Wisconsin

Fresh off the Rose Parade, meet the Wisconsin champion Greendale High School Band

Published

3 weeks ago

January 20, 2026

Fresh off the Rose Parade, meet the Wisconsin champion Greendale High School Band

In a village near Milwaukee, a high school marching band reigns supreme.

For 20 consecutive years, Greendale High School has won the Wisconsin School Music Association State Marching Band Championship in their division. And they’ve recently been recognized for their achievements by the Wisconsin State Legislature.

The school’s student body is around 900 students, and 200 of them are in the band. Members have performed in spectacles like the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and most recently in Pasadena, California before the Rose Bowl.

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The band plays popular songs crowds would recognize, from Disney’s “Frozen,” to Beyoncé to NSYNC’s 2000 hit “Bye Bye Bye.” There is a color guard and even a singer. Dozens of students march and play with precise choreography.

“Ultimately, we’re in the entertainment business,” band director Tom Reifenberg told WPR’s “Wisconsin Today.”

When Reifenberg started at the school in 2001, there were just 85 students in the band. They had never won a championship prior to 2000. He thinks the key to success is a philosophy that might sound uncommon in youth activities culture that prioritizes specialization and singular commitment.

First, there are no auditions — anyone can join the band even if they don’t play an instrument. Next, Reifenberg ensures that students in the band still have time for other extracurricular activities. He wants it to be a low enough commitment that students can still work or play tennis.

“Our philosophy is that we want you to do all those things because you’re in high school and should have a great high school experience,” he said.

Reifenberg and high school senior clarinet player Liliana Ramos spoke with “Wisconsin Today.”

Members of the Greendale marching band in Pasadena, California where they performed in the Rose Parade. Photo courtesy of Greendale High School

The following conversation has been edited for clarity and brevity.

Kate Archer Kent: Tom, you really make these events into full scale performances. It’s more than playing music. Can you describe what a show might be like?

Tom Reifenberg: If you go to a variety of high schools in Wisconsin, you’ll see anything from a halftime show of Beatles music to a really competitive show that is more artistic in nature. And we always try to do both. We try to appeal to anybody that’s showing up on a Friday night watching halftime. So for example, this year we did some music from “Frozen,” we did some music by Beyoncé . It’s something that anybody at the Greendale High School stadium will latch on to. But then we also mix that with some of the artistic elements that, in the competition circuit, a judge is going to look for.

KAK: Liliana, what drew you to the marching band?

Liliana Ramos: My older cousin was in the marching band and I saw that she got to travel a lot. And she made a lot of important friendships that she still has to this day. So that kind of drew my attention, because that’s something I was looking for heading into high school.

a marching band dressed in orange uniforms — The Greendale High School marching band performs at the state championship. *Photo courtesy of Greendale Schools*

KAK: Liliana, does the crowd break out in song along with you? Or what is that energy like with your crowds?

LR: You can see students or families get really excited when they hear a popular song that we’re playing. Or at the end the crowd just feeds off of our energy and everyone’s pretty hyped and happy about what we just put on.

KAK: Tom, how do marching bands like Greendale get involved in performing in these really big spectacles like the Rose Parade or Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade?

TR: There’s an application process for these big events and it’s always hard to get into your first one. But once you’re in, you’re in. Because these organizations want groups that they can trust and rely on to do a good job.

Like the Rose Bowl’s Tournament of Roses, for example, they say, ‘Once you’re in our family, we embrace you and you’re part of the Tournament of Roses family forever.’ And that’s true. Pulaski High School, up by Green Bay, is another school that has been in multiple times.

It’s important for us that we still have to keep up our performance level and have a certain number of students in the program. They want bigger groups there because the parade itself is so big and the stands are so big, they need groups that can put out a good amount of sound.

A marching band practices outdoors in cold weather, with members playing saxophones, flutes, and trumpets, while others hold large white flags in the background. — Members of the Greendale High School band practice for their upcoming Rose Parade performance Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025, in Greendale, Wis. *Angela Major/WPR*

KAK: Liliana, On New Year’s Day, you were in soggy Pasadena, California. I was watching the TV on my warm and dry couch, and just feeling sad and happy for all of these band members who were trying to do their best in those conditions. What was it like?

LR: Honestly, I had a lot of fun. It was different, because not a lot of people can say they’ve marched in the Rose Parade while it was downpouring. I think it made the energy a little higher for us because it’s different.

TR: What Liliana just said with the energy, it was phenomenal. You could tell at first, when the rain first started everyone was like, “Oh no, we have to do this in the rain.” But then it was just like “We’re here. Let’s do it. Let’s bring it.”

And I think our kids brought that energy and also the crowd lining the parade route for the whole 5.5 miles gave that energy back to us, which was really cool.

We were worried at first that maybe the Pasadena locals might not come out because they come every year and if it’s raining maybe they won’t be there, but they were there in droves and it was awesome. I wouldn’t have changed the rain part for the world to be honest.

KAK: Tom, there’s also a big financial commitment for families with performances like these. What is fundraising like for the marching band?

TR: We do a lot of individual based fundraisers so that families can choose what they participate in and what they don’t participate in, because like any other organization there are families that can just write the check but then there are some that have to fundraise every last cent.

What’s fortunate about Greendale is the community support is phenomenal.

KAK: Liliana, when you’re out fundraising how supportive is the community in donating to the marching band?

LR: The community wants to see us succeed so I feel like that’s what urges them to help donate. I would say Greendale’s a very tight knit community as well. So everyone is extremely supportive of the band.

KAK: Liliana, for a student who is not in marching band but plays an instrument: Do you have any advice?

LR: I would tell them to join the band because you’re going to make some lifelong friends. You spend so much time with these people at rehearsals and competitions and trips. So do it, because nothing bad can come out of joining band.

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Wisconsin

Wisconsin weather: Tornado alley expands impacting Badger State

Published

11 hours ago

February 10, 2026

Press Room

Wisconsin weather: Tornado alley expands impacting Badger State

article

Annual probability of a tornado from 1994-2024. 30-year climate data.

MILWAUKEE – Tornado Alley has been expanding eastward as climate data shows the increased activity in tornadoes, damaging winds, and hail events.

The National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) and Storm Prediction Center (SPC) released the probability of these events occurring within 25 miles of any location based on historical data.

Changes in Tornado Alley

What we know:

Annual probability of a tornado from 1955-2024. 70-year climate data.

Tornado Alley was originally known as a concentrated area across the Great Plains including parts of the Dakotas, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. New tornado data shows that a much larger portion of the United States is now included in tornado alley compared to before. Higher probability areas show where tornadoes have been more consistent over time.

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It is fair to say that tornado alley is expanded eastward based on climate data. Darker areas on the maps above show where there is more likelihood for tornadoes to occur, but the darker color has shifted. New locations include central and eastern portions of the United States, with some of the higher probability areas including the Mississippi and Ohio River Valleys.

What does this mean for Wisconsin?

By the numbers:

Over a 30-year climate period, data shows a 70% to 80% probability of any tornado in Wisconsin has shifted slightly southwest. However, over the past frequency of weaker tornadoes has slightly increased.

The chance for severe winds (60mph or greater) has moderately increased, with 70% to 80% probability in southwestern Wisconsin, and 50% to 60% probability in southeastern Wisconsin. The chance for hail greater than or equal to half an inch has significantly increased 80% to 90%.

Each severe weather season is different based on a variety of factors. However, climatology data helps meteorologists recognize patterns to adapt, understand, and prepare for severe weather events.

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The overall trend will be more frequent storm system that can bring southern Wisconsin more frequent but weaker tornadoes, hail, and damaging wind events. Keep in mind that severe weather can happen at any time of the year—even the winter months.

The Source: The information provided in this story is from the National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Prediction Center, and FOX6 Weather Experts.

Severe WeatherWeatherMilwaukee

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Wisconsin

A Final Word on the Wisconsin/Indiana Officiating Controversy

Published

23 hours ago

February 10, 2026

Press Room

A Final Word on the Wisconsin/Indiana Officiating Controversy

Like most of you, I witnessed what seemed in the moment to be an absolute heist of a loss for the Wisconsin Badgers in Bloomington in their 78-77 loss to the Indiana Hoosiers on Saturday afternoon.

At the end of both regulation and overtime, there were calls from a Michael Reed, Michael Irving, and Larry Scirotto crew that objectively seemed against Wisconsin, and it’s indisputable that Indiana would have suffered a tough home loss without a number of these whistles going the Hoosiers’ way, especially late.

The two calls that ended up being the flashpoints were: (1) a charge on Nick Boyd with 15.1 left in overtime after he’d been fouled at least twice dribbling with the ball, including by the Hoosier defender at the time of the whistle, and (2) a blocking violation whistled on John Blackwell when an apparently out of control Lamar Wilkerson went down in the lane with 2.8 seconds remaining (his free throws won the game for IU).

In real time, both calls appeared to be horrific and/or unusual and sent Wisconsin fans into a rage over a win that seemed to be stolen away.

With some time to reflect, here’s where I am.

The officiating in this contest definitely favored Indiana, especially in clutch moments. There were at least 10 occasions where a soft or apparently incorrect call went against Wisconsin. In a one-point overtime loss, it’s very hard to argue that this didn’t matter in the outcome. And typical Big Ten Home Cooking, which the Badgers themselves have benefited from many times, can’t fully explain things here.

For example, the charge whistled on Boyd with Indiana’s Conor Enright fused to him like a Siamese Twin is called a block on the defender 90+ percent of the time. It was a legitimately bad call in a big moment. The Blackwell foul is more nuanced, after another angle surfaced that showed him stepping on Wilkerson’s foot. The problem is that wasn’t why the foul was called. It was a simple blocking call on Blackwell, so in a sense, the refs were retroactively bailed out. It probably should have been a foul on Blackwell, but not for the reason the whistle blew.

Greg Gard and the Badgers were 100% correct to have felt cheated. Gard tersely noted in his postgame presser that, “I’ve never seen anything like that.” But it’s my responsibility to point out that the Badgers allowed a good team playing at home to race to a 14-point lead, as well as score oodles of points in the paint.

So, a good portion of the blame for this loss must rest at Wisconsin’s own feet. Playing really well for large stretches in the second half, especially on defense, isn’t a free pass for yet another subpar start by Gard’s squad. This simply must get fixed and quickly, given the gauntlet of top Big Ten teams the Badgers are about to face, starting at No. 8 Illinois Tuesday night.

If I’m Greg Gard, my advice to the team is to flush and move on from Bloomington and focus on playing a full game with no slow starts against Illinois. That’s the game that matters now, not Indiana.

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Wisconsin

Wisconsin Burger King Franchisee Faces Record Child Labor Penalties

Published

1 day ago

February 9, 2026

Press Room

Wisconsin Burger King Franchisee Faces Record Child Labor Penalties

MADISON, Wis. (WEAU) – WEAU obtained a copy of what’s called a Penalties Determination letter to one of Wisconsin’s largest Burger King franchise operators in a child labor and wage payment investigation.

The letter outlines what it says are penalties for the infractions. At this point, Cave Enterprises Operations LLC, has not been found guilty in a court of law. These are the results of an investigation by the Department of Workforce Development.

Cave Enterprises operates 105 Burger King franchises across Wisconsin, including five in the Eau Claire area.

Scope of Violations

The Department says it found more than 1,656 violations of Wisconsin’s child labor and wage payment laws during a two-year span ending in January 2025. The violations affect more than 600 young workers.

“This is the largest determination of child labor and wage payment violations in modern Wisconsin history,” according to a press release from the Office of Governor Tony Evers.

The allegations include illegal work hours and wage payment failures. According to the DWD, Cave failed to comply with Wisconsin’s Employment of Minors laws and related regulations.

Financial Penalties and Restitution

The Department of Workforce Development determined a penalty of $500 per violation—half the maximum allowed per violation penalty. That amounts to $828,000 in penalties.

Additionally, the Department says Cave Enterprises must pay $237,000 in unpaid wages to affected young workers. This includes unpaid regular wages, overtime wages, and penalty wages.

“If Cave Enterprises makes the payments within the specified timeframe, the Department will consider the matter resolved,” according to the DWD letter.

Next Steps

The State says Cave Enterprises must immediately come into compliance with Wisconsin’s child labor employment laws and regulations. The letter also says the company must pay the outstanding wages and penalties within the timeframe specified by the Department of Workforce Development.

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