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VOL. 123, NO. 52 THURSDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2015 SINGLE COPY PRICE: $1.25

www.MiddletonTimes.com

Q&A withQ&A withSen. RonSen. RonJohnsonJohnson

Local Local companycompanysteps up steps up to supportto supportconservancyconservancy

The United States Senator shares histhoughts as he gears upfor a rematch with RussFeingold. See page 3.

Transplantfamilies arehome for the holidays

Since opening RestoringHope Transplant House to visit-ing transplant families nearlyfour years ago here in down-town Middleton, we have hadthe good fortune to welcomeguests from all parts of Wiscon-sin, 25 different states and as faraway as Canada and England.All arrived here at 7457 Terrace

Avenue in search of a secondchance at life through the mira-cle of transplantation and in theprocess, fell in love with theplace we all take such greatpride in calling “The GoodNeighbor City.”

On behalf of our very grate-ful transplant family, I wouldlike to take just a moment tothank you all this holiday sea-son for embracing so many of

Town board approves new ski chalet

Construction of the Black-hawk Ski Club’s new chaletmeans a modern facility for agroup that otherwise cherishesthe rustic indoor ambiancethat has part of its après skiexperience for the past severaldecades.

The private ski club, lo-cated just west of Pleasant

View Golf Course on Black-hawk Rd., has relied on out-houses as restrooms and “notvery pleasant ones,” MarkTorresani, club vice presidenttold the Middleton TownBoard Monday.

The new 2,100-square footWest Chalet definitely wouldbe an upgrade from the exist-ing chalet that nearly burneddown a few years ago, anevent Torresani jokingly

wished had happened.The town board unani-

mously approved the pro-posed $350,000 chalet withconditions and a caution toprepare for an avalanche ofrequests from non-membersto use it.

“You will get more requestsfor events at this beautiful fa-cility in such a beautiful set-ting,” said Board Supervisor

Photo contributedCindy Herbst is director of Restoring Hope Transplant

House in downtown Middleton.

by KEvin MuRPHy

Times-Tribune

Major developmentsare moving forward

The Middleton CommonCouncil has approved the nextsteps for three developmentsthat will increase residentialdensity and provide more af-fordable housing options inthe community, according tosupporters.

The developments includea complete redevelopment ofOld Middleton Centre withresidential, office and com-mercial space, a 95-unit apart-ment building off ofParmenter St., and a 91-unitapartment building on the cor-ner of Blackhawk and Pleas-

ant View Roads.The council approved re-

zoning to a planned develop-ment district and generalimplementation plan for theOld Middleton Centre rede-velopment proposed by devel-oper Uptown Middleton, asub-tier LCC of T. Wall Enter-prises. The proposal includes205 residential units, 62,000square feet of commercial andoffice space with undergroundparking. The project has beenapproved conceptually with$7.7 million in developer fi-nanced TIF assistance.

The workforce housingcommittee recommended thecity provide $750,000 in TIFto subsidize 10 units to be re-

served for workforce housing,contingent on a 50 percentmatch in funds from DaneCounty Housing Fund.

Middleton Chamber ofCommerce President BobVandenBurgt penned a letterto the city in support of theproposed redevelopment.

“The Middleton Chamberof Commerce Board of Direc-tors supports the redevelop-ment of the Old MiddletonCentre property,” he wrote.“We know that having an ad-equate housing supply is crit-ical to Middleton’scomprehensive efforts to pro-mote and support the develop-

Parking or a park?

Middleton alders are delib-erating on whether the cityshould purchase the proper-ties west of the Village Greenpub and if purchased whetherthe land should be used to cre-ate a park, parking lot orboth.

At the site there currentlyresides four residential build-ings including Wayside Apart-ments. Developer TerrenceWall has purchased the prop-erties under contract and willturn it over to the city for $1.3million, otherwise he says hewill use it as private parkingfor the conceptually approvedredevelopment of Old Mid-dleton Center he proposed.

Planning and zoning direc-tor Eileen Kelley presented

the council with the three pos-sible options for the site if thecity were to acquire it.

Option one would bemostly green space withstonescape paths and a smallcovered stage/pavilion. Therewould also be benches, publicart, tables, trees and shrubs.

Option two would be verysimilar but includes a muchmore costly undergroundparking garage beneath thepark providing 23 stalls. Thisoption would reduce greenspace slightly by having atunnel, stairway, and elevatorleading down to the under-ground parking.

Option three is a parkingplaza that could also serve asa event or public gatheringspace. The plaza would fea-ture a decorative brick orstamped concrete surface withgrass and vegetation tied in.

There would be 35 spaceswhen used for parking.

Neither option one or twowould have funds for acquisi-tion, improvements or main-tenance readily available.The city would have to find away to finance these optionsoutside of the approved 2016budget. Option three wouldbe an eligible TIF expense.

Alder Kathy Olson ex-pressed the need for greenspace in the downtown andsaid there isn’t much interestfrom her constituents in a dualuse parking plaza.

“A street can be a dual useevent space according to whatwe have right now,” Olsoncommented. “I don’t thinkpeople are all that interestedor excited about going into aparking area. It would only

by CAMEROn BREn

Times-Tribune

by CinCy HERBST

Speical to the Times-Tribune

by CAMEROn BREn

Times-Tribune

City debates downtown needs

See MAJOR, page 2

See PARK, page 6

See CHALET, page 5

See HOPE, page 6

-Page 2-Page 2

Project is major upgrade for ski club

Newcomb Constructiongives $10,000...

ment and growth of area busi-nesses and that this project hasthe potential to add more multi-family housing to the city’s in-ventory.”

However, like city alders andstaff, VandenBurgt has concernsabout shortage of parking in theproposal. At the last plan com-mission meeting, Wall agreed toimplement stacked parking tobump the proposed 380 stalls tomeet the city’s code require-ment of 530.

The stacked parking will con-sist of a single lift in some stallsso that one car can be lifted andanother can park below it.These spots will be for couplesor singles who use one car moreoften. Other stacked parkingstalls will have a rack systemthat can be operated with asmartphone application and willshift cars up, down, and side toside to retrieve a driver’s carwhen needed.

Meadow Ridge Apartments,

proposed by developer JacobKlein, will be a 95-unit apart-ment building on Lisa Lane justwest of Parmenter with a major-ity of units reserved for work-force housing. The buildingwill be mixed income work-force housing with 80 percent(76) of the units income re-stricted to low to moderate in-come individuals or families, 20percent at market rate, and 25percent of all units targetedspecifically to veterans or dis-abled people.

Klein applied for and wasawarded WHEDA tax creditsfor the project, because of theproximity to jobs, the city’s fi-nancial support, and being in anarea with a lack of affordablehousing.

City council also approvedthe specific implementationplan (SIP) for Steve BrownApartments’ 91-unit Brown-point Reserve to be built on thenorthwest corner of the Black-hawk and Pleasant View Roadintersection. The motion

passed unanimously with the re-quirement that the lighting andlandscape plan go back to plancommission for final approval,because of neighbor’s con-cerns.

The proposal has been underfire from neighboring residentssince it was first proposed dueto concerns about the impact thebuilding would have on trafficand safety. An independenttraffic study coincided with theconcerns and led the plan com-mission to reject the initial re-zoning request.

Steve Brown Apartmentsbrought the proposal back andasked for assistance from theCities of Madison and Middle-ton to secure funding for inter-section improvements. Bothcities approved funding in theirbudgets. The developer alsomet with and plans to continuemeeting with neighbors to en-sure everyone can live with thefinal outcome.

PAGE 2 MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE THURSDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2015

Guinness World Records, registered in London, Eng-land, officially confirms that MOM now holds the Guin-ness World Record for “Most People Making S’moresSimultaneously,” at the Bonfire Bash on September 5,2015, a benefit to Prevent Homelessness through MOM,with 407 people participating. Amy Carlson, NBC15and Bucky Badger led the countdown and attempt.

“While the goal was to set a Guinness World Record,the most important part of the event is that we raisedfunds to help Prevent Homelessness in our community,”said Bret Newcomb, President of Newcomb Construc-tion, the presenting sponsor of the event. “We are ex-cited about both now holding the record and theawareness this event brought to this important issue.”

“Approximately 25 percent of the kids in MOM’sservice area live in poverty and are at risk of becominghomeless. This past year, MOM distributed over$100,000 in housing program assistance, which is com-bined with Case Management and financial counseling,”said Al Ripp, executive director at MOM. “Combinedwith use of the Food Pantry, the goal is to keep familiesstable and in their homes and prevent them from thestress and instability of homelessness.”

Newcomb donates $10,000 to Pheasant BranchBret Newcomb, as President

of Newcomb ConstructionCompany, presented the Friendsof Pheasant Branch Conser-vancy with $10,000 to supporttheir work in restoring, preserv-ing, and protecting the natural600-acre area, set aside for pas-sive uses.

The presentation was madeon the site of one of the com-pany’s projects, along DemingWay adjacent to the Conser-vancy and the Middleton ParksDepartment bike trail along thePheasant Branch creek onWednesday, Dec. 16.

“I run it with my colleaguesat least once a week, and I hikeit with my wife and I climb thehills. My son’s Cross-Countryteam practices on the trails.And every time I come out here,it is better than the last,” he ex-

plained. He described it as a“regional gem” and noted its in-credible value to the extendedcommunity of Middleton andsurrounding areas.

He considers it of great eco-nomic and aesthetic value tomany businesses in the area.Bret cited examples of his owncompany’s customers’ buildingsnearby — such as SpectrumBrands, and the new FiskarsAmericas Headquarters nowunder construction on DemingWay in Middleton. It will openin 2016 and includes environ-mentally sensitive design fea-tures, and stormwatermanagement measures devel-oped in cooperation with theCity of Middleton. “Thesebusinesses in the MiddletonCorporate Center take real

value from the Conservancyand its trails,” said Newcomb.

A local real estate developershares this view: “In a competi-tive marketplace, the recre-ational and natural amenities ofthe Conservancy have helped usto attract thousands of jobs as-sociated with such local head-quarters as Spectrum Brands,Fiskars, UW Health, and Meadand Hunt to name a few” saidJohn Livesey of Livesey Com-pany. “And the Conservancykeeps getting better” he added.

Accepting the donation wasDagny Myrah, President of theFriends of Pheasant Branch.She gratefully acknowledgedNewcomb’s contribution andhis stated hope that “others mayfeel inspired to consider howthey might support these efforts

in a rapidly developing city,”Myrah said.

“We are constantly learninghow important Pheasant BranchConservancy is to the residentsand the businesses of Middletonand Madison, as well as to pro-tecting the natural features, suchas the lakes just downstream.We have been thrilled with theCommunity response to ourprograms this year and majordonations like this will help usevery day in our shared workwith the City and the County, aswe face the changes and chal-lenges in the Conservancy,”said Dagny. “Our Annual Meet-ing on January 23 at KromeryMiddle School in Middletonwill cap off our 20th year ofpreservation, restoration and ad-vocacy.”

MAJOR continued from page 1

Community officially breaks the Guinness World Record for Most People Making S’mores Simultaneously at Bonfire Bash

Q: You’re considered achampion of Conservatism.Some of Wisconsin’s more Pro-gressive voters have a negativeimpression of that word. Whatwould you like to say to thosepeople?

A: I am proud to representall Wisconsinites and I workhard in the Senate to find areasof agreement with my col-leagues, Democrat and Repub-lican. That practical approachcomes from my business back-ground. I am conservative – andit’s fair to note that far moreWisconsinites consider them-selves conservative than callthemselves progressive or lib-eral. Consider the definition ofthe root word “conserve”: “Toprotect something (especiallyan environmentally or culturallyimportant place or thing) fromharm or destruction. To usesomething carefully to avoidloss or waste.”

I believe this 239-year experi-ment we call America is some-thing incredibly precious, andmust be preserved – both eco-nomically and environmen-tally. We have enormouschallenges facing our great na-tion. We need leaders who havethe integrity to tell the truth andfind real solutions based on theprinciples that made Americagreat – individual liberty com-bined with limited governmentclose to the governed.

Q: The economy has recov-ered significantly since the re-cession, but it has been, to somedegree, a lumbering recov-ery. What are your ideas forcontinued economic recovery?

A: As a manufacturer whohas started multiple businesses,I understand the power of a freemarket system to produce prod-ucts and services we all needand value at the lowest possibleprice and highest possible levelof quality and customer serv-ice. I also understand it is localprivate businesses that create

good-paying, self-sustainingjobs – not big government.

We don’t have a choice; wemust compete in a global econ-omy – and we can. America isthe world’s largest market – itsbiggest customer. As a manu-facturer, I know manufacturerswant to be close to customers.All we have to do as a nation isfully utilize our God-given en-ergy resources while protectingour environment, reduce themassive regulatory burden, andreform our complex tax code tomake American businessescompetitive.

Q: When you initially ranfor office, it was as an outsider– as someone who wanted tobring a business-like approachto the federal government. Nowyou’ve been there for six years,so you are, technically speakingat least, on the inside. Howhave your views and ap-proaches to legislation changedsince you won your seat in2010?

A: I’m still the outsider –I’ve never lost the perspectiveof a manufacturer and citizen-legislator. I’ve certainly gottena close look at the dysfunctionin Washington – dysfunctioncaused by bloated bureaucraciescreated and expanded by pro-fessional, career politicians –and the resulting depth of ourproblems. It has made me moredetermined than ever to chal-lenge the status quo and findreal solutions. Washingtonneeds leaders who have succee-ded in the real world of busi-ness.

Q: You are chairman of theUnited States Senate Committeeon Homeland Security and Gov-ernmental Affairs. In that ca-pacity, when speaking abouttightening U.S. borders, you re-cently said: “[t]here’s not oneparty that has a monopoly oncompassion… .” Can you pro-vide some examples of yourparty’s compassion in the formof legislation?

A: Americans are compas-

sionate people. But outsourcingour compassion to the federalgovernment hasn’t work outvery well. The $16 trillion,government-run “War onPoverty” didn’t eliminatepoverty. Since the mid 1960’sthe number of Americans inpoverty has increased from 29million to 47 million, povertyrates have averaged 15 percentfor 50 years, the American fam-ily as a foundational institutionhas dramatically weakened, andtoo many Americans have be-come trapped in a cycle of bro-ken families, welfare, andpoverty.

On a macro level, I believe theanswer is to devolve powerback to states and communitieswhere problems are more effec-tively solved. Proposals toblock grant federal welfare pro-grams back to the states, to beadministered closer to the peo-ple we need to help, are the firststep.

One example that required nolegislation is my Senate office’sinitiative to connect inner city,unemployed individuals whoare genuinely seeking opportu-nity with opportunities thatexist throughout the state. Weare teaming with inner citychurches and providing a week-long training session and othersupport to help those individu-als get hired and stay employed.

One example of specific legis-lation I have introduced is the“Fair Chance Act.” This bipar-tisan bill “bans the box” for fed-eral government jobs andfederal contractors, giving for-merly incarcerated individualswho want to turn their livesaround a chance at obtaining aninterview and a job, withoutbeing automatically eliminatedbecause of a prior criminalrecord.

Another example is the schoolchoice program in Milwaukee,created and protected primarilyby Republicans in our state, butsupported by people of con-science in both parties. For twodecades this program has giventens of thousands of inner citychildren an equal opportunity toa good education – somethingthey wouldn’t have had ifthey’d been trapped in failingschools. I am a proud supporterof the Milwaukee schoolvoucher program and the par-ents who rely on it.

Q: Earlier this year, yousaid the U.S. is “certainly vul-nerable” to ISIS. What stepshas the U.S. taken to preventthat?Unfortunately, this Presidentand far too many politicians inboth parties are not seriousabout making the hard deci-sions required to defeat ISISand prevent the rise of another

group like it. Violent Islamic ex-tremism is a generational threatand we must rise to overcome it.

A: Our most basic task inthis mandate is securing theborder. Based on 13 committeehearings I’ve chaired and mul-tiple fact-finding trips I’vemade, the conclusion is in-escapable: our borders are notsecure. Determined terroristscould easily exploit this vulner-ability. In spite of PresidentObama’s clearly stated goal:“degrade and ultimately defeatISIS,” the recent downing of aRussian airliner, and terror at-tacks in Beruit, Paris, and Maliprove ISIS is not even con-tained, much less on a short-term path to defeat.

We must defeat ISIS and Is-lamic terror organizations wher-ever they exist. America mustassemble and lead a fully com-mitted coalition of the willingdedicated to that goal. We mustsecure our border, end the prac-tice of sanctuary cities, allowour military personnel to carryarms to protect themselves, andrebuild our military capabilityto respond to an increasinglydangerous world.

To date, the two most signifi-cant defensive measure we’vetaken against acts of IslamicTerrorism were the hardening ofcockpit doors on commercialairliners, and broader sharing ofintelligence and other informa-tion across federal agencies andbetween federal, state, and locallaw enforcement and publicsafety agencies.

Unfortunately, much moreneeds to be done.

Q: Tragic mass shootingsseem pretty ubiquitous in Amer-ica at this point. While everyoneagrees they are horrific, Repub-licans and Democrats disagreevastly on how to curb them.What should the federal govern-ment do (or not do) to preventthese shootings?

A: When considering anyfederal government response orlegislation, the first three ques-tions we should ask are: 1)Would this have prevented past

tragedies? 2) Will it prevent fu-ture tragedies? And 3) Can wedo this and still protect personalliberty and constitutional free-dom?

A significant majority of massshootings involve mental ill-ness, a problem for which thereare no easy or obvious solu-tions. I’m always open to re-viewing bipartisan proposalsthat seek to improve our coun-try’s mental health system, en-force laws already on the books,and deal with problems likestraw purchases and illegalfirearm trafficking. I have sup-ported bipartisan legislation onmental health reform, but notenough Democrats agreed tomove the proposals forward.Both parties should be able toagree on fixing our broken men-tal health system to get dis-turbed people the help theyneed before they do somethingtragic.

Q: Your critics often labelyou a “climate change denier.”What are your views on globalclimate change? Can govern-ment protect the environmentwithout hamstringing com-merce?

A: I have never denied thatclimate change exists – it al-ways has and always will. Ap-proximately 20,000 years ago,vast areas of Wisconsin werecovered by glaciers. Sinceman’s presence at that time wasminimal, other forces causedthose glaciers to recede. Didthose forces cease to exist?

Climate change exists withouthumanity’s input but there is nodoubt our activity has an impacton the environment. We shouldall celebrate the EPA’s successin dramatically reducing themain chemical pollutants it wasestablished to address in the1970s. Everyone wants a cleanand healthy environment – it’s agoal we all share. We also needto follow the dictates of reasonand balance and avoid policiesthat have negligible benefit atmassive economic cost. Tech-nology is still the answer tolong-term environmental pro-tection, and to get that newcleaner technological innova-tion we need robust economic

growth.

President Obama disagrees andhas pursued policies he knowswill harm economic growth. Asa candidate, President Obamasaid that because of his pro-posed climate policies, “elec-tricity rates would necessarilyskyrocket.” That’s not good forWisconsin families, or for oureconomy. We need a strongeconomy to be able to afford aclean environment.So I will remain skeptical ofany policies designed to artifi-cially drive up the cost of powerand weaken our economy. I willsupport a balanced approach tokeeping energy prices competi-tive and our environment clean.

Q: There’s great politicalpolarity in the state rightnow. How do you plan to ad-dress that?

A: My approach is to con-centrate on areas of agreementthat unify us as a nation, insteadof exploiting what dividesus. Here’s the bestexample. We share the samegoal. We all want a safe, pros-perous, and secureAmerica. We’re concernedabout each other. No politicalparty has a monopoly on com-passion. We all want everyoneto succeed, to have the opportu-nity to build a good life forthemselves and their families. Iam not a professional politicianplaying partisan games inWashington. I’m a businessmanand a problem-solver who is fo-cused on results.

Q: What is your proudestaccomplishment during yourfirst term in office?

A: It’s quite rare to have afirst-term Senator become amajor committee Chair – I’mproud that after only a shorttime there, my colleaguestrusted me with the Chair ofHomeland Security and Gov-ernmental Affairs. More impor-tantly, I’m proud of the waySenator Tom Carper (D-Del.)and I have run the committeetogether. By concentrating onareas of agreement we havepassed 50 pieces of legislationout of my Committee on a bi-partisan basis, and nine havebeen matched with bills out ofthe House and signed into lawby President Obama.

Perhaps the most visible accom-plishment of this bipartisan ap-proach to achieving real resultsis the Stillwater bridge finallybeing constructed after decadesof delay. My cooperation withDemocrat Senators Kohl,Klobuchar, and Franken helpedmake the bridge a reality.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2015 MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE PAGE 3

A conversation with Ron JohnsonEarlier this year the Middleton Times-Tribune published a Q and A with Democratic Senate candidate Russ Feingold; Now it’s time for incumbent Ron Johnson, the Republican who unseated Feingold nearly six years ago, to weigh inby MATT GEiGER

Times-Tribune

Sen. Ron Johnson with his family.

Eight Dane County town-ships, including Cross Plains,Dunn, Montrose, Perry, Chris-tiana, Oregon, Pleasant Springs,and Springdale, wrote a letter toJohn Jagler, Chair of the 2015Assembly Committee on Hous-ing and Real Estate, to opposelegislation that would allowDane County towns to opt outof county zoning. A public hear-ing was held about the new leg-islation on Thursday, Dec. 10.

The current law gives citiesand villages control over zoningdevelopment while most towns

share authority with the county,which has veto power. More-over, Dane County towns havethe ability to approve or denyconditional use permits, whichis exclusive to Dane County.

Town of Cross Plains Chair,Greg Hyer, stated, “The pro-posed state law change wouldsubstantially increase Town ofCross Plains costs for planningand zoning, create uncertaintyabout the rules, provide an op-portunity for experienced pro-fessionals to structure the rulesin their favor, and discouragecoordinate policies for accom-modating growth and roads andservices needed to support thatgrowth.”

Mark Hazelbaker, legal coun-sel for Dane County Towns As-sociation and board membersJerry Derr and Tim Roehl, ofthe Middleton Town Board,have lobbied on behalf of thechanges to the zoning to createmore local autonomy to growtax bases. Previously, lobbyistRobert Welch was hired by theassociation to push the legisla-tion through by getting it in thestate budget; however, that didnot happen.

Earlier this month, the legis-lation was introduced before theAssembly’s Committee onHousing and Real Estate for apublic hearing. At this hearing,Derr and Hazelbaker declared

that zoning plans are signifi-cantly changed before they areapproved as it costs severalthousands of dollars to put azoning petition together, and noone is going to spend that muchmoney unless they know theirpetition will be approved.

In the letter to Jagler, thetowns stated: “Perhaps the mostimportant reason we encourageyou to oppose this legislation isthat is seems to be attempting tofix a problem that, we believe,is overstated and quite limited.Towns enjoy significant bene-fits from our partnership withDane County Zoning, and theselimited incidents [only 13 zon-ing petitions have been denied

since 2011] of denial do notwarrant abandoning a well-functioning system.”

Dane County executive JoeParisi is also against this legis-lation and was surprised that itcame back to the public hearingas there were so many peopleopposing the legislation in thefirst place.

“We are the fastest growingcommunity in the state – 70 per-cent of the state’s populationgrowth occurs in Dane County– and we need the ability tomanage the manner in which wegrow,” Parisi said.

Additionally, he Parisi saidmany of those who are pushingfor the change in state law donot actually live in DaneCounty.

The bill, as written, wouldonly apply to Dane County be-cause Milwaukee County does-n’t have any towns, and thosetwo counties are the only twoabove the 485,000 populationthreshold set in the bill.

“This law change eliminatesan historical shared county andtown responsibility to manageorderly growth and develop-ment. My experience is thattowns have not been able towork together to agree on uni-form seasonal weight limits forheavy equipment,” Hyer said. “Ican’t imagine a consensus de-veloping on uniform alternativezoning and planning policies.”

A comparable legislative ef-fort made it to a public hearinglast spring, but it failed.


Should towns be able to opt out of zoning?by JAnELLE MATHEwS

Times-Tribune

The road to state starts nowfor Middleton’s skiers andboarders as 2016 looks to be an-other great season with depthand talent on the teams andnearly 70 student athletes, in-cluding many freshmen, raringto go.

“We have a very goodgroup,” said snowboard coachDarrin Kolka. Last year, histeam took second in the WH-SARA conference and fourth instate. “I have all these returningkids on the boys side, with no

seniors, so this year and next aretwo big years for us.”

Kolka is pleased to be over-seeing a full roster of girls thisyear, too. “They’re very new,but the big thing is we now haveour own team of all Middletonhigh school girls.”

Ski team coach Ray Riddlesaid his goal is to have bothboys and girls teams qualify forthe state championships again.Last year the boys took first inconference and the girls werethird. Preparations will get un-

derway once the snow - or lackof it - cooperates.

“The weather’s been reallyhard, as a coach, as a skier, as alover of winter. But we’ve beendoing dry land training in themeantime.”

The ski team returns sevenstate contenders from last year:Olivia Krigbaum, Erika Rader,Anne Squires, Jack Ronnie,Zack Whritenour, Max West-hoff and Austin Krantz. Return-ing skiers Eric Anderson, Alec

Riddle and Alex Kushner arealso expected to make a strongpush for a trip to state. Thesnowboard team returns stateathletes Paige Wirth, CharlesAngevine, Alec Johnson,Campbell Esbeck, MaxwellLawrence and John Jones plusstrong contenders Sam Ander-son and Jackson Grimm.

The first meet is January 4 atTyrol Basin Ski Area at 5:30p.m.

Ski/snowboard teams are ready to compete...

Tim Roehl. The club has not held any

weddings on the property inyears and “frowns” on eventsthat are not club-related anddo not involve members, Tor-resani said.

Current club policy now re-stricts chalet use to club spon-sored events that are “in line”with normal activities involv-ing members but decisions areat the discretion of the board,he said.

“The policy can changewith the changes on theboard,” said Town Chair BillKolar, who asked if the newchalet will prompt a change inpolicy.

Torresani said it would besomething the board will haveto take up.

The club expanded parkingthree years ago in anticipationof building a larger chalet.The lower parking lot betterserves membership that hasgrown over the years and carsno longer park along Black-hawk Rd. while weekend les-sons bring in more traffic.

The new lower lot is unlitand the board required instal-lation of more lights if theclub wants to occupy the newchalet by its November targetdate.

“One light for two parkinglots … doesn’t meet code re-quirements, Kolar said.

The board also approved in-stallation of a 5,140-gallonholding tank instead of a sep-tic system as only seasonaluse is anticipated at the prop-erty and the hilly terrainmakes siting a septic field dif-ficult.

The club has two chalets, anewer “upper” East Chalet

and an older West Chalet,which is used mainly foryouth activities.

The existing West Chaletwill be razed and replacedwith a 2,118-square-foot, sin-gle-story building with partialexposed basement. The build-ing will be sided with roughsawn cedar; the roof will berustic steel and asphalt shin-gles.

“We still want to keep thefeel of Blackhawk with a rus-tic, traditional chalet …heated with a wood stove andwith some sort of heatingplant,” Torresani said.

The chalet fund raising ef-fort has reached $250,000 ofits $350,000 goal, accordingto the club’s website.

Chalet construction isscheduled to begin in May

and be completed by October.Blackhawk does not plan to

conduct a membership drivein association with the newchalet, said Joe McCarthy,club president.

“The new building is theonly real change. We want itto stay the beautiful little skiclub that it is,” he said.

The club began makingsnow last month so its cross-

country ski team can practicefor upcoming meets.

Blackhawk began as an am-ateur ski jumping club in the1940s and added alpine rac-ing, biathlon and cross- coun-try skiing over the years. Itoffers programs for disabledveterans and disadvantagedyouth and mountain biking inthe summer.


CHALET continued from page 1

Time forcommunityto supportMezera

As classroom teacher andthen principal I have dedicatedmyself to helping young peopleand faculty reach their full po-tential, focusing on peoples’strengths and not weaknesses. Iask our community to focus onthe strengths of Mr. Isaac Mez-era. I hired this intelligent, en-thusiastic young man over 12years ago. An excellent Englishteacher who had a gift for in-spiring students both in theclassroom and on the track. Thearticle in the Middleton Times-Tribune was unnecessarilygraphic, mean spirited, and de-structive to this young man. Hehas acknowledged his weak-nesses and is getting help, nowhe deserves mercy as he restartshis life with his wife and family.What Mr. Mezera did waswrong and he has paid the priceof his job and his reputation,now let us, the Middleton com-

munity, support him and hisfamily. Just mercy.

Tom VandervestMiddleton High School

Principal (1997-2006)

A heartfeltthank you

Hanging winter decorationsat the Historic First LutheranChurch a few days ago Ithought how lucky this historicchurch is to have survived. Iconsidered the many peoplewho worshipped, visited andprotected this place over thenearly 150 Christmas seasonsthat have passed since its dedi-cation in May of 1866. One ofthose people was Gilsie(Gilsey) Techam (1907-1990), aretired farmer, and great grand-son of one of the early churchmembers.

Gilse’s family was one ofmany who came to the westMiddleton area from Mecklen-burg, Germany. His greatgrandfather Friedrich (Fritz)Techam (1814-1881), was aweaver and farmer. On 16 April

1855, along with his wife Elis-abeth Fehland (1823-1855) andfive children, the familyboarded the vessel “Oder” andsailed from Hamburg. They ar-rived in New York after a har-rowing voyage of nine weeks,during which they narrowly es-caped shipwreck, and madetheir way to west Middletonwhere Fritz bought two hundredand forty acres of “wild” land aportion of which would beowned by the Techam familyfor the next 138 years.

They had barely arrived inMiddleton when ElisabethFehland died on 17 June 1855leaving Fritz in a new country,widowed and the father of fiveyoung children. He set to workclearing his land, planting andbuilding a home for his chil-dren. Then, in December 1855,the youngest son, Joachim, justseven months old when thefamily left Hamburg, followedhis mother to the grave. JohannFrederick Techam (1845-1926),who would become grandfatherto Gilsie, was just nine years oldwhen the family arrived inAmerica. Nine year old Johannwas now a motherless child la-boring beside his father to im-prove their land and care for his

siblings. Johann would survive life in

America. In 1872 he wouldmarry Liesetta Wittenburg(1850-1895) and father elevenchildren including Frederick(Fred) (1880-1962) who wouldbecome father to Gilsie. A sonand daughter died shortly afterbirth in 1890 and 1892. Then, in1895 Liesetta would die alongwith her twin sons, Jessie andJuneau. Now, fifteen-year-oldFred was without a mother andwould work the farm with hisfather and help care for the fam-ily.

In 1905, still working thefarm, Fred married Caroline(Lena) Schulenburg (1881-1928) and in 1907 Gilsie wasborn. He had two sisters, Ber-nice (1905-1983) and Luella(1910 -1987). Gilsie made thelong walk from the farm to at-tend school in Middleton wherehe played basketball, bowled,and completed the 12th grade.

At home on “Shellhorn Hill”eighty-nine of the original twohundred and forty acres re-mained in the family name andthere were plenty of chores todo. Gilsie raised sheep, pigsand chickens and milked thirtytwo cows. Hay was stored

loose in the barn. Until 1939when he bought his first tractorgrain was harvested with horsesand a threshing machine.

Gilsie never married. In1972 he retired but rented thefarmland to area farmers whoworked the property. His sistersdied in 1983 and 1987 andshortly after their deaths Gilsie,now 80 years old was ap-proached by developers andsold his property. The HolidayInn was built shortly after andtoday the Marriott Hotel standson the site of the original home-stead just East of Esser Pond inGreenway Station.

Gilsie’s generosity to theMiddleton community andother charities was great. Heleft most of the remaining$700,000 of his estate to chari-ties and organizations. His giftof $20,000 to the historic FirstLutheran Church was instru-mental in the first renovation in1989. He also gifted the Mid-dleton Historical Society withthe purchase of the RowleyHouse that serves as the mu-seum, the Evangelical LutheranChurch of America’s WorldHunger Appeal, St. Luke’sChurch in Middleton, the Mid-dleton-Cross Plains School Dis-

trict, Boy Scout Troops, theAmerican Lung Association ofWisconsin, the American RedCross, HospiceCare, the Mid-dleton Library board, the Mid-dleton Fire District, theMiddleton Area EmergencyServices, and close family andfriends.

Gilsie’s ancestors are buriedin both the “old” cemeterywhere the log church was builtand in the cemetery of the his-toric white church. I think oftheir struggles and am gratefulthat the church stands to honortheir joys and sorrows, to livesfilled with love, labor and lossesand the hopes and dreams thatlife for their children would bebetter than their own.

This is the season for giving;more importantly it is the sea-son to give thanks for what hasbeen received. To each of youwho have given time, labor,money and goodwill to keephistory alive, the board sendssincere thanks and best wishesfor the New Year.

God Bless You, Every One!Alice Drake


our guests in their time of great-est need. Your kindness andsupport continues to be a bless-ing to so many who come to callMiddleton their home awayfrom home throughout the year.Thank you all for makingRestoring Hope TransplantHouse your gift to the transplantcommunity – we hope you get achance to meet some of ouramazing guests and learn moreabout their inspiring journeys asthey return the favor by givingback to Middleton in their ownways.

MIDDLETON JUST FEELS LIKE HOME:

All of our early morningwalkers, foodies, avid cyclists,live music, small town breweryand safety conscious lovingguests agree that Middleton justfeels like home. While manyare quick to compliment thecharming beauty of the house it-self, it truly is the vibrant down-town Middleton area that

captures their heart during theirstay.

GUESTS GIVING BACK TO THE COMMUNITY:

From our guests comparingnotes regarding their favoriteHubbard Avenue Diner pie,sampling the many tasty gelatooptions at Villa Dolce, every-one’s favorite burgers at the Vil-lage Green, the good folks atThe Free House having thekindness to move one of ourmobility impaired guests fromSheboygan to the front of theline for a table on a very busynight, heading out to Sofra witha California family to celebrategoing home cancer free after alengthy stay, visiting our goodfriends at Vin Santo to enjoy ahome-cooked meal the night be-fore a loved one gets admittedto the hospital for severalrounds of chemo and radiation,listening to great live musicwith our friends fromLawrence, Kansas who thor-

oughly enjoy Capital Brewerynearly as much as their belovedJayhawks, to our very first guestAmy from Green Bay who ab-solutely adores the BBQchicken pizza at the RomanCandle – something that hassince been passed down to sev-eral of our guests. We haveeven seen entire families maketheir way down to raise a glassin celebration or in loving mem-ory of a loved one. The listgoes on and on. For the vastmajority, this will be the mostchallenging journey of theirlives and your outpouring ofsupport for all of them is proofpositive just how important“Good Neighbors” really are.

MIDDLETON GIVINGBACK TO THE TRANS-PLANT COMMUNITY:

The overwhelming gifts oftime, talent and materials tohelp with our day to day opera-tions and also care for our visit-ing families has been truly

unbelievable since we firstopened our doors.

Our very own MiddletonLions Club truly embraced thishouse and this cause as theirown several years ago and inthe past few years they havesuccessfully rallied statewideLions-Lioness-Leo clubs in col-lectively joining forces to raisefunds to help us get close toreaching our very ambitiousgoals for remodeling and reno-vations. The dedication andwork they have put in to unitean entire state around a causethat supports families through-out the state has simply beenamazing. Their efforts and somany others here in the commu-nity inspire us on a daily basis.

From the retired tradespeoplewho are always so eager to helpto the lady just up the street whohas volunteered to visit thehouse on occasion to cut hairfor some of our cancer patients,to the dear folks who haveopened up their incredible gar-

dens to guests to find somepeace and clear their heads, tothe talented ladies at the SeniorCenter who regularly drop offhandmade quilts that make suchperfect gifts when comfort isneeded most, to the kind localcyclists who loaned their ownbicycles to our very activeguests from London and thecountless kind souls who stopby with food donations on aregular basis so we can continueto provide a warm breakfast andhealthy snacks throughout theday for so many of our guestswho are not only strugglingphysically and mentally at thistime but also financially. Tothose who give so generously oftheir valuable time, incredibleskills and much-needed goods,we salute you.

RESTORING HOPE THISHOLIDAY SEASON:

As a non-profit, we reallyneed your help during this joy-ous holiday season of giving.

Even when we are regularly atcapacity, the extremely reason-able $35 per night rate wecharge our guests is hardlyenough to offset our regular op-erating expenses. We dependentirely on the generous supportof community-minded friendslike you to help us fill in thosegaps so that we can continue tobring our statewide transplantcommunity and beyond here tothe Middleton throughout theyear for them to enjoy the manycomforts of home during theirtransplant journey.

We thank you for your con-tinued support and wish you alla very happy holidays!

To learn more about Restor-ing Hope Transplant Houseand how you can support thisdowntown Middleton cause,please visit www.restoring-hope.org or call Executive Di-rector Cindy Herbst at608-831-1726.

be for designated times whenthere is an event. It is not agathering spot, it is a parkinglot.”

City planning directorEileen Kelley responded byexplaining that there could bebenches and tables set aroundthe plaza to make it a more ap-pealing place to gather.

“District-wise we are soshort of any kind of gatheringspace, park space, comparedto other areas,” Olson re-stated. “My constituentswould really like to see some-thing like [option one or two],they were so happy when it

was presented. I would like tosee how much parking we re-ally need before we do some-thing like [option three].”

“I agree with Kathy, that weneed some green space down-town, there is no gatheringplace,” alder Gurdip Brarchimed in. “Library is the bestthing, but otherwise there isparking. I think at some stagewe have to make that deci-sion.”

Alder Hans Hilbert pointedout that if the city acquires thelot with TIF funds it will losethe potential for future devel-opment and increased tax

base. He added that it wouldbe an easy option for the cityto ensure there is enough park-ing downtown.

Eileen Kelley explained tothe council that the site couldbe used for parking now andthen be converted into a parkin the future if parking needswere met in another way.

“If the city were to acquirethis and put in the parking,that doesn’t preclude fiveor ten years from now, if thereis additional parking else-where or we see that the needsare met this still could becomepark land,” Kelley said. “It

doesn’t preclude if the citycontrols it.”

Developer Terrence Walltold the council he will need adecision by May, because thatis when the contract for acqui-sition takes effect. He sug-gested the city use TIF toacquire the lot and use it as aparking lot with the plan toconvert to a park at a futuredate.

If the city acquires the sitewith TIF funds it can only beused for TIF eligible uses forthe life of the TIF district.

“The opportunity is now, ifyou don’t take advantage of

the opportunity, the opportu-nity will be lost,” Wall said tothe council. “I think it woulddefinitely be a catalyst for ad-ditional development in down-town that would createadditional, tremendous taxbase that would far offset theminor amount of tax base youhave right now.”

The council decided that theparks, recreation, and forestrycommission should weigh inand make a recommendationon the use of the space. A mo-tion to defer to that committeepassed unanimously.

HOPE continued from page 1

PARK continued from page 1

Last week’s articleabout environmental ini-tiatives in the Middleton-Cross Plains Area SchoolDistrict stated that the dis-trict disposes of 30,000pounds of unopened foodand milk cartons.

Actually, each year thedistrict donates to theMiddleton Outreach Min-istry (MOM) Food Pantry30,000 pounds of un-opened food and milk car-tons and whole fruit. Thishas been happening formore than 25 years.

Correction:

The MCPASD EducationFoundation handed out 10grants to five schools as part ofits third fal bus tour on Wednes-day, Dec. 2.

Staff members to receivegrants included West Middle-ton’s Julie Tofte and LindseyHellenbrand; Sauk Trail’s An-drea Lindberg and AnnO’Rourke; Northside’s RaelynnBodell, Ami Schmidt and TracyHellenbrand, and the third-grade teaching team; ClarkStreet Community School’sJason Pertzborn; and MiddletonHigh School’s Kevin Bavery,Steve Kurr, and Jacquelyn Cur-ran and Melissa Burgos.

The Foundation handed outmore than $8,300 as part of itsfall cycle. That total included a$1,250 grant from the StateBank of Cross Plains that fo-cuses on financial literacy. Inaddition, Monsanto donated$750 that was used as part ofthe general grant fund.

The Foundation has handedout more than 50 grants totalingapproximately $36,000 since itbegin issuing grants in 2013.Every District school has re-ceived multiple grants.

Since its inception in 2011,the Foundation has also raisednearly $200,000 for its endow-ment fund though MadisonCommunity Foundation. If youwould like to contribute to theFoundation’s endowment fund,please visit the Foundation’swebsite. If you would like tosponsor a grant in 2016,please e-mail Foundation exec-utive director Perry Hibner orcall him at 829-9014

To see photos from the event,please visit the District’s Face-book page.

The nearly 2-hour yellow bustour included stops at all of theschools. MHS band membersplayed “On Wisconsin” in eachof the schools before Hibnerpresented each recipient with

flowers donated by Copps and acertificate.

“Our bus tours to announceour teacher grants is always anamazing experience, and thisyear was no exception,’’ Hibnersaid. “It is always one of thehighlights of the year. To see thelooks on the students’ andstaff’s faces when we arrive ispriceless.

“We are thrilled to be able tohelp our wonderful teachers totransform their innovative andcreative ideas into real-life ‘in-spiring experiences’ for our stu-dents with a grant from theFoundation.’’

Other Foundation boardmembers who attended part orall of the celebration includedSuperintendent Don Johnson,chair Courtney Ward-Reichard,vice chair Rick Sanders andtreasurer Steph Mueller.

The Foundation received arecord 26 grant applications this

fall. The 10 grants ties for themost the Foundation hasawarded. Hibner also noted it isthe first time every grant wasfunded fully during a cycle.

Tofte received $947 for atraveling library of books de-signed for students readingbelow grade level in grades 2-4.

Hellenbrand received $500 topurchase supplies to assemble“break boxes” for each class-room in the school. The boxeswill contain sensory items tohelp students renew concentra-tion, calm down or re-energizefor better learning results.

Lindberg and O’Rourke wereawarded $452 to support anafter-school book club for third-graders.

Bodell was awarded $1,000to purchase a bass xylophoneand metallophone. These largerinstruments allow students whoare struggling with the coordi-nation of playing a stringed or

keyboard instrument the oppor-tunity to be a successful part ofthe music making.

Schmidt and Hellenbrand arethe leaders of NorthsideSPLASH committee and re-ceived $500 to purchase sup-plies for the advisory program,which was implemented lastyear. It is the second consecu-tive year the Foundation hasprovided support for the pro-gram.

The Northside third-gradeteam received $500 to purchasebooks aimed at students readingsignifcantly below grade level.

Pertzborn was awarded$1,250 from the State Bank ofCross Plains to support a trip toNew York City, where 17 stu-dents will participate in finan-cial seminars to study the stockmarket and investments. It is thethird straight year Pertzborn hasbeen awarded a grant from theFoundation.

Bavery and the MHS physi-cal education department re-ceived $2,000 to allow studentsof limited economic means toparticipate in off-campus fieldtrips to ice rinks, golf courseand bowling alleys.

Kurr was awarded $325 tosupport a performance ofThrenody to the Victims of Hi-roshima by composerKrzyszstof Penderecki at a re-cent MHS symphony orchestraconcert. The students met withveterans and shared with theylearned from this moving workin panel discussions.

Burgos and Curan wereawarded $1,000 to support a tripfo 16 students to Panama in2016 to learn about rainforestecology. The curriculum willfocus on conservation, scientificpractices, service to the commu-nity and science applications ina real-world setting.


Photos by Brian Ruppert

Middleton Community Orchestra packs the Performing Arts Center!The thriving Middleton Community Orchestra (MCO) held its first ever sell out concert last week at the Middleton Performing Arts Center. “We had a fantastic group of musicians on stage on

Friday, and we gave a great concert to a full house,” said MCO co-founder Mindy Taranto. “It was a treat, as always, to collaborate with pianist Thomas Kasdorf, and a blast to play with the MSOchorus.” Stay tuned for more information about upcoming shows.

Education Foundation hands out 10 grants

CHURCH NOTES

Pilot program will offer local food during winterWilly Street Co-op is imple-

menting an innovative new pro-gram that will provide freshlocal produce at its two areastores over the winter, as well asa rare opportunity for area farm-ers.

The natural foods co-op willpreserve nearly 7,700 pounds oflocal produce to offer to cus-tomers and use in its ownkitchens over the cold months.

“This new program bringsour customers a bit of Wiscon-sin summer, even as we battlethe elements. And it heightensour commitment to offer out-standing, fresh local productyear-round,” said co-op GeneralManager Anya Firszt.

Co-op managers view thisyear as a pilot for the program,a unique case of a retailer work-ing directly with multiple smallfarmers to pool their productand preserve it for winter use,according to Director of Pur-chasing Megan Minnick.

Along with providing cus-tomers new access to local food

in the winter, the program opensup a new market for local farm-ers.

“A good portion of the foodwe’ve preserved may have oth-erwise been wasted in the field,but we were able to purchase itand preserve it for winter use,which is providing revenue thatthe farms might not otherwisehave seen and access that ourcustomers would not otherwisehave had,” Minnick said.

Through the program, the co-op will offer:• 800 pounds of Door Countypeaches from Healthy RidgeFarm of Sturgeon Bay,processed and frozen at Madi-son’s FEED Kitchens for use inco-op-made pies.• 1,500 pounds of organic piepumpkins from New TraditionsHomestead in Hillsboro,processed at InnovationKitchens for use in co-op-madeThanksgiving pies.• 500 pounds of organic broc-coli from Crossroads Commu-nity Farm of Cross Plains and

processed at InnovationKitchens in Mineral Point into16-ounce bags of florets.• 1,856 pounds of organic toma-toes from Crossroadsand Fazenda Boa Terra ofSpring Green, processed intoquart jars of diced and crushedtomatoes, and quarts of tomatojuice that the co-op juice barsare using to develop newblends.• 1,000 pounds of apples fromHealthy Ridge Farm and ElaOrchards of Rochester,processed at FEED Kitchen foruse in the co-op’s Thanksgivingpies.• 2,000 pounds of organic but-ternut squash from New Tradi-tions Homestead of Hillsboro,processed at InnovationKitchens. The squash will bepacked into 5-pound bags foruse in the co-op’s productionkitchen, and cubed, frozen andpacked into 16-ounce bags forretail sale.

The co-op plans to have theitems available for retail sale on

the shelf in January.Willy Street Co-op has two

area locations, east, at 1221Williamson St. in Madison, andwest, at 6825 University Ave. inMiddleton.

For more information onWilly Street Co-op, pleasevisit www.willystreet.coop.

Middleton’s boys basket-ball team has a banner hang-ing in the north corner of thefield house where it lists con-ference championships.

That banner has been lone-

ly for a while, as the Cardinalshaven’t claimed a Big EightConference title since the2000-‘01 season.

It’s early, but that 15-yeardrought could be ending soon.

Middleton notched thebiggest win of its season lastSaturday, topping 12-timedefending conference champi-on Madison Memorial, 71-63.Junior guard Storm Murphyscored 20 of his 26 points inthe second half, while juniorforward Tyree Eady had 12 of

his 14 points after halftime. The Cardinals improved to

6-0 both overall and in theleague and lead second-placeSun Prairie (4-1, 5-1) by 1.5games. Madison Memorialfell to 4-2, 4-2.

“I think this was a hugestatement win for us, not justfor the Big Eight, but thestate,” Eady said. “It showswe can play with anybody andwe’re up there with the top


Follow RobReischel onTwitter at@robreischel

Times-Tribune photo by Mary Langenfeld

Tyree Eady and Middleton’s boys basketball team lead the Big Eight Conference.

Title dreamsBoys basketballteam in controlof Big 8 raceby ROB REiSCHELTimes-Tribune

See BOyS BB, page 10

Steffon Walby wanted tochallenge his team.

Playing a rigorous Big EightConference schedule is onething. But Walby —Middleton’s hockey coach —added a pair of solidMilwaukee-area schools to theschedule this year to test histeam.

Consider the exam aced.Middleton toppled

Cedarburg, 3-1, last Friday. TheCardinals then bestedHomestead, 6-2, last Saturday.

Middleton improved to a per-fect 11-0 and has jumped up toNo. 3 in the latest WisconsinPrep Hockey top-10.

“I am really proud of thegroup as a whole,” Walby said.

“The team chemistry has reallytaken off.

“The varsity group has reallyembraced the JV kids that comeup and play, and they have reallybecome closer as a group. Theboys are playing hard and theyare playing the game the ‘rightway.’ ”

Against Cedarburg, thatmeant surviving a red-hotgoalie. The Bulldogs MattMcCoy made 37 saves, but theCardinals had two third periodgoals to break a 1-1 tie.

Cedarburg led, 1-0, after thefirst period after an evenstrength goal by Jacob Temmer.

Middleton tied things with1:46 left in the second periodwhen Zach Heidel scored oneven strength goal on an assistby Jake Livesy.

It stayed that way until thefinal 2 minutes of the game,when the Cardinals scored a pairof late goals to prevail.

First, Jordan Hylbert had an

unassisted even strength goalwith just 1:26 left to put theCardinals ahead, 2-1. ThenDavis Bunz had a short-handed,empty net goal with just 14 sec-onds remaining and Middletonescaped.

Cardinals goalie TonyWuesthofen had 13 saves in thewin.

“Cedarburg was a very solidhockey club with a tremendousgoalie,” Walby said. “Theirgoalie was the big difference.

“We played a solid hockeygame and found a way to pre-vail. We certainly knew that wewere going to be tested, and wewere. We played physical andworked really hard.”

Middleton did much of thesame in its win over Homestead.

Casey Harper stakedMiddleton to a 1-0 lead when hescored on assists from ColinButler and Hylbert with just 2minutes left in the first period.



Davis Bunz and Middleton’s hockey team improved to 11-0 last week.

Still perfectHockey Cardsmove to 11-0by ROB REiSCHELTimes-Tribune

See HOCKEy, page 16

teams in the state.”In the last 24 meetings

between Middleton andMadison Memorial, theSpartans were 23-1. TheCardinals were well aware ofthat, and were dead set onreversing that trend.

“We knew that stat comingin and we really wanted thisgame,” Murphy said. “Coach(Kevin) Bavery talked aboutus being the wolves on the topof the hill and Memorial want-ed to come in here and get us.We just really acknowledgedthat and we were hungry andreally wanted to get this win.”

Murphy and Eady weretwo huge reasons why theCardinals prevailed.

Murphy lost a game of H-O-R-S-E to Bavery earlier inthe day, and probably had towonder if this might not be hisnight. But the Cardinals’dynamic guard shook off arough first half and shined inthe final 18 minutes.

Murphy shot 5-of-8 fromthe field in the second halfand went 8-of-9 at the freethrow line.

“I don’t know if I’ve evermet a guy that loves the gamemore than Storm does,”Bavery said. “He just loves itso much. I think the thing withhim is people don’t realizehow athletic he is and howmuch he’s changed from lastyear to this year.”

Eady, the Big Eight’s lead-ing scorer, shot just 1-of-8from the floor in the first half.But he made 4-of-7 shots in

the second half — including apair of critical three-pointers.

“Once I see that first shotgo down, everything justchanges for me,” Eady said.“Seeing that first one godown, I just had confidence inthe next one. That was big.”

Middleton had a big secondhalf after struggling against asmart, tenacious Memorialteam in the first half.

The visiting Spartans heldMiddleton to just 10-of-35shooting (28.6%), nevertrailed, and held a 29-26 leadat the break. Memorial alsooutrebounded the Cardinals,29-19, in the first half.

“They kind of had us play-ing their game and not thegame we wanted to play,”Murphy said. “We wouldshoot 3s and we were notshooting well at all.

“So at half, Bavery justsaid, ‘Let’s run our actions.Let’s slow things down. Let’sget in the lane, kick it, slowthings down, knock downshots and take our time.’ Sowe did that and things startedgoing well for us.”

Indeed.Middleton opened the sec-

ond half on a 7-0 burst andtook its first lead of the night.Junior guard C.J Fermanichopened the half with a reverselayup, Murphy drained athree-pointer and junior centerJack Smith scored to giveMiddleton a 33-29 lead just1:40 into the second half.

“We just told our guys wehave to trust our actions and

WSN Top-10 pollRank Team Record

1. Stevens Point 6-02. Germantown 7-03. Milwaukee King 6-04. Sheboygan North 5-05. Middleton 6-06. Milwaukee Riverside 4-17. Racine Park 8-08. Muskego 5-09. Arrowhead 4-110. Sun Prairie 5-1

Middleton’s boys basketballteam is smart enough to under-stand that rankings truly meanlittle. Especially at this time ofthe year.

But there is a respect factorinvolved. And when Middletonwas unranked last week — andsaw Big Eight rival Sun Prairiejump to No. 6 — MHS felt alittle snubbed.

“We didn’t really like that,”Middleton junior forwardTyree Eady said. “We felt wedeserved to be up there.”

So Middleton did somethingabout it.

In a showdown of Big Eightunbeatens last Thursday,Middleton raced to an 18-point,first half lead and rolled to a69-61 victory.

Middleton improved to 5-0overall and 5-0 in the BigEight. Sun Prairie slipped to 4-1, 3-1.

“That was a big win for us,”Middleton coach Kevin Baverysaid. “Sun Prairie’s reallygood.”

Eady finished with a game-high 20 points and added twosteals, while junior guard C.J.Fermanich had 19 points, fourrebounds and two steals.

Junior guard Storm Murphyadded 11 points and fourassists, and Middleton’s relent-less pressure defense helpedforce 27 Sun Prairie turnovers.

Middleton raced to a 19-7

lead behind 12 quick pointsfrom Fermanich and seven byMurphy. Middleton’s lead grewto as much as 35-17 late in thefirst half, but Sun Prairie coun-tered with a 10-0 burst andpulled within 35-27 at halftime.

Sun Prairie went on its runwhen Bavery elected to sitstarters Cody Markel andFermanich with two fouls latein the first half.

“Clearly a momentumshift,” Bavery said. “But withthe lead we decided to sitFermanich and Markel … andwe told our guys at halftimethat we’d rather be up eightthan down eight at half, and totake the 0-0 mentality withthem to start the second half.”

Middleton did exactly that,but Sun Prairie showed why itentered the game undefeatedand with a lofty ranking.

Eady erupted for 16 of his20 points in the second half.But Sun Prairie wouldn’t goaway.

Sun Prairie pulled within55-50, but Middleton got a pairof big second half three-point-ers by Eady and clutch threeballs from senior guard KevinRipp and junior guardDaydrian Spears.

Eady also made 8-of-10 freethrows down the stretch, whilejunior Jack Smith also made apair of critical free throws late.

“Sun Prairie has an out-standing group and a couple ofvery difficult matchups, so weknew they weren’t going to roll


Middleton KO’s Sun Prairie

Times-Tribunephoto by Mary

Langenfeld

M i d d l e t o n ’ sStorm Murphy(right) attacksthe hoop duringa win over SunPrairie lastThursday.

by ROB REiSCHELTimes-Tribune

over and quit,” Bavery said.“They made several runs at us,but we continually answered.And although the score gotclose a couple of times it nevergot to one possession.”

Dec. 17Sun Prairie …….....…….. 27 34 — 61Middleton ……...……….. 35 34 — 69

SUN PRAIRIE — Black 3 0-0 6,Hauser 1 1-1 3, Johnson 5 9-9 23, Kerr4 0-0 8, Ruffin 3 2-3 8, Suchomel 1 0-1

3, Verstegen 4 1-2 10. Totals 21 13-1661.

MIDDLETON — Bacon 1 0-0 3,Brunker 1 3-3 5, Eady 5 8-10 20,Fermanich 7 3-3 19, Markel 1 1-1 3,Murphy 3 4-4 11, Ripp 1 0-0 3, Smith 2-2 2, Spears 1 0-0 3. Totals 20 21-32 69.

3-point goals — M 8 (Bacon 1,Eady 2, Fermanich 2, Murphy 1, Ripp 1,Spears 1), SP 6 (Johnson 4, Suchomel 1,Verstegen 1). Total fouls — M 18, SP25.

BOyS BB continued from page 8

we have to follow themthrough,” Bavery said. “Andwe hit a couple early shotsthat really helped.”

No one expected Memorialto go away, though. Not with agritty team led by junior cen-ter Chris Knight (14 points, 12rebounds, five blocks), headyjunior forward Jake Ferguson(15 points, eight rebounds),and scrappy guards BillyWilson (12 points) and MattCaropreso (10 points).

Over the next 11 minutes,the game featured six ties,three lead changes and neitherteam led by more than five.

“Memorial’s a really solidteam,” Murphy said. “Reallyhigh basketball I.Q. Theydon’t try and force a lot ofstuff and they’re just a reallygreat team.”

Middleton trailed, 51-50,with 4:30 left when itembarked on a 7-0 run to takecontrol. Fermanich drilled a19-footer to start the fun,Eady made a pair of freethrows and Murphy had an

old-fashioned three-pointplay.

The burst lasted exactly 60seconds, and when it ended,Middleton had a 57-51 lead itwould never relinquish.

Memorial pulled withinthree with 3 ½ minutesremaining, and trailed, 63-59,after a rebound basket byKnight with 1:23 left.

But Murphy found Eadyfor a huge basket with 52 sec-onds left. Then Murphydrained 5-of-6 free throws inthe final 41.1 seconds.

Murphy is now shooting82.4% from the line (42-of-51) this year.

“Tonight was Storm’s

night,” Eady said. “He hitshots. He made his freethrows. Tonight was his nightand he did a great job and putthe team on his back.”

Afterwards, a giddyMiddleton bunch hung aroundthe school for nearly an hour,enjoying the fruits of theirlabor.

Bavery shared that pride,but was also quick to point outhis team has miles to travel.

“It’s great to beatMemorial,” Bavery said. “Butboth teams have a long waysto go and both are going to geta lot better. We’re only sixgames in. We’ve had some biggames at home and we still

have to go on the road to somereally tough places. Rightnow, though, we’re all prettyhappy.”

And optimistic they canupdate that banner.

Dec. 19Middleton 71, Madison Memorial 63Madison Memorial …….. 29 34 — 63Middleton ……...……….. 26 45 — 71

MADISON MEMORIAL —Wilson 12, Knecht 7, Weah 1, Goodwan2, Ferguson 15, Caropreso 10, Brown 2,Knight 14 Totals 29 12-27 63

MIDDLETON — Raffel 5,Brunker 4, Smith 3, Murphy 26, Thomas5, Eady 14, Ashford Jr. 4, Fermanich 10.Totals 25 12-16 69.

3-point goals — M 7 (Murphy 3,Eady 2, Thomas 1, Raffel 1), MM 3(Knecht 2, Wilson).


Middleton’s boys swim-ming team defeatedVerona/Mount Horeb, 95-75,last Friday.

The Cardinals’ 200-metermedley relay team of juniorErick Grelle, senior EthanLengfeld, senior JacobAegerter and sophomoreMichael Draves finished first.

Middleton’s 400-meter freerelay team of Aegerter,Draves, junior John Virnigand junior Max Hollfelderwas first. And the Cardinals’200-meter free relay team ofsenior Zach Carpenter, Virnig,senior Seth Gutzmer andHollfelder was second.

Draves won the 200-meterfreestyle, while Virnig wasthird and sophomore SamYoung was fourth. Junior

Luke Delaney won the 100-meter butterfly, freshmanAndrew Lund was second andGrelle was third.

Aegerter won the 100-meter freestyle, while Draveswas first in the 400-meterfreestyle and Delaney wasthird.

Lengfeld won the 100-meter breaststroke and juniorTommy McGovern was third.

Freshman Andrew Martinwas second in the 200-meterIM and freshman Jack Mondiwas fourth. Aegerter was sec-ond in the 50-meter freestyleand Hollfelder was fourth.

Grelle was third in the 100-meter backstroke, and fresh-man Blake Zillner was fourth.

• On deck: The Cardinalsare now off until Jan. 8, whenthey host Beloit Memorial andMadison East in a triangular.

Middleton’s wrestlers fin-ished third at the 15-team,Battle of the Fox Invitationallast Saturday.

Shiocton won the event with170.5 points, while DeForestwas second at 162. Middletonwas third with 138.50, whileGreen BayWest/East/Southwest andSlinger (128.5) tied for fourth.

Middleton’s Chris Rogersfinished first at 138 pounds.

Rogers defeated SamVanStraten of Shiocton, 8-0, inthe finals

Middleton’s Max Mayhewfinished second at 160 pounds.Mayhew received a first roundbye, then pinned Ryan Zickertof Pittsville in 20 seconds.Mayhew then pinned MitchVeverka of D.C. Everest in3:28 and pinned Trevor Youngof Shiocton in 2:43.

In the title match, though,Slinger’s Adam Beine defeatedMayhew, 9-5.

Middleton’s JosephHoffman (113), Joseph Sperger(120) and Kevin Meicher (132)all finished third.

Hoffman opened by pinningLexi Schroeder of AppletonEast in 57 seconds, thenreceived a second round bye.

Hoffman pinned Cody Havlikof Pittsville in 28 seconds, thenlost to Slinger’s Caleb Ziebell,14-1. Hoffman then dropped a7-1 decision to Zak Nelson ofGreen BayWest/East/Southwest.

Sperger dropped his firstmatch to Taite Baier ofAppleton West, 6-2, thenpinned Chris Melius of Slingerin 3:10.

Matthew Grossman ofPittsville then pinned Spergerin 1:51 and Sperger was pinnedby Sawyer Theobald ofShiocton in 3:45.

In the third place match,though, Sperger defeatedGabriel Banda of Almond-Bancroft/Pacelli, 8-5.

Meicher received a firstround bye, then pinned Tylar

Wagar of Slinger in 1:55.Meicher won a major decisionover Jake Price of AppletonNorth, 8-0, then lost by injurydefault to Thomas Severson ofD.C. Everest.

Meicher returned to the mat,though, and pinned Pittsville’sBeau Merritt in 3:01 in thethird place match.

Middleton also received afourth place finish from MattDavey at 220, while bothIrving Perez (heavyweight) andCaleb Cymbalak (170) finishedfifth.

• On deck: Middleton host-ed Greenfield Tuesday, then isat the Bi-State Classic in LaCrosse Dec. 29-30.

Middleton’s girls gymnas-tics team opened the seasonwith a 132.475-121.375 winover Madison East/LaFollette.

Cardinals junior MadelinePflasterer-Jennerjohn won theall-around title with a 35.375score. Sophomore EleanorMackey was third in the all-around (32.550) and seniorKatherine Marshall was fifth(32.125).

Pflasterer-Jennerjohn fin-ished second overall on thefloor exercise with a 9.0. Bothsenior Ellen Cottingham andMackey scored an 8.550,while freshman Jordan Baggot

notched an 8.450.Pflasterer-Jennerjohn won

the vault with a 9.275, whileMackey posted an 8.40.Marshall scored an 8.20 andDani Aranda scored an 8.075.

Pflasterer-Jennerjohn wonthe uneven bars with an 8.70,while Mackey notched an8.40. Cottingham scored an8.10 and sophomore ChloeYoung posted an 8.0.

Pflasterer-Jennerjohn alsowon the balance beam with an8.40, while Marshall scored a7.825. Baggot posted a 7.675and Aranda scored a 7.450.

• On deck: Middleton isoff until Jan. 7, when it hostsJanesville Craig at 6:30 p.m.

Swimmerstop V-MHby ROB REiSCHELTimes-Tribune

Gymnastswin openerby ROB REiSCHELTimes-Tribune


Chris Rogers won the championship at 138 pounds at the Battle of the Fox Invite last Saturday.

Wrestlers 3rd at inviteCardinalsshine atBattle of Foxby ROB REiSCHELTimes-Tribune

The holidays should be aterrific time for Middleton’sgirls basketball team.

The Cardinals are rankedNo. 1 in the state by both theAssociated Press andWissports.net. Middleton is aperfect 6-0 in the Big EightConference and 7-0 overall.

And the Cardinals’ averagemargin of victory is a whop-ping 24.3.

Middleton kept its dreamseason rolling last Friday,with a 71-28 dismantling ofMadison Memorial.

“Our Memorial game was apretty good defensive effortall told,” Cardinals coach JeffKind said. “We played a lot ofpeople a lot of minutes andheld them to a season-bestdefensive effort of 28 points.”

Junior guard AlexisThomas led a balanced effortwith 15 points, while juniorCarlee Lemirande added 12points. Bria Lemirande addedeight points and Claire Stapleshad seven.

Middleton raced to a 39-15halftime lead and was never

challenged in the second half.“Offensively, we didn’t

have a great shooting night,but were still able to score(71),” Kind said. “We createda lot of turnovers and I thinkour press rotations are gettingbetter.

“Considering the start ofvacation and the tough gamewith Sun Prairie (last)Tuesday, we’re happy with theoutcome and our positiongoing into the break.”

Middleton will have a 10-day break until its next game,when it meets GermantownMonday at 5:15 p.m. at theFranklin Tournament. TheCardinals will also playTuesday and Wednesday atFranklin.

“Germantown will be atough draw as they have someexcellent athletes and play astyle similar to our own, so weexpect a fast paced game,”Kind said. “We always see alittle more physical play inthat tournament, so we’ll havea good test of our toughness inthat first game and will seesome very good teamsthroughout the event.”

Middleton 71, Madison Memorial 28Madison Memorial .......... 15 13 — 28Middleton ......................... 39 32 — 71

Madison Memorial — Rather 1 0-22, Sheppard 1 0-2 2, Stewart 1 0-1 2,Stroud 9 4-5 22. Totals 12 4-9 28.

Middleton — Anderson 2 0-2 4,Flottmeyer 3 0-0 6, Hibner 1 0-0 3, A.Lemirande 1 0-0 2, C. Lemirande 5 2-212, B. Lemirande 3 0-0 8, McDonald 21-1 5, Schafer 2 0-0 4, Staples 2 2-2 7,Thomas 5 3-4 15, Webber 2 0-0 5. Totals28 8-13 71.

3-point goals — MID 7 (Hibner 1,Lemirande 2, Staples 1, Thomas 2,Webber 1), MM 0. Total fouls—MID15, MM 14.


Rolling onGirls basketballteam remainsundefeatedby ROB REiSCHELTimes-Tribune


Alyssa Lemirande (right) and Middleton’s girls basketball team are 7-0 this season.

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE THURSDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2015

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The process started morethan a year ago.

Videos sent to schoolsthroughout the country. Talkswith coaches from all corners.Making campus visits whenev-er possible.

Last week, Middleton soft-ball standout Rachel Eversonfinally saw all of her hard work— both on the field and on therecruiting trail — pay off.

Everson accepted a fullscholarship to IndianaUniversity-Purdue UniversityFort Wayne. Everson, a juniorat MHS, will be a freshman atIPFW in the fall of 2017.

“The recruitment processdidn’t come easy,” Eversonsaid. “I started a year ago hav-ing my hitting coach email myskills video to schools through-out the country. We got a fairamount of interest, and fromthat some coaches came towatch me play on my travelteam and/or I attended their

camp. “The IPFW coach

(Germaine Fairchild) came to acouple of my games this pastfall and showed interest, andthen I went to their camp sothey could see more of me. Itwas a long process, but it allworked out in the end.”

Everson, a center fielder, iscoming off a sensational seasonin which she was named firstteam all-Big Eight Conferenceand was in the discussion forleague Player of the Year hon-ors.

Everson batted .495, whichwas the highest among theCardinals’ regulars. Eversonhad a team-high 47 hits, ledMiddleton with 12 walks, tiedfor first with 27 runs scored,and was second on the teamwith 28 RBI. Defensively,Everson didn’t commit an errorall season, had 50 putouts andtwo assists.

Former Middleton coachCherie Hellenbrand, whocoached Everson in both the2014 and ’15 seasons, hadnothing but glowing praise forthe Cardinals standout.

“Rachel lives and breathssoftball,” Hellenbrand said lastsummer. “Her high level ofcommitment and work ethichave taken her to the elite level.

What makes Rachel so specialis she is willing to do anythingfor the team. She is alwaysencouraging her teammatesand building team morale.

“She is mentally disci-plined, she can wait for the out-side pitch to travel into thezone and then takes it to oppo-site field. For inside pitches shehas quick hands to get throughthe zone and hits forpower. The Middleton programwill be fortunate to have herback for two more years.”

Perry Hibner, Middleton’snew coach, was thrilled to learn

of Everson’s latest achieve-ment — and giddy to have herin the program the next twoyears.

“Rachel is a joy to coach,”said Hibner, an MHS assistantin 2015 before landing the headjob this fall. “She always wantsto get better. Obviously, she is agreat hitter, but she has workedvery hard to become an out-standing center fielder, too.

“Rachel leads by example,but she is also vocal when sheneeds to be, too. She is a greatteammate. It’s pretty coolwatching her pump up her

teammates in the dugout.”Everson said she was draw-

ing interest from both Purdueand San Jose State. In the end,though, IPFW simply felt right.

“I’ve been to many camps atmany different schools andsomething about IPFW juststood out to me,” Everson said.“I liked the size of the campusbecause it’s not too big and nottoo small. I also liked howthings were run there. CoachFairchild allows you to haveyour own swing, but helps youwith the details.”

IPFW is coming off a 3-45

season. But Fairchild, a veterancoach who’s in just her secondyear at IPFW, hopes to turn theprogram around.

And Everson is optimisticshe can be a big part of aneventual reversal of fortune.”

“I’ve always hit for a highaverage, even this past summerwhere I’ve faced college levelpitching on my travel team,”Everson said. “Coach Fairchildsaid she sees me being able tohit for a high average and beingable to stretch the defense.”

Eversonpicks IPFWMHS softballstar landsscholarshipby ROB REiSCHELTimes-Tribune


Middleton’s Rachel Everson recently accepted a scholarship to Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne.

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE THURSDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2015

The Cardinals went ahead, 2-0, early in the second period ona Wes Rock goal assisted byTroy Reifsteck. After aHomestead goal, Butleranswered with a power play goalat 10:35 assisted by Kouba andHarper to give Middleton a 3-1lead.

Homestead refused to go qui-etly, though, and pulled within3-2 with just 6:13 remaining.Down the stretch, though, it wasall Middleton.

Butler scored at 13:24 on

assists from Zach Heidel andHylbert to make it 4-2. PrestonLewis had an unassisted goaljust 41 seconds later to make it5-2.

Finally, Bunz scored withjust 50 seconds remaining on anassist from Kouba. Wuesthofenhad another solid game with 23saves.

“Homestead gave us a goodchallenge, but ultimately ourconditioning and perseverancehelped us pull away at the end,”Walby said. “We were pretty

solid on specialty teams. TonyWuesthofen played both gamesand really was solid in the pipes.He allowed us to make mistakesand made some really timelysaves.”

Dec. 19Middleton 6, Homestead 2Middleton ………....……… 0 1 2 — 3Cedarburg ………......……. 1 0 0 — 1

First period: M — Harper (Butler,Hylbert), 14:57.

Second period: M — Rock(Reifsteck), 5:25; H — Henry (Driscoll,Verespel), 8:46; M — Butler (Kouba,Harper), 10:35.

Third period: H — Hobbs, pp,

11:47; M — Butler (Hylbert, Heidel),13:24; Lewis (un), 14:05; Bunz(Kouba), 16:10.

Saves: M (Wuesthofen) 25; H(McPike) 29.

Dec. 18Middleton 3, Cedarburg 1Middleton ………....……… 0 1 2 — 3Cedarburg ……......………. 1 0 0 — 1

First period: CB — Temmer(Grapatin, Henneberry), 10:18.

Second period: M — Heidel(Livesey), 15:14.

Third period: M — Hylbert (Graf),15:34; M — Bunz (Harper) (SH), 16:46.

Saves: M (Wuesthofen) 13; CB(McCoy) 37.

HOCKEy continued from page 9


Jordan Hylbert (23) and Middleton’s hockey team are rolling.

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