Don & Joan Prachthauser are proud long-time supporters of Life Navigators, a group that improves the quality of life for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. They do this by bringing the abled and disabled communities together through education, advocacy, and life-planning services.
Life Navigators envisions an inclusive community where individuals with disabilities and their support networks experience full participation and maximum independence. The community that Life Navigators want to create is one that will value the rights, hopes, dreams, and contributions of all people with disabilities.
The Challenger Event
This year was the 37th annual Challenger Event for Life Navigators.
The funds raised through this event are vitally important, allowing this group to continue to support the promising futures for 4,800 kids and adults with disabilities they serve each year. Through everyone’s donations, we are supporting individuals with disabilities to be safe, happy, and healthy in our community.
The Impact
A few years ago, the Challenger Event committee chair, Larry Haskin, introduced Don & Joan to Life Navigators’ mission. As a result, Murphy & Prachthauser was pleased to recognize Life Navigators in a marketing campaign video showcasing the positive impact that individuals with disabilities have when they are active and connected.
These opportunities to live, work, and volunteer mean so much to the individuals that Life Navigators serve and together, we can meet this growing need for disability services.
Although most of the event was virtual and took place during a pandemic, the Challenger event still sold out! These generous members of the community raised an incredible $255,000 for kids and adults with disabilities here in the Greater Milwaukee area!
Don and Joan’s History of Philanthropy
Don & Joan have a long history of being committed to philanthropy and volunteerism and support many charities in addition to Life Navigators. Don & Joan have also been lasting supporters of Gethsemane United Methodist Church, The Milwaukee Art Museum, Evans Scholars, Lake Country Young Life, and the Salvation Army. They are also lifetime members of the University of Wisconsin Alumni Association and Bascom Hill Society.
Don & Joan serve in leadership roles for numerous charitable causes in our community. Since 2004, Joan has been a volunteer docent at the Milwaukee Art Museum. Don has been the Administrative Board Chairman of Gethsemane United Methodist Church for over two decades, and Joan has served on various committees and has been a member of the chancel choir for thirty years.
Don is the senior partner at Murphy & Prachthauser, where he has worked since 1980. For much of his career, Don has supported the Wisconsin Association for Justice, of which he is a past president. He has twice received the honor of Lawyer of the Year from Best Lawyers in America. He is also a past president of The American Board of Trial Advocates-Wisconsin Chapter and an invitation-only member of The American College of Trial Lawyers. Don has also received the honor of Lawyer of the Year from the Wisconsin Association for Justice.
Don enjoys golfing and Joan delights in painting and traveling in their freetime. Don & Joan want us to remember that every day is a learning experience that can make us better, more compassionate people. For Joan, family and volunteering have been an important mission in throughout her life. For Don, whose career choice was inspired by the fictional character, Atticus Finch, it has been the need to have justice in the courtroom. Their devotion to family and giving back inspire each of us to make our community a better place for all.
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