Lynn Binnie 
Registration for the 2019-2020 soccer season is open for the month of June. Registration is online and the link can be found at www.whitewatersoccer.com. Representatives from the soccer club will be on hand at the Whitewater City Market to answer questions and help register your player every Tuesday night in June from 4-7pm.”
The Whitewater Unified School District recognized five District employees at a retirement dinner on Tuesday, June 4, at the Willow Creek Golf Course in Whitewater. Congratulations to the following retirees for their service and dedication to the Whitewater Unified School District.
Shirley Cutshall
School Counselor, Lincoln Elementary
25 years
Tony Tautges
Science Teacher, High School
22 years
Mary Kay Nelson
3rd Grade Teacher, Lincoln Elementary
31 years
Mary Rogers
Accounts Payable Administrative Assistant
29 years
Irene Bembenek
Duplicating
12 years
The Whitewater 4th of July Festival Committee and the Whitewater Lions Club welcome you to the 2019 Whitewater Area 4th of July Parade honoring our brave veterans and military service personnel.
Master Sergeant Jason Dean joined the Marine Corps in July of 1997 as a Ground Communications Technician. He deployed to Iraq in January of 2003 and again in January of 2006. He was wounded in action while serving with 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division in Al Karmah, Iraq in 2006 and received the Purple Heart Medal.
In 2014, MSgt Dean was selected to represent the Marine Corps on the highly competitive Wounded Warrior Congressional Fellowship Program where he served on the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans affairs under Senator Bernie Sanders. He also served in the Pentagon as the Special Advisor to the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, advising senior Pentagon officials on issues pertaining to wounded, ill, and injured servicemembers. He retired in November of 2017.
Master Sergeant Dean is the Commander of the Whitewater Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), Junior Vice Commander for the Wisconsin 1st District VFW, and Junior Vice Commander of the Walworth County Marine Corps League.
With warmer weather and with regular rain, many of us are mowing our yards more often. It might seem like a great solution to simply blow the clippings into the street. Before you do that, consider either composting or leaving them to naturally break down in your yard (this is like free fertilizer!).
Grass clippings in the street often end up in the storm drains and sewers and are sometimes a hazard to motorcycles and cyclists (it also isn’t very attractive in our neighborhoods).
Storm drains lead to the storm sewer system — you can see the drains, but the pipes connected to the drains are underground. These systems are totally separate from “sanitary sewer” (what drains from your house). The water in storm sewers makes its way into our lakes and local creeks.
Grass clippings, leaves, and other debris have a tendency to “clump” in storm drains and in the sewers. As it builds up, this can cause the drains to back up since they’re not performing at their peak. This, in turn, can cause flooding or drainage issues in the street and our neighborhoods, and that’s something we’re all hoping to avoid!
When grass clippings remain in the street and get wet, they can become slick and hazardous to drivers, cyclists, and motorcycles. If you’ve ever slid on loose gravel, you can imagine how much more you’d slide on wet grass! This is definitely a safety issue and our friends and neighbors will thank you for helping keep debris out of the street.
Further, since our storm runoff ultimately ends up in public waterways, we have to consider the environment. Grass clippings contribute nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous, which can cause an unwanted and uncontrolled growth of algae and aquatic weeds. This can rob streams, rivers, and lake of precious oxygen. We’re having serious issues with algae and other plant growth in the lakes, and clippings contribute to that.
When mowing your yard, you might make the first few passes blowing grass away from the street or ditches. If you end up with grass in the street, think about blowing or sweeping it back into your yard.
Finally, per Whitewater Ordinance 12.08.010 – “No person….shall place, deposit, keep, or cause to be placed, deposited or kept in or upon any street, alley, gutter, sidewalk or public ground….any stone, earth….grass clippings or lawn debris….” The Neighborhood Services Officers are issuing warnings to property owners when they find clippings in the street, and if not resolved, that will be followed with fines.
Please help your neighbors and the whole city by not blowing/leaving grass or debris in the street!
Liz Sotherland, who together with her husband John, own BicycleWise, connected with our State officials to proclaim May as Ehlers-Danlos Awareness Month. With some work with local representatives, the past month was officially Ehlers-Danlos Awareness Month in Wisconsin! Thank you Governor Tony Evers. The official document will be proudly displayed at BicycleWise.
The Ehlers-Danlos syndromes are a group of connective tissue disorders that can be inherited and are varied both in how they affect the body and in their genetic causes. They are generally characterized by joint hypermobility (joints that stretch further than normal), skin hyperextensibility (skin that can be stretched further than normal), and tissue fragility.
It’s difficult knowing there’s no treatment or cure, but working toward awareness and more research gives Liz hope for herself and others. To learn more click here or here.
As part of his comments on Memorial Day at the Veterans Memorial Building, Adjutant Steve Smith announced that a dwindling active membership, a lack of resources to maintain the building, and a refocusing on serving veterans led to the decision by the William Graham Post 173 of the American Legion to sell its building, which is 50 years old this year. “To be clear, we are not going away,” Smith stated. “We are downsizing to better focus on our mission, and we will continue to meet and function as we have in the past.” Please click here for the article in the Daily Jefferson County Union.
On Friday, May 31, Whitewater High School will be
celebrating its current and future students and alumni by encouraging all
current, future, and former Whitewater High School students and their families
to post both new and old photos on social media using the hashtag
#dayofthewhippet. Let’s celebrate past achievements, bright futures, and great
career choices, and show your Whippet Pride!
The Whitewater Arts Alliance is pleased to announce that Taylor McDarison has joined the organization as the Whitewater Cultural Arts Center Gallery Manager. She began her work with the Arts Alliance on April 29, and duties will include general gallery management, working with artists and coordinating exhibits.
A graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, McDarison graduated with a BFA with an emphasis in Sculpture/Ceramics. She has presented art related research in Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin and served on the executive boards of over 10 student and community organizations. She has also displayed work in galleries located in Wisconsin, Illinois, Ohio, and Washington.
Taylor shares, “Having served for three years as the Whitewater Arts Alliance (WAA) Recording Secretary, I am very aware of how warm, dedicated, and passionate the people surrounding WAA’s inner workings are. From our volunteers all the way up to our board president, I am so happy and proud to be returning to a community of exceptional art advocates. In a way, it feels like coming home, and I am eager to return and be part of a very effective and thriving grassroots art culture.”
The City of Whitewater has partnered with Midwest Computer Recycling Inc. to host an electronics recycling collection, Saturday, May 25.
Electronics can be dropped off between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. to city parking lot A, across from the City Municipal Building located at 312 West Whitewater Street, next to the Whitewater Train Depot.
Acceptable items and recycle costs include:
• TVs – $20 each • Tube TV’s – $10 each • Microwaves – $5 each • Large exercise equipment – $5 each
Cash or check payments will be accepted upon drop off. All other electronics including computer monitors will be accepted at no cost.
Midwest Computer Recycling Inc. employees will be present to assist with drop off.
In previous years the capacity of the recycling container was sometimes reached early in the day, so participants are encouraged to arrive as early as possible.
4th and 5th grade students from Lakeview Elementary have much to celebrate about during the recent Math 24 competition held at Whitewater Middle School. Good job on a job well done!