Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Monday, November 15, 2010
Literacy director put TLC into everything she did
Posted Online: Nov. 14, 2010, 6:44 pm
If you can read this, take a moment and thank those like Joyce Dobbins.
Joyce might not have taught you to read, but she had a hand in countless young people learning to love the written word. She left us last week at age 60, after a fight-to-the-last-second scrum with cancer, a battle she waged with courage and grace.
Joyce taught for 37 years in Moline, mostly first grade, maybe the most trying and awkward of years along the educational highway. With a soft spot for young people and a burning desire never to let a student slide through an educational crack, she had found the perfect calling.
Joyce was No-Child-Left-Behind years before it became politically fashionable.
In addition to her classroom work, Joyce guided Moline's The Literacy Connection, a one-on-one tutoring program for at-risk readers (the lower 20 percent of their class) at Moline's Washington Elementary.
For the past 20 years, more than 20 first- and second-graders partnered with a tutor from 2:40 to 3:45 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays at Faith Lutheran Church, Moline. It was something the children, tutors and parents of tutored students looked forward to.
The obvious is that guiding first graders for nearly 40 years showed patience, heart and spirit on Joyce's part. But The Literacy Connection took that love, passion and hope to another level. The Literacy Connection, with Joyce's iron will, gritty determination and some amazing tutors, made reading became a priority for many children. It opened a door many had struggled to open.
Joyce was a "pusher' and "nudger'' when it came to The Literacy Connection's success. She enlisted outside help from Faith Lutheran Church members and Moline Rotarians to serve as tutors and mentors to the students.
In conversations with the adults involved, I found they enjoyed sharing reading time with the young people as much as the students enjoyed bettering their reading skills. Joyce took great pride in making positive reading matches between students and mentors.
Since Joyce passed, my inbox has been flooded with e-mails from former students, fellow teachers, friends and parents of children who benefited from The Literacy Connection.
The notes relayed how kind Joyce was to her students, how easy she was to work with and how many lives were better because of the extra effort she gave.It is nice to have concrete evidence of what you thought about someone.
Joyce Dobbins was a treasure who will be remembered for her never-ending devotion to the many she served and the lives she affected in a positive fashion. She truly put TLC into everything she did.
Columnist John Marx can be reached at (309) 757-8388 or jmarx@qconline.com.
Joyce might not have taught you to read, but she had a hand in countless young people learning to love the written word. She left us last week at age 60, after a fight-to-the-last-second scrum with cancer, a battle she waged with courage and grace.
Joyce taught for 37 years in Moline, mostly first grade, maybe the most trying and awkward of years along the educational highway. With a soft spot for young people and a burning desire never to let a student slide through an educational crack, she had found the perfect calling.
Joyce was No-Child-Left-Behind years before it became politically fashionable.
In addition to her classroom work, Joyce guided Moline's The Literacy Connection, a one-on-one tutoring program for at-risk readers (the lower 20 percent of their class) at Moline's Washington Elementary.
For the past 20 years, more than 20 first- and second-graders partnered with a tutor from 2:40 to 3:45 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays at Faith Lutheran Church, Moline. It was something the children, tutors and parents of tutored students looked forward to.
The obvious is that guiding first graders for nearly 40 years showed patience, heart and spirit on Joyce's part. But The Literacy Connection took that love, passion and hope to another level. The Literacy Connection, with Joyce's iron will, gritty determination and some amazing tutors, made reading became a priority for many children. It opened a door many had struggled to open.
Joyce was a "pusher' and "nudger'' when it came to The Literacy Connection's success. She enlisted outside help from Faith Lutheran Church members and Moline Rotarians to serve as tutors and mentors to the students.
In conversations with the adults involved, I found they enjoyed sharing reading time with the young people as much as the students enjoyed bettering their reading skills. Joyce took great pride in making positive reading matches between students and mentors.
Since Joyce passed, my inbox has been flooded with e-mails from former students, fellow teachers, friends and parents of children who benefited from The Literacy Connection.
The notes relayed how kind Joyce was to her students, how easy she was to work with and how many lives were better because of the extra effort she gave.It is nice to have concrete evidence of what you thought about someone.
Joyce Dobbins was a treasure who will be remembered for her never-ending devotion to the many she served and the lives she affected in a positive fashion. She truly put TLC into everything she did.
Columnist John Marx can be reached at (309) 757-8388 or jmarx@qconline.com.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Spare foxholes, dig up Alpha bits instead
Posted Online: Sept. 03, 2010, 12:00 am 
Comment on this story | Print this story | Email this storyBy Leon Lagerstam, leon@qconline.com
MOLINE -- Basic Alpha bits work better than foxholes for non, new and old Christians.
Find out how by attending an Alpha Course introductory dinner at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 14, at Faith Lutheran Church, 1611 41st St.
The Alpha Course was created in London in the late 1970s as a way to explain basic principles of the Christian faith in a relaxed, informal setting, according to materials provided by Barbara Marlin, Faith's task force/small group coordinator and parish nurse.
Weekly Alpha Course meetings will be held for 10 weeks, and include a weekend getaway to a yet-to-be-selected destination, she said.
Each night will begin with a simple meal, followed by a brief worship service, a discussion led by church pastor the Rev. Mark Gehrke, and small group discussion time, program director Margaret Moore said.
''It's for anyone and everyone,'' she said. ''It's for Christians or non-Christians. It's for members of faithor non-members. People who don't even go to church are invited. It's just a chance to get together and study what it means to be a Christian.''
Attending the opening ''Is there more to life?'' introductory dinner will give people an idea what the course is like, but doesn't lock anyone into it, Ms. Moore said.
The actual course doesn't start until Tuesday, Sept. 21, and closes Tuesday, Dec, 7, with a celebration dinner. The weekend retreat will be Friday and Saturday, Oct. 29-30.
For information, call the church office at (309) 762-2824.
About 60 people already have committed to participate, even though many have no idea what it's all about, Ms. Marlin said.
''Nobody from the church has gone through it before,'' she said. ''But from watching videos, we've seen and heard many testimonials from people who said their marriages were a bit shaky, but were strengthened after their Alpha experience.
''Many people said they were healed from their addictions,'' Ms. Marlin said. ''And some even said they were atheists before Alpha.''
Her hopes and goals for the program basically are to help people know God exists, as well as to strengthen and reinforce people who have labored in His name for so long.
No questions will be considered simple or hostile, according to Alpha materials. Questions may include such thoughts as ''Is there a God?'' ''Why am I here?'' and ''Where am I going?''
Since it began 26 years ago, more than 33,500 Alpha Courses have been held in 163 countries, including more than 5,000 now being held across the U.S.
Rev. Gehrke and Ms. Marlin earlier attended an international conference in Naperville, Ill., attended by 1,500 people from 15 countries.
''It explained the process and how to hold an Alpha Course,'' Ms. Marlin said. ''We came back with a lot of excitement, information and tools about holding it here.''
Those tools, though, do not include anecdotal foxholes, in which atheists are said to never be found.
Each night will begin with a simple meal, followed by a brief worship service, a discussion led by church pastor the Rev. Mark Gehrke, and small group discussion time, program director Margaret Moore said.
''It's for anyone and everyone,'' she said. ''It's for Christians or non-Christians. It's for members of faithor non-members. People who don't even go to church are invited. It's just a chance to get together and study what it means to be a Christian.''
Attending the opening ''Is there more to life?'' introductory dinner will give people an idea what the course is like, but doesn't lock anyone into it, Ms. Moore said.
The actual course doesn't start until Tuesday, Sept. 21, and closes Tuesday, Dec, 7, with a celebration dinner. The weekend retreat will be Friday and Saturday, Oct. 29-30.
For information, call the church office at (309) 762-2824.
About 60 people already have committed to participate, even though many have no idea what it's all about, Ms. Marlin said.
''Nobody from the church has gone through it before,'' she said. ''But from watching videos, we've seen and heard many testimonials from people who said their marriages were a bit shaky, but were strengthened after their Alpha experience.
''Many people said they were healed from their addictions,'' Ms. Marlin said. ''And some even said they were atheists before Alpha.''
Her hopes and goals for the program basically are to help people know God exists, as well as to strengthen and reinforce people who have labored in His name for so long.
No questions will be considered simple or hostile, according to Alpha materials. Questions may include such thoughts as ''Is there a God?'' ''Why am I here?'' and ''Where am I going?''
Since it began 26 years ago, more than 33,500 Alpha Courses have been held in 163 countries, including more than 5,000 now being held across the U.S.
Rev. Gehrke and Ms. Marlin earlier attended an international conference in Naperville, Ill., attended by 1,500 people from 15 countries.
''It explained the process and how to hold an Alpha Course,'' Ms. Marlin said. ''We came back with a lot of excitement, information and tools about holding it here.''
Those tools, though, do not include anecdotal foxholes, in which atheists are said to never be found.
If you go
Dates and topics of Faith Lutheran Church's Alpha Course:
Sept. 14: Introductory dinner: ''Is there more to life than this?''
Sept. 21: ''Who is Jesus?''
Sept. 28: ''Why did Jesus die?''
Oct. 5: ''How can we have faith?''
Oct. 12: ''Why and how do I pray?''
Oct. 19: ''Why and how should I read the Bible?''
Oct. 26: ''How does God guide us?''
Nov. 9: ''Does God heal today?''
Nov. 16: ''Why and how should we tell others?''
Nov. 23: ''Does God heal today?''
Nov. 30: ''What about the church?''
Oct. 29-30: ''Who is the Holy Spirit?'' ''What does the Holy Spirit do?'' ''How can I be filled with the Holy Spirit?''
Dec. 7: ''How can I make the most of the rest of my life?''
Anyone can come.
Learning and laughter.
Pasta (or other great food).
Helping one another.
Ask anything.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Installation at Hope Lutheran Church, Quincy, IL
Installation at Hope Lutheran Church, Quincy, IL
On Sunday, September 12, Pr Mark will travel to Hope Lutheran Church, a new LCMC mission congregation to give the message. If you would like to go – we will leave Faith Lutheran Church’s parking lot at 11:30 a.m. sharp! The service is at 3:00 p.m. Mission starts and installations of this kind are very exciting! And more the merrier! RSVP the church office 762-2824.
BAKE SALE Lydia's leaking roof is in need of your help!
BAKE SALE Lydia's leaking roof is in need of your help! Please bake or purchase baked goods on Sunday, September 26th. Just drop off baked goods to Lori Turner call 764-4554 or bring Sunday morning. Matching Funds available through Thrivent Financial. Available all three services.
2011 Dining Books have arrived
2011 Dining Books have arrived. Every book purchased gives $10 in support of TLC. Contact Candy Smith to buy your copy today! 309-912-9013
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Hosanna! is hosting its 3rd LCMC Gathering, Saturday, September 18th, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
Hosanna! is hosting its 3rd LCMC Gathering, Saturday, September 18th, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
Hosanna! Lutheran Church , LCMC , St.Charles, IL No cost to the participants.
Pastor Nick Henseler, Prince of Peace, Davenport, IA is providing the opening devotion, and Pastor Bill Sullivan, New Life, a mission church, in Sterling/Rock Falls, IL will be our speaker and will answer questions. Then we go into break-out groups as we eat a lunch provided by Hosanna! (pizza and salad). We will close with celebrating Holy Communion as Pastor Martha Uecker Nelson, from St. Charles, leads us in Communion.
36W925 Red Gate Road
St. Charles, IL 60175
630-584-6434
All are welcome. The entrance is about 50 yards east of Randall Road on Red Gate Road.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
All Church Bicycling & Weiner Roast JULY 11, 1:30pm
All ages- children, singles, retirees! Invite family and friends!! Great outreach!
Meet in the Moline 55th Street boat ramp parking lot (next to hwere the old Farmall buildings were) at 1:30pm. We will be riding toward Rapid City . Around 4 pm we will meet at the park shelter that is on the left side of the driveway to the Hampton Heritage Center entrance (by the mini golf in Hampton ). We wil have hot dogs, chips, drinks and s’mores! Please call Shirley at 797-1981 or email to gary@forret.org to RSVP so enough food/drinks can be bought!
EVERYONE is welcome !
EVERYONE is welcome !
Contact Shirley with any questions!
Friday, May 28, 2010
Camp gets new life with name change, zip line
Posted Online: May 28, 2010, 12:00 am
Comment on this story | Print this story | Email this storyBy Leon Lagerstam, leon@qconline.com
| NEW WINDSOR -- A Christian Friendliness camp here has a new name and ''zip'' code. '"We try to add something new for the kids every year,'' said Kevin Perrine, director of the recently renamed Camp YouthHope, formerly known as Camp Summit. Students from youth centers operated by Christian Friendliness, sports teams, church groups and other groups going to the camp will find a new zip line waiting for them, designed to enhance codes of friendship and character development, and be fun. ''This zip line gives us another tool we can use to help kids deal with some issues in a different way,'' Mr. Perrine said. Campers can use it as a team-building exercise and a way to build each other's confidence, he said. Support they'll get from others as they face the zip-line challenge hopefully will show them how friends, family and God can be trusted and relied on when facing other intimidating challenges, Mr. Perrine said. ''It's like standing there facing a choice in life that you're not sure of, but knowing at some point that you have to make a decision to go for it or not,'' he said. ''We hope when kids make that decision to go off that platform of life, that the experience will bring them closer to God, and help them make the right decisions for Christ.'' Mr. Perrine was the first one to try the zip line during a test run earlier this month.''They let me down slowly at first,'' he said. His next 15 trips were far more exhilarating, he said. ''The tether has a spin on it, so when you're about halfway down, it spins you around and gives you a great view of the creek and everything.'' Seven others tried out the new zip line, he said. The first group of campers is expected Monday, June 7. ''This is the 10th official summer for us here, and we decided to change the name to Camp YouthHope to make it more identifiable with our other programs,'' Mr. Perrine said. Other projects include a YouthHope Coffee Shop and YouthHope Car Detailing Center at its 3928 12th Ave., Moline, site. The zip line was Mr. Perrine's idea, and included visiting other camps in the Peoria area for research, he said. Most of the supplies, including the large telephone poles and platform, and the labor were donated, Mr. Perrine said. He estimated donations totaled $6,000 to $8,000 to install everything. Christian Friendliness also recently received a $5,000 gift from Faith Lutheran Church, just up the block from the YouthHope center in Moline. That money will be used for programming for kids from nearby Springbrook Courts and the community. |
Friday, May 21, 2010
Installation for Rev. Bill Sullivan
Installation for Rev. Bill Sullivan
Sunday, June 27, 2010 at 3 p.m.
New Life Lutheran Church
Sterling, IL
We invite you to attend this special service for a very special church and pastor of the LCMC. New Life is a LCMC mission start, now with 211 members within just a few months. We will take a van full from Faith Lutheran Church immediately following our 11:00 a.m service. Many people from LCMC will be in attendance and the LCMC Ministry Board has been invited. We hope many of us from Faith will attend. We are honored to have Pastor Sullivan in our area.
Pastor Martha Nelson will be doing the installation. And Pastor Mark Gehrke has been invited to have the honor of preaching the sermon. Please stay tuned for additional info rmation as it becomes available.
Sunday, June 27, 2010 at 3 p.m.
New Life Lutheran Church
Sterling, IL
We invite you to attend this special service for a very special church and pastor of the LCMC. New Life is a LCMC mission start, now with 211 members within just a few months. We will take a van full from Faith Lutheran Church immediately following our 11:00 a.m service. Many people from LCMC will be in attendance and the LCMC Ministry Board has been invited. We hope many of us from Faith will attend. We are honored to have Pastor Sullivan in our area.
Pastor Martha Nelson will be doing the installation. And Pastor Mark Gehrke has been invited to have the honor of preaching the sermon. Please stay tuned for additional info rmation as it becomes available.
Rev. Dr. Mark E. Gehrke
Faith Lutheran Church, LCMC
1611 41 Street, Moline , IL 61265
309-762-2824 Ofc 563-508-8388 Cell
E-mail: pastorgehrke@faithlcmc.org
“Love the Lord your God, with all your heart,
and soul and strength and mind;
and love your neighbor as yourself.”
Luke 10:27
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Monday, May 3, 2010
Hats off to Q-C's best high school athletes
Our Own Thomas Lindauer
Hats off to Q-C's best high school athletes
| Posted: Wednesday, April 28, 2010 10:53 pm |
Honored. Humbled. Appreciative. Overwhelmed.
Those sentiments spanned generations Wednesday night at the 29th annual Quad-City Times Salute to Sports, where competitors young and young at heart celebrated achievement in athletics during a ceremony at Davenport North High School.
High school seniors Thomas Lindauer of Moline and Alyson Spinas-Valainis of Davenport Assumption were named as the Quad-City Times male and female athletes of the year, while the lifetime achievements of Tom Derouin, Don Grensing and Jack Spencer were recognized with their induction into the Quad-City Sports Hall of Fame.
"I didn't expect this, not at all," said Lindauer, a golf, basketball and baseball standout for the Maroons. "There were so many good athletes on the stage. It's an honor to be a finalist. Winning was something I didn't even think about. It's a little overwhelming."
Spinas-Valainis shared those feelings, thanking family members and coaches for helping her achieve.
"They made everything possible," said Spinas-Valainis, who dominated in basketball and softball for the Knights. "For all of us, there are so many people who have helped along the way. I appreciate the help I've had and a part of this belongs to them."
Both Lindauer and Spinas-Valainis have made their college plans. Lindauer has signed to play baseball at Illinois, while Spinas-Valainis will continue her basketball career at Bradley.
Lindauer is the first male from Moline to be honored as the Times' male athlete of the year, while Spinas-Valainis is the first female athlete of the year from Assumption since 1982.
In addition to the honored guests, the contributions to area athletics made by two individuals who died in the past year, long-time Times sports reporter and hall of fame member Dearrel Bates and Quad-City Sports Commission volunteer John Moran, were remembered.
Davenport Central senior Chris Page, the Moline concert choir ensemble and Bettendorf senior Chad Schmertmann provided entertainment.
Posted in High-school on Wednesday, April 28, 2010 10:53 pm Updated: 10:49 pm. | Tags: Quad-city Sports Hall Of Fame,Salute To Sports, Thomas Lindauer, Alyson Spinas-valainis, Tom Derouin, Don Grensing, Jack Spencer, Dearrel Bates, John Moran, Chirs Page, Chad Schmertmann,
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Our Own Renee Elkins is a budding writer and makes PaPa Nels Proud!
Our Own Renee Elkins
Hamilton School Student Writers
Hamilton School Student Writers
Hamilton School Student Writers
Posted Online: May 02, 2010, 12:00 am Comment on this story | Print this story | Email this storyNels Robert Lindell
By Renee Elkins
Sixth grade
Nels Robert Lindell's parents were named Nels Gunnar Lindell and Edna Beatrice Miner Lindell. They had five children. In order from oldest to youngest, Nels and Edna had three daughters, Beverly (died at the age of 2), Barbara, and Carolyn. The youngest two children Nels and Edna had were the twins, Nels and John.
Edna was a friend to everyone she met, the "family prayer warrior", and a stay-at-home mom. She loved children. After her youngest daughter was born, the doctor told Edna she couldn't have any more children. Edna did not believe him. For eight years Edna prayed for just one more child. When she was 34 she found out she was pregnant with twins. She knew that God didn't believe her when she asked for just one more child. In the end she was grateful to God for blessing her with five children. In June of 1982, Edna died of Alzheimer's.
Nels Gunnar was born in Sweden. Life in Sweden was very difficult because there was no work available and the land where Nels lived was very rocky so his family could not farm. In 1913, at the age of 15, Nels came to America. When Nels came to the country he went to Andover, IL (about 36 minutes away from Moline, IL) and got a job on a farm. Around 1922, he left Andover and headed off to Moline, IL. He then got a job working at John Deere Plow Works. He worked there from 1921 until 1965. In 1924 Nels met Edna. After a year, Nels and Edna got married on November 12, 1925 at Salvation Army Church in Moline, IL. On August 18, 1981 Nels died of heart problems.
On February 8, 1942, at Lutheran Hospital in Moline, IL Nels Robert Lindell was born. Twenty minutes later his twin brother, John William Lindell, was born. Before the twins were born, their sisters wanted the twins to be named Bobby and Billy. Later on in the twins' life their sisters started calling them by their middle names, Bobby and Billy. The twins were called that all the time until they went to college when they decided to start going by their first names.
When Nels Robert was a child, he always had a playmate -- his twin brother, John. They did everything together and were the best of friends. Sometimes it was almost as if they were a separate family because of the age difference between the boys and girls. Since the girls were older, they spoiled the twins. Nels always remembered his parents as being old because of their age when he and John were born.
Edna dressed the twins alike until they were in sixth grade when they rebelled. Edna was devastated because she felt her boys weren't her babies anymore.
Nels Robert came to know Jesus at about the age of 12. The Lindell family went to church every Sunday morning, Sunday evening, and Wednesday evening.
Nels Robert graduated from high school in 1960. He then went to two different colleges: Moline Community College and then Upper Iowa University. He attended each college for two years. Nels graduated in 1966 with a degree in biology and minors in both chemistry and business.
In 1966, Nels Robert was drafted into the Army. He made one friend that he still has today and that is Mike Gorman.
On January 12, 1949, in Waterloo, IA, Karen Suzanne Bruch was born. Later on, when she could decide for herself, she changed her name to Suzanne and then went by the nickname Sudi. In June of 1969, Nels Lindell and Sudi Bruch met. Later, on February 28, 1970, they got married. In May of 2003, Sudi was diagnosed with cancer. From May 2003 until November 2006, God gave the Lindell family the strength to fight the cancer. Sudi's sickness brought Nels and herself closer to both each other and Christ.
Nels and Sudi had two children: Heidi Suzanne Lindell and David Nels Lindell. David was born August 19, 1970. Heidi was born January 30, 1972. Both children were born at Lutheran Hospital in Moline, IL.
Sudi had many problems while she was pregnant with her daughter. She was due at the end of February. However, on January 30, Sudi started bleeding. To save her daughter, the doctor had to take the baby out one month early. The doctor told Sudi she shouldn't have any more children. Now Sudi's daughter, Heidi, lives a happy and healthy life with her husband and two daughters.
Sudi loved children and wanted many. However, she could not have anymore because it was too risky. The Lindell family decided to take in foster children instead. From 1981 to 1988, Nels and Sudi provided emergency foster care for 70 children. Afterwards, they housed 7 foreign-exchange students. In the 1990s, Nels and Sudi were busy with church and getting their children through college. From 1996 to 2006, they were busy with their children and grandchildren.
Nels Robert has had three main jobs throughout his life. Nels got his first job delivering newspapers when he was in his early teens. His favorite part was getting paid. His second job was working at Deppe's Market. His favorite part of that job was the fact that he was learning new skills. His third and final job was working at John Deere. His favorite part of that job was the fact that he got to see things built. Nels worked from 1964 until 2001 when he retired.
On April 1, 2001, Nels Robert retired from John Deere. Since then, he has done several things to occupy his time. A few of those things include working with the Red Cross, remodeling his house, participating in Habitat for Humanity, volunteering at church, teaching Bible classes, playing tennis, and caring for his wife while she was sick.
After Nels Robert retired, he took classes with the Red Cross. His first assignment was October 9, 2001, when he went to New York to do logistics work for the Red Cross after 9/11. On the 10th of October, he was sent to Ground Zero to take supplies and help set up a second respite center. He spent the next three and a half weeks working between the warehouse in New Jersey and Ground Zero.
Since Nels Robert retired, God has shown him many new ways to do His will.
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Lori Turner receives Humanitarian of the Year Award
Congratulations Lori! Great Job!
Lori Turner receives Humanitarian of the Year Award
Posted Online: May 01, 2010, 12:44 pm
Comment on this story | Print this story | Email this storyBy Dawn Neuses, dneuses@qconline.com
MOLINE-- It is her quiet way of doing things, and the number of things she does, that spurred Cindy Quinby to nominate her friend Lori Turner for the Illinois State Medical Society Alliance Humanitarian of the Year Award.
"I was very surprised, very honored and very humbled by it," Lori Turner, president of the Rock Island County Medical Society Alliance, said.
Last week, at a luncheon in Springfield, Ms. Turner was honored with the award for acts that range from fund-raising to collecting donations for orphanages, from gathering hospital and schools supplies for Tanzania, Africa, to reaching out to pregnant women and teens in the Quad-Cities.
"To me, this award means I am doing the right things caring for our community," said Ms. Turner, who also serves as Moline's 5th Ward aldermen. "I've often believed the only way to make things successful is to get people involved. If you want to have a good church, school and community, you have to be involved."
The local and state-wide alliances are non-profit organizations for physicians and spouses that focus on fund-raising and supporting and improving community health care.
The local organization has about 40 members has supported the Children's Therapy Center this year with fund-raisers and Trinity and Black Hawk nursing students with scholarships. This fall, the local alliance will help children in Rock Island County schools to get free flu shots.
Ms. Turner served in the U.S. Navy for five years as a dental and oral surgery assistant.She met her husband, Mike, an orthopedic surgeon for ORA, in the service. While her husband was serving in Desert Storm, Ms. Turner volunteered more than 300 hours for the Navy Relief Society, mostly sewing and assembling baby bibs and gift bags for families in need, according to the nomination letter written by Ms. Quinby, a member of the local alliance.
The couple have three children, the youngest was adopted from Bulgaria when he was four. After bringing him home, Ms. Turner began a clothing and toy drive for an orphanage, then found out it would cost $500 to deliver the goods to the country, she said.
Ms. Turner found a program that allowed things to be shipped for free on military flights when space was available, but she'd need 2,000 lbs to send. She embarked on a Quad-City wide collection drive and got 7,293 lbs to send. It was given to 10 orphanages, Ms. Turner said.
Afterwards, Ms. Turner began focusing on child abuse and neglect, which she said weighs heavily on her heart. She decided to reach out to pregnant women and teens to prevent abuse, and created a non-profit residential program in 2001, RuthServices. It has since merged with Lydia Association, which was housed in a 100-year-old building.
Ms. Turner helped organize volunteers to renovate the building.
She and her husband are a part of the Safe Families program in which they voluntarily open their home to families in crisis. "We help families so children don't have to go into homeless shelters or so their parents don't have to voluntarily place them into foster care,"she said. "These children are loved and have good families. They just need a helping hand."
Ms. Turner is a past president of the Illini Hospital Foundation, former member of the Moline Public Schools Foundation, former head of the Christian education program at Faith Lutheran Church.
She is currently appointed to the Keep Moline Beautiful Commission, Moline Library Board of Trustees and the Community Development Corporation. She also serves on her church council.
Ms. Turner believes anytime you can make your community better and stronger, it allows for growth. "It allows for people to enjoy a better family life and opportunities. It is wonderful to be involved in offering opportunities to others," she said.
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