April 25, 2012

Judged as Wisconsin’s Wisconsin Newspaper Association 2012 Large Weekly Division

Section A

VILAS COUNTY

NEWS-REVIEW EAGLE RIVER, WI 54521 • (715) 479-4421 • vcnewsreview.com

VOL. 127, NO. 6

$1.25

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

Area schools districts see lower property tax levies Officials say Act 10 saved on benefits ___________

BY GARY RIDDERBUSCH NEWS-REVIEW EDITOR

___________

Property tax levies at three area school districts declined this year, with administrators saying that Republican efforts to control spending are helping school boards balance their budgets.

The levy adopted at Northland Pines declined 2.8%, while Three Lakes saw the largest drop here at 9.2% and Phelps fell 4.1% Statewide, property tax levies adopted by the state’s school districts declined $47 million this year, or 1%.

“Our budget reforms are working,” said Gov. Scott Walker in a written statement. “This year we saw better class sizes, fewer teacher layoffs and property taxes were kept in check. Most importantly, educational opportunities for students were the best they have been in a decade.”

But state education officials and teacher organizations respond that the levy cuts, along with a $749 million decrease in state aid to public schools, are harming many schools throughout the state.

Administrators at Northland Pines, Three Lakes and Phelps noted that state aid to public schools here is minimal and has little impact on taxpayers’ bills.

Northland Pines saw its state aid drop from $167,914 last year to $151,158 this

year. Three Lakes lost about $10,000 in state aid and Phelps saw its state aid drop by about $700.

A statement from state School Superintendent Tony Evers saw it differently.

“These cuts impacted students across the state and hurt the quality of their education,” he said in a press release.

When the Legislature passed its 2011-’13 budget last summer, it cut school aid and also reduced the amount of property taxes districts could raise per student — known as the revenue limit — by 5.5% statewide. The property tax levy for a district is the total amount it expects to collect in taxes to help run the schools.

Despite the reduction in the revenue limit, local districts had to find the money elsewhere in the budget.

The help came in the form of a bill known as Act 10, which reduced the ability of most public employees, including teachers, to collectively bargain. It allowed districts to fill some of their budget holes by requiring employees to pay more toward their health-care costs and retirement benefits.

Pines saves $1 million Mike Richie, district administrator at Northland Pines, said his district saved about $1 million due to Act 10. At Pines, the levy dropped from $21.6 million last year to $20.9 million this year.

“Gov. Walker’s reforms have helped our district,” said Richie. “Act 10 helped us recoup the 5.5% cut in the revenue limit.”

Richie said teachers conTo LEVIES, Pg. 2A

THEY’RE BACK — The ospreys have returned to the North Woods where they are rebuilding nests and combing the lakes for fish.

—Staff Photo By KURT KRUEGER

Bag limit changes won’t come early Spearers still on lakes due to lingering spawn ___________

BY GARY RIDDERBUSCH NEWS-REVIEW EDITOR

___________

DANCEWORKS UNLIMITED — Student dancers, from left, Emily Reid, Eleanor Wirth and Emma Perry were among 170 area performers who participated in two Danceworks Unlimited shows

27th Business Expo slated this weekend One of the longest-running consumer shows in the area returns this weekend when the WRJO 94.5-FM and WERL 950-AM radio stations present the Business Expo at Northland Pines High School off of Highway 45 North in Eagle River.

The 27th annual show will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 28, and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, April 29.

The event will feature nearly 50 businesses displaying and selling the latest products and services inside the field house, commons and outside the school. Attendees can take advantage of dozens of vendor show specials, plus register to win prizes including Milwaukee Brewers tickets, dinner certificates and

more. Parking and admission will be free.

A wide variety of vendors will be on-site including health-care providers, banks and financial advisors, home and commercial builders and credit unions. There will be beauty products, window companies, energy-saving systems, docks and lifts, remodelers, waterproofing companies and more including the latest appliances, plus information about tree services, chiropractic care, leisure rooms and more “We opened up the show to more businesses this year and that’s why we changed the name to the Business Expo,” said Jim Hodges, general manager of WRJO/ To EXPO, Pg. 2A

INSIDE THIS ISSUE Spring sports in full swing n Northland Pines, Three Lakes and Phelps teams are busy this spring.

Pgs. 9-11

Saturday at Northland Pines High School in Eagle River. This year marked the 20th anniversary of Danceworks Unlimited.

—Staff Photo By ANTHONY DREW

While anglers, business owners and tourism officials had hopes that walleye bag limits could be revised prior to the opening weekend of fishing due to the early spring, state officials indicated that is unlikely this year.

The off-reservation Chippewa tribal harvest got an early start this year in the ceded territory due to ice going off of most lakes in mid-March, but cold temperatures in April have slowed the walleye spawn and lengthened the season for tribal spearers.

Bill Cosh, Department of Natural Resources (DNR) spokesman, said Monday that it would be difficult for tribal and state officials to make bag limit adjustments prior to the opening day of the general fishing season

Saturday, May 5.

“We still had four bands indicating they would be out spearing on Monday night,” said Cosh. “With groups still out, it would be hard to do (revise the bag limits) by early May.” Through Sunday, DNR treaty data coordinator Tom Cichosz said the tribes have speared 31,782 walleyes and 241 muskies. He said the tribal effort is dropping after several weeks of spearing.

“The number of lakes being speared has fallen dramatically in the last week,” said Cichosz, “but fish are still being found in those (lakes) that the spearers are going to. This weekend, 616 walleyes and 18 muskeis were taken.”

The daily walleye bag limTo BAG LIMITS, Pg. 2A

Public warned: drug traffickers using national forest for grow sites ___________

BY NEWS-REVIEW STAFF

___________

Over the last two years, the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest (CNNF), in cooperation with an interagency enforcement action, eradicated approximately 80,000 marijuana plants that were cultivated by large drug trafficking organizations.

These grow sites were located on the Nicolet land base in 2010 and the Chequamegon land base in 2011. Both were first reported by hunters.

The illegal activity of growing and harvesting marijuana on public lands is expected to continue, according to Forest Service officials.

U.S. Forest Service public affairs officer Suzanne Flory said the safety of the public and employees is the top priority for the Forest Service.

“National forest and other public lands are being used for these illegal operations as they are often vast, uninhabited acres the growers find have the right conditions for their illegal operTo MARIJUANA, Pg. 2A

Two marijuana grow sites were found on the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest the

last two years and the illegal activity is expected to continue. —Contributed Photo

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WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

VILAS COUNTY NEWS-REVIEW/THE THREE LAKES NEWS

WEATHER CORNER

NEWS

Note: Precipitation amounts are recorded at 8 a.m. for the previous 24 hours.

LAST SEVEN DAYS Hi Wed., April 18............54 Thurs., April 19..........48 Fri., April 20...............51 Sat., April 21 .............57 Sun., April 22 ............56 Mon., April 23............55 Tues., April 24 ...........58

Lo 26 29 30 24 24 22 28

Prec. .51R .27R None None None None None

ONE YEAR AGO Hi Mon., April 18............37 Tues., April 19 ...........41 Wed., April 20............41 Thurs., April 21..........40 Fri., April 22...............37 Sat., April 23 .............38 Sun., April 24 ............60

Lo 16 21 27 20 35 33 26

Prec.

Tr.S None .5"S Tr.S None .70S None

LAST YEAR

The average daily high at this time last year for the next seven days was 46, while the average overnight low was 29. There was rain on five days totaling .90 of an inch.

COMPARISON

Days precipitation recorded since April 1, 2012, 9 days; 2011, 11 days.

Average high of past 30 days, 2012, 53; 2011, 33. Average low of past 30 days, 2012, 29; 2011, 20.

FOREST CONDITIONS

Due to the recent dry conditions, DNR officials say the wildfire danger is high until the North Woods gets additional rainfall. Caution is urged for all outdoor debris burning.

STREAMS AND LAKES

Anglers are patiently waiting for the opening day of the general fishing season May. 5. In the meantime, anglers are pursuing panfish, including perch and crappies.

OUTLOOK

Wednesday there will be scattered showers and thunderstorms, with a high of 57 and a low of 38. Thursday morning flurries are possible, with a high of 47 and a low of 32.

Friday should be mostly sunny and cooler, with a high of 51 and a low of 24. Saturday is expected to be partly sunny and breezy, with a high of 48 and a low of 25. Sunday look for lots of sun, but contiinued cool, with a high of 49 and a low of 22.

(PORTIONS OF THE WEATHER CORNER ARE THROUGH THE COURTESY OF KEVIN BREWSTER, EAGLE RIVER and NEWSWATCH 12 METEOROLOGIST.)

FIRE DANGER HIGH — The Department of Natural Resoruces sign north of Eagle River reminds travelers that the fire danger is high and burning permits are requried for all outdoor debris burning.

—STAFF PHOTO

Expo:

FROM PAGE 1A

WERL radio station.

“Last year, the show was called the Sport and Home Show, but we felt that limited participation,” said Hodges.

“We’re excited about the wide range of Wisconsin and Upper Peninsula (of Michigan) businesses participating and anticipate several more joining as we still have busi-

nesses wanting to participate.”

The deadline to get in the show is Wednesday, April 25.

If businesses want to get in, they should call (715) 4794451.

Food will be provided by the Northwoods Children’s Museum, with all proceeds benefiting that organization.

Bag limits: it has been lowered on 537 lakes in response to tribal spearing declarations, revisions that affect 330 lakes in Vilas, Oneida and Forest counties.

In the three counties, there will be a three-walleye bag limit for sport anglers on 171 lakes, and a two-fish daily bag limit on 159 lakes.

Most off-reservation Chippewa tribal harvest takes place during the spring spearfishing season, with tribal spearers typically harvesting walleye from 170 to 180 lakes annually regardless of the number of lakes initially declared.

DNR Secretary Cathy Stepp said the department will review tribal harvest following the spring spearfishing season and may revise bag limits upward on lakes lightly speared or not speared. An administrative rule passed by the state Natural Resources Board in 1998 allows the department to adjust initial bag limits to reflect actual spring spearing harvest and projected summer harvests.

The current bag limits are effective between May 5, 2012, and March 3, 2013, inclusive. Most years the adjusted bag limits are announced prior to Memorial

FROM PAGE 1A

Day weekend.

Of the 232 lakes declared by the Lac du Flambeau band, 217 will have a daily bag limit of three walleye for sport anglers, while 14 lakes and chains will have a daily bag limit of two walleye due to an agreement between the state and tribe. Those lakes are Ballard, Big, Big Muskellunge, Island and Star lakes in Vilas County; Clear and Tomahawk lakes, and Rainbow and Willow flowages in Oneida County; Rice River Flowage and Lake Mohawks in Lincoln County; and Butternut and Pike lakes in Price County.

As part of a 1983 federal Appellate Court decision affirming Chippewa offreservation hunting, fishing and gathering rights, the six bands of Wisconsin Chippewa set annual harvest quotas for off-reservation lakes in the Wisconsin Ceded Territory.

As part of court agreements, the DNR reduces bag limits for recreational hookand-line anglers in lakes declared for harvest by the Chippewa bands to assure the combined tribal and recreational angler harvest does not jeopardize the ability of walleye to sustain its population in any lake.

Levies: districts see insurance, retirement savings FROM PAGE 1A tributing to the Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) saved the district $566,000 and teachers paying 12% of their health and dental insurance saved another $169,000.

“A benefit change within the employment handbook was in the area of post retirement insurance,” said Richie.

“It will be a big savings, about $65,000 per person retiring, for the district.”

In the past, the district paid the premium at the exit level for six years. Now, with the new handbook, the district pays health and dental premiums for five years, starting at 80% the first year, 70% the second, 60% the third, 52% the fourth and 45% the fifth. The retiring teacher must be at least 55 years old and have 15 continuous years of service in the district.

Additional savings related to the handbook comes in the alternative benefit category.

“Employees who have family insurance coverage through a spouse’s employer, other than the district, may elect to discontinue coverage under the district’s medical plan and will instead receive a $5,000 stipend,” said Richie.

“In the the past, the stipend was $7,200. Because we have 35 people taking advantage of this, the savings will be $75,000 a year.”

While Evers said staff cuts are hurting education in Wisconsin, Richie said there were only three positions eliminated for this school year, including an alternative education teacher, a technical education teacher and a special education teacher.

“The reason those teachers

were not replaced was due to small class sizes,” said Richie.

Due to the budget savings, Richie said the district will get a fourth year out of the referendum dollars approved in 2009.

“The previous referendum to exceed the revenue limit was for $2.9 million,” said Richie. “We are projecting a $4.1 million shortfall when the next referendum rolls around for the 2013-’14 school year.”

Richie said the good news is that the K-8 school will be paid off later this year and the Land O’ Lakes and St. Germain elementary schools will be paid off in 2014.

Three Lakes down Taxpayers in the Three Lakes School District saw the school portion of the property tax levy drop from $8.6 million to $7.8 million, or 9.2%.

District Administrator George Karling said Act 10 didn’t have a huge impact on the budget in the Three Lakes School District, saying the reforms resulted in some positive budget adjustments for the school board.

“We were already working closely with the staff on ways to save tax dollars and meet our budget,” said Karling.

“For example, our teachers have paid 10% of their health insurance for several years, they moved away from WEA insurance and they have increased their deductibles through a Health Reimbursement Account (HRA). Overall, it saves about $300,000 a year.”

Karling said some districts around the state took a big hit when state aid was cut and are now making drastic budget changes.

“We’ve already done it,” said Karling. “We have worked as a team and it is paying huge dividends.”

While the levy and spending has dropped, Karling said the district students continue to perform well in the classroom. He said staffing levels have remained stable, but are adjusted based on enrollment.

“Our achievement scores continue to go up,” he said.

“In the recent WKCE test, we took a major jump in all three grade levels. All is well here.”

Phelps sees drop Property taxpayers in Phelps saw their levy drop from $2.9 million last year to

$2.78 million this year.

District Administrator Delnice Hill said Phelps was able to save on its health insurance coses to the tune of $80,000 to $100,000.

“We were able to get a higher deductible through an HRA and our premiums actually went down,” said Hill.

The Phelps School District also was able to save because teachers contributed to the retirement system, with Hill estimating the savings will be in the $40,000 to $50,000 range.

“Those were the two main things that really made a difference, but we won’t know how much of a difference until the end of the year,” said Hill.

Marijuana: ations,” said Flory. “Typically, planting occurs in the spring and the plants are harvested in late summer. These marijuana growers for drug trafficking organizations are dangerous and are known to carry firearms.”

The CNNF asks that visitors be aware of their surroundings and know what to do to remain safe. Knowing how to recognize grow sites is vital, according to Flory.

Indicators of illegal marijuana grow sites include: — isolated tents in the forest where no other recreational activity is present; — garden tools, bags of fertilizer and large amounts of garbage; — signs of cultivation/ soil disturbances in unlikely areas; and

FROM PAGE 1A

— 1- to 2-acre cleared areas with stumps up to approximately three feet tall.

“If you encounter a site or unusual circumstances, you should take these actions immediately. Leave the area as quickly and quietly as possible. Do your best to know your location by use of landmarks or way points. Notify local law enforcement authorities. If on national forest land, you can also notify the local ranger district office,” said Flory.

Flory said authorities will continue to work together to decrease this unlawful and damaging activity on the national forest.

“Your assistance is important to help stop marijuana growing in your national forest,” she said.

VILAS COUNTY NEWS-REVIEW/THE THREE LAKES NEWS

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

3A

NEWS

FitzPatrick joins 34th District race

Vilas County Circuit Judge Neal A. Nielsen III swore in members of the the Vilas County Board of Supervisors during last Tues-

day’s organizational meeting at the courthouse. Steve Favorite was re-elected board chairman.

—Photo By Ken Anderson

Favorite keeps Vilas leadership ___________

BY KEN ANDERSON NEWS CORRESPONDENT

___________

Leadership of the Vilas County Board will remain the same after the results of voting by the 21 supervisors at an organizational meeting last week.

Board Chairman Steve Favorite retained his position with no opposition.

While the positions of first vice chairman held by supervisor Chris Mayer and second vice chairman held by supervisor Al Bauman will also remain the same, challenges were made.

Supervisor Sig Hjemvick challenged Mayer, with Mayer receiving 14 votes and retaining his position.

Hjemvick received seven votes.

Supervisors Ralph Sitzberger and Erv Teichmiller challenged Bauman for second vice chairman, and it took three votes by the board for Bauman to receive a majority.

The first vote had Bauman getting nine votes, Sitzberger six and Teichmiller six. It takes at least 11 for a simple board majority. The second vote gave Bauman 10, Sitzberger six and Teichmiller five. At that point, Sitzberger withdrew his name for consideration.

The third vote elected Bauman with 13 votes, with Teichmiller receiving eight votes.

Highway leaders There were eight supervisors seeking to be elected to the five-person Vilas County Highway Committee and,

after two rounds of voting, the committee will have three new members.

Nominated to be re-elected to the committee were Sitzberger, Bauman, Maynard Bedish and Charles Rayala. Highway Committee Chairman Jack Harrison had chosen to retire from county service.

Also seeking election to the committee were Supervisors Kathleen Rushlow, Ron DeBruyne, Chris Mayer and Emil Bakka.

Four supervisors with the top votes were elected on the first ballot. Bauman received the most votes with 17, followed by Rushlow, DeBruyne and Mayer, each with 13 votes. On the second ballot, Rayala was elected as the fifth member when he received six votes to five for

Sitzberger, Bedish.

Bakka

and

Other appointments A number of appointments were made by Favorite that included Mert Jensen and Fred Radtke to the Commission on Aging, Rayala and Teichmiller to the Human Services Board, Jeff Burke to the Northern Waters Library Service and Dennis Wittig as an alternate to the Board of Adjustment.

In other action, the county board: — adopted its standing rules to govern their proceedings and committee responsibilities for the next two years; and — approved creation of the Lost Lake Protection and Rehabilitation District in the town of St. Germain.

Following review of title search, Boulder Junction bike trail gets OK ___________

BY KEN ANDERSON NEWS CORRESPONDENT

___________

The extension of the proposed bike trail, north along Highway M to Dairyman’s Road in the town of Boulder Junction, was given approval last week by Vilas County Corporation Counsel Martha Milanowski, who reviewed title search information.

Vilas County officials had concerns about right-of-way ownership issues, and a title search was needed to determine if the county had clear title or if easements from former private landowners could restrict use of the land to highway purposes only.

The county highway department ordered the title search with the responsibility

for the town of Boulder Junction to reimburse the county for the cost.

In a letter to Vilas County Highway Commissioner Jarred Maney dated April 18, 2012, Milanowski gave the green light to proceed.

“I have reviewed the additional title work regarding the parcels located along County Highway M in Boulder Junction that are adjacent to county right of way that is proposed for the bike trail,” wrote Milanowski.

“Northwoods Title & Closing Services LLC provided deeds of record, maps and highway deeds pertaining to these parcels, and upon reviewing all of this information, it is my opinion that the county does in fact own the right of way that will be affect-

Five Vilas residents named to Lake Leaders Institute The Lake Leaders Institute, hosted every other year by the UW-Extension Lakes, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and Wisconsin Lakes, assists participants in developing and enhancing both their technical and people skills to enrich their communities and the waters within them.

Five Vilas County residents, all committed to the protection of area lakes, are the latest accepted nominees for Crew 9 of the Lake Leaders Institute.

The five Vilas County members of Crew 9 are David Blunk of Squaw Lake and the Flambeau River, Steven Budnik of the Turtle Lakes Chain, Dennis Burg of the Eagle River Chain of Lakes, Carol Warden of the Northern Highlands Lake District and Quita Sheehan of the Vilas County Land and Water Conservation Department.

“I am quite honored to attend the Lake Leaders Institute,” said Sheehan, upon learning of her selection. “I am really looking forward to meeting the rest of Crew 9 and finding out what interesting and effective ideas they have for Wisconsin lakes.”

Each of the last eight crews

of lake leaders has hosted up to 30 participants from across Wisconsin. There are three seminars, each lasting two days, held during May, September and October. Lake management and research professionals from state and private organizations teach the seminars. Graduates of the program are expected to take on active citizen roles with their lake, in county lake associations, on watershed management teams and on statewide policy committees.

To date, 20 Vilas County residents have participated in earlier crews and have brought the skills that they acquired back to Vilas County to work for lakes and lake communities at lake, town, county and state levels.

“The other lake leaders in Vilas County are an impressive group who have contributed much of their time, energy and creativity to improving and protecting Vilas County lakes. The institute is a vital training program for leaders in our local communities,” said Sheehan.

For more information about the Lake Leaders Institute, contact UW-Extension Lakes or visit Wisconsin Lake Leaders Institute.

ed by this proposed bike trail,” Milanowski continued.

“Therefore, it is my opinion that there are no legal impediments at this point associated with the ability to locate the bike trail on the county’s right-of-way along County Highway M immediately north of Boulder Junction,” Milanowski concluded.

The cost of the additional title search for approximately 10 parcels was $355.

Salt shed issue The former county salt storage shed at the Arbor Vitae highway facility was discussed at the county Highway Committee last week.

The storage shed was on the south side of Highway 70, and elevated levels of sodium were found in a private well near the shed.

“It’s an ongoing investigation,” Milanowski told the committee. “We are the responsible party with at least one private well beyond the enforcement standard. The home is vacant and on the market with the realtor asking if the well is going to be replaced.”

The current well is 60 feet in depth, with the Department of Natural Resources suggesting a depth of 150 feet is needed. Supervisors were told the cost for the well could be lower if it is possible to extend the current well to that depth.

“We’ve replaced wells in the past and I expect we’ll do that again,” Milanowski stated. “The realtor wants something in writing from the

county. County board Chairman Steve Favorite authorized me to provide that letter to the realtor, saying the county will replace the well.”

The committee approved the action with some suggestions on alternate solutions.

There is a budget line item of $12,300 for the well, but the cost could be higher, supervisors were told.

Supervisor Charles Rayala suggested Maney seek quotes from well drillers, while Supervisor Kathleen Rushlow suggested seeking approval from the Department of Natural Resources before extending the well.

Other action In other action, the committee re-elected Rayala as chairman and re-elected Supervisor Al Bauman as vice-chairman. New members elected by the county board at their organizational meeting were Rushlow, Chris Mayer and Ron DeBruyne.

The committee approved a resolution for county board action on culvert aid of $15,111 to the town of Plum Lake for a new culvert on Star Lake Road.

The panel discussed a fiveyear highway improvement plan with Mayer suggesting there was a need to have a schedule so “we don’t need maintenance at the same time.”

The committee also decided it will take a tour of the county highway system after final county board committee assignments are made.

Kevin FitzPatrick of Minocqua has announced his candidacy for the 34th Assembly District, running as an Independent.

“Many of my friends and supporters have told me that I should choose a political party to represent in this election, but I have found that to be a difficult choice in this current political climate,” said FitzPatrick.

FitzPatrick joins Republicans Rob Swearingen and Alex Young, both of Rhinelander, and Democrats Merlin Van Buren of Rhinelander and Roberta Retrum of Eagle River as candidates for the 34th seat.

He said the Republican Party has drifted too far to the right and the Democratic Party too far to the left, with neither party representing the majority of Wisconsinites.

“We are forced to vote against someone, rather than for someone. For this reason, I have decided to run as an Independent candidate,” he said. “I recognize that this will be a difficult endeavor, but I also realize that is the only way for me to remain true to my heart and to my convictions. This is the level of integrity that I will bring with me to Madison if elected this fall.”

FitzPatrick said that he and his wife have lived in northern Wisconsin since 1987 and have chosen this area to be the place to raise their three children.

“I have been fortunate enough to have been able to travel to many places in our great nation, and there is no place I would rather be than in the North Woods,” he said.

“This is also the place I hope to retire to when that time comes.”

FitzPatrick currently is a a teacher and coach at Lakeland Union High School.

“While I know that some will immediately hold that against me in our current

KEVIN FITZPATRICK

political climate, those who take the time to meet me and talk with me will find that I am honest, compassionate and open when it comes to issues that affect the 34th Assembly District constituency,” he said.

FitzPatrick said it is time for the people of Wisconsin to take back the state from those whose only concern seems to be making sure that their political party remains in power.

“Our history of progressivism and the ‘Wisconsin Idea’ is at stake,” he said. “We can restore Wisconsin to its place as one of the nation’s leaders in social and political reform. I believe it is possible to create jobs, protect workers’ rights and protect our environment. It will take a legislative branch and executive branch that are willing to work together to meet the needs of the people rather than their own political ideologies.”

The 34th Assembly District includes most of Vilas and Oneida counties, including the communities of Eagle River, Three Lakes, Rhinelander and Minocqua. The seat is currently held by state Rep. Dan Meyer (R-Eagle River), who announced his retirement earlier this year.

Seward to manage Main Street Program The Eagle River Revitalization Program (ERRP) recently announced the hiring of John Seward as its new executive director to manage Eagle River’s Main Street Program.

Seward originated from the small rural community of Fairmont, Neb. He has spent his career conducting research, assessing public policy and working to revitalize numerous downtowns.

He obtained a bachelor’s degree in communications studies from Nebraska Wesleyan University and is completing his masters in community and regional planning from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Seward served as a member of the Nebraska Army National Guard, conducted land-use policy research under the U.S. Department of Agriculture-National Research Initiative at the University of Nebraska, and worked with growth management issues at the Eastern Shore Land Conservancy in Maryland.

He’s been an active board member of the Haymarket Development Corp. in Lincoln, Neb., as well as the Cambridge, Md., Main Street Program. While in Cambridge, he worked to develop the residential Maple Street Program, created the Main Street Farmers Market and was part of the Economic Enhancement Committee.

Most recently, Seward coor-

dinated Main Street activities in South Dakota with Downtown Brookings Inc., Rapid City’s Main Street Square and the City of Huron.

“I look forward to working with Eagle River’s businesses, organizations and officials to continue the development of a vibrant downtown for locals and visitors alike,” said Seward. “We have the assets to create an amazing focal point in the community, a real destination, one that extends well beyond the tourist season.”

With the rush of the summer tourism season quickly approaching, ERRP will work with community partners to establish a plan for revitalization efforts in the downtown.

Recently, an incubator study was completed to assess the need for a business incubator that would cater to new or expanding businesses.

“In the next few weeks, John will be out visiting businesses and the community, gathering ideas on how we can revitalize Eagle River.” said Al Pittelko, president of the ERRP. “Please share your thoughts and ideas with John to help determine what our program should be concentrating on.”

The Eagle River Revitalization Program was founded in 1998. People can learn more about the program at eaglerivermainstreet.org.

VILAS COUNTY

NEWS-REVIEW

Tremblay’s REOPENING Sweet Shop, Inc. Monday, April 30 Hours 9 to 5 daily

715-479-8488 1-888-386-3302 WE SHIP

Downtown Eagle River, Wis. Hours: Daily 9 to 5

• Fudge • Cashew Turtles • Pecan Turtles • Hand-Dipped Candies • Cashew Brittle • Hard Candy & Saltwater Taffy

Published weekly by Eagle River Publications Inc. Eagle River, WI 54521 vcnewsreview.com Consolidation of the Vilas County News, the Eagle River Review and The Three Lakes News Publication #659480 Member of the Wisconsin Newspaper Association and the National Newspaper Association

Entered as periodical mail matter at the post office, Eagle River, WI 54521, under an act of March 3, 1879. Published every Wednesday. Subscription price for a year: Vilas and Oneida counties only, $50; rest of Wisconsin, $57; out of state, $68.

Mail subscription to Vilas County NewsReview, P.O. Box 1929, Eagle River, WI 54521. Payable in advance.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes, form 3579, to Vilas County News-Review, P.O. Box 1929, Eagle River, WI 54521, phone (715) 479-4421, fax (715) 479-6242.

4A

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

VILAS COUNTY NEWS-REVIEW/THE THREE LAKES NEWS

OBITUARIES LeRoy G. Campbell LeRoy G. Campbell, age 76, of Three Lakes, born to eternal life after a courageous battle on Thursday, March 1, 2012.

Preceded in death by his parents, Angeline Funke and Michael Skupien; son, Timothy in 1979; and wife, Louise, in 1994.

He is survived by brother, Danny Funke; stepdaughters, Barbara Vitrano and Kathleen (John) Antoni.

Loved by nine grandchildren and many great-grandchildren. Also survived by very special friend, Barbara

Ray Scholla

Friedli, other relatives and friends.

LeRoy was very proud to have served his country in the Marines.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, May 3, 2012, at St. Theresa Catholic Church in Three Lakes, Wis. Visitation will be for one hour prior to the service at the church.

Burial will follow in Three Lakes Cemetery.

Gaffney-Busha Funeral Home is serving the family.

PAID OBITUARY

6229

than 20 years caring for veterans, both entering the service and returning home.

Fred took pride in teaching physician assistants and other medical professionals. He also took pride in teaching his children a love for the environment, for caring for others, and for giving back to the community.

He was a consummate sportsman, enjoyed muskie fishing, partridge and pheasant hunting, and boating. He enjoyed music, especially greats like Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Louis Armstrong and Big Band.

He was a fellow of the American College of Cardiology, and a fellow of the American College of Physicians.

He was also an active member of the Elks in Marshfield, Wis. He is survived by his wife, Lila Fletcher; his three daughters, Luellen, Tracy and Leslie; and 12 grandchildren, Maya, Wilson, Leigh, Anne, Michael, Laura, Ellen, Kaye, Mathew, Drew, Tyler and Collin.

A visitation was held Thursday, April 19, 2012, at Gaffney-Busha Funeral Home from 3 to 5 p.m., with a service at 5 p.m. presided over by Episcopal Minister Father James Fosdick, with a repast for family and friends at Riverstone Restaurant in Eagle River.

For those wishing to commemorate his life, a memorial fund is being established for veterans. Donations to the fund can be directed to the family through GaffneyBusha Funeral Home.

The family would like to extend their appreciation to Dr. Lundberg, Dr. Norden, and all others of Saint Mary’s for their compassionate care, and to the nursing staff at Saint Mary’s for their friendship and kindness during Fred’s final days.

PAID OBITUARY

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Caroline R. Kelly Caroline R. Kelly, a lifelong resident of Eagle River, Wis., and New Port Richey, Fla., died Sunday, April 15, 2012, at Ministry Eagle River Memorial Hospital.

Caroline was born Sept.

15, 1921, in Eagle River.

On July 23, 1939, she and William “Bud” R. Kelly were married in Eagle River.

Caroline enjoyed cooking, gardening and was best known as an accomplished seamstress. For many years she operated a seamstress business out of a shop adjacent to Kelly’s Welding Service that was located on Range Line Road, east of Eagle River.

The Kellys retired to New Port Richey in the early 1980s. Caroline returned to Eagle River after her husband passed away in 1994.

She was preceded in death by her husband, William

“Bud” R. Kelly; a son, William “Bill” R. Kelly Jr., Oak Creek, Wis.; and a daughter, Kathleen (David) Herrmann, Medina, Ohio.

She is survived by a son, Orson (Eva) Kelly, Oswego, Ill.; daughter-in-law, Elaine (Bill) Kelly, Oak Creek, Wis.; son-in-law, David (Mary) Herrmann, Medina; and a sister, Marcella VandeStreek, Eagle River; six grandchildren, Tammy Kelly Gangwer, Enfield, Conn.; Chad Kelly, Joliet, Ill., Steve Kelly, Alexandria,Va., Debbie Kelly Jelinek, Burlington, Wis., Donald Herrmann, Weymouth, Ohio, and Kim Herrmann Besole, Medina; and eight great-grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held Saturday, May 5, at 2 p.m. at the Kingdom Hall of the Jehovah’s Witnesses in Eagle River.

PAID OBITUARY

6228

Debbie Kay Kroeger Debbie Kay Kroeger of Conover died Monday, April 16, 2012. She was 55.

Mrs. Kroeger was born December 13, 1956, to Alonzo "Nuck" and Arlene (nee Rumppe) Orethun.

Following gradation from Brookwood High School, she attended college and earned a master's degree in business administration.

She married Jeff Kroeger and they resided in Brice Prairie. She was employed at Gateway Transportation in Brice Prairie and Ashley Furniture in Arcadia.

The family later settled in Conover where she owned and operated MNL Resort and was employed at Ministry Health Care in Eagle River.

She was preceded in death by her father, Alonzo; and by her brother, Ricky.

A graveside memorial service will be held for Ray Scholla Saturday, April 28, 2012, at 1 p.m. at the St. Germain Cemetery.

Mr. Scholla, a resident of St. Germain since 1983, died

Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012, at Howard Young Medical Center in Woodruff.

A complete obituary ran in the Jan. 25, 2012, issue of the Vilas County NewsReview.

Les T. Steiner Les T. Steiner, a lifelong resident of Vilas County, died Saturday, April 14, 2012, at his home. He was 62.

Mr. Steiner was born May 11, 1949, in Madison, the son

of Willard and Mary Steiner.

Survivors include his sister, Wilma Winfield of Conover; and three nephews.

Gaffney-Busha Funeral Home is serving the family.

Rosemary A. Thurow

Fred W. Fletcher, M.D. Fred W. Fletcher, M.D., 80, passed away Monday, April 16, 2012, at Saint Mary’s Hospital in Rhinelander, Wis. He was born Feb. 6, 1932, in Delmar, Iowa, to Hugh E. Fletcher and Ellen Dawson.

He grew up in Delmar and later attended the University of Iowa for both his baccalaureate degree and medical school.

He married Lila Lee Loots in Berkeley, Calif., January 1957. They traveled to visit her father in Pittsburgh, Pa., where their first daughter, Luellen, was born.

He then served as a captain in the U.S. Army during peacetime after the Korean War (1957-1959), stationed in Germany.

After his honorable service, Fred returned to finish his residency for three years in Oakland, Calif., and continued as a cardiology fellow for two years at the University of Iowa.

His second daughter, Tracy, was born in Berkeley in 1961.

His third daughter, Leslie, was born in Iowa City, Iowa, in 1963. One infant son, Fred Hugh, died in 1960.

Throughout his life, Fred was a devoted husband and dedicated father who held his love for his family and country above all else.

He also held the medical profession in the highest regard and strove to always provide the best possible care for his patients.

He was well-known for his exemplary one-on-one patient care, and worked as a cardiologist until his retirement in 2010, always keeping up-todate on the latest techniques in his field.

He worked at Marshfield Clinic (1963-1976), Eagle River Memorial Hospital (19751983), Al Baha (American Medical International), Saudi Arabia (1983-1984), and finally at the VA Hospital in Tomah, Wis., where he spent more

REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS

Survivors include three sons, Matthew of Holtville, Calf., Nicholas of Waunakee and Lucas (Bubba) of Houghton, Mich.; her mother, Arlene of Ontario; three sisters, Cindy (Ray) Loendorf of Tomah, Tammy (Mark) Smith of Ontario and Penny (Jody) Harr of Sparta; and a sisterin-law, Alice (Jerry) Johnson of Tomah.

Online condolences may be made at torkelsonfuneralhome.com.

Available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Wisconsin’s North Woods… yours to enjoy.

Rosemary A. Thurow of Eagle River died Saturday, April 14, 2012, at her home.

She was 85.

Mrs. Thurow was born Sept. 25, 1926, in Milwaukee, the daughter of Nicholas and Viola (nee Andrzcjczak) Pavlak.

She was raised and attended schools in Milwaukee, then lived in Brookfield before moving to Eagle River in 1983.

Interested in nature, her hobbies included caring for birds and deer. She was a

member of St. Peter the Fisherman Catholic Church in Eagle River.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Joseph in 1996.

Survivors include two sisters, Delores Wall of Waupaca and Geraldine Hampton of Sturgeon Bay; and nieces and nephews.

A funeral service was held Tuesday, April 24, at St. Peter the Fisherman Catholic Church with the Rev. Robert Koszarek officiating. Burial was in Eagle River Cemetery.

Patricia McLellan Wykowski Patricia McLellan Wykowski of Eagle River, Wis., and Bradenton, Fla., passed away peacefully and fortified by the rites of the Church on April 12, 2012, in Bradenton.

Born on Nov. 2, 1930, in Three Lakes, Wis., she was the daughter of Frank and Gert (Peterson) McLellan.

Pat was preceded in death by her beloved husband of 49 years, Teddy Wykowski; her cherished son, Barry Wykowski; and her brother, F.J. (Bud) McLellan.

She is survived by her loving daughter, Bobbe (Steve) Hildebrand of Fond du Lac, Wis.; and her adoring grandchildren, Robert Hildebrand of Portland, Ore., Annie (Cory) Knill of Belleville, Mich.; Sarah Wykowski of San Francisco, Calif., and Nikki Wykowski of Chicago, Ill. She is further survived by her beloved brother and sisters, Kenneth (Helen) McLellan, Mary Lou Erickson, Tess

Danowski and Sara Apel. She also leaves behind sisters-inlaw, E. Jane Wykowski (Ron) Klein and Marge (Davies) Wykoski; and many dear nieces and nephews.

Pat worked for many years for the Three Lakes School District and in the family business, Eagle River Transfer Co. She lived her life with humor, courage and dignity.

An inspirational and wise woman, she will be greatly missed as she rests now in eternal peace.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at St. Theresa Catholic Church in Three Lakes at a later date. Expressions of sympathy may be made in her memory to the American Cancer Society or Gift of Life.

“Live your life to the fullest. And, when you need me, whisper my name in your heart… I will be there.”

PAID OBITUARY

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Joyce Zilis Joyce Zilis, age 72, a 20year resident of the Eagle River area and formerly of Chicago, Ill., died on Thursday, April 19, 2012, at her home.

She was born on July 25, 1939, in Chicago, Ill., to Zeril and Florence Rappaport.

Joyce worked as a schoolteacher for 20 years in the Chicago area.

She was an avid antique collector and artist.

Joyce was preceded in death by her husband, War-

ren.

She is survived by her sister, Davida Rappaport of Los Angeles, Calif.; brother-in-law, Weston Zilis of Land O’ Lakes, Wis.; cousin, Sheila (Charles) McCaghy of Watersmeet, Mich.; a niece, cousins, other family and many friends.

A private memorial will be held at a later date.

Arrangements by GaffneyBusha Funeral Home in Eagle River, Wis. PAID OBITUARY

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Government home loans available for rural areas The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development recently announced it still has home loans available to rural communities in Wisconsin with affordable monthly payments.

Rural Development offers 100% financing on home loans with no down payment required. The interest rate as of April 1 was 3.25%. Loans can be subsidized down to 1% and are offered for a period of 33 to 38 years.

Loans are available to anyone who meets the eligibility requirements. There are loan specialists available to assist with prequalifications.

The mission of USDA Rural Development is to deliver programs in a way that will support increasing economic opportunity and improve the quality of life of

rural residents.

For more information on Rural Development programs, visit a local USDA Rural Development office or the website at rurdev.us da.gov/wi.

ANTIQUES WANTED PAYING CASH FOR THE FOLLOWING: Crocks, jugs, earthenware bowls & pitchers; art pottery, Roseville, Hull, etc.; cookie jars; hand-decorated china; glassware before WWII; patchwork quilts & fancywork; Oriental rugs; picture frames; clocks, watches & fobs; jewelry; oil lamps; elec. lamps w/glass shades; old advertising items, signs, posters, containers, boxes, mixing bowls, etc., especially from Eagle River; coin-operated machines, slots, peanut, etc.; shotguns, rifles & handguns; hunting knives; wooden duck & fish decoys; old tackle boxes & lures; rods, reels & creels; glass minnow traps; old tools; toys of all kinds, trains, trucks, tractors, tin wind-ups, games, dolls, etc.; enamelware, especially bright colors; old photos of interiors & outdoor activities; all magazines before WWII; postcards (pre-1920); coin & stamp collections; old wood carvings of animals, etc. Check with me before you sell.

The real estate transactions listed below are being published at the request of many of our readers. The information is public record and reflects an index of each week’s transactions.

Property transactions exceeding $10,000 recorded at the Vilas County Courthouse the past week and the transfer fee: April 16, 2012 Daniel K. Ballard et al and Laurie S. Potts et al to David M. Cannon and wife, prt NW SE in 30-40-10, gov lot 7, $696 Estate of Vance Keppler Vorhees to Big Sand Lake #3 LLC, lot 3 of plat 742 in Big Sand Lake Chalet Condo, $699 Jon M. Strom to Richard A. Reinke et al, prt NW SW in 14-40-8, gov lot 4, $720 Maria Orysia Romanenko to James M. Gibbons and wife, lot 7 of plat 374 in White Feather Woods, prt SW NE in 33-41-5, gov lot 3, $630 David J. Locknane and wife to Charles J. Bernhard and wife, prt NE NE in 24-406, $330 James R. Czech and wife to Denice M. Snyder, prt SW NE in 11-43-7, gov lot 3, prt NE SW in 11-43-7, gov lot 5, $165 Fritz Family Trust and Kathryn J. Refsell Trustee et al to Claude L. A. Munier, prt NW SE in 22-42-5, gov lot 6, prt SE SE in 22-42-5, gov lot 7, $1,050 April 17, 2012 James Gother to Dennis Gother, prt NE NW in 12-4010, gov lot 3, $63 Craig V. Feller et al and Cheryl L. Cartier et al to Michael J. Crawley and wife, prt SW SW, prt SE SW, prt NE SW, prt NW SW in 18-43-

6, $1,020 Pers. Rep. Cynthia M. Thomas and Estate of Alan F. Blask to Megan M. Rippel, lots 1 and 2 of block 2 of plat 414 in Tambling’s Addn., $180 April 18, 2012 Mom Haven 6 LP to Wayne K. Hintz and wife, prt NW NE in 2-41-11, gov lot 4, $30 D.C. Baseman Trust et al and Yonally Revocable Living Trust et al to Klessig & Whitney LLC, prt NW NW in 3440-10, $660 Jeffrey P. Sundberg and wife to Jay Jackley, prt NW NE in 26-43-7, gov lot 1, prt SW NE in 26-43-7, $49.50 Leon R. Petzke to Louis R. Uhrmann and wife, prt SE NE in 24-40-6, $51 April 19, 2012 Michael G. Wilton and wife to Adam R. Fahl and wife, prt SE NW in 16-42-11, gov lot 2, prt NE SW in 16-42-11, $465 April 20, 2012 Robert A. DeCleene and wife to Martin P. Robbins and wife, lot 316 of plat 900 in Cranberry Estates Condominium, $299.70 Raymond A. Bowman and wife et al to D. Scott Marston and wife, prt SW NE in 1143-7, gov lot 3, prt SE NE, prt NE SE in 11-43-7, prt NE SW, prt NW SW, prt NW SE in 1243-7, $480 Wayne G. Amborn and wife to Terry A. Krajcik and spouse, prt SW NW in 31-4011, gov lot 3, prt NW NW in 31-40-11, gov lot 4, $165 First National Bank of Eagle RIver to Cynthia J. Oliver, lots 7 and 8 of block 4 of plat 411 in Perry’s CL 3rd Addn., $75 Silverfox LLC to Todd J. Geurts and wife, prt NW NE in 6-42-10, $150

PUBLIC MEETINGS Town of Washington Board of Supervisors — Wednesday, April 25, 4:30 p.m., town hall. Agenda: Opening of bid proposals for town roads 2012.

Vilas County-Tribal Concerns Committee — Thursday, April 26, 9 a.m., William Wildcat Tribal Center. Agenda: Updates and

resolution regarding “Parents Who Host Lose the Most” program.

Eagle River Plan Commission Public Hearing — Thursday, April 26, 6 p.m., city hall. Agenda: Public hearing on the proposed amendments of the project plans for tax increment districts No. 2 and No. 3.

Cleary records milestone with 87,000th building sold Cleary Building Corp. has announced the sale of its 87,000th building, according to company officials in Verona.

The building was sold March 21 by Dan Berdahl, building sales specialist at the Dell Rapids, S.D., branch office, to Prentice Plucker of Chancellor, S.D. “With 87,000 buildings sold, Cleary Building Corp. has not lost sight of the customer service and quality craftsmanship that has been the threshold of their success,” said company spokeswoman Amy Mueller. “Each building has been unique in its own right, customized to the clients’ needs with 22 colors of steel to choose from and endless design possibilities.”

Mueller said local sales specialists are present from the beginning of the building project through the construction of each building.

“Every Cleary building is built with pride before the shamrock is applied,” said Mueller.

Cleary Building Corp. is a family-owned company, in business since 1978. The corporate office and manufacturing plant are located in Verona. Additional manufacturing facilities are located in Grand Island, Neb., and Hazelton, Idaho. Cleary Building Corp. employs more than 800 full-time employees throughout the United States at its 80 offices, including one in Woodruff.

Gaffney-Busha Funeral Home Alpha Crematory & Chapel Tom & Joe Busha, Barry Wallis, Funeral Directors www.gaffney-busha.com 715-479-4777 Locally owned and operated since 1908

VILAS COUNTY’S ONLY CREMATORY Traditional Services • Prearrangements • Cremation • Monuments

Call Jim at (715) 479-1459 4946

715-479-3901

VILAS COUNTY NEWS-REVIEW/THE THREE LAKES NEWS

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

NEWS

POLICE REPORT

Jones joins mapping department Barb Gibson, Vilas County geographic information system coordinator/land information officer, announced the hiring of Tony Jones as parcel mapping/survey specialist.

“Tony has been with us in this position as an limitedtime employee for the last two months and we are very pleased to announce his fulltime appointment to the position,” said Gibson.

Jones graduated from UWEau Claire with a bachelor of science degree in geology and from Nicolet College with an associate degree in land surveying technology. He has been a registered land surveyor in Wisconsin since 2000.

His past experience includes two years as a parcel mapping technician for Oneida County and also has worked with two engineering firms, acquiring knowledge in land surveying and mapping, with conventional and global positioning system survey equipment, software and procedures.

“With this experience, Tony has fit seamlessly into the Vilas County position

Tony Jones has been hired as the new parcel mapping/survey specialist for the Vilas County Land Information/Mapping Department.

—Contributed Photo

with regard to understanding and using ArcMap 10, Vilas County’s mapping software,

along with deeds, tax listings and survey maps,” said Gibson.

In 2012, Jones, an active member of the Wisconsin Society of Land Surveyors (WSLS), accepted the post of representative of the Northern Lakes Chapter to the WSLS board of directors. He will serve in that capacity for two years.

“I look forward to a long and productive career with the Vilas County Land Information/Mapping Department,” said Jones. “I very much enjoy the people I work with and the prospect of providing accurate maps and map information for Vilas County.”

When he’s not mapping, Jones enjoys spending time with his family, home brewing and acting in performances with the Nicolet Players at Nicolet College.

Jones and Gibson can be reached at the Vilas County Land Information/Mapping Department at (715) 479-3655 or at the courthouse, located at 330 Court St. in Eagle River.

Public access to the Vilas County online map portal is at vcgis.co.vilas.wi.us.

Vilas County Court report

Minnesota man must repay ERRA for converting funds for insurance A 65-year-old Cloquet, Minn., man entered a plea of no contest to a charge of theft from a business setting and reached a deferred entry of judgment (DEJ) agreement in Vilas County Circuit Court last week.

Robert G. Pavaltos, the owner of All Sports Insurance, misappropriated $20,100 paid to him by the Eagle River Recreation Association (ERRA) for insurance products.

According to the DEJ, onehalf of Pavaltos’ $2,500 cash bond must be forwarded to the district attorney’s office for restitution, and the other one-half will be returned.

Other conditions of the DEJ include: commit no crimes, pay restitution in the amount of $20,100 to the Vilas County District Attorney’s trust account at the rate of $300 per month until the sum is paid, and an apology letter to the ERRA within 60 days.

Vilas Circuit Judge Neal A. Nielsen III said failure to pay the restitution will be considered a violation of the agreement. Judge Nielsen said if Pavaltos pays the restitution in full, the felony charge will be dismissed with no further court appearances necessary.

Theft in a business setting of more than $10,000 is a Class G felony and carries a penalty of not more than $10,000 or 10 years in prison or both.

Acccording to the complaint, the ERRA sought prop-

erty, liability, and boiler and machinery insurance from All Sports Insurance in October 2008 and sent Pavaltos two checks totaling $20,100 on Oct. 24, 2008. He cashed the checks but did not renew insurance policies with the proper insurance companies.

The ERRA received notice in January of 2009 that Pavaltos had not renewed the proposed insurance policies, and the ERRA had to obtain coverage from another company.

In other felony cases, Brian C. Thomas, 23, of Eagle River, entered a plea of no contest and was found guilty of operating a snowmobile without the owner’s consent.

Judge Nielsen withheld Thomas’ sentence, and he was placed on probation for three years with the following conditions: pay restitution, complete a cognitive thinking evaluation, and six months of jail time consecutive to his current sentence being served in the Dodge Correctional facility. He received credit for 81 days served.

A second charge of operating a snowmobile without the owner’s consent was dismissed.

According to the criminal complaint, Thomas and Justin Church, 22, of Eagle River, took one snowmobile from a motel and one from a pawn shop, both on Highway 70 West sometime between Jan. 21 and 22. One sled was sunk in the Eagle River near

Clinic adds Saturday hours Expanded access to medical coverage will be available to residents of Forest County and the surrounding area through a collaboration between Aspirus Clinics and the Forest County Potawatomi (FCP) Health & Wellness Center.

Beginning Saturday, May 5, a walk-in clinic for nonemergency medical care will be offered Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Health & Wellness Center.

“We’re excited to make people’s lives in our community a little easier,” said Linda Helmick, FCP Health & Wellness Administrator. “Our main goals are to provide access to care for people who need it without having to travel a long distance to receive that

care and to help people avoid having to spend money on unnecessary medical expenses at an emergency room.”

The weekend clinic will offer treatment for basic ailments of a nonemergency nature and medications will be available on a limited basis. Most insurance is accepted, including Medicare and Medical Assistance, but those planning to seek services are asked to check with their insurance company about coverage.

The Health & Wellness Center is located at 8201 Mish ko swen Drive, three miles east of Crandon off Highway 8.

For more information, contact (715) 478-4300 or FCPotawatomi.com.

Riverview Park, and the other sled was recovered Jan. 25 abandoned on a snowmobile trail along Highway 70 West.

Church was sentenced April 9.

Kimberly L. Reid, 29, of Lac du Flambeau, charged with possession of narcotic drugs, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernelia, made an initital appearance last week, and a pretrial conference was set for May 22 at 10 a.m.

A condition of Reid’s $5,000 signature bond was modified, allowing her to travel beyond Vilas, Oneida and Ashland counties. She also is not to possess prescription medications unless prescribed and in amounts prescribed.

According to the criminal complaint, Reid was arrested March 28 in Lac du Flambeau for allegedly possessing Oxycodone without a valid prescription. An informant had told law enforcement officers that she was traveling en route to or returning from Milwaukee with pharmaceutical drugs.

While one officer was walking back to his squad car, a second officer on the passenger side of Reid’s vehicle observed her look in her ash tray and close it. The officer said he then saw her place something down her pants.

After she was arrested, Reid admitted to stuffing a smoke pipe, pink straw with white residue and a bag with a leafy substance in it down her pants. She also admitted to stuffing a small bag with 11 Oxycodone pills in a body cavity.

Officers said that two young children in the vehicle were picked up by Reid’s mother following her arrest.

Jennifer K. Heiting, 26, of St. Germain, entered a nocontest plea to a charge of delivery of Schedule II narcotics and was found guilty. A 24-month deferred entry of judgment (DEJ) was approved with conditions. The

conditions of the DEJ include: commit no crimes; alcohol and other drug abuse counseling and successfully complete it; must complete current probation out of Oneida County; and do not possess any prescription medications with a valid prescription. Judge Nielsen said if Heiting completes the contidions of the DEJ in two years, the charge will be dismissed.

A second charge of delivery of Schedule II narcotics was dismissed. According to the complaint, Heiting sold 51⁄2 Suboxone pills for $98 in a controlled purchase at a St. Germain gas station Oct. 1, 2008.

Gayle A. Allen, 52, and Kristin L. Allen, 31, both of Lac du Flambeau, appeared in Vilas County Circuit Court last week for a status hearing.

Both were charged Aug. 29, 2011, with premature disclosure of a search warrant, party to a crime. The court was told additional information was coming that would resolve the case for Gayle Allen. District Attorney Albert Moustakis told the court he had reached a DEJ with Kristin Allen, stating that she refrain from any conduct which would constitute a violation of a criminal law and that she seve 10 hours of community service.

Shasta Star Klingman, 35, of Watersmeet, Mich., charged with substantial battery, party to a crime, appeared for a motion hearing at which her attorney asked the case be dismissed based on the state refusing to provide footage from three surveillance cameras at 1938 North bar in Land O’ Lakes. Klingman is alleged to have slapped and kicked another woman at the bar Dec. 5, 2010.

The owner of the bar said three cameras were located on the premises depicting difference views of the alleged incident. Judge Nielsen issued no sanctions at this time.

Vilas County Sheriff A total of 245 complaints were entered by Vilas County Sheriff ’s Department dispatchers last week.

In addition to those with sufficient detail to report below, a review shows at least four vehicle-deer accidents, one report of an abandoned vehicle, three requests for agency assistance, three ambulance requests, three reports of animal problems, three burglarys, three burglar alarms, six requests for citizen assistance, two reports of criminal damage to property, three disturbances, two reports of domestic violence, one fireworks complaint, one report of found property, one report of fraud, two reports of harassment, one report of hazardous conditions, one hit and run, one report of a missing person, one report of lost property, six reports of suspicious circumstances, three thefts, one report of threats, two traffic violations, one report of trespassing, four vacation checks, two weapons offenses, six welfare checks, eight 911 hang-ups, one report of dumping, two reports of drug problems, two drive offs and one report of identity theft.

At least 19 calls were referred to the Eagle River Police Department and there were at least 17 informational or procedural entries.

In the past week, at least 22 people were booked at the Vilas County Jail, including one for failure to appear, five for probation violations, one for bail jumping, operating after revocation, one for battery, three for disorderly conduct, one for resisting or

obstructing an officer, one for burglary, one for possession of THC, one for theft and one for carrying a concealed weapon.

During the week, the inmate population ranged from 57 to 65. As of April 23, there were 65 inmates.

Eagle River Police Among the calls received

by Vilas County dispatchers were at least 31 calls for the Eagle River Police Department. These included one hit and run, one vehicle accident, one request for agency assistance, one burglar alarm, one ambulance request, one report of stabbing, one burglary, five requests for citizen assistance, one report of criminal damage to property, one disturbance, two reports of domestic violence, two reports of found property, one drive off, one juvenile problem, one lifeline alarm, three reports of suspicious circumstances, one theft, one report of shoplifting, one report of hazardous conditions, one traffic violation and one report of trespassing.

Three Lakes Police This department reported one vehicle accident, seven ambulance requests, one animal problem, one request for citizen assistance, one request for agency assistance, one burglary, one fireworks complaint, one report of hazardous conditions, one welfare check, one report of identity fraud, one juvenile problem, one report of found property, one report of reckless driving, one juvenile problem, one report of suspicious circumstances, seven traffic violations and one report of trespassing.

Storm spotter class scheduled Area county emergency management departments and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will sponsor a storm spotter class Thursday, May 3, from 6 to 9:30 p.m. at Nicolet College in Rhinelander.

The class will be held in the Northwoods Center

building, in rooms 207, 208 and 209 on the second floor.

Attendees will learn about cloud formations, severe thunderstorms, tornadoes and flash floods. There is no charge for the class.

To register, contact the Oneida County Emergency Management Department at (715) 361-5167.

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NOTICE Notice is hereby given that the official public test of the automatic tabulating equipment to be used at the MAY 8, 2012 ELECTION in the city of Eagle River will be conducted at City Hall, 525 E. Maple Street, Eagle River, Wis., AT 1:30 P.M. ON FRIDAY, APRIL 27, 2012.

Debra A. Brown, WCMC/CMC/CMTW 905 Clerk-Treasurer

EAGLE RIVER AREA NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER

THURSDAY, MAY 3, 2012

REQUEST FOR BIDS

61ST Annual Observance

TOWN OF CLOVERLAND The Cloverland Town Board is requesting bids for the following roadwork: 1. Chip and seal 2.6 miles. Bid to include use of both 3/8" cover aggregate and 3/8" cover slag.

2. Crack sealing 1.43 miles Contact Chairman Scott Maciosek at (715) 479-3408 for further details and to see roads to be included in bid. Bids to be mailed to Scott Maciosek at 7085 Old Hwy. 70, St. Germain, WI 54558, or dropped at the town hall. Bids must be received prior to the 7:00 p.m. board meeting on Wednesday, May 2, 2012.

1122

Millie Ritzer, Clerk

5A

Thursday, May 3 ~ Noon to 1 p.m.

Brush cleanup Tree cleanup Rototilling Leaves blown Small quantities sand, gravel, dirt delivered

Lincoln Town Hall, 1205 Sundstein Rd., Eagle River For information, call John Bonson (715) 891-2123

6A

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

VILAS COUNTY NEWS-REVIEW/THE THREE LAKES NEWS

NEWS Three Lakes Board report:

Town officials review plans for Rice Lake Road project Three Lakes officials reviewed plans for Rice Lake Road improvements during last week’s town board meeting, prompting Chairman Don Sidlowski to call the project a good example of cooperation with the Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

The town was recently awarded $90,000 for repairs from the DNR on the condition it come up with 10% of the contribution to carry out the project, or $9,000.

The east-west portion of Rice Lake Road east of Highway 45 North leads to the 3,000-acre Thunder Lake Wildlife Area and is the only access to a town-owned boat launch on Rice Lake.

The town proposed spending $91,400 for road widening and gravel and adding fill and gravel to low areas as needed to use the entire $99,000.

Officials expressed eagerness to begin improvements on the town road, which has

launch.

The town used uncommitted monies budgeted for 2012 road construction projects to fulfill its part of the agreement with the DNR. In other action the town board: — approved an addendum to the Townline Lake boat landing bid packet, which opened April 19; — approved the Three Lakes Volunteer Fire Department quarterly financial report and request to adjust equipment replenishment fund contribution; — heard the Park Commission’s quarterly financial report; — approved a Plan Commission recommendation for installation of plumbing across a platted road with a septic force main to drain at 7767 Four Mile Creek Road; — granted permits for amplifying devices and a temporary banner for the July 20-21 Heritage Festival; and — appointed two Plan commissioners.

Three Lakes School Board views technology presentation ___________

BY C.M. SCHMIDLKOFER NEWS CORRESPONDENT

___________

present, along with U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy.

Keynote speakers will include Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen and radio talk show host Jerry Bader.

The menu will include stuffed chicken breast, roast beef, au gratin potatoes, green beans with almonds, fruit, salad, rolls and butter, dessert, coffee and tea. There will be a cash bar. The cost is $30 per perosn.

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It is believed that the future of computer interaction will consist solely of bodily movements in front of a sensor, be it in a computer or cellphones, according to Brown.

Instead of physically touching a screen or typing on a keyboard, users will wave their hands or fingers in front of the screen to carry out a myriad of commands.

Brown said the school district is investigating using similar devices to the Kinect in the computer science class to expand interest and push the boundaries of what is done in high school classrooms.

In other action, the board: — read a statement of the Board of Canvassers and Certificate of Election; — witnessed school board Vice President Mike Kwaterski and Clerk Tom Rulseh take the oath of office; — the approved noncapital objects budget proposal; — approved the recognition of service and retirement report, the graduation/awards update and the winter sports report; — approved the 4-year-old kindergarten curriculum; — approved the hire of Tyler Christensen as head track coach for school year 2011-’12 and Nicole Senter as drama coach for school year 2012-’13.

The Republican Party of Oneida County will host the 2012 Lincoln/Reagan Day Dinner Saturday, May 5, at Reulands Conference Center, located at 630 Chippewa St. in Minocqua.

Guest registration will begin at 5 p.m. with dinner to follow at 6 p.m.

Attendees can meet the Republican U.S. Senate candidates. Speakers will include Mark Neumann, Eric Hovde, Jeff Fitzgerald and Kip Smith.

State Reps. Tom Tiffany (35th District) and Dan Meyer (34th District) also will be

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were throwing a ball.

Brown said that Scratch, as a visual programming language, is appealing to younger students because, instead of typing in codes, there is a visual on the screen that allows users to see what’s being created.

It consists of a block portion with the commands, a design portion where connections form between inputs and outputs and the visual component of what is seen on the screen.

“Kids don’t have to physically type in their inputs or outputs or syntax errors,” said Brown. “It all goes up in Windows in a nice visual format. It allows you to upload projects to the Web and remix things.”

The visuals eliminate the need for plotting on graphs and the added aspect of point of space makes it easier for a sixth-grader to learn computer science, according to Brown.

“We want to utilize the Kinect for future projects in the school and also as a recruiting technique,” he said.

The ease of use and visual component means that middle school students can learn to create computer programs, something Brown is keen on bringing to the district’s middle schools with the assistance of computer science teacher Brad Volkmann.

Oneida Republicans to host Lincoln/Reagan Day Dinner

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Three Lakes School Board officials had the opportunity to see new technology in action at last week’s regular meeting.

High school senior Charlie Starke and prekindergarten through sixth grade Dean of Students and Director of Technology Kristoffer Brown conducted a PowerPoint presentation demonstrating how new technology works and the potential it holds for introducing and educating students at middle school grade levels in computer science.

“I’m a firm believer that computer science is the future core subject,” said Brown, who added that the field will become as vital to education as math, reading and writing in the near future.

“Computer science is not just about creating machines to help people do things better,” he said. “In my opinion, how to control and manipulate machines is the future.”

Brown said he’d like to see students as young as sixthgraders create and control robots as class projects.

To demonstrate how technology has advanced in recent years, Starke presented a game program he creat-

ed for a computer science class project to the board.

Starke used Kinect, a new gaming system created by Microsoft, and Scratch, an MIT Media Lab visual programming software targeted toward middle school students.

He then put together the PowerPoint presentation outlining details of the products and demonstrating a computer game he built upon a former student’s project using the technology.

Scratch, Starke explained, identifies input from the Kinect sensor, to follow a subject’s body movements and display them as a graphic on the computer screen.

“It allows physical interaction kind of like the [Nintendo] Wii, but instead of using controllers, it reads your body,” Starke said of the sensor.

Kinect also can register depth of field, although Starke’s project did not use a sensor with depth for his project.

“The depth of field is a significant development,” he said. “It has really done a lot to revolutionize the computer industry.”

Starke provided a demonstration of playing his game — dodgeball — by standing in front of the Kinect sensor and moving his body as if he

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT — Carl Ruedebusch, left, a part-time resident of Vilas County, presents Vilas County Economic Development Corp. Treasurer Barry McLeane with a $5,000 contribution to help further the activities of the organization. The corporation is preparing to open its first new business incubator this summer.

—Contributed Photo

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___________

widened to 16 feet, costing an estimated $62,400 including gravel.

A 14-foot-wide egress from the junction to Rice Lake also will receive an 8-inch application of gravel, creating a safe area for motorists to use with boat trailers, according to town board officials. This portion of the project will cost approximately $18,000.

“The DNR was very keen on rebuilding that part of the road,” said town shop foreman Tim Rutzen, who added that the work will be contracted out and the advertising for bids is expected to appear in local newspapers April 25 and May 2.

Sidlowski had requested $514,372 from the DNR for improvements which would have included a lift of the lowland marsh road by fabric, breaker run rock and gravel.

But the $90,000 granted by the DNR will nonetheless enable the town to open up the longer stretch of Rice Lake Road, granting access to the wildlife area and boat

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been closed due to disrepair stemming in part from severe damage in the wet summer of 2010.

Construction is slated to begin in May, but there are concerns the existing gravel roads may not withstand the weight of the trucks due to the unusually warm temperatures making the roads soft.

In that case, work will begin in November.

An approximate one-andone-half-mile stretch of the gravel road will be improved, according to Sidlowski, going from the highway to a planned gate at Thunder Ditch Road.

“We really need a gate on Thunder Ditch Road to close off that access,” said Sidlowski.

Four inches of gravel will be applied to Rice Lake Road from the highway to a gate approximately 500 yards away. It is expected this portion of the project will cost $11,000.

From there, 8 inches of gravel will be applied all the way to Thunder Ditch Road.

The entire road will be

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___________

BY C.M. SCHMIDLKOFER

715-369-3430 Rhinelander, Wis.

New law approved regulating UTVs A new Wisconsin law providing for permanent registration and updated regulation of utility terrain vehicles (UTV) will go into effect July 1, 2012.

The law has grown from UTV pilot programs the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) conducted over the last several years.

Any UTVs registered during the pilot program will continue to be registered with the previously assigned registration identification number and registration period.

The department will provide more detailed information to the public in the future through their website, press releases and informational pamphlets.

UTV means a motor-driven device that is not a golf cart, low-speed vehicle, dune buggy, mini-truck, or tracked vehicle that is designed to be used primarily off highway, and originally manufactured and equipped with all of the following: — a net weight of less than 2,000 pounds; — a cargo box installed by the manufacturer; — a steering wheel; — a taillight; — a brake light;

— two headlights; — a width of not more than 65 inches; — seats for at least two occupants on nonstraddled seats; — seat belts; and — roll bar or similar device designed to reduce the likelihood that an occupant would be crushed as the result of a rollover.

Other major rule changes include: • UTVs will follow nearly all the all-terrain vehicle (ATV) laws, except where specifically referenced.

• UTVs will have a specific UTV decal.

• UTV registration categories will be the same as ATVs (agriculture, private or

public).

• UTV operators at least age 16 and those born on or after Jan. 1, 1988, must be a graduate of an approved ATV safety certification course to operate in areas open to the public.

• There will be the creation of a new non-resident UTV trail pass.

• There will be new $20 five-day ATV and UTV nonresident trail passes.

• Effective July 1, 2012, a new $5 late registration renewal fee will be assessed for customers renewing their registration after the expiration date.

• UTVs will follow all ATV snow-removal laws.

• UTV-generated funding

will be used for UTV trails.

• UTV passengers are only allowed in seats that the UTV was originally manufactured with, meaning riding in the bed or cargo box of a UTV will be illegal.

ATVs and UTVs are now required to display a rear license plate, in addition to the side decals. The plate can be created or purchased by the registered owner. Plate specifications are 4 inches high by 71⁄2 inches wide, white in color with black lettering.

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WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

7A

VILAS COUNTY NEWS-REVIEW/THE THREE LAKES NEWS

OUTDOORS The crappie is a favorite fish of many EVERY angler has a favorite fish to chase and, if I had to narrow it down to just one, I’d say the crappie would be king on my list.

It’s a hard choice, you know, because those great-eating walleyes are always a challenging foe and the northern pike may be the all-around best-tasting fish in Wisconsin.

I do love catching and eating trout of all kinds, especially native brookies from national forest streams and stocked browns from high-quality lakes in Vilas County. In fact, I can see them frying in the pan right now, heads and all.

Perch are sort of a seafoodstyle delicacy and bluegills have a flavor all their own, especially when scaled and fried whole until the skins are crispy brown.

There’s something about frying bluegills with the bones in that gives them a unique flavor.

Oh, I’m hungry now.

I fish for bass and muskies, but because they fall into the catchand-release category most of the time, they don’t appeal as much to me. Yes, most of my fishing centers around the next fish fry with family and friends.

Despite all that, the crappie has emerged in my fishing expeditions as the go-to fish. Whether it’s fishing bobbers, jigging tubes or casting small baits, the panfish action is really hard to beat.

You can chase crappies the year around, and they are just as fun to catch in winter as they are in open water.

What never changes with a crappie is the way they hit and the way they take down a bobber — hitting aggressively but moving on very slowly.

What that creates is a bobber that sinks slowly or not at all, sometimes just moving left or

In the Outdoors By Kurt Krueger right as the crappie swims horizontally.

Except for being fooled from time to time by a rock bass, you can tell a crappie bite by how slowly the bobber sinks. There are exceptions, of course, especially if they are being chased by a predating muskie or northern pike.

In the fish fry category, no panfish adds up faster than the crappie. Those thick slabs can fill a bag in no time, much different than most of the perch and bluegills we find in the North Woods.

As an example, last week I was looking for crappies at the mouth of a shallow, stump-filled bay. I was hoping to find a school that was making one of those prespawn feeding runs into the shallows, most likely chasing minnows that were headed for warmer water.

The crappies were not in the bay, but my depth finder showed some strange marks out in 9 feet of water — just off the first decent break. I tossed out a couple of bobbers that suspended minnows on gold hooks, setting them about 3 or 4 feet down.

Wouldn’t you know it, those marks were monster crappies. For about 20 minutes, I had bobbers going down so fast that I couldn’t keep up. Several of the fish measured 14 inches, and all of them were 11 inches or better.

And then, just like that, there they were — gone.

Those are the fishing moments

we anglers live to experience. You just never know when you’re going to stumble into a jackpot of fish that are feeding with reckless abandon.

The other thing I can say for the crappie is that no panfish offers a cleaner fillet, free from parasites like the black spots that bluegills often harbor or the yellow grub-like larvae that are often in perch fillets. Those two parasites aren’t harmful to humans, but they aren’t very appealing despite those encouraging words — “just a little extra protein.”

I’m not sure what the scientific reason is for that, but my guess would be that crappies suspend off the bottom most of the time.

They are a very nomadic fish and they certainly don’t seem to spend a lot of time laying on mudflats.

Crappies are an interesting fish because they can show up just about anywhere. I’ve caught them in water that was so shallow the boat was hardly floating, on a deep crib in 24 feet of water, and everywhere in between.

They sure do love wood, sticks and brushy vegetation this time of year. Then after the spawn, they seem to hang out more in deeper weeds and wood, especially cribs. Minnows are my preferred bait in the early season, and plastic works well after the spawn when they feed more aggressively.

Crappies love a slow-moving bait, so reeling something back at a slow pace often triggers a strike. That also makes drift fishing very productive. There’s usually no such thing as one crappie, so finding one often leads to great fishing action.

Time to go crappie fishing, something you could do every day of the year. There’s never a closed season.

Spring crappies are both a treat to catch and eat, whether in the deepfrier or the frying pan. The season never closes. —Photo By The Author

Chequamegon-Nicolet approves ruffed grouse habitat projects ___________

Fishing with the Guides

By George Langley

BY GARY RIDDERBUSCH NEWS-REVIEW EDITOR

Inconsistent weather tough on spring anglers

___________

The Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest has approved a 6,200-acre habitat improvement project for 12 ruffed grouse management areas on the forest, with timber harvest expected to start next month.

The project will include the McDonald and Scott Creek ruffed grouse management areas in the Eagle River-Florence Ranger District, as well as the Bushaefer, Binder Lake, McCaslin and Lafave areas in the Lakewood-Laona Ranger District.

Forest Supervisor Paul Strong said the project will provide up to 6,200 acres of young forest and shrub habitat, maintain 145 acres of upland wildlife openings and improve streamside conditions on 350 acres bordering trout streams and scenic rivers.

“The majority of these improvements will be through timber harvest,” said Strong in approving the decision last month.

Strong indicated that young stages of early successional habitat provide habitat to a range of game and non-game wildlife species alike, including ruffed grouse, American woodcock and golden winged warbler.

He said both the 1986 Forest Plan and its 2004 revision recognized the importance of early successional habitat.

The Forest Service then partnered with the Ruffed Grouse Society to create and improve early successional habitat in more than 14 areas.

“However, after the initial establishment and treatment in these areas, little action has been taken to maintain age diversity over the last decade,” said Strong. “Since initial actions, species such as golden winged warbler, American woodcock and, to a lesser degree, ruffed grouse populations began a decline across their ranges, attributable to large-scale loss of early successional habitat.”

Strong said age diversity is a key to quality habitat.

“Currently, a number of early successional habitat species are dominated by

A dozen grouse management areas in the national forest will see vegetation management

stands too old to maintain this diverse matrix,” said Stong.

Other projects in decision include the Blockhouse, Squaw Creek and Wilson areas in the Medford-Park Falls Ranger District, and the Ding Dong, Halfway and Little Moose areas in the Great Divide Ranger District. The 12 ruffed grouse management areas comprise a total of about 31,000 acres, meaning the project will be on about 20% of the areas.

Forest wildlife biologist Dean Eklund, in the project proposal, said the ruffed grouse management areas are dominated by aspen, birch, jack pine and balsam fir on the uplands and are interspersed with scattered openings.

He said studies of grouse and woodcock have shown that optimal habitat use and effective connections be -

to increase young forest habitat under a recent Forest Service decision.

—STAFF PHOTO

tween communities of difference age classes occurs as habitat components near 10 acres in average patch size.

“The project will focus on restoring a mix of habitat conditions to ensure thrifty, vigorous and productive communities of trees, shrubs and openings conducive to highquality habitat for ruffed grouse, American woodcock, golden winged warbler and other associated plants and animals,” said Eklund.

The project will include: • About 5,585 acres of early successional forest communities will be regenerated by timber harvest through clearcut or shelterwood harvest methods.

• About 300 acres of tag alder shrub communities will be regenerated through shearing and cutting to provide various age classes of shrub habitat for nesting,

brood rearing, feeding and migration.

• About 145 acres of existing upland openings will be maintained through mowing, brushing and prescribed fire for mating display, brood rearing and feeding areas.

• About 300 acres of aspen stands will be converted to another community type when adjacent to cold-water fisheries in order to meet forest plan direction to minimize impacts from beaver on cold-water stream habitat.

• About 40 acres of aspen stands will be converted to another early successional community type when in recreational or scenic river corridor in order to meet forest plan direction to maintain scenic integrity.

Strong approved the habitat improvement project March 2 and implementation is expected to start in May.

What a completely off-center spring the North Woods is having. With the early ice-out, the patterns are totally out of whack and unpredictable, especially when it comes to spawning.

We think that all the perch have spawned, but we are still getting anglers in who are catching perch with spawn still in them. We think that all or most of the walleyes have spawned, but are not sure because a few are still being caught by perch and crappie anglers with spawn in them.

With the weather providing a cold front at least once a week, we just can’t seem to pin things down as far as looking ahead to the opener.

Water temperatures are in the 50-degree range on most lakes and will warm a little this week as it warms up. Our biggest need at this point is some consistent weather. We don’t want another spring like last year, where late April and May were one cold front after another.

We’ll see.

Perch fishing is OK but not great. The balance of those fish have moved off the shoreWith the game fishing season lines and are in the not opening until May 5, panemerging weed areas. fish, including perch, are a They have been hitting favorite target for anglers at this time.

—STAFF PHOTO minnows quite well, but are now starting to hit worms as well. Look for weeds and brush piles that provide cover to be holding these fish.

Crappie action is starting to heat up and will provide the best single fishery for the next two to three weeks. They will start the spawning process with some consistent warmer temperatures. A lot of fish have been caught in the warmer lakes already this year, but these fish are just starting to hold in the areas right off from where they are going to spawn. They are coming in on warm afternoons. Slip bobbers with minnows are working well at this point, just fished in the 5- to 8-foot range in weeds or around brush piles. If the weather stays warm, they will be spawning by opening day and will provide a great second option to walleye.

It’s a little early to predict opening-day action, but it sure looks like one of those years where anglers will be fishing deeper for walleye right from the opener. Jigs and minnows will be the ticket, as it is every year. Let’s wait and see what the weather brings for another week before we make our plans for the May 5 opener, but we are now close enough to start getting excited.

There is a lot to look forward to at this time of year.

Get those boats tuned up and ready!

Good luck and good fishin’.

SERVICE OF:

EAGLE SPORTS

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EAGLE RIVER GUIDES ASSOCIATION

8A

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

VILAS COUNTY NEWS-REVIEW/THE THREE LAKES NEWS

OUTDOORS

Trapper education program planned feature experienced trappers in a classroom setting.

The classes are required for individuals who haven’t previously purchased a trapper’s license. Organizers recommend that students be at least 10 years old.

To register for the class, contact John Lindner at (715) 369-2153. The class will cost $12. For more information and a listing of classes, visit dnr.wi.gov.

The Wisconsin Trappers Association and the state Department of Natural Resources will jointly administer a trapper education program May 10-12 in Rhinelander. The location and time of the class is yet to be determined.

The Wisconsin Cooperative Trapper Education Program — mandatory for new trappers who are not actively engaged in farming — will

Shotgun shooting instruction offered free to area students

The Headwaters Chapter of Muskies Inc. presented Lunker of the Year awards to, from left, Bill Jacobs, Linda Welch, Jess Karau,

holding his muskie replica, Linda Crass and Pattie Miller. Not pictured was Mace Mason.

—Contributed Photos

About 150 muskie hunters attend banquet The Headwaters Chapter of Muskies Inc. held its 34th annual banquet at the Eagle River Inn last Saturday, with about 150 muskie enthusiasts attending.

The banquet included raffles and auctions to raise funds for chapter projects, as well as the presentation of chapter awards.

Receiving the 2011 Headwaters Chapter of Muskies Inc. President’s Award for outstanding service were Jim Chamberlin, Paul Hansen, Elmer Jensen and Jeff Miller.

“Their long lists of accomplishments, dedication, service and outstanding leadership has enabled the Headwaters Chapter to grow and succeed in its mission, in keeping with its highest standards,” said chapter President Bill Jacobs.

Receiving the Headwaters Chapter of Muskies Inc. Mr. & Mrs. Musky Award for outstanding achievement went to Jim and Carol Heffner.

“Working as a team, they have been instrumental in keeping the highest standards of the Headwaters Chapter a success,” said Jacobs. “Their accomplishments, dedication and service enabled the Headwaters Chapter to grow and prosper.”

When it came to fishing awards, Lunker of the Year awards went to: men’s master division, Bill Jacobs, 52 inches; women’s division, Linda Welch, 45 inches;

Headwaters Chapter of Muskies Inc. president Bill Jacobs, right, presented the Mr. and Mrs.

juniors’ division, Jess Karau, 52 inches; women’s masters divison, tie, Linda Crass and

All present will be voting on rule changes. For further information, contact Chris Blicharz at (715) 546-2883.

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Muskie league sets meeting Teams interested in joining the Three Lakes Wednesday Night Musky League should attend the organizational meeting Wednesday, May 2, at the American Legion Bar in Three Lakes at 6 p.m.

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ty and clay target-shooting skills which will help the student to enjoy recreation shooting and hunting.

A parent or responsible adult is required to accompany each student and provide transportation to and from each class. Class size is limited.

For more information, call Bill Washburn at (715) 3690465 or Dick Krueger (715) 356-1393.

The Boulder Junction Shooting Range is offering a six-night shotgun shooting instruction program free to students ages 12 to 17.

The program will run for six consecutive Thursday evenings from 6 to 8 p.m., beginning May 17 through June 21.

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9A

VILAS COUNTY NEWS-REVIEW/THE THREE LAKES NEWS

SPORTS Sports Sidelines

By Gary Ridderbusch

Angel Golf Spectacular planned in St. Germain

KNIGHTS BATTLE BUTTERNUT — The Phelps Knights baseball team battled Butternut last Friday, but lost the home game 17-4. Some of the scenes included: above, Robbie Doppke scoring as the Butternut catcher scrambles for the ball; below, third baseman Blake Kalbus concentrating as he makes a throw to first base; and left, Thomas Crawford cracking the ball deep to left-center field for a double.

—Staff Photos By GARY RIDDERBUSCH

With the early spring, most North Woods residents are thinking two things — fishing and golf. It also means that the biggest golf event in this area, the Angel Golf Spectacular, is just around the corner.

Teams can now register for the 16th annual Angel Golf Spectacular, a fundraising event for the Angel On My Shoulder program, set for Friday, June 8, at St. Germain Golf Club.

The golf tournament will be a scramble format with registration at 8 a.m. and a shotgun start at 9:30 a.m. with celebrity guests from the Green Bay Packers, according to Lolly Rose, founder of Angel On My Shoulder.

“The list of celebrities has not been announced yet, but in the past, former Packers nose tackle Gilbert Brown has been a regular,” said Rose.

A Party with the Pack is set for Thursday, June 7, in St. Germain. It’s a time when fans can enjoy a cookout with Packer players. In addition, there will be auctions and raffles for signed footballs and other sports memorabilia.

The golf event Friday will offer a putting contest (cash prize) along with prize opportunities at designated golf holes and other awards. A reception will follow at the Whitetail Inn in St. Germain, including a social hour and hors d’oeuvres, dinner, awards, silent auction and a live auction.

The cost is $800 for a foursome. It will include golf, a golf wearable, beverages, snacks and box lunch on the course, reception, dinner, auction and awards. Guests may accompany golfers to the dinner, auction and awards for $75 per person. Golf contributors must register as foursomes only.

Other sponsorship and golf opportunities include Green Blazer sponsor for $5,000, Masters sponsor for $1,500, Double Eagle sponsor for $1,000 and Birdie sponsor for $500.

“All proceeds from the event will benefit the many causes championed by Angel On My Shoulder to improve the quality of life of those living with or affected by cancer,” said Rose.

Some of the Angel On My Shoulder programs that benefit from the Angel Golf Spectacular include Guardian Angel, Camp Angel/Camp Teen Angel, Uplifting Angels, Angel Care, Healing Angels, Angel Connection and Angel Wings. Angel On My Shoulder is a registered nonprofit cancer support foundation and donations are tax deductible.

For more information, call 1-(800) 860-3431 or e-mail golf@angelonmyshoulder.org. Because of the overwhelming support for the cause, it should be another “spectacular” golf outing.

Pines falls to Hatchets, but beats Ashland 4-2 ___________

BY GARY RIDDERBUSCH NEWS-REVIEW EDITOR

___________

Lady Eagles track team takes fourth at Lakeland ___________

BY ANTHONY DREW NEWS-REVIEW ASST. EDITOR

___________

The Northland Pines girls track team finished fourth out of five teams at the Lakeland Relays last Tuesday.

The Eagles scored 35 points, putting them ahead of Three Lakes but behind firstplace Tomahawk with 113 points, Lakeland with 81 and West Iron County with 74.

Our team always looks forward to the Lakeland Relays each season,” said Pines coach Josh Rhode. “It’s a fun meet and the format encourages teamwork. Our team had some great performances but we fell behind in points because we just don’t have enough numbers to fill up enough of the relay events.”

The 4x100-meter throwers relay team of Brooke Dreger, Lauren Czarapata, Kelly McGinnis and Angele Gehrke scored first place and broke the school record in the event.

The 4x1-mile team of Samantha Goll, Kylie Rhode, Taylor Neis and Emilie Robbins broke the previous school record by more than a minute, taking second place

Northland Pines pole vaulter Samantha Goll helped the Eagles get points in the pole vault relay.

—STAFF PHOTO

in the event.

The same group of girls broke the Distance Medley record from 1995 by a minute and took third place. Goll ran the 400, Rhode ran the 800, Neis ran the 1,200 and Robbins ran the 1,600. The girls also took second in the 6,400meter relay.

Neis, Robbins and Goll took second in the long jump relay.

In the high jump relay, McGinnis, Nicole Sullivan and Sydney Kamentz took third place.

Also scoring points for the Eagles were Rhode and Goll in the pole vault relay; Czarapata, McGinnis and Gehrke in the shot put relay; and Czarapata, Dreger and Gehrke in the discus throw relay.

“In the events that we

competed in, we did very well,” said coach Rhode. “I was proud of the team for competing so well despite being outnumbered.”

The coaches awarded the relay team of Goll, Rhode, Neis and Robbins the Most Valuable Players distinction.

“They all had a great meet and it’s very rare to break two school records in one meet,” said Rhode. “This is a very talented group of runners and they proved it in the meet.”

The meet’s most outstanding performance award went to Neis for her performance in the long jump.

“Taylor had the best jump in the event and set her own personal record,” said Rhode.

“She has a lot of potential and will be working on technique as she moves forward with the season.”

Czarapata also had an outstanding meet, according to the coach, as she had personal best distances in the shot put and discus throws, and she set the school record in the 4x100 throwers relay.

The Eagles were scheduled to host an invitational Tuesday, April 24, at 4:30 p.m.

The Northland Pines baseball team lost to Tomahawk 8-3 in a Great Northern Conference (GNC) game last Tuesday.

Both Pines and Tomahawk scored one run in the first inning and two runs in the second inning. The game remained tied at 3-3 after three innings.

But Tomahawk scored one run in the fourth and added four in the fifth, making it an 8-3 game and that ended up being the final score.

“We had 16 men reach base, but couldn’t get the big hit to bring them home,” said Pines coach Rob Govek.

The leading hitters for Pines included T.J. Harsla, Tanner Beaman and Brett Hughes with two hits each.

Dominic Caroselli got the start on the mound for the Eagles and took the loss throwing four and two-thirds innings. Beaman pitched the remaining one and one-third innings.

The Eagles traveled to Ashland for a nonconference game on Friday and came home with a 4-2 victory.

Pines took the lead in the first when Matt Meyer led off with a base hit, stole second and third, and scored on a ground ball by Jacob Schlitt.

Ashland came back to tie

it at 1-1 in the bottom of the first, but in the third Pines took the lead for good on RBIs from Caroselli and Brandon Wallace.

Then in the fifth, Pines added an insurance run when Wallace drove in Harsla, making it a 4-1 game.

Ashland gave Pines a scare in the seventh, loading the bases and scoring a run, making it 4-2, but Beaman was able to skrike out a batter for first out, forced a fly ball for the second out and then struck out the final batter.

Meyer, Harsla, Caroselli and Beaman supplied the offense with two hits apiece.

Beaman pitched the complete game, earning his first varsity win.

Beaman, a sophomore, was dominant, only allowing two hits and striking out 12 batters.

“We had some big plays on defense from Caroselli, Wallace and Beaman that helped keep Ashland from getting the big inning started,” said Govek. “It was a fun game for all of us.”

Pines, 0-5 in the GNC and 3-7 overall, was scheduled to host Rhinelander on Tuesday of this week and will travel to Medford this Thursday, April 26, for a 4:30 p.m. game. The Eagles will host Antigo next Tuesday, May 1, at 4:30 p.m.

Baseball clinic set Saturday A Northland Pines youth baseball clinic and coaches clinic will take place Saturday, April 28, at the Northland Pines baseball diamond behind the high school.

This will be a free clinic to all Eagle River area youth baseball players.

Participants will learn baseball skills and drills from high school coaches and players.

The following sessions will

be offered: Session 1, ages 7 to 9, 9 to 10:30 a.m.; Session 2, ages 10 to 12, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.; Session 3, ages 13 to 15, 1 to 2:30 p.m.; and coaches clinic, 2:30 to 3 p.m.

The clinic will be rescheduled in the event of inclement weather.

Donations will be accepted to the Northland Pines baseball program. For more information, contact Brad Dodge at (715) 617-6287.

10A

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

VILAS COUNTY NEWS-REVIEW/THE THREE LAKES NEWS

SPORTS

Three Lakes baseball team crushes NLC rival Crandon ___________

BY ANTHONY DREW NEWS-REVIEW ASST. EDITOR

___________

The Three Lakes Bluejays baseball team beat Northern Lakes Conference (NLC) rival Crandon 13-1 last Tuesday.

The Cardinals were previously undefeated in the NLC. Crandon got on the board right away in the top of the first, scoring one to take the early lead. However, the Jays didn’t waste any time getting on the board themselves, as they came up with two in the bottom half of the inning.

Three Lakes got the runs with two outs after committing a base-running mistake.

“Then Crandon had an error in the outfield, which opened the door,” said Three Lakes coach Jeff Liebscher. “I

was happy to see our guys overcome an early mistake and take advantage of theirs.”

The Jays put another eight runs on the board in the second inning, taking the wind out of Crandon’s sails.

The Bluejay batters produced runs in all four at-bats, according to coach Liebscher.

Dalton Tietsort and Brent LaDuke led the Three Lakes offensive attack, as both players went 2-3 with two RBIs. “We got production all the way through the lineup,” said the coach. “We caught Crandon on a good night. The game went our way and it was great to get this win.”

Ben Wales had another good night pitching, striking out four, walking four and giving up five hits.

Three Lakes tried to

squeeze in a game Thursday against White Lake, but by the time the team stepped off the bus, it was raining, according to Liebscher.

“It only got worse from there,” he said. “The field quickly turned into a mud pit.”

The Bluejays offense got to the Lakers pitcher early and often, scoring 14 runs through three innings of play before the game was suspended.

White Lake’s lone run was a result of a pick-off throw getting by the Three Lakes first baseman.

“Given the conditions, we played very solid,” said Liebscher. “Brent LaDuke was doing a great job of pitching.”

The game will be completed when White Lake comes to Three Lakes as a partial doubleheader.

Eagles leading Medford when game gets suspended ___________ FIRST WIN — The Phelps Knights softball team picked up its first win of the season with a 26-6 victory against Butternut last Friday afternoon. Phelps pitcher Amber Vander Bloemen (above) picked up the victory for the Lady Knights. Angela Grmick and Stormy Schreiber each had two hits for the Knights, and made good contact (left) against the Butternut pitcher throughout the game. The Knights were able to score several runs on passed balls (below).

Phelps was scheduled to host LaonaWabeno Tuesday of this week and will travel to Goodma-Pembine this Thursday. On Friday, the Knights will host Crandon.

—Staff Photos By GARY RIDDERBUSCH

BY GARY RIDDERBUSCH NEWS-REVIEW EDITOR

___________

The Northland Pines girls softball team had two road games this past week, including a game at Medford that was suspended due to poor weather conditions.

The Eagles and Raiders battled strong winds, cold and rain through three innings last Thursday before the game was suspended, with Pines leading Medford 16-11 in the Great Northern Conference (GNC) game.

“You have to give the girls a lot of credit for playing in these tough elements,” said Pines coach Steve Sawalski.

“It was hard to grip the bat and throw the ball because their hands were very cold.

Even with the poor conditions, Pines was able to score 16 runs in just three innings.

The Eagles were led at the

plate by Kelsey Bergum, who had a triple, three RBIs, scored two runs and was on base four times. Stephanie Sawalski was on base four times and scored three runs.

Jordan Welnetz had two hits, scored twice and had three RBIs. Morgan Munnik had two hits and scored twice.

The game will be completed when Medford visits Northland Pines May 15.

The second game of the week, the Eagles made another long road trip for a nonconference game at Ashland. In a real tight contest, the Oredockers won 2-0.

“Each team played very well defensively and the pitching for both clubs was really good,” said coach Sawalski.

Eagles Stephanie Sawalski pitched her best game of the year and didn’t give up any earn runs.

“Their were some very

good defensive plays throughout the whole game for Pines,” said coach Sawalski. “We had runners on base in just about every inning and just couldn’t capitalize, but we need to keep improving.”

Sami Johnston had two hits for the Eagles. Welnetz, Munnik, Megan Ebert and Sami Norman all collected a hit.

“Overall, it was a very good softball game and hopefully, it will help us be competitive in the coming weeks,” said Sawalski.

Pines, 0-2 in the GNC and 1-4 overall, was scheduled to host Mosinee on Tuesday of this week and will host Tomahawk this Thursday, April 26. Both GNC games will start at 4:30 p.m.

The Eagles also will host Lakeland in a GNC doubleheader starting at 11 a.m. this Saturday, April 28.

Lady Jays top Washburn 3-0 ___________

BY ANTHONY DREW NEWS-REVIEW ASST. EDITOR

___________

After falling 7-0 to Ashland last Tuesday, the Three Lakes girls soccer team rebounded to beat Washburn 3-0 Thursday night.

Three Lakes coach Stacy Stroud said the victory was great to see after a tough loss.

“Washburn has been doing well in conference, so it felt good to get the win in this one,” she said.

For the Lady Jays, Cassie Hoger had a big game, scoring all three goals and earning a hat trick.

The first goal came off a penalty kick, which was awarded after Bella Devereaux was fouled in the box.

The next goal came in the second half when Hoger received a pass out of the back from Karlie Stefonik.

“Our forwards were in great positioning on this play,” said Stroud. “The defense won the ball and distributed it quickly, enabling

Bear Cupboard Run set Saturday, July 21 The Lakeland Food Pantry will hold the Bear Cupboard Run Saturday, July 21, beginning with the half-marathon at 7:30 a.m. on the Bearskin Trail in Minocqua.

After the half-marathon, the one-kilometer (1K) Cubby Run will take place at 8:15 a.m. followed by the five-kilometer (5K) run and walk at 9 a.m.

The races will be professionally chip-timed. Participants should meet at Torpy Park.

Registration will be held Friday, July 20, from 5 to 7 p.m. and Saturday, July 21, from 6 to 8:30 a.m. at the pavilion in Torpy Park in Minocqua.

Preregistration for the half-marathon, open to participants age 12 and older, will cost $45. The 5K run and walk

will cost $25 for ages 22 and older and $15 for ages 21 and younger.

There also will be a 1K Cubby Run offered to children ages 10 and younger, which will cost $10. On-site registration on race day will cost an additional $5.

Preregistration must be received by Thursday, July 19, at noon. Participants may also register online at bearcupboardrun.org or tandhtiming.com.

The first 400 registrants are guaranteed a T-shirt. Cubby participants will receive a ribbon and bag. People who preregister by July 10 will be guaranteed a T-shirt size.

There will be a free shuttle bus offered at 6:30 a.m. for half-marathon racers.

For general information, visit lakelandpantry.com.

us to beat the defenders who were pushed up too far.”

Hoger scored the third and final goal off a pass from Havi Snyder.

“Although we won 3-0, this was a tough game,” said Stroud. “Washburn had some very dangerous opportunities. Our defense made some adjustments at the half and we shut down their attack.”

Three Lakes goalkeeper Ashley Dorpat earned another shutout during the game.

“This game was a battle to the last minute and I know when we meet them again it will be just as exciting,” said Stroud.

Although the game against Ashland was a

Northern Lights Conference loss for the Lady Jays, the team took some solace in the fact that the Oredockers are a Division 2 team.

“As long as I’m around, it will be our goal to one day upset the conference powerhouse who hasn’t suffered a conference loss in six years,” said Stroud.

The Lady Jays were scheduled to travel to Phillips Tuesday, April 24, and will travel to Iron Mountain, Mich., Thursday, April 26. Three Lakes will then host Kingsford Friday, April 27, before hosting Bayfield next Tuesday, May 1. All varsity games will begin at 5 p.m.

Tennis group plans meeting The Greater Eagle River Tennis Association (GERTA) will meet Tuesday, May 1, at 5:30 p.m. at the tennis courts adjacent to the Vilas County Fairgrounds.

Any tennis player or person interested in learning to play tennis is invited to attend.

For more information, contact Sherry Stecker at (715) 542-2337.

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SPRING PASS PROMOTION KOHLMANN CUP — Local Eagle River Peewee hockey player, Max Zingler, recently represented the area at the Wisconsin Amateur Hockey Association Kohlmann Cup tournament.

Zingler helped the Region 2 team to a tournament win, scoring eight goals and seven assists. His performance earned him a spot on Team Wisconsin.

—Contributed Photo

Unlimited golf & range balls now until May 24

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VILAS COUNTY NEWS-REVIEW/THE THREE LAKES NEWS

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

SPORTS

11A

Golf league meetings

Eagles pick up two GNC victories ___________

BY GARY RIDDERBUSCH

Lake Forest Monday Night Men’s The Lake Forest Monday Night Men’s Golf League will meet Monday, April 30, at the Lake Forest Fitness Center at 6:30 p.m. Anyone interested may golf before the meeting. League play will begin Monday, May 7.

For more information, contact Gabe at (715) 891-1231.

NEWS-REVIEW EDITOR

___________

The Northland Pines girls soccer team won two Great Northern Conference (GNC) games last week to improve to 2-1-1 in league games.

The Eagles opened the week with a 5-0 victory at Mosinee last Tuesday and then edged Medford 2-0 last Thursday.

Pines got on the scoreboard early against Mosinee with a nice cross from Mary Loeser to Caitlin Riley, who put it in the net.

The Eagles scored two more times in the first half.

First, Lauren Lenz capitalized on a pass from Sammy Pusateri and Carly Ridderbusch put the ball in the net off a pass from Loeser.

“We kept the ball on Mosinee’s half for the majority of the first half. We moved the ball well and connected on our passes,” said Pines coach Wendy McCormack. “The girls finally started shooting the ball more and it produced goals for us. This is something we have been focusing on a lot at practice lately.”

The second half was similar to the first with the ball staying in Mosinee territory for the majority of the time.

Pines tallied two more goals, including an unassisted goal from Molly Robinson as well as a penalty kick from Lenz.

“This occurred after one of our players got knocked down in the penalty box after heading the ball from a corner kick,” said McCormack.

“This game allowed some of our subs more playing time and the starters some rest, which was good after the long stretch of games in such a short time.”

Freshman goalkeeper Allison Sima got her first shutout of the season.

In the Medford game, Pines put pressure on the Raiders right from the first whistle.

“We had the ball on their half for the majority of the first half, but did not do a very good job maintaining possession,” said McCormack. “The players seemed to

Lake Forest Thursday Night Men’s The Lake Forest Thursday Night Men’s Golf League will meet Thursday, May 3, at the Lake Forest Fitness Center at 6:30 p.m. Anyone interested may golf before the meeting. League play will begin Thursday, May 10.

For more information, contact Darrell at (715) 479-1774.

Plum Lake Ladies The Plum Lake Ladies Golf League welcomes players to join the league every Thursday morning beginning May 10. Players may sign up a week or two before the weekly events to participate. For the first month of events, tee times will begin at 9:30 a.m. For more information, call (715) 542-2598.

Eagle River Senior Men’s The Eagle River Senior Men’s Golf League will meet Thursday, May 10, at 1 p.m. at the Eagle River Golf Course. Golf to follow, starting at 2 p.m. Sign-up sheets for golf will be posted on the golf course bulletin board the previous week. The league plays Thursdays at 1 p.m. with match formats varying each week. Participants must be 55 years old or older. New members are welcome. For more information, call Don at (715) 477-2370.

Lake Forest Wednesday Morning Women’s The Lake Forest Wednesday Morning Women’s Golf League will meet Wednesday, May 9, at 9 a.m. Golf to follow. For more information, call Jane at (815) 3702483.

Tuesday Night Ladies The Tuesday Night Ladies Golf League will begin league play Tuesday, May 1 at the Eagle River Golf Course, located at 457 E. McKinley Blvd in Eagle River, with 18-hole play starting at 1 p.m. and nine-hole golf starting at 3 p.m. To sign up, call the pro shop at (715) 479-8111. For more information, call league president Marsha Lewis at (906) 287-1323 or league treasurer Michele Vinovich at (715) 477-2551.

Lake Forest Wednesday Night Women’s The Northland Pines defense got two shutouts last week, with the help of defender Holly Dar-

be reacting more than controlling the ball.”

Paige Healy finally got a nice long shot just outside the penalty box, which found the back of the net.

“This helped the girls get their heads back in the game and they began to settle down and player soccer,” said McCormack. “The halftime speech focused on the mental aspect of the game and to get them to start using their biggest muscle — their brain.”

The second half proved to be a much more controlled game and Pines began to con-

RETURNING KNIGHTS — Returning to the Phelps Knights baseball team are, front row from left, Ryan Cirese, Brandon Crass,

BOWLING

ton (No. 23), who made an aggressive play against a Medford player.

—STAFF PHOTO

nect passes and control the tempo. Pines scored the second and final goal when Riley took a shot from the right side from a tough angle outside of the box.

“It was a nice, hard shot which the keeper didn’t even see coming,” said McCormack.

Pines continued to put pressure on Medford’s defense and their goalkeeper as the Eagles outshot them 27 to 7.

“Allyson Sima appears to be getting more comfortable in the net and has been doing a great job directing her

Cameron Galek and Robert Doppke; back row, Ross Samuelson, Cody Galek and Thomas Crawford.

—Photo By Sharon Gifford

NORTHLAND DOCKS

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Eagle Lanes Results of 4/18/12 Team results: Rockettes 0, Harry’s Market 7; Boone’s Building Supply 7, Darrell’s Dummies 0; Twelve Pines 0, Wild Eagle Corner Store 7.

High games: Karen Landvatter 215, Mary Simac 185, Sue Soderberg 184, Susie Erickson 182.

High series: Sue Soderberg 527, Mary Simac 525, Karen Landvatter 521, Susie Erickson 506.

High team game: Wild Eagle Corner Store 967.

High series: Harry’s Market and Boone’s Building Supply 2775.

STANDINGS W L Harry’s Market ...................123 80 Boone’s Building .................119 84 Wild Eagle Corner Store ....116 87 Darrell’s Dummies .............115 88 Rockettes..............................83 120 Twelve Pines........................53 150

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defense,” said McCormack. “ The defense did a great job keeping the ball out of our defensive third and maintained their composure throughout the game.”

Pines, 2-1-1 in the GNC and 2-1-3 overall, was scheduled to host Wausau Newman on Tuesday of this week and will travel to Lakeland this Thursday, April 26, for a 7 p.m. game.

The Eagles will host a double dual starting at 10 a.m. this Saturday, April 28.

Teams include Pines, Ashland, Phillips and Iron Mountain, Mich.

The Lake Forest Wednesday Night Women’s Golf League will have an organizational meeting Wednesday, May 9, at 7 p.m. Golf is optional before the meeting. League play will begin Wednesday, May 16, from 4 to 5:30 p.m. For a tee time, contact the clubhouse. New members of all levels are welcome. For more information, call Mary Ann at (715) 490-3663.

Big Stone Leagues The Big Stone Golf Course in Three Lakes has announced two leagues forming this spring.

The Wednesday Night Men’s League will have a meeting Wednesday, May 2, at 6 p.m. at the Legion Bar. The league will start May 9. For more information, call Phil LeBeau at (715) 367-6814.

The Thursday Night Women’s League will have a meeting Thursday, May 3, at 6 p.m. at the Legion Bar. The league will have an optional play night May 10 and league will start May 17. For more information, call Ellie Soder-Gutbrod at (715) 891-1723.

12A

VILAS COUNTY NEWS-REVIEW/THE THREE LAKES NEWS

MEMBER

EDITORIAL

VILAS COUNTY

NEWS-REVIEW

Eagle River Vindicator Established 1886 Eagle River Review 1890 ~ Vilas County News 1892 Publisher Editor Asst. Editor Lifestyle Editor Production Manager Asst. Production Manager Photo Technician Production Technician Proofreader Circulation Manager Accounting Manager Advertising Consultants

KURT KRUEGER GARY RIDDERBUSCH ANTHONY DREW MARIANNE ASHTON JEAN DREW ELIZABETH BLEICHER SHARINA ADAMS CARLY RATLIFF JEAN FITZPATRICK ELIZABETH SCHMIDT TERRY POSTO MARY JO ADAMOVICH DIANE GLEASON MARCIA HEYER MADELINE MATHISEN JULIE SCHIDDEL

FIRST PLACE NATIONALLY COMMUNITY SERVICE

Published weekly by Eagle River Publications, Inc., P.O. Box 1929, 425 W. Mill St. at Eagle River, Wisconsin 54521 erpub@nnex.net vcnewsreview.com Member of the Wisconsin Newspaper Association and the National Newspaper Association

Our View GOP school measures didn’t hurt districts here Republican efforts to control school spending created a $47 million decline in school-purpose property tax levies across Wisconsin this year, though critics claim the reforms hurt the quality of education.

Add to those shrinking tax levies a $749 million decrease in state aid and it becomes even more possible that state School Superintendent Tony Evers is right with his claim that students were impacted.

But regardless of what happened statewide, low-aided districts such as Northland Pines, Phelps and Three Lakes didn’t take as large of a hit because they had little to lose. The so-called property-rich districts in this recreational paradise don’t rely much on state aid.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

OPINION/COMMENTARY

Rosenak’s ‘Rules For Being Human’ ABOUT 18 YEARS ago this month, Bob Rosenak, formerly of Eagle River, was moderator of First Congregational United Church of Christ and he shared this list of “Rules For Being Human” with his friends. If you know a soon-to-be-graduate, share it with them.

1. You will receive a body.

You may like it or hate it, but it will be yours for the entire time you are on this journey.

2. You will learn lessons.

You are enrolled in a fulltime informal school called “life.”

Each day in this school, you will have the opportunity to learn lessons. You may like the lessons or think them irrelevant and stupid.

3. There are no mistakes — only lessons. Growth is a process of trial and error and experimentation. The “failed” experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiment that ultimately “works.”

4. A lesson is repeated until it is learned. A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. When you have learned it, you can then go on to the next lesson.

5. Learning lessons does not end. There is no part of life that does not contain its lessons.

If you are alive, there are lessons to be learned.

6. “There” is no better than “Here.” When your “there” has become “here,”

People Make the Difference

By Byron McNutt you will simply obtain another “there” that will, again, look better than “here.”

7. Others are merely mirrors of you. You cannot love or hate something about any other person unless it reflects to you something you love or hate about yourself.

8. What you make of your life is up to you. You have the means to obtain all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. The choice is yours.

9. Your answers lie inside of you. The answers to life’s questions are already yours.

All you have to do is look, listen and trust. * * * MAYBE IT’S a sign of the times? Has there ever been a time in the history of America when its citizens have been at war with each other on so many levels?

Even the Civil War years might not compare!

Maybe we’re at odds with each other on so many topics because of advances in forms of instant communications?

If anything happens anywhere in the world, we know

about it within seconds.

News travels fast. We’re connected by computers, satellite, email, 24-7 television news, smartphones, Facebook and Twitter.

As a result, we’re talking about Class Warfare almost every day. We’re trying to determine what is fair. We’ve pitted the poor against the middle class and both of those groups are envious of the wealthy upper class.

There is a war between the haves and the have-nots.

There is an unease between the people working and those unable to find jobs.

People in the private job sector have animosity for some of those people in the public sector. There is a divide between union workers and nonunion employees.

These wars have put a wedge between some families. Think of the different age groups. There is a dicussion going on about what is best between our youth, our college graduates, young adults, middle-age families and our senior citizens. We never seem to have enough!

Recently we read about a new war. Political candidates fired a shot claiming a war on women.

The bottom line is that the GOP plan is not hurting education in districts here. Northland Pines is going to get a fourth year out of its three-year referendum. Three Lakes made no cuts that impacted the quality of education despite not getting the full benefit of the last referendum because state rules eliminated some of the taxing authority the electorate had approved. Phelps voters just approved another three-year referendum with no increase in levying authority.

We love job growth, economic prosperity and reduced taxation as much as anyone, but those improvements should not come at the expense of severe environmental degradation.

It’s still hard to believe that last spring, Gov. Scott Walker proposed eliminating the state’s recycling program.

Whether Republican or Democrat, we need legislators who can balance the need for jobs with the need to protect our vital natural resources. The mining bill that died in the Senate last winter was a poorly negotiated document that would have rolled back environmental protections and silenced the voice of the public.

DNR Secretary Cathy Stepp needs to remember that our “awesome outdoors” didn’t happen by accident. Somebody protected it.

Behind the editorial ‘we’ Members of the Vilas County NewsReview editorial board include Publisher Kurt Krueger, Editor Gary Ridderbusch and Assistant Editor Anthony Drew.

* * * COLLEGE basketball and March Madness have been over for about three weeks. Now the top-rated teams must reload their rosters with top high school prospects. It’s normal for teams to lose senior student athletes, but many schools To McNUTT, Pg. 13A

Latest salvo fired in ‘Mommy Wars’

afraid we’d still be sitting there today.

Oh, we had birds talking all right, except that they were sandhill cranes in a field not far away, a hoot owl from a couple or three ridges over and a pair of mallards which noisily lifted off from a small pond and whirled through the trees about 75 yards away.

We moved around after 7:30, trying three other setups with like results before we decided to try along a power line right of way about a mile away.

There I managed to elicit a single gobble around 9:30 from a bird 200 yards away, and that was that. Well, that was that except for a porcupine which waddled across a trail about 40 yards away. It apparently was enamored by my mix of yelps, clucks and cackles, but forgot to inform the turkeys what a goodsounding call I was making.

We moved over to the Starks Lane property which Mitch set us up on and

VIRTUALLY everything said and done in a presidential election year distorts the truth, much like concave and convex mirrors in a carnival attraction alter one’s true reflection.

That kind of distortion occurred in the recent dustup over whether women who choose to stay at home can completely understand the economic challenges and personal struggles faced by women who choose, or need, to work outside the home while raising children.

There is no question that professional women receive much more societal validation than stay-at-home moms. Few magazine covers at the checkout line or fullpage ads promoting events and awards to successful women, laud mothers who stay home to raise their children. There aren’t a lot of television shows today like “Ozzie and Harriett,” “Leave It to Beaver” or “Father Knows Best.”

The view expressed by Democratic strategist Hilary Rosen that Mitt Romney’s wife, Ann, has “never worked a day in her life” and thus can’t relate to struggling families is bogus. Can a politician who has never held a job in the private sector relate to those who work there, or are searching for a job there? I’m thinking of the former community organizer, now president, Barack Obama. Can a career politician like Vice President Joe Biden identify with someone who doesn’t have the perks — planes, limousines, high pay and discounted, or free health care — he has enjoyed for most of his career?

Former Vice President Dan Quayle’s wife, Marilyn, who is an attorney, said it best at the 1992 Republican National Convention in Houston: “Having a profession is not incompatible with being a good mother or a good wife. ... Women’s lives are different from men’s lives. We make different trade-offs. We make different sacrifices. And we get different rewards.”

If a woman chooses to work at home (and aren’t

To MAINES, Pg. 13A

To THOMAS Pg. 13A

The ability of school administrators to work with insurance providers and craft their own cost-saving plan ends years of frustration for school officials. No longer does the teachers union hold all the cards in bargaining for benefits, preferred providers and which health plan gets adopted.

Our Earth Day message to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Wisconsin legislators is simple: Don’t forget the conservation tradition that has made Wisconsin one of the most progressive environmental states in the union.

That war goes along with the battle between the races, the sexes and people with different religions. Our political parties are more intent on dividing than uniting. For some reason, we have lost our moral compass. We all want what is fair for all, but we haven’t found a way to determine what is fair. We don’t want to compromise.

We’d rather wage war and not take personal responsibility.

Elections haven’t helped.

In fact, they seem to divide us. The minute one election ends, the next one starts.

Chris Matthews, host of “Hardball” on MSNBC, tells us, “We’ve got to make elections matter.”

He says we must respect the election process. The person (or party) that wins a sanctioned U.S. election should enjoy the spoils. The winners get to decide issues 60/40 in their favor. It can’t be 50/50 because that’s not fair to the majority. When the losers (the minority) have equal power, the wars begin anew and nothing gets accomplished.

Cal Thomas

Districts here got back more than what Gov. Scott Walker and the GOP took away in levying authority through savings on retirement and health-care benefits. The districts saved hundreds of thousands of dollars when teachers were forced to contribute to the state pension fund. At the same time, districts benefited from the virtual elimination of collective bargaining rights for teachers by implementing cost-saving health insurance plans with much higher deductibles.

A time to remember our conservation ethic

PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER SINCE 1985

White-tailed deer like heavy cover

The thick cover of tag alders and young aspen prodvides exellent cover for white-tailed deer and other wildlife. The Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest announced a plan to improve habitat at 12 wildlife management areas this summer and fall.

—Staff Photo By KURT KRUEGER

The gobblers made us suffer THE FIRST LEG of the odyssey has been completed — unsuccessfully, I might add.

As the second of six Wisconsin turkey seasons opened last Wednesday, I was prepared to show off my expert turkey calling while bringing in a big-boss gobbler for turkey hunting neophyte Dirty Doug McDrew.

As things turned out, all I accomplished for my effort in Clark County was luring one porcupine and one squirrel which, combined with the fisher I called in a couple weeks ago while scouting for birds up here, might say a lot about my calling abilities. We headed for Thorp on Thursday afternoon, hoping to get in an hour or so of early evening hunting, but a cold, pouring rain which pelted the car’s windshield from Wausau on west put a damper on that plan.

Instead, we went over maps with my Birkebeiner skiing buddy, Mitch Eichman, on whose farm and two other properties we fully intended to find a gobbler

Trails & Tales By Will Maines for Doug.

Buoyed by a prediction that said the rain would stop overnight and that Friday would be mostly sunny, we hit the hay early in preparation for a five o’clock rising.

We were in the woods before dawn on what I call the Lower 40 property about 12 miles south of Thorp. It was there that Mitch’s granddaughter, Jordan, got the second turkey of her career during the youth hunt two weeks earlier.

We walked through damp, quiet woods to a setup very near to where Jordan killed her bird, put out decoys and waited for the gobblers to start gobbling. If we’d been forced to sit there until a bird gobbled, I’m

VILAS COUNTY NEWS-REVIEW/THE THREE LAKES NEWS

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

OP-ED/READER OPINION Tax savings bad news Maines FROM PAGE 12A for Wisconsin’s children Dear Editor: Wisconsin homeowners paid $11 less in property taxes — three cents a day — on a median home, the April 21 Journal Sentinel reports, calling it “good news for property taxpayers.”

Maybe that’s good news, but not at the price of Gov. Walker’s damage to schools.

The DPI’s budget plan — Fair Funding for Our Future — would have kept property taxes down without depleting school budgets and driving good teachers away.

Instead of driving them away, we must retain our best teachers and recruit more. How? By providing reasonable class sizes for our children. By offering teachers moderate salaries with decent insurance and retirement benefits and cost-of-living increases based on their level of experience and education. All these cultivate a climate of respect — as Wisconsin has historically done for educators.

This year, Walker’s unfair redistribution of funds has caused bigger-than-usual class sizes for our average public school students who will likely be in an even big-

ger class next year and yet average teacher compensation is down.

And now, because of Walker’s increased powers, the Journal Sentinel’s April 21 lead article reports that teachers with a master’s or doctoral degree might take home a cost-of-living increment of 30% less, in spite of spending hundreds of their own dollars and hours and hours of their own time taking classes to better equip themselves to help our children learn.

Considering the destruction Walker has wrought, I don’t know how Wisconsin could be doing a worse job of recruiting and retaining good teachers to educate our precious children. On the other hand, how precious are our children to us if we are willing to rejoice at a property tax savings of $11, largely at their expense?

Wisconsin homeowners paid $11 less in property taxes this year on a median home — good news for Wisconsin’s children?

Kay Hoff Minocqua Tracy Thiel Milwaukee

scouted it for our Saturday hunt. Then it was back to the Lower 40 for a late afternoon go.

As turkey hunts go, our afternoon effort was pretty idyllic; a very light breeze drifting through the hardwoods, woodpeckers tapping on trees, a soft bed of leaves on which to stretch out full length and — and — a farmer deciding to spread manure on a field 150 yards away while at the same time trying for 20 minutes to start a balky Bobcat.

When the last clanging of a manure-spreading truck’s huge tailgate quit ringing through the woods, we admitted we were licked and gave up our effort as a bad job.

On the way to my brother’s cabin on Mead Lake

which served as our hunt headquarters, we stopped at Dale’s Mound Bar. There we found some pretty fine $2.50 hamburgers on the menu.

Doug ordered the 300,001st burger sold at the place since 1983, or so we deduced since a poster on the wall said a local fellow had just been awarded a case of burgers as a prize for ordering the 300,000th burger a week earlier.

Looking at the map later, we found the bar was four miles from the cabin, but after missing the road we needed to turn on shortly after leaving the place, we found ourselves taking an after-dark tour of the countryside, adding about 20 miles to our homeward trek, but with the bonus of seeing the tiny village of Willard for the first time in our lives.

Saturday morning found us back at the Starks property, and it was an entertaining morning as we hunt-

ed along the West Branch of the Eau Claire River.

I called and nothing answered. I called some more and still nothing answered. Two beautifullooking setups yielded not so much as a gobble or a cluck.

We did find ourselves close up and personal with a large number of Canada geese, sandhill cranes and mallards on the river, all of which talked to each other in loud and agitated voices for as long as we stayed the course.

Four deer splashed across the knee-deep river, standing there for quite some time trying to figure us out.

A gray squirrel came visiting at nine, sniffing curiously all around our decoy.

Doug disobeyed my order to “shoot ’im,” as the furry critter scurried off.

As was the case the day before, the only gobblers — and hens — we saw were in two farm fields about a mile north of my brother’s cabin.

13A

Two gobblers, especially, one in each field, were big, longbearded boys, but they might as well have been on Mars as in a field 50 yards away as they were.

Actually, using the Clark County plat book, we found the owner’s name and phone number, but when we called him to try and get permission to hunt his land, all we got was an answering machine. So much for that quickly hatched plan.

Long and short of the story, we had a great time, saw and heard a lot of wildlife but came home empty-handed.

Next year, I told Doug.

Next year, according to the bylaws of turkey hunting, he will be eligible to kill his first gobbler. This first year was just for the experience, for as the late, great Mr. President of the Old Duck Hunters Association Inc. once put it, “You got to suffer before you get your game.”

North soon will open private canine park Dear Editor: In response to Amy Sperry of Three Lakes: There is one very dog-friendly establishment in Eagle River, the Northern Wisconsin Canine Center.

We have brought the first indoor dog day care and training facility to the North Woods. The awesome news is we are expanding to a bigger facility where we will offer a “private” dog park.

Many dog parks around the country are great places to exercise your dog and meet new people. The problem is not everyone is a responsible dog owner. You don’t have to have a wellbehaved dog to walk into a

McNutt:

dog park.

Our private dog park will limit visitors that have passed a temperament test, have attended training classes or have their dog in day care. Also, the number of dogs at one time will be limited as to avoid overcrowding.

Don’t forget the halfpints! We will have a separate area just for them.

Best of all . . . it’s free! For more information on the Northern Wisconsin Canine Center, call (715) 479-4900 or go to our website at NWCanineCenter.com.

Nicole Belmore Eagle River

FROM PAGE 12A

also lose freshmen and sophomores to the pro leagues.

Imagine how much better the college teams would be if players stayed in school for four or five years?

Because the best players leave early, most top-tier teams are represented by talented freshmen and sophomores. They would really be good if the teams could start a lineup of juniors and seniors.

College coaches work long hours recruiting the top high school players, only to

lose them after one or two years. Only rarely does a coach field a team that has stayed in the program for four years. Yes, Kentucky won this year’s title with a starting line-up of 18- to 19year-olds. Now, all five of them have announced they will make themselves available for the NBA draft.

Makes you wonder — Who is being used more in this situation, the colleges or the athletes? It’s a big money business and there’s a fine line being walked.

SERVE will not close its doors on seniors Dear Editor: Before my husband and I retired and moved to Eagle River, a small group of concerned new retirees had been formed and led by Gil Raabe.

They called their group SERVE (Senior Eagle River Volunteer Enterprise Inc.).

The Older Americans Act had been passed and they decided to look into that as a project. The act specified a nutritious, affordable meal for senior citizens and socialization to get people out of their homes and be with other seniors.

SERVE made arrangements with a restaurant at first, but after a short time that did not work out as the seniors wanted to linger after the meal and socialize. Several other restaurants were tried, with the same result.

The program was then

WHAT OTHERS SAY Taxpayers would foot the bill for loans ___________

BY PETER W. KNITT

___________

Peoples State Bank has long been a part of communities in central and northern Wisconsin. As a community bank that believes in giving back through our community donations and employee involvement programs, we are concerned about the changing legislative landscape for credit unions.

Most understand the basic founding principle of credit unions; credit unions were granted a tax-exempt status in return for serving those of low to modest means. Recently, lobbyists for a small number of large credit unions have pointed to a perceived lack of loan credit to small businesses from traditional banks and wish to expand their business lending to fill this gap.

Congress is now considering a bill that would increase the deficit by allowing mega credit

unions to continue avoiding paying taxes on corporate loans. The bill, S. 2231, will more than double the current cap on the amount of member business lending that a credit union can do. Yet, only a select group of large, tax-avoiding credit unions will benefit from this change as most credit unions are nowhere near the lending cap.

As profit-driven credit unions stray from this mission by pushing for the ability to make more commercial loans to big business, taxpayers are now the ones who will truly be footing the bill. Currently, state-chartered credit unions don’t pay any income tax while federally chartered credit unions pay no taxes including income and sales tax. At a time when the public is turning in their tax returns, it’s troubling to know they will be paying more in taxes than these billion dollar credit unions.

Why is this important for every person to take note of? Because increasing the cap leaves taxpayers to foot the bill for an earmark benefiting less than 1% of credit unions, boosting only the profitdriven, elite mega credit unions.

Not only are the vast majority of credit unions not close to the lending cap, in Wisconsin state credit unions are able to seek a waiver from the limits in certain situations and to date, all waivers sought from the Office of Credit Unions have been granted.

Many business loans made by credit unions do not even count toward the current cap.

For 50 years, it has been the priority of Peoples State Bank to provide small-business credit and in 2011 we grew our loan portfolio by $5 million in addition to paying $2.4 milTo LOANS, Pg. 14A

stopped until the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) agreed to the use of their hall for a catered meal until something permanent could be found.

SERVE, in the meantime, was doing whatever it could to get enough money for a down payment toward its own place in Eagle River.

After months at the VFW, the Simpson building was put on the market. The building was substantially a solid, well-built structure, however, the years had taken its toll. It was a lot of money, which we didn’t have, so with much soul-searching (“should we or shouldn’t we?”), SERVE decided to take the plunge and bought the Simpson building.

Along with the help of many generous people, SERVE members and friends were able to roll up their sleeves and dig in. Their goal was to transform this ugly duckling into a beautiful swan which, over the years since 1986, has been done through the help of many volunteers and generous people.

SERVE is very proud of their accomplishments and happy to now have a beautiful and much-needed addition to the Eagle River community.

Throughout the years since SERVE has opened its doors, the noon lunch meal has been an integral part of our existence with many

changes along the way. Over the years, SERVE has always complied with any requirements or changes that the programs deemed necessary, always at our own expense.

Now for some reason, unknown to SERVE at this writing, the Commission On Aging, in spite of a yearly contract ending Dec. 31, has decided to move the lunch program to the American Legion building on Highway 45 South.

SERVE will not close its doors to our seniors and the Eagle River community as a whole. SERVE will continue to live on in Eagle River.

It has been the purpose of

Thomas

her home (and she did perform a great deal of volunteer work while battling breast cancer and multiple sclerosis), and even if she then could — in Rosen’s mind — relate to other women who made that same decision, how would that make anyone else’s life better? Would such a choice by Romney have improved the economy so that women who want to work outside the home, but can’t find jobs, get one? Would it have allowed women to stay home if they were afforded that luxury?

This is what politics has become. It’s about feelings and image, not substance and ideas that work. Because of skyrocketing debt, high unemployment and the failed policies they have promoted,

FROM PAGE 12A politically liberal women supposed to support a woman’s career choice?) and if she feels adequately compensated, shouldn’t her choice be affirmed, not only by her husband or partner, if she has one, but also by society?

Similarly, if a woman wants to work, or must work outside her home, shouldn’t she be equally supported by society and not made to feel added guilt and pressure?

Reasonable people ought to be able to answer yes to both questions.

Still, all of this is a distraction. Even if Ann Romney had chosen to work outside

this letter to give the community a bit of history of the program. I am just one of three remaining original members of SERVE prior to the opening of our present Kalmar site.

Once again, many thanks to all those along the way who have helped SERVE in any way at all.

Setting the record straight, Marion Schoofs SERVE member Eagle River P.S. We worked hard, but had fun along the way and developed many friendships.

Letters policy The Vilas County News-Review/The Three Lakes News welcomes letters from its readers.

Letters should be written legibly, or typed, and must include the name, address and telephone number of the writer. No letters will be published without the writer’s name.

Initials and/or pseudonyms will not be used.

Unsigned letters will be disregarded. While the maximum limit is 600 words, writers should note that shorter letters will receive top priority.

No political letters will appear in the last issue prior to an election. They should be mailed to us at P.O. Box 1929, Eagle River, WI 54521; email address: erpub@nnex.net.

Democrats cling to feelings and focus on one’s ability to relate. But it’s a fiction to believe that the only women’s issues of importance are those promoted by the left.

Liberal women are attempting to dominate women who share a different political and moral worldview. It’s all a house of mirrors — nothing more than a distortion of reality in an election year. Expect to see more of the same between now and November.

Direct all mail for Cal Thomas to: Tribune Media Services, 2010 Westridge Drive, Irving, TX 75038.

Readers may also e-mail Cal Thomas at tmseditors@tribune.com.

14A

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

VILAS COUNTY NEWS-REVIEW/THE THREE LAKES NEWS

NEWS

READER OPINION

T.A. Solberg Co. purchases Manitowish Waters market MANITOWISH WATERS — Minocqua-based T.A. Solberg Co. announced that it has purchased LaPorte’s Market in Manitowish Waters.

Beginning May 13, LaPorte’s Market will become T.A. Solberg’s first Village Market, a high-service grocery store located at 125 Highway W in Manitowish Waters.

“We are so excited to expand our T.A. Solberg family to Manitowish Waters,” said Lee Guenther, president and CEO of T.A. Solberg Co. “LaPorte’s has a long family history and dedication to the community. T.A. Solberg is the same way — family owned and with a promise to be a strong and active member of our community,” said Guenther. “We look forward to bringing our value-driven philosophy of great service, freshness, high quality and loyalty to Manitowish Waters in the

new Village Market.”

Village Market will retain current LaPorte’s employees and is in the process of recruiting a new store manager.

“Customers will still see the same friendly faces working at Village Market, while seeing a fresh new look and feel to the store,” said Guenther. “We’ll be bringing in fresh produce seven days a week. The Village Market meat department will cut and grind meat daily on-site. And the store will always have the superior service for which other T.A. Solberg stores are wellknown.”

In addition, Village Market will offer fresh bakery and deli, a liquor department, grocery, frozen and dairy departments.

During the transition to Village Market, service to Manitowish Waters will not be interrupted. Summer

hours will continue as in the past: Mondays through Saturdays, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sundays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

As part of the purchase, T.A. Solberg took ownership of the entire LaPorte’s Market mall. Current leases for the floral shop, hair salon and bank will continue. The company will take over operations of Café 129 and it will operate as Tula’s Café, a restaurant concept the company currently operates in Minocqua.

This is the first Village Market for the T.A. Solberg Co. The company currently operates five Trig’s stores, six Shell gas stations, a Save-ALot® Food Store, Trig’s Ace Hardware, Minocqua Recycling Center, Tula’s Café, Postal Connection, Timber Trail Coffee, Signature Salon, Tasmania Outback Resort, Trig’s Trucking and Trig’s Smokehouse and Distribution Center.

Work zone awareness promoted

SUCCESS STORY — Wild turkeys were reestablished in southern Wisconsin in the 1970s and the population has since spread across the

Loans FROM PAGE 13A lion in income taxes.

I believe S. 2231 is unnecessary and will only shift loans from taxpaying banks to taxpayer-subsidized billion dollar credit unions. Let your representatives know you oppose S. 2231 today, before our community ends up paying for it.

Peter W. Knitt is president and CEO of Peoples State Bank.

entire state. This jake was strutting his stuff on a property near Three Lakes last week.

—Staff Photo By KURT KRUEGER

Judicial misconduct still the issue Dear Editor: In response to Mr. Moe’s critique of my March 28 letter entitled “Judicial Misconduct,” I thank him for the correction that not all the petition-signing judges were from Dane County.

But in what way does that mitigate the fact that 29 serving judges in Wisconsin blatantly violated our state’s Judicial Code of Conduct?

Over the years, I have written quite a number of editorial letters, and virtually all of

them expressed a political point of view. Ironically, “Judicial Misconduct” was the first one that was not political.

The integrity of our courts is a matter that should concern us all equally, regardless of whether we are Democrat, Republican, Conservative or Liberal.

Bud Kuppenheimer Phelps _____________

To help prevent traffic crashes in road construction work zones that injure and kill motorists and workers, Gov. Scott Walker has proclaimed the week of April 23-27 as Work Zone Awareness Week in Wisconsin.

Walker’s proclamation noted that construction and maintenance of streets, highways and utility infrastructure are critical to economic vitality and keeping the state open for business.

The proclamation also reminded drivers that work

Nothing happens unless first a dream.

Carl Sandburg

zones often require narrowed lanes, lane shifts, temporary pavements, reduced speeds and night work, and advised that driving through work zones requires motorists’ utmost attention.

Last year, there were more than 1,700 work zone crashes in Wisconsin that caused eight deaths and nearly 750 injuries, 71 of which were serious, according to preliminary statistics from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (DOT).

“Driving through a work

zone is challenging under the best of circumstances, but your reaction time and margin for error are reduced significantly if you speed, tailgate or don’t pay attention to rapidly changing traffic situations,” said DOT Secretary Mark Gottlieb.

Rear-end collisions are the most frequent type of crashes in a work zone, according to Gottlieb.

“Because of the risks to motorists and workers, traffic fines are double in work zones,” said Gottlieb.

Store

CLOSING To make way for

Shopko Hometown!

Prices Slashed Storewide

30

%

Up To

Off* Orig.

Price

*Excludes Selected Categories

Groceries

Lawn Care

Patio Furniture

Sporting Goods

Apparel

For the Family

In-store specials on Mulch, Potting Soil, Bedding Plants, Hanging Baskets, Trees, Shrubs & More!

750 Hwy. 45 North, Eagle River We accept all major credit cards, Pamida gift cards and checks.

All Sales Final. We will accept returns on purchases made prior to 4/15/12, with receipt and in accordance with our standard return policy.