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The World Championship Cheese Contest is continuing to grow.  The Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association announced that there are a record setting number of entries for the competition in Madison next month.  More than 36-hundred cheesemakers from 26 different countries have signed on to show off their best dairy products from March third through the fifth at the Monona Terrace Convention Center, and may the best cheese win.

You might notice flags flying lowering and wonder why. Governor Evers issued Executive Order # 70, relating to a proclamation that the flag of the United States and the flag of the State of Wisconsin be flown at half-staff as a mark of respect for Milwaukee Firefighter, Darrin Jones who died in the line of duty. He was with the department for 28 years.

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services says 14 people in the state are currently being monitored for the coronavirus.  In a press  conference, officials said eight tests for the virus have come back negative, five tests are still awaiting results, and one positive case has been confirmed in Dane County.  DHS officials stressed that the risk to the public remains low.

We now know the fate of a woman charged with murder. A judge in Dunn County has sentenced Ezra McCandless to life in prison with possibility for parole after 50 years today. McCandless convicted of stabbing her boyfriend, Aexander Woodworth, to death back in 2018. Police say she stabbed him 16 times. McCandless tried to claim self-defense, but a jury found her guilty last November. She was sentenced today in a Dunn County Court.

The cost for regular gas in Wisconsin is down four-cents-a-gallon compared to a week ago.  Triple-A says the average price statewide is two-dollars-and-32-cents today.  Drivers in Madison are paying two-29, in Milwaukee two-24, two-18 in Fond du Lac and two-54 a gallon in Superior.

Today is National Wear Red Day, which is designed to heighten awareness about cardiovascular disease among women.  Heart disease and stroke are the leading causes of death of women in the United States.  In Wisconsin, officials say Go Red For Women isn’t just about wearing red or sharing health facts.  It’s about providing women with opportunities to prioritize their health and build communities that support and provide access to healthy choices.

A new study says you can reduce stress at work by staring at a plant.  Phil Hulett reports. PLANT IT, AND PICK UP THE DIRT HERE

A California man accused of possessing over three-million-dollars of cocaine in Eau Claire County is pleading no contest in the case.  Reports say Samuel Serrano pleaded no contest Thursday to possession with intent to sell over 40 grams of cocaine, giving him a prison sentence of no longer than eight years.  The Eau Claire County Sheriff’s Office says Serrano was recently found with nearly 70 pounds of the drug, the largest drug bust in the county’s history.

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers wants to use hundreds of millions of dollars in state tax revenue surplus to lower property taxes and increase education funding.  If you were paging through The Chippewa Herald you may have seen reports Evers made the proposal Thursday to the displeasure of many Republicans.  Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald says Republicans are focused on using the surplus on tax cuts for working families.

The Altoona city planner is running to join the Eau Claire School Board.  Joshua Clements announced Thursday he’s running as a registered write-on candidate, becoming only the third candidate to submit paperwork for the three openings.  Lori Bica and Phil Lyons are also running.