Stories you might have missed from around Wisconsin.
Milwaukee: Enlightened Brewing Company opens up about closing.
Wisconsin loves its beer, and its brewers, but the hard truth is that the beer market is changing. Decreasing sales and decreasing beer consumption have lead to hard times for many breweries. After battling those issues for two years, Enlightened Brewing Company in Milwaukee is closing its doors on January 5. The debt-to-income ratio of the 11-year-old Bay View brewery hit a critical level this year, causing the owners to decide to close the brewery and seek a buyer for its equipment and possibly its intellectual property. In an interview with the Journal Sentinel, the brewery’s owners talked about what led to the closure and what’s next for them, the space and their beer. Co-owner Tommy Vandervort said that when Enlightened opened in 2013 the Milwaukee beer landscape was different than it is today. “In 2016 there was a renaissance of a bunch of breweries in Milwaukee and that whole spirit carried us through to COIVD.” The brewery grew from 2013 until the pandemic. Post COVID, the brewery never recovered. Full Story
Eau Claire: US Supreme Court rejects parents’ challenge to school guidance for transgender students.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal from Wisconsin parents challenging the Eau Claire Area School District’s gender support policy. The lawsuit, filed in 2022 by a group called Parents Protecting Our Children, alleges an Eau Claire Area School District gender support plan violates parents’ constitutional rights because it doesn’t require them to be notified if a student asks about changing their names and pronouns, using different bathrooms or playing on sports teams that match their gender identity. WPR reported that in March, the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals sided with a lower federal court decision from the previous year and dismissed the case. The order stated that while it’s clear parents have genuine concerns, neither the parents nor their children were affected by the policy. Eau Claire School Board President Tim Nordin said he’s glad the case is behind them, so the district can focus on educating students. In a statement, WILL attorney Luke Berg said despite this denial, the fight for parents’ rights will continue in Wisconsin and across the country. Full Story
Bristol: There’s gnome place like Pringle Nature Center for the holidays.
Here’s a fun and easy holiday game, find a gnome, win a prize. It’s that easy during the annual Holiday Gnome Hunt at the Pringle Nature Center inside Bristol Woods Community Park. The hunt runs through December. You can search for gnomes through December on your own walks through Bristol Woods. “Mischief is afoot in Bristol Woods,” organizers said. “Find all five gnomes hiding on the trails by the end of December for a chance to win a free 2025 Pringle Nature Center family membership and a souvenir gnome ornament.” A statement from the Center says that to take part in the contest, post a photo from your gnome hunt on Instagram or Facebook and tag Pringle, or email your photo to Pringle by Dec. 31 to be entered into the drawing. Full Story
