Wonders
of
WALWORTH COUNTY
Fall 2021
Published by Southern Lakes Newspapers LLC
Behind-the-Scenes
Page 2
WONDERS OF WALWORTH COUNTY
FALL 2021
Broadcasting more than anchors, microphones
by Jason Arndt
experiences. “Lots of cool tricks and very replayable highlights,” he said. “We just wanted to get the job done.”
STAFF WRITER
C
had Wuttke finds working in the broadcast television industry an experience unlike any other. Wuttke, an Elkhorn Area High School graduate, often encounters a demanding environment consisting of deadlines and split-second ramifications of helping with live productions. “When you’ve got a deadline, going on the air at a specific time, you are going on there regardless whether you are ready or not,” he said. “It is nerve-wracking. It is exciting and it is like a drug in a way.” But Wuttke isn’t holding the microphone, or appearing in front of television viewers, he spends most of his time packed inside a truck packaging and editing highlights from Wisconsin’s most prominent sporting events. These include telecasts of Milwaukee Brewers, Bucks, other professional sports and Wisconsin Badger athletic contests. “It is a very demanding environment, but you keep coming back,” Wuttke said. “There is nothing like producing live television. Live television is where it is at.” Wuttke, a freelance broadcast technician, acknowledged he serves as a small piece of a very large puzzle in delivering telecasts appealing to sports fan. On any given day, inside a broadcast truck, Wuttke is just one of about 10 to 15 people producing a telecast for Brewers games. This includes a producer, director, technical director, audio and graphics crews, engineer, among a series of other specialists. “There is a lot of controlled chaos. Anyone walking in would be amazed at how organized it is,” Wuttke said. The controlled chaos, he said, begins well before the first pitch of a baseball game, opening kickoff for football and tip-off in basketball. Wuttke, a freelancer for Bally Sports Wisconsin, typically arrives to American Family Field in Milwaukee six hours prior to the Brewers taking the field for a 7 p.m. game. “We get in about six before first pitch, then we start going through our checks and effect to make sure everything is running OK,” Wuttke said. “Then we start to edit our pre-production elements.” Pre-production elements, he said, include condensed highlights from the previous game. Additionally, Wuttke and the rest of the production crew spends time preparing for any scenario, if a situation arises from a game. “It is like a 10-hour day, give or take,” he said. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the Brewers production crew operates outside of American Family Field, instead of traveling with the Brewers for games. “We produce away games from home now, which was never really the case, in years past when the Brewers were out of town, the director and producer and
Humble journey
Chad Wuttke, a freelance broadcast technician, returned to Elkhorn to start a family with his wife, Sarah. Pictured with Chad and Sarah are their 10-month-old daughter Tessa and 3-year-old son, Leo. SUBMITTED PHOTO Wonders of Walworth County
everyone would travel with the team to the site and work on the site,” he said. “Now, they have figured out how to take a signal and reproduce the games from home.” Bally Sports Wisconsin, like other broadcasting entities, typically pares down staffing for road games.
Unreal dream Wuttke, born and raised in Elkhorn, would have never imagined working in the industry while growing up. A member of the Elkhorn High School golf team, Wuttke also was part of the AV Club, and lent his voice to the morning announcements at school. “I grew up going to Brewer games as a kid, but never pictured myself doing what I do now,” said Wuttke, who graduated from Elkhorn in 1997. “Even as I grew older, working as a regular member of the broadcast crew seemed like a pipe dream.” Recently, his dream became more surreal, when Wuttke received an opportunity as a contributor to the 2020 Olympic Summer Games in Tokyo. His opportunity, Wuttke said, developed two years earlier in 2019 when he worked a speed skating job at Pettit National Ice Center in Milwaukee. “It turns out that crew also covered the Olympics,” he said. “I must have made a good enough impression that I got a text over a year later out of the blue from the director, Nate Hill, asking me to go Memphis and then Tokyo.” Wuttke, who is married to Sarah, an Elkhorn Area School District teacher, and
father of two young children, initially hesitated because he wanted assurances from his wife. “I was humbled and excited beyond belief. It was easily the biggest opportunity of my career,” Wuttke said. “I said yes right away, but I also had two very little children at home so I knew it was going to be tough, especially for my wife.” But Sarah, he said, gave him her blessing and he took flight to Japan.
Olympic coverage Japan, under a national emergency because of the COVID-19 pandemic, restricted movement of broadcasters and athletes attending the Olympic Games in an attempt stem the spread of the virus. “It was amazing to see what it was like on the other side of the world,” said Wuttke, who had never been to another continent up until his 15-day stay in Japan. “I was there for 15 days, I was quarantined for 14 days, so it was the hotel, take a bus to the venue, take a bus back to the hotel,” said Wuttke. Wuttke could only patronize one approved restaurant and convenience store during his stay. “They were very protective of their country because they were under an emergency when the Olympics were going on,” he said. But Wuttke kept working, primarily covering BMX and skateboarding events, both of which he described as fun
Wuttke embarked on a long path to become a small part of Brewers, or any other Wisconsin sports team telecasts, since graduating in 1997 from Elkhorn. Four years later, Wuttke earned an associates degree in Multimedia Technology from Madison Media Institute in Madison, where he earned his first job in the industry working for local ABC affiliate WKOW. The job opportunity, he said, came about a week before he received his degree during a tour of WKOW building. “They mentioned a job opening and I beat out five others for the job,” he said. While at WKOW, Wuttke worked from 3:30 to 8:30 a.m. Monday through Friday, serving as editor and cameraman before becoming director of the news station’s morning show. During his tenure, Wuttke learned about freelance opportunities from Steve Zimmerman, who helped him seek side jobs such as wrapping cables at volleyball and softball games or holding a parabolic microphone on the sidelines of football contests. A parabolic microphone, which looks like a miniature satellite dish, collects field audio from sporting events and in other venues, After 12 years, Wuttke moved from the Madison area to Milwaukee, where he took a leap of faith and became a freelancer.
Starting a family
In 2013, Wuttke met Sarah, who was working as a teacher in Elkhorn. “The stars aligned and after 18 years away, I moved back to my hometown and started a family,” he said. Since then, the Wuttkes became parents to Tessa, 10 months, and Leo, 3. When Wuttke has a night off from collecting and compiling footage, he spends his time at home, where he sometimes points out edited content he helped produce to his wife. Wuttke, however, admits he offers his own perspective of telecasts he isn’t working on. Wuttke, who cracked a smile, said his wife would become “playfully annoyed” whenever he notes flaws or techniques in other telecasts people don’t often recognize. “It is like anything, if you are singer, you would think of it in a different way,” said Wuttke of how he views watching sporting events from home. Although he admits having an interesting job, Wuttke said it isn’t about the attention. “I am not a doctor. I don’t save lives,” he said, adding he feels fortunate for his opportunities. “My wife impacts more my lives than I do.” Sarah Wuttke is an instrumental music and band teacher.
Growing their own FALL 2021
WONDERS OF WALWORTH COUNTY
Page 3
Apprenticeships help build workforce at Precision Plus
by Tracy Ouellette EDITOR
Finding qualified workers to fill manufacturing positions is harder than it used to be, but many businesses are working with local schools by offering apprenticeship programs. Precision Plus in Elkhorn is one of those businesses. “We’re always looking for new, potential candidates for our apprenticeship program,” said Stephen Brusky, Precision Plus director of education and business development. The machining company has been running its youth apprenticeship program for about six year, Brusky said. And many of the students have stayed with the company as full-time employees after completing the program. “We have a couple employees who have been here since the original apprenticeship, it’s a great career for them and benefits us as well,” Brusky said. Precision Plus’ high school program runs full-time during the summer and students get high school credit for the onthe-job learning. “They are here usually eight hours a day and we put them through a rotation through all the departments so they get to know the people and what the department is doing,” Brusky said. The rotation includes two weeks in secondary operation, two weeks in quality control, three weeks in CNC Swiss production, three weeks in Mechanical Swiss production, three weeks in the large CNC machine department, two weeks in shipping and two weeks the parts department. “They get a little bit of everything,” Brusky said. After the rotation is completed, the students get to decide what they like best and they are assigned to that department to finish out the program and meet the state criteria for apprenticeship completion, Brusky said. “A lot of them will stay on after this and become full-time workers,” he added. While the apprenticeship program runs during the summer months, many of the high school students will opt to work parttime during the school year. “Most of them are seniors, so they can get credit for working,” Brusky said.
Precision Plus Director of Education Stephen Brusky works with students in the company’s youth apprenticeship program. The program at the Elkhorn company works with area high schools to recruit students into the manufacturing field and strengthen the workforce. SUBMITTED PHOTO Wonders of Walworth County
“After graduation they can continue their training here. We have internal training programs where they can get hand-on parts machining experience all the way up to advance CNC courses.” Brusky said many of the high school students who enter the program didn’t even know something like this was available to them until they found out at school. “They are so excited,” Brusky said. “These are guys who work on tractors and cars and they don’t have the equipment at home to do some of the things they want to do, so when they come here and see what they can do, they just love it.” Brusky said apprenticeships are becoming popular again because of the
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lack of skilled tradespeople in the industry and Precision Plus is dedicated to training a whole new generation of machinists and factory workers. “We’re trying to reverse the stigma of needing a four-year college degree to be successful in life,” Brusky said. “For too long kids have been told they need to go to college to be a success and it’s not true and college isn’t for everyone. We’ve had some very, very successful people come out of our apprenticeship program, some of them are almost making six figures and doing so much better than their friends are doing right now.” Brusky credits the company’s dedication to education and willingness to go the extra mile with the students’ success.
Precision Plus President Mike J. Reader and Chief Operating Office Dave Strand are both actively involved in the program and support the apprentices throughout the process. “We’re all really passionate about it,” Brusky said. “Dave Strand retired from Wisconsin Oven and then came out of retirement to work here. He’s been such an asset to the program, it was a giant part of his former company and he’s brought all that education and passion here. He and Mike are a great team.” Precision Plus is at 840 Koopman Lane in Elkhorn. For more information about training, education and careers with the company, visit www.preplus.com and click on the “Careers” tab.
Wonders of Walworth County
A publication of Southern Lakes Newspapers LLC and The Beacon 1102 Ann St., Delavan, WI 53115 • (262) 728-3411 FOR GENERAL MANAGER: .....................................Sue Z. Lange ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITIES: EDITOR: .....................................................Tracy Ouellette Call (262) CREATIVE/PRODUCTION DIRECTOR: ................Heidi Schulz 725-7701, PAGE DESIGNER: ...........................................Jen DeGroot ext. 134 ADVERTISING DIRECTOR: ......................Vicki Vanderwerff ON THE COVER: Lorelei, daughter of Nate and Felicia Longo, is ready to take off during the annual Lane’s Way car and truck show Sept. 11 at Elkhorn Area High School. The event honors firefighters, police and first responders and a hometown hero. This year there was a special 9/11 memorial ceremony. Funds raised support veterans and a scholarship. In March 2019, Lane Schweitzer, of Elkhorn, died in a dirt bike accident at the age of 15. Photo courtesy of Dave Dresdow
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WONDERS OF WALWORTH COUNTY
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a month, my family taught the youngest children basic music concepts using the recorders. The older youth learned the instruments of their choice using the rudimentary music books, which also taught proper posture, embouchure (the way a player applies the mouth to the mouthpiece of a brass or wind instrument) and positioning,” Kearney said.
Local instrument repair shop helps missionaries teach music
A helping hand
by Heather Ruenz STAFF WRITER
A
partnership that developed several years ago between a missionary and the owner of a musical instrument repair shop eventually led to children in West Africa being taught how to make music. Ed Strege – owner of Badger State Repair in Elkhorn, met Fredrick Kearney – a missionary serving with Baptist International Missions Incorporated – when Strege was repairing an instrument that belonged to Kearney’s son. The story began in the fall of 2004, when Kearney and his wife, Antoinette, had the opportunity to take a survey trip to Ghana, West Africa. “Ghana is a place that had been indelibly placed on my heart to serve as a church planting missionary. From the moment we arrived until the time we left, it was clear that music is the major centerpiece in every aspect of life,” he said. Among the events music is the centerpiece of, he said, are worship services, naming ceremonies, weddings, funerals, Thanksgiving and festivals. Kearney said upon their return from the survey trip, he began to appeal for the donations of musical instruments and purchased the rudimentary music books for the future work in Ghana. “When we returned to Ghana to live, we reached out in our poverty stricken community in Tema-Ashaiman Newtown, with the gospel and started our first church,” he said. “My vision to have a classical orchestra that played traditional hymns and local choruses was still burning in my heart.” Strege said what Kearney was trying to do was inspiring. “We were working on an instrument for his son and he started telling me about wanting to start an orchestra,” Strege said.
WONDERS OF WALWORTH COUNTY
The Kearney family serve as missionaries in Ghana, West Africa, from the left: (front) Mary-Elisabeth; mom Antoinette; (back) Michael, dad Fredrick Sr., Fredrick Jr. and Stephen. It was Fredrick Sr.’s dream to bring music to people in the community they live in, which has gone above and beyond his expectations.
Strege, who has owned Badger State Repair for 35 years, has donated many instruments to Kearney’s cause. “Ed partnered with us and has given us significant donations of musical instruments that will make it possible to reach out to two additional locations with our music program,” Kearney said. Strege said he’s happy to help “I would do anything for this guy. He and his family are all involved and helping out. They’re doing great things,” Strege said. Once the music program got started, Kearney said, it took off. He said as they practiced and played during church services, many people in the community not only develop a love for God’s word and service but also an interest to learn music. He shared a story about Prosper, a young boy who loved music. “He came, and took a liking to the tenor
SUBMITTED PHOTO Wonders of Walworth County
Fast-track learning In order for it to be a success, Kearney said he knew he needed to learn more about instruments – how they work and how to fix them when they didn’t work properly. “He asked if I would show him what I know so he spent about a week here and I taught him what I could about repairing a variety of instruments,” Strege said. Kearney, who was not musically trained, said he hoped a music educator would partner with the mission to develop and train the young people for the orchestra he had envisioned. “But after four years of waiting, I realized that if this journey were to become a reality, I would have to start it,” he said. He said he displayed all the musical instruments for a “petting” activity with the youth in the West Africa community they lived in. “The excitement was contagious. Within
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WONDERS OF WALWORTH COUNTY
INSTRUMENT REPAIR saxophone. Because he could not take the instrument home to practice, he would take a PVC pipe, put holes in it and play it like a flute. He worked hard to improve his skills and joined the orchestra,” Kearney said. But Prosper learning the tenor saxophone and joining the orchestra was just the beginning. “He has since taught himself how to play the piano, flute, viola, oboe, and violin and served as our orchestra conductor. He is also an integral part of our ministry,” Kearney said, adding that Prosper now serves in many significant roles of the church and has started a music program in the new church where he leads. Delivery of the instruments to Kearney are by way of what Strege referred to as a “road angel,”
FALL 2021
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mission. Quayson has recently started a music program for 24 young people in the city of Zenu. He plays and teaches strings, woodwinds and brass. Kearney’s daughter has taken on new roles as well. “Our 17-year-old daughter, MaryElisabeth Kearney, is the conductor of our orchestra for the past year and a half. She also teaches the violin to a group of children,” he said. Kearney said the area they’re in is faced with many challenges but they believe with faith, encouragement and music, greatness can be achieved. “With this in mind, we have opened our home to seven additional children,
to give them a better chance to succeed. God has provided the funds for us to be able to acquire a piece of property for the dream family life center that will house not only the youth but also the orchestra with practice rooms, a great hall, and a state of the arts training facility for musical instrument repair,” he said. Strege said the Kearney family offers a good reminder to help out where you can with what you have. “You like to feel as though your time here on earth will leave it a better place. Fredrick is a very humble man, but he must
be pleased with what he’s doing and I’m honored to know him and to be able to help,” Strege said. For Kearney, at least on some level, his dream has become a reality. “Lives are being changed through the power of God’s word and the joy of music,” he said. Strege said if people have horns they want to donate, he will make sure they get to Kearney in West Africa. Tax-deductible donations can be sent to the Kearney’s mission by visiting www.bimi.org/ missionaries/kearneyF.php.
The music grows Kearney said the orchestra has been a magnet of enrichment and a haven of development for many of the youth in their community. “Since it’s inception, we have trained over 70 young people to play musical instruments. Four of our orchestra members were selected to be part of a musical with the Ghana National Symphony Orchestra. Thirteen members have been trained in musical instrument repair,” he said. The orchestra meets three times a week and practices under tents on the grounds of the Kearneys’ home and church compound. He said they play rich melodious sacred or traditional hymns for every church service and have held an Easter and Christmas concert for the past seven years. He said it’s inspiring to see others step up, including brother Samuel Quayson, of the Independent Lighthouse Baptist Church
above: Ed Strege, owner of Badger State Repair in Elkhorn, stands near the latest shipment of instruments he’s donating to the Kearney’s mission in West Africa. Strege spent time with Fredrick Kearney Sr. at Badger State showing him how to repair instruments. left: Theresa Wagner, who also works in the solder and brass assembly departments at Badger State Repair tests a trumpet. The company has repaired and donated instruments to a missionary family living in West Africa. HEATHER RUENZ PHOTOS Wonders of Walworth County
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FALL 2021
WONDERS OF WALWORTH COUNTY
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Teen tennis phenom nearly reaches U.S. Open Whitewater’s Reese Brantmeier headed for bright tennis career
By Michael J. Lewis CORRESPONDENT
Sixteen-year-old Reese Brantmeier laughed at the question, because it seemed preposterous, but after the U.S. Open tennis tournament that happened recently, it wasn’t. Brantmeier, a Whitewater native, is a precocious and talented tennis player, one of the best juniors in the world. Because of that, she was given a chance to play in the professional U.S. Open qualifying tournament, a week before the “main event” started, to try to make it into the women’s event. There was another upstart in the qualifying, a girl only two years older than Brantmeier, named Emma Raducanu. Brantmeier won two matches in the qualifying tournament and very nearly won a third, falling just short of a major accomplishment. Raducanu won one more qualifying match than Brantmeier – and then improbably won the entire U.S. Open, the most stunning result in decades. “So,” Brantmeier was asked, “if you’d won one more qualifying match, that would’ve been you winning the Open, not Emma, right?” “Haha definitely,” Brantmeier said laughing, while talking by phone from a New York airport the evening of Sept. 12. “That was insane, what Emma did. Just crazy.” OK, so maybe it would’ve been improbable for Brantmeier to win a Grand Slam title. But not that crazy in the near future, given her trajectory. The blonde kid with the huge forehand and winning smile is rapidly coming closer to a pro tennis career, and there’s every reason to believe she’ll be a star sooner than later. Just a few of the Whitewater teen’s accomplishments in the past year include the following: • Reached the third round of Junior Wimbledon in July; • Was the runner-up at the USTA 18s Nationals in San Diego in August, losing a close match to Ashlyn Krueger; • Defeated two pro opponents at the Open qualifying, including the former No. 35-ranked player, Olga Govortsova. After nearly reaching the women’s draw, Brantmeier competed in the junior singles and doubles tournament. In singles, she was defeated by her doubles partner, Elvina Kalieva, in the second round. But in doubles, Brantmeier and Kalieva advanced all the way to the finals on Sept. 11, before losing to the American duo of Krueger and Robin Montgomery. “I obviously didn’t come here planning to lose, but there were a lot of positives I take away from the whole experience,” Brantmeier said. “I won two matches in women’s qualifying, and I gained a lot of confidence in my game and showed I can hang with those kinds of players. I was definitely upset for a few hours after losing in qualies, but then I realized what a great experience it was,” she added. For Reese and her mom, Becky, who was with her for the three weeks in New York, the past 18 months have seen their lives turned upside down, as has the rest of the world. When COVID hit, Reese’s dad Scott,
“
I won two matches in women’s qualifying, and I gained a lot of confidence in my game and showed I can hang with those kinds of players.”
– Reese Brantmeier
Reese Brantmeier, 16, of Whitewater, is shown competing in a U.S. Open junior match in New York. After nearly reaching the women’s draw by winning two matches, Brantmeier competed in the junior singles and doubles tournament. In doubles, she and her partner, Elvina Kalieva, advanced all the way to the finals on Sept. 11 before losing. PHOTOS COURTESY JED JACOBSOHN/USTA Wonders of Walworth County
a family practice doctor in Whitewater, was incredibly busy with patients, while brothers Justin and Zach were home from college. For the first time in a long time, Reese’s tennis travels stopped, and the whole family was back together in Whitewater. “There weren’t any tournaments to go to; she’s not used to being home that much,” Becky said. “But it was good for all of us.” After spending last spring at home, Becky and Reese moved down to the USTA Training Center, where they lived at a hotel and worked with top American coaches like Jermaine Jenkins. For lots of people, following strict COVID protocols and being isolated for long stretches was a real issue. Not for
Reese. “She loved it!” Becky said. “She’s an introvert, so while other kids (at the USTA center) were complaining about having to go back to their rooms and be alone, she would take her five books and go to her room and be very happy for hours.” In Orlando, Reese’s game developed to the point where she is now one of the Top 30 juniors in the world rankings. “I think fundamentally she’s put together very well,” said Matt Cloer, one of Brantmeier’s coaches who was with her at the U.S. Open. “She’s got great variety, the ability to come forward (to the net), she’s got a great slice backhand (and) she drives her forehand very well. She’s such a hard worker and wants to get better, every day.”
With so much junior success early, of course many major Division I schools are interested in Reese, and it’s likely that soon top sports agents will be calling the Brantmeiers asking for her signature on a pro contract (Becky says there haven’t been many agent inquiries so far). For now, Becky and Reese said she’s keeping college as an option, and therefore declining almost all of the $42,000 Reese won by making it to the final round of U.S. Open qualifying, to maintain her college eligibility. But with so much success already – and Reese planning to play small pro tournaments this fall to judge her readiness for that level – it seems highly likely that going pro will be the next move for her. Until then, small moments like what happened the first few days of the Open will still excite her. “We had little kids spotting her and coming up to her and asking her to sign their giant tennis balls,” Becky said with a laugh. “And Reese was sure they didn’t know who she was, that they just saw someone carrying a lot of tennis rackets and figured they were a player. But then a few days later these pictures are popping up on the Internet and people saying, ‘I got a ball signed by Reese Brantmeier.’ That was very exciting for her.” Michael Lewis is a freelance reporter who lives in New York.
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WONDERS OF WALWORTH COUNTY
FALL 2021
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