Stories you might have missed from around Wisconsin.
Milwaukee: New funds will keep Walker’s Point Youth Center open.
When we talked to Audra O’Connell last month things looked dire for the Walker’s Point Youth and Family Center. Grants hadn’t been approved, funding had been cut and the center was on the verge of closing. The news is better now. The center will remain open for another year. Milwaukee’s Common Council voted unanimously to award the shelter $100,000 in community development block grants. That amount pushed the center past the $200,000 it needed to stay open. The Journal Sentinel reported that Ald. JoCasta Zamarripa, who co-sponsored the proposal, said at the council meeting, “I was very heartened to have so many colleagues join me in advocating for this.” Audra O’Connell, the shelter’s chief executive officer, confirmed that an anonymous donor matched the city’s one time grant. The center is one of just two state-licensed youth shelters in Milwaukee and the only one that serves parenting teens. Full Story
Brookfield: local knife sharpener will visit Japan to forge her own blade at the world’s oldest knife factory.
You never truly appreciate a sharp knife until you don’t have one. Knife sharpening is an art form as well as a necessary service. Now, for Brookfield-based knife sharpener Alena Joling her skills have presented a very unique opportunity. Joling made the cut (no pun intended) as one of only 12 people across the globe invited to visit the world’s oldest knife making factory in Japan in the new year. She told the Journal Sentinel, “I still can’t believe I got invited on this, it feels like such an honor.” Joling will visit Kikuichi Cutlery which is based in Nara, Japan. The factory traces its history back to the days of the samurai. It was founded in 1267 by swordsmiths for Japan’s famous warrior monks. Today, Kikuichi is still a family-owned business. Each year the company invites a small group of people in the knife industry to visit its factory. During her visit, knife smiths will help Joling make her own blade by hand. “I’ve never made a knife before,” she said, calling the knife makers “national treasures of Japan” who still hand forge all their knives. Full Story
Greendale: Is there a runaway alpaca in Greendale?
Sometimes identifying animals is tough. A dog can look like a coyote. In Greendale, an alpaca can look like a goat…or a deer. After receiving reports of a renegade alpaca or goat roaming the area, the Greendale police clarified in a Facebook post that people were actually seeing a white deer named Penelope. Penelope, who police said was named by an unknown person, was just prancing, eating and “doing what deer do.” Penelope has been seen before. The Journal Sentinel reported that the Oak Creek Police Department posted a picture of officers posing with the deer in March. Wisconsin law designates white deer as protected animals, which means it’s illegal to trap or hunt them. A deer’s white color can be caused by rare genetic conditions, which means it’s rare to see deer like Penelope. Many cultures consider white deer to be good luck. According to the advocacy group Protect the White Deer, cultures around the world hold white deer in high regard. no word on whether alpacas hold the same distinction. Full Story
