The College of Menominee Nation will feature two short plays staged on separate nights at the college’s Keshena campus and the Norbert Hill Center in Oneida.

The production will mark the 11th time CMN has collaborated with the Oneida Nation Arts Program to bring live theater to both the Menominee and Oneida communities.

The first play, “N.A.P.S.: The Native American Paranormal Society,” is set at the Broken Creek bingo hall, where a group of investigators are trying to debunk alleged paranormal activity for their television show. It was written by decorated Assiniboine playwright William S. Yellowrobe Jr. The show questions the wisdom and rationale of those investigating the spirit world.

The second play, “Shinnob Jep,” is set at a humorous game of Jeopardy, where all of the categories tie to Anishinaabe or American Indian culture. It was written by the late Fond du Lac tribal member Jim Northrup, who passed in August. The production attempts to honor his memory and share his humor.

Additionally, the production will feature an original scripted role of a master of ceremonies, who will introduce the plays and entertain the audience during the set changes.

CMN students and community members involved in the productions include the following: Daphne Allery, Melissa Besaw, Jessica Buettner, Moneejon Chevalier, Maria Frechette, Lloyd Frieson, Jamie Funmaker, Tonia Haack, Sabrina Hemken, Dorian LaTender-Lyons, Christa Lyons, Nathaniel Madsen, Debra Mcpherson, Doris Menore, Brian Moreno, Kasey Paiser, Linda Pamonicutt, Elizabeth Rice, AnnMarie Spice, Jordynne Waupekenay and Kayshia Wayka.

Showings both evenings begin at 7:30. Admission is free.

The Dec. 7 production is in the CMN Cultural Learning Center, N172 State Highway 47-55, Keshena. On Dec. 9, the production is in the auditorium of the Norbert Hill Center, N7210 Seminary Road, Oneida.

The show is directed by CMN faculty member Ryan Winn. This is a one-hour production.

A spike in counterfeit bills is being reported, and local law enforcement agencies are warning businesses to take a closer look at the money they’re taking in.

Police records show seven incidents of bogus bills being passed in the past four days in Shawano and Waupaca counties.

Four of those reports were in Clintonville. Two came from Walmart in Shawano, and one from the Highway 22 Shell station in Belle Plaine.

Authorities have not released details on the amounts involved, but police reports indicate that $280 in counterfeit bills were passed in one of the Walmart incidents.
Shawano County detectives are working with Shawano and Clintonville police in the investigation.

Clintonville Police Chief James Beggs declined to comment.

“We’re in the middle of an investigation, and I don’t want to compromise it,” he said.

But the Shawano County Sheriff’s Department posted a Facebook notice about the incidents and said the denominations used were 100’s, 50’s and 20’s.

According to the Shawano Police Department, all of the counterfeit bills that have been recently passed in the area have had the same serial number.

Police Lt. Dan Mauel said all of the recent incidents are related, given the similarities of the bills being passed, though it’s not clear whether the phony money is being passed by individuals intentionally trying to use counterfeit bills or by innocent people who came into possession of it from other sources.

Mauel said authorities have “a couple of leads” being pursued.

If Shawano County sells part of the Mud Lake Wildlife Area, state conservation officials will require the county to locate and purchase comparable property for future conservation purposes.

The state Department of Natural Resources has added “replacement property” as a new obstacle to a deal under consideration to bring business development to Cecil.

Cecil village leaders want the county to sell part of the Mud Lake property so that it can be transformed into commercial development and then annexed into the village.

Conservation advocates oppose selling off part of the wildlife area, which is a popular spot for hunting and other public recreation.

State DNR officials have cautioned county officials that, because Mud Lake was established long ago using state funds for conservation purposes, the county cannot sell part of it without state authorization.

In a Nov. 4 letter to the county, DNR attorney Richard Henneger wrote that a state appraiser had valued the property sought by Cecil at $63,500. The state would require Shawano County to purchase a new conservation site of equal or greater value to replace the lost Mud Lake property.

Henneger noted that county officials might prefer other alternative methods for moving forward with the Mud Lake sale. But, he wrote: “The department’s preferred option is finding and obtaining replacement property of equal value and recreational utility.”

County officials have not yet responded to the DNR’s communication.

Supervisor Gene Hoppe, a member of the county’s public property committee, said he had not heard about the replacement property concept, and he wanted to consider the state’s position further before deciding whether it was acceptable.

Hoppe said the Mud Lake deal is still under review by the county.

“We’ve been talking about it,” he said. “But no hard decision has been made.”

Cecil village leaders approached the county earlier this year with a request to sell part of the wildlife area, which borders state Highway 117 on the southern edge of the village. Cecil representatives said the site was ideal for new commercial development without disrupting the rest of the estimated 320-acre conservation area.

The site under consideration for sale, originally estimated at 15 acres, is reported as 21 acres in the DNR’s latest correspondence with the county.

Cecil officials said they wanted to annex future commercial development into the village, although some county officials have since questioned whether annexation is necessarily part of the deal.

Initially supportive of the idea, county officials later learned that the DNR was asserting veto authority because the county long ago accepted state funding to purchase Mud Lake property on the condition that the site would remain a protected conservation area.

Conservation advocate John Hoeffs said DNR insistence on replacement property could effectively kill any deal. Hoeffs said he doubts the county could find a suitable new site that would meet with the state’s approval.

Hoeffs, chairman of the Shawano County chapter of the Wisconsin Conservation Congress, said the existing Mud Lake area offers good wildlife conservation with convenient public access. He said he could not think of another property in the county with the same sort of characteristics.

“I don’t know of any other place,” he said. “It just isn’t there.”

Shawano Police Department

Nov. 30

Police logged 24 incidents, including the following:

Theft — Police investigated a property theft complaint on River Heights.

Assault — A sexual assault complaint was under investigation.

Arrest — A 22-year-old man was taken into custody at the probation and parole offices, 1340 E. Green Bay St.

Shawano County Sheriff’s Department

Nov. 30

Deputies logged 35 incidents, including the following:

Suspicious — Authorities responded to a suspicious person complaint on Ellms Street in Wittenberg.

Trespass — Authorities responded to a trespassing complaint on Oak Park Road in the town of Wescott.

Juvenile — Authorities responded to a juvenile problem on Hemlock Road in the town of Wittenberg.

Suspicious — Authorities responded to a suspicious vehicle complaint on state Highway 29 in the town of Hartland.

Disturbance — Authorities responded to a disturbance on County Road E in the town of Green Valley.

Disturbance — Authorities responded to a disturbance on Pine Drive in the town of Red Springs.

OWI — A 32-year-old woman was arrested for operating while intoxicated on U.S. Highway 45 in the town of Birnamwood.

Clintonville Police Department

Nov. 30

Police logged 19 incidents, including the following:

Disturbance — Domestic incident reported on Flora Way.

Fraud — Two worthless check complaints received.

Theft — A theft from a vehicle reported was reported on Seventh Street.

Accident — Accident report completed for a two-vehicle property damage accident at Main and 10th streets.

Theft — Juvenile referral completed for a retail theft on South Main Street.

Accident — Accident report completed for a two-vehicle property damage accident at Main and Sixth streets.

Fraud — Counterfeit money reported on West Madison Street.

One teenager was in custody and two other teens are expected to face charges after a drug bust in the city of Marion early Thursday.

Police executed a search warrant just after 2 a.m. in the 700 block of North Main Street after information was received regarding drug activity at the residence, according to a news release.

Methamphetamine, marijuana and drug paraphernalia were seized during the search, police said.

An 18-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of possession of meth, marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

Charges were referred against a 19-year-old man and a 19-year-old woman for possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

The Marion Police Department was assisted by the Clintonville Police Department.

The Shawano Redevelopment Authority got down to serious business Thursday, discussing its first request for RDA assistance after months spent justifying its very existence to a skeptical public.

The RDA held its first meeting in February to organize and to hammer out the boundaries of a redevelopment district, and draft a plan for addressing properties within that district considered to be blighted.

The proposed boundaries and plan were finalized in June, but both were met by opposition from property owners who objected to their properties being called blighted.

It took several more months of educational outreach, hearings and open house meetings to convince property owners that the district was being created as a tool to assist those who want to improve their properties, not as a weapon to be used against them.

The Shawano Common Council approved the redevelopment district in August, after having voted it down in July, and approved the redevelopment plan in October.

The plan includes a list of resources for property owners and other available assistance the RDA can provide, largely through the city’s Tax Incremental Finance districts, or direct people to, such as a variety of federal, state and local grants, loans and financial assistance.

The RDA heard its first request for assistance Thursday from Shawano Auto Sales, which is looking to tear down a blighted building at 945 E. Green Bay St., and re-purpose the property into a display and parking area, according to the RDA application.

The project, which would allow for an expansion of its current operations at 939 E. Green Bay St., would cost $125,000, including the purchase of the property, demolition and prep work, the laying of blacktop and meeting the city’s green space requirements.

Shawano Auto Sales was not requesting that full amount, but whatever assistance the RDA could provide.

The RDA took the proposal under advisement Thursday and was expecting to make a decision later this month.

Also taken under advisement was a proposal to spruce up some of downtown Shawano’s vacant buildings with murals and community-oriented advertisements placed in the windows of vacant storefronts.

One of those posters is already in place in one of the windows of the former Crescent Theater promoting Shawano County barn quilts.

The concept was being offered by a group of people that included downtown business owners and several members of Shawano County Economic Progress, Inc. and the Shawano Country Chamber of Commerce.

The cost of what was being called a window-scape project would be between $2,500 and $3,500.

The RDA district roughly follows the contours of Tax Incremental Finance districts already designated for blight elimination along Main Street from the Wolf River bridge on the north to Wescott Avenue on the south, and along Green Bay Street from Main Street on the west to Rusch Road on the east.

There are 391 properties within the boundaries of the RDA district. Just over half of them are considered blighted or in need of redevelopment.

Felony possession of drug paraphernalia

A Wittenberg man is facing a felony count of possession of drug paraphernalia used to ingest methamphetamine.

Corey S. Resch, 24, could face a maximum of six years in prison and $10,000 fine if convicted.

He is also charged with felony bail jumping, which carries the same possible penalty, as well as misdemeanor counts of possession of drug paraphernalia and failing to provide proper food and drink to an animal.

The charges stem from a tip received by Shawano County sheriff’s deputies that Resch might be manufacturing meth, according to the criminal complaint.

Authorities executed a search warrant on Nov. 15 and found materials and chemicals typically used to manufacture methamphetamine, according to the complaint. They also found a dog chained to a tree with no food or water.

Resch is scheduled for an initial appearance on Dec. 20.

According to court records, Resch also has a pre-trial conference scheduled for Dec. 20 in a separate case on felony charges of possession of meth and drug paraphernalia used to manufacture meth.

Shawano Police Department

Dec. 1

Police logged 23 incidents, including the following:

Suspicious — Police responded to a suspicious person complaint in the 500 block of West Third Street.

Vandalism — Christmas lights were reported vandalized in the 1000 block of South Sawyer Street.

Truancy — Police logged four truancy complaints from Shawano Community High School, 220 County Road B.

Drug Offense — Police investigated a drug complaint in the 400 block of East Green Bay Street.

Shawano County Sheriff’s Department

Dec. 1

Deputies logged 36 incidents, including the following:

Drug Offense — Authorities investigated a drug complaint at the Ho Chunk Casino, N7198 U.S. Highway 45, in the town of Wittenberg.

Disturbance — Authorities responded to a disturbance on Bluebird Road in the town of Birnamwood.

Disturbance — Authorities responded to a disturbance on Birch Street in Tigerton.

Disturbance — Authorities responded to a disturbance on Highway 22 in the town of Green Valley.

Accidents — Authorities logged five deer-related crashes.

Clintonville Police Department

Dec. 1

Police logged nine incidents, including the following:

Disorderly — Disorderly conduct was reported on Green Tree Road.

Fraud — A forgery was under investigation on Main Street.

Disturbance — Officers responded to a report of domestic-related disorderly conduct on First Street.

A Wisconsin Rapids woman is facing multiple felony drug counts for allegedly smuggling heroin into the Shawano County Jail and distributing it to fellow inmates.

Jessica L. Winters, 25, is charged with five counts of possession with intent to deliver heroin at or near a jail. Each count normally carries a maximum 12 years and six months in prison and $25,000 fine, but Winters could face an enhanced penalty because of a previous felony conviction.

She is accused of providing heroin to five inmates at the jail from Nov. 11-14.

Corrections officers conducted a shakedown of one of the jail dorms on Nov. 15 because of suspicions of drug activity, but failed to come up with any drugs. However, a subsequent drug test on six inmates, including Winters, showed the presence of opioids, according to the criminal complaint.

The complaint states officers had information that Winters was giving heroin to other inmates and that the heroin package was “the size of a softball.”

One of the inmates, later interviewed by deputies, described it as a brick half the size of a Kleenex box that Winters had smuggled into the jail in a bodily cavity, according to the criminal complaint.

Winters later admitted to sheriff’s deputies that she had smuggled in the heroin, according to the complaint, but described it as a much smaller amount.

Jail Administrator Greg Trinko said the jail has had “infrequent” cases in the past involving inmates who smuggle in contraband.

He said the contraband is not always illegal drugs and has included items such as chewing tobacco, which is also not allowed at the jail.

“We’ve had work-release inmates who will swallow something and regurgitate it later,” he said.

Under state law, corrections officers can do a strip search, Trinko said, but not a body cavity search.

That typically requires a search warrant and is performed by medical personnel at the hospital.

Two of the inmates in this case, including Winters, were transported to a hospital for body cavity searches, but no drugs were found, according to the criminal complaint.

Winters had been booked into Shawano County Jail on Nov. 11 on a $3,000 cash bond in a pending case where she faces felony charges of possession of narcotic drugs, methamphetamine and marijuana, according to court records.

An additional $5,000 cash bond was ordered on the new charges at her initial appearance Thursday.

She is scheduled for an adjourned initial appearance Dec. 12.

A bald eagle found suffering from lead poisoning in Shawano County is calling attention to a seldom-discussed environmental hazard: bullet fragments left behind by hunters.

Officials at Raptor Education Group Inc. in Antigo say the ailing bald eagle was found near death along Pine Lake in the town of Belle Plaine after ingesting bullet fragments from eating a deer carcass.

The lead used in manufacturing ammunition is so toxic that tiny fragments can poison birds or other wild animals that eat from what hunters leave behind.

Marge Gibson, executive director of the Antigo wildlife rescue group, said the bald eagle is a young male with a 5-foot wingspan that exhibited convulsions and internal bleeding when it arrived at the rehabilitation center about two weeks ago. Although eagles can live up to 50 years, Gibson said she is unsure whether this one will survive the lead poisoning.

“We’re trying our best,” she said. “He’s a sweet little bird, and he didn’t do anything wrong.”

Conservation advocates sometimes encourage hunters to use copper ammunition — which is not toxic — but many hunters have been reluctant to make the change or have been unaware of the environmental risks involved in using lead ammunition.

Brandon Braden, wildlife technician for the state Department of Natural Resources, said he regularly encounters eagles or other birds that have gotten sick from lead poisoning following deer hunting season.

Braden said the poisoning can occur when wildlife feed off either a deer carcass that has been abandoned or a waste pile left behind after a deer has been gutted and harvested in the field. All it takes is a little lead shrapnel hidden in the remains when a hungry scavenger swoops down to eat.

“It’s something that a lot of people don’t realize can happen,” Braden said. “It’s one of those unfortunate side effects.”

The Raptor Education Group reports that it has treated eight bald eagles with lead poisoning since deer hunting season began last month. Of those, five eagles died, including another from Shawano County.

John Zahringer, owner of RKG Sports in Shawano, said he questions whether birds are necessarily ingesting lead from bullet fragments rather than from other possible sources, such as fishing line sinkers.

Zahringer, however, said his shop does sell copper ammunition and has found it to be increasingly popular among gun owners, because of performance improvements and more affordable prices. Someday, lead bullets could become a thing of the past during hunting season, he said.

“It’ll come to pass,” he said. “But it’s going to take time.”

Gibson, who founded the Antigo wildlife rehabilitation center in 1990, said she has worked years to spread the message about lead poisoning of wildlife from bullet fragments.

Some critics have tried to depict her as anti-hunting, she said, but she only wants hunters to be more considerate of the environment. For all the birds that her group works to save from lead poisoning, there are probably hundreds more out there that suffer agonizing deaths after ingesting bullet fragments, she said.

Noting that lead also is toxic to humans, Gibson said there is a reason why lead has been removed from housepaint, gasoline and other common products.

“We should be smarter than this,” she said. Referring to those who deny the health risks of lead bullets, she added: “They’re making fools of hunters.”

The holiday season got rolling Friday in festive style with the annual Santa Parade in downtown Shawano.

Hundreds of people braved chilly temperatures to watch the parade along Main Street with marching bands, costumed characters and Santa Claus himself.

“It kicks off our holidays,” said Penny Escalante, who enjoyed the event with her family.

Joined by her children and grandchild, Escalante said the family turns out for the parade every year and always settles in the same spot on the west side of the street. Afterward, they head home and put up holiday decorations as part of their annual tradition.

“It brings about the holidays,” she said. “It brings about the merriment.”

The parade is organized each year by the Shawano Business Improvement District. Many downtown businesses keep their doors open late for the celebration, and many others enter floats in the parade.

Shawano Mayor Jeanne Cronce joined the parade, too, along with this year’s grand marshals, Steve and Karla Duchac.

The Shawano Community High School marching band treated the crowd to holiday songs, while spectators also cheered other floats presented by several area clubs, organizations and merchants.

Rick and Pat Soetenga turned out to watch their grandson ride on a float with his church group.

Rick Soetenga said the couple tries to catch the parade every year, and they still enjoy hearing the marching bands and taking in all the excitement.

“We’re still kids at heart,” he said. “It’s a good way to start the season off.”

Shawano Police Department

Dec. 6

Police logged 22 incidents, including the following:

Pedestrian Accident — Police responded to a report of an accident at Walgreen’s, 401 E. Green Bay St., involving a pedestrian hit by a vehicle. However, the police report indicates the subject might have had an unrelated medical emergency and that there was little or no contact with the vehicle. He was transported from the scene by ambulance.

Truancy — Police logged a truancy complaint from the Shawano School District.

Disorderly — Police responded to a disorderly conduct complaint in the 400 block of South Lincoln Street.

OWI — A 55-year-old man was arrested for operating while intoxicated at Main Street and Wescott Avenue.

Shawano County Sheriff’s Department

Dec. 6

Deputies logged 35 incidents, including the following:

Hit and Run — Authorities investigated a property damage hit-and-run on County Road D in the town of Seneca.

Fraud — Authorities investigated a fraud complaint on Glenwood Court in the town of Wescott.

Harassment — Authorities responded to a harassment complaint on County Road Q in the town of Wittenberg.

Trespass — Authorities responded to a trespassing complaint on School House Road in the town of Morris.

Fraud — Authorities investigated a fraud complaint on Lake Drive in the town of Wescott.

Accident — Authorities responded to an injury accident on state Highway 22 in the town of Belle Plaine.

Clintonville Police Department

Dec. 6

Police logged 14 incidents, including the following:

Fraud — A fraud incident was reported on Seventh Street.

Harassment — A harassment incident was reported at Clintonville High School, 64 Green Tree Road.

Accident — A two-vehicle property damage accident was reported on North 12th Street.

Missing — A missing child was reported on Flora Way and located a short time later.

Shawano residents will have a chance in April to send a message to city officials about how much of a priority should be given to the development of city parks.

The Common Council on Wednesday approved moving forward with an advisory referendum that will ask whether the city should borrow additional money for development of the Franklin and Smalley parks and a splash pad to replace the kiddie pool at Memorial Park.

The final form of the referendum question will come back to the council for approval in January.

The projects would require borrowing about $1.85 million above and beyond what the city already borrows for its capital improvement projects.

The impact on taxpayers would depend on whether the city goes with a 10-year or 20-year loan.

A 10-year loan would add $41 to the annual tax bill for the owner of a $100,000 home, under current interest rates. A 20-year loan would add $25.

Park and Recreation Director Matt Hendricks noted that interest rates being as low as they are now makes for a good time for borrowing.

He said the park features proposed are drawn from the city’s outdoor recreation plan and represent what the community has said it desires.

“The question is, how do we fund it?” Hendricks said.

The park and recreation department typically has an annual capital improvements budget of $250,000 a year, meaning it could take about eight years to accomplish the proposed projects if none of that money were to be spent on any other park improvements.

The additional borrowing would allow the improvements to be made within about two years, according to city officials.

Hendricks said the nonbinding referendum would get the pulse of the community’s interest in the projects.

“Let’s see how soon they want them,” he said.

At Franklin Park, the improvements would include a band shell and bandstand, additional parking for community events, walkable trails, a water fountain, and water and sewer utilities.

At Smalley Park, an existing pole building would be replaced with a structure similar to the one at Huckleberry Harbor and other park facilities, including bathrooms and storage, a rentable picnic area and showers. Other amenities would include trails and docks for canoes and kayaks.

The plan also calls for replacing the wading pool at Memorial Park with a splash pad, basically a playground with water features, according to Hendricks.

He said the existing pool was built in the late 1960s to early 1970s and is nearing the end of its life span.

Even if the borrowing is approved by voters, the park and recreation department would continue to pursue grant money if it’s available, Hendricks said, to cut some of the costs.

Shawano Police Department

Dec. 7

Police logged 28 incidents, including the following:

Disturbance — Police responded to a disturbance in the 800 block of East Richmond Street.

Truancy — Police logged two truancy complaints from the Shawano School District.

Shoplifting — Kwik Trip, 1241 E. Green Bay St., reported a shoplifting incident.

Accident — Police responded to a truck versus deer crash at Richmond Street and Industrial Drive.

Shoplifting — Walmart, 1244 E. Green Bay St., reported a shoplifting incident.

Hit and Run — Police investigated a property damage hit-and-run at Airport Drive and Green Bay Street.

Shawano County Sheriff’s Department

Dec. 7

Deputies logged 22 incidents, including the following:

Auto Theft — Charges of operating a vehicle without owner’s consent were referred against two Wittenberg boys, ages 15 and 17, after a vehicle was reported stolen on Mohawk Street in Wittenberg.

Auto Theft — A vehicle was reported stolen at the North Star Casino, W12180 County Road A, Bowler.

Vehicle Fire — Authorities responded to a vehicle fire on Hickory Road in the town of Richmond.

Burglary — A burglary was reported on Gold Creek Road in the town of Herman.

Vehicle Fire — Authorities responded to a vehicle fire at state Highway 156 and Nichols Road in the town of Lessor. The fire closed eastbound lanes of traffic on the highway for about an hour. The vehicle was a total loss, according to authorities. No injuries were reported.

Bail Jumping — Two counts of bail jumping were referred against a 67-year-old Bonduel woman on Meadow Road in the town of Washington.

Clintonville Police Department

Dec. 7

Police logged five incidents, including the following:

Fraud — Counterfeit money was reported on South Main Street.

Disorderly — A warning for disorderly conduct was issued on North Main Street.

The World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series on Thursday announced its running schedule for the 2017 season.

The schedule includes an Aug. 2 date in Shawano for the Sun Drop Shootout, the eighth straight year the series has come to the historic half-mile.

This is the first time since 2012 that the series will visit Shawano on a Wednesday. Each of the previous four years, the race for over $10,000 came on Tuesdays.

Shane Clanton won the past two races in Shawano. Josh Richards has been his main competitor atop the series for the past couple of years, including a second-place finish in Shawano in 2016.

A.J. Diemel, Nick Anvelink, Brett Swedberg and Mike Mullen were some of the top local racers in the 50-lap feature, but none finished higher than 12th place against some of the best Late Models drivers in the country.

The series will visit 21 states and make an appearance in Canada over the eight-month 2017 racing season.

Clintonville is moving to one garbage hauler to save wear and tear on city streets.

“We need to save our streets,” City Administrator Chuck Kell said. “At times haulers are chasing each other around the same street.”

Three companies currently pick up garbage and recyclables in the city, but the city plans to have only one hauler as early as February.

Toby Kersten, the city’s public works manager, previously told the Common Council that the streets are not built for use by that many heavy trucks.

The city’s street committee on Tuesday approved general contract specifications for collection, transportation, disposal and processing of refuse and recycling.

The city is seeking requests for a five-year contract with an option to renew an additional five years.

The winning firm would serve about 1,700 residences and businesses, which could opt out of the service and transport their own refuse and recyclables to the Clintonville Area Waste Service site.

Kell said he expects residents to be charged $11 to $13 per month.

“With a five-year contract, we will likely get a more attractive proposal,” he said.

Proposal are due by 4 p.m. Jan. 4. The street committee is scheduled to open them Jan. 5.

The contractor will be asked to provide several sizes of refuse carts. Single-family residences likely would get 94- to 96-gallon carts, though residents could request 65- or 35-gallon carts.

Collection hours are expected to remain between 7 a.m and 5 p.m Monday through Friday.

The street committee is also studying how to deal with items too large for the carts.

“It is not in the budget for a large pickup,” committee member Jim Supanich said. “Maybe we can have a citywide pickup a couple of times of the year. It makes the city look better not having items curbside for a week or two. We could pursue a meeting with CAWS on this.”

The Shawano School District is stepping up its student recruitment efforts by reaching out to prospective future students as early as possible — when they are born.

The district has reached an agreement with ThedaCare Medical Center-Shawano to introduce new parents to the public school district before mom and dad even take their little bundles home.

The hospital, which delivers about 300 babies a year, is distributing to all parents postcards inviting them to register with the school district to receive free gifts and other surprises while their baby is growing from newborn to kindergartner.

In an increasingly competitive environment for student recruitment, Shawano’s new outreach — known as the “Baby Hawk Program,” after the Shawano Hawks school mascot — is drawing praise for creativity.

“I think it’s a great idea,” said Susan Longmire, principal of St. James Lutheran School in Shawano.

Longmire’s parochial school competes with the Shawano School District for students, and she said partnering with the local hospital would be helpful to connect with new parents.

“That was a very smart move,” she said.

Shawano School Board members approved the marketing concept earlier this year, and administrators then worked out the details with staffers at the hospital.

Participating parents must provide their names and addresses at the school district’s website to be accepted into the program and receive a “Future Shawano Hawk” bib for their newborn, along with future birthday cards, other school district resources and unspecified surprises.

In announcing the program, School Superintendent Gary Cumberland said it was being offered retroactively to any child born after Sept. 1, in what Cumberland described as “the unofficial Shawano Class of 2034.”

“Shawano School District is eager to connect to the next generation of the Shawano schools family,” he said, “and maintain that connection as they enter in our district in the years to come.”

Like other public school districts in Wisconsin, the Shawano district has felt pressure from enrollment losses and reduced state funding under a growing state voucher program to subsidize private schools. The “choice” program has put public schools in competition with parochial schools for future students — and for the taxpayer funds that go with them.

The Wisconsin Association of School District Administrators has instructed public school superintendents that partnering with their local hospitals is a good way to make early inroads with new families.

Jon Bales, executive director of the association, said the recruiting technique has not caught on everywhere just yet. But Shawano is not alone, either.

“It is a growing practice,” Bales said.

ThedaCare hospital inpatient manager Carol Kary said hospital staffers are happy to assist the school district and to provide new parents with school information that might prove helpful later. Families typically take home much information about caring for their babies and preparing for parenthood.

Kary said although she could not forecast whether the school district’s recruiting effort would be successful, she said parents probably appreciate hearing from the schools.

“I think it’s a nice touch,” she said.

Longmire said St. James Lutheran School similarly makes early connections with families when they bring their newborns to the church for baptisms.

School administrators probably should do a better job of maintaining contact with those families to ensure that their children become students down the road, Longmire said.

“We haven’t done that as well as we should,” she said. “But that’s where we’re headed.”

The Shawano Area Community Foundation recently approved $23,307 in grants from its Shawano Area Fund to eight charitable organizations serving people in Shawano County.

The Shawano Area Fund is an endowment that accepts donations of any amount to be used to provide annual grants. The foundation’s volunteer grants committee selects grant recipients through a competitive application process each fall.

The grant dollars come from the endowment fund and proceeds from the foundation’s annual events.

The 2016 grant recipients and amounts awarded:

• Bonduel Area Emergency Medical Services Inc., $5,000, to fund the purchase of portable radios for emergency communication.

• Bridge the Gap Inc., $2,500, to fund sensory equipment that will improve the success of services for their clients on the autism spectrum who have unique sensory needs.

• Navarino Nature Center, $2,500, to support the construction of an Outdoor Education Resource facility that will allow for expanded programming and will accommodate individuals with physical challenges, to assist them in experiencing the same activities as their counterparts.

• Pella First Responders, $4,500, to fund the replacement of two mobile radios and three pagers for emergency communication.

• Safe Haven Domestic Abuse Support Center, $1,397, to purchase curriculum and materials for use during the facilitation of advocacy appointments and support groups for victims of domestic abuse and sexual assault.

• Unity Hospice, $3,660, to fund testing machines that can provide in-home, immediate results for critically ill patients, and decrease risk for medical errors.

• Walls of Wittenberg Inc., $1,250, to fund the construction of a permanent stage in the Art Park for free public concerts and educational opportunities.

• Wolf River Habitat for Humanity, $2,500, to fund the purchase of a truck for the resale store operations.

The Shawano Area Community Foundation was established in 1990 by community volunteers to preserve and improve the quality of life in Shawano and the surrounding area. It is an affiliate of the Appleton-based Community Foundation for the

Fox Valley Region, the second-largest community foundation in Wisconsin.

A bullying ordinance passed by the city of Shawano in April caught national and even international attention, spurring debate that continues to pop up on editorial pages eight months later.

The ordinance, which threatens possible fines against parents whose children engage in habitual bullying or harassment, has yet to be used, according to Shawano Police Chief Mark Kohl.

“I think it’s been a huge success,” Kohl said during an update to the Shawano Common Council on Wednesday.

“It created that invitation to the community, primarily to parents, to get more involved in the actions and behaviors of their children,” he said.

Kohl said media coverage, which, he said, has included reports in newspapers as far away as Canada, Australia and Switzerland, helped draw attention to the problem of bullying.

“Bullying has been an issue for everyone,” he said. “I suspect we’ve all been bullied, or maybe we were a bully at one time.”

Kohl said police have worked with parents to address incidents of bullying, but no citations have been issued.

Having the ordinance on the books, he said, has opened up communications on the bullying problem between parents, the police and the school district.

“The sign of a good community philosophy, a good community-oriented program, isn’t to show an increase in arrests and tickets and things like that,” Kohl said. “It’s to show a decrease in those reported types of crimes or violations.”

Though Shawano’s ordinance drew widespread attention, it was modeled after a bullying ordinance already on the books in the village of Plover.

Shawano’s ordinance calls for a fine of $366 for the first offense and $681 for the second offense for parents who are aware of and allow their children to engage in bullying or harassment.

The fine would only apply, however, if the parent had already been informed by police within the previous 90 days that their child had been engaging in bullying or harassment.

If any fines are ever assessed under the ordinance, the money will go into a bullying awareness fund for educational outreach on the issue, as per a separate resolution adopted by the Common Council in May.

Shawano Police Department

Dec. 8

Police logged 24 incidents, including the following:

Disturbance —A woman reported trouble with her husband in a domestic disturbance at a residence in the 200 block of South Union Street.

Overdose — A woman was reported unconscious from a possible drug overdose at a residence in the 200 block of North Humphrey Circle.

Disorderly Conduct — A student was reported being disruptive at Shawano Community High School, 220 County Road B.

Disorderly Conduct — A student was reported being disorderly in a classroom at Shawano Community Middle School, 1050 S. Union St.

Shawano County Sheriff’s Department

Dec. 8

Deputies logged 43 incidents, including the following:

Burglary — A resident reported $500 and other personal items taken from a residence on Fairview Road in the town of Bartelme.

Gas Odor — A passerby reported a strong odor of natural gas near an apartment building on Warrington Avenue in Cecil.

Animal Neglect — An anonymous caller reported cows being neglected and improperly handled after death on a farm on White Clay Lake Drive in the town of Washington.

Theft — A property owner reported the theft of 300 DVDs in the 200 block of Fourth Street in Mattoon.

Clintonville Police Department

Dec. 8

Police logged six incidents, including the following:

Weapon — Police assisted with transfer of ownership of a firearm at an unreported location.

Welfare — Callers requested welfare checks on individuals at two residences and one business location.