Mayville polka season to be closed with dairy, The Ridgeland Dutchmen

The Mayville Lions Club is sponsoring Gary and The Ridgeland Dutchmen from Cashton from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. Saturday, June 6 at the Mayville Park Pavilion, which is handicap accessible. Food and beverages will be available, as well as Cedar Crest and Scoop DeVille of Hartford ice cream. There will be cheese from various cheese companies throughout for sampling and Wisconsin Cheese Maps available.

This is the big one that everyone is waiting for to see the great selection and surprises of what June Dairy Month has to offer, along with enjoying the great music of Gary and The Ridgeland Dutchmen. This is the last dance of the season.

Gary Brueggen is known as the "Concertina Kid," and has been playing since the age of 9, April of 1982. The "The Ridgeland Dutchmen" was started by Gary's grandfather, Herman Brueggen, who passed away in 1971. In addition to Herman, the original band consisted of Gary's dad, Willard, and uncles Harry and Phillip as well as family friends. His cousin Brian played with the band from 1982-1985. In the 1990s, the band consisted of Gary, sister Judy on drums and vocals, father Willard on tuba, uncle Harry on Guitar and vocals. Also, at this time Harry and Marie's three daughters - Donna, Carol and Cathy - came along and were part of the Polka Mass Trio. They did Polkas Masses all over the U.S. including a number of times out in Mesa, AZ for their annual Polka Festivals.

The Ridgeland Dutchmen Band now includes the father-son duo of Willard and Gary Brueggen. Gary's dad, Willard, who will be 85 on June 28th, has been playing since he was 18. Gary performs on the concertina, button accordion and vocals, Willard on tuba. Other members who perform in the band on an as-available basis are Laurie Solberg, Lisa Meyers, Nancy Buckentine, Jeff Langen, Denny Anderson, Craig Ebel, Mike McIntyre, Brian Barnetzke, Gary Hendrickson and Tanya Tauges and Chris Langen.

In November of 1998, the band was named co-winners of the Horizon Award from the Wisconsin Polka Hall of Fame. More recently, in 2003, they were named Band of the Year. The Band has many great recordings out; their latest recording, "25 Years of Miles, Smiles and Memories," has won "Album of the Year" Award from the Wisconsin Polka web site. Gary was inducted into the World Concertina Congress Hall of Fame in October 2008.

If you would like more information about the band, email concertiniakid@gmail.com. For information about the Mayville polka dances, contact Donna Gudex-Kamrath at 920-960-5318.