Local News Briefs Friday 6/5/15

The Kewaskum Schools Superintendent says as soon as they heard about email threats parents at Farmington Elementary School had been receiving they notified authorities. Jim Smasl says a parent told them about the threats. He says a Washington County Sheriff’s deputy went to their school right away to make sure there wasn’t any credible threat to the safety of the kids. The emails were sent out in mass to parents of students from one of the classrooms. They implied physical harm or even death if parents didn’t send money or give out credit card information. Smasl says they did what they could to ensure the safety of the children. It’s believed who ever sent the threatening emails pick up a thread from a teacher’s email and used it to contact the parents. Even though the threat was deemed not credible the Sheriff’s department will keep a presence at the school through Friday afternoon when school lets out for the summer.

Public Memorial Sunday For Sonex CEO

There will be a public memorial service Sunday at the EAA AirVenture Museum in Oshkosh for Sonex Aircraft CEO Jeremy Monnet who was killed in a plane crash Tuesday along with assembly mechanic Mike Clark. Visitation will be from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Eagle Hangar inside the museum. A service will follow at 1:30 p.m. and a reception is scheduled for 2 p.m. in the EAA Founders’ Wing. Visitors are asked not to arrive before 10 p.m. so the family can hold a private service.

Chid Sexual Assault Suspect Waives Preliminary Hearing

The 25-year-old Waupun woman suspected of having inappropriate contact with a toddler waived her preliminary hearing Thursday in Dodge County Court. Cassandra Scheuers was subsequently arraigned and pled not guilty to a charge of 1st degree sexual assault with a child under 12 years of age.  A request to reduce her $10,000 cash bond was also denied. She will be back in court on July 6th for a scheduling conference.

Former Sheboygan Alderman Asks For Change Of Venue

The former Sheboygan alderman facing criminal charges has asked for a change of venue. Kevin Matichek was in Sheboygan County Court Thursday for two hearings on the charges of repeated sexual assault of a minor, public officer accepting a bribe, and possessing child pornography. His lawyer is asking that all three cases be consolidated and moved to another county.  Matichek faces charges in Sheboygan and Ozaukee counties for his alleged actions with teenage boys between 2002 and earlier this year. His next court appearance is next Thursday in Ozaukee County for a motion hearing.

FDL High School Principal Reflects On First Year

Fond du Lac High School Principal Michelle Hagen says they are concluding a very good school year. She says there was a lot of work to implement the new ACT testing and that went off well. Hagen is completing her first year as Fond du Lac High School Principal. She succeeded Jon Wiltzius. She became an assistant principal at the high school in August of 2013 after 23 years in the Milwaukee Public School System. She likes the support students at the Fond du Lac High School get from the community and says she’s glad she came to Fond du Lac because it’s a wonderful community. She says even though school got out this week, capped with high school graduation on Thursday, administrators and teachers will remain busy throughout the summer. She says administrators will be developing academic goals and teachers are planning, reflecting on practices and they work with students throughout the summer.

NFDL PFC Approves Acting Fire Chief

The North Fond du Lac Police and Fire Commission this week approved Bruce Pluim as Acting Fire Chief. He will hold the rank as Assistant Fire Chief. Village Administrator Chuck Hornung says they’ve split the duties of Fire and EMS Chiefs over the last few years, but will be hiring a combined Fire Chief and EMS Director. He says their current Assistant Fire Chief has been looking at stepping down for some time. He says they have a number of applicants for the combined job, but are still going through the process. He says they have 19 applicants in the current hiring process. Pluim has lived in the village for at least 10 years and already has experience on the department. Hornung says he held an officer’s rank and is familiar with staffing so he will be a good fit.

Art On The Island Sunday

The Fond du Lac Artists Association will hold their 47th annual Art on the Island event this Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Oven Island in Lakeside Park. Aileen Andrews of the Association says it’s a fun-filled free event. In addition to the entertainment and kids activities, there will be a silent auction, food and art will be for sale. Mary Ann Pahnke of the Association says they have 85 arts and crafts vendors attending. She says the show has a reputation due in part to association members and the location of the show. She says they bring in people from across the state and many vendors come in from out-of-state. The silent auction for the event supports local student scholarships.

SAGES Charter School Dedicates Chicken Coop

When agricultural is part of your school name it shouldn’t be too surprising to hear that children at the school dedicated a chicken coop on their next to last day of school. The dedication ceremony at the School for Agricultural and Environmental Studies or SAGES charter school in Fox Lake was held Thursday morning capping a big project for students of the school. Waupun Schools Superintendent Tonya Gubin says students did a lot of research for the project. She says there are about 6 or 7 chickens in it right now. She says students had to work with the Fox Lake City Council to change an ordinance to allow the coop. Gubin says it was a totally student-driven project. She says the project got a lot of support from area businesses.

Reservations Due Today For Women In Management Meeting

The Fond du Lac Chapter of Women in Management will be meeting on Wednesday, June 10 to celebrate the President’s Social and end of year finale.  The meeting will be held at The Retlaw Plaza Hotel from 11 am to 1 pm and the deadline to make your reservation is Friday (today).  The Fond du Lac chapter’s meeting will include a presentation to announce and honor the Woman Manager of the Year and the celebration membership milestones.  Call Vicki Woschnick to reserve your spot at (920) 929-8271.  There is a fee for this lunch meeting.  In addition to members, the public and businesswomen interested in joining are invited to attend.  Special guest speaker, Linda Greene will present “Laughter is the Best Medicine!”.  Greene is a Certified Laughter Leader and Life Enrichment Manager at Evergreen Continuing Care Retirement Community in Oshkosh.  She will share the history, health benefits and joys of laughing.