Good morning.
We got a new system in place So we had to power through some some phone distractions and thank you again, Brittany for doing that Nothing like changing the phone number on you without telling you are bad there But Brittany, why don't you tell us a little bit about embrace and who you are within the community?
Because I'll say it for myself personally.
There's nobody like you.
Give us give us the info, please
So my name is Brittany Grape and Trog and I'm the price of County
Program Coordinator with Embrace.
Embrace is a nonprofit organization and we provide free and confidential services to individuals and families who are impacted by domestic and sexual violence.
But we've been talking to other organizations in the community who deal with those, well, to put it lightly, Brittany, and not to understate it.
But the less pleasant things in life are the things that we don't necessarily focus on as much as those going through them deserve.
Kids who don't have a Christmas gift and people who have gone through domestic and sexual violence like this.
What kind of services does Embrace offer to people in those sorts of situations?
situations.
And we offer advocacy, crisis support, safety planning, prevention education, and connections to community resources throughout the Price County, Washburn County, Barron, and Russ counties.
And Embrace's goal is to support survivors on their journey towards safety and healing.
while working within our communities to prevent violence through education, awareness, and collaboration.
But a lot of people are coming to you after things like this have already happened.
And one of the big aspects of that, people who have gone through domestic and sexual violence, is, well, there's a link there with suicide prevention to
Approach to excuse me to address one is to address the other correct
Yes, and that's what I wanted to talk about today Go
So I think that it's important to recognize that supporting survivors of violence can also be suicide prevention It's not something that I think a lot of people think about
is like domestic and sexual violence survivors.
And so experiencing domestic or sexual violence can affect every part of a person's life.
And survivors may experience fear, anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress, shame, isolation, or a feeling that there's no way out.
And they may have been repeatedly told that they are worthless, that no one will
believe them or that they cannot survive on their own.
And over time, those messages can take away a person's sense of hope.
And survivors may also face very real barriers that can make their situation feel impossible.
And they may be worried about housing, finances, children, pets, transportation, retaliation from the person harming them.
and they could have been isolated from family and friends or may feel like they have no one left to turn to.
And when someone feels trapped and alone or unable to imagine a safer future, their mental health can be deeply affected.
It's easy to find those statistics.
Even just a quick Google will show you that suicide rates are higher amongst survivors of domestic and sexual assault.
And the reasons why may be one thing, but prevention and support is what you guys really focus on and where possible.
Simple question, Brittany.
What does supporting a survivor look like?
Well, it can be just as simple as believing them and saying that, hey, I believe you.
and that you did not deserve what happened to you, or I'm here with you in avoiding judging their decisions or pressuring them into leaving before they're ready, you could instead ask, like, how can I support you?
Because they know best.
Survivors know best of how, you know, somebody else can help them.
And just to remind them that they still have choices and that help is available.
Because sometimes people are afraid to ask someone directly,
if they are thinking about suicide, because they worry that asking might put the idea into their head.
And it's also an uncomfortable question for somebody to ask another person.
And I think asking directly can open the door for an honest conversation.
And you could calmly say, are you thinking about suicide, or are you thinking about hurting yourself?
And if they say yes, you take them seriously and stay with them.
if it's safe to do so, and connect them with immediate support.
And you don't need to be a therapist or have all the right words.
I think listening without judgment, believing someone, making them feel heard, and helping them connect with support can make a meaningful difference.
I know a lot of people asking questions like that.
It's easy to kind of convince yourself that I'm not the right person to ask that sort of question, but if you've got a close relationship with somebody, if they've leaned on you even in small ways before, I mean, sure, it might bring your relationship with them into an interesting spot, but frankly, I think of the cost of not asking and of not doing what I can, and it's pretty easy to imagine some pretty rough story.
And people don't have to be ready to throw everything away, correct?
Just to start thinking about making changes and asking themselves, am I being controlled in this way?
Am I part of these patterns of a relationship?
Because they're frighteningly effective tactics, these things that abusers do to keep people locked into a housing situation or to control finances.
And it's, again, it's something that happens more often than people think about or want to believe, correct?
Yes, and I think I think that matters most is that you know the person knows that they're not alone and that their life has value.
All right, so how can, you know, if I'm that person and we're looking at this sort of situation, am I, is pointing out that people like Embrace are there?
Is that the kind of thing that might be helpful?
I mean, it's tough to imagine a downside to doing that, but again, it's tough.
I can't say I've been in these sort of situations often, but when those thoughts occur, it's like, man, there doesn't seem to really be a right move, but contacting Embrace is always a solid place to start.
Yes, because you don't need to wait until you're in a crisis either to contact embrace.
You do not have to be ready to leave a relationship, make a police report, even know what you want to do next.
You can talk with an advocate about what is happening, learn about your options, create a personalized safety plan, or simply have someone just listen without judging you or telling you what you should do next.
Because suicide prevention is more than responding at the moment of a crisis.
It also means addressing the experiences that can cause people to feel isolated, powerless, and without hope.
And when we believe survivors restore their choices, reduce isolation, and help people see that safety and healing are possible, we're also doing suicide prevention work.
Our free and confidential 24-hour helpline is 1-800-924-0556.
And if you are experiencing suicidal thoughts, emotional distress, or are worried about someone else, you can call our Texas Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, and that's 988.
And support is available 24 hours a day.
And if someone is in immediate danger, call 911.
And no matter what a survivor's experience, they deserve to be heard, believed, supported, and safe.
And I just want survivors to know that they're not alone and that help is available.
I've had loved ones who work with you at Embrace, and I've been continually blown away, Brittany, by the efforts that you guys go to, the help that is available.
And again, it's one of those things that can't be me, right?
Well...
Give yourself an honest moral inventory, and if you spot troubling signs of those kinds of control, or if you've been through these feelings, those suicidal thoughts or other forms of distress, embraces right there 24 hours a day, that 24 hour helpline, 1-800-924-0556.
People like you, Brittany, are right there to help you and support you, and oftentimes, that...
that begins with figuring out what kind of support you need or even just talking to you.
I imagine you have a lot of people who call and just need another perspective on their situation.
Does that sound correct?
Yes.
That can turn into whatever it needs to so that you can protect yourself from these sorts of situations, from the things that have happened to you in the past, the things you may worry about in the future.
Brittany, on behalf of a community who needs you, thank you so much for what you do.
And on behalf of 98Q and our listeners, thank you for giving us some time this morning.
Yes, thank you for giving us time this morning.
Have a great day.
They're tough topics, but they're the ones we need to talk about.
YouTube, Brittany, by the way, you have a good one.
We'll talk to you again soon here on 98Q on Reality Radio.
Seriously, it's one of those things that, you know, oftentimes when these topics come up, when these conversations begin, it creates a feeling of awkwardness.
We don't know what to do.
People might have that uncomfortable laugh, but these are things that affect our community and embrace is right there to help.
you.
The suicide and crisis lifeline is 988, the 24 hour helpline, 1-800-924-0556.
And if you want an online resource where these phone numbers and more information is available, go to www.embracewi.org.
Incredible people doing the things that matter most for the people who need it most.
It's 931 AM.
I've got a couple more guests lined up to finish Reality Radio today, and we'll chat with them soon.
We've
We got the hands off our public lands rally coming up soon, and we also have the Seed and Bear Root sale from the Friends of the Garden.
That's right, a second dose of Sue today.
Coming up after these messages, you're listening, and thank you for doing so to 98Q Country.
All right, we're back to Reality Radio on 98Q.
Our first hour concludes with our third guest, and we've got it jam-packed in the second hour, so don't go anywhere even after we're done talking to Keith Grispell, District Administrator at the Prentiss School District.
Good morning, sir.
How's it going down in Prentiss today?
Hey, good morning.
It's going really well.
We're back in the routine of bus pickup school bills and infinite knowledge being acquired by our students.
This is the first time.
Yeah, we we were busy with the summer stuff, but now it's into, you know, school bells and students in the hallway and lockers and all that good stuff.
Yeah, we're nearly three weeks in.
In fact, we have our third Friday.
Everyone does have a third Friday count coming up on the 18th.
And for our enrollment wise, I'm hearing that we're seeing our enrollment slightly down, not a whole lot.
But we'll see when we get all the numbers calculated in from summer school, other events that we have happen, all those things add up into minutes and those add into students.
And we kind of put those out to DPI land.
So those reports will be available.
Like you said, the third Friday count is something people may or may not know, but it'll it'll translate into reports and figures that'll look pretty familiar by the time they are available for public digestion, if you will.
How's it been going from the administrative side of things?
I bet you've been getting a lot of miles on those shoes lately.
Yeah, I have to change them out a couple of times here.
My souls are gone here, but you know, things are moving along kind of on a down note.
We had to cancel our varsity football schedule due to, you know, I mentioned a little bit with low numbers, but that was compounded with some season ending injuries.
So, but we are running a JV schedule with our freshmen and sophomores and trying to get some more games.
We still plan on having a homecoming, which is a good fall.
tradition for the week of october fifth through the ninth our students really enjoy you know the dress-up days class competitions you know that support school spirit community pride and we always like welcoming back visiting alumni so we enjoy seeing them uh... i do have you know what that routine of things picture day that's coming up on october twenty four so everyone still has time to get that perfect haircut i know i think i need one or two and get a little ragged here uh... and then some other things that are happening that's really good
We have our Pops Rummage Sale.
They raise money for our school activities and supplies.
That's going to be happening September 24th through the 26th and then again October 1st through 3rd.
You can find household items, furniture, Christmas decor, office supplies, books and much more.
There's a person to contact if you're interested.
That person's name is Pat and the number that I have is 715-428-2504.
The sale is held at the Lyons Pavilion across the street from the Prentice School District and the hours are going to be eight to five and that number again 715-428-2504 and the person's name is Pat and they can help you out there.
Speaking of helping out, we have community service requests that we're asking our community members for.
Uh, mid-October is when we're planning on doing that, but we want to try to get our high school students all kind of lined up in the teachers as well, so we plan a day for that to help them see the value of giving back to our community members and helping out with either some light yard work around the house.
So if you have a need for raking up leaves or something similar, give the school a call at 715-428-2811, and one of our secretaries will get your address and contact information down, and then we'll follow up with a phone call and say, this is the date that we're going to be doing that.
And then I got two other things that I can kind of let you know about.
We have two employment opportunities.
We just posted a custodial position and an assistant girl's basketball coaching job.
The custodial position is a first shift position.
We're seeking individuals who can support the school in multiple capacities by also having their bus driver endorsement.
And we can provide training for that.
The basketball coaching position will assist the head basketball coach, Chad Winan.
with duties there and also coach the junior varsity team.
Chad is looking for a highly motivated individual to help return Prentice to state tournament in girls basketball.
We have a rich tradition of great basketball teams lacing up their basketball shoes on our Harvard floors.
So if you'd like to be part of this time honored history, contact the athletic director Katie Isaacson or head coach Chad Weinerd.
Contact information will be found on our website under district and then staff directory.
what I got for you this morning.
And I'll tell you what, Keith, one thing I really appreciate.
I know a lot of people here, you've got a Facebook page, you've got a website.
That's just too much internet for me.
But you guys put them all kind of in one spot.
The social media feeds, Facebook and otherwise, are actually present right there.
So you can just go to printis.k12.wi.us.
You can see the postings for those job openings.
You can see some shit.
shoutouts for new employees that you've brought in, like a paraprofessional who just joined you earlier this month.
So if people want to make it easier on themselves and still see everything in one place, printis.k12.wi.us looks pretty good to me.
Yep, one stop shopping right there.
You never can tell.
You bet.
that's Keith Grispell the district admin at Prentice school district like I mentioned you can find it right all on their website and man I love you guys for that I big shout out to whoever's running the social media on that one because it is it is everything you need in one spot without anything bombarding you or anything like that somebody's very
clearly put a lot of careful thought into even just the graphic organization of this.
You can check out their Facebook posts at the Prentice School District Facebook page if you're one of those Facebook people.
I'm trying to avoid Facebook as much as I can these days because I don't think it's really built for me, but it is still a great way to keep informed.
So if you want just the right dose of exposure to what gets posted by local organizations, they're doing it right there at the Prentice School District website.
Once again, that's Prentice.k12.w...
I dot US.
I've got three more reality radio show guests scheduled in the nine o'clock hour.
I've got minutes left of the eight o'clock hour.
I think I've got just enough time to quit yapping for a little bit.
Play one country song from Brantley Gilbert to finish the hour.
We still have top of the hour news, weather and a fresh sports update up next from 98 Q country.
and reality radio is back at it with our next guest coming up a local event in the near future we've got Rick Frostman here to tell us about the northern aged iron tractor and threshing show good morning Rick thank you for being here yep
Good morning and thank you for having me.
My pleasure.
Now, Rick, it's a bit of a mouthful that event, but you need to be specific with this because it's not necessarily the normal show people might expect.
I'll admit, I have not been to the show before.
Why don't you tell us the basics of what people can expect if they show up?
Oh my, you've never been there.
Well, this is possibly one of the greatest events, annual events in Highbridge, Wisconsin.
It features about 100 antique tractors.
If you like things that drip oil, burn oil,
uh our rusty this is gonna be a place for you there's other farming exhibits there's a thrashing machine or a couple thrashing machines we got a sawmill at runs uh quite a few other things kids games uh it's a really nice family event there's food available it's cheap to get to it's five bucks to get in that covers both days you get a button to put on your jacket that covers for both days the weather is always always beautiful and high bridge so it is really the place to be
this year's event?
And I'm looking at a picture of a few of these things.
And actually there's a, so there's a couple of places people can look online if that's their thing, northernagediron.com.
And you guys also have a Facebook page under the same name, Northern Aged Iron.
But basically it's kind of in the vein of a car show, but geared towards antique farming implements, correct?
That is 100% correct.
Like I said, a very family oriented event.
We've been doing this for 21 years now.
So it's, we've been around for a while.
And every year the show I think it's just a little bit better.
That would absolutely be right at home.
That's the kind of exact stuff that we have there We have a wide selection of tractors farm holes
John Deers, the other good green, Oliver.
There's lots of different tractors right around 100 or so.
We do a tractor parade every day at about noon, where we'll line them all up.
There's even a steam powered tractor.
So we've got a little bit for everybody's interest.
It's just a general name for the kind of a good name for our club because all this all our machinery is old Very little made before the night or before or after the 1970s excuse me and it goes back to from the 1920s on up through the 60s really so most of the stuff is at least 50 60 years old for the newest stuff and Some of the stuff going well over a hundred years
Now, we were having a discussion, my dad and I, about that tractor that we were using to split the wood, and we were just marveling at the fact that, as old as it is, that thing still just starts right up, as long as you remember to turn the fuel line on and check the fluids.
And it's kind of a marvel compared to a lot of machinery these days that, frankly, seems a little less reliable.
It almost seems like technology's moving backwards.
And I imagine you guys have similar conversations at these shows many years.
Am I correct?
Oh, exactly.
We've talked about how dependable some of the stuff that we have.
is where it starts right up, and a lot of the newer stuff sometimes doesn't, and sometimes if you bring it to the dealer, it should cost you lots of money.
Yeah, I have a 1962 Oliver 770 tractor.
I have that there every year.
It'll be part of the tractor parade at noon each day.
Oh, absolutely.
There's a wide variety.
Stationery, hay balers.
There's all kinds of different stuff.
We have a blacksmith on site.
He'll be there.
Sawmill will be sawing some wood.
We've got
A little bit for everybody.
So if you have any interest in something like that, your old Alice Chalmers there, you'll probably see something exactly like that.
We also give away a tractor.
You can buy for $5 a chance.
It's a 1946 Farmall.
That's in beautiful shape.
It's a really nice little tractor.
You know, that's what I love about car shows, about aged iron, anything like that.
You get to see the passion for people that often grew up with these machines.
I imagine that's one of the most common things is, hey, we grew up using this on the farm.
Is that a pretty common tune?
Oh, absolutely it is.
I mean, lots of people, as they're walking around, they'll say, oh, hey, my dad had one of these, my grandpa had one of these.
This was on my uncle's farm here.
So lots of people.
They have lots of good memories spurred on by looking at this
Rick, tell me what's going on around the fringes.
You mentioned that it's a whole family event and of course, not all the, I think of the kids especially, I know at the age of six or seven, you could have tried but might not have succeeded keeping my interest with these kinds of things.
I appreciate them much more now that I'm in some slightly older ages, but what else is going on around the show aside from the machines themselves?
As far as for kids, there's...
Barrel rides where they got this a little garden tractor pulling a bunch of barrels with wheels on them So kids can take a tour for little kids.
There's a kids pedal tractor pole tractor kids pedal tractor race They got a treasure hunt kind of a scavenger hunt for kids There's quite a bit of stuff to keep people people occupied and it covers a pretty sizable area
We're located about 20 miles south of Ashland and about four miles north of Mellon.
Oh, absolutely.
Yep, you drive by, it's right there.
The driveway's pretty well marked, and it's a show that'll go on all day, rain or shine.
No, you can bring things at the morning of the show Tractor registration each morning is at 8 o'clock in the morning So if you were to bring something there at 8 in the morning you'd register with the people behind the table and Set your show up or or set your tractor up or whatever you're doing
The parking is really convenient you pay your $5 to come in and there's
There'll be some rides going around on a wagon if people aren't able to walk.
Otherwise, you kind of wander, ask questions, and just enjoy the environment.
Eight o'clock on both days.
Most people don't come until a little bit later, but if you're bringing anything, as far as a tractor or something like that, then eight o'clock's the time to be there.
And if it's anything like those car shows I've been to, you'll have those early arrivals, but like you said, Rick, give it an hour or two and you'll have some of those slightly later arrivals in a full show.
Do you know how many machines you expect to have this year or maybe how many you had last year?
Right around 100 tractors along with the other machinery.
Alright, you know that tractor lover in your life will have more than enough to fill a day at the northern aged iron tractor and threshing show and you can be involved bring your bring your machinery if you've got a a unique crank started flywheel driven belt pull lead you to bring it over to the northern aged iron and tractor show Rick Frostman Thank you so much for popping up this morning to tell us about it And thank you very much for your time
I appreciate it.
Our pleasure.
We'll share some Facebook posts for you and we'll talk to you again soon and people can see you there this weekend.
Rick is from the Northern Aged Iron Tractor and Threshing Show.
I mentioned it at the beginning.
It's a bit of a mouthful, but you need every word there and they need you to stop on by for a great time this weekend.
Right on Highway 13, just a bit south of Highbridge, north of Glidden there.
It's on the highway itself.
You'll see it with the nice, convenient parking Rick mentioned.
We've got more reality radio guests coming up.
next on 98Q Country, it's a busy day and it'll be a busy weekend for you too.
We'll tell you why coming up after these messages on 98Q Country.
All right, 90AQ 816 AM and a jam-packed slate for reality radio today diving straight into it.
I've got Sue and I've got Sammy for Santa's elves.
I'm going to aim this that way because like it or not, Sammy, you'll end up on the radio today.
Good morning, you guys.
Good morning.
Thank you so much for being here.
So Santa's elves is something that a lot of people are thinking, I have seen that before.
I've seen their trees.
This sounds familiar, but not everybody out there is going to know offhand.
So tell us in super basic terms,
Who, what is Santa's Elves?
The kids are at school, so we can dispense with the rumors.
Fair enough, fair enough.
But if they're listening to the radio while they're doing that, I might be a bit distracting today.
Wednesday morning, not good for the homeschooled ones, I will say, because background noise, not so much.
Country music coming up later in the show.
But for now, we're talking to local area organizations, and especially the ones that help out the others around us.
And if that's not Santa's Elves, I don't know who is.
So Sue, why don't you dive in, give me the super basics.
on Santa's Elves, please.
OK, well, this organization started as a brainchild of several women in the fight field area back in the day.
And like we were just discussing before on the air, this organization has been around now.
This is our 30th anniversary.
Wow.
So that's just amazing for a nonprofit like this.
It started out with just a handful of children being helped.
It was a need that these women recognized was in our community for those less fortunate.
to be able to provide some a nice Christmas for their children, for their families.
And so it was a way to reach out to the community.
and provide that.
So the Santa Zell's organization now serves over 300 children, close to 100 families in Price County and Southern Ashland County within our school districts here.
So it's an amazing organization.
People can get applications.
It's not necessarily based strictly on financial need.
But there's a lot of other things, and when life happens that sometimes cause situations in families, that there is a need to help make that season just a joyous.
one for the family for the Children.
So especially so we reach out the human health and human services in Price County and the school districts help us identify those families that could benefit from the service that we provide to the families.
So it's just a great way to have a community effort to bring joy to these families.
So it sounds like it's not necessarily a one size fits all what you're doing for each of these families as many as there are.
But what's the meat and potatoes of it?
What
because what do most of your activities look like?
Because I know I think the bulk of it is it comes down to those trees and the donations that they foster.
What are you guys doing most of the time in official capacity for Santa's Elves?
Well, it isn't just at the holiday season, Gray, but we do a few fundraisers during the year.
We have done some things to raise funds.
We reach out to community businesses for support as well and apply for grants that help us provide the services.
The greatest piece of this is that we do this as a community as well.
These giving trees get put out at local businesses starting in November.
I believe our trees are going out November 1st at locations where certain businesses are willing to put them out.
And then on the trees, we identify needs of certain age children, male, female, and we ask the community to help us out by going out and purchasing
a couple things that are on these cards of wish list things from the children and bring them back to us.
We wrap them and between the families picking them up or the Park Falls Fire Department is amazing where they help us deliver them to
the
Park Falls.
community as well.
It's just a wonderful effort.
So it's one of these things and Sue I swear every time I've got you in here which is quite frequently and will actually have you in twice today appearing in two different capacities.
Every time I've got you in here Sue and along with other various members of the community we're talking about how many of us can give a little bit more to really benefit usually a smaller portion of the community who needs it the most but sometimes that that smaller portion of the community who needs an assist is
bigger than we imagine and I know growing up here in Park Falls I had some decent Christmases which may not have been as lavish as others but I know I didn't look around and think I'm not getting a Christmas what's going on and
Like a lot of other kids, that meant it was kind of lost on me that some people don't have the Christmas that the rest of us do.
And it's simple differences.
Small things can really make a big difference.
It doesn't have to be that 21 speed bicycle I wanted at 12 years old.
But the small things from a Christmas list or the other services that you guys provide, they're the small differences or the small changes, if you will, that make a really big difference in kids lives.
And you do focus mostly on kids, correct?
Or are you helping adults with things
too?
Well, it kind of varies.
But for the most part, yes, it is child focused from birth to 17 years old is the the area of age that we are targeting.
Yes.
And
I guess, you know, sometimes our family needs, you know, you say this about wanting, I have it a Christmas list, but some of the needs that come in are very basic.
Great.
You know, they're the winter clothing, their sheets or pillows or things that jackets and jackets and boots.
Right.
You know, they're things that
Some of us just don't think of as a need that would really be beneficial in these children.
That's a wonderful thing for them to receive.
And it's a practical thing that helps out the family as a whole too.
things, but it was,
well, and you'd be surprised if you start looking into how many kids sleep on a pile of their clothes.
Right on a bed frame perhaps but on a pile of clothes and like I've got nods here in the studio It's one of those things that you know I grew up on a mattress You don't even imagine that kind of thing until you see a TV show read a book about it or hear about an organization Who's helping with those kinds of things?
So we'll circle back to some of the items that are gonna be the most helpful But I'd like to lead with the fact that you guys could use a hand you're looking for volunteers as I understand am I correct there?
We absolutely are we're looking for volunteers to help with the wrapping and some
the shopping perhaps, but we do a lot of wrapping.
I want to do a lot of
wrapping.
You
Right, and just it's a matter of having hands.
you know, at the time that we're trying to get all these gifts processed because since it's such a large group of children and families, just to keep it all straight and make sure all the children are being addressed with their needs as much as we're able, it's quite a feat sometimes.
So Sammy here is leading up some of the drives that we're doing because all the children
We do like a lot of stocking, basically a
stocking stuffers.
We call them stocking gets a hat and coloring book crayons.
Just the basics.
Okay.
You know, we try to put some fun stuff in, but also some of those needed
Yes.
So
Well, I guess some of it, we have people that need to go and collect the items from these giving trees, make sure there's tags on the trees.
So a lot of times we have those people that are assigned a particular location or community where they go and check the trees
and
make sure that gifts get back to us.
Yep, a tree
monitor.
Yep, so those individuals would
you know, like I said, monitor the trees, make sure that we have tags and that we bring the gifts back when they are brought in.
We also can always use people, their skills, if they know how to make gloves and hats or if they want to come and just wrap a gift.
It doesn't have to be a huge commitment.
We meet twice a week once we start doing this so they could just come one day and help if they feel like it that morning or something and it just makes a huge difference to be able to do that.
Some other things, can you think, Sammy, as far as we need shoppers sometimes?
Shoppers are a big one.
She's our super elf, she's our super elf.
We call her Super Sammy
elf,
please.
I do, I do, we all do.
My mom actually got it for me.
That's
Yes.
or
year.
The Five Field Congregational Church.
Absolutely.
Yes, I can.
They can.
And but we guess we would like, we'd only you give new toys.
Yep.
Okay.
So I mean, if they
toys and stuff we we do ask but if they do feel like they want to you know buy a few squish mellows or they find things on sale that you know because we do have a list and I
believe it's
on our website or their Facebook page as far as what are the most requested items and age-appropriate things that
you know, that we do get from children.
So those things we really like to focus on and hence why we are looking at some of the drives that we're currently doing, even though it seems a little ahead of the holiday season gray, we really, you know, sometimes you can find deals on certain things and we've realized over time that there's certain needs that are regularly coming up and especially sometimes for the older children, you know, when it comes to these stocking stuffers, you know, the older kids are more particular, right?
They don't want a little kid coloring book.
crayons, they want more, you know, challenging adult kind of books in their stockings, right?
So we do try to accommodate that so that it is, you know, we're being sensitive to the age.
Am I
here?
The Nido Cube sure is.
And I have no idea what the two of you are talking about.
And all the squishies.
Squishies are a big thing and like
you mean?
Or like
squishies.
Where did that come from?
Like the dumplings and fidgets.
Yes.
So what is this an anxiety thing?
So you just sit there and play with it so that
You can tell how often we're likely to use any sort of needle.
But I know anytime I go into a store that sells them, they put them, they plaster it on the
in front of the window.
So if you're walking by your favorite novelty store, wherever the case may be, if you get over to Monaco or Eagle River and you see those, I know there's like grandma's toy box over there, may or may not have some of these things, but if you see a needle cube and you're thinking, how can I give back?
Silly as it may feel, grab that needle cube
and look for one of
Speaking of the trees, I think people are pretty familiar with the concept in general, but you've got a tag on the tree, you grab that, so you kind of claim that as the item you're going to purchase, you go out and purchase it,
bring it back to the business that had the tree where you found the tag, correct?
Well, you can, but you can bring it to any tree
location,
any tree location.
So there will be a list at those trees of where all the locations are.
Gotcha.
So you don't necessarily, if it's more convenient for you to bring it.
And we try to spread it out throughout the county.
So yes, that or not, Park Falls, Phillips, there will always be trees within all those communities.
So
Just pop in between these trees, picking up the gifts.
Now, I don't want to divert any sort of help or resources here, but would a gas card be something helpful to you guys?
Because my goodness, that's a lot of gas you guys are burning, 415 a gallon at least as of today.
Focus on the kids, but if you end up with a $25 gas card, I think that could go a long way for you guys.
I know what I'm thinking of right now.
So if people have some knitting or crocheting skills in a couple hours of their time, if they've just got a strong back to move things into the back of a vehicle and relocate things
little bit.
Are there any particular days where you know you'll need people or is it kind of an ongoing get in touch with us?
We'll figure it out kind of effort.
I would say at this point the real effort is once the trees go up.
Okay.
A lot of the administrative piece of things you know we're handling right now.
Okay.
You
know the a lot of the elves that are involved with that.
Once we start actually taking in gifts and things, usually it's a Wednesday or Saturday morning that we meet at the church basement and start processing the gifts and wrapping the gifts.
So at this point, we don't have a set schedule.
So I would recommend if you have a desire to want to help with that, there will be more information coming out as we get closer, of course, and we'll put some information out there when we know those dates.
But get in touch with us on either the website or the Facebook page, you know, sanazels.org.
Send to elvesfoundation.org.
And reach out to us if you feel this is something that's in your heart and that you want to help with the children, because there are many ways.
And the gas cards are a huge thing.
We do give those out and have actually received some grants like from QuickDrip and things to be able to provide some of these to families and to the older children.
Sue?
I don't know unless there's something I haven't heard.
I really don't know what that is.
We'll
elves.
Marketing, how it will come in
Absolutely.
us some time today.
worry.
was looking at
the flyer there, but people know they can see your flyers on our website, and we will also post on our Facebook page.
We'll share some of your posts.
So find 98Q Country on Facebook and on our website, 98QCountry.com.
But I hope we get a chance to chat with you again.
If only by phone, maybe we'll bump into you at Wheelway again.
You'll see these two bustling around.
Mayor may not be wearing the pointy hats, but certainly doing
good for the
good to have you here.
Thank
Reality radio continues.
It's 8 31.
We've got a quick message from our sponsors, news, weather and sports before our next guest on reality radio.
Alright, and it looks like we have a slight reschedule or something similar, just a change of plans, but we do have one guest remaining on Reality Radio, and it's actually the same guest we started with.
Hello again, Sue.
Thank you for appearing by phone with
us.
Oh, you're welcome, Gray.
It's always a joy to have conversation with you.
And likewise, but it's also just a good little laugh here.
I don't think I've ever had the same person twice in one reality radio day.
So a unique pleasure here.
But as I mentioned, when we were talking about Santa's elves earlier, you're here in multiple capacities.
And this is these aren't even the only two between this and the flamboyant sportsman's club and everything else you're up to.
So thank you for being so chronically involved as I like to put it.
You're here today with, well, this time with Friends of the Garden, correct?
That is correct, great.
Well, first of all, just for clarification, this isn't a sale.
This is a free event coming up.
The Friends of the Garden have actually existed for quite a while.
I've just been involved in the group pride for the last 10 or 15 years.
But for a while, we had basically a group of people that enjoy multiple facets of any kind of plant activity.
So it could be anyone from planting vegetables and things in gardens to perennials, which is my true passion, I guess.
So any kind of landscaping, any kind of use of plants.
So plants for medicinal purposes, prairie plants, learning,
from others, perhaps how to raise different things in our area, what works, what doesn't work.
And so the group as a whole needs once a month during the growing season.
We do multiple things.
So we both learn and help educate each other.
We do crafts, we do things with plants, and various different things depending on what the group's interest is.
everything plants.
And thank you for a very gentle correction there because I definitely did write this down as sale But as you mentioned, it's a free event and I didn't label that quite accurately But Sue this definitely plays into to something that you know opinions vary on how old the earth is But one thing's for sure there have been a lot of people on this planet for a very long time And maybe one of our best habits is sharing knowledge and hey, don't do this We've tried that and it doesn't work and just by doing that and repeating that process you can become the next generation of knowledge
and improve the situation for anybody who might be looking to engage in planting or maybe make their thumb a little bit greener.
Of course, here as we're sitting firmly planted in mid-September Sioux, one of the questions might be, what kind of planting can we even look forward to?
Or what kind of gardening or anything like that can we even be looking at right now?
And the seed and bare roots situation, I almost said it again, is tailored to that kind of timing, right?
Seed and bare root.
That's a timely thing even this late in the season.
What are we looking at with that seed in bare root situation specifically?
Well, Gray, a lot of things.
And it just seems, of course, a lot of people are in the harvest mode right now, right?
It's coming to the end of the growing season.
And so a lot of harvesting, tanning, different things and enjoying a lot of the blooming of things has already taken place.
However, there are a lot of late bloom plants, perennials.
things that we enjoy, even how they look, even if they don't flower year-round.
And the one thing I emphasize with this particular sale, or now there I did it, oh my gosh, it's contagious, is this exchange is the fact.
This is a great opportunity for people that have perennials, especially to bin them.
So in order to maintain good health of a perennial plant so that in the spring and for the next season, next year, it does well and continues to flower is they have to be thinned periodically.
When they get overcrowded, they won't bloom as well.
And it's a great way to share plants that cost a lot if you're going to go out and purchase them at a greenhouse or online.
through a different resources.
So it's a great time to send those out, you know, because you're growing season, you have more time typically this time of year.
Spring, we're all going crazy, trying to get things planted and moved and different things.
So this is a great way to take some of those and make your gardens that you do have in existence already for those that do.
For next season, by dividing out their perennials and bringing some to this exchange to share and help
provide others with information about those particular plants.
So perennials can pretty much be divided anytime of the year, but this is a great time to divide them also in the fall versus spring.
Sometimes because we're getting more moisture now in the fall, they don't have the heat intensity and a lot of the stressors that would be involved in perennials are pretty tough.
I know I'm dividing a lot of things and sitting out at lots of hostas and different things that
you know, you can dig them out and let them sit there and they'll be fine to be transplanted to someone else's garden a week or two weeks from now.
They're just very hardy.
It's really what makes perennials what they are that they keep coming back.
But it's something that I think, you know, once you take an interest in growing perennial plants, it's a little piece of magic, Sue, if you ask me that, you know, if my lavender is getting a little too thick and it's choking itself out a little bit, I can
thin that out a little bit and I can do whatever you know some people might want to buy some lavender as an herb from me but someone else might be able to take that and start their own growth of lavender from what I might have ended up throwing away do I have the right idea here
absolutely gray and I mean the plants aren't cheap you know all of us know and not nothing
To take away from the greenhouses, we have some wonderful greenhouses in our area, and they provide a lot of knowledge as well about the plants that will grow in our area.
But they also do provide plants that are annuals and things that don't only last that season.
So it's nice for me.
I appreciate having my flower business perennials that's less work.
Once I plant them, they're there.
And sometimes I get a creative hair, and I want to change how it looks.
But I can move them around, dig them up.
trade them with other growers and get some new plants too.
So this is a great way.
It's a free event.
We're gonna, we just ask that people try to bring their plants, you know, dirt-free, shake off the dirt and things, but anything can go.
So I mean, even if you have house plants, people have spider plants, they feel bad, guilty throwing away a new baby that's gonna grow a new plant.
and so they have all these pots around.
I mean, anything goes at this particular event and this is a great time to be taking seeds for next season as well.
You know whose perspective I'm catching on this suit somewhere out there is somebody listening thinking okay I need to drag my significant other here to offload some of these overgrown plants and that's I mean well that may be a little bit adversarial it's not necessarily the wrong idea because a lot of these plants given that they do return and they often return stronger and they come with that that growth that you know it's it's if your hostas have never gotten thick on you before well they will eventually and that can really just just by the nature of the plant and the hobby and
and the ability to decorate it.
You can really benefit the community that way just by instead of letting them be fed to the deer, you can come and see and hey, maybe you don't end up giving them all away to somebody who wants them, but they can still go to a greater use than just rotting back into the soil, which admittedly, still pretty solid.
You end up doing a little bit of a compost thing, right?
Right, but it is a good time to maybe speak to other people that can tell you this particular plant is deer tolerant.
This particular plant, you know, I grow this around my hostess and it keeps the deer away.
You know, there's different types of knowledge out there from people that have experience with various things, even strawberries now, you know, transplanting and moving strawberries this time of year to be ready for spring and what does that look like?
And, you know, a lot of times the resources within our organization are such, you know,
strawberries for a really reasonable price if you want to get into strawberries or blueberries or whatever it might be.
Usually we can kind of point you to a direction of an individual that would be a good resource.
Well, and something that comes to mind about strawberries in particular, Sue, I just learned recently that you don't end up with fruited strawberry plants unless they basically interact in the proper way.
There's some pollination that needs to happen that doesn't necessarily happen as easily as with other plants, though it's not necessarily a huge obstacle.
You've got to raise some of these plants right, and it sounds like I could come ask you guys about that sort of thing.
Is that correct?
Well, you sure can, and if we don't have the answer right there, Gray, we'll definitely can find it for you.
So, it's just a great, fun group of people, and we try to put out a calendar of what kind of things the group votes they want to do for the coming year.
And, you know, you can come and go as you like to whatever interests you, but I just found it as a great resource.
to get myself going and for any of the things that I really was interested in learning about and yeah so it's a good fun group of women and men that have a passion for plants.
Well, and as grocery prices rise, things like herbs and other gardenables are more popular than ever before.
So if you want to get a foot on the door, gardening in general, specifically perennials because of their unique nature, but also just questions for a community who would love to have you, what is the timing on that event that we're talking about?
Okay, so this is our second exchange.
We'll have one in the spring and one in the fall.
So
Oh, if you just have an interest in water.
Can you still hear me?
It looks like we might have lost our Sue.
Well, I guess we get a limited amount of Sue per day.
That said, we've had her twice already.
So I'm going to do a little bit of digging into the Friends of the Garden.
One last check.
Sue, can you hear me there?
Alright, looks like we lost touch so I'm gonna dig in and before 10 o'clock rolls around I'll have more info for you on the exact timing of that event that is the seed and bear root exchange We've accidentally called it things that it's not it's a free event So if you're looking to get into gardening the friends of the garden are looking to help you with that And I'll see if we can I can get back in touch with Sue here But I'll have that info for you coming up shortly in the meantime Sue was our last scheduled guest today for reality radio barring a bit of a reshuffling
And that means it's time for a little bit of country music coming up next on 98Q.
Stay tuned and look to our website for the archive of these conversations.
Listen back on demand.
Here's Josh Ross.
That was Josh Ross helping us finish a day of reality radio guests on 98Q and I'll get to work archiving those so you can listen back as we talk to Brittany from Embrace.
We talked to Sue with Santa's Elves and with the Plans and Seed Exchange from the Friends of the Garden.
I was able to reconnect off-air with Sue there briefly and she very kindly reminded me that I had a flyer right next to me with all the info.
Thank you so much, Sue, for those gentle reminders.
I need so much.
Clearly, I was laughing with her.
I've got a whole three flyers to keep
track of today and I managed to lose one.
But it's here in front of me.
We'll put this flyer itself on our website.
For those who'd prefer to stay off the internet though, I don't blame you one bit.
The plant and seed exchange by the Friends of the Garden is coming up next week Wednesday.
It's a week from today, September 23rd at Hines Park at 6pm.
It's a free event.
You don't need to bring something either in order to take something because like Sue and I were talking about, a lot of the stuff is kind of extra by the nature of perennial plants.
They keep
more even if it's more than you need.
So there's going to be plenty for you to bring home to start your perennial garden.
Bags and boxes will be provided.
Cuttings, plants and seeds from house or perennial plants may be brought if you've got yours.
And the whole purpose of the event, share and educate those interested in learning or just enjoying plants in a cost-effective way.
If you've got questions about the plant and seed exchange, the Friends at the Garden, or how exactly to thin out those hostas you've got growing in front of the house, maybe you'd
just bought.
Maybe you will do that to you.
You can call 715-518-4484 or be there at next Wednesday at 6 p.m.
at Heinz Park right h not quite done with the a day with gray if you don't with Glenn going back to n by the time I get to Phoenix