Verona Press The
Wisconsin's sco sc con ons nsi sin in s PRIVATE PRACTICE OF THE YEAR RECI RECIPIENT
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Thursday, November 14, 2019 • Vol. 55, No. 26 • Verona, WI • Hometown USA • ConnectVerona.com • $1.25
APPOINTMENTS WITHIN 24 HOURS!
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Setting a new norm
New senior center director focused on health and wellness NEAL PATTEN Unified Newspaper Group
Photo by Samantha Christian
Wade Moder, the executive director of the Upper Sugar River Watershed Association, describes rattlesnake master and other prairie plants found in the Sugar River Wetlands State Natural Area in Verona during a volunteer work day collecting seeds on Oct. 26. USRWA received several new grants this year, allowing the nonprofit to expand its staff, programming and focus on invasive species management.
‘A huge shift’ Grants increase USRWA’s capacity, programming beyond watershed
organization using them folded, have made “a huge shift” in the organization as it went from fter nearly 20 years of working a staff of one to three to improve waterways, restore and nearly doubled its riparian and prairie habitat and budget. educate the public in southwestern Dane “Two of them were County, a local organization has taken a Bunting invasive species related big step to extend its reach. grants that we felt would The Upper Sugar River Watershed be a reach for us but Association, which got its start as a something we could really handle and government initiative in the late 1990s help us expand our wings as an organizabefore becoming an independent nontion,” Moder explains in a Facebook vidprofit in 2000, is planning to use two eo announcing the grants. “Invasive spenew grants to expand its existing moncies don’t really know any boundaries, itoring and control of invasive species and I think if we’re managing invasive into a nine-county area throughout the species 100 miles away, 50 miles away – Driftless Area of Southwest Wisconsin. Wade Moder, who has served as USR- it doesn’t matter what it is – that’s going WA’s executive director since 2014, said to indirectly benefit our watershed, as the grants, awarded in May after another well, so we thought it was a match.” Unified Newspaper Group
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Totaling $150,000, the grants extend into spring 2021, allowing the USRWA to hire two new employees three years after Moder’s position went full time. In July, USRWA hired Wallrath Matt Wallrath as a fulltime invasive species coordinator to manage the work, which will take place in the Driftless Area throughout Dane, Green, Iowa, Grant, Sauk, LaFayette, Richland, Crawford and Vernon counties. That month, USRWA also hired Hannah Bunting as a parttime membership and communications assistant. These new positions and grants are
Turn to USRWA/Page 14
Council says no to Goodwill facade Traffic cited; thrift store could still open
the outside of the former World of Variety building ahead of a planned Goodwill store taking over the site. RENEE HICKMAN The alders who voted in Unified Newspaper Group opposition to the precise Verona council members improvement plan – a provoted down a plan to change cess required only because of The
Verona Press
proposed exterior changes – cited concerns over traffic and public safety as an explanation for their votes. Several alders said they had received considerable public comment in opposition to the store, which would be located
at 118 S. Main St. They said constituents were concerned about issues such as whether Verona could support two thrift stores in the area. A St. Vincent’s De Paul Thrift store is located at 513 W. Verona
Turn to Facade/Page 12
Turn to Director/Page 11
State champions Wildcats bring home gold ball in Division 1 state tournament. Turn to page 9
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SAMANTHA CHRISTIAN
Stephanie Ehle’s new role isn’t all that new to her. Until last month, Stephanie Ehle was was already working closely with seniors through her ow n h e a l t h and wellness company, Eudemonia LLC. There, she helped elderEhle ly people stay independent in their homes, providing personal training and working to improve their quality of life. N ow, a s t h e Ve r o n a Senior Center director, she’s doing many of the same things, only in more of a community setting. As a self-proclaimed extrovert, that suits her well. She likes having coworkers to bounce ideas off of. “Being here has been energizing,” Ehle told the Press. “Especially being around more people again and seeing the initial impact of our programs.” Since starting the position Oct. 7, she has been planning to bring some of her health and wellness expertise to the center’s programming. It will take some time, Ehle said, as she’s encountered some learning curves
in her new position. One is that she’s filling-out more paperwork than she thought she would. She also has to learn her daily responsibilities, such as opening the center, getting coffee ready for patrons in the morning, recruitment and training new volunteers. Ehle also has been trying to meet with senior center guests and connect with community members during big events like Monday’s Veterans Day celebration, to learn what gaps the senior center can fill. “I can’t plan programs if I don’t know who I am serving,” she said. “I have to know our clientele. I can’t guess what they want. I like to pick their brains, find out, can they offer something to the center and if not, what are they looking for the center to offer them?” Ehle has begun working on some new program ideas of her own. She has been talking to a case manager about forming a low vision group, wants to offer more intergenerational programs and would personally love to see nutrition become a larger topic along with bladder health. Ehle said she wants to engage the center’s guests to not only attend events, but also provide events. “Everyone who comes through our doors has a story to share. Until we talk to them, we don’t know someone’s life story,” she said. “We may end up just talking about playing bridge