Valley Sentinel 10-19-2023 by Valley Sentinel

Spring Green, Wisconsin

Thursday, October 19, 2023 | Vol. 4, No. 19 FREE, Single-Copy

Inside this edition

Savanna Institute: open house and more

Spooky Season Special Section

Musician in Residence: recap and video

Pages 1, 9, 11

Enclosed

Pages 1, 8

Savanna Institute promises (agroforestry and silvopasture) fun, proﬁt and—perhaps—to save the planet

Alex Prochaska, Editorial Intern

Visitors gazed in awe at rows of chestnut saplings and a flock of sheep at the Savanna Institute’s Spring Green Campus. The institute held an open house event recently, offering the public freshly-pressed apple cider, live music and a chance to learn about agroforestry and silvopasture. “We help people integrate tree crops on their farms in ways that are both profitable for the farmer and beneficial for the ecosystem,” explained Renee Gasch, assistant communications director at the Savanna Institute. The Savanna Institute is a non-profit based in Wisconsin and Illinois which helps people in the midwest adopt agroforestry, a form of agriculture combining crops and/or pasture with the cultivation of trees. Why trees and why now? Trees are very beneficial to the oak savanna ecosystem that covers the upper Midwest, said Gasch. “They filter and absorb water during heavy rain, provide pollinator and wildlife habitat to restore biodiversity, and drawdown

Photo by The Savanna Institute A speaker shares during the recent Savanna Institute open house in Spring Green. carbon from the atmosphere—an important solution for climate change,” explained Gasch. Gasch also touted trees’ role in preventing wind and soil erosion in ﬁelds or along

ﬁeld edges. “Plus, if they plant fruit, nut or timber trees, farmers can add another potential income source to their business,” said Gasch. “Trees make farms more resilient, and it is important in a changing

climate with volatile commodity markets that farmers add resiliency to the food system.” The institute runs a research and education campus in Spring Green, where the open house was recently held. “Our research program at the Spring Green Campus is particularly unique,” Gasch said. “We’re building a germplasm repository for tree crop breeding at a scale that doesn’t really exist anywhere else in the country.” The institute says the importance of dynamic crop breeding cannot be overstated. An agroforestry educator with the institute gave the example of black currants, a fruit incredibly popular and proﬁtable in Europe. In 1912, the U.S. banned it. Back then, the U.S. had a massive white pine industry, because white pines were used to make paper products. The pines often got infected with white pine blister rust, a plant disease which relies on black currants as a host. Black currants were banned to save the white pine industry.

continued on page 9

Indiana musician creates new songs, friendships during residency The Spring Green Musician in Residence Program Musician Joshua Powell readied the audience for a story-filled night at the Spring Green Musician in Residence finale show, “I’m just so grateful for this experience and for all the people I’ve met…so get ready, it’s going to be an emotional night.” Joshua Powell, a singer-songwriter from Indianapolis, wrapped up his twoweek Spring Green residency with a performance at The Shitty Barn that was filled with both personal stories from his career and reflections on experiences in the River Valley area. Currently in its sixth year, the program has evolved. “The last few years we’ve tried to allow the musicians to have more unscheduled

space during the two weeks to take care of themselves and their career,” says Residency manager Kim Nolet, “and I think that’s coming through in these finale shows. They really have that intense personal feel. We’re getting a show that nobody else is getting.” Nolet reflects that when the program first started, the musicians were booked for a lot of performances and creative engagements, “and that was probably a bit too selfserving. We wanted and needed to build community awareness and support, but the musicians were bearing the brunt of that. The more recent performers who are invited into the program have benefited

continued on page 8

Photo by Rob Steﬀen Musician in Residence Joshua Powell performing at the Shitty Barn.

Page 2

Commentary/Opinion

Thursday, OctOber 19, 2023 On the cover

“Sandhill cranes” (2023) Photos by Don Greenwood

From the photographer: "At this time of year, hundreds of Sandhill Cranes (and occasionally a Whooping Crane or two) can be seen during daylight hours foraging in ﬁelds through the River Valley, especially between Spring Green and Arena.

OPINION/EDITORIAL

The (not so) Plain and Simple Correspondent: Dyslexic –Woh em? Katie Green, Columnist The internet website that lists the chosen monthly observances has an interesting lineup for October, mostly medical in nature. There wasn't much there to unleash my irreverent sense of humor. It is American Pharmacist Month, Blind Awareness Month, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Eczema Awareness Month, ADHA Awareness Month, American Archives Month and Dyslexia Awareness Month. Individual days are also set aside, such as Indigenous People's Day (formerly known as Columbus Day) and National Farmers Day.

As evening approaches, the cranes fly in from the fields to their overnight roosting spot on the sandbars of the Wisconsin River. They are spectacular to watch as they fly in each evening in large groups." —Don Greenwood

Photo by Katie Green Putting a left shoe on a right foot and vice versa is a typical example of Dyslexia says the author.

Katie Green I could write about any one of those with some enthusiasm for various reasons but chose Dyslexia because it has shadowed me all ym bron dyas. I am a typical case, in that I chronically invert letters as I type or write longhand. Dyslexia is “a condition neurodevelopmental in origin that mainly affects the ease with which a person reads, writes, and spells, recognized as a specific learning disorder in children of normal vision and intelligence.” In writing the first two paragraphs I committed the inversion error half a dozen times and didn't correct them all so the reader can see what a garden variety dyslexic deals with. Often the principal handicap of dyslexia is that the child (and adult) feels stupid and without encouragement and help overcoming the gaps can descend into the dark pit of feeling worthless. I can honestly say that although it's no laughing matter, my own feelings were and are of annoyance, nothing more ivrulent. Er, that is, virulent. The scientific description of some symptoms by which a physician diagnoses dyslexia in a child are largely manifested in memorization: Late talking, learns new words slowly, has problems forming words correctly, such as reversing sounds of confusing words that sound alike, slow to remember letters, numbers and colors, difficulty learning nursery rhymes or playing

rhyming games. Putting a left shoe on a right foot and vice versa is a typical example. (See photo) Dyslexia is hardwired into one's system and can't be cured. No medication really helps but the dyslexic can be taught to focus. About three in every ten people with dyslexia also have ADHD (attention deﬁcit hyperactivity disorder) or are prone to mental illness. ADHD does improve with some medications, or taking the hyperactive child out doors and away from digital electronic devices has also proved helpful. In adults, “dyslexia causes diﬃculty in time management, personal organization, and prioritizing tasks.” To avoid low selfesteem, adult dyslexics “need to build on the talents and strengths that are easy for them.” The internet highlights a list of celebrities, – sports heroes, rock stars, and talking heads who are dyslexic and have worked themselves into satisfying careers. The lesson there is that your brain can be a bit wonky but don't automatically consign yourself to the ashcan. My just younger brother is also dyslexic in the classic manner. He remembers noticing how much faster our youngest brother learned his letters and numbers than Ken did. Because our earliest schooling was in a two room grammar school, Ken heard the other children being quizzed aloud on their reading, math, etc. and picked up a lot that way without being able to read or compute numbers. His verbal ability increased just from listening in. He was read to at home at night by our mother and his older siblings, as well, and didn't confront his mystery disability until the 6th grade, when a teacher pointed out what was obvious to her. She did not know how to help him, however. Of course he felt stupid at a young age and still does occasionally, but he has learned

to focus and sound out words phonetically until something eventually connects in his brain tells him what those letters mean. He reads a lot, but slowly, has long contributed to family and friends with a talent for being mechanically adept, and can talk your socks off authoritatively on many topics. Like his older sister, once you get him going there's no stopping him. He is outgoing, thoughtful, empathetic, admits to his faults readily, and can charm the birds out of the trees. By his own admission he's no paragon, but many appreciate his natural goodness and cheer. Dyslexia caused him to stumble early on, but he did not fall. This may be perceived as beside the point, but I find myself wondering if dyslexia isn't at work in the world of politics. Why are the results of the popular vote disputed by some voters and their leaders just because they wanted someone else to win or some other piece of legislature to prevail? Does this indicate a disconnect between looking at the scoreboard data and their brains? And the failure to prioritize, rather than be a blessing to all citizens I do not see Congress responding to what the majority of voters have asked for and desperately need, namely living wages and steady work, childcare for working mothers, adequate health care and nutritious food, safety from gun violence, strategies for combating climate change, and relevant education. Both failures fit the classic medical definition of dyslexia. If you bge to diffre, let me konw. Katie, who until recently lived in Plain, has been writing for fun and profit since childhood. Self-described as opinionated, she writes in the interests of a more loving, better-functioning world for all. She may be reached at katiewgreen@icloud.com.

Public school advocates want high court to limit taxpayer money to private schools By WisPolitics.com

Submit your artwork or photography for cover consideration: editor@valleysentinelnews.com

Lawsuits and court decisions appear to be an increasing option for those upset with state policy and the big GOP majorities in the Legislature. The eﬀorts to bypass the GOP-run Legislature and go to the newly liberal state Supreme Court is one big example. Another recent example is a lawsuit from the Minocqua Brewing Company and its owner Kirk Bangstad challenging the state's private school voucher programs and Independent Charter School Program. Bangstad, in a fundraising email, calls the lawsuit "critical to the health of our state’s system of education, which means it’s also imminently important to Wisconsin’s kids.'' Added Bangstad: ``In layman’s terms, our wildly-gerrymandered Republican legislature, through this revenue limit' legislation, has been forcing local school districts to constantly beg taxpayers for money instead of doing what they are

required to do by our state constitution… which is to ensure that every Wisconsin kid can attend an adequately funded public school.'' Attorney Brian Potts, for Bangstad, argued the revenue limits and funding for the programs violate the state's Public Purpose Requirement and Uniform Taxation Clause. "This parasitic funding system is pushing public school districts into an ever worsening ﬁnancial crisis, which is leading to what can only be described as a funding death spiral for public education," Potts said. Private school vouchers are currently funded in part through reductions in state aid that would have otherwise gone to public schools. Public schools then have the option to impose property taxes to help make up the diﬀerence. The Milwaukee Parental Choice Program is in the process of transitioning to

funding exclusively through general purpose revenue. Fred Melms, another attorney on the case, said the current school financing system "not only fails to equitably distribute resources but also threatens the financial stability of public education in Wisconsin." "It's imperative to address these issues to ensure that all students receive the support they need for a brighter future," Melms said. State Superintendent Jill Underly in a statement appeared to support the lawsuit, noting public education is a right under the state constitution. "And as a right guaranteed to our children, and as an opportunity for our state to put our money where our priorities should be, Wisconsin needs to fulfill its responsibility to effectively, equitably, and robustly fund our public education system. I welcome any

continued on page 4

Commentary/OpInIon

Thursday, OctOber 19, 2023 Page 3

OPINION/EDITORIAL

Public Education — Part 4: Insensible of needing it? Beverly Pestel, Columnist Based on the education of the Founding Fathers outlined in the last column, we know that they valued an education full of history that deserved to be analyzed and evaluated thoughtfully and critically. They saw education as foundational not just to form a nation, but at least for some, it was considered essential in forming a nation that could long endure.

Beverly Pestel In 1782 Thomas Jefferson wrote: Every government degenerates when trusted to the rulers of the people alone. The people themselves, therefore, are its only safe depositories. And to render them safe, their minds must be improved to a certain degree. Jefferson had a lot of other things to say about education and he continued to bang on this drum to “educate and inform the whole mass of the people” throughout his life. At one point Jefferson wrote of his campaign for public education, “I have been long sensible that…I was discharging the odious function of a physician pouring medicine down the throat of a patient insensible of needing it.” So, obviously there was some opposition to the principle of public education. Jefferson, however, was not the first to recognize the essential nature of education in the colonies. As far back as 1642, the

Puritans in Massachusetts passed a directive requiring parents to teach their children how to read and write. Since this directive did not work particularly well, in 1647 they implemented a law that required every township to appoint and fund a teacher to ensure that children were taught to read and write. As it turned out, this law failed to include all children and rapidly devolved into educating only an elite class. This was a common failure within the colonies and may have led to Jefferson’s early quote regarding educating “the whole mass of the people.” Jefferson’s first attempt to establish universal public education was in the Virginia House of Delegates in 1778 in the form of “A Bill for the More General Diffusion of Knowledge.” A portion of the preamble to that bill reads: …experience hath shewn, that even under the best forms [of government], those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny; and it is believed that the most effectual means of preventing this would be, to illuminate, as far as practicable, the minds of the people at large, and more especially to give them knowledge of those facts, which history exhibiteth, that, possessed thereby of the experience of other ages and countries, they may be enabled to know ambition under all its shapes, and prompt to exert their natural powers to defeat its purposes… It is worth noting Jefferson’s emphasis on knowing history so as to recognize the dangerous trends of ambitious politicians in order to avoid the pitfalls of the past. The issue of expanding educational opportunity was also addressed in this Bill, it continues: …whom nature hath endowed

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REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS IN THIS EDITION EDITORIAL Editor-in-Chief Graphic Design Community Contributor Agriculture Columnist Nicole Aimone Julianna Williams Amberly Mae-Cooper Barb Garvoille Managing Editor Democracy & Society Columnist Literary Contributor Literary Contributor Taylor Scott Beverly Pestel Mary Lanita Schulz Amanda Thomas Legal Editor Community Columnist Editorial Intern Gary Ernest Grass, esq. Katie Green Alex Prochaska Have graphic design experience or interested in meetings, events or writing and becoming a community contributor? Let us know. Thank you to all of our contributors for believing in our community. 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. .

Est. 2020 igne conﬂatum “Forged in Fire”

Beverly is a retired professor. She lives in a remodeled farmhouse and tends 40 acres of woodland in Richland County. When not in the woods she spends her time reading, writing and enjoying the beauty of the Driftless Area. Beverly may be contacted at bpestel@msn.com.

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Editorial Policy

show up eventually – but not yet.) Neither of these ordinances were enforced or put fully into effect. In fairness, it was the wild west, and we didn’t even have the Constitution yet. So, the stage was being set for universal public education, but there was a long way to go. It would be another 40 years before the gears of our government started cranking on the issue in earnest. Meanwhile, Jefferson kept pushing. In 1820 he wrote: I know no safe depository of the ultimate power of the society, but the people themselves: and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise their control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is, not to take it from them, but to inform their discretion by education, this is the true corrective of abuses of constitutional power. Thomas Jefferson knew history and he obviously believed that political power could corrupt and that an educated populace was the only remedy to avoid the demise of the nation he had helped to form. His prescience in the face of the current pressures being put on public education should probably be a clarion call to all of us. Jefferson kept lobbying for public education in the face of some of his contemporaries being insensible to the need. He was not alone, however, in championing the need for universal, free public education. It was much on the minds of many of the Founding Fathers as its health and continuance should be on ours. So, more on that next time.

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with genius and virtue, should be rendered by liberal education worthy to receive, and able to guard the sacred deposit of the rights and liberties of their fellow citizens, and that they should be called to that charge without regard to wealth, birth or other accidental condition or circumstance; but the indigence of the greater number disabling them from so educating, at their own expence(sic),…it is better that such should be sought for and educated at the common expence(sic) of all… A much-revised version of this Bill was eventually passed in 1796 with the help of James Madison. Virginia had been eventually coaxed into taking the medicine Jefferson had been offering for years. One battle won, now on to the United States at large and the battle for free public education for the masses. The Land Ordinance of 1785 allowed the Continental Congress to raise money from the sale of land west of the Appalachian Mountains, north of the Ohio River, and east of the Mississippi River. Thomas Jefferson was on the committee writing that bill – and guess what – it included a provision to have space set aside for a public school in every township. The Northwest Ordinance of 1787, revised in 1789, cleared up some stuff in the Land Ordinance of 1785 that some decided they didn’t like. (Most of which had to do with some fearing they would lose power – imagine that.) It’s not clear how much Thomas Jefferson had a hand in this bill, but it did state, "religion, morality and knowledge being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged." (I include this statement partially because the issue of the relationship between religion and public education is going to

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GOVeRnMent

Thursday, OctOber 19, 2023

UW to formally close UW Richland, end in-person instruction in Washington, Fond du Lac counties Henry Redman, Wisconsin Examiner Two more University of Wisconsin System branch campuses are set to close to in-person instruction at the end of the academic year, system President Jay Rothman announced Tuesday. Rothman announced that the Washington County campus of UWMilwaukee and the Fond du Lac County campus of UW-Oshkosh will no longer hold in-person classes after June of next year. He also announced the oﬃcial closing of the campus in Richland County — which stopped holding classes last spring. The announcement marks the

continued decline of Wisconsin’s two-year colleges, which have seen dwindling enrollment and investment in recent years. When the closure of the Richland campus was announced, local oﬃcials, residents and campus staﬀ blamed a prior decision by system leadership to consolidate the branch campuses under the control of the larger four year schools. In a news release, Rothman said the long-term viability of the two year campuses needs to be assessed. “It’s time for us to realign our branch campuses to current market realities and prepare for the future. The status

quo is not sustainable,” Rothman said. “This decision is a response to an evolving student marketplace. Oﬀering students an educational experience they deserve while working with local leaders to ensure it meets their expectations is key to our long-term success.” He added that the reason for the closures is not cost savings but student decisions to attend the state’s four-year universities or take classes online. Last fall, the most recent data available, enrollment at the Washington County campus was 332, down from a record high of 1,117 in 2010. Enrollment at

Fond du Lac County last fall was 258. In 2010, enrollment on the campus was the second-highest ever at 794. When its closure was announced last fall, enrollment at the campus in Richland County had dropped to 60 students. Rothman said the chancellors overseeing the remaining 10 branch campuses should discuss the future of those campuses with local oﬃcials. On the branch campuses, the county government owns the infrastructure while the system funds the salaries of

continued on page 9

Public school advocates want high court to limit taxpayer money to private schools continued from page 2 opportunity to move Wisconsin in that direction," Underly said. But School Choice Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty are blasting the Minocqua Brewing Company Super PAC lawsuit. WILL announced it will seek to intervene in the lawsuit. WILL President and General Counsel Rick Esenberg knocked the lawsuit as an eﬀort by "Far-left interest groups" to take options away from low and middleincome students. "If successful, their eﬀorts would destroy a popular program that serves thousands of Wisconsin families. The arguments that it makes would call into question Wisconsin's entire education system, throwing us all into chaos," Esenberg said. "Their 'facts' in their complaint are incomplete, misleading, misinformed, and their legal arguments border on nonsense."

School Choice Wisconsin President Nic Kelly also slammed the legal challenge. "Efforts to kill school choice will hurt thousands of low-income families throughout the state. In Milwaukee and Racine, where four out of five choice students are Black and Hispanic, this would fall most heavily on families desperate for educational options," Kelly said. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of a group of seven Wisconsinites, argues the way the programs are funded violates the state constitution by requiring local school districts to spend "significantly more" per pupil on private schools than public schools. It also targets school district revenue limits, which cap how much money a school district can levy from local taxpayers to cover aid reductions. The lawsuit also targets independent charter schools, but would not apply to charter schools affiliated with public

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school districts, according to Potts and Melms. The plaintiﬀs charged the Legislature with attacking public schools "under the guise of providing school choice." "But instead of creating a choice, the Legislature has created a cancer. And that cancer is growing rapidly, decimating Wisconsin's public schools," they wrote. The Wisconsin Public Education Network praised the lawsuit, arguing choice schools take away resources from public schools. WPEN Executive Director Heather DuBois Bourenane said it's long past time for the state to meet its constitutional obligations to public school students. "Children in public schools have paid the price for decades as the resources they so desperately need have been siphoned oﬀ to an unaccountable private system that plays by its own set of rules," she

said. Julie Underwood, lead plaintiﬀ in the suit and a former dean of the UWMadison School of Education, echoed the remarks. "The voucher and independent schools have been draining resources from Wisconsin's public schools for too long," Underwood said. "We believe these programs are unconstitutional and hope the Wisconsin Supreme Court ends them now.” For more, go to www.wispolitics.com

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UPCOMING SPECIAL SECTIONS/EDITORIAL NOTES:

November 16: Regular Gun Deer Hunting Season Forecast Our annual forecast and hunting guide ahead of the regular gun deer season. A perfect chance to reach hunters and outdoorspeople, both local and visiting. Ad reservations due EOD November 10. Ad copy due EOD November 13. November 16: Small Business Saturday (Nov. 25) Want to get the jump on local shopping ahead of Small Business Saturday? Let us know your ideas to get the word out on all the best local small businesses for shopping! Ad reservations due EOD November 10. Ad copy due EOD November 13. November 30: Local Holiday Gift Guide NEEDS A SPONSOR TO BE ABLE TO RUN TO DONATE SPACE TO LOCAL BUSINESSES Our annual catalog style local gift guide. First listing FREE to all area businesses, additional listings only $15 each. Each listing needs a picture of item, a short description, a price and your businesses' address and/or URL/contact information. Gift cards and similar are acceptable. More details to come. Will run during Spring Green Country Christmas. Regular ads available as well. Ad reservations due EOD November 22. Listing information due EOD November 22. Ad copy due EOD November 27. OPPORTUNITIES IN ALL SPECIAL SECTIONS Presenting Sponsor of the section — $400 (1 available each special section) A presenting sponsorship grants your logo and business name on the section itself. A sponsorship also includes a banner ad to be run within the section. Sponsor will also receive half off any sponsored article content within the special section. Supporting Sponsor — Supporting sponsorships of special sections may be available at $200 for all benefits above, excluding banner (limited availability), but including 50% off ads in the section. Presenting and supporting sponsors are included on any promotional materials and spots are limited, so reserve spots ASAP. Featured Business/Sponsored Articles — $200 for 1/2 page promotional article with 1-2 pictures ($100 if sponsor for the section). Editorial freedom to decide what is featured - Limited availability. Runs online as well. All special sections subject to change and participation. The more support and engagement we get, the more we can offer the community together. — Advertising Spots — $400 full page, $200 half page, $100 quarter page, $50 eighth page, $25 sixteenth page – Limited availability. Inquire about sponsorships, partner content and online and social ad opportunities. More information: valleysentinelnews.com/advertising-businesses or email: editor@valleysentinelnews.com or see our latest Business Insider newsletter for more upcoming special sections at: eepurl.com/iBVSyM

Spooky season Special Section

Presented by

Nicole Aimone

Spooky Season in the valley

Curated by Alex Prochaska, Editorial Intern ‘Tis the spooky season. Ghosts and ghouls abound. Who among us hasn’t been alone, in a dark place, and felt the presence of—someone else? Someone, or something—watching us. Maybe it happened when you were a kid. Maybe it happens to you as an adult. Whether it’s caused by

Halloween Trick or Treating hours VILLAGE OF ARENA

October 31, 2022 | 4 PM - 7 PM

Be sure to stop by the Arena Fire Station during this time! VILLAGE OF LONE ROCK October 31, 2022 | 4 PM - 7 PM

VILLAGE OF PLAIN

October 31, 2022 | 4 PM - 7 PM

Be sure to stop by the Plain Fire Station during this time! VILLAGE OF SPRING GREEN October 31, 2022 | 4 PM - 7 PM

imagination run wild, or a keen sense of awareness—whether you feel creeping panic, or a curious wonder— the feeling is real. Something is out there, watching us. In the spirit of the season, here’s a poem and short prose by a Spring Green author and poet for you, extra spooky.

Spirits of the Dead By Edgar Allan Poe

Thy soul shall ﬁnd itself alone ’Mid dark thoughts of the gray tombstone— Not one, of all the crowd, to pry Into thine hour of secrecy. Be silent in that solitude, Which is not loneliness—for then The spirits of the dead who stood In life before thee are again In death around thee—and their will Shall overshadow thee: be still.

To thy weariness shall seem As a burning and a fever Which would cling to thee for ever. Now are thoughts thou shalt not banish, Now are visions ne’er to vanish; From thy spirit shall they pass No more—like dew-drop from the grass.

The breeze—the breath of God—is still— The night, tho’ clear, shall frown— And the mist upon the hill, And the stars shall look not down Shadowy—shadowy—yet unbroken, Is a symbol and a token— From their high thrones in the heaven, How it hangs upon the trees, With light like Hope to mortals given— But their red orbs, without beam, A mystery of mysteries!

Did you even notice the graphic says 2022, not 2023? Where has the year gone? very Spooky!

Black Violet Rose By Amanda Thomas The incessant crackling of the old phonograph echoes the empty haunted madness of an old hollowed out and rotted Victorian era. The sound is like jagged ﬁngernails, running down a chalkboard – clawing and scratching desperately from the inside to get out. I will escape Within each room of this hundred twenty two year old forgotten farm house are my mother and I and the old torn antique papered in ﬂoral rose pink walls of crumbling plaster and lath. Bat

skeletons, bright and bone white buried, kept pretty and perfectly placed between each room, whisper despair to me. Their death, a secret melancholy poem hidden inside these walls, like a long lost love language of yesterday, kept away, never to be seen. I am spilling out I wear a dirty white slip, silk, that was once my nana Rose’s – my mother’s mother. It comes from a time, she told me, “when mid-western farming women always wore long dresses and shame.”

I look at myself in the mirror and see my nana looking back. I hear her voice, singing softly, oﬀ in the distance of the faded meadow, above the crackling. Back before the drought came. Back before the darkest storms blew through. Back before, when the graveyard was the only place you went after you died. I then hear my mother yelling from the kitchen, something about the cellar doors and getting the gates latched. Always watching from the windows

facing west, never moving – she never understood we were just a moment too late. Even still now, I admire her way of looking at the sky and knowing which way the wind will blow in. Which way the branches of the old black oaks will swing and sway. Which way we should run for cover, living in the lower valley, along what some have come to call the tornado alley. A place, they say, where pure hearted country souls are the target of terrible and mad destructive winds. On those real bad and windy days, when

continued on page 8

This year Spooky Season happenings around the valley are located in the general community calendar Spooky Season special SECTION

Fall 2023

Page 6

Community

Thursday, OctOber 19, 2023

COmmunitycalendar

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.

Events for October 19 - November 2 Thursday, October 19 Storytime 10:30 AM . Lone Rock Community Library, 234 N Broadway St, Lone Rock . lonerocklibrary.wordpress.com . Join us every Thursday for storytime! 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. Tech Drop-In 2:00 PM . Spring Green Community Library, 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green . springgreenlibrary.org . Stop by the Library with whatever piece of technology is causing you grief. Together, we will ﬁgure out the solution! Family Fun Night: Pumpkin Painting 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM . Plain Kraemer Library and Community Center, 910 Main St, Plain . kraemerlibrary.org . Join us for Family Fun at the library. We will have an exciting activity for your family to drop-in Thursday nights to take part in. Sign-up at the library or at 608-546-4201 to hold your spot. Sauk County Pasture Walks — Roger Bindl's Farm: Grazing Cover Crops 5:00 PM . S10620 Weidner Rd., SpringGreen . co.sauk.wi.us . Learn how to use cover crops to extend your grazing season. Winter feeding is the #1 expense for raising livestock. Reducing winter feeding days by using cover crops is a practical way of lowering this expense. 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.

Monday, October 23 Witch Or Wizard Craft 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM . Plain Kraemer Library and Community Center, 910 Main St, Plain . kraemerlibrary.org . Come create a Witch or Wizard Craft! Create your own favorite Witch or Wizard just in time for Halloween of recycled book pages! Aimed at children age 8 and up. Sign up at the library front desk or call 608-546-4201 to join us. 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 are always welcome!

Tuesday, October 24

Movies, Munchies and More — "Temples of the Egyptian Gods" 1:00 PM . Spring Green Community Library, 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green . springgreenlibrary.com . Come to the library for a cup of coffee, a sweet treat, a movie. This presentation will be by Joe Fahey. For over 2,000 years the Egyptian Pharaohs paid homage to their gods by building lavish temples. Marvel at their immensity as Joe Fahey explains their meaning, shows you their grandeur and provides a lesson in hieroglyphics as well. Moving Senior Bodies 4:00 PM . Spring Green Community Library, 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green . springgreenlibrary.com . Join Upland Hills Health professionals Rosie Morrey, APNP, and Jennifer Day, COTA, for weekly classes focusing on balance and strength training to promote healthy aging. Some benefits of strength training include: Friday, October 20 slowing down the loss of muscle; increasing bone density; improving balance and Fall Art Tour 9:00 AM - 7:00 PM . Mineral Point, Spring Green, Dodgeville, and Baraboo coordination, which will decrease fall risks; boost energy level; and increase mental sharpness. For the classes, please bring your own weights, wear comfortable clothes . fallarttour.com . During the three-day tour, artists will be in their studios, demonstratand walking shoes. You will also need to bring water. Register online. ing and selling their work.These artisans include painters, sculptors, potters, weavers, jewelers, woodworkers, mixed-media artists, and more. Many of these studios are open Wednesday, October 25 only for this event – providing a unique opportunity to meet the artists and purchase their work. Donuts on Wednesday 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM . North Park, Spring Green . springgreenWORKSHOP: Installing Solar Panels at Rural Properties 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM . Cates library.com . Playgroup for all! Meet other families and enjoy FREE donuts, story time Family Farm, 5992 County Hwy T, Spring Green . driftlessconservancy.org . This is a and open play. Story time starts at 10:30 AM. Hosted by Spring Green Community Lowery Creek Watershed Initiative workshop. We go through the process of installing a Library and Public Health Sauk County. solar photovoltaic array on a rural property, including choosing an installer, grants to All Ages Storytime 10:30 AM . Spring Green Library, 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green apply for, tax rebates, site selection, and more. We will also cover post-installation items . springgreenlibrary.com . Bring the whole family to the library for a morning of song, such as kW generation and billing. This workshop will be led by Eric Cates, Dick Cates, stories, movement, and fun! and Peter Fiala from the Legacy Solar Wisconsin Cooperative. Book Discussion: “Four Treasures of the Sky” by Jenny Tinghui Zhang. 2:00 PM . Spring Green Library, 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green . springgreenlibrary.com . Every Saturday, October 21 4th Wednesday at 2pm, join us for a cup of coffee, snack, and a chat about this month's Fall Art Tour 9:00 AM - 7:00 PM . Mineral Point, Spring Green, Dodgeville, and Baraboo selection. The book is available at the Library a month before the discussion. Synopsis: When she is kidnapped and smuggled across an ocean from China to America, Daiyu . fallarttour.com . The Fall Art Tour invites you into the private studios of accomplished must relinquish the home and future she imagined for herself. Over the years that artisans living and creating artwork in Mineral Point, Spring Green, Dodgeville, and follow, she is forced to keep reinventing herself to survive. We follow Daiyu on a Baraboo. Visitors will see firsthand how each artist creates their work and have the desperate quest to outrun the tragedy that chases her. As anti-Chinese sentiment opportunity to ask questions. or purchase artwork. Full tour map is available online. sweeps across the country, Daiyu must draw on each of the selves she has been in This and That Craft Vendor Market 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM . Village of Lone Rock order to finally claim her own name and story. Community Center, 214 Broadway Street Lone Rock . Contact Heidi Wilson by Bingo 6:00 PM . Dave's On Main, 1170 Main St, Plain . For more info look up Dave’s on Facebook Messenger or email heidisjewels2@gmail.com for information . New Fall Main on Facebook . A cozy restaurant where you are welcome to have a drink. Join us decor? A day out of the house? Or an early jump on Christmas Shopping? No matter every Wednesday for Bingo! the what, we have the where! Stop into the Lone Rock Community Center to see some wonderful vendors and crafters! Homemade jewelry, Crafts, Tumblers, crochet Thursday, October 26 afghans, towels, dish clothes. etc. Spring Green Farmers Market 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM . S230 E. Monroe St., Spring Storytime 10:30 AM . Lone Rock Community Library, 234 N Broadway St, Lone Rock . Green . Spring Green Farmers Market Is a year-round outdoor market offering lonerocklibrary.wordpress.com . Join us every Thursday for storytime! seasonal produce, local meats, baked goods and many other wonderful items. Held Stitch and Bitch 1:30 PM - 3:00 PM . Spring Green General Store, 137 S. Albany St. outside the Spring Green Community Public Library every Saturday morning. Spring Green . springgreengeneralstore.com . The Spring Green General Store’s Stitch Mindfulness: Discussion and Practice (Zoom Only) 10:30 AM - 11:45 AM . Virtual and Bitch handwork group meets Thursday afternoons weekly. All are welcome. Event . springgreenlibrary.com . Our meetings will include discussions and short Knit Night at Nina’s 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM . Nina’s Department Store, 143 E. Jefferson St. mindfulness exercises/practices. We will explore sitting, standing, lying down and Spring Green . ninasdepartmentstore.com . Every Thursday from 6 to 8 pm. All knitters moving mindfulness experiences. Find the zoom link online. and crocheters are welcome. Store closed after 5:30 pm. Driftless Landscape Tour 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM . Frank Lloyd Wright Visitor Center, 5607 County Rd C, Spring Green . taliesinpreservation.org . Join us for a conversation Friday, October 27 about the interconnectedness of land and culture while enjoying an approximately Haunted Orchard 6:00 PM . Future Fruit Farm, 5363 Knobs Road Ridgeway . future1-mile walk across the Taliesin property. Guests on this tour will explore the landscape fruitfarm.com . Please join us for a guided tour around the Haunted Orchard, where that Wright felt so connected to and learn about the geology, ecology, and cultural you will meet many spooky characters along the way! Fresh fruit, hot cider, baked history of the area while discovering what draws so many people to the Driftless Area. goods, and pre-packaged treats for the kids can be purchased before and after the Registration required. LIVE MUSIC: Jambidextrous 7:30 PM - 10:30 PM . Slowpoke Lounge, 137 W Jefferson journey. This tour promises to be spine-chilling fun for adults and kids alike. Tour times at 6:00, 7:00, 8:00! St., Spring Green . slowpokelounge.com . Jambidextrous is a 5 piece jazz group of Karaoke 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM . Slowpoke Lounge, 137 W Jefferson St., Spring Green . recent vintage, but comprised of 5 veteran musicians from the Spring Green area. A slowpokelounge.com . Join us the fourth Friday of every month for a night of Karaoke at history of jazz is presented from the original masters of Count Basie, Miles, Monk, Slowpoke. Janna Johnson hosts this night for the community to come together in song. Coltrane... through the progressive jazz, funk, and rock era of Herbie Hancock, Traffic Take a chance and come up on stage, or just cheer on your friends. We’ll get star ted and Santana. No cover, but tips are welcome and encouraged. around 8:00, and go until last call. That could be as early as 10:00 or as late as 2:00am. It all depends on you! No cover, but tips for our host are always welcome. Sunday, October 22 Fall Art Tour 9:00 AM - 7:00 PM . Mineral Point, Spring Green, Dodgeville, and Baraboo . fallarttour.com . Visitors will see firsthand how each artist creates their work and have the opportunity to ask questions. or purchase artwork. Full tour map is available online. Autumn Yoga & Wellness Retreat 9:30 AM - 6:30 PM . S7163 County Road G, Hill Point . radiantyogaandwellness.com . Join Radiant Spirit Retreats for a full-day Yoga and Wellness Retreat on their 25 acres of gorgeous property, located north of Spring Green.The day will include: Yoga, Breathwork, and Meditation, a Cacao Ceremony, reflective Nature Walking, Essential oil Sugar Scrub Workshop, and a Happy hour & 3-Course Dinner catered by DelecTable. Euchre 6:00 PM . Dave's On Main, 1170 Main St, Plain . For more info look up Dave’s on Main on Facebook . Join us every Sunday for Euchre!

Saturday, October 28 Greenway Manor's Annual Resident Trick or Treat 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM . 501 S Winstead St, Spring Green . Look up Greenway Spring Green on Facebook for more info . Bring your little ghouls and goblins to the senior living community for a spooktacular trick or treating event! We ask everyone to wear a mask, masks will be provided. Any updates will be posted on the Facebook page. Chili Supper Halloween Party 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM . Arena VFW Hall 514 Willow Street, Arena . For more info look up Ewing-Olson VFW Post 9336 on Facebook . Please join us for a Chili supper and Halloween party. Will have several varieties of Chili, come dressed in your favorite Halloween costume too. We will also have music by Stars Entertainment with Randy Hanzel and Florence Tabligan Langer from 7 to 10:30!

very V

Community Events for October 28 - November 2 Saturday, October 28 cont. Wild Hills Winery Halloween Party 5:00 PM - 9:00 PM . 30940 Oak Ridge Dr, Muscoda . wildhillswinery.com . Calling all ghastly ghouls, freaks, geeks, and fiends! We'll be dancing the night away at Wild Hills Winery! Bonfire, DJ, costume contest, woodfire pizzas, and a spooky vineyard walk all awaits you in the hills…Happy Spooky Season! Thrill the World River Valley 5:00 PM . Post House Garden, Jefferson St, Spring Green . rivervalleyarts.org . Suggested donation: $10. We're gathering a horde of "zombies" to dance a 3-minute version of the famous Michael Jackson's "Thriller" dance as part of Thrill the World, an annual worldwide simultaneous dance of Michael Jackson's "Thriller." The dance is learned by thousands of people who perform it together on the same day at the same time for charity. Haunted Orchard 6:30 PM . Future Fruit Farm, 5363 Knobs Road Ridgeway . futurefruitfarm.com . Please join us for a guided tour around the Haunted Orchard, where you will meet many spooky characters along the way! Fresh fruit, hot cider, baked goods, and pre-packaged treats for the kids can be purchased before and after the journey. This tour promises to be spine-chilling fun for adults and kids alike. Tour times at 6:30, 7:30, 8:30! LIVE MUSIC: Sugar Mama and the Rent Check 7:30 PM - 10:30 PM . Slowpoke Lounge, 137 W Jefferson St., Spring Green . slowpokelounge.com . Join us for a night of Halloween fun with live music, costume contest, and more! Playing a mix of funk, soul and rock 'n roll, Sugar Mama and the Rent Check are a Spring Green-based band featuring vocals, tambourine, guitar, keyboard, bass, harmonica, and drums. Suggested donation $5-10 at the door.

Sunday, October 29 Fall Yoga 8:30 AM - 10:00 AM . Radiant Spirit Retreats Yoga, S7163 County Rd G, Hill Point . ruralremedy.com . Suggested payment: $20 / drop-in session. Payment is appreciated but you are always welcome to come no matter your financial situation. Register online. Tarot Readings with BillieJo Scharfenberg 12:00 PM - 4:00 PM . North Earth Crystals & Gifts, 124 W. Jefferson St, Spring Green . northearth.com . BillieJo Scharfenberg began her journey with The Tarot in 1996. She uses her proficiency and knowledge to help clients make better life choices via the unique format and interpretive insights the cards offer. She has read Tarot cards professionally, both for individuals and groups, for nearly twenty years. She brings her experience, a combination of study and practical knowledge, as well as a keen devotion to the practice, to each reading in order to help you navigate your life path. $50 per half hour session. Walk-in appointments will be taken as availability allows. Time slots fill up quickly, so please call 608.588.3313 to set up an appointment. Hymn Sing 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM . Brown Church, Corner of County Highway B, Highway 130 and Brown Church Road . For more info look up Dave’s on Main on Facebook . The third in a series of non-denominational fifth Sunday hymn sings There will be a free will offering which will be given to the church for upcoming expenses. All are welcome. Arcadia Books Club Welcomes Mary Grow, author of Night Train to Odessa 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM . Arcadia Books, 102 E Jefferson St, Spring Green . readinutopia.com . Join us at Arcadia when we welcome Mary Grow back to Spring Green! She will be discussing her book, a beautifully written portrayal of a Ukrainian family that perhaps resonates now more than ever. Euchre 6:00 PM . Dave's On Main, 1170 Main St, Plain . For more info look up Dave’s on Main on Facebook . Join us every Sunday for Euchre!

Tuesday, October 31 Movies, Munchies and More — Corpse Bride 1:00 PM . Spring Green Community Library, 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green . springgreenlibrary.com . Come to the library for a cup of coﬀee, a sweet treat, a movie. Movie Synopsis: Victor (Johnny Depp) and Victoria's (Emily Watson) families have arranged their marriage. Though they like each other, Victor is nervous about the ceremony. While he's in a forest practicing his lines for the wedding, a tree branch becomes a hand that drags him to the land of the dead. It belongs to Emily, who was murdered after eloping with her love and wants to marry Victor. Victor must get back aboveground before Victoria marries the villainous Barkis Bittern (Richard E. Grant). (PG, 1h 16m, 2005). Spring Green Trick or Treating 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM . Spring Green . Happy Halloween! Get your costume on and get some spooky treats! Lone Rock Trick or Treating 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM . Lone Rock . Get your family and friends together and go enjoy the fall weather and get some yummy treats! Plain Halloween Event 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM . Plain Fire station, 1045 Cedar St., Plain . Free pizza, hot dogs, treats and air brushed tattoos! Stop by during trick or treating hours! Plain Trick or Treating 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM . Plain . Happy Halloween! Have a Spooktacular time trick or treating! Arena Halloween Event 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM . Arena Fire & EMS, 111 David Cir, Arena . Happy Halloween! Have fun Trick or Treating, and don’t forget to stop by the Arena Fire & EMS for some special holiday treats! Arena Trick or Treating 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM . Arena . Happy Halloween! Go out and get some candy and have a spooky time! Trick or Treat with The Clyde Company 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM . The Clyde Co., 131 W Jeﬀerson St, Spring Green . Stop in the shop for free hot cocoa & candy! We will be open for any trick or treaters!

Thursday, OctOber 19, 2023

Page 7

CIVICS & SERVICES

CA LE NDA R

This calendar is a place listing (for free) the typical meeting dates for area governmental bodies, Please email us with these meetings, or use the form on our Community Calendar page — and let's build community together: editor@valleysentinelnews.com October 22: MEETING: Fall Harvest Chapter Meeting 1:30 PM - 4:00 PM . Clyde Community Center, 6281 State Road 130, Avoca . For more info look up Wisconsin Farmers Union Iowa-Grant Chapter on Facebook . Join us on Sunday, Oct. 22 to celebrate Fall, discuss upcoming Iowa-Grant chapter meetings and review opportunities to attend the WI Farmers Union State Convention this coming Dec. 9-10 at the Chula Vista Resort in Wisconsin Dells. October 24: MEETING: River Valley School Board Meeting 7:00 PM . Little Theater, River Valley High School, 660 Varsity Blvd, Spring Green . Annual meeting. MEETING: Richland County Government Meeting 7:00 PM . Webex & The Phoenix Center 100 South Orange Street . MEETING: River Valley School Board Special Meeting 8:00 PM . Little Theater, River Valley High School, 660 Varsity Blvd, Spring Green . Immediately following the annual meeting. October 25: MEETING: Village of Spring Green Board Meeting 7:00 PM . In person and virtual event . 154 N. Lexington Street, Spring Green . vi.springgreen.wi.gov October 26: Eye Screening for Homeschool Families 10:00 AM . Lone Rock Community Library, 234 N Broadway St, Lone Rock . lonerocklibrary.wordpress.com . Every year, the local Lions Clubs help with eye screenings at the start of the school year. We are inviting the Ithaca Lions Club to do a screening for our homeschool families, a school-going children will have theirs done at school. This is a fast and easy process. It just scans your eyes and tells you if you need to see an eye doctor or not. October 30: MEETING: Spring Green Library Board Meeting 5:00 PM . Commmunity Room, Spring Green Community Library, 230 E. Monroe St. Spring Green . springgreenlibrary.org . The Library Board of Trustees meets each month, typically on the ﬁrst or second Tuesday, at 5 PM. Changes to this schedule are posted at least 24 hours prior to the meeting. The meetings are open to the public. November 4: Friends of the Library Book Collection 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM . Commmunity Room, Spring Green Community Library, 230 E. Monroe St. Spring Green . springgreenlibrary.org . The Friends of the Spring Green Community Library will accept donations of gently used books for resale on Saturday. Donations of no more than four boxes are preferred. Proceeds from book sales help support library programs and other amenities. Damaged books, encyclopedias, textbooks, and instruction manuals are not accepted, and the Friends reserve the right to limit the quantity of items accepted and/or refuse donations that do not meet library needs.

WHAT’S HANGINg ? ongoing art exhibitions

Spring Green Community Library Art Exhibitions . 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 . Liam Meyer of Black Pearl Forge in rural Blue River is exhibiting his forged art in the Glass Case Gallery. He says he doesn't remember a time when he didn't think like a blacksmith. Meyer has learned his craft mainly from trial and error supplemented by a Driftless Folk School workshop and observation of online metal workers. His art is available for viewing during regular library hours.

Wednesday, November 1 All Ages Storytime 10:30 AM . Spring Green Library, 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green . springgreenlibrary.com . Bring the whole family to the library for a morning of song, stories, movement, and fun! River Valley Community Anime Club 4:00 PM . Spring Green Library, 230 E. Monroe St., Spring Green . springgreenlibrary.com . Join us for the ﬁrst meeting of the RVS Anime Club! We will have a small meet-and-greet, then dive right into watching a few episodes of My Hero Academia! This event is geared toward teens. Bingo 6:00 PM . Dave's On Main, 1170 Main St, Plain . For more info look up Dave’s on Main on Facebook . A cozy restaurant where you are welcome to have a drink. Join us every Wednesday for Bingo!

Thursday, November 2 Storytime 10:30 AM . Lone Rock Community Library, 234 N Broadway St, Lone Rock . lonerocklibrary.wordpress.com . Join us every Thursday for storytime! 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. LIVE MUSIC: Molly Martin 7:30 PM - 10:00 PM . Slowpoke Lounge, 137 W Jefferson St., Spring Green . slowpokelounge.com . Molly Martin’s debut album, Mary, is a spotlight on the honest truth of Molly’s experience before and after quitting drinking; an 8-song inquiry into self-discovery. Molly’s birth name is Mary, and each track feels like a different aspect of the intersection between a buttoned-up Mary and a buttoned-down Molly. Nowhere near sacred and naturally profane, Mary is a think piece on everything from self-hatred to sexual assault. Something is bound to resonate, and that’s the point. Tickets $10 in advance/$15 at the door

William "Bill" Weege has artwork being shown in the Community Room Gallery. William Weege (b. 1935, Milwaukee, WI; D. 2020, Arena, WI) was a pillar in the printmaking and paper making ﬁelds in the United States. Although he is best known for his later abstract works, much of his early art commented on social and political issues. William Weege's work can be viewed at anytime during regular library hours when the Community 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.

“The good stuﬀ.”

Page 8

Community/arts & cULtUre

Thursday, OctOber 19, 2023

What is Lexington & Jeﬀerson? Some time ago, we announced the soft launch of a semi-regular to regular literary section we've been inspired by other literary compilations to call Lexington & Jeﬀerson. As the pivotal intersection of our community, we envision this as a place that celebrates the cross-section of arts in our greater community. We envision it as a place of curated and submitted prose, poetry and more that showcase the talents of our community.

Each edition we receive submissions of artwork, poetry, prose and other musings that we have trouble placing in the paper on their own and often have to simply hold or regrettably turn down. We hope this becomes a welcome place for them. This space will grow and change, as all things do, and we welcome talented individuals, organizations, authors, experts and artists to help curate this section - perhaps we'll compile and publish an annual

Lexington & Jefferson

literary journal, who knows? We may also use this space for arts & culture news and submitted musings that don't quite ﬁt within the bounds of a traditional column, proﬁle or letter to the editor. Get involved: If you're interested in submitting, curating or have ideas, please do not hesitate at all to submit them to us at: editor@valleysentinelnews.com

LITERARY + ARTS & CULTURE SECTION

Black Violet Rose

continued from page 5 we first came here to help nana, so many years ago, my mother began to crochet round lace doilies, to pass the time - on the days when no work outside could get done - when it was safer to just sit and wait it all out. Piles of hundreds of discolored lace doilies now sit, like dirty white snowflakes never melting away filling the corners of each of these lonely rooms. Finding a home in the forever season of a winter’s wasted death, here. We will always remain It is early autumn, now again. Hot and dry. I think of the leaves that once changed golden yellow and fell from the tall black oak that stood right outside the kitchen. I think of my nana’s freshly made hot apple pie, extra cinnamon and nutmeg always. I think of her humming and trimming the dead flower heads for kindling to start winter’s fire. I think of

how my mother sometimes still calls for her when she worries. How she calls for me when she forgets. The air has turned extra thick and sticky now, dead and stagnant; rarely a breeze ever inside this house. Even with all the broken open windows, the hot air makes me gasp. This must be what it feels like to suﬀocate; what dying must feel like just trying to breath. I go outside and the dust kicks up under my bare feet. I instantly remember the green grass and the purple wood violet. My mother’s favorite. I remember her always picking them for me, making pretty bouquets and saying, “this is you, Violet Rose, this is for you, my love, my rarest wildﬂower, you.” I heavy sigh, thinking, Mother always told me I was rare. Rare like a black violet.

Indiana musician creates new songs during residency continued from page 1 from those past efforts by condensing the same audiences into just a few shows. They are now more in control of their time here and can work their business in other ways while becoming part of the community as everyday residents.” As a result, show audiences have had more intensive storytelling about the musician’s experience in the area, and more new works showcased, during the finale show. Joshua Powell spent his September residency performing two shows at the Slowpoke Lounge and Shitty Barn, and participated alongside locals at the monthly Spring Green General Store acoustic jam. In between he was reading, writing, exploring new films (he’s a horror movie fanatic), exercising, fishing, and spending time with new friends across the community. The Residency also requires the musician to engage in a creative collaboration during their time. Joshua, who is also an adjunct professor of music business at Anderson University, partnered with Spring Green artist Jennifer Salt to exchange their own existing works and create new pieces based on what they received from the other person. Joshua received Jennifer’s drawing "Dreams in the Heart of an Ancient Woman" and created a new song inspired by the artwork. At the finale performance, he debuted the song and presented Jennifer with handwritten

lyrics. Jennifer was given Joshua’s song “100,000 Werewolves,” and began work on an original painting inspired by Joshua and the lyrics. She notes “the painting is not only about his song, but I'm weaving some of our talks in there too. My favorite part of the two-week collaboration was going to Frank's Hill for musical, writing, and artistic inspiration. There, listening to him weave stories about literature, about life, and his music was very helpful to conjure up a mystical theme for the art piece.” The artwork is supported by a grant from River Valley Arts and the ﬁnal piece will be showcased at the Spring Green General Store starting October 15th. Video highlights from this year’s residency can be found on Joshua Powell’s oﬃcial social media and the Spring Green Musician in Residence Facebook page, and by scanning below.

Rare like a good honest working man. Rare like meat cut right from the bone.

cobwebs, collecting dust and forgotten memories.

I take a deep breath in and can smell the dust blowing from oﬀ the barren ﬁelds. I breathe deeper and smell the mustiness of the house, the empty root cellar, dark and damp, echoing hunger and loss. I look over toward the weathered red barn, barely standing, north wall about to collapse. I notice the weathervane still on top begin to spin. The rooster, rusty and crooked, crumbling and worn, begins squeaking like a mouse caught in a trap, turning faster and faster, round and round, as the sky darkens behind it.

I can never forget

I look over at the house to my mother standing in the window, the yellowing curtains blow up and apart and then back together again, so rhythmically, as if dancing – their fraying lace reminding me of the old wedding dress I once found in the attic, just hanging lonely in heavy

I took the dress and wore it at night. I remember feeling the soft decaying edging while dancing to Beethoven’s Ghost trio in D all alone around my moonlit room until my hair smelled like the aging lace way long after I took it oﬀ. I lie awake at night while the wind howls and wonder why my nana kept her memories hidden in shame in the cornered darkness of the attic. And my mother, with her madness kept woven in so much worry and wait. I smell my hair and wonder if lace patterns follow through family generations, haunting us, without ever knowing. First dancing together and then ever so slowly, just fraying – falling - apart.

RV ARTS hosting Thriller dance fundraiser Thrill the World River Valley October 28th 5pm Downtown Spring Green If You Want to Dance Learn the Dance Step 1: Get the script The dance uses a script with words to make it easy for anyone to learn the dance. We are doing the three-minute version, so you only need to learn pages 1-2. Step 2: Watch the videos and practice! Thrill the World has put together videos to help you learn the dance. Videos for the 8 steps we will be doing are on the Thrill the World choreography page. More detailed lessons can be found on the Thrill the World YouTube channel (keep in mind this were created in 2007, so some of the details about dates, etc. will be wrong but the dance moves are correct!) Step 3 (optional): Come rehearse We will be having two rehearsals at the Spring Green Community Library in October. Register to dance and we’ll keep you posted. Register to dance

Please register ahead if you can! Suggested donation to register is $10...but you can register for free. Register to dance You can wait to register the day of the event...but you'll miss information about classes, etc. Learn the makeup We’re planning to have a zombie makeup class at the library in October. Register to dance and we’ll keep you posted. If you want to donate... You can donate online anytime! All donations will be split between River Valley ARTS and the Spring Green Community Library. You'll be able to donate generally or to a speciﬁc zombie. Become a zombie fundraiser Have friends and family that will want to support your dancing eﬀorts? Become a zombie fundraiser! You'll get your own fundraising page where you can set your own goal, add your picture, etc. Questions? Email thrilltheworldrivervalley@gmail. com or go to rivervalleyarts.org/thrill-theworld-river-valley

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Community/arts & cULtUre

Thursday, OctOber 19, 2023 Page 9

Spring Green film by Whaley and Schabla selected to the Driftless Film Festival Spring Green artists will be showcasing their short film We’ll Want for Nothing at the Driftless Film Festival. Starring American Players Theatre actors Colleen Madden and Kelsey Brennan, the film was written by Eric Schabla and directed by Jack Whaley. The film is the second by the artists, with the previous film, One Foot In, running in a prior Driftless Film Festival. Set on a farm during the Great Depression, We’ll Want for Nothing explores the relationship between two sisters. As a baby horse is born, the sisters wonder if their fortunes are changing for the better. We’ll Want for Nothing was nominated for Best Short at the Atlanta Shortsfest, Best Screenplay at the Wyoming International Film Festival, and was a finalist at the Los Angeles International Screenplay Awards. The screenplay for the feature-length version of the story placed in the top 7% in the 2023 Academy Nicholl Fellowship. Once a year, the Driftless Film Festival brings together the best of new independent cinema with the landscape, artistic energy and local atmosphere of the Driftless Area of Southwest Wisconsin. Celebrating its 14th season on Nov. 1-4, 2023, DFF continues to provide a one-of-

a-kind cinematic experience for audiences and filmmakers alike. DFF screens each of its films in the Mineral Point Opera House. Beautifully restored in 2009, the theatre retains the atmosphere of its origins as a 1915 vaudeville house. Brought to life by film screenings and live performances year round, the Opera House is both an elegant testament to Mineral Point’s passion for preservation and a showcase space for some of the best entertainment in the Region. From popular festival hits to locallyproduced art, the Driftless Film Festival seeks to showcase the most thoughtprovoking, innovative, and creative independent cinema of our time. These films will hit home in a place that feels like home. We’ll Want for Nothing will kick off the film festival 7 p.m. Nov. 1, paired with Q&A from the film makers. Individual screening tickets can be purchased for $10 each screening, or an all-festival pass that includes access to all screenings and events can be purchased for $65. Tickets can be purchased driftlessfilmfestival.com/tickets/

Photo contributed by Jack Whaley Colleen Madden and Kelsey Brennan filming 'We'll Want For Nothing'. We’ll Want for Nothing We’ll Want for Nothing is stark and grim in its beauty. Set on a farm during the Great Depression, two sisters greet the birth of a baby horse. “I saw it in a vision,” says the blind older sister, convinced the animal will ease their poverty. The short film, a taut 8 minutes in length, packs a punch. It’s like baptism in a cold, backwoods stream. It is in the same vein as the studio’s previous short film, One Foot In, which depicts the close but strained

relationship between two grave robbers in the 1800s. Both films are intimate, exploring two characters who long to be freed from struggle. And both are coiled with a delightful tension that took my breath away. I can only hope the APT actors and Spring Green filmmakers who created We’ll Want for Nothing continue to collaborate in future. Their artistic efforts bring pride to the Driftless and immortalizes our region on screen. —Alex Prochaska, Editorial Intern

Savanna Institute promises (agroforestry and silvopasture) fun, proﬁt and—perhaps—to save the planet continued from page 1

Later, a variant of black currants was bred to resist the disease. So in 1966, the ban on black currants was lifted. The Savanna Institute is trying to revive the market for black currants in the U.S., and see the crop as an untapped source of proﬁt for local farmers.

“Europe doesn’t have grape as their purple candy flavor: it's black currant flavor,” said the educator. “It's ubiquitous in other parts of the world. But here, we weren't allowed to grow it.” The Savanna Institute stresses the profitability of agroforestry. Jacob Grace, communications specialist with the

institute, said crops the institute focuses on—black currants, chestnuts, elderberries and others—have a larger demand than supply in the U.S. However, the institute admits agroforestry has tradeoﬀs. Grace said there are some agroforestry crops which produce a crop very quickly, like elderberries, which can be harvested

within one or two years of planting. “But a lot of these [trees take] five or 10 years before you’re getting a significant crop,” Grace said. “People always want to know: ‘What [do] I do? I'm going to be making no money off this land.’” Grace explained that silvopasture and/or

continued on page 11

UW to formally close UW Richland, end in-person instruction in Washington, Fond du Lac counties continued from page 4 faculty and staﬀ. “We want to work with the counties to determine the best way for our universities to serve their communities,” Rothman said. “This reassessment is designed to ensure facilities are used in

ways that meet community needs and provide long-term stability.” Rothman said the possible options for the existing campuses could include oﬀering four-year and graduate degrees, workforce development, dual enrollment and programs for high school and nontraditional students.

UW-Milwaukee Chancellor Mark Mone said in a news release that Washington County students will be able to attend the main campus in Milwaukee or the branch campus in Waukesha County and that the university will be expanding its partnership with Moraine Park Technical College.

“We know that it will feel like a loss to alums who earned their degree at the Washington County campus,” Mone said. “We remain committed to students in Washington County, which is why we plan to strengthen our partnership with Moraine Park Technical College based on demand and interest.”

Homecoming Restaurant (242 N Lexington St, Spring Green) owners Kyle Beach and Leah Spicer recently announced that the restaurant will be closing, for the season, at the end of October. "We hope to reopen next spring, if the fates see fit," the owners said on Facebook. 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.

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Page 10 Thursday, OctOber 19, 2023

Commentary/AGrIcuLture

Reflections from Lost Horizon Farm — The Joy of Discovery Barb Garvoille, Columnist 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. Each spring the corn ground was plowed and disked. These seasonal sequential events would serve to work up the soil, bury any stalks from last year's crop (known to farmers as "trash"), and also incorporate the winter's manure that had been spread on those fields. The final step would be dragging the fresh earth with a harrow to level the work land for seeding. Mr. Farmer took great pride in workland that was smooth. Sizeable rocks were always removed from the fields because of the damage they could do to tillage and harvesting equipment. Usually it would be a seasonal project for us to walk the corn fields to look for rocks that might have been unearthed. Luckily, there were not a lot of rocks in the fields of Lost Horizon Farm, so the job was never the backbreaking, tedious task some farmers had to bear where rocks would have to be picked up by the wagonful before planting could begin. Employing a mechanical rock picker was also an option for farmers whose workland contained a high number of rocks. After a rain was the best time for rock picking. Daylight will make rock surfaces shiny in contrast to the dark, plowed earth and, thus, easily detectable. The smell of the freshly turned earth moistened by rain epitomized the freshness one equates with spring. Coupled with walking in the farm's valley that echoed with the calls of newly arrived migrant birds, picking rocks was a task where a person felt totally immersed in the attributes of the new season.

Photos contributed by Barb Garvoille

The time I remember best was the time we were about midway through one ﬁeld, and I gravitated to what I thought was a rock. The rock turned out to be a perfectly preserved Indian spearhead from years ago. We had, of course, found arrowheads and horseshoes

Barb Garvoille in the fields before, but this was special. We both were amazed at finding such a perfectly intact specimen in soil that had so often been tilled and driven on with heavy equipment. Mr. Farmer would append the story of my spearhead find by saying that I was worthless afterwards because I had stopped looking for rocks and had focused on nothing but finding more artifacts! As part of the process of reworking the southern arm of the county road that bisected a part of our land, highway engineers selected a portion of the roadway in front of the farmstead to be lowered by three feet. This took out a small slope to the highway that had made it difficult for anyone leaving the farm driveway to see oncoming traffic headed south. In order to meld the front yard with the new roadway, some of our front lawn was bulldozed and reconfigured. We had landscaped the disturbed section, and the new seeding was coming well, although it was not yet as dense and thick with

Photo contributed by Barb Garvoille Migrating Canada Geese (Branta canadensis) were among the birds seen ﬂying over the valley. maturity as the rest of the lawn. On this portion of the lawn were two boulders that had been recently sourced from the nearby limestone quarry and delivered to our front yard via dump truck. The truck driver had backed up onto the lawn, and these two enormous rocks had fallen out of the dump box in such an eye pleasing combination that the driver had exclaimed: “Well now, ain’t that the natural look?” One afternoon while I was hand clipping around these boulders, I spotted a coin laying on the earth where new growth was especially sparse. When the county crew had replaced the soil, they had brought to the surface the 1885 Indian Head penny I had just discovered! I was struck with

a feeling of both excitement and marvel. My initial thought was: "I wonder who held this penny last?" (Later on in the day, I caught Mr. Farmer looking very carefully around those same rocks. He was hoping to ﬁnd another treasure!) Barb has called Lost Horizon Farm, just north of Spring Green, her home for the past 43 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.

Photo contributed by Barb Garvoille Ice shoe found on newly plowed earth. A horseshoe must always be positioned so that the u-shape of it holds one's luck!

At top, arrowheads found on Lost Horizon Farm. At right, the spearhead found on the farm. The stone is thought to be Hixton Quartz.

Photo contributed by Barb Garvoille This is it: the found 1885 Indian Head penny.

Outdoors & Recreation/AGrIcuLture

Thursday, OctOber 19, 2023 Page 11

The Sauk County Gardener Planting Spring Bulbs Jeannie Manis, Wisconsin Certiﬁed Master Gardener

“Daffodils are an optimistic flower, and foolproof.” — Tasha Tudor After all my years of gardening, you’d think I would be better prepared for the first frost. They always come around the end of September/first part of October so it’s not like I don’t know it’s coming. Still, I spent my Sunday afternoon, moving pots and plants into my greenhouse, picking all of my green tomatoes to ripen later, and creating a huge bouquet of all of my blooming dahlias and some of my mums for enjoying indoors. I covered some remaining blooming pots on my front porch and a large tower of herbs I want to transplant soon into individual pots for winter use. The funny thing is, I’m ready to take a break from gardening for a bit.

However, as this growing season comes to a close, it’s time to plant or ﬁnish planting spring-blooming bulbs. I’m talking about crocus, hyacinths, daﬀodils, tulips, snowdrops, fritillaria, and other spring blooming winter-hardy bulbs. The great thing about these hardy bulbs is that they are typically easy to work with, require minimal care after they’re planted, and are usually quite reliable bloomers. Selection is getting slim in local stores so hopefully you purchased or ordered early to get the colors, hardiness, and bloom time that you desire. For our area, you can plant these lovelies when the ground temperature is around 50-55 degrees or lower, just not freezing, up until a few weeks before the ground freezes. As long as the ground can be worked, you can plant bulbs. Although relatively easy to plant and

maintain, here are some tips to help ensure your bulbs thrive. Make sure you select the proper planting site for your bulbs – one with the right sunlight requirements and drains well. It will help to add some compost or other organic material to the soil before planting. To create a more natural look, plant the bulbs in clumps of 5-8 bulbs. Added bonus – less holes to dig. The hole should typically be 2 to 3 times as deep as the bulb itself. After planting, water well and then mulch to help protect the bulbs through their ﬁrst winter. Finally, mark the location somehow so that you don’t accidentally disturb the site before they have a chance to come up next spring. Keep in mind that some of these bulbs are considered delicious treats to animals such as chipmunks, squirrels, and voles. Over the past ﬁve years, I’ve

lost almost all of my tulips to these little rodents. Instead of continuing to be frustrated, I’ve gradually been replacing them with daﬀodils, hyacinths, and other less delicious bulbs. Daﬀodils and hyacinth are toxic, so they tend to be left alone. Also consider planting allium, muscari, snowdrops and Glory-of-thesnow if rodents and deer are a problem for your garden. If you must have tulips, consider laying some chicken wire over the planted bulbs and then weigh it down so the squirrels and chipmucks can’t get to the bulbs. An inch or so of chicken grit, available at farm stores, is another option to deter digging. Enjoy some time outdoors in our beautiful fall weather by planting some spring-blooming bulbs. Not only will you get a head-start on some early spring color, but if planted correctly, you’ll enjoy them for years to come.

they’re unlikely to survive the winter. If for some reason we get a warm spell after a killing frost and your seeds sprout, you can cover the sprouted seeds with a thick layer of mulch to insulate them. Prep your bed by clearing away any weeds and removing other dead/dying foliage. It’s also a great time to amend your soil with some compost or worm castings. Once your bed is prepped, simply scatter your seeds over the soil and lightly press them into the soil – just like it happens in nature. You just don’t want the seeds to blow away. Avoid the temptation to mulch them. You’ll only want to do that if they sprout after a warm spell. There are so many annual and perennial seeds that you can plant in the fall to help you get ahead next spring. Here are just a few to consider planting this fall: Alyssum, Baby’s Breath, Bachelor’s Buttons, Bee Balm, Bells of Ireland, Lupine, Black-Eyed

Susan, Blanket Flower, Calendula, Columbine, Coneflower, Cosmos, Delphinium, Dianthus, Forget-Me-Not, Foxglove, Hollyhock, Love-in-a-Mist, Marigold, Milkweed, Nasturtium, Pansy, Penstemon, Poppy, Snapdragon, Cleome, Sweet Peas, Coreopsis, and Speedwell (Veronica). Take some time to plant some of these wonderful flowers now so you can enjoy their blooms next year. We are still looking for some gardens in the Sauk Prairie/Merrimac area to feature on our 2024 Garden Tour. If you would be interested in having your garden on our tour, please post a message on the Sauk County Master Gardeners Association Facebook page and we’ll contact you for more information. This article was written by Jeannie Manis, a Wisconsin Certified Sauk County Master Gardener Volunteer. If you have gardening questions, visit the Sauk County Master Gardeners Association Facebook page.

Perennials to Plant Now for Next Year Blooms Jeannie Manis, Wisconsin Certiﬁed Master Gardener

“Don't wait for someone to bring you flowers. Plant your own garden and decorate your own soul.” — Luther Burbank Even as the days are shortening and cooling off, I’m still able to enjoy many flowers in my cutting garden and perennial beds. One of my favorites, cosmos, are ones that I did not plant. These lovelies have been reseeding themselves ever since the first year they were planted several years ago. There are many flowers that do a wonderful job of reseeding themselves (if you let them) and also really prefer to be planted in the cool fall weather. There are several reasons to plant in the fall. Many flower seeds need to be cold stratified – a process of exposing seeds to cold, moist conditions that they need to germinate. In nature, this happens naturally when plants drop

their seeds, and the seeds sprout the following spring after wintering under the snow. You can also do it by placing your seeds in moist potting mix in your refrigerator for about a month or do some winter sowing in milk jugs. However, fall planting accomplishes the same thing and removes the step of transplanting into the garden. Seeds planted in the fall sprout sooner than spring-planted seeds and get a head start on growing before weeds creep in. Weeds also don’t sprout as quickly in fall-prepped gardens, so you actually have more time between prepping your garden and planting the seeds. Another reason to plant in the fall – it’s cooler and much more pleasant to work outdoors instead of the heat of the summer. Here in our area, you should wait to plant until there is a killing frost if possible. That way your seeds don’t have time to sprout. You don’t want them sprouting before winter sets in because

Savanna Institute promises (agroforestry and silvopasture) fun, proﬁt and—perhaps—to save the planet continued from page 9

alley cropping helps oﬀset the early costs of growing trees. Silvopasture is when trees are grown and livestock is grazed on pasture between the trees. “Livestock need shade in pasture, especially on increasingly hot summer days, and they love eating fallen fruit and nuts from trees,” said Gasch. “Trees in pasture not only help with livestock comfort, they can help farmers increase yield per acre.” Alley cropping is when other crops are raised between the trees. Grace said certain crops beneﬁt from the shade and water retention trees provide—the institute is currently experimenting with carrots and onions. Overyielding may be the most reassuring promise to farmers considering agroforestry. Overyielding is when farmers produce more by growing multiple crops together, rather than one crop alone, said Grace. Grace said the institute successfully grew corn and soybeans between trees on a demonstration farm in Illinois. The corn and soybeans achieved 90% production, in addition to the tree crop. “With really minor reductions in what you already have growing, you can start growing trees,” said Grace. Gasch explained the Savanna Institute has been growing quickly recently because they are providing more technical assistance to farmers. “We have a whole adoption team, where we work one on one with farmers,” Gasch said. The adoption team asks landowners about their vision for their farm. The team helps them write a farm narrative to identify

resources, concerns and limitations the farmers have. The team also assists with farm planning. The institute’s technical service providers visit the farm, test soil and study land conditions. They help farmers access government cost-sharing programs at the local and state level. In addition, farmers are provided access to soil maps which suggest suitable trees based on available conditions. The soil maps even anticipate how climate change will affect conditions to come. While the Savanna Institute wants to help farmers profit, the institute is also concerned with the environment and climate change. “If we're not taking care of our soil and water quality, then we're really in bad shape for the future,” Grace said. “And we believe that perennial agriculture is some of our best tools to help improve our soil and maintain our water quality.” Perennial crops live all year and are harvested multiple times before death— like the trees and shrubs promoted by the institute. Perennials, with their deep, lasting root systems, make great windbreaks and riparian buffers. Windbreaks keep the wind from drying and eroding soil, and crops from being damaged by airborne soil. Riparian buffers are vegetation near streams, and protect water from sediments, pesticides, fertilizer, and other pollutants associated with agriculture. The root systems of perennials also help to sequester carbon from the atmosphere, continually depositing it into the soil, thereby slowing or reversing climate change. Grace explained that before the Savanna Institute was formed, a number of farms were already practicing agroforestry in

the Midwest. However, many were getting ready to retire, “and all that knowledge was going to be lost.” The institute was formed in 2013, in part, to collect the farmers’ knowledge “and spread the word.” “As a nonprofit organization, we can take risks that private farmers can't take,” Grace said. “So we want to take the risks and make the mistakes and then invite people to field days like this where they can learn from our mistakes.” Why Savanna Institute? Grace says the name comes from the native oak savannas that used to cover a lot of southern Wisconsin and Northern Illinois, where the Savannah Institute started. “Sometimes that confuses people, because it makes them think that we do oak savanna restoration, which is not exactly what we're doing,” said Grace. “We're interested in working farmland and working landscapes that are providing people with a profit and… with agricultural products, but that are kind of in the image of these oak savannas that used to be here.” Nate Lawrence, ecosystem scientist with the institute, led the Spring Green Campus tour at the recent event. Lawrence explained one of the institute’s current experiments. They are planting chestnut trees, which usually cannot survive the area’s cold weather. Many of the trees will die—but the survivors will pass on a tolerance for cold. After a few rounds of the “selection trials,” a hardy new cultivar will be born, capable of providing farmers chestnut riches. The Savanna Institute’s income and expenses can be found in their annual Perennial Report. In 2022, 39.5% of their income came from “Government Grants,” 39.6% from

“Other Grants,” 7.7% from “Programs,” and 12.3% from “Donations and Gifts.” “Other Funding” is listed, and it can be calculated to be “0.9%.” Grace mentioned that the institute sells some of the crops they grow— these sales must account for less than 1% of the institute’s income. They truly are nonproﬁt. Expenses in 2022 were 56.4% “Staﬀ,” 9.7% “Operations,” 5.1% “Education/Outreach,” 8.4% “Agroforestry Adoption,” 8.8% “Spring Green Campus,” 4.0% “Demonstration Farms,” and 7.3% “Research and Development.” “Fundraising” is listed, and can be calculated to be 0.3% of the institute’s expenses. “We host regular events and everyone is welcome,” Gasch said. “Every September, we have an open house for the Spring Green community (thank you to everyone who came!) This year from December 6-8th, we’ll host our virtual Perennial Farm Gathering with authors Robin Wall Kimmerer and Ross Gay delivering keynotes. If people want to join our events list, they can text Events to 33777 to receive updates.” In addition to the opportunities listed by Gasch, people can access two free classes on the Savanna Institute website: “Agroforestry Foundations” and “Social Justice and Agroforestry.” People can volunteer to monitor stream water on the second Tuesdays of the month, May-Oct. People can apply to become apprentices, where they will gain hands-on experience with agroforestry, or they can sponsor apprentice opportunities for others for just $2500. The Savanna Institute has a podcast, “Perennial AF,” hosted by Grace. For more information on the institute, go to: www.savannainstitute.org

Page 12 Thursday, OctOber 19, 2023

Outdoors & Recreation

An Outdoorsman’s Journal Mark Walters, Columnist

Mississippi River Duck Hunt 2023

Hello friends, You know that you may have some grey hairs on your head, if any hairs, if you are returning for an annual duck hunt that you first did 52 duck seasons ago. This year there would be 15 duck hunters and 2 fishermen on our annual pilgrimage to an island on the Mississippi River near Ferryville. At least for me, it is the most gear oriented and exhausting way I know of to spend 3 days in my year of trips. Friday, September 29th High 80°, Low 54° A long boat ride to an island by myself and within 3 hours there would be 17 of us including my daughter Selina who does this trip every year but will not miss a class at UWSP. My dad, the late Robert Walters was the founder of this trip and for most of the guys, Selina is the only female, this is a cannot miss kind of adventure. I would call the feeling for everyone, both at campfire time and our duck hunts, “electric”. One time over the course of the night I looked at 8 kids jaw jacking that are between the age of 16 and 32 and realized that they all went to Necedah High School. My stepsons Travis and Joey Dushek do not miss this expedition, we have a duck contest and quite often Trav or Joey wins it. Saturday, September 30th High 87°, Low 55° So warm you can be sitting in a

canoe, in the dark and not be chilled at all. Selina, I, Ruby, and her pup Red had to paddle about a mile to where we would watch night become day. Kind of bad luck greeted us when there were other hunters in our area. Neither of us gets overly concerned about these things, but in the end, we were cut off for much of our potential shooting. I did get one drake wood duck which Ruby found but did not retrieve all the way to me. This is new to Ruby, and she is excellent at marking dropped ducks and always finding them, but it is a bummer when she is swimming back to the canoe and drops them 20 feet away. Late in the morning Selina and I went exploring and found what would be an epic spot to hunt the rest of the weekend. I do have to mention, I rarely cook in my canoe but today we were going to have a breakfast fit for a king, that is until I realized I had forgot a lighter. This afternoon I witnessed Selina really get a grasp on dropping ducks with her 11/87. She ended up with 3 drake wood ducks, I ended the day with my limit of woodies and a teal. Red is learning to figure out where the dropped birds are. Tonight, just like last night, 17 people that are all like family had a perfect campfire kind of night. Sunday, October 1st High 91°, Low 60° Selina and I stand in shallow water next to our canoe and watch the sky. Ruby is so into duck hunting that at the age of 7 she stands in the water and sleeps. In short, I try to get her

Photo contributed by Mark Walters Selina, the pups and her dad do a lot of exploring when they duck hunt on the Mississippi River.

Photo contributed by Mark Walters Of the 17 people camped on an island on the Mississippi River, 8 of them graduated from Necedah High School.

into thecanoe to sleep but she insists on staying in the water. Selina and I dropped 6 ducks this morning and did not lose a one. When our morning hunt was over, we paddled back to camp, everyone else had broken their camp and were leaving. Selina and I got our cots out of the tent and we both took a first-rate siesta. When our gang is referring to this trip it is always called &quot;The Mississippi.” It is total exhaustion, sometimes not enough or good enough shooting or dog work. The Mississippi is a 110 PERCENT ADDICTION TO RETURNING THE NEXT YEAR. Will return each year, until I can’t.

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. 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 Selina Walters and her pup Red enjoying their duck hunt on the Mississippi River near Ferryville.

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