Friends,
Bryant & Stratton College Students are back
We are so fortunate to have the Physical Therapy Assistant students and their leaders back. They will be here the next 7 Wednesdays. This is such an impactful way for us to help the students and their program, as well as help our friends with MS and our mission.
I give a lot of credit to the leaders of these students for having them so well prepared to start helping our friends with MS on their first day here. Great job, students, too!
Thanks, Shannon for making this a great experience for them!
I love how they are setting some realistic but challenging goals with some of our friends with MS and are committing to help them get there while they are here with us. Good stuff!
Clean, non-toxic ways to clean our homes and ourselves
Nichole Connolly hosted her second talk about non-toxic cleaning tips in the kitchen. She also touched on asthma and allergies because May is asthma and allergy month. Last week was a good reminder that some with MS struggle with strength in holding items and spraying things. For example, using microfiber cloth and water can be such a wonderful, effective and safe solution for people to clean surfaces easily in the home. She’s hosting a total of four talks in her series. This Friday she will talk about detoxing in the bathroom and touching on the importance of removing dust.
Handout: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FTVQ4WDytle49uozNJPJJyYV9bscrbJVw7SYxjH2h9M/edit?usp=sharing
Presentation: Asthma and Allergies triggers and solutions, plus Detoxing your Kitchen tips
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1NJYsDcKRIzUJI5RAM1tD9pZel_hVd-rwyEeVNvNv93c/edit?usp=sharing
The next part of the series is this Friday – I hope you will engage in it and benefit from it.
Thursday morning walking
Despite it being a little chilly last Thursday, we had a nice turnout and a fun walk together. 100% of the people who showed up last week made it at least 10% farther than last week. The build-up process has started and is working 😊
As you can see, we are all starting to like each other as well.
We all had a great walk and found ways to stay together as we walk. The faster walkers are gracious enough to circle back and keep reuniting with the slower walkers. As a whole, the entire group walked faster and farther than last week…incredible!
Walking is not necessarily MS-friendly. It’s interesting how our MS symptoms flare up when we walk for almost all of us. It goes from interesting to amazing as we keep doing it consistently. As we build up for the Day of Endurance, our bodies tend to adapt to it.
This Thursday’s walk will be at Lapham Peak State Park. We are going to give it our best effort to find the baby owls plus walk farther than last week.
Family members, friends, volunteers, etc. are encouraged to join us. We will have a separate e-mail list for this. If you’d like to join us and be on this e-mail list, please let me know. We’d like to have as many as we can join us so when people go on vacation, can’t be there, etc., the walks still go on.
We have a very nice walking path around the outside of our parking lot. One lap is .1 mile so ten laps is one mile. Let’s get out there and make some laps together.
We will be keeping the people who would love to walk with us but physically can’t in our minds and hearts as we do these walks. Let’s walk for them.
Open Gym Clarification
Since Dr Kate Kern has joined us on a full-time basis, the gym is open to anyone with MS, family members and friends, and our volunteers Monday through Friday mornings from 7:00am – noon.
Please know that you can come and go as you please. You can work out on anything you want. You can engage in any of programs we are offering or you can do what you want. Our facility is here for you to use and benefit from however you are comfortable doing.
Tuesdays and Thursdays are a little quieter so if you’d like a little quieter experience, come on Tuesdays and Thursdays. If you want to come all five days, you are welcome and highly encouraged to do that.
Plant Sale
Sarah Lerand, one of our members, is hosting a Spring plant sale to benefit the National MS Society. Please see flyer below) – Thanks, Sarah for doing this! Let’s support Sarah and her efforts.
Golf Outing – Friday, June 26th
Good news about our golf outing…it’s full! Thank you to all who will be golfing in it and supporting it. We are so fortunate to have our friends from ePlatinum Health to put this on for us.
We are still in need of raffle items and silent auction items. Here is what we are looking for and have a sign-up sheet at the gym. If you are willing to go out and ask for any of these items or donate them, it would be much appreciated. We want to give our golfers a great experience and raise as much money for our mission as we can.
Please start bringing items in to the gym as soon as you can so we can start putting the baskets together and know what we have. Thanks so much!
We are still looking for some sponsors who would like to get some great visibility and help our mission. If you know someone that would be willing to be a sponsor, please let us know that as well. Here’s a link for sponsorship. https://eplatinumhealth.com/ms-golf-outing/ We are THANKFUL for our sponsors.
Let’s get together – Open Gym plus programs!
We’ll be getting together from 7:00am – noon on Monday through Friday mornings at the gym. Plus, Monday and Wednesday evenings from 4:30pm – 6:30pm and Tuesday afternoons for the aquatics program. I hope you’ll join us!
Where:
Wisconsin Metal Parts – Westmound Building
MS-Just Keep Moving, Inc.
W228N791 Westmound Drive
Waukesha, WI 53186
Email Dr Kate Kern at kborn1234@gmail.com with any questions.
Exercise class schedule (to start 3/16/25). Feedback welcome to make this as best as it can be!
Nutrition Program
This week, Janine and friends at the Nutrition program talked about Lettuce and related leaves.
If you are not engaging in our nutrition program, I would highly encourage you to at least read the handouts that Janine prepares for us each week and apply the information into your lifestyle.
Here’s a link to the full handout:
Nutrition: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wIVqp2PKumAcDI_e3VuY4HvqOhXDt6Si/view?usp=drive_link
Janine puts a lot into these presentations. It’s wonderful for her to share these presentations with those who can’t be here. It’s even more impactful for people who can be here in person to get the information first hand and be able to get questions answered and learn from others living with MS.
I would highly encourage you to engage in our nutrition program Monday mornings @ 9:00am so you can benefit at a high level. All are encouraged to come; people with MS, loved ones, care takers, volunteers, etc.
Thank you, Janine!
Nutrition Bingo WINNER!
Way to set a great example for all of us, Maria! Well done!
I hope more people engage in this program. What a fun way to create some good habits and stay ahead of our MS. Our goal is to get our bodies to heal itself from the inside. It needs good nutrition in order to have a chance of doing this.
Let’s Develop a Cookbook
Prayer Group We’ll be having our prayer group Wednesday from 11:00am – noon.
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 this Friday, May 15th, 2026. 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!
Member Spotlight – Abrian Kane
MS hits all of us differently. It has been very challenging for Abrian yet Abrian continues to do all he can and make the best of it on a daily basis. Like many with MS, Abrian didn’t do anything to deserve MS at this level nor does he want to be this way. He works hard each day he comes here. It’s great to see him standing…finally.
Ed and Adam’s Podcast
Adam and Ed had a conversation with Joan about her journey with MS
Here’s the link:
A Conversation with Joan by Positive Vibes Living with MS
Thanks Adam, Ed and Ava for doing these podcasts together!
Educational Sessions
CONTINUING THIS FRIDAY. Clean up your Spring cleaning! Nichole Connolly, one of our members with MS, will host a 4-part series covering simple, non-toxic, swaps to safely clean your home. This series will be held in the break room for education and demos.
May 1st 11:00am- 12:00pm – general cleaning and laundry products
May 8th 11:00am- 12:00pm – the kitchen
May 15th 11:00am- 12:00pm – the bathroom
May 29th 11:00am- 12:00pm – body products (skin care)
Friday, May 22nd 11:00am – 12:00pm: Dr. Obeidat, MD, PhD, at Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin, will share with us what being creative can do for brain physiology. Great follow up to Christina’s talk!
Wednesday, July 1st 9:00-10:00am: Joy Cochran, DPT, will review her demo of “how to fall” safely and effectively. We all fall, so let’s practice how to do it well!
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 Dr Kate, Joan, Traci, Ricky or Dan know.
Day of Endurance Training
Event is Saturday, August 29,2026 – Training is now
What: Do what you can
- Consistent Daily Exercise
- One long day per week – increase each week – no more than 10% per week
- Buddy up and exercise together
- Enjoy the journey 😊
Friday Morning Bike Rides
It was chilly starting last week but we had a nice ride together.
Looking at the weather for this Friday, it looks like we will be able to ride as long as it’s not raining. If it’s raining, we will not be riding. Watch your e-mail and Facebook to find out if we are riding or not.
If we ride, we’ll be meeting Friday morning at 7:00am at Nettesheim Park in Pewaukee. It’s on the SE corner of Hwy SS and Oak Street. The GPS address is: N26W27495 Prospect Ave, Pewaukee, WI 53072.
Come a little early so you can get your bike out of your car and be ready to ride as close to 7:00am as possible. We’ll ride until about 8:45. Let’s ride and have some fun!
For those who wish you could join us but can’t; please know we have you in our hearts on these rides. We’re riding with you and for you. I hope you too can join us someday.
Shoe Donations
We already filled six boxes and quite a few bags. 😊 Thanks to everyone who is donating their shoes!
Do you have any shoes you can donate? Becky Thomas is collecting old or new shoes supporting Soles for Jesus. These shoes will be distributed to people in need of shoes in Africa. She dropped off a box for us to drop them in. Please bring in shoes if you have any extras.
Coughs, colds, flus, etc. – Let’s not share
There are a lot of bugs going around. If you are experiencing any symptoms, please stay home and recover from them instead of sharing with the rest of us at the gym. We look forward to you getting over it and having you back quickly.
Dockhounds Game to benefit our MS-Just Keep Moving Mission – Save the date and get tickets
Research Needs us!
Marquette University, UW Milwaukee, University of Illinois, and Carroll University have research opportunities they would like us to engage in. We have flyers and more information about these opportunities at the gym. Please engage in these opportunities if you qualify. You could make improvements yourself and you could be helping so many other people with MS as they face their challenges. We really need to get this MS thing figured out and you can help by engaging in these research opportunities.
Here’s a research opportunity that Marquette University is doing for all of living with MS. I would highly encourage you to engage in this if you qualify.
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 at 690 members. That’s awesome! https://www.facebook.com/groups/2639832389489709
Our Facebook page is 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!
Metals for MS
Thank you to all who brought in aluminum cans, gutters, copper, brass, etc. Please keep bringing them in…you are helping us. Our total is $1,926.63 for the first year. That’s really good! We’re getting ready to take another load in.
Parking
If you are able-bodied and willing to park across the street in the Acuity Foam lot so people with mobility challenges can park in our lot, please do so. We want to make it easy for people with mobility challenges to park and get into our building safely. Thank you for doing that!
Gym Open and Close Procedure
If you’re the first to come or the last to leave the gym, please use this procedure for opening and shutting down.
Open and closedown procedures.docx
Thai Massage with Ricky and Nyani
Ricky will be here on Wednesdays doing Thai Massage.
Nyani will be here on Fridays doing Thai Massage
Our goal is to serve as many people who come to the gym consistently as we can with these Thai Massage services. Going forward we will be doing a rotational schedule to accommodate as many people as we can who need and want a massage.
There are some guidelines written up at the gym. Please respect the guidelines so we can serve as many people as we can. Please sign up according to the guidelines.
Here’s a link to the guidelines: Thai Massage at MS-Just Keep Moving
Reiki on Fridays
Reiki is available at the gym, for FREE on Fridays with Linda C, 9:30am until noon. Sessions typically last 20-30 minutes. Sign up for a session on the whiteboard.
Reiki (ray-kee) relaxes the body so that healing can occur! The “magic” of Reiki has helped some of our members with pain, insomnia, constipation, and so much more! Try it the next time you are at the gym!
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 and take action.
Let’s keep moving, smiling, and loving 😊 It helps in many ways!
In God We Trust…we are in good hands.
Dan
Our Website: http://msjustkeepmoving.org/
Phone: (262) 232-8552
P.S. I didn’t get out in nature much this week. I did go back to Lapham Peak to see how the baby owls were doing. I only saw one this time. Sure is a cute little fuzz ball.
I went to the Rookery in Simmons Woods in Pewaukee to see if there were any baby Great Blue Herons. There are, but they are very small right now. It will be fun to watch them grow.
This guy is watching over the nest while the mate is laying in the nest.
The red-winged black birds always want their picture taken
They sort of escort me out of the marsh
We saw some baby geese on Saturday. I guess there are quite a few different babies out there this week.
I was really lucky and saw a red-headed woodpecker this weekend. Unfortunately, I didn’t have my camera with me so I had to use my cell phone camera so it’s not the best quality. It was still fun watching it. They sure have a pointy beak.
The Sandhill Cranes wanted their picture taken so they came nice and close to me.
We sure love our cranes
I thought I would go out in our backyard and try to get a sunset picture tonight.
The sky changed quickly tonight and was lit up very different in different parts of the sky
For those who cannot get out and enjoy nature due your challenges with MS…my heart is with you. You are with me every time I am 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.
