Business

Lt. Gov. Barnes recognizes community service groups during La Crosse visit

Published

3 years ago

January 17, 2022

Wisconsin Lt. Governor Mandela Barnes (right) and state Sen. Brad Pfaff speak outside the Hope Restores office in La Crosse on Jan. 17, 2022. (PHOTO: Brad Williams)

Wisconsin’s Lieutenant Governor observed the Martin Luther King holiday by visiting with black student leaders in La Crosse.

Mandela Barnes stopped Monday at the “Hope Restores” office, near the Copeland Avenue bridge.

One of a dozen Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate in Wisconsin, Barnes also visited La Crosse Lighthouse respite center and spoke with Gundersen Health System employees on the south side during a sidewalk demonstration outside the hospital.

Lt. Gov. Barnes told reporters that most people in the area might not know about the services that Hope Restores can provide local residents.

“We like to highlight the work that sometimes goes unnoticed,” Barnes said. “We got a lot of young folks in here, and change in this country, change across the entire globe has always been driven by the younger generations, and too often they don’t feel supported, they feel ignored.”

Joined by Wisconsin state Sen. Brad Pfaff, Barnes talked about the value that Hope Restores can provide.

“The work that we do to uplift marginalized communities will impact the greater society, and I think that’s what our focus should be,” Barnes said.

Brad Williams

A native of Prairie du Chien, Brad graduated from UW - La Crosse and has worked in radio news for more than 30 years, mostly in the La Crosse area. He regularly covers local courts and city and county government. Brad produces the features "Yesterday in La Crosse" and "What's Buried on Brad's Desk." He also writes the website "Triviazoids," which finds odd connections between events that happen on a certain date, and he writes and performs with the local comedy group Heart of La Crosse. Brad been featured on several national TV programs because of his memory skills.