Here are a selection of brief news items from this week’s paper edition, and possibly a few news briefs that didn’t make it in the paper.

Fine arts board annual meeting set

The West Salem Fine Arts Board will hold its annual meeting at 5 p.m. Tuesday, June 9, in the Heider Center meeting room at West Salem High School. All-Star Donor members are invited to attend this meeting. For more information, call 786-2335.

Bangor Elementary to host blood drive

Bangor Elementary School will host a Red Cross blood drive from 1:30 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, May 27, at the school, 701 14th Ave. The drive is a walk-in only event, so no appointments are necessary.

Panther volleyball camp set for June

The West Salem Panthers coaching staff and players will host a volleyball camp for girls entering grades 4-8. The camp will take place June 22-25 at West Salem Elementary.

Session 1 for girls entering grades 4-6 will run from 12:30 to 2 p.m. Session 2 for girls entering grades 7-8 will run from 2 to 4 p.m.

Brochures and registration forms can be picked up in the West Salem middle and elementary school offices.

For more information, contact Darcy Sawyer at dsawyer@wsalem.k12.wi.us.

House concert planned for May 27

The Bluff View series of house concerts in rural Holmen continues May 27 with an evening of pop acoustic jazz courtesy of Allison Sattinger, performing with Matt Coleman and Phil Mielke.

Sattinger’s work has drawn favorable comparisons to Norah Jones and Joni Mitchell, and her May concert schedule also includes stops in California, Idaho, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

The concert starts at 7 p.m. at the home of Dave and Lori Schippers at N7916 Bluff View Court. Admission is $10. Seating is limited to 40 people, so early reservations are advised. Call 526-9051 for tickets or more information.

Digger’s Hotline season is back

Whether it’s landscaping improvements, installing a fence, building a deck or planting a tree, no project is too big or small to place a call before digging to the Digger’s Hotline, 1-800-242-8511 or 811.

Calls from anywhere in the country are routed to local One Call Centers and to the affected utility companies. Utility companies send a professional locator out within three working days to mark lines free of charge. After knowing approximate locations of utility lines, safe digging can begin.

Utility line depths can vary. Digging without calling has the potential to disrupt service to an entire neighborhood. It could also result in fines and repair costs. One call gets underground utility lines marked for free and prevents undesired consequences.

For details, visit www.diggershotline.com or call 800-242-8511 or 811.

Work starts on Black River trails

Renovation of all-terrain vehicle trails at the Black River State Forest began recently, with small segments of trail to be closed weekdays during the project.

The plan is to upgrade one wetland crossing a week with the affected section of trail ready to ride again by the weekend. The first area to be affected is the 2.2 miles of trail between Highway 54 and Bartos Road. Once these six crossings have been improved, work will begin on the eight crossings to the south between 54 and the state forest border.

ATV trails in the state forest are part of a 230-mile regional trail system in Jackson and Clark counties.

After Labor Day, phase two will begin with work on remaining crossings just south of Highway 54 followed by the six crossings between East Seventh Street and Cranberry Drive.

ATV trails are open from May 15 through Oct. 15 and from Dec. 15 through March 15. Weekly trail condition reports are available online at www.dnr.state.wi.us/forestry/StateForests/SF-BlackRiver/. During construction updated maps showing the section of trail closed will be on the Web site.

The plan is to upgrade one wetland crossing a week with the affected section of trail ready to ride again by the weekend. The first area to be affected is the 2.2 miles of trail between Highway 54 and Bartos Road. Once these six crossings have been improved, work will begin on the eight crossings to the south between 54 and the state forest border.

ATV trails in the state forest are part of a 230-mile regional trail system in Jackson and Clark counties.

After Labor Day, phase two will begin with work on remaining crossings just south of Highway 54 followed by the six crossings between East Seventh Street and Cranberry Drive.

Weather radio touted as good idea

Gov. Jim Doyle declared May 13 as NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards Awareness Day, part of a campaign to encourage Wisconsin residents to keep ahead of severe weather by tuning in to a 24-hour source of weather forecasts, watches, warnings and non-weather emergency information.

The information is provided by the National Weather Service and its parent agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Weather radios are known as “smoke detectors for severe weather and hazardous conditions.” An NOAA weather radio with an alarm and battery back-up is one of the best ways to protect your family, officials say, especially at night when the alarm feature can wake you up during severe weather and give you and your family time to seek appropriate shelter.

If there is no severe weather then your weather radio can be switched to a silent, stand-by mode.

Weather radios come in many sizes, with a variety of functions and costs. They can be purchased at most electronic stores. Most weather radio receivers are either battery-operated portables or AC-powered desktop models with battery backup.

Many receivers have digital technology called Specific Area Message Encoding that allows users to program their radios to alarm only for hazardous conditions that affect their county.The NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards network started in 1972 and is the sole government-operated radio system to provide direct warnings for conditions that pose a threat to lives and property. There are 33 stations that broadcast weather and hazards info to Wisconsin residents, and more than 1,000 stations nationwide.

Weather radios come in many sizes, with a variety of functions and costs. They can be purchased at most electronic stores. Most weather radio receivers are either battery-operated portables or AC-powered desktop models with battery backup.

Many receivers have digital technology called Specific Area Message Encoding that allows users to program their radios to alarm only for hazardous conditions that affect their county.

UW-L plans Twin Cities art trip

UW-La Crosse Continuing Education will sponsor a “Day of Art Fun in Minneapolis,” which will include shopping for art supplies and a trip to the Minneapolis Institute of Art.

Travelers will board the bus at 6:30 a.m. Saturday, June 27, and arrive back in La Crosse later that evening.

The first stop will be “Wet Paint” in St. Paul to shop for art supplies. From there, travelers head to the Minneapolis Institute of Art for the afternoon.

To conclude the trip, a stop at IKEA for shopping and dinner are planned before heading back to La Crosse. Linda Steine, associate outreach specialist for UW-L Continuing Education in the Arts, will host the trip.

Cost of the trip is $45. To register or for more information, call UW-L Continuing Education at 785-6506 or log onto www.uwlax.edu/conted.

Talk on caregivers’ online resources set

More and more caregivers are turning to the internet for resources to assist their loved ones. Join

Gundersen Lutheran will present “Exploration of Online Tools for Caregivers” from 6-7 p.m. Wednesday, May 27, at the Gundersen Lutheran Green Bay Building, located at the corner of South Avenue and Green Bay Street in La Crosse.

This Getting Older, Living Better program will highlight Web sites that have information and tools to assist in the caregiving process. Participants will be able to access the Web sites during the presentation.

This program is free and open to the public, but space is limited.

For more information or to register, call 775-4717. Signup deadline is May 25.

Entries sought for Interstate Fair

The La Crosse County Agricultural Society is seeking entries for the 2009 La Crosse Interstate Fair, which will be held July 15-19 at the fairgrounds in West Salem. All entries for the 2009 fair must be submitted to the

La Crosse County University Extension office by 5 p.m. June 4.

The 2009 Exhibitor Guide and Premium List, including entry forms, are available at the extension office in the County Administrative Center, 400 N. Fourth St., Room 3140, La Crosse, as well as the La Crosse Area Chamber of Commerce, and many bank and lending institutions around the county.

For the first time, the Exhibitor Guide is available on the Web at www.

lacrosseinterstatefair.com/home; click on “Exhibitor Handbook.”

Entry fees are $2 per person for Junior Fair Exhibitors, and $3 per person for Open Class Exhibitors.

For more information about the 2009 La Crosse Interstate Fair, call the

La Crosse County Extension office at 785-9593.

Survey about Internet use

U.S. Rep. Ron Kind, D-Wisconsin, urges residents of the 3rd Congressional District to complete a statewide Public Service Commission survey to ensure stimulus funds for broadband Internet access are delivered to western Wisconsin.

The survey can be found at: http://psc.wi.gov/apps35/eSurvey/Broadband/WIbroadband.aspx. Residents can also call Gary Evenson at (608) 266-6744 to give responses via phone.

Many residents of rural areas are limited to slow, dial-up Internet access, prohibiting them from efficiently accessing online resources. Many who telecommute or require the Internet for business purposes are struggling with the restricted connection, especially as more services become available solely online.

Vets scholarships available

Ten $1,000 scholarships are available to Wisconsin veterans attending University of Wisconsin System campuses during the 2009-10 academic year.

The Donald P. Weber Veterans Memorial Scholarship is available to Wisconsin residents enrolled full time as an undergraduate or graduate student at a UW school. Recipients must be a veteran of the U.S. armed forces and in good

academic standing. Potential recipients also will be required to give a short summary about themselves, their career plans and why they should receive the award. Financial need will be considered.

The deadline to submit applications

is May 15. For more information, go to www.foundation.uwlax.edu/

applications/WeberVeteransScholarship.pdf.

To submit your information for a public service announcement, e-mail it to wsm.news@lee.net