Valley Sentinel - 01-09-2025 by Valley Sentinel

Spring Green, Wisconsin

River Valley School Board votes to close Early Learning Center, eyes ‘$1M’ in savings

Board to hold special meeting Jan. 20 to discuss 'Reduction in Force at the End of the 2024-25 School Year'

At the Dec. 12 regular meeting of the River Valley School District Board of Education, the board voted to close the River Valley Early Learning Center, citing declining enrollment and costs as rationale for closure and discussed a future operational referendum.

Closing the ELC, Referendum

The board discussed the closing of the River Valley Early Learning Center, formerly Plain Elementary, based on an initial recommendation from the building and grounds committee, and a secondary recommendation from the budget committee.

The ELC currently hosts early childhood, four year old kindergarten and ﬁve year old kindergarten for the district.

“We looked at a number of diﬀerent things, the costs, and concluded with the declining enrollment, we can house all the students on the central campus, and that we would be looking to close the ELC,” Fred Iausley, board member and building and grounds committee member, said. “We made a recommendation to the budget committee for closure of the Early Learning Center after the 25-26 school year, and part of that was looking at some time to do some of the remodels we would need on the central campus.”

Based on the recommendations of the building and grounds committee, the budget committee then recommended that the board close the ELC after the current school year, referencing concerns that a proposed operational referendum on the April 1 Spring Election ballot may fail.

According to the district, the proposed

referendum, set to be taken up at the board’s Jan. 9 meeting, would allow the district to exceed state revenue limits for three years: $4.15 million in the 2025-2026 school year, $4.75 million in 2026-2027, and $5.2 million in 20272028.

“We thought it would be better to take the savings now. If the referendum were to fail, we all thought that it would be accelerating the closing to ‘24-25,” John Bettinger, school board vice president, said. “If that's in the air, why not make the decision now and take the savings year one and start moving forward with the process.”

Business manager Brian Krey said the district would be saving $300,000 by closing the ELC, and would save another $700,000 by consolidating into three school buildings. According to Krey, the $300,000 savings is specifically from operational costs (e.g., maintaining the building), while the $700,000 comes from efficiencies gained by consolidating staff and resources.

“By closing the ELC we’re talking about a million dollars in savings, which is a

lot, as we go to referendum on April 1, just to operate and survive with what we currently have. To go out to our taxpayers and say by making this change we can save a million dollars annually moving forward is a big deal,” Krey said. “We want to minimally impact any programs, any courses or class sizes, we want to keep what we have.”

Krey noted that the upcoming operational referendum is purely for academic courses, programs and classes and not for building maintenance, noting the referendum and closure of the ELC were independent issues for the district.

“The more I look at this, after attending the budget committee meeting, it’s making more and more sense that, going into a referendum, we’re asking taxpayers to come up with money, that we show that we are making every eﬀort we can to reduce our costs,” Iausly said, before motioning to close the ELC.

Board member Kiley Cates added, “It's not a decision we’re taking lightly, it’s something we have been talking about for a long time, it’s something we’ve talked about in all of our communi-

ty sessions going into referendum last time for our capital referendum, it’s something that has been on the horizon, and it feels fast for a lot of people, but we take it seriously, we know it eﬀects a lot of the faculty and the students. It's not an easy decision for a lot of us but it’s the decision we see forward as a community and a district.”

The motion to close the ELC passed with all board members voting in favor.

The board will decide at its Jan. 9 meeting the exact grade conﬁgurations after closure, with many students being moved to Spring Green Elementary on the district’s central campus and other grades potentially being moved among the middle school and high school. Further discussions about reconﬁguring the district’s existing spaces are set to take place over the summer, Iausly said.

This decision marks the ﬁnal closure of River Valley’s satellite elementary schools, after Lone Rock Elementary was closed in 2017 and Arena Elementary was closed in 2018.

District Report Card

District administrator Loren Glasbrenner gave a report on the District Report Card from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI). District report cards are produced annually by DPI to provide school districts a way to compare themselves to state averages.

The district received an overall score of 74.1 and an “exceeds expectations” rating. Individually, the high school received a score of 65.8 and a “meets expectations” rating, the middle school received a score of 84.7 and a “signiﬁcantly exceeds expectations” rating and the elementary school received a score of 56.2 and a “meets few expectations” rating.

“That River Valley score of 74.1 is the

continued on page 9

River Valley School District closes Early Learning Center

Community Calendar: Fishing, live music, theatre & more

Business Snapshot: Temp closings, retirements & renos

Luukas Palm-Leis, Reporter

Photo by Paige Gilberg

The River Valley Early Learning Center, in Plain — formerly Plain Elementary — on a recent evening.

OPINION/EDITORIAL

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dear Editor,

In our 248 years as a republic, we have run the gauntlet from true greatness to the committing of unimaginable atrocities. So long as imperfect men are in charge, both good and evil will do battle in our lives, businesses, churches, and all tiers of government.

On January 20, a new regime will

take control of our democratic-republic. A government bought and paid for by Musk and the ultra-rich. This new government will be led by an extremely ﬂawed individual. Surprise! It’s appalling to me that serial lying is acceptable, being a felon is a celebrated defect, and being an adulterer is okay. Is this truly the Christian nation we like to pretend it is?

For many, this is no surprise. The big surprise will come to those who fell under the Musk/Trump spell. Important governmental agencies will be crippled, dismantled or defunded. No one will escape what is about to happen! Surprise! None of us have anything in common with our ultra-rich overlords. Their in-

The (not so) Plain and Simple Correspondent: RIP Jimmy Carter

Katie Green, Columnist

Darn, another of my heroes bit the dust. The dust of Plains, Georgia, to be precise. James Earl Carter, Jr was a man of the people, a peanut farmer, military oﬃcer, governor, president, lifelong worker for peace and reconciliation, devoted husband, father, grandfather and compassionate sibling, one of the ﬁrst to take seriously the need to develop alternatives to fossil fuels, a Christian man whose morals, ethics and honesty were so great that he became the butt of jokes from those who couldn't imagine conducting themselves in that manner themselves. Remember when he admitted “lusting in my heart” after certain women, not that he did anything about it, and presumably confessed as much to his cherished wife Rosalynn. He brokered treaties giving Panama back to the Panamanians, and a nuclear non-proliferation treaty with Russia, and a peace treaty between the countries of Israel and Egypt. It was clear that his parents held the same high standards that he inherited. His mother, Miss Lillian, was famous

for joining the Peace Corps as an elderly woman. Service not only to the family, the country, but to the entire world was the expectation for Carters. After

his presidency ended, Jimmy continued to advocate and be a broker for peace, wrote numerous books, built houses for Habitat for Humanity, and taught Bible classes. One of my daughters-inlaw and her daughter ﬂew to Plains to

attend a Bible class out of admiration for the man, not being particularly religious otherwise, just good women who wanted to be in the presence of someone of such earnest willingness to explain what he thought was important and helpful about the Bible in living a life one could be proud of. Such energy! One of the favorite books in my library is Rosalynn's memoir, First Lady of Plains. In it she explains how she was given serious diplomatic tasks when First Lady – a tour of South America, and one to Asia. She had her own causes, too, involving mental health, women's rights, and growing good food. She had part of the White House lawn dug up for gardening, which was not done again until Michelle Obama revived the idea, although gardening was a necessity and a passion from the time of George Washington onward. I can't see Melania Trump out there pulling weeds and harvesting carrots for dinner, can you? “Rosy”, as Jimmy called his wife, also admits that she couldn't believe that anyone would vote for Ronald Reagan instead of giving Jimmy another

Fiscal Facts: School levies rise more rapidly, county levies slow down

Wisconsin Policy Forum

Gross K-12 property taxes in Wisconsin are expected to rise by the largest amount since 2009, spurred both by per pupil revenue limit increases and a historic number of approved school district referenda.

County property taxes, meanwhile, will rise by the lowest amount in the last decade. The overall picture is likely to cause Wisconsinites to see overall increases to their property tax bills that are in line with those of recent years -and possibly less than last year.

Property tax levies for K-12 schools will rise $327.2 million on bills mailed

out this month to taxpayers, according to preliminary data from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue (DOR). The increase of 5.7% over last December’s gross property tax bills is the highest since 2009, though not far above last year’s 5.4% increase.

One key driver of the large K-12 property tax increase is property tax referenda. Last month, we found that 2024 set records for both the number of school district referenda held (241) and passed (169), and voters in nearly twothirds of public school districts have approved at least one referendum since the beginning of 2021. Since then, a total

of 390 referenda have been approved to increase district property taxes beyond state limits.

Another possible factor is that in the 2023-25 state budget, lawmakers agreed to increase the state per pupil revenue limit by $325 in both the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years after freezing them for the previous two years amid high inﬂation. The limit governs how much revenue schools can raise from state general school aids and property taxes combined – the two largest sources of K-12 revenue. In general, the larger the revenue limit increase, the larger the property tax increase – unless

tended governmental takeover is a direct threat to every one of us. We cannot aﬀord to surrender our democracy or our republic. Stay alert and informed. Hold your governmental leaders to account. Don’t be silent!

Lee D. Van Landuyt Hillsboro, Wisconsin

four years to accomplish his goals for the good of the American people, particularly the working poor and floundering middle class. As she wrote, “I hate to lose.” But they were gracious in defeat and returned to Plains not knowing if they would be bored stiff or not but found all those meaningful things to do enumerated above. No endless rounds of golf in retirement but they did enjoy watching movies together and establishing the Carter Center and Library focused on medical research in poor countries and peace initiatives. Jimmy wanted to stay alive to vote for Kamala Harris and managed that. Afterward, he had nothing to live for. Now he and Rosalynn are at peace together in the fields of the Lord. When will we again find presidential material of his caliber again?

Katie, who most previously lived in Plain, has been writing for fun and proﬁt since childhood. Self-described as opinionated, she writes in the interests of a more loving, better-functioning world for all.

state lawmakers also signiﬁcantly raise general school aids. General school aids rose by $224.9 million from 2023-24 to 2024-25, not enough to stave oﬀ levy increases.

County property taxes, meanwhile, will rise just 1.3% on the latest bills — the smallest increase in the last decade. Levies for the state’s 16 technical colleges will rise by 3.3% to $516.0 million, and special district property taxes will grow by 4.0% to $136.4 million. Both increases are slightly smaller than those that took place in 2023. Data are not yet continued on page 5

On the cover

“Winter Wonderland” (2025) Photo, by Bonnie Ostrander

Recently, our new administrative assistant Bonnie was able to capture the state of our "winter wonderland" in downtown Spring Green by the BMO Bank.

Indeed this edition was scheduled to be our semi-annual Winter Wonderland special edition, where we showcase the best the winter in the Valley has to

Katie Green

OPINION/EDITORIAL

EDITOR'S COLUMN

Recently, myself and our managing editor were joined by a portion of our writers and contributors at Reunion Restaurant in Spring Green for a lovely holiday celebration where some were meeting in person for the ﬁrst time, and all of us were able to enjoy the company of a passionate group of individuals.

It was a fantastic evening full of laughs, good conversation, delicious food and cocktails – for me it was also an incredible burst of creative and emotional energy that I didn’t even know I needed.

This dinner was meant to serve as a way for the VS crew to come together, celebrate all of our hard work and to support a local business in the best way that we can. As we all gathered at the table, did introductions (I promise, we didn’t make anyone do painful ice breaker activities, but we did joke about it) and started enjoying our meal, we all began sharing our most loved pieces of Valley Sentinel, and where we want to see us go in the future.

Many of our contributors listed services we provide to the community, like our community calendar or the crossword as their favorite parts of the work we do, or simply enjoying diﬀerent design or content elements each edition.

As I listened to each unique quality, I was overwhelmed by the understanding that our small but mighty newspaper has done so much more than create another option for local journalism – we have created a home and a safe haven for a group of incredibly talented and creative people. Together, through a shared mission and goal, we have created space for each other to have voices and opinions to be heard, ﬁnd an outlet for a creative interest like designing a crossword or writing poetry, sharing their love for the outdoors.

Whatever it was for each speciﬁc person, everyone intoned enthusiasm at having a place to belong. It was incredible to be wrapped in the joy and warmth of people who feel accepted and free to be as creative as they can.

DONATION DRIVE

The part of the evening that was most inspiring to me was when I was given an opportunity to listen and absorb our contributors' dreams for the future direction of Valley Sentinel. We heard a smattering of everything from oﬀering community classes and forums, launching a community cookbook, expanding

at are our editors, Nicole and Taylor; our

our

our calendar/events coordinator, Paige; our education, government and society columnist, Beverly; our community columnist, Grace; and our outdoors columnist, John. Our crossword contributor, Nick, was also in attendance but is not pictured.

Of course there are many more contributors, regular and semi-regular, that are not pictured — and we're always looking for more. Valley Sentinel is a community paper, and we truly are what the community makes us. There is no set playbook for how we do the paper each edition, if you think we should cover or share something the community would be interested in, or if you want to try your hand at it, let us know! We're always up for trying something new. Here's to growth in 2025!

our online presence, to becoming a hub of education for the next generation of journalists and becoming an active stakeholder in the future of journalism in our country.

Recently we received word from our press that costs for materials have risen over 19% in the past few months and that our printing cost will go up accordingly.

If we charged $1 for each copy of Valley Sentinel, just half of the copies that are picked up each week would entirely cover our printing costs — however, we are committed to remaining a free

Now I don’t have a crystal ball so I can’t say exactly how many of these ideas will come to fruition, but I can speak to just how incredibly heartwarming and inspiring it was to see a group of people who donate and volunteer their time, energy and resources as excited and dedicated to this mission as myself and our other editor were when we ﬁrst started.

publication with an accessible, hybrid model that allows anyone that wants to read local news to have access to it. We do not believe ﬁnancial ability should be a barrier to reading local news. We may be a free paper, but unfortunately it’s not free to print papers.

Valley Sentinel will stay a free and truly independent and accessible paper. Please frequent our local businesses and let them

These people were daring to dream big for our community, for the journalistic

profession and for our little bi-weekly newspaper - and that passion and fever instantly renewed my love for what we do here.

In one of my favorite books, A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas, a character, speaks the line, “To the people who look at the stars and wish. To the stars who listen— and the dreams that are answered.”

know you read Valley Sentinel each week. What does independent news mean to us? It means NOT inﬂuenced by corporations or government, NO big corporate backers, NO corporate umbrella organizations, NO big money investors. Just a handful of people with a dream to build community.

Valley Sentinel is all-volunteer, independently owned and operated by its editors and is a majority woman-owned business. Community fueled and community focused. We only succeed if the community succeeds.

For more about Valley Sentinel and our model, visit us at valleysentinelnews.com/about

Something I have been bouncing around in my noggin lately has been the idea of imagination, speciﬁcally mine, and all of the things she and I are capable of. My imagination has taken me far, but I never could have imagined it taking me here, to surround me with other

people who look to the stars and wish like I always have and in the same ways. Us editors have a lot of wishes to share with the stars for 2025 and beyond (hopefully more on those soon) and we know there is a lot of uncertainty around the future of journalism right now, but one promise we will always make to our community and our readers, this year and every year, is that we care more. We care more by wishing big, by trusting our imaginations and I hope you’ll see that reﬂected in everything we have planned for this publication in the coming year.

Through all of this, there is no question we could never do any of this without our contributors, our community and most of all our readers. I hope that when you pick up your copy of Valley Sentinel you feel at home, like you’ve found your place, and to remember that all of this was made possible because a few people had overactive imaginations.

Nicole has a passion for teaching the next generation of journalists and preparing them for the changing local media landscape. Having served as her collegiate newspaper editor-in-chief at UW-Whitewater, Nicole has previously worked for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's family of newspapers and as a county government reporter for Capital Newspapers, including the Baraboo News Republic and with pickups in the Wisconsin State Journal and more. Nicole is the co-owner, publisher and editor-in-chief of Valley Sentinel. Her day job is media relations for a top Wisconsin hospital.

DONATION DRIVE

PO Box 144

Spring Green, Wisconsin 53588 USA (608) 588-6694

editor@valleysentinelnews.com valleysentinelnews.com

EDITORIAL BOARD

Editor-in-Chief

Nicole Aimone

Managing Editor

Taylor Scott

Legal Editor

Gary Ernest Grass, esq.

Editorial Policy

Graphic Design

Julianna Williams

Democracy, Society & Edu. Columnist

Beverly Pestel

Calender & Events Coordinator

Paige Gilberg

On certain topics in areas of great community interest, the editors of the Valley Sentinel may take positions they believe best represent and serve the interests of the community. Any opinions or positions taken by the editorial board are separate and distinct in labeling and substance from the community journalism that appears in the rest of the publication and does not aﬀect the integri- ty and impartiality of our reporting.

Literary Journal Editor (At Large)

Alex Prochaska

Reporter

Luukas Palm-Leis

Administrative Contributor

Bonnie Ostrander

Letter to the Editor Policy

Letters submitted for consideration are subject to fact-checking and editing for space and clarity. Submissions must have a compelling local community interest. Letters to the editor must ﬁt within a 500-word limit, and include name, city and phone number. Phone numbers are for oﬃce use only and will not be published. Letters of a political nature, without chance of rebuttal, will not be published the week before an election.

Column Policy

Columnist Barb Garvoille

Crossword Contributor

Nick Zaborek

Literary Contributor

Amanda Thomas

Editors may feature opinion columns written by public figures, members of the public or other publication staff. Columns reflect the opinions of the individual contributors and do not represent positions of the publication. Guest columns of an anticipated length more than 500 words should seek prior editor authorization.

If you are able and enjoyed this week’s edition, please consider donating $1 today.

Recently we received word from our press that costs for materials have risen over 19% in the past few months and that our printing cost will go up accordingly.

If we charged $1 for each copy of Valley Sentinel, just half of the copies that are picked up each week would entirely cover our printing costs — however, we are committed to remaining a free

Scan to support local journalism!

We can also be reached by mail/check at PO Box 144, Spring Green, WI 53588. Thank you for your support.

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Community Discussion Policy

From time to time the editorial board may select letters to the editor of a particular compelling community interest where a public ﬁgure or accountable public action is the recipient of criticism and allow, in the same issue, the subject of the criticism chance for rebuttal, with expounded independent input. The format shall be point, counterpoint and expert analysis. This community discussion shall serve as a moderated dialogue that presents multiple views of important community topics.

publication with that wants to read ﬁnancial ability We may be a papers. Valley Sentinel accessible paper.

Nicole Aimone, Editor-in-Chief

Photos by Hannah Feller

On a recent evening, Valley Sentinel was able to get as many of our regular contributors together as possible at Reunion Restaurant in Spring Green, to celebrate local independent journalism and our community.

Pictured

reporter, Luukas;

graphic designer, Julianna;

Back Home

Sledding recaptures winter memories

It was the Christmas holiday circa 1969 and our family had traveled from our home near Milwaukee to visit relatives on the farm, which six months later would become our permanent residence.

I had just turned 6 and my brother Kevin was 9. There was snow on the ground and we decided to go sledding.

The snow was covered with a glaze of ice. Combined with our plastic saucer, it was

the perfect recipe for speed. We skimmed across the crusty surface, rapidly shooting down the hill.

At the bottom of our sledding hill was a woven wire fence, but we didn’t come close to hitting it during our many trips, as we were always thrown off by bumps. That is until the last ride, when Kevin fell off and I held on for dear life before running face-first into the fence.

I was left with a bloodied and broken

nose and, as Kevin still says 55 years later, “a face that looked like a waffle.” It was the first of at least four nose breaks in my life and was my first visit to the clinic in Black River Falls.

Good thing the fence wasn’t barbed wire. When we wanted some serious sledding, we’d make the trip to the steeper hills across the creek. Sometimes we’d be joined by cousins and we’d pile as many as we could onto the six-foot toboggan, a jumbled mass of crossed arms and legs. There were a few trees and grassy hummocks, but we managed to avoid them and try to coax the sled a little further with every trip. We didn't head for home until we were exhausted, wet and cold or until the short winter day came to an end.

Thoughts of those days came to mind recently when the grandkids did some sledding the day after Christmas. The hill was pretty close to the scene of my 1969 episode, but the fence is gone.

The grandsons – ages 13, 11, 9 and 5 –rode the toboggan together and tried the plastic sled and the metal saucers. Our son Ross joined in. Even I took a couple of trips, which were pretty slow as my weight pushed the sled deeper into the wet snow – heavy butts are not built for speed.

Metal saucers and heavy butts brought back another distant memory from the late ‘60s. Dad had taken us sledding to Whitnall Park in Milwaukee. To show us “how it’s done,” he took the saucer

over one of the sledding hills and came down with a doink. His butt cheeks were perfectly molded into the saucer and our sledding day was over.

After the sledding our grandson Samuel – the youngest – and his father Ross built a snowman. Charcoal served as eyes and a nose, with baby carrots as teeth. I found a couple of orange marker ﬂags for the arms.

It was the perfect ending to the holiday and brought back memories of the scent of wet wool from mittens and caps drying out by the wood stove or over ﬂoor registers.

Those were simpler days when we had

no video games, no computers, no smart phones, no recorded movies and only two channels on TV. The snow meant outside fun with sledding, building forts and engaging in snowball combat.

I hope my grandchildren will have similar memories someday when they reminisce.

Chris Hardie spent more than 30 years as a reporter, editor and publisher. He was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize and won dozens of state and national journalism awards. He is a former president of the Wisconsin Newspaper Association. Contact him at chardie1963@gmail.com.

CROSSWORD

We were recently told "any newspaper worth its salt has a respectable crossword" — and to be clear, we're pretty salty

Give us feedback at editor@valleysentinelnews.com, as we've never made a crossword before, much less a respectable one, and it's surprisingly diﬃcult. Especially (maybe, eventually) with the goal of only including words or themes from the previous edition.

We're hoping to tighten up the grid over time and shift from an "indie" style to a respectable New York Times style with rotational symmetry — and we think we've done a good job of that. Which is why we've expanded our word pool and enlisted the help of passionate community members, who have created this crossword. This puzzle and section will absolutely change. Especially if you can help. We appreciate all the feedback and suggestions so far.

What about chess puzzles next? We're not joking. Seriously.

Chris Hardie, Columnist

Chris Hardie

Photo contributed by Chris Hardie Chris Hardie’s son Ross helps push start (from the back) Jameson, Elias, and Judah Benrud and Samuel Hardie.

Photo contributed by Chris Hardie Chris Hardie’s son Ross (in front) and grandson Samuel create a sledding track.

Puzzle by Nick Zaborek Edited by Jen Zaborek

Photo contributed by Chris Hardie Chris Hardie’s grandson Samuel Hardie stands next to his newly built snowman

The Tools of Conversation — Part 3: Laughing or Alarmist?

Beverly Pestel, Columnist

This series explores how our tools of conversation—from speech and print to television and social media—have shaped the way we think, learn and interact, often steering us into a state of fragmented discourse and misinformation. By examining seminal works on information networks, critical thinking and media influence, each column digs deeper into why our collective capacity for thoughtful conversation and civic engagement appears at risk. As we navigate new technologies and grapple with the merging of entertainment and news, we confront a crucial question: can we harness our evolving tools of communication to foster truth, community and meaningful dialogue, or will we be “amused into indifference”? Join me on this journey through reading, reflection, and inquiry, as we seek practical insight into building a more informed, empathetic and civically engaged society.

I just keep reading, and the list of books I need to read gets longer and longer, I really do want to figure out this information technology/communication stuff and how it has influenced our culture. But I need to recognize my limitations.

I’m reading The Death of Expertise by Tom Nichols, and he sent me a warning. He recounts a conversation with a layperson in his ﬁeld that sent him “an important article” on a topic that he believed should be read. When Nichols asked about the author of the article, the person admitted he had written it himself. Nichols asked him “if he’d had any training in the subject, visited the region, or read any of the languages of the Middle East. He had no such background, he admitted, and then said, ‘But after all, you can become an expert reading a book a month, right?’ Wrong,” says Nichols.

Expertise involves much more than reading books. I’m doing my best here, but I admit my limits.

Nichols also reminded me about metacognition. I spent a good part of my professional life reading literature in the cognitive sciences including the time that the term metacognition was coined. Simply, it is the process of thinking about your thinking. More speciﬁcally, it is the awareness of the need to analyze one’s own learning and thinking processes. That brings me to another dilemma. In a conversation with friends

recently I referred to someone as an idiot. A smirk and sideways glance in my direction kicked in my metacognition. I’ve written about the disturbing level of uncivil discourse speciﬁcally on social media – am I being a hypocrite? Is it unacceptable to call out willful ignorance by someone because we don’t want to participate in uncivil discourse? Or in our urge to be civil, by our silence, do we risk validating errors that are disruptive and dangerous? Is it always wrong to call a spade a spade if that spade is constantly spouting lies that can be easily disproven? Or is there always a kind way to ﬁght against error? I’ll let you know if I resolve this. Well, I’m reading Maria Ressa’s book How to Stand Up to a Dictator: The Fight for Our Future, I just got to Chapter 10, the title is Don’t Become a Monster to Fight a Monster. I suspect she has something important to tell me on this issue.

But before I pursue any of that further, I want to return to the quote of Postman from the last column and continue that train of thought: “[R]eading is by its nature a serious business. It is also, of course, an essentially rational activity… To engage the written word means to follow a line of thought, which requires considerable powers of classifying, inference-making and reasoning…It also means to weigh ideas, to compare and contrast assertions, to connect one generalization to another.” (pgs. 50-51)

So, I’m going to continue to write about what I am reading. As you can see above, the more I read and the more I think about these things, the more I see the punctuation in my columns changing, fewer periods and more question marks. I think that is a good thing. I ended the last column with the in-

tention of exploring Postman’s topic of Amusing Ourselves to Death, an exposition on our media-conditioned craving for entertainment that he asserts has perverted our ability to digest news and facts. So here I go… Postman wrote, “I want to show that in the twentieth century, our notions of truth and our ideas of intelligence have changed as a result of new media displacing the old…I believe the epistemology created by television not only is inferior to a print-based epistemology, but is dangerous and absurdist.” (pg. 27)

The book contains poignant examples of the move toward entertainment in the TV news business including emphasis on the looks and amiability of the hosts, the light-hearted banter, the transitions from tragic events to the celebrity news of the day, and the use of short blocks of news that transition into attractive and visually captivating commercials.

Postman expounds on the danger of the move from print news to TV news this way:

“What I am claiming here is not that television is entertaining but that it has made entertainment itself the natural format for the presentation of all experience…What is happening here is that television is altering the meaning of “being informed”… by creating misleading information…that creates the illusion of knowing something but which in fact leads one away from knowing…when news is packaged as entertainment, that is the inevitable result…we are being deprived of authentic information…we are losing our sense of what it means to be well informed. Ignorance is always correctable. But what shall we do if we take ignorance to be knowledge?...the public has adjusted to incoherence and been amused into indiﬀerence.” (pg. 87, 107,108,110)

(If the frequent use of ellipsis (…) in quotes concerns you and makes you wonder if I am cherry-picking from these authors, please check up on me. I use them to focus on my point and still maintain some level of brevity in these columns.)

So, Postman does not make a case against TV as entertainment, a world that creates more time for leisure and entertainment is a good thing. He main-

Fiscal Facts: School levies rise more rapidly, county levies slow down

continued from page 2

available for municipal or tax increment ﬁnancing (TIF) districts, which make up the remainder of local property tax levies.

These DOR data represent gross property tax levies, meaning they do not account for state credits that reduce net tax bills for Wisconsin residents. These data reﬂect the outsized impact of school referenda on property tax levels, as they account for just under half of all local property tax levies in Wisconsin in any given year.

Readers also should note that this year’s property tax increases come amidst a longstanding trend of a falling state and local tax burden for Wisconsin residents. The declining tax burden has been accompanied by a longstanding decline in state spending on K-12 education, both as a share of residents’ incomes and relative to other states. Local referenda have allowed some districts to resist these trends, but the rise of ballot measures has led to higher property taxes and may also be exacerbating diﬀerences between

tains, however, that an entertainment framework is not a medium that serves us well for transmitting serious content. If we cannot separate entertainment for entertainment’s sake and news for news’s sake, we may be in trouble. Postman leaves us with a Huxleyan warning:

“…when serious public conversation becomes a form of baby-talk, when in short people become an audience and their public business a vaudeville act, then a nation ﬁnds itself at risk; culture-death is a clear possibility…For in the end, [Huxley] was trying to tell us that what aﬄicted the people in Brave New World was not that they were laughing instead of thinking, but that they did not know what they were laughing about and why they had stopped thinking.” (pgs. 155-156, 163)

Are the pervasive use of oﬀ-color memes and the ubiquitous laughing emoji examples of a possible slide into this world?

In the November election roughly 93 million eligible voters chose not to vote. Each of the candidates only received 70+ million votes. What were those 93 million potential voters doing? Were at least some of them amused into indifference? Were they frozen into inaction because of a media infused “sequencing of information so random, so disparate in scale and value, as to be incoherent?” Did some in their illusion of being well informed take ignorance for knowledge in choosing how to vote? It was recently suggested that I watch Idiocracy (viewable free online – and I recommend it). There may be a legitimate prophetic message in that movie that we should heed. Are our tools of communication leading us to that place?

Or is Postman just an alarmist and none of this has anything to do with our current cultural situation? I think it does, but I also think there may be a lot more to the story and a lot more points of view to be investigated. So, back to the pile of books that just keeps getting higher…

Beverly is a retired professor. She lives in a remodeled farmhouse and tends 40 acres of woodland in Richland County. When not in the woods she spends her time reading, writing and enjoying the beauty of the Driftless Area. Beverly may be contacted at bpestel@msn.com.

This information is a service of the Wisconsin Policy Forum, the state’s leading resource for nonpartisan state and local government research and civic education. Learn more at wispolicyforum.org.

see the operational referendum and revenue limit resolution language passed by the River Valley School Board as this edition was going to press, scan the inlaid QR code above.

The referendum is set to be included on the April 1 Spring Election Ballot.

Beverly Pestel

districts that succeed in passing them and those that do not.

Photo courtesy of Mark Frey/Sauk-Prairie Indy on YouTube

To learn more about school district levies and referendums, why we've been seeing so many and some of the challenges facing public education in Wisconsin, local group Economic Equity Now! recently hosted UW professor emeritus Julie Mead to present on the topic. To

Thursday,January 9

COmmunitycalendar

Community Calendar is

Events for January 9 - January 16

HAHS Walking Club 7:30 AM - 9:00 AM • Highland Area Historical Society Gym, 526

Isabell St, Highland • FREE • The HAHS Walking Club meets every Tuesday in January. The gym is heated to 50 degrees, so please dress accordingly for this indoor walking session. Everyone is welcome to walk at their own pace.

Stitch and Bitch 1:30 PM - 3:00 PM • Spring Green General Store, 137 S. Albany St. Spring Green • springgreengeneralstore.com • FREE • The Spring Green General Store’s Stitch and Bitch handwork group meets Thursday afternoons weekly. All are welcome.

Tech Help 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM • Lone Rock Community Library, 234 N Broadway St, Lone Rock • lonerocklibrary.wordpress.com rvbroadband.org/techhelp • Come on in with any devices or technology you need help with! No appointment necessary.

Author Meet: Richard Cates 5:30 PM • Kraemer Library & Community Center, 910 Main St, Plain • kraemerlibrary.org • Join local author Richard "Dick" Cates as he discusses his new farm memoir, A Creek Runs Through This Driftless Land. In this book, Cates shares stories from his family farm, exploring memories, cattle, and a land ethic. All are welcome!

Knit Night at Nina’s 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM • Nina’s Department Store, 143 E. Jeﬀerson St Spring Green • ninasdepartmentstore.com • FREE • Every Thursday from 6 to 8 pm. All knitters and crocheters are welcome.

Bingo Night 6:00 PM • E4885 Hwy 14 & 23, Spring Green • For more information look up "Bingo Night Spring Green" on Facebook • FREE • Enjoy a lively evening of Bingo! Bring your family and friends for a fun community gathering with opportunities to win prizes. Perfect for all ages and a great way to meet neighbors and enjoy the excitement.

Winter Indoor Soccer 7:30 PM - 9:00 PM • Plain Elementary Gym, 1370 Cherry St, Plain • For more information look up "Spring Green Recreational Soccer" on Facebook • FREE • Open to ages 12 and up, join the Winter Indoor Soccer sessions for a fast-paced 5-a-side game on a basketball court. Sub in and out as needed. Appropriate footwear recommended. A great way to stay active and build skills over winter months. Carpooling is encouraged due to limited parking.

Saturday, January 11

Spring Green Winter Farmers Market 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM • S230 E. Monroe St. Spring Green • Spring Green farmers market is a year - round outdoor market oﬀering seasonal produce, local meats, baked goods, and many other wonderful items. Held outside the Spring Green Community Public Library every Saturday morning.

LIVE MUSIC: Bluegrass Jam 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Spring Green General Store, 137 S. Albany St., Spring Green springgreengeneralstore.com 608-5880-707, karin@springgreengeneralstore.com • All ages welcome! Bluegrass Jams will be held on the second Saturday of each month. While the weather permits they'll be held on our back deck. Bring your instrument and play along or come to listen; all are welcome.

LIVE MUSIC: Jazz Flux 7:30 PM - 10:00 PM • Slowpoke Lounge & Cabaret, 137 W. Jeﬀerson St., Spring Green • slowpokelounge.com • $15 in advance, $20 at the door • Join Milwaukee’s premier jazz group for an electrifying performance blending traditional jazz with elements of hip hop, R&B, and pop. The band’s high-energy show showcases their passion for the music and camaraderie.

Sunday, January 12

Guided Meditation Class 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM • North Earth Crystals & Gifts, 124 W Jeﬀerson St, Spring Green • northearth.com • $35 per person • Join Shelby Kottemann for a small-group guided meditation session promoting deep relaxation and healing. The session includes breathwork, sound healing, aromatherapy, and Reiki, tailored to each participant's needs. Shelby has over 10 years of experience as a certiﬁed Usui Reiki Master and bestselling author. Individual sessions are available after the class for $50. Registration required by calling 608.588.3313.

Monday, January 13

Tuesday, January 14

Movies, Munchies, and More: Anatomy of a Fall 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM • Spring Green Community Library, 230 E Monroe St, Spring Green • springgreenlibrary.org • FREE • Enjoy a good winter movie, warm drinks, and a sugary treat. This event features the ﬁlm Anatomy of a Fall (2023), a gripping mystery about a woman suspected of her husband’s murder, with her blind son facing moral dilemmas as the sole witness. Rated R. Winter Family Storytime 4:30 PM - 5:00 PM • Kraemer Library & Community Center, 910 Main St, Plain • kraemerlibrary.org • FREE • Enjoy themed stories, songs, and crafts aimed at children ages 0-5. This engaging family storytime is a perfect way to inspire a love for reading and creativity in young children. All are welcome!

HAHS Walking Club 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM • Highland Area Historical Society Gym, 526 Isabell St, Highland • FREE • The HAHS Walking Club meets every Tuesday in January. The gym is heated to 50 degrees, so please dress accordingly for this indoor walking session. Everyone is welcome to walk at their own pace.

Events are subject to change, always check ahead for up-to-date information on any events you are interested in.

Tuesday, January 14 cont.

Puzzle Night 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM • Spring Green Community Library, 230 E Monroe St, Spring Green • springgreenlibrary.org • FREE • Join the puzzle fun at the library on the second Tuesday of the month. Work together on 300-500 piece puzzles or try an exciting new challenge with puzzle chess. Players compete to complete a 100-200 piece puzzle using a timer, with the fastest player winning. Bring puzzles from home to share.

Corn Hole Adult League 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM • HAHS Gym, 526 Isabell St, Highland • $2 per person • Join the fun at the Corn Hole Adult League! Every Tuesday in January, test your skills and enjoy a lively evening of community camaraderie. Perfect for beginners and seasoned players alike.

Wednesday, January 15

Wednesday Morning Art Class: A Lesson in Color Value & Impressionism 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM • 2516 Brace Rd, Lone Rock • facebook.com/groups/337098120435220 • $20 per student/class • Join this art class to learn about Berthe Morisot, a key ﬁgure in the Impressionist movement. Explore her soft, light brushstrokes and how she captured the beauty of nature. The class includes a brief art history lesson, technique presentation, and a related project. All supplies are included. Please bring a snack and a water bottle. Registration required via the provided link.

All Ages Storytime 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM • Spring Green Community Library, 230 E Monroe St, Spring Green • springgreenlibrary.org • FREE • Join library friends for stories, songs, and crafts! Quiet toys are available for busy bodies, ensuring all children can enjoy the event. A delightful and engaging experience for families with young children.

ADRC Drop-In 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM • Kraemer Library & Community Center, 910 Main St, Plain • FREE • Elder Beneﬁt Specialist Mindy Shrader is available for walk-in assistance with understanding complex paperwork, resolving billing issues, and guiding seniors through the appeals process. She can also connect seniors with local resources and services. This service is available on the third Wednesday of every month.

Book Discussion: The Last Murder at the End of the World 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM • Spring Green Community Library, 230 E Monroe St, Spring Green • springgreenlibrary.org • FREE • Join the library for a discussion of The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton. Enjoy a cup of coﬀee, a snack, and a chat about this month's selection. The book is available at the library one month prior to the discussion.

Wednesday Wizards 3:30 PM - 5:00 PM • Spring Green Community Library, 230 E Monroe St, Spring Green • springgreenlibrary.org • FREE • Join us for this winter edition of the popular summer event! Explore winter-themed experiments and messy mayhem—all in the name of science. Ideal for kids ages 4-12.

Arcadia Book Club: The Paris House by Elizabeth Bowen 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM • Virtual Zoom • readinutopia.com • FREE • Join the Arcadia Book Club for a discussion of The Paris House, one of Elizabeth Bowen's most artful and psychologically acute novels. The story revolves around Henrietta, an eleven-year-old girl who discovers the secrets of a Parisian house during her brief stay. Please register for the Zoom discussion via the Arcadia Books website.

Thursday, January 16

HAHS Walking Club 7:30 AM - 9:00 AM • Highland Area Historical Society Gym, 526 Isabell St, Highland • FREE • The HAHS Walking Club meets every Tuesday in January. The gym is heated to 50 degrees, so please dress accordingly for this indoor walking session. Everyone is welcome to walk at their own pace.

Tech Help 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM • Arena Village Hall, 345 West St, Arena • rvbroadband.org/techhelp • Come on in with any devices or technology you need help with! No appointment necessary.

Lego Builders Club 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM • Kraemer Library & Community Center, 910 Main St, Plain • kraemerlibrary.org • FREE • We supply the Legos, you supply the creativity! Stop by to free build or try out the weekly challenges. This event is open to kids of all ages.

Women's Health Night 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM • Simply Health Chiropractic, 550 Sunrise Dr Ste #105, Spring Green • facebook.com/SimplyHealthChiropractic • FREE • Join Simply Health Chiropractic for a wellness evening featuring DIY sugar scrub making, appetizers, mocktails, laser demos (limited to 5), and a health talk at 6:45 PM. RSVP required to Simply Health Chiropractic to attend.

OPENING NIGHT: Two Crows Theatre Company Presents 'Harry Clarke' 7:30 PM - 10:00 PM • Slowpoke Lounge & Cabaret, 137 W Jeﬀerson St, Spring Green • twocrowstheatrecompany.org • $35 • Join Two Crows Theatre for a compelling performance of Harry Clarke, a play about a shy Midwestern man who adopts the persona of a cocky Londoner to charm his way into a wealthy family’s life. This intense and emotionally nuanced story explores his double life and seductive exploits. Curtain opens 30 minutes before show time. Running Thursday-Sunday thru Jan. 26, see website for tickets and times.

The

curated by Paige Gilberg and designed by Julianna Williams.

Events for January 9 - January 23

Saturday, January 18

Winter Free Fishing Weekend All Day • Statewide, Wisconsin • dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/Fishing/anglereducation/freeFishingWeekend • FREE • The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) invites anglers of all ages to enjoy a day of fishing without needing a license, trout stamp, or salmon stamp. Fish in any Wisconsin waters open to fishing, but be sure to check the regulations regarding bag limits, size limits, and species restrictions. Trout streams are open for catch-and-release, with only artificial lures allowed. Note: ice conditions are not monitored by the DNR, so consult local bait shops or fishing clubs for current conditions.

Kate's Bait Annual Ice Fishing Derby 6:00 AM - 1:00 PM • Kate's Bait, 3916 State Road 23, Dodgeville • katesbaitdodgeville.com • $15 per Adult, $5 per Child • Fish anywhere you want within the designated ﬁshing time. Participate as an individual or in one or two-person teams. Categories include "Most" Pan Fish (Best Stringer of 10) and Largest of each species: Crappie, Bluegill, Perch, Walleye, Bass, and Northern. Kids under 15 have their own categories. Register and weigh-in at Kate's Bait. Registration opens January 4th and runs through the morning of January 18th. Cash prizes and trophies will be awarded.

LIVE MUSIC: Concert in the Cafe with Jeff Larsen 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM • Spring Green General Store, 137 S Albany St, Spring Green • springgreengeneralstore.com • FREE • Enjoy a solo fingerstyle guitar performance by Jeff Larsen, featuring pop, country, jazz, and classic Beatles songs.

LIVE MUSIC: Don Greenwood 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM • STS Sounds, 139 N Lexington St, Spring Green • Free will donations appreciated • Come out and enjoy a live performance by Don Greenwood, a talented musician who has been performing original songs and covers for more than 50 years. This event is open to the public.

Sunday, January 19

Spring Green Gentle Jam 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM • Spring Green Community Center, 117 S Washington St, Spring Green • FREE • The Spring Green Gentle Jam meets on the 4th Sunday of every month, oﬀering a low-pressure environment for practicing acoustic instruments and singing. To register, email GentleJamSG@gmail.com.

Sharpen Your Knife Skills 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM • RedBarn Catering, 525 E Madison St, Spring Green • savortherivervalley.org/events • $55 • Hone your kitchen technique with a hands-on knife skills class taught by Chef Jay Miller of RedBarn Catering. Learn knife safety and eﬃciency, along with proper care and maintenance of your knives. The class will cover techniques like creating a Mirepoix. For more details and to register, visit the provided website.

Manifestation Vision Book Making Class 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM • North Earth Crystals & Gifts, 124 W Jeﬀerson St, Spring Green • northearth.com • $45 per person • Join BillieJo Scharfenberg for a hands-on workshop to create a personalized manifestation vision book. This class combines a vision board with journaling, allowing you to map goals, track progress, and reinforce intentions for 2025. Materials are provided, but feel free to bring your own pictures or magazines. Registration required by calling 608.588.3313.

Monday, January 20

A Night of Words 7:30 PM - 9:30 PM • Slowpoke Lounge & Cabaret, 137 W Jeﬀerson St, Spring Green • slowpokelounge.com • FREE • Join an open mic event where friends share words. Whether you have a favorite poem, a passage from a book, your own story, or simply want to listen, it’s all welcome.

Tuesday, January 21

Winter Family Storytime 4:30 PM - 5:00 PM • Kraemer Library & Community Center, 910 Main St, Plain • kraemerlibrary.org • FREE • Join us for a family-friendly storytime with stories, songs, and a fun themed craft and activity. All ages are welcome!

Wednesday, January 22

All Ages Storytime: At the Community Center! 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM • Spring Green Community Center, 117 S Washington St, Spring Green • springgreenlibrary.org • FREE • Join Ms. Kate for great stories, activities, and crafts. The theme for January is “Children Around the World.” This event will take place at the Spring Green Community Center.

Yoga with Emily Benz 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM • Wyoming Valley School, 6306 State Road 23, Spring Green • ruralremedy.com • Drop-in: $20 per class; Commit to a handful of classes: $17 per class • Drop in for a yoga class that focuses on mindfulness and movement. The class is suitable for all skill levels. If the cost is too much, feel free to reach out for a barter or alternative plan to get you to yoga—no barriers! Carpools from Spring Green or Dodgeville are also possible, and there are plenty of helpers.

Thursday, January 23

Tech Help 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM • Plain Kraemer Library, 910 Main St., Plain • kraemerlibrary.org • rvbroadband.org/techhelp • Come on in with any devices or technology you need help with! No appointment necessary.

Family Night: Life-Sized Games 5:00 PM • Kraemer Library & Community Center, 910 Main St, Plain • kraemerlibrary.org • FREE • Bring the whole family to enjoy life-sized versions of classic board games and regular-sized favorites. Fun for all ages! Reserve your spot by calling 608-546-4201 or visiting the library.

Silent Book Club 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM • Arcadia, 137 W Jeﬀerson St, Spring Green • readinutopia.com • Join Caitlyn for the ﬁrst Silent Book Club of 2025. Bring a book and treat yourself to some "me time" while chatting about books. This relaxed event is perfect for anyone who enjoys reading and sharing thoughts about literature.

River Valley Community Chorus Rehearsals 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM • Christ Lutheran Church, 237 E Daley St, Spring Green • Join the River Valley Community Chorus as they prepare for a spring concert on April 21st, sharing the stage with students from the RV High School Music Department. No auditions are required. Weekly rehearsals will begin on Thursday. All are welcome to participate.

WHAT’S HANGINg ?

ongoing art exhibitions

Spring Green Community Library Art Exhibitions Spring Green Community Library, 230 E Monroe St, Spring Green Monday-Thursday: 10 AM - 7 PM • Friday: 10 AM - 5 PM •

A note from the Library: The Library will be closed from Friday, January 17 to Saturday, February 8.

We are closing to refresh the main part of the Library a bit. We have already started with some red paint on the far wall, but will add a bit more color in the staﬀ areas as well as above the glass case. We will also be getting new carpet, and moving the shelves around a bit.

While we are closed, we will have a temporary space set up in the Lobby. This means that holds can still be picked up, printing can still be done, copies made, and faxes sent. We will also have a small browsable collection available. The temporary space will be open from Wednesday, January 22 to Wednesday, February 5 from 12-6p. We do also have the checkout lockers, so if those hours don’t work, please consider calling us to use those. We ask that any books checked out before or during the closure are kept by you until we re-open. Completely understand if that is not possible, and items need to come back before then.

Thank you for your patience and understanding during this exciting three week adventure.

John Bagjas is exhibiting his woodworking in the Glass Case Gallery during January and February. He was raised in the Chicago area and moved to Spring Green in 2022. John tells of his story, "I worked for 32 years in the Chicago are as a union-trained ornamental plastering restoration specialist. I worked on the restoration of many old churches and historic homes as well as, the most popular, the Lyric Opera House in downtown Chicago. Working with the plastering materials became the possible source of health issues that developed. While I was not able to work ,and was going through treatments, I decided to go back to making things with my hands. I'd always loved working with beautiful wood, So, I decided to make custom boards, boxes, and humidors as gifts. Then people started asking me what I had for sale. I like to go and choose the woods by looking for colorful hardwoods that have the most character because nature makes the most perfect imperfections in the hardwoods I use. I do not stain and do not use plywood in my work. I like to bring out the colors and imperfections in my projects. All my projects are made by hand with typical hand tools. My projects are custom one-oﬀ pieces and not mass produced, I have made similar pieces but nothing exactly the same." John's art is available for viewing from January 2-16 and February 10-28 during regular library hours.

BillieJo Scharfenberg will be our featured artist in the Community Room Gallery during February, once the renovation of the library is completed. Her stained glass works can be viewed during regular hours when the Community Room is not already in use. More information will follow when the display is in place.

Events for January 9 - January 23

CIVICS & SERVICES

CIVICS & SERVICES CALENDAR

This calendar is a place listing (for free) the typical meeting dates for area governmental bodies, and Please email us with these meetings, or use the form on our Community Calendar page — let's build community together: editor@valleysentinelnews.com

January 9: Plain EMS Meeting 7:00 PM • Village of Plain, 1045 Cedar St, Plain • villageofplain.com

River Valley School Board Meeting 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM • River Valley Middle School - Library, 660 Daley St, Spring Green • rvschools.org

January 10: Ridgeway Pine Relict Volunteer Day 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM • Ridgeway Pine Relict State Natural Area, Hwy H parking lot, Ridgeway • dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/StateNaturalAreas/volunteer • Join the Friends of Ridgeway Pine Relict for a volunteer workday. We will be cutting, treating, and piling brush to prepare it for burning with snow cover. No skills are required; training will be provided onsite. RSVP is preferred but not required. For questions or to RSVP, contact Bob Scheidegger at BobScheidegger@yahoo.com or 608-319-2083.

January 14: Village of Lone Rock Board Meeting 7:00 PM • Village Hall, 314 E Forest St, Lone Rock • villageoﬂonerock-wi.gov

January 15:

Village of Spring Green Plan Commission & Joint Extraterritorial Zoning Committee Hearing & Meeting 7:00 PM • Spring Green Village Hall, 154 N Lexington St, Spring Green • vi.springgreen.wi.gov • The hearing will begin at 7:00 PM, followed by the meeting. Topics include the consideration of a request by John Houck for a conditional use permit for Motor Vehicle Sales on parcel #182-0875-00000, Lot 15 Sunrise Drive, Village of Spring Green, and discussions regarding zoning ordinances. The meeting can be attended in-person or virtually via Zoom (Meeting ID: 940 9569 9653, Access Code: 179602). Those without internet access can join by phone at 1 (312) 626-6799.

January 16: Iowa County Board Special Meeting 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM • Health & Human Services Center, 303 W Chapel St, Dodgeville • iowacounty.org

January 20: School Board Meeting 6:00 PM • River Vallley Middle School Library, 660 Daley St, Spring Green • rvschools.org • Topic is Consideration & Action on Employees Selected for Reduction in Force at the End of the 2024-25 School Year

January 21:

Iowa County Board Meeting 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM • Health & Human Services Center, 303 W Chapel St, Dodgeville • iowacounty.org

January 22:

Plain Fire Department Meeting 7:00 PM • Plain Fire Department, 1045 Cedar St, Plain • villageofplain-wi.gov

Spring Green Village Board Meeting 7:00 PM • 154 N Lexington St, Spring Green • vi.springgreen.wi.gov

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY

WE'RE LOOKING FOR INTERNS AND COMMUNITY CONTRIBUTORS

We are looking for interns/volunteers who want to be in the unique position to learn the nuts and bolts of a news media publication that started from the ground up.

You will have the chance to make an impact at the ground level of a startup and see the effect of your work and ideas carried out with a lot of flexibility, in an environment and creative culture you can help influence and create.

Available subject areas: Looking for a challenge?

EDITORIAL/JOURNALISM SOCIAL MEDIA ADVERTISING/MARKETING

GRAPHIC DESIGN/PAGE DESIGN/LAYOUT DISTRIBUTION/CIRCULATION/CRM MNGMT PODCASTING/AUDIO PRODUCTION

We are a new, all volunteer local news source that holds a strong belief that by working to keep our communities informed and engaged on a variety of topics including arts & culture, events, community news and serving as a watchdog for our local governmental bodies, we can help create a strong identity for our community and ignite positive growth and change throughout the area.

Interested? Send us your area(s) of interest and a resume to: editor@valleysentinelnews.com

Internship will be unpaid, interns will be required to sign a FSLA-compliant internship agreement. If credit is available from intern’s educational institution for participation in an internship, we are glad to work with you to meet any requirements for receiving credit.

Want to help build community?

Know a college student that’s looking for a spring or summer internship for academic credit or to gain experience? Already attending village board or school board meetings and want to record or report on them? Want to engage with arts & culture, ag, businesses and other topics important to our community? Want to take scenic walks or drives delivering papers to subscribers and businesses? We have so many ideas to grow and do more for our community, but we need help, we CAN’T do it alone.

If you want to be a part of something bigger please email us and let us know what your interests are: editor@valleysentinelnews.com

Areas in most need:

-Graphic design (publication layout, visual story design, infographics)

-Community contributors

-Accounting/bookkeeping

-Municipal meeting recorders/reporters

-Social media posting/audio & video creation (TikTok, Reels, etc.)

-E-newsletter

-Website posting/design

-Agriculture reporter/columnist (current events)

-Sports reporting

We have the infrastructure set up for most of these areas, we're just in need of manpower from passionate community members.

VALLEY SENTINEL'S LITERARY JOURNAL SUBMISSIONS OPEN Works can be submitted at: valleysentinelnews.com/literary-journal/. Questions about submissions can be directed to: editor@valleysentinelnews.com Submissions will remain open until enough journal-quality submissions are received.

LITERARY + ARTS & CULTURE SECTION

Lexington & Jefferson

Arts In Brief

River Valley ARTS Creative Community and Artistic Development Grant Applications Now Available

Do you have an idea for innovative arts programming that will beneﬁt the River Valley area? Are you an artist who would like support for your individual learning and development? If so, River Valley ARTS is here to help! Creative Community and Artistic Development grant applications are now available at www. RiverValleyARTS.org. Deadline to apply will be late February 2025.

Maximum award amount is $2,500.

Creative Community Grants

The purpose of the Creative Community Grant is to stimulate creative and innovative arts programming in the River Valley area. Proposed projects could include public exhibits, performances, publications, and educational activities. Disciplines could include dance, theater, music, folk arts, literary arts, visual arts, video and ﬁlm. Priority is given to projects that maximize community involvement and community beneﬁt. Priority will also be given to applicants who don't have access to other funding sources. Funding for Creative Community Grants

is made possible by the generous support of local donors and businesses with matching funds from the Wisconsin Arts Board.

Artistic Development Grants

The purpose of the Artistic Development Grant is to support an individual's arts project or artistic learning and development. Possible use of Artistic Development Grant money could include expenses related to projects in the visual or performing arts, to help cover short-term courses, workshops, materials and supplies, and art/music classes or camps. Any professional artist, amateur artist, or student in the River Valley is eligible to apply for the Artistic Development Grant. Criteria for evaluating Artistic Grant applications are individual benefit, educational benefit, financial need, and community benefit. Funding for Artistic Development Grants is made possible by the generous support of local donors and businesses.

Questions? Please email contact@RiverValleyARTS.org.

Spring Green Arts & Crafts Fair Applications Open

The Spring Green Arts & Crafts Fair recently announced the opening of their 2025 artist applications.

Applications need to be postmarked by February 5, 2025.

More information can be found online at: www.springgreenartfair.com/Artist/Apply/.

The 2025 Spring Green Arts & Crafts Fair will take place downtown Spring Green on June 28 & June 29, 2025.

mutable

soil and earthen a fallen leaf I sit with my needles, this voodoo upon my sleeve

sap branched hands casting black stones, and sitting under a new moon's magick of each darkening tree speaking poems upon ancient ledges of sand, I stand driftless and free banishing all of these awful nature thieves moving, I am water in the river look deep that is me

shores only skim surfaces and never do see what exists in the far depths of the thirty feet and under

you! who skip ﬂat pebbles from unweathering

where there are the roots of all trees collecting storm's waters connecting nature's souls

into each season passing growing from where the darkness does bleed making one to always and forever be mutable: as me

Poetic Wonderer

Community

River Valley School Board votes to close Early Learning Center, eyes

continued from page 1

fourth year in a row that we have seen steady increases,” Glasbrenner said.

The district report card focuses on four areas of assessment: Achievement, Growth, Target Group Outcomes and On-Track to Graduation.

Glasbrenner noted that within the CESA3 region — which largely is comprised of school districts within southwest Wisconsin — the district ranked average for Achievement, ranked ﬁrst in Growth, ranked in the top ﬁve in Target Group Outcomes, and ranked near the bottom in On-Track to Graduation.

“The thing that's pulling us down a little bit for On-Track to Graduation is speciﬁcally third grade reading performance, and that is a targeted area that [elementary principal] Carla [Peterson] and the team and [interventionist] Tracy Frosch and all of us are working on,” Glasbrenner said.

Glasbrenner spoke of how the DPI report cards are a systems evaluation for school districts and are not a direct re-

ﬂection of student grades and academics.

“We are in line with what we want to be, we are seeing good results from some of the initiatives we are pushing forward and I’m really pleased with how the report card is coming forward and the results we are getting,” Glasbrenner said.

Looking ahead

The River Valley School District Board of Education meets Jan. 9 in the Middle School Library. The board streams meetings to the district’s YouTube Channel.

The board also has a special meeting set for Jan. 20 at 6 p.m. in the Middle School Library that includes a closed session for “Considering Employment, Promotion, Compensation, or Performance Evaluations”.

The meeting is set to come back into open session for the purpose of “Consideration & Action on Employees Selected for Reduction in Force at the End of the 2024-25 School Year”.

Have major updates to your business? Moving? Opening? Re-opening? Oﬀering something you don’t normally oﬀer during your regular course of business or having a pop-up?

Please submit your updates for consideration as we try to ﬂesh out what this will look like and how to best drive engagement for our business community: editor@valleysentinelnews.com

Remember, marketing is an important part of any event and business budget. These updates don’t replace advertising, but we’re happy to oﬀer them as a business community service.

Document via the River Valley School District

An excerpt of

Reunion Restaurant (134 W Jefferson St, Spring Green) has temporarily closed for January as owners Leah Spicer and Kyle Beach reassess the future of the restaurant. The closure follows financial challenges and a December announcement that hinted at potential closure without significant changes.

In an update, the owners expressed gratitude for community support and noted plans for a special summer event to thank patrons. Gift card balances will be honored in any future venture, and the owners are encouraging community input on the restaurant’s next steps. More information can be found on their website at reunionspringgreen.com

Wander Provisions (136 S Albany St, Spring Green) has announced a temporary closure for January. The shop, known for its locally and regionally sourced food and beverage oﬀerings, plans to reopen on Saturday, Feb. 1, "to much fanfare."

For more information about Wander Provisions and its oﬀerings, visit wanderprovisions.com or explore their in-store menu at wanderprovisions.com/in-store-menu.

Nina’s Department & Variety Store (143 E Jeﬀerson St, Spring Green) has closed its doors for regular operations after 108 years, marking the end of an era. Owners Joel Marcus and Judy Swartz Marcus announced their retirement in September 2024, launching a months-long going-out-of-business sale that concluded regular business hours on Dec. 31, 2024.

While the store has oﬃcially ceased full-time operations, Nina’s remains open Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. throughout January. These special sale events feature deep discounts on natural ﬁber yarns, women’s fashion clothing and other remaining merchandise.

Knit Nights, a longstanding community tradition at Nina’s, continue on Thursday evenings from 6 to 8 p.m. through January. Knitters and crocheters of all levels are invited to bring their projects and join this social gathering. Founded in 1916, Nina’s Department & Variety Store has been a cornerstone of Spring Green’s downtown, oﬀering a diverse range of goods for more than a century. The Marcus family expressed gratitude to their loyal customers and the community for their support over the years.

For more details about Nina’s history and remaining sale events, visit ninasdepartmentstore.com or follow them on Facebook at facebook.com/NinasDepartmentStore.

Slowpoke Lounge & Cabaret (137 W Jeﬀerson St, Spring Green) is preparing for roof and ceiling renovations in its Dance Hall, following the completion of the Two Crows Theatre Residency in February. The Dance Hall will be closed during construction, with the project expected to conclude by spring. As a result, some regular events are paused or relocated: Trivia: Cancelled in February Night of Words and Open Mic: Relocated to the bar area for January and February Karaoke: Cancelled for January and February

Despite these changes, Slowpoke remains active, hosting the Two Crows Theatre Company’s production of Harry Clarke from Jan. 16–26. Directed by Marcus Truschinski and starring Nate Burger, the play is a provocative tale of identity and deception.

For more details on Slowpoke’s oﬀerings and renovation updates, visit slowpokelounge.com. Tickets for Harry Clarke are available at twocrowstheatrecompany.org.

Kelly's Coﬀee House - Spring Green (E4830 US-14, Spring Green) announced a temporary closure on January 6. The closure followed a comment thread that featured both contentious and constructive advice in response to a since-deleted Facebook post that same day from Kelly's looking for feedback on how best to serve the Spring Green area community. No more details have been shared. The main Kelly's Coﬀee House location is at 196 West Court St, Richland Center.

Grandma Mary’s Cafe (E5028 US-14, Spring Green) has oﬃcially transitioned to new owners following the retirement of longtime owner Mary Sawle at the end of 2024. Sawle, who operated the cafe for 28 years, expressed gratitude for the community’s support and shared fond memories of her time serving the area.

The new owners, Desa and Abdi Nuredini, originally from North Macedonia, bring years of restaurant industry experience to the cafe. They have assured customers that Grandma Mary’s Cafe will continue to oﬀer the same delicious food, warm atmosphere, and community spirit that made it a beloved local favorite.

The cafe is open Tuesday through Sunday, with hours as follows: Tuesday–Thursday: 7 a.m.–1 p.m.; Friday: 7 a.m.–7 p.m.; Saturday–Sunday: 7 a.m.–1 p.m.; Closed Mondays For more information about Grandma Mary’s Cafe, visit www.grandmamaryscafe.com.

In Brief

Plain Clinic gets new APNP Natalie Hanson

Sauk Prairie Healthcare has announced the addition of Natalie Hanson, APNP, to its Plain Clinic. Hanson, an advanced practice nurse prescriber, will work alongside Dr. Jeﬀrey Collins to provide a range of healthcare services to patients in the area, as well as increase appointment availability for new patients.

Hanson, originally from Richland Center, completed her nursing degrees at Southwest Tech, Viterbo University, and Edgewood College. Her areas of interest include family medicine, preventative care, pediatrics, geriatrics, and same-

day care.

“Plain Clinic is close to home, and I like the hometown feel and being able to provide care in a small town,” said Hanson. “The team and Dr. Collins make it a very warm and welcoming clinic.”

To schedule an appointment with Hanson, call Plain Clinic at 608-546-4211.

For more information about Sauk Prairie Healthcare, visit www.saukprairiehealthcare.org.

Richland Hospital seeks community input for 2025 health assessment

The Richland Hospital and Clinics has announced the launch of its 2025 Community Health Needs Assessment to evaluate local health services and address unmet needs. As part of the process, TRHC is conducting an anonymous community survey available in English and Spanish starting Jan. 9 at RichlandHospital.com. Residents and business leaders are encouraged to participate by Feb. 7, 2025.

The assessment aims to build on insights from the 2019 and 2022 CHNAs by identifying progress and highlighting new or evolving health concerns

in the Richland County area. Findings from the survey will guide TRHC in shaping healthcare delivery and addressing community priorities.

In addition to the survey, TRHC will host a CHNA Town Hall on March 20, 2025, from 5 to 6:30 p.m., where community members can discuss ﬁndings and share feedback.

The Richland Hospital and Clinics has served the area for over 100 years, operating a critical access hospital in Richland Center and rural health clinics in Spring Green and Muscoda.

Reﬂections from Lost Horizon Farm — The Horses (Part 2)

Each edition, retired dairy farmer Barb Garvoille brings her musings on dairy farm life from her own years of experience on Lost Horizon Farm with her late husband Vince “Mr. Farmer” Garvoille. This mooving memoir focuses on 1980-2000, join Barb as she rises with the herd.

Isabelle and Simon Isabelle and Simon were rescue horses bought oﬀ the kill line at a horse auction by a northern Wisconsin charitable foundation seeking to provide permanent homes for unwanted horses.

Simon, a 4 year-old Standardbred, had been an Amish buggy horse. He came with both front legs that had been recently pin ﬁred. Pin ﬁring was a somewhat controversial remedial procedure in which the leg tendon was burned in several places with a hot iron in an attempt to create scar tissue that might strengthen a damaged leg.

Isabelle was a 26 year-old black Percheron mare who only had white markings on her hair coat in places where her work harness had rubbed. She was seriously underweight when she was rescued.

To ensure that the rescues found a good home, the foundation required photographs of the adopter's facilities as one of the criteria for allowing anyone to adopt an animal. Because we had erected a set of steel horse panels to form a spacious box stall in one bay of the machine shed, and we had seeded down and fenced an acre of pasture adjacent to the horse bay, our "horse house"and adjoining ﬁeld passed muster. We had driven to the rescue foundation to select

a horse. Isabelle immediately caught our attention. She was way oﬀ by herself in a horse pasture. Her head was hanging nearly to the ground, and she looked very sad indeed. As we were stroking and talking to her, Simon came up right behind Mr. Farmer and followed him all around the pasture. Simon had chosen us, and that was why we paid for and adopted two horses instead of one.

The afternoon the horses were to arrive at the farm, we received a call from the trucker we had hired. His horse trailer's hitch had completely sheared oﬀ as he was making a turn in a small town northwest of Lost Horizon Farm. Luckily, because the turn had been extremely sharp, the trucker had been going very slowly when his hitch broke. Simon and Isabelle were stopped dead in a trailer that had dropped forward at a 30 degree angle. Fortunately, neither horse was injured, and when Mr. Farmer arrived to take them home in our cattle trailer, both horses were tied outside the broken trailer. A crowd of townspeople had gathered on the highway by this time, so Mr. Farmer, the cow man, had an audience when he undertook the unfamiliar task of loading

The Sauk County Gardener

“God never gives someone a gift they are not capable of receiving.”

— Pope Francis

I went into my work oﬃce today and saw a very sad Poinsettia on my boss’ desk. It was dry and the leaves were all curled up. I gave it a good watering, making sure it didn’t remain standing in water, in the hopes that I might revive the plant for her. She had received it as a gift and just isn’t a plant person. She has no clue how to care for it and even if she did know, she doesn’t really have the time to care for it. Don’t let this happen to you if you wish to give someone a lovely gardening gift. Before you select a gardening gift for someone, make sure you pick something appropriate for their level of skill or interest in gardening. If the person on your list has expressed an interest in garden-

Winter Houseplant Care

“Plants want to grow; they are on your side as long as you are reasonably sensible.”

— Anne Wareham

Over the holidays, my husband and I visited the Tucson, AZ area. It was an amazing visit, but I must say, I wouldn’t want to garden there. The common garden theme throughout the area was cactus, lots and lots of cactus. However, with our extended absence, I was kind of wishing I had more cacti as houseplants because some of mine were drier than I expected. Luckily, houseplants typically need less water in the winter so only a few were truly unhappy. Keeping houseplants happy in the winter requires you to keep a few things in mind –indoor temps, light, water, and fertilizing.

horses. Alyson, who had read about all things equine, quietly reminded her Dad that the heavier horse is always loaded to the inside (driver’s side) of a trailer.

Both Simon and Isabelle were very steady about being loaded up and subsequently unloaded at the farm given the long step backwards and then downwards that had to be made from a cattle trailer versus a horse trailer.

With rest, Simon's legs had completely healed, and he regained the beautiful trotting style of a Standardbred. Isabelle's condition, both mental and physical, was transformed at her new home. Both horses lived on Lost Horizon Farm as great pasture buddies and thrived in a retirement where they had no work and lots of loving attention. In addition, they received outstanding veterinary care from a traveling horse vet (Though small in stature, she stood tall in her understanding of horses!). Their hooves were tended to by a farrier whose vocation was ﬁne art. What a bonus for this farm family! We could talk about and exchange books with the well-read equine veterinarian and discuss art with our farrier.

Barb has called Lost Horizon Farm, just north of Spring Green, her home for the past 45 years. She is fond of all creatures (including snakes). Her joy stems from being able to be outdoors every day observing and treasuring the plant and animal life on her small piece of this planet. She loved milking cows and is proud to have been a dairy farmer.

ing or is just starting out, consider gifting them relatively low-maintenance inhouse plants such as monsteras, pothos, ZZ plants, or peperomia plants. Others that can be relatively forgiving and easy to keep alive include peace lilies, air plants, and snake plants. This will help develop a love of gardening.

If the person you would like to give a plant has small children or pets, it’s nice to avoid plants toxic to children or pets. Some popular holiday houseplants that are also toxic include amaryllis, mistletoe, and poinsettia. Others that are sometimes forced as bulbs include daﬀodils and hyacinth. Instead of these, consider giving Christmas or Thanksgiving cactus, African violets, hoyas, or moth orchids. You may have a person on your list that likes plants but suﬀers from allergies such as mold, dust, and pollen. Some plants even cause contact dermatitis. Here is a list of some good plants to consider for

For most of us, our average indoor temps of 65 - 75 degrees Fahrenheit during the day and 60 - 65 degrees at night are adequate for most houseplants. Houseplants just don’t like temperature extremes so try and keep them away from doors that get opened frequently or drafty windows. They also don’t like heat vents, ﬁreplaces, and other sources of blasting heat waves.

Just like with temperature, location is key for optimal light. In the winter, your southern and eastern windows will be typically best for light. If you don’t have good southern/eastern exposure, consider adding grow lights to those plants that have higher light requirements. Water is another important consideration. I water my plants once a week as it’s easier for me to remember if it’s part of my regular schedule. However,

those with indoor allergies: aloe, snake plants, spider plants, golden pothos, dragon trees, or ZZ plants. Ones to avoid include English ivy (because of the sap), African violets (because their fuzzy leaves collect dust and pollen), and rubber trees (because they contain latex and can cause a reaction by those allergic to latex.)

If you’re unsure of the lighting the person has that you are giving the plant to, try and find a plant that doesn’t have very specific lighting needs. Instead, choose plants that can grow in both bright and low light. For example, indoor citrus trees are lovely indoors, but they need bright light to thrive. I have my calamondin (hybrid citrus fruit that looks like a little mandarin orange with a sweet peel and a sour bite) and my Meyer lemon in my south-facing window to get the best possible light. African violets, hoyas, peace lilies, peperomia, snake plants and ZZ plants are very tolerant of different

I still need to remember my plants tend to need less water during the winter. A schedule is nice but check your plant’s soil ﬁrst before watering. For most houseplants, water only when the ﬁrst top inch of soil is dry. If you acquired a plant that you haven’t raised before, research how much water that plant typically needs. I have some orchids, and they require very little water each week.

The Saguaro cactus I brought back from Tucson only needs a tablespoon of water per month. I’ll deﬁnitely have to put that on a schedule to make sure I don’t overwater it. No matter what, do not leave your plants in standing water for an extended period of them. Dump their saucers of excess water.

Running a humidiﬁer near your houseplants is helpful as most of our home’s air is drier than what houseplants

lighting.

Consider the person’s lifestyle or interests. If they love to cook, indoor herbs are a very thoughtful gift. Succulents are nice if the person is away from home a lot or is very busy that watering may not be top of mind. Or, if the giftee loves outdoor gardening or is simply a well-seasoned gardener, consider purchasing some of your favorite garden seeds, bulbs, or plants for planting next spring. Of course, you can always consider gardening gloves (I lose or wear out several pairs every season), a really nice hand pruner, gift certiﬁcates to their favorite nursery, or even bags of compost or potting soil. Just think of the fun you’d have with seeing if they could guess your gift of compost.

No matter what plant gift you give, it’s the thought that counts. Taking a little time to consider their interests and gardening level makes the gift even more thoughtful.

like. Grouping your plants closely together can help increase the humidity level around them. You can also set your plants in trays ﬁlled with pebbles or rocks. Add just enough water to the tray so the roots are not in the water.

As for fertilizing, you can hold oﬀ (or at least reduce) until your plants are actively growing again. During the winter months, their growing slows down or they rest. Most houseplants will start growing again in early spring. Extra things to do include removing dead leaves and watching for any insect or disease problems and treating prompting. Following these simple recommendations will help keep your houseplants happy and you occupied until its warm enough for outdoor gardening. It will be time soon enough.

Jeannie Manis, Wisconsin Certiﬁed Master Gardener

The Perfect Gift

Jeannie Manis, Wisconsin Certiﬁed Master Gardener

Barb Garvoille, Columnist

Barb Garvoille

Photo contributed by Barb Garvoille Simon was a rescued Standardbred gelding.

Photo contributed by Barb Garvoille Isabelle was an aged rescue Clydesdale cross.

The Sauk County Gardener

“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.”

— C.S. Lewis

With 2024 wrapped up, it’s time for my annual review of last year’s gardening resolutions and creation of my 2025 gardening resolutions. It’s easy to come up with grand ideas when my gardens are currently covered in snow so I can’t see what I didn’t get done this past summer. However, as I review last year’s resolutions, I realize I need to scale back a bit on my grand ideas as I didn’t accomplish as many as I had hoped. I’m still going to make some New Year’s resolutions because to me they are a list of things I want to improve and any eﬀort I exert is better than doing nothing at all.

Once again, one of my resolutions is to plant something new. Last year I was going to grow some cover crops and didn’t get it done. I feel my vegetable gardens could really beneﬁt from a year of cover crops. We have some late-

summer travel planned for 2025 and having a couple beds planted with cover crops to add nutrients back into the soil instead of planted with something that has to be harvested will be a win-win for me. The previous year my daughter, daughter-in-law and my daughter-inlaw’s mother all came and picked my abundant tomato crop when we went to Alaska. We had so many tomatoes that it took them a couple hours to pick them every couple days. I don’t want to have to ask them to do that again. (However, next year is supposed to be the season to grow tomatoes for spaghetti sauce so I’m not quite sure how I’m going to manage this.)

As we have those late summer travel plans, this next resolution should be an easy one. I plan to really only plant what we will eat; speciﬁcally, by minimizing the quantity of plants we grow. I always overplant and end up with more than we can eat. In most cases, I freeze extra for the winter and then share the rest with family and friends. However, with our travel plans, I would most likely

Wandering the Driftless

Beavers (Castor canadensis) are amazing animals. Like humans, they modify their environment to improve their chances of survival. Their large, orange incisors are used to cut down trees used for food and construction projects. Beavers use trees and mud to build dams across streams to provide a pond with ample water depth for an underwater entrance to their home, called a lodge.

The beaver lodge may be built in the middle of the pond from mud and sticks or may simply be a tunnel dug into a bank along the edge of the pond. In either case, a platform above the water line provides a place for the beavers to rest and raise their young. The underwater entrance keeps most predators from entering the lodge.

The beaver family, or colony, spends the day within the confines of the lodge. They leave the lodge under cover of darkness to check the dam for any leaks that need fixing and to cut trees for food and any construction that needs to be done. Beavers feed on the bark of the trees that they cut. They remove the bark much like humans eat corn on the cob. They hold a cut twig with the five fingers on each front foot, rotating the twig as the incisors remove the bark.

The ﬁrst portion of a beaver’s large intestine is a pouch called a cecum. This pouch contains microorganisms that provide the enzymes required to digest woody bark. They will eat leaves and both aquatic and terrestrial vegetation to supplement their diet. Beaver droppings are inch sized pellets composed of wood chips. This diet allows beavers to grow rapidly. The largest beaver caught in Wisconsin weighed 110 lbs!

An adult beaver will normally weigh 40 to 50 lbs and have webbed rear feet the size of an out-stretched human hand. The adults mark territory around their pond with a product called castor, which is produced by a gland. This warns other beavers that the territory is occupied. Beavers also have an oil gland. The oil is combed into their fur using a special, split toe-nail on each rear foot. The oil repels water and helps to trap an insulating layer of air against the beaver’s skin, protecting the animal from hypothermia in cold water.

Beavers do not hibernate, but remain

have to ask a number of folks to help harvest my garden and I don’t want to impose that much on their time. Another resolution I have is to plant more vegetables in containers for easy access from our deck. Last year, I planted a dozen large containers with a mixture of vegetables and ﬂowers to demonstrate that vegetables and ﬂower combinations can be quite lovely. I discovered that if the containers are fertilized more regularly than my garden beds and have consistent water, I can get a nice crop of just about everything that is planted. I struggled this past summer with rabbits eating my beans but luckily, I had three plants in one of my containers. With regular picking, I had enough to have two to three meals a week for about six weeks. I didn’t have enough for canning, but I was still able to enjoy fresh green beans. This is also a great gardening technique to better develop as I age, as it makes my “gardens” much more accessible.

Finally, I resolve to take more time to

simply enjoy our many perennial beds. Some are in need of being “thinned” and moved around a bit, but they are still quite stunning. I want to try and see more of the flowers, versus the weeds that need to be pulled. I think every gardener struggles with this. I hope you take this time to reflect on last year’s resolutions and make some new ones for this year. Also, please take time to appreciate everything you have accomplished. No matter what you decide to do, big or small, find something that will help your gardening skills continue to grow. Happy New Year!

This article is written by Jeannie Manis, a Wisconsin Certiﬁed Sauk County Master Gardener Volunteer. If you have any gardening questions, please contact the Extension Sauk County by emailing to trripp@ wisc.edu or calling the University of Wisconsin Madison Division of Extension Sauk County oﬃce at 608355-3250.

active all winter. This requires that beavers prepare for cold temperatures that will have them locked under a layer of ice for several months. Each fall the colony works feverishly to store food for the winter. Branches are cut and dragged to the pond where they are anchored in the mud near the lodge. The resulting feed pile will be the colony’s food for the winter.

Each member of the colony will leave the lodge daily and head to the feed pile. A branch will be chewed loose on top, where it is frozen in the ice, pulled out of the mud on the bottom of the pond and taken back to the lodge, where the bark is eaten. The members of the colony will starve to death if the feed pile does not last until the spring thaw.

The cutting of trees (and sometimes corn stalks) and backing up of stream waters often has beavers eventually “wearing out their welcome”. This is when I get a call. I am a beaver trapper!

I got a call early in the fall from a friend that owns property in western Richland County. Beavers had dammed up the trout stream running through his property, making access to a portion of the property diﬃcult. I told him I would check it out and do what I could to remove them.

Mid-December found myself and two friends standing on the edge of the beaver pond forming a plan. I was wearing chest waders, making me the “water guy”. The others would set traps, cut wire and hand me what ever I needed to get the traps set. We were using large “body grip” traps that kill the animals very quickly. We made four sets and made plans to check them the next day.

I am sure some are asking: “Why don’t you live trap the beavers and relocate them?” The reality is, while they do make live traps speciﬁcally for beavers, they are very expensive, large and diﬃcult to use. In addition, once I have a live beaver captured, where would I release it? Most landowners would not be happy if they found me releasing animals on their property.

The trip to the beaver pond the next day was ﬁlled with excited talk and laughter. It is said that each day checking traps is like Christmas morning for a trapper. You never know what “presents” your eﬀorts will deliver. We were not disappointed. Each trap

held an animal. Three beavers and a muskrat were removed from the traps and the traps were re-set. The excitement continued on the trip back to my house for the skinning and butchering.

All four animals were skinned, with the hides placed in the freezer. They will either be sold or tanned to be made into hats, vests or mittens. Beaver fur is extremely warm and garments made with it will last a lifetime if cared for properly. Castoreum, the product of the castor glands is used to make expensive perfumes. Dried castor glands sell for $50$75 per pound.

The beavers were also butchered for their meat. The meat is tender and beeflike and provides a bonus to the fur. I once made an entire roaster of beaver stew for a high school class of twelve students. I planned on serving the leftovers in the teacher’s room. The teachers were out of luck, as the students ate all of it. One young lady ate three bowls! Trapping is not for everyone, but is important in controlling many wildlife species. You are guaranteed to learn much about nature while trapping. Check the Department of Natural Resources web-

site for information on rules, seasons, training opportunities and licensure.

John Cler is a retired High School Science Teacher and Principal residing in Richland Center. He is an avid hunter, trapper, ﬁsher and nature nut. He currently chairs the Richland County Deer Advisory Council and the Richland County Delegation of the Wisconsin Conservation Congress.

Jeannie Manis, Wisconsin Certiﬁed Master Gardener

2025 Garden Resolutions

John Cler, Columnist

Beavers

Photo contributed by John Cler Trapping assistants Wyatt Gundlach (L) and Jerry Lynch(R) with three beavers and a muskrat.

Photo contributed by John Cler The incisors on a beaver require constant use to remain sharp.

An Outdoorsman’s Journal

Mark Walters, Columnist

Hello friends,

When I hit send on this column, I will be getting into my truck along with Ruby and Red and heading to the state of Mississippi for what seems to be an annual deer and (hopefully) hog hunting and camping trip. This week I am summing up the year 2024 and in all honestly, for myself, it was the busiest of all 63 years that I have walked this planet.

In January of last year, right after my daughter Selina graduated from UWSP I helped move her to Missoula, Montana. Selina took a job as a biologist for the USFWS and listening to what she does on a daily basis would make anyone a wiser person. Without biologists, this planet would be in bigger trouble than it already is.

On the Selina end of things, she traveled to Wisconsin 3 times, and I headed out to Montana in August and again in October. I love that part of the country and really enjoy elk hunting, even if no elk are harvested.

In 2024 I drove to Montana 3 times as well as Canada and Mississippi once each. The GMC Hotel is broke in.

NOAC is Necedah Outdoor Adventure Club, and we are part of the Necedah School District. I am the president and cofounder and in 24 months, we have created a very cool beach with a picnic area an ice-skating rink with lights and are currently building a disk golf course that is going to kick butt. Every 2 or 3 weeks I put out a message on

Necedah’s local Facebook page and that is a large part of how we have come up with our finances that it takes to build everything that we have created.

About all I can say is this, use Facebook like we have, create a group of get it done people and every community could have its own version of NOAC.

KAMO, I am still the president of KAMO, Kids And Mentors Outdoors and our group of 6 chapters is simply on fire right now in a very positive way as in getting kids outside. Covid set us back during covid, but that is in the past. Check KAMO out at www. kamokids.org. If interested, we will help start a chapter in your neck of the woods.

Lake Matilda is named after Michelle Chiaro who was an incredible human being and a lady that made me dream big dreams. Michelle passed away unexpectedly on 6-15-22 and that has about crushed me. A person has to plow forward, and I built a pond in my front yard and named it after Matilda as that was my nickname for her. I put over 350 hours of hard labor into it in 2023 and again this past warm season. Lake Matilda is pretty much built and stocked with perch and next will be crappie and a few walleye.

I cannot describe how much I love Matilda, especially since it is 40-feet out my front door.

My gardening, cattle raising, and heating with wood are a way of life for me, physical, time consuming and fulfilling. It keeps me worn out but I can’t/won’t stop.

This job, I am now into my 63rd winter walking this planet and

traveling on an almost weekly basis with a budget less that the average Kwik Trip employee’s pay. It really is crazy between the go, go, go and no you cannot buy that attitude that I must live with.

I have come to realize that if you were viewing me with a drone, from the time my feet hit the floor each morning, until the time I take them off the floor, I am moving at a faster pace than the average human.

Matilda is built, my easy season which used to start the day after deer gun, starts when I get back from the trip that I am about to leave for and lasts until April.

This job is very much of my identity and some day, I will go every other week and after that I will retire.

For now I have miles to drive, hopefully hogs to kill and campfires to laugh around.

Shop local and thank your paper’s management for running this column.

Sunset

Want to read more?

Check out previous weeks’ columns at www.outdoorsmansjournal.com

Follow along the adventures of Mark Walters, a syndicated outdoor adventure columnist who lives in Necedah, Wisconsin. He began writing his column, An Outdoorsman’s Journal, in 1989. It includes hunting, fishing, lots of canoeing and backpacking. He currently writes for around 60 newspapers. He hopes you enjoy reading about his adventures!

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Photo contributed by Mark Walters Lake Matilda creates a pleasant view out Mark Walters’ window and is a very relaxing place to hang out.

2024, A Year on the Run!

Photo contributed by Mark Walters

This 23 inch stream run brown trout was Mark Walters’ biggest yet.

Photo contributed by Mark Walters

Mark Walters’ good friends Doug Cibulka (left) and Jeff Moll (right) both retired this year.