Page 8 The Advocate News (Wilton-Durant, Iowa) Thursday, August 30, 2012

OpiniOn

Blahoskys resign
In a brief meeting Aug. 23, the Durant school board accepted the resignations of athletic director Ryan Blahosky and physical education/health instructor Marcola Blahosky. The meeting adjourned at 5:44 p.m. Durant Board members Brian Fargo, Joel Meincke Ron Alpen, Barb Reasner and Russ Paustian were present. The next regular board meeting is scheduled for Monday, Sept. 10 at 6 p.m. According to superintendent Duane Bennett, Ryan Blahosky had been offered an athletic director position at a school in Minnesota

Short and sweet

D
ue to a long week on the road, followed where readers will see a multitude of full page by the death of my grandmother, fol- ads from Aug. 23 through Sept. 20. lowed by Founders Day, followed by In total, youll see 41 advertisements that spending an entire deadline day in Tipton for will leap off the page! This is the fourth year court proceedings in the onwe have done what we like going situation involving the to call the full page ad sale Durant Community School and it continues to be a hit District and Monica Rouse with many local businesses (see page 2 for coverage), and organizations. Im sorry to say that Case in Enjoy what our local merPoint will be a bit subdued chants have to offer in the By Derek Sawvell this week. coming weeks as the ads I received many kind they are running can really words during the past week from readers with educate our readership and dazzle the eye at regard to my dear grandmothers passing. For the same time! that, Im humbled and just feel blessed to have If Im ever able to catch my breath, Ill be been able to share a bit of her story with all able to devote more time to this space in the of you. coming weeks. In the meantime, our staff, free What I wasnt able to write about last week lancers and intern (Kimberly Sloan) have all is that our Aug. 23 issue marked the beginning been a huge help in helping our product reach of our Full Page Ad Mania promotion. Todays your hands each and every week as things issue marks the second in a five-week period come up and life happens.

Case in Point

Durant school board

and resigned with the intent of accepting the position. At the end of last school year, Blahosky had been relieved of his dean of students role, which according to Bennett has been given to high school principal Tony Neumann. Beginning this year, Blahoskys position had been cut to part time as he was focusing just on the athletic director role. Bennett said candidates for the position are being reviewed and a hiring decision will be made in the future. The district is also deciding on whether the position will be half time or less. In the interim, Bennett noted that Neumann would be assuming the role of athletic director until the position is filled.

'I know how lucky I am'

JAKE KEPPY

continued from page 1

Grandpa and my sister are all in this with me, and to see all of our work pay off is pretty special. Its pretty cool to be able to say you showed the Grand Champion Market Hog. His mother agreed. What a way to go out, said Jeantee, and to have Loren and Ralph be there to see it was just awesome. Truthfully, were all pretty numb. Weve been after this for 15 years, and to get that final banner in your last attempt, thats pretty cool. Jake started showing hogs in open shows when he was 5 years old, and then advanced through the 4-H and FFA show rings. Every time he entered the ring, showing the Grand Champion at the Iowa State Fair was always a goal. This is truly a dream come true, said Jake. Everybody wants to win, and there can only be one winner each year. Im 21, and it seems like I wanted this for 21 years. For it to come down to being my very last time in the FFA show ring, its pretty crazy. Not a lot of dreams come true, but mine did. Ever since last year, when they showed the reserve champion, the Keppys have had one thing on their collective minds. We had a lot of success last year, said Jake, and this year we came with just one goal. Its pretty amazing to do that, and especially with a purebred. That doesnt happen very often. From Day 1 the Keppys have purchased their show pigs from Wayne Huinker of Decorah, and Jake said it was pretty special to have him share in their excitement. Hes also grateful that his grandpa was on hand to see everything unfold. Grandpa has been such a big part of this whole thing, and we could never have done it without him, said Jake. I cant give him enough thanks. He taught Dad everything he knows, and they taught me everything. Im very, very fortunate. Jake knew what was at stake when he entered the championship drive, and the fact that it was his final time in the show ring wasnt lost on him. It was pretty wild for everything to come down to my very last time in the ring, he said, and not everybody can say they went out driving the grand champion. I dont think you could write a better story. Jake will never forget that final drive, or having Judge Mike McCoy shake his hand. I know how lucky I am, said Jake. On any other day it could have been somebody else

'Miss the old GOP'

Editor: This political fighting has to end before we go over the cliff. Ive never seen such extreme division between political factions and the obstinacy of one group precludes any opportunity for progress in solving our countrys serious problems. Yes, Im talking about whats left of the Republican Party and its Tea Party faction which is now calling the shots. How else can you explain the inability of House Speaker John Boehner to control his caucus and accomplish anything productive during this session of Congress? When he had the opportunity to strike a deal with President Obama on the debt negotiations, he was rebuked by his Tea Party members so now were faced with going over the cliff. This Tea Party crowd in Congress has made it impossible to compromise on any issue with its No tax pledge, regardless of the importance to the future of this country. A great example would be when Obama proposed infrastructure projects which would put people to work rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges. If the Tea Party gets its way, the party platform will call for cutting regulations (that worked great under Bush), would rein in the EPA (who needs clean air and water anyway?), and would eliminate the Department of Education. Mitt Romney has already been pulled far to the right by the primary process and the partys ultraconservative base which is why he now wants to block access to Planned Parenthood, end a womans right to choose, stop men and women from marrying a partner of their choice all of which he supported at an earlier point in his career. If Romney is elected, he will face the same problem presented by the Tea Party as president that John Boehner now faces as our Speaker. As the former GOP (Grand Old Party) begins its convention, it would be helpful to examine how far to the right this party has been dragged by its extreme elements. Even Ronald Reagan, who pragmatically raised taxes 14 times in his eight years, would not support the obstructionism shown by this crowd. From the 50s through the 90s, often with a divided government, Republicans and Democrats were able to work out legislative solutions to some very serious problems facing our country. Those days are over with the Tea Party holding the purse strings. The moderate voices of the Republican Party have faded away. Gone are the days when Republicans like Eisenhower could propose an interstate highway system, when Reagan and Tip ONeil, a Democrat, could agree on a solution for Social Security. I, for one, miss the old GOP. So now while the Republicans are going through this identity crisis, I guess were all waiting for an answer to the old game show question, Will the real Republican Party please stand up? Larry Hodgden Tipton

Campus for Kids preschool hours

The Durant Childrens Group is now enrolling for the fall 2012-13 school year. Campus for Kids is for infants through preschool. The Campus Preschool program includes a three-year-old preschool which meets Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 to 11 a.m. For preschool students ages four and five years old, the school is held every Tuesday and Thursday from noon to 3 p.m. The Durant Childrens Group also includes a before and after school program (the Cracker Box Kids) for children five to 13 years old. For more information about any of these programs, call the Durant Childrens Group at 785-6744 or the Cracker Box Kids at 7854675.

in my shoes. You have to live with one mans opinion, and you have to hope his decision is the one you want. When he came out to give his final speech before naming a champion, he said he still hadnt made up his mind. When he said he was going to go out and shake the hand of your champion, I knew I had one last shot. I knew I had to get in front of him one more time, continued Jake, and I know I gave him the best possible view of my hog. When he came over and shook my hand, it was hard to believe that it was real. Its something you think about all summer, and you wonder how you will react. To be honest, it was more of a stress relief. Jake said his barrow won because it was well-balanced. It didnt have any major faults, he said, but for him to go out and compete with crossbreds, thats really something. When you got him on the drive, you could just see everybodys eyes around the ring open up. When he walked around, he walked like he owned the ring. After what happened at Saturdays Sale of Champions, Jake could probably buy the ring. Thanks to $17,525 in local support from the Durant and Scott County communities, Jakes grand champion sold for a whopping $30,000, with the difference being donated by buyers that included Hy-Vee, the Maschoffs, Custom Precast Co., Crown Prairie LLC, and ADM Alliance Nutrition/Show Tec, with support from Huinker, Madden Ag Services and Hunts Crop Ins. This year, sale participants were asked to find hometown supporters to set a floor price for bidding. The purchaser in the auction paid the difference between the floor price and the final sale price, and each participant in the sale takes home a check for 80 percent of the animals sale price. One of the hardest things to do is ask people for money, said Jake, but when you see all that support and care, its a pretty neat feeling. It was amazing to see so many people want me to have success, and I cant thank them enough. Jake says hell use his portion of the money to pay off some college bills, pay back his grandpa for feed, and then possibly purchase some boars for their own stock. We want to start raising our own show pigs, he said. Hopefully well be able to raise our own champions some day. (Editor's note: Watch next week for more area results from the Iowa State Fair.)

Volunteers needed for Public Lands Day

On Sept. 29, volunteers will join in the 19th annual National Public Lands Day which includes volunteers and organizations working on public lands across the United States. On the local level, volunteers are needed at the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site in West Branch. The project includes helping to reconstruct the 81-acre native tallgrass prairie. Volunteers will be cutting and hauling shrubs and invasive weeds from the grassland. If you would like to help, call Adam at 319-643-2541. Volunteers are asked to meet at the Visitor Center at 8:30 a.m. for orientation and to get signed up. Work in the prairie will be from 9 a.m. to noon. Long pants and close-toed footwear are required. The Herbert Hoover National Historic Site and the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum are open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, go to www.nps. gov/heho or call 319-643-2541.

Labor Day deadline

Where did the summer go? The Labor Day holiday weekend is just around the corner summers last official party before fall and winter set in. This is just a reminder that the office of the Wilton-Durant Advocate News will be closed on Monday, Sept. 3, to celebrate Labor Day and will open for business at 8 a.m. on Sept. 4. Due to the holiday, there will be an early deadline for the newspaper dated Sept. 6. Please have all your news items and ads to us by noon on Friday, Aug. 31, so that we can get them processed and ready for the printers. Have a safe and fun holiday weekend and keep reading the Wilton-Durant Advocate News.