A rising jail population has Shawano County authorities considering shipping some inmates to neighboring counties.

Troy Beyer, jail administrator, told members of the public safety committee Jan. 7 the average daily population in December was 185 and stood at 195 just hours before the meeting.

You could almost hear the collective sigh of relief at the Jan. 7 public safety committee meeting when members were told the Shawano County Dispatch Center was near full employment.

Kasey Cross, communications supervisor, said two vacancies remain in the department, but there are two candidates in the final stages of pre-employment screening. If all goes well, the department will be at full staff for the first time in many months.

A 58-year-old man convicted of using a computer to facilitate a child sex crime and possession of child pornography was released into the Shawano area Jan. 8, according to the Shawano County Sheriff’s Department.

Christopher K. Morley is listed as 6 feet tall, weighing 190 pounds. He is white with blue eyes and gray hair.

Morley, formerly of Suring, is considered homeless in Shawano County.

It wasn’t that long ago that Gage Timm and Ben Wesolowski spent their Friday nights playing for the Shawano and Wittenberg-Birnamwood football teams.

While they never had a chance to play for a high school state championship with the Hawks and Chargers, both players can now say they’re members of a national championship team.

Thursday, Jan. 8

Tigerton 79, White Lake 22

For the first few minutes of the game, the Tigers trailed the Lakers. But once Tigerton overtook the lead at 9-8, it was all Tigers from there, as they rolled to a 79-22 win in the CWC-North.

Tigerton improved to 10-0 overall with a and 4-0 in conference action, while White Lake dropped to 3-5 overall and 1-2 in the conference.

Thursday, Jan. 8

Crivitz 49, Lena 35

Lena suffered its first loss of the season, a 49-35 loss at home.

Crivitz held a slim 20-18 lead at halftime and extended it with a 29-17 second half.

Ella Thomson led the Wildcats with 11 points, followed by Madilyn Thomson with eight and Abby Kostreva with six.

Thursday, Jan. 8

Shawano 3, Appleton United 3

Shawano held a 3-1 lead after two periods, but Appleton United fought back to tie the game and leave the two teams with a 3-3 score.

Neither team scored in the first period, and Appleton United took a 1-0 lead at 1:16 in the second period.

Shawano scored all three of its goals in the same period.

One of my favorite soups for cold winter days is chicken corn chowder. Progresso brand chicken corn chowder is my favorite. Chicken corn chowder is creamy and hearty, while the corn adds a pop of freshness and sweetness to keep it from feeling too heavy.

Government is rarely efficient, but when it happens, it is always a refreshing surprise.

At year’s end, I made the decision to buy and then apply for the transfer of a firearms silencer.

So did thousands — and perhaps tens of thousands — of gun owners and hunters in 42 states.