In addition to being the most disappointing thing in the last year, the HSHS Sacred Heart and St. Joseph’s closure was also the most memorable, as almost 1,400 professionals lost their jobs. It felt eerily similar to the history-making closing of the Uniroyal Goodrich Tire Co. plant. On a more positive, exciting note, the largest event space in northwest Wisconsin, The Sonnentag Center, made its debut this year, opening the door to sports and special events. Finally, it was pretty dang cool to experience presidential campaign stops, including Democratic nominee and then-Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate Tim Walz, as well as now-Vice President JD Vance. Harris and Walz even stopped by the V1 headquarters and The Local Store, and Vance visited Olson’s Ice Cream! We welcome any politician of any party to support our local vendors. —Rebecca Mennecke