June 1, 2022

“For some, every day is a Memorial Day. Because after the loss of a loved one, adding the word ‘happy’ seems like a betrayal.” Words that make one stop and think, spoken by Fletcher-Pechacek Legion No. 121 Auxiliary President Margaret Larson at the 2022 Memorial Day Program at Greenwood Cemetery in River Falls.

“I know time has flown by and many of you are wondering, where did your kindergartner go?” said Superintendent Barry Cain at the Ellsworth High School Class of 2022 commencement ceremony on Friday, May 27.

The Prescott High School Class of 2022 packed the gym Friday night at the school district’s commencement ceremony. It was the first time in three years that attendance hasn’t been restricted at the event.

Ellsworth High School will seem like a different place next fall. Principal Mark Stoesz won’t be there for the first time in 31 years to greet students as they come through the door. He is retiring June 30.

June 8, 2022

Ellsworth’s 4×100-meter relay group of junior Bo Hines and seniors Max Grand, Jack Janke and Ashten Quade stood atop the podium just minutes after winning Ellsworth’s second consecutive Division 2 State Championship in the 4×100-meter relay at the WIAA State Track & Field Championships in La Crosse Saturday, June 4.

The last four years have been anything but ordinary for the class of 2022, as was detailed by graduating senior speakers Emily Odegard and Erick Luebke, who reflected on their time as students at River Falls High School during their speeches at the graduation ceremony on Sunday, June 5.

Time flies when you’re having fun, as the saying goes. Dianne Lecheler can scarcely believe 25 years have come and gone since she opened her quilt shop in Plum City.

Ellsworth Community School District hosted its 35th annual employee recognition dinner Tuesday, May 31 at Ridgetop in rural Prescott.

June 15, 2022

The Village of Ellsworth plans to purchase the former Ellsworth Junior High building at 254 S. Chestnut St. for a total of $25,000 using a portion of its American Rescue Plan Act funds, as revealed by Village President Becky Beissel at the June 7 Ellsworth Village Board meeting.

As author Jean M. Campbell talks about her latest Wally Walnut book, her face glows and her eyes are bright. She wants children to know that they’re special and that we can all get along, even if we’re different in some ways.

Every town needs a café that feels like home, where the servers know your name when you walk through the door and chat with you like family. That place in Ellsworth is Sawyer Joe’s.

A Minnesota man fled police twice in less than an hour during trac stops for speeding 100 mph on Highway 10, putting himself and others in danger. The pursuit, which was called off before it reached downtown Prescott, resulted in the suspect crashing his car near the Prescott clock tower.

June 22, 2022

After a special village board meeting held Monday, June 13, the village board voted 4-2 to let Administrator Clerk-Treasurer Nicole Stewart go from her position, effective immediately. Trustees Tony Hines and Lance Austin voted against her termination. No reason was given for the decision.

Prepare your taste buds for the 21st annual Cheese Curd Festival, slated for June 24-25 in Ellsworth’s East End Park. The event returns in-person after two years of drive-thru festivals, thanks to the pandemic.

With the early release to allow for teacher collaboration time paying dividends in academic success this year, the Prescott School Board at its meeting Wednesday, June 15 moved to include the program in its official academic calendar for the 2022-23 school year.

At the Monday night, June 20, Spring Valley School Board meeting, the board unanimously adopted a 20-year plan for a future athletic complex and asked the superintendent to prepare a formal recommendation to the board that includes how to proceed further, including potential funding options for the facility, informing the community, timelines and other aspects of the potential project.

The City of Prescott and Village of Ellsworth both made presentations to the Pierce County ARPA Ad Hoc Committee June 21, hoping for a piece of the $8.3 million pie for projects they consider vital to their respective communities.

While many fly fishermen enjoy traveling west to Montana and Colorado to fish some of the most beautiful rivers in the world, few of them know that world-class fly fishing experiences are located in the heart of Pierce County at Margo and Lola.

Pierce County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Tonette May retired June 30 after 25 years of service in law enforcement.

The site of what was once a historic building in Prescott has gone to ruins over the last several years, and the Prescott City Council voted at its meeting Monday, June 27 to order the former hospital building at 445 Court St. N. razed. The three-story St. Croixdale hospital building was constructed at the site in 1926 with 28 private rooms.

The Prescott City Council voted to issue a raze order of this dilapidated former hospital building at 445 Court St. N. The owner of the property, Hearth Development of St. Paul, failed to comply with city code enforcement action. Neighbors have complained about the condition of the property and activity there has led to numerous calls to Prescott Police Department.Photo by Riley Dorau