By ANNE KAZMIERCZAK
Register Reporter
Prominent at the corner of South Jefferson Street and East Jackson Avenue are a number of wood-framed garden beds. The garden, established last year by the Allen County Jail, is lush with growth that is providing inmates with fresh produce for their meals.
On Wednesday, pasta salad replete with snow peas was on the menu. Other meals have featured salads, herbs and greens.
Last year, the gardens saved Allen County $5,000 in food costs. This year, it is bound to be more, said Jail Administrator Joni Tucker.
Another plus to the produce is the nutritional boost to prison meals and the introduction of fresh flavors to many who have never tried them before.
“It’s the first time I’ve ever eaten peas like this — coming right off the vine — they’re delicious,” said inmate and garden helper Marty Bennett. “I don’t like cooked peas,” he added. The inmates are served snap and snow peas fresh with ranch dressing as part of their uncooked evening meal, Bennett noted.
Another favorite of Bennett’s is the garden’s radishes. “I eat (them) all the time,” he said.
Tucker noted many of the jail’s inmates had no experience with fresh foods.
“We had quite a lot of ladies who never had fresh produce before, and didn’t know what to do with it,” she said. “One young man had never had a fresh tomato. Now he eats them like candy.”
The jailed dine on carrots, squash, tomatoes, peas, salad greens and herbs from their plots.
“We use them as fast as we get them,” Tucker said of the crops.
Fried green tomatoes “went over really well last year,” noted Darlene Kitchens, corrections supervisor.
THE IDEA for the garden first came about when jail employees learned of a similar program at Angola Prison in Louisiana.
“Typically, a jail is a huge drain on taxpayer dollars,” Kitchens said. Using inmate-grown produce to supplement jail food, though, “save(s) the jail money,” she noted.
“Joni took the idea to the sheriff and he thought it was wonderful,” Kitchens said.
“We have an inmate commissary” where the jailed purchase such things as cigarette and candy “and we took the profits from that to pay for this,” she added. Jail crews built the wooden garden bed frames, and inmates Bennett and Dusty Dickerson constructed the sturdy wire tomato cages surrounding some plants.
Also making the garden possible were the donation of use of the space by landowner Kent Thompson and assistance by county director of Public Works Bill King, who provided the soil for the boxes, Kitchens said.
The public has appreciated the beautification of the corner, Kitchens said. “We have had so much community support.”
ALLOWING low-risk inmates to work in the garden “teach(es) the inmates some living skills and some character building skills, too,” Kitchens said.
Lessons learned have included patience, perseverance, and self-sufficiency, added Kitchens.
“They learned they could take care of themselves — with a $1 seed packet they could grow $100 worth of food,” Kitchens said.
The garden, too, has given inmates a sense of accomplishment, she noted.
At last year’s Allen County Fair, “we entered some beautiful baskets” of produce, “but we weren’t eligible to win any prizes,” she said. This year, she may allow inmates to enter such baskets as individuals, putting them in the run for the ribbons.
Only low-risk inmates are allowed to work at the garden, Tucker said. “They can’t have any person felonies (a crime against another human being). They have to have good behavior. They are never allowed to come out without a corrections officer and they are always on canmera.”
Both inmates sentenced to the county jail and those awaiting charges can participate, Tucker said. Crimes such as driving under the influence, disorderly conduct or failure to pay fines are typical of garden assistants, Tucker noted.
“We would not bring anybody out here that we feel would be a danger to society,” she said.
Overall, all concerned would rank the gardens a success.
“I think it’s made the inmates have better food choices and it’s been helpful in letting inmates have some responsibility they haven’t been exposed to,” Tucker said.
Some former inmates even come back and help out once in a while, she noted.
“We’re teaching them a hobby and something other to do than get in trouble,” she said.
6/17/10
Monday, October 4, 2010
Iola reads starts off running
Iola Reads placed boxes with its fall young adult selection, “House of Power,” at myriad locations when it kicked off Tuesday. By Wednesday afternoon, some boxes were already empty.
“House of Power,” by Patrick Carman, has won numerous book awards, and has a unique Web site that offers downloadable posters, videos and games related to the book.
The book, a sci-fi fantasy, tells the story of Edgar, a young boy curious about his three-tiered planet. “No one from Tabletop, where Edgar lived, had ever visited the Highlands,” says one video on the Web Site, “because they had never been invited.” Edgar climbs the great cliffs to the Highlands to learn the terrible secrets his planet hides.
Iola Public Library’s Roger Carswell said there is a twist to this year’s selection. “It is the first book in a trilogy,” he said.
Carswell informed local librarians they may wish to ascertain they have numerous copies of the book’s sequels on hand, if it proves as popular as expected.
The books are available at 12 locations in Iola, plus every school and public library here.
Carswell said 500 copies of the book were purchased. Funds for the program come from the Whitehead Trust and local civic groups, including Kiwanis and Friends of the Library, he said.
In addition, those who keep copies of the book are asked to donate $2 each to help the library defray purchase costs.
“Funds we collect help us determine how many books we can get the next time,” Carswell said.
Donations brought in $578.83 in 2008, Carswell said. “House of Power” has a cover price of $5.99 each.
Readers, once done with their copy of the book, are asked to return them to the boxes so others can enjoy them, as well.
Carman will visit Iola October 15, working with middle and elementary students throughout the day, then at a public event at 7 p.m. in the Iola High School lecture hall.
Iola Reads runs through Nov. 3.
09/10/09
“House of Power,” by Patrick Carman, has won numerous book awards, and has a unique Web site that offers downloadable posters, videos and games related to the book.
The book, a sci-fi fantasy, tells the story of Edgar, a young boy curious about his three-tiered planet. “No one from Tabletop, where Edgar lived, had ever visited the Highlands,” says one video on the Web Site, “because they had never been invited.” Edgar climbs the great cliffs to the Highlands to learn the terrible secrets his planet hides.
Iola Public Library’s Roger Carswell said there is a twist to this year’s selection. “It is the first book in a trilogy,” he said.
Carswell informed local librarians they may wish to ascertain they have numerous copies of the book’s sequels on hand, if it proves as popular as expected.
The books are available at 12 locations in Iola, plus every school and public library here.
Carswell said 500 copies of the book were purchased. Funds for the program come from the Whitehead Trust and local civic groups, including Kiwanis and Friends of the Library, he said.
In addition, those who keep copies of the book are asked to donate $2 each to help the library defray purchase costs.
“Funds we collect help us determine how many books we can get the next time,” Carswell said.
Donations brought in $578.83 in 2008, Carswell said. “House of Power” has a cover price of $5.99 each.
Readers, once done with their copy of the book, are asked to return them to the boxes so others can enjoy them, as well.
Carman will visit Iola October 15, working with middle and elementary students throughout the day, then at a public event at 7 p.m. in the Iola High School lecture hall.
Iola Reads runs through Nov. 3.
09/10/09
Tea, times three
By ANNE KAZMIERCZAK Register Reporter
Plans are solidifying for the spring edition of Iola Reads. The new year will bring a new idea: three versions of the same book, tailored to different age groups. The 2010 spring selection, “Three Cups of Tea,” by Greg Mortenson, lends itself well.
There is a young adult version, a children’s book and the original tale of Mortenson’s efforts to establish schools in the rugged mountains of Pakistan and Afghanistan.
“Three Cups of Tea” tells of Mortenson’s transformation from mountain climber to humanitarian/activist.
In 1993, Mortenson attempted to climb Asia’s K2, the world’s second tallest peak. While descending, Mortenson “wandered away from his group into the most desolate reaches of northern Pakistan,” according to his Web site. “Alone, without food, water or shelter, (Mortenson) stumbled into an impoverished Pakistani village where he was nursed back to health.”
In the village, Mortenson saw school children writing their lessons outside in the sand with sticks. He vowed to return their kindness to him by returning and building the village a school.
It wasn’t so far-fetched a notion. His parents had both established institutions in Kilimanjaro, where he grew up, his father a medical college and his mother a school for expatriates and international students.
However, Mortenson was on his own in trying to secure funds for his pledge.
Mortenson wrote to close to 600 celebrities, asking them for funds to build the school.
“His only reply was a $100 check from NBC’s Tom Brokaw,” the Web site notes. Undeterred, Mortenson sold his possessions, but earned only $2,400 for the effort.
Through publicity about his struggle, though, school children in River Falls, Wisc., learned of his attempts and collected $623.40 — all in pennies — which they sent to him in an effort to help.
That simple gesture inspired the Pennies for Peace program, which collects only pennies in drives by school children around the country.
“While a penny is virtually worthless,” in the United States, says Mortenson on the Pennies for Peace Web site, “in impoverished countries a penny buys a pencil and opens the door to literacy.”
Since beginning his task 16 years ago, 140 schools have been established, funded by donations through Pennies for Peace and the Central Asia Institute. The CAI was set up as the administrative arm of the schools Mortenson founded in both Pakistan and Afghanistan.
“Not one of them has been attacked through all this” global turmoil, noted USD 257 Curriculum Director Gail Dunbar.
“It shows how involved (Pennies for Peace and the Central Asia Institute) are in the communities” there, she said.
In March, Mortenson received the Star of Pakistan, that country’s highest civil award, for his efforts to promote education and literacy in rural areas of the country.
IN THE SPIRIT of the book, Iola Reads is planning Pennies for Peace activities during the nine-week local literary event. In addition, the group is trying to secure a speaker from the Central Asia Institute as an Iola Reads finale.
Also in the works is the possibility of showing short videos from Pennies for Peace on the city’s cable access channel. Weekly topics on Central Asia, including Islam, culture, people, environment and the like, would be broadcast. A kickoff assembly for Iola school children is also being planned for Jan. 18.
Iola Reads will purchase 300 copies of the adult book, 250 young adult editions and 30 children’s versions of the story. In addition, 75 classroom sets, which includes books and materials for a full classroom, will be purchased.
The purchases are funded through a $3,264.50 Sleeper Family Trust grant. Funds from the Friends of the Iola Public Library and Kiwanis Club also assist with the purchases.
As with other Iola Reads selections, a $2 donation will be requested for each book picked up.
11/12/09
Plans are solidifying for the spring edition of Iola Reads. The new year will bring a new idea: three versions of the same book, tailored to different age groups. The 2010 spring selection, “Three Cups of Tea,” by Greg Mortenson, lends itself well.
There is a young adult version, a children’s book and the original tale of Mortenson’s efforts to establish schools in the rugged mountains of Pakistan and Afghanistan.
“Three Cups of Tea” tells of Mortenson’s transformation from mountain climber to humanitarian/activist.
In 1993, Mortenson attempted to climb Asia’s K2, the world’s second tallest peak. While descending, Mortenson “wandered away from his group into the most desolate reaches of northern Pakistan,” according to his Web site. “Alone, without food, water or shelter, (Mortenson) stumbled into an impoverished Pakistani village where he was nursed back to health.”
In the village, Mortenson saw school children writing their lessons outside in the sand with sticks. He vowed to return their kindness to him by returning and building the village a school.
It wasn’t so far-fetched a notion. His parents had both established institutions in Kilimanjaro, where he grew up, his father a medical college and his mother a school for expatriates and international students.
However, Mortenson was on his own in trying to secure funds for his pledge.
Mortenson wrote to close to 600 celebrities, asking them for funds to build the school.
“His only reply was a $100 check from NBC’s Tom Brokaw,” the Web site notes. Undeterred, Mortenson sold his possessions, but earned only $2,400 for the effort.
Through publicity about his struggle, though, school children in River Falls, Wisc., learned of his attempts and collected $623.40 — all in pennies — which they sent to him in an effort to help.
That simple gesture inspired the Pennies for Peace program, which collects only pennies in drives by school children around the country.
“While a penny is virtually worthless,” in the United States, says Mortenson on the Pennies for Peace Web site, “in impoverished countries a penny buys a pencil and opens the door to literacy.”
Since beginning his task 16 years ago, 140 schools have been established, funded by donations through Pennies for Peace and the Central Asia Institute. The CAI was set up as the administrative arm of the schools Mortenson founded in both Pakistan and Afghanistan.
“Not one of them has been attacked through all this” global turmoil, noted USD 257 Curriculum Director Gail Dunbar.
“It shows how involved (Pennies for Peace and the Central Asia Institute) are in the communities” there, she said.
In March, Mortenson received the Star of Pakistan, that country’s highest civil award, for his efforts to promote education and literacy in rural areas of the country.
IN THE SPIRIT of the book, Iola Reads is planning Pennies for Peace activities during the nine-week local literary event. In addition, the group is trying to secure a speaker from the Central Asia Institute as an Iola Reads finale.
Also in the works is the possibility of showing short videos from Pennies for Peace on the city’s cable access channel. Weekly topics on Central Asia, including Islam, culture, people, environment and the like, would be broadcast. A kickoff assembly for Iola school children is also being planned for Jan. 18.
Iola Reads will purchase 300 copies of the adult book, 250 young adult editions and 30 children’s versions of the story. In addition, 75 classroom sets, which includes books and materials for a full classroom, will be purchased.
The purchases are funded through a $3,264.50 Sleeper Family Trust grant. Funds from the Friends of the Iola Public Library and Kiwanis Club also assist with the purchases.
As with other Iola Reads selections, a $2 donation will be requested for each book picked up.
11/12/09
Iola Greenhouse opens anew
By ANNE KAZMIERCZAK Register Reporter
pic
Iola Greenhouse has seen more turnover in the past six years than it’s almost hundred years preceding. New owner Kelly Spears wants to change that, and return it to the stalwart supplier of floral arrangements and green plants it was for so many years.
“Dennis Williams had it for 38 years,” she said. “He offered to teach me all I need to learn.”
Spears reopened as Iola Greenhouse and Gifts on Oct. 1. In addition to flowers and greenery, Spears plans to include gift items similar to those she and her sister, Kim Folk, had at their downtown store Two Sisters some years ago, she said.
“We had that store about seven years and enjoyed it immensely,” Spears said. “It was a gift, jewelry and home decor store. This is that store, plus.”
Spears will include more home decor items at Iola Greenhouse as time passes, focusing initially on wedding and funeral arrangements, balloon bouquets, baby gifts and artificial floral arrangements.
The store has taken on a whole new look. Spears’ parents, Jerry and Jackie Smith, helped redo both the interior and exterior, painting them in warm, natural earth tones that highlight the floral beauty. “It’s very soothing,” Spears said.
Autumn arrangements of faux flowers perk up otherwise drab rainy days, making the interior cozy and welcoming.
“I’m really particular about my artificials,” Spears said. “I want somebody to look at them and say, ‘Is that real?’”
Spears intends the store to be a seasonal go-to for home flowers and decor.
“We will do poinsettias at Christmas and lilies at Easter,” she said. Her father, she said, is now helping renovate the greenhouse.
Poinsettia season is not far around the corner. Already, glimmering red holly berry arrangements sparkle from a corner of the shop. Saint Nicholas statuettes stand waiting to brighten the season. Hand-painted vases, pitchers, flower pots and windows are designed with seasonal motifs; the art work is done by store manager Kathy Larson. Seasonal wreaths and Christmas pepper plants are other offerings.
Spears said taking over the greenhouse was a natural fit for her.
“I’m a big plant lover. I have plants all over my house,” she said. “I always liked houseplants and gardening, so I figured this was up my alley.”
And after 25 years as a registered nurse, she was also looking for a career change.
“In May I’ll finish with a bachelor’s degree in business management.”
Spears intended further schooling after that, but, she said, “This came up and I thought it would be much more fun.”
Spears said she misses the beautiful hanging baskets and pre-made pots she used to find at Maloney’s Greenhouse, which closed after the flood of 2007.
“I’d like to do that,” she said, noting there is no place in Iola to get pre-made baskets right now. Spears and staff will also “hand wrap and deliver gifts as well as flowers,” she said. “If somebody wants to buy a bear and tie balloons to it, we can do that.”
Iola Greenhouse and Gifts has a selection of soft pastel stuffed toys for baby, plus an array of balloon weights for balloon bouquets. Candy-filled coffee mugs are another selection. Not everything is on the shelves yet, Spears noted.
“People need to stop by because there will be new items coming in regularly,” she said.
Spears pointed out a line of aromatherapy products that was previously well-received in Iola, but unavailable since Two Sisters closed.
“It’s a line of all-natural hand soaps, countertop cleaners, dish soap,” she said. The products have rich aromas of blue sage, sea salt and pumello. “They make your house smell wonderful,” she said. She also carries pot pourri and candles.
Spears hopes others find the store as welcoming as she does.
“For me, my garden has always been therapeutic,” she said. “I think plants make you happy.”
Iola Greenhouse and Gifts is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. The phone number is 365-7447.
10/16/09
pic
Iola Greenhouse has seen more turnover in the past six years than it’s almost hundred years preceding. New owner Kelly Spears wants to change that, and return it to the stalwart supplier of floral arrangements and green plants it was for so many years.
“Dennis Williams had it for 38 years,” she said. “He offered to teach me all I need to learn.”
Spears reopened as Iola Greenhouse and Gifts on Oct. 1. In addition to flowers and greenery, Spears plans to include gift items similar to those she and her sister, Kim Folk, had at their downtown store Two Sisters some years ago, she said.
“We had that store about seven years and enjoyed it immensely,” Spears said. “It was a gift, jewelry and home decor store. This is that store, plus.”
Spears will include more home decor items at Iola Greenhouse as time passes, focusing initially on wedding and funeral arrangements, balloon bouquets, baby gifts and artificial floral arrangements.
The store has taken on a whole new look. Spears’ parents, Jerry and Jackie Smith, helped redo both the interior and exterior, painting them in warm, natural earth tones that highlight the floral beauty. “It’s very soothing,” Spears said.
Autumn arrangements of faux flowers perk up otherwise drab rainy days, making the interior cozy and welcoming.
“I’m really particular about my artificials,” Spears said. “I want somebody to look at them and say, ‘Is that real?’”
Spears intends the store to be a seasonal go-to for home flowers and decor.
“We will do poinsettias at Christmas and lilies at Easter,” she said. Her father, she said, is now helping renovate the greenhouse.
Poinsettia season is not far around the corner. Already, glimmering red holly berry arrangements sparkle from a corner of the shop. Saint Nicholas statuettes stand waiting to brighten the season. Hand-painted vases, pitchers, flower pots and windows are designed with seasonal motifs; the art work is done by store manager Kathy Larson. Seasonal wreaths and Christmas pepper plants are other offerings.
Spears said taking over the greenhouse was a natural fit for her.
“I’m a big plant lover. I have plants all over my house,” she said. “I always liked houseplants and gardening, so I figured this was up my alley.”
And after 25 years as a registered nurse, she was also looking for a career change.
“In May I’ll finish with a bachelor’s degree in business management.”
Spears intended further schooling after that, but, she said, “This came up and I thought it would be much more fun.”
Spears said she misses the beautiful hanging baskets and pre-made pots she used to find at Maloney’s Greenhouse, which closed after the flood of 2007.
“I’d like to do that,” she said, noting there is no place in Iola to get pre-made baskets right now. Spears and staff will also “hand wrap and deliver gifts as well as flowers,” she said. “If somebody wants to buy a bear and tie balloons to it, we can do that.”
Iola Greenhouse and Gifts has a selection of soft pastel stuffed toys for baby, plus an array of balloon weights for balloon bouquets. Candy-filled coffee mugs are another selection. Not everything is on the shelves yet, Spears noted.
“People need to stop by because there will be new items coming in regularly,” she said.
Spears pointed out a line of aromatherapy products that was previously well-received in Iola, but unavailable since Two Sisters closed.
“It’s a line of all-natural hand soaps, countertop cleaners, dish soap,” she said. The products have rich aromas of blue sage, sea salt and pumello. “They make your house smell wonderful,” she said. She also carries pot pourri and candles.
Spears hopes others find the store as welcoming as she does.
“For me, my garden has always been therapeutic,” she said. “I think plants make you happy.”
Iola Greenhouse and Gifts is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. The phone number is 365-7447.
10/16/09
High-tech printing at Iola Computer Products
By ANNE KAZMIERCZAK Register Reporter
At Iola Computer Products you’ll find T-shirts and mugs awaiting personalization. You can have a sign made for your business or a trophy made for your star player. In fact, at Iola Computer Products, the thing you’re least likely to find are computer products.
It is a problem, said owner Steve Garver. Not that those things aren’t there, but that his business’ name doesn’t accurately reflect the metamorphosis it has undergone over the years.
“We’ve more or less converted over to the sign business,” Garver said of the transformation. For a while, both signs and computers occupied the space. Before that, the businesses co-existed with farm implements.
“We’ve had this store since 1996,” Garver said. “Her dad owned a business down the street called Heiser Implements, and I worked for him,” Garver said, referring to his wife Sandy.
Garver worked for Heiser for 25 years, and started his computer store there, he said. “I had a lot of customers — schools, businesses, farmers.”
While working at Heiser, he developed his computer business, building and servicing computers for clients. When his father-in-law retired, he had two choices: take over the implement business, or focus on computers.
“It looked like computers were going to be a thriving business, which it was for a while,” Garver said. So he picked computers.
“We owned this building so we moved here,” he said.
Still, something lurked in the background.
“I’ve always been artistic, and my wife is artistic,” Garver said. “We both like to create.”
And so “We really morphed the business into something more artistic.”
That, too, began with farm implements.
“When I was working at the farm store, I would create decals for tractors and combines,” Garver said. “That was basically the start of the farm business.” Garver realized they could design almost anything, and print almost anything. With his computer savvy, the couple started marketing their printing services on line.
They print T-shirts and mugs and street signs for people and groups all over the country, as well as creating “dash plaques” for auto shows.
Dash plaques are like small flat trophies handed out to show participants, Garver said. Particpants collect them, added Sandy.
“We do a lot of car shows,” Sandy said. “Not just locally, but all over the United States.”
One of the appeals of ICP’s print work is it’s color layering. The company uses seven screens to print true-to-life color on T-shirts that are sold throughout the country. One client is the Safari Museum in Chanute.
“They wonderd how we could get such perfect flesh tones,” Garver said. He credits his printer, Ken Brakel.
“I’ve got the best screen printer in all of Kansas,” he said. “I’ve had other screen printers contact me through the Internet and want to know how he did that,” Garver said of Brakel’s work.
Garver explained with the printing they do, “There’s no room for error.” Because color is laid beside color to create a new tone, the placement of each screen has to be perfect. “Nobody can print like he can,” Garver said.
Besides amazing T-shirts, the company prints mouse pads, ceramic mugs, coasters, adn ceramic tiles. They make dog tags for dogs and people.
“When a lot of the guys were getting shipped off with the guard,” Sandy said, “parents came in and had pictures of the dads put on dog tags for the kids, and the dads were wearing pictures of the kids and the wife.” It helped the families stay close, she said.
And if you like, you can even get a dog tag for your dog, with your name and address on it, of course.
Other popular print art includes award medallions (popular with schools and clubs) and magnetic sports mementos. Shaped like basketballs and more, the magnetic plaques can be personalized with a player’s name and number, or even the team logo. “The kids like to put them on their lockers,” Sandy said.
“Everything we do, we do here,” Sandy said. “We design it and sell it.” And they design and sell quite the variety of things.
“You bring me a picture of the kids and I’ll put them on coffee mugs and mouse pads,” said Sandy. “I put them on ceramic tile — These will sit in easles, like a decorative plate,” she said of the portrait tiles one family had done.
Mugs are popular with reunions and businesses, she said. Showing an example, it is obvious the quality of the print work done at ICP. Ceramic mugs, for example, utilize a special ink that permeates into the glaze, Sandy said. There’s no difference in surface level, so whether you print a photo or a saying or a company name, it’s permanent and can’t be scratched off.
That sort of quality is what the Garvers strive for. They like to be top-notch in their work, be it embroidering your pets names onto fleece for Christmas pillows, as one customer was doing, or having a personalized street sign made for your den.
One apparent favorite is a phoot collage printed onto a mouse pad.
Sandy will compose a montage of images from your personal photos, then print them onto a mouse pad. Families often have one printed for every memmber.
One family, she said, had ICP put their heirloom geneological photos on coasters to display around the house. “That way people could pick them up to look at them closely. You wouldn’t want people handling the originals that way,” Garver said.
Sandy said the coasters are also popular with dog breeders, who include them in gift baskets or sell them at dog shows.
From signs to shirts, ICP prints it all. Whether you’re looking for Iola or other local color gear, or need a new wall sign for your company or its rigs, if it can be printed, they can print it at ICP.
Now if they only had a sign that said all that...
1/29/09
At Iola Computer Products you’ll find T-shirts and mugs awaiting personalization. You can have a sign made for your business or a trophy made for your star player. In fact, at Iola Computer Products, the thing you’re least likely to find are computer products.
It is a problem, said owner Steve Garver. Not that those things aren’t there, but that his business’ name doesn’t accurately reflect the metamorphosis it has undergone over the years.
“We’ve more or less converted over to the sign business,” Garver said of the transformation. For a while, both signs and computers occupied the space. Before that, the businesses co-existed with farm implements.
“We’ve had this store since 1996,” Garver said. “Her dad owned a business down the street called Heiser Implements, and I worked for him,” Garver said, referring to his wife Sandy.
Garver worked for Heiser for 25 years, and started his computer store there, he said. “I had a lot of customers — schools, businesses, farmers.”
While working at Heiser, he developed his computer business, building and servicing computers for clients. When his father-in-law retired, he had two choices: take over the implement business, or focus on computers.
“It looked like computers were going to be a thriving business, which it was for a while,” Garver said. So he picked computers.
“We owned this building so we moved here,” he said.
Still, something lurked in the background.
“I’ve always been artistic, and my wife is artistic,” Garver said. “We both like to create.”
And so “We really morphed the business into something more artistic.”
That, too, began with farm implements.
“When I was working at the farm store, I would create decals for tractors and combines,” Garver said. “That was basically the start of the farm business.” Garver realized they could design almost anything, and print almost anything. With his computer savvy, the couple started marketing their printing services on line.
They print T-shirts and mugs and street signs for people and groups all over the country, as well as creating “dash plaques” for auto shows.
Dash plaques are like small flat trophies handed out to show participants, Garver said. Particpants collect them, added Sandy.
“We do a lot of car shows,” Sandy said. “Not just locally, but all over the United States.”
One of the appeals of ICP’s print work is it’s color layering. The company uses seven screens to print true-to-life color on T-shirts that are sold throughout the country. One client is the Safari Museum in Chanute.
“They wonderd how we could get such perfect flesh tones,” Garver said. He credits his printer, Ken Brakel.
“I’ve got the best screen printer in all of Kansas,” he said. “I’ve had other screen printers contact me through the Internet and want to know how he did that,” Garver said of Brakel’s work.
Garver explained with the printing they do, “There’s no room for error.” Because color is laid beside color to create a new tone, the placement of each screen has to be perfect. “Nobody can print like he can,” Garver said.
Besides amazing T-shirts, the company prints mouse pads, ceramic mugs, coasters, adn ceramic tiles. They make dog tags for dogs and people.
“When a lot of the guys were getting shipped off with the guard,” Sandy said, “parents came in and had pictures of the dads put on dog tags for the kids, and the dads were wearing pictures of the kids and the wife.” It helped the families stay close, she said.
And if you like, you can even get a dog tag for your dog, with your name and address on it, of course.
Other popular print art includes award medallions (popular with schools and clubs) and magnetic sports mementos. Shaped like basketballs and more, the magnetic plaques can be personalized with a player’s name and number, or even the team logo. “The kids like to put them on their lockers,” Sandy said.
“Everything we do, we do here,” Sandy said. “We design it and sell it.” And they design and sell quite the variety of things.
“You bring me a picture of the kids and I’ll put them on coffee mugs and mouse pads,” said Sandy. “I put them on ceramic tile — These will sit in easles, like a decorative plate,” she said of the portrait tiles one family had done.
Mugs are popular with reunions and businesses, she said. Showing an example, it is obvious the quality of the print work done at ICP. Ceramic mugs, for example, utilize a special ink that permeates into the glaze, Sandy said. There’s no difference in surface level, so whether you print a photo or a saying or a company name, it’s permanent and can’t be scratched off.
That sort of quality is what the Garvers strive for. They like to be top-notch in their work, be it embroidering your pets names onto fleece for Christmas pillows, as one customer was doing, or having a personalized street sign made for your den.
One apparent favorite is a phoot collage printed onto a mouse pad.
Sandy will compose a montage of images from your personal photos, then print them onto a mouse pad. Families often have one printed for every memmber.
One family, she said, had ICP put their heirloom geneological photos on coasters to display around the house. “That way people could pick them up to look at them closely. You wouldn’t want people handling the originals that way,” Garver said.
Sandy said the coasters are also popular with dog breeders, who include them in gift baskets or sell them at dog shows.
From signs to shirts, ICP prints it all. Whether you’re looking for Iola or other local color gear, or need a new wall sign for your company or its rigs, if it can be printed, they can print it at ICP.
Now if they only had a sign that said all that...
1/29/09
IMS plans service day
On Oct. 8, Iola Middle School students will be released from class work and set out about Iola.
They won’t be playing video games or ball in the park, though.
The entire school will take part in a Community Service Day, the brainchild of Principal Jack Stanley.
“We have a lot of good kids here,” Stanley said. “This is an opportunity to let people see that.”
Buses will transport students to area residential care facilities, community service organizations and elementary schools where students will assist teachers, agencies and the elderly in various capacities.
They’ll also be at Riverside Park painting the Baby Barn, weeding and mulching the IMS landscape, and painting house numbers on curbs in front of residences throughout the IMS neighborhood.
“We hope to do it again in the spring,” Stanley said of the stenciling project.
“It will really help police, emergency medical technicians and the fire department find locations.”
Stanley coordinated the curb stenciling project with city officials and noted that students will also be clearing vegetation that overhangs the curbs in those areas.
Other students will help at Allen County Animal Rescue Facility, conduct a bake sale at Walmart, package items and make pillowcases to be sent to servicemen and women overseas, and pick up trash and trim vegetation along the Prairie Spirit Trail between Iola and Colony.
All students will eat lunch at their work sites and are asked to pack a lunch. Students may also order bag lunches through the school.
Assignments are linked to the students’ Teacher Advisory group — each teacher has been pre-assigned to a particular task. Dismissal will be from IMS at the normal time, Stanley added.
If the day is successful, Stanley hopes to make it a regular part of the school year.
10/01/10
They won’t be playing video games or ball in the park, though.
The entire school will take part in a Community Service Day, the brainchild of Principal Jack Stanley.
“We have a lot of good kids here,” Stanley said. “This is an opportunity to let people see that.”
Buses will transport students to area residential care facilities, community service organizations and elementary schools where students will assist teachers, agencies and the elderly in various capacities.
They’ll also be at Riverside Park painting the Baby Barn, weeding and mulching the IMS landscape, and painting house numbers on curbs in front of residences throughout the IMS neighborhood.
“We hope to do it again in the spring,” Stanley said of the stenciling project.
“It will really help police, emergency medical technicians and the fire department find locations.”
Stanley coordinated the curb stenciling project with city officials and noted that students will also be clearing vegetation that overhangs the curbs in those areas.
Other students will help at Allen County Animal Rescue Facility, conduct a bake sale at Walmart, package items and make pillowcases to be sent to servicemen and women overseas, and pick up trash and trim vegetation along the Prairie Spirit Trail between Iola and Colony.
All students will eat lunch at their work sites and are asked to pack a lunch. Students may also order bag lunches through the school.
Assignments are linked to the students’ Teacher Advisory group — each teacher has been pre-assigned to a particular task. Dismissal will be from IMS at the normal time, Stanley added.
If the day is successful, Stanley hopes to make it a regular part of the school year.
10/01/10
New children's garden a'growin'
By ANNE KAZMIERCZAK
Register Reporter
Iolans may have wondered about recent development at the corner of North Sycamore and Lincoln streets.
The work, a combined effort of the city, county, USD 257 and local businesses, will soon result in the dedication of the Wayne Garrett Children’s Garden, said SAFE BASE Director Angela Henry.
Set to open Oct. 13, the 13-plot garden will feature raised beds, a greenhouse, compost heap and arbor, all surrounded by a picture-perfect white picket fence, Henry said.
The garden came about through Henry’s efforts to increase awareness of food sources, enhance nutritional health of students and their families, and as a way to honor a man who was dedicated to children and his community.
“He was an advocate for children and for SAFE BASE,” Henry said of Garrett, who was killed in a tractor/car collision in the fall of 2008.
“He went with me to a meeting” seeking funding for the after-school educational program “the week before he died,” Henry said.
So it is apt, she said, that the new garden, created with volunteer efforts and grant funding from the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City, be named for him.
Many people and agencies have had a hand in the success of the garden thus far, Henry noted.
“The city gave us use of the plot; Anderson Plumbing donated two frost-free hydrants and all the plumbing work for the garden; the Sheriff’s Department dug all the fence post holes,” Henry went on. In addition, “Payless Concrete donated all the concrete for the project,” and the county’s Public Works Department provided labor and equipment to move soil, survey the plot and the like.
“We couldn’t have done this without them,” Henry said of the help.
Still others helped as well, Henry said. Diebolt Lumber will build and install the picket fence and arbor; Harry Clubine donated 15 cubic yards of compost and the county provided soil from its recent landfill cell expansion to be used to fill the raised beds.
Raised bed frames themselves were built using Allen County Jail inmate labor under the same program that saw a garden installed on the Iola square last year.
On Friday, inmates Chris Dix and Dustin Dicekrson were helping construct the 10 by 12 foot greenhouse to be placed in the center of the plot.
Sheriff’s Deputy Dathan McMurtrey and Allen County Emergency Management specialist Terry Call were also on hand.
The garden, once completed, will provide “school-based” learning for all elementary and middle school students enrolled in the district’s’ after school SAFE BASE program, Henry said.
Along with growing nutritious food stuffs, students throughout the year will research recipes and plan themed “Blue Plate Special” dinners to be shared with their families one Wednesday a month.
The first supper, also planned for Oct. 13, will feature pears and apples, courtesy of the season and a pear tree located on the edge of the new garden.
Throughout the school year, Henry said, students will design the Blue Plate Specials around seasonally available foods.
February will feature a Groundhog theme, with buckwheat pancakes and a live groundhog as mascot; March will feature healthy potatoes; “April is make your own pizza night,” Henry said; and May should see greens provided by the new garden become the base for a salad supper.
“The purpose is so kids can replicate these activities at home,” Henry said, including gardening with their families in yards or at Iola’s Elm Creek Community Garden, where SAFE BASE also has plots.
Dedication of the new garden is set for 5:45 p.m. Oct. 13, with Garrett’s family members and speakers from the Allen County Fair Board and USD 257 School Board on hand.
Register Reporter
Iolans may have wondered about recent development at the corner of North Sycamore and Lincoln streets.
The work, a combined effort of the city, county, USD 257 and local businesses, will soon result in the dedication of the Wayne Garrett Children’s Garden, said SAFE BASE Director Angela Henry.
Set to open Oct. 13, the 13-plot garden will feature raised beds, a greenhouse, compost heap and arbor, all surrounded by a picture-perfect white picket fence, Henry said.
The garden came about through Henry’s efforts to increase awareness of food sources, enhance nutritional health of students and their families, and as a way to honor a man who was dedicated to children and his community.
“He was an advocate for children and for SAFE BASE,” Henry said of Garrett, who was killed in a tractor/car collision in the fall of 2008.
“He went with me to a meeting” seeking funding for the after-school educational program “the week before he died,” Henry said.
So it is apt, she said, that the new garden, created with volunteer efforts and grant funding from the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City, be named for him.
Many people and agencies have had a hand in the success of the garden thus far, Henry noted.
“The city gave us use of the plot; Anderson Plumbing donated two frost-free hydrants and all the plumbing work for the garden; the Sheriff’s Department dug all the fence post holes,” Henry went on. In addition, “Payless Concrete donated all the concrete for the project,” and the county’s Public Works Department provided labor and equipment to move soil, survey the plot and the like.
“We couldn’t have done this without them,” Henry said of the help.
Still others helped as well, Henry said. Diebolt Lumber will build and install the picket fence and arbor; Harry Clubine donated 15 cubic yards of compost and the county provided soil from its recent landfill cell expansion to be used to fill the raised beds.
Raised bed frames themselves were built using Allen County Jail inmate labor under the same program that saw a garden installed on the Iola square last year.
On Friday, inmates Chris Dix and Dustin Dicekrson were helping construct the 10 by 12 foot greenhouse to be placed in the center of the plot.
Sheriff’s Deputy Dathan McMurtrey and Allen County Emergency Management specialist Terry Call were also on hand.
The garden, once completed, will provide “school-based” learning for all elementary and middle school students enrolled in the district’s’ after school SAFE BASE program, Henry said.
Along with growing nutritious food stuffs, students throughout the year will research recipes and plan themed “Blue Plate Special” dinners to be shared with their families one Wednesday a month.
The first supper, also planned for Oct. 13, will feature pears and apples, courtesy of the season and a pear tree located on the edge of the new garden.
Throughout the school year, Henry said, students will design the Blue Plate Specials around seasonally available foods.
February will feature a Groundhog theme, with buckwheat pancakes and a live groundhog as mascot; March will feature healthy potatoes; “April is make your own pizza night,” Henry said; and May should see greens provided by the new garden become the base for a salad supper.
“The purpose is so kids can replicate these activities at home,” Henry said, including gardening with their families in yards or at Iola’s Elm Creek Community Garden, where SAFE BASE also has plots.
Dedication of the new garden is set for 5:45 p.m. Oct. 13, with Garrett’s family members and speakers from the Allen County Fair Board and USD 257 School Board on hand.
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