Friends,
Merry Christmas!
I wish you and your family a blessed Christmas. We certainly had big week of celebrations last week.
Last Wednesday, we had our annual party to give THANKS to our volunteers and celebrate Christmas together. It was a day of joy, friendships and gratitude. There are so many people to thank for all they do for our gym. Again THANK YOU to all our volunteers. We are so blessed to be surrounded by such kind hearted, selfless people.
We even had a special appearance from Santa and some of his elves. 😊
Thank you Santa and elves for making our day so special!
Thanks also to all for the nice card and who were so generous to make financial donations to the gym. The money will certainly be put to good use. I’m so thankful we’re able to do all we’re doing…together. We certainly have a loving community.
The video you all put together really touched our hearts. Very nice! The heartfelt words and spirit of love and gratitide towards Bonnie and I meant a lot to us. It made both of our eyeballs leak; my chin even got wet. As soon as it started, I knew it was going to be a challenge for me to make it through it. THANK YOU for doing that! It’s a treasure that will be cherished.
Myofascial Release – Excellent demonstration by Carol Anderson
Carol did an amazing job teaching Myofascial release last Friday. She taught it at a level we could all do it ourselves and benefit from it. She even gave us all some balls to take home and do it at home.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve been doing it just about every night since. My hands are already loosend up and I’ve been feeling pretty good. Thank you Carol!
Our Craft Fair / Bake Sale was a big success!
On Sunday, we had our first ever craft sale and bake sale. All the people exhibiting were people from within our MS-Just Keep Moving family or have a close connection to us.
I’m amazed at all the creativity and gifts within our own community. A huge Thank You goes out to all who worked so hard to make this happen, shared their talents as well as all who came and supported it.
The people who baked goodies and donated them did an amazing job. We had everything from cookies, to date balls, to breads, chocolate covered nut bars, pies, lots of Athena’s delicious cakes plus much more. Thank you to all for baking these goodies and donating them for our bake sale. We are blessed!
Anonymous Donor Matching Opportunity
Great news! We have met our $5,000.00 matching donation. A huge thank you goes out to everyone who recently donated to help us reach this match. Your donations have been matched 😊. A huge thank you also goes out to our anonymous donor and his wife for initiating this and for so generously donating the match. Thanks so much!
So many people, myself included are amazed at how many programs we are able to offer for free for people with MS. Many times, I hear comments like “What’s your magic sauce? That’s not sustainable”. I would say our magic sauce is love and love is sustainable. It’s people helping people for the right reasons. We have been getting together as a group for almost 11 years now every Wednesday and Friday and we keep doing more and more together.
We have been extremely fortunate and grateful through the years that people and organizations have supported us financially. We ALL thank you! We are very frugile and cost conscious with the financial support we receive. We make sure each dollar gets put to good use. Perhaps you know someone who would be willing to make a contribution to our mission.
We would appreciate your help! Recently an anonymous donor has stepped forward to provide an end of the year donation challenge. The donor has agreed to donate dollar for dollar up to $5,000 matching donation for all the year-end donations we receive for MS-Just Keep Moving, Inc.
Please consider MS-Just Keep Moving, Inc in your end of the year charitable donations. Help us reach our goal of making this $5,000 donation a $10,000 aggregate donation.
You can donate one of two ways:
- Go directly online to our website: www.msjustkeepmoving.org
- Just click the “Donate” button on the landing page
- Send a check to:
MS-Just Keep Moving, Inc
W228N791 Westmound Drive
Waukesha, WI 53186
Through your financial support we can continue to keep our gym open at no cost to our friends with MS!
A huge THANK YOU goes out to all who have supported us in the past and continue to…THANK YOU!
Cardio and Balance Programs
These classes are aimed to get everyone exercising together. I like that word “together” 😊. We’ll need help from volunteers before and after the cardio class on Wednesday to get members on and off equipment. All are welcome and encouraged to join.
Wednesdays 10-10:30am: Cardio exercise
Location: in the big room using aerobic equipment in front of big TV
Pick your favorite piece of equipment to use, bring a water bottle, and arrive a few minutes early to get the equipment set up to your height.
10:30 – 11:45am Tai Chi led by Ricky
Fridays: Balance training and Core strengthening and Spin Classes
9:30am – 10:00am: Spin Class in front room led by Mike Beiermeister starting January 5, 2024. Bikes are limited so this will be first come first served.
10-10:30 am: seated balance class
10:30 – 11am: standing balance class
Pick the class / classes you feel most able and comfortable participating in. We will have chairs set up to sit on and/or use for balance support.
Email Kate at kborn1234@gmail.com with any questions.
Friday Morning Bike Ride
It’s going to be too cold this Friday…no ride. Let’s work hard indoors all winter so we’re ready to ride again in the spring.
Educational Sessions
This Friday, December 15th 11:00am – Noon. Carol Anderson will be coming here from Cincinnati, Ohio to teach us about Myofascial Release and show us how to do it on ourselves and others. This will be very interesting for all of us living with MS as well as all our volunteers, caregivers, etc.
Friday, January 12, 2024 11:00am – Noon. Rob Multerer, President of the National MS Society – Wisconsin Chapter will be here with a couple of board members to discuss the National MS Society. Agenda to be determined.
Friday, February 23, 2024 11:0am – Noon. Meg Walker who is a physical therapist specializing in pelvic floor exercises which help our core strength, bladder issues, etc. Meg will be here to teach us some of these exercises
Future topics could include: emotional health, nutrition, yoga, tai chi, wellness topics, safe use of gym equipment for your body, best exercise for you and more. What topics would you like to see? Please let Joan, Traci, Ricky or Dan know
Let’s get together!
We’ll be getting together from 9:00am – noon on Wednesday and Friday mornings at the gym. I hope you’ll join us!
Wisconsin Metal Parts – Westmound Building
MS-Just Keep Moving, Inc.
W228N791 Westmound Drive
Waukesha, WI 53186
Prayer Group We’ll be having our prayer group Wednesday @ 11:00am.
I just love the way we share, pray and laugh together while we witness prayers being answered weekly. It’s truly amazing!
Thanks goes to God and to everyone that joins us. Let’s get together to share, listen, talk, give thanks, and pray however God leads us.
MS-Just Keep Caring – Our Caregivers support group will be the first and third Friday of each month from 10:00 – 10:30am. The next one will be Friday, January 5, 2024. If you’re a caregiver of someone you love with MS, please join us and share your experience of caring for your loved one. This has been very helpful for many. Thanks to all who participate!
Our Facebook page is private. That means you’ll need to join if you want access to all our fun and progress. We’re now up to 461 members. That’s awesome! https://www.facebook.com/groups/2639832389489709
Our Facebook page is very active and fun. Lots of people are doing more and sharing their journey on Facebook. Feel free to join, post and share your experiences and comments.
There were some awesome pictures, videos and comments shared again this past week. Thank you to all who are sharing!
Thai Massage with Ricky Heldt
Ricky will be here Wednesday and Friday doing Thai Massage.
Many continue making great progress with chronic pain relief, range of motion, walking better and a new sense of hope when Ricky works with them. Please keep in mind that consistency is key. Not only with Ricky…with exercise too. We need consistency to realize the benefits long term. We want you to have long term benefits and relief.
Ricky has a sign up board based on first come first serve. You can pick the time slot that works for you. I highly encourage you to take advantage of Ricky’s Thai Massages each day and sign up for your time slot as soon as you get there.
Reiki with Linda Linda will be here on Fridays doing Reiki. Many people say Linda’s Reiki work is “magical”. We’re thankful for Linda sharing her gifts and talents with us. Feel free to let Linda know you’d like to do Reiki with her. She also has a sign up sheet.
Inspirational Humor with Adam Wollert
We’ll be having our inspirational humor zoom call with Adam again next Tuesday. Adam is a gift to all of us. Thanks to all who joined us today!
Please join us if you can.
Tuesdays @ 1:30PM
Here’s the link to join us…I hope you do!
Join Zoom Meeting with this link
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/9431389152?pwd=bWlYbFNaazVnM1M1cWxWMitlODdXUT09
Meeting ID: 943 138 9152
Passcode: 3qP2hu
Phone: 1-312-626-6799
Let’s reach out
I encourage you to share a smile and encouragement with someone. Perhaps you could call someone that you have not talked with for a while just to say hi and see how they are doing. We all could use a little extra love and encouragement.
MS is tough. Let’s have faith, remain calm, be flexible, help each other and learn as much as we can about the challenges of each day as we make good choices.
Let’s keep moving, loving and smiling 😊
In God We Trust…we are in good hands.
Dan
P.S. I moved a rock in our backyard near the bird feeder hoping a bird would sit on it so I could take its picture. It worked!
The turkeys sure are not shy by our bird feeder
I think they like the food
Since it’s a little colder out, the doves are trying to stay warm
If you were at the craft fair, you would probably saw the contribution Wisconsin Metal Parts, Inc. made. Our people designed this and made it last week for us.
Our world could use a little more unity so we made a nice message. It came alive when I lit it up in our backyard for a picture last Thursday.
For those who can’t get out and enjoy nature due your challenges with MS…my heart is with you. You are with me every time I’m out there. I enjoy being out there and I also enjoy sharing with you. I know how hard it is not to be able to get out and enjoy nature. Let’s enjoy nature and God’s beauty together this way.