News

The Whitewater Community Foundation is now accepting applications for Spring Community Action Grants.  Grants will be awarded to local non-profit organizations actively working to support the greater Whitewater community with educational, cultural, charitable and benevolent projects that will benefit and improve the community. 

Projects are expected to be accomplished within a specific period of time (generally not more than one year) and should be creative, innovative and address community needs.  The deadline for submitting applications is April 30, 2026.

Virginia Coburn, WCF Board Member who chairs the Community Action Grant Selection Committee, said, “I’m inspired by the number of local organizations sponsoring programs and projects to benefit the community.  The Foundation has given grants to The Community Space, Whitewater Food Pantry, Bethel House, First United Methodist Church, St. Patrick Catholic Church, Whitewater Rescue Squad and many more. I invite you to read the pages on our website to see if one of your projects is eligible for an action grant.”

Organizations interested in pursuing a Whitewater Community Foundation Action Grant should check out the Foundation web site at https://whitewatercommunityfoundation.org/?s=Action+Grants or contact Ginny Coburn at virginiacoburn@coburn.com for more information.

The Foundation continues to provide and host scholarships for Whitewater High School students and also offers fiscal sponsorship to organizations that are seeking 501(c) (3) status or require temporary pass-through funds for worthy community projects.

More information about the Whitewater Community Foundation can be found at https://whitewatercommunityfoundation.org/ and on Facebook. 

The Whitewater Community Foundation’s mission is to enhance quality of life in the Whitewater area via educational, cultural, charitable or benevolent expenditures.

Editor’s Note: The above was provided by the Whitewater Community Foundation.

[From myjewishlearning.com] In 2026, Passover begins on the evening of Wednesday, April 1 and concludes at nightfall on Thursday, April 9. The first Passover seder is on the evening of April 1, and the second Passover seder takes place on the evening of April 2.

(From Wikipedia) Passover, also called Pesach or Pesakh (/ˈpɛsɑːx, ˈpeɪ-/;^[2] Hebrew: פֶּסַח‎ Pesaḥ) is a ritual meal, the Pesach seder, that occurs the night of the paschal full moon after the 14th of Nisan, eve of the 15th, telling the story of the exodus, and remembering how the angel of death “passed over” the houses of the Israelites during the tenth plague on Egypt. It begins Feast of Unleavened Bread that continues through the 22nd of Nisan, and is one of three pilgrimage festivals in which all Jewish males living in the land of Israel are obliged. On the 16th of Nisan, jews begin the counting of the omer, the memorial offering of the firstfruits of the barley harvest. The counting continues for seven weeks until the Feast of Shavuot, also known as Pentecost.

When the Temple in Jerusalem stood, the paschal lamb was offered and eaten on Passover eve, while the wave offering of barley was offered on the second day of the festival. Nowadays, in addition to the biblical prohibition of owning leavened foods for the duration of the holiday, the Passover seder is one of the most widely observed rituals in Judaism. In the Diaspora the unleavened bread is celebrated for 8 days, based on the concept of yom tov sheni shel galuyot.

Besides having fun, what else can you do to prepare for the aging experience?  It is going to happen to all of us and the more prepared we are, the more likely we will age gracefully.  A number of doctors and experts were asked to come up with a mantra – a short slogan that encapsulates a core truth about physical and mental health.  In part one, we heard: 

Aging is a good thing. 

The way to health is through the gut. 

Sleep is important but not important enough to lose sleep over.  Here are a few more mantras.

Movement is life.

If you want to maintain your physical and mental health, you have to be physically active.  It keeps your brain, heart, lungs, bones and joints healthy; in fact, every cell in your body benefits from pumping blood throughout. It lowers your risk of depression, dementia, cancer, stroke, heart attack – all the things that are likely to shorten your life.

Food is medicine.  Food is love.  Enjoy it as both.

What you eat connects you to your culture and people you care about.  So, eat your favorite foods when you’re celebrating.  The rest of the time, choose foods that nourish your body.

Life is finite.  Live with it.

Once you acknowledge the limitations of being human, you can plunge your energy into what matters to you.  Procrastination, distraction, impatience, addiction and all the rest happen from trying to avoid reality.

************

For more advice for living a long happy life https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2016/06/can-you-lengthen-your-life

This article is submitted by Dementia Friendly Community Initiative, a program of Whitewater Seniors in the Park to help educate the community about dementia and to support patients and their care partners.  New committee members are very welcome!  Call Jennifer to volunteer   262 473 0535     jjackson@whitewater-wi.gov

https://www.whitewater-wi.gov/273/Seniors-In-the-Park

County Residents Report Zoning Permit Scam
Be aware if you receive unsolicited invoices or suspicious messages

County officials were recently notified of a fraudulent invoice scam involving current zoning requests before the Jefferson County Planning and Development Department. Residents have received fake emails that appear to be official correspondence from Planning and Development directing them to pay an invoice in order to finalize a permit. These scam messages often look professional and may even use the names and titles of Jefferson County employees and details regarding a pending request to appear legitimate.

Red flags that could indicate a scam include:

• Suspicious contact information not affiliated with a legitimate email address. All emails from Jefferson County end with @jeffersoncountywi.gov
• Pressure to pay promptly and through a method such as wire transfer. As standard practice, our Planning and Development Department does not send invoices. Residents pay at the time of their application or permit.

Please be aware that scammers can impersonate any County department or private business to try to steal your money. If you receive a message or request that you suspect to be fraudulent, the best practice is to contact the entity making the request via a phone number or email address you know is legitimate. Instead of using the email or phone number in the suspicious message, look up the correct contact information personally and use it to report the message.

If you receive a suspicious message claiming to be from the Jefferson County Planning and Development Department, please call (920) 674-7130.

For more about Jefferson County, including contact information for all departments:
https://cms4.revize.com/revize/jeffersoncountywi25/

Carol McCormick writes, “Two swans visited Trippe Lake on Monday morning feeding on a floating bog of cattails. The geese surrounding them didn’t seem to be intimidated by them. More curious than anything. Just another example of how precious our lakes are to our community!

Our thanks to Carol McCormick for sharing another interesting 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. Thanks for thinking about this!

Editor’s note: The link shown above is not accurate. View all class dates and register at:
finances.extension.wisc.edu/programs/

Direct link to view individual classes and register:

• For Rent Smart:  Free Virtual Programs – Rent Smart
• Planning AHEAD:  Overview ⋮ Planning AHEAD Statewide Virtual Series ⋮ University of Wisconsin-Madison – Division of Extension ⋮ Events
• Encouraging Financial Conversations:  Encouraging Financial Conversations Foundations March 17 – April 21, 2026 Training Series
• Money Matters Live:  Monthly Money Matters Live – Financial Education

Editor’s note: The above press release was provided by University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension–Walworth County.

“Jefferson County’s Land and Water Conservation Department and Planning and Development Department are jointly hosting a free workshop on April 7, 2026 from 8:00 am to 12:30 pm at the Jefferson County Courthouse focused on shoreland development and restoration. The main topics include County and City shoreland zoning rules, native plantings, bioengineering practices, riprap practices, funding opportunities, and resources available to contractors and landowners. There will be speakers from Jefferson County, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, Agrecol and Envirolok LLC.

Contractors in attendance will have their company highlighted on our contractor lists noting that they attended the workshop

Shoreland Contractors Workshop Agenda

Shoreland Restoration: Permits, Practices and Partnerships

April 7, 2026
Jefferson County Courthouse
Board Room, C2063
311 S Center Ave, Jefferson, WI
7:45 – 8:00 Check-In & Registration (Coffee, Snacks)
8:00 – 8:10 Welcome & Introductions
8:10 – 9:00 Shoreland Zoning 101

• County Zoning – Matt Zangl & Sarah Elsner, Jefferson County Planning
  and Development
• City of Fort Atkinson – Jed Draeger, Fort Atkinson Department of
  Neighborhood and Building Services

9:00 – 10:00 Benefits of Native Plants, Best Practices, Envirolok – Eric Seidl, Envirolok
10:00 – 10:10 BREAK
10:10 – 11:00 Calculating Storm Wave Height – Colton Hutchinson, Jefferson County

Land & Water Conservation Department (LWCD)
Rock Infiltration, Calculating Rock Size & Quantity, Engineering – Jon
Lisowe & Hanna Johnson, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade
and Consumer Protection

11:00 – 12:00 Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) RipRap Exemption,

Bioengineering and Permitting – Erin Cox, DNR
12:00 – 12:20 Project Funding & Resources – Jefferson County LWCD

• Lake Ripley Management District
• Wisconsin Healthy Lakes and Rivers Program
• Jefferson County Cost Share Programs
  12:20 – 12:30 Wrap Up – Jefferson County LWCD

Editor’s note: This announcement was provided by Jefferson County.