After Tim Decorah retired from his 29-year teaching career with the Waunakee Community School District, his former principal found him a job that met all of his criteria. 

It allowed him to continue working with kids and being involved with the community. And, when he left teaching, he never wanted to “have to answer to a bell.”

As project coordinator of the Waunakee Community Cares Coalition (WCCC), Tim is able to concentrate on making Waunakee a healthier place for youths by creating awareness and prevention of alcohol and substance abuse, and shining a light on mental health. As he spoke to the Waunakee Rotary Club at the Sept. 19 meeting, he described fostering a healthy and resilient community. 

Tim introduced himself to the club. He is from Wisconsin Dells amd grew up in a close-knit Ho-Chunk family as a member of the Ho-Chunk nation. In college, he played basketball under Coach Bo Ryan at UW-Platteville. 

Tim and his wife have three grown children and two grandchildren.

Tim also talked about his own resilience and recovery from an anxiety disorder he had struggled with throughout his life. 

That recovery began in 2021 after he had missed about 10 days of work, and was “checked out mentally,” Tim said. 

He recalled sitting at home  in a chair in late December with his face in his hands, his heart racing, and feeling sweaty. Two co-workers came to the door to check on him, but he didn’t answer and they left. When he picked up his cell phone, he saw one had called and he texted three words: “I need help,” he said. 

His co-workers returned and gave him numbers to call for help to begin his recovery from an anxiety disorder. He said that anxiety served him well as an athlete and a coach, but not as a teacher and in life overall. 

Tim’s life has been transformed since then, He is now a public speaker, sharing his story of recovery and raising awareness of mental health. He is also beginning to do podcasts. 

Tim said he loved his 29 years of teaching and the community, and is happy to be the WCCC coordinator. 

“I have always wanted to belong to something, to represent something, and now I can continue doing that,” he said. 

He noted that WCCC tries to get representation from 12 sectors of the community. It is funded through a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Drug Free Communities, with all the work falling under the umbrella of prevention, awareness and mental health. 

The grants have a 5-year lifespan, and the end of the first 5-year window is near. In January, WCCC will apply for years 6-10, and after year 10, WCCC will be on its own and will need a sustainable funding source. Tim said WCCC could use help with grant writing for this next round. 

WCCC’s provides a number of community programs, including:

-a keynote speaker for homecoming.

-Drug Take-back Day, when community members can safely dispose of any unused prescription and over-the-counter medications.

-funding for security and scanners at Waunakee festival beer tents. 

-an April speaker series on mental health awareness and substance abuse prevention. 

WCCC also collaborates with community organizations such as the school district, the Waunakee Rotary Club and Waunakee Neighborhood Connection. It is also 100% data driven, with numbers to measure progress. 

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Other News: 

-Wauktoberfest is history and was a roaring success, according to several volunteer organizers and bean counters. President Phil Willems reported that the kettle corn sales saw a net profit of $337, wine bar net profit was $1067 with $329 in tips. The beer tent tips totaled $41,000

Al Dassow said a lot of sweat went into the weekend with a lot of people involved. The beer tent cash sales were about $52,000 up from about $42,000 last year. That’s just cash sales. 

Other profits were seen from the ticket book for the pumpkins, goats and other activities. 

“In general, it was a fantastic weekend,” Al said, noting that invoices were up about 7% but the sales matched that. 

-Food for Kidz will be at Dane Manufacturing this year. 

Guests: Kyla Jensen, guest of Don Tierney; Connor LaMarche, guest of Tracy Greiber; Rotary exchange students Francisco Alvarez and Carmella Delgado. 

Visiting Rotarians: None

Birthdays: Sept. 30, John Cullen

Anniversaries: Sept. 28, Peggy and Bob Acker-Farber

Greeters: Sept. 26, Jean Elvekrog and Robert Arntz; Oct. 3, Chris Zellner and Todd Schmidt. 

To sign up to greet or to find out if you are greeting, visit: 

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/805054CAAAA2CA7F85-44320149-2023#/