Local News Briefs Wednesday 10/29/14

A 12-year-old Fond du Lac boy was hurt when a car struck the bicycle he was riding last night. The boy was heading east on Western Avenue when he was struck by a car that was going south on South Military Road. The car was driven by a 20-year-old Campbellsport woman. The boy was taken to St. Agnes Hospital and was later flown to Children’s Hospital in Milwaukee. The accident was reported at 6:14 p.m. 

Man Cleared In Oshkosh Attacks

Oshkosh Police say a man who was with a 19-year-old Oshkosh man suspected of attacking a UW-Oshkosh Student Sunday night was not involved in the attack. They say that man is cooperating with the investigation and no charges are expected to be brought against thim. Police say the victim and a friend were walking north on McKinley Street from John Avenue when the suspect and the other man crossed the street and walked towards them. The suspect then ran toward the victim and struck the victim without warning. The victim ran from the scene and made contact with a UW-Oshkosh police officer who took the suspect into custody. Police are continuing to pursue leads in two similar crimes that happened last week including the stabbing of two students last Friday. Three men who were close to one of the stabbing victims are being sought as potential witnesses. Anyone with information about the crimes is asked to contact the Oshkosh Police Department.

Fire Damages Washington County Home

Fire damaged a home and attached garage on Wallace Lake Road in Washington County’s Town of Trenton Monday morning. Sheriff’s officials say a passing motorist called in the blaze at 2225 Wallace Lake Road at 8:12 a.m. after seeing smoke coming from the garage. Five fire departments battled the blaze, which did significant damage to the home. There were no injuries reported. The home was vacant.

Ripon Utility Scam

Police in Ripon are warning residents about a scam. They say a man is calling local residents claiming they are past due on their Alliant Energy bills and their utilities will be shut off unless they make an immediate payment. They suggest doing that with a cash transfer or credit card to special account. Alliant Energy does not do business in this fashion and claims this is a Fraud that has been ongoing nationwide and is now operating in the Ripon Area. Police suggest not providing money fund transfers or credit card information to such a caller. They say you should not provide personal information or make a payment. Instead they say if you do have a question about your utility bill contact Alliant directly.

Random Lake Man Charged For Standoff

(WHBL-Sheboygan)-A Random Lake man has been charged for causing a tactical situation at his Town of Sherman residence over the weekend. Sheboygan County Sheriff’s deputies went to the Stoney Birch Road home of 49-year-old Daniel Guckenberger for a welfare check late Saturday night.  Once deputies arrived, Guckenberger allegedly pointed a long gun at them from inside the house and garage.  After an hour, he came towards the deputies with two knives before he was tased and taken into custody. Guckenberger was charged Monday with intentionally pointing a firearm at law enforcement, resisting an officer, and possession of cocaine. 

Final Debate For 6^th Congressional District Candidates In Plymouth Tonight

The two candidates for the 6th Congressional District seat square off in a final debate tonight before next Tuesday’s election. State Senator Glenn Grothman and Winnebago County Executive Mark Harris will debate the issues during a debate in Plymouth. It will be held at the Plymouth High School in the Acuity Auditorium from 7 to 8 p.m. The winner during next Tuesday’s election will succeed Congressman Tom Petri who has represented the 6th Congressional District the past 35 years.

Downtown FDL Recognition Not Possible Without Willingness To Invest

Downtown Fond du Lac Partnership Executive Director Amy Hansen says the City would not be one of the finalists for the Great American Main Street Award if people weren’t willing to invest in the downtown. The City’s Main Street program is one of ten finalists out of the 1,400 Main Street communities across the nation for the award. Hansen says Fond du Lac does what it can to improve the downtown including a variety of grants that are available to business owners. She says both the City and County, namely the Fond du Lac County Economic Development Corporation are committed to improving the downtown. She says over the past 10 years $87 million has been invested in the downtown and people have forgotten about some of those investments. She says examples of major projects include Hometown Bank, Marine Credit Union, Trinity, Thelma, the YMCA, Marian, Fox Valley Savings Bank and Commonwealth.

Superintendent Says Chegwin Elementary A Special School

Chegwin Elementary School officials shared news of their recent School of Recognition Award with the Fond du Lac School Board this week. District Superintendent Jim Sebert says recently the state’s Department of Public Instruction honored Schools of Recognition and Chegwin was honored for the 11th year in a row in the “Beating the Odds” category. He says they were recognized for their achievement despite having a high population of students coming from poverty or socio-economic hardships. The school received a plaque and he says they will also be getting a new banner for display outside the school. Chegwin was honored during a special ceremony at the State Capitol on October 13th.

Deer Management Meeting In FDL

Fond du Lac County residents can contribute their ideas about deer management population goals during a meeting in Fond du Lac tonight. County Deer Advisory Councils are holding the meetings across the state. The meeting in Fond du Lac will be in the legislative chambers of the City-County Government Center from 7 to 9 p.m. Another meeting will be held there on Thursday, December 11th also from 7 to 9 p.m. Residents can speak or submit written comments during the meetings.

Food Drive Success

The recent Boy Scout Food Drive in Fond du Lac led to nearly a ton and a half of donated food for the Fond du Lac Salvation Army’s food pantry. Ron Jacobson is the Director of Social Services at the Salvation Army. He says the 2,934 pounds of food donated during the Ledge to Lakes Boy Scouts food drive was about a half ton more than they received last year. The food was unloaded at the Salvation Army last Friday morning with special volunteer support from the Fond du Lac Fire Department. 

Marian Business And Industry Awards Presented

Marian University held its 33rd annual Business & Industry awards dinner last night in Fond du Lac. The Business of the Year award was presented to Alliance Laundry Systems, LLC, of Ripon. The Entrepreneur of the Year award was presented to Wisnet.com of Fond du Lac. The Economic Development award was presented to Con-way Freight of Fond du Lac.  Special Achievement awards were presented to two organizations: Children’s Museum of Fond du Lac and the THELMA Sadoff Center for the Arts.  This year the George Becker Business Spirit award was presented posthumously to Gary M. Smith. Smith is the third generation of the Smith family to lead C.D. Smith Construction.  C.D. Smith thrived during Smith’s leadership, where he secured some of the largest scale projects in Wisconsin and grew the company’s business throughout the United States. Smith was also a philanthropist and helped to fund projects locally as well as internationally in the Philippines, Haiti, Nicaragua and more. The Business & Industry awards dinner helps raise money for scholarships for business students in the Marian University School of Business & Public Safety.