Edgerton Community Outreach

Million Pound Challenge Update

Emily — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 20:31:56 +0000

Hoppy Easter every bunny!

Did you ever think back in January when you signed up for the Million Pound Challenge that May 31 would arrive so quickly? We are now in week 15 so if you’re a week or two behind on updating your stats, maybe you could take a few minutes to do that now? As we head into the FINAL stretch of the Million Pound Challenge I hope you have been HAPPY with your results! If not, you still have time; swimsuit season is not here yet! heHEhe!

First of all if you’re not aware, the million pound challenge did something this year for the first time …. It achieved its goal of donating 1 million pounds of food to Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin – which is AMAZING! The participation skyrocketed from last year to this year which meant a lot of “free” food went to a lot of great food panties of Southern Wisconsin including the Edgerton Food Pantry … thanks to YOU!

In February ECO was awarded $ 2456.66 in second harvest credit which not only surpassed what we earned throughout the challenge last year but it surpassed it by $571.78! That money will help to feed a lot of our neighbors and it’s only because of your continued support we’ve achieved that type of success! Thank you!

Although the goal has been reached the second harvest credits have NOT stopped (ECO was just awarded another $371.10) so keep logging your stats! The challenge doesn’t officially end until May 31^st!

Right now ECO is currently in 7^th place out of 222 teams. It just goes to show you what a little town can do TOGETHER!

Again to quote Sarah … “It takes the gifts of many to make our agency a success”

THANK-YOU AGAIN for your continued support and for taking time out of your busy schedule to help keep food on our shelves!

6 weeks to go … I’ll see YOU at the finish line! J

Business After Hours/Open House

Emily — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 21:24:15 +0000

Join Edgerton Community Outreach Thursday November 16, 2012 for Business After Hours and our Open House.

Location: 106 South Main Street, Edgerton WI 53534/The Edgerton Community Outreach and Thrift Store

Time: 5:30pm-7:30pm

What: Tour the facility, learn about Edgerton Community Outreach Programs that assist low income families in Edgerton, Milton, and Evansville, and take a peek at renovation work already completed and what is yet to come!!!

Refreshments will be served.

Stop by the Merry Monkey booth for a chance to win a prize!!!!

Million Pound Challenge

Emily — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 21:37:02 +0000

Would you be interested in joining a program that is not only FREE but it helps keep our shelves at the Edgerton Food Pantry stocked over the winter months? The program is called the Million Pound Challenge! ECO has participated the last 2 years, the first year with just a handful of people we earn $472 in Second Harvest credit. Last year we really recruited and it paid off big time to the tune of $1883 in Second Harvest credits! That really made a big difference at the pantry! Won’t you consider joining our team? It’s easy, just log onto: www.princetonclub.net/mpc Click onto view existing teams, find Edgerton Community Outreach, and then join by clicking onto the YELLOW join exercise button. This will take you to a registration page, where you’ll fill out your name, ect. Do NOT forget to select Edgerton Community Outreach as your team AND food pantry of choice! There are only 3 commitments to choose from. Exercise 1, 2 or 3 hours per WEEK then log your progress weekly. Nobody not even the team captain can see YOUR progress! Once you log in your hours, the Edgerton Food Pantry is awarded 10, 20 or 30 POUNDS of food. It’s a 21 week program so “if” YOU agreed to exercise 3 hours a week your effort would earn the Edgerton Food Pantry 630 pounds of food” … just think about that! 630 pounds of food per participant! If you don’t have a computer and want to join our team, not a problem! Just contact Sarah Williams, ECO Executive Director at outreachwilliams@gmail.com or 884-9593 OR Lori Ainsworth, ECO Volunteer at JLAinsworth@charter.net or 751-1052!

EHS Alumni Challenge

Emily — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 21:35:57 +0000

Has your class taken the Alumni Challenge yet? The Class of 1978 was the first class to accept the challenge and so far has collected over $4,613 in donations towards the Edgerton Community Outreach (ECO) Renovation Campaign! That is huge, THANK YOU CLASS OF 1978! Wow! Just imagine if every EHS Alumni took this challenge? All costs associated with the mailing are covered by volunteers at ECO so all we need is your class database. If you are part of the class reunion committee and would like to accept the challenge on part of your class, just contact: Sarah Williams, ECO Executive Director at outreachwilliams@gmail.com or 884-9593 OR Lori Ainsworth, EHS Alumni Challenge Volunteer at JLAinsworth@charter.net or 751-1052 and we’ll do the rest! If you would like to make a donation now, log onto our web site at www.edgertonoutreach.org and click on the donate tab! Thanks again for your continued support!

Two TONS of FOOD!!!

Emily — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 21:33:20 +0000

It’s still hard for me to wrap my head around the figure …4,487 pounds or 5,308 donated items! That is simply AMAZING! The sight was surreal, carts upon carts, all overflowing with food items at each and every school! Thanks to you, the Edgerton Food Panty just got the boost it so dearly needed! If I could I would personally thank each and every one of you that donated during the Merry Monkey food drive challenge! THANK-YOU for being so supportive & so generous! We hope you had FUN with the food drive challenge and perhaps even learned a little bit more about the Edgerton Food Pantry? We can’t wait to repeat it again next year! So are you ready to learn WHO ended the challenge at the TOP? With top honors donating 2,282 food items (2,119 lbs) of food was the ELEMENATRY school. The elementary school not only took FIRST place OVERALL, they also took the 2nd & 3rd overall spots as well! Way to go Elementary school! WOW, WOW, WOW! FIRST place OVERALL goes to 2nd/3rd Graders raising 858 items! SECOND place OVERALL was 4th/5th Graders raising 637 items. THIRD place OVERALL was Kindergarten/1st Graders raising 582 items and in forth place was the Elementary Staff raising 205 items. MIDDLE school was the school that took the 2nd place spot donating 1,258 food items (1,076 lbs)! FIRST place goes to 6th Graders raising 455 items! 2nd place goes to 7th Graders raising 323 items. 3rd place goes to the Middle School Staff raising 257 items and 4th place goes to the 8th graders raising 223 items! YAHARA School was the school that took the 3rd place spot donating 1,028 food items (754 lbs)! FIRST place goes to Mrs. Nelson’s Class raising 425 items! 2nd place goes to Mr. Gould’s Class raising 166 items. 3rd place goes to Ms. Draeger’s Class raising 133 items. 4th place goes to Mrs. Deegan’s Class raising 124 items. 5th place goes to Mrs. Brehm’s Class with 100 item and 6th goes to the Yahara Staff raising 80 items. Our last spot goes to the HIGH School who donated 740 items (538 lbs). FIRST place goes to the Freshman Class raising 234 items! 2nd place goes to the Junior Class raising 195 items. 3rd place goes to the High School Staff raising 140 items. 4th place goes to the Sophomore Class raising 89 items and 5th place goes to the Senior Class raising 82! Again, the staff and volunteers at the Edgerton Community Outreach can not express enough gratitude! THANK-YOU and HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

Edgerton Schools Host Merry Monkey Food Drive

Emily — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 01:17:00 +0000

The Merry Monkeys are hosting a FOOD DRIVE CHALLENGE at ALL the SCHOOLS (HS, Middle School, Elementary & Yahara) from November 7th until November 18th so don’t forget to bring in a food item or 12! heHEhe! Which class in EACH school will be crowned the most giving? Don’t have a child in school? No worries, donations can be dropped into one of the 4 bins located around town (Sara’s Health & Fitness, Edgerton Piggly Wiggly, Threads or at ECO) or cash donations can be made via our website atwww.edgertonoutreach.org. Remember ALL donations go directly to the Edgerton Food Pantry! THANK-YOU!

Thank You!!!

Emily — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 19:46:50 +0000

Two days ago Edgerton Community Outreach provided school supplies for 200 area children with the help of our community partners: individuals, Blackhawk Community Credit Union, American Family ~ the Dave Pierce Agency, Central Lutheran Church, St. Joseph Catholic Church, and many others. It is heartwarming to watch the students strut off with their new backpacks feeling so proud to go back to school with the supplies that they need!!! I am grateful to be part of such a giving community. We will continue to provide supplies up until the first day of school. Contact ECO at 608-884-9593 or outreachwilliams@gmail.com if you need assistance with school supplies for your children.

The success of the personal care items drive to stock the Middle School Care Closet was also overwhelming.Shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, toothbrushes, feminine hygiene products, deodorant, socks, under garments, and much more was donated to get this project off of the ground. It is difficult to understand that for many students that these basic supplies to take of oneself are not provided at home. We want to give our students every tool possible to be successful.

Our next big push is to attempt to collect as much cereal as possible to stock the Breakfast Programs at the Community Elementary School, Yahara Elementary School, and the Edgerton Middle School. Some of our student’s two main meals each day are the breakfast and lunch that they receive while at school. Cereal can be dropped of at each school, in the Merry Monkey Bins at Piggly Wiggly or Sara’s Health and Fitness, or at Edgerton Community Outreach.

Last Weekend for Stuff The Bus

Emily — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 19:29:13 +0000

If you live in Edgerton and drive on HWY 51 (North Main Street), you may have notice a school bus parked out front of the Dave Pierce American Family Insurance Agency. For at least the past three years, maybe longer (my memory is getting worse as I age!) Edgerton Outreach has partnered with many local businesses and groups to ensure that all students in our community go back to school with the supplies that they need. The bus parked at American Family is there so that our community can “stuff” it full of school supplies. As of this afternoon, 192 students have requested assistance for school supplies. Edgerton Outreach will be accepting requests through Tuesday August 16, 2011. The program is open to all students living in the Edgerton School district. We also attempt to provide notebooks, pens, and folders for college age students when needed.You may have also read about our new program at the Middle School. Edgerton Outreach is partnering with the School District to create a “Care Closet.” Personal hygiene products including soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, combs, deodorant, feminine hygiene items, shampoo, and conditioner. Students can access these items through a teacher or counselor AND teachers and counselors will have these items available to offer to students in need. Clothing items will be available through a voucher system at the Thrift Store.

Food Pantry Needs

Emily — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 17:49:18 +0000

The summer is always a very busy time of year of for food pantries. The stress on a family’s food budget drastically increases when the kids are out of school. Edgerton Outreach provides breakfast to students during the school year and many students receive free or reduced price lunch during the school year. Some families are trying to provide 14 extra meals per child per week during the summer months when little ones are out of school!! Imagine how stressful that is for a family that lives on a budget that is already stretched to its limit.Edgerton Outreach relies on a variety of resources to keep our pantry shelves stocked but we mostly rely on the generosity of our community. Donations of food items and monetary donations are equally important!! Ravioli, cream soups, chicken noodle soup, canned pasta, dry pasta, peanut butter, boxed potatoes, hamburger & tuna helper, and canned fruits are all needed at this time. Monetary items are utilized to purchase meat, milk, and other perishable items. Donations can be dropped off at the Edgerton Outreach Thrift Store, Sara’s Health & Fitness, and Piggly Wiggly.

Mortgage Seminar July 30th in Beloit

Emily — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 19:31:58 +0000

Many people, during these tough economic times, are struggling to pay their mortgage. Edgerton Community Outreach, when FEMA Funds are available, is able to help with $400 towards a families mortgage. The assistance can be accessed once per year when available. We have not had funding for mortgage assistance for fiscal year 2011. There is hope out there though. People struggling to pay their mortgage should call Neighborhood Housing Services (NHS) of Beloit. Even though they are located in Beloit, many of their programs serve people throughout Rock County. NHS has certified Mortgage Counselors on staff that are extremely knowledgeable about refinance options and programs to help people get back on track. The phone number for NHS is 1-608-362-9051.On Saturday July 30, 2011 NHS is hosting a Free Foreclosure Prevention Seminar at the Beloit Public Library (605 Eclipse Blvd, Beloit WI) from 10am-2pm. A few of the topics that will be covered during the two hour free seminar includes: avoiding foreclosure, lender’s options, foreclosure legal process, community resources, loan modification scams, and grant opportunities. From 2pm-3pm there will be an opportunity for people to meet one-on-one with a HUD approved foreclosure prevention counselor. APPOINTMENTS MUST BE MADE TO MEET WITH A COUNSELOR FOR THE ONE-ON-ONE CLINIC (2pm-3pm).

Very often we meet with people after they have missed two or three mortgage payments. It is very important to stay in contact with your lender if you are having difficulties and seek out help right away from an agency like NHS early on when you fall behind. NHS staff because of their certification from HUD as foreclosure prevention specialists are able to work with lenders on a different level compared to emergency service agencies. If you need assistance contacting an agency to help with foreclosure prevention, please contact Edgerton Outreach staff at 608-884-9593.