Wisconsin
The Swap & Shop aims to fill basic necessities void for rural Wisconsinities
STOCKBRIDGE, Wis. — Forty-six of Wisconsin’s 72 counties are considered rural, according to a recent report by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services. It can be challenging for those living in rural communities to access some of life’s necessities, such as clothes, food or toiletries.
The Swap & Shop is helping to fill the void, providing various basic needs and support to those who can’t travel to a city.
What You Need To Know
- The Swap & Shop is a free nonprofit clothing pantry offering other basic life needs, like food and toiletries
- This pantry provides services to Calumet County and other surrounding communities
- Lisa Meyer said families who come to this pantry live mostly in rural communities where grocery, clothing and drug stores can be miles away
Helping people in need is important to Lisa Meyer. She’s been a special education teacher and respite care provider for the past 20 years.
In May, Meyer opened the Swap & Shop in Stockbridge. She said it’s a clothing pantry that provides more than just something to wear.
“It’s not just clothes. We do have personal hygiene items, toiletries and also a basic food pantry,” Meyer said.
The Swap & Shop is located in Calumet County and also serves the surrounding areas. Meyer said families who come to the pantry live mostly in rural communities where grocery, clothing and drug stores can be miles away.
“The residents that live here, the closest for anything is really about 15-20 minutes away and there are some people that don’t have reliable transportation. We are providing emergency needs and supplemental needs,” Meyer said.
Meyer stressed The Swap & Shop is not just for people in need; it’s for everybody. Employee Carla Biese said she’s noticed families shopping because they’re in between paychecks or trying to stretch their budgets.
“People that come in here look for clothes, either their child is outgrown a size, and they’re in a panic because they need a bigger size, or they have an occasion for the weekend, like, ‘Oh my God, my dress doesn’t fit,’” Biese said.
Meyer said besides filling a need, she hopes to provide a sense of community to rural Wisconsin. While her shop is nonprofit, Meyer said she measures her gains by asking herself one question.
“Lisa, how do you know if you’ve been successful? I said, if I help one person, I’ve been successful,” Meyer said.
(WLUK) — Snow remains deep across parts of the Northwoods and the Upper Peninsula, even though much of Northeast Wisconsin has seen notable snow-melting heading toward spring.
It’s connected to a shift in Pacific climate patterns.
As of Thursday, 75.1% of the Northern Great Lakes area was covered by snow. Snow depth across the Northwoods and the U.P. ranges from 20 to 30 inches, with areas along and north of Highway 8 in Wisconsin at about 20 inches.
But farther south, significant snowmelt has occurred over the last few weeks across Northeast Wisconsin and the southern half of the state.
Looking ahead, an ENSO-neutral spring is looking likely, meaning Pacific Ocean temperatures are not notably above or below average. Conditions tend to be more normal and seasonal, though that does not guarantee typical weather.
La Niña occurs when the Pacific Ocean has below-average temperatures across the central and east-central portions of the equatorial region. El Niño is the opposite, with warmer ocean temperatures in those regions. Those shifts influence weather across the United States and globally.
In Wisconsin, a La Niña spring is usually colder and wetter, while an El Niño spring brings warmer and drier conditions. During a neutral period, neither El Niño nor La Niña is in control and weather can swing either direction.
Despite the snowpack up north, the 2026 spring outlook from Green Bay’s National Weather Service leans toward a low flood risk, because ongoing drought in parts of the state is helping to absorb snowmelt.
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Dry conditions are also raising fire concerns in several parts of the country. Low snowfall in states out west is increasing wildfire concerns, and those areas are already experiencing drought. Wildfire activity can increase quickly if above-normal temperatures and below-normal precipitation continue into spring. About half of the lower 48 states are in drought this week — an increase of 16% since January.
The winning numbers in Wednesday’s drawing of the “Wisconsin All or Nothing” game were:
2, 4, 10, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20, 21, 22
(two, four, ten, twelve, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two)
For more lottery results, go to Jackpot.com | Order Lottery Tickets
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