Local News Briefs Saturday 2/1/14

A few more details have been released about a fatal snowmobile accident that occurred in the Campbellsport area Thursday afternoon. DNR Warden Supervisor April Dombrowski of the Oshkosh Field Office says the victim was a 47-year-old Adell man who failed to negotiate a curve on the trail system in the Town of Auburn and crashed into a tree. He died at the scene. The accident remains under investigation. 

Names Released In Fatal Dodge County Accident

Dodge County Sheriff’s officials say a 46-year-old rural Beaver Dam man was killed in a head-on collision on State Highway 33 in the Town of Oak Grove Thursday afternoon. Paul Wilder lost control of his pickup truck and it was struck by an SUV driven by 24-year-old Johnathan Barth of Waupun. Wilder died at the scene. Barth and his passenger 23-year-old Alec Janzer of Beaver Dam were taken to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Roadways were snow-covered and slippery at the time of the accident.

State Grant Will Help With FDL’s EAB Planning

A state grant will help the City of Fond du Lac in preparing for the emerald ash borer. The state’s Department of Natural Resources recently announced the recipients of its annual Urban Forestry Grant Program. The City of Fond du Lac is receiving $5,409 for staff education and urban tree treatment and planting. Altogether 46 communities, nonprofit organizations, and counties received more than $602,000 for community urban forestry projects. 

Ripon Lights

Ripon’s Plan Commission is considering a change to a City ordinance to address complaints about exterior lighting fixtures in business and multi-housing projects. City Administrator Lori Rich says the complaints aren’t about lighting from single homes and duplexes, but more about glare from multi-unit apartments and businesses. She says the complaints are mostly the result of recent construction projects. She says some residents would like to see the ordinance changed to provide shielding to prevent glare from those newer projects.

MLK Spirit Award Winner Deserving

Marian University recently presented the Martin Luther King, Jr. Spirit Award to Laurice Snyder at its 20th annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Interfaith Prayer Breakfast. Snyder has been the Supervisor of Community Education Services for the Fond du Lac School District since 2007. Her position includes providing support for students and families of color who are living in poverty, homeless or identified as “at-risk.” Snyder was nominated for the award by Fond du Lac Schools Superintendent Jim Sebert who says he can’t think of a more deserving person. She also serves as a board member for the Fond du Lac Area United Way and as a board member and grants chairperson for the Fond du Lac Area Women’s Fund.

Eating Smart Gets The Thumb’s Up

The Executive Director of Fond du Lac Festivals says it won’t be long before restaurant patrons in Fond du Lac will be able to make healthier food choices by looking for a symbol in their menus. Leanne Doyle says a lot of restaurants are getting requests from their patrons to feature foods that are lower in fats, sodium, sugar and calories. She says soon an Eat Smart symbol will start appearing in menus next to dishes that are healthier for you. The symbol will appear as a green thumb. To reflect that change in eating habits the annual Festival Foods’ Taste of Fond du Lac will have a new judging category called Eat Smart. The Taste is Sunday, February 23rd from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Fond du Lac County Fairgrounds Expo Center.

UW FDL Hosting More Community Gatherings

The UW-Fond du Lac is more and more becoming host to community events. Dean John Short says their commons area, the Prairie Theater and Large Group Instruction room are places where groups and organizations can hold gatherings. The UW-Fond du Lac hosted the Fond du Lac County Economic Development Corporations 25th Annual Meeting this week, which featured Governor Scott Walker as a guest speaker. Short says those interested in inquiring about rentals should call 929-1138. He says they’ve even played host to some weddings.