Join us at our annual dinner to send kids from One Illinois Foster home to summer camp in beautiful northern Wisconsin, Camp Manitowish! Last year was a record!

EVENT SUMMARY!!!

12 years ago, the Jefferson Sportsman Society sent its first SOS youngsters to Camp Manitowish. Some easy math puts those first ‘graduates’ at 24-27 years old now. One wonders what influences that experience may have had in those formative years to the present. Hopefully they still embrace the camps values “to grow in wisdom, in stature, in favor with God and one another”. Maybe they went deep into what they had been exposed to and are active in outdoor adventures. Or at least look back in reflection of the friendships that had been made and what a little camp smoke in the eyes or a northern WI mosquito swarm is like. Hard to think that the richness of the camp adventure – or exposure to the outdoors would not have had some impact on a youngster. FYI, outdoor recreation is 2.2% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), comparatively with total alcohol at 1.65%. JSS uniquely combines the two!

Let’s do the numbers.

TOTAL DOLLARS RAISED           $18,483             A new record!! HUGE!!

# of dinner attendees                  40

Average $ per attendee                             $462

#1 Auction Item                            GA Fishing Charter (Capt. C. Leger and Eric Lis)

# of Silent Auction Items           +40

# of Live Auction Items               5

Largest donation                          $2,000

Impact on youngsters                 Immeasurable

A big thanks to the organizers and donors who gave much time and resources to make the event memorable. A hat tip to Claudio and Lucca Osteria for a beautiful meal and setting. All who attended we hope to see you at future events for the kids and a dash of debauchery.

Join us at wonderful Lucca Osteria!

RECAP OF EVENT

Members and Supporters,

It is with much appreciation that we send this note for your support of the Jefferson Sportsman Society and its recent fundraiser. It was no doubt a huge success and may even have set a record. That record was almost $15,000 after expenses.

Importantly, with your tremendous support, we immediately donated $5,000 to Camp Manitowish that was part of a matching grant. This year’s contribution will support over 12 foster children from SOS Villages to attend camp in summer 2024 and in addition 2 Family Camps will visit Camp Manitowish.

The balance, $10k, is being used to enable the JSS, and its generous supporters, to fund camperships in perpetuity with an endowment. This major step forward can positively affect the lives of many children for so many years to come.

As we reflect on our shared success, 12 years fundraising and 112 camperships, one cannot feel more excited for the future of this triad – SOS Villages, Camp Manitowish and the Jefferson Sportsman Society.

None of this would have been possible without the JSS members, the active supporters, and our shared mission in loving memory of Chris Bacigalupo.

On behalf of all those kids…THANK YOU!

The Jefferson Sportsman Society

Celebrate with us for 10 years of sending kids to Camp Manitowish!

Significant achievement!!

On April 1 we hosted the annual fundraising event on Crowdcast and concluded our fundraising for the camp year 2021. What an outstanding contribution from members – again. With the generosity of many on the live video event – and those contributing in cash or in sweeps ticket sales, The Jefferson Sportsman Society will be sending 7 foster children to Camp Manitowish this summer. Camp Manitowish matched JSS dollars, so again we essentially doubled the funds – and kids – for camp.

Attending this year will be 2 boys and 5 girls along with a special ‘Family Camp’ of 3 adults, 4 youth and 2 children. The family camp is a 6-day session nested between the two 3-week sessions during this summer. The family camp has the family embrace the opportunities and beauty of the northern woods of Wisconsin.

There were many high points and laughs of the evening, but special thanks to those that donated prizes for live and silent auctions. Those items included American Flags made of bourbon barrel staves (Bryan Adorjan), two-night stay at Camp Manitowish (Camp Manitowish), Fenix Watch (Bryan Frechette) and a Gibson’s Dinner with wine (Gibson’s, Jordan, Far Niente, MoetUSA). As a note, the Gibson’s dinner with accompanying wine raised over $1,600!

Overall, there were 21 silent auction items along with a .410 O/U, 12 O/U and .38 in sweeps that complimented the evening and fundraising effort.

Additionally, member Danny Romano will be hosting (auction) a “10 on 40” party this summer at his house on the lakefront. Stay tuned for date and details.

Special thanks to Bridget Albert who set the tone for a virtual cocktail with the JSS’ signature cocktail, ‘The Bullseye’! Great fun and a wonderful refreshment.

I would like to thank all the Directors for all they do and for dedicating time to make the event special.

Dave Mayo (auctioneer), Bryan Frechette (MN), John Hudoba, Hayley Cameron (Trivia), Matt Marani, Katia Budinski (setup!), Perry DiGirolamo, Brian Hadley, and Julie Vierkandt.

To ‘update’ Perry DiGirolamo’s closing remarks, the JSS has now been responsible for 72 children going to camp, 47 of whom were foster children!!

The JSS

THIS EVENT HAS BEEN COMPLETED - STAY TUNED FOR UPCOMING EVENTS AND NEXT YEARS CHARITY DINNER!