Top Stories November 11th

Tribute To Veterans This Afternoon On WBEV

11/11/11 - Local servicemen and women are invited to be a part of our Tribute to Veterans broadcast this afternoon on 1430AM. For the past five years, WBEV has turned over the entire afternoon on Veterans Day to hear from our local hero’s who have served this country in times of war, as well as those back here on the home front who held down the fort. The program begins at 12:35pm and in years past has lasted around four hours or longer. We’ll be broadcasting live from the Beaver Dam Veterans Center on Beichl Avenue and the public is invited to attend.

Mayville To Dedicate New Veterans Memorial

11/11/11 - A new Veterans Memorial in Mayville will be officially dedicated Friday morning. The memorial is located in Fireman’s Park, across the footbridge near the pavilion. Organizer Maureen Schuelke says the total cost was around $100,000, not counting in-kind labor donations, and was raised over a four month period. The granite structure is comprised of 17 panels. Ten of the panels have been utilized so far to engrave the names of over 800 deceased veterans from Mayville who served either during peace or wartime. There is no cost to the families of veterans to have a name on the wall. Schuelke says the heart-shaped walkway around the walls will be comprised of “pavers” of varying sizes that can be purchased and personalized by the public to help pay for the project. The pavers are expected to be in place for the 2012 Memorial Day Ceremony. Those interested in purchasing a “paver” are asked to get a hold of Schuelke at 405 Furnace Street, Mayville 53050, or call 920-382-1759. Sheriff Todd Nehls and Mayor Jerry Moede are among the speakers for the ceremony at Fireman’s Park this morning at 11am. A lighting ceremony will also be held tonight at 7pm.

BDHS Honor Society Honoring Veterans

11/11/11 - National Honor Society students at the Beaver Dam High School will be honoring area veterans with a special program Friday morning. Instructor Meg Sekel says local veterans have been invited for a light breakfast and conversation. She says the morning has had a profound impact on the students in each of the five years it’s been held. Members of the public are invited to join the students and area veterans at this morning’s breakfast in the auditorium beginning at 9:30am. There will be a formal program at 10:30am which among other things includes a 21-gun salute and patriotic music from the high school vocal jazz choir SWAZZ.

BD Orchestra Performing In Waupun Vets Salute

11/11/11 - The Beaver Dam Area Orchestra will be performing in a Salute To Our Veterans Concert Friday night the Waupun City Hall Auditorium. The event is meant to honor veterans and will bring together the combined Color Guard from the Waupun American Legion Post 210 and Waupun VFW Post 6709 Bentley-Hull in opening ceremonies. Music includes Morton Gould’s American Salute and Armed Forces Salute by Robert Lowden. Reserved concert seating is available for veterans and a reception for them will be held after the concert. Tickets are $5 at the door and also available at Waupun Chamber of Commerce and at Beaver Dam Area Arts Association. The concert begins at 7:30pm tonight.

Home Sales Picking Up

11/11/11 - Home sales are picking up in Wisconsin’s most populated area. Milwaukee’s M-I-L-S Incorporated said almost one-thousand-50 existing homes were sold last month in Milwaukee, Waukesha, Ozaukee, and Washington counties. That’s up 24-percent from the same month a year ago. Housing industry officials have said that the comparison is not a fair one – because last year’s home sales took a drop after a big federal tax credit for home-buyers had expired. For the year as a whole, M-I-L-S said home sales are up in Ozaukee and Waukesha counties – and they’re down slightly in Milwaukee and Washington counties.

Finance Committee Cuts Medicaid To Poor and Elderly

11/11/11 - A state committee voted 11-to-4 Thursday in favor of cutting over a half-billion dollars from Wisconsin’s Medicaid health programs for the poor-and-elderly. All four Democrats on the Legislature’s Joint Finance panel voted against the cuts, while 11 Republicans voted yes. The G-O-P said the cuts were necessary to eliminate a deficit in Medicaid caused by rising costs and a large expansion of enrollments due to both the rough economy, and expanded program offerings. Democrats called the cuts inhumane. Meanwhile, the Legislative Fiscal Bureau said the number of Medicaid recipients who could lose their coverage has grown from an estimate of 53-thousand people to around 65-thousand – half of them children. But the Bureau said about 28-thousand would have access to health coverage at their workplaces at a cost of less than nine-and-a-half percent of their household incomes. Under the Walker administration’s cuts, an upwardly-revised figure of 263-thousand Badger-Care Plus recipients would be moved to lower-cost plans. But the federal government would have to approve that move by January first, and if it doesn’t, the 65-thousand at risk would lose their coverage. Assembly G-O-P Finance Chair Robin Vos said he wished the state could do more, but it doesn’t have the money. But Senate Democrat Bob Jauch of Poplar accused the G-O-P of quote, “waging a campaign against social justice – and the enemy appears to be working-class families who are struggling to make ends meet.” The state’s plan now goes to Washington – where federal officials are required to approve about half of it.

Judge Welch’s On Justin Welch Deal

11/11/11 - A killer who made a deal with prosecutors to testify against two co-defendants will spend 10 more years in prison than what his plea agreement called for. Waukesha County Circuit Judge James Kieffer said age-60 was too early to consider giving Justin Welch his first chance at a supervised release. So Thursday, the judge said Welch will have to wait until he’s 70 before he can have his first chance of getting out. He’s 28 now. Welch admitted stabbing 39-year-old Kimberly Smith to death at her home in Oconomowoc in October of 2009. That was because her ex-boyfriend, Darren Wold, wanted sole custody of a now-six-year-old boy the couple had together. Wold and his friend Jack Johnson were recently found guilty of hiring Welch and arranging the murder. Prosecutors had Welch tell the jury he was promised seven-thousand-dollars to commit the slaying. She was found dead with seven stab wounds, cuts on her neck, a ribbon that tied Smith’s hands behind her back. Welch was arrested almost two years ago – and while he was being transported from San Diego to Waukesha, Welch broke free at a rest area in Arkansas. He was re-captured about 34 hours later in Oklahoma.

Woman Flips-Off Vehicle, Turns Out To Be Sheriff

11/11/11 - A driver in Milwaukee chose the wrong person to cut-off on a city street yesterday (Th) – Sheriff David Clarke. His spokeswoman Fran McLaughlin said she and Clarke were approaching a corner on the north side around 10:45 a-m. They were in a lane where they could either go straight or turn left. The woman’s pickup truck was in a lane for left turns only but she reportedly went straight anyway. McLaughlin said the 49-year-old woman sped past Clarke’s unmarked S-U-V to get in front of them. And as she did, she allegedly gave Clarke the finger – and the sheriff responded by turning on his flashing lights and siren, and stopped her. The woman then recognized Clarke, admitted she was in a hurry, and said she would never have put up the finger if she knew it was the sheriff. Clarke told her the woman shouldn’t do it to anyone – and he ticketed her for reckless driving, and having a suspended license. She was also arrested for a previous charge of driving while suspended.

BDUSD Seeking Wall Of Fame Nominations

11/11/11 - The Beaver Dam School District is seeking nominations for their 2012 Wall of Fame Awards. Honors will be given in two categories: Friends of Education and Outstanding Alumni. Friends of Education are individuals or organizations who have given distinguished service to the district and its students. Outstanding Alumni are graduates of the High School recognized for their exceptional accomplishments, outstanding leadership, historical significance and prominence on the local, state, national or international stage. Last year, the Outstanding Alumni was Dr. Gary Ebert, the Valedictorian of the Class of 1965, a renowned finite geometer and professor of mathematical sciences at the University of Delaware. The first recipient was film star Fred MacMurray. Nomination packets are available at all district school offices or on the district website at www.beaverdam.k12.wi.us. Nomination deadline is February 10, 2012. The district will honor the 2012 Wall of Fame recipients at their 16th Annual Wall of Fame Banquet in April. Award plaques will be permanently displayed at the high school.