News & Events

It’s time once again for #FlashbackFriday from the Whitewater Historical Society.

Sunday is Father’s Day and we wish all fathers a happy day! Here is a famous Whitewater father and son. On the left is George Esterly, inventor and industrialist, founder of the Esterly factory that was the largest employer in Whitewater between 1860 and 1890. On the right is George Esterly Jr. who followed his father to Minnesota in 1893, at which time the Esterly factory closed down. George Esterly’s house was featured in a recent post and is not extant, but Esterly Jr’s house is still standing. It is the Delta Zeta sorority house on Main Street.

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

(1947STU, 1887ST, Whitewater Historical Society)

The public is invited to a series of free workshops at the Irvin L. Young Memorial Library, facilitated by Associated Bank.

A one-hour Homebuyer Workshop will be held on Tuesday, June 18 at 5:30 p.m. Participants will learn what credit is, how to build it, and the step-by-step process of buying a home. Understanding what credit is and how to build it so that you are home-buyer ready is crucial for a transition from renting to owning. For adults.

On Thursday, June 27 at 1:00 p.m., there will be a presentation about protecting against identity theft and scams. Prevention is the first step in minimizing your risk for identity theft and falling victim to a scam. In this one-hour session, you will learn guidelines to proactively protect your identity as well as recognize common scams and fraud attempts. For adults.

For young adults ages 16-21, learn how to make a credit card help not hinder you and step into adulthood with money saving tips and tricks. In this one-hour session on Tuesday, July 16 at 5:30 p.m., you will become an expert in budgeting, paying yourself, and utilizing a credit card for good and not evil.

There is no cost or registration to attend the workshops. The library is located at 431 W. Center St. in Whitewater. Contact Sarah French with questions at sfrench@whitewater-wi.gov or 262-568-2782. Visit the library’s website at whitewaterlibrary.org for a full listing of upcoming library events.

The Wisconsin Law Enforcement Accreditation Group (WILEAG) will be assessing and examining all aspects of the Whitewater Police Department’s policy and procedures, management, operations, and support services. The assessment will take place Tuesday, June 18, 2024 through Thursday, June 20, 2024.

Verification by the WILEAG team is necessary for the Whitewater Police Department to meet the Board’s state-of-the-art standards as part of a voluntary process to gain accreditation.

“Accreditation evaluates whether our agency is following defined industry standards and best practices. This rigorous process helps us ensure we are providing the highest level of service for our community, ” Chief Dan Meyer said.

The public can provide comments to the assessment team by calling (262) 473-0109 on Wednesday, June 18th between the hours of 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. Telephone comments are limited to 10 minutes and must address the agency’s ability to comply with WILEAG’s standards. The current WILEAG accreditation standards can be found at the WILEAG website located at http://www.wileag.info/full-accreditation.html.

Individuals can offer written comments about the Whitewater Police Department’s ability to meet the standards for accreditation and send them to Wisconsin Law Enforcement Accreditation Group, at WILEAG, 7525 W. Greenfield Ave. West Allis, WI 53214.

“The Whitewater Police Department must comply with hundreds of standards in order to gain accredited status,” said Meyer. “The achievement and subsequent maintenance of accredited status have been cornerstone accomplishments for our department. The work required of our staff to maintain accredited status has helped us nurture a culture of professionalism over a number of years here.”

“The assessment team is composed of three law enforcement practitioners from other agencies within the state,” said Captain Adam Vander Steeg, Accreditation Manager for the Whitewater Police Department. “The assessors will review department documents, interview employees, and view offices and the places where compliance can be observed.”

“After completion of the assessment team’s review of the agency, the assessment team leader reports back to the WILEAG Board so a determination can be made as to whether the agency will be granted accredited status,” Vander Steeg stated. Accreditation status is granted for three years during which time the agency must submit annual reports attesting continued compliance with those standards under which it was initially accredited.

For more information regarding the Wisconsin Law Enforcement Accreditation Group, citizens can email executive.director@wileag.info or write to:
WILEAG
7525 W. Greenfield Ave.
West Allis, WI 53214

A copy of the standards is available at the Whitewater Police Department. Citizens can contact Captain Adam Vander Steeg at (262) 473-1372 for further information.
Whitewater Police Department
312 W. Whitewater St.
Whitewater, WI 53190

The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire extends congratulations to the students named to the spring 2024 dean’s list. Their academic performance has been outstanding, and we recognize these students with pride.

Congratulations, Blugolds!

Dean’s list eligibility requirements:

At the end of each semester, each of UW-Eau Claire’s four colleges recognizes excellence in scholastic achievement by publishing the dean’s list.

To be eligible, a student must:

– Be in good academic standing.

– Have a minimum semester GPA of 3.70.

– Have completed at least 12 credits during the semester, with no incompletes, no courses below the 100 level, no repeats and no Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory registrations (except in degree credit-bearing courses that are offered only on the S/U grading system in which a grade of S has been earned).

Students from your area who were named to the Dean’s List are:

Whitewater, WI

 Emma Jordan, College of Arts and Sciences

Versiti is the primary blood supplier for Southeastern Wisconsin hospitals, including Lakeland and Fort Memorial.

Everyone who participates in this drive will be offered a Starve a Mosquito t-shirt and a free Summerfest ticket (while supplies last).

Reserve your spot at this link or by calling 262-473-2997. Walk-ins are also welcome as time allows. Please note that several appointments are still open for double red cells. Be sure to take note of the new location at the Cravath Lakefront Community Center.

By Lynn Binnie
Whitewater Banner volunteer staff
whitewaterbanner@gmail.com

According to an article on Bloomberg.com on June 11, Coach USA, which owns Van Galder Bus Company and Megabus, filed for bankruptcy, indicating that it was unable to recover from a decline in ridership as a result of the pandemic. Van Galder, based in Janesville, operates a popular route that stops in Janesville for shuttle service to O’Hare airport and downtown Chicago. Per Van Galder’s website, the company, [originally family owned], has operated the shuttle service for over 70 years.

“Per its Chapter 11 petition that was filed on June 11 in Wilmington, DE, the company owes creditors between $100 -500 million. Chapter 11 in the bankruptcy code allows companies to keep operating while they shed debt and reorganize.

Private equity firm Variant Equity Advisors purchased Coach USA from British bus company Stagecoach Group in April 2019, less than a year before Coach USA’s business was decimated by the pandemic. Commuter ridership declined 90% in 2020, according to court papers, and the company turned to Covid relief funding to help stay afloat. Ridership has partially recovered, but last year was only about 45% of prepandemic levels. Meanwhile, the company was contending with higher expenses due to rising fuel, insurance and labor costs. Its management began to explore a possible sale late last year.

Across the US, the transportation industry has had to contend with low ridership levels on trains and buses as many Americans now work from home or only commute into the office a few times a week. In 2019, there were about 3,000 bus companies, according to Peter Pantuso, the chief executive officer of the American Bus Association. Since then, about half have closed, many of those remaining are operating at about 70% capacity, he said.”

According to WREX-Channel 13, The Renco Group, which owns Bus Company Holdings, is reportedly purchasing Van Galder as well as other Coach USA operations.

“Coach offers bus services in 27 locations in the US and Canada and carries more than 38 million passengers every year, according to its website. Its Megabus service has carried more than 50 million people through more than 280 cities since it was started in 2006. The company employs about 2,700 people,” Bloomberg stated.

Former Whitewater Resident Earns PhD

Rebecca Fischer (née Brereton) formerly of Whitewater, defended her doctoral dissertation June 13, 2024. Through her research and dissertation titled Reducing Kidney Transplant Rejection Rates Through Medication Adherence Education Post-Transplant: A Quality Improvement Project, Fischer earns her Doctorate of Nursing Practice from Jacksonville University. Fischer, who attended Lincoln Elementary for Kindergarten through 6th grade in the 80s and 90s, is a nurse practitioner in abdominal transplant surgery at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida.

Congratulations, Becki. We are proud of you.

Submitted by Roni Telfer and Rachel (Telfer) Dorn

Editor’s note: The Banner appreciates having permission to use the image on the homepage by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay.