- This week on "Wisconsin Life":
Meet a rising pop music star from Wausau,
a group of Racine volunteers
who host a TV game show from a hospital,
a mother and son team who run a shoe store with a lot of soul,
and a Northwoods ER doc
who comes to the rescue of fishermen.
It's all ahead on "Wisconsin Life."
* *
- Funding for "Wisconsin Life" is provided in part
by Alliant Energy,
Lowell and Mary Peterson,
and Friends of Wisconsin Public Television.
- Hello, and welcome to "Wisconsin Life."
I'm your host, Angela Fitzgerald.
Today we're in the heart of the Northwoods,
exploring the many different ways to enjoy
the Northern Highland - American Legion State Forest.
This massive forest covers more than 200,000 acres of land.
And spans across Vilas, Oneida, and Iron counties.
It is also home to the highest concentration of kettle lakes
in the world.
I've already begun exploring
around some of the lakes here by bicycle
and that's no small task!
There are roughly 40 miles of bikes trails in the area
with many bike stations and rest stops along the way.
As you can see, I'm off to tour a bit more
of this gorgeous state forest while you watch our first story.
[bicycle bell dings]
We meet a singer-songwriter from Wausau named Maa Vue,
who's working to make a name for herself
in the pop music scene.
- crowd: Maa-Vue, Maa-Vue.
- The crowd chants, "Maa Vue, Maa Vue" at a Milwaukee concert.
- crowd: Maa-Vue, Maa-Vue.
- Then she takes the stage.
[pop music]
- Maa Vue is the headliner for a raucous evening of rock,
[rock guitar music]
rap
[rap beats]
and rhapsodic love songs.
[slow song]
All sung in the Hmong language.
- We do stick to the Western style
but we use the Hmong language.
Not a lot of people speak Hmong anymore.
It's dying.
Okay, so kind of crazy.
- Maa lives in Wausau, but is in Milwaukee
as part of a six-city nationwide tour
with fellow Hmong language performers.
- We want to be able to establish
a Hmong music industry.
- Judging from the Milwaukee crowd's reaction,
they are well on their way.
[pulsing pop music]
Maa's YouTube channel
is hugely popular in the Hmong community
and her most recent video has over three million views.
[speaking in Hmong] - "Rov Pom Koj Dua."
In English, it means "see you again."
And it's about how,
when you didn't really break it off with someone yet,
or you felt like that chapter wasn't closed,
what would you do differently?
[laughing] For some reason,
people really liked that song and that music video.
And just within,
I think it was just within one or two months
we reached one million views.
* Peb lub xyoo, dhau mus lawm ntsiag twb to
* Lub siab mob, los tsis pom koj rov los kho
- The language may be Hmong, but the emotion is universal.
- * Wb sib tso, sib nciam mus dub muag txig
- Honestly, that song, it was inspired by my listeners.
Because they were telling me their stories
and what was going on with them.
* xav tsa lub ncauj hu koj lub npe
- The crowd loves hearing it live.
- [crowd singing along] * los tsam hu koj,
* hu hu koj tsis xav teb
- The audience enthusiastically joins in on the chorus.
[crowd singing along] * Hauv kuv lub siab, nws yuav mob pes tsawg zaus
* Es kuv Mam li tso tau, hnov qab koj ntawm kuv mus
- I just love it when my listeners,
they are able to sing with me.
'Cuz music, when you can share it like that,
it's just a good feeling.
- The good feelings continue when Maa is joined on stage
by her collaborator, David Yang.
[audience cheers]
-David Yang: * Quaj seev nrhiav, mus taug wb tej qub ke
- He's also a Wisconsin resident that lives in Madison.
It's crazy how so many talents, you know, reside in Wisconsin.
- * Pom wb zem zuag, luag ntxhi sib tuav raws tes
- David Yang and myself, we are just the narrators.
I don't see myself as an actor.
- Some of Maa's reluctance to act out her songs
comes from her traditional Hmong views of what's proper
for a married woman.
- I don't want to do scenes like that
with a male that's not my husband.
Being married, that's a preference of mine.
- Many traditional Hmong,
including members of Maa's family,
don't approve of her career ambitions.
- You just work hard.
If you want it badly enough,
then you just keep working at it.
- It's her husband who has been most encouraging.
- That's really what inspired me.
He told me, "Maa, why do you push away your dreams?
"You only have one life."
And, you know, it's so funny that a line like that
can make, you know, change
and you see life in a different point of view.
So, he really changed my life.
- That relationship has also inspired Maa's music
like her first hit.
* Txhob mloog tej lus lawv hais
* Kom ua wb lub neej muaj kev txog nyem
- "Nyob ua ke." Nyob ua ke means stay together.
And, you know, I wrote that
based on my relationship with my husband.
When I wrote it, I was going through a hard time.
But you have to trust.
Keep working at it.
And eventually things will turn out well.
Just remember why you guys got together in the first place.
And that was the message that I wanted to send out there
to a lot of the young, married couples.
- It's a message that's resonated,
as seen in the YouTube comments.
- There was a listener who wrote to my song "Nyob Ua Ke."
She and her husband were pretty much at the point
of getting divorced.
- "I took out my car and just drove.
Your song started playing."
- Her tears just came and she just realized,
"Why did I get married to this man?"
- "Memories of all the good and bad times
we had shared and overcame flooded me."
"After it was over, I drove back home."
- I never realized, you know,
that music was such a healing thing.
To see people relate to it
and be able to share their stories like this,
after just listening to a song.
It's powerful.
- Ready? One, two, three, Y-D-R!
- Band: Whoo!
- You guys ready to turn it up?
[crowd cheers] - Yeah!
- "Powerful" is also the surprising adjective
that describes Maa on stage.
Short of stature, but big in stage presence.
Online, she's been called the "Hmong Adele."
- Adele is, she's phenomenal.
And the other person I look up to for inspiration is Beyoncé
'cuz she's just so fierce.
She's like the performer I want to be.
- These young Hmong fans certainly follow
that mainstream pop world, as well.
- Yeah, they could be going to a Bruno Mars concert, right?
Or an Ariana Grande show.
And so when they choose to come to our show,
it just makes me feel inspired, motivated.
And I just feel really grateful
that they are giving their Hmong community a chance.
- No doubt because Maa speaks directly to them.
And Maa hopes, inspires them.
- They're just so supportive.
And I'm just glad I can show them this path is possible.
Wow, if she can do it, why can't I do it?
You know, why not? Why not dream big?
- Thank you so much, Milwaukee!
Make some noise!
[crowd cheers]
- I decided to leave my bike behind
and explore a little bit more
of the Northern Highland -American Legion State Forest
by foot, with a hike to a spot named Cathedral Point.
I'm really enjoying the views here at Trout Lake in Vilas County.
I can also see how Cathedral Point got its name
with these incredibly tall white pine trees.
In addition to this trail, there are 14 miles of hiking trails
located in the region.
So there are plenty of opportunities
to enjoy the sights and sounds of the forest.
I think I'll relax here before I get my feet wet,
while you check out our next story.
We catch up with a team of hospital volunteers in Racine
who use a TV screen to lift the spirits of their patients.
["Yakety Sax," also known as the "Benny Hill Show" theme]
-It's time for
"Schwobble."
- It's a little bit of "Bingo."
It's a little bit of "Scrabble."
And it's a lot like "Wheel of Fortune."
- "Schwobble" originates live
from the basement of Ascension All Saints Hospital in Racine.
- Good afternoon and welcome to "Schwobble."
- And it's produced exclusively for the entertainment
of hospital patients and their visitors.
- We tell them right off the bat-- I do at least--
that's it's more interesting than a soap opera
and a lot more fun than the news.
Thank you.
- Volunteers like "Schwobble" host Kristine Hincz
have been putting on the show each week since 1984.
- You might be a "Schwobble" winner.
- Before the 1 p.m. in-house broadcast,
volunteers take to the hospital hallways,
spreading the word that the game will soon be on.
Hi, congratulations are in order, yes?
- Thank you. - A little boy, a little girl?
- Girl. - A little girl.
- Patients don't know what it's all about
until we enter their room and kind of introduce the game
with a game sheet.
- When you know the answer, we'd like you to call in.
We'll put your voice live on the air.
Then you can pick from all the great prizes that we have.
- Our own version of Vanna White
selects the appropriate letter.
The word starts to form.
She could just be in the pink.
Sometimes the clue gives it away right away.
Other times it just makes them have to think a little harder.
She just could be in the pink.
- Hi. Is it blushing bride?
- You are correct.
Okay, we've got our second "Schwobble" winner right here.
- Cause it's so corny.
But it's so simple.
And that's our premise with "Schwobble."
We want the people to relax a little bit.
They laugh, smile.
When you see a patient smile, I mean, it's phenomenal.
It's just so wonderful.
- Loves his or her work.
- Wanting to make people smile
is what unites the "Schwobble" team.
[harmonica plays key note]
[humming same note]
* It had to be you.
- Many "Schwobble" members have also been Sweet Adelines.
- "Cooler By The Lake," that's our name.
Our bond is the love of singing and its four-part harmony
a cappella style.
And I'm a baritone.
- Sweet Adeline is a very different breed of people.
You want to entertain and sing and have fun
and make people smile.
- * You've got a friend in me.
- I came from New York
and didn't have a friend in the world here.
- *... friend in me.
Found Sweet Adelines a short time after arriving
and made wonderful friends.
It gave me a lot of confidence.
Therefore I got some confidence to stand in front of a camera
and help put on the "Schwobble" game.
Space number three.
Sometimes they vanish.
- This fifteen-year-old may be "Schwobble's" biggest fan.
- Magic-- magician's assistant.
- Katrina always schedules her monthly procedures
on a "Schwobble" day.
It makes her hospital stay a prizewinner.
- You got it. Okay, you're live on the air.
What is the answer? - Magician's assistant.
All right.
What would you like this time for your prize?
- I'll take the yo yo, please.
- The yo yo.
Are you a Yankees fan? - No.
- Oh, okay. - I like yo yos.
- I'm a Yankees fan.
Okay, you like yo yos. I don't blame you.
And this one is an official yo yo.
Good job.
- Soon the yo yo and the other prizes
are on their way to the winners.
- Did you have fun?
- Yeah. - Yeah.
- Then all of sudden, if you win, that's it.
It's a surprise.
It's a surprise and a pleasant surprise.
- And it's not only the patients who feel like winners.
- Sure! Who wouldn't want to make someone else happy?
- And we certainly hope
you don't have to be in the hospital next week,
but if you are, we will be right here next Tuesday,
ready to play "Schwobble."
Remember, if you don't have any wrinkles,
you haven't laughed enough.
["Yakety Sax," also known as the "Benny Hill Show" theme]
- I've managed to make my way
to Hemlock Lake in Oneida County,
where fishing guide and canoe restorer, Dave Osborn,
is going to help me navigate this area by canoe.
This remote lake is located on the west side
of the Northern Highland - American Legion State Forest
and offers visitors the chance
to enjoy a quiet and relaxed setting.
Thank you for having us here today, Dave.
- Thanks for having me. It's been my pleasure.
- So before we get out on the water,
can you tell us about this canoe that you've restored?
- Well, it's about 80 years old,
was built in Peshtigo, Wisconsin
by the Thompson Brothers Boat Company.
It's wood and canvas.
And I restored it a few years ago.
And it's ready to go for another 80 years.
- Nice. Okay.
So nothing to worry about? - Nothing at all.
- Okay. Wonderful.
- Grab a paddle and let's go. - Let's head out on the water.
- All right.
* *
- That was a really fun and peaceful ride.
Thank you for taking me out, Dave.
- Thank you, Angela.
It was a great paddle.
- It was.
I'm going to travel to our next spot in the forest,
while you check out this story from our Wisconsin Life Team.
We meet a mother and son team who run a business in Grafton
that still sees a future in old-fashioned service.
[hammering sound]
- The sound of nailing and the scent of leather
have filled the air of this shop in Grafton
over three generations.
- My grandfather built the business in 1946.
- Here's the "Now Open for Business."
The first of December 1946, he opened the door
for the first time.
[door squeaks]
- Arlene's father, Arthur, started the business
which Arlene runs today with son, James.
- My mother has been here since day one.
- I was raised upstairs.
Jim was working here since he was out of high school,
before he was out of high school.
- Earliest memories:
Anything from sweeping,
which I still do some of that.
Grandfather taught me everything, basically hands-on.
I've always liked to work with my hands.
- Soon James would have a lot on his hands
when his grandfather was hospitalized.
- This is a little touchy area for me because he said, "I'm scared."
Put his arm around me and I says,
"That's okay, Dad. It'll be all right."
And he never did come home.
- Arthur's absence left a big hole back at the shoe store.
- And you don't, all of a sudden,
don't have that person there to ask.
So that was a big difference.
And Jim, of course, Jim was only 20...
22 when he took on the full load.
- When this opportunity came up
for working back here,
it just kind of fell into place.
- He could have said, "No, I can't do this."
He could have told me that and I would have understood.
So we had to carry on.
- The cobbler skills James learned from his grandfather
and has mastered over the last 30 years
are rare today.
- In today's society,
it's probably considered a throwaway society.
Nowadays, somebody might have 20 pairs of shoes.
Years ago, you probably had only one or two pair
that you wore all the time.
So the good ones, you know,
they last and people hang onto them as long as possible.
- Our customers have been very loyal.
We have very good customers.
And that would be the other thing.
If we didn't have them, we wouldn't be here.
- Absolutely.
- Loyal customers
and alterations to shoes for medical reasons
have kept the repair side of the business going.
- Many times, it doesn't come out even.
They've had a hip replacement, a knee replacement,
so then they've got to have something done with the shoe.
- James does the build-ups and repairs.
Mom Arlene manages the retail side.
Between my mother and I, it's kind of a joint effort
if you want to call it that.
We complement each other, as far as working together.
- We don't do any of the high fashion.
We do comfort.
Comfort, fitting, service.
Service, big thing.
People do not realize that there's still places
that give 'em service,
which we do.
- Yeah, I like those.
- What do you think? How's that feel?
Stand up and walk around a little bit.
When we put a shoe on, they look as us kind of strange and say,
"I haven't had anybody put a shoe on my foot in a long time."
- Okay, off to your next stop.
- Okay, thank you.
- Take care.
Word of mouth is probably the best advertising.
And I guess being here for 70 years
probably has a lot to do with it,
with word of mouth.
- And if you treat your customers right,
you're going to get good words.
If you don't, they're not going to be good words.
- All right, then you can just sign this one.
- Good words for good work.
Work started 70 years ago
and carried on today
by mother and son.
- Without Jim,
we wouldn't be here really.
- Not without you, we wouldn't be here,
because that's where it started.
- So, I don't know what he's going to do without me.
- As best we can.
As best we can.
- Yeah, we don't change fast.
- Yup.
- We can't talk about Northwoods recreation
without talking about fishing.
In order to ensure a great fishing season each year,
the lakes in this area are stocked
by the Department of Natural Resources' Fish Hatchery.
I'm here with Gary Muench,
manager of the Art Oehmcke Fish Hatchery
here in Woodruff.
How are you doing today, Gary? - Good.
- So tell us about the work that you do here.
- Here at the hatchery, we raise Walleye and Muskies.
On any typical year,
we'll raise 25,000 to 30,000 large fingerling Muskies
that'll be about 11 inches.
About 125,000 large fingerling Walleyes
that are about 7 to 8 inches.
Our Walleyes here get sent pretty much in this area.
The northeast part of the state.
Muskies on the other hand,
they get stocked throughout the state.
We send fish down to the Madison area.
Fish around Milwaukee area.
- Wow. That's amazing.
And so that amount of fish will,
the ones that stay in this area--
that's what is actually found in the lakes?
- If Mother Nature can't provide the number of fish
that an area lake needs, that's where we come in as a hatchery.
We provide a supplement.
- What makes this area so special, as far as fishing?
- This area, you know,
the Northern American - Legion State Forest,
there's miles and miles of public property.
Miles and miles of shoreline.
I think there's more lakes in the Oneida and Vilas County
areas than anywhere else in the state.
So just provides a great backdrop to being fishing.
Even on those days when the fish aren't biting,
it's a unique experience.
- What is your all-time favorite fish to eat?
- It would probably have to be the Walleye.
Not just because we raise 'em, but because they're good to eat.
- I'll have to keep that in mind for later.
Thank you so much, Gary. - You bet.
Up next, let's meet another Wisconsinite
with a story to tell.
Over in Hayward, we met up with an ER doctor
with a special tribute to unlucky anglers.
- Every year, thousands of people head to the Hayward area
for a vacation.
And most take the time to do a little fishing.
While it's unlikely they'll catch a fish big enough
to land them in Hayward's Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame.
Every year more than a hundred people who are hooked on fishing
will get hooked while fishing.
They'll end up meeting Dr. Dayle Quigley.
Not at the boat landing, but in a Fishing Hall of Shame,
located just across town in the Hayward Hospital Emergency Room.
- We saw five in one day about a week ago.
- Dr. Dayle is the Medical Director at the ER.
- We do have some locals who come in,
but for the most part, they're tourists.
- They have boxes of old hooks
removed from thumbs, necks, arms and more sensitive spots.
But some of the best lures end up
in the Emergency Department Tackle Box.
- This is two or three years of just the pretty lures.
- This display case was built by Dr. Bob Swenson.
He's retired now,
but in the 1990s
he removed a lot of hooks from a lot of fishermen.
- In the '90s is when
the lures started getting more colorful and pricey for Muskies
and that's why I said, "Let's save, basically, as many lures,
"but give patients credit for it
by having their body part and date."
- The stories have similar beginnings:
an errant cast or someone fell down on their lure.
- I would say the majority just maybe touch it,
and then they start hurting so much that they scream or grunt,
and they say, "No, I'm going to the ER."
- Most of them are embarrassed more than anything else
that there actually in the ER for this.
- Removing a treble hook does not require much
in the ways of modern medicine.
- It's not a delicate operation.
- That barb holds tissue,
and the connective tissue under the dermis is really tight.
- Walk in, numb it up, get it out, done.
So we have your typical wire cutters.
We have some heavier duty gauge ones.
This is my favorite actually.
I call this the "Jaws of Life."
Not as big as what they have with the fire department,
but it does what we need for the big Muskie lures.
- Most fishermen come directly from the lake.
Dr. Bob remembers a boy
who hooked a fish who hooked the boy.
- A largemouth bass and patient
came into the ER with the hook on his right arm,
with the bass he was holding with his left hand.
- They even weighed the bass
after the hook was out of the angler and the angled.
- Two-and-a-half pounds. - That's not bad!
- Yeah, 16-incher. Yeah, it's a keeper.
Isn't it pretty here, though?
This is a nice place to fish.
- Dr. Bob knows getting hooked can happen to anyone.
- I can't feel a damn thing.
- It happened to him
just a few days after talking about his "Wisconsin Life."
But he decided to take care of it himself.
- Ah! [labored breathing] Oh!
[laughing]
First, first.
It's a first.
- I actually know somebody who,
when their grandchildren come to fish,
cuts the barb off the hook so that nobody gets hooked.
- Since the hooks keep coming, Dr. Bob says,
"It's probably time to put some more trophies on the wall."
- This display case
is only for a couple years,
and it filled up, and I guess
I'm going to build another one for them.
- Ten to two and it's wrist. It's not arm.
- I'm not supposed to look like I'm shot putting.
- Right. - Yeah.
- I'm glad I could share with you the sights and sounds
of the Northwoods here
at the Northern Highland -American Legion State Forest.
If you'd like to learn more about this state forest
or the stories from this week, visit WisconsinLife.org.
And remember, we'd love to hear about your "Wisconsin Life."
So send us your ideas at WisconsinLife@wpt.org.
I can't resist just a little bit more exploring while I'm here.
This is the Raven Trail.
It's just one of many nature trails here
in the Northern Highland -American Legion State Forest.
I have to say goodbye, but I'll see you next time.
I'm your host, Angela Fitzgerald,
and this is our Wisconsin Life.
Happy trails. * *
- Funding for "Wisconsin Life" is provided in part
by Alliant Energy,
Lowell and Mary Peterson,
and Friends of Wisconsin Public Television.