How to Give Back this Holiday Season

A guide to volunteering and donating locally this winter.

As you celebrate the people and things you value in your life this holiday season, you might find yourself wishing to give back some of your fortune to your community. Beyond dropping spare change in the red kettle at your local grocery store, there are many ways to act on the holiday spirit of giving. Here are just some of the options. Donate food and clothing Many food pantries are experiencing record numbers of visitors and hoping for an extra boost of giving around the holidays. Cindy Hilgendorf, assistant director of Family Sharing, an Ozaukee County food pantry, said the pantry had a record number of patrons in November and she expects December to be equally busy. She said families are in especially great need of hats and mittens, …

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Heard in the Hall

Village Needs Volunteers for Fall Cleanup Day

The great services like cleanup days can't happen without your help.

We are still in need of volunteers to assist for the Oct. 29 Fall Cleanup Day in Bayside. The Cleanup Day is held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. You can work one hour, four hours, or all day - whatever fits your schedule! Any time you can volunteer would be very much appreciated.   Duties range from very light sedentary activity to heavier lifting activities ranging from directing traffic, helping residents unload vehicles, answering questions, etc.  We cannot provide these great services to residents without your help. Please consider volunteering to help make this event a huge success. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Village Hall at 351-8811, ext. 101, or email email Kayla.   On behalf of the Village, thank you for your time…

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Wisconsinites Targeted in Car Donation Scam

Better Business Bureau says charity hasn't renewed expired license since 2006.

According to a press release from the Better Business Bureau: You may have seen the ads in local community newspapers or heard the radio ads, including a catchy jingle that says, “Be a star, donate your car.” The charity behind the advertisements is Heritage For The Blind, a Brooklyn, New York-based organization, that, according to its website, works to help the blind and visually impaired and offers free information about vision loss and eye disorders. It has no office in Wisconsin, but is heavily advertising here, currently asking people to donate their “vehicles, boats and RV’s” and is actually offering a “free 3-day vacation” for doing so.  According to the vacation offer’s details, “Donors will enjoy a 2-night hotel stay in the city …

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Better Business Bureau Offers Fraud Reminder

BBB says not all charities are legitimate, so be careful as 9/11 anniversary approaches.

The anniversary of the terroroist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, is quickly approaching, envoking painful memories and for some, the urge to give back. But the Better Business Bureau wants to remind donors to keep a watchful eye out as scammers may try to take advantage of those willing to help out. In a press release issued Thursday, the BBB took a look at a recent Associated Press investigation which found that many 9/11 charities “failed miserably” in serving victims, their families and their memories, while continuing to collect donations. This past week, the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs warned that a scammer was calling residents in Northeast Wisconsin fraudulently soliciting donations for a veterans’ clinic in Green Bay. More…

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Grieving Widower's $100K Gift Helps Pets, New Owners

Wisconsin-Humane Society Ozaukee Campus sees spike in adoptions after widower agrees to donate $100 per adopted pet.

Editor's note: The original version of this story read that Stan Kass filled the hole in his heart by adopting a dog named Reggie. It has since been changed to reflect that Kass and his wife had actually adopted the dog earlier in life. When Stan Kass lost his beloved wife of 56 years to cancer last year, he filled the hole in his heart with his adopted dog named Reggie.  Now he’s opening doors to other hearts — for people and pets — with a $100 donation for every pet adopted at the Wisconsin Humane Society up to $100,000, said Angela Speed, spokesperson for the WHS. "They say people help animals," Kass said in a recent WISN.com interview. "I think animals help people. I’m finding that out in the last year since my wife passed away." Of …

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Tom

2:12 pm on Wednesday, September 7, 2011

God bless your generosity and your very kind act towards our furry friends.   more ›

Bruegger's Gives Back to Vets for July 4

Part of proceeds going to Homes for Our Troops.

In the spirit of freedom and independence, Bruegger's Bagels is supporting our troops by donating a a portion of proceeds from any of their bagel bundles purchased Friday through Monday to benefit disabled veterans through Homes For Our Troops. Homes for our Troops is a national non-profit organization that builds specially adapted homes for severly handicapped veterans that have returned from Iran or Afghanistan. According to a press release, this is the 10th year in a row, the neighborhood bakery will sell its patriotic red, white and blue bagels on July 3 and 4. 

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Swimmers Get New Scoreboard Thanks to Donations from the Community

After 22 years, Nicolet finally gets a new scoreboard and touch-pads.

Coaches spend hours and hours training kids to get them ready for competitions. Dwight Davis, Nicolet High School swim coach, does the same, but when he wants to see them succeed during meets, he can't because he's busy fixing a scoreboard. "This system died in the middle of sectional diving. It was a total disaster," Davis said. However, with the School Board's pending approval on Monday, that might all change. With a combination of funds from the Nicolet Booster Club, swim fundraising events and some substantial donations from families, a new scoreboard and touch-pads will be on their way to Nicolet. The new scoreboard will cost about $18,000, though none of that money is coming from taxpayers. "The parents did a great job, they worked …

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Maple Dale-Indian Hill Fundraiser Takes in Record Contributions

Foundation's 10th annual Red Carpet Bash once again raises thousands to help out teachers.

There was a record turnout at the 10th annual Maple Dale-Indian Hill Educational Foundation's 10th annual Red Carpet Bash Saturday at the Four Points by Sheraton in Brown Deer. Hors d'oeuvres, a silent auction, dinner, live auction and dueling pianos were all part of the night's activities, which raised funds to help teachers buy supplies for the classroom. A 10-foot tall poster that featured the names of each of the district's 42 teachers was another item up for auction. Mark Shapiro, a parent and emcee for the evening, reminded the audience teachers often spend a few hundred dollars within a year on supplies for the classroom and never see a penny back. Bids of $500 started the auction, and when they were brought down to $200 and $100, …

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Fox Point-Bayside Whiz Kids

Whiz Kid of the Week: 5th and 6th Graders Raise Money for Whooping Cranes and Earthquake Relief Effort

Teacher's donated baked goods and students worked all three lunch periods everyday to raise money.

Lisa Chase's 5th and 6th grade class Maple Dale Middle School Whiz Kid's Accomplishment: These kids have raised $500 in three days for endangered whooping cranes through a bake sale. Their original goal was only $50, but once they exceeded that goal, they decided to help the vicitms of the earthquake in Japan. Whiz Kid's Key to Awesomeness: The students studied whooping cranes and wanted to help raise money that would assist them in reaching Florida safely. "When so many teachers helped bake over the weekend, and brought an enormous amount of food we made our goal in 20 minutes," Lisa Chase, special education teacher said. All the money that was raised after that first hour, is being donated to the survivors of the earth quake and tsunami …

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Stritch Gets Donation for Nursing Department

A $50,000 donation from the Coleman family keeps a mother's dream alive.

Cardinal Stritch University just received a $50,000 donation from The David and Ruth S. Coleman Foundation to assist its nursing program. The Coleman Nursing Scholarship is available to sophomores and juniors with a GPA of 3.0 or higher. It was established in 1986 by the Coleman family. Ruth Coleman in particular donated more than $2 million to Stritch during her life. This prompted the university to name the scholarship in Coleman's honor for her contributions to nursing education. Coleman's daughter, Bobbi Caraway, received a nursing degree from Stritch. Even after Coleman's passing, her memory lives on through donations made by her children, Caraway and Mark Sklar. “On behalf of the Board of Directors of the David and Ruth S. Coleman …

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