Community does matter...

​In Union Grove, Wisconsin there are two great organizations serving students with intellectual disabilities, Shepherds College and Shepherds Ministries. In fact, Shepherds College is the country’s leading three-year post-secondary educational program.  It’s a little gem hidden in this small Wisconsin village of 5,000 people.  I can tell you first hand that it’s a special place, with dedicated employees and great leadership.   The Village of Union Grove is very fortunate to have this remarkable place located here.

If you have a moment, I’d like to tell you a story about a Shepherds College student named Tony, and one of our Market Presidents at Community State Bank named Neil.

It’s a well-known fact in Union Grove that Tony spends much of his free time picking up aluminum cans around town.  He rides his bike from spot to spot collecting all the cans he can find.  An employee at CSB found out about Tony and his can collecting, and told Neil about it.  The employee told Neil that he saves and smashes all his cans, and that he currently had 2 full bags of cans in his garage. The employee asked Neil if he thought Tony might want them.

On a recent Sunday afternoon, Neil and his Dad showed up with their trailer and picked up the cans.  Now this isn’t that unusual, except that Neil was giving up some cherished family time, and time away from work to do this.  He gave the cans to Tony, and Tony sold them for $50.

However, the story doesn’t end there.  As I said, Tony spends a lot of his free time doing this.  You might be thinking that Tony does this for personal gain as I did. I was wrong.  Tony works diligently collecting the cans, and he donates the money he gets to his favorite place… Shepherds Ministries.  Tony is one of many people living at Shepherds with a heart bigger than Lake Michigan.
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When you get a chance today, do something nice for someone.  When you do that, think about Neil and Tony.

Want to learn more?
Check out the podcast we did with Dr. William Amstutz, President of Shepherds Ministries. [Click to listen]