A 911 call was received by the Taylor County Sheriff's Office on Friday, December 5, 2025, at approximately 4:17 p.m. The caller reported a missing person near the 7600 block of Perkinstown Avenue in the Township of Hammel. She said that her husband had been ice fishing earlier in the afternoon on Washington Flowage, which is located near their property. When he did not return, she was concerned he may have fallen through the ice.
Taylor County deputies, along with Medford fire personnel, Taylor County Emergency Management, and Taylor County EMS personnel, arrived at Washington Flowage where they saw a single sled trail leading out to an open area on the ice. The sled was seen in the open area of water.
Given they have specialized equipment and expertise in open water searches, Marathon County Sheriff's Office Dive Team, Wings of Hope and Bruce’s Legacy were contacted to aid in the search effort.
The man was found in the water, deceased, and was recovered. He was identified as Randall K. Runge of Medford. He was 69 years old. There is no indication of foul play.
The Taylor County Sheriff’s Office extended their condolences to the family of Randall. "We would also like to extend our gratitude towards the non-profit organizations, Wings of Hope and Bruce’s Legacy, along with the other emergency personnel that assisted," the sheriff's office added.
WI DNR ANNOUNCES PRELIMINARY 2025 DEER HARVEST TOTALS
The regular gun deer season was held from November 22 through November 30, 2025.
According to the Wisconsin DNR, "Preliminary figures indicate the number of deer hunters in Wisconsin slightly decreased compared to 2024. As of 11:59 p.m. Sunday, November 30, sales for deer hunting privileges (which include gun, archery, crossbow, conservation patron, and sports licenses) reached 790,044, down 0.12% from the same time last year. Of those, 550,611 were for gun privileges only (which include gun, conservation patron, and sports licenses).
"Preliminary figures show hunters registered 182,084 deer during the 2025-gun deer season, including 86,068 antlered and 96,016 antlerless deer. Compared to 2024, the gun season harvest total is down 0.8% statewide, with the antlered harvest down 2.6% and the antlerless harvest up 0.9%.
"Since the opening of the bow and crossbow seasons, Wisconsin hunters have registered 294,757 deer. This harvest is 1.1% ahead of the same time last year."
Price County is part of the Northern Forest Zone. However, rather than the deer harvest totals being reported by county as was done in previous years, some counties, including Price, are now part of DMUs, which are Deer Management Units. Portions of Price County are in six units, including DMU-112, DMU-113, DMU-115, DMU-116, DMU-117, and DMU-119. Portions of other counties are included in those DMUs and they are as follows:
DMU-112: Portions of Price, Rusk, and Sawyer Counties
DMU-113: Portions of Ashland, Bayfield, Price, and Sawyer Counties
DMU-115: Portions of Price, Rusk, Sawyer, and Taylor Counties
DMU-116: Portions of Lincoln, Oneida, Price, and Vilas Counties
DMU-117: Portions of Ashland, Iron, Oneida, Price, and Vilas Counties
DMU-119: Portions of Langlade, Lincoln, Price, Oneida, and Taylor Counties
Marquette County led the Central Farmland Zone and the entire state, registering 7.9 deer per square mile. Vernon County led the Southern Farmland Zone with 6.5 deer registered per square mile. DMU 201 (primarily in Eau Claire County) led the Central Forest Zone with 3.8 deer per square mile. DMU 108 (portions of Burnett, Polk, and Washburn Counties) led the Northern Forest Zone with 2.7 deer registered per square mile.
The DNR reported two hunting incidents. On the first day of hunting, a 57-year-old man was walking to a field to go hunting. He received a gunshot wound in his buttock. His injury was treated at a hospital. The investigation is pending. Also on the first day, in the evening hours, a 24-year-old man in Fond du Lac County was found as a victim of a self-inflicted, but unintentional, gunshot to his chest. He was found hours later by family members on private property. According to the WI DNR, "Preliminary investigation reflects the victim was in a tree, gun deer hunting from a saddle stand, when the unintentional discharge of their firearm occurred. Investigation pending." Comparatively, during the 2024-gun deer season, one firearm-involved hunting incident occurred resulting in an injury. (Keep reading; the article continues after the ad.)
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The DNR added, "For the past 10 nine-day gun deer seasons (2016-2025), the incident trend reflects an average of five hunting incidents per year. In addition, Wisconsin has had six fatality-free seasons, and all 10 years reflect single digit incidents."
The DNR stressed that hunters should follow the four rules of firearm safety, known as TAB-K:
T - Treat every firearm as if it is loaded.
A - Always point the muzzle in a safe direction.
B - Be certain of your target, what’s before it and what’s beyond it.
K - Keep your finger outside your trigger guard until you are safe to shoot.
Learn more about safe hunting in Wisconsin and register to take a hunter education course on the DNR’s Hunting Safety webpage.
DNR VIOLATION HOTLINE: Anyone with information regarding natural resource violations may confidentially report by calling or texting 1-800-TIP-WDNR or 1-800-847-9367. The hotline is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Trained staff relay the information to conservation wardens. You can also file a report online.
Grade 11: Cooper Fifield, Conner Fox, Deverick Hartmann, Madison Holm, Chase Mabie, Emily Mason, Mason Podeweltz, Gavin Polansky, Korbin Thums
Grade 12: Michael Bant, Ashlyn Englund, Jaxson Franz, Kayla Gillett, Clint Hale, Rhys Harris, Justin Hoffman, Evan Lord, Grady May, Nicholas Nikkila, Taylor Slattery, Zach Starkey (Keep reading; this article continues after the ad.)
Pine Village in Prentice offers affordable, active living in a wooded setting for those 50+ and disabled persons. Rent is based on 30% Adjusted Gross Income. Small pets under 30 pounds are welcome. Contact Pine Village at 715-428-2300.
Perfect Attendance
4K: Arya Enders, Coleson Gedde
Kindergarten: Phoenix Farr, Oliver Nelson, Nicole Weiler
1st Grade: Case Gedde, Forrest Walcisak
2nd Grade: None
3rd Grade: Scarlet Conner, Asher Gruber, Zoe Johnson
Image from Facebook/The Voice of Worcester 2.0 video
At the November 18, 2025 Town of Worcester meeting, the issue of rumble strips on Little Chicago Road was addressed. It was initially brought up at the prior town meeting. (See related article.)
Chairman Jim Michler said, "Do we really want to put rumble strips in there? If we do, we would need to communicate with all the people who live within listening distance of it, because we did hear testimony at the last meeting from somebody who says they are noisy. So, Russ, do you have any thoughts on that, because I'm kind of inclined to say we do not need rumble strips, so if you feel the same way, we can just vote that down and say we're not going to do it." Jim later added that Supervisor Jeremy Pesko had mentioned he talked with someone who said rumble strips can be heard from quite a distance.
Supervisor Russ Long stated it's a safety concern and there is a lot of traffic on that road. He said they do make a lot of noise on the highway, but he didn't feel there would be such a noise factor on Little Chicago Road given the speed is less on Little Chicago Road coming to a stop sign. Russ said that the corner is a big accident corner and asked how many accidents that occur there come from Little Chicago Road.
Jim said this intersection did not have enough accidents for the state to do anything, and the town would have to bear the cost of adding rumble strips. "It's just not a dangerous enough intersection," he said.
Russ asked for the cost of rumble strips. Jim said, "Well, the real cost is people, who his house rumbles every time somebody drives there. The dollar value, don't know, but it can't be that awful bad."
Russ said, "We can always put them in. Once the road's complete, we can always put in rumble strips." Russ again mentioned he was considering the safety factor. Ultimately, though, Russ made a motion to not put rumble strips on Little Chicago Road at the Hwy. 13 intersection. Chairman Jim Michler seconded it, and the motion was carried.
During public comment, Ann Patros asked if a roundabout could be implemented at Little Chicago Road. Jim said it's not on the state list as being too dangerous, so he did not feel it would qualify. Ann asked what the standard was from the state, and Jim said it has to do with the number of fatal accidents; they list all of them in the state, and they take the top number of intersections to focus on.
Anthony Sleck said, "I know in the meeting when we first discussed it, you had your deputy standing here so nobody could bring up any comments other than rumble strips. Why was that the only thing you put on the agenda instead of getting input from people that were here. That's why all them people were here. You made sure they didn't get an opportunity to talk about anything but rumble strips." There was no further discussion.
Another larger topic of the meeting was about open records. Brian Kerner asked why his open records requests, from over a year ago, have not been fulfilled. He stated that his name was placed on the town's website about requesting records and wanted to know why he hasn't seen the records. Jim responded, "Because your request was to inspect the records, that required a meeting here to do it, because you had a long list of requests." Jim said a written record of requests is kept, and phone contact does not qualify as a written record, so the town does not call. Jim said Brian did not give contact information but was sent three Certified letters, and he refused all three of them, but Brian interjected that he never received those. Jim continued, "Because you refused delivery on three Certified letters, we canceled those requests." Jim was told, "You just broke the law" and "It sounds like you need another lawsuit," and Jim replied, "Go right ahead. That's your choice."
The Chequamegon School District recognized students' achievements in September and October 2025.
The October 2025 Eagle Award winners, who showed they were responsible, from Park Falls Elementary School include:
Front Row Left to Right: Peyton Derr, Abby Troyer, Hanna Bertrang, Kinsley Brummer, and Presley Hammond
Middle Row Left to Right: Kody Weiler, River Bruehling, Ryan Rodriguez, Brookes Eichman, and Caitlin Brown of Forward Bank
Back Row Left to Right: Mikayla Radlinger, Paityn Davis, Rowan Fuller, Arya Spurrier, and Ruth Oswald
The October 2025 Soar Award winners, who showed perseverance, from the Chequamegon School District include:
Front Row Left to Right: Angel Gonzalez, MJ Barnabas, Leonidas Vitaniemi, and Billheijah Jim
Middle Row Left to Right: Hank Hammond, Aspen Hill, Aspen Buech, and Josh Hilgart
Back Row Left to Right: Jase Palecek, Emma Milton, Anabella Eggleston, Coen Martin, and Elias Wilson
Keep reading. The article continues after the following ad.
Park Village offers affordable, active living in a park-like setting for those 55+ and disabled persons in Park Falls. Rent is based on 30% Adjusted Gross Income. Small pets under 30 pounds are welcome. Contact Park Village at 715-762-4747.
The October 2025 Pop Tab winners at Park Falls Elementary School came from Ms. Weinberger's 3rd Grade class, which collected 3.5 pounds to support the Ronald McDonald House in Marshfield, Wisconsin. Over eight pounds were collected by the entire school.
Front Row Left to Right: Brooke Tourtillott, Brynlee Burger, Izebella Shields, Payton Kelly, Adaline Klepac, and Max Barylski
Middle Row Left to Right: Rayna Schultz, Jase Oswald, Ian Hilgart, Mikayla Radlinger, Aubrie Williams,Harland Griffith, Ben Strum, and Madelynn Larson
Back Row Left to Right: Rose Jim, Hunter Buech, Maddyx Donner, Hazel Singer, Wesley Mueller, Owen Schuh, Stevon Warren, and Hudson Schienebeck
Mrs. Eichman's 2nd grade class had the best attendance marks at Park Falls Elementary School for September 2025. The class had a score of 98.08%.
Front Row Left to Right: Paisley Vitek, Vivienne Davis, Charlotte McKee, Lexi Schuelke, and Peyton Derr
Middle Row Left to Right: Aspen Hill, Carter Goethlich, Kieko Sohl, Isabella Rabauliman, and Scarlett Bornhoeft
Back Row Left to Right: Mrs. Eichman, Blake Brinegar, Aiden Zirbel, Deliah Mann, Reed Damrow, and Paisley Kirchoff
Residents have been asking if Price County United Limited (PCUL) has received the grant funds for the cleanup of the "Lionite" site. My Price County asked PCUL for an update but did not receive a reply, so we contacted the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for a response.
According to an EPA spokesperson, "On September 19, 2024, Price County United Limited was awarded a $1,677,894 brownfield cleanup grant. Those funds are available for PCUL’s use. As PCUL and its contractor complete tasks, PCUL withdraws funds from a Treasury Department account to pay the invoices.
"To date, PCUL has spent approximately $82,000 of the grant. The grant funds have been primarily spent to develop a cleanup plan for the site and prepare for public review and comment on the plan."
The EPA told My Price County that PCUL had a public meeting on October 8, 2025 "to discuss cleanup plans for the former Lionite mill." Since My Price County was unable to attend that meeting at the time it was held, we reached out to Lynda Ludwig and Blake Pluemer, PCUL board members, via their various email accounts, asking for the video of the meeting so we could report to the public what was said at the meeting, but neither of them have replied to numerous attempts of contact. If either of them replies, this article will be updated with that information.
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The following is a summary of some of the topics at the October county board meeting.
BUG TUSSEL DISCUSSION
Regarding Bug Tussel, Board Member Paula Houdek asked County Administrator Nick Trimner, "I'm concerned that we had an agreement with them for 'x' amount of towers, and now we're not going to have some of those towers?" Nick explained that Bug Tussel lost some funding that they were anticipating, but the number of towers has not been lost. Price County will still be getting the same amount of towers, which was cited as ten. Paula asked if cellular coverage would improve in some of the areas in Price County that do not have good connectivity. "I don't believe there is a change in the original project," Nick told her. Board Member Jeff Hallstrand added, "Bug Tussel made no promises to us about cellular coverage. They said they partner with carriers, and where there are weak spots, they will go on those towers,....and I believe that is still the case." Some board members wondered when a tentative start date would be for this project. Paula stated that residents are expressing their frustrations at town meetings with the lack of progress on this project. Nick said Bug Tussel is behind in other counties, too, because they took on a lot of counties. "They overpromised, and they are delivering what they promised [just not as quickly]." He believed some towers would be done by next summer.
SOLBERG LAKE CAMPGROUND EXPANSION PROJECT
"I think it's gonna be a great addition to our Price County camping. It's gonna give another option to people," said Jeff Hallstrand. The county is looking to put WiFi in the campground at some time. In the new part, the rates have increased but not in the old part. The new part is $45 per day for a single stay, $35 per day for one month, and $30 per day for a four month stay. The county implemented an online booking system for the campground and is going to look to see if that option should be continued. Board Member Jordan Spacek pointed out that the locals liked it because they did not have to reserve early and pay more; they could just reserve the days they wanted. However, then the campground did not make as much money as it would have had they had to reserve the spot days earlier. Nick thinks having the entire park online will be more convenient without the need for cash-handling and a better user experience since campers can use the QR code on the post to reserve a site.
DISTRICT ATTORNEY UPDATE
Since Price County's District Attorney resigned this summer, the position has not been filled by the governor at the time of publication. However, John Luetscher is the special prosecutor who is in the office three to four days per week during this interim period. According to the Price County District Attorney's office, he is retired and is from Brown County.
HWY. 13 / LITTLE CHICAGO ROAD / HWY. 111 INTERSECTION
Board Member Larry Palecek said, "Both the sheriff and highway department are doing whatever is possible to increase safety at this dangerous intersection. The Town of Worcester is looking at the topic, as well. There was discussion about adding rumble strips, flashing lights, and a flashing stop sign and possible re-design of the intersection. It has been flagged as one of Wisconsin's intersections with a high chance of accidents based on history. So, it's on our agenda for our road tour." He added that if we wait for the state, it could take years for anything to get done, so they are looking at what can be done locally. Board Member Michelle Drobnik said she is not saying that something should not be done, but since the state controls those roads, she asked if the county does anything to improve the intersection, if there is a chance for reimbursement from the state. Nick said that there are a lot of suggestions being made to the state by the county officials, but the state will not allow the county to do anything on their own on the state roads. Nick said the county department did put up additional signs on Little Chicago Road as those areas are out of the state's right of way. The state would reimburse the county if it was state approved.
The Phillips Public Library, located at 286 Cherry Street in Phillips, has lots of activities and events planned for this month. Visit the library's website for more information.
Rumors are flying around Phillips as to what item was found at the school in Phillips. Allegedly, an "unexpected item" was found in a school's bathroom. Some rumors stated it was an item that would be used in a weapon or a weapon.
My Price County wrote to Superintendent Rachel Hoffman asking for clarification. As of the time of publication, we have not received a response but will update this article if one is received.
Chief of Police Mike Hauschild for the City of Phillips did provide some answers, stating, "The investigation is still ongoing. What I can tell you is that the item found was not a magazine, laser, or weapon. The Phillips Police Department is working in cooperation with the School District of Phillips. Student safety is the number one priority, and steps were taken to safeguard the students."
If any further information is received, we will update this article, but we wanted to get what we know now out to the public as soon as possible to clear up rumors and worries. The article continues after the ad; keep reading.
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UPDATE: 11-10-2025
We asked Chief Hauschild for more information and clarification regarding the "unexpected item" found at the school. He added that "two .22 caliber bullets were found in the middle school boys' bathroom. They were found by a student who turned them into a teacher. A folding knife was found during a search of a locker during that day. No one came forward with ownership of the .22 caliber bullets. Interviews were conducted by school officials with the juveniles who used the bathroom from the start of school until when the bullets were found. The bathroom was secured until a thorough search by law enforcement could be completed, and nothing was found during the search. An administrative hold was put on for the school during the search."
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Gavin Esterholm, the school board's student liaison for Phillips High School, reported updates on October 20, 2025, regarding various sports, groups, and events at the high school.
FOOTBALL
The football season concluded on October 10, 2025. Kalan Chuzles said, “We finished second in the conference with a final record of 6-2. In the Marawood Northwoods East 8, all-conference players include honorable mention defense Ayron DeLeasky and Kyle Sidenbender; second team offense, Ben Virnig and Wade Vetter; second team defense, Sawyer Kucaba; first team offense, Kyle Sidenbender, Kalan Chuzles, JJ Heikkinen, and Ayron DeLeasky; first team defense, Kalan Chuzles and Ben Virnig; and the Defensive Player of the Year was Ben Virnig. Overall, it was a good season with very good attendance from the community at the home games.”
VOLLEYBALL
Raelee Williams said, “We have won the last 10 out of 14 matches. We have greatly improved. Marawood Conference Honors include honorable mention, Maya Hertlein and Raelee Williams; second team Layla Staroba; and first team, Annaka Tobias. Volleyball finished third in the Marawood North. Two weekends ago, we traveled to the final tournament of the season in Gilman, where we placed third out of eight teams.”
CROSS COUNTRY
Cross Country has had a very good season so far, competing in the home meet where both the boys' and girls' teams won; the Nightfall Classic in Marshfield where the boys' team beat the Number 1 and 2 ranked teams in the state and the girls' team also came out on top; Athens where the boys' team placed 2nd, and the girls also placed 2nd; Auburndale with both teams winning; and, finally, conference with the boys finishing in 3rd place and the girls in 2nd. The boys' team once again faced the other top teams from the entire state, only five points behind Rib Lake-Prentice and one point behind Marathon. The girls lost a close battle to Assumption by five points. Conference honors include honorable mention, Josh Edwards, Evan Johnson, and Trinity Smith; second team, Logan Sokolowski, Lyla Rahmer, Tana Henderson, Addie Gabay, and Nick Pesko; first team, Ruby McCormick, Leah Harper, and Gavin Esterholm. Gavin also earned the Marawood Conference Runner of the Year for the third year in a row.
STUDENT COUNCIL
The student council played a huge role in the coordination and planning of Homecoming week. They most recently reviewed Homecoming week to improve upon next year, and they also began planning the winter talent show.
MOCK TRIAL
Mock trial began last Wednesday, and this year is promising with a lot of returning participants and a lot of new faces. On behalf of the team, I can confidently say we are very excited and looking forward to this year's case.
ESPORTS
Conner Carlson wrote the following, “In esports, we have been having weekly practice on Monday with both middle and high school, also with some people having solo matches. On Tuesdays, high school has matches against other schools. On Thursday, middle school does the same. People who are in esports have been having a lot of fun and are always looking forward to the next practice."
FBLA
FBLA did a trash pickup on October 16 on County Road D and helped out at the Fall Harvest on October 4.
QUIZ BOWL
There were tryouts and the first meeting last week during Logger Time. They have their first match on Monday against Bayfield.
HOMECOMING RECAP
Homecoming was a big success with good attendance at the football game, bonfire, and dance. The parade was also well attended, even with the venue change [to Flambeau Avenue]. The activities also went very well. The freshman class won the hallway decorating, and the sophomores won the dress-up days. The juniors won the door painting, and the seniors won the float decorating contest. Overall, Homecoming was a very enjoyable time for the students.
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