Page 29 - Ben Meyer News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

5:16 It was 1957, and Rhinelander’s Leona Forth laid eyes on Marv Schumacher for the first time. “That’s how we met, on a blind date,” she said. “That was it.” She knew right away. The outgoing, smiling, happy man would become her life partner. “He was the most generous,” Leona said. “He was the best guy in the world.” The couple took over Leona’s family business, running Forth Floral for decades. Marv and Leona Schumacher. On their 25th wedding anniversary, they bought themselves a treat. “This guy was selling clocks. We looked at this one. I said, ‘I think that’s...

5:36 The words “Mellen State Bank” are etched into the sandstone façade over which Jeff Peters ran his right hand on Tuesday. “It feels like history,” he said. “It almost feels like the history of connecting this area.” A sandstone quarry on Basswood Island in the Apostle Islands, circa 1894. Credit Jeff Peters Those carved words and the one-story façade look just like they did when the Mellen State Bank opened in 1902. The sandstone was quarried on Basswood Island in the Apostle Islands, the same sandstone used to build fashionable brownstone homes in East Coast cities. The sa...

The fire started inside the town shop. Inspections to determine what caused the fire are ongoing. Boulder Junction Town Chair Dennis Reuss said the damage caused by the fire was significant. “We lost all our equipment at this point including our building. The building is still standing obviously. It was all internal,” said Reuss. The loss includes equipment to keep roads plowed, sanded and clean. Reuss is working with other city officials to get back-up to continue maintaining the town. “We should be good to go as far as taking care of the responsibilities of the town,” he said. The S...

5:09 The World Bank has offices in more than 130 places and staff from more than 170 countries. Starting more than a decade ago, one of those staff members worked from a wood-paneled office overlooking a small lake outside Mercer. He was among the first telecommuters in Iron County, Wisconsin, a part of the first wave of work-at-home employees whose number has now spiked in the area. Gary Theisen had lived for years in Washington, DC, working at the headquarters of the World Bank and traveling internationally. Clear Lake. Credit Ben Meyer/WXPR In the mid-2000s, he wanted to move back to Wisco...

The cabin sits on U.S. Highway 8 between Crandon and Laona. When Johnnie Aschenbrenner was growing up, it was his home. Despite being on a major highway, there were no power lines until 1962, so the family used generators for electricity. Johnnie Aschenbrenner inside the home where he grew up between Crandon and Laona. Now, he rents it as a cabin as part of his resort. Credit Ben Meyer/WXPR Nowadays, the cabin has an updated yet rustic feel, and Aschenbrenner rents it out as part of his small resort on Wabikon Lake. It’s literally connected to the tiny bar Aschenbrenner also owns. All told,...