Neighbors-1201 January 2012

Neighbors Stories of interest from your community!

CARROTS FROM THE HEARTLAND! SLICERS & GIANT DICERS Paul Miller Farms, Hancock

January 2012 Vol. 2, Issue 1

THIS ISSUE Ornamental Iron 4-H Poultry Delivery WI Veterans Museum

Neighbors Table of Contents January 2012, Vol. 2, Issue 1

Paul Miller Farms’ giant carrots are so huge, they are almost impossible to remove by hand!

FEATURE ARTICLES 8 Carrots from the Heartland Paul Miller Farms specializes in giant carrots for diced processing.

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Together Thoughts from Jim Faivre, Neighbors’ publisher.

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Ornamental Iron Jake Carriveau of Bull Welding, Waupaca, is an extraordinary welder creating artistic masterpieces in iron.

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Special Delivery Jessica Magdanz of Pine River, WI delivers her Waupaca County Fair 4-H poultry to Jim Faivre.

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COLUMNS

Grounded Ruth Johnson, Neighbors’ Editor, reflects on daily life.

Day Trips-Paper to Iron Wisconsin Veterans Museum reveals unique exhibits showing our state’s Civil War participation.

Neighbors-January 2012

“Overall, that is why we purchase vehicles from Scaffidi Motors. Their team always works hard to find the vehicle that fits our needs. From a pricing standpoint, they are very competitive,” states T.J. Kennedy, Heartland Farms.

LEFT TO RIGHT: Rich Dunn, Joe Ebben (Scaffidi Trucks), T.J. Kennedy, Kathy Staack (Scaffidi Motors), Carl Phillips & Wes Meddaugh with some of Heartland Farm’s trucks from Scaffidi.

Stevens Point, WI (888) 414-4629 Tomahawk, WI (866) 978-1347

Together New experiences every month! I never dreamt being a publisher would be this much fun and so rewarding.

Neighbors magazine has shown me so much more about the lives of all our friends and residents of Central Wisconsin.

Growing up and working on our family farm, I helped produce corn and soybeans. Over the years, I accumulated knowledge regarding many different crops.

However, I discovered that there was a whole lot more I did not know by reading each Neighbors article right along with the rest of you.

Our carrot story this issue is a perfect example. I never realized Wisconsin ranks second in the nation in carrot production but I did know that Paul Miller Farms is Wisconsin’s second largest carrot producer!

The Neighbors 2012 editorial lineup is even better than 2011 so I hope you stay with us for the ride and join us as we enter the New Year! Thank you for all your thoughts and comments!

Above: Although I have seen Paul Miller Farms’ mammoth carrots many times, I am always amazed at how big AND tasty they really are. Bottom: While it might look like I just went for a ride in the bucket of that skid steer, that would be incorrect! I was merely helping Dan Magdanz exit the vehicle. Dan and his daughter, Jessica Magdanz were delivering the poultry I bought from her at the Waupaca County Fair FFA Market Animal Auction.

Happy trails and blue skies for all!

Jim Faivre Publisher, Neighbors

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www.unitedfcs.com

Neighbors

Grounded

EDITOR, PHOTOGRAPHER, DESIGN & PRODUCTION CIRCULATION & WEB MANAGEMENT Ruth Johnson

journey@journeywi.com 715-347-3755 www.journeywi.com

Mayan 2012 calendar predictions have invaded much My fish are one of my daily delights.

I completely redesign their tank every couple of months.

of the mainstream media, emphasizing destruction, doom and gloom.

As a child growing up in the 60’s, I cannot tell you the number of times people said the world would end, particularly during the atomic bomb/ Cold War era.

Today, claims abound that natural catastrophes are worse than ever before.

Yet in 1812, the Midwest experienced an earthquake so strong, it uplifted the Mississippi river bed, temporarily reversing the flow of the river, making it appear to run upstream.

Political unrest is also at the news forefront. As a nation, we have withstood many changes throughout our history. I believe we persevered, then and now, because the majority of Americans cherish the freedoms so many fought and died to defend.

This last year, Neighbors magazine helped me fulfill one of my life goals – to make a positive difference in people’s lives, which was reinforced to me through comments from readers and the people featured in our articles.

Perhaps that is the key to happiness – doing something, anything, no matter how small it seems, that helps someone else weather this storm we call life.

Thank you for reading Neighbors in 2011 and we look forward to bringing you interesting stories throughout 2012!

Warm regards,

Ruth Johnson Editor, Neighbors Magazine Page 6

Neighbors-January 2012

Old World Charm Taste beyond compare!

At family owned Ski’s, quality knows no bounds and you receive only the freshest, finest meats, seafood, 100+ Wisconsin cheeses, Boar’s Head deli products and other treats. Ski’s is an experience, not just shopping. When you walk into Ski’s, you know you are somewhere very special.

Savor Ski’s famously delicious homemade brats and sausages and the most tender beef, pork and chicken, cut by our expert butchers. In-season seafood refreshed daily – from salmon, halibut and cod to crab legs and lobster!

We offer Wisconsin’s finest artisan and master cheese makers with ‘squeaky fresh’ cheese curds on Friday and Saturday. Visit us soon for your good, old-fashioned, neighborly meat market experience!

NEW WAUSAU FRANCHISE LOCATION OPEN: Visit 4516 Rib Mountain Dr, Marathon, WI or Contact franchise owner, Craig Wolf, phone (715) 870-2136 or email wausauskis@gmail.com.

5370 US Highway 10 E Stevens Point, WI 54482

(715) 344-8484 www.skismeatmarket.com Mon-Fri: 10am–6pm Sat: 9am–6pm Sun: 10am–4pm

CARROTS FROM THE HEARTLAND! SLICERS & GIANT DICERS Paul Miller Farms, Hancock Article & Photos by Ruth Johnson, Editor

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Taproot. That is what you call the orange, fleshy part of the carrot, which is what most people eat. However, the average person will never see the unusual kind of huge taproots that Paul Miller Farms of Hancock, produces.

Grown for Wisconsin commercial processors, Birdseye Foods and Seneca Foods, these giant carrots, which can grow up to ten pounds each (normally 3-4 pounds), are perfect for transforming into uniform dicing carrots.

Once diced, these unusual carrots are canned or frozen and sold to wholesale grocer operations, restaurants, or other institutional use.

TEAM MILLER Paul Miller, Paul Miller Farm’s owner/operator, works closely with his son Todd, daughter Michelle, grandsons Jordan and Ian and the remainder of his team to grow these giant carrots and other vegetables on their vast, 2,700-acre vegetable farm.

(Continued on Page 10) Opposite Page: Paul Miller and his grandson, Jordan, display some of their giant dicing carrots. Both Photos This Page: Carrot harvesters’ tines dig between the rows, lifting up greenery and attached taproots. As they journey upward, taproots hang down between channels. The greenery is removed as the taproots continue up the conveyors and into the waiting dump cart. The carrot harvest window is tight and bumps up against the first frost so the farm races to get the carrots out of the ground.

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Todd performs farming duties, supervises seed cutting, manages Gramma Miller’s Farm Market, (their fresh produce and flower retail outlet), sells for their anhydrous ammonia operation and runs the parts department for their ASA-LIFT vegetable harvester dealership.

As Office Manager, Michelle handles administrative, marketing, plant and seed ordering, bookkeeping and other financial needs for all their entire company and all of its diversified interests.

Jordan helps with the all the overall farm responsibilities and is responsible for operating one of the carrot harvesters. Paul’s grandson Ian also assists.

According to founder Paul Miller, “My kids and their kids have worked together since they were very small to help build this operation into the successful organization that it is today. While sometimes challenging, there is nothing more rewarding and bonding for a family than knowing that everyone’s efforts have contributed significantly.”

(Continued on Page 11) Top: Shot from underneath the carrot harvester, this photo show how the giant taproots are suspended between tracks as they move up the conveyors, where they will soon be separated from their green foliage. Left: Paul Miller’s family members from left: grandson Jordan, daughter Michelle, son Todd and Paul Miller, all of whom are actively involved in the operation.

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A NATURAL CHOICE With 1,000 acres of carrots, Paul Miller Farms is Wisconsin’s second largest carrot producer, growing not just the giant dicers but also one other kind of large (not giant) carrot appropriate for cutting into nice, round slices.

In addition to both varieties of carrots, Paul grows 350 acres of potatoes for McCain Foods. The balance of his 2,700 acres varies based on crop rotation needs and is divided between sweet corn, snap beans, peas and other produce for food processor companies.

ALL ABOUT CARROTS Originally native to the Middle East, particularly Afghanistan, carrots are believed to be domesticated from Queen Anne's Lace, a weed. Cultivated by the Greeks and Romans, early carrots were branched and primarily purple unlike today’s orange, single root varieties.

(Continued on Page 12) Top: This photo from a few years ago captures Michelle’s children, Jordan, Austin and Mackenzie sitting on an immense pile of giant carrots. Middle: Shot from another angle, you can see the conveyor attached to the dump cart.

Bottom: The dump cart delivers its load to the waiting semi, evenly distributing the load from one end of the semi to the other.

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EARLY CLAIMS The ancient Greeks highly esteemed carrots’ medicinal value and reportedly used them to help cure ailments from marriage problems to snake bites.

Carrots do indeed have high nutritional and medical value but so far, no solid proof exists that they help marital bliss.

Carrots reached England in the fifteenth century.

Elizabethans not only ate them as a food source, but also used the plant’s feathery tops as hat decorations.

Early American colonists planted carrots in Jamestown, Virginia in 1609.

PRODUCTION STATS According to USDA 2010 statistics, Washington is top carrot producing state with 27 percent of production. Wisconsin ranks sixth with about 17 percent of production.

(Continued on Page 13) Top: Gramma Miller’s Farm Market offers fresh produce and fruits, baked goods, honey and maple syrup products, meat and poultry, beverages and more! Left: Paul Miller shares his love of NASCAR with grandson, Jordan, who serves with him on the Fuel Crew for the Sunoco Oil Company racing team.

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RENAISSANCE MAN Paul is a strong family man as well as a true entrepreneur committed to his business, yet he still carves out time for his favorite hobbies, NASCAR and basketball.

During NASCAR season, Paul and Jordan both serve on the Fuel Crew for the Sunoco Oil Company racing team.

Additionally, 40 years ago, after prodding from Butch Leitl, former UW-Platteville football coach, Paul became an official Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletics Association (WIAA) basketball referee.

Presently, Miller referees for junior varsity, freshmen and elementary teams at two local schools in Waushara County.

As a graduate of UW-Platteville in Tech Ag Engineering, Paul is a strong supporter of the University of Wisconsin system and is involved in many alumni activities. Like his giant carrots, Paul definitely stands out as a true achiever!

Top: Paul Miller Farms posts their production stats on a colorful sign near their farm. Right: Piles of carrots wait for transporting to one of the farm’s processor clients. Bottom: This is another early photo of Michelle’s children with the farm’s giant carrots.

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ORNAMENTAL IRON MASTERPIECES JAKE CARRIVEAU ARTIST EXTRAORDINAIRE Bull Welding, Waupaca

by Ruth Johnson, Editor

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Like a phoenix, a work of art rises from the intense heat and incandescent sparks of Jake Carriveau’s arc welder.

Jake, owner of Bull Welding in Waupaca, started working on area farms while he was still in high school.

During this time, he learned to weld and not only enjoyed it but also discovered he was quite good at it and made it his life’s passion.

Celebrating his eighteenth year of welding, his work runs the gamut from farm projects to manufacturing piecework to ornamental iron welding encompassing handrails, fences, staircases, stainless steel pipe weldments, construction attachments, pipe supports, prototypes and more.

(Continued on Page 16) Opposite Page: Jake uses ‘arc welding’ to essentially melt substances together at white-hot temperatures to form a bond. Top: Jake designed this ornamental railing and welded into a functional piece of art. Bottom: Jake waits for the spot he just welded, to cool. If you have ever seen an electrical short, you never forget the zapping sound, puff of smoke and burnt metal smell that usually follows. That is what a welder does, but in a controlled manner.

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The day I interviewed him, Jake had 2600 parts he was pushing to complete for a manufacturer, who needed them by the end of the week.

“Piecework involving hundreds of parts,” explains Jake, “can be costly because if you misquote even a little thing like a deburring step, you multiply the time it takes by the quantity and soon, you made a thousand dollar mistake.”

BEST-KEPT SECRET Garnering the bulk of his work through word of mouth spread by satisfied customers, these same patrons who spring primarily from the farming and manufacturing sectors, would be surprised to learn that 30-40% of Jake’s work is now in ornamental iron.

(Continued on Page 17) Top: Jake’s stairway rails, with their crisscross design and jutting angle, are subtly elegant and uniquely classy. Left: Jake is currently fabricating these decorative accent pieces for a kitchen cabinet topped by a granite countertop. His customers sometimes provide the direction for his designs based on something they have seen elsewhere but most of the time, they are Jake’s own original artistic interpretations.

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“Designing ornamental works is more difficult than machinery projects,” states Jake, “but the weld is less complex since unlike machinery, they are not under constant stress, nor do they need to meet as stringent specs.”

The biggest hazard Jake and other welders constantly face is flash burn.

Flash burn occurs when the arc welder’s very bright ultraviolet light surge hits the eye, painfully inflaming the cornea. “It feels like you have blisters on the back of your eyes for up to two days,” Jake reveals. It is sometimes called ‘welder’s flash’ or ‘arc eye’.

(Continued on Page 18) Top: A recent stairway railing creation by Jake is strikingly fanciful and incorporates log corners and multiple piecework leaves. Right: Jake opens his all-important safety visor to inspect the weld he made, which must be clean and strong in order to maintain integrity throughout the age of the piece. The railing he is working on is another crisscross design similar to the one shown on Page 16.

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BORN TO WELD While Jake did not receive any formal training, he studied what other people did and developed his natural aptitude for even, smooth welding on his own.

If you can imagine it, Jake can pretty much create it!

“I put quality into everything I do and the reward I get is when I show a client their finished piece and they tell me how much they like it,” exclaims Jake. “I marvel at what I made from a simple piece of steel and I can’t wait until the next project.”

Top: Surprisingly, Jake says his spiral staircases, like the one above, are simpler to create than curved ones because they involve precise measurements and are easier to keep within building codes. Left: This photo shows a close-up of the elaborately sophisticated flowers Jake created for the railing shown on page 15.

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NO JOB TOO BIG OR TOO SMALL! SATISFYING PAVING NEEDS ACROSS CENTRAL WISCONSIN    

Residential Agricultural Commercial EVEN Railroads!

B&B Paving Co., owned by Jim & Marilyn Benjamin, earns many new customers via current customer referrals.

Our work stands the test of time and the heaviest loads, whether they are simply pedestrians or fully loaded semis and trains! “We get the job done right the first time, every time!”

EXCEPTIONAL PERFORMANCE, REASONABLE RATES & FREE ESTIMATES!  SITE PREPARATION  ASPHALT PAVING  PARKING LOT, DRIVEWAY, PATIO & WALKWAY PAVING  ON-SITE PULVERIZING  PAVEMENT REMOVAL & RECYCLING (We can even recycle your existing driveway in place.)  ASPHALT REPAIR

James & Marilyn Benjamin 6817 Johnnies Lane Stevens Point, WI 54482

(715) 592-4775

SPECIAL DELIVERY! 4-H POULTRY Jessica Magdanz, Pine River Photos & Article by Ruth Johnson, Editor

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A Strong supporter of county fairs, FFA and 4-H groups and especially, county fairs’ 4-H market animal auctions, Jim Faivre purchases market animals annually at the county fairs.

The Waupaca County Fair is a perfect example.

At the 2011 auction, Jim Faivre won the bid on the roasting chickens shown by Jessica Magdanz, daughter of Daniel and Medora Magdanz, Pine River.

He also purchased the Reserve Champion Dairy Steer, owned by Morgan Eilers, daughter of Jen Erb (Waupaca High School Agriculture Instructor/FFA Advisor), at the Waupaca County Fair (shown above).

Jessica and her brother, Payton, both participated in the Waupaca County Fair 4-H Market Animal Auction for three years, showing poultry and pigs in 2011.

Opposite Page: Jessica Magdanz and her father, Daniel Magdanz, delivered the 4-H poultry Jessica entered in the Waupaca County Fair Market Animal Auction. Above: Morgan Eilers with her Reserve Champion Dairy Steer at the Waupaca County Fair. Right: Like most country folk, Jessica loves to climb aboard John Deere tractors, possibly dreaming of owning her own tractor.

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Uniquely Wisconsin Grip of Winter

By Pete Sanderson, MD, MBA

Winter’s cold hand tightly grips Wisconsin during February and often into March.

Nights often have very little cloud cover allowing the temperatures to plummet during early morning hours.

Cold temperatures may not be fit for man nor beast, but they can create true beauty on the landscape, icing the land and water surfaces. I treasure these times because often, I have been able to capture the most glorious photos in unbelievably frigid weather.

(Continued on Page 23) Above: A beautiful sunrise graces a farm between Nelsonville and Amherst, WI. The morning was bitterly cold and it was a real challenge to set up my camera to obtain this image. Most sane people would have been safe and warm at home but whoever said landscape photographers are sane? Even though a solitary horse was very interested in my activities, he only barely peeked out of his stall. He must have wanted to keep warm. Left: In the Buena Vista south of Plover, a drainage canal maintained high humidity in its vicinity. Plunging morning temperatures allowed the moisture to form hoar frost on the foliage. The frost is only fleeting, as the rising sun will soon erase it. The structure in the canal is used to control water levels. Right: High above, a setting moon has kept watch over farm buildings all night. The sun is behind me not quite above the horizon causing a very visible"Belt of Venus� on the horizon to the West. The dark band just above the horizon is the Earth’s shadow cast by the rising sun.

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The seasonal appeal of winter landscapes is not just a stark white expanse of snow. Hues include blues and grays; brown exposed bark tones of shrubs and trees stripped of foliage; golden sunshine rays and purple/pink tone sunsets.

To capture the best water images during winter, find locations with open water. When morning temperatures are very low, frost covers the landscape providing a fairytale like scene.

Wildlife also congregates around these areas.

Please feel free to email comments or alert me to areas you consider “Uniquely Wisconsin.”

Peter A Sanderson pete.sanderson@ministryhealth.org For more images, visit my blog, http://mdleader.wordpress.com Above: This is the Wisconsin River in the Village of Whiting along Tommy’s Turnpike.

When the mornings are very cold, I often take a detour and take this road to work.

Cold mornings and open water are a great recipe for hoar frost. Left: Tommy’s Turnpike passes over the Plover River as it flows into the Wisconsin River. Over the years, a small flock of swans made this area their year-round home. You can often see them feeding during the winter at the mouth of the Plover River. Right: Adams Lake is a small kettle lake between Plover and Amherst. Several years ago, light snowfall early in the season kept the cattails relatively intact. A light snowfall several days previously covered much of the lake except where ice fishermen drove off and on the ice. Reflected early morning light off the ice gave a nice accent to the cattails in the foreground.

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January Featured Print

Buza Barn Stockton, Portage County, WI Imagine having your own Pete Sanderson Limited Edition print!

Renowned landscape photographer, Pete Sanderson, offers prints from his many faceted collections, which he believes epitomize the unique beauty of Wisconsin. No program enrollment is required.

Pete Sanderson will personally print and sign each 11�x14� pigmented ink jet print on cotton paper.

FOR PRICES OR TO ORDER, CALL OR VISIT Koerten's Fine Framing & Gifts, 2501 Church St, Stevens Point (715) 341-7773 Pete Sanderson

Prints are available for pickup at Koerten's Fine Framing & Gifts or can be mailed for additional $10.00 to cover shipping and handling.

Pete Sanderson

Other Pete Sanderson Images at Koerten’s Fine Framing & Gifts

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Neighbors-June 2011

Day Trips

By Heather Kizewski & Ann Marie Worzalla

Inspired by an authentic passion for travel, we share unique adventures accomplished in one day; no overnight bags required.

PAPER TO IRON

We are sisters-in-law from Stevens Point and Amherst. Our families are involved in potato farming, so we are firmly entrenched in Central Wisconsin.

Our Day Trip to Wisconsin Veterans Museum took place on a cold, drizzly early December Saturday.

For over eight years, we have ventured forth together searching for unique destinations.

I originally learned of the museum when serving as a chaperon for my daughters’ fourth grade class to the Capitol two years ago.

Although I enjoyed the visit with enthusiastic fourth graders, I knew someday I would want to return under less hectic circumstances.

The museum is adjacent to Madison’s Wisconsin State Capitol building.

It is amazing how far you do not have to go to experience the moments we so often seek in faraway lands.

We hope to spark your wheels into motion. You are only a ‘day trip’ away!

Above: Sisters-in-law, Heather Kizewski (Left) & Ann Marie Worzalla (Right).

Some of the other featured highlights include an expressive snow-covered scene from The Battle of the Bulge during WWII, a jungle scene representing the Vietnam War years and numerous paraphernalia from the ground and air phases of Operation Desert Storm.

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Dedicated to our state’s citizen soldiers, the museum’s historic exhibitions, displays, artifacts and memorabilia, reflect many decades of service with items ranging from flags Wisconsin’s and Civil War regiments carried in battle to the equipment used by Wisconsin’s military personnel in Afghanistan and Iraq war efforts.

Top Left: Wisconsin Veterans Museum’s From Paper to Iron exhibit offers reams of documents and artifacts. Below Right: This scene from the Battle of Antietam display depicts the bloodiest single-day battle in American history.

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INITIAL ASSUMPTIONS With 2011 marking the 70th anniversary of Pearl Harbor, I assumed the museum’s focal points would entail mostly Pearl Harbor, Hiroshima and Nagasaki exhibits, memorabilia, facts and perhaps include an elaborate timeline of WWII. What I did not realize is that 2011 also marks the 150th Anniversary of the Civil War, which took precedence over Pearl Harbor in terms of exhibits.

I felt somewhat disappointed. The Civil War was not something in which I ever had any great interest.

Quite truthfully, I yawned my way through it in school.

DISCOVERY

UPON ENTERING

After reading the introduction to the exhibit, my initial disappointment evaporated. I could not wait to read more.

The first thing I noticed was the soft patriotic music playing throughout our visit.

There was a calming softness to the air, making it easy to clear space in our minds to take in all we were about to learn.

Among the first to arrive, we appreciated the quiet time and space to thoroughly walk/read through the exhibits.

By the time we left, the museum filled with people from all walks of life: young couples, college students, families with pre-teens, elderly persons, Boy Scout troops and more.

Ann Marie soon flagged me down to read about the Battle of Antietam, a display that immensely intrigued her.

Little did I know this museum would become another quest – similar to other quests (like the Peshtigo Fire, for example), where I would not be able to stop reading or talking about it.

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The exhibits are very comprehensive and summarize major events and turning points.

The very first exhibit to catch my eye was called From Paper to Iron: Wisconsin Joins the Civil War, which continues throughout September 30, 2012.

Top Left: The Wisconsin Veterans Museum is situated across from the State Capitol building and on the Badger Trolley bus line. Top Right: This is a photo of the display, which introduces the From Paper to Iron exhibit.

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Just four days after Confederates fired on Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861, Governor Randall signed a declaration of war that pledged Wisconsin’s undying support to protect and preserve the Union (known as the United States of America).”

His promise to defend the Union soon became manifest on the battlefield. Within eighteen months, the raw Wisconsin recruits that marched to war wearing an unlikely mixture of gray uniforms and hand-me-downs soon established themselves as one of the Unions’ most effective fighting forces.

Shaped by adversity and forged in battle, Wisconsin’s farmers, laborer’s, tradesmen, and merchants – entrusted with defeating Confederate forces - became like iron. This exhibit tells their story; From Paper to Iron.”

BATTLE OF ANTIETAM

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WISCONSIN JOINS THE CIVIL WAR From Paper to Iron takes you through Wisconsin’s involvement in the Civil War from the beginning to end. I chose this as a highlight of this story because it significantly piqued my interest.

The exhibit’s explanation reads, “Wisconsin’s entry into the Civil War began with Governor Alexander Randall’s signature on a single piece of paper.

Throughout the museum, various scenes of life-size figures and painted murals realistically portray events from the various wars in which Wisconsin veterans participated.

The scene portraying the Battle of Antietam was by far the most memorable. Ann Marie could hardly step away.

Not only was it interesting to read about, but it also played a major role in determining the entire outcome of the war.

SIGNIFICANCE The Battle of Antietam was the bloodiest single-day battle in American history.

It took place at the break of dawn on September 17, 1862 in Sharpsburg, Maryland near Antietam Creek.

With 23,000 casualties, it was the first major battle to occur on northern soil.

While considered a draw from a military point of view, Abraham Lincoln and the Union claimed victory.

(Continued on Page 31) Top: Wisconsin soldiers from the Iron Brigade, like the one pictured here, became one of the most feared fighting forces in the Union Army.

Bottom: This diorama reflects the many wars in which Wisconsin patriots have defended their state and nation.

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Once a fight to either save the Union, or, gain Southern independence, the outcome of the war would now affect the future of slavery as well.

MEMORABLE MEMORABILIA Early on, a tattered copy of Uncle Tom’s Cabin written by Harriet Beecher Stowe caught my eye.

Later, I noticed an old snare drum with pencil inscriptions, a liquor chest purchased in 1862, and a six-pound artillery shell – all of which had very interesting stories.

Ann Marie was especially interested in reading about Old Abe (The Civil War Mascot) as well as the Brotherhood of Freemasonry.

We both agreed as to how fast the time went since several hours felt like minutes.

TUTTO PASTA TRATTORIA BAR & CAFÉ In Italian, the word ‘trattoria’ means, ‘informal restaurant.’

This authentic informal Italian restaurant, located on State Street, just a few short blocks from the Wisconsin Veteran’s Museum, is artfully triangular in terms of how the building is situated and shaped.

Cozily seated near a window with a drizzly view of State Street, we admired the vintage paintings and distressed black woodwork.

(Continued on Page 32) Top: The Wisconsin Veterans Museum is home to many temporary and permanent exhibitions honoring veterans throughout our nation’s wars.

This diorama realistically and vividly portrays the famous Battle of the Bulge, which occurred in Europe during World War II. Bottom: Tutto Pasta, an architecturally delightful classic Italian Trattoria, is owned and operated by a Sicilian family spanning two generations.

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We found the menu outstanding and the prices reasonable.

More than anything, I loved that Dean Martin music played in the background the entire time we were there.

We each had the Insalata Caprese, a salad with fresh mozzarella, basil, and Roma tomatoes accompanied by warm fresh-baked focaccia with various dipping oils.

Had there not been a chance of freezing rain, we would have stayed for one of their tantalizing desserts.

FINAL REFLECTIONS Since returning, Ann Marie and I have had several phone conversations about the Civil War that sound as though we are discussing Hollywood’s latest gossip.

Never would I have thought!

The museum itself is extremely thought provoking.

Over all, the realities of the Civil War’s strenuous conditions helped us further grasp the magnitude of the freedom we have and how it was earned.

We discovered reams of information about the regiments from Wisconsin that fought in the Civil War while exploring the Paper to Iron exhibit.

The displays detailed the objects Wisconsin soldiers may have carried and also conveyed intangibles like the pride, honor, brotherhood, stamina, sacrifice and leadership held by the soldiers.

As a result, we enter the New Year with higher levels of gratitude and feel genuinely inspired to take our own personal resolutions ‘from paper to iron’.

Top: An exhibit called Fearful New Weapons, Harnessing the Industrial Revolution showcases the new weapons of war such as machine guns, heavy artillery and poison gas introduced in World War I. They created battlefields so dangerous that no one could stay above ground for very long. Most of the war was fought in the trenches, which were dark, musty smelling, muddy and cold. Middle: A Civil War era photo depicts Union soldiers proudly displaying their flag. Bottom: Tutto Pasta’s cosmopolitan décor reminds one of the colorful and richly decorated restaurants of Italy itself.

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Hair by Haley Transform your hair into a true reflection of who you really are.

Whether you bring in a photo of your desired look or let me choose for you, when you leave, you will be truly amazed at the stunning results!

Haley Bridgeforth Independent Stylist CALL FOR AN APPOINTMENT:

(715) 340-1331

5370 Hwy 10E Stevens Point haleybridge@gmail.com

Imagine having your own Gypsy Vanner!

Enjoy their beauty and grace at home and in the ring!

Derek & Denise Krause Ogdensburg, WI info@featheredgold.com www.featheredgold.com

(715) 445-5345

Ice King!

The beauty of the Wisconsin River shines year round, even in winter as this scene shot by Pete Sanderson, our Uniquely Wisconsin contributor, clearly illustrates.

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