News and Press Releases

November 8, 2007 - Fine Arts Foundation holds fund-raiser, receives donation

The Fine Arts Foundation is sponsoring a fund-raiser at the Westby House on Thursday, Nov. 8, before the first performance of the musical "South Pacific". The performance is being put on by the Westby High School Drama & Music Department.

The cost will be $30 per person or $50 per couple. The cost includes a social hour at the Westby House (including hors d'oeuvres and two beverages of your choice) from 5  until 6:30 p.m.; admission to the musical; and, reserved seating. The performance will begin at 7 p.m. in the high school gymnasium.

To make a reservation, call Ade and Kathie Hendrickson at 634-2152 by Sunday, Nov. 4. Leave a message on the answering machine if there is no answer and someone will return your call. All proceeds from the Thursday night performance will go to the Fine Arts Foundation.

The Fine Arts Foundation of the Westby Area has received a $10,000 bequest gift from the estate of Dorothy Krause. This generous contribution is a great example of the support and interest the Fine Arts Foundation is generating upon the launch of its Capital Campaign.

Donations to the Campaign "Building the Future, Bridging Communities" can be sent to the Fine Arts Foundation of the Westby Area, P.O. Box 362, Coon Valley, WI 54623. For more information about the foundation, contact Adrian Hendrickson, president, at (608) 634-2152.

September 20, 2007 - P.T. and Marilyn Bland making an honorary difference

The Fine Arts Foundation of the Westby area has announced that Dr. P.T. and Marilyn Bland, of Westby, have been named honorary chairs for the foundation.

The Blands have resided in Westby since 1953 when Dr. P.T. Bland opened an office in the community and began a family practice, a practice he remained dedicated to until September of 2006, when he retired from the day-to-day schedule at the age of 83.

The Blands have no intention of leaving the area and remain committed to a place they call home. They raised four children, Susan, Bruce, Robert and Sarah, all of whom graduated from Westby Area High School. Retirement has allowed the Blands more time to spend spoiling their seven grandchildren and lone great-grandchild. The Blands were honored to be asked to chair the fine arts foundation auditorium project. They have a devote interest in the arts and love classical and jazz music. They've attended numerous musicals and concerts through the years in the gymnasium of the high school and realize how important it is to the school district of Westby and all surrounding communities that would be able to utilize the benefits of an auditorium where talent can truly be displayed in a suitable setting.

"Marilyn and I have been blessed by having the privilege of living in this community for the past 55 years. We have personally seen the rewards through our children and grandchildren. A performing arts center is a wonderful opportunity to make a better place for generations to come. It is our hope that the Westby community and the surrounding area will help in joining others to make this happen," Dr. P.T. Bland said.

The Blands understand the hard work and dedication it takes to make a dream become a reality. In 1953, the year Dr. Bland moved to the community, a flu epidemic struck the region and he found himself making more house calls in a single day, than most doctors made in a month. He said he thought about quitting thinking to himself it shouldn't be this hard, but his dedication to the community and the people he was servicing kept him grounded and a valuable member of the community ever since.

Bland may consider himself retired, but like a project which requires overseeing from start to finish, he still stops by the clinic a few days a week with treats for the employees and a chance to reminisce about old times with some of his old patients. He even admitted to making a few house calls yet, a trait unheard of in the modern medical world and especially by a doctor who's supposedly retired.

The hardest part about retirement is not seeing patients who I've cared for throughout my entire career. I relied on them as much as they relied on me. I stopped by Norseland Nursing Home recently and it was like old home week. It's in my blood, it's my back which just isn't up to the task," Bland said.

Bland has suffered from numerous back problems ever since he fell while moving snow in Jan. 2006 while preparing for the Snowflake Ski Jump, an event and sport which is near and dear to his heart. During the fall he received a compression fracture, which wasn't discovered until a later date. The injury led to a series of further back problems forcing him to retire from the daily grind of seeing patients when he could no longer provide the level of medical care he prided himself on doing due to a lack of balance he now suffers from when he stands or walks without the aid of a pair of canes.

Bland is thankful that his disability doesn't cause him excruciating pain and it has forced him to the realization that although along with the wisdom one gains with age, it also has its down side when it comes to the medical world and the degree to which one can be healed as they age.

The Blands are just pleased that the business he built through the years has grown and prospered and remained in the community. Dr. Bland sold his practice to Vernon Memorial Healthcare in 1994, but remained a physician in the clinic and his name remains attached to the business.

Although he's still learning to be the patient from the clinical stand point, he stays closely involved with the medical field including being the VMH medical advisor for hospice, on numerous medical boards and is the chief engineer on the USSA Ski Jumping committee.

Dr. Bland spends much of his free time working on the computer, doing crossword puzzles in the New York Times, visiting family and reading books with his wife.

Marilyn has been a caretaker all her life and is still adjusting to Dr. Bland being retired, but after 62 years of marriage they both admit it's nice to be able to find time for each other without having to make an appointment.

The Blands hope to use some of their free time working with the fine arts foundation to jump-start a project they believe the community and surrounding area needs and would truly appreciate having if everything falls into place and the auditorium is constructed.

"This area is blessed with immensely talented actors and musicians. It would be wonderful accomplishment if Westby and the surrounding communities could join forces and develop a building which could display the degree of talent we know exists right here," Marilyn Bland said.

July 26, 2007 - Westby Area Fine Arts Foundation preparing to launch campaign

The Fine Arts Foundation of the Westby Area is ready to launch a major fund-raising campaign after years of hard work and the dedication of a small group of volunteers who believe the entire region would benefit greatly from the construction of a performing arts center locally.

Out-going president Kim Tainter, and incoming president Adrian Hendrickson, have remained focused on the development of a performing arts center since the fine arts foundation was founded in 2000 and became incorporated in 2001.

The current board including Hendrickson, Tainter, Kathy Erlandson, Karen Rude, Curt Moe, Mike Snustead, Mary Christenson, Dan Diehl, Karen Traastad and Sue Walby hired a campaign specialist, Frank Boras, to jump-start the capital fund-raising efforts for the construction of the performing arts center, which is scheduled to begin before the end the month.

The foundation has been working to identify a number of potential donors who they are hoping will find it in their hearts and wallets to boost the fine arts center's capital campaign into full gear over the next few months. The foundation hopes to persuade a financially secure individual, or individuals, who may wish to leave a legacy of themselves behind for the community and other communities to enjoy for years to come, through the construction and possible naming rights of a performing arts facility, into donating a larger sum of money to get the project off the ground.

The foundation currently has $50,000 in the bank, raised through fund-raising and memorial donations for the development of a 550-seat performing arts center. Construction of the center is expected to near $4 million dollars before its completion, a cost which continues to increase the longer the project is delayed.

An initial auditorium was part of a proposed school district expansion asking taxpayers to construct a new school and auditorium. The auditorium portion of the project was removed entirely from the school expansion plans after a failed referendum and funding is now being sought privately by volunteers who don't want to see the project fade away, due to a shortage of taxpayer money to fund the project.

"Support for the project has been good, but it's going to take a larger investment to get the project in full swing. We're truly hoping someone out there wants to leave a legacy behind and this would be the perfect opportunity," committee member Moe said last week.

The foundation is often asked a number of questions regarding the construction of a performing arts center. The committee maintains the center is needed to strengthen arts-related activities for area schools and surrounding communities who could utilize a building to hold concerts, theater shows, music camps, festivals, and gallery presentations. They believe the center would provide a viable place in the community and would attract families and tourism to the area.

"This wouldn't just be for Westby events. It would be available to rent to all surrounding communities who need a facility to host a special fine arts event," Tainter said. The center would be constructed on school property, which was donated to the foundation for future development of a performing arts center.  It would adjoin the new Westby Middle School on one side and extend toward the current district offices. The site has already been prepared for the addition with duct work, electrical, plumbing access and parking space availability.

Once the center is constructed it would be gifted to the Westby Area School District, that would handle maintenance and upkeep of the building through a sustaining endowment fund established to support the facility. The endowment fund would remove any financial burden from the school district budget, making the facility self-sufficient. Westby Area Schools would have first priority reserving the building for special events, after which availability of open dates would be on a first-come, first-served basis for civic organizations and other school districts throughout the area to reserve space for their special events.

"We believe the need is there to develop a performing arts center and we hope everyone in the community and surrounding communities supports the efforts so we can move forward with a very worthwhile project," Moe said. Donations for the proposed construction can be sent to Fine Arts Foundation of the Westby Area, P.O. Box 362, Coon Valley, Wisc, 54623 or call Adrian Hendrickson at 608-634-2152 for more information.

The foundation is planning to keep people informed of the performing arts center progress through a monthly newspaper column in the Westby Times. Watch for the first installment in late August or early September of this year.

The Fine Arts Foundation of the Westby Area is an arts organization dedicated to artistic excellence, providing multicultural programming with a distinctive, learning-centered focus for the diverse surrounding communities.