Combating childhood obesity

K4 teacher Nicole Gustaveson lays out a bowl of fruit for her students to share during a snack time at Shining Stars Preschool and Child Care Center in Suamico, Wis., Wednesday morning, Sept. 29, 2010. The center has been chosen as a pilot site for a program designed to help combat childhood obesity.

Logan Heimerl, 3, and Lauren Suchalla, 2, compare raspberries they picked from the center's garden.

Fire in the Town of Lawrence

On my drive into work I couldn't miss the giant plume of dark gray smoke. I thought it must have been a large barn on fire. Turned out it was a small garage shop that was under control quickly thanks to four local fire companies that responded (they really pulled out all the stops on this one).

Hose spray comes out of a window to a shop on fire at 2758 Golden Glow Road in Lawrence, Wis., Wednesday morning, Sept. 29, 2010. A car inside a shop caught fire while being serviced. De Pere, Greenleaf, Lawrence, and Wrightstown fire departments all responded to the fire.

A Lawrence firefighter runs to the scene.

Firefighters setup command and give instructions on the scene.

Neighbors watch as De Pere, Greenleaf, Lawrence, and Wrightstown fire departments knock down the fire.

Green Bay Gamblers media day

Appleton-native Green Bay Gamblers forward C.J. Eick (15) answers questions from reporters during Media Day at the Resch Center in Ashwaubenon, Wis., Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 28, 2010.

Green Bay Gamblers players, from left, Aaron Harstad (2), Travis Lynch (20), C.J. Eick (15), and Robert Francis (11) look at a poster showing last year's team celebrating their Clark Cup Championship during Media Day at the Resch Center in Ashwaubenon, Wis., Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 28, 2010. Head coach Eric Rud said with 10 returning players, another Clark Cup Championship is a possibility.

Free beer

Budweiser sure made a buzz when it announced National Happy Hour, a marketing event affording some tavern-goers to sample Budweiser products for free on Wednesday. For a business story previewing the event...

Warehouse employee Paul Below moves beer into place at Dean Distributing, Inc., in Green Bay, Wis., Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 28, 2010, in anticipation of tomorrow's Budweiser National Happy Hour.

East River egret

An egret rests in the foggy East River near East Mason Street in Green Bay, Wis., Thursday afternoon, Sept. 23, 2010.

Thrive

Thrive is a partnership between Bellin Health and the Green Bay School District helping students, teachers and parents care more about their health through healthy eating and daily activity. It's paying dividends and the school district is expanding it to 9 more schools.

We've shot a fair amount of Thrive-related art. This time we focused on the class activity activity breaks.

Kids are apparently really into yoga nowadays! They can actually do some of the really challenging poses. Myself? I'd get stuck just sitting cross-legged. Oh, to be flexible again...

Third grade students Nadia Martin, left, and Ariana Falk, right, relax with some yoga at the start of an activity/movement break (part of the Thrive program) at Kennedy Elementary School in Green Bay, Wis., Wednesday, Sept. 22, 2010.

From left, third graders Christian DeGroat, Brandon Eland, and Nicole Petrowuske pretend to take swings at a Green Bay Bullfrogs baseball game during the activity break.

Friday Night Football, Week 4

Bay Port High School's Beau LaFave (17) eludes Green Bay Notre Dame High School's Alex Miller (20) and Andrew Kwaterski (48) in the third quarter of a game in Suamico, Wis., Friday evening, Sept. 17, 2010.

Green Bay Notre Dame High School's Alex Miller (20) gets dragged down by Bay Port High School defenders Ben Messenger (19), Nick Beese (9), and Ben Nicla (34) in the third quarter.

Green Bay Notre Dame High School's Thurgood Dennis (4) and Austin Welhouse (42) bring down Bay Port High School's Dylan Cleereman (24) in the first quarter.

Green Bay Notre Dame High School's Peter Mortell (15) closes in on Bay Port High School's Dylan Cleereman (24) in the first quarter.

Amputation can't stop him

From our story about N.E.W. Lutheran High School offensive/defensive lineman DaVonte King by Scott Venci:

"Every day in the hospital, I would say, 'Why? Why did this have to happen to me?'" King said. "And then I would pray. Another day I would just be like, 'God, why did you do this to me? Why? Why me?

"But I realized that it's whatever. I have to live with it for my life. I can do most of the things other kids can do my age."

That includes playing football.

King (no relation) is a freight train with a fun personality. You can tell after watching him for five minutes that he loves to play and isn't going to let anything stop him. I really liked his posture and intensity in the photo below.

N.E.W. Lutheran High School's DaVonte King prepares to make a hit during practice in Green Bay, Wis., Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2010. King lost his left leg while in middle school.

Friday Night Football, Week 3

A few of Friday's good ones...

Ashwaubenon High School quarterback Austin Kassner (14) is sacked by Green Bay Southwest High School's Matt Freeman (4) in the third quarter of a game in Green Bay, Wis., Friday evening, Sept. 10, 2010.

Ashwaubenon High School's Trevor Campbell (24) and Gavin Marquart (23) bring down Green Bay Southwest High School's Jake Gorzek (28) in the first quarter.

Ashwaubenon High School's B.J. Schoonover (5) is tackled around the neck by Green Bay Southwest's Matt Freeman (4) in the first quarter.

Green Bay Southwest High School's Sam Duval (24) breaks up a pass intended for Ashwaubenon High School's Drew Taylor (2) in the first quarter.

Ashwaubenon High School quarterback Austin Kassner (4) throws while being hit by Green Bay Southwest High School's Tyler Aerts (33) in the second quarter.

Ashwaubenon High School's Ben Semenak (71) strips the ball from Green Bay Southwest High School's Tyler Brown (30) in the third quarter. Ashwaubenon recovered the fumble.

Barn cats and garden cats: It's the life

This was an assigned feature that turned out to be a lot of fun to work on. Who would have thought that all of our local greenhouses keep cats? From our story by Kendra Meinert:

"Their job description goes something like this: Must be able to look adorable, greet customers, find secret napping spots and resist the urge to eat the petunias. Mousing experience preferred. Beautiful working environment and excellent benefits.

Cats on the payroll at area greenhouses and gardens have actual duties — it just might not look like it when they're sprawled out mid-aisle in a splotch of morning sun somewhere between the coneflowers and catnip or covertly dozing beneath the shady cover of giant hosta leaves."

Chloe, a cat at Stone Silo Prairie Gardens, prowls through nearby wildflowers in Ledgeview, Wis., Thursday, Aug. 12, 2010.

Maggie finds shade on a hot Thursday afternoon up in a rafter in the barn at Stone Silo Prairie Gardens.

Jan Woz, owner of Mayflower Greenhouse in Hobart, Wis., lets Felix, the greenhouse's cat, out to roam the business, Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2010.

Felix solicits attention from friends Anna Hunt, 6, of Hobart, left, and Ellie Jung, 6, of Green Bay.

Felix takes a cat nap in the container room.

Felix strikes a pose.

Tearing It Down

From our story by John Styf: "On Wednesday, the nearly 100-year-old former Bishop's House on Catholic Diocese of Green Bay property at 1910 S. Webster Ave. was torn down. And it was done without public warning, with the for sale sign still posted in the front yard...Some [onlookers] pointed out where they used to work. Some took photos. Others cried or shook their heads."

The Chancery was built in 1911.

A crowd of people gathered to watch crews begin razing the old Chancery building on the campus of the Catholic Diocese of Green Bay in Allouez, Wis., Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2010.

Red bricks tumble as a crew began razing the old Chancery building.

Diocesan workers Gladys Powell, left, and Karen Bass, right, react to a large section of the top floor of the old Chancery building falling onto a pile of rubble. The two, and some others watching the demolition, said they once had offices in the building.

Lunch with the Packers

The Green Bay Area Chamber of Commerce's annual Welcome Packers luncheon lets local businesspeople and members of the public buy a seat at the lunch table with a Packers player. It's a crap shoot. You might get starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers at your table, or you might get the rookie who'll be lucky to make the practice squad. It's a fun affair. This year, things looked decidedly western... for a reason...

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is escorted into the Green Bay Area Chamber of Commerce's annual Welcome Packers luncheon by chamber ambassador Sue May at the Lambeau Field Atrium in Green Bay, Wis., Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2010. Rodgers supplied cowboy hats to several teammates, according to those seated at his table. Packers head coach Mike McCarthy remarked in his address, "I see a number of players are already dressed for Dallas, Texas." Dallas is the location for Super Bowl XLV in February 2011.

Green Bay Packers tackle Breno Giocomini sits with a table at the luncheon.

Green Bay Packers wide receiver Donald Driver gives a hug to Lance Andrew, 12, of Madison, Wis., after signing an autograph at the luncheon at the Lambeau Field Atrium in Green Bay, Wis., Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2010. Andrew said his mother, Deana Andrew (an avid Donald Driver and Packers fan) passed away when he was 6 years old. "This is probably the best day of my life," he said.