Hearts in Mind: Eagles Club presents donations from telethon

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(Left to right, back row) Eagles Aerie 1502 President Chad Abram, Nick Crary, Dan Moris, Nate Bremmer, Tom Stram, Tucker Trefz (Mayo Clinic), John Wesley (UW), Pete Schmeling (UW), Dr. David DeHart (Mayo Clinic). (Left to right, front row) Dr. Comden Dahl (Gundersen), Olivia Moths (Gundersen), Joan Paulson, Evelyn Dow, Carolyn Flock (Mayo Clinic) and Scott Paulson. (Steve Van Kooten/Courier Press)

UW, Gundersen, Mayo benefit from 2024 telethon

 

By Steve Van Kooten

 

On Wednesday, June 19, at the Eagles Club at the intersection of Beaumont Road and Wisconsin Street in Prairie du Chien, Tom Stram and Dan Moris, two of the three emcees for the 49th Eagles Heart and Cancer Telethon, and members of the telethon committee presented donation checks to representatives from the University of Wisconsin, Gundersen Health Systems and Mayo Clinic.

The Eagles Club and the Prairie du Chien area have a history of keeping people’s hearts in mind during the telethon. Throughout its lifespan, the telethon has raised more than $1 million for cancer and heart research. Stram announced that the 2024 edition of the telethon raised $37,550.

“We’re a small town, but we have a lot of people putting in time behind the scenes, and we reach out to a lot of people across the country and on the internet to promote it,” Chad Abram, Eagles Club Aerie 1502 President, said.

The University of Wisconsin Cardiovascular Research Center, UW-Carbone Cancer Research Center, Gundersen Cancer Research Center and Mayo Clinic Heart Research Center will each receive 25 percent of the money accrued by the event.

“That makes 50/50 for heart and cancer research,” said Steam, “and 100 percent of what we raise goes directly into research.”

“All the funds you are raising stay here. They do not go anywhere else,” said Olivia Moths, with the Gundersen Medical Foundation. 

“We want to make sure everyone knows that. The hard work you’re doing, the fundraising you’re doing for initiatives in our community, that will all stay here.”

Money donated through community organizations like the Eagles Club can help fund pilot research programs.

“The National Health Institute is the national funder of all types of research, whether it’s heart or cancer or lung or whatever, but they’re not going to give you research funding for a great idea,” Pete Schmeling, senior director of development for the University of Wisconsin’s Department of Medicine, said. “They’re only going to approve a grant if you can show there’s something there… so it’s a catch-22; how do you get it to the point that you get to the application phase?”

Pilot research is like getting a proof of concept; it’s a way to explore new ideas, show the idea has veracity and get it to the point where it will secure federal research support.

“This grant of roughly $10,000 can help us get a $3 million research grant later,” said Schmeling, who added that donations can “move the needle” for pilot programs to become viable.

Carolyn Flock, research operations for the Mayo Clinic, said, “This event you do every year is amazing. There’s a lot of very good research coming out of this area. Thanks, in large part, to you guys.”

“To come to a place that supports cancer research and that the community gets so involved is really special,” said Dr. Comden Dahl, with Gundersen Health Systems.

All three organizations highlighted research areas where dollars are being spent, including new medications to prevent blood clots, precision care for cancer patients to improve patient recovery, the use of shark cells to prevent cancer and the use of artificial intelligence to help predict when a person will have a heart attack.

Schmeling added that UW’s Health Transplant Center expanded their pediatric heart transplant program, which completed its first transplant last year.

For the telethon and the Eagles Club, the next step is on the horizon. With the first half of 2024 cataloged in history, time, energy and planning turn to the future. Next year is the big 5-0 for the telethon. Abram, Stram and the rest of the telethon committee have big things planned. Stay tuned and tune in.

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