I would like to give a blossom to anyone and everyone who is supporting Pleasant View Nursing Home,> in any fashion. Not only does Pleasant View provide a place for the elderly and those disabled by accident or disease a place to live and recuperate if they are not as financially well off as others, but Pleasant View also offers a place of employment to some who want to be in health care but do not want to work in a hospital or clinic setting. My mother, Nancy Guptill, is one of those people and has been for 27 years. She has dedicated half her life to caring for those people I listed above. To close down or dramatically reduce Pleasant View's operation would be a crime. Thank you to those who care! - Joshua B. Guptill>
Another barb against Mayor Doug Pinnow and the Brodhead City Council,> who are about to have East 7th Avenue between 15th and 17th streets paved in the proposed Prairie Park in southeast Brodhead. By the time this is printed, the dirty deed may have already been done. This street should have never been put in the first place. It was and is a waste of tax dollars, and more tax dollars will have to be spent to rip it out when Prairie Park is created. Council member John Bernstein ridiculously claims that this street is needed so that people can get to the new Water and Light building at 19th Street and East 4th Avenue. East 7th Avenue is not a through street anyway because the north section is separated from the south section by railway tracks that it does not cross. Also, East 9th Avenue (County T), is only two blocks to the east. East 4th Avenue is only three blocks to the west and would be a through street if it had stop signs all along it instead of only on every other street. It is not like people would have to drive miles out of their way. The mayor and city council want to see this land developed for housing, but it is not suitable for housing. It is wetland, a cache basin that is saturated with water most of the year, all year some years. If area property owners think they have a problem with water in their basements now, it will only get worse if this land is developed for housing. If other property owners in the area do not have a water problem, they will have a water problem if this land is developed. This is what happened in northeast Brodhead when the Crossroads development was created on wetland. The mayor and city council need to use some common sense and intelligence. - Dave Searles, Brodhead>
A blossom to Argyle EMS >for their help, efficiency and kindness. A special blossom to the emergency room nurse when I entered and to Dr. Olsky and to nurse Jeff >for his thoughtfulness and concern and also for obtaining a ride home for me. Special thanks to the policeman who gave me a ride home and helped me into my apartment. My blessings to all. - Kay Rood>
I'm not sure if this should be a blossom or a barb, but at the least it's a question mark to the editorial board of The Monroe Times. >In the past month, The Times has carried at least two editorials regarding the possibility of high-speed rail being established from Madison to Milwaukee to Chicago. I feel this coverage is a good thing, but my question is why, to my knowledge, has the Times never carried an editorial, story or news release regarding the strong possibility of the return of the BlackHawk Passenger train, through the Northwest Corridor of Illinois, from Dubuque to Chicago. This train would certainly have a far greater impact on stateline area residents, catching the train only 20 minutes away in Freeport or Lena, this is the train we would use frequently, far more than driving all the way to the Madison airport to catch a train. The BlackHawk train would make the stateline area an extension of the greater Chicagoland area, a huge boon to tourists, shoppers, business people, investors and commuters. Being a regional/long distance commuter train, it can only help grow our local towns and economies. We haven't had passenger train service in the stateline for 25 years, surely the return of "our" train is newsworthy, and the odds are very good that this train service will return within the next two years. Please contact BARC ( Blackhawk Area Rail Coaltion) in Galena for further info. There are 17,000 members in the tri-state area, including myself, and many newspapers throughout the stateline. To the Monroe Times, isn't it time for you to get on board? I'm sure your readers would benefit greatly to be kept informed of the status of this tremendous economic possibility. - Tom Rygh, Woodford>
A huge blossom to the DNR! >A few weeks back I reported to the New Glarus Woods office that the south facade of the Stewart Tunnel on the Badger Trail had been defaced with numerous white swastikas. I rode the trail again this past Saturday, and I was amazed that they were able to clean it up so thoroughly! It was as if it had never happened! Hats off to you for removing this blight so quickly, and for spending time with me on the phone, including follow-up calls! This is exactly why I don't mind paying for my annual trail passes! - Mick McClain>
The Mobile Food Pantry sends a big blossom to everyone who donated items or gave monetary donations for the Personal Care Products Collection> that took place in July. Those products were given to 175 families on Aug. 20 during the regular Mobile Food Pantry distribution. As low-income families struggle to make ends meet, it is gratifying to see our community come forward to help. A special thank you to the Monroe Fund and the Reasa Charitable Fund for their grant in support of this special project.
The Mobile Food Pantry sends another blossom to the businesses, churches and organizations >who send volunteers one month a year to the Mobile Food Pantry and to the volunteers who arrive regularly every month to help. And a thank you to St. Vincent de Paul for graciously allowing us to use their facility. - Rita Koster>
A barb to 23 cowards and a blossom to 3 heroes on the Green County Board. >Why is it whenever the county needs money, they just go to the taxpayers? Stop and look at what these high-up, so-called board supervisors are doing. They don't care about anybody but themselves. Spend, spend and spend some more. People, wake up in our county, and next election run against these old-timers and get them out. Someone also needs to run against the county clerk. He's in the good old pack. I cannot stress it enough to run, run against these guys. We have to get them off the board to make the changes. It's up to us now. Just maybe a change of board would make this county more livable and profitable for the people that live here. Think about this. - D. Maywood>
I would like to give a huge blossom to the Greg Anderson band and the busload of his fans >who traveled on an eight-hour trip to Frankenmuth, Mich., on Aug. 17-20. Greg's band was one of the favorite bands playing there and this was very evident in the response his music received. The Frankenmuth Summer Music Fest invites only the best received bands around the nation, which is determined by past recommendations of polka dancers. When a band shows well in Frankenmuth, many thanks are due mainly to the support of a multi-state group of faithful and long-time followers of the Greg Anderson Band. His fans came from Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota. The ethnic preservation of live music is an important part of this fest. Side benefits include making new friends and seeing old friends. Also, Monroe, Wis., was mentioned very often during the fest in a very positive manner. Let's keep live music alive. - Donna Ditzenberger, Browntown, and Lucy Maves, Edgerton, two long-time fans>
