1st Place: Justin Vernon
2nd Place: Judy Clark
3rd Place: Hank Aaron

If you are interested in sighting sensitive, bearded men, the Chippewa Valley is definitely the place to be. In fact, Western Wisconsin is a like a game preserve for artistic, outdoorsy, facial-haired fellows. Amongst all of these specimens, you just may catch a glimpse of the especially rare bearded troubadour Bonicus Iverus, or our biggest local celebrity, Justin Vernon. Although his current spate of musical success has him touring all over the world, he does own a big homestead outside of town, and he regularly stops at The Joynt to water. If spotting the elusive Justin seems like too much work, our second place celebrity can be viewed several times a day on WEAU TV-13 news. Judy Clark’s interviews with non-celebrity locals are breathtaking and sublime. Our third celebrity is actually extinct in our area – Hank Aaron no longer lives around here, but his baseball accomplishments starting in Eau Claire help retain his local celebrity status. – Eric Rasmussen