Community Notes March 19 – April 2

• The Volunteer Center of Door County will present the eighth annual Golden Heart Volunteer Celebration Tuesday, May 25. The celebration begins with a social at 4:45 pm, dinner at 5:30 pm and a 6:30 pm awards program at the Stone Harbor Resort and Conference Center in Sturgeon Bay.

This year the Youth category recipient will receive a $500 academic scholarship for the first time. The Adult, Lifetime of Service, Group and Arts & Culture category recipients will receive $500 to donate to a Door County charity of their choice.

Nominations will be accepted through Saturday, April 17. Call 920.746.7704, email [email protected], or visit http://www.VolunteerDoorCounty.com for more information.

• The Door County YMCA is almost half way to their 2010 Strong Kids Campaign Goal of $410,000. With the strong leadership of Campaign Co-Chairs Tonya and Mike Felhofer and Kenan and Stephanie Bunda, in addition to all the volunteers making phone calls and helping out with special events, the campaign has raised just under $200,000 raised from nearly 700 donors.

The Strong Kids Campaign is the annual campaign to provide funds for scholarships and affordable programs for all in Door County regardless of age or financial need. In 2009, the Door County YMCA raised $400,000 to support this program.

A gift to the Door County YMCA Strong Kids campaign ensures that no one is ever turned away from using the YMCA facilities or from participating in YMCA programs due to financial constraints. With one in every three people in Door County being served by the YMCA, no other organization has a greater impact on our community.

If you are interested in making a gift to the Strong Kids campaign, donate online at http://www.doorcountyymca.org or mail your contribution to Door County YMCA, 1900 Michigan Street, Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235.

• The Health & Wellness Cabinet Ministry of The Shepherd of the Bay Lutheran Church in Ellison Bay will present the first of a four part series dealing with End of Life Directives April 18. This first talk will be presented by Gregg Casperson and will deal with death from the view of responsibilities of an undertaker and the preplanning of your funeral.

This important, free presentation open to everyone begins at 4 pm. In May, the series continues with a presentation by lawyer Collin Dahl that will deal with all things legal concerning end of life directives. In June a nurse discusses death from her viewpoint, and in July a two-hour presentation from social worker Katie Graf will discuss and help individuals make out their end of life directive and have it notarized and put on file at the hospital.

Organizers sincerely hope that the community takes advantage of these free informational presentations. For more information and details contact Shirley Rosenquist at 920.854.4404.

• Gibraltar’s marketing and business education students earned state honors March 11 in competitions in Lake Geneva. Five students have advanced to the International Career Development Competition in Louisville, KY at the end of April.

The sister team of Hannah and Rachel Mickelson advanced to the ICDC by placing 7th in the Travel and Tourism category. Samantha Thorn and Nathan Fearing advanced by placing 3rd in the Sports and Entertainment Management Series.

Triple qualifier Zachary Kunstman will move on in the Advertising Campaign Event. He researched and planned an advertising campaign promotion for the Sister Bay Teen Center.

Billy Appel and Emmet Jacobs earned first place in the first round of the Virtual Business Retail simulation and went on to earn first place in the second round of the event, also.

Gibraltar Advisor Mary Witteborg was presented with the Wisconsin Red Apple Award, based on the recommendations of her students, parents and principal. The team moves on to Kentucky with 20,000 other marketing and business education students from throughout the United States and eight other countries. For more information on Gibraltar DECA join them on their Facebook page or email [email protected].

• The Door County Humane Society will kick off national “Be Kind to Animals” week Saturday, May 1, with an open house at the Liberty Square Shops in Egg Harbor. The theme for the event, which runs from 4 – 7 pm, is “I’m Kind.”

The event will incorporate a variety of displays demonstrating how the organization rescues and rehabilitates homeless cats, dogs and other small furry creatures in the county. Carrie Counihan, DCHS Executive Director, and several DCHS board members will be available to talk about the humane society’s services.

The newly expanded Liberty Square Shops will provide food and soft drinks at the open house and guests may enjoy a cash bar as well. Admission is $10 for DCHS members and $20 for nonmembers.

Guests will get a sneak peek at the newly expanded shops at Liberty Square, which don’t officially reopen to the public until May 5. The Liberty Square Shops are located at 7755 State Highway 42 in Egg Harbor. For more information visit http://www.libertysquareshops.com.

To learn more about the Door County Humane Society call 920.746.1111 or visit http://www.dooranimals.com.

• The Neighborhood Pub & Grill and Young Automotive of Sturgeon Bay combined to raise $1,335 for the MS Society in February.

The Neighborhood Pub donated $3 for every pizza sold and Young Automotive donated $5 from every oil change service in February. This is the sixth year the two businesses combined forces to raise money for the MS Society. Paul Stoltman and Fred Young extend thanks to the public that supported their efforts.

Paul Stoltman of The Neighborhood Pub has raised over $16,500 so far in his 2010 fundraising campaign.

• After the Solo and Ensemble Festival on March 20, Sturgeon Bay High School is sending a number of students on to the state level competition.

State bound solo events include: Peter Dahl, Piano; Andrea Malek, Violin and Soprano; Gretchen Hathaway, Alto; Holly Okkerse, Soprano; Ashley Jerovitz, Alto; Alex Bosman, Musical Theatre; Keri Grimsley, Musical Theatre; and Clara Wendland, Musical Theatre.

State bound ensemble events include: Robert Lewis, Forrest Heldmann, Shaquille Cosby, Luke Knapp, Dylan Abeyta, Spencer Gustafson, Josh Giese and Duryea Johnson, Men’s Double Quartet; Alex Root-Roatch, Tyler Anderson, Josh Giese, Duryea Johnson, Will Bradley, Alex Bosman, Jakob Happs, Luke Knapp, Molly Banks, Bess Anna Krauss, Mariah Vandertie, Betsy Bader, Gretchen Hathaway, Olivia Arnold, Ashley Jerowitz, Marta Schartner and Andrea Malek, Vocal Jazz.

• Community Clinic of Door County (CCDC) recently welcomed Dylan Annoye, a senior at Southern Door High School to its roster of volunteers. Annoye is completing a course in Volunteerism and a key component of the course is not simply learning about the importance of volunteering, but actually going out into one’s local community and doing just that. Annoye is assisting the Community Clinic of Door County in creating a social media presence.

Pat Delcore, Annoye’s faculty advisor and teacher, said the course has been offered for five years. The course offers a unique learning opportunity that could potentially teach students valuable life skills, underscoring the importance of giving back to the local community. After graduating from Southern Door, Annoye plans to pursue Industrial Design at UW – Stout.

• USDA Rural Development is offering home loans with no down payment and low interest rates for qualifying applicants in rural communities. The Direct Homeownership Loan Program provides for a long-term fixed interest rate, currently 4.875 percent. Mortgage payments are based on household income and could be lower.

Housing Program Director Dave Schwobe said applicants may be able to pay a total monthly house payment for less than what they are currently paying for rent.

Income guidelines are established by county, and properties eligible for USDA Rural Development financing must be located in rural communities with a population of 20,000 or less. Visit the agency eligibility Web site at http://eligibility.sc.egov.usda.gov to determine eligibility.

Maximum mortgage limits apply for home purchases from $153,000 to $273,000 in Wisconsin, depending on the county. Potential homebuyers must have a stable source of income, meet repayment guidelines and have an acceptable credit history. Applicants with a 640 credit score or higher receive streamlined credit reviews. Applicants must be unable to obtain other conventional financing.

Visit http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/wi to learn more or contact USDA Rural Development at 866.474.3600.

• Repair and upgrade work started this winter at the Friends Community Church of Sturgeon Bay. Established in 1880, the Friends Church has a long, rich history; however, now the historic stone church is in need of some repairs.

The church needs restoration of windows and tuck-pointing to the stone masonry. Tower leaks at the entrance are being repaired along with the installation of a new lift and updates to the nursery and Sunday school rooms. The church is seeking donations to help with the effort.

Friends Community Church offers Sunday services at 10 am, Sunday School, Bible Study on Thursdays at 6:30 pm, and popular hymn sings in the every fourth Sunday of June, July and August.

To donate to the Historic Preservation Fund, contact the church at 204 West Maple Street, Sturgeon Bay, call 920.743.2714, or visit http://www.friends-doorcounty.com.

• A few local individuals are teaming up with about 45 other believers from five Christian Radio Stations along with Mission of Mercy to travel to Kenya, Africa to minister June 5 – 16. These missionaries are from Rapid City, SD and Sturgeon Bay.

The goal of the missionaries is to touch the hearts of the children by showing them how important they are in God’s eyes.

The missionaries will raise funds through a brat fry and bake sale at Pick ‘N Save April 10 and 17 and May 8, 15, and 22 from 10 am – 2 pm. They will also be selling flower bulbs, garden plants and candy bars, in addition to Pampered Chef sales at http://www.pamperedchef.biz/hollylehmann. Click on the shop online in upper right corner. Enter “Wendy” in first box, “”Ulrikson” in the second box. Click “Search for Host”, then click on Wendy and you can shop. Tax deductible contributions can be made payable to Lakeside Community Church, c/o Wendy Ulrikson. Send them to WPFF Radio Station, 1723 Michigan Street, Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235.

• Coastie, a very talkative fiver-year-old robotic boat, has helped the Algoma/ Sturgeon Bay unit of the US Coast Guard Auxiliary win a first place award for 2009. Coastie’s motto is Saving Lives Through Education. Over 500 volunteer hours by the local US Coast Guard Auxiliary unit were given at schools, parades, events and celebrations, sharing messages such as “Life jackets float, You don’t” or “Reach or throw, but never go” in the water.