Chippewa Valley Book Festival

This coming Tuesday, October 19, at 6:30 p.m, local author Jerry Polling will be here at the Chippewa Falls Public Library to discuss writing and the concept of "Rising and Falling Action."

Poling, who works for the University of Wisconsin at Stout, is the author of A Summer Up North, which chronicles the time legendary baseball player Hank Aaron spent playing minor-league baseball for the Eau Claire Bears. He also wrote After They Were Packers: The Super Bowl XXXI Champs & Other Green Bay Legends, a look at the lives of some professional football players after retirement.

I hear very good things about Mr. Poling's books from our resident baseball expert Joe Niese, and I hope you'll join me Tuesday night in welcoming Mr. Poling to the Chippewa Falls Public Library. I myself plan on giving him my most rapt attention.

And please, email this to a friend or two who might be interested. I'd love to see a proper welcome for this local man of letters.

Falls: No Laughing Matter

Many people love pratfalls and see clumsiness as an essential part of the classic comedic sensibility. Witness Buster Keaton or Charlie Chaplin stumbling and bumbling through scenes or, more recently, the work of physical comedians like Chevy Chase or Chris Farley.

But as tempted as we are to laugh at the idea of people falling down, it is a problem. As posted on this blog previously, Chief Tom Larson was alarmed to recently find out that Chippewa County leads the nation in fall-related hospitalizations per capita. Just this morning, he told me that 20% of the paramedic calls that the Chippewa Falls Fire Department goes out each year on are for falls.

This is a problem that is especially prevalent among seniors. Some facts (courtesy of the Chippewa Health Improvement Partnership):


>Almost 1/3 of all adults over the age of 65 fall each year
>1% of falls result in hip fractures
>25% of adults who break a hip are dead within six months
>25% of adults with hip fractures require long-term care at a cost to Medicare of $3.1 billion per year
>Falls are the leading cause of traumatic brain injuries

And the fact is that the majority of falls are preventable. Simple things like decent lighting, picking up clutter and making sure the carpet on the stairs is tacked down can save you a doctor visit...or the life of a loved one.

Below are some links to some documents I scanned today that explain the problem and some things that can be done to help.

Facts on Falls for Seniors

Fall Prevention Brochure

Food for Fines Follow Through

"The charity that is a trifle to us can be precious to others."--Homer

Above you see just a portion of the food collected here at the library during the Food for Fines program in September. Just a while ago, I delivered said food to the Salvation Army Food Pantry at 521 N. Bridge Street here in Chippewa Falls. According to pantry coordinator Sally Hegg, the service sees about 30 people a day come through and it has been tough lately keeping food on the shelves.

Donations are always welcome, according to Ms. Hegg, and donations and contributions are tax deductible. The pantry's workers will be glad to give those who donate a receipt if they want one. Those who use the service must verify income & need. For more information, email Sally or call her at 715-726-9506 ext. 3.

The library will do Food for Fines again in the future and I urge you to watch this space for information on the upcoming "Give a Kid a Book" program, a coordinated effort of the Chippewa Falls Public Library, the Friends of the Chippewa Falls Public Library and The Spirit of Christmas of Chippewa County. During the Christmas season, we cooperate to include donated reading materials in gift packages put together for needy local families. The library will make donation boxes available for those patrons who want to make sure Santa includes a few new children's books under the tree.


For those who gave, THANK YOU! And we hope all our patrons continue to seek out opportunities to help local charities.