Due to coronavirus concerns, for the first time the 15th-annual David R. Collins Writers’ Conference will be held online, Thursday to Saturday, June 25-27. Paid workshops will be held via Zoom; free public events will be available on Zoom and via livestream to the Midwest Writing Center’s YouTube channel . The conference registration fee is $50 for MWC members, $65 for non-members; and $260 for full conference registration (four workshops + master class); $210 for three workshops; $160 for two workshops, and $85 for one workshop. Book pitches are $15 each. Attendees can hone their craft in... Read More

Transitions Mental Health Services is excited to announce that their 10th Annual Golf Outing, scheduled for July 24th, will continue as planned. As a precaution due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all guidelines put forth by the Governor, as well as the recommendations from the CDC will be followed. Transitions also said this year’s golf outing will place high focus on unity, comradery, positivity and, of course, mental health. The event will take place at Highland Springs Golf Course, 9500 35th Street West, Rock Island, with sign-up beginning at 11:30am and start time scheduled for 1:00pm. Registration... Read More

It’s a beautiful summer night, and it’s feeling like time for some cold drinks and some hot Mexican food! If you’re down for some south-of-the-border eats and wondering which local hot spots are still open for delivery, carry-out or curbside, well, wonder no more, QuadCities.com has got you covered, with our spicy list of local Mexican restaurants open and ready to take your orders for tacos, enchiladas, burritos, margaritas and more! Here, we offer you a list of local Mexican restaurants, bars and cafes that are going above and beyond to offer the community options to still get... Read More

MACOMB, IL – Organizers of Western Illinois University’s Leatherneck Country Meats – The Purple and Gold Standard of Western Illinois, are preparing for the group’s next sale, this time with a shifted focus to pork raised outdoors. Leatherneck Country Meats is a student-run organization that offers pork sales to the public. This is the third year LCM has been holding sales. This year, LCM is raising Berkshire hogs on the University Farm. The first piglets have already been placed outdoors. This year’s retail sale is expected in early October. “Raising berks on pasture... Read More

The Midwest Writing Center (MWC) is thrilled to announce that the annual David R. Collins Writers’ Conference will move forward in an all-virtual format June 25-27 for its 15th year. Registration is open now. Attendees will hone their craft in intensive three-day workshops, but will also have the option to participate in book pitches, a faculty reading, and a keynote address featuring author and columnist Lyz Lenz. Lenz will appear at a special livestream event on Thursday, June 25, and will lead a virtual master class on Friday, June 26, both entitled “Writing for Change.” Lyz Lenz’s writing... Read More

Like most entertainment around the world during coronavirus, the Levitt AMP Galva Music Series moved online this summer. All recipients of a 2020 national grant for a free summer music series will be part of a virtual free broadcast, all available on levittamp.org/virtual. Galva’s entry kicked off the series on June 20, with performances by Chicago Farmer and Edward David Anderson. “Each recipient of the Levitt AMP grant will be featured in one concert over the course of the summer as part of the national series — we just happened to be the first,” said John Taylor of Cambridge, president... Read More

Rhythm City Casino Resort is pleased to announce the Steel Panther – Heavy Metal Rules Tour will be performing on the Event Center stage Thursday, January 28, 2021 at 8 PM. Tickets for this show go on sale Friday, June 26 at 10 AM CST. This show is a reserved seating show with prices ranging from $25 to $50. Tickets can be purchased online , by phone at 844-852-4FUN or in person at The Market gift shop inside Rhythm City Casino Resort. As political correctness suffocates and squeezes the last drop of fun from popular culture, four men boldly plant their flag (and maybe another appendage) into... Read More

Six public sculptures in Bettendorf and four in Rock Island are in the process of being replaced with new ones. Each city has elected to keep one sculpture from last years’ selection for another year. Quad City Arts has facilitated the leasing and installation of public sculpture in the Quad Cities since 2002. The City of Rock Island has participated in the program, yearly, since 2007 and Bettendorf, since 2008. All of the sculptures are for sale and can be purchased by individuals, businesses or the city for permanent installation after June of the following year. In Bettendorf, look for “Uncle... Read More

After being closed since mid-March, Davenport’s German American Heritage Center will reopen with specific health and safety conditions on Tuesday, June 23. The museum at 2nd and Gaines streets, will offer ticketed and timed visits to groups of less than six, every 45 minutes during normal hours – which start at 10 a.m. Tuesday to Saturday, and noon on Sunday. The center will have new cleaning procedures, social distancing, sanitization areas, and mask requirements for all at the front desk, executive director Kelly Lao said recently. All patrons must wear a mask or face covering to enter the... Read More

Mark McGinn’s love of the theater is literally in his blood. His father Jack (who died in 2000) started performing at Quad City Music Guild in Moline within two years of its founding in 1949, and was in dozens of shows. Mark, a 67-year-old Bettendorf resident, started with Guild at Prospect Park in 1972, playing clarinet for “Fiddler on the Roof,” and his first stage role was in 1976’s “Jesus Christ Superstar” (as one of the apostles). McGinn has since been involved in more than 70 other shows (including last summer as John Wilkes Booth in Black Box’s “Assassins” in Moline), mostly... Read More