It’s a new month and a new chapter to go along with it! Welcome to the newly formed JDRF Wisconsin Chapter.

We are excited to continue to serve the state of Wisconsin in all the same areas as before, but in new and imaginative ways. We recognize that many of you haven’t met everyone, so we wanted to take a moment to introduce ourselves! Feel free to reach out to any of us that you haven’t met and get to know us.

 Tanya Bissen is the executive director for the Wisconsin chapter and joined JDRF in 2016, after spending 17+ years fundraising for Children’s Wisconsin.  Tanya and her husband, Greg, reside in Sussex and have three teenage daughters, age 13, 15 and 19.  When Tanya isn’t living vicariously through the busy schedule of her daughters, she and her husband stay active with golf and softball.

Julie Feest has lived in Wisconsin her whole life, and currently lives in Appleton, WI. She graduated with a degree in Social Work from UW-Oshkosh and has only ever worked in nonprofit. Julie has been with JDRF for over 20 years working in the Northeast Wisconsin Region. Her personal connection to T1D is her Aunt, who lived with T1D for over 50 years, and now her first and second cousin, too.  One of the things she enjoys the most about her work at JDRF is connecting with families and individuals. She’s married to her husband, Jim, who’s the perfect fishing partner! In her free time she enjoys fishing, spending time at the lake, and playing with her grandson.

 Dana Brill started her 20-year career at JDRF with the Minnesota Chapter (5 years) before joining the Northeast Wisconsin Chapter. She is has participated in three century JDRF Rides and has had a Walk Team every year she doesn’t Ride. While she doesn’t have a direct T1D connection her connections have been built through her relationships with families and supporters she has met through the years. She is proud to work for such an amazing organization that is transforming the way we treat T1D and cannot wait for the cures. She is excited to meet even more families and T1D supporters throughout our great State!

In her free time, you can find Dana shuttling her 10-year-old daughter to all her activities. She grew up in Madison, currently lives in Appleton and LOVES cheering on the Badgers and Packers!
On Wisconsin!

Erin Vella is the Development Manager for the chapter, and has worked at the JDRF for 11 years. Her original connection to T1D is a family friend whose daughter was diagnosed at only three months old & is now 20 years into living with T1D, so her relationship with JDRF extends even before being on staff. Through relationships with JDRF families that participate in the Ride and Walk programs her T1D connections have grown by hundreds. She considers that both fortunate because of the amazing passion shown by our T1D community yet unfortunate because we are still seeing diagnosis. This shared passion for a cure drives the work she does every day at JDRF. She has a daughter Rowan (2), a son Lincoln (4 months), a dog Freeway and along with her husband, Joe, owns Joe Mama’s Bar & Grill in Colgate, WI.

 Lottie Brooks joined JDRF as a Development Coordinator in January 2020, after two years working for Epic Systems as a Project Manager. She has no immediate family members with T1D, but several friends throughout her life have been impacted, so she is excited to be a part of turning Type One into Type One! She lives in Madison with her boyfriend Matt and her rescue dog, Phoebe. She spends her free time volunteering and training Phoebe to do all the pointless tricks that a dog can possibly learn to do!

We know some of you aren’t sure who to reach out to with certain asks. We hope these items address your primary concerns:

• If you’d like to mail checks to be deposited, please send them to our Appleton mailing address for the most efficient processing:

JDRF Wisconsin

1800 Appleton Road, Suite 2

Menasha, WI 54952

• If you have a question about OneWalk or Ride, please start with Erin and Dana
• If you have a question about Gala, please start with Dana and Lottie
• If you have a question about Community Engagement, such as Bag of Hope or Type One Nation, please start with Julie
• If you have a question about a payment, invoice, or want something promoted on our social media and/or website, please reach out to Lottie

We’ll have an updated chapter website soon, but in the meantime, we’d love to have you join us on our new Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.