Leader Feb. 2

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WED., FEB. 1, 2012 VOL. 79 • NO. 24 • 2 SECTIONS •

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Both Burnett and Polk counties show unemployment rate increase at end of year but a net gain of nearly 500 jobs from 2010 to 2011 PAGE 3

3 years prison

Rural Luck man sentenced for beatings, hit and run and more

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Minnesota man loses life in single-vehicle accident north of Danbury PAGE 7

Filings completed

Republican primary, county board size referendum only issues for Polk voters on April ballot PAGE 3

Concealed carry series continues PAGE 5

Home-schooled Hoopsters See SPORTS INSIDE THIS SECTION

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Miya Gobel (left) and Ellie Eklof hoist up a perch caught at the Coon Lake Classic in Frederic on Saturday, Jan. 28, as part of the Frederic and Luck co-op softball fundraiser. Several nice fish were released during the tournament, including the largest fish that won first, second and the third-place prizes. See Currents for more photos. - Special photo

A lonely signpost Remembering Bernice

Deaths

Bernice Vivian Abrahamzon Marlene M. Kufallk Louise Kimbel Charles J. Stone Laura Wicklund Bonnie DeLawyer Juanita “Nita” J. Long Roger D. Birkeland Michael I. DeMoe

The author of the Leader’s longest-running - and most popular - column, dies at 91

by Gary King Leader editor FREDERIC/LEWIS - From assembling the pages of calendars to proofreading news articles and advertisements, Bernice Abrahamzon began her career with the Inter-County Cooperative Publishing Association in the early 1960s by tackling every job a publishing plant could throw her way.

But for the past four and a half decades she was known for her role as a writer and poet and - to many, including some who never met her in person - as a cherished friend, through her weekly column in the Inter-County Leader, Behind the Signpost.

This past year she was still on the job at age 90, but failing health slowed her pace and her unique talent for writing and making friends out of total strangers came to an end with her death last Wednesday, Jan. 25, just days after her 91st birthday.

“In a way, she was the last leaf on the tree,” read a line in a tribute handed out at a celebration of life service held Saturday, Jan. 28, at the Lewis Memorial United Methodist Church.

She was an only child and is survived only by three sons - Drew, Tim and Tod. A close family friend, Sheila Staples, someone Bernice loved

What is the best part of the “soft” winter?

1. Lower heating bills 2. No plowing/shoveling 3. Safer travel 4. Best part? This isn’t fair!

Go to our online poll at www.the-leader.net (Weekly results on page 8)

Obituaries on page 15B

INSIDE Local author and Leader columnist Bernice Abrahamzon drew her love of writing and literature from her father.

Below, the first logo for her Behind the Siginpost column, created by John Franklin. - Special photo

Letters to the editor 9-10A Sports 13-20A Outdoors 21A Town Talk 6-7B Coming Events Back of B Letters from Home 3B Cold Turkey 3B

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The Leader is a cooperative-owned newspaper • Since 1933

PAGE 2 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

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Paul Cebar to play benefit for Frederic Arts, Lamar TAYLORS FALLS, Minn. - After two years of planning, Paul Cebar, a Milwaukee boy who’s made it big, will be playing Saturday, Feb. 11, to benefit Lamar Community Center and Frederic Arts.

Lamar has offered a winter concert and dance for seven years, and the partnership with Frederic Arts promises an exceptional event.

“The band, formerly known as Paul Cebar & the Milwaukeeans, plays nationally and has a vast following of fans,” says Mark Buley, president of Frederic Arts. “It’s great to be able to bring this talent to the community.”

Although the name has morphed from Paul Cebar & the Milwaukeeans to Paul Cebar Tomorrow Sound, the sound remains distinctly Cebar: A mix of funky Afro-Cuban music by way of New Orleans with a lively spin on all sorts of American strains from rhythm and blues to funk to zydeco performed with a load of whimsy and lots of midwestern soul.

Along with the concert and dance, Cebar has agreed to an exclusive Dinner with the Band to help raise funds for these two organizations. Only 10 guests will be seated with Cebar for what promises to be a lively evening of conversation on all things music and life, along with the cuisine of North and South India at the Vegetarian in St. Croix Falls. Make reservations with Nancy Buley at 715-327-4743.

The event will be held at the quaint Taylors Falls Depot, 312 Government St. in Taylors Falls and includes a silent auction of art and other useful items, along with beverages and desserts for sale. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are at the door, available online at lamarcommunity.org or at locations in Frederic, Luck and St. Croix Falls. Visit lamarcommunity.org or www.fredericarts.org for more information.. - submitted

Habitat for Humanity ReStore volunteers and staff celebrated the success of the 9-month-old store on Sunday, Jan. 29, and thanked the volunteers who made it possible. - Special photo

Habitat ReStore: Nine months of success Volunteers thanked ST. CROIX FALLS - On Sunday, Jan. 29, a group gathered to celebrate and to thank the many volunteers who have contributed to the success of the the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in St. Croix Falls. During the past nine months since the store opened, over 250 tons of goods and materials have come through the store and were resold or recycled instead of clogging up the landfill. Of this, 175,000 pounds of electronics were recycled for the community - for free.

Store manager David Sandmann thanked the volunteers, pointing out that moving over 250 tons of material is not a job for one or two people. “We can’t do it without you,” he said. “I thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

Items that people do not need are donated daily to the ReStore. Those that were resold in the first nine months since the store opened generated

enough income – after paying overhead costs – to provide Wild Rivers Habitat for Humanity with $75,000. Those funds, in part, helped build two homes and repair 13 homes locally this past year. This amount far surpassed the projections made before the store began. The proceeds are spent locally to support the mission of Habitat for Humanity.

The ReStore also announces a new pricing structure that will have a monthly markdown of merchandise that has been there for more than 60 days. Every day is a sale day, and every day brings in new and unique items.

For more information about donating, shopping or volunteering, call 715-483-2700. Everyone is invited to stop in and see what is happening in the store located at 2201 Hwy. 8, at the top of the hill in St Croix Falls. Every donation or purchase at the ReStore supports Habitat for Humanity in its mission to end poverty housing conditions in Polk and Burnett counties. - from HFH

State insurance commissioner visits local companies

Heller in color

Wisconsin Insurance Commissioner Theodore Nickel visited Luck Mutual Insurance Co. and Trade Lake Mutual Insurance on Tuesday, Jan. 24. Nickel said that the insurance industry is one of the four major industries in Wisconsin, with 290 companies based in the state. He added it is one industry not losing jobs and companies. Nickel said the 70 town mutual companies are an important part of that industry. This was Nickel’s first first to town mutuals in the northwestern part of the state and the visit time an insurance commissioner has visited Trade Lake Mutual in its 138 year history. Insurance companies like Trade Lake and Luck are owned by the policyholders and are a part of the network of cooperatives. Shown with Nickel (left) during his visit to Trade Lake are Charlie Johnson, president of the mutual, manager Ginger Baker and members of the board of directors Deanne Mullner and Wayne Gustafson. Submitted - Photo by Gregg Westigard

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Inter-County

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Inter-County Cooperative Publishing Association 303 N. Wisconsin Ave., Frederic, WI 54837 715-327-4236 • www.the-leader.net Doug Panek

Manager • dougpanek@centurytel.net

Gary King

Editor • gbking@centurytel.net

Board of directors

Charles Johnson, chair Merlin Johnson Janet Oachs Carolyn Wedin Ann Fawver

A cooperative-owned newspaper, the Inter-County Leader is published every Wednesday by the Inter-County Cooperative Publishing Association, Box 490, Frederic, WI 54837. Second Class postage paid at Frederic, WI 54837.

The Inter-County Leader is a qualified newspaper for the publication of legal notices, meeting the requirements as set forth in Chapter 985.03 of the Wisconsin Statutes. Every government official or board that handles public money should publish at regular intervals an accounting of it, showing where and how each dollar is spent. We hold this to be a fundamental principle of democratic government. Publisher reserves right to reject any advertisement or news release or letter of opinion at any time.

Web page: www.the–leader.net E-mail: the-leader@centurytel.net Subscription concerns: subscriptions@centurytel.net Advertisements: addept@centurytel.net Ad deadline: 10 a.m. Tuesdays Copy deadline: 4:30 p.m. Mondays

OFFICES Frederic • 715-327-4236

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Fax - 715-327-4117 (news copy) Fax - 715-327-4870 (ad copy)

Siren • 715-349-2560

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STAFF MEMBERS Nancy Jappe njappe@centurytel.net Tammi Milberg tammi@centurytel.net

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HOW TO SUBSCRIBE

The Inter-County Leader [ISS No. 8750-9091] is published weekly. Subscription prices are $37/yr. in Polk and Burnett counties; $41/yr. in Barron, Chisago, Washburn, St. Croix counties; $44/yr. anywhere in the United States $25/yr. for servicemen or women; $25/yr. for students or schools (9 months). Payment is needed before we can start the subscription. No refunds on subscriptions. Persons may subscribe online at www.theleader.net, write us at Inter-County Leader, Box 490, Frederic, WI 54837, or stop by one of our three offices.

Marty Seeger mseeger@centurytel.net Greg Marsten marscafe@lakeland.ws Sherill Summer sherill33@gmail.com Gregg Westigard greggw@lakeland.ws Carl Heidel cheidel389@centurytel.net Priscilla Bauer cilla@grantsburgtelcom.net Mary Stirrat marystirrat@hotmail.com Jean Koelz jeankoelz@hotmail.com EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Raelynn Hunter rael@centurytel.net

BRIEFLY

FREDERIC - The annual Frederic’s Got Talent competition is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 9, at 7 p.m., at the elementary school gymnasium on Birch Street. The talent show is for high school and junior high school students from Frederic and will feature spoken word (poetry, story, debate, speech, drama, etc.), music and movement (acrobatics, dance, juggling, etc.) Prizes will be given to the top three junior high or high school students.

Judges from the school and Frederic Arts Board will give 1 to 10 points, based on both original concept and execution. - with information from FredericArts.org ••• ST. CROIX FALLS - It’s not too early to start thinking about your spring planting plans. Join the National Park Service for a free presentation on Landscaping for Wildlife on Saturday, Feb. 18, at the St. Croix River Visitor Center in St. Croix Falls. Mike Zeckmeister, the regional wildlife biologist for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Northern Region, will provide information to create naturally beautiful settings that enhance wildlife habitat. Learn about basic wildlife needs and practical tips to meet those needs where you live.

Discover some simple techniques to make your property more bird and butterfly friendly while also reducing harm to the environment and saving time and money with lower maintenance. These principles will apply whether you live in town or in the country. Landscaping for Wildlife will be presented at 10 a.m. and then repeated at 1 p.m. Presentations are free and open to the public and take place at the St. Croix River Visitor Center, 401 North Hamilton St., in St. Croix Falls. Reservations are strongly encouraged due to limited seating. To reserve a seat, call 715-483-2274.

Callers can reserve up to four seats.

- from NPS ••• STATEWIDE - Wisconsin’s open enrollment application window for the 2012-13 school year opens Monday, Feb. 6, allowing parents an opportunity to send their children to any public school district in the state. Senate Bill 2, which extends the application period from three weeks to three months, has passed the Legislature and awaits action by the governor. The new law will be effective when the bill is signed by the governor and published by the secretary of state.

Upon enactment, the open enrollment application period will be from Feb. 6 to April 30. More information is available on the DPI Web site, dpi.wi.gov. - from the DPI ••• WESTERN WISCONSIN – Applicants are now being sought for scholarships to earn a two-year, master’s-level degree in international studies, and peace and conflict resolution. Rotary International will award 60 such scholarships to six universities worldwide later this year. Nominees will be forwarded from District 5960 to Rotary International through a selection process set to begin immediately. Awards will be for the 2013-15 term. Applicants must have earned an undergraduate degree and be proficient in a second language. For more information and to print an application, see the Rotary International Web site at www.rotary.org and click on Students and Youth, then Rotary Peace Centers or contact Jingle Mahan at jingle@rotary5960.org.

Applications are due to local Rotary clubs by April 6. Please contact Jingle Mahan at jingle@rotary5960.org if you do not know your local club.

Endorsements by local clubs will then be sent to the district level by April 20. In-person interviews for district finalists will be conducted June 2 in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area (candidates must be present to interview in person) with the nominee’s name forwarded to the international office by June 15.

Awards will be announced by Rotary International in the fall of 2012.

- from Rotary International

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 3

The unemployment numbers Both Burnett and Polk counties show unemployment rate rise at end of year but a net gain of nearly 500 jobs from 2010 to 2011

by Sherill Summer Leader staff writer SIREN - More than half of Wisconsin’s 72 counties had rising unemployment figures at the end of last year, December 2011, compared to November 2011, including both Polk and Burnett counties.

Burnett County’s rate jumped six percentage points from 7.9 percent in November to 8.5 percent in December. The number of unemployed residents increased by 47 during that time, 649 in November to 696 in December. Looking back, the highest unemployment rate in 2011 was in Feburary when the county’s unemployment rate was 11.6 per-

cent. The lowest rate was during October when the county’s rate was 7.7 percent.

There were 130 more employed residents in October than there were in December.

A year ago, in December 2010, Burnett County had a 9.3-percent unemployment rate. There was a net gain of 335 jobs from December 2010 to December 2011.

Ten years ago, in December 2001, the Burnett County unemployment rate was 6.2 percent. There were 308 more employed residents then, 7,779 in 2001 complared to the 7,471 in 2011. The labor force, both employed and unemployed workers, was slightly larger 10 years ago, 8,297 in 2001 compared to 8,167 in 2011. The number of unemployed was 178 less in December 2001 than in December 2011, 518 to 696.

In Polk County, the rate climed from 7.4 in November 2011 to 7.8 in December 2011.

Unlike Burnett County, however, the main reason for the rate increase was a larger labor force, growing by 242 workers, from 23,317 in November to 23,559 in December.

The number of employed residents in-

creased by 127, from 21,593 in November to 21,720 in December. The number of unemployed increased as well, from 1,724 in November to 1,839 in December.

Compared to December 2010 numbers, Polk County had a net gain of 139 jobs. In December 2010 the unemployment rate was 8.2 percent.

Looking back, the highest unemployment rate during 2011 was in Feburary when Polk County posted a 10.2 rate. The lowest rate was November when the unemployment rate, as mentioned above, was 7.4 percent.

Ten years ago, in December 2001, the county’s unemployment rate was 5.7 percent. There were 421 more jobs 10 years ago, 22,141 in 2001 compared to 21,720 in 2011, a loss that is likely tied to the relocation of most of the Polaris plant in Osceola to Mexico. There was a slightly lower labor force 10 years ago, 23,485 in 2001 compared to 23,559 in 2011, and less unemployed, 1,344 in 2001 compared to 1,839 in 2011.

Polk County filings completed for April 3 election Republican primary, county board size referendum only countywide issues

school districts, one of the two cities, seven of the 10 villages and two of the three towns with five-person boards. Voters in many of the other 21 towns may have no contests.

by Gregg Westigard Leader staff writer POLK COUNTY – The last caucuses have been held, and the last nominees have withdrawn their names from the ballot. The list of candidates for the April 3 election in Polk County is now complete. There will be a countywide referendum on reducing the size of the Polk County Board from 23 to 15.

Aside from that, many voters in the county will have at least one contested election to draw them to the polls. The least contested place in the county is the Town and village of Clayton. Those voters have no election for county board, school board, village board, or town board.

There will be contests for four of the 23 county board seats and in four of the 10

County board Four seats are contested. An additional three seats are open but have only a single candidate. In District 6, the village and Town of Milltown, incumbent Kathryn Kienholz faces Lester Sloper. District 8, the city of St. Croix Falls, has incumbent Randy Korb facing Tom Engel. In District 18, the south half of the Town of Osceola, incumbent Larry Jepsen faces Cynthia Thorman. The last contest is in District 22, most of Black Brook and the south part of Amery. Here, incumbents Russ Arcand and Larry Voelker were placed in the same district after new lines were drawn.

School boards There are school board races in Amery, Clear Lake, Osceola and Unity districts. That

leaves six boards with no contests, Clayton, Cumberland, Frederic, Luck, St. Croix Falls, and Turtle Lake.

Municipalities The city of Amery has a contest for one council seat. In the city of St. Croix Falls, three incumbents are retiring but only a single candidate filed for each office, and there are no races. There are contests in most of the villages, each of which has three of its six council seats up for election. The contests are in Balsam Lake, Clear Lake, Frederic, Luck, Milltown, Osceola and Turtle Lake. Centuria almost had a contest, but three of the six people nominated at the caucus refused the nomination. There are also no contests in Clayton and Dresser. Three towns have fiveperson boards and annual elections. There are contests in Alden and St. Croix Falls but not in Clayton.

A complete guide to the April election will be published in March, as well as a dialogue of the board-size referendum.

April ballot settled at Luck LUCK — The April ballot at the village of Luck will provide voters with a selection of several candidates. A one-year term and three two-year terms are up for election, and village residents were able to nominate candidates at the village caucus last Wednesday,

Jan. 25.

On the ballot for the one-year term are incumbent Craig Lundeen and former Trustee Gene Cooper. On the ballot for the threeyear terms are incumbents Phil Warhol and Ross Anderson, joined by Alan Tomlinson

and Becky Rowe.

Nominated last Wednesday, but not running, are Don Clarke and incumbent Hassan Mian. — Mary Stirrat

The last two caucuses Contests in Luck village and Town of St. Croix Falls

by Gregg Westigard Leader staff writer POLK COUNTY – The nominating caucus season is over. The Town of St. Croix Falls held their caucus Monday, Jan. 23, and the village of Luck held a postponed caucus

Wednesday, Jan. 25.

St. Croix Falls voters will chose two supervisors for their five-person board. The ballot will include incumbents James Beistle and Mary Lynne McAlonie and challenger Frank Behning.

Luck has three full-term trustee seats open and a single seat for the remaining year on a term. At the caucus, six people were nominated for the full term, but two of those peo-

ple declined the nomination. On the April 3 ballot for the three two-year terms will be incumbents Phillip Warholl and Ross Anderson plus challengers Alan Tomlinson and Becky Rowe. Don Clarke and incumbent Hassan Mian were also nominated but withdrew from the race. The contest for the oneyear term has incumbent Craig Lundeen facing Gene Cooper.

Inhalant request leads to meth charges Woman asked police to search for her “puffer” in her purse

by Greg Marsten Leader staff writer DRESSER – Maybe she was better off wheezing a little. Regardless, a request during an investigation led to multiple charges for a woman who accidentally revealed her stash of drugs.

It began when police were called to a rural Luck address early in the morning on Sunday, Jan. 29, for a report of a violent fight between two sisters, and when they arrived, they found the residence in chaos, with broken bottles, chairs, furniture and even a broken kitchen table.

One of the women, Kimma Mosay, 40, did

not acknowledge the police at the door and attempted to ignore them, pretending to be asleep.

But the officer noticed the home in disarray and entered the residence, eventually finding the other sister who called 911, and was not named in the police report.

However, Mosay acted nonchalant about the broken furniture, and after some questioning, admitted that the two sisters had been fighting and wrestling over something after drinking lots of alcohol.

During questioning, Mosay said she needed her “puffer” or inhaler, for a pending asthma attack, and asked the deputy to retrieve it from her purse.

That was when the deputy noticed several other narcotics in the purse alongside that inhaler. The deputy noted finding marijuana paraphernalia, a plastic container with white

powder and marijuana “roaches” in another baggie.

Mosay admitted that the marijuana was hers, but denied the white substance, later identified as methamphetamine, was hers.

She was arrested on charges of possession of marijuana and methamphetamine, and also had a blood alcohol concentration of .221, almost three times the legal limit.

Mosay is now facing charges of disorderly conduct as well as three charges for possession of drug paraphernalia, marijuana and methamphetamine, a felony.

She appeared in Polk County Circuit Court before Judge Jeffery Anderson on Monday, Jan. 30, who placed a $5,000 bond and set a preliminary hearing for Wednesday, Feb. 8, where they will decide if enough evidence exists to move ahead to trial.

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PAGE 4 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

Signpost/from page 1 as a daughter, was also listed among immediate family.

Gracious was the word most used in describing Bernice - and her love of Lewis’ only church, literature and her talent for listening and even proofreading made their way into a final tribute.

In his eulogy, Pastor Tom Cook said Bernice would often approach him after his weekly sermon, give compliments, followed by suggestions and ... corrections.

“She always did it in such a nice way,” he said. “And ... I’m going to miss that.”

Church members continued the tribute to Bernice at their regular church service the following day, including a reading by LaVonne Boyer of words written by former Pastor Steve Ward, a narrative to the tune of the song Nat King Cole made famous, “I Remember You.” One of the lines reads: “Every time I see a misspelled word in a newspaper and think of what a great proofreader you were - Bernice, I will remember you.”

Bernice, at her proofreader’s desk at the Leader in the 1970s. - Special photo

Father’s influence

In an interview for the Leader’s 75th-anniversary issue in 2008, Bernice said she had an interest in writing all her life and thinks maybe her father, “a great storyteller,” had an influence on what she came to love and do with her life.

She was the editor of her high school paper in Oconomowoc, the Cooney Crier (Cooney being the nickname for Oconomowoc), and would send her stories on to the editor at the city’s newspaper the Oconomowoc Herald - for consideration.

Later, attending Milwaukee-Downer College in Milwaukee, she immersed herself in writing essays and studying “artsy” magazines that offered a variety of poetry.

It was there that a girlfriend gave her the address of a serviceman who also liked poetry.

She soon became pen pals with a flight instructor by the name of Kenneth Abrahamzon and they corresponded for three years before meeting in person.

Flash forward several years to the mid1950s, and Mr. and Mrs. Abrahamzon are living in Lewis, raising a family. New friends included Ed and Lorraine Greinke.

Ed was the manager at the Inter-County Cooperative Publishing Association in Frederic and invited her to work part time in the back shop.

That job eventually led her to a job as proofreader and some journalism assignments.

“Due to the deadlines, all of us at the Leader would take our vacations at the same time each year - the first two weeks of July,” Bernice said.

The absence of staff during that holiday meant a shortage of copy for the paper, and she was called out of her proofreader’s chair to do some feature writing to build up a cache of stories to fill in the gaps.

But most of her time was spent proofreading stories by other writers.

It was frustrating for a natural-born writer.

“My own words,” she said. “I wanted my own words.”

“Signpost” is born

In 1967, Abrahamzon began submitting her own columns to Leader editor Bernice Asper. They would end up as fillers in the paper, one week on the bottom of a page toward the back, another week on top of a page closer to the front - wherever fill was needed.

A friend who has shared a passion for writing for years, Ruth Bunker Christianson, gave a name to Bernice’s column, Behind the Signpost.

Bernice’s local claim to fame slowly developed as her column was assigned a regular spot in the Leader - and readers became loyal, enjoying her homespun humor and stories of life on the farm.

At some point in the 1970s the column adopted a logo when co-worker John Franklin sketched a scene of someone peeking out from behind a signpost with the words “Bittersweet Ridge Farm” carved on it.

Life on the farm was both bitter and sweet, the same as everywhere else, she would note in one of four books she has

Leader manager Doug Panek presented Bernice with her old typewriter as part of the fun at her retirement party in 1991. She continued to work for the company for 20 years after her retirement, as a columnist, the writer of the Lewis news and gathering the information for the Do You Remember column. - File photo published since starting her column. They include a collection of her favorite columns, aptly titled “Behind the Signpost,” “Ladies of the Lewis Ladies Aid,” “Echoes of Christmas,” and “Home is where I lay my head.” She also edited and self-published her late husband’s book “Hawthorne Boy.” Winning various writing awards over the years, Bernice often said she was fortunate to have a family that understood her need to sneak away to writing conferences and meetings. She was a charter member of the Northwest Regional Writers and a member of the Wisconsin Regional Writers Association.

She has won the WRWA’s coveted Jade Ring Award.

“A once in a lifetime experience,” she said.

She was also a charter member of the Indianhead Rock and Mineral Society.

Both affiliations brought her longtime friends.

A story in everything

After more than 2,000 columns, with titles ranging from The Road to Bengtson’s Pond and Back, (a poem) to Noises in the Car, to What’s in Your Junk Drawer, the author hadn’t run out of ideas.

“Nothing is ever wasted on a writer - the smallest experience is something to write about,” she said. “It’s already written in my head before I put it on paper. Some people ask me ‘How can you remember all that?’ and I say ‘I just do.’”

“Bernice could find a story in everything,” said her longtime friend and coworker Konnie Didlo. “She touched the lives of many through her writing ... and she was always a teacher. I learned a lot working with her. She was a wonderful person and I will miss her.”

There were times when readers would request Bernice publish a column they consider a favorite - and she obliged.

“Perfect strangers will call me up and talk for hours about a column I’ve written, or send me a letter or photograph,” she

said, adding that those encounters never stopped being a surprise to her.

And while she enjoyed the feedback she got, sometimes reactions weren’t so positive.

She once wrote about missing the use of passbooks at the bank.

“Ed Greinke (former manager) called me on the carpet - and it wasn’t red,” she said.

“He told me I had set banking back 20 years.”

Another time she wrote about how Girl Scouts should sell the cookies themselves instead of their mothers bringing the order blanks to work.

“I was told it was too dangerous to expect them to knock on the doors of strangers,” she said. “Times change.”

In one column, titled “Fantasy: Windfall Leads to Problems,” she wrote about winning a million dollars and the problems that ensued.

After it was published, someone came up to her and shook her hand, saying, “We’re happy for you!”

She responded, “You don’t believe it, do you? You didn’t read the title!”

“But you never lie - you always write about things that really happen - you always tell the truth.”

“So this time I lied,” she said. And she had to explain that column many times.

Loyal readers may find it difficult to read the Leader from now on, knowing that “Signpost” will no longer be a part of the paper.

“I lost count over the years as to how many people were renewing their subscription only because of Bernice’s column,” said Lettie McDonough, another longtime friend and co-worker, who will remember Bernice not only as the column writer but as a gracious and caring person who was always willing to help someone else.

“She will be greatly missed.”

A long summer

The Leader crew became a second family to Bernice.

“They were like brothers and sisters, children and even grandchildren, like family,” she wrote upon her retirement from full time in 1991. At one point, she made it to the “top of the time clock,” for being the longest-employed person at the Leader.

It was a feat she cherished nearly as much as living in the same home for a long time.

Her husband, Ken, who liked new challenges, led the family to different towns.

There was Peru, Ind., and Memphis, Tenn., then Superior, Ashland and Sheboygan in Wisconsin and then to St. Paul and northern St. Paul in Minnesota.

He was a military flight instructor, teaching British and French cadets how to fly and later a theater director and teacher.

“He was a creative individual and welcomed new challenges,” she wrote in her book, “Home is where I lay my head,” which she dedicated to Ken and their three sons. “He had unlimited energy, the way very talented people do,” she writes in the book. “ When he entered a room he made it come alive. Together we were a good team and could make people laugh.”

Ken died suddenly in 1986, and a few days later a fire severely damaged the Lewis church. The flowers and memorabilia from the funeral were still in the church. Photos were rescued by Abrahamzon’s godchild, Kara Alden.

“It was a double whammy,” she wrote.

“In a single week I had lost the man I love most in life and our beautiful church.”

She often reflects on their life together and their decision in the 1950s that led to her idyllic dream of a home where they could settle for a while.

“His parents had moved to Lewis from Superior - so we came for a summer,” she said. “But it’s been a long summer.”

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 5

Adequate training is critical

by Boyd Sutton Special to the Leader You have decided that carrying a concealed pistol is right for you and you have your permit. Most important, you decided to go ahead for the right reason—to protect yourself and your family against deadly threats. It follows, then, that you want to be able to carry and use your weapon safely and effectively. That requires training and regular practice.

The Wisconsin law that permits concealed carry doesn’t require the right training, and most concealed carry advocates are against a state training mandate.

They aren’t against training. They believe that the right training is vitally important.

But they oppose government-mandated requirements, especially a “one size fits all” approach. They trust citizens to be responsible enough to get the right training. Moreover, they don’t want a government-mandated training requirement that could be used to disenfranchise people from what they argue is a right to carry a concealed pistol by imposing requirements that cost so much that many people can’t afford them.

But training was the No. 1 concern of everyone I interviewed, including two county sheriffs, two village police chiefs and a former district attorney—all of whom strongly support concealed carry.

The law allows a permit to be issued on the basis of a DD-214, showing honorable discharge from military service, or a record of having taken a hunter safety course. Hunter safety courses don’t include anything about handgun safety or proficiency. Military service may or may not include training with handguns and, for most people, was so far in the past as to have virtually no relevance to current proficiency. Training by a certified instructor also meets the state requirement for a concealed carry permit, but has no requirement for range time to demonstrate shooting proficiency or gun handling safety and there is no state requirement to address specific topics. So people who receive a concealed carry permit are pretty much on their own to get the sort of training needed to carry and use their weapons safely and effectively.

Every law enforcement officer I consulted expressed concern about the inadequacy of Wisconsin’s training requirement. “You must understand the legal ramifications, your responsibility, and the consequences of using your gun,” said Sheriff Dean Roland, “and you need to understand how to interact safely with law enforcement officers.” He had a number of other training concerns, as did the others.

Polk County Sheriff Pete Johnson urged people to get training to understand what he calls “the semantics of concealed carry and defensive gun use.” This includes such things as understanding concealment and brandishing of the weapon, personal concealment, and cover if weapons are drawn, and much more.

Roland and Johnson and police Chiefs Sybers, Siren, and Spafford, Webster, all spoke about the mental preparedness needed to engage in a firefight and survive. Targets don’t shoot back or produce the adrenaline rush that changes your mind and body’s performance. And targets don’t die because you shot them.

Training by the numbers Let’s look at what I’ll call training by the numbers. And let’s not forget what follows training—practice, practice, and more practice. Get the training and do the practice or you are a walking dead man and a menace to yourself and those around you. This doesn’t give you any answers; it merely highlights the key elements of carrying and using a concealed gun safely and proficiently.

Also, please remember that overall proficiency should be thought of as a stool with four legs—all four have to be solidly grounded for the chair to work. Think of

Concealed carry

begins in Wisconsin Boyd Sutton the four legs as equipment (gun and ammunition), holster, approach to concealment, and tactics. I barely touch on these below.

Daily carry Select a weapon and appropriate defensive ammunition. Almost all defense experts argue that you should not rely on what they call mouse guns such as .22, .25, .32-calibers. They recommend at least .380 and up. The 9 mm and .45 are the most popular, but others are popular too.

The ammunition you carry for defense is as important as the gun. Ball ammunition—also called full metal jacket—doesn’t expand much when it hits a target, so it lacks the stopping power of hollow point and other variants designed for personal defense. FMJ also has much greater penetration, so it can pass through the intended target or walls and is more likely to injure other people. Practice mostly with FMJ ammunition because it’s cheaper, but carry your defensive load.

Select a carry technique and appropriate holster for your primary gun and backup gun, if you carry one. Should it be pocket carry, with pocket holster, inside or outside the waistband, shoulder or shirt holster, cross-draw, back, appendix, or hip carry? For women, should it be one of the above or purse carry? How about an ankle holster? Most people who carry regularly don’t rely on a single holster technique. Do NOT plan to carry by simply sticking the gun in your waistband or a pocket without a holster.

What clothing do you plan to use to conceal the weapon reliably and not leave a tell tale bulge or weapon outline? How does your choice affect your ability to perform daily tasks such as getting in and out of a car, doing whatever work you do, whatever recreation you have, bending, lifting, carrying? How do you keep your gun secure if you need a public toilet?

How easily and quickly can you draw your gun and get on target in varying conditions and seasons?

If you are carrying and come across a no-guns posted area, how easily and discreetly can you remove your gun and secure it in your vehicle? This is a huge concern for law enforcement officers.

Johnson listed this as one of his biggest concerns. Both he and Roland said that during every deer season, the number of vehicle break-ins skyrockets—because guns are there and they are a prime target for criminals. So you have two problems—getting the gun off of your person as unobtrusively as possible, and securing it in your vehicle. Johnson recommended “a lock box, preferably a gun safe, that is physically attached to the vehicle.” Roland agreed.

Showing, drawing Studies show that private citizens use guns for self-defense from 800,000 to more than 3 million times annually. But John R. Lott Jr., states in his book, “More Guns, Less Crime,” “If national surveys are correct, 98 percent of the time that people use guns defensively, they merely have to brandish a weapon to break off an attack.” We’ll get into Wisconsin’s law pertaining to brandishing a weapon in the next part in this series. For now, though, let me just say that whether or not it is OK to show your gun is fraught with serious legal and tactical considerations. Good training covers this. You don’t get it from a hunter safety course or military service.

Shooting Shooting—if it comes to that—is the nub of it. The whole purpose of carrying, concealed or open, is to be able to defend yourself or your family from deadly

threats. There’s a trick question that good trainers use. “When do you shoot to kill?” The correct answer is, “Never. You shoot to stop the threat.” Once the threat is stopped, there is no longer any justification for deadly force. That means you don’t shoot to defend property. You don’t shoot if the assailant turns tail and is running away. You don’t shoot once the assailant is down or in any way clearly ceases his assault.

Good training provides multiple shoot/no shoot scenarios to teach you the basic principles of when it is or is not appropriate to shoot someone in self-defense. Get it right and you save yourself or your family. Get it wrong and you will very likely go to jail for a long time. You don’t get this in hunter safety or military training either.

There are many more legal and tactical issues to consider in shoot/no shoot situations. You are responsible for every round you fire, wherever it may go. That means if you shoot at an assailant and hit an innocent bystander, you are liable.

That means that if you shoot, and your round goes through a wall or window and injures someone across the street, you are liable. That’s one reason good trainers say it’s never a good idea to fire a warning shot. It’s hard to know where the round will end up. There are other, equally important, reasons, but that one is good enough for me.

You need to know how to best protect yourself by using movement, concealment, and cover. Do you fully appreciate the difference between cover and concealment, for example? Cover is protection; concealment is hiding.

Do you understand how much cover is provided by various obstacles? I always wince during movies and TV programs when I see characters—including police—seeking cover behind a car. Do you know that a 9 mm handgun round will usually penetrate through both doors of a car and still kill someone on the other side? The only relatively safe place to gain cover from a car is in the front, where the engine block presents a real barrier. You can learn these things in good training.

After drawing or shooting It’s critical to know what to do in the aftermath of an encounter, even if all you’ve done is to draw your gun without shooting it. If you have shot an assailant, the stakes go way up. We’ll get into how to deal with law enforcement in the next article. For now, consider these questions.

1. Do you know what to do after a shooting? How do you handle your gun?

What do you personally do?

2. Do you know whom to call and in what order?

3. Do you know what to say, or not to say to a 911 operator, to the police who respond, to any witnesses or bystanders?

Good training covers all of these points, but you don’t get it in hunter safety or military service.

Regular practice You know that old saying, practice makes perfect? Well it’s wrong! Perfect practice makes perfect. Poorly done practice instills and cements bad habits that become harder and harder to break. So it is always best to get some good quality training as soon as you can and to reinforce that training as often as you can afford to do so.

This should include safety basics, practiced over and over and over; how to draw quickly and/or unobtrusively; lots of dry fire to improve sight alignment and trigger control, and time on the range to improve your ability to shoot quickly and accurately.

When it comes to shooting, you are looking for combat accuracy, not target accuracy. In a gunfight, no one cares how many times you break the 10 ring, so the training standards and practice techniques are different. How far from the target should you do your practice shooting? Roland reminded me that 90 percent of all police-involved gunfights take place at 12 feet or closer.

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Training resources Training can be formal—a course you attend—and informal—what you get on your own from qualified friends, if you’re lucky, or by reading books and magazines, research on the Internet, or by watching special TV programs or videos.

Formal classes Formal training is the best. Everyone wanting a concealed carry permit should take an appropriate course—even those who got their permit by submitting a DD214 or certificate of hunter safety training.

All take anywhere from three to 10 hours and cost $150 or less. Some examples: • I received my concealed carry training last spring near Frederic from Advanced Protection Group LLC, led by Dominic V. Ferraro (www.apgwi.com, 855-WI-CARRY). Based in Madison, they conduct training throughout Wisconsin.

Their basic CC permit course is the most comprehensive I’m aware of. It lasts at least eight hours and addresses every topic listed above except shooting accuracy. They have advanced courses available.

• Safe Firearms Training (www.safefirearmstraining.com, 715-5547070; also see their Facebook page, Safe Firearms Training Wisconsin) provided training for some 55 people recently in a class held at the Frederic Fire Department. Taught by St. Croix police Officer Jared Cockroft and Polk County Deputy Joe Vierkandt, the course is certified by the Wisconsin Department of Justice.

Their course is at least four hours. Another course is planned for March 3 in Grantsburg and for mid-March in Amery.

They also plan to have intermediate and advanced pistol shooting courses.

• St. Croix Outdoors (Hwy. 8, stcroixoutdoors@centurytel.net, 715-4839515) sponsors monthly concealed carry courses run by David Twohy (http://www.wimnconcealcarry.com/).

The price includes six hours of classroom instruction plus range time and covers Wisconsin and Minnesota carry issues – including open and concealed for Wisconsin – and qualifies for both states’ permits. Students get a CD with training resources and a book about carrying concealed.

On your o\wn A few examples.

• U.S. Concealed Carry Association (www.usconcealedcarry.com/) – Membership organization. Many training resources come with membership. An insurance-like service is available to help with legal costs of defense if necessary.

Their monthly magazine has excellent articles on training and legal information.

• Armed Citizens Legal Defense Network, LLC (www.armedcitizens network.org/) – Membership organization devoted to providing legal defense assistance to members involved in shooting incidents. Monthly journal includes valuable training and legal reviews.

Many useful articles are available on the site without becoming a member.

• Down Range TV (www.downrange.tv) – Guns, self-defense, and shooting sports. Many training-issue discussions and videos, including past episodes of “The Best Defense.”

• Wednesday shooting shows on The Outdoor Channel on satellite TV. The next article in this series will talk about dealing safely, positively and effectively in encounters with law enforcement.

••• Boyd Sutton retired following 37 years of service in the Army and Central Intelligence Agency. In his younger days he spent over 10 years as a competition shooter. While no longer an active participant, he remains interested in shooting issues. Nothing in this or other articles in this series should be taken as legal advice of a definitive statement regarding the law. Please consult a qualified lawyer if you have legal questions.

PAGE 6 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

Unique experience helps Unity students succeed in college BALSAM LAKE — Over the last four years, Unity High School has greatly expanded its offerings for students pursuing higher education. Through advanced placement college-level courses and exams, students have been earning college credit and advanced placement, have been standing out in the admission process and have been learning from some of the most skilled and dedicated teachers in Northwest Wisconsin. As AP psychology and European history teacher Jennifer Helstad tells her students on day one, “If you can do AP, you can do college.”

According to high school Principal Jason Cress, students in the past would come back and tell staff and administration how they struggled during their first year of postsecondary education. Now those students are coming back and explaining how easy their first semester of

college was and how successful they are as they move outside of the red, white and blue halls of Unity High School.

As AP biology teacher Brian Collins explained, “Advanced biology has given my students a better understanding of what college courses will offer in terms of rigor and high expectations. I also feel the work in the labs has given my students more experience in converting numbers, working with data and exploring how the problem solving of science really works.”

Within five years, Unity has gone from having no AP classes to quite a variety. As registration begins for the 2012-2013 school year, students have the option of acquiring the skills and habits to be successful in college in eight different areas – biology, English literature, European history, music theory, physics, psychology, statistics and United States history. This grand total represents the largest selection

Unity students in advanced placement biology work on a lab project. The advanced placement classes provide high school students with college credit at a greatly reduced price. — Photos submitted

in the Lakeland Conference.

Many courses, like AP music theory and AP physics, are rarely seen in this part of the state of Wisconsin.

This “diploma-plus” effort at Unity High School is paying dividends for the Unity graduates as they are leaving the confines of Unity High School with improved writing skills, sharpened problemsolving abilities, and developed time management and study skills while also having earned college credit and advanced placement.

As Collins explained, “The College Board expectations in biology cover a

huge breadth of knowledge, but we find we are able to go deep into much of the content. As a rule, students are most successful when they continue the work outside of class. I think that builds the kind of study skills that will allow these students to thrive in college.”

Helstad agrees with Collins that the students are getting a “great litmus test for the college expectations they will encounter” and it is a “great deal” as students pay under $90 to take each AP exam that could earn them hundreds of dollars in savings for their college education. — submitted

Beatings, hit-and-run and more means three years in prison Ricky Mosay sentenced for violent crimes and bond violations

by Greg Marsten Leader staff writer BALSAM LAKE – A 21-year-old rural Luck resident will spend at least three years in prison, with another three years of extended supervision upon release for reduced charges that came from a laundry list of felonies and misdemeanors over the past two years.

Ricky A. Mosay was sentenced on Monday, Jan. 30, by Judge Molly GaleWyrick in Polk County Circuit Court after a plea agreement resolved and combined numerous felonies and misdemeanors, ranging from a violent beating and burglary of two men at a party, that left one man unconscious in the ditch, to unrelated charges of stealing a car, fleeing police and ending up in the ditch, as well as numerous bail jumping, battery, DUI, and a separate hit-and-run incident that caused injuries to a man.

A plea bargain last fall reduced or eliminated the bulk of the traffic charges, with Mosay pleading guilty to several charges for sentencing purposes.

The incident that led to the substantial battery charge stems from an assault in the fall of 2010 at the Round Lake reservation, where Mosay was allegedly behind an attack on two men that left one victim unconscious and lying in a ditch, only to wake up hours later, without his wallet.

According to the police report, the altercation began a football party near Mosay’s home. As two party-goers went to the store, Mosay called out to them, and dragged the men from their car, beating one of them on the head and face with a fence railing, causing several fractures.

One victim was left unconscious, woke the next day and walked to a nearby home to call police. The other victim also had been knocked out, but was a partial witness, noting that Mosay was the beater, and that he said he had a gun. That victim also passed out after Mosay beat him. He woke up later that night, and headed to a nearby home to sleep off his injuries, unaware of his fellow victim unconscious in the ditch.

After an extensive investigation, Mosay was identified as the assailant, although he denied even being there at the time, claiming he was busy with a WITC brick-

laying class, which turned out to be a lie.

He was later charged with seven felonies, including substantial battery, intending bodily harm, as well as two felony robbery charges, four bond violaRicky Mosay tions and a battery charge.

Mosay also had an outstanding incident from earlier that same year in March 2010, where he had thrown a chair at someone in another altercation, then as they argued, he attempted to leave in a huff, and hit a man with his car as he left, breaking bones in the man’s foot. Mosay claimed that he was the one being attacked, and that they were trying to pull him from his car when he ran over the man. He was eventually charged with felony hit-andrun, felony aggravated battery of an elderly person, felony substantial battery and misdemeanor disorderly conduct.

Mosay was out on bail when he was most recently arrested. An August 2011 incident involved Mosay’s refusal to stop for police on suspicion of intoxicated driving. He attempted to flee police but ended up crashing into a ditch on CTH E, where he was arrested for his second DUI, on top of three felony bond violations.

His cases were combined in a massive plea agreement last fall, and he was finally sentenced this week for the reduced charges.

Under GaleWyrick’s sentence, he will serve the maximum penalty, nine months, on the felony hit-and-run causing injury, as well as one year and six months plus two years of extended supervision for the substantial battery charge for the football beating, as well as another nine months for a guilty plea to a battery charge.

Mosay will serve all of those sentences concurrent to the judge’s sentence for the latest felony bail jumping, as he will serve at least three years in prison, plus another three years of extended supervision upon release.

His sentence also included paying court and restitution costs, as well as chemical and anger management treatment. The earliest Mosay will be released is in late 2014.

Free legal clinic POLK COUNTY - Local attorneys are staffing a free legal clinic the third Monday of every month for the purpose of providing general legal information to members of the community. The next free legal clinic is Feb. 20, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. It will be held in the Polk County Community Room at the Polk County Justice Center, no appointment is necessary. Local lawyers will be on hand to meet with in-

dividuals for approximately 10 minutes to provide general information in the following areas of law: family law, landlord/tenant and small claims, criminal/traffic, estate planning/elder law/probate, real estate, business law and debtor/creditor. For more information contact Janet King at Bakke Norman, S.C., at 715-684-4545. - with submitted information

www.the-leader.net • Connect to your community

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 7

Minnesota man dies in one-vehicle crash north of Danbury DANBURY - A 59-year-old Minnesota man was fatally injured in a one-vehicle crash in northern Burnett County Saturday evening, Jan. 28.

Charles James Stone of Sandstone, Minn., was driving on North Markville Road, a mile west of Hwy. 35, north of Danbury, when the accident occurred, resulting in his death. The accident oc-

curred at approximately 11:10 p.m., according to a news release from the Wisconsin State Patrol.

The state patrol was assisted at the scene by the Burnett County Sheriff’s Department. The accident remains under investigation. - with information from Wisconsin State Patrol

St. Croix Falls High School honor roll Honor roll Seniors

Taylor Ader, Cyrus Aluni, Haley Anderson, Jessica Berganini, Alex Bertram, Benjamin Clausen, Nicholas DeConcini, Christopher Eisen, Alexander Frey, Elliott Frokjer, Alicia Gravesen, Robert Heilig, Ahna Hoefler, Zachary Horn, Brandon Hutton, Emily Johnson, Erin Kessler, Kyle Kinzer, Terrence Klemish, Lauren Koschmeder, Brenna Loen, Nichole McPherson, Alex Mikl, Samuel Nichols, Caitlyn Olson, Sarah Petznick, Cassandra Rasmussen, Joseph Reddy, Matthew Rude, Erik Swenson, Jessica Theroux, Jenna Van Soelen and Brittany Whittier.

Juniors

Paige Appel, Phillip Bayle, Joshua Bibeau, Noah Casterton, David Cole, Courtney Ewald, Dustin Findlay, Kevin Fisk, Sydney Geisness, Kayla Golden, Amyrose Herrick, Alexandra Holmdahl, Nicholas Holmes, Jessica Houliston, Emily Hudson, Hayley Jaremczuk, Jordan Johnson, Samantha Jorgensen, Nathan Krenz, Cheyanne Krueger, Brittani Krych, Dylan Lynch, Jacqueline Manoppo, Stephanie Melin, Bailey Morrison, Madisen Neuman, Samantha O’Brien, Taylor Orton, Natalie Sempf, Maggie Singerhouse, Jacob Sommer, Anthony Stelton, Shane Swanson, Briana Wenell and Taylor Woller.

Sophomores

Erica Bergmann, Kierstyn Campbell, Hayley Cermin, McKenzie Christenson, Kamille Flandrena, Brendon Gearhart, Matti Gerlach, Brian Gilbert, Morgan Heichel Lindgren, Teagan Hills, Ella Hoefler, Alexander Jorgensen, Garrett Kerkow, Emily Kessler, Benjamin Kopp, Zarek Kubesh, Brennon McPherson, Taylor Moen, Jessica Rademacher, Nicholas Schlaeger, Thomas Schuler, Amy Segelstrom, Jacob Siltberg, Sally Sutton, McKayla Swanson, Megan Swenson, Logan Wallace, Taylor Webb and Lindsey Wondra.

Freshmen

Truman Ader, Mitchel Berg, Rebecca Buss, Marley Doolittle, Thea Erickson, Amelia Fisk, Felicia Fisk, Thomas Foss, Casey French, Evan Gorres, Noelle Gutzmer, Bailey Hansen, Bethany Kalpin, Cassandra Kalpin, McKenzie Katzmark, Alexander King, Henry Klein, Jacob Knight, Angus Koschmeder, Kyle Koshiol, John Larson, Zena Lefler, Jesse Loen, Samantha Melin, Nikolas Neuman, Bethany Oestreich, Danielle Peterson, Mariah Rohm, Brandon Schumann, Emma Seifert, Clover Stanze, Jonathan Steinert, Samantha Stich, Brenna Sullivan, Rebecca Thayer, Alanna Vossen, Mark Wampfler and Sadie Woller.

Siren High School honor roll A honor roll Seniors

Paige Kelley, Tricia Kopecky, Qi Xin Li, Ian Martin, Abigail Mitchell, Adam Neurer, Evan Oachs, Leanne Pigman, Zachary Powers, Murdock Smith and Jacob Stener.

Juniors

Alejandra Botta, Elizabeth Brown, Brittany Coulter, Dennis Livingston, Samuel Vasatka and Hunter Wickstrom.

Andrew Brown, Kaylene Johnson, Jessica Lysdahl, Felicia Paulzine, Alan Strabel and Isaac Wegner.

Raven Emery, Mackenzie Erickson, Matthew Larson and Joshua Lemieux.

Sophomores

Mackenzie Brown and Lucas Stiemann.

Freshmen

Harriet Koball, Nathan Martin and Tyler Molamphy.

Juniors

Sophomores

Corey Bauer, Austin Bruss, John D’Jock, Carly Good, Whitney Krogstad-Yambrick, Amber Moore, Devan Pavlicek, Jessica Strabel and Jade Taylor.

Freshmen

Eighth grade

Casey-Jean Brown, Haylee Doriott, Zoe Emery, Bryce Highstrom, Emily Howe, Travis Krenzke, Mercedes Moody, Kristy Nyman, Hope Peterson, Ashley Teron and Sophie Vasatka.

Seventh grade

Kodie Anderson, Keenan Cook, Madeline Doty, Alexi Gloodt, Amber Hanson, Wyatt Honeysett, Madisyn Jones, Maggie O’Malley, Toni Peterson, Keisha Roy, Michael Staples and Josiah Wegner.

B honor roll Seniors

Savonne Bearheart, Payton Decorah, Samantha Kosloski, Sydney Lamson, Tanner Lee, Max Lindquist, Bailey Mangen, Sampson Richter and Bayzhia Taylor.

Caitlynn Daniels, Laurel Kannenberg, Aubriannah Larson, Aaron Ruud, Hannah Skold, Elizabeth Stanford, Emily Stiemann, Alexandra Webster and Amber Zak. Riley Anderson, Patricia Close, Kayla Eideh, Seth Guertin, Brady Mangen, Haley Peterson, Kaylin Ritchey, Makayla Staples, Heather Struck and Autumn Tinman.

Luke Bollant, Jesus Garcia, Rachel Gloodt, Taylor Hagen, Amber Hall, Elijah Hinze, Stephanie Keith,

Eighth grade

Seventh grade

PAGE 8 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

COMMUNITY

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Not over yet

• Joe Heller •

The forecast is calling for some snow in the next week and, if nothing else, it will bring a sense of balance to our Nordic lives. This has been a surreal winter with temperatures in the upper 40s in January and a view of brown grass sticking out between dirty patches of snow.

Aside from the theories on global warming, it’s news that rings true to those trying to save a few dollars in heating their homes. There are numerous variables in trying to establish exactly how much is saved, but Thomas Content of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel’s Plugged In column was peaceful in quoting the Energy Information Administration as saying many household heating budgets have dropped about 9 percent so far this winter.

“The savings are even more impressive compared with the last five winters, which featured colder conditions and higher natural gas prices,” noted Content. “A typical Midwest household will see bills 23 percent, or nearly $200, below the six-year average, the EIA said.”

If you use all wood to heat your home, you’re saving money to begin with, and the actual cost savings won’t be as much as if you’re using heating oil or propane.

But despite the winter that wasn’t - which has likely impacted the local tourism industry significantly, with snowmobilers heading to northern Minnesota and the “yooper” in Michigan to find decent snow - there is an up side to warmer temps and snowless roads.

First, snowless roads are safer. That doesn’t mean freezing rain shouldn’t be taken into account. Most of us would rather drive on snow-packed roads than black ice.

And municipalities from Dresser to Danbury, not to mention counties, are saving money in snow removal costs. There’s an argument that “it all evens out” in the long run. Snow removal some years busts the budget, after all.

But taxpayers should take note of how much money is saved and how it affects their local tax levy, if at all. Does the money saved go back into the general fund or is it rolled over into next year’s snow removal fund? In either case it should mean more money for other budget needs or at least a hedge against raising next year’s tax levy.

But there’s most of February and all of March in front of us - and as soon as we tend to notice a savings, Mother Nature steps in and reminds us of where we live and how our planning around weather is one big exercise in futility.

Every good writer does well

• Web poll results •

Last week’s question

To take part in our poll, go to theleader.net and scroll down to the lower left part of the screen • See front page for this week’s question

• Where to write • President Barack Obama 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Washington, D.C. 20500 www.whitehouse.gov/contact/ Gov. Scott Walker Wisconsin State Capitol Madison, WI 53707 transition@wisconsin.gov Congressman Sean Duffy (7th District) 1208 Longworth House Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510 202-225-3365 U.S. Sen. Herb Kohl 330 Hart Senate Office Bldg.

Washington, D.C. 20510 715-832-8492 senator_kohl@kohl.senate.gov

Rep. Erik Severson (28th District) Room 6 North State Capitol Madison, WI 53708 608-267-2365 • 888-529-0028 FAX: 608-282-3628 rep.Severson@legis.state.wi.us Rep. Roger RIvard (75th District) State Capitol Room 307 North P.O. Box 8952, Madison, WI 608-266-2519 • 888-534-0075 rep.rivard@legis.wi.gov U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson 2 Russell Courtyard Washington, D.C. 20510 202-224-5323

Sen. Robert Jauch (25th District) Room 415 South, State Capitol P.O. Box 7882, Madison, WI 53707 Sen.Jauch@legis.state.wi.us Sen. Sheila Harsdorf (10th District) State Capitol, P.O. Box 7882 Madison, WI 53707 608-266-7745 • 715-232-1390 Toll-free - 800-862-1092 sen.harsdorf@legis.state.wi.us Rep. Nick Milroy (73rd District) Room 8 North, State Capitol P.O. Box 8953, Madison 53708 rep.milroy@legis.state.wi.us

We here at the Leader bid a fond farewell to good friend Bernice Abrahamzon this week - her death left us sad for the loss of someone special.

And it’s difficult not to lament on behalf of our readers who turn to page 5 of Currents each week to read Behind the Signpost before they read anything else in the paper.

Some subscribed to the Leader for her column alone.

To most of us here, Bernice was more than just a columnist or journalist or proofreader. She was simply a lovely person, full of grace, intelligence, poise and great humor - she shared the deadline pressure, but her calm presence somehow made it less stressful for those around her.

It’s hard to believe she worked here for nearly half a century. This past year we noticed her pace had slowed, a beautiful walking stick helping her to keep her balance as she soldiered on.

She laughed when we told her our subscription list would dwindle when she stopped writing her column. “I don’t think so,” she said, smiling.

We think so.

A newspaper story could never do justice to Bernice, and this week our feature captures only a small part of who she was. We shudder to think of any errors we may have missed, but we can imagine Bernice sending us signals from beyond, a la Clarence in “It’s a Wonderful Life,” for each typo.

As a young, self-taught journalist moved into the editor's desk decades ago, Bernice was encouraging and helpful as a friend, mentor and proofreader. More than a few of her lessons in the English language stuck. Adage should never be "old adage" - as the definition of adage is "old saying."

And she would often add a smiling face with her corrections and lessons.

Even in a thank-you card she once wrote, "Every good writer does well," scribbling the word "adjective" with an arrow pointing at the word good and "adverb" pointing to the word well. A tongue-in-cheek reminder of her role at the Leader.

And those multiple exclamation points used by desperate writers of letters to the editor - sometimes as many as three or four - she would delete all but one.

"You only need one," she would say. "That does the job."

And it appears we only needed one person to make our jobs more pleasant, more interesting and certainly more joyful.

Editorials by Gary King

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The entire Leader is online and delivered to your computer before the paper version is off the press each Wednesday. w w w. t h e - l e a d e r. n e t

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FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 9

• Letters to the editor • Petty politics When reading the letter from the Polk County Chairman of the Democratic Party, it is difficult to handle his excuses for a recall of Gov. Walker. The mantra of the Democrats in Wisconsin is to use the Koch Brothers as the demons from the deep. His additional reason for the recall is the American Legislation Exchange Council. To make his point that this group is terrible, he suggests people go to a Web site which has been put up by a group called Center for Media & Democracy.

What he does not say is that this group is made up of far-left politically biased individuals. Come on chairman, you must have better reasons for the recall.

Good work, chairman. You have shown your in-depth critique of the reasons for a recall. Those who want a recall, in Wisconsin, still have no better reason than the loss of the election of 2010. The Democrats don’t get it, but if I remember President Obama told Sen. McCain in a meeting, “You lost.” People with a proper understanding of the political process of elections will not try to undo the will of the people by recalls.

Unfortunately, the Democrats have now created more bad feelings among those who voted for Walker in 2010. There will be those with long memories who will want to repay the Democrats down the road. I for one am greatly disappointed by the petty politics of the supporters of the recall. If the members of one party in the state are unwilling to accept the results of legitimate elections, this becomes the nadir for the future of state government in Wisconsin.

Walker’s greatest sin is that he balanced the budget in Wisconsin without new taxes and saved large sums of money for many local and statewide school districts as evidenced by the reports in the Leader.

But then who would want to save the taxpayers money?

Don Denny St. Croix Falls

God’s view of the unborn

This past Sunday, Jan. 22, was called the The Sanctity of Life Sunday. The focus was on preserving the life of the unborn.

With over 54 million abortions since 1973, the emphasis was crucial. Unless people take seriously the outright slaughter of 54 million people, this atrocity will continue at the rate of over 4,500 daily. If there is going to be any way to stop the evil of abortion, it is not going to happen until people take seriously God’s view of the unborn. For many, this means that they take seriously their own rebellion against God in this area and stop seeking to keep abortion legal and do everything they can to stop it.

Psalm 139:13-16 clearly presents God’s view of the unborn. I challenged people from it in my sermon. This passage is reflecting on the omnipotent power of God in the miracle of conception all the way to the birth of a baby. The psalmist David is using his own beginning as he writes about this power.

David said, “You knit me together in my mother’s womb. I am fearfully and wonderfully made” (vv. 13-14). In other words, he is the product of God’s creative work in his mother’s womb. At the end of verse 15, he says that he was “skillfully wrought” or “woven together.” The

Wisconsin moving forward The recent State of the State address provided an opportunity to assess the reforms and progress made in the past year to get Wisconsin’s fiscal house in order and improve our state’s business climate.

The positive improvement we are seeing is encouraging and shows that we are heading in the right direction.

By comparison, states that did not make the difficult decisions to address their fiscal challenges have seen higher taxes, massive layoffs and lower credit ratings. One of the nation’s bond rating agencies recently downgraded Illinois’ credit rating from A1 to A2, making it the lowest rating in the country. According to the report, Illinois lawmakers were

meaning is “intricately made with care.”

Abortion disrupts God’s work of the unborn. The beginning of verse 13 says, “You have formed [created] my inward parts.”

Yes, God created our inmost being, even our soul. He arranged our genetic structure. The psalmist marvels at God’s divine engineering.

Therefore, because abortion destroys God’s work, the judgment of God is going to be very severe for doctors who perform abortions and every politician, person and organization that seeks to keep abortion legal. Whether they believe it or not, there will be a traumatic accountability.

One argument for abortion is that a woman has a right to do with her own body as she pleases. This is not true when it comes to abortion. The unborn child is not an appendix, a tumor or a piece of tissue. It’s a baby being formed in the woman’s womb. Human life begins at conception and continues to develop uninterrupted unless interrupted by abortion. Even in the embryo stage of life, God’s eyes beheld David. He said, “Your eyes saw my unformed body” (v. 16).

Think of the doctors, lawyers, teachers, engineers, plumbers, construction workers, etc., that will never be because they have been aborted. How about the moms and dads, grandparents, great-grandparents, family units, descendants that will never exist because they have been wiped out by abortion? No wonder the judgment of God is going to be severe.

The book of Judges records a lot of terrible things that happened with humanity.

God has a reason for this because the truth is summed up in the very last verse that says, “Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25). That’s the problem in the world today and with America.

Without any thought of a reckoning before God, everyone does what is right in his or her own eyes.

Pastor Merrill D. Olson Isanti, Minn.

Formerly of Webster

Million reasons to say thanks

We currently live in turbulent times; fears and frustrations with the government and the economy seem to be at an all-time high. The desire of people needing to “point the finger” and place blame instead of searching for solutions is also frustrating. As 2012 rings anew, I would like to “point a finger” at some wonderful people, events and programs and take time to recognize them.

In the spring of 2010, my daughter was diagnosed with cancer. Through the process of going through cancer, our family was touched in countless ways by literally hundreds of people in our communities. One of the many blessings we received was that my daughter was granted a “wish” from the Make-A-Wish foundation.

Make-A-Wish grants “wishes” to kids facing life-threatening diseases. These wishes give kids and families hope and a much-needed break from the hardships that can come with these horrible diseases.

Macy’s department store supports the Make-A-Wish program by offering the Million Reasons to Believe campaign. In this campaign, Macy’s will donate $1 for every stamped letter to Santa that they receive in their Macy’s mailboxes.

In 2010, I wrote a letter to Unity School

Sheila

Harsdorf 10th District Senate cited for failing to seriously address the budgetary challenges facing their state, including underfunded pensions and late bill payments. Illinois’ financial woes and policy decisions, including a 67-percent income tax increase, are causing job providers to leave the state.

The reforms enacted in Wisconsin in the past year have aimed at putting taxpayers first while giving local governments greater ability to balance their budgets and flexibility to respond to local

asking them if they would consider putting it to their staff to have their students write letters in support of this great foundation. The request was to have the students write a letter, they did not have to believe in Santa, but just a belief in the power of the goodness and miracles that can come from people who care. They responded in amazing heartfelt letters from students about their wishes for not just gifts, but for overall a better world.

Again this year, I asked the staff at Unity School if they would consider the letter-writing campaign. Once again, the response was tremendous! On Dec. 12, 2011, I delivered 786 letters to the Macy’s mailbox in support of the MakeA-Wish foundation with letters from students from Unity and Frederic schools. I would like to publicly recognize the administration, teachers and staff for supporting this project. Because of your extra effort in asking your students to take the time to write a wish, or reflect on what they can be thankful for, you were part of reaching the $1 million goal to help kids everywhere with life-threatening illnesses receive their wish.

Words cannot express enough how thankful I am to all of you for your continued hard work in teaching our youth and taking the time to help others.

Pam Garvey Centuria

Super and sober weekend In 2010, fatalities in alcohol-impaireddriving crashes accounted for 31 percent of all motor vehicle traffic fatalities.

If football fans plan on drinking during the big football game celebrations, designating a sober driver can help increase the chance of avoiding an alcohol-impaireddriving crash. Alcohol-impaired driving is no accident nor is it a victimless crime. In 2010, 10,228 people died in motor vehicle crashes in which an impaired driver or motorcycle rider had a blood alcohol concentration of .08 grams per deciliter or higher.

There are just too many drivers out there who believe that having just a few drinks and getting behind the wheel of a vehicle is harmless. But numbers don’t lie. Drinking and driving can result in loss of life or serious injury. These not only affect the lives of the impaired driver but can affect other families as well.

When you choose to drink, drink responsibly and pass your keys to a sober driver. Driving impaired or riding with someone who is impaired is not worth the risk. If you know of someone who has been drinking and is planning to drive, please remember, fans don’t let fans drive drunk.

Lil Piñero Burnett Adolescent AODA Prevention Coalition Siren

Recall update

The Democrats continue to pursue a Walker recall with an estimated cost of more than $9 million. Of course, union bosses want to hand-pick the governor’s opponent which could mean a primary raising the cost to over $17 million. Once again the taxpayers have to foot the bill because the Democrats and unions didn’t get their way.

Thanks to a ruling by Judge Mac Davis, priorities. To this end, an over $3 billion budget shortfall was eliminated while achieving a net reduction in the state tax burden. $800 million in overdue bills were paid and borrowing was reduced, resulting in an improvement in Wisconsin’s credit rating outlook.

Additionally, the limits passed on property taxes held the change in the statewide property tax levy to the lowest level in 15 years. According to estimates by the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance, growth in statewide property taxes was limited to 0.3 percent this year. WISTAX cited the property tax freeze included in the two-year state budget as the primary reason for this positive news. Given that this number reflects a statewide average, there were some property owners that saw an actual reduction in their tax bill,

C O O P E R A T I V E - O W N E D

the recall signatures obtained will now be scrutinized by the Government Accountability Board. They will now have to take affirmative steps to keep fraudulent signatures off petitions. This ruling should ensure the integrity of the recall process and that all Wisconsin voters would be heard equally.

Meanwhile, in states where the governors were not so courageous, they’re trying to figure out how to resolve the dire situation of their state budgets.

Gov. Quinn of Illinois said recently, “The state’s contribution to government pension systems is projected to grow 43 percent,” which will mean “less state money available and government services facing cuts.”

In California, Jerry Brown proposed “more deep cuts to state health and welfare programs next fiscal year while warning that spending on schools, universities and courts will be reduced by billions.”

Had Gov. Walker not acted on his reforms, these are exactly the situations Wisconsin would be facing. We are not experiencing the layoffs and cutbacks in crucial government services because Walker stood up to unions and Democrats. Instead of a $3.6 billion deficit we have a projected $300 million surplus. For that they want to recall him?

Karen Johnson Webb Lake

Deer management

I was raised in and around Frederic/Clam Falls area during the 1940s and ‘50s. During the ‘40s, we had a good deer herd, not overpopulated. In about 1948 or ‘49, the DNR decided their were too many deer for the feed supply or ?

I started hunting in 1949, and we could almost select the deer we wanted to harvest. It didn’t last long. I hunted through 1954 and the last three years (‘52, ‘53 and ‘54) we had to search mighty hard to even find a deer. I lived on a small farm surrounded by wild country without deer.

I have seen the Oregon Game Department perform the same with the same results. Now we have to have one-half of Oregon by raffle-type drawing. I may get a tag once in five to 10 years. Is that what Wisconsin DNR is attempting to achieve for you? Try and prevent it for you and your children. It is also healthier for the deer herd to police their own.

Dave Doherty Lebanon, Ore.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

The Leader encourages readers to submit letters to the editor. All letters may be edited for length, clarity, grammatical accuracy and stylistic consistency. Letters more than 400 words in length may be returned to the writer for editing. Submitted letters should include the writer’s full name, address, daytime phone number and email address (if available). E-mailed letters are preferred. Letters may be sent to the-leader@centurytel.net or mailed to Inter-County Leader, Box 490, Frederic, WI 54837. while others saw an increase.

As we have made progress in addressing our financial situation, we have maintained our focus on jobs and the economy. Job creators are noticing the changes in our state, as Wisconsin has seen its improved business climate recognized in rankings by CNBC, Forbes, Chief Executive Magazine, and the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, over 21,000 more people are employed in Wisconsin than a year ago.

Many challenges still lie ahead, but we are seeing the tough decisions made in the past year pay off. Please stay in touch as the legislative session continues by calling my office at 800-862-1092 or sending me an e-mail at Sen.Harsdorf@legis.wi.gov.

N E W S P A P E R

PAGE 10 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

• Letters to the editor • Don’t believe partial truths I’ve spent some time this week looking at the recall initiatives by the Democratic Party and the WEA teachers union.

The WEA teachers union was demanding that the WEA Trust Company be the sole health insurance supplier for the all Wisconsin teachers members. It turns out that WEA Trust is owned by the teachers union. Their rates for insurance are among the highest in Wisconsin. The Walker administration wanted to rein in the high cost of insurance. The administration did not strip the union of their bargaining rights for wages. Only the rights to demand they have WEA Trust as the sole insurance provider. The WEA Trust funnelled massive amounts of funds into the Democratic Party. In essence, it was a pass-through of taxpayer dollars to the Democratic Party. Most school districts have found huge savings by opening the health care up to competitive bids. One school district (I believe it is near Milwaukee) went from $1.2 million in the red, to $400,000 in the black due to switching health care. This was documented by a Washington Examiner reporter. Of course, the teachers union will object. Their ownership of WEA Trust will see an erosion of income. According to another Web site I looked up, the WEA Trust has six officers earning six-figure salaries yearly.

The teachers union also complained that the teachers were being told to increase their share of the subsidized healthcare premiums from 8 percent to 12 percent. I did some further digging on the Internet and found that employees of major companies across the U.S. pay an average of 15 percent to 22 percent of the health-care premiums. I don’t think that what the Walker administration did was fiscally irresponsible.

I guess the teachers union telling all teachers to not go to Wisconsin Dells in order to “hurt” the Republican Party was responsible. Most of the tourism industry hires temporary workers who work for minimum wages.

With the information I found, I think the people of Wisconsin need to be completely informed. Not be fed partial truths, misleading and outright deceitful information by the very liberal news media.

Before you vote one way or the other, I ask you to ask yourself this question: If the teachers union was stripped of all bargaining rights, why does the union still exist? Nobody would pay union dues to an organization that cannot bargain for the members. All the WEA wants is the same benefits senators, congressman and the president already get.

Dave Wilhelmy Siren

Pennies for Patients First of all, I extend gratitude to all of you at the Leader for the excellent coverage over the years regarding our Pennies for Patients fundraiser. I always hear from people who have read the article in the paper, and it often comes with a nice contribution. I live in Luck and it is so nice to have hometown people show their compassion for our efforts.

This is our 17th year collecting pennies.

Over the years, we have raised a total of $37,400. Our efforts have put us in the top 10 schools in Wisconsin, and we are proud members of the Lifesaver’s Club.

The annual kick off was held Friday, Jan. 27. Joining in the events were students from Osceola High School, the seventh-grade band, Hannah Kautz, a leukemia survivor, and Jacob Burns, who is completing his chemotherapy treatments. Casey Witkowski, the state coordinator, also spoke to the pre-K through second grade students at Osceola Elementary School. The collection goes on for the month of February.

Barbara Jorgensen Osceola Elementary School Osceola

Half-truths are lies What planet does Dave Wilhelmy live on?

His letter last week, repeatedly calling President Obama a liar, is full of halftruths.

Since half-truths are lies, Wilhelmy himself must be a liar.

Lie: Wilhelmy says the Democrats canceled the Social Security cost-of-living increase for two years.

Fact: The Social Security Administration has formulas to which it must adhere regarding increasing or decreasing retiree benefits. These formulas were put into place when Roosevelt first enacted the law. Obama has nothing to do with Social Security.

Lie: Wilhelmy basically states the Democrat stimulus money is gone and no jobs were created.

Fact: Both Democrats and Republicans voted for the stimulus package. Some 2 million jobs have been created since Obama took office, many of them due to the stimulus package.

In his rants, Wilhelmy conveniently forgets to mention the many promises fulfilled and the many accomplishments of Obama.

Obama promised to end the Iraq war, which he voted against in the first place.

Ironically, 4,000 dead troops and $1 trillion in taxpayers money later, Obama was the one who ended the lying-Bush’s war.

Obama promised to bail out General Motors. He did that. GM has paid back the loan and is now the number 1 automaker in the world.

Obama promised to hunt down and kill Osama bin Laden. He did that.

Obama is respected worldwide. This immense respect has improved foreign relations. He restored our positive global image, which Bush had destroyed.

Something never reported in the news is Obama’s Fatherhood Initiative. This initiative is a call to action to states and communities to raise awareness about responsible fatherhood.

Knowing that strong fathers build strong families and strong families build strong nations, Obama has made fatherhood the focus of his presidency.

Abandoned by his father at the age of 2, he states, “I have a hole in my heart from my own father’s absence.”

His example, as a strong family man and caring father, is being praised by fatherhood-advocate groups nationwide.

They are already seeing fathers being held

to a higher standard.

If you wish to witness the president’s passion about fatherhood, visit YouTube.

His speeches, dating back to 2007, can be seen there.

Obama is intelligent, progressive, a loyal husband and father, and impeccably “presidential” in his dress, conduct and leadership. We are extremely fortunate to have such a fine person as our president.

Roseanne Olsen River Falls

Sanctity of Life Month January has been Sanctity of Life Month, meaning human life is sacred and precious. What does it mean personally?

Jan. 22 we saw a video clip in church of a young woman sharing she had just had a baby. She planned to have an abortion and then spend that night partying. She was shown an ultrasound and fell apart.

She said she felt a fear of God for the first time in her life. A pregnancy crisis center helped her and she had her baby.

Planned Parenthood laments the loss of funds purporting their primary interest is women’s health, yet fight against having ultrasounds in their clinics. I think it was Oklahoma that passed a law that a woman had to see an ultrasound before she had an abortion, and Planned Parenthood filed a lawsuit to stop it. Why? According to the American Center for Law and Justice, Planned Parenthood performed 332,278 abortions just in 2009 and received $500 million of taxpayer money.

The St. Paul Pioneer Press featured an article about 6-year-olds Ryan Langston and Estelle Fitzgerald who both have Down syndrome and model for Target ads. That triggered a TV news segment and was featured news in sources around the world. Ryan’s dad asked for help sharing that Down syndrome is OK. How many of these precious children were among the over 55 million who’ve been aborted since abortion was legalized.

A Thursday, Jan. 26, Pioneer Press article, Don’’t ignore gendercide, warned about the crisis that’s been created all over the world by “gendercide,” choosing boys over girls, and that 160 million women have been lost in Asia because of sex-selection abortion. Statistics show America hasn’t been exempt.

The good news if you’ve had an abortion is God will forgive you if you come to him. But how can God bless America with this atrocity going on? The Bible says God made humans in his image. Why aren’t our hearts broken over these children and the mothers and fathers who often suffer through the years after. Are we so calloused? God warns us in Proverbs 24 where he says, “Rescue those who are unjustly sentenced to death; don’t stand back and let them die. Don’t try to disclaim responsibility by saying you didn’t know about it. For God who knows all hearts, knows yours, and he knows you knew!” (Living Bible) There is much more at stake in the recall election of Scott Walker than collective bargaining. When people are forced to pay dues and those dues are used to elect people who stand for what you believe is wrong, don’t you think that’s wrong?

MaryEllen Olson Amery

It’s not that minumum wage is loo low It’s not that minimum hourly wages are too low. It’s that minimum hourly wages are too low compared to the upper end of the hourly scale which includes benefits.

For example, if you are making $7.50 an hour and you want to purchase a car or some product or service from a manufacturer that has to pay his employees the equivalent of $75 an hour with benefits, you have to work 10 hours to purchase one hour worth of goods or services from them. Even if you work overtime or two jobs you still can’t afford those things.

You can’t even afford a used car or other essentials, like housing and food.

They say, buy things made in America and stop sending our jobs overseas. Well, if you find things made in America and you make $7.50 an hour you couldn’t afford them anyway. If you are a manufacturer of products made here and want to compete in the marketplace, you are forced to go offshore because of production costs along with government mandates, product liability, labor and benefits, marketing costs, etc.

• The upside of being a low-paid worker is you don’t make enough money so that you have to pay income tax to support all the government-funded programs, and you might even qualify for some of those programs, plus you have job security.

• For 40 or more years, I have been saying that we are going to be like Mexico where they have the haves and the have nots. We have come to that point because of the spread in the hourly wages where people on the bottom end of the pay scale can’t afford goods or services from people at the top of the pay scale.

• We all complain about things made in China, but how many people can afford to buy the more expensive products or those made in America if you can find them?

• To anyone who thinks it’s easy to manufacturer a product here and compete in the marketplace, I suggest you try it. I have developed several products here and tried to make them cost effective to compete in the marketplace, and it’s next to impossible.

• Have you noticed politicians are always saying we need to educate people and create (more) better-paying jobs?

Well, to that I say the majority of jobs out there can be learned on the job in a week or so, and those jobs are every bit as important as the better-paying jobs are to the population.

• I hear a lot of people making the higher wage say that it all goes for taxes if they work overtime. Well, that’s because you are making so much more than the workers on the lower-pay scale that you have to support all the government programs because they don’t make enough income to have to pay taxes or not as much. Either way, somebody has to pay or subsidize them, and remember, you priced your goods and services out of their reach.

Thoughts of the dropout.

Bill Kurtz St. Croix Falls

Rivard votes for thousands of jobs Revamping of permitting process will allow creation of generational jobs RICE LAKE — Rep. Roger Rivard, RRice Lake, has voted to revamp the ferrous mining process in Wisconsin, paving the way for thousands of jobs and billions of dollars to be invested in Wisconsin’s economy.

“Voting for this bill will ease the burden on families throughout northern Wisconsin,” said Rivard.

“People are desperate for jobs, and this bill will have a positive impact on the 75th District.”

It is important to note that the bill, which has been sent to the Senate, does not create a mine. It creates a reasonable permitting process and timeline for ferrous mining that leaves control of the approval process to the DNR.

“No one wants to say no to jobs, but I understand the environmental concerns that have been raised,” said Rivard. “I wouldn’t vote for this bill unless I was sure that Wisconsin’s natural resources are protected.”

The proposed mine in Iron County would be a huge boon to the area, including the 75th, pouring billions of dollars into the economy. It is estimated that the mine would create thousands of genera-

tional jobs and help individuals with an average annual pay and benefits package of approximately $82,000.

“Mining has always been a part of Wisconsin’s past, in fact our nickname, The Badger State, comes from our mining heritage,” said Rivard. “With today’s technology, mining can be safe and effective.

This bill will help move us forward and create a better future for our state.” — from the office of Rep. Rivard

Duffy introduces pay freeze extension for federal employees and members of Congress WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy, R-District 7, introduced H.R. 3835, Friday, Jan. 27, legislation that would extend the pay freeze of members of Congress and nonmilitary federal employees through 2013.

Duffy’s bill was scheduled to be considered and voted on in the House on Wednesday, Feb. 1.

“While private sector workers face the squeeze, and millions of families continue searching for work, the idea of asking that their hard-earned tax dollars go to fund a pay raise for government employees is just not right,” said Duffy. “As American families and businesses have been forced to tighten their belts, Washington has refused to do the same. Congress must be

willing to make the same sacrifices we’re asking of others, that’s why I introduced this bill. We must act now to extend the pay freeze on federal workers and on members salaries until Washington finally gets its finances under control.”

President Obama has proposed an increase in pay for all federal employees under his new budget. The current federal

employee pay freeze is set to expire at the end of December and was one of the suggested savings tactics put forth by the president’s own National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform (Simpson-Bowles) Commission. – from the office of Rep. Duffy

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 11

Possible change in garbage service creates a stir

by Mary Stirrat Leader staff writer LUCK — Discussions by the Luck Public Services Commission to standardize garbage service in the village met with disagreement from both the residents who were in attendance at the Wednesday, Jan. 25, meeting as well as some of the board members.

Luck held its caucus that evening (see separate story), then the board met as a committee as a whole to discuss garbage service. When meeting as a committee of the whole, the board may hold discussions but cannot take any action.

Village Trustee Hassan Mian, chair of the public services committee, introduced the topic by saying that the committee has not held much discussion on changing the way garbage service is handled in the village. The committee had directed staff to investigate the current system as well as other options and write up a report.

The report was compiled and presented by public works director Seth Petersen.

He first compared what is called organized garbage services with what is called open garbage service.

Organized garbage service is when a municipality has one garbage hauler that serves the entire municipality. Luck, where each resident can select his or her own provider, has open garbage service.

Of the 12 cities and villages in Polk County, said Petersen, eight have organized garbage services. Amery, Balsam Lake, Centuria, Clayton, Clear Lake, Dresser, Milltown and Osceola have organized systems, most of which include recycling.

Charges per quarter range from $31.50 to $34.50 for a 35-gallon container, with the exception of Centuria, which sells bags for $2.60 each. Only the authorized bags are picked up by the village hauler. Recycling is an additional $1.50 per month.

A survey in Luck in mid-January, according to Petersen, showed that two of the haulers serving Luck charge $14 per month for a 35-gallon container, which

comes to $42 per quarter. This is $7.50, or about 18 percent, more per quarter than residents in Balsam Lake are paying.

The catch, said Petersen, is that there are a number of residents in Luck who share garbage service, bringing the price down considerably.

Several audience members spoke out at this point in Petersen’s report. Lynn Gregorash, Alan Tomlinson and Don Tomlinson all said they would have commented on this idea during the public comment portion of the meeting, except they were not aware it was on the agenda.

Village Trustee Kristine King said she felt the issue should go to a vote by the resident. “There will be plenty of ample time to discuss this,” said Mian, noting that there have only been preliminary discussions on the idea.

The board agreed to allow public comment once it had concluded its own discussion.

As Petersen continued his presentation, he moved to three summary sentences.

First, he said, village residents who have their own garbage service would likely benefit from organized services by an 18percent reduction in costs. Residents who share services, he said, could benefit from a system like Centuria’s, which may or may not result in significant savings.

Secondly, he said, village residents currently have options similar to what could be negotiated in organized services, such as spring cleanup, pick up of brush and leaves by the village crew, and close proximity to recycling services.

Lastly, he said, garbage trucks damage the village alleys, but it is difficult to measure the damage. He indicated that the damage is similar to that caused by buses. In his report he noted that the majority of village residents currently use the same hauler. During the week of Dec. 2630, according to his report, about 70 percent of the trash cans picked up were from the same hauler.

King, a member of the public services committee, asked Petersen if the primary

issue is the age of the alleys. Petersen said this is the case, and most of the damage is done when the frost comes out. He said that a slightly stronger asphalt could be used or the asphalt could be applied a little more thickly, which would add cost to alley projects.

“I guess this would be a violation of my civil rights,” said King about imposing the use of a certain garbage service, “but what do I know?”

Trustee Craig Lundeen applauded King, asking if the same restrictions would be applied to snowmobiles or beer trucks that also cause damage to the roads.

Several questions then came to Petersen. King asked whether the selected garbage hauler would have a “monopoly” in the village, and Trustee Ross Anderson asked whether it would be mandatory that residents use the selected hauler or if there would be an “opt-out” clause.

Trustee Phil Warhol, the final member of the three-person public services committee, said that the discussion going on at that time was the first on the idea. Mian added that the committee felt it would be interesting to look at the information.

“My thinking was that it would lower the cost,” he said. “The fact that it could save folks up to 18 percent — that’s attractive to me.”

Multiple trucks through the alleys put additional strain on them, Mian said, adding than an “opt-out” clause would negate both the savings to residents and the lighter load on the alleys.

When village President Peter Demydowich commented that protecting the roads is one of his big priorities, Lundeen responded that protecting personal freedoms is a bigger to him.

Trustee Ross Anderson said that he saw an increase in the damage to his parking lot when the size of the garbage truck was increased. He asked whether a weight limit could be placed on the hauler.

This could happen, agreed Demydowich, but Anderson noted that it might

limit who can bid on the contract. King asked, once the contract was awarded, what would happen if the contractor hiked his prices. Demydowich responded that a new contractor could be found.

Saying that she supported the right to free speech, King said she would vote against any measure that established an organized garbage service in the village.

From the audience Gregorash told the board members that it was not their business to find out what his garbage service costs. If the village is going to restrict garbage service, he said, is should restrict which lumber trucks are allowed. Liquor licenses should be restricted, so there are fewer liquor trucks going through town.

Pointing his comments at Trustee Bob Determan, manager at Wayne’s Foods Plus, Gregorash noted that communities that bring in a Wal-Mart see an 8-percent decrease in grocery prices. He said maybe the village should try to bring in a WalMart to save money for the residents.

As an appraiser, Gregorash also said he would appreciate it if the board would restrict any other appraiser from doing business in the village.

Don Tomlinson, another member of the audience, told the board that the village went through the same issue 20 years ago.

The more haulers, he said, the more competition and the more likely that prices will come down.

“It is my choice,” he said, noting that he rents many dumpsters for the various properties he owns. “Nobody is involved.

You don’t have to get involved.”

John Leonard asked how the village would benefit from an arrangement with a single garbage service.

“This looks like a solution looking for a problem,” he said. “I don’t think there’s a problem.”

The committee of the whole made no recommendation for discussion at a future meeting of the village board.

Council discusses water tower repair issue

by Tammi Milberg Leader staff writer ST. CROIX FALLS – The city council for St. Croix Falls discussed the water tower on East Pine Street that serves Wal-Mart and Menards among other city entities at the Monday, Jan. 30, meeting. The dry riser tube in the water tower has been spot-welded, but it needs repair before it could tilt and release contaminated water.

Mike Bryant, water and sewer superintendent, stated that the city could save $60,000 if the crew did the work on repairing the dry tube. It was suggested that at the same time, since the water tower would have to be drained, that the tower interior and exterior should be painted.

The council was not asked to act on the matter, but was to be informed that the repairs and painting need to be done.

Bryant said the dry tube repair would need to be done sooner rather than later to avoid contaminating water from the tube moving from the weld. A grant can be applied for to help with the cost, but the date is a ways out, and the uncertainty of how long the tube will hold its own is unclear. The council seemed torn between

grant possibilities and having possible water contamination issues or worse, having a low or limited water supply to those bigger box-store businesses for several days until repairs could be made which could cost the city more because they would not be made by the crew.

During the repair and painting process, tanks with water would service those businesses with enough pressure Bryant explained. City Administrator Joel Peck stated that the city does have money in the water fund to pay for the repair and the painting, and rather than have the city take on additional debt, it would be better to pay it from the water fund. “We don’t need to take on any more debt,” Peck said.

“We have enough.”

Bryant suggested contracting with a painting team for the water tower painting. He stated that he knew a reputable company that would do a good job, and that the work would be guaranteed. The council discussed the options further.

In other business, the council heard reports from the librarian Sarah Adams who indicated that the library is providing after-school programs and is helping peo-

ple who are not up to speed with technology to get them up to speed to use the library’s technology as some of the public services they provide. The council thanked Adams for the report and the services the library provides for the community.

Councilman Paul Kuhlman gave the park and rec report to the council. He stated that the committee is looking at a design for the South Lions Park area that will be a rain garden of sorts, but he would have more at the next council meeting to present.

Council President Debra Kravig stated the Living Landmark Committee met, and they discussed further strategies for the St. Croix Falls Civic Auditorium. The cityowned building is currently the location downtown where Festival Theatre operates. Kravig stated that work has been done to reduce the financial numbers to make them more realistic. She stated that raising funds for the building’s restoration would involve a launch campaign, a fundraiser to help hire a marketing person to run the capital campaign, followed by a capital campaign fundraiser. Kravig

stated there would essentially be two fundraisers, The next committee meeting for the Living Landmark committee is Tuesday, Feb. 21, from 4-6 p.m.

Kravig also stated much work has been done on the Historic Preservation Committee by identifying homes with architectural and historical significance and working on historic homes description language which is being looked over by Taylors Falls, who has developed a similar historic home district and city language.

Kravig also stated that the city needs to revise the ordinance and language for historic preservation and identification. This has to be done through a public hearing.

Kravig also informed the council that once the ordinances are revised and changed that the process needs to come through the city council not the committee. The committee is also doing work on language regarding how policy and procedure would apply to homes marked as historic if an owner wanted to do any work on a home. Kravig stated that she would keep the council updated. The next council meeting will be Monday, Feb. 13.

Three days of sleep for mommy Meth hangover as kids try to wake her

by Greg Marsten Leader staff writer BALSAM LAKE – The report of a juvenile under the influence and passed out in a rural Frederic ditch also led to the discovery of a drug-fueled troubling scene at home, where a toddler and another child were allegedly ignored and left to fend for themselves, possibly for days at a time.

“It started with a sort of medical call,” stated Polk County Sheriff Peter Johnson.

“It just kept going.”

According to the police report, when they investigated the child in the ditch incident, they learned that it may have involved drugs that came from the mother, Angela D. Berg, 40, Frederic.

When investigators went to the intoxi-

cated juvenile’s home on the evening of Friday, Jan. 27, a child showed them pieces of drug paraphernalia and a white packet with powder in their bedroom, allegedly from the mother, Berg.

Angela Berg Police noted that Berg was in the bathroom at the time, “flushing something,” according to the report.

When she emerged from the bathroom, police said Berg appeared under the influence, as was her boyfriend, Jay Junglen, 48. They believed the two were “tweaking” on methamphetamine, or were pos-

Jay Junglen

sibly recovering from a binge of sorts.

They noted that the home was in a state of disarray, and authorities said there was also a 1-year-old and a 6-year-old child in the home at the time, with spoiled food for those children spread across the

kitchen.

Further investigation revealed that the woman may have been under the influence so severely, that she may have slept for three days straight, ignoring repeated efforts by the toddler and the other child to wake her.

Berg tested positive for methamphetamine, and told officers that she used meth and can’t take the responsibility of the kids. She admitted to having slept for three days straight, as well, and agreed that the children may have kept trying to wake her.

She was taken into custody and was initially charged with two charges of reckless causing mental harm to a child, as well as using methamphetamine with children present. The charges had yet to be finalized at press time.

The children were placed with social services when she was taken into custody.

Junglen had reportedly become combative and threatening to both police and the children, and was also placed under arrest for obstruction of the investigation.

PAGE 12 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

Academic news LA CROSSE – The following students have been named to the dean’s list at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse for the fall semester of the 2011-12 academic year, ending December 2011.

Qualification for the dean’s list is limited to students who have attained outstanding academic achievement. To be eligible, students must have earned not less than a 3.5 semester grade-point average and have carried a minimum of 12 semester credits.

Amery Tyler J. Tietyen, exercise and sport science; Balsam Lake Lindsey G. Voss, mathematics education; Frederic Kendra A. Wells, undeclared; Grantsburg Alyssa A. Ryan, marketing and McKenzie A. Ryan, biology; Luck Briana M. Bielmeier, therapeutic recreation; Osceola Michelle M. Graf, accountancy; Brady A. Langer, music and Lisa C. Rydeen, radiation therapy; St. Croix Falls David K. Lund, German studies; Siren Kevin P. Johnson, finance; Unity George L. Bloome, exercise and sport science. – submitted ••• EAU CLAIRE - The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire has named 2,109 students to its dean’s lists for the 2011 fall semester.

The dean’s list and eligibility criteria, as well as other listings of UWEau Claire student honors and awards, can be found online at

www.uwec.edu/news/people/honors.htm.

Students from this area who were selected for the dean’s lists are: Amery Margaret Behling, elementary education; Lisa Clark, chemistry; Brittany Frye, biology; Karen Hansen, communication; Cassandra Klatt, kinesiology; Britta Marquand, French; Joshua Olson, geology; Jacob Vanheuklom, environmental public health and Alissa Wulf, psychology; Balsam Lake Angela Berthold, geology; Centuria Hannah Zahler, psychology; Clear Lake Miya Rud, Spanish and Kelia Shafer, social work; Dresser Kari Gallagher, nursing and Katherine Weinberg, kinesiology; Frederic Tanesha Carlson, nursing; Sarah Knauber, nursing; Hertel Bethanna Petersen, mathematics; Luck Megan Panek, nursing; Milltown Charity Moore, history; Osceola Olivia Memmer, elementary education; Elizabeth Peterson, nursing; Robert Seiberlich, kinesiology; Ellyn Swenson, geology and Tim Whittenberger, business finance; St. Croix Falls Sara Palmer, business administration; Unity Shinae McBride, nursing and Brenda Rougeux, biology; Webster Quentin Johnson, kinesiology; Shaina Pardun, liberal studies and Aimee Rinnman, social work. – submitted ••• WINONA, Minn. - Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical is pleased to announce the president’s list for fall semester 2011. To be eligible for this honor, students must complete a minimum of 12 credits at Southeast Technical during an academic term and achieve a GPA of 3.5 or above to be named to the president’s list.

Milltown Tammy L. Melin and Chastity A.E. Smith; Osceola Crystal Joy Rixmann. – submitted ••• ST. PAUL, Minn. – The following students have been named to the dean’s list for academic excellence for the winter 2011 semester at Bethel University, St. Paul, Minn.: Balsam Lake Erin Gallagher;

Danbury Nicholas Wolfe; The dean’s list honors students who achieve an outstanding scholastic record during a semester with a grade-point average of 3.6 or greater. – submitted •••

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 13

WINTER SPORTS INTER! COUNTY LEADER • INTER! COUNTY LEADER • INTER! COUNTY LEADER

F R E D E R I C • G R A N T S B U R G • L U C K • S T. C R O I X F A L L S • S I R E N • U N I T Y • W E B S T E R BASKETBALL • GYMNASTICS • HOCKEY • WRESTLING

Home-schooled hoopsters

Milltown Minutemen basketball team has first-ever home game

Extra Points

by Greg Marsten Leader staff writer LUCK – It has been over 50 years since a varsity boys basketball team wearing Milltown jerseys was the home team.

That changed on Tuesday, Jan. 31, when the Milltown Minutemen hosted the Immanuel Baptist Church Crusaders team from Menomonie at the Luck School gymnasium. Both squads are made up of home-schooled teens who just happen to play some mean hoops.

Always the visitors “This is the first year for home games,” stated Minutemen head coach Ed Johansen, who wasn’t used to having his squad listed as the home team on the scoreboard. “It should be kind of nice not having to drive so far!”

While the Minutemen squad has been around as a team for over a decade, they have always been the visitors, never once the home team, prior to this week. That made the IBC contest a true event, striking a positive note for players, fans and family members who did a pretty good job of filling out the north half of the Luck auditorium bleachers.

“Yeah, we’ve never had a home game, ever. So this is something, for sure,” stated parent Laura Johansen, who was busy selling hot dogs, bars and other goodies in the hallway outside the game while her husband coached the squad inside.

She also noted how players and families have become pretty accustomed to traveling long distances for games or tournaments, and she even recognized some of the Menomonie kids buying treats from past tourneys. “They keep getting bigger!” she joked to one of the former toddlers.

On the court, the Minutemen did a good job of keeping the Crusaders in check.

While the IBC squad may have had the altitude advantage, they were not as quick or deep in the bench as the Minutemen, who have some solid players and formidable rebounding skills.

The Milltown Minutemen varsity squad. Pictured front row (L to R): Hans Johnson, Ben Smith and Viktor Johansen. Back row: Mike Johansen, Logan Alden, James Mielke and Tyler Alden.

Not pictured: Alex Barthman. – Photos by Greg Marsten

Not so rare, maybe The home-schooled team is not as unusual as one might think, and while they don’t play in a typical sanctioned league against other schools, they have several formidable opponents from church teams or small, private school teams, like IBC. Using standard National High School Federation rules, the games have all the makings of a regular old high school game, except they had a short prayer right after the national anthem.

The Milltown squad began as a loosely assembled team years ago, based at Mill-

See Hoopsters/page 17

The Milltown Minutemen JV squad. Pictured, front row (L to R): James Rice, Joe Burns and Tim Smith. Back row: Jared Gray, Eli Marek and Andrew Smith.

••• OSCEOLA – Ethan Deiss, formerly of Osceola, is on the fast track to success in snowboarding. The 20-year-old, who also wrestled at Osceola, recently took second place at the ESPN Winter X games in the street division. Deiss was also recently signed to Burton Snowboards AM team. According to TransWorld Business writer Mike Lewis, Deiss put together a break-out rail video part in the 2009 snowboard movie, “Think Positive.” Deiss is already getting set to work with a movie project this year and has spent time filming in Norway. He will be stepping into prime time with shots in upcoming films like Burton’s “Standing Sideways” and “Videograss Retrospective.” – Marty Seeger with information from Burton.com and business.transworld.net ••• SIOUX FALLS, S.D., – After taking care of business over Concordia-St. Paul 89-70, on Friday, Jan. 27, the Augustana men’s basketball team won their second straight game the next evening over No. 13 ranked St. Cloud State 74-52. Former Luck standout Brennan Olson went 3 for 4 from the field for a total six points and also had nine rebounds, one assist, a block and a steal. Olson had six boards, four points, two steals and a block against Concordia-St. Paul a day earlier. – Marty Seeger with information from www.goaugie.com ••• LEADER LAND – The Unity at Frederic boys and girls basketball games are being broadcast on Friday, Feb. 3, beginning at 6 p.m., on 104.9 FM. The Luck at Siren boys and girls basketball games on Tuesday, Feb. 7, can be heard on 104.9 FM, beginning at 6 p.m. The Somerset at New Richmond hockey game is also on 104.9 FM on Thursday, Feb. 2, beginning at 7 p.m. Games being broadcast on 1260 AM included the Thursday, Feb. 2 Amery at Ellsworth girls basketball game beginning at 7:30 p.m., the Amery at Ellsworth boys basketball game on Friday, Feb. 3, beginning at 7:30 p.m., The Somerset at Amery boys hockey game on Saturday, Feb. 4, beginning at 1 p.m., and the Osceola at Amery girls basketball game on Tuesday, Feb. 7. The St. Cloud State at Wisconsin men’s hockey game can be heard on Saturday, Feb. 4, beginning at 7 p.m.

••• LEADER LAND – Leader Sports strives to follow the college careers of area athletes. If you know of an athlete playing collegiate sports in 2012 who hasn’t been mentioned, send us an email or call and we’ll take it from there.

– Marty Seeger

SPORTS RESULTS DEADLINES: WEDNESDAY - MONDAY: 1 p.m. the following business day. TUESDAY: 7 a.m. on Wednesday. Missed deadlines mean no coverage that week!

S P O R T S N E W S O R S C O R E S T O R E P O R T ? • P H O N E : 7 1 5 - 3 2 7 - 4 2 3 6 • FA X : 7 1 5 - 3 2 7 - 4 1 1 7 • E - M A I L : m s e e g e r @ c e n t u r y t e l . n e t

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Eagle girls get off to a hot start against SCF

couldn’t get the shot to fall. The Saints remain perfect in the conference with the win.

“I’m still really proud of our girls because I think they played hard, they executed our game plan really well and you know, they’re just playing really well right now and we’re looking to mess up the conference as much as we can,” Kline said.

Leading the Eagles was Thomfohrda, who had 15 points, a pair of late-gamechanging steals and six rebounds. Jorgenson and Bader each had 10 points, and Bader had eight rebounds and four steals.

Hailey Olson added six points and Maddie Ramich had two.

The Saints got 12 points from Caitlyn Olson, and Petznick, Jerrica Jones and Natalie Sempf each added four points.

Saints overcome 10-point deficit in the first quarter St. Croix Falls 47, Unity 43

by Marty Seeger Leader staff writer BALSAM LAKE – From the start it appeared as though the Eagles basketball team was going to maintain their 10-point first-quarter lead against the Saints on Friday, Jan. 20. Unfortunately for the Eagles, the Saints surged ahead in the second half and held on for the four-point victory. For the Saints, it was their first win after two consecutive losses against Barron and Cameron, who had similar one-loss records as the Saints.

“I think we stayed hot the whole night.

A few things we gave up, but you know, St. Croix is a good team, so the second half they really came out to play,” said Eagles coach Carol Kline.

Unity led 19-9 after the first quarter and the Saints cut it to four points midway through the second quarter. The Eagles had a five-point lead at the half, but the Saints wasted no time at the start of the second half, scoring six unanswered points with two free throws from Sarah Petznick, two points from Caitlyn Olson and another two from Jessica Rademacher, who had a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Sydney Geisness also had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

The Saints took their first lead of the game with 5:26 still to play in the third quarter, and held onto it, leading by as much as seven in the final minute. Eagles senior Brittany Thomfohrda cut that thirdquarter lead to five and had a shot at closing the gap further with three shots at the free-throw line, but couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity. The Saints led 39-34 heading into the fourth quarter, and stretched it to nine points with four minutes to go off a steal by Petznick, who went coast-to-coast for score. But the Eagles defense clamped down, and with just under two minutes to go, Sarah Bader hit a free throw and another two points to bring it to within six.

St. Croix Falls 46, Clear Lake 12 CLEAR LAKE – The Lady Saints took care of business in a nonconference game at Clear Lake on Monday, Jan. 30. The Saints defense shined holding the Warriors to just five first-half points and seven in the second half. St. Croix Falls had a total of 22 steals, with Jessica Rademacher leading with five. Sydney Geisness and Natalie Sempf each had four and Jerrica Jones and Caitlyn Olson each had three to lead that category.

Geisness had 11 points and rebounds and Rademacher added 10 points with eight boards. Alexis Erickson had six rebounds and four points. Other scorers included Mattie Gerlach with six points, Sarah Petznick and Natalie Sempf with four, Caitlyn Olson, three and Taylor Orton, Erica Bergmann each had two.

Caitlyn Olson of St. Croix Falls attempts to catch the ball as Unity's Brittany Thomfohrda defends. – Photos by Marty Seeger The Eagles forced a pair of Saints turnovers in the final two minutes, and a Shauna Jorgenson jump shot for two after an Eagles time-out in the final minute of the game brought the Eagles to within four points.

The Saints shot poorly from the freethrow line late in the fourth quarter, and shot 5 of 15 for the game. They missed eight opportunities in the fourth quarter alone, allowing the Eagles a chance to

Unity elementary students performed a dance routine during halftime on Friday, Jan. 27.

Many of them wore pink in support of Shoot for the Cure, which is a fundraiser to support cancer research and the American Cancer Society. T-shirts were also available (inset) and many local business donated items for a raffle that was also part of the festivities on Friday.

close the Saints four-point lead, but Unity just couldn’t sink the shot they needed.

“We had some opportunities, they just didn’t fall right up to the end,” Kline said.

The Eagles had three opportunities from 3-point range in the final seconds but

Osceola 55, Unity 47 OSCEOLA – The Eagles dropped their second straight game at Osceola on Tuesday, Jan. 31. Unity will have another tough test when they travel to Frederic this Friday, Feb. 3, beginning at 6 p.m. No game stats were available at press time from the game at Osceola.

Shauna Jorgenson of Unity makes a save along the baseline against the Saints.

Pirate girls snuff the Cards Grantsburg win is fifth straight Grantsburg 49, Luck 41

by Greg Marsten Leader staff writer LUCK – The Grantsburg Pirate girls were able to contain the hosting Luck Cardinals on Friday, Jan. 27, at Luck, winning 49-41. The conference match was heated at times, but the Pirates prevailed, in spite of missing several key players.

“We were fortunate to get off to a great start and we held on from there,” stated Pirate head coach Adam Hale. “We really moved the ball well to open up the game and I thought we did a better job of converting inside tonight.”

“They took us to the wood shed,” stated Luck head coach Marty Messar, who also noted the Pirates’ fast start, and how the Cards continued to be plagued by turnovers. “After a rough start we played better, but the early hole we dug was too deep.”

Carly Larson led the way for Pirate scor-

ing, but she was backed up by the McKenzie sisters of Nicole and Stacey, who added 12 and 11 points, respectively.

“They made the difference,” Messar admitted.

Avery Steen led all scorers with 25 points for the Cards, followed by freshman Jenni Holdt with 14 points and eight rebounds. Angela Gore also added 12 boards for the Cards in the loss.

“Give Luck credit, they kept battling back and wouldn’t go away,” Hale said.

“Carly Larson hit a big three to extend the lead in the fourth and finally put them

away ... The McKenzie sisters did a great job inside for us and really were the key in our success offensively.”

Grantsburg held on for the win, 49-41, in spite of several times where Luck seemed to get back in the hunt.

Northwood 51, Luck 43 OSCEOLA – Northwood defeated the Luck girls basketball team on Tuesday, Jan. 31, in a game the Cardinals led after the first quarter, 15-10. The Evergreens

See Girls bball/page 18

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Eagles fourth-quarter surge too much for Saints

Unity improves to 6-2 in the conference Unity 51, St. Croix Falls 31

by Marty Seeger Leader staff writer RIVER FALLS – It was a close game right up until the fourth quarter Friday, Jan. 27. The Eagle boys basketball team clung to a 31-28 lead at the end of the third quarter and it appeared as though the game might not be decided until the final seconds. But the Eagles defense shined in the fourth quarter, holding the Saints to just three points, and Unity held onto the 20-point victory.

St. Croix Falls fought hard throughout the game and kept it close for a full three quarters of play. Unity senior Steven Kruger hit two key buckets near the end of the first quarter to give the Eagles a 128 first-quarter lead. Steven McKenzie picked up a steal near the end of the first half, and hit a jumper for two points at the buzzer to give the Eagles a 27-20 halftime lead.

Saints sophomore Andy Erickson had a solid effort in the second quarter, scoring 10 points and 12 total in the first half. It was a low-scoring affair throughout much of the third quarter, but St. Croix Falls pulled to within a point with three minutes to go on a jumper from Noah Casterton. Casterton hit another jumper for two points moments later and with two minutes to go in the third quarter the Saints had a 28-27 lead. Unity got two buckets from Kruger and Brady Turner to close out the third quarter, and the Eagles took the game from there. The Eagles held the

Unity's Zac Johnson shoots from the freethrow line late in the game against the Saints on Friday, Jan. 27.

Saints scoreless for the first five minutes of the fourth quarter, before Jace Marek sunk a free throw.

The Eagles moved to 6-2 in the conference with the win, and the Saints were handed their sixth straight loss.

Turtle Lake 69, St. Croix Falls 49 TURTLE LAKE – The St. Croix Falls boys basketball team traveled to Turtle Lake on Monday, Jan. 30, but suffered another loss. It was the team’s eighth straight loss. The Saints are winless in the conference but will get a crack at Webster this Friday, Feb. 3, beginning at 7:30 p.m.

No game stats were available at press time from the Turtle Lake game.

Unity's Xavier Foeller floats to the basket for two points against St. Croix Falls. – Photos by Marty Seeger

Clear Lake 49, St. Croix Falls 44 CLEAR LAKE – The Saints boys basketball team was defeated in nonconference action at Clear Lake on Tuesday, Jan. 31.

No game stats were available at press time.

Hayward 61, Webster 35 HAYWARD – The Webster boys basketball team trailed by eight points at halftime against the Hayward Hurricanes on Monday, Jan. 30, but were stopped cold in the second half in the nonconference loss.

The Hurricanes outscored the Tigers 198 in the third quarter and couldn’t overcome the deficit in the fourth. Josh Baer and Cody Isaacson each had eight points for the Tigers, while Brad Krause had seven, Joey Erickson had four, and Dillan Reeder, Taylor Heinz, Jake Hunter and Billy Cooper had two each.

LEFT: Andrew Erickson of St. Croix Falls had a solid second quarter for the Saints to help keep the game close at halftime.

Saint Ben Clausen pushes through Unity junior Brandon McKenzie.

Pirate boys outlast the Cards Grantsburg 52, Luck 46

by Greg Marsten Leader staff writer LUCK – The Pirate boys exploded in the first half and never looked back as they played conference mate Luck on Friday, Jan. 27, at Luck. The Grantsburg boys used 18 first quarter points and another 17 points in the second quarter to hold a lead and win, 52-46.

“It was a slow start for us, and we got beat up inside,” stated Luck head coach Rick Giller. “After being down by 13 points at the half, we made it a game we got it down to four.”

Yes, the Cardinals made a valiant attempt at it toward the end, and got within four points as the clock expired, but the Pirates proved too deep and solid inside to give up their hard-earned lead.

Sophomore Karsten Petersen led all scorers with 21 points for the Cardinals, including 7 for 11 free throw prowess.

Evan Armour and John Denny followed in scoring with eight and seven points each, respectively.

While Luck has had a hard time getting going in the early periods, the Pirates

were just the opposite, with five players scoring in the first period alone, including five points from Daniel Biorn. But it was Pirate center David Ohnstad who led the way, scoring 20 points to lead the Pirates, many of them on second-chance rebounds and follow-ups.

Nolan Hanson was next up with 12 points for Grantsburg, including seven of his team’s nine fourth-quarter points, sealing the victory, 52-46.

The Pirates are now 6-2 in West Lakeland play and 12-3 overall. They host undefeated Siren on Friday in what promises to be a good contest.

Luck falls to 2-6 in the West Lakeland and 6-10 overall. They fell to Turtle Lake by 13 points on Tuesday, Jan. 31, and next host Clear Lake in nonconference play on Friday, Feb. 3.

Turtle Lake 60, Luck 47 TURTLE LAKE – The Cardinal boys basketball team was tripped up by the Turtle Lake Lakers on Tuesday, Jan. 31, at Turtle Lake. Luck led by two after the first Luck's Evan Armour pulls in a rebound as Pirates Daniel Biorn and David Ohnstad defend.

– Photo by Greg Marsten

See Boys bball/page 18

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Siren girls control second half

Win big over Frederic Siren 60, Frederic 50

by Eugene Ruhn Special to the Leader SIREN – The Siren Dragons hosted the Frederic Vikings Friday evening, Jan. 27, shaping up a couple of good games for the night. Both teams had pink T-shirts for warm-ups supporting Coaches vs. Cancer.

Both schools raised money for this event by selling T-shirts and taking donations.

After the tip to start the ball game, the lead was exchanged back and forth for the entire first quarter. Frederic controlled the ball very well on offense, breaking through Siren’s full-court press. The Dragons, however, had issues turning over the ball to the Vikings, with many traveling calls in the first half. At the end of the first quarter, the game was tied 11-11.

In the second quarter, the Vikings started hot, making most of their buckets.

Frederic went on a run and had their largest lead of the night 24-17. The Dragons were able to find some renewed strength to close the gap by three points, with the Vikings leading at the end of the first half 26-23.

The second half started out with similar play from the first half, with a few players from both teams in foul trouble. Siren was able to control the ball a lot better on offense in the third quarter. The Dragons were able to bring the game within one point, but Frederic was able to retake the lead 35-34 with just over three minutes remaining in the third quarter. Siren changed the momentum of the game, with a 10-point scoring run to take the lead at the end of the third period 44-35.

The Dragons opened up the final quarter continuing their scoring run, and the Vikings were too overwhelmed to keep up with the rejuvenated Dragons. Siren won the game 60-50. Troy Wink said, “I felt we played well, had some strong stretches in the first. The difference of the game was the third quarter, allowing them to take the lead, having defensive breakdowns and lack of execution, not running our offense as we needed to. We needed a third scorer and didn’t get it. Maria Miller had 18 points and 12 rebounds, and Corissa Schmidt had 17 points and 11 rebounds, but that isn’t enough against good teams.”

Other scorers for the Vikings were Emily Byerly with eight points, Lara Harlander with three, and Carly Gustafson and Kendra Mossey with two apiece.

Frederic Senior Corrisa Schmidt at the freethrow line for two.

Siren's Kyaisha Kettula goes up for layup over Frederic's Lauren Domagala on Friday, Jan. 27. – Photos by Eugene Ruhn Scoring for the Dragons were Kyaisha Kettula with 27 points, Mackenzie Smith with 10 points, Brittany Coulter, six points, Abigail Mitchell, five points, Raven Emery with three points and Zoe Emery and Carly Good each had one point.

Siren 63, Cornell 20 SIREN – The Lady Dragons got off to a fast start against Cornell on Tuesday, Jan. 31, leading 22-6 after the first quarter.

Kyiasha Kettula put up seven points in the first quarter, extending her hot streak after her 27-point performance against the Vikings last week. Brittany Coulter also

knocked down a 3-pointer and scored seven in the first quarter as well.

“Overall, it was a good team win for us.

Ten of the 11 girls that suited up for varsity scored. It was nice to see Hope Peterson, Emily Howe, Zoe Emery and Jessica Strabel get extended playing time. Zoe and Hope both hit a 3 in the second half,” said Siren coach Ryan Karsten.

The Dragons had a good night at the free-throw line, going 12 of 15. Siren travels to Grantsburg this Friday, Feb. 3, and the girls play at 7:30 p.m.

“Always a tough place to play, against a well-coached and athletic bunch for girls,” Karsten said. – Marty Seeger

Pirate gymnasts place sixth in Hudson

SCF Unity gymnastics highlights HUDSON – The St. Croix Falls/Unity gymnastics team placed eighth overall at the Hudson Invitational on Saturday, Jan. 28. At least six gymnasts competed in various events, with Ashley Johnson scoring high in the vault with an 8.300. Raquel McCloud scored a 7.875 in the vault and Jenna Christensen scored a 7.350.

Johnson scored the most points on the team with 29.650 in the all-around event.

Christensen scored a 20.075 in the allaround.

Aimee Lerud breaks more school records

by Marty Seeger Leader staff writer HUDSON – The Grantsburg gymnastics team took sixth place out of the eight teams that competed at the Hudson Invitational on Saturday, Jan. 28. There were at least three girls who had no-fall routines on the beam including Raelyn Pochman, Heidi Horky and Aimee Lerud.

Pochman had a personal best on the beam after adding a new mount, and scored a 7.0 in the process.

There were also personal bests from Horky, who scored 29.625 in the allaround, and a personal best from Becca Glover on the beam with a 4.650. Glover also competed for the first time in the floor exercise. Rachel Diffee was unable to compete due to an injury.

Lerud continued to lead the Pirates with another solid performance. She made the podium five times and earned three medals and two ribbons. She was third overall in the vault with a 9.15, and had the same score as the second-place winner.

On the bars she took fourth with a score of 8.30, fifth on the beam with 8.675, third in the floor exercise with a 9.05, and third in the all-around with a 33.175. She also had two season highs on the floor and another in the all-around.

Aimee Lerud took fourth on the uneven bars for Pirates in Hudson, Saturday, Jan. 23.

– Photos submitted

RuthAnn Pederson scored personal-best scores in three events at Rush City, Minn., Tuesday, Jan. 31.

Grantsburg at Rush City, Minn.

RUSH CITY, Minn. – The Grantsburg gymnastics team competed at Rush City on Tuesday, Jan. 31, and Aimee Lerud set more school records. She broke a school record the vault, with a first-place finish and score of 9.45, and took first in the allaround with a personal best score of 36.15, which is also a school record.

Lerud also came in first place on the bars with a score of 8.875, and finished third on the beam with an 8.925, which was also a no-fall routine. She also tied for second in the floor exercise with an 8.9.

Personal-best scores also went to Grantsburg’s Heidi Horky in the allaround with a score of 30. Becca Glover also had a personal-best score in the floor event. RuthAnn Pederson had personalbest scores in three events, including vault, bars and the all-around.

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Siren’s undefeated season continues

Dragons win close one against Vikings Siren 55, Frederic 52

by Eugene Ruhn Leader staff writer SIREN – What a game this was, between the Siren Dragons and the Frederic Vikings on Friday, Jan. 27. A description can only be second best, as you had to be there to experience the excitement. There was high scoring early, the lead was exchanged back and forth for a little while, with the biggest lead Siren had in the whole game being four points. The Vikings had a seven-point scoring run to end the first quarter 13-10.

In the second quarter, Frederic was able to cause turnovers, with Siren unable to be in any kind of rhythm. The Vikings clung to a one-point lead for most of the second quarter, leading by as much as four points early in the quarter. The Dragons tied the game with 35 seconds left in the half, making the score at halftime 23-23.

In the third quarter, Frederic continued to be aggressive on defense, forcing Siren into taking bad shots, as the Vikings once again brought the lead up to five points.

The Dragons took a time-out and were able to slow Frederic’s momentum, fighting back to take the lead for the first time since the first quarter. The score at the end of the third quarter was 38-35.

In the final quarter, the Vikings kick off with four points off turnovers, caused by Frederic senior Waylon Buck. The lead once again was exchanged back and forth, like the first quarter, with scoring on every possession. Buck for Frederic had four steals in a row, which generated fast breaks for the Vikings. The score was tied at 44 all, with just over three minutes left in the game. Siren retook the lead with

Hoopsters/continued town Baptist Church, with Pastor Dan Mielke - himself a graduate of the team finding other similar squads to play in recent years.

“We’ve had some home-schoolers who didn’t really know about us until recently,” Johansen said. “But the word sort of spread.”

Johansen has been with the Milltown squad for about five years, and while he underplayed his own coaching prowess, he has a pretty good pool of talent to lead, although they did lose both of their previous games of this season.

“Last year, we finished about .500,” he said. “And the year before we had a winning season, taking first in a tournament.”

Homeless until now The Minutemen have generally practiced at the former Adult Development Center facility in Balsam Lake at the county library building, but Johansen said

Siren Senior Murdock Smith scores on a left-handed layup. – Photos by Eugene Ruhn just under two minutes remaining, then Frederic was able to tie the game at 48 with 1:30 remaining. The Vikings took the lead with one minute left, with a huge bucket by Jayce den Hoed. Frederic had the lead with 45 seconds remaining, but a costly turnover at midcourt, caused by the Dragons Elijah Hinze, allowing Siren to score and be fouled on the layup. The Dragons took the lead 51-50 with 18 seconds remaining, with Frederic’s only hope

Frederic Senior Waylon Buck scores on a layup over Siren's William Haines on Friday, Jan. 27. to foul and hope Siren misses the freethrows at the end, but that wasn’t the case, and the Dragons won, 55-52.

Comments from Frederic coach Ryan Lind, “I think our guys played very well on both sides of the ball, playing as a team. Siren is a really good team, so we knew we had to play great team defense.

We had a few mistakes late, and we have to learn from them and move on. I give

“it really wasn’t ideal,” and led to the squad renting the Luck gymnasium for practices and games.

The costs of playing in the big gym can add up quickly between facility rental, scorekeepers, referees and timers, so they hoped to recoup some costs with a $1 ticket and the snack sales.

“But it’s [the food] really for the visiting team. They kept asking me if we had any fast-food places around here,” Laura Johansen said with grin. “So, I figured we better feed them!”

School District.

“It’s just boys for now. We’ve talked about throwing together a girls team” Johansen said, “but we haven’t had enough players yet.”

The Minutemen have games scheduled against squads from Chippewa Falls, Menomonie, Superior and Poplar, as well as several teams from Minnesota where they also play several tourneys.

“It should be nice this year, as we’ve got four home games set for the season,” Johansen said proudly. “We got used to driving pretty far.”

Casting a larger net The Minutemen have enough players this year for a junior varsity squad, who played the IBC JV team after the varsity game.

Made up of almost exclusively homeschooled kids or players who attend Milltown Baptist Church but don’t play on other teams, Johansen said they draw players from an area that stretches from Grantsburg south to Frederic, Luck and Milltown, and take in much of the Unity

Milltown head coach Ed Johansen gives his squad some advice during a time-out.

The only differences The Minutemen look sharp in their custom-made two-tone dark blue and offwhite uniforms, which the JV players also wear.

Just because they play under rather unusual circumstances, don’t think the

Frederic's Ian Lexen goes up for a shot after grabbing an offensive rebound.

Siren a lot of credit, they are a very good coached team.”

Scoring for the Dragons were Hinze with 22 points, Andrew Brown with 15 points, Murdock Smith with 10 points, Evan Oachs four, and Davey St. John and William Haines with two points each.

Scoring for the Vikings were den Hoed and Buck with 11 points each, Michael Tesch and Adam Chenal with 10 points apiece, Ian Lexen with eight points and Jack Neumann with two points. squad doesn’t take their play seriously.

They practice three times a week, and while Johansen likes to underplay his coaching techniques, the players obviously listen to his direction, as well as that of assistant coach Mielke.

“It’s a good group of kids,” Johansen said. “We have a pretty good time.”

Milltown did a solid job holding off the IBC squad in the first half, and while they had a hard time burying their shots, they handled the visiting IBC team with aplomb.

So other than the fact that theses kids are schooled entirely at home, and there is a short prayer before the game, the only other notable difference is that when players are introduced, they run over and shake the opposing coach’s hand.

High school teams could maybe learn a few things from these kids.

Milltown's Mike Johansen (No. 23) defends against IBC Crusader Joe Dahmer (with ball). – Photos by Greg Marsten

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Girls bball/continued came storming back in the second quarter to take a 28-23 halftime.

Avery Steen scored 20 points for the Cardinals. She also had seven rebounds

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and three assists. Jenni Holdt had 11 points and eight boards, while Maia Lehmann added six points, Jaimee Buck had four and Angie Gorr had two. Taylor Joy contributed with seven rebounds, and Lehmann had three assists. – Marty Seeger

Pirate junior Kylie Pewe goes baseline as Luck's Jaimee Buck defends. – Photos by Greg Marsten

Boys bball/continued

S

quarter in a low-scoring affair, 9-7. The teams opened up the offense in the second quarter, and the game remained tied at 27.

Turtle Lake’s second-half effort proved too much for the Cardinals, and the Lakers also shot well from the free-throw line,

P O R T S shooting 20 of 21, and hit 14 of 14 in the second half.

The Cards were led by 15 points from Karsten Petersen and 10 from Kyle Hunter. Evan Armour had eight points, John Denny, seven, Trent Strapon four and Dylan LeMay, three. – Marty Seeger

Luck's Karsten Petersen (left) and Grantsburg's Zack Arnold (No. 21) chase a loose ball.

Blizzard girls fall and then recover

Lose to Silver Bay and then beat Superior

by Greg Marsten Leader staff writer SIREN – The Blizzard girls hockey team fell to Silver Bay, 9-5, on Saturday, Jan. 28 at Siren.

The Blizzard drew first blood, with Wendy Roberts knocking back a pair of goals only seconds apart in the first period. She had assists from Samantha

O’Brien on both tallies, with Kassie Lien offering a helper on another.

But Silver Bay countered and tied by the end of the period. O’Brien managed a goal early in the second period to give the Blizzard a lead, with helpers from Roberts and Paige Johnson, respectively.

But then the floodgates opened, as Silver Bay scored seven of the next nine goals, including five unanswered goals in the third period alone. The Blizzard tried to stay in the hunt and had additional scoring by Ashley Dietmeier and Lien,

both of whom were unassisted.

Silver Bay held on for the win, 9-5.

Blizzard girls down Superior SUPERIOR – The Blizzard girls recovered from their loss on Saturday, Jan. 28, to travel north to Superior for a nonconference match with the Spartans, and came home with a strong win, 5-2.

Superior scored first on goalie Paige Young, but the Blizzard girls responded with a flurry of four straight goals to counter the Spartans.

Ashley Dietmeier, Samantha O’Brien, Wendy Roberts and Dietmeier again, scored the next next four goals for a lead.

Assist credits go to O’Brien and Johanna Lauer.

Leading 4-1, the Blizzard did allow one more Spartan goal in the waning minutes, but they countered that with an unassisted Wendy Roberts tally in the final minutes, making the final score 5-2, in favor of the Blizzard. The squad is back in play again on Thursday, Feb. 2, against Moose Lake at Siren.

Blizzard boys cruise past Becker and River Falls

Blizzard 8, Becker/Big Lake 2 Blizzard 5, River Falls 1

by Greg Marsten Leader staff writer BECKER – The Blizzard boys hockey squad had little trouble dispatching the Becker/Big Lake cooperative squad on Friday, Jan. 27, winning 8-2 and never trailing.

It was the Dietmeier show to start, as bothers Aaron and Anthony Dietmeier

combined for four goals in the first period alone, including three for Anthony, who had a rare single-period hat trick.

He added another tally in the second period, as did Matt Larson and Joe Engelhart, with various assist credits going to each other in the scoring barrage.

Engelhart added another goal in the third period on a power play, making the final score 8-2 after two last-minute goals in the waning moments by the Becker boys.

Blizzard down Wildcats SIREN - The Blizzard boys continued their scoring ways on Saturday, Jan. 28, at home in Siren against River Falls, winning 5-2.

Matt Larson scored first for the Blizzard on a second-period power play, with an assist by Aaron Dietmeier.

Joe Engelhart scored next for the Blizzard as the second frame wound down, this time with a Larson helper and again on a power play.

Anthony Dietmeier then exploded for a hat trick in the final period, scoring three goals in just over three minutes to seal the win. One of the goals was on a power play and another was when the Blizzard were shorthanded. He had assists from Matt Larson, Engelhart and Aaron Dietmeier in the flurry of scoring, making the final 5-1, in favor of the Blizzard, who remain atop the Two Rivers Conference comfortably, four points ahead of the second-place Minneapolis Nova squad.

Burnett Blizzard youth hockey seeing success

The Burnett Blizzard Pee Wee A hockey team took first place in a tournament played on Sunday, Jan. 15, in the metro area. The playoffs are set to begin on Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 45. – Photos submitted

The Burnett Blizzard Pee Wee A hockey team took first place in a tournament played on Sunday, Jan. 15, in the metro area. The playoffs are set to begin on Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 45. – Photos submitted

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Spooner/Burnett hockey wins a pair of tournaments BURNETT COUNTY – The past two weekends have been busy ones for the Spooner/Burnett Bantam Co-op hockey team, and both have resulted in the team bringing home the championship trophy.

The weekend of Friday through Sunday, Jan. 20-22, the bantams played a four-team round robin tournament in New Richmond. They started the tournament Friday night with an 8-0 drubbing of New Richmond. Saturday afternoon they faced a tough challenge from North Metro, a Twin Cities team, and ended up with a 10 victory in a game with great defense and goaltending by each team. The team had to turn around and play the Huron, S.D., All-Stars Saturday evening. Spooner/ Burnett could not hold on to leads of 4-1 and 5-2 and ended up tied at 5 at the end of regulation. This led to an always exciting shoot-out, in which Huron won 2-1 to capture the victory.

Due to the seeding of the teams based on their records in the first three games, Spooner/Burnett found themselves once again facing Huron in the championship game. This time they found themselves on the winning end of a 3-2 score in another exciting game, giving Spooner/Burnett the championship trophy.

This past weekend found the team hosting an eight-team tournament in Spooner.

Spooner/Burnett kicked off the tourna-

Spooner/Burnett players are pictured after another tournament victory. Front row, (L to R): Jake Smith, Trevor Brimblecom, Hunter Johannes, Ryan Schutt, Taran Wols, Levi Neubich and Jace Scalzo. Second row: Coach Preston Curtis, coach Randy Bowman (hidden), Tanner Schafer, Alex Grubbs, Josh Gilberg, Brady Mangen, Ryan Anderson, Max Norman, Bailey Mangen, coach Mark Halverson and coach Nick Freeman. Back row: Jenna Curtis and Austin Bowman. – Photos submitted ment with a convincing 6-0 victory over Reedsburg/Wisconsin Dells. Scoring for Spooner/Burnett were Hunter Johannes with a three-goal hat trick, Brady Mangen, Jake Smith and Max Norman. Assists were credited to Johannes, Josh Gilberg, Austin Bowman, Ryan Schutt and Tanner Schafer. Trevor Brimblecom and Taran

Wols shared the goaltending duties and combined for the shutout.

The semifinal game found Spooner/ Burnett facing La Crosse. The Bantams took an early lead, held off a fierce rally by La Crosse and took home the victory 6-4.

Scoring for the team were Gilberg, Johannes, Schutt, Mangen, Norman and

Bowman. Assists were credited to Johannes who had three, Schafer and Bowman. Once again Brimblecom and Wols shared the goaltending.

The championship game on Sunday found Spooner/Burnett facing Tomahawk. Tomahawk came out and dominated the first period, putting 20 shots on the Spooner goalie and finding the back of the net twice. Mangen found the back of the net for the home team and Tomahawk held a 2-1 lead after one period. The second period was much more evenly played, with Spooner/Burnett’s Jenna Curtis scoring the only goal, which was assisted by Schutt. The teams entered the third period tied at two. The game remained tied until Norman scored on a great individual effort with 2:44 remaining in the game. Spooner/Burnett played great defense for the remaining time and came home with the championship hardware.

Spooner/Burnett entered the weekend short on defense as both Alex Grubbs and Bailey Mangen had been injured in the past week. The coaches changed around some positions and it worked out great for the team. Spooner/Burnett will find themselves playing in the state playdowns in Barron this upcoming weekend.

The winner of this playdown secures a spot in the state tournament in Oregon, March 3-4. – submitted

AREA BOWLING RESULTS Hacker’s Lanes

Sunday Afternoon Youth Games Standings: The Strikers 13, Hi There 12, The Girls 9, The Bowlers 8, The North 8, The Dogs 7, Bye 5, Team Hambone 2.

Boys games: Kyle Hunter (TB) 227, Austin Bruss (HT) 215, Jordan Bazey (TB) 198.

Boys series: Kyle Hunter (TB) 615, Austin Bruss (HT) 576, Charlie Lindberg 492.

Girls games: Corissa Schmidt (TG) 223, Avery Steen (TG) 175, Lauren Domagala (TG) 145.

Girls series: Corissa Schmidt (TG) 518, Avery Steen (TG) 512, Julia Owens (HT) 400.

Team games: The Bowlers 559, The Girl 527, Hi There 503.

Team series: The Bowlers 1514, Hi There 1468, The Girls 1427.

Monday Afternoon Senior Standings: Hummingbirds 14, Bears 13, Night Hawks 11, Eagles 10, Badgers 9, Vultures 6, Swans 5.

Men’s games (Handicap): Ron Noble 251, Dave Bannie 216, Alvin Tyler 216.

Men’s series (Handicap): Ron Noble 661, Alvin Tyler 590, Dave Bannie 579.

Women’s games (Handicap): Jackie Giller 232, Sharon Holt 219, Mary Young 214.

Women’s series (Handicap): Jackie Giller 599, Mary Young 589, Kelley Hill 576.

Team games (Handicap): Hummingbirds 806, Bears 779, Vultures 771.

Team series (Handicap): Hummingbirds 2302, Bears 2246, Vultures 2230.

Tuesday Classic Standings: Great Northern Outdoors 36, Yellow Lake Lodge 36, Bottle Shop 34, Pioneer Bar 19.5, Frandsen Bank & Trust 18, House of Wood 12.5.

Individual games: Josh Henry 254, Reed Stevens & Jake Anderson 245.

Individual series: Roger Tollander 668, Reed Stevens 665, Josh Henry 655.

Team games: Bottle Shop 661, Great Northern Outdoors 635, Frandsen Bank & Trust 623.

Team series: Bottle Shop & Frandsen Bank & Trust 1834, Great Northern Outdoors 1817.

Consecutive strikes (5 or more): Josh Henry 6x = 254; Kelsey Bazey 6x = 224.

Games 50 or more above average: Jake Anderson 245 (+78); Josh Henry 254 (+68); Reed Stevens 245 (+58).

Series 100 or more above average: Jake Anderson 611 (+110); Roger Tollander 668 (+107); Reed Stevens 665 (+104).

Splits converted: 3-6-7-10: Dale Frandsen. 4-5: Kelsey Bazey. 2-10: Butch Hacker Jr. 3-10: Jason Pearson.

Wednesday Night Early Standings: A-1 Machine 15, Daeffler’s Quality Meats 11, Larsen Auto Center 10, Pioneer Bar 9, Lewis Silo 8, Cummings Lumber 7, Skol Bar 4, Bye Team 0.

Individual games: Jim Murphy (CL) 245, Ken Koehler (A-1) 237, Brett Daeffler (DQM) 231.

Individual series: Brett Daeffler (DQM) 658, Jason Richter (A-1) 639, Mark Bohn (SB) 623.

Team games: A-1 Machine 971 & 965, Cummings Lumber 937.

Team series: A-1 Machine 2779, Lewis Silo 2631, Daeffler’s Quality Meats 2617.

Thursday Early Standings: Kinetico 29, Wikstrom Construction 28.5, American Family Siren 26.5, Red Iron Studios 26, Fab Four 26, Hell Raisers 25, Grindell Law Offices 24, Daeffler’s Quality Meats 23.

Individual games: Mike Route (RIS) 231, Mark Bohn (FF) 226, Brandon Ayd (GLO) 214.

Individual series: Ed Bitler (RIS) 615, Don McKinney (FF) 574, Blake Douglas (GLO) 567.

Team games: Grindell Law Offices 617, Red Iron Studios 578, Daeffler’s Quality Meats 567.

Team series: Red Iron Studios 1655, Daeffler’s Quality Meats 1621, Fab Four 1594.

Consecutive strikes (5 or more): Mike Route 6x = 231; Brandon Ayd 5x = 214.

Games 50 or more above average: Brandin Ayd 214 (+60); Brandon Dahl 193 (+57); Mike Route 231 (+70).

Splits converted: 2-4-10: Mark Kamish.

6-10: Mark Kamish.

Thursday Late Standings: Hog Wild BBQ & Grill 11, Fisk Trucking 8, Stotz & Company 7, Hansen Farms Inc. 6.

Men’s games: Eugene Wynn Sr. & Eugene Wynn Jr. 216, Oliver Baillargeon 212.

Men’s series: Eugene Wynn Jr. 577, Oliver Baillargeon 567, Dale Frandsen 542.

Women’s games: Heather Wynn 179.

Women’s series: Heather Wynn 460.

Team games: Hansen Farms Inc. 879, Stotz & Company 817, Hog Wild BBQ & Grill 762.

Team series: Hansen Farms Inc. 2580, Stotz & Company 2354, Hog Wild BBQ & Grill 2251.

Friday Night Ladies Standings: Frederic Design 29, Junque Art 25, The Leader 23, Meyer’s Plus 22, Pioneer Bar 21, Pin Heads 14, SKM 4.

Individual games: Linda O’Donnell 224, Karen Carlson 208, Cindy Denn & Gail Linke 191.

Individual series: Karen Carlson 529, Gail Linke 515, Linda O’Donnell 514.

Team games: The Leader 676, Junque Art 674, Pin Heads 657.

Team series: The Leader 1877, Junque Art 1835, Pin Heads 1782.

Games 50 or more above average: Myrna Magnuson; Denise Strait.

Splits converted: 5-10: Linda Richter. 57-9: Kim Owen.

McKenzie Lanes

Monday Night Ladies Standings: Wolf Creek Log Furniture 109, Alyeska Contracting 104.5, Edina Divas 102, Metal Products 92, Milltown Appliance 90, McKenzie Lanes 79.5, Frederic Truck & Tractor 62, Bye 35.

Individual games: Kelley Hill 213, Yvonne Snyder & Cindy Castellano 194.

Individual series: Shirley Wilson 518, Cindy Castellano 513, Kelley Hill 509.

Team games (Handicap): McKenzie Lanes 869.

Team series (Handicap): McKenzie Lanes 2417.

Monday Night Madness Standings: Mishaps 44, McKenzie Lanes 33, Alleycats 30, Eagle Lounge 29, Bogus Punkins 28, Bye 4.

Individual games: Debbie Swanson 201, Barbara Benson 195, Julia Delougherty 187.

Individual series: Debbie Swanson & Barbara Benson 544, Julia Delougherty 519.

Team games (Handicap): Mishaps 643, Bogus Pumpkins 628.

Team series (Handicap): Mishaps 1854, Eagle Lounge 1773.

Tuesday Early Mixed Standings: Lane Crashers 54, What the Ek 31, 1 Pin Short 28, Lemon Heads 27.

Men’s games: Kevin Ek 233, Jeff Lehmann 186, Gilbert Berg 177.

Men’s series: Kevin Ek 670, Jeff Lehmann 489, Gilbert Berg 478.

Women’s games: Beth Ahlgren 175, Alisa Lamb 159, Brenda Lehmann 134.

Women’s series: Beth Ahlgren 458, Alisa Lamb 431, Janice Berg 373.

Team games: What the Ek 503.

Team series: What the Ek 1460.

Tuesday Women’s Standings: Country Gals 79.5, Kassel Tap 68, Hauge Dental 61.5, Gutter Dusters 56, Custom Outfitter 54.5, Trap Rock 54, LC’s Gals 53.5, Tomlinson Insurance 49.

Individual games: Lonnie Stowell 212, Erlene Johnson 176, Lois Swenson & Kathy Braund 173.

Individual series: Lonnie Stowell 517, Kathy Braund 482, Norma Hauge 478.

Team games (Handicap): Tomlinson Insurance 816, Trap Rock 806, Gutter Dusters 782.

Team series (Handicap): Trap Rock 2335, Tomlinson Insurance 2302, Custom Outfitter 2250.

Tuesday Night Men’s Standings: Dream Lawn 52.5, Steve’s Appliance 44, The Cobbler Shop 42, Centurview Park 41, Nel-Lo-Hill Farm 38.5, Hack’s Pub 36, McKenzie Lanes 33, The Dugout 33.

Individual games: Doug Oryan 267, Rick Fox 238, Aaron Shannon 231.

Individual series: Doug Oryan 695, Rick Fox 627, Gene Braund 600.

Team games (Handicap): Steve’s Appliance 1204.

Team series (Handicap): Steve’s Appliance 3463.

Wednesday Early Standings: Amrhien Painting 42, Gerhman Auto Body 38, Hack’s Pub 38, Holiday StationStore 34, Suzie Q’s 26,

Top Spot 26, Cutting Edge 14, Bye 6.

Men’s games: Bob Chitty 224, Craig Willert 222, Dennis Kindem 208.

Men’s series: Craig Willert 548, Merlin Fox 545, Bob Chitty 542.

Women’s games: Patty Walker 173, Shirley Ince 156, Janice Fox 154.

Women’s series: Patty Walker 499, Dixie Runberg 454, Shirley Ince 408.

Team games (Handicap): Hack’s Pub 693.

Team series (Handicap): Hack’s Pub 1881.

Wednesday Night Men’s Standings: Tiger Express 24, Hanjo Farms 16, Harvest Moon 16, Reed’s Marina 16, Edina Realty 16, McKenzie Lanes 14, Dalles Electricians 14, Davy’s Construction 12.

Individual games: Jim McKenzie 265, Darren McKenzie 257, Jesse Schultz 245.

Individual series: Darren McKenzie 685, Craig Willert 653, Jim McKenzie 635.

Team games (Handicap): McKenzie Lanes 1070, Tiger Express 1061.

Team series (Handicap): McKenzie Lanes 2811, Tiger Express 2805.

Thursday Night Ladies 1/13/12 Standings: KJ’s 109.5, Truhlsen Chiropractic 107, Bont Chiropractic 101.5, Hauge Dental 99.5, Eagle Valley Bank 99.5, Cutting Edge Pro 98.5, RiverBank 95, Hack’s Pub 88.5.

Individual games: Carrie Schultz 212, Dawn High 201, Annette Norlander & Jackie Patterson 200.

Individual series: Carrie Schultz 558, Annette Norlander 532, Jackie Patterson, Dawn High & Jennifer Whelan 506.

Team games: Cutting Edge Pro 866, Hack’s Pub 767, Bont Chiropractic 746.

Team series: Cutting Edge Pro 2414, Hauge Dental 2166, Hack’s Pub 2164.

Black & Orange

Early Birds Standings: Gandy Dancer Saloon 18-10, Yellow River Saloon 17-11, The Tap 1216, Black & Orange 9-19.

Individual games: Rita Tesch (YRS) 172, Michelle Lysdahl (YRS) 158, Lynn Toivola (T) 151.

Individual series: Michelle Lysdahl (YRS) 438, Lynn Toivola (T) 424, Rita Tesch (YRS) 420.

Team games: Yellow River Saloon 919, Gandy Dancer Saloon 830, The Tap 807.

Team series: Yellow River Saloon 2596, Gandy Dancer Saloon 2422, The Tap 2346.

Monday Night Men’s Standings: Glass & Mirror Works 13.56.5, Black & Orange 11.5-8.5, Larry’s LP 10-10, Vacant 5-15.

Individual games: Curt Phelps (G&MW) 218, Jack Witzany (L) 204, George Kern (B&O) 193.

Individual series: Josh Johnson (L) 549, Curt Phelps (G&MW) 545, George Kern (B&O) 535.

Team games: Glass & Mirror Works 944, Larry’s LP 919, Black & Orange 852.

Team series: Glass & Mirror Works 2745, Larry’s LP 2719, Black & Orange 2481.

Games 50 or more above average: Jack Witzany 204 (+56); Curt Phelps 218 (+58).

TNT Standings: Flower Power 16-8, Cashco

15-9, Larry’s LP 13-11, Vacant 4-20.

Individual games: Becky Reynolds (L) 198, Wendy Gramer (C) 171, Jennifer Kern (L) 170.

Individual series: Jennifer Kern (L) 486, Sue Eytcheson (FP) 485, Cheryl Scallon (C) 457.

Team games: Cashco 893, Larry’s LP 873, Flower Power 805.

Team series: Cashco 2505, Larry’s LP 2463, Flower Power 2385.

Wednesday Night Standings: Cashco 14-6, Pheasant Inn 11.5-8.5, Lions 11-9, Zia Louisa’s 11-9, Black & Orange 9.5-10.5, Vacant 3-17.

Individual games: Tim Vasatka (PI) 214, Mike Zajac (C) 210, Art Bliven (L) 206.

Individual series: Ken Tonsager (ZL) 589, Mike Zajac (C) 569, Roger Tollander (C) 539.

Team games: Lions 996, Cashco 928, Pheasant Inn 890.

Team series: Lions 2731, Cashco 2684, Pheasant Inn 2539.

Games 50 or more above average: Tim Vasatka 214 (+50).

Splits converted: 4-7-10: Josh Johnson.

Early Risers Standings: Gayle’s Northwoods Hair Design 16-12, 10th Hole 16-12, Gandy Dancer 13-15, A+ Sanitation 11-17.

Individual games: Pam Dildine (10th) 195, Lylah Nelson (A+) 168, Millie Hansen (GNHD) 167.

Individual series: Pam Dildine (10th) 519, Millie Hansen (GNHD) 459, Lylah Nelson (A+) 456.

Team games: Gayle’s Northwoods Hair Design 697, A+ Sanitation 682, 10th Hole 652.

Team series: Gayle’s Northwoods Hair Design 2006, A+ Sanitation 2004, 10th Hole 1890.

Thursday Night Ladies Standings: Dolls w/Balls 16-8, Webster Motel 13-11, Pour House 11-13, Rollettes 8-16.

Individual games: Daphne Churchill (Dw/B) 155, Jacquelyn Churchill (Dw/B) & Tooter Barnes (PH) 154, Sandy Churchill (R) 151.

Individual series: Daphne Churchill (Dw/B) 423, Jacquelyn Churchill (Dw/B) 419, LuAnn Mattison (PH) 408.

Team games: Webster Motel 687, Rollettes 673, Pour House 671.

Team series: Pour House 1901, Rollettes 1893, Webster Motel 1887.

Denny’s Downtown Lanes

Sunday Afternoon Mixed Standings: Spare Us 34, Blind 31, Redneck Coon Hunters 28, George’s Angels 23, Team Siren 21, The Pacifiers 10.

Women’s games: Ernie Meyer & Lori Dake 157, “Trouble” Barfknecht 147.

Women’s series: Lori Dake 412, “Trouble” Barfknecht 375, Austin Otis 360.

Men’s games: Scott Lamphere 184, Issac Jewell 174, Jamie Meir 169.

Men’s series: Scott Lamphere 467, Issac Jewell 464, Jamie Meir 422.

Team games: Redneck Coon Hunters 433, Team Siren 426, George’s Angels 406.

Team series: Redneck Coon Hunters 1199, George’s Angels 1185, Spare Us 1180.

PAGE 20 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

W

L

I N T E R

The big games They’ll be packed to the rafters this Friday night in Grantsburg when the Pirates host the Siren Dragons in a crucial doubleheader. In boys action, the Pirates need a win to maintain West Lakeland title hopes while a Dragon victory THE SPORTS would all but lock up a crown. Meanwhile, the Dragon girls still have aspirations of catching the St. Croix Falls Saints in the league race and will need a win if that is to occur. The Dragons swept the doubleheader the first time around.

Note that the boys play first at 6 p.m. with the girls to follow at approximately

John Ryan

PAGE

E A D E R

7:30 p.m.

Firearm fair Hundreds of hard-core hunters will converge on Siren this Saturday for the South Fork Sporting Club’s annual gun show (see Jan. 28 Indianhead Advertiser for details). Promotional materials indicate well-known sportsman and deer and chicken wrangler Richard Kettula is one of the event’s main contact people along with noted former Frederic athlete Scott Wilder. Both Kettula and Wilder were on the roster of the 1968 conference champion FHS football team.

The NFL’s long tentacles Speaking of the Indianhead Advertiser, one is struck by the number of ads for eating and drinking establishments, which conspicuously refer to this Sunday’s “Big Game“ rather than “the Super Bowl.” That’s because, apparently, the NFL will take action against those who attempt to advertise to sell goods or services using the copyrighted term “Super Bowl.” So its OK to mention “Super

S

Bowl” in a news or sports story, and we are free to watch the Super Bowl or even to attend a Super Bowl party at someone’s house. But it’s apparently not OK for a business to use the term Super Bowl in their advertisements.

Coaches for Cancer event at Grantsburg high Organizers hope to “white out” the gymnasium with T-shirts sold to benefit the American Cancer Society and Grantsburg’s Relay for Life on Friday, Feb. 24, in the Pirates gym. The Webster Tigers will be in town that night. Watch for a future news release.

Another Kettula makes the local sporting news It was a breakout performance for Siren junior Kyaisha Kettula when she lit up the scoreboard for 27 points to fuel the Dragons’ 11-point victory over Frederic last Friday (see game story elsewhere on these pages).

P O R T S A sad hunting story There wasn’t a dry eye in the house when Galen D. “Coot” Skow recently told the tale of his experiences during the 2011 Wisconsin firearm deer season. Historically, most of Skow’s deerhunting stories have had happy endings, as evidenced by the array of impressive, high-scoring racks that adorn the walls of his trophy room.

Though the majority of Skow’s recordbook-caliber trophies have been harvested during archery season, he claims the rack from the 2011 rifle season buck which, in a perfect world would be on his wall today, would have been the biggest one of his career. But alas, things don’t always turn out right for hunters and other living things. If you run into Skow these days, chances are he’ll be ready and willing to discuss his ill-fated 2011 season.

John Ryan may be reached at jmr202@yahoo.com.

LFG taken down by Warriors Area wrestling teams competing at Conference tourney in Cameron Saturday

Clear Lake 55, LFG 22

by Marty Seeger Leader staff writer LUCK – It was a tough night for the Luck/Frederic/Grantsburg wrestling team on Thursday, Jan. 26, as they hosted the second-place finisher in the Lakeland

LEADER SPORTS SCOREBOARD BOYS BASKETBALL Team Siren Dragons Grantsburg Pirates Unity Eagles Frederic Vikings Webster Tigers Luck Cardinals St. Croix Falls Saints

Standings

Conf.

8-0 6-2 6-2 3-5 2-5 2-6 0-7

Scores Friday, January 27 Grantsburg 52, Luck 46 Siren 55, Frederic 52 Unity 51, St. Croix Falls 31 Monday, January 30 Hayward 61, Webster 35 Turtle Lake 69, St. Croix Falls 49 Tuesday, January 31 Clear Lake 49, St. Croix Falls 44 Turtle Lake 60, Luck 47 Upcoming Friday, February 3 7:30 p.m. Unity at Frederic (DH) Siren at Grantsburg (DH) St. Croix Falls at Webster (DH) Clear Lake at Luck Monday, February 6 7:30 p.m. Clayton at St. Croix Falls Tuesday, February 7 6 p.m.

Frederic at St. Croix Falls 7:30 p.m. Clear Lake at Grantsburg Siren at Luck (DH) Webster at Unity Thursday, February 9 7:30 p.m. Frederic at Luck (DH) Unity at New Auburn (DH)

WSFLG Blizzard

Overall 16-0 12-3 9-5 10-6 5-10 6-9 2-13

Overall 16-2-0

Friday, January 27 Blizzard 8, Becker/Big Lake, Minn., 2 Saturday, January 28 Blizzard 5, River Falls 1 Tuesday, January 31 Blizzard at Mora/Hinckley-Finlayson, Minn.

Upcoming Thursday, February 2 7 p.m.

Spooner vs. Blizzard at Grantsburg Saturday, February 4 3 p.m.

Blizzard at Minneapolis East, Minn.

Monday, February 6 7 p.m.

Blizzard at Pine City, Minn.

Thursday, February 9 7:30 p.m. North Branch, Minn., vs. Blizzard at Grantsburg

WRESTLING

had Paulsen pinned at one point.

Nick Britton also had an interesting match at 220 against Al Freiendshuh. Britton also nearly had a pin at one point during the match, but ended up getting pinned despite a solid effort against a quality opponent.

LFG wrestlers, and the rest of the Lakeland Conference including Unity and St. Croix Falls, will be going into battle on Saturday, Feb. 4, at Cameron for the conference tournament, beginning at 9 a.m.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

BOYS HOCKEY

Standings Conf.

10-0-0 Scores

Conference from Clear Lake.

LFG’s Brent Johnson picked up a pin at 132 pounds, and Tony Britton won by a 12-1 decision at 152. Other point-getters from LFG included Joe Christensen, who pinned his opponent late in the second period, and a forfeit won by LFG at 106.

Two other matches kept the crowd on the edge of their seats, with the first coming between LFG’s Alex Richey and Garrett Paulsen. Richey was wrestling an outstanding Warrior wrestler at 170 pounds, and despite the loss, he nearly

Upcoming Thursday, February 2 7 p.m.

St. Croix Falls at St. Croix Central Saturday, February 4 9 a.m.

Conference Tournament at Cameron (Luck/Frederic/Grantsburg, St. Croix Falls, Unity)

Team St. Croix Falls Saints Siren Dragons Grantsburg Pirates Unity Eagles Frederic Vikings Luck Cardinals Webster Tigers

Standings

Conf.

7-0 6-1 5-2 3-4 2-5 1-6 0-6

Scores Thursday, January 26 Unity 47, Prairie Farm 20 Friday, January 27 Grantsburg 49, Luck 41 Siren 61, Frederic 50 St. Croix Falls 47, Unity 43 Monday, January 30 St. Croix Falls 46, Clear Lake 12 Tuesday, January 31 Northwood 51, Luck 43 Osceola 55, Unity 47 Siren 65, Cornell 20 Upcoming Thursday, February 2 7:30 p.m. Luck at Clear Lake Webster at Shell Lake Friday, February 3 6 p.m.

Unity at Frederic (DH) Siren at Grantsburg (DH) St. Croix Falls at Webster (DH) Saturday, February 4 3 p.m.

Pine City, Minn., at St. Croix Falls Tuesday, February 7 6 p.m.

Siren at Luck (DH) Webster at Unity (DH) 7:30 p.m. Frederic at St. Croix Falls (DH) Thursday, February 9 6 p.m.

Frederic at Luck (DH) Unity at New Auburn (DH)

Overall 11-2 8-6 10-3 8-7 6-9 5-6 1-11

GIRLS HOCKEY Standings

WSFLGUS Blizzard

Overall 10-11-0

Scores Saturday, January 28 Silver Bay, Minn., 9, Blizzard 4 Monday, January 30 Blizzard 5, Superior 2 Upcoming Thursday, February 2 7 p.m.

Moose Lake, Minn., vs. Blizzard at Siren Tuesday, February 7 7 p.m.

Hayward vs. Blizzard at Siren

GYMNASTICS

Thursday, February 9 6:30 p.m. St. Croix Falls at Grantsburg

Visit

www.wissports.net

for local high school scores & stats

Billy Schallenberger attempts to put a move on a Clear Lake opponent at 145 pounds.

A mediocre 123 performance kept the Prediction King’s season success rate at 81 percent.

His overall wonloss record now stands at 105 and 25. He lamented his embarrassing miscues in predicting Tuesday wins by the Luck and St. Croix Falls boys but THE SWAMI vows to bounce back this week.

“Still, it was great to be able to mingle and glad-hand with some of my fans at last Saturday’s fishing contest at Coon Lake in Frederic. I was proud to help raise funds for the softball team, and I also enjoyed exceeding my legal panfish limit. (Shhhh!

Don’t tell!)”

Due to the long slate of games, the King will limit his generally clever anecdotes to two words or less.

The Swami

PREDICTS

This week’s games Girls Shell Lake 51, Webster 30 – Cakewalk Luck 48, Clear Lake 44 – Upset St. Croix Falls 61, Webster 26 – Future champs Siren 50, Grantsburg 48 – Hanging around Frederic 53, Unity 49 – Close game St. Croix Falls 66, Pine City 40 – Yawn Unity 49, Webster 23 – Large talons Siren 56, Luck 48 – Unlucky night St. Croix Falls 60, Frederic 47 – Unofficial clincher Boys St. Croix Falls 41, Webster 40 – Sweep Siren 58, Grantsburg 54 – Official clincher Frederic 47, Unity 43 – Big win Luck 53, Clear Lake 33 – Struggling opponent Clayton 55, St. Croix Falls 36 – Loss Grantsburg 70, Clear Lake 39 – Dynamic Siren 84, Luck 51 – Statement Frederic 100, St. Croix Falls 56 – 20th anniversary Unity 40, Webster 30 – Satisfying The Swami cheerfully answers all e-mails and can be reached at predictionking@yahoo.com.

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 21

O UTDOOR S I N T E R! C O U N T Y L E A D E R

ATVs • BIRDING • BOATING • CAMPING • FISHING • HIKING • HUNTING • RECREATIONAL VEHICLES

Winter brookies in Wisconsin?

Wolf tracks easily outnumbered a lonely looking set of deer tracks that crisscrossed through the snow last week in the Washburn County Forest. As a person who hunts in farm country, I’d never Marty seen so much wolf Seeger sign, but we weren’t after a wolf sighting on this particular day, nor The were we after deer.

Brook trout were the Bottom target of the day and even though I knew Line that what we were doing was totally legal, I had my doubts. But visiting the Washburn County Government Web site, and clicking County Forest Trout Ponds, the doubt is wiped away rather quickly. You’ll not only find names of the 19 ponds, but maps and information on how to get there. More importantly, you’ll see that the season runs from the first Saturday in May to March 1.

Some of these pothole lakes or ponds are barely two acres in size, while others can be as large as 15 acres. Most average roughly five acres and can require just a short hike from the road, or a two-mile hike into areas closed to any motorized traffic. Those ponds can provide some of the best fishing, and oftentimes, you go home with some decent exercise and memories of the natural beauty in theWashburn County Forest.

The lack of snow in Burnett and Polk counties is evident, but the Washburn County Forest area had a bit more, and even some cross-country ski trails were open last week. Snowshoes weren’t

needed, but in any other year snowshoes might be a godsend, depending on how far you’re willing to hike.

The only real gear needed is your favorite jigging pole tipped with nothing more than a jig you’d use for ice fishing for bluegills, and a waxie. The DNR cautions against using minnows on these lakes, but you don’t need minnows to catch trout. As long as you have your current fishing license and trout stamp, it’s all you really need, and it’s the trout stamp monies that help fuel opportunities such as this year after year.

When the inland trout-fishing season ends in the late fall, ponds in the Washburn County Forest can be at their best.

In April, the DNR stocks the ponds with brook trout, and some with rainbows when they are just 2 inches long. Amazingly, these fish can reach lengths of 7 to 10 inches by fall, and by the end of their second summer, can reach up to 14 inches.

The DNR says anglers shouldn’t expect any real trophies, and in some cases an empty pond, as many succumb to a frequent winterkill. It’s also noted that the hatchery fish don’t live to a third year, and might not survive to spring after their first year. But according to the Web site, “occasional winterkill is often necessary to keep populations of competing species low.” It’s also the main reason you can keep a limit of five trout per person at 7 inches or larger. There are also other small lakes nearby with bass and bluegill, but most of the majority of ponds are trout only to ensure the best survival rate.

With the prospect of catching a limit of brook trout, the trip was well worth it, but mostly because I had a fellow explorer who traveled many miles back and forth from his home to the Washburn County Forest, only to come home with an empty creel. Eventually his explorations were rewarded when he found a pond with fish willing to bite, but it was-

With a willingness to work a little, brook trout can be caught legally through the ice in the Washburn County Forest. There are 19 ponds open to fishing, but it can be difficult to seek out the one with fish willing to bite. The rewards are great, when you finally find them. – Photo by Marty Seeger n’t easy, so I vowed to keep his secrets safe. But with 18 others to choose from, I’ll deem it worthy of another trip in the future, to explore yet another nook in Wisconsin I’ve never really seen before.

The pond we fished was well over a mile into the forest, but worth it in the fact that we were the only ones there.

After the long hike, we hand-drilled roughly 20 holes, and it seemed that only one provided the most consistent bite, which proved to me how difficult it could be to find the fish.

There are no real tricks to fishing brook trout through the ice. Some fish were 2 or

3 feet off the bottom and some were just two feet below the ice. They measured between 7 inches, and 9- 3/4 inches, which was a perfect fit for the frying pan.

They were also, quite tasty.

I epected something new and certainly found it in the 148,000 acre, Washburn County Forest. I was fortunate enough to have someone show me the way, but if I do it alone or with a friend again, I certainly won’t forget to bring some patience. I’ll bring a good set of boots and and expect a little trial and error. If nothing else, the scenery alone, will be enough to lure me back.

Legislature moving forward with possible season on wolves Hunting/trapping season could come as soon as next fall

by Marty Seeger Leader staff writer STATEWIDE – Last Friday, Jan. 27, the gray wolf was officially removed from the federal list of endangered species in Wisconsin and parts of the western Great Lakes region. The power to manage the wolf population went immediately back to the state Department of Natural Resources, but current regulations list the wolf as protected, and the DNR can only authorize someone to “take” or kill a problem wolf, unless a change is made to the state law.

State legislators on Friday wasted no time in doing just that, by introducing the Wolf Management Act, or Assembly Bill 502. The bill, which was introduced by Rep. Scott Suder, R-Abbotsford, could allow the hunting or trapping of wolves in Wisconsin as soon as next fall.

“He’s the majority leader, so he can make things happen a little faster,” said Rep. Erik Severson, R-Osceola, whose name is also listed on the bill. He is also a member of the Assembly Natural Resources Committee, which has a scheduled hearing on AB-502, for Wednesday, Feb. 1, at the state Capitol.

Severson was confident, during a phone interview on Tuesday, Jan. 31, that an actual wolf hunting and trapping season could happen as soon as next fall. That is if they can get the bill voted out of the

committee in February to put it on the calendar in March. That could possibly set a season up for the fall.

“This should help get the deer population back, and obviously, the wolf population is back very strongly,” said Severson. He also said that the people he’s spoken to are excited for it.

“A lot of people are excited to go hunting, but I think most people are more excited about what it’s going to do about the deer population.”

Under AB-502 the DNR would be responsible for issuing wolf licenses, and both residents and nonresidents would be eligible, with the choice of either hunting or trapping from Oct. 15 through the end of February. The DNR would limit the number of permits and hunting would be limited to the zone for which the permit has been issued.

Licenses would be issued based on a preference-point system similar to applying for a bear or bobcat permit. The bill would also allow the use of bows and arrows, crossbows and the use of dogs for part of the season. Night hunting would also be allowed after the traditional nineday gun deer season. Baiting would also be legal under the bill, but only with nonanimal byproducts other than liquid scents. Trappers would also be required to use cable restraints.

For more information on AB-502, there’s a link on the Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association Web site at www.wbha.us.com, or on the Wisconsin State Legislature homepage.

In the meantime, the DNR is still planning to create the Citizen Trapper program. USDA Wildlife Services would

provide training on how to trap wolves in areas that have had wolf problems.

Landowners or farmers who have had

wolf problems in the past are being advised to talk to their local wildlife biologist for more information or permits.

Candlelight Night at two parks POLK/BURNETT COUNTY – Experience an outdoor adventure with a Candlelight Night on Saturday, Feb. 4, from 6 to 8 p.m. Enjoy a peaceful evening walk, snowshoe, or cross-country ski on the trail behind Crex Meadows Visitor Center. Challenge yourself on the trail with a scavenger hunt. Luminarias will light your way through the woods toward a marsh opening and campfire. Afterward, warm up inside with some hot chocolate and baked goods. If you do not have snowshoes and wish to try, they have a limited number available on a first-come, first-served basis. Even with little to no snow, they will still have the Candlelight Night. Experience nature firsthand outside in the winter.

Other events coming up at Crex Meadows include a snowshoe hike with a guide on Saturday, Feb. 11, at 1 p.m.

Shakers and Movers: Wolves and Their Signs will be on Saturday, Feb. 18, beginning in the classroom at 9 a.m. Saturday, March 17, is the Endowment Fund Benefit Dinner (reservations required). For more information about these and other events at Crex Meadows, call 715-4632739, visit www.crexmeadows.org, or find them on Facebook. Consider joining Friends of Crex. FOC supports these and other programs. To become involved, contact Crex Meadows.

Candlelight Night at Interstate Park Candlelight Night at the Park is on Saturday, Feb. 11, from 6- 9 p.m., at Interstate Park in St. Croix Falls.

Hundreds of candles are lit to guide skiers, snowshoers and hikers on separate trails. Ski on the Skyline CrossCountry Ski Trail, snowshoe on the Ojibwa and Homestead Snowshoe trails (snowshoes are available for use free of charge for ages 6 and up), or walk beside the St. Croix River. There will be warming fires at the trailheads, and food and refreshments will be available indoors at the Ice Age Center. Beginning at the Camp Interstate Shelter, hikers can enjoy a candlelit walk beside the St. Croix River. There will be warming fires at the trailheads, and food and refreshments available at the Ice Age Center served by the Friends of Interstate Park.

There will be hiking opportunities no matter the snow conditions.

Interstate Park is located in St. Croix Falls, on Hwy. 35 just one-half mile south of Hwy 8. The event is free of charge, but a Wisconsin state park sticker is required to enter the park. Annual passes for 2012 are $25 for Wisconsin residents or $35 for nonresidents. For more information about the event call 715-483-3747. – submitted

PAGE 22 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

Money and Politics

by Bill Lueders Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism STATEWIDE – Any candidate seeking contributions will tell you: No amount is too small to make a difference. But the more you give, individually or collectively, the more of a difference you can make. That’s why it makes sense to study contributions in search of larger patterns.

MapLight, a national nonpartisan research organization, recently launched a new feature that tracks campaign contributions by company for the U.S. Congress and two state legislatures, in California and Wisconsin.

For the Wisconsin data, go to www.maplight.org/wisconsin and click on the folder for “Companies” — a category broad enough to include interest groups like unions and professional associations. Up comes a list of the top 10 givers based on employee and political action committee contributions to successful state legislative candidates between Jan. 1, 2009 and June 30, 2011.

Leading the list is the University of Wisconsin, accounting for $120,459 in total contributions during this time. Contributors two through five are: Northwestern Mutual ($118,860), the United Association ($112,752), the National Education Association ($92,023) and Wal-Mart ($74,175).

You can click on the entity to find top recipients among current lawmakers.

The totals for United Association, a union representing plumbers, pipe fitters and associated trades, were obtained by tracking donations from the state’s seven affiliated locals.

MapLight, on request (it will run numbers for journalists for free), broke down

these contributions in terms of party affiliation. Overall, 58 percent of the donations from the top 10 contributor groups went to Democrats, and 42 percent to Republicans. The most lopsided giver was the National Education Association, which gave nearly 98 percent of its donations to Democrats.

These numbers show that, contrary to the spin favored by some partisans, neither major party dominates political giving. In last summer’s state Senate recall elections, for instance, Democrats and their supporters outspent Republicans $23.4 million to $20.5 million, according to the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign.

Of course, sometimes a person’s employer has little to do with his or her decision to donate to a campaign. Still, it’s

useful to know how much companies or groups give collectively — if only because it shows that employee donations are just part of a much larger whole.

Consider Wisconsin Energy Corp., pegged by MapLight as the sixth-highest giver to successful state legislative candidates in the 2-1/2-year period ending on June 30, 2011, with $59,010 in donations.

The Milwaukee-based utility currently has 10 registered lobbyists and has staked out positions on eight bills in the current legislative session, according to the state Governmental Accountability Board’s lobbying Web site. It reported spending $219,506 on lobbying in just the first sixth months of 2011.

And that’s just on the state level. The Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group

has released a report that names Wisconsin Energy as one of 30 Fortune 500 companies which spent more on federal lobbying in the three-year period from 2008-10 than they did on federal income taxes.

According to this report, Wisconsin Energy (the only state-based company to make this list) spent $2.5 million on lobbying over this three-year period, while getting $85 million in tax rebates; during this period, according to WISPIRG, the company made more than $1.7 billion in profits.

Barry McNulty, a spokesman for Wisconsin Energy, doesn’t dispute the claimed rebate amounts and lobbying outlays but insists there is “no connection” between the two. He says the utility lobbies mainly on issues such as energy policy, environmental matters and renewable generation and that “if tax benefits are achieved, those benefits flow back to our customers.” He adds that President Obama and Congress have enacted tax laws designed to spur new investment.

“We are in full compliance with the tax laws,” McNulty says. It’s just that the laws allow Wisconsin Energy to make $1.7 billion in profits while collecting tax rebates.

Employee giving to legislative campaigns is just one measure of the utility’s health.

Bill Lueders is the Money and Politics Project director at the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism. The project, a partnership of the center and MapLight, is supported by the Open Society Institute.

The nonprofit and nonpartisan center (www.WisconsinWatch.org) collaborates with Wisconsin Public Television, Wisconsin Public Radio, other news media and the UWMadison School of Journalism and Mass Communication. All works created, published, posted or disseminated by the center do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of UW-Madison or any of its affiliates.

Superior could be new Wisconsin boom town

by Mike Simonson Wisconsin Public Radio SUPERIOR – Two weeks of unprecedented news of jobs coming to Superior has a few heads down at City Hall spinning. In all, 1050 new jobs from three deals could be coming to Superior and Douglas County over the next three to eight years.

Kestrel Aircraft announced 600 jobs in the next four years, a week later, Exodus Machines inked a deal with Caterpillar to expand its Superior facility and manufacture heavy machinery creating 300 jobs

over the next six to eight years, and this week the iron pellet maker Magnetation named Superior as a finalist for a $300 million plant with 150 jobs. Superior Mayor Bruce Hagen is feeling the growing pains, “Yeah, we’re excited but to be honest with you, and I don’t mean to be moaning but I’m short-staffed. There are so many directions we’re going right now.

We do have a lot on the table, big and small, and we don’t want to lose any of them.” Exodus CEO Kevin Boreen grew up in Douglas County. He’s never seen

anything like it, “Absolutely, it’s been a great week. Superior becomes a community that people are actually moving into because jobs are here. It’s very exciting.”

In fact, Douglas County’s population has declined almost every decade since its peak in 1920 at almost 50,000 people.

Today, 44,000 call it their home. And Douglas County Administrator Andy Lisak likes what he sees for the future. Even though they’re competing with Minnesota, Illinois, and Indiana, Lisak believes they’ll land Magnetation Pellet,

“Some states are a little more nimble than others. In Wisconsin, we have a very good shot at landing this project because our permitting regimen, although very rigorous, is one that’s understandable and for this project, will be one that’ll be obtainable.”

Lisak says the secret in juggling all these projects at once is teamwork with government, education and the private sector.

Polk County marriages Deborah S. O’Connor, Titusville, Penn., and David J. Hemingway, Apple River, issued Jan. 23, 2012.

Rebecca J. Gehman, Rapid City, S.D., and Craig R. Ingvalson, Blooming Prairie, Minn., issued Jan. 25, 2012.

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 23

Notices

PAGE 24 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

Notices/Employment opportunities

Siren police report

Jan. 19: Michael J. McCollough, 26, Siren, was arrested

on a probation warrant.

Jan. 28: Jerome V. Frazee, 33, Frederic, was charged with possession of THC, failure to stop at stoplight and operate after suspension.

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 25

Notices/Employment opportunities Burnett County sheriff’s report Arrests and citations Jan. 25: George Holmes, 31, Danbury, was arrested on a Burnett County warrant.

Jan. 28: Jose L. Chavarria, 21, Webster, was arrested on a Burnett County warrant.

Jan. 28: Jose M. Chavarria Jr., 19, Webster, was arrested on a Burnett County warrant.

Jan. 29: Trista R. Dalberg, 33, Danbury, was arrested on a Burnett County warrant.

Other incidents Jan. 27: The owner of gravel pit in Grantsburg, Tiller Corporation, reported copper wire taken from conveyor belt machine.

Jan. 27: A neighbor to a cabin owned by Donald D. Letourneau, Willernie, Minn., reported a service door open on a garage. The owner was contacted, but no items appear to be missing from the garage.

Jan. 28: William F. Goulet, White Bear Lake, Minn., reported a 357 Smith and Wesson handgun, ammunition, microwave, outboard motor, three trolling motors, cordless drill, tackle box with tackle and two depth finders taken from his cabin.

Burnett and Polk County deaths Burnett County Iola M. Rachner, 97, Town of Meenon, died Jan. 6, 2012.

Kent J. Pletscher, 57, Town of Sand Lake, died Jan. 11, 2012.

Polk County Lila V. Nelson, 94, Luck, died Jan. 13, 2012.

PAGE 26 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

Notices/Employment opportunities Burnett County circuit court

Burnett County warrants Earlie L. George, 51, St. Paul, Minn., arrest warrant complaint, Jan. 27.

Todd M. Guider, 38, Chippewa Falls, warrant - failure to appear, Jan. 24.

Michael J. Huettl, 58, Grantsburg, arrest warrant - complaint, Jan. 26.

Gayle K. Kozak, 38, Webster, warrant - failure to appear, Jan. 25.

Stacy A. Lavin-Mejia, 39, Webster, warrant - failure to appear, Jan. 25.

Joye A. Masche, 53, Bremerton, Wash., arrest warrant - complaint, Jan. 24.

Michael C. Schouveller, 22, Pine City, Minn., warrant - failure to appear, Jan.25.

Guy L. Bernier, 34, Rice Lake, disorderly conduct, twoyear probation, 30-day jail sentence, Huber, release granted, restitution to be determined, anger management, alcohol as-

sessment at the discretion of deptartment of corrections, $200.00; bail-jumping, two-year probation, $243.00.

Kenneth L. Fritsch, 47, Mahtomedi, Minn., speeding, $200.50.

Mark C. Omer, 55, Grantsburg, operate without insurance, $127.50.

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 27

Local Special Olympians fly high Winter Games have lots of local connections

by Greg Marsten Leader staff writer BALSAM LAKE – It was a big weekend for several local special athletes, as they departed on Friday, Jan. 27, from Unity School for the Special Olympic Winter Games in Wausau.

The Olympians spent the weekend competing in cold-weather events like snowshoeing, skiing and more, while also celebrating the sheer joy of competition with their friends, families and teammates.

The opening ceremonies on Saturday included the culmination of the law enforcement torch run, held as a relay across the state from local and state law enforcement agencies, ending at the Winter Games in Wausau, where athletes from across Wisconsin competed in alpine and cross-country skiing, snowboarding and snowshoe racing.

Several of the local athletes have become a fixture at Trollhaugen Ski Area, where they often practice. Longtime volunteer coach Debbie Petzel said it helps having a ski area so accommodating and close.

“They treat us like royalty every time they ski,” she said.

Ryan Pierce competed in the giant slalom event and earned the bronze medal. He also took fourth place in the Super G. But the athletes have some pretty solid Olympic experience, with multisport athlete Ryan Pierce noting his own alpine skiing prowess.

“It’s pretty fun going down those runs,” he said with a grin while the team looked over photos of past Olympic events. “I haven’t broken a bone or fallen off a chair lift yet!”

It’s obvious the games are about fun and camaraderie, and this group is pretty close, giving each other nicknames and joking about everything from who crashes more to which football team they support.

Getting a group photo required “equal time” for two particular squads that hap-

The opening ceremony dance and mixer had a beach-party theme at a Wausau hotel and is always popular for the athletes. Pictured (L to R) are: Jarvis Warwas, Casi Anderson, Crystal Fougner and Christopher Richter. – Photos submitted unless otherwise noted pen to wear purple or green.

But the athletes and coaches are a committed group, offering support to each other, while also admitting that the events are quite entertaining.

“It’s always very exciting,” Petzel said of the games and the activities that take place around the events.

There are year-round competitions across the state, as well as national and even international games, but the local squad truly enjoys the Winter Games in Wausau, which culminates in the pomp and pageantry of opening ceremonies, medal award and a celebratory dance and mixer on Saturday.

“The dance is really a good time for everyone,” Petzel said.

There is no upper age limit for competition, and some of the athletes have become well-tuned to the pageantry of the games, and several have earned literally boxes of medals.

“I’ve been snowshoeing a long time!” stated athlete Crystal Fougner, who also competes in track, basketball and bowling in the warm months.

“Really, I think skiing is fun, no matter what,” Pierce said with a big grin, giggling over pictures of himself going down alpine runs. “Hey, I look like a pro in that one!”

Sometimes, it’s easy to forget why we play sports.

S p e c i a l Olympians depart for the Winter Games from Unity School. Pictured (L to R): Tim Eggers, Ryan Pierce, Heather Erickson, Jason Neidermire, Crystal Fougner, Jordan Warwas, Jarvis Warwas, Randy Anderson and Christopher Richter. – Photo by Greg Marsten Jordan Warwas competed at the State Winter Games in snowshoeing.

Festival Theatre presents Illusion Theater’s award-winning “My Antonia” ST. CROIX FALLS - Illusion Theater and playwright Allison Moore will bring Willa Cather’s vibrant character of Antonia to life with a regional tour of the award-winning show “My Antonia.” Festival Theatre presents this critically acclaimed production locally, funded in part by the Minnesota arts and cultural heritage fund, on Thursday and Friday, Feb. 9 and 10, in downtown St. Croix Falls. “We’re especially happy to host this touring production because our very first Big Read project which was funded by the National Endowment for the Arts was none other than ‘My Antonia,’” said Danette Olsen, director at Festival Theatre. “We truly enjoyed the experience of highlighting that novel as we considered our own immigration and sense of place stories in the St. Croix Valley.” In 1918, Willa Cather made the gutsy choice to write about the 1880s European immigrants who came here to make their American dreams come true.

They endured bitter winters and struggled to make things grow in the hardscrabble soil of the windswept Nebraska prairie. Moore’s new adaptation is told

through the memories of narrator Jim Burden, who after 20 years of living in the East returns to his small prairie town to see Antonia, the Czech immigrant girl who shaped his understanding of life. The cast features Katie Guentzel, playing Antonia for which she won an Ivey Award, as well as Dustin Bronson, Tony Brown, Delta Giordano, Aaron Preusse, Amy Schweikhardt and Molly Sue MacDonald, supported by musicians performing original music by Roberta Carlson. “My Antonia” will once again be directed by Illusion’s own producing director Michael Robins. Festival Theatre will present “My Antonia” on Thursday, Feb. 9, at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., as well as on Friday, Feb. 10, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets can be reserved by calling 715-483-3387 or online at festivaltheatre.org. This production is Flex Pass eligible as part of the 2012 Theatre Series at Festival, which includes “Man of La Mancha,” “Voice of the Prairie,” “Playing with Fire” and “It’s a Wonderful Life.” from Festival Theatre

Illusion Theater on Tour with “My Antonia” Thursday and Friday, Feb. 9 and 10 at Festival Theatre in St. Croix Falls. – Special photo

PAGE 28 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

Pennies for Patients kicks off

Patients Campaign can do so by giving their spare change or checks to elementary students, they can contact Barbara Jorgensen at Osceola Elementary by calling 715-294-3457, or they can mail their donations to Pennies for Patients, care of Barbara Jorgensen, Osceola Elementary School, 250 10th Ave. East, Osceola, WI 54020, and put Pennies for Patients in the memo.

The fundraiser runs until the end of February, and the pennies and other donations are counted at the bank during the first week of March. One total check is sent to the Pennies for Patients Campaign, a program of the National Cancer Society.

by Tammi Milberg Leader staff writer OSCEOLA– The annual Pennies for Patients leukemia fundraiser kicked off last Friday, Jan. 27, at Osceola Elementary School.

The campaign runs through the month of February and has students from the elementary school collecting pennies and any other donations for leukemia patients.

The Osceola fundraiser is headed up by second-grade teacher Barbara Jorgensen.

Her adult brother, Mark Jorgensen, lost his life to leukemia. She has taken up the cause to help run the pennies campaign because of her brother and because the cause is something she truly believes in.

The slogan for Pennies for Patients is “A Penny Can Save a Life,” and Jorgensen says it’s true. The students at Osceola Elementary raise between $2,000 and $3,000 a year, on average. Some years, they raise even more. Jorgensen says, “That’s a lot of pennies.”

The Pennies for Patients money goes directly to leukemia research and services for patients with leukemia. People wishing to donate to the Osceola Pennies for

New voting regulations in effort Beginning with the Feb. 21 spring primary election, Wisconsin’s new Voter ID Law will be in effect. Things have changed significantly since the last time you voted, and it is my hope that all the citizens of Wisconsin have access to the information they need so that everyone’s constitutional voting rights are upheld.

Here is a step-by-step account of the changes to make sure you are prepared before heading to the polls.

Voter registration: Under the new law, you can still register on Election Day. As usual, you will need to show a proof of residence. There are several documents that are accepted, including a paycheck, bank statement or utility bill within 90 days of the election. The Voter ID Law also requires that you have lived at your current address for at least 28 consecutive days. Previously, this was 10 days. Registration can also occur in person at the municipal clerk’s office until the Friday before the election.

Showing a photo ID at the polls: Before receiving a ballot, a voter will be asked to state their name, must show an acceptable photo ID, followed by signing the poll book. Photo IDs accepted include a driver’s license issued by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, a Wisconsin DOT-issued ID card, military ID card, certificate of naturalization, an ID card is-

The annual Pennies for Patients leukemia fundraiser kicked off last Friday, Jan. 27, at Osceola Elementary School. Students at Osceola Elementary raise between $2,000 and $3, 000 a year, on average, for leukemia patients. - Special photos

Nick

Milroy 73rd District Assembly sued by a federally recognized Indian tribe, a U.S. passport and an unexpired DOT-issued driving receipt or ID card receipt. Students IDs are accepted from a Wisconsin-accredited university, college or technical school. Along with the student ID, a document showing proof of enrollment must be provided. If you have a student ID, it must have the date of issuance, signature and an expiration date not later than two years after the date of issuance.

Getting a free voter ID: Wisconsin law now requires that the DOT provide free IDs to individuals who do not have one of the nine acceptable photo IDs, and the voter must be at least 18 years old on the date of the next election. To receive this voter ID card, you must request it for the purposes of voting. If you go to your local Department of Motor Vehicles and make the request, personnel must provide you with an ID as long as you have a birth certificate proving your identity.

Make sure to accommodate ample time if you need to find your birth certificate or need to obtain one.

If you do not bring an ID to your

polling place: An elector who appears to vote at a polling place and does not have statutory ID will be offered the opportunity to vote a provisional ballot. An elector who votes a provisional ballot may furnish statutory ID to the election inspectors before the polls close or to the municipal clerk no later than 4 p.m. on the Friday following the election.

Absentee voting: As of Jan. 1, a valid photo ID must be provided when voting by absentee ballot, unless you are part of a group exempted by statute or allowed to satisfy the requirement by other means. However, once photo ID is provided, the voter no longer has to provide this proof on subsequent absentee ballots, until they reregister (due to name or address changes).

Wisconsin’s new Voter ID Law, which the National Conference of State Legislatures cites as one of the most strict in the nation, will have an impact on all citizens of voting age in our state. I am strongly opposed to this policy, because I believe that many Wisconsinites will be disenfranchised on Election Day. Already we are hearing stories from people around the state about their negative experiences with this new law and how it cripples their ability to vote.

Eighty-four-year-old Ruthelle Frank may have to pay as much as $200 to get a new birth certificate due to a mistake on her certificate at the time of her birth. No one should have to pay any sum of money to exercise their American right to

vote.

While Republicans argue that this law is intended to fight fraud in our elections, no significant proof of any such fraud has been brought forward. Instead, countless numbers of elderly voters, young voters, students, minorities and low-income voters are being disenfranchised and prevented from exercising their constitutional right to engage in the democratic process.

Despite my objections to Voter ID, it is unfortunately now law. The thing we must do at the present time is to make sure that we, as a society, are well-informed and prepared to meet this new burden to exercise our right to vote on Election Day. Your best resource is the clerk of your municipality or county. If you need assistance in determining who that individual is, feel free to contact my office by e-mailing me at Rep.Milroy@legis.wi.gov or by calling 608-266-0640 or 888-534-0073 (Note: Toll-free number will only work if using a Wisconsin-based phone line).

The Government Accountability Board has also set up a Web site to answer questions about the new law. Please visit bringit.wisconsin.gov/ or gab.wi.gov/elections-voting/photo-id.

You may also call 1-866-VOTE-WIS or contact the GAB Help Desk at 608-2612028 or toll-free at 800-947-3529.

Somerset man arrested for OWI with children in vehicle POLK COUNTY - Trevor M. McKusick, 36, Somerset, has been arrested by the Wisconsin State Patrol Spooner Post for operating a motor vehicle under the influence, first offense, with two children in the vehicle.

On Monday, Jan. 30, at approximately

7:33 p.m., a Wisconsin State Patrol Trooper stopped McKusick for speeding in Polk County. Upon approach, the trooper detected the odor of intoxicants coming from the vehicle.

Following field sobriety testing, the trooper arrested McKusick for operating a

motor vehicle while under the influence.

At the time of the arrest, there were three passengers in the vehicle. There was one adult passenger who had also been drinking. The other two passengers were children, ages 9 and 10.

McKusick was charged with criminal

OWI and incarcerated at the Polk County Jail.

“A charge is merely an accusation,” noted a press release from the state patrol.

- from the Wisconsin State Patrol

WED., FEB. 1, 2012 • INTER-COUNTY LEADER NORTHERN CURRENTS • SECTION B

Currents

THE-LEADER.NET

Balsam Lake Smart Growth Committee presents plans

by Greg Marsten Leader staff writer BALSAM LAKE – Once touted as a premier destination resort town, Balsam Lake has fallen on less bountiful times in recent decades.

Exploding lake property values mean the old fashioned weekend resorts are a thing of the past, while home and cabin foreclosures, business bankruptcies and other economic changes have impacted how the village prospered, both downtown and across town.

That changing landscape led to the Balsam Lake Village Board taking a unique approach to address those changes, based largely on a broad survey of residents and business owners in the fall of 2010. That survey was initiated by the Balsam Lake Chamber of Commerce and showed not only that the concerns were real and shared, but also that for the most part, they were very addressable.

And they realized they had to move fast.

BLSGC formed

The village board formed a special subcommittee to address that survey and created a strategy to prosper again. Called the Balsam Lake Smart Growth Committee, it was meant to create a unique action plan, with assistance from the players involved, such as the chamber, local businesspeople, elected officials, residents and others.

"It was meant to see how we got here," stated Trustee and BLSGC Chair Jeff Reed.

"It was a big cross section of the community."

The results of their efforts were revealed at a presentation as part of a special village board meeting last Wednesday, Jan. 25.

They began the presentation with a viewing of a short feature program on sustainable development, produced by noted urban planner, author and lecturer Ed McMahon. The focus of that feature became a theme of sorts for the BLSGC.

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Believing in Balsam "It's about creating a sense of community, a sense of place."

- Jeff Reed

New signage is evident as you enter the village of Balsam Lake from the south. - Photos by Greg Marsten "It's about creating a sense of community, a sense of place," Reed said. "We saw a lot of recurring themes."

The action plan focused on those concerns with needs, deficiencies, dreams and the plans necessary to address those concerns, with the harsh realization that there is hard work ahead.

"It's a huge step forward," stated committee member and Polk County Economic Development Corporation Director Steve Healy. "This is a huge step forward for Balsam Lake."

Partnering for a goal

Some of those recurring themes or deficiencies led to a BLSGC mission statement for their action plan. That statement focuses on promotion and expansion of economic and social development of the Balsam Lake area, while also working in an advisory capacity for future developments, and partnering with organizations to reach that goal.

"That's the essence of what the commit-

Residents, business leaders and others weighed in on the action plan.

tee has been working toward," Reed said.

The committee used three extensive planning meetings. Led by UW-Extension agent Robert Kazmierski, they developed an extensive outline of goals, issues and ways to address those deficiencies, and that result has so far earned high marks from the people it affects.

"Another common theme was trying to make Balsam Lake a destination," Reed said.

But one general requirement of a destination is lacking and was tops on the list of needs.

The overnight stay

Almost unanimously, the BLSGC agreed

Plans for the new "pocket park" downtown were revealed.

that the most common deficiency in Balsam Lake was a real lack of short-term lodging. As mentioned earlier, the changing landscape on resorts combined with the current lack of any operating motels means visitors, tourists and others need to go pretty far outside Balsam Lake to stay overnight.

Several residents and business owners noted that lack of lodging, and how it can adversely affect an event, such as a wedding at a local church, that may lead to a reception at Paradise Supper Club or another local venue, and could have several hundred visitors to the area. While it may create great retail opportunity, it all changes when those attendees have to leave the area to sleep.

The BLSGC plan also mentions expanded camping as part of the answer and noted interest to focus more on local camping opportunities, either at Pine Park or other spots.

But the top issue dealt with addressing the lodging issue.

Reed said they are conducting a market analysis for a new hotel/motel and will solicit at least five possible investors by the end of 2012.

See Betting on Balsam, page 2

PAGE 2 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

Betting on Balsam/from page 1 "We found the need [for lodging expansion] was a common theme," Reed said.

After all, if you reach a destination, there's a good chance you might want to stay a while.

Main Street's future

The second most common concern the BLSGC plan raised had to do with business vacancies on Main Street, a trend that has seen a slow reversal.

"We've had vacant buildings and the lack of a grocery store," Reed noted. "How do we rehabilitate existing structures? We thought this was really key."

Reed said the committee is developing a downtown revitalization plan that will include a marketing kit for the village, and is meant to dovetail with recent chamber work with the owners of several vacant buildings, which chamber president Chris Nelson hopes will lead to several prominent rehabilitation projects in the near future.

The village is also working to enhance local signage to promote local businesses and existing amenities.

They have also refurbished "welcome" signage, and are working to create a so-called "pocket park" at the corner of CTH I and Main Street/Hwy. 46.

Preliminary sketches of the park were revealed for the first time at the presentation, showing a brick-lined corner sitting area, with a half-moon bench and more.

"It's about making a welcoming entrance area," Reed said.

This is where the new "pocket park" will be built this spring.

Don't forget the legs

The BLSGC also looked into the future a bit further with plans for extensive trails and bike paths, focusing on making the village more pedestrian-friendly, beginning with a walking trail from the millpond to Hwy. 46 downtown, and eventually extending the other way, as well.

"Balsam Lake is a pretty unique community," Reed said.

"We want people to take advantage of that."

The BLSGC is hoping they can secure grants to make the trails happen, possibly combining with recent plans to expand the millpond culvert on CTH I, allowing larger boats into the pond, with a trail above.

The pocket park is among the first things to be implemented and is planned for this spring. Several utility line details have already been addressed in preparation.

The Balsam Lake brand

The other primary goal of the BLSGC was economic development and "branding" of the village, which Healy endorsed fully, calling a "rifle shot approach" over "a shotgun approach."

"I can't stress enough the importance of branding," Healy said. "You want people to be reminded of Balsam Lake."

Healy also suggested using the Main Street program for downtown enhancements, and said the committee and the chamber will continue to work to retain or even help expand existing businesses, while also working on industrial recruitment and a "buy local" campaign.

"It will show a uniformity throughout the village," Reed said of the proposed signage and gateway. "In a very professional way."

The wish list

Other issues and concerns are also on the wish list, from addressing youth activities to businesses the village is

One of the major survey concerns was a lack of lodging, an issue that is even worse now with the closure of the Balsam Lake Motel. village inviting, both to tourists and businesses - potential and existing.

"This is a good start," stated Trustee Mike Voltz, who addressed his own frustration with industrial park vacancies. "We need to bring these people into Main Street."

Vacant businesses downtown are one of the primary concerns for the village, one they are hoping can be addressed with their action plan. - Photos by Greg Marsten

"We all believe in this town. The need is there and the time is now."

- Caroline Rediske

lacking, such as an ice-cream shop, more camping, bakery, coffee shop, grocery store and more, including and idea for a sort of "gateway" area between the lake an the village, possibly linking the lake with downtown even further.

Reed said one of the early realizations of the BLSGC was to assign tasks and give people some ownership in portions of the project, in an on-going manner.

"This [action plan] is a working, evolving document," Reed said. "The village board may change, but this needs to move forward."

Reed and others noted the importance of keeping the

Believing in Balsam

While the presentation was officially just that, it did require approval by the full board of trustees to move ahead.

That proved to be an easy sell, as several trustees praised the BLSGC's work and action plan, while also throwing their own weight behind the commitment.

"We all believe in this town," Trustee Caroline Rediske said. "The need is there and the time is now."

Chamber President Chris Nelson noted that they are growing and that the interest, concerns and support of the trustees is essential to make it reality.

"The chamber is really growing strong, but we hear what people don't like all the time," he said to the board on the action plan. "We'll stand together now, and we need you guys to support this plan and work for it."

The board of trustees unanimously endorsed the plan, and with that approval, officially began the implementation.

"It's been a fun project, and we've got a really good start," Healy said.

But with the presentation, Reed noted that the village "will always be special," in ways that are hard to define but essential to its character.

"People don't want to change the quaint mystique of Balsam Lake," Reed said. "It's about how we keep it charming ... keeping our small-town appeal."

The committee is hoping to make Balsam Lake a noted destination once again.

Taking advantage of the existing surroundings and charming nature of the village were deemed essential to success.

The giant trees in Pine Park are an example of that charm.

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 3

“Jack and the Beanstalk” auditions scheduled

GRANTSBURG – Auditions for Prairie Fire Children’s Theatre’s original musical production of “Jack and the Beanstalk” will be held on Monday, Feb. 6, at 3:30 – 5 p.m., at the Grantsburg High School Auditorium in Grantsburg.

Up to 70 local young people (and adults if applicable) are needed to play the roles of Jack, his fellow villagers, the carnival performers, the people of Orchestrania, the inhabitants of Featherville and the trolls.

Two professional actor/directors from the Prairie Fire staff will direct the production and play the roles of the Giant and the storyteller.

Auditions are open to age 7 through 95.

The audition process lasts up to two hours and all auditioners are required to be in attendance the complete time.

No preparation is necessary to audition. A portion of the cast will be required to stay following auditions for a short rehearsal. Rehearsals will be held from 3:30 to 8 p.m. the remainder of the week, with performances scheduled for Friday, Feb. 10, 7 p.m., and Saturday, Feb. 11, 2 p.m.

This weeklong Prairie Fire Children’s Theatre residency is being sponsored by Grantsburg Community Education.

For more information, contact community education at 715-463-5165, Ext. 160. - submitted

I was watching a show about

Letters from

prairie dogs. I learned that prairie dogs live in close-knit coteries and apparently, when prairie dogs from different coteries meet, they “stare at each Carrie Classon other, chatter their teeth, and flare their tails.” They build elaborate prairie dog towns on the best part of the prairie until there are so many prairie dogs that they devour all the grass and are eaten by coyotes, bobcats, and badgers.

This is exactly what is happening to my friend, Lanni, in Paris.

Lanni has moved to Paris, where the residents also live in coteries and chatter their teeth. Living in Paris sounds very glamorous until you realize how crowded Paris is. Paris is such a popular place to live that you have to spend half your salary to rent an apartment the size of a walk-in closet. Lanni has one month to find a home. She has lowered her expectations of size, and raised her expectations of cost, but she has still been outbid for apartments at the last moment. She is getting discouraged— and fearful of the coyotes waiting at the end of the month.

Home is an important idea.

Twice I suddenly found myself without a home while I lived in Africa, and neither time was very nice. I was never literally out on the street, but the insecurity of not having a place to call my own was unnerving. It made me wonder about home and what it means.

While living abroad, I listened to people switch between saying “home,” and meaning the country they came from, and “home” meaning the place where they were now living. Sometimes they talked about “going home” to somewhere and then coming “back home,” which was confusing.

Home

I have a friend who has no home by choice. She volunteers around the world and stays wherever she is working. I asked her where her home was and she said it was either in her tent or on her bicycle. I like to bike, but I think I would have a hard time calling the seat of a bicycle home. I also know people who live in their RV or sailboat, which I have an easier time imagining as a home. (I think a home should have something more comfortable to sit on than a bicycle seat.)

For the first time in our just-over-two-year relationship, I have a place to work and a place to keep things at Daniel’s house. After cleaning out his spare room, Daniel moved my new little desk into it, facing the window. He put up a pretty new light fixture with a dimmer switch (knowing I am fussy about light) and put a bamboo plant on my desk. He even bought me a comfortable chair with a seat like a tractor. Now, when I sit down to write, I feel like I am plowing up the back forty.

I like this little room with no clutter and the bamboo plant to keep me company. When I visit Daniel’s home, I now feel as if I am ... home.

I am hoping Lanni finds her place soon too. Because — whether it is a farmhouse, a sailboat, a small room with a bamboo plant, or a bicycle seat — finding a place where we are secure is important. Home is where we recharge and relax. Home is the place where we can be fully ourselves, safe from the coyotes.

Lanni tells me that she has put another offer on an apartment. She is chattering her teeth and waiting for word.

Till next time, —Carrie

Active students equal academic success 29 percent of Burnett County adults are obese BURNETT COUNTY - During the school year, students spend the majority of their day at school. This is a prime opportunity for students to get their recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity. Children who are regularly active have higher self-esteem, a better overall quality of life, are more likely to maintain or achieve a healthy weight, and are less likely to develop illnesses such as type 2 diabetes, cancers and other chronic diseases. Physical activity can also help improve students’ concentration, memory and classroom behavior. Higher physical fitness test achievement is also related to higher state academic test scores, higher attendance and overall school quality. In short, an active school equals academic success.

According to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, more than 25 percent of Wisconsin’s high school students are overweight or obese. Researchers warn that

if childhood obesity continues to rise, children today are likely to live shorter lives than their parents, as noted in the New England Journal of Medicine. According to the 2011 county health rankings, 29 percent of Burnett County adults are obese. This trend may continue if our youth do not get the recommended amount of daily physical activity.

According to information published by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction in 2007, fewer than half of elementary and middle schools in Wisconsin are incorporating effective strategies to increase student physical activity levels, e.g., active recess – structured-activities opportunities for students during recess; active classrooms - giving students opportunities to be active during or between learning; as well as other types of physical activity opportunities in and outside of the physical education class. More than half of Wisconsin students fail to meet daily physical activity recommendations according to the CDC. Schools and communities around the state are piloting Active Schools strategies like those mentioned above to increase options for physical activity in schools and be-

fore- and after-school programs. Burnett County schools, with the help and input of parents and the community, could work together to create sustainable strategies for physical activity opportunities in and around the school day. A collaborative approach is a win-win for everyone.

Parents can also take an active role outside of the school days in helping their child be physically active during the week, on weekends and during school breaks. Families can do fun activities together such as walking, biking, swimming and playing ball, as well as looking for other physical activity opportunities for families in their communities.

If you want to learn more about Active Schools, resources may be found at www.healthinpractice.org. Also, if you are interested in learning about what you can do to make a difference in the health, nutrition and well-being of Burnett County residents, contact Sarah Miller, RD CD CLC CLS, Burnett County Nutrition Coalition coordinator through the Burnett County Department of Health and Human Services at 715-349-7600, Ext. 1265. - from Burnett County Health Department

Birkebeiner ski race seeks volunteers

CABLE – In just over two weeks, Saturday, Feb. 25, the Olympics will come to Wisconsin in the form of the American Birkebeiner Ski Marathon, the largest ski race in the United States, Feb. 25.

Celebrating 39 years of bringing skiers from all over the world to ski 52 kilometers from Cable to Hayward, the Birkie offers a unique opportunity to see Olympicclass athletes competing in this area. Many Olympic athletes and members of international skiing teams travel to Northwest Wisconsin to ski the Birkie in non-Olympic years.

On standby Unless an emergency occurs,

Cold Turkey

most surgeries are scheduled as elective procedures. My recent back surgery was not an emerJohn W. Ingalls gency and so with some forethought we arranged a time for the procedure. Taking into account location, travel, work schedules and several other factors we were able to arrange a Friday morning appointment that would satisfy most needs quite well.

This allowed us to get to the surgery center without too much disruption and inconvenience.

I am a believer in law and order, unfortunately it was Murphy’s law that prevailed. Unexpected snow and slippery roads delayed our arrival but this was of little consequence. Following the barrage of questions, medical, legal and otherwise, I was escorted to a small room off of a hallway. The busy hallway was occupied by health care personnel and building contractors intent on their tasks. That particular section of the building was undergoing a surgical revision of its own.

The appointed time of whittling came and went, 11 a.m. became noon and then later. Sitting in a cubicle donned with a flattering gown designed by none other than Dr. Seymour Butts wasn’t the worst. My greatest distress was the growling in my stomach as no food, water or coffee was allowed since the day be-

Over 9,400 skiers are registered to take part in Birkebeiner events that are held around the Hayward area Feb. 23-25.

Two thousand volunteers are needed each year to provide liquids and on-course nutrition to the skiers during the race. There are nine food stations on the race route, spaced over the 52 kilometers, and race organizers are in need of volunteers every year to provide this support.

This can be used as a community service project for most students. Volunteers receive a Birkie swag, lunch, a volunteer party invitation and a chance to win door prizes.

fore. I reclined on my cot listening to the nurses and contactors discussing their lunches.

The only reading material in my allotted niche was a magazine, the previous Thanksgiving MD edition of Good Housekeeping.

Page after page was carefully arranged with photos of roast turkeys, sautéed vegetables and delightful recipes for “pumpkin mousse parfait.” The gurgling in my stomach began to rival the construction sounds down the hallway.

After an hour and a half, my surgeon entered the cubicle of confinement. It seemed that another surgeon in the next surgery suite was about an hour into a four-hour operation of reversing someone’s old vasectomy and the microscope broke. The only reasonable remedy was to transfer the back surgeon’s microscope and delay the next scheduled back surgery (mine). I got to review Thanksgiving recipes while some poor soul got his privates examined by a microscope for another 3 hours. In my mind, going without food was trivial in comparison.

As a gesture of kindness, the doctor “offered” me a free vasectomy or vasectomy reversal depending on my current condition. I declined the generous offer. I came for the back surgery and I decided to follow through on my original menu selection. One of the nurses, concerned about my state of mind, stopped by

If you would like to be part of this rich history of the American Birkebeiner Ski Marathon and would consider helping for a few hours on Saturday, Feb. 25, call local Birkebeiner race chief William Johnson at 715-327-4158 for more information.

Every year there are skiers from almost all 50 states and as many as 20 countries competing at the Birkie. This is a chance to show off the best of our country to the world.

For more information on the race and its unique place in Wisconsin history visit www.birkie.com. - submitted

to encourage me. We shared recipe ideas. I had learned how to get lumps out of gravy and she shared her special salsa recipe. It was a nice visit.

News got around about the lone remaining patient imprisoned in room four. I was awarded a gift certificate to Dairy Queen. Unfortunately I would have to wait until after my surgery to redeem it. I looked forward to using it but still pitied the poor soul still under the scope.

I survived the surgery in good fashion and even made it to the drive-up window at Dairy Queen before closing on a below-zero night. I sipped on a thick, cool vanilla shake that soothed my sore, dry throat yet my hungry stomach longed for something more. My beloved wife, who had also delayed her evening meal, drove while munching on a hamburger. It smelled so good. In her kindness she decided to share. The first bite was delicious. I rested the remaining part of the burger on my lap and clumsily reached for the shake.

The hamburger tumbled onto the floor where it remained unreachable and uneatable but still able to release warm, teasing food smells in my direction.

Life throws us curveballs sometimes and there really isn’t much we can do about it other than find the hidden joy in it. Without a doubt everyone who was involved in my care, both up front and behind the scenes, knows how to fly first class. Some days I am just relegated to fly standby.

PAGE 4 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

If you didn’t know what time of the year it was, or what the weather was like, you could tell simply by eavesdropping at the philosophy counter of the Mule Barn coffee shop.

“Good to see you here, Doc,” said Herb Collins. “That warm water on the battery trick work for you?”

“Thanks, Herb. Yep. I tried it this morning. What’s that you got there?”

“Travel thingie. You know it’s more than 80 degrees in Guatemala … right now?”

“Saw a deal on TV,” Dud said.

“They’re waterskiing in Florida. You can go fishing down there all year-round.”

Love at first sight

by Tammy Berg Program assistant, Interfaith Caregivers

It was love at first sight … and maybe second sight, too. Annie and Denny were sweethearts in high school. They went to the junior prom together in 1958. But after graduation, they both went their own way. Each of them married someone else.

Then, 42 years later, when they were both single again, they got reacquainted at a funeral. Denny shared his hanky with Annie as they grieved the loss of one of their friends. But this sad event turned out to be a milestone of sorts in their lives. Getting to know each other again kindled that old spark that they had in high school. They began dating again. Two years later, they married each other. They even used their 1958 prom photo on their wedding invitations.

Now, Denny and Annie are happily

Home

Country Slim Randles “You going to Guatemala, Herb?” said Doc. “Maybe. Been thinking about it. I don’t know much Spanish, though.”

“All you need to know,” said Dud, “is ‘Hace mucho calor,’ Herb.”

“What’s that mean?”

“Sure is hot!”

Interfaith Caregivers of

Polk County

AmeriCorps member married. They are both very active volunteers with Interfaith Caregivers. Not only do they share their hearts with each other, but they share their hearts with their Polk County neighbors.

Denny is a handy guy that likes to help with minor repairs and yard work.

He spends time most weeks giving rides and running errands. Annie also enjoys giving local rides. But she also likes to sit with folks whose 24/7 caretaker needs a break. She also offers her services as a housekeeper and does some meal preparation.

We have lots of caring volunteers like Denny and Annie who share their hearts with seniors and adults with disabilities in Polk County. Just like you, they are regular people with a strong desire to help those in need.

Requests for our services are growing

“I was just thinking yesterday,” said Doc, “of the unsung beauty of sweat.

You know, we take sweat for granted in summer. Heck, we even dislike it and go swimming to wash it off.”

“That’s a fact,” Dud said.

“But I think it would be kinda fun to sweat right now. You know, just sit in a hot sun and bask like an old lizard and sip iced tea …” “… and wear dark glasses,” said Herb. “ … and watch girls in bikinis,” said Dud. They looked at him.

“Around here?”

“Well, no. I mean, Guatemala or Florida, you know.”

“Yeah,” said Herb. “Guatemala.”

About that time Loretta came up.

“You boys want your coffees topped off, or should I just turn the hose on you?”

They shoved their cups forward and grinned.

“Sale on snow shovels down at the hardware store,” said Doc. “Heard that,” said Dud. ••• Brought to you by Slim’s award-winning book “A Cowboy’s Guide to Growing Up Right.” Learn more at www.nmsantos.com/Slim/Slim.html.

fast. In 2011, Interfaith Caregivers served 482 clients. Now more than ever, we need your help. So get involved in your community by using your time and talents as an Interfaith Caregivers volunteer. Apply as a couple, like Denny and Annie. Talk to your best friend about volunteering together. Or maybe this is something you’d like to do just for yourself.

February is National Heart Health Month. Do something good for your heart and for others. Choose a local nonprofit and volunteer your time. At Interfaith Caregivers, we can always find a way to put you to work.

If you are unsure about how you can share your heart, ask yourself these questions. Are you a good driver that enjoys spending time with seniors or disabled adults? Do you enjoy visiting and sharing stories with others? Do you have a knack for housekeeping, minor repairs or personal bookkeeping? Are you someone who likes to make calls to check up on others? Do you have skills that could help us in the office? How

about a desire to be a member of a board of directors? If you say yes to any of these, your interests and skills can most likely be used at Interfaith Caregivers.

Would you rather volunteer with a different client group? Check into Kinship to mentor a child or teen. Contact Wild River Habitat for Humanity if you want to help build a home for a family in need. The Salvation Army Serenity Home and the CRA can always use a helping hand. Whatever it is you enjoy doing, there is a nonprofit that can use your skills. And don’t forget about our counterpart, Burnett County Interfaith.

If you live in Burnett County, contact Barb Blodgett at 715-866-4970 for services or to volunteer.

For more information about volunteer opportunities contact Interfaith Caregivers at 715-485-9500. If you have more money than time, send a donation to PO Box 426, Balsam Lake, WI 54810. If you or someone you know needs help with rides, visits or chores call us now.

Larsen Family Public Library Friends of the Library

Second Saturday used book sale is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 11, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., in our Nexen Community Room. Your Valentine deserves some good books.

Forts Folle Avoine

The Burnett County Historical Society has a history research library at Forts Folle Avoine north of Webster and south of Danbury. It is open to the public on Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Information in the history research collection includes newspapers, photographs, maps, microfilm, cemetery records, homestead records, scrapbooks, interviews and census records. We have a list at our library of the books and reference materials housed in their research collection. They are also in need of volunteers to assist in various capacities at the historical society. For more information call 715-8668890.

Congratulations

Congratulations to our library board president, Laura Rachford, who has been appointed by the Burnett County Board to represent our county on the Northern Waters Library Service Board of Directors.

Northern Waters Library Service

Northern Waters Library Service is our regional public library system whose services include: • ensuring that residents have access to public library service

News from Bone Lake Town Board At the recent Town of Bone Lake Board meeting, Thursday, Jan. 12, the board voted to move forward with the process of building a properly permitted dam on the Straight River in Section 34. The vote was years in the making as the board gathered information and cost estimates, contacted all known property owners on the impoundment to determine their willingness to sign an easement, held two straw votes (one of property owners only and one of the town electorate only) and hired legal counsel to address an ethics complaint and determine the rights of the board to vote on the issue. The Wisconsin DNR has thankfully been patient and allowed the town the time to get through the

• promoting and coordinating resource sharing among libraries • providing technical and financial support to improve the quality of public library service • providing training and continuing education for library staff • coordinating cooperative library technology.

Book clubs

On Tuesday, Feb. 28, at 10 a.m., the book club will discuss “Fall to Grace” by Kerry Casey. “Two 13year-old boys whose fathers die suddenly on the same day experience friendship, self-awakening and renewal as they journey into adulthood.” The Mystery Book Club will be reading “Daughter of Time” by Josephine Tey. The first meeting of 2012 will be Monday, March 12, at 10 a.m. “Josephine Tey recreates one of history’s most famous, and vicious, crimes in her classic bestselling novel. The ‘Daughter of Time’ is an ingeniously plotted, beautifully written and suspenseful tale, a supreme achievement from one of mystery writing’s most gifted masters.”

Movie nights

We are interested in starting movie nights for young people and children. If anyone is interested with helping with this idea, please contact Patti at the library, 715-866-7697.

Meeting room

We now have a projector, screen and speaker system in our meeting room. The public is welcome to use these items. The National Honor Society from

process. Over the past few years, this has been a divisive topic for the town, however, now that the decision has been made the board is looking forward to a unified effort from all to ensure the structure built is cost effective and continues to provide for everyone’s enjoyment of the Straight River.

The town board also voted to adopt their new road sign maintenance plan as required by the state of Wisconsin.

The plan takes effect immediately.

Doug Route reported that the Polk County Citizen Advisory Committee on Land Use Rewrite continues to work on the many shoreland zoning issues.

An audit of the clerk and treasurer’s records was completed by the town board and found correct.

The next town board meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 9, at 7 p.m., at the Bone Lake Lutheran Church. - submitted by Darrell Frandsen, town clerk

Webster watched “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” last week.

Family Resource Center

Charlotte Heidel is starting an early literacy group for infants to 2 years old. The first meeting will be at the Burnett County Family Resource Center in Siren on Monday, Jan. 2, somewhere between 10 and 10:30 a.m. The address is 24062 Hwy. 35/70 in Siren. The phone number there is 715-349-2922.

Everyone is welcome, and please call the library if you have any questions about this new, exciting program.

Preschool story time

We meet every Wednesday all year long at 10:30 a.m. for stories, companionship and fun.

New adult books

• “Believing the Lie,” by Elizabeth George • “Hidden Summit,” by Robyn Carr • “The Merchant’s Daughter,” by Melanie Dickerson • “Rope,” by Nevada Barr • “Shut Your Eyes Tight,” by John Verdon • “Think of a Number,” by John Verdon • “Sleepwalker,” by Karen Robards • “77 Shadow Street,” by Dean Koontz • “D.C. Dead,” by Stuart Woods • “Clash of Kings,” by George R. R. Martin • “Dance with Dragons,” by George R. R. Martin • “Feast for Crows,” by George R. R. Martin • “Game of Thorns,” by George R. R. Martin • “Storm of Swords,” by George R. R. Martin • “Taken,” by Robert Crais

Adult nonfiction

• “Making It: Radical Home Ec for a Post-Consumer World,” by Kelly Coyne • “Dogs in the Hot Moon: T.J. Sheehan and the Great Sioux Uprising of 1862,” by Michael Sheehan

Children’s books

• “Suppose You Met a Dinosaur,” by Judy Sierra • “I’m Fast,” by Jim McMullan • “Little Dog Lost,” by Monica Carnesi • “One Cool Friend,” by Toni Buzzeo •”Crocodile Tears,” by Alex Beard • “In Your Dreams,” by Lesie Jonath (Board Book) • “The Napping House,” by Don Wood (Board Book) • “Only in Dreams,” by Paul Frank (Board Book) • “A Bed of your Own,” by Mij Kelly • “Puss In Boots: The Cat. The Boots. The Legend,” by Tina Gallo • “My First Spanish Phrases,” by Jill Kalz •”Staying Safe Online,” by Sally Lee • “Just Because You’re Mine,” by Sally LloydJones • “Peek-a-boo Penguins,” by Ruth Owen: “Colors and Shapes,” “Numbers and Counting,” “Ready for Reading,” “Sounds and Letters”

Young adult books

• “Thirst No. 2,” by Christopher Pike • “Fallen in Love,” by Lauren Kate

DVDs

• “The Puzzling Pyramids of Mexico,” (Ancient Civilizations Series)

Large-print books

• “Murder by Mocha,” by Cleo Coyle • “Hard Knocks,” by Howie Carr • “Operation Napoleon,” by Arnaldur Indridason • “Cell 8,” by Anders Roslund

Hours and information

Monday-Thursday 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.; Friday 9 a.m.

– 5 p.m.; Saturday 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. For more information contact the library at 715-866-7697, Web site: webster.wislib.org. Online catalog: merlin.nwls.lib.wi.us/search.

Transition Resource Fair for area youth and their families to be held in Osceola

OSCEOLA — The Osceola High School Special Services Department is sponsoring a free Transition Resource Fair for area high school and middle school students in special education, their parents and the professionals who work with them. Agencies will be on hand to talk about the services they offer for youth who will be transitioning from high school into the

adult world.

This event is open to families from all school districts in the area and will be held on Monday, Feb. 6, from 6-8 p.m., at the Osceola High School.

For more information please contact Deb Ramacher, CESA 11 parent liaison, at 715-246-4778. — submitted

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 5

Do you remember?

Behind the

Compiled by Sue Renno

Signpost

50 Years Ago

Bernice Abrahamzon

Thank you, Bernice - from your friends at the Leader

Siren spelling bee fi fin nalists and winners Pictured are Siren’s 2012 spelling bee finalists from secondthrough eighth-grade.

The winner, Emily Stiemann, will be going on to the regional bee in Turtle Lake Saturday, Feb. 22. The finalists were second grade: Skyler Strenke and Macy Tollander; third grade: Ruben Juarez and Jaslin Kegel; fourth grade: Asia Belisle and Cordell Fischer; fifth grade: Robert Jarrell and Alayna Johnson; sixth grade: Abby Kosloski and Ben Lemieux; seventh grade: Henry Taylor and Dawson Gast and eighth grade: Maggie O’Malley and Emily Stiemann. – Photo submitted

SCRMC nurse anesthetists mark 150 years of providing quality and excellence in anesthesia care

NATIONWIDE - Established by the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists, National Nurse Anesthetists Week was created to help the general public understand more about anesthesia safety, to talk about the questions to ask prior to undergoing surgery, the benefits of receiving anesthesia care from nurse anesthetists and to explain the role of CRNAs. The theme of this year’s campaign emphasizes the high standards to which certified registered nurse anesthetists adhere when administering anesthesia.

“One of the many rewards of being a nurse anesthetist is being able to provide patients with the comfort of knowing that I will be by their side, monitoring their vital signs and adjusting their anesthetics to ensure a pain-free and safe anesthesia experience,” said St. Croix Regional Medical Center’s Brad Byker, CRNA. Nurse anesthetists are advanced-practice registered nurses who administer approximately 32 million anesthetics in the United States each year. Working in every

setting where anesthesia is available, CRNAs are the sole anesthesia professionals in the vast majority of rural hospitals, and they have been the main provider of anesthesia care to U.S. service personnel on the front lines since World War I. “I take pride in belonging to a profession that has been at the forefront of anesthesia patient safety for 150 years,” said Byker, “and thanks to continuing research and education, anesthesia is nearly 50 times safer today than it was just 20 to 30 years ago.”

In recognition of their profession’s long history and enduring record of patient safety, certified registered nurse anesthetists at SCRMC and across the country are celebrating the 13th-annual National Nurse Anesthetists Week, Jan. 22-28, with this year’s theme of Quality and Excellence in Anesthesia Care.

To learn more about National Nurse Anesthetists Week or the AANA, visit www.aana.com. - from SCRMC

Frederic alumni homecoming dance kickoff planning meeting set FREDERIC - A homecoming dance for all Frederic alumni is being planned for Saturday, Oct. 20, at Hacker’s Lanes in Frederic. This event will be a fundraiser for the Frederic Schools music department.

There will be a kickoff planning meeting Thursday, Feb. 16, at 6:30 p.m. at Hacker’s Lanes. Anyone interested in helping with plans is invited to attend.

The homecoming dance will include a Frederic alumni band coordinated by Steve Wilson of Pine City, Minn.

Music styles will include music from the past decades as well as some rock ‘n’ roll. The goal is to appeal to all

ages.

All classes will be invited to join in the fun for a mass reunion. If your class is considering a 2012 reunion, perhaps you’ll want to set it around this fun event that will benefit the music department.

Core committee members include Greg Heine, choral director of Frederic Schools, Steve Wilson and Sandy Lundquist. For more information contact Sandy at 715472-4114 days or 715-327-8502 evenings. Please leave a message. - submitted

St. Dominic’s Church was negotiating to purchase four homes and two empty lots on Birch Street and Wisconsin Avenue for space to build their new church building and rectory.–Pete and Esther Frandsen of Bone Lake celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with friends and relatives at the home of their son Forrest.–Elmer Huser purchased the Lewis Hotel and Tavern from Lillian Nelson.–Frederic schools reported 137 students absent on Jan. 29; a flu epidemic had closed many area schools and measles had also broken out at Indian Creek School.–The Girl Scouts were having a paper drive. “Every piece of paper puts a Girl Scout a little closer to their international home, Our Cabana, in Mexico.”–Frederic eighth-grader Judy Sederlund won the Polk County Soil Conservation speaking contest and would compete at Spooner in February.–Professional wrestler Karl Schober was in the area, visiting his father at Round Lake, west of Frederic and set to wrestle in St. Paul, Minn., and Fargo, N.D.–There were pictures from two recent weddings: Muriel Peterson, Frederic, married David Skoug, Chetek, and Patricia Coen, Luck, married Henry Amundsen, Minneapolis.–Engagement announcements included Bonita Valley to John Rohl, Judy Marek to Wayne Turnquist and Donne Lee Pardun to Pvt. Virgil Springer.–Eighty-six bowlers raised $129 for the March of Dimes at a benefit tournament at the Black and Orange.–Obits included Bessie Palmer, Jesse Pelton, Andrew Dalpaiz, Robert Crowther, Edwin Bjork, Doris Peterson, Louis Baker Sr., Emanuel Olson, Harry Morse, Tom Nelson and Carl Anderson.

40 Years Ago

Two toolboxes from parked cars and two TVs from homes were all reported stolen between Jan. 24 and Jan. 30.–Henry Marek, rural Grantsburg, was featured with the Ford Model T he was working on, which he planned to drive in local parades.–The Polk County Sportsman’s Club issued an invitation to their 12thannual booya and fox hunt, to take place Feb. 6.–The state Capitol news made mention of a bill to legalize Bingo sponsored by church, civic and other nonprofit groups and the need for a comprehensive snowmobile code.–Webster Tiger Mike Dalsveen shot the winning basket in the final seconds of a “wild overtime victory” over the Frederic Vikings, 52-51.–Many Polk and Burnett County young people made the dean’s list at UW-River Falls, including Lucy Ronningen, LeRoy Anderson, Lyn Dueholm, Laura Clausen, Darrel Van Gundy, Annie Mueller, Robert Melin, Allen Hanson, Gerald Friberg and Dennis Lieder.–Deaths included Albert Hamble, Rebecca Stoen, Harry Bergman and Mrs. O.C. Anderson.–The Leader featured several pictures of the snow and street-cleaning efforts from a recent blizzard.–There were 12 Polk County traffic accidents for the week, most caused by poor visibility and brake malfunctions due to the snowstorm and extreme cold.–Denise Imme was named Betty Crocker Homemaker of Tomorrow at the Siren High School.

20 Years Ago

An ice-fishing house on Little Wood Lake exploded, injuring Jeramie Kozumplik, Thomas McAlpine, James McAlpine and Erick Johnson.–OSHA fines for Peterson Lumber on Spirit Lake were reduced to $5,000 and Arlen Peterson, manager, said good had come of the citations as they had made many improvements to the business since the inspection.–On Jan. 15, burglars broke into Trinity Lutheran Church, Falun, and the Compleat Angler Tavern, Danbury.–The woodworking business of Al Bennett in Siren was featured in an article by Gary King.–The Frederic Viking girls basketball team was ranked third in the state, in Division 4 polls, as of Jan. 22, with a 120 overall record and 6-0 in the conference.–Frederic gymnasts finished first at a four-way meet at Unity.–Sen. Bill Berndt met with staff of the St. Croix Valley Memorial Hospital to discuss health-care reform.–Obituaries were for Kelsey Ann Lind and Doris Queen.–Members of the Grantsburg Fire Department battled smoke and flames for 2-1/2 hours at the Matt Hoffman residence on Little Wood Lake, saving the house but missing the Super Bowl.–John Miller, Town of Daniels, was featured in a story about his competing in the Beargrease 500, a sled dog race from Duluth to Grand Portage, Minn., and back.

Brought to you by

OLSEN & SON DRUG

Serving the community since 1882

24106 St., Hwy. 35 • Siren, WI Phone 715-349-2221 • Fax 715-349-7350

Tom Moore, Owner Brian Johnson - RPh

PAGE 6 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

TOWN TALK/COUNTRY CHATTER

Good chilly morning, folks. It’s a beautiful Sunday morning and the sun is shining, time to get out and enjoy the weather. Who knows? We might even luck out and get to go for a walk in the woods.

Maybe if I bat my eyes at Mom she’ll feel guilty and take us exploring. I have to admit, I’m hard to ignore when I sit and stare at her.

It’s been a good week and I’ve been feeling great so I spent more time running and playing with Eli and Maya. Sometimes my hips bother me so I don’t feel much like playing so Mom has been giving me something for it which seems to help. It’s fun romping around, but Maya gets wound up and barking which can be deafening. Typical juvenile, she likes to make lots of noise and be the center of attention – she thinks it’s all about her.

Everybody is busy working on our next newsletter which will be coming out in March. There will be some good information on blastomycosis, something I had never heard of until my friend Simon got sick. I wonder if any of you have heard about it?

It’s a yeastlike fungal infection found in decaying wood and soil primarily in areas located near water.

That pretty much sounds like all of Wisconsin with our lakes and rivers. Anyway, watch for the article because it is very helpful in understanding this infection.

Guess what we have a new fundraiser and it involves grapes. We have our own wine label now called Humane Cellars which can be purchased through Benefit Wines onToby line. We have six

Happy Tails

Await

Arnell Humane Rosie is a 2-year-old Staffordshire bull terrier.

She is a compact powerhouse in a red coat with a calm, attentive and gentle personality. Rosie is very smart and loves to earn treat rewards by sitting at attention with eyes for you only. She also relishes her playtime with toys. If you wish to throw a toy for Rosie, she will gladly join in the fun, but your participation is not necessary. Rosie has a unique talent that could very well land her in a YouTube video.

Rosie can throw her toy over her head and follow its path by doing a back flip, keeping her eye on the prize at all times. Rosie is a sweet, well-behaved dog looking for the home that will give her stability and love. She is a keeper.

Twenty years ago, the prevailing method of training dogs involved the use of force and physical punishment. Training dog involved the use of choke chains, prong collars, commands and physical “corrections” to impose our will on our canine companions. Times have changed.

A gentler training method is preferred today. It utilizes the scientific principles of behavior and

Shelter

YAPpenings Sadie flavors each named after a shelter animal showing their pictures. For every bottle of wine sold, the shelter receives $7. Isn’t that great? Check out the Web site and you’ll find the info on our home page.

It’s been busy at the shelter this last week or two with lots of new friends coming in to stay. What would we do without the shelter? I cringe to think what would happen if it wasn’t there to welcome my friends. Most of the recent dogs are surrenders as their owner either couldn’t or wouldn’t look after them, so we’ll gladly keep them safely until they find a new loving family that will welcome them into their home.

Well it would seem we have an ongoing saga of Nick the kitten who, after being adopted, was returned because of allergies. On Friday he was adopted again by some nice people, so keep your fingers crossed. He was purring like crazy as they carried him out to their car to take him home. I think that meant he was one happy kitten! Now to find great families for Nick’s two sisters, Merry and Magi.

I want to tell you about Toby who is a young white-and-black springer spaniel mix. Toby is around 1 year old and is friendly with both people and other dogs. He especially likes his time out in the play yard with Freddy, the young guy I featured last week. Toby was a surrender as his previous owner was unable to care for him any longer. He learning developed earlier in the 20th century by behavior scientist B.F. Skinner. This training technique uses a small noisemaking “clicker” to mark the instant of “desirable” behavior and reinforce that behavior with a reward. Using this method, dogs can be trained without the use of verbal or physical force.

This type of training has been used on dolphins and whales for decades. Teach your dog that every time he hears the click of the handheld clicker, he gets a treat. Then teach him that the click happens when he does a specific behavior, such as “sit.” He soon learns that he can make the clicker work by offering to sit without being asked. Once he figures that out, add the cue – the word “sit” to teach him that the behavior he is offering you is called “sit.”

Apply the clicker technique to all of the things you want your dog to do and he quickly learns to do the behaviors you want – the ones that make good things happen with a click and a treat.

This type of positive reinforcement training helps to build a mutual bond of understanding and respect between the dog and trainer. It allows the dog to use his brain to understand what behaviors are rewarded, rather than responding to pain or force to achieve the same end result. A dog that voluntarily behaves is a happy dog. Positive reinforcement and clicker training is used with Arnell shelter dogs with dramatic results. It is a treat to watch a stray,

was a little shy when he first came in but seems to have overcome that. If you’re interested in visiting Toby, please drop by – we’d all love to see you.

Junior is about a 5-month-old white Junior and black kitty that loves to play and can even carry on a conversation with you. He’s a very handsome feline, with a long tail and personality to match. Junior and Ilse were tearing up the office last week and were hilarious to watch. Boo was also in the office but chose to watch from a safe distance. Can’t say I blame her!

Mom and her friend Roxi are busy organizing the upcoming spaghetti dinner and silent auction fundraiser being held at the Moose Lodge on April 21. Jenny, who did such a wonderful job in the previous years, has been helping keep us on track and helping when we have questions. Once again we will be applying for supplement funding from the Polk-Burnett Chapter Thrivent Financial for Lutherans. We really appreciate everything that they do for us. Also, watch for the raffle tickets to go on sale – we’re just finalizing the last of the prizes and I think you’re going to like them.

Dogs and cats instinctively know the exact moment their owners will wake up. Then they wake them 10 minutes sooner! – Unknown Have a great week everyone and stay warm.

Licks and tailwags!

The Humane Society of Burnett County is saving lives, one at a time. www.hsburnettcty.org, 715866-4096, License No. 267335-DS. We’re on Facebook too! without any training, figure it out and offering a “sit” in one session. It helps to build their confidence in themselves and offers our adopters great dogs with manners.

Positive level Rosie one basic obedience classes are available to the public at Arnell Humane Society. In level one with Claire, you will learn how the basic principles of positive training can build your dog into a motivated partner in your life.

Skills learned in this class are: sit, stay, down, come, on-leash manners, heeling and Go to your Mat. The one-hour class meets on Wednesday evenings at 7:15 p.m., for six weeks. This is an ongoing registration class, with a new class beginning as requested by participants. Preregister with Claire at 715-554-1490. Your dog will thank you for it. You will marvel at the difference in your dog and your understanding of your dog after this class.

Arnell Memorial Humane Society, 185 Griffin St. E., Amery, 715-268-7387 (PETS) or online: www.arnellhumane.org.

Siren news

715-349-2964 There’s a new game going on out in Bear Country. Or maybe I should say it’s more like who is the smartest, my hubby or the tree rats. Several weeks ago, hubby decided to see just how far the tree rats would go to get one of those black walnuts. They usually will spend hours searching for them, going back and forth in the bird yard. He took a piece of plastic pipe about 5 feet long and about 2 inches around (just big enough to put a walnut in it) and he pushed the walnut to the center of the pipe. He then laid the pipe flat on the ground. It sat that way for several weeks, then one day hubby noticed it had been moved and out he went. Sure enough, the walnut was gone. He replaced the walnut and several days later it was gone again. He replaced the nut several more times; however, we never caught the tree rat in the act until Sunday morning. A fat tree rat sat in the tree waiting for him to put out the walnuts and check the pipe, no walnut. He replaced it, then

came to the house. From the kitchen window we watched the fat tree rat come down the tree and lift the one end up to where the nut would roll out and then he claimed his prize. Tree rats are not stupid.

Hubby is working on another way to stump them.

The Siren Covenant Church ladies will once again be holding their chocolate affair on Friday, Feb. 10, at both the Siren U.S. Bank and the Siren Bremer Bank from 9 a.m. to whatever time the chocolate is gone. Stop in on Feb. 10, and pick up some for your Valentine.

Sympathy is extended to the family of Alano “Lonny” Virchow, who passed away Dec. 23.

Sympathy is also extended to the family of Bernice Abrahamzon, who passed away Jan. 22. The area lost a very special lady and one of the best writers around.

Those of you who are avid hunters or are gun collectors, the annual gun show is coming to the Siren

Bev Beckmark Lakeview Event Center on Saturday, Feb. 4, from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. For more information, call Dick Kettula at 715-653-2271 or Scott Wilder at 715-3278951. Admission for the event is $5. This event is sponsored by the South Fork Sporting Club.

Art and Bev Beckmark spent Thursday afternoon in Webster visiting Harold and Virginia Larson.

Congratulations to elementary student Delaney Summer, middle schooler Autumn Tinman and high schooler Paige Kelley for being chosen Siren Schools Students of the Week. Way to go gals, keep it up.

Congratulations to the Siren boys basketball team.

All you avid readers out there, the Larsen Family Public Library in Webster is holding a used book sale on Saturday, Feb. 11, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Stop in and check it out. Bring the kids along, there are lots of good books available.

Wisconsin Interstate Park Interstate Park leads Gov. Walker initiative ST. CROIX FALLS – A popular program at Wisconsin Interstate Park for preschool children and their parents will be highlighted this week as part of Gov. Walker’s statewide Read to Lead initiative.

Nature story time is offered every Thursday at 10 a.m., January through March, at the Ice Age Center at Interstate Park. Thursday, Feb. 2, naturalist Julie

Fox will share a story from a selection of children’s books that will be read at Wisconsin state parks throughout 2012. Every week of the year a different story will be shared at a state park to help promote the governor’s Read to Lead program designed to encourage Wisconsin children to read. At Interstate Park a short activity following the story will reinforce the book’s nature-related theme.

Nature story time generally lasts between 30-60 minutes, depending on the participants. “It’s a great opportunity for parents to get out to the park with their little ones during this time of the year,” com-

mented Fox, “and a great opportunity to encourage a love of books and reading at a young age.” Participants may spend time outdoors, weather permitting, so parents should dress their children accordingly.

Interstate Park is located in St. Croix Falls, on Hwy. 35 just one-half mile south of Hwy. 8. Nature story time is free of charge, but a Wisconsin state park sticker is required to enter the park. Annual passes for 2012 are $25 for Wisconsin residents or $35 for nonresidents. For more information call Fox at 715-483-3747.

Births A girl, Ivy Ann Bentley, born Jan. 11, 2012, at 2:56 a.m. to Josh and Molly Bentley and proud sister Macy, all of Siren.

Ivy weighed 8 lbs., 11.5 oz. and was 21 inches long.

Grandparents include Mike and Rena Bentley and Terry and Deda Mengel. Great-grandparents are Dude and Marie Bentley. – submitted •••

Born at Amery Regional Medical Center:

A boy, Koby Alan Heyer, born Dec. 30, 2011, to Tiffany and Bradley Heyer, Clayton. Koby weighed 9 lbs., 8.5 oz.

••• A girl, Aaliyah Joyce Zellmer, born Jan. 5, 2012, to Briana and Joseph Zellmer, Luck. Aaliyah weighed 8 lbs., 12.5 oz.

••• A boy, Bentley William Gooch, born Jan. 7, 2012, to Monique Gooch, Amery. Bentley weighed 9 lbs., 2 oz.

••• A boy, Dorian Ray Elric Despiegelaere, born Jan. 11, 2012, to Ashley Marz and Matthew Despiegelaere, Luck. Dorian weighed 5 lbs., 10 oz.

••• A boy, Lyric Montgomery Knighten, born Jan. 12, 2012, to Courtney and Sage Knighten, Clear Lake.

Lyric weighed 8 lbs., 3.5 oz.

••• A boy, Marek James Johnson, born Jan. 16, 2012, to Jennifer and Jacob Johnson, Luck. Marek weighed 8 lbs.

••• A boy, Joel Andrew Wagner, born Jan. 16, 2012, to Marcia and Aaron Wagner, Clear Lake. Joel weighed 8 lbs., 3 oz.

••• A girl, Lily Mae Lundeen, born Jan. 17, 2012, to Tanya and Craig Lundeen, Luck. Lily weighed 7 lbs., 13 oz.

••• A boy, Jay Leslie Case, born Jan. 19, 2012, to Laura Boche-Case and Linn Case, Clear Lake. Jay weighed 6 lbs., 6 oz.

•••

Siren Senior news Nona Severson

First of all, we want to extend gratitude to Barb Munger for writing this column for so many years. We thanked her at an earlier meeting but never put it in the papers. Kudos Barb for an excellent job.

Our evening meal will be Thursday, Feb. 2, with the meal being pork roast and more. Call 715-3492845 to make reservations.

On Thursday, we helped Marge Nyberg celebrate her 96th birthday. Marge’s daughter, Judy Johnson, furnished a birthday cake, a flower for the ladies and a chocolate candy bar for the guys. Marge had lunch guests as Judy; Kim, her granddaughter, and Betty, a niece, enjoyed having lunch with her.

Our sympathy to the family of Bernice Abrahamzon. She passed away this last Wednesday. She wrote such an entertaining column for the InterCounty Leader. Her shoes will certainly be hard to fill.

Keep Wednesday, Feb. 15, open so you can come to Siren Senior Center for a potluck lunch. We hope everyone will come and then stay and play 500 afterward.

Our winners for 500 were Cora deJong, Dwaine Bentley, Barb Munger, Ralph Groves and Neil Olson.

I was not at Spades and nobody gave me any names.

Until next week, stay warm and healthy.

Frederic Senior Center Dave Peterson

The weather is still being very nice to us, but we still need snow.

The winners at Spades were Willis Williams, Lorna Erickson, Ellis Erickson and Norma Nelson.

The winners at 500 were Arnie Borchert, Rich Hustad, Laryn Larson and Dave Peterson.

Remember we play Spades at 1 p.m. on Monday, 500 at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday and Pokeno at 1 p.m. on Wednesday and Friday. We also play Dime Bingo on Saturday from 1 to 3 p.m. We have had some new people playing. There is still room for more, give it a try.

There are still openings for the tax people on Feb. 16 and March 15.

Stay warm, until next week.

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 7

TOWN TALK/COUNTRY CHATTER Borderline news It’s sad to report two more (unrelated) deaths this week from Markville, Minn. Merle Gardener died from complications from a long bout with cancer.

Merle operated a junkyard for quite a number of years in Markville. Also, Charlie Stone died late Saturday night in a one-car crash on the North Markville Road in Wisconsin, just across the state line.

Pine County Commissioner Steve Chaffee was the guest speaker at the recent meeting of the East Pine County Wanderers. His topics included ambulance service to our area, the Pine County Soil and Water office, countywide zoning issues, and others.

Paul Raymond brought the cake and door prize.

Don Mishler was the winner once again. The prize was an assortment of tools. January birthdays were Gladys Nelson, Patrice Winfield, Leon Berg and Evelyn Johnson.

Marlene and Don Mishler are happy with the news that grandson Joe was hired by the Pine County Sheriff’s Department. Joe and his wife, Mandie, plan to move from the Twin Cities to Pine City, Minn.

Dave Baker’s son, Nicholas, graduated in December from the University of Pennsylvania with a master’s degree in planning and transportation. Fran and Dave will join the family in February for a dinner celebration for Nic in St. Paul, Minn. Nic has moved back to Minneapolis and is on a job search.

Pam Berg, Marlene Mishler, Cheryl Wickham and

Fran Levings joined two other members of the Seven-County Senior Federation Resolutions committee at Jan and Gary’s Cafe on Friday for a meeting. Federation Executive Director Tim Burkhardt was coordinator of the discussion. The committee has the job of deciding what issues to put before the convention in April where a vote will be taken on what concerns will be worked on during the next year.

On Sunday, Jan. 22, several people from McGraw Lake and Cozy Corners drove to Superior to honor Dan Proffit as he was installed as the new minister for Our Redeemer Free Lutheran Church in Billings Park. The church is over 100 years old. We were thrilled to be seeing Dan deliver such a moving sermon. His sister and her husband from Michigan surprised Dan by attending. After the service, a lunch was served in the church basement. John and Judy Pahos from Superior were also in attendance. John is originally from Markville, and was a friend of Dan’s father Dwayne Proffit.

After the service, several of us stopped by to see Larry Kinblom at Golden Living Rehab. We were told the flu was rampant there, so we had to mask and wash carefully. We did, and on Monday we came down with the worst flu we have ever had. We were thankful it was the 24-hour kind, but feel so sorry for all the patients at the center.

Webster Senior Center Wii Bowling is one of the most popular and exciting activities at the center. It is competitive, good exercise and lots of fun. This week Judy Weiss had high individual game with 228. Earl Boelter had high individual series with a 422. The Mini Mights had high team game and high team series with 803 and 1516. There were several splits picked up, Al Niklason the 5-10, Harvey Thompson the 4-7-9 and 5-10, add Earl the 5-10.

Dime Bingo continues to be another fun activity.

This week 21 came to play and enjoy the treats furnished by Don Brand. Come and join us every Wednesday at 12:30 p.m..

We are still playing pool and cards on Thursday afternoon at 1 p.m. until about 3 p.m. All seniors are welcome.

Winners of the Friday drawing were Pat Niklason, Bill Lalor and Theresa Gloege. They each received

Tuesday was a big day as usual with exercises starting at 10 a.m., followed by a couple of games of Skip-Bo. In the afternoon, games were played. In 500, Ron Flostad and Elaine Edlund were at the head table for every game and had a score of 5,200.

Other winners were Roger Greenly and Marlys Borchardt. Winners in Dominos were George and Ione Meixner and Don Anderson. Marian Edler and Dottie Adams were the winning team in Hand and Foot.

Thursday morning, we held our exercise session.

Fran Krause

Karen Mangelsen

Jan, Jim, Caleb and Hannah Schott picked up Lida Nordquist Saturday morning and they went to Shell Lake. Caleb participated in a basketball tournament there. In the afternoon, Joleen, Richard, Randi, Robb, Rick and Angela Funk came to Lida’s home and all the family had supper together. Angela’s birthday was celebrated.

Jean and Terry Williamson and family were supper guests of Maynard and Ronda Mangelsen Saturday.

Visitors of Donna and Gerry Hines on the weekend were Mark and Sue Hines, and Edgar, Dianne, Roxy, Jack and new baby Matthew Rodriguez. Jack’s second birthday was celebrated.

Clam River Tuesday Club will meet Feb. 8 at the home of Judy Leonard. The afternoon will begin with a potluck meal at 12:30 p.m. There will be a gift exchange ($10) for those who wish to participate. Also, the dice game will be played, so each person is asked to bring several small, wrapped gifts for that.

Orange

An HCE Harmony Club meeting was held at Adeline Ingalls last Tuesday with plans made for the annual Valentine dinner for the residents of Cedarwood Manor.

Naomi Glover and Fran Krause were dinner guests Sunday evening at the Mark Krause home to celebrate the birthday of friend Tom. Deanna Krause was on a retreat with members of the Webster Baptist church.

Marian Edler

In the evening, Cribbage and 500 cards were played.

The winners in 500 were LeRoy Booth, Bob Norlander, Lloyd Knutson and Gene Neumann.

Friday morning, Bridge was played.

There is a winter bazaar to be held at the senior center all day on Saturday, Feb. 4, as a fundraiser for Taylor Orton to spend some time in Europe. There are various activities and spaghetti will be served from 4 to 7 p.m. Look at the fliers around town and stop in and support a local student.

Dewey - LaFollette Sympathy is extended to Tim and Trudy DeLawyer and family because of the death of Tim’s mother, Bonnie DeLawyer. The funeral will be Friday at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Amery at 11 a.m. Visitation will be Thursday at Williamson-White Funeral Home in Amery from 4 – 7 p.m.

Karen, Hank, Hannah and Grace Mangelsen visited Inez and Arvid Pearson Monday.

Dylan and Ethan Longhenry were overnight guests of Maynard and Ronda Mangelsen Friday.

Congratulations to Randy and Tara Mengelsen on the birth of a daughter. Josephine Seone was born Jan.27. Hank and Karen Mangelsen are the paternal grandparents. Karen and Hank, along with Holly, Hannah and Grace Mangelsen, went to Menomonie Falls, Saturday to visit Josephine, Tara and Randy at the hospital.

Ronda Mangelsen went to Shell Lake Saturday morning to watch Daya Lawrence play basketball.

Later, she and Daya went to Cumberland to see a tae kwon do wrestling match.

Bernie Boelter

a package of Nikki’s homemade cinnamon rolls.

There is a drawing every other Friday at brunch, which is served from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m.

The potluck on Saturday was a great success.

Lots of food with socializing and games after lunch.

From the sound of laughter, I am sure everyone had a good time. For those who were unable to attend, there will be another one on Saturday, March 3.

Come and join the fun.

The tax preparers will not be at the Webster Center this year. They will be at the Siren Senior Center every first and second Monday and Thursday from 1 to 4 p.m. by appointment only. The first week in February will be for homestead returns only.

The next senior meeting will be Tuesday, Feb. 21.

The only thing constant about life is change and that keeps us on our toes.

See you at the center.

SCF Senior Center

Grantsburg Public Library

Bob Brewster

LaVonne O'Brien

Tom and Becky O'Brien visited Jack and LaVonne O'Brien Thursday evening. On Monday Fran Krause, Diane Medaglia, Amy Kopecky and LaVonne O'Brien attended the Burnett County committee meeting on the possibility of funding a new UWX family living agent which would be a big help to HCE. John and Reeny Neinstadt returned home Sunday from a cruise to the western Caribbean, Haiti and St. Martin.

Children were enthralled at story time last week when they had an opportunity to see a live raptor up close.

Crex Meadows wildlife educator Heidi Rusch treated preschoolers to a wildlife program that featured the bird along with stories and a video about raptors in Wisconsin. To participate in other fun and interactive preschool story times visit the library Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m.

Free tax help

Seniors and income-eligible individuals can receive free assistance preparing their taxes at the library.

Appointments are available on the first and second Thursdays and Fridays of February, March and April. Call the li- Heidi Rusch educates preschoolers about Wisconsin brary at 715-463-2244 to schedule an wildlife. – Photo submitted appointment. This program is sponsored by AARP Foundation Tax-Aide.

“Raylan,” by Elmore Leonard Digital learning day “Robert Ludlum’s The Janson Command,” by Stop in for help with e-readers, social media, Paul Garrison basic computer and Internet skills and discover how “Shadow of Your Smile,” by Susan May Warren to use the library’s digital resources. On Wednes“Snow Child,” by Eowyn Ivey day, Feb. 1, Janel Hutton with the library will offer “Sonoma Rose,” by Jennifer Chiaverini technology assistance from 1- 6 p.m. Appointments “Twice,” by Lisa Unger are not required, but appreciated.

“Victims: An Alex Delaware Novel,” by Jonathan Kellerman

New books in February

“Catch Me,” by Lisa Gardner “Celebrity in Death,” by J.D. Robb “Defending Jacob,” by William Landay “Diary of a Mad Fat Girl,” by Stephanie Mcafee “Dreams of Joy,” by Lisa See “Expats,” by Chris Pavone “Good American,” by Alex George “I’ve Got Your Number,” by Sophie Kinsella “Into the Darkness,” V.C. Andrews “Left for Dead,” by Judith A. Jance “Lone Wolf,” Jodi Picoult “Private Games,” by James Patterson and Mark Sullivan “Rabbit Book: A guide to raising and showing rabbits,” by Samantha and Daniel Johnson “Rainshadow Road,” by Lisa Kleypas

Technology

The library can help you meet your technology needs. There are seven Internet-ready computer stations, and the library offers a free Wi-Fi signal.

Preschool story time

Preschool story time is every Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. Enjoy a story, make a craft and get together with friends.

Library hours and information

Monday noon – 6 p.m.; Tuesday noon – 6 p.m.; Wednesday 10:30 a.m. – 6 p.m.; Thursday noon – 6 p.m.; Friday 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m. – noon. The contact information for the library is 715463-2244; Web site is grantsburg.wislib.org and now you can follow the library on Facebook.

PAGE 8 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

CHURCH NEWS/OBITUARIES Eternal

Perspectives Sally Bair

Fluff No sooner do the lighter-than-air dandelion seeds quit scattering than the goldenrod fluff starts in. The late-autumn, wind-borne stuff still makes me sneeze.

And soon golden, feathery tamarack leaves will start to shed.

All the fluff is beautiful. Sneezes or not, it’s fun to watch it blow in the wind. One major problem with nature-fluff, however, is that whatever blows grows.

Tiny seeds somehow manage to attach themselves to tiny specks of soil and—voila! A new dandelion or goldenrod stem to torment us.

There are many kinds of fluff in this world. In the literary world, it’s called chick lit—loosely plotted, lighthearted fables about silly characters who spend their shallow lives trying to catch Mr. Hunk so they won’t end up, heaven forbid, lonely and unloved. In other areas of life, fluff can come in the form of a roomful of toys or awards or trophies.

Fluff of any kind has little substance. It may bring the feel of cuddly softness babies feel when wrapped in a plush blanket. It may protect baby birds in the nest. It may bring the needed warmth of a down quilt or sleeping bag. It may even feel airy to the tongue, such as when we taste a light soufflé.

There comes a time when we need to replace our need for fluff for that of substance. Part of growing up requires that. We shouldn’t expect to be pampered all our lives. We must attain mental and emotional maturity along with our physical.

Spiritual “fluff” also can become a deterrent to our Christian maturity. Spiritual fluff can come in the form of easy-to-digest untruths about the Word of God. “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears they will … turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.” (2 Timothy 4:3-4) It’s easy to hear what we want to hear or read the lighthearted fables we want to read in order to feel comfortable. It’s easy to view our church as a fluffy quilt, forsaking Jesus’ command to go into the world and proclaim his message of hope and love. It’s easy to let our fluffy life take shallow root where it will hinder not only our own maturity but that of others.

We are rather to be “mature in understanding.” (1 Corinthians 14:20) Lord, help us to be discontent with the fluff of spiritual immaturity. Rather, help us grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Bair may be reached at sallybair@gmail.com.

Roger D. Birkeland

Michael I. DeMoe

Roger Dennis Birkeland, 75, Spooner, passed away on Jan. 27, 2012, at Spooner Health Systems Hospital.

Roger was born on July 9, 1936, to Carl and Millie Birkeland in Willmar, Minn. He grew up in Spicer, Minn., where his parents owned and operated Carl’s Resort on Nest Lake.

Roger graduated from Mankato State University and it was then that he went into radio announcing. His radio experience allowed him to hold positions which included salesman, program director and sales manager at Willmar’s radio station KWLM. On June 18, 1957, Roger married Shirley Ann Hale at Immanuel Lutheran Church, Eden Township in Morgan, Minn.

In 1964, he was hired as TV weather forecaster on the television station HWWL in Waterloo, Iowa. While there, he also did sports announcing and general spot announcing under his TV name, Roger Burk.

In 1969, Roger and Shirley moved to Spooner, where they owned and operated Roger’s Green Acres Motel for seven years. They then made their home in Voyager Village, where Roger worked for Terry Larsen in Webster selling cars. He also went back to radio selling out of Pine City, Minn., and Milltown. He also sold for Midway Motors. Roger was a member of Voyager Village POA for many years, where he was on the board of directors for 12 years. He was also an active member of Our Redeemer Lutheran Church from 1975-2005 before moving back to Spooner in January of 2005. He then became a member of Faith Lutheran Church in Spooner, where he has attended the past seven years. Roger was a huge sports fan. His favorite teams included Minnesota Vikings, Twins, Timberwolves and the Golden Gophers.

Roger was preceded in death by his wife, Shirley; parents, Carl and Millie Birkeland; parents-in-law, William and Florence Hale; brother, Stanley; brothers-in-law, Armin Dittbenner, Lawrence Schmidt, William Hale Jr., Doug Current and Jerome Sellner.

He is survived by his daughter, Michelle Truman; son, Ricky, a resident of Pleasures of Home; sisters-in-law, Ruth Schmidt, Eldora Dittbenner, Irene Current, Norma Sellner and Marilyn Hale; uncle, Lowell Werdal; aunt, Lois Werdal; his special cat, Macy; along with many nieces, nephews and other relatives.

Funeral services were held on Tuesday, Jan. 31, at Faith Lutheran Church, Spooner, with Pastor Brent Berkesch officiating. Music was provided by Kim Simon. The interment followed at Spooner Cemetery. Pallbearers were Wayne Zarn, Jeff Current, Louie Schmidt, Al Frigen, Mike Truman and Mike Dietz. Online condolences can be made at www.scalzo-taylor.com.

The Taylor Family Funeral Home, Spooner, was entrusted with arrangements.

Michael I. DeMoe, 66, resident of Frederic, died Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012, at St. Croix Regional Medical Center.

Michael was born Oct. 21, 1945.

He is survived by his mother, Shirley DeMoe; and four sons, along with five grandchildren.

He will be missed and always loved and remember.

Online condolences may be left at www.rowefh.com or www.wicremationcenter.com. Please continue to check the Web sites for updated information or call Bruce Rowe at 715-327-4475.

Rowe Funeral Home of Frederic and the Northwest Wisconsin Cremation Center in Milltown have been entrusted with arrangements.

Juanita "Nita" J. Long Juanita “Nita” J. Long, resident of Frederic Nursing and Rehab, died Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2012.

Memorial services will be held at the Rowe Funeral Home in Frederic on Friday, Feb. 3 – visitation will begin at 1 p.m., followed by the service at 2 p.m.

Online condolences may be left at www.rowefh.com or www.wicremationcenter.com . Please continue to check our Web sites for updated information or call Bruce Rowe at 715-327-4475.

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 9

CHURCH NEWS/OBITUARIES Marlene M. Kufalk Marlene M. Kufalk, 80, a resident of Webster, died Jan. 28, 2012, at Countryside Acres Assisted Living.

Marlene was born on July 14, 1931, to Otto and Scholastica Suhr in Milwaukee. Marlene was a graduate of WITC. She started out as a nursery schoolteacher during her early years in Milwaukee. When she became a mother herself, she stayed at home to raise her three children.

In 1967, she moved to Spooner where she started to work for Indianhead Community Action Agency while Delbert started his own business in Spooner. While at Indianhead, she was instrumental in starting the Head Start kindergarten program for Burnett County. She worked the community clothes closet helping countless people with food vouchers, cheese, butter, peanut butter and other commodities, just to name a few.

In 1974, Marlene gave birth to her fourth child, a son Thomas.

Marlene was very active politically and was an active member of the Republican Party and was a Town of Scott supervisor for several terms. She was a charter member of Lakeside Community Lutheran Church where she taught Sunday school, sang in the choir and made and sold recycled greeting cards. She was a member of the Webster Lioness, a volunteer at Forts Folle Avoine in Danbury, cooked meals for the Town of Scott Senior Center and Meals on Wheels, and was also a member of the Ravishing Rubies Red Hat Society.

Into her 70s, Marlene once again took a job helping people while working at the Department of Natural Resources, finally retiring in 2009.

Marlene loved and lived life to the fullest. She enjoyed dancing, auctions, selling Avon and spending time with her grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her parents; husband Delbert; son Steven James Kufalk; sisters Geraldine Edelblute, Audrey Weil and Dorothy Hawkinson.

She is survived by her daughter, Christine (Dale) Peterson; sons, Timothy (Melissa) Kufalk, Thomas (Lena) Kufalk; her grandchildren, Bradley, Kevin, David and Amanda Peterson; Justin, Dianna and Ben Kufalk; Sophia and Simon Kufalk; her great-grandchildren, Taylor and Sarah Peterson, and James Kufalk; brother, Reinhard (Betty) Kufalk; brother-in-law, Glenn.

Funeral services will be held Thursday, Feb. 2, at 11 a.m., with visitation 10-11 a.m., at Lakeside Community Lutheran Church with Pastor Bill Schroeder officiating.

Music will be provided by Ardis Sawyer. Interment will follow at the Spooner Cemetery. Pallbearers will be Brad Peterson, Kevin Peterson, David Peterson, Ben Kufalk, Todd Littfin and Travis Nordstrom. A visitation will be held Wednesday, Feb. 1, from 5 – 8 p.m., at Taylor Family Funeral Home, Spooner. Online condolences can be made at www.scalzo-taylor.com.

The Taylor Family Funeral Home, Spooner, was entrusted with arrangements.

Louise Kimbel Louise Kimbel, 89, Grantsburg, died Jan. 25, 2012, at the Burnett Medical Center in Grantsburg.

Louise Olson Kimbel was born in Grantsburg in 1922, daughter of Ole and Olga Olson. She graduated from Grantsburg High School in 1940 and from Fairview Nursing School in 1944. She joined the Army Nurse Corps and was assigned to the 139th Evacuation Hospital, which was on its way to Europe, March 1945. They were in Wurzburg, Germany, liberated in Ebensee, Austria. After their work there they were on their way to the Pacific, when the war ended. .

She had met Jack Kimbel, an Army officer, soon after joining the Army, and went by ship to the Philippines to marry him in 1946. From then on it was a constant change of assignments, including Los Alamos, San Francisco, Okinawa, England, the Pentagon, etc., a total of 22 moves.

They retired in Grantsburg in 1984, and Jack died later that year.

Four sons were born to them, Jim (Fran) of Brooklyn, N. Y., John (Tran) of Richmond, Va., Joe of Austin, Texas, and Michael (Julie) in Saratoga, Calif.; grandchildren are Karsten and Kelei Kimbel and Vinh Doquang. She is also survived by her sister, Margaret; and her brother, Gene (Pat). Her brother Atom died in 1991.

A memorial service will be held on Thursday, Feb. 2, at 2 p.m., at Faith Lutheran Church in Grantsburg.

The Edling Funeral Home, Grantsburg, was entrusted with arrangements.

Bonnie DeLawyer Bonnie DeLawyer, 92, died on Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012, at her home in Deronda.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Friday, Feb. 3, at 11 a.m., at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Amery. Burial will be at the Deronda Cemetery. Visitation will be held on Thursday, Feb. 2, from 4-7 p.m. at the Williamson-White Funeral Home in Amery and for the hour prior to the service at the church.

The Williamson-White Funeral Home, Amery, was entrusted with arrangments.

Bernice Vivian Abrahamzon

Gary W. Kosloski

Bernice Vivian Abrahamzon passed into eternal life, Jan. 25, 2012, at the age of 91 years and four days.

Bernice was born Jan. 21, 1921, at a home that the Kreitz family had built in Lake Geneva. She was the daughter of Goldie Laura (Hovey) and Paul Dreitz, and was an only child. Her father had been apprenticed to become a gardener. Bernice and parents lived on the Wacker estate, of Wacker Drive fame, and on the Zimmerman estate, Snug Harbor. Both of these estates were in suburban Chicago. His mentor was a man affectionately known as Uncle Bob McBride.

In 1929, Bernice’s father accepted a position as head gardener at the estates of Green Tree and Broadoaks near Oconomowoc. Paul Kreitz worked there for 39 years.

Bernice attended Summit Grade School, receiving an eighthgrade graduation diploma, on real sheepskin. Bernice then attended and graduated from Oconomowoc High School in 1939. Bernice graduated from Milwaukee Downer College in 1943. Her college experiences and education were a lifelong influence in her life. She also completed a semester of graduate work at Carrol College at Waukesha.

At various times, besides caring for her ailing mother, Bernice worked for Carnation Milk Company, a local sanatorium and a Lonely Hearts company. She corresponded with her future husband, Kenneth Lorn Abrahamzon, for three years before they met. They were married March 4, 1945, at Oconomowoc, while Kenneth was still on active duty as a Marine Corps aviator. They lived at Bunker Hill and Peru, Ind., as World War II came to an end. Bernice and Kenneth returned to his hometown of Superior, so he could complete his college education.

Kenneth accepted a teaching position at Ashland. Bernice also taught there, teaching high school literature.

They moved to Sheboygan, for one year, where Kenneth was technical director for Sheyboygan Community Players, a professional theater company. Bernice, Kenneth and boys moved to St. Paul, Minn., where Ken taught and directed plays at the Hihle Theatre on the campus of Macalester College. They lived on campus in facility barracks. They relocated to North St. Paul, Minn., where Ken taught at North High for 15 years.

In 1956, they moved to Lewis, just for the summer to be near Ken’s parents who had retired there. They rented a small house for $30 a month from Alice and Gust Saros.

In 1959, they bought a small farm, south of Lewis, and never moved again. Both Bernice and Ken became active in the Methodist Church in Lewis, which became lifelong commitments. Eventually Bernice became employed by the Inter-County Leader, first the bindery, ending at age 72 as proofreader. Bernice wrote the Lewis news for more than 30 years and the Do You Remember feature. She wrote a weekly column, Behind the Signpost, for many, actually an unknown number of years, it could be as many as 40. Bernice authored three books, was a charter member of the Northwest Regional Writers Club and Indianhead Gem and Mineral Society. In fact, she was the last charter member of both those organizations. She wrote many, many articles and was published in several newspapers and journals.

Bernice was preceded in death by her parents; infant brother; Kenneth, husband for 41 years; all of her aunts, uncles and cousins. In a way, she was the last leaf on the tree.

She is survived by her three sons, Drew Eric, Timothy Kirk and Tod Marshall; friend, Sheila Staples, who she considered a daughter or daughter-in-law; nieces and nephews; members of clubs and organizations she belonged to; church community; friends and readers of her writing, most of whom she didn’t know by name but loved nevertheless. We will mourn our loss at her passing and cherish her memory.

Funeral services for Bernice were held on Saturday, Jan. 28, at Lewis United Memorial Methodist Church, with interment in the Abrahamzon Plot in the Old Hawthorne Cemetery, rural Douglas County. Online condolences can be made at www.swedberg-taylor.com.

The Swedberg-Taylor Family Funeral Home, Webster, was entrusted with arrangements.

Gary W. Kosloski, 55, passed away peacefully Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012, at his home in Siren.

Gary was born on Nov. 17, 1956, in Siren to Rapheal and Doris Kosloski.

He graduated from Siren High School in 1975 and furthered his education at the University of Wisconsin-Superior.

While in college, Gary’s passion for sports allowed him to play football for the Superior Yellowjackets.

After college, Gary moved to New Richmond where his enjoyment of working with wood led him into the carpentry business.

He began working for Derrick Construction building high-end homes in the Twin Cities area. He then pursued self-employment by forming Kosloski Construction where he specialized in siding homes. Gary enjoyed making lawn furniture for friends and was instrumental in helping both his brothers build their homes in Siren.

On Dec. 1, 1991, Gary was blessed by the birth of his daughter, Natasha Jo. They soon returned home to Siren, where he would raise Tasha. Gary was an avid outdoorsmen who loved to hunt and fish. He was active in archery clubs where he mastered the compound bow. He then took up shooting a recurve bow instinctively where he won many competitions in the area. He especially enjoyed deer hunting with his dad and brothers, Ron and Rick. No matter how big or small the excursion, Gary was always prepared for the hunt, bringing enough equipment for everyone, knowing that his brothers would forget to bring something. Gary experienced hunting and fishing trips both locally and out of state.

When not hunting, Gary enjoyed the wind blowing in his face while riding his Harley and supporting the Green Bay Packers.

Gary was preceded in death by his father, Rapheal.

He is survived by and will be sadly missed by his mother, Doris; daughter, Natasha Jo; granddaughter, Kiara; brothers, Ron (Wendy) and Rick (Kristin); along with nieces and nephews, Jennica, Michael, Samantha, Abby, Nathan and Brady; and many family and friends Funeral services were held Thursday, Jan. 26, at St. Dominic Catholic Church in Frederic with Father Dennis Mullen as celebrant. Music was provided by Harmonic Balance from Siren. Pallbearers were Ron Kosloski, Rick Kosloski, Gregg Baasch, Len Carlstrom, David Daniels, Kris Hicks and Mark Erickson. Honorary pallbearer was Brig. Gen. Jimmie Jaye Wells.

A family gathering at Lakeview Cemetery in Siren will be arranged at a later date. Online condolences can be made at www.swedberg-taylor.com.

The Swedberg-Taylor Family Funeral Home, Siren Chapel, was entrusted with arrangements.

Charles J. Stone Charles J. Stone, 58, Sandstone, Minn., died Jan. 29, 2012.

Memorial service to be held at a later date. A full obituary will be published at a later date. Online condolences can be made at www.swedberg-taylor.com.

The Swedberg-Taylor Family Funeral Home, Webster, was entrusted with arrangements.

Laura Wicklund

Laura Wicklund, 97, Grantsburg, died Jan. 30, 2012, at the Burnett Medical Center CCC in Grantsburg.

Funeral service will be held Saturday, Feb. 4, 2 p.m., at Trinity Lutheran Church in Falun. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. on Friday at the Edling Funeral Home in Grantsburg.

A full obituary will be published at a later date.

The Edling Funeral Home, Grantsburg, was entrusted with arrangements.

Eunice Lillian Alen Eunice Lillian Alen, 91, Balsam Lake, passed away on Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012, at the Golden Age Manor Nursing Home in Amery.

She was born on Oct. 5, 1920, in Ellison Bay, the daughter of Albert and Lena (Herman) Isaacson.

Eunice attended Mounds-Midway School of Nursing in St. Paul, Minn., graduating in May of 1942. Following her graduation, she worked in the surgery department in Sturgeon Bay, from November 1942 until August 1953.

Eunice married Irvin Alen on Oct. 10, 1953, at Sturgeon Bay Baptist Church.

Eunice continued her nursing career at Apple River Valley Memorial Hospital in Amery from 1957 until her retirement in 1981. She worked in the obstetrics department and became director of nurses, in which capacity she served until retiring.

Eunice is a faithful follower of Jesus Christ. Eunice was a member of East Balsam Baptist Church. In the past, she has served as church pianist/organist, church clerk, Sunday school teacher and superintendent, a leader in woman’s work, librarian and church historian.

Eunice was preceded in death by her daughter, Lois Hemingway; granddaughter, Sanay Hemingway; brothers, Everett Isaacson and Ivan Isaacson.

Eunice leaves to celebrate her memory her husband, Irvin Alen of Balsam Lake; son, Keith Alen and his wife, Marla Wheeler-Alen of Valley Center, Calif.; son-in-law, David Hemingway of Balsam Lake; grandchildren, Charity (Rick) Weldt, Mark (Amy) Alen, Rachel (Matt) Larson, Mike (Katie) Alen, Alyssa (Jacob) Udvig and Ryan Hemingway, 11 great-grandchildren and three more on the way; nieces, nephews, cousins and other loving family and friends.

Funeral services will be held Thursday, Feb. 2, at 10:30 a.m., at the East Balsam Baptist Church with Pastor Gabe Brennan officiating. Visitation will be at the Kolstad Family Funeral Home on Wednesday, Feb. 1, from 4 – 7 p.m., and then again at the East Balsam Baptist Church on Thursday from 9:30 a.m. until the time of service.

Eunice will be laid to rest at the Bunyan Union Cemetery following the service. Casket bearers will be Eunice’s family. The family wishes to invite their guests to join them for fellowship and lunch at the church following the cemetery service.To express online condolences to the family, please visit www.kolstadfamilyfuneralhome.com.

The Kolstad Family Funeral Home of Centuria has been entrusted with arrangements.

PAGE 10 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

CHURCH NEWS

Husband concerned about wife’s contact with exes Q: How do I deal with my wife’s continuing relationships with her exboyfriends? We have been married two years, and she still likes to communicate with them. I trust my wife, but I don’t understand why she feels the need to keep reaching out to them.

Juli: I think you are right to be concerned about this, even if you trust your wife. A person’s friendships with the opposite sex need to change after marriage.

This is particularly true with exboyfriends or girlfriends. Even if the relationships are strictly platonic, they present the potential for a romantic relationship in the future. When you go through difficulty in your marriage, it will be too easy for your wife to confide in another man.

While your wife needs the support and companionship of close female friends, her friendships with men need to be more superficial and distant. Unfortunately, that is not a popular thing to say today. But guarding a marriage means protecting it from the potential of competing intimate relationships.

I would ask your wife why she continues to communicate with her former

Jim Daly

Focus on the Family

Juli Slattery

boyfriends. Explain to her that it is important for you to be the one man she confides in. Tell her that this isn’t about trust. It’s about being her one and only.

••• Q: My wife and I have been married for less than a year, and I was just diagnosed with cancer. Even more than my own health, I’m worried about what this means for our marriage. My wife didn’t sign up for this, and frankly, neither did I. Jim: I’m very sorry to learn of your diagnosis. Cancer is not an easy thing for any family, let alone newlyweds who are just beginning their journey together.

Like most couples, when you pledged to love “in sickness and in health,” you were likely only thinking about the flu or the occasional broken bone. This diagnosis has cast a cloud over all of that.

Author Erin Prater has developed a list of tips for dealing with a serious diagnosis as a couple. I hope you and your wife will take it to heart as you look to what

lies ahead: 1) Accept offers of help. If you’re involved with a church or a close group of friends, you’ll likely receive more assistance than you know what to do with.

This will allow you to focus on healing and coping as a couple.

2) Find a support group. Contact your doctor’s office or church for referrals.

3) Find a good counselor. A certified family counselor can help you navigate the emotions associated with this time.

Contact Focus on the Family for a local referral.

4) Continue to make intimacy a priority. Sex is one of the greatest tangible bonds between a married couple. If it’s still possible, make it happen.

5) Reach outside yourself. You and your spouse may start to spiritually and emotionally “drown” in hopelessness if you constantly focus on your situation.

Find ways to help others in need.

6) Realize it’s OK to question God. Present him with your questions and uncertainties.

7) Reflect. Journal your thoughts, feelings and reflections. Then share them with your spouse.

8) Refuse to be owned by your condition. Life, no matter how painful or confusing, is precious and worth living. Do your best to make lemonade out of

lemons.

The road before you may be rough, but the strongest marriages are founded on trials such as the one you’re facing. May God grant you and your wife strength as you weather this storm together!

••• Jim Daly is president of Focus on the Family, host of the Focus on the Family radio program, and a husband and father of two. Dr. Juli Slattery is a licensed psychologist, cohost of Focus on the Family, author of several books, and a wife and mother of three. Submit your questions to: FocusOnTheFamily.com.

Copyright 2011 Focus on the Family, Colorado Springs, CO 80995. International copyright secured. All rights reserved. Distributed by Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St. Kansas City, MO 64106; 816-581-7500.

This feature may not be reproduced or distributed electronically, in print or otherwise, without written permission of Focus on the Family.

Brought to you by:

Luck and St. Peter’s Lutheran Churches

Swedish Club meets Feb. 7

AMERY - The Swedish Club meets Tuesday, Feb. 7, at 6:30 p.m. at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church on Deronda Street in Amery.

A film “As It Is In Heaven” will be

shown beginning at 7 p.m. The film is about a successful conductor who gives up big city life and returns to his childhood village to direct a small choir. Semlor buns are featured in the social hour.

Further information at www.foreverswedish.org.

Mark your calendars for the March 6 monthly meeting when the group repeats a hugely successful program. Members,

including the public, are invited to share stories about their Swedish ancestors in the homeland or in America. You can also come to just listen and learn about immigration in Polk County. - submitted

Try our e-edition. Every page in color. www.the-leader.net

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 11

34th-annual Lions ice-fishing contest

Danbury

Mike Johnson, Danbury, received first-place for this bass he caught during the contest on Burlingame Lake near Danbury.

Volunteers weighed fish that were brought to the registration station.

Prizes were given out in four categories: Northern, bass, panfish and horned trout. – Photos by Jake Hunter

Hunter Schaaf pulled in this 7-lbs., 15-oz. northern Saturday, Jan. 28, during the 34th-annual Lions ice-fishing contest held on Burlingame Lake.

Cliff Eberhardt to perform at Festival Theatre

ST. CROIX FALLS - The 2012 Music Series continues at Festival Theatre with legendary singer-songwriter Cliff Eberhardt in concert on Thursday, Feb. 16. This is Eberhardt’s first visit to the historic Civic Auditorium in downtown St. Croix Falls, with the concert starting at 7:30 p.m.

“I was ecstatic to get a call from Cliff’s agent saying that he’d like to perform in our venue,” said Danette Olsen, director at the performing arts center. “Word is getting around the tour circuit that the acoustics in this historic building are superb and that our audiences are really lovely. I think it’s a great sign that musicians are eager to perform here.”

Eberhardt knew by age 7 that he was going to be a singer and songwriter.

Growing up in Berwyn, Pa., he and his brothers sang together and their parents played instruments. His dad introduced him to the guitar and he quickly taught himself to play. Fortunate enough to live close to the Main Point (one of the best folk clubs on the East Coast), he cut his

teeth listening to the likes of James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Bruce Springsteen, Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters, Bonnie Raitt and Mississippi John Hurt — receiving an early and impressive tutorial in acoustic music. At the same time, he was also listening to great pop songwriters like Cole Porter, the Gershwins, and Rodgers and Hart, which explains his penchant for great melodies and clever lyrical twists.

At 15, Eberhardt and his brother Geoff began touring as an acoustic duo, playing the Eastern club circuit until Eberhardt turned 21 and moved to Carbondale, Ill. There he found space to develop his own voice within a vibrant and supportive music scene that included Shawn Colvin.

In 1990, Eberhardt’s song “My Father’s Shoes” appeared on Windham Hill’s Legacy collection, leading to a deal with the label. They released Eberhardt’s first album, “The Long Road” in 1990, a work featuring a duet with Richie Havens. The critical response to this debut was outstanding. The Philadelphia Inquirer called

Legendary singer-songwriter Cliff Eberhardt will perform in concert on Thursday, Feb. 16, during the 2012 Music Series at Festival Theatre. – Photo submitted the album a “repeatedly astounding collection.” He followed with two more records on Windham Hill before releasing “12 Songs of Good and Evil” in 1997 on Red House Records, which stemmed from a chance meeting with Red House founder Bob Feldman at John Gorka’s wedding. Eberhardt recorded two more albums before his critically acclaimed “The High Above and the Down Below,” named the No. 5 album of 2007 by USA Today. Produced by legendary musician and Red House Records president Eric Peltoniemi, it was recorded in Minneapolis with noted jazz players Gordy Johnson, J. T. Bates and Rich Dworsky and was his first album after spending several years

recovering from a car accident. With a new lease on life and a fresh batch of songs, Eberhardt embarked on what has turned out to be an artistic renaissance.

Recorded in the Texas Hill Country, Eberhardt’s new album “500 Miles: The Blue Rock Sessions” may be his finest to date.

The concert is just the second of a dozen events in the 2012 Music Series, all discounted for subscribers (Flex Pass). Single tickets are available by phone at 715-483-3387 or online at festivaltheatre.org. Upcoming concerts include Valentine’s weekend with Girl Singers of the 1950s, Warren Nelson, a Woody Guthrie Tribute concert, and Danny Schmidt and Carrie Elkin. - submitted

PAGE 12 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

Handbell choirs perform at state Capitol

Madison

Frederic’s junior and senior handbell choirs performed in the rotunda at the state Capitol last Wednesday, Jan. 25, from noon to 1 p.m. After the performance the students went on a Capitol tour, and after dinner went to the Overture Center for the Arts for a performance by “the Blue Man Group. Students participating were Chris Hopp, Erik Stoner, Bradley Knauber, Michael Tesch, McKenna Cook, Emily Wells, Cori Schmidt, Lauren Domagala, Kendra Mossey, McKenna Rognrud, Natalie Phernetton and April Halverson. Photos show the group performing in the rotunda, under the direction of Pat Anderson, outside the Capitol and with a “Blue Man” following the Blue Man Group performance. - Special photos

Indianhead Shrine Club holds successful fundraiser

by Noble Milt Helmer Special to the Leader RICE LAKE - Even without the benefit of snow, the Nobles of the Indianhead Shrine Club held a highly successful fundraising event on Saturday, Jan. 21, in Rice Lake.

It was their 17th-annual event and featured 17 riders who, with the lack of snow, decided to spend their time ice fishing.

They had already raised $9,817.86 through pledges and outright donations. The riders were considering a cookout for lunch that day; however, with temperatures several degrees below zero, they were happy to go to the Jim and Delores Beusser home for lunch.

The snowmobilers and the Indianhead Shrine Club members and guests met in the evening at the Lodge in Rice Lake for a meal prepared and served by the Blue Hills Caterers. Chuck Nelson acted as host with Larry Hoyer as master of ceremonies. There were several Zor Shriners in attendance including: past President Kevin Johnson and Janet, Divan Marshal Gary Cuskey, Divan Captain of the Guard Bob Hering, Divan Aide Larry Weigand and Sheila, Ralph and Laurie Thompson and Zor President Larry Riemenschneider and Julie.

Jim Sockness, president of the Indianhead Shrine Club, and several volunteers received the pledges. Pete Schneider, head

Shown (L to R) are Jim Sockness, Gary Cuskey, Zor President Larry Riemenschneider and Larry Hoyer. - Photo by Julianne Riemenschneider of the snowmobilers, thanked the riders for their pledges and also thanked the people who solicited businesses for prizes.

Schneider called the riders forward to receive their prizes in order of top fundraisers. Once again, Jim Ebner took first place, raising $46,555 in the 17 years of the event.

Brent Thunberg, who was a Shrine kid, has raised $14,953 himself since he was a child. The poker run yielded $62 of which half was donated to Indianhead for the Shriners Hospitals for Children - Twin Cities® and the rest went for winning hands.

Riemenschneider presented several awards to people in attendance. Ellwood Thomas received a certificate for 25 years of service as chaplain, and Sockness received a certificate noting his 17 years as chair of the snowmobile event. Riemenschneider also presented certificates of achievement to all 17 members of the club for their dedicated effort.

Unique this year, seven employees of Kohl’s in Rice Lake each donated three hours of service to the dinner under the Kohl’s CARES program. They took care of coats and hats as guests arrived, helped serve the meal and carry plates to those who needed help and cleaned up afterward. Kohl’s then donated $500 to the Indianhead Shrine Club for the Shriners Hospitals for Children - Twin Cities®. Alyssa Berschneider, one of Kohl’s employees, told the group that her brother Zach was born with a clubfoot.

Now 19, Zach was cared for from infancy at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Twin Cities®.

Alyssa’s father Barry Berschneider also attended the event and couldn’t say enough good things about the hospital.

He was pleased to learn about the followup program for kids over age 21 who continue therapy at the Gillette Hospital and at Stillwater.

Mina Copeland Head Start at Fur, Fins and Feathers

The children from Mina Copeland Head Start recently took a trip to the sports center to learn more about the tools used for ice fishing. They were able to see all of the mounts, explore the minnows and watch people shoot bow and arrow. The center is now taking applications for the fall school year. Children must be 3 by Sept. 1. For more information please call 715-866-4867. – Photos submitted

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 13

Barbershop performers sing their gratitude at annual Ladies Night dinner DRESSER – On Saturday, Jan. 28, the Indianhead Barbershop Chorus had its annual Ladies Night at the Village Pizzeria in Dresser. The night is a thank-you to their gals who support them throughout the year in their musical hobby, which is a big commitment that includes practicing every Monday night and singing at concerts. Also on the agenda were the installation of new officers and presenting of awards.

President Mark Nelson presented honorariums to directors Steve Swenson and Karl Wicklund, and last year’s Barbershopper of the Year, Steve Osero, crowned this year’s recipient, Ken Mettler. Mettler was recognized for his perfect attendance, leadership in the chapter and district, and ticket sales to events.

Entertainment for the evening was provided by the Very Large Quartet, the

Chariot Quartet, the Bright Knights and the whole Indianhead Chorus.

Anyone interested in singing four-part harmony is welcome to a chorus practice any Monday night at 7:30 p.m. in the lower level of the old courthouse building on the northeast corner of CTH I and Hwy. 46 in Balsam Lake. Check out the chorus at www.indianheadchorus.org or call 715-483-9202 for more information. – Jean Koelz, with submitted information

Ken Mettler, named Indianhead Chorus’ Barbershopper of the Year, is pictured here (center) with last year’s winner Steve Osero (left) and Tyler Smith, representing the Land O’ Lakes District. - Special photo

Unity athletes show appreciation for educators, mentors

Unity athletes on the boys and girls basketball, wrestling and dance teams extended gratitude to the educators and mentors of their choice during the break between girls and boys basketball games on Friday, Jan. 20, at Unity High School. At least 52 athletes chose the educators and mentors that have made a difference in their lives in their own special way. – Photo by Marty Seeger

Friendly Twirlers Square Dance Club graduated seven students

Friendly Twirlers Square Dance Club graduated seven students on Wednesday, Jan. 25. They are (L to R): Instructor Jim Heinz; students, Dennis Brown, Larry French, Kathy French, Paul Manoppo, Dick Berlow, Bev Cree, Paula Maslow and President Denise Heinz. Lessons will start again Wednesday, Sept. 5, at Luck High School, every Wednesday through January. They hope to see you in a square. – Photo submitted

Siren Elementary School's perfect attendance Prekindergarten Samantha Andrea, AnnaDora Dorn, Leland Erichsen, Sarah Imhoff, Jazzlynn Iverson, Mikayla Johnson, Hudsyn McKnight, Dominic Spafford and Taylor Winberg.

Kindergarten Paige Balluff, Jordyn Hagert and Jaclyn Stuart.

First grade Nathan Aubert, Christian Brown, Rebekah Dugger, Mackenzie Hicks, Lilly Johnson, Lindsay Liljenberg, Lola Porter and Anna Schultz.

Second grade Emma Aubert, Dillon Buskirk, Josie Hagert, Navalya Hammond, Rylee Nelson and Macy Tollander.

Third grade Hailie Balluff, Nathan Curry, Casey Goranson, Brady Kosloski, Hannah Lemieux, Jeramiah Liljenberg, McCoy Maslow and Jalynn Nelson.

Fourth grade Gavyn Anton, Bryan Corbine, Mitchell Daniels, Cordell Fischer, Terrell Johnson, Anna Peach, Justin Phernetton, Destini Swanson and Kathryn Taylor.

Fifth grade Elicia Emery, Derek Highstrom, Cassandra Maslow, Paetyn McKnight, Devin Rand, Tyler Swanson and Silas Vasatka.

Sixth grade Eric Bruss, Abby Kosloski, Benjamin Lemieux and Leigha Priske-Olson.

PAGE 14 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

Coon Lake Classic Ice-Fishing Tournament

A group of anglers gather on Coon Lake in Frederic to escape the cold on an otherwise beautiful day on Saturday, Jan. 28.

Frederic

The Luck and Frederic softball players and volunteers helped at the registration station on Saturday, Jan. 28, during the Coon Lake Classic in Frederic.

At least 200 registered anglers and 300 people packed Coon Lake in Frederic for the Coon Lake Classic last weekend.

Luck and Frederic will be combining softball teams this spring, and they teamed up last Saturday, Jan. 28, for the Coon Lake Classic Ice-Fishing Tournament in Frederic. Over 200 anglers registered for the tournament and roughly 300 people showed their support. At least $2,500 was raised to provide new team uniforms for the co-op team this spring, which was more than the projected fundraising goal. The head coach of the spring softball team is Erin Hansford of Frederic, along with JV coach Megan Challoner of Luck. Some of the members of the softball team are pictured front row (L to R): Avery Steen and Jaimee Buck. Back row: Lara Harlander, Mya Rivera, Corissa Schmidt, Emily Byerly, Maria Miller, Camille Marsten and Samantha Harvey. – Photos submitted

Of the over 200 anglers who registered for the Coon Lake Classic softball fundraiser in Frederic on Saturday, Jan. 28, there were over 60 door-prize winners. Organizers extend gratitude to the many local Frederic and Luck businesses that donated items to make the event so successful. Winners at the tournament included back row, (L to R): Andy Dahlberg (ice shack), John Allee (Super Bowl football), Guy Gullitzer (second-place panfish), Mark Siebenthal (fish camera) and Corissa Schmidt (electric ice auger). Front row: Alex Rowe (third-place northern), Mario Battisti (second-place northern), Brody Measner (first-place northern), Randi Goebel (first-place panfish) and Jason Goebel (third-place panfish).

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 15

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Elderly, disabled among those learning about new ID requirement

by Patty Murray

Wisconsin Public Radio

STATEWIDE - Wisconsin’s Government Accountability Board is working to educate people about the state’s new Voter ID Law. Employees are traveling around the state answering questions about the law and are especially targeting the elderly or disabled.

Beginning in April, voters will have to present a valid photo identification card.

But just what qualifies as “valid” is unclear

to some. Molly Meyer of Green Bay came to a presentation this week at the Brown County library, “There’s a great deal of confusion about what they need or don’t need. I want to get it from the horse’s mouth.”

The “horse” in this case is David Burger, an elections specialist with the Government Accountability Board. He says most people will present a Wisconsin driver’s license or state ID. College ID or those issued by the military are also accepted, but

not a high school ID. Burger says the GAB is getting a lot of questions from the elderly and disabled, “They’re the ones that have more trouble getting around, getting to the DMV to get an ID card. We also get a lot of adult children that are calling on behalf of elderly parents making sure everything is squared away for them.”

That’s what brought Noel Hansen to the event. His 85-year-old mother is in a nursing home and can’t travel, “She definitely wants to vote. Her mind is OK, it’s her

body that’s failing. So she wants to vote, she’s always been active just like me, we were raised that not only do you have a right but a duty to vote.”

Even though there’s confusion in some quarters, a new poll shows there’s also support for the ID requirement. Marquette University Law School found more than two-thirds of respondents are in favor of the law.

Call for less partisanship in Wisconsin's redistricting procress

by Gilman Halsted

Wisconsin Public Radio MADISON - A UW-Madison political scientist is urging state legislators to take partisanship out of the state’s redistricting process to avoid costly and time-consuming lawsuits. Wisconsin’s redistricting plan is tied up in both federal and state court now with both Democrats and Republicans arguing about both its fairness and its timing. Barry Burden says there’s a way to prevent this costly bickering before

the next redistricting battle 10 years from now, “I would favor taking control away from the Legislature and the governor for redistricting, giving it to a professional nonpartisan body with professional permanent staff removed as far away as possible from political influence.” Burden says that approach has worked in Iowa since the 1980s where there have been no redistricting lawsuits since the state Legislative Service Bureau was given the task of drawing new voting district lines after each na-

tional census. Democratic state Sen. Tim Cullen agrees, he’s working on a plan now with Republican Sen. Dale Schultz, but he says it doesn’t make sense to try to pass it until after the 2012 election cycle, “We’re first of all trying to fight the fight that we should take it out of the Legislature. The next two-year session is probably the ripest time to do it. It’s not going to be this spring.

We’ve got to convince people that this is best thing to do. It’s hard to image that we could settle on a system that is worse than

the one we have.“ Supporters of reforming the system say the current approach allows the party in power to draw lines that favor their candidates and often ignore traditional neighborhood, city and county boundaries. They say legislators will be more likely to support a change in an offelection year well before the next census in 2020.

CLIP & SAVE

EVERY MON. Amery Senior Center

EVERY TUES.

EVERY WED.

• Wii golf, 9 a.m.

Frederic Senior Center • Spades, 1 p.m.

Luck Senior Center Siren Senior Center 715-349-7810

St. Croix Falls Senior Center

EVERY THURS.

EVERY FRI.

EVERY SAT.

Overeaters Anonymous, 6:30 p.m., 715-268-6605 • Pokeno, 1 p.m.

• 500, 6:30 p.m.

• Open 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m.

• Open 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m.

• Open 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m.

• Dime Bingo, 1 p.m.

• Monthly Senior Meeting, 3rd Tues.

• Exercise, 10-11 a.m.

• Skip-Bo, 11 a.m.-Noon • 500 Cards & Dominoes, 12:30-4 p.m.

• Cribbage, a.m.

• 500 Cards, 1 p.m.,

• Dining at 5, Every 1st Thursday

• Spades, 1 p.m.,

•!Exercise, 10-11 a.m.

•!Skip-Bo, 11 a.m.-Noon • 500, 6:30-10 p.m.

• Bridge, 10 a.m.-Noon • Bingo, 1st & 3rd Friday, 1-3 p.m.

Webster Senior Center

• AA Meeting, 7 p.m.

• Senior Monthly Meeting, 3rd Tues.

• Men’s Wii Bowling, 9:30 a.m.

• Dime Bingo, 12:30 p.m.

• Mixed Wii Bowling, 9:30 a.m.

• Cards & Pool, 1 p.m.

Food Shelf

• Ruby’s, Siren, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

• SCF, 1-4 p.m., 715-483-2920

• Frederic, 9 a.m.-1 p.m., 715-327-4425 • SCF, 9 a.m.-Noon

• SCF, Noon-6 p.m.

•!Ruby’s, Siren, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

• Frederic, 2-6 p.m.

• SCF, 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

• Siren VFW Aux., 2nd Wed., the hall, 7:30 p.m.

• Frederic Legion Aux. 249 Every 3rd Thurs., Golden Oaks, 7 p.m.

•!Pokeno, 1 p.m.

• Bingo, 1 p.m., starting Jan. 7.

715-866-5300

VFW Aux./Legion Aux.

EVERY MON. TOPS

• Good Sam, St. Croix Falls, 5:45 p.m., 715-483-3666

EVERY TUES. • Webster Lioness At Last Call, 6 p.m.

Meat Raffles

EVERY WED.

• Webster Chamber At The Tap, 5:30 p.m.

EVERY MON. •!First Baptist Church, Webster, 9:30 a.m., 715-349-2332

EVERY THURS. • Cushing Legion At Suzy Q’s, 6 p.m.

• Siren Lions At Midtown Tavern, 5 p.m.

• Danbury Fire & Lions Club, Yellow River Saloon, 5:30 p.m.

EVERY TUES. •!Luck Senior Center, 5:30 p.m., 715-472-2341 • Balsam Lake Municipal Building, 3:45 p.m., 715-485-3002

EVERY FRI. • Fishbowl Sportsmen’s Club At Sweeny’s Bar, 5 p.m.

• Snowciables At Thirsty Otter, 6 p.m.

• Grantsburg Legion, 6:30 p.m.

• Humane Society, Yellow River Saloon, 5 p.m.

• Hockey Assoc., Dreamers, 6:30 p.m.

• BYHA Hockey At Zia Louisa, 6 p.m.

EVERY TUES. • Trinity Lutheran Church, Osceola, 8:30 a.m., 715-755-3123

EVERY FRI. • Siren Lions At Jed’s Laker Lounge, 5 p.m.

• Lake Country Riders At The Pour House, 5:30 p.m.

• Webster Lions At Gandy Dancer Saloon, 4:30 p.m.

• S.N.O.W.S., Skol Bar, Frederic, 5:30 p.m.

•!Ruby’s, Siren, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

EVERY WED. •!Comforts of Home, Frederic, 5:30 p.m., 715-327-8063

EVERY SAT. • YLRA At Yellow Lake Lodge, Webster, 3-5 p.m.

• Ruby’s Pantry & Moose Lodge At Robert’s Road House, 4 p.m.

• Wild About Education At Wild Waters, Danbury, 5 p.m.

• Frederic, 9 a.m.-Noon

EVERY THURS. •!Overeaters Anonymous, Amery Senior Center, 6:30 p.m., 715-268-6605

EVERY SUN. • Wonderland At Yellow Lake Golf Course, 4 p.m.

PAGE 22 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

ENTERTAINMENT AND EVENTS

CONSTRUCTION, REMODELING, WINDOWS

I & H Beams $3/ft & up.

NEW-USED & SURPLUS. Pipe-Plate-Channel-AngleTube-ReBar-Grating-Exp a n d e d - O R N A M E N TA L STAINLESS STEEL-ALUMINUM. 12 acres of usable items PAL STEEL Company Palmyra WI 262-495-4453

FOR SALE MISCELLANEOUS

Brand NEW! Sofa & Love Seat $540, Full/Queen Bedroom Set $399. Delivery available. Call Janet at 715456-2907 www.cvfd.gbiz (Eau Claire) (CNOW) ALL NEW! Quality Mattresses— Twin sets $79, Full sets $145, Queen sets $165, King sets $225. Furniture too!

Call Janet at (715) 456-2907 www.cvfd.biz Eau Claire.

(CNOW)

HELP WANTED MISCELLANEOUS

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Regional Runs, Steady Miles, Frequent Hometime, New Equipment.

Automatic Detention Pay! CDL-A, 6 mo. Experience required. EEOE/AAP 866-3224039 www.drive4Marten. com (CNOW)

HELP WANTED TRUCK DRIVER

Driver-Weekly Hometime.

Dry and Refrigerated. Daily Pay! 31 Service centers.

Local Orientation. New trucks. CDL-A, 3 months current OTR experience. 800414-9569 www.driveknight. com (CNOW) Seeking class A CDL drivers to run 14 central states. 2 years over the road experience required. Excellent benefit package.

Call 701-221-2465 or 877-4729534. www.pbtransportation.com

Class A Regional/OTR Drivers: min. 1yr exp 23yrs-old.

Quality Hometime, Top Pay, Benefits. Hiring students: Fox Valley Tech, Waukesha Tech, Chippewa Valley Tech 800333-9291 www.veriha.com (CNOW)

MISCELLANEOUS

Sell your products and services with a 25 word classified ad placed in 180 newspapers in Wisconsin for $300. Call 800-227-7636 or this newspaper. www.cnaads.com (CNOW)

RED GREEN LIVE Experience this hilarious one-man show. Sat., May 5th, 7pm, Barrymmore Theatre, Madison (608-241-8633); Sun. May 6th, 7pm, Walter Theatre, DePere (920-403-3950) www.redgreen.com (CNOW)

Follow the Leader

WANT ADS Public Auction: Monday, Feb., 13, 2012. Luck Mini Storage, Luck, WI. 1-800236-3072 at 9 a.m. Personal effects, household goods and misc. items belonging to the following, Kim Braman LK27.

24-25Lc Public Auction: Monday, Feb., 13, 2012. Frederic Mini Storage, Frederic, WI. 1-800236-3072 at 10 a.m. Personal effects, household goods and misc. items belonging to the following, Alan Huro FR52. 24-25Lc Public Auction: Monday, Feb., 13, 2012. Siren Mini Storage, Siren, WI. 1-800236-3072 at 11:15 a.m. Personal effects, household goods and misc. items belonging to the following, Amy Mangelsen SN21 and Rosie Mulroy SN18. 24-25 Lc

www.the-leader.net

Sign up for e-mails of breaking local news @

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FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 23

Students of the Week GRANTSBURG

FREDERIC

Jacob Erickson has been chosen Frederic Elementary School’s student of the week. He is in kindergarten and the son of David and Kerrie Erickson. Jacob is a great student who loves to help out. He is a great role model and a pleasure to have in class. He enjoys playing basketball and soccer. His favorite subject is phy ed. When he grows up he wants to play football.

Jasmine Marcyan has been chosen Frederic Middle School’s student of the week. She is in sixth grade and the daughter of Nichole Pettis and Erye DeMarre. Jasmine is involved in band. She is trustworthy, honest and getting better at her grades. She enjoys hanging out with Ryan when they go four-wheeling. She plans to go to a nice college and find a good job. Her greatest influence in her life is her aunt Tina.

Victor Hulteen has been chosen Frederic High School’s student of the week. He is a sophomore and the son of John Hulteen. Victor is involved in FFA. He enjoys drawing, going on the computer and doing homework. He gets along with people, is artistic, takes initiative and is fun to be around. He plans to go to college to become a designer. His greatest influence in his life is his brother.

Anthony Simmons has been chosen Grantsburg Elementary School’s student of the week. He is in third grade and the son of Aaron Simmons and Shelly Nelson. Anthony always has a positive attitude. In phy ed, he always is hardworking and having fun.

He encourages and helps others.

His favorite subject is phy ed. He likes to be active. Anthony loves to draw and plays lots of sports.

Hockey is his favorite right now.

LUCK

Brayden Eder has been chosen Luck Elementary School’s student of the week. Brayden likes the Green Bay Packers, the Wisconsin Badgers and the Luck Cardinals. He is good in math and reading and is always nice and helpful to others. He has a little sister. He likes to play football, basketball and baseball. Brayden plays on T-ball and soccer teams after school.

Sydney Paulson has been chosen Luck Middle School’s student of the week. She is in seventh grade and the daughter of Jodi and David Christensen and Ken Paulson. Sydney is a great leader who also displays good sportsmanship. She is involved in choir, band, solo/ensemble, volleyball manager, basketball and softball. She enjoys spending time with family and friends, shooting bow and shopping. Her greatest influence is her mom.

Jordyn McKenzie has been Grantsburg Middle chosen School’s student of the week.

She is in seventh grade and the daughter of Jim and Julie McKenzie. Jordyn always gives 110 percent in everything she does. She is positive and hardworking. Her favorite classes are math and gym. She is very active in sports such as basketball and volleyball. She enjoys participating in choir and is active in her church.

Samantha Scribner has been chosen Grantsburg High School’s student of the week. She is a senior and the daughter of Blake and Shelley Scribner. She is VP of AODA, VP of FCCLA, a member of Link group, International Club and library club. She enjoys reading, writing, playing with little kids and getting involved in any and all elementary school programs. She is not afraid to be herself. She is a unique individual who is intelligent, friendly and helpful.

ST. CROIX FALLS

Michelle Tomlinson has been chosen Luck High School’s student of the week. She is a senior and the daughter of Don and Marianne Tomlinson. Michelle is a hard worker and always has a smile on her face. She is involved in FCCLA, AODA, dance, iceskating and softball. She works at the Luck-E. She enjoys Zumba, scrapbooking, cooking, jet skiing, snowboarding, decorating and sleeping. She plans to attend Aveda for cosmetology.

Alexie Koran has been chosen St. Croix Falls Elementary School’s student of the week.

She is daughter of Gene Schuldt and Elizabeth Hays. She has two older sisters. At school, Alexie loves to play with her friends. Her favorite thing to do at home is play dolls with her sisters. Alexie would like to be a teacher when she grows up. She is a sweet and caring student.

CORRECTION: Coltyn Doolittle has been chosen St. Croix Falls Elementary School’s student of the week. He is in fourth grade.

He lives at home with his mom and stepdad and an older brother. At home he likes to play video games. He loves when his mother makes hotdish. At school Coltyn loves to read. When he grows up he wants to be an engineer who designs cars. Coltyn has read almost every book on cars in the school library.

Thea Erickson has been chosen St. Croix Falls High School’s student of the week. She is a freshman and the daughter of Donald and Jennifer Erickson. Thea likes listening to music, watching movies and hanging out with friends. She is involved in FFA and softball.

WEBSTER

Congratulations students on a job well done

Alex Schaaf has been chosen Webster Middle School’s student of the week. He is in seventh grade and the son of Glen Schaaf. Alex is a positive student. He loves to joke around or make people laugh. Alex has a unique hobby of going to flea markets. Not only does he sell things but he likes to collect old knives, Coke memorabilia and both old and new video games.

He likes spending time with his family.

Sarah Thielke has been chosen Webster High School’s student of the week. She is a sophomore and the daughter of Jeff and Patty Thielke. Sarah is an intelligent and witty student that has the ability to relate well to her peers and staff.

She is involved in the business club, volleyball and track. She enjoys photography, reading and writing. She is an excellent writer, shows wonderful sportsmanship and has a unique personality that makes the classroom enjoyable.

UNITY

Mason Schleusner has been chosen Unity Elementary School’s student of the week. He is in third grade and the son of Mella and Mike Schleusner.

Mason is an excellent student.

He sets a great example for his peers. He always has a positive attitude and tries his best. He enjoys reading, hanging out with his friends, playing kickball, basketball and video games.

Chase Kern has been chosen Unity Middle School’s student of the week. He is in fifth grade and the son of Nora and Richard Kern. Chase is a great kid and works hard. He has a positive attitude and is friendly. He is an absolute gentleman and respectful, he sets an example that is worth following.

Kennedy Olson has been chosen Unity High School’s student of the week. She is a sophomore and the daughter of Erica and Lenny Olson.

Kennedy enjoys hanging out with friends, baking and swimming. She is involved in volleyball and softball.

Her favorite subject is algebra. After high school she plans to attend college. She resides in Milltown.

PAGE 24 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - FEBRUARY 1, 2012

Coming events

Happenings in the Upper St. Croix Valley communities

FEBRUARY

• Mike & Doug evening of music and fun at Balsam Lutheran Church at 7 p.m., 715-268-9291.

Grantsburg

THURSDAY/2

• Guided snowshoe hike at Crex Meadows. Please preregister. 1 p.m., 715-463-2739.

• Christian Outdoor Club meeting. For more info, call 715-488-2456.

Siren

• Tax help at the senior center, 715-349-7810.

THURS. & FRI./2 & 3

Indian Creek

Grantsburg

• Indoor ice-fishing contest at the tavern, 2-6 p.m., 715653-2671.

FRI. - SUN./3 - 5

• Lions Club breakfast at the school cafeteria, 7-11 a.m.

• Winterfest: Sat. booya & ice drags; helicopter rides; kids games; ice-fishing contest; more. Sun. Polk County Sportsmen’s Club co-ed softball on the ice, 715-790-8939, www.balsamlake.cc.com.

• Burnett Medical Center Foundation’s Valentine’s Banquet at the Lakeview Event Center. Social hour 5:30 p.m., dinner 6:30 p.m.

• AARP tax help at the library. Call for appointment, 715463-2244.

Luck

Balsam Lake

Siren

St. Croix Falls

FRIDAY/3

• Hingepoint meeting for men battling sexual addictions, at River Valley Christian Church, 9 a.m.-noon, 715483-5378.

• “Hopelessly Romatic Valentines program at Festival Theatre, 7:30 p.m., www.festivaltheatre.org.

• Candlelight Night at the Interstate Park, 6-9 p.m., 715483-3747.

• Friends of the Library meeting at the library, 9 a.m., 715-483-1777.

Frederic

• AARP tax help at the library. Call for appointment.

1-4 p.m., 715-327-4979.

• Booster Club chili dinner at the high school, 57:30 p.m.

SATURDAY/4 Amery

Taylors Falls, Minn.

• Lions Club ice-fishing contest on Lake Wapogasset, 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

• Paul Cebar Tomorrow Sound Fundraiser for Lamar & Frederic Arts at the depot, 8-11 p.m., www.lamarcommunity.org.

Clayton

• Lake Magnor Store scoring event, 8 a.m.-4 p.m., 715948-2935.

Danbury

• Ruby’s Pantry at the town maintenance shop, $15 donation. Open 9:30 a.m., distribution 10-11:30 a.m.

Grantsburg

• Feed My Sheep at Grace Church in Grantsburg. Doors open 8 a.m., distribution 9 a.m., 715-463-5699.

• Candlelight Night on the trail at Crex Meadows, walk, ski or snowshoe, 6-8 p.m., 715-463-2739.

Lewis

• Lewis Jam - Bluegrass, gospel & country music at Lewis United Methodist Church, 6-9 p.m.

Luck

• Bon Ton’s ice-fishing contest, 715-472-2959.

Never mind the lack of snow thus far this winter, there’s still plenty of winter fun to be had.

These boys were among more than 30 kids who took part in the sled races that were held on Big Doctor Lake near Siren. - Photo by Tracy Green

Osceola

• Transition Resource Fair at the high school, 6-8 p.m., 715-246-4778.

Siren

• Tax help at the senior center, 715-349-7810.

TUESDAY/7 Amery

Siren

• Cardiac support group at the medical center, 1 p.m., 715-268-0291.

• Swedish Club meets at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, 6:30 p.m., www.foreverswedish.org.

St. Croix Falls

Clam Falls

• Gun show at Lakeview Event Center, 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m., 715-653-2271, 715-327-8951.

• Making mittens from recycled sweaters class at the library, 10-11:30 a.m.

• Taylor Orton’s winter bazaar at the senior center, 8 a.m., 715-483-3979 or 715-483-3466.

Webb Lake

• Men’s club-sponsored ice-fishing contest on Lower Webb Lake at Oak Ridge Inn, 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m., 715-2597927.

SUNDAY/5 St. Croix Falls

• Benefit for “Punkie” Puffer at St. Croix Tavern, noon, 715-483-5825.

MONDAY/6 Clear Lake

• Compassionate Friends, Tri-County Chapter, grief support in death of a child, at First Lutheran, 7 p.m., 715263-2739.

Grantsburg

• Auditions for PFCT’s “Jack and the Beanstalk” at the H.S., 3:30-5 p.m., 715-463-5165, Ext. 160.

• Coffee hour at the Clam Falls Lutheran Church, 9 a.m.

St. Croix Falls

• Scholarship fundraiser chili cook-off at the high school, 5-7:30 p.m., 715-483-9469.

THURS. & FRI./9 & 10 Grantsburg

• AARP tax help at the library. Call for appointment, 715463-2244.

St. Croix Falls

• “My Antonia” at Festival Theatre. Thurs. 2 and 7:30 p.m., Fri. 7:30 p.m., 715-483-3387, festivaltheatre.org.

THURSDAY/9 Baldwin

• St. Croix Valley Beekeepers meeting at Peace Lutheran Church, 7 p.m., www.stcroixbeekeepers.com.

Frederic

• Frederic’s Got Talent at the elementary school, 7 p.m., FredericArts.org.

Luck

ONGOING Every Day

AA &/or AlAnon, Polk & Burnett counties, 715-931-8262 for time/location. Amery, 715-268-8431.

• Scholarship fundraiser lasagna supper & raffle at the school, 5-7:30 p.m.

• Bingo at the Lions Hall, 5:30-8 p.m.

Divorce care support group at Apple River Community Church, 715-268-8360, 715-268-2176.

Siren

Indianhead Barbershop Chorus meets at the Balsam Lake Government Center, 7:30 p.m., 715-483-9202.

Baby and Me class - Amery Medical Center, 1-2 p.m.

Grief Share support group at Centennial Hall, Amery, 715-268-2176 or 715-268-8360.

Moms In Touch International, First Baptist, Amery, 2 - 3 p.m., 715-268-5408, www.momsintouch.com

• Tax help at the senior center, 715-349-7810.

THURS.-SUN./9 & 12 Luck

• Winter Carnival. Fri. pageant 7 p.m., Sat. radar run 10 a.m., parade 7 p.m., Sun. ice fishing 8 a.m.

FRI. & SAT./10 & 11 Grantsburg

• PFCT’s “Jack and the Beanstalk” at H.S. Sat. 7 p.m.; Sun. 2 p.m., 715-463-5165, Ext. 160.

FRIDAY/10 Frederic

• Northwest Regional Writers meeting at Sunrise Apts., 1-3 p.m. Contact 715-349-2291.

• AARP tax help at the library. Call for appointment.

1-4 p.m., 715-327-4979.

Siren

• Siren Covenant Women’s annual “chocolate affair” at Bremer Bank and U.S. Bank, 9 a.m. till sold out.

Spooner

• Raising Backyard Pigs seminar at Ag Research Station, 10:30 a.m., 715-635-3506 or 800-528-1914.

SATURDAY/11 Amery

• Ruby’s Pantry at Congregational Church. Doors open 8:30 a.m. Dist. 9 a.m., $15 donation, 715-268-7390.

Every Monday

Partners of Veterans women’s support group, Counseling Associates, Siren, 1-2:30 p.m., 715-349-8575.

Every Tuesday

Bingo - Burnett County Moose Lodge, Siren, 6 p.m.

Survivors of domestic violence & sexual assault support group, Polk Co., 800-261-7233, 6-7:30 p.m.

Anger management group at Amery Regional Medical Center, 6:30-8:30 p.m., 715-268-4094.

Every Wednesday

Women of Hope, cancer support group, at SCRMC, 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m., 715-483-0431.

Starting Feb. 8: Free playtime with your toddler at Our Lady of the Lakes Catholic Church, 10-11:30 a.m., 715-557-0630.

Every Thursday

Breastfeeding support group at the St. Croix Regional Medical Center, 2-3:30 p.m., 715-483-0431.

Narcotics Anonymous meets at the Serenity House (old jail), Balsam Lake, 7 p.m., 612-205-2321.

Every Saturday

AA meets at the West Denmark Lutheran Church, rural Luck, 9 - 10 a.m.

Open skate at The Lodge Center Arena, Visit the Web site: burnettyouthhockey.com for special times.

Every Sunday

Open skate at Grantsburg Hockey Rink, 4-7 p.m.

Lasagna supper and raffle on Feb. 9 for Luck scholarship fundraiser LUCK – The annual lasagna supper and raffle will be held Thursday, Feb. 9, from 5 - 7:30 p.m., at the Luck School cafeteria, followed by Luck-Frederic doubleheader basketball. The meal sponsored by Frederic Larsen Auto Center.

Winners of the scholarship raffle will be drawn at halftime during the boys varsity game. Winners do not have to be present. Seniors are selling tickets through Feb. 6. Prizes include a cabinthemed quilt from Christmas Valley Quilting; a custom, insulated doghouse

by Herschel Brown; a wildlife watercolor from artist Vivian Byl; a two-week certificate from Burning River Farm CSA for certified naturally grown produce; and four certificates for full rounds of golf, including a cart, from Luck Golf Luck School seniors proudly show off and extend gratitude for some of the items to be raffled on Course. Additional prizes include a $25 Thursday, Feb. 9, to raise funds for their continuing education scholarships. The prizes showcase Natural Alternative Food Co-op certifithe variety of talent in the community, which includes a lap quilt, custom doghouse, watercolor paint- cate; two $20 Lucky Bucks certificates valid at 40-plus local businesses; three ing and four pints of maple syrup. - Special photo

$15 Fibre Functions Yarn certificates donated by Audrey Anderson, and four one-pint jars of pure maple syrup by Duane and Lynn Lindh.

All proceeds from the lasagna supper and raffle go to the Luck Community Graduate Fund, which awards $150 to each Luck graduate for continuing education expenses. Graduates have up to three years to request this scholarship.

Graduates who serve in the military have an additional three years to request their scholarship following their discharge.

To give additional support to Luck School graduates or to sell raffle tickets, please call Luck Community Education at 715-472-2152, Ext. 103 or e-mail director Amy Aguado at amya@lucksd.k12.wi.us. – submitted

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 25

2012 Destination Wedding Fair

Siren

Everything you could want for your wedding day can be found in Siren

by Jean Koelz Leader staff writer SIREN—Hundreds of guests took in the sights, sounds and tastes of what makes a dream wedding at the 2012 Siren Destination Wedding Fair held at the Lakeview Event Center on Sunday, Jan. 29. Brides and bride wanna-bes brought their friends, families and even their grooms to the fair to gather information and get ideas as they plan for their big day.

The fair included a wide range of local suppliers for all the wedding-related businesses you might expect: hotels, caterers, photographers, florists, and dress shops.

But there were a number of other businesses, too, representing physical fitness, beauty products, jewelry and entertainment.

The annual wedding fair is sponsored by the Siren Chamber of Commerce, and Executive Director Chris Moeller was at the front door to greet every visitor.

Guests were given information bags and were encouraged to register to win prizes.

There was a special prize basket for the brides valued at $500. Many of the booths also featured drawings for prizes that included everything from T-shirts and picture frames to a $500 travel voucher and generous discounts on rentals or services.

Event organizers used the front room to inspire and educate attendees. A number of tables were set to give décor and centerpiece ideas. And periodic presentations on food and beverage ideas, floral

Many exhibitors commented that guests seemed enthusiastic, taking the time to talk and gather information. – Photos by Mackenzie Koelz design and planning the ceremony were made by some of the exhibitors. The larger ballroom was filled with exhibitors who transformed their booth spaces into miniature versions of their stores, providing ideas at every price point.

No one left hungry. Adventures Restaurant in Siren passed hors d’oeuvres and handed out cookies; Kelli’s Catering in Grantsburg served up a mini turkey din-

ner; and the new culinary team at Northwoods Event Center and Rumors Restaurant—Chef Jorge Sanchez and wife Barbara Krause—offered samples of some of the items you might find in one of the customized menus they develop for catered events. (Rumors was also promoting the upcoming introduction of its new menu, which owner Lisa Hobbie says will be available by Valentine’s Day.) Exhibitors were pleased, saying that visitors seemed enthusiastic and willing to take more time to engage in conversations and gather information. The Gallery Gift and Floral owner Debbie Rufsholm explained that the day isn’t about actually making any decisions right then, so she encourages brides to come to her shop where they can get more individualized attention or just spend some time in her consultation room looking over photos

Visitors could enjoy a cupcake at this booth, featuring distinctive cakes from Jan's Custom Cakes in Turtle Lake. and design ideas.

Juli Kannenburg, owner of Adventures Restaurant and veteran wedding caterer, added that for most brides, the big decisions may have already been made. She uses the show as an opportunity to coach brides regarding food-service ideas they may not have considered. These include all the other points throughout the wedding process where food might be served, including daytime snacks for the wedding party, late-night snacks for overnight guests, and day-after meals for out-oftown visitors.

At the close of the event, Moeller was pleased. “This year we had more vendors and a bigger turnout; I’ve heard really positive comments from attendees.”

The Gallery Gift and Floral in Siren featured a number of highly creative and colorful floral arrangements, along with other decorating and gift ideas.

Wedding dresses lent by local individuals provided both something old and something borrowed for the event.

This elegant floral display was provided by The Rose Garden Floral and Greenhouse in Frederic.

Peggy Strabel talks with a guest about the wide variety of dresses, accessories and gifts Tablescapes like this one done by the Lakeview Event Center helped brides get ideas for reavailable at Peggy's Fashion Rack in Siren. ception themes and decor.