Today’s Meeting: – Scott Maginella – Precious Life
Future Speakers:
December 5th – Jonathan O’Harrow – Interim Director of Strategic Communication and Marketing – Penn State Altoona
December 12th –
December 19th – Christmas Party – No noon meeting
December 26th – No noon meeting
Whacha’ May Have Missed Last Week:
…..Last week the speakers were Bob Bilger and Jim Foreman of We CARE/ProCare. Bob, who is the president of the We CARE Foundation Board of Directors, spoke first stating that they have filed the necessary paperwork to become a charitable 501(c)(3) foundation. Since June 30th they have occupied the former Easter Seals building, owned by Blair County, and expect to become the sole lessee. He said that the We CARE board was not aware of the stoppage of funding by the Tyrone Hospital to ProCare until the dispute became public knowledge. The intent of the We CARE board is to reinstate the therapy sessions at the center and once their 501(c)(3) status is approved, to establish a scholarship program for those that cannot afford treatments. The monies for the scholarship program will come from fundraising activities such as the annual Softball Marathon and the Winter Blues and Brews event that’s scheduled for February 10th. Bob stated that nearly 40% of the patients that are treated need financial assistance. Finally, he noted that there are several trust accounts that are involved in legal proceedings….one in particular which has nearly ½ of a million dollars that is designated for the maintenance and upkeep of the facility. Jim then took the podium and said that it has been nearly a year ago to the day that ProCare was notified by the Tyrone Hospital that it would not be paying them for their 9 months of therapy services that they provided. But echoing Bob’s comments, Jim said that the therapy efforts at the center are now up and running, citing the fact that over 200 people have been served in just the last 1½ months. Jim clarified that there is a separation between the two entities with ProCare paying for the therapy equipment, providing the therapy staff, and paying rent; all supported by insurance and client payments, while We CARE will ultimately offer the scholarships to those patients that need financial assistance. He also spoke of the numerous therapy services being offered, in particular the Miracle Movement Center, which provides for a series of treatments to aid in movement issues. He finished by praising the dedication that Kristan Zolnoski brings to the center stating that she has been a driving force in the newly arranged collaboration between We CARE and ProCare Therapy.
Guests of the Day:
There were none.
News of the Week:
…..President Rachael reminded everyone about our annual Christmas candy sale. Orders are due December 5th with delivery set for December 12th. If you want to sell a carton of chocolate covered pretzels or Peanut Butter Meltaway bars, contact Kathy.
…..Speaking of Christmas, mark your calendar, as the annual AMBUCS Christmas party will be held on Tuesday evening, December 19th at Park Hills. Cash bar will begin at 6:00 PM, dinner at 6:30 and a visit from Ol’ St. Nick himself around 7:00. A sign-up sheet began its distribution last Tuesday. There will be no noon lunch that day or on December 26th.
…..Last week the raffle ticket of Dave Aikens was chosen. With all of the confidence he could muster, Dave strode to the head table and made his selection…..which was the Queen of Spades. One more card gone, so this week you can have the chance to take home a pot of around $275 by picking a Joker out of the remaining 40 cards. With the two Jokers remaining, your chances are 1 in 20 to take home some holiday cash.
…..Michele Lloyd announced that two Amtrykes were delivered last week to therapy patients at Kids First in Hollidaysburg. One tryke went to Rowan Brower, age 3, from Tyrone and the other to Cameron Tinker, age 5, from Williamsburg. Michele has also received requests for two other Amtrykes, at least one of which will be presented at our Christmas party on December 19th.
…..Do you shop on Amazon? If so, why not designate the Altoona AMBUCS as your charity of choice in their Amazon Smile giveback program? The Altoona AMBUCS are now registered with Amazon and consequently they will donate a portion of your purchases to us as a charitable recipient. The final details haven’t been worked out yet, but stay tuned for more information.
…..Didn’t see any 33 Club winners this week! But there is still the Monday night football game, so we might have a winner!
In Closing: We all know these products, symbols, or companies, but do you know what their acronyms really mean? How many did you know?
Yahoo! Yet Another Hierarchical Official Oracle
Taser Thomas A. Swift’s Electric Rifle
Zip Your Zip Code is actually your Zone Improvement Plan code
IKEA The founder’s initials & hometown, Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd Agunnaryd
Laser Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation
GEICO Government Employees Insurance Company
NERF Non Expandable Recreational Foam
SPAM Shoulder of Pork and hAM
EPCOT Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow
AFLAC American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus
SOS Fooled ya! SOS doesn’t stand for anything. It was chosen as a sign of distress for its unmistakable Morse code representation of three dots, three dashes, and three dots.