March 6th 2012
Despite the snow...Our young man from The Lair got out this weekend to do some winter activities. Sledding, Hiking around , exploring and playing at a playground. Who says a little snow ever hurt anyone? :)
Kudos to Robert for making the best of the weather and getting out of the house!
Bring on Spring!!
February 20th 2012
3 Cheers and all hail, the King-
of Valentines Day that is... Our elected monarch ruled over much glee and good cheer at the ARC dance hosted by the most regal Knights of Columbus.
February 15th 2012
Our cameras were rolling for this chance sighting at the Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary- a giant 2-headed turtle. Kidding aside-
The Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary is a beautiful 700 acre urban wildlife refuge featuring live animal exhibits, educational displays, miles of hiking/skiing trails and various wildlife viewing opportunities. It is the largest park in the Green Bay Park system and home to the second largest wildlife rehabilitation program in Wisconsin, caring for more than 4,500 orphaned and injured animals annually.
Trails to various buildings and viewing areas at the Wildlife Sanctuary are paved and wheelchair accessible. Inside, the buildings are accessible, and they have several wheelchairs available at the Nature Center for use for free on site. Call the main office at 920-391-3671 for more information.
January 1st 2012
Our young man from the Lair has OFFICIALLY graduated from Neenah High School and the TEC House!
We are so proud of all his hard work!!!
Thank you , as well, to all of our awesome MR CARES "family" who have helped him be successful in graduating!!!!
November 11th 2011
A stroll through the Mitchell Park Domes in Milwaukee brought many smiles and a chance to take off our winter coats! Stepping out of the icy weather and into a tropical paradise was just what the doctor ordered ;)
November 7th 2011
Our annual company trip to St. Paul was blessed by great weather and excellent experiences! Our group enjoyed swimming and hot-tubbing at the hotel. We also had a fun-filled day at the Mall of America complete with lots of shopping, laughing, and for some of our gang- RIDES! We also spent an afternoon at the history museum. The new exhibit was titled 1968 and our group was able to participate in games and snacks from the era, as well as making their very own tie-dyed t-shirt! We would like to extend a special thanks to our staff- Lana, Jessica and Brian for helping make this a memorable trip for our clients!
September 7th 2011
What a beautiful day for a fabulous picnic! Complete with great food, wonderful games, and a fantastic "kids on the block" puppet show demonstration. Thank you Lisa for your help in booking our live musicians! Thanks to all the parents and volunteers that helped make it all a blessed afternoon.
July 1st 2011
One of our residents partook in an out of state trip this month with a resident from the Third Street residence to travel to Kentucky and Tennessee to pursue many things of their interest. It was a very memorable road trip that was highly enjoyed. Pictures and some video footage have been posted to the Bell Street photobucket page for those interested in viewing.
Much of day one involved the driving from Neenah to Bowling Green Kentucky with stop breaks along the way and tolls to pay as we headed further South.
Our first day was concluded with hotel stay to gather strength for the activities ahead. Hotel stays are always a big hit for residents on these trips and our hotel experiences were progressively more fun in regards to continental breakfasts, room accommodations and time to enjoy the hot tub and swimming pool on several occasions. The latter items of mention sure helped us in regards to the persisting 90-100 degree heat we faced throughout the trip.
Culinary pursuits were also a big point of interest as one can’t go outside of the state without looking for those places that are lesser common or even uncommon to our area. Chick-Fil-A, Ruby Tuesday, Waffle House, and Nashville Pizza Company were all destinations pursued and well enjoyed meal-wise.
The next few days involved going to the Corvette Assembly Plant and Corvette Museum with time spent at Southland Lanes, which is a bowling alley and arcade similar to Badger Sports Park here in our area. Our following morning involved touring the Railway Park and Museum (also in Bowling Green, Kentucky) followed by the drive to Nashville to pursue activities whilst there.
After getting established at the hotel, we went to the Troubador Theater and adjacent gift shop to browse CDs and memorabilia before securing tickets for a Gene Watson and Rhonda Vincent concert going on later that evening that took the place of the routine Elvis impersonator show/performance normally going on.
While we waited for the show to start, we walked over to Nashville Paradise, which has notoriety for its talent contests. The guys watched a contest similar to American Idol involving of varying ages, singing their favorites songs which was another point of interest the guys enjoyed. Once we were done at Nashville Paradise, big thrills erupted as we ran across Cooter’s Dukes of Hazard Museum (owned by ‘Cooter’ himself, no less) and Sun Records just around the corner. We made it a point to visit Cooter's the next morning in regards to the Gene Watson show, which itself turned out to be very memorable and enjoyable.
The Dukes of Hazard Museum visit the next day was a phenomenal hit from the guys who both enjoy the TV show. Outside of all of the showcased collectables, the guys got a great number of pictures sitting in Daisy’s jeep, The General Lee, Cooter’s tow truck and Rosco’s squad car before we progressed on to Willie Nelson’s General Store nearby. Our later exploits of the day involved touring the Country Music Hall of Fame and walking Nashville to check out what was going on for the Country Music Awards Festival.
Having to return home is always a point of any trip that no one finds thrill in, so on our way to Chicago and our last night staying at the Arlington Heights Double Tree Hotel, we stopped at Slugger Field in Louisville, Kentucky with subsequent tour of the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory. The guys end their time in Louisville with the purchase of a personalized bat at the gift shop.
All in all, it was a great trip to which the guys enjoyed greatly on many levels and we were all glad to have the time and opportunity involved with going.
-Bell Street
July 1st 2011
June has been a great month for our residents as well as other program participants for community and nearby music events.
Shattuck Park in Neenah has been hosting free, lunchtime and evening live music with the onset of the month, some of which we here at Bell Street have pursued (pictured for this blog entry), much to the expressed interest of our residents.
A Bell resident and residents from The Plex and Third Street pursued our annual Country USA outing again this year, which was certainly interesting in regards to navigation of the muddy grounds. Congeled, clay-like, slippery and shoe-snagging muck was almost everywhere to be seen and walked through. Despite this, seeing this year's lineup of country music stars was of enjoyment for everyone.
-Bell Street
June 3rd 2011
The vacation was great.
We started our road trip off from Wausau, heading to Charleston, South Carolina. After a night stay in Louisville, Kentucky we arrived the next day in Charleston. During our time in Charleston, we were able to take a boat ride to Fort Sumter, where the Civil War started. We also were able to see the first US sunk submarine the USS Huntley, and toured a retired Navy vessel. We took a carriage ride around the city, and spend time shopping in The Market; it was amazing to see how people are to use dried sweet grass to make beautiful baskets. We also spent some time soaking up the sun on Folly Beach. No trip to Charleston is complete without trying out some of the Lowcountry food. We ate at Poogan’s Porch, 82 Queen St., and some of the seafood restaurants around the area (who knew She-Crab soup was so wonderful!)
On the ride home we stopped at Pigeon Forge, Tn. During our 3 nights, we went to Dollywood, The Dixie Stampede, The Hatfield vs McCoy’s Battle, and visited many of the local shops along the strip.
As we ended our trip, we were excited to come home to see friends and reflect on memories of another great vacation.