good apple awards 2011 program

These are Nebraska Appleseed’s guiding principles, and have been since our non-profit, non-partisan law project started sowing the seeds of justice in 1996.

For fifteen years, Appleseed has built common ground to address systemic inequality and poverty at its roots and to promote the rights and interests of working-poor families, children in foster care, immigrants, and others who often lack a voice in the public policy decisions that affect them the most.

Appleseed uses litigation in court when necessary, advances smart public policy at the Legislature and in Congress, and empowers and organizes community members to have their voices heard.

With these tools, we can build a stronger Nebraska where laws and policies ensure all people can meet their basic needs, find opportunity, fully participate in our democracy and help our communities thrive.

CORE VALUESCOMMON GROUND

EQUAL JUSTICE

2011 Good Apple AwardsCoCktails & soCial Hour

WelCome

Dr. Michael Wagner Becky Gould, Executive Director

Film sHort Fifteen Years Sowing the Seeds of Justice

Honoring tHe Builders oF a stronger neBraska

tHe roots oF JustiCe aWards

karen X. gómez & maria dávila

Centro Hispano Comunitario de Nebraska Darcy Tromanhauser, Immigrant Program Director Gloria Sarmiento, Community Organizer

rev. Janet goodman-Banks

Jennifer Carter, Director of Public Policy & Health Care Access

tHe seeds oF JustiCe aWard

daniel J. Hill, AssociAte

Stinson Morrison Hecker LLP & torri a. Criger, AssociAte

Husch Blackwell LLP Sarah Helvey, Child Welfare Program Director

tHe milo mumgaard Young leader aWard

adam morFeld, executive Director

Nebraskans for Civic Reform Becky Gould, Executive Director Senator Heath Mello

tHe Jim WolF equal JustiCe aWard

JoHn CavanaugH, executive Director

Building Bright Futures Becky Gould, Executive Director Senator Jeremy Nordquist

WelcomeBecky Gould, Executive Director

Welcome to Nebraska Appleseed’s 2011 Good Apple Awards! This year,

Appleseed celebrates fifteen years of sowing the seeds of justice and building a stronger Nebraska, a place where equal justice and full opportunity can become a reality for all.

In 1996, our founders created a unique public interest law project that would use creative strategies to build common ground and address systemic poverty and injustice at its roots.

Since then, Appleseed has become a one-of-a-kind legal organization in Nebraska – and in the nation – that simultaneously promotes smart public policy at the Legislature, uses litigation in court when necessary, and educates and organizes community members about their rights at the grassroots level.

We’ve used these strategies for more than fifteen years to champion justice for all in the places where public policy decisions are made. We’ve won precedent-setting victories that not only defended the rights of working-poor families, but created new opportunities for people to access quality health care, jobs and education; helped people become economically self-sufficient; and empowered community members to have their voices heard.

It’s taken a lot of work over the years, but we haven’t been alone in our efforts to build a stronger Nebraska.

We’ve been fortunate to have community allies like you join us by writing letters or making phone calls to lawmakers at

critical moments about crucial legislation, attending forums and workshops to help you take information and ways to get involved to your community, or writing a check to support our work – all contributing to our shared mission to advance the common good.

Together, we ensure that decision makers protect the rights and interests of low-income families, children in foster care, immigrant Nebraskans and others whose voices are often left out of the public policy processes that affect them the most. We believe in building a democracy inclusive of everyone – including the most vulnerable in our society – and working to create common ground to build a stronger, more just Nebraska for everyone.

Tonight is not just a celebration of fifteen years of our work. It’s also a celebration of courageous individuals who

despite facing difficult obstacles, were willing to take a stand for positive change, blaze new ground in their communities, and empower their neighbors to join the the work to build a stronger Nebraska.

The pictures and stories in this program and reflected on the banners around the room are of our partners, our neighbors and our friends. They represent hard fought victories, such as expanded access to education and health care for low-income parents and immigrants, and challenges that still lay ahead like restoring access to prenatal care, improving conditions for meatpacking workers, and repairing Nebraska’s child welfare system.

I hope that tonight you have a chance to celebrate the amazing work that has been done with your help, to meet great people that share a vision of how we can tackle the toughest challenges facing our state, and are inspired about what we can accomplish in the next fifteen years.

My day starts early. Each morning I wake

my three young children and get them ready for the day.

I take them to daycare and preschool before I commute an hour each way from my home in Beatrice to my classes at Southeast Community College in Lincoln.

My days also end late. After I make my kids dinner, wash their laundry, and finally get them to bed, I then turn to late-night study sessions.

It can be a challenging balance, but I make it work.

I didn’t always know that I wanted to pursue a higher education, but other young moms encouraged me to enroll in classes at Southeast.

I learned that Aid to Dependent Children (ADC) provides single parents like me an opportunity to pursue a higher education while caring for my family.

Through ADC, I’ve been able to pursue an Associate’s Degree for up to 36 months while receiving assistance to care for my little ones.

Ashley Fischer

An education is one of the surest pathways out of poverty.

In 2008, Appleseed won the passage of LB 458, a law unique in the nation that allows people like Ashley and more than 7,300 Aid to Dependent Children participants new opportunities to pursue an Associate’s Degree for up to 36 months.

I’m proud to say that I’ve been able to do both successfully.

I want my kids to have the opportunity to succeed in life. And I want to give back to my community, the community that is helping me succeed.

Today, I’m finishing my Associate’s Degree in Social Sciences at Southeast and I plan to enroll at the University of Nebraska at Omaha to earn my Bachelor’s Degree.

ADC has been critical to giving hundreds of parents like me the opportunity to pursue a higher education and become economically self-sufficient.

Ashley Fischer

I was born in Guatemala. My family and I

immigrated to the U.S. when I was ten years old. For a few years we lived in California before moving to Lincoln. I’ve lived in Nebraska for ten years – long enough to proudly call Nebraska my home. I’m now a US citizen and a Senior at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

I’m aware how lucky I was growing up. People I know in Guatemala consider my citizenship luck. Last December I accepted a friend request on Facebook from one of my old childhood friends in Guatemala. Her two older sisters married young and didn’t finish high school. Her brother dropped out of school because they think the economic burden of going to school isn’t worth it at this time.

I’ve been lucky to have parents who stressed the importance of getting an education. But that support alone isn’t always enough to succeed if higher education isn’t affordable.

I know fellow students who are incredibly intelligent and driven, but couldn’t afford higher education without Nebraska’s in-state tuition law for undocumented high school graduates.

Alex Gibilisco

They grew up in Nebraska. They’ve lived the majority of their lives here. They have put in the effort to learn English.

They balance two different cultures and don’t allow it to get in the way of their studies. They are driven. They are passionate.

They talk about wanting to be teachers, lawyers, doctors, or even hair stylists. They joined a new culture and overcame adversity in the pursuit of a higher education.

And just like me, they just want to contribute to our state and build a stronger Nebraska for everyone. For us, Nebraska is our home.

We aren’t the only ones who benefit from pursuing an education. Our entire state benefits. These students continue to deserve an opportunity, and they will make all of us Nebraskans proud for it.

In 2006, Appleseed and its community partners successfully advanced a law to allow Nebraska high school graduates who are undocumented to pay in-state college tuition rates.With our partners, we have prevented every attempt to repeal the law.

Alex Gibilisco

It can be incredibly tough to pay for a health crisis

and somehow make ends meet. I know, because I’m a breast cancer survivor.

My husband Dennis and I are pastors in Lincoln. We’re self-employed and have had to find insurance in the individual market. Insurers say we have “pre-existing conditions,” which means our coverage is both expensive and often denied.

I purchased insurance in late 2007. Both of us couldn’t afford insurance, so Dennis chose to go without. My monthly premium cost $500 on top of a $5,000 deductible. Despite paying my insurer every month, I had wait six months before they covered my medication.

In late 2008, my doctor diagnosed me with stage II breast cancer.

Within three weeks I underwent two surgeries and soon began chemotherapy and radiation treatment. Going through all of that was hard, but I was lucky to have coverage prior to my diagnosis. I don’t know how we would’ve otherwise made it.

Yet I knew uninsured people in my community who had health crises. They faced the tough choice between treatment and food, housing and utilities.

Rev. Janet Goodman-Banks

Our health care system was failing to meet low-income people’s needs, so I decided I had to be a voice for health reform.

I temporarily stopped my radiation treatments in 2009 to lobby our Congressional leaders. I spoke at health reform vigils alongside others like me who faced medical crises. I traveled to Washington, DC to testify on Capitol Hill about my pre-existing conditions and my fight with breast cancer.

Together, my fellow Nebraskans and I made the case that we could no longer wait to reform our broken health care system.

I am relieved to say that I became cancer free in October 2009.

It’s been a long time coming, but our health care system is on a path to becoming more just and fair for everyone.

Appleseed works with community voices like Janet to ensure all people have access to quality, affordable health care.

Together, we can reform our health care system to control costs, increase access and address health disparities.

Rev. Janet Goodman-Banks

I found out I was pregnant in January 2011. I was

very excited, but also worried. I had no medical insurance and worried how I would pay for prenatal care.

For a short time I received prenatal care at a local community health center, but I could only afford it for three months.

From three to six months pregnant, I received no prenatal care. I feared for my baby’s health.

I called a community organization and asked for a recommendation to help me find a doctor and care. They referred me to Gloria Sarmiento, the community organizer at Nebraska Appleseed.

I learned that until recently Nebraska covered prenatal care for all pregnant women. That changed in 2010 with a new state policy. Gloria connected me with James Goddard, an attorney at Appleseed.

We filed a lawsuit on behalf of me and the other mothers in my situation – more than 1,500 women – who have been denied access to prenatal care.

Sarah Roe

While the case is ongoing, Gloria helped me find a doctor who has worked with my financial limitations and helped me receive the care my baby and I need. The doctor and the nurses have been wonderful and very welcoming.

I believe all pregnant women should have access to prenatal care. It’s essential for the mother’s and baby’s health, and to ensure that all babies have a chance to begin life with a healthy start.

Ensuring prenatal care is wise fiscal and health policy.

The State of Nebraska’s 2010 decision to end public coverage for unborn children was a step backwards for the future of our state and contradicts the policy adopted and maintained by the Nebraska Legislature over the last thirty years.

That’s why Appleseed is defending in court the rights of more than 1,500 low-income pregnant mothers seeking to restore their access to prenatal care.

Sarah Roe

You keep this,” my mother said, handing

me a newspaper article about Nebraska Appleseed in 2002. “You might need their help one day.”

Back then I was working as a full-time prep cook in Pender, NE, and taking care of my nine-year-old daughter, Luara.

My job paid minimum wage – $5.15 an hour – and didn’t offer any health benefits.

But I had many health problems. Type 2 Diabetes. High blood pressure. Clinical depression. My conditions required several expensive medications that I couldn’t afford. Fortunately, I qualified for Medicaid, which paid for most of my medications and health expenses.

Amid budget cuts in 2002, the Nebraska Legislature changed the way it calculated who was eligible. I received a letter from the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) notifying me I was no longer eligible and I would lose cover in ten days.

Suddenly my minimum-wage job meant I earned too much money for Medicaid.

Teresa Kai

I thought about the newspaper article my mother gave me, and I called Nebraska Appleseed.

I learned that the State of Nebraska failed to provide transitional Medicaid for a one-year transition period to find health care coverage. I also learned that there were more than 10,000 other people like me in this situation.

I partnered with Nebraska Appleseed and we filed a class-action lawsuit against the State of Nebraska.

With Appleseed’s help, I represented all 10,000 Nebraskans who had been wrongly denied Medicaid.

We later won our case in the U.S. Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

We settled with HHS, which agreed to restore $18 million in health benefits for thousands of people.

It took patience, but Appleseed’s staff helped me get my my Medicaid restored and the medications I needed.

Throughout Appleseed’s 15-year history, we’ve won precedent-setting court victories that bring justice to Nebraskans like Teresa so they can access the health care they need.

Teresa Kai

I was once the child who needed a home, a child

dependent on a system that was responsible for my safety, well-being, and permanence. Removed from my birth mother’s home and adopted at age four, I was so clearly fortunate. The caseworker, the juvenile court judge, the placement staff, and the attorneys involved were responsive, committed and trained.

The child welfare system worked for me. My biological sister was not as fortunate. The system failed her; so badly abused and neglected, she will never live independently.

Today, I’m a mother of four - biological, adopted, and through foster care - and an advocate. I’m a social worker and a program director at Right Turn, a post-adoption program, working for children and families experiencing the child welfare system and the effects of its brokenness.

My purpose is to be part of a child welfare system that works well for every child and family.

My role as a foster parent is important; I am grounding in the chaos of the system. With a backdrop covered in few

Jessyca Vandercoy

answers and lots of waiting and disappointment, we focus on the everyday stuff: friendship woes, homework, flute practice, and dinner together.

My foster daughter says, “at this point I don’t really care where I go. I just want a forever home.”

I glance at my daughter, who I adopted in 2009; she looks like her birth mother. I smile, knowing she will have the opportunity to know where she came from, the gift of being able to ask any question she wants, and the satisfaction of seeing faces that look like hers.

I longed for this opportunity, these gifts and this satisfaction throughout my childhood. I am overjoyed that adoption policy and practices have changed and she will not feel the way I felt as a child.

There are nearly six thousand Nebraskan children counting on a competent child welfare system. It matters to each of them. I know, because it mattered to me.

Nebraska’s foster care system fails to meet the needs of too many children.

Appleseed works with community leaders like Jessyca to champion a child welfare system that provides safety, accountability & a strong future for our children.

Jessyca Vandercoy

Juan Martinez

I’m forty-five years of age, but by age thirty-

six I became practically disabled for life. I worked at Nebraska meatpacking plants for more than eight years. I used knives, trimming ribs for four years and heavy shoulder blades for another four years.

On the line, you quickly realize the toll that the speed and repetitive motions take on your body.

You make the cuts again and again. The line runs so fast, and it doesn’t slow down when workers are absent. Then you have to work even faster.

Each day I made thousands of cuts. My hands became inflamed. My fingers locked. I broke three disks in my back from lifting heavy buckets of meat and fat every day.

I’ve had two surgeries in my hands and two in my back and much therapy, but the pain doesn’t stop. My hands lost their strength and grip.

My doctor set work restrictions that prohibit me from using a knife or hook. Once my company learned of my restrictions, they laid me off. In my experience, when

Juan Martinezyou’re injured the company looks for any excuse to fire you.

My friends who reported their own accidents lost their jobs. Others hid their injuries because they feared being fired.

Even with the help of Workforce Development for two years, I couldn’t find a job with my medical restrictions. It’s been such a struggle to get adequate medical care and workers compensation. I continue to fight for reimbursement of medical bills from my company.

I’ve come to learn that when one is injured at the packing plants, it becomes nearly impossible to find a job. I still haven’t found any work. I’ve been relegated to surviving on social security.

We need policies that make the speed of work safe. I don’t want more people to become disabled just for doing their job.

Nebraska Appleseed has worked with hundreds of Nebraska workers to document current meatpacking conditions in a major safety study, The Speed Kills You, and to advocate for policies to slow work speed and improve worker and food safety.

The Roots of Justice AwARd recognizes the unsung grassroots heroes in our communities whose deeds and

voice have moved people to action or awareness, advancing the cause of equal justice and opportunity for all. The award honors individuals who are not paid professional advocates, but rather community leaders who volunteer their time, skills and experties. Additional weight is given to nominees who have overcome significant risk or confronted adversarial and difficult circumstances in their efforts to advocate for positive change in their community.

In 1996, Nebraska Appleseed’s founder Milo Mumgaard developed a vision for a public interest law firm that could

take on the toughest issues facing low-income and marginalized Nebraskans.

He started small with a one person operation run out of his basement and through hard work, dedication and skill, grew the organization to twelve staff in eleven years. Part of the strategy from the beginning was to attract young future leaders of Nebraska to this kind of work, through internships, engagement and support for those who were stepping out on a limb to try and engage in work that would make a meaningful difference to address poverty and inequality.

The Milo MuMgAARd Young leAdeR AwARd was created to recognize young Nebraskans who, like Milo, have a vision for the best of what our state can be, and through initiative, hard work, and dedication are pushing to make that vision a reality.

Roots of Justice Award

The Milo MumgaardYoung Leader Award

The 2011 Good Apple Awards The Builders of a Stronger Nebraska

The JiM wolf equAl Justice AwARd was created to recognize a Nebraskan who has made significant

contributions to equal justice for all throughout her or his career, in the spirit of Jim Wolf. This individual would be someone who, like Jim, stepped outside of the comfort of their day-to-day lives and, without thought for their own economic or political gain, devoted themselves to public service that benefits the common good.

Nebraska Appleseed was extraordinarily fortunate to have Jim’s support and guidance from our beginning in 1996, as a founding Nebraska Appleseed Board member, and through his significant financial support. In his wonderful life, the late Jim Wolf of Albion meant so much to so many Nebraskans.

His generosity, leadership and wise acts to build the common good benefitted education, family farmers, the livestock and banking industries, rural development, community philanthropy, civil rights, and justice for all. Jim’s contributions to Nebraskans everywhere are deep and wide.

The seeds of Justice AwARd honors significant pro bono contributions by private lawyers and law firms

advancing the public interest through positive policy reform. By contributing time and expertise to legal research and systemic litigation, either by itself or in conjunction with other efforts, these legal professionals improve the lives of people whose voices are often left out of the public policy decisions that affect them the most. These attorneys truly sow the seeds of justice for all Nebraskans.

Seeds of Justice Award

The Jim WolfEqual Justice Award

The 2011 Good Apple Awards The Builders of a Stronger Nebraska

Rev. Janet Goodman-Banks Roots of Justice Award

Janet Goodman-Banks, a nurse and former coal miner, has

been one of Appleseed’s strongest community allies and voices in the historic push for comprehensive health reform. Janet’s story of being diagnosed with stage II breast cancer and struggling with her health insurer to receive coverage resonated with and moved many Nebraskans. Amid chemotherapy and radiation treatments, Janet spoke at numerous health reform vigils and met with Nebraska’s Congressional representatives one-on-one. She traveled to Washington, D.C. and testified at Capitol Hill and shared with Congress her fight with breast cancer and her struggle for coverage with her insurer. Her story not only shined a spotlight on the flaws within our country’s private health insurance system, but she made the case why we couldn’t wait to reform the system and make it more just and equitable for everyone. Janet’s courage to share her personal story with so many people is inspiring and commendable. Nebraska Appleseed’s staff believes Janet truly is one of our community’s unsung grassroots heroes who have advanced the cause of equal justice in Nebraska. We are proud to recognize Janet Goodman-Banks as one of the recipients of the inaugural Roots of Justice AwARd.

Our 2011 Good Apple Awards Honorees The Builders of a Stronger Nebraska

Karen X. Gómez &Maria Dávila Roots of Justice Award

Karen and Maria truly embody the vision of this award. Unsung

grassroots heroes, these two are quietly working to build important nonprofit infrastructure in rural Nebraska and to do their part to create strong, vibrant Nebraska communities. Originally from El Salvador and Mexico – Nebraskans now for many years – their energy and spirit belie the significant barriers they had to overcome to start new lives in their chosen hometown of Columbus. While also working professionally as a real estate agent and tax preparer, Karen and Maria have dedicated countless hours to founding and developing a local nonprofit, Centro Hispano Comunitario de Nebraska (Hispanic Community Center of Nebraska). Both saw a need and opportunity to create a community center that provides information and a means for neighbors to come together to support their community and create positive, and systemic, social change. Now their events ensure that hundreds of immigrant Nebraskans are well informed about their rights and responsibilities, and bring together longtime and new residents to create a shared vision for the future. They envision people coming together for a common cause, empowering people, advocating justice for all and motivating youth to reach for their dreams. They truly inspire us.

The Builders of a Stronger Nebraska

Torri A. CrigerAssociate, Husch Blackwell LLP


When the Safe Haven law was passed in Nebraska

and it became apparent that there were significant gaps in access to behavioral health services for children, Appleseed reached out to Torri for help. Torri spent countless hours compiling a comprehensive look at federal and state law and policy related access to behavioral health services within the Medicaid program.

This research created the foundation for Appleseed’s work to ensure no children are forced to enter the child welfare system, simply because their parents cannot afford the behavioral health services they need. Torri’s Pro bono contribution allowed Appleseed to leverage our limited funds to make quick progress on an issue critical to the day to day lives of thousands of Nebraska children and families.

Torri concentrates her practice in health law representing health systems, hospitals, physician practices and other types of

healthcare providers. Torri received her Juris Doctorate from the University of Nebraska College of Law in 2008 and her B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Nebraska in 2005. While in law school, Torri received CALI Awards for Excellence in Corporate Finance and Governance and Clinical Practice and received an award for Outstanding Civil Clinic Student of the Year.


Daniel J. HillAssociate, Stinson Morrison Hecker LLP


Dan answered the call one day when Appleseed approached

Stinson Morrison and Hecker L.L.P. for help drafting an amicus brief to the Nebraska Supreme Court focused on protecting the rights of siblings within the child welfare system to be placed together when appropriate. Dan’s pro bono contribution allowed us to take a stand on the issue of how placement decisions are made within the chlid welfare system and the importance of

sibling relationships to children in the foster care system. While the Supreme Court decision ultimately did not resolve the issue, the case and Dan’s research helped the Legislature to pass LB 177, which codified in law the rights of siblings to be placed together when appropriate.

Dan graduated from the University of Nebraska College of Law in 2008 and received his bachelor’s degree in Management

and Organizational Leadership from Grace University in 2005. While in law school, Dan received the CALI Award for excellence in constitutional law. He also received the award for best brief in the 2006-2007 Allen Moot Court Competition. Dan volunteers with YFC, Inc., has served on an advisory board for InCommon Community Development, and is actively involved in his local church.


Adam MorfeldExecutive Director, Nebraskans for Civic Reform

Milo Mumgaard Young Leader Award

Adam Morfeld is in his third year of law school at the University

of Nebraska-Lincoln. He serves as Executive Director and founder of Nebraskans for Civic Reform (NCR), a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to voting rights protection and election and civic education reform. NCR works to make Nebraska elections more accessible to youth, low-income and disabled citizens. Further, NCR is dedicated to

strengthening and increasing civic education in K-12 and post secondary schools across the state. For five years this group, founded by college students and led by Adam, worked aggressively to introduce legislation, testify at hearings, and educate state legislators and Nebraska election officials about tangible improvements that could ensure no one in Nebraska is disenfranchised on election day. The current focus of Adam’s work to create a stable future for NCR by establishing it as a non-profit organization and garnering financial support for paid staff. What is most impressive about Adam is that he has done all this work on a purely volunteer basis driven solely by a passion and desire to see all Nebraskans engaged in our democracy. This is the kind of passion that led Milo Mumgaard to create and expand Nebraska Appleseed and is why Adam Morfeld is the inaugural recipient of the d. Milo MuMgAARd Young leAdeR AwARd.


John CavanaughExecutive Director, Building Bright Futures

Jim Wolf Equal Justice Award

John Cavanaugh and Building Bright Futures (BBF) have recognized

the basic truth that if we create or leave in place barriers to a good and productive future for our children we are jeopardizing the future of the community and society as a whole. John and Building Bright Futures are dedicated to creating concrete and sustainable opportunities for Omaha’s children and thereby promoting the common good. His life’s work and his work as

Executive Director of Building Bright Futures exemplify the values of the late Jim Wolf, a founding Nebraska Appleseed board member and longtime advocate for community philanthropy, civil rights and justice for all. That’s why the staff and board of Nebraska Appleseed is proud to select John Cavanaugh to receive Nebraska Appleseed’s Jim Wolf Equal Justice Award. Appleseed has had the good fortune to work with John largely in the context of his work at Building Bright Futures, specifically regarding children’s health care. John believes that access to health care for children is the foundation to all of Building Bright Futures work. Children cannot take advantage of opportunities to learn if they are sick or dealing with a chronic illness. In 2009, John helped lead a broad effort to educate senators on the need and opportunity to increase eligibility for Kids Connection, the state’s health insurance program for children.


That effort to expand health care access resulted in an increase in eligibility for Kids Connection to 200% of the federal poverty level. This work made thousands of Nebraska children eligible for health care. But his work did not end there. John and BBF recognize that while changing state policy is a necessary and important first step, enrolling children in Kids Connection is critical to making sure they access that available care. He continues to work with Appleseed and other groups to find ways to more efficiently and effectively enroll eligible children. In addition, John has been instrumental in the effort to restore prenatal care coverage. He has given powerful testimony on numerous occasions on the need for prenatal care to give a child the best possible start in life. He recently co-chaired the children’s health care summit held last December, which highlighted the inextricable tie between education and children’s health. John is a true statesman. He speaks directly, eloquently and cogently about the need for policies that safeguard the future for Nebraska’s children. His work benefits some of our most vulnerable Nebraskans and he has made a true difference in the lives of the youngest Nebraskans, and therefore, in the future for every Nebraskan. John Cavanaugh is a fighter for the common good and is a builder of a stronger Nebraska. We are honored to recognize John Cavanaugh with the JiM wolf equAl Justice AwARd.

Our 2011 Good Apple Awards Honorees Thank You to Our Good Apple Awards Sponsors!

John CavanaughExecutive Director, Building Bright Futures

Jim Wolf Equal Justice Award

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Stinson Morrison Hecker L.L.P.Annette & Paul Smith

Smith Hayes Financial ServicesVanguard Charitable Endowment

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Friends oF aPPleseed (uP to $500)ACLU of Nebraska

Big Brothers Big Sisters of the MidlandsCommercial Investment Properties

National Association of Social Workers-NE ChapterNebraska State AFL-CIO

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Thank You to Our Good Apple Awards Sponsors!


Celebrating Fifteen Years Sowing the Seeds of Justice

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A POSTER SHOW BENEFITING NEBRASKA APPLESEED

Historically, the poster has been a powerful means of communicating ideals and advocating for change.

Nebraska Appleseed called upon leaders in the graphic design community to envision how we can build a stronger Nebraska through greater equality, opportunity and justice for all.

We partnered with Justin Kemerling of The Match Factory and Lincoln screen printer Jason Davis of Screen Ink to produce an art exhibition with a collection of posters to inspire all people of our great state to work together to create a more inclusive, move vibrant community.

These powerful posters - eleven beautiful, limited-edition 18”x24” silkscreen prints hand-signed and numbered - give voice to Appleseed’s core values of Community, Democracy, Equality, Justice and Opportunity.

All proceeds from poster sales tonight benefit Appleseed’s efforts to advance equal justice and opportunity for all, building a stronger Nebraska for everyone.

Thank you to the designers who donated their time, talent & vision:

Paul BerkbiglerDoe EyedElla Durham + Sam RapienJustin Kemerling

Peter MorrisOxide Design Co.Cathy SolaranaJake Welchert

Staff

Becky Gould, Jd Executive Director

Child Welfare

Sarah helvey, Jd Program Director / Staff Attorney

roBert Mcewen, Jd Staff Attorney

Health Care Access Jennifer carter, Jd Public Policy & Program Director / Staff Attorney

GeorGe lyford, Jd Staff Attorney

Immigrant Integration& Civic Participation

reBecca GonzaleS, Jd Program Coordinator

Gloria SarMiento

Community Organizer

darcy troManhauSer

Program Director

chriSta yoakuM

Nebraska Is Home Coordinator

oMaid zaBih, Jd Staff Attorney

Low-Income Economic Opportunity

kate Bolz, MSw Associate Program Director

JaMeS Goddard, Jd Staff Attorney

Administration

cathy BraSe

Director or Finance & Administration

cynthia daviS

Office Manager

nicholaS Swiercek

Development Director

eric wickizer

Director of Information Technology

Board of Directors

PresidentPatricia zieG

Stinson Morrison Hecker L.L.P. Omaha, NE

Vice-PresidentSteve achelPohl

Achelpohl Law Office Omaha, NE

TreasurerMatthew J. JohnSon

Omaha, NE

SecretaryBeatty BraSch

Center for People in Need Lincoln, NE

Immediate Past PresidentherB friedMan

Friedman Law Lincoln, NE

clark Bellin

Mundy & Associates Lincoln, NE

terrence J. ferGuSon

Fraser Stryker P.C., L.L.O. Omaha, NE

e. SuSan Gourley, Ph.d.Lincoln, NE

Jan Gradwohl

Retired Judge & Adjunct Professor of Law Lincoln, NE

Max d. larSen

Max D. Larsen & Associates Lincoln, NE

taylor keen

Native American Center, Creighton University Omaha, NE

forreSt n. krutter

Berkshire Hathaway Omaha, NE

JoSe MiGuel leMuS

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Lincoln, NE

othello h. MeadowS iiiSeventy-Five North Revitalization Co. Omaha, NE

Milo MuMGaard

City of Lincoln, Mayor’s Office Lincoln, NE

allen overcaSh

Woods & Aitken Lincoln, NE

toM PanSinG

Pansing Hogan Ernst & Bachman Omaha, NE

MohuMMed Sadden

South Sioux City, NE

Senator dianna SchiMek

Lincoln, NE

thoMaS Schleich

Commercial Investment Properties Lincoln, NE

MeGan SeBaStian wriGht

Cline Williams Wright Johnson & Oldfather Omaha, NE

John SMolSky

Fuhrman, Smolsky & Furey, P.C. Omaha, NE

don witt

Baylor, Evnen, Curtiss, Grimit & Witt Lincoln, NE

art zyGielBauM

Adjunct Associate Professor, UNL School of Natural Resources Lincoln, NE

Nebraska Appleseed941 ‘O’ Street, Suite 920Lincoln, NE 68508

402.438.8853402.438.0263 fax

www.NeAppleseed.org

good apple awards 2011 program

Documents

stronger nebraska

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smart public policy

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