Congratulations to Becca Mosier
2025 New Holstein Area Chamber of Commerce Distinguished Person of the Year
Congratulations to Becca Mosier
Becca Mosier, 2025 Distinguished Person of the Year
Becca Mosier’s story is one any community would like—a native who left for college and a career only to return to her small hometown to make a big, positive impact.
The New Holstein Area Chamber of Commerce is recognizing the impact Mosier has made by making her the New Holstein Distinguished Person of the Year for 2025. Mosier will be honored at this Thursday evening’s annual dinner of the Chamber at the Altona Supper Club.
“Anybody who thinks it takes something magical, it doesn’t,” Mosier said about making a positive impact and even winning an award like Distinguished Person of the Year. “It doesn’t take anything extra special to be part of the community.”
Mosier has not only been part of New Holstein, she has been a leader and a person willing to take on new roles and start new organizations for the betterment of the community in which she grew up.
The daughter of Val Zibung and Julie Ehlert said, “I have a lot of memories of playing outside, long summer days at Kiwanis Park—in the creek. It is a really good place to grow up.”
She recalled biking to her parents’ business in the mid-1980s and helping her mother file paperwork.
But after graduating from New Holstein High School in 1999, Mosier said she knew she wanted to spread her wings a bit and chose to go to college at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “You get kind of restless,” she said. “It (New Holstein) feels kind of small. I was pretty anxious to leave.”
Teaching in Chicago
Mosier earned her degree in Elementary Education with a minor in Spanish, including studying for one summer in Mexico. Teaching jobs were hard to come by at that time and she was recruited by the Chicago Public School District. She started her career there as a full-time substitute teacher working in a wide variety of schools. “I’m grateful for the experience,” Mosier said. “It solidified the gross inequity of your zip code and where you live. It was eye opening in that way.”
Mosier said she felt like she made an impact in teaching right from the start. Her first assignment was a week-long stint at a middle school, after which the students said they wanted her to be their regular teacher.
But Mosier said even before she graduated college she wondered if full-time teaching was what she really wanted to do. After 15 years away from New Holstein, she returned home and went into other lines of work including being an underwriter at Acuity Insurance and later working for Premier Financial Credit Union based in New Holstein.
She made another shift in her career path about five years ago, going back into education as a regular substitute teacher in the New Holstein School District. Willing and able to teach at any grade level, Mosier is kept very busy filling in for NHSD teachers. “It’s actually the variety that makes it a great fit for me,” she said.
Not cut out for cubicles
She added that she realized at age 40 that she was not cut out for “cubicle life” and wanted to get back into teaching on a part-time basis, teaching any subjects the district needs. “We have a really good school district,” Mosier said, adding that she thinks all people would be well-served to at least briefly experience substitute teaching—similar to jury duty.
Working in the schools helped Mosier make one of her first big impacts on the community. She learned the district’s Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) was going to dissolve so she decided to help start a similar group—the New Holstein Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA).
Mosier continues to be the president of the PTSA, which allows students in grades 6 through 12 to be part of it. While the PTO operated primarily at the Elementary School, the PTSA operates at all levels and is open to anyone in the community. Annual dues are $10 per year, $7 for students. The organization meets the third Monday of each month (except December, June and July) at 6 p.m. at the High School. A catalog fundraiser held each fall is its primary source of revenue. PTSA has sponsored staff appreciation events and purchased other items needed by the school and its staff.
But Mosier did not stop with PTSA and substitute teaching when it comes to helping the youths of the community. Following in the footsteps of her entrepreneur father and also identifying a need for local families, she started Full Circle Community Closet.
Need for affordable clothing
Mosier said she identified a need for affordable clothes for families after she started substitute teaching in New Holstein. She would give her children’s old clothes to a friend, and also collected clothes at school to give to children in need. It soon became apparent that it would be good to have a storefront to serve the area with these items, and almost two years ago Full Circle Community Closet was opened on Wisconsin Avenue.
Now it its second location along STH 32/57, the business is a non-profit and has a Board of Directors but Mosier provides the day-to-day management of the store with assistance from local volunteers, more of whom are needed. She is paid an hourly rate but could be getting a salary based on how the non-profit is set up. Mosier has declined getting the salary to help Full Circle cover its costs.
More people are finding out about Full Circle all the time, Mosier said. Donations of new, gently used and other nice items arrive regularly, as do donations of money. Full Circle has been able to connect clothing and other items to kids in need, something teachers have often used their personal funds for in the past. “I don’t think they should have to do that,” Mosier said.
An eBay shop recently was started by Full Circle to expand its ability to sell items throughout the country.
Enjoys what she does
Mosier said she enjoys working at Full Circle and gets “into it” when she is there, often seeing hours pass by before she realizes it.
Not unlike those days in the 1980s when she helped her mother with the filing, her husband Adam and children Harper, 12, and Hayden, 9, also help out with Full Circle.
Not only does she sometimes have her kids at Full Circle, she also sometimes has them in class as their teacher. She said her children love school and like it when she is their sub, even though she has the reputation among students of being a “strict sub.” “I take that as a compliment,” she said.
Mosier also exudes a strong front in her service as a City of New Holstein alderperson. She said she became interested in local government as a citizen who fought to keep New Holstein’s Police Department when the idea was floated to have Calumet County provide law enforcement coverage for the city.
Now in her third two-year term as an alderperson, Mosier said, “I’m proud of the city administrators that we’ve brought on board. I’m proud that we continue to work on being open and progressive.” She added that she is happy that there are three women on the Common Council.
“There’s no guidebook,” Mosier said about jumping into government service. “I’m winging it. I’m figuring things out as I go.... There’s lots of things I’d like to focus on.”
As part of her service to the City of New Holstein, Mosier represents the council on the Library Board. That is fitting since the library is a place she spent a lot of time as a child growing up in New Holstein.
“It’s good that I came back,” Mosier said. “I can see the value in a smaller community. Community has become a buzzword.... We need to take care of each other.” Source: Article link
The New Holstein Area Chamber of Commerce is recognizing the impact Mosier has made by making her the New Holstein Distinguished Person of the Year for 2025. Mosier will be honored at this Thursday evening’s annual dinner of the Chamber at the Altona Supper Club.
“Anybody who thinks it takes something magical, it doesn’t,” Mosier said about making a positive impact and even winning an award like Distinguished Person of the Year. “It doesn’t take anything extra special to be part of the community.”
Mosier has not only been part of New Holstein, she has been a leader and a person willing to take on new roles and start new organizations for the betterment of the community in which she grew up.
The daughter of Val Zibung and Julie Ehlert said, “I have a lot of memories of playing outside, long summer days at Kiwanis Park—in the creek. It is a really good place to grow up.”
She recalled biking to her parents’ business in the mid-1980s and helping her mother file paperwork.
But after graduating from New Holstein High School in 1999, Mosier said she knew she wanted to spread her wings a bit and chose to go to college at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “You get kind of restless,” she said. “It (New Holstein) feels kind of small. I was pretty anxious to leave.”
Teaching in Chicago
Mosier earned her degree in Elementary Education with a minor in Spanish, including studying for one summer in Mexico. Teaching jobs were hard to come by at that time and she was recruited by the Chicago Public School District. She started her career there as a full-time substitute teacher working in a wide variety of schools. “I’m grateful for the experience,” Mosier said. “It solidified the gross inequity of your zip code and where you live. It was eye opening in that way.”
Mosier said she felt like she made an impact in teaching right from the start. Her first assignment was a week-long stint at a middle school, after which the students said they wanted her to be their regular teacher.
But Mosier said even before she graduated college she wondered if full-time teaching was what she really wanted to do. After 15 years away from New Holstein, she returned home and went into other lines of work including being an underwriter at Acuity Insurance and later working for Premier Financial Credit Union based in New Holstein.
She made another shift in her career path about five years ago, going back into education as a regular substitute teacher in the New Holstein School District. Willing and able to teach at any grade level, Mosier is kept very busy filling in for NHSD teachers. “It’s actually the variety that makes it a great fit for me,” she said.
Not cut out for cubicles
She added that she realized at age 40 that she was not cut out for “cubicle life” and wanted to get back into teaching on a part-time basis, teaching any subjects the district needs. “We have a really good school district,” Mosier said, adding that she thinks all people would be well-served to at least briefly experience substitute teaching—similar to jury duty.
Working in the schools helped Mosier make one of her first big impacts on the community. She learned the district’s Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) was going to dissolve so she decided to help start a similar group—the New Holstein Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA).
Mosier continues to be the president of the PTSA, which allows students in grades 6 through 12 to be part of it. While the PTO operated primarily at the Elementary School, the PTSA operates at all levels and is open to anyone in the community. Annual dues are $10 per year, $7 for students. The organization meets the third Monday of each month (except December, June and July) at 6 p.m. at the High School. A catalog fundraiser held each fall is its primary source of revenue. PTSA has sponsored staff appreciation events and purchased other items needed by the school and its staff.
But Mosier did not stop with PTSA and substitute teaching when it comes to helping the youths of the community. Following in the footsteps of her entrepreneur father and also identifying a need for local families, she started Full Circle Community Closet.
Need for affordable clothing
Mosier said she identified a need for affordable clothes for families after she started substitute teaching in New Holstein. She would give her children’s old clothes to a friend, and also collected clothes at school to give to children in need. It soon became apparent that it would be good to have a storefront to serve the area with these items, and almost two years ago Full Circle Community Closet was opened on Wisconsin Avenue.
Now it its second location along STH 32/57, the business is a non-profit and has a Board of Directors but Mosier provides the day-to-day management of the store with assistance from local volunteers, more of whom are needed. She is paid an hourly rate but could be getting a salary based on how the non-profit is set up. Mosier has declined getting the salary to help Full Circle cover its costs.
More people are finding out about Full Circle all the time, Mosier said. Donations of new, gently used and other nice items arrive regularly, as do donations of money. Full Circle has been able to connect clothing and other items to kids in need, something teachers have often used their personal funds for in the past. “I don’t think they should have to do that,” Mosier said.
An eBay shop recently was started by Full Circle to expand its ability to sell items throughout the country.
Enjoys what she does
Mosier said she enjoys working at Full Circle and gets “into it” when she is there, often seeing hours pass by before she realizes it.
Not unlike those days in the 1980s when she helped her mother with the filing, her husband Adam and children Harper, 12, and Hayden, 9, also help out with Full Circle.
Not only does she sometimes have her kids at Full Circle, she also sometimes has them in class as their teacher. She said her children love school and like it when she is their sub, even though she has the reputation among students of being a “strict sub.” “I take that as a compliment,” she said.
Mosier also exudes a strong front in her service as a City of New Holstein alderperson. She said she became interested in local government as a citizen who fought to keep New Holstein’s Police Department when the idea was floated to have Calumet County provide law enforcement coverage for the city.
Now in her third two-year term as an alderperson, Mosier said, “I’m proud of the city administrators that we’ve brought on board. I’m proud that we continue to work on being open and progressive.” She added that she is happy that there are three women on the Common Council.
“There’s no guidebook,” Mosier said about jumping into government service. “I’m winging it. I’m figuring things out as I go.... There’s lots of things I’d like to focus on.”
As part of her service to the City of New Holstein, Mosier represents the council on the Library Board. That is fitting since the library is a place she spent a lot of time as a child growing up in New Holstein.
“It’s good that I came back,” Mosier said. “I can see the value in a smaller community. Community has become a buzzword.... We need to take care of each other.” Source: Article link
Jerry Hallstrom
2024 New Holstein Area Chamber of Commerce Distinguished Person of the Year
For a man who did not move to New Holstein until he was already retired, Jerry Hallstrom has made quite a positive impact on the community in his later years.
As a matter of fact, the man who had never even heard of the community until well into adulthood has done so much for the city that he has been named New Holstein’s Distinguished Person of the Year for 2024 by the New Holstein Area Chamber of Commerce.
Hallstrom will be honored Thursday evening, Jan. 9 at the annual dinner of the Chamber held at the Altona Supper Club.
Some past winners of the honor over the years were honored for what they had done in the past for New Holstein, while others were honored for what they were currently doing for the community. Hallstrom’s contributions to the community fall into both categories as he has done much yet also continues to serve despite recently turning 85 years old.
Illinois native
Born in Belvidere, Illinois in 1939, Hallstrom’s family moved to Rockford, Illinois in 1945. His parents divorced when he was 9 and his father did his best to raise the five children but he also worked as an iron worker and was gone for days at a time. Jerry’s dad hired ladies to come in and cook and help with the children while he was away working.
Jerry recalls playing a little sandlot baseball while growing up but he was rather small for athletics. He said his driver’s license at age 15 listed him as 4-foot-10 and 93 pounds, but by the time he graduated from Rockford West High School he was 5-8, 123 pounds.
He immediately went to work for a company which made wood frames for TVs, but that lasted only six days as it just was not the job for him.
He then spent two years working for a local medical drug distribution company. A brother-in-law worked for Ginders Hospital Supply and got Hallstrom a job there, and that was his career for the next 29 years.
Meets his future wife
During his time at Ginders, Jerry met a coworker by the name of Helen Feile who originally was from Kiel and the couple dated for 13 years. For 12 of those years Jerry lived in an apartment at his dad’s house so that he could take care of him.
Jerry finished his work career with six years at Badger Medical Supply based in Madison but was able to continue to live in Rockford and serve customers in that area. A change in ownership and methods of operations at Badger Medical were the impetus for his early retirement. In March 1998 the couple got married, they both retired on May 29 and by June 1 they had moved to Kiel as Helen still had family living in the area.
In January 1999, Jerry was working part time in produce and carryout at Stell’s Piggly Wiggly in New Holstein to give him something to do. “I’m not sitting at home watching ‘Oprah’ or ‘Price is Right,’” he said. The couple purchased a home in New Holstein and moved in in March 1999, the first home the couple ever owned together.
Jerry said he never did any volunteer work while living in Rockford and even turned down an invitation there to join the local Kiwanis Club. But when Mark Stellpflug of Stell’s Piggly Wiggly extended an invitation to Hallstrom to join the Kiwanis in New Holstein, he accepted.
Just a few weeks into his membership, Hallstrom said, fellow member Ken Irwin invited him to become the president-elect. One of the requirements of that job was to find the guest speakers for the weekly meetings, which was a difficult task for a person who had only moved to the area within the past few years.
Twice president of Kiwanis
Hallstrom went on to twice serve as president of the Kiwanis, and also served as a lieutenant governor for the club and was on the District Foundation Board for six years. Altogether he was a Kiwanian for 14 years and said he was proud to have helped acquire two grants totaling $4,500 to be put toward construction of the city’s Aquatic Center.
In the early 2000s, Hallstrom said he read an item in the local newspaper looking for volunteers to help clean up the Timm House yards. He and Helen are avid gardeners and lawnkeepers at their home at the corner of Hickory Lane and Mayflower Street, attracting much attention each spring for the many tulips which spring about around their yard. They volunteered to help with the Timm House work, and then it was suggested they consider attending meetings of the New Holstein Historical Society which operates the historic site as well as the Pioneer Museum just down the street. That led to member Kay Nett asking Jerry to be on the Board of Directors.
In 2013, both he and Helen received Pioneer Awards from the Historical Society for more than a decade of service to the organization. Now close to a dozen years since receiving that award, Jerry continues to be very active with the Historical Society. He became president seven years ago when Terry Thiessen had to step aside for health reasons and has no plans to give it up anytime soon. “I have a real passion about that,” Hallstrom said of the Historical Society.
He has been giving tours of the society’s facilities for 17 years and said, “I enjoy doing the tours and telling people the history of the community. We have one of the nicest small community museums in the state of Wisconsin. We have the greatest Board of Directors that you could ask for.” As an example he cited the work done by Nett and Carol Wordell on decorating the Timm House for Christmas this past season.
The Historical Society largely relies on donations, brat frys and luncheons for its operating funds. “We have members from all over the United States,” Hallstrom added.
Ringing bells
A little before he started serving the Historical Society, the late Jim Bauer—a fellow Kiwanian—mentioned to Hallstrom that the Salvation Army in the area could use Red Kettle bell ringers during the holidays. Hallstrom now has been ringing bells on three or four Fridays in November and December at Piggly Wiggly for the past 18 years, taking a two-hour shift each of those Fridays. He was honored last year by the Salvation Army for his years of dedicated volunteerism.
As he began to get more involved in the community, Hallstrom said he also toyed with the idea of running for alderperson. When his alderman Paul Depies stepped down in April 2007, Hallstrom tossed his hat into the ring and was elected. His first stint on the Common Council lasted until about 2016 when he took on his biggest challenge to date—cancer.
Hallstrom had his gall bladder taken out and in the process the doctor told Helen that Jerry might have cancer. Jerry lost about 50 pounds from his already small frame. “That kind of knocked the snot out of me,” he said. He got a CT scan the day before Thanksgiving in 2015 and on the morning of Thanksgiving got a call to have a stent put in his liver followed by surgery at Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee.
Jerry said he was under the impression for five years that he had pancreatic cancer, only to later find out he actually and bile duct cancer.The good news is yearly CT scans now show he is cancer-free.
Back on council and more
After his recovery, Hallstrom returned to the Common Council. He was appointed to fill a term in August 2017 and was then elected from 2018 to 2020. Hallstrom said he was ready to yield the seat to anyone else who wanted it and when he heard Brad Hess was interested, Hallstrom went door to door with letters encouraging people to vote for Hess. “I never knew there were so many dogs that wanted to kill me,” Hallstrom said with a laugh about going door to door.
Also during his years with the Kiwanis Club, the club started an Aktion Club for adults with disabilities and Jerry represented the New Holstein club on the Aktion Club shared jointly with the Chilton Kiwanis. That led to Jerry being asked to serve on the Board of Directors of the New Hope Center in Chilton, something he did for about eight years before stepping down this past year.
Hallstrom’s volunteerism has even led the couple to other countries. “Santa Tours” led him and others to Iceland, Japan, New Zealand/Australia and Germany with the group wearing their Santa suits to a variety of functions, including visiting with 400 kindergarten students in Japan. An international Kiwanis Convention also took the couple to Geneva, Switzerland with side trips to London and Paris.
Back in New Holstein, Hallstrom’s heart for serving also is reflected when he does sidewalk edging for about 15 homes in the city—mostly those of widows they know. He refuses pay but if someone offers he tells them to make a donation to the Historical Society.
“I can truthfully say that everything I did, I enjoyed,” Hallstrom said. And he plans to continue doing what he can, adding, “I’m a little too Type A to sit around.” Source: Article Link
As a matter of fact, the man who had never even heard of the community until well into adulthood has done so much for the city that he has been named New Holstein’s Distinguished Person of the Year for 2024 by the New Holstein Area Chamber of Commerce.
Hallstrom will be honored Thursday evening, Jan. 9 at the annual dinner of the Chamber held at the Altona Supper Club.
Some past winners of the honor over the years were honored for what they had done in the past for New Holstein, while others were honored for what they were currently doing for the community. Hallstrom’s contributions to the community fall into both categories as he has done much yet also continues to serve despite recently turning 85 years old.
Illinois native
Born in Belvidere, Illinois in 1939, Hallstrom’s family moved to Rockford, Illinois in 1945. His parents divorced when he was 9 and his father did his best to raise the five children but he also worked as an iron worker and was gone for days at a time. Jerry’s dad hired ladies to come in and cook and help with the children while he was away working.
Jerry recalls playing a little sandlot baseball while growing up but he was rather small for athletics. He said his driver’s license at age 15 listed him as 4-foot-10 and 93 pounds, but by the time he graduated from Rockford West High School he was 5-8, 123 pounds.
He immediately went to work for a company which made wood frames for TVs, but that lasted only six days as it just was not the job for him.
He then spent two years working for a local medical drug distribution company. A brother-in-law worked for Ginders Hospital Supply and got Hallstrom a job there, and that was his career for the next 29 years.
Meets his future wife
During his time at Ginders, Jerry met a coworker by the name of Helen Feile who originally was from Kiel and the couple dated for 13 years. For 12 of those years Jerry lived in an apartment at his dad’s house so that he could take care of him.
Jerry finished his work career with six years at Badger Medical Supply based in Madison but was able to continue to live in Rockford and serve customers in that area. A change in ownership and methods of operations at Badger Medical were the impetus for his early retirement. In March 1998 the couple got married, they both retired on May 29 and by June 1 they had moved to Kiel as Helen still had family living in the area.
In January 1999, Jerry was working part time in produce and carryout at Stell’s Piggly Wiggly in New Holstein to give him something to do. “I’m not sitting at home watching ‘Oprah’ or ‘Price is Right,’” he said. The couple purchased a home in New Holstein and moved in in March 1999, the first home the couple ever owned together.
Jerry said he never did any volunteer work while living in Rockford and even turned down an invitation there to join the local Kiwanis Club. But when Mark Stellpflug of Stell’s Piggly Wiggly extended an invitation to Hallstrom to join the Kiwanis in New Holstein, he accepted.
Just a few weeks into his membership, Hallstrom said, fellow member Ken Irwin invited him to become the president-elect. One of the requirements of that job was to find the guest speakers for the weekly meetings, which was a difficult task for a person who had only moved to the area within the past few years.
Twice president of Kiwanis
Hallstrom went on to twice serve as president of the Kiwanis, and also served as a lieutenant governor for the club and was on the District Foundation Board for six years. Altogether he was a Kiwanian for 14 years and said he was proud to have helped acquire two grants totaling $4,500 to be put toward construction of the city’s Aquatic Center.
In the early 2000s, Hallstrom said he read an item in the local newspaper looking for volunteers to help clean up the Timm House yards. He and Helen are avid gardeners and lawnkeepers at their home at the corner of Hickory Lane and Mayflower Street, attracting much attention each spring for the many tulips which spring about around their yard. They volunteered to help with the Timm House work, and then it was suggested they consider attending meetings of the New Holstein Historical Society which operates the historic site as well as the Pioneer Museum just down the street. That led to member Kay Nett asking Jerry to be on the Board of Directors.
In 2013, both he and Helen received Pioneer Awards from the Historical Society for more than a decade of service to the organization. Now close to a dozen years since receiving that award, Jerry continues to be very active with the Historical Society. He became president seven years ago when Terry Thiessen had to step aside for health reasons and has no plans to give it up anytime soon. “I have a real passion about that,” Hallstrom said of the Historical Society.
He has been giving tours of the society’s facilities for 17 years and said, “I enjoy doing the tours and telling people the history of the community. We have one of the nicest small community museums in the state of Wisconsin. We have the greatest Board of Directors that you could ask for.” As an example he cited the work done by Nett and Carol Wordell on decorating the Timm House for Christmas this past season.
The Historical Society largely relies on donations, brat frys and luncheons for its operating funds. “We have members from all over the United States,” Hallstrom added.
Ringing bells
A little before he started serving the Historical Society, the late Jim Bauer—a fellow Kiwanian—mentioned to Hallstrom that the Salvation Army in the area could use Red Kettle bell ringers during the holidays. Hallstrom now has been ringing bells on three or four Fridays in November and December at Piggly Wiggly for the past 18 years, taking a two-hour shift each of those Fridays. He was honored last year by the Salvation Army for his years of dedicated volunteerism.
As he began to get more involved in the community, Hallstrom said he also toyed with the idea of running for alderperson. When his alderman Paul Depies stepped down in April 2007, Hallstrom tossed his hat into the ring and was elected. His first stint on the Common Council lasted until about 2016 when he took on his biggest challenge to date—cancer.
Hallstrom had his gall bladder taken out and in the process the doctor told Helen that Jerry might have cancer. Jerry lost about 50 pounds from his already small frame. “That kind of knocked the snot out of me,” he said. He got a CT scan the day before Thanksgiving in 2015 and on the morning of Thanksgiving got a call to have a stent put in his liver followed by surgery at Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee.
Jerry said he was under the impression for five years that he had pancreatic cancer, only to later find out he actually and bile duct cancer.The good news is yearly CT scans now show he is cancer-free.
Back on council and more
After his recovery, Hallstrom returned to the Common Council. He was appointed to fill a term in August 2017 and was then elected from 2018 to 2020. Hallstrom said he was ready to yield the seat to anyone else who wanted it and when he heard Brad Hess was interested, Hallstrom went door to door with letters encouraging people to vote for Hess. “I never knew there were so many dogs that wanted to kill me,” Hallstrom said with a laugh about going door to door.
Also during his years with the Kiwanis Club, the club started an Aktion Club for adults with disabilities and Jerry represented the New Holstein club on the Aktion Club shared jointly with the Chilton Kiwanis. That led to Jerry being asked to serve on the Board of Directors of the New Hope Center in Chilton, something he did for about eight years before stepping down this past year.
Hallstrom’s volunteerism has even led the couple to other countries. “Santa Tours” led him and others to Iceland, Japan, New Zealand/Australia and Germany with the group wearing their Santa suits to a variety of functions, including visiting with 400 kindergarten students in Japan. An international Kiwanis Convention also took the couple to Geneva, Switzerland with side trips to London and Paris.
Back in New Holstein, Hallstrom’s heart for serving also is reflected when he does sidewalk edging for about 15 homes in the city—mostly those of widows they know. He refuses pay but if someone offers he tells them to make a donation to the Historical Society.
“I can truthfully say that everything I did, I enjoyed,” Hallstrom said. And he plans to continue doing what he can, adding, “I’m a little too Type A to sit around.” Source: Article Link
Ed Shell
2023 New Holstein Area Chamber of Commerce Distinguished Person of the Year
Ed Shell’s “…decades of working in organizations which benefit New Holstein youths have not gone unnoticed by others, and for that Shell will be recognized on Thursday, Jan. 11 as New Holstein’s Distinguished Person of the Year by the New Holstein Area Chamber of Commerce.
When it comes to his record of service, foremost on his resume is his incredible tenure as part of the New Holstein Boy Scout program.
Born in 1946, Shell became a New Holstein Cub Scout in 1954 at the age of 8 and today he remains on the New Holstein Scout Committee. With the calendar turning to 2024, that is basically 70 years of being involved in Boy Scouting.
While his work with Boy Scouts is the top item on Shell’s resume, it is hardly the only one. He said he spent 41 years as a member of the New Holstein Kiwanis Club. He served as an alderman on the New Holstein Common Council for four years while Jerry Wink was mayor, was a union president for 10 years, and also served as a part-time police officer for the New Holstein Police Department for about 10 years. Surprisingly, Ed said that was on a volunteer basis as well. Summarizing why he has done so much volunteer work over the years, Shell said, ‘My dedication toward youths. It was fun. It’s just great to see kids grow up.’” (source: Tri-County News January 4, 2024)
When it comes to his record of service, foremost on his resume is his incredible tenure as part of the New Holstein Boy Scout program.
Born in 1946, Shell became a New Holstein Cub Scout in 1954 at the age of 8 and today he remains on the New Holstein Scout Committee. With the calendar turning to 2024, that is basically 70 years of being involved in Boy Scouting.
While his work with Boy Scouts is the top item on Shell’s resume, it is hardly the only one. He said he spent 41 years as a member of the New Holstein Kiwanis Club. He served as an alderman on the New Holstein Common Council for four years while Jerry Wink was mayor, was a union president for 10 years, and also served as a part-time police officer for the New Holstein Police Department for about 10 years. Surprisingly, Ed said that was on a volunteer basis as well. Summarizing why he has done so much volunteer work over the years, Shell said, ‘My dedication toward youths. It was fun. It’s just great to see kids grow up.’” (source: Tri-County News January 4, 2024)
Dianne Reese - 2022 Distinguished Person of the Year
For her life-long record of service to New Holstein which continues to this day, Dianne Reese has been named New Holstein’s Distinguished Person of the Year for 2022 by the New Holstein Area Chamber of Commerce.
Reese has served the community in a variety of ways over the years. When she and husband Ron owned New Holstein True Value Hardware, they were strong supporters of community causes. She later entered city government including serving as mayor and was a “hands-on” mayor—even helping to pull invasive weeds from the prairie area at Kiwanis Park.
She has been a longtime member of the New Holstein Kiwanis Club and has served the club in a variety of capacities. Reese continues to serve in her retirement years, currently working on a project to get new organization signs at the entrances to the community as well as helping the Kiwanis ‘n Cops ‘n Kids reading program. (source: Tri-County News, December 15, 2022)