Idaho Falls Magazine is heading up a "Drive and Drop" community donation drive Thursday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Staff will collect donations of canned goods and cleaning supplies on the B Street sidewalk between Park and Shoup, in front of Harris Publishing. There will be no need to get out of your vehicle, and every donor will receive a certificate for one free frozen yogurt from Orange Leaf.
Canned goods needed include tuna, chili, pork and beans, fruits, vegetables and cream soups. Cleaning supplies include laundry detergent, bleach, dish soap, bathroom cleaner, toilet paper and paper towels.
Donations will benefit these agencies:
City of Refuge Men's Shelter, 840 Park Ave.
The Haven 2480 S. Yellowstone Highway
Idaho Falls Community Food Bank 245 N. Placer Ave.
Last April 15, I was stopped for speeding on John Adams Parkway, trying to make it to the post office before 6 p.m., the deadline for putting my income tax returns in the mail. I won't make that mistake again, but how I long for the good old days when your envelope to the IRS could have an 11:59 p.m. postmark on it.
My point is, if you've been procrastinating on your taxes, today is the day. Here are some helpful reminders and links I've scrounged up for those of you who are on the spot today:
• People who need more time to finish their tax returns can use the Free File link to electronically request an automatic six-month tax-filing extension on Form 4868, extending the deadline to Oct. 15.
• If you meet certain financial requirements, the IRS may accept less
than owed via a negotiated settlement called an "offer in compromise."
You can see if you meet the eligibility requirements by filling out this
prequalifying worksheet.
• The installment option
is available for taxpayers who owe $50,000 or less. The minimum monthly
payment for installment agreements is $25. If you owe more than that,
you have to contact the IRS and fill out Form 433-F.
• The U.S. Postal Service has a tool that allows tax filers to find a post office that is open after 6 p.m.
And here are some links you procrastinators might find helpful or interesting, assuming
Sandy Anderson, executive director of Buy Idaho, will be the featured speaker at the next Idaho Falls Advertising Federation's next noon luncheon, April 18at Dixie’s Diner on Channing Way. Sign-in is at 11:30 a.m., and the presentation will run from noon to 1 p.m. Cost is $12 for members and $15 for non-members. A wide selections of lunch items will be available. Please RSVP to lisa@mightymcs.com if you plan to attend.
Anderson will speak to the group about the functions of the Buy Idaho organization and the importance of doing business within the state.
“When we support Idaho businesses, it keeps dollars in the state," she said. "These dollars reinvest themselves in other Idaho businesses, services, and our state farm commodities. It improves job opportunities and increases state tax revenues that support public services."
A big aspect of what she does is branding the Buy Idaho name to build awareness for the association, a non-profit that has more than 1,100 members statewide. "Advertising agencies and the media have played a major role in helping us get the word out and promoting Buy Idaho to their local clients. I feel so fortunate to have this opportunity to speak to these clubs and thank them for their support,” she said.
A past president of the Boise Advertising Federation, Anderson now sits on the board of the Idaho Advertising Federation.
The Eastern Idaho Technical College Foundation will hold its second Cyber Security Summit on the EITC campus April 18 from 8 a.m. to 4:15 p.m.
Last year, more than 200 IT professionals from business, government and education attended this event. Once again, admission is free. To register, follow this link: http://eitccss2.eventbrite.com/
Here are brief biographies of the speakers:
Chris Roberts (keynote): “The Evolution of Hacking” Roberts is founder, CISO and lead engineer for One World Labs, a consulting firm providing research, vulnerability assessment and remediation of IT Systems and physical structures. Globally recognized as one of the top experts in the field, Roberts has consulted on IT security, engineering, and architecture/design operations for many Fortune 500 companies in the finance, retail, energy and service sectors. He has also worked on, developed and implemented company-wide information security awareness programs and trains management and employees on IT security topics.
Here is a video of Roberts speaking last summer in Denver:
Tony Carothers: "Information Assurance and History: Learning from the past to secure the future.” With over 25 years in the communications security industry, Carothers specializes in developing secure communications solutions for the government and private sector. Clients have included assignments the U.S. Air Force, Army and Secret Service. The private sector work has been more varied, with the highlight being the work he has done for the SANS Internet Storm Center over the past 15 years as a senior incident handler.
Eddie Mize: "Poking Holes in the Cloud" Mize has 30 years in the computer industry, over 17 of them at InfoSec. He is an integration and security specialist with years of experience building information security programs and integrating multiple platforms and systems to provide comprehensive "best of class" secure solutions. He served on Cisco's Enterprise Advisory Board for Information Security, and has articles published in Network World, Pentest Magazine, and Hakin9 Magazine.
The Idaho Falls Chamber of Commerce Leadership Class is doing a fund-raiser Friday called Helping Those Who Help Our Kids. It is in support of the Idaho Falls School District 91 Education Foundation and the Bonneville School District 93 Education Foundation.
The event will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. at Teton Toyota, 2252 West Sunnyside Road There will be a silent auction, appetizers and prizes.
For more information, call Robb Chiles at 523-1010 or Doug Swanson at 403-8806.
