Club Supports Community Year Round

Prairie Riders never forget that they're fortunate to be able to enjoy such a great sport as snowmobiling. Rather than take their good fortune for granted, members of the Prairie Riders Snowmobiling Club "pay it forward" with donations and other charitable efforts.

These efforts continue throughout the seasons and include:

• Proceeds from our Oktoberfest Party and Fundraiser were donated to Milwaukee Children’s Hospital in November. Chris Leach and Tom Petrusky presented our gift of $1,400 to Shannon Richards, special events coordinator for Children's Hospital and Health System Foundation, who expressed her appreciation on behalf of Children's Hospital of Wisconsin to the Prairie Riders Snowmobile Club.
   
• Proceeds from our Oktoberfest Party and Fundraiser also were donated to Make-A-Wish in December. Lauren Pietkiewicz, the Kenosha County Youth Representative as well as a member of the Prairie Riders Snowmobiling Club, presented a check for $1,400 to a representative of Make-A-Wish. The club hopes that the proceeds from our Oktoberfest Party and Fundraiser will help make many dreams come true through the Make-A-Wish organization.
   
• Chris Leach delivered the proceeds from a food drive held the evening of the Oktoberfest Party and Fundraiser to the Shalom Center food pantry in Kenosha, Wis.
   
• At a Toys for Tots drive in November and December, club members brought new, unwrapped toys to the monthly club meetings and filled one very, very large box. Club members Jamie and Kat Carter delivered the bounty to Ken “Butch” Torkelson of the Lake County (Illinois) Marine Corps League.
   
• One special club member, seven-year-old Riley Stewart, daughter of club members Ryan and Kristen Stewart, made an extra special donation to Toys for Tots, bringing an entire box of gifts to the November club meeting. Inspired by the thought that some children might not have presents at Christmas, little Riley Stewart decided that all the gifts she received from friends at her birthday party would be donated to the annual Toys for Tots toy drive sponsored by the Marine Corps. (Read the full story in the December 2010 club newsletter) and click on Riley's picture, above, to see our young Good Samaritan with her donation.
   
• A winter hat, coat and warm weather clothing drive was held in January to benefit St. Vincent de Paul and the Shalom Center in Kenosha, Wis., to help keep those less fortunate warm during our coldest months. Club member Tom Petrusky delivered a full truck load the cold weather gear to the organizations.
   
• A drive for the Shalom Center's INNS Nightly Shelter Program and its Emergency Family Shelter was held in December. To help meet the center's needs, club members donated new unopened personal care items, common over-the-counter medications, baby care supplies, and other items.
   
• At our Winter Breakfast Ride and Party, we organized a donation drive for the Air National Guard's 376 Force Support Squadron, currently stationed in Kyrgyzstan, to benefit Humanitarian Aid to the Krygyz Republic. In January, club members donated school supplies to support this effort.
   
• A cash donation was made to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation, in support of the organization and the efforts of club member Kat Carter to fundraise for the cause.
   
• A cash donation was made to the Cystic Fibrosis Great Strides, in support of the organization and the efforts of club members Chris and Rachel Leach to fundraise for the cause.
   
• A cash donation was made to the Countryside Association, a not-for-profit agency that provides assistance to adults with disabilities, in support of the organization and the efforts of club member Jim Van Cleve to fundraise for the cause.
   
• A cash donation was made to the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life, in support of the organization and the efforts of club member Lauren Pietkiewicz to fundraise for the cause.

Many thanks to all of the Prairie Riders for your generous efforts to help our community throughout the year!