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Courageous Stories
Highlighting community stories of courage, strength and resiliency
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Wilder Child Development Center a Reassuring Space for Kids and Families During COVID-19
Any parent or child care provider can tell you that kids thrive on routine and stability. At a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed most people’s lives, the Wilder Child Development Center brings welcome routines and a reassuring environment for children – and their parents, too. Read this story »
Wilder Therapists Provide Mental Health Support for Children And Families During COVID-19
When the COVID-19 pandemic began, Wilder therapists were suddenly unable to meet in person with children and families who are experiencing stress and trauma. With balloons, feathers and bubbles, therapists are finding creative ways to help parents remain calm and nurturing during a crisis. Read this story »
Meals on Wheels Rolls with COVID-19 Changes to Continue Serving Older Adults and Adults with Disabilities in Saint Paul
Jack Munsell signed up in February to pack meals for other volunteers to deliver to Wilder Meals on Wheels customers in Saint Paul. Then the novel coronavirus upended life as Minnesotans know it. Read this story »
Wilder School-Based Mental Health Expands Beyond Elementary Schools in Saint Paul
Michael Brooks thinks every school would benefit from an on-site mental health professional. “Every school, nationwide,” says Michael, a school-based therapist with Wilder Community Mental Health and Wellness. “You cannot ignore the fact that life happens. To expect children to go on as if things aren’t happening to them is preposterous… Read this story »
Ywj Siab Lor’s Leadership Blooms with Wilder Youth Leadership Initiative
Ywj Siab Lor is an artist and dancer and a youth mentor in Wilder’s Youth Leadership Initiative who engages with peers and others in a friendly and confident manner. But Ywj Siab, who uses the pronouns they/them/their, wasn’t as talkative at the start of their freshman year of high school. “I was overwhelmed, and I was just terrified of… Read this story »
Longtime Wilder Friends Use Planned Gift to Extend their Commitment to Community
Wilder donor and former board chair Ken Rothchild built his career in mortgage banking and real estate development during the tumultuous 1960s. In a decade known for civil rights, the anti-war movement and social change, Ken worked for and then bought the real estate business his grandfather founded in 1885. At the same time, Ken and his… Read this story »
Michigan Fitness Foundation Captures “Ripple Effects” to Increase Healthy Eating and Physical Activity
Lila Gutuskey came to Wilder Research in search of a new way to share her organization’s impact. With an evaluation tool called Ripple Effects Mapping, the Michigan Fitness Foundation found a new way to capture the impacts of their statewide work on healthy eating and physical activity in Michigan. Read this story »
Wilder Customized Living Services Helps Saint Paul Hi-Rise Residents Age in Place
After nearly a year of hospitalization and rehabilitation following knee surgery, James Johnson was ready to go home. Unfortunately, the home he had shared with his friend for 27 years needed too many modifications for him to live in while using a wheelchair. Without other housing options, James might have been at risk of premature… Read this story »