Treasurer Fitzgerald reminds Iowans the deadline is September 30

DES MOINES, IA (09/20/2010)(readMedia)-- State Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald reminds Iowans that there is free money for college on the table. "We are giving away a $529 account in an effort to raise awareness about the importance of saving now for future college expenses," stated Fitzgerald. "Don't miss out on this great opportunity to jumpstart your child's college savings." To register and to see complete details, go to www.iowa529contest.com.

Studies show that children who have money saved for them are almost four times more likely to attend a four-year college than those with no account.* This makes saving ahead of time one of the most significant things families can do to help make college a reality for their children. By starting early and saving regularly, families can watch their savings and their children grow side by side. September is College Savings Month, a time when families are encouraged to explore the benefits of saving through a 529 plan like College Savings Iowa.

College Savings Iowa is an affordable, tax-advantaged option for families who are saving for their children's college education. It takes just $25 to open a College Savings Iowa account, and investors can contribute as little as $25 when adding to the account. Participants who are Iowa taxpayers can deduct contributions up to $2,811 per beneficiary account from their adjusted gross income in 2010. **

Anyone can invest in College Savings Iowa on behalf of a child. Investors do not need to be a state resident and can withdraw their investment federally tax-free to pay for qualified higher education expenses including tuition, books, supplies and certain room and board costs at any eligible college, university, community college or technical training school in the United States or abroad. *** To learn more about College Savings Iowa, go to www.my529iowaplan.com or call 1-800-523-0644.

*From the Center for Social Development study: The Role of Savings and Wealth in Reducing "Wilt" between Expectations and College Attendance. William Elliott III and Sondra Beverly, 2010.

**If withdrawals are not qualified, the deductions must be added back to Iowa taxable income.

*** Earnings on non-qualified withdrawals may be subject to federal income tax and a 10% federal penalty tax, as well as state income taxes. The availability of tax or other benefits may be contingent on meeting other requirements.

Train to Nowhere; Inside an Immigrant Death Investigation, a just-completed documentary about those connected to the 2002 railcar deaths of eleven undocumented immigrants, will have its television premiere next month on Iowa Public Television. Advance screenings will also be held in three Iowa cities in October.

Film synopsis: When the bodies of eleven Central Americans and Mexicans were found inside a freight car in Denison, Iowa, the nation took notice. Reporters descended on the small farming community, searching for information about how and why this group ended up inside a locked railcar, where they would die horrific deaths. yet compassionate look at the 2002 railcar deaths of the eleven undocumented immigrants. It takes the viewers from the streets of southern Texas, to the hills of a Guatemalan farm, to the Iowa town where the bodies were found.

immigration story in examining the case from various viewpoints: that of one victim's New York brother, a long-time immigration agent, and a train conductor imprisoned for working with the smugglers who locked the railcar to throw off U.S. Border Patrol inspectors. Viewers will see beyond the superficial levels of the people involved in the story and understand the complexities of their personalities and the situation. The older brother from Guatemala, once an undocumented immigrant himself, struggles with anger and, sometimes, guilt. Even though he urged his little brother to remain in Central America, his own financial success showed the younger man what could be achieved. The immigration agent, who traveled north as a boy with his migrant farm worker grandfather and father, believes in strict border control yet often encounters those who question his loyalty to the United States because of his Mexican heritage. The former train conductor, once paid to help slip people into the United States by train, argues that he was trying to help the immigrants gain a chance at better lives. This is a crime story that also illustrates how immigration is such a complex issue, far from black and white.

The documentary, Train to Nowhere; Inside an Immigrant Death Investigation offers an honest, The film is part crime story, part immigration perspective. It breaks free of the standard Train to Nowhere is scheduled to air Tuesday, Oct. 12, at 7 p.m. CST on Iowa Public Television, the PBS affiliate covering the state of Iowa. A trailer for the film may be seen at www.TrainToNowhere.com

Train to Nowhere was directed and co-produced by Paul Kakert, the Davenport-based president of Storytellers International. Colleen Bradford Krantz, a journalist-turned-author from Adel, Iowa, wrote and co-produced the documentary.

Advance screenings of Train to Nowhere will be held in the Davenport, Des Moines and Denison areas in early October. Admission is free and donations to Storytellers International, a 501c3 non-profit that produced the film, are appreciated.

Advance screenings:

Sunday, Oct. 3 at 3 p.m., Iowa Public Television's Maytag

1) Des Moines-area advance screening:  Auditorium, Johnston, Iowa.

2) Davenport advance screening:  Sunday, Oct. 10 at 2 p.m., Figge Art Museum, Davenport, Iowa.

3) Denison advance screening:  TBA

One viewer described the documentary as "kind of a CSI thing" with Iowa ties. However, it has been the immigration perspective's balance that endeared it to some of its first viewers, including one who wrote: "I thought it was very powerful, in a way that I didn't anticipate. I was very much drawn in by the characters ... As filmmakers, you've chosen a distance to the material that I think is just right. If this were presented from the POV of an advocate (either a pro or a con) no one would really listen - the film would be viewed through prejudiced eyes, unconsciously. I had never really thought of that before: The best way to truly communicate anything concerning immigration requires a certain distance from the field of battle. It sounds paradoxical, but to really get people to connect deeply with this topic, you have to maintain a bit of distance in that respect. I think you gauged it right."

Following the broadcast premiere of the one-hour version, the full version of the film will be available on DVD and may be purchased at the film website www.TrainToNowhere.com. In addition to the IPTV broadcast and DVD distribution, Storytellers International has worked with a high school social studies teacher who developed a lesson plan to go with the DVD. Educational bundles including the DVD and lesson plan for high school students are available for schools to purchase. (The content may be difficult for those under age 13).

Storytellers International, a non-profit dedicated to producing documentaries, was awarded a Humanities Iowa grant to help complete the documentary. The film is the first to be released by Storytellers International, a 501(c)3 non-profit charitable organization founded by Davenport filmmaker Paul Kakert. Kakert has been involved in video and animation production in the Quad Cities, and nationally, since 1991. In 2009 he founded Storytellers International to produce, promote and distribute documentary films from around the world.

The organization recently launched www.DocumentaryTV.com as a film enthusiast website and community interaction portal for promoting its films and receiving feedback and story ideas for its viewers and supporters.

Colleen Bradford Krantz, a former Des Moines Register reporter, has written a book, also called "Train to Nowhere; Inside an Immigrant Death Investigation," which served as the basis for the documentary. The book will be released in spring 2011 by Ice Cube Books, an Iowa-based publisher. Advance purchases of the book are possible through www.Amazon.com

The documentary and book describe events leading up to the deaths of the undocumented immigrants, and the subsequent criminal investigation. The bodies were discovered by a grain elevator worker in Denison, Iowa in October 2002. The eleven died of dehydration and hyperthermia (abnormally high body temperature) in June 2002 after smugglers locked them inside the railcar to avoid detection by Border Patrol. The railcar's door could not be unlocked from inside. The smugglers eventually lost track of the train, and those inside died within a day or two. Four people were charged in connection with the deaths.

The documentary is supported by Humanities Iowa and the National Endowment for the Humanities. The views and opinions expressed by the program do not necessarily reflect those of Humanities Iowa or the National Endowment for the Humanities.

SPRINGFIELD, IL (09/17/2010)(readMedia)-- The New Madrid Seismic Zone was the subject of a three-day conference here in which movers and shakers from all over the country, and Central and South America, met to plan for the eventuality of a major earthquake.

More than 250 National Guard leaders from more than 30 states - including Illinois and the seven other states that would be most affected by a major earthquake along the infamous fault line that once moved the mighty Mississippi River in 1812-met Sept. 14 to 16 to discuss capabilities, shortfalls and response planning.

Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee are all members of the Central United States Earthquake Consortium (CUSEC), whose mission is the reduction of deaths, injuries, property damage and economic losses resulting from earthquakes in the central United States.

The workshop was held at the National Guard Bureau's Professional Education Center, on Camp Robinson in North Little Rock, Ark., and included presentations by CUSEC, the National Emergency Management Association, the Arkansas Geological Survey, Civil Air Patrol, U.S. Southern and Northern Commands. Even America's largest retailer, Wal-Mart, offered a look at its planned disaster response efforts.

It is widely accepted that an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.0 or greater would quickly absorb the response capabilities of each of the directly-affected states. According to Brig. Gen. Steven P. Huber, Land Component Commander and Director of the Joint Staff for the Illinois National Guard, the main focus of the workshop was to proactively identify capabilities and gaps, and where the respective states could turn for help.

"I think the value is in getting to meet the people within the regions, specifically the folks around the impact area, and to do some coordinating," said Huber, a Chicago native. "We can talk about what we can bring to the table as well as what we feel we need. We would rather get to know these people and shake their hand here than at the scene of an incident."

Dr. Paul Stockton, the assistant secretary of defense for Homeland Defense and Americas' Security Affairs, was the keynote speaker on Tuesday, Sept. 14. Stockton gave a comprehensive presentation, centering on a unity of effort concept between the federal government, active duty military units, National Guard units, state governments and local emergency managers.

He led a discussion following his remarks, where he sought input from everyone in the room as to how best achieve unity of effort in the face of a catastrophe such as an earthquake in the center of the country.

According to CUSEC, there were no seismological measurements in 1812, but recent studies and contemporary reports suggest the magnitude of the largest of four earthquakes centering near New Madrid, Mo., was approximately 7.8. Fortunately, in 1812 the area was sparsely populated with few buildings and supporting infrastructure.

Today, the region is home to millions of people, including those in the cities of St. Louis, Mo., and Memphis, Tenn. Adding to the danger, most structures in the region were not built to withstand earthquake shaking, as they have been in more seismically active areas like California.

According to Scott Ausbrooks of the Arkansas Geological Survey, one of the greatest dangers lies in the phenomenon of liquefaction, which occurs when loose, sandy, water-saturated soils are strongly shaken. According to Ausbrooks, the soils lose their capacity to bear any weight and can flow like a liquid.

Ausbrooks and many other experts in the room agreed that an earthquake of such magnitude would knock out communication and nearly all of the bridges in the Mississippi River basin in the affected states. Scientists estimate that a magnitude 6.0 or larger earthquake is overdue in the region and could hit the Mississippi Valley at any time.

"All of the available resources, military and civilian, will be consumed quickly," explained Maj. Gen. William Wofford, the adjutant general of the Arkansas National Guard. "We will be overwhelmed.

"The response needs are going to exceed all of the available military and civilian assets," said Wofford. "The affected states will need to look to other states to fulfill any shortfalls."

Emergency Management Assistance Compacts between the states were at the center of many discussions at the workshop.

"We have a number of handshake agreements, but we have a lot of work ahead of us," said Wofford. "We all came to the workshop to work and to plan, which is key, but it's a work in progress."

According to Wofford, the agreements hammered out this year will be reviewed next year, taking into account troop deployments and operations considerations in the responding states.

"The planning aspect is the real benefit of a workshop like this, and having the National Guard Bureau, the federal government, civilian agencies and supporting states here is invaluable," said Wofford. "We've communicated, we've coordinated and now we're cooperating."

Program Helps Veterans Overcome Problems Transitioning Back from Deployment

SPRINGFIELD, IL (09/17/2010)(readMedia)-- Many Soldiers and Airmen have sustained injuries, physical and mental, while serving overseas.

The physical and mental trauma servicemembers are exposed to can sometimes make it difficult for them to transition back to a normal home life. Because of this, agencies that support veterans have created programs to help wounded servicemembers develop a new social and fitness routine.

The Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs, the Chicago Park District and the Hines Veteran Affairs Hospital hosted the fourth annual Veterans Adaptive Activity Day Sept. 16 at the Hines VA Hospital in Hines, Ill.

The event provided veterans with disabilities the opportunity to learn about the various recreational and fitness programs available to them and to sample sports equipment that was built specifically for their needs.

"It is really amazing to look around and to see all these people from the community and from various organizations come together to fill in all the gaps and to make sure that any veteran that is wounded or disabled is taken care of," said Dan Grant of Springfield, Ill., Director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs.

Grant is also an intergovernmental officer in the Illinois Army National Guard with Joint Forces Headquarters in Springfield, Ill.

The veterans were able to participate in adaptive sports demonstrations like, golf and wheelchair basketball, and attain information from regional adaptive sports and support services like, Diveheart Military Wounded and Great Lakes Adaptive Sports Association.

"This is a great opportunity for us to link these community resources in the Greater Chicago Area and throughout the state with veterans who need them," said Grant.