Franciscan Skemp sets diabetes talk

Franciscan Skemp certified diabetes educator Ann Skemp will give a free presentation on pre-diabetes from 3 to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 19, at Franciscan Skemp’s St. Francis Building, Marycrest Auditorium (second floor), 700 West Ave. S., La Crosse.

Approximately 20 million Americans have diabetes, but nearly a third are unaware that they have the disease. An additional 41 million Americans have pre-diabetes, a condition that occurs when a person’s blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not high enough for the diagnosis of type 2 diabetes.

There is no charge for this presentation, but seating is limited. People are asked to register at least one week prior to the presentation by calling (608) 392-7824 or logging on to www.franciscanskemp.org and clicking on “classes & events.”

Committee to fill Western board seat

A committee of the Western Technical College District Board will have a public hearing and meeting Jan. 14 to review applicants for a vacancy on the board.

The following have applied and must be at the meeting to qualify: Carrie Buss, Mauston; Ray Ebert, West Salem; Edward Lukasek, Sparta; and Rudolph “Pete” Peterson, Tomah.

No other names will be accepted at the meeting, which will be at 10 a.m. in room 408 of the Western Administrative Center, 111 N. Seventh St.

The committee is expected to choose one applicant at the meeting to serve the remainder of the three-year board term.

Aging program to focus on humor

“Humor in Aging” will be the topic of the next Franciscan Skemp Healthcare Successful Aging seminar, which is set for Tuesday, Jan. 26, at 2:30 p.m. in Marycrest Auditorium on the second floor of the La Crosse campus St. Francis Building, 700 West Ave. S.

Free refreshments will be served from 2 to 2:30 p.m., and a half hour for questions will follow the hour-long talk by Art Peek.

The event is free and open to all. For more information, call Elder Services at 392-9505.

Rebates offered for energy-saving buys

MADISON — Wisconsin homeowners looking to purchase new appliances can take advantage of $5.4 million in rebates through the Wisconsin State Energy-Efficient Appliance Rebate Program.

This program was approved through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and is designed to encourage consumer purchases of new Energy Star qualified home appliances.

New energy-efficient furnaces and boilers might qualify for a $200 rebate. Central air conditioners, air-source or geothermal heat pumps and refrigerators might qualify for a $75 rebate. Energy-efficient freezers might qualify for $50 and new dishwashers might qualify for a $25 rebate.

Homeowners interested in taking advantage of this program will need to submit an application and a copy of their receipt within 30 days of the purchase to receive a rebate. More information can be found online at www.focusonenergy.com.

Support group gets Guard recognition

Supporters of Wisconsin’s largest National Guard unit have received a national award for their efforts to improve the quality of life for guardsmen and their families. The Family Readiness Group for the Wisconsin Army National Guard’s 32nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team has been named the best in the Army National Guard for 2009.

Each year since 2000, the Defense Department has recognized the top unit in each of the seven Reserve groups that, among other things, implement programs and services that attract and keep soldiers, ensure unit members have fair access to benefits and entitlements and reduce family readiness issues that may interfere with a soldier’s deployment.

The 32nd Brigade’s group of volunteers launched a community service campaign in May 2008 when the brigade began preparing for its current deployment in Iraq. The initiative brought together families of soldiers who have deployed in the past with families experiencing their first deployment.

DNR office cuts walk-in service hours

The state Department of Natural Resources is reducing walk-in service hours at all 30 service centers statewide. As of Jan. 4, the DNR service center in La Crosse, at 3550 Mormon Coulee Road, will offer counter service on Mondays only from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 1:30 to 4 p.m.

People wishing to meet with a DNR staff member at La Crosse on any other day of the work week is encouraged to plan ahead and make an appointment. A complete list of DNR staff phone numbers and e-mail addresses is available online at dnr.wi.gov.

Also, service center staff can assist with appointments during office hours Monday. The number is 785-9000.

While service center hours are being reduced, the DNR has beefed up customer service on-line, through local license vendors and with the toll-free call center.

DNR is reducing walk-in hours as part of cost reductions mandated in the state budget. All service centers will remain available to local walk-in customers at least one day per week.

People who have a question on rules, regulations, or other DNR program, a toll free call center is available seven days a week, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. at 1-888-WDNRInfo (1-888-936-7463) with Hmong and Spanish service also offered.

Customers can visit DNR’s Web site at dnr.wisconsin.gov or call 1-877-945-4236 at any time to buy a license. Phone callers can, for example, order a fishing license, get a confirmation number and go fishing right away.

Live online chats are available on DNR’s Web site 7 a.m. to 9:45 p.m.

DNR partners with more than 1,400 retail stores offering convenient service and hours for purchasing hunting and fishing licenses. There are six licensing agents in La Crosse: Ace Hardware, 4242 Mormon Coulee Road; Kmart, 2415 State Road; La Crosse County Clerk, 400 Fourth St. N, room 1210; Quillins Island, 201 Sky Harbour Drive; Walmart, 4622 Mormon Coulee Road; Wiebke Fur Co., 110 Rose St.

Customers can find a complete list of DNR license agents, listed by city or county, on the DNR Web site.

EcoPark volunteer training class set

La Crosse’s Myrick Hixon EcoPark will host training sessions Jan. 11 and 28 for adult volunteers interested in helping with the third-grade winter program.

Training will run from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for new volunteer naturalists and 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for experienced volunteer naturalists.

Call 784-0303 or e-mail shanna@mhecopark.org to sign up.

EcoPark plans snow workshop for kids

The Myrick Hixon EcoPark in La Crosse will host a workshop to investigate the wonderful world of snow from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 16.

Participants will learn the different names of snowflakes and how snowflakes form. They will also learn about Native American names for snow, do some painting in the snow and create snowflakes of their own.

Participants should dress for going outside and exploring. This program is appropriate for children ages 6 to 10 and is limited to 12 children. Parents are welcome to attend, but are not required to.

The fee is $3 for members and $6 for nonmembers. Call 784-0303 to preregister for this program or e-mail info@mhecopark.org.

Natural book club sets monthly reads

The Natural History Book Club has meetings planned from 6 to 7 p.m. Jan. 19 and Feb. 16 at the Myrick Hixon EcoPark in La Crosse.

Participants should read “Omnivore’s Dilemma” by Michael Pollan for the Jan. 19 meeting and “The Land Remembers” by Ben Logan for the Feb. 16 meeting.

The club is free and open to all. Call 784-0303 or e-mail info@mhecopark.org to register.

EcoPark plans snowshoe event Jan. 23

Chuck and Linda Lee from the La Crosse Marsh Coalition will lead a Marsh Snowshoe Meander from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Jan. 23, for snowshoeing while observing the sights and sounds of nature in winter.

This Myrick Hixon EcoPark program is for adults. Participants should bring snowshoes if they have them. If not, they can be rented from the EcoPark for $5 (free for EcoPark members).

To register, call 784-0303 or e-mail info@mhecopark.org.

Children’s Museum offers parents a break

The Children’s Museum of La Crosse has parents’ night out events planned over the upcoming months on Friday nights.

The nights are meant for children ages 3-11, and will includes supervised museum exploration and play, light snack and games/activities.

Parents can drop off children starting at 5:30 p.m. and pick them up by 8 p.m. on the following dates: Feb. 12, March 19 and April 9.

Cost is $10 per child for museum members, $15 for nonmembers.

Registration and payment in advance is required.

Exhibit, play focus on Vietnam vets

The Pump House Regional Arts Center in La Crosse will host an exhibition featuring James Gill’s portraits of Wisconsin Vietnam veterans who were interviewed for the soon to be released Wisconsin Public Television documentary, “Wisconsin Vietnam War Stories.”

The exhibition at the Pump House runs Jan. 27 through March 13, 2010. The exhibition and reception is free and open to the public. The opening reception on Jan. 29 from 5 to 7 p.m. will include a screening of selected interviews with La Crosse area veterans from the Wisconsin Public Television documentary.

In conjunction with the exhibition, the Pump House is proud to host the premiere of “5,000 Pounds: Seven Soldiers’ Stories,” a new play by the award-winning local writer David Krump. This play details the lives and toils of seven soldiers in Vietnam in 1968. The play results from extensive research and interviews with Vietnam veterans. “5,000 Pounds: Seven Soldiers’ Stories” runs Feb. 4-6, 11-13, 19-20.

“5,000 Pounds” is directed by Anne Drecktrah and features the area’s finest actors, including Lance Newton, Colin Thelen, Brandon Harris, Alex Brick, Harrison DeCreny, Tim McCarren and Adam Petchel.

To order tickets or for more information contact the Pump House at 785-1434 or log onto www.thepumphouse.org.

Raffle to benefit Big Brothers

Big Brothers Big Sisters of the 7 Rivers Region has launched its “Start the New Year in a BIG Way Raffle.” Tickets are on sale at $20 each. The drawing will be held Jan. 15 at the BBBS office at 1707 Main Street, Suite 438, La Crosse.

Fifty prizes will be awarded, including one grand prize of $5,000. To buy raffle tickets, call 782-2227.

Storytelling class planned at OMS

Storyteller Sara Slayton will teach the art and craft of storytelling from 5 to 7:30 p.m. on Tuesdays, Jan. 19 through April 6, at Onalaska Middle School. The cost is $130.

Slayton will include a variety of story types, including multicultural tales, personal stories, fairytales and folktales, wisdom and peace tales, scary stories and thematic stories.

For more than 25 years, Slayton has worked in the field of early childhood education. As a University of Wisconsin-La Crosse instructor, she has taught courses in storytelling, diversity education and art, music and drama for children. She is a co-founder of the Bluff Country Talespinners Storytelling Guild.

For more information, call Karen Hansen at 785-6513 or e-mail hansen.kare@uwlax.edu.

A credit option is available for this program.

Youth orchestras plan auditions Jan. 13

The La Crosse Area Youth Symphony Orchestras will hold auditions for the second semester on Wednesday, Jan. 13, at Lincoln Middle School in La Crosse.

Walk-in auditions will be accepted from 6 to 7 p.m. To register for an audition, log onto www.lyso.org.

Instrumentation needed in the intermediate level Philharmonic Orchestra include violin, viola, cello and bass.

Instrumentation needed in the advanced level Youth Symphony Orchestra include violin, viola, cello, bass, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn, trumpet, trombone and percussion.

For more information, call 788-0159.

Winter road condition info available at 511

The 511 Traveler Information System, a service of the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, has activated its winter road condition report feature. The report covers interstate highways and higher volume U.S. and state-numbered highways.

Winter road conditions are updated regularly as conditions change based on the field reporting from law enforcement and county highway departments. It does not include all highways at this time due to the limitations of the physical reporting requirements.

Information on winter road conditions can be obtained free by dialing 511 from a landline telephone or cell phone or by going online (www.511wi.gov).

In addition to winter road conditions, 511 provides information on incidents, including crashes and lane closures due to work zones. Information is provided by county or roadway segment.

511 traveler information is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week and can be obtained by using either voice recognition or a phone’s touchtone keypad for those using a telephone or cell phone.

If in a moving vehicle, only passengers should call 511.

For best service when calling 511, WisDOT recommends minimizing background noise, including radios or open windows. Some cell phone service providers do not supply direct access to Wisconsin’s 511 traveler information system. Alternatively, the information is available free by dialing 866-511-WISC.

Web site offers anti-drug resource

Anyone who needs a tool to educate a family member or other friend about illicit drugs or alcohol can now obtain it through a new Web site: waragainstdrugs.org

The Web site offers a sampling of two booklets, “10 Things Your Friends May Not Know About Drugs,” and “How to Talk to Friends About Drugs.” Readers who need an anchor to educate their kids, grandkids, or other adult friends can use the booklets to explain and show how dangerous illicit drugs are to the body and mind.

Leaders of children and adult groups, such as clubs, charities, scouts, 4-H, chambers of commerce, businesses can use the booklets to raise much-needed funds as well as build positive PR for themselves.

The Web site was founded by Henry Schroeder, a longtime community newspaper publisher.

American Legion revives support fund

Wisconsin’s largest veteran service organization re-launched its Troop & Family Support Fund on Veterans Day.

The Wisconsin American Legion Family, which includes the Legion, Auxiliary, Sons of the American Legion and Legion Riders, is ramping up its efforts in anticipation of the 32nd Infantry returning from deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan.

About 3,500 National Guard soldiers will be returning to Wisconsin, and their needs will be varied, ranging from post-traumatic stress disorder and family reunification issues to emergency financial relief and job reintegration.

To contribute to the fund, send checks payable to: Troop & Family Support Fund, Wisconsin American Legion, P.O. Box 388, Portage, WI 53901. People also can make a secure online donation by credit card at www.wilegion.org/howcanyouhelp.

“The Wisconsin American Legion Family stands ready to assist our troops and their families in communities across the state from Kenosha to Superior and Green Bay to Platteville. We are asking for the public’s assistance to make a difference in the lives of those who have given much in service to our country,” said Department Commander Leo A. Endres.

Donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law and 100 percent of all funds received directly benefit the troops and their families. Administrative costs are covered by the dues Legion members pay.

VA extends Agent Orange benefits to cover more ailments

Relying on an independent study by the Institute of Medicine, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki decided to establish a service-connection for Vietnam veterans with three specific illnesses based on the latest evidence of an association with the herbicides referred to as Agent Orange.

The illnesses affected by the recent decision are B cell leukemias, such as hairy cell leukemia; Parkinson’s disease; and ischemic heart disease.

Used in Vietnam to defoliate trees and remove concealment for the enemy, Agent Orange left a legacy of suffering and disability that continues to the present. Between January 1965 and April 1970, an estimated 2.6 million military personnel who served in Vietnam were potentially exposed to sprayed Agent Orange.

In practical terms, veterans who served in Vietnam during the war and who have a “presumed” illness don’t have to prove an association between their illnesses and their military service. This “presumption” simplifies and speeds up the application process for benefits.

The secretary’s decision brings to 15 the number of presumed illnesses recognized by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Additional information about Agent Orange and VA’s services and programs for veterans exposed to the chemical are available at www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange.

Alzheimers registry seeks participants

The Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Institute at the University of Wisconsin of Medicine and Public Health and Franciscan Skemp Healthcare are recruiting for the Wisconsin Registry for Alzheimer’s Prevention.

To be eligible for participation, people must: