Debra Marquart: Poetry, Music and the Environment

Council Bluffs Public Library 400 Willow Ave, Council Bluffs, IA, United States

POETRY, MUSIC & THE ENVIRONMENTDebra Marquart is available to read from her creative work (poetry, fiction, memoir) and to perform music alone, or with her band, The Bone People. A singer-songwriter, Marquart fuses poetry, music, and storytelling in her performances. The topics in Marquart’s five books and ongoing research projects range widely to include the following: […]

Jeff Stein: Iowans You Should Know

Adair Library 199 Audubon St, Adair, IA, United States

Iowans You Should Know: Stories from the Iowa Almanac (new in 2021)Did you know that the Eskimo Pie® was invented in Iowa? So was the electric razor, the clip-on bow tie, and the self-filling fountain pen. Iowa was also the childhood home of four Academy Award®-winning performers, and three different Iowa-born musical acts had national #1 […]

Sarah Uthoff: Laura Ingalls Wilder

Faith Lutheran Church 10395 University Ave, Clive, IA, United States

General Laura ProgramThe basic Laura Ingalls Wilder program gives a general overview of Laura’s life. It features slides taken at all the Laura sites and is good for any age group.

Jeff Stein: Where’s Floppy?

Faith Lutheran Church 10395 University Ave, Clive, IA, United States

Where’s Floppy? Celebrating an Iowa Television Icon(new in 2021)For 30 years, from 1957-1987, Duane Ellett and his puppet Floppy delighted audiences of all ages on WHO-TV in Des Moines and at the Iowa State Fair. Children would call out “Where’s Floppy?”—and ventriloquist Ellett would bring his alter ego to life. From cartoons to riddles (“Why […]

Rich Tyler: Your Grampa and Gramma’s Farm

Blakesburg Methodist Church 104 N High St, Blakesburg, IA, United States

Your Grampa and Gramma’s FarmFarming in the late 1800s and early 1900s represents a lifestyle of hard work, inventions, prosperity and depression. This presentation focuses on a typical farmer, Joshua Secrest, who developed a successful livestock farm. It also reviews the dramatic development of ingenious farm machinery and tools that enabled growth and prosperity. Secrest […]

Scott Samuelson: AI and the Human Future

Lied Public Library 100 E Garfield St, Clarinda, IA, United States

AI and the Human FutureThis presentation focuses on the big moral and political issues surrounding artificial intelligence. What exactly is AI? Can it make our lives and our communities better, or is it going to take all our jobs and kill us off? Can AI respect privacy, or is privacy a thing of the past? […]

Darcy Maulsby: Adventures Along the Historic Lincoln Highway in Iowa

Ottumwa Public Library 102 4th St, Chillicothe, IA, United States

Adventures Along the Historic Lincoln Highway in IowaNothing says freedom like the great American road trip, especially when you cruise the historic Lincoln Highway in Iowa. Better known today as Highway 30, the Lincoln Highway revolutionized Iowa and America when the historic route was developed more than a century ago. If you’ve ever traveled on […]

Jeff Stein: From the Battlefront to the Homefront

Lakin Library and Envisioning Center 725 Main St, Tabor, IA, United States

From the Battlefront to the Homefront: Iowa Broadcasters Go To WarThe bravery of American military members has been well-documented, often due to the unique reporting done by Iowa-based broadcasters on the scene. This presentation includes segments from a documentary by the same name, featuring vintage broadcasts and interviews with the journalists who covered conflicts from […]

Jeff Stein: Iowans You Should Know

Ida Grove Public Library 100 E 2nd St, Ida Grove, IA, United States

Iowans You Should Know: Stories from the Iowa Almanac (new in 2021)Did you know that the Eskimo Pie® was invented in Iowa? So was the electric razor, the clip-on bow tie, and the self-filling fountain pen. Iowa was also the childhood home of four Academy Award®-winning performers, and three different Iowa-born musical acts had national #1 […]

John Liepa: Iowa’s Ethnic Heritage

Grace O. Doane Alden Public Library 1012 Water St, Alden, IA, United States

Iowa’s Ethnic Heritage, or “Who Do You Think We Are?”Enjoy the unfolding and changing adventure of Iowa’s immigration history. Beginning with the Ioway, one of 17 distinctive indigenous tribal groups, we’ll trace chronologically who we are as Iowans. From Spanish explorers and French trappers, traders and priests; to the dominant English, Germans and Irish; to Scandinavians, Dutch […]

John Liepa: How Iowa Met Baseball

Burlington Public Library 210 Court St, Burlington, IA, United States

How Iowa Met Baseball: the Myths, the History, the PlayersOver the past century the setting for the spring passion of many Iowans has been the ballpark. This presentation explores the myths of baseball’s origins, the early history and evolution of the game, baseball’s journey to Iowa and the role of the Civil War in spreading its […]

Jeff Stein: Iowans You Should Know

Iowa Masonic Library and Museums 813 1st Ave SE, Cedar Rapids, IA, United States

Iowans You Should Know: Stories from the Iowa Almanac (new in 2021)Did you know that the Eskimo Pie® was invented in Iowa? So was the electric razor, the clip-on bow tie, and the self-filling fountain pen. Iowa was also the childhood home of four Academy Award®-winning performers, and three different Iowa-born musical acts had national #1 […]