On May 26, 2022, Bell, Moore & Richter, S.C. hosted the Legal Association for Women’s annual “I Resolve” Fundraiser. This is the first time the fundraiser has been held in-person since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Kristin Degeneffe from Quartz Health Solutions and Morgan Stippel from our law firm serve on the Executive Board for the Legal Association for Women and were responsible for planning and organizing the fundraiser.
All proceeds from the fundraiser benefit survivors of domestic abuse through Dane County Domestic Abuse Intervention Services (“DAIS”). The DAIS Legal Advocacy Program provides domestic abuse survivors with critical support, advocacy, and legal services at no cost.
The event featured a silent auction and a raffle with donations from local Dane County businesses, live music (Harpist: Elizabeth Schrader), refreshments, and a long-awaited opportunity to socialize face-to-face. Members of the DAIS Legal Advocacy Team also shared a series of inspiring client stories highlighting the positive, far-reaching impact of their work.
Thanks to the support of the generous sponsors, donors, and fundraiser attendees, the Legal Association for Women raised $7,630 for the DAIS Legal Advocacy Program. These proceeds will allow DAIS to continue to provide high quality legal services that domestic abuse survivors rely upon during their greatest time of need.
It was an honor to host the Legal Association for Women’s annual “I Resolve” Fundraiser for such a worthy cause, and it was great to gather in person again. We look forward to partnering with the Legal Association for Women and DAIS again in the future.
In July, Bell, Moore & Richter, S.C. partnered with some other area law firms to collect gently used professional clothing for University of Wisconsin Law Students to help them build their professional wardrobes. BMR is happy to help support our future attorneys.
Bell, Moore & Richter, S.C.’s Attorney Will Bolte and Kelly Kiorpes (paralegal) participated in the summer Basic Wills and Estate Planning Clinic held from 9 a.m. - noon on June 24th, 2023. Sponsored by Community Justice, Inc and held at St. Luke’s Church in Madison, Wisconsin, Attorney Bolte and Ms. Kiorpes spent the morning working with low-income individuals seeking basic estate planning documents, including wills, durable powers of attorney and health care powers of attorney – all provided at no cost. The clinic pre-registers individuals and provides them with a questionnaire to complete prior to their appointment so that they arrive prepared with the basic information necessary to complete the estate plan documents. The volunteer professionals sit down with the individuals to go through the questionnaire, answer any questions they may have, and prepare and execute the estate planning documents. Attorney Bolte worked with a veteran making his first will and durable power of attorney, while Ms. Kiorpes completed their documents based upon the client’s questionnaire and his conversation with Attorney Bolte. Both also served as witnesses and notaries as needed. It was a small but mighty operation, with a team of about 10 volunteers lead by Jennifer Binkley of Community Justice, Inc. and Norma Kropp, Instructor and Legal Services Chair at Madison College. The team worked efficiently and effectively to ensure that every client walked away with their finalized and free estate plan documents. The complimentary coffee also helped! The next estate plan clinic is tentatively slated for some time in Fall 2023, and volunteer opportunities are open to attorneys, paralegals, and legal studies students. Anyone interested in volunteering their time may reach out to Jennifer Binkley at jenniferb@communityjusticeinc.org.
The event held on May 4, 2023, featured a silent auction and a raffle with donations from local Dane County businesses, live music, refreshments, and an opportunity to socialize and network. Members of the DAIS Legal Advocacy Team also shared a series of inspiring client stories highlighting the positive, far-reaching impact of their work.