Progress 2021 People & Demographics

Progress

People & Demographics

ALBERT LEA TRIBUNE

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2021

Tiger Cub Child Care staff member Jennifer Overland, left, reads “Stop Monkeying Around” to Khloe Koster, Julie McDaniel and Hallie Wescott on Jan. 26 in Albert Lea. DAVID MAYBERRY/ALBERT LEA TRIBUNE

New school district child care center aims to

FILL A NEED Child care center within Brookside available to school staff, public as space allows

By David Mayberry

david.mayberry@albertleatribune.com

Tribune Albert Lea

Soft chairs, pillows and plenty of books await toddlers at the Tiger Cub Child Care facility at Brookside Education Center in Albert Lea.

A

s much work and effort restrictions. More phone calls were went into opening Tiger swapped for in-person visits. The Cub Child Care Center, “daunting” process resulted in a just as much patience lot of work for the staff members, was required when the but “we only had to do some minor tweaks,” Hanson said. pandemic closed the facility.

Today, two of the As restrictions confour rooms are nearly tinue to ease, enrollfull, and staffing chalment and staffing are lenges are easing. increasing.

“As the COVID “It’s been steady rules started relaxsince” — the facility ing, it made it easier reopened in the fall, to find staffing,” said Jenny Hanson, Hanson said.

Tiger Cub Child Care The priority cusCenter director and tomers for the facilthe coordinator of ity are school staff Early Learning for District 241.

— Jenny Hanson members, but as space allows, public The day care center opened in March but remained so for child care is also available.

With two rooms to fill, that’s the just three weeks. Restrictions kept case today. it closed until the fall.

Additionally, licensing from the state was adjusted to accommodate See CARE, Page 2

“As the COVID rules started relaxing, it made it easier to find staffing.”

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Meals on the Go adapts

Building on relationships

Look-alikes enjoy reactions

Food program continues, though with less interaction than in the past. Page 4

United Way efforts focusing on impact in community, volunteers. Page 5

Two Albert Lea men often get mistaken for each other. Page 7

PAGE 2 | ALBERTLEATRIBUNE.COM | PROGRESS 2021 | PEOPLE & DEMOGRAPHICS | SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2021

A large monitor hangs on the wall of one of two infant rooms at the Tiger Cub Child Care facility at Brookside Education Center in Albert Lea. DAVID MAYBERRY/ALBERT LEA TRIBUNE

CARE Continued from Front Page

“We’re trying to meet the need of the staff’s child care options,” she said.

Hanson said school officials began considering an on-site child care center after a few potential hires declined job offers because of limited child care options in the area.

Tiger Cub has two infant rooms (each holds up to eight kids) and two toddler rooms (up to 14 kids).

Books and games dominate the rooms. Outside, the two age groups have their own specialized playgrounds. The equipment has additional foam padding.

“We don’t just sit around and rock babies all day,” said Dani Olson, Tiger Cub Child Care supervisor.

The space formerly housed the Head Start program. Those offices have since moved upstairs at Brookside Education Center.

The entryway used to be offices. Those walls were knocked down, allowing the somewhat circular layout to connect the four rooms with the entrance on the north side and via a kitchen/storage area on the south side. The latter allows staff members to coordinate food preparation and easily maneuver between the areas.

Children from members of the public began attending in October.

Lic: BC001552

Tiger Cub Child Care staff member Shaune McDaniel, left, holds Gunnar Auen as Hudson DeBoer sits in a rocker and Nolan Wangen looks for the next toy to play with at Brookside Education Center in Albert Lea.

Later during lunchtime, toddlers will eat at knee-high tables at the Tiger Cub Child Care facility at Brookside Education Center in Albert Lea. Enrollment windows for next year are approaching, as well. School staff members with children at Tiger Cub will register first, followed by returning public children, new school staff members and then new public children. Hanson expects that process to start in March.

Rates, she said, are comparable to other child

care centers.

“This is not a moneymaker,” Hanson said.

When the first class of Tiger Cub graduates is ready for preschool, they won’t have to go far. It’s upstairs at Brookside.

“Children can easily transition there, staying with us from 6 weeks old until kindergarten,” Hanson said. “It can all be in one location.”

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Toys, blocks and books lie on a table at the Tiger Cub Child Care facility at Brookside Education Center in Albert Lea.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2021 | PEOPLE & DEMOGRAPHICS | PROGRESS 2021 | ALBERTLEATRIBUNE.COM | PAGE 3

Rising leaders of the next generation ALBERT LEA HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS SHARE WHY THEY ENJOY GIVING BACK

By Tyler Julson

tyler.julson@albertleatribune.com

Evy Christensen is involved in student council, Link Crew and National Honor Society.

TYLER JULSON/ALBERT LEA TRIBUNE

Evy Christensen

Q : What activities/ clubs are you involved in at the high school?

A

: I am involved in student council, Link Crew and National Honor Society.

Q : How long have you been involved in each activity?

A

: I have been in student council since eighth grade. I have been involved in Link Crew and NHS since my junior year.

Q : What made you want to become involved in the activities you’re in?

A

: I wanted to be able to help people and make

people happy. In student council I get the opportunity to plan school events that help students to have a better high school experience. In the Link Crew I am able to help the eighth graders come into the high school, and give them advice on how to succeed in school. Lastly, in NHS I am able to help my community as a whole. I am given many opportunities to volunteer and help others.

Q : What are some of the life lessons or

knowledge you have gained from being a part of those activities?

A

: That helping others can go a long way. That being part of a community makes not only my life positive and better, but

can also do the same for others.

Q : How do you plan to apply that knowl-

edge to life after high school?

A

: These things will help me to be a positive person in the future. I will continue to push myself outside of my comfort zone in order to help others.

Q : What are your plans after high school?

A

: Right now I am planning on attending Rochester Community Technical College. I want to get an associate degree in accounting. I would like to start working and possibly go back for my bachelor’s degree at one of Minnesota’s universities.

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Aaron Farris is involved in concert, symphonic and jazz band, is president of the concert band, president of the National Honor Society, student council, and is a class representative on the Albert Lea School Board.

Aaron Farris

Q : What activities/ clubs are you involved in at the high school?

A

: I am in concert, symphonic, and jazz band, and am president of the Concert Band. I am also president of the National Honor Society, a student

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PAGE 4 | ALBERTLEATRIBUNE.COM | PROGRESS 2021 | PEOPLE & DEMOGRAPHICS | SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2021

Craig McCormick delivers a Meals on the Go package to a resident on Jan. 28 in Albert Lea. DAVID MAYBERRY/ALBERT LEA TRIBUNE

MEALS ON THE GO ADAPTS FOR PANDEMIC COMMUNITY FOOD PROGRAM CONTINUES, THOUGH THERE IS LESS INTERACTION WITH RECIPIENTS THAN IN PREVIOUS YEARS

By David Mayberry

david.mayberry@albertleatribune.com

The time is still rewarding, but it’s not the same.

And it probably never will be.

That’s the realization Sue and Craig McCormick have made for the weekly Meals on the Go delivery route.

They miss the interaction, but they know it’s for the best. And, despite the global pandemic, meals are still getting to Albert Lea neighbors who need them.

“We miss not seeing their smiles, and they don’t like it either,” Sue McCormick said. “That little contact means a lot to them.”

Cindy Gandrud is the director for Meals on the Go. The process before delivery has changed, as well.

Instead of drivers sharing a cup of coffee and gathering in the cafeteria, they wait in the parking lot of Mayo Clinic Health System and Fountain Centers. If the weather’s nice, they can socially distance near the door. That hasn’t happened in a while.

“They’re missing that camaraderie,” Gandrud said.

The meals are packaged in foil containers with paperboard lids or in paper bags, depending on the food item. From the Mayo cafeteria, they are moved by cart and elevator to the next floor. There, Gandrud divides the meal containers by route — seven in all — into fabric bins and bags. Some routes, like the McCormicks,’ require more than one bag.

When Gandrud is done, she hangs a bright pink

sign in the window, easily visible from the parking lot.

Food is ready for pickup.

The volunteers, almost all retirees, move toward the Fountain Centers door and lightly mingle along the way.

“The drivers have done really well adapting to the changes,” Gandrud said.

On this Thursday, their regular volunteer delivery day, the McCormicks have 14 meals to drop off at nine locations. After three years, it’s a well choreographed routine.

Sue McCormick jokes, “I’m the getaway driver.”

Both are retired. Sue was a tutor at Riverland Community College, while her husband spent more than three decades as an optometrist, including 27 in Albert Lea. “It’s a real good thing for us to do,” she said. “We hate it if we have to miss it.”

She hands the clipboard with their list of addresses and meal notes to her husband. As he’s checking the list, she says, “Watch out for Larry,” who sometimes has special food requests.

The couple has been delivering weekly for three years, always on Thursdays.

Meals on the Go, Craig McCormick notes, doesn’t usually deliver when schools are closed due to weather.

“It’s been different,” he said as they arrive at the first stop, just past City Arena.

“For a lot of them, there’s not a lot of other social contact. In the past, we could walk in and set the meal on the kitchen table.”

They certainly can’t do that now. Meals are set on

surfaces, inside or outside, depending on the request of the recipient.

“COVID has made it sadder. There’s not as much eye contact,” Sue McCormick said. “You could hold their hands, but now we hope to read lips.

“I’m not sure if it will ever get back to the way it was. I could see this being the norm going forward.”

On most other mid-mornings, the McCormicks enjoy their one-acre plot when the weather is right. They have flower beds and a vegetable garden. Craig McCormick is still active in the Lions Club, but the group has taken a break due to COVID and lack of numbers due to heavy snow bird membership.

You can tell, given the time of year and the task, they value this time and its outcomes. Sue McCormick heads past the Albert Lea Family Y for the second and third deliveries.

“We see them some through the window,” she said. “You get to feel like you know these people, but you really don’t know them at all.”

Volunteers are tasked with checking on recipients, even if for a fleeting moment. Some have found recipients in need of assistance or deceased.

In either case, there is a Meals on the Go protocol.

“We do make eye contact, and make sure that they’re all right and that the person is there,” Gandrud said.

The fourth delivery is further south. At this home, Craig McCormick pauses near the door of the home to make sure the woman received her food.

Volunteer drivers pick up bags with Meals on the Go delivery items on Jan. 28 in Albert Lea.

The fifth stop isn’t far.

“She was kind of turned sideways in a chair,” he said in a reassuring tone.

“But I could see her.”

The sixth and seventh stops are even closer.

A door is locked that usually isn’t, but he knows how to attract the attention of the homeowner.

A minute later, his wife reminds him to “grab the special ones.” She knows the home and the food requests.

“I got it,” he said. “Down to two.”

And just as quickly, “OK, down to the last one.”

On Front Street, the snow is knee-high and there isn’t a lot of room to jump out or park.

“I’ll go forward so you can get to the sidewalk,” she said.

She puts the car’s emergency lights on to slow traffic and then grabs the clipboard, now in an empty fabric bag. She fills in a few lines in the top corner of the sheet.

“That would be it,” Craig McCormick said as she finished.

Counting the time driving back to Fountain Centers, the route takes 30 minutes.

The couple returns the Meals on the Go bags to Gandrud, who’s waiting for the same from the other drivers.

Gandrud confirms Sue McCormick’s hunch from less than an hour ago: Delivery is likely forever changed due to the pandemic, largely due to the susceptibility of both recipients and drivers.

“I worry about the people we’re helping, but also about our drivers,” she said.

Volunteer drivers pick up bags with Meals on the Go delivery items on Jan. 28 in Albert Lea.

Meals are placed in foil and paperboard packaging or in paper bags.

To volunteer Meals on the Go needs volunteers to assist both with food preparation and food delivery. For more information, contact Cindy Gandrud at 507-402-3909.

Gandrud takes a call from a driver who is still on the route.

The volunteer says he’s stopped at a house twice — once at the start of his route and again just now, but the resident isn’t answering.

Gandrud says to return the meal and she’ll call the home to check if they want a meal today. The person, it turns out, had canceled earlier this week.

Not all of the routes are like the one the McCormicks drive, Gandrud said. But they’re all over Albert Lea. “Delivery is certainly different than it was before,” Gandrud said.

“The drivers have done really well adapting to the changes. They’ve been wonderful through this.”

Sue and Craig McCormick stand outside Fountain Centers after completing their Meals on the Go volunteer delivery on Jan. 28 in Albert Lea.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2021 | PEOPLE & DEMOGRAPHICS | PROGRESS 2021 | ALBERTLEATRIBUNE.COM | PAGE 5

United Way of Freeborn County Executive Director Erin Haag stands with Nikolle Guion, community impact coordinator, and Alyssa Dale, an AmeriCorps VISTA. SARAH STULTZ/ALBERT LEA TRIBUNE

Building on relationships in the community UNITED WAY FOCUSES ON IMPACT IN COMMUNITY, VOLUNTEERS

By Sarah Stultz

sarah.stultz@albertleatribune.com

The United Way of Freeborn County is hoping to expand the good it can do in the community through two new positions focused on strengthening its volunteer base and community impact.

The first position is through the national AmeriCorps Volunteers In Service to America program, which aims to strengthen organizations that alleviate poverty. Participants in the program serve in an office setting and gain experience and leadership skills, preparing members for a life of service in the public, private or nonprofit sector, according to the AmeriCorps website.

They work on things such as fundraising, grant writing, research or volunteer recruitment.

Executive Director Erin Haag said the ultimate goal is to build infrastructure for the organization and pass that on and help it be sustainable.

For the United Way of Freeborn County, that means a focus on volunteers.

Alyssa Dale, of Owatonna, who graduated from Concordia University in St. Paul with a degree in communications, said she had always wanted to be a part of the AmeriCorps program. She saw the opportunity through the United Way and applied for it.

Haag said after talking with various nonprofits, she said she discovered that many needed help with volunteer recruitment. She asked them what their formal volunteer recruitment plan is, but many did not have one.

Having been an AmeriCorps VISTA herself,

Haag said she realizes what the VISTA program could do. Without the ability to hire more staff, she said she knew they could leverage their resources through the program, and applied and got accepted for the program in January 2020. She was ready to roll that out before the COVID-19 pandemic struck, but it was ultimately delayed.

Dale will look specifically at building infrastructure for volunteer recruitment, looking at things like why people volunteer, pitfalls that might frustrate volunteers and other barriers.

The work will go handin-hand with work of Nikolle Guion, who started at the United Way in November as community impact coordinator and focuses on connecting resources to clients.

Guion recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in social work.

She said she had done some volunteering with Haag previously and got to know her through the winter coat drive through Lakeview Elementary School.

After that was over, she continued to check in and see if there were volunteer opportunities.

Ultimately, Haag offered her a job.

“We work really well together,” Guion said. “Erin works so well with so many community leaders.”

With relationships already in place with stakeholders, Guion said they can focus on making sure needs are met in the community, with everything from food and clothing to face masks, through schools and Public Health.

Guion said because of relationships already in

The United Way is utilizing a room at the Albert Lea Business Development Center near its offices to house donations from the winter gear drive. The donations include everything from coats and hats, to blankets and other items.

“We’re kind of filling in the gaps. We don’t have the capacity to do car repairs, but by golly, we can handle the pots and pans, maybe a dress shirt or shoes.”

— United Way of Freeborn County Executive Director Erin Haag place, COVID-19 has not been as big of a barrier as it could have been.

“I’m really excited I have a person to add to that and build those relationships,” Haag said.

The women said though the United Way is only open by appointment at

Coats and blankets donated by the community sit in a room in the Albert Lea Business Development Center to be given out to community members in need through the United Way.

this time, they want people to know they are available and have the ability to connect people with resources.

Haag shared some examples of where they have been able to help people in the community with household goods donated.

She said in one instance, the manager of the Semcac shelter contacted her about a need for microwaves. In another case, they got information from a member of the NAMI group that meets at the United Way. He had received beans through a food pantry but did not have a pot to make them in. They were able to get some pots and pans donated and then also gave the person information about cooking classes.

“We’re kind of filling in the gaps,” Haag said. “We don’t have the capacity to do car repairs, but by golly, we can handle the pots and pans, maybe a dress shirt or a shoes.”

Haag said community impact and volunteer

engagement are key to building a good donor base.

“If you involve volunteers, if you involve community, they they believe in what you’re doing,” she said. “They can see the impact, and they feel invested.”

She referenced a quote from Benjamin Franklin, “Tell me and I’ll forget.

Teach me and I may remember. Involve me and I’ll learn.”

“As we look at the community impact model, we are looking for ways we can expand our services to our community by developing programs that support existing nonprofits or run in partnership with volunteers to fill in the gaps.”

Several handmade quilts have been donated to the United Way of Freeborn County to give to community members in need.

PAGE 6 | ALBERTLEATRIBUNE.COM | PROGRESS 2021 | PEOPLE & DEMOGRAPHICS | SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2021

STUDENTS Continued from Page 3

Q : How long have you been involved in each activity?

A

: I am in my third year in concert band (second year/term as president), fourth year in symphonic band, fourth year in jazz band. I am in my second year in National Honor Society (first year as president), my third year on student council, and second year as the student school board representative.

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Q : What made you want to become in-

volved in the activities you’re in?

A

: I’m someone who believes that if you want to see change, the best way

to do so is to get involved yourself and be the change you want to see rather than wait and see if someone else does it. I don’t enjoy being that person that complains about things but doesn’t work to fix things to make it better for everyone.

Q : How do you plan to apply that knowl-

Q : What are some of the life lessons or

A

knowledge you have gained from being a part of those activities?

A

: I’ve learned what it’s like to work with others who have different priorities than myself, and I’ve learned what it means to be a representative of a large and unique group of people. I also learned what kind of work ethic and maturity it takes to be involved in different forms of student government, and the

responsibility that comes in conjunction with the trust of your peers. I’ve also learned to always be humble in everything that I do.

edge to life after high school?

: I plan to continue using my work ethic, ability to keep focus and listening skills to continue helping and representing others with humbleness, respect and a burning desire to accomplish things for my community.

Q : What are your plans after high school?

A

: I plan to attend Minnesota State University-Mankato and major in public administration and make Albert Lea my home.

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: For sports I am in hockey and tennis. For clubs I am student council president and I am in National Honor Society and Link Crew.

Q : How long have you been involved in each activity?

A

: I have been in hockey since I was about 5 or 6 and I started tennis in ninth grade. I have been in student council since eighth grade, I became an officer in 10th grade and worked my way to president. Finally, I have been in NHS and Link Crew since 11th grade because they are only available for juniors and seniors.

Q : What made you want to become involved in these?

A

: My family is big into sports, so they had the

biggest influence with me starting, but I kept going with them because I enjoyed them. I joined student council mainly because my brother was in it and he enjoyed it, but also because I liked the idea of planning school events and I wanted to be a part of that. NHS and Link Crew are all about giving back and helping others, so I joined them to do just that.

Q : What are some of the life lessons or

knowledge you have gained?

A

: From sports I have learned a lot about working together and helping others to be their best. As well as being able to let others help me, to be coachable. Student Council has taught me how to take charge and plan things, and about all of the things that come along with events. NHS and Link Crew have taught me the importance of giving back and helping others in any

way I can through my experiences.

Q : How do you plan to apply that knowl-

edge to life after high school?

A

: All of the things I have learned from sports and clubs have made me the person I am today and I am so thankful I was able to be a part of them. I have learned a lot of life skills from these things that I never thought I would when I joined. They have made me more confident and wanting to help others, which will definitely help in all aspects of my life after high school.

Q : What are your plans after high school?

A

: I plan to go to college, but I am not sure where or what my major will be. My top choice right now is the University of St Thomas and major in something in the math field.

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saturday, February 27, 2021 | PEOPLE & DEMOGRAPHICS | Progress 2021 | AlbertLeaTribune.com | Page 7

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Lance Skov, left, and Andrew Schwarz have often been mistaken for the other in the last few years. Hallie Cantu/Albert Lea Tribune

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Two years ago was the first time Andrew Schwarz became aware of Lance Skov.

At Wells Fargo Bank, an employee told him he had a twin in town and that if she ever saw the two of them together, she would introduce them to each other.

Only a few weeks later, while at Green Mill, that introduction happened, and the two men with a close resemblance met for the first time.

The two often get mistaken for each other throughout town, whether it’s while walking at the mall, in a McDonald’s drive-thru parking lot or elsewhere.

“I think it’s funny that we are similar looking,” Schwarz said.

Skov said Schwarz was even in the newspaper one time for a new job and his own mother called him and asked him why he hadn’t told her about his job.

“I told him the next time you change jobs, can you let me know?” Skov said with a laugh.

Skov, the son of Laverne and Liz Skov, was born and raised in Albert Lea and graduated from Albert Lea High School in 1989.

He earned his bachelor’s degree in accounting from Wartburg College.

After working at Americana National Bank for

Andrew Schwarz Livelihood: Sales consultant at Verizon Hobbies: Fishing, collecting antiques, singing karaoke and spending time with family Wine or beer: Beer

Andrew Schwarz, left, and Lance Skov met for the first time two years ago at Green Mill for the first time. Provided five years, he worked for a time at Albert Lea Abstract before starting in 2005 at Hill, Larson, Walth and Benda — now known as Hill, Benda, Skov & Bernau — where he has been ever since. He earned his CPA license in 2005 and became a partner at the firm in 2007.

Schwarz was originally from Charles City, Iowa, and lived in Des Moines for several years before moving to Albert Lea in 2012. He started out working at the Holiday Inn, and in 2014 he became a sales consultant at the Verizon store off of Bridge Avenue. He took a year off and worked at Oak Park Place, before recently returning to the phone company, where he says he has a good customer base.

Schwarz originally attended the University of Northern Iowa and earned his undergraduate degree from William Penn University. He earned a master’s in business administration from the University of Phoenix in 2007 and has also spent time as an adjunct professor at various colleges, including William Penn University and what was formerly known as Kaplan University.

His wife, Corissa, is a paralegal at Peterson, Kolker, Haedt & Benda law firm, and he has two children.

The men said though they don’t hang out with each other, they are Facebook friends, and they keep

Lance Skov Livelihood: certified public accountant at Hill, Benda, Skov & Bernau Hobbies: Reading, walking, traveling, cooking and spending time with family Wine or beer: Wine up with each other that way. They enjoy sharing stories of their mistaken identities with each other.

They recalled an Albert Lea-Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce event where they had their photo taken together, and they still have the photo from their first encounter at Green Mill.

If they get called a wrong name, sometimes they point it out, but oftentimes they just play along.

“A while back I went through the McDonald’s line, and someone asked if I went back to Verizon.

I said, “Yeah,” Skov said with a laugh.

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PAGE 8 | ALBERTLEATRIBUNE.COM | PROGRESS 2021 | PEOPLE & DEMOGRAPHICS | SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2021

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