In the 1990s, Osvaldo Durruthy was so desperate to get out of prison that he concocted a plan to kill the most hated man behind bars in Wisconsin. He thought the attack would get him deported to Cuba, a country he hadn’t stepped foot in since 1980, when he left as part of the mass exodus known as the Mariel Boatlift.

“We just want to be part of the American dream”: Cuban exile talks troubled past and hopeful future

Wisconsin Life celebrates the people, places, history and culture of the state. Come with us as we kayak the Mississippi River, interview musicians in Milwaukee, and bake pasties in Rhinelander. We connect you with diverse people and ideas through short stories updated twice a week.

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When someone downsizes their home, they have to think about what stays and what goes. But what do people do with relics from their life that carry deep meaning, like old trophies, that can’t make the transition into a new space? At the Nationwide Trophy Recycling program in Madison, Wisconsin, staff and volunteers take old trophies for a fee and recycle the parts. Then, they rebuild new trophies and give them away for free to nonprofits nationwide. Alexandra Salmon takes us on a tour of the shop.

Don’t know what to do with your old trophies? One Madison company will recycle them.

Spring is peak season for baby animals in Wisconsin. It’s also the busiest time of year for wildlife rehabbers, as they’re flooded with calls about wounded or orphaned critters. As WPR’s Sarah Lehr tells us, one group of humans in south central Wisconsin is bringing wildlife into their homes…to care for those animals until they can fend for themselves.

These Wisconsin volunteers are opening up their homes to wild animals

For those who have fought and died in the U.S. Armed Forces, they leave with their families the weight of their sacrifice. Holly Higgins of Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, lost her son, Daniel Johnson, while he served in the U.S. Air Force in Afghanistan in 2010. Higgins talks about dealing with the loss with her other son, Erik Johnson, a Specialist in the Wisconsin Army National Guard. They shared their experience as part of StoryCorps’ Military Voices Initiative, which is made possible by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Wisconsin Airman Killed In Afghanistan Remembered By Mom, Brother

Wisconsin isn’t typically thought of as being at the heart of country music, but did you know that half of one of country’s greatest songwriting duos is from Milwaukee? As Justin Barney tells us, Felice and Boudleaux Bryant are members of the Country Music Hall of Fame, and co-wrote “Rocky Top,” the state song of Tennessee. But first, they met in a dream in Milwaukee.

‘All I have to do is dream’: Remembering iconic songwriters Felice and Boudleaux Bryant

What are some of your early rock ‘n’ roll  memories? For Stoughton’s Bill Amundson, his hit REALLY close to home — when Stoughton’s very own “One Hit Wonders,” The Fendermen, rehearsed in a garage down the street from his home. WPR’s Brad Kolberg produced this story.

“We just want to be part of the American dream”: Cuban exile talks troubled past and hopeful future

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