I enjoyed all the stories. I was especially touched by a young man who wrote an essay about how helpful his father has been and how they missed his mom who recently died of cancer. Another little girl wrote a story about her great grandmother who had passed away, but was still very much in her heart. Many of the children credited parents with helping them with homework. Caleb Phillippo from Tippecanoe Christian School won with a poster about his 95-year-old neighbor, Clark.

Caleb Phillippo's poster honoring his 95 year old neighbor

If you’d like to check out the winners, they will be on display at Cold Stone Creamery in the Pavilions Shopping Center through December 18th.

It is nice to see so many people pausing to honor veterans on Veterans Day. We covered several activities at schools, the Indiana Veterans’ Home and at Purdue. But, we missed one I’d like to mention.

Employees at Imperial Travel donated the money to buy a flag pole and flags (American and Indiana) to put up at the company’s garage on South 30th Street. Mechanics Tim Plante and Mark Shoaf collected the funds in a short amount of time. It was then decided the employees would raise the flag for the first time on Veterans Day with a small ceremony. Employee Brenda Pease said it was heart warming to have everyone recite the Pledge of Allegiance as one unit. She said ten employees at the travel company have served or are serving in the military.

I was honored to emcee the program again this year. I was very impressed with our featured speakers. One was Lester Burch. His wife, Rose, died of breast cancer in December 2007. He told everyone how important support is to the patients and families. YWCA Women’s Cancer program Director Ruth Breyley said she hoped this event would help raise awareness. She said many women don’t get mammograms because there is no family history. Yet, in 90% of new cases the patients do not have a family history.

If you need help getting a mammogram, contact the YWCA.

765-742-4375
1-800-770-9004 (toll free)

If you are tired of hearing about unemployment, the economy, and crime, here is a great story I’d like to share. A friend of mine who is an Iraq War veteran, Tim Plante,  sent me this:

Bea One, Spurlocks, Bistro 501, La Scala, Adelino’s and the Bluefin Bistro are all taking part in the third annual event.

“Celebrity” maitre d’s will host patrons dining in any of the six restaurants.  Mike Cleff will be at LaScala tonight (September 14th). I will be at Spurlocks on Tuesday. Jeff Smith will be at Bea One on Wednesday. We will be there from 6:00p.m.-8:00p.m.

Hunger Hike is on Sunday, September 20th. Registration starts at 12:30 at Riehle Plaza. The walk starts at 2:00p.m. Proceeds benefit Food Finders Food Bank, Lafayette Urban Ministry, and  St. Thomas Aquinas Haiti Project.

For more information: www.hungerhike.org

Back row: Joe LePage, Laura Kirtley, Laura Nichols, Sue Scott. Front row: James Nichols and Georgana Nichols.

Thanks to everyone who donated during this year’s MDA telethon. Volunteers answered phones during the Labor Day weekend to help raise more than $296,000. While this isn’t as much money as last year, organizers were pleased with the amount, considering the economy.  Some of the top groups collecting money were the Lafayette Fire Department ($32,000) and the Tippecanoe County Lock-up ($38,000).

Money raised during the telethon helps families in the Lafayette area. The MDA helps families with clinic visits, leg braces, wheelchair repairs and other services.

I enjoy helping out at the telethon, for many reasons.  Labor Day weekend is like a family reunion for the WLFI emcees, families, and volunteers.  The children make it all worth our time and effort. As I was saying goodbye to James Nichols, our Goodwill Ambassador, he asked if he could have a hug. I thought I was going to cry! I gave him a big squeeze and asked him to give me a full report on MDA camp next year.

Videographer Nathan Caldwell, Service Technician Daman Hartwick, and Sue at the Fowler Ridge Wind Farm

This week I had the opportunity to meet workers who maintain turbines at the Fowler Ridge Wind Farm. Vestas is a global company, with thousands of turbines around the world.  My story about the work they will do airs Friday, September 4th. We couldn’t get permission to climb the tower with the crew that day. So, we sent my digital camera to the top. Daman Hartwick and Gerald Parker took some really cool shots from the top of the wind turbine. I’m still lobbying for my chance to see the view up top for myself! Stay tuned.

The Nichols family and our crew take a tour of a Crawfordsville Fire Station.

Labor Day is almost here.  Part of our holiday includes spending time with families, like the Nichols during the MDA telethon. Greg and Laura live in Crawfordsville with their two children James and Georgana. The children are this year’s MDA Goodwill Ambassadors.

Please include us in your Labor Day plans. Tune into the telethon Sunday night through Monday. Dozens of volunteers will be standing by to take your pledge. The money raised stays local, to help local families. This year, the MDA helped James buy new leg braces. And, he’ll probably need another pair before long. You know how boys grow! I’ll be on the telethon Monday afternoon. Tune in when you can!

The Nichols family

Sue and instructor Jack Bow

I survived Dancing with the Stars on Friday night. I managed to complete the routine without stepping on my partner’s toes or falling down. My partner was the owner of Arthur Murray Dance studio, Jack Bow. He was a great teacher and very patient!  We danced the swing to Old Time Rock-n-Roll by Bob Seeger.

The other participants had great routines. State Senator Ron Alting and his partner danced to ‘Brickhouse.’ He really got the crowd going when he slid across the floor! CC coach Dave Barrett did the swing, Ernie Caldemone of Artistic Media Partners danced to the song, ‘Last Dance,’ and Linda Rohrman did the sexy rumba to the song ‘Everything’. Doctor Greg Konrath had fun doing the moonwalk and other moves to ‘Billy Jean.” He and his partner Samantha wore dark shades and hats. Linda gathered the most donations to Big Brothers/Big Sisters to win the contest. Below is video from my routine, but you can see clips from each of the dancers on our web page. Go to video, then look under bonus.

Sue, Niccole, Laura, and Alyssa at Helen Fashion Show

You will be seeing lots of new faces on air at WLFI in the coming weeks.  Our morning anchor/reporter Alyssa Rossomme left last week. She took a job in South Bend. Alyssa did a great job reporting health stories. She was also instrumental in forming our partnership with HELEN magazine.

Joe LePage is one of our new morning anchors. He most recently worked at a TV station in Texas. He grew up in Delphi.  Sarah McKenna is our new morning meteorologist.  Sarah also comes to us from the Lone Star State.  She  has family in the Lafayette area.

Sue, Mike and Renetta at the 2008 Taste of Tippecanoe

Later this fall, Renetta DeBose will be leaving us. Renetta will be pursing her broadcasting career elsewhere.  I have enjoyed working with Renetta on different assignments like the Taste of Tippecanoe.  She has been active with Girl Scouts and enjoys collecting Hello Kitty items.  Renetta just asked me to share with everyone….”look out for me delivering the latest news at the next local TV station in a major market.”

Stay tuned for more changes!