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Verona Press
The

Thursday, February 4, 2016 Vol. 51, No. 37 Verona, WI Hometown USA ConnectVerona.com $1

St. Vinnys Verona shopstvinnys.com

Verona Area School District

Badger Exam
results show
racial gaps
Scott Girard
Unified Newspaper Group

Photo by Jacob Bielanski

A new hotel on West Verona Avenue officially opened its doors Jan. 7. The design features a modern decor with inspiration from nature.
Guests can gather in the lobby, pictured here, which features an open design with plenty of natural light.

Mixing work and play

Jacob Bielanski
Unified Newspaper Group

With its sleek, modern lines and


upgraded amenities, you wouldnt
expect Veronas newest hotel to have
a view of a farm field.
Over a year in the making, the new
90-room Fairfield Inn and Suites
Hotel purports to bring a new type
of visitor to the area. The new hotel
is managed and owned by the same
group of investors that built the now
8-year-old Holiday Inn Express next
door.
Though the hotel was largely built
to accommodate the steady stream

of visitors to Epic, its


presence also forms
the building block for
putting Verona on the
map for bigger events.
Part of the push to
make this location a
Marriott, hotel manEggen
ager Charlie Eggen
told the Press, is the
access to the roughly
55 million Marriott Rewards members worldwide.
Though Verona residents likely
wont make significant use of the new
hotel, that doesnt mean they wont
reap the rewards. The more businessfocused hotel could prove a catalyst
for making Verona a destination for
events, from weddings to sporting
championships.

Theres a lot of great things happening regionally in the area, said


Eggen, who served as manager
through both hotels openings. And
I just feel like Verona is like the sunny side of Madison Verona has
really got so much going for it in the
future.

Sister act
The idea for the hotel dates as far
back as the spring of 2013, when it
was first proposed to the citys Plan
Commission. The hotel today does
not stray far from that original vision,
including underground parking, a fitness center, swimming pool and a
meeting space capable of holding 50
people.

Turn to Hotel/Page 16

City engineer Gundlachs retirement begins end of an era


Jim Ferolie
Verona Press editor

Over the past few weeks, city engineer Bob Gundlach has been taking
a victory lap of sorts, getting a quick
comment here or there at city meetings and then a more formal recognition last week and this week.
Though hes not technically an
employee of the city, he started working with Verona more than 30 years
ago and has been a fixture here for
more than 25 years. Friday marks

his last day on duty for both the city


and engineering firm
AECOM, and the past
two Mondays were his
final appearances on
the dais of the Common Council and Plan
Commission, which
hes staffed for many
Gundlach
years.
On Monday, longtime former Public
Works committee chair Ald. Mac
McGilvray felt compelled to put his

own spin on the normally mayor-led


congratulatory farewell, speaking
from the audience of the Plan Commission to thank Gundlach not just
for his service but his personal assistance during McGilvrays time on the
council and that committee.
I want you to know just how much
I appreciate your presence these past
12 years, your patience and your consummate professionalism ... and your
commitment to excellence has given

Turn to Gundlach/Page 7

The

Verona Press

Turn to Gaps/Page 12

Board talks timeline for


new school planning
Duerst, Connor:
Consider including
high school

Guiding
principles
for planning

Scott Girard

Maintenance needs
Equitable facilities
Data-driven
decisions
Long-term, flexible
facilities
Good stewards of
taxpayer dollars
Community
engagement, support
Programs

Unified Newspaper Group

The Verona Area School


Board is back to planning
for a new school after
focusing on the shortterm solution for the space
crunch at Glacier Edge
Elementary School over
the past few months.
That includes an expected April 2017 referendum,
which the board committed to Monday night as
they outlined the work
required before then.
While they could ultimately decide against a
referendum after community surveys and other
input, the expectation
is that by Jan. 21, 2017,

board members will have


approved language for a
building referendum on
the April ballot.

Turn to Planning/Page 13

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The achievement gap in


the Verona Area School
District reared its ugly
head again in last years
Badger Exam.
Most district students in
grades three through eight
took the exams during the
2014-15 school year, and
overall results in the first
batch of information made
public last month were
generally positive, with
only fifth-graders falling below state averages
for testing either proficient or advanced in
English Language Arts
(ELA) and math. However, more detailed results
released by school district
administrators at the Jan.
25 school board meeting
show large gaps remain
between the scores of

black and Hispanic students and those of their


white peers.
Similar disparities also
emerged between students
considered economically
disadvantaged and those
not in that category. That
difference is what those
in education refer to as the
achievement gap, something district director of
curriculum and instruction
Ann Franke told school
board members was glaring.
We dont want this to
be predictable, she said.
Franke pointed out the
lack of trend data from
the Badger Exam, which
was in place only last
year, and has been discontinued, so scores cant be
easily compared to past or
future tests. But that data

February 4, 2016

The Verona Press

ConnectVerona.com

Verona named
fourth best city
Bill Livick
Unified Newspaper Group

The City of Verona has


been named the fourth best
place to live in Wisconsin by HomeSnacks, an
organization that uses data
to rank the best places to
live. The organizations
results show affordable
places that have low crime,
strong economies and great
schools. Criteria used to
rank the best cities include:
strong school systems, low
employment, high income,
high home prices, the number of sunny days per year,
low crime rates and the
cost of living.
HomeSnacks ranked

Photos submitted

Biking against bullying


BMX biker Matt Wilhelm shared an anti-bullying message with students at Badger Ridge Middle School and Core Knowledge Charter
School Wednesday, Jan. 27. Wilhelm, who also came to the school two years ago, showed off some tricks, even involving students
from the audience, while explaining how he overcame bullying growing up to get where he is today. The biker, who competed on
Americas Got Talent, encouraged students to never give up no matter what others tell them.
Above, Wilhelm, right, helps CKCS sixth-grader NJ Elias ride on the front wheel.

Above left, Wilhelm jumps over three staff members, including CKCS director Rick Kisting. Above right, Wilhelm shows off one of his
tricks to the audience.

Celebrating 20 years as Hometown Veronas


#1 place to take Karate!

six cities in Dane County


among the top 10 best places to live in the state: Waunakee (1), Cottage Grove
(3), Verona (4), Oregon
(5), McFarland (7) and Mt.
Horeb (10).
HomeSnacks rates,
among other things, the
best places to live as well
as the most dangerous cities in America.
Its list of best places
is based on data, and is
entirely unbiased, HomeSnacks writes on its website. Additionally, cost of
living numbers are based
on a scale of 100, so anything lower than 100 is
more affordable.

Epic records helped bring


Flint lead crisis to light
Doctor depended
on Verona-based
companys software
The Flint, Mich., doctor
who helped bring the citys
lead crisis to light used
Epic Systems software.
Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha said without Epics
software, identifying and
exposing the problem
would have taken much
longer, according to a story
this week in the Wisconsin
State Journal.
If we did not have Epic,
if we did not have (electronic medical records), if
we were still on paper, it
would have taken forever
to get these results, Hanna-Attisha told the State
Journal.
Hanna-Attisha and her
colleagues discovered that
the percentage of children in Flint who had
unsafe levels of lead in
their blood doubled after
the city switched its water
supply to the Flint River in
April 2014, according to
widespread news reports.
The city had previously
had an agreement with the
City of Detroit to get its
water from Lake Huron but
backed out of that agreement while under state

management to save money.


Virginia Tech researchers first reported the elevated lead levels in Flints
drinking water in September of last year, and
Hanna-Attisha then began
looking into lead levels in
young children, the State
Journal reported.
The doctor used the Epic
records to compare blood
results for 736 Flint children under age 5 who had
tests processed between
January and September
2013 with 737 children
during the same months in
2015 at the same facility,
the State Journal reported.
That effort found the
percentage of those with
elevated levels of lead in
their blood increased from
2.4 percent to 4.9 percent
in two years, according to
the State Journal story.
Home addresses from
the Epic records and a
geographic information
system software were
used to study differences
in children within the city
and those outside the city
who were not affected by
the water source change,
according to the State Journal.
Scott Girard

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February 4, 2016

City of Verona

Senior complex on Main gets


commission support
Jim Ferolie
Verona Press editor

Despite some hesitation over traffic, density and the potential loss of
commercial space, a proposed 80-unit
senior housing complex across from
Badger Ridge Middle School got
mostly positive comments from the
Plan Commission on Monday.
The project, called Emerson on
Main, would need to return to the
commission for a public hearing and
then a recommendation to the Common Council, both for rezoning and
a permit. Mondays discussion was
informal, called an initial review.
As commissioner Pat Lytle reminded them, the commission and council
likely will give some weight to any
concerns of neighbors, which include
a single-family subdivision directly
east, on North Edge Trail, across a
53-foot city-owned grass-topped utility easement, as well as a handful of
homes directly to the north and south.
Commissioner Scott Manley,
though he considered it a fantastic project somewhere else fitting
a demographic need, had serious
reservations about the location not
because of the nearby homes but
rather because of the limited amount
of commercial property available on
North Main Street.
Mayor Jon Hochkammer saw his

point and agreed with other comments


that 80 units on 3.3 acres might be a bit
much, but he liked the general idea.
Generally I agree with what Mr.
Manley said about commercial, he
said, but in this case, I really like
senior housing at this location. It will
fit in good with the community and
also create a buffer between some of
the single-family homes and multifamily homes.
It remains to be seen what the
council will think of the project, and
in past years, some alders have been
cautious of putting apartments near
single-family homes, even when
essentially obliged to and when the
commission agreed with it.
Senior apartments could be a different matter, however, as both the
commission and council have been
eager to see that demographic given
its due. That could be particularly true
with full service apartments such
as these, described by co-owner Kate
Shaw as places where people who
are 55 and independent dont want to
live.
Shaw and the letter included in the
application last month described a
facility aimed at much older residents,
generally 75 and up, with 24/7 on-site
care, laundry, housekeeping, meals and
group activities. She addressed some
traffic concerns by suggesting that 80
percent wont drive, which is why they
will provide transportation daily.

She also noted that there will be a


staff of about 10 people working during the day out of a total of 20 fulltime equivalent employed.
Commissioners had a few technical
comments about the 39,000-squarefoot facility and site plan, which rises
54 feet from the lower end to the top
of the roof.

Zoning text
Commissioners forwarded a zoning
ordinance revision that would require
the posting of city-owned signs on the
site of new developments.
While there were several suggestions for internal policy adjustments,
there were not changes to the proposed new rule, which did not draw
any public comment.
The signs generally will be two
feet by two feet, though there were
suggestions that a bigger sign might
be posted on more significant developments. The signs will be identical
to one another so they are reusable
including contact information and
possibly an adjustable area that could
show the date of the hearing.
City planning director Adam Sayre
said commissioning and preparing the
signs which are similar to ones used
in his former job, in Oconomowoc,
would take a few months.
The council will consider the ordinance at its Feb. 11 meeting.

Verona man avoids prosecution in federal gun case


Unified Newspaper Group

A Verona man accused


of being a firearm straw
purchaser received a year
of probation as part of an
agreement reached last
Thursday with federal prosecutors.
Joseph Jelinek was indicted last June for selling firearms without being a federal
firearms license (FFL) holder. In the original complaint,
U.S. District attorneys
alleged that from 2011 until
2014, Jelinek purchased
firearms and sold them as
part of a business.
According to documents

released during the case,


the ATF found four firearms registered to Jelinek
that had been recovered by
law-enforcement officers,
including a handgun recovered by suburban Milwaukee police in February of
2010.
According to an affidavit
from the ATF agent from
the case, a confidential
information told the ATF
that GI Joe Jelinek sold
firearms to people that he
knows and trusts and at gun
shows.
In an indictment filed Oct.
17, the U.S. Attorney listed
more than 164 firearms as
registered to Jelinek.

In building its case, the


ATF noted that more than
30 background checks were
logged to Jelineks name in
a six month period. Jelineks
attorney filed a motion to
suppress most of the ATFs
evidence against him, arguing that background check
logs should be destroyed
within 24 hours by law and
that ATF agents should not
have access to that information.
Under the terms of the
agreement, Jelinek will
avoid prosecution in the
case if he meets all the terms
in the next year. Terms

include not owning any firearms, giving up right, title


and interest in the list of
164 firearms, not violating
any laws and undergoing
mental health screening and
assessment.
The agreement comes
only weeks after President Obama signed an
executive order purporting to combat gun violence
by, among other things,
increasing access to mental
health screenings, speeding up background checks,
and going after online gun
sellers who do not possess
FFLs.

VPL to host Native


Voices exhibition in 2018
National library tour On the web
will hit town in 2018 Find out more about the exhibit:
Named the Wisconsin
Library of the Year in
2013, the Verona Public
Library is accustomed to
honors.
VPL is in some select
company once again
after being chosen to host
Native Voices: Native
Peoples Concepts of
Health and Illness, an
education exhibition that
will travel to 104 libraries
across throughout the next
four years.
According to a press
release last week from
the library, the exhibition features interviews
with Native people who
describe the impact of
epidemics, federal legislation, the loss of land, and
the inhibition of culture on
the health of Native individuals and communities
today.
Native Voices explores
the interconnectedness of
wellness, illness and cultural life for Native Americans, Alaska Natives and
Native Hawaiians, the
press release read. Stories
drawn from both the past
and present examine how
health for Native People
is tied to community, the
land and spirit.
According to the press
release, following a competitive application process, VPL was selected
for the national tour, which

At Cleary Building Corp.


190 S. Paoli St., Verona WI
(608) 845-9700

begins in February and


runs through June 2020.
Verona will host the exhibition from Sept. 13 to Oct.
25, 2018; the only library
in southern Wisconsin
selected as a host, according to the press release. As
part of the program, the
library will also receive a
$250 programming grant,
virtual training and publicity materials.
VPL director Stacey
Burkart said she hopes visitors have a meaningful
learning experience,
This is an opportunity
for the library to present a
topic relevant to our state
that we have not explored
before, she said. We are
so pleased to bring to the
National Library of Medicines fascinating exhibition to Verona and surrounding communities.
Burkart said a schedule
of the exhibition and related events at the library will
be available in 2018.
Native Voices: Native
Peoples Concepts of
Health and Illness was
previously displayed at the
National Library of Medicine in Bethesda, Maryland, from 2011 to 2015.

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Police reports

Individuals Businesses Estates

Reports taken from the log to drinking and submitted to


book at the Verona Police a field sobriety test.
Department.
Dec. 28
Dec. 27
10:37 p.m. Police warned a
9:40 a.m. A Verona woman couple about a "small amount"
was arrested for what would of marijuana that was found
be her fourth OWI after an after the officer stopped to
officer saw her drinking what help them with a vehicle
appeared to be a beer as she that had become stuck in a
drove westbound on E. Vero- driveway on the 200 block of
na Avenue. Officers stopped Legion Street.
the woman at a business on
the 300 block of E. Verona
Jacob Bielanski
Avenue, where she admitted

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Booked in february

February 4, 2016

Opinion

The Verona Press

ConnectVerona.com

Letter to the editor

Grandau best candidate for VASB


On April 5th, 2016 voters will
choose who will represent them on
the Verona Area School Board for
the next three years.
I would like to recommend
Charyn Grandau for that position.
A mother of two children in our
district and a former school board
member (2006-2012) Ms. Grandau
is easily the most qualified candidate for the job.
During her time on the board,
she helped revive the building and
trades program at the high school
and brought back summer school
for all students. She chaired the
committee to create a 4K program
in our district. She was one of the
board members who approved a
charter for Exploration Academy.
As treasurer of the finance committee, she oversaw the refinancing of our debt, taking advantage
of lower interest rates. The savings
we realized were then reinvested in
our schools. That money was used
in part to provide grants to teachers
who wanted to invest in innovative
programming for their students.
In the last 12 years, she has spent
time volunteering in classrooms
and after school programs in our
schools. She has been a member
of the site council at New Century
School, and is the current president
of the board of directors for New
Century.
Over the course of those years,

as a parent, a volunteer and as


an elected member of the school
board, Charyn has been a part of
almost every aspect of our schools.
She understands the many challenges our school district faces at
this time.
Two difficult projects that have
been in the forefront of her thinking are personalized learning and
school discipline models. These
programs have suffered from a lack
of clear definition and consistency
in roll-out between schools, as well
as a lack of professional development and classroom resources for
teachers.
Charyn has a clear understanding
of these issues. She is also interested in our future as a district, and
is aware of the importance of planning for new schools to meet the
needs of our growing community.
She wants to be part of a board
that is inclusive and welcoming to
all voices in our district, to ensure
that decisions about our children
are informed by the knowledgeable
voices of teachers and the caring
and concerned voices of parents.
As a parent of a child in this district, I think Charyn Grandau is the
experienced, informed candidate
who will be the best possible addition to our board.
Maggie Boyd,
City of Verona

Submit your community calendar and


coming up items online:

ConnectVerona.com
Thursday, February 4, 2016 Vol. 51, No. 37
USPS No. 658-320

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Community Voices

Serving humanity is the


best display of greatness

have often considered submitting an editorial to the Wall


Street Journal titled, The
Death of Customer Service. At
times, interactions at some stores
have made me want to just shop
online and skip
the negative
attitudes.
Certainly
not all retailers
are the same,
and most of
the time I feel
appreciated.
But studies
Peters
have shown it
takes 12 positive interactions to make up for a
single negative one.
This rule can apply to churches, as well, as many folks believe
that religion is just another retail
product that can be shopped
around. But there are some goods
and services that are difficult to
shop around for, and we often
have to take what we can get.
One of those is removing skin
cancer.
I recently had to have the Mohs
procedure performed on my noggin, and my dermatologist told
me I needed to go to the West
Side UW clinic on a specific date
with a specific doctor, and that
was that.
Having recently watched the
movie, Patch Adams, starring
the late, great Robin Williams, I
was reminded how some physicians unlike Patch might look
at their patients as nothing more
than an organism that needs scientific treatment.
But I am happy to report that
Dr. Gloria Xu was, for me, a
real-life Patch Adams. It was the
sort of experience that should be
the norm, rather than the exception.

And as a Christian, it made me


consider how I could leverage
my skin cancer care as motivation to better serve others who
might feel a bit bruised and battered by the world.
Basically, the Mohs procedure
consists of removing the basal
cell cancer in stages. Throughout the process, Dr. Xu and her
team were very friendly, asking
me all kinds of questions beyond
the required medical ones to get
to know me as a fellow human
being.
But the care went beyond that.
As I sat in the waiting area to
learn whether or not they had
removed all of my basal cell cancer, I was astounded to see this
physician checking on her other
patients, seeing how they were
doing and even serving them
refreshments.
I thought to myself, Why
would this highly skilled surgeon, who I am quite sure is
very busy, take the time to hand
people coffee and orange juice?
Surely there must be someone
else that can handle the more
mundane aspects of waiting room
etiquette.
When my name was called, I
was relieved to know that I didnt
have to repeat the Mohs procedure. They stitched me up and
sent me on my way. I thought
that was it, and that the next time
I would hear from anyone at the
clinic was when I return to get
my sutures removed.
I went back to work, and right
before I left for the day, my cell
phone rang. It was Dr. Xu, calling to see how I was doing and to
make sure Id call her directly if I
experienced any unusual pain.
The whole experience made
me almost forget that Id had
a cancerous growth removed

from my forehead. I felt like a


million bucks because someone
genuinely cared for me and my
wellbeing.
It made me realize that if I
were treated this way at a retail
business or a church, I would be
a customer or member for life.
This is not a new idea. Jesus
was pretty direct about the
importance of serving others.
In the Gospel of Matthew, he
succinctly stated to His disciples:
For even the Son of Man came
not to be served but to serve others and give His life for a ransom
for many. (Matthew 20:28)
And Jesus was never one to
speak words without following
them up with deeds. At the Last
Supper He humbled Himself by
kneeling down and washing His
disciples feet including those
of His soon-to-be betrayer, Judas
(John 13).
Just imagine: Here is true God
and true man washing feet the
day before He would die on a
Cross for the sins of the world.
He follows this astounding act by
telling His disciples: And since
I, your Lord and Teacher, have
washed your feet, you ought to
wash each others feet. I have
given you an example to follow.
Do as I have done to you. (John
13:14-15)
Consider what the world would
look like if we all actually had
the heart of a servant like Jesus.
I bet our places of business and
churches would be thriving.
Thank you, Dr. Xu, for reminding me of what I should already
be doing as a follower of Jesus
serving in genuine and surprising
ways. The scar on my head will
help me remember that.
Mike Peters is pastor of The
Church in Verona.

Letter to the editor

Vote for Kloppenburg in primary


JoAnne Kloppenburg will be our choice for the Wisconsin Supreme Court in the upcoming primary election.
She has a proven record of accomplishment, serving nearly a quarter century with legal professionalism. She
has provided a steady and honest interpretation of the law, and her election would help to repair the status of the
often ethically challenged high court that Wisconsin has endured of late.
Wisconsin missed the chance before to elect JoAnne Kloppenburg as a Justice of character and ethics. She was
narrowly defeated in 2011. It is time to rectify that mistake and elect a Justice that Wisconsin can take pride in.
Join us in voting for JoAnne Kloppenburg for Justice on February 16, and take pride in being part of Americas
democracy: Vote in every election!
Tim and Karen White,
Town of Springdale

ConnectVerona.com

February 4, 2016

The Verona Press

VAPAS to feature the Phat Pack


Trio to bring Best of
Vegas to Verona
Bill Livick
Unified Newspaper Group

Photo courtesy Clint Thayer, Focal Flame Photography

Riders participate in a previous Winter Cycling Relay Challenge at SBR Endurance Performance
Center in Verona. A portion of the proceeds from this years event will benefit the Wisconsin AIDS
Ride.

If you go
What: The Phat Pack
Broadway at Its Best, in
Verona Area Performing
Arts Series
When: 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 13
Where: Verona Area
High School Performing
Arts Center
Tickets: $30 adult; $28
seniors over 65; $8 student
(18 and under); available at
vapas.org, the State Bank
of Cross Plains-Verona,
Capitol Bank-Verona or by
calling 848-2787
played the role of Valjean in
Les Miserables on Broadway and on the national
tour, and Ewing played
Jinx in Forever Plaid on
the national tour and in Las
Vegas.
All three men had roles
in Phantom of the Opera
in Las Vegas; nine months
before the show closed,
organizers informed the performers that it would be ending. The announcement got
them thinking about their
next career moves, Ewing
explained.
We always walked out
to the garage together after
performing, and the three of
us became very close, so we
started to talk about what we
would do after Phantom
was over, Ewing said. We
decided to try to put a show

together and see what happened and it worked.


The trio is accompanied by
pianist Phillip Fortenberry,
whom Ewing described as an
off-the-charts amazing musician.
Some of the songs they
expect to perform here
include, In the Still of the
Night, Man of LaMancha,
Tina Marie, One More for
the Road, and Make Someone Happy.
Ewing said each singer
has his share of solos, but
the group also enjoys singing
together in three-part harmony.
Ewing said their show has
been well received outside
Las Vegas.
Were so grateful about it
because we get to do what we
love to do and we created
it, he said. We have a blast,
and its great music.
He said the group likes performing in Middle America, where the audiences
have been so great, and sometimes more raucous than a
Las Vegas audience.
Ewing said the Phat Packs
award in 2013 for Best of
Vegas was a big surprise
for us because were a small
show compared to other
shows out here.
We got great reviews
and play for small rooms of
400 or 500 people, he said.
Also, were self-funded, so
we really didnt expect that
kind of recognition.

Local 80s cover band to perform Feb. 13


If Veronans experience
80s nostalgia ahead of
Valentines Day weekend,
they might find local cover
band the Alan Halverson
Parsons Project to be a fitting date.
The band will perform a
series of covers from popular musicians of the decade
during its Totally Awesome 1980s Concert from
7-9:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb.
13 at the Good Shepherd
Lutheran Church West
Campus, 7291 County Rd.
PD.
Made up of members
from the churchs worship
team, Echoes of Grace,
the band organized its first
80s concert last year, and
will return to the stage with
a two-and-a-half hour set
list of songs by Journey,
Bon Jovi, Billy Joel, Boston, Van Halen, Chicago
and many other acts.
After the performance
struck a chord with its
audience last year, the
band set a goal to sell

If you go
What: Alan Halverson
Parsons Projects Totally
Awesome 1980s Concert
When: 7-9:30 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 13
Where: Good Shepherd
Lutheran Church West
Campus, 7291 County Rd.
PD
Tickets: $10 at the door
or on gslcwi.com
Info: AHPP214@gmail.
com
300 tickets at next weeks
event. AHPPs members
share a varied musical
background in addition to
their work with the band:
Steve Witherspoon has
performed with the Verona
Area Community Theater,
Chris Murray performs
regularly at Tuvalu, and
Tracy Dahl and Stephanie
Christensen have extensive experience in musical

theater.
Tickets for the concert
are $10 and are available
online at gslcwi.com, via
email at AHPP214@gmail.
com or at the door, if space
is available. Proceeds
from the concert will support outreach by the Good
Shepherd Music Ministry.
Low cost childcare will
be available onsite during
the concert.
For information, visit
facebook.com/ahppband/
or email AHPP214@gmail.
com.

DUI
Probate
Employment
Real Estate
Elder Law

Racing through winter


Local sports business to host
several events in February
Kate Newton
Unified Newspaper Group

SBR Endurance Performance Center may


specialize in helping clients meet their fitness goals, but the business also has a few
goals of its own this month: to combat the
winter doldrums for athletes and spectators
alike.
SBR will host three events in February,
beginning with its annual Winter Cycling
Relay challenge Friday and continuing with
two iterations of its Winter Wonderland Triathlon later this month. The triathlon, held
mostly indoors and organized with UWMadisons triathlon team, will include a
collegiate race on Sunday, Feb. 14, and an
age group race thats open to the public on
Sunday, Feb. 21.
While the triathlon is more competitive (collegiate athletes can use the race to
qualify for nationals, while age group athletes could qualify to participate in the USA
Triathlon National Championships), tomorrows relay challenge serves as a more
fun and social event with lower stakes.
That doesnt mean, though, that tomorrows relay isnt as physically demanding.
Participants form teams and switch off riding for a full 24 hours, typically riding more
than 400 miles combined from the time the
first rider hops on the bike at 5 p.m. Friday
until the last rider finishes at 5 p.m. Saturday.
Since starting the event eight years ago,
SBR coach and co-owner Jessica Laufenberg told the Press theyve made an effort
to add some twists to the relay, including making riders draw out of a jar whether
theyll be riding on a flat or hilly course
when they switch off every hour on the
indoor CompuTrainers. Theres also a twohour period where racers cant see how fast
theyre going, what place theyre in or how
far their team has gone.
And because the event is meant to fundraise for a new organization every year (a
portion of this years proceeds will support
the Wisconsin AIDS Ride), riders also have
to pay for perks. If they want to cool down
with a fan or play a certain playlist, itll cost
them. Need to make a team substitution?
Thatll be $5, Laufenberg said.
SBR also encourages the public to stop
in during the relay, either to support a specific team or bid on silent auction and raffle items. Donated prizes this year include
UW-Madison mens basketball tickets, a
one-night stay at the Kalahari Resort and
gift certificates from area businesses like
Metcalfes, Vintage Brewing Company and
Rocket Bikes. Raffle tickets are $1 each,
and winners will be announced after the
relay ends on Saturday afternoon.
Laufenberg recommends that spectators

600 W. Verona Ave


Verona, WI 53593

608-709-5565
www.rizzolaw.com

If you go
What: Winter Wonderland Triathlon
When: 7 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 14 (collegiate race day) and 7 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 21
(age group race day)
Where: Verona Community Pool,
257 Fairview Ave., and SBR Endurance
Performance Center, 403 Venture Ct.,
Suite 1
Cost: $65 for age group athletes
Info: 848-9057 or
sbrenduranceperformance.com
to come on Friday night, or the last three
hours on Saturday when many riders come
back with their families to cheer their team
on to the end. In addition to a lively atmosphere, SBR coach Bill Martin said the
event can also act as a good introduction to
SBR and its services for newcomers.
I think its a good opportunity for people
who are maybe unfamiliar with CompuTrainers or what we do, to come in and take
a look and see a fun event, Martin said. I
think sometimes when people hear about a
business like ours if theyre just starting to
get into a sport, they might feel intimidated,
but they can come to one of these events
and see that yes, theres competition
involved, but its fun competition.
Spectators are also welcome at the triathlon events, which will begin at 7 a.m. both
Sundays at the Verona Community Pool
with a 750-meter timed swim. Athletes are
then shuttled to SBR, where they ride 20
kilometers on the CompuTrainers and then
head outside for a 5K run on a flat course.
Participants times in all three events are
then added together for their final time.
Martin, who also coaches the UW triathlon team, said that providing another opportunity for collegiate athletes to qualify for
nationals has made the event popular since
it started three years ago. Anywhere from
120 to 150 athletes many from out of state
will participate this year, and some of the
proceeds from registration support the triathlon team members, who both race and
volunteer at the event.
While the collegiate event registration
filled quickly, registration for the age group
triathlon is open until Feb. 14. Registration
is $65, and so far, Martin said about 40 athletes have signed up. At last years event,
local professional triathletes and other elite
athletes participated in a separate heat so
that people could see all of the local pros
go at it, Martin added, and they plan to do
that this year as well.
You get to see whos in shape in February, Laufenberg said with a laugh.
For more information on SBR events or
to register for the age group triathlon, visit
sbrenduranceperformance.com or call 8489057.

adno=450903-01

Photo submitted

The Phat Pack is set to perform at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 13, at
the Verona Area High School Performing Arts Center.

adno=430981-01

In the 1960s, a trio of stars


Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis, Jr.
adopted the moniker the Rat
Pack, and performed in Las
Vegas as well as a number of
Hollywood movies.
The members of the Rat
Pack passed away long ago,
but four years ago a trio of
younger singers popular
in Las Vegas and beyond
formed the Phat Pack as
something of a tribute to the
originals. The group will
appear in the Verona Area
Performing Arts Series next
Saturday, Feb. 13 at the Verona Area High School Performing Arts Center.
Bruce Ewing, Randal Keith
and Ted Keegan arent Rat
Pack impersonators. Instead,
they try to bring the spirit
of the Rat Pack to the stage,
in that they loved their music
and they loved having fun,
Ewing explained in a phone
interview with the Press.
We dont do the same
music that they did, and were
not trying to impersonate
them, he said. But we love
each others company and we
all love the music that we get
to perform together, and its
just that fun, laid-back spirit
that the Rat Pack did have.
Thats what were trying
to do to honor them with
good spirit.
The group was named
Best of Vegas 2013 Best
All-Around Performers
by the Las Vegas Review
Journal. Since then, theyve
taken their show on the road
and have serenaded fans
throughout the country with
a few original songs, as well
as Broadway tunes, favorite American standards and
some Las Vegas numbers.
Their onstage banter and
original material serve to
showcase the groups musical talent and big voices.
Keegan has played the role
of the Phantom in Phantom of the Opera, Keith has

February 4, 2016

The Verona Press

ConnectVerona.com

Coming up

Churches

of Epic will be held from 3-4 p.m. For simple ways to prevent back injuries.
information or to RSVP, visit fitchburg- Participants will also learn exercises
Discuss transportation issues affecting wi.gov.
and stretches to keep their back and core
Verona area senior citizens at 12:30 p.m.
strong. Wear comfortable clothing and
Friday, Feb. 5 at the senior center.
Conquering cancer
bring a yoga mat or towel. For informaCenter director Mary Hanson and
The senior center will host several dis- tion, call 845-7180.
VAAA board member Scarlet Feller will cussions in February for its Conquering
lead the discussion, while attendees can Cancer: Prevent, Survive, Support and DNR presentation
share ideas for expanding transportation Thrive series, at 10 a.m. Thursday, Feb.
Learn about the definition of DNR,
options. For information, 845-7471.
11 and 10 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 25.
or Do not resuscitate, and its impact
On Feb. 11, Dr. Sarah J. James will in the event of a medical emergency
Home buying
lead a discussion titled Prostate and at 12:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 11 at the
Visit the library for advice on pur- Ovarian Cancer: Prevention, Symp- senior center.
chasing your first home from 7-8 p.m. toms, and Treatments. On Feb. 25, Dr.
Jasmine Hudnall, D.O. from the UW
Wednesday, Feb. 10.
Eugene Lee will discuss Breast, GI, and Verona Clinic and Fitchrona EMS depAbigail Darwin and Wendy Dalgety Lung Cancer: Prevention, Symptoms, uty chief Cindy Diedrich will discuss the
from Stark Company Realtors and a and Treatments.
definition and use for a DNR.
panel of experts will discuss current real
For information, call 845-7471.
For information, call 845-7471.
estate market trends, financing details
and other information to help first-time Healthy lifestyles
Free community meal
home buyers.
Join Barbara Rasmussen, RN, as she
Attend free community meals from
For information, call 845-7180.
discusses a medical plan to prevent and 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays starting
help fight against heart disease at 10:30 Feb. 13 at the Badger Prairie Needs NetVRBC town hall
a.m. Thursday, Feb. 11 at the senior cen- work, 1200 E. Verona Ave.
Join the Verona Road Business Coali- ter. For information, call 845-7471.
Much of the food served will come
tion (VRBC) for an update on how the
directly from the kitchens at Epic, and its
Verona Road construction project will Back health
culinary team will be preparing the food
affect businesses through 2016 and
Learn how to help keep back pain at in the Prairie Kitchen. No reservations
beyond at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 10 bay from 7-8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 11 at are required. Bring a takeaway container
at the Epic campus, 1979 Milky Way.
between 12:30-1 p.m. if you would like
the library.
The meeting will be held in the festiPhysical therapist Jo Annyapu to take leftovers with you (as available).
val conference room. An optional tour will discuss basic back anatomy and
For information, visit bpnn.org.

ALL SAINTS LUTHERAN


CHURCH
2951 Chapel Valley Rd., Fitchburg
(608) 276-7729
allsaints-madison.org
Pastor Rich Johnson
Sunday: 8:30 & 10:45 a.m.

Transportation meeting

Community calendar
Milky Way, fitchburgwi.gov
6-6:30 p.m., Chinese/English
Storytime, library, 845-7180
7-8 p.m., First-Time Home Buyer
presentation, library, 845-7180

Thursday, February 11

9:30-10 a.m., Toddler Story Time


(ages 1-2), library, 845-7180
10 a.m., Conquering Cancer:
Prevent, Survive, Support and
Thrive series with Dr. Sarah
James, senior center, 845-7471
Tuesday, February 9
10:30 a.m., Healthy Lifestyles
10:30-11 a.m., Everybody Story
Time (ages 0-5), library, 845-7180 with Barbara Rasmussen, senior
center, 845-7471
4 p.m., Teen chocolate tasting
10:30-11 a.m., Preschool Story
(ages 11-18), library, 845-7180
Time (ages 3-5), library, 845-7180
Wednesday, February 10
9:30-10 a.m., Toddler Story Time 12:30 p.m., TRIAD presentation,
senior center, 845-7471
(ages 1-2), library, 845-7180
3 p.m., Veterans Club, senior
10:30-11 a.m., Preschool Story
Time (ages 3-5), library, 845-7180 center, 845-7471
4-5:30 p.m., Anime Club (grades
4-5:30 p.m., Minecraft Club
Saturday, February 6
6-12), library, 845-7180
(grades 1-3), library, 845-7180
11-11:30 a.m., Chinese/English
4:30 p.m., Verona Road Business 7-8 p.m., Keep Your Back
Storytime, library, 845-7180
Strong and Healthy, library, 845Coalition town hall meeting, Epic
6 p.m., Fourth Annual Jay Lechler festival conference room, 1979
7180
Tribute Concert, Tuvalu

Whats on VHAT-98
Thursday, Feb. 4
7 a.m. Incontinence Talk at
Senior Center
8 a.m.Zumba Gold
9 a.m. Daily Exercise
10 a.m. Bahama Bob at
Senior Center
2 p.m. Zumba Gold
3 p.m. Daily Exercise
4 p.m. Skip Jones at Senior
Center
5 p.m. Bill Burns at Senior
Center
6 p.m. Salem Church Service
7 p.m. Senior Center Redo
8 p.m. Daily Exercise
9 p.m. Honor Flight at
Senior Center
10 p.m. Oregon Pump
House at Historical Society
Friday, Feb. 5
7 a.m. Skip Jones at Senior
Center
1 p.m. Honor Flight at Senior
Center
3 p.m. Why We Love the
Packers at Senior Center
4 p.m. Bill Burns at Senior
Center
5 p.m. 2014 Wildcats
Football
8:30 p.m. Why We Love the
Packers at Senior Center
10 p.m. Incontinence Talk at
Senior Center
11 p.m. Bahama Bob at
Senior Center
Saturday, Feb. 6
8 a.m. Plan Commission
from Feb. 1
11 a.m. Why We Love the

Packers at Senior Center


1 p.m. 2014 Wildcats
Football
4:30 p.m. Oregon Pump
House at Historical Society
6 p.m. Plan Commission
from Feb. 1
9 p.m. Why We Love the
Packers at Senior Center
10 p.m. Oregon Pump
House at Historical Society
11 p.m. Bahama Bob at
Senior Center
Sunday, Feb. 7
7 a.m. Hindu Cultural Hour
9 a.m. Resurrection Church
10 a.m. Salem Church
Service
Noon Plan Commission
from Feb. 1
3 p.m. Why We Love the
Packers at Senior Center
4:30 p.m. Oregon Pump
House at Historical Society
6 p.m. Plan Commission
from Feb. 1
9 p.m. Why We Love the
Packers at Senior Center
10 p.m. Oregon Pump
House at Historical Society
11 p.m. Bahama Bob at
Senior Center
Monday, Feb. 8
7 a.m. Skip Jones at Senior
Center
1 p.m. Honor Flight at Senior
Center
3 p.m. Why We Love the
Packers at Senior Center
4 p.m. Bill Burns at Senior
Center

5 p.m. 2014 Wildcats


Football
7 p.m. Common Council
Live
9 p.m. Hindu Cultural Hour
10 p.m. Incontinence Talk
at Senior Center
11 p.m. Bahama Bob at
Senior Center
Tuesday, Feb. 9
7 a.m. Incontinence Talk at
Senior Center
10 a.m.Zumba Gold
9 a.m. Daily Exercise
10 a.m. Bahama Bob at
Senior Center
2 p.m.Zumba Gold
3 p.m. Daily Exercise
4 p.m. Skip Jones at
Senior Center
5 p.m. Bill Burns at Senior
Center
6 p.m. Resurrection Church
8 p.m. Senior Center Redo
9 p.m. Honor Flight at
Senior Center
10 p.m. Oregon Pump
House at Historical Society
Wednesday, Feb. 10
7 a.m. Skip Jones at
Senior Center
1 p.m. Honor Flight at
Senior Center
3 p.m. Why We Love the
Packers at Senior Center
5 p.m. Common Council
from Feb. 8
7 p.m. Capital City Band
8 p.m. Why We Love the
Packers at Senior Center
10 p.m. Incontinence Talk at

Senior Center
11 p.m. Bahama Bob at
Senior Center
Thursday, Feb. 11
7 a.m. Incontinence Talk at
Senior Center
8 a.m.Zumba Gold
9 a.m. Daily Exercise
10 a.m. Bahama Bob at
Senior Center
3 p.m. Daily Exercise
4 p.m. Skip Jones at
Senior Center
5 p.m. Bill Burns at Senior
Center
6 p.m. Salem Church
Service
7 p.m. Senior Center Redo
8 p.m. Daily Exercise
9 p.m. Honor Flight at
Senior Center
10 p.m. Oregon Pump
House at Historical Society

ST. JAMES EVANGELICAL


LUTHERAN CHURCH
427 S. Main St., Verona
(608) 845-6922
stjamesverona.org
Pastors Kurt M. Billings and Peter
Narum
Office Hours: 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday,
Tuesday, Thursday, Friday; 8 a.m.noon Wednesday
Saturday Worship: 5 p.m.
Sunday Worship: 8:30 and 10:45 a.m.

THE CHURCH IN VERONA


Verona Business Center
535 Half Mile Rd. #7, Verona
(608) 271-2811
livelifetogether.com
Sunday: 9 a.m.
FITCHBURG MEMORIAL UCC
5705 Lacy Rd., Fitchburg
(608) 273-1008
memorialucc.org
Pastor Phil Haslanger
Sunday: 8:15 and 10 a.m. Worship
Sunday School: 10:15 a.m.

SALEM UNITED CHURCH OF


CHRIST
502 Mark Dr., Verona
(608) 845-7315
salemchurchverona.org
Rev. Dr. Mark E. Yurs, Pastor
Laura Kolden, Associate in Ministry
Sunday School: 9 a.m.
Sunday Worship: 10:15 a.m., staffed
nursery available
Fellowship Hour: 11:30 a.m.

GOOD SHEPHERD LUTHERAN


CHURCH ELCA
(608) 271-6633
Central: Raymond Road & Whitney
Way, Madison
Sunday: 8:15, 9:30 & 10:45 a.m.
West: Corner of Hwy. PD & Nine
Mound Road, Verona
Sunday: 9 & 10:30 a.m. & 6 p.m.

SPRINGDALE LUTHERAN
CHURCH-ELCA
2752 Town Hall Rd. (off Hwy ID),
Mount Horeb
(608) 437-3493
springdalelutheran.org
Pastor Jeff Jacobs
Sunday: 8:45 a.m. with communion

DAMASCUS ROAD CHURCH WEST


The Verona Senior Center
108 Paoli St., Verona
(608) 819-6451
info@damascusroadchurch.com,
damascusroadonline.org
Pastor Justin Burge
Sunday: 10 a.m.
MEMORIAL BAPTIST CHURCH
201 S. Main St., Verona
(608) 845-7125
MBCverona.org
Lead Pastor Jeremy Scott
Sunday: 10:15 a.m.
REDEEMER BIBLE FELLOWSHIP
130 N. Franklin St., Verona
(608)848-1836
redeemerbiblefellowship.org
Pastor Dwight R. Wise
Sunday: 10 a.m. family worship
RESURRECTION LUTHERAN
CHURCH-WELS
6705 Wesner Rd., Verona
(608) 848-4965
rlcverona.org
Pastor Nathan Strutz and Assistant
Pastor Eric Melso
Thursday: 6:30 p.m.
Sunday: 9 a.m.

SUGAR RIVER
UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
415 W. Verona Ave., Verona
(608) 845-5855
sugar.river@sugarriverumc.org,
sugarriverumc.org
Pastor Gary Holmes
9 & 10:30 a.m. contemporary worship.
Sunday School available during worship. Refreshments and fellowship are
between services.
WEST MADISON BIBLE CHURCH
2920 Hwy. M, Verona
Sunday Praise and Worship: 9:15 a.m.
Nursery provided in morning.
Sunday school (all ages): 10:45 a.m.
Small group Bible study: 6 p.m.
ZWINGLI UNITED CHURCH OF
CHRIST
Hwy. 92 & G, Mount Vernon
(608) 832-6677
Pastor Brad Brookins
Sunday: 10:15 a.m.
ZWINGLI UNITED CHURCH OF
CHRIST
Hwy. 69 & PB, Paoli
(608)845-5641
Rev. Sara Thiessen
Sunday: 9:30 a.m. family worship

ST. CHRISTOPHER CATHOLIC


PARISH
St. Andrew Church
301 N. Main St., Verona
St. William Church
1371 Hwy. PB, Paoli

Holiness is Our Essential Purpose


Most religions consider it a fundamental tenet of faith
that our essential purpose here on earth is to serve God
and man, and to seek to be truly holy in this life, so that
we might see God in the hereafter. Despite this being a
near universal tenet of faith in virtually every religion,
modern man appears to have forgotten his essential
purpose. Everywhere we see men, women and children
rushing about busily and haphazardly pursuing disparate goals, but without any overarching purpose, and as
a consequence many of these same people are radically
dissatisfied with life, and go through life with a nagging
sense that something fundamental is missing. But then
we occasionally catch sight of a truly holy person, and
we begin to discern that they have grasped this fundamental truth of existence: that we are created to serve
others, and are most at peace when we heed that calling. We all have different stations in life, and yet all of us
are called to be holy by serving God and our fellow man.
Christopher Simon, Metro News Service
As obedient children, do not conform to the evil
desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just
as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do.
1 Peter 1:14-15 NIV

Support groups
AA Meeting, senior center, Thursdays at 1 p.m.
Caregivers Support
Group, senior center, first
and third Tuesday, 10:30
a.m.
Healthy Lifestyles
Group meeting, senior
center, second Thursday
from 10:30 a.m.
Parkinsons Group,
senior center, third
Friday at 10 a.m.

adno=447268-01

Monday, February 8

9:30-10 a.m., Toddler Story Time


(ages 1-2), library, 845-7180
10:30-11 a.m., Everybody Story
Time (ages 0-5), library, 845-7180
4-8 p.m., Maker Monday (ages
11-18), library, 845-7180
7-8:30 p.m., USRWA Board of
Directors meeting, USRWA Office,
208 E. Main St., Mt. Horeb, 4377707

THE CHURCH IN FITCHBURG


2833 Raritan Rd., Fitchburg
(608) 271-2811
livelifetogether.com
Sunday: 8 & 10:45 a.m.

430 E. Verona Ave.


845-2010

adno=447265-01

Friday, February 5

10 a.m., The Young and the


Restless open indoor play time
(ages 0-5), library, 845-7180
10-11:30 a.m., Prairie Kitchen
Cooking Club: Heart Throb ($5),
Badger Prairie Needs Network,
1200 E. Verona Ave., 845-7471
10:30-11 a.m., Baby Story Time
(ages 0-18 months), library, 8457180
12:30 p.m., Transportation meeting, senior center, 845-7471
1 p.m., Movie Matinees:
Homeward Bound (G, 85 minutes), senior center, 845-7471
7:30-9:30 p.m., Madison
Songwriters Showcase and Open
Mic featuring Dana Perry and John
Jacobs (suggested donation of
$5; $3 for students and seniors),
Tuvalu

(608) 845-6613
stchristopherverona.com
Fr. William Vernon, pastor
Saturday: 5 p.m., St. Andrew, Verona
Sunday: 7:30 a.m., St. William, Paoli
Sunday: 9 & 11 a.m., St. Andrew,
Verona
Daily Mass, Tuesday-Saturday: 8
a.m., St. Andrew, Verona

adno=447269-01

Call 845-9559
to advertise on the
Verona Press
church page

ConnectVerona.com

February 4, 2016

The Verona Press

Gundlach: Retirement, along with Rieders, will herald big transition in city
Continued from page 1
me the confidence I might
not have otherwise had,
he said. Everyone needs a
wingman, now and then. ...
I owe you greatly.
Gundl a c h ,
w h o
turned
67 two
days later, was
quick to
offer his
assistance to
the city he adopted years
ago, despite living 35 miles
away, in Arlington.
Im only a phone call
away, he said.
The normally stoic Gundlach then cracked a rare
ear-to-ear grin and gave a
hearty chuckle as he proved
he meant that last comment, noting hes already
got plans to evaluate a set
of plans for AECOM next
week.
But his regular duties
reviewing plans, working
with developers, staffing
city meetings, answering
public questions will be
handled by three different people who have been
working on the transition
for months already.
Combined with the
impending retirement of
public works director Ron
Rieder this summer, the
city is in for a big transition. Last week, Gundlach
spoke with the Press about
what is clearly the end of an
era for Verona:

Q&

Photo by Jim Ferolie

City officials applaud retiring city engineer Bob Gundlach at his final Common Council meeting
Monday, Jan. 25.

I get telephone calls day


to day from people that are
referred to me by Ron Rieder, that could be a question about sanitary sewer
or water main service to
their property, could be a
question about stormwater,
about the streets.
Theres a lot of night
meetings, theres a lot of
meetings during the day
to meet with developers,
meetings with the city to go
over technical review to go
over development thats on
the books. Its an interesting job because things are
different every day. You
never know what telephone
calls youre going to get.
Ron gets a lot of those
questions, and when he
V e r o n a P r e s s : W h o cant answer a question, he
will be handling your job refers people to me.
now?
VP: How has your job
Bob Gundlach: Jeffrey
Montpas, Theran Jacobson with Verona changed over
and Carla Fischer. Some the years?
BG: We used to do all
of them were (working on
Verona projects for the past the drawings with pen and
ink. Now its all done on
couple years).
Theran was working on the computer. The techniNine Mound Road and the cal changes that have taken
(County Hwy.) PD plans, place ... its just phenomeCarla was on the stormwa- nal what can be done today
ter (control plans). They and what could be done in
will split up what I do. Jeff the past.
I think theres more pubwill go to the meetings.
lic involvement in the City
VP: Tell me something of Verona today than there
about being city engineer was 15, 20 years ago. They
that most people would have more people at the
not know or expect about public hearings than they
used to have.
the job.
BG: Youve got to be
VP: How has Verona
quick on your feet, I guess.
Theres a myriad of ques- changed over the years
BG: When we started,
tions that come up.

the stoplight downtown


was only a blinking light,
and now youve got seven,
eight, nine traffic signals.
With growth comes growing
pains, and Verona has seen
many of those, but theyve
spent the money, to build
the fire station, city hall, cop
shop, new library. Theyre
there to serve the public.
VP: How about from a
community perspective?
BG: We see moms bringing kids, which we probably didnt see 20 years ago.
We see more women in the
audience than we did 20
years ago.
Some people are more
vocal than they were 20
years ago. I think we see
more petitions, where people go through the neighborhood ... and I think this
is just because theres the
Internet and social media.
People are more knowledgeable about whats
going on.
VP: How have your
interactions with them
been?
BG: Generally, if you
explain the project, you
explain whats going to
happen, when its going
to happen, the disruptions
theyre going to see, most
people can generally live
with it.
VP: Tell me a funny story about working here or
working with Ron.
BG: I dont have any stories.

one-visit crowns.

VP: Do you have a


favorite memory?
BG: Theres been so
much stuff thats gone on
over the 26-year-period, its
hard to say. I think weve
turned out good sets of
plans, weve generally gotten favorable responses.

Ive got some remodeling city) that if they need help,


to do. Ive got land out in Ill come in and work a day
Richland County, fence- here or day there, check
building to do. I want to plans or something like that.
start a tall-grass prairie out As far as taking on a project
there.
for two or three months, Im
Ive got a bunch of stuff not going to do that.
to do. Ive got some relations in Colorado, I might
VP: You have kids or
go visit them. I might find a grandkids youll be visitVP: You and Ron have part-time job to make ends ing?
BG: None. Im not marworked sort of side by side meet.
Ive basically told (the ried.
for about 30 years now.
Did you plan your retirements together? Are you
going to travel together or
something?
Find updates and links right away.
BG: (Chuckling) No. I
havent decided yet (what
Add us on Facebook and Twitter as Verona Press
Im going to do). Ive got
stuff to do around home.

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February 4, 2016

The Verona Press

ConnectVerona.com

On the web
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Photos by Lee Larson

Strutting
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Verona Area High School students showed off the latest
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princes and princesses dressed
in their own stylish clothing.
Above, models (from left)
Solomon Roller, Danny Keyes,
Jenna Acker and Marissa Feller
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Elizabeth Paul, left, escorts the Wildcat mascot across the stage.
Naima Ahmed Dukow models a peach champagne-colored dress.

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Jeremy Jones, sports editor

845-9559 x226 ungsportseditor@wcinet.com

Anthony Iozzo, assistant sports editor


845-9559 x237 sportsreporter@wcinet.com
Fax: 845-9550

Sports

Thursday, February 4, 2016

The

Verona Press
For more sports coverage, visit:
ConnectVerona.com

Boys basketball

Boys hockey

Cats
must
win out
to share
Big 8 title
Jeremy Jones
Sports editor

Photo by Ed Fink

Junior Nathaniel Buss (11) is congratulated by fans after the Verona Area High School boys basketball team became the first team this season to knock off Middleton
Thursday at VAHS. Buss scored 20 points, including the game-winning free throw with 12 seconds left.

Undefeated no more

Verona first team to beat


Middleton this season
Anthony Iozzo
Assistant sports editor

It took more than half of the season, but Middleton is no longer


undefeated.
The Cardinals have the Verona
boys basketball team to thank for
ending their perfect season, as the
Wildcats showed their potential in a
62-61 win Thursday.
At the time, the 61 points were
the lowest Middleton had scored in
any game this season, but the Cardinals also lost to Madison East Saturday, 59-52.
Still, the feat by Verona was
impressive, and it allowed the

Wildcats to have a chance at getting


back to .500 Saturday against JanesBig Eight
ville Craig.
Team W-L
Although Verona fell 88-66 to the
Cougars, the win over Middleton is
Madison Memorial 10-2
a high point that might just allow
Middleton 10-2
for more success down the stretch.
Sun Prairie
9-3
It is a very difficult conference,
head coach Alan Buss said. EveryMadison East
7-5
one has really good players, and our
Janesville
Craig
7-5
focus is talking about taking it one
game at a time and getting better.
Madison West
6-6
The question is, are we getting betVerona 5-7
ter?
Beloit Memorial
5-7
And obviously, Thursday, the
answer to that was yes and (SaturJanesville Parker
1-11
day) not so much. So next week, we
Madison La Follette 0-12
will see if we have made improvements along the way.
The indication is that there is a and that is something that paid dividifferent focus at practice and in dends Thursday.
game prep than earlier in the season,

I think they have been more


focused. I think practice has been a
little bit more focused being ready
for games, Alan Buss said. There
has been a little more commitment
to defending just trying to get five
guys on the same page at the same
time is what you are trying to do.
Verona (6-1 0 overall, 5-7 Big
Eight) will be playing for more
results like Thursday, which
showed no team is unbeatable in
the conference. The Wildcats travel
to Janesville Parker (4-12, 1-11) at
7:30 p.m. Friday.

Verona 62, Middleton 61


Verona trailed at halftime Thursday, but it wasnt a large deficit like
the previous three games.

Turn to Boys/Page 11

Girls basketball

Wildcats beat Parker, set up huge week in the Big Eight Conference
Anthony Iozzo
Assistant sports editor

An upcoming Big Eight Conference clash between the Verona


Area High School girls basketball
team and first-place Middleton is
looking like it will decide if the
Wildcats can at least share the
title this season.
After Fridays 55-36 win at
Janesville Parker, the Wildcats
(14-2 overall, 12-1 conference,
ranked third in the Wisconsin
High School Girls Basketball
Coaches poll) remain a half game
behind Middleton (14-2, 12-0,
ranked second), and both teams

have games Thursday and Saturday before meeting at 7:30 p.m.


Tuesday, Feb. 9, at VAHS.
Verona plays at Beloit Memorial (0-17, 0-13) at 7:30 p.m. Thursday and hosts Madison East (6-10,
5-8) at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Middleton travels to Sun Prairie (11-6,
9-4) Thursday and hosts Madison
Memorial (6-12, 5-9) Saturday.
If both win Thursday and Saturday, then Tuesdays game will
decide who will be in first place
in the conference and give the
winner an upper hand in the race.
While Janesville Craig (12-5, 103) still has an outside chance of
sharing or winning the Big Eight,

the Cougars lost twice to the


Wildcats and once to Middleton.
Craig travels to Middleton on Feb.
20.

Verona 53, Parker 36


Verona needed a comeback Friday at Parker after trailing 22-20
at halftime, and the Wildcats
stepped up with a 33-14 second
half advantage to move to 12-1 in
the Big Eight.
The Wildcats got double-digit
games from junior Alex Luehring with 17 and senior Cheyenne
Trilling with 11.
Parker was led by senior Bree
Porter with 13.

Big Eight
Team W-L
Middleton 12-0
Verona 12-1
Janesville Craig
10-3
Sun Prairie
9-4
Janesville Parker
6-7
Madison La Follette 5-8
Madison East
5-8
Madison Memorial 5-9
Madison West
1-12
Beloit Memorial
0-13

Any chance the Verona


boys hockey team had
of winning the Big Eight
Conference title outright
took a big hit Thursday
when the Wildcats were
upset 3-2 inside the Janesville Ice Center.
With the loss, the Wildcats must now win out to
have a shot at sharing the
title.
Verona, which still has
three conference games
against Sun Prairie (137-0), Beloit Memorial
(5-14-0) and at first-place
Middleton (11-2-0) to end
the season, fell to 12-81 overall and 8-3-0 in the
Big Eight.
The Wildcats are the
only conference game left
on the schedule for Middleton, which hosts Verona at 8 p.m. Thursday,
Feb. 11.
Verona defeated Sun
Prairie, 4-0, and Beloit
Memorial, 11-2, early
this season, but lost 3-1 at
home against Middleton.
Janesville forward Tyler
Perkins struck pay dirt
twice, two minutes apart
early in the second period to break a tie with the
Wildcats.
Verona freshman Graham Sticha, who had two
goals on the night pulled
the Wildcats within a goal
with just over five minutes remaining in the third
period. The Wildcats were
unable to find the equalizer though.
Kyle Kobs of Janesville
and Sticha exchanged
first-period goals.
Senior Alex Jones
stopped 13 of 16 shots
on net in the loss, while
Janesvilles Jack Bostedt
stopped 30 of 32 for the
Bluebirds.
Janesville has historically been a tough place
for us to play and this
year was no different,
Wildcats head coach Joel

Turn to Hockey/Page 11

Big Eight
Team W-L
Middleton 11-2
Verona 8-3
Sun Prairie
8-3
Janesville co-op
7-4
Madison Memorial 5-7
Madison West
5-8
Beloit Memorial
3-9
Eastside Lakers
0-11

10

February 4, 2016

The Verona Press

ConnectVerona.com

Gymnastics

Girls hockey

McKersie helps Lynx earn tie


Jeremy Jones
Sports editor

McKenzie Imhoff gave the


Metro Lynx a 1-0 lead early
in the first period Friday, but
the girls were unable to retain
the lead, skating to a 2-2 draw
in a battle of state-ranked
honorable mention squads.
I think the girls played
really well against one of
the best goalies in the state,
Lynx head coach Derek Ward
said. We had them beat with
the puck in their zone with 30
seconds left but couldnt keep
them from putting one in late.
We battled hard in OT but
couldnt put on away.
Imhoff struck just over a
minute into the first period
inside the Madison Ice Arena,
but the Lakeshore Lightning
drew even just shy of 12
minutes into the third period
thanks to Katie Gebhardt.
Lynx forward Vivian Hacker struck back a little
more than a minute later with

Photos by Jeremy Jones

Verona/Madison Edgewood gymnasts Lizzie Lyubchenko competes on the vault Saturday at the
Spartan Invitational.

Gymnasts defeat United, take fourth at invite

Jeremy Jones
Sports editor

The ninth-ranked Verona Area/Mount Horeb boys


swimming team posted 28
of 36 individual seasonbest times (the most of any
team) at Saturdays Madison West Invitational, plus
all three relays had seasonbest times.
With the performances,
the Wildcats were able to
finish fifth an improvement of four spots from
last year with 176 points.
Three swimmers beat
their end-of-season goal
times, including Zeke
Sebastian in the 200 IM.
Zeke is having a great
season and has now made
all four of his goal times
for the season, Wildcats
head coach Bill Wuerger
said.
Caulden Parkel bested
his season goal time in the
500 free and Bryce Hoppe
matched the feat during his
50 free leg of the 200 free

Verona/Madison Edgewood sophomore Lauren


Samz placed fourth overall on her lone event,
scoring an 8.40 on the balance beam.

Waterford took top honors at the meet,


besting Waupun 130.5129.775. Verona/Edgewood rounded out the top three
with 127.850 points.
I unfortunately wasnt impressed
with our performance, Hauser said.
We had a lot of mistakes and falls on
beam which brought our team score
down significantly from where it
shouldve been with our stronger lineup.
The seventh-ranked Franklin co-op
bested the 14th-ranked Burlington co-op
for top honors, winning the Green Division 147.525-140.150. Ninth-ranked
Middleton finished third with a 139.575,
while fourth-ranked Sun Prairie placed
fourth with 138.0.

VA/MH 127.85, United 121.875


Michuda won the balance beam and
finished runner-up on the vault Tuesday
en route to a runner-up all-around finish
with a score of 34.575 against Madison
United.
Michuda posted an 8.90 to win the
balance beam and help the Wildcats/
Crusaders cruise 127.850-121.875
against United.

Turn to Metro Lynx/Page 11

Want to play softball?

Turn to Gymnastics/Page 11

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If you go
What: Big Eight
Conference meet
When: 2 p.m. Saturday
Where: Beloit Memorial
High School

Angaran and Wellnitz


closed the meet out with
a sixth-place finish on the
400 free relay in 3:21.81.
Angaran added a sixthplace finish in the 100
free (49.56) and 100 backstroke (55.57).
Wellnitz finished seventh in the 200 free
(1:50.7) and Vesely
matched the finish in the
50 free (22.47). Hoppe
(1:04.01) capped the meet
by finishing eighth in the
100 breaststroke.
The top-ranked team in
the state, Madison Memorial posted a convincing
win, scoring 465 points for
first place. Second-ranked
Madison West once again
finished second to the
Spartans with 258.5 points,
while 10th-ranked Middleton (193) took third.

relay.
The boys are responding well to the taper process, and I look for more
fast swims over the final
three weeks of the season,
Wuerger said.
Veronas top finish came
in the first event where
seniors Bryce Angaran and
Preston Vesely were joined
by junior Bryce Hoppe and
freshman Shane Rozeboom to take third place in
the 200-yard medley relay
with a time of 1 minute,
41.34 seconds.
J u n i o r J a c o b W e l l - JV conference
nitz and sophomore Luke
The Wildcats extended
H a g e l i n , V e s e l y a n d a streak of finishing in
Hoppe took fourth in the the top four at the junior
200 free relay (1:30.39).
Sebastian, Rozeboom.
Turn to Swim/Page 11

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seconds remaining for the


Lightning to send the game to
overtime.
Lynx sophomore goaltender Sydney McKersie, who
is sixth among the state leaders in goals against average,
turned away 20 of 22 shots on

Cats improve four spots at West invite

Sports editor

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a short-handed goal to help


the Metro Lynx retake the
lead.
Imhoff and Hacker each
finished the night with a goal
and an assist.
While it looked like that
might wrap things up, Hannah Frontier scored with 16

Boys swimming

Jeremy Jones

Senior Mandy Michuda finished a


team-best third-place on the uneven
bars in the White Division of Saturdays
Madison Memorial Invitational. She
went on to finish fifth overall in the varsity all-around competition with a combined score of 33.150.
Michuda tied Waterford senior Lauren
Dziak for third with an 8.20.
Verona/Madison Edgewood sophomore Lauren Samz placed fourth overall
on her lone event, scoring an 8.40 on the
balance beam.
Michuda tied for fifth on beam with
Madison Uniteds Melissa Ponty with an
8.30, while adding a sixth-place finish
on the vault (8.45).
Wildcat/Crusader freshman Annie
Maher came away in seventh place
(8.275), while Waupun senior Jasmyn
Bensley won the event with an 8.70
Verona seniors Kirsten Queoff and
Michuda tied for 10th place on the floor
exercise with an 8.2.
Both Mandy and Kirsten have been
anchors of consistency this year, head
coach Rachael Hauser said. As senior
captains, they know what needs to get
done in practice to get the results we
want come tournament season, and they
have been pushing their team to step up
to the challenges they set as team goals
at the beginning of the season.
Unfortunately, injuries have set us
back so far, but we are looking to some
of the newer members to fill in where
we have lost girls in the lineup.
Madison United junior Celia Ramsey
won the uneven bars with an 8.60 and
the vault (9.40) on her way to the allaround title with a combined 35.275
points.
Waterford senior Isabel Saber finished
second (34.400) after winning the floor
exercise (9.10) and taking second on
beam and the uneven bars.

Photo by Evan Halpop

Metro Lynx Lizzy Conybear (left) with McKenzie Imhoff (right)


after a goal in the first period. The Metro Lynx played against the
Lakeshore Lightning at Madison Ice Arena on Jan. 29.

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It is time to start thinking about summer softball.


Before young athletes hit
the softball diamonds this
summer, leagues need to
get organized and formed.
This is where the Verona
Area Girls Softball Association (VAGSA) has helped
out with a variety of programs for more than 12
years.
VAGSA is a non-profit
organization committed to
providing opportunities for
recreation, competitive and
tournament (Cougars) softball to all girls in the Verona Area School District and
neighboring communities.
Each year, over 150 athletes enjoy the opportunity
of being part of one of the
most comprehensive softball programs in south central Wisconsin.
The following Youth
Softball programs are

available each summer:


Pre-Season Warm-up
Camp (April 10) Grades
3-8
Leagues (Recreational
and/or Competitive)
Grades 3-12
Cougar Tournament
Teams Grades 3-12
Instructional (skills-based
summer camp) Grades
K-9
No matter the skill level,
new to softball or a more
experienced player, there
will be an opportunity to
not only play the game, but
to build and refine needed
skills.
On April 10, VAGSA will
host a pre-season warm-up
camp at the VAHS gym to
help athletes warm-up after
a long fall and winter break
from softball.
This camp will also help
prepare players for skill
evaluations that will be held
the following weekend.
On April 17, skill

evaluations will be conducted at the VAHS gym to


assess each players level
of play and understanding
of the game. Team assignments (recreation and competitive) will be based on
each individual players
evaluation.
Registration for VAGSA
softball is currently open.
The registration deadline
for the 2016 summer program is April 10.
Registration materials are
available on the vagsa.org
website.
Participating in VAGSA
youth softball programs
will teach each player proper and consistent application of fundamentals in a
positive, safe, and fun environment while enriching
their enjoyment of playing
the game.
For more information on
VAGSA, visit them at vag
sa.org or email vagssawi@
gmail.com.

ConnectVerona.com

February 4, 2016

The Verona Press

11

Wrestling

Cats edged by Belleville co-op, Big Eight tournament next


Anthony Iozzo
Assistant sports editor

The Verona Area High


School wrestling team had its
final dual meet of the regular
season Friday as the Wildcats now get ready for the
Big Eight Conference tournament at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at
Janesville Craig High School.
The Big Eight tournament features seven ranked
wrestlers La Follette junior
Francesco Schiro (106), Sun
Prairie sophomore Drew
Scharenbrock (120), Middleton freshman Kevin Meicher
(126), Middleton junior Chris
Rogers (132), Janesville
Craig senior Arstride Serrano (170), Janesville Parker
junior Logan Murdy (195)
and Madison East senior

If you go
What: Big Eight
Conference meet
When: 9:30 a.m.
Saturday
Where: Janesville Craig
High School
Michael Dunlap (heavyweight).
Despite not having a
ranked wrestler, Verona does
have several experienced
wrestlers with chances to
medal. Junior Brandon Daniels is 21-3 at the 132-pound
weight class. Senior Dom
Sabbarese is 18-7 at 170
pounds. Seniors Garrison
Stauffer (220), Matt Maier
(132), Ryan Weiss (152) and

Austin Powers (126) are all


over .500 as individuals this
season.
And while some have similar weight classes, they have
moved up and down throughout the season with some
lineup choices for conference not yet made by Verona
coaches.
The Wildcats will be looking to score as many points as
possible to push for the team
title, with Sun Prairie, Janesville Craig (regular season
champion) and Middleton
being other contenders.

Belleville 42, Verona 41


Verona traveled to Belleville Intermediate School
to take on Belleville/Monticello/New Glarus Friday and
fell 42-41.

The Wildcats and the Belleville co-op both won seven


matches, but Verona had one
less bonus point in the loss.
The Belleville co-op had
six pins and a forfeit, while
the Wildcats had four pins,
two forfeits and a technical
fall.
Sophomore Reagan
Stauffer defeated Kyle Sparr
21-5 for a technical fall at
160 pounds. Senior Egill
Hegge (145) pinned Hayden
Latsch in 1 minute, 31 seconds, while Sabbarese (170)
pinned Calvin Binger in 1:13.
Garrison Stauffer (220)
pinned Daniel Enlow in 1:58,
and Daniels pinned Jack
Dietrich in 3:12.
Freshman Conner Dugan
and Maier both won by forfeit.

Metro Lynx: Look to wrap up Badger Conference title


Continued from page 10
goal. Homestead senior Erin
Connelly, who leads the state
in save percentage and sits
one spot ahead of McKersie
at fifth in GAA, finished with
46 saves for the Lightning.
The Lynx (12-4-4 overall,
7-1-0 conference) travel to
Stoughton on Friday to face
the last-place Icebergs (2-161, 1-6-1) and then hosts nonconference Hudson (7-8-1)

on Saturday.
Next week the Lynx travel
to Schofield to battle the Central Wisconsin Storm (14-21) Feb. 12 before closing out
the regular season Saturday,
Feb. 13, at home against Viroqua (8-8-1, 2-5-0).
All four games are slated to
drop the puck at 7 p.m.
Of having three goalies
amongst the states top 10
in goals against average and
save percentage Ward said,

The having three standout


goalies has been a great problem to have as they have been
able to have friendly competitions throughout the season.
Our number one goal was
to win conference and if we
win our remaining conference
game we will meet that goal,
Ward said. As for seedings
we will find out on Feb. 7.
We should end up with a top
four seed and hopefully do
well in the second season.

Badger
Team W-L-T
Metro Lynx
7-1-0
Cap City
7-2-0
Rock County
5-3-0
Viroqua 2-5-0
Badger Thunder
1-6-1
Icebergs 1-6-1

Swim: Verona travels to Beloit for conference on Saturday


Continued from page 10
conference meet every
year theyve been in the
Big Eight Conference
(eight years) on Thursday,
finishing fourth with 174

points in Sun Prairie.


Verona turned in 13 of
15 season-best times in
individual events and five
of six relays beat their
seed times.
Four swimmers beat

their end-of-season goal


times: Brady Wagner in
the 100 free, Ian Grossenbacher-McGlamery in
the 100 breast and Aidan
Updegrove and Michael
Princl on their 100 free

legs of the 400 free relay.


Madison Memorial won
six of 11 events to dominae the meet with 656
points followed by Madison West (552) and Middleton (425).

Gymnastics: Big 8 title could come down to final game


Continued from page 9
Michuda placed second
on vault with an 8.5.
Kirsten Queoff tied Uniteds Celia Ramsey for top
honors on the floor exercise with a 9.075. Michuda

finished third with a 8.925.


Ramsey (8.75) led a 1-2
finish on the uneven bars
by United and also took
the vault crown with a
9.425. The finishes helped
her take home top varsity
all-around honors with a

combined 35.825.
Verona/Edgewood dominated the meet 107.48056.550.
The Wildcat/Crusaders
JV team took the top five
spots on floor led by Vanessa Wagner (7.75) and

the uneven bars thanks to


Emelia Lichtys 5.05.
Lichty was the first of
four V/ME competitors on
the vault with an 8.2. She
also helped the team sweep
the top three spots on the
balance beam with an 8.05.

Hockey: Big 8 title could come down to final game


Continued from page 9
Marshall said.
Verona was again missing senior captain Zach
Lanz from the lineup due
to post-concussion protocol.
The Wildcats also lost
Jacob Keyes early due to
injury.
Without those two in
the lineup hurts our depth
a bit, but still we had plenty of chances to score and
win the game, Marshall
said. The team played
pretty well, just couldnt
beat a hot goalie when we
needed it.
Verona had dominated
the Janesville co-op in the
teams previous meeting,
winning 6-1 back in midDecember.
The Wildcats host Sun
Prairie on Friday and
Beloit Memorial on Tuesday, Feb. 11, at 7 p.m.
before facing Middleton in
the regular season finale.

A couple bad conference losses lately does


eliminate our chances for
an outright conference
title, but we still believe
in this team and like our
chances in the playoff run
if we are healthy and play
with confidence down the
stretch, Marshall said.

Verona is 7-2-1 against


teams in its sectional and
figures to be seeded anywhere from second to
fourth depending on how
they finish out the season.
Our guys feel we
should be in the top four of
our section, we have had
the toughest regular season

schedule, so hopefully its


prepared us come playoff
time ... Everyone has lost
to one team or another in
our section so it should
make for an exciting seeding meeting and tournament series in our area,
Marshall said.

Who wants to see a picture?


Visit
ungphotos.smugmug.com/VeronaPress
to share, download and order prints
of your favorite photos from
local community and sports events.
All orders will be mailed
directly to you!

Photo by Anthony Iozzo

Junior Colton Reiber goes up for a putback after securing an


offensive rebound Saturday against Janesville Craig. Reiber finished with 10 points in an 88-66 loss.

Boys: Parker is up next


Continued from page 9
Instead, the Wildcats
were down just three
points, 30-27.
That steady play continued in the second half, and
Verona grabbed a fourpoint lead with under three
minutes to play.
Junior Tyree Eady (24
points) drained a 3-pointer
with 48 seconds left to later tie the game at 61, but
junior Nathaniel Buss (20
points) went to the freethrow line in a doublebonus situation with 12 seconds left, hitting the second
one to give the Wildcats a
62-61 lead.
Seniors Cole Schmitz
and Kwan Clements added
17 and 12 points, respectively. Junior C.J. Fermanich and sophomore Brogan
Brunker both chipped in 11
points for Middleton.
I think we were more
patient on offense than
we were (Saturday), and I
think we defended with a
little more tenacity than we
did (Saturday), Alan Buss
said.

Janesville Craig 88,


Verona 66
Verona fought back from
an early 11-point deficit to
cut Craigs lead to 42-40 at
halftime, and senior Keaton

Knueppel and Schmitz


combined for nine points
early to keep the Wildcats
close.
However, the Cougars
did not stop scoring. Junior
SanTrell Payton scored 17
of his 21 points in the second half, and junior Adam
Anhold added 11 of his 13.
They are just a tough
matchup for us. They have
such a strong post presence,
and when they are shooting like that it spreads you
out on defense and it makes
it tough to defend, Alan
Buss said. They played
very well. They have good
perimeter players. They
have guys that can shoot
and have a post game. That
is a well-rounded package
right there.
Junior Colton Reiber,
who finished with 10
points, did score to cut
Craigs lead to 63-55 with
nine minutes left, but Janesville finished on a 27-7 run.
Nathaniel Buss and
Schmitz led Verona with 14
points, while Clements and
Knueppel chipped in 10
and eight points, respectively.
Junior Jake Negus
(19 points), junior Nick
Lynch (11 points) and
senior Connor Wright (11
points) also reached double digits for the Cougars.

WERE
ALL
EARS
Questions?
Comments?
Story Ideas?
Let us know
how were doing.
Your opinion is something we always want to hear.
Call 845-9559 or at connectverona.com

12

February 4, 2016

The Verona Press

ConnectVerona.com

Verona Area School District

Gun law would open school campuses, allow limits


Scott De Laruelle and Scott Girard
Unified Newspaper Group

the bill expresses the intent of the


federal Guns Free School Zone law by
permitting concealed-carry licensees to
carry on school grounds.
Simultaneously, it grants each
school district the authority to establish
policy about concealed-carry within
school buildings, she added.
Assembly speaker Robin Vos stated
last month that the bill is probably
unlikely to move forward in the process in this legislative session, according to the Wisconsin State Journal.

A proposed state law would allow


the carrying of concealed weapons on
school grounds, but would also allow
school districts to prohibit them inside
school buildings.
Wisconsin does not currently allow
weapons on school grounds, and the
bills co-authors said it would make
Wisconsins law compatible with federal law by clarifying the law about
concealed carry within a school zone.
On Jan. 13, state Sen. Mary Lazich District concerns
Verona Area School District superin(R-New Berlin) and co-author, state
Rep. Rob Brooks (R-Saukville), intro- tendent Dean Gorrell wrote in an email
duced the Wisconsin School Zone to the Press that he has not given the
Empowerment Act, and Lazich said proposed legislation a lot of thought,

as he could see it wouldnt have much


traction in this legislative session.
He said a letter from the Green Bay
School District outlined his main concerns with the bill, though.
Those included that no one local had
contacted any school officials about
gun-free school zones, the added difficulty in perceiving danger for school
staff and resource officers who are
unaware of who possesses a concealed
carry permit and the general public
access to athletic events.
Lazich said the issue was brought to
her attention by school administrators
and school board members in my district, which includes parts of Milwaukee, Waukesha, Racine and Walworth
counties.

Gaps: No silver bullet


Continued from page 1
can certainly point out gaps
among certain demographic
groups in the district.

Language an issue
One of the starkest differences was in the ELA section.
Of the white third- through
eighth-graders who took the
exam, 64.9 percent scored
proficient or better, while
just 28.2 percent of Hispanic test-takers did the same.
Black students fared even
worse, with just 20.4 percent
scoring proficient or better.
By economic status
determined based on free/
reduced lunch eligibility
27.5 percent of economically
disadvantaged students scored
proficient or better on ELA,
compared to 64.9 percent of
non-disadvantaged students.
The numbers dropped nearly
the same for math, with 20.2
percent of economically disadvantaged students scoring
proficient or higher compared
to 58.7 percent of non-disadvantaged students.
The gaps continued to
show up in math when broken down by race. Among
white students, 58.6 percent
scored proficient or better, but
just 21.2 percent of Hispanic
students and 19.1 percent of
black students did the same.
Schools mostly followed
their demographics. Sugar
Creek Elementary School,
which has the highest
minority and free/reduced
lunch populations, had the
lowest percentage of students scoring proficient or
advanced in ELA. On the
other hand, Verona Area
International School has the
lowest percentage of free/
reduced lunch students and
had the largest percentage of
students scoring proficient
or advanced in ELA.

High school

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The gap did not just manifest at the Badger Exam level,
though, as ACT scores for
juniors in high school showed
similar divisions among
socioeconomic groups. As
part of the Badger Exam
process, the state required all
juniors take the ACT in 2015,
a requirement that will continue even though the exam
itself will not.
The ACT uses students
scores to determine which
students are college
ready. Just 17.5 percent of
VASD students classified
economically disadvantaged were deemed college
ready in math compared to
65 percent of not economically disadvantaged students. ELA showed a nearly
identical gap, with 33.3
percent of economically
disadvantaged students college ready and 79.5 percent
of non-economically disadvantaged students ready.
The breakdowns by race
did not provide any better
news. On the math portion,
66.3 percent of white students
were college ready, compared
to just 27.3 percent of Hispanic students and 11.8 percent
of black students.
On the ELA portion, those
numbers rose, but still with a
large gap from 79.8 percent
of white students to 42.4 percent of Hispanics and 41.2
percent of black students
considered college ready.

The numbers
Badger Exam ELA
Demographic Proficient
State 51%
VASD 54%
White 64.9%
Black 20.4%
Hispanic 28.2%
Asian 56.5%
Two or more
68.4%
Econ. Dis.
27.5%
Non-Econ. Dis.
64.9%

Badger Exam Math


Demographic Proficient
State 44%
VASD 48%
White 58.6%
Black 19.1%
Hispanic 21.2%
Asian 53.3%
Two or more
45.6%
Econ. Dis.
20.2%
Non-Econ. Dis.
58.7%

ACT ELA
Demographic College
ready
White 79.8%
Black 41.2%
Hispanic 42.4%
Asian 50%
Two or more
60%
Econ. Dis.
33.3%
Non-Econ. Dis.
79.5%

ACT Math
Demographic College
ready
White 66.3%
Black 11.8%
Hispanic 27.3%
Asian 50%
Two or more
50%
Econ. Dis.
17.5%
Non-Econ. Dis.
65%

Tuesday she thinks the districts efforts toward personalized learning and making
Advanced Placement classes
more accessible to high
school students will help
toward closing the gaps in
coming years.
Making sure that all
students have access to
advanced coursework
is going to pay huge dividends, she said. If you do
well on an ACT type exam,
its usually because you have
a really good, solid foundation.
She added that the district
is working to give professional development to its
teachers on personalized
learning, but also equity
work.
Just really helping staff
understand what that means
and what it means to use
culturally responsive teaching strategies and really
understanding how to meet
the needs of Hispanic learners, ELL students, AfricanAmerican students, she
said. Its ongoing work.
Theres no quick fix. Every
district in Dane County, and
the state of Wisconsin, probably the nation, is dealing
the same thing.
Attacking the problem with
I wish there was a silver
Franke told the Press bullet.

ConnectVerona.com

February 4, 2016

Tom Duerst, VASD


board member

Equity, sustainability
With the districts 2015
decision to make equity
among all students its focus,
a new, modern building
could create a glaring disparity among facilities.
For one thing, it could
mean the districts two newest schools, GE and the
potential elementary on the
Herfel property to the south,
are in the same area of the
city.
Thats part of the reason
the district hired Findorff
as a construction manager.
Staff will work with the construction company to determine what it would cost to
renovate the districts older
buildings, like Sugar Creek
Elementary School, to make
them measure up.
I feel like for a long time
weve just been fixing what
we can as we go along, said
Amy Almond, who is on the
boards Building, Grounds
and Transportation committee.
Duerst also said that any
money put toward maintenance, especially larger
projects, should ensure the
building is usable for the
long-term, not just patches. That ensures the board
would be good stewards of
taxpayer dollars, another
principle, and would allow
them to look at the bigger
picture of how any decision
affects the districts future.
Another principle board
members will consider is
where to house the districts
charter schools or other
choice programs, like Two
Way Immersion.

Looking for input


Along with using all data
available to inform their
decisions and building facilities that the community can
use, the board also emphasized the importance of communicating and engaging
with the community.
Why would we do anything without the community
having some kind of input?
Almond said.
Board members already

know at least one of the


questions those community
members might ask, especially in Fitchburg.
Not only will there be
some voices out in the community regarding (a) high
school in Fitchburg, but
Why doesnt Fitchburg have
its own school district?
said 21-year board member
Ken Behnke. That question
will come up.
While they know the
answer to that question
its almost surely not going
to happen because the
demographic differences
that would exist between
the schools are undesirable and the district would
want to avoid redundancies in administration they
need to be open to the other
ideas and questions community members bring forward,
Huskisson told them.
Regardless of what you
do what we know to be
true about this process is that
if you engage the community
along the way and at very
strategic times, it helps you
go from learning and exploring to solution or a potential
project, she said.
The board did not outline
exactly what that process
would look like this spring,
though a massive advisory
committee is unlikely given
the timeline. Instead, efforts
could include community
workshops at locations
around the district or focus
groups of specific populations, like the chamber of
commerce or seniors.
The goal is to have ideas
by summer that could be put
out for feedback in a survey
this fall. That survey will
likely be one of the final
pieces to inform the boards
final decision.
We really need to be
strongly ready to go with
something basically we
know the outcome before
the election, Beres said,
pointing out the next election
would be in April 2018. A
year, thats tough to wait.

88 spots for 2016-17 open enrollment


Some board
members question
number after recent
discussion on space
crunch at GE
Scott Girard
Unified Newspaper Group

The Verona Area School


District could have fewer
open enrollment students
entering in 2016-17 than
in the current school year.
The school board
approved 88 spots for general education open enrollment students, including
24 for ninth-graders, on
a 6-1 vote Jan. 25, with
Renee Zook the lone vote
against. The board also
approved 21 open enrollment spots for special
needs students.
It took more discussion
than in recent years, when
approving open enrollment
spots was a unanimous,
little-discussed topic. This
time, though, some questioned how much space
there was after discussion
the above-capacity situation at Glacier Edge Elementary School over the
past few months.
The number could also
still grow. This school
year, 99 open enrollment
spots were ultimately
opened after the board
initially approved only
78. The board revisited
the openings in May after
enrollment numbers were
lower than expected for
some schools.
At their Jan. 25 meeting, some board members
questioned the number of
spots available after having discussions over the
past few months about the
lack of space in the district.
Just after we got done

saying, Were really


tight, board member
Tom Duerst said. Got a
lot of unhappy parents in
the district about certain
things that have happened
around here, and now
were saying weve got 45
spaces (in K-5).
Board president Dennis
Beres, though, pointed to
the nearly $600,000 the
spots would bring into the
district, and said its simply a measure of filling
the spots here and there
that are open.
After an explanation
from principals in attendance at the meeting of
how the spots open and
the lack of problems they
cause, Duerst and those
who questioned the original numbers other than
Zook voted for the proposal.
Country View Elementary School principal
Michelle Nummerdor said
her kindergarten classes
are at 15 students in all
four sections. As they
move to first grade, she
said she needs to keep
four sections to avoid having 20 students per classroom and lacking much
room for eventual district
growth. The open enrollment spots can help fill
those classrooms, then.
Sugar Creek Elementary School principal Todd
Brunner agreed with Nummerdor.
Very carefully and
very conservatively I
looked and we accepted
a few (spots), Brunner
said. Its only done after
a careful consideration.
The spots the board
approved Jan. 25 do not
include any for sixthgraders. Open-enrolled
fifth-graders must reapply
to the district before fifthgrade, but without any
spots, they are likely not

2016-17 open
enrollment
Grade Spots
K 8
1 16
2 2
3 2
4 9
5 8
6 0
7 0
8 2
9
24
10 7
11 7
12 3
going to remain in VASD.
The only other grade
with zero openings is seventh grade.
Other than ninth grade,
the grades with the most
openings are first, with 16;
fourth, with nine; and kindergarten and fifth, with
eight each.
Years ago, the district
allowed more than 100
students annually to come
into the district through
open enrollment, which
provided a major budget
boost. As projections have
forced the district to plan
for growth, though, the
board has limited those
numbers.
The open enrollment
period begins Feb. 1 and
closes April 29. The district must let applicants
know if theyve been
accepted for open enrollment by June 10.
To find out more about
open enrollment, visit dpi.
wi.gov/open-enrollment.

adno=450899-01

If voters were to approve


that referendum, a school
would likely open in September 2019, Jill Huskisson
of Eppstein Uhen architects told the board Monday
night.
Board members outlined
seven guiding principles
for the process of planning a
new school building, including ensuring all facilities are
equitable, they make datadriven decisions and they
consider maintenance needs
for existing buildings.
Despite all of the recent
discussion about overcrowding at elementary schools,
especially GE, board members Tom Duerst and Derrell
Connor both emphasized
they do not want to rule out
building a new high school
first. A new campus, which
would be located on the former Vanta (West End) and
Erbach properties off West
Verona Avenue, would
allow the district to repurpose the current high school
building to alleviate other
space issues.
You need to at least
explore high school if youre
doing a long-term look at
your district, Duerst said.
In the year they have
to decide, consultants are
expected to gather data to
inform the board and the
community about what
problems the district faces
and come up with realistic
solutions.
Consultants include EUA,
Findorff to help with construction costs and MD Roffers Consulting. MD Roffers holds one of the keys
to how the district will proceed, as the company looks
in-depth at expected growth
in the district in more detail
than the Applied Population
Lab, which has provided the
district more regular enrollment growth projections in
recent years.
That data are expected
later this spring, and outreach efforts to the community will begin in earnest in
March, Huskisson said. That
outreach could be a major
factor in the referendums
outcome, she added.
Your solutions better
reflect (the guiding principles), but as important, the
engagement in this community and what theyre telling
you, she said. The best
plans cannot compensate for
the fact that the community
didnt support it.

You need to at least


explore high school
if youre doing a
long-term look at
your district.

adno=450904-01

Continued from page 1

13

Verona Area School District

adno=450900-01

Planning: Modern building would create disparity

The Verona Press

adno=450905-01

adno=450902-01

14

February 4, 2016

The Verona Press

ConnectVerona.com

Verona artist co-curates Kenosha exhibit


Deeply Rooted
showcases
30 works by
Midwestern quilters

Bottom left, Elena Rafiee, 10


months, is all smiles while
meeting Elsa and Olaf.

An art exhibit opening


in Kenosha this month is
being co-curated by a local
artist.
Pat Kroth, a Verona resident who uses a variety of
materials to create whats
known as fiber art, will
also be featured in the contemporary art quilt exhibit,
titled Deeply Rooted.
After premiering at the
American Quilters Society show in Des Moines
last fall, the exhibit will
open in Kenosha on Sunday, Jan. 31 at the Anderson Art Center, 6603 Third
Ave.
The juried exhibit showcases 30 contemporary art
quilts meant to explore
interpretations of (putting) down roots or being
uprooted while encompassing a broad range of
styles, techniques and
interpretations, according
to an exhibit press release.
One of Kroths works,
Life Routes which
depicts plant roots and is
layered with fragments of
hand-dyed fabric, tulle and
found objects like maps,
tickets and buttons is
featured alongside work
from SAQA member artists from other Midwestern
states.
International fiber artist Kathyanne White from
Prescott, Ariz., acted as
juror to select the quilts

On the web

Send it here

See more photos from the character


meet and greet at the library:

If you have news youd like to share


with readers of the Verona Press, there
are many ways to contact us.
For general questions or inquiries, call
our office at 845-9559 or email veronapress@wcinet.com.
Our website accepts story ideas, community items, photos and letters to the
editor, at ConnectVerona.com.
Several types of items have specific
emails where they can be sent directly.

Photos by Kate Newton

Real friends
Kids had a chance to meet
beloved characters from the
page and the screen at the
library Saturday, Jan. 16. Elsa
and Olaf from Frozen, Llama
Llama from the popular childrens book series and Huckle
Cat from the book series
Busytown were all on hand to
meet with kids, who were also
able to partake in characterthemed snacks and crafts.
Above, Ryan and Zoe Nechvata
get an up close look at Llama
Llama even reaching out to
give him a few pats on the nose.
Top left, Sarah Zelle, 3, goes in
for a hug after spotting Huckle
Cat.

ConnectVerona.com

Photos submitted

Verona artist Pat Kroth serves as co-curator of a contemporary


quilt exhibit opening in Kenosha. Her quilt Life Routes, made up
of hand-dyed and commercial fabrics and found objects, is also
featured in the exhibit.

and will also be represented in the exhibit. Kroth and


fellow members of the Studio Art Quilt Associates
(SAQA) Karin Gundlach and Rebecca Kemble
of Iowa, Cynthia Levis
of Nebraska and Cynthia
Wenslow of Illinois
serve as co-curators.
Deeply Rooted will
continue its tour after closing in Kenosha on March
20, with stops at the International Quilt Fest in

Chicago and others in Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa and


Nebraska through next
year.
Kroths work has been
shown in exhibits and collections across the country
since the 1990s.
For more information
on the exhibit, contact Pat
Kroth at 845-3970 or visit
andersonartscenter.com.
Kate Newton

Advertising inquiries
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Business announcements
ungreporter@wcinet.com

College notes/graduations
ungcollege@wcinet.com

Community news
communityreporter@wcinet.com

Legals
OFFICIAL NOTICE
TO BIDDERS
2016 VERONA STREET
REHABILITATION PROJECT
CITY OF VERONA, WI

OWNER: Notice is hereby given by


the City of Verona, Wisconsin that it will
receive Sealed Bids for the 2016 Verona
Street Rehabilitation Project.
PROJECT: The major work consists
of the following items: Approximately
7,800 lineal feet of 30-in. wide curb and
gutter removal, 320 square yards of concrete sidewalk removal, 1,075 square
yards of concrete driveway approach
removal, 2,730 cubic yards of common
excavation, 2,450 cubic yards undercut
excavation, 7,500 lineal feet of 30 curb
and gutter machine replacement, 275 lineal feet of 30 curb and gutter hand replacement, 1,075 square yards of 7 concrete approach, 1,750 square feet 5-inch
thick concrete sidewalk, 1,125 square
feet 7-inch thick concrete sidewalk, 4,150

tons of crushed stone subgrade stabilization, 19,400 square yards pulverize and
reshape, 3,925 tons of asphaltic concrete
pavement, Type E-0.3, 70 tons of asphaltic driveway and approach, erosion control and all appurtenant work.
PLANS AND SPECIFICATIONS: The
Bidding Documents are on file for review
at the office of the City Clerk, City Hall,
111 Lincoln Street, Verona, WI and at the
office of the Director of Public Works, 410
Investment Court, Verona, WI.
Copies of the Bidding Documents
are available at www.questcdn.com.
Bidders may download the digital Plan
Documents for $10.00 non-refundable
payment by inputting Quest Project #
4234960 on the websites project search
page. Please contact QuestCDN.com at
952-233-1632 or info@questcdn.com for
assistance in free membership registration, downloading, and working with the
digital project information. No paper plan
documents will be provided.
TIME: Sealed Bids will be received
until 1:00 P.M., February 18, 2016, in the

Notice of Rate Increase


Water Customer of the Verona Water Utility

This is to give you notice that the Verona Water Utility filed an application on
January 21, 2016, with the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSC), for authority to increase water rates. Rates for general service will increase 3 percent. The
increase is necessary to reduce the existing deficiency in present rates. The request
is being made under Wis. Stat. 196.193. Rate increases granted under this statute do
not require a public hearing.
The effect of the increase for some selected customers is shown below. Public
Fire Protection will also increase 3 percent.
Customer
Classification

Meter
Size

Average Residential 5/8

Gallons
14,000

Existing
Quarterly Rate
$48.85

Revised
Quarterly
Rate
$50.29

Large Residential

5/8

50,000

$135.25

$139.21

Commercial

1 1/2

650,000

$1,128.00

$1,164.15

Public Authority

1,700,000

$2,736.50

$2,825.84

Industrial

4,000,000

$6,209.50

$6,413.84

This rate increase will go into effect on March 16, 2016


If you have any questions about the rate increase request, call the Verona Water
Utility at (608) 845-6695.
Published: February 4, 2016
WNAXLP

office of the Director of Public Works, 410


Investment Court, Verona, Wisconsin. At
this time, all bids will be publicly opened
and read aloud.
BIDS: All Bids shall be sealed in an
envelope clearly marked 2016 Verona
Street Rehabilitation Project. The name
and address of the bidder shall be clearly
identified on the outside of the envelope.
BID SECURITY: A bid bond or certified check, payable to the City of Verona,
in the amount of not less than 5% or more
than 10% of the Bid shall accompany
each Bid as a guarantee that if the Bid is
accepted, the bidder will execute the contract and furnish 100% performance and
payment bonds within 10 days after notice of award of the contract by the City.
WAGE SCALE: Each Contractor
or Subcontractor performing work on
the project shall be required to pay not
less than the prevailing wage rate on the
project as established by the State of
Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development. Copies of these wage rates
are on file in the office of the City Clerk
and will be incorporated into the contract
documents.
BID REJECTION: The City reserves
the right to reject any and all Bids, to
waive any technicality, and to accept any
Bid which it deems advantageous to the
Citys best interest.
BID WITHDRAWAL: All Bids shall remain subject to acceptance for a period
of 60 days after the time and date set for
the opening thereof.
Published by authority of the City of
Verona, Wisconsin
Jon H. Hochkammer,
Mayor
Ellen Clark,
City Clerk
Published: January 28 and
February 4, 2016
WNAXLP
***

STATE OF WISCONSIN,
CIRCUIT COURT,
DANE COUNTY, NOTICE TO
CREDITORS (INFORMAL
ADMINISTRATION) IN THE
MATTER OF THE ESTATE OF
Arlene I. Solberg

Case No. 16PR8


PLEASE TAKE NOTICE:
1. An application for Informal Admin-

istration was filed.


2. The decedent, with date of birth
January 29, 1920 and date of death December 9, 2015, was domiciled in Dane
County, State of Wisconsin, with a mailing address of 5477 Windridge Road, Oregon, WI 53575.
3. All interested persons waived notice.
4. The deadline for filing a claim
against the decedents estate is April 22,
2016.
5. A claim may be filed at the Dane
County Courthouse, Madison, Wisconsin, Room 1000
Lisa Chandler
Probate Registrar
January 6, 2016
Atty. Marilyn A. Dreger
200 W. Verona Avenue
Verona, WI 53593
(608) 845-9899
Bar Number: 1001608
Published: January 21, 28 and
February 4, 2016
WNAXLP
***

NOTICE
ELECTORS OF THE
TOWN OF VERONA

Notice is hereby given that the Public Test of the Automatic Tabulating and
Electronic Voting Equipment to be used
for the February 16, 2016 Spring Primary
in the Town of Verona will be conducted
on Tuesday, February 9, 2016 @ 10:30 AM
at the Town of Verona Office.
This test is open to the general public.
John Wright
Town of Verona
335 N Nine Mound Road
Verona, WI 53593
(608) 845-7187
Published: February 4, 2016
WNAXLP
***

STATE OF WISCONSIN,
CIRCUIT COURT,
DANE COUNTY, NOTICE TO
CREDITORS (INFORMAL
ADMINISTRATION) IN THE
MATTER OF THE ESTATE OF
Mary L. Bartlett

Case No. 16 PR 52
PLEASE TAKE NOTICE:
1. An application for Informal Administration was filed.
2. The decedent, with date of birth
March 27, 1925 and date of death January
17, 2016, was domiciled in Dane County,
State of Wisconsin, with a mailing address of 206 S, Marietta Street, Apt. 310,
Verona, WI 53593.
3. All interested persons waived notice.
4. The deadline for filing a claim
against the decedents estate is May 13,
2016.
5. A claim may be filed at the Dane
County Courthouse, Madison, Wisconsin, Room 1000
Ben J. Schulenburg
Circuit Court Commissioner
January 26, 2016
Atty. Marilyn A. Dreger
200 W. Verona Avenue
Verona, WI 53593
(608) 845-9899
Bar Number: 1001608
Published: February 4, 11 and 18, 2016
WNAXLP
***

NOTICE
ELECTORS OF THE
CITY OF VERONA

Notice is hereby given that the Public Test of the Automatic Tabulating and
Electronic Voting Equipment to be used
for the FEBRUARY 16, 2016 Spring Primary Election in the City of Verona will
be conducted on Monday, February 8,
2016 at 10:00 a.m. at City Hall, 111 Lincoln
Street, Verona, WI
This test is open to the general public.
Ellen Clark
City Clerk
City of Verona
111 Lincoln Street
Verona, WI 53593
Published: February 4, 2016
WNAXLP

***

Public Notice
TOWN OF VERONA,
TOWN HALL & PUBLIC
WORKS BUILDING
DANE COUNTY, WISCONSIN

The Town of Verona, WI will receive


Sealed Bids no later than Wednesday,
March 2nd, 2016, at 2:00 pm CST from
General Contractors for the Construction of a new Town Hall, Public Works
Building and Salt Shed. All bids will be
received at the existing Town of Verona,
Town Hall located at 335 North Nine
Mound Road, Verona, WI 53593.
The project is located at 7685 County Highway PD, Town of Verona, WI 53593
There will be a pre-bid meeting for
the project, at the Town of Verona, Town
Hall on Wednesday, February 17th, 2016
@ 2:00 pm.
Bidding Documents can be viewed
at the Town of Verona Town Hall between
the hours of 9:00 am and 2:00 pm Monday
thru Friday.
Digital copies of the Bidding Documents are available through the Quest
Construction Data Network (www.
questcdn.com). The Quest Project No. is
4247058. Please contact Quest at (952)
233-1632 or info@questcdn.com for assistance with free membership registration, downloading and working with
the digital project information. Quest
members are able to view the digital Bid
Documents for free and download them
at a cost of $20. The Quest website can
also be accessed through links on the
Town of Verona Website at (www.town.
verona.wi.us)
or the Homan Construction Management Website at (www.homancm.com).
For more information, please contact the Town of Veronas, Owners
Representative: Tim Homan of Homan
Construction Management, LLC at 608
417-9331 or tim@homancm.com or
Amanda Arnold, Town Planner & Administrator at 608 845-7187 or AArnold@
town.verona.wi.us.
Published by the authority of the
Town of Verona.
BY: Amanda Arnold,
Town Planner/ Administrator
Published: February 4, 2016
WNAXLP
***

ConnectVerona.com

CLEANERS NEEDED for Stoughton


Area offices. Mon-Sat, 2-5/hrs per night.
Please call 608-246-9665 or 608-4381386.
DISHWASHER, COOK,
WAITRESS, & DELI STAFF
WANTED.
Applications available at
Sugar & Spice Eatery.
317 Nora St. Stoughton.

602 Antiques & Collectibles

KT CLEANING
House and office cleaning,
errand-running,
yardwork,
dog-walking.
Free estimates.
608-514-4510.

548 Home Improvement


A&B ENTERPRISES
Light Construction Remodeling
No job too small
608-835-7791
DOUG'S HANDYMAN
SERVICE
"Honey Do List"
No job too small
608-845-8110

EXCLUSIVELY ROSES is seeking drivers for Valentine's Day deliveries February 11th, 12th and 13th. Routes go to
Chicagoland. $200/route + gas. Drivers
must use their own vehicle. STRICTLY
LIMITED to minivans and cargo vans.
For further inquiries, please contact us at
608-877-8879.
EXPERIENCED DISHWASHER WANTED. Apply at Sunrise Family Restaurant
1052 W. Main, Stoughton.
JOIN EXCLUSIVELY Roses in Valentine's Day bouquet production February
3rd-10th in a bright, energetic work environment! We offer flexible shifts, days,
evenings and weekends. Starting at $9/
hr + referral & completion bonus. For
more information, contact us at 608877-8879.

434 Health Care, Human


Services & Child Care
COMFORT KEEPERS IN MADISON
Seeking caregivers to provide care
to seniors in their homes. Need valid
DL and dependable vehicle. FT & PT
positions available. Flexible scheduling.
Sign-on bonus.
Call 608-442-1898
FULL-TIME HOUSEKEEPING/
Laundry, STOUGHTON
$8.60-$10.04/hr.
Health Insurance,
Dental and Vision.
Call Rebecca
262-685-7113

441 Sales & Telemarketing


LOOKING FOR eager persons to work
at a call center on Madison's West side,
paid weekly, flexible hours. For more
info, call 608-268-3695.

449 Driver, Shipping


& Warehousing

646 Fireplaces,
Furnaces/Wood, Fuel

HALLINAN-PAINTING
WALLPAPERING
**Great-Winter-Rates**
35 + Years Professional
European.Craftsmanship
Free-Estimates
References/Insured
Arthur Hallinan
608-455-3377

451 Janitorial & Maintenance


EVENING CLEANING Help Needed
in Oregon, WI. Full and Part-time shifts
available. Monday-Friday, NO WEEKENDS. General cleaning such as vacuuming, dusting, mopping, etc. Apply at
Diversified Building Maintenance, 1105
Touson Drive, Janesville, WI. 608-7529465.

452 General
OFFICE CLEANING in Stoughton
Mon-Fri 4 hours/night. Visit our website:
www.capitalcityclean.com or call our
office: 608-831-8850

508 Child Care & Nurseries


CHILD CARE Verona Area. Non-Smokers. 35 years experience. 845-9288
CLASSIFIED AD DEADLINE IS Noon
Friday for The Great Dane and Noon
Monday for the Verona Press unless
changed because of holiday work schedules. Call now to place your ad, 873-6671
or 835-6677.

FOR SALE Oak firewood, seasoned and


split. Delivered. 608-843-5961

696 Wanted To Buy


WE BUY Junk Cars and Trucks.
We sell used parts.
Monday thru Friday 8am-5:30pm.
Newville Auto Salvage, 279 Hwy 59
Edgerton, 608-884-3114

705 Rentals

RECOVER PAINTING currently offering


winter discounts on all painting, drywall
and carpentry. Recover urges you to join
in the fight against cancer, as a portion of
every job is donated to cancer research.
Free estimates, fully insured, over 20
years of experience. Call 608-270-0440.

GREENWOOD APARTMENTS
Apartments for Seniors 55+, currently
has 1 & 2 bedroom units available
starting at $750 per month, includes
heat, water, and sewer.
608-835-6717 Located at:
139 Wolf St., Oregon, WI 53575

TOMAS PAINTING
Professional, Interior,
Exterior, Repairs.
Free Estimates. Insured.
608-873-6160

STOUGHTON 1616 Kenilworth Ct.


Large 2-BR apts available now.
Pets welcome. Many feature new wood
laminate flooring.
$775-$825/mo. 608-831-4035.
www.madtownrentals.com

554 Landscaping, Lawn,


Tree & Garden Work
COMPLETE LAWN AND GARDEN
SERVICE offers professional pruning
services for your ornamental trees/
bushes/fruit-bearing trees. Properlytimed pruning will extend the life of
your plantings and encourage the
development of desirable characteristics,
such as blooming or fruit bearing. Call
Greg
today! 608-835-9541.

572 Snow Removal


PLOWING BLOWING
Residential & Commercial
20+yers exp. Fully Insured.
608-669-0025

576 Special Services

STOUGHTON 3-BEDROOM lower level


of two-flat, near downtown, River Bluff
School. Newly renovated. Central air.
W/D, water included. No pets. $855/
month+security deposit. 608-873-7655
or 608-225-9033.

720 Apartments
ROSEWOOD APARTMENTS for Seniors
55+. 1 & 2 bedroom units available
starting at $750 per month. Includes
heat, water and sewer. Professionally
managed. Located at
300 Silverado Drive, Stoughton, WI
53589 608-877-9388
STOUGHTON LOWER Flat, 2 bdr,
BIG back yard, new carpet/paint, $650
month-to-month. Call 608-235-3887.

750 Storage Spaces For Rent

DANCE PARTY! 608-220-4025 for your


next party. Mobile DJ.

LOOKING FOR Experienced CDL semidriver. Our business has expanded. We


are adding new equipment. Must be
professional, courteous and have clean
MVR. Runs from Madison area to Arizona and S. California. No touch freight,
paid mileage and insurance. Serious
inquries only. 608-516-9697

COLUMBUS ANTIQUE MALL


& CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS
MUSEUM
"Wisconsin's Largest Antique Mall"
Customer Appreciation Week!
Feb 01-07. 20% Discount!
Enter daily 8am-4pm 78,000 SF
200 Dealers in 400 Booths
Third floor furniture, locked cases
Location: 239 Whitney St
Columbus, WI 53925
920-623-1992
www.columbusantiquemall.com

HENNA TATTOOS!
==========
Always wanted one, but
didn't want to go into
Madison to get it?
====
Now you don't have to!
I will come to you!
...or to a local bar, coffee
shop, library, etc.
==
Prices start at $10
and go up depending on size
Evening and Weekend
appointments OKAY!
Party rates also available!
====
For questions, sample pics
or to set up an appointment use one
of these platforms:
facebook.com/hobohenna
@hobohenna on Twitter
hobohenna@gmail.com
==========
(addit'l charge of $1/mile may apply
if travel is more than 10 miles from
Downtown Stoughton)
CLASSIFIED AD DEADLINE IS Noon
Friday for The Great Dane and Noon
Monday for the Verona Press unless
changed because of holiday work schedules. Call now to place your ad, 873-6671
or 835-6677.

ALL SEASONS SELF STORAGE


10X10 10X15 10X20 10X30
Security Lights-24/7 access
BRAND NEW
OREGON/BROOKLYN
Credit Cards Accepted
CALL (608)444-2900

970 Horses

FRENCHTOWN
SELF-STORAGE
Only 6 miles South of
Verona on Hwy PB.
Variety of sizes available now.
10x10=$60/month
10x15=$70/month
10x20=$80/month
10x25=$90/month
12x30=$115/month
Call 608-424-6530 or
1-888-878-4244

WALMERS TACK SHOP


16379 W. Milbrandt Road
Evansville, WI
608-882-5725

975 Livestock

15

WERE
ALL
EARS

PURE BRED Red Angus Bulls, open and


bred heifers for sale. Pick your bulls now
for summer delivery. Shamrock Nook
Red Angus 608-558-5342

990 Farm: Service &


Merchandise

NORTH PARK STORAGE


10x10 through 10x40, plus
14x40 with 14' door for
RV & Boats.
Come & go as you please.
608-873-5088

RENT SKIDLOADERS
MINI-EXCAVATORS
TELE-HANDLER
and these attachments. Concrete
breaker, posthole auger, landscape rake,
concrete bucket, pallet forks, trencher,
rock hound, broom, teleboom, stump
grinder.
By the day, week, or month.
Carter & Gruenewald Co.
4417 Hwy 92
Brooklyn, WI, 608-455-2411

OREGON SELF-STORAGE
10x10 through 10x25
month to month lease
Call Karen Everson at
608-835-7031 or
Veronica Matt at 608-291-0316
OREGON SELF-STORAGE
10x10 through 10x25
month to month lease
Call Karen Everson at
608-835-7031 or
Veronica Matt at 608-291-0316

CLASSIFIED AD DEADLINE IS Noon


Friday for The Great Dane and Noon
Monday for the Verona Press unless
changed because of holiday work schedules. Call now to place your ad, 873-6671
or 835-6677.

RASCHEIN PROPERTY
STORAGE
6x10 thru 10x25
Market Street/Burr Oak Street
in Oregon
Call 608-520-0240

Questions?
Comments?
Story Ideas?
Let us know how
were doing.
Your opinion is something
we always want to hear.

Call 845-9559 or at
connectverona.com

Full-Time Warehouse associaTe

UNION ROAD STORAGE


10x10 - 10x15
10x20 - 12x30
24 / 7 Access
Security Lights & Cameras
Credit Cards Accepted
608-835-0082
1128 Union Road
Oregon, WI
Located on the corner of
Union Road & Lincoln Road

Heritage Tile, a leader in historical reproduction


tilework, is seeking an energetic, team player for a
full-time Warehouse Associate position in our Verona,
WI operations center. First shift. Send a cover letter
and resume to:
will@heritagetile.com

801 Office Space For Rent

888.387.3280

OFFICE SPACES FOR RENT


In Oregon facing 15th hole
on golfcourse
Free Wi-Fi, Parking and
Security System
Conference rooms available
Kitchenette-Breakroom
Autumn Woods Prof. Centre
Marty 608-835-3628

adno=450658-01

516 Cleaning Services

CAREGIVER/CNA. If you have a heart


for the elderly, enjoys helping others, join
our team in helping our residents live life
to their fullest potential. Remember, "put
a song in the hearts of others and you'll
always have one in yours." Call Andy
608-290-7347.

The Verona Press

www.heritagetile.com

Part-time assembly Position

840 Condos &


Townhouses For Sale
VERONA DUPLEX FOR RENT. 3/Bed,
1.5/Bath, newly remodeled throughout. Call 608-239-5505 for details and
appointment.
CLASSIFIEDS, 873-6671 or 835-6677. It
pays to read the fine print.

Heritage Tile, a leader in historical reproduction tilework, is seeking an energentic, team player for a
part-time Mosiac Assembly position in our Verona, WI
operations center. Flexible hours. Send a cover letter
and resume to:
will@heritagetile.com

888.387.3280

www.heritagetile.com

C.N.R. STORAGE
Located behind
Stoughton Garden Center
Convenient Dry Secure
Lighted with access 24/7
Bank Cards Accepted
Off North Hwy 51 on
Oak Opening Dr. behind
Stoughton Garden Center
Call: 608-509-8904
DEER POINT STORAGE
Convenient location behind
Stoughton Lumber.
Clean-Dry Units
24 HOUR LIGHTED ACCESS
5x10 thru 12x25
608-335-3337
CLASSIFIED AD DEADLINE IS Noon
Friday for The Great Dane and Noon
Monday for the Verona Press unless
changed because of holiday work schedules. Call now to place your ad, 873-6671
or 835-6677.
THE Verona Press CLASSIFIEDS, the
best place to buy or sell. Call 873-6671
or 835-6677.

NOW HIRING DRIVERS FOR DEDICATED & REGIONAL RUNS!


Dedicated Fleet, Top Pay, New Assigned Equipment, Monthly Bonuses
WEEKLY HOMETIME!
CDL-A, 6 mos. OTR exp. reqd EEOE/AAP
LIMITED POSITIONS! APPLY TODAY!
866-370-4476
www.drive4marten.com

adno=450526-01

402 Help Wanted, General

February 4, 2016

Come Join our Neighborhood!

Increase Your sales opportunitiesreach over 1.2 million households!


Advertise in our Wisconsin Advertising Network System.
For information call 845-9559 or 873-6671.
Marten Transport. NOW HIRING DRIVERS FOR DEDICATED
& REGIONAL RUNS! Dedicated Fleet, Top Pay, New Assigned
Equipment, Monthly Bonuses. WEEKLY HOMETIME! CDL-A,
6mos. OTR exp Reqd EEOE/AAP LIMITED POSITIONS!
APPLY TODAY! 866-370-4476 www.drive4marten.com
(CNOW)

HELP WANTED- TRUCK DRIVER


HIRING EVENT CDL-A Drivers, Des Moines-based TMC will
be onsite at Black Bear Casino Resort, 1785 Highway 210,
Carlton, MN 2/6/2016, 10 a.m. -5 p.m. Hiring boat haulers. Need
CDL Class A, 1 year OTR Experience. Full Benefits Package,
Employee-Owned Company. Call 855-409-3630 (CNOW)

MISCELLANEOUS
ADVERTISE HERE! Advertise your product or recruit an
applicant in over 178 Wisconsin newspapers across the state!
Only $300/week. Thats $1.68 per paper! Call this paper or 800227-7636 www.cnaads.com (CNOW)
adno=450906-01

KOJAK EXCAVATING & TRUCKING LLC COMPLETE CLOSE-OUT AUCTION


Saturday, February 20, 2016 @ 10:00 A.M.
101 E. Murray Street Browntown, WI 53522

Powers Auction Service: (608) 439-5761 or (608) 214-3765


INSPECTION DATES: Mon. Feb. 15th Fri. Feb. 19th : 9 A.M. 5 P.M.
Kenworth Semi-Tractor (3) Dump Trucks (5) Trucks (4) Trailers
(2) Rollers (3) Excavators Mini Excavator Skid Steer Screen Plant
Backhoe Crawler Dozer Loader Road Graders Farm Tractor & Misc.
.5% BUYERS PREMIUM WILL APPLY DAY OF SALE..

PLEASE VISIT FOR LISTING & PHOTOS: WWW.POWERSAUCTION.COM

adno=449371-01

Powers Auction Service


2445 E. State Hwy 11 South Wayne WI 53587
Office: 608-439-5761 or 608-439-5764

Have you seen our construction progress?

All Saints Neighborhood on Madisons west side is growing, developing a Main Street and
new living options opening Summer 2016. Were accepting applications for the following:

Campus Administrator - Manage the daily operations of our senior living campus.
Admissions Coordinator - Coordinating the campus admissions process.
Care Coordinator - LPN or RN required. Providing care management.
Cooks - Experience Preferred. Preparing delicious meals for campus residents.
Resident Assistants - Full and part-time positions available now for a variety of shifts.
We offer great shift differentials including $1.00/hour nights & weekends!

Maintenance Technicians - Performing scheduled & unscheduled maintenance.


We offer competitive wages as well as health, dental and Paid Time Off
to eligible staff. Contact us today!
to request an
application:

608.243.8800

to download
an application:
allsaintsneighborhood.org

adno=450876-01

ANTIQUES
ANTIQUE SPORTING AND ADVERTISING SHOW February
5&6, Sunnyview Expo Center, OSHKOSH WI
Friday10--6,Saturday9-5.BUY/SELL/TRADE$2000.00WORTH
OF DOOR PRIZES www.antiquesportingandadvertisingshow.
com 906-250-1618 (CNOW)

16

February 4, 2016

The Verona Press

ConnectVerona.com

Hotel: Business-centric Fairfield, leisure-focused Holiday Inn share costs as neighbors


to explore the citys downtown, he said, and the addition of more walkable
businesses between South
Nine Mound Road and
downtown would create an
ideal corridor to maximize
that movement.
Eggen, a resident of
Madison, said he and the
owners continue to work
with city leaders to maximize those opportunities,
including the possibility of
a B-Cycle addition temporary bike rental stations
found throughout Madison.
When I say walkable
its walkable now, he said.
I think we can embrace
that feel that weve got
now.

Continued from page 1

Global reach, local feel

Photos by Jacob Bielanski

The Fairfield Inn and Suites on West Verona Avenue opened the
doors to its 90 rooms on Jan. 7. This one and the neighboring
Holiday Inn Express are owned and managed by the same Veronabased groups.
Shown at right is the sleeping area of a typical room in the new
hotel, which touts a modern smart room decor throughout that
emphasizes natural light. Through the window, single family homes
can be seen off of West Verona Avenue.

contrast with the amenities


of the more leisure-focused
Holiday Inn Express.
Its really like a sister
property type of relationship, where we work very
closely, Eggen said. And
thats really the beauty of
having this.

The future of the West


With another hotel also
being built on the opposite
side of Verona, Eggen said
he and others behind the
hotel are hoping the community manages to bring
greater tourism so the hotel
can expand its focus beyond
weekday business travelers.
Epic is fantastic, it definitely brings us a lot of
business, but all of our eggs
are in one basket, Eggen
said.
One example was the
2012 and 2013 cyclocross championships, held
at Badger Prairie County
Park. Those January events
were expected to bring in
roughly $1 million in tourism. But the cyclocross
championship group, Eggen
said, did not look to Verona
for future events, citing a
lack of local support.
We didnt have a local
organization to step up and

say, Hey, we will keep that


show running for you,
Eggen said.
One of the other key
areas he hopes to see is the
addition of a wedding and
event venue larger than the
ice arena. The city has one
banquet center, the Heights,
and another has been proposed on the southeast side
of the city, but it has not yet
been built.
Eggen said weddings and
sporting events represent the
two biggest opportunities
for more tourism for Verona
beyond business travel.
The new hotel features
event space for up to 50
people but does not have an
in-house food service.
Eggen said hed also like
to see the city play up the
current feel of the citys
west side while expanding
its walkability.
Visitors to the Holiday
Inn Express regularly make
the mile-long trek each way

Though the hotel will


likely court clientele from
all over, the spirit is still
very local.
In an industry that often
moves its managers around
the world, Eggen considers himself lucky to have
been a part of one area for
so long. He was working at
hotels in Madison, he said,
when he was hired to manage the Holiday Inn Express
after its opening eight years
ago. This time around, Eggen was able to be a more
integral part of the hotels
future.
It was really fun to be
a part of the process
from the initial planning of
should we build a hotel, to
actually designing it, coming down to the details,
Eggen said. It was such a
collective effort.
He said his employees are
also community minded,
with some coaching Little
League and volunteering
throughout the community.
Hotel part-owner Lee Fischl, owner of Fischl Construction, is a lifelong Verona resident whose company
built both the Verona Public
Library and the Verona City
Center building, as well as
the Holiday Inn Express.
The two hotels combine to
employ a number of full- and
part-time employees from
the immediate area, including more than 25 shuttle
drivers, most of whom are
local retirees, Eggen said.
Were proud to be in
Verona were Verona
owned and operated, weve
been in Verona for a long
time and we plan to be in
Verona for a long time, he
said.

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weekday-focused Marriott travelers. In a press


release, representatives of
the hotel touted the new
Fairfields business-centric design, creating workspaces within rooms and
adding a business services,
such a laundry pickup, that

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The construction of the


hotel brings with it a lot of
risk in Verona, Eggen said,
because its not just competing with hotels within
the city, but also with those
in Madison, Middleton and
Fitchburg.
The hotel business is
extraordinarily competitive, Eggen said. Being in
Verona is very challenging.
We have a wonderful
location to Epic thats it.
One could look at the
Holiday Inn Express next
door and think that competition is right in Fairfields
face. However, the two
hotels are both managed by
the same company, S&L
Hospitality. The brands, or
flags (Fairfield and Holiday
Inn Express), merely represent a fee paid for the
franchise.
This means the two
hotels are able to offer
more metropolitan features in a more cost-effective way. The connection,
for example, allows the
two hotels to share a free
shuttle service staffed 24
hours a day that will take
hotel guests virtually anywhere in the Madison
area. Likewise, costs can
be controlled by sharing
housekeeping between the
two locations and offering accommodations when
rooms are overbooked.
Eggen said the choice
of flags was deliberate,
complementing the weekend-heavy Holiday Inn
Express crowd with the

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