Mark Scholz passed away, but his legacy is a lifetime of generosity

Mark Scholz passed away, but his legacy is a lifetime of generosity

Daily News (West Bend, Wis.)
Published: Nov. 25, 2017

Mark Scholz was so giving and so humble about it, even his sisters and his mother were amazed at a video they saw that showcased Scholz’s life of giving.

That helped the family jokingly look past his grumpy personality.

“He was a life saver,” said Jan Zehren, one of Mark’s sisters.

Another sister, Donna Schmitt, quickly intervened with a big smile, “... which balanced out his grumpy personality. He was quite a character.”

On Tuesday, members of Scholz’s family were invited to participate in the Boys & Girls Clubs of Washington County Thanksgiving Dinner at the West Bend facility. In addition, the family got a tour of the facility.

Zehren said the family was invited to the event by Executive Director Jay Fisher so they could see the direct impact of Scholz’s generosity.

“He is, was, a very remarkable man,” Zehren said.

Scholz died Feb. 19 at the age of 67. But his impact on the community remains strong and will for many, many years. He left tens of thousands of dollars in his estate to several organizations, including the Boys & Girls Club of Washington County, St. Joseph’s Hospital’s Kraemer Cancer Center and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Washington County. Between just those three organizations, Scholz’s estate donated $75,000, Zehren said.

She added those are only three of the seven organizations Scholz left money for in his estate. And those are just a fraction of what Scholz spent nearly all of his adult life contributing to in whatever way he could — time and/or money.

In October, Scholz was honored by WTMJ-Channel 4 in Milwaukee during its “Positively Milwaukee” awards ceremony with the Legacy of Giving Award, which goes to someone who has made a significant impact on his or her community and had died within the last year.

“Many, many people will be benefactors of Mark’s kindness and generosity,” Zehren said.

In March, Scholz will be one of the five inductees for the West Bend Baseball Association’s Wall of Fame, an organization he was an active member of. The WBBA already has a scholarship named in his honor.

Amongst the family members, there is no one that knows for sure why Scholz got involved in the community has much as he did it. Nobody knows because Scholz never boasted about it.

But there are theories.

His father, Allan, served in the Air Force for 22 years and achieved the rank of Major. That was something Mark wanted to do. Thus, a semester shy of graduating from college at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, Mark enlisted in the Marines, but was turned away. Zehren said her brother was turned away because he didn’t meet the visibility requirement.

“Our speculation there was this drive for civic duty, patriotism,” Zehren said. “That’s sort of what we think.”

Bernice, Mark’s mom, said Mark was angry because he couldn’t fulfill something he thought he was placed on Earth to do and that was to serve his country like his father did.

“He came back home and did what he had to do to compromise the feeling he was having,” Bernice said.

Zehren said she thought a void needed to be filled.

Her big brother was “incredibly humble,” she added. The one thing he consistently did brag about was he dog, Jack. For years, Mark and Jack guided duck and pheasant hunts.

During the “Positively Milwaukee” awards ceremony,

a video played highlighting Scholz’s charitable efforts.

“For one thing, I was surprised at what he did,” Bernice said. “He didn’t share a lot with us because I think he was trying to do something he wanted to do to help him realize how much he wanted to help other people.

“No matter what, he’d always be there for people who call him or need him or help other people in need and he was just one heck of a good guy.”

The video lasted about five to six minutes. When it finished, the family saw their beloved son, brother, in a way they never thought possible.

“I have such a great amount of respect for him,” Zehren said.

Bernice said, “I don’t know if there is a word for how proud I am.”

His mother couldn’t recall if Mark always had a generous heart or an ambition for volunteering, outside of being an altar boy at St. Frances Cabrini and being in Boy Scouts.

“He never did it for the accolades,” Schmitt said. “He felt like it was something he felt he should do.”

Also on Mark’s list of charitable efforts include the Jackson Fire Department, the Slinger Fire Department, the American Cancer Society, Meals on Wheels, the WBBA and the West Bend Thunder traveling baseball program.

Scholz also owned Scholz Mobil in Jackson and sponsored the local adult softball team.

“He didn’t have his own children,” Zehren said. “But he did a lot for kids.”

The family learned that the day of Mark’s memorial

service. On that day, hundreds of people attended, offered condolences and shared stories. But there was one group of visitors that stood out: the youth baseball players, all in uniform.

“That’s when it hit me,” Schmitt said. “Watching them all come through. I thought, ‘He had all these balls juggling in the air. Doing this for this group, this for this group.’ When I saw all those boys from the baseball team come through in their uniforms, I thought, ‘Wow.’ He obviously really touched them.

“Those young boys, to take time out of their Saturday to come in their uniforms and pay respect and, at one point, I turned during the funeral and one of the boys had tears streaming down his face.

“I thought, ‘Wow. He really has made a difference in the world.’”

RESTAURANT SERIES: Krimmer's Restaurant - Husband, wife dream a little dream together

RESTAURANT SERIES: Krimmer's Restaurant - Husband, wife dream a little dream together

Daily News (West Bend, Wis.)
Published: Nov. 24, 2017

By NICHOLAS DETTMANN

ndettmann@conleynet.com 262-306-5043

Wes Krimmer has an extensive journal of people he’s served in his culinary career.

It reads like a weekly lineup for a late-night talk show: Oprah Winfrey, Johnny Depp and Britney Spears for a small sampling of the much longer list.

With Krimmer’s Restaurant — 114 N. Main St., West Bend — Washington County residents and guests have taken advantage of the same entrees the A-list celebs once enjoyed as it was recently voted as a recommended restaurant in Washington County in a recent and informal poll of readers by the Daily News.

“Have been (to Krimmer’s) six or seven times and the quality of steaks is on par with the best Chicago steakhouses,” said West Bend’s Ryan Woody. “Wine is reasonably priced and the desserts are always worth it.”

For four years, Krimmer was the head chef of the Mason Street Grill inside the Pfister Hotel.

“It’s Milwaukee’s preferred hotel,” Krimmer said. “If you’re an athlete or a musician, anything of that sort, you go there and stay there.”

Krimmer believed that experience was something Washington County deserved to enjoy.

“That’s the feel we’re bringing back home is the big, not just Milwaukee taste buds, but everything a big city has to offer is what we’re offering here in West Bend,” Krimmer said.

There was interest from investors to have Krimmer’s in Milwaukee. But being West Bend natives, Krimmer and his wife, Kelsey, wanted to bring the big-city dining experience home. “When we have something special going on, we love to spoil ourselves with great food and awesome service (at Krimmer’s),” said Anita Ulrich of Kewaskum.

The Krimmers moved to Milwaukee about 15 years ago so Wes could attend culinary school at Waukesha County Technical College after getting a business degree from Moraine Park Technical College in West Bend.

Wes has known since he was 8 years old he wanted to be in the restaurant industry.

“My first job was wiping down tables at McDonald’s here on (Highway) 33,” Wes said. “Now the owner

of that McDonald’s and 17 others is one of the regulars here. It’s a full circle here.”

Wes worked at Motions, a seafood restaurant in Milwaukee, while attending culinary school. He was there for nearly three years before he took the job at Mason Street Grill.

After four years at Mason Street Grill, Krimmer worked as the head chef at the Pfister’s sister property, the Hilton Hotel, also in downtown Milwaukee, for an additional four years.

But, for his final two years at the Hilton, Krimmer, along with several family members, was putting together what has become Krimmer’s.

“I’ve been in restaurants for 20 years,” Wes said. “Every job I’ve had since I was 14 has been in the restaurant industry.”

Being in the culinary arts is not just in Wes’ repertoire. It’s also in Kelsey’s.

For 11 years, they lived in Milwaukee. And while Wes worked at some of the prestigious restaurants, Kelsey ran a Brazilian steakhouse on Water Street for about six years.

They had in the back of their mind for many years they wanted to open a restaurant in their hometown and saved money for several years to do so.

When they got the amount they needed to fulfill their dream, they began to look at properties.

“It was the right time, we had our 20 percent saved and we were looking at commercial buildings here and in Milwaukee, on the east side of Milwaukee,” Wes said. “Anywhere that had a bar or a restaurant for sale, we were looking for anything.”

When they came across the spot in downtown West Bend across from the West Bend Theater, they were reluctant.

“We didn’t think too much of it,” Wes said. “We thought it was too small, there were no windows, it was real dark.

“We didn’t see real potential in this property.”

They had offers to go into other buildings, but the Krimmers knew that’s not what they wanted. They wanted something they could call theirs.

“We were going to open up our restaurant, explore our ideas,” Wes said.

Eight to nine months later, they went back with an offer.

“This was one of the few properties that was small enough where my wife and I could control everything,” Wes said. “And make everything as perfect as we possible could instead of opening up a huge restaurant and were in over our heads.

“We wanted something small and intimate like this.”

That, along with the desire to be in downtown West Bend, led to the Krimmers making the offer on the building. About two years later, on Feb. 27, 2015, Krimmer’s opened, taking the place of what once was a Chinese restaurant for more than 25 years.

“Everything we offer here is completely different than any other menu here in the whole Washington County area and a lot different from anything you’ve seen in Milwaukee, Chicago or New York,” Wes said.

There are no canned foods in the restaurant. The staff makes the establishment’s mayonnaise to go with the salad dressing. There are also zero frozen items.

“The fish that comes in here, we’re one of 17 restaurants in the state of Wisconsin that deal with a fresh, flown-in seafood program,” Wes said. “Our meat is one of the highest grades in the world. All the desserts are homemade. Everything is made from scratch.”

He added there isn’t a restaurant within 40 miles of Krimmer’s that offers dry-aged steak, which he said takes years of training. The steaks have eight to 15 specifications that need to be met.

Krimmer’s is able to do this because of Wes’ connections from when he worked in Milwaukee.

“You pay for what you get,” Wes said, adding, “we’re bringing a lot of new ideas to West Bend.”

Singing trio coming to the Schauer Center on Dec. 1

Singing trio coming to the Schauer Center on Dec. 1

Daily News (West Bend, Wis.)
Published: Nov. 18, 2017

By NICHOLAS DETTMANN

ndettmann@conleynet.com 262-306-5043

It was just guys being guys. Hanging out in the kitchen and talking.

What eventually happened led three men from the Salt Lake City area to chart-topping songs and albums.

Casey Elliott, Bradley Quinn Lever and Brad Robins make up GENTRI: The Gentleman Trio and they’ll perform two shows — at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. — Dec. 1 at the Schauer Arts and Activities Center in Hartford.

It is the trio’s Wisconsin debut.

“The last time I was in Wisconsin, I was working with the BYU football team when they played in Madison,” Robins said. “I was working as a camera guy, the film crew, with the team.”

The trio’s music comes with the help of Stephen Nelson, their music director and producer.

The trio formed in June 2014.

“The idea was Casey’s wife’s idea,” Robins said. “She had just gotten home from an event where a men’s vocal group performed. She looked at us and said ‘You should form a group.’” The three men, who are in the early- to mid-30s, met in early 2014 for a production of “Les Miserables.” They each have extensive theater and singing backgrounds, including Elliott performing the role of Radames on the national tour of “Aida” after it debuted on Broadway in 2000.

Lever was the lead vocalist on the 2012 U.S. tour of “The Forgotten Cards,” and Robins has performed in productions including “Les Miserables,” “The Phantom of the Opera” and “The Scarlet Pimpernel.”

According to the trio’s website, GENTRI is “transfused with lush, epic orchestrations and rich, dynamic three-part harmonies.”

Nelson, who composes the music, will play piano during the show in Hartford. He is inspired by composer John Williams, and the boisterous songs from movies such as Williams’ iconic score from “Star Wars.”

“He is the lifeblood of our sound,” Robins said.

He added, “It’s a combination of cinematic orchestra, with threepart tenor harmony.”

It didn’t dawn on them to come together and form the group GENTRI until Elliott’s wife suggested it. When they realized she wasn’t talking about forming the so-called boy band like N’ Sync or Backstreet Boys from the 1990s, they thought it could work.

“As musicians, you’re always looking for the next project, something to vest yourself in,” Robins said, adding, “We’re all very entrepreneurial. The wheels started turning. One thing led to the next. We’ve been going ever since.”

They enjoyed immediate success.

GENTRI’s self-titled EP was released March 31, 2015, and spent 10 consecutive weeks in the top 10 on two Billboard charts, including three weeks at No. 2 on both the Classical and Classical Crossover charts.

Soon after, they released their debut music video from their first hit single, “Dare.” The video was featured on news outlets around the world, including “ABC World News,” “NBC Nightly News” and “Inside Edition.”

The song, Robins said, was the perfect story with how GENTRI came to be.

“That song has so much importance, it tells the GENTRI story, about having a dream and going after it,” he said. “We had a dream and we dared to go after it.”

Not long after the success of “Dare,” the trio released their first full-length album, “RISE.” It had eight original songs and two covers. The album debuted at No. 3 on Billboard’s Classical and Classical Crossover charts, behind only Williams’ “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” and Andrea Bocelli. They’ve been on the charts alongside Michael Buble and Pentantonix.

“To be out there at the top of our genre’s charts with international stars was pretty humbling,” Robins said. “Frankly it was pretty eyeopening, like there’s something here.”

That’s when they decided to leave the Salt Lake

City valley and tour the world.

GENTRI has since performed with Idina Menzel, Journey and international tenor star Alfie Boe. In addition, they’ve performed at the Governor of Utah’s annual gala, as well as the national anthem at Utah Jazz, San Diego Padres and Colorado Rockies games.

“We’ve been very humble and grateful for the reception we’ve received,” Robins said.

In addition to their sound, the gentlemen of GENTRI wanted to bring something else to the stage.

“Wearing suits ... fashion/style is a huge element for our brand,” Robins said, adding the suits are often “snazzy.”

“We have tailor who designs new suits that we’ll be wearing in Wisconsin,” he said. “Every season we’re switching up the wardrobe.”

Despite their quick rise to stardom, they still have one worry as they get ready for the Wisconsin debut.

“We hope people come,” Robins said.

RESTAURANT SERIES: MJ Stevens - Hard work is a family tradition at MJ Stevens

RESTAURANT SERIES: MJ Stevens - Hard work is a family tradition at MJ Stevens

Daily News (West Bend, Wis.)
Published: Nov. 17, 2017

By NICHOLAS DETTMANN

ndettmann@conleynet.com 262-306-5043

TOWN OF ADDISON — Mark Jug tapped into more than 80 years of experience — all the tips and tricks of the restaurant industry — to establish MJ Stevens Pub ’N’ Restaurant, 5260 Aurora Road.

In the late 1930s, his grandparents from both sides of the family owned a pair of restaurants in Milwaukee.

“You learned a good work ethic in the family,” Jug said.

He couldn’t pinpoint one or two people who taught him the important lessons about life and business. Instead, he learned a little bit of everything.

Today, generations of customers and employees are the beneficiaries.

MJ Stevens was recently voted one of the 10 recommended restaurants in Washington County by Daily News readers in an informal poll.

“Great food, great service and the best fish fry around,” said Tracy Oestreich of Slinger.

John Fritsch added, “MJ Stevens offers the best fish fry and prime (rib) in the area. We have no better anywhere in southeast Wisconsin. Their menu overall is one of the best that we have seen and tried a lot of the different foods. Their service has always been the best from entering to finish line.”

According to Jug, the important lessons to succeed, especially in the restaurant business, aren’t flashy.

“Quality food, reasonable prices and be honest with your customers because if you don’t do those, you’re done,” Jug said.

Not only have customers appreciated that, so have the employees — past and present. Jug said he has frequently heard from former employees, including an architect in Chicago and a police officer in northern Wisconsin.

“This was their first job,” Jug said. “They told me they learned a lot. They learned a lot as far as work ethic.”

Jug saw that first hand when he was their age.

At the family restaurants, they’d use the freshest fish for the fish fry. They’d take the fish caught

in Lake Michigan, clean and serve them that night.

Just like how working hard and having a strong work ethic is important to the family’s long line of restaurant ownership, so is tradition. It’s inscribed on glasses served at MJ Stevens. It is also on the restaurant’s website, “Family tradition since 1933.”

In 1950, two family members — Albert Jug and Martin Jug Jr. — opened a restaurant in Milwaukee called Albermart Sky Lounge. A year later, Albert married Alga Bozic and they, along with Martin, operated Albermart until 1965. Also, in 1965, Albert and Alga opened Jugs in Menomonee Falls and operated it until 1983.

Then Mark got involved in the family tradition when he opened Long Branch Saloon on Dec. 22, 1979, in Barton.

“I was born into it,” Mark said when asked why he opened Long Branch, which specialized in burgers.

By mid-1985, Mark was ready for a break after nearly six years of restaurant ownership.

Then, a few months later, the owners of the MJ Stevens building asked Mark if he’d be interested in purchasing the building. Twice, he said no.

“The third time I said, ‘Why not? Give it a try,’” Mark said.

He initially said no because he still needed the break. Eventually, he came around.

“I just missed it,” Mark said.

MJ Stevens opened Dec. 22, 1985 — six years to the day after the Long Branch Saloon opened.

In the first few months after opening MJ Stevens, the specialties were burgers, just like at Long Branch. Then, the menu started to expand, offering fish fry and prime rib.

With the encouragement from his son, the building also expanded. The word was spreading quickly about MJ Stevens’ offerings, specifically the fish fry, which Mark said is hand-breaded arctic ice cod.

“It was crazy,” Jug said.

For MJ Stevens’ first fish fry, there were only three staff members — one cook, a bartender

and a server — and had 25 pounds of fish. Today, there are nearly 30 staff members in house and they serve more than 700 pounds of fish.

The prime rib has also blossomed into a popular choice, along with a Sunday brunch.

“I’m very grateful,” Mark said of the restaurant’s nearly 32 years in business. “I make a decent living, meet a lot of good people.

“We’ve had good employees, a good customer clientele.”

There is nothing spectacular about how the work ethic is instilled at MJ Stevens.

“You teach them about hard work, always trying to achieve ... to do the best job you can in everything you do regardless if it’s restaurant business or anything,” Jug said.

Mark’s son, Jason, is the fourth generation to carry on in the family business as the owner of Jug’s Hitching Post in Kohlsville, while his daughters, Deanna and Natasha, are also involved in the restaurant industry.

“I’m happy with the way things are going,” Mark said.