Iowa Home Schoolers Set Sixth Annual Day at the Capitol for Tuesday, Feb. 26

DES MOINES, Iowa — Hundreds of Iowa homeschool families will converge at the Statehouse on Tuesday, Feb. 26, for the Network of Iowa Christian Home Educators’ sixth annual Homeschool Day at the Capitol.

          The NICHE Homeschool Day at the Capitol typically attracts about 1,000 home educating parents and students.

“Our annual event has had a tremendous impact, particularly in raising understanding among elected officials and the public about the positive value that home schooling has on the state budget and the values that are instilled in home school children,” said NICHE President Justin LaVan. “The NICHE Day at the Capitol really gives our legislators the opportunity to put a face on homeschooling.”

The morning session at the Capitol Building will include informal training for personal visits with legislators, student achievement displays, Capitol and Judicial Building tours, recognition of homeschoolers from the House and Senate floors and a proclamation at 10:00 a.m. by Iowa Governor Terry Branstad.

The afternoon session, which will take place at the Embassy Suites Hotel, 101 E. Locust St., will feature additional interactive learning and several presentations, including WHO Radio talk show host Jan Mickelson, who will speak on “Stuff What Ain’t True” about Abraham Lincoln and other matters of historical importance Pastor, conservative activist and homeschool father Jamie Johnson will speak on “One Million Davids: The Coming Generation of Christian Political Leaders.”

Homeschool families are encouraged to visit www.homeschooliowa.org for additional details and to register for the event.

Formed in 1992, NICHE is Iowa’s only statewide homeschooling organization providing support and information to home educating families through a variety of events and resources, including an annual conference, a formal graduation service, a monthly newsletter, legislative services and multi-faceted assistance to local homeschooling groups and individual families.

 

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Erday’s to Close After Nearly 88 Years as Geneva’s Oldest Retial Store; Quitting Business Sale Starts Thursday

GENEVA, Ill. – After nearly 88 years in business in the same location, Erday’s will sell its entire inventory and close its doors, president Victor Erday III said today.

The store’s inventory sale opens to the public on Thursday. Erday’s, located at 10 N. Third St., will be open 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. weekdays, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 4:00 p.m. Sunday during the sale.

“We’re the oldest retail store in Geneva,” said Erday, who operates the business with two brothers, Jim and Bob. “We have some people coming in who are the third generation and even a few fourth-generation customers.”

The third-generation store has seen fashion change over the years from wool suits to double-knits to the dreaded leisure suits of the 1970s and beyond, but one trend that has been devastating to independent menswear stores across the country has been the shift to a casual workplace.

“First, it was Casual Friday. Then, pretty soon every day was a casual day,” Erday explained. “Men used to wear suits and ties to work five days a week and buy at least several suits a year, but that isn’t happening anymore.”

Main Street men’s stores also have been squeezed by the rise of big-box retailers that stress self-service and low prices. Other trends added further pressure.

“The economy has been down since 2008 and, for a lot of men, clothing is a lower priority than making sure they can put food on the table and pay their bills,” Erday said. “In the past, people used to buy clothes for their sons, fathers and grandfathers for their birthdays and holidays like Father’s Day and Christmas, too. Now, they buy electronics and other things. Those different buying patterns have affected our business over the years.”

The store opened on May 1, 1925 when Erday’s grandfather, Victor Erday, Sr., a Hungarian immigrant, opened his custom tailoring shop at 8 N. Third St.  “He was a master tailor. We have a couple garments here at the store that were handmade by him and we have photos of him at the cutting table. It’s pretty cool stuff,” Erday said.

In the store’s heyday, its staff included Erday’s father, uncle, four brothers, sister, 22 employees and four full-time tailors as well as him. “That’s when men were wearing suits to work every day,” he said.

All of the Erday offspring, which also include brothers Jeff and Ron and sister Susie, began working at the store early in life. “I started when I was eight years old, sweeping floors. I was actually selling merchandise in seventh grade,” Erday said. “This is the only job I’ve ever known, other than washing dishes in college for four years.”

The current store, built in 1930, fills more than 5,900 square feet and continues to offer full tailoring services. Victor and Helen Erday and their four children — Victor, Jr., John, Helen and Irene  — lived above the store.

Erday and his brothers will rent out their building to new tenants. Closing a local retail landmark is bittersweet but Erday acknowledges he’s looking forward to it.

“We’re going to go from retail to being landlords,” he added. “And, I’m going fishing.”

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After 80 Years in Edwardsville, Imber’s Men’s Wear Announces Quitting Business Sale

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Imber’s Men’s Wear, which has served the local community for 80 years, is going out of business and will sell its entire inventory, owner Alan Legow announced today.

The store’s inventory sale opens to the public on Thursday. Imber’s Men’s Wear, located at 144 N. Main St., will be open 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. weekdays, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Saturday, and 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Sunday during the sale.

Legow recently sold the 2,000-square-foot building his store has occupied for decades. Another local business will move into that location at some date after Imber’s inventory sale is completed.

The grandson of the company’s founder, Legow said his professional focus has evolved since his 2006 launch of A.L. Custom Clothiers. Through that venture, Legow goes directly to clients’ homes and businesses to serve their custom clothing needs.

“It’s become very successful and it’s my real passion,” Legow said. “Because of its growth, I’ve had to divide my time between it and the store. I’ve struggled with the decision over the last few years but, in the end, closing the store is the right thing to do.”

Imber’s was founded in Belleville 90 years ago by Legow’s grandfather, Hyman Imber. As the business grew and flourished, the Imber family eventually operated six stores in the area. Legow began working at the Edwardsville store in 1976 after college.

Over time, however, many independent Main Street clothing stores across the nation have faced a number of challenges ranging from big box stores and online competitors to more casual workplace dress codes that changed buying habits.

“Back then, family stores flourished,” Legow said. “Today, I really don’t need a storefront to do the custom clothing work that I do. The timing was really right to move this change.”

He added, “I appreciate the community’s support over so many years and can’t thank our customers enough for their loyalty. I’ll always be grateful to them and the many, many friends we’ve made through Imber’s. I look forward to continuing to serve them through my custom clothing business as we go forward.”

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David Jones Fashions for Men and Women Launches Benefit for Trooper injured in October Car Chase

            SIOUX FALLS — A local businessman whose store was damaged during a car chase last month has launched a fund drive for a state trooper critically injured in the incident.

            David Jones, owner of David Jones Fashions for Men and Women said he hopes to collect at least 10,000 signatures on a giant get-well card and raise at least $20,000 to benefit Trooper Andrew Steen, an eight-year veteran of the South Dakota Highway Patrol. Steen suffered severe head injuries when he was struck by a car driven by a 25-year-old woman during a car chase.

            “Men and women in law enforcement risk their lives every day to keep us safe. Trooper Steen was doing his job to protect the public and now we hope the public will come in, sign the get-well card for him and make a contribution,” Jones said. “We are also donating a percentage of our sales through the Christmas season to this effort. We’re also working with some other businesses in hopes they’ll match contributions to the fund.”

            During the chase in which Steen was injured, the woman crashed her vehicle through the front of Jones’ store, which has been in business five years. Law enforcement officials fired a number of shots to stop her vehicle. Jones’ store was closed for 14 days following the incident.

            “We’ve talked with Trooper Steen’s family. They’re aware of what we’re doing and appreciate our goal,” Jones said. “We plan to present the card and all contributions to his family on or around Christmas Eve.”

            David Jones Fashions for Men and Women is located at 5005 S. Western. Store hours are 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Saturdays. The store is closed on Sundays.

            “We’ll have a big banner out front and the card will be inside. We’re asking everyone to stop in when they’re out and about and show their support for Trooper Steen,” Jones said. “While our goal is to raise $20,000 in the next four weeks, it would be a real show of community spirit if we could raise even more than that.”

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New Mexico’s Carzalia Valley Produce Article Featured on Cover of November Issue of Onion World

When James Johnson of Carzalia Valley Produce in Columbus, N.M., says sustainability is the buzzword in the onion industry, the fourth-generation farmer/businessman knows what he’s talking about, writes Eric Woolson in the November issue of Onion World.

The entire article can be read at “Sustainability Practices Not New for Carzalia Valley Produce.”

Woolson Authors Article for Carrot Industry’s National Trade Publication

An article by Eric Woolson, owner of The Concept Works, appears in the Winter 2012 issue of Carrot Country magazine.

Woolson wrote about a national project to significantly improve the processes involved in growing organic carrots on a commercial scale. He interviewed five industry experts in research and production who are leading the four-year Carrot Improvement for Organic Agricultural Project.

The article, National Project to Improve Organic Production Systems Launched, outlines the effort that USDA Agricultural Research Service researcher Philipp Simon says “plays nicely into, first, answering research questions but, second, cashing in immediately with practical applications for growers’ fields.”

Blue Willi’s Store in West Des Moines to Sell Inventory, Close Doors After Clothing Make Goes Out of Business

WEST DES MOINES – The impending end of an internationally iconic clothing brand is leading to the closing of a local retail store, its owner said today.

Blue Willi’s, the nearly six-year-old West Glen Town Center store that bears the same name as the clothing label, will sell its entire inventory and close its doors as the 60-year-old Danish company that produces the women’s and men’s clothing sold in at least 27 countries goes out of business.

The store’s inventory sale opens to the public next Thursday. Blue Willi’s, 5515 Mills Civic Parkway, will be open 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. weekdays, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Saturday, and 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Sunday during the sale.

“The economy in Europe is as tough as the economy here in the United States right now and that’s really unfortunate because Blue Willi’s is a phenomenal company with an incredible history,” said Tom Halsch, who co-owns the store with his wife Patti. “It’s a select group of companies that last 60 years and Blue Willi’s was in that group because the product is just that unique.”

Halsch has been a manufacturer’s representative for 35 years and has represented the Blue Willi’s representative in the Midwest for 18 years. As the brand’s U.S. following grew, the company began to open retail outlets, including one in the Des Moines market. When the owner of that store decided to close in December 2006, the Halsches stepped in.

“The manager still wanted to run it and the brand was still popular so that’s when I became a retail store owner,” Halsch said.

Halsch notes that unlike most other quitting business sales, this time the product itself will be gone for good. “The selection is limited and what’s in the store is what you can buy. They’re not making any more,” he said.

Blue Willi’s built its following by creating clothing with long-strand cotton in which special enzymes were used to seal the fibers and every inch of the materials were waxed before they were woven into garments. The garments are washed and dried several times during the assembly process, too, to enhance their strength and comfort.

“The clothes are very durable. We’ll have a women come into the store wearing a 12-year-old sweater and it almost looks like it just came off the rack,” he said.

The Halsches have traveled to Denmark and met with the company’s owners and designers. He met the company founder, Jens Marius Willi Thomassen,  a number of times over the years.

Blue Willi’s remained a family business until 2009 when it was sold.

“On visits to the factory, it was always interesting to watch the computer guy design the garments because women who knit would say, ‘You really shouldn’t be able to do that. It would take seven different kinds of needles to complete that.’ That’s why the people who buy Blue Willi’s really appreciate it and come back. They really like the quality of it.”

He added, “Everyone at Blue Willi’s was so nice. When we’d go over there, the entire factory would stand outside waving goodbye until our bus was out of sight. They’d host us for dinner at their house. It’s like part of your family is dying.

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