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agriculture & industry • community • faith & charities Education • down through the years • family & home business & health • life • neighbors • people A PUBLICATION OF THE ALBERT LEA TRIBUNE • FEBRUARY 2014
Grocery quandary solved
What was once Jamboree Foods now exists as Kiester Market, selling groceries to residents of the small town in eastern Faribault County. Drew Claussen
Kiester pulls together to find a way to keep shoppers in town
By Drew Claussen
drew.claussen@albertleatribune.com
K
IESTER — After its grocery story unexpectedly closed its doors in 2012, the people of Kiester banded together to look for other options. The closing of Jamboree Foods left Kiester residents having to drive 16 miles to Wells, 17 miles to Lake Mills, 25 miles to Albert Lea or 27 miles to Blue Earth just to purchase groceries. When it became clear that other companies didn’t have interest in opening a store, residents went out looking for pledges for a cooperative. Finally, after more than a year of hard work, the Kiester Market opened in January. “It’s a truly grass-roots project,” said organizing board member Judy Meyer. “It began in the fall of 2012 after the grocery store closed in June of 2012. That fall some of us decided that maybe we ought to try a co-op.” Meyer said Jamboree Foods
closed in Kiester with no explanation from ownership, despite being a profitable store. Stores closed in Elysian and Truman the same day. All three were owned by Elysian resident Brad Gohla. The opening of Kiester Market was a big win for a city that also saw the controversial closing of the United South Central Middle School in Kiester in June 2008. The building had served the Kiester community in one way or another since 1924. “The school closing was devastating to us, as it was to the other areas around here that lost their school,” said Kiester Mayor Jeanne Brooks. “Kiester is a nice community. We have a lot of things that a lot of other towns don’t have. We have a movie theater and a clinic and a lot of other things. So to have that grocery store makes one more service available to our residents.” The city is home to a bowling alley and the former school is a community center. Kiester lacks a convenience store, but it does have Duane’s Felco, a
service station that pumps gas and has auto repair. Monty’s also repairs cars. The city of about 500 has a weekly newspaper, a medical office, a bank, a grain elevator, two farm implement sellers, a lawn mower dealer, a farm supply store, a seed dealer, a car wash, a coinoperated laundry, a photography studio, a liquor store, a public accountant, two bar and grills, two cafes, a beauty salon, two insurance providers and a flooring store, among other business offerings. Meyer said driving to other communities to get groceries was hard on a lot of people, especially the elderly. Brooks said Kiester has around a 40 percent senior population and agreed that it was really difficult for them to get groceries during the stretch when there was no store. “I told the market group on many occasions that the endeavor was greatly appreciated because it’s a public service,” Brooks said. “A lot of people can’t go out of town when they need to go out of
town, so it’s crucial that we have this service available to them.” Brooks said they tried for months to get a company to open a store in Kiester without success. Then the community pulled together with the market group as its lead to open their own store. The Kiester Market’s building is owned by the city and leased by the cooperative. The first step the board took to getting the new cooperative was to get pledges from residents, to see if there was enough support to move forward. They collected around $65,000 in pledges, which told them that there was enough support to go forward. “Now we’re totally organized, we’re legal, we’ve hired a manager and he’s hired an assistant manager and some other staff,” Meyer said. “We have new signage up, and we have gone with the Mason Bros. of Wadena as a distributor.” Meyer said she hopes the store will also provide some part-time jobs for teenagers in
the Kiester area at some point, especially in the summer. Only full-time positions had been filled in January. The project for the Kiester Market was truly a community effort from its beginning to end, they said. Volunteers put in many hours tidying the building up after it was left in pretty rough shape when the last company left. “It hadn’t been cleaned up at all and we spent four days, almost 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. working on it,” Meyer said. “I don’t even know how many people there were, probably 25 to 30. They really came in and worked hard and got it all cleaned up. We had a man who used to be a school janitor who used four machines and got that floor looking better than we thought it ever could.” Meyer said able-bodied people helped with the manual labor and others kept the volunteers fed. “The older folks who couldn’t help brought food,” she said. “We ate better those few days than you can imagine.”
The former Kiester school functions as a community center these days.
Page 2 • Albert Lea Tribune • Sunday, February 23, 2014 • PROGRESS 2014 - neighbors
Making it happen g Austin Atti
Ryan
Levi Sorensen and Austin Attig prepare their Lego robot, Turbo, to perform an array of tasks on a course. Tim Engstrom
Gage Sailor
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Levi Sorens
Saige Flat
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Luke Morrison mka r a W c Eri
Erika Bute
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ALDEN — Sixth-grader Austin Attig likes to play with Legos. His mother is a sixth-grade teacher at Alden-Conger Public School who follows the high school robotics team. So it just made sense to teacher Sarah Attig to launch the school’s First Lego League team when robotics team adviser David Bosma suggested it. Besides, a 4-H leader already had suggested it. The team comprises 10 students in sixth and seventh grades. “This is kind of the feeder to our high school robotics program,” she said. More than 10 students wanted to be on the team. Attig, a Twin Lakes resident who has taught at Alden-Conger for five years, slimmed it down to 10 by looking at grades, a record of no detentions and availability for coming to practice. The team isn’t merely a bunch of block-building experts either. The competition requires three segments: a challenge using robotics and Legos, a research project and a presentation on First Lego League core values. The values are: • We are a team. • We do the work to find solutions with guidance from our
coaches and mentors. • We know our coaches and mentors don’t have all the answers; we learn together. • We honor the spirit of friendly competition. What we discover is more important than what we win. • We share our experiences with others. • We display gracious professionalism and cooperation in everything we do. • We have fun. So while some Alden-Conger students during practices were busy with the Legos and a robot they named Turbo, others were researching tornadoes and others were making a presentation on core values. The team selected tornadoes because of the June 17, 2010, tornado outbreak that came through the school district. Garrick Steele is a student whose farm was struck by a tornado on that day. He said he likes knowing more about tornadoes. “They are interesting, but not,” he said. “It does get a lot of abilities,” Attig said. “Some are good at research, some at problem solving, some at programming the robot. They had to listen to each other to think outside the box.” Turbo, by the way, is Latin for
tornado or whirlwind. First Lego League is a worldwide competition. With team number 7985, they competed Jan. 12 in Rochester, where up to 36 teams from the region were at a middle school. Alden-Conger finished fourth that day. They didn’t move on, but their teacher was pleased with their showing. “For our first time, being a rookie team, I thought we did pretty well,” she said. The team won awards, too. They won Most Innovative Design for their robot, and they won the Core Values Award for how well they worked together. After the qualifying round, teams in the afternoon competed again, this time against teams in their division. The Alden-Conger team won its division. The robotics competition is timed and the course is called Nature’s Fury. In 2 minutes and 30 seconds, two students control Turbo through exercises like lifting a Lego house, releasing an airplane that flies on a string, knocking barrels down a ramp, bumping into a Lego palm tree just enough to knock a branch off without landing on power lines — things like that. “It’s hard to get it just right,” Austin Attig said.
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Turbo and the Nature’s Fury robotics course are in front of the Alden-Conger First Lego League team. Members from left, back row, are teacher Sarah Attig and students Luke Morrison, Saige Flattum, Austin Attig, Erika Bute, Gage Sailor, Garrick Steele and, front row, Ryan Hansen, Eric Warmka, Levi Sorensen, Cody Korman.
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Geneva Meats grows to become Dean’s Smoke Shack By Micah Bader
micah.bader@albertleatribune.com
Albert Lea 507-373-6418
Kiester 507-294-3244
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GENEVA — There’s a good chance that customers who enter Dean’s Smoke Shack will be greeted by an Anderson. Dean Anderson and his daughter, Samantha, have been part of the smokehouse — a part of Geneva Meats & Processing at 75 E. Main St. — from the beginning. “I always thought it would be cool to work with the family, and now I have the opportunity,” Dean said. “It’s great.” The smokehouse opened in January 2013, and Kellie Anderson — Dean’s wife and Samantha’s mother — began working with Dean and Samantha in the store on weekends. Last October, she joined the staff on more of a full-time basis. “When this lifted off the ground, I was part time, and now it’s al-
ways so busy that I’m here (at the smoke shack) a lot,” Kellie said. Dean has 28 years of experience in the sausage-making industry, and he’s been recognized for quality work. He earned the award for the National Grand Champion summer sausage, and he was involved with the winning of the Clarence Knebal Award at the American Cured Meat Championships in 1996 and 1997. The knowledge Dean acquired over the years is being passed on to Samantha. “I wanted to bring her in and show her the sausage side of the business and hopefully train her to take it over someday,” Dean said. The Anderson family lives on an acreage outside Hayward, but Dean said he’s interested in moving closer to Geneva.
4Meat, Page 10
Micah Bader
Dean Anderson of Dean’s Smoke Shack in Geneva uses the store’s new Risco meat stuffer.
neighbors - PROGRESS 2014 • Sunday, February 23, 2014 • Albert Lea Tribune • Page 3
Name that item
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Solve this puzzle of Northwood locations
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8 By Sarah Stultz
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See answers on Page 4 of this section.
740 Central Ave. Northwood, IA 641-324-0064 www.northwoodtheatre.com
Page 4 • Albert Lea Tribune • Sunday, February 23, 2014 • PROGRESS 2014 - neighbors
Answers to image puzzles
Two new grain elevators shine in the sun in Bricelyn. The now-empty older elevators are on the left.
Page 3: 1. The Old Creamery Museum 2. Cannon at Worth County Courthouse 3. Water tower 4. Northwood-Kensett High School gymnasium 5. First Lutheran Church 6. Worth Brewing 7. Top of Iowa Welcome Center 8. Northwood Anchor Page 6: 1. KOA 2. Julio’s Bar & Grill 3. Hemenway Iron Works 4. Lou-Rich 5. Hayward Cooperative 6. Calico Hutch 7. Becker Auto Sales Page 9: 1. Jensales 2. Jenson Manufacturing 3. Manchester Township Shop 4. Farmers Mutual Insurance 5. Manchester-Hartland Telephone Co. 6. Jordahl Meats
219 North Main Bricelyn MN 507-653-4100
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Storage wars
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WFS adds 2 new grain bins in Bricelyn By Tim Engstrom
tim.engstrom@albertleatribune.com
BRICELYN — By the end of 2015, the entire grain storage operation in Bricelyn will be on the west side of Main Street. Watonwan Farm Services Co. in October finished construction of two 685,000-bushel steel grain bins. With the existing storage availability, that brings capacity at Bricelyn to 1.8 million bushels, said facility manager Darren Engebretson. WFS last fall stored grain in the old elevator on the east side of the street for the last time. The grain has been transferred to the new bins, Engebretson said. Lightning struck the east-side grain elevator in 2006, started a fire and opened a hole in its side that had to be repaired. With a new scale and scale house built on the west side of the road in 2009, all that is left on the east side is the office. Engebretson said WFS intends to build a new office on the west side of the road next summer, near the scale house. The new grain bins speed things up for farmers, he said. The old elevator could handle 7,500 bushels of grain per hour. The new one takes 15,000 bushels per hour. “We have to keep up with the
Two new steel grain bins in Bricelyn hold 685,000 bushels each. They were completed in October. farmers as they get bigger and use new technology,” he said. He said last year the yield was so much that 321,000 bushels had to be stored in a pile on the ground. Now WFS won’t need to do that, thanks to the advancements. He said the Bricelyn facility picked up additional business from the Blue Earth and Easton areas thanks to the new steel bins. That’s been good for the local cafe during the harvest season. WFS offers trucking to farmers.
There is at least one semi at each WFS facility, but most of the fleet is kept at Truman, Welcome and St. James. WFS is headquartered in Truman. So what happens to the old elevator? That’s undetermined, Engebretson said. The old elevator is immediately north of the abandoned canning factory. Engebretson said the old one was a wooden elevator inside the steel-sheeting exterior. It was less expensive to build new bins than to repair the old one, he said.
Celebrating 30 years of serving you!
28218 870th Ave Hollandale, MN 507-889-8071
Enno Haan, a principal, teacher and coach at Hollandale Christian School, holds the trophy his soccer team won in a tournament it hosted Sept. 27. Micah Bader
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Meet the new principal
By Micah Bader
micah.bader@albertleatribune.com
HOLLANDALE — Enno Haan has been a teacher and principal for 30 years, and after filling those positions at Hollandale Christian School last year, he coached his students in three sports against schools from across the state line. Instead of fielding a team that plays a schedule of multiple games on different days, seventh- and eighth-graders at Hollandale Christian School participate in one-day tournaments for soccer, volleyball and basketball. Hollandale Christian School hosts the annual soccer tournament, Haan said. At each tournament, three teams from Christian schools in Iowa also participate. “It’s a fun day where kids can get together and play and be with other kids from Christian schools,” Haan said. “It’s not a highly competitive thing — although we do like to win.” Hollandale Christian School — the only participating school from Minnesota — won the soccer tournament on Sept. 27. The team didn’t allow a goal on its way to
the title, Haan said. Other schools that participated were Kanawha Christian School from Kanawha, Iowa, Timothy Christian School from Wellsburg, Iowa, and St. Paul’s Lutheran School from Latimer, Iowa. Each school is more than 70 miles away from Hollandale, and Timothy Christian School is the farthest car ride at 128 miles. St. Paul’s Lutheran School hosted the volleyball tournament on Nov. 22 in Latimer, and Hollandale Christian School took third place. Timothy Christian School hosted the basketball tournament on Feb. 7. All teams from Hollandale Christian School consist of students from Haan’s classroom, and he coaches each sport. “My favorite part of coaching is being able to see the students develop and get to the next level,” he said. “I’m more of a teacher out there.” Since the school doesn’t have an official team and only participates in tournaments, it doesn’t have official practices, either. However, many kids hone their skills as part of Amateur Athletic Union teams in Albert Lea and get exercise during physical education class and
Trophies line the wall of Enno Haan’s seventh- and eighthgrade classroom from tournaments in basketball, soccer and volleyball. recess at school. “We practice a little during P.E. class,” Haan said. “It’s a culmination of the P.E. unit that we do.” Hollandale Christian School is a member of Christian Schools International, a nondenominational school that teaches students from multiple Christian backgrounds. “Children come from about 25 different churches,” Haan estimated. “It’s independent and not parochial.” Haan is originally from Sioux Center in northwest Iowa. He played basketball at Western Christian High School in Hull, Iowa — less than
10 miles north of Sioux Center. He continued his education at Dordt College in Sioux Center and earned his master’s degree in elementary education from the University of South Dakota in 1987, according to hollandalechristian.org. He was the seventhand eighth-grade teacher and principal for four years at Brookfield Christian School in Brookfield, Wis. He spent 10 years at Inwood Christian School in Inwood, Iowa; eight years at Sully Christian School in Sully, Iowa; and eight years at Delavan Christian School in Delevan, Wis., before he joined the staff at Hollandale Christian School.
neighbors - PROGRESS 2014 • Sunday, February 23, 2014 • Albert Lea Tribune • Page 5
Your locally owned community bank www.securitybankmn.com
Winnebago Industries’ new Travato model will be built in the former Cummins Filtration building in Lake Mills.
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A new lease on labor Purchase of Cummins plant pays off
By Sarah Stultz
sarah.stultz@albertleatribune.com
LAKE MILLS — When the city of Lake Mills purchased the former Cummins Filtration plant in April 2012, city leaders hoped the move would pay off. Now almost two years later, optimism has sparked throughout the community as Winnebago Industries prepares the plant for building Class B motor homes. “Everybody’s really happy,” said Lake Mills Mayor Dave Steffens Sr. “There was some grumbling about that when we did it, but there’s no complaining now.” Winnebago CEO and President Randy Potts said the company has ordered equipment, made changes to the building and hired people in anticipation of the first employees beginning in early February. At the Lake Mills
plant, employees are building the company’s new Travato model, built on a Ram ProMaster chassis, that will be marketed under the Winnebago coach line. Once those assembly efforts are established, the company will move its other Class B van assembly operations from Charles City, Iowa, to Lake Mills, including the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter RV-based product called the Era, Potts said. “I can’t speak for the people in Lake Mills, but the people in city government have felt good about what we’ve done,” Potts said. “And they should. They’re trying to bring people into the community.” Winnebago and the city in November announced the two entities had agreed on a five-year lease of the 100,000-square-foot plant. The city purchased the building in 2012
A timeline of events August 2009: Cummins Filtration announced plans to cut 400 jobs at its Lake Mills plant and shift them to San Luis, Potosi, Mexico. The cuts would occur in shifts between November 2009 and March 2010. February 2010: The company delays the layoffs to late spring. April 2010: About 125 to 130 employees were laid off. Final layoffs were pushed back to December. October 2010: Cummins Filtration delayed its final round of layoffs to the spring of 2011 because of increased customer demand and the need to continue providing support to operations. December 2010: The Lake Mills Chamber Development Corp. announced a cash incentive for people who know of a company interested in establishing a new business in Lake Mills. The business had to employ at least 10 people, pay
with tax increment Potts said the financing funds in company was hopes of attracting interested in the a business — with property because jobs — to the city. of the proximity The former owner, to its other plants, Cummins Filtrathe high-quality tion, prior to that workforce in north Randy had announced it Iowa and southPotts would transfer its ern Minnesota filter assembly operaand its availability. Its tions to its facility in San headquarters is in Forest Luis, Potosi, Mexico. The City, Iowa, which is also move meant the loss of in Winnebago County. several hundred jobs. The company has Potts said an induscommitted to having a trial broker hired by the minimum of 50 employcity contacted Winneba- ees working there by the go with the opportunity end of the first year, he for the building. said. “We took that under The agreement calls advisement and didn’t for a triple-net lease, really have a plan imwhich means that Winmediately,” Potts said. nebago will pay the taxes “Soon thereafter, we and utilities, but not the realized the demand for principal. The city will this particular product retain ownership. line we had, and for our Steffens said the new business in general, had jobs at Winnebago, picked up. We started to combined with new jobs look at ways to increase across the street at Larour capacity, and that’s son Manufacturing, are when the pieces started helping the Lake Mills to fit together.” economy.
an average starting wage of $10 per hour and make a capital investment of at least $500,000. If it met those requirements and operated in Lake Mills for one year, the person who provided the name could be eligible for a $1,000 finder’s fee. January 2011: Employees at Cummins Filtration in Lake Mills were notified that a final round of layoffs would happen April 8. April 2012: The Lake Mills City Council finalized a $750,000 purchase of the Cummins Filtration north plant, in hopes of attracting a business to the city. October 2013: Cummins Filtration announced its plans to shut down operations in Lake Mills by the end of 2014. November 2013: Winnebago Industries announced it has agreed to a five-year lease of the former Cummins plant from the city of Lake Mills.
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Gateway to Gateway Park
Officials collaborate on new boat landing By Tiffany Krupke
tiffany.krupke@albertleatribune.com
EMMONS — A boat landing will be in place at Gateway Park this summer as a result of the efforts of the State Line Lake Restoration Committee. The project is nearly complete, said Emmons Mayor Paul Henschel. All that is left is putting in side dressing and planting new grass. “We were hoping it would be finished last year,” Henschel said. “We are happy with the progress, though.” The park had a boat landing, but it was washed out and inaccessible. State Line Lake Restoration Inc. paid for a survey of the boat landing to assist the DNR in getting the work done and hosted fundraisers to pay for a community contribution. The plan to replace the landing included
$55,000 worth of work, which was submitted last fall. The DNR donated 24 cement planks. The water line was dug into, filled with sand and the cement planks were placed. The project was to be completed summer of 2012 but was pushed back because of a late snowfall and rain. The project had a one-year deadline and had to be resubmitted after work fell behind. The boat landing isn’t the only project State Line Lake is undergoing. Ducks Unlimited will work with the committee to create a new dam and a carp barrier in the hopes to enhance the quality of the lake. The 425-acre lake was dominated by green algae all summer and had poor water quality. Removing carp from the lake will help the natural vegetation and allow the game
fish to survive. The permits are still being processed, but officials were hoping to start work in February. Henschel said the work will enhance the usefulness of the lake. “It will make it possible for kids to fish and for us to organize activities for them,” Henschel said. Henschel credited State Line Restoration Committee members with making the project possible. There are seven people in total involved in the project. “It is their hard work that got this going,”
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Henschel said. The mayor said he hopes the work will draw people to the area and help improve the quality of the lake. His son, Andy Henschel, also shared his excitement. He works for the Shell Rock River Watershed District. “I’m excited for it to be finished and to make this lake usable again,” he said. Once the landing project is completed, Paul Henschel said he wants to hold a get-together at the lake this summer and offer boat rides.
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Page 6 • Albert Lea Tribune • Sunday, February 23, 2014 • PROGRESS 2014 - neighbors
The overhead view
Solve this puzzle of Hayward locations 1 5
2
3
6
4
7
Stop in and check out our large inventory!
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Celebrating 103 Years of Business!
Hartland gets treatment plant, ready to share with Freeborn
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See answers on Page 4 of this section.
Part the water
Hayward Cooperative
STORAGE
Images from Google Earth
tim.engstrom@albertleatribune.com
for the Tribune
HARTLAND — Starting in the spring of 2015, the cities of Hartland and Freeborn will begin sharing a water treatment system. In late October 2013, Hartland finished building a water treatment facility. New water mains and water meters were installed so that meters can be electronically read through a new Neptune electronic meter reader system with software conversions for utility billings. “These are two communities coming together and joining hands to save money for their local residents,” said Nicole LaFrance, city clerk for Hartland and Freeborn. “It is the wave of
the future, just like other entities sharing resources with each other.” To pay for the work, Hartland issued $1.23 million in bonds and has a $1.25 million grant from USDA Rural Devel-
opment. The cost of the Hartland project is $2.8 million. The new facility in Hartland was built, LaFrance said, because the existing water treatment facility was failing and
Neighbors by the numbers Albert Lea
2010 census: 18,016 Median age: 44 Households: 7,774 Housing units: 8,410 Square miles: 14.68 City Hall address: 515 Clark St. City Hall phone: 377-4300 Railroads: Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern (Canadian Pacific), Union Pacific Highways: Interstate 90, Interstate 35, U.S. Highway 65, U.S. Highway 69, Minnesota Highway 13 Schools: Riverland Community College, Albert Lea High School, Southwest Middle School, Hawthorne Elementary School, Halverson Elementary School, Lakeview Elementary School, Sibley Elementary School, St. Theodore Catholic School, Brookside Education Center, The Children’s Center, United Preschool
Alden
2010 census: 661 Median age: 39.9 Households: 268 Housing units: 292 Square miles: 1.0 City Hall address: 174 N. Broadway St. City Hall phone: 874-3620 Railroads: Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern (Canadian Pacific) Highways: Interstate 90, Minnesota Highway 109 Schools: Alden-Conger Elementary and Secondary Schools
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The interior of the new treatment plant in Hartland has blue and green pipes and a gray floor.
2010 census: 365 Median age: 47.9 Households: 168 Housing units: 197 Square miles: 0.3 City Hall address: 309 N. Main St. City Hall phone: 653-4369 Railroads: both are Union Pacific Highways: Minnesota Highway 253 Schools: none; is in United South Central School District
Clarks Grove
2010 census: 706 Median age: 38.1 Households: 295 Housing units: 312 Square miles: 0.4 City Hall address: 101 N. Independence Ave. City Hall phone: 256-4106 Railroads: Union Pacific Highways: Interstate 35, Minnesota Highway 251 Schools: none; is in Albert Lea School District
Conger
2010 census: 146 Median age: 32.7 Households: 62 Housing units: 69 Square miles: 0.1 City hall address: 51 School St. City hall phone: 265-3435. Railroads: none Highways: none Schools: none; is in Alden-Conger School District
Ellendale
2010 census: 691 Median age: 39.6 Households: 296 Housing units: 317 Square miles: 0.9 City Hall address: 505 Second St. City Hall phone: 684-2681 Railroads: Union Pacific Highways: Interstate 35, Minnesota Highway 30 Schools: NRHEG Elementary School
Emmons
2010 census: 391 Median age: 43.4 Households: 174 Housing units: 190 Square miles: 0.8 City hall address: 219 Main St. City hall phone: 297-5707 Railroads: none Highways: U.S. Highway 69 Schools: none; is in GlenvilleEmmons School District
needed significant repair. A new water tower will be built in the fall of 2014 or the spring of 2015 after bids are accepted and Freeborn’s buy-in funds are in place. Freeborn intends to take bids the summer of 2014 for its portion of the project, which includes running water lines from Hartland to Freeborn. This includes water main and meter replacements. The project is scheduled to start in fall of this year. Financing is in place for the community and includes grants and loan funds, LaFrance said. She said the preliminary engineer’s report through Bolton & Menk has been approved by the city and the USDA Rural Development. 4Plant, Page 9
Freeborn
2010 census: 297 Median age: 38.9 Households: 120 Housing units: 130 Square miles: 0.2 City hall address: 402 Park St. City hall phone: 863-2204 Railroads: none Highways: none Schools: none; is in United South Central School District
Geneva
2010 census: 555 Median age: 38.3 Households: 220 Housing units: 228 Square miles: 0.4 City Hall address: 403 Fourth St. City Hall phone: 256-4192 Railroads: none Highways: Interstate 35 Schools: none; is in NRHEG School District
Glenville
2010 census: 643 Median age: 44.2 Households: 278 Housing units: 290 Square miles: 2.2 City Hall address: 221 W. Main St. City Hall phone: 448-3916 Railroads: Union Pacific and Cedar River Highways: U.S. Highway 65 Schools: Glenville-Emmons High School, Glenville-Emmons Elementary School
Hayward
2010 census: 250 Median age: 44.5 Households: 114 Housing units: 123 Square miles: 0.6 City hall address: 107 County Road 26 City hall phone: 373-1222 Railroads: Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern (Canadian Pacific) Highways: Interstate 90 Schools: none; is in Albert Lea School District
neighbors - PROGRESS 2014 • Sunday, February 23, 2014 • Albert Lea Tribune • Page 7
Emily Reyerson is the new executive director of the Wells Area Chamber of Commerce. Julie Seedorf
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150 3rd St NE P.O. Box 67 • Wells, MN 56097 Phone: 507-553-3121 Toll Free: 800-788-6442
The revitalizer
Wells chamber heads in new directions
By Julie Seedorf for the Tribune
WELLS — Walking into the Wells Area Chamber of Commerce office, the first thing you may see and hear is the smile and the friendly greeting from Emily Reyerson, the new executive director. Reyerson became the director in November. Reyerson’s position involves working with the nine-member board, coordinating and planning activities for the chamber and the Wells community, taking care of the membership, recruiting of new members, bookkeeping, publicity and working on the chamber website. A year ago the Wells Area Chamber of Commerce saw dwindling membership. At that time a community meeting was held to decide the fate of the business association. People showed renewed interest and wanted to revitalized the nonprofit. With the hiring of Reyerson, the Chamber of Commerce is on the upswing with growth of new members and projects. Reyerson grew up in Alden and graduated from Alden-Conger High School. She graduated from South Central College in graphic communications in 2011. Reyerson formerly worked at the Wells Mirror and currently owns her own photography studio in Alden. Wells Does It Bright was Reyerson’s first event for the chamber, taking place soon after she started. Wells Does It Bright is an evening that kicks off the holiday shopping in Wells. It is usually held in November around Thanksgiving. Local businesses in the community are open for the evening and offer holiday specials. During the evening the Flame Theater offers
free movies. There are carriage rides, pictures with Santa, Christmas lights on Broadway are turned on and carolers walk along singing Christmas songs to entertain the shoppers. Reyerson expects that the festive event will continue next year. The chamber hosted a winter social this year on Jan. 14. It is a free event for current members, new members and anyone interested in the chamber. “It was a time for people to network with each other, businesses, chamber members and citizens of the Wells community.” It was at the Wildcat Bar & Grill and featured appetizers. Gary Hagen provided entertainment. New board members were announced and a Volunteer of the Year was named. Paint The Town Red was usually held in February in coordination with Valentine’s Day. This event has been done other years but was not held last year because of the uncertainty of the chamber continuing as it was. It is a way to highlight businesses and what they do in a social atmosphere. A new visitors guide is in the planning process. “We are hoping to include individuals from the surrounding areas,” Reyerson said. “We hope to work together so we can include more than the city of Wells. We do want to focus on the Wells area, not just in town. There are a lot of people who have businesses outside of Wells but do a lot in Wells, too.” Wells Kernel Days is a celebration that takes place in August and the chamber joins with the Wells Jaycees to organize it. This year’s Kernel Days takes place on Aug. 15 to 17, the same weekend as the Wells All School Reunion.
Neighbors by the numbers Hollandale
2010 census: 303 Median age: 38.3 Households: 128 Housing units: 146 Square miles: 0.4 City hall address: 110 Park Ave.W. City hall phone: 889-4001 Railroads: none Highways: Minnesota Highway 251 Schools: Hollandale Christian School; is in Albert Lea School District
Hartland
2010 census: 315 Median age: 36.8 Households: 140 Housing units: 148 Square miles: 0.3 City hall address: 407 Broadway St. City hall phone: 845-2469 Railroads: Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern (Canadian Pacific), Union Pacific Highways: Minnesota Highway 13 Schools: none; is in NRHEG School District
Kiester
2010 census: 501 Median age: 47.8 Households: 246 Housing units: 281 Square miles: 0.4 City hall address: 116 N. Main St. City hall phone: 294-3161 Railroads: Union Pacific Highways: Minnesota Highway 22 Schools: none; is in United South Central School District
Lake Mills
2010 census: 2,100 Median age: 45.3 Households: 944 Housing units: 1,055 Square miles: 2.6 City Hall address: 105 W. Main St., Lake Mills, IA 50450 City Hall phone: 641-592-3251 Railroads: Union Pacific Highways: U.S. Highway 69, County Highway 105 Schools: Lake Mills Community School
Manchester
2010 census: 57 Median age: 36.8 Households: 26 Housing units: 30 Square miles: 0.1 City hall address: 70830 255th St. City hall phone: 826-3483 Railroads: Union Pacific Highways: Minnesota Highway 13 Schools: none; is in Albert Lea School District
New Richland
2010 census: 1,203 Median age: 43.8 Households: 487 Housing units: 531 Square miles: 0.6 City Hall address: 203 N. Broadway Ave., PO Box 57, New Richland, 56072 City Hall phone: 465-3514 Railroads: Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern (Canadian Pacific) Highways: Minnesota Highway 13, Minnesota Highway 30 Schools: NRHEG Secondary School
“I am hoping it is a big event. We will have a lot of people for the reunion, and we hope to make the weekend one big weekend.” Reyerson stated. Other events may be added during the year for the community of Wells. The Wells Area Chamber of Commerce offers Wells Bucks that people can buy and use in area chamber businesses. The Wells Bucks can be purchased in any amount at $5 increments. When people purchase the Wells Bucks they also get a list of the area businesses that belong to the chamber that participate in the Wells Bucks programs. Cost of membership in the chamber varies by the number of employees. Professional members are charged a flat rate. For financial institutions, the rate varies. Any individual in the community can be a member. Reyerson summed it up with her goal for the Wells Chamber this year: “This is a rebuilding year, and I think the chamber is going in the right direction. People should give the chamber a new chance and check us out. To move forward into the future I want to see this organization be a positive organization and be successful. As a business owner myself I like to network and communicate with people and see what they are doing, working together to make a positive business community.” Hours for the Wells Area Chamber of Commerce are Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The office is at 28 South Broadway, Wells. It can be reached by phone at 507-5536450 and by email at wellscc@ bevcomm.net.
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2010 census: 1,989 Median age: 44.2 Households: 885 Housing units: 1,004 Square miles: 3.8 City Hall address: 627 Central Ave. City Hall phone: 641-324-1075 Railroads: Union Pacific Highways: U.S. Highway 65, County Highway 105 Schools: Northwood-Kensett Elementary School, NorthwoodKensett Junior/Senior High School
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Twin Lakes
2010 census: 151 Median age: 49.5 Households: 76 Housing units: 85 Square miles: 0.51 City Hall address: 101 W. Main St. City Hall phone: 852-2155 Railroads: none Highways: U.S. Highway 69 Schools: none; is in Albert Lea School District
Wells
2010 census: 2,343 Median age: 45.3 Households: 1,013 Housing units: 1,133 Square miles: 1.4 City hall address: 125 S. Broadway Ave. City hall phone: 553-6371 Railroads: Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern (Canadian Pacific) Highways: Minnesota Highway 22, Minnesota Highway 109 Schools: United South Central High School, United South Central Middle School, United South Central Elementary School, St. Casimir Catholic School, Covenant Life School
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Page 8 • Albert Lea Tribune • Sunday, February 23, 2014 • PROGRESS 2014 - neighbors
United they stand
Consortium allows Glenville-Emmons to offer an array of classes
By Brandi Hagen
brandi.hagen@albertleatribune.com
GLENVILLE — Four years ago five schools created a consortium to open opportunities to students and teachers and to be more resourceful with each school’s budget. The consortium
comprises Glenville-Emmons, Grand Meadow, Lyle, Le Roy-Ostrander and Southland students taking courses together via interactive television classrooms. “It makes sense for a lot of rural schools,” Glenville-Emmons and Grand Meadow Superintendent Jerry Reshetar said.
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Students at Glenville-Emmons take a math class via the television. ITV class there are two dents, can change from The consortium helps screens and a Smart year to year based on the schools keep their Board. One screen is what is in demand. students instead of placed in the front of In the consortium, losing them to bigthere are college courses the room and the other ger schools with more in the back. It allows and elective classes and opportunities. students and the teacher also special education. “It’s not uncommon to see the students at For special education for a high school student the other schools — like alone, Reshetar said to say, ‘I want to go to they are in a classroom Albert Lea or I want to go the schools have saved together. A paraeducator about $250,000 by to Austin because I can sits in the rooms where sharing resources. get this class.’ Well, I’ve there is not a teacher Other classes students got that class right here; physically present to have taken or will have you don’t have to leave keep an eye on students the option of taking into get it,” Reshetar said. clude child development, and to help the students “I can’t do that with evcommunicate with the precalculus, Algebra II, erything, obviously, like teacher who can’t always Spanish and German. orchestra because we’re see everything. “Where a lot of too small, but we can do “Students need to kind schools are cutting back quite a bit.” of advocate for themon foreign language, The schools were selves, too,” Tietje said. we, a small school, are matched up based on “Sometimes you have to actually adding another size and proximity as speak up a little bit loudoption,” said Glenvillewell as their needs. Emmons Schools Princi- er because you’re not in The biggest obstacle a room where you can the schools have faced in pal Jeff Tietje. “It helps really raise your hand. us compete with those making the consortium That’s been the biggest bigger schools.” work is getting schedadjustment in terms of In Glenville, there are ules to line up not only on a daily basis, but also five units for ITV classes it not being a traditional classroom.” at the high school and annually. At the elementary one at the elementary Each year there are level, students have the level. around 30 classes that opportunity to take field Some rooms have students can choose trips. One of the trips a mobile set up while from. The classes, that students in Glenothers are more permamainly for 10th-grade ville-Emmons Schools nent. In a permanent through 12th-grade stuhave been able to take was to a NASA location. “You call them up, Knowledge • Experience • Integrity they have a person right there walking you through,” Tietje said. Life & Long Term “It’s like they’re talking Care Insurance right to the students. They can hear the students when they ask Beth Atz Insurance questions or the teachers Independent Agent — they’re just hundreds 507-448-2859 of thousands of miles Glenville, MN apart. It’s virtually faceto-face interaction.” The consortium isn’t only beneficial to students. Because each school contributes classes to the consortium, teachers are able to have full-time jobs where they may not otherwise. For example, it can be hard for schools to employ a foreign language teacher who is only needed for one period a Land Mobile Radio Service day. Because of the consorWES WEBB
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tium, a language teacher can be hired at just one school and can provide for the others. “We can fill her day up,” Tietje said. The ITV way of teaching and holding meetings fits in with the school’s use of other technologies like an online site called Schoolology, a learning management system where students and teachers can interact and complete classroom work. Another direction Reshetar sees the school going is streaming classes to a student who is home sick from school and also providing online courses so that scheduling courses becomes even more flexible. “We’re not far from that,” Reshetar said. Both the community and the school are benefiting from the direction the school is headed, Reshetar and Tietje said. “The biggest thing it says for Glenville is that we’re a vibrant and viable community that has quality education,” Reshetar said. “We can meet the standards and produce a quality student and compete with the best of any school.” Some may wonder how students from the five schools having class together and then playing against each other in athletics works. Reshetar said it really hasn’t been an issue. Each school maintains its identity, sports logo, mascots and school colors. “All of that is important to small schools,” Reshetar said. He added that having classes together can maybe increase sportsmanship at athletic events, too, because the students know the others they are competing against.
The Glenville-Emmons Elementary School has met or exceeded Annual Yearly Progress goals as established by the State in math and reading for the last four years in a row.
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neighbors - PROGRESS 2014 • Sunday, February 23, 2014 • Albert Lea Tribune • Page 9
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‘Love what you do’
Woman opens only salon in Clarks Grove By Tiffany Krupke
tiffany.krupke@albertleatribune.com
CLARKS GROVE — In the eight years since she started her business, Dawn Loverink said she has been blessed by the support of the community. Loverink is a licensed cosmetologist and the owner of Depot Salon & Tanning, the only salon in Clarks Grove. Loverink is the owner and the salon’s only employee. As a busy working mother, she feels a sense of security owning a small-town business. “I’ve put everything into this to make it everything that I wanted,” she said. Loverink didn’t always dream of owning her own salon. She went to college for accounting,
but decided it wasn’t for her. “I realized it wasn’t for me to sit behind a desk,” Loverink said. “I’m a little more active than that.” After graduating school in Austin as a licensed cosmetologist, she found work at a salon in Rochester. The job gave her experience and allowed her to work with more diverse clients. Still, she missed her home. She moved to Clarks Grove and began to work to start her own business soon after. “I was confident that I could go on my own. I felt comfortable; I felt ready,” Loverink said. Loverink said being a small town business is a challenge because you have a bigger role
to play in peoples’ lives. Customers become friends over time, she added. She loves setting her own hours and being her own boss and says every day is something new. She decided to include the tanning salon because she felt like it was a service the town was lacking. Loverink has many family and friends as her support system, including her mother, Barb, who owned a salon for 34 years. Her mother was not excited about the idea at first, Loverink said. “She warned me it would be a challenge,” Loverink said. “But mom is always there when I have to ask questions or need advice.” Loverink has two kids, ages 1 and 3, so she doesn’t work many late
nights anymore. The people of Clarks Grove have been supportive, said Loverink. She has many clients in town, including a few longtime clients. When she isn’t at the salon, Loverink is busy taking care of her kids, gardening, fishing, camping and crocheting. Her husband, Lance, also works in town as the city maintenance man. The two have lunch together daily to catch up. As for her salon, Loverink says she has no plans to slow down. “I hope to retire doing this,” Loverink said. “When you love what you do, it really isn’t work.” Depot Salon & Tanning is on Main Street in Clark’s Grove. The salon offers tanning, waxing and hair services.
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Plant: Water line to be constructed in right of way Continued from Page 6 Once the final report has been approved by USDA Rural Development and the Freeborn City Council, the bidding will take place. After that, $330,400 of Freeborn’s portion of funds will be set aside to Hartland for payment of Freeborn’s portion of the water treatment facility, and it will be jointly owned by the two cities once construction is complete and closing documents are
submitted. At that point Hartland will begin bidding to establish the new water tower. Freeborn will utilize the tower it has now. Freeborn received a $1.18 million loan from USDA Rural Development and a $1.4 million Rural Development grant. Plus, the largest Department of Employment and Economic Development Small Cities Program grant in 2013 for $979,500 went to Freeborn. That grant’s
funds will be split between two city projects, with $630,000 set aside for the water project and $349,000 for residents needing to update or repair homes. The large grant was designated to Freeborn because of concerns based on arsenic found in existing ground water, which can lead to potential health hazards. Freeborn is completing the final stage with the county allowing a conditional-use permit that will allow the water
line between both communities to be constructed in the county right of way. The line will start at Hartland and will go from County Road 33 to County Road 10. The expected construction timeline is about six weeks to run six miles of distribution line, LaFrance said. A joint powers water treatment system and distribution board has been created. Residents from each community are on the board.
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Page 10 • Albert Lea Tribune • Sunday, February 23, 2014 • PROGRESS 2014 - neighbors
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Kelly Hanson, housing director at Ecumen New Richland, stands in the apartment of resident Margaret Kilbane. Kilbane moved into the facility last spring and has decorated her apartment to feel like home.
A great place to work
Ecumen recognized again for dedication By Brandi Hagen
brandi.hagen@albertleatribune.com
NEW RICHLAND – Ecumen New Richland, a nonprofit senior living community, has been around for 14 years in this town, and it and Ecumen communities have been named one of the Best Places to Work by the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal for the eighth time. “We have this really close-knit group of dedicated staff,” said housing director Kelly Hanson. “I think it helps the majority of them are from this area, and they know a lot of our residents. Because they are woven into this community, they are extremely dedicated to our clients and to each other.” The community has been through a name change recently. It was called Community Neighbors, but it was decided to give it and the three others like it more individualized names for the communities they were serving. Ecumen New Richland is a single-floor community offering 15 apartments to senior citizens. Hanson said it is an integrated living. Some of the residents are in assisted living while others are getting memory care. Originally the community was geared toward independent seniors, some who even had jobs, but the needs have changed. “It’s really an interesting dynamic,” Hanson said. “It can be a blessing and a curse. A lot of our assisted living residents actually like to help out with the other residents. It makes them feel needed.” The facility, Hanson said, is moving toward a memory care focus, but it wouldn’t turn away a senior who was only looking for assisted living. “We’re going in that direction because the demand is really increasing,” Hanson said. “As we get less and less assisted and more and more memory care, that’s really where our focus and our passion is moving.” According to Alzheimer’s Association, there will be up, to 16 million cases of Alzheimers by 2050. “This is a number that constantly hangs over my head,” Hanson said. “This is our future, and I think about whether our society is prepared to deal with the effects of that.” One of the ways that Hanson and the staff at Ecumen New Richland are staying ahead of the game is to keep educating themselves. “I feel an obligation as the director of the community to keep educating the staff about new research, new findings that come out and new techniques and methods,” Hanson said. “I don’t want us to be stagnant. I want to keep looking at the way we are serving these people and honoring their lives and making sure they are still engaged and finding
A dining room is in the center of the Ecumen New Richland building. It connects resident rooms, offices, a kitchen and a laundry room.
By the numbers Figures describing Ecumen New Richland from Kelly Hanson, housing manager:
3 meals served per day
to residents, plus snacks
5 years, the longest stay by a resident
14 years Ecumen has been
in New Richland
in the building
Alzheimer’s by 2050
New Richland served in 2013
14 people living
15 rooms for residents 16 staff members 16 million people will have 22 residents Ecumen
37 cities Ecumen is in 83
average age of the residents
moments of happiness in their every day lives.” Ecumen has begun an initiative called Awakenings. The goal of the initiative is to reduce the amount of antipsychotic drugs its residents are on. “Then, we want to make their lives better by more person to person care, learning them as individuals and learning about their likes and dislikes,” Hanson said. Becoming an Awakenings community takes a lot of time, so Ecumen New Richland is not one yet, but it started the process in November to become one. The facility already encourages its residents to socialize and express themselves with a common dining area and living room, a weekly church service and a monthly Bible study. In addition, high school students visit the community for one hour Monday through Thursday each week. Residents play games, paint their nails, decorate cookies, make crafts or just plain visit with the students. “It’s beneficial for both of
them,” Hanson said. “It’s nice for the residents to interact with people other than the staff because they see us everyday. These people love telling their stories.” Also in making improvements, Ecumen New Richland brought in a new registered nurse. “We had limited RN hours as far as being in the building before,” Hanson said. “That’s one thing that I really pushed for when I started here because of our new focus on dementia care and the increasing acuity of our residents. I felt that we need more onsite nursing hours.” The nurse will be onsite four days a week and there is always a nurse on call. The apartments in New Richland could be for couples, but currently are occupied by individuals. Residents are given a bed, dresser and nightstand when they move in and are allowed to decorate their apartments as they please. “It’s like home,” resident Margaret Kilbane said. “I have everything here.” There is a small kitchen and laundry room in the facility, too, but usually those are used just by the staff. The staff cooks three meals a day for the residents, and they also get snacks. Staff takes care of laundry, though Hanson said there used to be a resident who insisted on doing her own until she was physically unable. “I can totally respect wanting independence,” Hanson said. Ecumen New Richland is one of the smaller branches of Ecumen, but Hanson said that’s not a bad thing. “Our community really tailors to the lifestyles of the seniors in this area,” she said. “There are options in the bigger cities, but I think that can be a difficult move to the folks who are invested in the community and are used to living in a smaller town. It’s important that we’re here to honor that lifestyle and those backgrounds.” Ecumen New Richland is at 113 First St. SW. Ecumen has communities in 37 cities.
Meat: Website leads to in-store sales of products
507-465-3218 New Richland, MN
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Continued from Page 2 Along with adding Kellie to the staff, the smokehouse has been expanding in other ways. A new Cryovac machine was added for vacuumsealing product and a Risco meat stuffer was purchased for pushing meat into casings to help with the high demand for products. “Business has been very good,” Kellie said. “It’s definitely picked up in the last year.”
Dean said he is hopeful the store will be able to expand again within the next year. Customers from Geneva are the main supporters of the business, but out-of-town smokehouse connoisseurs also can see the selection at Dean’s Smoke Shack, thanks to a web presence. The company has a Facebook page and a website: Deanssmokeshack.com.
Dean’s Smoke Shack, an extension of Geneva Meats & Processing, is at 75 E. Main St. in Geneva. “We get people who come in quite often who have checked the web-
site out,” Dean said. “It’s helpful.” More than 40 varieties of specialty smoked meats are listed. Some of the inventory available includes jerky, summer sausage, wieners, several types of brats, ring bologna, bacon, shredded pork and beef, sliced pork and Rolepolse, also known as rolled sausage. Something that’s new to the smokehouse is a selection of cheeses and salads.