Too old to work?

VOL. 123, NO. 45

THURSDAY, NOVembeR 5, 2015

www.MiddletonTimes.com

SINGLE COPY PRICE: $1.25

Middleton woman says she was fired because of her age

by MATT GEIGER
Times-Tribune

A middleton woman has accused her employer of age discrimination, according to a

claim filed with the U.S. equal
Opportunities
employment
Commission.
Kathleen Kate Lee, who is
66 years old, was fired from her
job as a registered nurse at St.
marys Hospital on may 13,
2015. According to a complaint
filed by Kramer, elkins & Watt,
a madison law firm, on her behalf, Lee was terminated from
her job due to her age.
According to the same document, Lee was ostensibly fired
for violating HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act), the federal
law intended to protect the personal information of patients.
but Lee believes she was actually fired, following more than
33 years as an exemplary employee at St. marys and 45
years in nursing, so that the hospital could save money by hiring a younger, less experienced
replacement.
In fact, we are aware of
multiple instances in the cases
of other employees who committed clear violations of
HIPAA not even debatable violations, much unlike ms. Lees
situation - and the employees
were not terminated, the filing
states. Therefore, St. marys
has taken the same purported
violation and treated ms. Lee

Harmony in
the state
Assembly
differently, resulting in a costsavings to St. marys who can
now hire a much younger nurse
to replace ms. Lee at a much
lower rate of pay.
According to her legal counsel, Lee had planned to work at
St. marys for at least another
three years. She is seeking damages equal to three-years of
compensation.
Lee began working at St.
marys in 1981. Her employee
file includes letters lauding her
work, and she was chosen to
serve as one of the faces of St.
marys in a recent billboard
campaign.
but on may 2 of this year, ac-

You read that correctly: Longtime Middleton resident and

UW Marching Band director Mike Leckrone
was recently hailed by
the state assembly as
a Hometown Hero.
Read more on page 2.

Workshops will tackle

racial inequities next week
See LEE, page 8

Kathleen Lee, pictured above outside her Middleton home last week, believes St. Marys Hospital fired her because of her age - not because of a HIPAA violation. She has worked as a nurse
for more than four decades, including 33 years at St. Marys.
Times-Tribune photo by Matt Geiger

Community leaders to gather November 14

by REV. JIM ILIFF
Times-Tribune

Racism and racial disparities

have been a persistent and stubborn reality in our communities
and our nation.
In Dane
County, the unemployment rate
for African Americans is four
times higher than that of whites.
41% of African Americans live
in poverty, compared to 10% for
whites.
African American
adults are eight times more
likely to be arrested than whites
and black youth are fifteen
times more likely.
Now, five community leaders
have come together to initiate a
community-wide effort to address these concerns.
They are Percy brown (Di-

rector of equity and Student

Achievement, middleton-Cross
Plains Area School District),
Charles Foulke (middleton
Chief of Police), Rev. miranda
Hassett (Rector, St. Dunstans
episcopal Church), Rev. James
Iliff (Pastor, middleton Com-

munity United Church of

Christ), and Al Ripp (executive
Director, middleton Outreach
ministry).
The response of our community to these issues began on
October 12 when the middleton
Public Library sponsored a

community panel discussion to

address issues raised in the
book Just mercy, by bryan
Stevenson. It was the featured
book in this years Go big
Read program, co-sponsored
See RACE, page 8

Young
Asian
leaders
visit
City leaders in Middleton
welcome visitors from Singapore and Malaysia. Read
more on page 4.

State lawmakers honor Mike Leckrone

PAGE 2

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

Photos by Greg Anderson

University of Wisconsin Marching Band director Mike Leckrone was honored by the Wisconsin State Assembly on October 27. Leckrone has lived in Middleton throughout his career.
by RON MCCREA

Special to the Times-Tribune

The Wisconsin State Assembly Chamber rang out with

brass, winds, cymbals, and
drums as lawmakers hailed
middletons mike Leckrone as
a Hometown Hero.
Leckrone, the beloved UW
marching band director, provided a welcome show of harmony as the Assembly was

called to session on Oct. 27.

middleton Democratic state
Rep. Dianne Hesselbein, who
nominated Leckrone for the
honor, introduced him from the
dais as a Wisconsin icon, a superb musician and showman, as
upbeat today as when he first
raised the baton.
She traced Leckrones 47year career at UW-madison
from 1969, when band membership was at an all-time low to
its current national popularity.

She told how he had opened the

ranks to women, made it an allvolunteer band, emphasized fitness and showmanship, created
the annual band concerts at the
Kohl Center, and formed the
smaller Varsity band to play at
home basketball and volleyball
games.
I cant tell you how thrilled
and honored I am, Leckrone
told the lawmakers. I dont
consider what I do to be heroic.
Im just a band director. but Im

very grateful that this Assembly

feels that I have contributed to
the culture and state of Wisconsin in a positive way over the
years. You cant know how
gratifying it is for me to understand that.
He said from the first day, he
understood that I had a great
responsibility and privilege to
be working for one of the great
universities of the world, and
that his mission would have to
be to infuse his students with
the desire to be seeking and
searching for excellence in
everything they do. He said he

is proud of what his thousands

of former student-musicians
have done with their lives.
Throughout his career, Leckrone has always lived in middleton with Phyllis, his wife of
60 years. education runs in the
family. Phyllis had a career
teaching special education, and
daughter mika retired this year
from teaching middleton firstgraders. mike Leckrone said he
plans to stay on as band director
for a little bit longer.
Phyllis attended the ceremony and received her own
standing ovation - along with

daughter mika, granddaughter

Kami Jo, and great- granddaughter Lyra, who wore pink.
Leckrone told the lawmakers
that the favorite moment of his
career was during the 1992
Rose Parade in Pasadena. The
Rose bowl directors had suggested to him the night before
that during the two-hour march,
he could have his band play
when you see patches of your
fans along the parade route.
Leckrone
paused
and
grinned. We played On Wisconsin ninety-seven times that
morning.
With that, the UW Varsity
band marched into the chamber, trumpeting the famous fight
song. The legislators jumped to
their feet.

McCrea, a former Madison

journalist, is a member of Rep.
Dianne Hesselbeins Capitol
staff.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

PAGE 3

Plan commission wants $26,500 TIF

Unanimous vote in favor of TIF for Old Middleton Centre traffic study
by CAMERON BREN
Times-Tribune

The middleton Plan Commission last week approved

using tax increment financing
(TIF) to fund up to half, or
$26,500, of a traffic impact
analysis for a proposed major
redevelopment of Old middleton Centre.
Typically the traffic impact
analysis is financed by the developer of a proposed project,
however, given the scope of the
particular proposal and the ef-

fect it could have on downtown

traffic the plan commission recommended to the common
council approval of funding half
the traffic study.
In August the middleton Plan
Commission approved the concept for a downtown redevelopment from developer Uptown
middleton, a sub-tier LLC of T.
Wall enterprises. The Uptown
middleton proposal is a complete rebuild of Old middleton
Centre on the block of Terrace
Ave., Parmenter St., and Hubbard Ave.
The proposed development

Board of education
kicks employee
compensation model
back to committee
by CAMERON BREN
Times-Tribune

The school districts board of

education voted last week to
defer a proposed compensation
plan back to the advisory compensation committee. The compensation model is the result of
months of several hour-long
meetings between teachers, district staff and administration,
school board members and consultants.
The boards decision to hold
off on approving the proposed
compensation plan was based
on feedback they got from
teachers and staff in the district.
many teachers submitted comments to the board asking for
more information and raised
concerns with the proposed
plan.
board member Anne bauer,
who worked on the compensation model on the committee

said many of the concerns were

addressed and discussed in the
committee, and while not easy
choices, each item was considered carefully.
West middleton 4K teacher
and teachers union vice president Joellen Pauls worked extensively on the proposed
compensation model. While
she praised the board and staff
for all the work theyve put into
it, she said she feels that teachers need more time to review it
to make sure it works out for
everyone.
As Pauls notes the new compensation model is a result if the
2011 law, Act 10, that basically
dissolved most public public
unions and changed the way a
district negotiates with its employees.
Its an understatement to say
we have struggled since Act
10, Pauls said. Across the
See TEACHERS, page 8

features seven mixed-use buildings with more than 200 residential units, 62,000 sq. ft. of
commercial and office space,
and 380 parking stalls including
underground parking.
The development would be
built in three phases over three
years, with phase one beginning
as early as spring 2016. Phase
one would be the corner Parmenter and Hubbard and would
make up a majority if the office
and commercial space, phase
two would be next to the post
office on Aurora St. and elmwood Ave. and have four and

five story mixed use buildings,

Phase three would be the Terrace Ave. area and contain three
three-story residential buildings.
Under city standards the project would be 128 parking stalls
short, but the developer says the
ratio of commercial and residential alleviate the shortage
since used stalls would be offset
by the different peak parking
times.
Alder Hans Hilbert said in an
earlier plan commission meeting that the developer should try
to design a plan with 128 more

stalls regardless of cost and perhaps the city could partner to

help in financing.
In the latest plan commission
meeting they approved covering
half of the traffic study because
it encompasses many intersections that are important to the
circulation and vitality of the
downtown. They decided regardless of whether the project
moves ahead information obtained from the study can be
used to identify future improvements and their recommended
timing.

According to city guidelines

the intersections in the study
area will be analyzed based on
existing traffic volumes, and
projected traffic volumes for
2020 with and without the proposed redevelopment project.
A motion to recommend the
common council approve funding one-half the cost of the
downtown traffic impact analysis, up to a maximum of
$26,500, with tax increment financing district (TID) #3 funds
passed unanimously.

City welcomes Southeast Asian Leaders

PAGE 4

by DEB BIECHLER
Times-Tribune

When dedicated and bright

young Southeast Asian government leaders are paired with
staff in the City of middleton,
its a win-win situation, according to those playing host as part
of this cultural exchange of
ideas.
For a second time, the City of
middleton was chosen as a key
partner in the Young Southeast
Leaders
Initiative
Asian
(YSeALI). YSeALI is the
Presidents signature program
to strengthen leadership development across the Association
of Southeast Asian Nations,
(ASeAN) and to strengthen
people-to-people ties between
the US and Southeast Asia.
Last year middleton hosted
participants from east Timor.
This year, young leaders from
Singapore and malaysia are engaging with city government officials and citizens, learning
how our community deals with
some of the common challenges
of governance, sustainability,
cultural diversity and resource
management.
brian Patrick Tan of Singapore and Ong Siou Woon of
malaysia were chosen for this
years exchange with middleton, which runs from October
10 through November 7.
Their track records of leadership and positive impact on
their communities gained them
one of 75 spots in the program
that over 1,000 other young
Southeast Asian leaders applied
for.
Tan is currently the senior assistant director of the Center for
Livable Cities based in Singapore. Its mission is to distill,
create and share knowledge on
livable cities in the hopes to
make them better. The agencys
work spans three main areas including research, capability development and advisory and

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

knowledge platforms.
In the future, Tan hopes to be
involved in some level of governance in Singapore. His
focus, while here, is to learn
more about the engagement of
citizens in government and to
learn about middletons work
toward sustainability.
middleton is a perfect fit for
Tans focus, he said. In 2010, it
was recognized as a finalist for
an All-America City Award for
projects related to workforce
housing, sustainability, and
public outreach.
middleton is much more
transparent in its processes than
Singapore. And Singapore is
much more transparent than
malaysia, observed Tan.
You have many more meetings to inform citizens and that
let them voice their opinions to
influence the decisions that city
leaders will make here, he
stated. I was surprised how
few people attended some of the
meetings. maybe it is because
there are so many meetings to
go to.
Ong
concurred.
In
malaysia, what the government
does is very private, Ong said.
even statistical records like
population and other data collection is not readily shared at
least for five years. Government emails are never open to
the public.
Ong is the senior executive
officer of the Penang Institute in
Penang, malaysia. According to
the organizations website, the
Penang Institute seeks to spur
bold thinking in the key areas of
economics, socio-politics and
sustainable development.
The Institutes approach assumes three main thrusts:
The first is to undertake research and analysis of public
policies in order to provide
input and influence for strategic
planning in Penang and the region in general.
The second is to provide a

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

For more information

about the YSEALI program, go to their website
at:
exchanges.state.gov/non
-us/program/yseali-professional-fellows-program

Brian Patrick Tan of Singapore and Ong Siou Woon of Malaysia are scheduled to depart from
Middleton on Saturday.

Photo by Mark Opitz

platform for intellectual and

professional exchanges on critical, current and strategic issues
concerning Penang and its surrounding region.
The third is to maintain a
comprehensive databank and
resource center as well as to
produce and disseminate publications and research findings in
order to enrich public discourse
in the areas of economics,
socio-politics and sustainable
development.
because of malaysias tight
hold on government information, reaching the goals is not
always easy.
If a person mentions something that the government does
not want mentioned, there is a
risk of being arrested for sedition, Ong said. And, there is

no due process. The ruling government decides what is seditious.

malaysia and Singapore have
close ties. For a short time, Singapore was part of malaysia.
There were differences in
philosophies, said Tan. People
from Singapore wanted more of
a race-blind country. You have
affirmative action for minorities
in the US. malaysia has affirmative actions for the majority.
Ong added, And malaysia
wanted a stronger centralized
government. even the decision
of where a bus can stop has to
be made at a federal level.
According to Ong, a lot more
young malaysians are wanting
change that includes more discussion available to the public.
Very brave people are chal-

lenging the system, Ong said.

mostly its news reporters and
political leaders who are targeted for sharing information
that might be considered as
making the government more
vulnerable and so is considered
to be seditious.
mark Opitz, middletons assistant planning director and
zoning administrator, is facilitating the YSeALI exchange
for Ong and Tan. In addition to
government meetings, Opitz
has helped arrange social and
cultural visits.
Some of the highlights of
their time in the middleton area
so far have been apple picking,
an organic farm tour, a visit to
State Street in madison, and a
hike through Pheasant branch
Conservancy.
The mcCluskey farm tour
was a special treat for me, said
Tan. There is only one dairy
farm in Singapore as were a
very small country. There are a
few vegetable and poultry
farms. most of our food is
brought in. We cant just go and
see if the food is really being
raised organically like you can.
The pair also toured Taliesin
in Spring Green, Olbrich botan-

ical Gardens and the Chazen

museum. Theyve eaten at
many middleton restaurants as
well as had a welcoming reception at the Pleasant View Golf
Course.
When asked why middleton
has applied to participate in the
YSeALI program, Opitz
pointed to what he wrote in an
application form: We hope to
learn more about how east
Asian countries are responding
to issues facing their countries,
especially population growth,
environmental challenges and
food security and other issues
related to poverty. The City of
middleton is interested in opportunities for the exchange of
municipal/technical expertise
and hopes this fellowship program will help to further those
opportunities abroad.
On a personal level, Opitz
added, I am also particularly
intrigued by how developing
countries are deploying new
technology - in terms of infrastructure development, energy
sources, and communication
systems - while having the opportunity to skip some of the
incremental steps - and associated mistakes - taken by more
industrialized nations. When I
visited
Chinas
Yunnan
province in 1994, I noticed
some of the tragic environmental and safety impacts arising
from rapid development of coal
plants and highways, but in recent years its been heartening
to read about a number of
Southeast Asian countries that
are modernizing their infrastructure based on more sustainable energy (e.g., wind and
solar power) sources and wireless communications, thereby
enabling them to reduce pollution increases and potentially
(hopefully) improve citizen access, education and quality of
life.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

PAGE 5

Mystery author Ernst returns to library

Death on the
Prairie writer
will read
next week
The middleton Public Library will welcome author
Kathleen ernst on Thursday,
Nov. 12, at 7 p.m. to read from
her latest Chloe ellefson mystery, Death on the Prairie.

In this, the sixth novel in the

popular series, amateur detective Chloe ellefson takes custody of a quilt once owned by
Laura Ingalls Wilder. Hoping to
prove that Wilder stitched it herself, she and her sister Kari set
out to visit all of the historic
sites associated with the
beloved author. but death
strikes as the journey begins,
and trouble stalks their fellow
travelers, a strange cast of Little House devotees including
academic critics, greedy collectors, and obsessive fans.

Kathleen ernst is an awardwinning and bestselling author,

educator, and social historian
who has published more than 30
novels and one nonfiction
book. Her books for young
readers include the Caroline
Abbott series for American
Girl. Honors for her childrens
mysteries include edgar and
Agatha Award nominations.
Kathleen worked as an Interpreter and Curator of Interpretation and Collections at Old
World Wisconsin, and her time
at the historic site served as in-

spiration for the Chloe ellefson

mysteries. ernst served as project director/scriptwriter for several instructional television
series, one of which earned her
an emmy Award. She lives in
middleton, Wisconsin.
Copies of Kathleens books
will be available for purchase at
the event, and the evening will
conclude with a book signing.
For more information or to register for this special event, visit
midlibrary.org/events, email
info@midlibrary.org, or call
608-827-7403.

Kathleen Ernst is the author of more than 30 novels.

Photo contributed

PAGE 6

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

GEIGER

Counter
by Matt Geiger

The
Murderer

I remember my dad, holding

a rifle and rocking in an old
wooden chair as he peered out
of the second story bedroom
window. The farm where we
lived was miles from the nearest
streetlight, so he was primarily
looking into a reflective glass
void in which the ghost of a
middle aged man in a flannel
shirt sat in a chair, cradling a
gun and occasionally sipping
whiskey.
There was a murderer on the
loose, and my dad was going to
shoot him, I figured.
Living in a small town on the
New england coast, excitement
of this variety was in short supply. my companions were meditative cows, emotionally
distant barnyard cats, and a pet
dog who, if let loose, would literally run in a straight line until
he died, was caught and returned, or circumnavigated the
earth and ended up back at his
food dish.
The most homicidal thing Id
ever seen, up until that day, was
the zip-line I tried to build between two tall maple trees in a
nearby wood. That and my dad
when I returned home from
using the zip-line, asking if
someone could help me search
for all the missing skin that had

been flayed from my hand.

but this was a real, human
murderer. Two law enforcement
agents in gray suits had
knocked on our door that morning and explained the situation
to my parents.
From my listening spot
around the corner I had to cobble together the information
from various conversational tidbits. but the basics were clear.
A maniac had escaped custody,
and his pursuers chase had led
them to our front door.
Surrounded by 1,000 sprawling acres of land and dozens of
old, vaguely english agricultural buildings, this was an escaped convicts dream come
true. There were moss-covered
stone walls behind which to
duck. musty hay lofts in which
to sleep. Cows to milk if he got
thirsty, and horses on which to
gallop away to freedom if he
was not too busy stabbing us all
to death in our beds.
It was the greatest event of
my young life. As night closed
in around us, it blotted out the
equipment and buildings in the
barnyard, replacing them, in my
minds eye, at least, with this
crazed and violent man. every
lowing of a cow meant he was
tip-toeing through the muck.
every rustle of the leaves was
his weight shaking the tree he
scaled in order to leap onto our
roof. every silence was him
holding his breath as he plotted

L eTTeR

something
extraordinarily
bloody.
I had been planning a career
in either baseball or masked
vigilantism for years, and it appeared fate had made the final
decision for me. Now was the
time to reveal myself as a top
flight crime fighter.
I played the situation over
and over in my head. each one
ended in the same way, with me
the hero. Like most of my life
goals then and now, the story
followed the same narrative arc.
I would avoid putting myself in
any real danger, but chance
would eventually deliver the
criminal to me in some way.
Perhaps I could stick my leg
out around a corner as FbI
agents chased him by, tripping
him so they could cuff him and
haul him away. Or maybe he
would fall asleep and I could
creep out of the food pantry and
hit him over the head with a frying pan. Or maybe he would
simply crumple of exhaustion at
my feet just before the police arrived.
However it went down, they
would find me with my arms
crossed and one foot resting
atop the fallen villain.
Was this something for which
I should put on my batman costume? No, that would be ridiculous.
I would dress as Zorro.
Slashing a Z into this mans
torso would be a fitting way to

TO THe

cap my victory over evil.

Wait, no. I would be Inigo
montoya from The Princess
bride. The FbI agents hadnt
mentioned anything about this
man having six fingers, which
montoyas nemesis did. but
they hadnt said anything about
him not having six fingers, either. In fact, they had been surprisingly silent about how many
digits he had. Probably because
he had six and they didnt want
to sound politically incorrect by
bringing it up, I reasoned.
In hindsight, my dad showed
commendable restraint by not
shooting me that evening, as I
repeatedly sprang out from behind him and yelled: Hello!
my name is Inigo montoya.
You killed my father. Prepare to
die!
He just smiled, sighed, and
turned his attention back to the
window.
In all my excitement, I dont
remember feeling any actual
fear. my dad was there, after all,
and he would make sure any
harm that befell me would be
the wholesome, skinned knee
variety, not the terrifying,
hacked to bits with a cleaver
type.
It is in the absence of fear
that we are all at our best. being
afraid, after all, is the most toxic
emotional state. Its why the internet is such a weird place
because thats where everyone
goes to express their most hyperbolic terror. Republicans are
scared of the government. Democrats are scared of Republicans. The old are scared of the
young, and so on.
When afraid, we cower and
loose sight of all that is good.
but when your dad is calmly
guarding your home from an escaped lunatic, you can put on

e DITOR

Special thanks to voter registration deputies

A special thank you to the municipal
clerks who have graciously taken their time
to provide training for a group of middleton
Action Team members to become certified
as Special Registration Deputies.
To register students at middleton High
School who will be 18 by February 16,
2016, we needed to have certification from
eight municipalities.
Clerks of these municipalities coopera-

tively worked to make that process as easy

as possible. These hard working clerks and
deputy clerks are to be commended: Lori
burns- middleton, Sara Ludtke- Town of
middleton, marybeth Witzel-behl- madison, matt Schuenke- Village of Cross
Plains, Nancy meinholz- Town of Cross
Plains, brenda Kahl- Town of berry, Carolyn Hacker- Town of Springfield, Tom
Wilson- Town of Westport.

We salute you and your service to the

communities you serve.
Your work is greatly appreciated,
Tom & Sandi Vandervest
City of middleton

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

your best cowl or cape, let your

imagination go wild, and really
make the most of the situation.
I sometimes hear other parents pointing out all there is to
fear in the world. Stay away
from strangers, animals, television, cell phones and above all,
wheat, they advise. Just generally remember that everything
on earth is dangerous.
my message to my daughter
is a little different, at least during these early years. There are
two potential scenarios she will
encounter until shes old
enough to venture off on her
own.
The first is that everything is
fine. The second, like that
evening with the murderer on
the loose, is that everything is
not fine, but she doesnt need to
worry or be afraid because Im
here to make sure everything is
okay.
Its merely an extension of
our first year and a half together.
For the first year of her life,
my daughter was essentially a
backpack. An inanimate object.
The key to successfully parenting was the same as the key to
successful backpack ownership:
If you ever set it down, make
sure you pick it up again before
you leave.
but people, most of them
women, marveled at me when
they saw me doing it.
Look at that man, their
eyes said. Hes carrying something that weighs 20 pounds and
hes buying a loaf of bread.
Wow!
Their adoration made me
wonder if their husbands, when
sent to the grocery store to fetch
diapers, often came home with-

out the baby but with a pet giraffe or a giant new tattoo. Or
maybe they made a habit of forgetting their infants in the organic produce section, left with
only a smug sense of culinary
superiority to keep them company.
These people look at me as
they would a chimpanzee wearing glasses or a dog riding a
skateboard. Impressed merely
by the fact that Im doing something, but the bar set so low they
dont even bother to check if
Im doing it well.
but keeping your kid alive
comes naturally, whether that
means not forgetting her at the
supermarket or arming yourself
and fighting off a violent escaped convict.
And he never did kill my
family, by the way. The police
found him a few days later,
shivering and afraid, in a barn a
few miles down the road. At the
time, I thought the important
thing was that my dad had kept
him away.
Today, I know I was wrong.
my dad didnt sit there all night
to keep the murderer away. He
was there to keep out the fear.
To fend off the most useless of
emotions.
And it worked, of course. because sometimes things are fine,
and sometimes monsters lurk in
the shadows. And while you
cant actually protect your kids
from every bump and bruise,
you can protect them from fear.
because when you are very
young, you should be beyond
fears reach. And when it tries
to get in, its good to know there
is someone there, standing
guard, looking into the darkness
and keeping it at bay.

Westport needs new supervisor

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

by MICHAEL DREW
Times-Tribune

The Westport Town board

has voted unanimously to begin
advertising to fill current and
future openings on town committees and the town board.
This action was taken after an
announcement that current
board supervisor bill Von
Rutenberg potentially moving
out of the township as early as
mid-November an in-depth discussion on the current available
positions on town committees.
Discussion centered on the
procedure in which the empty
position would be filled prior to
the next election. Town administrator Tom Wilson advised the
board that according to state
statutes, the responsibility of
filling the position falls to the

remaining supervisors and the

town clerk.
board supervisors also voted
by split decision to oppose
Dane
County
Ordinance
Amendment 16 by adopting
Town Plan Commission Resolution 15-98, labeled Rejection
of Certification of Dane County
Farmland Preservation Zoning
Ordinance Revisions.
How do you justify approving one because it might help
some of our farmers, commented board Chairman John
Van Dinter, but rejecting all the
rest of them?
Van Dinter cited the position
that the entirety of the Dane
County Zoning Code is in need
of complete revision, and that
the Westport board has repeatedly rejected potential zoning
code updates out of hand in

e NGAGemeNT

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

favor of such a revamp.

board Supervisor Ken
Sipsma opposed the amendment, and stated he did not
agree that the town should oppose an amendment that could
potentially assist town residents.
The vote passed the board on
a vote of 4-1.
board Administrator Wilson
provided the rest of the board
with an update on the status of
the proposed budget and that
budget meetings for the township is scheduled for Tuesday
November 10th, starting at
7:00pm.
Weve got a little bit of
work to do yet, commented
Administrator Wilson on the
draft of the upcoming budget,
but it does balance.
As of the October 19 board

David Roessler and Luanne Leverentz of Cross Plains, together

with Charlie brandt and Donna Demeo of baraboo, announce the
engagement of Allison Kay Roessler and Anthony Charles brandt.
Allie graduated from middleton High School, and earned her
bachelors degree in early childhood and special education from
the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. She is currently employed
as a kindergarten teacher in milwaukee.
Anthony graduated from baraboo High School, and earned his
bachelors degree in biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. He is currently attending graduate school for biomedical science at the medical College of Wisconsin in Wauwatosa.
The two of them live together in New berlin, WI. Their wedding
date is set forJuly 16, 2016in the Wisconsin Dells.

The Town of Westport is actively searching for qualified applicants to serve on the Towns
Board of Supervisors.
Eligible candidates must live in the Town of Westport and have a demonstrated interest in local
government. The Town Board meets on the first and third Mondays of the month and members
are expected to attend regularly. A few other Committee/Commission/Board meetings are necessary as well.
The Town is also accepting information for those interested in filling potential openings on the
Town Plan Commission, Town Park Committee and the Town Historic Preservation Commission.
Interested parties should send their resume with letter of interest to Thomas Wilson
attwilson@townofwestport.orgor Michelle Kumar atmkumar@townofwestport.org
Contact608-849-4372with any questions. All paperwork must be received by Town staff no
later thanNovember 9, 2015by4:00 p.m.to be considered.

meeting, no updated mill rate

was available as budgetary
items were still being reported
to the Administrator, though
discussion centered on how
long-term changes at the
WAemS and the Waunakee
Area Fire Department may have
significant impacts on the future

town budget.
Wilson additionally stated
that the upcoming budget may
be affected by loan payments
for the new Public Works Facility, in addition to any increases
in emS service cost.
before adjourning, the town
board did pay the outstanding

bills for the township, hear updates from supervisors who are
members of town committees,
and discussed landscape work
that is nearing completion near
Riveredge Road prior to adjourning the board until November.

Manure into drinkable water?

Thats the countys plan in Middleton

Dane County will deploy a

new system to essentially eliminate phosphorus from cow manure while turning the manure
into water clean enough to
drink, if a provision in County
executive Joe Parisis 2016
budget is adopted this fall. The
County has selected a Wisconsin company, Aqua Innovations
of beloit, to install this cuttingedge manure treatment system
at the site of the highly successful Cow Power digester just
outside of middleton owned by
Gundersen Health System.
One pound of phosphorus is
powerful enough to grow 500
pounds of toxic algae.manure
contains phosphorous and due

Leverentz
and Roessler
to wed

PAGE 7

to Dane Countys large family

farm economy, phosphorus reduction is critical to the effort to
clean up our lakes. manure digesters remove about 60% of
the phosphorus found in manure. The new system achieves
nearly 100% phosphorus removal. This means less phosphorus filled manure and
digester byproduct being spread
on fields sensitive to runoff in
the Yahara watershed.
Dane County executive
Parisi has included funds in his
budget next year - $500,000 - to
pay for construction of a facility
to house the technology. Dollars for the technology and system - known in the industry as

a nutrient concentration system - were approved in the

County executives prior budgets and depending on a final
contact with Aqua Innovations
will cost an estimated $1.3million.
From the very basic like
working with farmers on how
fields are planted, to the very
complex like this system that
processes brown waste product
into purified, clear water, we
know it will take a wide range
of solutions for us to have continued progress in cleaning the
Yahara Chain of Lakes, Parisi
said.
Should the final dollars
needed for the new phosphorus
eliminating technology be approved in the county budget this
fall, construction of the new
technology could get underway
in early 2016. Pending County
board approval of a contract
with Aqua Innovations, the sys-

tem would be activated in 2016

and begin purifying the manure
byproduct of digestion process.
As a Wisconsin-based company, Aqua Innovations is excited and honored to partner
with Dane County to help the
county, its citizens and farmers
use our technology which has
been proven 100% effective at
turning manure into clean water
for the past 10 years. Said Joe
Cecala, CeO of Aqua Innovations. Aqua Innovations has engineered and manufactured
water treatment systems globally that increase usable water
and increase human survival
with a special concentration on
using its new and transformative technology to eliminate
agricultural waste and pollutants in the dairy industry.
The County executives
budget for 2016 also includes
See MANURE, page 9

PAGE 8

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

Obituary

united in marriage to the love of

her life, Clarence C. Scheele on
Nov. 2, 1937, in St. Lukes
Lutheran Church, middleton.
Luellas family was the center
of her life. She loved and gave
unconditionally. She was so
proud of her family. Luella always had time for you and the
time was quality. She was a
mother, grandmother and great
friend. As a woman of strong
faith Luella mastered the art of

Luella W.
Scheele
Luella W. Scheele, age 100,
passed away peacefully on
monday, Nov. 2, 2015. She was
born in the town of berry, on
December 13, 1914, the daughter of Herman and Rosa
(marten) Wille, Sr. She was

living and passed it on to her

family with kindness and grace.
Luella is survived by her
daughters, marilyn Nicholson
and mae (Gary) Sailing; eight
grandchildren; 15 great-grandchildren; ten great-great-grandchildren;
three
great-great-great-grandchildren
and many nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by
her husband Clarence; son-inlaw, Dale Nicholson and grand-

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

son Steven Nicholson. Funeral

services will be held at ST.
mARTINS
LUTHeRAN
CHURCH, 2427 Church St.,
Cross Plains at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2015 with the
Reverend Kirsten Curtis presiding.
Visitation will be on Saturday
from 10 a.m. until the time of
the service at the church. The
family wishes to extend a special thank you to Dr. Daniel

Jarzemsky and the staff of

Heartland Country Village. memorials in Luellas name may
be given to St. martins
Lutheran Church. Online condolences may be made at
www.gundersonfh.com.
Gunderson Cross Plains
Funeral & Cremation Care
2421 Church Street
(608)798-3141

ADA access earns Middleton park award

City of Middleton teamed up with Eagle Scouts to install EZ Dock Launch for users of all abilities

The Park Design Awards,

Outstanding Young Professional of the Year and Outstanding Professional Award of the
Year will be presented at the
Annual Conference in Wisconsin Dells on Thursday, November 5 at 9:30 a.m.
The presentation will be
made at the Kalahari Resort.

LEE

Wisconsin Park & Recreation

Association Park Section Announces 2015 Park Design
Award Winners
Among the winners is the
City of middleton Public Lands
Department, which won the
Park Design Award of merit for
the ADA accessible eZ Dock
Launch at Graber Pond.

cording to the complaint, she

learned that a friend and fellow
employee at St. marys, had
suffered a stroke. The friend
had posted information about
the stroke and his health status
on the social media site. That
evening, Lee shared the information with mutual friends and
colleagues, in several cases via
email. but while Lee intended
to send one message to a mu-

tual friend for whom she did not

have a personal email address in a private Facebook message,
she says she unknowingly
posted it to that persons timeline or wall, which is visible
to all friends on Facebook.
When Lee learned on may 3
that her post was visible on
Facebook, she removed it.
The friend who experienced
the stroke was not a patient of

by the University of Wisconsinmadison and the madison Public Library. Panel members at
the October 12 event included
brown, Foulke, Urban League
CeO Ruben Anthony, Dane
County Sheriff Dave mahoney,
and Dane County Judge Josann
Reynolds.
As a follow-up to this event,
a community workshop has
been planned. equity vs.
equality: an examination of
racial inequities that exist in
Dane County. It will be held on
Saturday, November 14, from

9:00 am to noon, in the courtroom in the middleton Police

Station, 7341 Donna Drive,
middleton, Wisconsin. It will
be co-led by brown and Laura
Love, Director of Secondary
education, mCPASD.
by using national and local
history, participants will explore
the roots of racism in America
and learn how it has manifested
itself through time and continues today. Through presentations, videos, and discussion,
participants will examine current instances of racial in-

RACE

TEACHERS

state teachers have been faced

with a profound level of unfamiliar change that has led to uncertainty, handbooks, revised
compensation models, decreased morale, increased pressure to do more with less,
increased class size, decrease in
classroom budgets, increase in
health care premiums and contributions to pensions, increase
in early retirement and mid-career job shifts, and most telling;
a significant drop across the
state in college enrollment in
the field of education.
Pauls said she understands
that the most of the changes and
reduced funding has come from
the state, but asked the board to
realize that the work teachers
put in hasnt changed and has
many feeling stressed.
I know the bottom line is the

budget and the money needs to

be there to increase compensation, Pauls said. I know the
money is not there, but we are.
We are still here giving more
than what we have to give and
that is the one thing that has not
changed.
The overwhelming concern
with the compensation model is
that we are doing more for less
and for longer and at this point
that is our bottom line, she explained.
Pauls acknowledged that deferring the plan back to the
compensation committee would
create more work for everyone
involved including herself but
felt that was the right thing to do
given the feedback theyve received.
I appreciate the opportunity
to kick it back to the committee

Trail users in middleton

welcome the installation of an
ADA accessible kayak/canoe
port and fishing pier, by the
eagle Scouts of middleton,
wrote WPRA. This is the first
of its kind in the State.
The eZ Dock Launch uses
an innovative adjustable bench
and guide rails to accommodate

Lees, nor was he a patient on

her floor of the hospital. According to her complaint, Lees
knowledge of his stroke had
nothing to do with her job as a
registered nurse at St. marys
.
On may 7, Lee was contacted
by St. marys about the incident. On may 11, during a fourminute conference call with her

users of all ability, it continued. Rollers along the

kayak/canoe port allow the use
of guide rails, allowing users to
maneuver with their upper body
as they enter and exit the pond.
because the dock is floating, the
water level relative to the pier
remains unchanged, and because the dock only requires a

employer, she answered questions about the incident.

Two days later, on may 13,
representatives for St. marys
called Lee and terminated her.
ms. Lee does not know how
or why St. marys determined
that she violated HIPAA because she clearly did not, the
complaint states. St. marys
shipped the contents of Lees

Community workshop on race also planned

As a follow-up to this event, a community workshop

has been planned. Equity vs. Equality: an examination
of racial inequities that exist in Dane County. It will be
held on Saturday, November 14, from 9:00 am to noon,
in the courtroom in the Middleton Police Station, 7341
Donna Drive, Middleton, Wisconsin.
equities in Dane County, get a
glimpse at work being done in
the mCPASD to address these
issues, and begin to identify ad-

if necessary, even if it means

more night meetings, she said.
I appreciate the commitment
from both administration, the
board, and staff to make sure all
our questions are answered and
understood and to maybe know
that we cant move forward this
year, but we made a commitment to do whats best for our
district.
Joanna Cree is another
teacher serving on the compensation committee and was representing teachers at the board
meeting. She said a teacher
wanted her to tell the board they
felt teachers with experience
from other districts were being
undervalued because of the
level they would be placed at in
the new plan. Superintendent
Don Johnson explained that levels are now equated to prior

ditional opportunities to address

racial inequities in our schools
and community.
In speaking of this event,

salary rather than years of experience. He said he has heard

concerns about the change.
There were other concerns
brought up involving credit for
leadership roles or participation
in committees and professional
development.
Jay barbeau, another teacher
on the compensation committee
said he know from the outset
that whatever plan they came up
with it was going to be viewed
as less.
I said at the committee,
what we develop, teachers are
going to feel like we are doing
less for more, because we all
have 2008 in our minds and its
not 2008 anymore, barbeau
said. Things have changed for
you and for us and I think thats
where the disconnect comes

little over an inch of depth to

float, ice cover will not damage
the structure during the northern
winter.
WPRA is a statewide, nonprofit service organization dedicated to extending the social,
health, cultural and economic
benefits of parks and recreation
through its network of recre-

ation/park professionals and

civic leaders. There are approximately 2,500 WPRA members
who include state and local experts on recreation, urban planning, aquatics, at-risk-youth,
therapeutic recreation services,
and parkland development and
services.

work locker to her, as well as

sending her a termination letter.
Although ms. Lee did
everything in her power to
properly submit a grievance in
an effort to prove to St. marys
that she did not commit a
HIPAA violation, and to save
her reputation and her career,
ms. Lees grievance was never
considered by St. marys, al-

leges her complaint.

The complaint goes on to say
the alleged HIPAA violation
was merely a pretext for age
discrimination.
both the federal Age Discrimination in employment Act
and the Wisconsin Fair employment Act prohibit age discrimination against anyone over the
age of 40.

Chief Foulke offered these

words of support: The racial
and ethnic disparities in our
country, county and community
are getting the attention and action that are sorely needed. The
equity vs. equality training is a
logical step in maintaining the
momentum that community
leaders have been building to
address this very real problem.
I am pleased to be part of the
planning team for this training
and feel the middleton Police
Department can be part of the
solution.

from.
He told the board that as the
plan got closer to being finalized the more concerns he
heard.
When this compensation
package became real, the voices
grew louder, at least in my
room, barbeau explained.
Im hoping we can go back to
the drawing board a little bit as
a compensation group and talk
about it.
Im very happy that its on
the table that we are going to
send it back to the compensation committee, because I definitely think that is the
appropriate thing to do, said
board member Paul Kinne.
Their background knowledge
in this after all those meeting is
so much deeper than anything I

continued from page 1

continued from page 1

Registration forms are available at the middleton Outreach

ministry office (3502 Parmenter Street) or the middleton
Public Library (7425 Hubbard
Avenue). You may also register
online at http://equity-vs-equality.eventbrite.com.
The cost of for the event is
$10. Scholarships are available
to those who need them.
To have a registration form
sent to you, to apply for a scholarship, or to have your questions answered, contact Jim Iliff
at jiliff1955@gmail.com.
continued from page 3

could do tonight, it only makes

sense to me.
A motion to defer the compensation plan back to the committee passed unanimously.

CHURCH NOTES

Putnam County Spelling Bee

comes to Performing Arts Center

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

Manure

From 7

dollars to study the feasibility of developing a

similar system at the site
of the Waunakee Digester.
The future is now in
our fight to clean up our
lakes and I look forward
to working with homegrown, Wisconsin innovators on taking our next
bold step as leaders in
cleaning our lakes, Parisi
concluded.
Dane County and its
partners took 4,000
pounds of phosphorus out
of the Lakes mendota and
monona watersheds in
2014.
The project now in its
second year of operation
consists of digesters and
generators to create energy. Cow manure from
blue Star Dairy Farms,
Hensen brothers Dairy
and Ziegler Dairy Farms,
is processed in three airtight digester tanks. The
facility generates approximately 16 million kilowatt hours of electricity
annually which is added
to the local grid in Dane
County through madison
Gas and electric. The
electricity purchased by
mGe is enough to power
2,500
approximately
homes.
because
of
the
methane released by untreated manure, the digester will also reduce
greenhouse gas emissions.The state DNR estimates that by treating
manure and generating
renewable electricity, the
digester will reduce climate-changing emissions
by 22,000 tons per year
equivalent to the CO2
emissions from over
4,000 cars.

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

middleton High School

Drama presents The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling
Bee on Nov. 12, 13, & 14
at7:30 p.m.in the PAC. Tickets
are available in advance
at www.middletondrama.org.
They are $8 for students and
seniors and $10 for adults.
The 25th Annual Putnam
County Spelling Bee by William
Finn, Rachel Sheinkin, Rebecca
Feldman, and Jay Reiss is the
heartwarming story of six
quirky pre-adolescents vying
for the championship title at
their local bee. The kids spell
their way through round after
round of words, hoping never to
hear the soul-crushing sound of
the bell, which signals an error
and the end of the ride for that
particular speller. Along the way
the kids reveal insecurities and
successes, joys and failures,
hopes and heartaches in the hilarious and touching musical
presented by middleton High
School.
See the showNov. 12-14at
the middleton PAC or travel to
the Wisconsin High School
Theatre Festival onNov. 20to
see middleton Drama in the
Showcase performance. middletons production of The
25th Annual Putnam County
Spelling Bee will be presented
at the Young Auditorium on
the University of WisconsinWhitewater Campus at4pm and
8pmCheck outwww.middletondrama.orgfor more information.

PAGE 9

Photo contributed

The cast of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee clowns around during a recent rehearsal at Middleton High School.

Putnam County will take place Nov. 12, 13, &

14 at7:30 p.m.in the PAC. Tickets are available
in advance atwww.middletondrama.org.
$8 students/seniors and $10 for adults.

PAGE 10

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

PAGE 11

PAGE 12

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

Follow Rob
Reischel on
Twitter at
@robreischel

Skibba is Player of the Year

MHS golfer
wins states
highest honor
by ROB REISCHEL
Times-Tribune

The long and proud history

of middleton girls golf
started by the great Dewey
Stendahl, then taken to even
loftier heights by Jeff Kenas
and now becky Halverson
is one of the most storied in
the state.
Names
like
Lindsey
Solberg, Heidi Hinners, Jill
Ries and Halversons will live
in infamy.
but the magnificent career
of Loren Skibba rivals any the
school has ever seen.
Skibba guided middleton to
the second WIAA Division 1
state title in school history this
fall. She also finished second
at state individually, after winning the crown herself in
2014.
For her sensational season,
Skibba was named the state
Player of Year by the Golf
Coaches
Association
of
Wisconsin. Ries, the states

Co-Player of the Year in 2000,

is the only other middleton
athlete to win that award.
I could not be more proud
of Loren to be the All-State
Player of the Year, said
Halverson, who just finished
her third year as the Cardinals
coach. She should be very
proud of her accomplishment
after all her hard work on the
course. Its definitely exciting
for our program.
Skibbas honor highlighted
a bevy of awards that have
poured in for middletons
golfers since winning state on
Oct. 13.
middleton junior Alexis
Thomas was also named firstteam all-state, while juniors
morgan miles and morgan
Narowetz were named honorable mention all-state.
Skibba was also named the
big eight Conferences Player
of the Year, while Thomas and
Narowetz joined her as firstteam all-conference selections. miles was named second-team all-conference and
sophomore Payton Hodson
was named honorable-mention
all-league.
Skibba, a Northern Arizona
recruit, averaged 74.65 this
season, which was the lowest

in the state. Skibba finished

first at seven of 13 tournaments during the regular season and was never lower than
eighth.
Skibba was then second
individually at regionals, sectionals and state.
Loren had an unbelievable
career, Halverson said. Im
so proud of her for being
named Player of the Year for
the big eight Conference. It
was a privilege being able to
coach her these past three
years and I think she will do
great things for Northern
Arizona University.
Thomas took her game to
new heights during a brilliant
junior season.
Thomas averaged 78.56,
won the big eight Conference
tournament and finished
fourth individually at state.
Thomas fired a remarkable 1under-par, 71, on the second
day of the state tournament,
which keyed middletons run
to the title.
Thomas was in the top-five
in 11 of the 14 tournaments
she competed in, including
eight top-three finishes.
Alexis really excelled this
See GOLF, page 20

Franklin says goodbye

Times-Tribune photo by Mary Langenfeld

Tara Franklin, who coached Middletons girls track and field team the last 21 years, wont
return in 2016.

Track coach
steps away to
focus on family
by ROB REISCHEL
Times-Tribune

Tara Franklin tried putting

off the decision as long as
possible.
She tried throwing it on the
back burner this summer. She
did whatever possible not to

think about it this fall.

Finally, middletons longtime and extremely successful
girls track and field coach had
to face facts. Her 19-year
tenure as the Cardinals boss
had to end.
Franklin became a mother
for the first time to twins
Paxton and Keska in
January. And with her children now dominating her
world, Franklin knew there
simply wasnt enough room in
her life to coach track and

field.
I poured my heart and
soul into it, Franklin said. I
absolutely loved being with
the kids.
I loved every bit of it, cold
days, rainy days. I felt like a
mom to so many of the kids
and Ive built so many lifelong connections and relationships. but Ive never had my
own kids, and if I kept coaching, I was going to have very
See FRANKLIN, page 16

Times-Tribune photo by Mary Langenfeld

Middleton girls golfer Loren Skibba was named the states Player of the Year by the Golf
Coaches Association of Wisconsin.

Fabulous fourth for MHS runners

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

PAGE 13

Middleton
shines at state
by ROB REISCHEL
Times-Tribune

The conditions bordered on

miserable. Rainy, slippery,
soggy, muddy.
but the day itself was a historic one for middletons boys
cross country team.
The Cardinals finished
fourth at last Saturdays WIAA
Division 1 state meet held at
Ridges Golf Course in
Wisconsin Rapids. That was
the highest finish in school history.
The boys had a very successful cross country season,
middleton
coach
Cindy
bremser said. It took them the
first month to have all the players run on the same team and
then they improved each competition.
Cardinals
junior
Gus
Newcomb, who led middleton
with a fifth place individual
finish, thought the Cardinals
could crack the top-three. but
Newcomb was still happy
where middleton finished.
Fourth at state was good
for us, said Newcomb, who
finished the 5,000-meter course
in 15 minutes, 5.15 seconds.
We wanted to wait longer to
see middleton show up on the
scoreboard after the race, but
we still moved up from last
year (sixth), which is great on
such a tough day.
Kimberly won the boys title
with 80 points, while madison
La Follette (99), West bend
West (114), middleton (133)
and milwaukee marquette
(180) rounded out the top five.
Newcomb ran a sensational
race, hanging around eighth
place most of the way.
Newcomb then made a late
charge and moved up to fifth
with a terrific finishing kick.
Newcomb improved by 28
positions from last year and
bettered his time by 31 seconds.
A top-five finish to me
means a lot, Newcomb said.
To be on the podium in cross
country is so sweet, sweeter
than the podium in track in my
opinion.
Admittedly, my goal was
to be in the top-three, but it didn't happen for me and I'm
proud I gave a good effort on
the day. Now, I need to think of
the race as a stepping stone,
learn from the positives and
negatives of the race and apply
them. I'm excited to go back to
the drawing board.
Cardinals senior Perrin
Hagge was 36th overall in
16:45.24, while sophomore
Jack
Rader
was
39th
(16:46.08).
Perrin improved his position toward the finish,
bremser said. Jack Rader
again ran very aggressive, running with the lead pack through
one mile at 4:57. He lost some
momentum in the second half
and finished in the same place
he finished last year.
Sophomore Sam Jaeger finished 53rd (16:57.13) during
his first trip to state. And senior
David marrone was 74th
(17:11.14) and improved his
time from last year by 51 seconds.

Times-Tribune photos by Mary Langenfeld

Sam Jaeger ran his first

year at state like a veteran,
bremser said. He ran a very
even pace.
David marrone ran a
strong even race. He covered
the last mile with power and
was covered with mud in the
end.
middletons terrific performance at state capped an
unforgettable season.
Second at conference, first
at sectionals and fourth at state
will be a year they will never
forget, bremser said.
On
the
girls
side,
middleton
senior
Sam
Valentine was eighth individually in 18:53.57. Valentine
went out with the leaders,
remained strong and held on
for a big finish.
This season has no doubt
been one of my better ones,

Valentine said. Im thankful to

have stayed healthy throughout
and been able to continuously
improve.
Reaching top-10 at state
was definitely a big preseason
goal of mine that I wasn't even
sure was attainable at that time,
but throughout the season I
gained my racing confidence
back and knew what I could
achieve. Now, having reached
that goal, it's a wonderful ending to my senior season.
Cardinals
sophomore
Charlotte Sue was also 72nd in
20:09.99.
Charlotte Sue experienced
her first competition at state
and ran a very controlled race,
bremser said. Running her
first mile in six minutes had her
in 50th place. This is a little
faster than she is use to starting
out, but she maintained compo-

sure and finished with a very

good time.

WIAA STATE MEET

At Wisconsin Rapids
Saturdays results
DIVISION 1
Boys
Team scores: Kimberly 80,
madison La Follette 99, West bend
West 114, middleton 133, milwaukee
marquette 180, Hartland Arrowhead
196, madison memorial 213, Stevens
Point 217, mequon Homestead 229, Sun
Prairie 278, Hudson 281, Germantown
310, South milwaukee 319, Neenah
323, Schofield D.C. everest 377,
Franklin 379, Waukesha North 385,
muskego 393, Onalaska 412, Green bay
Preble 414.
Top 10 individuals: 1, Gessner,
madison La Follette, 15:44; 2, basten,
Green bay Southwest, 15:55; 3, Rink,

Perrin Hagge (left) helped Middletons boys cross country

team finish fourth at state last Saturday. Sam Valentine
(above) finished eighth in the girls race.

Kimberly, 15:57; 4, Potter, Wauwatosa

east, 16:02; 5, Newcomb, middleton,
16:05; 6, Anderson, Schofield D.C.
everest, 16:05; 7, bosley, mequon
Homestead, 16:13; 8, Farrell, Janesville
Craig, 16:14; 9, Perez, Stevens Point,
16:17; 10, Legg, madison La Follette,
16:17.
Middleton results (places are listed among only team competitors)
middleton 3, Gus Newcomb,
16:05; 23, Perrin Hagge, 16:45; 26, Jack
Rader, 16:46, 34, Sam Jaeger, 16:57; 47,
David marrone, 17:11.
Girls
Team scores: eau Claire memorial
117, Hartland Arrowhead 169, Appleton
North 174, Sun Prairie 183, milwaukee
DSHA 193, brookfield east 202,

Whitefish bay 206, Waukesha West 231,

madison West 262, Oak Creek 283,
Kimberly 285, madison memorial 291,
Oconomowoc 294, Germantown 316,
Pulaski 330, bay Port 332, La Crosse
Central 332, muskego 358, West bend
West 398, Neenah 424.
Top 10 individuals: 1, Roberts, eau
Claire memorial, 17:49, 2, Davre,
Whitefish bay, 18:28, 3, Van Wie, Sun
Prairie, 18:32, 4, Scott, milwaukee
DSHA, 18:42, 5, Pringle, Sun Prairie,
18:45, 6, Werking, brookfield east,
18:48, 7, Roeske, eau Claire memorial,
18:51, 8, Valentine, middleton, 18:53, 9,
Kalander, mequon Homestead, 18:55,
10, Jochims, muskego, 18:55.
Middleton runners: 8, Sam
Valentine, middleton, 18:53; 72,
Charlotte Sue, middleton, 20:09.

Dream season
comes to a close
PAGE 14

Boys soccer
team falls in
sectional semis
by ROB REISCHEL
Times-Tribune

The result isnt what they

wanted.
The effort, the intensity,
truthfully really the entire season was something everyone
was awfully proud of.
middletons boys soccer
team dropped a 2-1 decision to
madison West in the WIAA
Division 1 sectional semifinals
last Thursday.
The Cardinals finished the
year 16-4-1, while the Regents
defeated Sun Prairie in the
sectional finals two days later.
This game was a game the
players can be proud of,
middleton
coach
ben
Kollasch said. This was a
game that players left all their
effort on the field. There were
no other options, no unused
tactics, just an opponent that
would not fall.
All seasons must end, and
though it was difficult, this
seemed a fitting end, to be in
the game, clawing and scratching for the next goal the whole
way. This team never showed
any tendency to give in. They
had been down in big games
before and they came back
time after time just not
against West this year. A game
like this certainly takes care of
the proud tradition in
middleton, even if the result
wasnt what we wanted.
middleton took a 1-0 lead
in the 14th minute when Derek
Waleffe cleared a ball from the
Cardinals end toward bradan
Allen. A West defender stumbled and played the angle
poorly, allowing Allen to get

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

behind him for the first goal of

the game.
West scored in a similar
way in the 21st minute. The
Regents then notched the
eventual game-winner in the
29th minute after a corner
kick.
both teams played great
defense after that and to everyones surprise, no goals came
after the West corner kick,
Kollasch said. We found
ways to pressure West in the
second half. We didnt dominate the game, but we certainly controlled the better part of
the play in the second half. We
just never cracked through the
defensive wall West put up.
both teams played very
good defense, neither team
could keep the ball long
enough to create chances, and
the goals that did come happened when each team took
advantage of a good bounce or
a piece of luck that came their
way.
While the end was rough,
middleton had another memorable season.
The Cardinals had just six
seniors on the roster. but
middleton finished second in
the big eight Conference at 71-1 and made a run at its first
trip to state since 2011.
What a season, Kollasch
said. early in the season we
lost one of those senior captains to a knee injury which
kept him out for the rest of the
season. Not long after we lost
one of our junior captains to
an ankle injury that kept him
out until the playoffs.
Through all of that turmoil, the team kept their
minds on the game, learned
every day, stayed competitive,
and won lots of games. I was
keenly aware of the youthful
nature of the team, but I am
not sure that I even realized
the extent of the strong contri-

bution of our younger players.

With so much youth on the
roster, middleton should be
poised for bigger and better
in 2016.
As you might imagine,
given our youth, we can look
forward to bigger and better
things for this team in the next
years, Kollasch said. Our
younger players have gained
critical experience in conference games and in big playoff
games.
Any team in the state
would envy the opportunity to
return 15 players to the team
and the potential to return nine
starting players out of 11! All
of this goes to the quality of
work that our seniors and captains have given to this team to
guide the younger players to
be on the competitive edge
and get more out of themselves than they thought they
ever could.
Our seniors will be
missed. We graduate two starting central midfielders, two
great options at central
defense, a strong option at
center forward and a platoon
starter at the wing. While we
can never replace them, we
always find ways of reinventing what we do and their contribution will live on in their
mentorship of the younger
players from this year.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

Times-Tribune photo by Mary Langenfeld

Bradan Allen (right) and Middletons boys soccer team fell to Madison West in the sectional
semifinals last Thursday.

Swimmers
win sixth
straight title
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

by ROB REISCHEL
Times-Tribune

The goal was outlined after

their first practice of the season.
They spent the next 10
weeks bettering themselves,
and destroying almost everyone that crossed their path.
Then
last
Saturday,
middletons dynamic girls
swimming and diving team
made their primary objective a
reality.
The Cardinals won the big
eight Conference meet held at
beloit memorial in remarkably
impressive fashion. middleton
posted a whopping 563.5
points and easily outdistanced
runner-up
Verona/mount
Horeb
(466.5).
madison
memorial (441), madison West
(345) and Sun Prairie (246)
rounded out the top five.
We knew this was a big
goal and that the girls would
have to put in more work than
ever before to make that goal a
reality, middleton coach
Lauren Cabalka said. I have
said all season long how
impressive this young group
has been, day-in and day-out,
but definitely not as impressive
as they were on Saturday. This
was one of the most exciting
and fun meets I have ever witnessed.
middletons impressive title
marked the sixth straight year it
had won the conference meet.
To win six straight is pretty
remarkable, Cabalka said.
We have had a lot of success
over the years. I credit that to
great depth of talent, fantastic
feeder programs in the area and
a group of girls who continue
to buy into our program's philosophy and goals.
middleton had a plethora of

impressive showings up and

down the lineup.
Freshman Cora mack was
second in the 200-yard
freestyle (1:56.50), while sophomore Caroline Hippen was
third (1:56.80) and senior
Samantha Roll was fourth
(1:57.38). mack was also third
in the 50-yard freestyle
(24.47).
Freshman Hannah Aegerter
was second in the 500-yard
freestyle (5:15.63), while junior margaret mcGill was fifth
(5:22.37) and junior elise
Hokanson
was
seventh
(5:26.10).
Senior emma Karbusicky
was second in the 100-yard
breaststroke (1:07.31) and
freshman emily Keebler was
10th (1:10.12).
Sophomore
Chiara
Pierobon-mays was second in
the
100-yard
backstroke
(59.28), while senior Victoria
Lin was third (59.92) and junior Tryn Peterson was seventh
(1:02.21).
Aegerter was also third in
the 200-yard Im (2:12.88),
freshman makenna Licking
was fifth (2:14.89), Karbusicky
was seventh (2:15.90) and
freshman emily Keebler was
ninth (2:16.27).
middletons 200-yard medley relay team of senior
Victoria Lin, Karbusicky,
Pierobon-mays and Licking
was third (1:49.53).
Lin was third in the 100yard butterfly (58.82) and
Pierobon-mays was seventh
(1:00.87). Roll was third in the
100-yard freestyle (54.32),
while Hippen was fourth
(54.50) and Licking was fifth
(54.73).
middleton also dominated
the relays.
The quartet of Aegerter,

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

PAGE 15

Times-Tribune photo by Mary Langenfeld

Freshman Hannah Aegerter and Middletons girls swimming and diving team won the Big Eight Conference championship for
a sixth straight season.

Roll, Hippen and mack won

the 400-yard freestyle relay
and set a new big eight record
in the process (3:34.38). The
previous mark had stood since
1990.
The icing on the cake came
at the end of the meet, when
our 400 free relay broke a 25
year-old conference record,
Cabalka said. They swam out
of their minds.
The foursome of Roll,
Aegerter, Hippen and mack
won the 200-yard freestyle
(1:38.22).
And
relay
middletons 200-yard medley
relay team of Lin, Karbusicky,
Pierobon-mays and Licking
won the 200-yard medley relay.
Sophomore
eleanor
mackey was also fourth in the
one-meter diving, while sophomore Sarah Dahlk was eighth.
This win was our best team
win of the season and one that
has set an incredibly high standard for years to come,

Cabalka said. I could not be

more proud of what we accomplished.
There truly is no greater
joy in the world of coaching
than seeing a smile on the faces
of your athletes that is full of
accomplishment, joy and pride.
We saw a lot of those on
Saturday.
We had some fantastic
individual swims, but our
relays really stole the show. We
were finally able to put together 12 really great swims, all at
the same time.
On deck: V-mH will be at
the
middleton
Sectional
Saturday at 1 p.m.

BIG EIGHT CONFERENCE

MEET
Team scores: middleton 563,
Verona/mount Horeb 466, madison
memorial 441, madison West 345, Sun
Prairie 246, beloit memorial 59,
Janesville Craig 58, Janesville Parker 40,
madison east 35, madison La Follette 34.
1-meter diving: 1, Nunn, VmH,
430.35; 2, Donkle, mm, 419.00; 3, Kas-

par, mW, 380.75; 4, mackey, m, 380.30;

5, Forrest, mW, 379.15; 6, Riggins, mm,
361.80.
200 medley relay:1, Verona/mount
Horeb (Nelson, bennin, Smith, Larsen),
1:47.42; 2, madison memorial (meyer, A.
Center, Gomez, m. Center), 1:48.36; 3,
middleton (Lin, Pierobon, Karbusicky,
Licking), 1:49.53; 4, madison West (Sullivan, mirus, marty, Higgins), 1:51.15; 5,
Sun Prairie (Unmacht, Powers, Nelson,
White), 1:51.41; 6, middleton (mcCue,
Peterson, Keebler, Warriner), 1:53.02.
200 freestyle: 1, Powers, SP, 1:53.92;
2, mack, m, 1:56.50; 3, Hippen, m,
1:56.80; 4, Roll, m, 1:57.38; 5, Seidl,
VmH, 1:57.47; 6, Lutz, mW, 1:59.67.
200 individual medley: 1, marty,
mW, 2:09.22; 2, Donagan, JP, 2:11.38; 3,
Aegerter, m, 2:12.88; 4, Drapp, VmH,
2:13.73; 5, Licking, m, 2:14.89; 6, eckerle, mm, 2:15.63.
50 freestyle: 1, Nelson, VmH, 23.05;
2, Center, mm, 23.70; 3, mack, m, 24.47;
4, Unmacht, SP, 24.76; 5, First, mW,
24.90; 6, Center, mm, 24.98.
100 butterfly: 1, marty, mW, 57.21;
2, bennin, VmH, 57.87; 3, Lin, m, 58.82;
4, Cole, mm, 1:00.36; 5, Peterson, m,
1:00.59; 6, Frankwicz, mLF, 1:00.69.
100 freestyle: 1, Center, mm, 52.47;
2, Seidl, VmH, 54.06; 3, Roll, m, 54.32;
4, Hippen, m, 54.50; 5, Licking, m,
54.73; 6, Parker, VmH, 54.76.
500 freestyle: 1, Powers, SP, 5:05.00;
2, Aegerter, m, 5:15.63; 3, Lutz, mW,

5:16.52; 4, Henshue, VmH, 5:19.63; 5,

mcGill, m, 5:22.37; 6, mcKeon, mm,
5:23.25.
200 freestyle relay: 1, middleton
(Roll, Hippen, Aegerter, mack), 1:38.22;
2, Verona/mount Horeb (bennin, Parker,
Larsen, Seidl), 1:38.97; 3, madison West
(mirus, Higgins, Cardwell, First),
1:39.51; 4, madison memorial (Gomez,
Houston, Cole, Center), 1:39.57; 5, madison memorial (bloomer, Trinkner, bissen, Spielman), 1:41.15; 6, middleton
(mcCue, Warriner, Lin, Pierobon),
1:41.80.
100 backstroke: 1, Nelson, VmH,
54.33; 2, Pierobon, m, 59.28; 3, Lin, m,
59.92; 4, Unmacht, SP, 1:00.40; 5, Drapp,
VmH, 1:01.06; 6, Frankwicz, mLF,
1:01.15.
100 breaststroke:1, bennin, VmH,
1:05.45; 2, Karbusicky, m, 1:07.31; 3,
Gomez, mm, 1:07.85; 4, Donagan, JC,
1:08.14; 5, Larsen, VmH, 1:09.03; 6,
Drapp, VmH, 1:09.15.
400 freestyle relay: 1, middleton
(Aegerter, Hippen, Roll, mack), 3:34.38;
2, Verona/mount Horeb (Parker, Seidl,
Henshue, Nelson), 3:34.57; 3, madison
memorial (Cole, T. Center, eckerle, A.
Center), 3:37.24; 4, madison West (Higgins, First, Cardwell, marty), 3:39.49; 5,
Sun Prairie (Unmacht, White, Powers,
Lelivelt), 3:42.24; 6, middleton (madigan, Warriner, mcGill, Licking), 3:42.24.
At Beloit Memorial.

PAGE 16

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

FRANKLIN

Off and running

Times-Tribune photo by Mary Langenfeld

Kevin McMahon (10) and Middletons boys volleyball team swept Beloit Memorial, 25-21, 25-17, 25-15, in the sectional
semifinals Tuesday. The top-seeded Cardinals now face second-seeded Waukesha South in a sectional final Thursday at 7
p.m. at Madison Memorial.

little mommy time.

Franklin was a middleton
assistant in 1994-95, then
took the program over in
1996. Franklin led the
Cardinals to a runner-up finish
at state in 1996 her first
season as coach then led
middleton to consecutive
state titles in 1997-98.
In all, middleton had 11
top-10 finishes at state under
Franklins guidance. And her
final team in 2014 stunned
many by finishing second at
state themselves.
She was obviously a
model of consistency being
here for so many years,
middleton athletic director
bob Joers said of Franklin.
even after so many years, I
still see the passion she brings
to the sport each year.
She has been instrumental
at helping create excitement
in the program, which has
grown in participation each
and every year. We will miss
her, but I have a feeling we'll
still see her around the track.
If she must go, last years season was an amazing way to
finish her career.
When Franklin arrived,
there were 36 athletes in the
program. Last years team had
130 when the season began.
Part of that was due to
Franklins energy, passion and
love for a sport she excelled in
at monona Grove High

continued from page 12

School. Part of it was Franklin
helping athletes reach heights
they hadnt always believed
were possible.
I hope I made a positive
impact on track in this area,
Franklin said. I hope I
impacted the kids, just to do
better and push yourself.
Dont give up on yourself. We
developed such a great program because of the hard
work with the kids and the
assistants.
And I certainly learned
its not the trophies you accumulate. Theyre fun and they
definitely help make memories. but its the connections
you make with people that
matter the most.
That may be, but Franklins
Cardinals were awfully good
at finding the podium, as well.
During Franklins tenure,
every school record was broken except for the shot put.
Several athletes competed
collegiately and brought a
level of success the program
had never seen.
The bookends, starting at
state and ending at state with
second place finishes, really
stands out, Franklin said.
And all of the things in
between were so much fun,
too.
All of the assistant coaches that poured their hearts out
and built the program with
me. We had so many people
seeing the vision. I was fortunate to be given the opportunity.
While Franklin definitely
wants to focus on family for a
while, she also said she hasnt
ruled out a return to coaching
when her twins get older.
For now, though, shes
ecstatic to be a mom and will
happily let someone else take
a turn with the program she
built.
I know its going to be in
great hands, Franklin said.
And I told the team, when
the weathers nice, you might
see me push the double
stroller over and help with
some things. I probably cant
stay away from it altogether.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

PAGE 17

PAGE 18

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

NOTICES

LAWN & GARDEN

FOR SALE

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

SERVICES

RENTALS

FOR SALE

SERVICES

HELP WANTED

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

PAGE 19

n GOLF

PAGE 20

season,
Halverson
said. She improved almost
three strokes from last season
to this season.
Her winning the conference tournament and then the
1-under-par on day two of
state is amazing! Im thrilled
to have Alexis one more year
because if she keeps working
at her short game, she is going
to continue to do great things
for us.
Narowetz had a solid junior
year that included three topthree finishes and a fourth
place showing at the big eight
Conference meet. Narowetzs
season average was 86.12.
morgan Narowetz had
some really good nine-hole
scores this season, Halverson
said.morgan shot in the 30s
seven times this season. She
should be very proud of earning first-team all-conference.
miles cracked the top-10 at
four tournaments during the
regular season, then was seventh at regionals and fifth at
sectionals. miles averaged an
88.72, then tied for 27th individually at state.
morgan miles had a great
season and Im very happy
that she earned second-team
all-conference, Halverson
said.She shot a 38 twice during postseason play, which
was huge for us.Her ability to
stay positive out on the course
is something that I wish was
contagious.
Hodson was the Cardinals
most improved golfer. Hodson
took more than seven shots off
her 18-hole average from 2014
and lowered it to 91.64 by the
end of the year.
Im so excited for Payton
because she has such an itch
for the game right now and her
drive to improve is so exciting, Halverson said.

2015 Golf Coaches

Association of Wisconsin
Girls All-State Teams

First Team
Loren Skibba* middleton

MIDDLETON TIMES-TRIBUNE

mikayla Hauck monona

Grove
Speedy Kent Homestead
Ashley Kulka beaver
Dam
Claire
Lauterbach

Arrowhead
Kate martin mukwonago
Alexis Thomas middleton
*Player of the Year

Second Team
Sarah busey Racine St.
Catherines
CheyAnn Knudsen milton
Taylor mcCorkle Oregon
mia Seeman milton
bailey Smith Verona
Stanley Wang Thomas
more

Third Team
emily balding brookfield
Central
Hannah braun Kimberly
megan Growt De Pere
Alexa Holland Arrowhead
Amy Holzer Hartford
emily
Lauterbach

Arrowhead
bailey Schmidt Galeettrick-Trempealeau

Honorable Mention
Katie Arneson edgewood;
melissa biesmann Verona;
elizabeth bobinski Green
bay Notre Dame; erin ericson
Onalaska; Ivy Fedewa
Wisconsin Dells; Nina Galang
brookfield east; Rachel
Gentile The Prairie School;
megan Glaeser Fox Valley
Lutheran; Taylor Hakala
milton; megan Hessil
Franklin; Jessica Heyrman
Catholic memorial; Sydney
Hubbard Onalaska; Jenny
Johnson Oregon; Lauren
Klauck eau Claire North;
Trystin Kluess Fox Valley
Lutheran; mattie Kujawski
Arrowhead;
Jessica
Kuzniewski Waukesha;
Ilayna Long Tomah; Isabelle
maleki Homestead; Clare
matkom Whitefish bay;
Courtney matschke Franklin;
Sydney maule Appleton
North; Lexi meade eau
Claire memorial; Lori meyer

continued from page 12

Freedom; morgan miles

middleton; Taylor moon
brookfield Central; morgan
Narowetz middleton; emily
Opsal Verona; erika Priebe
Fox Valley Lutheran; Hanna
Rebholz Verona; Keaton
Schmitz Arrowhead; Hailey
Smoot Franklin; Stephanie
Stead Green bay Notre
Dame; mari Suokko Union
Grove; Kayla Thielen
marinette; Chloe Volden
Hartford.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2015

Times-Tribune
photo by Mary
Langenfeld

Middleton
girls
golf
standout
A l e x i s
Thomas was
named firstteam
allstate.