Boone, Ia. -Poor and elderly people may soon go without legal representation in Boone County. Boone County Legal Aid, which for 31 years has provided legal services to those who couldn't afford them, will close in February if a $10,000 grant from Prairie Meadows Racetrack and Casino is not awarded. The legal service is one of the few programs in Iowa that offers legal representation to those who qualify without turning to the state for its services. "It is a very sad situation, but that's the fact," said Alan Schroeder, city attorney and supervisor of Boone County Legal Aid. For the past two years using money mostly from the city and county, Schroeder has upheld the outfit alone, taking on about 60 clients a year, and settling cases that range from domestic abuse to bankruptcy. He also has a private practice. If the legal service closes, he's unsure where his clients will go. The city of Boone gave Schroeder $6,300 in July to resolve pending cases, said Kathy Berg, Boone's finance officer. Without that, the program might already be closed. "All governments are having problems with finances," Boone Mayor George Maybee said. "No one else stepped in. The county didn't. The state didn't." Donovan Olson, chairman of the county Board of Supervisors, said the board quit funding the legal service in July because it felt the county didn't need it. Drake University ended its funding after the 2000 spring semester "for a variety of reasons," Suzanne Levitt, the law professor who oversaw the program, said via e-mail. Olson said Schroeder must prove Prairie Meadows is the primary money source for the board to grant the program any more money. Schroeder ran the program without the help of law students or Drake, which had provided as much as two-thirds of the money in some years.
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QUESTION: Who hasn't stepped in to help the funding?

Charlie Y. Reader is a 35-year-old theatrical agent in New York , living a seemingly idyllic life as a bachelor . Numerous women ( among them Poppy , Helen , and Jessica come and go , cleaning and cooking for him . Charlie 's best friend since kindergarten , Joe McCall , who has a wife named Ethel and children in Indianapolis , comes to New York for a stay at Charlie 's apartment , claiming that the excitement is gone from his 11-year marriage and that he wants to leave his wife . Joe envies and is amazed by Charlie 's parade of girlfriends , while Charlie professes admiration for Joe 's married life and family . At an audition , Charlie meets singer-actress Julie Gillis . She has her life planned to a tight schedule , determined to marry and retire from performing to a life of child-rearing by 22 . Although at first she wards off Charlie 's advances , she comes to see him as the ideal man for her plans . Julie demands that Charlie stop seeing other women . Charlie balks , but he begins to fall in love with her . Joe starts keeping company with Sylvia Crewes , a sophisticated classical musician and a typically neglected lover of Charlie 's . Sylvia is approaching 33 and desires marriage as much as the younger Julie does . One day , annoyed by Julie and possibly jealous of Joe 's attentions , Charlie blurts out a proposal of marriage to Sylvia . She is thrilled , only to discover the morning after their engagement party that he has proposed to Julie as well . Joe confesses his love to Sylvia and asks her to marry him .
What question would one ask from this paragraph?

QUESTION: What does Julie Gillis want to do?

Tommy and Suzy (brother and sister) went to the playground one afternoon with their mom and dad, Jan and Dean. They were playing a game of tag and having the best time ever running after each other and laughing. They liked to play tag instead of building sandcastles or swinging. They liked tag because they liked to run. They like to play hopscotch or jump rope but that day they wanted to play tag. Other games aren't as fun. They met Tony and Ally (who are best friends) and invited them to play tag too. Tony and Ally like to play other games like hopscotch or jump rope but that day they joined the game of tag. Making new friends is important. Tony and Ally would rather make friends than play their favorite games.
What question would one ask from this paragraph?

QUESTION: Did Tony, Ally, Tommy, and Suzy all become friends that day?

Nine families displaced by a fire at Alamo Hills Apartments in March filed lawsuits Wednesday against the apartment complex. They allege that the complex could have done more to protect belongings they were forced to abandon in the aftermath of the blaze. Bernard Dempsey Jr., an attorney with Western Michigan Legal Services, the group that represents the tenants, said Alamo Hills gave the displaced families very limited opportunity to remove belongings. "They were given three days to get their stuff out, and if they couldn't get moved out in three days, their stuff was discarded," Dempsey said. "Alamo Hills just threw it out." Others, he said, lost possessions to looters after the March 23 blaze, which left 78 people temporarily homeless. According to the lawsuit, the tenants were prohibited from entering their apartments to retrieve possessions and were promised that the complex would provide security. A spokesperson for PM One, the company that manages Alamo Hills, could not be reached for comment. Nine separate suits were filed in 8th District Court, which handles civil claims of less than $25,000. "We're asking for the reimbursement of the value of their property and a small amount for stress -- $3,000 on top of their out-of-pocket expenses for their lost stuff," Dempsey said. "They're not looking to get rich off this. A lot of this is simply because they were treated so badly." Dempsey said most of the tenants who filed suits still live at the apartment complex, although many are trying to find homes elsewhere. "The new apartments (they were provided) were not in very good shape. That's actually one of the claims," he said.
What question would one ask from this paragraph?

QUESTION:
What is the difference in value between the maximum of a civil claim in 8th District Court, and the reimbursement requested by Dempsey on top of out-of-pocket expenses?