SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
September 27, 2026
Sullivan’s Salvos 10/1/26
In this edition:
*United Way and Iowa Shares
*Wilson’s Orchard
*Vote Turek!
*Shameful Behavior!
*Consequential – Johnson County Social Services
*Salvos Salutes – 2021
*Did You Know?
*United Way and Iowa Shares
The United Way and Iowa Shares campaigns are underway. I hope you will choose to be a supporter. Melissa and I are big supporters of the United Way and the United Way affiliated agencies. We give generously, I think. We also volunteer when and where we can.
So United Way is in our blood. Unfortunately, it does not seem to be in the blood of enough Johnson County residents.
I just heard a statistic that only 4% of all adults in Johnson County contribute to the United Way. Only 4%! And I’m sure it isn’t any better for Iowa Shares! That is simply too low, folks.
One in three families in Johnson County uses a United Way service. Let’s get at least one in three contributing to the United Way and/or Iowa Shares!
*Wilson’s Orchard
I’d like to encourage you to visit my friend Paul Rasch at Wilson’s Orchard. Paul is a great guy doing great things with a great place!
Located just a few miles north of Iowa City, just off Highway 1, Wilson’s Orchard has been around a long time. If you have never been there, go! There are 120 types of apples, but much, much more. It really is a local treasure, and people of all ages should visit! It is particularly a “must-do” for the kids and grandkids!
For more information, see: http://www.wilsonsorchard.com.
*Vote Turek!
Did you know that Ashley Hinson has voted with Donald Trump 100% of the time? 100%! When she tries to say she is bipartisan? That is an outright lie!
Every bad thing that has happened since Trump has been elected has been made possible by Ashley Hinson. It is her fault!
The US Senate, the US Supreme Court, and perhaps our whole democracy just might come down to the Iowa Senate race. If you have one breath left to take, spend it to defeat Ashley Hinson and to support Josh Turek!
Please spread the word!
*Shameful Behavior!
I was disgusted to learn about this, but I think it is important that people know.
On Saturday, September 19 a group of protesters showed up outside of the home of Iowa City Mayor Bruce Teague. Luckily, Bruce’s husband and children were able to get out before anything happened. And thankfully, a group of friends were able to come to Bruce’s aid. I am sickened by this.
I do not know why they were there. Frankly, it does not matter.
First, no small-town Mayor deserves this treatment. Bruce works hard at two jobs and deserves some privacy.
Secondly, newsflash! Bruce Teague is African American and gay. Both of those identities make him more vulnerable than most other elected officials.
Thirdly, as I mentioned earlier, Bruce has young children. Children always deserve to feel safe at home.
Fourthly, one of the group’s leaders was Nick Bergus. In case you did not know, Nick’s wife Laura serves on the Iowa City Council with Bruce. In addition, Nick works for the City of North Liberty. He should know better. This could have been his wife and daughter. Apparently, Nick told some of the folks who came to Bruce’s side, “I love Bruce.” Well, you have a strange way of showing it, Nick. Nick, you sicken me.
I really like Bruce. I think he is a good person and a good Mayor. But even if I didn’t, this shit is getting out of hand. Our politics are the ugliest they have been in a half century, and the people behind it sit back and pretend they are uninvolved.
We need to make it known that we do not condone these types of actions. Please write your City Council and let them know how you feel!
*Consequential – Johnson County Social Services
While the various Departments and Offices in County Government are always changing, we have only added two Departments in my 22 years here – Finance and Social Services. Here is the story of Social Services:
I was not the idea person behind this one – my colleague Sally Stutsman was. But I knew how to get it done. Back in 2005, there were several State and Federal programs that gave funding to counties for a variety of Health and Human Services needs. But as Sally noted, the Board simply did not have a handle on all this. Some money came through the local branch of the Iowa Department of Human Services. Some flowed through the County Attorney’s Office. Some was managed by the Johnson County Council of Governments (JCCOG, now called the MPO of Johnson County). Some was in the Sixth Judicial District.
The Board was really not managing all this well. Deadlines were sometimes missed, or emergency meetings held so that deadlines were not missed. There was duplication of services, and there were gaps. There were programs that needed monitoring, but little monitoring was done. And some of the County money seemed to be going out the door based solely upon which applicants were most popular with the Board. Sally really believed the whole thing needed to be professionalized.
I agreed. More importantly, I had previously spent just under 7 years working for Iowa Medicaid. I had seen counties that had a Social Services Director who managed all these things, and I knew exactly who to speak with- Linn County Social Services Director John Brandt. I had worked with John over the years, and he impressed me as perhaps the most knowledgeable human services expert I had ever met. I knew that we could learn from him.
Sally and I went to Cedar Rapids and spent some time with John, and invited him to speak to our Board. As usual, John impressed everyone with his knowledge and organization. He also made two key points that helped to sell the position. First, many programs allowed the County to charge a small percentage for administration. We had never done this before. By the time we added all those up, it paid for something like a quarter of the position. Secondly, we were missing out on opportunities. There were a few programs we could tap, but had never done so because no one knew where to look. We were leaving money on the table.
The Board was convinced, and in early 2006 we hired Amy Correia as our first ever Johnson County Social Services Director. Amy had an Master’s in Social Work from the UI, but more importantly, she knew many of the local players. (As some of you may recall, Amy also served on the Iowa City Council from ’06 until ’09.) Amy left her position in the summer of 2011, and later that year we hired Lynette Jacoby, who still holds the job today.
Johnson County Social Services does SO much that it is amazing to imagine life without it! JCSS currently consists of two Divisions – one is services for adults, which includes our Aging Specialist, 3 General Assistance Workers, 2 Services Navigators, a Mobility Coordinator, and a person who assists with our Free Tax Help clinics. The other Division is services for families and children, and includes childcare Quality Improvement Grants, Care Coordination, Early Education Scholarships, Child Care Incentives, Focus on Youth Fund, Juvenile Court involvement, Youth Shelter, Youth Detention, Disproportionate Minority Contact, and Juvenile Justice Youth Development. Plus JCSS oversees more than $2 million in block grants to local nonprofits.
Creating Johnson County Social Services was a very good move, and I am proud that I helped to get it done!
*Salvos Salutes – 2021
What I wrote about some of the honorees from Salvos’s Salutes in 2021:
Frank Lalor: 25 years ago, he helped to found Table to Table. In 2021, Frank decided to retire, leaving an incredible legacy. T2T has delivered over 25 million pounds of food during that time, feeding thousands of our neighbors while keeping good food out of the landfill. It was a great idea then, and even better now. Thanks, Frank!
Brian Finley: An Application Developer in the UI IT Department, Brian recognized that the State of Iowa had done nothing to get people signed up for vaccinations. So Brian put his know-how to use, and created a Twitter account - @IAVaccineAlerts – that automatically Tweeted out vaccine openings across the state. Tens of thousands of Iowans are safer today because of Brian’s efforts!
Stu Mullins: After spending decades at United Action for Youth, Stu Mullins decided to hang it up. It would be a huge mistake to underestimate the impact this one person has had on decades worth of Johnson County youth. Whether in direct service or just keeping the doors open, Stu’s contributions to UAY are immeasurable. To top it off, he is a killer musician and a wonderful guy!
John Lundell: It was not long ago that Coralville’s relationships with Iowa City, North Liberty, and Johnson County were in very bad shape. Right now, those relationships are as strong as they have been in my memory. What happened? New leadership in a few key roles – notably John Lundell as Mayor of Coralville. John is an excellent communicator, hard worker, and straight shooter. He has done a very nice job, and has certainly earned this retirement! Thanks, John! I hope there are many Hawkeye games in your future!
Terry Donohue: North Liberty continues to experience growing pains – even though we have been saying that since the ‘80s! But over the past decade or so, folks have had few worries when it came to the role of Mayor. Terry Donahue has handled the role very capably and thoughtfully since 2017. Every politician says something about “listening to all opinions.” And I believe most are sincere. But I can’t think of anyone who really lives that out as much as Terry Donahue. He is a great guy with a great sense of humor, and he will be missed.
Anji Jordan: Many good things are happening on the SE side of Iowa City. And if you look closely, you will likely find Anji Jordan right in the middle of it! From helping families navigate COVID to getting a beautiful community mural painted to getting kids bikes to helping pass a Self-Supported Municipal Improvement District (SSMID) to knitting to Chairing Better Together to well… basically doing everything, Anji is an irresistible force for good! We are SO lucky to have her as a part of our community! Keep up the great work!
Crissy Canganelli: It is never easy when your job is to address the problem of housing and homelessness. It is a challenge made even more difficult when a small but vocal portion of our community decides to attack everything you do. We are lucky to have Chrissy Canganelli, folks! She is ethical, dedicated, smart, and has put Johnson County ahead of 99% of all the counties in the country when it comes to addressing homelessness. We have not eradicated this problem; we likely never will. But we are making great strides! Thank you, Crissy, for leading the charge!
Cecilia Norris: We are 50 years in, and the Free Medical Clinic just keeps serving people who have no other access to heath care. One of the key players there is Dr. Cecilia Norris, who has done yeoman’s work in her 16 years as Medical Director. While her direct service is critical, Dr. Norris gets this Salute for her tireless efforts to combat misinformation around COVID-19 and the vaccines. Dr. Norris was constantly trying to correct misinformation and put out the correct info, whether at work, on social media, or whenever asked. It may seem futile, Cecilia, but I know you have saved lives. Please keep up the great work!
As you can see, 2021 was a year full of people worthy of our admiration!
*DID YOU KNOW? The racial mix in Johnson County is about 70% white, 10% black, 7% Hispanic, 7% Asian, 1% Native American, and 5% two or more races. (Source: US Census Bureau.)
Anyone interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the County website-
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---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 8:08 PM
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