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Here are a selection of brief news items from this week's paper edition, and possibly a few news briefs that didn't make it in the paper.

Holmen man makes top five in bass event

The bass tournament season got off to a pretty good start last weekend for Holmen’s Jeff Benson.

Benson caught five bass weighing 18 pounds, 2 ounces, to take fourth place in the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Great Lakes Division tournament Saturday on the Mississippi. His efforts netted him $1,007.

Dan McGarry of Tomah was the big winner with a five-bass catch weighing 19 pounds, 10 ounces. The victory earned McGarry $3,667 plus a $647 Ranger contingency bonus and placed him one step closer to qualifying for the Kentucky and Barkley Lakes Regional Championship next October in Gilbertsville, Ky., where he could ultimately win a new 198VX Ranger boat and a Chevy truck.

McGarry caught his bass fishing stumps with a jig.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Jason Slagstad of Sarona, Wis. (five bass, 18-14, $2,157); Jesse Wolfe of Nelson, Wis. (five bass, 18-11, $1,439); Jeff Benson of Holmen, Wis. (five bass, 18-02, $1,007) and Brian Christianson of La Crosse (five bass, 18-01, $863).

James Klass of Slinger, Wis., took home the Boater Division Snickers Big Bass award, earning $610 for a 5-pound, 5-ounce bass he caught on a spinnerbait.

Letter carriers food drive is Saturday

Postal workers from Local Branch 59 will pick up nonperishable food items to be delivered to local food pantries during this weekend’s 15th annual Letter Carriers Food Drive.

Letter carriers will leave bags at homes this week, and people can leave the bags filled with nonperishable food near their mailboxes Saturday.

More than 87,000 pounds of food was collected last year, and went to The Salvation Army, New Horizons, Onalaska Food Basket, West Salem Care and Share, Prince of Peace Church in La Crescent, Minn., WAFER and other pantries.

Sponsors are the U.S. Postal Service, the United Way, the AFL-CIO and Campbell’s Soup.

Genealogy group plans cemetery session

The La Crosse Area Genealogical Society will meet Tuesday, May 27, from 4 to 8 p.m. at Oak Grove Cemetery, 1407 La Crosse St.

This will be a working session — taking digital photographs, verifying information from the stones and cleaning gravestones. Participants should bring a bag lunch, digital camera, clipboard for writing on and a kneeling pad.

Any help will be appreciated. Call 782-6277 for more information.

Holmen Area Foundation plans annual golf event

Golfers interested in playing for a good cause are invited to participate in the eighth annual 18 Holes for Holmen golf outing planned for Wednesday, June 11, starting at 12:30 p.m. at Drugan’s Castle Mound Country Club north of Holmen.

The event is sponsored by the Holmen Area Foundation and the Holmen High School activities department, which will share the proceeds. Other major sponsors include Firefighters Credit Union and HSR Associates Inc.

The Holmen Area Foundation is a tax-exempt public charity primarily supporting education along with scientific, literary, recreational, artistic and civic efforts in the Holmen community.

The four-person scramble will feature a shotgun start, with hole prizes in addition to the $5,000 cash prize for a hole-in-one. A silent auction also is planned.

Cost per player is $60, of which $30 is tax deductible. Flyers with more information about the event are available at area businesses and at Holmen schools.

Registration deadline is May 23. To sign up or to arrange for a flyer to be sent, call the high school activities office at 526-9208.

Chickencue to aid Northern Hills PTO

Northern Hills Elementary in Onalaska will host a chickencue in the Sam’s Club parking lot in Onalaska from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, May 10.

The meal, prepared by Premier Catering, includes a half chicken, potato salad, baked beans and a dinner roll. Tickets are $7 in advance and can be purchased from any Northern Hills family or by calling the school at 783-4542. Walk-up tickets will be $7.50 the day of the event.

Proceeds from the event will support the school’s Parent-Teacher Organization.

Track boosters plan chickencue May 15

The Onalaska Track and Field Booster Club will host a chickencue from 2:30 to 7 p.m. Thursday, May 15, in the Onalaska High School parking lot.

The meal, prepared by Premier Catering, includes a half chicken, potato salad, baked beans and a dinner roll. Tickets are $7.50 in advance and can be purchased by calling 797-6285. Walk-up tickets will be $8 the day of the event.

Auxiliary seeks dollars for poppies

The Onalaska American Legion Auxiliary is again conducting its Dollar a Poppy Club program, which was started in 1976.

People donating $1 for a poppy by May 28 will have their names posted on the Dollar a Poppy Club poster on display in the Legion clubrooms.

Donations can be sent to Onalaska American Legion Auxiliary, P.O. Box 22, Onalaska, WI 54650, with checks made payable to Onalaska Legion Auxiliary — Unit 336.

HHS Class of 1978 seeks classmates

The Holmen High School Class of 1978 reunion committee is looking for the following classmates: Lynn Sobota, Donna Nichols, Scott Johnson, Rhonda Olsen, Tom Deters, Rose Leisgang, Tony Seever, Paul Christianson, Marlene Kirchner, Steinn Bjornsson, Keith Myren, Tom Deters, Paul Solberg, Kim Morehouse, Cathy Taylor, Laura Vinson, George McCarthy, Bonnie Bay, Cheryl (Mikels) Weigand and Russ Jerome.

People with contact information for these classmates should call Terry Hegenbart at (608) 498-3338.

Holland Sand Prairie group meets May 12

A meeting of the Friends of the Holland Sand Prairie will be held at 7 p.m. Monday, May 12, at Holland Town Hall. All are welcome.

Highway V road work begins May 12

The La Crosse County Highway Department will begin reconstruction work Monday, May 12, on Highway V north of Holmen.

Reconstruction, which will involve removing existing pavement and putting on new pavement, will run from Highway DH to Highway TT. Holmen’s water and sewer lines also will be updated as part of the project.

Minor delays can be expected. The highway will remain open to traffic, with flag people directing traffic during construction hours.

The project is expected to be completed by the end of June.

Onalaska's Main Street torn up

Construction began May 6 on the 900 block of Main Street in Onalaska, with restricted traffic flow expected for two weeks while Harry Viner Inc. installs new water and sanitary sewer mains. The use of an alternate route is encouraged.

CD features river stories, memories

Stories of life on the modern-day Mississippi River flow off a new CD available from UW-La Crosse.

Eighteen La Crosse-area residents share their river tales in the two-disc CD package, “First Person Wisconsin: Mississippi Memories II.” Their stories were first told during 13 programs airing on Wisconsin Public Radio station WLSU in 2006.

Among those interviewed were a group of Longfellow Middle School teachers, musician Calvin Mitchell, birder Fred Lesher and retired WLSU radio station general manager Jim Conway. UW-La Crosse history Professor Charles Lee captured the stories as part of UW-L’s Oral History Project.

The double CD package is available for $17.77. Order by credit card by contacting Paul Beck, UW-L Special Collections, at 785-8511. Or send a check payable to UW-La Crosse to: UW-L Oral History Program, 325 Wimberly Hall, 1725 State St., La Crosse WI 54601.

Loggers to host kids safety day May 10

The Safe Kids Campaign will team up with the La Crosse Loggers and La Crosse Area Sports Commission for “Slide Into Safety With the Loggers.”

Children, from pre-school to teenagers, along with parents are invited to attend this free outdoor active experience at the Copeland Park ballpark, which will be held from 4 to 8:30 p.m. Saturday, May 10.

“At the first annual Slide into Safety with the Loggers, we will be offering fun and interactive activities that focus on risks associated with summer hazards,” said Kim Lombard, coordinator for La Crosse Region Safe Kids and trauma and injury prevention specialist at Gundersen Lutheran. “Our goal is to provide children with the knowledge they need to make good choices and to encourage personal responsibility for staying safe."

Families will be asked to check in at the gate. From there, children and parents will be escorted through 10 fun safety challenges. The challenges will focus on several different outdoor activities including boating, car, ATV, bike, sports, fire, hiking and camping safety and more.

After the children have completed all 10 events, they will be recognized as a “Slide Into Safety Champion” and receive a medal for their efforts. They’ll also be registered for prizes.

Nationwide, 2.7 million accidental injuries to children result in emergency room visits in the summer months. “The La Crosse Coulee Region Safe Kids is committed to preventing and reducing accidental injuries in children.” Lombard said.

Families can also take part in other activities at the ballpark, including Big E inflatables, archery, playing Wii games on a big screen television and, of course, baseball. Families will also have the opportunity to tour booths that promote activities for children to participate in during the summer months.

At 7 p.m., the booths will shut down, but families can gather along the outfield as prizes and an outdoor movie will be offered to wrap up the evening.

Causeway Interfaith holds paint collection

Causeway Interfaith is hosting a two-day event during which the organization will pick up gallon, pint or quart paint cans or stain cans from homes in La Crosse County and dispose of them at the county’s hazardous materials center.

The two-day event occurs Tuesday, May 13, and Thursday, May 15. Any resident of La Crosse, Onalaska, Holmen or West Salem can call Causeway and arrange to have their old paint picked up.

Causeway is asking for $1 donation per can. Only paint products will be allowed and no five-gallon buckets will be accepted.

The proceeds of the paint drive-away will go to Causeway, which provides services to the elderly and people with disabilities to help them retain their independence.

For more information, call Causeway at 775-9999.

Fort McCoy plans open house May 17

Fort McCoy will host an Armed Forces Day open house from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 17. Fort McCoy's Commemorative Area on the 800 block of the installation, will serve as the hub for open house activities.

Many family oriented activities are planned for the day, which is free and open to the public.

Events will include bus tours of the installation, personalized dog tags, camouflage face painting, a sand bag filling station and an obstacle course.

Displays of military equipment and clothing and military re-enactors will be on site.

The Equipment Park, Commemorative Area Buildings and History Center will be open throughout the day. The Equipment Park features more than 50 pieces of equipment representative of the equipment used throughout McCoy's history. The Commemorative Buildings highlight the World War II era.

Items on display at the History Center include artifacts and photographs depicting the installation's history from 1909 to the present day.

Building 905 and the area around it will feature various displays. An Information Area will be located at the main entrance of building 905. One-hour installation bus tours will depart from the east side of the building throughout the day.

Refreshments will be available for purchase.

Visitors must use Gate 15 (Tomah gate) to access open house grounds from off post.

The gates are manned by security personnel, and adult visitors must show photo identification upon entering.

For more information, call (608) 388-2407.

County fair entries sought

The La Crosse County Agricultural Society is seeking entries for the 2008 La Crosse Interstate Fair, which will be held July 16-20 at the fairgrounds in West Salem.

The 2008 Exhibitor Guide and Premium List, including entry forms, are now available at the La Crosse County University Extension office located in the County Administrative Center, 400 Fourth St. N., Room 3140, La Crosse, as well as the La Crosse Area Chamber of Commerce, and many financial institutions around the county.

The Premium Books contain lists of possible entries for both junior fair exhibitors in 4-H, FFA, or other youth organizations and open class departments, which are open to any Wisconsin resident. Entry fees are $2 per person for junior fair exhibitors and $3 per person for open class exhibitors.

Junior fair exhibitors may exhibit in more than 25 departments including dairy, beef, horse and other livestock, flowers, gardening, natural science, arts and crafts, photography, woodworking and many others. Junior exhibitors must be members of a La Crosse County based 4-H, FFA or other youth organization with adult leadership and with an educational program approved by the local fair board.

Open class departments are open to any Wisconsin resident wishing to enter. Open class exhibitors may exhibit in such departments as dairy, beef, horses, flowers and vegetables, bees and honey and many more.

For more information, call the county Extension office at 785-9593. All entries for the 2008 fair must be submitted to the Extension office by 5 p.m. June 5.

Dance teams plan fundraiser at mall

Valley View Mall, Ellickson Studio, Children’s Miracle Network and the West Salem, Onalaska, Logan, Central and Aquinas dance teams are teaming up for a fundraiser for CMN and the dance teams’ athletic funds.

From May 1-31, Valley View Mall will display dance team portraits taken by Ellickson Studio in Center Court. Anyone may vote for their favorite dance team with a minimum donation of $1.

Each dollar donated is considered as one vote for that team. To vote, individuals can obtain specially marked envelopes from the dance team members and return the envelopes to them, or visit Valley View Mall and use the specially marked envelopes by the display and deposit them in containers at the following locations: Hollister Co., Aeropostale, The Buckle and Valley View Mall customer service center.

All proceeds donated will benefit the CMN and the competing dance teams’ athletic funds.

For more about the event, visit www.myvalleyview.com.

Bike rodeo set May 10 at Holmen Square

Area kids are invited to the Z93 Bike Rodeo from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, May 10, at Holmen Square.

The free event will feature a bike safety road course, gifts for the kids and free bicycle helmets for those who do not have a helmet, courtesy of Altra Federal Credit Union, Features Sports Bar and Grill in Holmen, Gundersen Lutheran Express Care, and River Trail Cycles.

Holmen police officers and firefighters also will be on hand to meet with kids, and free bike safety checks will be offered.

Holmen trap shoot to benefit Riverfront

Riverfront is organizing a trap shoot at the Gunslick Trap Club in Holmen.

The shoot will be held Sunday, May 18. On- site registration begins at 9 a.m. and activities run through 5 p.m. All people who enjoy trap shooting are invited to attend; no pre-registration is required.

For $25, participants receive 100 targets. The targets will be launched from a house 16 feet away from the shooting line. Participants should bring their own guns and shells.

Also available will be hamburgers and brats on the grill, pulltabs, and a chance to win a bow from Mathews Bow.

Gunslick Trap Club is located on 96767 Briggs Road in Holmen. For more information, call the Riverfront Foundation at 784-9450 or committee chair Jerry Den Boer at 792-5133.

Golf outing to aid OHS football, emergency food shelf

The Onalaska High School football program and the West Avenue Food Emergency Resource will benefit from Mutual of Omaha’s 2008 charity golf outing, to be held Monday May 12, at Cedar Creek Golf Course.

For the past three years, the event has raised $7,500 to $8,000 annually for community causes.

“The charitable golf tournament not only raises money to purchase food for WAFER, but brings a public awareness for the need to help feed the hungry of our community,” said Lee Bluske, WAFER’s treasurer and a Mutual of Omaha associate. “WAFER can purchase, from a nonprofit food recovery organization, approximately 5,000 pounds of food for every $1,000 of donations. This is a great way to enjoy the game of golf and give back to the community.”

Cost is $100 per golfer, which includes the scramble with cart, social hour, prime rib dinner, awards and door prizes. Consider

Hole sponsorships are available for $250 to $1,000, and businesses also could support the event by donating door prizes.

For more information, to register as a golfer or hole sponsor or to donate door prizes, call Eric Guth at 782-5293.

Medics to reward kids for bike safety

Tri-State Ambulance, Rudy’s Drive-In in La Crosse, The Frosty Mug in Holmen and the Dairy Queen in Onalaska are teaming up for a new bicycle helmet safety program called “Cool Kids — Cool Treats.”

When Tri-State Ambulance personnel observe a child 15 years old or younger wearing a helmet while riding a bicycle in public, the kids will be given a “ticket” entitling them to a free ice cream at The Frosty Mug or Dairy Queen or a root beer float at Rudy’s Drive-In when accompanied by an adult. The program runs through Aug. 31.

“Our hope is to raise helmet safety awareness,” said Matt Zavadsky, director of Tri-State Ambulance. “The goal is simple. Keep children out of the emergency room and provide some cool treats as incentive.”

Holmen Legion Auxiliary plans May 10 plant sale

The Holmen American Legion Auxiliary will hold a Mothers Day plant sale from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, May 10.

Hanging baskets, planters, geraniums, bedding and vegetable plants will be available. The sale will be in the parking lot on Main Street directly behind the Legion.

In case of rain, it will be held at the shelter in Halfway Creek Park (behind the Legion).

Onalaska Lions hold Candy Days

The Onalaska Lions Club will hold its annual Candy Days on May 9-10 to raise money for local projects and the Wisconsin Lions Foundation. Members of the Onalaska Lions Club will hand out rolls of Lion Mints at the Festival Foods and Wal-Mart locations in hopes of receiving donations.

The Lions will also collect used eye glasses at the Onalaska Wal-Mart and other locations to disperse to needy persons in third-world countries.

Onalaska plant sale planned for May 17

A plant sale sponsored by the Natural Arts Garden Club will be held on Saturday, May 17, starting at 8 a.m. in the Crosseroads Center parking lot on Highway 16 in Onalaska, across from Valley View Mall. Perennials and many colorful annuals will be on sale.

Legion seeks funds for troop phones

Last September, The Wisconsin American Legion presented satellite phones to Golf Company, 2nd Battalion, 24th Marines Reserve Unit out of Madison and Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 24th Marines Reserve Unit out of Milwaukee. Both units are currently deployed in Iraq.

The Legion purchased enough time in September to charge each phone with 5,000 minutes. Recently, the Legion received word that Fox Company had exhausted their minutes and that Golf Company is running low.

In order to recharge the phones with additional minutes, help is needed. The Wisconsin American Legion needs to raise $50,000 to provide deployed Wisconsin Reserve and Guard units with phones and sufficient calling minutes to allow all of their members to call home to Wisconsin.

To contribute to the “Wisconsin American Legion Troop and Family Support Funds,” send checks to The Wisconsin American Legion Troop and Family Support Fund, P.O. Box 1000, Portage, WI 53901. Donations are also accepted by credit card online at www.wilegion.org/howcanyouhelp.

Challenge Academy taking applications

The Challenge Academy, a tuition-free program for 16- to 18-year-old “at-risk” youths is now accepting applications for its next class of cadets, who will start July 25.

Located at Fort McCoy, the academy offers high school dropouts or habitual truants a chance to earn a high school equivalency diploma, learn essential job and life-coping skills and develop the strength of character to become responsible citizens.

Cadets spend 22 weeks at Fort McCoy, learning in a highly structured environment. After returning to their home communities, they work with local mentors for another year to pursue the goals they have set for themselves.

Would-be cadets must apply voluntarily, must have dropped out of school or be at least a year behind in credits and must not have been convicted of a felony.

More information is available from the academy’s admissions department at (608) 269-4605 or www.challengeacademy.org.

Free child lead screenings offered

As part of Project LEAD, the EPA grant received by the La Crosse County Health Department in October 2007, free blood lead screening will be available the last Friday of each month from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. Parents should call 785-9865 to reserve a time and come to the La Crosse County Health Department, 2nd Floor of the Health and Human Services Building, 300 4th Street La Crosse.

As part of Project LEAD, the Nutrition Services Department which houses the WIC Program, will offer the free blood lead testing. The test also is available at other times through public health nursing by making an appointment at 785-9723.

Children younger than 6 who have never been screened are encouraged to have a blood lead test done, and all children younger than 2 who live in a home or spend time in a home built before 1978, should be tested.

The testing is done with a finger prick sample of blood. Children whose screening results come back greater than 10 ug/dl are recommended to have a confirmatory blood draw done through their doctor’s office. There is no cost for the blood lead screening test.

Project LEAD is working with agencies that serve families with children younger than 6 to increase awareness and screening for lead poisoning, which continues to be a risk to children residing in homes built prior to 1978.

Outreach is being conducted to educate home owners, contractors and landlords of the need to remodel with regard to disturbing lead paint which was very likely to be used on surfaces painted in the 1970s and earlier.

For more information, call the La Crosse County Health Department at 785-9872.

Low-income phone discounts offered

Low-income consumers may qualify for assistance programs that discount initial telephone installation and basic monthly service, according to a recent announcement from CenturyTel.

The assistance programs, known as Link-Up and Lifeline, are available to qualifying consumers in every U.S. state (territory and commonwealth). Link-Up helps these consumers pay the initial costs of getting telephone service. Lifeline provides certain discounts on monthly service for qualified subscribers.

Qualifications for participation vary by state. States with their own programs have their own criteria. In states that rely solely on the federal program, the subscriber must participate in one of the following programs: Medicaid, food stamps, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Federal Public Housing Assistance or the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), Head Start, the National School Lunch Program’s Free Lunch Program, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) or if the household annual gross income is at or below 135 percent of the federal poverty level.

The amount of the discounts also varies by state. This federal Link-Up program offsets one-half of the initial hook-up fee, up to $30, for qualified households.

People living in a CenturyTel service area should call 800-201-4099 or log onto www.centurytel.com/lifeline to inquire about eligibility.

County offers low-cost radon test kits

The La Crosse County Health Department once again is offering radon test kits to anyone interested in checking the radon level in their home.

Radon test kits can be purchased for $5 at the following locations:

La Crosse County Health Department, 300 Fourth St. N., La Crosse

Hazel Brown Leicht Memorial Library, 201 Neshonoc Road, West Salem

Onalaska Public Library, 741 Oak Ave. S.

Radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers and kills 20,000 people every year. For more information about radon, call 888-low-radon or visit www.lowradon.org.

Franciscan Skemp hosts moms group

Franciscan Skemp Healthcare is offering new moms and babies a chance to find support, friendship and new information through a new weekly program called New Mom and Baby Group.

New moms can listen to speakers and find advice for the new chapter in their lives. The group meets at two locations and is free for everyone.

On Wednesdays, the group program meets from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the Franciscan Skemp Onalaska Clinic, 191 Theater Road, in the lower level conference room

On Thursdays, the program meets from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the Franciscan Skemp Family Health Clinic in the Sally Olson Conference Room, 815 S. 10th St., La Crosse.

For more information, call (608) 392-4172.

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