Two Sturgeon Bay Students Win 4-H Key Award

• Josie DuBois and Matthew Olson of Sturgeon Bay have been selected as the Door County recipients of the 4-H Key Award for this year. They were presented with their award at the Annual 4-H Recognition Banquet held on Nov. 6.

The prestigious Key Award, one of the highest honors a 4-H member can receive, honors a select group of 4-H participants annually. The youth receiving this award are ones who have demonstrated consistent growth in their 4-H involvement, developed and applied their leadership skills, and actively participated in the functions of their 4-H club and community.

4-H Key Award recipients are high school students with at least three years of experience in 4-H and one year as a youth leader. The Wisconsin Farm Bureau and Rural Mutual Insurance Company sponsor the Wisconsin 4-H Key Award program.

• The Door County Soil & Water Conservation Department, WI DNR, two local meat processors and two local charitable organizations are teaming up with deer hunters to donate venison to needy families in Door County.

Since the program began in 2000, hunters in Wisconsin have donated over 77,000 deer which were processed into over 3.4 million pounds of ground venison. In Door County a total of 1,693 deer have been donated in the last 11 years.

Hunters can help feed needy people throughout Door County this fall by taking six simple steps: legally harvest a deer outside of the CWD zone during any open deer season; field-dress the deer; register the deer at a WI DNR Registration Station; call a participating processor to verify there is space to accept the deer; drop the deer off at the participating processor; sign a simple log-in sheet at the processor to verify the donation. Hunters must donate the entire deer, except for the head and antlers.

The participating meet processors and food pantries take it from there, processing the donated venison and distributing to needy Door County families. There is no cost to the hunter who donates the deer.

2011 participating Door County processors include Door County Custom Meats in Sturgeon Bay (920.746.0304) and Haberli’s Deer Processing in Sturgeon Bay (920.743.5736).

For more information contact Greg Coulthurst at the Soil & Water Conservation Department at 920.746.2214.

• Husby’s Food and Spirits is raffling a “Bike for Bo” to raise money for Sister Bay seventh grader Bo Johnson, who is fighting leukemia at the Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin. Husby’s will sell raffle tickets for entry into a drawing for a Fat Tire bike. The bike will be raffled Sunday, Dec. 4 at halftime of the Packers game against the New York Giants, approximately 5 pm. The afternoon will include free New Belgium beer sampling.

Tickets are $5 or 5 for $20 and you must be present to win.

• DOOR CANcer, Inc. will present “Holiday Homes Tour” Dec. 3 from 10 am – 4 pm. This year they have five wonderful homes that are decorated for the holidays. The homes stretch from Southern Door County to Egg Harbor.

The $25 donation allows entry into the homes. All funds from this event will help cancer patients in Door County. The Holiday Homes Tour is just one of the many fundraisers that have helped DOOR CANcer distribute over $800,000 to Door County residents.

Tickets are available at the following locations: Cut Hut, Clippers Mate, Associated Bank (main branch), Baylake Bank (4th Ave.), Renard’s Cheese, Touch of Class, Ministry Door County Medical Center (gift shop), and at the homes during the tour.

For more information call Barb Herdina at 920.743.8492 or Mary Lu Norton at 920.823.2433.

• A Service of Community Remembrance will be held at 3 pm on Nov. 27 at the Door County Community Auditorium. The service is sponsored by Good Samaritan Society Scandia Village, Casperson Funeral Home and the Northern Door Ministerial Association.

The service will feature a reading of the names of those who have died in the past year, readings, prayers and musical selections.

Greg Casperson, one of the organizers of the event, observed that Door County and specifically northern Door County in recent years has lost many people who have contributed to its life and history.

Joy Zakrzewski, Chaplain for Good Samaritan Society Scandia Village, indicated that this second annual event will once again become a way for the community to express its grief for those who have died during the past year.

For more information call Pastor Michael Brecke at 920.421.0941, Chaplain Joy Zakrzewski at 920.854.2317 or Greg Casperson 920.854.4123.

• The Volunteer Center of Door County is participating with Wisconsin Gives Back, a non-profit support network, by selling 2012 Wisconsin Wall Calendars. Each calendar features a aerial photograph of some of Wisconsin’s most visited areas (Cana Island is featured in February), along with 366 things to do in Wisconsin.

Each $15 Wisconsin Calendar purchased generates $9 for the Volunteer Center. Calendars may be purchased by stopping by the Volunteer Center, 62 S. Third Avenue, Sturgeon Bay or by visiting http://www.VolunteerDoorCounty.com and clicking on the “Photo Calendar” link.

• Baylake Bank Premier Club will be sponsoring a “Holiday Gift Program” designed to benefit homebound mature citizens within the Door County Community.

A group of volunteers made up of Baylake Bank employees are working in cooperation with Neighbor to Neighbor, Meals-on-Wheels and the Social Services Department to reach out to mature citizens and provide gifts and personal care items to those in need.

A Holiday Gift Tree will be displayed at Baylake Bank Main Office, 217 N. 4th Ave., Sturgeon Bay, from Nov. 18 – Dec. 16.

The community is invited to participate by selecting from a number of holiday wishes representing an individual whose name will remain anonymous. Participates are asked to return their filled gift baskets to Baylake Bank Main Office no later than December 14. Filled gift baskets will be delivered before Christmas.

• Members of the Door County Chapter of The Compassionate Friends (TCF) will participate in an annual worldwide event designed to honor the memories of all children, regardless of age, who have died. The chapter is joining Dec. 11 with hundreds of organized memorial services around the world for The Compassionate Friends’ 15th annual Worldwide Candle Lighting, an event now believed to be the largest mass candle lighting in the world.

The local candle lighting will be part of a special service held at 6:30 pm at the United Methodist Church in Sturgeon Bay and will feature music, readings, refreshments and a special DVD of remembered children. Annually tens of thousands of families, united in loss, light candles for one hour during the Worldwide Candle Lighting, held the second Sunday in December. Candles are first lit at 7 pm, local time, just west of the International Date Line. As candles burn down in one time zone, they are lighted in the next, creating a 24-hour wave of light as the observance continues around the world. For more information about the worldwide event visit http://www.compassionatefriends.org.

To contact the Door County Chapter of The Compassionate Friends call Carol at 920.743.3476.

• Local dental office, Dentistry by Design, is helping bring smiles to local families in need this Christmas by joining 97.7 The Big Dawg, the Sturgeon Bay Fire Department, and the Sturgeon Bay Police Department for the Big Dawg Christmas.

In its third year, the Big Dawg Christmas spreads holiday cheer to families in Door County who have fallen on hard times.

This year Dentistry by Design is joining the effort by donating toothbrushes. Dentistry by Design will also be one of the official drop-off sites for the Big Dawg Christmas, taking donations through Dec. 15. Other Big Dawg Christmas drop-off sites include 97.7 The Big Dawg, Sturgeon Bay City Hall, Door County ACE Hardware, New Comfort Solutions, Sturgeon Bay Utilities, and Witt Ford.

Now in full swing the Big Dawg Christmas culminates with Big Dawg morning show DJ, Jeff Stone, broadcasting live for 31 hours from the balcony of Sturgeon Bay City Hall from Dec 15 – 16.

Event volunteers will begin deliveries to nominated families on Dec. 17 with all deliveries completed in time for Christmas.

To give a monetary donation call 920.743.6677. To nominate a family in need, send requests to 920.559.9770 or email [email protected].

• Each year numerous businesses and individuals from Door County donate items so that over 350 youngsters can visit the Children’s Christmas Stores held at four locations in November and December. The stores are hosted by the Family Centers of Door County with the help of over 40 volunteers. With the assistance of Santa’s Elves, children age 4 to 12 are allowed to shop and wrap gifts for family members while parents wait outside. These items are priced from 50¢ to $15. No child is turned away for inability to pay.

While monetary donations are accepted, the Family Centers are asking community members to contribute new items to increase the inventory. Items for men and teens are particularly needed.

To arrange pick up or drop off of donations, or for more information, call the Family Centers at 920.825.1430.

Dates and locations of the stores are as follows: Nov. 26, noon – 3 pm, Bertschinger Center in Egg Harbor; Dec. 3, 8:30 – 11 am, Southern Door Family Center in Brussels; Dec. 3, 1 – 3 pm, Ephraim Historic Village Hall in Ephraim; Dec. 10, 9 – 11 am, Cherry Point Mall in Sturgeon Bay.

Hardy Gallery Executive Director Elizabeth Meissner-Gigstead (right) presented Wellness Center Director of Development Katherine Schnorr with a $100 check on behalf of the Hardy Gallery.

• Ephraim’s Hardy Gallery’s “On the Town” raffle, which featured multiple Door County getaway packages including lodging, dining and activity certificates donated by the local business community, grossed $745 for the non-profit organization.

Raffle winners for the specific Door County getaway packages included Bonnie Rock (Sister Bay package), Ben Meyer (Ellison Bay package), Heidi Derbick (Egg Harbor package), Jane Davis (Ephraim package), Kris Miller (Fish Creek package), Peggy Lott (Sturgeon Bay package), and Julia VanRoo Bresnahan (Baileys Harbor package).

As part of the gallery’s ongoing “Art from the Heart” initiative, the Hardy donated $100 to the Wellness Center of Door County, an organization which provides primary health care, including family planning and reproductive health care.

For more information call 920.854.2210 or visit http://www.thehardy.org. For more information about the Wellness Center of Door County call 920.746.9444 or visit http://www.wellnesscenterofdoorcounty.com.

• The total amount of deer donated to Hunt for the Hungry continues to grow. 170 deer were donated during bow season, with many more expected to be donated as gun season begins.

In addition to the donated deer, another 4,000 pounds of wild game, birds, and fish have arrived at Paul’s Pantry in Green Bay the last couple weeks. All totaled, over 61,000 pounds of donations have arrived through the early archery deer season.

For more information or to learn how to donate deer or wild game visit http://www.huntforthehungry.com.

• The League of Women Voters of Door County (LWVDC) invites voters to learn about Wisconsin’s new Voter Photo ID Law from election experts from the Government Accountability Board.

The programs, presented by Steve Pickett and Sarah Whitt, will take place at the Nasewaupee Town Hall (corner of County C and Park Drive) on Nov. 29 from 7 – 8:30 pm and the Meadows Gathering Room at Scandia Village in Sister Bay on Nov. 30 from 2 – 3:30 pm.

Earlier this year, the Legislature passed the Voter Photo ID Law, which was signed by Governor Walker on May 25. In addition to requiring voters to show an acceptable photo ID to receive a ballot, the law contains other important changes to the voting process, including a longer, 28-consecutive-day residency period and a requirement for voters to sign the poll list.

Educational materials explaining the Voter Photo ID Law will be distributed at the meeting.

To learn more about the new law visit http://www.gab.wi.gov. For more information about these programs or the LWVDC contact Shirley Senarighi at 920.743.1691 or via email at [email protected].

• The Women’s Fellowship of the Sister Bay Moravian Church will hold its annual “Christmas in the Country Fair” on Dec. 1 from 10 am – 2 pm. Attendees will have the opportunity to shop locally for handmade crafts, handmade rag rugs, Christmas bakery, and more.

Breakfast rolls and homemade chicken soup will be served for lunch. The church is located at the corner of Hill and Old Stage Roads, Sister Bay.

• A mobile unit will have Recall Walker and Recall Kleefisch petitions available for all Wisconsin residents to sign. Signers do not need to be registered to vote.

The unit will be open from 2 pm until sundown Mondays through Fridays and noon to sundown on Saturdays (Thanksgiving and Christmas weeks excluded). The signature station is located near the Sister Bay Village Hall and Post Office.

• Sturgeon Bay’s Historic Inns and Bed & Breakfasts will be hosting the 28th Annual Christmas Walk on Dec. 4 from 1:30 – 5 pm with all proceeds benefiting United Way of Door County.

The public will enjoy the scent of fresh cedar and pine and the sight of sparkling lights as six Sturgeon Bay inns and bed & breakfasts open their doors. The buildings will showcase creative decorations of the season and holiday music. Door County artists and fine crafts persons will be displaying handmade works of art in each inn offering the perfect opportunity for finding unique holiday gifts.

Chanticleer Guest House, Colonial Gardens B&B, Inn at Cedar Crossing, Reynolds House, Sawyer House B&B and White Lace Inn are participating this year.

All proceeds from ticket sales directly benefit United Way of Door County, a largely volunteer organization, to achieve the mission of a stronger and healthier community. Tickets are $7.50 and can be purchased at any participating inn the day of the Christmas Walk. For more information or to purchase advanced tickets stop by the Inn at Cedar Crossing (920.743.4200).

• The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development still has loans with affordable monthly payments available to rural communities in Wisconsin.

The Guaranteed Rural Housing (GRH) Program requires no down payment and is financed through participating lenders. GRH loans are available to low and moderate income individuals and families. These loans are made at a fixed interest rate for 30 years. The amount of the mortgage is limited by repayment ability and there are no restrictions on the size or design of the home. Loan closing costs and repairs can often be financed with home purchases.

Direct Single Family Housing loans are also available with no down payment for lower income households. These are for a period of 33 to 38 years. The current interest rate is 3.50 percent, and in some cases may be subsidized down to one percent.

USDA Rural Development also offers Home Repair Loans and Grants. These loans are at one percent interest for a maximum term of 20 years. The loan amount depends on the ability to make a monthly payment based on required income guidelines.

Applications for these programs are currently being accepted. For free pre-qualification, contact Rural Development at 715.524.8522 ext. 4 or via email at [email protected].

• As the “Official Shipper of the Holidays,” the United States Postal Service recently released the suggested mail-by dates to ensure packages, cards, and letters reach their intended destination before the 2011 celebrations begin.

Postmarking for domestic mail — mailed from and delivered within the U.S. — and international mail destined for overseas should occur by: First-class Mail – Dec. 20, Priority Mail – Dec. 21, Express Mail – Dec. 22, Parcel Post – Dec. 15, DNCD Drop Ship – Dec. 19, and DDU Drop Ship – Dec. 22.

To view recommendations for international shipping, visit http://www.usps.com.

• Northern Door Health & Wellness Ministry will present “Power Outage – What to do after the storm!” on Dec. 3 at 1 pm. Door County Emergency Management Director Anne DeMeuse will speak about what individuals can do to stay safe during these times.

The presentation, free and open to the public, will take place at the Shepherd of the Bay Lutheran Church in Ellison Bay.