News

The City of Whitewater Celebrates the 10th Anniversary of the Discover Whitewater Series

Editor’s Note: The following was submitted by Knight Public Affairs, LLC.

The Greater Whitewater Committee (GWC)’s 10th anniversary celebration of the Discover Whitewater Series (DWS): Half Marathon, 5K, and W3 Fit Kid Shuffle was a wildly successful community event, raising money for local charities. 

This year’s Discover Whitewater Series (DWS) brought in over 462 participants, 408 volunteers, and nearly 70 sponsors. With live music, friendly faces, and a scenic new course, race weekend could not have gone better. Dozens of runners were awarded for their accomplishments, including the following overall winners:

Women’s Half Marathon Winners: Peighton Meske (1st), Jenny Zwagerman (2nd), Lauren Mordini (3rd)

Men’s Half Marathon Winners: Matt Barrett (1st), Martin Erl (2nd), Alexander Cushman (3rd)

Women’s 5k Winners: Miranda Slaback (1st), Heidi Mane (2nd), Rachel Fielding (3rd)

Men’s 5k Winners: Devin Johnson (1st), Mark Elworthy (2nd), Paul Taylor (3rd)

To see all race results, visit www.runnersedgeracetiming.com/results.asp. 

Women’s Half Marathon Winners: Peighton Meske (1st), Jenny Zwagerman (2nd), Lauren Mordini (3rd)
Men’s Half Marathon Winners: Matt Barrett (1st), Alexander Cushman (3rd)
Men’s Half Marathon: Martin Erl (2nd)

Participants of the DWS were enthused by the overwhelmingly organized and welcoming event. City Council President, Lisa Dawsey-Smith, gave the opening remarks as runners prepared to take on the race course. The sun was shining and the warm fall air made for a beautiful morning as both races began.

As runners ventured through the course, they got to experience some of Whitewater’s finest features. The DWS team was proud to welcome new and returning participants alike, exceeding their greatest expectations of the race. Thanks to all the hard work of volunteers and sponsors, this 10th anniversary DWS proved to achieve its mission of bringing people together in support of a good cause. 

Women’s 5k Winners: Miranda Slaback (1st), Heidi Mane (2nd), Rachel Fielding (3rd)
Men’s 5k Winners: Devin Johnson (1st), Mark Elworthy (2nd), Paul Taylor (3rd)

All proceeds will be distributed to the DWS’s five charity partners: Whitewater LEADS, Working for Whitewater’s Wellness (W3), Whitewater Unified School District, Bethel House of Whitewater, and the J-Hawks Swim Club. Runners and volunteers joined together afterwards to celebrate the day’s accomplishments, enjoying a free beverage from bronze sponsor 841 Brewhouse. 

“The 10th anniversary of the DWS proved to be a year of celebration, growth, and success,” said Race Director, Dawson Miller. “It was amazing to see runners and volunteers alike showcase their hard work.”

The DWS team would like to thank all who came out in support of the race. The whole community is blessed to have had 462 participants attend the DWS, making it a hugely successful charity event. We hope everyone will join us again for the next one! Stay tuned for more information on the 11th annual race. 

 To learn more about the DWS, visit https://RunWhitewater.com/.

About the DWS

The goal of the DWS is to promote the City of Whitewater and highlight its greatest features. The DWS partners with the city, business community, university, and the school district to make this a tremendous event that benefits all who participate. For more information about the race visit runwhitewater.com. For general race inquiries, email info@runwhitewater.com.

For more information about the DWS, contact Jeffery Knight at jpk@knightpublicaffairs.com or 920.728.0662.

This Week’s Garage Sale

233 Ash Ln.

Whitewater, WI

Saturday 9/24 , 8am- 2pm Sunday 9/25, 8am -2pm 

Tons of EUC, name brand, boy and girl clothes. 

Boys size Small, Medium, Large and XL.

Girls size 3/4T and 5-14/16. 

Tons of shoes including winter boots. 

Winter gear. Snow pants and tons of jackets. 

Womens size clothing XSMALL-Small.

Mens size clothing Small – XLarge.

Housewares.

Bedding- sheets and blankets. 

Outside equipment including some camping gear.

Kids wagon.

Tons and tons of good stuff and cheap. Priced to give you an amazing deal while helping us clear things we no longer need. 

Paige Davis and Kelsey Herold Join Whitewater Kiwanis

Editor’s Note: The following was provided by the Whitewater Kiwanis Breakfast Club.

Lorrie Koppein, the Lieutenant Governor of Division 4 of the Kiwanis Wisconsin-Upper Michigan District, and Patrick Taylor, President of the Whitewater Kiwanis Breakfast Club, welcomed new members Paige Davis and Kelsey Herold of First Citizens State Bank to the Whitewater Kiwanis Breakfast Club this week. They will serve as Co-Treasurers for the fiscal year, and as officers of Kiwanis.

Whitewater Kiwanis is a group of dedicated volunteers who help both children of the Whitewater community and the world, all with 100% of funds raised going directly to youth projects and zero to administrative costs. Over the past five years the club raised funds to make possible the recent installation of the city’s first piece of inclusive playground equipment, a We-Go-Round, in Starin Park.  Annual donations are also made to provide scholarships for students, as well as support for organizations such as the Whitewater Food Pantry, Bethel House, The Community Space, and the Whitewater Youth Soccer Club.

If you have an interest in helping youth in Whitewater, you can check out Whitewater Kiwanis on Facebook and join our Club by contacting Patrick Taylor at Petaylor.law@gmail.com.

Kiwanis is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to improving

 the world one child and one community at a time.

Christine Hayes selected as the recipient for the 2022 Wisconsin Music Educators Association Michael G. George Distinguished Service Award

Editor’s Note: The following was submitted by the Whitewater Unified School District.

Christine Hayes, Lincoln Elementary Music Teacher has been selected as the recipient for the 2022 Wisconsin Music Educators Association (WMEA) Michael G. George Distinguished Service Award.  This award is given annually to an individual who has made significant contributions to music and music education over a sustained time period.  “Mrs. Christine Hayes has made a significant contribution to the Whitewater students and families since 1988,” said Dr. Caroline Pate-Hefty, WUSD Superintendent.  “Her excitement and passion about reaching all students in the creative and musical realms is absolutely inspirational in the WUSD.”  

Christine Hayes loves teaching K-5 General Music at Lincoln Elementary in the Whitewater Unified School District and the relationship she has with students and families is central to receiving this award; however, the next few paragraphs will highlight the ways in which her work has impacted the profession far beyond your school district. She is proud to be a music education advocate and has served on the 2014 National Core Arts Standards for Music writing team for General Music Grades 3-5, piloted national cornerstone assessments, served on the 2017 writing team for the new WMEA Wisconsin State Standards and is immediate past chair of the WMEA State Standards Committee. In addition, she is a Past-Chair of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) Council for General Music Education and a WMEA Past-President.  

Special honors include: 2016 Wisconsin Award for Excellence in Music Education-Madison Symphony Orchestra & Ward Brodt Music, the 2014 WMEA Creative Sparks in Music Education Award, 2008 Herb Kohl Teacher Fellowship Award, 2007 Wisconsin Teacher of the Year – Phi Delta Kappa International/Wal-Mart, 2003 WCDA “Outstanding Church Musician” Award, 2001 Wisconsin Alliance for Arts Education Model School Program Award in Arts Education, team leader, 1998 Council of Chief State Officers National Arts Assessment Training Institute – WI Representative, and 1985 Fulton County Teaching Excellence Award. 

Christine has a passion for sharing world music and cultures with the students and community in which she teaches, traveling to Ghana and the mountains and heartland of Mexico for educational study. She serves on community arts boards and has served on most every committee of WMEA/WMSA as well as the Wisconsin Alliance for Arts Education Board.  

“We are extremely proud of Christine’s accomplishments,” Pate-Hefty added. Christine Hayes will be honored October 26th at the 2022 Wisconsin State Music Conference in Madison.

United Way to Kick-off Season of Caring on October 2nd 2022

Editor’s Note: The following was submitted by United Way of Jefferson & North Walworth Counties

The United Way of Jefferson & North Walworth Counties is launching their second annual Season of Caring, scheduled to run for seven weeks from October 2nd  – November 12th.

“We are kicking off our 2022 campaign season focused on our theme “We are ALL the United Way” and the greatest way we believe our communities can be join us, is to generously spread kindness and caring power to as many people as they can,” states Elizabeth Ellis-Bols, United Way executive director.  “Our communities have faced very difficult times these past several years, so we want our campaign efforts focused not only on fundraising, but on taking care of one another and showing our appreciation. We want to help people recognize the importance of community engagement and give them easy opportunities to become more involved.”

The Season of Caring will consist of six different small missions across six weeks, beginning on Monday, October 3rd. The missions will be as follows: Join our Mission (week one), Donate an Hour (week two), Show Appreciation (week 3), Give Your Support (week four), Connect With Others (week five), and Treat Yourself (week six). There are no set requirements for completing each mission, and there is no sign-up or registration fee for participating.

“We wanted to make participation in this six-week series as easy as possible,” Ellis-Bols states. “We will be offering a lot of suggestions and information that will help people determine what specific acts of caring will work best for them, but we also want community members to get creative and express themselves during these small missions. Mostly, we want people to remember that small, simple acts of kindness can have a huge ripple affect across communities. And I think we can all agree that our communities need as much caring power and support as possible right now.”

Some of the suggested acts from United Way include signing up for United Way newsletters (Join Our Mission), sending a thank you note to a healthcare worker, teacher, etc. (Show Appreciation),  donate blood (Give Your Support), registering on United Way’s volunteer platform (Donate an Hour), join a book club (Connect With Others) and taking time to enjoy a favorite activity (Treat Yourself).

Any community member can participate in the Season of Caring, and United Way is encouraging workplaces to join in and use it as a team building exercise, or for parents to engage their children and make it a fun family activity. The acts can be as small or as big as an individual determines and can include acts that are completed very quickly or tasks that require a longer commitment.  The one request from United Way, is that folks share their participation and encourage others to join.

“We want to see all of these amazing acts of caring and we want the participants to share their positive impact with others and encourage them to join in,” Ellis-Bols states. “We have created specific hashtags for the week that we ask people to use anytime they post their participation on social media. We’d also love for United Way to be tagged in any postings so we can help share the information. But mostly, we want participants to find any way to share – text your friends, post something up in your break room at work, or email your family members. We want to see this have a profound, positive impact on our communities.”

Full details for the Season of Caring, including instruction sheets for each individual day, hashtag details, Facebook images and more, can be found on the Season of Caring page on the United Way’s website – https://uwjnwc.com/events/week-of-caring/.

“We’ve put together lots of details and marketing information to make it very easy for people to participate and to promote each week’s task,” Ellis-Bols states. “I’ll be sharing my personal participation each week, as well as our board of directors’ involvement, because our United Way is fully committed to spreading caring power throughout our communities. At United Way, we see one of our main responsibilities as creating connections throughout our communities – connecting individuals to needed help and resources, connecting volunteers to organizations who could benefit from their time, connecting donors to causes and missions they care about, and now connecting the power of kindness and support to those who need it.”

To join in on the week’s events, people are encouraged to visit the United Way website and subscribe to their newsletter and to “like and follow” their Facebook page (@uwjnwc). Participants are encouraged to share their acts of caring by sharing to their social media pages and using the following hashtags: #uwjnwc #seasonofcaring #2022campaign #wearealltheunitedway.

“We’re so excited to launch this version of this caring series and we think it’s the perfect way to begin our campaign season,” Hartwick adds. “We look so forward to seeing community member participation, and to see witnessing the impact that simple acts of caring can make in our communities. Thank you to those who will join us.

Anyone who would like more information on United Way or who has any questions on the Season of Caring, can visit the United Way website at www.uwjnwc.com or contact Ellis-Bols at 920.563.8880 or unitedway@idcnet.com. 

The United Way of Jefferson & North Walworth Counties’ mission is to fight for the health, education and financial stability of every person in our communities. We do that by providing support to community programs, projects and local agencies that provide critical health and human services to those in need.  This network of helping services can be described as a “safety net” for those in our midst in need.  Whether it is transitional housing, literacy education, after-school programs and education, health and dental care, end of life care, mentoring programs, job training or disaster relief, the United Way identifies the greatest needs in our community and helps to fund agencies that can meet those needs.

For more information about our local United Way, you may visit the website at www.uwjnwc.com  or “like” the Facebook page at “United Way of Jefferson & North Walworth Counties.”  For details regarding the United Way’s online volunteer tool, please visit www.volunteermain.com.

Whitewater Collects 2022

2022-whitewater-collects-flyer-wooden-animals

The 9th annual Whitewater Collects show will be held on Saturday, October 8, 2022 from 12:00
PM to 3:00 PM at the Cravath Community Lakefront Center, 341 S Fremont St, Whitewater.

This popular annual event is put on by the Whitewater Historical Society and is free and open to
the public.

In addition to viewing the displays of area collectors, visitors can receive free verbal professional
evaluations of up to two antique or vintage items from noted auctioneer, Carol Miller. Ms.
Miller is the owner of Bailey’s Honor Auction and Estate Services, LLC.

Collections being displayed this year include vintage Fiesta Ware, historical political
memorabilia, antique muffineers, antique Stanhopes, autographs of famous people, antique
children’s pull toys, face jugs, Whitewater Pottery, antique pyrography, Pescheret art, hunting
bows, and many more!

If you would like to display a collection (space is still available) or get more information, contact
Jan Goder at jgoder1976@gmail.com or 262-949-0644. Collections can be antique, vintage, or
contemporary.

Join us! This event is fun, interesting, and educational!

Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin awards more than $500,000 for projects involving 10 UW institutions

Editor’s Note: The following was received from the Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin.

In its latest round of funding, the Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin has awarded $544,541 for eight projects that will increase research and student training collaborations among 10 UW System universities.

Students will be involved in projects and programs that include expansion of the Wisconsin Agriculture-Water Nexus Network, summer field experiences in western and central Wisconsin, lab and field training in water quality techniques, examination of the economic impact of recreational and commercial fishing, monitoring of the Red Cedar Basin watershed and expansion of the Innovative Weather program.

“Our latest funded projects will create new collaborations and strengthen existing partnerships among the UW institutions and external partners that will further enhance the student experience and prepare undergraduates for careers in Wisconsin’s workforce,” said Marissa Jablonski, executive director for the Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin. “We were very pleased that many of the projects will involve students, faculty and staff at multiple universities.”

Freshwater Collaborative funding to date has been awarded to UW-Eau Claire, UW-Green Bay, UW-La Crosse, UW-Madison, UW-Milwaukee, UW Oshkosh, UW-Parkside, UW-Platteville, UW-River Falls, UW-Stevens Point, UW-Stout, UW-Superior and UW-Whitewater.

Grant descriptions for the latest funded projects are available at https://freshwater.wisconsin.edu/funded-projects-august-2022/

The funding is part of a statewide initiative, backed by the Wisconsin State Legislature and Gov. Tony Evers, to tackle Wisconsin’s grand water challenges and support curriculum development, undergraduate research opportunities, career development and field training experiences for students interested in studying water-related fields at the 13 UW universities.

Startup funding for the Freshwater Collaborative was provided in 2019 by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation and the UW System. In July 2021, the state legislature and Gov. Evers approved $5 million in the biennial budget to expand the collaborative’s ability to train water professionals and establish Wisconsin as a leader in water-related science and economic growth. The Freshwater Collaborative awarded $3.42 million in March 2022.

Obituary, Larry Edward Heesch, 75

Larry Edward Heesch, 75, residing in Whitewater, Wisconsin, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, September 14, 2022.   Larry was born August 21, 1947 in Inglewood, California. He grew up in sunny southern California where he enjoyed time at the beach riding the waves and playing volleyball.  He was an accomplished amateur photographer, even learning how to develop his own film.  Additionally, Larry enjoyed not only driving sports cars and off-roading, but also maintenance and repair; his prized 1984 Bronco is still running.  His family and friends always will remember his sense of humor.   

After graduating from Mount San Antonio Community College in Walnut, California, Larry attended Western State College in Gunnison, Colorado.  He graduated in May 1971 with a business degree. Larry was fortunate to work in a life-long career in finance that melded his expertise in his field with personal job enjoyment and fulfillment.

After moving to Colorado, Larry transferred his love of the beach to love of the mountains.  In the winter he went downhill, cross-country, and telemark skiing. In the warmer months, he enjoyed backpacking, hiking and camping as well as fly fishing for rainbow trout. He became a cycling enthusiast, biking in Colorado, California, and Venezuela. 

He is survived by his mother, Phyllis Heesch; daughter, Ashleigh (Corey) Bruns; granddaughter, Emilie Bruns and grandson, Dean Bruns.  He was preceded in death by his maternal grandparents Emil and Elsie Heesch.

Celebration of life service will be at Millard Community Covenant Church in Elkhorn, WI on September 19, 2022 at 1:00 pm.  For online condolences and guestbook, please visit: Nitardy Whitewater, WI.

A special thank-you to the staff at Our House who lovingly cared for Larry and to Agrace Hospice for providing contentment and comfort for Larry as he prepared to join his Father in Heaven.

Nitardy Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. Online condolences can be made at www.nitardyfuneralhome.com

#FlashbackFriday with the Historical Society: UWW Mall in 1969

It’s time once again for #flashbackfriday with the Whitewater Historical Society.

This week’s photo is a 1969 view from the Robert Ortmann collection. Robert Ortmann was a student at UWW (Wisconsin State University-Whitewater) from 1967 to 1971.

This is a great shot of the “mall” in 1969 taken from near Starin Road toward the south. On the left you can see Upham Hall and in the distance you can see the old Hamilton Gym and part of Old Main.

Join us next week for more from the Whitewater Historical Society.

(5948P, Whitewater Historical Society)