Feb. 18, 2025
Contact Jill Miller at 608-796-3615 or jmmiller@viterbo.edu
RIVERLORIAN STEVE MARKING TO PRESENT A VISIT FROM WILL DILG AT VITERBO UNIVERSITY FEB. 27
LA CROSSE, Wis. – Celebrate the centennial of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge with a 50-minute stage production of A Visit from Will Dilg by Steve Marking at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 27 in the Viterbo University Fine Arts Center Nola Starling Recital Hall. The performance will be followed by a discussion and audience Q&A session.
With a script based on Dilg’s own published words, the performance shares the story of the man who rose from the depths of depression following the drowning death of his son in the early 1920s to lead an extraordinary crusade to protect the Mississippi River. He was instrumental in the founding of the Izaak Walton League, and then with the support of the Women’s clubs of America, helped saved a 261-mile portion of Mississippi River backwaters from drainage for agriculture. This stretch of river is now known as the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge.
Marking is a self-described Riverlorian, or “someone who studies rivers and shares all aspects of navigation, nature, history, legends, and lore with anyone who will listen.” Born and raised on the backwaters of the Upper Mississippi in La Crosse, Marking has an innate knowledge of the twists and turns of the river and its ever-changing character. A consummate videographer and photographer, he captures images that are both entertaining and breathtaking.
Marking is a guest speaker and resident entertainer for American Cruise Lines as they travel the Mississippi, Ohio, and Cumberland Rivers. He earned a master’s degree in vocal performance from the Peabody Conservatory of Music in Baltimore and a bachelor’s degree from Viterbo University.
This presentation is part of the D.B. Reinhart Institute for Ethics in Leadership’s Spring Lecture Series and is presented in partnership with the community Aldo Leopold Celebration. It is free and open to the public. For a full schedule of Ethics Institute events, visit www.viterbo.edu/ethics.
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