You're listening to Perspective on WFHR 1320 AM, 97.5 FM.
I'm Melissa Kaye, bringing you news in our community.
During this interview, I'm talking with Port Edwards District Administrator and Ed Hoyer Elementary School Principal, James Beena, on Thursday, August 13th.
Thank you for joining me, Jim, to bring the community an update from the Port Edwards School District.
Thank you very much for having me once again, Melissa.
Good morning.
And today we have two special guests with us, Mrs. Leslie Arndt and Mr. Ben Jennings.
They're involved with a special project happening in the school district, moving the historic statue of Mr. John Edwards to the John Edwards High School campus next summer.
Welcome, Leslie Arndt.
Thank you, Melissa.
I'm really pleased to be here.
And thank you for being here, Ben Jennings.
No problem.
Appreciate you having me.
So Leslie, let's start with you.
Tell our listeners a little bit about yourself and how you're involved with the moving of this historic statue.
Tell us about the statue, maybe a little bit about the history.
So
yes, I'm Leslie.
I am a descendant of John Edwards, Jr., who the statue was created for.
And I'm with the Alexander Terrible Foundation, and it was our mission to get...
get the statue moved to a new spot away from the middle site and into another visible spot at the John Edwards High School.
We've been thinking about it for a few years now and the opportunity arose recently over the past about a year now that we've been planning this project.
And yeah, the statue, we actually found some pretty interesting historical information about it.
It was originally,
created in 1890, well it was paid for in 1893 and contracted with a artist down in Chicago and it was originally placed at the Forest Lawn Cemetery back shortly after it was created and then in 1961 it was moved to the mill site and it spent a number of years there and now that the mill has
It has been closed down and the YMCA is no longer there.
We thought we really wanted to have a more visible site for the statue.
It
feels like it's kind of lonely down there for him.
So we've been in contact with the school and they had open arms.
They really wanted to have it at their site and it's perfect location for it since the school is named after him.
And also, Ben Jennings actually reached out to me because he's very passionate about historical projects and
wanted to take a look and see if there's how he could help out with this.
So it's been a great partnership between all three of us and the foundation and it's been really, really exciting to get this move forward.
So within the next year or so, we'll probably have it located at the school.
And I can turn it over to Ben because he's got all the details on actual movement of the studio.
Sure.
Before we switch to Ben, Leslie, tell me again the name of the foundation and then what is your, you said you're a descendant of John Edwards?
Yes.
He would have been, I believe, my great-great-grandfather.
So the Alexander Charitable Foundation was created at, well, there was actually, it was called the Nkusa Paper Foundation, when the paper company was still active and going.
And then it was switched over, the money was switched over and created back to the Alexander Charitable Foundation.
And that was created when the paper company was brought out by Georgia Pacific and they needed a place to house all the historical archives.
And so we created the Alexander House, which probably many people know about as the Center for Art and History in Port Edwards.
So it created houses that are archived and it's also a small art gallery.
And that's run by the Alexander Charitable Foundation and
Foundation was created with the actually my mother and five, four of her sisters were all the first members of the foundation for descendants of John Alexander.
And so that was, they had all since passed away except one of them is still still living down in the Chicago area.
But now it's not until the next generation and we're looking, we were looking at
really thought this was a good time to move the statue, just to get more prominence for it at the school.
Okay.
So now, Ben, let's transfer over to you.
Tell our listeners about your expertise and why you're involved with the moving of this statue.
Yes.
Well, I'm a sculptor by trade.
It's kind of a condition I have art, that is.
I was born and raised here in Wisconsin Rapids.
I worked for the City of Wisconsin Rapids as well.
I went to the University of Minnesota, got my Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 3D studio arts and metal casting and ceramics.
So I have a familiarity with sculpture and things of that nature.
This is kind of my first approach at working with heavy stone.
I had contacted the Alexander or Leslie actually and reached out to her.
And, you know, since the mill has been decommissioned and partially demolished, I just found it a good opportunity to try to procure some of the, some of the more historical elements that were there to carry on the, you know, the tradition, the history.
the legacy, the identity of our community and our paper industry.
They thought it was a great idea because that's really what they want to, the story they want to tell to the public and the future generations.
I feel really strongly about that.
I think it's super important.
And Leslie's right.
It's sitting over there in a corner of Port Edwards where people don't really go now because that area is definitely slowed down with the mill being closed and the YMCA now being torn down.
And part of that is still going to remain as a community area.
But so Ben, what are some of the preparations that you're doing to make this move?
Well, one of the bigger.
was to get compliance from Wood County.
I had met with them several times, met with the village of Port Edwards, all of those different stakeholders to kind of pitch the idea of restoration and relocation to redesignate the location for the sculpture.
They were, you know, it took several meetings back and forth and a pretty thought out plan.
And they agreed to give the statue back to the foundation.
And we made everything shake out that way, which has been really nice.
I'm really happy that they, you know, it's difficult sometimes to get through red tape with some of these things.
And they made it happen.
with us so that was really great.
Wonderful and when is the move actually going to happen?
We're thinking you know there's like six or seven sections of the monument and it's fastened together probably with pins and there's some adhesive that are on there so well probably the first move will probably be to get the the top portion off which is the John Edwards Junior portion.
um and I'll be able to get that back to the studio and carefully work on cleaning um and restoring it resealing it and finishing it that'll be probably the first the first step um and then the other pieces um hopefully will be able to be cleaned potentially on site uh they're going to be very heavy so uh but we have you know there's people in the community that you know um this this means a lot to
to more than just, you know, me as an artist, you know, feeling how important it is and how unique it is to our area.
There's more to it than, you know, how the foundation feels about it.
There's members, a lot of members of the community that also, you know, it holds significance to as well.
So,
you know,
we've been open to hearing what the community has to say about it and what kind of they would like to see happen to it.
So, yeah.
And, you know, we'll get it cleaned up.
Well, we'll get it reassembled.
We've done some mock-up designs of what that would look like.
And we presented that to the school board.
They were thrilled with it.
And then as far as the restoration of the statue itself, is it going to change how it looks?
I mean, it's fairly weathered, I would guess.
Not that I know that much about statues, but tell me a little bit about the restoration of it.
How will it change it?
Yeah, for sure.
It'll give it new life.
I mean, there's different techniques that you can use for cleaning things of this nature.
They're sensitive.
The materials can be soft since they're fairly old.
But our goal is to freshen it up and seal it to preserve it for the next 100 years.
I've heard of dry ice cleaning.
We'll probably use some soft bristle brushes.
different types of soaps.
I don't know if we'll have to use any acids, but those are some potential options for cleaning it.
And then a clear coat finish that will protect it and allow for easy cleaning in the future.
Okay, well let's just take a brief pause here to hear from our sponsors.
I'm Melissa Kay talking with Port Edwards District Administrator Jim Bina along with Leslie Arndt and Ben Jennings, and you're listening to Perspective on 1320 a.m.
975 FM WFHR.
Welcome, you're listening to Perspective on WFHR 1320 AM, 97.5 FM.
I'm Melissa Kay bringing you news in our community.
I'm speaking with Port Edwards District Administrator and Ed Hoyer Elementary School Principal Jim Beena along with Leslie Arndt and Ben Jennings.
And we've been talking about moving the historic John Edward statue from the location it's been in for a very long time.
Ben, we were talking about some of the logistics of moving it and some of their... There's actually some other outside companies involved with this.
Let's talk about the actual moving of the statue, Ben.
Yeah, so this is a particularly unique...
I have contacted Neiman's towing.
I know they have the capability of lifting up a semi truck and turning it over on its side.
So that would be a potential option for us.
I met with them at the site and kind of going over the logistics of what that looks like.
Again, like I said, it would be in portions.
And then as far as reassembly, I've also been in contact with Hartle Monuments as well.
work that they do in the cemeteries, and I think they're equipped enough to handle this type of task as well with a crane.
Well, and that statue, like Leslie told us in the first half here, has been moved before.
Yes, it has.
It was originally placed in the Forest Long Cemetery.
late 1800s, excuse me.
And yeah, and it was moved in 1961.
And so now we'll have its third move to the high school in 2027.
Okay.
And Leslie, as president of the foundation, you've made this a priority.
Talk a little bit about that and the foundations involved in a little more.
Sure.
So yeah, we've, you know, we've admired that foundation or that, excuse me, that statue for many, many years.
And
And it's just been on our radar to get that into a more prominent space.
Number of the people on the foundation board and even some members from Port Evers and community members have been passionate about it and saying, you know, we want to see that move to a more, a better location for prominence and for the community to see it more often.
In our plan, it's going to have a lovely location at the school with lighting and some nice, have a lot of descriptions to it.
And it'll get a lot, hopefully get a lot more attention that way from all the various area communities.
And Ben, one more question for you.
Is there any concerns that you have?
Are there worries that you have about moving this statue?
Well, yeah, of course, right?
to take the utmost caution when it comes to this.
Like I said, it's a unique request to have, you know, try to get someone to help with the moving.
But, you know, I think there's, I think Hardle Monuments for sure has enough experience.
It'll definitely have to be, probably a structure will have to be built around it.
And then from that point, it'll, you know, attach to the piece and then we'll be able to move the structure.
just to assure that nothing gets damaged.
I believe it's carved limestone.
So it can be quite sensitive.
And it's not something that's super easily repairable if something were to chip off.
So yeah, we're gonna be taking full caution when it comes to that.
The granite pieces, for example, though, I mean, I've got some...
granted off of the admin building and tried to test some of it to its strength and how it reacts to the power tools and it's quite hard.
So I got a feeling that we're going to be pretty safe with that.
We just need a heavy enough piece of equipment to get it up off the ground and onto a trailer for transport.
Gotcha.
That sounds like a very sensitive and well thought out plan.
Let's move to you now, Jim, and tell us a little bit about where this statue is going to be located at the high school.
Sure, Melissa.
And again, thank you very much, Ben, and thank you, Leslie.
Leslie and Ben approached me about a year ago with this very exciting opportunity to bring the John Edwards Junior statue to the high school campus.
you know, Ben and Leslie, they've touched on the history a little bit.
Our high school, of course, is high school and middle school is John Edwards Middle and High School named for John Edwards.
Our historical building is approximately 100 years old.
It was built at a time when the paper industry was thriving.
It was in its somewhat early years still here in Central Wisconsin.
And of course, Mr. Edwards was a very, very prominent
individual in the paper industry.
So we felt as a school district, as a school board, as stakeholders in the community that it was only fitting that we would be able to provide a site to kind of merge Mr. Edwards, his statue here with our historical high school as well.
specific location that you asked about.
We've got a very scenic southeast.
corner lot of our high school.
It's at the corner of Levine and Second Street.
We've got a very nice open area there with some mature trees and some floral plantings and things like that.
We're looking to place the statue there near the corner of Levine and Second Street.
And Leslie touched on that a little earlier in the segment.
We would like to put some plantings around it, some stonework, some signs, possibly some solar lighting.
to really make it a prominent heritage site that will really celebrate Mr. Edwards and his connection to the community and to our school district.
So will there be things going on?
We've talked about that this is going to happen next summer.
So we have an entire school year between now and then.
Will teachers be talking about this during the school year?
We've been sharing a little bit of information.
We have not shared a great deal yet until we can kind of get through all of the initial steps that will allow us to bring it to bring the statue here to the school.
But now we've gotten through some of those hurdles and we're going to be sharing some more information.
Once the statue is on site, we've had some.
preliminary conversations about an unveiling, a ceremony, et cetera, kind of bringing the John Edwards statue and merging it with the John Edwards middle school and high school.
So, yes, we do have some initial plans to celebrate bringing the statue over and having an unveiling.
that it does seem very fitting and I have to be honest I am a transplant to this area so I didn't know all of this history but when I was driving around Port Edwards and I came across the statue I was like oh this is kind of interesting back over here far away from like why isn't it by the high school?
Absolutely.
So it's good that it's going to be coming home.
In our last couple of minutes here, James, would you just share with us a couple of the back to school where we're getting into the meat of it now?
It's going to be happening here very soon.
Absolutely, Melissa.
And again, thank you.
We're going to switch gears a little bit from this very exciting heritage.
this heritage move of the statue over to what's coming up here in just a couple of weeks.
It is back to school time, isn't it?
Just a few things on our school calendar.
We have our beginning of the year in-service meetings for all returning staff on August 25th, 26th, and 27th.
Those are typically held at our elementary school.
Our elementary school is still under
It's under some renovation right now and I'll talk about those projects in just a moment.
So we're gonna do our most early in-service meetings here in the John Edwards High School.
Regarding our construction, we started our construction projects on June 5th and we have had typically between three and five contracted companies on site at the elementary, a couple of them here at the middle school and high school, five days a week this summer.
removing some asbestos.
They've been putting new ductwork in, new heating, new cooling, new registers in the rooms.
The registers and the heating units were original to the elementary school from 1968.
So it was certainly in need of an upgrade.
All of those projects are on time and we are scheduled to, yep, they are scheduled on time.
Everything is running as it should.
And we are starting our elementary calendar one week later.
We're going to be starting school here at the middle and high school on Tuesday, September 1st.
And because of those projects at the elementary, we're going to be starting school at the elementary on Tuesday, September 8th.
Oh, nice.
So the littles will get a little bit of an extra spring break or summer break.
They do.
They get an additional week off this year.
All right.
Well, that wraps up our time for today.
Jim, was there anything else you wanted to share before we close out?
I guess I would just like to wrap up a little bit about our projects that are going on here.
As anyone who has had additions or renovations done to their home, they know what a hectic time that is
with so
many details.
And I would just like to give a big public thanks to our summer help and our custodians who've been working here.
They've been working side by side with all of our contractors.
And they have our buildings and grounds looking phenomenal.
So thank you very much to all of our summer staff and all of our custodians who have really stepped up this summer to make our school district look fantastic.
It really does take a village.
Well,
I'm Melissa Kay, speaking with Port Edwards District Administrator and Ed Hoyer Elementary School Principal, James Beena.
Thank you, James.
Thank you very much, Melissa.
And then also with Leslie Arndt with the Port Edwards Foundation.
I don't think I got that title right, Leslie.
Correct me.
It's okay, that's Alexander Terrible Foundation.
There we go.
Thank you for talking with us today, Leslie.
Yeah, thank you for having me, Melissa.
And thank you, Ben Jennings, for filling us in on what's going to be happening with the moving of the
statue.
Absolutely.
Well, I will look forward to speaking with you all again as this project moves forward.
And when the move actually happens, I can't wait to cover the unveiling of the statue being moved.
Thank you all.
Thank you.
And thank you to listeners joining us for news in our community.
On perspective, 1320 AM, 97.5 FM, WFHR.
You're listening to Perspective on WFHR 1320 AM, 97.5 FM.
I'm Melissa Kaye, bringing you news in our community.
During this interview, I'm talking with Port Edwards District Administrator and Ed Hoyer Elementary School Principal James Beena on Thursday, August 13th.
Thank you for joining me, Jim, to bring the community an update from the Port Edwards School District.
Thank you very much for having me once again, Melissa.
Good morning.
And today we have two special guests with us, Mrs. Leslie Arndt and Mr. Ben Jennings.
They're involved with a special project happening in the school district, moving the historic statue of Mr. John Edwards to the John Edwards High School campus next summer.
Welcome, Leslie Arndt.
Thank you, Melissa.
I'm really pleased to be here.
And thank you for being here, Ben Jennings.
No problem.
Appreciate you having me.
So Leslie, let's start with you.
Tell our listeners a little bit about yourself and how you're involved with the moving of this historic statue.
Tell us about the statue, maybe a little bit about the history.
So
yes, I'm Leslie.
I am a descendant of John Edwards, Jr., who the statue was created for.
And I'm with the Alexander Terrible Foundation, and it was our mission to...
get that statue moved to a new spot away from the, from the mill site and into another visible spot at the John Edwards High School.
We've been thinking about it for a few years now and the opportunity arose recently over the past about a year now that we've been planning this project.
And yeah, the statue, we actually found some pretty interesting historical information about it.
It was originally,
created in 1890, well it was paid for in 1893 and contracted with a artist down in Chicago and it was originally placed at the Forest Lawn Cemetery back shortly after it was created and then in 1961 it was moved to the mill site and it spent a number of years there and now that the mill has
It has been closed down and the YMCA is no longer there.
We thought we really wanted to have a more visible site for the statue.
It
feels like it's kind of lonely down there for
him.
So we've been in contact with the school and they had open arms.
They really wanted to have it at their site and it's perfect location for it since the school is named after him.
And also Ben Jennings actually reached out to me because he's very passionate about historical projects and
um wanted to take a look and see if there's how he could help out with this so um it's been a great uh partnership between all three of us and the foundation and um uh it's been really really exciting to get this move forward so within the next year or so we'll probably have it located at the school
And I can turn it over to Ben because he's got all the details on actual movement of the studio.
Sure.
Before we switch to Ben, Leslie, tell me again the name of the foundation and then what is your, you said you're a descendant of John Edwards?
Yes.
He would have been, I believe, my great-great-grandfather.
So the Alexander Charitable Foundation was created at, well, there was actually, it was called the Nkusa Paper Foundation, when the paper company was still active and going.
And then it was switched over, the money was switched over and created back to the Alexander Charitable Foundation.
And that was created when the paper company was bought out by Georgia Pacific, and they needed a place to house all the historical archives.
And so we created the Alexander House.
probably many people know about as the Center for Art and History in Port Edwards.
So it created houses that archived and it's also a small art gallery.
And that's run by the Alexander Charitable Foundation.
And the foundation was created with the, actually my mother and four of her sisters were all the first members of the foundation for descendants of John Alexander.
And so that was,
They have all since passed away except one of them is still still living down in the Chicago area.
But now it's not until the next generation and we're looking we're looking at really thought thought this is a good time to move the statue just to get more prominence for it at the school.
Okay, so now Ben let's transfer over to you.
Tell our listeners about your expertise and why you're involved with the moving of this statue.
Yes, well I'm a sculptor by
trade.
It's kind of a condition I have art that is.
And I was born and raised here in Wisconsin Rapids.
I worked for the city of Wisconsin Rapids as well.
I went to the University of Minnesota, got my bachelor of fine arts degree in 3D studio arts and metal casting and ceramics.
So I have a familiarity with sculpture and, you know, things of that nature.
This is kind of my first approach at
working with heavy stone.
I had contacted the Alexander or Leslie actually and reached out to her and, you know, since the mill has been decommissioned and partially demolished.
I just found it a good opportunity to try to procure some of the some of the more historical elements that that were there to carry on.
The you know the tradition the history the legacy the identity of our community and our paper industry They thought it was a great idea because that's you know, I mean that that's really what they they want to You know the story they want to tell to the public and the future generations so
I feel really strongly about that.
I think it's super important.
And Leslie's right.
It's sitting over there in a corner of Port Edwards where people don't really go now because that area is definitely slowed down with the mill being closed and the YMCA now being torn down.
And part of that is still going to remain as a community area.
But so Ben, what are what are some of the preparations that you're doing to make this move?
Well, one of the bigger.
was to get compliance from Wood County.
I had met with them several times, met with the village of Port Edwards, all of those different stakeholders to kind of pitch the idea of restoration and relocation to redesignate the location for the sculpture.
So it took several meetings back and forth.
a pretty thought out plan.
And they agreed to give the statue back to the foundation.
And we made everything shake out that way, which has been really nice.
I'm really happy that it's difficult sometimes to get through red tape with some of these things.
And they made it happen with us.
So that was really great.
Wonderful.
And when is the move actually going to happen?
Um, we're thinking, um, you know, there's, there's like six or seven sections of the monument.
Um, and it's fastened together, um, probably with pins and, uh, there's some adhesive that are on there.
So, um, we'll probably, the first move will probably be to get the, the top portion off, which is the John Edwards Jr.
portion.
Um, and I'll be able to get that back to the studio and carefully work on cleaning.
and restoring it, resealing it and finishing it, that'll be probably the first step.
And then the other pieces hopefully will be able to be cleaned.
Potentially on site, they're going to be very heavy.
So, but we have, you know, there's people in the community that, you know, this means a lot to more than just, you know, me as an artist, you know, feeling how
important it isn't how unique it is to our area there's more to it than you know how the foundation feels about it too there's members a lot of members of the community that also you know it holds significance to as well so you know we've been open to hearing what the community has to say about it and what what kind of they would like to see happen to it so yeah and you know we'll get it cleaned up well we'll get it reassembled we've done some mock-up designs of what that would look like
And we presented that to the school board.
They were thrilled with it.
And then as far as the restoration of the statue itself, is it going to change how it looks?
I mean, it's fairly weathered, I would guess.
Not that I know that much about statues, but tell me a little bit about the restoration of it.
How will it change it?
Yeah, for sure.
Well, it'll give it new life.
I mean, there's different.
different techniques that you can use for cleaning things of this nature, you know, they're sensitive.
The materials can be soft since they're, you know, they're fairly old, but you know, our goal is to, you know, freshen it up and seal it to preserve it for, you know, another the next hundred years.
I've heard of like dry ice cleaning.
We'll probably use some soft bristle brushes.
different types of soaps.
I don't know if we'll have to use any acids, but those are some potential options for cleaning it.
And then a clear coat finish that will protect it and allow for easy cleaning in the future.
Okay, well let's just take a brief pause here to hear from our sponsors.
I'm Melissa Kay talking with Port Edwards District Administrator Jim Bina along with Leslie Arndt and Ben Jennings, and you're listening to Perspective on 1320 a.m.
975 FM WFHR.
Welcome.
You're listening to Perspective on WFHR 1320 AM, 97.5 FM.
I'm Melissa Kaye, bringing you news in our community.
I'm speaking with Port Edwards District Administrator and Ed Hoyer Elementary School Principal Jim Beena, along with Leslie Arndt and Ben Jennings.
And we've been talking about moving the historic John Edwards statue from the location it's been in for a very long time.
Ben, we were talking about some of the logistics of moving it and and some of their the outs.
There's actually some other outside companies involved with this.
Let's talk about the actual moving of the statue, Ben.
Yeah.
So this is a particularly unique.
request.
I have contacted Neiman's towing.
I know they have the capability of lifting up a semi truck and turning it over on its side.
So that would be a potential option for us.
I met with them at the site and kind of going over the logistics of what that looks like.
Again, like I said, it would be in portions.
And then as far as reassembly, I've also been in contact with Hartle Monuments as
well.
type of work that they do in the cemeteries, and I think they're equipped enough to handle this type of task as well with a crane.
Well, and that statue, like Leslie told us in the first half here, has been moved before.
Yes,
it has.
It was originally placed in the Forest Long Cemetery.
late 1800s, excuse me.
And yeah, and it was moved in 1961.
And so now we'll have its third move to the high school in 2027.
Okay.
And Leslie, as president of the foundation, you've made this a priority.
Talk a little bit about that and the foundations involved in a little more.
Sure.
So yeah, we've, you know, we've admired that foundation, or excuse me, that statue for many, many years.
And
And it's just been on our radar to get that into a more prominent space.
Number of the people on the foundation board and even some members from Port Evers and community members have been passionate about it and saying, you know, we want to see that move to a more, a better location for prominence and for the community to see it more often.
In our plan, it's going to have a lovely location at the school with lighting and some nice, have a lot of descriptions to it.
And it'll get a lot, hopefully get a lot more attention that way from all the various area communities.
And Ben, one more question for you.
Is there any concerns that you have?
Are there worries that you have about moving this statue?
Well, yeah, of course, right?
I mean, we're going to.
to take the utmost caution when it comes to this.
Like I said, it's a unique request to have, you know, try to get someone to help with the moving.
But, you know, I think there's, I think Hardle Monuments for sure has enough experience.
It'll definitely have to be, probably a structure will have to be built around it.
And then from that point, it'll, you know, attach to the piece and then we'll be able to move the structure.
just to assure that nothing gets damaged.
I believe it's carved limestone.
So it can be quite sensitive.
And it's not something that's super easily repairable if something were to chip off.
So yeah, we're gonna be taking full caution when it comes to that.
The granite pieces, for example, though, I mean, I've got some...
granted off of the admin building and tried to test some of it to its strength and how it reacts to the power tools and it's quite hard.
So I got a feeling that we're going to be pretty safe with that.
We just need a heavy enough piece of equipment to get it up off the ground and onto a trailer for transport.
Gotcha.
That sounds like a very sensitive and well thought out plan.
Let's move to you now, Jim, and tell us a little bit about where this statue is going to be located at the high school.
Sure, Melissa.
And again, thank you very much, Ben, and thank you, Leslie.
Leslie and Ben approached me about a year ago with this very exciting opportunity to bring the John Edwards Junior statue to the high school campus.
You know, Ben and Leslie, they've touched on the history a little bit.
Our high school, of course, is high school and middle school is John Edwards Middle and High School named for John Edwards.
Our historical building is approximately 100 years old.
It was built at a time when the paper industry was thriving.
It was in its somewhat early years still here in Central Wisconsin.
And of course, Mr. Edwards was a very, very prominent.
individual in the paper industry.
So we felt as a school district, as a school board, as stakeholders in the community that it was only fitting that we would be able to provide a site to kind of merge Mr. Edwards, his statue here with our historical high school as well.
specific location that you asked about.
We've got a very scenic southeast corner lot of our high school.
It's at the corner of Levine and Second Street.
We've got a very nice open area there with some mature trees and some
floral plantings and things like that.
We're looking to place the statue there near the corner of Levine and Second Street and Leslie touched on that a little earlier in the segment.
We would like to put some plantings around it, some stonework, some signs, possibly some solar lighting to really make it a prominent heritage site that will really celebrate Mr. Edwards and his connection to the community and to our school district.
So will there be things going on?
We've talked about that this is gonna happen next summer.
So we have an entire school year between now and then.
Will teachers be talking about this during the school year?
We've been sharing a little bit of information.
We have not shared a great deal yet until we can kind of get through all of the initial steps that will allow us to bring it to bring the statue here to the school.
But now we've gotten through some of those hurdles and we're going to be sharing some more information.
Once the statue is on site, we've had some.
preliminary conversations about an unveiling, a ceremony, et cetera, kind of bringing the John Edwards statue and merging it with the John Edwards middle school and high school.
So, yes, we do have some initial plans to celebrate bringing the statue over and having an unveiling.
that it does seem very fitting and I have to be honest I am a transplant to this area so I didn't know all of this history but when I was driving around Port Edwards and I came across the statue I was like oh this is kind of interesting back over here far away from like why isn't it by the high school?
Absolutely.
So it's good that it's going to be coming home.
In our last couple of minutes here, James, would you just share with us a couple of the back to school where we're getting into the meat of it now?
It's going to be happening here very soon.
Absolutely, Melissa.
And again, thank you.
We're going to switch gears a little bit from this very exciting heritage.
this heritage move of the statue over to you know what's what's coming up here in just a couple of weeks it is back to school time isn't it just a few things on our school calendar we have our beginning of the year in service meetings for all returning staff on august 25th 26th and 27th those are typically held at our elementary school our elementary school is still under
It's under some renovation right now, and I'll talk about those projects in just a moment So we're going to do our most early in-service meetings here in the John Edwards High School Regarding our construction We started our construction projects on June 5th, and we have had typically between three and five Contracted companies on site at the elementary a couple of them here at the middle school and high school five days a week this summer they've been
removing some asbestos.
They've been putting new ductwork in, new heating, new cooling, new registers in the rooms.
The registers and the heating units were original to the elementary school from 1968.
So it was certainly in need of an upgrade.
All of those projects are on time.
And we are scheduled to, yep, they are scheduled on time.
Everything is running as it should.
And we are starting our elementary calendar one week later.
We're going to be starting school here at the middle and high school on Tuesday, September 1st.
And because of those projects at the elementary, we're going to be starting school at the elementary on Tuesday, September 8th.
Oh, nice.
So the littles will get a little bit of an extra spring break or summer break.
They do.
They get an additional week off this year.
All right.
Well, that wraps up our time for today.
Jim, was there anything else you wanted to share before we close out?
I guess I would just like to wrap up a little bit about our projects that are going on here.
As anyone who has had additions or renovations done to their home, they know what a hectic time that is with so many details.
And I would just like to give a big public thanks to our summer help and our custodians who've been working here.
They've been working side by side with all of our contractors.
And they have our buildings and grounds looking phenomenal.
So thank you very much to all of our summer staff and all of our custodians who are really, they've really stepped up this summer to make our school district look fantastic.
It really does take a village.
Well, I'm Melissa Kay, speaking with Port Edwards District Administrator and Ed Hoyer Elementary School Principal, James Beena.
Thank you, James.
Thank you very much, Melissa.
And then also with Leslie Arndt with the Port Edwards Foundation.
I don't think I got that title right, Leslie.
Correct me.
It's okay, that's Alexander Terrible Foundation.
There we go.
Thank you for talking with us today, Leslie.
Yeah, thank you for having me, Melissa.
And thank you, Ben Jennings, for filling us in on what's going to be happening with the moving of the statue.
Yeah, you bet.
Absolutely.
Well, I will look forward to speaking with you all again as this project moves forward.
And when the move actually happens, I can't wait to cover the unveiling of the statue being moved.
Thank you all.
Thank you.
And thank you to listeners joining us for news in our community.
On perspective, 1320 AM, 97.5 FM, WFHR.