Volume One Staff

Aug. 10, 2020

E.C. Public Arts Council Receives State Grant, Starts Local Artist Database

the newly revived arts council is one of 10 state recipients of the grant, which will help unemployed or underemployed local artists

Rebecca Mennecke, photos by Andrea Paulseth

The Eau Claire Public Arts Council was one of 10 organizations across Wisconsin to receive the “We’re All In” Creative Workforce program grant from Arts Wisconsin in partnership with local organizations ...

Aug. 4, 2020

Have You Ever Thrown An Axe? Now's Your Chance!

Ironside Axe Club offers opportunity for stress relief

Rebecca Mennecke

If you think chucking axes isn’t an ideal date night for you and your honey, think again. Or at least that’s what Manny Kohl and Anna Obrecht – sweethearts-turned-managers of the new Ironside Axe Club in Eau Claire – say about their new business venture on London Road ...

Aug. 4, 2020

Victory in Vignettes: Local Theater Group Celebrates Suffrage

Rebecca Mennecke

“Well-behaved women rarely make history.” It’s a common enough quote, but one local theater group – in partnership with the League of Women Voters – decided to take a look at the women ...

Aug. 4, 2020

DOGGONE FUN: Children’s Theatre Presents ‘101 Dalmatians’

featuring food, friends, and fun, this dinner theater is one you won't want to miss

Rebecca Mennecke, photos by Andrea Paulseth

Life is good for Roger and Anita and their two dogs, Pongo and Perdita, until Cruella De Vil aims to steal their dalmatian puppies to create her new fur coat. Disney’s 101 "Dalmatians" will hit The Oxford’s stage ...

Aug. 4, 2020

41st Annual Artswest Exhibit Goes Online

Rebecca Mennecke

If you’re looking for something fun to do while enjoying the comfort of your home, look no further than the 41st Wisconsin ArtsWest juried art exhibit, sponsored by the L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library ...

Aug. 4, 2020

Eau Claire 14-Year-Old Publishes First Novel

age is nothing more than a number for one local writer ...

Rebecca Mennecke, photos by Andrea Paulseth

If there’s one thing Georgia Kendziera knows about starting her career at the ripe age of 14, it’s that you should do what you love. And for her, that means writing a book. And then publishing it ...

Aug. 4, 2020

Local Writer Gives Voice to the Voiceless

new BIPOC writers group offers space for writers of color

Rebecca Mennecke, photos by Andrea Paulseth

Though Yia Lor – a member of the Chippewa Valley Writers Guild advisory board – enjoys listening to stories from others and connecting with families and children as a social worker, her true passion ...

Aug. 3, 2020

Black Lives Matter Mural Memorializes Vibrant Lives Lost

'This is still happening,' one muralist says. 'It's not necessarily gotten better.'

Rebecca Mennecke, photos by Andrea Paulseth

“Each time the world loses a Black life, a mother, father, son, daughter, best friend, or neighbor is lost ...

Jul. 30, 2020

Mabel Tainter Suspends Fall Season Through End of November

during ‘intermission’ period, executive director plans to depart

Rebecca Mennecke

“We want to assure you that we are working hard to ensure that our Mabel will be around for the next 130 years,” the media release said. “We are ...

Jul. 24, 2020

‘Conversations in Color’: New Livestream Event Continues Race Discussion

new weekly show debuts Monday on Converge Radio

Rebecca Mennecke, photos by Andrea Paulseth

Dr. Selika Ducksworth-Lawton and Ed Hudgins’ new radio series, "Conversations in Color," seeks to fill that need by discussing a number of race-related topics. Their first episode, which will be broadcast ...

Jul. 21, 2020

TOUR DE NACHO: Eau Claire Couple Sets Out to Find Best Nachos in Town

"We love nachos," said one local nacho-lover, "obviously."

Rebecca Mennecke

When life gives you lemons, eat some nachos. Or at least that’s what Parker and Rachael LeMire – high school sweethearts-turned-Eau Claire couple – have done amid the global pandemic: eat some good nachos ...

Jul. 21, 2020

Pop-Up Food Truck Event Hopes to Sustain Local Food Economy

some might call it a ‘food truck frenzy’

Rebecca Mennecke, photos by Andrea Paulseth

After watching all of the festivals and fairs around the Chippewa Valley get cancelled, Kyle Yudes from Castle Insurance Agency in Eau Claire knew he had to do something ...

Jul. 21, 2020

Menomonie Market Food Co-Op Goes Virtual

Rebecca Mennecke

Since the coronavirus pandemic first started, people’s shopping habits have changed significantly, according to Kendall Williams,  marketing manager at the Menomonie Market Food Co-Op ...

Jul. 21, 2020

Menomonie's Revamped Stout Craft Co. Features 24 Craft Beers, Food – and Axe Throwing

‘We want to be known for craft beer and craft foods,’ says general manager of what was formerly Stout Alehouse

Rebecca Mennecke, photos by Andrea Paulseth

Stout Craft Co. in Menomonie – formerly Stout Ale House – got a facelift as of June, with a total rebrand of the restaurant. With new paint, new TVs, new LEDs, new neons, new trimwork, a new bar ...

Jul. 21, 2020

Blugolds, Blue Devils ... Both Green

Chatting With Sustainability Leaders at UWEC, UW-Stout

Rebecca Mennecke

"The most beautiful thing about the concept of sustainability is that it’s an intersection; that means that when we apply a sustainable lens to something as overwhelming as our current public health crisis ..."

Jul. 21, 2020

Faced With Colon Cancer, Wisconsin Author Wrote Ferociously

Christopher Kunz published four books in four months. ‘He was pretty magical with his craft,’ says his wife.

Rebecca Mennecke

Christopher Kunz didn't let cancer take him down. Instead, he wrote ferociously ...

Jul. 21, 2020

Local Author Perseveres Despite MS Diagnosis

'Writing a book is like a miracle,' says local author Jenny Knipfer. Writing three? Now that's a feat.

Rebecca Mennecke, photos by Andrea Paulseth

Jenny Knipfer woke up one day in 2014 to find that her toes were numb. The following day, she woke up to numb legs. Then the next day, the numbness had made its way to her midriff. That’s when she made an appointment with a neurologist ...

Jul. 21, 2020

A Passion For Great Music: Converge Radio Welcomes New Station Manager

Rebecca Mennecke

When Ashley Wiswell began working at Converge Radio in December 2018, she had no idea that she would find her passion ...

Jul. 21, 2020

Opening Shot | July 22, 2020

photos by Rebecca Mennecke

BLACK LIVES STILL MATTER. Yet another mural is in progress in downtown Eau Claire. The mural was designed and ...

Jul. 20, 2020

Young Artists Unite: Midwest Artist Academy Will Offer Place for Teens to Be Creative Together

Rebecca Mennecke

B.J. Hollars remembers when he was a high school student and he sat on the sidelines writing poetry while a group of his friends played a game of pick-up basketball. Though he didn’t exactly feel left out, he ...