News & Events

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

The Banner reached out to all of the candidates in the April 5 election for the two Walworth County and two Jefferson County supervisory districts that represent portions of the city of Whitewater, offering them the opportunity to share with our readers their background, what they feel they would bring (or already bring) to the board, reasons for running, what they believe should be primary goals for the county, etc.

For information on all of the candidates on your ballot, visit vote411.org

Jefferson County

District 24 represents wards 11 and 12 in the Jefferson County portion of the city. Roger Lind, 525 N. Fremont, is running unopposed. He did not provide a statement to the Banner.

District 25 represents ward 10 in the Jefferson County portion of the city, together with the town of Cold Spring; Wards 1 & 2 Town of Hebron; Ward 3 Town of Koshkonong, and Ward 2 Town of Palmyra. Matthew Foelker, W3467 Lower Hebron Road, Fort Atkinson, is running unopposed. He did not provide a statement to the Banner.

Walworth County

District 3 represents most of the eastern part of the city, together with the townships of Whitewater, LaGrange, and Sugar Creek. This map shows the boundaries after 2021 redistricting. Brian Holt, W6873 Sugar Creek Road, Elkhorn, is running unopposed.

Brian Holt, while writing that we should “save space for contested races,” indicated that he is “a 34 year old farmer from Sugar Creek who is looking forward to continuing my term on the board.” He offered for us to provide his email address, brian.e.holt@gmail.com, and his phone number, 414-520-2620.

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District 4: Jerry Grant, Vice Chair of the County Board, has chosen not to run for re-election. The district represents primarily the western portion of the city that is located in Walworth County. This map shows the boundaries after 2021 redistricting. Running for the seat are Curt Knull, 404 E. Cravath, Whitewater; and Al Stanek, 415 S. Douglas Court, Whitewater.

Curt Knull, Candidate for Walworth County Board of Supervisors, District 4

My name is Curt Knull. I am running for the Walworth County Board of Supervisors. I’m a disabled veteran and, other than my time in the US Air Force and a brief time in Oklahoma, for work, am a lifelong Walworth County resident.

I grew up on a farm in Millard and graduated from Elkhorn High School in 1990. I joined the Air Force immediately after graduation and I’ve seen a fair portion of the world and served in Desert Storm.

I’m blue collar, through and through and made a living as a sheet metal fabricator until the doctor advised me against it, due to the damage my back sustained while in service.

I’m running because I still believe in serving my country and community. I believe in accountability and our representative government. What that means is, while I refuse to betray my principles, my personal tastes or preferences take a back seat to the people who may elect me. Lowering taxes and a positive environment for entreprenurship are important to me.

I can be reached on Facebook at Curt Knull 4 County Supervisor and at statelinetoo@gmail.com with any questions or concerns. I look forward to the opportunity to serve and hope you will give me that opportunity April 5th. Thank you.

Al Stanek, Candidate for Walworth County Board of Supervisors, District 4

Thank-you for extending the opportunity to me and others to provide voters some background information regarding our qualifications for various local elected offices.

I have lived in Whitewater for over 26 years and am asking Whitewater Walworth County District 4 voters to consider me as their representative on the county board of supervisors.

I was a senior level transportation planner in the Tommy Thompson administration where I learned how a government by the people can overcome obstacles, make positive changes and responsibly manage our tax dollars. I also served two years developing and coordinating a cost-effective way of responding to the transportation needs of Walworth County’s elderly and disabled citizens while also providing a trip to work option for others that need one.

I represent Walworth County on the Wisconsin River Rail Transit Authority, a multicounty agency working to maintain safe and efficient rail service to area businesses which helps to keep our employers competitive. As a former member and Chair of the Whitewater Community Development Authority I know how important it is that we expand our tax base.

No one is born with the desire or the capacity to spend hours in long meetings considering complex and often contentious public issues. A commitment to be a County Board Supervisor includes long hours reviewing complex materials and regular attendance at a half dozen or more committee meetings along with regular County Board meetings and hours working with the people that you represent.

Educated and trained as a journalist, I understand the importance of listening and paying attention to the positions of all participants as critical decisions are made. I have years of experience making sense out of often conflicting viewpoints and finding a way to solve problems.

I consider myself a fiscal conservative but hold no allegiance to any political party.

For more information simply type www.stanekcountyboard.org into the address bar of your computer. PLEASE DO NOT FORGET TO VOTE and THANK-YOU for your consideration.

Whitewater High School’s FIRST Robotics Team #6574 Ferradermis recently wrote a grant through the Gene Haas Foundation on behalf of the team and the Technology and Engineering Department at Whitewater High School to improve the CNC machining capabilities in the school shop.

Improved CNC capabilities will help the team manufacture more of their robot components in-house, and it will also allow students in metals classes to get more hands-on experience.

Pictured is team Tri-Captain Senior Elijah Grall presenting the check to Technology and Engineering Teachers Mr. Mason Pautsch and Mr. Tim O’Toole.

Article and Photo Submitted by Laura Masbruch
Whitewater High School Robotics Advisor and Banner Volunteer
lmasbruch@wwusd.org

Forty-two high school FIRST Robotics teams from Wisconsin, Illinois, and Minnesota descended on UW-Milwaukee’s Panther Arena from March 23 – 26 for the FIRST Wisconsin Regional. Whitewater High School’s Team #6574 Ferradermis played well throughout the event!

Ferradermis played 12 qualification matches with a final record of 7-4-1, earning an average of 2.25 ranking points per match, and a final ranking of 12th out of the 42 teams. Up to four ranking points can be earned per match. Two are awarded to the winning alliance in each match, and in the case of a tie, each alliance is awarded one ranking point. During this year’s game, an alliance can earn an additional ranking point in a match for successfully scoring a certain amount of cargo in the hub and another for scoring a certain number of points by climbing in the hangar during the end game. Ferradermis earned at least one of those additional ranking points in 10 of their 12 qualification matches. They also played two “unicorn matches” which is the nickname given to a match where an alliance earns all 4 ranking points.

The drive team in Milwaukee was led by senior driver Elijah Grall, freshman operator Andrew O’Toole, junior human player Jazmin Cederberg, and freshman technician Hugo Portales.

During the alliance selection process, because some of the higher ranked teams selected each other as alliance partners, Ferradermis moved up into the #8 alliance captain position. Competition Logistics Captain senior Shane Kinson then took the field to invite Team #1259 Paradigm Shift from Pewaukee and Team #930 from Mukwonago to join our alliance. The alliance played two hard-fought quarterfinal matches before being eliminated by the #1 seeded alliance.

The Chairman’s Team of freshmen Andrew Zimmermann and Maddi LaHaie and sophomore Cosette Wildermuth-Breitzman was able to visit with judges and do their presentation in person rather than virtually as they had for the previous competition in Duluth. Also, while in Milwaukee, the two Dean’s List semi-finalists for Ferradermis, juniors Jazmin Cederberg and Daniel Portwine, had a chance to interview with a pair of judges.

The next stop for the team will be the Seven Rivers Regional in La Crosse from March 30 through April 2. This event will host 47 teams from Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, and Minnesota, many of whom are already well known to each other from the competitions in Duluth and Milwaukee. It should be a great event! The event can be livestreamed at https://www.twitch.tv/firstinspires5 on Friday and Saturday. Go, Ferradermis!

Article and Photos Submitted by Laura Masbruch
Whitewater High School Robotics Advisor
lmasbruch@wwusd.org

Editor’s note: The following was received from Mason DePorter, FFA Reporter.

Recently, the Whitewater FFA gave a $2000 check to the Whitewater Breakfast Kiwanis Club. Last spring the Whitewater FFA decided to donate the profits from the plant sale to Kiwanis to support the We Go Round project. The We Go Round Project is adding an accessible playground feature at Starin Park. 

In honor of FFA week and their ongoing support, the Whitewater Culver’s donated $500 to the Whitewater FFA. 

The WHS Portfolio Committee is seeking community members to be a part of the listening audiences on Wednesday, April 27, 2022, 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. We are hoping for at least 15 Whitewater Community members to participate. Community members willing to attend the presentations can email kmcnulty@wwusd.org  or call 262-472-8230 to sign up by Friday, April 8.

Members of the Whitewater High School Class of 2022 are currently preparing for the annual Portfolio Event which will be held on Wednesday, April 27, 4-7:30 p.m. at the high school. 

This event for seniors allows them to showcase their academic achievements, celebrate their accomplishments, and share their postsecondary career and academic plans before graduation. To make the presentations more meaningful, students present to an audience of WHS staff members and members of the community along with family and friends who are invited to attend. 

Students present examples of their best work in core academic and elective areas, share 2 or more examples of their involvement in activities in and outside of school, or work experiences, and at least one service activity that had special significance. Students then describe their future career and educational plans and the pathway they have chosen to accomplish their career goals. Graduates end their presentation by summarizing the most important learning experiences they’ve had in high school and how they hope to use their knowledge and skills to become a productive and responsible member of society. 

Article Submitted by Kate McNulty
Whitewater High School
kmcnulty@wwusd.org

At Our House Senior Living Memory Care in Whitewater we are looking forward to a great evening for our senior residents as we celebrate Prom 2022 on March 31, 2022. We are holding Prom for our seniors to brighten up their evening, and we would love to hear them reminiscence about their memories with special events like this that they had in the past. We want all of our residents to feel special!

We are looking for donations of prom dresses and men’s dress attire. Anything would be helpful to make this a night to remember. We will also be looking for a great local vendor to order our prom meal from. If anyone in the community would like to donate any items for our prom please reach out to Angela Lyman-Executive Director at 262-473-9507 or Brandy Eason-Assistant Director at 262-473-1011.

The image on the homepage,”Corsage – Blumz by JRDesigns in metro Detroit” by Flower Factor is marked with CC BY-NC 2.0.