We want to thank the Friends of Veteransand Ronesa Revels for putting on a suc-cessful Poker Run for the Veterans Assis-tance Foundation in Tomah and all theVeterans we serve. For those of you who donot know about the Friends of Veterans,they are a motorcycle organization thathelps fundraise for our veterans. Thisorganization was founded by a gentleman

whose name was Larry Dahn (Moss, as weknew him). Moss died on June 14, 2008, inan accident while riding on his motorcycle

On Saturday, May 15, 2010, it wasanother adventure again with the PokerRun. VAF’s Faye Rainey and Dawn Ollen-dick came in around 9 a.m. to set up tablesand made coffee and hot cocoa and someextra goodies to go with the beverages. Wehanded them out to the riders while theyregistered for the ride. They had manystops on the way so they needed that cof-fee, which we ran out of. Sorry to all.

The Friends of Veterans had a goodturnout for the event. After the blessing ofthe bikes (we counted around 63 bikes),they lined up on 5th street and all took offat the same time. It was amazing! Morebikes showed up late; they turned aroundand took off to catch up with the rest!

That night they were staying inWyeville to eat, drink and camp. Duringtheir fun time, they had lots of raffles andprizes to give out. This was all done inmemory of Moss – “his dream lives on,but he is not forgotten.”

VETERA

NS ASSISTANCE

FOUNDATION

VETERANS ASSISTANCE FOUNDATION

Summer 2010 SERVING WISCONSIN’S AND THE NATION’S HOMELESS VETERANS FOR OVER 15 YEARS

VAF, P.O. Box 610, Tomah, WI 54660 608-372-1280 www.veteransassistance.org

We are now full bore into summer. Hereat the Veterans Assistance Foundationthings rarely slow down, and this summeris no exception. We’ve had staff going inall directions; presenting information atWisconsin Department of Veterans AffairsSupermarkets in Cleveland and Milwau-kee, Wisconsin, and soon to be Rice Lakeand Madison; a board meeting; theNational Coalition of Homeless Veteransconference in Washington, D.C.; adopt ahighway; and many other projects.

Since our last newsletter we have lostone staff member to other endeavors, pro-moted Regina to the position of CaseManager and welcomed aboard Michelle

as our newest staff member. Friends ofVeterans had their annual Bike Blessingand Poker Run, which was followed by avery generous donation to the program. Iwasn’t able to attend this year, but fromwhat I heard the weather was much nicerthan last year. The Veterans and staff ofVAF extend a much appreciated thank youto all who support this program. The valueof support, whether it be in the form ofdonations, volunteering or just lending ahelping hand, is priceless.

Thank you all. Be safe and take care.

Semper Fi,Colin

FROM THE PRESIDENT

We have a couple of staff changes to tellyou about. Due to a case manager movingon to explore other opportunities, we had acase manager position open up. Gina Bald-win, our Administrative Assistant, hastransferred into that position and we havehired Michelle Hove as the new Adminis-trative Assistant in the front office.

Regina “Gina” BaldwinIn the last issue,

we left off withme being the newAdministrative Assis-tant (Tina got pro-moted). Guess what?It’s my turn to passon the torch to anewbie (see MichelleHove’s article below).I am proud to

announce that I have been promoted to avacant Case Manager position. I am veryexcited about this transition. The last cou-ple of weeks have been busy learning allthe duties and responsibilities of my newposition. It is definitely going to takeawhile for me to rise to the level. However,starting out in the front office definitely isan asset for me. Being part of this programis very rewarding and I’m ready for thechallenge of my new job. I look forward tocontinuing my employment with the VAFand assisting Veterans to the best of myability. Thank you for the confidence, sup-port, experience, and most of all, theopportunity to grow with you!

Michelle HoveI was born and raised in the Tomah area.

I moved away a couple of times, but wehave a very close-knit family and my rootsalways pulled me back here. Early in 1990

CONGRATULATIONSGINA AND WELCOMEABOARD, MICHELLE

FRIENDS OF VETERANS8TH ANNUAL BIKE BLESSING/POKER RUN

CONGRATS, continued on page 2

Dan and Peggy Koresh (yes, that isVAF case manager Peggy Koresh) par-ticipating in the 8th Annual Friends ofVeterans (FOV) Poker Run benefitingthe Veterans Assistance Foundation. FRIENDS, continued on page 4

Gina Baldwin

Page 2 Summer 2010

The Department of Workforce Develop-ment for the State of Wisconsin held a Vet-erans Job Fair on June 16, 2010 at theArmy National Guard Armory in Sparta,Wisconsin. Of the displays set up, therewere 21 employers (including one FederalAgency) and 19 benefit providers. The JobFair ran from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and had avery good turnout with 98 Veterans regis-tering for the event.

Through the employers attending theevent there were 130 current positionsopen. There were five veterans hired at theevent, and there were 125 confirmedfuture interviews for the veterans. Therewas a van from the VAF that made the tripto Sparta taking 14 of our Veterans(including the driver) to take part in theJob Fair. Of these 14 individuals, therewere five future interviews set up that day;there may be more interviews pending.

Vern Tranberg represented the VeteransAssistance Foundation (VAF) at the JobFair as a benefit provider/outreach infor-mation table. He indicated that several ofthe veterans stopped at the VAF table toinquire about the program and to look atthe pictures of the program facilities. Hecommented that they all said they werevery happy someone was helping our fel-low veterans. He handed out severalbrochures and asked them to spread theword about the program to any Veteransthey knew who may need the services pro-vided by the VAF.

Dawn Ollendick also attended the JobFair in the afternoon. She and Vern bothmade contact with several of the employerspresent to either set up a possible workingrelationship with a new employer or to touchbase and strengthen the relationship with acurrent employer working with the VAF.

I met my husbandand on August 16,1990 I found out Iwas blessed withexpecting our firstchild. On August24, 1990, my hus-band was put onalert for DesertStorm. He leftNovember 8th for

Saudi Arabia. When he returned in July of1991, our son was three months old.

We now have two children: Our son isnow 19 and our daughter is 12. Our sonjust finished his first year of college; heis an Art Education Major with a Minorin History. He has three more years left,then he plans to return to Tomah to teachand coach football. Our daughter is cur-rently in the middle school and is astraight A student. She hopes to go to col-lege to be a lawyer. Both of our childrenare in many sports and are currently play-

ing summer softball. My husband and Ienjoy camping, fishing, movies andattending our children’s sporting events.We also try to vacation once a year, usu-ally to the Caribbean. That is my para-dise, and I would choose to retire there,out of any other place in the world.

My experience includes working forAdecco Employment Services and ABREmployment Services. Both places workwith companies to fulfill their staffingneeds. I believe there are even a few gen-tlemen here that I have worked with in thestaffing field. Besides this, I have manyyears experience in Human Resourcesand Customer Service. I feel that everyplace I have worked has had positiveexperiences for me to draw from, and Ihope to use these experiences to be of bet-ter service at VAF. I am so happy to behere working with Faye and the crew – notto mention working with all of the veter-ans. Thank you for the opportunity to be apart of the VAF team!

CONGRATS, continued from page 1

SPARTA JOB FAIR

Dawn speaking to a representative ofCentury Foods of Sparta.

VAF Staff Dawn and Vern with Dave Wolf(DWD-DAV Program Spec.) and Bob Bur-rier (DAV Deputy Representative) of WI.

The Friends of Veterans presented acheck to the Veterans Assistance Founda-tion with the funds raised by the FOV at the8th Annual Bike Blessing and Poker Run.

FRIENDS OF VETERANSPRESENTS CHECK TO VAF

The plaque reads:

Presented toThe Friends of Veterans

In Sincere Appreciation of yourContributions and Support

to the Veterans in our Program.

Thank you2010

The Veterans Assistance Foundation

APPRECIATION PLAQUEAWARDED TO FRIENDS

OF VETERANS

Pictured, L-R: Faye Rainey-ProgramDirector VAF, Dawn Ollendick-ProgramsDirector VAF, Colin Moten-PresidentVAF, Ronessa Revels-FOV, Billy Johnson-FOV and Kathy Cook-FOV.

Colin presenting a plaque to the Friendsof Veterans in appreciation of their effortsto support the VAF. Pictured, kneeling:Kurt Wohler; 1st Row Standing, L-R: PetePeterson, Peg Peterson, Colin Moten-VAF President, Ronessa Revels, TabathaBishop and Ralph Johnson (seated); 2ndRow, Standing, L-R: Gina Gilpin, TimGilpin, Billy Johnson, Kathy Cook, RonCrow and Pennie Johnson.

Michelle Hove

Moss Dahn and Ronessa Revels havesupported the Veterans Assistance Founda-tion (VAF) since its inception in 1994. Mossbought new televisions for the dayrooms toreplace the old sets that were over 20 yearsold. They brought in towels, washcloths,sheets, clothing and other items that theVAF could use to help the Veterans in theprogram. When the VAF needed refrigera-tors for the program, Moss found a way toget them. Moss wasn’t afraid to ask organi-zations for donations to help the Veterans.

In 2002 Moss and Ronessa decided theywanted to do something bigger to helpraise money for VAF. So talk was started ofa fundraiser, that turned to a Poker Run andfinally to a Bike Blessing. The first BikeBlessing and Poker Run was held in May2003 with approximately 20 bikes regis-tered and they raised $100 for the VAF.They decided to hold the event again thenext year and had 10 to 12 friends and fam-ily members helping them organize theevent, which has turned into an annualevent and grown from there. This year theyhad approximately 100 people signed up –some only came to have their bikes blessed,while others took part in the Bike Blessingand the Poker Run itself, which was 90miles long for the whole route. This year,the Friends of Veterans Bike Blessing andPoker Run raised $5,000 for the VAF.

In 2008, the Friends of Veterans lostMoss due to a motorcycle accident; at that

time, Ronessa was going to give up on theFriends of Veterans as it was something theyhad built up together. Several members ofthe group would not give up on Ronessa andtold her that Moss would have wanted her(and them) to keep it going to help the Vet-erans. Ronessa decided to stay with thegroup and keep it going. The Friends of Vet-erans currently has over 40 members in thegroup with approximately 15 of them Veter-ans themselves with service dates rangingfrom WWII, Vietnam, Desert Storm,OEF/OIF, other conflicts, peacetime andcurrently serving on active duty.

The members of the Friends of Veteransput on an annual Thanksgiving Dinner forthe residents of the Veterans AssistanceFoundation. They cook a traditional dinnerwith turkey, potatoes and gravy, stuffing andpies, along with several other goodies. Theycome in and serve the dinner to the Veteransand thank them for their service to our coun-try. Many heartfelt conversations take placebetween the two groups on this day.

The Friends of Veterans is not a Motor-cycle Club, but a group of people whocome together to help and support others –they are a “family”. Even though there areVeterans in the group, several members arenot Veterans, but have joined because theyhave family members that have served inthe United States military. Ronessa alwaystells everyone, “The Friends of Veteransisn’t about us, it’s about helping others.”

Summer 2010 Page 3

IN THE SPOTLIGHTIN THE SPOTLIGHTThe following organization/individuals are recognized for their special

contributions to the Veterans residing in VAF-operated programs in Wisconsin:

FRIENDS OF VETERANS

My name is Terry Morrisard and I havebeen with the Veterans Assistance Founda-tion since September 26, 2007. I was liv-ing with my sister, but I became homelesswhen she asked me to leave. I had nowhereelse to go.

I came to VAF, and while I was in theprogram I became a voluntary driver. Ienjoyed that very much and did any drivethat was asked of me. Renee kept mebusy with drives, and I also moved all thevehicles so plowing could get done in the

winter. I got my own room when I becamea driver, and I liked that very much.

I moved to the Step Up house in July2008. Shortly after going into the Step Uphouse, I became house manager and stillhold that position today. While being thehouse manager I have been in charge of dif-ferent things around the house, which I like.I got a job at the VA with the IT program inthe kitchen; I have had that job ever since Icame into the Step Up house, and plan tocontinue to work there.

Because of living in the Step Up house, Ihave been able to grow my savings account,

and was able to purchase a car with cash.My savings account is still growing becauseI have learned to save money and I like that.I always keep the house clean and makesure that the other Veterans are also doingtheir part. Just like at your own house, youhave to do your jobs.

I was able to connect with HUDVASH,and was approved, and I now will be get-ting my own apartment to move into. Iwould recommend the VAF program toother Veterans.

Terry Morrisard

The Tomah VAMCheld the March Mad-ness 9-Pin Tap Bowl-ing Tourney Fundraiseras a way to raise fundsfor the 2010 NationalVeterans Creative ArtsFestival. The tourna-ment was open to all –Veterans, Employees,Volunteers and mem-bers of the Communityand was held fromMarch 1-April 9, 2010.

There were seven-teen, 2 person teams

entered in the tournament at a cost of $20 perteam. The tournament consisted of tworounds – a qualifying round and a champi-onship round. In the qualifying round, eachteam bowled one game. The game wasplayed with the teammates taking turns, onebowling the first frame then the other bowl-ing the second frame and so on until the endof the game. Of the 17 teams to compete inthe tournament, the three teams with thehighest scores then proceeded to the champi-onship round.

The top three teams were: Louie and Bob(VAF residents) with a score of 192, Billand Tom with a score of 176 and Joey andJohn (VAF residents) with a score of 175.

The competition was tough, and therewas probably a lot of good-natured ribbinggoing on, but in the end the team of Thun-der and Lightning persevered and tookhome the top honors of the tournament.The final standings of the tournament areas follows:1st place: Louie and Bob, Final score of 1862nd place: Joey and John, Final score of 1783rd place: Bill and Tom, Final score of 177

Quoting Thunder (aka Louie) “it was allin good fun to raise money, and I wouldlike to thank Jim Theres of the TomahVAMC for running it. We need more activ-ities like this. Hint, Hint.”

DRUM ROLL, PLEASE…and the winners for VAF are…THUNDER AND LIGHTNING

VAF residents BobD. and Louie G.display their 1stPlace awards fromthe 9-Pin TapBowling Tourna-ment hosted by theTomah VAMC.

Thank you from the Residents, Staff and Board of Directors of the Veterans AssistanceFoundation for all you do to help the Veterans in our Program. A special thank you toMoss and Ronessa for your efforts to support our program and in starting the Friendsof Veterans group. We miss you Moss, your dream lives on!

HIGHLIGHT A VETERAN

Page 4 Summer 2010

WHAT YOU CAN DOTO HELP?

Providing services takes money;foundations and corporations fighthard for a share of big federal andstate grants. The Veterans AssistanceFoundation relies on the generosity ofpeople like you to help end thenational disgrace of homeless veteranswho are (MIA) Missing in America.

Please send your tax-deductibledonations to:

Veterans Assistance Foundation, Inc.P.O. Box 610Tomah, WI 54660

Please help us to continue our effortsto help those veterans who need a“Hand-up and not a hand-out.”

VAF MISSION STATEMENT

Our mission is to help homelessveterans or at risk of becomingHomeless veterans regain, maintainand improve their status in society byproviding an alcohol- and drug-free,secure environment through which awide array of human services can beaccessed in an atmosphere of dignityand mutual concern.

Personal Care Items:Toothbrushes/Holders Toothpaste Dental FlossFoot Powder Shampoo ConditionerCombs Brushes Disposable Shavers Shaving Cream Bar Soap LotionLiquid Hand Soap Kleenex Bar Soap Holder/ContainerDeodorant Vaseline Fingernail/Toenail ClippersBaby Oil Toilet Paper Denture - Bath, Cleaner, Adhesive

Recreational Items:Model Kits Phone Cards Pool Sticks and Chalk (red) Craft Kits Movies Pool Stick Repair Kit Board Games Crossword Puzzles Nine Ball RackPens, pencils Envelopes Exercise MatsStationery Books 26" Bike Tire TubesStamps Bicycle Rack Bicycle Tire Repair KitsGreeting Cards Bicycles (26")

Clothing: Good used clothing is fine.House Slippers (Sizes 8-13) T-shirts (S, M, L, XL, 2XL)Underwear (S, M, L, XL, 2XL) Socks – Athletic (Sizes 8-13)Men’s jeans (Waist sizes 32 to 42) Shower shoes/flip flops (M, L, XL)Tennis Shoes Winter – Hats, Gloves, Boots, Coats

Household Supplies:Sugar/Sugar Substitute Coffee mugs (plastic) Pillows & Pillow ProtectorsBath Towels/Wash Cloths Clothes Hangers (plastic) Laundry Detergent (powder)Fabric Softener Sheets Sewing Kits Laundry Bags (mesh type)

2010 WISH LIST

While donations of any kind are always welcome, please call the Center at 608-372-1280before making any donations. Cash donations are always needed and welcomed. Asalways, the residents and staff thank you for your kind thoughts and generous support.

WDVA SUPERMARKET OF VETERANS BENEFITSCLEVELAND, WISCONSIN

On the 4th and 5th of June, VAF’s Dawn Ollendick attended a Supermarket of Veterans Ben-efits in Cleveland, Wisconsin as an outreach effort for the Veterans Assistance Foundation.

At this free “one stop shop,” veterans can learn about eligibility criteria for state benefits,programs for veterans and services available to them. They can also apply for their benefits.Veterans also receive information about loans, education and employment benefits.

Veterans who earned medals and need to get them or have them replaced had an oppor-tunity to do that, as well. Veterans could apply to get their medical records or DD214’Sordered and obtain information about assisted living and nursing home care available tothem. Veterans could also pre-register for burial in state veterans’ cemeteries.

It was very busy both days and also very educational for Dawn. This event was wellorganized and she met a lot of nice people. These events are very important to our veter-ans; many of the veterans who came to this event were not aware of all their benefits.

OUTREACH TO SUPERMARKETVAF’s Faye Rainey was able to attend the Supermarket of Veterans Benefits on July

3rd of this year. It ran in conjunction with Operation Freedom hosted by MilwaukeeCounty at the Milwaukee County Zoo.

Besides the Veterans Assistance Foundation, there were over 35 providers that gaveinformation regarding VA health care, federal and state benefits and educationalopportunities. Many were there for veterans and there were several others for all indi-viduals – not just for veterans.

Hundreds of veterans from all service periods, including Iraq and Afghanistan,came through the display areas that day. It was nice to hear the many expressions ofgratitude from people in their appreciation for us being there and providing the serv-ices that we do.

We want to thank Ronesa and theFriends of Veterans and all who partici-pated in this great event that we lookforward to every year. This organizationmeans a lot to all of us at the VeteransAssistance Foundation, especially to ourveterans. We thank you.

FRIENDS, continued from page 1

The Tomah VAMC Chaplain MaynardP. Hofer preparing for the Blessing ofthe Bikes.

Departing the VA for the start of the 8thAnnual FOV Poker Run.