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(Whitewater Unites Lives submission) Jake Gerlach is a WUL Hometown Hero, and has been nominated “For leading twice-weekly hikes in the Kettle Moraine and surrounding areas for 23 years, and for sharing his in-depth knowledge of the local flora.”

His nomination includes:  “For those who enjoy being outdoors, hiking is a wonderful activity but no one wants to be lost in the woods or repeat the same trails all the time.  Jake is so knowledgeable on the entire trail system of the Kettle Moraine and the surrounding areas.  Plus, he is knowledgeable on the local flora so we hikers get great exercise with a learning experience.  Hikers meet Jake at 4 p.m. at the Highway 12 trail head on Tuesdays, on Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m. from the same point and in winter from the John Muir trail heads.” 

WUL (Whitewater Unites Lives) is a locally-focused civil and human rights group that works to connect the people in our community and to create opportunities for all people to learn and support each other in our common humanity.   

 Anyone who would like to nominate a local hero of any age should send their nomination, with a short description, to whitewaterunites@gmail.com 

(Fort Healthcare submission) Fort HealthCare is pleased to announce a brand-new, FREE community-based wellness challenge open to adults beginning May 4, 2021, to coincide with Mental Well-Being Awareness Month. Registration began online on April 5th.

This six-week challenge encourages physical activity and tracking steps as a way to get participants moving. Steps and exercises are tools for healthy coping by decreasing the effects of stress on the body.

Tiffany Pernat, Fort HealthCare Worksite Wellness Specialist states, “Physical activity is so important for the entire body and all of its systems and should be done at a moderate intensity most days of the week. This can range anywhere from 20 to 30 minutes each day.”

Pernat continues, “Aside from physical activity helping with overall health and values such as blood pressure, cardiovascular endurance, blood glucose numbers and weight, it has a positive effect on the brain, which can help a person when they are experiencing stress, anxiety or depression, and can be a great coping mechanism. With exercise, I always recommend that a person pick something that they know they will enjoy and find fun, because it won’t feel as much like ‘work’ so it will be something to look forward to and maintain throughout time, thus creating healthy and sustainable habits.”

Traci Wilson, Fort HealthCare’s Community Programming Coordinator, adds, “Walking (or any exercise) can help relieve stress in many ways. Short bouts of exercise can boost endorphins in the body, which can help reduce stress hormones and alleviate mild depression.”

Wilson notes, “Everyone experiences some type of stress each day, which can affect our overall health. The key is to manage our stress and the quickest and easiest way to get out of our heads, is to get up and take a short walk. At Fort HealthCare, our mission is to improve the health and well-being of our community. We hope that the ‘Make Each Step Count’ Challenge provides a fun, engaging opportunity for people to challenge themselves by managing their stress with exercise.”

The challenge will also include two weekly tasks to complete. One will be a piece of weekly education and the other will be tracking your steps. If you do not have a tracking device such as a Fitbit, Apple Watch or Garmin, an activity-conversion chart will be provided. Also, many smart phones have a tracking app you can use to keep track of your steps.

Additionally, throughout the challenge, there will be an interactive daily calendar that will have a daily challenge, weekly Bingo Bonus Challenge and great pieces of health information and blogs to encourage your progress. As part of the challenge, there will be prizes given to some of the top step-getters.

Pernat continues, “This challenge is a great opportunity to get moving, come out of an exercise-funk you may be in, or to continue with your current exercise plan. At Fort HealthCare, health and wellness is a top priority, and if we can have a little fun and friendly competition with others in the community, we hope it sparks lifestyle habits that continue for participants beyond the challenge dates.”

The challenge will encourage 10,000 steps a day throughout the six weeks; however, the prize structure will start at 5,000 steps a day to inspire those individuals who are just starting their fitness journey, or those who have taken some time off and are jumping back in.

For more information about the challenge and how to register, please visit FortHealthCare.com/StepsCount.

Fort HealthCare is committed to improving the health and well-being of our communities, with a vision to be the healthiest community in Wisconsin. As the leading healthcare provider in the region, it is our goal to reach as many members of the community as possible with health and wellness messages, providing tools and resources to help individuals improve their health and quality of life, while collaborating with several partners to positively improve the population’s health overall on a long term basis. For more information, visit FortHealthCare.com.

(Whitewater Arts Alliance submission)   Art by students from ages 4 to 18 will be featured in the April virtual exhibit at the Whitewater Arts Alliance’s website www.whitewaterarts.org.  The show becomes available on Friday, April 9 and runs through Saturday, April 24th.  The gallery at the Cultural Arts Center will be closed for the month of April.

The exhibit will include visual two dimensional artwork by students from area schools.  The art teachers displaying their students’ art are:   Justin Mane (Washington), Sara Sixel (Lincoln), Sara Brautigam (Lakeview), Sarah Heyer (Middle School), and Crystal Gill (High School).

Here is a message from WAA’s President, Kristen Burton, about the show, “Part of the Whitewater Arts Alliance’s mission is to promote arts education. This collaborative exhibit between the Whitewater Unified School District and the Whitewater Arts Alliance supports that mission, provides the community an opportunity to follow the developing talents and careers of our up-and-coming artists, and fosters a positive environment for lifelong learning and creativity.”

The mission of the Whitewater Arts Alliance is to promote the visual and performing arts through an alliance of artists, individuals, educational resources, and organizations to promote creativity and diversity that will serve to educate and enrich the lives of the residents of the Whitewater community and surrounding areas.

Carol McCormick writes, “A young Bald Eagle perched on the same branch where a possible ‘Mom and Dad’ sat two years ago over Trippe Lake. Next generation? A positive sign of the continuation of the species! Immatures take four years to reach the recognizable white head plumage.”

Our thanks to Carol McCormick for sharing yet another interesting nature photo.

— Our Readers Share: We hope that you might have something that you’d be willing to share.  Anything that’s been created by someone else should, of course, be credited, and you should ask their permission if you’re able. We cannot post copyrighted material without permission. We can’t guarantee that we’ll have space for all submissions, and contributions will be subject to editorial board approval. The one definite exclusion is anything politically oriented. We will assume that you’re willing for us to include your name as the submitter unless you indicate that you prefer to remain anonymous. Send to whitewaterbanner@gmail.com or click on “submit a story” near the top right of our homepage.  Thanks for thinking about this!

Whitewater Grocery Co continues to THANK the many volunteers of both the Whitewater Food Pantry and The Community Space.  Both food pantries are important during normal times but even more important during the Pandemic.   Whitewater Grocery Co thanks them for being a Whitewater Food Warrior during these unprecedented times.   Topper’s Pizza also presented each person with a free pizza or Topperstiks.  We thank them for their time and dedication to helping feed all Whitewater area residents.

(Left to Right) Barb Quast – Co-Director of the Whitewater Food Pantry    Carlene Wood, Pete Bolchen, and Pat Chaput, Co-Director of the Whitewater Food Pantry.

(Left to Right) Dogan Satir, Kay Robers – Director of The Whitewater Community Space, and Mary Heather Robeson.

(Dwight Foster Library press release) The Dwight Foster Public Library, in partnership with the Aging and Disability Resource Center of Jefferson County, will now have available at the library, Dementia Busy Bags. These bags will be specific for individuals experiencing memory loss and their care partners to pick up. A library card is not needed to pick up a bag. The bags include items for all ages to engage your loved one with dementia in a variety of activities. Each month will feature different crafts and resources for both the person living with dementia and the person providing care.

Pick up bags at the Main Service Desk. This is an ongoing project to connect with our community. Feel free to contact the library at (920) 563-7790 or stop in to pick one up. For more information about other Dementia materials at the library, go on to the library website at fortlibrary.org and click on the Adult tab at the top of the page to find Caregiver Kits. Dwight Foster Public Library is open to the public and is open Mondays through Thursdays from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m., Fridays from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m., and Saturdays from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.

Banner note: The library indicates that Whitewater residents are welcome to obtain these kits. Here is more information about the kits:

Memory loss can lead to empty, idle hours if one becomes unable to participate in their favorite past-times. Filling a bit of the spare time with something meaningful or engaging can be a struggle for caregivers.

The Dwight Foster Library has developed 5 Caregiver Kits for individuals who provide care to someone with memory loss. These kits contain a variety of materials and activities to stimulate the mind, body and spirit of individuals with memory loss.

Items in the kits include puzzles, art materials, music, video, books and photographs. Each kit also contains a copy of the book “The Caregiver’s Guide to Dementia: Using Activities and Other Strategies to Prevent, Reduce and Manage Behavioral Symptoms by Laura N. Gitlin and Catherine Verrier Piersol.”

• Checkout period is 8 weeks
• Please return Caregiver Kits to the 1st floor desk at the Dwight Foster Public Library in Fort Atkinson
• Please inform the library if anything in this kit is not working.

(Whitewater Public Library submission) The Irvin L. Young Memorial Library invites interested people to register for a Reliable Health Information Workshop to take place on Saturday, April 10th at 10:30 a.m. This virtual workshop will be available at whitewaterlibrary.org.

This is a free, 90-minute educational program developed by Wisconsin Health Literacy. The program helps adults use the internet to find reliable health information. Participants will learn how to tell which websites are good and practice searching different health topics.

Program includes:
•       Searching for health information that can be trusted
•       How to read a webpage – finding quick facts and key points
•       How to tell if the information you found is from a good source
•       Finding sites in other languages
•       Differences between using a computer or mobile device
•       Local places to use the internet 
•       Using other online resources for your health

“Happy Easter!” by swisscan is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Banner note: Though this photo of a massive boiler is obviously not from UW-W nor from the current day, we thought it was interesting. The photo was taken at General Electric Station E in Portland, Oregon in 1905.

Boilers at Station EPortland General Electric Photograph CollectionORG lot 151 PGE 5-29, Oregon Historical Society Research Library

(UW-W press release) As part of a maintenance project, the University Heat Plant at UW-Whitewater will be conducting a test of its boilers on April 5-6 and April 12-13. This test will require the plant to release steam outside of the building. During this time, the campus community may hear sound and notice a white cloud that is associated with the venting of steam.