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Wisconsin Public Services Hosts Students for 'Solar Olympics' Published on 05/18/2023 under News

Mother nature cooperated with area students as they displayed their renewable energy skills.

Wisconsin Public Service held their 27th annual Solar Olympics on the UW-Oshkosh campus. More than 100 students participated from 14 high schools within the WPS footprint. Local schools participating included Three Lakes, Lakeland, Marathon, Wausau West, and Tomahawk.

The friendly competition, hosted each spring, allows these students to showcase their knowledge of solar energy. This year featured 13 different events all with the common theme of solar. Just a few of the examples, solar cars, solar cookers, design work, and solar jeopardy.

Area students are bringing a few gold medals back to the Northwoods. Three Lakes won the Photovoltaic Innovation event, while Tomahawk claimed top spot in Solar T-Shirt Design. The Marathon participants scored well in a number of categories and earned a silver medal in the overall competition.

WPS created the Solar Olympics in 1997 in conjunction with districts participating in the Solarwise for Schools program. Solarwise provides renewable energy lesson plans, projects, and teacher training.

In Other News

Hatchet Track & Field Teams Compete in Marathon Invite

Published on 04/18/2025 under Sports Tomahawk's track and field squads both finished in the Top 5 as a team in their outdoor invite at Marathon Thursday. The Hatchet Girls placed second, notching two first-place finishes. The 4x100 meter relay squad of Siennah Caulkins, Alicia Voermans, Faith Derleth, and Kaylynn Sandry finished with a time of 53.87 seconds. Caulkins also placed first in the triple jump with a leap of 33'1.5". Tomahawk's boys placed fifth in the invite. Sam Zastrow had the highest finish in the 1600 meter run, placing third with a time of 4:48. The next outdoor invite for Tomahawk is Tuesday when they travel to Medford.

Published on 04/18/2025 under News While their work is often behind the scenes, dispatchers play a crucial role in emergency response, and this week is set aside to recognize their efforts. Over the past few days, local law enforcement agencies have been taking the time to observe National Telecommunicators Week by recognizing their dispatch staff. That includes the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office which referred to the telecommunicators as the 'first, First Responders.' Their eight member 911 center handled more than 5,500 emergency calls last year. They dispatch for not only the Sheriff's Office but two police departments, two ambulance services, one full-time fire department, and four volunteer fire departments. The Sheriff's Office said, "When you experience a critical incident, they are the first voices that help calm the chaos. They not only take phone calls regarding emergency and non-emergency situations, but they also coordinate resources to get help to those in need..."

Published on 04/18/2025 under News Folks can be on the look out for the Easter bunny in downtown Tomahawk tomorrow, as Tomahawk Main Street will be hosting their annual Easter celebration. Saturday will be filled with family friendly activities throughout the morning and afternoon. Ahead of the event, we heard from Main Street Director Jennifer Turkiewicz who was excited to bring back the event for a fourth year. Technically, festivities got underway in late March with kick off of an Easter Scavenger Hunt. They partnered with nearly two dozen businesses who hid an Easter egg in each store. Participants can find the hidden egg, get their maps stamped and exchange them for a goodie bag and an entry into a grand prize drawing. Turkiewicz says, "It's has been so fun to see all the families downtown and visiting businesses to fill their cards." And it's not just locals, she says they've had completed entries from other Northwoods communities and even the Twin Cities and Iowa. It all leads into tomorrow's celebration where a number of businesses will be hosting Easter and Spring-themed activities like games, crafts, contests, and fun adventures. Of course, the Easter Bunny will be on hand for pictures as well. Tomahawk Main Street has a full schedule on their website. Turkiewicz encourages people to stop by between 10 and 2 tomorrow, to have a little fun and explore all that the district has to offer. People can still turn in their Easter Scavenger Hunt Cards as well.

Published on 04/18/2025 under News After a successful discussion last month, the Oneida County Sheriff's Office is bringing their presentation on online safety to Minocqua next week. The Oneida County Sheriff's Office announced plans to offer another presentation on Internet Crimes Against Children. This comes after positive feedback to a similar presentation in Rhinelander last month. They plan to cover internet safety, sextortion, the role of law enforcement, and what people can do to help prevent themselves or others from becoming victims. They'll also leave time at the end for a Q and A session. They noted that the presentation will be suitable for all ages. It'll take place next Wednesday at 5pm at Lakeland Union High School. We'll get that event posted in the WJJQ Community Calendar.

Published on 04/18/2025 under News More than three dozen teenage artists from around the Northwoods submitted work to a regional competition. The Association of Wisconsin Artists and Antigo Visual Arts teamed up with NTC-Antigo to host the Wisconsin Regional Art Program-Teen. The exhibit offers a unique opportunity for young artists to display their work, be judged by a professional, and potentially earn state awards. It featured the work of 36 teen artists from seven area communities. This year's exhibit judge, Alicia Schroeder-Haag says, "I was very pleased with the variety of art that was created and shared. Participating in this show and others like it gives young artists a chance to express themselves, build confidence, and see the value of their own voices..." From these entries, ten will be selected for the state WRAP a bit later this summer. For the local artists they won't have to travel far. This year's conference will be held at the Center for the Visual Arts in Wausau.

Published on 04/18/2025 under News The Lincoln County Board will be creating a committee to review their meeting rules. At their meeting Tuesday, supervisors approved a resolution establishing an ad-hoc rules committee. According to the resolution, the goal is to strengthen board governance through clarification and expansion of their rules. The committee is tasked with (1) reviewing the current general rules of the board along with (2)the template provided by the Wisconsin Counties Association. They'll then (3) provide recommendations to the full board for consideration. The committee will be comprised of 5 board members. While Ad-Hoc committees are typically appointed by the board chair, Jesse Boyd, who serves that role says they'll have the supervisors elect the committee members at their meeting next month. As for the timeline, the committee are expected to wrap up their work by the September Board meeting.

Published on 04/18/2025 under News We've had April showers, both rain and snow in Northern Wisconsin. While that's slowed our spring yard work, it's been good for our ongoing drought conditions and reservoir levels. Taking a quick look at those two reports, starting with the weekly US Drought monitor released Thursday. While far northern Wisconsin is still classified as abnormally dry (D-0), there are no longer areas listed in drought conditions(D1-D4). That is an improvement from March and early April. This includes all of Vilas and Oneida Counties, as well as far northern portions of Lincoln County. As for area reservoir levels, the usual spring fill-up continues. According to WVIC data, the Spirit is just a few inches down; the Eau Pleine a half foot below full. Nokomis is at the two foot mark; the Willow and the Rainbow are each just inside 6 feet below full.

Published on 04/18/2025 under News A Marathon County woman accused of supplying drugs to dealers in North Central Wisconsin will serve six years in federal prison. According to a release from the US Attorney's Office of Western Wisconsin, Mercadys Perkins of Weston was sentenced yesterday. Back in January, the 32 year old pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. According to the release, investigators were looking into large quantities of meth in the region, and Perkins identified as a distributor. They said Perkins sold meth to an informant on three separate occasions. That led to a search of her home where the task force recovered additional drugs and evidence. Perkins was on both probation and bond at the time of her arrest and has also been sentenced to two years in state prison. The federal sentence will be served concurrently. Three others have also been charged and pleaded guilty in connection with this investigation. They are expected to be sentenced in the coming weeks.

Published on 04/17/2025 under News A student group in Tomahawk focused on mental health is relatively new, yet they have some activities on the horizon including a 5k fundraiser. Last spring, the Tomahawk chapter of Raise Your Voice Club was formally approved by the district. It's part of a growing national campaign for students. Among the goals of Raise Your Voice Club is to eliminate the stigma around mental health, while breaking down barriers and building community. Coming up next month, the Tomahawk Chapter of Raise Your Voice will be holding their first annual 5k Color Run/Walk. For those unfamiliar with the format, the route leads participants through stations where colors are dispersed, dying the shirts. That's coming up on May 31 in the school forest; it coincides with Mental Health Awareness Month. Proceeds from the event will go towards the club and their efforts. Friday, April 18 is the deadline for registration. And the Tomahawk Raise Your Voice Club also shared that they've been invited to participate a mural project with chapters from seven other school districts. Each chapter will be represented on their own tile which are pieced together for the larger mural. The goal is to highlight the uniqueness of each club while also sharing this common mental health goal.

Published on 04/17/2025 under News The fishing opener is just a few weeks away, and anglers will have even more information at their fingertips this season. On Wednesday, the DNR launched their new Wisconsin Fishing Finder, a website described as a comprehensive online fishing resource. Justine Hasz is the DNR Fisheries Management Bureau Director. She says, "This is an easy-to-use resource that we hope will become a staple for all anglers looking to discover more about Wisconsin's fishing opportunities." With more than 15,000 lakes and 42,000 miles of rivers and streams, along with the Great Lakes and Mississippi River, the DNR notes finding a fishing hotspot is like finding a needle in a haystack. And Hasz notes it will not only help anglers find new places to fish, but also offer insights into current favorites. Anglers will find boat launch locations, shoreline fishing spots, lake habitat guides, and fish stocking information, along with regulations and even guides for eating fish. In the announcement, the DNR also shared that the TROUT tool, a current resource for Wisconsin trout anglers will be incorporated into the new Wisconsin Fishing Finder going forward. The Wisconsin Fishing Finder can be accessed on both computers and smart phones through the DNR website. And anglers have a couple weeks to study up before the General Inland Fishing Opener which is set for May 3.

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