Welcome, everybody, to Midday Magazine for this Monday, November 11, 2024.
Have your host, James J. Mailov here.
And at 4.30 today, we're going to talk with Ken and Chris, the Zores Shriners, about
the year festival of trees in 2024.
I'm going to go ahead and get that down by the time they're in with us.
I will have that down.
Right now, joining us, though, some of our favorite people.
We have Lisa Skibb of with us, and we have Tammy Barber with us from Aspirus Health right
here in Wisconsin, Rapids.
And ladies, thank you so much for being here today.
Thank you for having us.
It's a pleasure.
Appreciate the time.
We're here to talk about Lights of Love, the tree lighting ceremony that will be taking
place on November 20th, and we'll get into the details of that.
We're going to tell you about all the fun things and all the important things that are
a part that wrapped up in this event.
But if you don't mind, I would like to actually get to first Tammy the history of Lights
of Love.
And touch on this a little bit because as we are talking about in a pregame a little, I
love this event.
I look forward to it every year.
I'm a sucker for events that pull at our hearts, but bring us together at the same time.
And I think that our, I know that fun isn't maybe the right word for this.
But I got to tell you, I've been a part of a lot of these events, and I've broadcast
some of these.
And I see people enjoying themselves, I see people smiling.
And I think that that is, if I could be honest, yesterday marked a year that we lost my
grandpa, my papa, and he meant the world to me.
And I know that yesterday, my dad and I, we kind of wanted to be moody.
And that would have been the last thing that he would have wanted.
He'd have gotten mad at us for getting moody.
So we tried to celebrate him.
We smiled a lot yesterday.
And before we knew it, we were laughing yesterday.
And I would have never dreamed that would have happened.
But we were laughing yesterday because we were thinking of my papa and laughing.
That's what he would have wanted.
And so when we do have this ceremony and we do honor our loved ones and there is some
solidness to it.
There's no getting around that.
There's also a lot of, a lot of joy.
There's a lot of joy a part of this event.
So I don't want to lose that side of it.
And I thought getting into the history of this 23 years, that is very impressive, ladies.
That's very impressive.
It sure is.
And yeah, it's a great, meaningful community events.
How did this start, Tammy?
We had a spirit or the riverview auxiliary, a very dedicated group of volunteers in our
community for many years.
One of the members, I think Nancy Myers, heard about a similar event, a fundraiser for
a hospital in Michigan.
And she brought the idea to her group, the auxiliary here.
And they loved it.
And they formed a committee.
And Diane Pokrant for many years was the leader of that committee, super hardworking committee.
And they really turned this into what it is now, and even far beyond what it is now.
And we're very passionate about it, and did a great job, so that was 23 years ago.
And since then, the auxiliary dwindled in numbers.
And so they actually are no longer, they kind of dissolved.
We're keeping it going, and many of them still are volunteers at the event, and help us with it.
So we're happy to keep the tradition going.
It's a wonderful fundraiser.
The money that is raised goes to help our patients.
And through the foundation, the hospital foundation.
And it's just a great tradition for a lot of families and individuals in the community.
To buy a light, which is only $3, in honor or in memory of someone special to them.
And then they come to the event and watch the trees be lit and drive past them for the entire holiday season.
Oh, it's good into that, the meaning of this event, and how people can celebrate their loved ones with this event.
Because that's where this all started.
So I think to Tammy's point, we have experienced it with the audience now.
And those are able to attend that they have, again, a mix of someone they're memorializing, somebody they've lost, and they want to remember them.
And then return every year.
We've had donations that have returned every year in memory of.
And then also somebody who is in a fight, in a fight of cancer or some other diagnosis.
And they also choose this as a way to honor them.
And how can I give back and help that next patient as an example?
So we do have experience of both.
We see happy tears.
And we see, because somebody is on the fight, we see tears of remembrance when they have someone who passed away.
So it is really a nice event again for the community.
So we're happy we can continue it for all these years.
I had two early experiences with lights of love.
Back when Aspirus had that building that used to be there right across the street.
My Nana stayed there for a while, she was going through Alzheimer's dementia and it was, I had never been in that building before until then.
And I, like a lot of people, I'm at the building at Aspirus across the street there.
From all my kids were born in that building and for other reasons too.
But I'd never been in across the street.
And it's pretty much the last place I saw my Nana.
It's pretty much the last place I did.
And it meant a lot to me over there, in that area right there.
And I remember that year, lights of love came around.
And this was something, well, we had never done this before.
So you know, we wanted to do this in honor on it, especially because we felt we were very thankful to Aspirus
and the way that she was treated, that building in particular and the people working in there.
How well they treated her and my family.
We thought that this wasn't just a way to honor her, but also thank Aspirus and thank the people that had worked there.
And so we did this and we felt, it felt really good and everything.
I don't think anybody in my family, any of us really expected to do something like this
and have a good feeling from it.
And so it's something that they enjoyed, they appreciated.
But then the year came around years later, I would be broadcasting and seeing lights of love one year.
And I treated this because I'm over serious and I over prepare for everything I do and all that.
So I'm just focused on the job itself and how many breaks we have.
And taking care of all the people that we're going to be on the air with us and all that.
And I get down there and we get people just starting to get in.
Like it's not even full yet.
And I realize, well, this is even bigger than I remember.
Like there's a lot of people out there.
There's a lot of people feeling these things.
And I immediately, it was like deja vu.
I immediately went back to thinking of my Nana and how much that meant to be able to do that.
And thinking about how many people out there are going through something.
Like you said, Lisa, whether they are currently going through cancer or they beat it or other.
There's so many of us out there.
And I look around and I see all these people.
And there's people out there that are, hey, I haven't seen you in a long time in meeting.
But more so or not, I saw strangers talking to strangers.
So people leaning on each other.
I saw community coming together.
And while every one of those individuals might have been going through something different,
we all had something in common.
We're all feeling.
We're all hurting.
And we're able to be together for each other.
We're able to have each other's back.
It's such a great, it's such a much needed thing, especially in a year like this and coming
out of an election and those things.
We need to be coming together more and more.
But we also need to note these opportunities we have in life in these different things that
we have that bring us together and show that we have so much more in common than not.
And somebody out there is going through something, whether it is, it just happened or it happened
years ago.
This event really gives us an opportunity to heal, not just ourselves, but heal each
other.
Yes.
There's absolutely a solidarity of a common experience.
And you can see it where the people are coming together, whether it's in person because
you're able to attend the event or it's listening to the live broadcast that you will be doing.
We do have some folks who choose to come in their car.
And so they can see some of the event from their vehicles as well as listen to the event
as well.
So there is that solidarity and trying to come together as a community.
It's a really beautiful moment.
The tree lighting up itself is a beautiful moment.
I did want, I know that there are people out there that are hearing this and maybe they
missed the deadline.
Maybe they wanted to be a part of this event and have a light themselves up there.
The deadline has though passed already though, right, Tammy?
That's correct.
On the deadline, we always sell, you know, they're always for sale year round.
So if you ever, you know, are in a position where it pops in your mind and you want to buy
a love light, you can get one for somebody.
And what happens is the deadline for being on this year's list that we don't, you know,
have generated.
Yeah, we generated.
It's a QR code now, you know, or a link, you know, these days where you can look.
That was passed on November 1st, but anyone who buys a light now will be on next year's
list.
And so, you know, like I said, it's kind of just a rolling thing.
I know people do like to find their name on a list and show somebody.
Maybe if they bought the light in honor of memory of someone they like to show them that.
And so that is an important aspect of it.
And then yeah, it's just, I invite anybody who, even if you can't come to the event on
November 20th to just drive by.
Yeah.
And you'll see the lights and they'll be up all, all season and just think about, you
know, the people you remember or honor.
So you have talked about the history.
The event has seen a lot of changes over the 23 years because we had the event.
I remember my children were in grade school.
They would come to the event and we were able to hold the event inside the hospital in
the lobby.
To your point, it got so popular that one year we had concerns from the fire department
in terms of how many people we had in the lobby.
So we felt we had to be respectful of the fire department.
So we did move it to an outside event.
Then we lost our trees.
The trees we had used for years and years on the expressway went down when that tornado
came through town.
And I want to say, and maybe, gosh, 18, 18, 20, 20, 20, 20, 20, 20, 20, 20, 20, 20.
So we lost our three trees.
So we had a flex.
We did go to your point across the street.
We had an oak tree in the corner by our nursing home, which was called Riverview Manor.
We did go there for a couple years, but we had arborists come in and assess the tree.
And they felt that the tree, the lights could potentially damage this tree.
And because it's so old and such a part of our family at Aspire's Riverview, we did
not want to jeopardize the health of the tree.
So we did move it back now to the expressway.
So yes, as Tammy mentioned, the lights themselves will be on the expressway.
So as you drive by through the holiday season, you can see them the whole time.
This is all the things we've talked about today is reason enough to have this event.
But as you touched on Lisa, this raises funds as well to put into our community to help
the individuals in our community.
Can we touch on that a little bit?
The proceeds do go to Aspire's Riverview Foundation, and they are then used for various initiatives
to support initiatives that focus on our community's greatest health needs.
And those include things like substance abuse, behavioral and mental health, and food
systems, and cancer.
So those have been kind of identified as our community's biggest needs, and so that's
what the proceeds are used for.
For various grants and support initiatives through our hospital.
It's nice to be able to hit on so many different topics and different things that need
it so much.
And while there are certainly, I'm sure, more that would like to be done, doing the work
that we're able to on this is such a huge front.
And we just don't know how much it can impact each one of these particular categories,
and the people that need it.
It's such a nice thing to be able to be a part of such a good event and to feel good
of it while also knowing that you are doing such good work with it.
The event itself, let's touch on the details of that, the who, when, what, where, why.
But let's get into that one a little bit, and I think you'd want to leave that.
Yeah, so I will tell you about this year's event.
It's again, Wednesday, November 20th, we'll be doing a live broadcast with your radio
station.
Wait, what?
No, I'm joking.
Yes, we're going to be there.
About an hour before, we'll be doing a variety of interviews on the breaks with people
who are either involved with hospital, involved in the community, or going to be part of the
program that evening.
And then at 5.30 is when the program actually starts, we're going to have a welcome from
our new president, Chris Squires, the new president of Aspirus Riverview Hospital.
So he'll be there, and then we have a blessing from a local pastor, and then something that
we've done for a number of years now, we're very excited about it.
And I know the students are, we have a student essay contest.
In fact, one of my daughters, many, many years ago, fourth grade, got to read her essay at
the event.
But our students, the last couple of years have come from Rams, or Wisconsin Rapids Area
Medical School, six graders, and their teachers.
And there, I know their group, their students look forward to every year knowing that in
six grade, you get to be part of this essay contest.
So we have that group coming, and speaking of the community again in some of the history,
we have three members of the auxiliary who come and help us with this event, and they're
part of the panel that helps to judge the essay contest.
So they're working on that, and the winners will be announced very soon.
Then we also have music, again, back to that feel of joy, as well as some memorial, you
know, with some mix.
We have joy coming from our music students from Gross School, the third through fifth grade
choir, and their teachers will be joining us that evening, so some musical interludes.
And then we always invite someone to come from the community and give a message.
Again, it's a message of either hope, or perseverance, or, again, memorial.
So we're, we have that piece.
We also have, like to thank our sponsors that we have for the event.
Richie Felner, funeral home, honors the people and the family they've worked with for
the last year.
So they're part of our celebration.
We also have Salaris, who provides us with some refreshments, and then, of course, working
with you and the radio station.
It's something that a civic media or a parent company and us here at WFHRI, WIRI, it's
inner blood.
This is what we do around here.
Being a part of these kind of things is more of an honor for us than anything to be a
part of.
We're very proud and very happy to be able to do these things, broadcasting the event itself.
Being honest with the audience is, live remotes are not easy, and in a job where every second
you don't know what the next second is going to lead to, and let's go ahead and bring
this outside now.
Let's do that.
But honestly, I'd be lying also if I didn't tell you guys that that's part of the reason
why we get into this business.
It's not just for the excitement of, you know, know what live can bring, but to do events
like this.
You work at stations like this.
You're a part of things like this because you want to be a part of events like this.
So we're humbled to be able to be broadcasting this.
We're looking forward to it.
I know that Seth and I have been working on the production part of it a bit, making
sure that it sounds really good for you guys, and you're able to listen to this one.
As you both have mentioned, plenty of people will be down there.
Dress warm.
Dress warm.
That wind comes off of that river pretty good.
But many other people are going to be parked in their cars at the event, and you at home
will be able to listen to the event.
So there's plenty of different ways to be a part of this.
Right?
If people are thinking about coming, they just can park in the southwest corner of, you
know, the hospital's parking lot number one, and they'll up on the light post you see
the parking lot number one, and it's basically right outside the front entrance, sort of in
the southwest corner would be best.
And that's what they can probably see a lot of it from their car, depending on where
they park, or they can just get out right at the last minute when we're doing, you know,
getting ready to do the countdown and just listen in the, in the comfort of their vehicle,
the rest of the time.
And so we hope, we hope to get, you know, a lot of participation, but if they're at home
and, you know, don't want to make the trip down to the hospital, that is fine too.
Yep, you'll be able to catch it right here, everybody, 97-5 FM 13-20 AM.
And while we have mentioned that the current list that is going to be there, well, you cannot
necessarily get on that list.
If people do want to help or be a part of the event, are they, are we looking for volunteers
still, or anything like that, can people do that, or if we have a volunteer that really
is interested, they can certainly call the hospital and ask for Lisa Skibba, and they'll
direct me to them.
We're lucky to have a lot of staff who step in and help.
And so we're fortunate in that way, but certainly if somebody wants to be involved, if not
this year, next year, they can call the hospital and ask for Lisa Skibba, and they'll direct
you to my voicemail.
Right, I think one of the speakers is going to be in the pre-show, our volunteer coordinator
of the hospital, Anne Marie Ott, so we will be happy to hook anyone up who is interested
in volunteering in any capacity at the hospital with Anne Marie.
And while certainly we want you to attend this event, whether it is being there physically
in person or listening on the radio or however you're going to take it in, keep in mind
as you both have mentioned as well.
This is a year, this is for the holiday season, you'll be able to take this event in,
you know, drive and buy a virus and everything, hopefully not just thinking of your loved
ones, but thinking of others.
And as a side note, I would also mention thinking of those in our healthcare industry and
how hard they are working and how hard they work, especially at this time of year, you
are all appreciated.
We thank you very much for what you do for our communities.
And I really appreciate you guys putting up with my questions every year, coming in here
and everything.
I always appreciate the time.
If people have followed questions, they want to know some more from either of you.
How can they reach you Tammy if they have further questions?
Sure.
Just call the main hospital number, which is 42, it's 360, 60.
And you can ask for either Tammy Barber or Lisa Skiba, and either of us will be very
happy to answer your questions.
Or like I mentioned, if you just want to be a volunteer at the hospital, if you're at
home and thinking, I want to get involved with something, maybe not this, but something
else.
And Marie Ott, or just say send me to the volunteer coordinator, and she would absolutely
love to talk with you.
Keep that in mind, everybody.
And you can go to aspirus.org to find out more information and encourage you to do so,
be sure to bookmark that page.
And get ready, be sure to bookmark on your calendar, lights of love, ceremony, it's coming up
Wednesday.
November 20th, things will kick off at 5.30.
We encourage you to come down down to Aspirus and take in the event.
If you cannot, we will have it here right here for you at 97.5 FM 13.20 AM.
Both of you.
Thank you again for the time.
Thank you.
And thank your entire team for doing this for us.
We look forward to it.
Then coming up.
Thank you.
And we'll look forward to it.
We'll see you guys soon.
We'll have more Midday Magazine coming up for you right here at 97.5 FM 13.20 AM WFHR.
We are locally grown radio.
