06
Jan
2004
• Beginning January 5, travelers at Moline's Quad City International Airport will be able to surf the Web while they wait for their flights under an alliance between the Metropolitan Airport Authority and Mediacom. In a unique partnership, the two organizations will provide free WiFi wireless Internet access in the public areas of the facility. The system, designed by Mediacom, deploys wireless access points at strategic locations in the terminal and concourse areas. The units are connected to Mediacom cable modems, which provide a high-speed connection to the Internet.
• Iowa is receiving more than $2.3 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Emergency Management Performance Grants (EMPG) program. EMPGs provide states the flexibility to allocate funds according to risk vulnerabilities and to address the most urgent state and local needs in disaster mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.
• Looking for a fun, affordable winter weekend getaway with your family and friends? The third annual Quad Cities Be a Tourist in Your Own Backyard weekend could be the answer. Nearly 30 hotels and more than two dozen attractions will offer discounts and incentives for those who want to explore the Quad Cities from Friday, January 16, through Monday, January 19. Hotel rooms begin as low as $36.95, and many include dinners, breakfasts, and more. New this year is a free family-fun night from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, January 16, at the Family Museum of Arts & Science in Bettendorf. Crafts, children's activities, demonstrations, games, music, and family photos will kick off the weekend at the event. The weekend is sponsored by the Quad Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Quad Cities Lodging Association. Go to (http://www.visitquadcities.com) and click on the "Be a Tourist in Your Own Backyard" icon for a complete listing of participating hotels and attractions.
• Cervical cancer is preventable, yet according to the American Cancer Society, an estimated 13,000 women in the United States will be diagnosed with the disease this year alone. In Illinois, 740 women are expected to be diagnosed with cervical cancer, and an estimated 230 will die of the disease. Cervical-cancer rates are twice as high among Latina and African-American women as white women, and Asian-American women are also significantly impacted by the disease. These figures could be greatly reduced if women would get screened regularly, allowing reliable testing to find changes in the cervix before cancer develops. Breast-cancer and cervical-cancer screening are now more available to medically underserved women through various state programs. For example, the Illinois Breast & Cervical Cancer Program provides early-detection testing to women with little or no health insurance for free or at very little cost. For more information in Iowa, contact the Scott County Health Department at (800)215-1444, option 3. In Illinois, contact the Rock Island County Health Department at (309)794-7088.
• The EF Foundation for Foreign Study is currently looking for open-minded adults to join the network of International Exchange Coordinators (IECs) in eastern Iowa. With just a few hours a week, you can help screen potential host parents and assist them in selecting a student, organize orientation sessions, coordinate fun activities, and provide support throughout the students' stay. EF Foundation students are between the ages of 15 and 18, and hail from 30 countries throughout Europe, Asia, and South America. They live with volunteer host families and attend local high schools. For more information, call Amy Lewis at (888)447-4273 or log on to (http://www.effoundation.org).
• The 230 laws that went into effect January 1 in Illinois include a prohibition on driving in the left lane of highways for more than a half-mile, a ban on "tongue splitting" as a cosmetic measure, a requirement that police record the race of the driver in traffic stops, and a measure raising the minimum wage from $5.15 an hour to $5.50 an hour. Other laws: require booster safety seats in cars for children eight and under; extend the time in which clerics accused of sexual abuse may be prosecuted or sued, as well as the time victims of "gender violence" have to sue; require insurance companies to divulge their 19th Century ties to slavery policies; and require equal pay for men and women doing identical jobs. You can keep tabs on what your legislators in Illinois are up to at the Illinois legislative Web site at (http://www.legis.state.il.us).
• The Bettendorf Public Library has chosen three poems written by area teens to submit to the VOYA National Poetry Contest. VOYA, or Voice of Youth Advocates, is a magazine dedicated to library services for teens. Young people ages 12 to 18 were invited to send in their work. The three poems are "Unrequited Loss" by Danielle Builta and "Choose Me" and "Orange, Red, Yellow" by Carly Johnson. You can see these poems for yourself by looking at the library Web site at (http://www.bettendorflibrary.com/teen/voya.htm), or by visiting the Bettendorf Public Library. The winner of the VOYA national contest will receive a $20 cash prize and a copy of the April 2004 issue of VOYA, in which the poems will be published.
• Iowa is receiving more than $2.3 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Emergency Management Performance Grants (EMPG) program. EMPGs provide states the flexibility to allocate funds according to risk vulnerabilities and to address the most urgent state and local needs in disaster mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.
• Looking for a fun, affordable winter weekend getaway with your family and friends? The third annual Quad Cities Be a Tourist in Your Own Backyard weekend could be the answer. Nearly 30 hotels and more than two dozen attractions will offer discounts and incentives for those who want to explore the Quad Cities from Friday, January 16, through Monday, January 19. Hotel rooms begin as low as $36.95, and many include dinners, breakfasts, and more. New this year is a free family-fun night from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, January 16, at the Family Museum of Arts & Science in Bettendorf. Crafts, children's activities, demonstrations, games, music, and family photos will kick off the weekend at the event. The weekend is sponsored by the Quad Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Quad Cities Lodging Association. Go to (http://www.visitquadcities.com) and click on the "Be a Tourist in Your Own Backyard" icon for a complete listing of participating hotels and attractions.
• Cervical cancer is preventable, yet according to the American Cancer Society, an estimated 13,000 women in the United States will be diagnosed with the disease this year alone. In Illinois, 740 women are expected to be diagnosed with cervical cancer, and an estimated 230 will die of the disease. Cervical-cancer rates are twice as high among Latina and African-American women as white women, and Asian-American women are also significantly impacted by the disease. These figures could be greatly reduced if women would get screened regularly, allowing reliable testing to find changes in the cervix before cancer develops. Breast-cancer and cervical-cancer screening are now more available to medically underserved women through various state programs. For example, the Illinois Breast & Cervical Cancer Program provides early-detection testing to women with little or no health insurance for free or at very little cost. For more information in Iowa, contact the Scott County Health Department at (800)215-1444, option 3. In Illinois, contact the Rock Island County Health Department at (309)794-7088.
• The EF Foundation for Foreign Study is currently looking for open-minded adults to join the network of International Exchange Coordinators (IECs) in eastern Iowa. With just a few hours a week, you can help screen potential host parents and assist them in selecting a student, organize orientation sessions, coordinate fun activities, and provide support throughout the students' stay. EF Foundation students are between the ages of 15 and 18, and hail from 30 countries throughout Europe, Asia, and South America. They live with volunteer host families and attend local high schools. For more information, call Amy Lewis at (888)447-4273 or log on to (http://www.effoundation.org).
• The 230 laws that went into effect January 1 in Illinois include a prohibition on driving in the left lane of highways for more than a half-mile, a ban on "tongue splitting" as a cosmetic measure, a requirement that police record the race of the driver in traffic stops, and a measure raising the minimum wage from $5.15 an hour to $5.50 an hour. Other laws: require booster safety seats in cars for children eight and under; extend the time in which clerics accused of sexual abuse may be prosecuted or sued, as well as the time victims of "gender violence" have to sue; require insurance companies to divulge their 19th Century ties to slavery policies; and require equal pay for men and women doing identical jobs. You can keep tabs on what your legislators in Illinois are up to at the Illinois legislative Web site at (http://www.legis.state.il.us).
• The Bettendorf Public Library has chosen three poems written by area teens to submit to the VOYA National Poetry Contest. VOYA, or Voice of Youth Advocates, is a magazine dedicated to library services for teens. Young people ages 12 to 18 were invited to send in their work. The three poems are "Unrequited Loss" by Danielle Builta and "Choose Me" and "Orange, Red, Yellow" by Carly Johnson. You can see these poems for yourself by looking at the library Web site at (http://www.bettendorflibrary.com/teen/voya.htm), or by visiting the Bettendorf Public Library. The winner of the VOYA national contest will receive a $20 cash prize and a copy of the April 2004 issue of VOYA, in which the poems will be published.
