Feel the Love Wisconsin

In 2018, Lennox, a leading provider of innovative home comfort solutions, launched a new corporate social responsibility program called, Feel The Love. The Feel The Love program, originally launched as Heat U.P. in 2009, engages Lennox dealers and employees to nominate deserving families in need with access to perfect indoor heating and air, at no cost including installation.

2019 Feel the Love Wisconsin Press Release

One City Schools Receives $50,000 for Innovation

Madison, WI (August 9, 2019) – Catherine Zdeblick travels the world to capture images that both reflect differences in people and cultures around the world, but also what joins us together as human beings. 

However, her greater passion is children.  Ms. Zdeblick has dedicated her adult life to advance efforts that support children.  

“When you empower a child, you empower the family. When you empower the family, you empower the entire community” said Zdeblick.  

Zdeblick’s latest visit to One City included a demonstration of her photography to the 4-year-old kindergarten classrooms. The children have been learning about photography, pasting the walls of One City with their photography work. 

Zdeblick’s gift comes at a pivotal time for One City as it works to fund 100% of the third (summer)-semester of its unique public charter school with charitable contributions from individuals, foundations and businesses. The State of Wisconsin presently does not provide public funding to traditional public schools or public charter schools for extended day or year-round programs. One City CEO Kaleem Caire said, “Catherine is helping shape this school so our children and their families can succeed. We are honored and humbled by her gift and her belief that year-round school matters.” In fact, One City’s summer data shows that its children made impressive gains during the third semester of its school year – a time of year when many children often lose ground educationally: a phenomenon also known as the “summer slide.”

About One City Schools: One City Schools is a nonprofit operator of high quality schools and other learning opportunities for children in Madison, Dane County and Wisconsin. It’s mission is to seed a new model of public education that ensures young children are on track to succeed in a college or career preparatory program from birth through high school graduation.

For More Information Contact:

Jessica Tormey, VP of External Relations and Policy, One City Schools

Email: jtormey@onecityschools.org Phone: (608) 268-8004 or (608) 347-2298

WPS partners with TriWest Healthcare Alliance on contract to administer Community Care Network in Region 4 for Veterans Affairs

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:

Tom Enwright

(608) 977-7165

thomas.enwright@wpsic.com

WPS partners with TriWest Healthcare Alliance on contract to administer Community Care Network in Region 4 for Veterans Affairs

MADISON, Wis.—Aug. 8, 2019— WPS Military and Veterans Health today announced that it is one of the major subcontractors supporting the contract awarded to TriWest Healthcare Alliance by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to administer its new Community Care Network (CCN) serving military veterans across Region 4.  

“WPS has a successful record of working with TriWest on the Patient-Centered Community Care (PC3) and Veterans Choice programs,” said Dave Marshall, Executive Vice President of WPS Military and Veterans Health. “We look forward to continuing to partner with TriWest to serve our nation’s veterans. I extend thanks to our WPS employees for their outstanding performance in supporting the VA programs.”

TriWest administers the VA’s Patient-Centered Community Care program in all 50 states, the Pacific Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. WPS has worked with TriWest to provide claims processing services in support of TriWest’s current VA contract, which will continue under TriWest’s new CCN contract with VA for Region 4.

The geographic area of responsibility in Region 4 will include: Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

The new CCN contract will connect veterans to community health care providers when the VA is unable to provide those services directly. With the new contract, TriWest will be responsible for building out and maintaining a network of community health care providers, paying claims, and providing customer service in support of the VA’s health care mission. Other optional functions include appointment scheduling, care coordination, case management, and disease management services.  

“At TriWest, it has been our privilege to serve the health care needs of the veteran and military community for over two decades. We are humbled to have the opportunity through this contract to continue our work alongside the VA, through which we have served 1.8 million veterans with the provision of 11.9 million appointments from our network of over 1.1 million providers, as we continue to partner with WPS MVH for the next generation of our work in serving our nation’s veterans,” said David J. McIntyre Jr., President and CEO of TriWest Healthcare Alliance.

To learn more about the Community Care Network through the Department of Veterans Affairs, visit: www.triwest.com. Veterans can visit www.va.gov to learn about eligibility.

About WPS Health Solutions

WPS Health Solutions is a nationally regarded government contractor and a leading Wisconsin not-for-profit health insurer. The WPS Health Insurance division offers affordable health plans and benefits administration. The WPS Government Health Administrators division administers Part A and B Medicare benefits for millions of seniors in multiple states, and the WPS Military and Veterans Health division serves millions more members who are active in the U.S. military, veterans and their families. In 2019, the international Ethisphere® Institute named WPS one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies® for the 10th straight year. For more information, please visit wpshealthsolutions.com.

Mike Odden Joins State Bank of Cross Plains as VP-Mortgage Lending Manager

August 6, 2019, MADISON, Wisconsin— Mike Odden brings nearly 30 years of diverse banking experience in the Madison area to State Bank of Cross Plains (SBCP) as the new Vice President-Mortgage Lending Manager. In this role, Odden will mentor the bank’s mortgage loan officers, as well as help design new mortgage lending programs and products to match the specific needs of customers throughout South Central Wisconsin.

“Mike has spent his entire career helping people in and around the Madison market,” shares Scott Ducke, SBCP Chief Lending Officer. “He has a way of recognizing opportunities to serve his customers with innovative loan programs or simply suggesting we create something new to better fit what people are looking for in our local communities.”

Odden holds a degree in Finance from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. He serves on the Board of Directors for the Wisconsin Mortgage Bankers Association at both the local and state chapter levels. In addition, he has mortgage lending experience on both the operational side and working directly with customers to provide a well-rounded perspective to this leadership position.

For more information about how a mortgage from State Bank of Cross Plains might help you secure the home of your dreams – or the business or rental unit you’ve been working toward – contact the SBCP Mortgage Lender in your community at (608) 497-4640.

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Agrace Offers Four Grief Support Groups in September, Seeks Hospice Volunteers in Dane County

In September, four grief support programs will be offered at the Agrace Grief Support Center, 2906 Marketplace Drive, Fitchburg. The groups are open to the public and free to people whose family member was in hospice care in the past 12 months; fees can be lowered or waived for others, if needed. Unless otherwise noted, preregistration is required for all groups. Call (608) 327-7118 with questions or to register.

Bridges Grief Support Group for grieving adults meets Wednesdays, September 4 and 18, from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m., and September 11 and 25, from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. No advance registration is needed, and participants may attend as often as they feel the need for support.

Journey Through Grief is a six-week grief support group series for adults. It  meets Mondays, September 9 to October 14, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Spouse/Partner Loss Support Group is a six-week series for adults who are grieving the death of a spouse or partner. It meets Fridays, September 13 to October 18, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Family Grief Support Program is for families with children aged 5 to 18 who are grieving a death. It meets every other Tuesday, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., September through May. Dinner is included.

Also next month, volunteers are needed across Dane County to help in Agrace’s Madison-area thrift stores, office, kitchen and gardens. A training for these roles will be held Wednesday, September 11, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Agrace in Madison.

Volunteers are also needed to make companionship visits to local Agrace HospiceCare patients in patients’ homes, or in nursing homes or assisted living centers. Training for these roles will be held Monday, September 9, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Pre-registration is required for both trainings. Call (608) 327-7163 or visit agrace.org/volunteer to fill out an application.