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MAKING TIME FOR YOUR LITTLE IN YOUR ALREADY BUSY LIFE Some days it just seems impossible to wedge one more activity into your schedule. But being a mentor doesn’t necessarily need to become a burden in your life. Being a mentor is about more than going on special outings to movies and amusement parks. It’s about spending time together and being part of each other’s lives. For mentees, joining you in your everyday activities may not be so “everyday” for them. These activities may be a rare exposure to a different kind of lifestyle or provide interesting opportunities to learn new skills. You can still designate special time for fun activities that you and your mentee enjoy together. But if your schedule or budget is tight at the moment, spending time together while completing daily tasks can help you avoid canceling your meeting or making your mentee feel you do not have to for him or her. Try including your mentee in the following kinds of ordinary activities:
Sporting events or other activities. If your mentee is not already involved in some kind of organized activities, encourage her to join and take her to the practices. One mentor helped his mentee join a local chorus, and taking him to rehearsals became one of the activities they did together. Another match found and arena where both an adult and kids hockey league were practicing at the same time.
Preparing a meal. You and you mentee can learn more about cooking, home budgeting, and etiquette by working together to select the menu, shop, prepare the meal and, of course, enjoy the fruits of your labor! Planning an event. Are you hosting your next book club or having relatives over for a birthday party? Your mentee can learn eventplanning skills by helping you with invitations, food and beverage preparations, room arrangement and decoration, and hosting the event. Exercising. Modeling healthy physical activity is a great way to teach your mentee the importance of exercise. Jog together at a local park or seek guest passes if you belong to a gym. Projects around the house. Does your faucet leak? Is your computer acting up? Your mentee can acquire valuable vocational or household maintenance skills by learning with you about options for fixing the problem and joining you in repairing it. For many of these more mundane everyday tasks you may want to have a bite to eat or play a board game so that the mentee feels some Homework. Help your mentee with his or her homework, or hang “fun” was thrown into the mix. out and read a book while he finishes up. Family events. Are you going to be attending a family gathering? Socializing. Ask if you can join your mentee and a few of her friends Invite your mentee to join you. for pizza. Volunteering. Do you donate your time to local organizations? Take Source: Mentoring for Meaningful Results by Kristie Probst; copyright 2006 your mentee along and help find meaningful ways he or she can by Search Institute contribute.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Making time for your Little Transitioning into High School HAVlife ideas for your Little—Piano lessons Ideas for things to do with your Little Big Impact Event—BBBS Mentor Center Office Supplies Drive for BBBS at BOP Summer Jobs for Littles! Congratulations! RAVE—Alex got a job at Green Thumbers! Match Anniversaries and party in June Money-Wise Kids
Macomb Update June Match Activity—Camp Shalom Plant Sale Success! 2014 BBBS Golf Outing—Sign up today! Birdies for Charity—A great way to give! 100 Days / 100 Bigs Volunteer Recruitment Lunch and Learn: Suicide Prevention Get to Know BBBS Staff: Pete Tarantola Order your summer T-Shirts today! Community Calendar
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DREAMS COME TRUE WITH BBBS AND HAVLIFE
Big Sister, Susan says, “Alena's dream has come true because of BBBS and the HAVLife Foundation.” “Piano has always been a passion for Alena. She has a piano at home; however, she has not been able to take piano lessons. Alena's dream has always been "to have piano lessons so she can really do good at it, and play for her family." Alena's dream has come true because of BBBS and the HAVLIve Foundation. Alena has been enrolled in private piano classes at the Woodlawn Arts Academy in Sterling, IL. It is an eight week program of which I pick her up from school and drive her to her lessons. At the end of her eight week session, she will be in a piano recital at WAA.
ACTIVITY IDEAS: THINGS TO DO WITH YOUR LITTE Running out of ideas for you and your Little to do together? Try something new this summer! School Based: 1. Take a calendar and some stickers. Mark out the days you are meeting and what activities you plan to do. Mark important dates like birthdays. 2. Try cotton ball hockey. Blow a cotton ball back and forth across a table. If it falls off your opponent’s side, that’s one point! 3. Play Mad Libs. Community Based: 1. Take a picture together. Decorate a picture frame for the picture made out of popsicle sticks, glitter, foam pieces, paint, etc. 2. Make paper airplanes. Fly them from the top of a staircase. 3. Take a nature walk around a park. Rent a bird or flower identifying book from the library and look up what types of birds/flowers you come across.
I am so proud of my Little! Alena's self-confidence is greater than ever… Y E S !! Alena and I were matched while she was in 3rd grade as a part of the School-Based Program. Alena is currently in 7th grade. We recently transitioned to Community based in November of 2013.” To learn more about how your Little can take advantage of this fantastic opportunity, call Jaime at 563-323-8006!
DEAR MATCH COACH: TRANSITIONING TO HIGH SCHOOL Dear Match Coach, My School-Based Little is moving to high school. How can we continue to meet with each other? Volunteer, Since Big Brothers Big Sisters does not have any agreements with the high schools to meet for lunch, this would be a great time to transition your School-Based match to a CommunityBased match. Transitioning to a CB match would enable you to continue with your Little, meet outside of school, and do a wide variety of activities out in the community such as BBBS monthly activities, go to the park, see a movie, or grab a bite to eat. Transitioning to the CB program does require that you meet with your Little for 6-10 hours a month, which is only a few more than the SB requirements. Someone from our Enrollment team will contact you, your Little, and their parent/guardian to set up a time to meet in person giving everyone the opportunity to meet, discuss transportation, and set up your first outing with your Little! Transitioning is a great opportunity for you and your Little to continue the growth of your match relationship and to experience new and exciting things together! Just talk to your Match Coach and they will help get the process started!
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BIG SUPPLIES DRIVE! SUPPORT BBBS AT BOP!
COPY PAPER • POCKET FOLDERS • WHITE CARD STOCK • BUSINESS CARDS STOCK • PENS • HIGHLIGHTERS • CORRECTION TAPE • DYMO LABEL WRITER LABELS • STAPLERS • TAPE DISPENSERS • POST-IT NOTES • LEGAL PADS All of these items are needed at the BBBS offices to help us save on expenses and better support our Matches. Bettendorf Office Products is partnering with Big Brothers Big Sisters on our BIG SUPPLIES DRIVE which kicked off in late May and runs through June 23. All you need to do to support this effort is go to Bettendorf Office Products located at 3280 Middle Rd., Bettendorf and shop for one or more of the supplies on our list, purchase the items(s) and drop them in the bin! The needed supplies list will be posted on the Big Supplies Drive poster on the door at BOP when you walk in. Tear off a list and look for our “shelf talkers” indicating which items throughout the store we need.
3280 Middle Road Bettendorf, IA 52722 563-359-3487
SPORTS-THEMED EVENT HONORS VOLUNTEERS
Reserve your ticket or table today!
Eight Impact Awards will be given out at our 2014 Big Impact Event on June 25th, 2014 at the Rogalski Center at St. Ambrose University. This year the event is themed around the ESPN Sports Center, with a twist. We are calling it the BBBS Mentor Center and it will feature four “sets”: Mentor Anchor Desk, Sidelines Live, Mentor Panel and Sponsor Stage (used for our Live Auction). The Big Impact Event is hosted by Julian Vandervelde, former Little and football player for the University of Iowa Hawkeyes and now the Philadelphia Eagles. Joining Julian will be CBS-4 Sports Anchor, Jay Kidwell and CBS-4 News Anchor, Steve Long. The evening will kick off with the LOCKER ROOM RECEPTION (sports memorabilia silent auction), followed by dinner, program, awards and live auction (great vacation get-aways!) JOIN US! Call Beth or Kayla at 563-323-8006 for more information.
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RAVE ABOUT YOUR LITTLE! ALEX! Alex hired by Green Thumbers!
61% improved confidence
keep improving! 52% improved self-motivation Alex with Green Thumbers’ owner, Andy Kay
JUNE MATCH ANNIVERSARIES! Little
Big’s First Name
Big’s Last Name
Luke
Shawn
Kerr
Neela
Diana
Gilbert
Kameron
Matthew
Holmer
Nicholas
Andy
Miller
Kylie
Cara
Comba
David
Harry
Coin
Lance
Elizabeth
Heston
Donavin
Jay
Nelson
65% improved grades
BBBS Littles
Congratulations to Alex for applying, interviewing and getting hired at Green Thumbers. Alex took part in our first ever Job Readiness Program this year where he learned about jobs skills, resume writing, interviewing and marketing himself for a job. Way to go Alex on your summer job! We are proud of you!
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Years Matched 1
SUMMER JOBS FOR DEDICATED LITTLES
1 2 4 5 5 5 10
Looking for something to do this summer with your Little or to support BBBBS? Be sure to check out our Summer Activities Guide that was emailed to you in late May!
MATCH ANNIVERSARY
PA R TY Wednesday, June 4th 5-7 p.m. Putnam Museum BBBS has started celebrating match anniversaries quarterly. If you have a match anniversary in the months of April, May, or June you are invited! Meet us at the Putnam Museum to talk and celebrate your match. Afterwards, check out the neat science and CSI exhibit, for free! Dinner and dessert will be provided! Hope to see you there!
Congratulations to these Littles chosen for the Davenport Youth Corps program! These teens went through a rigorous Job Readiness program through Big Brothers Big Sisters which helped land them summer jobs in our community. We are so proud of all you! Pharris Rogers Davon Cole Alex Fox Anthony McGee Sallu Kargbo Camry Tellis David Dickinson Congratulations also to DaShae’ Parker for getting a job at Happy Joe’s!
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DEBT: THE GOOD, THE BAD AND...THE SMART WAY By IHMVCU Staff When we hear the word “debt” we tend to lean more toward the negative idea of debt. Simply stated, it means you’re responsible for paying or fulfilling a commitment. There are two sides to debt—a positive and a negative. Positive debt. At some point you’ll accumulate debt to buy a home (a mortgage) and fund your education. The reason it’s positive is because both of these expenses are investments. Negative debt. Negative debt is any debt used to buy short-term things such as clothing, entertainment, electronics, etc. All of these items have a very short life span and typically have no value when we decide to sell them. Therefore, the money we spend on them is really money we can never get back. Most people end up financing purchases for TVs, stereos and computers, but it would be smarter to use cash. How do you avoid negative debt? The most effective ways to avoid any negative debt issues is learning to manage your finances. Here are four easy debt management tips: 1. Record keeping. Create a file (a document or spreadsheet) where you keep careful track of all debt you accumulate and a payoff plan. If you can do this, you’ll have more control over
your debt than the average consumer. Record keeping is the first step toward controlling your finances, and it applies to debt as well as investments. 2. Use Online Banking. Use online banking to pay your bills. We live in a computer age, so let technology help you out and do as much tracking online as possible. This allows you do your banking 24-hours a day, 7 days a week. 3. Reduce the Number of Bills. Keep it simple — have as few bills as possible. A large part of debt management issues arise because of the sheer number of bills to pay. There’s the credit card company, the store cards, the utility bills, the car loan payment, the home loan payment, the student loan payment, and so on. For example: if you currently have three credit cards and they’re not used very much, use just one. Also, consider consolidating your existing debt. 4. Credit Card Debt. Start slowly with your first credit card. A smart money management rule is to avoid paying interest on your credit card charges by paying the balance in full each month. That way you'll enjoy the convenience a credit card can bring, but you can avoid unnecessary finance charges and debt that never seems to end. You’ll accumulate debt at some point in your life. There’s really no way around it. Especially when you consider the two greatest costs you’ll face – buying a home and funding your education. Debt if used wisely can be a great asset.
Thanks to IH Mississippi Valley Credit Union for their support of our Money-Wise Kids program! Check out the Money-Wise Kids lessons
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HELLO FROM MACOMB! WE’RE SPRINGING INTO SUMMER! What a great month for BBBS Warren and McDonough counties! May was all about community support. BBBS called on Warren and McDonough counties, and the response was spectacular. The good news and good stories just keep coming in. We are doing something really special for the kids of Warren and McDonough counties, and the community is going out of its way to be a part of it. Pictures are worth a thousand words, so allow me to talk your ear off.
GAME DRIVE We collected games and children’s books for the new School-based program at Bushnell, and the generosity shown by the community was outstanding! BIG thanks to everyone who donated, especially the Noon Rotary Club of Macomb. Look at the mountain of stuff the Rotarians collected for us:
To volunteer call Pete 319-222-1515 PHOTO CONTEST We finished our first-ever weekly photo contest, and WOW! Every week had a different task for the matches to do together, and the pics that came in were so much fun to see. Here are a few from the last three weeks:
PLANT SALE Plant Sale 2014 was a HUGE success! BBBS could not have done it without the help of this wonderful community. Raising money is important for our organization, but the support of the community (the Board, the Rotary, the Master Gardeners, the Bigs who helped, the spouses, all of our customers) is what impressed us most. Very special thanks to Scott and the guys from STC Investments for donating the space, and for getting the plants off the truck. There’s a lot of love for BBBS in this town!
And when the contest was all said and done, we had a clear winner. Congratulations to Little Brother Aidan and Big Sister Lois for this gem, titled “Traveling Salespeople”:
ADIEU Finally, we bid a fond farewell to Sam Copeland, our WIU Social Work Department intern for spring 2014. Thanks Sam for your help, insight, and energy. We wish you all the best in your very bright future!
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MOST SUCCESSFUL PLANT SALE EVER! THANKS TO ALL!
The 24th Annual BBBS Plant Sale, held May 2-11, was an amazing success, raising funds of over $55,000 for one-to-one youth mentoring. This year brought much better weather, with shoppers eager to buy and volunteers ready to deliver exceptional service.
Davenport, IA
Over the course of 10 days, BBBS was blessed to have over 125 people volunteer their time with unloading, sorting, delivering and helping hundreds of customers. From the start where BBBS had over 1,600 hanging baskets and more than 3,200 flats of annuals to sell, all but 90 flats were purchased by a resident or local business. A truly amazing outcome for our largest annual fundraiser that continues to grow and become a tradition for so many.
Plant Sale photo taken from Northwest Bank & Trust Tower
Thank you to our sponsors and everyone that purchased flowers and volunteered their time at Plant Sale!
Thanks to our presenting sponsors! Macomb, IL
Bettendorf, IA
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BBBS GOLF OUTING SET FOR MONDAY JULY 21! Get your team together for the 2014 BBBS Golf Outing sponsored by GalaxyOne Marketing. The golf outing will be held again this year at the Jack Nicklaus designed course at Fyre Lake in Sherrard, IL. This is one of the most beautiful courses in the Quad Cities area. About a 20 minute drive from Milan. With registration, each player will receive access to the driving range (free range balls), pre-tee-off beverages, tee-gift, lunch on the carts, drink tickets for the beverage tents and the wrap up 19th Hole Fiesta complete with food and beverages. There are also special contests with great prizes (closest to the
“dish” wins a big screen HD TV!) and hole in one prizes as well. We are also offering raffle prizes that you can enter to support the organization. The fun begins with registration opening at 8:30 a.m. and then shot-gun start at 10 a.m. The outing should wrap up by 4:30 p.m. Reserve your foursome (or twosome) today! There are still Corporate Player Packages available which include a foursome and hole sponsorship, and a few other sponsorship opportunities available. For more information contact Kayla Kiesey at kkiesey@bbbs-mv.org.
Corporate Player Package (includes foursome and hole signage) $1,200 Foursome $600. Twosome $300 (limited availability).
Secure your foursome! Register to play today! Kayla Kiesey at 563-323-8006 or email kkiesey@bbbs-mv.org or go to www.bbbs-mv.org
SUPPORT BBBS THROUGH BIRDIES FOR CHARITY PROGRAM The John Deere Classic will again include the Birdies for Charity Program, a unique giving program that includes a percentage match from the tournament. Fill out your Birdies Pledge today by visiting our website www.bbbs-mv.org. How Birdies for Charity Works: 1) MAKE A FLAT PLEDGE OR BY THE BIRDIE!!! Individuals can make a flat dollar pledge OR pledge for every "birdie" made during Classic. At the conclusion of the tournament, you will receive a pledge statement indicating the amount due of your pledge. 2) YOUR PAID PLEDGE WILL BE MATCHED!!! Once all the pledges have been collected, the Classic will tally the results and match 5% of the collected pledges with Bonus Bucks. In 2013, the John Deere Classic matched collected Birdie pledges by 10%!!!
3) WIN PRIZES FOR GUESSING THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF BIRDIES!!! Not only does your gift get matched by the Classic, each person who makes a pledge has the opportunity to guess the exact number of birdies that will be made during that year's tournament. The one person who guesses the exact number of birdies will win the grand prize (a new car!!!). If you’re close, you might win one of over 500 other great prizes.
BBBSMV BIRD NUMBER: 416
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100 DAYS/100 BIGS: KICK OFF! JUNE 1—SEPTEMBER 8 It’s not too late to jump in and help out in our effort to recruit a minimum of 100 adults in the Quad City region to become Bigs. All you have to do is contact Sarah Walker by phone at 563-323-8006 or email at swalker@bbbs-mv.org and let her know you want to help. What’s involved? Just find a minimum of three friends, family members or co-workers to inquire about becoming a Big. You have 100 days to find three people to inquire. You will receive a point for each inquiry and five points for each person who enrolls. If you are one of the top 10 point-getters you will win a $250 gift card to spend on your Little, just in time for them to go back to school. Right now there are 150 children on a list waiting to be matched. We need your help. If every Big finds one person that wants to enroll, we’d find enough people to match every child on the list and engage many others. CALL US TODAY AND SIGN UP!
Email Sarah at swalker@bbbs-mv.org
LUNCH AND LEARN: SUICIDE PREVENTION With news of teen suicide becoming more and more prevalent, and having several tragedies within the last few years here in the Quad Cities, chances are your middle or high-school Little knows of someone whose life was taken in suicide. Join us for a Lunch & Learn to discuss suicide awareness and prevention, learn about the warning signs of suicide, and become equipped with the community resources that are available to help. Dawn Knutson, Family System Coordinator for Scott County Kids and co-founder of the Eastern Iowa/ Quad Cities Chapter of the Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention Program will share her experiences with us. Dawn, whose son, Jeff, committed suicide in 1999 at the age of 16, has worked tirelessly since then to bring awareness to our community. BBBS believes that she has valuable knowledge and resources to share with our volunteers. This Lunch & Learn is open to any Big with a Little in 5th grade and up. When: Wednesday, June 11, 2014 Noon Where: Big Brothers Big Sisters office, 130 W. 5th Street, Davenport
Lunch will be provided. RSVP to your Match Coach by Monday, June 9.
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GET TO KNOW BBBS STAFF: Pete Tarantola Name: Pete Tarantola Position: Program Specialist in Warren and McDonough Counties
1. What is your favorite memory during the time you have been with BBBS? My favorite moments are too numerous to count. Every time I have called on the community for help, the response has been wonderful. Bigs, Board members, Rotary Club members, Master Gardeners, the guys from STC Investments, spouses, and my own mother volunteered to work at this year’s Plant Sale. Our volunteers brought tables, chairs, tarps, potting soil, a cooler, hoses, sign posts, and equipment to make this possibly the best Plant Sale BBBS has ever had in Macomb. And it was no different at Bowl for Kids’ Sake and the Christmas party last year. Whenever people come together for a good cause I’m happy. 2. What do you like to do when you are not working? When not working I coach the Western Illinois University Rugby Club, read too much, play with my dog, garden, cook, and try to keep my wife entertained. 3. What advice would you give a child who is in our program? My advice to anyone in the BBBS program, Big or Little, is try everything. It took me a long time to find my place, and my life is awesome because I tried everything.
ASK YOUR CO-WORKERS, FRIENDS AND FAMILY TO BECOME A BIG BROTHER OR A BIG SISTER TODAY!
www.bbbs-mv.org The Ultimate Teaching Store Teacher’s Aide is a local educational store that specializes in materials for infants through 8th and 9th grades. Teacher’s Aide believes in strong schools and strong parents. Ask about the Teacher’s Aide VIP program where we will call you and let your know about 20% off weekends!
STORE HOURS:
M-TH 10 a.m.—6 p.m., Fri., 10 a.m.—5 p.m. Sat. 10 a.m.—6 p.m., Sun. 12 p.m.—4 p.m.
4601 18th Street, Moline, IL 309-797-2605 902 W. Kimberly Rd., Davenport, IA 563-445-7422
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COMMUNITY CALENDAR—JUNE 2014 SUNDAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
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2
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$1.00 Mondays begin at Family Museum
Dew for Twosday RIVER BANDITS
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
4
5
6
7
11
12
13
14 Animals at Niabi Zoo
RME 5:30-8:30 pm
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Lunch & Learn Noon - 1 pm
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BBBS Yard Sale
19 Arts & Crafts 6:00-7:30 pm
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20
Circa 21 Stinky Kids
26 BIG IMPACT EVENT
5:30 Rogalski Center at St. Ambrose Univ.
29
Breakfast with the
21 Kid’s Wild Fest at Niabi Zoo Kidz Days at the RME
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28 BBBS Match Activity at
Camp Shalom!
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OUT AND ABOUT IN THE QUAD CITIES! JUNE Monday, June 2nd- The Family Museum will offer $1 admission on Mondays from June 2 - August 11, 2014 from 5:00 - 8:00 pm. Tuesday, June 3rd – The River Bandits at Modern Woodmen Park present Kids Eat free, Dew for Twosday! For the whole summer, all Tuesday night tickets are buy-one-get-one free, and kids get a free meal! Fans can also bring in old Mountain Dew cans and exchange them for a voucher for a free 16-ounce Mountain Dew. Call 563-324-3000 for more information. Saturday, June 14th- Breakfast with the Animals - Big Cats (8:30 am - 9:30 am). Enjoy a warm breakfast buffet and then experience Niabi animals as our special guests. Thursday, June 19th- Circa 21 Dinner Playhouse will present Stinky Kids, beginning Thursday, June 19th and running through Saturday June 28th. Stinky Kids the Musical is based on the award winning Stinky Kids® books and characters: little stinkers who learn to make right choices through their childhood mistakes and live by the motto “Always be a leader of good.” ® All performances are show-only and tickets are $8.50 per person. Visit www.circa21.com to learn more.
Saturday, June 21st - Kids Wild Fest will be held from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm at the Niabi Zoo and will feature a variety of activities for kids to enjoy such as bounce houses, face painting, games, and more. Niabi Zoo has partnered with WQAD Channel 8 and several local businesses to provide a fun and exciting event for kids and adults alike. Regular admission rates apply. Saturday, June 21st - Kidz Days at the River Music Experience is on the 3rd Saturday of every month at 10:30 am. Kidz Days at the RME presents a different program each month especially designed for kids under the age of 12. Call 563-326-1333 for more information. PLAN AHEAD! Tuesday, July 1 or Thursday, July 3 - 9:00 am—10:45 pm. Channel Cat Talks hosted by River Action, Inc. Susan McPeters, Black Hawk College will be the featured speaker on the Channel Cat! Take the kids for a ride on the Mississippi, where they will explore the sights, hear from the captain and sing along to river songs. Sessions are $12 each. To reserve your seats call 563-322-2629 or go to www.riveraction.org.