Jeanine: I like to think my life has really come full circle. My mom’s family has been in Augusta for generations and now we’re back in Augusta. Photos by Andi Stempniak Jeanine: In April 2013 I had taken a break from teaching to work on my Masters so I could become a Director of Special
“I just want to make sure everything is safe for me and the people I love.” Read More »
I have always enjoyed making things with my own hands and sharing them for other people to enjoy, and beer is no exception. Photos by Hedi Lamarr Rudd I grew up in a beer-loving family, so beer has always been a passion of mine. But before we started the Wisconsin Hop Exchange Co-op, I mostly worked
I was born in Sheboygan, the youngest of five. We lived on a farm just north of town where my folks grew pumpkins and a bit of everything else. Photos by Whitney Morales When I was in fifth grade, my dad bought his own funeral home in Omro, so I went to middle school and
“We just figured it out and continued to learn.” Read More »
Those were the days. We’d go down South 17th Street in Sheboygan and I’d go by three of my buddy’s houses and we’d pull our four wagons to the pier. Photos courtesy of Dan Welsch I had a blue wagon with white PVC rod holders, rod sticking up, landing nets, my boombox, my dip net
“Fishing is a part of me.” Read More »
There was always music around when I was a kid. I grew up in Rhinelander and lived there for most of my life, but I also lived on the Lac du Flambeau Reservation when I was younger. Photos by Shelby Cheyka I went to UW-Eau Claire after high school, then graduated from dental school in
“It’s never to late to follow your dreams.” Read More »
I would say my family, my mother, my grandmother, and uncles that came by, shaped who I was. Even though we didn’t have much when I was a kid, they made sure my brothers and I were good people. Photos by Hedi Lamarr Rudd Share This Post So I give tribute to them first. But
“I turned my pain into passion and started mentoring.” Read More »
My ancestors came from Ireland and Ohio to a parcel of land in the Driftless region and homesteaded in 1854. Photo by Hedi Lamarr Rudd I am the sixth generation to be raised on the family property formerly used as a 40-head milking dairy farm, but the government pretty much forced out family farms. It’s
Farming Music in The Driftless Read More »
I am the owner of Las Milpas LLC, a Mexican restaurant and Latino grocery store in Baraboo. Photos by Hedi Lamarr Rudd My day starts at 6:30, getting my daughter to school and heading to my store. In the afternoon I pick her up, we eat dinner together, and then I go back to the
“If we all stay united, we can be all stronger.” Read More »
I wasn’t always Barby the book fairy. I was born and raised on the South Side of Milwaukee. Photos courtesy of Barbara Cerda My parents are immigrants from Mexico, my mom grew up here and my father came when he was seventeen. I became a teen mom when I was fifteen years old, and again
Barby the “Book Fairy” Read More »
I grew up on the outskirts of Sun Prairie. As a kid, I spent most of my time on my granddad’s farm. It was a great time. I learned machinery and a work ethic, no doubt about that. Photos by Sterling Strathe I think it also laid a groundwork for a land ethic, even though
“That started a whole new chapter in my life.” Read More »
I was born in Ban Vinai refugee camp in Thailand in September 1976. I am the oldest of six children. Photos courtesy of Annie Vang When the Vietnam War ended in 1975, thousands of Hmong families were displaced from their homes. The Hmong people were recruited by the American military to fight in the war
“The HmongPhrases app was my gift to myself.” Read More »
Joel: In high school, I took an entrepreneur leadership class. There they really pushed me to think about my community and where I come from. Photo by Abby Chi I had to think about the problems I’ve seen in my community and what I could do about them. I was born in the Democratic Republic
“All children are meant for the stars.” Read More »
