Some Call Him the “The Bunker Guy,” But Who Is Geoffrey Graff Really?The reports cast Geoffrey Graff as “the bunker guy,” a crazy, gun-toting isolationist, who dug an underground home in a backwater of the city. The reality is more complicated. The 911 call carried an urgent message: Gunshots, Estabrook Park. At any… May 13 20May 13, 2020Article at Milwaukee Magazine
Milwaukee’s Long and Vibrant History of SocialismSocialism is once again on political lips, as both epithet and ideal. ANDY LITZENBERG grew up in Hales Corners as the child of a deeply conservative family. His first experience of political protest came in junior high, when his parents took him to a… Jun 24 19June 24, 2019Article at Milwaukee Magazine
A small miracle for Christmas: A young man's journey took a near-tragic turn on a snowy Iowa highway -- but one by one, strangers lighted his way out of the darknessIn one of my last memories before the truck hit me, I was sitting in the driver's seat of my mother's Honda Civic. It was stuck in an 8-foot snowdrift that blocked the northbound lane of Route 13 in rural northeast Iowa. The wind was screaming across… May 10 19May 10, 2019Article at chicagotribune.com
Meet Sister Andrea Lee, Tireless Defender of All-women’s Education and President of Alverno CollegeAlverno College’s president combines compassion, pragmatism and fierce advocacy for all-women education. Sister Andrea Lee had just returned to the house she shared with other nuns in her order, Immaculate Heart of Mary. She heard sirens. A glance… Mar 27 19March 27, 2019Article at Milwaukee Magazine
Up Close and Personal with Amy Lindner, United Way’s New CEOUnited Way’s new CEO, Amy Lindner, can jump your car and hopes to jumpstart the nonprofit behemoth as it navigates the digital age. The parking lot outside Waukesha’s Kilpatrick Engine and Transmission features cars awaiting work, engines on mounts,… Feb 28 19February 28, 2019Article at Milwaukee Magazine
Two years after Philando Castile’s death, programs aim to transform relations between police, residentsROSEVILLE, Minn. — The lights from the police car flash blue and red against the white minivan. An African American family of six sits inside the Nissan Quest in this first-ring suburb of St. Paul on a warm June evening. Mom’s at the wheel, grandma’s… Jul 07 18July 07, 2018Article at Washington Post
Arrivaderci, Bruno: The Guilt and Grief Woven Into the Loss of My Four-legged FriendThe joy and tragedy of owning a dog Bruno, an Italian greyhound and the only child for all seven years of his life, was about to get a younger sister. My wife, Mary, and I were nervous. Googling “Italian greyhounds and babies” yielded one conclusion:… Apr 04 18April 04, 2018Article at Milwaukee Magazine
From Darkness, Light: Meet the Man Who Calls Himself ‘Nub Zero’Joe Reed lost his limbs as a toddler and grew up abused by his foster mother. That didn’t stop him. The woman in the blue coat wants some earbuds. Joe Reed, wearing gold-rimmed aviator glasses, a “Joseph” name badge hanging from his blue Walmart… Feb 23 18February 23, 2018Article at Milwaukee Magazine
CC Strong: How a Stoughton High School Cross-Country Team Tragedy Became a Story of ResilienceWhen a team of young runners' promising season is interrupted by tragedy, what happens next? On this postcard-perfect early September evening, with the sun lingering in the clear blue sky, a black Jeep Cherokee makes its way north on Skyline Drive… Feb 02 18February 02, 2018Article at Milwaukee Magazine
He Brightened Lives All Around Him. Then He Went to Work for FoxconnThe suicide of a young Chinese man shows a different side of mega iPhone maker Foxconn. Among the hundreds of students I taught in a Chinese village, Brad stood out. He gave his final speech first semester singing Christmas carols through the voice… Nov 21 17November 21, 2017Article at Milwaukee Magazine
China’s TownA visa-for-sale program has benefitted Milwaukee in the form of millions of dollars in investments from Chinese people, who sink money into developments in exchange for green cards. Here's the inside story of early outreach that keeps paying off, and… Oct 26 16October 26, 2016Article at Milwaukee Magazine
In Good HandsAn art professor, with his 3-D printer, builds prosthetic hands for children in need. She didn’t fully understand the cause. But she did know the practical effect: Her firstborn child, still in the womb, would be born without fingers on her right… Oct 27 15October 27, 2015Article at Milwaukee Magazine
UW-Madison oak tree grew into a legend, now will be felledLong before the tract of land next to Lake Mendota became the University of Wisconsin, an acorn embedded itself in the soil not far from some burial mounds created by the original occupants of the land. The acorn grew into a bur oak tree with a trunk… Dec 19 14December 19, 2014Article at madison.com
Anatomy of a protest: From a simple march to a national fightOn Feb. 7, with Wisconsin united in the afterglow of a Green Bay Packers victory in the Super Bowl, brand-new Gov. Scott Walker convened a dinner meeting of his Cabinet at the Governor's Mansion. Walker held up a photo of President Ronald Reagan, who… Feb 27 11February 27, 2011Article at madison.com
After 35 years, father and daughter meetJoel Lidstrom of rural Caledonia, Minn., and his daughter, Hilari Anderson of Seattle, recently met for the first time. Shortly after Hilari's 35th birthday, her mother encouraged the two to contact each other. Hilari took the first step - via… Apr 29 07April 29, 2007Article at La Crosse Tribune
SEEKING CINDY: WWTC instructor finds herself, inside and outHe lay on his back and cried. Long, desperate sobs, the kind that won't quit no matter who's around or where you are. It was 1996, and Todd Munson had just gotten out of back surgery at Franciscan Skemp. His doctor stood at his bedside, puzzled. The… Oct 25 05October 25, 2005Article at La Crosse Tribune
Family and friends pray for boy burned in gasoline accidentHOLMEN, Wis. - Flames shot up the front of his gray, sleeveless T-shirt, engulfing Alex Goyette's face but stopping just short of his blonde, buzz-cut hair. Aaron Goyette, 15, watched in shock for a second. Then he screamed. The 12-year-old dropped… Sep 04 05September 04, 2005Article at La Crosse Tribune
