12th Annual Night to Honor Israel
October 15th, 2015 at 7:00PM
Calvary Church of the Quad Cities
4700 53rd Street
 
Date: October 15th
 
Time: Doors open at 6:00 pm. Pre-show begins at 6:30 and program begins at 7:00 pm
Place: Calvary Church of the Quad Cities
4700 53rd Street
Moline, IL. 61265
12 tribes of Israel for our Jewish friends and 12 apostles for Christians. The number 12 relates to divine government, God's authority, perfection, and completion. So, our twelfth Night to Honor Israel promises to be a very special night starting with our keynote speaker Pastor Mark Biltz.
I first met Mark at a CUFI Summit meeting in Washington D.C. several years ago. He was a main platform speaker and spoke with such passion and authority on Israel I knew then he would one day be our keynote speaker here in the Quad Cities. Please see his biography below. Mark's message is timely and relevant with everything unfolding in the Mid-East. Please never stop praying for the peace of Jerusalem. I hope to see you on October 15th.

PORT BYRON, Ill. -State Rep. Mike Smiddy, D-Hillsdale, joined local volunteers and community leaders to provide meals and resources at the 'Stand Down for Homeless Veterans' event, held September 17 through 19 at the Q.C.C.A. Expo Center in Rock Island.

"We owe our freedom to those who have served, and I'm proud that our community stands behind them and embraces the 'Stand Down for Homeless Veterans' event and to help veterans get the support they deserve," Smiddy said. "I'd like to thank 'Bridging the Gap Quad Cities' for their commitment to serving homeless veterans in our community, and for allowing me to join them for this important event. I invite everyone in our community to look for ways to help those who have served our country."

'Bridging the Gap Quad Cities' is a local not-for-profit dedicated to serving veterans in the community, and connecting services at a variety of levels. The 13th annual 'Stand Down for Homeless Veterans' event offered food, clothing, grooming, medical testing, support programs, legal assistance and employment counseling. 'Bridging the Gap Quad Cities' partnered with other local non-profits to host the event, and Smiddy attended the event to serve hot meals to local homeless veterans. Residents who wish to contribute to the organization or volunteer should contact Mike Malmstrom, co-director of 'Bridging the Gap Quad Cities' at 309-269-2012.

One in six children in Iowa and 1 in 5 children in Illinois face food insecurity. This issue and these statistics have motivated a Quad-City teen to join the fight against hunger.

"Many know that hunger is a big problem in other countries around the world, but few realize that people in our own communities go hungry every day," says Clare VanSpeybroeck, age 16. VanSpeybroeck, an active member of the 4-H Teen Hunger Ambassadors, held a food packaging event at which volunteers helped assemble over 15,000 meals. The event was held Sunday, September 27 at St. Pius X Farrell Hall, 2502 29th Avenue, Rock Island.

"The goals of my project are to provide nutritious meals to the hungry in the Quad Cities, educate youth and adults of the need in our area, and unite the community by working together to help others," says VanSpeybroeck. The non-perishable family-sized rice casserole meals will be distributed to the needy through the Riverbend Food Bank and the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry in Rock Island.

Clare says she has participated in three other 4-H meal packaging events in the past but is excited to take on the challenge of organizing an event herself. "I couldn't undertake this project without the support of the Rock Island County 4-H Extension Foundation and the co-sponsorship of my 4-H Teen Hunger Ambassador group. I am honored that the adult leaders of these groups have confidence in me to take on this leadership role," says VanSpeybroeck.

Clare organized all of the logistics of the event including publicity, recruiting volunteers, fundraising and ordering the food and supplies from Illini Fighting Hunger (IFH). IFH is a student organization at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana founded to address local and international hunger issues by making meal packaging events more frequent, more accessible, and more effective.

Clare's project is partially funded by a grant from Illinois 4-H Feeding and Growing Communities, the Rock Island Knights of Columbus, and private donations. She still has an additional $1,000 yet to raise to cover the costs of the food and supplies. If any funds over this amount are collected, the money will be used to sponsor additional meal packaging events or activities of the 4-H Teen Hunger Ambassadors.

If you would like to contribute to this charitable cause, a letter showing receipt of your tax-deductible donation will be mailed to you. Please make checks payable to: RICO 4-H Extension Foundation and mail to: University of Illinois Extension, Attn: Clare VanSpeybroeck, 321 W 2nd Avenue, Milan, IL 61264

The 4-H Teen Hunger Ambassadors welcome other teens ages 12 and older who are interested in helping combat hunger in the local community to get involved. For information on joining the group, contact Diane Baker, 4-H Youth Development Educator, bakerd@illinois.edu or (309) 756-9978.

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It cannot be put too strongly that businesses in the Hilltop Campus Village are open for business, and that patrons past and present are doing themselves and the businesses a disservice should they be avoiding these corridors due to the resurfacing of Harrison from 12th to 5th. Now is the time to visit, to patronize and to buy.
Local business is dependent on its customer base, so now would be a good time to not only patronize the many stores in this area if you are a regular customers, but also to take the opportunity to acquaint your yourself with the stores here - its restaurants, photography studios, beauty salons, law offices, grocery stores, pharmacies, bakeries, pawn shops, book binderys, accountancies, medical and health care services, banks, credit unions, hat and wig stores, plus the many resale, antique and collectibles shops.
Take this opportunity to continue to shop here if you already do, and to make this a special trip to expose yourself to what the Hilltop has to offer.

CHICAGO - Governor Bruce Rauner announced he has made appointments to the Illinois Health Information Exchange Authority, the Northern Illinois University Board of Trustees and the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District.

 

 

Name: Mason Budelier

Position: Executive Director - Illinois Health Information Exchange Authority

Governor Bruce Rauner has appointed Mason Budelier as Executive Director of the Illinois Health Information Exchange Authority. He currently serves as the General Counsel of the Authority.

Budelier came to the Illinois Health Information Exchange Authority in February. Before the Authority, Budelier served as a staff attorney at the Office of Council to the Inspector General within the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. He served in that role from 2011-2015 and handled legal and policy issues related to the administration of the Illinois Medicaid program. He also spent three years as an associate attorney with Bollinger, Ruberry & Garvey.

Budelier earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Iowa State University and a law degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law. He lives in Chicago.

 

Name: Tim Stuthers

Position: Trustee - Northern Illinois University

 

Governor Bruce Rauner has appointed Tim Stuthers to the Northern Illinois University Board of Trustees. He holds two degrees from the institution.

Stuthers is the Illinois Market President of First National Bank of Omaha. His responsibilities include general market and administrative duties for banking operations across the state of Illinois. He has 35 years of experience with the company, having started with them in 1980.

Stuthers currently serves on the boards of the Northern Illinois University Foundation, the DeKalb Sanitary District, the Illinois Council on Economic Education, and Grace Lutheran Church.

Stuthers earned both a bachelor's degree in finance and an MBA from Northern Illinois University. He lives in DeKalb.

 

 

 

Name: David Walsh

Position: Member - Metropolitan Water Reclamation District

 

Governor Bruce Rauner has appointed David Walsh to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District.

Walsh currently serves as the head of business development for Mark J. Walsh and Company. MJW&CO is a Chicago based commodity trading advisor. Previously, Walsh served as Senior Vice President of Advertising for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Prior to joining the Star Tribune, Walsh worked in a variety of positions within the Tribune Company, where his last position was Vice President of Advertising for the Los Angeles Times. Before joining the Times in 2005, he served as vice president of Tribune Interactive, where he oversaw print and online classified strategies for 10 Tribune owned newspapers.

Walsh earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Illinois. He lives in Chicago.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley today announced that Aaron McKay has been named state director of the six Grassley offices located in Iowa.  The state director is based in Des Moines.

Grassley said his state offices - located in Cedar Rapids, Council Bluffs, Davenport, Des Moines, Sioux City and Waterloo -- are central to providing Iowans with services including assistance with federal agencies such as the Social Security Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs, FEMA, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.  Constituent services specialists also provide passport help and consider applications to the U.S. military service academies, among other assistance.  Regional directors also work in each of these offices as part of Grassley's commitment to fostering the process of representative government and active dialogue between elected officials and the people at the grass roots who they represent.

McKay will succeed Robert Renaud who has served as state director for 14 years and will retire on Sept. 30.  Renaud was Grassley's economic development director and regional director for four years before holding the position of state director.  "It has been a privilege to work for Iowa's senior senator. He exemplifies what Iowans expect in a public servant and expects his staff to be diligent in serving Iowans," Renaud said.  Renaud and his wife reside in Mitchellville.

McKay has worked for Grassley since 2001 as the Des Moines-based regional director and covering 21 of Iowa's 99 counties.  McKay previously served as a constituent service specialist for Grassley in Waterloo and as a staff assistant in Washington, D.C.  Between his positions with Grassley in Washington and Waterloo, McKay worked for the House of Representatives National Security Committee.  "I am honored to serve the people of Iowa as Senator Grassley's state director and will work to echo his strong commitment of public service," said McKay.

McKay is a graduate of the Upper Iowa University in Fayette.  He and his wife reside in Pleasant Hill.

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Washington, D.C. - Congressman Dave Loebsack released the following statement today after his legislation, the bipartisan E-Warranty Act of 2015 (H.R. 3154), was signed into law by President Obama. The legislation gives manufacturers the option of fulfilling their warranty notice requirements by posting the information on their website. Loebsack was the lead Democratic cosponsor and joined with Congressman Markwayne Mullin (OK-02) to introduce the bill.

"I am pleased this bipartisan legislation, which includes a commonsense update to our nation's decades old warranty requirements, is now law," said Loebsack. "This bill allows manufacturers to post warranty information online and give consumers easy access to written warranties."

If manufacturers choose to meet their warranty notification requirements by posting the information on their website, it must be in an accessible, conspicuous digital format. Manufacturers must also provide consumers with information on how to access the online warranty and obtain a paper copy, either by including instructions on the product packaging or in the product manual. The bill makes no changes to the rules regarding the content of warranty information.

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Washington, D.C. - Congressman Dave Loebsack released the following statement today after the Speaker of the House, John Boehner, announced he will resign at the end of the month.

"I commend Speaker Boehner for his service to the House of Representatives and to our nation. While I have not always agreed with him, I understand that the challenges of leading a fractured and ideological party must have been extremely difficult. I wish him the best as he moves on to the next phase of his life.

"Today's news also gives the Republican Party an opportunity to pick a leader who has a history of working across the aisle with Democrats to move our nation forward. It is my hope that the Republican Party will elect a Speaker who is able to stop the partisan games that have ruled Washington for far too long and start working for the American people. I stand ready to work with the new Speaker, along with anyone from either side of the aisle, to solve the critical problems facing our nation."

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SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - Pointing out the potentially devastating effects of police officers entering crisis situations without training, state Rep. Mike Smiddy, D-Hillsdale, voted to release funds for critical law enforcement training that are currently available but being blocked by the governor's budget veto.
"These training programs prepare officers for the most dangerous parts of their jobs and helps keep them and the public as safe as possible," Smiddy said. "It is irresponsible to send officers into crisis situations without the tools to safely diffuse the risks, especially when the funds to help are ready and waiting."
Smiddy voted to advance the funding for training grants to local law enforcement which are financed through statewide traffic ticket fees and would not be funded at the expense of other critical services. When the governor vetoed the budget, his action blocked funding for training programs which include specialized instruction on crisis interventions, information on safe interactions with the public, firearm safety, narcotics detection, interacting with people facing mental health challenges, updates on new laws and other important information. This measure still needs approval by the full House and Senate to be considered by the governor.
"The governor has taken an ideological view that harms middle-class families in Illinois, and now may even jeopardize the lives of officers who keep us safe," Smiddy said. "I find it unacceptable that the money to begin these training sessions is available, and yet not released. We must simply authorize its use and help Illinois officers be as prepared as possible while they protect us."
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Proclamation to aid farmers in hauling harvest in an efficient and effective manner

 

(DES MOINES) - Gov. Terry E. Branstad today signed a proclamation to allow the transportation of overweight loads of soybeans, corn, hay, straw, silage and stover.  The proclamation takes effect today, September 25, 2015, and expires after 60 days.

"I am pleased today to sign this proclamation to allow Iowa farmers to move their crop yields in an effective and efficient manner," said Branstad. "Iowa's farmers are a critical component of Iowa's economy and this proclamation will ensure they're able to transport their crop ahead of deteriorating weather conditions."

"Governor Branstad and I continue to look for ways in which government can assist Iowans and today's harvest weight proclamation is another way we're able to ensure producers can get their yield out of the fields and to market," said Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds.

This proclamation is intended to allow vehicles transporting soybeans, corn, hay, straw, silage and stover to be overweight, not exceeding 90,000 pounds gross weight, without a permit, but only for the duration of this proclamation.  This action is intended to allow loads transported on all highways within Iowa, excluding the interstate system, and those which do not exceed a maximum of 90,000 pounds gross weight, do not exceed the maximum axle weight limit determined under the non-primary highway maximum gross weight table in Iowa Code §321.463(5) (b), by more than twelve and one-half percent (12.5%), do not exceed the legal maximum axle weight limit of 20,000 pounds, and comply with posted limits on roads and bridges.

The Iowa Department of Transportation is directed to monitor the operation of this proclamation to assure the public's safety and facilitate the movement of the trucks involved.

The signed proclamation can be found here.

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