The purposes of this Association are to:

  • The purposes of this Association are to:
  • A. Promote and protect the interests, rights, and welfare of the retired educators of the Stevens Point area in conjunction with the Wisconsin Retired Educators’ Association (WREA).
  • B. Monitor and work to improve the benefits for retired educators and other members of the Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS).
  • C. Encourage Association members to maintain membership in the Wisconsin Retired Educators’ Association (WREA).
  • D. Develop working relationships with local service organizations whose main emphasis is on aging groups and with organizations sharing goals similar to those of the Association.
  • E. Inform Association members about and advocate for educational and other relevant societal issues.
  • F. Inform members of activities in the area provided for senior citizens.
  • G. Encourage Association members to be active participants in community affairs on an individual basis.

2016 September Updates

SPARTA’S NEWS AND NOTES
September 12, 2016
Please remember to call in your luncheon reservation to Mary Ann Krems (715-344-2453) no later
than noon on Thursday, September 8th before the Monday meeting. Alert her to any dietary needs.
If you pay for your meal with a check, please make it payable to the Sky Club. The cost of the meal
is $15.00.
WELCOME to new members!! We look forward to seeing you at our September 12 th meeting.
Social Committee update: Thank you so much to Eileen Payne and the social committee for all
the preparation involved with our trip on June 23rd. The weather was perfect to tour the Rawhide
complex, ride the Chief-Waupaca cruise and visit the Red-Mill in the King area. We all had a
wonderful time!
Program committee: The committee will meet right after the September meeting to arrange
programs for the next year. If you have an idea for a new program please join us or let the
committee chairman, Santha Bickford, know.
Book Committee:
Please plan to sign up for the Book Sale scheduled for Wednesday, October 19th through Saturday
October 22nd. We will have a sign up clip board at our September meeting. See full article below.
Dues for fiscal year 2016-2017, from October 1 through September 30, are due. Annual dues:
$15.00 for SPARTA and $50.00 for WREA regular and $30.00 for Associate (spouse, friend). 3 year
WREA Dues: $135.00 for WREA regular, $75.00 for Associate. WREA life membership dues:
$650.00. First year membership is free for new SPARTA members.
IMPORTANT: We are a unit of WREA (NOT WEAC RETIRED). WREA is the watchdog for
our pensions. We need to join and support WREA more now than ever before! We need
WREA to protect our hard earned retirement money. Join WREA even if you can’t
volunteer because WREA dues support the oversight of our pensions. WREA has critical
oversight people watching over legislation that affect our pensions.
VOLUNTEER LOGS DUE NOW:
Please help Joyce by bringing your volunteer log information to the September meeting. Joyce
must cull all the hours, record how members spent their time with additional information, then send
it in by the end of September. Please remember to write your total monthly hours spent and the
activities you were involved in. The data helps the state WREA with legislative information and
community outreach verification used to protect our pension and support public education.
Our September meeting will be our Nomination and Election Day for new officers.
Nominations can come from the floor during the Sept. meeting. There is a two year term for officers.
Officers may serve multiple terms. This year Joyce Chekouras will be stepping down as our President
after serving two terms.
The Audit Committee met with our Treasurer and found no mistakes. Thank you for taking
such good care of the books, Janet Langton!
Our POA Committee, Joan Gilles and/or Santha Bickford, will meet to help those in need of legal
paperwork on October 7th and 14th at the Lincoln Center. This service, including paperwork, is free to
the public.
Highlights from District Three Meeting on May 10, 2016
Attendees were Mary Ann Krems, David Blado, Santha Bickford, Jan Langton and Joyce Chekouras
On Membership:
• “Each One, Reach One” “40 Touches” Ambassador Program. Personal contact imperative. (At the September
convention, social for Ambassadors who do the calling. Their special recognition.)
• Now 12,000 members spread over 60 units. Goal is to increase our numbers by 10%.
• Members urged to register with WREA: they will receive the Red Apple Express, Legislative Alerts, and they can
sign up for WREA news via email.
• WREA renewed focus on its primary function--to protect our pensions. Need to strengthen grass roots efforts.
• Bylaws revised: WREA members who do not belong to a unit won’t get a larger voice.
WREA Officers:
• David Bennett’s sudden retirement announced on March 7th for April 1st. Interim Director chosen by Board of
Directors Diane Wilcenski. (She will speak at unit meetings.)
• Marcia Trentlage was elected WREA President on October 1st last year.
• WREA has also hired a lobbyist, John Forester.
Volunteer Hours:
Stevens Point accrued 8,642 hours of volunteer work, spread over 30 organizations, for a total of $188,309. President
Joyce Chekouras received the facsimile check on behalf of SPARTA.
Member Benefits:
MASA testimonial was given by a woman who used it. Emergency evacuation services, great for travel, pay by the year,
five-month period, or for a lifetime.
Foundation Challenge Award for educational innovation:
87 entries, elementary focus this year. Winner: Edgar Public School: “The Power of Music,” $2,000 awarded. Students
perform in nursing homes. Their music and choreography brings reminiscence to the elderly, connects them with their
history. Great student performance at the meeting!
Entertainment:
Edgar Elementary students.
Ken Anderson's "Mayberry Reflections," comparison with Dorchester, Wisconsin.
Scholarships and Teacher Grants:
Award given April 30th—a $1,000 grant to promote education. High School scholarship for someone planning a career in
education. If an applicant gets local scholarship, he or she can get support for a statewide one. For graduating seniors.
The recipient goes through 1st semester at a college/university and then enrolls for second actually to get the
scholarship.
WREA Foundation Spotlight on Education Grants: (over March to Sept. 2015)
Stevens Point REA—Stevens Point Sculpture Park: Peace Flag Project
Update on the WRS and ETF:
**Bob Conlin, ETF secretary: “Another 2008 could be catastrophic” “SWIB adjusting types of investments
control risk and volatility.”
$1.5 Billion in losses, mainly from last year, need to be recognized over the next five years. Projections up to
2019 favor lower raises—Low return environment, slow global growth, will minimize returns. Future
pensions are at the mercy of the legislature. Watch for legislative action and alerts.
Submitted by, David Blado
Book Committee: The fall SPARTA book sale will be Wed. Oct. 19, noon to 7 p.m.; Thurs. and Fri.
Oct. 20 and 21 from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.; and Sat. Oct 22, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. The schedule for sign
up to work will be at the September meeting. Posters to take to community businesses and points of
interest will also be available at the September meeting. Our last community take-in day for books,
CDs, music and books on tape will be Monday, September 19th because the third Monday in October
is also the same week of the sale. If you have questions on the schedule or want to sign up, please
call Nancy Mezyk at 715-341-5905. Other questions call Nancy Kemmeter at 715-344-2598.
Membership Report: A sincere thank you to Sally Dellinger who contacted all the schools in
Portage County for retiring educators. Letters are being sent to them inviting them to join us and
several already have done so. We thank the Executive Committee for taking on the task of sending
out the letters. After the WREA convention in September we will have more indications of what
suggestions WREA has for us to increase membership. Joyce Wortruba-Polson and Barb Towey will
be joining our group and others are always welcome. Submitted by Mary Ann Krems, Membership
Chair.
Memberships Paid Ahead
Please check before paying your dues!
WREA SPARTA
George Alfsen life
Dave Blado life
Doris Blanche life
Joyce Chekouras life
Ann Cragg life
Joyce Daberkow life
Ann Eggelston 2018
Mary Egle life
Suzanne Fee 2017 2017
Marlys Gross 2017
Jan Hermann life
Laurel Hoeth life
John Holddridge 2017
Nancy Kemmeter 2017
Gretchen Kruziki 2017 2017
Janeen Kwarciany life
Jan Langton life
Charlene Laurent 2018
Judith Lerand 2017
Eileen Payne 2018
David Pederson 2017
Jill Schabel life
Jane Schoenecker life
Celia Shogren 2017
Christine Sivek 2017
Janet Swiston 2017
Carol VanAlstine life
Frances Vollrath 2017
Financial Report: May-August
For security reasons, financial details not listed on the website
SPARTA SCHOLARSHIP ENDOWMENT FUND: 2016-2017 DONATIONS
For security reasons, financial details not listed on the website
BOOK SALE 2015-2016
For security reasons, financial details not listed on the website
This includes all carrying costs for storage and rent
through December 2017.
An audit was conducted on August 19. The books were found to be in order. Thanks goes out to Eileen Payne,
Arvy Crawford, and Barb Clementi for volunteering to do this important job.