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Labor day celebrations across the QCA

Communities across the Quad Cities are celebrating Labor Day.

Vibrant Arena, QC Storm agree to 10-year lease

Vibrant Arena and the QC Storm agreed to a 10-year lease featuring ice system and arena upgrades, new Executive Director Rik Edgar announced.

KWQC+ to preview college football season

KWQC will host a special livestream previewing this year’s college football season.

Quad Cities schools cancel activities, dismiss early during extreme heat

Davenport, Geneseo, and Rockridge school districts are canceling outdoor sports and dismissing early during First Alert Heat Days.

MLK Center hosts Soul of the City 2026

The Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center presents Soul of the City 2026, a free, family-friendly celebration of community, culture and connection on Saturday, September 5th from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. at Franklin Field, 1251-9th Street in Rock Island. The festivities start with the Soul of the City Parade at 10 a.m. The parade [...]

Moline accepting applications for its Public Art Maintenance Program

The program provides matching funds to help individuals or organizations repair, restore and maintain existing public artwork in Moline.

First-time mom nominates Trinity BirthPlace nurse for national award after reuniting her with newborn in NICU

A first-time mom nominated a UnityPoint Health Trinity BirthPlace nurse for a DAISY Award after the nurse helped her reunite with her newborn baby in Iowa City.

Vibrant Arena and QC Storm agree to 10-year lease extension

Vibrant Arena at The MARK and the Quad City Storm hockey team announced a new 10-year lease agreement on Tuesday morning, Sept. 1.

Bob Guy named Grand Marshal of Galesburg Labor Day Parade

Bob Guy, SMART Transportation Division Illinois State Director, has been named the Grand Marshal of the 2026 Galesburg Labor Day Parade. The parade starts on Monday, September 7 at 10 a.m. along Main Street in downtown Galesburg. The parade is hosted by the Galesburg Trades & Labor Assembly and is recognized as the nation’s oldest [...]

Davenport to vote on another employee settlement

A former attorney is asking for nearly $400k

Federal funding extended again for Chicago-Quad Cities passenger rail project

There is still no timeline for when the long-delayed project would begin.

Stone’s Apple Barn won’t offer apple picking this year

Customers will still be able to buy apples from the store along with regular items, though officials said some varieties may be limited.

Labor Day weekend gas prices vary across region, AAA says

Gas prices across the Quad Cities vary heading into the holiday weekend, averaging $4.34 in Illinois and $3.87 in Iowa.

2 injured after driver fails to yield for motorcycle near Pleasant Valley High School

While the two vehicles didn't actually collide, the near collision caused the motorcycle to swerve and land on its side, according to the sheriff's office.

Congress averts a government shutdown ahead of the midterms

With just a few weeks to spare, the House approved legislation extending funding through mid-December.

The week in hip-hop: Gettin' dead fresh with Erykah Badu and Saul Williams

NPR Music culture critic and reporter Rodney Carmichael ruminates on the latest in rap culture. This week: like-minded releases from Erykah Badu and Saul Williams, closure in the 2Pac murder and more.

Applications open for Moline Public Art Maintenance Program

The City of Moline is now accepting applications for its Public Art Maintenance Program. The program provides matching funds to help people and organizations repair and restore existing public artwork in Moline. Applications are open between September 1 and October 31. A total of $10,000 in matching funds is available for eligible public art maintenance projects. [...]

ICE says it has enough body cameras now, after series of deadly shootings

Cameras could help alleviate some concerns about ICE transparency and accountability after immigration officers were involved in over two dozen shootings under the Trump administration.

QC Storm, Vibrant Arena extend lease through 2031

The Quad City Storm and Vibrant Arena at the MARK have reached a deal that will keep the team playing in downtown Moline until 2031. The Quad City Storm and Vibrant Arena at The MARK executed a new five year lease agreement. The agreement secures the arena as the team’s home through the 2030-2031 season, [...]

14 new books in September to help ease you into fall

Three Pulitzer winners, a Booker Prize winner, two Booker longlisted authors this year, and a number whose works have been adapted for the screen are among the authors with new books out this month.

Two injured in a near collision in front of Pleasant Valley High School

A mother and her son were taken to a local hospital for treatment.

Pleasant Valley High entrepreneurs raise funds for St. Jude

Two Pleasant Valley High School students used their luxury shine car detailing business to raise funds for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Kamran Foad and Tripp Barclay washed cars for free, in exchange for donations, on August. 29 at Green Buick GMC in Davenport and raised thousands for the hospital. The two seniors say the fundraiser follows what they [...]

Gardeners work to replant grass, flowers after Iowa State Fair

Following record-breaking attendance, fair gardeners say they are now picking up trash in gardens, planting grass seed and growing new flowers.

Retirements, hirings and personnel news from Rock Island-Milan School District from Aug. 25

The following personnel items are from the Aug. 25 agenda of the Rock Island-Milan School District.

North Scott Press — September 2, 2026

Mother and son injured in Scott County motorcycle crash on way to school

A mother and son were injured in a motorcycle crash on the way to school Tuesday morning.

Skydivers take to the air for Donahue Days Duck Race

At 3 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 6, skydivers will fall into the Donahue Sportsman’s Park, carrying an American flag, and kicking off the 30th anniversary Donahue Days Duck Race.  That’s just a taste of the excitement visitors can expect at Donahue Days this year, which begins Friday evening and lasts through Sunday. Festivities begin with family bingo night and a bags tournament together at 6 p.m. Friday evening. Softball and volleyball tournaments pick up at 9 a.m. the next morning. When players aren’t on the diamond or in the sand, they can visit a craft and vendors fair which returns to Donahue Days this year. Free water fights with the fire department take place at 2 p.m. Family movie night starst in the city park as the sun sets around 8 p.m. The Sandlot is this year’s feature. The movie is free, as are snacks and popcorn. Guests only have to bring seating and drinks. Friends of Donahue President Sarah Ganzer said that a grant from Iowa American Water helped sponsor the movie night and other free family activities throughout the weekend. “Anything that does cost money,” like tournaments at the sportsmen’s park or the firefighter’s duck race, “is a fundraiser for that organization,” Ganzer said. Activities reach top gear Sunday, and the fire department pancake breakfast will help you fuel up for it. Flapjacks will be served from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. Families will find a host of free activities throughout the day. Kids quarter-mile and one-miles races step off at 8:45 a.m. and 9 a.m. At 11 a.m., a sand dig will give kids a chance to dig up half-dollars and other prizes in the volleyball court. From 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., Winfield 4-H will offer a petting zoo. “They’re bringing all kinds of goats and things. They’ve said its interactive. They’re very excited about it,” Ganzer said. A kids tractor pull and home run derby both begin at 1 p.m. Sunday. A new foam bubble cannon will complement returning bounces houses. Kids should also prepare for the Donahue Days parade, which will march through town in a shower of candy. The parade starts at noon. Line up begins at 11 a.m. at John Glenn. The pie contest also returns this year, for its 20th anniversary. Apple is the fruit of choice. “We’re really hoping for a good turnout with the number of pies,” co-organizer Linda Holdorf said. Donahue’s pie competition features both traditional, double-crust pies and ever-popular liquid pies. “I guess you’d call it hooch,” Holdorf said. “When we have our auction, that’s one of our big sellers.” Mayor Ken Schoenthaler and volunteers Bob Golinghorst and Cathy Lafrenz are set to return as pie contest judges. Proceeds of the pie auction, at 5:30 p.m., are split between the Donahue Sportsmen’s Club and the fire department. Last year both organizations received $6,100. Skydivers are set to fall around 3 p.m. and mark the beginning of the duck race at 3:30 p.m. Find a member of the Donahue fire department to buy into the duck race, which sends hundreds of rubber ducks down a course in the sportsmen’s park. Every duck is numbered. Whoever bought the “button” for the first duck across the finish line will receive a $1,000 prize.    Live music begins Sunday evening at 7 p.m., followed by fireworks at dusk.      

'Mr. McCausland' named grand marshal for parade

The grand marshal of this year’s Labor Day parade in McCausland is Lloyd Claussen. Or, as his neighbors call him, Mr. McCausland. A lifelong McCausland resident, Claussen has worn just about every hat he has been offered. “If someone comes to mind when you think of McCausland, it’s him,” City Clerk Haylee Soda said. Claussen has been a member of the city council since 2008, but his civic career began long before. In 1986, he helped found McCausland’s twice annual blood drive—and has himself donated over 85 gallons of blood since, according to friend and Deputy City Clerk Jan Lewis. “We took on Washington, Iowa, and we collected 145 pints, and they collected 129 pints,” Claussen recalls fondly. He still organizes the blood drive today. On weekends, Claussen teaches Sunday school at McCausland’s United Methodist Church, where he serves as chairman of the board and runs the church’s Labor Day 5K, one-mile and quarter-mile races. Claussen has worked at Steve’s Auto since he was a teenager. He has coached Little League, organized town holiday parties and led ditch cleanup crews, Lewis said. After joining the city council, he led the successful local push to save the post office from closure. He called it his proudest moment. Lewis was postmaster at the time, and remembers Claussen coming in to strategize. Could it be done? Claussen would ask. Could the post office be saved? “If it could be done, he would do it,” Lewis recalls telling him. Soda said Claussen wasn’t sure about his appointment as grand marshal when she first proposed it, “but he’s honored to do it now.” “He’s just such a deserving person to be recognized,” she said. “It is way past due,” Lewis added. Labor Day Festivities Claussen presides over a suite of festivities that will take to McCausland streets Labor Day weekend. Activities begin with bounces houses, food trucks and a hotdog eating contest Sunday evening, with a street dance to follow at 7 p.m., and fireworks at 9 p.m. The McCausland fire department will serve pancakes for breakfast from 7 a.m. the next morning—a perfect bite for anyone driving in for the Labor Day car show. Sign up begins at 8 a.m., and drivers are advised to arrive early to avoid the parade. Runners will take their 5K marks at 8 a.m. As that race concludes, a pair of kids races—one-mile and quarter-mile—will step off, at 9:15 a.m. and 9:45 a.m. The parade will march through city streets at noon, with Claussen in the lead. Food trucks and the United Methodist Church will offer lunch. The kids’ tractor pull returns in the afternoon, at 3 p.m. “Kids that win their age division have the ability to go on at the state level,” Soda said. A 3 p.m., organizers will announce winners of the car show and draw one lucky ticket for the firemen’s 50/50 raffle. This year, the city of McCausland recruited a host of local sponsors for its Labor Day celebration, as the city works to manage its high property tax rate. Logan’s Auto, Central Broadband, Lucky Frog, Steve’s Auto, and Porter Insurance are this year’s sponsors. “But I’m happy with the amount that we were able to get. It’s encouraging,” Soda said. She hopes to grow the number of sponsors each year and lower the cost to city taxpayers. “I can see us being able to cut back further each year, and hopefully add more fun activities for families,” she said.

Living 'An American Dream' in Iowa

Not many people get to say they’re living out their dreams. Aaron Fullan is one of the lucky ones. And he’s got lots of dreams. The Clinton-based actor, comedian and composer shared his story with members of the North Scott Rotary Club last Friday. Fullan is not only working in his dream profession, he’s also able to do it all from his hometown. Throughout his career, he’s amassed more than 260,000 followers on social media, and his online content has earned millions of views.  His latest adventure helped celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. Fullan was introduced by club member and Iowa lieutenant governor Chris Cournoyer. While Cournoyer has been visiting other Rotary clubs across the state, celebrating America 250, she was delighted when Fullan reached out to her to explain he’d been approached to compose a symphonic piece for a Pennsylvania-based orchestra. “An American Dream” had its world premiere in June, and Rotary members were able to listen to a recording of the 11-minute piece. “It was an honor to be able to write something for such a momentous time in our history, and music is such a uniting thing,” said Fullan. “There were people there, obviously, on both sides of the political aisle, who can listen to something like that and really feel a sense of American pride, and just feel honored to live here and have the freedoms that we do.” This was Fullan’s first piece for a full orchestra, although he’d written for string quartets. And the opportunity came from a chance encounter. The wife of one of Fullan’s friends works for a non-profit, and when the couple attended an event in Washington, D.C., last year, Fullan’s friend happened to sit next to the vice-president of the board of the Brandywine Valley Symphony Orchestra from Kennett Square, Pa., near Philadelphia. Fullan’s friend learned that the symphony was looking to commission an original piece to celebrate America 250. Naturally, he knew just who to recommend. The board approved Fullan as their composer and from there, he went to work. “They wanted it to be a medley, so they wanted to incorporate as many patriotic pieces as possible into a short amount of time. So, we put together a list, and I took it and ran with it. Writing a medley is challenging, because you don’t have much time to give each piece. So, you’ve got to be creative in how you do that. “But it was an incredible honor to work with these pieces that I’ve been listening to since I was a kid.” Fullan said the organizers wanted the piece to be “as historically broad as possible,” so the songs for the medley include everything from “Yankee Doodle,” to Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA.” There are also completely original orchestrations, including the introduction, where Fullan said he wanted to evoke the feeling of being out on the ocean, just as the first settlers experienced. He said the composition process took a few months, and while the conductor had a few minor notes, there were no major rewrites. Fullan composed the music for each instrument using a computer program and then worked with an orchestrator on the final piece. “As a composer, my favorite thing to do is to write music, not necessarily make sure it works well for an orchestra. So, a lot of times, composers and orchestrators partner. I wrote it on my computer, assigned all the instruments and created it the way I wanted it to sound. And then I send all of those digital parts to an orchestrator, and they put it down on paper for the musicians. “I have a very good friend – he told me once, ‘If I could just orchestrate and not compose, I would do that.’ And my immediate thought was, ‘You and I need to be friends, because I want to compose and I don’t want to orchestrate.’ So, we make a great team.” The piece had its first public performance on June 26 at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, regarded as one of the finest arboretums in the world. Fullan said some of the best American composers, including John Philip Sousa and Aaron Copland have performed there. “My whole family got to go,” he said. “It was a really, really special event. “It was an American-themed concert, so they had my name with John Williams, Copland and Sousa.” While the symphony was a success, and Fullan looks forward to it being performed again, there was one hiccup he learned about after the premiere that’s held up the publishing rights to the piece. The symphony includes an excerpt from “God Bless America,” which was written by Irving Berlin. “We didn’t know this going into writing this medley, but Irving Berlin gave all of his music royalty rights to Boy Scouts of America. All proceeds of Irving Berlin’s work go to the Boy Scouts. And they are notoriously resistant to medleys using his pieces.” Although a publishing company was hired to help get the rights to the songs in the medley, they apparently missed “God Bless America,” and as a result the piece is in publishing limbo. “I may just have to cut that part out – which I don’t want to do – in order to make it publishing friendly.” But while that plays out, Fullan said he’s looking forward to writing more music and telling more stories. He said he particularly enjoys writing music for films. “That was my first love. I went to a John Williams concert at the Chicago Symphony Hall in 2008. I will never forget it. My dad got me the ticket as my high school graduation present, and I sat in the middle of the tenth row, and I was like, ‘This is what I want to do.’ And that was a turning point moment for me.” From Clinton to the big-time Fullan’s journey began in a straightforward manner. The son of a firefighter and a cosmetologist, he and his two older brothers had to take piano lessons. “My parents were very adamant that we were going to take at least two years of piano lessons, just to see if we had any God-given talent to exercise. If not, they said, ‘You can quit.’” Although he once pretended to complain about practicing his 20 minutes per day, Fullan said he knew from an early age he loved playing the piano. “I had an amazing piano teacher, Sharon Burggraaf here in Clinton. She is the most joyful person, loves music, and just helped fan that flame in me and gave me an incredible love for it.” “I always like to encourage you to encourage music in your households. In one way, shape or form, music is the gift that keeps on giving.” While Fullan was a multi-sport athlete in both high school and college, he said both sports and music have taught him invaluable skills. But he cited the connection between music and education. “The studies on the connection between music and literacy and higher test scores, it’s undeniable. And often, it’s the first thing to get cut in school programs, sadly. But it really is one of those things that, if you put the time and effort into it, you’re going to play it the rest of your life. John Williams, one of my musical heroes, is 93, 94, and is still writing music for films. So, it’s something that’s so good for mind, body, soul and spirit.”  After high school, Fullan attended Emmaus Bible College in Dubuque, where he majored in music ministry with an emphasis on piano performance. While he studied composing at Emmaus, Fullan said his composition dreams didn’t really come to fruition until after college. “I took one semester of composition, and that was enough for me to be like, this is something I would love to do, but I didn’t really know exactly how I was going to do it.” In a way though, that’s what drew him to music ministry. He began playing piano at his church when he was around 10 years old, which he described as “a great training ground.” He said he also knew that he wanted to use his gift for music. “I feel like God gave me this gift and I think He wants me to cultivate it and work on it to use it in ways that bless other people.” Fullan said he draws inspiration in part from the composer Johann Sebastian Bach. “I have always looked up to him as one of my musical heroes. And one of the things he would do in his pieces – which I did for “An American Dream” – he would always start his pieces on the manuscript, ‘Jesus, help me,’ in Latin. And then at the end, it said, ‘For the glory of God alone.’ He was very single-minded, and he knew where all of his talent came from. Therefore, all of the music he wrote, whether it was sacred or secular, he knew that music was a gift from God. “A lot of the musicians that I studied in music history in college, their lives were kind of out of control and filled with a lot of hardship and pain and were just not grounded individuals. Bach was one of the very stable musicians, and I think that had a lot to do with it. He understood where his gift came from and who it was for, and that really informed what he was doing and gave purpose to whatever he was writing. So, I have that in my studio – Soli Deo Gloria, which is Latin for ‘For the glory of God alone,’ just to remind me why I do what I do.” ‘I really like making people laugh’ But Fullan’s talents aren’t just limited to music. He’s also a successful actor. That wasn’t always part of the plan, though. “I was painfully shy when I was young and did not want any sort of attention. And then right around when I started high school, something just clicked and switched, and I was funny all of a sudden. And I realized I really like making people laugh and having an audience. So, I did some plays in high school and got some really good feedback from the performances that I did. “I kind of considered going straight to Hollywood to just try it for a while when I graduated from high school. I will never forget it, my dad and I went out to eat. He was just kind of like, ‘A lot of people who just jump right into it without any sort of foundation, they kind of crash and burn. So, why don’t you take a year to think about it.’ And I’m so glad he did, because I ended up going a little bit more of an unconventional route.” That route included his music. As a way to promote himself, Fullan began making online content – “Funny videos that were about music and the music that I was writing. And I got a lot of great response and people being like, ‘You could act.’ And it just didn’t seem like a realistic path for me at that time. I just got married and started having kids. We were really settled here in the Midwest.” But, as with so many things, the pandemic changed Fullan’s perspective. “I had been reaching out to talent agents about music, because film music was where I was getting most of my opportunities. So I really wanted to get an agent to represent me, because I hate the business side of the arts.” As he was contacting agents in 2020, one said she had watched some of his online content and thought he might have potential as an actor. After an audition, the agent signed him two weeks later, and shortly after that, he booked his first commercial, which filmed in North Carolina. Since then, he’s not only done more commercials, he’s also appeared in several short and feature films. “Because of the pandemic, it’s crazy that the reality is, now you don’t have to go into casting offices. You can set up a camera and audition from home. If they like you enough, they’ll fly you to where you need to be. So now more than ever, acting is accessible to anyone and everyone if you have a quiet room in your home.” Fullan described the entertainment industry as “the Wild, Wild West” right now, which he said makes it an exciting time. With more access to the industry, independent filmmaking is at an all-time high. “Hollywood was very much dominated by these massive studios, and it was so hard to get in. Now, if you have talent, there’s so many different ways to showcase your talent and build relationships and connect. To practice on smaller films and projects and build your way in. You now have much more opportunity because the landscape has shifted so much, again, due to the pandemic. “We’re living in unprecedented times for the entertainment industry, which causes a lot of uncertainty in those main strongholds of Hollywood, but most everyone else I talk to and who are in the same boat as I am, it’s extremely exciting.” He cited Bettendorf natives Scott Beck and Bryan Woods as one example. The pair founded their filmmaking company while they were students at the University of Iowa and eventually began producing and writing. One of their biggest hits was 2018’s A Quiet Place, starring Emily Blunt and John Krasinski.  “They were just passionate while they were at school here in the Quad Cities and then just kept making movies,” said Fullan. “One of my big goals is to be able to encourage other small-town Iowans, Midwesterners, anybody who’s not from a major entertainment hub, that it is possible to pursue big dreams from right where you’re at. Iowa, for example, has brought out John Wayne, Elijah Wood, Ashton Kutcher. There have been a lot of great artists that have come out of Iowa, but they’ve all had to go to Hollywood to do the work that they did. “But now is a new era in the entertainment industry and in the music industry. Because we are so connected, we can do this anywhere. And so, I’ve been doing it full-time, since 2021, from our little house in Clinton, Iowa. That has been a dream come true for me and our family.” He said that, although his work is rewarding, it’s not always easy. “I’m always honest with people up front that it’s not the easiest path. Because you’re up against a lot. You’re going to be working against people who are like, “How are you going to make that happen? That doesn’t seem realistic.’  So, you really have to be determined to do it. If you feel like it’s something you’re called to do and you’re very, very passionate about it, I would just encourage you to go for it.” With his family and his faith helping to guide him and keep him grounded, Fullan said he’s looking for opportunities to continue sharing his talents. “I love film. I love storytelling. A couple of years ago, I had the first opportunity – which I hope to do more of – I played the lead role in a Christmas musical film, and I wrote the music for it. So, that’s my goal, to be able to combine those two passions and do more of that. “I love telling stories. That’s why I wanted to do film music specifically. But I’ve always been inspired by stories. Storytelling is one of the most powerful ways to affect change and inspire people to do good,” Fullan continued. “There’s times when I’m writing music for films that I’m moved to tears, not because of the music, but because of how it’s all coming together. The story is coming through loud and clear, and those moments are so incredibly impactful.” Fullan is also producing his first film right now, a family comedy about travel baseball which will film in the spring of 2027. “Lots to laugh about in travel sports. I think there’s a lot of shared pain points for parents.” The film came from a list of 10 ideas, and Fullan said he’d like to tell the rest of those stories someday, too. But mostly, he wants to tell stories that inspire and uplift. “And comedy, family-friendly comedies. Like I said, I love making people laugh. So, family-friendly, wholesome entertainment.” And he said he’d like to help inspire others if he can. “One of my big goals is to help inspire kids who may find themselves in the same boat I was in … where it just didn’t seem possible to do things that don’t happen as much around here. Chris Cournoyer and I chatted, and she was saying there’s so many gifts here in Iowa, in the Midwest. She said, ‘I feel like Iowa is the USA’s best-kept secret,’ in the sense that there’s so much gift here that isn’t publicized because it doesn’t have the same opportunity. You’re not in the Hollywood Reporter or Variety or these major trade publications. And I think that can discourage a lot of people from doing things that maybe they should do. I really want my life to help young people really overcome these hurdles. It could be hard and it’s not the easy path that many people choose, but it’s worth it and it’s certainly possible if you’re willing to put in the time, effort and creativity to make it happen.” He said he wants to help young people with their dreams because he had so many inspiring mentors as he began in the industry. They include longtime Hollywood music supervisor Lindsay Fellows. He works for Walden Media, which co-produced films such as the Chronicles of Narnia series, Journey to the Center of the Earth and City of Ember.  Fullan took a chance early in his career and reached out to Fellows via LinkedIn asking for advice and guidance. “And he responded so quickly. ‘This is great. I think you do have talent. Let’s keep in touch; I love mentoring young composers.’ To this day, he is one of my go-to people that I contact when I want him to listen to something, or I need advice about something. That’s been incredibly invaluable to me, and I want to be able to be that type of resource for others.” ‘I can’t believe I’m here’ Fullan took a moment to reflect on his most recent success with “An American Dream.” When the conductor lifted his arms to begin the piece on June 26, he said the thought that ran through his mind was, “I can’t believe I’m here. “When you get so caught up in working hard at a dream you’ve had, it’s sometimes difficult to pause and soak in some of the realizations of those dreams. You’re so focused on the next step that you don’t pause and say, ‘I did it. I got to this point that, 10 years ago, I could have only dreamed of doing.’ “Just looking around – my family, my in-laws, my parents, my brother and sister-in-law all made the trip out to Pennsylvania. I was looking around at my family and how supportive they’ve been. And then, they had about 1,100 people in the audience at this incredibly beautiful historical venue. “I guess the best way to say it is that I savored it. I soaked it in and really was like, ‘Oh, my word. Thank you, God. This is more than I could have asked for.’” For more information, visit aaronfullan.com.      

Supervisors oppose Bettendorf TIF district

The Scott County Board of Supervisors handled a light agenda last week, with only one major item regarding a proposed TIF district in Bettendorf. At last Tuesday’s committee of the whole meeting, county planning and development director Greg Schaapveld explained that Bettendorf is proposing a new “Downtown North” urban renewal area. The URA would be comprised of 329 acres extending from 17th Street to the city limit at Riverdale and from State Street north to Central Avenue. This project would also include the redevelopment of what is currently the Hillside Mobile Home Park, located in the 4400 block of State Street. Schaapveld said the mobile home park housed 36 inhabited trailers at its most recent peak, but it is now down to six trailers. The owner of the park is moving trailers – at no cost to the residents – to other mobile home parks in the area. Schaapveld said the owner originally intended to develop the area into a new mobile home park with new infrastructure. However, Bettendorf recently conducted a study showing the need for approximately 400 downtown apartment units. So, the developer and the city plan to work together to develop the site into a multifamily residential area with 168 market-rate apartments. The city plans to offer $2.7 million in TIF incentives over 10 years. “They expect it will be paid out and finaled in seven-and-a-half to eight years,” said Schaapveld. Although the county does not have any say in how Bettendorf chooses to approach this project, as it will be entirely within city limits, it did have the opportunity to comment. In keeping with the county’s longstanding principals regarding TIF usage, Schaapveld drafted a letter to the Bettendorf City Council opposing its use for residential projects. “In accordance with the County’s adopted TIF Principles, the Board supports the use of TIF when it is used to reverse blight and declining property values, if it is to offset the extraordinary cost of such redevelopment in urban renewal areas. Scott County opposes the use of tax increment financing to fund public and private infrastructure for residential development. Lastly, the Board recommends that all projects financed with incremental taxes be for the minimum dollar amount necessary to make the project feasible and also be of the shortest possible duration,” read the letter. “The board generally does support the use of TIF for removal or repair of blight, which, arguably, this is a blighted area. The infrastructure is in pretty poor shape,” said Schaapveld. “On the flip side, you don’t generally support the development of residential property with TIF, which, ultimately, this is residential development.” Supervisor Ken Beck said the project area is “pretty dilapidated,” but he agreed that TIF should not be used to pay for infrastructure improvements for residential development. “I appreciate the letter being down the middle, saying we don’t object to it necessarily, but here’s what we support; here’s what we don’t.” Supervisor Maria Bribriesco agreed with Beck, saying that while the county appreciates attempts to remediate blight, she had additional concerns about the project. Bribriesco said she thought having market-rate apartments could contribute to additional homelessness in the area. “I think people are being priced out of the market and I think – I know we don’t have a vote – but I think we need to make a little more emphasis that we care about people that don’t have as much money. The people that stay at these trailer parks don’t have the means to live in $200,000 homes or really nice apartments, and we need to start thinking about the homelessness in Scott County. And Bettendorf needs to be doing the same.” “There’s not a darn thing we can do about it,” said board chair John Maxwell. “We can say that it’s going to contribute to homelessness, we can say everything we want to say, but our hands are tied. And the only thing we can do to change it is to keep talking to our legislators.” “Thanks, Greg, for staying the course and writing the letter,” said supervisor Jean Dickson. Other business The only other item of business handled by the board was the renewal of the Class C retail alcohol license for Slaby’s Bar & Grill in Plainview.    

Tasty Café to be featured on America's Best Restaurants Roadshow

Eldridge’s Tasty Café played host to America’s Best Restaurants, a national media and marketing company, on Monday morning. During the on-site visit, they filmed an appearance for the ABR Roadshow. America’s Best Restaurants travels the country spotlighting independent, locally owned restaurants that make a positive impact on their communities. During the visit, the ABR Roadshow team highlighted Tasty Café on camera, featuring an extensive interview with owner Arber Djaferi about the restaurant’s special place in the community. Established in 2019, Tasty Café was born out of a long-held dream by its founders to create a welcoming dining experience. The restaurant is committed to treating every guest like family, serving fresh, high-quality breakfast and lunch favorites in a comfortable atmosphere where everyone feels at home. Tasty Café actively engages with the community through school sponsorships and charity work, reinforcing its dedication to local support. “We are incredibly grateful for the support we’ve received from the Eldridge and Quad Cities community.  Our goal has always been to create a place where people can enjoy great food, friendly service, and feel right at home. Whether it’s a family breakfast, a business meeting, or catching up with friends over coffee, we want every guest to leave with a smile. Being recognized by America’s Best Restaurants is an honor, and we look forward to continuing to serve our community for many years to come,” said Djaferi. The completed episode will be aired extensively on social media channels at a later date. The premiere date will be announced on the restaurant’s Facebook page and featured on America’s Best Restaurants’ website and YouTube channel. Headquartered in Florence, Ky., America’s Best Restaurants is a national media and restaurant marketing company that travels the country telling the stories of locally owned, independent restaurants through its ABR Roadshow. With more than 2,000 episodes filmed, ABR features restaurants across its social media channels, website, and the restaurant’s own digital platforms. Learn more at AmericasBestRestaurants.com.

NSP Football Contest returns this week

The North Scott Press Football Contest kicks off this week, and you’re invited to join the fun! Over the next 12 weeks, prognosticators predict the outcome of 13 games plus a tiebreaker — the total points in one game. The entrant with the most correct picks wins $50. Second prize is $25, and third is $10. Winners will be announced weekly in a news story in The NSP. Game pairings for each week appear in the ads on the contest page with an entry form that must be filled out and delivered in person by Friday at 5 p.m. to The North Scott Press office at 214 N. Second St., or mailed to: North Scott Press, P.O. Box 200, Eldridge, IA 52748. Mailed entries must be received by Saturday. Official forms are also available from the sponsors, whose ads appear on the contest page. There is only one entry per person allowed, but family members and co-workers are encouraged to play (no photocopied forms accepted). There is no cost to enter. Official rules can be found on the contest page - please read carefully. The first slate of games appears this week on page 3A. Thank you to this year’s sponsors: Porter Insurance, DuTrac Community Credit Union, ORA Sports Medicine, Farm Bureau Financial Services – Tony Burkhart, First Central State Bank, Ruhl & Ruhl Realtors – Nancy Billups, Iowa 80 Truckstop, Steve’s Auto Sales, King’s Material, Eldridge Body Shop, and Amhof Trucking.

Insects: Friend or foe?

Not all insects are bad.  Some are useful and critical to success in our gardens.  Learn to ID the most common found in the yard.  This program will be presented by Entomologist Mike Kintner with the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship on Tuesday, Sept. 8, at 6 p.m. at the Scott County Extension Office, 875 Tanglefoot Lane, Bettendorf. It is free and open to the public.  Registration is appreciated using this link. https://go.iastate.edu/0PA1QB

Eldridge Legion installs new commander

At the monthly meeting Aug. 10, American Legion Post 639 installed Elmer Jackson as the new commander. Commander Jackson is a Vietnam veteran and is a current resident of Eldridge for over 35 years. The commander invites all current members of Post 639 to attend monthly meeting. Regular monthly meetings are held in the Scott County Library in Eldridge at 6 p.m. on the second Monday of each month. The commander also invites non-member veterans to attend one of the routine meetings.

Absentee ballot requests open now

Scott County Auditor Kerri Tompkins announced that Tuesday, Aug. 25, is the first day for voters to submit requests for absentee ballots by mail for the Nov. 3 General Election. You must request an absentee ballot to receive a ballot via the mail. Ballots will begin to be mailed on Oct. 14. The completed absentee ballot request form is due in the auditor’s office by 5 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 19. Request forms are available in the office (M-F, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), via download from the Auditor’s webpage or the Auditor’s Office will mail forms to voters upon request, www.elections.scottcountyiowa.gov or you can call 563.326.8631.

Cracks, spots and slow ripening: Diagnosing common tomato issues

Home gardeners across Iowa are reporting a wide range of tomato issues this summer. While many gardeners first suspect disease, several of the most common problems are physiological disorders triggered by fluctuating weather, uneven moisture and environmental stress. "Many of the tomato problems gardeners are seeing are tied to growing conditions rather than diseases or insects," said Chelsea Harbach, director of diagnostics and plant health specialist at Iowa State University’s Plant and Insect Diagnostic Clinic. Aaron Steil, consumer horticulture specialist with ISU Extension and Outreach, added that periods of heavy rain, hot temperatures and inconsistent soil moisture can all affect fruit quality and development. Blossom end rot appears early One of the most common complaints this season has been blossom end rot. The disorder appears as a brown or black sunken area on the end opposite the stem (blossom end) of developing fruit. "Blossom end rot is caused by a calcium deficiency within the fruit, but in Iowa soils, the underlying issue is usually inconsistent soil moisture, not a lack of calcium in the soil," said Steil. Wide swings between wet and dry conditions can limit calcium movement into developing tomatoes. Gardeners can reduce problems by watering deeply during dry periods, applying mulch and avoiding excessive fertilizer applications. "Consistent moisture is the best prevention," said Harbach. “Adding calcium products rarely addresses the problem completely.” Cracking follows rainfall Heavy summer rains have also led to widespread fruit cracking. Cracks typically form near the stem and may radiate outward or circle the fruit stem. "When tomatoes suddenly take up lots of water after a dry spell, the fruit expands faster than the skin can stretch," Steil explained. Large-fruited beefsteak tomatoes are especially susceptible, though some varieties have better crack resistance than others. Mulching and providing even moisture throughout the season helps reduce cracking, according to Steil. Sunscald damages exposed fruit Periods of intense heat and strong sunlight have caused sunscald in some gardens. The disorder appears as pale white or yellow patches on fruit exposed to direct sun. "Tomato fruit naturally relies on the plant's foliage for protection," Steil said. "When fruit suddenly becomes exposed because of disease, storm damage or heavy pruning, sunscald can develop quickly." As damage progresses, the affected area may become sunken and vulnerable to decay. Harbach noted that gardeners can reduce sunscald by maintaining healthy foliage and avoiding excessive pruning. Heat impacts fruit set Many gardeners noticed flowers dropping from plants earlier this season without producing tomatoes. "Tomatoes are sensitive to temperature extremes during flowering," Steil said. "Very hot days and nights can interfere with pollination and reduce fruit set." Blossom drop is particularly likely when night temperatures stay above 75ºF. "The good news is that plants often begin setting fruit again when temperatures moderate," he said. “Providing adequate moisture during dry weather helps plants cope with stress.” Weather fuels disease This season's wet spring and stretches of hot, humid weather have also contributed to tomato diseases in many home gardens. Warm, wet conditions favor common problems such as Septoria leaf spot, early blight and bacterial spot, while prolonged leaf wetness can help other fungal and bacterial diseases become established. "When leaves stay wet for long periods and humidity remains high, disease problems can spread quickly," Harbach said. “Good sanitation, mulching, watering at the base of plants and providing adequate spacing and air circulation can go a long way toward reducing disease pressure in the garden.” Consistency is best Despite the variety of symptoms appearing this season, many of the solutions are the same. "Tomatoes perform best when they receive consistent care," said Steil. “Regular watering, mulch, balanced fertilization, good air circulation and proper training all help reduce stress-related disorders.”

Powerful Tools for Caregivers virtual series begins Sept. 11

Family caregiving is a growing responsibility for many Americans. Nearly 39% of U.S. adults provide care for a family member or friend with a chronic health condition. While caregiving can be rewarding, it often brings challenges that may affect caregivers' physical health, emotional well-being and overall life satisfaction. “Caregiving can be stressful, and many caregivers struggle to find the support they need,” said Barbara Dunn Swanson, health and human sciences educator with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. To help address these challenges, ISU Extension and Outreach is offering Powerful Tools for Caregivers, an evidence-based educational program designed for individuals caring for a spouse, parent, relative or friend with a chronic condition, including dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. The program provides practical strategies and resources to help caregivers manage the demands of caregiving while maintaining their own health and well-being. Participants will learn techniques for: • Reducing stress • Communicating effectively with care recipients, family members and healthcare professionals • Making difficult caregiving decisions • Managing emotions related to caregiving • Finding and using community resources A virtual Powerful Tools for Caregivers of Adults with Chronic Conditions series will be held on six Fridays: Sept. 11, 18 and 25, and Oct. 2, 9 and 16, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The workshop series is designed to provide caregivers with practical tools and support to help them care for themselves as they care for others. “Caregiving can be one of the most meaningful roles a person takes on, but it can also be physically and emotionally demanding,” said Malisa Rader, health and human sciences educator with ISU Extension and Outreach. “Powerful Tools for Caregivers reminds participants that caring for themselves is not selfish. It is an essential part of providing quality care for a care recipient.” “Caregivers who thrive, rather than just survive, understand that by taking care of themselves, they are better able to provide meaningful care,” added Swanson. The cost is $60 per person, which includes the Powerful Tools for Caregivers workbook mailed to participants before the series begins. Caregivers of Iowa cancer survivors may participate at no cost thanks to funding from the Iowa Cancer Consortium. Use coupon code CANCERIOWA when registering. The registration deadline is Sept. 4 or until all available slots are filled. Registration is available online at https://go.iastate.edu/YHM0RO. For more information about the program, visit www.extension.iastate.edu/humansciences/ptc or contact health and human sciences educator Malisa Rader at mrader@iastate.edu or 515-708-0622.  

Miller-Meeks pledges to continue support for cancer research, prevention

IOWA CITY — U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks spoke Monday with cancer survivors and researchers and signed the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network’s promise to support the network’s priorities to end cancer. Miller-Meeks, who is running for reelection in Iowa’s 1st Congressional District, spoke about her efforts in Congress to support cancer research, early detection, screenings and cancer prevention. The Republican from Ottumwa is an ophthalmologist and said that while her current job is in Congress, “you don’t ever take the doctor out.” Miller-Meeks said similarly, she also carries the “pain” of her sister dying of breast cancer and her brother from lung cancer. Volunteers and cancer survivors at the Iowa City event said they had spoken with Miller-Meeks frequently and appreciated her support of cancer issues. At the close of the event, Miller-Meeks signed the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network’s “Cancer Promise” which is a pledge to “help advance policies and legislation” that support cancer research, access to affordable healthcare and ensure access to cancer prevention services. The event was part of a series of “coffee cancer chats” hosted by the network to speak with Iowa candidates ahead of the November election about cancer in Iowa, where cancer rates are among the highest in the nation. Miller-Meeks’ opponent, Democrat Christina Bohannan, participated in the cancer chat in mid-August and agreed to questions posed by the network about increasing cancer research funding, expanding the scope of clinical trial participants and funding for smoking-cessation programs. Miller-Meeks also answered in the affirmative to the same questions asked of her Monday and noted bills she has already worked on to help address some of the same issues. Prevention and detection A bill sponsored by Miller-Meeks to provide Medicare funding for multi-cancer early detection tests was signed into law in February. Miller-Meeks said Monday these blood tests will be a “game changer” for overall cancer detection and “help level the playing field” for rural residents since the blood test can be done anywhere. “It’s one of the things that is going to really help transform the ability for people, no matter where they live, whether it is, you know, in a healthcare desert in an urban area or whether they’re in a rural area, to have access by a blood test, which then can be sent to a laboratory,” Miller-Meeks said. She also spoke about bills she has worked on to increase access to 3D mammography for veterans and members of the military. Miller-Meeks said often when people talk about cancer, they try to say that it’s attributed to one thing – tobacco use or  water quality, for example. “When you actually look at the Iowa Cancer Registry and you look at who has cancer, what kind of cancer, what groups is it most prevalent in, and then you look at their individual data — then you find it’s not as simple as people are trying to make it out to be,” Miller-Meeks said. She also said prevention is more than just screening, but programs and technology that help to improve overall health. “I do think that technology has the ability to change behavior, and when it comes to cancer prevention, whether it’s tobacco cessation, whether it’s obesity, whether it’s a sedentary lifestyle, all of those things are impacting our health,” Miller-Meeks said. Rural care Miller-Meeks talked about rural healthcare closures, including the recent closure of  MercyOne’s clinic in her hometown of Ottumwa. This closure, she said, was due to an “over saturation” of primary care in the region. Miller-Meeks said lack of access in rural areas was part of the reason she was passionate about initiatives like multi-cancer early detection tests and other efforts that increase cancer screening and prevention. Iowa was the first state in the nation to receive funds from the Rural Health Transformation program, which was funded in the Republican bill known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Iowa received $209 million from the program, which aims to improve rural healthcare access and the quality of outcomes with a hub-and-spoke model. Miller-Meeks said she has spoken with Dr. Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and said that if other states don’t “get their act together” to apply for the Rural Health Transformation fund, “we’re more than happy to have more awards.” Miller-Meeks has faced criticism over her support of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act in part because of its cuts and changes to Medicaid programs. According to the health policy publication KFF, changes to the program from the spending bill are expected to result in an increase of 10 million people by 2034 who will be without health insurance. Research Miller-Meeks said it was “nice” to be joined by several University of Iowa cancer researchers who spoke with her during the cancer chat. She agreed to support increased funding for the National Institutes of Health, and other federal agencies that do cancer research, but she noted it’s important to look at what’s being funded in addition to the amount. “It’s not just … how much funding goes to the NIH, but what the NIH does with that funding,” Miller-Meeks said. She said she wants that funding to go to research that is “taking a risk” and not doing the same trials that another institution is looking at. And, she said she wants to support research happening across the country, not just “on the coasts” or at Ivy League schools. “Great research happens right here in Iowa, right here at the university,” she said.

Two injured in motorcycle incident near Pleasant Valley High

Two people were injured in an incident between a motorcycle and a minivan near Pleasant Valley High School this morning. A news release from the Scott County Sheriff’s Office said Scott Emergency Communications Center received a report of an injury accident involving a motorcycle and a vehicle in front of Pleasant Valley High School on [...]

Iowa researcher helps identify potential gems on Mars

A University of Iowa researcher is helping to unearth the geological secrets of Earth’s planetary neighbor, with recent findings of a necessary mineral to create certain precious gemstones and future study into the largest canyon in the solar system identified so far. Valerie Payré, an assistant professor in the UI School of Earth, Environment and Sustainability, said striving to learn about the history and geological makeup of Mars’s surface can help in better understanding Earth’s own history. Based on previous study of the surface of Mars, Payré said she expected the Mars Perseverance rover to show her “silica-rich rocks” like kinds of granite. What she wasn’t expecting to see were white-colored pebbles that held corundum — a mineral from which rubies and sapphires are made. “It’s so unexpected because on Earth it’s (made) from the specific conditions; we were not expecting to find those on Mars,” Payré said. “So it was a very exciting discovery, and I was looking at so many papers to try to understand how that happened.” A NASA research team comprised of Payré and other scientists published a research letter detailing their findings this month, based on the data gathered by the SuperCam instrument on Perseverance. Payré served as co-investigator on the Perseverance team. The geologist said researchers have yet to figure out if the corundum on Mars has actually formed precious gems rather than a different form of the mineral. But if and when the pebbles’ origin is found, Payré said her team and others involved with the Perseverance rover will be using all of the instruments at their disposal to learn all they can. On Earth, corundum is formed in conditions involving fluids, high temperature and high pressure. These conditions could have been made by the impact to Mars’s surface that created the area where the pebbles were found, called Jezero Crater. However, Jezero Crater is located within an even larger crater, one Payré said is more than 1,000 in diameter, so the corundum could have been created through that impact instead. Corundum is made of aluminum and oxygen, Payré said, and is more common in aluminum-rich environments rather than the silica-rich rocks she thought she’d see. “It’s the first time we’re seeing those types of compositions at the surface of Mars, so we’re still trying to understand how that could happen,” Payré said. Jezero Crater was formed more than 3.5 billion years ago and “shows promising signs of a place that was likely friendly to life in the distant past,” according to information posted by NASA online about the Perseverance mission. As many as 400 people are working on different aspects of the mission, split into teams to focus on each of the rover’s 10 instruments and what they find. As the SuperCam was the only instrument that could analyze the pebbles, since they were small and not close to the rover’s location, Payré said the team was able to publish its own findings. Additional researchers are working with everyone involved with Perseverance to bring together all of the data collected by the rover. Included in the SuperCam are “at least six techniques” for gathering information about the surface of Mars, Payré said, including different lasers to study the chemistry and crystals within rocks, a camera and a microphone to measure how hard a rock is based on the sound a laser makes when hitting it. Since the rover found the pebbles last year, Payré said the team has been looking for a larger outcropping where they may have come from using orbital observations and photos from Perseverance to identify rocks with the same coloring. However, Mars’s landscape limits the rover’s ability to go to certain areas, as it needs to be protected from sandy areas, pointed rocks and slopes that could cause it to tip. Another area of Mars’s surface Payré is examining for possible corundum formation is Valles Marineris, a canyon that stretches 2,400 miles in length and has a depth of close to 6 miles at its deepest.The geologist is principal investigator of a UI research team awarded a two-year, $100,000 NASA grant to study the rocks found within the canyon, with a future goal of developing a helicopter that could fly into the canyon to study rocks close-up rather than through orbital imagery. Both of these projects are focused on shedding new light on the chemistry of the crust of Mars in different ways, Payré said, through study of the planet’s internal geology through Valles Marineris and surface impact areas like Jezero Crater. Payré said one thing she’s learned through the Perseverance mission is the importance of impact craters on “shaping the geology of Mars” and if this happened to Earth’s neighbor, it could have happened here as well. “It’s part of the story. We want to understand what the crust is made of, and corundum is part of that story,” Payré said. “There’s aluminum-rich rocks out there. We don’t know how they formed, but that’s part of what the crust is made of.”

Harvest season nears in Iowa; Farm Rescue taking applications

Less than 10% of Iowa corn acres have reached the mature stage as of the latest crop progress and condition report, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture anticipates some reports of  harvested acres to appear in the next weekly report. According to the USDA report for the Aug. 24 through Aug. 31 reporting period, 6% of Iowa corn acres had reached maturity, which is 2 percentage points behind the 2025 and five-year average pace. Corn that has reached the dent stage, at 68%, however, is significantly higher than last year and the 5-year average, which the report shows at 60% and 62% respectively. Nearly all corn acres, 94%, have reached the dough stage as of the latest report. Iowa’s corn crop continues to rate well with 77% marked good to excellent for the reporting period. Soybeans also rated 77% good to excellent condition. A scant number of soybean acres was reported to be dropping leaves during the reporting period and 93% of the crop was reported to be setting pods, which is slightly behind last years pace and the five-year average. Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig said in a news release that the warm weather expected through the rest of the coming week will “continue to push crop development.” State Climatologist Justin Glisan said that while rain fell across most of the state during the reporting period, it wasn’t much. Most weather stations reported below normal amounts of precipitation, and the statewide average for the week was 0.32 inch, while the normal precipitation for the period is 0.91 inch. Soil moisture conditions did not change much from the week prior. Both topsoil and subsoil rate as 67% adequate moisture. The statewide average temperature for the week, at 70.1 degrees Fahrenheit, was less than 1 degree above the normal, according to Glisan. Farm Rescue support during harvest The volunteer organization, Farm Rescue, is accepting applications and referrals for free harvest assistance to farmers and farm families in need this season. The organization started in South Dakota in 2005 to help farmers and their families get crops out of the field when major illnesses, injuries or natural disasters make normal harvest impossible. Farm Rescue uses volunteers, donors and business partners to help farmers with equipment and “manpower” to get “time sensitive” farm chores done. Shari Rogge-Fidler, the executive director of Farm Rescue, said in a statement that Farm Rescue can “help carry the load” for families facing crisis. “In rural communities, neighbors have always looked out for one another, but during harvest, those same neighbors are often working long days to bring in their own crops,” Rogge-Fidler said. “That’s where Farm Rescue can step in.” The service is available in Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Montana and Kentucky. Farmers, neighbors, ag professionals and community members are encouraged to refer families in need of harvest assistance to Farm Rescue. Families can also apply directly for assistance.

Iowa Democratic candidates push for term limits at Polk County Steak Fry

Two national Democratic lawmakers endorsed Josh Turek for U.S. Senate on Saturday and called for term limits for U.S. Supreme Court justices and lawmakers. Nearly 700 Iowans gathered at Des Moines Water Works Park for the 2026 Polk County Steak Fry to hear from 10 current legislators and hopefuls. They were joined by headliners U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse from Rhode Island and U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin from Maryland. Whitehouse, who currently serves as the ranking member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said Turek reminded him of former Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin. “I would say I was an early believer in Josh’s race. I served in the Senate with Tom Harkin. I know what Iowa can deliver because I saw Tom Harkin in action,” Whitehouse said. “And when I took a look at Josh, I saw a lot of Tom Harkin in him. So please send Josh to the Senate.” Electing Turek, Whitehouse said, will do several things. First, it will “put a check on the crazy people that Trump is putting into office. Second, it will address issues with the Supreme Court. And third, get the dark money out of U.S. elections.” Whitehouse said there are three great fights that need to happen in Washington. “We need to get rid of dark money in our politics because it’s rotting our politics. We need to back off the climate denial fraud and corruption operations of the fossil fuel industry because our children deserve a better future than what the fossil fuel industry will provide them. And we need to clean up the mess at the Supreme Court.” The Supreme Court, Whitehouse said, needs to be investigated. They need a proper ethics program that has proper fact finding – there can’t be an exception for the nine, he said. He also wants to see retroactive term limits. “Those are the things we can do if you send Josh Turek to the Senate,” Whitehouse said. “That will change America. Josh is the right guy.” Turek took the stage to a standing ovation and hundreds of waving Turek signs. He stressed how Iowans across the state are struggling to put food on the table, a roof over their head, pay electric bills and access healthcare. He highlighted Iowa’s declining educational system, record-level farm bankruptcies due to tariffs and war and the state’s rising cancer diagnoses and ongoing water quality crisis. “And really, Iowa, we have hit the bottom,” Turek said. “This is not the state that we know. This is not the state we grew up in.” Pointing to the voting record of his Republican opponent, U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson, Turek said she stands for cuts to healthcare and food programs, support of tariffs and war and tax breaks to billionaires. “This is not what Iowans want. Iowans want to have a senator that is going to fight for them,” Turek said. Fight for Iowa. Fight for Iowans. Fight for the middle class. Fight for our workers. Not just look out for the billionaires and the large corporations.” Turek said he also agreed there’s a need for term limits. “If we can win this seat, we will not only make a generational change to this state, we will be able to flip the Senate, and we’re going to be able to change this country,” Turek said. “All of us together, we’re going to do it.” Raskin, who serves as the ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, also endorsed Turek. He gained national recognition for serving as the lead impeachment manager during the second impeachment trial of Donald Trump and is a key member of the January 6th Committee. Raskin, who received a standing ovation as he approached the podium, said this was first trip to Iowa. “Been here for 17 days and in the state longer than Republican gubernatorial candidate Zach Lahn,” he joked, drawing effusive clapping, whistling and cheering. He added that Iowans can tip the House and Senate back in the direction of democracy and freedom. Raskin said Democrats stand for democracy. “The only party in America that will stand up to your right to vote, even if you’re not going to vote for us. We are the party that stands up for constitutional democracy and freedom for everybody in America.” He invoked the “last great American Republican President Abraham Lincoln, who spoke of government of the people, by the people and for the people.” This is the proposition, Raskin said,  that is being tested in the November election. “Our party, says the government, must be an instrument for the common good and public interest of all.” People must go to the polls, he said, to take the government back again. “You know, everything is under attack. Our whole Constitution is under attack. The preamble is under attack. It’s not even enforceable in court, and it’s under attack.” He said separation of church and state is also under attack. Agreeing with Whitehouse’s call for term limits for the Supreme Court, he said freedom of speech is under attack. “It’s gotten so bad that Donald Trump’s masked paramilitary soldiers are shooting down American citizens exercising their First and Second Amendment rights in the streets of America,” Raskin said, and promised Americans will see justice for the cases of those killed by federal agents  in states such as Minnesota. Sand calls for conversations and common sense Gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand said politics is supposed to be about making state government work for ordinary people — not a small number of people with too much power for too long. He threw in his support for term limit legislation that many other candidates are calling for on both a federal and state level. Sand said two things are missing in Iowa: common sense and conversations. With his town halls, he is listening, he said, and having discussions about solutions that would bring people together and force state government to work for ordinary people. “That’s what I want us to get back to in the Capitol building. Common sense, listening to each other, being willing to recognize when even the person that’s mostly wrong actually has a point to make. We are having none of that in Des Moines,” Sand said. He discussed his varying viewpoints to his opponent Lahn and reminded the crowd that his campaign is focused on bringing people together with real solutions. “That’s why we had over 100 Republicans announce endorsements, including people who are in elected office right now as Republicans,” Sand said. “Because people across the state of Iowa are fed up with the direction of the state. They want change.” Sand concluded, “Let’s remake this state and turn it back into an Iowa that is not about being redder or bluer, but one about being better and truer.” Iowa Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott, running in Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District, also cited her support for term limits. She said she filed a term limits bill in the Iowa Senate that many of her colleagues in the Legislature didn’t like. “We can see that things are not working. We need new voices and new perspectives coming up through the process. And so, we need to find a way to make sure that we can have those new perspectives and new leadership that we need to lead us in a better direction. I will do that in Washington,” she said.

Farmers have until Dec. 31 to file claims in Deere settlement

Farmers who purchased and had to repair John Deere large agricultural equipment during a certain time frame may be eligible for a payment as part of an antitrust class-action settlement. To receive the payment, however, farmers must file a claim in the newly opened Deere Repair Settlement website, by Dec. 31. Right to repair advocates argue that accepting the current settlement will give farmers a small payout and prevent them from future or more substantial settlements or damages. The settlement is the result of a class-action antitrust lawsuit against Deere & Company that alleged the company “engaged in an anticompetitive scheme” to withhold certain repair tools from customers and independent repair shops and require customers to use Deere-authorized dealers for repairs and diagnostics. The class-action suit is part of an ongoing “right to repair” fight against Deere, and various technology companies. Deere denies the allegations. Class members are John Deere large agricultural equipment customers who purchased repair services through Deere’s authorized dealers in the United States between Jan. 10, 2018 and May 18, 2026. Members of the class have four options in the matter. According to the Deere Repair Settlement site, managed by the Angeion Group, if farmers exclude themselves from the lawsuit by Dec. 4, they will receive no payment from the settlement but will “keep the right” to assert their own claims or damages against the company for the same reasons. Another option is to file a claim before the end of the calendar year and receive payment based on the “total number of labor hours expended” on John Deere repair services. According to the settlement website, this ensures payments reflect the “anticompetitive harm” suffered by each member of the class. Willie Cade, a board member with the Repair Association, said most farmers don’t know the number of repair hours spent on their equipment over an eight-year period, just the total bill. Plus, farmers don’t know the total size of the class and therefore how many farmers will split the agreed-upon $99 million settlement from Deere & Co. “Which is like, really, you want me to make a decision on something that I have no idea about?” Cade said. According to the settlement site, in addition to the cash settlement amount – which is likely to be lower once attorney and litigation costs are subtracted – the settlement also includes injunctive relief estimated to be between $293.9 million and $648 million. As part of the injunctive relief of the settlement, Deere has to “provide customers and (independent repair shops) access, on fair and reasonable terms, to digital tools required for the maintenance, diagnosis, and repair” of the eligible equipment. No actions are required to receive injunctive relief. Members of the class also have the option to file an objection to the settlement by Dec. 4, which asks the court to deny the settlement amount and continue the lawsuit. The lawsuit has a fairness hearing scheduled for Jan. 19, 2027, at 10 a.m. in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Here the court will decide if the settlement is fair. Class members’ final option is to do nothing, in which case they will not receive payment from the settlement, nor will they be able to file their own claims against Deere on the same topic. The class-action lawsuit, while similar in nature, is separate from a case between the Federal Trade Commission and John Deere, which has also reached a settlement. Several states, including Iowa, have introduced various “right to repair” laws asking agricultural equipment manufacturers to provide repair and diagnostic tools to customers and independent repair shops. John Deere holds that it is “dedicated to supporting customers’ ability and access to maintain, diagnose, and repair their equipment safely, efficiently and conveniently.” Deere has a number of service and repair services that allow customers to repair and maintain equipment.

Celebrity deaths remind us: 'Don't dream it, be it.'

At the risk of sounding parasocial, last week was a rough one, with a pair of celebrity deaths, Dolly Parton and Tim Curry. Both spectacular entertainers were important to me in ways that I struggle to adequately express, and which others have already done far more eloquently that I ever will. Although she’d been open about having recent health struggles, learning the news of Dolly Parton’s death was simply shocking. She seemed to have an eternal quality about her. I’ve had a Dolly song stuck in my head for days – maybe you do, too. For a lot of reasons, my brain landed on “Hard Candy Christmas.” The director of Steel Magnolias told her she couldn’t act. “This was not news to me,” Dolly said later. She then quipped back, “I’m not an actress. I’m Dolly Parton.” Dolly Parton was quite simply the best of us. Born and raised dirt-poor in Tennessee, she raised herself to unimaginable heights. With her determination, she could have decided to be anything. She chose to be good. And what goodness. Her talent is undeniable. She wrote her first song at the age of six and became a professional songwriter 10 years later.  She went on to sell nearly 100 million records. She starred in movies and TV, won countless awards. She was larger than life, big in every way and never gave less than 100% of herself. There’s an old story that she wrote “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You” on the same day. While it’s not entirely accurate, they were written at roughly the same time, which led people to speculate Dolly was going through it at the time. And she was, although not for the reasons you might think. She was going through a breakup, but it was a professional break with her musical partner and mentor Porter Wagoner. For years, Wagoner controlled her career, and in some ways may have even held her back as a solo artist. But “Jolene” became a huge hit, Parton was ready to branch out on her own, and “I Will Always Love You” served as a farewell and thank you to Wagoner. Incidentally, Elvis wanted to record “I Will Always Love You.” And Dolly thought about it. At least until Col. Tom Parker tried to get her to sign away half the publishing rights. She reluctantly said no. And then made bank all day when Whitney Houston covered the song in 1992. And Dolly knew her own mind. When Barbara Walters told her she was a joke based on her looks, Dolly simply said, “The joke’s on the public. I know exactly what I’m doing, and I can change it at any time … I’m sure of myself. I’m sure of my talent.” But it would be a mistake to restrict Dolly’s impact simply to her music, when she became so much more than that. Consider her philanthropy. Her efforts with the Imagination Library came about because her father was illiterate. Since 1995, the program has distributed hundreds of millions of books to children around the world at no cost to the families. She asked for memorials to go to the Imagination Library; the website crashed the day of her death because so many people rushed to donate. The Dollywood Foundation was formed to help improve education near her childhood home in Sevier County, Tenn. When she started giving out scholarships to students, the drop-out rate fell from 35% to 6%. Today, the foundation gives out scholarships to four high schools in the area. She raised funds for countless healthcare related causes, including the American Red Cross, HIV/AIDS charities, cancer research, and donated $1 million to help fund research for the COVID vaccine, which paved the way for the Moderna vaccine. She raised funds to build a state-of-the-art hospital in Sevierville. She gave so many financial gifts to help families at the East Tennessee Children’s Hospital, they eventually renamed the place in her honor. After wildfires swept through the Great Smokey Mountains, she helped raise money to assist more than 900 families affected by the fires. Each family received $10,000. She helped raise awareness attempts to preserve bald eagle sanctuaries. She openly supported her queer fans, voicing support for not only same-sex marriage but also the trans community. “I’ve always been a freak and different, oddball even in my childhood and my own family, so I can relate to people who are struggling and trying to find their true identity,” she once said.  “I do not sit in the seat of judgment. I love people for who they are. We’re all God’s children” There’s Dollywood, which I had the delightful opportunity to visit a few years ago. While the park is fun, if a bit silly, Dolly actually purchased the park in the 1980s to help bring more good-paying jobs to Sevier County. And now, not only is it the largest employer in the area, it also has an enviable benefits package for employees that includes tuition reimbursement, childcare assistance and career development opportunities, in addition to insurance and retirement benefits. All of that doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of everything Dolly Parton accomplished in her 80 years of life. We’ll likely never know her true impact, as many of her gifts were given anonymously. Dolly could have been a billionaire. Instead, she knew you can’t take it with you, and so she gave and gave and gave, in the hopes of leaving the world better than she found it. I saw a social media post that talked about how when Dolly climbed the ladder of success, she didn’t pull it up after her. And it’s true. When she saw others climbing behind her, she extended a hand and said, “Come on up and join me.” And in the twilight of her life, she still showed up, looking perfectly Dolly, with a smile on her face and a song in her heart. Shortly after her beloved husband, Carl Dean, died, even though she was grieving, she came out for the opening day at Dollywood, beaming and waving. Even in her final days, living through cancer, she still radiated hope and positivity.  How lucky we were to have had Dolly Parton. And how fortunate we are to have the legacy she left behind. Don’t dream it, be it After having absorbed the news of Dolly’s death, I was hit again less than 24 hours later with the news about Tim Curry. There’s an adage that you can tell a lot about a person if you ask them what role comes to mind when you say, “Tim Curry.”  For me, the first role that comes to mind will always be Wadsworth from Clue. I’ve written before about the impact that film had on me and the development of my sense of humor, and Curry had a massive influence in that regard. But Clue is not the first film I saw him in.  Instead, it was the far more age-appropriate film adaptation of the musical Annie, where he played Miss Hannigan’s ne’er do well brother Rooster. Watching him dance on the stairs with Carol Burnett and Bernadette Peeters during “Easy Street,” I was mesmerized. He was delightfully lecherous, and he seemed to have such glee, such joie de vivre, about him. Turns out that was true of most of his films. Because he loved playing weirdos and freaks, people on the fringes. “Heroes are boring,” he famously said.  There are a lot of actors that make you say, “Hey, it’s That Guy.” But when Tim Curry showed up, he was never just That Guy. He was always The Tim Curry, and you knew whatever happened next, it was going to be fully bonkers. A while ago, I saw a meme about A Muppet Christmas Carol and Muppet Treasure Island. Both brilliant films, but one of the things that makes them work is the way the human actors interact with the Muppets. “Michael Caine treats the Muppets as fellow actors,” read the meme. “Tim Curry treats himself as a fellow Muppet.” That’s actually true in a literal sense – Curry received a Muppet made in his likeness after the film wrapped. But Curry also joked in his autobiography, “Vagabond,” about Miss Piggy having been the great love of his life and, “the one that got away.” I could talk about Clue all day – indulge me – and here’s a fun fact for you: Curry wasn’t actually the first choice to play Wadsworth the butler. The first choice was character actor Leonard Rossiter. But he died. Then the studio wanted Rowan Atkinson, who was starring in Blackadder, but they decided he wasn’t famous enough. Curry eventually got the role in part because he knew director Jonathan Lynn from school. He threw himself into the part – to the point where it’s hard to imagine anyone else as Wadsworth. In fact, he may have thrown himself too hard, as he was hospitalized with high blood pressure after the last day of filming. That’s the day they filmed the sequence where Wadsworth runs through the house reenacting all the murders. His career was intense – film, television, theatre, voice acting. He did it all, and he did it all brilliantly. He was having fun, and you had fun right along with him. In 2012, he had a massive stroke, caused by two blood clots in his brain. He had to learn how to speak again and spent the rest of his life in a wheelchair because of mobility issues. But while his career slowed, he was never completely out of the entertainment industry. He still did voice work, still did some performing, and in 2016, he played the Criminologist/Narrator in FOX’s television remake of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Ah yes, Rocky Horror. Don’t think I’ve forgotten. As a theatre kid, of course I’ve seen Rocky Horror roughly three gajillion times. Yes, at midnight screenings, shouting and throwing things at the screen. No, I won’t recount any stories. This is a family newspaper. Instead, I’ll simply repeat what Princess Diana once told Curry about her experience with the film: “It quite completed my education.” The role of Dr. Frank N. Furter was written specifically for Curry, and he performed the role in the West End and on Broadway, as well as in the film adaptation. Rocky Horror is decidedly not for everyone, but for those who embrace its wild weirdness, there’s a line in the show that speaks volumes. Don’t dream it, be it. It’s interesting to me that there’s currently a Rocky Horror revival on Broadway right now. Last week, in the wake of Curry’s death, the cast gathered on stage to pay tribute to him. Actor Paul Soileau, who’s playing Frank right now, explained the impact Curry had. “Fifty-three years ago, Richard O’Brien laid a piece of paper in front of Tim Curry with ingredients on it. And he took all those ingredients and created this beast that everyone found something within it and could see a piece of themselves inside of it. This beautiful beast. Just as Richard O’Brien created Rocky Horror Picture Show to find something more about himself, you can also say that Tim Curry created Frank N. Furter to express and find something deeper about himself. And somehow, it resonated for this long with this many people in this room right now.”  Then, Soileau brought out actor Luke Evans, who was the original Frank in the revival, and Jake Shears, who will take up the mantle this month, and the entire cast sang Frank’s great farewell song, “I’m Going Home.” Curry once attended a midnight showing of Rocky Horror at the Waverly Theatre in New York City. His appearance was unannounced and caused something of a stir. An employee told him to scram because she didn’t like the ruckus. And she didn’t believe it was really him. He showed her his passport. She kicked him out anyway. Curry was very private about his personal life, and indeed, might have been more content not to write an autobiography at all. But he wrote “Vagabond” for all the people whose lives he impacted. “The notion that my experiences might resonate helps me persevere — if they strike a chord with only one teenager, alone with a book in his room, as I so often was; or that young woman reading this on an interminably long bus ride; or that older queen, hopefully still in his fishnets, who saw Rocky Horror upstairs at the Royal Court; or that middle-aged mother who organizes Clue watching parties and refuses entry to anybody out of costume; or that buttoned-up bank clerk who relishes musicals; or that woman who kicked me out of the Waverly for being myself.” So yes, it’s been a rough week. But I am grateful for Tim Curry and Dolly Parton. Two people who fervently lived out the ethos of “Don’t dream it, be it.”          

2010: Eight candidates vie for four seats on school board

Sept. 2, 1976 • Donahue and McCausland were gearing up for their town festivals, both of which would have a Bicentennial theme. In Donahue, there would be an encore presentation of John Glenn’s Bicentennial program, “Salute to America.” Meanwhile, another highlight of McCausland’s celebration would be the dedication of the new community building. U.S. Rep. Ed Mezvinsky was set to attend. • Five members of the Iowa Army National Guard in Mount Joy were honored for bravery at a ceremony in Washington D.C. LaMonte Combs of Park View, Eddie Newman of Eldridge, Robert Ertz of Eldridge, Henry Luchner of Davenport and Jimmy Ray of Bettendorf received the Valley Forge Cross from the executive council of the National Guard Association. The award was given in recognition of their heroism in helping rescue workers injured in a series of explosions at the Robin Hood Flour and Grain Elevator in Davenport in May of 1975. • New North Scott faculty included Joanna Rouse, Tim Britt, Ann Ortiz, Wendy Aye, Jim Boland, Brad Colton, Randy Denner, Dan Anderson, Jan Lambert, Betty Rath, Mary Ann Hamilton, Paul Renaud, Sheila Hatch, Bill McDonald, Kathy Paulos, Nalini Nanda, Joanne DeCoster, Pat Storbeck, Holly Peterson, Chris Hackett, Mary Jo Piano, Jane Varcho, Kay Ferris, Bob Perry, John Langenhan, Jerry Lensing, Brad Stary, Mary Pickett, Beverly Anderson, Lynn Atkins, Lynda Roesler, Margot Santon, and Carol Albrecht. • North Scott High School welcomed two foreign exchange students. Tina Urpiola was from Finland and would be staying with the George Claeys family. Joey Almeda was from the Philippines and was staying with the John Peeters family. • The North Scott football team was gearing up for what was described as a “rugged” schedule for the 1976 season. Following the annual soap scrimmage, the team would open with a non-conference game against Iowa City West. Pleasant Valley and DeWitt Central were tabbed as the favorites to top the Big Bend Conference in the preseason. Western Dubuque was also set to join the conference. Sept. 3, 1986 • As part of the Iowa State Thespian Conference, which would be hosted by North Scott, a revival of the spring musical, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” was planned. Most of the cast was set to return for the special performances, including a public performance that would benefit the drama and music department. • North Scott employees gathered for the second annual staff awards program, which doubled as a celebration of the district’s 30th anniversary. In addition to employees, four of the five original school board members – Ray Porter, Elmer Hamann, Wesley Schmalz and Harland Rohlk – were honored, as were several notable early district leaders. These included Charles Hahn, the first superintendent; Lorraine Keehner, the first district secretary; and Glen Suiter, the district’s first treasurer. Also honored was Roy Curtis, who worked behind the scenes to help form the district. When the district was officially formed on July 1, 1956, a budget of just under $1 million was adopted to pay salaries and handle the upkeep of buildings. Meanwhile, longtime employees were also presented with awards, including Leona Engelbrecht, Joan Erps, Ann Gerber and Fern Holtz, who had worked for the district for 20 years. • Lisa Cline of Donahue won a trip to Los Angeles courtesy of MTV. She was one of five grand prize winners from across the country chosen in a random drawing. She asked her brother Mike to accompany her on the trip. Lisa and Mike would receive a tour of the city in a stretch limousine and $600 in spending money. Highlights of the trip included a stay at the Beverly Hills Hotel and tickets to the MTV Music Video Awards and the afterparty.  • Rev. David McKnight was named the new pastor at Park View Lutheran Church. A native of Texas, he had served churches in Guttenberg and McGregor from 1979-1982 before returning to Texas. • Approximately 1,000 runners participated in the Donahue Sodbuster races. Jeff Honert of Longmont, Colo., and Patricia Sykes of Cedar Falls won the 10K; Steve Beck of Rock Island and Gwen Archer of Davenport took the 5K; and Chad Flynn of Wheatland and Audra Madden of Park View won the one-mile youth race. Sept. 5, 2001 • The LeClaire Road paving project was running ahead of schedule, and Eldridge city administrator John Dowd said the target date for reopening was at the end of September. That couldn’t come soon enough for business owners along the corridor, who said the project had been a hardship on them and their employees. Many said they had seen a minimum 30% drop in business over the length of the project. “We’re thankful for our faithful customers who came no matter what, but others have said it was just too much of a hassle to come all the way through the detour,” said Laurie Dalton, co-owner of the Eldridge Amoco. “That was our biggest fear, and it came true.” • The North Scott community grieved the loss of 16-year-old Kaycee-Jo Petersen, who was killed in a one-car accident along St. Ann’s Road in rural Long Grove. Petersen had just begun her junior year at North Scott High School, where she was well-known among students and a member of the cooperative swim team with Pleasant Valley. She was the daughter of Larry and Pamela Petersen. • A worker escaped injury after equipment he was operating struck a buried 12,470-volt electrical cable near North Scott High School. The line had built-in safety equipment designed to make it short out if it was hit, which likely saved the worker’s life. More than a fourth of Eldridge residents were without power, and students at the high school and Ed White were released from school early. Eldridge utilities general manager Ron McGill said equipment failure contributed to the incident. “We marked it where our locating equipment showed the line to be. But that wasn’t exactly where it was. Our locating equipment was off.” • The North Scott cross-country teams saw good numbers, with the boys’ team turning out a record 26 runners. There were also 31 runners on the girls’ squad. While the boys only had two returning varsity runners, Kyle Kundel and G.J. Schaub, junior Jeff Less also returned after taking a year off. Girls’ coach Don Rupe said his team was young, with the varsity team including three juniors, two sophomore and two freshmen. They were led by sophomore Jessica Viner. • The Davenport Fire Department was still investigating the cause of a major fire at the River Cities Business Center in Mount Joy in February. Most of the warehouse was destroyed, and John Deere reported the loss of $75 million of inventory stored at the site. Davenport fire chief Mark Frese said it could take years to complete the investigation and complete the insurance process. He also said the investigation included a look at why water pressure at the site was inadequate to fight the blaze. Sept. 7, 2011 • A large, standing room only crowd turned out for a North Scott School Board candidate forum at the Scott County Library. There were eight candidates for four seats on the board. These included incumbents Paul Dierickx, Tim Lane and Krista Long; first-time candidates Dennis Albertson, Dennis Kirby, Barb Kuhl and John Maxwell; and former school board member Joni Dittmer. • Scott County was planning to honor the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks with a 9/11 Memorial Procession, which planned to stop at every rural fire station. “We wanted to find a way to recognize the anniversary of the tragedy, and we wanted to involve as many departments as possible,” said LeClaire fire chief Mark Slagle. The procession would include a trailer bearing a piece of steel salvaged from the wreck of the World Trade Center. Meanwhile, teachers were also looking for ways to help students understand the impact of that day. “Most of my students now were in first grade on Sept. 11, 2001. Most of them remember seeing it on TV, but not the details,” said high school teacher Chad Guge. “All these students have really known is a post-9/11 world,” agreed teacher Sean Marmion. He said he was planning on having an open discussion of the attack and its aftermath during his class. • Rural Scott County residents Gene and Shirley Newell were inducted into the Iowa 4-H Hall of Fame during a ceremony at the Iowa State Fair. Shirley had served on the Mississippi Valley Fair Board for 32 years, and Gene had served as a supervisor at the fair for years. • Walcott School received a $3,250 grant from the Iowa 80 Group, part of BP’s Fueling Communities program. “Quality education is something we feel very strongly about, and this was an exciting opportunity for Iowa 80 Truckstop to help support the Walcott School,” said Iowa 80 Group senior vice president Delia Meier. The school and its PTA planned to use the funds towards their SMART Boards program, which was designed to install interactive whiteboards in all classrooms by 2014. • The North Scott football team rolled past Clinton, 49-19, in its home opener. Quarterback Louis DeFrieze scored three touchdowns in the game, and the Lancers racked up 532 yards of total offense. “I thought we started off slow tonight, but I thought we recovered and finished strong,” said lineman Thomas Cawiezell. “I feel like our line is getting more confident with each series and we’re really starting to trust each other. I think we’re starting to gel.” Sept. 1, 2021 • Positive COVID cases in Scott County hit their highest levels since January as a new variant continued to spread. However, Scott County Health Department director Amy Thoreson said residents had the tools they needed to help – vaccines, masks and social distancing. Thoreson said cases of RSV were also becoming more prevalent. • A fire at Cinnamon Ridge Dairy Farm destroyed a feed storage shed. No livestock was injured, although owner John Maxwell sustained burns while driving a tractor away from the shed. The cause of the fire was under investigation. The Donahue, Dixon, Eldridge and Long Grove fire departments responded to the scene. • Donahue was ready to celebrate its 150th birthday with a Frontier Days bash that would include old and new traditions. Organizer Sarah Ganzer said most of the events would benefit the Sportsman’s Club and the Donahue Fire Department. “This year, everyone is working together. It’s a testament to where Donahue is going,” said Ganzer. In addition to the traditional softball and sand volleyball tournaments, there would be a kids’ carnival, a vendor fair and the annual Duck Race. Meanwhile, Sandy Moeller also pieced together old festival t-shirts donated by the Linnenbrink family, which were then turned into a quilt by Eunice Grell. The quilt was set to be auctioned off.    • The North Scott volleyball team finished its opening week of a season with a 7-2 record. After sweeping Clinton, they fell to Cedar Rapids Prairie and Cedar Rapids Washington and beat Iowa City West at the MAC/MVC Challenge, before winning the Maquoketa Invitational, where they swept Camanche, North Cedar, Northeast, Maquoketa and Central DeWitt. “To say the least, it was a busy and difficult week,” said coach Taryn VanEarwage. • As the Edward W. Knapper VFW Post 6174 geared up for the annual Buddy Poppy Drive, it was set to be a special year for the fundraiser. The VFW Department of Iowa was celebrating its 100th anniversary, so in addition to the traditional red poppy, there would also be a special gold poppy. All funds raised were distributed among local organizations that aided veterans. VFW member Tom Zimmerman was pictured with Sandy Ott and Jeff Thompson of North Scott Foods, who made the first donations of the year.

Finding common ground isn't liberalism. It's leadership.

The recent attack ads portraying Rob Sand and Josh Turek as “too California liberal” say more about political campaigning than either candidate. Instead of focusing on their records, ideas, and willingness to work with people who disagree with them, these ads rely on attaching a candidate to a place or ideology voters are supposed to dislike. Iowa voters deserve better. Rob Sand and Josh Turek have shown a willingness to work across party lines. Listening to Republicans, Democrats, independents, and others isn’t “California liberal.” It’s governing. In an increasingly divided environment, meaningful progress requires compromise. Iowa needs leaders who will find common ground and work toward practical solutions. That’s what bipartisanship is supposed to look like. Iowans should be skeptical when political ads label someone “too liberal” simply because they have different ideas. Voters should look at what candidates stand for, their records, and whether they are willing to work with others to produce results. Rob Sand and Josh Turek should be judged on their Iowa values, records, and proposals—not political labels. I don’t expect every elected official to agree with me. I expect them to put Iowa ahead of partisan politics and work with anyone willing to solve problems. That’s not “California liberal.” That’s being an Iowa leader.   Derek Schroeder DeWitt

A respectful disagreement

I’d like to respectfully disagree with the letter to the editor Aug. 19, 2026, “Democratic State Senators Focus on the Issues.” First, the age-old solution to society’s problems is spend more money and increase our government. One would think with our government $4 trillion in debt from spending, things would be fixed by now. Secondly, abortion as a right isn’t right. At conception, a baby becomes a human being. And if it’s not a human being, then the decision to abort the baby is about the same as having a tooth pulled. But if it is a human being, then we’re talking about the unjustified taking of a human life. By and large, I think most people still thing the unjustified taking of a human life is wrong. Thirdly, all literature isn’t profitable. Some is pure garbage being marketed as essential and good. Might I suggest that those promoting some of this garbage buy a page in the newspaper and print some of this garbage so that people like myself can be enlightened to its vital importance to the perpetuation of our freedom and democracy. I’m thankful we can still have an opinion in this country, and that’s mine.   Craig Jepsen Long Grove

Message Delivered

North Scott volleyball is picking up right where it left off. The Lancers are sweeping conference foes and picking off 5A schools as if nothing changed. In its first week playing as reigning state champions, North Scott straight-setted Muscatine (25-22, 25-18, 25-18), staved off 5A No. 14 Cedar Rapids Prairie (25-16, 19-25, 15-12) and scored a big upset over 5A No. 6 Cedar Rapids Kennedy (21-25, 25-23, 16-14). While a 21-25, 17-25 loss to 5A No. 2 Iowa City West ended the program’s 18-match winning streak, North Scott is ecstatic to be 3-1 after four matches. “I’m really proud of how we played today,” senior captain Eisley Weinert said. “Obviously we lost our last game, but overall, it was really good. We have nothing to hang our heads about. “(The ranked wins) mean a lot for us, especially beating Kennedy. That energy flow is really important for us, and all of the energy was up. It was great.” The debut week for new head coach Taylor Ingram couldn’t have gone much better. “I thought we played lights out,” she said. “Overall, playing six sets back-to-back and having to play Iowa City West, the girls are gassed, but I felt we pushed through. “We had some great moments. We made some silly mistakes of our own, but I’ll take them in August. I think it’s a little humbling to come in unranked, but it’s sweet to come in and have those upsets early.” It did not take long for The Pit to get rocking. North Scott stormed ahead against Prairie, 25-16, in the first set of the annual Mississippi Athletic Conference versus Missouri Valley Conference showcase on Thursday night. The Lancers then gave the second set back, 25-19. The seesaw affair saw the Lancers get up 12-6 in the third set before giving all six points back in a row. North Scott closed out the final three points with one Prairie violation, a kill from senior Kamilah Eller and an unreturned serve by Eller. “To see the mental game, us being able to hit that fifth gear, that’s nice to see early on in the season,” Ingram said. North Scott lost to Kennedy last year 15-7 in a third set. The Cougars came out swinging again, taking the first set 25-21. The Lancers were down by as many as eight points in the set, 18-10, but stormed back to close the gap, just running out of time before Kennedy hit 25. “We focused on keeping our energy up. When their energy was up, ours was down,” Weinert said. “It’s really important we keep it up and start playing our game and not letting that affect us.” Kennedy opened up a 9-4 lead to start the second set, but North Scott took a lead at 13-12 that it did not give back. In the decider, Kennedy forced a North Scott timeout leading 9-5. It led 11-7, but the Lancers went on a four-point run to tie the proceedings. Kennedy reached 13 points first, 13-12, but never had a match point. A monster block from senior Sydney Soppe tied the set at 13. An ace from senior Olivia Graham clinched the match a few points later. “I like that regardless of who we had on the floor, what rotation, what defense, we were in sync,” Ingram said. “That was nice to see this early. Building on that, it’s only going to get better... Things aren’t going to go our way all the time. In the chaos moments, we have to talk more, and tonight we did a good job of that. It helped us finish those first two matches. It didn’t go our way in the third, but overall, we did a fantastic job.” Iowa City West entered the season ranked No. 2. The Trojans field one girl committed to Iowa, another committed to Iowa State, and a handful of other highly-touted recruits. Still, the Lancers were never overwhelmed in the match despite falling 25-21, 25-17. “Alyssa Schroeder and Katie Moeller came out hot with some blocks. I’m very proud of our middles for stepping up against some Division I-ranked players,” Ingram said. North Scott also handled business in its season-opener at Muscatine on Tuesday: 25-22, 25-18, 25-18. It was the Lancers’ 13th consecutive win against the Muskies. North Scott has not lost a set to Muscatine since October 2019. Across the four matches and 11 sets, Soppe, Eller and junior Brinley Schroeder have 62 of North Scott’s 83 kills. Schroeder has been by far the most efficient with 21 kills to six errors on 54 swings. Weinert is distributing the ball like a veteran point guard, accounting for 64 of North Scott’s 78 assists. Graham leads the work on the back line with 45 digs. Eller is second with 29 digs, followed by Schroeder’s 25, Weinert’s 23 and Soppe’s 20. Soppe, Schroeder and Moeller are all tied for the team lead with nine blocks. Weinert has six, and Eller and Schroeder each have three. Weinert noted that her team’s biggest area of improvement for the week will be from the service line. North Scott landed just 80.8 percent of its serves. Eller leads the team thus far with nine aces, while Schroeder leads with a 92.9 percent serve efficiency rate. North Scott will not be an unranked team for very long. It has an excellent opportunity to start 4-1 as the 2-7 Davenport North Wildcats came to The Pit on Tuesday night for the second round of conference matches. Already, North Scott has shown it can face adversity head-on and come out the other side victorious. Those characteristics, and this type of start, will help propel North Scott into its season as the calendar turns to September. “I think we are a very persistent group,” Weinert said. “We’re not expected to be good this year; it’s a very big rebuild year for us. I think we’re very persistent. I think we can come out and be strong. Don’t count us out.” Ingram echoes Weinert’s sentiment: “I hope this proves to us as a team that while we may be undersized, we may be unranked, but we can do it. Tonight showed it. Coming out swinging against ranked teams, getting a couple of wins — what else do you need to do to prove it?”

Obituary: Kevin Lane

A Memorial visitation, for Kevin Lee Lane, 63, of DeWitt, will be Friday, Sept. 4, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Chambers Funeral Home, Eldridge. A private family graveside service will take place on Saturday at St. Ann’s Catholic Cemetery, Long Grove. Kevin passed away on Friday, Aug. 28, 2026, at his home surrounded by his family, after a 2½-year battle with pancreatic cancer. Kevin was born on July 26, 1963, in Davenport, the son of Jack and Dolores (DeLarm) Lane. He graduated from North Scott High School in 1981. He married Rose Dierickx on April 26, 1986, at St. Ann’s Catholic Church, Long Grove.  Kevin worked as a journeyman millwright at Archer Daniel Midland (ADM) in Clinton for 38 years. He enjoyed the outdoors, hunting, fishing, camping and visiting historical sites. Kevin possessed the gift of mechanics and could fix anything and everything without formal instructions. His knowledge of cars, engines, and general repair was extensive. Kevin also served as a former member of the DeWitt Volunteer Fire Department.  Survivors include his wife, Rose; his children, Jennifer (Dustin) Raba, Ashley Lane, and Erin (Nicholas Franco) Lane, who are due with Kevin and Rose’s first grandchild in October of this year. He is also survived by his mother, Dolores Lane; his brothers, Mark (Melissa) Lane and Curtis (Kari) Lane; his mother-in-law, Lolita Dierickx; and his beloved cat, Elliot. He was preceded in death by his father, Jack and father-in-law, John Dierickx. Memorials may be directed to Brent Ohl Pancreatic Foundation or the DeWitt Volunteer Fire Dept.  Online condolences may be shared with the family at www.McGinnis-Chambers.com.   Custom obituary

Obituary: Bonnie Amhof

A funeral service for Bonnie Marie Amhof, 87, of Eldridge, was held at 11 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 29, at Park View Lutheran Church. Visitation was from 9:30 a.m. until the time of the service on Saturday at the church. Burial was in Davenport Memorial Park. Runge Mortuary, Davenport, assisted the family with arrangements. Mrs. Amhof died Monday, Aug. 24, 2026. Bonnie Maxwell was born Jan. 19, 1939, in Davenport, the daughter of Floyd and Irene (Biehler) Maxwell. She married Ronald E. Amhof on Aug. 16, 1958. Survivors include her husband, Ron; a son, Doug Amhof, Eldridge; a daughter-in-law, Roxanne Amhof, Fort Dodge; seven grandchildren; and a great-grandchild, with two on the way. Memorials may be made to Park View Lutheran Church. Online condolences may be made at www.rungemortuary.com.

Grant writing 'boot camp' offered

Nonprofit, government and education professionals who have a project idea and are ready to begin developing a grant proposal can receive hands-on feedback during two free Grant Proposal Boot Camps offered this fall in Fayette and Cherokee. Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Community and Economic Development will offer the two-day, in-person workshops Sept. 29-30 in Fayette and Oct. 19-20 in Cherokee. Grant Proposal Boot Camp is designed for participants who have a fundable project idea and want dedicated time to move it toward a complete proposal. Participants will work on key components of grant development, including executive summaries, measurable goals and objectives, logic models and evaluation plans. Participants should bring a laptop or tablet, along with draft proposal materials, early project notes or information about the funding opportunity they are considering. The workshops provide dedicated time to work on participants’ own proposals while receiving guidance and feedback. “Having uninterrupted time to work through a proposal can be valuable, especially when participants can ask questions and receive feedback along the way,” said Lindsay Henderson, a community development specialist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. “The goal is for each person to leave with greater clarity about the project and meaningful progress on the application.” The Fayette workshop will be held Sept. 29-30 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. both days at the Fayette Community Library, 104 W. State St. Registration for the Fayette workshop is free and closes Sept. 25. The Cherokee workshop will be held Oct. 19-20 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. both days at Cherokee County Extension and Outreach, 209 Centennial Drive. Registration for the Cherokee workshop is free and closes Oct. 16. For more information or to register, visit the Grant Writing Workshops webpage or contact Henderson at lindsayh@iastate.edu.

Some states raise pay for home caregivers as shortage looms

WILMINGTON, Ohio — From her recliner in her tidy townhouse, Donna Logan offers advice to the first baby boomers to hit the big ‘8-0’ this year: Life can be good, especially with someone like Helen Aponte helping with laundry and housekeeping and the drive to the doctor’s office. “I do most things on my own,” said Logan, 81, a native of Wilmington, Ohio. “But having Helen come in once a week gives me confidence.” “I drive her, whatever she needs,” said Aponte, 52. “It makes me happy to help Donna stay in her home.” Logan and Aponte found each other about a year ago through the Council on Aging in Southwest Ohio in rural Clinton County, about 40 miles northeast of Cincinnati. For three hours on Mondays, Aponte works directly for Logan as a home care aide for $15 an hour, paid by a county property tax for senior services. Aponte helps Logan with the tasks of daily living, not with medical care. For a senior, that support can mean the difference between aging at home or in an institution charging thousands of dollars a day. Many seniors who are relatively healthy but need some assistance could see that relationship as an ideal arrangement. But it won’t be possible for many baby boomers, the 65 million Americans who were born between 1946 and 1964. This year, four million Americans in that generation, including Cher, Sylvester Stallone and President Donald Trump, turned 80. Every day for at least the next decade, another 10,000 will join them. By 2030, Americans over 65 will outnumber those under 18. For decades, experts have warned that the country was not prepared for this demographic wave. In 2002, a National Institutes of Health forecast urged states, among other things, to revamp policies to prioritize home caregiving over nursing homes. The study warned  that it was “becoming increasingly difficult for home care agencies and other providers to find and retain qualified caregivers,” and that the problem would only get worse as the U.S population aged. A big factor then was the poor pay for home care workers. The future has arrived, and little has changed. Despite the importance of their work, home caregivers are near the bottom of the nation’s pay scale: In 2024, the national median pay for home care aides was $16.78 an hour, or $34,900 per year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The low pay and the difficulty of the work have created a labor shortage, worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic and the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. There are 4.3 million home care aides today, but the federal government forecasts that by 2034, the nation will need more than 5 million of them. Some states that cover nonmedical home care through Medicaid, the joint state-federal healthcare program for people with low incomes, have marginally increased workers’ wages. But those small gains could be wiped out in 2027, when billions of dollars in Medicaid cuts go into effect as part of the broad tax and spending measure that President Donald Trump signed last year. The spending cuts in that law will put pressure on cash-strapped states to cut home- and community-based services, since the federal Medicaid law only requires them to provide institutional care. The challenge in Ohio The structural challenges of a larger older population fall mostly to the states, and Ohio is a bellwether. The population has been aging faster since the 1990s collapse of the state’s industrial base, “so I understood the challenge when I came into office,” said Ursel McElroy. In 2019, McElroy, a state government veteran on aging policy, became director of the Ohio Department of Aging under Republican Gov. Mike DeWine. In an interview, McElroy defined the challenge, then and now. “Our health care is a triumph of human ingenuity, but while we’re living longer, we’re spending more years in less than good health,” he said. “That’s the problem we want to solve for. How do we keep pace with the realities of aging?” One reality is that many seniors, such as Donna Logan, cannot afford to hire an aide on their own, but they are not eligible for Medicaid coverage. Instead, they turn to the nation’s more than 600 area agencies on aging, a network established in the 1965 Older Americans Act.   The Council on Aging of Southwestern Ohio manages senior-services levies in four counties including Clinton, said spokesperson Paula Smith. From that money, the county’s Elderly Services Program can pay home care aides, who can be hired through an employment service or directly. In 2021, the Biden administration proposed putting $400 billion into Medicaid’s home-based and community programs to support home care workers and improve their pay as they kept older Americans out of nursing homes where COVID-19 was rampant and deadly. The proposal did not pass. The shortage of home care aides worsened. In the past two years, some states have raised the pay of those workers in their Medicaid programs, often to bring them closer to the state’s minimum wage. In California, for example, the basic wage for home care workers rose this year to $16.90 an hour, which is the statewide minimum wage. Each of the state’s 58 counties then adds a location adjustment. The Los Angeles County wage went up more than $1 to $19.64 this year. In New York, the hourly wage for home care aides rose by 55 cents, to $19.65 in New York City, Long Island and Westchester County and to $18.65 in the rest of the state. Other states that have recently adjusted home care aide wages include Illinois, up a dollar to $18.75 and Texas, from $10.60 to $13. Ohio, where the minimum wage is $11, also raised its pay in 2025 to an average of $16 an hour because, McElroy said, the Department of Aging and advocates across the state “have come together more so than I’ve seen in years past.” The nonprofit Councils on Aging across Ohio held roundtable discussions for legislators on the critical shortage of home care aides, and the importance of their work. Raises for the Medicaid-paid workforce of home care aides, advocates said, would help bring up wages for everyone doing that work. A social media campaign pushed for pay raises, and ultimately, the legislature approved them. Smith, the spokesperson  for the Council on Aging of Southwestern Ohio, said more people are applying to become home care aides. While Smith said no one is quite sure why, the pay raises likely helped. ‘I am doing just fine here’ Donna Logan says baby boomers shouldn’t worry about turning 80. “They’re in a lot better shape, I think, than our parents,” she said one rainy summer morning in her Wilmington townhouse. “I know a lot of them want to stay at home, like me. I tell them, ‘Get Helen.’” The handicapped tag on the rearview mirror of Aponte’s sedan allows her to ferry Logan to the grocery store or the doctor’s office. She helps Logan with housekeeping. Every week, Aponte shows Logan how to sign on to the computer to sign her time card for $15 an hour. “I’m getting the hang of it,” Logan said with a laugh. She turned down her son’s offer to live with his family. With Aponte, “I am doing just fine here.” Logan isn’t the only one. Aponte has 14 other clients, and they love her so much that in May, Aponte received a Council on Aging award as a home aide hero. “I love doing this so much,” Aponte said. As a teenager, she took care of her grandmother and discovered a calling. She said her work now gives her flexibility to care for a disabled son. In her years as a home care aide, Aponte has found one thing in common among seniors, no matter the generation. “They have a lot of stories,” she said, “and they just want someone to listen to them.”

View the Scott County Sheriff's report from the Sept. 2 NSP!

FRIDAY, AUG. 21 10:37 a.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of a one-vehicle accident near 283rd Street and 284th Avenue. A vehicle driven by Corey Lee Engelbrecht, 49, Davenport, was westbound on 283rd Street. The roadway unexpectedly failed and gave way, causing Engelbrecht’s vehicle to fall through the roadway. 3:50 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a disturbance on Park View Drive. 5:24 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with property damage in the 19600 block of Wells Ferry Road. 9:12 p.m. — Maria Alicia Yaracely Hamilton, 20, Davenport, was charged with contempt – violation of a no contact or protective order, following a report of a domestic disturbance in the 3800 block of Wilkes Avenue, Davenport. 11:01 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a disturbance in the 3400 block of North Plainview Road. SATURDAY, AUG. 22 1:19 a.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with personal injury. 2:40 a.m. — Deputies responded to a weapons complaint in the 700 block of 3rd Street. 10:23 a.m. — Deputies responded to a vandalism complaint in the 2300 block of West Locust Street. 11:26 a.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a domestic disturbance near West 2nd Street and Western Avenue. 2:30 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of a two-vehicle accident in the 700 block of West Iowa 80 Road, Walcott. A vehicle driven by Alfonso Romeo Muniz, 44, Riverside, Calif., attempted to back into a parking space and struck a parked vehicle. 2:48 p.m. — Deputies responded to a trespassing complaint in the 700 block of West Iowa 80 Road. 4:57 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with personal injury near Veterans Memorial Parkway and Utica Ridge Road. 6:29 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with property damage near West Lake Park Road and 110th Avenue. 7:00 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of a two-vehicle accident in the 2900 block of North Plainview Road, Walcott. A vehicle driven by Natalia Dmytrenko, 41, Minneapolis, Minn., attempted to back into a parking space and struck a parked vehicle. 7:57 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a disturbance. 8:03 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with personal injury near Greenbrier Drive and Tanglefoot Lane. 8:19 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a burglary/home invasion in the 1000 block of Brown Street. 8:26 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a disturbance in the 500 block of Chestnut Street. 8:50 p.m. — Deputies responded to a harassment complaint. 9:09 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a disturbance in the 3500 block of Tanglefoot Lane. 10:18 p.m. — Daniel Martin Arps, 47, Davenport, was charged with OWI – 1st offense and cited for operating an ATV above the reasonable and proper speed, following a traffic stop near 110th Avenue and 200th Street, Davenport. SUNDAY, AUG. 23 3:01 a.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with personal injury near West 35th and Harrison streets. 3:39 a.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a domestic disturbance in the 3500 block of West 43rd Street. 4:34 a.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a domestic disturbance in the 2500 block of West 49th Street. 10:34 a.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with property damage. 11:31 a.m. — Brendin Kyle Hite, 21, Davenport, was cited for possession of a controlled substance (marijuana) – 1st offense, following a traffic stop near West 68th and North Division streets, Davenport. 11:38 a.m. — Deputies performed a welfare check in the 300 block of Davenport Street. 11:56 a.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a missing person in the 700 block of Franklin Avenue. 2:43 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with property damage in the 700 block of West Iowa 80 Road. 4:06 p.m. — Matthew Eugene Prewitt, 18, Park View, was cited for interference with official acts, following a traffic stop near Park View and Valley drives, Park View. 5:08 p.m. — Deputies responded to a weapons complaint in the 1200 block of East 29th Street. 5:37 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a domestic disturbance in the 2600 block of Grant Street. 6:33 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of a one-vehicle accident near Telegraph Roa and Vermont Avenue, Davenport. A motorcycle operated by Shane Joseph Beatty, 39, Davenport, was westbound on Telegraph Road. Beatty reportedly told deputies an eastbound vehicle crossed the centerline, causing him to swerve to avoid a collision. Beatty’s motorcycle left the roadway and went into a ditch. The other vehicle did not stop at the scene. 8:00 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with personal injury. MONDAY, AUG. 24 12:55 a.m. — Alejandro Fernandez-Castro, 31, Pharr, Texas, was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and interference with official acts, following a drug complaint in the 8200 block of Northwest Boulevard, Davenport.  2:12 a.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a disturbance in the 1300 block of East 37th Street. 10:27 a.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with property damage in the 3500 block of North Plainview Road. 12:14 p.m. — Deputies responded to a weapons complaint in the 900 block of 24th Street. 12:19 p.m. — Deputies responded to a trespassing complaint in the 2200 block of Rockingham Road. 2:11 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a juvenile problem in the 27800 block of Bowker Drive. 2:57 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a domestic disturbance in the 300 block of South Juniata Street. 7:29 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a domestic disturbance in the 1400 block of South Utah Avenue. 8:11 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a domestic disturbance in the 200 block of East 37th Street. TUESDAY, AUG. 25 12:50 a.m. — Isaiah Drevon Clark, 27, Davenport, was charged with driving while barred (habitual offender) and cited for failure to yield to an emergency vehicle, following a traffic stop near West 67th Street and Jebens Avenue, Davenport. 2:12 a.m. — Jessica Lynn Ramza, 40, Davenport, was charged with possession of a controlled substance (marijuana) – 1st offense and possession of drug paraphernalia; and Melissa Ann Schinckel, 35, Davenport, was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a controlled substance (other), following a traffic stop in the 100 block of West 65th Street, Davenport. 7:11 a.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of a two-vehicle accident near 210th Street and Holden Drive. A vehicle driven by Michael Arthur Alexander, 34, Davenport, was eastbound on 210th Street. Alexander reportedly attempted to make a left turn to Holden Drive. He was struck by a vehicle driven by John Christopher Foster, 57, Davenport, that was westbound on 210th Street. Alexander was cite for failure to yield on a left turn. 8:04 a.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with property damage in the 600 block of Belmont Road. 8:58 a.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a disturbance near West Garfield and North Division streets. 10:32 a.m. — Deputies responded to a fraud complaint in the 22600 block of Great River Road. 2:13 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a disturbance in the 300 block of East Locust Street. 2:16 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with property damage in the 600 block of Belmont Road. 6:12 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of a two-vehicle accident near 140th Street and 100th Avenue. A vehicle driven by Lincoln James Callahan, 20, Davenport, struck a vehicle driven by David Alan Crews, 43, Blue Grass. Callahan was cited for failure to stop within the assured clear distance and failure to provide proof of insurance. 9:28 p.m. — Deputies responded to a vandalism complaint in the 10100 block of 298th Street. 10:32 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with personal injury near South Cody Road and Sycamore Drive. WEDNESDAY, AUG. 26 12:30 a.m. — Jasmine Tanesia Dodd, 38, Rock Island, was cited for possession of a controlled substance (cannabidiol) – 1st offense, possession of a controlled substance (marijuana) – 1st offense and possession of drug paraphernalia, following a traffic stop near East 53rd and Brady streets, Davenport. 1:38 a.m. — Jeremy Shane Larue, 50, Davenport, was charged with possession of a controlled substance (non-marijuana) – 3rd or subsequent offense, following a traffic stop in the 1600 block of West 53rd Street, Davenport. 8:53 a.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a disturbance near West 4th and Taylor streets. 10:01 a.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a domestic disturbance in the 6900 block of West Locust Street. 10:06 a.m. — Deputies responded to a report of an assault in the 400 block of West 4th Street. 2:58 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a domestic disturbance in the 2100 block of North Lincoln Avenue. 5:49 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with property damage near North 9th Avenue and East LeClaire Road. 5:52 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a domestic disturbance in the 700 block of 3rd Street. 8:40 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a missing person on Park Crest Court. THURSDAY, AUG. 27 3:55 a.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a disturbance in the 6300 block of Brady Street. 5:58 a.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with personal injury. 11:55 a.m. — Deputies responded to a drug complaint in the 600 block of Belmont Road. 12:30 p.m. — Deputies responded to a drug complaint in the 600 block of Belmont Road. 1:43 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a disturbance in the 600 block of Belmont Road. 1:47 p.m. — Deputies responded to a trespassing complaint in the 2600 block of West Locust Street. 3:15 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a domestic disturbance in the 7400 block of Cedar Street. 3:16 p.m. — Deputies responded to a fireworks complaint in the 300 block of South Main Street. 5:47 p.m. — Deputies responded to a harassment complaint on Park Crest Court. 5:51 p.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a missing person in the 1000 block of Hacker Street. 7:43 p.m. — Deputies responded to a trespassing complaint in the 100 block of South Kensington Street. 9:48 p.m. — Deputies performed a welfare check on Hillside Court. FRIDAY, AUG. 28 10:23 a.m. — Deputies responded to a report of a missing person in the 200 block of Manor Drive. 11:10 a.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with property damage in the 600 block of Belmont Road. 11:34 a.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with property damage in the 1700 block of West 6th Street. 11:37 a.m. — Deputies responded to a report of theft in the 13800 block of 118th Avenue. 1:07 p.m. — Deputies responded to a trespassing complaint in the 8200 block of Northwest Boulevard. 1:27 p.m. — Deputies responded to a trespassing complaint in the 18200 block of 249th Avenue. 1:46 p.m. — Deputies responded to the scene of an accident with personal injury in the 10300 block of 140th Street.      

Fall Field Day to be held Sept. 10

Farmers, ag retailers, crop advisors and conservation professionals can explore current Iowa State University research on cropping systems, nitrate loss, cover crops and a potential alternative biomass crop — miscanthus — at the upcoming Fall Field Day at the Southeast Research and Demonstration Farm on Sept. 10 from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. The event is hosted by ISU Extension and Outreach, ISU Research Farms and the Southeast Iowa Agricultural Research Association. "This field day offers an opportunity to see research results in the field and discuss how those findings can be applied on working farms," said Rebecca Vittetoe, field agronomist with ISU Extension and Outreach. “Whether you're interested in crop productivity, conservation practices, alternative crops or livestock forage opportunities, there will be valuable information for a wide range of producers and ag professionals.” Check-in begins at 1 p.m., and the field day starts at 1:30 p.m. The event is open to the public at no cost due to the support from ISU Extension and Outreach, ISU Research Farms and the Southeast Iowa Agricultural Research Association. Certified Crop Advisers can earn 1.5 continuing education units in crop management and 0.5 CEU in soil and water management. The Southeast Research and Demonstration Farm is located at 3115 Louisa-Washington Road, Crawfordsville. Signs will be posted near the farm. For more information, contact Logan McCrea at ldmccrea@iastate.edu or 641-226-7102; Virgil Schmitt at vschmitt@iastate.edu or 563-263-5701; or Rebecca Vittetoe at rka8@iastate.edu or 712-540-3319.

Swim team enters third year in the pool

It almost feels strange to say it is year three of the North Scott girls’ swimming program. By now, it simply feels like business as usual. The Lancers made their third voyage to the Davenport Central Swim Invitational on Saturday to ring in the start of a new season. “It went really great,” reported coach Joni Paulsen upon the team’s arrival back in Eldridge. “We had our starting times from the beginning of the season, from practice, so it was good to see everybody drop time from that. We are seeing that progress in that short time.” North Scott is still operating with the smallest roster in the Mississippi Athletic Conference at just nine swimmers. The biggest difference this year is that three of them are upperclassmen and two more are returning swimmers from last fall. Seniors Lillian Farro and Madelyn La Plante, along with junior Olivia Durkin, are all in their third years with the program. Farro and Durkin were named team captains for this season. Sophomores Julie Enlow and Madyson Sparkman are starting their second years with the team. This fall, the Lancers welcome freshmen Tori Gruenhagen, Rylie O’Flahrity, Jessenia Webb and eighth grader Kaylee Mose to the team. “Our program has grown so much from last year to this year,” Farro said. “We have a bunch of new swimmers. It’s good that we have a lot of different programs that lead into high school swimming. Like at the Y(MCA), North Scott Junior High, or things like that, a lot of the girls here have swam before.” Farro’s last point, about the group’s experience swimming, is the biggest boon to the team as it starts the season. “Almost everyone here has been on the team or in the River Otters or junior high leading into it. They already understand how swim meets work, and they understand times. We don’t have to take so long with so many levels of building endurance,” Paulsen said. “This year, we can establish a pace and go full into race strategy from the start. Now they know what they’re swimming, but more importantly how to swim it. It helps build on that, and it makes a very big difference.” Another key addition is that Paulsen and assistant coach Lauren Hayman can take a step back in some respects. With experienced swimmers, the girls can coach themselves and boost each other’s confidence in and out of the pool. “(The upperclassmen have) been through the growing season, and the next one where we’re implementing things. Now, they can be the ones to help the younger swimmers, and they already do,” Paulsen said. “You can see that level of confidence shine through them. “A really big thing this year is to be athlete-driven. I always tell them that Lauren and I are here to give you the tools, but you still have to build the house. We can’t want your goals more than you do. They’ve all sat down and wrote down specific goals on top of their team goals. Lauren and I’s goal is to help them reach their goals, whether that’s short-term or long-term.” The team’s number one goal remains the same from previous years: bond and become a tight-knit family. Despite newcomers making up half of the team this year, Farro says ‘it still feels like the same team,’ and the returners are making a point to welcome the younger kids into the family. “As an upperclassman, you can get caught up in your own world thinking about your future. It’s good to stay grounded and meet these younger kids and connect with them,” Farro added. “You think that a one-year difference in high school is a big thing, but a lot of these girls are so mature and emotionally strong. I like how we as a team, no matter if we lose people or gain people, we always have the same team values.” The Lancers once again compete in a full schedule, and the team will have three home meets this season at the North Scott YMCA. Those dates are Sept. 15 against Clinton, Sept. 29 against Burlington and Muscatine, and Oct. 15 against Bettendorf. North Scott will also return to some large-field invitationals. The team goes back to Linn-Mar on Sept. 12, to Iowa City High on Sept. 19 and Williamsburg on Oct. 12. The Lancers’ lone meet this week was back at Davenport Central High School on Tuesday (Sept. 1) in a triangular against the Blue Devils and Rock Island Rocks. The team then takes over a week off before traveling to the 14-school Linn-Mar Invitational next Saturday.

A dozen medals in opening meet

It’s hard to imagine the first meet of the year going much better for North Scott’s cross-country teams. 12 runners came home with varsity medals, with one of them coming within shouting distance of the gold medal. The Lancer boys took team runner-up honors, while the girls placed third at the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Invitational last Tuesday (Aug. 25) at Elliott Athletic Complex. North Scott ran alongside great teams at this meet. Mount Vernon-Lisbon is ranked fifth in 3A boys and sixth in 3A girls. Center Point-Urbana is ranked eighth in 3A girls, and Mid-Prairie Wellman is ranked fourth in 2A girls. “For being a smaller meet, it wasn’t short on talent,” Lancer coach Amy Knoche said. “With that level of competition, I thought we competed very well for our first meet of the season. “On the boys’ side, we were right with Mount Vernon for much of the race. They obviously have the advantage of knowing their home course, and they were able to pull away a little over the final mile, but our guys were right there competing for the top spots throughout the race.” The seven best Mustang runners all finished inside the top 11, including scoring runners taking first, second, fourth, fifth and sixth, for a team score of 18 points. Lancer senior Parker Hamly broke up the streak of maroon jerseys with a third-place effort of 17:14.9 — just a handful of steps behind Kyler Happel’s winning time of 17:06.0. Hamly’s time was faster than what he posted at the conference and district meets last season, and it was 22 seconds faster than his time at this event last year. He had a legitimate shot to win the race before the Mustangs made their moves during the final mile. “Parker led for the majority of the race, which can be very taxing because you are constantly ‘on’ and setting the pace rather than being able to sit behind someone,” Knoche said. “The two Mount Vernon kids were either just a couple of steps behind him or within about 10 meters for most of the race. It wasn’t until the final half-mile that they were able to pull away. “Running 17:14 this early in the season puts Parker only about 20 seconds off his PR already, which is a great sign. When you combine his time with the way he competed and the work he put in over the offseason, I think Parker is in a really good spot compared to where he was 52 weeks ago.” North Scott put all of its boys’ runners in the top 16. Senior Ben Clayton finished eighth overall with an 18:01.0 race, and freshman Jeremiah Stanley took tenth with an 18:14.6 time. Sophomores Bryton Dougherty and Miles Unwin were 12th and 13th at 18:35.6 and 18:47.2, respectively, to score for the team. Junior Zeke Skyles ran an 18:52.2 race, and sophomore Cooper Esch clocked in at 19:02.7. Senior Nate Holst also came home with a medal, finishing 20th overall at 19:10.3. The performance from the sophomore class as a whole was one of Knoche’s biggest takeaways from the afternoon. “Having a full year of racing experience under their belts makes a big difference,” Knoche said. “They now know what to expect, how to approach a race and what it takes to compete at this level. Bryton, Miles and Cooper are showing some really encouraging signs, while Zoey Ayers has looked promising for the girls. “Zeke Skyles showed some promise as well. His tendency has been to start a little conservatively and work his way up throughout the race. He did a better job of getting out a little harder and putting himself in a better position early. That’s something we’ve been working on with him, and it was encouraging to see him make that adjustment in the first race of the season.” Lancer girls take top three finish Every placement matters in cross-country. That showed in the girls’ race on Tuesday as the Lancers nabbed the third team spot by one point over 3A No. 8 Center Point-Urbana, 78 to 79. “We are a smaller team this year, but I thought our girls competed extremely well and were able to finish ahead of one of the ranked teams. That gives us a lot to be encouraged about moving forward,” Knoche said. Junior Natalie O’Flahrity (21:15.8 — eighth place) and senior Khloe Hamilton (21:23.3 — ninth place) took their rightful spots at the front of the Lancers pack. Perhaps the most exciting result from the group was another sophomore, Vivian Ohsann, taking 13th and timing at an even 22 minutes and five seconds. Ohsann ran track as a freshman but missed the cross-country season due to an injury. With her in the fold as a third option behind O’Flahrity and Hamilton could mean a great deal to future North Scott team scores. “(Ohsann) ran with Natalie and Khloe through the first mile before dropping off a little, which is understandable given that this was her first cross-country race and she doesn’t have the same race experience yet,” Knoche said. “Having Vivian healthy and being a solid No. 3 runner could be really important for our girls this season. If she can continue to improve and eventually compete with Natalie and Khloe, that kind of depth at the front of our lineup is only going to make all three of them better. It also gives our team a much stronger pack up front, which can make a big difference when we get into the bigger meets later in the season.” The aforementioned Ayers placed fourth on the team and 22nd overall with her time of 23:10.4. Senior Emma Reif was next, in 29th place, at 23:52.4. Freshman Kayla Stortz rounded out the scoring quintet in 36th place at 24:37.1. While placement and times are the only two major statistics in cross-country, those don’t matter to Knoche in the first race of the season. “I put more emphasis on how our runners compete than on their actual times or placements at the first meet of the season,” Knoche said. “I want to see how they handle the race, how they respond when things get difficult, whether they compete for position, and whether they continue to fight all the way to the finish. “Those things tell me much more about where we are as a team early in the season than a time on the clock. Times will naturally drop as we get further into the season, as our training progresses and our athletes get into better racing shape.” Of course, you can’t hold intangibles in your hand. The medals the team won provide a physical piece of motivation to continue pushing themselves into the season. “I think tasting success early gives them a shot of confidence moving forward,” Knoche said. “They now have a little more belief in themselves and in what this team can accomplish. Hopefully, they can build on that confidence, continue to work hard and use this meet as a springboard for the rest of the season.” North Scott will go from one of the smallest meets of the year to one of the biggest meets of the year. This Saturday, the team heads back to Crow Creek Park for the Pleasant Valley Spartan Cross-Country Challenge. It features 16 schools and teams from both sides of the Mississippi River.   Also, on the Lancers’ schedule on Tuesday (Sept. 1) — weather permitting — was the Clinton School House Invitational. The heat index projected to be over 100 degrees during racing hours. “Next week looks like it’s going to be really toasty, which is not exactly favorable for distance runners,” Knoche said. “These races will give us an opportunity to see where we are against some quality conference competition, but it’s still a long season. We want to use these meets as a measuring stick without putting too much emphasis on where we finish in August.”

'We have to figure out a way to get better'

Losing to the defending state champions on their home field is far from a bad result in week one. Certainly, North Scott wanted to post a more competitive result than it did. No. 1 Cedar Rapids Xavier quashed the No. 3 Lancers’ bid to supplant them as the top team in the state, leaving no questions as to which is the team to beat in Class 4A. This expedition hit dark shores and quickly turned into a forgotten battlefield with the visitors in a 33-point hole after three quarters. North Scott punched in a late touchdown and extra point to avoid the shutout, but the air had gone out of the Lancers’ side of the stadium long before. “We’re never going to be satisfied with moral victories. We didn’t even have one of those tonight,” Lancer coach Tony Stewart said. “I felt like early on we didn’t execute some of the things we wanted. Coaches didn’t put ‘em in good enough positions to be able to execute those things. We’ll get better. We have a lot of kids who are playing both ways and playing a heck of a lot of football who have a ton of guts and heart. We have to figure out a way to get better.” Xavier dominated every facet of this game. Rushing yards: 191 to 55. Passing yards: 227 on 18 attempts to 173 on 28 attempts. Turnovers: Zero to two. Punts: Zero to seven. Xavier extended its winning streak to six games against North Scott without much of a sweat. “We have to execute some stuff better. I liked some of the schematics that we have, but we didn’t execute it. And that’s because we didn’t coach well enough to execute it,” Stewart said. “We’ll get better. It’s on the coaches. If (the players) aren’t executing, it’s because we’re not putting them in a good enough position to.” North Scott punted on all five of its first half drives. Xavier scored points on four of its first five drives with two field goals and two touchdowns. While there were flashes of offensive success for the Lancers early on — a 12-yard reception by senior Ryder Maher on the opening drive and a 16-yard reception by junior Landon Gronewold on the fourth drive — the team took one step forward followed by two steps sideways or backwards. North Scott only mustered 1.9 yards per carry in the game — 55 yards on 29 carries — and had all four of its penalties assessed within the first 26 minutes of game time. “Either we missed a signal, or maybe I called something the wrong way; I felt there was always something a little bit off,” Stewart said. “And they’re too good of a team to do that against. You get yourselves in a second or third and long, it’s hard to get out of those.” On the other side of the ball, Xavier did whatever it wanted. It averaged 6.0 yards per carry and 17.5 yards per completion. The Saints’ game plan included two trick play passes from non-quarterbacks. The first one, on the opening play of the game, went for 33 yards. The second one, midway through the third quarter, went for a 35-yard touchdown to go up 27-0. Senior Ty Weiss accounted for 21 of his team’s 33 points. He scored two touchdowns, kicked two field goals and made all three extra points. “They are really good at what they do,” Stewart said. “A lot of misdirection. They had to pull some things out, trick plays and things, and they’re always good at it. They’re well coached. We have to get ourselves in position where we can compete better.” The lone bright spot for North Scott came on its first drive of the fourth quarter. Junior Conlan Panther entered the game at quarterback, replacing senior Miller Haedt, and immediately sparked the North Scott offense. Panther threw a beautiful sideline ball to senior Ryan Block for a 42-yard gain. Then, Maher drew a defensive pass interference to place the ball inside the red zone. Panther then tossed a screen pass to senior Aaron Bergfeld. This was Bergfeld’s first varsity reception, and he charged forward 10 yards for a touchdown. “(Panther’s) got an incredible arm. We thought to give him a shot. He did; we protected, and he got the ball out,” Stewart said. “Conlan hasn’t played football since he was a freshman, really. We want to get him in there and give him some live game action. He’s worked his tail off too, and we want to give him some opportunities.” For the second straight season, North Scott has lost its season-opener. This loss does not have the same sting as it would have in district play, but the Lancers’ margin for error has nonetheless taken an early hit. The team will try to learn from this game, but it will need to be ready for Cedar Rapids Washington at home this Friday. The Warriors defeated Cedar Rapids Jefferson 38-13 last week. “(The loss to Xavier) can hurt, and it should hurt. (Co-defensive coordinator) Coach (Zach) Schwartz said if it doesn’t hurt, you’re not invested enough,” Stewart said. “It hurts tonight, but tomorrow you turn the page and move on. It’s a long season. We’re going to play other really good teams. We know what we have to do to be better. We know what that looks like here.”

Lancers match school-record 279 at Thunder Hills

The first step on the road to a state championship is to be the best team in your area. North Scott took a big leap towards making that second part a reality. The Lancers had not beaten Pleasant Valley in a meet since the 2024 Mississippi Athletic Conference meet. Until last Monday (Aug. 24). North Scott matched its school-record score of 279, clearing the Spartans by two shots to win the Western Dubuque Bobcats Invitational at Thunder Hills Country Club. The Lancers have now shot 279s in consecutive meets, doing so for the first time at their home invitational two weeks ago. In this 11-school field, only the Lancers, Spartans (281), Dubuque Senior Rams (294) and Dubuque Hempstead Mustangs (298) went sub-300 for the day. It was a remarkable turnaround for North Scott at this event compared to last fall, when it shot its season-worst score of 306 at Thunder Hills. This 27-shot improvement well outpaced Pleasant Valley’s seven-shot score decrease from last year’s tournament. Junior Andrew Vollbeer, who finished as individual runner-up last year, took home meet medalist honors with a 4-under 67. This set his new high school personal record for an 18-hole round. It is also the low round for the Lancers this season. Senior Jaxon Adkisson shot a 2-under 69 to tie for third place, with Pleasant Valley’s Michael Koury Jr. taking runner-up honors with a 3-under 68. Junior Luke Leverenz tied for fifth with a 1-under 70, and sophomore Michael Phillips tied for 12th with a 2-over 73 to score for the team. Freshman James Vollbeer shot a 4-over 75, and junior Max McClintock shot a 6-over 77, as the No. 5 and No. 6 golfers in the Lancer lineup posted scores many other schools are envious of. North Scott had just this one meet last week, and it only has one meet again this week. It is much closer to home, as the Lancers will contest the Davenport Assumption Boys Golf Invitational at Emeis Golf Course on Wednesday starting at 9 a.m. The field is comprised of all 10 MAC schools plus Dubuque Senior. Pleasant Valley is the defending champion of this event. Dubuque Senior’s Colton McCollaugh is set to defend his individual gold medal.

The rain, rain won't go away

North Scott’s girls’ tennis team had its most rain-impacted week of the season, resuming and stopping action at the ends of the week. The team played one and a half conference dual meets and half of one tournament in a disjointed couple of days. On Saturday, the already rain-postponed Assumption Invitational was paused and then canceled midway through the tournament due to persistent afternoon rain. There is no makeup date currently scheduled. The same rain that canceled the original date for this tournament also postponed the North Scott and Central DeWitt dual on Aug. 14.  The Lancers lost 5-4 Monday, carrying singles results over from two weeks ago. Senior Maddy Jepsen and freshman Claire Jepsen continued their streak of doubles success, winning 6-2, 6-1 over the Sabers’ top duo. Every Lancer got into the win column on Thursday at Davenport Central in a 9-0 North Scott sweep. Each girl moved up one spot in the lineup with Maddy Jepsen taking a breather. In singles, in order of lineup spot, Claire Jepsen won 6-1, 6-4; senior Victoria Samara won 6-0, 6-0; senior Ava Pins won 6-1, 6-0; sophomore Kelsey Clayton won 6-1, 6-2; freshman Sloan Varner won 6-0, 6-0; and junior Chloe Rickertsen won 6-1, 6-1. In doubles, Samara and Claire Jepsen won 6-0, 6-1 at No. 1; Clayton/Varner won 6-1, 6-0 at No. 2; and Pins/Rickertsen won 6-2, 6-0 at No. 3. On Monday, North Scott hosted Davenport North, and it will host Davenport Assumption on Thursday.

View the Eldridge Police report from the Sept. 2 NSP!

MONDAY, AUG. 24 2:25 a.m. — Assisted Medic with an EMS call in the 300 block of West Slopertown Road. 11:57 a.m. — Report of a parking complaint in the 100 block of East Iowa Street. Handled by officer. 3:15 p.m. — Assisted Medic with an EMS call in the 700 block of North 1st Street. 4:29 p.m. — Complaint of juveniles riding double on an electric scooter in the 200 block of South 5th Street. Handled by officer. 6:38 p.m. — Assisted Medic with an EMS call in the 200 block of North 4th Avenue. 7:20 p.m. — Complaint of a pile of dirt in the roadway near South 8th Street and West Pinehurst Drive. Handled by officer. 8:08 p.m. — Justin Jacobs, 42, of DeWitt, was cited for operating a non-registered vehicle, following a traffic stop on Highway 61. 10:00 p.m. — Wendy Spencer, 50, of Davenport, was arrested for driving under suspension, following a traffic stop in the 800 block of South 10th Avenue. 11:04 p.m. — Sean Reichardt, 29, of Davenport, was cited for operation without registration, following a traffic stop in the 8900 block of North Division Street. TUESDAY, AUG. 25 6:38 a.m. — Complaint of a disabled vehicle on Highway 61. Handled by officer. 6:57 a.m. — Assisted Medic with an EMS call in the 200 block of East Franklin Street. 8:43 a.m. — A juvenile was charged with possession of a controlled substance, following an incident in the 200 block of South 1st Street. 9:23 a.m. — Assisted Medic with an EMS call in the 100 block of North 1st Street. 10:55 a.m. — Report of a parking complaint in the 200 block of South 5th Street. Handled by officer. 4:53 p.m. — Alysha Klemme, 35, of DeWitt, was cited for a registration violation, following a traffic stop in the 300 block of West LeClaire Road. 10:26 p.m. — Assisted another agency with a report of a suspicious vehicle near 210th and Brady streets. 11:38 p.m. — Complaint of smoke alarms going off in the 700 block of Saint Andrews Circle. Handled by officer. WEDNESDAY, AUG. 26 1:23 a.m. — Assisted Medic with an EMS call in the 700 block of North 1st Street. 10:55 a.m. — Assisted Medic with an EMS call in the 600 block of East Iowa Street. 1:32 p.m. — Complaint of a subject using a dumpster illegally in the 200 block of East Franklin Street. Unable to locate. Handled by officer. 5:49 p.m. — Lori Leigh, 46, of Princeton, was cited for failure to stop within the assured clear distance, after being involved in a three-vehicle accident near North 9th Avenue and East LeClaire Road. 6:57 p.m. — Report taken for damage to a window in the 500 block of West Davenport Street. 8:40 p.m. — Assisted another agency with a report of a missing juvenile on Park Crest Court. 11:46 p.m. — Assisted Medic with an EMS call in the 300 block of West Sheridan Drive. THURSDAY, AUG. 27 4:24 a.m. — Complaint of suspicious activity in the 800 block of East LeClaire Road. Handled by officer. 6:23 a.m. — Assisted Medic with an EMS call in the 300 block of Country Club Court. 7:43 a.m. — Complaint of a reckless driver in the 800 block of East LeClaire Road. Unable to locate. Handled by officer. 11:33 a.m. — Complaint of a disabled vehicle on Highway 61. Handled by officer. 5:27 p.m. — Complaint of a reckless driver on Highway 61. Handled by officer. 6:01 p.m. — Complaint of theft of a vehicle in the 200 block of South 1st Street. The complaint was unfounded. Handled by officer. 6:32 p.m. — Assisted Medic with an EMS call in the 200 block of South 1st Street. 8:23 p.m. — Assisted another agency with a traffic stop in the 600 block of South Scott Park Road. FRIDAY, AUG. 28 12:28 a.m. — Assisted another agency with a traffic stop on Highway 61. 8:36 a.m. — Nartessia Griffin, 31, of Chicago, Ill., was cited for operation without registration, following a traffic stop in the 100 block of East LeClaire Road. 8:50 a.m. — Report taken for fraudulent activity in the 600 block of North 6th Avenue. 10:42 a.m. — Logan Pacha, 17, of Donahue, was cited for careless driving, following a traffic stop near South 3rd Avenue and East Iowa Street. 10:46 a.m. — Report of a parking complaint in the 100 block of West Spring Street. Handled by officer. 11:12 a.m. — Corey Engelbrecht, 49, of Davenport, was cited for use of an electronic communications device, following a traffic stop near South 4th Avenue and East LeClaire Road. 1:04 p.m. — Andri Aponte Flores, 33, of Glendale Heights, Ill., was cited for operation without registration, following a traffic stop near Scott Park Road and 214th Street. 2:01 p.m. — Assisted Medic with an EMS call in the 500 block of West Valley Drive. 2:58 p.m. — Syngen Case, 35, of Davenport, was cited for operating a non-registered vehicle, following a traffic stop near Harrison Street and West Slopertown Road. 3:19 p.m. — Complaint of a disabled vehicle on Highway 61. Handled by officer. 3:34 p.m. — Alexis Schuldt, 31, of Moline, was cited for operation without registration, following a traffic stop near East Blackhawk Trail and South 11th Avenue. 3:48 p.m. — Ezkiel Buckner, 27, of Davenport, was arrested for driving under suspension and cited for no insurance, following a traffic stop near South 9th Avenue and East Hickory Street. 6:09 p.m. — Complaint of a disabled vehicle on Highway 61.  Handled by officer. SATURDAY, AUG. 29 6:21 a.m. — Assisted Medic with an EMS call in the 200 block of East Franklin Street. 12:46 p.m. — Assisted Medic with an EMS call in the 300 block of South Blanche Drive. 2:53 p.m. — Complaint of a reckless driver in the 300 block of North 9th Street. Unable to locate. Handled by officer. 5:11 p.m. — Ryan Loyd, 27, of Bettendorf, was cited for operating a non-registered vehicle, following a traffic stop near North 6th Avenue and East LeClaire Road. 5:17 p.m. — James Hughes, 30, of Davenport, was arrested for a failure to appear at a revocation hearing - possession of a controlled substance, following an incident in the 100 block of South 14th Avenue. 6:40 p.m. — Complaint of a subject in the 800 block of Fox Ridge Road being harassed. Handled by officer. 7:28 p.m. — Complaint of suspicious activity in the 600 block of North 6th Street. Handled by officer. 10:46 p.m. — Assisted another agency with a welfare check near 300th Street and 220th Avenue. SUNDAY, AUG. 30 5:44 a.m. — Assisted another agency with a vehicle vs. bicycle accident near Slopertown Road and North Division Street. 6:07 a.m. — Complaint of a horse in the roadway near South Buttermilk and West Lincoln roads. Unable to locate. Handled by officer. 6:27 a.m. — Complaint of a horse in a yard in the 1100 block of West Lincoln Road. The horse was returned to its owner. Handled by officer. 12:23 p.m. — Assisted another agency with an incident in the 100 block of West Lombard Street. 3:03 p.m. — Complaint of a subject hearing gunfire in the 300 block of West Spring Street. Handled by officer. 3:52 p.m. — Complaint of a disabled vehicle on Highway 61. Handled by officer. 3:55 p.m. — Complaint of a disabled vehicle on Highway 61. Handled by officer. 7:28 p.m. — Report of an alarm sounding in the 200 block of South 16th Avenue. Keyholder contacted. Handled by officer.  

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ABET, an accreditor focused on STEM, has accredited over 4700 programs at 937 schools across the globe.

42nd annual Rock Island Labor Day Parade will have 90-plus entries

The 42nd annual Rock Island Labor Day Parade is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Monday, Sept. 7, with more than 90 entries have registered, with many based on this year’s theme of “Marching Through 250 Years of American History.” The line-up includes the Los Charros horse riding group, Marching Avenir Highsteppers DrillTeam, members of the Illinois [...]

Davenport council to consider settling with former assistant city attorney

The agreement, which the council plans to consider Wednesday, would settle the attorney's claims for $397,000.

Davenport considering options for restoring Levee Inn

Davenport is looking at potentially renovating the Levee Inn on the riverfront into a concessions stand with the help of city funding, grants, and donations.

Hot and humid start to September

Fall thoughts may come to mind when you hear "September", but the month is starting out hot and humid in the Quad Cities! Here's your full 7-day forecast.

Gretchen at Work: Making window treatments at Great Plains Blind Factory

Great Plains Blind Factory in Davenport has been in business since 1993.

Whistleblower claims USPS plan for Trump's mail voting order could 'derail' midterms

A whistleblower says the U.S. Postal Service is rushing out an online system for President Trump's push to restrict mail voting that could "derail" the midterm election if courts allow it to proceed.

Judge to decide if Tyler Robinson will go to trial in Charlie Kirk murder case

Utah District Judge Tony Graf Jr. will hear arguments over evidence introduced in July, to decide if there's enough probable cause for a trial in the shooting of the conservative activist last year.

Made in America: How AI is keeping this U.S. factory competitive

GE Appliances is leaning heavily into artificial intelligence to improve quality and efficiency on the factory floor.

A NY hospital tried to close its birthing center. This city united to fight back

Democrats and Republicans in Troy, New York, took on a national Catholic health system and kept the county's last birthing center open.

A makeover for college: No gym, no meal plan and two years of work

A new model in Vermont emphasizes hands-on learning while stripping away frills like gyms and meal plans that increase costs. Other newly created institutions are also reimagining college.

New Iowa Quad Cities campaign urges safe use of e-bikes, e-scooters on sidewalks and trails

"Ride Safe 'n Smart" is a collaboration between Iowa towns, school districts and healthcare professionals, reminding people how to stay safe on trails and sidewalks.

Days after Trump announces Venezuela oil deal, White House fills in some of the details

As part of the deal, the U.S. is creating a private company as a joint venture with North American Blue Energy Partners, owned by Venezuelan businessman Alejandro Betancourt.

Hindu pilgrims, on arduous trek, among Nepal's missing

Among the hundreds still missing on Nepal's border with China are Hindus from India and beyond, participating in a journey of devotion to a sacred mountain

These are the 10 fastest-growing jobs over the next decade, Labor Department says

These are the top 10 fastest-growing jobs over the next decade, according to new Labor Department projections.

Amid backlash, museum cancels planned Met Gala exhibit on fashion designer John Galliano

The Metropolitan Museum of Art is canceling exhibit honoring British designer John Galliano. The exhibit had led to backlash because of the designer's past antisemitic and racist statements.

Jury convicts a man of first-degree murder for the 1996 killing of rap icon Tupac Shakur

A jury found Duane "Keffe D" Davis guilty of orchestrating the 1996 killing of rap icon Tupac Shakur, finally bringing a measure of resolution to a case that had gripped hip-hop fans for decades.

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is stepping down, White House says

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is stepping down after 18 months on the job, the White House said Monday, in the latest departure of a top military leader during the Trump administration.

Nearly 200 witnesses to Charlie Kirk shooting apply for victims' benefits in Utah

While the high-profile shooting at Utah Valley University had only one homicide victim, Kirk's assassination was witnessed by thousands in person and even more as video spread online.

Edward Spencer

This is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.Even today, Easterners view the Midwest as far better ground in which to plant corn than culture. They would almost…

Section of highway in Galesburg to be dedicated to fallen area soldier

A section of U.S. Highway 150 through Galesburg will be dedicated in honor of an area soldier who lost his life in Iraq. According to a release from the Illinois General Assembly, Sgt. 1st Class Kyle Wehrly, a Galesburg native and Illinois Army National Guard member, the section of highway will be dedicated Friday September [...]

Another prominent Republican heads to Iowa

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins is scheduled to return to Iowa on Tuesday.

Muscatine Power & Water will begin water-main replacement project

Muscatine Power and Water will close Roscoe Avenue between Van Horne Street and West 11th Street beginning Tuesday, Sept. 1 for a water-main replacement project, a news release says. The roadway will be fully closed during working hours. Outside of working hours, the road will reopen to one‑lane traffic. The project is expected to last [...]

Seeing fall colors already? Arborist says check your trees

A QC expert tells us that if your leaves are already changing colors, it might be a sign of a bigger problem, including disease, drought and root system issues.

Illinois state senators hold town hall in Port Byron, talk Tyson closure

Illinois state Sens. Li Arellano Jr. and Neil Anderson held a joint legislative session update and town hall meeting in Port Byron on Monday.

Geneseo couple proposes 26-acre sports complex in memory of late son

A Geneseo couple is proposing a 26-acre sports complex in memory of their son, with soccer fields, pickleball courts, a splash pad and parking.

Muscatine City Council will review financing for sanitary/storm sewer project

The Muscatine City Council will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, Sept. 1, to gather input on a long‑term financing plan for Phase 6E of the West Hill Sanitary and Storm Sewer Separation Project, according to a news release. The hearing begins at 5:30 p.m. in the City Council Chambers, second floor of Muscatine City [...]

Muscatine’s Roscoe Avenue to temporarily close for water main replacement

Muscatine Power and Water will begin water main replacement work on Tuesday, Sept. 1, temporarily closing part of Roscoe Avenue.