A hero (masculine or gender-neutral) or heroine (feminine) (Ancient Greek: ἥρως, hḗrōs) is a person or character who, in the face of danger and adversity or from a position of weakness, displays courage or self-sacrifice-that is, heroism-for some greater good.

Had it not been for Lady Mary Wortly Montagu, the wife of the British Ambassador to Ottoman Constantinople, who in 1918 had the courage to inoculate her son against smallpox the variolation process may not have been introduced to Great Britain and thousands may have perished as a result.

Variolatin was the forerunner of modern inoculation and is the introduction of a small amount of cowpox into the bloodstream of a healthy patient for the purpose of creating immunity to smallpox.  

The courage exhibited by Lady Mary saved her son from the dreaded disease and as word spread to Great Britain by 1921 the Royal Family was sufficiently impressed to experiment with the technique on the residents of Newgate Prison. That is another story.

Brenda Visnovec , Lakeville Liquor Operations Manager and past MMBA President, has placed herself and her stores in the direct path of a behemoth for the last year.  

She selflessly accepted the responsibility of experimenting with a group of inventory items that were previously unavailable in this market.  

Brenda accepted this task because she believed that if she did this others would follow.

She knew that cities gain confidence from other cities and their success stories.  

She also knew that if nothing was done there was a very good chance that many of our member stores would cease to be sources of revenue for their residents.  

Brenda did this bravely, selflessly and better than any of us could.

Throughout history great leaders have taken chances, chosen the difficult path and created a new vision for all of us.  

Brenda Visnovec is one of those leaders. It is now up to all of you to follow her lead, apply her vision to your store and create a new vision for your enterprise fund.  

You owe this to yourself.  

We also have a debt of gratitude to repay to Brenda.  

She placed herself in the crosshairs for us all.  

Repay that debt by following her lead.  

Stop procrastinating; do it now!  

If I ever decide to grow up, I hope I'm like Brenda.  

Sometimes the best man for the job is a woman.

Gary Buysse

Rogers Liquor 

Softball teams across the state are gearing up for that first pitch of the season and soon fundraising efforts will be underway. 

Often times, teams will partner with a local bar to help raise money to offset costs accrued throughout the year. 

The Department of Public Safety Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division (DPS/AGED) wants to educate the public on how to legally raise money for softball beer busts.

Fundraising Legally for your Team

• The establishment must run the fundraiser and agree to donate the profits to the team.

• Cover charges or charging for a cup at the door is allowed, but fees must be collected by the establishment, not the team.

• The establishment can donate time, profits on liquor sales and personnel.

• The establishment can designate how much money they donate after recouping costs for donated alcohol.

• The establishment can hold silent auctions, raise money through games of skill or take straight donations for the team.

• Skill is defined as an activity or game where a player's physical or mental ability will determine the outcome.

• Common fundraising activities or games include: dunk tanks, billiards, golf putting, bocce, silent auctions.

• Team volunteers can collect money for the additional fundraising inside the bar such as games and silent auctions.
   

Red Flags your Fundraiser could be Illegal

• Allowing games based on chance such as: raffles, drawings, specific card games based on chance, some amusement games such as plinko and paddle wheels.

• Team officials collecting cover charges or fees for cups at the door.

• Purchasing alcohol and selling it privately at an off-site location: home, park or another facility other than a licensed liquor establishment.