MetroLINK, the mass-transit system for the Illinois Quad Cities, has re-branded itself as "Metro" and is rolling out changes to encourage more Quad Citians to go green. These will include a new slogan, logo, bus-stop signs, graphics for the buses, and an Internet micro-site. Metro offers a green transportation option for the Quad Cities; half of its fleet consists of compressed-natural-gas buses, which reduce emissions of exhaust pollutants by 70 to 85 percent. For more information, call (309) 788-3360 or visit QCMetroLINK.com or the microsite at GoGreenMetro.com.
Judy Payne, owner of Davenport-based JP Designs and creator of the organic, reversible pendants known as CoolEarthwear, has expanded her product line to include a limited-edition reversible pendant made from recycled corn. Payne will be donating all proceeds from the sales of the "Corn-for-a-Cause Pendant" to the 2008 Iowa Disaster Fund. The "Corn-for-a-Cause Pendant" will be available for purchase online beginning October 13. For more information, call (563) 650-2727, e-mail sales@JPDesignsLtd.com, or visit CoolEarthwear.com.
The eighth-annual Women of the Year Awards luncheon will honor women of the Quad Cities whose significant volunteer work benefits our community. Honorees are chosen from nominations from local citizens, charities, and organizations. Nomination forms are available at JLQC.org, and the nomination deadline is Friday, October 3.
ABC's World News with Charles Gibson will broadcast from Davenport on Friday, October 10, as part of the "Great American Battleground Bus Tour." In each city, Gibson and World News will look at the key issues facing voters as they prepare to cast their ballots in the presidential election.
Royal Neighbors of America was presented a 2008 Join Hands Day Excellence Award for its Join Hands Day project held in May. In addition to the award, Royal Neighbors received $1,000 to use toward next year's project. Local chapter members, along with area young people, visited several nursing homes and played games and shared lunch with the residents. Join Hands Day is a national day of volunteerism.
The Department of Justice's Grants to State Sexual Assault & Domestic Violence Coalitions Program awarded $82,965 to the Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
The United States Green Building Council recently named the expansion to KJWW Engineering Consultants corporate headquarters in Rock Island as the Quad Cities' first LEED-certified building. The 17,700-square-foot expansion was awarded a LEED Silver Certification. The Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System is a certification program and the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction, and operation of "green" buildings. The certification verifies that a project is environmentally responsible, profitable, and a healthy place to live and work. Utility bills show the new addition uses less energy per square foot than the existing building, even though the new building uses substantially more glass for daylighting and views.
Rebuilding Together Quad Cities, a volunteer-based home-rehabilitation group, will repair 19 homes this fall as part of a Quad Cities Rebuilding Together home-repair spree. Work kicked off September 27 on four projects, with additional workdays scheduled for October 4 and 11 and other weekends into November. Volunteers will repair homes for some of the community's neediest homeowners, helping them live in warmth, safety, dryness, and independence. Rebuilding Together was founded as Hearts & Hammers in 1990 and will have completed projects for 519 Quad Cities homeowners by year's end.
Local author and news anchor Gary Metivier will debut his second book, Willie's Wagon Adventure: A Hog Ate My Homework!, at the Machine Shed on Saturday, October 11, from 5 to 7 p.m. Metivier will participate in a meet-and-greet, and games and prizes will be available for kids. A portion of the proceeds from the book will help send children to cancer camp. The Machine Shed is located at 7250 Northwest Boulevard (I-80 exit 292) in Davneport.
The Judicial Branch of the State of Iowa will receive $499,800 from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services' Administration on Children, Youth, & Families to address families affected by substance abuse.
