Upcoming Meetings

Our club meets in the Dahm Heritage Room at Pickard Commons on the Ripon College campus at noon on Tuesdays, unless otherwise noted.

Thursday, March 10, Board Meeting
Meets in the Mihaly Room of Pickard Commons at 12 noon.

Tuesday, March 15,
Club Meeting
Danelle Phillips is inviting a nurse practioner from RMC to explain the difference between RNs, NsP, and MDs.

Tuesday, March 22,
Club Meeting
Michael Schoeb, the new CEO of Alliance Laundry, will be speaking to us about the future of Alliance Laundry Systems.

Tuesday, March 29,
Club Meeting
Rafael Salas, Ripon College Art Dept. chair, will show us some art as examples of issues in the world of art.

Club Leadership

President
Paul Nulton

President-Elect
Richard Zimman

Vice-President
Mellisa Wipijewski

Secretary
Kristy Sadlon

Treasurer
Bob Meyer

Past President
Tonya Alling

Board of Directors
Term Expires 2011
Barb Evensen
Linda Putzer
Steve Sorenson
Term Expires 2012
Emily Dinegan
Tom Keuler
Ian Stepleton
Term Expires 2013
Jenny Machkovich
Rich Scamehorn
Danelle Phillips

Committee Chairs

Fundraising
Richard Zimman

Youth Services
Sue Meyer

Sponsored Programs
Rick Bunge
Jack Christ
Kristy Sadlon
Tim Scottberg

Community Services
Herm

Young Child Priority One
Ian

Club Meetings
Mellisa Wipijewski

Membership Growth
and Education
Tonya Alling

This Week’s Meeting

Attendance: 12 members and 3 guests

Guests 

Tim Lubinsky was the guest of Paul Nulton. Tim's membership will be officially approved at our board meeting tomorrow! We look forward to Tim's participation in the club. He's starting off with a bang, taking charge of the 50/50 raffle next week while Tonya's basking in the Florida sun. We'll plan an evening induction ceremony soon so that Tim and Joe Michels can be formally welcomed to the club. Stay tuned for more details.

Brian Wells was the guest of John Olson. Brian owns Ripon Area Roofing and recently returned from his second mission trip to Haiti. Check riponpress.com to read Ian Stepleton's column about Brian's trip (click here for a live link).

Amy Pollesch, director of the Ripon Community Thrift Store and Food Pantry, was the guest of Tonya Alling and our speaker.

Announcements 

A Tribute to Dr. Robert Meyer
We extend our sympathy to the family and friends of Dr. Robert Meyer, age 82, who passed away on Wednesday, March 2, 2011, just one week shy of his 83rd birthday. He was the husband of Carol Meyer, father of Bob Meyer Jr. and father-in-law of Sue Meyer. He was a 56-year member of Kiwanis and a past president. Nine Kiwanians attended the funeral service on Saturday. Pastor Paul Nulton did a wonderful job paying tribute to Dr. Meyer, and he and Rich Scamehorn also participated in a barbershop quartet which sang two songs in Doc's honor.

Bowling with Friends – Sunday, March 27
Members of our club have been asked by the Early Bird Kiwanis Club to help the day of the event. Bowling with Friends is an annual day of fun at Plaza Bowl for consumers of Diverse Options, including Aktion Club members. It's a ton of fun and they truly enjoy it.

West Bend Kiwanis GermanFest – Tuesday, March 29
Let's round up an interclub and head for West Bend on March 29, starting at 6 p.m. For the past two years a hearty group of Nooners has attended and had a BLAST! Contact Rich Scamehorn if you'd like to attend please.

Noon Kiwanis Children's Fair – Saturday, April 16
There are lots of opportunities for volunteering at our fourth annual Children's Fair. More details will follow in an upcoming issue of the Noon News.

RC2 5K, 10K and Half Marathon – Saturday, April 30
Paul Nulton and Steve Sorenson are rounding up the road run committee to plan the first of three Noon Kiwanis sponsored road runs. If you'd like to help with any of the events, please email Steve.

Denim and Pearls – Friday, May 6
Denim and Pearls is one of the Foundation for Ripon Medical Center's largest fundraisers. Plan to enjoy an evening of wine and food tasting, raffles and live auction on May 6 at Royal Ridges.

Green Lake Area Get Movin' – Saturday, May 21
Danelle Phillips is excited to announce an area-wide day of physical activity. She has plans for a frisbee golf tournament and other events in the works and she'll need volunteers to help.

Doug Lyke 5K Sunrise Run – Saturday, June 18, 7:30 a.m.

Hay Days – Saturday & Sunday, June 18 & 19
The third annual Hay Days celebration will be held at WellSpring Farm, N5307 Brooklyn G Road on June 18 and 19. Volunteers are needed. Contact Linda Holloway at (920)597-0749 if you can help.

Kids from Wisconsin Concert – Tuesday, June 28, 7 p.m.

Vic Ferrari Concert Brat Fry – Friday, July 22, 4:30 p.m.

Doug Lyke 5K Twilight Run – Saturday, August 13, 7:30 p.m.

March Birthdays
Linda Putzer - March 17; Danelle Phillips and Don Amsden – March 31. Happy Birthday!

March Anniversaries
Sue Meyer - 10 years; Helga Rikkers - 14 years; Herm Leitz - 9 years; John Olson - 1 year. Congratulations Nooners and thank you for continuing to serve the children of the world!

Noon Kiwanis Treasurer Needed
Would you be willing to share your time and talent as Noon Kiwanis treasurer? Please contact Paul Nulton if you're interested.

Opportunities to Help Your Kiwanis Club
If you can take on some of the duties Tonya has been doing next year when she takes over as Division 12 Lt. Governor, please contact Paul Nulton or Tonya Alling.

Happy Bucks

Mary Avery was happy to have won $10 in the 50/50 raffle. With an investment of $2 in raffle tickets and $1 for this happy buck, she's ahead $7! It's a lucky seven on Fat Tuesday Mary!

Herm Leitz was happy to tell a bad blonde joke in honor of Marge Burling (since Marge wasn't at the meeting to tell her own).

John W. Olson was happy to report two John Olson's on his plane from Las Vegas. He happened to be seated next to John U. Olson, and in an effort to get seated on the aisle, he asked the stewardess to move the somewhat-inebriated John U. to the front of the plane where there was more room. The stewardess promptly removed John U. from the plane, netting John W. the coveted aisle seat with room to spare. Poor John U. didn't know what hit him.

Steve Sorenson was happy to have received a phone call from Charles Wiley, reserving the second Tuesday in June to speak to our Kiwanis club while Mr. Wiley attends Badger Boys State. Last year Mr. Wiley indicated that at age 83, it would be his last appearance at Boys State. We're glad he changed his mind! His programs are always very insightful and thought provoking.

Pat Himebaugh was happy to visit St. Benedict College near St. Cloud Minnesota to see daughter, Amanda, perform in a play.

Queen of Spades 50/50 Raffle

Mary Avery's ticket was drawn and with $120.50 in the pot, she drew the ten of spades, winning $10. Next week's pot starts at $110.50 with 40 cards left in the deck and the Queen of Spades, three fives and two tens still in hiding. That's a 15 percent chance of winning at least $5 next time, but you've got to attend the meeting and purchase a ticket to win!

Editor's note: I apologize for not remembering my camera today folks. I'll be glad when Norm returns to his duties next week. Five weeks in a row has been enough for awhile! – Tonya

Today’s Program:
Ripon Community Thrift Store & Food Pantry

Amy Pollesch, director of the Ripon Community Thrift Store and Food Pantry, filled us in on what's been happening since she last spoke to us one year ago.

Did you know . . .

• At Thanksgiving, the thrift store issued 175 $20 to $25 gift cards for Pick 'n Save, so that families could purchase the fixings for their Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner. Amy shared that one young mother came into the store just days before Thanksgiving and indicated that without the gift card to purchase a turkey, her family might have been eating peanut butter and jelly at home that day because her husband was too proud to let them attend one of the free meals in the community.
• Christmastide brought the Wishes and Wonders program. Thrift store staff wrapped and distributed around 700 presents to area children this year.
• Between January and December 2010, the thrift store gave away $4500 in clothing and household items to those in need. That $4500 is calculated in thrift store value, by the way, so a shirt may be marked $1 and a sofa may be marked $15. That's a lot of merchandise.
• Food distributions have risen dramatically over the past year. Just this Monday, they gave away 300 bags of groceries (in one day).
• In 2006 they were serving an average of 140 families per month and now, five years later, they are serving over 200 families per month, spiking up to 250 families in some months.
• In the past twelve months, they have conservatively served 2,400 families, most of which have at least three family members, for a total of nearly 8,000 people in one year.

What's New?

• In early February, the weekly food distribution day was switched to Monday. The thrift store and food pantry had been closed on Mondays, so this switch allows pantry consumers to pick up their groceries privately, when the regular thrift store shoppers aren't there to see them accepting the food. This change added about 35 volunteer hours per week, because five people volunteer seven hours to fill all the orders each week.
• Kim Davis has taken on the role of Public Relations specialist. In addition to writing grants, which she has been doing for over a year now, Kim will be promoting awareness of the needs of consumers of the thrift store and food pantry as well as opportunities for others to volunteer or make donations.
• Local food banks foresee a decrease in funding at the state and county level for administrators of some social service programs and are investigating the feasibility of local food pantries being a distribution and collection point for WIC and food stamp applications.
• The Ripon Community Thrift Store and Food Pantry is always looking for a larger space, which could accommodate other agencies like Advocap, Social Services and perhaps a free clinic some day, in addition to the pantry shelves and household items.
• The pantry is participating in the Alan Shawn Feinstein matching grant program. Mr. Feinstein will match up to $1 million of any monies and food items collected between now and April 30. Although Amy doesn't know at what level the donations will be matched, she encourages everyone to donate now, while the potential for the match exists.

Want to get involved?
There are many ways to get involved in the Thrift Store and Food Pantry. This is a community-wide effort. Here are a few ways to help...

• Donate your new or gently-used clothing, furniture, and household items to be sold in the store. All profits are used to support the goal of providing food and other necessities for those in need. Just $1 in sales can purchase up to 10 pounds of food through government programs.
• Spend time volunteering at the store – weekly, monthly, or as needed. We need people to organize the food and donations, help run the register, and assist with other projects at the store.
• Offer to be "on call" to help unload large shipments of food and/or assist with other tasks as needed.
• Sponsor the store financially. You can give as an individual, a family, or even do a business sponsorship.

Making an impact
Amy is grateful that the Ripon community has embraced the thrift store and food pantry, stating that although other food pantries arrive at the local food bank without enough money to fulfill their list, our food pantry always has enough to purchase everything on their list with a little bit left over to roll into the next month.

She feels strongly that the Lord's hand is in our Ripon Community Thrift Store and Food Pantry and that this mission is blessed by God. She shared a story of a family who needed three twin beds for three children who were sleeping on the bare floor, and within 24 hours, three sets of mattresses were donated. In her words, "there's no way that's a coincidence." That's just one of many times when Amy has felt the Lord at work in this effort.

Amy says that the face of poverty has changed over the past year or two, to "a look of desperation". Please continue to support the Ripon Community Thrift Store and Food Pantry with your donation of food, money, clothing or time.

The Ripon Community Thrift Store and Food Pantry is located at 109 Watson Street, Ripon. You may reach them by phone at 748-5756 or click here to visit their web page.