MENOMONEE FALLS, Wis. – Memorial Day weekend is a time set aside to honor those who died serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, but it’s also a chance to help service members as they transition into civilian life. 

Guitars for Vets helps veterans do just that through music. 

In the music room of his Menomonee Falls home, Jesse Tyler Frewerd sings a song he not only wrote, but a story he lived. He was a senior at Pulaski High School near Green Bay in 2001 when the Twin Towers were brought down and America was suddenly at war. He knew his life would change, too.

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“I just remember watching it on TV and just, in shock like everyone,” he said. “Eventually, it led me to the Army.”

Frewerd returned home from a tour in Iraq physically OK, but there were some way-too-close calls. 

“Having an IED go off right under the Humvee we were in,” he said. “Very lucky that we all made it through that.”

So how does war change a person?

“I would say war changes a person because you can see the best in people but you also the worst side of it,” said Frewerd. “That’s what Guitar’s for Vets does, like help vets transition back in a healthy way.”

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Guitars for Vets is a non-profit organization with Milwaukee roots. It puts guitars in the hands of veterans and teaches them not only how to play, but to use music as a way to cope with the memories of what those of us who haven’t served can’t even imagine. 

“It helped me primarily with community, just having other like-minded veterans to jam with,” Frewerd said.

“The men and women I come across and tell them about Guitars for Vets, I refer to that as a new mission,” he continued. “It gives purpose, fulfillment – it’s a new mission in life.”

Frewerd is an alumnus of the program and now an ambassador. He played a little music before the war, but Guitars for Vets helped to expand his playing skills and connected him to another veteran group that teaches songwriting.

He came back from war to a new baby, a breakup and the death of his dad.

“It was a lot, and it took its toll on me, and I really didn’t know what to make of it,” Frewerd said. “Luckily, due to family support and my now wife, just getting me out of this little hole I’d dug for myself. It’s good to be on the other side of things.”

Frewerd’s day job has him helping veterans transition back to civilian life. His own story strikes a chord with those who’ve lived a similar tune.

“It’s a snapshot. It’s when I was at a bleak moment, but I think now just speaking to that there is hope,” he said. “If I can get through it, there’s hope for other veterans.”

Rock 4 Vets in New Berlin will raise money for Guitars for Vets on Thursday night, May 23. Held at the New Berlin West High School Performing Arts Center, doors open at 6:30 p.m. and tickets are $20. The lineup includes Willy Porter, Rob Anthony, The Whiskeybells, and KB and the Dungarees.

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) – Parts of northeast Wisconsin are picking up the pieces after Tuesday’s severe weather.

The National Weather Service confirmed that four tornadoes touched down elsewhere in the state on Tuesday night, two in central Wisconsin and two in western Wisconsin.

Officials are still investigating exactly what hit the Kaukauna area, which is one of several local communities that was hit hard.

Our team coverage of the cleanup begins with Samantha Cavalli in Kaukauna, where emergency responders are documenting the damage.

Cleanup is underway in Kaukauna after last night’s severe storms which brought heavy rain and strong winds.

Residents in Kaukauna are assessing the damages. One of the large trees on the corner of Lawe and Division streets was uprooted and hit a home. Luckily no one was injured.

“All of a sudden I heard this big woosh and it was weird,” said Kerri Jansen of Kaukauna. “I took my dogs and me and my kids went downstairs.”

“I was letting my dog out and it started getting really windy and raining,” said Alyssa Janssen of Kaukauna. “I was a little freaked out so I ran into the house and closed all the windows and all of a sudden the tree fell and the power went out.”

Alyssa Janssen says multiple branches on a tree in her front yard fell and blocked the road. With the help of some friendly neighbors, Janssen says they were able to move the tree out of the way.

“Actually we’re the only one without power still because it fully detached from our house,” said Janssen. “The neighbors are letting us run our refrigerator off their power.”

“Right now the community emergency response team is out and they are taking pictures of the damage and we can see a pretty distinct line just cutting through the whole city,” said Andrea Fencl, the marketing and communications manager for the City of Kaukauna. “Round House Manor sustained significant damage to its roof, leading to more than fifty people being displaced.”

Kaukauna Mayor Tony Penterman says the residents were taken to Kaukauna High School last night. The Red Cross is helping those who need a temporary place to stay.

“We are in talks with Outagamie County Executive Tom Nelson who is in talks with Governor Evers for some additional help to potentially put them up because it might be several weeks or maybe even a month before they can get back into their location,” said Penterman.

Door County is also cleaning up today following the storm. Locals are still dodging fallen trees in the road as far north as Egg Harbor. Trees are being cleared from roadways by crews to get traffic flow safely restored for drivers.

Some homeowners in Door County are also on clean-up duty with trees falling on homes near the bayside. Suamico native Tom Massey found out early today that a group of trees fell on his second home in Egg Harbor while it was being rented out to Door County visitors.

“I did have eight trees taken down, so I figured I was safe,” said Massey. “Apparently not, there’s four more that I have to deal with now. It took me weeks to clean up after these other eight trees, so I’ve had enough of wood right now.”

The renters of the Egg Harbor home did not suffer any injuries from the storm.

And, in Green Bay, Brittany Schmidt talked with people overwhelmed by the damage to their homes.

“The most horrible sound I had ever heard, it was crack of thunder, sounded like shattering glass and lit up all through the house.”

Kathleen Fadale in Green Bay described a scary, close call during Tuesday night’s storm.

“The whole tree just came down.”

It crashed into the room where her husband was sitting. He was not injured.

“The whole ceiling on his side of the bed fell in, all the 2 x4 brought down, insulation all over the house,” said Fadale. “Very scary, I hope nobody else is having a bad day like this.”

Over on Carrie Lane, Diana Resch is dealing with the same type of damage.

“I knew it would be bad, but it’s just overwhelming.”

Diana says the wind was so strong that it even blew out her screen door completely through. When she looked at the damage outside, she realized this tree had fallen on her house, impacting her roof, then as she panned over and looked at her whole backyard, she had six trees down, three uprooted. The one that hit her home is also completely uprooted.

She has a lot of cleanup to do, but she is thankful no one was injured

“It’s not through the ceiling of upstairs, but it is crushing, heavy,” said Resch. “As time goes by, it’s been getting worse and worse so hoping to get it soon, I have family coming later to help.”

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MADISON, Wis. — The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) today confirmed the emergence of cicadas in Wisconsin.

A resident of Lake Geneva has sent photos of newly emerged cicadas (Magicicada spp.) taken on Friday, May 17. The DNR confirmed that these insects are indeed Brood XIII cicadas.

“Dozens are hatching in my yard,” the photographer wrote in their email to the DNR.

Periodical cicadas are found in the eastern half of the United States and nowhere else. There are seven species, four of which have 13-year life cycles and three that have 17-year cycles. Of those, there are 15 “broods” or year classes.

The 17-year Brood XIII is the only one known to emerge in Wisconsin, though only in the southernmost counties. However, other parts of the Midwest, like Illinois and even further south, will see the emergence of both Brood XIII and the 13-year Brood XIX. This will be the first time these two broods have emerged in the same year since 1803 – 221 years ago.

Cicadas’ deafening mating calls can be annoying; after they mate, their carcasses can become a nuisance as they litter the ground. The insects do not bite or sting; in fact, many people cook and eat cicadas; some even call them “tree shrimp.”

When cicadas emerge, they emerge en masse. Densities of tens to hundreds of thousands of cicadas per acre can be common. The noisy insects remain active for four to six weeks after emerging, feeding by sucking plant fluids from a wide variety of deciduous plants and shrubs. This feeding generally does not injure mature plants that are otherwise healthy.

The insects are expected to keep emerging in southern Wisconsin into June and will not appear again in the state until 2041. Individuals who spot cicadas on their property or public lands are encouraged to report the sighting on the Cicada Safari app to help track the co-emergence of Broods XIII and XIX.

For more information, visit the University of Wisconsin–Madison’s Periodical Cicadas in Wisconsin webpage.