Cassandra Brustkern, 8, of La Porte City encourages Opal, a mini Rex, to run a rabbit hopping course at the home of Joan Knoebel in rural La Porte City July 17. (Jim Slosiarek)

Training a rabbit to hop competitively is harder than it sounds.

Rabbits may hop instinctively, said Joan Knoebel of La Porte City, but trying to get one to follow a course and jump over obstacles of varying heights is another story altogether.

“Rabbits like to zigzag, they don’t hop in a straight line,” Knoebel said.

Over the last year, however, Knoebel, her daughter, Cassandra Brustkern, 8, and nephew, Bradley Ryan, 11, have trained or are training some two dozen rabbits first to walk on a leash with a harness and then to follow a straight jumping course, hopping over poles stacked from one to five high or higher.

Once Brustkern and Ryan got used to getting their rabbits to hop, they started teaching others, going to schools and 4-H meetings to get other kids interested in the event as well. Rabbit hopping was an event at the Black Hawk County Fair this year.

Training initially begins with getting the rabbits accustomed to the leash and to being lead. The rabbit is then gradually taught to follow the trainer’s lead and stay on course.

Eventually the rabbit is introduced to the obstacles.

Ryan said he likes the rabbit hopping competition more than showing because he gets to work with his rabbits more.

“They’re not just in a cage looking good, we get to interact with them more,” he said.

“You get to actually spend time with your rabbits,” Brustkern said. “It’s fun to just let them out and work with them.”

The humans have learned about as much as the rabbits: It’s against the rules to nudge a rabbit with your foot if he won’t hop over the bars. The person on lead must stand or run to the side of the course, not in the course behind the rabbit.

And you have to be careful about who your rabbit is competing against.

“We’ve learned not to do bucks and does together,” Knoebel said, “because the bucks get really stupid when there are does around.”

Rabbit hopping as a competition started in Sweden in the 1970s and is growing in popularity in both Europe and the United States. Knoebel said most of the American popularity comes on the east and west coasts, but that she is working with a friend in Colorado to bring the sport to the Midwest.

– Molly Rossiter

The Buchanan Mansion, a 125-year-old brick house near Tipton that weighs more than 300 tons, started rolling down the road Monday morning, Aug. 10, 2009. The structure, being moved by Jeremy Patterson House Moving, averaged half a mile per hour. (Chris Mackler/The Gazette)

The moment of truth came at 6 Monday night when the 300-ton brick mansion made a right-angled uphill turn off Cedar County Road X30 onto the muddy Green Road.

Would the behemoth Buchanan Mansion, a Cedar County landmark for 125 years, remain upright or slide into the ditch?

Before more than 100 curious onlookers, the 20 crew members of Jeremy Patterson House Moving scrambled beneath the mansion for an hour, adjusting chains, sliding steel plates and wedges beneath some of the 140 tires holding up the house, and moved it forward inch by inch until it was finally off the road safely.

“This has never been done before,” said Jeremy Patterson, owner of the Washington, Iowa-based moving company that accomplished the feat.

“Heavier buildings have been moved for shorter distances, but no one has ever tried to move an old 300-ton brick mansion more than five miles,” he said.

Patterson, who was wearing a heart monitor after the recent blockage of one of his carotid arteries, delegated steering the 400-ton self-propelled rig — the beams, dollies, diesel engines and other moving equipment weighed more than 100 tons — to Jamen Buckingham of Bernville, Pa.

Walking backward in front of the house, Buckingham steered it with a remote-controlled joystick, making constant corrections to keep the 36-foot-wide rig on course. He also controlled the power to the six dollies with driving wheels that impelled the rig forward.
Alliant Energy crews took down 16 sets of utility lines to enable the rig’s passage.

The move could not have taken place had there been any bridges along the route, Patterson said.

Linda Weaver of Tipton, who with her husband, Randy, intends to make the mansion the center of their startup winery, said a weeklong weather delay made the move more stressful than it otherwise might have been.

Asked the cost of the move, she gave the same answer Patterson gave to The Learning Channel, which filmed the spectacle for broadcast later this year: “Two tractors, a goat and a little red hen.”

Teri Jo Griebat, who lived in the mansion for a decade until earlier this year, said the 16-room mansion was built in 1883 by Alexander Buchanan. Members of her family lived in it since her grandfather Clarence Miller bought it in 1938, she said.

Griebat said a $2,300 utility bill in January convinced her that new accommodations were in order. She said she is delighted it will be preserved in its new location on Green Road by the Weavers.

Later this week, the house will be settled into place atop wooden cribs, and its new foundation will be built beneath it, Linda Weaver said. It will likely be two years before the Weavers move into the mansion and start making wine there, she said.

– Orlan Love, The Gazette

Part of the historic Sutliff Bridge over the Cedar River in northeast Johnson County collapsed June 13, 2008, from flooding. Johnson County supervisors are considering whether to rebuild the 1898 structure. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette)

SUTLIFF — A lot of people have Sutliff Bridge stories — grand Memorial Day celebrations, weddings, having a drink on its wood planks.

Whether the bridge will be around to inspire new stories is unknown.

Last year’s flood washed away one-third of the bridge, which opened in 1898 over the Cedar River in the northeast corner of Johnson County. Now the county’s supervisors are considering whether it’s worth spending an estimated $1.4 million to restore it.

The bridge may have little functional use — it was closed to vehicles in 1981 — but supporters tout its historical and sentimental value. Before the flood, it was 827 feet long and one of the few Parker truss bridges left in Iowa.

“I don’t cry very easily, but tears did come to my eyes because I know it meant so much to the people (who) lived in that area because it was a treasure, you might say,” Janice Hunter, 86, said of hearing about the flood damage to the bridge.

She lives in Iowa City but grew up a few miles from the bridge. She remembers movies occasionally being shown near it, and the scare her children got when its planks rattled under the family car.

The structure also has some good stories of its own. Consider:

• In 1999, a ceremony was held in honor of the bridge being placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The thing is, it was put on the register the year before, unbeknown to local people.
• In 1984, to keep the bridge from possibly being torn down, the non-profit Sutliff Bridge Authority signed a long-term lease with the county for $1 to assume oversight of the bridge.
• For 20 years, Sutliff Bridge was the centerpiece of a beloved 5K run that Runner’s World magazine, at the race director’s prodding, had once dubbed the “worst road race in America.”

Johnson County has resumed control of the bridge to get funding for it. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has said it will pay 90 percent of the estimated $1.4 million in flood-related damage. The state would pick up the rest of the tab.

It’s not yet known what would happen to the remaining bridge structure if the county decides not to restore it. An evaluation under way will consider all options, from restoration to demolition, county Engineer Greg Parker said.

Supervisors say they have heard from a lot of people who want Sutliff Bridge rebuilt, but they’ve also heard from some who question spending that much taxpayer money on it.

“I think people are very conscious of (federal) spending and the deficit,” Supervisor Sally Stutsman said.

Supervisor Larry Meyers, who sits on a county committee studying the Sutliff issue, said he’d like to see it rebuilt, but he has a threshold for what’s worth it. The FEMA estimate, he said, is just about that number.

Supervisor Rod Sullivan has no doubt he wants it restored. He grew up a mile east of the bridge and said it felt like a death in the family when the floodwaters washed part of it away.

“It does mean something for the people of Johnson County,” he said.

The bridge now looks like someone took a giant saw and clumsily cut off its eastern third, with the planks and the railing on the remaining span bent just before dropping 20 feet to the now-calm Cedar River.

It’s a sight that, a year later, still bothers Randy Howell every morning when he opens Baxa’s Sutliff Store & Tavern, the business he runs on the east side of the bridge.

“You sit there, and it’s gone now and it has been, and it rips your heart out,” said Howell, 45.

Bridge advocates say they understand that repairs may be expensive but note that there are pots of recovery dollars available for such work. For example, FEMA is expected to pay most of the $25 million needed to restore the Paramount Theatre in Cedar Rapids.

Having the bridge back would be a big boost to the area, said Randy Brannaman, 56. He’s president of the Sutliff Bridge Authority and has lived near the structure his entire life.

“It is not an eyesore, but it’s sure a hole in all our hearts,” he said.

His group has nearly $30,000 in an account for the bridge. He said others have said they’d donate money to help get it rebuilt.

A report from an engineering firm evaluating Sutliff Bridge is expected soon. The county will see what it says and go from there, Meyers said.

The State Historic Preservation Office will provide technical assistance if the bridge is rebuilt, spokesman Jeff Morgan said.

FEMA spokesman Vince Clark said via e-mail that, after the engineering assessment, the county will submit a plan to FEMA for review. The agency will “seek ways to avoid, minimize or mitigate adverse effects” on the historic integrity of the bridge, he said.

Click here for Gazette Online anniversary coverage
Click here for KCRG TV-9 anniversary coverage

Parkersburg a shining example of post-disaster recovery

By Orlan Love
The Gazette

Houses at various stages of construction are seen in what was the path of last year's tornado, in Parkersburg on Tuesday, May 12, 2009. Nearly 300 homes were destroyed, and about 100 of those have not yet been rebuilt / Photo by Liz Martin, The Gazette.

Though trees remain scarce and Tyvek house wrap is still the dominant exterior design motif, officials here rate the town’s recovery from a nuclear-bomb-like EF5 tornado at about 75 percent complete.

In the year since the May 25 tornado destroyed nearly 300 homes and killed six people in Parkersburg and two in nearby New Hartford, the town is “about 80 percent back to normal, with the rest to be made up this summer,” Mayor Bob Haylock said.

City Clerk Gary Hinders said the rebuilding of houses is between 75 percent and 80 percent complete, with city infrastructure lagging in the 50 percent to 60 percent range.

“It will take a couple of years to fix the destruction that occurred in 20 to 30 seconds,” he said.

Police Chief Chris Luhring, a leader in the effort to replace the town’s ruined playgrounds, rates the physical recovery at 75 percent, but the psychological recovery — repairs to what Luhring calls “damage to the heart” — has barely begun, he said.

“People see our recovery and they say, ‘You’re all right,’ but hearts are hurting. It takes time. There is post-traumatic stress, and that’s totally all right when you go through something like an EF5 tornado, which struck like an atom bomb,” Luhring said.

The Rev. Betsy Piette, pastor at Parkersburg United Methodist Church, said she and other local clergy have been discussing ways to help their congregations counter the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder.

When the dollar damage has all been totaled up, it won’t include residents’ emotional suffering, she said, adding, “You can’t put a value on the trauma people experienced.”

Repairing emotional damage has been largely deferred while residents rebuild their homes, Piette said.

Hinders said he still marvels at the fortitude and ambition of Parkersburg residents who dusted themselves off and immediately set about rebuilding.

“Their attitude has been ‘Lead, follow or get out of the way.’ They were digging basements before their debris was hauled away,” he said.

The No. 1 thing he’s learned during the past year, Hinders said, is “do not discourage people when they want to rebuild.”

Hinders said he, like most Parkersburg employees, has worked double shifts during the past year to ensure the city does not stand in the way of progress. For example, in a city that typically issued one or two building permits a month, Parkersburg has issued 234 since the tornado and 150 so far in 2009, he said.

Parkersburg, which had 1,889 residents as of the 2000 census, had been expecting to climb above 2,000 in the upcoming national count. “We’re hoping now to hold our own at 1,889. If I had to guess, I’d say we’ve lost between 100 and 150 people,” Hinders said.

While most of them will be missed, the following six, killed by the tornado, will continue to be grieved: Bertha Eckhoff, 85; Charles Horan, 74; Richard and Ethel Mulder, both 80; Shirley Luhring, 71; and Ray Meyocks, 74.

Hinders said the town immediately lost $43 million in assessed property value, which was 49 percent of the community’s tax base. Add to that about $13 million to rebuild damaged or destroyed municipal infrastructure and $18 million to replace the school, and the total damage approaches $75 million, he said.

Though most of the loss was indemnified by private insurance or by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, that does not mean residents came out ahead, Hinders said.

“Most of the new homes cost more than the ones they replaced, and many people who did not have mortgages before the tornado have them now,” he said.

Hinders said the city still has about 100 fewer houses than it had before the tornado. “I expect we will be 60 or 70 houses short when the rebuilding is complete,” he said.

Most of the shortfall is attributable to older residents moving to retirement communities and residents rebuilding on lots expanded by the purchase of neighboring property.

Though there will be fewer houses, the new ones are more expensive, and the city hopes to get back to 100 percent of its pre-storm assessed property value, Hinders said.

The city also hopes to get back to 100 percent of its shade trees, but that will take much longer. By this fall, when the last of five tree-planting events is finished, the town will have as many trees as it did before the tornado, but they will be a lot smaller, Hinders said.

On the commercial side, Parkersburg economic development director Virgil Goodrich said 13 of the 15 businesses destroyed by the tornado have reopened or soon will.

“We lost two businesses, both restaurants, but we have three new ones coming in,” he said.

Parkersburg sales-tax receipts, a good indicator of economic activity, increased markedly in the two post-tornado quarters for which state figures are available.

In the last quarter of 2008, sales-tax proceeds were $3.4 million — up more than 27 percent from the comparable year-earlier quarter. In the third quarter of 2008, receipts were almost 18 percent higher than in the comparable year-earlier period.

Those gains reflect the rebuilding effort and the replacement of items lost in the tornado, though most such expenditures were made outside of Parkersburg.

A comparison of the last two quarters in 2007 and 2008 shows that construction-related sales tax surged from $441,000 to more than $1 million and that sales tax for businesses selling building materials and home furnishings went from about $1.5 million to nearly $2.5 million.

Residents are most excited, Goodrich said, about the grand opening this weekend of Brothers Market, the town’s only grocery store. The new 13,800-square-foot market will be 40 percent larger than the store destroyed by the tornado, said store manager Dusty Hanson.

“It’s going to be huge. The town has been waiting for this. It’s one of the big missing pieces, like the school,” Hanson said.

Most of the new $18 million school will be ready when classes resume this fall, said Aplington-Parkersburg Superintendent Jon Thompson. “We set an aggressive goal to be back in one year, and we’re going to make it,” he said.

With eight classrooms in portable buildings and the entire high school jammed into what had been the elementary school in Aplington, students had to adapt quickly to the new reality.

“Hard as that sounds, it has been a fantastic school year,” Thompson said. “It would have been easy for our seniors to be bummed out by the changes, but they came over (to Aplington) and made the absolute best out of it and set the tone for a tremendous school year.”

Mark Wyatt (from left), Gina Weaver and Nikki Davidson ride down 42nd Street NE at the start of a six-mile group ride near Twin Pines Golf Course earlier this month. Riders from the city's traffic engineering division, the Bicycle Advisory Committee and police braved chilly and wet conditions to educate themselves about how to make Cedar Rapids more bicycle friendly / Jeff Raasch, The Gazette.

Rick Smith
The Gazette

The Cedar Rapids City Council will submit an application on Aug. 7 to the League of American Bicyclists in hopes of becoming Iowa’s second bicycle-friendly community.

Cedar Falls secured the distinction this year, according to the certifying organization’s Web site. 

In total, 102 communities in the United States have the bicycle-friendly status, with three, Davis, Calif., Boulder, Colo., and Portland, Ore., having the top platinum rating. Nine cities have a gold rating, 23, a silver rating, and 67, including Cedar Falls, a bronze rating.

The pursuit of the bicycle distinction is something that the council and local bicycle and trail enthusiasts have been working on for months.

Ron Griffith, a traffic engineer with the city, is heading up the city’s effort along with a new Bicycle Advisory Committee.

The city must take steps to promote bicycling by focusing on what Griffith last night called the five Es: engineering, education, encouragement, enforcement and evaluation and planning.

In tandem, as the city prepares to sell itself as worthy of bicycle-friendly status, it is in the midst of a process to create a Trails Development and Management Plan.

A special task force comprised of city and community representatives met the entire week of March 30 to begin the planning process. A key finding: The city needs to look at trails both as recreational venues and transportation assets that connect the neighborhoods and streets to parks, schools and jobs.

Griffith reported that city staff and local planners and others the last two Fridays have been out riding city streets with an eye to how they work with bicyclists.

Griffith said the city is looking to create “sharrow” lanes as part of four streets projects now under construction, 33rd Avenue SW, Council Street NE, C Avenue NE and Kirkwood Boulevard SW. The outside shared lane or sharrow might be 14 feet wide while other lanes that might typically be 12 feet wide will be 11 feet wide, he said.

Council member Justin Shields said he hoped no money would be directed away from flood relief for the bicycle initiative. Griffith noted that trails and connecting neighborhoods to them was a major focus on the city’s just completed planning process for its flood-damaged neighborhoods.

Among the lingering questions: Is a 10 foot-wide sidewalk, which is intended for pedestrians and bicycle use, a sidewalk or a trail?

2009 Gazette Communications

A basket full of fresh scallions (green onions) in the farmers market.

Farmers’ markets are starting to open around Iowa, and let’s face it, it can’t get here a moment too soon! Here’s what you can be on the look out for this season:

May – Asparagus, lettuce, mustard greens, green onions, radishes, rhubarb, spinach and zucchini.

June - Asparagus, beans, blueberries, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, cherries, collard greens, leeks, lettuce, mustard greens, green onions, peas, radishes, rhubarb, spinach, strawberries, swish chard and zucchini.

July - Apricots, asparagus, beans, blueberries, beats, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, cherries, collard greens, cucumbers, currants, gooseberries, kale, leeks, lettuce, green onions, peaches, peas, peppers, potatoes, radishes, raspberries, rhubarb, spinach, squash, strawberries, sweet corn, swish chard, tomatoes and zucchini.

August - Apples, apricots, beans, blueberries, beats, broccoli, cabbage, cantaloupe, carrots, cauliflower, collard greens, cucumbers, eggplant, kale, kohlrabi, leeks, okra, green onions, peaches, pears, peas, peppers, plums, potatoes, radishes, raspberries, rutabaga, spinach, squash, sweet corn, sweet potato, swish chard, tomatoes, turnips, watermelon and zucchini.

September - Apples, beans, beets, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, cantaloupe, carrots, cauliflower, collard greens, cucumbers, eggplant, grapes, kohlrabi, okra, green onions, pears, peppers, plums, potatoes, pumpkins, radishes, raspberries, rutabaga, spinach, squash, sweet corn, sweet potato, swish chard, tomatoes, turnips, turnip greens and watermelon.

October - Apples, beets, broccoli sprouts, cabbage, cantaloupe, carrots, collard greens, eggplant, grapes, kohlrabi, green onions, parsnips, peppers, potatoes, pumpkins, radishes, raspberries, spinach, squash, sweet potato, swish chard, tomatoes, turnips, turnip greens and watermelon.

For a list of Eastern Iowa Farmer’s Market Schedules, click here. You can also consult the Iowa Farmers’  Market Directory .

Now, for the more important question. What delicious dish will you make with all that tasty produce? Here are a couple of ideas from area chefs:

Vegetable Tian  by Chef Kim Zesiger, Redhead, Solon

Herb crusted Chilean sea bass w/ heirloom tomato & avocado salad & white truffle oil

by Chef Jayson West, Daniel Arthur’s

By KCRG TV-9

Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson dances in Times Square with her "Dancing With The Stars" partner Mark Ballas during an appearance on ABC's "Good Morning America" television program Wednesday. Johnson was named "Dancing With The Stars" champion during the show's finale Tuesday night /AP Photo, Jason DeCrow

Shawn Johnson is the new Dancing with the Stars Champion. After an 11-week competition, Johnson and partner Mark Ballas narrowly won the mirror ball trophy. The difference between 1st and 2nd place was less than one percent, the closest in the eight seasons of the show.

Shawn entered the competition as the youngest celebrity, and became the second olympian to win. Figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi won it all in season 6.

As for what’s next with the talented West Des Moines native, Johnson says she’ll need to decide on the olympics.

 Now she will just enjoy her latest victory.

Cedar Rapids seeks biggest trees

Americorps workers Cyndi (cq) O'Hern (left) of Ankeny and Ken Holland of Cedar Rapids stretch a measuring tape to measure the girth of a tree in Ellis Park as they gather data for the Trees Forever Champion tree competition Monday in northwest Cedar Rapids. The pair had to switch to a longer tape measure/ Jim Slosiarek, The Gazette

By Rick Smith
The Gazette

CEDAR RAPIDS — Sharon Carmody-Holmes still recalls the yard tour she got in 1985 before she and husband Bob decided to buy the house at 2127 Greenwood Dr. SE.

One of two giant ginkgo trees in the backyard, the owner reported, ranked as the largest tree of its kind in the city, if not beyond.

Like fish stories, surely there are tree stories, too.

Now, though, Daniel Gibbins, the city of Cedar Rapids’ arborist, and Trees Forever of Marion have joined forces to create a contest to determine which trees of differing species in Cedar Rapids are, in fact, the city’s champion trees.

Through the end of the month, residents are encouraged to nominate trees in their own yards or those in other spots in the city, whether on public or private property.

Gibbins encourages residents to measure their own trees and then nominate them. Three measurements are needed — height, circumference and crown spread — with height being the trickiest.

Trees Forever also has trained a cadre of volunteers, which include Green Iowa AmeriCorps volunteers in Cedar Rapids, to help with the measuring. The volunteers also are out following leads for possible champion trees.

Upon hearing of the big-tree contest, Carmody-Holmes and her husband, who has been involved with Trees Forever from its founding 20 years ago, didn’t think twice about seeing if there was something to the claim of the prize ginkgo that had come with the purchase of their house.

Their own measurement of their largest ginkgo, at 104 feet tall, appears to place it well above the tallest ginkgo on the current Iowa Department of Natural Resources’ state list.

“It is pretty breathtaking as far as the size,” Carmody-Holmes says. “You look out the kitchen window and all you see is the tree, the sky and the clouds.”

The state big-tree list is a bit of a work in progress, and trees can fall off the list because, as Cedar Rapids arborist Gibbins notes, wind storms, ice storms and drought can take their toll on the oldest, most spectacular trees. Trees fall into decline over time, Gibbins says, and once a tree begins to fail, it’s hard to reverse course.

The DNR promotes its 2003 Big Trees list on its Web site, and the state’s largest red maple on that list was in Cedar Rapids.

A hunt to find it lead to the home at 1254 Elmhurst Dr. NE, adjacent to the Mount Mercy College campus. The front lawn revealed the spot where the tree once stood. The homeowner since has died, too.

A wind storm in recent years blew half the tree down, and the city removed the rest, says Rita Hutchins, neighbor across the street at 1251 Elmhurst Dr. NE. She, too, lost a giant tree in recent years from her front yard.

“It’s kind of like losing an old friend when they have to come down,” Hutchins says.

Once the big-tree contest ends at month’s end, the city’s Gibbins will remeasure tree nominees to determine which are champions. He then will nominate the city champion trees for the state’s list and a national list.

Now scheduled, too, is a June 19 event in which he and Trees Forever will conduct a tour of the city’s champion trees as part of the city’s Freedom Festival.

“We would like to know where these big trees are,” says Gibbins, “and with all that’s gone on, I think this is just a great event, even considering the flooding and the recovery.”

Measure up
Trees are ranked on three measurements: circumference, height and crown spread. Ranking is determined by total points.

• Circumference: Measure around the tree trunk at 4.5 feet above the ground. Each inch is one point.
• Height: An estimated height can be made using a yardstick. First, measure 100 feet from the tree. Next, hold the yardstick vertically, 25 inches from the eye. Align the zero inch mark on the yardstick at the base of the tree and note the inch mark that aligns with the top of the tree. Every inch equals 4 feet of height. Height contributes 1 point for each foot.
• Crown spread: Measure from a point directly below branch tips on one side of the tree to a point directly below branch tips on the other side of the tree. Make a second measurement at right angles to the first. Average the two measurements. Crown spread counts for 1/4 point for each foot.

To compete, contact Trees Forever at (319) 373-0650 or at agreen@treesforever.org

2009 Gazette Communications

Fans cross fingers for fellow Iowan Shawn Johnson

Shawn Johnson of West Des Moines and partner Mark Ballas dance the jive last Monday in the "Dancing with the Stars" semifinals. The pair earned a perfect score for their Argentine tango but placed second in the semifinals/ ABC photo

By Carla Keppler
The Gazette

Iowans rooted for Shawn Johnson when the West Des Moines gymnast captured Olympic gold in Beijing. And they’ll be rooting tonight as she reaches for another shiny prize – the mirror ball trophy.

Johnson will face off against two other “Dancing With the Stars” contestants in the final showdown of the season.

On Tuesday night, the champion will be announced on the results show.

Both shows begin at 7 p.m. on ABC-TV.

Fan support is crucial. The winner will be determined by a formula that factors in judges’ scores and viewer votes.

Johnson captured hearts across the world while earning one gold and three silver medals in the 2008 Summer Olympics. Her fan base, which is especially strong in her home state, followed as she joined “Dancing With the Stars” this year.

At 17, she is the youngest contestant in the show’s eight seasons.

See video of Shawn and read more about her in our Claim to Fame blog. 

“She has a lot of personality, and you can tell that she cares a lot about what she’s doing,” said Molly Djuric, 22, of Iowa City. “She represents the state very well, and she’s a great role model.”

While living in Los Angeles, where the show is based, Johnson maintains as normal a lifestyle as possible.

The teen has been taking online classes to stay on track academically. She plans to return to Valley High School in West Des Moines for her senior year.

Fans are impressed by the talent she brings to the dance floor.

“She’s got a maturity about her. She doesn’t even look or act 17,” said Twyla Larsen, 60, of Oelwein. “It amazes me in a week’s time what they can learn and what they do. I’m tickled she’s in the top three.”

Rumblings about “skimpy” dance outfits and Johnson’s youth have sprung up online, but to many, there’s no cause for alarm.

“She uses good judgment, and it’s just a part of the sport,” Djuric said.

Larsen agreed, adding that many prom dresses she sees nowadays are cut lower and are more revealing than what the dancers wear.

“It’s just the times,” she said. “It doesn’t bother me at all.”

While Larsen and Djuric, who watch the show regularly, are pulling for Johnson, it is anyone’s game, they say.

“I think it’s going to be really close because they are all really talented,” Djuric said.

But like other Iowans tonight, she’ll be crossing her fingers for Johnson.

2009 Gazette Communications

By Meredith Hines-Dochterman
The Gazette

Talk to your kids about money and the economy/Stock photo by JupiterImages

The economy. Everyone is talking about it. At work. In the grocery store. At home.

Sort of.

Parents tend to avoid issues that could upset their offspring. Money is regarded as one of those “for adults only” topics, leaving kids in the dark as their parents wrestle to make ends meet. What parents don’t understand is they might be doing more harm than good.

“When parents worry, their kids worry,” said Amy Jackson, team leader for children’s services at the Abbe Center for Community Health in Cedar Rapids. “Children do listen to what adults say about the topic.”

For that reason, experts say it’s best to include children in discussions about money.

“It’s always smart to be honest with children — in accordance to their age,” said Kathleen Staley, assistant director/director of program and consultation services with the University of Iowa Counseling Service.

This doesn’t mean providing a blow-by-blow of bills and tax statements, but explaining to children that times are tough and, until times get better, there will be some changes.

“What experts suggest is one minute per grade level to explain it to them,” Jackson said.

Kathi Moss, financial wellness coordinator for Horizons, suggests families track spending, prioritize goals and make cuts where necessary. This process should include children. “It’s the only way they’ll buy into it,” Moss said.

It’s typical for young children to think money grows on trees or in ATMs. If they don’t understand why Mom and Dad can’t afford the Friday night tradition of pizza and a movie, they’ll continue to ask for it.

“Explain that there isn’t a lot of money for the extras,” Moss said. “At the same time, make sure not every extra gets cut, because then no one is happy.”

Still, talking and planning won’t make everything better. Some children will worry. They’ll require more reassurance from their parents that they’ll be OK. They’ll want to do something to help. They’ll want to talk more about the situation. All reactions are normal.

“Talk to your children as much as they need,” Staley said. “Make them part of the family unit that will come together and face tough times together.”

Jackson said if parents focus on the positives — they have a home, they have food — their kids will, too. If a child can’t stop worrying, contact their doctor or mental health professional.

“Adults need to make sure they build up their own support system,” Jackson said. “We focus on kids all the time, but adults need to have people they can lean on, too.”

Free fun

Ready to upgrade family entertainment options without breaking the bank? Here are a few money-saving ideas to get you started:

• Your local library is a one-stop shop for all kinds of entertainment, including books, movies and music. Keep an eye out on upcoming activities, including story times, movie events and special activities.
• Make game night a regular event. Choose a board game, pop some popcorn and enjoy time as a family. Trade games with friends, or set up a multifamily game night, to increase the fun.
• Explore the great outdoors. Call your local parks and recreation department for information about hiking and bike trails in the area.
• Visit the Iowa Cultural Corridor Alliance at http://www.culturalcorridor.org/for more free culture events in the area. 

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