MONROE - As 2011 draws to a close, we took a look back at some of the more noteworthy events and trends that helped shape 2011.
Granted, any listing of top stories is highly subjective: Each of us is impacted by the events around us in different ways. For this listing, we sought to include stories that either drew the most interest from our readers, or otherwise had the widest impact in our communities.
Yesterday, we highlighted five stories from the first part of the year. Today, we conclude our top stories with five important stories from the latter part of the year.
Wild weather
Summer 2011 brought a couple of bouts of some pretty wild - and windy - weather.
On Wednesday, June 8, high winds, estimated at about 85 miles per hour at the Monroe airport, swept through the county. The storm was short, but caused plenty of damage to residences and agricultural buildings. There were an estimated 100 trees in the City of Monroe that were either knocked down or lost limbs. Power lines were downed and roads and streets were blocked throughout the county.
The village of Albany was among the hardest hit, with much of the community losing power for at least several hours.
Road and utility crews responded, and for the most part, debris was removed and power restored quickly.
Another blast of damaging winds tore through the county the morning of Monday, July 11. The winds were high enough to overturn a semi truck along Wisconsin 11.
The straight-line winds left behind a path of downed tree limbs and power lines, blocking roads and leaving many without power, and causing road and utility crews to again go out to restore access and utility service as quickly as possible. About 1,300 Monroe residents were without power for the better part of the day.
Several homes and buildings, including Parkside Elementary School and the MERIT Center, reported damage from the winds. Ludlow Bar on the Monroe's northside also had significant damage, with a portion of its roof ripped off. Many corn fields were also damaged.
Darlington solidier killed in Afghanistan
The tragedy of war hit home this year, as a soldier from Darlington was killed by insurgents in September while on duty in the Kandahar province of southern Afghanistan.
Army Spc. Jakob Roelli was a Darlington High School graduate who was remembered for being active in school activities, including sports, plays and forensics. He grew up on the family dairy farm and attended University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh before deciding to pursue his long-held dream to serve in the U.S. military. He had been in the Army Special Forces for about two years at the time of his death.
Family members said Roelli was proud to serve his country, and volunteered for his tour of duty in Afghanistan.
It's what he really wanted to do," his aunt, Julie Gill of Shullsburg, said shortly after Roelli's death.
"This was his dream, to fight for his country."
E. coli Outbreak StrikEs monroe
Eighteen people, most of them children, tested positive for E. coli 0157 between July and November this year. The potentially deadly bacterial infection claimed the life of one young child, a 22-month-old from New Glarus.
An initial rash of E. coli infections affected nine people between July and September; a second outbreak affected nine others between October and November. Most of those infected in the second outbreak were young students at Abraham Lincoln Accelerated Learning Academy in Monroe, prompting school officials to take extra sanitation safeguards to prevent its further spread. While the school never closed, all kindergarten and 4K students at the school were required to have a stool sample; those identified as having the E. coli bacteria were not allowed to return to school until they tested negative.
The Green County Health Department reported no new cases of E. coli infection since early November.
8th/9th street project
Oh, the headaches! Motorists endured more than seven months of road construction along 8th and 9th streets in Monroe earlier this year. Traffic routes were interrupted and access to businesses along the corridor was limited, causing frustration among residents and business owners alike from mid-March to early November.
The project included, among other things, widening the 8th/9th street corridor, adding retention walls, replacing water and sewer mains and laterals, and replacing the aged railroad bridge over 8th Street.
The project cost about $4.3 million. The Monroe water and wastewater utilities paid about $900,000 for their portions of the project, while the City of Monroe paid about $840,000. The state paid for the remainder of the project.
Family Promise
Our economic struggles continued during 2011. Area businesses continued to fight a sluggish economy, and area workers continued to face unemployment and stagnant or falling wages.
For some, the battle to stay afloat proved too great. Green County Human Services reported this fall that spending for housing assistance was projected to be about $324,000 by the end of the year - more than double the 2011 budget of $140,000, and quadruple the 2010 budget of $80,000.
That's where one of our favorite stories of 2011 comes in.
Volunteers and churches from the area came together last spring to put together the Family Promise of Green County to help fill the gap and provide services for homeless families. Family Promise arranges overnight accommodations for homeless families at area churches on a rotating basis, as well as a day center where the families can get needed services.
But the real story was how quickly the organization came together and took action. According to the national umbrella organization for Family Promise, Monroe's group came together in near-record time - the group was able to begin providing services in November.
Family Promise of Green County shows just how much can be accomplished when people unite and work toward a common good.
And that's a fitting note on which to bid farewell to 2011, and welcome the promise of a brighter 2012.
Granted, any listing of top stories is highly subjective: Each of us is impacted by the events around us in different ways. For this listing, we sought to include stories that either drew the most interest from our readers, or otherwise had the widest impact in our communities.
Yesterday, we highlighted five stories from the first part of the year. Today, we conclude our top stories with five important stories from the latter part of the year.
Wild weather
Summer 2011 brought a couple of bouts of some pretty wild - and windy - weather.
On Wednesday, June 8, high winds, estimated at about 85 miles per hour at the Monroe airport, swept through the county. The storm was short, but caused plenty of damage to residences and agricultural buildings. There were an estimated 100 trees in the City of Monroe that were either knocked down or lost limbs. Power lines were downed and roads and streets were blocked throughout the county.
The village of Albany was among the hardest hit, with much of the community losing power for at least several hours.
Road and utility crews responded, and for the most part, debris was removed and power restored quickly.
Another blast of damaging winds tore through the county the morning of Monday, July 11. The winds were high enough to overturn a semi truck along Wisconsin 11.
The straight-line winds left behind a path of downed tree limbs and power lines, blocking roads and leaving many without power, and causing road and utility crews to again go out to restore access and utility service as quickly as possible. About 1,300 Monroe residents were without power for the better part of the day.
Several homes and buildings, including Parkside Elementary School and the MERIT Center, reported damage from the winds. Ludlow Bar on the Monroe's northside also had significant damage, with a portion of its roof ripped off. Many corn fields were also damaged.
Darlington solidier killed in Afghanistan
The tragedy of war hit home this year, as a soldier from Darlington was killed by insurgents in September while on duty in the Kandahar province of southern Afghanistan.
Army Spc. Jakob Roelli was a Darlington High School graduate who was remembered for being active in school activities, including sports, plays and forensics. He grew up on the family dairy farm and attended University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh before deciding to pursue his long-held dream to serve in the U.S. military. He had been in the Army Special Forces for about two years at the time of his death.
Family members said Roelli was proud to serve his country, and volunteered for his tour of duty in Afghanistan.
It's what he really wanted to do," his aunt, Julie Gill of Shullsburg, said shortly after Roelli's death.
"This was his dream, to fight for his country."
E. coli Outbreak StrikEs monroe
Eighteen people, most of them children, tested positive for E. coli 0157 between July and November this year. The potentially deadly bacterial infection claimed the life of one young child, a 22-month-old from New Glarus.
An initial rash of E. coli infections affected nine people between July and September; a second outbreak affected nine others between October and November. Most of those infected in the second outbreak were young students at Abraham Lincoln Accelerated Learning Academy in Monroe, prompting school officials to take extra sanitation safeguards to prevent its further spread. While the school never closed, all kindergarten and 4K students at the school were required to have a stool sample; those identified as having the E. coli bacteria were not allowed to return to school until they tested negative.
The Green County Health Department reported no new cases of E. coli infection since early November.
8th/9th street project
Oh, the headaches! Motorists endured more than seven months of road construction along 8th and 9th streets in Monroe earlier this year. Traffic routes were interrupted and access to businesses along the corridor was limited, causing frustration among residents and business owners alike from mid-March to early November.
The project included, among other things, widening the 8th/9th street corridor, adding retention walls, replacing water and sewer mains and laterals, and replacing the aged railroad bridge over 8th Street.
The project cost about $4.3 million. The Monroe water and wastewater utilities paid about $900,000 for their portions of the project, while the City of Monroe paid about $840,000. The state paid for the remainder of the project.
Family Promise
Our economic struggles continued during 2011. Area businesses continued to fight a sluggish economy, and area workers continued to face unemployment and stagnant or falling wages.
For some, the battle to stay afloat proved too great. Green County Human Services reported this fall that spending for housing assistance was projected to be about $324,000 by the end of the year - more than double the 2011 budget of $140,000, and quadruple the 2010 budget of $80,000.
That's where one of our favorite stories of 2011 comes in.
Volunteers and churches from the area came together last spring to put together the Family Promise of Green County to help fill the gap and provide services for homeless families. Family Promise arranges overnight accommodations for homeless families at area churches on a rotating basis, as well as a day center where the families can get needed services.
But the real story was how quickly the organization came together and took action. According to the national umbrella organization for Family Promise, Monroe's group came together in near-record time - the group was able to begin providing services in November.
Family Promise of Green County shows just how much can be accomplished when people unite and work toward a common good.
And that's a fitting note on which to bid farewell to 2011, and welcome the promise of a brighter 2012.