Good morning, Madison!

Here's a bit of good news on this rainy Friday: The Henry Vilas Zoo playground is open again.

If you'll recall, the zoo closed its playground at the end of July after finding a barn swallow nest with chicks had taken up residence.

But earlier this week, zoo staff checked the nest to find all the chicks were gone, officially giving the green light to re-open the playground.

–  Hayley

🍎 These moms are on a mission this school year.

  • Some context: Throughout the 2021-22 school year, East High School made headlines for all the wrong reasons. Fights drew police to the school, with one instance resulting in students getting pepper sprayed. In an effort to create a safer school environment, a group of moms and community members stepped in to help by providing snacks and supportive presence during the lunch hour and the situation seemed to largely improve.
  • The group, called Moms on a Mission, or simply MOMs, wants to work with the district to ensure a safer 2022-23 school year. But as Cap Times reports, so far they've gotten little support from MMSD. The group reportedly has a meeting with superintendent Carlton Jenkins scheduled for Aug. 25, one week before classes start.
  • The group has offered several suggestions for deterring fights on school grounds but the district, which is currently dealing with major staffing shortages, hasn't always been on the same page. Now, concerns over the district's ability and willingness to implement changes is putting the pressure back on MOMs to keep the peace at school.
  • Want to help? MOMs is looking to raise $7,250 to provide snacks for the fall. You can donate here. Additionally, there are plenty of opportunities for volunteering. You can learn more about that here.

🥗 Pay what you can at Little John’s Lunchbox.

  • The self-serve café in the Madison Children’s Museum serves grab-and-go food made from  grocery store surplus items. There are no prices listed on anything and customers are encouraged to pay as much or as little as they can.
  • Little John's Lunchbox is one of local restauranter David Heide's latest ventures. Heide is the founder of the nonprofit Little John's which produces roughly produces 17,000 meals a week for those in need.
  • The State Journal reports Heide isn't raking in big profits with this venture but is happy to partner with the museum to provide food security for children and use the opportunity to teach children about philanthropy. The news outlet writes one visitor loved the idea so much they paid $100 for a bag of chips.
  • Little John's Lunchbox has been up and running for three weeks but will host a grand opening at 11 a.m. today.

🏈 Goodbye Shell?

🐦 Avians rejoice! A judge has ruled bird-safe glass is legal.

"[P]rotecting birds is really important. What’s good for birds is what’s good for Wisconsin, so this is great news for all of us, really." – Matt Reetz, executive director of Madison Audubon

♿ The county has proposed adding universal changing stations to its buildings.

  • A resolution introduced at the Dane County Board meeting Thursday would make it a policy for county facilities to have universal changing stations. While many county buildings already have similar changing stations, adding electric, height-adjustable universal changing stations would create inclusive and accessible facilities for people with disabilities.
  • If approved, these electric, height-adjustable changing stations would be added to properties owned and operated by the county where there is adequate space, according to a county press release.
  • The resolution will go through committees and back to the County Board in the coming weeks.

🏳️‍🌈 Your lunchtime listen: To Madison’s gay community, risk of monkeypox goes beyond just the virus.

  • Via WORT: "As monkeypox spreads, so too does the harmful stigma around the virus.

    Monkeypox, a smallpox-related virus that is transmitted from person-to-person through long periods of skin-to-skin contact, is currently spreading mostly among men who have sex with men. Because of this, a misconception has formed in some segments of the public that monkeypox is a 'gay disease.'

    This misconception is hurtful to the LGBTQ community."

🦠 Covid-19 update

Photo by Hayley Sperling/Madison Minutes

Has the fall of Roe v. Wade impacted your decisions about family planning? Tell us.

We've partnered with Tone Madison to produce a survey that will help us better understand and offer our readers a fuller picture of how the ruling is affecting people across the Madison area. Learn more and take the survey here.

Take the survey

🐶 Friday Floof

Happy Friday! It's floof time. Frankie is a five-year-old rescued Cavachon who loves the simple things in life, like watching squirrels on YouTube, wrestling his cat brother, and getting ice cream from local shops. When he's not tied up with those activities, you can probably find him having a fit of zoomies or sniffing out treats. We love to see a well-rounded boy.

😸 Do you have a floof to share with the Madison Minutes community? Fill out this form for the opportunity to be featured.

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Morning update: Thursday, Aug. 18
Madison MinutesHayley Sperling

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