SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
March 7, 2014
Sullivan’s
Salvos 3/11/14
In this edition:
*Saint Patrick’s Day!
*Bob Sullivan
*Spring Break
*Spring Break Shout Out!
*Girl’s State Basketball
*Cost Of Living In Iowa
*Did You Know?
*Saint Patrick’s Day!
Happy St. Patty’s Day on March 17! St. Patrick’s Day is one of my favorite
days of the year. While not an “official” holiday, this day has long been
celebrated heartily by my Irish family.
The
tradition lives on… I almost always take St. Patrick’s Day off work. March 17
is a Monday this year, but I don’t see much on the calendar. J
Meanwhile,
I hope each and every one of you is touched by a little luck o’ the Irish!
*Bob Sullivan
March
17 holds a special place in my heart that goes beyond St. Patrick’s Day. That
was also the birthday of my late father, Bob Sullivan.
Dad
was a proud union man, Hawkeye fan, and Irishman. We were father and son, but
also best friends. I can honestly say he was probably the most fun person I
have ever known.
Unfortunately,
he left this world much too soon, and never got the chance to meet any of his
nine grandchildren. I miss him every single day, but especially on St. Patty’s
Day.
If
you knew my dad and you are reading this – send me an e-mail some time. I could
really use a little time swapping stories and reminiscing.
And,
if you are looking for an extra toast on St. Patrick’s Day, allow me to suggest
that you raise a glass to Bob Sullivan.
Happy
birthday, Dad.
*Spring Break
Spring
Break for the UI, Kirkwood, and most schools in Johnson County commences Saturday,
March 15 through Saturday, March 22. When you live in a place dominated by
education, Spring Break matters – even if you yourself get no break per se! I
hope everyone finds something to enjoy during that time!
*Spring Break Shout Out!
While
many young people will be on a beach somewhere, my son BJ will be joining a
Rotary Club mission trip to Xicotepec, Mexico. I’m tremendously proud of BJ; he
decided he wanted to make this trip, and he is paying his own way. (Which is
substantial!) BJ has a big heart, and I am awfully proud of him.
*Girl’s State Basketball
Congrats
to the City High Girl’s Basketball Team on a great season, culminating in a
loss in the State semifinals.
I am a huge sports fan, but I try not to focus on that in Salvos.
(I figure you have many other outlets for sports opinions.) I make a bit of an
exception for City High Girl’s Basketball, as it has been a big part of my
family’s life over the past decade.
Our family has been extremely fortunate when it comes to girl’s
basketball. City High won a State championship in 2008 when my oldest daughter,
Rachel, was on the sophomore team. My daughter Jordan was privileged to play on
outstanding teams, and helped her team to the State Tournament in 2012, her
Senior year. Now our foster daughter Loshika has had the opportunity to be a
part of a team that went 24-1 and was ranked #1 most of the year. It has been
quite a run!
The
success on the court has been remarkable. But I’d like to give a shout out to
Coach Bill McTaggart. Bill is a great guy, plain and simple. He does things the
right way, and he sincerely cares about the kids. Sports really are about more
than wins and losses. We are so lucky to have had our lives touched by this
fine man!
*Cost Of Living In Iowa
Even at the state's median wage, many
families in Iowa cannot make ends meet. The latest “Cost of Living in Iowa”
report from the nonpartisan Iowa Policy Project (IPP) illustrates costs of a
basic-needs, no-frills family budget.
The report found substantial increases
in costs over the last few years in housing, food, transportation and
childcare. “We often hear about low-income families in the context of the
official poverty level, but you would need to make nearly three times that
level in some cases just to make ends meet,” said Peter Fisher, research
director of IPP and lead author of the report. “That is why public work
supports, such as child care, food and energy assistance, as well as the Earned
Income Tax Credit and health care subsidies, are so important to low-income
families,” said co-author Lily French, senior policy consultant for IPP.
At the state's median wage — $15.33 in
2012 — many family types on average would need to make substantially more in a
full-time job:
— $25.04 per hour for one worker in a two-parent family with two
children;
— $20.11 per hour for one worker in a two-parent family with one
child;
— $28.11 per hour for a single parent with two children; and
— $20.87
per hour for a single parent with one child.
“These figures put some real context
into the political debate we hear about whether to raise the minimum wage from
$7.25 per hour,” Fisher said. “Even at $10.10 per hour, families will need
significant supports to stay afloat.”
The report is the opening installment
of the fourth edition of “The Cost of Living in Iowa.” It is available on the
IPP website, www.iowapolicyproject.org. The
report includes complete information on basic-needs family budgets for all
family types and geographic areas in the state, with tables providing
county-by-county information.
“Cost differences from county to county
can be dramatic,” French noted. “Monthly child care expenses for two children
ranged from $562 to $998. Average costs of health care ranged from $575 to $739
per month, and rent varied from $721 to $1,254. “In the highest cost county, a
total basic needs budget for a family with two children was $9,000 higher than
the lowest-cost county,” she added.
Subsequent installments of the 2014
report will focus more closely on work supports and how they affect basic
family budgets in various regions of Iowa. A preliminary version of this part
of the analysis, illustrating "cliff effects" in the Child Care
Assistance program, was released in December and is available on the IPP
website here: http://www.iowafiscal.org/like-falling-off-a-cliff/.
The Iowa Policy Project is a
nonpartisan, nonprofit public policy research organization based in Iowa City.
Reports are at www.iowapolicyproject.org.
*DID YOU KNOW?
There are 34 million Americans with at least some Irish ancestry; 10
times the number of people in Ireland itself.
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"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 @ 10:50 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home