I grew up on a farm about five miles from Marshfield, Wisconsin — population about 14,000 people, at the time. Surrounded by family farms and a lot of other small farming communities, Marshfield was where pretty much everyone from the countryside went when they “went to town.” As a kid, I spent most of my summers baling hay, mowing the grass, helping in our big garden, and doing other chores around our property. Once a week, my Mom would “go to town” (Marshfield) to do a grocery run. My brother and I got to go along too.
Those trips to town were the highlight of our week. We’d usually get to go to the “Hobby Shop” where they had model ships, airplanes, and model railroad sets. The Hobby Shop also had “Cox engine” airplanes, which my brother was into, and he taught me to fly them too. Usually, we couldn’t afford to buy anything in the Hobby Shop, but it was fun to go look. Then there was the Ben Franklin store, where they had trinkets and toys we could get for under a dollar.
Another fun spot was the Woolworth store. The main floor was basically clothes, so my brother and I always headed downstairs, where they had small pets and other fun stuff. I remember one time we decided to pool our money together and buy a turtle. But at the last minute, my brother changed the plan, and we came home with a mouse instead — which my Mom immediately vetoed, and back to town we went to return it!
Marshfield was a fun place for me growing up. In June, we had the Dairy Parade. Then there were 4th of July fireworks. There was a nice park with a small zoo that we’d get to go to once in a while; an ice cream store, where sometimes our Mom would treat us to a cone. And of course, the annual week-long County Fair in August, which was a highlight before we had to go back to school.
People worked at the Marshfield Clinic, which has since become a huge medical conglomerate that monopolizes most of the healthcare industry statewide now. Marshfield was also once the home to a major mobile home factory, a wood products plant, a shoe factory, metal working factories, agricultural equipment dealers, and of course, dairies and cheese factories. Most of those industries are gone now.
There was only one fast-food place in town, but it had the best burgers I’ve ever tasted. A few times a year we got to go there, and it was a real treat. When the owner retired, he sold the business to an employee, but it was never the same after that. We also had a “Shopko” store — sort of like a Target or Walmart, but with much better quality and a great selection. We also had a JCPenney and a Sears store.
When I grew up, I opened my own photography studio on the main street in Marshfield — just two blocks away from that old “Hobby Shop,” which had long since closed down. My wife and I raised our kids in Marshfield. It wasn’t a perfect town, but it was home, and it was — back then — a great place to raise a family. We had a good, solid, Bible-based church. Christianity, family values, honesty, patriotism, and America were highly esteemed, along with hard work.
Of course, there were problems too. Marshfield was not immune to alcohol abuse, and the town had more than its share of bars, along with illicit drugs, for those seeking that sort of thing. But for the most part, it was a clean, family-oriented community with a lot to offer.
After our kids grew up and moved away, my wife and I, now “empty nesters,” left Marshfield behind. By this point, all the churches had become “woke” and “seeker-friendly,” offering only “Christianity-lite,” so as to be all-inclusive and non-offensive. We’d lost all the stores I had enjoyed as a kid. The local daily newspaper had shut down years prior, replaced with a “Shopper’s Guide” that added a few local-interest stories to give the illusion that it was worth looking at.
Alcoholism and drug use had become rampant too, destroying many lives. By the time we moved away, heroin and cocaine had become the biggest problems, along with a quickly growing dependence on welfare for many — people were addicted to mind-altering substances, and claimed “disability” because of life choices. And if you weren’t somehow connected to someone wielding power in local politics, then you weren’t in the “club,” and your opinion no longer mattered.
Today, Marshfield has about 19,000 residents, so it hasn’t really grown much in the past fifty years. Most kids leave town as soon as they graduate high school. The increase in population is primarily foreign “immigrants.” The downtown is still picturesque, and some historical buildings have been repaired and preserved. But most of the industry is gone. That “hometown” atmosphere and feeling of “community” is gone. And it seems like most who live there just struggle to get through the week so they can go someplace else on the weekend.
The decline of Marshfield is not unique. The whole world has devolved into addictions, self-centeredness, and apathy. And like many small communities across this nation, there came a point when the “city leaders” decided they wanted Marshfield to be more “progressive,” more “inclusive,” more “diverse.” You know, like Madison and Milwaukee. That lust for recognition has led to a lot of bad decisions. Although thousands have lived in the area for generations, their opinions regarding their cherished hometown community have meant nothing to mayors and city councils intent on a “fundamental transformation” of Marshfield into a radical, “enlightened” and “progressive” city — eager to virtue signal, but now devoid of any real “virtue.” As I said, it matters not that you may have lived there your entire life, and contributed substantially to the community that once was. If you’re not part of the “club,” your opinion has zero value, and you’ll be more than welcome to move out.
In 2003, the first Mosque opened. Local churches welcomed the Muslims to their “community of faith.” Islam is still a minority there, but it’s very visible, very influential, and growing.
Perhaps the saddest part of the whole thing is how the churches began to compromise, slowly at first, and then “all in” on the diversity and inclusion. I remember the days when our pastor would preach some pretty hard sermons, and more than once he’d slam his hand down loudly on the pulpit to drive home an important point — or to wake up a weary farmer, on the verge of dozing off. Such a thing would be unheard of now. And as the churches began to compromise, soften and cower, retreating from all political and cultural influence, the permissive lifestyles and godless culture filled the void, making church — and old-fashioned family values — irrelevant and discarded.
Homosexuality was unheard of when I was a kid, but by the mid-1980s, the concept began to be whispered about. But it was still just something growing slowly in the big cities, as people began to “come out of the closet.” It was unimaginable in Marshfield. Within ten years, though, the LGBT groups began to organize in earnest, claiming it was an issue of “civil rights.” But their actual goal was the right to spread that mental illness openly and proudly, normalizing sodomite sex, and ultimately to recruit more people — specifically children — into that lifestyle.
We all know what’s happened since. June became “Pride Month.” But now we have LGBTQP+ celebrations every month of the year. Including “Aromantic Spectrum Awareness Week,” the “International Transgender Day of Visibility,” the annual “Gay Easter Parade,” “International Drag Day,” “Gay Uncles Day,” “Bisexual Awareness Week,” and “International Lesbian Day,” to name just a few among hundreds. Yes, hundreds.
It’s no exaggeration to say that the main objective of the LGBTQP+ cult is to lure and groom children. Are you aware that schools nationwide are carrying books with graphic sexual content? These books have worked their way into classrooms — as well as both school and public libraries. Nearly 1 1/2 MILLION sexually explicit books across the nation — in children’s sections of libraries, and in public school classrooms, with all manner of filth and perversion being taught by teachers to children. Is it any wonder we now have such a massive explosion of “gender dysphoria” among young people?
Marshfield, not to be outdone, has now endorsed the LGBTQP+ movement wholeheartedly. City leaders and school board members have chosen to allow this pornography to be read by and taught to children. The perversion of young minds, through the normalization of homosexuality, transgenderism, and so-called “family-friendly ” drag queen performances, is applauded. After all, Marshfield wants to be “relevant” and “progressive.” Down with the “old-fashioned” prudence.
When my wife and I left Marshfield, Ray LeBlanc took over the street ministry I began there. Since that time, he’s worked tirelessly to stop the grooming and exploitation of children. You see, for the past six years, Marshfield has proudly hosted a “Pride Festival” in a downtown city park — complete with drag queen performances, where sick, perverted men dress as gaudy, hyper-sexualized women that would make a Vegas stripper blush. And as they dance provocatively in their lewd female garb, children are invited to “tip” the dancers, going up to the stage and giving them dollar bills. Like something you’d see at an adult strip club.
But this is billed as a “Family-Friendly” festival where parents take their children to partake in the action. These events are all about sexual perversion on a whole other level, beyond imagination. Ray — and others in his small group — have pleaded with the city council to, at the very least, require these drag queen performances be held indoors, for adults only. But city leaders have refused. A few other citizens have spoken out at council meetings too, but they’re always overwhelmingly outnumbered by the local — and imported — LGBTQP+ crowd.
In allowing this to continue, the city is in violation of Wisconsin Statute 948.055, which states, “Whoever intentionally causes a child who has not attained 18 years of age…to view or listen to sexually explicit conduct…” is guilty of a Class F felony. By law, a Class F felony results in up to 12 1/2 years in prison, up to a $25,000 fine or both. Marshfield mayors and city council members have ignored these violations year after year. No surprise. These “family-friendly” drag shows are allowed all across the nation, while laws on the books designed to protect children are ignored.
Ray has also pleaded with local pastors to stand with him in protest against these Pride Festivals, which are filled with vile, disgusting filth and perversion. This year, colorful stickers were handed out to the little kids (as young as 2) with the “F word” prominently displayed. With the exception of Ray, every pastor in town has refused to stand against this or even preach on it…or even talk to Ray about this wicked child abuse that happens every year — in an open-air, very visible downtown park. In fact, some churches even participate in the event. It appears Marshfield would be a great place for a new millstone factory.
If you’re as outraged about this as you should be, I encourage you to contact Mayor Nick Poechel and tell him to protect the innocence of the children of Marshfield. You can call the Mayor’s office and voice your opinion at (715) 384-2919. If you care at all about protecting these precious little children, make the call.
