Lake Country Weekend Post

2 • LAKE COUNTRY POST • AUGUST 1, 2015 GMTODAY.COM HEALTH Chudnow Museum of Yesteryear, open 10–4pm Wed.–Sat., noon–4pm Sun., 839 N. 11th St., Milwaukee. $5 adults, $4 seniors & students, free for children under 6. 414-273-1680 or www.chudnowmuseum.org Dousman Stagecoach Inn Museum, 1–4pm 1st & 3rd Sun. of each month, 1075 Pilgrim Pkwy, Brookfield. $5 adults, $2 children ages 6–12, $3 seniors, free for chil- dren 5 & under. www.elm- brookhistoricalsociety.org O'Brien/Crites Field Avi- ation Museum, 7am–9pm daily, Crites Field terminal, 2525 Aviation Dr, Waukesha. Free, donations accepted. 262-549-0472. Commemorative Air Force Wisconsin Wing, dedicated to restoring World War II aircraft to flying condition, 9–2pm Sat., Northview Rd. (east of Waukesha County Expo Cen- ter), Waukesha. 262-547-1775. Octagon House, 10–4pm daily, 919 Charles St., Water- town. 920-261-2796. "Palmyra Answers the Call in World War II" & "One Hundred Years of Aviation in Palmyra," 10–2pm Sat., Palmyra Histor- ical Society, Turner Muse- um, downtown Palmyra. 262-495-4245. Betty Brinn Children's Museum, hands-on museum for children 10 & younger & their families, 9–5pm Tues.–Sat. & noon–5pm Sun.; closed Mon., 929 E. Wiscon- sin Ave., Milwaukee. $5 per person or free for museum members & children 1 & younger. 414-291-0888. Discovery World Muse- um, Museum of Science, Economics & Technology, 9–4pm Tues.–Fri., 10–5pm Sat. & Sun., 815 N. James Lovell St., Milwaukee. Adults $7, seniors $6, stu- dents $4.75, children 2 & younger free. 414-765-9966. Milwaukee Public Muse- um, 9–5pm every day, except open to 8pm Thurs., 800 W. Wells St., Milwaukee; $17 adults, $14 seniors, college students & active military with ID, $12 youth (5-13), chil- dren 4 & younger, free. 414- 278-2700 or 414-278-2728. Pabst Mansion, restored 19th-century mansion, fea- turing exhibits of Victorian dolls, a dollhouse & orna- mental artifacts, 10–3:30pm Mon.–Sat. & noon–3:30pm Sun., 2000 W. Wisconsin Ave., Milwaukee. Adults $8, seniors 65 & older $6, chil- dren 6–17 $3. 414-931-0808. Milwaukee Art Museum, 10–5pm Tues., Wed., Fri., Sat. & Sun., 10–8pm Thurs., 700 N. Art Museum Dr., Milwaukee. $12 adults, $10 students, seniors & active military, free for children 12 & under. 414-224-3200. Mitchell Gallery of Flight, 6am–10pm daily, Gen. Mitchell International Airport, 5300 S. Howell Ave., Milwaukee. 414-747-5300. Haggerty Museum of Art, Marquette University, 530 N. 13th St., Milwaukee. 414- 288-7290. "Hard-Hat Restoration Tours," ongoing, Historic Indian Agency House, Agency House Rd., Portage. 608-742-6362. Clark House Museum, 7–9pm Wed. & by appoint- ment, 206 E. Wisconsin Ave., Pewaukee. 262-691-0233. Honey of a Museum Tours, 9–3:30pm Mon.–Fri., Honey Acres, N1557 Hwy 67, town of Ashippun. 920- 474-4411. "Front Lines" Speaker Series, 10:30am Sun., Oak- wood Church, 3041 Oakwood Rd., Hartland. 262-367-1212 or tracy@oakwoodnow.org "Windows to Understand- ing" Lecture Series, 1pm 3rd Mon. of the month, Olive Wood Theatre at Tudor Oaks Retirement Communi- ty, S77-W12929 McShane Dr., Muskego. Free. 414-529-0100. National Council for Geocosmic Research Orga- nization, 6pm 4th Mon. of the month, Wauwatosa Lions Club, 7336 St. James Ave., Wauwatosa. $7 & $10. 920-474-7404. Waukesha Toastmasters Club No. 1173 Meetings, 6:30–8:30pm the 2nd & 4th Thurs. of the month at the Goodwill Community Center, Conference Room, 1400 Nike Dr., Waukesha. The public is welcome. w w w. w a u ke s h a - t o a s t m a s - ters.com Free Lectures to Improve Your Life through Cre- ative Use of Your Mind, 11am Sun., Spiritual Living Center of Greater Milwau- kee, Marian Center for Non-profits, 3211 S. Lake Dr., Milwaukee. 414-327-7849 or visit www.rsgm.net Survivors of Suicide, 7–9pm 3rd Mon. of the month, National Alliance for the Mentally Ill Waukesha, 217 Wisconsin Ave., Waukesha. 262-524-8886. Al Anon Meetings, 7pm Mon., Fox River Congrega- tional Church Parish House, N34-W23575 Capitol Dr., City of Pewaukee. 262-695-9695. Tai Chi Fundamentals, 9:30–10:30am Mon., Regency - Muskego, W181-S8540 Lodge Blvd., Muskego. 262-679-0888. Diabetes Support Group, 6:30–8pm 2nd Mon. of the month, Community Memori- al Hospital, W180-N8085 Town Hall Rd., Menomonee Falls. 262-251-1000. Breast Cancer Support Group, 6:30–8pm 4th Mon. of the month, Community Memorial Hospital, W180-N8085 Town Hall Rd., Menomonee Falls. 262-251-1000. Crohns & Colitis Support Group, 7pm 2nd Mon. of the month, Froedtert Hospital, 9200 W. Wisconsin Ave., Wauwatosa. 414-475-5520. Divorced & Separated Support Group, 7:15–9:15pm Tues., First Congregational Church, 100 E. Broadway, Waukesha. 262-547-5567. Arthritis Information Seminar Sponsored by Doctors Speakers Bureau, 6:30–7:30pm 1st Tues. of the month, Wellness Center, 1720 Dolphin Dr., Waukesha. 262- 832-8888. "In-Law Relationships," 7pm 1st & 3rd Tues. of the month, St. John Vianney Church, 1755 N. Calhoun Rd., Brookfield. 262-796-3942. "When a Parent Dies," 7–8:30pm 1st & 3rd Tues. of the month, Good Shepherd Catholic Church, N88-W17568 Christman Rd., Menomonee Falls. Register by calling Careconnection at 262-251-1001. Women's Health Semi- nars, 6:30–7:30pm 2nd Tues. of the month, Community Memorial Hospital, W180- N8085 Town Hall Rd., Menomonee Falls. $15 per seminar. Register by calling Careconnection at 262-251- 1001 or 800-246-8332. CPAP (Sleep Apnea Sup- port Group Sponsored by the Regional Sleep Disor- der Center), 6:30–8pm 4th Tues. of the month, Commu- nity Memorial Hospital, W180-N8085 Town Hall Rd., Menomonee Falls. 262-251-1000. Attention Deficit Hyper- activity Disorder Support Group, 7:30pm 3rd Tues. of the month, Community Con- ference Center, Wisconsin Athletic Club, 8700 W. Water- town Plank Rd., Wauwatosa. 414-299-9442. Face-to-Face with Fathers, 6:30–8pm 3rd Wed. of the month, Parents Place, 1570 E. Moreland Blvd., Waukesha. 262-549-5575. Anxiety & Panic Disorder Support Group, 6:30–8:30pm every other Wed., First Con- gregational Church, 100 E. Broadway, Waukesha. 262- 567-0788. Family to Family Support Group, 6:30pm 2nd Wed. of the month, National Alliance for the Mentally Ill Wauke- sha, 217 Wisconsin Ave., Waukesha. 262-524-4256. Obsessive-Compulsive Dis- order Support Group, 7– 8:30pm 2nd Wed. of the month, First United Methodist Church, 121 Wisconsin Ave., Waukesha. 262-542-4256. "Parenting Young Chil- dren" Support Group, 9:30– 11:30am Wed., The Women's Center, 425 N. East Ave., Waukesha. 262-547-4600. Greater Milwaukee Area Multiple Myeloma Support Group, 4–5:30pm 4th Wed. of the month, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, 4125 N. 124th St. Unit A, Brookfield. 262-790-4701, Ext. 103. Communication/Leader- ship Club, 6:30–8pm 1st & 3rd Wed. of the month, Pewau- kee Public Library, 210 Main St., Pewaukee. 414-543-4813. Wauwatosa Community Jazz Band, 2pm Aug. 2, Peck Pavilion at the Marcus Cen- ter, 929 N. Water St., Milwau- kee. Free. 414-273-7206 or www.marcuscenter.org Keb' Mo', 8pm Aug., 5, Northern Lights Theater, 1721 W. Canal St., Milwaukee. $39, $44, $49. 414-847-7922 or www.paysbig.com On and On, 8pm Aug. 20, Turner Hall, 1040 N. 4th St., Milwaukee. $10. 414-286-3663 or www.pabsttheater.org CALENDAR By Eric Oliver Enterprise Staff OCONOMOWOC — In a society spending an increasing amount of time indoors away from nature, Rogers Memorial Hospital is taking steps to expand its cutting-edge horticulture therapy pro- gram. The hospital is set to finish construction on its new therapy garden this fall. It'll feature numer- ous raised beds, a year- round greenhouse and plants galore. The garden will be used to bolster the efforts of a growing hor- ticultural therapy depart- ment. Melanie Hammer and Kelly Cunningham cur- rently make up the two- person department, but it looks to expand as the hospital devotes more of its campus to the therapy. Cunningham is new to Rogers, brought on to help develop and admin- ister the therapy pro- gram. "It's a goal-oriented therapy similar to art or music therapy where you're working on specif- ic goals for clients or patients to obtain some sort of end result and then using plants and plant-based activities as a modality to achieve that," Cunningham said. The developed program is going to focus first on the patients in the eating disorder department, but Cunningham and Ham- mer said the therapeutic possibilities are endless. According to the Amer- ican Horticultural Thera- py Association, the bene- fits of horticultural activ- ities and exposure to nature can be seen in "cognitive, psychological, social and physical realms." Numerous scientific papers research and dis- cuss these claims. The AHTA expanded on the cognitive and psychologi- cal benefits. Cognitively the therapy can "enhance cognitive functioning, improve attentional capacity, improve concen- tration, stimulate memo- ry and improve goal achievement," it says. Psychologically, the ther- apy "improves quality of life, increases self- esteem, improves a sense of well-being, reduce stress, improves mood, decreases anxiety and alleviates depression." The therapy is recently garnering growing atten- tion because of a society that is spending an increasing amount of time indoors. "Americans spend 93 percent of their time indoors," Hammer said. "(Researchers) have seen all these benefits they're now proving with research about having a connection with nature. We're trying to now sell that to a generation that doesn't even understand that they need nature. It's urgent." Hammer said interact- ing with nature helps restore your brain from the constant directive thinking it's put through on a daily basis. "To go out into nature to do indirect thinking restores you back to full capacity to go back and tackle life again, so we're a culture that's tackling life without restoring it. That's going to end in a burnout." How the gardens started Hammer said Theresa Rogers was an avid gar- dener and kept multiple beds of flowers on cam- pus that after her passing were lost. In 1990, Rita Nolte, a Rogers employee, began working in the overrun gardens to restore them to a work- able state. "With her knowledge of working with the patients, the doctors began referring patients to Rita for garden thera- py," Hammer said. "She worked one on one with patients in everyday tasks in the garden." After retiring in 2013, Nolte was honored at Rogers' annual women's gathering. A former patient spoke about the way helping Nolte in the garden transformed her. "It gave her a place to put into practice the excellent tools she was learning in treatment," Hammer said. The push to expand the horticulture therapy started after Hammer was brought onto the staff. She said she felt Rogers was a perfect set- ting to launch a horticul- ture care program because of its dedication to the being at the fore- front of medicine. The decision to make a dedicated garden for the therapy came about as part of a master thera- peutic plan. "Once (Rogers) finds a new therapy or other options they think people might be interested in they do their best to bring it into the hospital, which is one of the terrific things that sets them apart," Cunningham said. The first therapeutic landscape was a stone labyrinth. It was installed at the request of the Spir- itual Care and the Experi- ential Therapy Depart- ment. After the over- whelming success of the labyrinth, Rogers made the decision to turn a courtyard into the dedi- cated therapy garden. "There are very few behavioral health care organizations that offer horticultural therapy," Hammer said. "There are some but it's rare, with Rogers setting and with Rogers being excellent in behavioral health care to add this, it sets them even more apart." Manager of Adolescent Center at Rogers Memori- al Hospital Robert Mills said the gardens and the horticultural therapy program are two of the things that allow Rogers to do the work that it does. "No teen would come this way (to Rogers) if they didn't need to," Mills said. "We know that the environment is a big part of helping them feel com- fortable and helping them get comfortable enough to really go after their obsessive compul- sive disorders." Once the gardens open in September, the pro- gram will begin fully and follow the master plan. Meet the staff Hammer was brought on board after working in the field for eight years. She previously had a long career in social work before taking time off to raise her kids. She then pursued horticultural therapy to combine her loves of gardening and social work. "I advocated for horti- cultural therapy pretty much since day one," She said. Hammer was one of the decisive forces in bring- ing the therapy to Rogers. Cunningham is the first trained horticultural therapist to join the staff. She specialized in the therapy after going to school for landscape hor- ticulture. During that time she did an intern- ship and found the thera- py to be a good fit for her personality and career. She also started a horti- culture program with a nonprofit organization in Milwaukee to help adults with developmental dis- abilities. "It was an easy decision to make," Cunningham said. Email: eoliver@conleynet.com Cutting-edge therapy in Oconomowoc Rogers Memorial Hospital opening garden dedicated to horticultural therapy Submitted rendering A rendering of the new therapy garden at Rogers Memorial Hospital. Eric Oliver/Enterprise Staff Horticulture therapists Melanie Hammer and Kelly Cunningham at Rogers Memorial Hospital in front of the Theresa Rogers Memorial Garden.

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