W E D N E S D AY, J A N U A RY 2 , 2 0 0 8 • V O L U M E 7 5 • N O . 1 9 • 8 , 0 0 0 C O P I E S • S E C T I O N A
WEEKEND WATCH: • Congressman Dave Obey @ Amery and Siren • Snowmobile safety course @ Luck • Photo exhibit @ Amery • Silen Messengers @ Siren • Musical auditions @ Siren • See Coming events and stories
INSIDE
Rescue of horses from icy swamp a group effort
Leader INTER-COUNTY
the-leader
Serving Northwest Wisconsin
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Revised tax statements out Nissen corrects problem in a week PAGE 3 Semper fi siblings
One horse remains missing PAGE 5
Court enters not guilty pleas Former teachers aide accused of having sex with student stands mute
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Preliminary agreement reached in hangar lease dispute PAGE 8
A citizen’s guide to the caucuses PAGE 3
Obey secures funds for SCFalls PAGE 7
Top 10 local stories of 2007 PAGE 8
Jane and Steve Cooper, rural Frederic, are feeling very proud. Jane’s sons, Sam and Aaron Kackman, have just graduated from the Marine Corps basic training and are off for further training this week after a Christmas at home. The brothers, 21-year-old Sam and 19-year-old Aaron, joined the Marines under the Buddy Program. That program allows recruits to join together, go through training together and often serve together. Sam and Aaron say they both will receive training in aviation mechanics and hope to specialize in helicopter repairs. They will probably head overseas later this year after more schooling, to start their nine years of service in the Marines, including five years of active duty. The brothers say they were inspired to join the Marines by the example of their stepfather, Steve Cooper, who served 20 years in the Corps, retiring as a master sergeant. Their mother, Jane Cooper, is the administrative assistant in the Polk County Human Services Department. Shown above are Aaron and Sam Kackman, their mother, Jane Cooper and stepfather, Steve Cooper. - Photo submitted
New Year brings new tax increases
STATEWIDE - Buying cigarettes, owning a car or holding a driver’s license in Wisconsin became more expensive Jan. 1. Wisconsin’s tobacco tax went up by a full dollar per pack at the start of the new year. That will make the total state tax on a pack of cigarettes $1.77, the 12th- highest tobacco tax in the nation according to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids. Gov. Jim Doyle championed the cigarette tax increase as a way to get smokers to quit, and keep kids from ever starting. It will
CURRENTS FEAURE
also be used to help pay the state’s bills. The tax is expected to bring in more than $150 million in just the first half of this year. Lawmakers and the governor decided not to raise any taxes to pay for roads, but they leaned on several fee increases instead. The annual vehicle registration fee will go up $20, from $55 to $75 and vehicle title fees will go up by nearly $25. The cost of a driver’s license will increase by $10 to cover new costs associated with
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the federal Real ID program. Some of that money will pay for better equipment and security at DMV offices and training for employees. Heavy trucks, those that weigh more than 8,000 pounds, will see 30-percent increases in their annual registration fees. For the largest trucks, that will mean a nearly $600 increase compared to what they’re paying now. – Wisconsin Public Radio (Shawn Johnson)
SPORTS
Rikkola rocks Badger, Eagles soar to best ever finish
2007: A review January through June
Heller looks back
The Inter-County Leader is a cooperative-owned newspaper
PAGE 2 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - JANUARY 2, 2008
Leader
Serving Northwest Wisconsin
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.
MANAGER Doug Panek dougpanek@centurytel.net EDITOR Gary B. King, Editor gbking@centurytel.net STAFF Nancy Jappe njappe@centurytel.net Marty Seeger mseeger@centurytel.net Tammi Milberg tammi@centurytel.net Brenda Sommerfeld brendals@centurytel.net Gregg Westigard greggw@lakeland.ws Prisclla Bauer the-leader@centurytel.net Erik Barstow the-leader@centurytel.net Carl Heidel the-leader@centurytel.net Sherill Summer the-leader@centurytel.net EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Raelynn Hunter rael@centurytel.net
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Luck hopes to recruit candidates at caucus
Blank spots on recent ballots
by Gregg Westigard LUCK – The village of Luck hopes to nominate a full slate of candidates for the April 1 election when it holds its nominating caucus next Wednesday night, Jan. 9. The caucus will be held during the
regular village board meeting at the village hall. Three of the six trustee spots are open this year, the seats now held by longtime board members Eugene Cooper and Marsha Jensen plus that of first-term member Lori Pardun. All three are eligible for re-election to two-year terms. The village has had difficulty getting even three candidates for the board in some recent elections and has had one or two blank spots filled by write-in votes.
All village residents can attend the caucus which nominates the persons who will be on the ballot this spring. The next village board will have the responsibility of setting up the new village administrator position and hiring a person to fill the office. In addition to the three trustees whose seats are open this April, the village board includes president Richard Callister and trustees Marilyn Berg, Jack Holdt and Steven Nielsen.
Briefly
BURNETT/WASHBURN COUNTIES Today (Jan. 2) at 5 p.m. marks the deadline for filings for candidacy for school, city and county board. The Leader plans to publish filings in its next issue, Jan. 9. ••• LUCK - Dee Sweet, the poet laureate of Wisconsin, will read from her new work on Friday, Jan. 11 at 7:30 p.m. at the Cafe Wren, located on the north edge of the village on Hwy. 35. Sweet is an associate professor at UW-Green Bay, and a creative communications consultant. An Anishinaabe enrolled at White Earth (makwa dodem), she has presented over 200 public readings/performances throughout the U.S. and in Canada, Mexico, Guatemala and Great Britain. She previously served for six years as chair for the American Indian Studies program at Green Bay. Also reading will be Kelly Green of Frederic. Green is the author of 17 books and chapbooks of poetry and prose, a native of St. Paul and has been writing, publishing and performing his work for more than 20 years. This reading is co-sponsored by The Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets. For more information, contact the Cafe Wren at 715472-4700 or cafewren@lakeland.ws - submitted
First baby ST. CROIX FALLS – The first baby to be born at St. Croix Regional Medical Center in 2008 was born Tuesday, Jan. 1, at 10:46 a.m. – a girl. No further information was available at press time but the Leader will post information/photo as it become available on our Web site at www.the-leader.net and in next week’s edition.
Press conference today on tax bills BALSAM LAKE – A press conference will be held by Polk County Clerk Cathy Albrecht today (Jan. 2) at 4 p.m. in the County Board Room of the government center. The conference will be in regards to the 2008 property tax statements. The Leader will update the public on the conference via its Web site at www.the-leader.net.
Man’s ear a casualty in fight with soldier POLK COUNTY - An Army soldier bit off the ear of another man during a fight that occurred Dec. 30 at a party at a residence at 833 20th Ave. Ramon Aleaga, 21, of Colorado Springs, Colo., faces a possible charge of mayhem. According to a sheriff’s report, Aleaga was confronted by another man at the party who heard Algea telling about his experiences in the Iraq War. The man allegedly told Aleaga that his dad was a Vietnam veteran and never bragged about what went on. The report states Aleaga responded in anger saying the man’s father was a loser and a “piece of s—-.” A fight broke out, and during the fight, Aleaga bit off a large portion of the man’s left ear, separating it completely. He then spit the piece of ear back at the man and began to strangle him. Other people broke up the fight when they saw the man gasping for air. The man was taken to the Amery hospital for treatment and was advised the ear piece could not be reattached. The man then called the police to report the incident. Aleaga was interviewed by an officer, and he admitted to biting off the man’s ear. He was then booked into the Polk County Jail. - Gary King with information from Polk County Sheriff’s Department
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 3
Revised tax statements out
Nissen corrects problem in a week
by Gregg Westigard BALSAM LAKE – All the Polk County property tax statements have been corrected, reprinted and mailed. Residents now have their new tax bills, on yellow paper. The rush job to get correct statements in taxpayers hands after an error was discovered on the previous statements was carried out by Polk County Treasurer Amanda Nissen. On Friday, Dec. 21, just before the start of the Christmas holiday, it was discovered that an error had been made in calculating the county portion of the 2007 property taxes. While the snafu was not in the treasurer’s office, it became the job of the county treasurer to fix the problem. Nissen set to work that Friday evening to recalculate the statements,
notify local treasurers that an error had been made, and contact the printing/mailing service to set up a shortorder job. She put in 30 hours of extra work, including 14 hours on the Saturday before Christmas, to get the job done. Most of the new statements were mailed on the Wednesday after Christmas and the last on Friday, Dec. 28. The task involved 41,631 statements. The postage cost for the project will be over $16,800. The printing cost is not yet in. However, there will be no overtime labor cost as the work was largely done over the holiday break by the salaried treasurer. Details on how the process went astray are still being explored, but there were changes this year in how the property tax levy resolution was presented to the county board and in who completed the certification of the apportionment form.
Polk County Treasurer Amanda Nissen was given the job of correcting the property tax statements and getting the revised forms printed and mailed. She worked over 30 hours on the holiday weekend to get the problem solved. - Photo by Gregg Westigard
A citizen’s guide to caucuses
Round two of the election season starts with village caucuses, residents to decide who will be on April ballot
by Gregg Westigard BURNETT AND POLK COUNTIES Residents in most villages and three towns will soon get to decide who will run for their boards in the April election. Candidates for half of the six trustee seats on each village counsel will be nominated by caucuses during January. In addition, three towns that have gone to five-member boards will have caucuses to nominate candidates for two of the four supervisor seats. Those towns are Alden, Clayton and St. Croix Falls. Every voter living in a village or town can take part in the caucus, but many caucuses have a low turnout. In some cases, less than a full slate of candidates is nominated. Caucuses must be held between the first and last Tuesday in January. In 2008, caucuses may be held from Jan. 1 through Jan. 29. Citizens gather at a designated time, choose a chairperson for the meeting and nominate persons to be placed on the April ballot. Under these guidelines, the dates of the Centuria and Clayton caucuses may be too early. Villages have six trustees who serve a two-year term, so half the trustees are elected each year. The terms of village presidents are up next year. The three towns that have expanded their boards to include a town chair and four supervisors will have two of the four seats up this year. Nominations take place in two ways. A common method is to use paper ballots to place a name in nomination. An alternate method is spoken nominations. Nominees present can remove their names from consideration. A person does not need to be present to be nominated. If the nomination process produces the number of candidates allowed for the ballot, for example six names for three trustee seats, a motion can be made to accept the nomination list as the final list. When more than the maximum number of candidates are nominated, a vote is held to narrow the list to the allowed number. Two candidates can be selected for each position. In villages, three seats are open, so six candidates can be nominated by the caucus. If more than six persons are nominated, a ballot is
taken. Each person present votes for three nominees, and the six persons with the most votes win a place on the April 1 spring election ballot. Caucus dates and incumbents whose seats are open this year are listed. Most caucuses are held in the evening during village counsel meetings. Burnett County villages Grantsburg – Jan. 14 – Dale Dresel, James O. Nelson and Dean Tyberg. Siren – Jan. 10 (daytime meeting) – Rudolf Mothes, Paul Riemer and Luanne Swanson. Webster – Jan. 9 – Norman Bickford, Kelsey Gustafson and Ruben Ruiz. Also Municipal Judge Brian Sears. Polk County villages Note: Villages not listed have nominated candidates in December using nomination papers.
Balsam Lake – Jan. 8 – Sheila Albrecht, Chris Sondrol and Judy Swenson. Centuria – Jan. 7 – Rodney Peterson, Dennis Swanson and Stanley Swiontek. Clayton – Jan. 7 – Curtis Anderson, Robert Carlson and Scott Donath. Frederic – Jan. 29 – Kay Friberg, Brad Harlander and Jamie Worthington. Luck – Jan. 9 – Eugene Cooper, Marsha Jensen and Lori Pardun. Milltown – Jan. 14 – Dawn Ferguson and the two seats vacated when Les Sloper and Joe Castellano resigned. Polk County towns Alden – Jan. 10 – Gary Dado and John Bonneprise. Clayton – Jan. 8 – Paul Gehrman and Odell Olson. St. Croix Falls – Jan. 16 – James Beistle and Mary Lynne McAlonie.
Two hospitalized
Adam R. Weiler, 23, St. Croix Falls, and Kelly J. Neuman, 27, St. Croix Falls were both transported to Burnett Medical Center in Grantsburg after Weiler lost control of his vehicle and struck a bridge on East River Road in Anderson Township on Saturday, Dec. 22. Neither were wearing a seat belt and were injured when their heads struck the windshield. – Photo courtesy of Burnett County Sheriff’s Department
PAGE 4 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - JANUARY 2, 2008
Court enters not guilty pleas for Baillargeon
POLK COUNTY - A 39-year-old former teachers aide charged with having sex with a 16-year-old male student, stood mute last week on the five criminal charges brought against her, and the court entered not guilty pleas on her behalf. Brenda K. Baillargeon, if found guilty, faces not more than six years in prison and a possible fine of not more than $10,000. She faces three felony counts of sexual assault of a student by a school staff member and two counts of child enticement – sexual contact. The reading of the complaint at the Dec. 28 hearing was waived. Baillargeon’s attorney, Owen Williams,
is to meet with district attorney Dan Steffen on Feb. 1. The court set a pretrial conference for March 28. According to a criminal complaint, Baillargeon first had sexual intercourse with the alleged victim sometime between May 19 and May 29 at a lake cabin. They also allegedly had sex on Aug. 2 at the teen’s home while his mother was away and on or about Sept. 30 at the home of the accused. The illicit seven-month sexual relationship with the high school student she tutored included road trips and sneaking into his home in the earlymorning hours for sex, according to the criminal complaint. She was his first
Area youth present free concert
Pictured are the “Camel II” barbershop singers from Osceola High School. – Photo submitted OSCEOLA – The general public is invited to the first-ever Co-Ed Youth In Harmony Chorus concert on Saturday, Jan. 19, at 4 p.m., in the Osceola High School Auditorium. Students from Amery, Chisago Lakes, Home School, Luck, North Branch, Osceola, St. Croix Falls, Somerset, Unity and Webster will join their voices in song. This musical highlight will capture lessons learned and apply training that the young people glean from a daylong Youth In Harmony Festival hosted by the Indianhead, Croix Chordsmen and Vallee de Croix Choruses. One of the most rewarding activities in the barbershop music international and local organization is introducing young people to music in the barbershop style. As the two largest musical education organizations outside of school and college, Sweet Adelines International and the Barbershop Harmony Society are pleased to assist the local chapters in bringing this unique event to their areas. Kathy Lucken, Carolyn Ward, Jon Buss, Warren Wilson and Vicki Salmon have been the event coordinators for this fun and educational “adventure in music” for area students. Originally, letters of invitation were sent to 22 area schools, and the vision was to have 100 young people participate in the festival. To the delight of the event’s coordinators, response and
interest in this event has been remarkably strong, and there are currently 170 young people registered for the festival. Barbershop singing allows singers to take some liberties with music, that aren’t usually enjoyed in other musical art forms. Adding introductions, tags, and the baritone part which is unique to barbershop music, offers students a new and exciting challenge. Two of the festival’s clinicians will be from the college at River Falls, Professors JW Park and Sarah Parks, Shawn Gudmunsen, a vocal teacher from St. Croix Falls who has barbershop background, and Liz Turba, associate director for Vallee de Croix will be on hand to offer new and challenging music to attendees. Pat Teorey and Denise Baber, choreographers for Vallee de Croix and Region 6, will be there to bring the music to life. The Vallee de Croix, Croix Chordsmen and Indianhead Choruses are all avid supporters of promoting musical programs in area schools, and have donated portions of their show proceeds to funding programs for young singers. For further information on Vallee de Croix Chorus, see their newly updated Web site at www.valleedecroix.org, visit the Croix Chordsmen, at www.stcroixvalleychapter.com and Indianahead Chapter at www.indianheadchorus.com. – submitted
love, and they planned to be married after she got a divorce, court records state. Baillargeon worked as a teachers aide for approximately seven years in Amery Schools but resigned a few months ago while being investigated by the Polk County Sheriff’s Department. The child’s mother had filed a harassment restraining order against Baillargeon in October after Baillargeon allegedly went to the restaurant where the 16-year-old worked and kissed him in the parking lot while he was taking out the garbage. The alleged victim’s mother contacted authorities after her son confessed details of the relationship to her last
Wednesday, according to the complaint. Besides facing three counts of sexual assault by a school staff member and two charges of child enticement, Baillargeon also faces four counts of knowingly violating a restraining order after the mother discovered a phone bill with calls from Oct. 15 to Oct. 21 ranging from 20 minutes to 73 minutes long. She told authorities that she had received so many calls from the youth she felt she needed to answer them and speak with him. One report states Baillargeon was able to keep in contact with the alleged victim through text messages via her daughter’s cell phone. – Gary King
Clam Lake chimney fire
A chimney fire resulted in extensive smoke and water damage of this Clam Lake home owned by Sam and Edna Jones. The fire was reported at 10:05 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 27. The St. Croix Tribal and Webster Fire Departments and the ambulance stationed in Webster responded to the blaze. All of the occupants of the home were able to escape with only minor injuries. It has not been determined if the structure will be replaced or repaired. – Photo by Sherill Summer
SCF students recognized
Students from the St. Croix Falls High School business management program were recognized by the St. Croix Falls/Taylors Falls Rotary Club. Katherine Wright and Jake Yunker are participants in the DECA program They were chosen by the Rotary to participate in Camp Enterprise, an areawide leadership event. It is an extensive three-day camp offering students the opportunity to participate in leadership activities focusing on the free enterprise system. Wright’s parents are John and Denise Wright. Her interests are marketing and entrepreneurship. Volunteering for the Deer Lake Trail Clean Up and Friends of the Saints, she also participates in local ski clinics. Joel and Maureen Yunker are Yunker’s parents. He has worked at St. Croix Floral and at the Falls Cinema 8, and also is interested in entrepreneurship. – Photo submitted
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 5
P O L K
C O U N T Y
H E A D L I N E S
Two horses rescued, one still missing
Community pulls together in search and rescue
LUCK – Luck residents, Steve and Camilla Kruse, were very lucky to have their neighbors, friends and the Luck Fire Department on Sunday, Dec. 23, after their horses got out of their fence and one had to be pulled from Sedge Lake in Bone Lake. The Kruses are 11 miles east of Luck on Hwy. 48 on Lamont Lake and have three horses, Doc, Alibi and Rock. The Kruses suspect the three got out from their pasture during the snowstorm on Sunday, after a corner post of their split rail fence was knocked down. Camilla said that all three would get very playful while it was snowing, and Rock, a 16 hand-high black Tennessee walker, would get very excited and run and skid stop within inches of the fence. This time he must not have stopped fast enough and the fence went down. Kyle Berschnieder was house/horse sitting while the Kruses were gone on vacation, and he was notified as soon as an employee of Kruses Wood Craft noticed the fence. After passing through neighbors’ yards, the horses went running onto Sedge Lake, according to neighbors. Berschnieder and several neighbors, including Samantha Wilkinson, Todd Olson, and Larry and Linda Glenn, immediately started searching on foot and by snowmobile, but the storm had covered the horses tracks. Berschnieder spotted Doc on Sedge Lake at about 3:30 p.m. and while approaching noticed that Alibi was close by but was trapped in the water up to his neck after breaking through ice. Phoning the neighbors who were
This is a recent picture of Rock. He is still missing. Please contact Steve and Camilla Kruse if you have any information about his whereabouts. – Photos submitted searching and the Luck Fire Department, everyone arrived within 30 minutes. LFD got to the scene from a private dead-end road from the north but still had to be lead by neighbors, walking three-fourths of a mile to arrive to where the horses were. One neighbor stayed with Alibi to hold his head above the water and keep him calm, while another community member plowed the dead-end road for the rescue vehicles. The 12-person Luck fire/rescue team got ropes under and around Alibi. They pulled and pulled until they were able to get him out of the hole and onto firmer ice. After resting for a bit, the team was able to get Alibi to his feet,
Pictured is Alibi followed by Doc in the pasture. Both horses are doing fine but really miss their companion, Rock. covered in blankets, and he was led by Berschnieder on the long journey to the Kruses horse trailer that had been brought up the dead-end road. The second horse, Doc, followed across the ice by himself, but Wilkinson was able to put a rope around him to lead him out, too. The Grantsburg veterinarian examined the horses after they were brought to the trailer and said there were no injuries evident. With the horses being brought to Jeff Hulett’s home, where he had cleared out stalls in his heated barn, their temperatures came up to normal within a few hours. Luck Fire Chief Roger Nelson admitted this was the department’s first-ever horse rescue, but with the prompt efforts of all the neighbors and rescue
team, it was a successful one. “Everybody’s really been outstanding from a community effort,” horses owner Steve Kruse said. “I think that’s the real point to get across is how many community people came together to get a rescue like this done.” The search for other horse, Rock, is still under way. There have been flyers posted and there are neighbors and friends out searching, but it is expected that he could be anywhere by now. If you have any information on this 4year-old, 16HH, black Tennessee walker with a blaze star on his face, please contact Steve and Camilla Kruse at 715-8225691 or mobile 715-419-0932. They would appreciate anything anyone could do. – Brenda Sommerfeld with information from Linda Glenn
SCRMC announces second gifts
ST. CROIX FALLS - St. Croix Regional Medical Center was pleased to receive a grant of $250,000 from the Hardenbergh Foundation of North Oaks, Minn. The foundation’s directors issued the grant to be used for the construction projects within the Lloyd Olson Surgery Center which will be completed in April 2008. According to Jeff Peterson, executive director of the Hardenbergh Foundation, “The grant was given based on the extraordinary need and the special service the construction of the helipad will bring to the community.” Phase II of construction includes the construction of a rooftop helipad for expedition of medical care; development of an education center in the lower level of the building to expand St. Croix Regional Medical
Center’s offering of medical and community education programs; relocation of the material management department and construction of a therapeutic pool for rehabilitation of patients recovering from a stroke, cardiac event or orthopedic surgery. The medical center has a capital campaign goal of $1,800,000. SCRMC just recently received a grant from the Fred C. and Katherine B. Andersen Foundation in addition to the Hardenbergh Foundation gift. “Construction of the helipad is already moving ahead thanks to the generous gifts from the foundations” stated Lenny Libis, chief executive officer of SCRMC. “One of the goals of the medical center has been to provide excellent physicians in a wide array of specialties to the communities we serve through our clinics. This helipad will let us give our patients quicker access to critical care and heart specialists.” Libis said. St. Croix Regional Medical Center is conducting the Phase II construction capital campaign through direct proposals to area foundations and businesses that ben-
efit from their relationships with the medical center. “Unlike the 2000 capital campaign which helped fund the building of the Riegel Clinic building and the emergency department expansion in 2002, we are not directly soliciting the general public for funds,” Libis explained. “The 2000 capital campaign included a promise to upgrade the surgery recovery area which we weren’t able to accomplish at that time. The construction of the surgery center fulfills that promise. We will gladly accept donations towards the Phase II projects from the public, and we look forward to the surgery center’s grand opening and gala event next spring, to which will invite the donors from both campaigns.” St. Croix Regional Medical Center is a multispecialty group practice with a 25-bed critical access hospital organized under the IRS 501©3 nonprofit statutes. For more information on the Phase II capital campaign, please contact Sandra Williams at 715-483-0247 or visit the Web site at scrmc.org. - submitted
Books, books, books Reading is such fun. Chad and Jessamine enjoy reading to Makellah and Nikiya. The children are enrolled in the Early Head Start program in Balsam Lake. Tracker, also a participant in this program, is investigating a book of his own. Reading to very young children, even young infants, is not only pleasurable for adults but also beneficial for the children. Members of Frederic Eastern Star Chapter 239 gave books to all the children in the Birth to 3 program. This was done for the love of reading and in lieu of a seasonal gift exchange. Eastern Star is a Fraternal organization for men and women, part of the family of Freemasonry. It’s dedicated to charity, truth and loving kindness. These are from left to right: Chad, Jessamine, Makellah (small child) and Nikiya (the baby). At right, Tracker investigates his book.— Photos submitted
PAGE 6 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - JANUARY 2, 2008
Feingold looks ahead, across the aisle in the new year
Senator to continue longstanding commitment to bipartisanship in 2008
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In 2008, U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold will push five bipartisan initiatives that address key issues: health care, education, election reform, the environment and the deficit. Advancing bipartisan legislation is a top goal for 2008 for Feingold, who has introduced legislation on health care reform, reform of the No Child Left Behind education law, public financing of presidential elections, clean water restoration and fiscal responsibility – issues which all have bipartisan support. While Feingold acknowledges that enacting these bills will take time, a bipartisan approach to addressing these issues is critically important. “While the gridlock in Washington is frustrating for everyone, there are examples of Democrats and Republicans working together to address issues important to all Americans,” Feingold said. “As we begin a new year, it is imperative that members of both parties focus on finding ways to work together. I worked for years with John McCain and others from both parties on campaign finance reform, but it paid off when we made the most significant changes to our election system in a generation. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues across the aisle on issues like health care reform, education, the financing of our presidential elections, defending our nation’s waters and curbing wasteful spending.” State-based health care reform The State-based Health Care Reform Act, S.1169, introduced by Feingold and Sen. Lindsey Graham, RSC, would launch pilot programs in several states to help them achieve health care coverage in the best way they see fit. States could use single-payer systems, expansion of current programs or adopt completely new approaches to cover the uninsured. By helping states try different approaches, Congress can determine the best way to ensure all Americans receive the health care they need. “All Americans deserve access to good health care, and it is long past time for Congress to break the log-
jam preventing action on health care reform. I will continue my push with Sen. Lindsey Graham for an American-style approach to health care reform that gives the states the flexibility they need to develop plans to bring health care coverage to all their residents,” Feingold said.
bicameral, bipartisan bill to update the system and make sure candidates aren’t overly dependent on wealthy donors. Rather than scrap the system which has served us so well for over a generation, we should work to fix it and restore the public’s faith in the fairness of presidential elections,” Feingold said.
Fixing No Child Left Behind The president’s No Child Left Behind education law has been soundly criticized by members of both parties since it was signed into law. Among the bipartisan criiticisms is the use of high-stakes testing mandates in the law and the undermining of local control of public schools. In response to these criticisms, some states have passed or introduced state laws or resolutions opposing key provisions of NCLB. After hearing from teachers, administrators, and parents in Wisconsin about problems with the law, Feingold joined with Sen. Pat Leahy, D-VT, to introduce the Improving Student Testing Act, S. 2053, to reform NCLB’s testing mandates and encourage the use of multiple measures of assessment. “People of all political stripes agree that the federal government’s one-size-fits-all education policy is the wrong approach,” Feingold said. “I want to work with my colleagues across the aisle to fix NCLB so we can close the achievement gap in our schools and return control to those who are in the classroom every day working to improve our children’s education,” Feingold said.
Clean water restoration The Clean Water Restoration Act of 2007, S. 1870, would restore the original protections of the nation’s waters by clarifying that the Clean Water Act is principally intended to protect the nation’s waters from pollution rather than just to sustain navigation on major waterways. Companion legislation was introduced in the House of Representatives by U.S. Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn., and Vernon Ehlers, R-MI. “Until we act, federal protections of our nation’s waters remain threatened. Unfortunately, recent Supreme Court decisions have undermined our ability to protect the nation’s rivers and wetlands—directly affecting the safety and affordability of our drinking water, outdoor recreational opportunities, habitats for wildlife and fragile ecosystems around the country. That is why I have introduced the Clean Water Restoration Act of 2007 to restore the original intent of the Clean Water Act,” Feingold said.
Presidential public financing Along with Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, Rep. Price, D-N.C., and Rep. Shays, R-Cont., Feingold introduced the Presidential Funding Act of 2007, S.2412, which would implement a variety of reforms to make the presidential funding system more practical and appealing to candidates. These reforms include providing matching funds earlier in the cycle, increasing the amount of public funding available to participating candidates, eliminating state-by-state primary spending limits, and significantly raising the total primary and general election spending limits. “The presidential public financing system is badly in need of repair. That is why I am working on a
Curbing wasteful spending – The line item veto The Congressional Accountability and Line-item Veto Act, S. 1186, introduced in the Senate by Feingold and in the House by Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., would create a line-item veto to target wasteful earmarks, improve congressional accountability, and deter lawmakers from inserting frivolous spending into future bills. The bill avoids constitutional problems with previous line-item veto legislation by requiring both the House and Senate to vote to approve a president’s decision to eliminate earmarks. “Wasteful spending has sent our nation’s debt spiraling out of control. One way to provide greater budget discipline is to find more ways to cut unauthorized earmarks out of the budget process. I am delighted to be working with my friend Paul Ryan to push our line-item veto bill to target wasteful earmarks. Congress owes it to the taxpayers to be a careful steward of their tax dollars,” Feingold said. – from the office of Sen. Feingold
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“Natural Step” speaker in Luck on Sunday LUCK – Ashland City Council member Mary Rehwald will be speaking at West Denmark Lutheran Church on Sunday, Jan. 6, at 1 p.m. The title of her is “Building Ecopresentation Municipalities; Applying “The Natural Step to Your Community.” “The Natural Step” is a book by Sarah James and Torbjorn Lahti that provides descriptions of how a number of towns and villages in Sweden benefited from the adoption of sustainable business, building and transportation practices. Rehwald is in much demand as a speaker since she led the successful effort to have Ashland become the second self-declared eco-municipality in the U.S. She also organized a delegation to Sweden to see first-hand some of the successes that are described in the book. One of Rehwald’s main interests is in promoting public participation the process of developing comprehensive land use plans – something with which most towns and villages in Polk County are now involved. Polk County Supervisor Jeff Peterson arranged Rehwald’s visit to this area in anticipation of forming local study circles to discuss the principles of “The Natural Step.” Those attending this free
Mary Rehwald will speak Sunday at West Denmark Lutheran Church near Luck. – Photo submitted event will have the opportunity to not only purchase a copy of “The Natural Step,” but also to sign up for a study circle. Supervisor Peterson can be reached at 715-472-2728. – submitted
Tribe donates to Interfaith Caregivers
Barbara Blodgett, director of Interfaith Caregivers receives a check for $5,880 from Tribal Chairman Hazel Hindsley. The money was donated by St. Croix Enterprises. Every year Interfaith Caregivers takes on the project of Helping Hands - Christmas for Kids never knowing just how it will turn out. How many children, how many families, how many gifts, and will there be enough donations. The check from St. Croix Enterprises allowed Interfaith Caregivers to meet its budget goal and furnish gifts for 619 children. There were many wonderful donations, but the budget bottom line was far from sight. Without this check, many would have had to do with so much less for Christmas. Interfaith Caregivers would like to extend gratitude to the Tribal Enterprises. With their help it is indeed a happy holiday. – Photo submitted
Obey secures funds ST. CROIX FALLS– Seventh District Congressman Dave Obey announced Thursday that the FY08 Omnibus Appropriations Bill includes $443,000 that he requested to allow the Army Corps of Engineers to move ahead with city of St. Croix Falls to design and implement necessary improvements to their wastewater treatment plant. “We’ve been working to help renovate St. Croix Falls’ wastewater treatment plant to meet the city’s growing needs and protect the St. Croix River,” said Obey. “This money should allow the Corps of Engineers and the city to
move forward with the project.” St. Croix Falls’ existing wastewater plant - which feeds into the St. Croix River – must be improved to meet Wisconsin DNR’s environmental standards. In the 2005 Omnibus Appropriations Bill, Obey secured authorization for the Army Corps of Engineers to help St. Croix Falls with the project. These funds are intended to allow the Corps to continue to work with the community. – from the office of Congressman Obey
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PAGE 8 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - JANUARY 2, 2008
L e a d e r
We b Po l l
Last week’s poll results 8%
Editor’s NOTEBOOK
Total votes: 76
Top local story of 2007?
6 votes Ruby’s Pantry (local hunger)
37%
28 votes Nursing homes
17%
13 votes Lagging economy
38%
29 votes Disturbing local violence
This week’s question: My local property tax bill this year...
1. Went down from last year 2. Stayed about the same 3. Went up slightly 4. Went up significantly
To take part in the poll go to www.the-leader.net and scroll to the lower left portion of page.
J o e H e l l e r
W h e re t o Wr i t e
President George Bush 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Washington, D.C. 20500 president@whitehouse.gov
Governor Jim Doyle 115 East, State Capitol Bldg. Mailing address: P.O. Box 7863 Madison, WI 53707 wisgov@mail.state.wi.us Congressman David Obey 7th Congressional District 2462 Rayburn Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20515 or Wisconsin office: Federal Building Wausau, WI 54401 (715) 842-5606 Rep. Ann Hraychuck 28th Assembly District State Capitol, P.O. Box 8942 Madison, WI 53708 Phone: 608-267-2365 Toll free: 888-529-0028 In-District 715-485-3362 rep.hraychuck@legis.state.wi.us
Rep. Frank Boyle 73rd Assembly District Room 221 North State Capitol P.O. Box 8952 Madison 53708 E-mail: Rep.Boyle@legis.state.wi.us
Rep. Mary Hubler 75th Assembly District Room 7 North, State Capitol P.O. Box 8952 Madison, WI 53708 or 1966 21-7/8 St. (Hawthorne Lane), Rice Lake 54868 (715) 234-7421• (608) 266-2519 rep.hubler@legis.state.wi.us Senator Robert Jauch 25th Senate District Room 19 South State Capitol P.O. Box 7882 Madison, WI 53707 E-mail: Sen.Jauch@legis.state.wi.us
Senator Sheila Harsdorf 10th Senate District State Capitol, P.O. Box 7882 Madison, WI 53707 (608) 266-7745 • (715) 2321390 Toll-free - 1-800-862-1092 sen.harsdorf@legis.state.wi.us U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold SDB 40, Rm. 1 Washington, D.C. 20510 or 8383 Greenway Blvd. Middleton, WI 53562 (608) 828-1200 senator@feingold.senate.gov U.S. Senator Herb Kohl 330 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 senator_kohl@kohl.senate.gov Congressman Ron Kind 3rd Congressional District 1713 Longwirth Office Bdg. Washington, D.C. 20515 202-225-5506 888-442-8040 (toll-free)
Views expressed on these pages do not necessarily represent those of the Inter-County Cooperative Publishing Association management or board
T h e
F O R U M First, the most inspirational
is certainly in the eye - or the heart - of the beholder. I nspiration This year’s review of the local stories from the past year held a few
unusual tales, but before ranking the news items that filled the pages of the Leader in 2007, we’d like to make special note of stories that inspired rather than simply informed. Luck High School senior Tanya Pardun organized a walk in April to encourage more public awareness of the need for suicide prevention programs in Polk County. Pardun, who was 18 when she undertook the project, is wise beyond her years as to the devastation of suicide. She tried to kill herself, but family pulled her through. Then her father ended his life. Two months after that, a best friend committed suicide. And this last winter, another friend committed suicide. She fought back by organizing the Suicide Prevention Walk, which raised funds for the Yellow Ribbon Project, a nonprofit organization that educates people about suicide prevention and helps suicide survivors cope with their loss. “Suicide is a leading cause of death for people of all ages,” Pardun said. “People shouldn’t be ashamed to ask for help.” In her search for ways to help educate the public, Pardun found the Yellow Ribbon Project based in Colorado as she surfed the Internet.To find out more information about starting suicide prevention programs for schools and the public, call the Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention Program at 303-429-3530, or call Pardun at 715-5542241. The most inspirational local story of 2007. Other inspirational stories of 2007 have to be the Cookie Brigade project of Susan Hager of Frederic (see local newsmakers, page 2, Currents) and the WINGS project started by former Unity football coach Craig Miles, wife Cathy and daughter Kelli in honor of their son and brother, Mark,who took his life in 2006. (See Sports Top 20). ••• And the Top 10 local stories of 2007 are.... 1. The closing of Capeside Cove nursing home at Siren and the ongoing discussion concerning the future of the Polk County-owned Golden Age Manor at Amery. These stories are not exclusive to Burnett and Polk counties, obviously, but local residents are struggling as they weigh the economic truth versus social responsibility. Follow-ups on both stories will continue in 2008. 2. Local violence. If you had any doubt that the nature of local news was becoming more and more like that of metropolitan areas in terms of crime, 2007 likely helped erase any doubt. Two murder-suicides - left the Luck community and the entire area - stunned in 2007. Add other headlines dealing with homicide and drug use, and it adds up to one of the more sobering years in terms of violent news. 3. Arrest in Frederic. This story left seasoned journalists scratching their heads as they left the Frederic Village Hall on Sept. 11 - feeling empty-handed. Still an important story - the arrest of a man wanted in an international drug smuggling ring during a routine traffic stop in a small northwestern Wisconsin village. But the initial story began as a potential worldwide headline - a man on the terrorist watch list suspected of funding terrorists arrested in small town on sixth anniversary of 9-11. Our reliable sources said, off record, that the man indeed was on the list. One sidenote story was that Katie Couric left a message - among hundreds - with the Frederic Police Department that evening. Who says we can’t drum up excitement in our Rockwellian world? 4. New assistant district attorney for Polk County. See item 2. This has been talked about for years - and obviously the need for help in the district attorney’s offices in both Burnett and Polk counties is very obvious. The new help arrives in 2008, and it should help expediate local justice if not make the system work smoother. 5. Resignations at Milltown. It’s certainly unusual when two longtime trustees step down in the middle of a controversy. Questionable utterances and some use of profanity stirred a debate on the street which led to a special meeting and the asking for resignations of two trustees by at least two fellow trustees and some citizens. It served as a reminder/lesson for all concerning representation and presentation in arguing issues - no matter how well-meaning the speaker may be. 6. Ruby’s Pantry. This fellowship has become a local phenomenon, giving out free food right and left to thousands of people in Burnett and Polk counties in 2007 - with plans to continue. To witness the lineups at the distribution sites was both heartening and disheartening at the same time. It’s obvious the economy nationwide is not healthy - and that may go double for our local economy. To know there is an organization like Ruby’s Pantry in our backyard is another inspirational story of recent years - and certainly for 2007. 7. Bridges. Two Frederic graduates - Jim McDonough and Kristina Moats were both involved with the rescue and treatment of survivors of the I-35 bridge collapse in Minneapolis. (See 2007, year in review, Currents section). In the wake of the disaster bridge inspections became the focus of state officials and the bridge over the St. Croix at Osceola was named one of four bridges similar to the I-35 bridge that required inspection. It passed the inspection. 8. Snow is good. It arrived in bunches in December. The most in 10 years. Some aren’t too excited - but most agree it will help boost the local economy. 9. Health care facility expansions. Another bright spot in 2007 was the plans for expansion at the area’s two major medical centers - BMC at Grantsburg and SCRMC at St. Croix Falls. 10. St. Croix Tribe. Continually on our Top 10 local stories list, the Tribe in 2007 broke ground for a new casino/hotel at Danbury, elected a new council with promises of establishing a new tribal constitution and came one step closer to getting its Beloit Project approved by the BIA and the governor, despite a setback late in the year. Here’s to more inspiring news in 2008.
I n t e r ! C o u n t y
All editorials on this page by editor Gary King
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JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 9
L e a d e r F O R U M Letters t o t h e e d i t o r Sad commentary I could not help but take exception with Mr. King’s comments about “The Golden Compass.” Whether the news reports are correct or not, one should not just sit back and “simply enjoy the film” with the implication that one should shift their mind into neutral once the movie starts. In making such comments, Mr. King does a fine job of trumpeting the politically correct establishment’s siren song of “All is well. There is nothing to be alarmed about, we are in control.” As for me, give me a good book; a book that is well written, properly edited, and proofread so as not to assail my intellectual sensibilities with philosophical nonsense, misspelled words, poorly constructed paragraphs and sentences that would cause my high school English teacher to groan in his grave. Books such as: “An Underground History of American Education,” by John Taylor Gatto and “How Shall We Now Live,” by Charles Colson/Nancy Pearcy are examples of books that fit the afore definition. These books cause one’s mind to ponder, process, and probe further the premises put forth. Such activities exercise the mental muscle just as one would exercise the physical muscle to stay fit. The sad commentary on American culture is that we do not have very good mental muscle tone. The evidence has been clearly documented and is apparent at almost every turn whether it is regarding what the Congress is currently debating or what is fact or fiction regarding global warming. One of the biggest sources of mental atrophy is the output of Hollywood. As an educator I see this lack of mental muscle tone on a daily basis in the students who frequently ingest mentally the trash coming out of Hollywood. “The Golden Compass” is just another example such output. Ron Brace Dresser
True democracy should represent the best interests of a majority I’m sure you have noticed that a presidential election will take place in 2008. Soon we will even have a few preliminary votes in this long and arduous process. By any measure, such as the number of candidates, amount of money spent, time campaigning and a number of crucial issues, this is an important election. Consider, for example, the long list of issues I gleaned from a recent article on politics; health care, Iraq and Iran, education, social security, energy, immigration, executive power, abortion, income inequality, crime, and finally, globalization. It’s an eye-popping list which would cause any serious voter to be a bit overwhelmed, plus
there are 20 presidential candidates (I think), each with a position on all the issues listed above. Whoever survives this melee we call a presidential election is going to have some very difficult choices. If, however, this becomes a truly democratic election, the candidate who is elected should have only one real issue and that would be representing the concerns of the majority of voters. What a novel idea, “let’s have a president whose agenda is that of the American electorate rather than one that is exclusively his or her own.” Let’s vote for that person who listens to the people rather than special interest groups and their lobbyists. Is this concept so utopian, naïve and unworkable as to be rejected out of hand without any serious consideration, because a president who listens to the needs and wants of the electorate is just putting a finger to the wind to judge its direction, so that he or she can avoid the wrath of an unruly mob? I think not! On some of the issues listed before, I’m not even sure a consensus even exists, and on a few others I know I would not agree with the majority. But that is not the point. Governance is not easy and every citizen’s issues cannot always prevail. A true democracy, however, should represent the best interests of a majority of the electorate and that has not been the case for a long time now. I would suggest that health care is a good example of this, and that is why the voters in this election are upset with its politicians and the direction of the country. So, who is that person who will best represent the will of the people? We may never know, or, on the other hand it may be the last person standing in November. Let’s hope it is that person who will allow us as a nation to express the very best that is in us. I’m optimistic, for after all, we are the very best democracy that ever has been. Aren’t we? Doug Gray St. Croix Falls
revenue on our property tax in the Polk County debacle. Hang on to your wallets nonsmokers you may wish there still was someone willing to pick up your tab. Mark Pettis Hertel
Anyone for tea? Although I no longer live daily life in Polk County, I try to keep up on the happenings there. I still own property and pay property taxes there. Around the world, this is a trying time. In my 46th year, I have witnessed more bankruptcies and foreclosures than in my first 45 years combined. So, without ado, and with all the dripping sarcasm I can possibly muster, I would just like to say, “Thank you, newly elected Polk County Board members, for raising taxes! Again…and again…and again…and….!” In spite of the state‘s mandatory levy cap, you figured out a way to do it! Unbelievable! It is especially disheartening when the situation is so hopeless that even our own stalwart board member, Mr. Robert Blake, decides he’s had enough. Thank you, Mr. Blake. We know you tried! As you supposedly help the poor by raising taxes to maintain and even expand services, you negligently create greater and greater numbers of people who need those services. How many people do you damage in your thoughtless quest to help others? I certainly hope that the people of Polk County have the fortitude to endure this taxation system. I look to the future with hope as I recall the great battles of our forefathers, and wonder, “Who will be our next Patrick Henry? Nathan Hale? Thomas Jefferson?” Anyone for tea? Jenifer Deziel Duluth
What’s wrong with this picture?
Happy New Year This letter is to all the people that quit smoking for the new year. Thank you for paying more than your fair share of sales tax all these years. Your generous contributions to the state were appreciated. Now that the state (our representative included, not our senator) has elected to make smoking too expensive by taxing it too high, ($1 a pack increase) nonsmokers will have to pick up the tab. Our representative and many others in the Legislature thought that they could keep tapping the smokers for more taxes, and they would keep paying. Not this time. In government the money is spent before it is collected, and the tax increase on tobacco has already been spent. When the users quit using, the nonusers have to pay the tab. We all saw the importance of sales tax
Fo l l o w
When you look at your property tax bill for this year you may notice that the school levy credit has increased from what it was a year ago. On a per student basis the state average school levy credit has increased 26 percent (from $526 to $665). And next year it will increase again. At first glance that may seem OK until we look at the details. There are three major problems with the school levy credit this year. First, both the governor and the Legislature intended to provide an increase of $79.3 million in general equalization aid to school districts. But because the budget was adopted so late the school district revenue limits would not recognize an increase in aid to school districts. As a result, no increase in general equaliza-
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tion aid was provided. The $79.3 million increase was actually provided in the school levy credit and higher gross levies were approved. We were told the higher levies were to be offset by the increase in the school levy credit, but 299 school districts lost money on this exchange because their credit increase was less than their aid increase would have been. As a result, the net property tax in those districts will actually be higher than it would have been without the aid to credit shift. Second, the coordination of school aids and school levy credits is needlessly complicated because they are paid to different entities in different fiscal years. School aids go directly to school districts in the current year while the school levy credit goes to the tax collecting municipality in the following year. Finally, school levy credits tend to reward high spending school districts. For example, last year Abbotsford budgeted $9,612 per pupil and their credit was $323. Compare that to Linn J4 where the budget was $18,793 per pupil and the credit was $2,784. On a per pupil basis Linn J4 spends about twice as much and receives a credit of about nine times as much as Abbotsford There are 30 districts where the school levy credit was less than $400 per pupil. Two-thirds of them spend less than the state average. There are 55 districts where the school levy credit was more than $1,200 per pupil. Only three of them spend less than average. There are 34 districts where the school levy credit was more than $1,500 per pupil. All of them spend more than average. At the earliest opportunity the governor and the Legislature should undo the damage created by the aid to credit shift and put the $79.3 million into the general aid appropriation as they had agreed earlier. For the longer term, the state should treat the school property tax levy credit as a general school aid and pay it directly to school districts every year. Doug Haselow, executive director Association for Equity in Funding Menomonie Falls
Letters to the editor
The Leader welcomes letters to the editor. Diverse and varied opinions are welcomed. Letters are subject to being edited for length, taste and/or clarity, and we urge writers to be brief and limit their letters to 500 words or less. Writers must provide their name and give their complete address and phone number. Content that will cause letters to be rejected include: Crude language, poor taste, disrespectful comments regarding a group’s or individual’s ethnicity, gender, religion, culture, sexual orientation or race; other incendiary language, poetry or personal attacks.
L e a d e r.
Preliminary agreement reached in airport lease dispute
by Sherill Summer SIREN – Ken Kreutzmann, president of the Burnett County Hangar Owners Association, has reported that a preliminary agreement has been reached with Burnett County in the disputed airport hangar lease. The two sides met with a professional mediator in a marathon session that lasted over eight hours on Friday, Dec. 28.
Burnett County Administrator, Candace Fitzgerald, confirmed that there was a settlement agreement and stating that, “The county is glad to move this forward. “ Fitzgerald also stated her opinion that working with others means finding a common ground that both sides can agree to. She thinks this was accomplished in this mediation. Despite the statements that an agree-
ment has been reached, there are no details of the specific changes to the lease available at this time. A follow-up to this story will appear, as details become available. The hangar owners association filed suit against Burnett County when the county attempted to revise the airport hanger lease, and Judge Harrington has reviewed the matter much of last year.
c o o p e r a t i v e ! o w n e d
Judge Harrington has made a partial ruling and appealed to the two sides to resolve the dispute in mediation. The FAA also urged a resolution to the dispute in mediation in a letter sent the airport manager Jeremy Sickler.
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L e a d e r T h e New Year’s resolution Think of it as a big book club. Or a coffee-klatsch. Or a chance to meet some neighbors and talk about what’s really important in our lives, how we meet our most basic needs. Its proponents call them “study groups,” but those words can trigger alarm in some folks. The Natural Step program, based on the book of the same name, is coming to town just in time to give you the lift you need after the post-holiday let down. No, it’s not a weight loss program. The Natural Step is an approach to sustainability, or “preserving life on Earth indefinitely,” that began in Sweden in the late 1980s and has been spreading around the world ever since. Its basic concepts were developed by a Swedish doctor and then vetted by a group of 50 scientists. The 22 revisions that followed eventually arrived at four basic principles which are really indictments of our post-industrial way of interacting with the environment. The Natural Step approach encourages us to reverse course in each of these areas with the emphasis on meeting human needs in a sustainable way. In a TNS world, we would cease mining and distributing materials from the Earth’s crust (e.g., coal, oil) faster than they can be returned there. We would stop
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producing substances (e.g., PCBs, dioxins) at a faster rate than they can break down by natural processes. We would no longer consume so-called “renewable resources” (e.g., trees, fish) more quickly than they can be replaced. And we would do these things in the service of meeting human needs. According to its adherents, TNS will neither trickle down nor bubble up. Instead, it will Steve just spread almost unnoticed Pearson from little clusters of interest within communities, states and countries. In an article from the publication In Context, Robert Karl-Henrik described how a TNS network might form: “I don’t think that the solutions in society will come from the left or the right or the north or the south. They will come from islands within those organizations. . ., people who want to do something. . . You won’t notice the difference. It won’t be winning over anyone. It will just spread.” In Wisconsin, that vague and mysterious process seems to be occuring. From its small beginnings - the
H e r e
tiny town of Washburn became the state’s first ecomunicipality, a TNS designation, just a couple years ago - a network of counties, cities and towns signing on to the approach has sprung up. There are now 16 such eco-municipalities in the state including La Crosse and Douglas counties and the cities of Madison, Marshfield and Manitowoc. Locally, study groups have begun in the towns of Amery, Osceola and St. Croix Falls. This Sunday, Jan. 6, at 1 p.m., interested folks in the Luck area can hear a speaker with some hands-on TNS experience. Mary Rehwald, a fifth-term Ashland City Council member who helped make the town Wisconsin’s second eco-municipality, will be sharing her experience at the West Denmark Lutheran Church just west of Luck south of the intersection of CTH N and 170th Street. The event is open to the public. Organizer Jeff Peterson, a Polk County Board member, hopes the gathering will lead to at least two study groups in the Luck area. A similar event is scheduled in St. Croix Falls on Saturday, Jan. 19 from 10 a.m. to noon. The featured speaker there will by Dr. Kelly Cain from UW-River Falls. Mayor Brad Foss and city administrator Ed Emerson have previously indicated their support for a sustainable future utilizing TNS principles for the river town. Burnett and In Washburn counties, Rick Schneider, the environmental specialist for the Northwest Regional Commission, Planning recently received a $21,000 grant from the EPA to promote TNS throughout the two-county area. Schneider plans to hold eight to 10 sessions with a short presentation on a particular aspect of sustainability followed by a roundtable. The last session will be a field trip to a county board meeting. Participants will be encouraged to urge their elected officials to consider environmental impact alongside cost in all their decisions. Look for a separate article elsewhere in this week’s paper and stay tuned for further details. You can reach Rick at 715635-2197. Here’s hoping local organizers will get a good turnout at all the abovementioned events. It’s the time of year when we begin anew and resolve to do things differently. Momentum is building, and the moment is now. Come out and share some
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 11
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Chisago County eyes new jail
Commissioner gives report to TF council
by Tammi Milberg TAYLORS FALLS, Minn. – The city council for Taylors Falls heard a report from their county commissioner, Richard Greene, representing District 2, at the last council meeting of 2007, held Dec. 27. Greene gave the council an update of things going on at the county level. Greene mentioned the county purchased a 60-acre parcel across from Hazelden for the site of a new jail. Overcrowding in the jail has forced Chisago County to outsource inmates to other jails, costing them as much as $1 million a year to do so. Chisago County is looking at building a new jail with more capacity, similar to what Polk County did when they built their jail to handle overcrowding, and have the capability to rent out jail space to other agencies to offset operation costs. Greene said the 60-acre purchase was just over $1 million and that the county is asking for the property to be annexed into the county seat, Center City. In Minnesota, the county jail must be located in the county seat. The next step is the design and cost analysis, which Greene said could be
anywhere, but indicated around the $20 million mark. “Until we get a design and cost analysis in March, we really don’t know a cost or time frame,” he said. The council asked Greene what would happen to the old jail. Greene said he was not sure at this point and the county is considering options. Greene also updated the city of roads in the county on the list for upgrading including Hwy. 16 that goes out to Wild Mountain, which Greene indicated is one of the oldest roads in the county. Hwy. 20 is also slated for repairs down the line and that is one of the oldest roads in the county, as well. Greene said that if Hwy. 16 does not get done soon, there won’t be much left of it. In other business, the council approved a request for St. Joseph’s Church. The request was made by the church to allow for parking; two spaces, on the street next to the church door during adoration hours, each Saturday from 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. The reason for the request is because the city ordinance does not allow parking overnight during winter hours. The public works department indicated in a memo they were not in favor of the request because of snow removal issues. The council sided with the church
request, however, because their concern for persons walking to their vehicles a distance in the dark during those hours. Councilman Zara Kinnunen said safety of people walking in the dark at late hours was more important than the snowplows going around parked vehicles in that location. The council agreed with the safety measure and indicated that it was only for two designated spaces, not the entire street. The council further designated that parking permits be displayed in vehicle dash boards to show permission to park, indicated that church members should be notified not to park in those spaces if there is a snow emergency and to cooperate with the public works department so they can do their job without any problems. The council passed a motion to allow for the request with those stipulations. The motion carried with all in favor except Larry Julik-Heine, who is a member of the congregation and abstained from the vote. Since the parking rules are part of the city ordinance, the council will have to amend the ordinance to allow for the request before the change could become effective. Other action •The council approved a training request for public works director Bill
Neska to attend in Bloomington, Minn., with a $270 registration fee, hotel and mileage expenses to come from the sewer fund. •The council adopted updated language to the personnel policy for the city. •Approved the budget and the tax levy for 2007, collected in 2008 at $688,835. •The law enforcement contract with Chisago County for 2008 and 2009 was approved after it was tabled at the last meeting, to determine if the enforcement hours could be cut down to reduce costs. It was determined the hours suggested were need and the recommendation was to accept the contract as it was presented. Councilman John Tangen abstained from the vote. •The engineering standards revised by city engineers at Short Elliot Hendrickson were approved. •A public hearing date of Monday, Jan. 14, was set to discuss the development code, zoning map and zoning fees, with consideration for adopting those codes after the hearing, and the council may consider lifting of the moratorium at that time.
Burmaster commends schools in the news MADISON—State Superintendent Elizabeth Burmaster commended schools and communities throughout the state for being named to various lists regarding education. Most recently, the Madison metro area claimed the No. 2 spot on Forbes magazine’s national list of Top 20 Places to Educate your Child. The Milwaukee, Waukesha, West Allis metro area ranked 17 on the same list. “Congratulations to these schools and communities,” Burmaster said. “I am proud that so many of our schools earned top honors as each school and community embraces our New Wisconsin Promise to provide a quality education for every child.” Burmaster also recognized 90 middle schools that received certificates as Exemplary Middle Schools in the Association of Wisconsin School Administrator’s new Wisconsin Middle School of Excellence Award program. “Success in middle school builds on the foundation for future success in high school and beyond,” she said. A total of 363 middle schools were reviewed for the AWSA recognition program. Those with high growth in reading or math scores in the past school year; reading or math scores in the top 10 percent in the past year; or high growth in scores in reading or math for schools comprised of a high poverty population were identified. These schools were invited to apply for the Wisconsin Middle School of Excellence Award. Applications will be rated based on collaborative leadership and professional learning communities; personalization and the school environment; and curriculum, instruction, and assessment. The 2007-08 awards will be presented at the AWSA Middle Level Commission Conference in Stevens Point on Feb. 14. Forbes magazine ranked communities on a number of criteria including public school support and library popularity. “Wisconsin’s commitment to public education and lifelong learning through strong public libraries is a formula for economic prosperity and quality of life,” Burmaster said. In another national publication, U.S. News and World Report, in collaboration with School Evaluation Services,
reviewed 18,790 public high schools in 40 states for its list of America’s Best High Schools. Kickapoo High School in Viloa, Nicolet High School in Glendale, and Shorewood High School earned silver awards. Another 56 Wisconsin high schools were among 1,086 that earned bronze awards. NOTES: The attached list includes Wisconsin schools and communities from Forbes magazines Top 20 Places to Educate your Child, AWSA’s Exemplary Middle Schools, and America’s Best High Schools by U.S. News and World Report. This news release is available electronically at http://dpi.wi.gov/eis/pdf/dpi2007_154.pdf. Exemplary Middle Schools
Adams-Friendship Middle School Amery Middle School Amherst Middle School Ashland Middle School Badger Middle School, West Bend Badger Ridge Middle School, Verona Jack Young Middle School, Baraboo Belleville Middle School Berlin Middle School Bessie Allen Middle School, North Fond du Lac Black Hawk Middle School Black River Falls Middle School Bloomer Middle School Brandon Middle School, RosendaleBrandon Brillion Middle School Brodhead Middle School Bruce Middle School Bullen Middle School, Kenosha Cadott Junior High School Cedar Grove Middle School, Cedar GroveBelgium Clarke Middle School, Two Rivers Colby Middle School Crivitz Middle School De Pere Middle School Deerfield Middle School Denmark Middle School Drummond Junior High School Du Pont Middle School, Washburn Einstein Middle School, Appleton Flambeau Junior High School Franklin Middle School, Green Bay Gibraltar Middle School Gillett Middle School Glidden Middle School Grantsburg Middle School Hortonville Middle School Ithaca Middle School John Edwards Middle School, Port Edwards Kettle Moraine Middle School Lake Shore Middle School, Mequon-
Thiensville Lena Middle School Lincoln Junior High School, Alma Center Loyal Junior High School Luxemburg-Casco Middle School Lomira Junior High School Medford Middle School Menomonie Middle School Mondovi Middle School Meyer Middle School, River Falls Merton Intermediate School North Junior Campus, Menomonee Falls Oakfield Middle School Odyssey-Magellan Middle School, Appleton O’Keeffe Middle School, Madison Oostburg Middle School Paideia Academy, Kenosha Palmyra-Eagle Middle School Pardeeville Middle School Parkview Junior High School Phillips Middle School Pilgrim Park Middle School, Elmbrook Potosi Middle School Prairie Farm Middle School Prescott Middle School Random Lake Middle School Reedsville Middle School River Ridge Middle School Riverdale Middle School Rosholt Middle School School of Technology & Arts II, La Crosse Slinger Middle School Somerset Middle School Spring Harbor Middle School, Madison Sevastopol Junior High School Stanley-Boyd Middle School Starbuck Middle School, Racine Steffen Middle School, MequonThiensville Stockbridge Middle School Templeton Middle School, Hamilton Thomas Jefferson Middle School, Port Washington Washington Junior High School, Manitowoc Waunakee Middle School Webster Middle School, Webster Webster Middle School, Cedarburg Whitefish Bay Middle School Williams Bay Junior High School Winneconne Middle School Winnequah Middle School, Monona Grove Winter Middle School Wisconsin Hills Middle School, Elmbrook
America’s Best High Schools
Abbotsford Junior/Senior High School Amery High School Ashland High School Auburndale High School Augusta High School
Bayfield High School Birchwood High School Bowler High School Boyceville High School Cashton High School Chetek High School Coleman High School Crivitz High School Elkhart Lake High School Flambeau High School, Tony Gilman High School Goodman High School Granton High School Grantsburg High School Greenwood High School Hayward High School Holcombe High School Hurley High School Kickapoo High School, Viola (Silver Award) King High School, Milwaukee Laconia High School, Rosendale Ladysmith High School La Farge High School Logan High School, La Crosse Loyal High School Menomonie High School Mercer School Necedah Middle/High School Nicolet High School, Glendale (Silver Award) North Crawford High School, Soldiers Grove Pembine High School Phelps High School Pittsville High School Platteville High School Prairie Farm High School Pulaski High School Reedsville High School River Ridge High School, Patch Grove Seneca High School Shorewood High School (Silver Award) Siren Junior/Senior High School Solon Springs High School South Shore Junior/Senior High School, Port Wing Spooner High School Spotted Eagle High School (Maaic), Milwaukee Stockbridge High School Tesla Engineering Charter School, Appleton Thorp High School Turtle Lake High School Viroqua High School Wausaukee High School West High School, Wausau White Lake High School Wisconsin Conservatory of Lifelong Learning, Milwaukee – submitted
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Commencement speakers inspire graduates
by Lisa Stratton UWRF Public Affairs RIVER FALLS —Some 290 undergraduate and graduate students watched themselves march into the future on a larger-than-life projection screen on Dec. 15 at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls’ commencement. The graduates and more than 3,000 family, friends and well-wishers packed the Robert P. Knowles Physical Education and Recreation Center to hear a potent message of a life lived in service to others. Chancellor Don Betz welcomed all to the ceremony and reminded the graduates to take time to thank the special people in their lives whose efforts enabled them to complete their education. Rodney Nilsestuen, secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection and a 1970 graduate of UWRF, gave the commencement address. Nilsestuen began by offering congratulations on behalf of Gov. Jim Doyle. “As I’m sure is obvious to every citizen in Wisconsin, the governor’s No. 1 priority from day one in office has been to strengthen Wisconsin’s educational system,” said Nilsestuen. “It is his core belief that the state’s investment in its young people is not only the state’s highest responsibility, but also its best opportunity for helping ensure that Wisconsin’s future is bright.” Nilsestuen went on to describe his own experiences at UWRF. Nilsestuen is counted among the university’s distinguished alumni, and has been a member of Gov. Doyle’s cabinet since 2003. Recently elected president of the new North Central Bio-Economy Consortium, he was president and chief executive officer of the Wisconsin Federation of Cooperatives for 24 years before being joining state government. Nilsestuen gave the graduates a few words of varied wisdom from Albert Einstein, Mae West, Muhammad Ali and Mark Twain. He also cautioned them to take notice of rising global social and cultural problems and that their reactions and service to mankind will shape and create history. “So your generation, like those that went before you, will face major, sometimes daunting, change and challenge,” said Nilsestuen. “How you respond to
Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection Rodney Nilsestuen delivers his commencement address, “An Armband, Grandma and Mandela.” – Special photo these challenges will depend on your education, your awareness, your capacity to adapt, and your willingness to lead.” James Madsen, professor and chair of the physics department and the 2007 Distinguished Teacher, thanked all who nominated him for the honor, as well as his colleagues, students and family. Madsen offered some unique advice, as told to him by his father when he was growing up. “What we lose on the merry-goround, we make up on the Ferris wheel: which means, you don’t have to win at everything, but you should make progress overall,” said Madsen. “Many a blind man would be happy to see that: which means, you need to keep some perspective. At some point, you need to say good enough, and move on.” Madsen graduated from UWMadison with a B.S. in applied math,
engineering and physics, and earned his Ph.D. in applied physics from the Colorado School of Mines. Madsen has been heavily involved with the international IceCube project at the South Pole, offering students the opportunity to do research with him on neutrino astrophysics. He has been awarded several National Science Foundation grants to continue his research. The Outstanding Service Award was presented to Mary Ella Jerome, a 1974 UWRF graduate, whose philanthropic efforts have allowed the music department to restore its Steinway pianos. Jerome’s continued dedication and service to music led her to create five scholarships awarded annually to
UWRF students in music, agriculture or education. Commencement took on a somber note as Lt. Tracy Alger, a 2001 graduate of UWRF who was killed in action by an improvised explosive device in Iraq earlier this year, was honored for her military service. Alger was a 2nd Lieutenant with the 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat team, 101st Airborne Division. “Her convoy responsibilities did not require Lt. Alger to participate in dangerous escort assignments, but she did so because the soldiers who served under her command took priority over her own safety,” said Betz. “By aspiring to live up to her value of leadership, Lt. Alger made the ultimate sacrifice.” An American flag flown in Alger’s memory at the 2007 UWRF Veteran’s Day ceremony was presented to two close friends she met in college, Carrie Hickman and Micki Larson Moos. Assisting in the presentation of the flag was Staff Sgt. David Till, president of the Veterans Club and a member of the 1st Battalion of the 128th Infantry Regiment of the Wisconsin Army National Guard. Congratulatory remarks were also given by David Rainville, a professor and chair of the faculty senate, and by student senate President Derek Brandt, of St. Paul, Minn. Degrees were conferred by Terry Brown, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Dale Gallenberg, dean of the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, Barbara Nemecek, dean of the College of Business and Economics, Faye Perkins, interim dean of the College of Education and Professional Studies, and Doug Johnson, director of graduate studies. Accompanied by The River Falls Brass, Barbara Bright, a graduating senior and music major from Minneapolis, Minn., sang the “The Star-Spangled Banner” and the “UW-River Falls Pledge Song” to begin and end the ceremony. - submitted
Staff Sgt. David Till presents Carrie Hickman and Micki Larson Moos with a flag in memory of their late friend, UWRF alumna Lt. Tracy Alger, who was killed in action in on Nov. 1, during her third tour of duty in Iraq. – Special photo
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Burnett County sheriff’s report Accidents Town of Oakland, Dec. 22: Patrick H. Henderson, 38, Webster, was westbound on Bushey Road when he lost control negotiating a curve. The vehicle left the roadway and struck a tree. There were no reported injuries. Town of Trade Lake, Dec. 22: Paula G. Larson,49, Frederic, was southbound on Hwy. 48, attempting a left turn into a driveway when a vehicle attempted to pass. The vehicle collided tearing off the bumper of the Larson vehicle. The other vehicle did not stop after the accident. There were no reported injuries. Town of Rusk, Dec. 23: Shoshanna R. Mike, 17, Braham, Minn., was westbound on Hwy. 70 when she lost control on the snow-covered roads. The vehicle overturned after hitting a driveway embankment. There were no reported injuries.
Town of Swiss, Dec. 24: Charles W. Haverland, 61, Danbury, was eastbound on Hwy. 77, attempting a turn onto 2nd Avenue South when he slid into Michelle L. Buskirk, 28, Danbury, who was parked at the stop sign of 2nd Avenue South. There were no reported injuries. Town of Meenon, Dec. 26: Nathan J. Petersen, 20, Siren, was southbound on Old Hyw. 35 when he lost control and left the roadway, striking a mailbox in the process. Arrests Town of Wood River, Dec. 15: Anna M. Whited, 34, Grantsburg, was arrested on a Burnett County warrant. Town of Swiss, Dec. 17: David M. Hughes, 33, Danbury, was arrested for domestic battery. Town of Swiss, Dec. 20: Chad J. Roberts, 37, Danbury, was arrested for domestic battery. Town of Swiss, Dec. 21:
Shannon L. Garbow, 27, Danbury, was arrested for battery and disorderly conduct. Town of Swiss, Dec. 21: Erin E. Dearbin, 21, was arrested for battery, disorderly conduct and criminal damage to property. Town of Swiss, Dec. 25: Jerome D. Melton, 45, Danbury, was arrested for criminal damage to property. Town of Scott, Dec. 25: Sean T. Schaaf, 34, Danbury, was arrested for OWI and operating after revocation. Town of Meenon, Dec. 27: Jason E. Davis, 20, Frederic, was arrested for violating a restraining order. Other incidents Town of Meenon, Dec. 10: John D. Lowry, Webster, reported a 12-volt battery stolen. The incident is under investigation. Town of West Marshland, Dec. 13: Burnett County Sheriff’s Department responded to an alarm. Tracks were seen at the sight, but no entry was
Burnett County criminal court Allison E. Didier, 17, Webster, seat belt violation, $160.80. Nace A. Sutherland, 16, Grantsburg, license restriction violations, $186.00. Tommy R. Jewell, 33, Siren, nonregistration, $160.80. John R. Olson, 44, Frederic, nonregistration, $249.00; display unauthorized vehicle registration plate, $223.80. Harlan J. Meyer, 55, Grantsburg, inattentive driving, $627.00. Craig A. Stevens, 44, Webster, disorderly conduct, $249.00. Bryan C. Johnson, 44, Duluth, Minn., speeding, $186.00. David W. Noonan, 50, Woodbury, Minn., speeding, $211.20. Jack R. Kemptner, 24, Somerset, operate without valid
license, $186.00. Scott L. Jewell, 45, Princeton, Minn., disorderly conduct, $249.00. Shelly A. Tanning, 39, Minneapolis, speeding, $186.00. Benjamin J. Joyce, 28, Grantsburg, OWI, $730.00, alcohol assessment, license revoked seven months. Drew L. Preston, Danbury, issue worthless check, $249.00. Lester C. Peoples, 60, Springbrook, issue worthless check, $188.77 restitution, $213.00. Judy M. Christner, 54, Spooner, disorderly conduct, $249.00. Laura M. Coulter, 47, Siren, operate without valid license, $186.00. Christopher G. Glonek, 34, Grantsburg, possess drug paraphernalia, $242.00.
George R. Mosay, 23, Luck, OWI, $1,020.00, alcohol assessment, 20 days’ jail sentence, Huber privileges for employment, license revoked 18 months. Robert L. Mishler, 39, Siren, OWI, $1,209.00, two-year probation, 60 days’ jail sentence, Huber privileges granted, alcohol assessment, license revoked 27 months. Heather S. Lura, 36, Wayzata, Minn., speeding, $113.00. Chain of Lakes Landscaping, Danbury, vehicle equipment violation, $231.00. Charlene O. Sutherland, 31, Siren, operate without valid license, $186.00. Sherry Benjamin, 27, Webster, operate while revoked, $249.00; violation of child safety restraint requirements, $160.80.
made into the home. Town of Oakland, Dec. 15: Clarence W. Boreen, Danbury, reported his inflatable Santa and sleigh was run over by a vehicle. The incident is under investigation. Town of LaFollette, Dec. 15: Sandra A. Taylor, St. Paul, reported two guitars, four portable radios, wrapping paper in two wooden boxes and a pair of moccasins were taken from a home. The incident is under investigation. Town of LaFollette, Dec. 15: A vehicle driven by James T. Yarosis, Webster, broke through the ice on Warner Lake. He contacted Burnett County Sheriff’s Department to inform them of the situation, and the sheriff’s department informed Yarosis that he had 10 days to remove his vehicle. Village of Webster, Dec. 16: Ralph J. Ludden, St. Paul, Minn., reported a boat and assorted tools owned by his brother were taken from his residence. The incident is under investigation.
Town of Anderson, Dec. 17: Clifford Wies, Grantsburg, reported roofing tin, insulation and eight vehicle rims and tires taken from a property. The incident is under investigation. Town of Dewey, Dec. 17: Jennie-O Turkey Store reported a DR Power Wagon Wheelbarrow stolen from a parking lot. The incident is under investigation. Town of Siren, Dec. 18: Shirley A. Schroeder, Webster, reported a house entered and ransacked. Guns were discovered missing. The incident is under investigation. Town of Scott, Dec. 25: Three snowmobiles were stolen from Main Storage Units. One of the snowmobiles was recovered. The incident is under investigation. Town of Jackson, Dec. 25: The town shop reported the theft of gas from the bulk tank. It appeared that two snowmobiles stole the gas. The incident is under investigation. Town of Jackson, Dec. 25: Northland Builders reported gas stolen from a bulk tank using the
same technique as the gas stolen at Jackson town shop. The incident is under investigation. Town of Webb Lake, Dec. 26: A front door of a cabin was discovered to be open by a neighbor. Burnett County Sheriff’s Department responded and found that the cabin was entered. A snowmobile track was found in the driveway. It is unknown if anything is missing. The incident is under investigation. Town of West Marshland, Dec. 27: Jeffrey W. Schnell, Hudson, reported his hunting shack entered, and the contents of two fire extinguishers were sprayed on the floor and walls. Town of Oakland, Dec. 30: Richard C. Anderson, Frederic, reported the theft of ice-fishing equipment from his four-wheeler. The incident is under investigation. Town of Webb Lake, Dec. 31: Four Star Sports reported two snowmobiles and gas stolen. One sled was recovered. The incident is under investigation.
Polk Co. Red Cross looking for a book POLK COUNTY – The Polk County Branch of the American Red Cross is looking for “Polk County Wisconsin in the War.” A copy was found at the Balsam Lake Library, and it has wonderful history of the beginnings of the Red Cross in Polk
County. This book was copyrighted in 1919 by Oscar W. Lund, publisher, Harald H. Lund, editor, in Luck. If you have this book and would be willing to donate it to the American Red Cross please call 715-485-3025. submitted
Polk County sheriff’s report Accidents Dec. 22, 10:11 a.m., Osceola Twp., 200th Street, .37 mile south of 85th Avenue, #1— LAWRENCE R. HOFFMAN, 63, Lindstrom, Minn.; #2—ELIZABETH R. GERNER, 40, Dresser; Unit 1 was southbound on 200th Street. Unit 2 was eastbound in a private driveway at 813 200th Street. Unit 2 was unable to stop at the end of the driveway and slid onto 200th Street and struck unit 1, which was southbound. Unit 1 then slid across the road and got stuck in the ditch. Unit 2 ended up in the west ditch due to the accident. Unit 1 driver, Hoffman, sustained a minor injury (wearing seat belt/no EMS). Dec. 22, 11:45 a.m., Black Brook Twp., 95th Street, .8 mile
south of 35th Avenue, MARK D. KLINK, 50, Deer Park, was southbound on 95th Street. Unit 1 lost control and slid across the roadway and into the east side ditch. Unit 1 then struck an embankment and overturned onto its roof. It also spun around, facing north before coming to a stop. Dec. 22, 11:52 a.m., Balsam Lake Twp., CTH I at South Long Lake Drive, SALLY J. WULF, 49, Balsam Lake, was westbound on CTH I. The operator lost control, left the roadway to the right and crashed into a stop sign and street sign at south Long Lake Drive. Dec. 22, 4:03 p.m., Osceola Twp., 240th Street, .25 mile south of Hwy. 35, ADAM L. SCHUMAN, 16, Osceola, was traveling northbound on 240th
Street on glare ice roads when the driver lost control of the vehicle. Vehicle left the roadway and rolled onto its side in the ditch. Dec. 26, 9 a.m., St. Croix Falls Twp., Hwy., 100 feet south of 160th Avenue, SARAH A. SPEICH, 19, Centuria, was northbound on Hwy. 35. The driver lost control on the snow/slush and drove into the ditch along the east side of the highway. The car received frontend damage. Other incidents Sometime during the evening of Dec. 22, a vehicle owned by AMBER L. BEAUVAIS was taken from outside her residence without her permission. The vehicle was later recovered in the ditch, in St. Croix County. Also, at the time of the vehicle theft, a neighbor’s (JENNIFER A. KUHN, Clear Lake) vehicle was entered and compact discs were stolen. Dec. 26, CONSTANCE M. CLASS, RR Amery, reported that her mail, along with mail of her neighbors, had been stolen from their mailboxes.
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Notices
Burnett County civil court Burnett Medical Center vs. Kathleen Hess, Grantsburg, $968.00.
Northeastern Title Loans LLC vs. Brenda R. Barr, Grantsburg, $1,998.86. Bremer Bank N.A. vs. Scott E. Smith, Webster, return 2001 Ford Truck plus $366.00. St. Croix Regional Medical
Center vs. John C. Phillps, Grantsburg, $1,613.45. Capital One Bank vs. John A. Hallock, Danbury, $3,441.32. Citizens Community Federal vs. David McArthur, Webster, $1,639.42. Capital One Bank, vs. Natasha Olson, Grantsburg, $1,331.31. Bayfield Financial LLC vs. Lorrie L. Will, Siren, $1,003.16. Bayfield Financial LLC vs. Ronald E. Tetrault, Spooner, $4,059.28. Arrow Building Center vs. David Stromberg, Webster, $657.76.
Burnett Co. marriage licenses Phillip S. Johnston, Colorado Springs, Colo., and Rebekah L. Peterson, Colorado Springs, Colo., Dec. 21. Knute J. Norenberg, Grantsburg, and Dagny C. Cervantes, Texas, Dec. 26. Tony J. Bentley, Webster, and Rhonda M. Spafford, Webster, Dec. 26. Andrew B. Douglas, Circle Pines, Minn., and Rachell S. Larrabee, Circle Pines, Minn., Dec. 28.
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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
2007 Year in review: Top 10 stories Brookshaw breaks BSU records Former Webster graduate and Bemidji State’s goaltender Emily Brookshaw broke Bemidji State’s alltime record for saves on Saturday, Nov. 24, when she stopped a career high of 50 against the Wisconsin Badgers. The game ended in a shutout overtime tie. “When the buzzer went off, I was just shaking,” Brookshaw said. Brookshaw now holds the saves record at 2,405, taking it over from Bre Dedrickson who had 2,379. It is also enough to set her at sixth place in WCHA history for career saves. The Wisconsin Badger game’s performance earned Brookshaw the WCHA defensive player of the week and the U.S. College Hockey Online defensive player of the week. Brookshaw had trained with Molly Engstrom at the USA Hockey camp to hopefully become an Olympian. She held her own during the scrimmages with a one-goal performance, two goals allowed and a shutout. “I think she has the potential definitely,” Engstrom said of Brookshaw. – Brenda Sommerfeld
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Emily Brookshaw makes a save during her record-breaking game against the Wisconsin Badgers. Photo courtesy of Bemidji State University Kutz captures Division 3 title Grantsburg’s Sean Kutz finished just seven seconds behind the firstplace finisher in last year’s Division 3 championship, but this year there was a whole different ending to Kutz’s story, when he received the title even after coming down with bronchitis during the week before the competition. The week before, Kutz had collapsed from exhaustion when he finished second at the sectional tournament in Boyceville. “I went for a really good time (at Boyceville) and didn’t really want to do that here,” Kutz said. During this year at the state tournament, Kutz decided to change his running strategy from last year’s. He said
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he had started off too quickly, but this year took it a little slower in the beginning and finished the last half mile off strong. After passing his competition, Kutz was able to hold the lead for the remainder of the last bit of the race. Kutz gets to hold this title for the year, as this is his final high school crosscountry season. - Brenda Sommerfeld
girls shut out Prescott and Thorp to their second-consecutive receive Division 3 sectional title and to make their third trip to the state competition in Madison. Pitcher Mollie Bjelland had five strikeouts in the first two innings in the Thorp game. Alyssa Ryan helped the Pirates take an 11-0 win with three RBIs on 1-2 hitting. Grantsburg shut out Prescott 4-0, with three of the four runs in the first inning. “After the first inning, I don’t know what happened,” coach Don Bjelland said. “To give them (Prescott) credit, I think the pitcher started changing her speeds a little bit.” Bjelland and Jamie Lund held Prescott down with no runs by combining 10 strikeouts, only two hits and two walks. The Pirate defense kept these few base runners from getting past second base.
career at St. Croix Falls, the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association gave Keith O’Donnell the ultimate coaching honor. O’Donnell joined 19 other inductees to the hall of fame in March in the presence of family, friends, former players and assistant coaches. O’Donnell influenced a lot of people during his years at St. Croix Falls, not only as a football coach, but as a teacher at the high school as well. In football, he coached the Saints to many victories including a state runner-up in 1988, two sectional titles, three regional titles and six conference titles. “In a small school system, it’s hard to win every year, but even in the down years we still had a lot of great kids to coach,” O’Donnell told a former Leader reporter. The support and understanding of the community has been important in order to keep coaching,” he said.
Sean Kutz raises his arms after winning the State Division 3 crosscountry meet this year. - Photo by Marty Seeger Webster cross-country dream season After 26 years of coaching cross country in Webster, Jim Muus had never seen such a strong boys team as the one this past fall. The boys team dominated the entire season with a conference championship and took a second-place finish. “This is definitely the biggest moment that we’ve had,” Muus said. Depth was a major factor in the
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Pirate girls took their 14th consecutive sectional championship during the 2007 season. - Photo by Larry Samson
The Webster cross-country team gets a ride on the Fire truck after returning with second place from the state meet. - Photo by Raelynn Hunter team’s success, its core group, which included seniors Peter Walsh, Brian Gibbs and A.J. Holmquist. Each had a big hand in recruiting others to join the cross-country team. Muus said that Gibbs’ main reason for joining two years ago was to get in shape for basketball, but now loves the sport and loves to run. There will be another dream season in the works yet again next season as junior Quentin Johnson, freshman Jack Taylor, sophomore Bryan Krause, junior Nick Krinkie and a handful of others will be lining up to fill in for the seniors. - Marty Seeger
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Pirates softball third trip to Madison The Grantsburg Pirate
The softball team allowed six runs total during the season and carried two streaks of four- and five-game shutouts. “We have to pride ourselves on not letting anybody score,” Bjelland stated. These girls scored 10 or more runs during 19 of their 23 wins of the season and were on a 45-game winning streak from their third game in 2006. The streak did end when the defending champs were beaten by Sevastopol in Madison 4-0, but have another year ahead of them for this season. - Brenda Sommerfeld
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SCF coach reaches hall of fame After his historic 35year football coaching
St. Croix Falls football coach, Keith O’Donnell, was inducted into hall of fame. - Photo by Matt Blumkin - Brenda Sommerfeld Bjelland and Flanigan reach 1,000 points Siren’s Caitlin Flanigan reached her 1,000-point mark on Friday, Jan. 19 and Grantsburg’s Mollie Bjelland followed right behind with hers on Thursday, Feb. 1. Flanigan needed 22 points in the
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SPORTS RESULTS DEADLINES: WEDNESDAY - MONDAY: 1 p.m. the following business day. TUESDAY: 7 a.m. on Wednesday. Missed deadlines mean no coverage that 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 o r b r e n d a l s @ c e n t u r y -
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Siren’s Caitlin Flanigan was one of the girls that scored 1,000 points during the 2006-07 basketball season. - Photo by Marty Seeger her thousand points and the pressure was on. She remained scoreless during the first quarter and scored only seven in the second. The third was her moment of glory, when she sank her 22nd point on an easy layup with only 12.6 seconds remaining. The crowd went wild. “They’re awesome,” Flanigan said about the suddenly loud crowd. “It’s cool when I made the last one. I’ve never heard them get that loud.” Coach Jon Ruud gave a speech, she got many hugs and was able to enjoy the rest of the game from the bench. Bjelland became the fourth Pirate basketball player for Grantsburg that achieved 1,000 points. After scoring 22 at the Siren game, she only needed four more points. With just under seven minutes in the first quarter, Bjelland accomplished what many high school players never see, with an all-net floater from about 12 feet. “I was in awe when they called the timeout and everyone just stood up and applauded,” Bjelland stated. “Talk about feeling out of your place; man, I was pretty nervous.” Basketball is considered by Bjelland as her “fun sport” and she says her accomplishment is due to the continuing support of her team. “I’m so happy for her,” coach Lisa McKinley said. “She has so much athletic ability that when you ask her to do something she just does it. For this to be her fun sport and excel so well it’s just phenomenal.” - Brenda Sommerfeld
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The Tigers beat the Cameron Comets 40-29, but then fell to the Eau Claire Regis Ramblers 56-43 to receive second instead of the title. “We wanted to hang a banner,” coach Randy Hedrick said, “but you gotta win the conference or you gotta get the sectional title. It was a good run. They’re good kids. They played hard. That’s all I can ask for as a coach.” The cheerleaders and fans were a great asset for the Tigers, following them every step of the way. Stores even closed in Webster during the afternoon for people to make it to games to cheer their team on. “They’re great kids and they deserve it,” Webster Principal Tim Widiker said. “There’s a lot of fans here that really moved us,” said junior guard Brian Gibbs. “That really kept us going.” The team improved from being an 1110 ball club the year before to regional champions and sectional runner-up this year. Finishing the season with a No. 14 ranking in the state and with a 22-3 mark had the Tiger seniors leaving with their heads held high. The kids not only excelled in the sport of basketball, but the entire team also made the honor roll in their classes at school. “I think the thing I’ll remember the most is the team, the unity we had,” Peter Walsh said. “We had fun. We gave it our best shot.” - Brenda Sommerfeld Bob Pilz shares his story After being diagnosed with myelofibrosis, a serious bone marrow disorder in early March, former Luck baseball coach of 14 years and guidance counselor of 19 years shared his story with the Leader. Pilz talked about battling illness, baseball, his faith in God and family. Despite the uphill battle, Pilz held a positive attitude no matter what obstacle lay ahead. “I refuse to be negative about anything at this point, cause I don’t think that it does you any good. I think a positive attitude is really important,” he said. While the bone marrow transplant Piz received in May was a successful one, the leukemia from the blood disorder returned, and Pilz passed away on June 26. It was not however, a cause for despair for family friends and relatives. “He was a totally changed man, he got a lot closer to God,” said son Travis Pilz. Ever since he heard about his sickness, he started reading the Bible more.
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Tiger boys second in sectionals Webster boys basketball won second place in their first-ever sectional appearance in the Eau Claire North Huskies’ gym on March 10.
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Luck baseball coach Bob Pilz shared his story after being diagnosed with myelofibrosis, a serious bone marrow disorder. - Photo by Marty Seeger
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Craig and Cathy Miles of Luck along with their daughter, Kelli, started WINGS to help support area students in financial need for participating in extracurricular activities in June of 2007. - Photo by Matt Blumkin It got our family closer together.” Bob’s wife, Mary, said that parting ways with Bob was one of giving thanks to God for his life. - Marty Seeger A change for baseball fans all around The Siren and Webster boards of education approved a recommendation to enter into a Co-op agreement for varsity boys baseball and girls softball for the 2007-08 school year. “It’s all about opportunities for our kids, and not to lose what we have, and then to be able to pick up softball, which is something we’ve really been heading towards for years,” said former Siren athletic director John Tinman. Another reason for the approval was to improve a balance between the number boys and girls sports offered at Siren. The Webster and Siren boys baseball teams played their last game on July 11, with Webster coming out with a 10-2 win. “I think its kind of a unique situation playing against each other, knowing that you’ll be teammates next year,” said Webster athletic director Tim Widiker on the teams final game as opponents. Another big change that took place among all area schools was the move from summer baseball to spring baseball. Schools affected will be the Webster/Siren Co-op, Grantsburg, Frederic and Unity.
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WINGS lifts students, athletes Former Unity football coach Craig Miles, wife Cathy, and daughter, Kelli, addressed a need to help students involved in athletics and extracurricular activities who don’t always have the resources necessary for participation. They formed a new program in June called WINGS, which stands for Whatever Individual Needs Gear or Supplies. Coaches and teachers from area schools will be able to go to WINGS to help out students and athletes that can’t afford certain equipment for a sport, band or other activities. Craig Miles began working on a firstannual golf benefit in Dec. 2006, which was held on June 18, 2007, at the Luck Golf Course with 148 golfers in attendance and 38 volunteers who helped out. The Miles family started the program after losing their son, Mark, who took
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Mollie Bjelland accomplishes 1,000 points at her “fun sport” of basketball. - Photo by Marty Seeger
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his life in 2006. Mark was a 2006 graduate of Unity who played football, basketball, golf and baseball for the Eagles, and also played trombone in the high school band. Family and friends remembered Mark as someone who was willing to help others and accepted everyone. “That’s what motivated us to do this, to carry on that convention,” said Craig Miles to former Leader reporter Matt Blumkin in June. - Marty Seeger
Extra Points ••• LEADER LAND – On Jan. 3 the boys basketball game between Osceola at Hudson will be broadcast on WLMX 104.9 FM at 7:30 p.m. The boys and girls basketball games with Grantsburg and St. Croix Falls can be heard on Jan. 4 starting at 6 p.m. on WLMX 104.9 FM. Also on Jan. 4 the boys hockey with Pine City, Minn., at Blizzard can be heard on WXCE 105.7 FM at 7 p.m. The girls basketball game with Amery at Ellsworth will be broadcast on Jan. 4 at 7:30 p.m. on WXCE 1260 AM. On Jan. 8 the boys and girls basketball games between St. Croix Falls and Luck will broadcast at 6 p.m. on 104.9 WLMX. The boys and girls basketball games with Webster at Grantsburg will be broadcast on WXCE 105.7 FM at 6 p.m. Also on Jan. 8, the Amery at Somerset boys basketball game can be heard on WXCE 1260 AM at 7:30 p.m. – Marty Seeger ••• LEADER LAND – On Jan. 5 the college basketball game between Iowa and Wisconsin can be heard on WXCE 1260 AM at 11 a.m. The college hockey game between Colorado College and Wisconsin is being broadcast on WXCE 1260 AM at 7 p.m. – Marty Seeger ••• LEADER LAND – Local sports tidbits to share? Please contact theLeader by 4 p.m. on Tuesdays to go in Extra Points! – Marty Seeger and Brenda Sommerfeld ••• LEADER LAND – Leader Sports strives to follow the college careers of area athletes. If you know of an athlete who will be playing collegiate sports in 2007-08 and hasn’t been mentioned, send us an e-mail and we’ll take it from there. – Marty Seeger and Brenda Sommerfeld
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 17
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Rikkola rocks Northern Badger at the Northern Badger Tournament. Wilson wrestled six times for the finish. After getting pinned in the first round, Wilson won his next three, including one in overtime to Somerset’s Trevor Bushinger. The Saints team is preparing for their conference match against Unity on Thursday night, which is shaping up to be a great match. “They’re strong in some weights, and we’re real strong in others,” Clark said. He added that it will likely come down to which team gets pinned and which team doesn’t. “I think it’ll be within 10 points one way or the other,” says Clark.
Four others place in the top 12 by Marty Seeger RIVER FALLS – Saints 112-pounder Justin Rikkola (13-1) took the Northern Badger Tournament by storm on Friday and Saturday, along with four others who vied for spots in the top 12. Jake Bruns (119) also landed a strong finish in second place. Rikkola received a bye in the first round but won his first match of the tournament over Chris Burton of Boyceville 16-0, and dominated much of his way through the tournament. “It seems to me like the bigger matches they are the better he wrestles,” said coach Dan Clark. He notched two pins over Alec Adams of Cumberland and Logan Cudd of River Falls. The first pin took 48 seconds, and his second over Cudd took 1:51. In the first-place match, Rikkola took down Bubba Gudis of Bruce in a close 2-1 decision. Gudis took second at
Saints wrestler Dan Larson (L) work on a takedown over Unity's Tim Reed. Larson won the first, but met Reed again in the concellation round and lost.
St. Croix Falls wrestler Justin Rikkola dominated the Northern Badger Tournament last weekend. Here he wrestles Chris Burton of Boyceville in his first match. Rikkola won easily 16-0 by tech fall over. - Photos by Marty Seeger the state tournament last year, which makes Rikkola’s win even sweeter. “Its only our 12th Northern Badger champion ever, so that was nice,” said Clark. Last year Rikkola placed second in the tournament. Bruns had a great couple of days on the mat by pinning Jimmy Wirkus of Cameron in his first match of the tournament in 40 seconds. His second win of the day came by a 6-5 decision over Jerrod Hrdlicka of Rice Lake. In the quarterfinals, Bruns defeated Nate Nelson before receiving a forfeit in the semifinals. Bruns faced the undefeated Kaleb Stevens (17-0) of Barron for the second-place finish. Sophomore Joe Raygor (152) notched two pins over Josh Trotterchaud of Durand and Tyler Odegard of Mondovi before losing by a 1-0 decision to Glenwood City’s Garrett Bonte in the quarterfinal match. Raygor won his next
three matches, one by pin to take a fifthplace finish overall. Dan Larson (135) and Jesse Wilson (140) both received 12th-place finishes
Joe Raygor
Jesse Wilson
Saints junior Jake Bruns took second place at the tournament, which was his best ever. Here he works on a pin over Cameron's Jimmy Wirkus.
Eagles get best-ever finish at Badger Six wrestlers place in the top 12 by Marty Seeger RIVER FALLS – The Eagles wrestling team entered the Northern Badger Wrestling Tournament for their sixth time last Friday and Saturday according to coach Mark Ferguson. To date this is the school’s best finish yet. Six of its 12 wrestlers placed in the top 12 in what is by far the toughest tournament of the year. “I was really proud of the kids. They wrestled hard every match, win or lose,” Ferguson said. This year, 37 different teams participated in the event, and wrestlers from Divisions 1-3 go head to head to see some of the best wrestlers in the north. The Eagles current No. 1 wrestler, Dustin McKinney (125), placed second at the tournament after winning be major decision over Dylan Zahara of Mondovi 10-1. He defeated Justin Schienebeck of Park Falls and Cody Parrott of Flambeau before falling to Thane Antczak of Chetek/Prairie Farm in a 7-2 decision. Antczak is a two-time state champion and one-time state runner-up. “Being in those matches really make a difference in your confidence level,” said Ferguson, who mentioned that McKinney was angry at himself for not
Alex Peper (L) defeated Luke Neumann of Edgewood/Monona Grove last Friday. Peper took ninth place in the tournament. - Photo by Marty Seeger
Unity's Dennis McKinney gets an opponent in a headlock during one of many matches that took place at the Northern Badger Tournament. McKinney placed third overall. - Photo by Marty Seeger carrying out the plan he intended to do. But as Ferguson admits, “Its tough to carry out a plan against a tough kid like that.” While Dustin placed high in his bracket, Ferguson said that his brother Dennis (130) probably finished best in his bracket. Dennis was seeded sixth going into the tournament and took third place, just one match away from a possible first-place finish. In compari-
son to the first- and second-place finishers, Ferguson said Dennis is right up there and will be very tough toward the end of the year. Alex Peper (112) finished in ninth place, winning his first two matches by a pin and 11-4 decision. While he lost his next two, the senior took his final two matches by decision. “Besides one mental mistake that lasted all but three seconds, he probably
could have placed a lot higher,” Ferguson said. Both Peper and senior Tim Reed (135) lost buzzer-beater matches on the second day of the tournament, with Reed losing one to a possible error by the referee, which Ferguson contested. Ferguson says the ref made a call in overtime too soon before Reed completed a move, which the referee agreed to. But once a call has been made, there’s no overturning the call. Other Unity wrestlers making their mark on the historic day were senior
See Wrestling/ page 20
PAGE 18 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - JANUARY 2, 2008
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Tiger boys up two more during vacation Frederic and St. Croix Falls take two loses
1 2 3 4 F 7 10 12 8 37 15 15 16 16 62 Individual Statistics St. Croix Falls 2s 3s FTM/A F TP Jake Larcom 1 0 0/0 1 2 Dan Roach 0 0 0/0 1 0 Trygve Chinander 0 1 0/0 2 3 Sam Schmidt 2 1 0/0 1 7 Cory Gebhard 2 0 0/0 1 4 4 0 1/2 2 9 Ryan Larson 2 0 2/4 2 6 David Lund Kyle Christensen 2 0 2/2 0 6 Greg Kadrmas 0 0 0/0 2 0 13 2 5/8 13 37 Totals Team St. Croix Falls Glenwood City
Webster 72, Bruce 43 CLAYTON – The Tigers won two games during the Clayton tournament this weekend. The first game was against Bruce, which they took easily, 72-43. Webster had a 15-point lead, 39-24, over Bruce before halftime and sailed right through the second half scoring 14 more points than Bruce. Brian Thill led his team with 23 points and Brian Gibbs scored 22, mostly in the first half, while A.J. Holmquist put up 10 points and Dylan Geske made seven. – Brenda Sommerfeld
Ryan Larson led the team with nine points and Sam Schmidt added seven. David Lund led the Saints in rebounds with five and Larson came down with four. Cory Gebhard led in assists with five and also had two steals. - Marty Seeger 1 2 3 4 F 17 15 14 8 54 10 19 15 13 57 Individual Statistics St. Croix Falls 2s 3s FTM/A F TP 1 0 0/0 4 2 Jake Larcom Trygve Chinander 4 2 2/4 1 16 2 0 1/7 3 5 Cory Gebhard 0 0 0/2 2 0 Gus Koecher 4 0 3/3 2 11 Ryan Larson 6 0 1/4 1 13 David Lund Greg Kadrmas 3 0 1/1 2 7 20 2 8/9 15 54 Totals
Team St. Croix Falls Ellsworth
Team Webster Bruce
1 2 3 4 F 23 16 14 9 72 11 13 14 5 43 Individual Statistics 2s 3s FTM/A F TP Webster Peter Walsh 0 0 1/2 1 1 6 3 1/1 3 22 Brian Gibbs Nick Wolfe 0 0 0/0 1 0 5 0 0/0 3 10 AJ Holmquist 0 0 0/0 1 0 Quentin Johnson Mitchell Elliott 1 0 2/3 0 4 1 1 2/3 4 7 Dylan Geske Brian Thill 10 0 3/5 1 23 0 0 1/2 1 1 Alex Clemons Adam Baum 2 0 0/0 0 4 25 4 10/16 15 72 Totals Bruce Jacob Kopras Cody Stewart Kurtis Johnson Ryan Gerber Aaron Ewert David Hegeholz Dalton Atwood Totals
2s 0 0 5 0 1 0 1 7
3s FTM/A F 0 0/0 1 0 0/0 2 0 2/2 3 0 2/2 3 0 0/0 3 7 1/1 1 0 3/4 3 7 8/9 16
TP 0 0 12 2 2 22 5 43
Webster 86, Lake Holcombe 44 CLAYTON – The second game the Tigers played was no different than the first, with Webster coming out on top of Lake Holcombe 86-44 on Saturday, Dec. 29. Being up 41-24 at halftime gave Webster a big advantage, and they weren’t slowed down any when they scored 45 points in the second two quarters while Lake Holcombe only put up 20 more points. Brian Gibbs scored 23 points again. Dylan Geske put up 15 and Adam Baum and Brian Thill each tallied up 14, while A.J. Holmquist got eight points. – Brenda Sommerfeld Team Webster Lake Holcombe
1 2 3 4 F 19 22 22 23 86 12 12 14 6 44 Individual Statistics Webster 2s 3s FTM/A F TP Peter Walsh 1 0 2/3 3 4 Brian Gibbs 7 1 6/7 2 23 Nick Wolfe 2 0 0/0 3 4 AJ Holmquist 4 0 0/0 4 8 Quentin Johnson 0 0 0/0 2 0 Mitchell Elliott 2 0 0/0 1 4 Dylan Geske 7 0 1/2 4 15 Brian Thill 5 0 4/6 3 14 Adam Baum 7 0 0/0 3 14 Totals 35 1 13/18 25 86 Lake Holcombe Joey Lamoureux Brandon Crank Kyle Schneider Justin Cynor Lee Kostick Kent Velie Cody Schneider Tyler Marshall Alex Roppe Jacob Burpo Totals
2s 2 0 3 0 2 1 3 2 1 1 15
Ellsworth Nelson Kuutt Murph Hipple Niedfeldt Samuel Henning Anderson Totals
3s FTM/A F TP 1 0/0 3 7 0 0/0 3 0 0 2/4 1 8 0 0/0 2 0 0 0/1 3 4 0 0/2 4 2 0 0/2 4 6 0 9/11 2 13 0 0/2 1 2 0 0/0 0 2 1 11/22 23 44
New Auburn 53, Frederic 44 Bruce 47, Frederic 43 CLAYTON – The Vikings traveled to Clayton last Friday and Saturday evening for two games against New Auburn and Bruce. According to coach Ben Nelson, the Vikings had a tough time against New Auburn on Friday night with a total of 32 turnovers. Kyle Swenson scored half of the
2s 1 1 0 2 6 0 2 1 13
3s FTM/A F 3 3/3 5 0 0/0 3 0 0/0 4 3 2/3 1 0 5/5 2 0 1/1 1 0 2/2 1 0 0/0 4 6 13/14 21
TP 14 2 0 15 17 1 6 2 57
Ellsworth 57, St. Croix Falls 54 GLENWOOD CITY – On Saturday the Saints came out with a much closer battle against Ellsworth, led by a 16point game from Trygve Chinander. The senior guard also had seven steals, five assists and six rebounds. David Lund was second on the points list with 13 to go along with six rebounds. Ryan Larson led the team in rebounds with eight. At one point the Saints led the game by 13 after the first period, but scored only nine in the second and eight in the fourth to come up short. - Marty Seeger Webster’s A.J. Holmquist goes up for a shot during a previous game this season. - File photo by Carl Heidel Team Frederic New Auburn
1 2 3 4 F 14 14 3 13 44 8 10 19 16 53 Individual Statistics Frederic 2s 3s FTM/A F TP Nolan Neumann 3 0 0/0 3 6 Will Primm 1 0 0/0 4 2 Ben Anderson 1 1 0/2 1 5 Zach Anderson 2 0 1/5 5 5 Kyle Swenson 4 4 2/2 2 22 Kanan Hackett 2 0 0/0 0 4 Ben Nelson 0 0 0/0 2 0 Brent Crandell 0 0 0/0 1 0 Totals 13 5 3/9 18 44 New Auburn Logan Butterfield Mike Farrell Calen Trowbridge Brad Thomas Jordan Super Totals Team Frederic Bruce Frederic Brent Crandell Ben Anderson Zach Anderson Kyle Swenson Kanan Hackett Ben Nelson Totals Bruce Jason Kopias Karl Gerber Ryan Gerber Dave Hegeholz Dalton Atwood Totals
2s 3 3 7 1 2 16
3s FTM/A F TP 2 5/11 1 17 0 1/5 2 7 1 0/0 4 17 0 1/2 2 3 0 5/11 3 9 3 12/29 12 53
1 2 3 4 F 13 14 5 11 43 10 10 11 16 47 Individual Statistics 2s 3s FTM/A F TP 0 0 0/0 4 0 0 0 0/0 4 0 4 0 2/4 3 10 6 2 2/2 3 20 2 1 0/0 1 7 0 2 0/0 2 6 12 5 4/6 17 43 2s 1 4 2 1 3 11
3s FTM/A F TP 0 4/4 1 6 0 5/10 3 13 3 4/6 4 17 1 0/0 0 5 0 0/2 2 6 4 15/22 10 47
Vikings point guard Kyle Swenson takes a shot from the field. Swenson scored 42 points during the tournament in Clayton this weekend. - File photo by Marty Seeger team’s points with 22, and the Vikings held a 14-7 lead after the first period, and a 28-18 lead at the half. Frederic fell apart in the second half with only three points to New Auburns 19. Fortunately, the team was able to turn things around on Saturday against Bruce. “After playing one of our worst games of the year on Friday we played very well on Saturday against Bruce, but unfortunately came up a little short,” Nelson said. Swenson had 20 points, eight rebounds, six assists and four steals against the Red Raiders. “Ben Nelson and Kanan Hackett stepped up and made some big shots as well for us. Overall the team showed a lot of resilience after a poor showing against New Auburn Friday,” Nelson said. - Marty Seeger Glenwood City 62, St. Croix Falls 37 GLENWOOD CITY – The Saints played a tough tournament in Glenwood City last weekend with their first loss coming to the Hilltoppers.
Saints Jacob Larcom drives around a defenseman in their game against Frederic earlier this year. File photo by Marty Seeger
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Blizzard boys celebrate holiday by winning Six wins until championship game De Pere 6, Spooner 3 Blizzard 6, Park Falls 3 Park Falls 6, Spooner 2 Blizzard 7, De Pere 4 by Brenda Sommerfeld SIREN – The Blizzard had something to celebrate during their holiday vacation while they skated in their holiday tournament and took the first-place trophy to remain undefeated. Four games were played. Two were on Thursday, Dec. 27, and two on Friday, Dec. 28. Three of them were won with the winning team scoring six goals. This tournament marked great accomplishments for members of the Blizzard. Blizzard captain Travis Close had an eight-point tournament with seven goals and one assist. “The neat part is he scored a even strength goal, two power-play goals, and added a shorthanded goal against Park Falls,” coach Greg Sears commented. “Almost like the cycle in baseball.” Sophomore Robbie Billings had another good run with two goals in each game, which leads his team with 27 total points. Close has put in 24 and Cameron Hughes 22. The Blizzard’s freshman goalie, Mike Billings, has posted a 91.1 save percentage and with his eight victories is in a tie for the state lead. The Park Falls Cardinals were not going to tie the Blizzard this time around. The Blizzard boys came out ready for them, outshooting them 10-5 in the first period and with Close scoring his first unassisted 3:52 into it, and this brought them into their first break
Blizzard captains, Cameron Hughes, Travis Close and David Harlander, recieve the plaque for winning the tournament on Friday night. - Photo by Brenda Sommerfeld up 1-0. The second period was even shots with each team smacking 10 towards the other’s goalie, but the Blizzard put in three of their 10 while Park Falls only got in one. The Cardinals put in the first goal right away, but Close answered back with the next two on power plays. The first came from assists from Hughes and Billings, and the second from David Harlander and Billings. Billings scored his first of the game unassisted to get their four points and put them above Park Falls 5-1.
The third period was closer in scoring but didn’t help the Cardinals catch up. Park Falls scored, then Billings on a power play from Harlander and Hughes, then Park Falls and finally Close with an unassisted and shorthanded with four minutes left. That was the 6-3 that ended it. The only non-six game was the championship game where the Blizzard went up against the De Pere Voyagers and they won the trophy with a final score of 7-4. Three goals (hat trick) were put in by Close, two by Billings, one by Ben
Anderson and one by Hughes. De Pere played harder than the score showed, with them outshooting the Blizzard 14 to six and having a 2-1 lead in the first quarter. Close scored unassisted the Blizzard’s point only 1:15 into the first quarter, but no one else was able to get a shot into the net. “But we must of woke up and played some of the best hockey I have seen in the second en route to taking a 5-2 lead after two periods,” Sears explained. Anderson scored his goal during the second on a power play 8:09 into the second with assists from Close and Hughes, and Billings put in an unassisted 10 seconds later to bring the Blizzard ahead by one. Billings scored the next goal with help from Noah Thatcher, and Hughes scored on a power-play from Harlander and Anderson, while the Voyagers had a player in the box for a charging penalty. This brought the Blizzard up 5-2 going into the third period. Close scored another unassisted five minutes into the third and another power play goal from Billings and Hughes seven minutes later. De Pere was able to put in two more to bring the score a little closer, but they weren’t able to take advantage of the last three minutes, when they were five on three with Billings and Anderson both in the penalty box for two minutes with minors. “We are 8-0-1 entering the New Year,” Sears said. “I’m real proud of my guys so far. Their hard work and team unity is paying off, and hopefully we can continue this as we start to prepare for the playoffs.”
Lady Blizzard tie two in tourney second period. Then Casey Crawford retaliated and scored an unassisted goal, sniping the puck to the upper corner of the net, which Bennett described as one of the prettiest goals they have scored all year. “We’ve been working hard at practice with our shooting, and the girls are definitely improving,” Bennett explained.
Fall to Moose Lake in last game Lady Blizzard 1, Lake of the Woods 1 by Brenda Sommerfeld MOOSE LAKE – The Lady Blizzard had a tournament this weekend hosted by Moose Lake. Their first match was against the Lake of the Woods team, which went into a five-minute overtime and stayed tied 1-1, not breaking their winning streak. It was a very fast-paced game even though the Blizzard started out flat. “We may be in for a long night,” coach Tim Bennett had thought in the first five minutes. The Blizzard then picked it up and took charge of the game. It was pretty evenly matched with 33 shots on goal from the Blizzard and 38 by Lake of the Woods. “We had numerous close scoring chances,” Bennett said. Alex Lonetti scored for the Blizzard early in the third period on a wrap around. After the goal, Lake of the Woods turned the game around and kept the puck in the Blizzard territory, and causing Lady Blizzard to have several turnovers. Lake of the Woods finally scored late in the third on a scrum in front of the net. Being shorthanded for part of the five-minute overtime made it a little more difficult, and the Lady Blizzard were not able to score, but neither was the Lake of the Woods, ending the game
Aimee Van Tatenhove goes in to score against the goalie while surrounded by opponents during the Moose Lake tournament this week. - Photo by Jean Van Tatenhove with a 1-1 tie. Lady Blizzard 1, Little Falls 1 MOOSE LAKE – This was the same result of a game just against a different team for the Lady Blizzard in their second match-up against Little Falls. Once again it went into overtime and ended in a tie of 1-1. The result may have been the same, but the Lady Blizzard dominated this game shooting 40 to Little Falls’ 17.
“Our girls played awesome defense,” coach Tim Bennett said. Little Falls was only allowed the outside lanes with the Lady Blizzard taking the middle on defense. “That was a completely awesome period of hockey you just played,” Bennett had told his team going into the locker room after the first period. The only trouble was that they weren’t able to score until after Little Falls scored a shorthanded goal in the
Moose Lake 1, Lady Blizzard 0 MOOSE LAKE – Most good things come to an end, and the Moose Lake game was the end of the winning streak the Lady Blizzard had going, but not by much, when they lost 1-0 in the last minute of the game. “This game could have gone either way,” coach Tim Bennett stated. “Defensively as a team we couldn’t be playing any better.” The only goal was made by Moose Lake late in the third. Goalie Tiffany Meyer was screened and couldn’t see the shot coming when they hit it from the top of the circles. The Lady Blizzard pulled Meyer in the last 30 seconds and had a few good chances to score, but couldn’t get one in the net. “The girls really played well and deserved to win,” Bennett said. “I thought we were headed for a third overtime.” With this game loss, the Lady Blizzard received third in the tournament, and Bennett says that they are doing everything he asked them to do as a coach, except put the puck in the net.
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Sunday Afternoon Mixed Standings: D&B’s 17, Spare-Us 16, The Hee Haws 12, Hot Shots 9, Sandbaggers 5, Gems 4. Women’s games: Gail Linke (The Hee Haws) 233, Barb Morgan (D&B’s) 213, Angie White (Spare-Us) 169. Women’s series: Gail Linke (The Hee Haws) 643, Barb Morgan (D&B’s) 540, Dorothy Barfknecht (Hot Shots) 442. Men’s games: Scott Morrison (Gems) 202, Don Hughes (The Hee Haws) 198, Jim Loomis (Spare-Us) & Brian Bistram (D&B’s) 193. Men’s series: Don Hughes (The Hee Haws) 569, Jim Loomis (Spare-Us) 556, Scott Morrison (Gems) 522. Team games: The Hee Haws 852, D&B’s 848, Gems 844. Team series: The Hee Haws 2417, D&B’s 2375, Spare-Us 2374. Five strikes in a row: Gail Linke (6). 50 pins above series: Barb Morgan (+51), Gail Linke (+62), Angie White (+61). 100 pins above series: Gail Linke (+130). Splits converted: 5-7: Barb Morgan, Scott Morrison. 3-10: Lori Dake. Wednesday Afternoon Ladies Standings: Eggs 5, Hacker’s Lanes 4, Frandsen Dairy 3, Pioneer Bar 2. Individual games: Betty Schandorff (HL) 180, Nancy Bradwell (HL) 179, Char Sandberg (PB) 175. Individual series: Nancy Bradwell (HL) 491, Ruth Sorenson (FD) 456, Betty Schandorff (HL) 453. Team games: Hacker’s Lanes 647, Frandsen Dairy 632, Hacker’s Lanes 587.
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Ben Hendricks (189) and freshman Luke Nelson (119). Hendricks placed 11th with three pins on the day and Nelson fished 12th with one pin. Ferguson said that Hendricks could have probably placed even higher, but Nelson showed promise for the future. Nelson wasn’t seeded going into the tournament but managed to place without as much experience as some of the competition. Nelson had a tough second day but
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Splits converted: 3-10: John Hickey. 3-67-10: Jake Anderson. 4-9: Tim Pederson. 4-5-7: Marlin Larson. Thursday Late Men’s Standings: Hansen Farms Inc. 39, Hog Wild BBQ & Grill 35.5, Stotz & Co. 34.5, Fisk Trucking 28, Johnson Upholstery 26. Individual games: Dave Gabrielson 236, Kenny Hackett 236, Ole Baillargeon 222. Individual series: Ole Baillargeon 646, Elmer Nagel 590, Gene Wynn Jr. 560. Team games: Hansen Farms Inc. 990, Stotz & Co. 930, Hog Wild BBQ & Grill 876. Team series: Hansen Farms Inc. 2873, Stotz & Co. 2616, Fisk Trucking 2409.
McKenzie Lanes Monday Night Ladies Standings: Metal Products 61, Sam’s Carpentry 53.5, Wolf Creek Log Furniture 53.5, Frederic Truck & Tractor 50.5, Bont Chiropratic 49.5, Edina Divas 49.5, McKenzie Lanes 42, Milltown Appliance 40.5.
Ferguson said “he wrestled his tail off on the first day.” Unity will travel to St. Croix Falls in their second conference dual of the season this Thursday. While the team is still young and learning, Ferguson says the dual should be a close one. With six of their top wrestlers placing at Badger he likes where they’re sitting at this point. “I’m pretty proud of the way we look right now,” Ferguson said. “And those six are looking a lot better than I thought they might.”
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Team series: Hacker’s Lanes 1764, Frandsen Dairy 1697, Pioneer Bar 1602. Wednesday Night Early Men’s Standings: A-1 Machine 37, Pioneer Bar 36.5, Four Seasons Wood Prod. 35.5, Skol Bar 35, Larsen Auto Center 33, Parker 29, Lewis Silo 25, Cummings Lumber 25. Individual games: Brett Daeffler (LAC) 277, Norm Hansen (A-1) 269, Gene Ackland (4S) 261. Individual series: Norm Hansen (A-1) 737, Gene Ackland (4S) 698, Jon Doolittle (LS) 676. Team games: Four Season Wood Prod. 1084 & 1076, A-1 Machine 1056. Team series: Four Season Wood Prod. 3176, A-1 Machine 2993, Lewis Silo 2886. Thursday Early 3-Man (First Half) Standings: Wikstrom Construction (8) 62, K-Wood (10) 57.5, Full Timers (5) 56, Hell Raisers (7) 54, Fab Four (3) 51.5, CenturyTel (6) 50, Frontier Trails (9) 46, Grindell Law Offices (4) 39. Individual games: Don McKinney (FF) 299, Ed Bitler (K-W) 258, Don McKinney (FF) 254. Individual series: Don McKinney (FF) 732, Ed Bitler (K-W) 684, Mike Sullivan (WC) 645. Team games: Fab Four 625, K-Wood 615 & 599. Team series: K-Wood 1766, Fab Four 1713, Wikstrom Construction 1671. Consecutive strikes (5 or more): Don McKinney (11x) 299 & (8x) 254; Ed Bitler (5x) 258. Games 50 or more above average: Don McKinney 299 (+90); Ed Bitler 258 (+51). Most points: Dave Hall (HR) 33.
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Individual games: Kathy McKenzie 196, Louise Clark 190, Kelley Hill & Rene’ Strayer 189. Individual series: Barb Wilson 508, Kathy McKenzie 504, Dawn Blanski 501. Team games: Metal Products 973. Team series: Wolf Creek Log Furniture 2800. Monday Night Madness Standings: Peper Tire & Align. 12, McKenzie Lanes 12, Pepie’s Gals 12, Osceola Plumbing & Heating 10, Alleycats 8, State Farm Ins. 6, Scottay’s Trucking 2, Frederic Larsen Auto 2. Individual games: Julia Delougherty 199, Barbara Benson 193, Brenda Carlson 182. Individual series: Barbara Benson 502, Julia Delougherty 487, Linette Erickson 463. Team games: McKenzie Lanes 625, Peper Tire & Align. 613, Pepie’s Gals 603. Team series: McKenzie Lanes 1776, Peper Tire & Align. 1702, Pepie’s Gals 1642. Tuesday Early Mixed Standings: Still Standing 8, Lane Crashers 8, The Gumegu’s 0, Gutter Gals 0. Women’s games: Lonnie Curtiss 189, Jan Lemann 152, Janice Berg 144. Women’s series: Lonnie Curtiss 521, Jan Lehmann 421, Janice Berg 368. Men’s games: Erv Lehmann 246, Guppy Gustafson 171, Don Ellefson 161. Men’s series: Erv Lehmann 590, Guppy Gustafson 482, Gilbert Berg 449. Team games: Still Standing 535. Team series: Still Standing 1532.
Burnett Youth Hockey U-12 Girls
December 22-23
Grantsburg/Burnett 10, Ashland 1
Goals: Breanna Phernetton (3), Ashley Dietmier (3), Laura Harlander (2), Sam O’Brien, Jaylica Larson Assists: Ashley Dietmier (3), Kassie Lien, Sam O’Brien, Tianna Stewart, Daniel Pardun, Johanna Lauer Saves: Hope Tucker (8)
Grantsburg/Burnett 9, Amery B’s 3
Goals: Laura Harlander (3), Kallie Schiller (2), Breanna Phernetton, Hope Tucker, Tianna Stewart, Ashley Dietmier Assists: Breanna Phernetton, Sam O’Brien, Tianna Stewart, Kassie Lien, Daniel Pardun Saves: Gabby Schiller (5)
Goals: Joe Engelhart (3), Anthony Dietmeier (2), Tyler Richison Assists: Tyler Richison (2), Matt Smith, Kyle Roberts Saves: Thomas Labatt (3)
Blizzard PeeWee A
Goals: Ryan Curtis (3), Jacob Swenson (2), Aaron Dietmeier Assists: Brian Billings, Triston Alden, Aaron Dietmeier, Jeremy Roy, Jacob Swenson Saves: Jimmy Richison (23)
Hayward 7, Blizzard 5
Goals: Ryan Curtis (2), Aaron Dietmeier (2), Brian Billings Assists: Brian Billings, Ryan Curtis, Jacob Swenson, Matt Larson Saves: Jimmy Richison (20)
Squirt A
December 29-30
Burnett 8, Chippewa Falls 1
Goals: Brady Mangen (3), Brett Richison (2), Vincent Larson, Aubriannah Larson, Jenna Curtis Assists: Vincent Larson (2), Brett Richison (2) Saves: Bailey Mangen (3)
PREPS
Burnett 17, Menomonie 0
Goals: Jenna Curtis (5), Brett Richison (3), Vincent Larson (2), Max Norman (2), Brady Mangen (2), Aubriannah Larson, Keisha Roy, Nick Robinson Assists: Vincent Larson (5), Jenna Curtis (2), Brett Richison, Max Norman, Dylan Strait, Nick Larson, Aubriannah Larson Saves: Bailey Mangen (0)
Burnett 10, Amery 1
Goals: Jenna Curtis (5), Brady Mangen (3), Vincent Larson, Nick Robinson Assists: Vincent Larson (2), Brady Mangen (2) Saves: Bailey Mangen (0)
Blizzard Bantam
Bantam 12, Chippewa Falls 0
Goals: Kyle Roberts (3), Jordan Sargent (2), Tyler Richison (2), Joe Engelhart (2), Brady McWilliam (2), Cody Benedict Assists: Brady McWilliam (3), Cody Benedict (2), Jordan Sargent, Joe Engelhart Saves: Brandon Roufs (4), Thomas Labatt (1)
Bantam 6, Amery 3
Goals: Joe Engelhart (3), Cody Benedict (2), Brady McWilliam Assists: Brady McWilliam, Damian Rasmussen, Bert Luedtke Saves: Thomas Labatt (14)
Bantam 6, New Richmond 0
Somerset 7, Blizzard 6
Ben Hendricks after his pin over Cameron's Seth Olson last Friday.
Tuesday Night Men’s Standings: Nel-Lo-Hill Farm 89.5, Steve’s Appliance 89, Hack’s Pub 83, The Dugout 80.5, Greatland Trans. 77, Glass Bar 75.5, McKenzie Lanes 75.5, Dream Lawn 70. Individual games: Norm Hansen 259, Darren McKenzie 258, Randie Gustafson 258. Individual series: Norm Hansen 719, Randie Gustafson 668, Dick Wallis 665. Team games: The Dugout 1234, Dream Lawn 1205, McKenzie Lanes 1194. Team series: The Dugout 3492, Glass Bar 3459, Dream Lawn 3458. Wednesday Early League Standings: Hendrick’s Motor 66, Lite House 58, Holiday Stationstores 50, TriCounty Imp. 46, Fox Den II 44, Larsen Auto Frederic 42, Fox Den 42, Cutting Edge 36. Women’s games: Janice Fox 178, Jeanne Kizer 169, Patty Walker 166. Women’s series: Janice Fox 489, Patty Walker 459, Jeanne Kizer 454. Men’s games: Merlin Fox 268, Mike Welling 249, Bob Berg 244. Men’s series: Mike Welling 678, Bob Berg 666, Merlin Fox 661. Team games: Holiday Stationstores 690, Larsen Auto Frederic 683, Hendrick’s Motor 673. Team series: Holiday Stationstores 1943, Fox Den II 1923, Hendrick’s Motor 1910. Wednesday Night Men’s Standings: Dalles Electric 55, Harvest Moon 42, Edina Realty 41, Hanjo Farms 32, Reed’s Marina 30, Davy’s Const. 26, Tiger Express 20, McKenzie Lanes 10. Individual games: Brad Hacker 300, Jim McKenzie 289, Carl Hetfeld 249.
Youth hockey results
Bantam 6, Somerset 4
Freshman Luke Nelson finished well for his first Northern Badger Tournamnent last weekend. He finished 12th place overall.
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Blizzard Bantam
Unity sophomore Dustin McKinney took second place at Northern Badger last weekend. - Photos by Marty Seeger
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Goals: Anthony Dietmeier (2), Joe Engelhart (2), Cody Benedict, Kyle Roberts Assists: Brady McWilliam (2), Cody Benedict (2), Damien Rasmussen, Joe Engelhart, Kyle Roberts, Jordan Sargent Saves: Brandon Roufs (3)
Blizzard PeeWee A
Blizzard 14, Chippewa Falls 1
Goals: Ryan Curtis (4), Matt Larson (4), Alex Hopkins (2), Brian Billings (2), DJ Hanter, Jeremy Roy Assists: Alex Hopkins (3), Ryan Curtis, Aaron Dietmeier, Cameron McWilliams, Jeremy Roy Saves: Jimmy Richison (5)
Blizzard 9, Amery 2
Goals: Ryan Curtis (5), Alex Hopkins (4) Assists: Jacob Swenson (2), Aaron Dietmeier (2), Ryan Curtis, Alex Hopkins Saves: Jimmy Richison (9)
OF THE
NAME: Travis Close SCHOOL: Luck YEAR: Senior COMMENTS: The Blizzard’s Travis Close had a great weekend during the Holiday tournament hosted by the Blizzard. Close had an eight-point tournament with seven goals and one assist. Against Park Falls, Travis Close he scored an even strength goal, two power-play goals and one shorthanded goal. Coach Greg Sears described it as almost like the cycle in baseball. Then against De Pere, Close had another hat trick night. – Brenda Sommerfeld
WEEK
NAME: Casey Crawford SCHOOL: Grantsburg YEAR: Sophomore COMMENTS: The Lady Blizzard had a good tournament at Moose Lake this weekend with the help of Casey Crawford. Crawford scored the only Blizzard point against Little Falls, that tied the game, by sniping the puck Casey Crawford into the upper corner of the net of the goal. Coach Tim Bennett said this was one of the prettiest goals they have scored all year, and Crawford is improving immensely. – Brenda Sommerfeld
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 21
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New Year's Eve 2007, 11:05 P.M. While the vast majority of lucky local yokels are out ready to greet the new year while engaging in varying forms of revelry and debauchery, I’m spending a restless evening at home, wringing my hands nervously while pondering important questions that may or may not be answered in 2008. Will former Luck multisport athlete and the area’s premier deer archer Galen D. “Coot” Skow bounce back from his 2007 streak of bad hunting luck and once again arrow a trophy whitetail in 2008? • Will Siren basketballer Janey Emery notch her 1,000th point in late 2008, or will she reach the milestone in early 2009? • Will this columnist be successful in ousting the soulless prognosticator The Amazing Bynor from these pages before the 2008 football season? You can’t argue with Bynor’s success rate (88 percent; tops in the Upper Midwest), but it seems most people miss the smug, granola-eating hunter and gatherer known as The Swami, and they long for his return. • Will Unity High School once again walk away with the Gary Award for the best basketball popcorn as they have for the past four consecutive years? • Everyone expects Rick Giller and his Division 4 Luck Cardinal boys to challenge for a berth in the WIAA state tournament in 2008, but might Danny Judd’s Grantsburg Pirates or Randy Hedrick’s Webster Tigers also be destined for a run at Kohl Center glory in Division 3? • Will old warhorse boys basketball coach Todd Voss be able to lead St. Croix Falls to a .500-plus record in his Grover Cleveland-like second stint as Saints head man? • Will the early March boys state basketball tournament (March 6, 7 and 8) draw increased crowds to the Kohl Center now that the WIAA event won’t be competing with the first round of NCAA March Madness? • Will the Second-Annual Frederc High School Alumni Basketball Tournament scheduled for Feb. 2 be an even grander and more prosperous affair than was the inaugural event last winter? • Will the Green Bay Packers continue their alarming stretch of lousy January Lambeau playoff performances or will they live to play again on Jan. 20? Who can forget the 30-7 Lambeau thrashing by Michael Vick and the Falcons and the 31-17 loss to the 8-8 Vikings in the famous Randy Moss moon game? •
J o h n R y a n
THE SPORTS
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Will wise Viking fans admit that the Randy Moss trade will rank in infamy with the infamous Herschel Walker deal? Will Moss go down in history as the only player who was ever traded primarily because the fans of a chief rival (i.e. Packer fans) hated him? • Will Siren-Webster, Frederic, and Luck soon lock up baseball coaches under contract as we prepare for Leader Land’s first all-spring WIAA baseball season? Will longtime diamond mentors Chad Gibson or Greg Sears be in the mix? • Will the welcome, ample snow cover be a boon to the local ruffed grouse population, which seems to be at a stagnant plateau during a period when experts say the population should be near its peak? • Will the local pheasant population stay strong and robust though the birds may be about to face what some are calling an old-fashioned northern Wisconsin winter? Or will our lack of diverse agricultural grain waste cause a winter survival problem for the gaudy imports? • Will McKenzie Lanes again be a 700 Series and perfect game factory in 2008 as it was in 2007? Some say the Centuria alley has become the number one bowling venue in all of Leader Land, with the Black and Orange of Webster a close second. • Will local silent sports icon William F. Johnson IV again be able to coordinate the mustering of a throng of volunteers that will make the Gravel Pit way station at the American Birkebeiner on Feb. 23 one of the most vital and bustling pit stops for Birkie skiers from around the world? • Will 2008 president-elect Mike Huckabee be able to assert his influence and help a local school district finally inflict an “Intelligent Design” curriculum upon its high school science students? • How will limp-wristed major league baseball commissioner Bud Selig deal with players and organizations who were fingered in the Mitchell Report which documented the pervasiveness of steroids in baseball? (What can he do?) Hey-wait a minute—Wasn’t Selig himself figuratively juiced up over the so-called “season that saved baseball” back when the chemically-addled Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa were assaulting Roger Maris’ singleseason home-run record? (What next...Blood doping in the sports of cycling and running?) • Will hall-of-fame voters again give the “thumbs down” to McGwire when the final tally is announced in February? • New Year’s Eve 2007, 11:58 P.M. zzzzz...zzzz...zzz...zzzz
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West Lakeland Conference Standings
Team Luck Webster Grantsburg St. Croix Falls Siren Unity Frederic
Conf. 3-0 2-0 2-1 2-1 1-3 1-3 1-4
Scores
Overall 7-0 8-1 5-1 2-3 2-5 1-6 1-8
Friday & Saturday, December 28 & 29 Clayton Tournament Webster 72, Bruce 43 New Auburn 53, Frederic 44 Ellsworth 57, St. Croix Falls 54 Webster 86, Lake Holcombe 44 Bruce 47, Frederic 43 Glenwood City 62, St. Croix Falls 37 Saturday, December 29 Grantsburg 69, Clear Lake 51
Coming up
Friday, January 4 Grantsburg at St. Croix Falls (DH) 6 p.m. 7:30 p.m. Siren at Webster (DH) Frederic at Shell Lake (NC) Cumberland at Unity Tuesday, January 8 Webster at Frederic (DH) 6 p.m. 7:30 p.m. Unity at Grantsburg (DH) St. Croix Falls at Luck (DH) Siren at Northwood (DH)
WRESTLING Coming up
Thursday, January 3 Clear Lake at Luck 7 p.m. St. Croix Falls at Unity Saturday, January 5 TBA St. Croix Falls at Chetek 9:30 a.m. LFG at New Richmond Invite Unity at New Richmond Invite
GIRLS BASKETBALL
West Lakeland Conference Standings
Team Siren Frederic Webster Grantsburg St. Croix Falls Luck Unity
Blizzard
8-0-1
Scores
Coming up
Overall 5-0 6-1 3-3 1-4 2-5 1-6 0-5
Friday, January 4 Siren at Webster (DH) 6 p.m. 7:30 p.m. Grantsburg at St. Croix Falls (DH) New Auburn at Luck (NC) Unity at Cameron Bruce at Frederic Tuesday, January 8 Unity at Grantsburg (DH) 6 p.m. St. Croix Falls at Luck (DH) Siren at Northwood (DH) 7:30 p.m. Webster at Frederic (DH)
BOYS HOCKEY Standings
Conf. 3-0 3-1 1-1 1-1 1-2 0-3 0-2
GIRLS HOCKEY Lady Blizzard
Standings 2-8-2
Coming up
Thursday, December 27 Blizzard 6, Park Falls 3 Friday, December 28 Blizzard 7, De Pere 4
Tuesday, January 8 Lady Blizzard at New Richmond 7 p.m.
Friday, January 4 7:30 p.m. Pine City at Grantsburg
Thursday, January 3 6:30 p.m. Rush City at Grantsburg Friday, January 4 St. Croix Falls at Superior 6 p.m.
I gave myself a well-deserved week off while many of our local cagers played in holiday tournaments. I was 8-1 in the last week before the holiday break, which brings my record to 46-6 and keeps my success rate at 88 percent. I would’ve been 9-0 THE AMAZING if I’d known BYNOR Somerset would be missing key players when they played Unity. I picked Unity correctly every time when they were short-handed and would’ve picked Unity to win if I’d known the Spartans were undermanned. (Come on, St. Croix County informants—get with it and get me timely information like you’re supposed to. You’re making me look bad.) Snowmobiling has been great and it’s been really fun meeting so many of my fans when I’ve been out on the trails. Thanks also to everyone for the gift cards and wooden nickels.
Frederic 50, Webster 32—The Vikes take another step toward a showdown with Siren on Jan. 22. Northwood 44, Siren 40—The Evergreens still have Siren’s number, but the Dragons can redeem themselves on March 1 when they’ll face Northwood in the regional final at Webster. Grantsburg 50, Unity 28—The Pirates are starting to get it together. St. Croix Falls 42, Luck 35—The tenacious Redbirds give the Saints a battle.
Coming up
The Amazing Bynor
PREDICTS
Girls games Siren 50, Webster 26—The Dragons will keep rolling until Tuesday. Grantsburg 47, St. Croix Falls 43—I’m calling this a mild upset.
GIRLS GYMNASTICS Coming up
Boys games Webster 66, Siren 36—The reigning regional champs lambast their neighbors to the south. Grantsburg 70, St. Croix Falls 54—The Pirates are performing like a well-oiled machine. Frederic 46, Shell Lake 42—The Vikes win. Who needs football? Cumberland 65, Unity 48—The Beavers have little trouble. Webster 57, Frederic 32—The Tigers remain undefeated in conference play. Northwood 55, Siren 47—The Dragons hang close for most of the game. Grantsburg 73, Unity 49—The Pirates have too much depth. Luck 68, St. Croix Falls 43—The Cards wear down the Saints in the second half.
Read Leader Sports! www.the-leader.net
PAGE 22 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - JANUARY 2, 2008
O UTDOORS INTER! COUNTY LEADER
ATVs • BIRDING • BOATING • CAMPING • FISHING • HIKING • HUNTING • RECREATIONAL VEHICLES
Zero to one in four hours There was no rush to go outside to greet the New Year. I could tell the wind had gradually picked up, temperapushing tures slightly closer toward zero, and the Marty Badger game was just Seeger about ready to start. Yet, rather than waste an entire day in front The of the television, I decided to try and Bottom Line attempt the first squirrel hunt of 2008. It’s been a long time since I’ve ventured to the woods solely in search of the elusive squirrel, but something had to give. Plus, a midwinter walk through the frozen forest can be very alluring, especially when the temperatures dip near or below zero. Sometimes the hardest part is convincing yourself to go, but once you’ve acclimated yourself to the cold it can be difficult to want to go back inside. It didn’t take long to get ready, and the more I prepared, the more excited I became. It was a little something different, and I knew I’d have the woods to myself, with the exception of a few squirrels—or at least that’s what I hoped for. A flock of turkeys was huddled by a windrow when I turned onto the field road. A trail had already been broke by a tractor, which made for easy driving, but four-wheel drive was still a must. As the turkeys scattered in all directions, I parked the vehicle and prepared for the mid afternoon hunt. It wasn’t probably the best time for squirrel hunting, but the sun was blaring, and it felt good to be outside. My grogginess from the drive was
quickly relieved after taking the first deep breaths outside the vehicle. It was a refreshing feeling to breathe the cold air. With gun in hand, I walked a couple of hundred yards along the tractor trail before reaching the wood line. Other than a few small deer trails, the forest was clean with fresh snow. I stopped just long enough to see if there were any squirrels scurrying along, but nothing stirred. An occasional fluff of snow would blow from the limbs, but all was silent. I still-hunted for nearly an hour, pausing and peering through the woods in over a foot of snow. Out of the corner of my eye I caught a glimpse of a small nuthatch clinging to an old stump in search of food. It was eerily silent, yet peaceful with the exception of an aching creak from one of the varieties of oak, maple and elm that scattered the woods. I hopped onto a larger deer trail for easier walking and continued my methodical quest, and still nothing stirred. The 15 to 20 minute pauses didn’t seem to work, so I decided on covering more ground in the hopes of surprising an unsuspecting squirrel. Finally, two squirrels were sighted on a brushy slope facing the west, and I snuck in slowly for a closer look. Just as I picked up the rifle for a quick shot, a red-tailed hawk flew close by, echoing three distinctive shrieks, enough to send chills down my spine. Both squirrels booked for heavy cover, disappearing just as fast as they appeared, leaving the woods silent once again. I headed west into the wind this time, and skirted a long fencerow with picked cornfields on both sides. The fence line was buried in thick prickly ash; with oak, maple and elm trees towering high above it. I caught a glimpse of movement in the snow ahead and crept in for a closer look, just in time to see a gray squirrel scurry up the side. I
Running water flowed in the open on just two spots of the seemingly lifeless river. - Photo by Marty Seeger spent nearly 15 minutes jockeying for position before finally getting a decent shot. Taking aim was difficult as the wind whipped tears in my eyes, and the sun blared straight on. Another body would have been a lot more helpful in getting the squirrel to switch sides, but the mission was complete, and I headed back to the woods with a squirrel in my pack and the wind at my back. I spent the next couple of hours breaking trail along the river, pausing only to catch my breath and nearly forgetting that I was in pursuit of squirrels. I would have been just as happy without the squirrel in my pack, and even happier without having to com-
plete the skinning process in such cold temperatures. Sometimes I wonder if people choose not to hunt squirrels because of the cleaning process, or perhaps they’re not too fond of the taste. But done just right, a squirrel stew can be quite satisfying, which makes the effort seem all the more pleasurable in the end. In order to make a more complete meal, I’ll have to go back again before the season closes. The temperatures are expected to increase in the next couple of days, which should make the squirrel activity slightly better. One squirrel in four hours isn’t too productive, but then again, neither is sitting in front of the television all day.
Wildcats opener on Wild Mountain Ski team hosts 28 boys/girls teams by Marty Seeger TAYLORS FALLS, Minn. – The Chisago Lakes-St. Croix Falls ski team hosted 28 boys and 28 girls teams on Friday, Dec. 21, in their home opener on Wild Mountain. The Wildcat teams ran two teams apiece with team one taking a seventh place overall finish and team two taking a ninth place overall finish. Phillip Bottjen finished first on the Wildcats team for the boys and 16th overall. Tim Johnson finished second on the team and in 21st place overall. St. Croix Falls student, Erinn Bloomer, went 47th in the overall standings. The girls first team finished in third place overall with team two taking 11th place. Katy Garbe finished her best race of the year with a fourth-place finish. Amanda Angel also had her best race with 26th place and the third-best time on the team. “She has made great advances this year,” says coach Dan Raedeke. “Look for more great things to come.” CL-SCF’s top skier Simone Raedeke crashed on her first run of the day, yet came back on her second run with the second-best time of the day. SCF stu-
Philip Bottjen on the hill for CL-SCF. - Photos by Dan Raedeke dents Melinda Beyer and Kate Wright finished the day with 23rd-and 32ndplace finishes respectively. January will prove to be the busiest month for the Wildcats with a conference race every Tuesday and invitationals on Jan. 18 and Jan. 31.
The CL-SCF girls team finished well in their home opener last Friday at Wild Mountain. Both girls and boys teams will have a busy schedule during the month of January.
Katy Garbe speeds down the hill at Wild Mountain last Friday.
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 23
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Notices
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Employment / Notices
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - PAGE 31
Frederic framed
The Village of Frederic was framed by rainbows - or sun dogs on the first day of 2008 - at least for a short period in the afternoon. These photos, taken from Hwy. 35 to the north of the village, show rainbows on the east and west sides of the village. What is not shown in these photos is the bright sun which is needed to produce sun dogs - an atmospheric phenomenom associated with the reflection or refraction of sunlight by small ice crystals. Photos by Gary King
Hwy. 48 rollover Kaitlin J. Unbehaun, 16, Grantsburg, was transported to Burnett County Medical Center in Grantsburg after an accident on Sunday, Dec. 16. Unbehaun was westbound on Hwy. 48 when she drifted into the eastbound lane, then lost control when she overcorrected. The vehicle overturned in the ditch. The driver was cited for inattentive driving. – Photo submitted by the Burnett County Sheriff’s Department
Wisconsin Library Association meets
The Wisconsin Library Association is a group that unites and supports people from all types of libraries to develop and advocate for dynamic, responsive Wisconsin libraries. This group meets annually for a conference in the fall held in various cities throughout the state. This fall the conference was held in Green Bay from Oct. 16 through 19. Libraries from the entire state attended including representatives from Polk County. The photo shows the conference attendees wearing their red T-shirt proclaiming: Wisconsin Libraries keep us in a better state! – Photo by Steven Platteter
Wierschem new director
DANBURY - Steve Wierschem will be the new director at Forts Folle Avoine. He will replace Kevin Klucus who resigned as director to move to Florida. Wierschem will start Jan. 1, 2008. Burnett County Historical President Dianne Gravesen remarked that the search for a new director attracted many good candidates and that it was very difficult to choose between them. Wierschem is excited about the opportunity and has many plans for the Forts, such as an improved Web site, a column in area newspapers and more educational activities to attract local kids. Forts Folle Avoine includes a reconstructed fur trading post that occupied the site in the early 1800s and an authentic woodland Native American village. The Forts also houses the Burnett County Historical Library, a historic one-room schoolhouse, amphitheatre, museum and gift shop. The 80-acre park is on the National Register of Historic Places and is operated by the
Steve Wierschem will be the new director of Forts Folle Avoine. – Photo by Sherill Summer Burnett County Historical Society with support from membership and Burnett County Parks and Recreation and Tourism departments. – Sherill Summer
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All is calm
Photographer Erik Barstow captured these scenes of some area Main Streets on Christmas Eve 2007. They include Frederic, Grantsburg, Centuria, Dresser and Osceola.
Dresser
Frederic
Grantsburg
Snow glow
The soft glow of a security light lends a touch of warmth to the cold snow in a winter night scene. - Photo by Carl Heidel
Osceola
Grantsburg’s American Legion
‘Follow the Leader’
Currents N O R T H E R N
January 2, 200 2nd Section B Inter-County Leader
News and views from the Northwest Wisconsin community
2007: A year in review
Part 2 - July - December by Tammi Milberg COUNPOLK/BURNETT TIES–Last week the Leader recapped the top stories and headlines of 2007 for the months of January to June. This week, part two, or the last six months of the year are featured as we glide into 2008.
July
•Beth Rice was crowned Miss Balsam Lake during the annual Freedom Festival event. •The Siren Queen Pageant took place with Jenna Wambolt being crowned Miss Siren. •Clam Falls celebrated the Fourth of July with a parade. •Bone Lake residents celebrated the Fourth of July with a boat parade. •Webster hosted a Fourth of July parade. •Centuria held the annual Memory Days celebration and Cailin Turner was crowned Miss Centuria. •A benefit was held for Nick Doriott, a 15year-old ATV racer from Webster, who was injured in an ATV accident in June and left paralyzed from the shoulder/neck down. •The Central Burnett County Fair took place in Webster. •A groundbreaking for the new St. Croix Chippewa Tribe Hole-in-the-Wall Casino/Hotel took place in Danbury. •The St. Croix Falls and Taylors Falls communities celebrated Wannigan Days and the 100th birthday of the hydroelectric dam. •Phase 1 of the Gaylord Nelson Riverwalk in St. Croix Falls from the Overlook Deck to the new National Park Service Headquarters was completed and a dedication of the River Spirit sculpture at the overlook, created by artist Julianne Stage, took place. •The first tug-of-war across the St. Croix River took place during Wannigan Days and was sponsored by the Lions clubs of St. Croix Falls and Taylors Falls. •Burnett County organized its first Woods, Waters and Wildlife Conference at the Webster High School. •Baby Clara, infant daughter of Nick and Andrea Lundquist of Frederic, was home safe after she was injured at the Family Days softball tournament when a softball struck her in the head and fractured her skull. •The annual Lucky Days celebration took place in Luck. •Jasmine Jones was crowned Miss St. Croix Falls •Martin Rike, 39, Pine City, Minn., was recovered from the St. Croix River near Grantsburg after 12 hours of rescue efforts from Pine County, Minn., and Burnett County emer-
gency rescue agencies. •Brian Jensen, 30, Luck was sentenced to two years in prison and one year of supervision after pleading no contest to child abuse. •Faith’s Lodge, a retreat in Webster for persons dealing with the loss of or seriously ill child, opened its doors. •Bill Johnson, Frederic, discussed the history of the Frederic pool as the community questioned the future of the facility. •The Oxygen Network aired the “Snapped” series featuring a recant of the Roland Krueger murder in St. Croix Falls in 1999. •A Polk County teen, Michael Joseph Lamettry, Turtle Lake, lost his life after being injured by a makeshift bottle rocket. •A head-on collision in rural Amery claimed the lives of Matt, McClintock, 27, Frederic, and Jordan Handrahan, 18, Amery•The Polk County Fair was held at the fairgrounds in St. Croix Falls. •Carol Peper was crowned Polk County’s Fairest of the Fair. •Danbury fire chief and town chair for the town of Swiss Bill Klugow, 58, died suddenly. He had been born with an enlarged heart. •Burnett County Historical director, Kevin Klucas, announced he and his wife were relocating to Florida.
August
The Granary, formerly Scott’s Hardware Hank, opened in Webster as a gift, hardware, feed and more store. •The Culpepper and Merriweather Circus came to Frederic. •The Rendezvous at the Forts (Forts Folle Avoine) took place in Burnett County. •Siren celebrated Summerfest. •Zion Lutheran Church of Bone Lake celebrated their 100th anniversary. •The annual Lamar Music Festival took place at the Lamar Schoolhouse in rural St. Croix Falls. •EMTs who grew up locally and work in the Twin Cities were first responders to the I-35 bridge collapse scene in Minneapolis. •The community of Dresser Neighborhood Watch hosted a National Night Out event. •The shortfall in rain, as much as five inches short of the norm, was noticed most by farmers who struggled with growing productive crops. •Bridges across the nation began to be inspected for safety after the I-35 bridge collapse. The bridge in Osceola over the St. Croix River, which has the same design as the I-35 bridge and was
See 2007, page 2
In July, a bronze River Spirit sculpture created by local artist Julianne Stage was unveiled before hundreds of people at the St. Croix Falls scenic Overlook Deck. The sculpture was made possible through public enhancement dollars provided by the Menards Inc. development on Hwy. 8. - Photo by Erik Barstow
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SOME LOCAL NEWSMAKERS OF 2007
Burnett County Circuit Court Judge Michael Gableman announced in October that he would seek a spot on the State Supreme Court, running against incumbent Justice Louis Butler. - Photo by Carl Heidel
Susan Hager of Frederic appeared on the “Martha Stewart Show” in 2007, recognized as one of 10 award winners in Stewart’s “Dreamers into Doers” contest. October marked the first anniversary of Hager’s Cookie Brigade which, as of Sept. 18, had sent 1,700 dozen cookies and 600 dozen dog biscuits to Afghanistan, Africa, Germany, Iraq, Kuwait, South Korea and to Fisher Houses for convalescing military personnel in Minneapolis and in San Antonio, Texas. Photo by Nancy Jappe
Balsam Lake native Jahnna Randall, 21, exchanged places with Dana Sky, 21, of New York in an MTV Reality Series “Meet or Delete” that aired the two girls’ experiences in swapping lifestyles. She is shown with a New York City street person in the photo above. Photo submitted
Faced with an appeal from the American Civil Liberties Union, the state of Minnesota has decided to end its pursuit to prosecute a massage therapist for violating state law by having a sexual relationship with a former client - someone she eventually married. LaRae Lundeen Fjellman of Lindstrom, Minn., the daughter of "Sonny" and Margaret Lundeen of rural Frederic and a graduate of Frederic High School, has an office in Balsam Lake. She said the state of Minnesota was unfair in its investigation and seemed intent on putting her out of business. On Feb. 9 they announced they had dropped the case, noting the facts "clearly do not constitute the egregious mischief or exploitation that the Legislature sought to protect the public from." - Photo submitted
Wayne Anderson of rural Frederic, known to Leader readers for his Write from West Swedencolumn, expanded his coverage area in 2007 when he traveled to Iraq in May to become an embedded reporter. Anderson filed several stories with the Leader and an area radio station while competing with the likes of the New York Times and Newsweek. Anderson was one of the only - if not only - embedded reporter from Wisconsin during his six weeks in Baghdad. Photo submitted
Carol Pool, a veteran EMT and owner of Unity Ambulance Association at Milltown, was named the 2007 Health Care Advocate by the St. Croix Valley Helathcare Foundation. - Special photo
St. Croix Falls administrator Ed Emerson received word from a distant relative in 2007 that he was related to Ralph Waldo Emerson, the famous American essayist, poet and leader of the Transcendentalist movement in the early 19th century. Photo submitted
Bill Hunter, owner of the Pour House in Siren and president of the Wisconsin Tavern League, wrote an editorial in May stating that 12,000 taverns are serious businesses that play an important role in the state’s economy. May was National Tavern Month. - Photo submitted
2007/from page 1 inspected and deemed safe. Ironically, the Osceola bridge did collapse [no one was injured or killed] in 1938, at the age of 40, on the same date as the I-35 bridge collapse, Aug. 1. •Summer wildfires sparked up sporadically due to the drought. One notable wildfire occurred in the village of Siren. •Brittany Flatten was crowned Miss Webster during Gandy Dancer Days. •Charles E. Lewis Days was held in Lewis. •Balsam Lake native Jahnna Randall,21, exchanged places with Dana Sky,21, of New York in an MTV Reality Series “Meet or Delete” that aired the two girls’ experiences in
swapping lifestyles. •The school district of St. Croix Falls began pursuing the idea of a music and classroom addition to the high school with the cost under $1 million. •An auto accident involving three vehicles in Clear Lake took the life of John Merth, 31, Clayton. The driver of the vehicle Merth was riding in, Tabitha Lawrimore, 26, was later charged with homicide by intoxicated use of a motor vehicle. •Former Osceola Police Officer, Michael R. Jarvey, 41, was charged with five felonies including forgery, misconduct, possession of a firearm and excessive use of authority in office. •Sherman
Leske, longtime village president of Dresser, announced his resignation. •Derek Mosay, 21, was convicted of homicide by intoxicated use of a motor vehicle after running over and killing Mike Ellis, 45, Round Lake in Sept. 2006. •Oktoberfest was held in Danbury. •The Dresser Lions annual classic car and truck show took place. •Ignite, a Christian rock concert, took place in Falun. •The Red Brick Grill, a restaurant on St. Croix Falls’ Main Street, opened its doors. •A Memorial dedication by the Danbury Fire Department took place. The Fire and Rescue Memorial included
William Johnson, IV, of Frederic, was the overseer of the project to build the Frederic swimming pool, which marked its 50th year in 2007. A Save the Pool committee, formed several years ago, presented a plan to the school board in December regarding steps to be taken to keep the pool operational. - Photo by Gary King
the names of John Okonski, 2006, Clarence Rother, 2006, and Bill Klugow, 2007. •The WINGS golf tournament benefit took place in Luck raising $10,000 for youth who can’t afford sports equipment, band instruments or other supplies to participate in school activities. WINGS stands for Whatever Individual Needs Gear or Supplies and was created by former Unity coach Craig Miles and area teachers. •The new skateboard park in St. Croix Falls was a popular summer destination for youth and teens. •The Polk County Historical Society held a dance fundraiser and raised $2,500 to help with the elevator fund for the Polk County Museum in Balsam Lake, which is undergoing renovations. •Arthur Johnson, Luck, claimed a $10,000 prize from the Powerball drawing with his winning ticket, purchased at Frederic Stop. •Siren’s Capeside Cove Good Samaritan Center released information that they would be closing their doors Nov. 20, or as soon as current residents are relocated due to financial struggles. •Golden Age Manor, the county-owned nursing home in Amery, was discussed by the Polk County Board and the finance committee was directed to consider offers for the sale of the facility.
See 2007, page 13
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 3
A Christmas Wish by Nina Borup Malmen “Tell us a story, dear Granny Please tell us a story today, The weather is cold and raining So we cannot go out to play. “Tell us a story of Christmas A story from long, long ago.” As I gazed at their innocent faces I thought of a story I know.
Then Christmas Day came one more time As Nellie paused at the top of the stair, The towering tree and the gifts were waiting The cousins and aunts and uncles were there.
Writer’s Corner
Poor little Nellie ran back to her room She quickly jumped into her bed, “Please, dear God...no more Christmas” And she pulled the covers over her head.
The following day dawned bright and clear As Nellie tiptoed down the stair, She gazed at the towering Christmas tree And all of the gifts awaiting her there.
I told of an orphan named Nellie Who loved Christmas more than life, She lived with an older brother And his beautiful, charming wife. The Christmas Eve service was over And the carols had all been sung, Fido and Rover were sleeping And the stockings were carefully hung. Christmas Day dawned bright and clear As Nellie tiptoed down the stair, Beneath the towering Christmas tree The gifts awaited her there. Nellie untied the bows and removed the paper She admired each gift with delight, The doll and the books and the toys And the clothing which fit just right. The cousins and aunts and uncles Arrived for the Christmas Day feast, They dined on turkey, potatoes and gravy Not a soul went hungry, to say the least. And when the day finally came to an end Nellie sighed and wistfully said, “I wish that every day was Christmas” As she recited her prayers and went to bed.
Christmas Day had come again Yes, God heard Nellie when she said her prayer, Every day would be Christmas Toys and books and a doll with golden hair. The cousins and aunts and uncles Came for the Christmas dinner, Turkey, potatoes and gravy Did not make them any thinner. Yes, Christmas Day came once again With the beautiful gifts and the towering tree, The cousins and aunts and uncles On turkey, potatoes and gravy, all dined merrily.
The light in her room began to glow Nellie awoke with a cry of alarm, Her brother was calling her name And gently pulling on Nellie’s arm. Suddenly Nellie realized, Christmas had not come again She felt like she wanted to scream, The towering tree and the beautiful gifts And the Christmas dinner...everything was a dream. Then as the morning dawned bright and clear Nellie tiptoed to the top of the stair, There were no gifts beneath the tree Yes, God had answered her prayer. Christmas is great thought Nellie But, shopping daily for gifts is tough, Turkey, potatoes and gravy are fattening Christmas...ONCE A YEAR...is enough!
Northwest Regional Writers The Northwest Regional Writers meet at 1 p.m. the second Friday of the month either in Frederic or Grantsburg. Each month we have a topic to write about and read to the group. The following writing was read at the last meeting. Call Mary Jacobson at 715-349-2761 for more information about the organization.
Poco Penners The PoCo Penners meet the second Friday of the month at 2 p.m. at the county boardroom in the government center in Balsam Lake. Contact Gladys Frokjer at 483-3208 or Iris Holm 284-3174 for more information. - submitted
Submissions should be typed, double-spaced on one side only of 8 -1/2 x 11 white paper, leaving a minimum of 1-inch margins all around. Handwritten submissions will not be accepted. Submissions should be no more than 800 words. Submissions may be delivered to The Leader’s offices in Frederic or Siren, mailed to Box 490, Frederic, WI 54837 or e-mailed to the-leader@centurytel.net. We prefer e-mailed copy. If hand-delivered or mailed, please write "Writers’ Corner" somewhere on the front of the envelope. If e-mailed, please use "Writers’ Corner" as the subject and include the submission as body text of the e-mail. No attachments, please. Your submission to Writers’ Corner grants The Leader one-time rights to publish the item in the weekly newspaper. The author retains the copyright and all future publication rights. The Leader may edit submissions for grammar and punctuation, clarity and length. If you have any questions about this new feature, please contact us at the-leader@centurytel.net or call 715-327-4236. - Editor
Adventures in the high Arctic - Ice Age Trail annual meeting ST. CROIX FALLS – “Adventures in the High Arctic: Sailing Spitzbergen and the Svalbard Islands” is the featured program of the annual meeting of the Indianhead Chapter of the Ice Age Park and Trail Foundation. The meeting will be held on Saturday, Jan. 26, at 10 a.m. in the Interpretive Center at Interstate State Park in St. Croix Falls. The public is invited to this event. Refreshments will be available. Keith Relyea and Jeannie Kant spent
12 days sailing in the high Arctic this past summer aboard the Nooderlicht (the Northern Lights), a two-masted schooner. They and their fellow travelers sailed and motored along the northwest coast of Spitzbergen, the largest island in the Svalbard archipelago. Sitting between 75 and 80 degrees north latitude, the Svalbards lie halfway between the Arctic Circle and the North Pole. They are largely uninhabited by humans. The islands were discovered by Norwegians
Keith Relyea and Jeannie Kant spent 12 days sailing in the high Arctic this past summer aboard the Nooderlicht. Photos submitted
in the 12th century and were used as an international whaling base in the 17th and 18th centuries. In 1920, they came under Norway’s sovereignty. Relyea and Kant will share their photos of polar bears, whales, bird and plant life, walruses, remnants of Arctic exploration, glaciers and the spectacular scenery of Spitzbergen, as well as showing evidence of global warming in this starkly beautiful wilderness. The islands are the site of the Global Seed Vault, a “doomsday vault” designed to protect millions of crop seeds from natural disas-
ters, wars and even global warming. In addition to the election of officers, the annual meeting reviews the accomplishments of the chapter during the previous year and proposes schedules and projects for the coming year. Persons who are unfamiliar with the trail and the work of the chapter or who might be interested in becoming involved in their efforts to create and maintain the 60 miles of trail under their domain are welcome. For further information contact Dean, chapter chair, at 715-472-2248. - submitted
Franconia Sesquicentennial Committee holding history day LINDSTROM, Minn. – On Saturday, Jan. 19, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Franconia Sesquicentennial Committee is holding a history day at the town hall on Hwy. 95. Come see the display of items that belonged to pioneers, including an immigrant trunk, daybooks from the general store, photographs of early life
and other things of interest. The committee is arranging for this display in an attempt to entice others to provide information on items pertaining to the township. Family histories, photographs, papers, memories and personal objects are just some examples the committee would like to record.
If you have photographs, papers or other small items you are interest in showing to the committee, bring these with you when you visit the display. A member of the committee will take a photo and record your possessions. This event is being held to honor the legacy of those who preceded us. The
committee is working on a book to record the Franconia’s past, and also to provide events during 2008 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the recording of the original plat of Franconia and the formal organization of the township. – submitted
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River Road Ramblings Lindblad's SteamPowered Sawmills and Threshing Machines by Stanley Selin Three generations of the Lindblad family provided custom lumber sawing and grain threshing services in the
collected by Stanley Selin
Trade Lake area for over 60 years. Carl Lindblad emigrated from Sweden in 1880, and operated a sawmill with two of his sons, Malker and Fabian. The steam-powered sawmill was usually set up in locations where timber was being cleared and lumber was needed for new buildings. Malker and Fabian Lindblad did custom steam threshing in the Trade Lake area until about 1930. At this time, Fabian’s two sons, Chester and Hardy, began threshing operations for local
Carl Lindblad and sons, Malker and Fabian, sawing lumber near Rice Lake in eastern Trade Lake Township around the turn of the century. farmers which lasted for over two decades. Large-scale custom grain threshing became obsolete in the 1950s for several reasons. By this time, combines had become more in demand because they were less labor intensive. Also, the demand for home\grown small grains as livestock and poultry feed was declining, since commercial feeds became available in many small towns. Chester and Hardy’s threshing
operation, however, was unique in that they still used a 60 HP Case steam engine for power many years after steam engines had been retired from the American farm scene. Except for lubrication, their machine required no petroleum-based products. It was powered by wood and water. Unless otherwise noted, photos are from the Selin collection.
Carl Lindblad sitting on his 30 HP Advance engine while threshing at the Andrew Selin farm in Trade Lake in 1914.
Carl Lindblad sitting on his 30 HP Advance engine while threshing at the Andrew Selin farm in Trade Lake in 1914.
Carl Lindblad and sons sawing lumber on the Andrew Selin Farm at Trade Lake in 1915. – Photos submitted
The Lindblad threshing machine crew had stopped at Four Corners to have their picture taken in 1941. Left to right: Walter Anderson, Henry Kubicka, Chester Lindblad, Roy Johnson, Ernest Benson, Gilmar Johnson and Hardy Lindblad. Photo courtesy of Robert Anderson.
Early Lindblad brothers threshing scene about 1906. The Advance grain separator was built of wood and was powered by the 30 HP Advance steam engine. The machine was too heavy for the engine to pull, so four horses were used to move it between jobs. Carl Lindblad is on the engine, and Ed Brattley of Trade Lake was the teamster.
Motorcycle safety training set RICE LAKE - WITC Rice Lake continuing education will offer the motorcycle safety basic rider course beginning in April. The 16-hour class, which is designed to teach the beginner or experienced rider safe techniques in riding a motor-
cycle, is approved by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. The class consists of six hours of classroom and 10 hours on-cycle instruction. Passing the basic rider course waives the driving test when applying for a Class M license at the DMV.
The registration fee for spring classes is $160.51. Fees will increase after June 1. Preregistration is required. For more information on class dates and times or to register, call WITC Rice Lake at 715-2347082, ext. 5257. – from WITC
Legion district meeting set LUCK – Luck American Legion and Auxiliary will be hosting the Polk County meeting at 10:30 a.m., and the 12th District meeting at 2 p.m., on Saturday, Jan. 5, 2008, at the Danish Brotherhood Society Hall in Luck. Refreshments will be served. – submitted
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 5
Words from prison, Proverbs for Christian living To respect and to fear God is the foundation of our selves, To love our neighbor is the method for living. Be absolutely honest in dealing with others, Be very strict in controlling oneself. When you are poor, do not flatter. When you are rich, do not be proud. Don’t be jealous when you see others enjoying benefits, but you should share their joy. Don’t be happy when you see misfortune of others, but you should share their sorrow. When working with others and you see there are advantages for you, don’t run to get them; When working with others and there is danger, don’t withdraw. When you are in debt to others, you should acknowledge and repay. When others are in debt to you, be generous and forgive. When you treat others with kindness, you should consider it your duty. When others treat you with kindness, consider it a gracious act. Whenever money passes your hands, whether large or small, be pure and honest. Whenever you have dealings with friends, whether male or female, be cheerful and approachable. Don’t easily give promises, but if you do, try your best to keep your promise. Don’t borrow from others, but if you do, you should soon repay. Respect your own elders, but also respect the elders of others. Love your own children, but also love the children of others. When you observed other people with strong points, take them as your model. When you observe other people with weak points, take it as a warning. Control your own temper; don’t get short tempered and angry. Be careful with your lips; don’t easily say things. Don’t pass around words you cannot prove. Don’t do anything you dare not show to others. When you see others with all kinds of precious things, don’t arouse our covetousness. When you see others having difficulty, don’t just stand aside with your hands in your sleeves. In the presence of others, don’t compliment and please them. Behind the backs of others, don’t be judgmental and critical. When you do things for others, be diligent and loyal. When you communicate with others, be frank and straight forward. Hate wicked things as you hate snakes and serpents. Admire righteousness just as you admire precious things. I would rather lose money than lose my own trustworthiness. I would rather lose my life than lose my loyalty to friends in times of crisis.
In your body and your clothing, be clean always. Don’t do anything that is disgusting. Don’t say anything that is disgusting. Absolutely forbid your use of tobacco, wine or gambling. Bernice Absolutely forbid any kind Abrahamzon of inappropriate and excess ornamentation. Be considerate of others, whatever you do. Glorify the Lord’s name, wherever you are. – Written in Chinese by the Rev. Heng Meng Tau, well-known pastor of Peking, China, who was strongly anti-communist. He was put in prison in the 1950s and 1960s, where he died. He wrote these words in prison. Translated by Lincoln Lin, Chinese language teacher in Thailand.
BEHIND THE
SIGNPOST
Gingerbeings? Ever since the feminist movement got into high gear, folks have been having fun twitting its more far-out protagonists for their attempts to alter the language. Chairperson for chairman, paperperson for paperboy, stuff like that. The campaign has had its apparently permanent impact, nonetheless Ms. or MS has become an accepted form. Newspapers now regularly refer to women by their last names alone, as they long have done with men. The weather scientists have decided to consider male names for hurricanes. And in New York, the other day a woman got legal permission to change her name from Cooperman to Cooperperson. It has remained for us, however, to bring the change to full flower. Well, almost to full flower. In the section once known as the women’s pages, later as Family Life, and now as Trends, appeared an illustrated recipe for, are you ready, gingerpersons. We are fortunate that we can identify gingerpersons as our tasty, old Christmas season friends, the gingerbread man. Sakes alive, grandma! Pass us a gingerperson, please, and let’s talk this over. As long as we’ve gone this far, let’s take it all the way. Gingerpseron is a sign of progress, all right, but it’s still sexist; there’s that son on the end of the word. How about gingerbeing? And for heaven’s sake, let’s get down to basics. Why call it a woman’s movement? Why an International Women’s Year? Why a women’s meeting in Houston? Woman is, if you please, the most offensively sexist word of all. It comes right out of the old English. Wo from wif, meaning wife, of course, plus man. Man’s wife. Can one imagine a more condescending term, a word more redolent of possession, of proprietorship? Of degradation? Not only does it designate, ah, er, female of the species as a mere auxiliary of the male, it sticks her with the label wife, be she single, married, divorced or widowed. And everyone knows how derogatory a term wife is! Arise, ye prisoners of submission! You have nothing to lose but the chains of male supremacy. (Chain male! That’s a funny, folks.) (Note: St. Paul Pioneer Press, written by staff writer with no copyrights.) Until next week, Bernice
Don’t cover your own mistakes. Don’t show off your good points. Whenever you talk or act, be very polite.
State hotline available to help people with radon questions STATEWIDE – Noting that January is National Radon Action Month, state health officials encourage everyone to learn about radon and the risk of lung cancer from exposure to this odorless gas. “With many homes tightly sealed against the winter cold, people should consider testing the air in their homes to find out if radon is seeping in through the foundation,” said Dr. Sheri Johnson, state health officer. Radon is a naturally occurring, odorless radioactive gas that comes from trace amounts of uranium in the ground. The gas can seep into homes through the foundation and neighboring houses can have different concentrations of radon. It is estimated that about 5-10 percent of homes in Wisconsin will have elevated levels of radon. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that radon causes several thousand preventable lung cancer deaths nationally each year.
“Radon levels vary greatly from house to house,” said Johnson. “With inexpensive tests, you can measure your radon. If the concentration is excessive, you can reduce it.” She added that many hardware stores have radon test kits available to purchase for $20 to $30. Some local public health agencies also have the kits. The cost to reduce radon in a home is not very high and will improve the home’s value. Nationally certified radon mitigation contractors in Wisconsin can help. Some builders of new homes know how to incorporate features that reduce radon entry, with little added expense. For comprehensive radon information and to find a list of certified contractors, visit the department’s Web site, www.lowradon.org or call the toll-free statewide radon hotline at 1-888-LOW-RADON (1-888-5697236). - submitted
Do you remember ? Compiled by Bernice Abrahamzon
50 Years Ago The movie “Northwest Passage” was playing at the Frederic Theatre.-Chester Fremont, Frederic, wanted pulp wood, rough market spruce, balsam and tamarack.-“Stage Coach to Fury” was playing at the Auditorium Theatre, St. Croix Falls.-Happy New Year’s greetings come from Forestwood Lodge, Joyce Larson; Marvel Gas Co., Frederic; G.C. Daffy; Standard Oil Lagent, Frederic; Ben Franklin Store, Frederic; Rudell’s, Frederic and Glockzins, Frederic.-Polk County will call for new bids on county home.-Dr. C.J. Lindfield was injured in a highway accident.Holstein cows at New Richmond auction averaged $300.-A New Year’s dance was held at Indian Creek Hall.-“The Pajama Game” was playing at the D’Lux Theatre, Luck, starring Doris Day.-Specials at Route’s Super Market, Frederic, included chocolate covered cherries at 49¢ lbs., peanut butter 35¢ for a 13-oz. jar; roundsteak at 69¢ lb. and pork roast at 43¢ lb.-Wallin Implement, Centuria, advertised snowplows for sale.-Red grapes were 2 lbs. for 29¢ at Route’s Super Market, along with 4 lbs. lard for 63¢ and toilet tissue at 8 rolls for 49¢.-Antifreeze was $1.85 per gallon.Lettuce was 2 heads for 35¢, brown sugar was 2 lbs. for 25¢, Miracle Whip was 49¢ for a quart jar.-Happy New Year.
40 Years Ago Specials at Route’s Super Market, Frederic, included pork roast at 33¢ lbs., grapefruit 10 for 43¢, Christmas candy at 2-lb. bag at 49¢ lb. and coffee at 2 lbs. for $1.29.-Specials at the Frederic Co-op Store included sugar at 10 lbs. for 99¢, Gold Medal flour at 25 lbs. for $2.09 and slab bacon at 45¢ lb.-Obituaries included Anna Spong, Emma Van Canneyt and Mrs. David Nelson.-New and retiring officals were honored at Stokely Co., Frederic, at a banquet held at Perry’s Supper Club, Clam Lake.-A wedding dance was held Dec. 9, at the Indian Creek Hall for Dale Desjardins and Jeanne Erickson.-Additional obituaries were Pearl Hanson and Martha Nelson.-The Frederic Boy Scouts were selling Christmas trees at Ray’s Firestone, Frederic.-There was a singing Christmas tree at the Trade Lake Baptist Church.-Two local families lost their homes to fire: the Frank Svobada family of West Sweden and the Francis Pine family of near Milltown.-Obituaries included Wallace Wicklund and Bert Mitchell.-The chief operator at Frederic Telephone Co., Genevieve Branstad, retired after 22 years with the company.–Specials at the Clover Farm Store, Frederic, included beef stew meat at 69¢ lb., oyster stew at 2 cans for 59¢, instant coffee at 69¢ for a 6-oz. jar and Flintstone ribs at 49¢ lb.
20 Years Ago An Eastern Star reception was held for Grand Adah, Doris Hanson.-Obituaries included Joseph Czekalski, Timothy Briggs, Ethel Lysdahl, Richard (Jerry) Tucker, Sophie Scott and Frederic community leader, Oscar Peterson.-Local crafts were featured at Made Just for You Shop at Siren.-Dr. William Fischer fied Dec. 13. He served as a physician in Frederic for 35 years until his retirement in 1981.-Obituaries included Emma Amundson, Leonard Bursaw, Tinus Lee, Dale Garness, Dennis Kallman, Selma Carlson, Arlo Bohn, Samuel Jensen, LaVerne Amborn and Hellmuth Nielsen.-The home of Doris Beach, Siren, was destroyed by fire.-Business of the Week in the Leader was the Alpha Store with a 103-year history.Two new school buses were ordered by the Frederic School Board.-Joleen Funk, Dresser, won first prize with a Christmas Story in a Leader contest.-Additional obituaries were Blanche Holland, Matthew Bremer, Florence Hotchkiss and Freda Neamy.-The water wheel was the first source of power for NW Wisconsin Electric Co.-Additional obituaries were Ethel Peterson, Russell Carlson, Victor Miller, Rudolph Baustain, Violet Formanek and Theresa Nelser.-Burnett County Board asked for approval for state-funded vocational education.
PAGE 6 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B- JANUARY 2, 2008
TOWN TALK/COUNTRY CHATTER Happy New Year, everybody! Reed here from Humane Society of Burnett County. It’s been a pretty hectic week here at the shelter. Just when I think things can’t get any more nuts, my doggie world gets turned on its ear (scratch it, will Reed you?). As of this writing, we now have exactly 19 new puppies in our care. Nineteen! Can you imagine? I already told you about the six that YAPpenings came in last week, then 11 came in all one litter. They are a readymade football team! Then two more came in the day after that. That is a lot of p....err, puppies to clean up after! I know I asked for puppy food last week, but these new little ones can really put away the groceries, so any extra you can spare will not go to waste. I tell you, our back room looks like a darn nursery! On another happy note, Nelly went home this week to her new family. She is such a sweet girl, I know she will be spoiled and showered with love. Good for her. Casey, the toy poodle, has been out on furlough and reports he’s been watching movies and hanging out with a really nice family. I’m guessing he isn’t going to be calling the shelter home for much longer. He feels a little out of place being the only short guy in this ruff-and-tumble environment. He can’t play with us outside because, for one thing, it is too cold for such a scrawny dude, and also he would
SHELTER
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Siren Bev Beckmark
With this year’s ample snowfall the whole area looks like a veritable winter wonderland, much to the delight of our snowmobilers. Those who managed to keep their machines are now in their glory riding the trails. If you ride throught the area you will notice there just aren’t as many tracks in the ditches and fields as there was say five or six years ago. Will the snowmobile become a thing of the past as so many other things have? If we end up with more winters with little or no snow it might just happen. All you future brides who are now in the planning stage, there will be a wedding showcase coming up on Sunday, Jan. 20, at the Northwoods Crossing Events Center in Siren starting at 11 a.m. and closing at 4 p.m. There will be a complete wedding style show plus many exhibits to help you plan a perfect day to remember. Art and Bev Beckmark spent Christmas Day in Duluth this year at the home of her sister, Christine Abotonos, and her son, George. Also present were Bev’s brothers, Bob and David. They enjoyed ham dinner and spent the afternoon recalling past holidays growing up plus many past family get-togethers. Peggy Strabel out on Waldora Road, and her son, Jim Kyes, spent Christmas Eve at the home of Dan and Becky Strabel where they enjoyed dinner and exchanged gifts. The Daniels Township will hold their monthly meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 8 at the Town Hall at 7:30 p.m. Congratulations to elementary student Corey Bauer, middle schooler Jacob Swenson and high schooler Renee Fischbach for being chosen Siren School’s student of the week. Sympathy to the family of Glenn Sutton who passed away Dec. 16. I hope you all had a safe and enjoyable New Year’s Eve and the New Year brings the best to you all.
get mowed down by one of us chasing a ball or something. He’s f-r-a-g-i-l-e. I did not tell you yet, that the mom to the 11 pups came to oversee her youngsters and will, herself, be looking for a new home. Her name is Tessa, and she is a springer Lab mix. She is white with black spots and a black head. Her kids are all black, a couple with white markings. What a surprise. She is mellow, or maybe just tired, and looks like she could use some meat on her bones. She is a nice-looking girl nonetheless. The last two pups are Belle and Missy. They are both black, fuzzy, Border collie-mix girls, only a few months old. They are goofy and mighty rambunctious. I guess I don’t have a lot of room to talk, though. And I’m an adult! Don’t forget, if you’re in the market for a kitten, we still have a few to choose from. There are four available right now and possibly four more down the road that are under observation currently. At one time they were exposed to a bad bug, so we have to make sure they have a clean bill of health before they can be released. They are all very nice kitties, but don’t tell anyone I said that or I will be teased unmercifully. I have a reputation to uphold, you know. That is about all the news I have this week. I’m dog tired from the parade of pups, so take care, everyone, and I’ll see you here next week. HSBC is saving lives, one at a time. www.hsburnettcty.org 866-4096.
Frederic Senior Ardyce Center Knauber Written for last week
Monday spades was played with the following winners: Marlyce Borchert in first place, Betty Liesch in second place, Arnie Borchert in third place and Lola Hinschberger in fourth place. Pokeno was played on Wednesday. Our executive meeting will be held at 9:30 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 28. We gathered supplies for the Frederic Food Shelf, which they welcomed. New year’s Day we will celebrate with our Share-ALunch holiday buffet. Cards, bingo and fellowship will be enjoyed.
Written for this week
Our angel kitchen lady arranged so we had the center open for a few hours on Christmas Eve and also Christmas Day. Those of us who came enjoyed meals together. Frances Kurkowski wanted no one to be lonely over Christmas, and sharing each others’ company makes a happy Christmastime. Last Thursday night 500 cards was played with the following winners: Lonnie Jones in first place, Ruth Johnson in second place, Shirley Sandquist in third place and Carmen Marek in fourth place. Remember the aging process slows down when you have friendship with others, and the senior center is a good place to come. We welcome you to join us.
www.the-leader.net
Groth nishing up clinical internship at OMC Rachel Groth, right, of Clear Lake, is finishing up a clinical internship with Osceola Medical Center’s Rehabilitation Department. The six-week physical therapy internship had Groth partner with OMC physical therapist assistant Kelly Hogen, her clinical instructor. As part of her learning experience, Groth assisted Hogen with patients from the clinic, hospital, nursing home and schools. She also observed orthopedic surgery, speech therapy and occupational therapy. Groth is finishing a two-year program at Anoka Ramsey Community College in Coon Rapids, Minn. She expects to earn her physical therapist assistant associate degree next spring. The rehab department is a regular training facility for physical and occupational therapy students. Three more students are expected to train there during the next few months. – Photo submitted
Dewey - LaFollette
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Karen Mangelsen
Friday, Dec. 21, Judy Albee visited Beth and Garry Crosby. Weekend visitors of Hank and Karen Mangelsen were Larry, Heidi, Celie, Baxter, Jake, Hannah and Grace Mangelsen and Dave Close. Judy Albee and Don Schleiss visited Beverly Brunclik Saturday evening. Nina and Lawrence Hines went to the Twin Cities Sunday and stayed through Tuesday. They celebrated Christmas with their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Christmas Eve guests of Lida and Don Nordquist for supper and celebrating were Joleen, Richard, Rick, Robb and Randi Funk and Jim, Jan, Caleb and Hannah Schott. Karen and Hank Mangelsen stopped in later. Donald Albee and Judy Albee had Christmas supper with Beverly Brunclik Monday night. Donna and Gerry Hines celebrated Christmas in the Twin Cities with their family. They went down on Monday and returned Wednesday. Don Schleiss and Judy Albee had Christmas Day dinner with Don, Charlene and Charlie Strabel. Later, Judy and Don visited Donald Albee and Beverly Brunclik at Bev’s home. Todd Mangelsen called on Hank and Karen Mangelsen Tuesday evening. On Wednesday, he visited Gerry and Donna Hines. Wednesday evening visitors of Dick and Shirley Quinton were Hank and Karen Mangelsen. Clam River Tuesday Club will meet Jan. 2 at 1:30 p.m. at the home of Judy Albee. Sympathy is extended to Russell Atkinson and family, due to the death of Russell’s wife, Dorothy. She was 83 years old.
Fran Krause
Orange
LaVonne O’Brien
Jack and Jeri Witzany entertained their family on Dec. 22-23, for their Christmas get-together. Lavonne O’Brien visited former Harmony HCE member, Arlene Fink, at Frederic Care Center last Wednesday. On Thursday she had Christmas lunch with Heather Wade. Christmas Day guests of Jack and Lavonne O’Brien were Pat and Nancy O’Brien and Mike and Tylyn O’Brien. On Saturday, Dec. 29, the O’Brien families were guests of Jack and Lavonne. Marvel Merriam spent Christmas Eve with Julie and Mark Freeborn and family at River Falls. They were all Christmas Day guests of Gary and Billie Gravesen, along with the Dennis Gravesens. John and Reeny Neinstadt, Natalie Bray and children spent Christmas with Lamar and Sandy Johnson and family at Cadott. Mallory Peterson and Allyson Krause are spending their Christmas vacations from college at their homes. The Dean Peterson family spent a few days at their cabin and visited relatives. They were Christmas guests at the Brad Peterson home along with Donis and Jim Taylor and Maxine Stone. Lloyd Stone and the Brian Stone family came on Thursday to visit Maxine Stone and to celebrate her 98th birthday on Saturday. Many relatives and friends also stopped by at the Brad Peterson home to wish her the best. Kent and Nancy Krause were Christmas Day guests at the Steve Ammends. The Mark Krause family was at Naomi Glover’s Christmas Day. Karen, Jerry, Cassie and Karl Hintz, Sturgeon Bay came for the Krause get-together at Fran Krause’s. They returned home Thursday evening. Kathryn Krause was in the holiday basketball tournament for Webster High School girls at Eagle River Thursday and Friday. Bryan Krause participated in the boys basketball tournament at Clayton on Friday and Saturday.
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 7
TOWN TALK/COUNTRY CHATTER Webster Senior Center
866-4334 I’m sorry I missed the deadline last week but I will try and bring you up to date on some of the happenings at the center. We didn’t have a senior meeting this month on Monday, Dec. 17, but Margel Ruck and I met at the center in the afternoon and did a little more Christmas decorating on the west wall. In the evening, a number of our seniors were part of the full house at the Webster High School where they first enjoyed the ham dinner donated by Larsen Chevrolet and prepared and served by school staff and volunteers, and then the Christmas concert put on by grades seven through 12 under the guidance of Julie Strang and Jim Muus. What a treat! On Tuesday, Opal Johnson, Margel Ruck and I attended the Christmas program put on by children in kindergarten through eighth-grade from the Harvest Christian School in Sandstone, Minn., for the Super Adult Group at the Clover Community Church, Cloverdale, Minn. Afterward we all ate turkey dinner in the church basement. Nine ladies played dime bingo on Wednesday afternoon and enjoyed the homemade German chocolate cake, caramels and fudge furnished by Margel Ruck. Harold Peterson, Carson Dunkley and Dave Wardean played several games of pool and then Dave repaired the outside floodlight. There will be no dime bingo played until Jan. 2, 2008. Dave Wardean, Ken Hayes, Sam Williamson, Pat O’Brien, Gene Johnson and Harold Peterson had a good time playing pool on Thursday evening, and Dave repaired three of the dining area lights while playing, too. Mert Kisselburg and Nancy O’Brien were the only ladies playing cards, but everyone enjoyed the goodies brought by them. Thirty-one people attended our Christmas party at the
The new year begins with the Arnell kennels full of dogs and cats waiting for their lost owners or perhaps new ones with a loving home. Benson is one such dog. He has a wonderful, playful, mature personality. He has soft, gentle eyes that twinkle with excitement when it is his turn for a walk. Benson came to the shelter as a stray and is hoping someone will see in him, the fantastic companion they have always wanted to share walks in the woods and fetching games in the backyard. Arnell Memorial Humane Society, 185 Griffin Street E.,, Amery 715-2687387 Mon. - Sat., 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Online at: www.arnellhumane.org
HAPPY TAILS
AWAIT Arnell Humane Society
Benson
Cookie sales begin Saturday, Jan. 19 Girl Scout cookies add up to opportunities for girls ST. PAUL, Minn. – When you open a box of Girl Scout cookies you also open endless leadership development opportunities for girls. Members of the newly merged Girl Scouts of Minnesota and Wisconsin River Valleys will begin taking orders for the annual Girl Scout Cookie Program Activity on Saturday, Jan. 19. The Cookie Program Activity provides opportunities that help girls, ages 5 – 17, become successful women as they learn about business and communication skills, money management, marketing and teamwork. River Valleys Cookie Program Activity runs through March 30. Cookie booths open in communities for direct sales starting Feb. 29. At $3.50 a box, Girl Scout cookies add up to much more than a tasty snack. In fact, only 83 cents goes to the baker. Proceeds stay within the local Girl Scout jurisdiction to help girls achieve personal and troop goals like attending Girl Scout camps, traveling to new places and funding local community service projects. Proceeds also help to offer hundreds of high-quality educational programs and activities, as well as use of 17 beautiful properties, including the five regional service centers and camp facilities, to 49,000 girls throughout the Twin Cities Metro area, southern Minnesota and western Wisconsin. This will be River Valleys first Cookie Program Activity since the merging of its five legacy Girl Scout councils – Cannon Valley, Greater Minneapolis, Peacepipe, River Trails and St. Croix Valley – on Oct. 1, 2007. – submitted
center on Friday, Dec. 21, and they all enjoyed the beef stew dinner prepared by Deb in addition to the cookies, cheesecakes, candy and a special decorated cake. Winners for best Christmas attire were Gladys Packer, Faye Russ, Lily Gleason, Mert Kisselburg, Judy Baker, Gladys Beers, Margel Ruck, Mary Klar, Judy Behrens, Bruce Behrens, Theresa Gloege, Ann Agerbeck and Carol Berglind. There were three other door prize winners whose names I didn’t get. Everyone enjoyed the gift exchange, and after the party was over Gene Johnson, Dave Wardean, Harold Peterson and Bruce Behrens played several games of pool while Ann Agerbeck, Margel Ruck, Gladys Beers and I played golf cards. Most of the area churches had Christmas Eve candlelight services, and I greatly enjoyed the one at my church that was packed full of families that were there with other family members home for the holidays. It is my most favorite church service of the entire year. The center was closed Monday and Tuesday for the Christmas holiday, and after the snowstorm, I stayed home where it was warm and cozy and I didn’t have to worry about cleaning the snow off my windshield, wearing boots and all that other wintery stuff. Special gratitude is extended to Lily Gleason for donating two jars of peanut butter for Deb to make cookies; Gladys Beers for assorted chocolate candy, apples, and candy bags for all the people receiving home delivered meals and the congregate diners at the Christmas party; Margel Ruck – homemade fudge and caramels; Geri Cyms – cookies; Tony Saladis – aluminum cans; and Gordon Burmeister – paperback books. Our get-well wishes and prayers continue to go out to Jerry Enns who is receiving therapy at Miller Dwan Rehab.
320-242-3933
Mary Klar Center in Duluth; Albert Doriott; Karen Doriott’s mother; Mary Garbe who will be receiving a kidney transplant on Jan. 10, from her daughter who is the donor; Thelma Klugow; Fran Arnold; Belva Ollikain and Arlene Fink. Our sympathy and prayers also go out to Georgia Lalor and family in the death of her sister, Violet Marek; Mildred Buggert in the death of her brother; and the Edward Strese family in his recent passing. Do you know that the Bible is the best-selling but leastread, and least-understood book in the United States. After a Gallup poll, George Gallup stated that “we as Americans revere the Bible but we don’t read it.” Sixtyfour percent of people in a recent survey said that they were too busy to read the Bible. The average household has three Bibles, but less than half the people in the U.S. can name the first book in the Old Testament, Genesis. Twelve percent in a survey identified Noah’s wife as Joan of Arc! Isn’t that sad? The solution is to read the Bible, and make a commitment to read it entirely during the next year. God’s word is a precious gift, and you can accomplish this if you only take 15 minutes every day to read it. This goal will not only give you information, but transform you. Someone once summarized 2 Timothy 3:16 by saying: “God’s word shows us which road to take (doctrine). It tells us when we get off track (reproof); how to get back on (correction); and how to stay on (instruction in righteousness).” “If you’ve never read the Bible through, there’s a special joy awaiting you; you could start the New Year out just right, walking with the Lord and in His light.”Unknown. “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” – 2 Timothy 3:16. See you at the center!
Cloverton - Markville
Even though we have flipped the calendars over to the New Year out here in the little townships of Arna and New Dosey, let’s take a minute or two and take a look at our December activities. The annual Christmas party held in Cloverton was a lot of fun. This year brought many younger residents and their little children out for the event. Santa (in person of weekender Ron Moser) made an appearance with his stop being followed by food, door prizes and, of course, that dice game. Fran Levings won the grownup door prize, a 2-lb. jar of honey made at Cloverton’s Wolfcrest Apiaries, while the child door prize, a stuffed elf, was won by John Wagner. A highlight of the evening was having former Cloverton resident Helen Feldt there. Her daughter and son-in-law, Margaret and Bill Damman, brought her out from Sandstone. The December meeting of the East Pine County Wanderers has traditionally been our Christmas party. A gift exchange was held. Evelyn Johnson brought the cake and door prize. The prize was a gift certificate to the Hay Creek Outpost and was won by Shirley Blokzyl. December birthdays were Maria Starowoitow and Dave Drake. Maynard Monson, Clara Lilly and Fran Levings also enjoyed the Christmas party held at the senior dining center in the Northland Community Center in Dairyland. Marian Dyson and Diana Wolf had done a lovely job of decorating the hall and the chili and cookies were followed by a game of bingo. Brenda Lilly, Clara’s daughter-in-law, came up for a visit one day and locked the keys in her car. Fortunately, three young men, Larry, Todd and Carlos, came over and got them out for her. Clara spent Christmas Day at the home of Brenda’s sister, Rudy, in Roseville, Minn. Two family gatherings provided some holiday fun for Shirley and Jerry Blokzyl. First of all, they were guests at the home of Shirley’s daughter, Lynn, and son-in-law, Mike Bolvin, in northeast Minneapolis, then it was off to the home of Mike and Shelley Blokzyl, Jerry’s son and his wife
Fran Levings
in Harris, all done on Christmas Day. Kyara Thompson hosted her parents, Pam and Leon Berg, and her brother and his wife, Leon Jr. and Ann of Beroun, on Christmas Day. They all had a wonderful time. On Christmas Eve day, Darlene Merimont, entertained with her daughter and son-in-law, Barb and Pat Haynes in Willernie, Minn., then on Christmas Day, all 25 members of the family gathered at her granddaughter Michelle and Ryan Allhouse’s home in White Bear Lake, Minn. Darlene says a highlight of the day was her little 9-month-old greatgrandson Tyler. Don Schirmer hit a deer on Hwy. 35 between Webster and Danbury one day in December. He was on is way to a job in Superior. The deer took out his headlights and a turn signal, but all is fixed up now. He made a pit stop at mom, Deloris’, home after the accident. Mention must be made of the death of our Markville friend and neighbor Chris Golden who passed away in November from complications of pneumonia at Mercy Hospital in Moose Lake. Chris was only 68 and a lifelong resident of our area. A very meaningful Native American memorial was held in his garage. Our deep sympathy to his family. A notice here, a glass, oval pot cover from the memorial reception for Peter Fornengo is missing. If you have it by mistake, please call Fran Levings at the number on this column heading. A very exciting thing happened at our home on Dec. 22. We saw a loggerhead shrike in our yard. We had never seen one before. While it is always thrilling to see a new bird around, it is bothersome to us because they kill and eat little birds, like chickadees and nuthatches. We’re keeping our eyes open. Dave would like to thank Bev Carlin and Clara Lilly for providing him with homemade fruitcake and peanut brittle this holiday season. He likes both of them. Have a peaceful and productive New Year, wherever you are.
Computerized farm record keeping workshops to be offered SPOONER – If one of your 2008 New Year’s resolutions is to get your farm financial records onto the computer, now is the time to take action. The University of Wisconsin-Extension is offering a workshop to give the bookkeeper of the farm the opportunity to try out a popular record keeping software package before purchasing it. Farmers can learn how to use QuickBooks@ software to keep farm financial records a UW-Extension workshop on Wednesday, Jan. 9. The QuickBooks@ workshop will be held at the WITC Conference Center in Rice Lake. This workshop is sponsored by the University of Wisconsin-Extension and the Center for Dairy Profitability at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. QuickBooks@ can be set up as a farm recordkeeping
program that enable producers to use a personal computer to organize and analyze financial records. The QuickBooks@ workshop will provide hands-on experience to farm families so participants can get a better understanding of how the program works. This workshop will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in a computer lab at the WITC Conference Center. The cost of the QuickBooks@ workshop will be $20 per person. Class size for this workshop will be limited, so register early. The deadline for registration is Jan. 4. For more information please contact Otto Weigand at the Spooner Area UW-Extension Office at 715-635-3506 or 1-800-528-1914 or otto.wiegand@ces.uwex.edu. - submitted
PAGE 8 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B- JANUARY 2, 2008
POLK COUNTY LIBRARY NEWS
Amery Public Library “Rhett Butler’s People,” by Donald McCaig A number of years ago Alexandra Ripley wrote a sequel to “Gone With the Wind” called “Scarlet.” It was not successful, for Margaret Mitchell was a hard act to follow. Donald McCaig, a wellknown writer of civil war fiction has taken a different tack. He tells Rhett Butler’s story and lets the reader in on all the things they didn’t know about Mitchell’s roguish Civil War profiteer. Rhett Butler’s boyhood was spent in the marshes and tidewaters of the Low Country. His father was a slave owner whose overseer was Isaiah Watling. Belle Watling, Isaiah’s daughter, was part of an early scandal in Rhett’s life. Of course there is Scarlett O’Hara, daughter, of Tara, the beautiful headstrong woman who would be the love of Rhett’s life, but sometimes the bane of his existence. “Rhett Butler’s People” brings Margaret Mitchell’s characters to life in a new and exciting way. If you are a “Gone With the Wind” fan or a Civil War buff, put this book on your winter reading list. Library notes Story time will be held at 10:30 a.m. on
Wednesday mornings. Everyone is welcome for songs and stories. Friends of the Library book group meets on Monday, Jan. 14, at 7 p.m., to discuss “Prodigal Summer,” by Barbara Kingsolver. Pick up a copy at the circulation desk if you would like to join this group for exciting book talk. The Teens Read book group meets on Monday, Jan. 28, to discuss “Bound,” by Donna Napoli, this historical novel which deals with foot binding will make fascinating reading. We meet from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. for snacks and book talk. Friends of the Library are looking for members who would like to help raise funds for the new library expansion project. Forms are available at the library circulation desk. Otaku Club will meet on Wednesday, Jan. 2, note change of day, because of the holiday. Otaku Club meets from 5 to 6 p.m. Library hours Regular Hours are Monday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Tuesday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Wednesday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Thursday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Friday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Saturday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
St. Croix Falls Public Library Saturday Talk About the Book Club The book club will meet the fourth Saturday of January, Jan. 26, at Sit-ASpell in Les Amis Shops, 9:30 a.m. The current selection is “Let the Northern Lights Erase Your Name,” by Vida Vendala. New members welcome. Friends of the Library The next meeting of the Friends of the St. Croix Falls Public Library will be held on Thursday, Jan. 3, at noon in the library. Technology Free wireless is available at the library. Also, visit the library Web site stcroixfallslibrary.org to get information on the building project, programs at the library
and much, much more! Story hour Listen to stories, create great art and have fun with other kids and parents every Wednesday, 10:30 a.m. Hours, contact The library is open from 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. every day except Saturday 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Closed on Sundays. The library will be closed Dec. 31-Jan. 1. Happy holidays! Check it out! Make a New Year’s resolution to read more books. See what’s available @ www.more.wi.lib.us.
Dresser Public Library Dresser Public Library is located at 117 S. Central Ave., Dresser, WI 54009. Library hours Monday 9 a.m.–5 p.m., Tuesday noon5 p.m., Thursday 10 a.m.–noon and 1–7 p.m., and Saturday 9 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Three Internet computers: You must physically present a MORE library card to library staff and library fines must be under $10 to use a computer. Coming up Lapsitter and preschool story times will resume Thursday, Jan. 3, at 10:30 a.m. each Thursday. Join us then for sto-
ries, songs, fingerplays, crafts and more. Food for Fines will run the entire month of January! Bring one nonperishable item for a local foodshelf for each dollar in fines on Dresser Public Library materials. MORE policy restricts us from waiving fines on materials from other libraries. Contact the library at 715-755-2944 which is our telephone and FAX number or e-mail us at www.dresserpl@ifls.lib.wi.us. Our Web site, www.dresserpubliclibrary.org. also has information about story times, days closed, reference links, library policy and much more.
Polk County Library Federation Happy holidays from the staff of the Polk County Library Federation. For further information contact the library at 485-8680. The director is Colleen Gifford, assistant director/youth services
is Molly Kessler, and the library clerk is Stephanie Fansler. The Polk County Library Federation is open Monday – Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Amery Public Library
Clear Lake Public Library Regular library hours Monday: Noon - 7 p.m.; Tuesday noon - 6 p.m.; Wednesday 3 - 9 p.m.; Thursday: 9 a.m. - 2 p.m.; Friday: noon - 5
p.m.; and Saturday: 9:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. We can be reached by phone at 715-2632802 or by e-mail at clearlakepl@ifls.lib.wi.us.
Luck Public Library Hours Monday 1 – 5 p.m., Tuesday 1 – 8 p.m., Wednesday 9 a.m. – 5 p.m., Thurs-
day 1 – 8 p.m., Friday 1 - 5 p.m., and Saturday 10 a.m. to noon.
Balsam Lake Public Library Balsam Lake library staff and the library board wishes everyone a Happy New Year. Story time Story time is at 11 a.m. every Wednesday here at the library. All ages are welcome to join us for stories, crafts, music and snacks. Hobby and craft group Join us Saturday, Jan. 12, at 10 a.m. here at the library - bring a hobby or craft of your choice. Share ideas, learn new hobbies, hone skills and enjoy ca-
maraderie. All ages welcome. Friends group Friends group will meet Wednesday, Jan. 30, 3 p.m. at the library. Balsam Lake Library, (under the water tower) at 404 Main St., Balsam Lake. Hours are Monday 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Tuesday 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Wednesday 10 a.m.8 p.m., Friday 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m.-2 p.m. E-mail: balsamlakepl@ifls.lib.wi.us Web site www.balsamlakepubliclibrary.org.
Milltown Public Library Story hour Milltown Public Library offers story time every Tuesday at 10 a.m. yearround. Story times are free and are designed for children under 6 and their caregivers. Each story time lasts 30 to 45 minutes and includes time to browse and check out books. We will start again on Jan. 8. We are wireless Bring your laptops to the Milltown Public Library and enjoy our free, fast, wireless Internet access. No more waiting for an open computer! Surf the Net from a comfortable chair! No time limits! “Window to the World” Chase off cabin fever this winter with
the “Window to the World” lecture series at Milltown library where local travelers will share their firsthand knowledge of faraway places, people and international issues. The first event in this series, about Haiti, was a huge success! Don’t miss the next “Window to the World” presentation, which will take audiences to Chiapas, Mexico, on Saturday, Jan. 26, at 2 p.m. Join us on Saturday, Feb. 2, at 2 p.m. for a presentation about South Africa. Hours Library hours are Monday and Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Thursday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Friday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Osceola Public Library Cold nights, hot reads kickoff! Warm up with cup of soup with library staff and the Friends of the Osceola Public Library and sign up for the Adult Winter Reading Program anytime between 11:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan 16. Book discussion “Truck: A Love Story,” by Michael Perry. Perry chronicles a year during which he struggled to grow his own food, live peaceably with volatile neighbors, and fix his pickup truck, at a time when he also fell in love and befriended a paraplegic and quadriplegic biker team. Join the discussion at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan 29. New participants are always welcome to attend! Natural Step for Communities study circle You can join in the dialog! The Osceola Public Library is forming three different study groups of 10 participants to discuss the book “Natural Step for
Balsam Lake Public Library
Communities.” The circles will meet for 10 sessions every other week. The “Natural Step for Communities” provides inspiring examples of communities that have made dramatic changes toward sustainability, and explains how others can emulate their success. If you are interested please contact the Osceola Public Library for more information at 715-294-2310. Library mailing list If you would like to be taken off the library news and events mailing list, please send an e-mail to osceolapl@ifls.lib.wi.us. Hours, contact Our hours are Monday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Friday from noon to 5 p.m., and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Our phone number is 715-294-2310, and our Web address is www.osceolapubliclibrary.org.
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 9
POLK COUNTY LIBRARY NEWS Frederic Public Library
New 2008 library hours Beginning Jan. 2, the library will be open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Effective Jan. 2, returned materials must be in the drop boxes before the library opens in order to be backdated at check in.
become a member. We need Friends to help at the twice-a-year bake/book sales, and we would also like to work with our Friends to develop some special community programs and fundraising projects. Please fill out an interest card at the library and we’ll get in touch with you early in 2008.
Story time resumes Jan. 9 The first story time of the new year will be Wednesday, Jan. 9, at 10:30 a.m., when preschoolers and their caregivers are invited to attend an hour of activities with the theme Noisy Stories. Join us and bring friends!
Don’t forget the soup labels The library is a collection site for milk caps and labels for Frederic school projects, and grocery items for the local food shelf. Be sure to include some of these items in your book bag when you visit the library.
Book groups to meet Jan. 17 The Thursday morning reading group will meet Jan. 17, at 10 a.m. to discuss “The Poisonwood Bible,” by Barbara Kingsolver. The evening book group will meet Jan. 17, at 7 p.m. to talk about “Colored People: a Memoir,” by Henry Louis Gates. Copies are available through the library, and new participants are always welcome.
Wireless access available The library offers wireless Internet access, so surf the Net from your laptop without waiting to use the public computers. The laptop must have a wireless card installed in order to access the connection.
The Friends of the Frederic Library need you A Friends group is formally organizing at the library, and we invite you to
Hours and information Frederic Public Library, 127 Oak Street West. 715-327-4979, e-mail fredericpl@ifls.lib.wi.us. Regular open hours are Monday through Friday 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.; and Saturday 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Centuria Public Library Hours The Centuria Public Library is open Monday from noon to 5 p.m., Tuesday from noon to 7 p.m., Wednesday from
noon to 5 p.m., Thursday from noon to 7 p.m., closed Friday, and open 10 a.m. to noon Saturday.
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Burnett and Washburn counties receive sustainability grant Burnett County, in partnership with Washburn County, is pleased to announce that they have received a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Education program to conduct education (study groups) for its residents, high school students, municipal leaders, and institutions, dealing with sustainable development and how we can utilize this idea to minimize the impact of environmental problems in our two-county region. The framework for this project will be based on The Natural Step process developed by Swedish environmentalists Torbjorn Lahti and Dr. Karl-Henrik Robert, and Sarah James, all who have extensive backgrounds in sustainable community planning. This is a proven framework that has been used around the country and around the world, that emphasizes that real sustainable changes can be accomplished starting at the local level, with participation from enlightened local municipal officials, business owners and residents. Study group locations will be identified in the two-county region, and interested individuals, students, business owners and municipal leaders are in-
vited to participate. The study groups will be informal and discussion will be designed around reference to the book “The Natural Jen Barton Step for Communities.” This book first clarifies concepts of sustainability and sustainable development and offers Reycling a clear framework Control of principles – The Commission Natural Step – used widely to better understand these issues. Guest speakers will also tbe invited to elaborate on sustainability success stories from other areas in the state and region. Participants will be asked to put what they learn into action at the local municipal level, in an effort to promote the consideration of environmental impacts in all governmental actions. The “Natural Step for Communities” book will be offered at half price to those participating in the study groups. Please call Jen Barton or Rick Schneider, 715-635-2197, to be placed on a list to participate in this opportunity to make a real difference. It is anticipated that the study groups will begin in the upcoming weeks, so if you are interested, please call to reserve a spot.
EARTH NOTES
Save the trees Don’t shake hands with Sheryl Crow! She wants us to use one square of toilet paper, per event. On a good day, I don’t think I could get by with one sheet of Bounty! I’ve used leaves, grass, Sears catalogue and my socks; but one sheet of toilet paper? I tried to figure out how this would work. I can’t give you all the details (it wouldn’t get printed) but I tried to fold the sheet into an eight-ply patch; it ended up to be about the size of my thumb; that won’t work. I tried wrapping one finger, that didn’t work. I wadded it up into a ball about the size of a dime, that didn’t work. These clowns are relentless; they won’t be happy until they’ve promoted every loony idea there is. Do you know what Escherichia coli are? They are resident bacteria of the lower intestines of mammals (we are mammals, even the liberals). As long as E-coli stay in the lower intestine, they won’t harm you, but if you ingest them, you could die or wish you had. Almost everyone washes their hands after visiting the outhouse, but if you use only one square of toilet paper, you may have to take a shower.
Brooke Biedinger
IRREGULAR columnist Remember the E-coli poisoning from the spinach? I knew that was going to happen ever since I was a kid; that’s why I don’t eat spinach. Initially they thought the spinach could have been contaminated from feral pigs. I don’t remember what the resolution was, but I’ll bet it was from some farmer that used only one sheet of toilet paper. Another breathtaking suggestion to save Mother Earth, “for the children.”
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JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 11
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2 0 0 7 Most unusual stories...
In the last three decades, the Leader has published photos of lightning strikes, but never has there been a strike like the one that exploded a pine tree in the yard of John Meyers of rural Frederic in 2007. The strike splintered the tree over a football field-size area, set Meyers’ garage on fire and blew out windows in his house. It wasn’t the first time for Meyers who said another tree in his driveway - just a few feet away from the one struck this summer had been struck by lightning a few years ago. - Photo by Gary King
Sarah Baillargeon of Amery was lucky to survive this crash in November which saw her van smash through the base of a 60-foot silo on a farm on Hwy. 65 south of Balsam Lake, after thick fog clouded her vision. Two deputies risked their lives to enter the silo and help Baillargeon out of the silo, which was so unstable it was making noises as if it were going to collapse, as Baillargeon called for help on her cell phone. The silo did, in fact, collapse the following morning as workers for Lake Services towing company pulled the vehicle out of the silo. No one was hurt. The collapse was captured on cell phone video and can be seen at KARE11.com - Photo courtesy Polk County Sheriff’s Department
On Sept.11, 2007 - the sixth anniversary of 9/11 - Frederic Police Officer Larry Bergeron (shown above) pulled over a man driving a van which was allegedly speeding past the Holiday station on Hwy .35 south of Frederic. News quickly spread that the Frederic Police Department had arrested a man whose name appeared on the government’s terrorist watch list and media from the Twin Cities and Eau Claire drove for miles to travel to the Frederic Village Hall that evening to get the story. Government officials quickly denied - via news releases from the FBI office in Milwaukee and the federal Drug Enforcement Agency - that 30-year-old Abidaziz M. Hassan was on a terrorist watch list. They said he was one of 44 people indicted by a grand jury in New York in a drug conspiracy which involved smuggling a drug called khat from east Africa to the United States. Authorities described Hassan as an “under worker” in the conspiracy and not one of the key players. A day after the Frederic arrest, U.S. Marshals were at the Polk County Jail to take custody of the man and transport him to New York. - Photo by Gary King
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The Leader featured a story in 2007 on Staff Sgt. Dustin M. Gould, A Marine who was killed in Iraq in March while disabling a bomb. Interviewed for the story was Gould’s uncle, Monte Scaff, a St. Croix Falls resident and former Webster resident, a proud uncle who wanted to pay tribute to his nephew. Above, Sgt. Gould’s sister, Bethany, and mother, Karen, are shown with the world-famous guitarist, Esteban, who hand-delivered a guitar Sgt. Gould had won before dying by winning the Esteban Reviews Guitar Contest. Gould was finishing his fourth tour in Iraq as a staff sergeant in the Marines, with less than a month left to serve. - Photo submitted
An American flag waves in the breeze along a backroad in eastern Burnett County. - Photo by Gary King
2007/from previous page
Firefighter Steve Warndahl of the Cushing Volunteer Fire Department demonstrated in August how to put out a grease fire on your kitchen stove. The grease fire demonstration looked at how bad the fire can get, and was part of a safety show that also explained candle safety, the No. 1 cause of house fires. Grease fires can start fast and can get out of hand rapidly if you don’t know what to do, Warndahl said. “We want people to be prepared and know that if something happens, they will know what to do if they keep calm.” When cooking with oils and grease, you should always have three things handy, an insulated glove, a heavy lid that will cover the pan with the grease, and a fire extinguisher, Warndahl said. - Photo by Gregg Westigard
One of 2007’s cool spots for relaxing. - Photo by Gary King
•The St. Croix Chippewa Tribe of Wisconsin gathered in Danbury for the annual Wild Rice Powwow. •The Dam Bistro restaurant in St. Croix Falls was named Discover Wisconsin’s Restaurant of the Month and owner Jeff Halverson was presented with an award. •The Burnett County Agricultural Fair took place in Grantsburg. •Hazel Bohn, Frederic, celebrated her 100th birthday with family and friends. •Siren first-grade teacher Chris Erickson and Unity kindergarten teacher Barb Swanson traveled with nine other American teachers to Costa Rica to learn about the rainforest as part of the Global Educators Program. •Area schools welcomed new teaching and coaching staff for the upcoming school year. •St. Croix Falls elementary students were delayed their first week of school while the school construction for the remodeling and addition of the building was finishing up. •The city of Taylors Falls borrowed just over $1 million for a new well on CTH 37. •Groundbreaking for the new enterprise center in Grantsburg’s industrial park took place. •Harvey and Marilyn Stower, Amery, were honored for their service to the community at an appreci-
ation dinner in Amery. •Siren schools administrator Scott Johnson fielded comments from an angry public during a board meeting in which parents and staff expressed their disapproval of the resignation of principal Jennifer Vogler and two other staff resignations. •The Polk and Burnett County Community Referral Agency director, Alta Tann, was charged with theft and possession of narcotics over a fourth-month period. •Pam Anderson, a Grantsburg special ed. teacher was presented with roses as
See 2007, page 17
Elisa Soper-Thomas of Andover, Minn., donned her best Lucy outfit for the “I Love Lucy” contest at the Chateau St. Croix Winery and Vineyard north of St. Croix Falls during the winery’s fall festival in September. - Photo by Priscilla Bauer
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2 0 0 7 Some favorite shots of ours...
Frosty was out of work this past summer but apparently enjoyed the time off, relaxing on a bench in the backyard of a home in the village of Grantsburg during the Big Gust Days celebration. - Photo by Gary King
This young dancer received some final touches on his dance outfit from his father at the St. Croix Tribe’s annual Wild Rice Powwow at Danbury in late August. - Photo by Carl Heidel
A friend of a young man checks to see that he’s OK as he stretches out on a bench at the Polk County Fair, apparently exhausted by the heat - and out of water. Temperatures soared into the 90s during the four-day run of the annual event. - Photo by Gary King
The hydroelectric dam at St. Croix Falls provided the backdrop for this dramatic shot of lightning taken during an approaching storm by photographer Erik Barstow.
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 15
2 0 0 7 and of yours
ABOVE: We received shots nearly weekly of bears throughout the summer of 2007. Cecelia Andrewson, who lives on CTH N in rural Webster, submitted the photo above of a large black bear wandering through her property. RIGHT: Sandie Sahr, who lives just north of the village of Frederic, submitted a photo of this black bear strolling through her back ard. “It was July 1 and there were about 30 cars stopped on Hwy. 35 as people snapped photos,” said her husband, Chuck.
RIGHT: Here’s lookin’ at you...One of the best birth announcements in 2007 came with this photo via e-mail. Robert Walker and Heather Gaylord of St. Croix Falls proudly announced the arrival home of Jack Tezazu Walker, born in Hosanna, Ethiopia. Jack joined his siblings, Sarah, David and Lauren on Feb. 10, 2007. BELOW: Frederic Police Chief R.J. Severude gives direction to a young man who offered to help wash the village squad car in preparation for the annual Family Days parade in June. Photo by Melissa Buss
ABOVE: Four-year-old Beth Ann Dahlberg of Solon Springs kept warm at the Frederic Sleigh Parade in January with some very fashionable, vintage outerwear. - Photo courtesy Candis Hankins
BELOW: Charles Johnson of Trade Lake snapped this photo of a redtailed hawk that landed on his porch and lingered for at least two hours one summer Sunday. Johnson said the bird had made an apparent attempt to fly through the living room window before landing on the porch. He was able to get within six feet of the bird to snap this shot.
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2 0 0 7 Queens for a year... Local communities and the Polk County Fair chose their ambassadors in 2007
Brittany Flatten was crowned Miss Webster 2007, Saturday evening, Aug. 11, by the former Miss Webster – and her sister – Leighann Flatten. Brittany and her sister are daughters of Fred and George Ann Flatten of Webster.
Jenna Wambolt, daughter of Kim and Wade Wambolt, was chosen Miss Siren 2007 Saturday, July 7. Carole Peper of Centuria, daughter of Greg and Karen Peper, was crowned this year’s Fairest of the Fair at the Polk County Fair on Sunday, July 29. Melanie Chenal was crowned Miss Frederic Saturday evening, June 16. She is the daughter of Dave and Nancy Chenal.
Jasmine Jones, daughter of Kevin and Andrea Jones, was crowned Miss St. Croix Falls 2007 on July 20 during the Wannigan Days celebration. LEFT: Amanda Kleidon was crowned Miss Danbury on June 5. She is the daughter of Allen and Diane Kleidon.
Krystal Ann Stage was crowned Miss Luck at the pageant held Friday evening, Feb. 9, as part of the annual Luck Winter Carnival activities. She is the daughter of Jeff and Joni Stage.
Vanessa Kleiss was the new Miss Grantsburg following her coronation June 2. She is the daughter of Roderick and Georgianne Kleiss of Grantsburg. Bethanie (Beth) Rice was crowned Miss Balsam Lake 2007, Friday evening, June 29. She is the daughter of Brian and Kim Rice and Karen and Robert Pennings.
Stephanie Lobert was crowned Miss Milltown Thursday evening, June 21. She is the daughter of Bill and Darice Lobert.
Cailin Turner, daughter of Jeff and Susan Turner, was crowned Miss Centuria 2007 at a pageant held Friday evening, July 6, at the Unity Schools.
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A rope that spanned the St. Croix River is grasped by members of the Taylors Falls community in the first annual tugof-war between the cities of Taylors Falls and St. Croix Falls held this past summer during the annual Wannigan Days celebration. - Photo by Julie Holmquist
2007/from page 13 the Grantsburg Rotary Teacher of the Year.
September
Members of the Taylors Falls Legion march across the Hwy. 8 bridge that spans the St. Croix River between Taylors Falls and St. Croix Falls. The group had just paid honor to the war dead during the 2007 Memorial Day Service. A wreath was tossed from the bridge into the river to honor those lost at sea. - Photo by Gary King
•The Siren school board approved to post a position for dean of students/interim administrator after principal Jennifer Vogler resigned to fill the position. •It was back to school for kids after the Labor Day holiday. •Franconia Sculpture Park celebrated its new location during its annual Fall Arts and Music Festival. •Osceola celebrated with Wheels and Wings and the Community Fair. •Frederic elementary students remembered 911 with a program aimed at saluting America. •A fundraiser for Web and Lori Macomber of Webster to adopt Nathanial, a 1-year-old Guatemalan boy, took place. •Former Leader advertising manager Wayne Boniface was featured on Duluth TV News for busting a perpetrator who broke into his home and stripping the would-be offender do his clothing during a scuffle, making it easy for officers to identify the unclothed individual on the run and arrest him. •Andrea Fox opened a dance academy in Siren. •Siren village clerk Doris Kosloski was honored for 40 years of service. •Gil Ahlgren, Frederic, passed away at the age of 93. He was known for writing four college textbooks in the area of agriculture and served as an agricultural advisor to foreign countries. •A man was arrested in Frederic for suspicions of links to terrorism, which was later denied, following a routine traffic stop. •Bernice Asper, Frederic, died at the age of 87. She was the editor of the InterCounty Leader from 1963 to 1983. •Burnett Dairy Cooperative marked its 40th year of business at its Alpha facility. •The number of home foreclosures filed in Polk County were reported to have quadrupled since 1997. •Burnett County home foreclosures filed were reported to have tripled since 1997. •Siren hosted a Harvestfest event. •Homecomings took place at Leader land schools. •St. Croix Falls firefighter Beth Anderson attended training at the National Fire Academy and led the 911 program while in Maryland. •The St. Croix Falls city council approved the purchase of the former Holiday store building for the new city library location. •Voyager Village Arts & Crafts Show board members distributed $24,780 in profits to 10 community organizations. •Siren Antiques opened in the former Siren Now & Then building. •Georgette Sears grew a 12-foot cherry 100 tomato plant in Siren. •An all class reunion for Unity’s 50th anniversary took place with a football game and tours of the school building. •Carol Pool, EMT, was named the 2007 Health Care
More than 30 vintage autos passed through Burnett, Polk and Washburn counties as a vintage auto club chose northwestern Wisconsin to hold one of its special tours. - Photo by Sherill Summer Advocate at the St. Croix Valley Healthcare Foundation’s fundraising dinner.
October
•Les Amis, formerly J&D Clothiers, opened in St. Croix Falls featuring specialty shops inside the business. •Fleet Supply on Hwy. 8 noted it was closing its doors after 23 years. •A referendum for the Taylors Falls elementary for improvements would be on the Nov. election ballot. •A decline in Methodist ministers was noted as many are retiring and few replacements are available. •The budget for Polk County was moving toward completion. •The town hall for St. Croix Falls was demolished after serving as a meeting place and former school in the community. •Burnett County Judge Michael Gableman an-
nounced he was considering a race for the State Supreme Court. •Jason Wilhelm was hired as Siren school’s interim principal. •Trinity Lutheran Church in McKinley celebrated 100 years with the help of Swedish visitors to the area. •A ribbon cutting ceremony took place to open the new Amery Regional Medical Center after three years of planning and 17 months of construction for an updated facility. •Most proposals for new positions and increases were denied at the Polk County Board meeting. •A groundbreaking for senior apartments in Siren, Lilac Grove Apartments, took place. •St. Croix Falls student Kelsey Douglas-White was nominated, filmed and featured on the KARE 11 News Ac-
See 2007, next page
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2007/from previous page ademic All-Stars segment. •Todd Muehlhauser, son of Ione and Bruce Muehlhauser of Cushing and owner of TLM Custom Built Cabinetry in Minnesota, was featured on the TV series “Extreme Home Makeover” and helped in the construction of a home for a Minnetonka family. •Milltown held their annual Pumpkin Fest celebration and the fire department hosted their annual Taco Feed. •The Frederic Lions held a Classic Car Show. •The TV series Discover Wisconsin came to St. Croix Falls and filmed several segments in the area for an upcoming special on trails in Wisconsin. •A ground breaking for the new Luck Museum/Library was held. •A historical marker was placed in Milltown with information about Camp Milltown, a World War II prisoner of war camp for German immigrants during 1944 and 1945. •Local EMTs from Luck were thanked for their life-saving quick response to injures sustained by Diana Herbst after a motorcycle/deer accident. •The Polk County Sportsmen’s Club hosted the annual disability hunt. •Stephanie Kothlow, Unity tennis player, made her third trip to state. •Saints golfers Alyson Sullivan and Jenny Benoy made their second trip to state. •A tie vote of 11-11 at the Polk County Board of Supervisors meeting shot down a wheel tax that the county could have added as part of a county vehicle registration fee that was estimated to generate $800,000 per year. •Over 71 pounds of marijuana was recovered in a bust in the town of Jackson. •Osceola hosted a duathon, 3mile run, 22-mile bike ride and 1-mile run, which was taken in by over 300 participants. •Schools were wavering on their budget and levy numbers waiting for the state budget to get finalized so exact aid amounts could be factored into the school budgeting process. •A Superior man, Patrick Cohenowr, was killed when his motorcycle struck an SUV head-on near Moose Junction on Hwy. 35. •Osceola high school drama students presented “Beauty and the Beast.” •Unity School hosted the Haunted Hayride. Unity Community Education hosted the annual Halloween party. •Cookie Brigade co-founder, Susan Hager, Frederic, was featured on the Martha Stewart show. The Cookie Brigade’s theme is “Let’s Get America
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Baking for Our Troops.” •The Luck FFA and newly formed alumni invited the public to take a trip through the corn maze and haunted house behind the soccer field. •Roy Kirk White and Nolan James Neumann, Frederic Troop 128, were awarded their Eagle Scout Awards at the Court of Honor held at Clam Falls Lutheran Church. •Strauss employee Tom Triemert was featured for 60 years of employment with the company. He began at the St. Paul, Minn., plant and is still employed at the St. Croix Falls location. •Marnie Meister, St. Croix Falls, returned from the Special Olympics in China where she competed in bowling. St. Croix Falls Mayor Brad Foss declared Marnie Meister Day in her honor. •A 25year-old Round Lake woman survived a gunshot to her face from a 29-year-old male, Bryan Corbine, who was later arrested and charged with first-degree attempted homicide. •A special meeting in the village of Milltown resulted in the resignation of two long-time trustees, Joe Castellano and Les Sloper, following comments made/reported at a previous board meeting that were deemed inappropriate. •The fate of a two-month old Balsam Lake baby remained uncertain as authorities were looking at charging the parents for abuse. •A mock crash was held at Frederic High School to remind students about the harsh reality of poor choices. •The Grantsburg Fairgrounds became the sight of a haunted house for Halloween thrill-seekers. •The father of an organ donor, Bob Carlson of Frederic, by chance meets the man who received his son’s liver, John Stephens. •The bridge at Riverside was completed. •Tigers cross country boys earned second at state. •Polk County Supervisor Gerald Newville moved from his district leaving a vacancy on the board. •The keys to the St. Croix Falls new city library location (former Holiday grocery store) were presented to librarian Sarah Adams in a tour of the building ceremony and kick off of fundraising for the renovation to the building. •Burnett County passed their budget without cutting services or jobs. •A proposal for a new highway building for Polk County at an estimated $1.2 million was discussed at the county board. The matter will be placed on a February 19, 2008, primary election referendum. •The budget state passed adding a position of assistant DA for Polk County. •Polk County deputy clerk
Frederic FACT (Fighting Against Corporate Tobacco) students chalked the sidewalks in front of student entrances one moring before school to inform students about "Big Tobacco" targeting teens. Above, Rhaya Larson posed for the body outline as Candace Buck traces. - Photo submitted
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Dry conditions all summer created dangerous wildfire conditions. This August fire burned 11.5 acres in the village of Siren. Several homes were threatened and residents evacuated. The fire was suppressed by Siren and Webster Fire Departments with assistance from the DNR. No structures were lost, but firefighters spent three days working on the fire. The cause was a brush pile that had not been fully extinguished. - Photo courtesy DNR Diane Taxdahl filed suit against Polk County and Clerk of Court Lois Hoff for alleged harassment toward a political rivalry as both women ran for the position during two election periods in which Hoff was elected and re-elected to the position. •Two St. Paul, Minn., sisters, Erin and Holly Stojan, were found safe on a river island near Grantsburg after their canoe capsized on the St. Croix River and they spent the night in cold conditions waiting to be rescued.
November
•Dorothy Behringer, Clam Lake wood carving artist, was inspired by her nine brothers who all served their country in the Korean War, and was featured for her art and her story. The family of 11 children was originally from North Dakota and all nine brothers returned home. •Veteran’s Day was observed in local school programs. •The rebuilding of the Bone Lake Store began after it had been destroyed by fire in February. •Rick Kane, SCRMC’s biomedical electronics expert, retired after 27 years. •A Polk County Sheriff’s Deputy was dragged approximately 20 feet down the road after he performed a routine traffic stop and the driver attempted to drive away while the deputy had his arm inside the
window trying to turn the key. •Tim Wick, CEO of Burnett Medical Center resigned. •Hunters photographed with their trophy deer were featured in the Sports section.•A later than usual daylight savings time was observed. •Whitetails Unlimited donated $2,500 to Grantsburg schools for archery equipment. •In Veteran’s Day coverage, a St. Croix Falls graduate was noted for serving in three wars: WWII, Korea and Vietnam. His name is Maj. James Sawyer and he resides in Rice Lake. •An open house at the St. Croix Falls elementary campus took place. •Bill Lindberg, Siren, was attacked by a buck in his backyard. Lindberg had scrapes on his right arm from the deer’s horns and the deer was later put down by a game warden. •Luck High School Drama presented “A Matter of Principle.” •Grantsburg drama presented “You Can’t Take it With You.” •Jeff Finch resigned from the Grantsburg village board. •The Stop-A-Sec in Cushing started construction for a new gas station. •Durex Products in Luck was purchased by the Linatex Corporation of America. •Taylors Falls hosted it’s annual Lighting Festival event including a parade and the designation of the Royal
See 2007, next page
The St. Croix Tribe began its new casino project at Danbury in 2007. - Photo by Carl Heidel
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Polk County District Attorney Dan Steffen and State Rep. Ann Hraychuck held a joint news conference in July to announce the state’s approval of a new assistant district attorney for Polk County, something sought for many years to help with a growing caseload. Hraychuck announced that the Senate passed their version of the 2007-2009 state budget on June 26 which included funding for assistant district attorney positions in both Polk and St. Croix counties. “I was approached early this spring by Polk County and asked to support a full-time assistant district attorney position and St. Croix County requested my help in obtaining a half-time assistant district attorney position. I gladly wrote letters to the budget-writing Joint Finance Committee expressing the need for the additional positions, as well as had conversations with my colleagues in both houses of the Legislature.” - Photo by Erik Barstow
2007/from previous page Lady of the Village who was Barb Anderson for 2007. •It was noted that it had been 50 years since police entered the home of Ed Gein in Plainfield and made their gruesome discoveries. •Luke Nelson, Balsam Lake, stumbled on two bucks locked at the horns, one was deceased, and Nelson was able to shoot the other buck with his bow. •An Amery woman drove her van into a silo at a farm on Hwy. 65 in Polk County. The silo collapsed the next day when a towing service attempted to remove the van from the silo, crushing the vehicle and destroying the silo. •Derrick L. Leffelman, 24, Grantsburg, lost his life in a single-vehicle accident. •A former Amery teacher’s aide, 39-year-old Brenda Baillargeon, was charged with having sex with a 16-year-old male student. •Polk County finance members were charged with open meetings violations. •A 29year-old Illinois man was fatally shot in a hunting accident in the town of Rusk when a member in his hunting party’s gun got stuck on some brush and accidentally discharged. •A Thanksgiving Festival was held at the Nelson School in Grantsburg. •Unity Lions celebrated their 50th anniversary. •Carl Johnson, Amery, was presented with an appreciation award for his dedication to the Arnell Memorial Humane Society. •Wade Sommers was sworn in as the new St. Croix Falls Fire Chief, replacing retired Chief Dale Anderson. •The city of St. Croix Falls announced a resort tax will be on the February primary ballot proposing adding a half of a cent tax to resort type businesses. •A colonial dinner for second graders and their grandparents was held at Osceola Elementary. •A new band shell for Siren began construction.
December
•Santa Day was held in Webster, Milltown, Siren and Dresser. •A Medieval Banquet was held at St. Croix Falls high school. •The annual Christmas at the Forts celebration took place. •The new Gateway Mall in Siren opened, featuring five business occupants. •Despite heavy snowfall Centuria hosted a Cozy Country Christmas Parade complete with Santa Claus. •Farmington joined the joint municipal court of Dresser, the town of Osceola and village of Osceola. •Well 11 for the city of St. Croix Falls was online adding to the city’s water supply. •O’Reilly Auto Parts opened in Siren. •Longtime County Board Supervisor John (Jack) Overby of Milltown passed away at the age of 78. •Polk County Court Judge Molly GaleWyrick announced she was seeking re-election. •Holiday concerts took place at Leader Land schools. •Duana Bremer was se-
lected to fill the vacant seat on the Polk County Board left by Gerald Newville. •A second house fire for the family of John and Nina Northquest of Clam Lake left minimal damage. •Ann Peterson was hired as the new Siren clerk/treasurer. •Daniel Owens, 37, Nye, was sentence to seven years of prison and 14 years of probation after pleading to charges of soliciting a child for prostitution and distributing methamphetamine to a minor. •Balsam lake Police Chief Sheryl Gehrman was chastised by some for her strict law enforcement tactics at a Balsam Lake village board meeting. Other praised her efforts to uphold the law. •KARE 11 News visited and filmed Frederic kindergarteners in Tammi Hasselquist’s class and Sue Hager, who works for the school’s dog awareness program and was featured on the Martha Stewart show for her Cookie Brigade idea. •The Insight School in Grantsburg held and open house. •Eunice Kanne, 100, was honored at the Northwest Regional Writer’s holiday party at the Jade Dragon in Grantsburg. •The Grantsburg transfer station in Grantsburg was closed after the village decided not to run it. •The city of St. Croix Falls hosted a dedication ceremony for the Wert Nature Preserve, a 450-acre parcel formerly known as Simonwoods that was annexed into the city and is forever placed in preservation. •Robert Blake announced he was retiring from the Polk County Board of Supervisors. Blake has served as a supervisor and chair in his time on the board. •Burnett Dairy Co-op boasted a productive year in sales, $100 million, which was a record in the co-op’s 40-year history. •Polk County deputies Ron Pedrys and Eric Palmer were honored for their efforts to save a woman who drive her vehicle into a silo. They went into the unsafe structure to rescue Sarah Baillargeon, 28, of Amery, from her van. •The Year in Review part one was featured recapping the events from the first six months of the year. •Christian music artist Carolann Rosenthal helped Dresser kindergarteners with their elementary music program. •Dorothy Richard, Grantsburg, was honored for 39 years of service as Burnett County Court register in probate/juvenile court. •Residents of Polk County were alerted to an error in tax statements indicating that a line item was subtracted twice inadvertently and the new tax bills, with a higher price tag would be issued in the coming days. CORRECTION: A photo caption in last week’s year in review should have stated the St. Croix Falls Fire Department celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2007.
Jim McDonough, 1993 Frederic High School graduate and son of Lettie McDonough of Luck, (shown above wearing helmet and white shirt and at right) was one of the first EMS workers to respond to the I-35 bridge collapse scene Aug. 1, in Minneapolis. McDonough saw the tragedy unfold while driving an ambulance for Allina Medical Transport. He related the scene of the disaster that evening for a Leader feature story. Frederic was also proud to know another one of its graduates played a key role in the bridge collapse.. Kristina Moats works at HCMC EMS as a 911 dispatcher and had just gotten to work when the tradegy started to unfold. She, along with her co-workers, coordinated the communications during the event for the EMS side of the disaster. “ I feel very fortunate because I also travel that bridge twice a day in the early evening. I traveled it approximately 20 minutes before the collapse,” she noted. - Photo above by Andrew Worrall. Photo at right courtesy Allina Medical Transport. Photo below by St. Croix Tribe Police Chief Frank Taylor
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JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 21
2 0 0 7 Farewell...
The following people have left us in the past year. They are listed by month, according to when their obituaries appeared in the paper.
January
John B. Joyce, Harriet L. Bjork, Clarence (Tubby) Roger Carlson, Ella E. Demulling, Jean A. Klint, Norman Oscar Nelson, Alice Von Rueden, Margaret Elizabeth Nolan, Gertrude Mae Olesen, James R. Jones, Sophie Halperin Katz Schulman, Gregory Alan Stock, Donald James Fossum, Emma (Bergstrom) Haight, Loretta J. Tucker, Corrine M. Westphal, Helga V. Reule, Bertha K. Buskirk, Kent Allen Erickson, Phillip M. Edwall, Ruth Crotteau Gutzmer, Mavis Gjonnes, Jack Vezina, Elsie Anna Christensen, June J. (Chelmo) Erickson Leef, Dennis J. Giese, Julia E. Erickson Kamish, Emily B. Koethe, Alpha E. Dahle, Barbara Lee Creuzer, Bessie Swenson, Helen E. Clark, Roger Sjolander, Steven Daniel Clover, Adam Eugene Peterson, Leslie Raymond Johansen, Loyal W. Lunde, Beatrice Mae (Halstead) Olson, Julia Abbott, Edith Viola Johnson, Charles E. Jensen, Elwood C. Olson and Sheri L. Martin.
February
Charles J. Petersen, Noah Bibeau, Daniel H. Chapman, Irene Lucille Sokolowski, Charles Smith, Edward Nicholas Arendt, Clifford T. Trudeau, Mary Ann Ulick, Wallace Floyd Davison, Jason D. Madsen, Harris Hills, Myrtle Gladys Lurene Schworer, Carlie Stellrecht, Lynwood “Lyn” R. Andersen, Ethel Grace Ormston, Anna Ullom, Larry E. Reese, Roy H. Erickson, Louise Ann Wicklund, Helen H. Nichols, Mervin “Mike” Hill, Travis Reed Donald, Adehl Burch, Charles E. Fahland, Eugene Fredrick White Jr., Phyllis G. Sedlacek, Vernon W. Friberg, Paul David Carlson, Florence E. Anderson, Selma Utoft Grumstrup, James “Jim” Clair Hanson, Gilbert “Gib” Held, Phyllis Marie Martin, Zachary “Mouse” Curtis Wolfe, Alta I. Anderson, Hollylea M. (Mosay) Tirado, Ruby Wells and Delores A. Suchy.
March
June K. Westlund, Allen E. Warden, Wilbur W. Tyson, Kenneth O. Stonesifer, Patricia A. (O’Connor) McDonough, Larry C. Gault, Jon A. Carson, Charles W. Smith, Myrtle Gladys Lurene Schworer, Pierre Norbert Schiebel, Edna Gutierrez Jones, Ashley N. Severson, Nicole E. Peterson, David J. Rich Jr., Ruth Elizabeth Prose, Gerald Burton Palmer, Robert E. Nelson, Justine Ruth Kelly, Robert Anderson, Helen Klotzbach, Irene H. Kinney, Eleanor H. Karr, Ira Lynne Matrious (Min Waa Waa Yoshe Kwe), Dick Swenson, Larry E. Java, Fr. Albert J. Shanley M.S., Robert R. Lumsden, Delbert E. Duncan, C. Allan Benson, Lorna Pauline Swanberg, Mabel Chapman Sutton, Christal L. Honts, Melvin J. Reis, Kathleen Marie Andersen, Norman Meinke, Herman Engebretson, Charlotte Marie (Jackson) Selander, Alyce C. Mueller, Anita Marie (Althoff) Beckenbaugh, Rodger Allen Erickson, Charles (Chuck) William Hagen, Carmen Lucille (Avery) Fahrendorff and Larry Vicker Kurtz.
They left us in 2007
April
Elvira Marguerite Vallentin Swanson, Katherine “Katie” V. Johnson, Dorothy Glockzin, Mildred A. Martini, Marjorie J. (nee Hammer) Vogel, Timothy Wade Swedberg, Donald E. Johnson, Mary Jane Anderson, Larry Irvine Price, Dave Allen Davidson, Dennis Dean Leon Fellman, Robert John Anderson, Richard (Dick) Sherman Swenson, Helen E. Rood, Florence L. Pardun, Marion H. MacDonald, Timothy Mark Lehman, Katherine C. Peterson, (Sue) Georgene Weideman, Judith Ann Soderholm (nee Bradshaw), Karen Jane Burgett, Ann Elizabeth Hansen, John Mauritz Waldemar Olson, Edith Evelyn Janssen, Hugh C. Parker, David W. Oman, Carl K. Hansen, Celia Danielsen, Wesley Bengtson, James Burton Sine, Ray William Shern, Merlin Nelson, Ronald Eugene Hill, Inez E. Mackie, Joseph A. Bonneprise and Nancy Kay (Wise) Bates.
May
Michael S. Spengler, Glenn L. Hunter, Lawrence L. Reed, Lowell Norlander, Maynard (Hans) J. Falb, Ruth A. Doran, James L. Vanderhoff, Dorothy Paine, John A. Taborshak, Elmer Alexander Berg, Jerry James Allen, Marvin Robert Lade, James Lawrence Ouellette, Gary P. DeNucci, Donald E. Johnson, Jarmund N. (Jiggs) Schmidt, Mildred Ann Martini, Norman “Norm” Schwartz, Myrtle L. Durow, Wesley Emmons Olson, Viola Eleanora Macho, Gordon Edward Anderson, Hilda A. Raiche, Richard A. Pfundheller, Leona Rose Steinbach, Velma Marie Podabinski, Harley Carl Nielsen, James Evon Nelson, Frank Edwin Koukol, Mildred Kiska, Walter Johnson, Jerome J. Bremer, Walter “Walt” John Steneman, Bob Weld, Linda K. Noe, Gilbert (Gil) Gibson, Lonny G. Worman, Frank E. Koukol, Michael A. Gillquist and Richard A. Pfundheller.
June
Robert Northquest, Margaret (Maggie) J. Nelson, Peggy Jean Daniels, Theodora L. Mann, Clifford G. Shaw, Jack “Big Eagle” Edward Roper Jr., Scott Anderson, Connie “Babe” Rivard, Shirley Kay Hopp, Agnes D. Olson, George Hugh Wilson, Elsie C. Wegener, Clara P. Waldo, Barbara L. Olson, Jeffrey D. Wagers, Lorraine Marie French, Betty Bystrom, Carolyn G. Bradshaw, Kathleen T. Boyd, Elmer “Jim” Bibeau, Melvin E. Winberg, Valerie Mae Nielsen, Marie Hach Menke, Marjorie Ann Maier, Dennis Larson, Pearl B. Jensen, Thomas R. Stendall, Forrest “Frosty” Mathews, Dorothy L. Martin, Eileen M. Jensen, Margaret L. Hendrickson, The Rev. Edward N. Coolidge, Bob Pilz, Marion Bystrom and Mary E. Swanson.
July
Arlin Laier, Ethel Lucille Carlson Erickson, Karen L. Wolf, Ruth Marie Ehlers, Ruth W. Brown, Lucille H. Melin, Howard Mattson, Helen B. Johnson, Jerry Hallberg Milton L. Braman, Alberta Jacqueline Loverude, Gaylord Clarence Worrell, Lonie “Dixie” Seagraves, Walter Lee Johnson, Lois Lawson Higley, Maurice “Maury” Eugene Heyer, Joyce Fahlin (nee Skog), Anna M. Carlson, Barbara Jean (Thurner) Broom, Scott G. An-
The area bid farewell to three icons in local journalism in 2007 - Bernice Asper, Jack Vezina and Palmer Sondreal. Asper was editor of the Inter-County Leader from 1963 to 1983 and was dubbed “the first lady of journalism” by Harvey Stower. Vezina was the city editor at St. Croix Falls for the Standand Press in the 1950s and ‘60s and Sondreal was publisher, owner/writer/pressman and ad salesman for the Amery Free Press for 65 years. - Special photos derson, Vivian Wiesch, David J. Littfin, Ralph A. “Bud” Mattson, MaryAnn Mallin, Terry M. Lawson, Florence E. Gustafson, Roger J. Evans, Mary (Nadia) Johnson, Arlene M. Clendening, Mabel Matilda Northquest, Edith Ada Rider, Melvin William Smith, Marion Ellen Adelia Byl, Verna E. Smith, Diane Marie Isaacson, Elaine Janet (Anderson) Buck, Gladys M. Bedauskey, Esther Berntson, Roger J. Evans and Mary Ann Jacobs.
August
Beulah A. Volker, Esther Lisk, William “Bill” LeRoy Klugow, Muriel E. Fossum, Verna E. Smith, Michael Steven Piel, William “Bill” Kenneth Hodapp Jr., Matt Arnold McClintock, Daniel L. Miller, Arthur Bruce, Beulah A. Volker, Dorothy L. Pijanowski, Esther G. Lisk, Karen R. Jensen, Sondra L. Bowser, Virginia V. Mosay, John R. Merth, Lester M. Jacoby, Gladys (Huebscher) Fleming, Esther Stepanek-Owen, Lacrecia A. Johnson, Elizabeth J. Cullen, Ethyle Ann Johnson, Wendy B. Bruck, Edward W. Dalsveen, Raymond John Walsten, Charles W. Plaster, Violet R. Olson, Erik V. Werdier, Therese (Terri) Flattem, John Clarence Novak, Geraldine Ann Hiller, “Larry” Lawrence Randel, Joseph C. Wilson, Delores “Lori” Pardun and Richard H. Hanson.
September
John I. Nelson, Earl N. Heier, Joseph J. Dominas, Stephen Lee Quimby, Lena Glenna, Arvin G. Anderson, Frederic Henry Tabbert, Roy John Sederlund, Doris M. Jensen, Bernice V. Asper, Norma Burnett Simonson, Charles W. Edler, Ethel C. Pederson, Gertrude Clarice Glassel, Darlene A. Petersen, Mary A. Jasperson, Margaret L. Boettcher, Laura O. Esmond, Isla Schnur, Martha Elizabeth Iverson, Lloyd Kenneth Warn, Edna Lucille Skold, Richard Merrill, Gilbert Harold Ahlgren, Austor T. Soderberg, Viola Lorraine Risik, Ethel H. Peterson, Orval N. Polsfuss, Darlene Ann Petersen, Robert Laverne Lindquist and Sandra M. (Berres) O’Donnell.
October
Russell Julius Erickson, John Robinson Jr., June A. Benson, Cecelia M. (Sis) Quee, Calvin C. Wimberly, Martha Elizabeth Iverson, Roger Hunter Knieff, R. Calvyn Romsos, Edna Lucille Skold, Gladys S. Freitag, Jeffrey James Hill, Michael Peter Fristed, Charles “McGee” J. Quigley, Michael I. Hills, Russell C. Stewart,
Gladys V. Slipher, Earl O. Petersen, Wayne Ahlstrom, Paul Q. Snook, Lucille Murtaugh Cashman, Donald “Donnie” A. Clausen, Violette Elizabeth Helland, Carol J. Frazer, Dorothy L. Lindgren, Myrtle Emily Adams, Elna Grace Heine, Robert Eugene Sauerbrey, Gladys E. Brenizer, Warren E. Magnuson, Aimee Marie Walker, Betty J. Glander, John J. Schroeder, Robert Lewis Sutton and Terrance (Terry) Hersant.
November
Wayne Irving Summerfield, Patty Loiland, Derick James Leffelman, Alexis Marie Jagusch, Gertrud (Marlene) A. Fortmann, Peter Fornengo, Kenneth J. Swanson, John Joseph O’Donnell, Jayden N. Long, Louise M. Swanson, Arlee W. Hansen, LeRoy E. Magnuson, Audrey M. Videen, Dennis R. Adams, Rachel Louise Boettcher, Christian Peter Golden Jr. (Rudy), Patrick Eugene Robinson, Eldon Harding Andrewson, James F. Voigt, Elsie Rose Strese, Donna Mae Meyer, Leo Neil Fristed, Andrew “Andy” Anthony Lundin, Dean E. Preston, Marion B. Branstad, Walter Herrli, Lester W. Heise, Melvin Monson, Dorothy G. Hines, James E. Burford, Doris Mae Cochran, Georgia H. Forrest, Irene Leona Mattson, John L. Thomas, Frances T. Perrault, Gladys E. Brenizer, Marian Loretta Marek, Mildred Louise McNally, Jerry J. Wilkins, Gustof Fritzof Peterson, Florence E. Gustafson and Carol J. Frazer.
December
Larry Roger Cross, Jack D. Denver, Stella Marion Nutt Enger, Mildred G. Hankins, Sonya Clara Kelley, Elden Everate Klar, Jack (John) O. Overby, Bernadine “Goo-Goo” Gertrude Polaski, Doris Virginia (Eckberg) Rassett, Esther Marie Durns Schallenberger, Doris Marie Swanson, Jean A. Swenson, Steven Blaser, Hildur Blomberg, Grace E. Borup, Charles R. Brown, Lois Margaret Jacobs Cowan, Willard (Bill) John Engdahl, Robert (Bob) Charles Jackson, John Mork Jr., Milo N. Nelson, Beatrice Lila Olson, Robert Harold Williams, Edward R. Strese, Terry J. Schmidt, Debra Lynn Mosay, Gordon Bibeau, Janette V. Lucken, Genevieve Elsie Palmquist, Mary Ann Murphy, Alice Daniels, Leonard C. Hansen, Arlene M. Bush, Marion B. Bonsness, Carl V. Anderson, Violet Emily Marek, Harley Martin Jensen, Elizabeth M. Ferguson and Glenn L. Sutton.
Among the friends and familiar faces that left us in 2007 were (L to R), Luck High School counselor and coach Bob Pilz, longtime Luck businessman and sports promoter Gary DeNucci, former Polk County Supervisor and longtime Milltown businessman Jack Overby, 41-year teacher and community volunteer Dorothy Glockzin of Frederic, longtime resort owner Mel Winberg of Siren, Danbury fire chief, town chairman of Swiss and president of the Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association Bill Klugow and former Unity superintendent Terry Schmidt.
PAGE 22 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B- JANUARY 2, 2008
OBITUARIES
Dorothy Ann Atkinson
Dennis R. Peterson
Carol Neuman
Dorothy Ann Atkinson, age 83, of Woodbury, Minn., formerly of Webster, died on Dec. 25, 2007, at the Woodbury Care Center. Dorothy was born on March 20, 1924, in Red Wing, Minn., to Alton and Beulah Engle. She married Russell Atkinson on Nov. 1, 1942, in Markville, Minn. The couple lived in Red Wing, Minn., the Webster area and in St. Paul, Minn., retiring to Webster. Due to ill health, Dorothy entered the Woodbury Care Center at Woodbury, Minn., on Oct. 1, 2004. Dorothy is preceded in death by her parents. Dorothy is survived by her husband; children Alton Ray (Carol Atkinson of San Anotonio, Texas, Russell Terry (Dana) Atkinson of Little Falls, Minn., Linda Lou Atkinson of Woodbury, Minn. and Peggy (Ron) Lewis of Spooner; grandchildren Tammy, Neil, Kim, Brian, Rick and Tracey; 11 great-grandchildren and other relatives and friends. Funeral services were held on Sat., Dec. 29, 2007, at the Lakeview United Methodist church at Hertel with Pastor Arveda “Freddie” Kirk officiating. Music was provided by organist Fran McBroom and soloist Courtney Daniels. Casket bearers were Cyrus Atkinson, Curtis Atkinson, Jim Atkinson, Lyle Atkinson, Jerry Atkinson and Miles Spafford. Burial was at the Lakeview Cemetery at Hertel. The Swedberg-Taylor Funeral Home of Webster was entrusted with the arrangements.
Dennis R. Peterson of Dresser died Saturday, Dec. 22. He was 59 years old. Dennis was born Oct. 28, 1948, in Minneapolis, to Ray and Corrine Peterson. Throughout his life, Dennis was known for his intelligence and wonderful sense of humor. His interests included traveling, reading and horse racing. But from childhood his passion was golf. His happiest days were as a golf instructor. Dennis was preceded in death by his parents, Ray and Corrine. He is survived by his wife of 24 years, Cassie. Memorial services will be held at 2 p.m., Friday, Jan. 4, at Peace Lutheran Church with the Rev. Wayne Deloach officiating. Music will be provided by Dorothy Lindholm. The Grandstrand Funeral Home, Osceola, was entrusted with arrangements.
Carol Neuman, Shell Lake, died Dec. 24, 2007, at the Terraceview Living Center in Shell Lake. She was 93 years old. Carol Roma Okonek was born July 13, 1914, in Spooner to Joseph and Hazel (Spear) Okonek. On Nov. 25, 1937, she was united in marriage to Frank Neuman at Shell Lake. Following their marriage, the couple resided in Beaver Brook Township where they farmed and where Carol was an Avon representative for 25 years. Carol was a member of the St. Joseph Catholic Church in Shell Lake, the Altar Society, the Hillsdale Homemakers and former member of the 4-H. Carol was preceded in death by husband Frank; her parents; Robert and Charles; and sister Jean Brown. Carol is survived by children Patricia Anna (Robert) Parks, St. Croix Falls, Robert (Nancy) Neuman, Spooner, and Sue Lundstrom, Shell Lake; grandchildren Jeff (Wendy) Parks, St. Croix Falls, Mike (Jackie) Parks, Dresser, Don (Jessica) Parks, St. Croix Falls, Bob (Amy) Neuman, Dresser, Lori (Mike) Knutson, Rice Lake and Blake Lundstrom of Japan (Air Force); greatgrandchildren Annalise, Kullen, Brooke, Makayla, Michael (Liz), Jayd, Dawson, Claire, Luke, Sydni and Stella; brother Donald (Gayle) Okonek, Myrtle Creek, Ore.; sister-in-law Dorothy Okonek, Spooner; brotherin-law Wayne Brown of Oregon; and many nephews, nieces and cousins. A Mass of Christian Burial was held on Dec. 28 at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Shell Lake with Fr. Andrew Ricci as celebrant. Interment was at the St. Joseph Cemetery in Shell Lake. Casket bearers were Jeff Parks, Mike Parks, Don Parks, Bob Neuman, Mike Knutson and Steve Goulding. Honorary casket bearer was Blake Lundstrom. The Scalzo-Taylor Funeral Home, Spooner, was entrusted with arrangements.
Donald F. Jasperson Donald F. Jasperson of Osceola died Wednesday, Dec. 26, 2007, at Osceola Medical Center at the age of 88. Don was born Oct. 25, 1919, in Luck Township to Clarence and Louise Jasperson. He graduated from Luck High School. He served in the Army Air Force during WWII, receiving the American Theater Campaign Medal, Good Conduct Medal and WWII Victory Medal. On March 21, 1945, he married Adine Demulling in East Farmington. Don worked as a civilian employee of the Air Force for 29 years. Don was a member of the American Legion, enjoyed family, friends, fishing, hunting and get-togethers. Don was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Adine; sister, Delia Jorgensen and brother, Roger Jasperson. He is survived by his children, Lynda (James) Brawner, Carol (Richard) Peterson, Scott (Anne) Jasperson, Ron (Jo) Jasperson, Lana (Nick) Jensen and Dan (Sue) Jasperson; 16 grandchildren and eight greatgrandchildren. Funeral services were held Saturday, Dec. 29, at the Trinity Lutheran Church in Osceola with the Rev. Mark Kock officiating. Music was provided by Nancy Hasselquist. Interment was in the Mt. Hope Cemetery. The Grandstrand Funeral Home, Osceola, was entrusted with arrangements.
Alfred Carl Spaude Alfred Carl Spaude, age 71, a resident of Siren, died on Thursday, Dec. 20, 2007. Services will be held at a later date. A full obituary will follow in a future publication.
Violet M. Wilson Violet M. Wilson, age 87, resident of Stillwater, Minn., died Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2007. She is survived by son, Charlie Wilson; grandchildren, Kristin Wilson and Kim Brockman; sisters, Eleanore Measner, Millie (Wayne), Lundquist, Fuddy (George) Wegang, Helen McKenzie; and brothers, Alvin (Janet) Nielsen and Elmer (LaVonne) Nielsen. Funeral services were held Saturday, Dec. 29, at First Lutheran Church in Cushing, with the Rev. Amy Hessel officiating. Interment is at the Cushing Cemetery. Music was provided by organist, Carol Medchill and soloist, Lori Lundquist. Pallbearers were Duane Callin, Scott Nielsen, Bruce Lundquist, Brian Lundquist, Barry Nielsen and Allen Wegang. The Rowe Funeral Home of Luck was entrusted with funeral arrangements.
Esther L. Hochstetler Esther L. Hochstetler, age 75, resident of the United Pioneer Home in Luck, died Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2007. She was born Oct. 24, 1932. Eleanor was preceded in death by brothers, Jim Olby, Dewain Olby and Robert Olby. She is survived by six children, Catherine Tonnar of Boyceville, Jerry (Sondra) Hochstetler of Guthrie Center, Iowa, Alan (Cathy) Hochstetler of Milltown, Rita (Dale) Frandsen of Frederic, Virgil (Karen) Hochstetler of Ankeny, Iowa and Betty Wiyrick of Spokane, Wash.; 21 grandchildren; 22 great-grandchildren; brother, Earnest Olby of Ashland; three sisters, Evelyn Weigle of Halltown, Mo., Phyllis (Lloyd) Wahl of Maiden Rock and Sharen (Marlin) Fritch of Poplar; sisters-in-law, Margaret Olby and Eleanor Olby; other relatives and friends. Funeral services were held Friday, Dec. 28, 2007, at Bone Lake Lutheran Church in Bone Lake Township, Luck, with the Rev. Mary Ann Bowman officiating. Music was provided by organist, Shirley Lund. Pallbearers were Darek Frandsen, Joe Hochstetler, Jon Hochstetler, Andy Hochstetler, Jason Hochstetler and Wesley Hochstetler. The Rowe Funeral Home of Luck was entrusted with funeral arrangements.
Selma M. Shay Selma M. Shay of Osceola, died Friday, Dec. 21, 2007, at St. Croix Health Center. She was 87 years old. Selma was born April 8, 1920, in Osceola to Elmer and Rose Measner. In 1938, she married Bruce Shay. She was a homemaker and member of Trinity Lutheran Ladies Aid and Understanding Friends. Selma was preceded in death by her husband of 64 years, Bruce; son, Doug Shay; infant great-granddaughter, Andrea McCance; son-in-law, Ardell Fox; and sister, Fern Mullen. She is survived by her children, Nancy (Dennis) Bursch of Somerset, Kathy (Gary) Hauble of Forest Lake, Minn., Peter (Kathy) Shay of Dresser and Rosemary Shay of Roberts; 13 grandchildren; 13 greatgrandchildren; two great-great-grandchildren and many other friends and relatives. Memorial services were held Friday Dec. 28, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Osceola with the the Rev. Mark Kock officiating. Music was provided by Laurie Neumann. Private interment was at Oak Grove Cemetery in Farmington. The Grandstrand Funeral Home, Osceola, was entrusted with arrangements.
George Adams Hardenbergh George Adams Hardenbergh, 89, formerly of St. Paul, Minn., died on Monday, Dec. 24, 2007. He was born March 19, 1918, to George Stone and Victoria (Robertson). George graduated from the California Institute of Technology as an electrical engineer. During WWII he served 4-1/2 years in both the European and Pacific theaters of war. He was married to Dorothy May Jensen formerly of Frederic for nearly 40 years until her death in 1989. George was a pioneer in the early computer days and co-developed items patented for the computer industry. A brief foray into politics resulted in a position as Ramsey County Commissioner from 1967 to 1970. More recently, George donated the Mounds Theatre building property to The Portage of Youth to be renovated into a facility to address the unmet needs of youth and families on St. Paul’s East Side. His hobbies included a lifelong passion for theater organs, computers and collecting things no one else would want. He was preceded in death by parents; wife, Dorothy; and son Ludvig. He is survived by son, Reid (Nancy); daughter, Constance (Joe) Bibeau and grandchildren, Corinne and Adam. A service of remembrance will be held on Thursday, Jan. 3, 2008, from 4 to 7 p.m. at Bradshaw Funeral Home, 4600 Greenhaven Dr., White Bear Lake, MN 55127 and also a time of gathering will be held on Friday, Jan. 4, 2008, from 4 to 7 p.m. at Rowe Funeral Home in Frederic.
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 23
CHURCH NEWS So Deep
My grandmother shared in the ownership of a coal mine in North Dakota in the early 1900s. Actually, their 40 acres sustained two mines: a pit mine and one tunneled into the hillside. The mines held lignite coal of good quality, making their Sally Bair business successful and popular with community homeowners. The dangers of coal mining PERSPECTIVES reached my family twice. While digging coal in the tunneled mine one year, my grandpa was buried to his waist in coal and dust that fell from overhead. The other men freed him, but as a result, he suffered intensely from boils all over his body. The other accident took the life of my great-uncle at the open pit mine. An avalanche of dirt, piled high at one end, buried him as he leaned against it one day during a break. There are other dangers in mining coal—or other ore—from the earth. Flooding of mines, rotten supports that give way, noxious gases and dynamite blasts. Miners know they must work in near-darkness, sometimes alone. But they also know that persistently digging deeper will reward them with the richest ore. Mining the riches of God—his wisdom, love, mercies, joy, peace, and more—is not easy, either. We must spend time alone with God, something that can be hard to do as we are surrounded by noise day in and day out. We must be willing to spend time in the solitude of private prayer. It isn’t necessary to constantly light up our world with artificial light. We must also be willing to work hard instead of taking the easy way out, as we do when we use gadgets to do our work for us. And we must be willing to face the dangers of rejection and scorn by others, often loved ones, who try to undermine our efforts to dig. God has riches that we can’t even imagine, riches he wants us to find. “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!” (Hebrews 11:33) Lord, give us the will and desire to dig deeply and daily for your treasures that we may share them with others. In Jesus’ name, amen. (Mrs. Bair may be reached at sallybair@gmail.com)
ETERNAL
Catholic churches to sponsor mission FREDERIC/GRANTSBURG – A mission will be held at the St. Dominic Church at Frederic and the Immaculate Conception Church at Grantsburg on Jan. 3 to Jan. 8. The mission theme is Breathing Deeply a Very New Year. The morning events will be followed by soup and sandwiches and the evening events will be followed by cookies, bars and refreshments. Monsignor Michael Decker will be the presenter. Msgr. Becker serves as pastor of St. Michael Parish in St. Michael, Pa., and sacramental minister at the University of Pittsburgh. He is also an adjunct professor of homiletics at Washington Theological Union in Washington, D.C. Msgr. Becker has preached retreats around the world including the Missionaries of Charity in India (Mother Theresa's order), Columbia, Peru and Haiti. The teaching schedule is as follows: Praying the Psalms, Our Daily Word to God, Thursday, Jan. 3, with a 10:30 a.m. Mass at IC and will be repeated with a 7 p.m. devotion at SD. Praying the Eucharist, God's Daily Gift to Us, Friday, Jan. 4, with a 10:30 a.m. Mass at SD and will be repeated on Sunday, Jan. 5, with a 7 p.m. devotion at IC. Praying the Sunday Gospel — Learning the Art of Spiritual Reading, Friday, Jan. 4, with a 7 p.m. devotion at IC and repeated on Saturday with a 10:30 a.m. Devotion at SD. Praying Your Daily Life — Everything, Yet Everything Belongs, Monday, Jan. 7, with a 10:30 a.m. devotion at IC and will be repeated with a 7 p.m. Mass at SD. Praying a New Future, Praying a New You, Tuesday, Jan. 8, with a 10:30 a.m. Mass at IC and will be repeated with a 7 p.m. Mass at SD. They welcome you to join them for these very special events. - submitted
confident expectation.” (“…hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Part 3 Holy Spirit who was given to us.” Romans 5:5 In the last verse of that great 13th chapter NASB) What we hope for is what we expect of I Corinthians, the apostle Paul gives us a to happen. When we speak of a “hope of very pointed message about three very imbut only think of heaven as a “long heaven,” portant subjects in Christianity: “And now shot,” it is no wonder we lose our endurance. abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the If you are discouraged and want to quit— greatest of these is love” (I Corinthians especially when things are difficult, you need 13:13 NKJV). How many lessons have we Garret to work on your hope. If you do not have the had about faith, about hope, about love? Derouin right kind of hope, you will not endure. Faith We have defined them and analyzed them. gets us headed in the right direction. Love We have emphasized how important they gets us moving. But, only hope keeps us movare. And, they are indeed fundamental to THE ing when the going gets tough. Christian doctrine and Christian conduct. So, what the apostle Paul wrote to that relPREACHER’S But, if we want to see best how faith and atively new and much tested church at Theshope and love all work together to motisalonica was a commendation: I give thanks vate and sustain our Christian life, then I God for your work defined by your faith, to Thessalonians 1:3 is a verse that provides and your hard labor motivated by your love, great insights. Paul writes to the young and your steadfast endurance inspired by your hope. church at Thessalonica that he is …“constantly Would that commendation be true of us? How is bearing in mind” their “work of faith and labor of your faith in God—does it define what you do each love and steadfastness of hope” (I Thessalonians 1:3 or is your week defined by worldly idols? How week, NASB). Note the way Paul pairs each of the three is your love—does it get you moving in serving your virtues, faith and love and hope, with a practical neLord and others, or is it so weak that you are stuck in cessity of daily Christians living: work and labor neutral? How about your hope—is it a confident exand steadfastness. Let us look at the important conpectation that drives you faithfully through the hard nections between faith and work, love and labor, times, or is it a whimsical wish that lets you falter at and hope and steadfastness. every speed bump? You may need to revitalize your faith, rekindle your Hope and Steadfastness love, and refortify your hope. This is done through a The third connection Paul makes in verse three is study of God’s Word and fellowship with His devoted between hope and steadfastness. The Enhanced If you would like to join in Bible study and followers. Strongs Lexicon tells us that in the New Testament the fellowship with a group of Christians who truly want word “steadfastness” is used to describe “the characthe best for you now and in eternity, then please come teristic of a man who is not swerved from his deliberto one of our Bible study periods or Sunday worship ate purpose and his loyalty to faith and piety by even assemblies. (Part 3 of an article written by Stan Crowthe greatest trials and sufferings.” The result in our Minister) ley, lives in this verse is described as endurance to the end, If readers have questions or simply wish to know even through the most difficult times. more about the Church of Christ, we would like to inNow, what is it that produces that endurance in our vite them to call 715-866-7157 or stop by the church lives? Paul said to the Thessalonians that it is hope. building at 7425 W. Birch St. in Webster. Sunday Bible The word “hope” is surely one of the most misused begins at 9:30 a.m. and worship begins at 10:30 class words in our language today. When we say “hope” a.m. We also meet Wednesday evenings at 7 p.m. Ofwe usually mean “wish.” We say we hope it rains— fice hours are Tuesdays through Fridays, 9 a.m. when there is not a cloud in the sky! noon. “Hope,” at least as the Bible uses the word “hope,”
Faith, love and hope
PEN
is something entirely different. It means a “joyful and
Bethany celebrates birth of Jesus SIREN – Bethany Lutheran Church in Siren held Christmas Eve services Dec. 24 at 4:30 and 9 p.m. Christmas monologues at the manager during the 9 p.m. services were read by L to R: Mike Vasatka, the Shepherd; Dave and Robin Formanek as Joseph and Mary; and Beth Greiff, the Angel. Music included “O Come, All Ye Faithful,” “O Little Town of Bethlehem,” “Hark the Herald Angels Sing,” and “Go Tell it on the Mountain.” A special solo anthem by Mark Foote was “Were You There that Christmas Night” and during the lighting of the candles, Kristen Kosloski played flute while the congregation sang, “Silent Night. The sending carol was “Joy to the World.” Coming Jan. 6, the Silent Messengers return with the Story of Christmas; Sunday worship services are held at 8 and 10:30 a.m. For more information, call 349-5280. – from Bethany Lutheran Church, Siren
PAGE 24 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B- JANUARY 2, 2008
CHURCH NEWS Son’s trip into the wild is key to becoming independent Q: My 16 year old son wants to go on a supervised, three week outing in a nearby national forest. It scares me to think of him being out there somewhere beyond my ability to help him if he got in difficulty. Am I right to turn him down? DR. DOBSON: I'm sure you know that within a couple of years your son will be gone off to college or to some other pursuit, perhaps the military, and he will be entirely beyond your reach. Why not give him a taste of that independence now, while he is still under your care. It will be better for him to ease away from your influence than to have it come to a sudden end. There was a moment during my teen years when my mother and I had a similar debate. I was 16 years old and had been invited to work on a shrimp boat during the summer. The captain and crew were tough dudes who didn't put up with any nonsense. It was a man's world and I was drawn to it. My mother was very reluctant to grant permission because she understood that there could be dangers out there in the Gulf of Mexico for four days. She was about to say no when I said, "How long are you going to keep me as your little boy? I'm growing up and I want to go." With that, she relented. It turned out to be a good experience during which I learned what it is like to work, whether or not I felt like it and I began to understand better how
the adult world works. I came back grimy and tired but feeling very good about myself. My mother later acknowledged that she had done the right thing even though she worried the entire time. Yes, I think you should let your boy go to the wilderness, especially since it is a supervised trip. Dr. James "Letting go" works best as a gradDobson ual process. It's time to get started. ••• Q: Our family lives an exhausting lifestyle we just can't seem to find a way to slow down! It gets depressing at times. Do you have any words of advice for us? DR. DOBSON: Let me share something that may help you and your husband make the tough choices on which a slower lifestyle could depend. Do you remember Vince Foster, who reportedly committed suicide during the early days of the Clinton administration? He was deputy counsel to the president before that tragic night of his death on July 20, 1993. Just eight weeks earlier, Foster had been asked to speak to students graduating from the University of Arkansas School of Law. This is what he told the students on that occasion: "A word about family: You have amply demonstrated that you are achievers willing to work hard,
FOCUS ON THE
FAMILY
long hours and set aside your personal lives. But it reminds me of that observation that no one was ever heard to say on a deathbed, I wish I had spent more time at the office. Balance wisely your professional life and your family life. If you are fortunate to have children, your parents will warn you that your children will grow up and be gone before you know it. I can testify that it is true. God only allows us so many opportunities with our children to read a story, go fishing, play catch and say our prayers together. Try not to miss a one of them." Vince Foster's words now echo back to us from eternity. While you're climbing the ladder of success, don't forget your own family. Those years with your children at home will be gone in a heartbeat. Do whatever is necessary to grab those precious moments, whether it requires changing jobs, getting a smaller house or turning down lucrative and exciting opportunities. Nothing is worth losing your kids. Nothing! ••• Dr. Dobson is founder and chairman of the board of the nonprofit organization Focus on the Family, Colorado Springs, CO 80995 www.family.org. Questions and answers are excerpted from "Solid Answers" and "Bringing Up Boys," both published by Tyndale House.
Brought to you by:
Pilgrim Lutheran Church Frederic
Silent Messengers coming to Siren SIREN - The Silent Messengers are coming to Siren. The Silent Messengers
is a clowning ministry. It is not the traditional comedy that most people associate with clowning, but rather a drama.
Come and see the story of Jesus’ birth presented by The Silent Messengers on Sunday, Jan. 6, at the 8 and 10:30 a.m.
services at Bethany Lutheran Church. submitted
JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 25
PAGE 26 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B- JANUARY 2, 2008
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JANUARY 2, 2008 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B - PAGE 27
Students of the Week GRANTSBURG
FREDERIC
Ryan Wylie has been chosen Frederic Middle School’s student of the week. He is in seventh grade and is the son of Jenny Strenke. He is involved in FFA, soccer, basketball, baseball, wrestling and football. His hobbies include hunting, fishing and spending time outside. He has a great attitude and is always willing to help.
Savanna Pearson has been chosen Frederic High School’s student of the week. She is a senior and the daughter of Lonny and Terri Pearson. She is class treasurer and is involved in forensics, teen court, honors choir, honors band and many other activities. She enjoys playing piano and clarinet. She is always willing to help and does more than what is required. She is pleasant and cooperative and motivated to do well.
Jaxon Jones has been chosen Grantsburg Elementary School’s student of the week. He is in second grade and the son of Brad and Sherri Jones. He is such a fun child to work with. He has a great sense of humor. He works hard at school and is kind to his classmates. His favorite class is gym. Hobbies include tennis and hockey. He plays on the Grantsburg Pirates Hockey team.
Casey Ekholm has been chosen Luck Middle School’s student of the week. He is in sixth grade and the son of Eric and Renette Ekholm. He asks lots of intriguing questions and does well on all of his assignments. He is an excellent student. He has a very positive and cheerful outlook on life. He is involved in safety patrol, basketball and baseball. He enjoys playing Xbox and shooting hoops.
Derek Buck has been chosen Luck High School’s student of the week. He is a sophomore and the son of Reuben and Connie Buck. He is a thoughtful student whose writing has a lot of personality and humor. He is an excellent artist. His projects are always unusual, creative and well crafted. He has a subtle and quiet sense of humor that matches his personality. He is involved in basketball and football. He enjoys listening to music.
Cody Leach has been chosen St. Croix Falls Middle School’s student of the week. He is the son of Mike and Michelle Pederson and Bob and Bev Leach. He enjoys playing legos. He is involved in band, church youth group and cross country. His favorite subject is math. He is a super student, extremely responsible and hardworking. He is always smiling and a great friend to everyone in class.
SIREN
Emily Howe has been chosen Siren Elementary School’s student of the week. She is in fifth grade. Emily is a good student who takes great pride in her work. Her friendly manner and wonderful spirit makes her popular with her classmates.
Annie (Qi Xin) Li has been chosen Siren Middle School’s student of the week. An immigrant from China when in elementary school, she has successfully transitioned into a solid English user. She excels in language arts. She reads fluently, reading as much as the highest achievers in our middle school. Her conduct is noteworthy. She is respectful toward teachers and participates meaningfully in discussiions. Her curiosity about others, American culture and the English language is sincere and important.
Lydia Benge-Briggs has been chosen Grantsburg High School’s student of the week. She is a junior and is the daughter of Steve Briggs and Linda Benge. She is a quick and adaptable learner. She is creative, intelligent, social, friendly and witty. She is involved in volleyball, soccer, choir, swing choir, jazz choir, honors choir, forensics, National Honor Society vice president, class president. Her hobbies include singing, biking and acting.
ST. CROIX FALLS
LUCK
Adrian Spores has been chosen Luck Elementary School’s student of the week. He is the son of Kris and Mark Johnson. He loves to read, play guitar, ride bike and work on the farm. He participated in the Prairie Fire Theatre this fall. He is a hardworking student, who is always smiling.
Taylor Byers has been chosen Grantsburg Middle School’s student of the week. She is in fifth grade and the daughter of Lee Byers and Stephanie Martini. She plays the clarinet in band and her favorite subject is math. She loves to play basketball and rollerblade. She always does her best work in school. She is an excellent role model and is always willing to help out.
Kristina Flandrena has been chosen St. Croix Falls High School’s student of the week. She is a sophomore. She enjoys watching movies and participating in sports. She is a member of SOS, volleyball, gymnastics and student council. She is always willing to help out. She was a huge help with the winter fun day and just an all-around great student.
WEBSTER
Travis Freese has been chosen Siren High School’s student of the week. He is a senior and the son of Ron and Kathy Freese. He is on the B honor roll. He is a fantastic student. He enjoys all of his classes and is always full of energy. He is not only respectful and courteous, but he is also hardworking and reliable. His peers admire him for his optimism, sense of humor and honesty. Underclassmen look up to him as both an athlete and as a good student. He is involved in football, basketball, track and band.
Congratulations students on a job well done!
Tanner Peterson has been chosen Webster Elementary School’s student of the week. He is in kindergarten and the son of Craig and Tracie Peterson. He is a model student. He is always attentive and eager to learn. He gives his best effort on every project. He enjoys math and reading. He likes board games and is always fair. He is kind to all of his classmates.
Darren Deal has been chosen Webster Middle School’s student of the week. He is in seventh grade and the son of Greg Deal and Lisa Schutta. Darren earned A's during the first quarter in all six of his classes. He is a polite young man who works hard and gets along well with everyone. Hobbies include drawing, working on the computer, biking and hiking.
Jack Taylor has been chosen Webster High School’s student of the week. He is a freshman and the son of Pam Brown and Joe Taylor. He has outstanding attendance, a great work ethic and is very respectful. He is class president, involved in the Native American Club, cross country, basketball and track. His hobbies include hunting and running.
UNITY
Dustin Olson has been chosen Unity Elementary School’s student of the week. He is in second grade and the son of Dale and Paula Olson. Dustin is a very hardworking student. He always puts his best effort into his school work and his relationships with his friends. He is kind and helpful to others. He always follows the rules, shows exemplary behavior and has a positive attitude.
Andrea Leis has been chosen Unity High School’s student of the week. She is the daughter of Tom and Karen Leis. She consistently demonstrates an advanced understanding of concepts and principles discussed. She enjoys reading, scrapbooking, music and volunteer work. She plans on attending college and majoring in forensic science after graduation.
PAGE 28 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NORTHERN CURRENTS, SECTION B- JANUARY 2, 2008
JANUARY
THURSDAY/3 Amery
• Lunch with Congressman Dave Obey, 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., at Camelot Dining & Lounge; 1-2 p.m., Con. Obey briefing at city hall.
Frederic
Coming events
Luck
• Polk County American Legion & Auxiliary meeting, at 10:30 a.m.; 12th District at 2 p.m. at DBS Hall.
SUNDAY/6 Dresser/St. Croix
• VFW Post #4186 Ladies Auxiliary All-youcan-eat breakfast at the VFW Hall, 8 a.m.noon.
Osceola
• 500 Card Night at the senior center, 6:30 p.m.
• Earth Arts to Georgia O’Keefe exhibit at Mpls. Institute of Art, 12:30 p.m., 715-483-3150.
Luck
• Snowmobile Safety Course at the school, room 201, 6:30-8:30 p.m. For info call 715-4722041 ext. 41.
Siren
• Silent Messengers Ministry at Bethany Lutheran Church, 8 & 10:30 a.m., 715-3495280.
St. Croix Falls
MONDAY/7
• Exercise by YMCA, 10-11 a.m.; Skipbo, 1112 a.m.; crafts, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. and 500 cards, 6:30 p.m.-9:30 p.m., at the senior center.
Frederic
• Spades played at the senior center, 1:30 p.m.
Siren
St. Croix Falls
• Congressman Obey briefing at the government center, 3-4 p.m. • Marine Corps League, for any current or former member of the U.S. Marine Corps or FMF corpsmen, 7 p.m., at Little Mexico.
• Art Group, 9:30 a.m.-noon, at the senior center.
FRIDAY/4
TUESDAY/8
Siren
• Auditions for spring musical at the high school, 4-7:30 p.m.
Amery
Amery
• A Photography Exhibit by Nathaniel Schlecht at The Northern Lakes Center for the Arts, 7:30 p.m., 715-258-6811.
• 500 card party, 6:45 p.m., at the senior center. • Swedish Club meets, 7 p.m., at Our Saviors Lutheran Church.
Frederic
St. Croix Falls
• Pokeno played at the senior center, 1 p.m.
• Exercise by YMCA, 10-11 a.m.; Skipbo, 11 a.m.-noon; 500 cards & Dominos, 12:30-4 p.m., at the senior center.
St. Croix Falls
• Bingo 1-3 p.m., at the senior center.
WEDNESDAY/9
SATURDAY/5
Frederic
Frederic
• Share-A-Lunch & celebrate the birthdays of the month at the senior center.
• Pokeno played at the senior center, 1 p.m.
Waiting to be rescued and restored in the new year is this old truck sitting along Hwy. 35 at Luck. - Photo by Gary King
Rice Lake
• Farm records systems and training at
Siren Junior and Senior High School Winter Program
The senior high school band has quite a depth in their clarinet section, with Myia Schroeder and Jessica Tills on clarinet and Breanna Barr and Kelley Wampfler on bass clarinet, as part of the 12-piece clarinet section. LEFT - Senior Adam Daniels performs the solo in the song “Celtic Christmas” sung by the senior high choir as part of the Junior and Senior High School Winter Program.
Emily Muus was one of the soloists during the swing choir’s “Santa Baby” performance. Shown in the the background are Sarah Howe, Amber Guevara, Courtney Daniels and Alysha Alden. – Photos submitted
LEFT - Jessica Talbert, a seventh-grader, played her clarinet during the junior high band performance. The band played two individual pieces in addition to the combined piece with the senior high.
The Siren Junior and Senior High School bands played “Sleighs, Horses, and Bells” in a combined effort under the direction of Bryn Anderson, band director.