By allowing ads to appear on this site, you support the local businesses who, in turn, support great journalism.
Hello Hillsboro: Firemen elect new leadership
Placeholder Image

Congratulations to Stacy Morris, who was recently elected by the Hillsboro Firemen as their new Chief, and Jeremy Miller, who was elected as the new Assistant Fire Chief.

The Hillsboro Fire Department has always been fortunate to have quality members who are capable of assuming the reins of authority, and this year is no different.

Both of the new officers are veteran firefighters who have many years of experience on the department.
On a personal note, in addition to the new rank of Assistant Fire Chief, Jeremy also retains his Knowles family title of Son-In-Law. And that fact allows us to report the remarkable amount of time and work he has always devoted to the department. We’re very proud of him!

The residents of Hillsboro and the entire Fire Association are also very appreciative of outgoing Fire Chief Tom Sebranek and Assistant Fire Chief Tom Hotek for years of outstanding service to the community.

Congratulations are also in order for the Lady Tigers Basketball Team for winning the WIAA Regional Championship.

Good luck in Sectionals, girls. They will play next on Thursday night in Neillsville against Gilmanton.


            ***

Sincere weather watchers have been searching for centuries to find a never-fail indicator that Old Man Winter is ready to take a break and hopefully a long vacation.

There are all kinds of clues available, from the annual report of an over-rated and disoriented groundhog, to the depth of ice reported by frustrated and extremely cold fishermen.

This year, however, a new signal has been added to the local folklore, at least in Hillsboro.....the outdoor appearance of Tiger track and field athletes in the HHS parking lot after school.

Socks and I were enjoying our first long (and refreshingly warm) walk of the Winter on Monday afternoon when we heard unusual but very welcome noises coming from the school. On investigation, we discovered an entire track and field team running laps, and enjoying the warmth and sunshine.

Talk about a genuine and long awaited true sign of Spring!

Socks was so excited about seeing the students taking good advantage of the weather change, she wanted to join the group. But without her track gear on, I feared she might become overheated. Well, it’s the thought that counts!

Anyway, the sight made our day. Those young students did every bit as well as the TV forecasters in spreading the good news in Hillsboro.


            ***

Please remember to put outside by your door any non-perishable food you wish to donate to the Good Samaritan Food Pantry on Saturday morning.

The local Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts from Troop and Pack 83 will be “Scouting for Food” that morning.

I don’t have to tell you how important this year’s food drive is, with many local families needing assistance during these difficult times.

So, like the Scout pledge, please “Do a Good Turn.” Support the campaign, and your neighbors as much as possible.

Mice paddling a canoe?
Random Thoughts, August 3
Mice paddling a canoe
This is a reproduction of a Huppler card drawing, done with tiny black dots. He gave it to me in 1961 when he was living in Muscoda with his father.

MUSCODA - Probably few folks in this village remember when mice in Muscoda paddled canoes and/or drove a Hudson roadster automobile. Don’t worry, the little rodents existed only in the mind of a Muscoda native and artist, Dudley Huppler.

         Huppler was born in Muscoda August 8, 1917. He attended high school in Muscoda where he developed a life-long interest in reading. He then enrolled in the University of Wisconsin-Madison, receiving  bachelor’s and master’s degrees.

         He first worked for the WPA, a make-work federal program during the Great Depression when jobs were scarce. He later returned to the U.W. as a teaching assistant.

         Through the years he made frequent visits to Muscoda to visit his family who operated a meat market here. I interviewed Dudley in September, 1961. By then he was an international traveler with many connections throughout the art world. He also spent time teaching at the University of Minnesota and had studios in Santa Monica, California and New York City

         As an artist Dudley developed a system of tiny black dots to portray mice and other characters. He used the method in children’s books and on sets of cards that he marketed in New York City and small places like Ed’s Store and Ruth’s Dress Shop in Muscoda.

         One of his books has characters who lived in “Mouscoda”  during the 1920s, including a young girl who is given a croquet set and struggles to learn the game. 00

         His books for children are not among the collection at the Muscoda Public Library. However there is a book on local shelves that chronicles Huppler’s life and accomplishments.

         His life ended in August, 1988 in Boulder, Colorado. By that time he estimated he had created more than 38,000 drawing and paintings.