Local News Tuesday 3/26/13

Green Lake County Fatal Accident

 

Green Lake County Sheriff’s officials say a 71-year-old Green Lake woman was killed when her SUV pulled out of a driveway into the path of an oncoming pickup truck. It happened shortly after 7 a.m. Monday morning on Highway 23 west of Forest Ridge Road. Sharon Leu died at the scene. The driver of the truck, 38-year-old John Duenkel of Ripon, was flown to Theda Clark Regional Medical Center by Theda Star helicopter. He’s reported to be in good condition. The crash occurred approximately 2 miles east of Green Lake.

 

Nine Arrested For OWI’s During St. Patrick’s Day Weekend In FDL County

 

Results are in from a countywide crack down on drunken drivers in Fond du Lac County over the St. Patrick’s Day weekend. According to Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Captain Rick Olig the extra patrols resulted in 254 traffic stops, 134 citations were issued and 172 warnings were issued. He says to no one’s surprise there were 9 drunken driving arrests during the enforcement event.

He says there weren’t any problems associated with parades in Fond du Lac and Dundee during the parades but before or after. Olig says the next effort will probably be around Memorial Day weekend, but don’t be surprised to see a random enforcement effort pop up at any time. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an impaired driver can be on the road 772 times before getting caught or arrested.

 

Dodge County Tavern Break Ins

 

Dodge County authorities are investigating three tavern break-ins that occurred over the weekend. Dyno’s Last Tap in the Town of Lomira was burglarized early Saturday morning. Danny Boys on East Lake Street in Horicon was broken into during the same period. Early this (Monday) morning a break-in was also reported in the Village of Burnett. Various items were taken during the break-ins.

 

19 Killed In Snowmobile Accidents This Winter

 

Wisconsin had its 19th fatal snowmobile accident over the weekend. Department of Natural Resources officials say it happened in Oneida County Saturday night and involved a single machine. A second single snowmobile accident in Marinette County, also on Saturday night, resulted in injuries. Speed may have been a contributing factor in the second accident.

 

Suspected Counterfeiters Caught In Sheboygan

 

(Wisconsin Radio Network)-A Milwaukee area couple is in the Sheboygan County Jail after allegedly attempting to pass counterfeit bills at the Memorial Mall last Friday.  Police said clerks at Hobby Lobby contacted them about 5 p.m. with their suspicions about a female customer.  Captain Jim Veeser said officers located a vehicle and recognized the 28-year-old Milwaukee man – who was driving – as being a suspect in similar cases last January.  Veeser said officers then located other counterfeit one-hundred dollar bills.  The suspect and an 18-year-old Oak Creek woman were arrested. 

 

Walgreens Settles Claim Over Inaccurate Pricing

 

Walgreens had to pay nearly $30,000 to settle a claim with the state that it scanned inaccurate prices and didn’t post refund notices at its Wisconsin stores. According to the state’s Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection it found 121 inaccurately priced products at 51 Walgreens stores on the first visit during a 2-day inspection last August. On the second day eight more instances were found and there were 11 instances of not posting required refund information. Walgreens paid a civil forfeiture in 2009 for similar alleged violations.

 

Tower Closures Won’t Affect EAA AirVenture

 

(Wisconsin Radio Network)-The air traffic control tower closure in Oshkosh will NOT negatively impact AirVenture. EAA’s AirVenture is scheduled to go on as planned at the end of July, despite tower closures across the country. Federal officials announced on Friday that Wittman Regional Airport will end its tower operations April 7 because of federal budget sequestration mandates. AirVenture Spokesman Dick Knapinski explains, federal officials understand the size, scope, and importance of AirVenture. The year round operations at the tower are contracted by the Federal Aviation Administration, but FAA personnel fly in to Oshkosh operate the tower during and surrounding the World’s Greatest Aviation Celebration. Concerns were raised about the FAA travel budget due to sequestration cuts, but Knapinski says the week long fly-in is four months away; folks in DC should be able to figure it out by then. Plus, Knapinski says, they’re always working on a plan B, just in case. About half a million aviation enthusiasts come from all corners of the state, across the nation, and 60 countries for AirVenture, bringing an estimated $110 million economic impact to Oshkosh-area counties each year. Beyond AirVenture, talks continue with airport management and the FAA to keep Wittman tower open all year round, considering it is one of the state’s five busiest airports.

 

FDL City Council Forum Tonight

 

The UW-Fond du Lac will host a Fond du Lac City Council candidate forum at 6:30 p.m. tonight in the Prairie Theater. The UW-Fond du Lac Student Government Association is sponsoring the forum. Mike Mentzer, retired managing editor of The Reporter and currently an associate lecturer at UW-Fond du Lac, will serve as the forum moderator. UW-Fond du Lac Dean John Short says they are happy to provide such forums. Originally it was scheduled for the Large Group Instruction Room, but Short says there is more room in the Prairie Theater. Questions will be taken from the audience if time permits. City Council candidates invited to participate include; Catherine Block, Rebecca Lunde-Ross, Dan Manning and Samuel Meyer. There are three City Council seats open for election.

 

FDL School Board Forum Tonight

 

The Fond du Lac Area Retired Educators’ Association will be holding a candidates’ forum tonight with the four candidates running for the Fond du Lac School Board. The candidates are Elizabeth Hayes, Kathleen Nagle, Mark Jurgella and Barbara Kuhls. The forum will be held in the legislative chambers of the City-County Government Center at 7 p.m.  Former UW-Fond du Lac Dean Judy Goldsmith will be the moderator. The general election is next Tuesday.

 

Kuhls Runs For FDL School Board

 

Barbara Kuhls says she wanted to invest in the education of the next generation and that’s why she decided to run for the Fond du Lac School Board. Her son will be graduating from the High School this year. A retired nurse she feels the district should stick to teaching kids the basics and not influence the way they think. She says according to one survey 61 percent of state residents favor expansion of the school vouchers program. She says it is the school board’s role to adapt if it’s approved as part of the state budget. Overall she’s pleased with the way kids are being taught in the district and says the district has an excellent music and arts department. Kuhls says she be pleased to serve on the board. She’s one of four candidates running for three seats on the board. The others are incumbent board members Elizabeth Hayes, Kathleen Nagle and Mark Jurgella.

 

FDL City Offices Will Be Open Friday

 

City of Fond du Lac Offices will remain open on Good Friday, March 29th.  The City Clerk’s office will be open until 5:00 p.m. for the purpose of voter registration and absentee voting. For more information please contact the City Clerk’s Office at 920-322-3430.

 

Cheers For Volunteers Winners

 

The winners of the Cheers for Volunteers awards have been selected for this May’s awards dinner. Volunteer Center of Fond du Lac County Executive Director Nancy Zompolas says the selection committee had a tough task choosing winners from the nominees. She says they are grateful to their sponsors. Winners will get $1,000 to be given to the charity of their choice. Zompolas says area residents are welcome to attend the reception and dinner on Thursday, May 2nd at the Holiday Inn in Fond du Lac.

 

Winners this year include:

Carl W. Tonjes Award-Gail Sharpe

Agency Volunteer of the Year-Alice Russert

Senior Volunteer of the Year-Marilyn Ryan

Rising Star Award-Angela Whicher

Rural Volunteer of Year-Norman Loehr

Spirit of Compassion Award-Fond du Lac Circles of Support Volunteers.

Services Club of the Year-Robyn King

Board Volunteer of the Year-Laurie Pain

Cheers Choice Award-James Waldschmidt

For more information about the celebration click here.

 

Actor James Cromwell Pleads To Disrupting Meeting

 

(Wisconsin Radio Network)-Oscar-nomiated actor James Cromwell has pleaded no contest to disrupting a UW-Madison Board of Regents meeting last month, in which he yelled about cat experiments on campus. The 73 year-old actor and 27 year-old activist Jeremy Beckham were charged with disorderly conduct in connection with the February 7 protest. The men held large signs showing a cat with metal implanted in its head at a UW lab. Cromwell’s attorney entered the plea on behalf of both men, and a Dane County Court Commissioner ordered Cromwell and Beckham to pay 263 dollars in forfeitures and costs.

 

Alice Finalists Named

 

The four finalists for the state’s 66th Annual Alice in Dairyland position have been announced. They are Beth Babcock of Wisconsin Dells, Marie Mahaney of Milwaukee, Kristin Olson of Windsor, and Tammy Wiedenbeck of Lancaster. The 66th Alice in Dairyland will be selected during the three day Finals, May 8th through the 10th, in Calumet County. The public is invited to attend the Finale Banquet and Program in Brillion on Friday, May 10th.

 

ASTOP Benefits From Qdoba Donations

 

ASTOP in Fond du Lac will benefit from a local restaurant today that will be donating 10 percent of its dine or carry out orders from 5 to 9 p.m. Linda Selk-Yerges the executive director of ASTOP says you have to have a flyer for the donation from the Qdoba Mexican Grill to go to ASTOP. ASTOP stands for Assist Survivors Treatment Outreach Prevention and provides services to victims of sexual abuse and assault. In addition to their regular website they also have a Facebook page, which sees a lot of visits. The Facebook page is listed under ASTOP Sexual Abuse Center. You can get a copy of the flyer for the Qdoba donation by clicking here. http://kfizpodcasts.com/130326ASTOP.docx