May 17, 2012 - "Recall Review"
This week we turn the spotlight back to politics and the recall elections involving Governor Walker and the 29th State Senate seat. Guests will be Democratic activist Christine Bremer Muggli of Wausau and Republican activist Kevin Stevenson of Merrill. On June 5th, Wisconsin voters will decide between Governor Scott Walker and Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, and in the 29th State Senate race between Republican Assemblyman Jerry Petrowski and Democratic Assemblywoman Donna Seidel. Petrowski and Seidel face off May 23rd in a combined media debate sponsored in part by Wisconsin Public Radio.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	51:49

May 10, 2012 - "Author, Loung Ung"
This Thursday we feature a conversation with Loung Ung, author of First They Killed My Father, whose story of surviving genocide in Cambodia is being shared this week with central Wisconsin school children. Ms. Ung was five years old, and part of a middle class family when the Khmer Rouge came to power. In the next five years, two million of Cambodia's seven million people would die, including Ms. Ung's father, mother, and two sisters. Her story is an inspiration to oppressed people all over the world, and has particular significance to Wausau's Hmong community. The program will feature a 30 minute conversation between Ms. Ung and host Glen Moberg, followed by a discussion with Chang Yang, former President of the Wausau Area Hmong Mutual Association, who escaped from Vietnam after the fall of the U.S. backed government; and Colin Hansen, history teacher with the Edgar School District, who brought Ms. Ung to central Wisconsin.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	51:45

May 3, 2012 - "Father Steve Brice"
This Thursday, Route 51 features an hour of conversation with Father Steve Brice, who is being reassigned to another community after serving for 18 years as the pastor of The Church of St. Anne in Wausau. Host Glen Moberg will ask Father Steve about his work with the social justice group NAOMI in its efforts to re-establish public bus service in the Village of Weston; his outreach to the central Wisconsin Hmong community; his efforts to help the homeless and poverty stricken in the Wausau area; and his reflections on the impact of Catholic advocacy on the debates over insurance coverage for contraception and the Paul Ryan budget proposal.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	51:20

April 26, 2012 - "WI 29th Senate District Recall-Part 1"
This week we will present a forum between the two candidates on the Democratic Party ballot for the 29th State Senate District recall election. Host Glen Moberg will moderate a discussion between State Representative Donna Seidel (D-Wausau) and James Buckley (D-Antigo). The winner of the May 8th primary election will likely face State Representative Jerry Petrowski (R-Marathon) in the June 5th general election. Listeners will have an opportunity to call in with their questions live on the air.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	52:12

April 19, 2012 - "Israeli music group, Yamma Ensemble"
This week we present an hour of conversation and music with Yamma Ensemble, an ethnic Israeli folk music group that is touring the United States and central Wisconsin. Host Glen Moberg will interview band members Talya G.A. Solan, Avri Borochov, Sefi Asfuri, Aviad Ben Yehuda, and Yonnie Dror, who will perform on ancient and modern instruments in our Wausau studio. The group appears in concert April 19th at 7:30 pm at The Grand, downtown Wausau. According to one music critic, "Yamma Ensemble brings the cultural mosaic that is Israel alive. Their sounds?drawn from Eastern European, Balkan, Gypsy, Sephardic and Yemenite melodies?are at times rollicking and joyous, at others moving and mournful. But they are always vibrant, passionate, and performed from the heart. To listen to Yamma Ensemble is to stroll the markets of Old Jaffa, to sip coffee in a café above the Mediterranean. It is to experience the mystery of Israel."

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	51:37

April 12, 2012 - UWMC's Spring Play: "Milwaukee Vibrator"
This week we preview Milwaukee Vibrator, The Motorcycle Musical, scheduled for its world premiere debut performance on Friday, April 13th, at the Center for Civic Engagement Theater on the UW-Marathon County campus in Wausau. The rock'n'roll musical is based on Wisconsin's Harley Davidson culture, as the patrons of a biker bar fight to keep it open against a greedy real estate developer. Guests will be: Steve Sperry, Wisconsin native and Milwaukee Vibrator author; producer and UW-Marathon County Theater Director Sarah Rudolph; and cast member Zachary A. Wilde. In a first for the Route 51 show, the program will feature three rehearsal performance segments, performed live on the radio and from the theater stage.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	50:14

April 5, 2012 - Michael Perry
This Thursday A conversation with Wisconsin author, humorist and part time farmer Michael Perry. Glen Moberg will talk to Perry about his books Population 485, Truck, and Coop, and about his appearance April 14th at the Sentry Theater in Stevens Point.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	47:02

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	47:02

March 22, 2012 - "Wisconsin Kids Voting"
This week we focus on the central Wisconsin Kids Voting convention, which takes place on the UW-Marathon County campus in Wausau on Tuesday, March 20th. More than 250 regional high school students will participate in the event, which is modeled after our national political conventions. The Democratic and Republican students will hold debates, and then each group will choose a presidential candidate.
On Thursday, Route 51 host Glen Moberg will present highlights in the event and moderate an hour long discussion with the two winning high school candidates, and with Mike Otten, the Executive Director of Kids Voting USA Wisconsin Marathon County.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	47:02

March 15, 2012 - "Affordable Care Act, Year Two"
This Thursday Route 51 looks at the changes in medical care and insurance coverage mandated by the Affordable Care Act, two years after the controversial national health insurance reform law was passed and signed into law. Guests will be Dr. Todd Stewart, Vice President of the Marshfield Clinic and a pediatric intensivist, and Doug Hill, the Executive Director of Know Your Care Wisconsin, a nonpartisan organization with a mission of informing the public about the new health care law. This is a good opportunity for our Route 51 listeners to get answers from the experts about how the new law affects them and their insurance coverage. Dr. Stewart and Mr. Hill will be answering phone calls live on the air.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	46:07

March 8, 2012 - "Author, Sandra Kring"
We continue our Regional Authors Series focusing on North Central Wisconsin writers and the new books they have published. This week we welcome author Sandra Kring. Her new book A Life of Bright Ideas continues the story of two best friends from Wisconsin who were featured in Kring's best seller from 2006, The Book of Bright Ideas. Kring's novels have been critically acclaimed. Her own life is also an inspiring story. She survived an abusive childhood, and went on to run support groups and workshops for adult survivors of trauma. Kring credits her success to a belief that she could "rewrite the story" of her own life.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	46:09

March 1, 2012 - "Author, Charles Schoenfeld"
This week we begin a Regional Authors Series focusing on North Central Wisconsin writers and the new books they have published. Host Glen Moberg welcomes Charles Schoenfeld, author of A Funny Thing Happened on My Way to the Dementia Ward, a true account of his experience as a Certified Nursing Assistant working with Alzheimer's patients at North Central Health Care in Wausau. Schoenfeld writes: "The dynamics of daily life on a dementia ward, my encounters with co-workers, visiting family, and particularly the residents I helped, resulted in a train wreck of emotions that both broke and filled my heart. The stories are many." Schoenfeld worked for most of his life as a UPS truck driver, and entered this second career only after his mother became a patient at the facility.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	46:03

February 23, 2012 - "Insurance Coverage of Contraception"
This week we look at both sides of the debate over national health insurance and the decision by the Obama administration to enforce mandatory coverage of contraception through the Affordable Care Act. Guests this week are Julaine Appling, President of Wisconsin Family Action, and Lon Newman, Executive Director of Family Planning Health Services Inc. The issue has become prominent in the upcoming U.S. Senate race in Wisconsin, and has provoked heated exchanges between national pundits, with some decrying a "war on religion" and others a "war on women".

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	46:12

February 16, 2012 - "Tuskegee Airmen"
This Thursday we have a very special edition of Route 51 as we welcome two of the legendary Tuskegee Airmen- Virgil Poole and Dr. Welton Taylor, for an hour of in depth conversation on their service to our country in World War II, and their roles in overcoming the ugly racial stereotypes of the time. Mr. Poole and Dr. Taylor will talk about their service in the 332nd Fighter Group, which became the inspiration for the hit George Lucas movie "Red Tails." Mr. Poole and Dr. Taylor are appearing Wednesday evening at the Edgar High School Auditorium, and Thursday evening at the American Legion in Wausau.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	46:28

February 9, 2012 - "Central Rivers Farmshed"
This week we look at the Central Rivers Farmshed, an organization based in the Stevens Point area that's dedicated to making Central Wisconsin a local food community. Host Glen Moberg will moderate a discussion with Eric Olson, a member of the Farmshed Board of Directors; Layne Cozzolino, Farmshed Interim Executive Director; and Joelle Grohsek, Farmshed Program Coordinator. The group's work is based on several principles: food is a cultural heritage; local food systems produce wealth; food brings people together; healthy eating is a simple solution; and the area has the necessary natural resources for the project.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	46:26

February 2, 2012 - "Marathon County's LIFE Report"
This week we look at the findings of the Marathon County LIFE Report, a biannual examination of the good and the bad, the positives and the negatives, and the opportunities and challenges of life in central Wisconsin. The report highlighted a vibrant local economy that has been hit hard by recent plant closings, and a community dealing with challenges posed by poverty, alcohol abuse, and early childhood development. Our guests this week are: Jeff Zriny, President and CEO of the Wausau Region Chamber of Commerce; Jeff Sargent, the Executive Director of North Central Community Action Program; and Julie Burmesch, Coordinator of the Wausau School District Pre-Kindergarten Programs. The show will also discuss an effort to market the region with a new campaign called "Central Wisconsin Time", and will look at similar community reports being compiled for Portage County and Wood County.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	45:23

January 26, 2012 - "UW-Stevens Point LEAF Program"
We'll be taking a look at the UW-Stevens Point LEAF Program, which helps Wisconsin public schools in their efforts to teach young people about forestry. The program is a partnership between the Department of Natural Resources and the Wisconsin Center for Environmental Education. Host Glen Moberg will moderate a discussion with Jeremy Solin, LEAF Program Director; Wendy McCown, Director of the DNR Bureau of Forestry Services; and Karen Dostal, School Forest Director of the Stevens Point Area School District. Nearly one third of the state of Wisconsin is covered by forests, which provide important environmental, economic and social benefits for our citizens. LEAF stands for Learning, Experiences and Activities in Forestry.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	45:02

January 19, 2012 - "Proposed Mining Law in Wisconsin"
This week we look at the controversy surrounding Wisconsin's proposed new mining law, Assembly Bill 426, which would ease regulations and the environmental review process in approving new mines, and which could lead to an iron mine in Ashland and Iron Counties, south of Lake Superior. Those in favor of the bill say the mine would provide hundreds of needed, well-paying jobs. Those opposed worry about environmental damage to a pristine natural area in the Lake Superior watershed. We welcome our guests, State Senator Bob Jauch, Democrat from Superior and State Representative Tom Tiffany, Republican from Hazelhurst. The program will also feature comments made by mine supporters and opponents at a recent public hearing in Hurley.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	45:26

January 12, 2012 - "Budget Cuts to UW System"
This week we will discuss the challenges facing our regional University of Wisconsin campuses. Guests will include Bernie Patterson, Chancellor of UW Stevens Point; Keith Montgomery, Dean of UW Marathon County; and Patricia Stuhr, Dean of UW Marshfield Wood County. The program will discuss the possible impact to local campuses of Governor Walker's decision to cut $46.1 million dollars from the UW budget. UW System President Kevin Reilly called the cuts the largest in history, and predicted that universities would have fewer and larger classes; current students would need more time and larger loans to graduate; and future students would find it more difficult to get into UW System schools (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Dec. 23, 2011). The cuts were announced as part of the Governor's effort to balance the state budget without tax increases.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	45:03

January 5, 2012 - "Aldridge family Grants Land Trust"
This week we revisit the role private conservancy efforts and land trusts play in the preservation of forests, lakes and trails used for outdoor recreation. The subject is in the news because of the donation of easements covering 3200 acres surrounding the Minocqua Winter Park, preserving its system of cross country trails while keeping the property in private ownership. The transaction was the largest of its kind in Wisconsin history. Guests will include Matt Dallman, Regional Director of the Nature Conservancy and Bryan Pierce, Executive Director of the Northwoods Land Trust, which coordinated the transaction. The program will also feature an extended interview with Ken and Carolyn Aldridge, the couple who initially purchased the Minocqua area parcel, and then put permanent restrictions on the 3200 acres in order to preserve the trail system.

	Play MP3 File		Download MP3 File	45:30