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Two former Puerto Rico residents ‘pay it forward’ with resource fair for new arrivals | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Elizabeth Baker
May 4, 2018
Luis Rosado Castillo registers to vote at the community resource fair for Puerto Ricans who have recently moved to Milwaukee. (Photo by Elizabeth Baker)
Luis Rosado Castillo left his home in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, in January, due to the devastation caused by Hurricane Maria. He has liver cancer, and medical treatment became too expensive on the island. He chose to move to Milwaukee where he has family and friends and where he can afford the care he needs.
People such as Castillo who have recently moved to Milwaukee from Puerto Rico as a result of Hurricane Maria were welcomed at a community resource fair, where they could get information and talk with people from organizations offering job skills training, English classes, voter registration, insurance plans, health care, legal assistance and more. Eighty-eight families attended the event, held Saturday at the Olga Village Senior Center, 722 W. Washington St.
Castillo said he lost everything in the hurricane, and his illness makes him unable to work, but he had a smile on his face as he sat down at a table to register to vote and talked about his new life in Milwaukee. He likes the cold weather – and the beer – and he said he will be here for good.
Like Castillo, Brayan Rodriguez Morales left Mayaguez for Milwaukee this winter. He had to drop out of school, but he’ll pick up his computer science studies again at UW-Milwaukee this fall. Morales said he would like to move back to Puerto Rico, but for now, many people are still leaving the island, and it is much easier to find work in Milwaukee.
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Morales shares an apartment with family members, so he attended the resource fair to learn more about finding a place of his own.
Husband and wife José Rodriguez and Maria Cotto talk to Kay MacKenzie, director of Education and Community Services at Centro Hispano. (Photo by Elizabeth Baker)
Husband and wife José Rodriguez and Maria Cotto have also lived with family and friends in apartments for the several months they have been in Milwaukee. They came to the fair looking for information about obtaining a home of their own. They said it was difficult to leave their city, Carolina, in Puerto Rico, but it is deteriorating and has few job opportunities. Rodriguez has a doctorate degree in education, and Cotto has her master’s in nursing. They both take English classes so they can obtain good jobs here in Milwaukee.
Housing, education and employment opportunities are the three main needs for most Puerto Ricans arriving in Milwaukee, said Ald. José Pérez, who introduced himself to attendees and informed them about city services and how to contact their local representatives.
Pérez, originally from Puerto Rico, said he sees a growing need for community events such as the resource fair as a result of the influx of people coming from the island in a short amount of time. The city keeps no official records of Puerto Rican migrants, but the Milwaukee Public Schools Board of School Directors reported in December, 2017, that 270 students from Puerto Rico enrolled at MPS schools after Hurricane Maria.
“I think in general the city needs a welcoming center, a welcoming place where any immigrant that comes to prosper should have some orientation to the city,” Pérez said. “It’s important that we build upon this to make it more of a permanent place and structure. When we coordinate these resources, people will succeed.”
The community resource fair was organized by Alberto Maldonado, director of the Roberto Hernández Center at UWM, and Andres E. Gonzalez, vice president and chief diversity officer at Froedtert Health, both of whom are originally from Puerto Rico.
Maldonado said this is the first time he has worked on an event like this in the 29 years he has been in Milwaukee. He first came from Puerto Rico to attend UWM. “I think it’s now our turn to pay it forward and to welcome other Puerto Rican families the way we were welcomed once to the city,” he said.
The event planning team will soon hold a debriefing session to ensure all the families who attended are served and connected to appropriate services, Gonzalez said.
Maldonado said he and Gonzalez will also create a website with the mayor’s office that can serve as a virtual welcoming site for the families, with resources and contact information. They hope to continue hosting resource fairs as Puerto Rican families continue to migrate.

author: Elizabeth Baker


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 3, 2018

source: news-milwaukeenns

license: Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

author: Adam Carr


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Kohl’s Facility Day at Penfield Montessori | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Penfield Children’s Center
May 5, 2018
(Photos courtesy of Penfield Children’s Center)
On Wednesday, May 2, more than 100 Kohl’s facility managers met at Penfield Montessori to donate their time and talents to renovate the school. Projects included painting, light installation, repairing walls, constructing storage shelving, creating a breastfeeding room for staff and families, and restoring the school’s entrance on Cherry Street.
In addition, Kohl’s Wild Theater, a partnership between Kohl’s Cares and the Milwaukee County Zoo, performed for our students and taught about animals and conservation. After, staff helped students with planting projects and creating crafts that promote recycling.
In 2017, Kohl’s associates contributed nearly 850 total volunteer hours at Penfield Children’s Center and Penfield Montessori Academy, resulting in more than $27,000 in grants.
Penfield Montessori Academy is a public Montessori school in Milwaukee that offers classes starting at K3. They foster an inclusive environment in which children of all abilities can flourish together in multi-age classrooms.
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author: Penfield Children’s Center


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 5, 2018


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Teens Grow Greens celebrates opening of Webers Greenhouses | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Teens Grow Greens
May 5, 2018
(From Left to Right) Teens Grow Greens Executive Director Charlie Uihlein, Teens Grow Greens Board President Jill Compton, Teens Grow Greens Graduate and current Board member Edward Rodgers, Common Council President Ashanti Hamilton, and Growing Director Claire Muza cut the ribbon and open Webers Greenhouses. (Photo courtesy of Teens Grow Greens)
Teens Grow Greens will celebrate the grand opening of their new greenhouse and experiential learning facility on Friday, May 4, 2018 at 10 a.m. with a ceremonial ribbon cutting. Their first day of business will be on Saturday, May 5, 2018 at 10 a.m. Its regular business hours will be every Wednesday – Sunday 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Webers Greenhouses will not only be a fully functioning greenhouse for community members to purchase plants, herbs, and vegetables, but also an experiential learning facility for Teens Grow Greens interns.
Teens Grow Greens is a non-profit where Teens “learn, grow, and go.” During a nine-month paid internship, local teens learn life skills through hands-on experience in mentorship, entrepreneurship, and agriculture. Following the internship, Teens Grow Greens provides post-graduation support to ensure the success of each Teens newfound individual goals, like graduating high school, becoming employed, or launching an entrepreneurship product.
“Teens Grow Greens not only grows healthy food, it also grows and develops leaders and activists within our community.” Teens Grow Greens Graduate Edward Rodgers shared, “being in the program gave me the extra drive to seek out others in my community and expand my horizons on marketing and entrepreneurship. They even helped me start and complete my resume. My dream is to become a neurosurgeon. Through Teens Grow Greens, I was able to make a connection and shadow a specialty doctor at a hospital.”
(Photo courtesy of Teens Grow Greens)
Through the purchase of Webers Greenhouses, Teens Grow Greens interns will not only have a new home to grow in their agricultural and entrepreneurship skills, but Teens Grow Greens will also be able to provide employment opportunities for graduates of the internship program. This year, Travon, a 2017 Graduate of Teens Grow Greens, plans to set up a small cafe in Webers to sell his own created product to customers, Joe Veggie Go.
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“I’m proud to support organizations like Teens Grow Greens,” said Ashanti Hamilton, President of the Common Council. “Teens Grow Greens not only encourages local Milwaukee teens to take charge of their futures, but the being done right here in the 1st district will benefit the entire community by providing greater access to fresh produce and flowers.”
Teens Grow Greens also plans to hold a visioning session in October with the goal to host a discussion for community, business, and non-profit leaders to identify more ways Webers Greenhouses can better serve not only the mission of Teens Grow Greens, but also its immediate community.
“Opening Webers Greenhouses is a growing step for Teens Grow Greens as an organization. We will be able to expand our ability to support and impact local Milwaukee teens during their internship and provide additional post-graduation support,” said Teens Grow Greens Executive Director Charlie Uihlein. “We are incredibly thankful and excited for this opportunity to grow in our mission as an organization and also cultivate vegetables, herbs, flowers, and plants for the community to enjoy.”

author: Teens Grow Greens


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4th Annual SpringFest at Lincoln Park | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Anne Vaillancourt
May 7, 2018
Friends of Lincoln Park are having their 4th Annual Spring Fest in Lincoln Park on May 12th from 12:00 pm to 3:00 pm. 1301 E. Hampton Av. Milwaukee, WI
This is a free all ages Festival for our Neighbors to celebrate Lincoln Park. There will be Yoga, a Paddling & Swimming safety workshop, Games, Art Activities, Snack, a seed give away for flowers and vegetables and a Community resource table.
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author: Anne Vaillancourt


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American Red Cross, Harley-Davidson partner to install fire alarms in homes | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Margaret Cannon
May 7, 2018
Milwaukee fire cadet Evan Jaksic (left) goes door to door with volunteers, asking if residents need their smoke alarms tested or installed. (Photo Margaret Cannon)
Pat Sweeney has never forgotten the day she arrived at her parents’ house to find it in flames. The top floor of the house she grew up in was destroyed, and her parents sat outside, wrapped in blankets.
“The only thing that saved them was the “blood-curdling, high-pitched sound of the smoke alarms,” she said.
“I got out of the car and my knees got weak because I thought of what could have happened,” said Sweeney, who is now a director at Harley-Davidson. “And they made it out because of the smoke alarms.”
“Sound the Alarm, Save a Life” was held at Harley-Davidson, 3700 W. Juneau Ave., as part of an American Red Cross national campaign to install 100,000 free smoke alarms in 16 days. Red Cross of Wisconsin partnered with Harley-Davidson, Milwaukee Fire Department, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Manpower, Snap-on and Near West Side Partners to recruit  280 volunteers and install more than 700 free smoke alarms in Milwaukee neighborhoods.
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“I think sometimes people don’t think about smoke alarms because they have never had a fire,” said Michael Ball, fire lieutenant and community relations director for the Milwaukee Fire Department. “It’s so critical [to have smoke alarms] and yet every day we find people who don’t have them.”
Volunteers line up to get smoke alarms from American Red Cross before heading out into city neighborhoods. (Photo Margaret Cannon)
Volunteers were divided into groups and were led by a fire cadet into residential neighborhoods on Milwaukee’s Near West Side, including Washington Heights, Washington Park and Cold Spring Park to test, install and replace smoke alarms, as well as to teach families about creating escape plans in the case of a fire.
Justin Kern, chief communications director for the Red Cross of Wisconsin, said he hopes the event prepares people and creates a ripple effect to get people talking about fire safety.
“Last night, in this neighborhood [Martin Drive] alone, there were three house fires,” said Kern. “We want to make sure that people have the right stuff in place so that they feel safe and protected.
Vanessa Pierce, 31, and her daughter Jessenia, 12,  from Waukesha, volunteered at the event. Pierce said she likes to give back to the community and be an example for her daughter.
“I wanted to show her how much effort you can put into helping others around you,” she added.
Congresswoman Gwen Moore flew home to Milwaukee from Washington, D.C., to speak at the event. She said the personal attention volunteers are giving to Milwaukee residents by knocking on doors is going to make a difference.
“You are going to save somebody’s life,” said Moore.
Lazavia Jackson, 17, and Angel Jackson, 16, are students at Alexander Hamilton High School and volunteered at the event. Their mother works for Manpower and they thought this would be a good way to get some service hours.
Angel said she was just accepted into her school’s National Honor Society, which requires volunteering for 50 hours. “I’m going to take any volunteer hours that I can get,” she said.
The two were paired with fire cadet Evan Jaksic, 19, and drove to 20th Street and W. Juneau Avenue to start knocking on doors.
“The end goal of all of this is just to keep people safe,” said Jaksic.
Thanks to the Home Fire Campaign, which started in 2014, more than 400 people have been saved from injury or death in home fires, according to the American Red Cross.

author: Margaret Cannon


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 6, 2018


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Youth advocates visit Sankofa | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Wisconsin African American Tobacco Prevention Network
May 7, 2018
Members of the Wisconsin African American Tobacco Prevention Network (WAATPN) FACT group, part of Wisconsin’s youth-led tobacco prevention movement, recently participated in the Sankofa Health and Wellness Fair.
The fair, held at North Division High School, was presented by American Cancer Society, and featured education presentations on health and nutrition as well as other activities. FACT youth were on hand to provide information on the illegal sale of single cigarettes, also known as “loosies,” and the targeting of communities of color with menthol products.
The teens informed other youth and adults about the dangers of using tobacco, especially menthol, which tends to be inhaled deeper because of its cooling effect and also draws young smokers who become addicted to the deadly product.
(Photo courtesy of Wisconsin African American Tobacco Prevention Network)
The youth also conducted an activity called a “human billboard,” in which they carried signs warning others about the dangers of tobacco use. To join the youth-led tobacco prevention movement or to learn more about or join FACT, visit Factmovement.org.
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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Name *
May 7, 2018

author: Name *


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Vel Phillips remembered and honored at memorial service | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Talis Shelbourne
May 8, 2018
The choir sings James Cleveland’s song, “God Is,” at Vel Phillips’ memorial service. (Photo by Talis Shelbourne)
When Velvalea Rogers Phillips laughed her hardest, her shoulders would shake as her mouth formed a soundless “O.”
This was just one of the memories Michael Phillips, Vel Phillips’ only surviving son, recalled at her memorial service at St. Mark African Methodist Episcopal Church, the oldest African-American church in Wisconsin.
Phillips passed away at the age of 95 on April 17. She lived a life of community, activism and laughter, according to speakers at the service.
“When she really got going, she would hit you on the shoulder as if to say, ‘pshaw,’” her son said. “She loved to laugh; we [even] laughed when a man with a bad combover and orange skin became president,” he added.
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He went on to describe her love of Lebron James, the Green Bay Packers and how she would “hold court” at the now-closed Chocolate Factory on Prospect and spent time with fellow Milwaukeeans.
Thanks to her impressive legacy of “firsts” in the state of Wisconsin, connecting with Phillips was a rare, appreciated opportunity, he said.
Phillips was the first African-American woman to graduate from University of Wisconsin Law school, the first African-American to serve on Milwaukee’s Common Council, the first female judge in Milwaukee, the first African-American judge in Wisconsin, and eventually the first female and/or African-American to be elected Secretary of State in Wisconsin.
Gerard Randall, chairman of the Social Development Commission, laughs as he recalls Vel Phillips. (Photo by Talis Shelbourne)
Phillips became renowned for her determination when she joined the Rev. James Groppi and the NAACP Youth Council in leading marches for open housing beginning in 1967. Eventually, the Common Council passed her open housing ordinance, opening up Milwaukee neighborhoods to desegregation.
Yet even with all of her firsts and political achievements, her son Michael said he mainly knew her as “mom.”
Several city officials familiar with Phillips’ trailblazing efforts attended the service, including Ald. Milele Coggs, State Sen. Lena Taylor and Mayor Tom Barrett. Gov. Scott Walker ordered flags to be flown at half-staff in honor of her passing and many others, including County Executive Chris Abele, U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, the Milwaukee Police Department and Milwaukee Public Schools sent commemorations.
Robert Trondson, the film producer who worked on her biographical documentary, described her as a notorious night owl who was excited about sharing her story.
Gerard Randall, chairman of the Social Development Commission, said Phillips was an icon in the state who used her persistence and resilience to create change. “She paved the way for people of color and women to say, ‘I can do this work just as well as anyone else and share a vision just as well as anyone else,’” he said.
Chief Judge Maxine White, who met Phillips in 1978, characterized her as a good listener and a “champion of civility.”
“As one of her students, I am the beneficiary of her transcendent legacy,” White said. “She wanted to bring justice and peace to a troubled world for as long as she could.”
Phillips’ friend, attorney Larraine McNamara-McGraw, also spoke, recalling how she encouraged voting and other acts of public participation in politics. “I know that if Vel were up and about, she would have been front and center in the Black Lives Matter movement,” McNamara-McGraw said.
The three-hour memorial service opened with a prayer of comfort by Pastor Joy L. Gallmon and ended with a eulogy by Congresswoman Gwen Moore.
Moore was 16 when she first met Phillips, who was judging an oratorical contest held at North Division High School; when Moore won, she was surprised.
“I was a hot mess — didn’t have my hair or my nails done,” Moore joked. “But that’s how Vel was; she judged me on my content and not how I looked.”
Phillips became Moore’s mentor, helping her during her 1992 Senate campaign and encouraging her to be strong in the face of political blowback.
For instance, Moore pointed out that when Phillips and her husband joined the NAACP during the early 1950s, it was considered a “renegade” organization.
“She stood up for people who need social justice and it cost her; but she always got up,” Moore said. “The lesson is that you have to sacrifice to get somewhere, you have to expand your [platform] and reach out and help someone else.”

author: Talis Shelbourne


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 7, 2018


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Comprehensive strategy needed to reduce lead poisoning | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Dr. Yanna Lambrinidou & Paul A. Biedrzycki
May 9, 2018
(Photo courtesy of Milwaukee PBS)
Yanna Lambrinidou is affiliate faculty in the Department of Science, Technology, and Society at Virginia Tech and founding member of the Campaign for Lead Free Water. Paul A. Biedrzycki formerly served as director of Disease Control and Environmental Health at the City of Milwaukee Health Department.
The City of Milwaukee’s latest allegation that the paint industry is strategically using lead contamination in drinking water to shift blame away from lead-based paint in order to avoid future litigation settlements is an ironic tactic. The exact same argument could, of course, be made about local elected officials. Namely, that they, themselves, are leveling an accusation against the paint industry to deflect attention away from the very real risk to Milwaukee’s children and liability to the City posed by lead exposure from drinking water provided via lead-bearing plumbing. This includes Milwaukee’s over 70,000 underground lead service lines.
The stark truth is that there is no safe level of lead exposure regardless of environmental source. Framing the argument as “paint vs. water” reduces a complex problem to distracting finger-pointing, obfuscates what is known and not known about different exposure pathways, and leaves residents sub-optimally equipped to protect themselves, their families, and their communities from preventable exposures. It also muddies our society’s ability to develop science-based regulations that reduce each exposure threat effectively and provide equitable public health protection from all sources.
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A growing body of evidence suggests that both paint and water are implicated in childhood lead poisoning. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), ≥30 percent of blood lead level cases ≥10 micrograms per deciliter do not result from lead in paint. Yet our existing public health surveillance systems are designed to miss lead exposures from drinking water.
Current blood lead screening procedures entirely overlook the two populations whose lead intake is most likely to come primarily, if not exclusively, from the tap: fetuses and infants dependent on reconstituted formula. Moreover, environmental risk assessments at the homes of children with blood lead levels above CDC’s current action level of 5 micrograms per deciliter rarely, if ever, include water sampling, and when they do they tend to involve sampling methods that are sorely inadequate for capturing worst-case lead levels the children might routinely consume.
This means that currently neither Milwaukee nor any other city in the country possesses the data necessary to establish whether it is lead in paint or lead in water that is the primary, secondary, or sole contributor to a fetus’, infant’s, or child’s lead exposure (let alone make blanket statements about the hierarchy of exposure sources of all children at all times).
Failing to address the real public health risk posed by both lead-based paint and lead-bearing plumbing in a methodical, transparent, and collaborative manner is not only irresponsible but also negligent on behalf of policymakers and government leadership alike.
In Milwaukee, literally millions of dollars have been spent on programs addressing lead-based paint within residential premises, primarily using federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) grant funding. However, childhood lead poisoning levels remain unacceptably high — approximately 11% of children under 6 are reported to have blood lead levels above 5 micrograms per deciliter.
Lead in drinking water, on the other hand, is barely addressed and consistently misrepresented. Lead-bearing plumbing includes not only lead service lines but also lead solder and leaded brass. These materials tend to leach lead erratically, often resulting in the release of small highly concentrated particles which can contain lead levels in the hundreds and thousands parts per billion. Ingestion of these particles can, in turn, result in acute blood lead level spikes and cause significant health harm that is almost impossible to detect unless one’s exposure occurred days or weeks, rather than months or years, prior to one’s blood test. Furthermore, there is widespread recognition that when it comes to lead in drinking water, the current Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) regulatory framework is not protective of public health.
Addressing lead at the tap in a manner that takes into account the science of lead corrosion has nothing to do with absolving lead-based paint. It has everything to do with recognizing a well-established non-paint-related reservoir of lead in our environment.
Public health science is based on a foundation of comprehensive and early prevention. Treating lead in paint and lead in drinking water as somehow mutually exclusive or in competition reflects non-scientific thinking and translates into a public health catastrophe that is linked to high healthcare costs, diminished educational achievement, decreased work productivity, and poor quality of life. This is hardly a desirable marketing tool (or epitaph) for any resident, much less residents who reside in a city that considers itself a “Freshwater Capital” of the world.
While it may be politically tempting for the Mayor of Milwaukee to attack the paint industry as responsible for childhood lead poisoning in the City, he should not ignore the culpability inherited by ignoring lead-bearing plumbing in the heat of the battle. A comprehensive approach that authentically engages the community, shares strategy and costs readily, and encourages public participation and leadership in decision-making is often a better, if not a winning, strategy.
In the meantime, water utilities and public health agencies must do more to deliver honest public messaging about the prevalence and risks of lead bearing plumbing, and demand proactive, science-based, and socially just action by elected officials.


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 8, 2018


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Jane’s Walk MKE kicks off with discussion on need for neighborhood connections | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Lydia Slattery / Wisconsin Watch
May 9, 2018
The Jane’s Walk kickoff event took place at the Turner Hall Ballroom. (Photo courtesy of Dominic Inouye, Jane’s Walk MKE)
Connecting with neighbors can be as simple as getting a cup of coffee at a local café and striking up a conversation with the barista. Activism can begin with starting a community garden and encouraging neighbors to participate.
Ruth Weill, a community organizer in the Riverwest and Harambee neighborhoods, sees community action as engaging with people throughout the day. She said that activism doesn’t necessarily mean holding a rally; it can mean having conversations and trying to understand what residents want to see in their neighborhood.
“People have a lot of assets they bring to the table and that’s what you learn when you’re talking in those unplanned conversations,” said Weill.
Weill and six other local activists were part of a panel discussion organized by Jane’s Walk MKE, which provides free, resident-led walking tours throughout Milwaukee. A kickoff event called “Seeding Grassroots” was held recently at the Turner Hall Ballroom, 1040 N. 4th St. Sponsors included ZIP MKE, Milwaukee Turners, Near West Side Partners, Menomonee Valley Partners and Milwaukee County Parks, along with a half dozen other organizations.
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Caitlin Taylor (center) and Tony Giron (right) chat with another attendee at the Jane’s Walk MKE event, “Seeding Grassroots.” (Photo courtesy of Dominic Inouye, Jane’s Walk MKE)
The panelists discussed their own activism and philosophies in relation to the work of urban writer and activist Jane Jacobs, author of the 1961 book “The Death and Life of Great American Cities.” Jacobs fought for community-based city planning to protect neighborhoods and the people who occupy them. Jane’s Walk is an international organization in 42 countries and more than 200 cities. The panel was moderated by Michael Carriere, an associate professor at the Milwaukee School of Engineering,
“Normal people who lived in those areas were the experts, in her opinion,” said panelist Antoine Carter, formerly a program manager for Groundwork Milwaukee, an environmental nonprofit. “Oftentimes we leave that to urban planners who sometimes have never been in the neighborhoods they’re helping plan.” Jacobs wanted to get neighborhood residents involved in the planning process, he said.
Tatiana Maida, a panelist and Healthy Choices department manager at Sixteenth Street Community Health Centers, stressed that immigrant communities face unique challenges since they do not have the same feeling of belonging in their own neighborhoods as native-born Americans do.
When Carriere asked about “the return of urban agriculture,” Venice Williams, executive director of Alice’s Garden, responded, “We need to stop saying, ‘return to urban agriculture’ because for some neighborhoods it never left; just because you didn’t see it, doesn’t mean it wasn’t going on.”
Williams said her family always grew food within the city and fed one another. Community gardens and urban agriculture were a way to take care of families in the neighborhood.
Carter added that urban agriculture creates a stronger sense of community, as strangers hang out together and have conversations. “I’ve used urban ag as an organizing tool,” Carter said. “A lot of the benefits I saw were beyond a healthy carrot.”
Jane’s Walk MKE is now in its third year, offering nearly 30 walks throughout the city, and some in the suburbs. The walks will take place throughout May and are free and open to the public. Tour guides will lead groups through neighborhoods such as Lindsay Heights, Sherman Park, Bay View and Riverwest.
“We have walks from West Lawn Gardens to the north, Lincoln Avenue to the south, from the lake and to Washington Park,” said Dominic Inouye, co-program chair of Jane’s Walk MKE and founder and director of ZIP MKE, a grassroots organization that photographs and engages with Milwaukee communities.
“We love to celebrate community-making and community-building,” added Julilly Kohler, co-program chair of Jane’s Walk and vice president of Milwaukee Turners.
Kohler explained that Jacobs was a hero because she wanted to preserve three New York neighborhoods from Robert Moses’ plan to build a freeway through those neighborhoods. Moses served as New York City parks commissioner during the 1960s. Jane fought for 10 years and that freeway was never built, Kohler said.
The kickoff event began with a Jamaican stew meal. Local poet Kavon Kortez-Jones performed his spoken word poem, “Lake Michigan” and musicians Ellie Jackson and Caley Conway performed a Milwaukee version of Woodie Guthrie’s “This Land is Your Land.”
Any resident who wants to lead a Jane’s Walk is welcome to do so, Kohler said.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct Antoine Carter’s role at Groundwork Milwaukee.

author: Lydia Slattery / Wisconsin Watch


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Legislation to rename street to honor Vel Phillips | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Ald. Milele A. Coggs
May 9, 2018
History was made today. Through a unanimous vote of the Common Council, the legacy of Vel R. Phillips, Milwaukee’s first African-American and first female Alderperson will live on through the renaming of North Fourth Street in her honor.
The legislation (Common Council file #180127) will rename North Fourth Street, from West Saint Paul Avenue to West Capitol Drive, as North Vel R. Phillips Avenue. The street’s renaming will serve as a memorial to Vel R. Phillips’ advocacy for social justice, fair housing and civil rights, her groundbreaking career, and her lasting legacy in the Milwaukee community. North Fourth Street was significant in Phillips’ life as she attended Garfield Elementary School and St. Marks Church on this street, and went on to represent this area as the 6th District Alderwoman. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive also runs parallel to North Fourth Street, reflecting the collaboration and friendship between the two civil rights leaders of their time.
Alderwoman Milele A. Coggs introduced the legislation, which was unanimously recommended for passage by the Public Works Committee on April 25. “The legacy of Vel Phillips, her incredible courage and commitment, has shaped our community’s history, and it is past due time to make this small tribute to such a large figure in Wisconsin and this nation’s history,” said Alderwoman Coggs. “Running parallel to MLK Drive, North Vel R. Phillips Avenue will serve as a reminder of her contributions to the betterment of the community and the voice she used to advocate for others.”
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“The unanimous vote of my colleagues is a demonstration of the tremendous impact that Ms. Phillips had on each of us, and I am grateful for their support. Thank you to each of the community groups, residents, and businesses who have shown their support for this street renaming. Although we are saddened and suffered a great loss with her passing, this also creates an opportunity to honor her legacy, while providing a reminder of the work we must continue to do.”

author: Ald. Milele A. Coggs


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LISC/ESPN pilot home court program grants $25,000 to renovate a basketball court in Milwaukee at Running Rebels recreational facility | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
LISC Milwaukee
May 9, 2018
The Running Rebels Community Organization has been awarded a $25,000 LISC/ESPN Pilot Home Court grant to renovate the basketball court at its recreation facility in central Milwaukee.
The grant from ESPN and Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), the nation’s leading community development support organization, is part of $150,000 allocated this year.
The LISC/ESPN Pilot Home Court Program is a collaboration between ESPN and LISC that provides non-profit, neighborhood-based organizations, middle schools and high schools with financing and technical assistance to improve the quality, safety, and accessibility of local basketball courts in selected markets.  The Home Court program is part of a larger ESPN social responsibility initiative, RePlay that works to revitalize vacant spaces into places for sports, recreation and play.
The Running Rebels Community Organization will renovate the gymnasium of their recreation facility, bringing it up to standards that will allow for tournament play. Improvements will include installation of a new playing court, basketball goals, bleachers, and a new scoreboard. The new court will be used by seven Running Rebels basketball teams as well as the larger community.
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“LISC is excited to bring ESPN resources to Milwaukee and to partner with Running Rebels, an organization changing the lives of young people every day”, said Donsia Strong-Hill, executive director of Milwaukee LISC.
LISC identifies local, nonprofit, community-based agencies that have an interest in building or refurbishing basketball courts in schools and neighborhood parks. Through the program, local agencies are provided with the necessary financing and technical assistance to improve the quality and safety of courts in their communities. The agencies oversee the construction, maintenance and programming of the courts.
“Basketball courts can serve as tremendous neighborhood assets,” said Kevin Martinez, vice president of ESPN Corporate Citizenship. “They provide more young people the ability to access to sports, which ultimately contributes to better health and quality of life for those in the community.”

author: LISC Milwaukee


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Mitchell Street Sun Fair cancelled due to new state legislation | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Edgar Mendez
May 10, 2018
Photo from last year’s Sun Fair. (Photo by Hailey Richards)
The first weekend of June will be much quieter on Historic Mitchell Street this year. The annual Sun Fair, which typically runs from South 7th Street to South 11th Street, has been cancelled, according to Nancy Bush, executive director of  Historic Mitchell Street Business Improvement District 4 (BID 4).
“We just weren’t able to pull everything together to hold it this year,” said Bush, adding that the fair would be back in 2019.
Bush said organizers decided last week to cancel it because of funding issues exacerbated by increased safety costs. The well-attended Sun Fair, which is sponsored by BID 4, was relaunched in 2010, an offshoot of a Mitchell Street Fair that drew large crowds in the 1980s and 90s.
The main challenge in funding is due to a recent change in state law specific to Milwaukee, which altered the funding mechanism for business improvement districts (BIDs).  Budget Motion 418 was part of a package of amendments introduced by Rep. John Nygren and Sen. Alberta Darling, both Republicans. The legislation changed the way mixed-use properties within the BIDs are assessed.
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BIDs collect assessment fees from local business to be used to improve safety and cleanliness, and to hold events that help promote and draw businesses to the area, among other tasks.
The BIDs can now assess only the percentage of the mixed-use property that is not tax-exempt or residential. That meant the Mitchell Street BID could only assess the street-level retail portions of buildings rather than the entire property, explained Bush. Because there are several mixed-development properties on Mitchell Street, that change cut $10,000 from the BID’s operating budget, she said.
The loss of funds this year led the BID to seek an outside vendor to run the festival, which Bush said has always made a profit. However, organizers decided that it is in everyone’s best interest  to cancel this year’s fair, she said.
Part of the reason was the expected increase in the cost of security for the festival.
“This year we weren’t able — nor was the potential operator — to set up the amount of security that we wanted, which would have been an increase over the last few years,” said Bush, who did not name the outside vendor.
The Sun Fair had run annually since 2010 before it was cancelled this year. (Photo by Adam Carr)
Multiple fights, several of which were caught on camera and shared widely on social media and television news, marred the 2017 festival. According to police, five adults and one juvenile were arrested as a result of the incidents. Some community members believe those incidents led to the cancellation of this year’s fair.
“I went last year and do believe they’re cancelling it because of the number of fights that occurred,” said South Side resident Kayla Sanchez.
She said she attended several fairs with her children, ages 2 and 4, prior to last year, with no problems. She said the fair was a way to make memories with them.
“I wanted them to experience it every year (but) they won’t be able to enjoy it this year. I’m sure a lot of families will be missing out, including mine,” Sanchez said.
Juanita Torres, who has lived near Mitchell Street for 36 years, said attending the fair has been a tradition for her siblings and children. She said they like to go early when it’s less crowded. Torres hopes the fair comes back next year so they can keep the family tradition alive. She said while some people were worried about the fights, they aren’t representative of her experiences at the fair and won’t deter her from going back.
“There’s always a chance that there is going to be a fight or disagreement anywhere you go but we can’t stay in a bubble,” Torres said.
Bush insists that the fights, while troubling, have not happened often at the fair and are not the reason it is being cancelled.
“The fair has always been family friendly, and safety will continue to be of paramount importance. The people who caused problems last year didn’t come here for the rides or to buy food; they came to cause trouble,” Bush said.
Santa Fret, owner of La Borincana, 1820 S. 13th St., said her restaurant sold pinchos, a Puerto Rican staple, and other food at the fair for the past four years. Fret said the restaurant would post fliers announcing the fair on the front windows and customers asked about it often.  She said she was very disappointed when she heard it was cancelled.
“It’s really a shame, especially for the kids. It was something great for them to do in the community. They keep taking things from Milwaukee,” said Fret in Spanish, adding that her business didn’t profit from the fair but she appreciated it.
At least one business owner in the area is not disappointed to see the festival take a break. Alicia Leguna and her husband Antonio, who opened Dulceria Alicia, a candy store located at 812 W. Mitchell St. nine years ago, said they close early during the festival and that long lines that form for the rides block customers from entering.
“The fair hurts our business,” said Alicia Leguna in Spanish.
Those who do come in during the fair, she said, do so to use their phones or ask to use the bathroom. Some get upset at the owners because they keep a watchful eye for shoplifters, she said.
“There’s a lot of out-of-control kids in the store and banging on the windows in front during the festival,” according to Leguna.
Despite the challenges, the fair has been a great success, said Bush, who added that occupancy on Historic Mitchell Street is up and a new art studio would be opening there soon.
“Business is better than ever. The Sun Fair has been a great event for businesses and for residents of the neighborhood,” Bush said. We’re skipping it this year but looking forward to the future of the fair.”

author: Edgar Mendez


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 9, 2018


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After 200 Nights of Freedom, March On Milwaukee 50th plans finale to recognize Open Housing Marchers and reignite the next generation of activists | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
March On Milwaukee 50th
May 11, 2018
The Midwest’s role in civil rights history is often overlooked. Milwaukee itself has neglected its civil rights past. As the 1967-68 Open Housing Marches passed into history, this period in Milwaukee came to be remembered more often as “the year of the riots” rather than an inspiring and nationally-significant demonstration of nonviolent direct action. As the 50 anniversary of the Open Housing Marches draws to a close, the Milwaukee community is invited to make a vow — to teach this vital history to a new generation and ensure that it becomes part of the story we tell ourselves about Milwaukee for the next 50 years, and beyond.
To formally recognize the contributions of the marchers in 1967-68 and reignite a spirit of activism in Milwaukee, March On Milwaukee 50 is inviting the community to gather for the finale of 200 Nights of Freedom on Saturday, May 19. Events will be centered at North Division High School, which stands next to the former site of St. Boniface Catholic Church, where each march in 1967 and 1968 began and ended.
Public events will kickoff with a “Thank You” Bus Tour (11:30am-1pm), where current youth activists join former NAACP Youth Council members and Commandos as they trace the history of the Open Housing Marches through the city. This is a unique opportunity for different generations to learn from and inspire each other. Throughout the tour, the buses will stop at key historical locations where the public is invited to come and say “Thank You” to the original marchers — full schedule and more details can be found here.
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After the tour, a community celebration entitled Marching On: 50 Years in the Making (1-3pm) will take place at North Division High School. In the spirit of Recognition, we will honor the remarkable accomplishments of Milwaukee’s unsung Civil Rights heroes, the NAACP Youth Council and Commandos, who along with Father James Groppi embraced the efforts of the Honorable Vel Phillips in the fight for fair housing and freedom for all people. In the spirit of Re-ignition, we will also spotlight youth activists who continue the struggle for justice today. More information and RSVP can be found here.
Congresswoman Gwen Moore will deliver the keynote address, sharing personal memories of the Open Housing Marches and reflections on her mentor, Vel Phillips, while at their shared alma mater, North Division High School.
Confirmed speakers and presenters include members of the NAACP Youth Council and Commandos, Mayor Tom Barrett, Common Council President Ashanti Hamilton, Wisconsin Black Historical Society’s Clayborn Benson, America’s Black Holocaust Museum’s Reggie Jackson, Urban Underground’s Sharlen Moore and more. Hip hop artist Klassik and poet/activist Ajamou Butler of Heal the Hood will also be giving tribute performances. Additionally, contributing writers to the poetry anthology chapbook Where I Want to Live will be reading poems about the city in which they wish to live.
All are welcome at this free event, whether you were on the frontlines 50 years ago or this is your first time hearing of this history. Additionally, Making About: Recognition and Re-ignition, an event where community members can make signs and write thank you notes for the marchers, is being held on May 16 at Escuela Verde — more info here.
March On Milwaukee 50th:
March on Milwaukee 50 is an intergenerational group of organizers, artists, professionals, academics and original marchers. Over 200 community individuals, organizations and institutions have participated in the planning process.
200 Nights of Freedom
Drawing inspiration from the timeline of the Open Housing Marches, 200 Nights of Freedom is an initiative that has featured over 200 nights of public events and programming reflecting upon, documenting, and reviving the spirit of the marches.
Accomplishments include:
For more information, visit our website at 200nightsoffreedom.org, find us on Facebook, or email March on Milwaukee 50th at info@200nightsoffreedom.org.

author: March On Milwaukee 50th


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 11, 2018


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High school students follow in footsteps of open housing marchers | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Rachel Kubik
May 11, 2018
Students and staff from three high schools gathered at the Alumni Memorial Union on Marquette’s campus and walked across the 16th Street viaduct. (Photo by Rachel Kubik)
Laura Hancock, campus minister at Messmer High School, said she and Lisa Metz, a theology teacher at Divine Savior Holy Angels High School, discussed the racial climate in the U.S. with another friend more than two years ago. Hancock said it was really disheartening.
“We kind of just started dreaming, wouldn’t it be awesome if our three schools could go on a civil rights pilgrimage together? And it really just started there as a dream, as an idea, and over time it has become a reality,” Hancock said.
Metz said the high school students come from very different backgrounds: racially, culturally and socio-economically. “There is this desire from young people to know more about the civil rights movement and contemporary issues of racial justice. We wanted to give them an opportunity to experience it and to do something active and big.”
Students from Messmer High School, Marquette University High School and Divine Savior Holy Angels High School walked across the 16th Street bridge, also known as the 16th Street viaduct, to follow in the footsteps of the Milwaukee open housing marchers in 1967. The viaduct connects Milwaukee’s North Side and South Side neighborhoods.
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The march was the first event of many that this group of students will embark on. Starting May 30, students will travel to Memphis, Selma, Montgomery, Birmingham and St. Louis to see sites important to the civil rights movement, such as the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis and the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Alabama.
Jaylin Taylor (left) and Maya Garrett (right), two seniors from Messmer High School, march over the 16th street bridge. (Photo by Rachel Kubik)
Metz said the historical sites also are relevant to the present day. For example, St. Louis — near where Michael Brown was killed in 2014 — is important to the Black Lives Matter movement. “We’re really trying to be full circle with the past but really actively present,” Metz said.
Reggie Jackson, speaker and head griot at the America’s Black Holocaust Museum, spoke to the students before the march about the history of the protests and his interactions with marchers.
He advised students to make personal relationships with people of different backgrounds so they don’t judge people based on stereotypes.
Jackson said he made a promise to himself to do the same, years ago. He didn’t want to have erroneous perceptions about people based on the group they belong to. “It’s allowed me to see people as simply human beings and not to have those stereotypical unconscious biases clouding my judgment of people.”
Jackson advised the students going on the trip to pay attention to images of young people such as themselves in the museums. “You can look at those young people and say, ‘Listen, if they were able to do that, if they had the courage to do those things, why can’t I do the exact same things?’”
Derek Keller, a student at Marquette University High School, said he thinks most people dismiss racism because they think it’s all in the past. However, he noted that racism is still present in Milwaukee, and he was motivated to go on the pilgrimage to learn about how to see others’ differences and interact with people more meaningfully.
“It’s really an honor to be able to do this, experience all these new places and bring that back to Milwaukee,” said Keller.
He said the most surprising aspect of Jackson’s speech was learning that most of the marchers were teenagers, because he initially thought they were older.
He said it was a big deal to him because that’s his own age. “If they can be a part of this, then maybe even I can make a difference,” Keller said.
Mamaa Yorke, a student at Divine Savior Holy Angels High School, said her family wasn’t from the United States and family members didn’t get a firsthand account of what happened in the 1960s. She went on the march to see for herself.
Yorke said she stands up for what she believes in. “I feel like I am very strong in my opinions and I won’t let other people change my opinions just because.” She said she thinks the student march across the bridge will have a small ripple effect in a big ocean.
Hancock said she hopes that each “pilgrim” will be transformed, affected deeply and gain an experience that they did not anticipate. “This is a pilgrimage; it’s not just a trip, so we’re going to be very intentional about being prayerful every day and engaging at that deep level of the spirit and of the soul.”
Hancock said she hopes the students’ lives will take a new direction when they return. She said, “I really hope that we’re going to have 40 young leaders who are well grounded in history as well as their faith, and ready to pay attention and see what’s going on in our city and then be part of the solutions.”

author: Rachel Kubik


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 10, 2018


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Walnut Way executive director promotes economic development, community | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Jackson Dufault, Conor Stanley, Khaleeq Sattaar El
May 14, 2018
Editor’s note: This is one of an occasional series of articles about the people and places of 53206.
Nine months into his tenure as executive director of Walnut Way Conservation Corp., Antonio Butts envisions the Lindsay Heights neighborhood, located in the 53206 ZIP code, as a prime destination for African-American professionals.
He acknowledges the challenge of achieving this goal in a community that’s known for high rates of poverty and incarceration, but pointed out that Lindsay Heights has come a long way since founders Sharon and Larry Adams incorporated Walnut Way in 2000. Walnut Way has worked to move past the economic struggles that have plagued the neighborhood.
“The neighborhood is primed for revitalization, not redevelopment. We don’t need to displace people and rebuild. We will work with the people that are there to get to the goal of having an economically diverse community.”
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According to Butts, revitalizing Lindsay Heights starts with civic engagement, which is a lesson he learned as a child growing up in the neighborhood.
“Civic responsibility was a very important value…in my household,” he said. He added that it remained important when he began working at various community-based organizations.
In 2000, Butts joined the Lavarnway Boys & Girls Club as a counselor and later a program director. In 2004, he began working at the Bureau of Milwaukee Child Welfare, where he started various small businesses, including a landscaping company, to create jobs for teens. Later, he created a program called the Mobile Market for Share of Southeastern Wisconsin to bring nutritious groceries to food deserts in Milwaukee.
“[Mobile Market] was started from scratch. One of the things that you see throughout my career is that I’ve been a part of either starting initiatives or driving new initiatives and lifting programs off the ground and carrying them forward,” said Butts.
At Walnut Way, Butts is shepherding Phase II of The Innovations and Wellness Commons, located on the corner of North 16th and West North Avenue, focusing on new construction adjacent to the building. Phase I of the project included The Juice Kitchen and a commercial kitchen for the Milwaukee Center for Independence.
The first floor on the Wellness Commons will be rented to a Milwaukee Jobs Work satellite office, a locally owned cafe and bakery, and the headquarters of the African American Chamber of Commerce, according to Tyler Weber, program manager of catalytic development for Walnut Way. The second floor will contain both Walnut Way’s Center of Wellness, which will focus on events such as yoga, meditation and healing circles, and the Center For the Arts and Community, which will host acting classes, poetry readings and art galleries. Phase II concludes with the construction of the Sharon and Larry Adams rooftop terrace.
Weber added that Walnut Way holds women’s healing circles and men’s wellness peer groups, as well as offering wellness practitioners of color an opportunity to expand their businesses.
Butts plans to use the principles of environmental stewardship and catalytic development to advance the neighborhood. “In each of those areas we have a portfolio of projects, programs and initiatives,” he said.
Projects such as the community garden, yoga wellness classes and the Boys 2 Leaders project revolve around strengthening the community, Butts said. Creating stronger father figures, improving personal health and shaping youth into leaders drive the Lindsay Heights community forward, he added.
“[Local families] are our guides in the issues and projects that we go deeper into and explore so that individuals and families can feel as though they’re part of community,” Butts said.
These programs and the Innovations & Wellness Commons bring community members together to engage with one another.
“It’s about connecting with people, it’s about understanding who they are and being willing and open enough to share who you are,” he said.
“I really do believe it is the work of the heart.”


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 13, 2018


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Free summer lunches, breakfasts and snacks offered | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Milwaukee Center for Independence
May 15, 2018
Stressing the importance of offering nutritious meals to children during the summer months, the Milwaukee Center for Independence announces the sponsorship of the Summer Food Service Program.
The program, funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and administered by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, provides nutritious meals to children during the summer, when free and reduced-priced meals are typically unavailable. Free meals will be made available to children 18 years of age and under. Persons over 18 years of age who are determined by a state or local public educational agency to be mentally or physically disabled and who also participate in a public or private non-profit school program during the regular school year may receive free meals as well.
A list of locations that will be serving free meals this summer can be found here. Meals are provided to eligible children regardless of race, color, national origin, age, gender or disability and there will be no discrimination in the course of meal service.
This program fills a void created when school lunches are not available. Helping parents meet the nutritional needs of their children is the strength of this program.
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Summer meal sites served by MCFI are listed on attached sheets.

author: Milwaukee Center for Independence


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New Layton Clinic offers bilingual mental, behavioral, addiction treatment | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Andrea Waxman
May 15, 2018
Dr. Julie Schuller (center left), Sixteenth Street CEO, and Cristy Garcia-Thomas, Aurora Health Care chief external affairs officer, mark the ceremonial opening of the Layton Clinic, as Mayor Tom Barrett (left); and state Rep. Josh Zepnick (right) look on. (Photo by Andrea Waxman)
A young bilingual, Spanish- and English-speaking couple came with their little girl to the new Layton Clinic for the first time recently, said Kerri Ackerman, Sixteenth Community Health Centers vice president of patient services.
“When they were walking out, they said, ‘It was so nice that somebody spoke our language,’” Ackerman reported. Then they stopped, sat on the bench and asked if they could take some photos there. ‘This feels like our back yard. This feels like we’re at home,’ they said.
“That’s the best compliment we can get,” said Ackerman, clearly pleased.
In addition to offering bilingual services, Sixteenth Street Community Health Centers’ Layton Clinic is focusing on mental and behavioral health services, including alcohol and drug abuse treatment, in an underserved area on the South Side. The new clinic also provides primary care to patients who come for mental health services, and to community members.
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Located at 4570 S. 27th St., the clinic officially opened its doors on April 2. With two medical providers and two psychologists on staff, the clinic is seeing patients while it continues to hire.
“We have already established one of the largest mental health clinics in the city and our mental health teams at (our Chavez and Parkway) sites have noted a severe shortage of (mental health and substance abuse) programs that are able to accept patients with Medicaid and certainly uninsured patients,” said Julie Schuller, Sixteenth Street CEO.
Schuller added that mental health colleagues at Aurora, Rogers Memorial Hospital and the Medical College of Wisconsin have confirmed that this gap exists.
Also, “we target our services, at least in part, toward the Latino population,” and that population is moving into the area around the new clinic, Schuller said.
Addressing the mental health and substance abuse crisis, Schuller said that half of adults and children in Milwaukee with a mental health issue do not receive the services that they need. In 2016, 350 people in Milwaukee County died from a drug overdose, a 70 percent increase from 2015, she added.
“This clinic is about filling those critical gaps. … Giving people a place in their own community, in their own language, where they can address their physical, mental and social needs is how we combat this epidemic,” Schuller said.
Maria Perez, Sixteenth Street’s vice president of behavioral health, speaks to a TV reporter at the Layton Clinic grand opening celebration. (Photo by Andrea Waxman)
Layton Clinic is offering medical care, traditional behavioral health care, alcohol and other drug abuse services, and child and adolescent day treatment, “ in English and Spanish, Schuller said.
Modeled after Sixteenth Street’s Waukesha clinic, the Layton Clinic will provide medication, including Suboxone and Vivitrol, for opioid addiction. “This expanded access … will mean that more people will have a chance for recovery,” Schuller said.
The day treatment program is designed for children and adolescents, ages 6 to 18, who have acute problems that cannot be managed in the outpatient setting, said Maria Perez, Sixteenth Street’s vice president for behavioral health.
The patients spend five half-days a week in group, individual and family therapy and also receive medication management. This intensive behavioral health treatment helps the young people regulate their emotions so that they can better cope with school stress, peer pressure, family problems and propensity for addictions, she said.
Day treatment aims to keep them from getting worse and from going into an inpatient setting.
William Reyes, the psychologist leading the day treatment program, said all patients are welcome, regardless of  “socio-economic status, cultural background or minority status such as religion or sexual orientation.” He is in the process of putting together the first group and expects to start seeing patients in the next two weeks.
“We’re really excited about (offering medical and behavioral care) because we do believe in an integrated model,” Perez said. “We’re set to do both. The mind and body are one really.”
Sixteenth Street expects more than 13,000 visits to the Layton Clinic in its first year and more than 20,000 in its second. “This increase in access will be palpable to our community,” Schuller said.
Sixteenth Street Community Health Centers is a Federally Qualified Health Center, which means that it receives federal funding to provide health care services to vulnerable populations. As such, it is reimbursed for Medicaid and Medicare patients at a higher rate than hospitals and other health care facilities, explained Allison True, Sixteenth Street’s director of communications.
“It helps us offset the cost of uninsured patients and it’s one of our largest and only sources of revenue … and is a necessary financial contribution for us to be open and operating,” True said.
Sixteenth Streets’ four full-service clinics — three in Milwaukee County and one in Waukesha County — its school based-clinics at St. Augustine Prep and St. Anthony schools; its satellite geriatric clinic at the United Community Center; and WIC (Women, Infant and Children) clinic, all on Milwaukee’s South Side, see approximately 38,000 patients annually, according to True.
Of those, about 56 percent are on Medicaid, 14 percent have private or commercial insurance and 4 percent have Medicare, True said.
Sixteenth Street recently announced plans to build another new clinic at 4603 W. Mitchell Blvd., pending Village of West Milwaukee Plan Commission approval.
Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin health network announced a $12 million commitment in August 2015 to build the clinic, in partnership with Sixteenth Street Community Health Centers, according to True. The search for a clinic site began then.
The area was identified “as significantly lacking access to health care services,” according to Cathy Jacobson, president and chief executive officer of Froedtert Health. It will also have a residency education program with the Medical College of Wisconsin, according to True.
The West Milwaukee clinic is projected to serve 12,000 patients a year who are currently without needed care, expanding Sixteenth Street Health Centers’ overall capacity to nearly 50,000 people, according to True.
If approved, construction on the 24,000–square-foot clinic will begin by fall 2018, with completion expected in summer 2019.

author: Andrea Waxman


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 14, 2018


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28240181988_c4a60fe627_k | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 14, 2018


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United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County accepting applications for Partnership MKE | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County
May 15, 2018
United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County is now accepting applications for the 2018-2019 cohort for Partnership MKE.
Partnership MKE is a new United Way initiative which helps create a blueprint on how to address and solve biases within our local community. Its goal is to break down barriers and destroy bias by pairing community leaders across lines of race, age, religion, sexual orientation, and culture.
Built on the legacy of The Milwaukee Mosaic Project (2000 – 2010), Partnership MKE will continue to pair community and business leaders across our numerous social divides and guide them through a one-year process of relationship, understanding, and trust building.
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“Helping people from different backgrounds get to know one another has the potential to build social capital, and will have larger social and economic benefits for the Milwaukee community at large,” said Joel Peterson, manager of diversity development and community engagement, United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County.
The new Partnership MKE is designed with two levels of interaction, creating a holistic approach to driving personal and social change:
• Identify, encourage and train more than 600 Mosaic Project alumni to re-establish their social capital within racial and ethnic diversity in Greater Milwaukee and Waukesha County
• Create a new cohort of partners to participate in a curriculum-based experience (from YWCA of SE Wisconsin and Anti-Defamation League of Chicago) that integrates social networks and focuses on community outcomes.
Milwaukee Mosaic Project alumni such as Charles Brown, deputy director and director of youth programs at Journey House; Danae Davis, executive director of Milwaukee Succeeds; Mark Sabljak, corporate & community engagement director at Milwaukee Film; and Shary Tran, director of diversity and inclusion at Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin all have signed on to promote and help support the work of the new initiative.
To learn more about Partnership MKE and apply to be part of the 2018-2019 cohort visit, https://www.unitedwaygmwc.org/PartnershipMKE.


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Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service wins gold for South Side taverns series | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Dwayne Burtin
May 16, 2018
Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service reporter Edgar Mendez took home the gold for his two-part special report titled “Last Call: Milwaukee’s South Side taverns,” at the Milwaukee Press Club’s annual Awards for Excellence in Wisconsin Journalism on Friday, May 11.
The series on the demise of South Side taverns won in the “Online: Best Hard Feature Story” category. The series, which was published on Dec. 11, 2017, detailed how the corner bar, once a staple on the South Side, is becoming a relic in some neighborhoods as a result of the steady decline of industry, changing social patterns and the perception that such taverns are a magnet for crime. Mendez looked at city licensing data and found that many old-time bars are now closed, along with the way of life they represented.
The package also won a regional Edward R. Murrow Award from the Radio Television and Digital News Association (RTDNA) for feature reporting in the Small Digital News Organization category, defined as fewer than 5 million unique visitors per month.
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Former NNS reporter Naomi Waxman won the bronze award from the Milwaukee Press Club in the “Online: Best Hard Feature Story” category for her special report, “Teetering on the brink: Barriers to reproductive health care access.” Waxman was a Diederich College of Communication graduate student and Public Policy Forum Fellow at NNS when the article was published. She is currently in the graduate journalism program at Northwestern University.

author: Dwayne Burtin


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41237496375_136ea5cf66_k | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Dwayne Burtin
May 16, 2018


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Nonprofit launches new program to build opportunities for former convicts | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Meghan Rock, Elyse McFeggan and Chris Reisner
May 16, 2018
The Community Warehouse has launched a new re-entry program called Partners for Hope, which is intended to help formerly incarcerated individuals get back on their feet.
The mission of the faith-based organization, which has locations on both the north and south sides of the city, is to revitalize impoverished neighborhood and provide work for individuals with challenged backgrounds.
The new program offers various 18-month long courses, on topics ranging from substance abuse to job training. Community Warehouse also connects recently incarcerated individuals with mentors at its two locations. “We’re partnering with Federal Prison Systems, the House of Corrections, different programs like that,” said Bronzeville store manager Samuel Foster.
Employees work full time and participate in hour-long classes once a day. Coaching also takes place on Wednesday evenings, during which new employees are paired with mentors who help them transition into the workplace.
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CEO Nick Ringger recently interviewed 39 soon-to-be-released inmates at the House of Correction to fill 10 positions in the Partners for Hope Program, which started on May 7.
During the past three years, Community Warehouse has hired about 85 formerly incarcerated people.
“I got in trouble with the law and coming to Community Warehouse, they helped me as far as getting myself back on track,” said employee Theodore Edgecomb.
Community Warehouse, which opened its second location at 324 W. North Ave. in Bronzeville in September, offers discounted housing materials to help rebuild disadvantaged communities. Unused building materials are donated by contractors, manufacturers, developers and others. In addition, customers can purchase high-quality household products, new clothing and technology products, such as mobile phones, at deeply discounted rates.
Community Warehouse currently employs 45 people at its two sites. The original South Side location, at 521 S. 9th St., opened in 2005.
“From what I understand they are giving people a second shot at life,” said customer Fred Townsend. “That’s a cause worth supporting.”
Ringger said Community Warehouse works with formerly incarcerated individuals so they will be able secure a better job. With the organization’s support, about 90 percent of the individuals hired have broken the cycle of reincarceration, he added.
Faith is the driving force behind Community Warehouse; Bible verses are painted at the ends of the aisles in the original store. The organization also offers a weekly Bible study for workers, who can receive compensation for attending the sessions.
Ringger said that with patience and the right partners, Community Warehouse could be successful in any U.S. city.
“Every city has the same thing,” he added. “They have products that will go into the landfill, they’ve got men and women who desperately need jobs, they’ve got neighborhoods that need to be rebuilt.”


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 15, 2018


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The profound cost of forgetting | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 17, 2018
(Left to right) Commandos Larry Willis, the late Shakespeare Lewis and Fred Reed (Photo by Adam Carr)
Adam Carr is a member of March On Milwaukee 50th, the group convening the 50th anniversary of Milwaukee’s Open Housing Marches. He writes this reflection in advance of the finale of 200 Nights of Freedom, on Saturday, May 19. Carr is also on staff at Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service.
Andrew Tyler was a Commando. The Commandos formed in 1966 after a local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan bombed the Freedom House, the headquarters of the NAACP Youth Council. As I’ve heard Commando Fred Reed say, “It was our job to take care of the kids.”
The Commandos were known for being no-nonsense, savvy and tough — and they needed to be. While they went on to take a leadership role during the marches in 1967 and ‘68, for the Commandos, their fundamental responsibility to defend the youth was sacred.
As an elder, Mr. Tyler worked as a crossing guard at Kluge Elementary, a wonderful MPS school on the northwest side of Milwaukee. I did not know him personally, but by all accounts I’ve heard, he was a profoundly good man. Fifty years later, he continued to live his pledge as a Commando, putting the safety of young people above all else.
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On the morning of Nov. 21, 2017, before school, Mr. Tyler was walking to his post at Kluge when he was tragically struck by a car. A few weeks later, he died of injuries sustained in that accident. Around Milwaukee, more attention was paid to the accident than Mr. Tyler’s life’s work.
Shakespeare Lewis was a Commando. I had the honor of getting to know him through the course of the 50th anniversary commemoration and 200 Nights of Freedom. He was a solemn man, measured in his speech and often deep in thought.
At a recent storytelling event organized by Ex Fabula, Mr. Lewis was invited to share his experiences in the marches. He shared some amazing stories but began by sharing his searing disappointment. While Mr. Lewis was proud to be a Commando, since the marches, his participation has earned him little more than a police record following him around for 50 years. He felt forgotten. He laid his life on line for Milwaukee, and that night, I saw firsthand how deeply we’ve let him down.
A couple months later, Mr. Lewis’s health took a turn for the worse. While he was in hospice care, his fellow Commandos tracked down a portable CD player so that in his final hours he could listen to the spiritual music he loved. Four days after Vel Phillips died, Mr. Lewis passed away with some of his brothers by his side.
Milwaukee needs heroes. The paradoxical thing is, we actually have them. Whether it’s as simple as benign neglect, or as troubling as our city’s reluctance to embrace strong black men, we’ve forgotten some of our best.
As young men, Andrew Tyler and Shakespeare Lewis helped write one of Milwaukee’s most important stories, yet they have been written out in most accounts. We should mourn them, yes, but first, we must remember them. And Mr. Tyler and Mr. Lewis are two men among numerous Commandos and Youth Council members, many still with us and others who have passed, all of whom have fallen prey to our neglectful amnesia.
In the last 50 years, much has changed in Milwaukee, but as I’ve heard Commandos and Youth Council members say, too much has stayed the same.
So, in our next 50 years and beyond, let’s change the narrative. Our city — and particularly our young people — needs this story and its authors, with all the inspiration and insight they offer.
To learn more about the Open Housing Marches, visit 200nightsoffreedom.org or download Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service’s The Long March to Freedom.


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9/7/13 Aerial photos of Michigan vs. Notre Dame | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 17, 2018


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 17, 2018


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Youth share struggles ‘to give a face’ to mental illness | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Rachel Kubik
May 17, 2018
Erica Williams-Clark told how she went through confusion and hardship after she lost her cousin to suicide, and it inspired her to pursue psychology in college. (Photo by Rachel Kubik)
As an infant, Ci’Yanna Jones was known as a “crack baby” because her mother was addicted to crack cocaine. Jones struggled with that label as a child. Her self-harming habits started at the age of 5.
“I wasn’t really focused on the toys and having fun. I was focused on using things to hurt myself,” said Jones, 16.
Her biggest support came from her grandmother, who took Jones home, loved and cared for her. “I love her to death. I would take a bullet for my (grand)mama,” Jones said.
She recently shared her experiences via a video in front of an audience of more than 120 people at Loos Room at Centennial Hall, in the Milwaukee Public Library. Images, text and a poem told the story.
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Six other Milwaukee youth also spoke about their personal experiences with mental health challenges. Topics included adoption, losing a cousin to suicide, coming out as transgender, self-harm, anger management issues and bullying.
Experts also provided information on mental health, and representatives from community organizations shared resources before and after the presentations. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) teamed up to sponsor the event.
Brenda Wesley, a mental health advocate and the emcee, said she wanted the event to increase awareness surrounding mental health.
Wesley has a son and sister who live with mental health disorders. “We have to decrease stigma and open up more doors and access for treatment.
“What we can do individually is to listen, be aware, not sit in judgment (and) support,” Wesley said.
Jacquelyn Smith, a pediatric psychologist at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin, spoke to the audience about supporting transgender and gender non-conforming youth.
She said it can be highly beneficial for youth to share their stories of struggles publicly, assuming they are in a healthy place and have the support to do that.
Telling stories of past hardships also can improve students’ confidence and self-esteem, Smith added. “It lets youth know that they’re not alone and that people care.”
Smith noted that often youth with mental health issues are more resilient, open and creative than adults. “That’s probably one of the things I enjoy most about my job, to walk those really rewarding journeys with them and see them try new coping skills, feel better and be successful.”
Smith added that the event brought topics that she addresses every day to the community in a novel way. “It’s really important to me to be able to be a part of events like that and help the community understand that pediatric mental health is something that we have to pay attention to,” Smith said.
“From an audience perspective, it makes stories personal and real and I think in some ways that carries more weight than research stories and the published literature that’s out there,” Smith said. “It gives a face to things that we know kids struggle with.”
Alex Hart-Upendo was bullied starting at the age of 5. He was smarter than many children his age, so he became isolated and soon became depressed.
“No matter how many times I heard my mom say I was a good person or that I was beautiful, I still felt like she was lying. Why did she only think good things about me when everybody else said I was stupid, ugly (and) worthless?” Hart-Upendo said. He would spend a lot of time in the nurse’s office at school and pretend to be sick so he could go home.
Now 11, he finds pleasure in owning a bowtie business, creating and selling custom bowties for the past two years. “I think that everyone on this earth has a purpose, and mine is bowties.”
Hart-Upendo said he was motivated to “let people know that kids being bullied don’t need to get tougher skin.” He said they do need to tell a parent or friend.
Reyna Saldaña started her story about struggling with foster care, anger management and depression by sharing a journal entry she recently found in a storage unit. She wrote the entry when she was 10 and it explained her dreams for normalcy and that she hurt other people because she hurt inside.
Saldaña, 19, lost her mother at a young age to cancer. “I would rather die than live without the people I love,” the journal entry said.
Her anger caused her to say mean things to others. She said people called her a monster. “On the outside, I was like, ‘Oh, I don’t care.’… But on the inside, I was hurting, so I was just like, ‘How could I do that to someone? How could I hurt someone like that? I don’t even know them.’”
Jones said she would like to help mothers who are addicted to drugs, because she doesn’t want anybody going through what she went through. “I just thought, if I were to tell my story, it would make a difference,” Jones said.
The last line of her poem — “If I only knew I was perfect in my own way from the beginning” — elicited an eruption of applause from the audience.
Smith commented that mental health concerns are a part of life for many people, just like other health issues.
She said she hopes people can become more comfortable having conversations about mental health. “There’s people who need help who don’t get it because they’re concerned about what others might think,” Smith added.
Wesley said she would advise someone struggling with a mental illness that he or she is not alone and recovery is possible. “What recovery looks like is different for everyone. … It’s what makes you happy in your life. That’s your recovery.”


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 16, 2018


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Community members redouble effort to promote safe driving on Northwest Side | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Sophie Bolich
May 18, 2018
Community members stand at the intersection for hours at a time urging drivers to slow down and be safe. (Photo by Sophie Bolich)
The Northwest Side Community Development Corp. held a Rally for Safe Streets Monday, the latest in an effort to control traffic accidents on the infamous stretch of Capitol Drive between 30 Street and Fond du Lac Avenue.
For the one-hour duration of the rally, the usual blaring car horns and screeching tires at 35 and Capitol turned to friendly beeps and waves in support of the cause.
Alderman Khalif Rainey has called attention to the problem of reckless driving in the area, reporting in a news release that the Wisconsin Department of Transportation ranked 35 and Capitol the most dangerous intersection in the state.
“We need all drivers to recognize the responsibility for safety when they get in the car. We also want to look into engineering solutions that could calm traffic and improve pedestrian crossings,” said Rainey in a news release.
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“We had eight deaths last year on Capitol Drive alone, which is really disconcerting,” said Steve O’Connell, who participated in the rally. “We just have to get out here and get people to slow down, because they do slow down when they see us.”
Sarah Bregant, community development specialist at the Northwest Side CDC, said the group began organizing rallies in response to traffic deaths in 2017, but is not satisfied with the results.
There are several schools located near 35th and Capitol, endangering children who have to walk and ride buses on the dangerous road. (Photo by Sophie Bolich)
“We aren’t seeing as much improvement as we would have liked,” she said. “We see it as an issue for all the neighbors in the area who are looking to get across streets safely by driving, walking, biking and taking the bus.”
Bregant said the CDC wants to target reckless drivers.
“We thought it would be important to get out on the street corner and show drivers who just use this as a thoroughfare that we care about our neighborhoods and want people to drive safely.”
A key strategy for changing people’s driving behaviors is to enforce consequences, which O’Connell said has been more effective since community members drew attention to the problem.
“We were concerned the police were not doing enough by way of enforcements” he said. “Once we made a big scene about it, the ticket numbers increased.”
According to Milwaukee Municipal Court records, there was a 30 percent increase in traffic tickets citywide from 2016 to 2017.
Sgt. Sheronda Grant, a spokesman for the Milwaukee Police Department, said that officers are working on controlling road sfety in the city as a whole.
“It’s definitely on our radar, the issue of reckless driving,” she said.
In 2017 the Northwest Side CDC organized a community bike ride and picketing to raise awareness. The group is also a member of the Complete Streets Milwaukee Coalition, and is currently circulating a petition asking the city for a new street design on 35 and Capitol as well as other intersections throughout the city. The design would include crosswalks and defined bike lanes (such as those on Humboldt Avenue at Locust Street and Center Street) to improve safety and convenience for motorists, as well as bikers and pedestrians. The petition has 186 signatures so far.
Bregant said the road safety problem seems to be on the radar of almost every alderman in the city. However, infrastructure changes are a slow process, so working to encourage safe driving and seat belt use is a quick solution for the moment.
Traffic crashes killed 64 people in Milwaukee in 2017; 57 people were killed in 2016, Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service reported, based on Milwaukee Police Department data.
“People really love to see us out here, and we have a good time,” said O’Connell. “Our push is civic engagement,” he added. “The more of us that are out here, the more signs they see and the more individuals they see out here — that draws attention to the fact that people do have to slow down.”

author: Sophie Bolich


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 18, 2018

author: Adam Carr


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As opioid death toll rises, task force releases plan to combat epidemic | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Edgar Mendez
May 21, 2018
A discarded needle lies in an alley near West Greenfield Avenue. (Photo by Edgar Mendez)
Carianne Ramanio, 42, is three months pregnant and nine months clean from heroin. Her addiction journey began at 19, she said, as she went from cocaine, to legally prescribed pain pills, to pills bought on the street and eventually heroin.
“I overdosed a couple times. I almost lost my hand due to an infection. I’m done with it,” said the determined grandmother of three who’s spent the majority of her life on Milwaukee’s South Side.
Ramanio, who was revived after her overdoses by Narcan, a drug that reverses the effects of opioids, said she’s lucky to be alive. Others weren’t as fortunate. There were more than 400 drug overdose deaths in Milwaukee County in 2017, more than 300  of which involved opioids. Through the first three months of 2018, 56 opioid-related deaths occurred. That number will rise. Determinations still need to be made on 41 additional toxicology cases, according to Karen Domagalski, operations manager for the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office. Last year there were 78 opioid-related deaths in the county from January through March.
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The pace of drug overdose deaths in 2018, including six that occurred during the weekend of May 12 and 13, is similar to last year, according to the medical examiner’s office. Two of the recent six deaths occurred in the 53204 ZIP code on the South Side, which is where the highest number of opioid overdose victims through the first three months of 2018 resided. Increases in drug activity and prostitution, which is strongly connected to the opioid epidemic, have contributed to a rash of seven homicides that have occurred within a 20-block radius in 53204 since March.  Several of the murders remain unsolved.
As the deaths accumulate, a preliminary plan to reduce fatal overdoses of opioids and other drugs has been released by the City-County Heroin, Opioid, and Cocaine Task Force.
The plan consists of eight focus areas including: enhancing and funding existing prevention programs; reducing the number of drug violation arrests; improving epidemiology and surveillance; developing programs in collaboration with the criminal justice system; and supporting federal, state and local policies and legislation. The plan was originally scheduled to be finalized by February, Bevan Baker told Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service in a December interview. At the time Baker was the task force chairman and commissioner of the Milwaukee Health Department (MHD). Baker resigned in January amid an avalanche of criticism over his handling of the city’s lead poisoning crisis.
Baker’s departure, along with that of Hector Colon, the first task force chairman, and overall disarray within MHD, delayed the release of the comprehensive plan, acknowledged Ald. Michael Murphy, co-chair of the task force with Michael Lappen, administrator of the Behavioral Health Division (BHD) for Milwaukee County. The group also had difficulty gathering a quorum and scheduling meetings since it was created in February 2017.
“There are certain things I can’t control and others I can,” Murphy said.
Despite those difficulties and the daunting challenge of slowing the pace of drug deaths in the county, Murphy said he is confident that the partnerships and collaborations created through the group, which are now part of the comprehensive plan, will have an impact.
Michael Lappen (left), administrator of the Behavioral Health Division (BHD) for Milwaukee County, and Ald. Michael Murphy are co-chairs of the City-County Heroin, Opioid, and Cocaine Task Force. (Photo by Edgar Mendez)
“I think in the past people worked in their own silos and what the task force tried to do is recognize that with limited financial resources we need to support each other. We’ve broken down some of those borders,” Murphy said.
Ongoing efforts that have been strengthened through the task force include increases in funding specific to the opioid epidemic, more locations to dispose of prescription pills, increased distribution of needles, and more access to and training to administer Narcan, Murphy said.
Also in the works is a collaboration with Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW), which will provide recommendations to the task force on best practices or promising approaches to treat those who are addicted to opioids and other drugs, Murphy said. A social media campaign to help reduce the stigma associated with opioid addiction and to try to prevent young people from becoming users also is being planned, he added.
Another aspect of the plan will be to target individuals who recently overdosed, according to Lappen.
“The idea is to follow up within 24 hours and tell them, ‘Hey, you just almost died. What can we do to help you?’” Lappen said.
That effort, which is also a collaboration with MCW, will include hiring people with lived experience with opioid addiction, he said. The program will be supported through a $250,000 grant awarded by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) to Milwaukee County to expand treatment for opioid addiction.
According to data included in the task force’s preliminary plan, 75 percent of individuals with substance use disorders never receive treatment. In addition, 70 percent of the state’s prisoners have a substance abuse problem, with only 10 percent receiving treatment while incarcerated, according to estimates by the Wisconsin Department of Corrections. Lappen said it is important for the plan to take a public-health approach and treat addiction as the disease that it is, rather than focusing on the issue through a law enforcement lens.
“There will be a number of collaborations to make sure people are getting treatment instead of being criminalized,” Lappen said.
While the plan released by the task force holds promise, said “Tina,” a 35-year-old woman who is battling an opioid addiction, nothing will change until treatment is more readily available in the central city.  Although she said she’s no longer taking the opioid pills she spent the last decade addicted to, she now she waits in line each morning for her daily dose at the methadone clinic.
“It’s like I switched from one addiction to another,” she said.
Tina, who requested not to be identified by name, has gone back and forth between suboxone, a drug that blocks the effects of opioids but is also addictive, and methadone, because they are the main treatments available, she said. She remains at risk for going back to pills because once the physical pain that accompanies the withdrawal goes away, individuals are left with the residual damage from their addiction.
“It’s like all the emotional pain that you took the drugs to forget comes back all at once. That and the guilt you feel because you lost your family because of the mistakes you made while you were addicted is really difficult to handle,” she said.
That burden, coupled with difficulties in getting a job due to a criminal record, leads many to go back to heroin or other drugs, she said. “Without coping skills to help you get adjusted to your new life, it’s a lost cause.”
Ramanio has remained drug free since August, after taking methadone and suboxone for seven days while detoxing in jail, she said. Prior to that, she’d gone through inpatient and outpatient treatment. Sitting in jail and reflecting on the fact that she is a grandmother, and that she had thrown decades of her life away, helped her finally quit, she said.
“I had to sit down and look at myself. It’s not a good look for a 42-year-old grandmother to be on heroin,” she said.
She also moved from Milwaukee in October, which has helped, she added.
Ramanio said she might make her way back to the city someday, hopefully to start a rehabilitation program for women getting out of prison. Her goal would be to help them find housing and connect with companies that would give them jobs.
“I want to give them a chance to enter back into a society where they feel good about themselves and are actually progressing in life. I’d like to be a success story for them.”


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 20, 2018


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| Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Adam Carr
May 21, 2018


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Bloom and Groom brightens Milwaukee neighborhoods | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
City of Milwaukee
May 21, 2018
Photo courtesy of the City of Milwaukee
Again this year, the City of Milwaukee and its Neighborhood Improvement Development Corporation coordinated the sale and distribution nearly 50-thousand flowers to residents in eighteen different neighborhoods around Milwaukee. The “Bloom and Groom” project took place on two weekends in May.  The objective of the effort is to both beautify neighborhoods with flowers planted at homes, and to build local cooperation to address concerns.
Mayor Tom Barrett visited the Havenwoods Bloom & Groom flower sale location at the Redemption Lutheran Church parking lot, 5641 N. 68 Street on May 10.
For nearly a decade, the city has worked with Lowe’s Home Improvement to obtain the flowers at minimal cost.
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Photo courtesy of the City of Milwaukee

author: City of Milwaukee