MENOMONEE FALLS, Wis. — Two Menomonee Falls School Board candidates are holding an event Saturday at a location that has some people concerned. They will be at Shepard Arms, a gun shop located less than 1,000 feet from a school.
That, in itself, caused concern last year before the school year began. Now, some people have reached out to TMJ4 News via email, questioning why the event is happening at the store.
Shepard Arms will host school board candidates Chris Stueland and Adam Sachs on Saturday, March 8. The idea is receiving mixed reactions from people on the street.
Watch: Mixed feelings about Menomonee Falls gun store hosting school board candidates
“It is being held at a gun shop, do you care?” reporter Rebecca Klopf asked an unidentified man walking out of the post office.
“No.”
"No, I don’t. There are bigger things to worry about than that,” said Angela Crittenden.
“I wasn’t aware of that. But I don’t think it is appropriate,” answered another unidentified man.
The event is generating even more comments on Facebook after the store posted there would be a protest. The protest is being led by Grassroots Menomonee Falls Area, a volunteer social justice group that Nathan Russell helps lead.
"At every classroom that I have ever been in, we talked about if someone comes in here with a gun, here's what we are going to do. Thinking that safety is so huge, having this event at a gun store just dilutes the whole premise,” said Nathan.
He says his group will be across the street from what is being billed as a “ballot-chasing event,” protesting. The school board event is being hosted by Turning Point, a conservative political action group. Turning Point has donated tens of thousands of dollars to races across Wisconsin. Its founder, Charlie Kirk, has close ties to President Donald Trump and promotes Christian conservatism.
Two school board candidates, who are not attending the event and agreed to an interview, say that in an election that is supposed to be nonpartisan, it doesn’t appear that way.
“What my goals are is to keep the race as nonpartisan as possible and to focus on students, and that is going to be my emphasis,” said Derek Blemberg, candidate for Menomonee Falls School Board.
“School board shouldn’t be exciting, right? School board should be about making good policy for students and not about Democrat versus Republican and partisanship,” said Jesse Cramer, candidate for Menomonee Falls School Board.
TMJ4 News contacted all the school board candidates to ask for an interview. Chris Stueland, Adam Sachs and Nina Christensen did not respond. Hallie Newman Schmeling offered this statement:
"As a parent, advocate for children, and school board candidate, I find the optics of school board members and candidates attending an event at a gun shop troubling. Given the importance of school safety and the need for community-centered discussions, this choice of venue is a mismatch to priorities that are best for our public schools and healthy child development. However, I’m hopeful that since they are willing to meet publicly in that space, they will also attend the School Board Candidate Forum on March 13 at 6:30 PM at the public library. This forum offers the community the opportunity to see all candidates in one place and make an informed decision on who to vote for on April 1st."
TMJ4 News also reached out to Turning Point, but did not get a response.
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