Brystol Ryann Shearer, daughter of Rochelle and James Shearer of
Hammond, was the first baby born at Baldwin Area Medical Center in 2009.Brystol was born Friday, January 2 at 8:12 p.m. She was six pounds, 15.5 oz. and 21 inches long. The attending physician was Dr. Stoeckeler. Brystol's parents were presented with a $50 savings bond by the Baldwin Area Medical Center Auxiliary. Brystol has two sisters, Taylor, six and one-half, and Hayden, three, who was the first baby born at BAMC in 2006.
"Do-it-yourself" service bay offered
When Mike Brandenburg, owner of The Muffler Shop in Baldwin and two other locations, bought Van's Service Station on Main Street next to The Muffler Shop in 2004, he wasn't sure what he would do with it. The building sat empty for a couple of years. Mike said to change the use of the building would have required code updates. But last summer he said he decided to try a use for the building on a trial basis.
"We opened it up as a rental bay," said Mike, "because in the shop we hear a lot of people say 'I wish I had a place to do some mechanical work myself.' And now with the economy being the way it is, handy people can work on their own vehicles or even a snowmobile."
The little shop offers a heated space along with a hoist. Mike said there are a few tools that he provides and an air compressor. "Hopefully, people will bring their own tools but we have the basics. And while people are working, if they have a question they can come over [to The Muffler Shop] and tax our knowledge."
Mike said the idea for a rent-a-bay came from his days in the service when he was stationed at a base in Texas. "So instead of leaving the building vacant, I decided to try this." Mike said his son Dan did all the work to renovate the small station and ready it for rent. "Dan did all the work and was in charge of renovation. I gave him the idea and said go with it."
Hoist operation will be done by personnel from The Muffler Shop, Mike said.
Register of Deeds office offers free real estate fraud alert service
The St. Croix County Register of Deeds, Kathleen Walsh, is pleased
to announce that her office has released a free on-line automated service that will allow St. Croix County property owners to have their name monitored within the Register of Deeds Office in order to track possible fraudulent activity. Participants will be notified only when the exact name they have submitted to Property Fraud Alert›(PFA) is listed as a Grantor or Grantee on a document recorded in the Register of Deeds Office. Subscribers will be told what type of document has been recorded in the Register of Deeds Office. Walsh says that if property owners are notified, they may call the Register of Deeds office for more information about the document. PFA will not prevent fraud from happening; however, it provides an early warning system that will allow property owners to take appropriate action should they believe fraudulent activity has occurred with their property.
St. Croix County is the fourth county in Wisconsin to offer this service. Milwaukee, Dane and Winnebago counties in Wisconsin in addition to several counties in other states are also offering this service.
Fidlar Technologies, based in Rock Island, Ill. developed the property fraud alert system last year as the FBI focused on mortgage fraud as a fast growing crime. The FBI ranks Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, California and Florida in the top 10 fraud hot spots. To date there has not been any fraudulent activity reported in Wisconsin. Walsh says that being proactive may reduce the possibility of fraud occurring in this county. To learn more about PFA and to sign up, visit the website: www.propertyfraudalert.com. Read Frequently Asked Questions before signing
up.
What's the Holdup?
Mark your calendars for Sunday and Monday, January 11 and 12. B-W's fourth hour drama class is going to be strutting their stuff with an original production entitled "What's the Holdup" Come to the Baldwin-Woodville High School PAC at 2:00 on January 11 or 7:00 on January 12 to partake in theater fun. "What's the Holdup?" directed by Seth Kersten, is a tale of a down-on-her-luck woman (Heather Aune) struggling just to make ends meet in absurd and hilarious world. The audience follows as she battles her burdensome landlady (Nancy Lee), meets a man with a secret (Seth Kersten) and a blind man (Dan Ramberg), and confides in an ostentatious cashier (Tana Mabis). Kersten and Ramberg's original creation will make you laugh and make you cry up until its shocking conclusion. Tickets are available at the door. The drama class will be putting on several plays on these two days.
From the Exchanges
Interesting News Items from
Surrounding Communities
BURNETT COUNTY SENTINEL (GRANTSBURG): Many church-goers were just settling in for perhaps the most blessed Christian event of the year last Wednesday evening when the power went out for a little more than two hours around the Grantsburg area. "We had just sat down for church when the lights went out," one Immaculate Conception Catholic Church parishioner said. "The members of the choir all lit candles and sang a capella - it was just beautiful," she continued. Officials at Northwestern Wisconsin Electric said about 7,000 customers were without power from just after 5 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. on Christmas Eve. "There was a fault at the substation behind the diesel plant here in Grantsburg," John Dahlberg reported. "The breaker at Rock Creek 'saw' the fault and opened the circuit, causing the outage."
MONDOVI HERALD NEWS: Strokes are medical conditions not usually associated with youth. But 13-year-old Tanner Franson of Mondovi is the exception. He recently experienced a bleed in his brain caused by a rare condition known as an arteriovenous malformation (AVM). An AVM is a congenital defect meaning that it is present at birth. With this defect, arteries and veins are not connected by capillaries (very fine blood vessels), but are connected directly to one another forming a tangle of blood vessels. The lack of capillaries allows blood to flow more rapidly under a higher pressure than the vessels are designed to handle. The vessels may then hemorrhage, or bleed, which can cause stroke, paralysis, the loss of speech, memory of vision, or even death. This rare condition sent Tanner to the hospital on December 7 when doctors performed surgery to remove his tangle of blood vessels that had begun to bleed. Tanner has now been recovering from surgery at Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire. With continued daily therapy, Tanner is expected to make a complete recovery.
TRIBUNE PRESS REPORTER: After allegations of shortchanging customers on their fuel, John Rassbach of Rassbach Oil was officially charged December 17 with one count of class H felony forgery and four counts of class A misdemeanor theft of movable property. The allegations come after an investigation and surveillance in August and September involving the St.
Croix County Sheriff's Department, the state Division of Weights and Measurers and several area farmers. The case has been delayed after Judge Howard Cameron recused himself. Judge Scott Needham will now be presiding over the case with Rassbach's initial appearance on January 9. The felony H count of forgery has a penalty of fines up to $10,000 and/or imprisonment up to six years. For each of the misdemeanor A counts, the fine is up to
$10,000 and/or up to nine months imprisonment.
CENTRAL ST. CROIX NEWS (HAMMOND): The lights were on and the door unlocked at the Hammond Hotel Monday evening, but those who ventured inside realized quickly the bar and restaurant were not open for business - in fact, it was being remodeled for its "Grand Reopening" on New Year's Eve under new ownership and management. "I hope as many people come in after we're open," co-owner Cedric Ellingson said after turning away a family with young children but not before extending an offer: "They could come in and paint if they want. That's cool." While Ellingson was painting his partner, Don Fowell, with whom he also owns Bo's 'N Mine in River Falls, was helping kitchen manager Matt Minter, a Le Cordon Bleu graduate and chef at both corporate and non-corporate restaurants, get his new digs arranged. "We're adding a charbroilier so we can get those steaks and burgers done to
perfection," Fowell said.
RIVER FALLS JOURNAL: A frozen copper pipe at the high school burst overnight Sunday and left standing water on an area of the first floor by the lockers and in about ten rooms, especially those where math is taught. Superintendent Tom Westerhaus was on the scene Monday as the cleanup effort began. This included running fans and dehumidifiers, pulling up carpeting and moving furniture out of classrooms. Westerhaus said the discovery was made just before 6 a.m. by a janitor coming to work. As of 1 p.m. Monday Westerhaus said it was too early to give a damage estimate. The school district's insurance company. School in River Falls is closed until Monday, January 5 because of the holidays. The pipe that cracked in two places was
in the wall of a math classroom.
The little shop offers a heated space along with a hoist. Mike said there are a few tools that he provides and an air compressor. "Hopefully, people will bring their own tools but we have the basics. And while people are working, if they have a question they can come over [to The Muffler Shop] and tax our knowledge."
Mike said the idea for a rent-a-bay came from his days in the service when he was stationed at a base in Texas. "So instead of leaving the building vacant, I decided to try this." Mike said his son Dan did all the work to renovate the small station and ready it for rent. "Dan did all the work and was in charge of renovation. I gave him the idea and said go with it."
Hoist operation will be done by personnel from The Muffler Shop, Mike said.
Register of Deeds office offers free real estate fraud alert service
The St. Croix County Register of Deeds, Kathleen Walsh, is pleased
to announce that her office has released a free on-line automated service that will allow St. Croix County property owners to have their name monitored within the Register of Deeds Office in order to track possible fraudulent activity. Participants will be notified only when the exact name they have submitted to Property Fraud Alert›(PFA) is listed as a Grantor or Grantee on a document recorded in the Register of Deeds Office. Subscribers will be told what type of document has been recorded in the Register of Deeds Office. Walsh says that if property owners are notified, they may call the Register of Deeds office for more information about the document. PFA will not prevent fraud from happening; however, it provides an early warning system that will allow property owners to take appropriate action should they believe fraudulent activity has occurred with their property.
St. Croix County is the fourth county in Wisconsin to offer this service. Milwaukee, Dane and Winnebago counties in Wisconsin in addition to several counties in other states are also offering this service.
Fidlar Technologies, based in Rock Island, Ill. developed the property fraud alert system last year as the FBI focused on mortgage fraud as a fast growing crime. The FBI ranks Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, California and Florida in the top 10 fraud hot spots. To date there has not been any fraudulent activity reported in Wisconsin. Walsh says that being proactive may reduce the possibility of fraud occurring in this county. To learn more about PFA and to sign up, visit the website: www.propertyfraudalert.com. Read Frequently Asked Questions before signing
up.
What's the Holdup?
Mark your calendars for Sunday and Monday, January 11 and 12. B-W's fourth hour drama class is going to be strutting their stuff with an original production entitled "What's the Holdup" Come to the Baldwin-Woodville High School PAC at 2:00 on January 11 or 7:00 on January 12 to partake in theater fun. "What's the Holdup?" directed by Seth Kersten, is a tale of a down-on-her-luck woman (Heather Aune) struggling just to make ends meet in absurd and hilarious world. The audience follows as she battles her burdensome landlady (Nancy Lee), meets a man with a secret (Seth Kersten) and a blind man (Dan Ramberg), and confides in an ostentatious cashier (Tana Mabis). Kersten and Ramberg's original creation will make you laugh and make you cry up until its shocking conclusion. Tickets are available at the door. The drama class will be putting on several plays on these two days.
From the Exchanges
Interesting News Items from
Surrounding Communities
BURNETT COUNTY SENTINEL (GRANTSBURG): Many church-goers were just settling in for perhaps the most blessed Christian event of the year last Wednesday evening when the power went out for a little more than two hours around the Grantsburg area. "We had just sat down for church when the lights went out," one Immaculate Conception Catholic Church parishioner said. "The members of the choir all lit candles and sang a capella - it was just beautiful," she continued. Officials at Northwestern Wisconsin Electric said about 7,000 customers were without power from just after 5 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. on Christmas Eve. "There was a fault at the substation behind the diesel plant here in Grantsburg," John Dahlberg reported. "The breaker at Rock Creek 'saw' the fault and opened the circuit, causing the outage."
MONDOVI HERALD NEWS: Strokes are medical conditions not usually associated with youth. But 13-year-old Tanner Franson of Mondovi is the exception. He recently experienced a bleed in his brain caused by a rare condition known as an arteriovenous malformation (AVM). An AVM is a congenital defect meaning that it is present at birth. With this defect, arteries and veins are not connected by capillaries (very fine blood vessels), but are connected directly to one another forming a tangle of blood vessels. The lack of capillaries allows blood to flow more rapidly under a higher pressure than the vessels are designed to handle. The vessels may then hemorrhage, or bleed, which can cause stroke, paralysis, the loss of speech, memory of vision, or even death. This rare condition sent Tanner to the hospital on December 7 when doctors performed surgery to remove his tangle of blood vessels that had begun to bleed. Tanner has now been recovering from surgery at Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire. With continued daily therapy, Tanner is expected to make a complete recovery.
TRIBUNE PRESS REPORTER: After allegations of shortchanging customers on their fuel, John Rassbach of Rassbach Oil was officially charged December 17 with one count of class H felony forgery and four counts of class A misdemeanor theft of movable property. The allegations come after an investigation and surveillance in August and September involving the St.
Croix County Sheriff's Department, the state Division of Weights and Measurers and several area farmers. The case has been delayed after Judge Howard Cameron recused himself. Judge Scott Needham will now be presiding over the case with Rassbach's initial appearance on January 9. The felony H count of forgery has a penalty of fines up to $10,000 and/or imprisonment up to six years. For each of the misdemeanor A counts, the fine is up to
$10,000 and/or up to nine months imprisonment.
CENTRAL ST. CROIX NEWS (HAMMOND): The lights were on and the door unlocked at the Hammond Hotel Monday evening, but those who ventured inside realized quickly the bar and restaurant were not open for business - in fact, it was being remodeled for its "Grand Reopening" on New Year's Eve under new ownership and management. "I hope as many people come in after we're open," co-owner Cedric Ellingson said after turning away a family with young children but not before extending an offer: "They could come in and paint if they want. That's cool." While Ellingson was painting his partner, Don Fowell, with whom he also owns Bo's 'N Mine in River Falls, was helping kitchen manager Matt Minter, a Le Cordon Bleu graduate and chef at both corporate and non-corporate restaurants, get his new digs arranged. "We're adding a charbroilier so we can get those steaks and burgers done to
perfection," Fowell said.
RIVER FALLS JOURNAL: A frozen copper pipe at the high school burst overnight Sunday and left standing water on an area of the first floor by the lockers and in about ten rooms, especially those where math is taught. Superintendent Tom Westerhaus was on the scene Monday as the cleanup effort began. This included running fans and dehumidifiers, pulling up carpeting and moving furniture out of classrooms. Westerhaus said the discovery was made just before 6 a.m. by a janitor coming to work. As of 1 p.m. Monday Westerhaus said it was too early to give a damage estimate. The school district's insurance company. School in River Falls is closed until Monday, January 5 because of the holidays. The pipe that cracked in two places was
in the wall of a math classroom.
