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January 20, 2010 |
By Jen Schultz
If you’ve been down to the Crawford County Building lately, you’ve probably seen this colorful quilt hanging on one of the walls.
After taking a closer look, you might notice that this pieced and hand-tied quilt is very unique. The fabrics used are actually mens’ silk neckties.
The quilt was made by Carol DuCharme’s grandmother, Gertrude LaBonne. She and her husband, Albert lived their entire married life in the "Fourth Ward" of Prairie du Chien.
According to the plaque that hangs next to the quilt, "In Gertrude’s era nothing went to waste and women were very creative in ways to reuse what they had. Due to her skill and imagination, her husband’s silk ties became this unique quilt."
"My grandmother gave the quilt to me in the 60’s," stated Carol.
The quilt has been on display since November, it will be given back to Carol and another one will be put up at the end of January.
"I missed having the quilt over the holiday season, I always put it over one of the tables in my living room," Carol revealed.
The Crawford County Art Committee solicits artists’ quilts from the community. In order for a quilt to be displayed the owner must be a resident of Crawford County and it must be approved by the committee. "We are always looking for more quilts," Marilyn Leys, a member of the committee said. "The quilts are a low-cost way to brighten the building and make it more interesting."
For more information on displaying a quilt at the Crawford County Building, contact Marilyn Leys at 608-872-2547.
By Jen Schultz
Mark your calendar for the 35th annual Eagle’s Telethon on Saturday, January 30 from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. The program will consist of people from the Prairie du Chien area showing off their talents and a phone-in auction where viewers can bid on donated items.
Members of the Prairie du Chien community can watch the program being taped live from Bluff View Intermediate School on the local cable channel 6; or join in the festivities at the Eagles Club where there will be a pork feed and live auction.
All of the proceeds will go to heart and cancer research. Last year with the community’s help, the Eagles were able to raise over $31,000. Since the very first telethon the Eagles held in 1976, they have raised over $547,000.
According to Tom Nelson, "The Eagles Club is always looking for talent, volunteers, and donations. We wouldn’t be able to do so without the community’s effort."
Interested individuals and organizations can stop in at the committee meetings held every Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. in the Eagles Club.
Singers, musicians, comedians, dancers—anyone can participate in the talent part of the telethon. Children’s Program programming will air from 5 to 7 p.m.
The telethon is run strictly by volunteers. Different organizations volunteer to answer the phones on an hourly basis during the telethon. Individuals are also needed to help make the telethon run smoothly behind the scenes at the school.
Donations are gratefully accepted for both the telethon program and live auction at the Eagles Club. For donations, contact Mary Lausted at 326-9422.
To help cut down on costs, local businesses are wanted for major sponsorships. Mediacom provides the equipment and professional personnel to televise the event. CenturyTel provides the phones and phone service for the telethon. If your business would like to donate, contact Tom Nelson at 326-8602.
The Eagles Club is located at 200 S. Beaumont Rd. For more information call 326-6012.
Kramer, new city administrator
By Jen Schultz
Aaron Kramer will start his new position as Prairie du Chien’s City Administrator Monday, January 25.
As the new administrator, Kramer is responsible for the efficient administration of all of the city affairs. He will ensure that all laws and ordinances are enforced, exercise supervision and control over all departments, and attend all meetings of the City Council, Commissions, and boards.
Kramer will make recommendations to the city council, prepare and submit the annual budget, and keep the council advised on the financial condition and needs of the city.
Most recently, Kramer held the position of mayor in Ripon, Wisc. He was appointed in a special election by the city council in the summer of 2003.
While mayor, Kramer also worked as an insurance agent for Diedrich Insurance Agency in Ripon.
According to Kramer his goal as city administrator is "to make tomorrow better than it was yesterday by doing everything I can do today."
Kramer has an open door policy, and he’s always looking for ideas from the community. He wants public involvement. "The only bad ideas are ones you don’t share with me," Kramer states.
One of Kramer’s first challenges will be getting a handle on the finances—specifically the budget, debt, and taxes. He is a firm believer in transparency, especially in regards to the city’s budget and finances. While mayor, Kramer was very open to the public and displayed all city’s financial information on the community’s website.
He takes pride in his term as the mayor of Ripon. Over the five years he was mayor, taxes only increased by 3%.
Kramer is excited about moving his family to Prairie du Chien. "One of the things that appealed to us was that it is so family friendly. This area has a lot to offer and a family can do a variety of things without leaving the area," expresses Kramer.
The Kramer family includes his wife, Sarah and daughters Kylie, 4, and Emmy, 1. They will be moving to Prairie du Chien this summer after Kylie is finished with school and dance in Ripon. Kramer will commute to Ripon on the weekends to see his family.
The family loves to travel, enjoys gardening, and have recently taken interest in genealogy. Kramer’s hobbies also include the love of baseball, the Brewers, and Packers. Kramer’s pride is his sports pages on the family website, the-kramerfamily.com
Kramer has a background in radio announcing and managing. He was the radio announcer for Ripon’s high school football games for the past 13 seasons, up through this past fall.
He is a current WIAA licensed referee and umpire for middle school, high school, and college sports—specifically basketball, softball, and baseball.
To contact Aaron Kramer, call the City Hall at 326-6406.
January 18, 2010 |
By Jen Schultz
Michael Hoeger had first-hand experience with the worst earthquake Haiti has seen since 1751. Hoeger is the son of Dennis and Martha Hoeger of Prairie du Chien. He graduated from Prairie du Chien High School in 2007 and is currently a junior at UW-Madison studying engineering. Hoeger joined Engineers Without Borders (EWB) last fall after admiring a friend who volunteered in Rwanda through EWB.
EWB is a non-profit student organization that partners with disadvantaged communities to design and implement sustainable solutions. Hoeger knew that by joining EWB, he would have the opportunity to help others who needed it the most. The UW-Madison chapter’s project was scheduled to last six days in Haiti, Jan. 9 through 15. They would survey and assess what needed to be done to repair a clean water pipeline through a river valley in Bayonais, a rural village about 70 miles north of Port-au-Prince. Included on the trip from the UW-Madison chapter were a Professional Engineering Advisor and five students, including Hoeger.
"Our group was surveying when the earthquake occurred. I was standing on a rock in a creek and lost my footing. A team member called out to me ‘Is the earth moving for ya?’ I thought she was poking fun at me for stumbling, and another group member called out ‘Are you feeling this?’ We immediately knew that an earthquake had occurred, and quit surveying as our tripod had slid from it’s original position," stated Hoeger.
The earthquake happened at 4:52 p.m. on Tuesday, January 12.
"After we could no longer feel the quake other team members noted the level bubble on the survey equipment was still moving continuously. We did not learn the location of the earthquake until later that evening, nor the extent of the damage until the next day," admits Hoeger.
During their stay, the UW-Madison chapter of EWB was able to finish their surveying and even completed an extra task. They were able to work with local Haitians to restore a pipeline that would provide clean water for as many as 8,000 people.
While working in Bayonais, Pastor Actionnel, of the World of God organization, housed and fed the team. "Pastor Actionnel hosted our group and treated us like family. When it was time for us to leave, he used his own vehicle and diesel fuel which is sure to be in short supply following the earthquake to get us to the Dominican Republic," Hoeger said.
The team was scheduled to return to the United States on Friday, Jan. 15, but because of the earthquake, returned late on Saturday, Jan. 16. The team was not able to travel home the same route they had come, through Port-au-Prince; so Pastor Actionnel personally drove them to the Dominican Republic border.
"I am thankful to return unharmed, and recognize how lucky we are. We are grateful for Pastor Actionnel’s swift actions that got us home safely and timely. Our hearts go out for the Haitian people," states Hoeger.
"When we were there, everyone was very welcoming. They seemed to make do with what they had; you couldn’t tell that they were living in extreme poverty at church and school," said Hoeger.
But Hoeger is worried about the effects the earthquake will have on the community. Bayonais, like all of the other communities in Haiti rely on Port-au-Prince for all of their supplies, including food, gas, clothing, medicine. With the main hub of Haiti’s infrastructure receiving heavy damage, it is only a matter of time before the shortage of supplies affects the outlying communities. Hoeger believes starvation and disease will claim the lives of many people in communities such as Bayonais, even though they were not affected as badly by the earthquake as Port-au-Prince.
"I encourage people in our community to send donations to Haiti through worldofgod.org," expressed Hoeger, "as I feel this is an efficient way to channel funds directly to the rural community of Bayonais."
EWB and the UW-Madison chapter will continue to work with the Bayonais community in Haiti. Hoeger hopes that he will be able to return with EWB during his next winter break. For more information on EWB visit ewb-usa.org.
By Ted Pennekamp
Crawford County Extension Agent Vance Haugen recently returned from his third trip to Nicaragua to help dairy farmers. In 2001 and 2002, Haugen traveled to Nicaragua to teach farmers there about rotational grazing. From Nov. 22-Dec. 6, 2009 Haugen taught the farmers about bio-gas production and soil fertilization.
Haugen traveled to Nicaragua as part of Partners of the Americas in association with the U.S. Agency for International Development, and he helped dairy farmers there to set up anaerobic digesters, which convert bio-gas from cow manure into energy.
The digesters are made from "ag. bags," the white plastic-type of material commonly seen on Wisconsin farms to store silage. The digesters are four-foot in diameter and about 12-14 feet long. Haugen said that a two-foot-deep trench is dug and the digesters are laid down in the trench. A cow manure-water mix is poured into the digester to the desired level and nature then takes its course as the manure produces gas. The gas then can go through a tube and can be used for gas stoves, lighting, generators and a variety of other uses.
"They’re especially simple and all gravity fed," said Haugen about the digesters. "They’re neat little deals."
Haugen noted that the digesters are relatively inexpensive to set up and offer a low-cost, naturally-produced energy source. "For about $60, we could get one set up in a day," he said.
A digester allows the farmer to get the most out of his manure. After the manure is used for producing gas, it can be taken out of the digester and spread on cropland as fertilizer. The digester does not deplete the manure, said Haugen.
Haugen helped build two digesters while in Nicaragua and the site preparation was completed for two more before he had to return to the United States.
Building the digesters in Nicaragua has revived some of Haugen’s interest for their possible application in Crawford County. "It’s given me more enthusiasm to take a look at it again," he said.
In fact, Haugen will be speaking about digesters at the Midwest Value Added Conference in Eau Claire, which runs from Jan. 20-22. Digesters work well in the warm climate of Nicaragua, but Haugen said that digesters might be able to make an impact in Crawford and surrounding counties despite Wisconsin winters. "I think there is some potential," he said. "If they can be built for hundreds or thousands of dollars, they might be low-cost enough for about 50 percent of the farms and could save on energy for at least part of the year."
Haugen said he will be building a small digester on his farm in Minnesota and he will also be encouraging more research in an effort to determine if digesters are practical in Wisconsin and the Midwest. He said that digesters may be able to save on the costs of running vaccuum pumps, water heaters and for cooling milk on a dairy farm.
How much time it takes to "feed" a digester, how reliable they are, and how much money they actually save will be some of the factors that determine whether or not they are found to be viable in Wisconsin, said Haugen.
For those interested in finding out more about bio-gas digesters, they can log onto the website wcasfmra.org/biogas.htm.
