Tag Archives: citizen advocacy

My Grown Up Christmas Wish…

6 Replies

 

    Never a Christmas morn,

    Never the old year ends,

    But someone thinks of someone,

    Old days, old times, old friends

                          (Author unknown)

Each holiday season, I proudly display this framed piece which was completed in 2000. The saying has always been one of my holiday favorites and represents much of what Christmas means to me.

During my forever ago crafting days, I utilized my creativity to include it in what became my first and only originally designed cross-stich project. It was an especially proud moment for me to have achieved this end result.

Now…whenever I experience the typical holiday anxiety, stress, or even sadness—as most of us do especially during this time of year—I find comfort and a sense of ease simply by studying the images and silently reciting those words.

As a way to express my appreciation to the families and friends of six innocent Wisconsin men, the men themselves; Michael Piaskowski, Reynold Moore, Michael Hirn, Dale Basten and Michael Johnson, and to all of you for your continued interest, amazing feedback, and unwavering support of my ongoing advocacy, I offer this special something from my grown up Christmas list; a genuine wish that these same images and words will provide whatever is necessary to fuel your inner peace and sanity, now and throughout the New Year.

Happy Holidays to all of you!

Joan and Mike Treppa

A Meaningful and Long Overdue Exchange…

Leave a reply

I spotted him standing in line a few yards from where I sat. “Now’s your chance,” I thought to myself. Mimicking those same thoughts were ones spoken aloud by my husband, Mike. “You better go now or you’ll lose your chance to talk to him,” he urged. That was all the motivation I needed.

I stood next to him and blurted out, “Howdy!”

He turned. I smiled.

He then greeted me with similar enthusiasm and a smile that warmed my heart.

I showed him my name tag, compliments of the Great North Innocence Project (GN-IP). This evening was their annual gala which had finally brought the two of us together.

“Does this name look familiar?” I inquired. He responded with a curious “No.” It was not too surprising, given that what I was about to share with him happened ten years ago in 2015. This exchange we were now sharing was long overdue.

I explained how I had recently come across correspondence he and I had while he was still incarcerated. “I was sifting through names of all the people who’ve reached out to me over the years through my website, A Matter of Facts, and I came across your name,” I explained.

Recollection was still absent from his face.

I continued. “I nearly fell out of my chair when I saw your name, especially after hearing about you in the news following your exoneration. And then…I freaked and wondered if I had bothered to respond back to you. So…I went digging through my emails and sure enough, I found the correspondence between us. I have to be honest. Back then I received a lot of messages from people looking for help and sadly, I was overwhelmed. As much as I tried, I could not respond to everyone. Your message was so kind and respectful so it was a huge relief to know that I hadn’t ignored you.”

Marvin Haynes* stood there reconciling the details of this long lost connection. “I do remember writing to you!” Familiarity flooded his memory. “Can you send those emails to me? I’d like to see them,” he said.

“Yes, of course,” I reassured him.

“Please, I’d like you to meet some of my friends and family. They’re just over there at that nearby table.” I said. “Plus I have something I’d like to give to you.”

“Sure,” said Marvin. I introduced my husband, Mike, my sister, Clare, a friend, Mark Charron, and finally, Keith Kutska, all of whom were delighted to meet my new friend.

I then pulled my last copy of Reclaiming Lives out of the cloth bag that was hanging on the backrest of a nearby chair. Marvin glanced at it. “You wrote this? I want to write my own book, too,” he said excitedly. “Well, maybe I can help you with that, give you a few pointers,” I offered. That would be great!” Marvin’s excitement grew. I explained that my contact information was inside the book and we agreed that we’d be in touch.

I asked Marvin if he’d pose with me for a photo. He agreed and Mike took the first picture. “Oh, I should be holding your book up for the next one,” Marvin declared.

An entire month passed before I finally got around to gathering the contents of those emails onto a word document which I sent to Marvin in a private message. I reiterated who I was and included the photo Mike had taken of us (with him holding my book) at the Benefit.

To my surprise, almost immediately, Marvin tagged me in the following post on social media:

*Marvin’s story.

Donate to Marvin’s GOFUNDME Campaign

If you have thoughts/feedback about my content please feel free to share them on this site. Thank you. Take care…

Connecting With Quality Friends at Eden Vista…  

1 Reply

Good friend and fellow advocate for six innocent men, Shirley DeLorme now resides at a senior living community in Green Bay called, The Village at Eden Vista. Through her efforts, I was scheduled to give a book talk to its residents on Thursday, July 31, 2025.

When doing these events, I always keep in mind that sometimes it is more about the quality of my audience than the quantity. That was certainly the case with this event which summoned a modest group of 15-20 attendees made up of both residents and staff. It was held in the basement theater space and was a mixed group of those who were aware of the Monfils case and those who were not.

Photo courtesy of The Village of Eden Vista

Our exoneree, Michael “Pie” Piaskowski, joined me for this event. And this time, I provided a slide show to accompany my usual presentation of introducing myself, summarizing the case, announcing him as my guest, and finally, fielding questions from the audience.

Locatelli family circa 1964 (Joan Treppa’s immediate family)

Shirley was the first to arrive downstairs. Aside from her welcomed presence, one other woman stood out quite prominently. Judy is a retired attorney who grew up in Green Bay. She had practiced elsewhere and was not in the area when the Monfils case saturated news headlines. In fact, she had only recently returned to her hometown of Green Bay.

I asked what her level of understanding of the case was. “I was kept abreast by colleagues in this area during that time,” she explained. “I wanted to attend today to hear more details and to learn what has happened since. If you have extra books with you, I’d like to buy one.” I signed her copy and showed her the four additional signatures near mine. “I was able to get some of the six guys to sign the books as an added bonus for these events,” I said to her. She was thrilled.

Following the presentation, Judy’s background became apparent when she asked a number of very technical questions regarding appeals, procedure, etc., which Mike Pie handled with ease. She was also interested in knowing whether or not the other five men were still in prison. Shirley asked a number of questions as well, as a way to help the rest of the audience gain an appreciation of the flaws in this case.

During questions, I shared Shirley’s role of hosting the Family and Friends (FAF) meetings at her home. I shared photos taken of her with various family members of the six men. The photos also included John Gaie and Denis Gullickson, authors of the book, The Monfils Conspiracy.

Back row L to R: Denis Gullickson, Lee Basten, Mike Pie, Clayton Kutska Front row: Shirley DeLorme, Gina Martin, Claire Micoliczyk

John Gaie, Shirley DeLorme, Mike Hirn

After every one else had left, both Shirley and Judy hung out with us to chat further. Much more was discussed about the case. Judy also shared an impressive list of prominent people she considered as close friends. Those in the political arena such as Wisconsin Senator, Tammy Baldwin and Virginia Senator, Tim Kaine are among her closest. Judy promised to share my book with Senator Baldwin.

Both women walked with us to the front entrance and lingered for a bit longer. As we exited the building I said to Mike Pie, my husband, Mike, and Clare, “There’s always at least one interesting connection made at these events. You just never know what that connection will be and where it might take us.”