Local News Briefs Friday 12/19/14

Washington County Sheriff’s officials say a man has been taken into custody suspected of the armed robbery at the National Exchange Bank & Trust in Allenton last Friday. Sheriff’s Detectives working on the case, in conjunction with the FBI and Milwaukee Police made the arrest on Wednesday.  The suspect remains in custody while the investigation continues.  The man was masked when he entered the bank last Friday afternoon armed with a handgun and demanded money. There were on customers in the bank at the time and no one was injured.

FDL Men Facing Armed Robbery Charges

Armed robbery charges were brought in Fond du Lac County Court this week against two Fond du Lac men for a drug-related robbery. Twenty seven-year-old Delaney Watt and 25-year-old Prentice Shipp are both facing armed robbery and marijuana possession charges for the August 10th robbery. They allegedly robbed a man at gunpoint in the parking lot of the Pick ‘N Save on Pioneer Road. Bond was set at $1,000 cash for Watt. An arrest warrant was issued for Shipp. Watt has a preliminary hearing on January 16th.

FDL County Not Affected By 911 Outage

Fond du Lac County Communications and Emergency Management officials say the County was not affected by a 911 outage experienced by at least five other Wisconsin Counties Thursday. The counties that were affected by the Frontier Communications service interruption included Adams, Juneau, Columbia, Marquette and far western Dodge County. The Dodge County outage included the Fox Lake and Randolph area. Officials say a fiber optic line was accidentally cut outside of Dodge County. 

Oshkosh Military Vehicle Contract Announced

The defense division of Oshkosh Corporation will be building more than 250 Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles for the U.S. Army. The contract will pay $67 million for the building of 256 trucks and trailers. Delivery of the vehicles will happen between 2015 and 2016. A company official says the vehicles will be used around the world. They can be used to move troops, supplies and haul equipment. Oshkosh Corporation says they have built and delivered 33,000 of the trucks and trailers to the Army since they began making them in 2010.

Waupun Publics Works And Library Employees Will Get Raises

The Waupun Common Council this week approved a raise for two City employee’s groups.  Mayor Kyle Clark says city representatives met with the union last week that represents public works and library employees. They discussed wages and as a result the union and its members accepted the initial offer of a 1.57 percent raise that will take effect in the coming year.

Down To The Nitty Gritty For The United Way Campaign

Although giving to the Fond du Lac Area United Way campaign seems to have slowed the last couple weeks, the agency’s executive director says they should be able to raise their $745,000 goal. Tina Potter says they have raised a little over $571,000, but they have some big contributors that haven’t sent their envelopes in yet. She says the goal for their industry division has been reached. Potter says $290,387 was raised in that division, which is 100 percent of their goal. She also notes that the sale of gift certificates to Friar Tucks, Sebastian’s Steak House, and Salty’s Seafood Restaurants by Progressive Investors Company made $606 for the United Way last weekend.

FDL Firefighters Donate Winter Coats To Kids In Need

Fond du Lac firefighters are teaming up with Operation Warm to donate brand new winter coats to over 100 children from low-income families. Firefighters fundraise in order to personally fit each child, help select their favorite color, and write their name in the interior tag of their new coat, which reads, “Made Just for You.” “A new coat allows families to stretch their limited financial resources to other basic necessities like food and shelter,” explained Fond du Lac firefighter Steve Pieper. The coat celebration will be held at Parkside Elementary School this morning at 11 a.m.

What’s Next For Mercury Museum Space?

The executive director of the Fond du Lac Children’s Museum says they were happy to have Mercury Marine Museum within their museum this year. Andrea Welsch says it was a great way for Mercury to celebrate its heritage during their 75th anniversary year. Mercury used about 5,000 square feet in the museum for their displays. They closed down their exhibits on November 30th. Welsch says early next year she will discuss uses of that space with her Board of Directors.

Traffic Will Vary Around Christmas

An inspector with the Wisconsin State Patrol says there are some areas of construction in Winnebago County to watch for if you’re traveling this Christmas season. Scott Hlinak says the 441 interchange on the south end and the bridge over Highway 10 are potential problem areas. He says they’ve seen quite a few crashes around the Highway 10 Bridge. He says plan ahead and watch for traffic that might be stopped. He says it’s hard to predict peak travel times for the holidays, but today could see one of them for those taking next week off. He says traffic will vary on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

A Cappella Christmas Concert Saturday Benefits Salute The Troops

An A Cappella Christmas Concert Saturday night in Fond du Lac will benefit the Salute the Troops of Fond du Lac organization. It will be held at 7:30 p.m. at St. Patrick’s Church at 39 East Follett Street. Salute the Troops Executive Director Alex Louis says their organization helps out veterans in Fond du Lac County who may be in need. She says that includes helping them with food, fuel, gas and groceries. One of the groups performing will be the Hometown Harmony Tradition Men’s Barbershop Chorus. Clark Koechel is a member of that chorus. He says two other groups will also be performing. He says the Sound Celebration Women’s Barbershop Chorus and Fond du Lac High School Cardinal Singers will also perform. There’s free admission, but a free will offering will be accepted.

Habitat ReStore Hosts Fundraiser For MPTC Student Learning Trip

The Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Fond du Lac will host a fundraising effort for Moraine Park Technichal College’s International Education program Saturday. Some students will be taking a service learning trip to Jamaica in March. The students will be having a bake sale, 50/50 raffle and gift wrapping station. MPTC President Sheila Ruhland says students in the program learn a lot from the opportunity. Habitat will also be donating 10 percent of their sales Saturday to support students participating in the program. MPTC Vice President of Academic Affairs Jim Eden says the students involved are in their nursing and health education program. Hours for the event are from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.