Wisconsin HLAA Chapters

Fox Valley Regional Chapter – Meets on the 2^nd Monday evening from April – December. Special events may be planned for off months. Meetings are held at The Unitarian Fellowship Building in Appleton. Meetings are educational in nature, with a few social events. The meeting room has a hearing loop and an FM system. Captioning is also provided at meetings. Contacts are: Rhonda:rclancey@hotmail.com & Lynda:woolentree@gmail.com  Phone contacts: Lorna: 920-725-2579 or “T” 920-420-8462. Attendees come from throughout the Fox Valley Region, Green Bay, Oshkosh, & Fond du Lac. The chapter newsletter serves as a meeting notice. To be added to the mailing list, click HERE.

Lake Country- Meets at the Sequoia Branch Library on the corner of Tokay & Midvale Boulevards in Madison on the 4^th Wednesday evening of the month. Meetings start at 6:30 PM. Contacts: Lisa:lzovar@charter.net & John:j.kinstler@me.com The meeting room has a loop system and meetings are also captioned. The chapter has a Facebook page that posts their meeting notices. All meetings feature educational programs of interest to people with hearing loss.

Milwaukee/Racine chapter – Meets on the 1^st Thursday of each month at 6:30PM at The Center for Communication Hearing & Deafness (CCHD), 10243 National Ave., West Allis. Contacts: Jean: szaboshhh@yahoo.com & Caroline: carolineludka@yahoo.com Meetings include social time and educational programs. There is a hearing loop in the meeting room, and meetings are also captioned.

Western Wisconsin Chapter – Has met in Menomoni since its founding. This chapter would like to move its base to Eau Claire, and is actively searching for hard of hearing people interested in supporting that move. Contact: Brenda: bjoyarendt@charter.net or call the Independent Living Center: 715-233-1070.

Northwoods Chapter – Meets on the 2^nd Tuesday (March – November) at the Ascension Lutheran Church in Minocqua at 1PM. This chapter uses a self help format for meetings, and brings in speakers on a variety of hearing loss issues. Contact: Ellen: hathmusic@newnorth.net  715-358-3006.



Wisconsin's Newest HLAA Chapter

Madison is home to the newest Wisconsin HLAA Chapter! The Chapter meets on the 4th   Wednesday evening of each month at 6:30PM at the Sequoya Library on the corner of Tokay Blvd. and Midvale Blvd. For more information, and to get on the chapter's contact list, Contact: Sheila at: Sheila@leadingedgereview.com

The library meeting room has a hearing loop, and captioning will be provided as long as funds are available. Members of this chapter represent hard of hearing people of all ages; including college students, those in the work place, and those who are retired.

Madison is a key area for HLAA to have an active chapter since it is in close proximity to The Office for Deaf and Hard of Hearing, and is in the city central to the legislative process in our state.

CONGRATULATIONS

HLAA~Madison!

 NOTE: The chapter has several interesting programs lined up.  If you live in the Madison area, don't miss the opportunity to participate at the chapter level of HLAA. Everyone is welcome, and meetings are open to the public.

Fox Valley Chapter Takes a Bus Ride!

Members of Fox Valley Chapter chartered a bus to travel to Options for Independent Living Center in Green Bay. Options model home is fully accessible to all people with disabilities, including those with hearing loss. It's well worth a visit. An interesting program was given in the looped room at Options. It was a great idea, and a good time!



Sad News

We are sorry to report the closing of WaukeSHHHa Chapter. This chapter has met for many years, but an aging membership has forced the few leaders left to bid adieu. Ann Gazinski, one of the chapter founders who had kept things going for years, deserves a big thank you for all the work she has done.

Chapters can always be revived if there is a group of dedicated individuals who are willing to make it happen. In fact, that is exactly what has happened in Madison.

 Wisconsin Needs More HLAA Chapters

Chapters determine their own programs & meeting times based on the consensus of the group.

Chapter meetings are open to anyone interested in learning more about hearing aids, hearing loss, hearing assistive technologies, coping skills, workplace issues, etc.

Consumer based chapters are organized and run by people who are hard of hearing and those who have family members or friends who do not hear well.

If you are interested in forming a new chapter in your area, contact: Elizabeth at the national HLAA office. elebarron@hearingloss.org

 There are chapter members in Wisconsin who are willing to help.