April 2013

Doris Virgens’ Estate

Shelley Krahmer, John Edman, Traci Lardy, Dr. Pat Bacon

Doris Virgens was 95 years old when her sister and life-

long housemate Rosine got sick and had to go to the lo-

cal hospital.

The care her sister received from the nurses at Mayo

Clinic Health System in her last days made an impression

on Virgens, according to her attorney, John Edman.

After Virgens died in 2012 at the age of 97, her will re-

vealed just how much it meant to her. Edman presented

two local organizations with estate gifts from Virgens on

Friday morning - $425,000 for FCH Foundation and

$425,000 for Presentation College.

Edman said Virgens lived a humble life, sharing her home

with her sister.

"They lived a conservative life just off Blue Earth Ave-

nue," Edmund said.

When Rosine died, Virgens began to consider what she

would like done with her estate, since neither of the two

had children. Edman said she wanted to donate her es-

tate to a local organization, for local use. He gave her a

list of organizations to consider, and she thought long and

hard about it.

"She called me one day and said she was ready," he said.

"She said nursing students really have a hard time finan-

cially because they are busy with their school work, espe-

cially third-year students."

The observation surprised Edman, who said he didn't be-

lieve Virgens had any personal connection to any nurses

or nursing students - outside her experience taking her

sister to Mayo near the end of her life.

"I think that is where it first started," he said. "Sometimes

you don't realize how little things make a difference to

people. People must have treated her nice. It made a big

impression on her."

Dr. Pat Fahey Bacon, director of the nursing program at

Presentation College's Fairmont campus, is moved by the

kindness Virgens must have experienced at the hands of

nurses.

"It touches me that the nurses touched her," she

said.

The estate gifts were given with no restriction, other

than a request that the funds stay in the area and

help the nursing program at Presentation.

Shelly Krahmer, president of FCH Foundation, said

the gift will be added to the group's endowment

fund.

"Her gift will go on forever," she noted.

Presentation College, Fairmont campus, director

Traci Lardy said the funds are Presentation's first

estate gift, and the college is in the process of de-

ciding how it will best be used.

Edman acknowledged he was surprised when Vir-

gens chose Presentation College, a relatively new

organization in the area.

"We are still new," Lardy said. "A lot of people don't

know we have a 501(c)3 (non-profit) status. We

hope people will realize it does help us."

Krahmer and Lardy recognized the connection be-

tween the organizations listed on the will.

"We train the nurses," said Lardy, "and [they] em-

ploy them."

"This is an incredible gift that between the organiza-

tions we can really honor," Krahmer added.

** This article was written by the Kylie Saari, staff writer for the Fairmont

Sentinel. Permission was given to use this article in this newsletter.

April 2013 Fairmont Campus Newsletter Page 2

PC Nursing Students

Elected to Office On February 23, 2013 the Minnesota Student

Nurses Association (SNA) held their annual

convention. Presentation College Junior nursing

class attended the convention at the St. Paul

College in St. Paul, MN. Two Presentation

College students ran for office and were elected

as board members.

Emily Guggemos was elected Southern

Regional Director, which entails being a valu-

able resource for student nurses.

Christina Wagner was elected Breakthrough

to Nursing Director, which includes represent-

ing student nurses and facilitating growth and

development of the nursing field.

They are working together to get a formal chapter

of Minnesota SNA at Presentation College in

Fairmont. They are very excited to be a part of

Minnesota SNA and look forward to representing

our College.

Siri Heille, nursing faculty, stated the that stu-

dents truly enjoyed this day, even though it meant

an early day on the road. The following student

sent this email thanking PC for this opportunity!

"I just wanted to tell you how AWESOME yester-day was. I really do appreciate PC or you or who-ever made us go to this. On the way up I REALLY didn't want to go (it was way too early in the a.m. and a Saturday). But after experiencing it, I hope you continue to force the Juniors to go. I think it might also be beneficial to sophomores so they see how it works and then there junior year they can bring their resumes and what not. Any-way, just wanted to say thank you! I really learned a lot and it renewed my nursing school motivation!"

Congratulations Christina and Emily!! We

know you will represent Presentation College

very well!!

Presentation College Fairmont Campus

Junior Nursing Class

April 2013 Fairmont Campus Newsletter Page 3

PC Baseball Ending

Era at Metrodome Mark Your Calendars

Classes Resume April 2

Last Day of Classes April 26

Finals Week April 29

— May 2

Commencement Practice May 3

In Aberdeen

Mass/Commencement May 4

In Aberdeen

Fairmont Pinning & Recognition May 6

Presentation College’s baseball team recently

made the news on WCCO. Click on this link to

view the teams’ time and history at the Metrodome.

Go Saints!!

http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2013/03/09/after-30-years-college-baseball-to-end-at-dome/

Financial Aid Office

to Visit Fairmont

“If spring came but once a century

Instead of once a year,

Or burst forth with the sound of an earthquake

And not in silence,

What wonder and expectation there would be

in all hearts

To behold the miraculous change?”

April 2013 Fairmont Campus Newsletter Page 4

1. Student volunteers are needed for the 2013

Fairmont Campus Pinning & Recognition Cere-

mony. Volunteers are needed to assist in greet-

ing guests, handing out programs, and etc. It

will be held on Monday, May 6th at 7:00 p.m. at

the Fairmont High School Performing Arts Cen-

ter (900 Johnson Street, Fairmont).

The program starts at 7:00 p.m. and we should

conclude by 8:30 p.m. We will need a total of 8

volunteers and your time commitment would be

from 6:15—8:30 p.m..

Please email Susan Barnes if you are interest-

ed. This event can be used for your volunteer

hours.

2. Special Olympics is coming to the Fairmont area. If you would like to be involved and coach, this is a wonderful way to give back to the community.

Please contact Jamie Urban the coordinator for this event for more information and volunteer

packets. Thanks. jurbanspeco@hotmail.com

3. The Martin County Historical Society needs help preparing their spring newsletter for mailing:

Tuesday, April 16, 2013 9:00 a.m. Pioneer Museum Usually takes about 60 to 90 minutes Coffee, soft drinks and rolls will be available

Please contact me at my e-mail address below or at 235-5178 if you can help.

Lenny Tvedten Executive Director Martin County Historical Society 304 E. Blue Earth Ave. lennymch@frontiernet.net

Opportunities to

Give Back

It’s Getting Closer;

Graduation!!!

Presentation College’s commencement prac-tice will be held at 2:00 pm on Friday, May 3

rd, 2013 and the commencement ceremony

will be held at 2:00 pm on Saturday, May 4th,

2013 in the Strode Activity Center on the Aberdeen Campus, preceded by Mass in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel in the Main Building at 11:00 am.

Presentation College Fairmont Campus will recognize their 2013 graduating students on Monday, May 6 at 7 PM. A Pinning and Recognition Ceremony is being planned at the Fairmont High School auditorium.

A slideshow with pictures featuring the seniors will be played that night. If you have appropriate pictures of you and other graduating Fairmont Campus students, e-mail those to Traci Lardy by April 15.

Presentation College Fairmont Campus

2012 Graduates

April 2013 Fairmont Campus Newsletter Page 5

After surviving a 36 hour bus ride, we finally arrived in

New Orleans. We traveled to Camp Restore and on our

second day we headed out to A.R.C. to help the employ-

ees there recycle used Mardi Gras beads. It turns out;

tons of beads get thrown out every year, beads that do

not break down in landfills, so this organization collects

and resells them.

After our volunteer work for the day was completed, we

were free to go out and explore the city. We explored the

French Quarter and wandered Bourbon Street. There

were street performers on every corner and multiple plac-

es where people were eager to read your palms and tarot

cards. Everyone made sure to stop at Café Du Monde to

eat beignets and coffee.

On our third day in New Orleans, we headed out to the

Rescue Ranch. The staff there rehabilitates and rescues

horses after hurricanes. They also take in horses that

were surrendered by their owners. We spent the morning

at the Ranch mucking out stalls, walking horses, and

grooming the animals. Some of the horses housed there

are adopted, while others are used for therapy and after

school programs. At the Rescue Ranch, what they did

was truly amazing and the devotion they had for helping

troubled youth was inspiring.

On day 4 we headed to Los Isleños Museum at St. Ber-

nard. The museum focused mostly on the Native Ameri-

can and Spanish culture within Louisiana. While at the

museum we helped the grounds keepers set up huts

made of sticks, rope, and palm leaves. During our down-

time we were able to learn about the culture, take part in

the raccoon dance, play games, and explore the muse-

um.

After leaving the museum we set out for a guided swamp

tour. The swamp was beautiful and full of wildlife; such

as a three foot alligator, various turtles, and a wide varie-

ty of native birds. Our tour guide was locally raised, so he

was able to point out many unique attractions within the

swamp.

New Orleans Trip of

a Lifetime

My fifth day in New Orleans was spent helping the

homeless at Lantern Light. Lantern Light is an or-

ganization based in New Orleans with goals of help-

ing the less fortunate by providing meals, aiding with

shelter, and helping with medical expenses. Volun-

teers at Lantern Light can expect to prepare emer-

gency groceries, prepare meals, and offer social

interaction. Lantern Light was founded by the

Presentation College Sisters and is located behind

St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. Seeing the Sisters

work is truly inspiring, their kindness and dedication

has helped countless people.

Overall the experience was eye opening. To see a

culture affected by natural disaster come together to

work towards the well being of its community is truly

awe inspiring. The feeling of self worth one receives

from volunteering to help those less fortunate than

oneself is paramount. I would recommend this

course to all of you. Our time there was short and

there is much more to be done.

Article written by: Naomi Posivio, PC student

April 2013 Fairmont Campus Newsletter Page 6

B14...BINGO!

On Wednesday, March 13th PCAL organized

BINGO at the Knights of Columbus. Presenta-tion College students arrived at the KC hall in PC attire. Many students purchased BINGO playing cards, ranging from $5 to $14. The more the BINGO card cost, the more games there were to win at for each BINGO drawing. The prizes ranged from $25 to over $700. The big winner from Presentation College was Jessi-ca Nowicki, winning over $50. BINGO can be played every Wednesday at the KC Hall, 920 East 10

th Street starting at 7PM.

Pizza’s Popular Periods

What are the top 5 pizza sale days:

(don’t peek at the answers below)

1. Super Bowl Sunday 2. New Year’s Eve 3. Halloween 4. The night before Thanksgiving 5. New Year’s Day

April 2013 Fairmont Campus Newsletter Page 7

Presentation College’s newest honor society for students and faculty recently announced its charter members. The Board of Trustees for Pi Gamma Mu – International Honor Society in So-cial Sciences formally accepted Presentation College’s charter application beginning the fall 2012 semester. Charter members of the South Dakota Zeta Chapter of Pi Gamma Mu include Elizabeth Blankenfeld (Aurora, SD), Sarah Nich-ols-Caballero (Fairmont, MN), Latonya Gage (Aberdeen, SD), Stacie Gerhardt (Fairmont, MN), Lyla Moore (Sioux Falls, SD), Timi Wil-liams (Eagle Butte, SD), and Shobi Zetina (Agency Village, SD). In addition, charter facul-ty members are Stacie Shaw and Dr. Brad Ten-nant.

Membership in Pi Gamma Mu is open to quali-fied undergraduate and graduate students and faculty members involved in the social sciences. To qualify for membership, a student must have junior, senior, or graduate standing, be in the top 35 percent of the class, have a “B” or better average in at least 20 semester hours of history, political science, sociology, anthropology, eco-nomics, international relations, criminal justice, social work, psychology, social philosophy, his-tory of education, and human/cultural geogra-phy.

Pi Gamma Mu, founded in 1924, now has nearly 250,000 members at 150 chapters located at colleges and universities in the United States and abroad. The purpose of the Society is to encourage academic excellence in the social sciences.

PC Honor Society

Announces Charter

Members

Celebration of Lent

and Easter at PC On Thursday, March 21

st Presentation College

students took part in the annual Lent and Easter Celebration service. The Service con-sisted of several songs and readings. After each reading students placed palm branches, a towel and basin, a chalice, bread, a gavel, a rooster, a crown of thorns, a pair of dice, and nails around the cross. Each item had special symbolism that told the story of Lent and East-er. After the service, students were asked to pound their nails into the cross. The service had a fantastic turn out and the pot luck after wards was a definite success.