Doing Your Bit

During the month of March KFIZ had the opportunity to participate in the Fond du Lac County Red Cross "Be a Hero for the Red Cross" campaign. Our part included doing on-air interviews with the co-chairpersons Marty Ryan, Larry Moldenhauer and others associated with the campaign. We ran public service announcements, did news stories on the campaign and the different activities that raised funds for it. Our investment was small, time and publicity.

Thanks to the businesses and agencies that held the actual fundraising activities, plus individual donations, the Red Cross reached its goal of $25,000.

What did we learn from the experience? Anybody can give their time and that can be just as important as the money sometimes. We have a very active Red Cross, one that does its part on both the local and national levels. This past Tuesday morning they held a thank you breakfast at the Ramada Plaza Hotel in Fond du Lac for some of the "Heroes" who gave between $250 and $5,000 during the campaign. The Hotel chipped in and donated the breakfast. It was appreciated.

Before we left we learned how the money from the campaign would be spent. Suffice it to say that its been put in very good hands. In fact we also found out while munching on our scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, breakfast links and mini-muffins that more than $2,000 had already been spent on the six families displaced by a fire at a Ripon apartment complex last Friday. The year is just beginning. Larry Moldenhauer made a point of telling those at the gathering that you can donate to the "Heroes" campaign any time of the year. If your group is going to hold a brat fry or similar event this year, give a little of the proceeds to the Red Cross. Simply give Denise a call at 922-3450 and tell her you want to earmark the money for the "Heroes" campaign.

KFIZ is part of the community that we live in and so doing our bit for the "Heroes" campaign was something we enjoyed doing.

The nice thing about "Heroes" is that they often go without notice. Maybe the person sitting next to you at a baseball game or the movies gave blood during a Red Cross blood drive. The one waiting behind you at the checkout line spent two weeks on the Gulf Coast helping with Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. The man or woman getting gas at the pump next to you taught life guard training through the Red Cross that some day may save a family member.

Not all the heroes could be in that room at the Ramada Tuesday morning, but they were well represented.