Agrace: Hospice Volunteers Needed in Dane County

Volunteers are needed to assist customers, operate the cash register and sort donations at the Agrace Thrift Stores in Madison, pack donated merchandise in donors’ homes, or make companionship visits to local Agrace hospice patients in patients’ homes, nursing homes or assisted living centers.

Agrace will host volunteer orientation Thursday, May 18, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at its Madison campus. Pre-registration is required. Call (608) 327-7163 or visit agrace.org/volunteer to fill out an application.

Grief Support Group Options in May

In May, Agrace is offering professionally led, in-person and virtual (accessible with a tablet, computer or smartphone) grief support options.

• Bridges is for adults grieving the death of any loved one. Meetings are held every other Wednesday at the Agrace Grief Support Center. In May, meetings are May 3 and 17, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.

• Bridges (virtual) is for adults grieving the death of any loved one. Meetings are held every other Wednesday. In May, meetings are May 10 and 24, from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m., via Zoom.

• Young Adult is for anyone aged 18 to 30+ years who is grieving the death of a loved one, parent, child, spouse, sibling or friend. The group will meet May 11, from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., at the Agrace Grief Support Center.

There is no fee for these programs if a participant’s family member was in hospice care in the past 12 months; fees for others can be lowered or waived, if needed. Pre-registration is required for all groups. For details, fees or to register, email griefsupport@agrace.org or call (608) 327-7110.

Get Expert Customized Grief Support—by Text

Agrace now offers thoughtful, customized text messages from a service called Help Texts. It’s free and you can sign up even if you are also receiving grief support individually or in a group. To sign up or learn more, visit HelpTexts.com/Agrace.

In-home Support from Age at Home Can Boost Well-being

Do you care for or know an older adult who could benefit from non-medical home care services? Social interaction, like a daily visit from an Age at Home companion, can boost a senior’s well-being and also ensure that they safely shower, dress, take medications and eat well.

If you think the support of an Age at Home companion could help someone you love, call (608) 327-7456 or visit AgeatHome.org.

Old National Bank: Benefits of Opening Checking and Money Market Accounts

WPS publishes new Corporate Social Responsibility Report

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
DeAnne Boegli
Vice President of Communications
608-512-5754
deanne.boegli@wpsic.com

WPS publishes new Corporate Social Responsibility Report
Report highlights achievements during 2022

MADISON, Wis.—April 5, 2023—The 2022 WPS Health Solutions^® Corporate Social Responsibility Report is now available on wpshealthsolutions.com. The report provides a comprehensive overview of the major lines of business at WPS Health Solutions, with a special emphasis on the people, progress, and partnerships that helped keep the company successful over the last year.

In 2022, WPS Health Solutions worked through its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion team to increase diversity across the company. During the year, new employee resource groups were created to help build communities for all employees. The groups now include options for professional development, women, veterans, and people living with disabilities and mental health concerns.

WPS Health Solutions received numerous awards in 2022, including being named a Top Workplace by the Wisconsin State Journal and the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, making the Achievers’ 50 Most Engaged Workplaces list, winning several Top Workplaces USA awards, and being named the Disabled American Veterans Patriot Employer and Large Employer of the Year.

Despite a challenging economy, WPS gave charitable donations totaling more than $211,200 to 39 local and national organizations. The WPS Charitable Foundation donated more than $250,000 to 28 organizations.

“The report enables us to share our employees’ commitment to high ethical standards and conducting business with integrity. It helps anyone interested in WPS to get to know us a little better,” Vice President of Communications DeAnne Boegli said.

“People, Progress, and Partnerships” is the theme for the 2022 report. More than 75 years since its founding, WPS Health Solutions continues its work to protect the health and financial well-being of its customers through three lines of business: WPS Health Insurance^®, WPS Government Health Administrators^®, and WPS Military and Veterans Health^®, as well as two subsidiaries: WPS Health Plan, Inc. and The EPIC Life Insurance Company.

Employees of WPS Health Solutions aspire to do their best by exhibiting the company’s four core values: Individual Responsibility, Customer Focused, Mutual Respect, and Driven and Passionate. The mission of WPS Health Solutions is this: Together, making health care easier for the people we serve.

About WPS Health Solutions^®

Wisconsin Physicians Service Insurance Corporation (WPS Health Solutions), founded in 1946, is a nationally regarded benefits administrator for a variety of U.S. government programs and a leading not-for-profit health insurer in Wisconsin. WPS Health Solutions serves active-duty and retired military personnel, seniors, individuals, and families in Wisconsin, across the U.S., and around the world. WPS Health Solutions, headquartered in Madison, Wis., has more than 2,700 employees. Within the enterprise, there are three divisions: WPS Government Health Administrators, WPS Military and Veterans Health, and WPS Health Insurance/WPS Health Plan/EPIC Specialty Benefits. For more information, please visit wpshealthsolutions.com.

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Seein-is-Believin: She broke barriers as an opera singer, then devoted her life to helping Madison’s kids

Check out this amazing article in the Wisconsin State Journal, on the work our new member, Prenicia Clifton, is doing in our community. Prenicia is the founder of Seein-is-Believin, an organization dedicated to improving the lives of young people in our communities.

UW–Madison 2023 Senior Class Gift Leaves a Legacy of Supporting Mental Health and Well-Being

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 4, 2023   

Contact Information:
Kevin Jacobson, University of Wisconsin–Madison Senior Class Communications Director
Email: seniorclass@chancellor.wisc.edu
READ RELEASE ONLINE: union.wisc.edu/about/news/2023-senior-class-gift

UW–MADISON 2023 SENIOR CLASS GIFT LEAVES A LEGACY OF SUPPORTING MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING

MADISON – The University of Wisconsin–Madison Senior Class Office (SCO) will gift funds to the Center for Healthy Minds Higher Education Fund as its 2023 senior class gift.

Every year, the students of the UW–Madison SCO choose a project or beneficiary of its senior class gift. SCO raises funds to leave a legacy for the class and improve UW–Madison in a tangible way.

The class of 2023 has faced many challenges, including going home halfway through the 2019-20 academic year due to COVID-19. In recognition of those challenges and their impact on the mental health of the graduating class, the Senior Class Office will partner with the Center for Healthy Minds, an organization founded by UW–Madison psychology professor Richard J. Davidson, Ph. D.

The Center for Healthy Minds operates with a mission to cultivate well-being and relieve suffering through a scientific understanding of the mind while envisioning a kinder, wiser and more compassionate world. Student leaders at UW–Madison prioritized these ideals by launching Healthy Minds on Campus, a student organization designed to extend the Center’s research to all corners of campus in a tangible way.

“We believe that this student-initiated organization will systematically improve the well-being of students at UW–Madison,” said Liam McLean, University of Wisconsin–Madison Senior Class Office president.

The Healthy Minds on Campus plans to host monthly guest speaker events focused on mental health, well-being and flourishing; forums, called Community Conversations, during which students can discuss mental health and well-being with their peers; and an annual mental health and well-being retreat. The organization also plans to work to raise awareness of the importance of well-being and evidence-based practices and habits that support well-being.

The SCO board encourages those graduating in the class of 2023 and all those interested in supporting the Center for Healthy Minds’s Higher Education Fund to donate to the class gift here. Donations will go toward advancing the development of work to support student and campus mental health goals, which aims to set a standard for a mental health awareness and establish a resource model that can spread to campuses across the nation.

Learn more about SCO and the 2023 senior class gift.

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About the University of Wisconsin–Madison Senior Class Office

The University of Wisconsin–Madison Senior Class Office Senior Class officers work each year in partnership with Student Affairs, the Wisconsin Union, the Office of the Chancellor, and the Wisconsin Alumni Association and Foundation to create an unforgettable senior class experience. This includes helping to plan both winter and spring commencement ceremonies, select the class gift, plan senior-inspired events, and advocate for the entire class. By bringing diverse passions together, the officers unite the senior class and cultivate Badger pride. Learn more at seniorclass.students.wisc.edu.