YMCA And Area Agencies Come Together To Help Families Focus on the Needs of Our Children

DAVENPORT, Iowa  - April 1, 2010 - As part of a nationwide effort to encourage kids to get moving, the Scott County Family Y will host YMCA Healthy Kids Day, the nation's largest health day for kids and families as part of the Quad Cities National Week of the Young Child.

April 11-17 is designated as The National Week of the Young Child.  In the Quad Cities, more than a dozen trusted community child and family agencies have come together to host a variety of events focused on the needs of young children and their families. The week will kick off with a special opening ceremony at the Bettendorf Family Museum on Sunday, April 11.  The Museum in partnership with Family Resources will host this celebration from Noon - 4 p.m. and the Museum will offer half price admission that day.

There will be additional activities throughout the week including opportunities to hear speakers regarding issues facing our children as well as other events in cooperation with local agencies including the YMCA, Scott County Kids Empowerment, the Davenport Public Library, Lutheran Social Services and the Child Abuse Council.

The big finale to this week-long celebration is YMCA Healthy Kids Day on Saturday, April 17.  The event is fun-filled day of engaging and creative activities that foster healthy living, and is a part of the YMCA's larger efforts to help more kids and families become physically active.

YMCA Healthy Kids Day

YMCA Healthy Kids Day, a free community event, will be held in three locations this year.  The Two Rivers YMCA in Moline, Illinois and the Maquoketa Area Family YMCA in Maquoketa, Iowa will host activities from 9am - Noon.  The event will also be held from 1-4pm at the West Family YMCA, 3503 West Locust Street, Davenport.

In addition to the fun, the day will provide resources to help educate grown-ups about making healthy choices for their families every day. More than 30 area children's organizations will interactive activities and games at the West Family YMCA event and will focus on topics such as personal safety, health and wellness, reading advancement and body development.  And thanks to Healthy Kid's Day partner, the Davenport Community School District, nationally known children's entertainer, Steve Couch, will give a special concert at 3:30pm.  In addition to the concert, the first 300 children attending YMCA Healthy Kids Day will get Healthy Family Home activity books and a lunchable sample, compliments of Kraft-Oscar Mayer Foods.

"Keeping kids healthy is at the core of what the YMCA stands for," said Deb Gustafson, Executive Director of Child Care and Family Services for the Scott County Family Y. "The word 'exercise' doesn't sound very enjoyable to many people, especially kids, but getting them to move more through play that requires physical activity is the key to building healthy habits that last a lifetime. On YMCA Healthy Kids Day, both kids and grown-ups will have the opportunity to get moving, to play and to have fun."

Experts recommend that kids engage in at least 60 minutes of physical activity, including active play, each day. Studies show that kids who consistently engage in play are happier and healthier, and develop and enhance a variety of skills including motor skills, social skills, problem solving, and creativity. Kids who get 60 minutes of physical play also tend to have higher self-esteem and perform better academically.

"The goal of encouraging kids to play more is to build a lifetime of love for physical activity," said Gustafson. "Play should not seem like a chore - it is an activity that is fun and brings joy and allows a kid to just be a kid."

YMCA Healthy Kids Day is supported locally by Scott County Kids Empowerment and the Davenport Community School District and nationally by Northwestern Mutual Foundation and Tropicana. Quad Cities National Week of the Young Child partners include : the Davenport Public Library; Care For Kids; Family Resources, Inc; I-Smile; Lutheran Social Services; Mississippi Bend AEA; the Putnam Museum; Community Action of Eastern Iowa; Iowa Child Care Resource & Referral; Scott County; Scott County Kids Empowerment and your Quad Cities YMCAs.

For more information about Healthy Kids Day or a complete list of National Week the Young Child activities, visit the Scott County Family Y website, www.ScottCountyFamilyY.org.

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WASHINGTON - Chuck Grassley today said that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded two competitive grants totaling $3,030,257 to the Iowa Department of Public Health and the University of Iowa.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will distribute the money as shown below.

• $2,745,257 to the Iowa Department of Public Health to help pay for the Ryan White Care Act Title II.

• $285,000 to the University of Iowa from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences to help pay for pharmacology, physiology and biological chemistry research project titled, "Evolution of Pre-mRNA Splicing in Primates."

Each year, thousands of local Iowa organizations, colleges and universities, individuals and state agencies apply for competitive grants from the federal government. The funding is then awarded based on each local organization or individual's ability to meet criteria set by the federal entity.

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Awarded Re-Accreditation from the American Association of Museums

Davenport, IA (3/31/10) - The Figge Art Museum has achieved re-accreditation from the American Association of Museums (AAM), the highest national recognition for a museum. Accreditation signifies excellence to the museum community, to governments, funders, outside agencies, and to the museum-going public.

"Our original museum was one of the first accredited museums in the US in 1973. This 2010 re-accreditation of our new facility, operations, and structure is confirmation that the Figge is well-run and providing a superlative service to our constituency," stated Sean O'Harrow, Executive Director of the Figge Art Museum.

AAM Accreditation is the field's primary vehicle for quality assurance, self-regulation, and public accountability, and earns national recognition for a museum for its commitment to excellence in all that it does: governance, collections stewardship, public programs, financial stability, high professional standards, and continued institutional improvement. Developed and sustained by museum professionals for 35 years, AAM's Museum Accreditation program strengthens the profession by promoting practices that enable leaders to make informed decisions, allocate resources wisely, and to provide the best possible service to the public.

"Accreditation assures the people of the Quad Cities that their museum is among the finest in the nation," said Ford W. Bell, president of AAM. "As a result, the citizens can take considerable pride in their homegrown institution, for its commitment to excellence and for the value it brings to the community."

Accreditation is a rigorous process that examines all aspects of a museum's operations.  To earn accreditation, a museum first must conduct a year of self-study, and then undergo a site visit by a team of peer reviewers.  AAM's Accreditation Commission, an independent and autonomous body of museum professionals, review and evaluate the self-study and visiting committee report to determine whether a museum should receive accreditation.  While the time to complete the process varies by museum, it generally takes three years.

Davenport, IA - Russell Construction is proud to announce that for the third year in a row, our safety program was recognized as a third place finalist for the Association of General Contractors National Safety Excellence Award.

Every year, the Association of General Contractors (AGC) recognizes companies from all across the country, that have developed and implemented premier safety and loss prevention programs and showcases companies that have achieved continuous improvements and maintenance of their safety and health management systems. The AGC Construction Safety Excellence Award is our industry's top recognition.

To become eligible for this award, companies had to compete at the state level and receive a letter of nomination from their home AGC chapter. The submission included application forms, a two page description of a company's Safety & Health Program and a one page description of why they should receive the award. This year, there were 128 finalist nominations that were passed on to the national judging committee, of those 48 finalists were selected; Russell Construction was among this group. The final step was to give a five minute presentation to a panel of safety experts along with a 10 minute question and answer session after the presentation.

In addition, each company was judged upon an overview of company safety program, increased employee involvement in safety, new programs,  procedures or resources used to promote safety, management's commitment to safety and specific unique activities the company does or provides to promote safety.

As a company dedicated to safety excellence, Russell Construction has accomplished several notable safety achievements over the last two years, including surpassing 1,100,000 hours without a single lost time incident. Additionally, in 2009, Russell was awarded the Saxies Safety Program of the Year, by the online safety organization SafetyXChange.

As a Midwest leader in Construction Management, Design/Build and General Contracting services, Russell is dedicated to supporting the local Quad Cities economy through competitive and efficient construction services. For more information on Russell, please visit their corporate website at www.russellco.com.

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