Congresswoman Gwen Moore Honors Mac Weddle: A Milwaukee Beacon of Hope, Service and Community

On Saturday, September 12, 2026, Congresswoman Gwen Moore joined family, friends, and community members at the Garfield Street Festival to surprise Weddle with a special tribute recognizing a lifetime of service and impact. But the honor represented far more than a single presentation. For decades, Mac Weddle has represented something powerful in Milwaukee: the belief that strong neighborhoods are built when people care enough to serve, connect resources, and create opportunities for others.

Mentored by respected community leader Joe Winston, Weddle would go on to provide decades of leadership at Northcott Neighborhood House, where he served as Executive Director and helped the organization reach thousands of people annually.
Under his leadership, Northcott’s staff and volunteers worked closely with the United Methodist Church, elected officials, neighborhood leaders, and nonprofit partners to bring vital services directly to Milwaukee residents. Youth, families and seniors found doors of opportunity through employment and job-training programs, food assistance, GED preparation, literacy and tutoring programs, educational services and numerous community partnerships.

Weddle’s leadership is also deeply connected to the history and growth of Milwaukee’s Juneteenth Day celebration. Through Northcott Neighborhood House and generations of community partners, he helped protect and advance Juneteenth as more than an annual celebration. It remained rooted in history, education, culture, freedom, and community. More than 50 years after Milwaukee’s Juneteenth tradition began, generations of children who once attended with their parents now bring their own children and grandchildren.

Congresswoman Gwen Moore’s said, “This tribute provided Milwaukee and me an opportunity to do something communities too often postpone; we gave Mr. Mac Weddle, this servant, his flowers while he is here to receive them.”