(DES MOINES) - Gov. Terry E. Branstad today issued the following statement upon learning the bodies of Evansdale cousins Lyric Cook-Morrissey, 11, and Elizabeth Collins, 9, were positively identified today. The girls disappeared July 13 while on a bike ride.

"It was with great sadness that I learned of the deaths of Lyric and Elizabeth. I want to commend the thousands of family members, friends and volunteers who never lost hope that they might be found alive. With this closure now comes great grief. The thoughts and prayers of my administration go out to those affected by this terrible tragedy. I want to assure everyone that our Department of Public Safety will continue working with local law enforcement officers. We want justice served for the taking of these young lives."

Local communities report homelessness declined in Iowa

WASHINGTON - On a single night last January, 633,782 people were homeless in the United States, largely unchanged from the year before.  In releasing HUD's latest national estimate of homelessness, U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan noted that even during a historic housing and economic downturn, local communities are reporting significant declines in the number of homeless veterans and those experiencing long-term chronic homelessness.

Meanwhile, local homeless housing and service providers in Iowa reported that the number of sheltered and unsheltered homeless people decreased by 6.6 percent between 2011 and 2012.  Five states accounted for nearly half of the nation's homeless population in 2012: California (20.7 percent), New York 11.0 percent), Florida (8.7 percent), Texas (5.4 percent), and Georgia (3.2 percent).

HUD's annual 'point-in-time' estimate seeks to measure the scope of homelessness over the course of one night every January.  Based on data reported by more than 3,000 cities and counties, last January's estimate reveals a marginal decline in overall homelessness (-0.4%) along with a seven percent drop in homelessness among veterans and those experiencing long-term or chronic homelessness.

Donovan said, "We continue to see a stable level of homelessness across our country at a time of great stress for those at risk of losing their housing.  We must redouble our efforts to target our resources more effectively to help those at greatest risk.  As our nation's economic recovery takes hold, we will make certain that our homeless veterans and those living on our streets find stable housing so they can get on their path to recovery."

Theresa Porter, Deputy Regional Administrator for HUD's Region VII, added, "Behind every number is a family or an individual living in our shelter system or even on our streets.  While HUD and our local partners are working to reduce and eliminate homelessness, there are too many people struggling to find an affordable home to call their own."

During one night in late January of 2012, local planners or "Continuums of Care" across the nation conducted a one-night count of their sheltered and unsheltered homeless populations.  These one-night 'snapshot' counts are then reported to HUD as part of state and local grant applications.  While the data reported to HUD does not directly determine the level of a community's grant funding, these estimates, as well as full-year counts, are crucial in understanding the scope of homelessness and measuring progress in reducing it.

The Obama Administration's strategic plan to end homelessness is called Opening Doors - a roadmap by 19 federal member agencies of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness along with local and state partners in the public and private sectors. The plan puts the country on a path to end veterans and chronic homelessness by 2015; and to ending homelessness among children, family, and youth by 2020. The Plan presents strategies building upon the lesson that mainstream housing, health, education, and human service programs must be fully engaged and coordinated to prevent and end homelessness.

The decline in veteran homelessness in particular is attributed to the close collaboration between HUD and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs on a joint program called HUD-VA Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH).   To date, this targeted rental assistance program provided more than 42,000 homeless veterans permanent supportive housing through rental vouchers provided by HUD along with supportive services and case management by VA. The national estimate announced today reveal a particularly large decrease in the number of homeless veterans - more than 7 percent.

The reductions reported today are attributed in part to the impact of HUD's $1.5 billion Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-housing Program (HPRP), a program designed to assist individuals and families confronted by a sudden economic crisis.  Funded through the Recovery Act, HPRP spared more 1.3 million persons from homelessness by offering them short-term rent assistance, security and utility deposits, and moving expenses.

Read HUD's 2012 Point-in-Time Estimates of Homelessness, including community-level data.

http://www.hudhre.info/index.cfm?do=viewResource&ResourceID=4726

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HUD's mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all. HUD is working to strengthen the housing market to bolster the economy and protect consumers; meet the need for quality affordable rental homes: utilize housing as a platform for improving quality of life; build inclusive and sustainable communities free from discrimination; and  transform the way HUD does business. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet at www.hud.gov and  http://espanol.hud.gov. You can also follow HUD on twitter @HUDnews, on facebook at www.facebook.com/HUD, or sign up for news alerts on HUD's News Listserv.

Casting descriptions below are based on "can look to play," not necessarily actual ages.  In addition to roles detailed below, an ensemble of character actors, singers and dancers (both men and women) is required for feature roles throughout the show.  Some performers with additional skills (play instruments, tumbling ability, etc) and two dogs are to be cast.  Specifically a small dog (like a chihuahua) and a large dog (like a bull dog).  Dogs should be able to bark, sit and come on command.  Send photos and details via email to the casey@theatrecr.org for consideration of your pet.  Please note, no pets at the scheduled auditions.

At this time, no preparation is required for auditions other than familiarity with the show.  Auditioners should be prepared to dance, sing and read from the show unless they are confident they will only accept roles that do not require all three.

Roles available:

Principal Roles

• Elle Woods - Soprano Belt - Gb2 - G5
  • Female, 20's. Excellent actor / singer / dancer. The quintessential Valley Girl who follows her ex-boyfriend to Harvard Law School and realizes that she has more to offer than just a pretty face and a bubbly personality
• Margot / Serena / Pilar - Soprano Belt - G#3 - F5
  • 3 Females, Late Teens - 20's. Excellent actors / singers / dancers. California Sorority girls who act as Elle's Greek Chorus.  Margot is ditzy, Pilar is sassy, Serena is Starbucks and Spray Tan obsessed.
• Paulette Buonofuonte - Soprano Belt - A3 - A5
  • Female, 20's - 40's. Excellent actor / singer.  A brash and funny hair stylist who is friends with Elle and longs to ?nd a man for herself
• Vivienne Kensington  - Soprano Belt - A3 - F5
  • Female,  - 20's. Excellent actor / singer. A smart and savvy law student who initially dismisses Elle, but grows to be her friend
• Brooke Wyndham  - Mezzo-Soprano - A3 - G5
  • Female, 20's - 30's. Excellent actor / singer / dancer. An exercise video star who is also a former sorority girl. Must be good at jumping rope.
• Enid Hoops -  Soprano Belt - G3 - G5
  • Female, Late Teens - 20's. Excellent actor / singer. A mousy, intellectual law student
• Emmett Forrest  - Tenor - B2 - A4
  • Male, 20's - 30's. Excellent actor / singer. A smart and sensitive law student who takes Elle under his wing
• Professor Callahan - Baritone  - A2 - F#4
  • Male, Late 30's - 50's. Excellent actor / singer. A pompous and manipulative law professor at Harvard
• Warner Hunter III  - Tenor - Eb3 - Ab4
  • Male, Late Teens - Early 30's. Excellent actor / singer. A good-looking, but pompous guy who breaks Elle's heart
• Kyle Brendan O'Boyle: the UPS Guy - Dancer
  • Male, 20's - 40's. Good dancer. A great-looking, in-shape employee of the United Postal Services.

Supporting Roles

• Elle's Mom - Alto - C4-E5
  • Female, 30's - 50's. Good mover / singer / actor. Elle's socialite, country-clubing mother
• LeiLani and Kate  - Alto - Bb3 - Eb5
  • Female, Late Teens - 20's. Excellent singer / dancer. Elle's other  sorority sisters
• Aaron Schultz -  2nd Tenor
  • Male, Late Teens - 20's. Excellent singer. Harvard Student.
• Sundeep Padamadan  - Baritone / Tenor
  • Male, Late Teens - 20's. Excellent singer. Foreign Harvard Student
• Grandmaster Chad  - High Baritone
  • Male, Late Teens - 20's. Excellent Character Actor / Hip Hop Singer / Hip Hop Dancer.
• Elle's Dad - Baritone  - D3 - E#4
  • Male, 30's - 50's. Good mover / singer / actor. Elle's rich, golfer father
• Dewey - Actor
  • Male, 20's - 40's. Character actor. Paulette's trailer- trash ex-boyfriend.
• Nikos Argitakos - Actor
  • Male, Late Teens - 30's. Character actor. Brooke's pool boy. Witness against Brooke. Gay AND European
• Carlos - Tenor
  • Male, Late Teens - 30's. Character actor / singer. Boyfriend of Carlos.  Big money note at the end of "There!, Right! There!"
• Winthrop, Lowell, Pforzheimer
  • 3 Males, Late 20's - 50's. Good actors / singers. Harvard admissions board. Three different, quirky and funny  characters.
• Chutney Wyndham - Actor
  • Brooke Wyndam's step daughter, affected by her "station" and marginally psychotic
• Other Roles
  • Judge, Reporter, Whitney, Shop Owner, Courtney, Harvard Students, Delta Nu Sisters, Nail Customers, etc, could be played by the characters listed above in named roles.