Madison Reading Project: Junior League of Madison Celebrates 35th Anniversary with Major Community Gifts

For more information: 

Junior League: Ginger Gant, gingergant312@gmail.com 608-234-2958, 

Madison Reading Project: Rowan Childs, rowan@madisonreadingproject.com 608-665-0055

MyArts: Jessica Courtier, Jessica@madisonyoutharts.org 608-416-1945

JUNIOR LEAGUE OF MADISON CELEBRATES 35th ANNIVERSARY WITH MAJOR COMMUNITY GIFTS

The Junior League of Madison (JLM) has awarded this week $325,000 to two Madison nonprofits.

“In its 35th year, the League is proud and honored to partner with Madison Reading Project (MRP) and MyArts, two growth-oriented nonprofit organizations,” said Sarah Barnes, JLM President. “Our $250,000 gift to MRP and  $75,000 to MyArts confirm the League’s commitment to children and families in our community. The reach and impact of both these nonprofit organizations impress our members, and we look forward to further building those relationships in the future.”

The gift to Madison Reading Project includes funding for their new, all-accessible ADA-compliant second Big Read Reading Bus to debut in 2024, a $50,000 challenge grant to the Dane County community to “Fill the Bus,” and a $100,000 visionary gift. MRP connects Madison area communities with free books and literacy resources that ignite a love for reading and affirm and reflect the diversity of young readers. MRP currently serves 250,000+ children through community partners and educators.

The gift to MYArts includes $25,000 for an indoor mural for their Artist in Residence Program and $50,000 for their Access fund so every single youth programming partner can receive support through reduced charges. MyArts is a vibrant community space that currently supports nearly 60 impactful, wide-array of youth art programs.

The League has also established a $150,000 grant-making program, bringing the League’s current financial commitment to the community to nearly half a million dollars.

“Madison is fortunate to have two such powerful charitable organizations doing extraordinary work in the areas of literacy and the arts in our community,” Barnes said. “The Junior League is pleased to celebrate what they have done and what they will continue to do in the years ahead.”

“We invite women in the community to join our organization and realize the personal leadership skills they can develop and the positive community impact they can make.”

For membership information, please contact juniorleaguemadisoninfo@gmail.com.

L-R: La Tasha Fields, Corinda Rainey-Moore, Jodi Sweeney, Tammy Rozek, Sarah Barnes, Laurel Rice, Rowan Childs, Chris Laurent, Sarah Brenden, Mary Pat Berry, Ann Christianson, Jaclyn Vitela Jacqmin 

Mike Shea joins Lake Ridge Bank as Vice President-Senior Executive Banker

October 2, 2023 (MADISON, Wis.) – Mike Shea has joined Lake Ridge Bank as Vice President- Senior Executive Banker as of September 18. With more than 30 years as a local banker in the Madison market, Shea brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in building the types of connections that enable collaboration and ensure a client experience that exceeds expectations. He has spent the last 10 years serving high-net-worth clients in a private banking or executive banking capacity.  

Lake Ridge Bank’s Executive Banking Team provides concierge-style service to qualified customers who require a big-picture approach to managing sophisticated or complex banking needs. By providing a single point of contact, an executive banker offers the necessary expertise to simplify banking and seamlessly manage financial activities across a wide range of departments, encompassing a full spectrum of business and personal financial strategies. 

With a degree in Business Management, Shea has earned multiple awards of excellence throughout his career. He is a Certified Wealth Specialist through the Cannon Financial Institute and brings insights from a wide range of banking perspectives, including consumer lending, residential mortgage lending, private wealth management, and executive banking. Shea is also an active volunteer throughout the community, including serving as Vice President on the Badger Men’s Basketball Booster Club Board of Directors and participating in organizations such as the American Heart Association Go Red for Women Board, the Middleton High School Reality Day, and the Sertoma Club of Middleton. 

For more information about Executive Banking services at Lake Ridge Bank, contact Mike Shea at mshea@lakeridge.bank today.

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Lake Ridge Bank’s mission is to “create extraordinary banking experiences where everyone prospers.” For more than 100 years, this has meant getting to know each of our clients to offer personalized services to meet their specific financial goals. Lake Ridge Bank offers a full line of financial products and services. We focus on offering products and services to make your banking easy. Our business banking and mortgage lenders are trusted leaders in their field with the expertise to provide the right loan at the best rate possible for our clients. As a community bank, we are dedicated to reinvesting in, and making our communities great places to live, work and raise a family. Visit lakeridge.bank to learn more about how we can help you. Member FDIC 

Lake Ridge Bank. Go Far. Go Together! 

For additional information, please contact Mark Schellpfeffer at mschellpfeffer@lakeridge.bank.  

Boys & Girls Clubs of Dane County: Looking for Volunteer Mentors for Next Step Fridays

Next Step Fridays is a partnership between MMSD GED Option #2 Program and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Dane County, that engages high school students with community partners to develop a College, Career, and Community Ready (CCCR) portfolio that will help students identify what their next steps will be after they graduate. The main goals of the portfolio will be to:

• Develop soft skills, with a focus on being college, career, and community ready
• Connect with a mentor that enables the student to go deeper into their CCCR interests, answering “where am I going?” and “how will I get there?”
• Create an post-graduation action plan with specific goals for the next step of their life plan, including financial plan and housing plan

We are looking for volunteers to mentor and coach our high school students so that they can reach their full potential as productive, responsible, and caring adults.  

Dates:   Fridays, October 13 – November 17

Time:     11 AM – 2 PM

Location: 3rd Floor, Lapham Elementary School, 1045 E Dayton St.

Schedule

Week 1: Speed mentoring

Wks 2-6: Create CCCR Portfolio with mentor

– Where am I going? – Goal setting

– Resume/cover letter

– Professional email address, sending professional emails, setting up

your phone and voicemail

– How will I get there?

– How to get specific job training, job skills, certificates, etc

– Job search workshop/Interview skills/mock interviews

– Job shadows

– Credit score, financial plan and housing plan

Week 7: CCCR Portfolio mentor speed feedback round

Week 8: Finalize Next Step Action Plan

If you are interest in becoming a mentor, please complete this short interest form: https://bgcdc.formstack.com/forms/next_step_fridays_mentor_interest

Victoria Thayer, CPA from Novii CPA Selected to Attend AICPA’s 2023 Leadership Academy

Victoria Thayer, CPA was one of only 36 CPAs honored by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) as a member of the Leadership Academy’s 15th graduating class. Victoria was selected based on her exceptional leadership skills and professional experience for the four-day Leadership Academy program, which will be held December 11th – 14th.

Victoria is the founder of Novii CPA, a local downtown Madison firm, that currently has 5 employees and continues to grow in the Madison Community. Victoria was the recipient of the 2023 WICPA Young Professional Excellence Award for her professional achievements. She is a board member of  Madison Reading Project, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Dane County’s Finance Committee and part of the Advisory Committee for WWBIC.

The AICPA Leadership Academy was designed to strengthen and expand the leadership skills of promising young professionals while they network with a peer group of talented and motivated CPAs.

The Leadership Academy features career-development workshops and sessions with some of the accounting profession’s most prominent influencers. Participants were selected from public accounting firms of all sizes, business and industry, government, and consulting firms.

The 2023 Leadership Academy attendees were recommended by their employers, state CPA societies, and/or volunteer organizations. Candidates submitted resumes and a statement explaining how participating in the Leadership Academy would impact them personally and professionally.

To date, more than 480 CPAs have participated in the AICPA Leadership Academy, many of whom have gone on to take on leadership positions in their firms, businesses, and volunteer organizations.

For more information about the AICPA Leadership Academy, visit AICPA.org/Leadership.

StartingBlock Madison: Meet the Madworks Fall 2023 Cohort!

We’re thrilled to introduce the 8 companies in this Fall’s Madworks Cohort. The Madworks Accelerator is a 11-week program, comprising tailored mentorship and building governance acumen. The program is industry agnostic. In addition to connecting companies to entrepreneurial leaders in the community, we ensure that these organizations obtain a foundation in legal compliance, quality board management skills, and financial knowledge.

Meet The Companies

• 1Director / Rianne Lund – All-inclusive software suite for funeral homes to manage their business and allow families to make funeral arrangements from the comfort of their own home.
• Figgy / Rachel Neill & Chris Roepe – Creators of kids play couches that are fun, high quality, safe, and sustainable.
• NOVII CPA / Victoria Thayer – Outsourced accounting solutions, financial preparation services, tax planning and tax preparation, and CFO services.
• Petphoria / Grace Wang – Modern lifestyle brand for pets and their people. Offering a wide variety of premium products for your pet – from delicious dog treats to trendy dog toys.
• Redfox AI / Nick Myers – Voice-activated AI that verbally facilitates and troubleshoots home diagnostics and medical devices helping manufacturers and providers be there at the point of care.
• Soul Mobility / Troy Tesmer – Mobility solutions for the physically challenged to support their independence and well being. The initial product, Power-Flex, wil convert a manual wheelchair to a power chair quickly and with no tools.
• Snow Scholars / Jake Piekarski – Affordable and personable residential snow removal company that employs college students at several college towns throughout the Midwest.
• Spraycision / Dervis Gursoy – Designs and manufactures advanced level sensor systems for orchard sprayers that automatically control nozzles to reduce the chemicals, fuel and water usage and to provide eco-friendly solutions in spray applications.

PROGRAM BENEFITS

• Access to over $1M in prizes and benefits
• $6,500 in grant funding per participating team
• 1 year membership to StartingBlock (24×7 access), with an exclusive space at StartingBlock dedicated to Madworks companies
• Access to StartingBlock member benefits, including 90% discount on Hubspot CRM
• Regular access to Madworks & StartingBlock staff and connections to their network of mentors and experts