4-4-73
Over 58% of Merrill’s voters turned out on Tuesday as several local and state races were decided. In a non-binding referendum voters finally gave the nod to the Jefferson School construction project. City voters voted for the project by a 450 vote margin but township voters voted against the project by a 260 vote margin leaving a 190 vote difference. The Merrill Fiscal Control Board will meet once again next Tuesday to again vote on the measure to spend up to $550,000 to construct the new school in the sixth ward. In other election results voters returned incumbent school board members Darrell Hulke and Lester Voigt to the board and added newcomer Vivian Borchardt to fill the vacant seat. A total of nine candidates competed for the three open spots. The state wide referendum on whether to allow bingo to be run by certain charitable organizations got the thumbs up not only locally but on the state level.
The Merrill Wrestling Alumni Association has a unique event this Friday in the East Gym, it’s the 1973 seniors vs the old timers. Scheduled bouts include: Todd Annis vs Ron Schleif, Gary Strozewski vs Ed Robl, Bill Wengler vs Steve Wendorf, Joe Zuelsdorff vs Harvey Leiskau, Steve Severt vs Jay Harding, Keith Burrows vs Dale Lemon, Jerry Wendt vs Gary Porath, Leroy Vandre vs Virgil Kleinschmidt, Mike Hommerding vs Jerry Hass, Chuck Porath vs Bruce Lesky, Ron Priebe vs Harry Holzem, Pete Leiskau vs Tom Hass, Fred Harkner vs Mark Geiger, Bob Gustin vs Roger Wendorf, Don Heyel vs Jeff Kraft, Bruce Severt vs Tom Hildebrand, Dick Hass vs Mike Fechtner, Mike Ellerman vs Barry Jensen, Reed Wyland vs Dave Higgins, and Ted Williams vs Steve MacSwain. The event gets underway at 7:30 PM, tickets are $1. (Imagine the claims to Medicare if this event was repeated in 2013)
Elbridge Curtis’s sap operation at 806 Riverside Ave. is pictured on page 16. Curtis has tapped several trees in his yard for years and uses 25 buckets to collect the sap. He cooks his own syrup at the residence.
4-6-83
Election results are in; Lloyd Kincaid, a Crandon democrat, will take over the State Senate seat previously held by Clifford Krueger. Kincaid defeated republican Sheehan Donoghue by about 7,000 votes. Donoghue won the local vote but district voters picked the northern state assembly rep over Merrill native. In local races, Judith Stockowitz became the first ever elected City Clerk in Merrill history on Tuesday defeating her opponent Lynn Jon Henrich in the race to succeed the late Robert Klug. In the school board race, all three incumbents held onto their seats with Dan Olson as the top vote getter followed by Patricia Weber and Tom Sazama.
In local school news, 11 Merrill Senior High School students advanced to State Forensics Competition after taking first place in the district competition last week. Those students include: Jack Talbot, Rita Butalla, Cheri Grubbs, Steve Meier, Mark Anglin, Kris Batchelder, Rod Lohff, Kim Kleinschmidt, Donna Schneider, Stephanie Monka and Tammy Wenzlick. Ted Nickel and Lyn Seidlitz, juniors at Merrill Senior High School were elected Prom King and Queen for the 1983 Prom. The theme for this year’s prom will be “Just You and I.”
Captain Dennis R. Hintze will serve as the Acting Chief of the Merrill Police Department beginning April 8th. Chief of Police Charles Johnson announced the move in advance of his 11 week absence as he attends the FBI National Academy. Johnson also announced the promotion of Lieutenant Thomas E. Schotz to the rank of inspector and Juvenile Sgt. Jack Kleinschmidt to the rank of Juvenile Lieutenant.
3-31-93
Voters will have to make a decision next week on the proposed Merrill elementary school, but for now there is no site to build on. The School Board tabled a final decision to buy the Simon property on State Rd 107 on the north edge of the city after preliminary soil testing showed a high level of nitrates. The paper this week is filled with stories and photos showing potential voters the cramped space and outdated conditions at the Franklin and Lincoln Elementary Schools which combined are 120 years old. The referendum on the ballot allows borrowing up to $14 million dollars for the new elementary school and a re-model of the current high school on Polk Street.
According to the sports page: Gary Sjuggerud comes from a family of bowlers but only he and his mother can brag that they are perfect in the sport. Sjuggerud bowled a perfect 300 game last Thursday in the Men’s 760 League at Lincoln Lanes capping off a 755 series. Gary’s noted his mother was the first woman to ever bowl a perfect game in Kenosha. Sjuggerud credited encouragement from Russ Sukow in making the final three strikes.