VLC Shared Items with 11 Families in May!

2 men, a truck and a trailer! VLC delivered to a mom, her 12 year old daughter, and 3 year old diabetic son who were beginning their life all over. The husband left and took the furniture with him. An aunt shared living room furniture but the 2 bedrooms, bathroom and kitchen were left to VLC to fill....and fill you did! Beds, dressers, bookcases, a desk, toychest and dining table were shared along with a new set of pots & pans, sheets, towels and comforters. This was a very special delivery. 2 volunteers who love doing make-overs joined us. They brought lamps, bedding, pictures, shelves and bulletin boards to hang and pillows to toss! Cozying

things up and making it a beautiful new beginning for this family...

*A futon was shared with a Hartland family living in a 2 bedroom apartment. They have 2 special needs children, each who need their own bedrooms. Leaving mom on the couch and dad on the living room floor. Thanks to you, they now have a bed as well!

*The mother of a 10 month old little girl who was recently diagnosed with a very serious and very rare form of cancer had diapers on her wish list. Donors dropped boxes off this month to share and a special VLC friend touched by the story sent a UPS truck to the porch to drop off 5 cases of diapers! No child should go through this....nor should a mother. Now mom can focus on helping to her daughter get well....

*A mom and 2 sons just moved into an apartment. This amazing dining table and chairs replaced the nightstand and outdoor folding chairs they were using for a kitchen table....and this beautiful bed with 4 drawers beneath and bedding replaced the futon mattress on the floor and the 3 cardboard boxes used for their clothes.

* 7 more donors made families so happy this month. A dryer was shared with a family who could not afford to replace theirs, a 4-drawer file cabinet was shared with a caseworker, 2 dirt bikes were shared with 11 & 12 year old brothers, and 3 extra gliders were shared with Siena House, a homeless shelter in Waukesha where moms in crisis can rock their little ones at very stressful time in both of their lives... Thank you for your generosity!

Grounds Clean Up at the Women's Center of Waukesha

It is truly amazing what a difference 10 volunteers working 2.5 hours each can make! We had alot of fun working together and together we shared 25 hours of labor! We raked, weeded and pruned the planting beds around the Women's Center, mowed the yard at the WC and their 5 transitional homes, and dug up the backyard at one home to prepare it for seeding. Thanks to the individuals, couples and families who came out to make things just a little nicer for the women and children who are staying at this safe place for a little while...

April's Clients of the Month!

Oh what a month! We received requests from 10 Clients this month, and thanks to the amazing generosity of Lake Country, we were able to help them all! We delivered a glider to help to relieve the pain of a 14 year old boy, a file cabinet to keep medical information organized for a family with so many special needs, a crib, and an outpouring of new and gently used clothing and toys for 2 children (2 & 6) who can no longer live with their parents...but who have a family friend who has stepped forward to become their Foster Parent so they can be kept together. A brand new car seat was purchased and shared along with a stoller with a grandmother who is now raising her granddaughter, and beds, bedding, a kitchen table, couch and loveseat for a mom who is a 2 time cancer survivor, and is now battling heart disease. One story more difficult than the next...all of these clients were so grateful, all in disbelief that strangers would share such beautiful things with them...would shop for new clothes and toys for them! Thank you for making their lives a brighter!

VLC April Garden Work Days!

The VLC Garden is off to a great start, even though spring is not! 15 Volunteers learned a double digging method of preparing the garden and helped to ready the beds for planting. Another evening, 8 volunteers helped to plant early spring crops. Please check the Garden Blog at http://www.volcgarden.blogspot.com/ to be kept up to date on scheduled work dates, what is on the garden wish/need list, with questions, for location, or to volunteer to share an hour or two this summer.

Drive for Baby Items for Healthy Families of Waukesha County

50 volunteers braved the wonderful Wisconsin spring weather on Saturday March 26th sharing a 'wish list' of items needed for Healthy Families with customers at the Pewaukee Wal-Mart, Oconomowoc Pick N Save, and the Hartland Walgreens. Generous customers filled the carts....and VLC filled the shelves at Healthy Families with donations. Over 13,000 diapers were collected! Thanks to all of you who shared 2 hours of your time for making a difference!

Food Drive for the Hartland & Pewaukee Food Pantries and the Lake Area Free Clinic

These are the faces of Volunteers of Lake Country! They are your friends and your neighbors. They are single, they are couples, they are families. They are parents with their children and grandparents with their grand-children. They are youth groups (thanks to the Pewaukee HS Key Club) and community groups (thanks to Divine Redeemer Church and Pewaukee Kiwaniis!) They shared 2 hours of time on a Saturday, and they thanked US because they enjoyed it!! We staffed 3 stores...had 41 volunteers...and collected mountains of groceries for the Food Pantries just in time, as their shelves were close to empty, along with $700.00 in cash donations. Thank you to the volunteers and the generous people of Lake Country for making a

difference in the lives of others!

February's Client of the Month

Jim, who recently became the sole parent to his children James (6) and Julia (4) was VLC's February Client of the Month. Jim sent

a note:

Volunteers of Lake Country,

James, Julianna, and I would all like to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for everything. The children really enjoy the bunk bed, toy chest, books and clothing. We are all very thankful for the couch, loveseat, coffee table, lamps, towels and welcome basket. It was very rewarding for us after all we have been through in last year. This should help us immensely, as we continue on our journey of life.

Sincerely,

Jim

Washer and Dryer Donations

VLC shared 3 sets of washers and dryers this last month! Two of the families were families we received from Human Services. One was the family where both the mom and dad are in the reserves. (The husband has served 2 tours in Iraq). This is the third set shared. This set, along with a beautiful dining table and chairs were shared by a VLC volunteer. VLC arranged a match with the Hebron House. They picked it up and are using them in the new overflow homeless shelter that they recently opened in Waukesha for the winter months.

January's Project- A Family Visitation Room Make Over

Our goal was to create a positive environment for 2 Family Visitation rooms at Human Services. These rooms are used for supervised visits for parents and their children who are living in Foster Care, or in the care of relatives. It is a place where families who are in crises can stay connected. VLC had some very different requests on the 'wish list' and to our amazement, volunteers came forward with children's tables and chairs, lobby chairs, a loveseat, bookshelves, children's toys and family games, area rugs and artwork. Your kindness and generosity made these rooms warm and cozy, and life a little bit better for the families.

January's Client

We delivered to Jamie, who had lost her job, her apartment and then everything she had which was in a storage locker and she didn't have the money to pay her bill. She has a new job, and new apartment and a new start. You shared a couch, 2 chairs, a kitchen set, bed, and chest of drawers along with dishes, pots and pans, kitchen utensils, kitchen and bath towels. She had been in an empty apartment for weeks prior to our delivery, so she was so excited, and so grateful for these gifts when they were delivered. Thank you!