SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
May 1, 2010
Sullivan’s Salvos 5/4/10
In this edition:
*Mother’s Day
*Arizona Immigration Law
*Congrats Sandy Bucher!
*Congrats Mike Townsend!
*Congrats Deb Minot!
*Project Green Plant Sale
*319 Music Festival
*Quire Spring Concert
*Sutliff Bridge Fundraiser
*Did You Know?
*Mother’s Day
Sunday, May 9th is Mother’s Day. It may go without saying, but please take some extra time to say thank you to the important women in your life.
*Arizona Immigration Law
By now you have all heard about the racist piece of “immigration” legislation that passed in Arizona. This is so heinous that I’m not even sure where to begin. But here are a few thoughts:
People generally perceived of as being of “Mexican” descent are typically a genetic mix between Native Americans (including natives of North, Central & South America) and Spanish immigrants. People fitting this description have lived in Arizona for hundreds of years, long before Arizona was a state (or Mexico was a country). If you look at just the Native American roots, they have been there 10,000 years. How DARE the Arizona Legislature treat a group of people this way?
The US has gone through other ugly “show us your papers” moments. Must we do this again?
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: we have strict laws that allow for companies to be “international” and do business across international boundaries. That is referred to as the “free market”. There is no “free market” for labor, however. People who want the same rights enjoyed by corporations are viewed as criminals. What is wrong with that picture?
This is racist, classist and wrong. I hope the US Supreme Court will overturn this law, but I have little faith in that body. At the very least, please join me in speaking out!
*Congrats Sandy Bucher!
Congratulations to Sandy Bucher who is retiring after 22 years in the County Attorney’s Office, 17 in her position as Johnson County’s Victim Coordinator.
In this role, Sandy has masterfully handled helping victims of crime and their families through the difficult situations they are facing. It is important and unsung work.
Thank you, Sandy, and congratulations on your retirement!
*Congrats Mike Townsend!
I am really getting sick and tired of losing so many great people to retirement! The next retirement I want to mention is that of Mike Townsend. Mike is retiring after 30+ years at Goodwill Industries.
I have known Mike for over 20 years now. I cannot imagine a better guy. Mike has dedicated his life to serving folks who were otherwise marginalized. Through it all, he has been honest, caring, thoughtful, committed, and funny.
When all hope that when we retire, we can look back and see that we have made a difference. Mike Townsend has made a significant positive difference in the lives of literally THOUSANDS of our neediest citizens. How can we even begin to measure such an impact? How can we possibly thank him enough?
This will not be nearly good enough, but thank you, Mike! Your time at Goodwill is extremely appreciated!
*Congrats Deb Minot!
Assistant County Attorney Deb Minot was installed as a judge this past Friday. Congrats on this tremendous honor!
*Project Green Plant Sale
The 40th annual (!) Project Green Plant Sale is Saturday, May 8, from 9–11:30 AM at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
The Project GREEN Garden Fair is a special tradition in the Iowa City/Coralville community. Gardeners and would-be gardeners will find a great assortment of trees, shrubs, vines, and sunny and shade perennials, as well as sources of expert information to help with plant selections.
Local experts will be available to answer your garden questions. This year’s authorities will include Mark Vitosh, DNR forester; Terry Robinson, Iowa City forester; Tim Thompson, DNR wildlife biologist; Jim Scheib, member of Eastern Iowa Bird Watch; Master Gardeners of Johnson County; a garlic mustard specialist; and Jennifer Jordan, the IC recycling coordinator, who will be available for information and questions relating to the IC Community Compost program.
In Project GREEN, they learn by doing. Whether you have a “green thumb” or a “brown” one, there is a job for you. Volunteers are needed not only for assistance with the plants, but the Garden Fair also requires a sizable management team which helps with tasks ranging from finance and publicity to container acquisition.
For more information, contact the Fair Coordinators: Barb Gartner, 338-5781, barbara-gartner@uiowa.edu Fern Allison, 338-8580, frdallison@msn.com
*319 Music Festival
Iowa City's Southeast side welcomes you to the 1st Annual 319 Music Festival, dishing up an eclectic mix of folk, blues, jazz, hip-hop and more from local musicians. 1-7 PM on Saturday, May 8. Come join in for food, music, conversation, and neighborhood fun as we celebrate the beginning of summer!
All are welcome to attend...that means YOU: Chances are you haven't been to the Broadway area even though you've lived in Iowa City for years. Come meet new people and dispel the stereotypes that the media perpetuates about this area. This is the first of hopefully many festivals to come on the South side in the hopes of creating a more whole and connected Iowa City.
Musicians include: Idris Goodwin, The Awful Purdies, Dave Zollo, Kevin 'BF' Burt, Tom Nothnagle, Midwest Quality, Agri Cultor, and rae and the Honeybees, in addition to area youth 'amateur' talent.
For more info contact the Broadway Neighborhood Center @ 354-7989.
*Quire Spring Concert
The Quire’s annual Spring Concert is Saturday, May 8th, 7:00pm at Zion Lutheran Church. For more info, see http://www.thequire.org.
*Sutliff Bridge Fundraiser
The Sutliff Bridge Authority is back in action! On April 7, the Johnson County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 to work with FEMA and restore the Sutliff Bridge.
In celebration of this vote, the SBA is holding a late spring party and fundraiser on Saturday, May 8 at the Solon American Legion from 8 pm – midnight. Music by The John Janssen Band; $5 donation at the door. T-shirts, raffles, and much more!
*DID YOU KNOW? There are just over 76,000 jobs in Johnson County, and only 42,000 of those are filled by Johnson County residents. (Source: Peter Fisher, UI Urban & Regional Planning.)
Anyone interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the County website-
www.johnson-county.com.
"Sullivan’s Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise mentioned.
If you do NOT want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type "unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always, feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to serving you!
---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 10:42 PM
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