March/April 2019 | Volume 37 Issue 2
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Spring May Finally Be In The Air!
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Audio-Reader Funding Update
By Beth McKenzie, Development Director
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Our Development team has been working hard to create and implement a plan to increase community support and help Audio-Reader become self-sustaining after funding from the University is fully discontinued. We’ve developed a diverse strategic funding plan and we’re excited to report success on the beginning phases of that plan.
Our year-end mail campaign,
Help Expand Audio-Reader (HEAR)
, is our most successful yet! We don’t have final numbers yet but we’re well over $116,000.
We raised over $11,400 in the university’s
One Day One KU
event. This was our first time participating in the one-day online fundraiser. Thank you to all our ambassadors and friends who helped make our first year a success.
We’ve more than doubled participation in our
Sustaining Donor Program
! This monthly gift is easy and affordable for many donors. Thank you to our volunteers who participated as door greeters to tell everyone about our new sustaining donor program.
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February was Audio-Reader’s month in
The
Merc Co+op’s Change for our Community
program. All of the round ups, change jars, and bag refund donations raised more than $7,800 for Audio-Reader! We’re so grateful for this opportunity at The Merc, and to the community for all the support.
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We’re recruiting for new Golf Tournament sponsors and new Underwriters. We will provide ongoing updates for these and other aspects of our development plan.
Thank you for all you do for Audio-Reader, we truly couldn’t do it without you!
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This Listener's Message to You: "Keep Up The Great Work!"
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Meet a Listener
By Kimberly Morrow
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Springfield MCB Thrift Store Donations coordinator Matt Elliff loves to listen—To talking books from his cooperating network library for the blind; to all kinds of music, to television shows and movies, and, most of all, to Audio-Reader, where he has been an active listener for eleven years. “I love the old time radio shows, The Book Was Better, and most of all, the readings of my local Springfield newspapers.”
Born premature, Matt is blind from birth as a result of an excessive amount of oxygen required to accommodate his then-underdeveloped lungs, which caused blood vessels to form over the retinas, leading to their permanent detachment—a condition known as retinopathy of prematurity. In addition to his job, Matt enjoys working with adaptive technology, science fiction, and ham radio, where his call sign is KC0QJJ.
Matt has a special place in his heart for Audio Reader and its volunteer staff. “They’re all excellent!” he says. His message to Audio-Reader volunteers: “Keep up the great work!”
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Join Audio-Reader for “Mondays at the Moose!”
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Enjoy dinner at
Blue Moose
in
Lawrence
any time from
5 - 10 pm
the
FIRST Monday
of every month, tell your server you are dining for Audio-Reader, and 15% of your food and beverage sale will go directly to Audio-Reader! This is an easy and delicious way to support Audio-Reader. Our next Monday at the Moose is
Monday, April 1,
any time from 5-10pm.
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Save The Date!
Audio-Reader's Golf Classic
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Audio-Reader’s 10th Annual Golf Classic
will take place at Eagle Bend Golf Course on
Monday, June 3rd
Erin O’Neil, KU Women’s Golf Head Coach, is back again to chair this fun event. Each year the golf classic continues to grow and bring in crucial funds for Audio-Reader – last year the event grossed over $28,000!
Help make this another successful event for Audio-Reader by signing up to play, becoming a sponsor of the event or telling your friends about it. This is a great way to support Audio-Reader while enjoying a morning out on the beautiful greens of Eagle Bend!
To register your team or inquire about sponsorship opportunities, contact Beth McKenzie at 785.864.5336 or
[email protected]
.
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Reminiscing
by Lori Kessinger, Outreach Coordinator
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About a month ago, Jan Shumway and I were discussing some of Audio-Reader’s volunteers and the stories surrounding them. Mrs. A.B. Ewing holding the record for the longest book ever recorded; Eleanor Symons as the first reader who started recording even before we went on the air in October of 1971 so there would be a backlog of books to air; Calder Pickett and his tirade in his Lawrence Journal World column that finally got Audio-Reader’s driveway paved; Bill Kelly and Phyllis Rhodes getting the giggles during the obituaries (they aren’t the only ones, but we caught them on tape) and so many more...
In preparation for Audio-Reader’s 50
th
Birthday, Oct. 7, 2021 I will be collecting these stories. Start pulling together your favorite Audio-Reader memories:
- Tributes to your reading partners or the teams you remember
- Unique happenings during your recording sessions
- Fond memories of past staff and volunteers
Submit them in either written or audio format to me (
[email protected]
). My hope is to gather enough stories to create a book to share with the community to further promote Audio-Reader as an important institution in our community.
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Looking for a Jill of All Trades? Look no further than this Springfield volunteer!
By Kimberly Morrow
Springfield Audio-Reader volunteer Marlee Yant is the ultimate example of “been there, done that”. She describes herself as a “nomad”, having never lived in one house for more than five years until moving to Springfield, Missouri, where she has resided for thirteen years. The Indiana native graduated from Missouri State University, where she majored in creative writing before obtaining a masters degree in counseling psychology. She has lived in various parts of Missouri five different times, as well as New Mexico, Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky. During her lifetime, Marlee has served as the owner of a restaurant, a motel maid, truck driver, home health aid, juvenile corrections officer, and rehabilitation counselor at the New Mexico Commission for the Blind.
In her spare time, Marlee enjoys flipping houses. At age 80, she currently has her eye on yet another house. She says, “It definitely gets in your blood, and I’m good at it.” She describes herself as happily divorced and happily single, and a proud cancer survivor. “Surviving cancer has given my life an entirely different perspective; It really makes you appreciate every single day.” The mother of one son, Marlee equates being a senior citizen with eating dessert. “This is the very best time of my life,” she says. “Volunteering at Audio-Reader is a very big part of that.”
Marlee’s work with the blind in New Mexico led to her interest in Audio-Reader. She began volunteering this past summer, and admits that at first, she was scared. “I had never done any type of reading on the air before. Being on the radio felt threatening at first, but now the fear is gone and I enjoy the people I work with and it’s such a fun thing to do.” She enjoys her reading partner, Amanda Miller. “We get the giggles going while reading the newspaper. I know the listeners can hear the smile in our voices.” Her favorite aspect of volunteering? “You don’t
have
to do it. You do it because you enjoy it.” And Marlee has high praise for Audio-Reader. “I like the Audio-Reader system. They’re very cooperative with me, and they really help me get things done. I love working with Audio-Reader.”
Marlee reads live newspapers 2-4pm on Fridays for Audio-Reader Springfield
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Audio-Reader Piano Show at Lucia Beer Garden + Grill
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Janie Jones
is an active retiree who sings in two choirs, enjoys visiting National Parks and has a bachelor's degree in journalism! She will be reading Newspapers of Southeast Kansas on Fridays for Audio-Reader listeners.
Bryn Greenwood
is a published author, she is interested in books, Chinese historical
dramas, motorcycles, and dogs. She will be reading the USA Today on Thursdays.
Lusie Cuskey
is working on her dissertation in the KU Theater Studies department. She comes experienced, having read for the Blind and Dyslexic (RFB&D) in Louisville, KY. She will be reading Reader's Digest for our Special Request Program.
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Do Something Good and Lower Your Taxes
Do you have an IRA? Are you 70½ or older? Are you concerned about how your Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) will affect your taxes? Would you like to support Audio-Reader?
If you answered ‘yes’ to all of these, you may want to consider directing your RMD to Audio-Reader using the IRA Charitable Rollover. This allows you to donate directly from your IRA without counting the RMD amount as taxable income. This has to be done before you take your RMD (once you take it, you are too late).
If you are interested in learning more about supporting Audio-Reader this way please contact Beth McKenzie at 785.864.5336 or
[email protected]
.
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2 - Ivy Knight & Cristi Hansen
4 - Margretta deVries
6 - Martha Baxter
7 - Harold Asner
8 - Jeanne Jones
9 - Mary Conn, Michelle Suter, Carole
Smith
10- Mary Lee Warner
11 - Susan Rogers, Christopher Riels,
Harlan Roedel
12 - Pamela Ungashick, Keith McCormick,
Kay Traver, Skip Elser, Stephen Brand
14 - Kelly Loeb, Lori Lange, Kris Shields,
Lysle Holloway
15 - Melinda Kearney, Anrenee Reasor
16 - Carol Cole
17 - Eunice Dokko
18- Terry Betzen
19 - Taylor Axtell, Jackie Hilton, Russell
Hilton
21 - Debra Kirmer
22 - Rachel Gadd-Nelson
24 - Mike Wood
25 - Jennifer Nigro, Georgia Ransone
26 - Maureen Altman
28 - Shirley Elwing, Karen Davis
30 - Chris Miller
31 - Nathan Poell, Richard Head
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1 - Shannon Hennessy, Lisa Hallberg
2 - Sharon Wells
4 - Sheila Marque, Joe Schremmer
5 - David Schaaf
6 - Kay Campbell
7 - Tandy Reussner
8 - Matt Suggs, David Williams
9 - Faelan Jacobsen
10 - Karen Brown, Arshan Munif
11 - Susan Tabor
12 - Ann Place
14 - Susan McGee
15 - Jo Anne Kready
16 - Donald Braker, Eileen Braker
16 - Lori Plank Allen
17 - Tamara Seyler-James
18 - Joel Wells, Bob Roberts
21 - David Buck
25 - Kris Vakas-Mcclelland
26 - Mike Doudoroff
28 - Camille Olcese, Scott Sader
29 - Jennifer Estes
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Audio-Reader Network
| reader.ku.edu
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