Local News

By Correne Martin

In an effort to address building safety and compliance issues mandated by the state, the River Ridge School District is seeking a state trust fund loan not to exceed $2 million. The money would finance energy efficiency projects and be repaid over five years.

“When you go outside the revenue cap, although we would receive some aid, the majority of it comes from the tax bills,” explained Interim Superintendent Tom Andres regarding repayment of the potential loan.

On May 13, the school board voted to begin application paperwork for the state trust fund loan and, on May 26, the board approved a resolution authorizing the loan, also levying a tax in connection with it. Next, the resolution must be published within 10 days of the May 26 meeting. Then, there will be a 30-day period during which those who wish to petition the action can do so.

A two-vehicle crash took the lives of a rural Eastman teen and a Tomah man Sunday afternoon, May 24, in the town of Eastman, according to the Crawford County Sheriff's Department.

Bridget Achenbach, 19, was traveling south on Highway 27 near Messler Lane about 2 p.m. when her Chevrolet Cruze hydroplaned on wet pavement and spun across the centerline into the northbound lane. Her vehicle collided with a Chevrolet Impala, driven by Kenneth Eppers, 85, Tomah. Achenbach was pronounced dead at the scene.

The man and his wife, Genevieve Eppers, also 85, were extricated from their car with the Jaws of Life and taken to Crossing Rivers Health in Prairie du Chien, where Kenneth died from his injuries. Genevieve was later transported by ambulance to a La Crosse hospital, where she remained in critical condition Monday afternoon. An update on her condition was not available Tuesday.

By Sherrie Ball

About 165,400 people served in the Vietnam Conflict from Wisconsin. More than 1,200 perished. Of those, three men were from Crawford County.

Gordon L. Nagel was from Wauzeka. He was born April 8, 1948, the son of Lester and Christie (Aspenson) Nagel. From a large family, Gordon was one of 11 children.

He was a Boatswain’s Mate 2nd Class (BM2) assigned Harbor Security with the U.S. Navy. Gordon enlisted in the Navy with his brother, Myron Nagel under the “Buddy System.” (The Navy Buddy Enlistment Program offers for the enlistment of small groups of not more than four male individuals or four female individuals who wish to stay together for as long as possible during their enlistment.)

By Correne Martin

Not many of us can say we’ve written a novel, especially as teenagers. Yet, Rachel Mergen, 17, a junior at River Ridge High School, can. In fact, Rachel has composed and self-published, via CreateSpace, three fantasy titles, the first when she was 13 and the second two at 16 and 17. A fourth will come out in March 2016.

“When I was little, I didn’t enjoy writing or reading that much. But I started writing song lyrics when I was in seventh grade,” Rachel said. “The vampire movies, like ‘Twilight’ and ‘Vampire Academy,’ came out when I was younger and this (her books) just kind of happened around then.”

Additional inspirations for Rachel have come from the band Imagine Dragons’ lyrics, the classic title “To Kill a Mockingbird,” and Amy Plum’s “Die for Me” series, which is based in Paris. “She’s one of my favorites. I’ve actually had conversations with her,” she noted.