New Law to Highlight Contributions of Hispanics in U.S. History

CHICAGO - October 10, 2009. Governor Pat Quinn and Rep. Elizabeth Hernandez today raised awareness of a new law that requires the history of the United States taught in public schools reinforce the role and contributions of Hispanics.

"I salute Representative Hernandez for her work championing this important legislation," Governor Quinn said. "The new law ensures that U.S. History is taught accurately to our students and emphasizes the important contributions of Hispanics throughout our nation's history."

Senate Bill 1557, sponsored by Senator William Delgado (D-Chicago) and Representative Elizabeth Hernandez (D-Cicero), was passed overwhelmingly with bipartisan support.

The bill amends Section 27-21 of the School Code by providing that curriculum on the history of the United States is to reinforce the study of the role and contributions of Hispanics, including on issues such as the events related to the forceful removal and illegal deportation of Mexican-American U.S. citizens during the Great Depression.

"It was alarming to learn how Hispanics Americans were treated during the Great Depression, and that it has gone unreported for so many years," Rep. Hernandez said. "It's critical that this period in history be taught in our schools so that we can learn from the mistakes of the past."

Section 27-21 of the School Code currently requires U.S. History to be taught in all public schools, and further outlines that curriculum must include the role and contributions of various peoples and ethnic groups.

The bill is effective as of January 1, 2010.

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October 9, 2009 - Davenport, IA - Celebrating life through programs and classes that enhance one's spirit, mind and body is the mission of the Scott County Family Y.  On Saturday, October 24, area cancer survivors and their supporters are invited to attend a wellness open house at the West Family YMCA that's especially designed to do just that.

At 9am, BODYVIVE will celebrate life with an energizing and uplifting combination of easy-to-follow cardio steps aimed at lifting the heart rate followed by creative strength building and flexibility exercises. Live Strong RPM group cycling classes geared towards empowering and energizing the whole body will be held at 8am, 9am, and 10:15am.  Inspiration will also be shared from YMCA members who are surviving cancer in addition to informational displays from area health care providers and cancer awareness organizations. Participants should come dressed comfortably and be prepared to have fun.

This Live Strong event is part of a Community Wellness Open House, from 8am to 5pm, Saturday, October 24, at the West Family YMCA, 3503 West Locust Street, Davenport.  In addition to the wellness classes, survivors and the community are encouraged to take part in other open house events and drawings, all aimed at enhancing total health - your Spirit, Mind and Body. Each person who attends will also receive a Livestrong or a Sur-VIVE-or wristband.

For information about this event, call the West Family YMCA at 563-386-4414 or visit the Scott County Family Y website, www.ScottCountyFamilyY.org.

Provision passed by House paves way for Pentagon to provide benefits to Iowa National Guard troops

Washington, DC - Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa) today announced that his Guaranteed Benefits for Our Troops Act (HR 1222) was included in the final FY2010 National Defense Authorization Act, which passed the House today by a vote of 281-146.  The legislation will now be sent to the Senate for passage and then onto President Obama to be signed into law.

Braley's fix will ensure that hundreds of Iowa National Guard members are provided benefits they were promised under the Department of Defense's Post-Deployment/Mobilization Respite Absence (PDMRA) program, commonly known as "Respite Leave."  Over 20,000 Army National Guard members across the country - including almost 800 members of the Iowa National Guard - did not receive benefits they earned due to delay between the announcement of the leave program by the Department of Defense and the implementation of the program by the individual services.

"Today brings us one critical step closer to ensuring that National Guard troops across the country receive the benefits they earned and deserve," Braley said.  "Iowa National Guard troops have served some of the most grueling and lengthy deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan, and we owe it to them to provide these long overdue benefits immediately.  I'm looking forward to seeing President Obama sign this important legislation into law, and seeing Iowa National Guard troops finally receive the benefits they have long been promised by the Pentagon."

Respite Leave was designed to provide service members deployed to places like Iraq and Afghanistan for longer than established rotation cycles additional help to reintegrate back to civilian life, as well as to improve the retention of service members who had experienced especially long tours of duty.

Once the Respite Leave program was announced, however, there were significant delays before its implementation.  The Department of the Army, for example, didn't issue its corresponding policy for implementing Respite Leave until more than six months after the Pentagon's January 2007 announcement of the program.

Because of this gap, thousands of soldiers from the Army National Guard did not receive proper Respite Leave compensation.

Braley first introduced the Guaranteed Benefits for Our Troops Act in July 2008.  The bill, which will allow the Pentagon to retroactively grant up to $200 per day to affected troops, has previously passed the House as part of the FY2010 National Defense Authorization Act and as part of a Department of Defense appropriations bill.

The legislation will now be sent to the Senate for passage and then onto President Obama to be signed into law.

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In addition to the Pumpkin Festival held at Fejervary Park on October 24th, the City of Davenport Parks & Recreation Department has focused their efforts in supporting the men and women of the U.S. armed forces by organizing Operation Tee Off To Iraq. Operation Tee Off To Iraq is an organized effort to collect and distribute donated golf supplies overseas to inspire the men and woman of the armed forces to keep up their efforts during demanding times.

To further support our efforts, inspired donations of used golf clubs, balls, tees, and monetary donations for shipment are greatly appreciated.

Donation table will be present at the front gate of the Pumpkin Festival at Fejervary Park on October 24th.

Interested donors not able to participate in Pumpkin Festival, please contact: Polly Delange -Senior Clerk, Davenport Parks & Recreation at 563-326-7816.