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Menomonie News Net
November 20, 2024, Issue 1
In This Week’s Issue…
Editors: Layne Pitt & Becky Kneer
by Becky Kneer
Congratulations! You are reading the first issue of Menomonie News Net and we’re excited to share the story behind its creation.
It began in 2022 when an episode of 60 Minutes highlighted the alarming loss of local newspapers across the country and the negative impact on communities. For weeks after watching, I kept asking myself, “Is this what’s happening in Menomonie?”
That fall a group of people - both journalists and community members like myself -gathered in the back room of a local café to discuss the state of local news. Several of us left that meeting committed to continuing the conversation.
And so began the journey that has led to this newsletter, with two years of discussions, Zoom calls, coffee meet-ups, community forums and presentations. As a group, we learned about the concept of “news deserts,” identified gaps in local news coverage, and brainstormed ways to address the growing need for reliable, accessible news in Menomonie.
We started calling ourselves The Local News Group and began hosting “Where’s the Local News?” forums, inviting the community to join the conversation. Our mission? To help area residents find trustworthy, accurate and up-to-date local news.
By the summer of 2023, after exploring various models, we made a pivotal decision: to pursue nonprofit status. Inspired by The Whitewater Banner, a nonprofit online news outlet in southern Wisconsin, we became a component fund of The Community Foundation of Dunn County. This step opened doors to donations and grant funding, bringing us further along the path.
One of the community forums held at the Menomonie Public Library. Photo: Layne Pitt
Our goals became clearer as we met in retreat - fill the gaps in local news, promote citizen journalism and support existing news sources. But how could we make this happen?
More answers came from a survey we conducted in the spring of 2024, which asked local residents, “Where do you get your local news?” The results were eye-opening. The over 400 respondents said Facebook and word of mouth, confirming what we had suspected - we had a lot of work ahead of us, but local residents were willing to help.
A spark of inspiration came from the Twin Cities suburbs of Eden Prairie and Woodbury, which had faced similar challenges with the loss of local newspapers. We learned they were using a model we were considering - nonprofit, nonpartisan, community-led local news. Encouraged by their success, we reached out for support and guidance and discovered there’s a wide network of people willing to help. These organizations have mentored us, providing invaluable support toward taking the next steps.
And now, we’re proud to announce the launch of Menomonie News Net - an online newsletter, built by and for our community.
What makes Menomonie News Net different? Unlike traditional print newspapers, we’re offering a weekly online newsletter - free to all and accepting donations. Our focus will be on local news from the city, county, towns, schools and nonprofit/civic organizations. We’ll work in collaboration with other news sources, offering republishable stories. While we plan to build a small paid editorial and tech staff, most of our efforts will continue to be volunteer-driven, just as they have been from the start. There will be plenty of opportunities for community members to get involved.
We’re still charting this journey and we’re grateful for those who have supported us so far, whether you’ve been with us since the beginning or are just joining now.
Together, let’s help build a more informed, engaged and connected Menomonie!
Becky Kneer, a retired RN, has worked in military, teaching, and community health settings, calling Menomonie home for over 40 years.
Local organization is back as a new unified force
Hudson and Menomonie – United Way St. Croix Valley and Dunn County United Way have completed their merger, effective July 1, 2024. The nonprofits had previously announced their intent to merge to form a stronger, more unified force for community impact.
The combined organization is “United Way St. Croix and Red Cedar Valleys” (UWSCRCV) and will serve communities throughout Burnett, Dunn, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, and St. Croix counties. The merged website is uwvalleys.org.
“We are excited to start this new chapter,” said Steve McCarthy, Executive Director of the merged organization. “By combining our efforts, we can better serve our communities, more capably mobilize resources, and more ably create lasting solutions to the challenges facing our region.”
The two organizations combined their boards to form a new board of volunteer leaders from throughout the six-county area. “Representation from all of our communities is vitally important,” explained board president Todd Sherman. “Our intent is to listen to local communities, partner with nonprofits doing work that aligns with our data-driven approach, and support select nonprofits’ efforts through our annual campaigns.”
The merger will enable United Way St. Croix and Red Cedar Valleys to streamline operations, eliminate duplication, and maximize the impact of donor investments. Additionally, the organization will leverage the strengths and expertise of a combined board and experienced staff to expand effective programs and services through its annual campaigns.
“Together, we will continue to work hard to create thriving communities where everyone has the opportunity to succeed,” said Tim Bartels, former president of the Dunn County United Way Board and now Treasurer of the merged organization
United Way will continue to have a local presence, opening a second office location at 800 Wilson Avenue, Menomonie, in addition to its office located in Hudson. A Ribbon Cutting with the Menomonie Area Chamber of Commerce was held late summer.
For more information about St. Croix and Red Cedar Valleys United Way, visit uwvalleys.org or contact Steve McCarthy, Executive Director at [email protected].
About United Way
United Way St. Croix and Red Cedar Valleys fights for the health, education, and financial stability of every person in Western Wisconsin.
United Way is dedicated to improving lives and strengthening communities. By mobilizing the caring power of donors, volunteers, and partners, United Way works to create lasting change.
New Director of Economic Development Named for Greater Dunn County
Photo: Contributed
Source: Economic Development for Greater Dunn County
Dunn County, WI – The Dunn County Economic Development Corporation (DCEDC), Greater Menomonie Development Corporation (GMDC), Stout Technology Business Park (STBP), the University of Wisconsin-Stout, Dunn County, and the City of Menomonie have announced the appointment of Adam Accola as the first shared Director of Economic Development for Greater Dunn County. In this role, Accola will lead economic development initiatives across Dunn County, within the City of Menomonie, as well as the Menomonie Industrial Park and Stout Technology Business Park. Accola brings a wealth of experience in community-driven growth and entrepreneurship from previous roles, including as Community Manager at The Coven Eau Claire (formerly CoLab).
"I’m excited to continue fostering economic development in this vibrant region,” said Accola. “Dunn County has incredible potential, and I look forward to working with local businesses, entrepreneurs, and municipalities to build on this momentum."
Through this unique partnership, a collaboration with local municipalities, economic development organizations, and the University of Wisconsin-Stout, Accola will focus on key areas such as business retention and expansion, entrepreneurship, and workforce housing. These focus areas were identified as priorities during the 2023 Dunn County Economic Development Summit.
Accola has a strong background in strategic community engagement, network building, and project leadership. During his tenure at The Coven Eau Claire, he played a pivotal role in doubling membership and revenue by establishing strategic community partnerships and spearheading entrepreneurial support initiatives like Startup Chippewa Valley Week (which he expanded to include Menomonie in 2021) and 1 Million Cups Eau Claire.
This new role will involve not only working to attract new businesses but also facilitating the expansion of existing ones. Accola will also engage with stakeholders from both the public and private sectors to ensure the successful implementation of Dunn County’s economic development strategies.
Dunn County is poised for growth, and under Accola’s leadership, this shared position and partnership aims to strengthen its collaborative efforts with local businesses, entrepreneurs, and economic development partners.
For more information on upcoming economic development initiatives or to get involved, please contact Adam Accola at [email protected]
Adam Accola is the Director of Economic Development for Dunn County and a community-driven leader with experience in fostering entrepreneurial ecosystems and business growth.
Menomonie Middle School Holds Veterans Day Program
Sergeant (ret.)Tyson Hoeft, featured speaker at the annual Menomonie Middle School Veterans Day event. The Menomonie High grad recalled his years served around the world in the US Marine Corp and the WI Nat’l Guard. Hoeft teaches in Menomonie Schools. Photo: Becky Kneer
Dunn County Looking to Improve More Highway Miles in 2025
Photo: Debra Bell
Source: Dunn County
MENOMONIE - Dunn County officials are hoping to increase the number of county highway miles that are repaired by about a third in 2025 to bring down the average age of all county roads.
“Historically, we have done approximately 10 miles of roadways each year,” said Dustin Binder, county Highway Commissioner. “We want to increase that to 18 miles in 2025.”
The reason for proposing the increase, Binder said, is “we want to try to get all roads within the projected lifespan of a road,” which is 20 to 25 years.
Currently, the average age of a county highway is 34.6 years. If the County Board of Supervisors approves Binder’s budget request for 2025, the average age would be reduced to just under 23 years.
The county worked on 8.18 miles in 2021; 10.68 miles in 2022; 13.49 miles in 2023; and 12.28 miles in 2024. The budget proposes 18.48 miles of road work in 2025.
“Our road conditions are quite behind and need improvements,” Binder said of the need to expand the miles of road projects, adding that the county has about 425 miles of roads.
The 2025 Highway Department budget calls for spending nearly $9 million on county highways, with $6.6 million coming from the county and the rest from the state Department of Transportation.
Binder and other county officials are trying to educate taxpayers about the costs involved in county road and bridge construction. According to a recent presentation Binder gave to the County Board, it costs approximately $150,000 to resurface a mile of roadway, while pavement replacement costs $250,000-$300,000 a mile. Reconditioning costs $400,000 to $500,000 a mile, and total reconstruction costs $1 million or more a mile.
The lifespan for resurfaced road is eight to 10 years; pavement replacing, 20 years; reconditioning, 20 to 25 years; and reconstruction, 20 to 25 years.
“We are trying to get more information out to the public about what we do and how much it costs,” Binder said. “We need the public to understand where their tax dollars go for highway projects.”
The highest profile projects planned for 2025 are a reconstruction project on Highway D from 420th St. to Highway K in Irvington, and a reconstruction project on Highway D from Highway 25 to 816th Avenue in Tainter.
The projects include making safety improvements, storm sewer, and adding curb and gutter. The total cost of both projects is about $4.2 million, with the county paying $1.8 million.
Other projects being planned include Highway G from BB to D; Highway J from the Menomonie city limits to 410th Avenue; Highway C from Z to D; Highway S from N to Highway 170; Highway BB from Highway 25 to 12; and Highway G from D to 25. Three bridge projects also are planned.
Concerning 2024 projects, Binder said work on the major Highway B project overall has gone well, is nearing total completion and is anticipated to come in under budget. The Highway B project was two separate projects: from state Highway 12/29 to I-94 and from I-94 to Packer Drive. The estimated cost of the combined project was more than $10 million, with state and federal funds picking up the bulk of the expenses.
“The overall project costs were less than what we anticipated, which is good news for budgetary purposes,” Binder said.
Editor’s Note: the 2025 Budget including Highway passed at the Nov. 12 meeting.
Dustin Binder, Dunn County Highway Commissioner, may be contacted at [email protected]
“Don’t Be Afraid to Ask”
Menomonie man shares suicide attempt experience to educate others
Matt Stevenson is a nursing program student at CVTC. Photo: CVTC
by Alyssa Van Duyse
Matt Stevenson knows that his story is tough to hear.
He also knows it’s worth telling.
If he can reduce the stigma of suicide and save just one life by educating people about the signs of suicide, it’s worth reliving the moments he almost lost his life to suicide, he said.
Stevenson, 33, a nursing program student at Chippewa Valley Technical College, is sharing his story of depression, thoughts of suicide and attempted suicide to highlight awareness
“We can talk about statistics until we’re blue in the face. It doesn’t hit home until you hear somebody say it,” Stevenson said. “If I say, ‘Hey, these are some things I’ve experienced,’ it definitely hits home a little bit more.”
Depression
Stevenson was a typical kid by all standards. He grew up in a loving home in Menomonie, was a three-sport athlete and had many friends.
But depression and suicidal thoughts don’t discriminate.
In eighth grade, Stevenson began to experience depression and suicidal ideation. That was the first time he contemplated suicide.
“I eventually told a friend what I was thinking. She told her mom, and then counselors got involved,” he said. “I was self-harming. I was hitting myself.”
School counselors followed up with Stevenson. The depression he was experiencing subsided until his sophomore year of high school in 2007.
The depression came back with a vengeance.
An Accumulating Storm
He was under the pressure of school and sports, shaking off an unwanted nickname and a long winter.
“It was kind of an accumulating storm,” Stevenson said. “It was the end of December when I started to contemplate suicide. I came up with a date and a plan.”
The plan was pushed up and set into motion on January 9, 2007, when an impromptu sports meeting didn’t go as planned. It was just one more brick on the teetering pile in Stevenson’s mind.
“I started breaking down right in the middle of the gym, and I turned to my best friend, and I said, ‘Tell people to remember me,’ ” Stevenson recalled. “He didn’t understand what I was saying. He grabbed my arm, and I said, ‘No. I have to do this.’ ”
That’s when Stevenson ripped his arm away from his friend’s grip, got into his car and drove home.
“The last thing I remember was laying on the ground thinking of a previous friend who had completed suicide. I thought about what his funeral was like and about his family at the funeral,” he said. “Then I woke up in the hospital … with my jaw wired shut.”
Getting Help
Stevenson can look back on that time with a clearer view. He didn’t want to die, but he didn’t know how to manage the depression, anxiety and the blanket of physical pain that comes with those ailments, he said. He wanted the pain to stop.
After his suicide attempt, he began seeing a counselor. He learned coping skills, identified his support system and is utilizing medication to treat depression and anxiety.
Stevenson said he knows mental health is something he will struggle with, likely his whole life. But he has tools to better identify when he is struggling and then a plan in place to help.
CVTC Nursing Instructor Dawn Barone said she learned of Stevenson’s experience only a few weeks ago. She might never have known, except Stevenson was comfortable enough with Barone to tell his story.
“I am just so proud of Matt,” she said. “Though I know that he will always be challenged by his past, he is passionate about helping to support others when they are challenged as well. While knowing a bit about Matt's history adds to my pride in him as a student and future nurse, it is clear that there is so much more to his nursing journey, and I know he will have a great future in nursing wherever he goes.”
Working through the rigorous nursing program at CVTC can be a source of stress for Stevenson, but he said it also keeps him on track and working toward his ultimate goal of becoming a nurse.
“I’m gonna have my good days. I’m gonna have my bad days. Just knowing that and being able to utilize some of those coping skills – it’s second nature to be able to apply those skills now,” he said.
His passion for helping others, coupled with his first-hand experience with suicide ideation, makes him a compassionate source to educate others.
“I want people not to be afraid to ask (if someone is thinking about suicide),” he said. “Just don’t be afraid to ask. I was losing interest in things. I stopped playing hockey. Even if you’re unsure, don’t be afraid to ask because the worst they are going to say is ‘no.’ ”
Alyssa Van Duyse is in Media Relations at Chippewa Valley Technical College.
If you or someone you know has thoughts of suicide, text the Crisis Text Line HELLO to 741741; call, text or chat Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988; or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255.
Resources: Prevent Suicide Wisconsin, SAMHSA, Suicide Warning Signs
Editor Note: In Menomonie call Northwest Connections at 888-552-6642
Citizen Journalism Workshop Registration Open
Photo: UW-Stout
Source: UW-Stout Continuing Education
MENOMONIE - Do you have a passion for writing and want to share our community’s stories? This Citizen Journalism Workshop is designed to equip local residents with the skills to produce compelling, well-researched journalistic content. Whether you’re writing for a local publication or your own blog, this course will guide you through the essentials of journalism, from interviewing to editing.
Over the course of six sessions from Jan. 28 through March 4, you will gain practical experience in writing stories that reflect the people, events, and issues shaping your community. By the end of the workshop, you’ll not only have written your own news stories but also gained insights into the process of getting them published.
This workshop is perfect for community members who enjoy writing and have an interest in sharing the stories that matter most to their neighbors. No previous experience is required. Attendees will leave the workshop with the skills to write and potentially publish their own journalistic stories.
Cost of the six week workshop is $149, but scholarships (reducing the cost to $29) are available and are funded by generous donations from the Wisconsin Newspaper Association Foundation, Eye on Dunn County, and The Local News Group (publisher of Menomonie News Net).
Kate Roberts Edenborg, a seasoned journalist and educator with a Ph.D. in journalism and mass communication, will lead the class. With years of experience working as a professional journalist and teaching journalism at the university level, she brings a wealth of knowledge on both the theory and practice of journalism. Her expertise ensures that you’ll gain practical skills and new insights into journalistic storytelling.
For the complete workshop details click here.
Mustangs Land Nine on All-BRC Football Team
Photo: Debra Bell
by Layne Pitt
MENOMONIE - The Menomonie High School football team had nine players selected to the 2024 All-Big Rivers football team.
Senior wide receiver Isaac Ellison was selected first team offense, while senior outside linebacker Brody Thornton was picked first team defense.
Three players were given second team honors. Senior Cage Sorensen was chosen to the defensive team as in inside linebacker and to the special teams as a punter. Senior offensive lineman Ben Helminski worked his way to the offensive team and senior defensive lineman Reid Cegielski to the defensive team.
Earning honorable mention honors were: senior quarterback Brady Johnson, senior running back John Higbie, senior defensive back Ray Pember and junior linebacker Luke Pember.
Menomonie finished the season at 5-5 overall, 3-4 in Big Rivers play, good for fifth. The Mustangs advanced to the WIAA playoffs, falling 34-31, in Level 1 play, to Monona Grove. The appearance was Menomonie’s 38th overall appearance in the WIAA tournament.
Layne Pitt is the retired UW-Stout Sports Information director and also worked more than a decade at the Dunn County News.
Two Menomonie Area Residents Join Blue Devil Hall of Fame
The 2024 UW-Stout Hall of Fame inductees (L to R): Patrick Mengelkoch, Naomi DeLara, Erin (O’Connell) Anderson, Derek Hanson, Tim Nelson, Daniel Drewek, Layne Pitt, John Miller. Photo: Reese Kupsky, UW-Stout Sports Information.
Source: UW-Stout Sports Information
MENOMONIE - Two Menomonie area residents were among eight individuals inducted into the UW-Stout Athletic Hall of Fame recently.
Tim Nelson of Downsville and Layne Pitt of Menomonie are now among 202 standout athletes, coaches and administrators that are part of the UW-Stout Athletic Hall of Fame.
Tim Nelson, a seven-time USTFCCCA All-American, in 2012, was the NCAA Division III men’s cross country individual champion and USTFCCCA Division III Men’s Athlete of the Year for both outdoor track and field and cross country, winning individual national titles in the indoor and outdoor 5000-meter, outdoor 10,000-meter and cross country.
The 2011 and 2012 WIAC athlete of the year, Nelson holds school records in the indoor 3000- and 5000-meter, and outdoor 5000- and 10,000-meters. In 2014, Nelson was awarded the NCAA Today’s Top 10 Award. Nelson is a major in the Minnesota Army National Guard and owns American Edge Real Estate in Menomonie.
The longest serving UW-Stout sports information director with 28 years of service, Layne Pitt created the athletic department’s first website in 1996, added live stats and video streaming services, introduced social media, produced statistics, stories, game notes, player bios and photographs of thousands of games and events and publicized thousands of student-athletes.
Pitt was presented with the University’s Chancellor’s Academic Staff Award for Excellence in 2019, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the College Sports Communicators for more than 25 years of service and the Tom Butler Award from the WIAC. Pitt retired in October, 2022. Previous to working at Stout, Pitt was a member of the editorial team at the Dunn County News for 11 years.
Also earning induction were:
John Miller, men’s and women’s swimming coach (1983-89)
Daniel Drewek, track and field, 7x WIAC pole vault champion (2008-12)
Naomi DeLara, gymnastics, 4x national champion (2008-11)
Erin (O’Connell) Anderson, softball, All-American first baseman (2002-05)
Derek Hanson, hockey, All-American forward, school scoring leader (2006-10)
Patrick Mengelkoch, football, All-American tight end (2007-10)
For a Calendar of Events in the Menomonie Area, visit Kathy Weber’s Menomonie Minute.
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