People who have lost a loved one may have a hard time dealing their grief. That’s why Hospice Touch of Tomah Memorial Hospital is offering a six week support group series to help people who have lost a friend or a loved one. Hospice Spiritual Care and Bereavement Coordinator Debbie Warthan says sessions will be held in Tomah and Adams beginning next month.

The series will be held each Thursday March 10 through April 14 from 9 a.-m. to 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. – 7 p.m.at the Hospice offices at 601 Straw Street in Tomah and from 1 pm to 3 pm at the Adams County Community Center in Adams. There is no charge for the program but Warthan said participants should register by calling Hospice Touch at 374-0250 in Tomah or 339-7500 in Adams by March 3.

U.S. Rep. Ron Kind (WI-03) delivered 162 Veterans’ stories collected by Mr. Bill Cain’s students at Tomah High School over 15 years to the Library of Congress. These tapes will now become a part of the national Veterans History Project Archive.

“I was honored to deliver these important stories to the Library of Congress, where they will be preserved for future generations,” Rep. Kind said. “I hope everyone will join me in continuing to grow the project. I urge everyone to ask veterans they know to record their stories. This is the last ask of a grateful nation to our veterans.”

Last year on Veterans Day Rep. Kind joined Tomah High School students to pack up the videos, and discuss the importance of the Veterans History Project. In 2000, Rep. Ron Kind authored, and Congress unanimously passed, legislation creating the VHP, which has since allowed veterans to record more than 100,000 stories and preserve them in the Library of Congress for future generations.

Fort McCoy no longer will accept driver’s licenses from Minnesota, Illinois, Missouri, New Mexico, and Washington state as proof of identity. According to the Department of Defense officials, it’s a consequence of the REAL ID Act of 2005 and these states not being in compliance with the law. Fort McCoy Physical Security Chief Mark Reaves with the Directorate of Emergency Services said Fort McCoy visitors who have one of the licenses that are banned should be ready to present an alternate form of ID, such as a passport. Service members, family members, DOD employees, and federal employees with the DOD common access card, DOD uniformed services identification and privileges cards, federal personal identification-verification cards, or transportation workers’ identification credentials are not affected, officials said, as these cards are authorized in DOD policy to facilitate physical access to installations. Commanders can also waive the requirements for special situations like graduations. For more information, refer to http://www.dhs.gov/real-id-public-faqs, or contact the Fort McCoy Physical Security Office at 608-388-8445/4694.

SHERIFF JOHN SPEARS REPORTS THE FOLLOWING ONGOING ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR AND NARRATIVE EXCERPTS FROM THE WEEK ENDING February 15, 2016.

2/12             A hit and run was reported on County Road B and Sebion Road, in the Town of Jefferson.  It appeared a vehicle was negotiating a corner on County Road B.  The vehicle went left around the corner and went off the road up a snow embankment.  The vehicle struck a post and support wire.  This remains under investigation.

2/12             Elizabeth Fanta, Viroqua, was traveling north on State Highway 27, in the Town of Franklin.  Fanta encountered blowing snow, lost control, struck a guardrail, and came to a rest in the ditch.  No injuries were reported.  The vehicle was towed due to moderate damage.

2/12             Mahkinzie Johnson, Elroy, was traveling south on County Road W, in the Town of Hillsboro.  Johnson lost control while negotiating a curve on ice covered roads and struck a fence.  No injuries were sustained.  The vehicle received moderate damage.

2/14             Marilyn Biederman was traveling west on State Highway 56, in the Town of Viroqua.  Biederman lost control on the snow covered roads, left the roadway on the south side of the road, went down an embankment, and struck a tree.  Biederman received minor injuries.

2/15             2 reportable car/deer crash:

Michael Manning, Wauzeka, on County Road S, Town of Webster;

Craig Williams, La Farge, on US Highway 14, Village of Coon Valley;

***********                                               This past week                 Year to Date

Alarm Responses                                           5                                     44

Animal Related issues                                     5                                     115

Assisting Municipalities                                   51                                  292

Crimes Against People                                    8                                     64

Crimes Against Property                                 9                                     52

Domestic Crimes                                           3                                     17

Fire Responses                                               12                                   104

K-9 Calls                                                         0                                     1

Medical Responses                                         34                                   212

Mental Health Cases                                       3                                     21

Missing Person Investigations                         5                                     13

Safety Escorts                                                 1                                     24

School Walk Through                                     12                                   45

Search and Rescues                                        1                                   4

Security Check                                               111                                 823

Serving Legal Documents                                8                                   168

Suspicious Activity Investigations                    21                                  130

Threat Investigation                                        1                                     4

Traffic Accidents                                             22                                    223

Traffic Related Investigations                          73                                   664

Vehicle Lockouts                                             6                                     50

Weapons Investigation                                    0                                    2

Unclassified Calls for Assistance                      34                                   249

_____                                ______

 TOTAL CALLS FOR SERVICE                       478                                  3598

 ADMISSIONS INTO COUNTY JAIL                    22                                   130

IF YOU HAVE INFORMATION ON AN ABOVE CRIME, OR ANY CRIME, CALL CRIME STOPPERS AT 637-8477 OR 1-800-657-6868.

John B. Spears, Sheriff

The Tomah VA Medical Center will host a town hall meeting for Veterans on Tuesday, March 1. The meeting will be at 5pm in the VA Chapel – Building 425. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert McDonald has directed all Veterans Affairs healthcare and benefits facilities to hold town-hall events to improve communication with, and hear directly from, veterans nationwide. The meetings are intended to provide local veterans a wide-open forum and for VA officials to hear directly from veterans to improve services and maintain trust. The meeting is open to the public and there will be representatives from Senator Tammy Baldwin’s and Senator Ron Johnson’s offices, as well as Representative Ron Kind’s and Representative Sean Duffy’s offices.

Aerial spraying to control gypsy moth caterpillars is planned for 85 acres at Mirror Lake State Park this spring, including the Cliffwood and Sandstone Ridge campgrounds, boat landing picnic area, and the Echo Rock Trail areas. The spraying will be done in order to reduce gypsy moth populations and prevent the caterpillars from defoliating trees in the treatment area. The spraying will be coordinated through the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Gypsy Moth Suppression Program.

A small, low-flying airplane will apply “Foray,” an insecticide made from the naturally occurring bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis kurstaki (btk), beginning early in the morning. The spraying will occur sometime between the middle of May and early June, depending on weather conditions and caterpillar development.

DNR staff will host an open house meeting to share information on the spray program. The open house will be held from 9 to 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 24 at the Mirror Lake State Park Office, E10320 Fern Dell Road, Baraboo. Questions can be directed to DNR Forest Health Specialist Mark Guthmiller by calling 608-275-3223 or Park Manager Becky Green by calling 608-254-2333.

The gypsy moth is a serious forest and urban pest that was introduced into the United States from Europe in the 1860s. The gypsy moth population had a slight increase in parts of south central Wisconsin this past year with isolated areas with populations reaching damaging levels. Within parts of Mirror Lake State Park the gypsy moth population has reached the point that the caterpillars may kill trees by eating all of their leaves during May and June. Aerial spraying will prevent this damage and will avoid other adverse effects such as nuisance caterpillars and skin rashes resulting from direct exposure to the caterpillars. Find more information at gypsymoth.wi.gov.

Contributed by DNR

The Hillsboro School Board decided to table the decision of hiring a co-principal for a week. Superintendent Curt Bisarek said the school board will consider the plan again next Tuesday. The three finalists for the job are Hillsboro High School teacher Bob Booty, Hillsboro Middle School teacher Chris Copeman and Kewauskum Elementary Principal Tom Fischer.

Other items the board took action on/discussed:

• Approved FBLA overnight trip to state contest in LaCrosse
• Approved Senior Class Trip to Chicago May 13 and May 14
• Approved revision of Policy 423 Full-Time Public School Open Enrollment
• Accepted the resignation of Mike Burch as softball coach
• Approved the retirement of Kirby Wong at the end of the June 2016
• Approved Part-Time elementary music position for 2nd semester of 2015-16 school year
• Approved CESA 5 Contract for 2016-17
• Approved 2016-17 School Calendar
• Hired Softball and Assistant Softball coach for 2015-16
• Approved transfer request of special education teacher for 2016-17 and tabled the Hiring Elementary Special Education teacher for 2016-17

Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch (left) and JCEDC Exective Director Terry Whipple (right) listen to iLEAD student, Kyle Roberts (middle) talks about the charter school. (Photo taken by Paris Dudzinski)

Wisconsin Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch toured iLEAD Charter School in Mauston Tuesday morning. She was interested in seeing a new option for learning and was intrigued in how the Juneau County Economic Development Corporation (JCEDC) has partnered with the Mauston School District. Executive Director of JCEDC Terry Whipple said these students are learning to manage their own education while under the close supervision of the teachers, and the students practice daily, emulating the character traits that have been identified in successful people. Whipple said he believes JCEDC is the first Economic Development organization in the state to make education of youth a significant part of its strategic plan.

There was rollover accident in the Town of Cutler February 12. 61-year-old Jerrie Fisher of Camp Douglas was southbound on 2^nd Avenue when Fisher’s vehicle slid off the road and into the ditch. Law enforcement officials say the road was covered in ice and had deep ruts in the packed snow and ice. The ditch was deep and caused the vehicle to roll onto its roof. Fisher was able to crawl out of the vehicle. Fisher refused medical treatment at the scene.

MADISON, WI… (February 15, 2016) On Saturday, February 20th the American Red Cross will honor seven local heroes at An Evening of Heroes hosted by Ho-Chunk Gaming in the Wisconsin Dells. Honorees are ordinary people whose actions embody the values of the Red Cross and demonstrate the potential in all of us. Whether they’re stepping-up during a medical emergency to provide assistance, or helping others through a lifetime of volunteerism, Heroes reflect what is best about our community. In fact, all would say they aren’t heroes at all. This humble trait makes their dedication to helping people even more special.

Hero nominations were accepted throughout the year, and culminate with the Evening of Heroes event, Saturday, February 20, 2016. The reception (sponsored by NGL) begins at 5:00p.m. The dinner and program begin at 6:00p.m. Immediately following the program, guests will be treated to an exclusive Sarah Dunn Band performance courtesy of Ho-chunk Gaming Madison.

This year’s Hero nominees will be presented by Mistress of Ceremonies, television personality and WKOW’s news anchor Amber Noggle. The winners are:

Adult Good Samaritan: Denise Davenport (Cambridge)
While others were stunned and silent in action, Denise saved a man’s life by performing compression-only CPR on an unconscious man outside of while he was trapped in his car, keeping him stable until EMT’s arrived. Denise received the training as a member of the Red Cross Disaster Action Team. Award presented by TDS Telecommunications.

Youth Good Samaritan: Emma Hanisko (Cambridge)
This 16-year old was nominated for her selfless acts initiative and compassion to make her community stronger. Emma has been active in the Cambridge 4-H Club for eight years and just elected club President. Involvement includes community projects roadside clean up, Adopt a Child, Toys for Tots, Cambridge Food Pantry and the Humane Society to name a few. In addition, for the past five-years she has hosted a Party for the Pantry requesting donations instead of birthday gifts for herself.Award presented by National Guardian Life.

Community Hero: Patrick Bourdeau (Baraboo)
A Community Hero is someone who assisted their community or individuals through volunteering and Good Samaritan efforts. In this case he risked his life when a neighbor’s house was on fire. Patrick noticed the front porch was on fire and immediately dialed 911. While doing so, he ran to the burning house and pounded on the door to make them aware. Had it not been for his quick thinking, the two residents may not have made it out unharmed. Award presented by Alliant Energy Foundation.

From the Heart Hero: Jane Soman (Fennimore)
From the Heart Heroes, truly give the gift of life by donating blood on a regular consistent basis or volunteering for local blood drives. We salute Jane after her 30-year career of coordinating blood drives in Fennimore for three-decades. Her personal relationship with donors and volunteers has been an inspiration to the community. Award presented by UW Health & Unity Insurance.

Lifetime Hero: Elaine Pattridge (Wonewoc)
Elaine was nominated for her lifetime dedication to others, incorporating the values of the American Red Cross and making a profound difference in his or her community. Elaine has been the blood drive coordinator for the Wonewoc blood drives for the past 43-years. On average, in her town of 816 people, Elaine collects 35-40 units of blood per drive. This equates to saving up-to 20,640 lives! (40 units x 4 blood drives per year x 43 years of service = 6,880 x 3 (each blood donation can save up-to 3 lives) = 20,640) Plus, she isn’t afraid to roll-up her own sleeves as she has donated nearly 12-gallons of her own blood.Award presented by St. Gobain.

Military Hero: Jim Blankenheim, Marine (Retired) (Madison)
This award is presented to an active or retired member of the armed forces whose actions go above and beyond the call of duty. Jim exemplifies the true spirit of a volunteer, giving with his heart, mind and body to support Veterans. Jim started working with the Wayne D. Horner “Stand Down” in the early 1990’s giving homeless Veterans a ‘hand-up’ not a’ hand-out’. Jim also volunteered for 4-years at the William S. Memorial VA Hospital Infusion Lab in Madison. Jim is also the President of the Vietnam Veterans organization for the past five-years and an active member since the 1990’s. Award presented by LHI.

Everyday Hero: Officer Lucas Killick (Lake Delton)
Officer Lucas Killick is a six-year veteran of the Lake Delton Police Department. As a lifelong resident of the community, he serves and demonstrates a strong sense of community and volunteerism in his actions. He is the driving force behind a successful “Cops for Kids” campaign each year that services an average of 300 disadvantaged families. Award presented by St. Clare Hospital.

An Evening of Heroes is the premiere gala event of Southwest Wisconsin chapter to help raise funds for mission related services provided to the community. A few event tickets remain available to purchase by contacting Megan.Bessett@redcross.org or by calling 608-232-5832. Event photos, stories and more will be available at redcross.org/Wisconsin, and the American Red Cross Southeast Wisconsin Chapter Facebook page.

Contributed by Barbara Behling

The Mauston School District approved the project specifications and bid documents for the district’s Field Renovation Project at its meeting on Monday night.  After a presentation from Rettler Inc., the board unanimously approved the documents for the replacement of the track, renovation of the football field, and replacement of the bleachers and stadium lighting. The documents will also include a series of alternative improvements, which the board could consider for the project. Bids are expected to be back by March 29. The project is a part of the 2015 Spring Referendum.

Also during the meeting, the board approved the 2016 Summer School Program. Director of Teaching and Learning Linda Oleinik said there are suggestions on where residents can go for swimming lessons this summer, since the Olson Middle School’s pool will be closed for referendum projects.

Back (l-r): Dave Swiergosz, Michael Lindert, and JK Walsh Front (l-r): Kerry Randall and Molly Scully

The Bank of Mauston’s Board of Directors made recent appointments to its executive staff.  Dave Swiergosz, Vice President of Commercial Lending; Michael Lindert, President of The Bank of Mauston; and JK Walsh, Assistant Vice President, Kerry Randall, Vice President of Mortgage Lending and Molly Scully, Vice President all were appointed to the board. Director of Marketing Amanda Emery-Morris would like to congratulate these employees on their accomplishments.

Contributed

A Mauston man was arrested for OWI – 2^nd Offense in a hit and run incident in Mauston. On Wednesday night, Mauston police officers were dispatched to a residential area of Mauston for a vehicle hit and run accident. Upon arrival at the scene, officers made contact with the reporting party who stated she was inside her house and heard a loud crash. She went outside and observed that her vehicle had been struck and had severe damage. She stated that she saw the vehicle that hit her car flee the scene. While photographing the damage to the parked vehicle, officers located identifying pieces of the other vehicle, including the front license plate. Due to the information provided by the victim and the recovered license plate, officers were able to locate the vehicle in the City of Mauston.

When officers located the vehicle, the driver, 26 year-old Jack Morrison of Mauston, was unconscious in the driver’s seat with the vehicle running. When officers were able to wake Morrison and make contact with him, a strong odor of intoxicants was noticeable on Morrison. As a result, officers performed standardized field sobriety tests. Due to the results of these tests, Morrison was taken into custody for operating while intoxicated – second offense and transported to the Juneau County Jail without incident.

A Dodgeville man pleaded guilty Wednesday to selling his mother and her boyfriend the heroin that killed them. Online court records show 31-year-old Herbert Grosenheider Junior made the plea in a Sauk County courtroom. He was facing two counts of felony first-degree reckless homicide in the June 2015 deaths of 51-year-old Diane Rogers of La Valle and 55-year-old Richard Maurer. Rogers and Maurer were found dead outside their home in the town of Woodland. A pre-sentence investigation was ordered and sentencing will be scheduled for a later date.

An arrest warrant has been issued for a man who has been contacting members of the public about selling heavy equipment and after receiving money, doesn’t deliver the equipment. The Adams County Sheriff’s Office said it is alleged that 47-year-old Gary Tracy has been offering the equipment and then keeps the money from prospective buyers. There is an arrest warrant issued for Tracy from the Department of Corrections Probation and Parole. The Adams County Sheriff’s Office said Tracy is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Anyone with information on this subject or any crime subject has committed, please contact the Adams County Sheriff’s Office at 339-3304 or Adams County Crime Stoppers by texting their tip to CRIMES (274637) with keyword “ADAMS”.  You may be eligible for CA$H rewards up to $1,000 and can remain anonymous.

The Necedah School Board made a decision on which bank was to be its depositor for the performance loan contract at its Tuesday meeting. Superintendent Larry Gierach said the board decided to use both the Necedah Bank and the Bank of Mauston as depositors and the money of $6,675,000 will be split evenly. This is in conjunction with the energy saving project resolution the school board had approved in November. Also, after a closed session, the Necedah School Board approved the renewal of a two year contract for Mark Becker as the Middle School/High School principal.

Other actions the board took at its meeting:

• Approved the resignation of one fifth grade teacher, Savanna Kaster, for the 2016-17 school year. Approved the hirings of one full time regular and two part-time regular special education instructional aides due to the increase in special education student needs per their individual educational plan.
• Accepted donations from: $1,500 from Parker Hannifin for the Computer Numerical Control machine; $4,000 from Whitetails Unlimited, Inc. for an archery program for Physical Education; $300 from an anonymous donor for healthy snacks; and $129.07 from the Necedah Power-lifting Association for weight room supplies.

The Sauk County Health Department was recently awarded a mini grant by Wisconsin Department of Health, Building Resilience Against Climate Effects (BRACE) program to enhance capacity to assess, prepare for, and effectively respond to climate and extreme weather events and reduce or prevent related negative health effects. Sauk County’s mini grant will allow key stakeholders to work collaboratively over the course of one and a half years to develop a community engagement protocol to identify locally-relevant climate adaptation strategies that can be integrated into existing public health and emergency response planning mechanisms, and to create sustainable goals.

On Thursday February 4th, 2016 over 40 key stakeholders met in Plain to learn about the BRACE framework and determine priorities and specific action steps to begin working collaboratively on. The stakeholders in attendance identified as the top four health outcomes to focus on:

• mental health,
• chronic disease and
• injury,
• waterborne disease.

Specific action steps identified at the first meeting include:

• development of a community outreach and information campaign;
• identification of at risk populations,
• improving upon identification tools,
• creation of distribution tools for educational materials to at risk populations;
• assist local communities in identifying their specific water issues.

The Wisconsin BRACE program has many tools and resources available for local communities and the general public on climate and health. Extreme weather toolkits, which provide one- to two-page guides that can be used by the public, local governments, health departments, and emergency response personnel, to better prepare Wisconsin residents for extreme weather events are publically available on the Wisconsin BRACE website or the Center for Disease Control’s BRACE program website.

Contributed by Jill Quinn 

The Juneau County Board of Supervisors authorized the hiring of two different positions in the Department of Human Services. The first position was a full-time Comprehensive Community Services (CCS) Facilitator and the second was a full-time Daytime Crisis Worker/Chapter 51 Coordinator. Director Scott Ethun believes both positions are crucial to improving such services to Juneau County residents who need them Both positions are fully paid for: The CCS Facilitator by federal and state funding, and the Daytime Crisis Worker/Chapter 51 Coordinator will be paid by Medicaid, private insurance, and private pay, so they will not require an increase to the 2016 tax levy for Juneau County. In the event that the funding is no longer available, both positions would be terminated. A resolution designating Coralie Burrows as Interim Child, Youth, and Family Services Supervisor until the hiring of a new Children Services Manager. This is a result of the former Children Services Manager, Robin Degner, resigning at the beginning of February.

The board also approved:

• Town of Lisbon Fifth Amendment to Zoning Ordinance #53-A-5
• A cellular device purchase policy
• The purchase of Online Employee Self Service Module for Finance Software for the Financial Department
• Designating the week of April 11-15 as Work Zone Awareness Week in Juneau County
• Land sale to Kristy Koudelka of tax delinquent property (Parcel No. 29014961.01)
• Authorizing the filling of vacancy of Child Protection Services Worker and Community Support Program Psychiatric Nurse

The Juneau County Board of Supervisors usually meet the third Tuesday of the month at 9:30 at the County Board Room at the old courthouse.

Two people were injured in a semi-truck versus vehicle accident in Monroe County Thursday evening. Sheriff Scott Perkins said the accident occurred about 6:35PM on State Highway 21 at Excelsior Avenue in the Township of Byron. 51-year-old Steven Strand  of Mitchell, South Dakota was operating a semi-truck eastbound Highway 21, when a vehicle operated by 49-year-old Cherryl Duncan of Wyeville, pulled out of the parking lot and into the path of the semi. Strand attempted to avoid the Duncan vehicle, but was unable to do so and struck it.  The semi then entered the south ditch and overturned.  The Duncan vehicle came to rest in the north ditch. Duncan and her passenger, 74-year-old Gerald Duncan of Wyeville, received non-life threatening injuries and were transported to Tomah Memorial Hospital. The crash remains under investigation by the Wisconsin State Patrol.