Morning Update

About that podcast…

Morning update: Oct. 20

In this newsletter

Good morning, Madison!

Remember yesterday when I said we'd have news? Well, we're ready to share.

City Cast Madison is officially going to start publishing in November.

What's City Cast Madison? City Cast is a network of daily local news podcasts in cities around the country. City Cast Madison will publish at 6 a.m. weekday mornings and will feature 15 minutes of local news, culture, and conversation.

Who's on the team? Oh, we are so glad you asked. The City Cast Madison team is led by veteran journalist Molly Stentz, who previously worked at WPR, WORT, and Isthmus. The show's host is Bianca Martin, a Wisconsin native who helped launch the nationally-syndicated public media program 1A and produced shows for NPR, WBEZ, and WORT. Rounding out the team as producer is Dylan Brogan, who you may know from his work as an Isthmus reporter and WORT contributor.

Where does Madison Minutes fit into all of this? Once the podcast officially launches, you'll see City Cast Madison episodes and updates in this newsletter. You'll also hear us as occasional guests on the show (as a digital journalist, this scares me but I'll do it for you!).

Mark your calendars: We'll be hosting a launch party with the City Cast Madison squad Dec. 1 at Cordial from 5:30-7:30 p.m. (Don't worry, we'll remind you plenty of times before then, too.)

— Hayley

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🌳 Goodbye Kerr-McGee Triangle. Hello R. Richard Wagner Park.

On Friday, the city will honor the legacy of the late Dick Wagner in a park dedication ceremony. Kerr-McGee Triangle Park located at 728 Jenifer St. has been renamed R. Richard Wagner Park.
Who? Dick Wagner was a longtime Madison public servant and one of the first openly gay elected officials in the country. He's the author of two books on gay history in Wisconsin. Wager died in December 2021.
You can read an excerpt from his 2019 book We've Been Here All Along: Wisconsin's Early Gay History here.
Related: Leaders Mourn Loss Of Dick Wagner, Trailblazing Public Servant, LGBTQ Activist, Historian, And Mentor (WORT)

🚒 The City of Madison is hiring firefighters and EMTs for the first time in three years.

The Madison Fire Department is accepting applications for full-time firefighters and EMTs for the first time since 2019.
This year, the city removed the citizenship requirement for the positions, meaning that anyone with a legal right to work in the U.S. is eligible to apply. No prior experience in fire or EMS is required to apply. The applications will be open through Nov. 30.
Check out the job listing here for more details.

🦷 Celebrate Smiles is bringing back free dental care to MMSD students.

Before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, a partnership between the Madison School District and Access Community Health Centers brought Celebrate Smiles staff into schools across the district, turning classrooms into makeshift dental facilities. The program took a two-year hiatus (because, pandemic) but is now back bringing dental care to students in need through a mobile office.
According to the Cap Times, the “CareMobile” is an RV outfitted to provide free dental services to students. It will visit 21 MMSD schools this year and is currently set up in Leopold Elementary School’s parking lot.
You can see a full list of services provided here. The tentative 2022-23 Celebrate Smiles operational calendar is available here.

⚖️ ICYMI: We made a voting guide.

The election is Nov. 8 and we figure you might have some questions about voting in Madison. We made a guide that has all the relevant information in one convenient place.

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Are you ready to vote? The election is Nov. 8 and MyVote.wi.gov is your one-stop shop for all election information. We've also pulled a few extra links for specific questions. Happy voting!

Check your voter registration here.
Get the details on voter IDs here.
Meet the candidates here.

🍻 Three big wins for Madison breweries.

Working Draft, Great Dane, and Giant Jones all came out as winners at this year's Great American Beer Festival competition in Denver. According to the State Journal, the competition is the largest for commercial beers in the U.S.
Working Draft took home the gold in the German-style Doppelbock or Eisbock beer style category for its Klosterade. Meanwhile, Great Dane won a bronze medal in the German-style Marzen category for its Great Dane Oktoberfest. Giant Jones Brewing also came home with a bronze medal for its Doppelsticke Altbier in the Other Strong Beer category. Cheers to the winners!

🥖 Your lunchtime read: Former Madison politician makes bread to feed the racial justice movement.

Via Wisconsin Life: "For former Madison politician Mo Cheeks, the art of sourdough bread making started as a hobby. The pandemic provided a chance to perfect his baking skills and make a difference in the world around him. 'As I was thinking about how to process the realities of injustice in our country. I found myself with a number of sleepless nights. There was something about handmaking the dough that had now become a source of therapy for me.'"

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