ASHWAUBENON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – The popularity of the circus in Northeast Wisconsin appears to be high with seven Beja Shrine shows this weekend all drawing crowds in the thousands.
“The kids were ecstatic when we told them they were going to go to the circus,” said Lyda Schnake of Manitowoc.
The main draw for the children remains the animals.
“I love the elephants,” said Emma Hohman of Seymour. “I absolutely love the elephants.”
“The tigers and lions are mostly mine,” said Mathias Hohman of Seymour.
But for as long as the animals have been bringing people to the circus, people have been outside the doors trying to spread a message on behalf of the animals.
Mary Lemens of Green Bay has held a sign outside each one of the seven circus shows the past six years.
She spoke to WLUK.
“We are really upset about the cruelty that goes on to train these animals to do tricks that are totally unnatural for them to do”
Pressure from animal rights groups was one factor in another circus tour, the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus, phasing out elephants from its shows.
After that happened, attendance dropped and now Ringling is set to end its tour for good in May.
But Jim Van De Hey, the Beja Shrine Circus Chairman, says circuses with animals continue to do well.
“A lot of people thought that when they announced elephants last year that they were done, people thought there would be no more elephants in circuses, when in fact there is about three or four circuses that run elephants right now across the United States”
Vandehey says the Beja Shrine sees no end in sight for bringing the circus to the area. That is despite continued calls for the animals to be taken out of the acts.
“They’ve been here forever and we have been here forever and we’ll keep being here and they’ll keep being here too, so there isn’t going to be much changed with that”
“They’re going to go for quite some time,” said Lemens. “I think Ringling just had enough and they’re moving on. It’s smart”
Like usual, the circus is scheduled to be back here the first weekend of March next year.
Proceeds from the circus help cover the operational costs for the Beja Shrine.
The shrine hosts other fundraisers throughout the year, which help cover the costs associated with children’s hospital visits.
