Wisconsin Briefs - Company donates $100K to Ag Center

WOOD COUNTY

Wood County Farm Bureau donates $500 to Honor Flight

The Wood County Farm Bureau voted at its November board meeting to donate $500 toward the Never Forgotten Honor Flight. This is the second $500 donation the group has made to the flight, which takes World War II, Korean and Vietnam veterans on a one-day trip to Washington, D.C., to visit the military memorials that were built in their honor. No government funding, only donations and fundraisers, make the trips possible.

Several Wood County veterans have gone on this trip, which serves a 12-county area. The Never Forgotten Honor Flight was founded by veterans Jim Campbell and Mike Thompson in 2010 and has now provided 26 trips to Washington, D.C.

In 2017, flights are planned in April, May, September and October.

The public is always encouraged to join the welcome home ceremony at Central Wisconsin Airport in Mosinee the evening the flight returns.

MANITOWOC

Company donates $100K to ag center

A local food company has made a $100,000 donation to help get a Manitowoc-area agriculture center off the ground.

Lakeside Foods committed the money to the future Wisconsin Agricultural Education Center's capital campaign. Once open, the center aims to teach locals about the farming industry.

The agriculture center says in recognition of the Lakeside Foods donation, it plans to name the atrium in its Discovery Center in the company's honor.

For details about the center or to donate to the capital campaign, visit BuildWAEC.org.

WEST ALLIS, WI

Century Farm/Home applications available

In celebration of Wisconsin's agricultural heritage, long-time farm and home owners are encouraged to register for a 2017 Sesquicentennial or Century Farm and Home Award. To qualify for the award, continuous family ownership of a property in the state of Wisconsin for the past 150 or 100 years must be proven.

Applications are now available from the Department of Agriculture or the Wisconsin State Fair office and are due by March 1, 2017. Honorees will receive complimentary fair admission tickets, an invitation to the awards breakfast, a commemorative photo, certificate and outdoor display sign.

The Century Farm and Home Program began in 1948 in conjunction with the State's Centennial Celebration. There are over 9,200 Century Farms and Homes nestled throughout the Badger State. The Sesquicentennial Program originated in 1998 as part of the State's Sesquicentennial Celebration. Since that time, over 785 families have been honored.

To request a copy of either application, call 414-777-0580.

MADISON

Orths named to AFB’s Young Farmers & Ranchers committee

Derek and Charisse Orth have been appointed by the American Farm Bureau Federation to its Young Farmers & Ranchers Committee for the 2017-2019 term beginning in March.

The national committee is comprised of 16 positions representing all regions of the U.S. An individual or a couple may hold each committee position.

Derek and Charisse milk 250 cows with his parents at Orthridge Jerseys near Lancaster. Derek is a board director and Charisse is co-women’s chair for the Grant County Farm Bureau. He is also a treasurer of the Wisconsin Jersey Breeders Association.

The Orths recently completed a three-year term on the Wisconsin Farm Bureau’s Young Farmer and Agriculturist Committee where they served as chairs in 2016.

PLYMOUTH

Plymouth Cheese Drop marks decade

While most folks watch the ball drop in Time Square to mark the ringing in of a new year, there is another event that has gained in popularity over the past 10  years - the annual Plymouth Cheese Drop.

The event is sponsored by Sartori Cheese Company which provides cheese gift bags for the first 250 families in attendance, as well as creating the big wedge of cheese that gets lowered from a Plymouth fire department ladder truck.

The family-friendly event which kicks off at 6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31, will include live music, an outdoor bonfire in the Plymouth Arts Plaza where kids can make pudgy pies and s’mores until the Cheese Drop at 10 p.m. Live music will continue inside until 12:30 a.m. The PAC is located at 520 N. Mill St., Plymouth. The event is free.