Wisconsin
Joann plans to close 16 Wisconsin stores, a change from what the retailer said in January
Almost 70% of the Joann fabrics and craft stores in Wisconsin are now set to close, a stark change to a month ago, when the company, which recently filed for bankruptcy, made no mention of store closings in the state.
After filing for bankruptcy in January, the national retail chain has asked the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware to authorize the closure of about 500 stores across the U.S., including 16 in Wisconsin, according to a statement from Joann on Wednesday.
The company first filed for bankruptcy in March 2024 but was able to keep its stores open by going private, despite owing $1 billion in debt at the time. However, the 82-year-old company still owes more than $600 million in debt and has faced lagging sales and inventory issues, according to CNN.
The January announcement from the company had initially excluded any mention of closing Joann stores in Wisconsin, but Wednesday’s announcement changes that.
Which Joann stores in Wisconsin are closing?
A total of 16 Joann stores are closing in Wisconsin, including four in the Milwaukee area, according to the announcement.
- Fond du Lac: 806 W. Johnson St.
- Janesville: 2700 N. Pontiac Drive
- Madison: 2021 Zeier Road
- Pewaukee: 2020 Silvernail Road
- Cudahy: 5656 S. Packard Ave.
- Brookfield: 16800 W. Bluemound Road
- Menomonee Falls: N78 W14531 Appleton Ave.
- Watertown: 401 Bernard St.
- Plover: 1150 Meridian Drive
- Lake Geneva: 600 N. Edwards Blvd.
- Beaver Dam: 1645 N. Spring St.
- Marshfield: 1919 N. Central Ave.
- Marinette: 2400 Roosevelt Road
- Oshkosh: 1226 S. Koeller St.
- Racine: 2629 S. Green Bay Road
- Sheboygan Falls: 4079 Highway 28
Which Joann stores in Wisconsin will remain open?
The company has a total of 23 locations in Wisconsin. The following will remain open:
- Greenfield: 4950 S. 74th St.
- Appleton: 720 N. Casaloma Drive
- Green Bay: 2777 S. Oneida St.
- Onalaska: 1220 Crossing Meadows Drive
- Wausau: 226830 Rib Mountain Drive
- Eau Claire: 4045 Commonwealth Ave.
- Wisconsin Dells: 121 Commerce St.
A full list of Wisconsin locations can be found on the company’s website.
How many Joann stores are closing? How many are staying open?
The closure of 500 stores will represent an almost 60% reduction in the craft retailer’s brick and mortar spaces, of which there are currently 850, according to its website.
In its Feb. 12 statement, the chain wrote that the closures would contribute to “right-sizing our store footprint” and ensuring the best path forward for the company.
“This was a very difficult decision to make, given the major impact we know it will have on our Team Members, our customers and all of the communities we serve,” Joann said in the statement. “A careful analysis of store performance and future strategic fit for the Company determined which stores should remain operating as usual at this time.”
When will my Joann store close?
Information on when the Joann stores will close was not included in the announcement.
Maia Pandey contributed to this report.
Contact Claudia Levens at clevens@gannett.com. Follow her on X at @levensc13.
Wisconsin
Stepmom from hell accused of starving 35-pound teen daughter enters plea — could spend the rest of her life behind bars
The Wisconsin stepmother from hell accused of abusing her 35-pound 14-year-old daughter by depriving her of food and water has entered a no-contest plea in the twisted case.
Melissa Goodman, 52, now faces up to 46 years in prison if she’s handed the maximum sentence for charges of chronic neglect causing great bodily harm, chronic neglect causing emotional damage and false imprisonment.
She’s set to be sentenced on July 1.
Goodman, along with husband Walter Goodman, has been accused of starving her autistic stepdaughter.
Goodman’s daughter Savanna Goodman and her girlfriend Kayla Stemler were also charged over the alleged abuse, People reported.
The family is accused of locking the teen in a bedroom without a mattress, restricting her to only her room for years and depriving her of food and water, according to Wisconsin prosecutors.
The mobile home they lived in became a house of horrors for the teenager, who was mistaken for a 6-year-old when she was found by cops in August 2025 and rushed to the hospital.
Walter Goodman, the victim’s father, called 911 to report that his daughter was lethargic and ill.
Responding officers found her weighing just 35 pounds; she was hospitalized with multi-organ dysfunction, including respiratory failure and pancreatitis.

From 2020 until August 2025, the victim, whose name is not disclosed because she is a minor, was allegedly isolated in a trailer on Hattie Lane, in Oneida, Wisconsin.
Extended family members were told she was away on vacation or with other relatives to explain her absence.
Wisconsin
‘Song Sung Blue’ subject Claire Sardina playing Wisconsin State Fair
When “Song Sung Blue” – the biopic about Milwaukee Neil Diamond tribute act Lightning & Thunder – had a premiere at the Oriental Theatre in Milwaukee last December, star Hugh Jackman gave Claire Sardina (played in the film by Kate Hudson) an engraved bench honoring Lighting & Thunder to be installed at Wisconsin State Fair Park.
In August, Sardina will get to have a seat on that bench – and sing again on a State Fair stage.
Sardina will perform with tribute act So Good: The Neil Diamond Experience Aug. 9 at the Bank Five Nine Amphitheater, the largest stage at the fair featuring free concerts with admission.
For Sardina, it will be a return to a place central to Lighting & Thunder. The band performed in the Milwaukee area from 1989 until Mike Sardina, aka Lightning, passed away in 2006. The State Fair was one of their favorite places to play, and the couple got married there in 1994.
The couple’s wild story – from a performance at a Pearl Jam Summerfest concert to major health issues – was the subject of the documentary “Song Sung Blue” that inspired the biopic, and earned Hudson an Oscar nomination for portraying Claire Sardina.
Fair officials May 8 revealed the full headliner lineup for the stage, which includes:
- Aug. 6: Sixteen Candles
- Aug. 7 and 8: Here Come The Mummies
- Aug. 10 and 11: Herman’s Hermits starring Peter Noone
- Aug. 12: Hairbangers Ball
- Aug. 13: Too Hype Crew
- Aug. 14: The Gufs
- Aug. 15: Let’s Sing Taylor – An Unofficial Live Tribute Show
- Aug. 16: Pat McCurdy
All Bank Five Nine Amphitheater concerts are included with fair admission.
The lineup is also nearly complete for the Bank Five Nine Main Stage, with just a show on Aug. 11 to be announced.
Tickets are on sale for these shows at wistatefair.com and include same-day fair admission:
- Aug. 6: Hairball
- Aug. 7: Nelly
- Aug. 8: Bailey Zimmerman with Chandler Walters
- Aug. 9: Wynonna Judd and Melissa Etheridge
- Aug. 10: For King + Country with Rachel Lampa
- Aug. 12: John Mulaney
- Aug. 13: The All-American Rejects with Joyce Manor
- Aug. 14: Lindsey Stirling with PVRIS
- Aug. 15: AJR with Em Beihold
- Aug. 16: The Beach Boys
Wisconsin
Wisconsin universities and schools impacted by Canvas data breach
WAUSAU, Wis. (WSAW/GRAY NEWS) – A ransomware group has claimed to have breached the learning management system Canvas, possibly exposing the personal information of students, teachers and staff across the country.
According to a statement from the Universities of Wisconsin website, they were notified of a nationwide security breach experienced by Instructure, the provider of Canvas. Universities of Wisconsin schools use the cloud-based management system.
UW-Stevens Point tells NewsChannel 7 they have not confirmed UWSP was involved in the breach, but did send communication that Canvas was down and students should not perform any asked actions if prompted, as it may not be legitimate while Canvas is down.
Instructure, the parent company of Canvas, posted on May 1 about a cybersecurity incident that had been reported and was under investigation.
The next day, Chief Information Security Officer Steve Proud wrote that the information involved in the attack included names, student ID numbers, messages between users and email addresses.
“At this time, we have found no evidence that passwords, dates of birth, government identifiers, or financial information were involved. If that changes, we will notify any impacted institutions,” he wrote.
The Wausau School District sent a letter to parents Wednesday regarding the cybersecurity incident. They said there is no evidence that passwords, single-sign-on credentials, financial information or social security numbers were impacted. They stressed that type of information is not stored in Canvas.
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