This week, my adventures reporting for The Denmark News involved a great deal of discussion about what is next for the current Early Childhood Center (ECC) building. It was in the middle of December when it first clicked for me that the fate or future of the structure would be one of, if not the, most significant and contested developments I would cover in the coming months.

For as long as I can remember, the annual Maribel Lions Picnic has been a yearly highlight as well as the unofficial start to the summer season. Since I was a small child, "Maribel Weekend" has meant two days of excitement and fun in the nearby town.

This week, I had the honor and privilege of accompanying the Denmark Vikings and their legion of loyal hometown fans as our baseball team obtained their third consecutive state title. Over the course of two exhilarating and nerve-wracking days at Fox Cities Stadium, those courageous Vikings managed to pull off two spectacular wins and bring home a historic third state trophy.

Over the past ten months reporting for The Denmark News, I have had the honor and privilege to help cover just some of the amazing things happening in the Denmark High School Athletics Department.

This Sunday, I had the honor of covering this year's Denmark High School Graduation. Although after enduring my own commencement ceremony eleven years ago I had thought I would be happy never attending another again, I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to salute and send off this year's senior class.

By: Alex Sekora, Contributor

In 1918, the village of Denmark had many reasons to celebrate. They had recently completed paving Main Street downtown with concrete. Residents completed a large service flag commemorating all of the 85 men who entered the service during World War I. The village also led all of the towns in Brown County in securing their entire allotment of Liberty bond subscriptions to support the war effort.

Of the many problems our current society faces, one in particular has raised my concern more and more as of late, especially in its impact on younger generations than my own--that is the ever-growing issue of social media and its ever-deepening effect on our lives. Social media has become more than just an economic powerhouse, it has infected all but every aspect of our everyday life and, I believe, has made us far worse off for it.

One thing that has stood out to me over the past months reporting on the goings on of Denmark and its surrounding area, is the deep and committed partnership between our community's farmers and our schools. While agriculture is important to everyone everywhere as a source of food, for the people of the Denmark area, it is so much more than that.

Video and other marketing innovations on the rise

By: Chris C. Nelson, Publisher/Owner

Over the past three weeks of my writing for The Denmark News, I have had the opportunity to cover the annual rummage sales in Maribel, Denmark and now Eaton. Each sale brought in thousands of shoppers to these small communities in search of the deals and steals and provided a chance for many to get to know them better.

By: Chris C. Nelson, Publisher/Owner

Maybe you sing her praises daily and never forget to say thank you. Perhaps she’s always on your mind but it only takes an occasional call or visit to remind her of just how important she is to you.

However you honor your mother, the opportunity to truly make much of her is this Sunday. Mother’s Day is the holiday that’s dedicated to the special women in our lives; the ones who raised us, loved us, and continuously put us first.

We at The Denmark News hope you have been enjoying the additional local content in the past few weeks’ editions. While I have been hard at work writing articles and taking photos for the paper, we have also had the immense benefit of receiving a large number of pictures and stories from community members. This submitted content has been a great addition, and we only hope to grow on what we have started.

By: Chris C. Nelson, Publisher/Owner

Last week, I had the honor of being sworn in as an official member of the Maribel Lions Club. At a meeting at Suster's attended by our fellow Lions and their wives, two other new members and myself were officially inducted into the organization by Lions District Governor, Dave Brinkman.

Over the past eight months working for The Denmark News, I have had the privilege to see first-hand all the amazing things happening in our community, as well as the awesome people and organizations that make them possible. This experience has left me feeling extremely hopeful for what the future holds for our town and its people. So many in our community want what is best for everyone and are willing to put in the hard work necessary to accomplish it.