Xavier High School XHILARATION Show Choir Keeps Winning

By Marcia Hughes

The Xavier High School XHILARATION Show Choir earns the Grand Championship Trophy, as well as caption awards for best vocals and best combo at the Waukee show choir competition, January 2010! That’s five GCs in a row!

SPORTS TALK: Should Fighting Be Allowed in Hockey?

Jeff Hare and Christoph Trappe debate about it on this episode of The Jeff Hare show.

Mount Mercy welcomes poet and essayist Stephen Kuusisto

By Emily Muhlbach
Mount Mercy

Mount Mercy College will welcome Planet of the Blind author, poet and essayist Stephen Kuusisto during a special Q&A and reading titled “The Secret Lives of Eavesdroppers: A Nonfiction and Poetry Reading,” on Wednesday, January 20. The Q&A starts at 3:30 p.m. and the reading starts at 7:30 p.m. Both events take place in Flaherty Community Room, Basile Hall, and are free and open to the public.

Kuusisto’s memoir, Eavesdropping: A Memoir of Blindness and Listening, is said to “show sighted people, who overlook sound, the richness of our world,” by The Seattle Times. Described as “a luminous memoir of a darkened world” by The Boston Globe, Kuusisto’s Planet of the Blind is a beautiful and inspiring look into a world of shadows and color. Join us as Kuusisto describes his journey through seeing the world like a kaleidoscope, “both beautiful and useless.” Read more…

Volunteers Worked on MLK Day

While some people had Martin Luther King Day off, it was business as usual for AmeriCorps members as they assisted in community projects during a government-designated National Day of Service.

Approximately 125 volunteers worked at nine sites throughout Cedar Rapids, Read more…

Freedom Festival withdraws plans for 4-day BBQ event

Event looks to City Council for support to return July 4th events Downtown

Cedar Rapids Freedom Festival today announced it has withdrawn its event application to the City of Cedar Rapids to hold a 4-day barbecue event June 24 – 27. (Related: Rib War ends; BBQ Roundup the victor over RibFest)

The Festival also called for support from the Cedar Rapids City Council to help return the annual Celebration of Freedom events on July 4 to its traditional May’s Island downtown venue.

“Today we are formally withdrawing our event application for RibFest 2010, scheduled for June 24-27,” said Freedom Festival executive director, Janet Wilhelm. “There are ample reasons that make RibFest not only family-friendly and affordable, but also necessary and feasible. However, based on input from some members of the Cedar Rapids City Council and unsuccessful negotiations with representatives of the Cedar Rapids Five Seasons Facilities Commission and its management company, VenuWorks, we have deemed it in the best interests of the community and Freedom Festival to discontinue our endeavor to produce this event. We are also mindful of other very high priority community recovery items upon which the City Council must focus its attention.

Wilhelm

“We have notified the nine National Barbecue Cookers Association cookers who were scheduled to be part of RibFest of this decision and we are in the process of returning their performance deposits,” Wilhelm added. “We extend our thanks and best wishes to these talented cookers as they work to fill out their schedules at other events throughout the country.” Read more…

Waterloo Traffic Fatality Identified

On Saturday, January 16, 2010, at approximately 4:40 P.M., Waterloo Police officers investigated a single-vehicle fatal traffic accident that occurred in the 700 block of Independence Avenue.

The driver of the vehicle, identified as 58-year-old Wilbert Dean Petersen, of Waterloo, was traveling westbound on Independence Avenue when his vehicle left the roadway and struck a concrete post. Mr. Petersen, the sole occupant of the vehicle, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Information provided by Waterloo Police

An Ex-Iowa Hawkeye Will Be in the Super Bowl

On the AFC side, the New York Jets are playing the Indianapolis Colts in the championship game. On the NFC side Read more…

Iowa City: Recycle your old electronics for $1 per item

January 23, 2010
10 a.m.- 2 p.m.
1001 S. Clinton Street (Fire Department Training Center)
Sponsored by ECO Iowa City & Midwest Electronics Recovery

Read more…

MUST-SEE VIDEO: Tough Ice on Window

Check out how this sheet of ice holds its own. Shot in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Jan. 21, 2010.

Hello from Eastern Iowa News headquarters

As of Jan. 30, 2010, Eastern Iowa News will go on a break.

We do appreciate that you tuned in. From May 2009 through January 2010, more than  100,000 unique people – or really computers – there could be more than one person watching, right? – checked out the site.

We do appreciate it!

- CT (You can still follow me on Twitter:  www.twitter.com/ctrappe)

Updated: Jan. 30, 2010

Cedar Rapids Gas Prices Drop

Last we knew gas prices were in the mid-to-high $2.60s/gallon in Cedar Rapids. Today, we spotted them as low as $2.55/gallon.

Ellis/F Avenue NW in Cedar Rapids

OBSERVATION: Pizza Transferred After Incident

This happened this afternoon (Jan. 28, 2010) at 16th Avenue and Edgewood Road SW in Cedar Rapids. Read more…

PIC: We Assume this “For Rent” Sign Didn’t Help Find A Renter

Spotted in Cedar Rapids on Jan. 26, 2010.