Valley Sentinel - 01-12-2023

January marks end of Sauk County COVID-19 testing sites

Public Health Sauk County has announced that Sauk County COVID-19 testing sites will be closing temporarily after January 15, due to lack of use. These sites, located in Spring Green, Reedsburg, and Baraboo, were set up in partnership with local emergency medical services.

The final testing clinic in Spring Green will be held on January 15 from 5:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Spring Green Fire/EMS station, located at 327 S Winsted Street. To register for a test at this location, individuals must use the COVID Connect System at https://covidconnect2.wi.gov/#/ login and also register at https://www. springgreenems.com.

"We are incredibly grateful for our partnership with Spring Green Fire/ EMS, Reedsburg Ambulance Service, and Baraboo EMS to help coordinate these COVID-19 testing sites,"

said Andrea Zuther, COVID Nurse Supervisor at Public Health Sauk County. "Despite these testing sites coming to an end, know that there continue to be options available if you would like to get free COVID tests."

Individuals can order one free package of five at-home COVID-19 tests per month from the Wisconsin Department of Health Services at sayyescovidhometest.org, or can get four free at-home COVID-19 tests from the federal government at covid. gov/tests. For help placing an order, individuals can call 1-800-232-0233. For questions about COVID-19, testing sites, or vaccines, individuals can contact Public Health Sauk County at 608-355-3290 and select option #3 to leave a message. The COVID Response Team will make every effort to respond within 24 hours, although the phone is not monitored on weekends.

River Valley ARTS Creative Community and Artistic Development Grant applications available

Do you have an idea for innovative arts programming that will benefit the River Valley Area? Are you an artist who would like support for your individual learning and development?

If so, River Valley ARTS is here to help! Creative Community and Artistic Development grant applications will be available at www.RiverValleyARTS. org in early January 2023. Deadline to apply will be late February 2023. Maximum award amount is $2,500.

Creative Community Grants

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

River Valley Community Chorus welcomes new singers

The River Valley Community Chorus welcomes new singers to

join them in the Musicians Unite to Fill an Empty Table concert in the afternoon, April 23, 2023, at St.

have

Artistic Development Grants

The purpose of the Artistic Development Grant is to support an individual's arts project or artistic learning and development. Possible use of Artistic Development Grant money could include expenses related

Luke’s Catholic Church in Plain. The River Valley Community Chorus will perform jointly with students from

to projects in the visual or performing arts, to help cover short-term courses, workshops, materials and supplies, and art/music classes or camps. Any professional artist, amateur artist, or student in the River Valley is eligible to apply for the Artistic Development Grant. Criteria for evaluating Artistic Grant applications are individual benefit, educational benefit, financial need, and community benefit. Funding for Artistic Development Grants is made possible by the generous support of local donors and businesses.

Photo by Nicole Aimone, Editor-in-Chief EMS Chief Derek Miller, left, hands volunteer Kathy Santos a completed COVID-19 swab test December 2020 at the weekly testing site at the Spring Green Fire Department.

Melinda Van Slyke, River Valley ARTS

Nancy Cullen, RVCC Board Member the River Valley High School

Editor'S Column

It’s our first edition of the new year, and while I have a lovehate relationship with New Year's resolutions, we wanted to take some time to share a few resolutions we are making, in hopes to give our community and readers what’s needed through our publication.

In October 2022, we passed the anniversary of our second full calendar year of publication. However, due to when Valley Sentinel started publishing at the end of 2020, 2023 will technically be the 4th calendar year in which we’ve published an edition. You’ll see this reflected on our volume number on our cover.

We’ve shared many times the story of how we started this small business by building a desk, cashing in savings bonds and working hard to make a dream come true. We started very small and have had some tremendous growth since the days of building a desk, but it hasn’t always been easy (something we share with our readers semi-regularly as well).

While we’ve had some amazing growth throughout our time, we’re still very much a grassroots, small business. There is still only a small handful of dedicated, passionate volunteers making this happen each edition and we’re always doing the best we can. Part of doing the best we can does mean changing things that aren’t working, or refocusing on areas that aren’t getting enough attention (and trust us, we’ve found plenty of each of those things).

You’ll notice this edition is again shorter than we’d like. It’s certainly not for a lack of content. We’re doing work in the background to find the best ways to share and present this content in a way that becomes familiar and easy to engage with. As we start the new year, we are practically bursting at the seams with the ideas we’d like to create, share and put out into the community — but we have a few major resolutions we’d like to focus on, and commit to right here in the first edition of 2023.

The first being a commitment to civic engagement and the watchdog role of news media. The Sentinel in our name implies a certain level of watchdog journalism that we haven’t had the resources to consistently commit to in the ways we’ve wanted. While our resources and manpower haven’t necessarily changed, we want to make an effort to refocus on this important piece of our role. We want to focus on encouraging the community to get more civically involved — whether that means showing up to your local government meetings and speaking at public comment on a topic that’s important to you or taking it a step further and getting involved in local government or even getting more community members to vote — we are working on ways to include more content centered around this in each publication. Currently, we’re navigating some growing pains as we mature as a publication. One of those civically-minded aspects of maturing is having filed our first public records complaint. This isn’t unfamiliar territory to established news media, and it’s not new territory to any of our editors. It’s an area that I navigated while covering Sauk County government for Capital Newspapers, wading through public records that were handed over well after they should have been.

Our second major New Year’s resolution is committing to finding a way to better highlight and include community contributors, especially arts and culture pieces from our community. We’re starting the process in the background of figuring out how best to feature the many writings, artwork, prose, poetry, photos and more from local contributors.

We would like to try and find a way to present more of this and really focus on this part of our wonderful community, because we have so many talented individuals in this area. This may include a poetry section or a preview (or review) of live music or something similar. The ideas are endless on how we do this, but we are excited at the prospect of being able to potentially share more prose, poetry and artwork in a little bit of a different way that engages with our community. It’s important to note that these resolutions won’t be made overnight and we’re only in month 1 of 12 of this arbitrary year. These will be gradual improvements we are working towards, with our mantra here being progress over perfection and our focus being on providing the community with even more resources and information. We may be navigating those growing pains over here, but with your help, support and involvement, we can truly continue to grow into a publication that serves our entire community.

— Nicole Aimone, Editor-in-Chief

On the

Legal Editor's Column: We're suing Lone Rock over public records, here's why

Gary Ernest Grass, esq., Legal Editor

Last Halloween the Village of Lone Rock held a public meeting and did not notify the Valley Sentinel. The next night they held public hearings on their annual budget and a village board meeting.

The Valley Sentinel was sent an e-mail notice less than an hour before the meeting started. We asked for various public records related to these matters and got nothing. The village clerk told us we were not entitled to notice, and past notices had merely been given as a courtesy.

Now we’re suing.

There were lots of reasons for us not to sue. You might think we rushed into this without considering those reasons. If so, you would be wrong.

We know that the ideals of government transparency sound abstract, and it’s hard to talk about them without sounding self-righteous and clichéd. In the real world, looking at something at the level of a village, they seem less important. The village says it informed its citizens in other reliable ways, and we have no strong reason to doubt that. They weren’t trying to deliberately shut out the media to hide dirty secrets or operate in the dark so they could engage in corruption. It’s all local stuff and in small towns if anything were amiss word would get around anyway. So what’s the big deal, actually?

Plus, these are not well-paid full time career politicians that run million dollar campaigns to get elected or go on junkets funded by industries seeking to peddle influence. These are our local friends and neighbors who have noble reasons for wanting to get involved. Dragging them into court or making them pay fines will only discourage civil involvement.

All that is true.

Furthermore, the paper is taking a risk that it will alienate local leaders and citizens that it relies upon as sources, readers, and advertisers.

So why?

Because at the end of the day we still consider this a vitally important issue. Because we believe the press has a solemn duty to fight for the principles of transparency, because the law is on our side, and because this is not just an ordinary lapse or mistake, but something far more egregious.

First, recall that this was not just a couple of ordinary meetings and documents. There are meetings and records concerning the village’s annual budget. This is one of the most important things that any unit of local government decides, and it has special protection under law. Summaries of proposed budgets are supposed to be made available to the public well in advance, Public hearings are required. Most municipalities are required to

place a paid “Class 1 Notice” in the official paper for the locality. Once set, the budget has a legal force that cannot simply be undone. It restricts spending for the whole year unless special procedures are used to enact changes. So that makes this a much bigger deal than the average meeting.

It is also considered one of the core functions of our transparency laws that the people be able to see how public monies are being spent. In part this comes from the public experience with greed and waste. It would be wrong to think that the only concern is outright corruption. Well meaning people may direct funds to vendors they know not because they’re getting some kind of a kickback, but because they honestly think the one they know is the best or only alternative. Opening up the process is a way of making officials aware of appearances of conflict they might overlook, and allowing better alternatives to come to light.

We don’t think officials in Lone Rock are crooks, but could greater transparency have benefited them? Well, it’s hard for us to say when we can’t get most of the records.

Second, the clerk’s comment that she believes no notice to the press is required is alarming. Our understanding is that the clerk in Lone Rock, like the clerk in most villages, has been designated the responsibility of sending out notice to the press and the public. Someone in that position should know what is required. She also does not seem to have acknowledged the public’s right to inspect or receive public documents. Providing access to government records is described by statute as one of the core responsibilities of public officials. If she believes access to meetings and records is just a courtesy, how many times might she have failed to provide that “courtesy”?

In the case of media notices, it seems like she may be confusing “Public Notice” with notice “to the public,” which is admittedly a pretty easy mistake to make. The Wisconsin statutes have a section called “Public Notice” which states that notice must be given to two classes of public media and also directly to the public. (The Valley Sentinel is in one of these classes: media who have requested in advance to be notified of any public meetings.) A section of the law allows notice “to the public” to be provided in various ways, including posting in designated places or online. But this does not discharge the independent duty to inform the media. The legislature thought that informing the press was independently important because the press can play a vital role, not just transmitting the notice to the people, but also looking deeper,

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

investigating, commenting, bringing out different perspectives and connections. We believe that as well.

Essentially, there are two kinds of mistakes a public official can make with respect to a public duty: first, the duty can be executed imperfectly, or not executed, because of inadvertence or excusable neglect; second, the duty can be rejected altogether, either because the official sees as not being a duty at all. The second is much more serious.

The final factor worth discussing here is that each failure here was, with respect to the Valley Sentinel, absolute or near absolute. Many times people sue over public records because they received most of the records, but not all. They disagree with something being redacted. Copies were not clear. The response was late. They were overcharged. They complain about meeting notices that were late, unclear, or had missing information. There was some effort to comply with the statute, in other words, but there were errors.

In this case, the Valley Sentinel has waited over two months and received no records, and no acknowledgement that any will ever be provided. Under the law, records are to be provided as soon as practicable and without delay.

The Department of Justice has long recommended that records be provided within 10 days, or if that is not possible, that the custodian of records send within 10 days an acknowledgement of the request and an estimated time for completion. So it hasn’t been a small error, but as far as we can tell, a complete failure or rejection of the law.

Similarly, the Valley Sentinel did not receive late or incomplete notice or the October 31 meeting — we received no notice at all. The notice for the November 1 public hearing and board meeting came less than an hour before the meeting. The standard is 24 hours — two in an emergency. Here, not even one. This is more than a small mistake.

We acknowledged at the outset that talk about the ideals of open government often sounds self-righteous and clichéd, but it is still something we believe in. We think it is integral to the idea of democracy. If our ideal is government by the people, for the people, then government meetings are the people’s meetings, and government records are the people’s records. Having access to these things is part and parcel of the government not being some external force that we deal with at arm’s length, but something that is a part of us, that we do.

We don’t think every little mistake merits a lawsuit. But we think with issues this important, we need to be vigilant. And in this case, the violations were far too serious to just ignore.

With the many things going on in Lone Rock and Richland County covered by this edition, we wanted to put together an illustration that created a representation of the issues raised.

Dear Editor, The UW System has promised a proposal for UW Platteville Richland. This is welcome news, and we are hopeful that they will cooperate with us. However, the annexation of Richland campus to UW Platteville reduced by 55% our financial support from both UW System and UW Platteville. Our Dean’s position, a recruiter, 11 of 18 faculty members, Student Services staff, the International Coordinator, the Continuing Education Director-similarly all gone. We’ve also lost the marketing and strategic plan, and Youth Options and Academic Alliance programs were ended. As one of the UW Colleges, we were the third largest institution within the system, and

especially important for this poor rural area, we had the lowest cost per student for the UW System.

The campus has tremendous community support, including from our Foundation, a leader among all 13 colleges. Being near Madison in a rural setting with a 134-acre campus and a 192-acre wooded and tillable farm for campus use, we are ideally set to be associated with UW Madison’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Nearby are large farms associated with Organic Valley. These features, along with our modern labs on campus, would provide ideal space for research in many areas of agriculture and environmental studies.

Richland Campus has been a hub for

International students since 1986, most of whom started here and transferred to UW Madison. Our faculty and staff all had professional training on how best to support students from different cultures, and the community hosted and mentored them. We brought the USA to them and they brought the world to us.

We have multiple attributes valuable to higher education. The campus is located in a beautiful environment that supports the Wisconsin Idea, exemplifying how all colleges could be revived and offer what the Regents want: affordability and accessibility.

Kay Ziegahn, Richland Center, Wisconsin

cover “County line, Lone Rock, Wisconsin” (2023) Mixed media/digital, by Valley Sentinel/AI/ Public Domain

EDITORIAL

UW-Richland will not be saved outside the courtroom, action is needed now

The County and the community were disheartened just over a month ago when a unilateral directive from University of Wisconsin System President Jay Rothman directed the administration of the University of Wisconsin-Platteville Richland campus in Richland Center to start winding down operations and to plan to discontinue in-person instruction starting fall 2023, with the directive also promising a transition plan that floated the red herring ideas of online instruction and continuing education.

It’s become increasingly clear that the only way to save UW-Richland is inside a courtroom.

A cursory review of the 1966 agreement between the County and the UW System indicates to this editorial board that it’s not even clear that Rothman’s unilateral directive is legal. This alone, in addition to the many other various ways the community and the County are about to be harmed, is reason enough to play this out in a courtroom.

The 1966 agreement for the County-owned campus lays out a structure of shared responsibilities, with the County maintaining the buildings and grounds and the UW System maintaining the campus as an instructional institution itself. The agreement is set to continue in perpetuity and the lease between the County and the UW System isn’t set to expire until 2042.

It takes a vote of the UW System Board of Regents to close a campus down. But that’s notyet - what Rothman’s directive purports to do, technically.

Legally, it is significant that UW-Richland is not an "institution" but merely a "campus." If it were independent, with its own chancellor, any fundamental change to its mission would have to go through public hearings. Fundamental responsibility for changing that mission would belong to the chancellor, not the system president.

Because it is now merely a campus, the process for closing or fundamentally changing Richland's role is streamlined, but it's still hard to understand where the UW System President would get this authority. The president has no independent powers and only carries out the directives of the regents. When did the regents direct this?

Also, although the role of the students and faculty was dramatically reduced in 2015, they are still supposed to be participants in advising university policy. What opportunity for formal input did they have?

Moreover, the 1966 agreement specifically lays out the UW System’s obligation to maintain the campus, and to provide adequate instructional and administrative staff. The only way the agreement can be terminated is, in June of any given year, if: 1.) the legislature fundamentally changes how the branch campuses operate, 2.) if the legislature doesn’t

Contact

588-6694 editor@valleysentinelnews.com valleysentinelnews.com

provide adequate funding. (If you noticed the series missed an “and” or an “or” there, you’re not alone — the agreement is missing any sort of conjunction that would indicate whether either or both conditions must apply.) Even if the necessary condition (or conditions) exist for termination, the obtuse language is not clear how the “automatic termination” of the agreement operates or is initiated in practice: what happens if one party thinks that funding is adequate and the other does not, or if they disagree whether a change in branch operations is fundamental?

Rothman’s unilateral directive appears to be the best example of breach of contract and financial responsibility the County could ask for in court. Applicable here, the agreement is binding until the state doesn’t adequately fund the campus, only then are there potential avenues to exit the agreement. Until that time, the UW System has an obligation to maintain the campus, and to provide adequate instructional and administrative staff.

Rothman’s directive is a perfect example of intent by the UW System to not provide adequate instruction or administrative staff — and perhaps he’s hoping you’ll ignore that until this June when perhaps he believes the UW System can exit the agreement.

Further, one might bet the UW System has no intention of actually providing continuing education or online instruction at the campus — that it is instead an exercise in subterfuge to placate the community and spread out the adverse news until June, when the train that’s currently leaving the station cannot be stopped and they believe the UW System can simply exit the agreement. Regardless, let’s not mince words, the loss of in-person instruction would mean the constructive closure of the campus.

There’s one foolproof way to ensure that Rothman’s directive is upheld, legal or not, and that the campus fails to exist as it has — by simply doing nothing.

You may want to wait to see what the UW System’s forthcoming proposal is for the future of the campus. You may welcome their promise to cooperate and negotiate with you in good faith.

You may quixotically believe that any such usurpation, as Rothman’s questionable directive intends, does not become lawful with time. However, the reality is, as much as we may have faith in the courts to make things right, and to sort right from wrong and legal from not, they’re not God and they don’t play Him on TV, and oftentimes they are forced to sanction the plan that entails the least amount of disruption. When dealing with institutions such as these, there are things that even the courts cannot undo after a time — and we are rapidly approaching that juncture. Any negotiations are a distraction and any forthcoming proposal is, at best, a delay and, at worst, a closure by another name. The County and the community will find themselves “negotiating” with their hands tied behind their back if they don’t quickly take legal action.

Remember, the UW System also promised to maintain the campus and provide adequate instruction and administration. When you look at the recent history of funding, instruction, administration and enrollment decisions by the UW System with regard to UW-Richland, the simple “falling enrollment” narrative falls apart. By most measures, the data appears to indicate that this is a long-planned constructive closure and the campus was set up to fail. It becomes easier to see and easier to legally argue that the UW System has failed to maintain and adequately provide funding, instruction and admin for quite some time.

So what can you do?

This is your time to show your support. This is not the time to reminisce about how nice the campus was in the past. This is the time to fight for its future. This is the time to take action and get involved. Urge your County Board to fight this fight in the courtroom. Sign on to a court case with fellow community members to legally address the harm the UW System is threatening to do to you educationally and as taxpayers. Sign a sincere letter of intent that says you would seek education in its many forms at UW-Richland if it continued to provide in-person instruction. Organize. Sign hundreds of community members onto a lawsuit asserting harm by this constructive closure. If possible, get certified as a class action. Hold regular meetings as a community, with legal counsel, as things progress in court, keeping everyone involved and empowered. Regardless, fight this fight and show the UW System that UW-Richland isn’t just a memory, it’s a need.

Ask your County Board to take this fight to the courtroom. This sort of fight is part of their job and part of representing your interests. It could be said that the County has the best chance and best legal argument to stop this. Ask them to put together a legal team that knows the UW System and contract law (even better if they take this fight pro bono or on contingency). Push for an immediate request in court for an injunction preserving the status quo that existed before the directive, enjoining the UW System and UW-Platteville from moving forward with winding things down and discontinuing in-person instruction.

Then move forward with a legal challenge to the directive and the ability of the UW System to unilaterally remove itself from its agreement with the County. While the legal fight plays out, in-person instruction continues, giving the community time to organize to secure the campus’ future.

With the right legal team, what does the County have to lose by taking this action? The campus is County-owned, they will need to maintain the buildings and grounds as a financial pit if the campus closes anyway. There’s so much more to lose by not taking this fight.

We need to be clear: legal action is not the only way to affect policy. Action outside of the court is essential. Public pressure should be put on

the president and the regents to do the right thing; with secondary targets being the chancellor, faculty and students, the public and the legislature. Asking the courts to fix this has many problems of its own: it is slow, expensive and uncertain, and limited by the law. But the courts have one important power that is essential: to freeze the actions of the university so that the community has the chance to mobilize and the president's scheme does not become a fait accompli. It will be much easier to prevent this plan from finishing than it would be to try and undo it once it is complete.

All the while the community, organizations, the UW-Richland Foundation and the County and its Education Committee need to come up with a plan for the campus to succeed, financially and otherwise, for years to come. A court will need to be shown that there is a need and there is a plan, if it is to uphold the agreement and order the UW System to continue to properly maintain the campus, its instruction and administration.

It’s time for Richland County and its Board to take action, taking the stance that Rothman’s directive isn’t legal while posturing to maintain the status quo that existed before the directive and asserting the attitude and policy that the campus isn’t closing or discontinuing in-person instruction, now or until at least 2042.

The agreement remains in effect and, while it does, the UW System should not be allowed to discontinue in-person instruction. Continuing education, online education or other offhand proposals intended to placate the community could never have been contemplated to meet the threshold of adequate instruction and intent of the agreement when signed, and they do not. The UW System needs to be held to account and held to their promise to maintain the campus and provide the agreed to adequate instruction and administration.

Should this be fought in the courtroom, and should the UW System be enjoined from winding down, closing the campus or discontinuing in-person instruction while the legal fight continues, this is your time to show the County, the UW System, the Legislature and the Governor that there is interest and a need for UW-Richland and that there is a plan to support it. These public officials need to be lobbied in support of adequate funding of UW-Richland.

This is the time to fight. Attend the next County Board meeting, attend the next County Education Committee meeting, lobby your elected officials, reach out to the Friends of the Campus group and figure out how to organize and get involved.

If you wait and see, or start simply inventorying the campus’ assets, you’ll lose UW-Richland, the campus’ storied history and impact on so many and all the potential it has to impact the educational pursuits of future students — and it’s not something you’ll ever get back.

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Editorial Policy

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

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

Est. 2020

igne conflatum “Forged in Fire”

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Covering Arena, Lone Rock, Plain, Spring Green and the surrounding areas in Sauk, Iowa and Richland counties.

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Valley Sentinel is published in Spring Green, Wisconsin every other Thursday by Lower Wisconsin River Valley Sentinel, LLC. ISSN 2694-541X (print) — ISSN 2694-5401 (online)

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COmmunitycalendar

Events for January 13 - January 26

Friday, January 13

LIVE MUSIC: Genevieve Heyward 7:30 PM - 10:00 PM Slowpoke Lounge, 137 W Jefferson St., Spring Green slowpokelounge.com Tickets $10 in advance, $15 at the door Join us as we welcome Genevieve Heyward with her band. Since she can remember, Wisconsin based singer-songwriter Genevieve Heyward has grown up with music in her life. Adept at both guitar and piano, she writes her songs based on raw emotion and relatable experiences that cuts through with melody and sultry tone.

Saturday, January 14

Spring Green Farmers Market 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM . 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green Spring Green Farmers Market Is a year-round outdoor market offering seasonal produce, local meats, baked goods and many other wonderful items. Held outside the Spring Green Community Public Library every Saturday morning. Pre-orders are recommended. Visit our Facebook or Instagram page or email SGFarmersMarket@gmail.com for a list of participating vendors and their contact into.

LIVE MUSIC: Bluegrass Jam 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Spring Green General Store, 137 S. Albany St., Spring Green 608-588-0707, karin@springgreengeneralstore.com, SpringGreenGeneralStore.com . Free event. All ages welcome! Bluegrass Jams will be held on the second Saturday of each month. While the weather permits they'll be held on our back deck. Bring your instrument and play along or come to listen; all are welcome.

Monday, January 16

Arena Historians: The History of Helena, WI 1:30 PM Grandma Mary's (Brisbane Hall), 175 Hwy 14, Arena Search Arena Historians on Facebook Free to the public. Join us as we delve into the history of Helena, Wisconsin and its three iterations. Wayne Schutte will be present to share his knowledge of the Helena Shot Tower, which was part of the second iteration of Helena. Words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. 7:30 PM - 9:30 PM Slowpoke Lounge, 137 W Jefferson St., Spring Green slowpokelounge.com We invite you to join us to share the words of Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. Bring your favorite quote or speech or essay and we will read, listen, and celebrate this amazing human and his legacy.

Tuesday, January 17

Movies, Munchies and More: Finding Neverland 1:00 PM 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green springgreenlibrary.com Every Tuesday at 1pm, come to the Library for a cup of coffee, a sweet treat, and either a movie or a presentation. Findind Neverland Synopsis: A biography of Scottish playwright J.M. Barrie, whose relationship with a young widow and her sons inspired the children's classic "Peter Pan." (Rating: PG)

Winter Family Storytime 10:15 AM - 11:00 AM Plain Kraemer Library and Community Center, 910 Main St, Plain kraemerlibrary.org Fun stories, songs, and themed activities each week for children and their caregivers. Stories and songs 20-30 minutes followed by craft/activity. Children under 6 must be accompanied.

Wednesday, January 18

All Ages Storytime 10:30 AM 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green springgreenlibrary.com Bring the whole family to the library for a morning of song, stories, movement, and fun!

Arcadia Book Club discusses "So Long, See You Tomorrow" by William Maxwell 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM . This is a Zoom book club meeting . readinutopia.com This simple story of a crime of passion in a small American town in the early 1900s, and the way that it resonates over years is a quiet American classic. Maxwell was one of the great editors of the 20th century working at the New Yorker for 40 years.

Thursday, January 19

Mid-Morning Matinee 11:30 AM Plain Kraemer Library and Community Center, 910 Main St, Plain kraemerlibrary.org Join us each month for an exciting movie matinee on the third Thursday of the month. Morning includes lunch served by Roarin 20s Dining and Social Club, followed by an exciting film aimed at patrons 18+ at noon. Sign up at the library by stopping in or calling us at 608-546-4201 to reserve your seat.

Stitch and Bitch 1:30 PM - 3:00 PM . Spring Green General Store, 137 S. Albany St. Spring Green springgreengeneralstore.com The Spring Green General Store’s Stitch and Bitch handwork group meets Thursday afternoons weekly. All are welcome. Knit Night at Nina’s 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM Nina’s Department Store, 143 E. Jefferson St. Spring Green ninasdepartmentstore.com Every Thursday from 6 to 8 pm. All knitters and crocheters are welcome. Store closed after 5:30 pm.

Saturday, January 21

New Year Yoga & Wellness Retreat 9:30 AM - 4:30 PM . S7163 County G, Hill Point 608.250.0966, lark@radiantspiritretreats.com $199 for Retreat + Optional $50 for Happy Hour + 3-course Dinner + Drinks Join Lark Gibson of Radiant Spirit Retreats for a full-day Yoga and Wellness Retreat on their 25 acres of gorgeous property, located 20 mi. north of Spring Green. The day will include: Yoga and Meditation, 2023 Vision Board making, a Nature Walk, Essential oil Rollerball Workshop, and a Happy hour & 3-Course Dinner catered by DelecTable Madison.

Spring Green Farmers Market 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM . 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green Spring Green Farmers Market Is a year-round outdoor market offering seasonal produce, local meats, baked goods and many other wonderful items. Held outside the Spring Green Community Public Library every Saturday morning. Pre-orders are recommended. Visit our Facebook or Instagram page or email SGFarmersMarket@gmail.com for a list of participating vendors and their contact into.

Mindfulness: Discussion and Practice 10:30 AM - 11:45 AM 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green springgreenlibrary.com Registration not required but appreciated. Our meetings will include discussions and short mindfulness exercises/practices. We will explore sitting, standing, lying down, and moving mindfulness experiences. "Without judgement" is one of the main principles of mindfulness and we will incorporate nonjudgmentalness into our time together. Everyone is welcome from beginners to the experienced. No judgements.

Saturday, January 21 cont.

SOLD OUT - SAVOR: Making Pasta with Kyle and Chance 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM Homecoming, 242 N. Lexington Street, Spring Green savortherivervalley.org Homecoming’s chefs Kyle and Chance will teach the secrets of making great pasta by hand. You’ll use local and organic ingredients including Meadowlark Mill flour. You’ll sample delicious pasta prepared by Homecoming staff and take home your own pasta creations along with a recipe card. To register, click here. $60 per person. Registration is limited to 20;

Tim Eddy and Lone Goat Rodeo 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Spring Green General Store, 137 S. Albany St., Spring Green springgreengeneralstore.com Free to the public. Tim plays Americana originals and covers of songs by Willie Nelson and others.

LIVE MUSIC: Zakk Jones Trio 7:30 PM - 10:00 PM Slowpoke Lounge, 137 W Jefferson St., Spring Green slowpokelounge.com Tickets $10 in advance, $15 at the door The Zakk Jones Trio is a dynamic group that fluidly blends styles as varied as modern jazz, Americana/country and fusion, often even in the same songs. Between unique arrangements of classic songs/standards and original material, the trio brings any audience a fresh listening experience that’s filled with creative improvisations.

Sunday, January 22

LIVE MUSIC: Acoustic Jam 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Spring Green General Store, 137 S. Albany St., Spring Green 608-588-0707, karin@springgreengeneralstore.com, SpringGreenGeneralStore.com Free event All ages welcome! Acoustic Jams will be held on the third Saturday of each month. While the weather permits they'll be held on our back deck. Bring your instrument and play along or come to listen; all are welcome.

Monday, January 23

Open Mic 7:30 PM - 10:00 PM Slowpoke Lounge, 137 W Jefferson St., Spring Green slowpokelounge.com Join us the fourth Monday of every month for an Open Mic, hosted by Dylan Harris. We’ve got the mics, the plug-ins, the piano - you bring the music! Whether you want to play solo, sing to a back up, or get the band together, this is the place. So come on out and show your stuff, or just support the folks on stage. Either way, we’re making music together! No cover, but tips for our host are always welcome!

Tuesday, January 24

Movies, Munchies and More: The Unbearable Weight of Movies, Munchies, and More: The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent 1:00 PM 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green springgreenlibrary.com Every Tuesday at 1pm, come to the library for a cup of coffee, a sweet treat, and either a movie or a presentation.The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent Synopsis: When his money gets tight, actor Nicolas Cage stumbles upon the ideal scheme to earn quick cash when an eccentric billionaire and longtime admirer invites him to make a paid appearance at his upcoming birthday party. Yet unbeknownst to his fan and secret drug runner, Cage doubles as a CIA informant intent on taking down the kingpin's smuggling operation (Rating: R)

DIY and Crafting for Teens 4:00 PM 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green springgreenlibrary.com Learn to do a new craft each month, or just bring your own and hang out! This program is designed Winter Family Storytime 10:15 AM - 11:00 AM Plain Kraemer Library and Community Center, 910 Main St, Plain kraemerlibrary.org Fun stories, songs, and themed activities each week for children and their caregivers. Stories and songs 20-30 minutes followed by craft/activity. Children under 6 must be accompanied.

Thursday, January 26

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

Family Movie Night 5:00 PM Plain Kraemer Library and Community Center, 910 Main St, Plain kraemerlibrary.org Children and their families can sit back and enjoy a free family-friendly movie and pizza dinner at the library. We we will be showing a family favorite, Happy Feet! Sign up is encouraged but, not required to attend. Sign up at front desk or by calling 608-546-4201. PG 1h 45m . Children under 6 must be accompanied

Knit Night at Nina’s 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM Nina’s Department Store, 143 E. Jefferson St. Spring Green ninasdepartmentstore.com Every Thursday from 6 to 8 pm. All knitters and crocheters are welcome. Store closed after 5:30 pm.

WHAT’S HANGINg ? ongoing art exhibitions

Local Art at the Library: Wayne Farra and Maya Madden/Helen Klebesadel Open until January 31st Spring Green Community Library, 230 E Monroe St, Spring Green Monday-Thursday: 10 AM - 7 PM Friday: 10 AM - 5 PM Saturday: 9 AM - 1 PM . Wayne Farra and Maya Madden, the artists behind No Rules Gallery in Spring Green, are exhibiting examples of their jewelry in the Glass Case Gallery. Both artists have been creating jewelry for over 40 years. Their beautiful Cloisonne pieces, and gemstone rings and necklaces, which include unusual agates and jaspers, are available for viewing during regular library hours. In the Community Room Gallery, the featured exhibit is "Before Night Falls: Watercolors by Helen Klebesadel". Helen is an artist, educator, and activist who grew up in the Wyoming Valley area before moving to Spring Green in her later school years. Her studio is located in Madison, but her art has been exhibited nationally and internationally for three decades. This exhibit is available for viewing at any time during regular library hours when the room is not already in use. Please ask for the room key at the circulation desk.

The Community Calendar is curated and designed by Julianna Williams. Events are subject to change, always check ahead for up-to-date information on any events you are interested in.

Updated:1/10/2023

map shows the current CDC COVID-19 Community Level for each county in Wisconsin. Community levels measure the impact of COVID-19 illness on health and health care systems in communities. COVID-19 community levels can help communities and individuals make decisions based on their local context and their unique needs. Community vaccination coverage and other local information can also inform decision-making for health officials and individuals. Updated: 1/10/2023

Updated: 1/10/2023

Reflections from Lost Horizon Farm — Calves (Part 3)

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

Who's Who?

All the heifer calves at Lost Horizon Farm were named soon after birth. Calves' names had to begin with the alphabetical letter assigned to that particular year. When a person got to the year of the x or the y, coming up with an appropriate name required some mental dexterity. Geographic locations, animal or plant names, current events, political figures, or features of the solar system provided resource material. Having to consult a dictionary for help was considered a failure of vast proportions! Heifers were not given the surnames of relatives; cows with those names always seemed to have a disappointing career in the barn! Sometimes, something about the calving, or the calf, or the mother cow just presented itself as the appropriate name. The calf born with a very beguiling face and extra long eyelashes became Ingenue. The diminutive daughter of a gigantic cow we called Christine the Bus just had to be named Kristin the Minibus. The calf with the white Z marking on its head became Zorro

The first sunny day after a calf had been put in its calf hutch, Polaroid photographs were taken for a profile of each side of the calf. Getting the calf to come out of its hutch for a photograph was not always easy, especially when it was either very

cold or very hot. Sometimes the calf figured it was some sort of game and would come out, assume a photogenic stance, and then bounce back into its hutch just before the picture could be taken. A person had to try and get the one side and the calf's head in the photograph.

In a year of many heifer calves, there would be some calves very difficult to differentiate from one another, and having a photograph that included the head might just have the marking that would separate two otherwise similar individuals.

The photographs were stapled in a paper Calf Identification Book, the annual gift of the artificial inseminator. It was a kind of baby album featuring the year's heifer calves. Both side pictures and head shot, birth date, ear tag number, sire and dam, and vaccination dates appeared on a page for each newborn. Having all that useful information, the book would be transported outside anytime an animal had to be identified: for a vet check, at breeding time, when the cattle buyer came, or when the heifer was brought into the barn before the birth of her first calf. The well-used look of calf ID books came from thumbing through them, dropping them outdoors in varying weather conditions, or from wiping off traces of cattle activity (A spinning animal will send up a shower of manure and dirt particles from its feet.).

Barb has called Lost Horizon Farm, just north of Spring Green, her home for the past 42 years. She is fond of all creatures (including snakes). Her joy stems from being able to be outdoors every day observing and treasuring the plant and animal life on her small piece of this planet. She loved milking cows and is proud to have been a dairy farmer.

CIVICS & SERVICES CALENDAR

January 13:

VOLUNTEER: Ridgeway Pine Relict Workday 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM Ridgeway Pine Relict State Natural Area is known for its scenic pine relicts that have northern plant species. Help care for this site with Friends of Ridgeway Pine Relict by removing invasive plants and encouraging native plants at our second Friday workdays. Activities during winter focus on brush cutting, treating and burning. Contact Jared Urban 608-228-4349 for information.

January 17: Village of Lone Rock Caucus for Spring Elections 7:00 PM Lone Rock Village Office, 314 E Forest St, Lone Rock Spring Election Tuesday, April 4, 2023. The following offices are to be elected to succeed to the present incumbents listed: Office Incumbent, Village President Dan Quinn, Village Trustee Mary Litviak, Village Trustee Harry Pulvermacher, Village Trustee Brandon Bindl.

January 18:

HEARING: Plan Commission Hearing - Village of Spring Green Board Meeting 7:00 PM Virtual event vi.springgreen.wi.gov

MEETING: Village of Spring Green Board Meeting 7:00 PM Virtual event vi.springgreen.wi.gov

January 25: MEETING: Village of Spring Green Board Meeting 7:00 PM Virtual event vi.springgreen.wi.gov

January 27: Meet Wisconsin Supreme Court Candidate Janet Protasiewicz 1:45 PM - 3:00 PM Spring Green Community Center, 117 S Washington St, Spring Green sgcommunitycenter.org Judge Janet is running to fill the seat on the Supreme Court vacated by retiring Judge Patience Roggensack. Judge Janet will share the values she will bring to the Wisconsin Supreme Court and why her qualifications make her the best candidate in the Tuesday, February 21st 2023 non-partisan Primary and the Tuesday, April 4th 2023 non-partisan Spring Election. Light refreshments will be served.

An update on sports coverage

You may have noticed that there has been no River Valley Blackhawks sports coverage this winter season.

Our student athletes are great. Our coaches are great. Our parents and community supporters are great. So what gives?

While we appreciate the engagement, stats, pictures and write ups we get from coaches (and we urge them to continue) — covering the multitude of sports that happen, as a bi-weekly, is…hard.

That’s not to say we’re not up for the task. We’re proud to have put together great sports stories, opinion pieces and coverage in prior seasons. However, it’s never been on the scale and consistency we’d like. With our limited manpower and resources, we

truly believe that if we’re going to do it, then we want to do it right. We want to find the best balance of print and interactive, online sports coverage (both scholastic and community/club/intramural) that the community deserves.

To do that, we most likely will need a sports editor and an additional paginator to coordinate and compile what is involved. So we wanted to send out some feelers to see if there is a savvy, passionate community member or members that live and breathe sports that want to be empowered to take this on and make it their own. We understand it’s a marathon, not a sprint, but we wanted to make sure our readers knew where we were and what we’re thinking too.

Stay tuned and let us know if you’re interested: editor@valleysentinelnews.com

Barb

Photo contributed by Barb Garvoille Calf identification books were an invaluable tool for identifying young stock.

The Community Calendar is curated and designed by Julianna Williams. Events are subject to change, always check ahead for up-to-date information on any events you are interested in.

The Sauk County Gardener

Winter Houseplant Care

― Robin Wall Kimmerer

I find that I tend to get a little bit of cabin fever in the winter when I can’t get outside to enjoy gardening. Growing houseplants helps as they can provide the opportunity to garden indoors. However, there are some things to keep in mind when caring for houseplants. The first is humidity. Plants like the humidity to be around 50% humidity. However, in the winter, the humidity in our homes can be as low as 10-20%. One easy remedy is to add a humidifier. We have one placed over by the windows in our kitchen where I keep most of our houseplants. The plants are all grouped together, creating a little microclimate among them. If that’s not an option for you, consider adding a pebble tray under your plants. Place an

inch of pebbles in the tray, fill it a half inch with water, place the plant on top of the tray. The roots won’t sit in water; instead, the water will evaporate and raise the humidity around your plants.

Another challenge is making sure your plants have adequate light. I’m fortunate to have a large bank of windows on the south side of our home to create a plant habitat. Try to place your houseplants in south- or west-facing windows but don’t let them touch the windows. Then try to remember to rotate them a quarter-turn after each watering.

It is very easy to overwater in the winter. Most of our plants’ growth slows in the winter so they need less water. I like to water once a week as it helps me remember to actually water, but that’s not always the best for your plant. Instead, check the soil moisture about 1 to 2 inches deep to see if your plant needs water. You can also lift them to see how heavy they are; if they are light, they need water. When you do

River Valley Community Chorus welcomes new singers

continued from page 1

Department. Proceeds received from free-will donations at the concert will go to area food pantries.

The high schoolers will perform pieces they entered in the statewide Wisconsin Music Educators competition while the River Valley Community Chorus will sing Haydn’s Little Organ Music, accompanied by Bruce Bengtson of Madison, and other pieces. No auditions are necessary to join the chorus.

Local resident and composer Dan Krunnfusz is director. Dan previously taught chorus in Baraboo and directed the Madison Boys’ Choir.

The River Valley Community Chorus was formed in 2018 as the successor to the Taliesin Chorus.

After a pandemic-induced hiatus, the chorus was finally able to sing again last September. In addition to the April concert, the River Valley Community Chorus is planning a fall performance of a major choral work. Details will be announced later in the year.

Rehearsals for the April performance begin Thursday, January 19, at 6:30 p.m., in the Christ Lutheran Church sanctuary, 237 East Daley Street, in Spring Green. Rehearsals will continue on Thursday evenings until the concert, with the exception of April 6. For further information, please contact Mike Smith by email at mike@ pleasanthillprairie.com or by phone at (608) 583- 2849.

George's Auto Body (127 Wood St, Spring Green) has closed after 55 years of serving the greater Spring Green community. They closed their doors at the end of 2022. "We can't thank this great community and devoted customers enough for all your support. But we are looking forward to the new chapter coming," they said in a statement. " We are so happy for Feiner Construction/ Enterprises to be moving their businesses and office to our location."

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

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

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

have to water, water deeply with room temperature water until the water runs out the bottom holes. Another option is to let them sit in your sink for about 15 minutes to allow the plant to soak up moisture.

I have to always remind myself to go easy on fertilizer as plant growth is typically much slower during the winter months. There are some exceptions –flowering plants such as African violets and orchids. Wait until you see new growth on your plant before you start fertilizing.

Keep an eye on indoor temperatures. Most plants tend to like the same indoor temps as people – 65 to 75 degrees F during the day and 55-65 degrees F at night. African violets and orchids tend to like it a little warmer, but mine are doing great in these temps.

Finally, manage indoor insect pests and diseases. Every year, I seem to have at least one plant that gets mealy bugs – they look like little pieces of

cotton on the plant. Prevention is the best method for controlling pests and diseases so regularly inspect your plants. Common pests are spider mites, mealy bugs, aphids, whiteflies, fungus gnats and scale. Each has a different method for managing them so if you find that you have insect pests, visit https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/ article-topic/houseplants/ for plant pest and disease specific information. For more information on houseplant care, visit https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/ articles/houseplant-care/.

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

Jeannie Manis, Wisconsin Certified Master Gardener

Photo contributed by Nancy Cullen River Valley Community Chorus will hold rehearsals Thursday evenings January 19 - April 6:30 p.m., in the Christ Lutheran Church sanctuary, 237 East Daley Street, in Spring Green.

An Outdoorsman’s Journal

Mark Walters, Columnist

Hello friends, This is my annual summing up of the last years experiences in the outdoors, which in reality I have been writing for 33 years and with the love I have for my job and with the current, steadily fading numbers on my retirement I will be writing for another 33. One other thing, thank the folks who run this column in the newspaper that you are reading it in and shop local.

Let’s skip the 8-ice fishing, winter camping trips that I went on and just say that they were all fun and I am looking forward to lots of them between now and ice out.

It’s April 1st, I am in Canada and my girlfriend Michelle Chiaro, her 16-yearold daughter Kylie and my daughter Selina are overseeing the Ruby having pups project. One of the pups became stuck in the birth canal and these three ladies saved the day and long story short, Ruby gave birth to “Red” who would become my 8th golden retriever.

It was mid-April when I was on my annual turkey hunt with Selina. She just finished her 7th semester at UWSP with a double major, a minor, Vice President of the Fisheries Society and a job in the Aquatic Biomonitoring Lab. About all I can say is this girl knows how to take care of a full schedule and put an annual hurting on the local turkey flock and what’s crazy is she always whacks big birds.

It was also in mid-April that Michelle and I started our annual pilgrimage of baiting bear in the forests and marshes of northern Juneau County. Michelle loved baiting bear as I do and it was always because of the outdoor adventure.

Also in April, Michelle and I began planting our gardens which were designed to feed 6 people with a host of veggies to feed us year round in several ways.

On June 12th Michelle became ill,

several people in the medical field who loved her thought it was something like a virus, as did Michelle who was a 26year ICU nurse. On June 14th, Michelle’s conditioned worsened and I called an ambulance that took her to Hess Memorial Hospital in Mauston. I was told Michelle was very ill and she was immediately put into a coma and that moment I was told there was a strong possibility that she would not come out of it. No matter how I triumph or how many years pass, I will never get over the loss of Michelle Chiaro.

July 2022. Family, friends, neighbors, readers of this column and people in the newspaper industry, literally at least 500-different people did their best to comfort me and I am thankful for that.

Though to this day I am a wreck, I will heal as that is the only option. My main cure other than what I just mentioned was to immerse myself into bear baiting and hobby farming. Until 3-months after Michelle passed all I could do was move my body or sit by my campfire. If I sat in my house, I lost it.

Our gardens were planted for six with the plan of four workers, I lost all workers as Michelle’s children went to Arkansas and then California to be with her family.

Though I was not going to do it, three influential people in my life talked me into going on our annual fly in fishing trip to Shultz Lake near Red Lake, Ontario. That trip also would help with the healing.

The bear baiting was probably my biggest soul saver and I know she was with me. Hard work and hard thinking got me into the best physical shape I have been in, in at least 20-years.

September, I am in my bear stand, it is my 12th afternoon in a row of sitting in a tree. I think it was Michelle who helped, a large boar had crossed a swamp behind me and was about to enter a willow thicket 100-yards away. My shot hit its mark and I had a downed 310-pound, “dressed” boar.

My other big challenge of the year was a solo elk hunt near Bozeman, Montana. This would be a public land hunt and I did it before I was too old to do it. I arrived three days before the season, scouted, built

a very comfortable base camp down low and a very basic camp up high. I found elk two days before the season opened and slept in major grizzly bear country up high.

On opening day, a blizzard hit my camp just as I was heading up to my stand in the darkness. As night became day, I saw three elk but could not determine if one had big enough antlers to be a legal shooter. An hour later four cows came through and behind them was a beautiful 6x6 with a huge body. I put three rounds from my 300 BAR in his chest and I had my bull.

Once again and a hundred times since June 15th, I know Michelle was with me.

I am not exceptionally happy anymore but I am rebounding and working hard in KAMO and also helping to start an Outdoor Youth Club in Necedah. We just had our 3rd meeting and this kids/adults organization is going to do good things.

I will get my laugh back and someday I will see Michelle Chiaro again!

Sunset

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

Want to read more? Check out previous weeks’ columns at www.outdoorsmansjournal.com

Photo contributed by Mark Walters

Good friends after a great day of fishing last summer on their annual fly fishing trip to Shultz Lake.

2022 The Best of Times/The Worst of Times

Photo contributed by Mark Walters Michelle Chiaro was an incredible mother, nurse and soulmate, says Walters.

Photo contributed by Mark Walters Selina Walters harvested her 9th turkey last spring.