 Get ready for an exciting new LIR event to be held in the fall of 2008 for members and non-members alike…with the only requirement that you’re 50 or over! Yes, a triathlon, which will be the first for our organization and a first for LIRs
statewide. At this time, we’re in the initial planning stages, and we are looking for volunteers to serve on some future committees. For some of you who want to be more actively involved with LIR, this is an excellent opportunity to do so because one only has to make a short-term commitment.
If you are interested, e-mail Burt or Norma Altman at: altman3131@aol.com or phone 608.788.0424 after April 1.
Spring 2008 Planned Classes:
 “Have You Heard a Good One Lately?” Storytelling for Adults
This course is designed to help adults share their life stories with children and grandchildren. Often touted as truly the “world's oldest profession.” storytelling is a way to share
important life lessons, to entertain others and to pass along values. In a very practical, funfilled, and non-threatening environment participants will practice skills to help them become expressive tellers as they develop their first stories to share with others. This course will also include a visit to the Bluff Country Tale Spinners story-telling guild meeting
to meet working story-tellers in our community. Join us for a tale-spinning\good time!
Presenter: Sara Slayton, retired lecturer, School of Education, UW-L; professional storyteller
April 9, 16, 23, 30, 10 a.m.-12 p.m.; April 10, 7-8:30 p.m.
330 Cartwright Center, UW-L
April 10, Grounded, 318 Main St.
Caring Community:
How Service Agencies Serve
The Salvation Army, Hunger Task Force, WAFER, American Red Cross: What are their missions? Who do they serve? What are their resources and needs? How can we help?
 Hunger Task Force/WAFER
This joint session will explain how the Hunger Task Force operates as a food recovery program to provide food to various local agencies to include WAFER, the largest area food pantry. There will also be a tour of the facilities with Q/A.
Presenter(s): Shelly Krause, Executive Director, Hunger Task Force and Heidi Blanke, Executive Director, WAFER
April 28, 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m.
Hunger Task Force/WAFER
403 Causeway Blvd., La Crosse
 Vesterheim Norwegian American Museum Tour
Join us for a day in Decorah, Iowa visiting the oldest and most comprehensive museum in the nation dedicated to a single ethnic group. We will dine (catered by the Dayton
House Restaurant in Decorah) in the 100 plus year-old Bethania Church which was transported from Northwood, N.D. to its present location. After lunch there will be
time for shopping and visiting Decorah. We will stop at the Norwegian farm homestead (part of the museum) before returning to La Crosse.
May 13, depart UW-L football stadium parking lot 8 a.m.; return 5:30 p.m.
Decorah, Iowa
Cost: $46 (includes motorcoach, lunch, Art Center fee)
Summer Planned Activities:
 Organic Farming
Join our group as we travel to the largest organic food coop in the United States, Organic Valley, located in La Farge, Wis. CROPP Cooperative (born of a group of farmers gathered in Southwestern Wisconsin in 1988) focuses on keeping families on the land. The cooperative now has hundreds of farmers in the Upper Midwest and across the Heartland. We will tour the headquarters building and learn the history as well as current operations of the cooperative. Lunch will be a buffet lunch (on your own), organic of course, with vegetarian and meat entrees. After a stop at their gift shop/retail store, we will travel to Viroqua stopping at Main Street Station, Wisconsin's oldest public market. Sue Sebion, owner of Sibby's Homestead Organic Ice Cream, will greet us at the Organic Zone. She will treat us with her story of how she came to develop organic ice cream and her business mission. For those interested, on our way home we will visit the Westby Cooperative Creamery. A manager there will enlighten us with their business mission and
their plans for the marketing of organic dairy products.
June 12, 8:45 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
La Farge and Viroqua, Wis.
$25, includes coach transportation and tours
 Hmong Cultural Center Tour
Come visit this new, very diverse public facility owned and operated by the Hmong Community. You will get a close up of Hmong history and their cultural practices, which will include their memorial services. Explore how they have found their place in La Crosse and take a brief look at their intricate art work, paj ntaub (story cloth),
their only way of recording their past.
June 24, 10-11 a.m.
Hmong Cultural Center
1815 Ward Ave., La Crosse
Coffee or Tea with Storytellers
Something fun to do on a hot summer day — enjoy iced or hot coffee or tea and sweets while listening to storytellers. Join Sara Slayton and Terry Visger as they tell their favorite tales to entertain. Terry Visger engages listeners and takes them on a journey of the imagination telling folktales, fairytales, scary stories and multicultural tales. Terry, an elementary teacher for over 30 years, used storytelling as an integral part of her classroom. She conducts workshops for adults on ways to use storytelling across the curriculum to increase retention, improve skills and excite learners. Sara Slayton has been a storyteller for the past 10 years, performing in schools and libraries throughout Wisconsin. She tells a variety of types of stories: folklore, personal stories, wisdom tales, humorous stories, scary stories and multicultural tales. She uses open-ended props and simple music to enhance her stories in creative ways. As a retired teacher of young children with a 25-year background in early childhood education, she brings a level of animation to her storytelling sessions that serves to entertain while educating.
July 24, 1:30-3 p.m.
Grounded Specialty Coffee
308 Main Street, La Crosse
$10, includes coffee, tea and sweets
 Great River Shakespeare Festival
Back by popular demand!
This summer brings another journey to Winona, Minnesota to attend the Great River Shakespeare Festival. On July 15, we will have the opportunity to enjoy a presentation on the Taming of the Shrew by Doug Scholz-Carlson, Associate Director of the company. He is also an actor, fight choreographer and director. On July 19, the day will start with a morning visit to the Blue Heron Coffee House to have the opportunity to ask questions of the cast and crew. We will then travel to Pickwick, Minn. to visit the historic Pickwick Mill built in 1858 followed by lunch (on your own) at the Pickwick Mill. After lunch, we will continue on to Winona State University to see a professional production matinee of Taming of the Shrew.
July 15, 1-3 p.m.
Pre-trip discussion, UW-La Crosse
July 19, 8:45 a.m.-6:30 p.m.
Winona, Minn.
$53, includes pre-trip class, coach transportation and matinee
 Shrine of Our Lady-Guadalupe Tour
Join us as we tour the Shrine. You will learn about the Shrine’s origin (which includes a video presentation), the Votive Chapel, the different Stations of the Cross and visit the newly constructed sanctuary. At 11 a.m. you will have the opportunity to attend Mass or visit the Shrine Gift Shop followed by lunch.
August 12, 9-12 p.m.
Shrine of Our Lady-Guadalupe
5250 Justin Rd.,
La Crosse
$11, includes tour and lunch
 Wildlife Eco-Tour
Board the Mississippi Explorer Boat at the foot of Main Street, Lansing, Iowa and head into the Wildlife Refuge. The Mississippi Explorer Boats are specifically designed to safely navigate the shallow “backwater” areas of the Mississippi River. Bald eagles, great blue herons, egrets, otters, muskrats, beavers, numerous songbirds – both tropical and domestic, deer and waterfowl are some of the wildlife typically seen during the cruise. But, the number one attraction is viewing a bald eagle nest up close! This is the ideal time to view these nests that typically have one to three baby eaglets in them. In addition to seeing all of the diverse wildlife, the ability of the boat to leave the main channel of the Mississippi River allows passengers to experience a beautiful ecosystem. We will transverse down narrow sloughs with overhanging branches and uprooted trees, through lotus and lily fields, past muskrat and beaver lodges, and alongside muddy river banks with plant life of all kinds!
August 27, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Lansing, Iowa – on the Upper Mississippi River National Fish & Wildlife Refuge
$66, includes coach transportation, lunch and tour
Welcome Back Social - Fall 2008
Mark your calendars!
September 18, 2008 - Thursday
FALL TOPICS:
Watch for details and registration information in the Fall Newsletter.
- Mystery
- Energy—Policies & Alternatives
- Election Reform
- History of Elections
- Mississippi Valley Conservancy
- Civil Air Patrol and Dive & Rescue
- Presidents’ First Ladies
- Literature
Who we are?
To become better acquainted, an LIR member's profile is included in each newsletter.
Jane Treglowne
Jane and husband Tom of 39 years, moved to Onalaska from Marshfield three years ago to be closer to family. Jane taught kindergarten in the Marshfield School District until retirement. She also worked five years as a part-time radio newscaster covering city government and the police beat in Marshfield and served over 15 years on the city's Planning Commission. The year before retirement she also served on the Mayor’s select committee for the Fire Department Facility Needs. Jane is a member of the Friends of the Onalaska Library, WREA, and on the Promotion/Membership Committee for LIR. She and Tom also belong to the Mississippi Valley Conservancy and the Natural Resources
Foundation of Wisconsin and enjoy their many trips. Reading, biking, fishing and grandkids ROCK!!!
Incredible India—October 29-November 12, 2007
The India tourist bureau publicizes India tourism as incredible, and for the 24 members of LIR who traveled to India in November it proved to be true. It was an incredible experience! The group traveled in India by plane, train, bus, and boat; but what made the travel unique were the elephant ride to the Amber Fort and the rickshaw rides to the Ganges River. Along with seeing the Taj Mahal, a wonder of the world, and the Temples of Khajuraho, the group visited a hospital, schools and even Bollywood (the Indian equivalent of our Hollywood). While these places were incredible, the hotels where the group stayed displayed their own degree of splendor. They were magnificent! A future Travel Talk will highlight the many interesting aspects of this trip. Watch for the announcement. In 2009 the plan is to tour the ABC countries — Argentina, Brazil and Chile. This
trip will include the rainforest of the Amazon as well as the fjords of Chile, with many stops in between.
Executive Committee Officers:
Jim Sill, President • 783.2112
Burt Altman, Vice President • 788.0424
Mary Graumann, Secretary • 783.1932
Bill Graumann, Treasurer • 783.1932
Shirley Anderson, Historian • 783.5451
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