Visitation, funeral plans in place

Last modified: Wednesday, October 19, 2005 12:15 PM CDT

Visitation, funeral plans in place

Chippewa Falls Senior High School students will give an emotional tribute to Doug Greenhalgh and his family tonight at a community visitation at Chippewa Falls High School.

Greenhalgh, a Chi-Hi band director, his wife Therese and granddaughter Morgan were killed early Sunday morning in a bus accident as the school’s marching band was returning from a state competition at UW-Whitewater.

The Chi-Hi music program will perform a musical tribute to the Greenhalgh family at 7:45 p.m., according to Mike Schoch, superintendent of the Chippewa Falls School District. The visitation service will be held from 5-8 p.m.

“The Chi-Hi band, chorus and orchestra will pay tribute to the Greenhalghs with a few musical selections,” Schoch said. The visitation will be open to members of the community.

Parking will be available in the main Chi-Hi parking lot east of the Cardinal entrance and in parking lots south of the front school entrance. Parking will also be available on city streets near the school.

Funeral services for the Greenhalghs will be held Thursday beginning at 10:30 a.m. at Trinity Methodist Church, 201 W. Central St., downtown Chippewa Falls.

To accommodate the large crowd expected for the funerals, video feeds of the service will be made available at First Presbyterian Church, 130 W. Central St. and in the Chippewa Falls Senior High School auditorium.

The Chippewa Falls Police Department is handling traffic control and is implementing a parking system designed to ease pressures on downtown traffic, said Sgt. Mike Farley.

The police department is expecting a lot of people to attend and encouraging people to plan ahead if attending the funeral. Some people may have to walk a long distance to the church.

The church parking lot is being reserved for family members only. Family members should report to the intersection of Pine Street and Spring Street for assistance in gaining access to the church parking lot.

Others attending the funeral services or wishing to participate in the processional from the church to Forest Hill Cemetery should take River Street to Superior Street where they will be directed to designated parking areas, Farley said.

“We will be lining vehicles up in the streets four across,” Farley said. No one will be able to leave the area until the procession to the cemetery begins, he said.

The 100-400 blocks of West Spring Street and the 200 block of West Central Street will be closed to local traffic during the funeral. Local residents will not have vehicle access to their homes or businesses during the funeral.

Officers will be stationed at the main intersections downtown throughout the procession in order to keep traffic flowing, Farley said.

Police Chief Joe Coughlin said patience is what community members need.

“We would ask people for their patience, because there will be delays, there will be some waits, and there will be some congestion,” Coughlin said.

McDonell Central High School, a Catholic school about a block away from Chi-Hi, will hold a Mass at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in memory of the accident victims.

McDonell Principal John Flanagan said students and staff of Chippewa Falls Senior High School are invited to join the Mass. Flanagan said McDonell realizes not all of the Chi-Hi staff and students will be able to attend the funeral because of space considerations, so McDonell is making the invitation.

The Mass will not be open to members of the general public.

SCHOOL CANCELED

There will be no classes Thursday at Chippewa Falls High School so students and staff can attend the funeral services for Doug Greenhalgh and his family.