Events around the Tri-States

The Americana Band

The Americana Band keeps the “traditional” Christmas tradition alive by playing Salvation Army music around the kettles and elsewhere this time of year. They are scheduled to play at the Salvation Army kettle at the Locust HyVee 4-6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 1, and again at the same location 4-6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 8. Other places to hear the band are in the Rosheks lobby 1-2:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 8, and the same place and time on Saturday, Dec. 22. They will play the older traditional Christmas tunes during the Ham House Victorian Christmas event 1-3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 1. The band is also scheduled to play a Civil War ball Dec. 15 in Galena. 

Though the Americana Band started playing the kettles about 20 years ago, they have branched out into other styles of music. They play love songs for Valentines Day events, Irish music for St. Patricks Day, Latin music for Cinco de Mayo, patriotic music for Memorial Day and other summer venues such as the Ham House Fourth of July Ice Cream Social, and numerous Oktoberfest gigs in the Fall. They played a Renaissance concert at the New Melleray Abbey a couple of years ago. This year was the first year they played Halloween music at a Halloween event. During the summer they play Dixie and ragtime in the American Trust pavilion outside the Ice Harbor on Sunday evenings as the Twilight riverboat steams in. 

The band was started by David Overby, the University of Dubuque band director at the time, as an outlet for people to play in more informal settings for fun. Overby had Dixie bands in other places, and organized the Clinton Community Band over 25 years ago. His grandparents, immigrants from England and Canada, were Salvation Army officers in New England, and Overby has continued the emphasis on the British brass band style with the Americana Band. Though the band does mostly free events, the group, also known as the Band of Infidels and Guerrilla Band, is available for private parties.

Anyone is welcome to join the band. If you liked pep band in high school, this is for you. For more information, contact Overby at davidsoverby@gmail.com​.

Upcoming Events at the
James Kennedy Public Library
​in Dyersville: December 2018

Saturday, December 1: Cookie Walk Fundraiser from 10:00 am - 1:00 pm. Come to the library for our annual Christmas Cookie Walk Fundraiser. Fill a plate of sweet treats (about a dozen items) from a variety of homemade baked goods. Plates are $6.00 for one or $10.00 for two. Volunteers will be on hand to wrap your tray before you leave. Sponsored by the Fundraising Committee of the JKPL.

Monday, December 3: Holiday Music with Strings Attached @ 6:00 pm. Strings Attached, a local musical group, is coming to the library for a holiday concert! The group is composed of Gary Bramel, Joe Schmitt, and Dan & Sue Engelbrecht. Come listen as they perform some of everyone’s holiday favorites.

Friday, December 7 thru Sunday, December 16: Used Book Swap @ Your Library. Looking for a good book? Come to the Used Book Swap at the library! Just wrap up a gently used/nearly new book from your home library and mark it with a general statement of what it is – novel, romance, biography, etc. Bring your gift wrapped book to the library and exchange it for another. Everyone who participates will be entered into a drawing for a book lover’s prize. The Used Book Swap is open all hours the library is open between December 7-16. 

Sunday, December 9: Old Fashioned Christmas from 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm. The entire family is invited for an afternoon of live music, traditional Christmas carols, cookies, and spiced cider at the Dyer-Botsford House in Dyersville. Santa & Mrs. Claus will make a special appearance, and several prizes will be given out in a drawing. All ages welcome, but children under the age of 10 must be accompanied by an adult. This event is sponsored by the Senior Advisory Committee of the JKPL and the Dyersville Historical Society.

​Friday, December 21: Coffee and Creating @ Your Library from 9:30-11:30 am. Coloring, crafting, creating, chatting and enjoying coffee or other morning beverages are all part of the fun. Participants are welcome to come and go as time allows. This program is open to adults 18 and older.

Library programs are free unless otherwise noted. For information on these and other library programs please call 563-875-8912 or go to www.dyersville.lib.ia.us 
or contact Dawn Schrandt via email at dschrandt@dyersville.lib.ia.us

UnityPoint Health Finley Hospital 
December 2018 Events
For more information or to register for classes
and events at UnityPoint Health Finley Hospital, visit www.unitypoint.org/dbqevents.

Amputee Support Group. Monday, December 3, 4:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m., Kehl Diabetes Center (lower level). No one can fully understand the feelings and struggles involved in dealing with the loss of a limb quite like someone who has been through it. That is why UnityPoint Health - Finley Hospital is now offering a new support group to help you regain control through education, compassion and encouragement. The support group will offer:

• Open and honest discussions led by a licensed physical therapist
• Opportunities to share the trials and successes of your limb loss journey
• An empowering environment to help you adjust to your new normal, independent and fruitful life
• Guest speakers to enhance your knowledge and broaden you access to resources

Cancer Journey Support Group. Tuesday, December 4, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m., Finley’s Wendt Regional Cancer Center. The Cancer Journey Support Group is a mutual support organization that brings together those persons affected by cancer so they may help each other learn to live life in a positive and meaningful manner. Feel free to bring your lunch or purchase lunch in our cafeteria. For more information call Wendt Regional Cancer Center (563) 589-2468.

No man or woman really knows what perfect love is 
until they have been married a quarter of a century. 
—Mark Twain

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