full-time basis and will live in the Quad Cities.
• Project NOW is accepting applications for the 2006 Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) scholarships. Eight scholarship recipients will each be awarded $500 from funds available through the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity (DCEO). The CSBG scholarship is designed to provide financial assistance to low-income and/or disadvantaged persons of high academic attainment or potential. The scholarships provide financial assistance to persons pursuing formal education or occupational training at an accredited Illinois educational institution including short-term training (two years or less) in high-technology or growth occupational skills, or general post-secondary education. To be eligible for the scholarships, applicants must reside in Rock Island, Henry, or Mercer County and meet CSBG income guidelines. Applications can be picked up at 418 19th Street in Rock Island or 711 Fourth Avenue in Moline.
• Black Hawk College, the Eastern Iowa Community College District, St. Ambrose University, and Western Illinois University have formed a consortium for international-education programs. The collaboration between the local area colleges will provide study-abroad opportunities to Guanajuato, Mexico, for students from the Quad Cities colleges. The first trip will be May 20 to June 3 and will cost $2,500. The trip will allow students who don't have the time or money for a semester-long trip to enjoy a study-abroad experience. Twenty students will travel to Guanajuato and study at the University of Guanajuato, earning seven credits toward foreign-language requirements. This trip will serve as a pilot project for the program, which will look into expanding to overseas destinations and semester-long trips over the next five to 10 years. - Jesse Virgil
• The St. Patrick Society, Quad Cities, U.S.A. has announced its annual search for the Irish Mother of the Year. All nominations must be original letters of approximately 150 words. A nominee should be involved in family, church, and community; have a good sense of humor; and demonstrate pride in her Irish ancestry. Nominations must be postmarked no later than March 1. Mail nominations to the St. Patrick Society at P.O. Box 4487, Davenport IA 52808. The winning nominee will participate in a variety of events the weekend of March 17-19. For more information on St. Patrick Society activities, call (563)324-5000 or look at (http://www.stpatsqc.com).
• A coalition of five wine organizations has been created to fight efforts to restrict consumers' ability to purchase wine directly from out-of-state wineries. The Coalition for Free Trade, Family Winemakers of California, Napa Valley Vintners Association, Wine America, and Wine Institute have created the Free the Grapes organization (http://www.freethegrapes.org). The group claims that if passed in the Illinois General Assembly, House Bill 4350 and Senate Bill 2180 will prevent Illinois wine lovers from purchasing wine directly from out-of-state wineries. A "wine war" pits wine consumers against wine and spirits wholesalers, which want all purchases to flow through them. In May, the United States Supreme Court supported direct interstate wine shipments by ruling that states can regulate wine shipments but cannot discriminate by treating out-of-state wineries differently from in-state wineries.
• FirstMed Clinics in the Iowa Quad Cities will be renamed Genesis Convenient Care to better identify the urgent-care services available at the clinics. The clinics are located at 1520 West 53rd Street in Davenport and 4017 Devils Glen Road in Bettendorf. The clinic at 2350 41st Street in Moline was renamed Genesis Convenient Care last year. The change will not affect the FirstMed Pharmacy organization. Genesis Convenient Care clinics are open seven days a week for patients seeking immediate treatment for minor illnesses and injuries.
• Iowa Senators last week filed legislation to curb the ability of local governments to seize private property through eminent domain. The legislation was introduced in response to a June 2005 U.S. Supreme Court decision that expanded local governments' power to use eminent domain. The high court ruled that a local government could take private property from one owner and resell it to another for economic-development purposes. The legislation also strengthens requirements for condemning property within a slum or blighted urban-renewal area. Under the bill, local governments would have to consider properties on a parcel-by-parcel basis and could not condemn entire neighborhoods as blighted. Iowa farmland also would have increased protection under the legislation.
• By logging on to (http://www.traveliowa.com), travelers can view the 2006 Iowa Travel Guide page by page. The interactive site is a preview of the guide people will receive if they order a copy. The 2006 publication contains 180 pages packed with updated information about Iowa's attractions, events, bed-and-breakfast inns, and more. Tourism is a $5-billion industry in Iowa, employing more than 62,000 people statewide and generating more than $273 million in state taxes. The Iowa Tourism Office is part of the Iowa Department of Economic Development.
• Project NOW is accepting applications for the 2006 Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) scholarships. Eight scholarship recipients will each be awarded $500 from funds available through the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity (DCEO). The CSBG scholarship is designed to provide financial assistance to low-income and/or disadvantaged persons of high academic attainment or potential. The scholarships provide financial assistance to persons pursuing formal education or occupational training at an accredited Illinois educational institution including short-term training (two years or less) in high-technology or growth occupational skills, or general post-secondary education. To be eligible for the scholarships, applicants must reside in Rock Island, Henry, or Mercer County and meet CSBG income guidelines. Applications can be picked up at 418 19th Street in Rock Island or 711 Fourth Avenue in Moline.
• Black Hawk College, the Eastern Iowa Community College District, St. Ambrose University, and Western Illinois University have formed a consortium for international-education programs. The collaboration between the local area colleges will provide study-abroad opportunities to Guanajuato, Mexico, for students from the Quad Cities colleges. The first trip will be May 20 to June 3 and will cost $2,500. The trip will allow students who don't have the time or money for a semester-long trip to enjoy a study-abroad experience. Twenty students will travel to Guanajuato and study at the University of Guanajuato, earning seven credits toward foreign-language requirements. This trip will serve as a pilot project for the program, which will look into expanding to overseas destinations and semester-long trips over the next five to 10 years. - Jesse Virgil
• The St. Patrick Society, Quad Cities, U.S.A. has announced its annual search for the Irish Mother of the Year. All nominations must be original letters of approximately 150 words. A nominee should be involved in family, church, and community; have a good sense of humor; and demonstrate pride in her Irish ancestry. Nominations must be postmarked no later than March 1. Mail nominations to the St. Patrick Society at P.O. Box 4487, Davenport IA 52808. The winning nominee will participate in a variety of events the weekend of March 17-19. For more information on St. Patrick Society activities, call (563)324-5000 or look at (http://www.stpatsqc.com).
• A coalition of five wine organizations has been created to fight efforts to restrict consumers' ability to purchase wine directly from out-of-state wineries. The Coalition for Free Trade, Family Winemakers of California, Napa Valley Vintners Association, Wine America, and Wine Institute have created the Free the Grapes organization (http://www.freethegrapes.org). The group claims that if passed in the Illinois General Assembly, House Bill 4350 and Senate Bill 2180 will prevent Illinois wine lovers from purchasing wine directly from out-of-state wineries. A "wine war" pits wine consumers against wine and spirits wholesalers, which want all purchases to flow through them. In May, the United States Supreme Court supported direct interstate wine shipments by ruling that states can regulate wine shipments but cannot discriminate by treating out-of-state wineries differently from in-state wineries.
• FirstMed Clinics in the Iowa Quad Cities will be renamed Genesis Convenient Care to better identify the urgent-care services available at the clinics. The clinics are located at 1520 West 53rd Street in Davenport and 4017 Devils Glen Road in Bettendorf. The clinic at 2350 41st Street in Moline was renamed Genesis Convenient Care last year. The change will not affect the FirstMed Pharmacy organization. Genesis Convenient Care clinics are open seven days a week for patients seeking immediate treatment for minor illnesses and injuries.
• Iowa Senators last week filed legislation to curb the ability of local governments to seize private property through eminent domain. The legislation was introduced in response to a June 2005 U.S. Supreme Court decision that expanded local governments' power to use eminent domain. The high court ruled that a local government could take private property from one owner and resell it to another for economic-development purposes. The legislation also strengthens requirements for condemning property within a slum or blighted urban-renewal area. Under the bill, local governments would have to consider properties on a parcel-by-parcel basis and could not condemn entire neighborhoods as blighted. Iowa farmland also would have increased protection under the legislation.
• By logging on to (http://www.traveliowa.com), travelers can view the 2006 Iowa Travel Guide page by page. The interactive site is a preview of the guide people will receive if they order a copy. The 2006 publication contains 180 pages packed with updated information about Iowa's attractions, events, bed-and-breakfast inns, and more. Tourism is a $5-billion industry in Iowa, employing more than 62,000 people statewide and generating more than $273 million in state taxes. The Iowa Tourism Office is part of the Iowa Department of Economic Development.
