2011 Moments

2011 moments

As published in the Inter-County Leader and Washburn County Register

Copyright 2012 Inter-County Cooperative Publishing Association, Frederic, Wis.

A look back in photos Rough weather made for tough going in a catamaran race on Shell Lake in August. - Photo by Larry Samson, Washburn County Register

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HOWDY, NEIGHBOR! Allie Olander, 2, was delighted to meet and play with her soon-to-be neighbor, Norman Springett, who with his mom and brothers attended the groundbreaking service of the Olander Habitat for Humanity home in Amery in May. - Photo by Jackie Thorwick

ASSURANCE OF SPRING Highs in the low 50s and lows near freezing created spring anxiety in late April but scenes like this assured us that spring was really on its way in northwest Wisconsin. - Photo by John Reed

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FAREWELL A Frederic graduate gives a tearful hug following the graduation of the Frederic High School Class of 2011. - Photo by Sandra King

LOUD BOYS It wasn’t a marching band or the screeching of a fire engine that made this young parade-goer hold his ears but rather the antics of the shotgun-wielding Wild River Boys, who made some noise during the annual Family Days parade in Frederic in June. - Photo by Gary King

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STORMING THE CASTLE Several kids made a valiant attempt at climbing the walls of the Luck WInter Carnival castle in February - Photo by Greg Marsten

FISH KISS Scratch it off their bucket lists - Kathy Goneau and Deb Talmadge enjoyed the Bon Ton ice-fishing contest at Little Butternut Lake in Luck in February.

- Photo by Greg Marsten

CHILLING EVIDENCE Rick Davidsavor, the local expert at retrieving submerged vehicles, carefully peers into the icy waters of Balsam Lake to view a Chevrolet Tahoe that broke through the ice on the Balsam Lake Narrows, proving the dangers of driving on ice in mid-March. - Photo submitted

STANDING TALL Paul Rightman of Siren is proud of his father as he stands tall at the rally held at Spooner in February for the returning National Guard 950th Clearance Company. - Photo by Larry Samson

TRIBUTE Wayne Shirley listens as Sarah McCurdy of the Polk County Land Information Department gives him glowing praise for his help in numerous areas of local government during a special retirement party held for Shirley in April.- Photo by Greg Marsten

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TIME TO LEAVE Little Elisa made her way across the floor of the dance pavillion at the Polk County Fair as her grandmother, Kathy Brihn, follows. - Photo by Greg ENDLESS SUMMER Tommy Swenson, 13, got a few runs in as the sun set over the Siren Skate Park in August. - Photo by Greg Marsten

FROG FURNITURE This little guy peeked out from an umbrella base on the deck of a Polk County home during a hot day in August. Photo by Marty Seeger FAIR FRIENDS Wayne and Vicky Fredrickson of New Richmond took a break at the Polk County Fair in July, recalling 53 years of visiting the county fair as a couple. - Photo by Greg Marsten

See all 10 pages of “2011 Moments” in this week’s e-edition @ www.the-leader.net

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Grantsburg used stingy defense and outrebounded Blair-Taylor during a thrilling victory late in the fourth quarter. Pirates David Ohnstad, (far left) Brent Myers (center) and Seth Coy grapple for a rebound early in the game. – Photos by John Reed

The corn pile was a huge success at the dairy breakfast. During clean up the Unity FFA members took their turns trying to bury Kaina Zygowicz up to her neck in corn! During the event youths could try to find hidden items in the corn pile that were good in exchange for door prizes.

A full moon finds its way above the trees on Sunday, April 17, glowing behind a thin veil of clouds. - Photo by Marty Seeger

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These barred owl babies hatched just over two weeks ago. This photo was obtained by a camera on a tripod, duct taped to a pole near the nest box. These babies will be branching in a couple of weeks. - Photo by Sue Herwig

Patrick Pfannes holds an umbrella for Durand Blanding during Blanding’s playing of taps at a Memorial Day service held at the St. Croix Falls cemetery during rainy and windy weather.

“He was my aide-de-camp,” said Blanding, whose rendition of the tribute to fallen soldiers rang true under imperfect conditions. More photos of Memorial Day programs in Currents. Photo by Gary King

The Class of 2011 prepared for their final class picture in different ways, with different ways to kill time. – Photos by Greg Marsten

A field of snow reflects afternoon sun in this Burnett County scene. More hours of sunlight each day reminds us the days of winter are numbered. - Photo by Gary King

Bill Erickson showed his Packer pride during the swimsuit competition portion of the Mr. Mid-Winter Sports Day pageant held at the Rendezvous event center in Grantsburg on Feb. 19.

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Creating fun during the long winter months in northwestern Wisconsin sometimes takes a little creativity. These youngsters were enjoying themselves with tours around the Clam Falls Flowage on Sunday, Feb. 20, as part of the South Fork Sporting Club’s annual ice fishing contest. - Photo by Gary King

A DNR pilot took this photo of downed trees in the Johnson Lake area of Burnett County thee day after the July 1 storm, which toppled trees across 130,000 acres in Burnett County.

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This fisher has been a daily visitor at the Brooke Biedinger residence near the Clam Falls area. – Photo by Brooke Biedinger

Pirate fans of all ages traveled to Madison last week to watch their Pirates during the state finals at the Kohl Center.

Spring flowers are caught between two seasons these days as the region fluctuates between winter and spring. Another snowfall arrived late Tuesday evening, April 19, and light snow fell through much of the morning, April 20. - Photo by John Reed

Pro wrestler Mitch Paradise flipped a pseudo fan from the crowd who challenged him to a bout during the January Judgment Day event at Grantsburg High School on Jan. 15.

The money raised during the FFA and FCCLA's Penny Wars was donated to the Muscular Dystrophy Association. The freshman class raised the most money and got to select which faculty member would have the privilege of kissing a calf. That honor went to librarian and freshmen class adviser Lori Nelson.

Students were also able to purchase coupons permitting them to wear hats in class and the money raised from this student council fundraiser was donated to the American Cancer Society.

A couple makes a rubbing of a loved one’s name at the Moving Wall, a replica of the Vietnam Memorial which came to the Northern Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Cemetery near Spooner in August.

A glance back at a few of the more memorable images of 2011 by the Register’s award-winning photographer Larry Samson Bear cubs act out some brotherly love in April.

The two-man crew of this catamaran was tossed into the water on Shell Lake during a race in August.

2011 moments Previously unpublished

Five minutes before the July 1 storm hit, Zach Christianson snapped this photo, looking out over Devils Lake north of Webster. The photo is one of the more dramatic ones of the wall cloud that appeared within minutes over Northwest Wisconsin early that evening.

It was published on Facebook, but this is the first time it has appeared in the Leader. - Special photo

With the flick of a switch, a rural Lewis home exploded on a Friday evening in September, coming down on 71-year-old Roger Wolfgram, who lived to celebrate his 72nd birthday the following Wednesday from a hospital bed at Regions Hospital in St. Paul. Frederic Fire Chief Brian Daeffler released more photos he and another firefighter took of the aftermath and the search and rescue effort by Frederic firefighters. Wolfgram sustained burns to his hands, face, neck and back as well as a fractured hip in the explosion. He was in the basement when he tested a breaker switch while trying to get the furnace started. A spark apparently ignited gas and the entire home came down on Wolfgram, burying him under 4 feet of rubble. After hearing voices, Wolfgram was able to call for help and firefighters heard him - but just barely - and pinpointed his location. “He was lucky to survive,� Daeffler noted. - Special photos