Stories you might have missed from across Wisconsin.
Mondovi: Poultry farmers using Facebook after processor abandons thousands of chickens.
If you’re looking for a great deal on chickens, and want to help local farmers, this could be the deal for you. At least six Wisconsin poultry farms are giving away tens of thousands of chickens after their contracted processor closed last week without notice. The chickens have been raised for meat. Pure Prairie Poultry closed their processing plant in Charles City, Iowa on October 9. they also stopped paying for feed for the chickens. Pure Prairie owns the chickens and contracts with farms to raise the birds for them. This is a common practice in the poultry industry. A poultry producer near Mondovi told WPR that the company owes him at least $90,000 in rent and other expenses. He had 45,000 chickens that Pure Prairie was supposed to pick up for processing on Oct. 6, but the company canceled with just a few days’ notice. Three days later, he was notified he could no longer get feed from his local supplier. feeding all the chickens is costing some famer’s up to $20,000 a week in addition to labor and facility costs. Now the affected farmers have taken to Facebook and Reddit to share the addresses of farms in Buffalo and Trempealeau counties, where people can come get the chickens for a donation or for free. many of the farms are only asking for $1 per bird. Farms like he ones affected are contractors for the poultry companies, so they don’t have access to the same type of insurance programs that are available for crop growers or dairy producers at the state and federal level. Full Story
Green Bay: Elementary school counselor wins School Counselor of the Year award.
Do you remember your school counselor? They can make a big impact in a sometimes thankless job. A Green Bay elementary school counselor has gained recognition by being named School Counselor of the Year. Tammy Van Ess from Jackson Elementary School was given the honor by the Wisconsin School Counselors Organization. Van Ess’s nominators said they put her up for the award because she used data to determine how to support students at Jackson Elementary and, when she noticed increases in behavior referrals, worked with individuals and small groups to decrease referrals by over 75%. The Press Gazette shared a quote from a press release from the Wisconsin School Counselors Organization. “It is through her own commitment to creatively meet her families’ needs by offering evening events or innovative learning experiences for students, as well as her partnerships with local stakeholders such as Do Good Wisconsin and Rooted In, that have produced a trajectory for families at Jackson Elementary School to feel connected to school staff and see the school as another resource for support.” Van Ess also created the Hunger Heroes Jaguar Den food pantry during the pandemic. The pantry is based on community donations, and any Jackson Elementary family can use the pantry. Van Ess runs the pantry with a team of fourth- and fifth-graders. She will go on to represent Wisconsin in the National School Counselor of the Year competition. Good luck! Full Story
Milwaukee: Bar Hosting an event for people to pitch their single friends.
Do you have a friend or co-worker who is single and looking to mingle? Are you baffled as to why others aren’t seeing them as the king or queen you perceive them to be. If so, then you might want to head to Uncle Buck’s in Milwaukee tonight at 7:00. Pitch-A-Friend, a national group that hosts events for friends to create a slideshow and pitch their friend as an eligible bachelor or bachelorette, will host its first Milwaukee. Presenters can make a three- to five-minute slideshow showing how funny, smart, attractive and all-around dateable their single friend is. Anyone can attend the event for free, and it costs $5 to present. Brittney Sockwell, who founded the Milwaukee Pitch-A-Friend chapter told the Journal Sentinel, “The purpose is to allow friends, who know you better than anyone else, to pitch you as the amazing person that you are.” Get Pitching! Full Story
