Wisconsin School for the Deaf - The Wisconsin Times Vol. 133 No. 3 Spring 2012 | Page 8

It’s the Right Thing to DO! Blood Drive 2012
WSD Health Center Staff, Susie Kelly, along with the help of WSD’s nurse, Diane Nelson, coordinated a
blood drive with the Blood Center of Wisconsin on Wednesday, February 22, 2012. Staff and students were
encouraged to donate. Students who were 16 and 17 also needed parental permission to donate. The local deaf
and hearing communities were contacted and invited to participate.
Mrs. Susie (nee Sinnen) Kelly, a WSD alumni and Certified Nursing Assistant at WSD, stated that, “A total of
thirty two units of blood were donated. This means 96 lives were saved. This is awesome!” Susie Kelly enrolled
at WSD in 1964 and graduated in 1975. When she was only 19 years old, she began her employment at WSD
in 1977. She is in her 35th year of employment at WSD. WSD is proud to have alumni return to campus and
provide valuable role modeling for our students.
In addition to the WSD nursing staff’s assistance at the blood drive, the WSD Student Body Council served as
ambassadors. They escorted patrons to the tables and made sure they were fed and offered beverages, in order to
replenish fluid loss. Their helpfulness and good manners were appreciated by all.

All Under One Umbrella
Wisconsin Educational Services Program for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Outreach (WESP-DHH Outreach)
recently sponsored the 10th annual Family Conference and the eighth annual Professional Conference. Both
were held at the Radisson Paper Valley Hotel in Appleton, Wisconsin. Keynote presenters were Harold Johnson
and Janice Fialka. Breakout sessions included: From Apples to Androids by Laura Plummer, Tools of the Trade
by Butte Publications, Building Social Language and Communication Confidence by Karen Anderson, Edmodo
for the classroom, a Facebook-like system to use online with students by Rebekah Marchilena and Helping
Children Deal with Grief by Eve Dicker Eiseman.
More than 140 professionals attended the Thursday and Friday Professional Conference and just over 120
families attended the weekend Family Conference. Activities for the children, while the parents were in
workshops, included: Appleton Children’s Museum, the YMCA, and going to Oshkosh for the Experimental
Aircraft Association - EAA program. More than 250 children from birth to 16 attended age appropriate activities
all day Saturday. Evening activities included Deaf storytellers: Alyson Urdahl, Lisa Perry Berkhardt, Lulu Lee
and Sheri Cook; watching the movie Mary Poppins or attending the Broadway production of Mary Poppins at
the Fox Valley PAC; a Teen/Tween dance; and ASL workshops.
A special workshop for professionals and families with a DeafBlind child, was given by Robbie Blaha and cosponsored by the Wisconsin DeafBlind Technical Assistance Project (WDBTAP). In addition, Kevin Williams
offered a two day presentation for educational interpreters. More than 30 registered for this workshop.
Wisconsin Hands and Voices sponsored a silent auction a