FEMA to the rescue, 11 years ago

In August of 2007, the La Crosse area was inundated by flood waters after a very rainy Saturday.  Less than a week after the disaster, FEMA director David Paulison toured some of the most heavily damaged towns in the area, including Gays Mills, and then met with reporters at Goose Island near La Crosse to report on what he saw.  The same day of Paulison’s visit, local media staged an all-day fundraiser outside the La Crosse Center.  The 12-hour effort raised more than $313,000 for flood relief. 

The City Brewery was putting on a “History of La Crosse Rock and Roll” concert at the southside Festgrounds.  The concert featured the Studebaker 7, the Headliners, the original Molly Maguires, and the “farewell reunion” performance of Johnny and the Shy Guys.

The NFL had just suspended Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick indefinitely, because of his gambling on dogfights.  At the same time, Brett Favre was about to start what would be his final season in a Packers uniform…in 2007, 11 years ago, yesterday in La Crosse.