FOX VALLEY VETERANS COUNCIL

The Fox Valley Veterans Council (FVVC) is a nonproft 501(c)3 organization established in 2006/2007 to bring together 20 veteran service organizations in Outagamie, northern Winnebago and Calumet counties.  The purpose of the FVVC is to provide a central forum within the Fox Valley to disseminate veteran information between veteran organizations and support veteran organization activities for the common good and welfare of all veterans.  Their mission is to uphold the principles of the Constitution of the United States; promote the goals and objectives of all veteran organizations for the common good and the welfare of active and veteran personnel of all the Unformed Services as well as their dependents and survivors; and to foster and support the exchange of information and ideas among all veteran organizations in order to provide better service to veterans and their families.  The Veterans Memorial in the old Outagamie County Courthouse is maintained and updated by FVVC.  FVVC holds an annual Memorial Day celebration to honor those who gave their lives while serving our country.  One of the primary goals of the FVVC is to sustain a Veterans Emergency Fund to provide short term help to veterans and veteran families in the Fox Valley in time of need.  Needs include housing, utility payments, clothing, food, transportation or any other high priority need.  In 2011, FVVC assisted 20 veteran families totaling $10,300; 32 veteran familites totaling $46,800 in 2012 and so far this year 56 veteran families totaling $35,900.  Emergency fund requests are increasing therefore the need for funds is increasing.  Funds are managed by the Veterans Emergency Fund Council made up of committee members from the veteran service organizations who meet on an as needed basis to review requests.  A person is eligible to apply for emergency assistance if they are a veteran or immediate family member of a veteran.  They must also provide form DD214 showing honorable service, must be a resident of one of the three counties and provide copies of bills in consideration for assistance.  Most responses are within 48 hours.  FVVC is an all volunteer organization.  In March 2011, they partnered with American National Bank Fox Cities to create the Veterans Emergency Fund.  The bank donates $10 for every checking and saving account and $50 for every mortgage.  Total donations from American National Bank from 2011-2013 total over $33,000.  For more information, please visit www.foxvalleyveteranscouncil.org.

District Governor David Yeghiaian

DG David Yeghiaian thanked us for being Rotarians.  Rotary is what brought us here today.  David joined Rotary 9 years ago to get customers.  After 6 months, he thought about quitting because he did not gain any customers but he enjoyed Rotary.  He attended a PETS training session and realized that Rotary was bigger than his own club and he became more engaged.  He particiapted in a National Immunization Day and volunteered at the local Men’s Clothes Closet.  At the Men’s Clothes Closet, he helped a man who could not start a job without a pair of black pants.  This helped him realize how Rotary helped in his community. 

DG David shared three key goals that clubs should focus on:  memership, service and leadership.  Membership pertains to members sharing their own Rotary story of how they became involved in Rotary and how it changed their life; innovative/flexible membership plans; and corporate/share memberships.  Service is how we change lives by making sure to take advanage of the various grants offered from the District, members making contributions to The Rotary Foundation (TRF) and the eradication of polio. The more you contribute to TRF the more there is for grants resulting in larger, more impactful projects. It is expected that there will be 0 cases of polio in 2015 with worldwide certification in 2019.  About $5 billion will be needed to accomplish this and the Gates Foundation and others have already contributed $4 billion.   Leadership means becoming a heart and sole inspired leader (any individual regardless of age, role or title; who embraces their personal strenghs, gifts and passions to postively impact others and change the world), participating in the District Leadership Acacemy (for non Rotarians and Rotarians) and how the District is here to help serve clubs (inverted triangle).  The key is to do whatever is in the best interest of the Club and if innovative/flexible aren’t for your club then start a new club which may incorporate it.

The District 6220 Conference will be held May 1-3, 2014 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay. On May 2, keynote speaker will be Jean Irwin and dinner with Mark Murphy, CEO of the Green Bay Packers.  You can register online at:  http://www.ridistrict6220.org/. 

As a way for Rotarians to help Engage Rotary and Change Lives, the District has created a shirt to help explain what we do in Rotary and why others would want to be part of our amazing organization. It is designed to help with one of District 6220's Goals (Membership), while also demonstrating the two other Goals of Service (incorporating the six Areas of Focus) and Leadership.  District leadership has chosen to keep the costs as low as possible to encourage more purchases to have more people wearing the shirts for Membership and PR efforts.  To order one, please go to:  http://www.co-store.com/rotarydistrict6220. 

Rotary on the Road

Gardens of the Fox Cities (Kathy Dreyer)

Lynn Van Vreede talked about how the Memorial Park Arburatum and Gardens and Scheig Learning Center opened in 1996 as a free public garden.  In 2009, they changed their name to the Gardens of the Fox Cities. The Gardens pays the City of Appleton $1.00 per year rent for the 38 acres of land. The Gardens is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and does not receive any money from the local, state or federal governments. They have a staff of 2 full time and 4 part-time employees.  Today, they have 26 themed gardens, a 4 acre prairie, trails for walking and cross country skiing and a large natural wetland.  The Gardens offers educational programs for children 5-18 including Marvin’s Gardens and Seeds to Market, host school field trips, hold after school programming, adult classes / workshops and hold wedding ceremonies and receptions.  The Seeds to Market program is an accredited class for students through the Appleton Career Academy.  Two of their biggest fundraisers are the Garden to Gourmet Dinner (A Sustainable Dinner for a Sustainable Future) and the Heirloom Plant Sale. During the summer, they held two music in the gardens events.  In the future, the Gardens would like to add a Kitchen Garden to teach visitors basic gardening techniques and a Junior Landscape Program for youth ages 11-16. 

Paper Discovery Center (Kathleen Lhost)

Boxes lunches were served in the River Level while Kathleen showed a short video about activities at the Paper Discovery Center and talked about the history of the building, the paper industry in the Fox Cities, the history of the Paper Industry International Hall of Fame and its program, the Paper Discovery Center.  The Paper Discovery Center opened in late February of 2005.  The Paper Discovery Center is a science and technology center in Northeast Wisconsin with the aim of celebrating the art and science of paper through interactive and engaging educational programs, exhibits, and activities, with a focus on the industry’s exciting future. This summer the Paper Discovery Center offered a summer science series with programs such as Optical Illusions, Kitchen Flight, Slimy Science, Wild About Water and Finding Rainbows.  After lunch, Kathleen led a brief tour through some of the exhibits and answered questions about funding for the organization.

Valley Packaging (Barbara Kelly)

19 Rotarians met at the Roemer Road location of Valley Packaging Industries, Inc.  We were greeted by President Bob Russo, Heather Harrington and Mat Busch, who presented an overview of the organization's expansive operations.  Valley Packaging Industries provides training rehabilitation and/or therapy services daily to more than 650 adults, students and children with disabilities.  VPI is an equal opportunity employer, providing integrated employment to over 1,000 people, with and without disabilities.  Many of the jobs are in their packaging business, which contracts with many other companies needing packaging services to raise revenue and provide work opportunities for their clients.Staff noted that VPI exists "To promote the dignity and worth of individuals who have disabilities or are disadvantaged and to assist them in developing their optimum level of social vocational and economic independence in the community." After the presentations, we were given a tour of the packaging operations.  Those of us in attendance now know what this year's Christmas Kleenex boxes will look like, having seen an amazing assembly line putting them together.  There were many other operations going on in the building also.  Thanks to VPI for expanding my understanding of how much you do for our community.

Wastewater Treatment Plant (Curt Detjen)

The things we all take for granted … Appleton wastewater plant is a major operation going unnoticed.  It processes an average of 10,000 gallons/minute totaling over five billion gallons per year.  The operation is fed by more than 350 miles of sanitary sewer running beneath our city streets.  The last addition was completed in 1992 at a cost of $68 million, including the addition of the egg-shaped digesters that are the distinguishing visible feature of the plant.  This technology is still state of the art.  Appleton provides this service at the lowest cost of all area communities.  Product is processed completely in a 22-hour cycle.  Effluent is discharged to the Fox River while the 20,000 tons of bio-solids are converted to compost or field spread as a fertilizer product.  The plant even captures and uses a portion of the methane gases it produces, using it as a natural gas replacement for use in its heating and cooling operation.  This saves about $200,000 per year.  The group was given a tour, including an experience in the special, smelly room.  We appreciate that Chris Shaw, Bob Kennedy and Chris Stempa provided Rotarians with such a comprehensive presentation and walking tour of the plant.

CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES GRANT PRESENTATION

In 1941, Rotarian William J. Roemer established a trust in the name of his wife, Helen Thom Roemer, to support the work of the Orthopedic Committee of the Rotary Club of Appleton and named the Rotary Club of Appleton the trustee of that trust.  Today that committee is called the Children with Disabilities Committee.  The income from this fund was set up to be used to benefit disabled children within a radius of 50 miles. The committee approved the following distributions from the Helen Thom Roemer Fund in the Appleton Rotary Foundation:

Agape ($7,303.01)

Agape offers people with developmental and other special needs individualized opportunities for independence.  These funds will be put towards the purchase of a van for the children’s group home allowing children to be part of our community.

Appleton Area School District ($3,500.00)

Appleton Area School District provides speech and language therapy in the child’s natural environment. Their grant will be used to purchase iPads, cases, and additional apps for the itinerant Speech and Language Therapy Department to use during therapy with children that are serviced within the community and not at a school site.  The iPad not only provides interactive features but it provides learning in a fun avenue that is highly interesting to young students.

ARC Fox Cities ($2,000.00)

The Arc Fox Cities focuses on youth and adult programming, family support, advocacy and guardianship services to improve the lives of individuals with developmental disabilities and their families.  Funding will go to the SOAR Program to assist youth entering and navigating through the transition years--from youth to adult programming.  Their goal is to connect transition students with Arc Programs and other students from other schools which offering a comfortable inviting environment. 

Cerebral Palsy of Mideast Wisconsin ($2,000.00)

Residential Camp Sandy Wheels was started in 1979 and is held at the Mt. Morris Camp and Conference Center in Wautoma. Their mission is to provide services that positively affect the quality of life for persons with disabilities and their families. The funds will be used to provide Camp Sandy Wheels scholarships for children with disabilities.                                                          

Easter Seals Wisconsin ($2,500.00)

Since the Easter Seals HelpLine started providing services in the Fox Cities it has looked to fill gaps in services available to individuals with disabilities.  One of these gaps is funding for equipment for children with disabilities not covered by any existing funding source.  Funds will be used to help purchase equipment such as adapted recreational equipment; equipment that aids in independent living; safety equipment and equipment that helps families care for children with disabilities.

Fox Valley Sibling Support Network ($2,250.00)

The Fox Valley Sibling Support Network was established in 1998 to provide programs for children and adults who have siblings with disabilities or long-term illnesses.  The Fox Valley Sibling Support Network in collaboration with The Arc Fox Cities plan to host the 10th annual, Santa Celebration on December 7, 2013 at the Grand Meridian, Appleton. At this event, children with disabilities and their families enjoy breakfast with Santa and other fun activities designed to involve children with disabilities of all ages with their siblings.

                                                               

Haven of Hope Day Care ($500.00)

Haven of Hope is a caring and compassionate center for adults and children with special needs, providing individualized quality day services.  These funds will be used for transportation costs for client outings to learn and experience different aspects of the community.

Muscular Dystrophy Association ($2,000.00)

Each year, MDA hosts a summer camp (Camp Hope) in Green Lake for children 6-17 living with neuromuscular disease.  These funds will help provide scholarships to this camp.

YMCA Camp Hope ($1,000.00)

YMCA Camp Hope is a two week day camp held at Plamann Park for children, ages 6-15 years, with physical and cognitive disabilities.  Camp Hope is designed to offer recreational and social experiences including swimming, arts/crafts, nature walks, games and a family picnic event. The program focuses on enhancing skills and helping children with disabilities enjoy the outdoors.