Jay, who has lived in the Waukesha area for nearly 20 years, is an active volunteer who serves on numerous local boards and committees. He’s married to Colleen with three kids having gone through the Waukesha schools. He is the VP of a local distribution company and currently serves on several area Boards.
If you are like me, you spend a fair amount of your winter time planning and thinking of ways to maximize your summer. Travel, parties, vacations, and a host of other activities then make the summer months fly by far too quickly.
But what about the “other people”? How do our local officials truly get away from the public eye and enjoy their summer fun? Are they at all different from the rest of us?
In search of these answers, following are random responses from some “local notables”:
Waukesha Mayor Larry Nelson:
“Of course I must start with how exciting my new Mayoral duties are, and how every day brings fresh opportunities for summer fun right here in Waukesha. In addition, this summer my wife Dawn and I are looking forward to Spring Green to see plays at American Players Theatre. In my opinion, it's the best outdoor theatre in the country (while indoors, our Waukesha Civic Theatre is a close second), and we also recommend the Spring Green General Store for brunch. We are also looking forward to a short trip to New York to see 91-year-old Les Paul perform, see the Tony award winning play, "The History Boys," and revisit the Metropolitan Museum of Art where we were engaged in 2003. At the end of August, we're headed to Seattle, a city I've always wanted to visit. I love visiting different cities to come up with creative ideas I can bring back to Waukesha.”
Waukesha School Superintendent David Schmidt:
“My summer plans are quite normal…
I plan to work most of the summer to plan for the upcoming year. Our administrators and board continue to meet and work (while using some of their vacation time) and prepare for the coming school year. There will be a vacation with my family for one week in July and playing new dad to two new ten week old kittens. I will also continue to take out my frustrations and stress on yard work which I truly enjoy, especially the ever changing colors of new flower beds (this includes mulching, deadheading, weeding, watering, watching).
My goals include getting out on the golf course once every weekend and trying to keep a high handicap from growing too much. I also hope to spend as much time as possible with Bobbie. She has four weeks of vacation this summer and will spend some of this time in Waukesha. And no summer vacation would be complete without my faithful iPOD bringing me every Bob Dylan song recorded. Beyond this, my plans are small for the summer and, like every year, summer is way too short to prepare for another school year and get some R+R. “
Waukesha County Manager of Public Works Betsy Crossewaite:
Keeping up with an active family of husband and two teenage boys sometimes doesn’t leave time for relaxation. So, prior to the start up of summer activities and the hectic season of developing the $25 million Department of Public Works budget for the County, I took time over Memorial Day weekend to relax at a quilt retreat with friends at a 100 year old mansion in Mineral Point. While there, a trip to Spring Green not only brought the discovery of a new quilt shop, but also put me right in the middle of Spring Green’s Annual “Bob Fest”, a tribute to Bob Dylan and his music. Dave Schmidt, you’ve got to check this out!
I like to try new things, and since last summer’s endeavor was my first ever Triathlon competition (of which I had to learn to swim to compete in it!), I had to try something new this summer. My 15-year-old son and I spent a week in Juarez, Mexico with the Episcopal Church youth group building a house for a family of four. The group of 24 built a 450 square foot house that more than quadrupled their current living conditions. Two months ago I was excited about a new adventure with my son. Today, I can tell you that working in 108 degree, blazing sun with 14 high school kids was more than an adventure and it was more than just building a house. It was about creating a home and security for a family and it was about seeing 14 of our community’s youth mature into young adults before my eyes. My week in Juarez has been the most rewarding experience of my life. Hard to know how I’ll top this one, but I’ll try next summer!
Town of Brookfield Administrator Rick Czopp:
“Having recently purchased a home in the Town, I have joined the ranks of home landscapers. After exhaustive research from my couch via HGTV, a plan was selected and plantings commenced. While doing all this outside work, it struck me that there could be more pet dogs then residents in my Community. And the dogs have created a great way to meet people with opening lines like “What’s your dog’s name?”. After conferring with my wife, I now find additional summer plans encompass mulching, weed-whacking, crack-filling and many other too-exciting-to-talk-about home activities.
In addition, there are always new opportunities for growth and development within Town government. The Board and myself continue exploring methods of providing fi
