The good
Des Moines Metro Opera received a $25,000 grant from DuPont Pioneer last week to support its continued work of “educating and inspiring nearly 40,000 Iowans annually through its educational and outreach programs.”
According to a press release, much of the DuPont Pioneer’s annual fund contribution will be put to use in Des Moines Metro Opera’s OPERA Iowa Educational Touring Troupe, a program that produces a 13-week regional arts tour by eight professional singers and directors who present opera performances in classrooms and communities across the Midwest. OPERA Iowa performs annually in front of more than 25,000 students and community members.
Where’s the corn? Word is that Iowa sweet corn got a late start this year, and by the lack of roadside corn stands, that seemed to be true -— until now. Local farmers now have some ears for sale including some at Saturday’s downtown farmers market. But as they will tell you, it’s not their best. More stands keep popping up each day, so the good stuff should be ready any time. Pass the butter.
The bad
The Animal Rescue League of Iowa (ARL) is asking for your help. As of last week, the organization had a record 1,210 homeless animals in its care, including 40 cats that were recently rescued from a recent hoarder. “We continue to receive dozens of animals every single day,” said Tom Colvin, executive director for the ARL. “We are doing everything we can to keep up with that number of animals and are getting them into homes as fast as we can, but we really need the public’s help.” ARL is encouraging people to keep their pets rather than surrender them to the ARL, at least until their numbers decline. The organization is also asking people to consider fostering a pet. “The homeless pet problem cannot be solved through adoption alone, it also needs a combination of low-cost programs and education,” said Colvin. “As we continue to expand our services to pet owners, we need them to take advantage of the resources to spay or neuter, train and care for the pets.” ARL cares for more than 18,500 animals annually.
A final twist. Remember the guy who invented the Twister game? We don’t either, but he died last week at a care facility in the Minneapolis suburb of St. Louis Park at age 82. His name was Charles Foley. He and another guy apparently came up with the Twister idea and sold it to Milton Bradley. The game was a hit after being featured on “The Tonight Show” in 1966 and became a staple in the game collection in many homes during the 1960s and ’70s and continues to be a top seller today for Hasbro Inc. Right foot yellow.
The ugly
There’s nothing like a peaceful game of little league baseball to teach kids lessons about life, right? That was not the case recently during a Grandview Little League practice in Des Moines when a fight between two coaches broke out in front of the kids. Steven Dicks, one of the coaches involved, told KCCI, “Next thing I knew this guy stopped his truck and came running across the parking lot and grabbed me by the throat.” Dicks said another coach, Michael Boehler, was the one who grabbed his neck. “He grabbed me by the throat, and then he tried to jerk me to the ground by pulling on my shirt and ripped my shirt,” Dicks said. Boehler was charged with simple assault and received a one-game suspension from the Grandview Little League Board. Of course, there are two sides to every story, but Boehler denied comment. Batter up.
Michael Robinson, 33 of Davenport, was arrested on charges including child endangerment, assault and burglary, The Quad-City Times reported last week. Police reported that he used his 11-month-old child as a shield to avoid being arrested. Robinson allegedly kicked in the back door of an apartment occupied by the mother of the child and threatened her. He then reportedly forced his way into another apartment where the child was at and punched a person who was there. Police say the child wasn’t harmed when taken away from Robinson during the arrest. CV
