(Whitewater Kiwanis Breakfast Club submission) The Whitewater Breakfast Kiwanis Club partnership with the Whitewater Community Foundation, the City of Whitewater, and the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater has currently raised $17,000 to enable children with disabilities to more fully enjoy the playground in Starin Park, with $23,000 more needed. Plans are underway to provide a “We-Go-Round,” which is a merry-go-round designed to allow wheeled-mobility devices to fit in comfortably so all children can enjoy the experience. The “We-Go-Round” has a center post wheel for all children to use and create the spinning motion from inside and outside.
“This piece of equipment will make a huge difference to children with disabilities in Whitewater. All children can play together on the ‘We-Go-Round.’ We are seeking our community’s help with donations to make this a reality,” said Jean Bromley, President of the Whitewater Kiwanis Breakfast Club.
The “We-Go-Round” encourages social play for all children as both riders and pushers while they cooperate to make a fun experience for all. The children pushing work on motor planning and coordination through engagement of their muscles and joints. Kids utilize balance skills, along with core, lower and upper body strength. They will also use their cognitive skills for problem solving. This new equipment will bring imaginative play and the ability for all kids to socialize, no matter their degree of mobility.
“A huge thank you goes to the Kiwanis Club for wanting to add this fun piece of equipment to Starin Park,” said Eric Boettcher, Parks and Recreation Director. “This new We-Go-Round will be a great addition allowing all children to participate and enjoy the playground. That is exactly what a playground should be, a place for everyone to enjoy their experience.”
UW-Whitewater will provide an in-kind contribution of $10,000 for the installation. The Whitewater Community Foundation has set up a fund for the project and donations can be made now. To donate, visit http://whitewatercommunityfoundation.org/donate/. Click the Donate Now button and the site will ask you to choose a dollar amount, how often you wish to donate and which cause you wish to support as there are additional options for donations. Donors can also choose to share a note of why you are gifting the money to the cause. Donations may be tax deductible.
Kiwanis is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to changing the worldone child and one community at a time.
(Whitewater Public Library) The Irvin L. Young Memorial Library invites attendees to a virtual program called Conservation@Home on Wednesday, April 7th at 6:00 p.m.
Geneva Lake Conservancy’s Conservation@Home program is an education and recognition program for homeowners for their earth-conscious choices in home landscape, as well as water conservation and protection efforts. Conservation@Home is designed to encourage landowners to become actively involved in the conservation effort. We can all contribute to environmental improvement – one yard at a time. If your yard fulfills certain conservation-based criteria, you can receive Conservation@Home certificate to help show off your beautiful yard! Register at whitewaterlibrary.org
(Walworth County submission) The Walworth County Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has an urgent need for volunteer guardians. Volunteer guardians are court-appointed decision makers for adults with mental incapacities. Guardians advocate for their wards’ best interests. Currently, 13 volunteer guardians serve 31 wards. The upcoming retirement of two longtime volunteers will leave several adults without guardians, creating a critical void.
“Guardians play a vital role in our communities in helping those who can no longer help themselves,” says Walworth County Volunteer Services Director Colleen Lesniak. “The individuals in need do not have family or friends that can be of assistance. Our volunteer guardians fill that critical role of making important health care and financial decisions to ensure these individuals’ needs are being met.”
While the hours are flexible and can vary, volunteers should expect to spend about 5 hours per month helping their clients. Typical responsibilities include working with professionals to make decisions for their wards, giving formal approval of care and services, advocating for and protecting their rights, visiting at least once per month, and making applications for services and financial benefits on their behalf. There is a monthly stipend available for volunteers. No formal experience is necessary; simply an interest in helping others. Volunteers must be at least 21-years-old and have a valid driver’s license.
For more information on the program or to complete a volunteer application, please contact Colleen Lesniak at Walworth County Volunteer Services at 262-741-4223 or email clesniak@co.walworth.wi.us.
A reader who suggested not to use their name shared this photo of crocuses (alternatively, croci) which was taken on March 28. They titled it, “Surprised by Spring on Main Street,” and said the sight “totally surprised” them while walking their dog.
— 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!
National Vietnam War Veterans Day unites Americans to thank and honor Vietnam veterans and their families for their service and sacrifice.
This special day joins six other military-centric annual observances codified in Title 4 of the United States Code §6 (i.e., Armed Forces Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day, Navy Day, Veterans Day).
The Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Act of 2017 was signed into law by President Donald J. Trump, designating every March 29 as National Vietnam War Veterans Day. However, it is not an official holiday in any part of the United States.
This year’s commemoration of National Vietnam War Veterans Day on March 29th will be virtual this year. The Vietnam Veterans of America’s commemoration will be streamed at 12 p.m. CDT on March 29th at www.honorvietnamveterans.org.
March 29 is a fitting choice for a day honoring Vietnam veterans. It was chosen to be observed in perpetuity as March 29, 1973 was the day United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam was disestablished and also the day the last U.S. combat troops departed Vietnam. In addition, on and around this same day Hanoi released the last of its acknowledged prisoners of war.
November 1, 1955 was selected to coincide with the official designation of Military Assistance Advisory Group-Vietnam (MAAG-V); May 15, 1975 marks the end of the battle precipitated by the seizure of the SS Mayaguez.
The Department of Veterans Affairs estimates that today there are more than 6 million U.S. Vietnam veterans living in America and abroad, along with 9 million families of those who served during this timeframe.
We make no distinction between veterans who served in-country, in-theater, or who were stationed elsewhere during the Vietnam War period. All were called to serve and none could self-determine where they would serve.
This is from www.vva.org: “Of the 2,709,918 Americans who served in Vietnam, Less than 850,000 are estimated to be alive today, with the youngest American Vietnam veteran’s age approximated to be 60 years old.”
(MSOE submission) The following Whitewater student received academic honors from Milwaukee School of Engineering for the 2021 Winter Quarter: Gwynne Sahyun, is on the Dean’s List. She is pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering.
Undergraduate students who have earned at least 30 credits and have a cumulative GPA of 3.20 or higher (out of 4.0) are on the Dean’s List. Students who have maintained a 3.70 or higher receive “high honors.”
Undergraduate students on the Honors List have earned a GPA of at least 3.20 (out of 4.0) for this quarter and are not on the Dean’s List.
Milwaukee School of Engineering is the university of choice for those seeking an inclusive community of experiential learners driven to solve the complex challenges of today and tomorrow. The independent, non-profit university has about 2,700 students and was founded in 1903. MSOE offers bachelor’s and master’s degrees in engineering, business and nursing. Faculty are student-focused experts who bring real-world experience into the classroom. This approach to learning makes students ready now as well as prepared for the future. Longstanding partnerships with business and industry leaders enable students to learn alongside professional mentors, and challenge them to go beyond what’s possible. MSOE graduates are leaders of character, responsible professionals, passionate learners and value creators.
Article and Photos by Laura Masbruch Ferradermis Advisor and Banner Volunteer lmasbruch@wwusd.org
Due to the pandemic, and the varying degree to which teams throughout the world could meet in person and get access to their equipment, the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) suspended all in-person play for the regular 2021 season and implemented a fully virtual set of competitions for teams that were able to participate. Internationally, 3,075 teams (about three-fourths of all existing teams) were able to register and participate in these competitions. Many schools, even some in Wisconsin, did not allow their teams to register due to restrictions on extra-curricular activities. Ferradermis, Whitewater High School’s team, has been able to meet in person in small groups since the beginning of November. We also had a group of students who chose to remain fully virtual and were integral parts of the administrative and CAD teams.
For the traditional Chairman’s, Woodie Flowers, and Dean’s Lists awards, Ferradermis was grouped with the other 29 participating Wisconsin teams. During Spring Break, students took part in virtual interviews with judges for both Chairman’s and Dean’s List. Chairman’s focuses on all non-robot parts of a team including community outreach, diversity, and impact on students during the previous five years. Administrative Team Members Anderson Waelchli, Carson Ellenwood, and Molly Zimmermann put together a 7-minute presentation around the theme of, “staying connected,” for Chairman’s which they delivered prior to a 5 minute Q & A session with the judges. Team members can nominate one mentor for the Woodie Flowers Award, and this year the students selected co-head coach Dilpreet “Chief” Randhawa, who has been with the team since it first formed five years ago. Mentors nominate up to two sophomore or junior students for Dean’s List; this year the candidates for Dean’s List were Elijah Grall and Anderson Waelchli. Wisconsin will be holding an awards ceremony in mid-May to announce the finalists, who will advance to compete on an international level.
Ferradermis chose to participate in two of the three virtual competitions hosted by FIRST, declining only the Game Design Challenge. For the Innovation Challenge, teams had to, “Identify a problem or opportunity and design a solution to help people (or a community of people) keep, regain, or achieve optimum physical and/or mental health and fitness through active play or movement.” A team of students worked from January through March with the guidance of mentor Allison Conrad to develop a modular set of playground equipment which can grow with a child. They researched their customer base by surveying our elementary students, connected with an actual playground equipment company that provided background and eventually reviewed their design, used CAD to develop their design, and then produced a 3D printed model. This past weekend, they delivered their two-minute business pitch to the judges for their product, Rec-Creation, which was then followed by a three-minute presentation, and ten minutes of Q & A. Participating team members included Reilly Aschenbrener, Carson Ellenwood, Andrew Rollette, Anderson Waelchli, Gwen Yeager, and Molly Zimmermann. Ferradermis will be judged as part of the Argon Group, which is made up of 30 randomly assigned teams from across the United States, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Canada, and Turkey. BadgerBOTS, the team from Middleton who helped Ferradermis get started five years ago, is the only other Wisconsin team in this group. Four teams from the Argon Group will be named semi-finalists and will then present again to a new group of judges, competing against the semi-finalists from all other groups, with 20 teams eventually being named finalists.
Technical Flyer Submitted for Infinite Recharge at Home
The third virtual competition, Infinite Recharge at Home, was divided into two parts. Teams first had to submit technical information on their robot for the traditional judged machine awards, and then they could qualify for the Skills Challenge. Students created a technical flyer describing the robot under the guidance of mentors Nick Ackerman and Dilpreet Randhawa. This past weekend, a student team of Reilly Aschenbrenner, Elijah Grall, Andrew Rollette, and Lauren Rollette completed a seven-minute presentation and five minutes of Q & A with judges. Students are now working on submitting video clips of the robot completing various skills challenges including the Hyperdrive Challenge (where the driver must navigate four specific paths as quickly as possible), the InterStellar Accuracy Challenge (where the robot must score power cells from four different distances in under five minutes), and the Power Port Challenge (where the robot collects power cells from the floor and the team scores as many points as possible in one minute). Ferradermis will be judged as part of the Oxygen Group for Infinite Recharge at Home; this group is made up of 30 randomly assigned teams from 16 states, Turkey, and Mexico. Ferradermis is the only Wisconsin team in this group.
Ferradermis is excited to have the opportunity to participate in an in-person off-season competition on June 19. The Lakeshore Robotics Coalition in Manitowoc is hosting Wisconsin teams in June over the course of four days, with up to 14 teams competing each day. Each team will only be allowed to travel with 10 people (7 students and 3 mentors), and one of those members must serve as a volunteer at the event to further limit the number of people in attendance. Remaining team members and mentors will gather at the high school to watch the live stream of the event and feed scouting information to the team in Manitowoc. The winning alliance from each day along with the captain of the second place alliance will get to return for a championship day on July 10. The students are excited for the opportunity to get “wheels on carpet” for the first time since March of 2020. Go, Ferradermis!
