Voices from the Valley: A podcast of the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region

Mental Health: A Path Forward

Did you know that from 2010-2018, the suicide rate in Calumet, Outagamie and Winnebago counties increased by 66 percent? And among those at greatest risk are middle-aged men, individuals in certain professions (like farming, construction and law enforcement, for example), veterans, members of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and people of color), and LGBTQ+ community members.

 

In response to this alarming community crisis, Northeast Wisconsin Mental Health Connection launched Project Zero, a suicide prevention initiative supported by the Community Foundation, and conducted a local 2021 Mind Your Wellness Survey, that was designed to collect population-level data on several mental health and suicide-related indicators. A total of 1,259 adults from Calumet, Outagamie and Winnebago counties took the survey during the pandemic.

 

The Connection has just released a new report on recommendations aimed at improving adult mental health of adults in the Fox Valley. Outlined in the report, titled Mental Health & Suicide Prevention Recommendations, are more than 40 recommendations that can serve as a road map for many nonprofits, businesses and individuals to support and and advocate for new projects, strategic plans, and priorities. Go here to learn how you can impact the community.

 

The survey results identified many risk factors that contribute to poor mental health in adults, including having an annual household income of less than $50,000, feeling isolated, spending several hours of non-work time per day on screens, and inadequate sleep. The resulting recommendations are organized into three themes: basic needs, access to care, and social connection.

Show notes at   https://www.cffoxvalley.org/podcast/mental-health-a-path-forward/  

Healthy Smiles for All

Dental care is critical to a person's overall health, especially in children. But the pandemic and financial constraints have been barriers to families trying to access proper care, causing decreases in visits. Organizations like volunteer-driven Tri-County Dental help fill the gaps and meet thousands of students where they’re at, offering preventive care to avoid emergencies and keep students healthy and able to focus in school. 

It’s estimated that there are over 85,000 people in the tri-county area of Northeast Wisconsin who cannot afford even limited oral health care. And according to the Dental Association, about a third of all children in the state of Wisconsin have untreated tooth decay. The dental community wanted to do something about that. For the past two decades, volunteer dentists and dental hygienists have been offering their services free of charge through the Tri-County Community Dental Clinic.

Roughly 90 dentists from throughout the area volunteer to work at Tri-County. There are paid fellowships for new dentists who recently graduated to get experience for a one-year term. There are income and insurance requirements to be eligible to go to the clinic. Co-pays for regular visits never cost more than $35. But for students who qualify for free and reduced lunch, care is completely free.

Show Notes at  https://www.cffoxvalley.org/podcast/healthy-smiles-for-all-23/ 

Understanding Autism

What is it like to learn your child has autism? And how do you find resources to give your child the best opportunities for learning and for experiencing all the joys and challenges life has in store?

In this episode we take some time to consider how we think about Autism, a developmental disability that affects the way a person communicates, thinks, and interacts with others and the world around them. People with autism experience the world differently. You may have heard the term, “Autism Spectrum,” to describe the diverse range of symptoms and abilities that are unique to everyone. 

We visit Shawano, Wisconsin, where a non-profit called Bridge the Gap for Autism is making a huge impact. It is a nationally recognized organization that has helped hundreds of children and adults with autism through a unique approach.

And we go to Black Creek Elementary in the Seymour School district, where students with Autism are using technology that is a real game-changer.

More at https://www.cffoxvalley.org/podcast/understanding-autism/

Welcoming Refugees

In this episode we're discussing the number of refugees from other countries who have recently resettled here in the Fox Valley. What is life like for them, and how can our communities be welcoming to our new neighbors? Most of them come from the Democratic Republic of the Congo in central Africa. Two years ago, we began to see many come through the Afghanistan evacuation program.  About 300 more refugees will resettle here by the end of 2023.

We hear from Tami McLaughlin, executive director of World Relief Fox Valley about the resettlement of people from Afghanistan seeking refuge and starting a new life in our communities, and the challenges they face as they make the Fox Valley their new home.

Episode notes and links: https://www.cffoxvalley.org/podcast/welcoming-refugees/  

Housing: A Plan Forward

Imagine if all residents can live in a good home they can afford. Our region is composed of households across the income spectrum, and it's getting harder to find these homes.

High-quality, stable housing is central to the health and wellbeing of all families in our communities. A new Fox Cities and Greater Outagamie County Regional Housing Strategy was developed in 2022 as the result of a study done in our communities. Over the next decade, our region needs roughly 11-thousand to nearly 18 thousand new dwelling units just to keep up with the estimated population growth. In this episode, we'll discuss the plan forward, thanks to the many who are coming together to take on the challenge. Do you have a role to play in this path forward?

Visit  https://www.cffoxvalley.org/podcast/housing-a-plan-forward/ for the episode show notes.

Kaukauna and King: 50 years Later

What happens when we uncover lost stories and tell them in new ways? And how might shared experiences, between people who are different from one another, bring us closer together? In today’s very special episode we’re going to take you back to a story that happened over 50 years ago. It's the story of an exchange of Black and White high school students in Wisconsin in 1966, right in the middle of the Civil Rights Movement. 

Black students from Rufus King High School in Milwaukee switched places with White students from Kaukauna High School during a time of heightened racial tensions in our country, and on the wave of big changes. The young people lived in each others' homes, attended classes in each others' schools and took what they learned to the stage, performing Martin Duberman’s groundbreaking play called “In White America” in both cities.  

Today a new generation of high school students are re-living that era in a project called, “The Exchange In White America: Kaukauna & King 50 Years Later.” It's all thanks to journalist and filmmaker Joanne Williams, who had been a student at Rufus King when the exchange took place. She wondered about what happened to the students in the exchange and what their lives were like now and was inspired to embark on a 6-year journey to create a documentary film, which involved a revival of the play 50 years later by high school students in Milwaukee and Kaukauna.  

 Two weeks ago during Black History Month, over 1,000 people in the Fox Valley area had the chance to view the film and participate in conversations with the  filmmaker Joanne as part a Northeast WI premiere tour.

More episode notes at:  https://www.cffoxvalley.org/podcast/kaukauna-and-king-50-years-later/

Clintonville’s Compassionate Connections

In many rural areas of the Fox Valley region, there are often serious gaps in services such as transportation, healthcare, and other services meant to help individuals and families that might be struggling economically.  Clintonville's Compassionate Connection Center, a nonprofit we partner with here at the Community Foundation, is working to bridge those gaps. In this episode we learn how an entire community is coming together under the guiding principle that everyone deserves the same opportunities and to be treated with personal dignity and respect.

The Compassionate Connections Center provides access to basic necessities like clothing, food, diapers, formula, emergency relief, home repairs, and automobile repairs, and provides children with enough food and resources to help support them at home.

Articles

• Compassionate Connections receives funds from Clintonville Community Heroes Award winner
• Clintonville nonprofit hosts trivia night to help provide free back-to-school clothes - WFRV TV

Mental Health: Do You Need Emotional CPR?

We’ve probably all faced an emotional crisis. Something that rocks our world and sends us into a feeling of despair. Just in the last two years alone, people have experienced increased feelings of anxiety, depression, and uncertainty. It's that collective trauma of living in a world that is no longer predictable.

The growing need for emotional support is urgent. In this episode we’re going to talk about a program in the Fox Valley called e-CPR, and, like CPR, it can be a lifesaver. E-CPR is a community education workshop that teaches people how to support another person experiencing an emotional crisis.

 

Program resources, links, and more at  https://www.cffoxvalley.org/podcast/e-cpr-help-for-emotional-crisis/

Inclusion in the Outdoors

The Fox Valley is renowned for our outdoor activities, from lakes and parks to more than 340 miles of trails for use year round. But many people might be surprised to learn that not every member of our community feels safe or welcomed in our outdoor spaces, especially people who are considered historically marginalized, such as people of color, people who speak different languages, people with disabilities, and people who identify as LGBTQ+.  

Why doesn't everyone has the same access to positive outdoor experiences, and what’s being done about it?

More at: https://www.cffoxvalley.org/podcast/inclusion-in-the-outdoors/ 

Our Story: We’ve come a long way!

People of all walks of life have been impacted by the Community Foundation since its founding in 1986. We hear their stories, and we want you to hear them too!

Our Voices from the Valley: A Podcast of the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region podcast launched in September, 2021, and we've come a long way in telling the eye-opening, heartstring-pulling stories people and nonprofits in our community have shared with us. 30 episodes later and more than 3,000 downloads from around the world, we are celebrating and sharing the unique facets and challenges of living in our area!

Our Story

Our fledgeling episode was titled Our Story, and we took that opportunity to share how the Community Foundation came to be, what we do, and how we've grown to touch lives throughout the Fox Valley region. Back when we aired this episode, we were still recording our interviews on Zoom, and not able to record in person. In spite of those audio experiments, our mission remains the same: We strengthen our community for current and future generations by helping people make a difference in the lives of all. 

More show notes here:   https://www.cffoxvalley.org/podcast/our-story/