Dakota County
Tribune
Farmington | Rosemount and the surrounding areas www.dakotacountytribune.com
May 29, 2014 • Volume 129 • Number 13
Memorial Day shines on Rosemount
NEWS
Rosemount police chief to depart for Maple Grove
New park to attract visitors Whitetail Woods in Empire Township is the Dakota County Parks Systems latest addition. Page 5A
Eric Werner will begin in the new position June 9 by Nick Hassett
OPINION
SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
Family gives back to others Burnsville family has organized a way for area businesses to donate to 360 Communities Food Shelf. Page 4A
THISWEEKEND
The Rosemount American Legion and Rosemount VFW and their auxiliary units held a Memorial Day ceremony at the Rosemount Veterans Memorial in Central Park on Monday, May 26. The speaker was Richard Carroll, a World War II bomber and member of the U.S. Army Air Corps, who was a prisoner of war. The Rev. Paul Jarvis, pastor at St. Joseph Catholic Church, delivered the invocation and benediction. The event included music by the 34th Infantry Division “Red Bull� Brass Quintet. More photos are inside this edition and online at SunThisweek.com. (Photo by Tad Johnson)
After spending nearly two years as the chief of police for the Rosemount communi- Eric Werner ty, a law enforcement veteran will be headed to Maple Grove in June. Eric Werner, who was appointed as Rosemount’s police chief in September 2012, will be leaving the department of about 20 officers to head a police force around three times that size. And those who worked with him in Rosemount have given him See WERNER, 6A
Ending on high notes
Mystery man Rosemount’s Craig MacIntosh left a successful career as a comic-strip artist to pursue mystery writing full-time. Page 16A
SPORTS
Irish lacrosse rises to No. 1 The Rosemount High School boys lacrosse team enters the post season with the state’s top ranking. Page 8A
Rosemount High School seniors to perform one last time by Tad Johnson SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
Rosemount seniors Madison Holtze and Alison Baker plan to end their high school years on some high notes. The accomplished singers will put their talents on display during the Rosemount Area Arts Council’s first Senior Vocal Recital. Holtze and Baker will perform at the scholarship fundraiser, which starts at 7 p.m. June 15 at the Rosemount Steeple Center. The two vocalists will sing in solo, duet and with accompaniment with a wide range of selections. Holtze and Baker, both All State Choir members and 2014 Students of the Year in instrumental and vocal music, respectively, have performed in numerous choir, OnStage and
theater productions over the past four years. It’s has been a long journey through music for Holtze, who will attend the University of Minnesota to major in vocal performance, and Baker, who will enter the nursing program a Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter.
Alison Baker Baker remembers her journey started after being invited to perform in Rosemount High School’s OnStage variety show as a third-grader. “That gave me confidence I didn’t know I had,� she said. Baker continued to sing and played French horn in the middle school band. She recalled there was a sense of excitement of learning to play an instrument. “I have always loved
Madison Holtze, above, was named the Instrumental Music Student of the Year for 2014 at Rosemount High School. (File photo) Alison Baker, left, was named the Vocal Music Student of the Year for 2014 at Rosemount High School. (Photo by Tad Johnson) performing,� she said. But she said she started leaning more toward developing her singing talent because it allowed her
a greater ability to express She has been a bundle herself. of nerves prior to perBaker said improving forming solos, but that her voice has been a jourSee RECITAL, 5A ney of confidence.
Pretty plant palettes fuse art and science North Trail Elementary garden grows the curriculum
ONLINE
by Jennifer Chick To receive a feed of breaking news stories, follow us at twitter.com/ SunThisweek. Discuss stories with us at facebook.com/ SunThisweek.
INDEX Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . 4A Public Notices . . . . . . . 6A Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8A Classifieds . . . . . . . . . 10A Announcements . . . . 14A
News 952-846-2033 Display Advertising 952-846-2011 Classified Advertising 952-846-2000 Delivery 952-846-2070
SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
Gardening is the perfect fusion of art and science, so while North Trail Elementary students in Farmington are digging in the soil, they are learning not only about biology, but also about the fundamentals of art. Pam Tycer, art teacher at North Trail Elementary in Farmington, has been encouraging students to look at art and science differently through gardens at the elementary school for the past eight years. The project started with a butterfly garden after Tycer received a grant from the University of Minnesota for a program called Monarchs in the Classroom. She took the class and was fascinated by it. “It was an opportunity to link art and science,� she said. Students helped Tycer plant
Pam Tycer, art teacher at North Trail Elementary School in Farmington, believes there is a close connection between art and science, an idea that she teaches by taking her students into the gardens at the school. (Photo by Jennifer Chick) the garden, which is filled with sustainable plants that will encourage monarch butterflies to lay their eggs in the plants. It has
$
!""'! !
See GARDEN, 16A
$ ! # $ !
&
been a learning experience for everyone as Tycer has taught the groundskeepers at North Trail Elementary not to pull up milk-
weed, a plant often considered a nuisance and a weed. As she walks through the garden this spring, she is delighted to see even more milkweed pushing up through the soil. The students raise butterflies that are then released in the gardens. Tycer works on art projects that incorporate the butterfly life cycle into drawings. Once the butterfly garden was started, other garden ideas soon sprouted up. Now kindergarten students plant heads of lettuce that they will take home with them at the end of school. There are tomatoes and herbs, strawberries and carrots. “Kids need to know where that carrot on their plate came from,� Tycer said. A rainbow garden, with its hues of reds, oranges, yellows,
"