NEW PARTNERSHIP: MILWAUKEE BUCKS AND PICK N SAVE

The Bucks and Pick 'n Save tipped off their 6th Annual fight against food insecurity on Monday, February 26 by donating, $15,000 in Pick 'n Save gift cards to The Gathering at a press conference prior to dinner distribution at our Ascension mealsite. These gift cards were made available through Kroeger's ZERO HUNGER/ZERO WASTE initiative.

The gift cards will empower our meal guests with access to healthy food. Guests will be able to grocery shop for themselves with dignity utilizing these gift cards!

Volunteers from the Bucks staff, Pick 'n Save and Metro Market teams, along with the Milwaukee Bucks most recent acquisition; Ryan Rollins, had the opportunity to prepare for and serve our meal guests.

Pick 'n Save had experts on-hand to share information on employment opportunities, prescription drug access, and how to utilize grocery delivery provided by Kroeger Delivery, through utilization of thier SNAP/EBT benefits. 

Pick 'n Save donated the supplies for and prepared 150 bag lunches that were distributed along with the 241 hot meals  served on Monday.

The Bucks donated and distributed 150 Bucks branded lightweight down jackets to each meal guest. Bango entertained folks as they entered the building and the Milwaukee Bucks very own DJ Shawna kept the event lively.

The Gathering is honored and proud to be in a partnership with the The Milwaukee Bucks and Pick 'n Save, 2 businesses who really understand the need to provide access to those who are experiencing food insecurity!
 

Thank you, thank you, thank you! 

MARDI GRAS 2024

A great big thank you goes out to all of our sponsors and guests that made our 2nd Annual Mardi Gras  – bigger and better than our first Mardi Gras! Beads and masks were plentiful, the Wine Pull and Balloon Pop along with the Raffle and Silent Auction kept everyone engaged - making new friends and reconnecting with old ones. A good time was had by all!

To say that our 2nd Annual Mardi Gras was a success is an understatement – our number of registrations went up from 104 in 2023 to 147 in 2024 – that’s a 40% increase! And we doubled our projected revenue proceeds – including our MOVE Appeal, we raised over $40,000 – which is a record for us😊

This year we had 2 Royal Sponsors; Komatsu Mining & Bader Philanthropies, 6 Flambeau Sponsors; Kathryn & Randy Dean Charitable Fund, Phyllis E. Klein Charitable Fund, Elaine & Gerry Mainman, Modern Woodman and 2 from St Paul Episcopal Church, 7 Doubloon Sponsors; Mel & David Johnson, Elaine & Gerry Mainman, Cindy & Evert Berndt, John Hickey, Milwaukee Admirals, Direct Supply, Clement Leasing (Mary & Ross Read) and Steren McDonalds, and 4 Beaded Sponsors; Brice Cohey Consulting, Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Town Bank and Carla Washington.

Andrea Williams did a bang-up job as our Emcee once again, Baked Dreams food was just as yummy as last year, Edible Impressions cookies were as tasty as they were beautiful, Shutterbug’s photo booth kept the party hopping and Felipe Rodriguez’s acoustic guitar music added much to the ambiance of the evening.

This year’s awardees include; Distinctive Trailblazer - Jeff Steren of Steren McDonalds who has been donating food from 9 of his stores twice a week for over 30 years, Individual Champions – Elaine & Gerry Mainman – who for over 28 years have contributed financially to our programs, and they served The Gathering's very first lunch at St James on January 9, 1982, Foundation Guardian – Lux Foundation who has provided us with grant funds for over 28 year with each year providing us with an increase in financial support, and Corporate Advocate – Direct Supply who has taken care of us with both financial and with material/supply support for nearly 8 years!

And to each of you reading this article –be sure to  save the date for Mardi Gras 2025 –

MARCH 4, 2025!!! You don’t want to miss this fete`!

 
With Peace & Gratitude,
Lyn Hildenbrand
Executive Director

SWEET 16 GOLF CLASSIC

The Gathering had an amazing time at the Brown Deer Golf Course on Friday, July 28th, while we celebrated our Sweet 16 Golf Classic. Our event included a day of golfing, our traditional Wine Ring Toss, a Raffle & Silent Auction. To end the night four-somes were recognized; Team Trimble had the lowest score and Team Hanrahan had the highest score!
We would like to thanks our staff, donors, and golfers for making this event a huge success.