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From Blake Scharine:

Greetings Whitewater & beyond,

We all have been hunkered down at the Broken Spur Inn and Steakhouse in Torrey, Utah (ok, almost all, more details to follow). We highly recommend this place. It has great rooms, amenities and an excellent restaurant on site. Everything we want when staying in the boonies of Utah.

The formula for our trips involves getting to our main destination in 2 or 3 days and 4-6 nights at our home base hotel.

So from Saturday to Tuesday, our group knocked out a ton of great motorcycle routes.

Capital Reef National Park
Spectacular towering rock formations with deep red color, winding pavement for nearly 25 miles

Fish Lake loop
Curvy country roads to a beautiful lake setting.. watch out for all the cattle ‘landmines!”

Bryce Canyon
One road in & One road out; Rivals the Grand Canyon without the crowds. Bright orange spires, crazy rock formations, thousands of acres of canyon grown rock towers and tremendous viewing pull-offs to get the best pictures. This canyon appears to go on forever.

Red Canyon
This one is a bit shorter drive-thru but right up next to the pavement. Deep red columns, 2 rock tunnels and massive rock walls with alien looking rock spindles called “hoo doos”

Arches National Park & Moab
A 108° day but 16 miles in and 16 back allowing one to pull into a missed attraction with ease on the travel back. This park had a bit more hiking into the attractions so we did mostly pull-offs and got to see a couple miraculous stone arches, huge volcanic mountains. Afterward, we visited a familiar pair of arches in Moab. Apparently, those arches have served millions!

Utah-Hwy 12 (some call the devil’s backbone)
NEWLY PAVED!! an awesome stretch of about 70 miles. Tall thick forest, deep layers of canyon formations, and an eerie view of 10s of thousands of acres of desolation. All this is 2nd to about 3mi stretch that has 1000′ drop offs w/no shoulder or guard rail. The new pavement, from 6 yrs ago, added a 6″ curb on each side. (To give you the impression of safety.)

Burr Trail
A hidden gem!!! 18mi paved; huge crevices almost caves where water runs through in spring. Riding along canyon walls 1000′ up, wow! VERY little traffic. Thx Patty n Cliff for finding this one!

God really has created heaven on earth here, we see glimpses of it at home and full panoramas of it out here… amazing.

Til next time.
Blake

The next installment of the Banner City Bikers’ trip to Torrey, Utah will be posted as sent in by members of the group. For part 1,  ; part 2,

Collaboration and creativity are driving the plans for the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Community Engagement Center and a new hotel on the city’s west side.

The site, located at 1260 W. Main St., will soon undergo a major redesign that will include the construction of a privately owned and operated 70-room, Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott hotel on the south side of the property. The existing 52,000-square-foot building to the north, which previously housed the former Sentry grocery store, is being leased to the university and will be transformed into a state-of-the art UW-Whitewater Community Engagement Center — a hub for faculty, staff, students and community members to engage in community-based learning, projects and research.

A groundbreaking at the site is scheduled for 10 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 11.

“For 150 years, UW-Whitewater has been dedicated to serving our communities and we are proud to be a partner in bringing a hotel and the Community Engagement Center to the region,” said Chancellor Beverly Kopper. “I want to express my appreciation to the UW-Whitewater Foundation, Inc., which previously owned the property and saw the potential for this space to serve both the educational and hospitality needs of the community. This project is an example of the outstanding cooperation between UW Whitewater, the Foundation, the City of Whitewater, the developer — United Development Solutions — and the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority, which helped make the project a financial reality.”

The mission of the Community Engagement Center is in keeping with the Wisconsin Idea — that the people and resources of the university stretch beyond the boundaries of campus to positively impact lives across the state.

“We envision this building as a place where everyone can collaborate to find creative ways to make a difference in our communities,” Kopper said. “We will also expand and enhance our training and certification programs to serve even more students and adult learners.”

The Community Engagement Center will house:

Business development centers that support entrepreneurs and business owners with consulting, market research, educational and other services.

Safety lab to train future workspace inspectors on the proper safety techniques using hands-on experiences.

Clinical suites for counseling, speech pathology and social work faculty and students to serve patients and clients.

Art gallery and studio to display UW-Whitewater’s permanent art collection, welcome visiting artists and provide archival storage.

Computer testing center for students and community members to complete certifications and fulfill degree and licensure requirements.

Continuing Education Services to facilitate adult outreach and training opportunities.

In addition, the center will feature dedicated classrooms, meeting spaces, conference rooms and co-working areas to host training sessions, workshops, and other programming.

“The Community Engagement Center is being redesigned with an architecturally industrial vibe that allows for innovative and flexible spaces,” said Grace Crickette, vice chancellor for administrative affairs. “Some areas will feature roll-up garage doors so that visitors can see learning as it happens.”

University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Director of Athletics Todd Garzarelli has announced the hiring of Elise Knoche as Head Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving Coach.

Knoche (pronounced kuh-KNOCK-ee) spent the last four years as assistant men’s and women’s swimming and diving coach at Division I Southern Illinois University, where she assisted in all aspects of the program and helped the Salukis post more than 80 all-conference honors and break nearly 40 school records.

“We are thrilled to welcome Elise to the Warhawk family,” Garzarelli said. “She brings a high level of energy as well as experience as a successful coach at Division I and Division III programs. Elise’s focus on coaching character to provide positive student-athlete experiences and the holistic development of student-athletes stood out as I spoke with her and others in the coaching ranks. We are excited for her to take our swimming and diving programs to the next level.”

For the complete story at UWWSports.com,

For an update on the WUSD construction, 

This free service is brought to you by the generous volunteers of Open Arms Free Clinic and Walworth County Public Health.  Maximum 50 students per day.  First come, first serve.  Please bring child ‘s proof of age (birth certificate or other legal document).  There are no requirements for proof of income or insurance status to receive all the services.  Families who do have Medicaid (BadgerCare), will need to provide that information for immunizations only.  Please bring the required school forms on the day of service, no follow up reporting will be completed.

Free Backpacks, supplies, books and shirts and more will be available on a first come first served basis provided by volunteers and friends of the Walworth County Food Pantry.

Saturday, August 25, 2018, Doors open at 8:00 am

Open Arms Free Clinic
Walworth County Food Pantry
205 E. Commerce Ct, Elkhorn, WI

Summer is the most beautiful time of year on the UW-Whitewater campus, and the community is invited to explore during free guided tours this summer. UW-Whitewater Continuing Education is pleased to offer tours of the prairie and nature preserve, landscapes, flower and vegetable gardens, and greenhouse throughout the season. Kick off the tour season with an evening tour of the prairie and nature preserve on the summer solstice, June 21.

Wes Enterline, UW-Whitewater’s sustainability coordinator and Master Gardener volunteer, will lead the tours. All tours are free with registration and open to the public.

To download a flyer with all the information: 

Register for any or all tours here: http://www.uww.edu/ce/garden.

Campus maps can be found here: http://www.uww.edu/campus/.

Prairie and Nature Preserve

See how the prairie vegetation and wildlife changes over the summer months, starting with a summer solstice tour on the 21^st.

Thursday, August 9, 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.

Meet at Lot 19

Campus Flower Gardens

Check out our annuals and perennials and learn more about the sustainable practices we use.

Thursday, August 23, 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, August 25, 10:00 – 11:30 a.m.

Meet at the Visitor Center, Lot 7

Upham Greenhouse and Campus Vegetable Garden

Our gardens yield hundreds of pounds of organic produce each summer, all donated to local food pantries.

Thursday, August 16, 5:00 – 6:00 p.m.
Thursday, August 30, 5:00 – 6:00 p.m.

Meet at the Visitor Center, Lot 7

These are walking tours with low activity levels. If you need accommodations or have questions about physical access, please contact Kari Borne at bornek@uww.edu or 262-472-1003.

 Pictured are, from left to right, Lion President Don McComb, Lion Bernie Tagney, Lion Sue Patnaude and volunteer Louie Patnaude.

On Monday, August 6th, the Whitewater Lions Club helped out the New Berlin Lions at the Wisconsin State Fair by conducting free vision screening for kids. Using the Plus Optix camera, they screened 123 kids between the ages of six months and 12 years old. There were nine referrals handed out to the parents so they could follow up with the eye doctor of choice. Helping prevent blindness is one of the main focuses of all Lions Clubs worldwide. The Whitewater Lions Club also conducts vision screening during the school year at all Whitewater Elementary schools.

All are invited to Messy Church on  August 8 from 6:30 – 8 pm at First United Methodist Church in Whitewater. Messy Church is a new way of “doing church” based on hands-on learning.

Join us as we worship, create, and grow together in a deeper understanding of God’s love for us and for all. Contact Beth at christianed@fumcwhitewater.org for more information.

Visit the Messy Church Facebook event page for more details.

Despite the rainy weather and chilly temperatures, the ski team placed 4th and won the Best Comedy Award in the statewide tournament held July 19 – 22 in Wisconsin Rapids, WI.

The Whitewater Minneiska water ski team together with the Elkhorn Lauderdale team was very proud of their combined efforts and look forward to the teams’ permanent merger!

Check out their Facebook page to see where you can see the next performance!