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Menomonie News Net
Apr 30, 2025, Issue 24
Local News Group
April 30, 2025
Issue 24 of Menomonie News Net. Catch up on back issues HERE. Please donate as able HERE. Join subscribers HERE - currently at 928.
“We grieve for those whose lives were full, yet taken in their prime; For parents gone, and in their place, a silence left in time. We ache for every child they loved, now walking through the day; With questions far too big to hold, and dreams that lost their way.” - On Community Grief (unknown)
Thanks for reading…
Editors Layne Pitt & Becky Kneer; MNN Contributors; Tech Support Tracy Glenz
Website: menomonienewsnet.org Submit News: [email protected]
In this Issue…
Menomonie Optimist Club Honors Katelian Bossany
Michelle Hupert (Katelian's teacher), Katelian, and her parents Bob and Det Bossany. Submitted Photo
By David K. Williams
The Menomonie Optimist Club honored Katelian Bossany, a senior at Menomonie High School, as the April Youth of the Month. The Optimist Club has been recognizing outstanding students from Dunn County’s four high schools for over 30 years.
Katelian Bossany has led an active life at Menomonie High School. She is a member of the National Honor Society, the GEAC/Global Scholars program, and has been involved in the Chess Club, the Multicultural Club, has been a Link Crew leader, and has been active in Girl Scouts.
Katelian has taken numerous AP coursework, and this year finished in fourth place in the National Ocean Science Bowl. Katelian has also been a member of the varsity soccer and winter soccer teams. She has served as a youth leader in her church youth group and works a part time job at Walmart.
Katelian plans to attend UW-Madison next fall, where she will major in engineering. She is the daughter of Bob and Det Bossany.
In addition to the Youth of the Month program, Menomonie Optimists have involved youth in work projects at Hoffman Hills State Recreation Area for 40 years, conduct the Menomin Meander family bike ride around Menomonie’s Lake Menomin each August, and have provided dictionaries to every third grader in Dunn County for many years.
David Williams is a Menomonie resident and retired UW-Stout administrator.
Red Cross Menomonie Blood Donation Drives in May
Six blood donor drives are scheduled in Menomonie for the month of May. To view a list and/or make an appointment click here.
Accounts Set up to Support Children of Menomonie Plane Crash Victims
GoFundMe and FBOs set up
Compiled by MNN Staff
Editor’s Note: In response to the tragic deaths of two Menomonie couples on April 19, (Ross Nelson & Raimi Rundle; Mike & Courtney Morrow) three GoFundMe accounts have been set up by family members to benefit the six children. In addition, FBOs (for benefit of) accounts have been set up at two local banks.
GoFundMe:
FBOs (for benefit of) set up at local banks. Checks may be sent directly to the banks below:
1) Westconsin Credit Union; FBO McKinley Morrow (Memo Line); 444 South Broadway; PO Box 160. Menomonie, WI 54751
2) Security Financial Bank; FBO Tiffany Children & Morrow Children; 212 W. Prospect St; Durand, Wi 54736
Dunn County Offering Free Well Water Testing
Menomonie - Dunn County is offering free well water testing this summer, and officials hope to test 300 wells. Heather Wood, Dunn County water resources specialist, said the testing “is open to anyone with a well within Dunn County, and there is no cost to participants.”
The testing will be conducted by the Dunn County Health Department, and the tests will look for nitrates. This will be the third year in a row that the county has offered this free service for well owners. A massive effort in 2023 sampled 995 wells in total, with 973 private wells and 22 wells representing town halls included. A follow up program last year tested 263 wells.
The regular testing is helping the county establish water quality data for the county as a whole. The Dunn County Well Water Quality Map is available on the Dunn County Groundwater website. The map does not identify participants or individual well tests but instead shows general trends down to the section level.
"We are getting a much clearer picture of where we have groundwater issues and where we don't," Wood said. "We appreciate well owners getting their water tested." High nitrates, for example, tend to be concentrated in the southeastern corner of the county, Wood said, which isn't surprising given the sandy soils in the areas with higher nitrate concentrations. Nitrates often result from agricultural runoff, septic systems and fertilizers.
Each well owner who participated will receive a letter from the county Land and Water Conservation Division, explaining the results and what resources are available if there is contamination that needs to be mitigated. Dunn County cannot mandate or fund private water treatment systems or the replacement of any wells that have high test results through this program, Wood said.
Those who wish to participate in the 2025 program can sign up at https://dunncountywi.seamlessdocs.com/f/groundwatertest or contact Wood directly at (715) 231-6532 or email [email protected]
MHS Grads: Where are They Now?
Carolyn Cole - Class of 2007
By Judy Foust I love it when we get international news from our alumni! Today’s story is written by Carolyn Cole (class of 2007).  Cherry blossom time in Japan I keep something called a Nectar List which, instead of a Bucket List of things to do, is a list of things that you’ve already done that’s added extra sweetness to your life. A large chunk of items on that list are thanks to a VHS tape that my mother bought back in the early 90’s. I am currently living in Japan, working for the Ibaraki Prefecture Board of Education as an English Specialist. It’s a fancy way of saying that I teach English as a Foreign Language. I have just finished up my third year of teaching at my assigned elementary school in the city of Tsuchiura, where I teach third and fourth grade students once a week and fifth and sixth grade students twice a week. The new school year started in April, which is cherry blossom season. I graduated from MHS in 2007. When I was a student there, I participated in the fall plays and spring musicals, sang in the choir, tried out Forensics in my junior year, and took Japanese as my foreign language. Growing up, my absolute favorite movie was (and still is) Studio Ghibli’s My Neighbor Totoro—aka the aforementioned VHS— but since it was dubbed into English it was clear to my child brain that it was an American movie. It was in English, after all! In my middle school years, Japanese was offered as a language subject along with German and Spanish. I had taken the required term of Japanese as a seventh grader, and one day we were shown the film in its original language in class. I was astonished to realize that the voices I had heard for years were in fact not the original voice actors. Later I went to the school library to look at books about Japan. My mind was absolutely blown to smithereens. Here was this movie that I had adored for years, and suddenly those elements to the story and the characters that had always intrigued me and raised questions— those elements had context. I was bitten by the Japanese bug, and there was no going back.  MHS Class of 2007 The more I read and learned about Japan, the more interested I was in continuing studying the language. I took Japanese up until partway through my sophomore year. Classes at the high school had very few students; in my freshman year there were only nine of us. In the first half of my sophomore year I took it as an Independent Study class along with another student. When Mr. Bencke left the district to go teach | in Japan, the program was cut and I was unable to continue studying. When I was applying to colleges, one of my requirements was that the school had to have a Japanese program. Luckily both of my parents’ alma maters had Japanese Language programs, as did the two other colleges I sent applications to. Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, ended up winning my vote and I spent three wonderful years on campus, and one amazing year studying abroad in Kyoto. After studying abroad, I realized how much of the country I still hadn’t explored and wanted to go back as quickly as I could. Carleton College has a unique system that doesn’t require students to declare their majors until the spring term of their sophomore year. This type of system allows the freedom to explore multiple academic fields for two years in order to choose the path that fits best. I entered thinking I would be an English major or a History major, but I also was so fascinated by sociology, linguistics, and anthropology classes that I ended up taking in those first two years. In the end, I had managed to find a major that fit all of my academic interests and goals: I majored in Asian Studies, concentrating on East Asia, with an academic focus in Sociology and Anthropology. Long story short, I majored in Japanese culture. I graduated from Carleton in 2011 just a few months after the devastating earthquake and resulting typhoon that damaged a large part of eastern Japan. Obviously, my family and friends had some concerns about my going there so soon after a major catastrophe, but I’ve always been stubborn. I came to Japan in March 2012 as an ALT (Assistant Language Teacher) for a company that contracts with city-level boards of education to provide English teachers for schools. After working for the company for ten years first as an ALT and then as someone who helped train ALTs on top of teaching, I finally applied to and was accepted into the prefecture’s English Specialist program. It’s been a wild ride full of twists and turns but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. As a Menomonie native, I would love to see our city pick up the threads of the diplomatic relationship with its sister city here in Japan, which was established in 1991. Even perusing Menomonie’s official .gov website, there is absolutely nothing on the home page about Nasukarasuyama, in Tochigi prefecture. Even searching for “Nasukarasuyama” on the site brought up no results. I think it would be great if after reconnecting with our Japanese and Russian sister cities somebody in the future writes in their Nectar List that they had the chance to host an exchange student from those cities or they had the opportunity to visit those cities. It would be pretty sweet, in my opinion.  Judy Foust is a retired longtime 7th Grade Reading Specialist at Menomonie Middle School. To submit info to her or to request an interview she may be contacted at [email protected] |
Menomonie Middle School Presents ‘The Wizard of Oz: Youth Edition’
The Wizard of Oz: Youth Edition will be performed by the Menomonie Middle School this week at the high school auditorium. Performances are Thursday, May 1st & Fri May 2 at 7:00 p.m.; Sat, May 3 at 2:00 p.m.
This stage adaptation, featuring the characters and celebrated songs from the film, brings the wondrous Land of Oz to life in a jubilant theatrical experience.
Tickets are available at the door for $5. For more information visit the MMS Choir & Drama facebook event.
MHS Extracurricular News
Compiled from Daily Announcements
Photo: Debra Bell
April 23
JV Boys Baseball swept Rice Lake last night 10-0 and 14-0 Tyler Sutherland threw a complete game one hitter in game one. Max Jaeger threw a complete game no hitter in game two. Varsity Boys Baseball swept Rice Lake 15-2 and 3-1 last night. AJ Zydowsky threw a complete game in game one while receiving the victory for the Mustangs on the mound. Landon Mittlestadt had 3 extra base hits with 6 RBIs in game one. Bailey Casey threw 6 innings with no earned runs in game 2 for the Mustangs to receive the win in game 2. Rex Drout came in the 7th inning to get the save in game 2. AJ Zydowsky had a go ahead 2 RBI single in the 6th inning to help propel the Mustang offense. The Mustangs are back in action next Tuesday at home vs. Eau Claire North.
Congratulations to Ray Pember who was recently selected as one of 32 statewide finalists for the very prestigious 2025 WIAA Scholar Athlete Award! Only four boys and four girls from each of the four WIAA divisions were selected based on both athletic and academic achievement. Ray will be honored at the WIAA Scholar Athlete Banquet on May 4 in Stevens Point. Join us in congratulating Ray on this incredible accomplishment!
Congratulations to all three MHS Choirs on an outstanding performance last Thursday at the WSMA Large Group Choral Festival. Bass, Treble, and Concert Chorus all performed in Class A and received Division One ratings from a panel of judges. You can catch all these groups perform at their upcoming concert on May 21st at 7:00 p.m.
The MHS Boys Track team took a split squad of athletes to the New Richmond Open yesterday. Top three finishers included DJ Butler in the high jump, Rhiley Pernsteiner in the pole vault and a 1st place finish from Blake Kissh in the discus. Blake threw 140 feet to win by a significant margin. Great job boys team.
Congratulations to the Girls Track and Field Team on their excellent performance last night at New Richmond. Top 3 finishes came from Bella Drake in the 400 meter dash. Second place finishes from Izzy Sorensen in the 400 meter dash, Grace Nevin in the 300 meter hurdles, Brianna Klimek in the shot put and Ofelia Prechel in the triple jump and event champion Izzy Sorensen in the 100 meter hurdles. Congrats girls!
Varsity Girls Softball lost a close game to Chippewa Falls last night 6-7. Maci Marlett tallied 3 hits while Livi Sample and Ellie Fisher each had 2. Reese Barfknecht, Amanda Holzhueter, and Livi Sample all hit a homerun accounting for all of the Mustang's RBIs. JV Girls Softball lost 3-7 to Chippewa Falls. Vivian Lorenzen hit a 2 run triple to get on the board. Tiana Miller was stellar behind the plate as well as hitting a triple. JV2 Girls Softball lost 4-14 to Chippewa Falls. The JV2 was led by Leah Bystol who hit her first homerun! All levels are back in action tomorrow at Chippewa Falls.
April 24
The Mustangs Golf Team finished in 4th place (3 shots out of 3rd) out of 18 teams at the Whitetail Invitational @ Colfax Wednesday. Leading the way was 1st place medalist Tyler Recklin shooting a 1 over 72. Others scores were Trent Wold with an 80 good for 12th & Wes Miller & Mitch Kopascewski both with 86's.
Congratulations to the High School Orchestras, both of which received a rating of 1, for their performances at our district's annual band and orchestra large group festival that took place at the middle school. Both groups performed well and deserved every bit of praise they received. Well done, Orchestras.
April 25
In a steady rain Thursday the Boys Varsity Golf Team shot their best team 9 hole round of the past 2 years with a 13 over par 153 at the BRC meet at Turtleback Golf in Rice Lake. It was only good for 5th place but 1 shot back of 3rd & 3 shots out of 2nd. Leading the Mustangs was Mitch Kopaczewski with a 37 good for 10th place. Followed by Tyler Reckin & Wes Miller with 38's in A
The Girls Soccer Team battled hard against New Richmond in the rain last night, but were not able to pull off a win. Penelope Awsumb scored the lone goal for JV and Ariana Beazley scored for varsity. Both teams will play at home again next Tuesday against Rice Lake.
The Girls Varsity Softball team fought hard after giving up a big first inning to Chippewa Falls. They battled back but ended up falling short by a score of 4-9. After the first inning we were able to hold Chippewa to one run and played a solid defensive game. Reese Barfknecht, Livi Sample, Siera Auth, Amanda Holzhueter, Jaidyn Stouff, Adison Hasse, and Ellie Fisher all tallied hits. Amanda Holzhueter made multiple outstanding plays at 1st base. The JV Softball team lost by a score of 3-13 and JV2 lost 1-11. JV2 Softball is back in action with a home double header against Chippewa on Monday and all 3 levels play next Tuesday.
Congratulations to the Girls Track and Field team on their performances last night at the Rice Lake Invite. The team was led by a second place finish from Izzie Whitwam in the pole vault. There were quite a few personal bests despite the poor weather. The girls will be back in action next week on Tuesday at River Falls. Good luck girls!
The Boys Tennis Team was able to beat the rain last night and claim a 7-0 sweep against River Falls. The Mustangs are now 2-0 in conference and 9-1 overall. They are traveling to the Milwaukee area today for a two-day invite.
April 28
The Boys Tennis Team traveled to the Milwaukee area over the weekend and dropped some close matches to Slinger, Hartford, and Monona Grove. Earning their first career varsity wins were Will McKnight, Gabe Grutt, and Carter Goodman.
The Girls Track and Field Team sent their distance runners to the UW-Eau Claire Distance Gala on Friday night. It was an awesome event with music, a great announcer, excellent competition and weather while racing under the lights. Our girls performed exceptionally well, with Bennett Schmitt and Lauren McCalla winning the 3200m and 1600m races, respectively, establishing meet records in the process. Lauren's time also smashed the Menomonie school record by five seconds, and earned her yet another All-American award for this season, her fourth so far! We also had third and fifth place finishes in the 1600 meter from Bree Barfknecht and Bella Drake, and 4th place finishes from Addy Schuller in the 800, and Anika Schoenberger in the 3200. All six girls ran their best times of the season. Congrats ladies!
GROWW Releases Report on Housing in Menomonie
Report is result of 2024 door knocking and listening session campaign
Aerial view of downtown Menomonie
Menomonie, WI - A new “Housing in Menomonie” community report released by GrassRoots Organizing Western Wisconsin (GROWW) sheds light on the pain, uncertainty, and frustration Menomonie residents face due to rising rents, substandard living conditions, and limited housing availability. Visit bit.ly/groww-housing to view the full report.
The report documents the firsthand stories of Menomonie residents, showing the housing crisis through the real consequences facing everyday people in our community.
A local veteran talked about the declining quality of housing: "I served my country, and now I’m living in a place with mold and broken windows. It’s humiliating, but I don’t have any other options."
Another resident shared their frustration with rent prices: "Every year, my rent goes up, and every year, I have less to spend on groceries, gas, and my kids. It’s like I’m paying more for nothing."
These are just a few of the stories told in the report, and understanding the pain facing Menomonie residents is vital for working on solutions.
“This report isn’t about data and numbers, it’s about real people facing real struggles,” said Cody Gentz, a Menomonie City Councilman and member of the Housing Justice Team. “We heard from families who can’t afford rent increases, seniors who struggle to find accessible housing, and students living in unhealthy conditions. Menomonie deserves better.”
In addition to challenges, residents also offered possible solutions to their housing concerns, such as changing zoning laws to allow more types of housing and bringing back municipal rental inspections.
“I own and live in a duplex in east Menomonie that I bought in 1997,” said Margo Hecker, a local Menomonie landlord. “Every year, a city building inspector would come to look at my upstairs apartment and recommend any changes needed for safety reasons. I appreciated the feedback and guidance. Renters here deserve to have the security of knowing their rental has passed an inspection by the city.”
The report was compiled by GROWW’s Housing Justice Team, formed in the Spring of 2024, and is the culmination of a months-long listening campaign that engaged hundreds of residents in the community.
Dunn County residents and GROWW organizers came together to start exploring local solutions to housing problems, feeling that the local, state, and federal governments were not doing enough.
The team engaged residents to document the realities of housing in Menomonie in order to determine the most pressing and impactful housing problems. Through a grassroots listening campaign the team knocked on 558 doors, held three community listening sessions, and surveyed nearly 200 students at UW-Stout.
Their findings confirm what many in the community have long felt: the housing crisis in Menomonie is real, severe, and complex.
GROWW is a grassroots organization based in western Wisconsin.
Students gain 'confidence to go global' to join international community
By Abbey Goers, UW-Stout
Photos by Denajah Smith, Helen Wilson and Jerry Hui
Thirteen members of UW-Stout’s Chamber Choir braved the Scandinavian winter in performances with international university singers to warm audiences’ hearts.
They partnered with choirs from Stockholm’s KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden’s largest technical university, and Linköping University. They also held informal community performances.
Choral Director Jerry Hui hopes his students gain the confidence to go global and imagine themselves being part of the international community.
“Multiple performances of the same program for different audiences are an invaluable experience as singers. There are so many beautiful venues with wonderful acoustics that can easily be the highlight of our students’ time as choral singers,” he said.
Their first joint performance entitled “Come and Stay Awhile,” with the Royal Institute of Technology’s Kongl. Teknologkören choir, was held at St. Johannes Kyrka, in Stockholm.
The spectacular church’s steeple towers above neighboring buildings. Within, its Gothic Revival style displays ornamental arches and carving, high vaulted ceilings, lattice work and enormous stained-glass windows.
But where most expansive, stone structures create echoes during choral performance, St. Johannes produced a much clearer, dry sound. Among their songs, Chamber Choir sang two in traditional Swedish: “Limu, Limu, Lima,” arranged by Sofia Söderberg, and “Helan går,” arranged by Hui.
“I love the selection of music we sing and the people I sing with. We have built such a community within Chamber Choir that it makes coming together and singing so much more than a class to me,” said Denajah Smith, a human development and family studies senior from Minneapolis.
“Music is a form of expression. It helps us to navigate the world around us as well as share our history and culture with those who want to learn more about the world. Music has always provided me with a way to express myself that words alone never seemed to do justice.”
Continue reading story HERE
Public Meetings Apr 30 - May 7
City of Menomonie
Mon May 5 City Council Meeting - 7 p.m.
Click HERE for full calendar.
School District of Menomonie
No Meetings
Click HERE for full calendar and additional details
Dunn County
Wed Apr 30 Facilities Committee - 6 p.m.
Wed May 7 Planning, Resources & Development - 8:30 a.m.
Click HERE for calendar, documents, recordings & public commenting
Menomonie Collegians
Ethan Wurtzel earns WIAC tennis player of the week honors
Menomonie’s Ethan Wurtzel is the No. 1 singles player for the UW-Eau Claire men’s tennis team. Photo by Zach Jacobson, UW-Eau Claire
EAU CLAIRE - UW-Eau Claire's Ethan Wurtzel was named the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) men's tennis athlete of the week April 22.
The Menomonie High School graduate won a pair of No. 1 singles matches during the week, finishing with a 2-0 record. He defeated UW-La Crosse's Tyler Schneider 7-6, 5-7, 6-3 on April 17, clinching a 4-3 dual victory. Wurtzel followed with a victory in straight sets over Rumeal Setts of Hamline University, 7-5, 6-2 on April 19, helping the Blugolds win the dual 7-0.
The award was the third time this season Wurtzel received the conference honor, but the first time as a singles player. Wurtzel teamed with partner Juan Gallego to twice capture doubles team of the week laurels in February. The team has played at the No. 1 doubles spot most of the season.
The Blugolds wrapped up the regular season last weekend, winning three matches. Wurtzel won all three matches at No. 1 singles and at No. 1 doubles.
Layne Pitt is the retired UW-Stout sports information director and also worked more than a decade at The Dunn County News.
Menomonie Collegians is a regular feature of Menomonie News Net. The column is not limited to student-athletes, but may be a former MHS student in a play, forensics, music or any type of collegiate competition. If you know of a Menomonie Collegian, please email l[email protected]
This story by Layne Pitt of Menomonie News Net is licensed under a CC BY SA 4.0 International license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
For a Calendar of Events in the Menomonie Area, visit Kathy Weber’s Menomonie Minute.
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