Here at Love Wisconsin, we amplify the good things happening in our state. By featuring the unsung heroes of our democratic process—from poll workers to a constitutional scholar, from municipal workers doing the nitty-gritty work that keeps our communities ticking to reporters showing why local journalism matters for an informed democracy—we are stronger when we share stories!
My maiden name is Kennedy. Growing up in the 1960s as a Jewish Kennedy was a story. Classmates asked me, ‘Oh, do you live in the White House?’ And then with the assassinations, everyone wanted to know how I got the name Kennedy. Photo by Gary Porter My dad’s last name was Ungar, which is …
I grew up in Milwaukee’s Jewish community and attended a suburban public school. There were no Holocaust survivors in my immediate family, but I was aware many belonged to my synagogue. Photos by Gary Porter From an early age, my parents and grandparents taught my siblings and me to be proud of our Jewish identity …
I am shy and hesitant to speak publicly, but I know I need to do it to reach people, to share my experience during the Holocaust. I got involved with the Holocaust Education Resource Center (HERC) because I have a story to tell. I was born in 1937 in Karlsruhe, Germany, and I lived in …
I’m in school right now, but I’m doing it remotely because of the pandemic. I’m pursuing my associate’s degree in science at Nicolet College in Rhinelander, and from there I’d like to either go into linguistic anthropology or environmental science. Photo courtesy of Jephrey Valliere I was working for Amazon down in Kenosha for a …
In recent decades, many of Wisconsin’s independent and local newspapers have folded or been absorbed by large media conglomerates that hollow them out and reduce local content. Ron’s story is part of a series that illustrates why local journalism matters and why we need journalists to confront our urgent local issues. I was always a …
“Local news is so important. It’s the glue that connects us.” Read More »
I first got interested in history in the fourth grade. I took a book out of the school library on the colonial South—I don’t remember what the title was, but I remember how it looked. It had a real cloth pink binding. Photo courtesy of the Center for the Study of the American Constitution From …
In recent decades, many of Wisconsin’s independent and local newspapers have folded or been absorbed by large media conglomerates that hollow them out and reduce local content. Gillian’s story is part of a series that illustrates why local journalism matters and why we need journalists to confront our urgent local issues. I live on a …
“I have a passion to ensure we have a well-informed population.” Read More »
“Before the 2016 general election the Beloit city clerk did not have enough poll workers. I think the league of women voters gave the city clerk my name and I was contacted to see if I would be a poll worker. I thought, ‘sure, why not.’ It doesn’t take much time. My mother had been …
“This feels like an all hands-on deck approach to our democracy.” Read More »
Every day, people are released from prison and return to communities across the state to rebuild their lives. Wisconsin has an incarceration rate of 676 per 100,000 people and, notably, imprisons Black men at a higher rate than any other state in America. The barriers people face when they are released can be overwhelming and are considered partially responsible …
Wisconsin has 72 Counties, 190 Cities, 1,246 Towns, and 414 Villages. It takes A LOT of people—more than 70,000 Wisconsinites—to do the nitty-gritty work that keeps our communities ticking. Dennis Fermenich is one of them. In high school I was always involved in music. During my very first semester at Layton School of Art, I …
In recent decades, many of Wisconsin’s independent and local newspapers have folded or been absorbed by large media conglomerates that hollow them out and reduce local content. Julian’s story is part of a series that illustrates why local journalism matters and why we need journalists to confront our urgent local issues. I loved to read …
When I was about 12, I was laying on the back of the wagon in Marion, Alabama. My granddaddy had been plowing the field all day, and I was looking up at the clouds, thinking about what I’m going to do when I grow up. At that particular time, what I saw for myself was …
