The Rip

Beginning the first Monday of August for two nights and three days my travel partner (also known as my wife) and I spent time in Door County, WI. The last time we were there was seven years earlier when we camped at Peninsula State Park. We were in Door County in June 2018 and Aug 2016 (with 2016 being the bridge incident). For this venture, we departed early Monday morning, only to get stuck in a traffic jam exiting Hwy 12 on to the Interstate by Madison. Just getting up the on ramp to the interstate took 10 minutes. Not a good beginning, but after that, it was smooth sailing. What was not necessarily smooth were the waves on the Lake Michigan side. Mother Nature had other ideas, and that is where rip currents (formerly known as rip tides) came in to play.

Monday we arrived at Whitefish Dunes State Park, we had lunch and then walked along the path to Cave Point Co Park, about a mile hike. Cave Point is quite different, with larger parking areas and more people than when I first encountered it during my youngest brother's wedding in May 1988. Wedding photos were taken in the park. After the hike, I went swimming at the Whitefish Dunes beach. When we were there in 2019 the lake was so high that there was no beach. Not this year, which saw the level much lower producing a long white ribbon of sand between the water's edge and the dunes.  Not that I am a regular visitor to the beach, but two of the four lots were full of vehicles when we arrived, and the beach was teeming with people, just what one would expect on a beautiful early August day. Kayakers were prevalent, including some kayak tour groups touring along the shore. My wife told me to be careful and to get out of the marked area on the map that shows were rip currents are most prevalent. That meant I walked perhaps near half a mile to get out of the marked area. Not as if the signs did much good considering the number of persons in that mapped area. The waves were large, often white caps, that could catch you and haul you in and then retreat and haul you further out. It was rather fun swimming.

Whitefish Dunes State Park, ribbon of sand, taken from picnic area,
right after our arrival, about 11:30 am. Waves became whitecaps by the time
I went swimming after completing our hike to Cave Point
There is an abrupt change from dolomite outcropping to sand and sand dunes

Rip currents, per Ocean today are: "A rip current is a narrow, fast-moving channel of water that flows directly away from the shore. It cuts through breaking waves like a river running out to sea, moving at speeds up to 8 feet per second (5.45 mph, or almost as fast as Michael Phelps at his fastest). They do not pull you under, but they can quickly carry you far past the surf zone." Hence, a swimmer can tire out. The method to get out of a rip current is to swim parallel to shore and when out of the current, to swim back to shore. I will not bore you with details on the geomorphology and meteorological occurrences that can lead to rip currents.

Not an uncommon shoreline from Whitefish Dunes beach
north to beyond Cave Point Co. Park

Of course, on our way up we had heard that the loss of two kayakers between the peninsula and Washington Island had turned to recovery, and in fact we heard that the bodies of two twenty year old persons kayaking without life jackets were recovered. As if one recovery was not enough, to show people are people, on Tuesday we heard more news on rescues. First, on Monday night two people on paddle boards at 9:00 pm, yes 9:00 pm when the sun set at 8:15 pm in Sister Bay, had the wind change direction and took them further out, beyond the calmer embracing arms of the landforms that form the bay and moved into Green Bay. They also did not have life jackets. The report from the emergency service scanner recounted the incident, where drones and  thermal imaging camera read:

Little Sister Bay - water rescue - juveniles out paddle boarding - winds switched - unable to get back to shore at Pebble Beach - no life jackets - attempting to swim back - thermal imaging - Request Ephraim & Gibraltar to assist with water rescue - Request Egg Harbor Fire for drone - Coast Guard en route ETA 45 min + Coast Guard Helicopter en route - paddle board is orange & lime green in color - approximately 2 football fields off Pebble Beach drifting north - dispatch is on the line with them - they have vistual (sic) lake contact before stand down orders - Ephraim Marine unit has both victims on board & refusing medical - cancel all further responding units

 

The Cave in Cave Point

As if first responders were not busy enough, on Tuesday there were two rescues at or near Whitefish Dunes. On Monday, my weather application had a warning for beaches from Rock Island south to Manitowoc County for concern of rip currents starting at 2 pm. I read the alert and realized that the more protected Newport Beach was not on the list. My travel partner and I made our way to Newport Beach State Park, which was our plan anyway. We did a three mile hike, and then had lunch. I then went to swim. On the way back we stopped for ice cream in too busy Sister Bay. Some seaweed was in the first few feet of the water. There were probably about 30 people at this lesser used beach, but only a few others entered the water. As at Whitefish Dunes, I go out to about chest to neck depth and then I swim parallel to shore. First, to assure that if something happens, I am in water that I can stand in, and second, if a rip tide catches you, you swim parallel to shore . Hence, my swim pattern helps in case I hit a rip current. 

Portion of WI State Park Map for Whitefish Dunes
Red by author to highlight prevalent rip current area (parallel lines by beach)

Actually, my wife says I was to be safe, and since I always listen to my wife, I swim safely. After all, I did not want to become that 68 year old man swept into Lake Michigan by a rip current, or even that 68 year old man rescued. If I were rescued, I think my wife would put an end to me swimming in open water in areas without a lifeguard, at least areas susceptible to rip currents. Hence, being safe is in my best interests. I would never hear the end of it, not from the rescue group but from my wife, if I was the one who had to be rescued. 

After swimming at Newport Beach, we departed, we had talked the night before of going back to Cave Point to see the large waves hit the rock formation, but instead we went to Sister Bay to get ice cream (made at the Sister Bay Ice Cream Factory and Sandwich Shop, if you go don't waste money on a one scoop dish, get a one scoop waffle cone). Cave Point is southeast of Egg Harbor so we would have had to go a back north to get to the ice cream shop after Cave Point. I am glad we did not go, it was likely a large traffic jam given the occurrences in the area that day. 

Part of Whitefish Dunes seashore

Notwithstanding warnings of rip currents, eye witness accounts say people were still swimming in the area of Cave Point, diving off the cliff into the water, and swimming at Whitefish Dunes. That day, rescue crews responded to two incidents. It was not just the local fire department, but the Coast Guard which sent their helicopter and dispatched their rescue boat, which makes me think of the movie The Guardian, starring Kevin Costner. Other jurisdictions responded for mutual aid. The thing is, in Door County, very little is just a few minutes away. The Door County station for the Coast Guard is in Sturgeon Bay is 26 minute travel time to Whitefish Dunes and Cave Point. They sent  a boat and a helicopter, and Jacksonport responded with a boat. It is about 10.2 miles by water, likely longer distance fighting waves. The woman who made the call, had been at Cave Point and saw people jumping in. She then said she made her way to the sand beach, which is really Whitefish Dunes, because all other areas from Cave Point south is dolomite outcroppings, a form of limestone. Anyway, the story goes that two young teens and their dad were in the water, about waist deep. The female teen got caught in a rip current which pushed her out, and second pushed her further out. Her brother and dad, who recognized what was happening, went after, but got in the same current, as did one or two others who  jumped in and tried to help. One person was transported by Coast Guard ambulance. Apparently, there were five persons caught in the current which took them about 600 feet from shore. By the time rescuers arrived some had gotten out, local rescue got one or so out and the Coast Guard also got one person out. If that was not enough, later two juveniles were rescued after getting caught in a rip current, but much closer to shore they were. The beach was then closed. The thing is, I am not sure where the rescues occurred in relation to the mapped area, but recognize the warning was for the shoreline and it listed Whitefish Dunes. 

Whitefish Dunes Beach

The search and rescue persons encourage people to wear life jackets, and some are available on shore for use. The Coast Guard made this Facebook post about the second incident: 

Whitefish Dunes State Park (not related to previous call) - Water Rescue - two juveniles 15 feet from shore - stuck in a rip tide - no life jackets - requesting Jacksonport fire with boat - Sturgeon Bay Marine731 en route - male party still in the water multiple people actively trying to help also without life jackets - Coast Guard Boat en route - all parties out of the water on shore

The Door County Sheriff's office stated that "Door County's waters are beautiful but can be extremely unpredictable. Weather, waves, currents, and water conditions can change rapidly, creating dangerous situations for boaters, paddlers, and swimmers."

Over the course of three days, there were three water rescues and one, unfortunately, recovery operation. The rip currents can suddenly show. Whitefish Dunes website identifies the occurrence of rip currents: "Lake Michigan can produce dangerous rip currents [exit DNR]. These currents are most serious when large waves are present. Rip currents typically occur within 200 yards of the ramp leading to the beach. Signs and flags identify this area. If caught in a rip current, swim parallel to the shore. Rip currents are seldom wider than 30 feet." (A web site for the ocean and rip currents says they can be 50--100' wide.) It is that 200 yards, or 1/8 mile that the beach is clearly marked for rip currents. I walked down to the second beach access point from the first access point, using a mat provided in the sand to a safer swim area, beyond the normal rip current zone. Of course, pets are not allowed on the beach, but plenty of them were to be seen, so I guess people will also figure they can be in the water in a area not suggested for swimming. People will be people.

Post Scripts:

This past Friday (8/7) at Myrtle Beach, a 47 year old school teacher from Georgia, and father of four, died after rescuing a girl from a rip current. Lifeguards had just ended their duty for the day when the girl was caught in the rip current at about 8 pm. He got her to safety, when he was "ripped under by the current."  

About 100 people a year die due to rip currents each year.  

Founded on Aug 4, 1790, two water rescues occurred on the 236th birthday of the US Coast Guard in Door County alone.

Henry

It was a breezy and sunny early afternoon on Thursday when the medium sized SUV pulled into the campsite next to us at Cunard Lake. Out popped three boys and their dad, and the family dog. We had been fortunate to reserve the Tuesday morning prior to their arrival (the day we arrived) a lake side site that sits high above the water with a steep drop to Cunard Lake. We knew someone had that site reserved for part of our stay, but we obviously did not know about Henry. I never met Henry, but here he is having the title of this blog post.

Map of Cunard Lake Campground
With notations.
Source: WI DNR

Henry, about eight years of age, was likely several years younger than his tall teenage brothers. Henry may not reach the height of his dad or brothers, but he can beat them out in one aspect--talking, or chatting. The mom joined them later in the day pulling up in a Prius, so Henry had his mom around to talk to. I am not sure how much attention his older brothers paid to chatty Henry. For a while, before the mom showed up, I wondered how they would fit three tall males and Henry in the rather middle sized tent, and maybe with the dog. Mom brought a small tent, and I don't know who slept in it, perhaps the two teenagers, but they would not even be able to kneel in it. If they slept in it, it would almost be like a cartoon with the feet hanging out the door of the tent.

If Henry were to kneel he may have been about the height of their large dog. My wife became enthralled with Henry, well actually his chattiness. To the other side we had campers in our demographic group and for two nights they gathered with neighbors to their opposite side. They were rather chatty too, and I cannot imagine what it would be like if they got together with Henry.  The adults departed Friday morning, so we mainly had Henry for talking on Friday, before we departed Saturday morning. It would have been trying to be sandwiched between the chatty adults and chatty Henry for another night.

Fungi on a stump, Cunard Lake Campground, site 30

Cunard Lake, is one of two quiet campgrounds in the Northern Highlands American Legion State Forest (NHAL), the other being Starrett Lake, which is further northeast, not exactly too far from the heavily used Musky, Crystal and Firefly lakes. For several years Cunard has been one of the three least used Campgrounds in the NHAL. Why this is the case, I am not sure, but the lake does not allow craft with gas powered engines. It does not allow generators, or radios to play. Although the way things are moving, like electric bikes, which are scooters powered by electricity over gas, they may need to keep abreast of what is being marketed for water craft. I doubt it is not long away there will be an electric powered paddle board. 

Anyway, annually, the NHAL puts out a small newspaper with varied information, but mostly ads, to pay for it, and they list the most used and least used campgrounds and sites at the NHAL. In 2024, Cunard was second least used, but in 2025 it was the third least used. The other least two used sites are Big Lake and Sandy Beach. We drove through Big Lake one time after biking from Manitowish Waters toward Boulder Junction and back, and it was logged or had significant downed trees, so I can see why people do not camp there, or they logged it because it is not in high demand. We have not driven to view Sandy Beach Lake, that I recall. If we did, it was not memorable.

Yet, Henry was so memorable that he gets one of my famed blog posts named after him. All I know about Henry is he liked to chatter. It may be sexist, but speaking is not necessarily a strong suit of males, ask any female. I hardly heard a peep out of his two older brothers except for one time as they were setting up. The one thing that occupied Henry's time when he was actually did not say much during the day was when he pounded in the tent stakes. 

They had their tent set up, Henry was chatting, the dad getting other camping gear out and the oldest son rather than helping his dad went to the lake to fish from the beach. The middle son was using a hand pump to fill an inflatable kayak. I was walking by their site and all of a sudden, as I am opposite the boy pumping there is a large horrendous boom. The kayak exploded, as I looked I saw the boy looking down to realize what had happened. His dad stopped what he was doing and asked what happened and the son said he had just completed pumping it up and opened a zipper on the side, wondering why it was there and it exploded. The dad was calm, perhaps more so than I would have been, and examined it and then made a call. I was back at the campsite and the wife was wondering if everyone was alright and what happened. She then overheard the dad's conversation and the kayak had just been purchased and had been a floor model. The oldest son, who was fishing came up and I think was about to give the third degree to the his next in line brother (the middle child)  when the dad intervened and said he thought it was defective after having been inflated too long or something. Later that afternoon they made a trip, perhaps to Woodruff or Minocqua and brought back a canoe. We middle children are well versed in taking grief from older and younger siblings.

I am not sure what it was about Henry that made my wife comment on him. Perhaps, she could not believe a boy could talk so much. She worked at elementary and middle schools as a nurse for part of her career, so would have familiarity with a large group of children and their tendencies. Normally, I don't think one expects the youngest to be chatty, on the other hand one would expect teenage boys to be taciturn, which they were. 

The one thing that would have produced more noise than the boom of an exploding inflatable kayak, would have been if my wife, whose favorite time to get into water is bath water, went by chance into the water at the beach and was approached by the common water snake. That snake seems to find comfort at the beach in the late evening. I saw the snake last year and it was rather disconcerting. I have tended to only notice the water snake at around dusk. My wife ventured to the lake and did not see the snake. Last year the snake came out of the water a bit lifted its head and hissed at me. I backed up as quick as I could. People say, don't be scared they can bite but not poisonous. That is like saying, cut yourself, with a knife that is not dipped in poison. Who wants a bite even if it is not poisonous? Whether Henry saw the snake at the beach, I don't know. This year I thought I would take charge, so I took a determined step to the snake and it backed up slithered over the way a few feet and then started to lift its head, and I decided I best not do that again. The snake probably knew I was more scared of getting bit then it was of me grabbing it.

Snake at Cunard Lake Beach, July 2026

Henry was pretty talkative through the night and after we went into the camper about 9 pm. However, at 9:30 Henry was quiet, so I am thinking he reached his bed time. Non-campers can occupy the park from 6 am to 11 pm, and those happen to also coincide with quiet hours. I think quiet hours starting at 11 pm is rather late. If I got up a 6:30 or 7:00 am and made the noise my wife thinks I do, I think other campers would be upset, so is it acceptable to be upset with a good deal of Henry noise at 9 pm?

Campground for large RV's near Hancock, WI

As much as Henry was annoying with his constant chatter, I am not sure he ever breathed, my wife commented that it was nice that his parents and siblings took him camping at campground in the NHAL rather than some of those where large camper after large camper are on top of each other, such as the one near Hancock, WI which you can see from Hwy 51, otherwise known as I-39. Camping at the NHAL, even with Henry would be a better experience than at a large RV park.

Breaking Bread

It was the large platters and bowls of food I most recall. The food was quintessential middle American comfort--turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green beans and of course corn. The meal was held annually on the weekend following Labor Day. This meal was just one important part, perhaps second to the beer tent, of the Sacred Hearts Parish Fall Festival in Sun Prairie, WI. As a festival it may not have been as big as the Sun Prairie Corn Festival, but I found something unique about this festival--in the meal, breaking of the bread together at long, beer hall like, communal tables is not unlike the Eucharist at mass. The festival encompassed most of the whole parish community. It served more as a builder of the church community, than as a fund raiser. If you counted the amount of volunteer labor, it was likely a money loser, but I felt the point was to bring the parish together. The relationship of the festival to the spiritual community at mass, is an intertwined relationship, almost symbiotic as they worked off each other. Breaking of bread is important to community.

Sacred Hearts Parish Hall, gym above, cafeteria below
Google Street View

Sacred Hearts was somewhat unique in its founding. Germans and Irish came together and formed one parish, not two as happened in other parts of the now Madison diocese where each ethnic group started its own parish. With Sacred Hearts being founded in what was an agricultural community, celebration of the fall harvest was appropriate and important. Over time, however, the sense of community in Catholic Churches has been lost, and the movement toward pastorates, or combinations of parishes, I believe, is helping to lead the disintegration of parish as a community, and as a large part of civic community or, for urban parishes, as part of the neighborhood.

If one were to listen to the bishop, all is hunky dory and community is being built, and mass attendance is up (compared to 2022). He does not talk much about the churches engagement with the wider community. He does not count those that have left in comparison to those that have joined. He has to give a sanitized view of his initiative. In Magnificat Humanitas, Pope Leo XIV (parag 27) mentions that when "politics fails to address the tragedies of humanity, when the economy turns against the person or when science oversteps the limits of its competencies" the church must make her voice known in order to promote communion. Hence, the relation of the church to the larger community is important, to play the role suggested by Leo, there must first be a relationship. This relationship is at the wayside.

Back when I was growing up in Sun Prairie, there was, I suggest, a complementary relationship between the parish and the overall civic community. Heavily settled by many German and a lesser amount of Irish immigrants, the Sun Prairie area contained many Catholics. Sacred Hearts was a large presence in the community. Its current dark brown brick church was built in the early 1920's. One of my second great grandmothers, Rosalie Duscheck, died in Sun Prairie, at the age of 92 in October 1921. Faith was important to Grandma Duscheck, as can be seen in this statement from her obituary: "A few months before her death, her desire to see the new church was so great that her sons carried her out and took her to the church in a wheel chair, where she found a great joy in praying at the altar."

1941 Wedding at Sacred Hearts
Courtesy: WI State Historical Society Digital Library

The parish hall is also a brown brick building. Attached is a newer mid-century modern school, of grades one to eight. From outside one enters this classic mid-century modern antiseptic like structure, built to withstand many little hands and feet, and yet long lasting with ceramic tile predominating on hallway floors and at least to four or five feet above floor. For centuries the church knew how to build things right. If you went one direction you were on the first floor of the school (grades 1-4); the other direction took you to a half story down to the parish hall, or a half story up from the first floor took you to the school gym-auditorium. A further half story up from the gym took you to the second floor of the school, grades 5-8. Many of these schools, with large windows, built at a time when energy was cheap, was a common design for a number of Catholic Churches which built new schools during the mid 1950's to early or mid-1960's to accommodate the increase in attendance from the baby boom. Indoor tile pattern/color and exterior brick color being the main differences. 

1912 Sanborn Map of Sacred Hearts property
Courtesy of WI State Historical Society

The festival dinner was held in the parish hall, with the rummage sale in the gym. Outside, there were several booths, of redwood stained wood, and dark green canvas of games for the children. I think for some years they were stored in the small shed, now long gone, that housed Fr Waldkirch's (a longtime pastor) beagles. Men gravitated to the beer tent, perhaps the big money maker, sometimes set at the corner of the church building. The dinner was made and served primarily by women of the parish. These ladies often seemed to be 80 years old, to a young boy, but they were likely in the 50's and 60's. But, maybe younger.  Depending upon the first letter of your last name, families would donate rolls, butter, or pies. As I sit here writing this, it makes me think how much I miss that family style all you can eat meal, where I would fill my plate with turkey, gravy and stuffing, with some corn, but seldom green beans and never cranberry sauce. Meals are one method of gathering particularly family style at long tables set end to end almost the length of the room. I suspect if someone was from town, they did not want to be seated across from the Hovel family particularly the boys with the voracious appetites. On the other hand, they were treated to a feast and likely wondered how people could eat so much. It was a community meal, cheap, plentiful and comfort food. The meal and the festival served a purpose of bringing people together. The church and school, were clearly, at the time, a robust institution.

That institution has seen better days, mass attendance is way down, Sacred Hearts, now teamed with other churches to form Epiphany of the Lord Parish runs an annual deficit. The bishop failed to make any comments on the financial suitability of parishes, perhaps because it is not good. Many have left and few join. Much of this has occurred since Monsignor Duane Moellenberndt retired. One I was growing up the parish had three priests, and for many years, until realignment a few years ago had two. Today, it has three to four priests serving four churches, from St Albert in the west to St Joseph in Waterloo to the east. As an interesting aside, Waterloo was once heavily Catholic, settled in part by Landskron Czechs, and today there is one weekend mass. The fourth priest is in Hispanic ministry and serves here and I think some other area churches.

Undated image of part of Sun Prairie.
Sacred Hearts Steeple sits to left of the water tower
Courtesy of WI State Historical Society

Decline of parishes has implications to the wider neighborhood and community.  Writing in 2008 in the journal City Mayors Society, Tony Favo talks about the important role Catholic Churches played in the mid 1800's to the mid 1900's--their importance with community building, neighborhood ministries, providing food and clothing to the poor and unemployed, hospice services for the terminally ill, and urban parishes had health clinics for the uninsured. Not uncommon were Catholic Hospitals. Perhaps, there was no better illustration of the importance of the Catholic Church to a neighborhood than the movie Cinderella Man. In the movie, James Braddock a down-on-his-luck Irishman during the Great Depression (1935) fights the reigning heavy weight boxing champion, Max Baer. In the movie, many in the neighborhood, gathered in the parish Catholic church to listen to a radio broadcast of the fight. Braddock won. The 1930 census had a question if the household had a radio. My grandparents answered no. 

The Church is/was an important pillar of the neighborhood. Although to many policy makers today the Christian Church is but a nuisance. Yet, Favo took a different view: 

Catholic churches, schools and institutions, in other words, became important anchors of urban neighborhoods. While public schools began crumbling in the 1960s and 1970s as a result of the flight of white, middle-class families to the suburbs, Catholic schools have remained strong. The National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) reports a 99 per cent graduation rate at Catholic secondary schools in 2007 versus a 50 per cent graduation rate for urban public high schools.

Favo then goes on to talk about the decline of the Catholic Church in neighborhoods. That decline has only become more rampant. Fewer Catholics, coupled with changing neighborhood demographics all contributed to the decline. If one were to point to the poster child for decline of the Catholic Church in the United States today it may very well be Pope Leo XIV's childhood parish church, a mid-century modern facility completed in 1957 to serve the growing Catholic population of the area. The church is in Chicago, but just outside of Leo's hometown of Dolton, IL. Closed in 2011, the church did not last even three generations. 

Interior of Pope Leo's Childhood Parish Church
With Robert Prevost being elected as Pope in May 2025, 
this building has since been added to the list of Chicago's 
most endangered list. If not for Leo, the building would
go into the dust bin of the southside, although it still may.
Google map image

Favo continues his work on the institutional loss, but concludes with the following:

The loss of viable Catholic parishes is shattering to many American urban communities. City governments, inevitably, are left to pick up the pieces. 

As Richard Garnett, professor of law at the University of Notre Dame writes of Catholic church and school closings, “As these institutions fold, the burdens on and challenges to public ones will increase.”

I wonder what, nine years later, Favo would have to say about the church in the city? The decrease in services is one thing, but more important is what the loss of institutions does to the very critical fabric of our society. Much as been written about the importance of institutions to the nation. 190 years ago Alexis de Tocqueville traveled throughout the United States to attempt to discover what made democracy work in this fledgling nation, while it failed in other places (most notably at the time, France, his native land). In his book, Democracy in America he noted that Americans exhibited remarkably robust institutions and instincts for civil society—strong neighborhoods, communities, churches, clubs, etc.—and that this strength provided vital support for the health of the democratic polity. Hence, engagement has been, according to de Tocqueville, key to a strong American society.  I see this as similar to Pope Leo's further comment in Magnificat Humanitas: "...Social Doctrine becomes a theology of communion in history, a history in which the word made flesh continues to be present through dialogue, memory and prophecy." The condition of our humanity depends on social interaction.

In a blog post in Sept 2014, I wrote about the importance of the built environment to our civic engagement. I commented on how a small part of Chicago was more neighborly than Sun Prairie. At least at the time of that visit when I was in school. From suburban Sun Prairie, to New Jersey (Braddock), and to the cornfields of Iowa in Winneshiek County where I visited two years ago and was able to see the importance the German communities and their Catholic Churches and schools once meant to those rural communities. The Catholic Church was important to the community, built on strong faith, and backs of its members.

Yet, this disassociation has been going on in most all aspects of society. Robert Putnam, a prominent sociologist, wrote Bowling Alone, in which he described the decline in participation in American society. The clubs and organizations which de Tocqueville famously described, like the Catholic Church, are generally not as strong as they once were. Putnam puts much of the blame on television, perhaps now social media. The civic glue which holds the nation together is eroding. This affects the connectedness and communities of our nation and the desire to engage in civil discourse. Decline has continued and cynicism and indifference now play a major part in society. Part due to institutions themselves, part to a simply more cynical nation where division is promoted.

Book Cover

Many dioceses are restructuring. The common plan is to consolidate, as occurred in the Madison diocese a three years ago, with three to five parishes into a pastorate and into one parish, with the three to five churches. Two to three priests at the combined parish is common. The priest will often rotate their mass celebrations, but how each new parish handles it is up to that parish pastor. What occurs, is at a time when community should be encouraged, the combined churches into one parish structure helps undermine community as the priests become transient by service to many churches. The large pastorate that serves Fort Atkinson area (six churches), the assigned pastor said he would have to travel over 100 miles to visit all the churches in one day. They lack strong attraction to many of the communities or neighborhoods served simply because they are no longer living nearby, they cut out their hotline for after hours or they lack the time to be involved in their community. A priest, could be a leader in building community. Fr Art Koth, who served Christ the King in McFarland for many years, was once named person of the year in the Norwegian Lutheran dominated village; this was due to his involvement in the community. The rad trads, would not think to be involved with anything other than lace and funny hats. It is often said that such consolidation of churches leads to a twenty percent drop in membership of the restructured parish. At a time when the church can ill afford to lose members, strategies that result in that are pursued. The only winners are the consultants that recommend such foolery. It is a classic sign of folly, pursuing strategy counter to your goals.

This lack of community connection, I think, is in large part is due to the church having prioritized the single all-male priesthood, over all else, whether be the Gospel, the Eucharist (one only needs to look at the combined parishes) church or community. The connections once so strong to building a relationship between church and city are going by the wayside at least for the Catholic Church. Other churches, mainly Evangelical, fill the void as the decline in the Catholic Church continues. The Brazilian soccer team, was almost all evangelicals, which has led some Brazilians to comment, when they were knocked out that "If you pray like a Gringo, you play like a Gringo." Catholics used to make up over 80% of the country, but is now at 52%. When you lack boots on the ground this is the result. It seems as if the mission of the church is to empty the pews to align with the fewer priests. Hierarchy then complains about lack of giving, mass attendance (nationally at 18%) but drive people away by sermons, traditionalist services, and lack of masses. They really have no right for such complaints given the failing model of clergy to which they adhere. In terms of giving the Stella Maris combined parish of St Patrick (Cottage Grove), Christ the King (McFarland), and Immaculate Heart of Mary (Monona) raised about 50% of its intended operating goal for the past fiscal year. 

I romanticized a bit about the parish dinner at the Sacred Hearts Fall Festival. But, from about 30 to over 100 years ago such occurrences were common in the church. It was a parish community, more than simply a place that mass was said. Community was present in the culture, in the activities, and spiritually in the mass. They are all integrated. Dynamics of society, think Bowling Alone, and those within the church compound the problem of lack of engagement and involvement in civic or religious organizations. At a time when the church should be helping to address the problem of engagement it seems to be going in the opposite direction, it is said by those in charge, due to church priorities, declining priests and laity. The church in the community is a loss not to just to the church but to the city and our democratic society. 

Japanese Beetles

I think most of us who garden are familiar with the invasive pest known as the Japanese beetle. While they were introduced into Wisconsin in the 1950's, they exploded in the southern part of the state in later 1990's into the 2000's. They are a pest that likes to destroy certain plants.

The first time I noticed a Japanese beetle was quite some time ago, but within that explosion time frame. That year I had planted Blue Lake pole beans, in lieu of my standard Blue Lake bush bean. The bean plant was nice and healthy until one day in early July I was in the garden checking my plants and noticed that the leaves were all skeletonized, and that is where I noticed the beetle. I did not know what it was at the time, but the internet, even before AI, quickly informed me of the pest. 

Three Japanese Beetles partying on a raspberry plant leaf

Currently, they mostly attack our raspberries and roses, but have been seen on other plants, such as Hollyhock. They burrow into the rose bud such that when it opens you find them feasting on the rose petals. We pull them off the plants as we come across them. I used to simply hold it and take my thumb nail and puncture through the bug, but that got messy, and would take me away from raspberry picking as my hands smelled like Japanese Beetle. It is not a pleasant odor. Now, I pick them off and place them in a container of water and some Dawn dish soap. I am not concerned about killing an invasive specie. A couple years ago camping at Mirror Lake Gypsy moths, now called Sponge moths were literally falling out of trees, and I asked a ranger what to do and she said smash them. That made sense to me. We got one container filled with the beetles, and did not know what quite to do with them, so I dug a hole and dumped them in. 

When I look at the raspberry plants and see them on the foliage or on a berry, it is not uncommon for two to be hooked up, likely fertilizing eggs to continue the spread of this pest. I have to say, they are not usually too shy and I have even come across a fivesome. I am quickly becoming an expert on the sexual habits of Japanese Beetles. While they like the tops of the leaves to mate, some, in this recent hot weather, hook up on the underside of a leaf. I take it they are not monogamous.

Pulling them off can be a challenge, particularly if you already have some in a closed hand. In the closed hand, the sharp little legs like to stick to you hand, or even worse they are trying to wiggle out between the fingers or the palm and finger tips. Perhaps the spot most vulnerable is the between the little finger and the palm . They vibrate the hand which provides an odd sensation. With several in the hand you try to keep them in before they can escape and dump them all in the water-soap mix. This is not always successful.  

Cucumber leaves eaten off plant, likely be deer

If you have not tried to pick a Japanese beetles off a plant and hold them in your closed hand I suggest you do so. It becomes more difficult as you add the beetle to the hand with several already vying to get out.  I do have to say, picking the fivesome off was rather difficult to make sure I got all. I think I put my handover the group and pulled on the leaf. Sometimes I am fortunate to get them all, other times not so much. 

The beetles do three things, eat, have sex, and party. At some point the beetles will lay the eggs, which have a 10 to 12 day period to hatch. The females burrow into the ground lay the eggs and depart to eat, party and have sex some more. As much as they destroy my garden plants, the majority of their 10-12 month cycle is spent underground eating roots of grass. I get the feeling that we will forever be fighting the Japanese beetle. It is too bad the deer don't go for them instead of my cucumber and other plants. Or, that the Canadian wildfire smoke does not hamper them.

If it is not one pest, Japanese Beetles as an example, it is other pests, deer eating plants, squirrels stealing out bean seeds, rabbits nibbling on lower leaves, chipmunks destroying plants. And other creatures I am not aware, perhaps racoons, groundhogs or whatever. 

Priorities

This past winter, about a month apart, I saw death notices for two religious sisters, one a Dominican from the Sinsinawa convent, and the other a Benedictine based at Holy Wisdom Monastery. Besides that both were near the same age and committed themselves to religious life, I quickly noticed they had one other thing in common. Both funerals were at Holy Wisdom Monastery which is slightly north of Madison, WI. Each of the funeral services were led by a female, and with communion using gluten free hosts. Needless to say they did not have a Catholic funeral mass. At least for the Benedictine it is not like a priest was not available, as one priest played the music, and another gave the homily. Instead they went with a female who preaches at Holy Wisdom which was started by the Benedictine sisters. At one point Holy Wisdom was under a different name until then Bishop Robert Morlino helped encourage the split and asked them to give up the tabernacle that had been housed at the location, at that point they changed the name. I bring this up  as it shows the priority for the Catholic Church and its affect on even religious sisters.

1 July 2026 SSPX recently consecrated bishops (white)
Google images

Unfortunately, as many in the Amazon can attest, the chief priority of the church is not the resurrection and saving grace of Jesus, or service to the faithful, but rather a single all-male clergy. Persons in the Amazon can go over a year without a priest showing up. So much for the church serving those at the margins. At the same time, in the United States, we see many foreign priests such that we have become a mission area. The priests from India or Africa or wherever, are favored by some of their home territories because the American diocese pays their diocese for their services, a rent-a-priest program. The problem is many of the foreign priests are hard to understand, so it further drives away people. Why attend mass when you cannot understand the celebrant, whether it highly accented English, Latin, or Bengali. According to EWTN in the 1990's over 80% of Brazilians were Catholic, and it is now down to 52%...and falling. It does not take a genius to figure out why. In the meantime, Evangelicals are the recipients of the Catholic loss. Given the move to Evangelicals, it is not that the church is not sufficiently traditional, as many rad-trads say, but it is failing to have boots on the ground, and clergy rooted in the community. 

Diocese of Detroit, symbolic of decline in the Catholic Church
Ryan Burge is a professor at Washington University
L to R: Baptisms, First Communion, Confirmation, Marriages Funerals

People are voting with their feet and leaving, and the church lets its institutional sclerosis and its conservative nature keep it down. Even the firmest trads, SSPX, recently split with tradition by not getting papal approval for consecration of new bishops. Recently, some news outlets, pointed to recent high number of converts, but the incoming does not offset those who leave, and the number is actually lower than pre-Covid years. Yet, the church will take it as a win. Mass attendance is at 28%, much less than most other faiths. One wonders if Benedict's change to the mass also led to disaffection. If it is the one true church, in trad minds, why is it loosing so many people? Over the centuries this idea of one true church has led to a significant arrogance that has become embodied in the institution. When my grandfather used to say "The walls of hell are lined with the souls of priests!" it was not the abuse crisis, but the arrogance priests exhibited, clericalism. Here is a link to an article on the disconnect in the Church. While the data is almost ten years old, it shows the clear disconnect between the rad trads who demand purity and compliance, compared to the parishioners. This is part of the reason, I believe, so many have left or are leaving. Yet, even the rad trads, as pointed out in a prior post lose themselves, lace only goes so far in binding rad trad clerics to the faith. When Pope Francis proclaimed Todos, todos, todos, he was recognizing that people can disagree with church teaching and still be Catholic, to him it was a matter of accompaniment and not putting people down. This is different from John Paul II and Benedict XVI who both seemed to demand strict obedience. Even Poland is starting to go the way of Ireland. The bible may say, regarding Christ's church, that "the gates of hell shall not prevail against it," but that does not say anything about the folly and sins of men.

Sadly, the increasing number of young rad-trad priests think their main activity is to wear funny hats and dress in long black cassocks, rather than provide service to their parishioners. I know of one rad-trad, who no longer identifies as a priest, but when pastor of a parish got rid of its 24 hour hotline for its congregants. If you needed anointing of the sick, or confession, you may be dead by the time you get it. Unfortunately, this is becoming more the rule than the exception with the Morlino priests. In less than two decades we will only have Morlino priests and the church will increasingly be smaller and more doctrinaire focused on Latin, funny hats and long cassocks rather than people and God. The "gift" of Robert Morlino keeps on giving. Hence, rather than accompanying congregants on a spiritual journey, they think of themselves. 

The problem is the priests then complain about how few attend mass, but yet many clergy fail to accompany parishioners. They complain even more about the lack of giving, but yet they preach exclusion and have a mass more like SSPX than Vatican II. They do not like the effects of their preaching and actions, yet they still do it. The actions of the local bishop has also driven congregants away. The Church is in a perfect storm when you add in its clericalism, and what that has led to in the church. It is now getting worse as many diocese close churches, consolidate, and cut back on masses because of the priest shortage. Figures show when this occurs 20% of the congregations are lost. Yet, they keep doing it. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result, and that is where the church finds itself.

So much focus of the church over the past few decades has been on trying to keep the conservative, Holocaust denying SSPX in the fold. So much so that leaders have been blind to the other end. It is a true misreading by the church when two religious sisters do not have a Catholic funeral mass. The church not only cannot preach to a choir which has dispersed, as at St Maria Goretti, and Christ the King, but it has failed to keep its own religious properly in communion. It is not like these two religious sisters up and got married, they still lived within their respective religious communities. The conservative nature of the church, in trying to patch things up for so long with SSPX, failed to recognize the crumbling foundation, leaky roof, and all that entails on the other end of the divide.

Ryan Burge

The injustice is even greater for the persons in the Amazon and other regions at the periphery who desire to better practice their faith, but lack clerics to attend to their needs. It is not like the issue is not known, the Synod on the Amazon brought the issue of lack of clergy for many communities to the forefront. It seems to me the Church made a pact with people when it baptized them, and now it throws them to the side and fails to live up to its end of the bargain because of the single, all-male priesthood. Poor John Paul NO, in his rush to maintain male clericalism, he used historic arguments that make little sense. After all, the first person to encounter the risen Christ was not male, but Mary Magdalene (John 20:11-18).

Yet, even John Paul apparently did not say no to female deacons, which existed in the early church, but no longer exist due to patriarchy and clericalism. Pope Francis got some things right, but choose not to go too far, perhaps a concern with what Cardinals Burke and Mueller would say. When the US bishops visited the Vatican on their ad limina visits a few months after the Amazon synod, it was not the issue of declining priests or drop in attendance that they wanted to broach with the Vatican, but to make sure the Pope (Francis) would not think of allowing ordination of married men, or allow female deacons, two issues that synod document touched on. The final no action was a win for clericalism and patriarchy. One would think the rad-trads would embrace female deacons, since they were active in the early church, but they do not. Rather, they look to Pius X and the 19th century as the "highwater" mark, not the first centuries of Christianity. Even with this, the church still studies the matter and the recent study committee document (2025) was laughable for its incomplete and poor treatment of the issue.

To help with the lack of clergy one would think deacons could become more common. However, Bishop Morlino forbad any new deacons. I have a man in my book club who had wished to become a deacon  when Morlino was a bishop, but Morlino said no. Fast forward to present time, and another member of my book club noted he had received a letter from the diocese asking him to consider becoming a deacon. Apparently the letter was sent to a certain demographic of males, as the one who earlier had desired and is retiring this year, did not get a letter. So, we go from the short-sighted Morlino to present time when they are now wanting more deacons. Do they finally realize the negative effects of the lack of clergy? They realize the clergy shortage is real, and perhaps they realize that the Morlino priests really do not wish to work all that hard. Why do Morlino priests dislike work? It could be thta they are too busy tidying up their lace, and dusting their beanies. 

Hence, the Catholic Church is left with people having been praying for the past 50 or more years for more priests and the situation has not improved. It reminds me of the joke...

A devout person refuses evacuation during a flood. They stubbornly decline a rowboat and a motorboat, insisting God will save them. Even when a helicopter arrives, when they are perched on the roof of the house, they refuse the rope. Eventually, the person drowns. They meet God, and ask why He didn't intervene, to which God replies, "I sent you two boats and a helicopter, what more did you expect?

Clearly, in the above joke, the Catholic Church is the devout person. Maybe God is telling the Church that it has failed to properly use all its human resources, In that sense, in holding to a single, all-male clergy the church shows that its priority is not attending to the Gospel or the bringing people to encounter Jesus, but rather its priority is the single all-male priesthood to which all else in the church is subservient. 

Those two religious sisters continued to live with their religious communities, showing the diversity of thought in the church. But, community, long a standard of the faith is being lost and its decline is increasing as parishes are closed, or consolidated. It may be an urban legend, that Pope Benedict XVI desired a smaller more doctrinaire church, but that is coming true. The church will look much different in a couple generations, as more churches close due to declining attendance, and fewer priests. The priority of the church for a single all-male clergy feeds on itself and this priority is what has led to realignment, closures and consolidations. The church is reducing its population to align with its decreasing number of clergy. It is a matter of priorities, and the message of Gospel is second to the single all-male clergy. 

Gone Garden

I first noticed a kale plant, started by my brother-in-law, who gave it to my sister who gave it to me at Easter. Due to the heavy rains in mid to late April, I did not get the garden soil worked up as early as desired for cool season crops, hence this kale, an my own plants were not in the soil until late April. It was a less than a week later, that it was chewed to the ground. My other plants went missing, like they were pulled out, even with row covers. I put a wire basket around it, and since it has struggled to once again take off. My other kale plants have seen the same fate. I am not sure what it is this year, but critter damage to my garden started early and has continued. I have plants or vegetables being eaten that have never before been eaten. It began and April and has continued unabated. This has meant that much of my garden is gone.

Critters eating Kale

I am not sure why an animal would like kale, but for its supposed benefits of varied minerals. Yet, it is not just the kale. Leaves have been chopped off Brussel sprouts, the fruit and/or leaves of kohlrabi have been eaten. The collards have been left untouched, by a critter who seemingly prefers kale over collard greens, but now have the usual holes in the leaves eaten by some type of caterpillar or worm. Yet, even before all this my self-started kale, collards, broccoli, and cabbage plants were fully eaten to the ground. It was so bad, I had to go buy plants of kale and collards and broccoli plants. The critters got them too, and have little left. I am not sure what squirrels may do, but one time as I entered the garden I saw a squirrel with a plant in its mouth moving quickly out of the fenced in garden. 

My second planting of beans was all destroyed, likely by squirrels, but maybe chipmunks, digging up the seeds I had planted. I even covered the next planting with screen weighed down by stones, and some where still dug out.

Kohlrabi leavaess eaten 

My pea plants were eaten off at the ground in May, just as they were about to produce. Some of my bean plants had the same, but the bean plants in the raised bed were looking good until we got back from a camping trip on July 2, and noticed they were all eaten down.

While the garden is on a hill in the backyard, my eggplant seem to need more sun so I planted three on the southside of the house in our flower bed. A couple weeks ago I noticed the lower leaves had been eaten, but the critter left the small fruits starting to be produced on the plants. for two of the plants, I have placed a large tomato cage over the plants, and used old screening or chicken wire to wrap around the cage. The critter apparently did not like the fruit of the eggplant. Of course, the critter ate more than vegetables. I had a nice snapdragon from last year that survived and had flowered, and I dead-headed to get it to flower again, only to find a couple days later it had been eaten to the ground level as some cosmos.

Brussel Sprout leaves eaten

Fortunately, my tomato plants have been left unharmed, although earlier in the year deer seemed to have eaten them as they did my rose bushes which delayed roses on most of my rose shrubs.  Adding insult to injury, the impatiens I planted in a homemade planter, that sits about 7" above the concrete floor of the porch, were cut down to a couple inches high, destroying all the nice flowers. Our neighbor plants impatiens in the ground and they never have damage, perhaps because they have a dog, and while an inside dog, they do let it out in the backyard on occasion. I am not sure if the critters smell the dog even though it is not in the backyard too often, or what happens that they know to attack my plants. It all makes me wonder if the critters have trail cams to find out what we are up to and when we are away from the house. 

I do know that I have seen a rabbit in the garden, and not sure how it got in, perhaps through the door. I wonder, with all the damage it lives in there and hides under the rhubarb leaves. I want to know why the critters can not eat things, like the volunteer Kentucky Coffee trees that pop up, or the creeping Charlie, or the burdock, or the grapevines growing up back in my somewhat wild area? But, no, they have to eat something I put time and effort into growing and had to replace (some replaced twice, i.e.  three plantings). I know, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over again and expecting a different result. 

Kale

I have tried row covers over seedings and as another fence, but those techniques failed. I am now trying another fence, to have the kale and Brussel Sprouts fenced within the fenced in garden. I keep wondering if I have to put a netting over the top, supported by some type of structure. I am attempting to reinvigorate the remaining plants, but not sure if that will work to which I will have a mostly gone garden.

Demographic Mortality

A few months ago there was an outbreak of the Hantavirus on a cruise ship, possibly due to some bird watchers who became infected while visiting a rat infested dump in Argentina. As I was reading the article I mentioned to the wife that an outbreak of the Hantavirus was on a cruise ship. As I was reading, she asked if anyone died. I then replied some old man died, his wife and at least one other. When saying "old man" was aged 68, it did not occur to me that I was the same age. Unwittingly, I labeled myself an old man. I did not know this man, but, things hit home with two other deaths over the past several months. One was a college friend who lived next door in the dorms, and another a former classmate from high school.

While I am a seasoned citizen, although not as seasoned as the wife, women live longer than men, on average about 4.9 years, say five years. Given that, perhaps I am a more seasoned citizen than my wife. Currently, in the US, men are expected to live on average 76.5 years, although if you get to 65, you have, on average 18.4  more years to live. At my current age, the wife may have to put up with me for an additional 15 years. Although the math does not always work since other sources identify lesser years on earth if you live to 65. 

It was midweek when I read a Facebook post about the high school classmate who died. He lived in Minnesota, but his funeral will be in Sun Prairie. We were both part of the 1976 bicentennial class. There have been others that have passed on, one of which I was acquainted with since grade school died about 14 months ago. There are also college classmates. Several years ago the wife of one of my college roommates, who was in the same 1980 college class, passed away. Last November, a former friend from college, who lived in the dorm next to me passed away. He was from Madison, and while spent much of his time in Colorado, was back in the area with his funeral and burial in the Madison area.  

Population Pyramid, US, 2025
populationpyramids.org

This increasing level of departing the bonds of earth is starting to become more common for my demographic. The mortality level increases as we age just as travel insurance, and other insurance rates increase for the seasoned citizen set. The wife got her driver license renewal notice recently, and saw that there were options to renew on line, but she did not qualify due to her being a senior citizen.

 According to the 2025 US population pyramid, it is at the 60-64 age cohort where females begin to outnumber males. This of course does not bode well for widows, or single women in the age group looking for a similarly aged man. Does this lead to cougars?  Women live longer than men, and often it was that the man is older than the spouse he marries. Kind of a double whammy. My wife is smart--she is a cougar, marrying a bit younger than her demographic. She has always denied being a cougar, but a former coworker of mine, also a cougar by about the same age difference with her spouse (but a millennial), is proud to be one and suggested that my wife embrace being a cougar.  

The mortality rate for men tends to increase dramatically in my age group. At 68 (65-74), the rate is 2,000 to 4,500 males per 100,000 males, and for the next ten year group (75-84) it increases to 4,700 per 100,000. At 84 it is 14,000-17,000 per 100,000. I am not sure why they have such a large range, it seems as if it is an easy statistic to maintain. Genetics, lifestyle and other factors all play a roll in determining life expectancy. 

As an unwittingly self-described old man, the demographic mortality is starting to hit home.

Have a safe and enjoyable Independence Day!