GREAT EXAMPLES OF GIVING

St. James Parish Mukwonago 604 Dozen Christmas Cookies

A longstanding tradition for Gathering Christmas meals is to give each guest a treat bag filled with a piece of fruit, Christmas cookies and candy.  St. James Parish Mukwonago provided all ingredients this past Christmas:  7,255 homemade cookies, 1,493 candy canes, 534 oranges, 368 apples, 418 cuties plus assorted scarves, gloves, hats and winter headbands.

Michael Best & Friedrich LLP: Holiday Card Exchange Program 

Attorneys at Michael Best & Friedrich LLP opt to write checks to a worthy cause in “exchange” for sending holiday cards to each other.  In 2015 that meant $675 for The Gathering’s work.

St. Paul’s Episcopal Church

Provides personal supplies for Gathering guests four times/year, including socks, scarves, sleeping bags, backpacks, knit caps, ear warmers, coats and hoodies.

Music for Charity 

Karen Beaumont, Milwaukee organist, designated the proceeds from two of her 2015 concerts for The Gathering and Tamarack Waldorf School.  This was also part of Karen’s birthday celebration.  The Gathering received over $200 to continue our work.

Alternative Birthday Gift  

One of our young volunteers decided that instead of gifts for his 13^th birthday he would like to collect donations for people in need.  The Gathering received $125 for our Community Meals – that’s enough to provide breakfast for 50 guests!  Thank you, SB!

Christmas in July

In July, you’re putting on sunscreen, heading to a local festival, or taking walks outside.At The Gathering’s South Side site, our guests are celebrating Christmas. Thanks to a partnership with Johnson Controls, we have celebrated Christmas in July at the Gathering for over 20 years.

The meal (roast beef, fresh mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, rolls, Christmas cookies, and ice cream sundaes) is paid for by Johnson Controls, and prepared and served by JCI employees. To top it off, each guest receives a gift bag supplied by JCI employees, and each child is given a treat bag full of wrapped presents and goodies donated by Maureen and Gary Shebesta. Holiday music and decorations added to the festive atmosphere.

The Gathering Board of Directors thanks the following generous supporters giving $250 or more between September 1, 2011 and February 29, 2012

We have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of all donor names. If we have missed you or spelled your name incorrectly, please let us know.

Contributions of $15,000-$24,999

Nicholas Family Foundation

Contributions of $10,000-$14,999

One Anonymous Donor * Catholic Community Foundation – JCC Fund * The Grainger Foundation * Hunger Relief Fund of Wisconsin

Contributions of $5,000-$9,999

Two Anonymous Donors * Empty Bowls Project * Jane Bradley Pettit Foundation *Luedke-Smith Fund – Greater Milwaukee Foundation * Lux Foundation * Trainer Family Foundation * United Way of Greater Milwaukee – Donor Choice

Contributions of $2,500-4,999

One Anonymous Donor * All Saints’ Cathedral Hunger Book Sale * Christ Church-Episcopal – Whitefish Bay * David and Mel Johnson * Ladish Company Foundation * August Mueller Trust (U. S. Bank Trustee) * St. Paul’s Episcopal Church – Milwaukee * Thompson Foundation

Contributions of $1,000-$2,499

Two Anonymous Donors * Bostik, Inc * CNA Insurance * Lucy Cooper * Custom Service Manufacturing * Richard and Mary DeLuca * Emanuel United Church of Christ-Hales Corners * Rachel Finger * Daniel and Kathy Glaser * Gathering Memorial Fund-Greater Milwaukee Foundation * GE Foundation * Paul and Kathy Hartke * Steve Holt * Greg and Jackie Johnson * Nancy and Dan Kiernan *Mike and Ginny McBride * John and Beryl Mulhern * Rite Hite Foundation * William and Susan Rose * St. John Chrysostom Episcopal Church-Delafield * St. Joseph’s Catholic Church-Wauwatosa * St. Mark’s Episcopal Church-Milwaukee * St. Matthias Parish-Milwaukee * Margaret Schumacher * Service Club of Milwaukee * Silverman Family Foundation * Marc Vandiepenbeeck * Robert and Ellen Venable * Donald and Kate Wilson * John and Julie Wolf

Contributions of $500-$999

Eight Anonymous Donors * Robert C. Archer Designated Fund-Greater Milwaukee Foundation * David Ashpole * David and Karen Bartel * James Bauman * Evert and Cindy Berndt * Joe and Marlene Bruno * Lisa Christiansen * Cottrell/Jacobs and Housiaux Family Fund-Greater Milwaukee Foundation * Vincent and Linda Dindzans * Heider and Bott Company * Michael Istwan and Amy Korpi * Frederick and Susan Kasten * Ted and Mary Kellner * James and Dona Knight * Eugene and Gwendolyn Lavin * Evan Lenhardt and Virginia Finn-Lenhardt * Andrew Martin and Janet Trostel Martin * Joseph and Joni McDevitt * Tom and Diane McGinn * Rex and Gladys Merriman Fund-Greater Milwaukee Foundation * Jeff and Holly Morris * Northwestern Mutual

Foundation * The Other Stratton Foundation * Allan and Sandy Pasch * Dennis Petrick * Jack and Martha Prince Family Fund-Greater Milwaukee Foundation * Robert W. Baird Foundation * St. James Episcopal Church-Milwaukee * Seaman-Goes Family Foundation * Seeds of Health Elementary School * Gary and Maureen Shebesta * James and Christine Speaker * Stony Hills Presbyterian Church-Germantown * Carl and Nancy Trimble * Western Province of the Community of St. Mary * Trevor and Margaret Will * Will Ross Memorial Foundation * Eugene and Carmen Witt * Lee Wolcott

Contributions of $250-$499

Four Anonymous Donors * A & A Manufacturing Company * Jeff and Susan Allen * Answerport Management and Technology Consultants * Bayerlein Foundation * William and Kathryn Berezowitz * Jane Bozewicz * Robert and Elizabeth Bradley * John and Julie Cabaniss * Carrie Taylor and Nettie Taylor Robinson Memorial Fund-Greater Milwaukee Foundation * Christ Church-Delavan * James and Diane Cowles * Paul Fackler * Gary and Faye Giesemann * Greendale Community Church * Greg and Hazel Griffin * Holz Motors * Henry Jaskulski * Johnson Controls * Peter and Mary Klabunde * Jill Kortebein * Brian Lanser * Jane Matheus * Michael McClone * Hazelyn McComas * Mark and Karen Meunier * Jose Montenegro, III * Jo Mooney * William and Susan

Mueller * Kevin and Cheryl O’Connor * St. Agnes Congregation-Butler * St. Boniface Episcopal Church-Mequon * St. Nicholas Orthodox Church-Cedarburg * St. Thomas of Canterbury Episcopal-Greendale * Marilyn Schrader * Tom and Meredie Scrivner * Shorewest Realtors * Jerry Smith * Melvin and Lee Stapel * Trinity Episcopal Church-Wauwatosa * Joanne and Patrick Ward * Western States Envelope and Label Company

Children help The Gathering in amazing ways.

“I am Molly and I am ten years old. This summer my cousins, Aubrey and Addie and I had a lemonade stand to raise money for The Gathering. We raised more money than we thought, and some people even gave money and didn’t want lemonade. I have been to The Gathering and I think it is a great program. I think all the volunteers are magnificent! George and Moses made me feel welcome. George was like a teacher to everybody and told them what to do. George explained things to everyone and he gave us jobs. I got to hand out juice, clean the tables and stack the muffins. Moses was a great person to talk to and he does a good job. The people that come in every day and volunteer are special people. The guests looked like they felt welcome. Everybody left with a full tummy and that made me feel happy. I liked doing the job George gave me and I felt like I knew what to do. I hope you can use our lemonade money for something that will help The Gathering.”

On December 9, 2011, The Gathering received a letter and a check from Seeds of Health Elementary School located near our south side site, which includes Windlake Elementary and 5th-8th grades at Windlake Academy. As part of their Character Counts program, they were discussing how “generosity is… being willing to give to others.” As a result, the students collected loose change and chose The Gathering as the recipient of those funds. They appreciate that many of The Gathering’s guests live in their neighborhood and could even be Seeds of Health family members. They sent us $837.39!

We often see children as the recipients of assistance, but they are also wonderfully equipped to give. Above are two examples of children who have given to The Gathering in recent months. This is only a small part. Middle school students from St. Rafael and Prince of Peace Schools serve regularly at our dinner program. Children donate cookies and bag lunches. They organize sock drives, make seasonal decorations, and hold fundraisers throughout the year; individual children serve at meal sites with their parents or grandparents. Last May, a group of “Bigs” and “Littles” from Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Milwaukee met at the St. James meal site after the Saturday lunch program to create and hang decorations. The spring-themed placemats, table center pieces and wall art gave the space a feeling of joy and youthfulness. On Saturday, March 3, 2012, Daisy Troop 9057 from Southwood Glen Elementary School in Franklin brightened the St. James site with their handmade St. Patrick’s Day decorations, toured the meal site and donated Girl Scout cookies before lunch was served.

We are all blessed by the gifts and compassion of so many young supporters!

Daisy Troop 9057