Local News Briefs Monday 3/30/15

The funeral for State Trooper Trevor Casper drew thousands from across the nation to Kiel Sunday afternoon. Squad cars from around the state and country parked near the High School where the memorial service was held. The small community of 3,000 has many signs of support for its hometown hero including signs in business windows, blue lights and ribbons and more. Fond du Lac Police sent a contingent of officers including their honor guard. A private burial service will be held today. The Trooper was killed in an exchange of gunfire with bank robbery suspect Steven Snyder in Fond du Lac last Tuesday evening. Fatally wounded the trooper managed to also kill Snyder.

FDL Street Closing

Fond du Lac’s Public Works Department tells us beginning this morning there will be lane closures that will take place on Division Street and Macy Street due to water main repair work.  South bound traffic on Macy Street will be reduced to one lane through the intersection of Division Street, with no right (west) turns allowed on to Division Street. West bound Division Street will be closed between Main Street and the Fond du Lac River. East bound Division Street will remain open to traffic during the work.  The closures will remain in place through this week with the repair work and pavement restoration. All lanes are expected to be fully opened next Monday.

FDL Near Middle In County Health Rankings

Fond du Lac County ranks in the middle of the pack for health in the state, according to the annual County Health Rankings released by the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.  Fond du Lac County Public Health Officer Kim Mueller says, “Business and community leaders throughout Fond du Lac County have been working together – as part of the Healthy Fond du Lac County 2020 initiative – recognizing that today’s health needs have become more complex and expansive than ever before.” Fond du Lac County ranks near the middle for health outcomes (34) and in the top half for health factors (20). Fond du Lac ranks in the top quarter of Wisconsin counties for clinical care (17), and in the top half for health behaviors (25) and social and economic factors (26). Fond du Lac County ranks near the middle for physical environment (40). According to the 2015 Rankings, the five healthiest counties in Wisconsin, starting with the healthiest, are Ozaukee, followed by Pepin, Calumet, Florence, and Kewaunee. The five counties in the poorest health, starting with the least healthy, are Menominee, Milwaukee, Forest, Washburn, and Rusk. The Rankings are available at www.countyhealthrankings.org.

Write In Candidates Needed For NFDL School Board Race

The North Fond du Lac School District honored two departing school board members at last week’s meeting. District Superintendent Aaron Sadoff says School Board President John Duffy is leaving the board after nine years, serving all nine as president. He says no one is running for that seat in the April election so a write-in could win the seat. Ryan Pelot is also leaving after five years on the board, the last three as vice-president. Sadoff says Pelot and his family recently bought a home and they will no longer be living in the district. He says the board will have to appoint someone in June to fill that vacancy. Sadoff says they are fortunate to have a good school board and members of the community willing to serve on it. Incumbent board member Steve Hock is the only candidate on the ballot for the two spots on the board up for election. 

FDL County Will Be Used To Test New Election Equipment

The state’s Government Accountability Board will use Fond du Lac County to test new election equipment for certification. County Clerk Lisa Freiberg says the testing will be done in May. She says no one in the state is currently using the equipment because it hasn’t been certified yet. She says Winnebago and Washington County are considering purchasing the same equipment. She says the equipment allows results to be sent in wirelessly versus phone modems or delivering them to the County clerk’s office. The testing will be done at a couple of poll sites in Fond du Lac. She says in past year the school district went digital and they are no longer able to modem in results from schools they used as polling locations. Freiberg says municipal clerks and election workers will be trained on the new equipment and it will be used for the first time next February.

MPTC Will Host Take Back The Night Event

The interim president of Moraine Park Technical College says they have the honor of being one of a few sites in the nation that will host an anti-domestic violence program next month. MPTC is one of only 10 colleges in the nation chosen to host the Ten Points of Light to Take Back the Night program. Bonnie Baerwald says they are partnering with a national organization and some local organizations to host the event on April 30th. It’s a candlelight vigil designed to bring awareness to all forms of domestic violence. She says it will begin at 6:30 that evening, but more information about the event will be available on the Moraine Park website.

Childrens Home Program Will Be Repeated At FDL Public Library

The program on the history of the Fond du Lac Children’s Home, originally presented on March 19, will be repeated at 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 14, at the Fond du Lac Public Library. Presenter Sally Powers-Albertz agreed to a reprise to satisfy the dozens turned away from the standing-room-only turnout.  Like many communities in the early 1900s, Fond du Lac struggled with how to care for orphaned or abandoned children. Fond du Lac decided that rather than send these children to big facilities in bigger towns and cities, they would care for them here in the Children’s Home. Active for more than 50 years, the Children’s Home was a sprawling complex located at 35 W. Follett St. Powers-Albertz, a genealogical researcher for 35 years, is author of “Fond du Lac’s Forgotten Pipeman,” featuring the Taylor family of Fond du Lac.  The Children’s Home program was a part of the library’s History at Home monthly series every third Thursday. The regularly scheduled April program will take place as planned, History of Wisconsin Supper Clubs, presented by Ron Faiola, at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 16.