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Bazeley Breaks Nineteen-Year-Old Pool Record

September 20, 2024

On Tuesday, September 18, the Whitewater Girls’ Swim Team competed against Burlington Co-Op. 

Whippet Girls’ Swim Team

There were a handful of best times at the dual meet. Here are a few of them:

  • All the 200 Freestyle swimmers earned themselves a best time including Charlotte Hajewski who dropped 3 seconds, Georgia Esch who dropped 14 seconds, and Grace Coleman who dropped 17 seconds. We love to see a clean sweep of best times in a single race! 
  • Atreya Wilson competed in the 200 IM for the first time in her swim career. Despite many nerves at the beginning of the race, Atreya crushed it and went a time of 3:14.17. Kendra Serrano continues to improve by dropping 2 seconds in the 200 IM. 
  • In the 50 Freestyle, Caitlin Alford went a best time of 43.11. She continues to get closer to her goal to go under 40 seconds! 
  • Makayla Bazeley not only went a season best time (1:00.18) in the 100 Butterfly but she broke a 19-year-old Burlington pool record. Congratulations Makayla! Georgia Esch also showed up to compete by dropping an impressive 9 seconds from her previous time. 
  • Another sweep of best times in the 100 Freestyle included Laken DePorter who dropped 5 seconds, Charlotte Hajewski with a time of 1:10.36, and Kendra Serrano with a time of 1:13.66. 
  • In the 100 Backstroke, Maggie Maas went a best time of 1:18.48, and Makayla Bazeley went a best time of 1:00.47. 
  • In the 100 Breaststroke, Maya Davis continues to drop time every week. She went a 1:42.32 that is 9 seconds faster than her previous time. 

Come support the Whippets at home on Tuesday, September 24 as they take on Badger and Platteville/Lancaster at 5:30 pm. Let’s fill the stands with a ton of red and white!

Article and Photo Submitted by Sarah Reynolds
Whitewater High School Head Swim Coach
ReynoldsSM07@uww.edu

City’s Grandest Opening in Many Years: Over 200 in line as ALDI’s doors open (Updated)

September 20, 2024
Local staff members were joined by representatives of nearby ALDI stores and corporate staff for the ribbon cutting.

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

Update 9/20/24 @ 8:40 a.m. – Mark Dorn indicates that, “The ALDI flyer not in this week’s Walworth County shopper was in this week’s Whitewater Register and Palmyra Enterprise. It was a separate grand opening section with a five dollar off of $30 purchase coupon. I remain a print subscriber to both the Register and the Enterprise.”

ALDI promised that the first 100 customers for their grand opening on September 19 would receive a Golden Ticket that could be worth up to $100, plus a free eco-friendly bag stuffed with ALDI products. That promotion helped to bring out a line of at least 212 people, as counted by a store employee, before the ribbon cutting at 8:50 a.m. that celebrated the long-awaited opening of the doors of the first free-standing grocery store in Whitewater since 2015. The parking lot was completely full, and as a consequence the western portion of the Walmart parking lot looked like it must be Black Friday.

Larry Kachel indicated that the prior property owner [DLK related] had been in discussion with ALDI beginning in 2017, but the company had concluded that the traffic counts and population did not meet their minimum criteria. Kachel hastened to add that the late Jim Allen’s persistent efforts over many years to attract a store should also be recognized. Tom Howard, ALDI’s regional real estate developer, told the Banner that the city became a viable possibility for a store as a result of the success that the company has recently enjoyed with other stores in rural areas. Jon Kachel indicated that discussions have taken place with a variety of prospects regarding the property located between ALDI and Culver’s, but nothing has come together yet.

Trevor Dimpfl, Kayla Ayres, Olivia Zinanni, and Danielle Swaisgood (L-R) were the first in line.

Those at the very front of the line, four UW-W students, indicated that they had arrived at 4:45 a.m. They said that they were excited about having a second option for groceries. Hailing from the Madison area, they’d already had the opportunity to shop at an ALDI store.

Nancy Denzin’s goodie bag
Nancy arrived at 6:30 a.m. and was #41 in line

Katrina Stark was lucky #100.

The one hundredth person in line was Katrina Stark, a university student who was proud to say that she’s from Wisconsin’s first capitol, Belmont. Her just-in-time arrival had been at 7:20 a.m, still rather early for a 9:00 opening. The woman immediately behind Stark described herself as being one of the “disgruntled,” stating that she would have been among the chosen if there hadn’t been a few line crashers. She and others felt that the numbers should have been passed out earlier. The woman was among those who had successfully dissuaded the store employee from giving a number to one of the interlopers.

A previous Whitewater Banner post provides many details about the store. Here we need to correct a couple of previous misstatements and offer some new discoveries:

Correction regarding WIC (a supplemental nutrition program for Women, Infants and Children): The Banner erroneously stated that ALDI accepts WIC EBT cards. This is not true. ALDI does not accept WIC as a payment. We regret this error. ALDI does accept the Quest EBT card from the Wisconsin FoodShare program. [This program has also been known as food stamps or SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.)]

Curbside pickup will be available starting October 3. The signs on either side of the banner designate reserved stalls for pickup.

Correction regarding curbside pickup orders: We previously indicated that the store would not offer pickup of online orders. It turns out that this service will be offered beginning on October 3. Orders may be placed through the website [aldi.us] or app. There are three parking spaces in front of the store that are designated for customers with pickups. Delivery service is expected to soon be offered by Instacart, which already provides service from the Janesville ALDI.

Meat and seafood
Beer and ale — New Glarus doesn’t seem to have a prime location.
Even “sibling store” Trader Joe’s Two Buck Chuck sells for more than $2 in most states now.

Tobacco/Alcohol: The store doesn’t sell any tobacco products. It does sell beer and wine; however, the beer section primarily features ale. There are no national brands of beer, but New Glarus is featured.

Pricing: As with many chain stores, the prices may vary from one location to another. Additionally, the Banner was told that a number of prices may change every Thursday based on market conditions. On Thursday, gallons of 1% and 2% milk were priced at $1.99; whole milk cost $3.05. A dozen eggs sold for $1.06. A pound of butter was $1.99, with a limit of four. In Janesville on the same day all of the milk was priced at $2.66 and eggs were $2.99. Though it was not indicated, Whitewater’s low prices may have been grand opening specials.

It’s Oktoberfest time, so the ALDI Finds [“Aisle of Shame”] features a number of German desserts. Deutsche Kuche means “German cuisine,” and this cake is imported.

European products: A longtime ALDI shopper states that she enjoys trying the various European products that are offered. Currently, a representative stated, there are more German products in stock than usual in celebration of Oktoberfest, and German products are especially featured once a quarter.

“ALDI Finds” [“Aisle of Shame”] fans will be impressed that the frozen food section is at least twice as large as the section in the Janesville store.
This sign is on the non-frozen “ALDI Finds” section. In this store that section isn’t right across from the frozen FINDS section. Items in “The Aisle of Shame” are typically not restocked when sold out.

The non-frozen ALDI Finds always includes many seasonal decorations.

Checkouts: The self-service registers only accept credit/debit cards (perhaps also FoodShare EBT.) It was indicated that there will also always be an attended cash register. A regional manager stated that virtually all staff are cross-trained, and in a given shift an employee might run a register, stock some shelves and do some cleaning.

Electric carts: Though there is not yet an electric cart for shopper use, when the Banner told the district manager that one of our readers had expressed that he needs to use one, the manager stated that he would request that at least one be provided.

Restrooms are located at the front of the store.

What happened to the Walworth County Smart Shop flyer? For years this “shopper” that comes in the U.S. Mail has included an ALDI flyer. Strangely, at least some local residents did not receive the flyer in this week’s mail. The district manager is looking into this.

A card with three coupons for $5 off a $30 purchase was being distributed. The first coupon is good from September 25 to October 1; the other two, in the succeeding weeks.

Free Mon. Night Spaghetti Meals: Now dine-in and to-go / Comidas Gratis de Espaguetis los Lunes por la Noche

September 19, 2024

#FlashbackFriday with the Historical Society: Fire tube added to East Side School

September 19, 2024

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

Continuing our deep dive into the East Side School (Washington School), here is a photograph from the period 1945-1955. In this image, the school has received a new front entrance since 1907, but more interestingly, there is a large tube “fire escape” on the side wall. This fire escape was put on the school building in the summer of 1945 and was seen as a way to quickly move students out of the second floor in case of a fire. I wonder how many readers remember sliding down this tube in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Did fire drills use this tube? Did kids slide down without permission?

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

(3684P, Whitewater Historical Society)

Whippet Volleyball Defeats Monroe in 3 Straight Sets

September 19, 2024

Whitewater Varsity Volleyball hosted the Cheesemakers of Monroe Tuesday night, September 17, in a conference matchup. The Whippets rallied together and won the match in 3 straight sets (25-23, 27-25, 25-18) to move to 1 – 1 in conference play.

File Photo

Whitewater had a balanced offensive attack led by senior Falyn Krahn (6 kills), junior Sydney Schilt (5 kills), and seniors Ava Alvarado and Calli Grosinske (each with 4 kills). Senior Calli Grosinske tallied 15 assists on the night.

Defensively the Whippets were led by senior Ella Spear (14 digs) and senior Ava Alvarado (13 digs).

The Whippets will host another conference opponent on Thursday evening, September 19, as they take on the Eagles of Jefferson.

Article and Photo Submitted by Caitlin Dowden
Whitewater High School Head Volleyball Coach
dowca01@wwusd.org 

Cross Country Runners Race in Cottage Grove

September 18, 2024

The Whippet Cross Country Team competed in hot conditions on Tuesday, September 17 in Cottage Grove at the Dana Waddell Invitational hosted by Marshall High School.  

Earning medals on the day were:

BOYS
Varsity Boys: Xavier Zei 4th, Miles Nickelsburg 13th, Luc Pomazak 15th, and Andrew O’Toole in 16th.
JV Boys: Wyatt Esch 7th, Isaiah Mendez 10th
Team finish: The Varsity Boys placed 3rd out of 10 and the JV Boys placed 2nd.

GIRLS
Varsity Girls: Virginia Nelson 14th, Athena Soto 20th
JV Girls: Lucy Troxel 4th, Delaney Hammack 10th
Team finish: The Varsity Girls placed 5th, and the JV Girls took 2nd.

Full race results: https://my.raceresult.com/309431/

Next up for the team will be the Angel Invitational at UW-Parkside on Saturday.

Article submitted by Chad Carstens
Whitewater High School Head Cross Country Coach
ccarstens@wwusd.org

UW-W Football Preview: #3 Warhawks to Host UMHB Saturday

September 18, 2024

By Angela Kelm
Asst. Athletic Director for Sports Information

The No. 3 University of Wisconsin-Whitewater football team will be back in front of the Warhawk faithful at Perkins Stadium this Saturday. UWW will host the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor with kickoff slated for 1 p.m. The game is the team’s annual Alumni Day presented by Mercyhealth. 

Latest Rankings
The Warhawks are ranked third in the latest D3football.com and American Football Coaches Association Division III polls. UMHB is receiving votes in the pair of national polls. 

UWW’s Last Time Out
The Warhawks are coming off of a 24-14 road win over Division II’s Roosevelt University. UW-Whitewater capitalized on defense and special teams to put up 17 points in the third quarter to bolster the win. 

Quarterback Jason Ceniti found Drake Martin on a short pass for the first touchdown of the game. The Warhawk defense provided a boost on the first drive of the second half last week. On the third play of the third quarter, UWW pushed the Laker quarterback back into his own end zone where a fumble was recovered by Lucas Sadler for the defensive touchdown. Later in the quarter, Tyler Vasey hauled in a kickoff at the two-yard line and went the distance for the 98-yard kick return TD. 

UMHB’s Last Time Out
The Crusaders defeated Westgate Christian University 85-6 last week. UMHB put up 71 points in the first half alone. Kamerin Ferguson averaged 30.8 yards per carry with 185 yards on 6 rushes including a pair of touchdowns. Four Crusaders saw action at QB with Isaac Phe connecting on 7 of 9 passes for 130 yards and two touchdowns. Six receivers tallied catches on the day as Mary Hardin-Baylor posted 562 yards of total offense. 

On the Air
Saturday’s game will air live on the WIAC Network courtesy of UWWTV. The contest can also be heard on 105.9 FM The Hog in the Whitewater area, or online. 

Series
This is the 11th matchup between these two powerhouse programs. The Warhawks own the series 8-2 and have won the last two games. Last season, UWW topped the Cru in Belton, Texas 17-14. In 2022, UW-Whitewater won 28-24 in a thriller at The Perk. From 2007-2019, the Warhawks met UMHB six times in the NCAA Division III Playoffs. UWW was 4-2 over that span of postseason matchups. 

Fairhaven Senior Services Open House: New 3rd & 4th floor Assisted Living

September 18, 2024

Obituaries

Obituary: Marion Jauch Burrows, 96

Marion Jauch Burrows (Feb. 2, 1930 – June 5, 2026) Her sparkling eyes, warm laugh, and generous ways were gifts Marion brought into this world, touching family members and friends alike over the ninety-six years of her life. She was born and raised in Lombard, IL, and in the course of her life lived with her husband and growing family in Abilene, TX, St. David’s, PA, Arkadelphia, AR, Ada, OK, and Colorado Springs, CO, before settling in Whitewater, WI, in 1965. Generosity of heart, compassion toward those in need in and beyond her community, and an unwavering commitment to fairness … Read more

Obituary: Patricia “Pat” Bailey, 70, of Woodbury, MN

Patricia “Pat” Lynn Bailey, age 70, passed away peacefully on June 1, 2026 with her daughter by her side. Pat was born February 21, 1956 in Ann Arbor, Michigan to John and Ruth (Hudock) Prentice. After a brief time in Ann Arbor, the Prentice family moved to Whitewater, Wisconsin, where Pat grew up as part of the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater community, where her father served as University Registrar. Pat attended the University School and later graduated from UW Whitewater with a degree in Elementary Education. Although she did not pursue teaching, she built a meaningful career in Human … Read more

Obituary: Gemelino Paris Esperante, 83

Gemelino Paris Esperante, 83, long time resident of Whitewater, passed away on Thursday, June 4th, 2026. He was born on January 10, 1943, to his late father and mother, Evaristo and Carmen in Spain. In 1973 he moved to the United States as a sheep herder. On August 21, 1981, he was united in marriage to Cyndie Esperante in Colorado. Gemelino also worked in Mining and construction for many years. He enjoyed the outdoors, fishing, raising sheep and growing things in his garden, and flowers. He will be missed by all who knew him. He is survived by his wife … Read more

Obituary: Mary Ann Warner, 86, of Dodgeville

Mary Ann Warner died peacefully on Wednesday, May 27, 2026 at Crestridge Assisted Living in Dodgeville. Her physical heart failed, but her actual, loving heart never did. Ann was born June 28, 1939 to Mary and Charles Kearns in Iowa. She moved to Whitewater, Wisconsin and graduated with many dear friends in the class of 1957. Ann married John Warner on September 19, 1959. They lived in Whitewater, Sturgis Michigan, and finally settled in Janesville where they built a beautiful life and raised their family. Together, they ran a business, traveled, played cards, and enjoyed their lives. When they became … Read more

Obituary: Patricia Jacobson, 81

Patricia Ann Jacobson (Bureau), age 81, of Whitewater, WI, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, May 26, 2026, at St. Mary’s Hospital in Madison, WI. Born on September 2, 1944, in Marquette, MI, to the late Donald and Margaret Bureau, Pat grew up in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. She graduated from Graveraet High School, attended Michigan State University, and later earned her bachelor’s degree from Northern Michigan University. Pat dedicated her professional life to shaping young minds, working as an elementary and junior high school teacher in both Flint, MI, and Whitewater, WI. At the heart of Pat’s life was a beautiful, … Read more

Obituary: Lois Lauritzen, 92, of Brookfield

In loving memory of Lois Lauritzen, age 92, who passed away on June 1, 2026 at Lakewood Memory Care in Brookfield. Lois led an active life full of devotion to family and friends. Born July 14th, 1933 in Silvis, IL, daughter of Harry and Elsie Wilson, she grew up in the Quad Cities with older brother Harry Wilson Jr. Lois graduated from Augustana College in Rock Island, IL with a degree in physical education. She met her husband Paul Lauritzen on the college tennis team. Their marriage on June 12th, 1955 lasted 59 years until Paul’s death on September 26th, … Read more

Obituary: Donald Walter Triebold, 91

Donald Walter Triebold passed on to his eternal home on May 21, 2026. Don was born on April 23, 1935, in Evanston, IL, to the late Frederick W. and Mildred (nee Stecher) Triebold. Through his teen years, Don lived and worked on the family’s dairy farm, where he developed a life-long work ethic. His first eight years of education were in a one-room country schoolhouse, in which all eight grades were taught by one teacher. He graduated from Whitewater City High School in 1953 and then graduated from UW Whitewater in 1958 with a degree in Business Education. He continued his education, and earned a Master’s … Read more

Obituary: William Kincaid Davis, 84, of Evansville

William Kincaid Davis, age 84, passed away on Tuesday, May 19 at Agrace Hospice Center in Fitchburg. He was born on November 1, 1941, in Madison, Indiana, the second son of Salvation Army Officers Agnes (Dixon) and William C. Davis. He attended several schools in Indiana and Illinois, including University of Illinois Experimental High School (Champaign), and graduated from Galesburg High School in 1958. He earned his bachelor’s degree from UW-Eau Claire in 1964 and his master’s degree from UW-Whitewater in 1972. He had an expansive career in education, beginning as an English teacher in Whitehall, Thornton Township (IL) and … Read more

Obituary: Magdalene “Maggie” Stetter (nee Fritz), 79

Magdalene “Maggie” Stetter (nee Fritz), 79, of Whitewater, Wisconsin passed from this life onto the next on Monday, May 4, 2026. She was born on January 16, 1947, to the late John and Mary (Presser) Fritz in St. Stefan, Austria. Maggie immigrated from Austria with her parents and brother, became a US citizen, and grew up and attended school in West Allis, WI and then graduated with a teaching degree from University of Wisconsin – Whitewater. Maggie served as a substitute, English, and German language teacher in the Whitewater, Elkhorn, Delavan, and Palmyra schools and at Divine Word Seminary. Maggie … Read more

Obituary: Lawrence “Larry” C. Hartung, 76, of Fort Atkinson

Lawrence “Larry” C. Hartung, a proud Marine Veteran of the Vietnam War, and longtime resident of Fort Atkinson, WI, passed away peacefully at his home on May 1, 2026. Larry was born June 7th, 1949, to Levon and Charles Hartung in Chicago, IL. Larry enlisted in the US Marine Corps in 1968 and served 3 consecutive tours in the Vietnam War. During this time, he became pen pals with his future wife, Candy, via a connection through his father. In 1970, he came home on leave to marry Candy. They celebrated 55 years of marriage on October 31st, 2025. During … Read more