Welcome to Kenosha

Welcome to Kenosha, and yes, I do mean that Kenosha. It’s the place I’ve always called home even when I didn’t live here. It’s a very special place right on Lake Michigan. Anyone who lives here has probably called it Kenowhere jokingly once or twice, referring to the fact that it’s a small city that has dreams of being a big city like Chicago or Milwaukee. The irony is that this past year thrust my hometown in to the national spotlight.

Let me tell you, that moment last summer changed everything here. Life stood at what felt like a standstill for a week, but it definitely highlighted how special this town is. Once the protests and riots began, almost overnight the city banded together to protect itself. Boards went up all over town, with people taking time off of their jobs to volunteer to protect the downtown businesses. That’s what makes this place so special, at least to me. We band together when the going gets tough.

That’s not all that defines Kenosha, though. Living right on the lake is equal parts awesome and awful. Let me explain. The lake always provides a beautiful view, even on the gloomiest of days. However, being in Wisconsin means that we get winter. Now, for most of the state, that means a snow storm and it’s done. Not here. A snow storm can turn to lake effect snow, which can dump feet of snow. It hasn’t happened in many years, but I can remember a year where one storm dropped two feet of snow. Of course, in Wisconsin, there’s a saying: “if you don’t like the weather, just wait ten minutes.” Now while it’s not quite that dramatic, winter is Kenosha is definitely unpredictable. In 2008, we had a warmer winter than usual. Including a day that I’ll never forget. It was January 7, 2008. I’d say that it was a seemingly normal day, except that it wasn’t. It was 60 degrees, which is unheard of for January. Do you know what happens when it hits 60 degrees in January? Tornadoes happen. Two of them to be precise, but hey, that’s Kenosha for you.

The summer months tend to be just as special and sporadic. Since winter is typically too cold to enjoy much outdoor activities, we make up for it by cramming as much activities as we can in a two to three month period. Festivals happen every weekend all over the city, especially along the lake. Every church in the city has a weekend to have a festival, and they are all hoping that the weather holds up for it. Usually it does, but sometimes, you guessed it, you get tornadoes instead. If it’s not tornadoes, it’s straight lined winds or derechos. Either way, trees are getting uprooted.

Now one of the best places of Kenosha is the lakeshore. Nestled along the lakeshore also happens to be our downtown. In just a couple of blocks, you can visit so many local businesses, including many delicious places to eat. My favorite coffee shop is there. There’s also a trolley that makes its loop around the downtown area. There are some buildings downtown that are old, and rumored to be haunted. There’s also a library that looks like it could be a capital building. All of these things can be found in other towns, of course, but none will be quite like here.

So that’s Kenosha, that’s home. It’s the place I grew up. It’s the place that I couldn’t wait to get away from. I always know that it’s there though, waiting for me to visit and say hello. Waiting to welcome me home.