Fall 2015 - Brain Injury Alliance of Wisconsin

BIAW NEWS · FALL 2015
BIAW
NEWS
A Quarterly Newsletter for Individuals with Brain Injury, Families, and Professionals
Fall 2015
In This Issue:
Summer 2015 .................................... 1
Executive Director’s Message ........... 2
Walk for Thought .............................. 3
Three Goals for 2015-16 ................... 4
Thank You ......................................... 5
Survivor Submissions ....................... 5
BIAW in the News............................. 6
Research Opportunity ........................ 7
Support Groups...............................8-9
BIAW in Action ............................... 10
Donors & Members ......................... 11
BIAW Conference ........................... 12
Save the Date for the BIAW
Annual Brain Injury Conference
May 2-3, 2016
BIAW NEWS · FALL 2015
BIAW Mission Statement
The prevention of brain
injury and the full
participation in life for
individuals with brain injury
2015-2016
Board of Directors
Mike Klug, Vice-President
Perry Schroeder, Treasurer
Jan Heinitz, Secretary
Bob Babel
Kelly Kjell
Jackie Kuhl
Audrey Nelson
Kevin Pasqua
Staff:
Karl Curtis, Executive Director
Newsletter Editors:
Karl Curtis
Contributing Writers:
Karl Curtis
Eric Lindquist
Published by:
Brain Injury Alliance of Wisconsin
N63 W23583 Main Street, Suite A
Sussex, WI 53089
1-262-790-9660
1-800-882-9282
admin@biaw.org
www.biaw.org
From the desk of the Executive Director
Karl Curtis
Executive Director
Newsletter Director’s notes
Hello! My name is Karl Curtis, and I am the new executive director of the Brain Injury
Alliance of Wisconsin. I came on board in mid-October, just in time to attend the Walk
for Thought in Brookfield. Prior to joining the BIAW I served as the executive director of
the Verona Area Chamber of Commerce in Verona, WI and before that I spent nearly 10
years as a local journalist.
My personal experience with brain injury began on June 18, 1998 when my son, then
only nine-years-old, was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor. He was treated with
surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, and has been classified as having an acquired brain
injury. The good news is my son is now 26 years old, has a steady part-time job, and all
his health reports have been positive, but he still deals with many of the issues typical of
brain injury – memory difficulties, balance issues, anger, depression, etc.
It has been a pleasure, and also very educational, to meet many of you during my first
month on the job. One thing I have learned is while there are many common threads
among the survivors I have met, no two brain injuries are exactly the same. I look
forward to meeting with more of you over the coming months and learning from you all
how the BIAW can best serve our shared community.
In the meantime, feel free to contact the BIAW and share your thoughts, concerns and
stories.
*************************************
I encourage you to submit items you think might go well in the winter newsletter to
admin@biaw.org. We are particularly interested in news from survivors and updates from
support groups around the state.
Help
Opportunity
Prevention
Education
Website Improvements
www.biaw.org
Our website is improving. Please be patient while we work to serve you better.
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BIAW NEWS · FALL 2015
2015 Walk for Thought
The Brain Injury Alliance of Wisconsin’s 2015 Walk for Thought was held October 3,
2015, at Fox Brook Park in Brookfield and the Sports Complex in the village of Ashwaubenon.
While Mother Nature may have thrown the groups a curve with some wind and cold,
there was plenty of warmth generated by all those who walked for the cause!
The scenes below are from the Brookfield walk, and we’d love to get a few photos from
Ashwaubenon.
Thank you to those who attended and sponsored this wonderful event. We hope you will
join us again next year!
Thank you to our sponsors:
 Clearview Brain Injury Center
 Columbia St. Mary’s/Sacred Heart
Rehabilitation Institute
 Froedtert Hospital
 Homes for Independent Living





3
Lakeview Specialty Hospital &
Rehab
LearningRX
MCFI NEXDAY
REM Wisconsin
UW Health & Unity
BIAW NEWS · FALL 2015
News from the BIAW
BIAW has Three Goals
for Upcoming Year
thoughts. We are always glad to hear from you at admin@biaw.org.
Web Site Improvements
In this electronic age, a great web site is an asset to any organization. With this in mind the BIAW is looking to upgrade its current web site some time in the next year.
At the October BIAW board of director’s meeting, the board expressed three primary goals for the next year. Those goals are to
host an outstanding Annual Brain Injury Conference this coming
May, to expand the reach and activities of the group to more of
This effort will require expertise and money.
the state of Wisconsin, and to upgrade the organization’s web site
to make it more modern and user friendly.
If you know a web designer or hosting company that might be
willing to work with the BIAW and perhaps donate or discount
All three of these goals present opportunities for involvement and services, please let us know at admin@biaw.org.
input from the broader community across the state.
As we begin our web site upgrade we will also be searching for
Annual Brain Injury Conference
sponsors and other donations. A donation of any size will always
All members of the greater brain injury community are encourbe appreciated. Additionally, a new web site will offer advertisaged to attend the BIAW Annual Brain Injury Conference on
ing opportunities to businesses and individuals. If you would like
May 2-3 at the Wilderness Resort in Wisconsin Dells. The conmore information about contributing in any way to a new BIAW
ference provides a vast array of educational, networking and so- web site, please send an e-mail to admin@biaw.org.
cial opportunities for all who attend.
Support the BIAW
You can also help the conference planning committee by providing input. If there is a topic you would like addressed, or if you
know of a terrific speaker or presenter who would be a hit with
attendees, please send your suggestion to admin@biaw.org.
While we may not be able to act on every suggestion, all input
will be considered and is greatly appreciated.
Does your employer have an end of year giving program?
Are you searching for a worthy cause for end of year giving?
Statewide Reach
Why not consider a donation to the BIAW?
The BIAW works with support groups across the state and provides information and other resources to the brain injury commu- Visit our web site, www.biaw.org, to learn about various giving
nity throughout Wisconsin, but we want to do more.
levels. Go to the “Donate” tab and following it to “Membership.”
You can help by being the eyes and ears of the BIAW. If you
know of any groups or activities to which the BIAW can lend
support such as publicity, speakers or information, please let us
know. Similarly, if you have ideas about ways the BIAW can be
more active in your part of Wisconsin, feel free to share your
If you would like to donate in the more traditional way, you can
mail a donation to BIAW, N63 W23583 Main Street, Suite A
Sussex, WI 53089.
All donations are tax deductible.
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BIAW NEWS · FALL 2015
Thank You
The Brain Injury Alliance of Wisconsin would like to thank former
executive director Kasey Johansen for her past service to the BIAW. Kasey
stepped down from her position in July, but graciously continued to serve
as interim director until her replacement could be hired. She played a key
role in organizing this year’s “Walk for Thought” and also the initial
organizational efforts of the 2016 BIAW Conference.
The BIAW wishes Kasey and her family all the best in their future
endeavors.
Survivors’ Submissions
With God’s Love
By Marnie Housel
Spooner, WI
I shall, with God’s love,
Successfully, rise above
My BRAIN INJURY,
For he has given to me –
The strength of an ox, in order to
Accomplish, what I want to do.
Moreover, and what’s more,
He has allowed me to abhor
The need for pity,
Because, you see:
I am alive, and Christ, is too –
So, with this in mind, please do
Not try to hinder my attempt
To be normal, with your contempt,
For what you do not understand.
Thus, my brain injury, was all planned,
By the Father,
So, that knowledge, could gather,
As a result of my accidents.
We are, alas, students
Of the ALL-Mighty,
And, thus, we
Should attempt to better learn,
His wisdom, in order to earn,
God’s approval –
It is important: His call
Must be heard, and whether we understand it, or not –
We, at least, have got
To do His will.
So, let us fill,
Our hearts, with love for the weak, sick, and desperate:
And not loathe, or hate
What it is, that we do not understand.
Because, with God – it’s all been planned!
Marnie Housel is a brain injury survivor. This poem was
submitted for her by Jim Richie of the Rice Lake Brain Injury
Support Group.
Patron Member, Jan Heinitz,
in honor of Christina Guild
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BIAW NEWS · FALL 2015
BIAW in the News
Severe brain injury spurs local
woman to help others like her;
she's being honored for efforts
Audrey Nelson has learned to never say no after a life-altering traffic crash in 1981
By Eric Lindquist
Audrey Nelson’s life changed forever on Oct. 24, 1981.
It was on that date that another vehicle struck a car the
then-18-year-old Nelson was riding in head-on, trapping her and
the driver, and completely rerouting her young life.
Nelson suffered a serious brain injury in the crash,
which occurred on an icy stretch of Highway 27 between Cadott
and Cornell, and needed a surgeon to implant a metal plate in her
head.
“I had a depressed frontal lobe fracture,” Nelson recalled this week. “That’s not good. That’s the part of your brain
that helps you think and plan.”
While the brain injury affects Nelson somewhat to this
day — she has a hard time following a rigid schedule and occasionally mixes up her words — she didn’t let it stop her from
devoting her life to helping some of the estimated 1.7 million
Americans who sustain traumatic brain injuries annually.
Nelson, now 52, will be recognized with a silver award
Monday at a Milwaukee luncheon for her remarkable comeback
story by Disability Rights Wisconsin. She is one of several individuals statewide who will be honored at DRW’s Spirit of ADA
Awards in conjunction with the 25th anniversary of the passage
of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The awards recognize
people and organizations who are positively changing and improving the lives of people with disabilities in Wisconsin.
Nelson is the owner and director of Reality Unlimited, a
company operating two group homes for people with brain injuries or neurological issues, and has been a co-facilitator of a brain
injury support group in Eau Claire since 1983. She is president of
the Brain Injury Alliance of Wisconsin and a member of the
Long-Term Care Council for the state Department of Health Services, the Eau Claire B.R.A.I.N. Team, the Mayo Clinic Traumatic Brain Injury Model System Regional Advisory Board and
the Treatment Instead ofPrison Task Force of JONAH (Joining
Our Neighbors Advancing Hope) in Eau Claire.
“She’s a real firecracker,” Jodi Hanna, director of
DRW’s Rice Lake office, said of Nelson. “She just has a lot of
energy and she cares so passionately about this issue.”
Hanna said she believes Nelson’s injury and recovery prompted
her to work hard so others can have similar opportunities.
“That is at the heart of what she does,” Hanna said. “She
wants others to enjoy a full life after brain injury.”
For her part, Nelson said her experience put her in a
unique position in terms of advocacy — she struggled enough to
understand the pain of brain injury but recovered enough to be
able to speak for those who can’t.
Audrey Nelson stands Thursday outside the Mike Wilson House,
2409 Rudolph Road, one of two group homes she operates in Eau
Claire for people with brain injuries. Nelson, who sustained a
serious brain injury in a 1981 car crash, will be recognized next
week by Disability Rights Wisconsin for her long service to people with brain injuries.
Photo by Steve Kinderman
ber the words, and she had a hard time controlling her temper.
“The outlook was pretty grim at the time,” said Nelson,
a Cornell High School graduate.
But Nelson defied the experts by refusing to put limits
on herself.
She attended UW-Eau Claire the following year, majoring in social work, and managed to earn a bachelor’s degree despite only reading one textbook. She later earned a master’s degree in vocational rehabilitation at UW-Stout in Menomonie, got
married and had three children, now 26, 22 and 18.
“The No. 1 thing people say about people with brain
injuries is that they have unrealistic expectations. Well, thank
God for unrealistic expectations,” Nelson said, adding with a
chuckle, “The good thing about a right frontal lobe injury is that
you can’t really understand everything, so you don’t take no for
an answer.”
When it comes to brain injuries and expectations, Nelson said, “I always say, ‘Never say never, and never say always.’
I believe in taking baby steps until you get where you want to
go.”
While she was still a student at UW-Eau Claire, Nelson
met a woman, Dorothy Wilson, whose son suffered a brain injury
after being hit by a drunken driver and who was advocating for a
grant to start a group home catering to the specific needs of people with brain injuries.
In 1983, Nelson, Wilson and Carol Joles started a brain
injury support group in Eau Claire. The group has met once a
month ever since.
When asked about this long-standing gift to the community, Nelson humbly replied, “It’s really been more of a gift to
me.”
When Nelson and her husband opened their first group
home 20 years ago this week for people with brain injuries, Nelson named it the Mike Wilson House after Dorothy Wilson’s son,
the inspiration for the facility. Mike Wilson died in 1991, 12
years after his accident, and his mother was clearly touched by
Nelson’s tribute.
“That was so nice of Audrey,” Dorothy Wilson
Exceeding expectations
After her accident, a neurosurgeon told Nelson, a freshman at Northwestern College in the Twin Cities at the time, that
she probably would never be able to give birth or return to
school. She could read but was unable to comprehend or remem-
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BIAW NEWS · FALL 2015
said. “She has really done a lot for people with brain injuries.”
Making progress
The recent flood of attention to concussions in sports
symbolizes the positive change in attitudes about brain injuries
in the United States, Nelson said.
Nelson recalled being involved with the former National Head Injury Foundation when the organization approached the
National Football League in the 1980s to discuss head injures
associated with the sport. NFL officials refused to acknowledge
the problem.
“For the kind of awareness we see today to be happen-
ing is amazing,” she said. “Now when I tell people I had a brain
injury, they kind of understand what that means.”
That awareness, she believes, can lead to better care and
treatment for people with brain injuries.
And for Nelson, that’s what it’s all about.
Audrey Nelson is a former president of the BIAW and current
member of the board of directors.
This article appeared in the online edition of the Eau Claire
Leader-Telegram on Oct. 2, 2015. Reprinted with permission.
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BIAW NEWS · FALL 2015
Statewide Network of Brain Injury Support Groups
NORTHWEST
CENTRAL
 Brain Injury Support Group
Frederic Public Library
127 Oak Street West
Frederic, WI 54837
2nd Friday of the month
2 pm -3:30 pm
Julie Martin, juliemartin92@yahoo.com
(715) 327-4474
 Wausau
 Rice Lake
Lakeview Medical Center
Conference Room
1100 North Main
Rice Lake, WI
1st Sunday of the month
1:30 pm - 3:30 pm
Corinne & Jim Richie
(715) 234-0079
NORTHEAST
 Brown County
N.E.W. Curative Rehabilitation
2900 Curry Lane
Green Bay, WI 54311
Quarterly @ 5:30 pm
Jessica Drumm, jdrumm@newcurative.org
(920) 593-3562
Aspirus Wausau Hospital
333 Pine Ridge Boulevard
Wausau, WI
2nd Wednesday of the month
6:30 pm
Lea Ratajczyk, lea.ratajczyk@aspirus.org
(715) 847-2826
 Making New Connections
NORTHWEST – EAU CLAIRE AREA
 Wisconsin Traumatic Brain Injury Support Group
Sacred Heart Hospital-Eau Claire
900 West Clairemont
3rd Thursday of the month
Eau Claire, WI
7 pm -8:30 pm
Chastity Krings, krings.jc@gmail.com
(715) 308-6052 or
Rhonda Olson, Rhonda.Olson@hshs.org
(715) 717-4392
 Mild Brain Injury Group
Luther Campus Clinic Entrance
Deli Conference Room
1221 Whipple Street
Eau Claire, WI
3rd Tuesday of the month
5:30 pm - 6:30 pm
Mary Beth Clark, clark.marybeth1@mayo.edu
(715) 838-3258,
Michelle Knutson (715) 838-1725
Bay Evangelical Covenant Church
2280 Nicolet Drive
Green Bay, WI 54311
4th Wednesday of the month @ 7 pm
Karen Feld, Facilitator, karen4tbisg@aol.com
 Oshkosh
TBI Support Group Oshkosh
Aurora Medical Center
855 N. Westhaven Drive
Oshkosh, WI 54904
4th Thursday of the month
6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
Michael Athanasiou, m-mathano@att.net
(920) 233-3655
 Sheboygan Area
Miracle Point Brain Injury Society
St. Nicholas Hospital/Francis Room
3100 Superior Avenue
Sheboygan, WI 53081
1st Monday of the month (September-May)
6:30 pm – 8 pm
Amber Slaby, Amber.Slaby@hshs.org
(920) 459-4642
SOUTHWEST
 Big River Chapter-LaCrosse
Gundersen Medical Center
1st floor of Mooney Education Library
LaCrosse, WI
2nd Tuesday of the month
5 pm - 7 pm
Elizabeth Rand, RN, ekrand@gundluth.org
(608) 775-4063,
Brittany George, OT
 Appleton
St. Elizabeth Hospital
1506 S. Oneida Street
Appleton, WI
4th Monday of the month
6 pm - 7:30 pm
Mitch Cornils, mitch@soarfoxcities.com
(920) 731-9831, x111
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BIAW NEWS · FALL 2015
Statewide Network of Brain Injury Support Groups
SOUTHEAST - MILWAUKEE AREA
SOUTHEAST
 Embracing Hope
 Waukesha County Heading Forward
Acres of Hope and Aspiration
W147 S7138 Durham Place
Muskego, WI
4th Wednesday of the month
6 pm - 7 pm
*Advance Registration required*
Lisa K. Alberte, RN, acreshope@yahoo.com
(414) 405-4722
Waukesha Memorial Hospital
725 American Drive
Waukesha, WI
1st Wednesday of the month
6 pm - 7:30 pm
Jennifer Micheau, jennifer.micheau@phci.org
(262) 928-2351
 Dodge County
Clearview Brain Injury Center
198 County DF
Juneau, WI
3rd Monday of the month
6 pm - 7 pm
Tammy Novotny, tnovotny@co.dodge.wi.us
(920) 386-3403
 Brain Injury Support Group
NEXDAY Brain Injury Rehab Center
9350 W. Fond Du Lac Ave
Milwaukee, WI
3rd Tuesday of the month
6 pm - 7:30 pm
Katie Ryan, katelyn.ryan@mcfi.net
(414) 797-0038
 Kenosha County: Stateline TBI Support Group
for Functioning Teens and Adults
First Christian Church
13022 Wilmot Road
Kenosha, WI
3rd Tuesday of the month
7 pm – 8:30 pm
Beth Jankowski, murphyski_b@yahoo.com
(262) 344-1505
SOUTH CENTRAL – MADISON AREA
 Mild Brain Injury Resource Network
One Tower Conference Room
Meriter Hospital
202 South Park Street
Madison, WI
3rd Thursday of the month
6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Deb Enburg, Ph.D., dpenburg@chorus.net
(608) 845-6356
Waterford
Lakeview Specialty Hospital & Rehab
Dining Room
1701 Sharp Road, Waterford, WI.
Second Tuesday of the month
6:30pm -8:00 pm
Caroline Feller, cfeller@lakeview.ws
262-534-7297
 Mild Brain Injury Group for Spouses &
Significant Others
Meriter Hospital, Patient Registration Area
Conference Room
202 South Park Street
Madison, WI
2nd Monday of the month
6:30 pm - 8 pm
Lynn Hovey, hoveylynn@gmail.com
For changes, addition, or more information:
Tele: (262) 790-9660 ● Website: www.biaw.org
Email: admin@biaw.org
(608) 222-4717 or (608) 576-5285
 Janesville
Rock County Brain Trauma Support Group
2200 W. Court Street, Suite 130
Janesville, WI 53548
2nd Tuesday of the month
6 pm - 7 pm
Brenda Brown, bbrown@ccddc.com
(608) 752-4993
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BIAW NEWS · FALL 2015
BIAW In Action
Janesville
Conference
The Brain Injury Alliance of Wisconsin was
very happy to participate in the Catholic
Charities Brain Injury
Conference in
Janesville on October
22. The event provided
an outstanding opportunity to learn and network with survivors,
providers and researchers from all around the
state.
Pathways Brain Injury Unit
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BIAW NEWS · FALL 2015
Members
& Donors
Brain Injury Alliance of Wisconsin extends sincere appreciation to the following
individuals, families, and/or organization who supported the Alliance through new/
renewal memberships and/or donations during the current fiscal year.
Members:
Courtesy:
Dawn Cieszynski
Anna Diefenthaler
Joseph Grissom
Heather Kapp
Carolyn Knight
Darlene Price
Dennis Oseth
Nadia Rivera
Dawn Wallace
Individual:
Robert Babel
Jay Baukin
Sharon Bloomgarden
Melinda Carr
Anthony Destefano
Donna Destefano
Brian Dieschbourg
Glenda Fowler
Michael Hineberg
Mary Hoerth
David Hoffman
Lynn Hovey
William Jamieson
Amy Killmer
Jennifer Kolp
Karen Krouch
Lisa Jensen
Marta Lecher
Adam Lenhardt
Bridgette Leonauskas
Arlene Nelessen
Sarah Porter
Corrine Richie
Mary Sandmire
Jennifer Sauer
Diane Schluter
Anne Siegel
Kimberly Virden
Family:
Mike & Roxann Crabb
Jill Flory
Turk & Beth Flory
Dennis & Kelli Goldsmith
Joe Goldsmith & Heather Kowalewski
Wendy, Danny, Ross, & Mitchell Gottschalk
Kasey, Brian, Kaitlyn, & Tony Johanson
David & Susan Keller
Mike & Kevin Klug
Paul & Nichelle Martin
Ronald, Barb, & Scott Preder
Paul & Sharon Sauer
Christine & Hannah Tarrant
Tom & Andrea Tatlock
John, Marilyn, & Sarah Van Der Puy
Carolyn & Peter Zytkus
(We apologize for any omission or errors in our list and request that
you contact the Alliance office to report any oversight.)
Professional:
Michael Athanasiou
Jane Bey
Brenda Brown
Gordon Johnson, Jr.
Craig Jordan
Robert Karol
Kelly Kjell
Kathy Klika
Sue Krueger
Jackie Kuhl
Beth Moore
Audrey Nelson
Dean Olejniczak
Jodee Plazek
Jason Pirtle
Rebecca Politis
Sarah Porter
Lea Ratajczyk
Lorna Reed-Severson
Katelyn Ryan
Denise Stelpflug
Sonja Stoffels
Patron:
Brain Injury Law Group
Jan Heinetz, in honor of Christina Guild
Independence First
Pathways Norwood Health Center
Corporate:
Lakeview Hospitals & Rehab
MCFI NEXDAY
ProHealth Care Neuroscience
REM Wisconsin
Rozek Law Office
Founder:
Betty Lou Lewis
Donations in Honor of:
Jessica Schluter
By: Diane Schluter
Heather Stevens
By: Bev & Jerry Nelson
Scott Herman
By: Frank Pagliaro
Heather Stevens
By: Bev & Jerry Nelson
Donors:
James Blask
Carol Bronikowski
Paul & Mary Brunner
David Breen Wines
Ron & doreene DeVillers
Caryn Easterling
Mark Ernst
Epic
Kathleen Francke
General Electric Company
Elin Hudson
Brian & Kasey Johanson
Craig Jordan
Kasana
Susan Keller
Kelly Kjell
Mike Klug
Diane Lisowski
Julie Llewellyn
Gary Munz
Netrix
Kent Newbury
Tim Nustad
Diane Riedel
Perry & Laurie Schroeder
Kevin Schumacher
Todd & Peggy Stair
Ed & Tammy Stone
Tom & Andrea Tatlock
Lyn Turkstra
Linda Vegoe
Western Wisconsin Cares
Willis & Jill Wolfe
Christine Zabkowicz
Diane Zollitsch
Memorial Donations:
Jerry Barker
By: Michael & Kate Blochinger
Michele Boyer
Nancy Brill
Roger Dreher
Karen Hanes
Sally Hanson
Van & Lylia Hare
Karen Krouch
Dean Montour
William & Barbara Newcomer
Doretta Raymond
Karole & Bruce Kurnow
Gilbert Bonnin
By: Faye Bonnin
Joy Paulbeck
Donald Mastaglio
By: Kathleen Francke
We thank all the donors who
supported Chip In for Brain Injury
golf outing & the Walk for Thought.
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BIAW NEWS · FALL 2015
Upcoming Events
Save the Date
Brain Injury Alliance of Wisconsin
ANNUAL BRAIN INJURY CONFERENCE
May 2-3, 2016
Wilderness Conference Center
Wisconsin Dells, WI
N63W23583 Main Street · Suite A
Sussex · WI · 53089
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