Record American Weekly, Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2014

ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS NEWS & OPINION

Record American WeeklyAn edition of Rockford Record American - Rockford, Illinois News & Opinion

OUTDOORS: KEEPING UP WITH AIDA, PAGE 7

Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2014 Copyright 2014 RECORDAMERICAN.COM

Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2014 21-27, 2014 ·DAILY NEWS AT

RECORDAMERICAN.COM

What’s Local, Page 3

CITY SCRIBBLER: A BAD LIST, CHICKENS AND STUCK-UP

SWANS, PAGE 4

ICEHOGS : AHL WEEKLY UPDATE, PAGE 5

OPINION: WHAT MAKES A GOOD LOBBYIST, PAGE 6

A STOP AT THE SHOPTHE COUNTRY BARBER SHOP6930 CHARLES ST.See “Barber,” Page 3

recordamerican.com

RECORD AMERICAN WEEKLY • Nov. 18, 20142


By Jeremy OsterRockford Record American

The barber pole is spinning again in front of The Country Barber Shop, formerly Matt’s Country Barber Shop, at 6930 Charles St., Rockford.

It’s cozy inside and there’s blues and jazz playing on the radio. Scores of coffee cups line little wooden shelves along an entire wall of the waiting area, homage to 45 years of Rockford men sipping coffee and sharing stories.

Both barber chairs and the cash register by the door are antiques. New barber Tony Leon seems right at home with his handlebar mustache and friendly demeanor. That’s good news for Jeremy Couch, who made his second visit to The Country Barber Shop Nov. 7, with his friends from work.

Barber continues Rockford tradition

What’s Local “I’ve had one other shaving experience right before a friend’s wedding,” Couch said. “But, they were in a big hurry and it wasn’t anything like this. This is the best shaving experience I’ve ever had and it was a really relaxing experience too.”

Couch paid for both his friends to get their first real shaves.

Leon said: “There are 14 parts to the face and four different strokes– freehand, backhand, reverse freehand, and reverse backhand–which is only for behind the ear.”

Leon uses a pre-shave oil to help the ra-zor glide well, hot lather, numerous hot towels, and then finishes up with genuine Bay rum. He takes his time to do the job right; Couch’s shave took between 30 and 40 minutes.

Besides a good shave, Leon is adept at numerous styles of haircuts.

“I specialize in men’s traditional hair-

cuts such as pompadours, pompadours with side parts, flat tops, fades and tapers, you name it, ” he said. “I also enjoy putting a spin on the traditional styles for the more modern man.”

Matt Tortorici opened near the inter-section of Perryville and Charles Street a few years before the CherryVale Mall was built. Knowing a new shopping center was in the works, Tortorici saw the potential in opening a family business at what was then just an open field at a country crossroads.

Tortorici recently decided to hang up his clippers and enjoy the retired life. Instead of closing up shop, the family decided to keep the doors to their family tradition open with Leon’s help.

Hours are Tuesday- Friday, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m.- 5 p.m. The shop can be reached at (815) 398-5147 and on Facebook.

Barber Anthony Leon gives Jeremy Couch, of Illinois Management Marketing Group, a shave Nov. 7, at The Country Barber Shop in Rockford. (Photo by Jeremy Oster)

What’s Local - 3City Scribbler - 4Sports - 5Opinion - 6Lifestyles - 7-8Business - 9

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INDEX3


Editor’s note: After becoming aware of a mag-azine called The City Scribe, we’ve decided to change the name of this column From “City Scribe,” to “City Scribbler.” By City Scribbler

It’s beginning to sound like white noise anymore when Rockford cracks a “bad” list. From as far back as anyone can remember–the first time the Forest City made Money maga-zine’s list of the poorest places on the planet, or was it the cities with the longest stoplights?

It’s difficult to count. Rockford has only been gracing these lists for the past 17 or 18 years, so they often get lost in debates about whether the west side begins at the west bank of the mighty Rock River or prestigious Win-nebago County Justice Center.

Now there’s one for the Scribbler to figure out. Is the Justice Center downtown or

on the west side? “Bring ‘em downtown,” has a nicer ring than, “Bring ‘em to the west side,” coming from our men and women in blue.

Regardless, according to Law Street Me-dia, we’ve gone and done it again. Rockford is No. 2 behind Little Rock, Arkansas, on the Top 10 Most Dangerous Cities Under 200,000 list.

The site claims because there have been 19 murders in Rockford this year, we deserve to inch up from 2013’s No. 3 slot. First, it’s import-ant to note that the correct term is “homicide.” “Murder” should only be used when describing a malicious, premeditated homicide, at least according to the City Scribe’s stylebook. But, who has time to count homicides in Rockford anyway, when Marc Trestman and Jay Cutler have spent the last 10 weeks paying homage to Chicago’s murderous history by killing their entire 2014 NFL season? Again, that’s something for a sportswriter to dissect. We must press on.

After all, Lansing, Michigan, is on Law

Street’s list. That’s right, Lansing, the home of the esteemed Thomas Cooley Law School, Michigan State Police and State Capitol, is the the eighth most-dangerous city under 200,000. So, we know this list is bunk. Who would think about steping out of line with a trove of aspiring legal minds, almost officers and legislators lurking around every corner? Did Marion Berry retire to Lansing?

That’s not important. We’re talking about Rockford, Illinois, where the beer flows like water and men rob banks naked. Yes, the men are men but the sheep are anything but scared, just a little bored–almost as bored as the chickens, our banished birds. We talk to them. We know. Most tell us that as soon as they hatch, they long for the day they are welcomed in the Rockford land of plenty, alongside the majestic swans who turn up their bills while cooling in east-side, state-funded luxury ponds.

Let us raise chickens and maybe we’ll

stop killing each other. Better yet, let’s become a poultry plethora. A Rockford chicken fac-tory could be the answer. A few million feisty feather dusters could fit in the old District 205 Administration Building on Madison Street and grow as round and fat as they’d like, Yeah, yeah, yeah. We know. The city says it’s tear-ing down the building. But, a better cottage industry there likely has never been. But, we digress. It was breasts and thighs that helped give downtown a bad name in the first place. Or was it On the Waterfront? What were we talking about? Oh, yes. Law Media’s Top 10 Most Dangerous Cities Under 200,000 list. Or was it Forbes’ Most Miserable list? The Scribbler forgets. The beer is cold, churches full and the fish bigger with each story.

Rockford is a tough town. It’s almost not possible for the average person to make with a plat of land, a couple of pigs and a milkin’ cow. If it gets any worse, the Scribbler may move up north.

A ‘bad’ list, chickens and pretentious swansCity Scribbler

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Rockford Record American

Rockford IceHogs Week 6 recapS P O R T S

‘Hogs win one in Week 6

Rockford’s Pierre-Cedric Labrie (22), battles for position with Texas Stars defenseman Cameron Gaunce (24) in American Hockey League action Sunday, Nov. 16, at the BMO Harris Bank Center. (Photo by Greg Hamil)

Rockford’s AHL franchise record eight-game winning streak came to a halt as the IceHogs dropped both sides of a home-and-home series with Milwaukee to begin their first three-in-three set of the season.

After taking tough 4-1 and 2-1 losses to the Admirals, Rockford rebounded to take down the 2014 Calder Cup Champion Texas Stars 3-2 at the BMO Harris Bank Center, ending the busy weekend on a high note.

Week 6 resultsFriday, Nov. 14, Milwaukee 4, Rockford 1 Saturday, Nov. 15, Rockford 1, Milwaukee 2 Sunday, Nov. 16, Texas 2 Rockford 3

Week 7 scheduleFriday, Nov. 21, vs. Iowa, 7 p.m.Saturday, Nov. 22, vs. Milwaukee, 7 p.m.Sunday, Nov. 23, at Chicago, 4 p.m.

Bacon Bits Rockford’s eight game winning streak,

which ended with Friday’s loss to Milwaukee, was the longest unbeaten streak since the 2008-09 season, setting an AHL franchise record. The previous longest winning streak came when the IceHogs won six straight from Oct. 12 to Oct. 26, 2008.

Through 16 games this season, Rock-ford has four regulation losses, and three of them are against the Milwaukee Admirals.

The IceHogs have scored four goals in the three losses to Milwaukee, an average of 1.33 goals per contest.

In the IceHogs other 13 contests, the club is averaging 3.54 goals per outing.

Friday and Saturday’s losses were the first two times this season Rockford has been held to a single goal.

Overall, Rockford has dropped eight straight against the Admirals dating back to March 7 and the IceHogs have scored just 16 goals in those eight losses. The two losses to Milwaukee extended Rockford’s winless streak against the Admirals to eight games, dating back to last season.

Rockford was whistled for a sea-son-high 45 penalty minutes in Saturday night’s loss in Milwaukee.

Defenseman Klas Dahlbeck logged 19 penalty minutes in the game, a season-high for one player.

Brandon Mashinter’s second-period power play goal against Texas was the first goal the IceHogs scored with the man advantage at home since their 5-4 OT win against Lake

Erie on Nov. 4, and just the second this season.Defenseman T.J. Brennan has points in

seven of his last eight games, totaling 2g-8a-10pts with a plus/minus rating of +7. Brennan leads all Rockford skaters and ranks second among all AHL defensemen with an overall plus/minus rating of +12. Brennan tied an indi-vidual season-high in shots on goal with seven against Texas on Sunday, and leads Rockford with 44 shots through 15 games played.

Center Mark McNeill had his team season-high six-game point streak snapped on Saturday in Milwaukee after racking up 7g-4a-11pts during his hot stretch. McNeill also sustained a lower body injury in Saturday’s game and did not play on Sunday, snapping his 91 consecutive games played streak dating back to April 20, 2013, the longest active streak on the IceHogs.

Goaltender Antti Raanta turned aside 33 shots to pick up the win on Sunday, in his first start after being assigned to Rockford the previous day. Raanta’s last win for the IceHogs came exactly one year earlier, in a 4-2 victory against San Antonio on Nov. 16, 2013. Rock-ford had their nine game streak of scoring a third period goal snapped on Friday against Milwaukee. In those nine contests, Rockford had tallied 16 times, an average of 1.78 goals per third frame.

The IceHogs accumulated a single-game (regulation) season-high 45 shots on goal on Sunday, marking the third time in six games the IceHogs eclipsed the 40-shot total.

Rockford ranks seventh in the AHL, averaging 31.5 shots on goal per game.

Pierre-Cedric Labrie played in his

400th-career AHL game Sunday.Hot Hog: Week 6

Teuvo Teravainen, Center (1g-2a)First-year center Teuvo Teravainen

picked up three points in three games during Week 6 for Rockford. On Saturday in Milwau-kee, Teravainen potted his second goal of the season, Rockford’s lone marker in a 2-1 loss. Then on Sunday, the Finnish center marked two primary assists to help lead the IceHogs to a 3-2 win over the Texas Stars. Overall this season, Teravainen has 2g-8a-10pts in 14 games with the IceHogs.Upcoming Games

Friday, Nov. 21, vs. Iowa Wild. Game begins at 7 p.m. The IceHogs’ second meeting with the Wild kicks off with another Blues Flame Lounge Pre-Game Party at the BMO. All ticketed fans 21-and-up can arrive early to enjoy free appetizers, live music and drink specials before enjoying the game. Doors open at 5:15 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 22, vs. Milwaukee Admi-rals: Faceoff is set for 7 p.m. The IceHogs try to break their skid against Milwaukee when they meet for the third time in seven days. Fans can stick around after the game to take a shot from center ice for a chance to win prizes courtesy of Papa John’s.

Sunday, Nov. 23, at Chicago Wolves. Game starts at 4 p.m. Rockford makes its first visit to Allstate Arena to play the second of twelve against their intrastate rivals in an Illinois Lottery Cup matchup. The IceHogs are hoping to improve upon their 1-4-0-1 record in Rosemount a year ago.Bud Light Hog Talk Monday Night At Mul-

ligan’s and Grill:Bud Light Hog Talk is back on Monday,

Nov. 17 at Mulligan’s Pub and Grill from 6-7 p.m. Mulligan’s is on North Main St. Fans can join Mike Peck or TJ Hogan from 6-7 p.m. on most Mondays throughout the season.

All Rockford Icehogs games are broad-cast live on WIFR Channel 23’s Antenna TV. The games can also be viewed on Comcast Cable channel 436, Charter Cable channel 193 or Mediacom 101 in the Rockford market and online through AHLlive.com. Fans can listen to the action for free on AHLlive.com. For a complete listing of TV stations carrying IceHogs games, visit IceHogs.com. Every broadcast will start with the IceHogs Warmup 30 minutes prior to puck drop.

IceHogs individual game tickets are now on sale Call (815) 968-5222 to reserve your seats for any IceHogs regular seasn game.

5


least productive in two decades.But it wasn’t entirely unproductive. Just before

they left town, members of Congress did manage to get three things done: they passed a Veterans Administration reform package; they increased aid to Israel; and they kept highway construction projects around the country from losing funding.

Why did these three measures find success when so many others did not? There’s a two-word answer: powerful lobbyists. Veterans, supporters of Israel, and the combined weight of highway construction interests and state and local gov-ernments are among the most influential forces in Washington.

Last year, some 12,000 active lobbyists spent $3.24 billion on trying to influence the federal government, according to the Center for Respon-sive Politics. I don’t know of any other country where lobbyists have those kinds of numbers, spend that kind of money, or get the kinds of results they’re able to achieve here — in Con-gress, in the executive branch and, increasingly, in statehouses around the country.

But even among all those lobbyists, some stand out for their effectiveness. The National Rifle Association (NRA), the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), veterans’ groups, the AARP: all are very good at obtaining laws and policies in their interests and blocking laws and policies they consider harmful.

I don’t mean by this that they’re all-powerful. They don’t win every battle. But they do win most of them.

How do they do this? To start, lawmakers have to get elected. Good lobbyists don’t just provide large amounts of money for campaigns, they provide early money and expert help. They donate, they introduce you to other donors, and they help you establish connections that can help during your campaign and later on. Early money in politics is better than late money. Candidates remember that sort of thing. They also remember that if you oppose these organizations’ views, they’ll come at you hard.

Good lobbyists and their organizations also provide information in easily digestible form. They’ll assign particular staffers to develop re-lationships with members of Congress — people who can write a speech or testimony or legislative language quickly. They and their colleagues are sophisticated observers of public affairs who know whether, when, and how to approach gov-ernment policy makers, along with the particular policy maker who can help them best.

They are deeply knowledgeable about the process of government and have a wide net-work of friends on Capitol Hill, in the agencies, and in members’ districts — often, their most effective voices aren’t Washington lobbyists, but the grassroots networks they’ve built back

home. They understand that at heart, lobbying is about establishing relationships long before any particular issue affecting them comes up, so that when they go to talk about a bill, they’re going in to see a friend.

They build relationships in several ways. There are all kinds of approaches to members — the annual policy conferences to which members of Congress flock, the sponsored trips and meetings in out-of-the-way resorts where a lobbyist can get a few days of a member’s undivided attention. But the best lobbyists are also friendly, approachable people who know how to talk to members and policy-makers of both parties.

The best lobbying groups also have a lot of money and resources not just to woo policy makers, but to shape public discourse. They make good information available to their advocates, and make sure that the advocates who speak for them on television, online, and in newspapers are well informed. They know that part of the battle is to shape public dialogue.

The best lobbyists are masters at making the system work for them. My guess is that their influence over policy surpasses the media’s clout, and they have now become the fourth branch of government.

Lee Hamilton is director of the Center on Con-gress at Indiana University. He was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for 34 years.

By Lee H. HamiltonBecause of its power to influence public affairs,

the press has long been known as “the Fourth Estate.” But I think the media may have been displaced. These days, it’s lobbyists who seem to carry the most clout in Washington.

Here’s a case in point. When Congress closed at the beginning of August for its end-of-summer recess, it faced wide-scale derision for having accomplished next to nothing during the year. In fact, the Pew Center ranked the session as the

What makes a strong lobbyistO P I N I O N

K n o w t h e f a c t s b e f o r e t a k i n g s i d e sBy Ed Tolbert

As I sit and listen to discussions about Mayor Larry Morrissey firing Rockford Police Chief Chet Epperson, or whether he should ask for his resignation, I can’t help but look back on how the police union has attempted to sabotage past chiefs.

Given the way the union tried to ruin former Chiefs William Fitzpatrick and Jeff Nielsen, there should be no shock that this union has taken aim at Epperson. And if Morrissey does fire the chief, it is safe to assume the next chief would be their next target.

Morrissey is correct. In 1988, Fitzpatrick battled unioned officers who seemed to shoot first an ask questions later. Mind you, the rank-and-file was working a scary downtown that was several years from any kind of redevelopment.

The east side was the place to be. In 1988, downtown Rockford was known for its crime. And, much like today, our police department was in shambles. Officers had little respect for the police chief and authority of his office.

Fitzpatrick had his flaws. He was a hard-nosed leader—maybe too hard at times. Yet, he expected the department to follow protocol and his officers to truly protect and serve the community. Some officers in the union didn’t want to follow such protocol.

In 1988, when the term “renegade cop” was

uttered within earshot of anyone familiar with Rockford, our city’s police quickly came to mind. Officers demanded freedom to patrol the streets as they saw fit.

The problem was, they also wanted the power to make their own rules. When Fitzpatrick put his foot down, the union cried foul and turned on him. Sound familiar? It should because it is exactly what is happening now.

Say what you will about Chet Epperson. His record as an officer was exemplary. His peers respected him and his leadership skills shined early in his career. This remained true even though Epperson was not the Police and Fire Commission’s first choice in 2006. The com-mission wanted someone from the outside, a chief with experience fighting crime in bigger, badder cities.

That all changed after the city discovered top candidate James Purdy had a checkered past. Suddenly, it was clear the commission had made a mistake.

Enter Epperson, who the commission hired with a 2-1 vote. (Don’t let the vote fool you. There were people begging the city to hire Epperson when Purdy fell through just like they did early in the search for a permanent chief.).

Morrissey has always wanted to revamp the police department and turn it into a multi-pre-cinct agency (geopolicing), mirroring those in Chicago and Milwaukuee. By doing so, Mor-

rissey saw stronger community involvement and more streamlined opportunities to work with other police departments, the FBI and Illinois State Police. Epperson also had that vision then and he has it now. Making it work, however, required a bit of housecleaning, tweaking rules and regulations that only some officers were re-quired to follow. In short, the renegade mentality of 1988 was still a standard when Epperson was hired. He put a stop to it and quickly.

We all know what happened next: the union bucked the system. It didn’t want to be managed. So, in what has become their calling card, shortly after Epperson was hired, it gave Epperson a 276-6 vote of no confidence. Does that sound familiar? It should. It’s the Fitzpatrick and Nielsen years revisited.

Led by former President Doug Block and his band of minions, the union, formally known as the Police Benevolent and Protective Association Unit No. 6, in less than two years, filed around 30 employment grievances against Epperson, expecting Morrissey to fire him. I’ve got news for them: It didn’t happen then and it’s not going to happen now.

Oh, by the way, that’s the same Doug Block who tried to run for mayor in 2009. Few can forget it. Block was so ignorant about the issues (not even knowing what a TIF district is), he resorted to a sophomoric mud-slinging cam-paign that was more comical than anything.

Block’s chances came to a screeching halt after a pornographic text message aimed at Morrissey was traced back to Block’s camp. Sorry, Dougy. You should really teach your son how to play nice with others.

Imagine an aging former cop running for mayor just so he can fire the police chief. Only in Rockford.

Epperson’s latest troubles do appear to be dam-aging. Sure, officers heard Epperson tell Lloyd Johnston not to comply with officers when they arrived to check on his son. Instead of risking a public spectacle and maybe a dangerous incident, Epperson called a supervisor to the scene. There should be no confusion about this. Johnston is head of the Rockford NAACP. He’s in the public eye and was not complying with officers at the scene. Johnston was combative and the situation could have spun out of control.

Guess what? Epperson sent a supervisor to the scene and the incident ended.

Ed Tolbert is a Rockford resident. Read the rest of this article at recordamerican.com.

Guest columns may be submitted to [email protected], or in the “Your View” section at recordamerican.com.

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L I F E S T Y L E SKeeping up with Aida: Preparing for New Orleans

Editor’s note: “Keeping up with Aida” is col-umn by 13-year-old Aida Frey, of Algonquin, Illinois. Aida is the unofficial ambassador of the U. S. National Parks Service, having visited nearly 200 parks in just four years. By Aida FreyJunior Ranger

My family and I will be visiting seven national parks on our next adventure. These parks are in the South, and have a variety of interesting subjects to see and learn about. They include American Indian sites, Civil War battlefields, national seashores, music history and even pirates!

I wrote two songs about national parks and the Junior Ranger program in anticipation of visiting the Jazz National Historical Park in

New Orleans. I am hoping that my songs will be used on the next Songs for Junior Rangers album.

Jazz music was born in New Orleans at the turn of the 20th century. It is a combination of blues, gospel, and ragtime musical styles. Louis Armstrong is one of the most famous jazz musicians, and is celebrated along with many other musicians at this park.

Also in New Orleans, there is another park called Jean Lafitte National Historical Park. This park tells the history in and around the War of 1812. I cannot wait to visit the French quarter and see the famous architecture and eat the wonderful food. We will then travel over to the Gulf Islands in Mississippi and visit

the beautiful shores along the Gulf of Mexico. While in Mississippi, I will also see

Civil War battlefields and plantation mansions from the 1800s. We will also see some very old and important American Indian villages and mounds in Louisiana. In Arkansas, we will see a settlement that started in the 1600s and has French, Spanish and American cultural influ-ences. On each trip, we enjoy seeing different parks and learning unique things about each park. I will keep you updated as I close in on my goal of visiting two-hundred National Parks in four years.

Read more of Aida’s 2014 travelogue and daily updates from her upcoming trip at recordamerican.com.

R e v i e w : ‘ 1 0 1 S u p e r f o o d s . . . ’ w o r t h a r e a d Rockford Record American

101 Superfoods That Stop Your Joint Pain And Inflammation is a resource guidebook that claims people will be able to enjoy delicious foods that heal their joints, protect their brain and feel energetic and alive once again when they buy it. This has caught the attention of Healthyand-FitZone.com’s Stan Stevenson, prompting an investigative review.

Our 101 Superfoods That Stop Your Joint Pain And Inflammation review shows this guidebook has tons of priceless information on combating joint pain and inflammation as well as leading a healthy lifestyle,” reports Stevenson. “When you start including these superfoods in your daily diet, you will feel better in two weeks. You will also learn how to battle pain and inflammation

if you can’t keep away from grilled foods, how saturated fats can help you, the role of trans-fats in causing chronic pain and inflammation and much more.”

101 Superfoods That Stop Your Joint Pain And Inflammation lists five fatty foods which protect the heart, improve breathing and lower blood pressure, three sinister foods that are responsible for causing constant inflammation and pain, the most important vitamin for easing inflammation and joint pain, the most refreshing beverage for stopping inflammation, three special types of nuts that can be consumed daily to fix damaged tissues and neutralize all damaging free radicals that may be present in the body, the best types of grapes for health and combating pain and inflammation, the best fruits for easing joint

soreness, the best natural remedies for headaches and more.

“The 101 superfoods discussed in the guide cover all aspects of healthy eating that also in-cludes vital information on knowing what to eat i.e. a step by step meal plan for easing chronic joint inflammation and promoting optimal health,” says Stevenson. “The resource guide is complete, leaves no stone unturned and address-es everything, leaving no questions unanswered. Similar resource guides in the market today cost way more and offer less valuable information. The guide also comes with a free resource guide with 101 remedies for fighting pain.

“Packed with priceless information on com-bating chronic inflammation as well as leading a healthy lifestyle, 101 Superfoods That Stop

Your Joint Pain And Inflammation is worth your time and money. This affordable and complete guide tells you everything you need to know about stopping joint pain and inflammation as well as leading a healthy lifestyle. The exciting bonus, money back guarantee and wealth of information are enough to make this resource guide a strong buy.”

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National Park Service proposes archeology rule changeRockford Record American

The National Park Service (NPS) has proposed a rule to allow deaccessioning of federally owned archeological items deter-mined to be of insufficient national archeo-logical interest. The amendment to the Code of Federal Regulations Chapter 36 part 79 is open for public comment for 90 days ending Feb. 17, 2015.

Federal agencies, including the NPS, are responsible for millions of archeological objects around the nation. The proposed rule is intended to assist federal agencies in their stewardship of archeological collections which they curate on behalf of the American public.

The new rule would provide agencies with a rigorous procedure to deaccession a limited number of particular material remains that are determined to be “of insufficient ar-cheological interest” by meeting very specific criteria. No human remains or cultural items as defined in the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) may be disposed of under this proposed rule.

Objects for possible disposition under the proposed rule must be archeological “material remains.” Examples include large quantities of red brick fragments retained during an excavation or soil samples that have become contaminated.

The proposed rule is designed to improve the cost-effectiveness of caring for federal collections. It includes a number of safeguards including consultation with a NPS Collections Advisory Committee, which may include a representative appointed by a feder-ally-recognized tribe; notification of interested parties including State and Tribal Historic Preservation offices and interested universities; and publishing detailed information about the proposed disposition in the Federal Register. Deaccessioned objects are not to be sold or traded as commercial goods.

Public comments will be reviewed and considered before a final rule is drafted. The

final rule is expected to be published in the Federal Register in 2015.

About the National Park ServiceMore than 20,000 National Park Ser-vice employees care for America’s 401 national parks and work with commu-nities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Visit us at nps.gov, on Facebook: facebook.com/na-tionalparkservice; Twitter: twitter.com/natlparkservice; and YouTube: youtube.com/nationalparkservice.

High school students spend 12 days in Alaska learning about climate change Rockford Record American

Youth from an Ohio high school spent 12 days in Alaska this summer, hiking and watching wildlife and learning about our changing climate. Their experi-ence was part of the first “Climate Change Academy,” an immersive, comprehensive climate change course.

“I am glad that I came to Alaska and learned about the harmful effects of climate change for myself,” said Sydney Young, a sophomore at West Geauga High School in Chesterland, Ohio. “I have the knowledge to define my own opinion. I feel comfortable and confident in my ability to make a change.”

The Academy is a partnership between the National Park Service Climate Change Response Program and the non-profit No Bar-riers Youth. “This is a model for experiential learning,” said Ray Sauvajot, acting associate director for natural resource stewardship and science in the National Park Service. The partnership began with the successful Night Skies program, which led to the development of the more intensive immersion program. No Barriers Youth solicited applications for the “Climate Change Academy” from middle and high schools across the nation. After several

rounds of review, Mike Sustin, Chemistry and Environmental Science teacher from West Geauga High School was selected as a group leader and 10 students were selected to partic-ipate in the academy.

Sydney and her fellow students, ages 14 to 18, spent time in Kenai Fjords and Denali national parks following a pre-trip curriculum. The students dedicated time over weekends and summer days to complete the five sessions of extra-curricular lessons in preparation for the trip.

In Alaska, the group hiked the Harding Icefield Trail in Kenai Fjords National Park with park rangers Luke Rosier and Jenna Giddens. They were sworn in as Junior Rangers and took a full-day wildlife and glacier boat tour of the fjords with John Morris, interpre-tive program manager for the National Park Service’s Alaska Region.

Ricky Greene, a high school senior on the trip, said, “Every animal we saw on the cruise to Holgate Glacier became a story with a ton of interesting facts. The most amazing thing John told us was the idea of ‘The Danc-ing Spheres’ that described the relationships between the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lith-osphere, cryosphere, biosphere and even the

heliosphere. It gave me a whole new way to look at the way global warming affects us. Now I can explain it better to people who don’t understand.”

In Denali National Park, students par-ticipated in a climate change scenario planning activity with Alaska Region Science Advisor Bob Winfree. On their last day in the park the group overcame personal challenges by hiking a strenuous Cathedral Mountain route with Dave Schirokauer, physical and social science program manager in Denali.

Now back in Ohio, the students are developing a project to share their discoveries with their community. Additionally, each student will enter the first No Barriers Youth Climate Change Art Contest, also sponsored by the NPS Climate Change Response Pro-gram, in which anyone ages 12-21 can submit an artistic entry responding to: “When think-ing about climate change, what is your hope for the future?” The aim of the contest is to inspire conversation around the subject and to encourage youth to approach it from multiple disciplines and value the intersection of arts and sciences.

To learn more about the contest, see globalexplorers.org/climate-change/.

The National Park Service and No Barriers Youth work together to promote awareness and action on climate change. The National Park Service Climate Change Response Program and No Barriers Youth partnership is a commitment to provide cli-mate change learning opportunities for youth and educators nationwide.

About NPS Climate Change Response Program: The Climate Change Response Program is a cross-disciplinary program that provides guidance, training, technical expertise, project funding, and educational products that support our actions to preserve the natural and cultural resources and values of the National Park Service.

Ab o u t No B a r r i e r s Yo u t h No Barriers Youth is a program of No Barriers USA, is a nonprofit organiza-tion based in Fort Collins, Colorado, whose mission is to inspire respon-sible global citizenship by providing life-changing travel experiences for students and educators of all abilities and backgrounds.


B U S I N E S S

Winnebago Buy Local presents ‘A Local Holiday Market’ 2014’Rockford Record American

In what is becoming a local annual hol-iday tradition, “A Local Holiday Market 2014” will happen on Saturday, December 6, 2014 from 10 a.m. to4 p.m. at Rockford University’s Regents Hall, 5050 E. State St., Rockford.

Presented by Winnebago Buy Local, and sponsored by Rock Valley Compounding Pharmacy, Spectrum Insurance, and Wired Cafe, you will get to experience an amazing, holiday-themed, shopping market filled with only locally owned businesses.

In its fourth successful year, A Local Holiday Market 2014 helps you support and shop at your favorite local homegrown, grass-roots businesses – all in one spot.

“The people of Winnebago County want to be a part of the Buy Local Movement, so we are bringing together dozens of these local businesses, all in one place! We want to help everyone to be able to Buy Local for the

busiest shopping time of the year,” said Lauren Davis, director of Winnebago Buy Local. “It is festive, fabulous, and fun for every age group and every walk of life, and it greatly benefits our community with unique gift ideas—even for those ‘who have everything.’”

Businesses at A Local Holiday Market 2014 are 100 percent local, grassroots, home-grown businesses. By supporting businesses such as these, up to 68 cents of every dollar spent with them stays in the local economy on average, which is significantly more than if one buys from other types of businesses. Supporting locally owned businesses such as these allows a community to retain more of its wealth while becoming a unique place to live, work, and visit.

Winnebago Buy Local, a not-for-profit group based in Rockford and supports locally owned businesses for the benefit of our region.

In addition to local businesses, Win-

nebago Buy Local will also have representatives from Rosie’s Birthday Club on site to custom gift wrap purchases for a donation. This allows shoppers to get their holiday shopping done and have the gifts wrapped in a complete, one-stop local shopping trip this year while also helping a local charity help many local children who, under various circumstances, may otherwise not receive recognition on their special day.

Also returning this year—the first 100 families passing through the doors of A Local Holiday Market 2014 will receive a commem-orative, reusable tote bag filled with local business goodies to help remind them to buy local during the holiday season, as well as all year long while also helping the environment by reusing our planet’s resources.

Cost is free. All ages are welcome, and the venue is handicapped accessible. All are ages welcome. Parking is available on site.

Beware of IRS phone scamRockford Record American

In the past few days the Rock-ford Regional Office of the Better Business Bureau (BBB) has seen a dramatic increase in the number of calls from consumers who have received calls from scammers pos-ing as IRS officials. The Rockford 911 Center reports that they have seen a similar surge in calls from residents.

All callers to the BBB report, whether the calls are answered or received as a voice mails, are very threatening in nature. They say they have been threatened with legal action, foreclosure, and jail.

Dennis Horton, director of the BBB’s Rockford Regional Of-fice said, “Today we’ve received calls at a rate of two or three every ten minutes.” While they are only taking reports the 911 Center says their concern is that their calls from residents have come mainly from the elderly.

Horton added: “It’s a good guess to say the increased activity with this scam is prompted by the fact that the scam works.”

Consumers should be aware that according to the IRS, the agency never contacts taxpayers by phone asking for money. They also never contact taxpayers by email. If there is an issue with the IRS that requires response, the contact would be made by U.S. mail.

Anyone who receives one of these scam phone calls is urged to hang up and contact the FTC. Never give our personal informa-tion over the phone, officials said.

For more information on scams, visit www.bbb.org. The agency can also be found on Face-book and Twitter.

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Record American Weekly, Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2014

Documents

Transcript of Record American Weekly, Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2014