Volunteering on the Home Front

APRIL

2020

King Active Volunteers 356

!

Message from your Volunteer Coordinator

Terry Heschke, Volunteer Coordinator

With Volunteer Appreciation Week right around the corner, I wanted to feature all of our volunteers. I want everyone to know you matter, you make difference, and you’re our team. Your great generosity has had a profound and lasting impact on our staff and members here at the Wisconsin Veterans Home. Your willingness to share both your time and your many talents along with giving sel�lessly to help others speaks to both your strength and the quality of your character.

As I was thinking about writing this article, I wanted to look up the de�inition of two important words: Team & Volunteerism. “Team is de�ined as a group of individuals working together to achieve common goals”. “Volunteerism is de�ined as the policy or practice of volunteering one’s time or talents for charitable, educational, or other worthwhile activities, especially in one’s community”. These two words describe our volunteers - all of you! We have such a wonderful volunteer team, over 350 volun-teers and I’m sure many of you don’t really know how everyone spends their time here with our members. Well, I am going to share all the tasks our volunteers do and hope maybe some of you will want to try something different or if you have a talent that isn’t mentioned, come to me and let’s make it happen!

Happy Volunteer Appreciation Week during April 19th through April 25th! Words cannot adequately express the gratitude that I, the members and staff wish to convey to each of you! Please know that your volunteerism is recognized, ap-preciated, valued and cherished. As many of you have heard, we had to make a dif�icult choice to cancel our Volunteer Banquet for April 21st to carry out our precautionary measures due to the COVID 19. I have couple of ideas in the works to still recognize all our volunteers and as soon as our precautionary measures are lifted, I will keep you updated.

This poem sums it up on how special you are to our staff and most of all, our members:

Volunteers are just ordinary people with extraordinary hearts.They offer the gift of their time to teach, to listen, to help, to inspire, to build, to grow, and to learn.They expect no pay, yet the value of their work knows no limit. They’ve known the unexpected joy of a simple hug.They’ve planted tiny seeds of love in countless lives.Volunteers are just ordinary people who reach out and take a hand and together make a difference that lasts a lifetime.

Author Unknown

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Welcome New VolunteerDan Wierichs Author Unknown

I shall pass through this world but once.Any good, therefore that I can do

Or any kindness I can showTo any fellow creature, Let me do it now.

Let me not defer nor neglect it,For I shall not pass this way again.

VOLUNTEER CREED

you can make a difference

Happy Birthday from the Staff of King May your day be wonderful and richly blessed!

If you have a birthday this month and your name isn’t listed, please contact the volunteer of�ice: 715.258. 4247 volunteerservices@dva.

May your day be wonderful and richly blessed! April 3

Jim WaidApril 4

Todd KnepfelJames O’Keefe

April 5Michele Bolen

April 8Kenneth BruchJerome Taddy

April 9Micha Krogstad

April 10 Steve Jones

April 11Scott Turner

April 12Todd Wahler

April 15Mathew Harn

Nanci MaesJohn Mundt

April 17Heen DessortFrank Haffner

April 19Darlene Hempel

April 22Mary Woiak

April 23Valerie Barden

Armin Conradet, Sr.April 28

Janet ErmilioApril 30

Alan Strobusch

Volunteer NeedsIf you are able to assist, or have questions contact:

Terry at 715-258-4247or Jeff at 715-258-5586 ext. 2239

March 22, Sunday: Oshkosh

Fire or Other Emergencies (715) 258-5586 Ext: 2222

Of�ice of the Commandant(715) 256-5022

Marden Center Administrator(715) 256-5019

Volunteer Coordinator(715) 258-4247

Volunteer Of�ice e-mailVolunteerServices@dva.wisconsin.gov

Marden Center Donations(715) 256-5020

IMPORTANT CONTACTS

IMPORTANT REMINDERSPlease take a moment to read these reminders:

• Volunteers must not take any photographs of members dur-ing any type of event or activity per HIPAA

• Volunteers shall not transport any members off grounds at any time unless it’s with the WVH buildings or All Camp Trips.

• Volunteers, please check with staff before taking any members off of Ainsworth 1st and 2nd fl oor units unless staff is with you.

• Volunteers should NOT enter a member’s room without permis-sion. Please knock and wait for an answer. If you do not receive an answer but you hear some voices, go to the next room. This is their home and we need to treat it like it’s our own home.

• Volunteers should only be bringing members store bought food, homemade items are not allowed, and one needs to check with staff if the item is appropriate for the member diet.

• Please report your volunteer hours. It’s very important for us to keep showing how important and valuable your volunteering is to our members and staff.

• Volunteers are not permitted to drink alcohol while on outings or visiting with members in Alley 5. Feel free to have a non-alcoholic beverage though!

Upcoming Events • Hopefully April 28, Tuesday: Re-Creation Performance at Ains worth Hall Multipurpose Room, 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.May 2, Saturday: 1:00 p.m., Semi-Annual Commemoration Service, Main Chapel. Snacks to follow at 1:30 p.m. May 21, Thursday: 6:00 p.m., Flag setting at the cemetary.May 25, Memorial Day: 9:30 a.m., Lakeside Service; 10:30 a.m. Cemetery Service and Music in the Park.

Volunteer Coordinator

If you are able to assist, or have questions contact: Terry at 715-258-4247

or Jeff at 715-258-5586 ext. 2239

All-Camp Trips • March

March 9, Monday: Barnes &

Sign-In StationsReporting your volunteer hours and who you are visiting

in a timely matter is very important. Each Sign-In Station has a volunteer box for your hour slips, feel free to e-mail them to me, or do it on-line.

Ainsworth Hall-Outside the MPR doors to the right.MacArthur Hall-Outside the Activity of�ice.Stordock Hall-Information center near the dining room.Olson Hall-Outside the activity of�ice on the �irst �loor.When you sign in, it lets us know who is in the buildings at

any given time in case there is an emergency or we need to get ahold of you (which has happened). Please be sure you stop at the sign-in stations and sign in before going to your post.

February 23, 1945

It has been noticed that some volunteers need to have their ID photo taken. If you are one of those volunteers, please contact Terry or Jeff. They can walk you over to security to take a very professional “mug shot”. Just

Volunteers Photo ID

Stordock Hall Members Have All Been Moved!

This process was completed late January and members and staff are doing well with the transition. Our new normal census will be 521. Thank you to all the volunteers who spent many hours volunteering for our Stordock members.

Moses BuildingConstruction continues and it is still on

track for completion in Fall of 2021.

Volunteer Annual Education Forms ...along with the 4 Year Updated Background Check (if needed one) have been sent out! If you haven’t received yours, please let me know, otherwise, please drop them off at the of�ice or mail them.

Work Therapy Program

In an effort to be consistent with the other two Veterans Homes in the state, we will be moving the member work therapy program towards a volunteer program. This program will continue to provide our members with a sense of purpose that is so important to all of our well-being! Many of our work therapy members will be joining our volunteer team so they can accumulate hours by helping out around campus!

For Your Information......Once Again

How many of us have heard of the Gray Ladies? One of our volunteers whose parents were part of the Gray Ladies here at King back in the 1950’s and 1960’s, gave me a couple of photo-graphs. So, being Volunteer Recognition Week is in April, some research was done on them and this is what I found.

The Gray Ladies were American Red Cross Volunteers (most-ly comprised of women) who went through rigorous training to provide non-medical care to patients in military hospitals, other health-care facilities, and private homes, notably during World War II. They provided friendly, personal, non-medical

Gray Ladies from the Wisconsin Veterans Home back in the mid 1950’s and 1960’s. The gentleman standing with the two ladies is Frank Haffner, his wife Rose appears in the center of the front row in the group image. Rose Haffner was also a Gold Star member of the Weyauwega Legion Auxilliary. Frank held several positions here at King, and he was also good friends with Commandant Gil Stordock.

services to sick, injured or disabled patients. They wrote let-ters, read, tutored and shopped for patients, and served as guides to visitors and as hostesses in hospital recreation rooms and at information desks. Gray Ladies also provided hospital-ity services in Red Cross Blood Centers and joined forces with other Red Cross workers in caring for disaster victims.

By the 1930s, the Gray Lady Service spread to other hos-pitals around the country, both military and civilian. Their services also expanded to include blood centers and providing assistance with disaster response. During World War II, the service reached its peak with almost 50,000 women serving as Gray Ladies in military and other hospitals throughout the U.S. Following the war, some Gray Ladies even served in U.S. military hospitals overseas. While the number of Gray Ladies decreased after the war, these women continued serving in American hospitals until the mid-1960s when the Red Cross shifted to a uni�ied concept of volunteers.

by Terry Heschke

COVID-19 Updates on WDVA WebsiteOver the past couple of weeks or so you have likely received a multitude of information and guidance regarding COVID-19. To consolidate that informa-tion into one location, the Wisconsin Veterans Affairs department has launched a public COVID-19 website which can be found on Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs website, click on COVID-19. I ask that you remember to take care of

yourselves during this time. If you are feeling overwhelmed or frightened, reach out to your family, church or even myself, and remember, we will all get through this together. M I L I T A R Y A N N I V E R S A R I E S

April 1, 1942: The Japanese resume major attack on the Bataan Peninsula. The American and Philippine troops have 24,000 of their men ill due to short rations. April 4,1966: U.S. F-4C Phantom bombers hit the main supply route between North Vietnam and Naning, China, striking the Phulangthong bridge. April 7, 1972: Communist troops take Locninh, a district capital in Binhlong Province. 15,000 ARVN troops are surrounded by NVA while retreating form Locninh to Anloc. April 10, 1951: The Defense Department issued an order effective May 1 lower-ing the induction standards. The plan called for the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps to receive draftees for the �irst time since World War II. April 16, 1951: General and Mrs. MacArthur departed Haneda Airport for the United States. Nearly 500,000 Japanese turned out to say goodbye. April 19, 1972: US 7th Fleet warships, while bombarding the North Vietnamese coast, are attacked by MiGs and patrol boats. April 25, 1999: In Iraq US warplanes struck air defense sites in the northern no �ly zone after being threatened by radar. April 28, 1967: Heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali refused to be inducted into the Army and was stripped of his boxing title.

Data courtesy of the History Channel

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