Wisconsin

Hearing the music of Wisconsin agriculture

Published

2 years ago

May 9, 2024

Hearing the music of Wisconsin agriculture

by Ashley Hagenow

At the recent Alice in Dairyland Finals, I shared how much I love music. Music has been a constant theme throughout my whole life, and certainly in the role of serving as Wisconsin’s 76th Alice in Dairyland.

Whether I was greeted in the morning with an upbeat tune or used a song to help me fall asleep at night, music was always there, from the very early mornings through the late nights. On my long drives across Wisconsin, I have blasted my favorite songs as I sing along to the lyrics. Sometimes, music was there to provide some background noise or the beat for a little dance break. Music has felt like a constant companion throughout my Alice journey and has certainly provided inspiration to me as I proudly represented Wisconsin’s $104.8 billion agriculture industry this past year.

Telling a story

One of the things I love most about music is that it tells a story. Music tells a story just like Alice in Dairyland tells a story wherever she goes. The different parts of a song are like the different parts of a speech or key message that I’ve shared with audiences across Wisconsin, whether highlighting the economic impact of Wisconsin agriculture, all the opportunities available through careers in agriculture, or personal stories from my experiences in the agriculture industry.

Halei Heinzel named 77th Alice in Dairyland

The similarities between music and Alice in Dairyland are numerous. Throughout this incredible experience of serving as Wisconsin’s 76th Alice in Dairyland, here are some of my favorite “songs” I have sung while promoting Wisconsin agriculture.

My journey as the 76th Alice in Dairyland began on July 5. Last summer brought many opportunities to share my key messages across Wisconsin, whether at Farm Technology Days, the Wisconsin State Fair or many of the county fairs in our state. These events were also the opportunity to introduce myself as Alice to consumers across Wisconsin and beyond, just like the intro in a song.

Some memories include riding the 10-horse hitch of Meyer Farms at Farm Tech Days and engaging with our Alice in Dairyland partners for the first time, the cream puff eating contest at the Wisconsin State Fair, visiting my home county fair in Columbia County to host the Sale of Champions, and my first official trip to Door County to visit Washington Island and learn what makes Door County agriculture so diverse and special.

A great journey

Moving into the fall, the adventures of promoting Wisconsin agriculture continued, and my playlist of songs diversified. My top memories include engaging with fourth grade classrooms across the state to promote Wisconsin agriculture and specialty crops in our great state, walking the colored shavings at World Dairy Expo to deliver the Supreme Champion envelope, touring Alsum Farms and Produce to learn more about potatoes and pumpkins, witnessing my first Wisconsin cranberry harvest thanks to Amber Bristow, and traveling internationally with the Ginseng Board of Wisconsin to highlight Wisconsin ginseng and agriculture across the world.

Progressing into the holiday season and the first few months of the new year added new verses to the song of serving as Alice in Dairyland. The annual Holiday Campaign provided memories promoting our Something Special From Wisconsin members and products while making new connections with media outlets across the state. Attending events such as the Wisconsin Association of Fairs Convention and Corn and Soy Expo allowed me to reconnect with many familiar faces in Wisconsin. As a very involved FFA member growing up, I enjoyed sharing memories on social media during National FFA Week in February and how those experiences as an FFA member have shaped my personal and professional journeys in life.

As I prepare for the “outro” of my year serving as Alice in Dairyland, I have made some great recent memories while preparing for what is ahead in the next few months. Coordinating our Wisconsin Cheese Campaign with Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin yielded outcomes such as a national media engagement with RFD-TV and Wisconsin cheese samplings across our great state. We also have been developing our very first supper club campaign with the theme of “Eat Local, Eat Wisconsin With Alice in Dairyland.”

I am so excited to conclude my year as the 76th Alice in Dairyland promoting Wisconsin dairy and our state’s dairy farming families during National Dairy Month in June. I can think of no better way to celebrate this incredible year than through enjoying plenty of Wisconsin dairy products and countless adventures across our state. In just a few short months, I will be passing the microphone (and the keys to Tassie, my flex-fuel Ford Explorer vehicle through the Wisconsin Corn Promotion Board) to Wisconsin’s 77th Alice in Dairyland, as she begins an incredible year of promoting Wisconsin agriculture on July 8.

These are just some of the memories and experiences that I will cherish, and they truly demonstrate how something like Alice in Dairyland can bring an entire state together. Everyone is excited to “hear the music” when it comes to Wisconsin agriculture, and it has been the honor of a lifetime to represent this industry for the past year. Thank you all for being a part of this journey!

Hagenow is the 76th Alice in Dairyland.

Source link

Wisconsin

Zach Schulz is nearing a return from injury. Will he play in the Frozen Four?

Published

10 hours ago

April 8, 2026

Press Room

Zach Schulz is nearing a return from injury. Will he play in the Frozen Four?

LAS VEGAS – Wisconsin hockey’s Zach Schulz is skating and practicing with the team, but is he ready to return to game action?

The Badgers’ junior defenseman, who is a New York Islanders draft pick, has been out since Dec. 6 due to a broken leg he suffered against Notre Dame. Badgers coach Mike Hastings has noted that the 6-foot-1, 194-pound lefty was working toward a possible return this season.

Thursday, April 9 would be as good of a time as any.

Outside of Michigan, North Dakota, the Badgers’ opponent in the national semifinal at 4 p.m. Thursday at T-Mobile Arena, will be the most prolific scoring team they’ve faced this season. The Fighting Hawks have 11 20-point scorers and rank third in the nation in scoring with 3.85 goals per game.

If Schulz’s return is going to happen, now would seem to be the time. Then again, maybe not.

“I do believe part of my responsibility or our responsibility as a program is to put young people in positions to succeed,” Hastings said during a press conference Wednesday April 8 at T-Mobile Arena. “We asked them to do the work, and he has done all the work.”

The Badgers’ blue line has been hit hard by injuries. In addition to Schulz, junior Logan Hensler is done for the year with a lower leg injury he suffered against Minnesota Jan. 31. Schulz was on the No. 1 line at the time of his injury. Hensler was part of the No. 2 group.

Their absences partially explains some of the struggles the Badgers have had at times on defense. Getting a piece of that D-core back would provide a boost for a unit that will need to be on top of its game against North Dakota.

Hastings said he plans to talk with Schulz on Wednesday night.

“This has been a process that both of us committed to with our unbelievable training staff and doctors that are here and with his effort, he’s put himself in a position to be in that conversation,” Hastings said. “When (the injury) happened, we were hoping that would be the case, and that’s the case.”

Source link

Wisconsin

Impact Day: Wintry mix to 60s in SE Wisconsin

Published

22 hours ago

April 8, 2026

Press Room

Impact Day: Wintry mix to 60s in SE Wisconsin

Sprinkles early Wednesday ahead of a big warmup to end the week.

REALLY AWESOME TO SEE HOW FAR HOPEFULLY THIS CAN TAKE US TO MORE EXPLORATION. YES, YES, 100%. AND THIS MORNING, OTHERWISE NOT PERFECT. IT’S NOT TOO BAD. WE’RE WAKING UP TO A FEW SHOWERS ACROSS SOUTHEASTERN WISCONSIN, BUT IF YOU DIDN’T LIKE THE WEATHER YESTERDAY, WE ARE GOING TO BE DRASTICALLY DIFFERENT BY THIS AFTERNOON. HIGH TEMPERATURES YESTERDAY TOPPED OUT CLOSE TO ABOUT 34 DEGREES. THAT’S WHERE WE’RE SITTING FOR A LOT OF SOUTHEASTERN WISCONSIN RIGHT NOW. WE’RE GOING TO WARM UP INTO THE 60S THIS AFTERNOON. YES, SOME OF US ARE WAKING UP TO MAYBE A FEW SNOWFLAKES OUT THERE. MOST OF US ARE WAKING UP JUST TO RAIN SHOWERS TO KICK OFF THE DAY TODAY, SOME DRIER CONDITIONS SOUTH OF I 94 IN OUR VIEWING AREA RIGHT NOW. BUT YOU CAN SEE THE ACTIVITY THAT’S STRETCHING BACK WEST OF MADISON. JUST A FEW LIGHT SHOWERS AND SPRINKLES ARE LOOKING POSSIBLE THROUGH ABOUT 10:00. THERE’S RAIN ALL THE WAY BACK CLOSE TO WATERLOO RIGHT NOW, SO IT’S NOT GOING TO STICK AROUND THE ENTIRE TIME. WE’LL HAVE DRY TIME BETWEEN NOW AND 10:00, BUT ON AND OFF SHOWERS ARE STILL POSSIBLE. MILWAUKEE HAS HAD SOME SHOWERS THIS MORNING. YOU CAN SEE THE RAINDROPS ON THE CAMERA LENS THERE IN OCONOMOWOC, AS WELL AS BROOKFIELD. DELAVAN SO FAR HAS STAYED PRETTY DRY AND RIGHT NOW IT LOOKS LIKE RAIN IS A LITTLE MORE LIKELY. CLOSER TO AND NORTH OF I-94. RAIN IN MILWAUKEE RIGHT NOW. THOSE CHANCES STICK AROUND INTO THE MORNING. BUT THE BIG STORY TODAY IT IS THE WARM UP. IT IS GOING TO BE NICE LATER THIS AFTERNOON. SHOWER CHANCES JUST ABOUT 9 OR 10:00. THEN THE REST OF YOUR WEDNESDAY IS GOING TO BE DRY OVERNIGHT TONIGHT. ANOTHER CHANCE FOR SOME RAIN THAT MOVES OUT BY THURSDAY. BUT THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY, ANOTHER RAIN CHANCE IS ON THE WAY. MOST OF OUR DAYLIGHT HOURS ARE LOOKING DRY 56 DEGREES ON SATURDAY, DRY FOR SATURDAY. THEN WE’RE TRACKING. WILL TRACK MORE RAIN CHANCES SUNDAY, MONDAY AND TUESDAY AND A BIG COOLDOWN AS WE HEAD INTO TUESDAY. BY WEDNESDAY OF NEXT WEEK, TEMPERATURES COULD BE ON THE CHILLY SIDE. ONCE AGAIN. HERE’S FUTURE CAST. NOTICE IT’S MAINLY RAIN THAT WE’RE SEEING, BUT I CAN’T RULE OUT A FEW SNOWFLAKES HERE. OVER THE NEXT HOUR OR SO. THEN JUST SOME SHOWERS FOR THE EARLY PART OF THE DAY. AND THEN SUNSHINE IS BACK. IT WILL BE WINDY, SOME GUSTS AS HIGH AS 35MPH, BUT THAT’S BRINGING IN TEMPERATURES IN THE 60S LATER TODAY. AND THEN A COLD FRONT MOVES THROUGH AND RAIN CHANCES BUILD BACK IN REALLY FROM ABOUT 10:00 TONIGHT THROUGH ABOUT THREE, 4:00 IN THE MORNING. AND MOST OF YOUR THURSDAY IS DRY AND SUNNY. THEN NOTICE LATE THURSDAY EVENING INTO EARLY FRIDAY MORNING. THAT’S WHEN WE’LL TRACK OUR NEXT CHANCE FOR SOME RAIN. SO THE BOTTOM LINE, THE BIG CHANGE FROM WHAT WE SAW THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS IS THE TEMPERATURES WILL BE BACK IN THE 50S AND THE 60S TODAY THROUGH FRIDAY, AND REALLY THROUGH MOST OF THE SEVEN DAY FORECAST, WE HAVE RAIN CHANCES EVERY SINGLE DAY, BUT MOST OF THAT RAIN IS FALLING DURING THE OVERNIGHT HOURS, AND WE COULD HAVE A FEW SHOWERS LINGERING OR BUILDING IN IN THE EVENING OR LINGERING INTO THE MORNING. BUT FOR THE MOST PART, DAYLIGHT HOURS. AS WE HEAD THROUGH THE REST OF THE WORKWEEK IS GOING TO BE DRY, BUT WE DO HAVE SOME SHOWERS OUT THERE TO KICK OFF THE DAY. TODAY THERE COULD BE SOME WET ROADS FOR YOUR MORNING COMMUTE. RAIN CHANCES RETURN LATE THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT TONIGHT. SOME SHOWER CHANCES LATE TOMORROW INTO THURSDAY, BUT AGAIN MAINLY OVERNIGHT RAIN CHANCES. SO THOSE 50S AND 60S WILL HAVE A CHANCE TO GET OUTSIDE AND ENJOY 56 DEGREES ON SATURDAY. RIGHT NOW, SUNDAY 70. THAT’S FANTASTIC. AND IT DOESN’T LOOK LIKE A WASHOUT, BUT WE ARE TRACKING STORM CHANCES SUNDAY AND MONDAY. OH MY GOODNESS. HOPEFULLY WE’RE TURNING A CORNER, BUT IT IS STILL SO EARLY. FINGERS CROSSED. IT’S WILD TO THINK THAT WE PROBABLY HAVE SOME SNOWFLAKES AROUND RIGHT NOW AND WE’

Impact Day: Wintry mix to 60s in SE Wisconsin

Sprinkles early Wednesday ahead of a big warmup to end the week.

Updated: 5:46 AM CDT Apr 8, 2026

Editorial Standards ⓘ

Early rain showers Wednesday morning, with parts of the area seeing a wintry mix as temperatures start near freezing. Showers move out later this morning. Skies will gradually clear through the afternoon, with highs warming into the low to middle 60s.Rain with a few thunderstorms return late Wednesday evening and night. Rain will move out by early Thursday morning. Thursday will be a bit cooler, but still mild with a mix of sun and clouds. Another chance for rain returns late in the evening, with shower chances lingering into early Friday. Most of Friday is expected to stay dry, with highs in the low 50s.Drier Saturday with seasonable temperatures in the low 50s. Looking ahead, a more active pattern returns with chances for storms Sunday and Monday as temperatures jump into the low 70s. Rain chances continue Tuesday, with afternoon highs dropping back into the low 50s.

MILWAUKEE —

Rain with a few thunderstorms return late Wednesday evening and night. Rain will move out by early Thursday morning. Thursday will be a bit cooler, but still mild with a mix of sun and clouds. Another chance for rain returns late in the evening, with shower chances lingering into early Friday. Most of Friday is expected to stay dry, with highs in the low 50s.

Drier Saturday with seasonable temperatures in the low 50s. Looking ahead, a more active pattern returns with chances for storms Sunday and Monday as temperatures jump into the low 70s. Rain chances continue Tuesday, with afternoon highs dropping back into the low 50s.

Source link

Wisconsin

Wisconsin defense lawyers argue conviction in Oshkosh boat crash should be overturned

Published

1 day ago

April 7, 2026

Press Room

Wisconsin defense lawyers argue conviction in Oshkosh boat crash should be overturned

OSHKOSH (WLUK) — The state defense lawyers association argues the judge made a mistake in allowing a Winnebago County jury to hear the case against Jason Lindemann, who crashed his power boat into a cruise boat.

Lindemann was sentenced to five months in jail and three years on probation and ordered to perform 150 hours of community service as a result of the July 9, 2022, crash between his powerboat and the On The Loos paddlewheel cruise boat. He was also ordered to pay $11,702.79 in restitution. The crash injured more than a dozen people.

Lindemann has appealed, claiming he drove his boat like “every boater does” and that the evidence doesn’t support the convictions. Prosecutors replied it believes Lindemann’s conviction should be upheld. Lindemann’s reply brief due is due April 14, then the appeals court will review the case and issue a ruling. That’s expected to take several months.

Surveillance video of a July 9, 2022, boat crash on the Fox River in Oshkosh. (Courtesy Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office)

On Tuesday, the Wisconsin Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers filed what’s known as a ‘friend of the court’ brief, offering its input on the issue of jury selection.

Brief from the Wisconsin Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers arguing for Jason Lindemann’s conviction in an Oshkosh boat crash to be overturned.

Click here to view the PDF file

It noted the extensive publicity on case, from the day of the crash, onwards.

“WACDL submits that a careful analysis of precedent, and a realistic assessment of the pretrial publicity at issue, require that prejudice be presumed. Lindemann’s community was sufficiently against him that drawing his jury from Winnebago County violated his due process rights. The circuit court thus erred in denying his request for a change of venue, and reversal is warranted,” wrote attorney Megan Sanders.

The brief also argues the judge’s faith in voir dire — the juror screening and selection process — was “unfounded,” given the case’s publicity.

It argues the convictions should be overturned.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION (1)

“There is an effective solution for the due process problem at issue here. Case law supports it, Lindemann sought it, and the State — after explaining its concerns about proceeding in Winnebago County — declined to contest his request. Under these circumstances, and with no cogent rationale for keeping the case in Oshkosh, the circuit court erred in denying Lindemann’s motion for a change of venue,” the brief states.

Source link