Bailey Larson was crowned queen and Taylor Mabis king at homecoming festivities at Baldwin-Woodville High School on Friday night after B-W beat Ellsworth 22-14.Jessie Peterson leased the Wildwood
Jessie Peterson has leased the Wildwood Bar and Grill from owners Mitch and LaVonne Johnson. The agreement is for one year to see how the business goes, said Peterson and “so far the bar and restaurant are going well,” she said.
Peterson graduated from B-W HS and then attended Chippewa Valley Technical College at Eau Claire where she earned a police science degree. She worked for the Ellsworth Police Department for seven years but was looking for a career change when the Wildwood opportunity arose.
Peterson has extensive bar and restaurant experience in both high school, when she worked at the Hammond Hotel and the Doll House, and in college. “I know how to bartend and waitress but now I’m learning the financial part and ordering.” She also said she does some cooking.
Her sisters Bethany, Summer and Krystal all are employed at the Wildwood also.
Alertnow is in use to provide information
A phone message system that utilizes the internet has been put in use. The program is called Alertnow and will be used to send phone messages to every parent in the district.
According to District Superintendent Rusty Helland, the system can be accessed by members of the District’s administrative team which includes building principals as well as Transportation Director JR Dachel and Director of Pupil Services Patti Phillipps.
According to Superintendent Helland, the program uses the internet to call every phone number entered in it. The phone messages to parents will be made in a matter of minutes. If the phone isn’t answered a message will be left.
“It is a way to provide immediate communication and hopefully it will work well,” said Helland. The system can be used for select groups other than the total list of phone numbers, he added.
The program is produced by a Raleigh, North Carolina based company that is one of the fastest growing communication companies in the country, said Helland. The cost for the system was reasonable, too, about $2 per student at B-W.
The training for the system was given to members of the administrative team in August.
A test of the system resulted in a 89% success rate—meaning that the call was answered or a message was left on 89% of the 1,741 phone numbers contacted.
Helland said other methods of communicating school news will be continued: the phone hotline and over TV and radio for school closings.
Parents who want their phone listings updated or to add a cell phone that should be called with messages would best use their Family Access site. If that isn’t available, the child’s school should be contacted.
From the Exchanges
Interesting News Items from
Surrounding Communities
HUDSON STAR OBSERVER: A man armed with a knife surprised employees at Taco John’s Restaurant early on Saturday by ordering more than breakfast. According to police, the man, described as white, between 30 and 40-years-old, around 6 feet tall and heavy set, came into the restaurant at the corner of 11th Street and Coulee Road at 6 a.m. He told a supervisor and another employee that he wanted money and that no one would get hurt if they did as they were told. The man, who was wearing a short, fiber-filled jacket, got away with an undisclosed amount of cash from a safe and fled on foot. The incident was over in minutes according to the victims. Police are investigating but have no leads at present. Anyone who may have been in the area at the time of the robbery and saw something or who has any information about the crime is asked to contact the Hudson Police Department at (715)386-4771.
PIERCE COUNTY HERALD (ELLSWORTH): A Prescott teenager was charged Tuesday in Pierce County Circuit Court with strangulation and suffocation. John P. Lubich, 19, 190 Flora St. S., was also charged with alleged misdemeanor intimidation of a victim and disorderly conduct along with the felony. The charges stem back to an Aug. 14 incident in the city of Prescott when the female victim called 911 according to the criminal complaint. Prescott Police Officer Mark Schultz noted in his report that the victim told Pierce County Dispatch that things were fine and that a male voice got on the phone, sounded angry then hung up. Schultz went to 190 Flora St. and first talked to the male, identified as Lubich. He said everything was fine between him and the victim. The victim then gave Schultz her side of the story. The two were drinking and it reached a point where the victim wanted her car keys so she could go to sleep. Lubich told her no and the pair began to argue. While they were arguing, he grabbed her and pushed her to the ground, where he choked her. She guessed she couldn’t breathe for about two to three seconds. She then ran into the house and called 911 with Lubich right behind her. Schultz noted the victim had scratches on her arm and shoulder, dirt on her back and clothing along with a “larger red mark on her neck area that appeared to be consistent with being grabbed and squeezed by the neck.” Schultz then interviewed Lubich, who denied touching her again. Lubich later admitted to grabbing the victim.
AMERY FREE PRESS: Amery Mayor Harvey Stower died Tuesday morning September 29 at Regions Hospital in St. Paul. He had been a patient at the hospital after suffering a heart attack on Friday. Stower, and ordained Methodist minister, had a varied career, including teaching English, serving as a State Representative in the Wisconsin Legislature and as an assistant to the Wisconsin Secretary of Veteran’s Affairs. One of Stower’s crowning legislative achievements was securing funding for the Polk County Information Center in St. Croix Falls.
TRIBUNE PRESS REPORTER (GLENWOOD CITY): The Dunn County shooting range in Boyceville run by the Northwest Rod and gun Club is finishing up some structural components to insure top-notch safety to users and the surrounding community. While the range has been around for more than 30 years, safety issues cropped up in 2006 when housing was developed directly behind the range. Projectiles have been found over the hill and there was a fear of potential injury coming from a stray bullet. At this time the range had no supervision, few structural safety features and anyone could come at any time, said long-time active club member Mark Smith. Even so, only one minor injury has occurred and it wasn’t due to mishandling a firearm. The first plan of attack was having range supervisors present during the hours of operation and having a gate to prevent access after the hours of operation. Supervisors must be certified annually, said Bauder. Currently the club has approximately 50 certified supervisors. The next step was keeping projectiles from going over the hill. Physical barriers have been put in place on the rifle range to prevent bullets from going over the hill. The new baffles were made possible with a state grant from County Conservation Aids with the county also matching those funds. All the fill of the baffles is from recycled material coming from Mattison Construction out of Knapp. This would have all ended up in a landfill, said Bauder. Also helping out, Dunn Energy brought in the poles, drilled the holes and set them. While the baffles aren’t aesthetically pleasing, they fit the bill.
RIVER FALLS JOURNAL: The Journal’s front page story last week, “Who’s the mystery owner?” struck pay dirt. A 58-year-old town of River Falls man called police and accurately described the engraved wedding rings that he and his wife wore only to church, plus other mostly jewelry heirlooms, such as necklaces and watches, that belonged to his parents. The collection had gathered dust in the police evidence room until investigator John Wilson decided to put out a public plea. Wilson said the rural River Falls man’s house was burglarized in April 2006. The Pierce County Sheriff’s Department took the complaint. The case remained unsolved. Wilson described the man’s reaction to his recovered keepsake property as “choked up, shaken and excited,” adding that, “He had pretty much given up hope that they’d ever be found.” Wilson is now working with sheriff’s investigators on possible criminal charges against a local River Falls man. The suspect claimed the items were given to him by a female hitchhiker he picked up and later dropped off at a Hudson motel. Wilson said last week’s Journal story generated a half-dozen calls from people claiming they lost jewelry in the past from a theft or burglary.
