Jeff Wielichowski’s sister, Lindsay Goff (from left), and parents Luanne and Jerry Wielichowski, talk about the night they lost him. Jeff drowned in his swimming pool July 15 after drinking 190-proof grain alcohol. Credit: Jeff Sainlar

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The phone call was from a woman I didn't know. "I'm calling to invite you to my son's funeral today," she said.

Jeff Wielichowski, 22, drowned in the Greenfield family's swimming pool on July 15 after drinking a punch made of 190-proof Everclear grain alcohol, Red Bull and Gatorade.

Luanne Wielichowski believes her only son had no idea how potent this concoction was, and she has channeled her grief into a crusade to ban the sale of Everclear and other high-proof booze in Wisconsin, as some other states have done.

I did stop at the funeral at St. Alphonsus Church in Greendale and talked briefly with Jeff's mother and dad, Luanne and Jerry, who were surrounded by things that had been dear to him - the diploma from Viterbo University in La Crosse that he earned two months earlier, samples of his graphic art, his camera, his electric guitar, the music playing on his iPod.

Their creative son had been looking for a job in the arts or media, and just a week earlier had committed to a five-year loan for a better car. A promising future was unfolding for the 2006 Greenfield High School grad.

"He was not ready to die. It was not his time," his mother said.

Luanne has become something of an instant expert on high-powered grain alcohol. She began calling everyone from the governor's office on down to, in her words, ban this poison. The Everclear bottle purchased by Jeff and a friend remains at the family's home, a painful reminder of a night that her parents can't stop replaying in their minds.

"It smells like rubbing alcohol," Luanne said, unscrewing the top and putting her nose to the opening. The bottle has a price tag of $17.99 and a warning that its contents are extremely flammable. People have been known to use this stuff as a cleaning solvent and for circus fire-breathing acts. A designation of 190 proof means it's 95% alcohol. Most popular gin, vodka, brandy and other hard liquor is 80 proof, or 40% alcohol.

On July 15, Jeff and a longtime friend went to Loomis Beer & Liquor at Loomis and Layton and bought the Everclear and other party supplies. Everclear is available at many liquor stores and even grocery stores, though the owner of this particular store voluntarily took it off the shelf after learning of Jeff's death.

Another male friend and three female friends joined them that night at the Wielichowski home. Jeff and one friend mixed up the Everclear, Red Bull and Gatorade and started drinking it about 8:30 p.m. His parents have since learned this blend has an all-too-fitting name: Tucker Death Mix.

Just a short time later, Luanne, who was home that night along with Jerry, noticed her son's speech was slurred when he briefly came into the house. She urged him to stop drinking. Jerry saw the Everclear bottle and told his son, "Get rid of that stuff. It's going to make you sick."

"Don't worry," Jeff said.

A little later, he jumped in the pool, as he had countless times since childhood. It's about 5 feet deep. His friends later said he seemed to be swimming frantically.

"It is my best guess," Luanne said, "that his heart was speeding from the Red Bull, and he thought he could just swim it off. Instead, he became unconscious from the Everclear and went to the bottom of the pool."

At this point, she can't prove what role the strong alcohol played in his death. Final autopsy results have not been determined yet by the Milwaukee County medical examiner, which ruled the death a drowning. Luanne was informed her son's blood-alcohol level was 0.26%, more than three times the legal limit for driving.

The friends pulled Jeff from the pool and laid him on the deck, but didn't tell his parents right away that he apparently had passed out. About 10:30 p.m., Jerry came outside and found his son unresponsive and not breathing. Luanne, a professor of nursing at Alverno College, did CPR to try to save her son's life. Someone called 911, and a rescue squad and police came, but Jeff could not be revived.

Last Tuesday would have been his 23rd birthday. Seven weeks after his death, his bedroom at home is undisturbed. Luanne said she can't bring herself to even pull the sheets from his bed. His death is so hard to accept. No one wants to go in the pool anymore.

The family has faced other challenges. Jerry and also Jeff's 30-year-old sister, Lindsay Goff, were diagnosed with cancer in 2004. Jerry is still receiving chemotherapy.

The family's state representative, Peggy Krusick, has taken an interest in their cause and plans to introduce a bill to ban the sale of products like Everclear. First, she plans to check with law enforcement, health experts and with other states to see what they've done. A patchwork of restrictions, including outright bans, exists in more than a dozen states, including neighboring Minnesota and Michigan.

Luanne also has turned to the governor's State Council on Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse. Citizen member Joyce O'Donnell from West Allis said the council's planning and funding committee, which she chairs, took a position in August to support a ban on 190-proof grain alcohol.

Everclear is a brand of Luxco, a St. Louis spirits company. Company chairman and CEO Donn Lux declined to comment on Jeff's death or Luanne's allegations about the product. The company's website says Everclear enjoys "a loyal, near cult-status, following." Other Internet sites glorify its hard-partying reputation.

What it does is get you drunk fast, especially younger users, Luanne said. Her son paid the ultimate price for a very bad choice, she said, and it's her goal to inform other families about this stuff and prevent similar tragedies.

"Was it sold legally to them? Yes, it was. But I don't think people are really aware of what it is," she said. "I need something good to come out of this horrible story."

Call Jim Stingl at (414) 224-2017 or email at jstingl@journalsentinel.com



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