Volume One 02/24/2022

Owner

Publisher

Creative Director

Nick Meyer nick@volumeone.org

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Editorial + Content

MANAGING EDITOR

Tom Giffey tom@volumeone.org

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ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Rebecca Mennecke rebecca@volumeone.org

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ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Parker Reed parker.reed@volumeone.org

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ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Sawyer Hoff sawyer.hoff@volumeone.org

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LISTINGS EDITOR

James Johonnott james@volumeone.org

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Advertising + Digital Marketing

MEDIA STRATEGY DIRECTOR

Brian Maki brian@volumeone.org

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MEDIA STRATEGIST

Jake Smith jake.smith@volumeone.org

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Video + Photo + Design

VIDEO & PHOTO DIRECTOR

Joel Pearish joel@volumeone.org

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WEB DEVELOPMENT & DESIGN

Don Ross don@volumeone.org

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GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Taylor McCumber taylor@volumeone.org

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GRAPHIC DESIGNER Hleeda Lor hleeda@volumeone.org

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PHOTOGRAPHER

Andrea Paulseth andrea@volumeone.org

Retail + Gallery

LOCAL STORE DIRECTOR

Lindsey Quinnies lindsey@volumeone.org

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LOCAL STORE STAFF

Jada Evans + Maggie Israel + Bonni

Knight + Taylen Lundequam + Tasha

Nelson + Matt Novacek + Lydia Park +

Soren Staff + Megan Troia + Rylee Herr + Tatiana Broses

Office + Distribution

OFFICE MANAGER / BOOKKEEPER

Andy Norrish andy@volumeone.org

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DISTRIBUTION DRIVERS

Tom Jannusch + Matt Novacek + Daniel Wewusson

THE CHIPPEWA VALLEY’S LEADING INDEPENDENTLY OWNED COMMUNITY VOICE

Staff Notes

Volume One Adds a Permanent New Kids & Family Section

WE’RE HAPPY TO REPORT since we re-designed, re-focused, and re-launched Volume One just – both in print and online – over a year ago, that readership and interest has surged as the community emerges from the pandemic. In particular, print copies of Volume One are in demand on newsstands now more than ever. As we’ve mentioned, to help meet this interest, we’ve returned to our two-week print publication schedule, while daily publication continues online at VolumeOne.org.

Along with the increased schedule, we’re now choosing to enhance V1’s editorial content further by launching a new, permanent “Kids” section inside each issue of Volume One. The section will feature content on local family activities, attractions, schools, educational programming, parenting, and more. This means instead of producing our stand-alone Chippewa Valley Family publication six times per year, that there will instead be more robust

kid- and family-specific content in the majority of Volume One’s 26 issues each year, as well as online at VolumeOne. org, and in our existing family-specific email list and social media channels.

This change will make our family content more timely and relevant, as well as elevate it – along with related sponsors and advertisers – to more people than ever before. Plus, all the best recurring features of Chippewa Valley Family will now be incorporated into Volume One’s annual calendar of community coverage.

This is great for families – parents, grandparents, and caregivers of all kinds – but it also offers a number of dynamic partnership opportunities for local organizations interested in the family-focused market of the Chippewa Valley. If you’d like to learn more about any of these partnership or advertising opportunities, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our team at advertising@volumeone. org or call (715) 552-0457.

V1 Online

VOLUMEONE.ORG

Exclusive online content and digital goodness await you at VolumeOne.org. Visit our website for our robust online events calendar, videos, interactive content, comments, discussion, and much much more.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Our social media feeds are filled to the brim with breaking news,exclusivecontent,timely promotions, visuals, videos, and more fun stuff. Across platforms, Volume One brings the best stuff right to your feed.

EMAIL NEWSLETTERS

Stay up-to-date, discover cool events, and learn about promotions, giveaways, and so much more by signing up for our email newsletters. There are seven different lists, sign up at VolumeOne.org.

About Us

Volume One is the leading locally owned, locally operated, and locally focused media organization in our market. We’re a collection of print and online publications; a video, design, and digital marketing company;aneventproductionandticketing company; and a mission-driven retail operation. In print we typically distribute 13,000 copies to 500+ locations in Eau Claire, Menomonie, Chippewa Falls, and other communities 26 times/year. Online at VolumeOne.org we garner nearly 5 million annual page views, have aweekly email network of more than 30,000 people, and we connect daily with another 30,000 on social media. The magazine was co-founded in 2002 by Dale Karls & Nick Meyer.

Memberships + Subscriptions

You can support Volume One with a membership, subscription, or by shopping at The Local Store. Visit VolumeOne.org/membership for options, or call (715) 552-0457. For annual subscriptions of 26 issues and special publications, mail a check for $65 (covering postage) to the address above.

Advertising Info

For information about ad rates & sizes in print or online, or about digital marketing including email, video, or social media and more, email: advertising@volumeone.org or call (715) 552-0457.

Partner Content

Volume One occasionally partners with local organizations to create content in print and online that may be of interest to thousands of readers throughout the Chippewa Valley and beyond. Articles or videos created “in partnership” are sponsored by thepartneringorganizationandmaybecreated with their assistance or expertise, for informationaland/orpromotionalpurposes. Any content created in this way – which comprises less than 2% of the pages Volume One publishes each year – will always include “Partner Content” indication.

Contributors + Submissions

If you’d like to become an occasional or regular contributor, please email tom@ volumeone.org.Thereareopportunitiesfor paid writing, photography, and cover art, though most contributions are unpaid. We also welcome the submission of ideas or completed works from the community for publication consideration.

Internships

Internships are available for a number of excitingandinterestingpositionsincluding writing/editing, photography, sales/marketing, illustration, and more. Contact us to learn more.

© 2022

Contributedwriting,artwork,andphotography in Volume One remains the property of the authors, artists, & photographers. The opinionsexpressedherearenotnecessarily those of the publication or its advertisers.

FROM VOLUME ONE PUBLISHER NICK MEYER

Contributors

EVA PAULUS is unfortunatelyobligated to endure the consequences of her own actions.

SAWYER HOFF tried curling for the first time and realized how hard it is… plus everything hurts. EDITOR

PARKER REED is basking in his newfound fame. EDITOR

is happy that all structures are impermanent.

+ CARLEE SHIMEK subscribes to the Matrix theory that we are living in a simulation, in the hopes that she can hack the system and get superpowers.

+ THOMAS DELAPP is torn: impatient for a warm spring, yet not ready to put his sweaters away.

JARED CHOATE thinks there’s nothing cornea than optometry humor.

MIKE PAULUS isn’t one for complaining. He’s more like ten. WRITER

WRITER

BARBARA ARNOLD is channeling polar bears. WRITER

BEN THEYERL does in fact how to score curling, and yes! He’d be happy to tell you. WRITER

+ MICHAEL BEHRENDS once played a guitar with his teeth in front of a packed bar in Iowa and no one bothered to tell him how cool it looked afterwards.

* SAMANTHA KOBS didn’t intend to eat that entire half-gallon of Olson’s Ice Cream, but here we are. WRITER

SPECIAL SHOUT OUTS:

+ NEW CONTRIBUTOR | * BIO OF THE FORTNIGHT

On The Cover

“Deutsch Family Farm” by Joe Maurer •

From the artist: “ The image-making process started by looking backward. Working on Midwestern newspapers from the wartime 1940s, I noted a technique was used to preserve the papers in wax. The intermingling of paint, wax, and newsprint creates a tension between the past and present, field and ground. The ground became a palimpsest. In this way, time and space are fluid in the depicted landscape. Analogously, many techniques of farming have modernized or changed, but the scale of the farm still represents one of the major factors in rural quality of life in Wisconsin.”

Sarah Ryan, Matthew Morgan, Mark Oliver

PHOTO BY MARK OLIVER

Localphotographer Mark Oliver was up and at ’em on Feb. 7 before the sunrise for a drive in the Eau Claire countryside, capturing this photo of a wintertime tree, devoid of leaves.

Thoughts

SUCKER PUNCHES TO THE FACE

LEARNING PERSISTENCE, ONE BLOW TO THE SCHNOZ AT A TIME words

I HAVE NEVER BEEN DRAWN TO SPORTS INVOLVING BUSTED NOSES OR BLOODY KNUCKLES. I believe in participation ribbons and doing your best. But like many people, I also have deep-seated anger stemming from god-knowswhere. And sports have always been a great outlet.

Contrary to my personality, I’d been watching the social media account of Savage Fit Box for months wondering whether or not I could survive in a boxing gym. I couldn’t name a single MMA or UFC fighter.

In fact, my understanding of combat sports was limited to a few ’90s megastars, like Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Undertaker. But there was a flicker of hope somewhere deep inside, telling me that maybe that didn’t really matter.

Eventually, I took a leap of faith. “Should I join a boxing gym?” I asked Google. Within seconds, I was engrossed in a Reddit fitness thread.

“Just do it,” posted someone by the name of Artima.

But then I found the words that I’d really needed to hear from a user named Winsling: “The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The sec-

YOGA STUDIOS ARE FOR PEOPLE WHO LOVE ADJUSTING THEIR CHAKRAS (WHATEVER THAT MEANS), CROSSFIT GYMS ARE FOR PEOPLE WHO CAN DO PULL-UPS WITHOUT CRYING, AND 24/7 ACCESS GYMS ARE MOSTLY JUST FRAT BOYS TAKING MIRROR SELFIES.

ond best time is today.”

Certainly, I could still plant the seed at age 30.

The day I first stepped foot into the gym, I entered with caution. To my surprise, it was strangely gym-like. No folding chairs being smashed over people’s heads. No ears being bitten off. Just well-structured classes and an encouraging atmosphere – even for rookies like myself.

There was something special about this gym. I have tried out my fair share of gyms over the years, but never before had I felt like I just fit in. Yoga studios are for people who love adjusting their chakras (whatever that means), CrossFit gyms are for people who can do pull-ups without

crying, and 24/7 access gyms are mostly just frat bros taking mirror selfies.

But this gym was kinda like Over the Top meets The Breakfast Club – disparate misfits in spandex just punching stuff and laughing through it all, from the middle-school girl who could totally beat me up, to the retiree in his mid-70s. We all sort of belonged there.

Two days shy of my one-year gym anniversary, I dragged myself to a morning class. In a twist of bad luck, I was stuck sparring with the owner, Hector. Usually, you throw easy punches at your opponent for the sake of practicing movement. But sparring with the owner is not the same as sparring with another

gym member. He was quick as a wink and thirsty for blood. And because I’m mouthy, he decided he was going to put me through the wringer. No amount of Street Fighter experience would prepare me for this. I was a rookie on my way to certain death.

At first, he allowed me to simply practice as his body absorbed each pitiful punch. But eventually, he started throwing jabs right back at me. Then hooks. I was slipping, rolling, swinging wildly. Sweat dripped down my temples as I dodged each lethal blow that came my way. Right. Left. Duck. And then suddenly … BAM! A sucker punch straight to the nose. In reality, he’d only given me a little boop on the schnoz, but in the moment, it felt like I’d been bludgeoned by Mike Tyson himself.

As I made my way out to my car after class, I couldn’t help but notice the tingling sensation in my face. Once seated, I flipped down the visor mirror, staring at the most underwhelming bloody nose ever experienced. My first-ever bloody nose.

A slow smile spread across my flushed, post-workout face as I thought back to those wise words of Winsling and the Chinese proverb. I’d planted my tree, and the little bugger was thriving.

by samantha kobs • illustration by sarah ryan

3 THINGS WE LOVE Thoughts

EPIC FELINE RESCUES, ICE-FISHING, AND CAFFEINATION CRISES

THERE’S NOTHING WHOLESOME QUITE LIKE A CAT NAMED “BISCUIT,” especially one who was rescued by a service technician after this cold kitty was left in a frozen, cold farmhouse basement. According to Wiersgalla Plumbing & Heating Co., technician John Van Toll stumbled across Biscuit while working. John felt an instant connection to the feline friend, so he brought Biscuit home, where his family instantly fell in love too. Biscuit now lives in their fur-ever home. Find your own feline friend at any local shelter.

THE 9TH ANNUAL JIG’S UP ICE FISHING CONTEST WAS NICE, ICE, AND EVERYTHING ... FISHY? Contestents at the annual fishing contest proved a dedication to fishin’. An estimated 1,500 people bundled up to face the freezing temps on Lake Wissota at the Feb. 12 contest. Why? For some good ol’ fashioned Wisconsin fun –and a chance to win the event prizes, such as a two-year lease on a Ford F-150 or a fourwheeler. The only thing left out of this wholly Wisconsin shindig is Kwik Trip coffee.

Crunching The Numbers 129

Loomis’ place out of 47 finishers in the men’s Nordic combined large hill/10km competition at the Winter Olympics in Beijing Feb. 15. It was an Olympic personal best by Loomis, who was in his second Games.

3

SPEAKING OF KWIK TRIP COFFEE, HAVE YOU EVER WANTED TO DRINK PIPIN’ HOT coffee out of sand castle toys, a squirt gun, Wilson the volleyball, a porta potty, the teapot that Jim gave Pam, or even a guitar? Now is your chance. Kwik Trip said in early February that they are out of coffee cups across the country, apparently due to the theft of literally all of their cups by a rival gas station. The good news: You can refill your own cup (of any size) with coffee at any Kwik Trip location until cups are back in stock.

Eau Claire Native Ben Loomis’ 2022 Olympic Stats

12:52.3

The number of meters Loomis jumped during the team large hill4x5km event on Feb. 17 It was the longest jump of the day by am American

Loomis’ time in the second leg of the Nordic combined large hill/4x5km relay. Team USA’s combined course time was 51:09.1, second only to gold medal-winning Norway in the relay portion of the competition.

QUESTIONING THE LOCALS

FREE-WHEELIN’ DISCUSSION WITH LOCAL FOLKS

A

BELOVED LOCAL

MOVIE THEATER CHAIN BEGAN ITS STORY when Connie and Mike Olson met at a movie theater and fostered their love for the industry. The pair now coown Micon Cinemas, with two locations in Eau Claire and one in Chippewa Falls. Connie worked for UW-Eau Claire for 28 years as a typesetter, and since 2004 has devoted her life to providing a quality, fun, and friendly cinematic experience for Chippewa Valley movie lovers.

I LIKE SEEING WHAT’S BEEN DONE DOWNTOWN SINCE WE MOVED HERE. WITH THE AREA REVITALIZED, IT WILL BE INTERESTING TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS.

Connie’s Shoutouts

Name: Connie Olson

What aspect of Micon Cinemas are you most proud of? That there is a Micon Cinemas. Mike (husband and co-owner) and I met at a movie theater in Rice Lake and it was always our dream to come back to our home town and open our own theater. It took us almost 25 years, and it’s in Chippewa Falls, but we never gave up on that dream.

What’s the best culutural experience you’ve had in Eau Claire? I remember when I worked at the university and my kids were little, they had an International Day there and you could go around the main university building and taste different foods and see all these different cultures. It was the reason that my oldest daughter studied in Japan for a year.

What aspect of Micon Cinemas would you like to improve upon? We have recliners and VIP Lounges just like the big cities. Right now we’re working on bringing people back to our downtown location. It’s been a rough couple years there with building repairs and the shutdown for the pandemic. We don’t want to see our local downtown cinema disappear, so we’re working on ideas to keep it going.

What frustrates you about the Chippewa Valley? The lack of parking in downtown Eau Claire. That’s one of the issues our customers have there is finding a place that they can park for two-plus hours to see their movie. They don’t want to park blocks away, especially in the winter. Water Street or Downtown? Downtown. I like all the things they are doing to the downtown area to revitalize it.

What French word would I call Eau Claire? La Maison (at home).

OLSON’S ICE CREAM. The ice cream chain has called Chippewa Falls home for decades, and expanded into Eau Claire in 2019. It is one of the Chippewa Valley’s favorite hometown treats.

IRVINE PARK ZOO. With recent rennovations to their structures and grounds, Irvine Park Zoo in Chippewa Falls is a great place to spend time with family and connect with your inner child.

LOCAL MOVIE THEATERS. The pandemic hit the movie industry hard, with locallyowned theaters needing support from their communities to stay alive and afloat.

PHOTO BY ANDREA PAULSETH

Community

HOLY CAMOLE!

Wisconsinites of a certain age fondly remember an educational program called Storylords, which aired on public TV in the 1980s and early ’90s. What they may not realize is that the show was entirely created and performed by folks from UW-Stout and the Menomonie community. A new exhibit at the Rassbach Museum in Menomonie showcases original props, costumes, and photos from the magical show as well as interactive experiences. Learn more at dunnhistory.org.

Business

ELECTRIC DINGO? NO, IT’S NOT A BAND. IT’S A NEW VINTAGE SHOP. 18

PHOTO BY ANDREA PAULSETH

News

Cannery District Eyed for Senior Apartments

words by tom giffey

A MINNESOTA-BASED COMPANY

WILL NEGOTIATE WITH THE CITY OF EAU CLAIRE TO BUILD A FIVE-STORY APARTMENT COMPLEX in the Cannery District that would be aimed at residents aged 55-plus. On Feb. 16, the city’s Redevelopment Authority approved opening 90 days of negotiations between Silver Creek Equity and the city over a roughly 2.7-acre parcel known as The Heights on the north end of the Cannery District.

Silver Creek – which has invested in similar senior apartment complexes in Minnesota and Arkansas – approached the city with a desire to find a location in Eau Claire, said AaronWhite,thecity’seconomicdevelopment manager.Theproposedbuildingwouldinclude 136 units, most of them featuring one or two bedrooms, with some studio apartments

The apartments – known as Lake Place Eau Claire – would be aimed at empty-nesters and retirees, but wouldn’t provide assistedlivingamenities.Theprojectwouldinvolvean estimated investment of $26 million, he said. Most of the parking would be underground, and the development would feature outdoor amenities such has a community garden and pickleball courts

The proposal is one of several ongoing projects in the former industrial area that city planners have dubbed the Cannery District. On Feb. 14, the city’s Plan Commission approved a final site plan for the 260-unit Cannery District Apartments. Construction on that project is expected to start this year. A proposal for another parcel, the so-called Riverside Site, is expected to come before the RDA in March, White added, while other developers have expressed interest in the current site of Kessler Park.

SILVER WINS GOLD Eau Claire

SILVER SPRING FOODS HONORED FOR LOCAL ECONOMIC IMPACT

words by tom giffey

EAU CLAIRE-BASED SILVER SPRING FOODS

CAPPED OFF A BIG YEAR – which included hosting Wisconsin Farm Technology Days last summer – by winning the top award from the Eau Claire Area Economic Development Corp.

Silver Spring, which describes itself as the world’s largest grower and processor of horseradish, is the latest recipient of the EDC’s Paragon Award, which is given annually to a recipient deemed by fellow businesses to have had a major economic impact on the community.

In announcing the award, the EDC noted that in addition to hosting the statewide farm show – which drew an estimated 52,000 visitors last July –the company has recently expanded its production lines, entered new markets, and invested in its workforce.

Eric Rygg, the company’s president, said he was surprised to learn Silver Spring had been chosen for the award, whose past recipients have included community mainstays such as Royal Credit Union, CURT Manufacturing, Pablo Group, Jamf Software, and WIN Technology.

“We feel honored to be recognized within that group,” said Rygg, whose great-grandfather, Ellis Huntsinger, founded the company in 1929.

“Eau Claire is a special place for businesses and families, and we continue to dedicate ourselves to growing our company in a way that benefits our team members and our community,” he added.

In addition to its traditionally zingy horseradish, Silver Spring makes a variety of products, including specialty mustards (such as its new Everything Bagel and Stone Ground mustards) and sauces (including Wasabi, Sriracha, and Chipotle Ranch). While Silver Spring has a manufacturing plant in Pennsylvania and a farming operation in Minnesota, the majority of its workforce is here in Eau Claire.

“The Paragon Award is an opportunity to celebrate and recognize the economic impact that a company makes within our community,” said Luke Hanson, executive director of the Eau Claire Area EDC. “Silver Spring is a great example of how the Chippewa Valley is a great place to grow a business and thrive during a global pandemic. We are proud of Silver Spring’s business successes and humbled that they continue to call this area home.”

19 pandemic hit. Silver Spring had been planning to host Farm Tech Days that summer, but the event was rescheduled for July 2021 instead.

Meanwhile, like many manufacturers, Silver Spring has faced supply chain constraints and the challenge of maintaining a strong workforce.

“We’re doing what we can to build a resilient company that can take some shots in the market and not be as susceptible to what the market is doing,” he said.

WE’RE DOING WHAT WE CAN TO BUILD A RESILIENT COMPANY.

Among other things, the company is poised to begin a 37,000-squarefoot warehouse expansion act the original Huntsinger Farms property south of Eau Claire. Silver Spring is also planning other upgrades on the property, where it still grows horseradish roots in a five- to seven-year rotation with other crops such as corn and soybeans.

It’s been a busy few years for the company. After dealing with a nationwide horseradish shortage in 2019, Silver Spring bought a competitor, Michigan-based Brede Foods, in early 2020 in part to tap into Brede’s horseradish supply. The sale was announced just as the COVID-

Such crop rotation is important both to produce good products and to protect the viability of the land itself, Rygg said.

“We want to be around for another 90 years,” he explained.

Silver Spring will officially receive the Paragon Award at the EDC’s annual luncheon on Feb. 28 at Florian Gardens in Eau Claire. Learn more at www.eauclaire-wi.com/

–ERIC RYGG, PRESIDENT, SILVER SPRING FOODS

SUBMITTED PHOTO

HARVESTING HORSERADISH AT HUNTSINGER FARMS

THAT’S A WHOLE LOTTA’ CANDLES! E.C. Celebrates 150th Birthday in March

HAPPY

BIRTHDAY, EAU CLAIRE! IN A FEW SHORT WEEKS, THE CITY OF EAU CLAIRE WILL CELEBRATE ITS 150TH BIRTHDAY

– a milestone marking the date when three little logging villages on the banks of the Eau Claire and Chippewa rivers put on their big municipal pants and formed the City of Eau Claire. That happened way back on March 19, 1872, and to celebrate the city and several businesses and institutions – includingVolume One – are planning a variety of commemorations.The sesquicentennial celebration will kick off on Saturday, March 19, with a birthday party at the Chippewa Valley Museum in Carson Park, where residents will cometogethertocelebrateacenturyandahalfofhardwork,creativity,andtransformationthathavemadeEauClairewhatitistoday.

(To answer your first question: Yes, there will be cake!) A bit before that – on March 10 – Volume One will publish a special keepsake issue to celebrate our hometown’s 150th year. The issue will feature unique stories, photos, and designs, all commemorating the history of our people, our community, and the notable businesses that have stood the test of time and helped shape our story over the decades. Of course, the history of Eau Claire really goes back farther than 1872 – the settlement first sprouted decades earlier, and people have been in the Chippewa Valley for literally thousands of years – but 150 is a nice, round number, and that’s as good a reason as any to celebrate. Check out visiteauclaire.com/150th to learn more. –Tom

Giffey

Downtown Menomonie

LION’S LATEST ‘KLUNKER’ A RACE CAR

FOR THE PAST 60 YEARS, THE MENOMONIE LIONS CLUB HAS HELD ITS KLUNKER CONTEST, a fundraiser in which the Lions place a car on the ice of Lake Menomin and gather guesses about which day the car will fall through the ice. This tradition will continue in year 61, but with a bit more flare. Since 1961 the Lions have used a rundown car, dubbed a “Klunker,” for its annual fundraiser, but this year the club is using a racer instead of the usual vehicle. The yellow car was donated by Mars Race Cars, and the graphics were donated by Jige Graphics. “After flipping five to six times, and landing on the roll cage each time, the car was twisted where it’s not competitive, but the driver escaped without injury which is a testament to our race cars,” owner Jimmy Mars said. “However, it’s the perfect Klunker for the Lions Club.”Tickets are on sale for the Klunker Contest now, and money raised directly supports the club’s efforts. These projects include the Menomonie Lions Club Game Park, Lion Ted Wiehe Nature Trail, scholarships for Dunn County high school seniors, and much more. For more information on the 61st Annual Menomonie Lions Club Klunker Contest, visit menomonielions.org. –Parker Reed

Token Jewelry, ‘Sanctuary’ Mural Among Downtowny Award Honorees

THE BEST OF THE BEST THAT DOWNTOWN EAU CLAIRE HAS TO OFFER WERE HONORED FEB. 17 at the annual Downtowny Awards celebration at The Brewing Projekt. The honors, organized by Downtown Eau Claire Inc., highlight the individuals, organizations, and events that make downtown Eau Claire vibrant and unique. Several awards were selected based upon voting by the public. These include Favorite New Business and Favorite Downtown Business, both won by Token Jewelry; Most Impressive Glow Up to the“Sanctuary” mural on the side of The Fire House; Favorite Downtown Event to Volume One’s Sounds Like Summer Concert Series; and Best New Development to the L.E. Phillips Senior Center expansion. Other awards include Member of theYear toVisit Eau Claire, Outstanding Achievement to Brent Douglas Flowers, Event Partner of the Year to Olson’s Ice Cream, and Volunteer of theYear to Ann Sessions of the Chippewa Valley Theatre Guild. –Tom

Giffey

SUBMITTED PHOTO

SUBMITTED PHOTO

In The Mix Neighbors

THEY’VE GOT US COVERED

EVEN AMID BIG REMODELING PROJECT, PUBLIC LIBRARY IS CLOSE AT HAND

words by doug pearson

ABOUT LIBRARIES, ALBERT EINSTEIN SAID, “THE ONLY THING THAT YOU ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO KNOW, IS THE LOCATION OF THE LIBRARY.” Most residents of Eau Claire know where the London Square Mall was located. That’s where you go these days to find the Eau Claire public library. If you can’t walk, drive, or ride your bicycle, city Bus No. 6 will get you to the front door at 2725 Mall Drive.

This temporary location is necessary because, as many of us have kept watch in recent months, the downtown library is under reconstruction. It’s a busy place. Sometimes, 50 workers may be on site, working on drywall, plumbing and electrical, and the amazing array of geothermal units and pipes for the HVAC system. Online, you can watch Mike Shea, project manager for Market & Johnson, give an update as of this winter. Though you’ll probably never see the infrastructure of the building when you

Nonprofits

visit the renewed library, Shea’s video reveals a wall of steel units that comprise the geothermal mechanical room. After a brief look at the first floor and the new book drop, Shea shows off the dry-walled staff workplace in the basement. This renovation is going to provide a state-of-the-art location for finding books and more as part of the long-range vision for the building at its inception in the early 1970s (the current building opened in 1976). One day, planners surmised, the library will need more space – a third floor. One day, the library will do much more than provide books on shelves and a system for borrowing the books.

Local commitment is crucial to the success of public libraries. That has certainly been the case for the Eau Claire public library. But it is important to acknowledge the work of the Wisconsin Library Association. At about this time every year, WLA sponsors Library Legislative Day in Madison. (This year the event happened on Feb. 8.) The WLA presents a gen-

Soup-er Bowl Time: Annual Empty Bowls Fundraiser Returns With a New Twist

DIP YOUR SPOON INTO GOOD WILL AT THE 22ND ANNUAL EMPTY BOWLS FUNDRAISER, courtesy of Feed My People Food Bank, which takes a bite out of local hunger to tackle food insecurity throughout the Chippewa Valley by selling gift boxes containing locally handcrafted bowls. Sales from each ticket go toward meals for the hungry of the Chippewa Valley – a $20 ticket will help provide at least 80 meals to those in need, according to Feed My People communications specialist Susie Haugley. “One bowl may not seem like a lot,” Haugley said. “But when they’re all stacked together, the impact is huge.” This year, Empty Bowls teamed up with the Pablo Center at the Confluence and chef Steve Knowlton to create specialty recipies for the event. Each box includes a hand-made bowl, two exclusive recipes, access to a cooking video, and a locally sourced ingredient. The Empty Bowls fundraiser kicks off Feed My People’s 40th anniversary, and Haugley said it will be an important occasion to bring the community together and raise awareness. Empty Bowls will run March 1-3. For more info, visit the Empty Bowls website at give.fmpfoodbank.org. –Thomas

DeLapp

eral agenda to legislators and their staff, hoping to produce support for libraries across the state, including attention to public libraries, academic libraries, and school libraries. Libraries, like other public organizations and private entities, have struggled with two years of precautionary techniques that offer safe and secure ways of doing business. Many people have decided to wait it out, using the internet as the substitute for materials they usually found in the library. Some have taken advantage of the small “branch” libraries in the community. There are at least 15 Little Free Libraries in Eau Claire and probably another half dozen in Altoona. The take-a-book, leave-one concept was the idea, in 2009, of the late Todd H. Bol of Hudson. If you can’t get to the public library on Mall Drive, look for a Little Free Library near you. You’ll probably find something you always wanted to read – or something you know nothing about. That’s the adventure of libraries. Hang on. The L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library hopes to reopen downtown in the autumn of this year.

Doug Pearson is a professor emeritus of English at UW-Eau Claire and a longtime library supporter.

DRONE VIEW OF THE ONGOING CONSTRUCTION AT THE L.E. PHILLIPS MEMORIAL PUBLIC LIBRARY

LOCAL COMMITMENT IS CRUCIAL TO THE SUCCESS OF PUBLIC LIBRARIES.

PHOTO BY MARKET & JOHNSON

Diversity

The Bias Inside Us: Traveling Exhibit From the Smithsonian Hits the Pablo Center This Spring

words by sawyer hoff

WHEN IT COMES TO OUR INTERNAL BIASES, WE OFTEN DON’T THINK ABOUT WHY WE THINK THE WAY WE THINK. The Bias Inside Us exhibit shows us the science behind how we think, but –more importantly – it shows us how we can change our own preconceptions. The Bias Inside Us – an exhibit exploring the social psychology of implicit bias – is slated to be on display at the Pablo Center’s James W. Hansen Gallery between 10am and 2pm from Feb. 26 to March 27.

“Bias is an innate human trait, and we all have it,” said Laura Zelle, project manager for the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service. “Much of what goes on in our minds is automatic

without our conscious knowledge. So because you don’t have control over these firings, it can affect your preferences for people and groups. These preferences can be positive and negative, which can lead to prejudices.”

The Bias Inside Us first opened in the Science Museum in Minnesota and will travel throughout the Midwest in the coming months. The transportation, setup, and admission to the exhibit are all free and provided by The Smithsonian. “This is really about people coming in and learning how their brain works,” Zelle said. “It’s really a testament to the community in Eau Claire that brings this (here).

Women

They’re not backing away from the self-reflection piece.”

On March 1, an online discussion is slated about the book Biased: Uncovering the Hidden Prejudice that Shapes What We See, Think, and Do by Stanford University psychologist Dr. Jennifer Eberhardt. The discussion will explore the scientific basis of biases and how to change them. (Learn more about how to take part at tinyurl.com/ BiasedBookDiscussion.)

“This is a fantastic learning experience,” said Robin Miller, organizer and UW-Eau Claire professor. “We are so excited to be able to bring this experience to the community. It will be great for students.”

CELEBRATE SUFFRAGE WITH THIS PERFORMANCE

VOTES FOR WOMEN! IN CELEBRATION OF WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH IN MARCH,

THE CHIPPEWA

words by kathryn paulson

SIXTY-NINE MILLION INDIVIDUALS SUSTAIN

A BRAIN INJURY EACH YEAR AROUND THE GLOBE, according to a recent article in the Journal of Neurosurgery. The CDC estimates 2.8 million sustain a traumatic brain injury each year in the United States alone. This is a sobering thought.

Traumatic or acquired brain injury (TBI/ABI) may result from falls, auto accidents, abuse, strokes, tumors, or other medical conditions. This includes concussions. These injuries are often called the “Invisible Disability” by brain injury survivors and caregivers. Each brain injury is unique, but recovery methods can be shared no matter how the injury happened.

The Blugold Brain Injury Group is spreading the word that there is hope for healing and recovery in the Chippewa Valley and beyond. Led by Dr. Jerry Hoepner and student clinical speech languagepathologistsfromUW-EauClaire,BBIG advocates for increased knowledge and support for individuals and families affected by brain injuries. Group members know firsthand the strugglesoflivingandworkingwithabraininjury.

BBIG members share a wealth of knowledge, such as tips, techniques, and coping skills, both for the injured and their caregivers. The power of connectivity is so important; Survivors come together to face a real need and provide a meaningful opportunity for others to learn.

VOTE FOR WOMEN! A DRAMATIC READING • 6:30-8pm • Mabel Tainter Center for the Arts, Menomonie • FREE 3.3

VALLEY LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS will host a dramatic performance in collaboration with Eau Claire’s Women in Theater group at the Mabel Tainter Center for the Arts in Menomonie. The production will bring to life 10 of the prominent leaders of the U.S. suffragist movement – and four of those women had links to Wisconsin. One of those leading ladies, Carrie Chapman Catt from Ripon, was also a founding member of the National League of Women Voters. Established in 1920, six months before the ratification of the 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote, the League is still going strong today. Its purpose remains to educate all citizens on the importance of upholding and promoting democracy. It is a non-partisan organization. “With this performance, we want to inspire people to vote at every election,” said Annemarie McClellan, co-president of the ChippewaValley chapter of the League ofWomenVoters,“and consider other ways of getting involved, such as becoming a poll worker and keeping up with legislative changes. We’d like voters to understand how change – or lack of change – affects them locally.”The performance, slated from 6:30-8pm on Thursday, March 3, is free for the first 185 folks to arrive, and will be followed by a social hour with refreshments. Doors open at 6pm, and masks are required inside the theater. For more information about the performance – or about the organizations – visit lwv-gcv.org or ecwit.weebly.com. –Keely Khoury

BBIG members share the journey of finding and accepting the “new you.” They give support to making the best and right decisions for going back to employment or school, social and family issues, and adjusting a “new life” for everyone. Maybe most importantly, they work together on resiliency, humor, and advocating for the future.

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Downtown E.C.’s Calico Shoppe, Purple Petunia to Close Mid-March

words by sawyer hoff

GOODBYES ARE ALWAYS HARD, AND THAT’S NO DIFFERENT FOR TWO LONGTIME DOWNTOWN EAU CLAIRE BUSINESSES – The Purple Petunia and The Calico Shoppe – which will close this spring.

Lynn Goelzer opened The Calico Shoppe (214 S. Barstow St.) in 1993 to bring her love of quilting to Eau Claire by selling fabrics and related products. She opened The Purple Petunia next door nine years later, and since then the business has transformed into an iconic gift shop.

Though a final closing date hasn’t been set, Goelzer expects the stores to close midMarch and will be announcing the closing datewithinthenextcoupleofweeks.Theyare now offering closing sales in both stores.

Goelzer and her husband, Daniel, plan to travelaftertheyretiretovisittheirchildrenand grandchildren located across the U.S., and to enjoysomewell-deservedrelaxation.Buthave no fear – they aren’t leaving the area for good.

“We are just happy that we have been able to work downtown here,” Daniel said. “Downtown has been good for us and there’s a new owner of the building, so I’m sure there will be good things happening.”

The Calico Shoppe and The Purple Petunia

• 214 and 216 S. Barstow St., EauClaire • 715-834-9990 • calicoshoppe.com

GET ON THE RIGHT PATH

UWEC ALUMS START CARBON OFFSET CO. TO FUND REFORESTATION EFFORTS

words by sawyer hoff

WHEN IT COMES TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION, OFTENTIMES PEOPLE WANT TO GET INVOLVED but aren’t sure how. That’s where The Carbon Offset Company comes in.

The company, founded by a pair of Blugolds, works with individuals and companies to help neutralize the carbon emissions they create. Individuals can purchase a monthly or yearly subscription, or make a one-time purchase, which goes toward planting five trees a month

for $5 a month.

“Our idea is that they can continue doing business as they do it, without damaging the planet,” said Matt Kallstrom, who co-founded the business with Anthony Meshnick.

The founding duo met at UW-Eau Claire, then started The Carbon Offset Company in September 2020. The inspiration came from a comment by a hairstylist who said he wished he could plant one tree for each haircut he sold.

Business

GET A LOAD OF THESE LIGHTNING LOOKS AT ELECTRIC DINGO VINTAGE

WHEN WE STUDY HISTORY, IT’S USUALLY PEOPLE, PLACES, AND EVENTS – but what about fashion? Electric Dingo Underground Vintage owner Cyndi Kelly believes fashion is an important part of history – and the present –which is why she sells vintage clothing. “Vintage doesn’t belong in a museum,” Kelly said. “They’re clothes, they’re meant to be worn and loved.” Kelly goes to thrift stores, garage sales, estate sales, and surfs the internet to find her vintage pieces, then repairs leather and sews fabrics, giving them a second life. “It’s important to me that clothing is recirculated,” Kelly said. “A lot of it would end up in landfills, and we’re getting away from fast fashion, which causes a lot of pollution.” Electric Dingo will have its own website soon, but for now, Kelly is selling through a variety of platforms, and in person by appointment. –Sawyer Hoff

“It affects everybody, the environment does,” Meshnick said. “No matter what your background is or what you believe, it’s something that’s important to all of us. If we don’t take action now to get our earth on the right path environmentally, it’s gonna have some bad consequences.”

The Carbon Offset Company has planted trees across the U.S. including California, Florida, and Oregon. They also have reforestation projects across the world in Mozambique, Appalachia, Haiti, Madagascar, and Senegal. They have already planted about 330,000 trees across the globe.

“Little actions add up,” Meshnick said. “One person might think, ‘Oh I don’t make a difference,’ or ‘I can’t make a positive impact’, but if everyone has that mindset then nothing is going to ever get done.”

The Carbon Offset Company is creating an app for Shopify store owners which will allow them to give shoppers the option of purchasing trees to plant at checkout.

Learn more about the company at thecarbonoffsetcompany.org.

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MATT KALLSTROM, CARBON OFFSET COMPANY

CHOP IT LIKE IT’S HOT

Gettin’ in Your Face Time: New Studio Helps You Glow Up Your Skincare Game

words by natalie derks

DREAMING OF BEAUTIFUL SKIN? AUBREY BELISLE CAN RELATE. After years of struggling with acne as a teenager, she researched ways to defeat common skin problems. The result? Water Street’s newest skincare studio, Bel Aesthetics

“I aim to create an ultra-relaxing space that welcomes everyone,” Belisle said. “I understand how acne can affect one’s life, and I am passionate about helping people with inflammation of all kinds.”

Belisle – licensed aesthetician, owner, and sole practitioner of Bel Aesthetics – was born in Minneapolis but studied skincare at the Aveda Institute Portland and got her start at numerous spas in the area. Following a desire to return to the Midwest, Belisle moved to Eau Claire in October 2020 and opened her studio space on Water Street shortly afterward.

TRU REVERIE – TRANSLATED TO “AUTHENTIC DAYDREAM” –REPRESENTS OWNER RACHEL PEARL’S DREAM of owning a salon. Pearl strived to create a quaint place where stylists and clients feel comfortable being themselves while achieving the hair styling of their dreams.

Though hair and beauty are Pearl’s passions, it didn’t start out that way. Pearl’s mom convinced her to take cosmetology classes at Chippewa Valley Technical College, but Pearl was initially hesitant.

“When I decided to go to CVTC for beauty school, it really was supposed to be a temporary plan until I decided what I wanted to do next,” Pearl said. “I didn’t have any real desire to do hair – I didn’t even own a blowdryer or know how to use a curling iron or braid. But I quickly realized I was pretty good at it, and it was another form of art.”

After being a stylist for more than five years, Pearl’s No. 1 goal is to have her clients leave with 100% confidence in their hair. She customizes each service to each individual, offering clients an in-depth consultation and maintenance plan. Pearl specializes in lived-in low-maintenance color, hair

extensions, and bridal hair. She feels particularly passionate about education and proper training for stylists to ensure a high-quality approach to beauty offerings. “I hope to someday have a team of like-minded stylists around me and expand,” Pearl said. “I want to create a salon that truly educates stylists from the very beginning and gives them a place to grow their careers. Bringing an environment like this to Eau Claire is something I feel would benefit the community as a whole.”

Tru Reverie offers PPD-free color (PPD is an ingredient that often causes allergic reactions) and pre-screened organic products. Pearl recognizes that the beauty industry can create a lot of waste, and she tries to mitigate her waste production as much as possible by offering glass bottles for her products. She intends to offer a product refill station in the future.

Eventually, Pearl hopes to expand her mini-salon into a full salon, with the goal of offeringa comfortable experience for both clients and staff.

To learn more about Tru Reverie (which is in the Suites on Brackett, 1740 Brackett Ave., Eau Claire), visit rachelpearlstylist. com or follow her on Instagram @tru.reverie.

Bel Aesthetics, which takes its name from Belisle (French for “beautiful island”), stands out from other skincare clinics for a variety of reasons.

BEL AESTHETICS (715) 797-6077

427 Water St., Suite 7, Eau Claire @belaestheticsxo hello@belaesthetics.com belaesthetics.com

Perhaps most notably, though, Belisle avoids using synthetic fragrances and emphasizes the use of CBD in her services.

Bel Aesthetics offers a wide range of facial treatments and body waxing services. In addition,thestudioprovidesbodytreatments using preservative-free masks and scrubs Belisle creates herself, as well as homemade hemp-infused bath bombs

I DIDN’T EVEN OWN A BLOWDRYER OR KNOW HOW TO USE A CURLING IRON OR BRAID. BUT I QUICKLY REALIZED I WAS PRETTY GOOD AT IT, AND IT WAS ANOTHER FORM OF ART.

– RACHEL PEARL, OWNER OF TRU REVERIE SALON

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TRU REVERIE SALON BRINGS MINI-SALON EXPERIENCE TO EAU CLAIRE, OFFERING CUTS AND COLOR words by sawyer hoff

DOWN UNDER Music

E.C. NATIVE JACK RINGHAND DROPS NEW ALBUM WISER ALL THE WAY FROM NEW ZEALAND

words by parker reed

AMERICANA MUSIC IS USUALLY FOUND IN THE HEART OF AMERICA, detailing the chronic struggles of everyday folks as they traverse toward the American dream. However, one Eau Claire native’s musical journey has taken him from the Midwest all the way Down Under.

Jack Ringhand has been performing alt-country and Americana music for over a decade, with his musical migration taking him from Eau Claire to Onalaska to Madison. Ringhand has performed with multiple groups in Wisconsin, but his latest project, Tall Folk, calls Dunedin, New Zealand, home.

Ringhand along with bandmate, Lara Robertson, formed Tall Folk when Ringhand moved to New

Zealand in 2018, and they released their album Wiser in mid-January – a full-length album featuring songs chock full of pedal steel guitar, dobro, violin, fiddle, and other traditional folk instruments.

“This genre of music, and this project for me in particular, has a lot of genuine truth to it,” Ringhand said. “Within this music is the ability to speak to the powers at play and tell the truth as we see it. There is a sense of honesty in all of our songs that we’re particularly proud of on this album, and the blending of our styles is what sparked it. It’s a byproduct of the times we’re in.”

Ringhand was born in Eau Claire and lived in Eau Claire County until the age of eight. From there, he

lived in Onalaska, where his love for music was fostered. Jack started off modestly by playing trombone in middle school but decided to trade in his brass instrument for an acoustic guitar in high school, when he began to see his classmates taking a liking to the instrument. “Songwriting is a process which gives me purpose,”

Music

S. CAREY ANNOUNCES NEW ALBUM, TOUR

A FORMATIVE EAU CLAIRE TALENT IS PREPPING ONE OF HIS MOST INTROSPECTIVE RELEASES TO DATE. Sean Carey (a.k.a. S. Carey) recently announced his latest full-length studio album Break Me Open will drop on April 22 on the Jagjaguwar record label.The brand-new, 10-song album from the songwriter, producer, polymathic instrumentalist, andsecondlongest-servingBonIvermemberisbothmorepersonalandcollaborativethanhecouldhaveeverpredicted. “Break Me Open is about love – past, present, and future,” Carey said in a media release. “It’s about fatherhood, the overwhelming feeling of deep love for my kids, and the melancholy of watching them grow up right before my eyes. It’s about accepting my faults and wrongdoings, exposing myself, and trying to know myself better than I did the day before. But above the darkness, it’s a message of hope, honesty, and growth. It’s a call to be vulnerable: Break Me Open.”The title track and lead single,“Break Me Open”shows S. Carey at his most stripped down and vulnerable, with the full album tackling the reality of Carey’s marriage falling apart, the death of his father, and the growth of his children. Alongside the release of Break Me Open, Carey will embark on a 20-show headline tour beginning in April. The tour dates will take place in between dozens of international dates with Bon Iver, including headline shows at Chicago’s Lincoln Hall, Brooklyn’s Public Records, and a hometown show in Eau Claire at the Masonic Temple on Thursday, April 28. Each show will feature support from Courtney Hartman, who will also play in S. Carey’s band. –Parker Reed

Ringhand said. “It’s an outlet in which I can process life through and express myself. No matter where I find myself in the world, I know music – and songwriting most of all – will always be a part of my life in some way.”

Check out Ringhand’s new album on all major streaming services.

PHOTO BY PETER LARSON

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JACK RINGHAND (RIGHT) AND BANDMATE LARA ROBERTSON (LEFT) COMPRISE TALL FOLK.

Hear That? Here Are Three Recent Releases From Notable Local Musicians That Are Sure To Get You Hoppin’ and Boppin’

KNOW YOU ARE – QUETICO

Quetico, a provincial park in Ontario, Canada, is 1.2 million acres of rugged boreal wilderness made up of a vast system of lakes, connected by portages, and traversable by canoe. It’s a place one goes to be alone, to disappear into a chorus of natural sounds, to reset, and to lose all sense of normal time. Quetico, the solo jazz project of Eau Claire native Yan Westerlund, serves that exact same purpose, except indoors. Quetico’s newest release, Know You Are, is a more subdued follow-up to 2019’s maximalist Man Alone. It’s the sound of Westerlund fully realizing his vision for the project, resulting in a meticulously crafted piece of art. Check out the new album at yanwesterlund.com –Parker Reed

If you think jazz music is struggling in 2022, well you just might want to take that statement back after hearing this new tantalizing release. Prolific jazz musicians Sue Orfield and Joan Hutton just released their first collaborative record, Take That Back, a 10-song effort on Shifting Paradigm Records. The album is a crash course in traditional jazz, featuring magnificent bass clarinet and tenor sax melodic dueling courtesy of the powerhouse duo. “Music is truly the thing that I work for every day,” Orfield said. Take That Back will celebrate its release at Stones Throw in Eau Claire on Feb. 26, at 7:30pm. Tickets are available at takethatbackjazz.com. –Parker Reed

Music

FROM THE DEPTHS TO NEW HEIGHTS: FORMER BON IVER MANAGER RETURNS TO MAKING MUSIC

AFTER A DECADE OF MANAGING ONE OF THE TOP ARTISTS OF THIS GENERATION, a Chippewa Falls native has returned to making music again. Kyle Frenette is the creative force behind the acoustic-ambient project Overred – a project he started in 2007, when he released the album Theater. After a flurry of life-changing events, he decided to return to the project 14 years later, finding his passion for music again amid a global pandemic. And his newest album, Liminal, serves as the voice of a man whose life has dramatically changed over the past few years. “The word ‘liminal’ is defined as occupying a transitional stage of a process, or being on both sides of a threshold at once,” Frenette said. “This is how life feels now, and was especially how it felt during the making of this album; I recorded it mostly during the second half of 2020 when the universal state of flux caused by the ongoing pandemic was still new. This feeling of in-between was intensified for me as my wife and I also awaited the birth of our first child. Massive change both internally and externally was afoot, and so I turned to making music to ease the waiting as I have before in my life during periods of upheaval.” Liminal by Overred is available now on all major streaming services and from Frenette himself on overred.bandcamp.com. –Parker Reed

“THE

After developing a love for music throughout her childhood, Bri Murphy packed up her things and moved from Eau Claire to Nashville to pursue her musical dreams. Fast forward a decade, and Murphy is making her dream reality. Her new single, “The Pines,” dropped in February, along with her first-ever fully produced music video. The single follows her journey with grief to find healing. It traverses the acceptance of the cards you get dealt in life. “I’m really proud of what I have done as a side musician, but it wasn’t what I moved here to do. I got caught up in chasing other people’s dreams and forgot mine.” Check out more at brimurphymusic. com. –Sawyer Hoff

TAKE THAT BACK – SUE ORFIELD AND JOAN HUTTON

PINES” – BRI MURPHY

Event

Fine Folks! Check Out the 12th Annual Folk Arts Festival

words by thomas delapp

WE CAN HEAR YOU SIGHING TO YOURSELF RIGHT NOW: “AH, I’VE ALWAYS WANTED TO LEARN ABOUT HISTORIC BARN RESTORATION.” OK, maybe you haven’t said that. But who wouldn’t at least be interested? Don’t worry: the Chippewa Valley Museum has got something special for you.

On Saturday, Feb. 26, from 12pm to 5pm, the Chippewa Valley Museum will hold its 12th annual Folk Arts Festival, featuring a variety of presentations, demonstrations, workshops, vendors, and performances galore.

If you can think of it, it will probably be there: barn restorations, weaving, ice sculpting, needle work, harp-music, wood working (pause to take a breath), sheep raising, knitting, barn quilting, live performances – and oodles more, if you can believe it.

WE WANT TO SHOW THE BALANCE BETWEEN HERITAGE, TRADITIONAL

Blending the past and present is something that museum educator Karen Jacobson and education intern Karen Kilby said is integral to the exhibit. “The spirit of the event is to showcase talent,” Jacobson said,” and showcase heritage skills as they meet contemporary ideas.”

Featuring talent, indeed!

There’s almost too many events and participants to list. But there are standout, keynote presentations, including “The Art of Historic Barn Restoration: Along the Barn Quilt Trail” with guest speakers Michael and Mary Kolstad and Becky Kiesow; “Raising Heritage Sheep + Wool Dyeing Techniques + Sustainable Agriculture,” thanks to Three Rivers Fibershed, including a panel discussion; and music from local band Naalia. Outside the museum, local artist Jason Anhorn will make an appearance to help break the ice – with a live ice sculpting demonstration, that is. Additionally, there will be a section of the festival devoted to kids, thanks to a collaboration between The Children’s Museum of Eau Claire, L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library, and the Eau Claire K-Kids Club.

“We want to show the balance between heritage, traditional arts, and modern practice,” Jacobson said. “It’s all about learning.”

For more information about the Folk Arts Festival, visit the Chippewa Valley Museum’s event website.

ARTS, AND MODERN PRACTICE. IT’S ALL ABOUT LEARNING.

BRAIDED RUGS, PART OF THE VIRTUAL FOLK ARTS FESTIVAL IN 2020

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KAREN JACOBSON, CHIPPEWA VALLEY MUSEUM

MAR 10

Events ON YOUR WATCH LIST

GINGER BILLY’S BACKWOODS COMEDY

THE PABLO CENTER - JAMF THEATRE PABLOCENTER.ORG

Ginger Billy shares his unfiltered views about life in his “Backwoods Comedy Tour” while completely shirtless. He’s taking “redneck comedy to a new level” and bringing it to town for a southern-fried performance.

MAR 13

BANFF MOUNTAIN FESTIVAL

THE PABLO CENTER - RCU THEATRE PABLOCENTER.ORG

Experience high-adrenaline action films that will transport you across the globe in search of adventure. About 400 films are entered into the annual festival, and award-winning films and audience favorites are chosen for the world tour.

MAR 10-20

THE SAVANNAH SIPPING SOCIETY

THE GRAND THEATRE

CVTG.ORG

Four middle-aged women, all needing to escape their dayto-day routines, are drawn together by fate and a hilarious impromptu happy hour.

Music

Is Clout All You Think About? For This Band, It Sure Is.

ONE OF EAU CLAIRE’S MOST UNIQUE OUTFITS IS BACK WITH NEW ORIGINAL MUSIC. Gash, an indie rock/experimental outfit comprising Logan Nyberg, Mitch Smuhl, Eric Christenson, and Eric Simmons released their new single “Clout is All I Think About” on Dec. 13. The new song features an experimental indie rock/ alternative structure, mixed with ambient vocal passages, focusing on social media’s effect on the music industry. The track was recorded and mixed by Seth Tracy and mastered by Nyberg. The single is the band’s first song since the release of their debut studio album, Leftern, in May. “We are working on new songs right now,” Smuhl said, “and hoping COVID doesn’t affect any upcoming shows in the spring.” “Clout is All I Think About” is available now on all major streaming services and from Gash directly on bandcamp.com. –Parker Reed

LOGAN NYBERG, GASH

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4 FILMS YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS YEAR

Alien Abduction: Answers

Directed by John Yost

A new documentary on the suject of UFOs andhowthey’veimpactedthelifeofWhitley Strieber will premiere at the event.

History of Metal & Horror

Directed by Mike Schiff

A captivating documentary that explores thehistoryofheavymetalandhorrorfilms, and how the genres merged over time.

EMBRACE THE ODDITIES

MIDWEST WEIRDFEST DEBUT SPOOKY SHOWINGS THIS MARCH words by parker reed

CAN YOU THINK OF A BETTER PLACE TO HOLD A FREAKY FILM FESTIVAL THAN IN THE HOMELAND of infamous killers such as Jeffrey Dahmer and Ed Gein? We didn’t think so.

The sixth annual MidWest WeirdFest is back in Eau Claire at Micon Downtown Cinema in 2022, taking place from Thursday, March 4-Sunday, March 6. The event is a cinematic celebration of alll things fantastic, frightening, paranormal, and just plain weird, showcasing horror, sci-fi, fantasy, mystery, and dramatic films from underground filmmakers from around the world.

Woodland Grey

Directed by Adam Reider

A tale of mounting terror and an inescapable fever dream following a man and woman who unleash an ancient horror.

Festival director Dean Bertram said the festival, which has remained at Micon Cinemas every year of the event, has remained largely the same in spirit while slightly expanding its programming to meet the growing needs of its audience.

and more films in an intimate setting every year.”

This year MidWest WeirdFest will feature 17 feature films and 80-90 shorts after receiving several hundred submissions, a record for the festival. Included in this year’s program is the world premiere of a new documentary entitled Alien Abduction: Answers. This documentary features world famous writer

of heavy metal and horror films, and how the two genres merged over time. These are just two films featured at the festival, which will give a number of the filmmakers featured the chance to meet directly with their audience after the showings.

“We pride ourselves on our relationships with our filmmakers,” Bertram said. “We bring our filmmakers to their audience in such a casual and hometown manor. Literally after a screening our filmmakers are able to talk to their audience in the lobby, or at a bar next door over a drink. We’re very proud that a festival like ours can bridge that daunting gap between a film and its audience.”

Planet B234

Directed by Keelie Sheridan

A father creates an alternate world where he can cope with his anxiety, but it comes at the cost of his sanity and his son.

“It’s grown over the years, but we’ve largely wanted to keep its essence intact,” Bertram said. “It’s still the cinematic celebration of all things fantastic, frightening, paranormal, and just plain weird that we always wanted it to be. We’re remaining true to those roots, but we still manage to have more guests

DEAN BERTRAM DIRECTOR OF MIDWEST WEIRDFEST

and alien abductee Whitley Streiber, author of the best-selling Communion book series. This documentary is directed by John Yost, and MidWest WeirdFest will be the first location viewers will have the chance to take it in.

Also included in the programming for this year’s MidWest WeirdFest will be The History of Metal and Horror, a captivating documentary that explores the history

Bertram, who has directed film festivals internationally for over a decade, said having a film festival in the cold and spooky land of Wisconsin is a match made in horror heaven.

“There is sense of weirdness here in Wisconsin,” Bertram said. “There are tales of people like Ed Gein, there are UFO landing ports, and the Hodag, and all sorts of other weird and wonderful tales. What better place to have a weird festival in than Wisconsin?”

Get full details on the festival at midwestweirdfest.com.

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IT’S THE CINEMATIC CELEBRATION OF ALL THINGS FANTASTIC, FRIGHTENING, PARANORMAL, AND JUST PLAIN WEIRD WE ALWAYS WANTED IT TO BE.

“

Design

GROOVE IS IN THE ART: EAU CLAIRE MAKERS MARKET BRINGS IN THE CRAFT

THE ARTISTS AND TASTEMAKERS OF THE CHIPPEWA VALLEY JUST GOT A NEW FRIEND AND ALLY IN THE EAU CLAIRE MAKERS MARKET.

Founded by Kala Rehberger and Lexi Kane with help from Sarah Ryan, the Eau Claire Makers Market recently held their third event, a two-day soirée that hosted dozens of talented and passionate local artists

We began as a three woman show, selling earrings and crafts in Lexi’s front yard with Sarah crocheting in a lawn chair to keep us company,” Lexi Kane said. “We had no idea it would become anything bigger.”

Their quick success has surprised even the founders of ECCM.

“We are so excited about the growth of the market,” Kane said. “We hope that the market continues to be a place where artists and the community can connect.”

The next Eau Claire Makers Market event is at Forage on April 2 and 3 from 12pm-5pm.

You can contact ECMM to get involved via email at ecmakersmarket@gmail.com.

– Jared Choate

Visual Art

Go On a Journey With ‘Origins & Odyssey’ Exhibit

words by rebecca mennecke • photos by andrea paulseth

IN THE FAMOUS GREEK TRAGEDY THE ODYSSEY, READERS FOLLOW ALONG THE JOURNEY of Odysseus, king of Ithaca, as he voyages home after the Trojan War. Viewers of the new “Origins and Odyssey” exhibit at the Chippewa Valley Museum take a similar journey – through the progression of local artists as they perfect their forms.

“This is going to be so exciting because I don’t think anything like this has ever been done before,” said Gallery Curator Christy Skuban. “Each artist is going to have a mini retrospect of their work, and they’re going to show a piece from their childhood or when they first started getting into the arts. … From there, they’re going to (showcase) an in-between piece. We’re going to follow their journeys. And then we’ll have a current piece (with) where they’re at with their art.”

Through April 8, join local artists Patricia Hawkenson, Erin O’Brien, Susan Carew Johnson,

Design

Thomas Gardner, Don Gaber, Liz Stingl, Wendy and Kevin Shaefer/Miles, Raymond Kaselau, Jason Anhorn, Tommy Ford, Beth Creekmore, Aubrey Hogan, Bilhenry Walker, Patty Martinson, Gary Barone, Jeff Nelson, Ellen Nelson, Enamel Hands, Tina Sheppard, and Christy Skuban as they showcase their journeys through the artistic process, beginning with their earliest works to their latest works. “Hopefully (the artists will) inspire children,” Skuban said. “They’ll see where some of the artists started out, maybe with crayon drawings or doodling, see how they progressed over the years, stuck with it.”

Throughout February, check out

Find Your Flow: New Calligraphy Biz Offers Signs, Designs

WHEN A BLUGOLD AIMS TO ACHIEVE THEIR GOALS, THEY REACH FOR THE STARS. Just ask Madeline Nelson, a UW-Eau Claire grad who currently works as a marketing and social media coordinator, part-time bar tender, and calligraphy craftster. “The best advice I received is that you get what you give,” Nelson said. “ outcome is a reflection on the amount of hard work and dedication you put in.” Her latest business venture, Kay Design Co., began with a conversation with a close friend. They encouraged her to use her artistic abilities in a way that could be utilized and enjoyed by others – and then fueled her passion further by asking her to create a custom sign for an upcoming wed ding. “After the seed had been planted in my head, I dove in head first, designing a website, business cards, and a business page on Instagram,”she said, noting an added sense of gratitude for her background in marketing. Now, she offers a wide range of calligraphy signs and decor for all types of events – weddings, engagement parties, bridal or baby showers, graduation parties, and more – and offers custom invitations and programs created through graphic art. All of Nelson’s creations for Madeline Kay Design Co. are handwritten and painted in modern script, though she loves combining the classic, timeless calligraphy spice things up. Not only that, but she also offers custom graphic art, as well. When a client reaches out, Nelson works with them by discussing what they envision for their event – including styles, colors, and sizing. Then, to ensure that both she and the client are on the same page, she creates a mood board, then discusses any changes the client may want to make. Have an upcoming event? Check out her custom art or shoot any inquiries to Nelson through her website (madelineknelson.wixsite.com/website (madelineknelson@gmail.com), Instagram (@madelinekaydesignco), or call her at (715) 338-8894

I DON’T THINK ANYTHING LIKE THIS HAS EVER BEEN DONE.

–CHRISTY SKUBAN, GALLERY CURATOR AT ARTISAN FORGE STUDIOS

SUBMITTED PHOTO

Food+Drink Beer

GET JUICY! LEINIE’S RELEASES PEACHY NEW SOUR BREW

A LEGENDARY LOCAL BREWING COMPANY HAS A NEW OFFERING on tap for consumers of session-sour style beers. Leinenkugel’s just released their new beer called Juicy Peach, their first-ever session-sour style beer. The drink was released on Feb. 1 and is available in the Great Lakes region

Juicy Peach is a mild sour-style beer that is brewed with light tart notes balanced with the refreshing sweet flavor of natural peaches. It is just tart enough to keep it interesting, but not overly sour, giving you a thirst-quencing, easy drinking experience. Leinenkugel’s Juicy Peach is available locally at the Leinie Lodge andwhereverLeinenkugel’sproductsaresold.

Cocktails

DIVE KEEPS IT CLASSIC WITH NEW COCKTAIL

IT’S TIME TO DIVE INTO A BRAND NEW MENU OF CLASSIC CRAFT COCKTAILS. Dive, a popular bar nestled inside The Lismore Hotel in downtown Eau Claire, just debuted a number of classic cocktails as part of an updated menu. These drinks were included in order to spice up the watering hole’s offerings, as well as bring back a few classic concoctions traditional beverage lovers will all enjoy. One of these new craft cocktails is the Caribbean Campfire Old Fashioned, a drink made with pineapple rum, toasted walnut syrup, cherry bitters, and smoked before pouring into your glass. For more information on the new menu, visit their website thedive.bar.

New Stuff

FEEL-GOOD FOODS

ALTOONA CAFE OFFERS HEALTHY, HEAVENLY FOOD INSIDE NEW WELLNESS CENTER

words by sawyer hoff • photos by andrea paulseth

LOCAL PHYSICIANS RIMA AND ROBERT DEFATTA UNDERSTAND THAT IT’S JUST AS IMPORTANT to feel good on the inside as it is on the outside – thus the creation of Xavier Artisan Bistro.

Xavier Artisan Bistro – or Xa Bistro for short – is a new restaurant within the brand-new River Prairie Wellness Center in Altoona, also owned by the DeFattas. Their vision for Xa Bistro was to create a place where good food isn’t just about taste; it’s also about ingredients.

“There’s a lot of things we do externally to our face and to our body, things that can be done with

creams and products and procedures,” Rima DeFatta said. “But then we realized that the picture isn’t complete without working on what you’re feeding yourself.”

Xa Bistro offers craft organic coffees, healthy breakfast options, homemade gelato, artisanal sandwiches, salads, made-from-scratch soups, and many entrees with Middle Eastern influence.

foods is a very important thing in our culture.”

This influence is seen most prominently in their mazza plates, which refers to small Middle Eastern cuisines such as hummus, baba ghannouj, tabbouli, muhammara, shankleesh, etc. – most often served with homemade Levantine flatbread.

The DeFattas believe that sourcing their ingredients locally is important not only for the community but in terms of the quality of the food. That’s why they source most of their foods from Wisconsin and Minnesota and have their coffee roasted specifically for Xa in Montreal. You can even purchase many of their ingredient from their marketplace in order to reproduce your favorite Xa meals from the comfort of your home.

XAVIER ARTISAN BISTRO

(715) 930-1943

1470 Rivers Edge Trail, Altoona @XaBistro xabistro.com

“I’m originally from the Middle East – the basin of everything ancient,” Rima said. “Having whole

“We really try to source from right around here,” Robert said. “Our honey comes from Thorp, our maple syrup comes from Menomonie, the kombucha is from a company in Milwaukee – even the potatoes in our potato chips were grown in Wisconsin.”

FEEL GOOD, ON THE OUTSIDE AND THE INSIDE. Xavier Artisan Bistro is located in the new River Prairie Wellness Center in Altoona.

ZATAR

MATCHA

QUINOA SALAD

PHOTOS BY MARY MOUA

ARTISTRY IN THE BAKING: VAN DOUGH’S BAKE SHOP BLENDS BAKING AND ART

A NEW MENOMONIE-BASED ENTREPRENEUR CREATES BAKED GOODS THAT ARE SO VIVID, THEY ALMOST BELONG IN AN ART MUSEUM.

Van Dough’s Bake Shop is a new custom baked goods business in Menomonie owned by Amy Accola. The young artist offers a variety of custom cookies, cakes, and cupcakes that customers have the ability to commission custom artwork to be hand laid on the edible products. Accola started the business in late 2019 with the hopes of combining her love for art and baking into a tasty tandem she can build a life around.

“I want to push the boundaries of what you can expect baking to be,” Accola said. “The fact that something can be made so artistically, but also be edible, is fascinating to me. It adds a special layer to the experience when the customer knows so much effort has been put into what they’re eating.”

Accola’s background is in art, as she studied art while attending the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington. From there, she lived in Ireland for a time and attended one year of catering college there. Following her return to the United States, Accola accepted a full-time position at a local pharmacy but was never entirely happy with art not playing a role in her working life. Vincent Van Gogh, and his painting “The Starry Night” in particular, have influenced her pursuit of art from a young age, so after watching a plethora of baking shows, she decided to give pro baking-ship a go.

Customers reach out to Accola via social media or her website, and from there she makes all of the orders by hand. If a customer wants a custom-shaped cookie, she is able to use her 3D printer to print cookie cutters and is also able to print out pre-made logos and apply them to cookies with help from her edible ink printer. Accola then makes all of the

ingredients from scratch, with each order taking six to eight hours to decorate and eight to 12 hours to dry. Being the sole force behind Van Dough’s Bake Shop, Accola either delivers the cookies directly to the customer, or she has them pick up their orders at her home/workspace. Accola is able to complete about four orders a week on average, and in 2021 she fulfilled over 100 orders in a calendar year for the first time.

“Almost everyone who comes to pick up their order is amazed and their mouths just hang open for a while,” Accola said.

“Recently I made some Harry Potter-themed cookies, and the boy who they were for was in the car, and when he saw them he was just in awe. It’s really cool to see everyone’s reactions.”

While Accola has worked from her home for the past year-and-

a-half, she has also been able to partake in a number of vendor fairs and pop-up events, including a few get-togethers at the Brewing Projekt in Eau Claire. She is happy with her current operation but said the next step for her is to open a brick-andmortar retail storefront where she can sell her cookies and host instructional workshops for interested guests.

“I’ve always loved art, and this venture is a way for me to incorporate that into my everyday life,” Accola said. “I’m able to sketch out each design and see every cookie through from start to finish. On top of that, it’s a relaxing process because you can’t rush through it. You have to take your time or else the finished product won’t be something I’m proud of. It almost serves as a therapeutic activity in between the hectic pharmacy life.”

Chill Out With These Flavorful CBD-Infused Drinks From The Growler Guys

LOOKING FOR A WAY TO CHILL THIS WEEKEND? SNAG A NEW CBD-INFUSED DRINK from The Growler Guys in Eau Claire

The bar/restaurant franchise, which started in Oregon with a fill-station movement that offers growler (64-ounce) and crowler (32-ounce) fills, celebrates its fourth year on Feb. 26.

LongtimeEauClaireresidentsandownersofthe Eau Claire store, Chris Clover and Greg Haugen believe their mission is to share their love of all things craft with their customers.

That includes their two CBD Kombuchas on draft: Cranberry and Ginger Mint, which are rotating flavors created in Sister Bay,Wisconsin. They also now offer Clearwater CBD – sparkling water that comes in rotating flavors. Currently on draft is Black and Blue, a blue raspberry-flavoreddrinkthatwascreatedbytheNorthwoods Brewpub in Osseo.

Kombucha is a naturally-carbonated, sweet and sour drink made from tea that dates back almost 2,000 years, according to The Growler Guys’ website. It’s filled with enriching antioxidants and probiotics – or good bacteria that promote healthy digestive flora

CBD beverages are made from cannabidiol, a non-psychoactive molecule found in cannabis, and lack the psychoactive side effects of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is found in marijuana. So it provides wellness benefits withoutthemind-alteringeffects.Thesebenefits have been said to include better sleep, less anxiety, joint pain treatment, and pain reductionrelatedtoinflammationincancertreatment and digestive diseases. –

Barbara Arnold

HAVE A GOGH AT THESE CAKES, CUPCAKES, AND COOKIES words by parker reed

I WANT TO PUSH THE BOUNDARIES OF WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT BAKING TO BE.

Leisure

SILVER STARS Sports

TEAM U.S.A. TAKES SECOND PLACE IN OLYMPIC FIGURE SKATING, WITH HELP FROM TWO VALLEY SKATERS

words by parker reed

TWO LOCAL FIGURE SKATERS NOW HAVE AN INTERNATIONAL SILVER MEDAL TO ADD TO THEIR IMPRESSIVE TROPHY CASES.

The Minnesota-based Northernettes Synchronized Skating team represented Team U.S.A in a competition in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, which took place from Feb. 11-12.

The Northernettes earned a silver medal in the junior free program category with a score of 116.40, garnering them their first international medal. It was their best-scoring performance of their season. The 21-member team includes 16-year-old Ella Piltz of Memorial High School and 18-yearold Paige Southworth from Elk Mound.

“We are proud, humbled, and so thankful to have had this opportunity to represent the United States of America,” the Northernettes wrote to social media. “This is the most

incredible privilege, and this past week was truly a dream come true.”

The routine included a well-executed Level 4 move element with Level 3 moves in the field as well as a Level 4 traveling circle and a Level 3 intersection with a Level 3 point of intersection. “This really means a lot to us,” Piltz said. “It’s cool for people to recognize that I’m a part of Team USA Figure Skating even though they might not know much about the sport itself. It’s an honor most people never get to have.”

Team USA won an additional medal at the Neuchâtel competition, with the Illinoisbased Starlights Synchronized Skating Team earning a bronze medal in the junior synchronized skating category.

THIS PAST WEEK WAS TRULY A DREAM COME TRUE.

Recreation

RACE OF THE IRISH: SHAMROCK SHUFFLE SLATED FOR MARCH

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN FOR UWEC’S ANNUAL LUCKY RUN words by carlee

shimek

IT’S TIME TO SHAMROCK AND ROLL AT THE ANNUAL SHAMROCK SHUFFLE 5K – A PRE-ST. PATRICK’S DAY RACE HOSTED BY UW-Eau Claire’s University Recreation and Sports Operations department. The race is a great opening to the spring season of running and a fun event for locals of all ages. The route is a loop, beginning and ending at the McPhee Physical Education Center. If interested, you’ll traverse down the steep Garfield Avenue hill, over the university’s campus footbridge, and along the scenic Chippewa Valley River trail. Online registration ends March 10 at 11pm, along with ordering specific shirts. Extra shirts will be available on same-day registration, but the hosts cannot guarantee getting one or in the preferred size. Same-day registration begins at 8am on March 12; this is also the time when packet pickup opens. For ages 10 and under, registration costs $15, and for 11 and up, it costs $20. The fundraiser’s proceeds go toward student professional development and recreation. Any and all kinds of runners, walkers, and strollers are welcome. Kick off the spring with an enjoyable event for everyone. To register, visit raceentry.com.

Recreation

LET’S GET MOVING! BE ACTIVE COMMUNITY CHALLENGE IS BACK

GETTING ACTIVE IN THE WINTER DOESN’T NECESSARILY MEAN BRAVING THE COLD; it can be anything that gets your blood pumping – indoors or outdoors! Wisconsin communities will compete to see who can log the most active minutes in March as part of the Active Communities’ “Be Active” challenge. While the suggested target is 200 minutes a week, you can set your own goals. All community members are encouraged to join. The winning community will receive a trophy and the knowledge that these cold days cannot keep them down. Last year, Eau Claire ranked fourth out of 42 communities, with 102 registered participants, but this year we’re going for the gold. Registration is $10 and includes a T-shirt. Proceeds will go to the Eau Claire Parks, Recreation, and Forestry’s Youth Scholarship fund. To register, go to activecommunities.com and search “Be Active.” –Sawyer Hoff

Recreation

POLAR PLUNGE RETURNS FOR 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF SPECIAL OLYMPICS

THE POLAR PLUNGE IS BACK AND COLDER THAN EVER. This year celebrates the 50th anniversary of Special Olympics of Wisconsin, which provides yearround sports opportunities to more than 10,000 athletes of any age and skill level. Proceeds from the event will directly support the organization. Preregistration is encouraged and on-site day-of-registration is also available. In 2022, there are four ways to jump in and freeze for a reason including taking a plunge yourself, getting involved virtually, hold a competition at your school, and financially supporting an individual plunger. Proceeds from this unique tradition help nearly 9,000 Special Olympics Wisconsin athletes train and compete at the state, national, and international level. You can find more information and pre-register at polarplungewi.org. - Barbara

Arnold

SHAMROCK SHUFFLE, 2019

Home

Pets

Prized Pup: Eau Claire Dog Named 2021’s Most Obedient

words by parker reed

THE TOP DOGS IN THE NATION WERE CROWNED IN THE EIGHTH AMERICAN KENNEL CLUB CLASSIC in Orlando, Florida, on Dec. 18-19 – a competition pitting 248 of the nation’s most prestigious pups against each other.

Kasper, a golden retriever owned by Karen Thompson of Eau Claire, won in the Novice category for most obedient dog/ handler team.

The competition was held in conjunction with the AKC National Championship, presented by Royal Canon at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando.

The other four winners in the most obedient dog/handler team category were Willie, owned by Kathleen Keller/Stephen Keller of Flemington, New Jersey (Open); Ember, owned by Linda Montgomery of Mount Crawford, Virginia (Utility); and Prada, owned by Jeannie Dennard of High Point, North Carolina (Masters).

For more information you can visit the AKC’s website akc.org

STITCHED TOGETHER

LOCAL MEMORY BEAR BUSINESSES HELP FAMILIES REMEMBER LOVED ONES

THOUGH MEMORIES OF LOVED ONES WHO HAVE PASSED MAY FADE WITH TIME, having something physical to hold onto can help family members remember the good times of days passed.

Memory bears are stuffed teddy bears created using repurposed pieces of clothing, fabric, or other materials that are incorporated into the stuffed animal. They’re often gifted as a way to commemorate special occasions, such as weddings or anniversaries, but are most commonly created to remember a family member who has passed on using pieces of their clothing.

And, in recent years, a number of businesses have devoted themselves to the creation of these bears in Eau

Claire, illustrating the demand for heartfelt keepsakes in the area. Julie Konzen, a physical therapist at HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital, established her side business, Legacy Memory Bears, in 2018. Since then, she’s completed more than 400 bears for orders in 36 different states as well as Canada.

Her love for the craft began in 2014 when her mother-in-law passed away, and a number of bears were produced from her clothing, which were distributed to members of the mourning family.

“It’s very personally rewarding to help people hang onto a piece of their loved one,” Konzen said. “These are clothing items that the person wore at one time, and I don’t take that lightly.

These are gifts that people will cherish for a lifetime, so I take the responsibility of handling those memories very seriously.”

A true trailblazer in the memory bear industry, Debra Eichelberger has operated Honey Bears by Debbie in the area since 1989, piecing together bears in her Eau Claire home for more than 30 years.

Jill Higley, the owner of JMH Crafts Memory Bears & Keepsakes, is new to the business of memory bears, but the craft has already had a profound impact on her psyche.

Higley lost both of her parents within a 10-month span in 2017 and 2018, inspiring her to create memory bears to hold onto their memory as long as possible. After crafting those initial bears, she was inspired to start her own business and pay that sense of peace forward. In 2021 she crafted 189 keepsakes, including memory bears, ornaments, pillows, and blankets.

“While dealing with that loss, I found it incredibly comfortable to have something to hold onto, to hug, or to talk to,” Higley said. “It doesn’t replace the person you’ve lost, but it gives you a bit of comfort when you need it. They can’t hug you back, but they receive hugs pretty darn well.”

words + photos by parker reed

SAYING ‘I LOVE YOU BEAR-Y MUCH.’ Memory bears, made from the clothes of loved ones who have passed, are gaining popularity locally.

JULIE KONZEN AND HER MEMORY BEARS

NEW THERAPY PRACTICE HELPS CLIENTS EXPLORE MINDFULNESS

A NEW THERAPY PRACTICE IN EAU CLAIRE OFFERS A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO MENTAL HEALTH CARE. Mindful Connections

LLC was founded by founded in 2021 by Cora Reuter Looker and Nichole Kaeppeler Kulow, UW-Stoutgradswithexperienceworkingwith incarcerated individuals and first responders. “While one could say we are in the business of emotion and thought, we know these areas are only a piece of the overall picture of wellness,” the pair said. “We spend time withourpatientsaddressingallareasofhealth and communicate regularly with other local wellness professionals to ensure we can help people to get well and stay well.” Aside from specializing in trauma, Mindful Connections

Health Wild Nettle Blend For Wild Pain: New Eau Claire Business Creates All-Natural Pain Relief Products

words by parker reed

FAMILY, HEALING, AND A COMMITMENT TO SUSTAINABLE PRACTICES ARE THE FOUNDATION of a new Eau Claire-based business. “We’ve been trying to live healthier lives, and be more natural the past few years,” said Trenity White, co-owner of topical treatment company Silvasano. “Somewhere along the way, pain is going to arise for people, and we want to give them an all-natural and organic solution to their pain.”

Silvasano, a new company operating out of Eau Claire, offers all-natural products that are devoid of harmful pesticides and other chemicals in an effort to create a cleaner and healthier product. The business was founded in late 2021 by local photographer Trenity White and his partner, Emily Severson, beginning with their trademark wild nettle rub blend – a topical rub aimed to reduce inflammation, pain, and relieve stress through aromatherapy.

“Our products combine a number of different ingredients that blend well into the finished product,” Severson said. “It’s a great way for us to combine our family and business to keep it grounded and healthy.”

SILVASANO

(715) 313-3249 silvasanonaturals@gmail.com facebook.com/silvasanoEC

The main ingredient in their wild nettle rub blend is stinging nettle – an often overlooked ingredient. White said it can promote noticeable

pain relief for arthritis, tension, sprains, dry skin, and more.

“A lot of people think stinging nettle is just some weed that grows in a ditch or a pesty plant you find somewhere,” White said. “But when you take a look back at its history, it’s actually a really powerful herb. It’s something we think is underutilized and helps set us apart from other similar types of products.”

offers Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing (EDMR) therapy and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy. Learn more about Mindful Connections at mindfulconnections22. wixsite.com/website –Matthew Morgan

SUBMITTED PHOTOS

WHO’S READY FOR WARM WEATHER?

We sure are! But not because we have anything against cold weather. Quite the opposite, actually!

We’re excited for spring because that’s when Govin’s Farm hosts their annual Lambing Barn, where folks can see all the baby animals. Check it out beginning the weekend of March 19-20 from 9am4pm. For more info, visit govinsfarm.com

PHOTO BY ANDREA PAULSETH

Discovery

Education

STEP INTO THE WILD AND EXPLORE WILDLANDS SCHOOL

SCHOOL DOESN’T HAVE TO MEAN ENDLESS HOURS AT A DESK IN A CLASSROOM, STARING AT A SCREEN –OR AT THE CLOCK. It can also mean getting outdoors and into the real world to learn about science, math, history, English, and much more in a cooperative, hands-on way.

That’s the project-based approach taken by Wildlands School, a public charter school located at Beaver Creek Reserve in rural Eau Claire County. The school, which serves students in seventh through 12th grades, is part of the Augusta School District, but it welcomes students from around the region via open enrollment. In the past, students have come from Eau Claire, Chippewa Falls, Altoona, Fall Creek, Menomonie, Elk Mound, and elsewhere.

The school describes itself as “a teacher-powered, project-based learning environment. This means that education is hands-on and student-centered. As students age and gain more experience they transition from a teacher led environment to an independent form of education, with staff members available to all levels for resources and guidance.” Students have explored the Rocky Mountains and the Grand Canyon as part of field science seminars while also working toward state learning standards via their personal learning plans.

If Wildlands School sounds like an adventure you’d like to pursue, open enrollment for the 2022-23 school year runs through April 29 Several open house tour dates are planned, and prospective students and parents can learn more at wildlandschool.net.

Learning

CLEANIN’ AND READIN’

LOCAL PARTNERSHIP CREATES SEVEN MINI LAUNDROMAT LIBRARIES

words by parker reed

A PARTNERSHIP IS HELPING SPREAD LIBRARY RESOURCES FURTHER INTO THE COMMUNITY, giving families something to occupy their time with while they’re washing their clothes. The L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library and the UW-Madison Division of Extension Eau Claire County have established a number of Eau Claire Laundromat Libraries throughout the city.

At seven participating laundromats, families are invited to read a number of books while they are at the location, and are also invited to select a book to take home with them. Additionally, each library also features a binder with information for parents and caregivers about early literacy and community resources that support children and families.

Each library contains diverse,

high-interest books in English, Spanish, and Hmong for children up to age 8. No check-out registration is required, and no library card is needed to use any of the literature at any location.The goal of the outreach program is to increase acess to children’s books for area families and also to promote the development of early literacy skills for children and families who visit participating local laundromats.

For more information, visit ecpubliclibrary.info/kids/ laundromat-libraries.

The UW-Madison Division of Extension

Eau Claire County is interested in helping create Laundromat Libraries in communities outside the City of Eau Claire. If you’d like to help, learn more online here or call their office at (715) 839-4712.

WHERE CAN YOU FIND THESE LIL’ LIBRARIES?

PARTNERING LAUNDROMATS

INCLUDE:

• Laundry Express Laundromat (2655 Golf Road, Eau Claire)

• London Road Laundromat (2820 London Road, Eau Claire)

• Pinehurst Laundromat (3061 N. Hastings Way, Eau Claire)

• Risler’s Laundromat (3233 Seymour Road, Eau Claire)

• Super Wash Laundromat (2625 N. Clairemont Ave., Eau Claire)

• Super Wash Laundromat (2703 Birch St., Eau Claire)

• Vine Street Laundry (2005 Eighth St., Eau Claire)

WASH UP! Local libraries have partnered to offer new Laundromat Libraries to help early literacy in the area.

CHILDREN’S MUSEUM OF E.C. LAUNCHES PRE-K PROGRAM

NEW PARTNERSHIP WILL SERVE KIDS AGES 6 MONTHS TO 5 YEARS

PARENTS, GET GEARED FOR A NEW EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION PROGRAM MAKING ITS WAY TO THE CHIPPEWA VALLEY.

Beginning next school year, the Children’s Museum of Eau Claire’s new preschool program will serve kids ages 6 months to 5 years of age, including a 4-year-old kindergarten program with before- and after-school care, and will offer a curriculum that channels and challenges children as individuals.

The program will have a capacity for 60 children total, with the 4K having a capacity of 18 children for a morning or afternoon session beginning at the start of the 2022-23 school year, while the new museum itself – which is under construction on North Barstow Street – isn’t expected to be open to the public until November.

“Children will be presented with a warm, beautiful environment that promotes exploration, discovery, and the freedom to get messy,” said Lydia Ekenstedt, who will direct the program. “They will have opportunities to learn practical life skills, with a big emphasis on social/emotional awareness, and building independence. The children drive the learning to bring out the wonder and beauty that is already inside them.”

The Children’s Museum of Eau Claire is partnering with Ekenstedt’s Montessori-inspired and structured in-home daycare, Peace Tree Child Care. A typical school day will include activities that enhance social, emotional, intellectual, and physical growth. Experienced teachers encourage children to explore, imagine, and create in a small class size setting, fostering an appreciation of all things STEAM.

For more information visit Children’s Museum of Eau Claire’s website, ChildrensMuseumEC.com, or Peace Tree’s website, peacetreecare.com.

KIDDOS PLAY AT THE CHILDREN’S MUSEUM OF EAU CLAIRE

words by parker reed • photo by andrea paulseth

Play

HOW TO BUILD YOUR OWN

MATERIALS NEEDED:

• 50-80 disposable 10” x 13” aluminum trays

• Heavy-duty all-purpose hand scoop

• 2 five-gallon buckets

• Heavy-duty storage container

• Food coloring

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Check the weather forecast. Make sure the evening temperatures will reach below 15 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Lay all of your trays on a flat surface outside. Fill evenly with water.

3. Wait until the top layer of the water is slightly frozen. Add 5-10 drops of food coloring. Neon food coloring generally works best, but go for any color that you like best!

4. Plot your igloo design in your yard. Avoid a sunny spot, where your igloo may melt.

5. Shovel out the snow to make even ground. Create a diameter between 4.5-6 feet.

6. Make your “snow cement.” Mix equal parts cold water and snow in a five-gallon bucket to a slurpee/snowcone consistency.

7. Once your bricks are frozen, lay one layer of bricks horizontally to create your foundation. Then, begin building your igloo with the bricks stacked vertically, using “snow cement” in between each brick to secure your igloo.

For a complete tutorial, check out the same YouTube video the Rowekamp family followed to build their igloo at bit.ly/3sKlXGR.

Activities

INSPIRING IGLOO

GOT WINTER BLUES? NOT THE ROWEKAMP FAMILY, WHOSE COLORFUL IGLOO CREATION BRIGHTENS UP THE EASTSIDE HILL NEIGHBORHOOD

words by thomas delapp

IN THE LATEST OF THE EASTSIDE HILL NEIGHBORHOOD’S OUTDOOR ESCAPADES, A MULTICOLORED IGLOO magically glows in the front yard of the Rowekamp family. It’s hard to miss when you’re passing by Margaret Street. “It’s become an attraction,” said local dad Chad Rowekamp, “that’s for sure.”

The igloo accompanies the homemade ice rink already gracing the Rowekamp abode. And there’s no shortage of outdoor activities for this Eau Claire family.

After seeing a rainbow-igloo tutorial on YouTube, he asked his 7-yearold daughter, Molly, if she thought they should make one themselves. Of course, she said yes.

The Rowekamps are already locally known for their heading efforts to get kids – and adults – outside. They’ve made Little Free Sled Libraries, stuffed animal zoos during lockdown, host lemonade stands in the summertime, “vandalize” local parts of downtown with their colorful chalk creations, and Chad serves as president of the Eastside Hill Neighborhood Association, which is responsible for the Boyd Park Plus project, which aims to bring improved playground facilities to Eau Claire.

The family also participates in the 1,000 Hours Outside challenge, which tries to balance the average

1,000 hours of screen time kids have per year with 1,000 hours outside. Some take the challenge very seriously, Rowekamp said. Others are more casual and see it more as a fun goal. Big change comes from small things, Rowekamp said.

While most of us are impressed by Rowekamp creating difficult, elaborate projects for (and with) his kids, he wants people to know that it’s actually easy as pie to work your creative outdoor side.

“At the end of the day, there’s a vision in my head for what the world should be like,” Rowekamp said. “You’ve got to build the place you want to live.”

SUBMITTED PHOTOS

Projects

Ready? Set? Draw! Check Out New Comic Book Club

words by thomas delapp

FETCH YOUR PAPER AND PENCILS AND GET SCRIBBLING, because the Unitarian Universalist Congregation is hosting a DIY Comic Club on Sunday, March 27, with the goal of connecting kids after two years of a long – and isolating – pandemic.

“This pandemic has been really scary for kids,” said Aimee Johnson, religious exploration coordinator for UUC. “They’ve

had to shut off some parts of their lives and just not be kids.”

No set structure is important for creativity, Johnson noted. Some prompts and challenges will be provided before letting the kids loose to create – and when they’ve finished, their work will be photocopied to share with others and take home as a souvenir. Kids need someone to tell them they have permission

to create and be themselves, she said, and the DIY Comic Club will let them use their imaginations and initiative. “I’m excited for (kids) to get together without structure or assignment,” Johnson said, “just to have fun and create.”

Check out the DIY Comic Club for yourself from 12pm to 2pm on March 27. Find more info at facebook.com/UUCREEauClaire.

Attractions

IS THIS REAL LIFE? OR IS THIS JUST MYTHOLOGY? CHECK OUT COOL LIBRARY EVENT FOR KIDS

THE GREEK GOD ZEUS WOULD SAY THIS EVENT IS PRETTY ELECTRIFYING. Check out the teen Mythology Madness virtual event on March 16 from 6pm to 7:30pm, hosted by the Augusta Memorial Public Libary. Try out mythology-themed trivia, puzzle-solving, a Celtic virtual escape room, and learn knot tying! This statewide library experience allows teens to connect in a virtual setting. Registration is available (free!) on the Chippewa Falls Library website at chippewafallslibrary.org

ten teens to sign up before March 12 are guaranteed a materials for knot tying and Celtic bookmarks, escape room cheats, and snacks!

Shimek

PHOTO VIA CREATIVE COMMONS

PHOTO VIA PIXABAY

UPHILL CLIMB.

For decades, Mt. Telemark near Cable, Wisconsin, was a northwoodsmeccaforoutdoor lovers, as shown in this 1960s poster. Then its massive lodge fell into disrepairandbankruptcy.

Now, the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation has grand plans for the site. Learn about the rise and fall and rise again of Mt. Telemark, starting on page 44.

design

elemark Lodge is an apparition now. Or rather, it always was.

In country where lakeside log cabins shuttered for the winter seem to act as acoustic paneling for the winter wind, and where old tarpaper lumberjack cabins seem to billow smoke as a signal, the Wrightian behemoth –trapezoidal, wood-paneled, clean-lined, and glass-fronted – couldn’t help but make on-lookers glance, and then glance again, to make sure that it was real.

But that was always the point.

For most of the last century on a hill too small to ski on, in a part Wisconsin too out there to be incorporated, a man named Tony Wise insisted with an ebullient stubbornness that there could be life and livelihoods in the Northwoods of Wisconsin. First, he built it, then they did come, and then he pushed ahead to bigger and grander with a pioneer’s spirit. Beginning in 1947, a glacial moraine was named Mt. Telemark, and a rope tow soon laced its slope. Quickly Telemark became, as an old-timer up North would say, “happening.” The American Birkiebeiner started, the biggest names in jazz and pop graced its ballroom stage, and senators, governors, and Green Bay Packers all came to Cable, Wisconsin.

Like all apparitions though, Telemark was ephemeral. A place powered by a pioneer who had repeated the mistake of thinking rain follows the plow. Wise took Telemark, continued to till it for more and more, and eventually, the soil he’d built it on dried up. His dream bought the farm as he lost the lodge, filing for bankruptcy in 1985. Rains came occasionally for the Lodge after, but without Tony Wise, it was merely subsisting on its own legend until finally closing in 2014.

What was left then was a Lodge that seemed to haunt Cable. It’s wood-paneled walls turned moldy, and the glass-front, absent of any lights

on the inside, once again reflected the humbleness and harshness of the Wisconsin winter.

To say that Telemark haunts Cable though, isn’t to say it drags it down. Rather the specter of Telemark carries in it a hint of life. It is in some parts Hamlet’s father, Paul Bunyan, and Casper the Friendly Ghost. What Telemark was is spurring action on what Telemark could be, and the plans being made for the legendary property that built, held, and sustained the Wisconsin Northwoods spirit are being made by those who felt it firsthand. Namely, as the first whiff of spring signals the coming winter thaw, American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation is moving forward with hopes to root Telemark further in the Northwoods community and assure its cultural and economic impact and growth into a sustainable future.

THE NORTHWOODS COMES OF AGE

Tony Wise was a man with an eye towards the mythic.

The founder of Telemark reflected once in The North Wisconsin News that standing at the top of Mt. Telemark, he would “take a trip back 10,000 years to watch the last ice age glacier ripping and tearing the earth’s surface asunder, which dumped a huge mass of rock and dirt into a moraine that ever after affords an unobstructed view in all directions.”

When Wise came along, he simply saw himself as part of another intervention in the long histo ry of glaciers, Native Americans, French fur traders, and lumbermen.

He was born in 1921 in Hay ward, at the tail-end of the Wisconsin timber boom which left the community seeking an identity. Unmoored and searching, Wise built up himself as he built up the community of Hayward. He lived in the same turn-of-thecentury house in Hayward and slept in the same bed he was born in the entirety of his life, according to a 1981 profile in the Pioneer Press. Yet, his life’s work changed the economic, cultural, and physical spaces of “Up North” that came to define those words as an escape,

an oasis, and a way of life.

Wise’s mother was a gleeful schoolteacher from whom he inherited his sense of story and place. His father worked the ledgers, speculating in real estate and owning a small bank in Hayward that acted as a creditor to many during the lean years of the 1920s. Wise’s dad also left life too soon, dying in an auto accident in 1932. It was a tragedy, and Wise made sure that the community-minded generosity his father showed during his life became the focal point of his own. The $100,000 life insurance payment from the accident ensured he and his mother could survive through the Great Depression. It also became the seed money for Telemark.

First, however, the money was put to work putting Wise through college. He graduated from Ohio State University, and then got an MBA at Harvard. World War II broke out, and Wise joined up to serve his country with the 10th Armored Division. He commanded a tank in the European theater from 1944 through to the end of the war. When the division entered Bavaria in 1945, he helped recapture the German ski resort town of Garmisch and quickly took to the local habit of alpine skiing.

When Wise returned to Wisconsin, he came back with an honorable discharge and a newfound love of a sport that was mostly foreign to Americans at the time. Hayward had begun to rebuild an economy based around hunting and fishing tourism that sustained it through three

Outside of Cable, Wisconsin, a 75-year saga with as many ups and downs as the ski trails it brought to the Wisconsin Northwoods gets another chapter.

THE MAN WITH THE DREAM.

Mt. Telemark founder Tony Wise posed outside the then-new Telemark Lodge in 1972. The lodge drew visitors for years before falling into bankruptcy and disrepair. It was demolished in 2021. (PhotocourtesyTelemarkEducationFoundation.)

“Telemark is the only place where the lodge is bigger than the ski hill.”

–Billy Kidd, Olympic skiing medalist

The myth of Telemark, as Wise would tell it locals – according to Telemark Education Foundation director and Telemark Memories author Deb Nelson – was that Wise climbed the 370-foot moraine 2 miles east of Cable in the winter of 1946, carved a number into a birch tree on one side, read a number carved into the other side by the property owner, and settled on a compromise of $750 for the nearly 800-acre property.

After a summer of clearing runs, Telemark ski hill opened on Dec. 13, 1947, using a surplus Jeep engine to power a tow rope. It was one of the first ski lifts in the country, let alone the Midwest. Aspen, Colorado, had only adopted lift-powered skiing a year

where Nordic skiing was born, reconnected a community to its spiritual heritage, helped Hayward-Cable find a source of joy juxtaposed against the harsh winter cold, and accomplished Wise’s goal of being a source of economic stability through the winter months.

Wise though, was not the only GI to glimpse alpine skiing and bring it back home. In fact, most ski resorts in the US today were founded by those who shared his story, serving in the famed 10th Mountain Division or seeing the Alps in the closing moments of World War II. The pragmatic side of Wise’s insight that skiing could fill a niche in an economy once centered on resource extraction became a model for long-suffering mining outposts in the American West. In Colorado, many towns simply picked a mountain and put up a chairlift. When it became itself competing against mountains offering vertical seven times Mt. Telemark in a

To survive, Wise fell back on distinctly

progressive experimentation. He turned the Wisconsin Idea towards recreation in the state’s Northwoods, foraying into any and all ways to guarantee its skiing, fishing, hunting, and leisure for now and into perpetuity.

In summer 1967, Wise led a canoe trip down the Namekagon with U.S. Sens. Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin and Walter Mondale of Minnesota that secured their sponsorship for the 1968 National Scenic Riverways Act. When it passed, the Namekagon and St. Croix rivers instantly became the longest stretch of protected riverway in the U.S., extending more than 285 miles. Meanwhile, in the winter, he recruited members of the U.S. Cross Country Ski Team to design courses over the glacial moraines and woods surrounding Mt. Telemark. With the help of UW-Madison architecture students, he designed a plan for a series of model recreation communities that sought to center the activities that one could enjoy in the Northwoods for those who lived there.

A LODGE BIGGER THAN THE HILL

The centerpiece of his plan for Telemark though, was a $6.1 million (adjusted for inflation, that’s $41 million) 200-room ski lodge designed by Frank Lloyd Wright associate Herb Fritz: the Telemark Lodge.

When the Lodge opened in 1972, Olympic alpine medalist Billy Kidd remarked that “Telemark is the only place where the lodge is bigger than the ski hill.” It would become its epithet and attitude-defining mantra.

The Lodge itself was as unique a building as you’d ever step in. An intricate maze of stone and cedar wood that folded in on itself, giving you the sense that in wandering to your room you were wandering the Wisconsin woods. As you walked, you would invariably find an oasis, popping into a restaurant where for a time the sous-chef was a young Emeril Lagasse, or into a lobby where Packers quarterback Bart Starr was sitting beneath the massive, 100-foot-tall stone fireplace, regaling an eager Wisconsin crowd with tales of the Lombardi years.

Telemark Lodge’s heyday stretched over a period that was, in retrospect, comically 1970s. The dull orange furniture that survived until its closure eight years ago was a lasting testament, but so were the odd details that define what the Lodge at its best looked like. The lavish nightclub billed itself as a “disco,” but most nights hosted jazz luminaries such as Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Bill Evans. At the first ever cross-country skiing World Cup in the U.S. in 1978, the dignitary with the honor of starting the race was Billy Carter, brother of President Jimmy Carter and proprietor of Billy Beer.

I always held a subdued fascination with this time period at Telemark, as it’s when my own family first visited the Lodge. My favorite reflec-

Telemark Lodge during its 1970s heyday.

RIGHT: Mt. Telemark’s founder, Tony Wise, also created the American Bikebeiner, now the largest cross-country ski race in North America. FACING PAGE: Making snow at Mt. Telemark in the 1960s. (Photoscourtesy Telemark Education Foundation.)

“There was always a possibility you’d be sitting in your room and right down the hall someone that belonged at Carnegie Hall or cooking at a restaurant in Paris was doing their thing.”

–Marlene

Theyerl, Mt. Telemark Lodge patron

tion on the energy during the period comes from Marlene Theyerl, my grandmother, who described it saying, “There was always a possibility you’d be sitting in your room and right down the hall someone that belonged at Carnegie Hall or cooking at a restaurant in Paris was doing their thing.”

The Lodge during those years had a unique pull to it, drawing people in from all over, and for many, causing them to stay. A fixture of Telemark for many years, Gary Crandall fell in love with Telemark, and at Telemark, when he moved to Hayward from Madison in the early 1970s. His future wife, Sara, owned the Creative Touch gift shop housed inside the Lodge’s mini-mall. As the tourist economy spurred by Telemark took off, Crandall became the race director for 35 years of the Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival, which started in 1986, quickly became one of the largest mountain bike races in the world, and called Telemark home. Among his favorite memories of the Lodge in its early days was Wise’s penchant for booking musical talent that painted a picture of the times and the place. For Crandall, sitting in front and hearing Bonnie Raitt was a favorite memory, as was a visit from the Badgers: “During the Birkie while we were working, the UW Marching Band came down the hallway. … Pretty amazing to hear those drums fill a narrow hallway while they marched.”

The hodgepodge of the times was also underscored by significant investments in Telemark that would become fixtures in Hayward-Cable, and the Northwoods, for years to come.

Most notable among these was the American Birkiebeiner, affectionately known as the Birkie. It started in 1972 with just 51 skiers, but will host an estimated 10,000 skiers this year when the 48th annual race takes place the weekend of Feb. 26. A 55-kilometer point-to-point marathon originally from Hayward to Telemark, and now skied from Cable to Hayward, the race spurred the development of the Birkebeiner trail, which now stretches over 120 kilometers of ridges, forested valleys, and hills.

Cross country skiing, in fact, ultimately surpassed downhill skiing as Telemark’s main attraction. The hills of Wisconsin were no match for the West or New England, but the forested ridges, hills, and steep valleys found in Wisconsin offered some of the most ideal terrain on the American continent for those OK with climbing. Plus, the sport mixed freely with the leftover spirit of those Norwegians, Swedes, and Finns who landed in the Upper Midwest during the Scandinavian diaspora. With Wise’s invitation, the U.S. Ski Team made Telemark a regular training ground. He even let them design the trails that went in for a World Cup race in 1978. Meanwhile, the Birkie became the largest and most prestigious race in North America, and Wise banded it together with the oldest and largest races held in Scandinavia (including the Swedish Vasaloppet and Norwegian Birkiebeiner) in a new series called the Worldloppet.

THE MISSING YEARS

Ultimately, the mantra “the Lodge is bigger than the hill” lost its oomph. It was Telemark’s fatal design-flaw – the thermal exhaust port on Wise’s anti-Death Star.

Through all of the heady days of the Lodge, Wise was barely turning a profit on his most profitable events. And in most ventures, Telemark was taking heavy hits to its bottom-line.

Nonetheless, Wise pushed ahead. He went even bigger than the Lodge in the early 1980s, investing in an all-weather convention center, “the Coliseum,” that was meant to bridge the gap of low-snow years in the Northwoods. It had tennis courts, an indoor track to ski through, grand murals with allusions to Rome, and cost about $1 million per winter just to heat. Telemark Lodge had hid the financial realities of its grandeur behind its splendor and the cheerfulness of its owner. The Coliseum though, a concrete box that looked like it belonged on the lot occupied by

MORE AT VOLUMEONE.ORG

A FAMILY TRADITION: Writer Ben Theyerl – at far left with his family in this 2002 snapshot – is an avid skier and third generation American Birkebeiner participant. He has many personal memories of Mt. Telemark, both on skis and off. An

The venture proved the investment that broke Wise, who lost control of Telemark in bankruptcy in 1985.

From there, the Lodge became a lost treasure that the community that had sprung up around it tried to reclaim. It bounced, and bounced, among owners. Some wanted to run Telemark like any other ski resort, while others were intent on capturing what made Telemark different from those places that had become as much a fixture in American winters as the sport they hosted.

In the end, the property went on the auction block at a sheriff’s sale in 2013.

In its initial act Telemark had created an energy that transformed the Northwoods. The laws of the universe held that energy would be conserved, and now, those who remember and carry Telemark’s legacy are doing just that.

THE AMERICAN BIRKIEBEINER SKI FOUNDATION STEPS IN

As far as energy goes, a fair amount of Wise’s entrepreneurial passion surrounding the Northwoods community landed with Ben Popp.

Popp is executive director of the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation (ABSF), which was founded as a nonprofit to take over the American Birkiebeiner when Wise lost Telemark in 1985. Like Wise, Popp has a deep understanding of the community he grew up in (Popp is from nearby Phillips, and now lives in Spooner) which presents as a natural intuition, and he is not afraid to let his – or others’ – ideas flow freely. “I think oftentimes if (we at the Birkie) think, ‘This is something we can come up with,’ and we think it’s important – then we go, ‘Let’s figure out a way to do it,’ ” is how he characterized it when I talked to interviewed him last month.

The Birkie Foundation, once just in charge of the annual race, has turned into a year-round calendar of events, a trail infrastructure operation, and a new professional race team, Team Birkie, that’s already put skiers on the World Cup. Popp was instrumental in moving the race’s home to a property adjacent to Telemark when the Lodge closed in 2013. There, the ABSF built the largest snowmaking operation for a cross-country trail in the Midwest – capable of producing a fully artificial 5km snow loop. There are plans to expand that to 15km, which would make Birkie’s snowmaking operation the largest in the U.S., and do it on a trail that’s up to the requirements to host any level of skiing event. There are plans

olis-based) Loppet Foundation to host a World Cup on the course in 2024, which we’re extremely excited about,” Popp said.

In 2018 though, the Birkie came up with its biggest idea yet: Bring it all back home. Since 2013, Telemark had remained vacant and empty. The Lodge neared condemnation, while just to the west the Birkie was breathing life into the vision the Lodge once embodied. “After three or four rounds of plans going nowhere, we decided that if no one else has been able to (make this work) over the last five or six years, then we should maybe look at doing it,” Popp said.

Considering purchasing Telemark, however, yielded a challenge that fit the outsized building. “Once we decided to do it, we just had the little problem of raising $1.4 million! Then (to add to that) it became clear pretty quickly we had to tear the building down.” That would add about $750,000 to what the ABSF would need.

The Birkie, though, was committed to bringing down the Lodge in a way that would honor what it had been. A $250,000 idle sites grant from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. gave the project life, and then the Birkie channeled Wise’s

ABSF looked to preserve part of the Telemark property into perpetuity and found a partner in the Landmark Conservancy.

“There were members in the community that approached Landmark and said, ‘You guys should really look at this property, it is significant,’ ” said Lindsey Ketchel, the Landmark Conservancy’s executive director. “Once we saw just how critically important these lands were for outdoor recreation, and the ecological integrity of the forest there, we decided to move forward with the purchase from the Birkie.” The $500,000 sale from the ABSF to Landmark Conservancy proved to be another one of that forest’s mutualisms.

Telemark Lodge was demolished in April 2021, paving the way for dreams to be planted again in the ground Telemark had sprouted from.

“That’s the nuts-and-bolts that got us to where we are now, which is the idea that Telemark is vital to 1) the economic activity of this region, and 2) for (the Birkie) to carry out our mission of having amazing experiences while getting people outside, we need a medium, and this is the place for it,” Popp said.

As for what those ideas look like in reality, Popp offers this explanation: The plan is to break ground next year on a Nordic Center, certified for sustainability and using a solar array, which would help offset carbon emissions from snow-making. “Some of these balls are starting to roll – which means we’re taking on more events coming up,” Popp said. Among these are the Mt. Borah Epic Mountain bike race, a high school mountain bike league race, and a cross-country World Cup event in 2024. A planned hotel, as well as partnerships with several business, “make us feel like it’s really starting to come together,” he said.

The ABSF also recently received a $762,000 outdoor recreation grant from the state, which will fund a roller ski loop, biathlon range, strength park, and additional mountain bike trails, which Popp said will enhance the venue and provide more silent sport opportunities.

To use that old Northwood-ism again, Telemark is “happening.” This version, however, seeks to use the detritus of what Wise once built to bring a stability to Telemark and its place in the Northwoods landscape. No longer an apparition, but instead a steady presence, alive and well.

And while the ideas are free flowing, there is a focus to the ABSF’s ver-

“We all have a strong desire for telemark to regain a viable operation bringing back that huge national and international focus.”

–Gary Crandall, former race director, Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival

Overflow Parking/Possible Biathlon Range

Area

Great Hall

Camping Cabins Sledding + Tubing

the vision

Designed to Net-Zero + Living Building

Challenge Standards

Coffee Cafe + Info Center

With ‘Bike-up’ service window

Outdoor Plaza

With tables + benches overlooking Mt. Telemark + trails

Self-Serve Bike + Ski Center

For DIY repairs, waxing + service

Bird Safe Glazing

With great views to trails + observation tower on Mt. Telemark

Outdoor Fireplace + Gathering Area

Trail Center

Includes Birkie Museum, Education + Training Rooms, Toilets + Changing Facilities, Satellite Birkie offices, Birkie Gift Shop, Designed to Net-Zero + Living Building Challenge Standards

Access Direct from trail center + tap room

sion of Telemark that is clear. Popp explains that “if you draw a circle 50 miles around (Hayward and Cable), 90% of our funding comes from outside that circle. But we as an organization spend over 80% of our funding within that 50-mile circle. So that’s the model, using the community we’ve built far and wide in skiing to flow in and build our community in Hayward-Cable, (and) it will be cut from the same cloth of getting people outside and being connected to the world at large.”

In both the skiing community and among those in Cable, Popp and the ABSF’s vision seems to have a faith placed in it that previous attempts to remake Telemark have not earned.

Gary Crandall summarizes the Cable community’s feelings: “We all have a strong desire for Telemark to regain a viable operation bringing back that huge national and international focus. I see that the Birkie is taking a more measured approach and hopefully this time the glory that was Telemark will once again blossom.”

Meanwhile, for those for whom life’s tapestry

LOOKING TOWARD THE FUTURE.

Since purchasing the former Telemark property, the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation has developed extensive plans for the site, aiming to create “the premier outdoor recreation facility in northern Wisconsin.” The image above shows a planned “village hub,” which could include everything from a museum to a tap room to an outdoor fireplace (at left). The facing page shows a map of potential development at Telemark. Learn more at www.birkie.com/telemark. (ImagescourtesyAmericanBirkebeinerSkiFoundation.)

weighs heavily towards skiing and for which Telemark was a touchstone, there is already much to laud. Eau Claire skier David Ecker said of his time growing up at Telemark during its waning years that it “was one of the few places in the world that (cross-country) skiing was the center of the universe.”

“Many of us have spent the last handful of years mourning the loss of Telemark,” Ecker said. “I am especially excited by (the Birkie’s) sustainable plan to focus on land conservancy, rather than over-commercializing the property.”

For Popp, meanwhile, the nuts, bolts, facts, and figures of steering the ABSF all point towards the spectral joy, spirit, and connection to the world that the name Telemark carries in the Northwoods: “I think about hosting a World Cup here (in 2024), how amazing would it be to line up Jessie Diggins next to Johannes Høsflot Klæbo” –a seven-time Olympic medalist Norwegian skier –“next to your dad, my mom, a kid from Minneapolis who didn’t know what skiing was two years ago, a kid from the Lac Courte Oreilles reservation, and on and on. When we all get to sit at the same table, we all get to inspire each other, and that’s my ultimate dream at the end of the day.”

To see that dream, you can now head two miles East of Cable, up a chip-sealed road where the bridges offer glimpses of the vernal pools and springs coming off the Namekagon, take in the glacial knoll that’s stood for 10,000 years, brought life and connection to northern Wisconsin, and belongs to all once again. It is a place not unlike others strewn throughout the Northwoods – this is after all, one of the most beautiful places on Earth – but here a certain ghost named Tony Wise, through a half century of hard-work, folded and stuffed all that is beautiful and good about the place into a singular word: Telemark.

With the vision Wise inspired alive and well through the Birkie, he can now watch over the rebirth, renewal, and continued legacy of the Northwoods that he helped create.

In other words, Telemark Lodge is an apparition now. Or rather, it will always be.

Ben Theyerl grew up in Altoona, has cross-country ski raced all over the country, and currently lives and breathes the sport while based in Crested Butte, Colorado. He’s written about skiing at Fasterskier, and about other things in The Brooklyn Rail, Volume One, and BJ Hollars’ Hope is the Thing project (Available at the Local Store!).

Nothing is certain in life, the old saying goes, but death and taxes. And we’ll admit that, under most circumstances, neither subject is very uplifting to talk about. They can be pretty boring topics, too: Skimming through a stack of IRS paperwork may make you wish you were dead, and that’s even before you find out what you owe. Nonetheless, both death and taxes – and the financial and legal intersection of the two –are critical topics for all of us. Making sure we’ve planned well, financially and otherwise, can ease our anxiety and make our lives more comfortable and fulfilling … at least until the inevitable happens. Until then, you’ve got this.

PRESENTED BY:

PLANNING AHEAD

WHAT ARE POWERS OF ATTORNEY, AND WHY DO YOU NEED THEM? AN EAU CLAIRE ATTORNEY EXPLAINS compiled and edited by tom

IT’S NO EXAGGERATION THAT MOST OF OF WOULD RATHER THINK OF ANYTHING ELSE THAN ABOUT MAKING CHALLENGING END-OF-LIFE DECISIONS. But those decisions inevitably will have to be made – either by ourselves or by others – and planning ahead can provide peace of mind and prevent future confusion and difficulty.

In an episode of the Volume One-produced podcast Journey Ahead: Aging Well in the Chippewa Valley, Lisa Wells of the Eau Claire County Aging and Disability Resource Center chats with Eau Claire attorney Peter Grosskopf about a variety of end-of-life legal issues. In this excerpt from the podcast, Grosskopf addresses the difference between a health care power of attorney and a financial power of attorney, and why you need both.

Lisa Wells: From your experience, why do people put off planning ahead?

Peter Grosskopf: I think part of it is just normal inertia. You know, procrastination. They don’t want to deal with it. Thinking about having dementia or thinking about requir -

ing a power of attorney to manage your affairs is not something pleasant. So it’s easy to put off.

I know when I was talking about it with my family years ago. Then it was more like, “Well, if we talk about it, then it’s going to happen,” right? There’s a lot of people who say that about wills, too, that they don’t want to do a will because it’s sort of like opening the door to death, which is, really not true at all, of course.

Let’s talk a little bit about who really needs a power of attorney. Do we need it when we get older? Do we need it like when we get sick? Who who really needs one?

I usually tell people that pretty much everyone over the age of 18 ought to have powers of attorney. And those include both health care or medical power of attorney as well as financial power of attorney. And one thing to remind people is there’s been a lot of famous cases about people who did not have powers of attorney – for example, Karen Ann Quinlan, Terri Schiavo, among others – and those were all

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very young people who had not done any advance planning and wound up in terrible medical conditions that lasted for years and years and went through the courts for years and years.

So anybody over the age of 18 should have a power of attorney for health care and finance. Let’s talk a little bit about what’s the difference?

Well, the difference basically is the health care power of attorney, like it sounds, is for making health care or medical decisions. You can appoint an agent who can make those decisions for you. The financial power of attorney is to manage finances, and it has evolved over the years. It used to be that the financial power of attorney was limited to kind of specific circumstances, such as selling the house long distance when you couldn’t be on location, things of that nature. But it’s evolved into what’s called a durable power of attorney, and what the “durable”

part simply means is that it’s intended to remain in effect even after a person becomes incompetent. That has become extremely important now for planning for dementia, planning for that period of time when a person is not able to manage their finances. But equally important, I’ve got a lot of my older clients who simply don’t want to manage their finances anymore. They’re still competent. They just don’t want to do it. So they’d like to have somebody step in and help.

So what are some questions on the power of attorney for health care?

One of the important questions is, do you want to give your agent authority to have you admitted to a nursing home or community-based residential facility? And the reason I point that out is a couple of things. No. 1, a lot of people instinctively say, “No, I don’t want to go to a nursing home, so I’m going to check ‘no’ to that.” But you really want

to say “yes” to that, because if the time comes when you have to go to a nursing home or a community-based residential facility – like assisted living – then if you’ve said no to that and you’re not able to admit yourself, then the family will likely have to go to a guardianship and protective placement, which is a court procedure, which is much more time-consuming, it’s much more expensive, and it can be ongoing for years and years. So that’s why you really want to say “yes” to that.

The other reason I point that out is because the Wisconsin power of attorney asks that question, but you could go to another state, for example, Minnesota or Illinois, and get a perfectly fine health care power of attorney from those states that simply don’t work in Wisconsin because they don’t ask those questions. Other questions that are asked in the health care power of attorney would be, for example, whether or not you want nutrition when the time comes, when you want feeding tubes. And there’s also a spot where you can put down your own statement of your preferences, desires, limitations, or restrictions. So those are some of the things that are asked.

Now we’ve talked about the power of attorney for health care. Can you talk about power of attorney for finance? And then the next question would be, there’s some confusion between power of attorney for finance and living will. Could you talk about the difference?

Let’s talk about the living will first. With the living will, basically, this is a direct statement. From the signer or maker to their health care professionals on certain choices that have been made. In other words, a person can do this living will that says they don’t want to have fluids or

they don’t want hydration, they don’t want feeding tubes, things like that. It’s a direct statement from that maker to the health care providers, and the advantage of that is that nobody has to make a difficult decision at a difficult time because the maker has already made that. The limitation on it is that it’s only usable under two circumstances, which are a terminal condition or a persistent vegetative state. And there are a lot of medical conditions which are neither one. So, for example, a person with Alzheimer’s or dementia typically is not considered to be in a terminal condi-

tion or certainly not a persistent vegetative state. And so there the living will would not have any application, in which case the person would really want to have the health care power of attorney. Now, it’s OK to have both the living will and the health care power of attorney, but you want to make sure that they’re not inconsistent with each other.

So you suggest that people should have both.

If a person comes to me with that question, I typically say, if you’re only going to have one, the one you want is the health care power of attorney, because it’s a much broader document, more usable in more circumstances. And that’s the one if you have to go to a nursing home, you want you need that one. So if you’re only going to have one, that’s the one you want. If you want to have both, which is not a bad idea, then certainly you can do both. But again, make sure they’re consistent and the living well.

To hear more of this conversation, as well as other episodes of the Journey Ahead podcast, visit volumeone. org/podcasts or search for Journey Ahead in your podcast app of choice.

“THERE’S BEEN A LOT OF FAMOUS CASES ABOUT PEOPLE WHO DID NOT HAVE POWERS OF ATTORNEY ... WHO HAD NOT DONE ANY ADVANCE PLANNING AND WOUND UP IN TERRIBLE MEDICAL CONDITIONS THAT LASTED FOR YEARS AND YEARS AND WENT THROUGH THE COURTS FOR YEARS AND YEARS.”

–PETER GROSSKOPF, EAU CLAIRE ATTORNEY

BROUGHT TO YOU IN PART BY

THE URN: 7 OPTIONS FOR ASHES

SOME UNIQUE WAYS TO CELEBRATE THE LIVES OF THE ONES YOU’VE LOST

words by sawyer hoff

TRADITIONAL CASKET BURIALS CAN BE CLUNKY, EXPENSIVE, AND DOWNRIGHT TERRIBLE FOR THE ENVIRONMENT. That’s why more than half of Americans are now opting to be cremated after they die. Not only is it easy, but there are also cool and unique things to do with those ashes to celebrate the lives of the people we’ve lost. Here are seven options that are a little more interesting than just keeping those ashes in an urn.

1. MAKE ‘EM SPARKLE ... IN JEWELRY. Whether you have your loved one’s cremains pressed into a diamond or funneled into a capsule necklace, you can always have them with you when they’re made into jewelry. People have made rings, necklaces, bracelets, anything that gives those ashes a little pizzazz.

2. GET A TATTOO USING THEIR ASHES. No, I’m not talking about a self-portrait of them on your arm

(unless you’re into that). Many tattoo artists are able to mix ashes in with the ink to create a beautiful tattoo that will be a permanent reminder of the ones you’ve lost.

3. SEND THEM OFF WITH A BANG. Hear me out: fireworks. Who doesn’t love fireworks? Sprinkle a few ashes in those dynamite sticks and watch their colorful lights explode in the sky. It’s a beautiful way to celebrate the lives of your loved ones.

4. LET THEM LIVE WITH THE FISHES. You could release their ashes into the ocean, but wouldn’t it be cooler to make them a living part of the ocean and help preserve marine life? Eternal Reefs, a Florida-based charity, creates environmentally safe reefs using your loved one’s ashes, which helps replenish the deteriorating population of reefs on the ocean floor.

5. SPIN A RECORD. Nothing helps with the pain of grief like listening to music. You can now do that knowing that they are a part of that music, since companies can now press ashes into working vinyl albums. We recommend going with something upbeat and staying away from Celine Dion, but that’s just us.

6. INVEST IN A PORTRAIT. Many artists can mix ashes into their paint and create beautiful portraits. I think I would want my ashes to create a Britney Spears portrait, but you could always get a portrait of the person who died.

7. SHOOT THEM INTO SPACE. Neil Armstrong once said, “One small step for man, one giant step for human remains” – or something like that. A company called Celestis has launched ashes into orbit for 20 years.

IT’S TIME TO CONSIDER YOUR TAX SITUATION

HOW FEDERAL AND STATE TAX CHANGES CAN IMPACT YOU

by pat erickson, cpa

ADMIT IT – WHEN YOU THINK OF A CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANT, YOUR MIND GOES STRAIGHT TO THE IMAGE OF SOMEONE PUNCHING NUMBERS into an adding machine in a dimly lit office with stacks of paper everywhere. But today’s environment of virtual meetings, electronic information exchange, and collaboration provides a much more accurate picture of the current accounting industry.

CPAs use these technological innovations to cultivate a much deeper understanding of tax rules and legislation than the average taxpayer. A professional advisor can analyze how the following items may be applicable to your specific tax situation and help you find potential opportunities for saving time and money.

FEDERAL CONSIDERATIONS

• Did you know there may still be time to reduce your 2021 tax liability? Individual retirement account and health savings account contributions can be made up until the filing deadline (April 15) for the prior year – and may provide a deduction.

• In March 2021, the IRS issued the third round of stimulus checks based on information from the most recently filed tax returns. You may be eligible for additional stimulus payments with your 2021 tax return if your income declined or you can claim additional dependents.

• If you received advanced child tax credit payments from the IRS between July and December 2021, that information needs to be reported on your 2021 return and directly impacts the child tax credit you are eligible

for in 2021. This was considered an advanced payment of the child tax credit reported on your 2021 income tax return, not an additional stimulus payment.

• You can deduct up to $300 of certain cash charitable contributions, even if you don’t itemize your deductions in 2021. The amount is double for married taxpayers. A lesser amount was also allowed in 2020 as an abovethe-line deduction without having to itemize.

• Depending on the type of business and level of involvement, business and rental income may be eligible for a 20% deduction for qualifying business income. Consult a tax professional for advice on the many different considerations for this deduction.

STATE OF WISCONSIN CONSIDERATIONS

• When the federal standard deduction increased in 2018, the number of taxpayers who itemize deductions dropped from more than 30% to around 10%. However, Wisconsin allows for an itemized deduction credit for medical expenses, mortgage interest, and gifts to charity – depending on your situation.

• The property taxes you pay on your home may qualify you for a school property tax credit of up to $300 annually. If you don’t own a home and instead rent, the rent you pay may also qualify you for this credit.

• Contributions to a qualifying 529 plan up to $3,380 if married filing joint and $1,690 if married filing separate could net you a Wisconsin deduction. Contributions above the annual limit carry forward to future years until the amount has been utilized.

• Private school tuition paid for K-12 education may qualify for a Wisconsin deduction. Private schools are not required to provide specific tax documentation for this deduction, so it is easy to miss. Primary school deduction is limited to $4,000; secondary school is limited $10,000.

• Since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, many Wisconsin grants have been administered. A large number of these grants are federally taxable but are tax-exempt for Wisconsin purposes.

• Many Wisconsin taxpayers will be impacted by the tax rate decreasing from 6.27% to 5.3% for income between $32,330 and $355,910 for married taxpayers. Depending on your Wisconsin withholding and exemptions, you may see a higher Wisconsin refund than you are used to. The tax withholding tables have been updated effective Jan. 1, 2022, so you may see a slight increase in your paycheck, but the lower withholding will also impact your 2022 income tax return.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

You may have questions regarding inheritance, gifting/receiving, or the impact of trusts and estates on your individual income taxes. As the level of complexity to your situation increases, a professional accountant with their ear to the ground in an ever-changing tax landscape can be a wise investment.

For more information, contact Pat Erickson, a licensed CPA at CliftonLarsonAllen in Eau Claire, at Pat.Erickson@claconnect.com or (715) 852-1131.

The information contained herein is general in nature and is not intended, and should not be construed, as legal, accounting, investment, or tax advice or opinion provided by CliftonLarsonAllen LLP (CliftonLarsonAllen) to the reader. For more information, visit CLAconnect.com. CLA exists to create opportunities for our clients, our people, and our communities through our industry-focused wealth advisory, outsourcing, audit, tax, and consulting services. Investment advisory services are offered through CliftonLarsonAllen Wealth Advisors, LLC, an SEC-registered investment advisor.

PROTECT YOUR PIN

STATE OFFERS IDENTITY SAFEGUARD FOR FILERS

by wisconsin department of revenue

THE 2022 INDIVIDUAL INCOME TAX FILING SEASON OPENED

JAN. 24, and the Wisconsin Department of Revenue is now offering an extra layer of identity protection for taxpayers. The department’s new Wisconsin Identity Protection PIN program is another way it is securing a taxpayer’s personal information. Once a taxpayer requests and receives their Wisconsin Identity Protection PIN, they will use it to securely file their Wisconsin individual income tax return and homestead credit claims. More information on the Identity Protection PIN program may be found by searching “Identity Protection” on the DOR website.

“The goal of the PIN program is to keep refunds in the right hands and out of the pockets of fraud-

sters,” said Department of Revenue Secretary Peter Barca. “Another important thing to keep in mind about fraud, is that unless you have contacted us first, we never call people without first sending a letter. So, if you are getting a call or a text from us, but you haven’t received a letter from us, that’s a red flag for fraud. We always send letters first.”

The DOR also emphasizes that filing electronically saves time and money, and it increases accuracy and security. Wisconsin processed 3.29 million individual income tax returns in 2021, with an e-file rate of 91%. This is the first time DOR surpassed the 90% milestone for electronically filed returns.

Learn more about state tax filing at www.revenue.wi.gov.

BROUGHT TO YOU IN PART BY

POWER OF ATTORNEY: FOR MONEY, FOR HEALTH

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A HEALTHCARE AND FINANCIAL POWER OF ATTORNEY?

words by Aging & Disability Resource Center of Eau Claire County

“POWER OF ATTORNEY” SOUNDS SIGNIFICANT AND COMPLEX, BUT IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE. Designating this power to a trusted spouse, family member, or friend is essential to making sure your interests are protected in the case of severe disability or deterioration of mental function.

HEALTH CARE FINANCIAL

WHAT IS IT?

HOW DOES IT HELP ME?

A health care power of attorney document makes it possible for adults in Wisconsin to authorize other individuals (called health care agents) to make health care decisions on their behalf only if they are no longer able to so.

This is an extremely important pre-planning tool to allow you to set out some of your wishes and pick your own decision-maker. If you do not have this document and need someone to make decisions on your behalf, a costly guardianship will have to be pursued in court. Having a proper power of attorney for health care can prevent the need for guardianship and save your family money.

WHO NEEDS ONE?

WHEN DOES IT GO INTO EFFECT?

Everyone over the age of 18. Loss of ability to make health care decisions can happen at any age; likelihood increases with age or illness.

Only when you are no longer able to make complex medical decisions by reason of “incapacity.” Incapacity means two doctors have examined you and determined that either temporarily or permanently you are not able to make your medical decisions. This is when the document is activated. Note: It can also be deactivated if you regain your abilities.

WHAT DOES IT COST?

FREE! An attorney can also complete the document, but they will charge a fee. It does not need to be notarized, but it must be witnessed at the same time you sign it by two non-family adults who are not providing health care to you.

WHO SHOULD HAVE A COPY?

WHERE CAN I GET THE FORMS?

Keep the original for yourself in an easily-accessible location. Provide a copy to each of the “agents” and your doctor’s office and/or hospital.

• Aging & Disability Resource Center

• gwaar.org/guardianship-resources

• www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/forms/advdirectives/ adformspoa.htm

A financial power of attorney document authorizes another person (called an agent or attorney-in-fact) to handle the financial affairs of the person creating the document (called the principal).

This is an important pre-planning tool to allow you choose a person you trust to handle your financial affairs. If you do not have this document or other suitable arrangements made (e.g., a trust or the appointment of a representative payee), a Guardian of the Estate must be appointed if the principal loses the mental ability to make financial decisions.

Everyone over the age of 18. Loss of ability to handle financial affairs can happen at any age; likelihood increases with age or illness.

It is effective immediately unless otherwise specified. It must be “durable,” meaning your agent has the authority to act on your behalf even if you become temporarily or permanently unable to make your own decisions. The current statutory state form for a power of attorney for finance is automatically durable.

FREE! An attorney can also complete the document, but they will charge a fee. It does need to be notarized at the time you sign it.

Keep the original for yourself in an easily-accessible location. Provide a copy to each of the “agents” so they can provide this to financial institutions upon request.

ADRC does not provide this form

• gwaar.org/guardianship-resources

• www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/forms/advdirectives/ adformspoa.htm

HOW TO Party!

Whether you’re planning for kids, adults, or a corporate event – find where to go and what to do for your next celebratory gathering!

PRESENTED BY +

GETTIN’ READY TO CELEBRATE? HERE’S WHERE TO START.

WANT TO THROW A PARTY WITH A FRESH VIBE?

Shake off those ancient, outdated party trends and traditions with some fresh ideas. I mean, do you really want to be known as the person in your friend group who throws lame parties? Absolutely not.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed at the idea of party planning, no sweat. We’ve got you covered with plenty of ideas for how to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, company parties, pre-wedding parties, and more.

And, really, there’s no shortage of ways to celebrate: bowling, amusement parks, escape rooms, paintballing, axe throwing, painting

BOWLING

Wagner’s Lanes wagnerslanes.com • (715) 8336700 • 2159 Brackett Ave, Eau Claire • Bowling parties at Wagner’s include bowling (1 game or 3) pizza, custom themes, volleyball courts, bean bags, darts, pool and more. Entertainment like comedians, bands, and more can be hired.

Bowl Winkle’s bowlwinklesbowling.com • (715)

552-0564 • 1616 N. Clairemont Avenue, Eau

Claire • Children’s and adult themed parties with pizza, catering options, 1-3 bowling games, and more. Brooklyn Room features buffet station, TV, and VIP lane rental.

Falls Bowl fallsbowl.com • 715.723.3347 • 9 W

Columbia St., Chippewa Falls • Hosts parties with on-site food & spirits, suitable for kids parties and adults.

Ojibwa Golf Course & Bowl ojibwagc.com • (715) 723-8823 • 8140 136th Street, Chippewa Falls • Parties feature designated kids zone, private room rental, on-site food (Jimbob’s Pizza), glow in the dark bowling, glow graphics on lanes, and more.

Broadway Bowl stoutcraftco.com/bowling • (715)

233-3333 • 1501 North Broadway, Menomonie • Parties include pizza, soda, and custom themes for kids.

AMUSEMENT CENTERS

Action City & Chaos Water Park metropolisresort.com • 844-855-2724 • 5150 Fairview Avenue, Eau Claire • Go-karts, arcade games, trampoline park, Ninja warrior course, water park, laser tag, and more. Kids parties for 5-10 kids include pizza, soda, reserved party room, Dairy Queen ice cream, and party attendant.

parties, and movies theatres are a tap of your finger – or a phone call –away. And they’re great attractions for kids AND adults. But we don’t even stop there. Oh, no. We take our party-planning to the next level, with listings of local caterers, mobile bar tenders, ways to rent tables, chairs, decor, and more.

And there’s even listings in here for 21+ parties, including local wineries and breweries where you can find the area’s best crafted drinks.

So hang those streamers, set out the plates, and let the fun begin.

Eau Claire Games & Arcade facebook.com/ eauclairegamesandarcade • 2928 London Road, Eau Claire • (715) 514-2034 • Book the arcade for private party, or party hosted during normal hours. $15/person for a 3-hour block of time includes free to play arcade games and pinball. Drinks with refill included.

SKATING (ROLLER OR ICE!)

High Roller highrollerskating.com/EauClaire

• 715-832-6000 • 3120 Melby St. Eau Claire • Roller skating and nerf battle parties. Can rent out the whole facility. Food, soda, organized games, and more. Outside food allowed.

Hobbs Ice Arena eauclairewi.gov/recreation/ hobbs-ice-arena • (715) 839-5040 • 915 Menomonie St., Eau Claire • Birthday party packages for kids include open skate or dry floor for 10 kids + 2 chaperones, 12 hot dog or pizza meals, and room space for $130 (+$8/person after 12)

AXE THROWING

Ironside Axe Club ironsideaxeclub.com • 2930 London Rd, Eau Claire • Rent a few lines and hurl some iron. Serving canned and bottled beverages, snacks, and pizza delivery. Also offers a mobile axe throwing venue you can bring to your off-site party.

Wisco’s wiscoseauclaire.com • 1920 S Hastings Way, Eau Claire • 715.895.8542 • Wisco’s restaurant offers axe throwing fun with WI comfort food and 24 beers on tap.

Action City metropolisresort.com • 844-855-2724

• 5150 Fairview Avenue, Eau Claire • Go-karts, arcade games, trampoline park, Ninja warrior

DONUT FORGET that someday you’ll be able to eat donuts off a giant wall again, just like we did at thispre-COVIDevent“BestNight”atTheLismore.Gotmorepartyideasthanwhat’sshownhere?Email our listings editor at james@volumeone.org so we can include it in our next guide!

course, water park, laser tag, ax-throwing and more.

PAINTBALL & NERF

First Strike Paintball firststrikepb.com • 10327 County Hwy X, Chippewa Falls • Paintball party packages with discounts for bringing your own equipment. Picnic area and grill, with some snacks and beverages available. Birthday package includes 500 rounds per player (6+) and a paint grenade.

Battlefield Osseo battlefieldosseo.com • (715) 597-6644 • W12151 Vold Rd, Osseo • Attractions include classic paintball, low-impact gellyball, and axe throwing. Group rates for 18+ participants. Snacks and some drinks available. Picnic area, and BYO beverages allowed. Nerf Wars nerf-war-parties-eau-claire.square. site • Bring an organized nerf war to the outdoor location of your choice. Includes 20 rival nerf guns with safety glasses, barricades. $200 for 2 hour party with kids ages 6-15.

ESCAPE ROOMS

Tactical Escape 101 • tacticalescape101.com

• (715) 418-0012 • 4800 Golf Road, Eau Claire • Groups of 4-10 can escape from a number of game scenarios including dystopian, heists, conspiracies, and more. Amateur to expert level play for all ages. Ages 9+, with adult guidance required up to age 16. $100 per adventure (4 people, +$25 for each additional person.)

Escape EC escapeec.com • (715) 598-5695 • 1727 Westgate Rd, Eau Claire • Groups of 2-8, age 10+ work together to escape rooms with different game scenarios. Adults required for groups with ages below 16.

SPORTS SPOTS

Loopy’s 723loop.com • (715) 723-5667 • 10691 Cty. Highway, Chippewa Falls • Loopy’s has a banquet hall, tiki bar, beer garden, volleyball court, and river equipment rental.

Eau Claire Curling Club curlingclub.com • 5530 Fairview Drive, Eau Claire • Book the curling club to learn from the pros with training or a demonstration, or a private game.

Eau Claire Sport Warehouse ecsportwarehouse. com • (715) 514-5944 • 2983 11th Street, Eau Claire • Batting cages at $40/hour, and basket/ volleyball court for $60/hour.

EXA Sports exa-sports.com • Eau Claire & Menomonie locations • 9000 sq foot private facility with trampoline, spring floor, balance beams, bars, rock wall, ropes course, climbing, obstacle course, and more. Personal party host. Themed parties (nerf, super hero, princess, ninja.)

UWEC Ropes Course uwec.edu • Hilltop Center 105, 15 Garfield Avenue • The UWEC Ropes Course is open for adventure on Saturdays for up to 12 participants in a 2-hour course for $20/ person.

YMCA Indoor Sports Center ymca-cv.org • YMCA kids parties feature 2 hours or private space (1 hour of play time), soda, pizzas or hot dogs, ice cream, balloons, cake, and more for $150-250. Options include obstacle course, bounce house, snacks, field supervision, and more.

PAINTING

Cheers Pablo cheerspablo.com • 2839 Mall Drive, Suite 3A • Painting parties at $25/child and $39/adult with a minimum of 10 participants. Instructors lead painters through fun and encour-

aging experiences.

Board & Brush boardandbrush.com • (715) 514-2123 • 1402 S Hastings Way, Eau Claire • Paint wooden board art with adult, teen, and kids parties. 1-3 hours of inspired art, adult beverages sold, BYO snack snacks and food.

Paint Shack thepaintshack.net/events/private-parties/ • 715-379-7377 • 2524 Golf Rd, Ste 2C, Eau Claire • Paiting parties for adult or kid parties. Cash bar for adult parties, and you can BYO food and NA beverages. Make painted canvas, screen, or wood board projects.

MOVIES

Micon Theatres miconcinemas.com • 3109 Mall Drive, Eau Claire • 475 Chippewa Mall Drive, Chippewa Falls • 315 South Barstow Street, Eau Claire • Party packages include reserved seating, food, drinks, popcorn, and candy.

SKATE PARKS

Eau Claire Skateboard Plaza Along the bike trail near Lakeshore Shelter, 900 Broadway St., Eau Claire • (715) 839-5039 • PR@eauclairewi.gov • eauclairewi.gov The Parks, Recreation & Forestry Department installed a 3,000 square foot facility in August of 2013. Intended for skateboards, inline skates, and BMX bikes only, this park is free and is open to the public.

Marshall Park Bridgewater Ave, Chippewa Falls The Marshall Park Skateboard Park can be used by skateboards, inline skates, and BMX Bikes.

Phelan Park 9th St. East and 21st Ave. East, Menomonie Huge, with plenty of features for a number of different skill levels. All concrete with some great lines and a generally good flow. Includes a 6’vert, quarter, two 6’ regular transitioned quarters, a small 4’ bowled corner, pyramids, and more. No pad requirements - FREE.

PARTY SUPPLIES

50-50 Factory Outlet 3315 State Road 93, Eau Claire • (715) 833-0019 • 5050factoryoutlet. com Wedding items including shoe stickers, garlands, confetti, cake toppers, guest books, flower basket, ring pillow, photo booth props, serving sets, and more.

A1 Express Rental Center 2515 Mall Dr., Eau Claire • (715) 834-2727 • a1expressrental. com Offering tents, fine china, chocolate fountains, arches, champagne fountains, silver & glassware, chairs, chair covers, serving equipment, and more.

Alpha-Lit Alphalitletters.com Offering high quality marquee lettering to customize your events. Color bulbs available, and letters can stack up to two rows high.

Allure Premiere Event Florists 1802 B Stout Rd., Menomonie • (715) 235-0902 • allureeventflorists. com Each wedding floral is a one-of-a-kind experience. Allure boasts no limitations, featuring services like bridal and attendee bouquets, corsages, boutonnieres, ceremony flowers, arbor decorations, cake flowers, centerpieces, cocktail decorations, toss bouquets and more.

Awards & More 2425 Seymour Rd, Eau Claire •

(715) 839-8666 and (888) 811-2020 • awards@ awardsandmore.com • awardsandmore. com Awards & More makes invitations, RSVP cards, programs, thank you cards, save the date cards, magnets, cake toppers, and custom wooden wedding plaques.

Big Dot of Happiness 412 Technology Drive E., Menomonie • 800-274-4282 • Smiles@BigDotOfHappiness.com • bigdotofhappiness.com Stylish and themed designs for for table settings, cake toppers, yard art, decor, stickers & labels, and more.

Briggs Tent & Party Rental 3350 Horlacher Ln., Eau Claire • (715) 839-0218 and (800) 281-7070 • briggstent.com A one-stop shop for your supplies, including tables, linens, chairs, tableware, A/V, food prep equipment, light ing, tents, dance floors, wedding accessories, and more.

Rock n Roll To Go Plus (715) 8397951 • forthepartyofyourlife.com vides DJ entertainment, a master of ceremonies, a photo booth, projector screen rentals, and music for bachelor/ ette parties, ceremony, and dinner.

Sweet Legacy Vintage Furniture & Rental 3031 N Hastings Way, Eau Claire • sweetlegacy.net A Mother & Daughter that specializes in collecting, creating and curating vintage and vintage-like decor rentals for weddings, parties, photo props and more. Their private venue hosts parties for about 50, great for rehearsal dinners and bridal showers. They offer full wedding design services, curating your big day from top to bottom.

ALL AROUND FUN

Eau So Fun Parties eausofunparties.com • 2230 EastRidge Center, Eau Claire • A rented party space with themes and everything taken care of. Packages between $599-1999 include private space, snacks, drinks, party host, table settings, treat table, set up and clean up, themed meals, and more.

CATERING

Bijou Catering 2629 East Clairemont Ave., Eau Claire • (715) 832-6778 • eauclairechef@hotmail. com • bijou-bistro.com Full service catering presented by Head Chef Anthony Draganowski will provide you with a unique and sophisticated experience. Serving hors d’oeuvres, culinary displays, carving & pasta stations, buffets, dessert menus, and beverages.

Billy’s Grill & Catering 1019 15th Ave., Bloomer • (715) 828-1186 • billysgrill-catering.com Its catering options feature hearty meals of BBQ beef, pork, chicken, turkey, Italian, seafood, potatoes, salads, vegetables, appetizers, and more.

Bresina’s Carry Out 10 Jefferson Ave, Chippewa Falls • (715) 723-7869 • facebook.com/BresinasCarryout A take out restaurant. Grab your order and take it to your event. Serves plenty of food, but the bulk orders of chicken and Jo Jo’s are the crowd favorite.

Burrachos Catering Services (715) 8341843 • burrachos.com Burrachos can cater your event with burritos, taco bar, or the late night nacho bar.

Catering Bye Design byethewillow.com/ catering-bye-design Offers buffet lines, customization stations, chocolate fountains, dessert bars, artistically arranged grazing boards, appetizers, cupcakes, and more.

Famous Daves 2911 Mall Dr., Eau Claire • (715) 835-2227 • famousdaves.com Famous Dave’s catering crews bring plates of lip-smackin’ barbeque to all occasions. Full service, pick-up, and delivery options.

Fat Boys Family Restaurant Catering Services

1312 Main St., Bloomer • (715) 568-4464 • fatboys.net Customize your menu to exactly what you want from a large list of options from pizza, sandwiches, salads soups, potatoes, prime rib, and more.

Festival Foods Catering Services (715) 8381000 • festivalfoods.com Festival Foods features options including party platters, sandwich buffets, and breakfast buffets.

The French Press - Catering thefrenchpresseauclaire.com The French Press offers an expansive catering menu featuring pasta, beef, pork, chicken, fish, and vegetarian entrees.

HyVee Catering hy-vee.com HyVee offers an expansive and affordable catering selection for weddings, as well as uniquely tailored specialty buffet bars like sushi, pizza, sliders, and more.

Karl’s BBQ Express (715) 828-7910 • barbqexpress.catering@gmail.com • karlsbbqexpress. com Authentic pit barbecue for catering, pick-up, delivery, and vending. Meat choices include pork, ribs, brisket, turkey, and sausage links. Served with classic bbq pit sides, with lemonade or iced tea by the gallon.

BEST ‘PAINT-N-SIP’ VENUE

1. Board & Brush

2. The Paint Shack

3. Cheers Pablo

(1402 S. Hastings Way, Eau Claire) offers opportunities to create inspirational décor for your home, or Go Beyond Wine & Paint Nights. Check out their Wood Sign Workshops too! The Paint Shack (2524 Golf Rd. #2C, Eau Claire) is more than just a painting place; it’s an art party! Art entertainment is kind of their thing. Check out their birthday offerings. Cheers Pablo (2839 Mall Dr. Suite 5, Eau Claire) offers a one-of-a-kind ceramic studio experience.

PARKS & PAVILLIONS

CLASSIC SPOTS FOR OUTDOOR GATHERINGS OF ALL SIZES & AGES

Nothing beats a classic park party in beautiful Wisconsin weather – in season of course. The entire Chippewa Valley is blessed with an incredible infrastructure of parks and pavilions with wonderful amenities and offerings for parties of all kinds ranging from kids to retirees. Whether you’re looking for playgrounds, charcoal grills, hiking trails, or just a bit of nature, there are nearly 100 different options for spots to plan your party in Eau Claire, Chippewa Falls, and Menomonie.

Find full, searchable listings of the nearly 100 Chippewa Valley park and pavilion options (and much more!):

VolumeOne.org/party

KP Katering Eau Claire • (715) 855-9055 • kpkatering@aol.com • kpkatering.com KP Catering offers the full gamut of catering options. Buffets, hors d’oeuvres, plated dinners, chef carving stations, guest-customized stations, desserts, social & cocktail hour menus, and more. Taste testing sessions at their kitchen, full choice of china and table settings, table decorations and floral displays, setup & teardown included.

Life Support BBQ facebook.com/LifeSupportBBQeauclaire Need tasty barbecue, stat? Life Support BBQ will provide the meaty jolt your tastebuds need. With the help of their specialized smoker-outfitted trailer – dubbed the “Hambulance” – Life Support specializes in mouth-watering roasted pork. Works with any budget.

Live Great Food Catering 715-220-6084 • livegreatfoodcatering@gmail.com • livegreatfood. com Live Great Food caters unique creations for plated dinner, buffet, or family style meals, or served out of their mobile food truck. Meals include handmade pastas, roasted porchetta, amish chicken, hors d’oeuvres, trout, and much more. Also offering mismatched plate rental.

Lucy’s Deli & Restaurant Catering 117 N. Bridge St., Chippewa Falls • (715) 720-9800 • foreign5. com/lucys-deli Lucy’s Deli caters events in Chippewa Falls. Featuring sandwiches, their famous hot beefs, wrap platters, homemade soups, breakfast trays, and gooey sweet rolls.

Mancino’s Catering Services 4056 Commonwealth Ave, Eau Claire • (715) 835-4000 and 8354100 • mancinoseauclaire.com Mancinos offers grinder platters, party salads, pasta platters, cookie platters, and any other sides on the menu such as chips, drinks, and soups.

Noodles & Co. Catering 4653 Keystone Crossing, Eau Claire • (715) 858-9000 • noodles.com/ eauclaire Featuring 8 serving entree pans, dessert trays, and shareable sides in party-size versions of menu items.

Northwoods Grazing facebook.com/northwoodsgrazing/ Northwoods Grazing creates beautiful and delicious grazing boxes and tables for your events.

Red Coal BBQ (715) 514-1023 • facebook.com/ RedCoalBBQ Red Coal BBQ caters event-sized versions of your favorite BBQ menu items: smoked meats, beef briskets, pulled pork, mac & cheese, baked beans, corn bread, and much more. Red Coal also provides catering from Southside Soul’s menu, featuring rib tips, Chicago style beef, fried chicken, and more.

UW-Stout Catering (715) 232-3463 • mcraer@ uwstout.edu • uwstout.edu/dining/catering/ The catering services available at UW-Stout are also available off-campus (within 5 miles, in Menomonie). Featuring lunch & dinner buffets, box lunches, and appetizers.

MOBILE BARTENDING

All Occasions DJ Service (715) 828-3536 • Info@ AllOccasionsDJService.net • alloccasionsdjservice. com From music, lighting, planning and customization, All Occasions DJ Service strives to serve you, From ceremony production, cocktail and dinner music, to dance music. Take a look at all of their services and packages.

Free Pour Wisconsin 715.781.9145 • jinman@ freepourwi.com • freepourwi.com A veteran-owned

DOWNTOWN EAU CLAIRE

mobile bartending company that services Western Wisconsin. Hires passionate and experienced bartenders. Email for a quote.

Heather Rae Mobile Bartending hrmobilebartending@gmail.com • hrmobilebartending.com Heather Rae bartending is an intimate experience for your guests at a wedding of any vibe. Heather can help create a specialized menu of cocktails for your event. Based out of Milwaukee but will travel as far as Minneapolis.

PHOTO BOOTHS

All Occasions DJ Service (715) 828-3536 • Info@ AllOccasionsDJService.net • alloccasionsdjservice. com An all-around service, All Occasions provides sound, light, mobile bar, and photo booth services.

Always Over the Top Photography (715) 552-2761 • drsteinke@yahoo.com • alwaysoverthetopphotography.com Photo booth includes an on-site attendant, fast prints, scrapbook, props, open air concept, unlimited photo strips, and more.

Angell Mirror Photo Booth angellmirror.com A unique, interactive and digital photo booth experience with an attendant, deluxe props, red carpet and ropes, animations, LED lighting, and more.

Carlson Entertainment 715-598-7107 • info@ carlsonentertainment.com • carlsonentertainment. com Combines wedding DJ, MC, and event planning with an experienced professional, complete event coverage, and customized with awesome music, and unique introductions. Can provide musicians, videography, and photo booths.

The Joy Booth (715) 577-8243 • teresa@ thejoybooth.com • thejoybooth.com Available for engagement parties, bridal showers, and weddings. Includes booth attendants, customized image footers, backdrops and props, and more.

MiPhotobooth 616-402-7496 • miphotobooth. com Rents & delivers photo booths for your event.

Photo Booth Ent photoboothent.com Providing photobooth rentals with a variety of different booths including black curtain, slow motion, open air, LED, and green screen.

Rock n Roll To Go Plus (715) 839-7951 • forthepartyofyourlife.com Provides DJ entertainment, a master of ceremonies, a photo booth, projector screen rentals, and music for bachelor/ette parties, ceremony, and dinner.

ShowTime Entertainment (715) 821-1100 • tony@ showtimeentertainmentllc.com • showtimeentertainmentdj.com Offers detailed event planning, uplighting, ceremony sound, wireless mics, all day music coverage, award-winning photo booths, and cinematic videos.

The Star Booth: Mobile Photo Booth (715) 5984771 • info@starboothfun.com • starboothfun. com Star Booth provides your photo booth with an attendant, themes & props, graphics, memory book album, custom scrapbooks, and more.

BEST PLACE FOR A KID’S BIRTHDAY PARTY

1. action city

2. children’s museum of eau claire

3. chaos indoor water park

(2402 Lorch Ave, Eau Claire) has it all: go-karts, video games, laser tag, and tasty food. Children’s Museum of Eau Claire (40 S. Barstow St, Eau Claire) is more than just an all-ages hangout: It’s a great place for your kids to call their own on their special day. For a stellar waterpark experience, Chaos Indoor Water Park (5152 Fairview Drive, Eau Claire) offers a Wisconsin Dells-level experience in the Chippewa Valley’s backyard.

OMBIBULOUS BREWING, ALTOONA

WINERIES & BREWERIES

GRAB A DRINK AND MORE AT THESE GROWING DESTINATIONS FOR 21+ PARTIES

A day-trip to a Western Wisconsin winery or brewery can make a great venue for not just a regular party, but an entire immersive experience. You can stay close to home or head out of town for a beautiful countryside drive to any number of destinations. While there, you can not only sample the brews and wines, but you can often take part in behind-the-scene tours, learn about the craft of making beers and wines, snack on a variety of food offerings, and of course do some shopping to bring home their local and unique goods and wares.

Find full, searchable listings of more than 40 regional wineries & breweries (and much more!): VolumeOne.org/party

INDOOR PARTY SPACES

The Brewing Projekt 1807 N Oxford Ave, Eau Claire • thebrewingprojekt.com/events

Capacity: 200. Offering a rooftop or indoor location in this unique and destination brewery. Offers full beverage service with TBP beers & seltzers. Off-site catering for the reception food. A small room is available for parties or as a changing room. Tables & chairs are included, and TBP provides planning consultations. Guests are welcome to bring their own decor.

Brickhouse Pub & Grub Bar & Banquet Hall 2233 Birch St, Eau Claire • (715) 832-6227 • Find it on Facebook Meeting rooms and halls for up to 250.

Dunn County Fish And Game Association 1600 Pine Avenue East, Menomonie • (715) 235-8155

Fill Inn Station 104 W. Columbia St., Chippewa Falls • (715) 723-8282 and (715) 723-6551

• fillinn@fillinnstation.com • fillinnstation.

com Capacity: 275. Banquet room is great for wedding receptions or parties, with a private bar and stage area, and a dance floor.

Forage 403 South Barstow St, Eau Claire

• forage.ec@gmail.com • forageeauclaire.

com Capacity: 72. A unique, urban, modern location for your wedding, rehearsal dinner, or event. Uplighting, centerpiece decorations, customizable table decorations & settings, and can provide servers, bartenders, and caterers as needed.

customized menus and signature cocktails for your event.

Lake Hallie Golf 2196 110th Street, Chippewa Falls • (715) 861-5442 • lakehalliegolf.com Capacity: 150. Sports-bar atmosphere with indoor and outdoor options. Catering options available.

Leinenkugel’s 124 East Elm Street, Chippewa Falls • leinie.com/leinie-lodge • (888) 534-6437 • leinielodge@leinenkugels.com Book the Leinie Lodge for your next event birthday, special event, wedding reception, or more. A warm atmosphere, northwoods style decor, sampling bar, and more.

• dunncountyfishandgame.com

Capacity: 350. Amenities include a licensed kitchen, full bar, portable bar, tables & chairs, linens to rent, outdoor grounds to explore, and sound system.

Eagles Club Banquet Hall 2588 Hallie Rd., Chippewa Falls • (715) 723-0172

• eaglesclubbanquethall.com Capacity: 350. Two banquet halls, an outdoor pavilion, and catering & bar service.

Elks Lodge 402 3411 Stein Blvd., Eau Claire • (715) 834-4022

• elkslodge402@yahoo.com • elks.

org Capacity: 150. The Elks Lodge has rooms that can be rented for your event, with an outdoor deck.

Fox Run Tavern 1515 S 65th Ave, Eau Claire • (715) 835-6489 • facebook.com/FoxruntavernEC Capacity: 90. This tavern offers on-site catering with a buffet or dinner style banquet. An outdoor deck is available, as is the main bar area, and upper & lower decks. The rental of the room is free with the cost of catering.

Houligans Steak & Seafood Pub 415 South Barstow Street, Eau Claire • (715) 835-6621 • houligans.net Capacity: 70. Houligan’s Gharrity Room is a private banquet room with a private bar for buffet and appetizer serving.

Johnny’s Italian Steakhouse 4751 Owen Ayres Court, Eau Claire • (715) 830-9779 • johnnysitaliansteakhouse.com/eauclaire Johnny’s party-sized rooms for 20-50 guests can create

Loopy’s Grill & Saloon 10691 Business 29, Chippewa Falls • (715) 723-5667 • loopy@723loop. com • 723loop.com/banquets. html Capacity: 500. Loopy’s can host large or small parties, in indoor and outdoor settings. Offers in-house catering, waterside location, outdoor tent, in-house DJ, A/V and lighting, and event dome for winter gatherings. Area grounds offer recreation options like volleyball, bean bags, shuttle service, kayaks, and more.

Modicum Brewery 3732 Spooner Ave, Altoona

• modicumbrewing.com The back room at this brewery can be rented for your small event. Contact to learn more.

Mona Lisa’s 428 Water St., Eau Claire • (715) 839-8969

• ohmona@sbcglobal.net

• monalisas.

biz Capacity: 50. The private room at Mona

Lisa’s can serve small functions, or up to 99 with light food and cocktails.

Munson Bridge Winery W6462 Bridge Rd., WIthee • (715) 229-4501 • tmrhlnd@aol.com • munsonbridgewinery.com/weddings Capacity: 250. The winery offers outdoor and indoor venues, in the exterior gardens, refurbished hayloft, or a tented chandelier lit pavilion. Provides an in-house decorator, planning and consultation services, and limited beverage service.

Off Broadway Banquet Center 1501 North Broadway, Menomonie • (715) 233-3333 • jayouellette@ offbroadwaybanquet.com • offbroadwaybanquet. com Capacity: 450. A banquet hall with built in dance floor, full bar, and catering service. Planning & event assistance available. Smaller rooms available for rehearsal dinners.

Ojibwa Golf & Bowl 8140 136th St., Chippewa Falls • (715) 723-8823 • info@ojibwagc.com • ojibwagc.com Capacity: 100. Host your event with on-site catering in the indoor space or patio deck with golf and bowling entertainment.

Oxbow Hotel 516 Galloway, Eau Claire • 715-839-0601 • theoxbowhotel.com

Capacity: 150. The Oxbow Gallery can be reserved for small events, with outdoor seating in the courtyard. Catering and beverage service provided by the Lakely restaurant. A stage for live music, specialty lighting, A/V capabilities, wedding event coordination staff, and on-site boutique hotel lodging can sleep up to 72 guests.

The Pablo Center 128 Graham Avenue, Eau Claire • pablocenter.org Capacity: Small events & 250-1200. Conveniently located downtown with quick restaurant access and great views. 13,000+ sqaure foot building with 3 floors offers a number of layout and setaing combinations. Event planning and coordination assistance, on-site beverage service, third-party catering, A/V technology with projection and custom lightning avaiable.

Pine Meadow Golf Club 4324 Fairfax Park Dr., Eau Claire • (715) 832-6011 • PineMeadowGolfClub@gmail.com • pinemeadowgolfclubinc.com/ parties Pine Meadow has semi-private indoor seating and a partially covered patio. Can seat up to 75 people.

Pioneer Grill & Saloon E5699 Cty. Hwy. D, Menomonie • (715) 235-9927, 715-235-4973 • PioneerGrill.com Capacity: 1000. Can cater and host your banquet indoors or outdoors.

Pizza Ranch 2815 Truax Blvd., Eau Claire • (715) 514-4143 • pizzaranch.com Capacity: 73. The Pizza Ranch community room can host small parties and events.

Sammy’s Pizza 2812 London Rd, Eau Claire • (715) 8311-300 • mysammys.com Capacity: 50. The private dining space at this pizza joint is free with in-house catering.

Sweet Legacy 3031 N Hastings Way, Eau Claire • sweetlegacy.net Capacity: 50. A fully decorated small event venue and fully decorated rental warehouse. The event venue can provide catering and limited beverage service, or you can bring your own caterer. The venue is decorated with decor they have available to rent for weddings.

VFW Club Post 305 1300 Starr Ave, Eau Claire • (715) 552-8438 • facebook.com/ vfwclub305 Capacity: 100. Banquet facility available to rent.

VFW Post 7232 2900 W Folsom St, Eau Claire • (715) 832-3528 • vfwpost7232. org Capacity: 150. Main hall, kitchen, dance area, outdoor pavilion, and fenced area.

Westgate Sportsman Club 4909 Sportsman Dr., Eau Claire • (715) 832-4548 • ecwestgate@gmail. com • ecwestgate.com Capacity: 250. This banquet hall provides on-site catering, bar service, stage for entertainment and/or wedding party, decor available for rent, event planning & support, bride & groom suites, and table & chair setup. Premium packages can include rehearsal dinner, and Sunday brunch. Seasonal discounts available.

HAVE MORE PARTY IDEAS TO ADD TO OUR LIST?

Email our listings editor at james@volumeone.org so we can include it in our next guide!

BEST SHOP FOR GIFTS

1. The Local Store

2. Tangled Up in Hue

3. Down to Earth Garden Center

Scratching your head at where to buy gifts for friends and family?

Check out The Local Store (205 N. Dewey St., Eau Claire), which features locally made goods with something for everyone. Tangled Up in Hue ( 505 S. Barstow St. Suite B, Eau Claire) takes an artistic spin on gifts, with something handmade and from the heart. Down To Earth Garden Center (6025 Arndt Ln., Eau Claire) offers more than plants; it offers one-of-a-kind gifts everyone will love.

Events+Guides

COMING ALIVE. The famed Wisconsin Singers’ latest revue of American pop hits – from Elvis to Lady Gaga – is called “Come Alive!”

They’rebringingtheirmusical energy to the Pablo Center at the Confluence on Friday, Feb. 25

There will even be a Fifth Quarter, giving Badger Fans a chance to “Jump Around” and sing along to “Varsity.”

The Rear End

Events

CHIPPEWA VALLEY EVENTS

FEB. 24 – MAR. 13, 2022

All events are subject to change; call ahead for details. For full event descriptions and details, visit our online calendar at www.volumeone. org/events. Listings in the calendar are free. If you have an event that you would like included in an upcoming issue, go to our website at www. volumeone.org or call (715) 552-0457. For any event related questions, contact Listings Editor James Johonnott at james@volumeone.org.

Thursday, February 24

BUSINESS

Instagram Marketing for Business Owners

1-2pm • Hosted by Western Wisconsin Women’s Business Center • Learn to set up an instagram account, choose & edit images, write captions, and develop social media strategy. successfulbusiness.org/events

CAREER

Careers & Beers 4-6pm • The Brewing Projekt, Eau Claire • Job fair & happy hour. Featuring over a dozen local employers in a casual atmosphere with live music from Brian Bethke. FREE • 21+ • aroundthe715.com/careers-and-beers/

COMEDY

Clear Water Comedy: Ellie Hino Live at The Brickhouse 7:30-9:30pm • The Brickhouse, Eau Claire • Touring comedian, super fun mom, a mediocre wife, and an all-around delight. Silly and honest about married life and motherhood. $10 adv/$15 door • 18+ recommended • volumeonetickets.org

CRAFTING & MAKING

Indianhead Chapter of the American Sewing

Guild 10am-1pm • Lake Street United Methodist Church, Eau Claire An overview for programming the guild’s 20th anniversary year. Showing of a video on surface embellishments and a “show and tell” of current projects. FREE for first time attendees

FITNESS

Intro to Pole Art and Fitness 6:30-7:30pm •

Studio Sky, Eau Claire • Learn the fundamentals of pole art & fitness. $30 • 18+ • 598-6043 • studioskyec.com

FOOD & DRINK

Brick Oven Pizza & Live Music 5-10pm • The Enchanted Barn, Hillsdale • Heated floors, cozy spaces, pizza 5-8pm, full bar, live music 6pm. Reservations preferred • theenchantedbarn.com

Four-Course Beer Pairing Dinner 6-8pm • 29

Pines Hotel and Convention Center, Eau Claire • Main course is a stout-braised beef stew in breadbowl with smoked gouda beer cheese sauce. $40 • 21+ • volumeonetickets.org

KIDS

YMCA Family Fun Zone 9-11:30am • YMCA

Sports Center, Eau Claire • Free play and organized activities. $3 member, $5 non-member, FREE for parents • Ages 0-6 • eauclaireymca.org

Virtual Storytime 10-10:30am • Live via Zoom • Short, simple read alouds, interactive picture books, music and movement, and more. FREE • 0-4, Family • 839-5007 • ecpubliclibrary.info/kids/ storytime

SUBMITTED

Virtual Pajama Storytime 6:30-7pm • Live via Zoom • Bedtime stories, songs, and more, geared towards ages 0-4 and parents. Register online. FREE • 0-4 • ecpubliclibrary.info/kids/storytime

Virtual Literary Trivia 7-8pm • Hosted Online • Teens and Adults are invited to show off their literary knowledge in this fun, fast-paced virtual trivia game. FREE • 12+ • bit.ly/trivia224

MUSIC

Vinyl Nights: “Radiant Waves” with DJ Eric Olson 7-10pm • The Lakely, Eau Claire • A spectrum of bright pop, rock and jazz surprises from the deep seas of 1970 and beyond. FREE • All Ages • theoxbowhotel.com

NIGHTLIFE

6th Annual Team Jeopardy Trivia Challenge 7-9:30pm • The Oxford, Eau Claire • Teams of 8 compete in Jeopardy style trivia for prizes and bragging rights. Cash bar, bucket raffles, free apps and sweets. Limited to 20 teams. $20 per person • 18+ • 839-8877 • ecct.org/tickets

DJ Trivia at Kat’s Pourhouse 7-9pm • Elk Mound • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/KatsPourhouse

Dj Trivia at the Chippewa River Distillery 7-9pm • Chippewa Falls • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com

Dj Trivia at the Sandbar & Grill 7:30-9pm • Chippewa Falls • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/SandBarandGrillLLC

OUTDOORS

Eau Claire RV Show 11am-6pm • Chippewa Valley Expo Center, Eau Claire • Take advantage of the best deals of the year on more than 60 campers from the industry’s top brands. FREE • All Ages • 839-5319 • ecrvshow.com

RECREATION

Winter After Hours 6-8pm • Pinehurst Park, Eau Claire • Ice skating, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, kubb, firepit, music, equipment rentals, and free hot chocolate. eauclairewi.gov/parks

Crokicurl Family Fun Nights 6-8pm • River Prairie Park, Altoona • No experience needed. Register online. $5/two-person team/night • 6+ • apm.activecommunities.com/altoonapr

68 www.VolumeOne.org | FEBRUARY 24, 2022

Friday, February 25

CAUSES

ECC Humane Association Benefit Thrift Sale 9am-5pm • Raintree Garden Center, Eau Claire • A huge and diverse thrift sale, all proceeds benefit Eau Claire County Humane Association. Pets available on-site for adoption. FREE • 715/8746640 • raintreegardencenter.com

KIDS

YMCA Family Fun Zone 9-11:30am • YMCA

Sports Center, Eau Claire • Free play and organized activities. $3 member, $5 non-member, FREE for parents • Ages 0-6 • eauclaireymca.org

Family Storytime 9:30-10am • Chippewa Falls Public Library, Chippewa Falls • Stories, songs, and more. Registration required. FREE • Family • 723-1146 • chippewafallslibrary.org

DANCE LIKE THERE’S SOMEBODY WATCHING. The Russian Ballet Theatre brings the timeless classic Swan Lake to the Pablo Center on Thursday, March 3.

live music, wine, and art. d

Wisconsin Singers - Come Alive 7:30pm • Pablo Center, Eau Claire • A revue of American pop music hits that celebrates the thrill of live music from the past five decades. Ticket price TBA • pablocenter.org

Old School Dance Party w/ Uncommon Denominator 7:30pm • The Heyde Center, Chippewa Falls • Get on the dance floor with classic funk/ soul/pop/rock tunes from 70s to today. Cash bar. $10 adults, $9 seniors, $7 student (under age 22) • cvca.net

MORE EVENTS

Drawing for Kids with Dan Gogh 10:3011:30am (Animals) & 1:30-2:30pm (Manga) • Live via Zoom • Kids can learn to draw animals and manga art by following along with professional artist Dan Gogh in this interactive workshop. FREE • School-age • 839-5007 • ecpubliclibrary.info/kids

YMCA Family Friday Nights 6-9pm • YMCA Sports Center, Eau Claire • Activities, movies, inflatables, entertainment, and gymnastics. $4 member, $6 non-member • eauclaireymca.org

EXA Parent Night Out Theme Nights 7-9pm • EXA Sports, Eau Claire & Menomonie • Enjoy a night out while your kid enjoys a night at the EXA Sports gym. $10 per kid (non members) $7 per kid (members) • Ages 6+ • exa-sports.com

LEISURE

Knights of Columbus Progressive Bingo

7-9:30pm • Columbus Hall, Chippewa Falls • Food and refreshments are available, profits go to local charities. All Ages • 726-2002 • kofc974. com/bingo

MUSIC

Free Live Music: St. Peter’s Snow 7-9pm • 200 Main Art & Wine • Join Kyle Fought & Jason for

Late Night Jazz at The Lakely: Hunter Delikowski Trio 8:30-11:30pm • The Lakely, Eau Claire • Brings a tasteful and refreshing energy to the music scene. FREE • All Ages • theoxbowhotel.com

OUTDOORS

Eau Claire RV Show 11am-6pm • Chippewa Valley Expo Center, Eau Claire • Take advantage of the best deals of the year on more than 60 campers from the industry’s top brands. ecrvshow.com

SENIORS

Boost Your Well-Being 11am-noon • L.E. Phillips Senior Center, Eau Claire • Explore and discuss topics to improve mindset to become your best self at any age. Attend weekly or when you can. $13 • 50+ • 839-4909 • lephillipsseniorcenter.com

STAGE

Cold Reads, Warm Drinks 2 6:30pm • Racy’s Coffee Lounge, Eau Claire • Back by demand! A night of tasty drinks and cold script reads. No experience required. Participate or just sip a hot drink and watch. • facebook.com/ events/965466711074259

Mane Stage Productions: Little Shop of Horrors

7:30-10pm • Menomonie High School, Menomonie • A cult classic dark musical comedy featuring award-winning doo-wop, rock, and Motown songs. $4 • PG • 556-0710 • tinyurl.com/2p94zut9

WELLNESS

Saturday, February 26

CAUSES

ECC Humane Association Benefit Thrift Sale

9am-3pm • Raintree Garden Center, Eau Claire •

A huge and diverse thrift sale, all proceeds benefit Eau Claire County Humane Association. Pets available on-site for adoption. raintreegardencenter.com

CRAFTING & MAKING

Folk Art Festival noon-4pm • Chippewa Valley Museum, Eau Claire • Family friendly, folk arts demonstrations. See exhibits by practicing artists all afternoon. Workshops & performances for an immersive experience. cvmuseum.com

GAMES & HOBBIES

First Monthly Eau Claire Backgammon Meet Up

4-6pm • 200 Main Art & Wine, Eau Claire • Eau Claire’s First Monthly Backgammon & Cribbage Meet Up. Free to play, opportunities to win prizes.

MUSIC

Sue Orfield & Joan Hutton Album Release

Concert 7:30-10pm • Stones Throw, Eau Claire • Original music from this jazz quartet’s new album “Take That Back.” $15adv, $20 door (students $10) • sueorfield.com

Bessie, Billie, Nina: Pioneering Women in Jazz

7:30pm • Pablo Center at the Confluence, Eau Claire • A recreation of the music and social legacies of Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday, and Nina Simone. Ticket price TBA • pablocenter.org

James Ignacio at River Jams 8-11pm • River Jams, Chippewa Falls • Ignacio has been playing and recording music in the Chippewa Valley for the last 20 years in barns, stages, wine patios, and more. FREE • 21+ • 861-3041 • river-jams.com

Late Night Jazz at The Lakely: The Animistic

Trio 8:30-11:30pm • The Lakely, Eau Claire • Comprised of Janny Trumpet, William DeBlaey, and Nick Zuck. Their sound is rooted from the traditions of jazz, funk, and soul. theoxbowhotel.com

OUTDOORS

Eau Claire RV Show 9am-6pm • Chippewa Valley Expo Center, Eau Claire • Take advantage of the best deals of the year on more than 60 campers from the industry’s top brands. FREE • All Ages • 839-5319 • ecrvshow.com

RECREATION

Come Slide With Us noon-4pm • Pinehurst Park, Eau Claire • Supervised sledding fun, a roaring fire to warm up next to, music, and a cup of hot chocolate. FREE • eauclairewi.gov

STAGE

Mane Stage Productions: Little Shop of Horrors

2-5pm, 7:30-10pm • Menomonie High School, Menomonie • A cult classic dark musical comedy featuring award-winning doo-wop, rock, and Motown songs. $4 • PG • tinyurl.com/2p94zut9

Sunday, February 27

FOOD & DRINK

“Dinner in the Dark” Mystery Meal 5pm • Paradise Shores, Holcombe • Calling adventurous eaters. A three-course meal mystery dinner. Order tickets online. $25 • paradiseshores4.com

GAMES & HOBBIES

Sunday Pool Tournament 12:45pm • Zymurgy Brewing, Menomonie • Single 8-ball Valley Rules. Double Elimination. $20 • 21+

MUSIC

UWEC University Symphony Orchestra 23:30pm • Haas Fine Arts Center, Eau Claire • Student Concerto Winners will perform with the University Symphony Orchestra. $7 GA, $5 Sr & Under 17, $2 UWEC staff/student

Whiskey Bitters Acoustic Duo 3-6pm • River Jams, Chippewa Falls • Musicians Cole & Stacy are teaming up to give a twist to some new music after playing the local music scene with Bumble-

fist. FREE • 21+ • 861-3041 • river-jams.com

NIGHTLIFE

Dj Trivia at the Brass Lantern 3-5pm • Chippewa Falls • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/brasslanternpubandgrill

SHOPPING

Tie the Knot Wedding Fair 11am-1pm • Sleep Inn & Suites Conference Center, Eau Claire • Check out local vendors, huge door prizes, cocktails & appetizers, hotel tours, and more. $6 in advance; $10 at the door • All Ages • volumeonetickets.org

OUTDOORS

Eau Claire RV Show 9am-2pm • Chippewa Valley Expo Center, Eau Claire • Take advantage of the best deals of the year on more than 60 campers from the industry’s top brands. • ecrvshow.com

RECREATION

Come Slide With Us noon-4pm • Pinehurst Park, Eau Claire • Supervised sledding fun, a roaring fire to warm up next to, music, and a cup of hot chocolate. FREE • eauclairewi.gov

STAGE

Mane Stage Productions: Little Shop of Horrors

2-5pm • Menomonie High School, Menomonie • A cult classic dark musical comedy featuring award-winning doo-wop, rock, and Motown songs. $4 • PG • 556-0710 • tinyurl.com/2p94zut9

Monday, February 28

BUSINESS

Eau Claire Area EDC’s Annual Luncheon 11am1pm • The Florian Gardens , Eau Claire • Annual luncheon and Paragon Economic Impact Award event. $45 • eauclaire-wi.com/annualluncheon/

EDUCATION

BadgerTalk: Who Are the Amish? 6:30-7:30pm • Hosted Online • Join UW-Madison Professor Dr. Mark Louden to learn more about Amish history, tenets of faith, lifestyle, customs, and much more. FREE • All Ages • youtube.com/user/AMPLWI

KIDS

Virtual Storytime 10-10:30am • Live via Zoom • Short, simple read alouds, interactive picture books, music and movement, and more. FREE • 0-4, Family • 839-5007 • ecpubliclibrary.info/kids/ storytime

Read Me a Book Club 4:30-5:15pm • Live via Zoom • Read-alouds, games, activities, and guided discussion. FREE • Grades K-2 • 839-5007 • ecpubliclibrary.info

NIGHTLIFE

Dj Trivia at Dean & Sue’s Bar 7-9pm • Menomonie • General knowledge trivia. • 21+ • facebook.com

WELLNESS

GriefShare Support Series 7-9pm • Bethesda Lutheran Church, Eau Claire • For people grieving the death of a loved one. Drop-in at any point during series. $20 one time • Adults at 13+ with supervision • c3ec.org

Tuesday, March 1

CAUSES

Empty Bowls Feed My People Food Bank, Eau Claire • Support the food bank by purchasing a bowl gift box. Choose-your-own bowl or get a random box during a drive thru on 3/2. $20-40 • give.fmpfoodbank.org/EmptyBowlsWeek

KIDS

YMCA Family Fun Zone 9-11:30am • YMCA Sports Center, Eau Claire • Free play and organized activities. $3 member, $5 non-member, FREE for parents • Ages 0-6 • eauclaireymca.org

BEST BETS

FEBRUARY 24 — MARCH 13

1.EMPTY BOWLS

Mar. 1-3 • Feed My People Food Bank

Support Feed My People Food Bank by purchasing a bowl gift box. Choose-your-own bowl or get a random box during a drive thru on March 2.

2. NIGHT OF FREEDOM & HOPE 2022

Mar. 4 • River Prairie Center • 6:30-9pm

Fierce Freedom’s annual celebration, dinner, and award ceremony. Live music, catered meal, special speakers, and more. Highlights of the evening include a delicious catered meal and live jazz music from local performer Emily Watkins. Guests will also be able to bid on “experiences” during our live and online auction.

3. MIDWEST WEIRDFEST

Mar. 4-6 • Micon Downtown Cinemas

The 6th annual MidWest WeirdFest is a cinematic celebration of all things fantastic, frightening, paranormal, and just plain weird. Enjoy an incredible array of the latest horror, sci-fi, fantasy, and underground films, along with a selection of astounding paranormal documentaries at one of the world’s top-reviewed film festivals.

4. POLAR PLUNGE

Mar. 5 • Half Moon Beach • 8:30am-2pm

The annual polar plunge event returns. Dive in cold water to Special Olympics of Wisconsin, wear silly costumes, win raffles, enjoy live music, and more.

5. SHAMROCK SHUFFLE 5K RUN/WALK

Mar. 12 • UWEC McPhee • 9-11am

This 5K run/walk is hosted by UWEC Recreation & Sports Operations. The route goes from UWEC upper campus, down the Garfield Avenue hill, over the footbridge, and back up the Chippewa Valley River trail. Strollers welcome. Race clock at the start and end of the course. Shirts are first-come, first-served. Cash and check only.

Family Storytime 3-3:30pm • Chippewa Falls Public Library, Chippewa Falls • Stories, songs, and more. Registration required. FREE • Family • 723-1146 • chippewafallslibrary.org

Parent Cafe 4-6pm • Hosted via Zoom by the Family Support Center of Chippewa Falls • Building relationships and communication when parenting doesn’t run like clockwork. FREE • All Ages • 720-1841 • RiverSourceFamilyCenter.com

NIGHTLIFE

Dj Trivia at the Sandbar and Grill 7:30-9pm • Chippewa Falls • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/SandBarandGrillLLC

DJ Trivia at the Growler Guys 7:30-9pm • Eau Claire • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/TheGrowlerGuysEauClaire

Dj Trivia at the Stout Craft Company 7-9pm • Menomonie • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/StoutCraftCo

Wednesday, March 2

CAUSES

Empty Bowls Feed My People Food Bank, Eau Claire • Support the food bank by purchasing a bowl gift box. Choose-your-own bowl or get a random box during a drive thru on 3/2. $20-40 • give.fmpfoodbank.org/EmptyBowlsWeek

CRAFTING & MAKING

Macramé Class 6-8pm • The Brewing Projekt, Eau Claire • Make two plant hangers, one to hold a 4-5” pot and the other to hold a 6-8” pot. $45 • Teens and Adults • meeshdrops.com/diy

FITNESS

EXA Sports Daytime Playtime 10-11:15am • EXA Sports, Eau Claire • Daytime playtime for kiddos.

$3 a Child • All Ages • 514-4640 • exa-sports.com

FOOD & DRINK

Grilled Burgers and Live Music 5-9pm • The Enchanted Barn, Hillsdale • Signature burgers, full bar, heated floors & cozy spaces. Open mic the first Wednesdays. Reservations • theenchantedbarn.com

KIDS

Family Storytime 9:30-10am, 10:30-11am • Chippewa Falls Public Library • Stories, songs, & more. Registration. • chippewafallslibrary.org

MUSIC

Classic Country Jam w/Bear Creek Boys 6-9pm • Northwoods Brew Pub, Osseo • Popular classic country tunes. Back line is provided, but bring your own axe. • northwoodsbrewpub.com

NIGHTLIFE

Dj Trivia at Buck Shot Bar 7-9pm • Boyceville • General knowledge trivia.FREE • 21+ • facebook. com/jamiesbuckshot

Dj Trivia at Westside Bar & Grill 7:30-9pm • Eau Claire • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/westsidebarandgrillec

WELLNESS

The Savvy Caregiver Class 9-11am • Hosted Online • Strategies, practical real-world skills, and helps to reduce stress. adrc.org

Thursday, March 3

BUSINESS

Instagram Marketing for Business Owners

1-2pm • Hosted by Western Wisconsin Women’s Business Center • Learn to set up an instagram account, choose & edit images, write captions, and develop social media strategy. successfulbusiness.org/events

CAUSES

Empty Bowls Feed My People Food Bank, Eau Claire • Support the food bank by purchasing a bowl gift box. Choose-your-own bowl or get a random box during a drive thru on 3/2. $20-40 • give.fmpfoodbank.org/EmptyBowlsWeek

CRAFTING & MAKING

Macramé Class 6-8pm • The Brewing Projekt, Eau Claire • Make two plant hangers, one to hold a 4-5” pot and the other to hold a 6-8” pot. $45 • Teens and Adults • meeshdrops.com/diy

FITNESS

Spring Forward Yoga & Beer 6:30-7:30pm • Modicum Brewing Company, Altoona • Strength, flexibility, off-color humor, loud music, and adult beverages. $15 • badintentionsyoga.com

FOOD & DRINK

Brick Oven Pizza & Live Music 5-10pm • The Enchanted Barn, Hillsdale • Heated floors, cozy spaces, artisan pizza 5-8pm, full bar, and live music at 6pm. Reservations • theenchantedbarn.com

KIDS

new production of the timeless classic. New hand-painted sets, choreography, costumes, and makeup design. $35+ • pablocenter.org

Friday, March 4

CAUSES

Fierce Freedom’s Night of Freedom & Hope 2022 6:30-9pm • River Prairie Center, Altoona • Fierce Freedom’s annual celebration, dinner, and award ceremony. Live music, catered meal, special speakers, and more. $35 • 514-2890 • bit. ly/nofh2022

KIDS

MORE EVENTS

FULL DETAILS

YMCA Family Fun Zone 9-11:30am • YMCA Sports Center, Eau Claire • Free play and organized activities. $3-5, FREE for parents • Ages 0-6 • eauclaireymca.org

Virtual Storytime 10-10:30am • Live via Zoom

• Short, simple read alouds, interactive picture books, music and movement, and more. FREE • 0-4, Family • 839-5007 • ecpubliclibrary.info/kids/ storytime

NIGHTLIFE

DJ Trivia at Kat’s Pourhouse 7-9pm • Elk Mound • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/KatsPourhouse

Dj Trivia at the Chippewa River Distillery 7-9pm

• Chippewa Falls • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com

Dj Trivia at the Sandbar & Grill 7:30-9pm • Chippewa Falls • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/SandBarandGrillLLC

STAGE

Mane Stage Productions: Little Shop of Horrors

7:30-10pm • Menomonie High School • A cult classic dark musical comedy with award-winning songs. $4 • PG • tinyurl.com/2p94zut9

Russian Ballet Theatre Presents: Swan Lake

7:30pm • Pablo Center, Eau Claire • A must-see

YMCA Family Fun Zone 9-11:30am • YMCA Sports Center, Eau Claire • Free play & organized activities. $3-5, FREE parents • Age 0-6 • eauclaireymca.org

Family Storytime 9:30-10am • Chippewa Falls Public Library, Chippewa Falls • Stories, songs, and more. Registration required. FREE • Family • 723-1146 • chippewafallslibrary.org

Kindergarten Round-up 10-11:30am • Messiah Lutheran School, Eau Claire • Games, snacks, and a campfire for songs and stories. FREE • Ages 4-5

YMCA Family Friday Nights 6-9pm • YMCA Sports Center, Eau Claire • Activities, movies, inflatables, entertainment, and gymnastics. $4 member, $6 non-member • eauclaireymca.org

LEISURE

Knights of Columbus Progressive Bingo 7-9:30pm • Columbus Hall, Chippewa Falls • Food and refreshments are available, profits go to local charities. All Ages • 726-2002 • kofc974. com/bingo

MOVIES

MidWest WeirdFest Micon Downtown Cinema, Eau Claire • A cinematic celebration of films fantastic, frightening, paranormal and just weird. $6/film or $15 Fri, $20 Sat or Sun, or $55 3-day • midwestweirdfest.com

MUSIC

Live Music with Sad House Guest 7-9pm • 200 Main Art & Wine, Eau Claire • An indie-folk/rock band. FREE • 200mainec.com

Late Night Jazz at The Lakely: Hannah Harder Quartet 8:30-11:30pm • The Lakely, Eau Claire • Saxophonist brings her quartet for soulful renditions of jazz classics. • theoxbowhotel.com

EXTREME METAL.

Wisconsin’s own Casket Robbery will headline the metal onslaught at Zymurgy Brewing in Menomonie Saturday, March 5.

SENIORS

Boost Your Well-Being 11am-noon • L.E. Phillips Senior Center, Eau Claire • Explore and discuss topics to improve mindset to become your best self at any age. $13 • 50+ • lephillipsseniorcenter. com

STAGE

The Secret Garden 7-8:30pm • Regis High School, , Eau Claire • A community theater production of the classic story. $10 tickets, children 5 and under FREE; tickets available at the door

Mane Stage Productions: Little Shop of Horrors

7:30-10pm • Menomonie High School • A cult classic dark musical comedy with award-winning songs. $4 • PG • tinyurl.com/2p94zut9

Saturday, March 5

FARMERS MARKETS

Winter Farmers Market in the Greenhouse 9am2pm • Down To Earth Garden Center, Eau Claire • • downtoearthgardencenter.com

CRAFTING & MAKING

Knit & Crochet Club 10am-noon • Altoona Public Library, Altoona • Bring your projects, and meet other crafters for coffee. • altoonapubliclibrary. org

MOVIES

MidWest WeirdFest Micon Downtown Cinema, Eau Claire • A cinematic celebration of films fantastic, frightening, paranormal and just weird. $6/film or $15 Fri, $20 Sat or Sun, or $55 3-day • midwestweirdfest.com

MUSIC

Disco Night 7pm • Mabel Tainter Center for the Arts, Menomonie • Shirts & Skins puts on a vibrant show with horn section, disco hits, and video wall. $21 + fees • mabeltainter.org

A Night of Extreme Metal feat. Casket Robbery

7pm • Zymurgy Brewing, Menomonie • Back at Zymurgy, this time with King Goro, Maniacal Force and Dead Soul Symphony. $10 • 21+

CVSO Presents: Anthony Ross Plays Elgar

7:30pm • Pablo Center, Eau Claire • Featuring Anthony Ross, principal cellist of the MN Orchestra. $25-45, $10 youth/student • pablocenter.org

Late Night Jazz: Janny Trumpet: A Lo-Fi Experience 8:30-11:30pm • The Lakely, Eau Claire • Janny Trumpet is an emerging Lo-Fi Jazz artist. FREE • All Ages • theoxbowhotel.com

SUBMITTED IMAGE

Events

OUTDOORS

Eau Claire Morning Rotary Ice Fishing Tournament 8am-1pm • Lake Altoona County Beach, Altoona • Ice fishing fun that benefits local non-profits like The Community Table, The Family Resource Center, and more. $25 Pre Registration, $35 Day of per person • fb.me/e/1qvyLNZSH

Polar Plunge for Special Olympics Wisconsin

8:30am-2pm • Half Moon Beach, Eau Claire • Dive in cold water to Special Olympics of Wisconsin., wear silly costumes, win raffles, enjoy live music, and more. $75 • polarplungewi.org

RECREATION

Crokicurl Family Fun Tournament 9am • River Prairie Park, Altoona • Open to teams of two players. Register online through Altoona P&R. $20/two-person team • 6+ • anc.apm.activecommunities.com/altoonapr/home

STAGE

Mane Stage Productions: Little Shop of Horrors

2-5pm, 7:30-10pm • Menomonie High School • A cult classic dark musical comedy with award-winning songs. $4 • PG • tinyurl.com/2p94zut9

The Secret Garden 7-8:30pm • Regis High School, , Eau Claire • A community theater production of the classic story. $10 tickets, children 5 and under FREE; tickets available at the door

Sunday,

March 6

FOOD & DRINK

VFW Auxiliary Breakfast 8-11:30am • VFW Post 7232, Eau Claire • Eat breakfast at the VFW with local veterans. $8 seniors, $9 adults, FREE for kids 5 and under • vfwpost7232.org

GAMES & HOBBIES

Sunday Pool Tournament 12:45pm • Zymurgy Brewing, Menomonie • Single 8-ball Valley Rules. Double Elimination. $20 • 21+

MOVIES

MidWest WeirdFest Micon Downtown Cinema, Eau Claire • A cinematic celebration of films fantastic, frightening, paranormal and just weird. $6/film or $15 Fri, $20 Sat or Sun, or $55 3-day • midwestweirdfest.com

MUSIC

Live Music: Dave BeBeau 3-6pm • River Jams, Chippewa Falls • Solo acoustic covers including James Taylor, Tom Petty, Neil Young, Charlie Daniels, America, Bon Jovi, John Cougar, and more. FREE • 21+ • 861-3041 • river-jams.com

NIGHTLIFE

Dj Trivia at the Brass Lantern 3-5pm • Chippewa Falls • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/brasslanternpubandgrill

STAGE

The Secret Garden 2-3:30pm • Regis High School, Eau Claire • A community theater production of the classic story. $10 tickets, children 5 and under FREE; tickets available at the door

Monday, March 7

KIDS

Virtual Storytime 10-10:30am • Live via Zoom

• Short, simple read alouds, interactive picture books, music and movement, and more. FREE • 0-4, Family • ecpubliclibrary.info/kids/storytime

NIGHTLIFE

Dj Trivia at Dean & Sue’s Bar 7-9pm • Menomonie • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ •

WELLNESS

GriefShare Support Series 7-9pm • Bethesda

Lutheran Church, Eau Claire • For people grieving the death of a loved one. Drop-in at any point during series. $20 one time • Adults at 13+ with supervision • c3ec.org

Tuesday, March 8

KIDS

YMCA Family Fun Zone 9-11:30am • YMCA

Sports Center, Eau Claire • Free play & organized activities. $3-5, FREE parents • Ages 0-6 • eauclaireymca.org

Family Storytime 3-3:30pm • Chippewa Falls Public Library, Chippewa Falls • Stories, songs, and more. Registration required. FREE • Family • 723-1146 • chippewafallslibrary.org

NIGHTLIFE

Dj Trivia at the Sandbar and Grill 7:30-9pm • Chippewa Falls • General trivia FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/SandBarandGrillLLC

DJ Trivia at the Growler Guys 7:30-9pm • Eau Claire • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/TheGrowlerGuysEauClaire

Dj Trivia at the Stout Craft Company 7-9pm • Menomonie • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/StoutCraftCo

SENIORS

Learning about the ADRC 3-4:30pm • Chippewa Falls Public Library, Chippewa Falls • Learn more about local resources and services to help you age well. FREE • chippewafallslibrary.org

WORDS

Adventures in History Book Club 6:30-7:30pm • Chippewa Valley Museum, Eau Claire • Book list online, or available by email. Books cover history from 1945+. FREE • Adult • cvmuseum.com

Wednesday, March 9

EDUCATION

UWEC Forum Series - Raj Patel “How Do We Feed 10 Billion People Sustainably?” 7:30pm • UWEC Schofield Auditorium, Eau Claire • Controversial author, journalist, professor and food policy expert. Ticket TBA • uwec.edu

FITNESS

EXA Sports Daytime Playtime 10-11:15am • EXA Sports, Eau Claire • Daytime playtime for kiddos. $3 a Child • All Ages • 514-4640 • exa-sports.com

FOOD & DRINK

Grilled Burgers and Live Music 5-9pm • The Enchanted Barn, Hillsdale • Signature burgers, full bar, heated floors and cozy spaces. • theenchantedbarn.com/wednesdays

KIDS

Family Storytime 9:30-10am, 10:30-11am • Chippewa Falls Public Library • Stories, songs, and more. Registration required. FREE • Family • 723-1146 • chippewafallslibrary.org

NIGHTLIFE

Dj Trivia at Buck Shot Bar 7-9pm • Boyceville • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/jamiesbuckshot

Dj Trivia at Westside Bar & Grill 7:30-9pm • Eau Claire • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/westsidebarandgrillec

WELLNESS

The Savvy Caregiver Class 9-11am • Hosted Online • Strategies, practical real-world skills, and helps to reduce stress. adrc.org

Thursday, March 10

COMEDY

Ginger Billy - Backwood Comedy Tour 7:30pm • Pablo Center, Eau Claire • Shirtless and tattooed, Ginger Billy gives viewers an unfiltered humorous look into life in rural Upstate South Carolina. Ticket price TBA • pablocenter.org

FOOD & DRINK

Brick Oven Pizza & Live Music 5-10pm • The Enchanted Barn, Hillsdale • Heated floors, cozy spaces, artisan pizza 5-8pm, full bar, and live music at 6pm. Reservations • theenchantedbarn.com

KIDS

YMCA Family Fun Zone 9-11:30am • YMCA Sports Center, Eau Claire • Free play and

organized activities. $3 member, $5 non-member, FREE for parents • Ages 0-6 • eauclaireymca.org

Virtual Storytime 10-10:30am • Live via Zoom

• Short, simple read alouds, interactive picture books, music and movement, and more. FREE • 0-4, Family • ecpubliclibrary.info/kids/storytime

NIGHTLIFE

DJ Trivia at Kat’s Pourhouse 7-9pm • Elk Mound

• General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/KatsPourhouse

Dj Trivia at the Chippewa River Distillery 7-9pm

• Chippewa Falls • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com

Dj Trivia at the Sandbar & Grill 7:30-9pm • Chippewa Falls • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/SandBarandGrillLLC

WELLNESS

Healthy You in 2022 Book Club 10-11am • Chippewa Falls Public Library • A free monthly book club to learn strategies to help you stay healthy as you age. FREE • chippewafallslibrary.org

FORMER WWE SUPERSTAR ERICK (ROWAN) REDBEARD WILL BE PART OF THE CHIPPEWA CARNAGE WRESTLING EVENT MARCH 12

upcomingevents

TIE THE KNOT WINTER WEDDING FAIR

Feb. 27 • Sleep Inn & Suites, Eau Claire • 11am-1pm • $6adv

Check out local vendors, huge door prizes, cocktails & appetizers, hotel tours, and more.

MORNING ROTARY ICE FISHING TOURNAMENT

Mar. 5 • Lake Altoona County Park • 8am-1pm • $25adv, $35 day of

A day of ice fishing fun. All proceeds from the event help local nonprofits: The Community Table, the Family Resource Center, and a fund to help other local nonprofits/causes.

ALL-OUT PRO WRESTLING: CHIPPEWA CARNAGE

Mar. 12 • Chippewa Falls High School • 4-10pm • $15-25

Live pro wrestling action with former WWE superstar Erick (Rowan) Redbeard, Beer City Bruiser, and Horace the Psychopath. Meet-andgreet at 4pm. Doors at 5pm. Action starts at 6pm.

CATHY REITZ AT 200 MAIN ART & WINE

Mar. 18 • 200 Main Art & Wine, Eau Claire • 7-9pm • $12

Join Cathy Reitz for night of live music, wine, and artwork at 200 Main Art & Wine. Very limited tickets are available.

DOUGAN SMITH’S THE DJ QUARTET

Mar. 30 • 200 Main Art & Wine, Eau Claire • 6-8pm • $10 • Live Music with Kansas City Saxophonist and UWEC AlumnusDougan Smith’s The DJ Quartet.

CHECK OUT THESE EVENTS AND MORE AT: VOLUMEONE.ORG/TICKETS

Events

The Sustainable Witch Series: Magical Herbs for Ritual & Health 4:30-5:30pm • The Broom & Crow, Eau Claire • A 3 month series with 6 classes total. Use plants in your witchcraft beyond incense. Learn about herbs around you. $15/class or $20/class after 3/10 • thebroomandcrow.com

Friday, March 11

KIDS

YMCA Family Fun Zone 9-11:30am • YMCA

Sports Center, Eau Claire • Free play and organized activities. $3 member, $5 non-member, FREE for parents • Ages 0-6 • eauclaireymca.org

Family Storytime 9:30-10am • Chippewa Falls

Public Library, Chippewa Falls • Stories, songs, and more. Registration required. FREE • Family • 723-1146 • chippewafallslibrary.org

Triple P Workshop: Behaviors At School 1-3pm • Family Resource Center Inc., Eau Claire • A positive parenting workshop discussing ways to reinforce good behavior during your child’s time at school. FREE • frcec.org/upcoming-events

YMCA Family Friday Nights 6-9pm • YMCA

Sports Center, Eau Claire • Activities, movies, inflatables, entertainment, and gymnastics. $4 member, $6 non-member • eauclaireymca.org

LEISURE

Knights of Columbus Progressive Bingo 79:30pm • Columbus Hall, Chippewa Falls • Food and refreshments are available, profits go to local charities. • kofc974.com/bingo

MUSIC

Sue Orfield & Josh Gallagher at The Stones Throw Stones Throw, Eau Claire • An evening of jazz a. $5 • 21+ • sueorfield.com

A Tribute to Aretha Franklin 7:30pm • Pablo Center, Eau Claire • Four time GRAMMY winning Karen Clark Sheard performs a tribute to the Queen of Soul. $30+ • pablocenter.org

SENIORS

Boost Your Well-Being 11am-noon • L.E. Phillips Senior Center, Eau Claire • Explore topics to improve mindset to become your best self at any age. $13 • 50+ • 839-4909 • lephillipsseniorcenter.com

STAGE

MTG Presents: Clue 7:30pm • Mabel Tainter Center, Menomonie • Based on the cult classic madcap comedy film, inspired by the popular board game. A hilarious whodunit full of laughs. $15 for Adults, $13 for Student/Senior/Military. • 231-7529 • menomonietheaterguild.com

WELLNESS

Death Cafe Hosted by Kaleidoscope Soul 5:307:30pm • Racy’s Coffee Lounge, Eau Claire • A casual conversation about death. Cake will be provided and drinks available for purchase. Not a grief group. FREE • 18 + • bit.ly/3ujRpy4

Saturday, March 12

MUSIC

Traditional Irish Session 4:30-6:30pm • Lazy Monk Brewing, Eau Claire • A social music gathering to play, listen to, or otherwise enjoy traditional Irish fiddle tunes. • lazymonkbrewing.com

Gaelic Storm 7:30pm • Pablo Center at the Confluence, Eau Claire • Gaelic Storm’s new album mixes traditional Irish sound with modern influence. Ticket price TBA • pablocenter.org

Live Music: The Sixes 8-10:30pm • River Jams, Chippewa Falls • The Sixes, an acoustic duo, will

play their own original music with an edge in an intimate and engaging atmosphere. FREE • 21+ • 861-3041 • river-jams.com

RECREATION

Shamrock Shuffle 5k Run/Walk 9-11am • UWEC McPhee Strength & Performance Center, Eau Claire • 5k Run/Walk on campus that starts/ends at the McPhee Recreation center. Shirts available first come first serve. $20/person, $25/person on a team • All Ages • 836-3377

SPECTATOR SPORTS

All-Out Pro Wrestling presents Chippewa Carnage 4-10pm • Chippewa Falls High School • Former WWE superstar Erick (Rowan) Redbeard and many more guests. Action starts at 6pm. $25 floor seats, $15 bleachers, FREE for 6 and under

STAGE

MTG Presents: Clue 7:30pm • Mabel Tainter Center, Menomonie • Based on the cult classic madcap comedy film, inspired by the popular board game. A hilarious whodunit full of laughs. $15 for Adults, $13 for Student/Senior/Military. • 231-7529 • menomonietheaterguild.com

WELLNESS

Yoga Nidra: The Power of Rest with Heather White noon-1:30pm • The Yoga Room, Eau Claire • Join heather for an hour and a half of peace. Learn the yogic art of rest. $20 • 18+ • (763) 2136566 • theyogaroomec.com

Sunday, March 13

GAMES & HOBBIES

Sunday Pool Tournament 12:45pm • Zymurgy Brewing, Menomonie • Single 8-ball Valley Rules. Double Elimination. $20 • 21+

MOVIES

Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival World Tour 2-5pm • Pablo Center at the Confluence, Eau Claire • A collection of award-winning and audience favorite inspiring action, environmental, and adventure films. $20 for adults and $10 for youth ages 16 and under • All Ages • pablocenter.org

MUSIC

Chippewa Valley Community Chorus Concert - Odes and Tributes 2-4pm • The Heyde Center, Chippewa Falls • The Chippewa Valley Community Chorus presents it’s 2022 concert, titled “Odes and Tributes.” $10 adults; $6 seniors; FREE youth

Live Music: Artem Jazz Trio 3-6pm • River Jams, Chippewa Falls • The jazz trio explores a style of work similar to Bill Evans, Oscar Peterson, Ryo Fukui, Errol Garner, and more. • river-jams.com

NIGHTLIFE

Dj Trivia at the Brass Lantern 3-5pm • Chippewa Falls • General knowledge trivia. FREE • 21+ • facebook.com/brasslanternpubandgrill

OUTDOORS

Explore Eau Claire’s Pedestrian Trails 2-4pm • Lazy Monk Brewery, Eau Claire • From the Lazy Monk, visit community gardens, High Bridge, little known green space in the heart of the city. Post-hike stop for craft beer. FREE • All Ages STAGE

MTG Presents: Clue 2pm • Mabel Tainter Center

Menomonie • Based on the cult classic madcap comedy film, inspired by the popular board game. A hilarious whodunit full of laughs. $15 for Adults, $13 for Student/Senior/Military • menomonietheaterguild.com

Local Lit

7

words by gary busha

the heat settles in like a toad on a bar stool squatting happily

silence all around occasionally a page turns quiet, white as snow

writing is easy stare at the blank page and think about emptiness

after the laughter irony walks in and grins orders a double

I have stopped counting all the nail holes in the wall–the absent pictures in my latest dream my car gone my keys missing you shrugging shoulders your humanity wearing someone else’s clothes struts upon the stage

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Gary Busha is an editor, writer, and publisher long active in the small press. He is actively retired. For more by Gary search for his name on VolumeOne.org. For more info and to purchase his books, visit garycbusha.wordpress.com

ABOUT THIS PAGE:

Curated by Bruce Taylor, former Poet Laureate of the City of Eau Claire and Professor Emeritus, UW-Eau Claire, Local Lit features some of the best of the Chippewa Valley’s poetry and prose. It runs once a month, usually in every other issue. Read more local literature at VolumeOne.org/lit.

TO SUBMIT YOUR WORK:

Gotsomegoodwords?Weacceptoriginalpoetryandshort prose from current and former Chippewa Valley residents. Poetry must be 30 lines or less, prose must be under 500 words. Writers may submit up to one poem or prose piece permonth.Previouslypublishedmaterialiswelcome(tellus when/whereitfirstappeared).Emailqualifiedsubmissions to: lit@volumeone.org (paste text directly into the email, type “Local Lit Submission” into the subject line).

The Rear End

WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT THE COLD

Old Man Winter came to us a months back. Fast and quiet beneath a starlit sky, he slipped down the streets of our city, dragging his skinny ice-capped fingers across our windowsills, his diamond-hard eyes scanning for cracks. Patiently looking for a way inside.

Why? Because Old Man Winter aches for the delicious music of your constant complaining.

The frozen cave in which he slumbers is hidden beneath the rocky earth. But he can still hear you. Your gripes and grumbles tumble across his cavern floor. Your sour moaning slithers into his lair, tickling his gnarly ears, and as his eyeballs roll back into his head, a hungry smile pushes deep into his pale, crackling cheeks. He loves it. This is why he gets up in the morning.

So he comes to us with snow and single-digit temperatures. We mutter and wail and Old Man Winter gnashes his razory teeth into a feast of unhappiness. He grows tall and lanky. And colder. His slender arms reach into every corner of our

house. The more we complain, the colder he gets. The colder he gets, the more we complain. And still we shiver and curse.

Maybe we should lighten up and let the old man starve.

It would be fantastic if our Nonstop Happy Thoughts could somehow vanquish a powerful weather god, forcing him to flee the region, thus raising the temperature. But that’s just not how science happens. (That is, unless my high school science teacher skipped a chapter on Deities and Atmospheric Pressure, in which case, shame on that guy. My final project could have been on Ice Giants, and the dioramas alone would have taken your breath away.)

Informed scientific discussions aside, how we choose to react to negative things can at the very least render them powerless over our moods. We can’t raise the temperature outside, but (if you’re privileged enough to have a furnace at your disposal), you can at least be OK with whatever the thermometer reads. You don’t need to hop on Facebook and let

everyone know you HATE WINTER!

That’s not helping anyone.

Now, this is important – if your wintertime mood stems from the lands of seasonal affective disorder, then don’t listen to me. You can’t “lighten up” your way out of depression. If you need it, get some real help. Post haste.

But if you’re the type of person who cranks up the complaint machine as a (largely ineffective) coping mechanism, then just … knock it off. You’re causing your own problem and most probably creating trouble for the people around you. Instead, just bundle up and do something fun. After all, it’s all psychological.

And to anyone still reading this –if you’re looking for a point in which science and psychology (sort of) mix, get this: There is no such thing as “cold.”

As any polite scientist will gladly explain after you give him some cookies, the temperature of

an object is simply a measurement of the heat energy on to which it’s holding. When there’s more energy, there’s a higher temperature. Less energy means a lower one. Thus, we can measure “hotness” because it’s a quantity of something.

I happen to possess a lot of it.

“Coldness” is nothing. It’s not there. When you feel a cold sensation, you’re actually feeling the removal of heat from your body, not the entrance of something else. So just like “time” and “monetary value” and “the perfect burrito,” cold isn’t a real thing. It’s something our brains invented to help us cope with the world around us.

Giving something a name makes it less confusing. And giving something a personality – that of an evil old man, for instance – probably makes it easier to deal with. But at the end of a winter’s day, it’s really not there.

So exactly what are you complaining about?

OLD MAN WINTER FEEDS ON YOUR COMPLAINTS. LET HIM STARVE.

words by mike paulus • illustration by eva paulus