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Ukraine Population: 44,209,7336 VISITORS FROM HERE!
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|Ukraine was the center of the first eastern Slavic state, Kyivan Rus, which during the 10th and 11th centuries was the largest and most powerful state in Europe. Weakened by internecine quarrels and Mongol invasions, Kyivan Rus was incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and eventually into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The cultural and religious legacy of Kyivan Rus laid the foundation for Ukrainian nationalism through subsequent centuries. A new Ukrainian state, the Cossack Hetmanate, was established during the mid-17th century after an uprising against the Poles. Despite continuous Muscovite pressure, the Hetmanate managed to remain autonomous for well over 100 years. During the latter part of the 18th century, most Ukrainian ethnographic territory was absorbed by the Russian Empire. Following the collapse of czarist Russia in 1917, Ukraine achieved a short-lived period of independence (1917-20), but was reconquered and endured a brutal Soviet rule that engineered two forced famines (1921-22 and 1932-33) in which over 8 million died. In World War II, German and Soviet armies were responsible for 7 to 8 million more deaths. Although Ukraine achieved final independence in 1991 with the dissolution of the USSR, democracy and prosperity remained elusive as the legacy of state control and endemic corruption stalled efforts at economic reform, privatization, and civil liberties. A peaceful mass protest referred to as the "Orange Revolution" in the closing months of 2004 forced the authorities to overturn a rigged presidential election and to allow a new internationally monitored vote that swept into power a reformist slate under Viktor YUSHCHENKO. Subsequent internal squabbles in the YUSHCHENKO camp allowed his rival Viktor YANUKOVYCH to stage a comeback in parliamentary (Rada) elections, become prime minister in August 2006, and be elected president in February 2010. In October 2012, Ukraine held Rada elections, widely criticized by Western observers as flawed due to use of government resources to favor ruling party candidates, interference with media access, and harassment of opposition candidates. President YANUKOVYCH's backtracking on a trade and cooperation agreement with the EU in November 2013 - in favor of closer economic ties with Russia - and subsequent use of force against civil society activists in favor of the agreement led to a three-month protest occupation of Kyiv's central square. The government's use of violence to break up the protest camp in February 2014 led to all out pitched battles, scores of deaths, international condemnation, and the president's abrupt departure to Russia. New elections in the spring allowed pro-West president Petro POROSHENKO to assume office on 7 June 2014. Shortly after YANUKOVYCH's departure in late February 2014, Russian President PUTIN ordered the invasion of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula claiming the action was to protect ethnic Russians living there. Two weeks later, a "referendum" was held regarding the integration of Crimea into the Russian Federation. The "referendum" was condemned as illegitimate by the Ukrainian Government, the EU, the US, and the UN General Assembly (UNGA). Although Russia illegally annexed Crimea after the "referendum," the Ukrainian Government, backed by UNGA resolution 68/262, asserts that Crimea remains part of Ukraine and fully under Ukrainian sovereignty. Russia also continues to supply separatists in two of Ukraine's eastern provinces with manpower, funding, and materiel resulting in an armed conflict with the Ukrainian Government. Representatives from Ukraine, Russia, and the unrecognized separatist republics signed a ceasefire agreement in September 2014. However, this ceasefire failed to stop the fighting. In a renewed attempt to alleviate ongoing clashes, leaders of Ukraine, Russia, France, and Germany negotiated a follow-on peace deal in February 2015 known as the Minsk Agreements. Representatives from Ukraine, Russia, and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe also meet regularly to facilitate implementation of the peace deal. Scattered fighting between Ukrainian and Russian-backed separatist forces is still ongoing in eastern Ukraine.
Strategic position at the crossroads between Europe and Asia; second-largest country in Europe after Russia
|Eastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland, Romania, and Moldova in the west and Russia in the east
|Geographic coordinates:
| total: 603,550 sq km
land: 579,330 sq km
water: 24,220 sq km
Size comparison: almost four times the size of Georgia; slightly smaller than Texas
|Land Boundaries:
|total: 5,618 km border countries (7): Belarus 1,111 km, Hungary 128 km, Moldova 1,202 km, Poland 535 km, Romania 601 km, Russia 1,944 km, Slovakia 97 km
|2,782 km
|Maritime claims:
| territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 m or to the depth of exploitation
|temperate continental; Mediterranean only on the southern Crimean coast; precipitation disproportionately distributed, highest in west and north, lesser in east and southeast; winters vary from cool along the Black Sea to cold farther inland; warm summers across the greater part of the country, hot in the south
|mostly fertile plains (steppes) and plateaus, with mountains found only in the west (the Carpathians) or in the extreme south of the Crimean Peninsula
|Elevation extremes:
|Natural resources:
|iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil, salt, sulfur, graphite, titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel, mercury, timber, arable land
|Land use:
| agricultural land: 71.2% arable land 56.1%; permanent crops 1.5%; permanent pasture 13.6% forest: 16.8%
other: 12% (2011 est.)
|Irrigated land:
|21,670 sq km (2012)
|Natural hazards:
|Current Environment Issues:
|inadequate supplies of potable water; air and water pollution; deforestation; radiation contamination in the northeast from 1986 accident at Chornobyl' Nuclear Power Plant
|International Environment Agreements:
| party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds
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| noun: Ukrainian(s)
adjective: Ukrainian
|Ethnic groups:
|Ukrainian 77.8%, Russian 17.3%, Belarusian 0.6%, Moldovan 0.5%, Crimean Tatar 0.5%, Bulgarian 0.4%, Hungarian 0.3%, Romanian 0.3%, Polish 0.3%, Jewish 0.2%, other 1.8% (2001 est.)
|Ukrainian (official) 67.5%, Russian (regional language) 29.6%, other (includes small Crimean Tatar-, Moldavian-, and Hungarian-speaking minorities) 2.9% (2001 est.) note: 2012 legislation enables a language spoken by at least 10% of an oblast's population to be given the status of "regional language," allowing for its use in courts, schools, and other government institutions; Ukrainian remains the country's only official nationwide language
| Orthodox (includes Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox (UAOC), Ukrainian Orthodox - Kyiv Patriarchate (UOC-KP), Ukrainian Orthodox - Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP), Ukrainian Greek Catholic, Roman Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, Jewish
note: Ukraine's population is overwhelmingly Christian; the vast majority - up to two-thirds - identify themselves as Orthodox, but many do not specify a particular branch; the UOC-KP and the UOC-MP each represent less than a quarter of the country's population, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church accounts for 8-10%, and the UAOC accounts for 1-2%; Muslim and Jewish adherents each compose less than 1% of the total population (2013 est.)
|44,209,733 (July 2016 est.)
|Age structure:
| 0-14 years: 15.51% (male 3,528,821/female 3,326,405)
15-24 years: 10.3% (male 2,334,454/female 2,218,718)
25-54 years: 44.47% (male 9,639,404/female 10,020,385)
55-64 years: 13.68% (male 2,587,898/female 3,458,016)
65 years and over: 16.05% (male 2,375,904/female 4,719,728) (2016 est.)
|Dependency ratios:
| total dependency ratio: 43.3%
youth dependency ratio: 21.4%
elderly dependency ratio: 21.9%
potential support ratio: 4.6% (2015 est.)
|Median age:
| total: 40.4 years
male: 37.2 years
female: 43.5 years (2016 est.)
|Population growth rate:
|-0.39% (2016 est.)
|Birth rate:
|10.5 births/1,000 population (2016 est.)
|Death rate:
|14.4 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.)
|Net migration rate:
|0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.)
| urban population: 69.7% of total population (2015)
rate of urbanization: -0.33% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)
|Major urban areas - population:
|KYIV (capital) 2.942 million; Kharkiv 1.441 million; Odesa 1.01 million; Dnipropetrovsk 957,000; Donetsk 934,000; Zaporizhzhya 753,000 (2015)
|Sex ratio:
| at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.96 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.75 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.5 male(s)/female
total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2016 est.)
|Mother's mean age at first birth:
|25 (2013 est.)
|Maternal mortality rate:
|24 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)
|Infant mortality rate:
| total: 8 deaths/1,000 live births male: 8.9 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 7 deaths/1,000 live births (2016 est.)
|Life expectancy at birth:
| total population: 71.8 years male: 67.1 years
female: 76.9 years (2016 est.)
|Total fertility rate:
|1.54 children born/woman (2016 est.)
|Contraceptive prevalence rate:
|65.4% (2012)
|Health expenditures:
|7.1% of GDP (2014)
|Physicians density:
|3.54 physicians/1,000 population (2013)
|Hospital bed density:
|9 beds/1,000 population (2012)
|Drinking water source:
| improved:
urban: 95.5% of population
rural: 97.8% of population
total: 96.2% of population
urban: 4.5% of population
rural: 2.2% of population
total: 3.8% of population (2015 est.)
|Sanitation facility access:
| improved:
urban: 97.4% of population
rural: 92.6% of population
total: 95.9% of population
urban: 2.6% of population
rural: 7.4% of population
total: 4.1% of population (2015 est.)
|HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
|0.86% (2015 est.)
|HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
|219,000 (2015 est.)
|HIV/AIDS - deaths:
|7,900 (2015 est.)
|Obesity - adult prevalence rate:
|21.7% (2014)
|Education expenditures:
|6% of GDP (2014)
| definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.8%
male: 99.8%
female: 99.7% (2015 est.)
|School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
| total: 15 years male: 15 years
female: 16 years (2014)
|Unemployment, youth ages 15-24:
| total: 23.1% male: 23.7%
female: 22.4% (2014 est.)
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|Country name:
| conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Ukraine
local long form: none
local short form: Ukrayina
former: Ukrainian National Republic, Ukrainian State, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic
etymology: name derives from the Old East Slavic word "ukraina" meaning "borderland or march (militarized border region)" and began to be used extensively in the 19th century; originally Ukrainians referred to themselves as Rusyny (Rusyns, Ruthenians, or Ruthenes), an endonym derived from the medieval Rus state (Kyivan Rus)
|Government type:
|semi-presidential republic
| name: Kyiv (Kiev)
note: pronounced KAY-yiv
geographic coordinates: 50 26 N, 30 31 E
time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
|Administrative divisions:
|24 provinces (oblasti, singular - oblast'), 1 autonomous republic* (avtonomna respublika), and 2 municipalities (mista, singular - misto) with oblast status**; Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Chernivtsi, Crimea or Avtonomna Respublika Krym* (Simferopol'), Dnipropetrovs'k (Dnipro), Donets'k, Ivano-Frankivs'k, Kharkiv, Kherson, Khmel'nyts'kyy, Kirovohrad (Kropyvnyts'kyy), Kyiv**, Kyiv, Luhans'k, L'viv, Mykolayiv, Odesa, Poltava, Rivne, Sevastopol'**, Sumy, Ternopil', Vinnytsya, Volyn' (Luts'k), Zakarpattya (Uzhhorod), Zaporizhzhya, Zhytomyr note 1: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses); plans include the eventual renaming of Dnipropetrovsk and Kirovohrad oblasts, but because these names are mentioned in the Constitution of Ukraine, the change will require a constitutional amendment note 2: the United States does not recognize Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the municipality of Sevastopol, nor their redesignation as the Republic of Crimea and the Federal City of Sevastopol
| 24 August 1991 (from the Soviet Union);
notable earlier dates: ca. 982 (VOLODYMYR I consolidates Kyivan Rus), 1648 (establishment of the Cossack Hetmanate)
|National holiday:
|Independence Day, 24 August (1991); note - 22 January 1918, the day Ukraine first declared its independence (from Soviet Russia) and the day the short-lived Western and Greater (Eastern) Ukrainian republics united (1919), is now celebrated as Unity Day
|history: several previous; latest adopted and ratified 28 June 1996 amendments: proposed by the president of Ukraine or by at least one-third of the Supreme Council members; adoption requires simple majority vote by the Council and at least two-thirds majority vote in its next regular session; adoption of proposals relating to general constitutional principles, elections, and amendment procedures requires two-thirds majority vote by the Council and approval in a referendum; constitutional articles on personal rights and freedoms, national independence, and territorial integrity cannot be amended; amended 2004, 2010, 2015 (2016)
|Legal system:
|civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts
|18 years of age; universal
|Executive branch:
| chief of state: President Petro POROSHENKO (since 7 June 2014)
head of government: Prime Minister Volodymyr HROYSMAN (since 14 April 2016); First Deputy Prime Minister Stepan KUBIV (since 14 April 2016)
cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers nominated by the prime minister, approved by the Verkhovna Rada elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 25 May 2014 (next to be held in 2019); prime minister nominated by the president, confirmed by the Verkhovna Rada
election results: Petro POROSHENKO elected president; percent of vote - Petro POROSHENKO (independent) 54.5%, Yuliya TYMOSHENKO (Fatherland) 12.9%, Oleh LYASHKO (Radical Party) 8.4%, other 24.2%; Volodymyr HROISMAN elected prime minister; Verkhovna Rada vote 257-50
note: there is also a National Security and Defense Council or NSDC originally created in 1992 as the National Security Council; the NSDC staff is tasked with developing national security policy on domestic and international matters and advising the president; a presidential administration helps draft presidential edicts and provides policy support to the president
|Legislative branch:
| description: unicameral Supreme Council or Verkhovna Rada (450 seats; 225 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 225 directly elected in a single nationwide constituency by proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms); note - because of the Russian annexation of Crimea and the partial occupation of two eastern provinces, 27 of the 450 seats remain unfilled
elections: last held on 26 October 2014 (next to be held fall of 2019)
election results: percent of vote by party - NF 22.1%, BPP 21.8%, Samopomich 11.0%, OB 9.4%, Radical 7.4%, Batkivshchyna 5.7%, Svoboda 4.7%, CPU 3.9%, other 13.9%; seats by party - BPP 132, NF 82, Samopomich 33, OB 29, Radical 22, Batkivshchyna 19, Svoboda 6, other 4, independent 96, vacant 27; note - voting not held in Crimea and parts of two Russian-occupied eastern oblasts leaving 27 seats vacant; seats as of December 2015 - BPP 139, NF 81, OB 43, Samopomich 26, Vidrozhennya 23, Radical 21, Batkivshchyna 19, VN 20, independent 50, vacant 28
|Judicial branch:
| highest court(s): Supreme Court of Ukraine or SCU (consists of 95 judges organized into civil, criminal, commercial, and administrative chambers, and a military panel); Constitutional Court (consists of 18 justices) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges proposed by the Supreme Council of Justice or SCJ (a 20-member independent body of judicial officials and other appointees) and appointed by presidential decree; judges initially appointed for 5 years and, if approved by the SCJ, serve until mandatory retirement at age 65; Constitutional Court justices appointed - 6 each by the president, by the SCU, and by the Verkhovna Rada; justices appointed for 9-year non-renewable terms
subordinate courts: specialized high courts; Courts of Cassation; Courts of Appeal; regional, district, city, and town courts
|Political parties and leaders:
|Batkivshchyna ("Fatherland") [Yuliya TYMOSHENKO] Bloc of Petro Poroshenko – Solidarnist or BPP [Vitaliy KLYCHKO] (formed from the merger of Solidarnist and UDAR) Narodnyy Front ("People's Front") or NF [Arseniy YATSENIUK] Opposition Bloc or OB [Yuriy BOYKO] Radical Party [Oleh LYASHKO] Samopomich ("Self Reliance") [Andriy SADOVYY] Svoboda ("Freedom") [Oleh TYAHNYBOK] Ukrainian Association of Patriots or UKROP [Ihor KOLOMOYSKYY] Vidrozhennya ("Revival") [Vitaliy KHOMUTYNNIK] (parliamentary group) Volya Naroda ("People's Will") or VN (Yaroslav MOSKALENKO)
|Political pressure groups and leaders:
|Centre UA [Oleh RYBACHUK] OPORA Civic Network [Olha AIVAZOVSKA]
|International organization participation:
|Australia Group, BSEC, CBSS (observer), CD, CE, CEI, CICA (observer), CIS (participating member, has not signed the 1993 CIS charter), EAEC (observer), EAPC, EBRD, FAO, GCTU, GUAM, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAIA (observer), MIGA, MONUSCO, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS (observer), OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, SELEC (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
|National symbol(s):
|tryzub (trident); national colors: blue, yellow
|National anthem:
| name: "Shche ne vmerla Ukraina" (Ukraine Has Not Yet Perished)
lyrics/music: Paul CHUBYNSKYI/Mikhail VERBYTSKYI
note: music adopted 1991, lyrics adopted 2003; song first performed in 1864 at the Ukraine Theatre in Lviv; the lyrics, originally written in 1862, were revised in 2003
|Diplomatic representation in the US:
| chief of mission: Ambassador Valeriy CHALYY (since 3 August 2015)
chancery: 3350 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20007
telephone: [1] (202) 349-2920
consulate(s) general: Chicago, New York, San Francisco
|Diplomatic representation from the US:
| chief of mission: Ambassador Marie YOVANOVITCH (since 29 August 2016)
embassy: 4 Igor Sikorsky Street, 04112 Kyiv
mailing address: 5850 Kyiv Place, Washington, DC 20521-5850
telephone: [380] (44) 521-5000
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After Russia, the Ukrainian republic was the most important economic component of the former Soviet Union, producing about four times the output of the next-ranking republic. Its fertile black soil generated more than one-fourth of Soviet agricultural output, and its farms provided substantial quantities of meat, milk, grain, and vegetables to other republics. Likewise, its diversified heavy industry supplied unique equipment, such as, large diameter pipes and vertical drilling apparatus, and raw materials to industrial and mining sites in other regions of the former USSR. Shortly after independence in August 1991, the Ukrainian Government liberalized most prices and erected a legal framework for privatization, but widespread resistance to reform within the government and the legislature soon stalled reform efforts and led to some backtracking. Output by 1999 had fallen to less than 40% of the 1991 level. Outside institutions - particularly the IMF –encouraged Ukraine to quicken the pace and scope of reforms to foster economic growth. Ukrainian Government officials eliminated most tax and customs privileges in a March 2005 budget law, bringing more economic activity out of Ukraine's large shadow economy. But more improvements are needed, including fighting corruption, developing capital markets, and improving the legislative framework. From 2000 until mid-2008, Ukraine's economy was buoyant despite political turmoil between the prime minister and president. Ukraine's dependence on Russia for energy supplies and the lack of significant structural reform have made the Ukrainian economy vulnerable to external shocks. Ukraine depends on imports to meet about three-fourths of its annual oil and natural gas requirements and 100% of its nuclear fuel needs. In January 2009, after a two-week dispute that saw gas supplies cut off to Europe, Ukraine agreed to 10-year gas supply and transit contracts with Russia that brought gas prices to "world" levels. The strict terms of the contracts further hobbled Ukraine's cash-strapped state gas company, Naftohaz. The economy contracted nearly 15% in 2009, among the worst economic performances in the world. In April 2010, Ukraine negotiated a price discount on Russian gas imports in exchange for extending Russia's lease on its naval base in Crimea. Ukraine's oligarch-dominated economy grew slowly from 2010 to 2014. After former President YANUKOVYCH fled the country during the Revolution of Dignity, the international community began efforts to stabilize the Ukrainian economy, including a March 2014 IMF assistance package of $14-18 billion. Ukraine has made significant progress on reforms designed to make the country a prosperous, democratic, and transparent country. Russia's occupation of Crimea in March 2014 and on-going aggression in eastern Ukraine have hurt economic growth. With the loss of a major portion of Ukraine's heavy industry in Donbas and ongoing violence, Ukraine's economy contracted by 6.8% in 2014 and by an estimated 10.5% in 2015. Ukraine and Russia have engaged in a trade war with sharply reduced trade between the countries by the end of 2015. The EU-Ukraine Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area finally started up on 1 January 2016, and is expected to help Ukraine integrate its economy with Europe by opening up markets and harmonizing regulations.
|GDP (purchasing power parity):
| GDP (purchasing power parity): $349.8 billion (2016 est.) $344.6 billion (2015 est.) $382.4 billion (2014 est.)
note: data are in 2016 dollars
|GDP (official exchange rate):
|GDP (official exchange rate): $87.2 billion (2015 est.)
|GDP - real growth rate:
|1.5% (2016 est.) -9.9% (2015 est.) -6.6% (2014 est.)
|GDP - per capita (PPP):
| GDP - per capita (PPP): $8,200 (2016 est.) $8,100 (2015 est.) $8,900 (2014 est.)
note: data are in 2016 dollars
|Gross national saving:
|14.3% of GDP (2016 est.) 15% of GDP (2015 est.) 9.5% of GDP (2014 est.)
|GDP - composition, by end use:
| household consumption: 69.3%
government consumption: 20.3%
investment in fixed capital: 13.3%
investment in inventories: 0.5%
exports of goods and services: 55.9%
imports of goods and services: -59.3% (2016 est.)
|GDP - composition, by sector of origin:
| household consumption: 69.3%
government consumption: 20.3%
investment in fixed capital: 13.3%
investment in inventories: 0.5%
exports of goods and services: 55.9%
imports of goods and services: -59.3% (2016 est.)
|Agriculture - products:
|grain, sugar beets, sunflower seeds, vegetables; beef, milk
|coal, electric power, ferrous and nonferrous metals, machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, food processing
|Industrial production growth rate:
|2% (2016 est.)
|Labor force:
|18.04 million (2016 est.)
|Labor force - by occupation:
| agriculture: 5.8%
industry: 26.5%
services: 67.8% (2014)
|Unemployment rate:
|10% (2016 est.) 9.1% (2015 est.) note: officially registered workers; large number of unregistered or underemployed workers
|Population below poverty line:
|24.1% (2010 est.)
|Household income or consumption by percentage share:
| lowest 10%: 3.8%
highest 10%: 22.5% (2011 est.)
|Distribution of family income - Gini index:
|24.6 (2013) 28.2 (2009)
| revenues: $27.8 billion
expenditures: $30.87 billion note: this is the planned, consolidated budget (2016 est.)
|Taxes and other revenues:
|31.9% of GDP (2016 est.)
|Public debt:
| 78.2% of GDP (2016 est.) 79.4% of GDP (2015 est.)
note: the total public debt of $64.5 billion consists of: domestic public debt ($23.8 billion); external public debt ($26.1 billion); and sovereign guarantees ($14.6 billion)
|Fiscal year:
|calendar year
|Inflation rate (consumer prices):
|Inflation rate (consumer prices): 13.5% (2016 est.) 48.7% (2015 est.) note: Excluding the temporarily occupied territories of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the city of Sevastopol and part of the anti-terrorist operation zone
|Current account balance:
|-$1.315 billion (2016 est.) -$251 million (2015 est.)
|$33.97 billion (2016 est.) $35.5 billion (2015 est.)
|Exports - commodities:
|ferrous and nonferrous metals, fuel and petroleum products, chemicals, machinery and transport equipment, foodstuffs
|Exports - partners:
|Russia 12.7%, Turkey 7.3%, China 6.3%, Egypt 5.5%, Italy 5.2%, Poland 5.2% (2015)
|$38.3 billion (2016 est.) $38.94 billion (2015 est.)
|Imports - commodities:
|energy, machinery and equipment, chemicals
|Imports - partners:
|Russia 20%, Germany 10.4%, China 10.1%, Belarus 6.5%, Poland 6.2%, Hungary 4.2% (2015)
|Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
|$16.01 billion (31 December 2016 est.) $13.3 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
|Debt - external:
|$127.7 billion (31 December 2016 est.) $119.8 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
|Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
|$65.95 billion (31 December 2016 est.) $60.95 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
|Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
|$7.983 billion (31 December 2016 est.) $7.183 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
|Market value of publicly traded shares:
|$20.71 billion (31 December 2012 est.) $25.56 billion (31 December 2011 est.) $39.46 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
|Exchange rates:
|hryvnia (UAH) per US dollar - 25.26 (2016 est.) 21.8447 (2015 est.) 21.8447 (2014 est.) 11.8867 (2013 est.) 7.99 (2012 est.)
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|Electricity - production:
|171 billion kWh (2014 est.)
|Electricity - consumption:
|143 billion kWh (2014 est.)
|Electricity - exports:
|8.5 billion kWh (2014 est.)
|Electricity - imports:
|89 million kWh (2014 est.)
|Electricity - installed generating capacity:
|56 million kW (2014 est.)
|Electricity - from fossil fuels:
|63.7% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
|Electricity - from nuclear fuels:
|23.7% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
|Electricity - from hydroelectric plants:
|9.9% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
|Electricity - from other renewable sources:
|1.1% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
|Crude oil - production:
|35,910 bbl/day (2015 est.)
|Crude oil - exports:
|668.1 bbl/day (2013 est.)
|Crude oil - imports:
|24,180 bbl/day (2013 est.)
|Crude oil - proved reserves:
|400 million bbl (1 January 2016 es)
|Refined petroleum products - production:
|96,210 bbl/day (2013 est.)
|Refined petroleum products - consumption:
|257,000 bbl/day (2014 est.)
|Refined petroleum products - exports:
|19,250 bbl/day (2013 est.)
|Refined petroleum products - imports:
|153,000 bbl/day (2013 est.)
|Natural gas - production:
|19.9 billion cu m (2015)
|Natural gas - consumption:
|33.8 billion cu m (2015 est.)
|Natural gas - exports:
|0 cu m (2015 est.)
|Natural gas - imports:
|20 billion cu m (2014 est.)
|Natural gas - proved reserves:
|1.104 trillion cu m (1 January 2016 es)
|Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy:
|291 million Mt (2013 est.)
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|Cellular Phones in use:
|total: 60.72 million subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 137 (July 2015 est.)
|Telephone system:
| general assessment: Ukraine's telecommunication development plan emphasizes improving domestic trunk lines, international connections, and the mobile-cellular system
domestic: the country's former sole telephone provider, Ukrtelekom, was successfully privatized 2011 and independent foreign-invested private companies now provide substantial telecommunications services; the mobile-cellular telephone system's expansion has slowed,
international: country code - 380; 2 new domestic trunk lines are a part of the fiber-optic Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) system and 3 Ukrainian links have been installed in the fiber-optic Trans-European Lines (TEL) project that connects 18 countries; additional internationa (2015)
|Broadcast media:
|state-controlled nationwide TV broadcast channel (UT1) and a number of privately owned TV networks provide basic TV coverage; multi-channel cable and satellite TV services are available; Russian television broadcasts have a small audience nationwide, but (2007)
|Internet country code:
|Internet users:
|total: 21.886 million percent of population: 49.3% (July 2015 est.)
|^Back to Top
|187 (2013)
|Airports (paved runways):
| total 108
over 3,047 m: 13
2,438 to 3,047 m: 42
1,524 to 2,437 m: 22
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 28 (2013)
|Airports (unpaved runways):
| total 79
1,524 to 2,437 m: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 69 (2013)
|9 (2013)
|gas 36,720 km; oil 4,514 km; refined products 4,363 km (2013)
| total 21,733 km
broad gauge: 21,684 km 1.524-m gauge (9,250 km electrified) standard gauge: 49 km 1.435-m gauge (49 km electrified) (2014)
| total 169,694 km
paved: 166,095 km (includes 17 km of expressways)
unpaved: 3,599 km (2012)
|1,672 km (most on Dnieper River) (2012)
|Merchant marine:
| total 134
by type: bulk carrier 3, cargo 98, chemical tanker 1, passenger 6, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker 8, refrigerated cargo 11, specialized tanker 2
registered in other countries: 172 (Belize 6, Cambodia 35, Comoros 10, Cyprus 3, Dominica 1, Georgia 10, Liberia 10, Malta 29, Marshall Islands 1, Moldova 14, Mongolia 1, Panama 8, Russia 12, Saint Kitts and Nevis 8, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 12, Sierra Leone 5, Slovakia 2, unknown (2010)
|Ports and terminals:
|major seaport(s): Feodosiya (Theodosia), Illichivsk, Mariupol', Mykolayiv, Odesa, Yuzhnyy
|^Back to Top
|Military branches:
|Ground Forces, Naval Forces, Air Forces (2013)
|Military service age and obligation:
|20-27 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation is 18 months (2015)
|Military expenditures:
|3.8% of GDP (2016) 2.7% of GDP (2015) 1.77% of GDP (2014) 0.97% of GDP (2013)
|^Back to Top
|Transnational Issues
|Disputes - International:
|1997 boundary delimitation treaty with Belarus remains unratified due to unresolved financial claims, stalling demarcation and reducing border security; delimitation of land boundary with Russia is complete and demarcation began in 2012; the dispute over the boundary between Russia and Ukraine through the Kerch Strait and Sea of Azov is suspended due to the occupation of Crimea by Russia; Ukraine and Moldova signed an agreement officially delimiting their border in 1999, but the border has not been demarcated due to Moldova's difficulties with the break-away region of Transnistria; Moldova and Ukraine operate joint customs posts to monitor transit of people and commodities through Moldova's Transnistria Region, which remains under the auspices of an Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe-mandated peacekeeping mission comprised of Moldovan, Transnistrian, Russian, and Ukrainian troops; the ICJ ruled largely in favor of Romania in its dispute submitted in 2004 over Ukrainian-administered Zmiyinyy/Serpilor (Snake) Island and Black Sea maritime boundary delimitation; Romania opposes Ukraine's reopening of a navigation canal from the Danube border through Ukraine to the Black Sea
|Refugees and internally displaced persons:
| IDPs: 800,000 (Russian-sponsored separatist violence in Crimea and eastern Ukraine) (2015); note - revised figure reflects updates to UN's IDP verification and registration processes
stateless persons: 35,228 (2015); note - citizens of the former USSR who were permanently resident in Ukraine were granted citizenship upon Ukraine's independence in 1991, but some missed this window of opportunity; people arriving after 1991, Crimean Tatars, ethnic Koreans, people with expired Soviet passports, and people with no documents have difficulty acquiring Ukrainian citizenship; following the fall of the Soviet Union in 1989, thousands of Crimean Tatars and their descendants deported from Ukraine under the STALIN regime returned to their homeland, some being stateless and others holding the citizenship of Uzbekistan or other former Soviet republics; a 1998 bilateral agreement between Ukraine and Uzbekistan simplified the process of renouncing Uzbek citizenship and obtaining Ukrainian citizenship
|Illicit drugs:
|limited cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for CIS consumption; some synthetic drug production for export to the West; limited government eradication program; used as transshipment point for opiates and other illicit drugs from Africa, Latin America, and Turkey to Europe and Russia; Ukraine has improved anti-money-laundering controls, resulting in its removal from the Financial Action Task Force's (FATF's) Noncooperative Countries and Territories List in February 2004; Ukraine's anti-money-laundering regime continues to be monitored by FATF
|^Back to Top
« Previous Country | Next Country » Back to Flag Counter Overview
Source: CIA - The World Factbook


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Hafren Junior School
Catchment Area
Academic Results
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About Hafren Junior School
Hafren Junior School is a Community school located in Newtown.
Contact Information
Hafren Junior School Park Lane Newtown, Newtown, Powys, SY16 1EG
01686 626143
Other Info
- Type: Community
- Gender: Co-ed
School Catchment Area
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subset: commoncrawl


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Posted on 15 May 2019.
The WINEFRONT has flourished as a wine review and information site since 2002. We believe in hard work, realistic scoring, reliability and rigorous independence. We cover Australian wine principally but we extend coverage across the wider world of wine. The hunt for the next beautiful wine knows no boundaries. The WINEFRONT is run by Campbell Mattinson, Gary Walsh and Mike Bennie. A full history of reviews and articles is available to subscribers via the WINE SEARCH tab.


text:
Midwest Living Holiday Gift Guide 2012
Creative cookie tools
Whetstone Woodenware French rolling pin Your favorite baker will treasure this satin-smooth, elegantly tapered and surprisingly lightweight maple rolling pin made in Silver Lake, Indiana. $19.95. (800) 253-3670; whetstonewoodenware.com
Greenfield Village cookie cutter canister Hand-forged at The Henry Ford in Dearborn, Michigan, these five quaint cutters come stacked in a tin and look like set pieces from Little House on the Prairie. $43. (313) 982-6144; giftshop.thehenryford.org
Fancy Flours cookie stamps Step away from the frosting. All you need is firm cookie dough to make a great impression (pun intended) with these tools. The Home Made stamp (at left in picture, $17) presses balls of dough into adorable medallions. The Message on a Cookie gadget (at right in picture, $20) comes with tiny moveable letters to spell names or greetings. One idea: Edible place cards! (406) 587-0118; fancyflours.com
Cookie box
For a modern alternative to the classic cookie tin, tuck treats in white bakery boxes, available at crafts stores. We dolled ours up with a cheerful red ribbon and lined the inserts with coordinating paper.
Want to make these cookies? See our recipe for Vienna Almond Cutouts, then get tips here for making cool swirls.
Sweet greeting
When you want to give more than a card, but less than a gift, slip a cookie or two in a plastic treat bag (available at crafts stores) with a solid-color piece of scrapbooking paper. Fold contrasting paper over the opening, punch two holes, then tie with ribbon.
Winter wonderland
Cross-country snowshoes Clarence Iverson began constructing snowshoes from Michigan white ash, rawhide and copper on the Upper Peninsula in 1956. Whether you hang them on the wall or wear them into the woods, they'll last a lifetime—or several. From $227. (877) 452-6370; iversonssnowshoes.com
Good-for-you gift For a memorable and healthy gift, pack a pair of wool socks or cozy gloves in a bag with a Midwest hiking guide, then add a note inviting the recipient on the winter walk of their choice in the New Year.
Duluth Trading Company bags
The women on our staff fell hard for these rugged travel purses. Durable and attractive, with zippers that slide like a dream, they're an affordable sure thing for any on-the-go gal. From $30. (800) 505-8888; duluthtrading.com
Hiking guides
Several companies publish books about day hikes in and around Midwest cities. Priced around $18, they make great gifts, especially for someone who just moved to a new town. A few we like: Moon's Take a Hike, Falcon Guides' Best Hikes Near, Menasha Ridge Press' 60 Hikes within 60 Miles and Wilderness Press' Walking.
Funkychunky Chip-Zel-Pop
That's potato chips, pretzels and popcorn, clustered with thick chocolate and chewy caramel. The Minneapolis snack company's signature treat is sweet, salty and oh-so-addictive. $22 for 20 ounces. (888) 473-8659; funkychunky.com
Warm touches
Mojo Spa hats In addition to cosmetics, the Chicago company sells handmade accessories, including irresistibly flirty crocheted hats. Colors and styles may vary. $38. (773) 235-6656; mojospa.com or etsy.com/shop/mojospastyle
LazyTcrochet button-up shawl Garrettsville, Ohio, fiber artist Tricia Hodson's cozy crocheted wrap elicited oohs and ahhs when we walked it down the office hallway catwalk. Chunky round buttons and a great price seal the deal. $40. etsy.com/shop/lazytcrochet
Duluth Pack log carrier Made of durable canvas with attractive leather trim, the Minnesota-based company's carrier easily rolls or folds for off-season storage. A great pick for anyone who loves a wood-burning fire. (800) 777-4439; duluthpack.com
Baabaazuzu boot liners An unfortunate husband-dryer incident (we've all had 'em) inspired the Leelanau, Michigan, company's passion for stylishly upcycling old sweaters. $40. (231) 256-7176; baabaazuzu.com
Bemidji Woolen Mills mittens Trust a company that's been working with wool for 92 years (and in Minnesota, no less) to keep your fingers warm. These ragg wool mittens and gloves have practical deerskin palms and soft pile lining. $29.50. (888) 751-5166; bemidjiwoolenmills.com
Start a new tradition
You hum along every year-—but have you ever eaten a chestnut roasted over an open fire? Midwest-grown chestnuts are readily available online starting in late fall, and Jacob Bromwell, a 193-year-old Cincinnati-founded company that crafts classic kitchen gear, sells this stove- and fire-safe roaster. You may only use it once a year, but when you do, you'll know the holidays have arrived. Instructions and recipes included. $44.99. (800) 683-2626; jacobbromwell.com
Get personal
Four Midwest jewelry designers make the details of your life their business, printing birth dates, names and initials on sweetly simple pieces.
Lisa Hopkins Design carved tree West Lafayette, Indiana, metalsmith Lisa Hopkins' nostalgic tree design (far left in picture) scored big points with our staff. $64. lisahopkinsdesign.com
J Lynn Creations dog tag Chesterland, Ohio, artist Jacquie Lynn's necklaces (second from left in picture) will suit new daddies—or grandpas! $44. etsy.com/shop/jlynncreations
Amy Cornwell miniature monogram Noblesville, Indiana, artist Amy Cornwell's simple gold monogram charm (second from right in picture) would appeal to any age, but we like it as a special gift for a young girl. $25. amycornwell.com
Jeneri Jewelry necklaces Naperville, Illinois, artist Jennifer Neri offers an array of pieces stamped with dates, names or Braille letters (far right and middle necklace in picture). From $48. (216) 870-6838; etsy.com/shop/jenerijewelry (December 2012 update: Artist is on vacation and will not take further orders until January.)
Pearl inspirations
The inspiration and source for Nadine Leo's jewelry flows right outside her door. At the Mississippi River Pearl Company in Alma, Wisconsin, Nadine sells earrings, necklaces and rings she makes with Mississippi pearls. Prices vary, starting around $50. (Princess Diana and Queen Elizabeth have both worn her pieces.)
The endangered status of freshwater mussels adds to the mystique of Nadine's work. Because invasive zebra mussels threaten the local kind's population levels, harvesting is no longer permitted, so the number of pearls available is finite. But Nadine says she has enough to last her for years to come. (651) 301-1204; nadineleo.com
Michelle Brusegaard screen-print scarf
The Grand Forks, North Dakota, artist prints hipster-friendly earrings, stationery and colorful, soft-as-your-favorite-tee jersey scarves—as affordable as they are stylish. $25. etsy.com/shop/michellebrusegaard
Veronica Riley Martens tagua necklace
Adorn yourself with lusciously hued necklaces made of slices of renewable tagua nuts from the Amazon rainforest. Bold, beautiful and "green." What's not to love? From $60. etsy.com/shop/veronicarileymartens
Don't forget the pooch!
Potter Kim Berger makes gorgeous bowls and tasty treats for lucky dogs and cats (and humans, too) at her East Troy, Wisconsin, studio. The brightly colored dishes come in several sizes (from $15) and are heavy enough to withstand a dog's eager mealtime rush. She uses eggs from her chickens in the biscuits, which come in a cute paw-printed box ($14). Bowls and biscuits can be personalized for no extra charge. (262) 210-5846; etsy.com/shop/kboriginalsetc
Easy-fill ornaments
Nestle special "ingredients" inside ball ornaments for thoughtful, budget-friendly party favors or decorations. You can use wintry natural materials like we did, or let your imagination fly.
What you'll need
Plastic ball ornaments
Artificial snow
Pine tree clippings
Place items inside one ornament half. (Leave them loose, or secure with a dot of hot glue.) Top with the other half, string with ribbon, and presto, you're done!
Artful home glass ornaments
Order exquisite, jewellike ornaments from all over North America at this beautiful online gallery based in Madison, Wisconsin. From $29. (877) 223-4600; artfulhome.com
Tazza Glass candy canes
Mike Grau blows hundreds of glass ornaments every year at his studio in Medina, Ohio. Browse the huge array of balls and teardrops, or order several of these sparkly candy canes, available in a rainbow of sweet colors. $10. (440) 570-7172; tazzaglass.com
Le Papier studio ornament
A Chicago company puts silhouettes on ornaments (and many more items). Pick a standard form, or for $10, submit a photo. $34. (847) 922-6474; lepapierstudio.com
Christmas countdown
Paper Source wreath kit Chicago-based Paper Source makes holiday crafting easy with a variety of wreath kits. Punch out, fold, and adhere petals and leaves to the included wreath form. Great for beginner crafters! $19.50. (888) 727-3711; paper-source.com
Do-it-yourself Advent calendar Give family and holiday guests a festive fireplace surprise. Pop pieces of candy, small toys or clues (to find larger gifts hidden in the house) in 24 tiny envelopes or muslin bags. Rubber-stamp numbers on circular labels to seal envelope flaps, or write numbers on bags with a marker. Hang envelopes or bags along the mantel with mini clothespins. Shop your local crafts store for similar supplies, or find pictured items at Paper Source. (888) 727-3711; paper-source.com
Page Russell stoneware vase "Gnaw marks" add fun texture to the matte white Bad Beaver Vase (pictured at left on mantel), one of many mod gifts we love at Chicago's Unison. $78. (877) 492-7960; unisonhome.com
Faribault Woolen Mill Co. Soho throw
Of all the wool throws we snuggled under, this was the softest. Made in Minnesota, it's a timeless Christmas gift that will cozy up the back of your sofa for winters to come. $130. (507) 412-5510; faribaultmill.com
Red aglaonema
We love this festive, easy-care houseplant as a long-lasting alternative to poinsettias. Find it at Lowes, Home Depot and Walmart this December. Because it's not a traditional gift plant, you may want to dress up the pot. Center pot on a square of felt (sized so that ends fold up to reach the pot's rim). Bring up one corner; hot-glue felt to the rim of the pot. Bring up adjacent corner, folding under excess, and hot-glue. Repeat with remaining corners. Finish with a ribbon and tag.
Decoylab clocks
A Walt Disney forest's worth of cute critters (owls, bunnies, deer and more) populate this line of whimsical wall clocks made in Kansas City, Missouri. Many are perfect for a baby's nursery; the trendy bird designs make a stylish accent for any room. $84. decoylab.com or etsy.com/shop/decoylab
Death's Door Spirits gin
This Middleton, Wisconsin, distillery takes its name from the dangerous water between the Door County peninsula and Washington Island. Ingredients include Washington Island juniper berries and wheat. $30 for 750 ml. deathsdoorspirits.com
Try it in our Jolly Gin Fizz, an effervescent, gingery cocktail, sweetened with pomegranate juice and spiked with gin.
Sechler's pickles
Skip the grocery store gherkins, and try these guys, made in St. Joe, Indiana, since 1921. Candied-orange-flavored spears taste the way clove-studded oranges smell: Perfect for Christmas! $16.95 for a four-jar gift box. (800) 332-5461; gourmetpickles.com
Pierrepont Hicks tie
Style doesn't always start on the coasts. Since 2009, Minneapolis couple Mac and Katherine McMillan's hip-yet-classic wool ties have been a fashion-blog staple. $120. pierreponthicks.com
J.W. Hulme iPad sleeve
Based in Saint Paul, J.W. Hulme has crafted canvas and leather goods since 1905. (The company supplied Army tents during WWI.) Their iPad sleeves can be monogrammed and make great gifts for business travelers. $125. (800) 442-8212; jwhulmeco.com
The Henry Ford Wright Flyer
Indulge your inner 10-year-old boy—or an actual one on your list—with this 20-inch model from the Michigan museum's gift shop. Bonus: It really flies (and, we've found, survives crash landings in soft grass). $55. (313) 982-6144; giftshop.thehenryford.org
Grandpa Shorter's cheese knife
The beloved souvenir-and-more shop in Petoskey, Michigan, sells elegant knives with handles made of Petoskey stone, the speckled fossils found on area beaches. $53. (231) 347-2603; grandpashorters.com
Daisygirl lotion and body butter
Made in Elk Horn, Iowa, the nongreasy formula leaves just enough scent to remind you (or your better half) that you're wearing something special. Our pick: Pomegranate Grapefruit. From $5. (712) 249-5253; daisygirlbath.com
DB Infusion bars
A confetti of spices, fruits, nuts and tea flavors these beautiful chocolate bars from Madison, Wisconsin. We love the No. 2, with curry powder, cinnamon, honey, orange zest, mango, coconut and almonds. $5.25 apiece, or $31.50 for a seven-bar gift set. (608) 233-1600; infusionchocolates.com
Salt Sisters vanilla infusion kit
Pour vodka over the beans, and in two months, you've got a giant bottle of vanilla extract. Made by a Goshen, Indiana, gourmet seasoning company, the kit and beans can be reused for another batch. $25.95. (574) 276-8871; saltsistersonline.com
Catstudio tumblers
Show your state pride with mix-and-match vintage-style frosted glasses. (The website has scores of other cool goodies; enter with caution.) $12.25 each. (800) 819-3367; catstudio.com
Amy Butler smartphone skin
The Granville, Ohio, designer's signature bold floral patterns will make any phone stand out from the crowd. A great stocking stuffer, they are available to fit a variety of models. $15. (866) 380-8130; skinit.com
Giardino napkins
Cleveland Heights, Ohio, artist Pat Garmhausen hand-prints these luxurious linen napkins. Stash a set or two for last-minute hostess gifts. We're equally smitten with her cheery dish towels and pillows. $40. etsy.com/shop/giardino
Visions of sugar rubs
Give the gift of relaxation with seasonally scented body scrubs. They softly exfoliate, leave skin nourished and are oh-so-easy to make.
What you'll need
Granulated sugar
Olive oil
Cocoa (optional)
Essential oils (try peppermint, cinnamon or sweet orange)
Food coloring
Mix 1-1/2 cups of sugar with 1/3 cup of olive oil. For chocolate, add 2 tablespoons cocoa. Add 2 to 3 drops of desired essential oil and a few drops of food coloring for a festive hue. Spoon scrub into crafts store jars and tie on decorative labels.


text:
1675 84th St. SE
Caledonia, MI 49316
Office Hours: Mon-Thu 8:30am-4:30pm, Fri 8:30am-12:30pm
Find on a Map
Sunday: 9:30 & 11am
Monday: 7pm
CornerKids Infant-5th
grade programming offered during all services unless
otherwise noted.
For 6th-12th grade programming, see our Student Ministries page.
Missed a service? No problem! Just head over to our messages page to watch or listen to previous messages.
Click for Campus
48 Lafayette Ave SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
We have many options for parking and have created a PDF map and created a Google Earth map to help you locate nearby parking lots. Please look for the Cornerstone parking signs.
Find on a Map
Where to Park
Sunday: 10:30am
Infant-5th grade programming offered during the
Missed a service? No problem! Just head over to our messages page to listen to previous messages.
2730 56th St SW
Wyoming, MI 49418
Sunday: 9:30 & 11am
August 4, 2019 | Brad Kalajainen84th St. Campus
Message Discussion Guide
If you have a prayer request, or to see our weekly prayer requests, visit our Prayer Room.
by Brad Kalajainen on 08/11/19


text:
|• July 2010
|• August 2010
|• September 2010
|• October 2010
|• November 2010
|• December 2010
|• January 2011
|• February 2011
|• March 2011
|• April 2011
|• May 2011
Wendell Barnhouse is a nationally-known and respected columnist who has spent over 20 years covering collegiate athletics. He has reported from 24 Final Fours and more than three dozen bowl games and has written about the Big 12 and its schools since the conference's beginning. Barnhouse will be updating the Big 12 Insider on happenings and behind-the-scenes information about the conference.
June 2011
|Wednesday, June 29
More clickable links
New Texas A&M men's basketball coach Billy Kennedy credits his high school coach - who is now his stepfather - with influencing his career choice. And ESPN.com's Eamon Brennan weighs in on Kennedy's preferred style of play.
Former Oklahoma State coach Sean Sutton has been hired by his brother Scott to be an assistant coach at Oral Roberts.
And Dave Sittler of the Tulsa World writes how Scott Sutton has just completed the biggest assist of his career by helping his brother get back into coaching.
Marquise Goodwin of Texas won the long jump title at the USA outdoor national championships over the weekend which means he can compete in the world championships in Korea - which is the same weekend as UT's opening game against Rice.
Kansas' Thomas Robinson displayed his skills and talent at the Amar'e Stoudamire Skills Academy in Chicago.
|Monday, June 27
Links to start your week
Berry Tramel of the Oklahoman writes the cooperative spirit in the Big 12 Conference is at an all-time high and it can be traced to the departure of one school.
Mike Jones of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes that Texas coach Rick Barnes, in 14 seasons as coach of the Longhorns, has become a victim of his own success.
Dave Matter of the Columbia Daily Tribune, in his Big 12 Summer Countdown Series, ranks the top defensive coaches.
The past year shows that Texas A&M continues to move toward its goal of building champions.
Athletic director Mike Holder has been instrumental in giving Oklahoma State the facilities it needs to compete on a national level.
Kansas State is planning a $60 million renovation of Bill Snyder Family Stadium that athletic director John Currie considers crucial.
Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman reviews the Big 12 Conference 2010-11 season and sees brighter days ahead.
|Tuesday, June 21
Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman writes that despite a winless visit to Omaha, the Texas baseball team overachieved this year.
Kansas State freshman guard Angel Rodriguez has a role model in J.J. Barea of the NBA champion Dallas Mavericks.
Dave Matter of the Columbia Daily Tribune, in his Big 12 Summer Countdown Series, ranks the top offensive coaches.
Berry Tramel of the Oklahoman ranks the nonconference football schedules for the Big 12 teams.
Jeff Borzello, who covers college basketball recruiting for CBSSports.com writes about the unusual pipeline that has developed between Iowa State and New York City.
|Monday, June 20
Texas A&M Falls To Defending National Champs
Both Big 12 Conference teams in the College World Series are in similar positions after losses that came in similar fashions.
Texas, which faces an elimination game Monday, lost its opener despite taking a 3-0 lead. Texas A&M jumped to a 4-0 lead on South Carolina Sunday night but wound up losing 5-4 when the Gamecocks scored the winning run in the bottom of the ninth.
The Aggies took advantage of an error and two-out, three-run triple from Brandon Wood to score four times in the top of the first. With ace Ross Stripling on the mound, things looked promising for A&M. However, an error by the Aggies helped the defending national champions score four runs in their half of the first.
Texas A&M had been averaging nearly eight runs over its last 11 games but was stifled over the last eight innings. The Aggies finished with just four hits and struck out 10 times.
Stripling recovered from his shaky start and was outstanding through the eighth inning. A&M reliever Kyle Martin allowed a leadoff double in the bottom of the ninth and South Carolina loaded the bases with no outs. The Aggies brought in an extra infielder but the strategy didn't work when South Carolina second baseman Scott Wingo completed a four-for-four night with a game-winning single off the wall in right field.
The Aggies will face Cal at 1 p.m. Tuesday in an elimination game.
"This isn't the first time we've lost a game," Texas A&M coach Rob Childress said. "I mean, we've lost 21 on the year and our guys have been very, very resilient. I think what we've been through for the last month has really helped our team, helped us grow and helped us get closer together."
If Childress and his players can take any solace from the loss it's the knowledge that South Carolina lost its CWS opener last year and then won six consecutive games to claim the championship. It can be done.
|Sunday, June 19
Texas Loses CWS Opener
Joe Garagiola wrote a book called "Baseball Is a Funny Game" that dealt mostly with the stories he had encountered during his baseball and broadcasting days.
Texas coach Augie Garrido might not say that baseball is a funny game but he acknowledges the mysteries, twists and turns that a team can encounter ... especially in the postseason.
In the Longhorns' first game in the College World Series Saturday night they took advantage of two Florida errors to take a 3-0 lead in the top of the third. With junior Taylor Jungmann on the mound, that looked like enough to assure UT of a crucial opening victory.
Jungmann, after all, won three games in Omaha as a freshman in 2009. This season, he had 13 victories and a 0.95 ERA. Even facing a lineup as powerful as Florida's, giving Jungmann an early 3-0 lead is tantamount to giving Texas a victory.
It didn't exactly work out that way. Jungmann couldn't find the strike zone and the Gators tagged him for five runs (four earned) in 4.1 innings as Florida rallied for an 8-4 victory.
"I think probably in the third inning I got out of rhythm," Jungmann said. "Once I got out of rhythm, I made some bad pitches. I walked more guys (four) than I usually do. And, I mean, they took advantage of it."
In three NCAA starts, Jungmann has allowed 12 earned runs in 18.1 innings (7.85 ERA). Texas has lost all three of those games. The Longhorns will face their sixth elimination game of the postseason when they meet North Carolina at 1 p.m. Monday in a loser-goes-home game.
If there's one thing that Texas fans believed headed into the NCAA tournament was that with Jungmann on the mound, the Longhorns would win the game.
"You can't ever assume anything in baseball," UT shortstop Brandon Loy said.
That's why baseball is a funny game. Funny as in unpredictable, not funny as in anyone in Burnt Orange feels like laughing.
|Thursday, June 16
Condolences and RIP
Kevin Gray, who worked closely with the Big 12 Conference as president of the Greater Kansas City Sports Commission for the last 22 years, died Wednesday after a battle with metastatic cancer. He was 51.
Click and read
Texas A&M pitcher Ross Stripling credits coach Rob Childress with teaching him an off-speed pitch that has helped Stripling compile an impressive 14-2 record.
Texas is back in the College World Series thanks to the key contributions from five freshmen.
The PGA Tour has a new promotional video out that is, well, different. "Golf Boys" features former Oklahoma State golfers Hunter Mahan and Rickie Fowler. Just click and watch.
|Tuesday, June 14
Hot links for a Tuesday
A trip to Omaha for the College World Series is a fitting ending to one of the greatest athletic seasons in Texas A&M history, writes Robert Cessna of the Bryan-College Station Eagle.
An outstanding pitching performance by Michael Wacha and a six-run first inning helped Texas A&M defeat Florida State 11-2 to earn the Aggies' first trip to the College World Series since 1999.
It's called a dog pile and it's how college baseball teams like to celebrate important victories. Here's a first-person view of a dog pile, thanks to a Flip cam (which, apparently, survived the experience.
Mike Green, Iowa State sports information director for men's basketball, has collected every Sports Illustrated - and for you youngsters, the magazine started publishing in 1954 - that's 57 years times 52 issues per year. Here's the video.
In his Big 12 Summer Countdown series, Dave Matter of the Columbia Daily Tribune assesses the offensive line talent in the Big 12.
The Year Of The Aggie
Your Humble Correspondent doubts the Chinese calendar will ever have a designation honoring Texas A&M. Come to think of it, the Aggies are doing just fine when it comes to having themselves a season in the sun.
Monday night in Tallahassee, Texas A&M clinched a trip to the College World Series with a convincing 11-2 victory over Florida State on the Seminoles' home field. The Aggies are making their first trip to Omaha since 1999 and will join its rival.
Texas and A&M were Big 12 Conference co-champions and give the league two teams in the CWS for the first time since 2005. (By the way, that's the last time the Big 12 produced a national champion - the Longhorns.)
The color of 2010-11 has been maroon. The Aggies, in addition to sharing the baseball crown, have won Big 12 titles in football (share of South Division), women's golf, soccer, indoor track and field (women), outdoor track and field (men's and women's), men's tennis and equestrian.
In the last nine weeks, Texas A&M has brought home national titles in women's basketball, men's and women's outdoor track and field plus a doubles title in men's tennis.
Coach Rob Childress' baseball team has been outstanding over the last five weeks, winning 16 of its last 20. And they've been succeeding with pressure performances. The Aggies won their second consecutive Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship by overcoming a 7-0 deficit and winning on a walk-off home run. They advance to Omaha with had-to-have-it, win-or-go-home victories in the College Station and Tallahassee Regionals.
When word came down during the Big 12 Championship that No. 1 starter John Stilson was sidelined with a torn labrum, Texas A&M could have let that adversity become an excuse. Instead it has further steeled the Aggies' resolve. Case in point: Texas A&M was the only team to go on the road and win a Super Regional.
Considering there's a strain of championship fever rampant in College Station, the other seven teams in Omaha had best take Texas A&M seriously.
CWS brackets set
With co-champions Texas and Texas A&M making the eight-team field, the Big 12 Conference has two teams in the College World Series for the first time since 2005. Nebraska, Baylor and Texas made it that year with the Longhorns leaving Omaha with the national championship.
Texas, a No. 7 national seed, is in the same four-team pool with No. 3 seed North Carolina, No. 6 seed Vanderbilt and No. 2 seed Florida. Texas A&M's pool includes top-seeded Virginia, fourth-seeded South Carolina and California.
The Longhorns will face Florida at 6 p.m. Saturday. The Aggies will meet South Carolina at 6 p.m. Sunday. The Gamecocks are defending national champions and eliminated Oklahoma at last year's CWS.
The two four-team pools play a double-elimination format until one team from each pool remains. Those two teams will determine the national champion by playing a two-out-of-three series that will start on June 27. With Texas and Texas A&M in opposite pools, the only time the long-time rivals would meet is if both reach the championship series.
Texas is making its 34th trip to the CWS, the most in NCAA history. Texas A&M is making its fifth trip to Omaha and its first since 1999. This year the CWS is making its debut at the new TD Ameritrade Park.
|Monday, June 13
ESPN.com Writer Likes "New" Big 12
Eamonn Brennan, one of ESPN.com's college basketball writers, weighs in on the benefits of a 10-team Big 12 Conference:
The new-look Big 12 will only boost the rivalries between top teams like Kansas and Texas. In the process, it will ensure that any regular-season Big 12 champion is one that survived the same balanced schedule as the rest of the league. Throw in the fact that most Big 12 teams seem intent on keeping their nonconference challenges alive, at least for the forseeable future, and the costs to the teams involved -- creating a minefield of potential momentum-crushing losses in both league and non-league play -- should be outweighed by the RPI benefits the league will receive by the end of the season.
When other leagues made their football-minded expansion moves last summer, they got bigger. Many of them -- the Big Ten (Nebraska), the Pac-12 (Utah, Colorado), the Big East (TCU) -- also got worse. The Big 12 went in the opposite direction, both in volume and quality. The result should be interesting from January on.
Plus, we get to see Texas play Kansas twice. No matter where your allegiances are, this is an extremely promising development.
Links To Start Your Week
Dave Matter of the Columbia Daily Tribune with a solid "the year after" Q and A with Big 12 commissioner Dan Beebe.
Jason King of Yahoo!Sports.com writes that new Texas A&M coach Billy Kennedy has the luxury of taking over a program that doesn't need rebuilding.
Mike DeCourcy of The Sporting News writes about the advantages and challenges for men's basketball in the "new and improved" Big 12 Conference.
After a heart-breaking loss ended the season, Baylor's baseball team is still in the grieving process.
The hot-button issue in college athletics is increasing the amount of money that scholarships are worth - "the cost of attendance" - for student-athletes.
There will be 75 Big 12 Conference football games in 2011. Berry Tramel of the Oklahoman bravely ranks them from No. 1 through No. 75.
Texas is headed to Omaha (again) for (another) College World Series because it has a great pitching staff. So says Cedric Golden of the Austin American-Statesman.
History Lesson In College Station
So, why did Your Humble Correspondent invest nine hours, drive 365 miles to College Station on a sizzlin' summer Sunday? Because history must be chronicled and celebrated.
A little after 6 p.m. Sunday, a bus rolled up to Reed Arena carrying the A&M men's and women's track teams. Saturday the Aggies completed an unprecedented triple double three peat - championships in both genders for three consecutive years. (Getting back from Des Moines proved the toughest part - bus ride to Omaha, flight to DFW, connect to a flight to Austin, bus ride to College Station.)
YHC was there when Texas A&M won the women's national championship in Indianapolis. Winning when unexpected - outside of the A&M locker room, few expected the Aggies to win the title - brings a unique thrill. (Dallas Mavericks fans are experiencing that "holy - - - -" moment. To quote the late, great Jack Buck, "I can't believe ... what I just saw.")
What Texas A&M accomplished in track and field was not expected but perhaps predictable. Winning consecutive titles and having the talent to be ranked near the top of the sport all season stamped the Aggies as favorites to win two titles again. But ask the Miami Heat about the gravitas of championship expectations.
Performing your best at the right time is a prerequisite for champions. In the world of the perspiring arts, it's called "clutch." In track and field, being clutch is a tenth of a second here, a quarter of an inch there.
YHC watched Oklahoma sprinter Mookie Salaam race to the second-fastest time in the world in winning the 200 meters at the Big 12 Championship. (YHC didn't actually see it; Salaam moved too fast for YHC's old eyes.) However, Salaam didn't win the NCAA 200 meters. In the finals, his muscle twitches were infinitesimally slower than his competitors. It happens.
In women's basketball, Texas A&M's two victories at the Final Four defined sealing the deal. Sydney Colson's passes and Tyra White's game-changing scores gave the Aggies the championship. The A&M track teams had to close it out in similar fashion.
While most observers consider track and field to be an individual sport, the final event is the 4x400 relay - a four-person team carrying a baton four laps around the track. Texas A&M needed victories in both events to claim the team titles. And in both events, the Aggies took care of business.
Jessica Beard set an NCAA record with her time of 49.1 running the anchor leg for the women. Tabarie Henry anchored the men's team to a victory that clinched the men's title when Florida could do no better than a sixth-place finish.
Sounds simple, right? Just take care of business. Run faster than the other guy, the other girl. Take your medal, hoist your trophy.
But it's like this: No school had ever won three consecutive championships in both men's and women's track and field. Texas A&M is the first. If the Aggies had not won both titles, then it would have started all over again next year. Winning this year was imperative for a double three peat. Winning those relays was the difference between history and just another track meet.
Near the end of one of YHC's favorite movies, the character played by Tom Hanks says, "It's supposed to be hard. If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it. The hard... is what makes it great."
If you're a cinema nerd, you know that's from "A League Of Their Own." Kind of like Texas A&M right now.
|Thursday, June 9
NCAA approves Missouri exhibition game for Joplin tornado relief
Missouri Southern State University and the University of Missouri, in conjunction with the Joplin tornado relief campaign, will participate in the One State, One Spirit Classic Presented by Leggett & Platt. The game will be played on Sunday Oct. 30 at Missouri Southern' s Leggett & Platt Athletic Center in Joplin, Mo.
Proceeds from the game will be donated by Missouri Southern to support the rebuilding efforts in Joplin which was struck by a massive tornado on May 22. The game will observe a moment of silence at 5:41 p.m., the time that the tornado touched down in the southwest Missouri town.
Missouri, which will play its first game under new coach Frank Haith, already had scheduled the two exhibition games allowed under NCAA rules but the school obtained a waiver from the NCAA to allow the game at Missouri Southern.
Story links worth the click
A great story from Dave Matter of the Columbia Daily Tribune on the Missouri football team's relief efforts in tornado-ravaged Joplin.
Two years after his famous (infamous?) relief appearance helped Texas reach the College World Series, Austin Wood has no regrets.
Kansas State guard Will Spradling, who will likely be a key player for the Wildcats this season, gained valuable experience on a trip to Europe.
Kreklow leaving Missouri baskeball program
Ricky Kreklow, a sophomore guard who last season as a freshman averaged 9.8 minutes and 2.1 points per game, plans to transfer from Missouri. New coach Frank Haith said on Thursday's Big 12 coaches summer conference call that he met with Kreklow Wednesday and that the Columbia native wanted a change.
"He's a Columbia kid, was a great player here at Rock Bridge High school but he told me he wanted to spread his wings and get away from home," Haith said. "He'll have a great career wherever he goes. We certainly hate to see Ricky leave our program, but we understand the decision."
Kreklow's father Wayne and mother Susan coach Missouri's volleyball team.
If Kreklow follows through with his decision to leave, his departure would leave Missouri with four scholarships available for next season. Haith said Thursday that the recruiting process is ongoing.
"We're still looking and still recruiting," he said. "We'll have some guys on campus. Amazing how it's still going on through the spring and summer. I think we will add a couple more pieces that we could add."
|Tuesday, June 7
Linked up
New Oklahoma basketball coach Lon Kruger has a track record of turning around programs.
Dave Matter of the Columbia Daily Tribune continues his Big 12 Summer Countdown by assessing the players and coaches who have the biggest shoes to fill.
Anyone who watched Baylor's season-ending 9-8 regional defeat to California Monday night would agree with Bears coach Steve Smith's assessment: "A very, very painful loss."
Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman writes that Texas is peaking at the right time as the Longhorns head into a Super Regional matchup with Arizona State.
In light of Jim Tressel's resignation at Ohio State, Berry Tramel of the Oklahoman writes out Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops dealt with a similar situation in a far different manner.
|Sunday, June 5
Taking the good with the bad
Saturday was a difficult day for the state of Oklahoma. But for Baylor, it was the exact opposite. Here's how it broke down:
* Oklahoma's baseball team, which reached the College World Series last season and started the season 16-0, was eliminated with two losses in the Fort Worth Regional. The Sooners lost to Dallas Baptist 3-2 in 10 innings Friday and 7-0 to Oral Roberts Saturday. Oklahoma had six hits and six errors in its final game. OU went 0-2 in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2002.
* Oklahoma State was eliminated from the Nashville Regional with a 3-2 loss to fourth-seeded Belmont - the first NCAA tournament victory for that school. The Cowboys (35-25) lost 12 of their last 16 games. Oklahoma State was making its 38th NCAA appearance and it was only the second time it was eliminated in two games.
* Playing at Karsten Creek, its home course, Oklahoma State's top-ranked men's golf team hoped to win the national championship. But the Cowboys were eliminated in Saturday's semifinal by Augusta State. The defending national champions, Augusta State defeated Oklahoma State in match play for the second consecutive year - last season that result came in the championship match.
* Oklahoma's softball team suffered a similar fate and was eliminated by Missouri 4-1 Saturday afternoon at the Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City. The Sooners committed four errors to help the Tigers mount their attack against sophomore pitcher Keilani Ricketts. Oklahoma, however, was considerably short handed. Second-team all-American catcher Jessica Shults was sidelined during the NCAA tournament with pan ulcerative colitis. Backup catcher Katie Norris couldn't play against Missouri because of a sprained elbow so third baseman Dani Dobbs volunteered to catch and Ali Vanderveer had to take over at third base.
* Reaching the Women's College World Series for the first time since 1998, Oklahoma State joined Oklahoma in OKC for the first time. The Cowgirls, though, went 0-2 in the WCWS and were eliminated Saturday by California, 6-2. Oklahoma State finished 42-20 and reached the NCAAs for the third consecutive season. "It's great for our program. It's great for Oklahoma State. It's a tribute to our seniors," OSU coach Rich Wieligman said. "What they've gone through and how they've brought us along, I can't say enough about what they've done for this program. I'm very proud of them."
* Baylor's softball team lived to play another day at the WCWS. The Lady Bears will face top-seeded Arizona State Sunday afternoon after outlasting Missouri in an elimination game that ended early Sunday morning. Baylor's Holly Holl hit a two-out, two-strike home run in the bottom of the 13th to end a classic pitcher's duel. The 1-0 victory left Baylor as the only one of four Big 12 schools still playing in OKC. The Lady Bears' Whitney Canion allowed two hits while the Tigers' Chelsea Thomas was valiant in defeat, striking out 19. "She knows that tonight wasn't her fault," Missouri coach Ehren Earleywine said. "We didn't hit. She pitched brilliant. One of the best pitching performances I've ever seen. Everybody saw it."
* Baylor's baseball team moved within one victory of reaching the Super Regionals with a 3-2 triumph Saturday over top-seeded Rice on the Owls' home field. The Bears' Josh Turley threw the first complete game of his career, allowing seven hits and striking out seven. The Bears (31-26) move on to the Houston Regional championship round, where they'll face the winner of the Rice-Cal game at 6 p.m. today. If Baylor wins, it would move on to the Super Regionals for the first time since 2005, while a loss would send the Bears into a final game at 6 p.m. Monday.
Links for Sunday reading
Third-seeded Kent State handed Texas ace Taylor Jungmann his first loss at home and put the Longhorns into the loser's bracket of the Austin Regional.
Texas A&M's bats have come alive in the postseason as the Aggies have moved into great position to win the College Station Regional.
Blair Kerkhoff of the Kansas City Star writes that after its annual spring meetings, the Big 12 Conference is following the motto that less is more.
Steve Walentik, who covers Missouri's basketball team for the Columbia Daily Tribune, ranks his top 12 returning players in Big 12 basketball for the 2011-12 season.
Jessica Shults, Oklahoma's second-team All-American, is being treated for pan ulcerative colitis.
Dave Matter of the Columbia Daily Tribune kicks off his excellent off-season look at Big 12 Conference football by breaking down the top 10 nonconference games involving league teams.
Brent Zwenerman of the San Antonio Express-News writes about the Big 12's decision not to change its name.
Coach Bob Stoops is struggling to deal with the deaths that have impacted the Oklahoma football program.
Kansas defensive coordinator Carl Torbush resigned this week. He has been diagnosed with low-grade prostate cancer.


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DENVER Durango Fire Chief Dan Noonan spoke out against a bill to unionize firefighters Wednesday at the state Capitol, during a Senate hearing that signaled a flare-up in Colorados labor wars after a few years of relative peace.
Senate Bill 25 passed the Business, Labor and Technology Committee on a 3-2 vote. It allows firefighters in any department to take a majority vote to unionize in order to bargain for better pay, benefits and working conditions.
Cities and fire department leaders oppose the bill, saying it takes away their control over their own affairs.
Noonan said the bill could sow dissension in departments such as Durango Fire & Rescue Authority that use a blend of professional and volunteer firefighters. Durango has worked hard to build a department that respects both volunteers and professionals, he said.
It creates an unfunded mandate and creates an unfair advantage for career firefighters, Noonan said.
But other Front Range firefighters testified in favor of unions.
Ron Taylor, a Westminster firefighter and union official, said right now, many firefighters lack a forum to bargain overstaffing, workers compensation and health care.
When this bill passes, firefighters the ones who crawl through the smoke and through the dark they will have a voice, he said.
But passage is not guaranteed. The sponsor, Sen. Lois Tochtrop, D-Thornton, said she is not rushing the bill and is willing to work with opponents.
The issue has a painful history, especially for Democrats.
Labor issues havent been on the front burner for the previous two years, when Republicans controlled the House. Now Democrats control both chambers and the governors office. The last time that happened, the party suffered through a nasty internal battle over unions.
Former Gov. Bill Ritter vetoed a bill in 2007 that would have made it easier to unionize workplaces of all sorts. He tried to make up to labor-friendly Democrats by allowing state employees to unionize, but that upset business owners and Republicans.
Tochtrop tried a similar firefighter bill in 2009. It passed the Democratic-controlled Legislature, but Ritter vetoed it, which led to protests by the firefighters union once a staunch ally. Later that year, Ritter decided not to run for re-election.
Gov. John Hickenlooper is trying to avoid the same trap.
We are reviewing the proposed legislation and working with interested parties to find common ground, said his spokesman, Eric Brown.
In the same committee Wednesday, a Republican labor bill died on the 3-2 party-line vote. SB 24 was a right to work bill that would have undermined union workplaces. House Republicans have a similar proposal that also faces long odds.
The firefighter bills next stop is the full Senate.


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|MLBPA Press Release
Armin-Wolf-Baseball-Arena in Regensburg, Germany
Rod Carew Stadium in Panama City, Panama
XinZuang Stadium in Taipei, Taiwan
Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter, Fla.
Initial opening-round matchups (including home and visitor designations) as well as ticket information will be announced at a later date by the host venues.
The pools for each qualifier are:
Qualifier 1
Sept. 20-24 in Regensburg, Germany
Czech Republic
Great Britain
Qualifier 2
Nov. dates TBD in Jupiter, Fla., USA
South Africa
Qualifier 3
Nov. dates TBD in Taipei, Taiwan
Chinese Taipei
New Zealand
Qualifier 4
Nov. 14-18 in Panama City, Panama
"We are excited to expand the scope of the World Baseball Classic and maintain our commitment to global baseball development, starting with four excellent venues hosting the new qualifiers this fall," said Paul Archey, senior vice president, International Business Operations for Major League Baseball. "We are very pleased with the level of interest from venues and organizers around the world who share our enthusiasm for the World Baseball Classic and its mission of celebrating the global nature of our game."
"We are pleased to have 12 new countries participating in the World Baseball Classic," said Major League Baseball Players Association Assistant General Counsel Ian Penny. "Sports fans around the world will witness one of the greatest events on the international sports calendar when the 2013 World Baseball Classic launches its new qualifiers with games in Regensburg, Germany. We're confident the qualifiers will further expand the international popularity of the game we all love. We thank all participating nations for their commitment to the World Baseball Classic and the qualifier host locations and organizers for their passion and interest in the game of baseball."
The qualifiers will feature a six-game modified double-elimination format. The composition of the pools was determined after venues were selected, with consideration given to competitive balance, existing rivalries and each national team's geographical location.
"The implementation of this qualification system into the World Baseball Classic framework is a true sign of the strong collaboration between the IBAF and our colleagues at Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association," said Riccardo Fraccari, president of the International Baseball Federation. "We are very encouraged about the inclusion of emerging baseball territories and the continual growth of the international baseball landscape that this represents."
The qualifiers will expand the competitive field from 16 to 28 countries. The teams invited to participate in the qualifying pools will include the four World Baseball Classic teams from 2009 that did not win a game: Canada, Chinese Taipei, Panama and South Africa.
The winners from each qualifying pool will advance to the World Baseball Classic tournament, scheduled for March 2013. Those four teams will join the 12 countries -- Australia, China, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Puerto Rico, United States and Venezuela -- that receive automatic invitations based on their performance in the 2009 tournament.
The 2013 World Baseball Classic will mark the third edition of the tournament. The inaugural event was held in 2006, and the second World Baseball Classic was held in 2009.


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Westchester County NY Windows : Westchester County NY Siding : Westchester County NY Roofing : NY : Westchester County NY Home Improvement Contractor : Westchester County NY Remodeling Contractor
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Home Improvement for the Westchester County NY Home Owner
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Just because the wind doesn't blow the curtains around doesn't mean they are perfect. In a well insulated home, the greatest amount of heat loss is through the windows.
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There are many reasons for replacing the windows in your Westchester County home
To Save Energy as a Westchester County NY Home Owner
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All of us boys had dogs. To tell the truth, they were mostly just plain dogs of various sizes and folks called them "mixed breeds," whatever that means.
These dogs were talented, too. Why, they could chase balls, cars (and cats) and bark at strangers, which is what you expect from a good dog. There's nothing better than having a big, old dog beside you in a pup tent on a dark and scary night.
I realize I shouldn't write about stuff that I've never used.
But I'm sorta fascinated about the recent incident were this fella was charged after getting 25 pounds of marijuana in the mail.
Another area newspaper had an article where officers destroyed a marijuana patch with a street value in the thousands of dollars.
To me, that stuff looks like a hybrid bunch of rabbit tobacco.
Growing up, I don't rightly recall anybody mentioning marijuana, much less smoking it.
I didn't have very much to do with girls. They always wanted to play house, cook pretend stuff from mud and china berries and have us around to be a daddy for their dolls.
You know, I sorta felt girls always had to prove they were better than the boys.
That feeling was engraved in my head ever since Teen Roddey pulled me from the deep end of the city pool on Gay Street after I got all choked up, went under and just about drowned.
Just my luck, about every boy I knew was at the pool that day. One fella called me a sissy because I was rescued by a girl.
Uncle Bob and Aunt Prunie are coming to visit us for a spell. I don't mind that, but they're bringing my two dreaded little cousins with them.
That means there's going to be a couple of real boogers in our house for a while. Yes sir, double trouble is on the way. I reckon they couldn't find anybody willing to take the pair in during their absence.
Things have been wide open around here. Since we got their postcard, we've been busy getting things straightened up.
We all yearn for a little relaxation. When it finally gets here, we search for an outlet to occupy the time that we have so eagerly awaited.
In other words, what in the world are we gonna do to pass the time?
Over the years, the government has enacted safety laws that prevent today's young folks from enjoying a bunch of stuff I had fun experiencing.
I'll bet that out there somewhere, there's some sort of rule or regulation that says you can't lie on the grass and gaze into the heavens.
As a youngster, I loved looking up.
One recent morning – as four or five snowflakes cast a film over the sidewalk – I relaxed with sips of hot coffee after reading the newspaper, and pondered plans to wish my son, Blake, a happy birthday.
You know, our second-born isn't a little fella who romps through the house in muddy shoes on days like this any more.
The years have flown by, or so it seems. Soon, I'll be 76.
Thank goodness, I happened across this newspaper article about folks growing vegetables in small plots.
I was standing in the produce aisle at the grocery store digging through the banana table in search of a nice, ripe bunch.
This fella comes up to me and clears his throat.
"You Evans?" he asked.
"Yep, that's me," I shot back. "What can I do for you?"
"You sure are fascinated with boogers," he gruffly said. "Seems to me that you like talking about them a right smart bit."
Well, yeah, I silently thought.
Close friends (and most folks in general) know that my wife and I have been blessed with a couple of great-grandchildren, one of each species.
The little boy is 15 months old and the little girl joined the family about five months ago. He lives in Lancaster and she lives in Old Line State (that's Maryland).
Our granddaughter in Maryland is having a tough time finding a spot in an infant day care facility for her latest addition.
As spring got warmer, things got busy with school and such.
All of that reading, writing and arithmetic temporarily pushed back my plans to build a British Spitfire out of cardboard gleaned from behind the Parr Brothers' Furniture store.
I didn't like it, but I had to wait until summer vacation to assemble my English fighter plane.
Now you may ask why I had my heart set on a British Spitfire. Well, why not?
One cold winter Saturday morning, I got lucky.
That warm sun has melted away the last traces of snow.
Mama said the pear tree is starting to bud and the yellow belle bushes are showing some color.
Why, even the ice man has a little hitch in his giddy-up from making more deliveries in our neighborhood.
Given this little glimmer of warm weather, I had already been given orders to hose down the wooden lawn chairs stored in the plunder house and to rinse out the bird baths.
There's one thing for sure, I thought, as I lugged the chairs outside.
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