December 2021
AN ANNUAL WOMEN’S MAGAZINE PUBLISHED BY THE DETROIT LAKES TRIBUNE
Christy Brinkman Mary Beth Gilsdorf Sally Hausken Julia Nelmark Amanda Schermerhorn Gretchen Thilmony
INSIDE
woman of the year
Anna
Painter of her own path
LASSONDE
Daughter – Sister – Friend – Grandma
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Anna Lassonde
This year’s Woman of the Year is an artist, wife and mother who has pulled her family through a string of serious struggles, with creativity and strength
Amanda Schermerhorn
A busy mom, legislative advocate and M State student, she’s been an inspiration to many this past year, including Vice President Kamala Harris
Sally Hausken
Forthright and tenacious, this passionate protector of nature is a force of nature herself—and there would be no Sucker Creek Preserve without her
Julia Nelmark
As grounded and enthusiastic about her work as president of MMCDC as she is about her community volunteerism
Christy Brinkman
Even before the pandemic, she was proving herself as one of the hardest-working women in local longterm health care
Gretchen Thilmony
Becker County’s first female District Court Judge, she strives to use her position for positive change
R
esilience is a trending topic right now. In the COVID-era landscape of chronic stress, grief, and hardship, resilience has become a precious thing; a ticket to greater happiness and survival, and a behavioral skill to strive for. “Resilience is about being adaptable. It’s about being flexible,” explains the federal Bureau of Medical Services. “Resilient people still feel sad, angry, or frustrated when faced with a setback. But they find ways to move forward, to tackle challenges with creativity, hope, and a positive attitude.” Our choice for this year’s Woman of the Year, Anna Lassonde, perfectly embodies that definition of resilience. Life has thrown Lassonde and her family a series of life-altering curve balls over the past few years, and with her unique blend of creativity, hope, and a positive attitude, she just keeps knocking ‘em out of the park. With every new challenge she’s faced, she’s demonstrated the ability to be flexible, adapt, and keep moving forward. Lassonde’s story would be inspiring no matter when it was told, but during the pandemic, when we could all use a reminder that this, too, shall pass, it feels especially relevant and important to share. We gladly share it with you here, along with the stories of six more inspiring, extraordinary local women. Enjoy.
Mary Beth Gilsdorf
The matriarch of ‘the Gilsdorf girls,’ this influential community leader and her husband, Hans, have raised their daughters to be leaders, too
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Cover Illustration / Self Portrait by Anna Lassonde
MAGAZINE CONTRIBUTORS Michael Achterling machterling@dlnewspapers.com Nathan Bowe nbowe@dlnewspapers.com Vicki Gerdes vgerdes@dlnewspapers.com Dawn Duncan dawn@yellowbrightinc.com
ADVERTISING Robin Stalley rstalley@dlnewspapers.com Elizabeth Molacek emolacek@dlnewspapers.com
PUBLISHER: Melissa Swenson mswenson@dlnewspapers.com
MAGAZINE EDITOR: Marie Johnson mtjohnson@dlnewspapers.com MAGAZINE DESIGNER: Mollie Burlingame mburlingame@bemidjipioneer.com CIRCULATION MANAGER: Viola Anderson violaa@dlnewspapers.com
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woman of the year
Painting her own path forward With strength and creativity, Detroit Lakes artist Anna Lassonde has steered her family through a remarkable series of hardships, and is finally feeling like they’re ‘in a better spot now.’ BY MARIE JOHNSON For Women 360
L
ifelong artist Anna Lassonde has a favorite saying about the painting process: “You can’t mess it up. You just keep painting until it looks right.” The more unintended ‘mixups’ there are along the way, the better it looks in the end, as the more layers a painting has, the more depth it has. And that depth gives it strength. It’s a philosophy that Lassonde seems to carry over from her artwork into all other aspects of her life: The idea that, if something doesn’t turn out the way you at first envisioned it, you don’t give up; you reshape your original vision. You add another layer, and another, and in the end, you wind up with something stronger and better than you ever thought possible. “She taught me that,” says Elizabeth Kapenga, Lassonde’s close friend. “Her ability to keep going, and keep pressing on, is incredible. She’s a very, very
6 | WOMEN 360
strong person to handle all the crazy things life has thrown at her. She keeps going and she keeps dreaming, and I love that about her.” Lassonde has repainted her life’s picture several times over the past few years, as new and unexpected challenges kept leading her to add new layers. She and her husband, Fred, and their two kids, Aviana, 11, and Silas, 7, have faced a series of unexpected challenges — including debilitating injuries and losing most of their belongings in a
“When things would kind of settle down, something else would happen. You just kind of roll with the punches and do what you have to do.” -Anna Lassonde storm — that virtually wiped away their old ‘normal.’ “There was no normal, for like four years,” Lassonde says. “It was high highs and low lows; it was so up and down; it was one thing after another. When things would kind of settle
Contributed / Anna Lassonde / Women 360
Left: Lassonde, with one of her horses and a portrait she painted of that horse. Right: She provides painting instruction to a senior at a local assisted living facility as part of her grant-funded ‘Art Through the Sages’ community art project. She plans to do more of the classes in the near future. down, something else would happen. You just kind of roll with the punches and do what you have to do.” The family’s struggles started in 2017, when Fred was struck in the head by a falling truck part while tinkering in their garage. “He didn’t initially act like anything was wrong, but the next day he was having vision problems and numbness and I thought he was having a stroke,” Lassonde recalls. Fred’s injuries turned out to be far worse than they had guessed; he was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury. His verbal abilities were affected, and he’d get dizzy, get headaches, and feel fatigued. He couldn’t function in his job as a Fargo police officer anymore, and the family dynamic suddenly shifted. A stay-at-home-mom at the time, Lassonde found herself returning to the workforce. “That was a huge turning point in my life,” she says. She had previously worked in longterm healthcare, and returned to the field again with a full-time job at Ecumen in Detroit Lakes. She continued to be the primary caregiver to her kids while also caring for her husband and managing the household. “Basically, we started over,” Lassonde recalls. “I was working, and my husband was sick, and there were the kids — so it was a crazy time.” After that, the hits just kept on
coming. With the loss of Fred’s salary, the family couldn’t afford to keep their home in Lake Park, so they downsized to a smaller property east of Detroit Lakes. They put most of their belongings into a storage unit during the transition, and then a storm came along and tore the roof off that unit. The family lost almost everything. Lassonde says she couldn’t have gotten through the shock of that without the support of the Detroit Lakes community — especially her “church family” at Community Alliance Church. “They really took care of us,” she says. “Friends and church members came and helped us go through everything and save what we could, and throw out the rest. It was very overwhelming to deal with.” Just as the family was getting back on their feet and settling into a ‘new normal’ at their new home, they were hit with another crisis: Lassonde was severely injured. While out enjoying one of her favorite pastimes — horseback riding — with her friend, Kapenga, her horse got spooked and bucked her off. She landed hard on her hip and suffered multiple fractures, breaking her back and pelvis. The injuries caused chronic pain and, “I basically had to relearn how to walk again,” Lassonde recalls. “I was
on crutches for a while, and had to lay down a lot; sitting was painful. I didn’t know how to get better.” Unable to continue to work full-time and unsure of her timeline for recovery, she was in pain and feeling uncertain about the future. She also had time on her hands, and was looking for a way to fill it. She was in need of an escape, and some solace. She turned to her old passion, painting. Born in the Twin Cities area and raised in the Dakotas, Lassonde’s love for painting stretches back to her early childhood. Though her parents were “not creative types,” she says, her great-grandmother was a painter, and there are some paintings of hers that Lassonde still loves to look at. “People would ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, and I would say ‘artist,’” she says. As she grew up, she established a career in healthcare, but painting was always a favorite pastime. During her months-long recovery, it became a saving grace. She dove into her artwork, operating her art studio, Jollybird Studio, out of her home part-time. She also started
Marie Johnson / Women 360
Bright and colorful, “quirky” animal portraits are her favorite things to paint.
WOMEN 360 | 7
leading make-and-take painting classes around the lakes area, inspiring others to paint and showing them some basic techniques. “Ever since I was a child I was always drawing, creating and writing,” she told the Tribune in a 2019 article about her work. “It’s something that I just love to do, I have a huge passion for it. And I love teaching people; I love sharing that.” She paints primarily with acrylics but also enjoys watercolors, as well as collage and photography. She loves to use bright colors in her paintings, and paints all sorts of different people, places and things — but quirky, personality-filled animal portraits are her forté. Her own animals are often her go-to subjects: the Lassonde family has two horses, a Great Pyrenees dog, 21 chickens, two parrots, a cat and two parakeets. “So we have a zoo, basically,” Lassonde laughs. “It’s a lot of fun. It’s a lot of work, too — my free time is spent taking care of the animals. But I like doing it.” She loves animals so much, in fact, that her studio, Jollybird, is named after her beloved childhood pet, a bluebird named Jolly.
With painting a part of her daily life again, Lassonde began to blossom. She found a doctor in Fargo who helped her manage and overcome her pain using muscle pressure point work and special exercises, and today she’s mostly painfree.
“She’s a very, very strong person to handle all the crazy things life has thrown at her. She keeps going and she keeps dreaming, and I love that about her.” -Elizabeth Kapenga, friend of Lassonde
The recovery process was difficult, and took months, but Lassonde made the best of her time at home, and kept on daring to dream. Soon, she was staring an adventurous idea in the face: to travel to Angola, Africa, to paint a
large mural. She had been wanting to take a trip to Angola for a long time, to visit a friend of hers who did medical missionary work there. But she didn’t know how she would manage the trip, and she didn’t want to go alone. Then, a few months into her recovery, an opportunity presented itself. She found out there was a local group planning a missionary trip to Angola, and if she went along, she could lead a project to paint a mural on the side of a women’s clinic in the Angolan city of Lubango. The pieces fell into place, and she decided to take the plunge. “I was dealing with a lot of pain at the time, but I still went anyway,” she says. “Sometimes you just have these opportunities, and you have to grab them.” It turned out to be a gratifying, unforgettable experience. Lassonde designed the mural in advance, creating it in the African Tinga Tinga art style to make the look of it relatable to the local Angolan people. The mural “tells the gospel theme, in one image,” she describes. It reads like an open book, with picture pages that flow across the clinic wall. Since she was still recovering from
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Contributed / Anna Lassonde / Women 360
Lassonde with her husband, Fred, and their two kids, Aviana and Silas.
her back injury, Lassonde worked with a group of about 10 Angolan community members and other volunteers to paint the mural onto the building. She made the outline, and then showed them how to paint it all in and bring it to life. “It turned into their project,” she says. “The images were there, but everyone else was painting them, and I was just coordinating it… We had two weeks to do it.” It was a collaborative and creative experience, Lassonde says, and the end result was its own reward. The mural is now used as a tool to teach the Angolan people about the Bible. Since that trip, Lassonde has remained focused on her art, and has been busy. Last winter, she moved her studio out of her home and into a space at the Washington Square Mall, and she’s been exhibiting her artwork at local churches, the Holmes Art Cellar, Ecumen and other venues around the area. She has hosted numerous public and private painting lessons and parties, along with a public art class. For the “150 Sails Up” celebrations
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in honor of Detroit Lakes’ sesquicentennial this past summer, she made two original sailboat creations. And she received a spring 2021 grant to offer free painting classes to senior citizens at local assisted living facilities — something she plans to do again in the future. The COVID-19 pandemic, of course, added an unexpected layer to her life, as it has for everyone. Social distancing rules made daily routines more complicated than usual, and Lassonde’s painting business
rivers of water that day and expecting the worst, but was shocked to see that my studio appeared to be untouched… I am so thankful.” She relocated into a bigger space at the mall, and at the time of this writing, was planning to relocate again soon, to a downtown space with more natural lighting for her artwork. “She’s been through the ringer, with all the things her family has been through,” says Marcy Henrikson, an active member of Community Alliance Church and good friend of Lassonde’s. “I often wonder why so many bad things can happen to the same family and why they “She’s been through are tested as they are, but...she always the ringer, with all the points it back to things her family has the provision of her family and church been through. I often family and those wonder why so many who love them. It’s really a true test of bad things can happen faith, to those that to the same family and know her.” Lassonde believes why they are tested as she’s looking at her they are… It’s really a family’s hardships in the rear view true test of faith.” mirror now, with -Marcy Henrikson, friend of Lassonde a growing distance between them and their recent string of struggles. Her health was impacted. But in her has improved considerably, characteristic style, Lassonde and her husband’s symptoms, turned the hardship into while still there, have also a creative opportunity. improved. Her creative itch She used the pandemic as is being well-scratched with a source of inspiration, all the painting projects creating a mixed media art she has going on, and there series that spotlighted local are more coming up. Her frontline workers. daughter is developing her She was hit with her most own artistic talents, and her recent unwelcome surprise in son enjoys tinkering in the September, when a fire broke garage with his dad. Their out at the mall. She had to animals provide endless hurry to relocate her studio, entertainment and comfort. but fortunately most of her The family has settled into their ‘new normal.’ artwork was fine. She did “We’re in a better spot have to get rid of some of her now,” Lassonde says. “We’ve fabric pieces and aprons due been through all this stuff... to smoke damage. and I really feel like I should “I remember working share my story. Hopefully it in there, trying to move encourages somebody to keep everything, and the smell going, to see that you can get was awful,” she recalls. through to the other side.” n “I remember seeing the 10 | WOMEN 360
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Laying it all out to lawmakers M State political science major and busy mother of four, Amanda Schermerhorn, is a passionate advocate for nontraditional students, sharing her story with hundreds of legislators — including Vice President Kamala Harris BY MICHAEL ACHTERLING For Women 360
I
“Over the past year, it was not uncommon for me to wake up before 4 a.m. to ensure that I had my classwork done before I would have to wake up my children to help them with theirs.” -Amanda Schermerhorn
12 | WOMEN 360
t was Monday, May 24, and Amanda Schermerhorn was nervously awaiting her turn to speak. She was in a virtual meeting, much like the hundreds of meetings she had already taken part in throughout the COVID-19 pandemic during her time at M State in Detroit Lakes, but this one was on the national stage — and she was about to speak to Vice President Kamala Harris. She wore black for the occasion, accenting her neckline with a Ruth Bader Ginsburg-style lace collar, a special homage to one of her heroes. She reminded herself that, even though the vice president was the highest ranking government official she had ever spoken to, she is still just a person, like her. That helped reduce her anxiety. At least a little. Schermerhorn was about to tell her story as part of a listening session on the “digital divide” in education — the gap between those with ready access to technology and those without. She was speaking as a member of the legislative advocacy team for Lead MN, a student-led organization that represents more than 180,000 two-year college students in Minnesota. Once live online, she talked to the vice president about her experience as a non-traditional student, an adult mother of four who went back to school to better herself. When the pandemic hit, Schermerhorn told Harris, she found herself struggling to balance her own online classes at M State with her kids’ remote learning needs at home. Broadband doesn’t reach their rural Detroit Lakes residence, she attested, so she’d have to use her smartphone’s mobile hotspot while her kids were using their limited internet access for their Zoom classes. Other times, she’d
Schermerhorn speaks to Vice President Kamala Harris during a listening session on the “digital divide” in education on May 24. Contributed / Amanda Schermerhorn / Women 360
drive to the closed M State campus’s parking lot to use the college’s WiFi to complete her coursework from her car. “Over the past year, it was not uncommon for me to wake up before 4 a.m. to ensure that I had my classwork done before I would have to wake up my children to help them with theirs,” she said. “None of this would’ve been possible without technology.” Part of her routine also involved caring for her 8-year-old son, Richard Jr., who has autism and receives special education
Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Schermerhorn moved to Detroit Lakes when she was about 4 years old. Her mother’s side of the family has deep roots in the area. Her grandfather, James Larson, was Becker County’s longest serving sheriff, from 1959 to 1974. Schermerhorn attended Detroit Lakes Public Schools and was supposed to graduate from Detroit Lakes High School in 2004, but dropped out before that could happen. “I was taking a lot of AP classes, like (I
she says. “I felt like there was more that I could be doing. I felt a drive.” She says it was her husband who suggested she find a hobby for her constructive energy, so she enrolled at M State. Since law had always been an interest of hers, she began a paralegal program; later, she changed her major to political science. “I wanted to understand the legislative process and how the laws were made,” she explains. In the future, she wants to use that
“I’m so inspired by you.” -Vice President Kamala Harris, to Schermerhorn
services through Rossman Elementary School. “Not only was I (the kids’) tutor, I was a physical therapist, speech therapist and occupational therapist, as well,” she told Harris. “Many of those services my youngest receives at school, so of course, those were cut off at the time.” Harris hung on to her every word. “What an incredible story, and I’m so inspired by you,” Harris told Schermerhorn. “Congratulations on everything you have worked to achieve, and that your family has worked to achieve.” The online event was the monumental highlight of Schermerhorn’s year. Getting to that place of advocacy, to that big meeting with the vice president, took many small steps for Schermerhorn — steps that were taken as part of a years-long academic and professional journey.
was a) super overachiever, super involved in school, and then it was just like, I couldn’t take it anymore,” she recalls. She moved to Devil’s Lake, N.D., and worked in construction, taking part in a levy raising, among other projects. But eventually, she was encouraged by a family member to finish her schooling, and that set her on the path to pass her General Educational Development test, or GED, which is equivalent to a high school diploma. She received that in 2007, and then moved around a lot before returning to the Lakes Area eight years ago. She married Richard Schermerhorn in 2014 and the couple celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary in October. They have four children, including Richard Jr. as well as teenage twins Izabella and Travis and middle schooler Sylas. “When we moved back to Minnesota, I was primarily a stay-at-home mom,”
knowledge to better defend people. Her ultimate goal is to become a civil rights attorney. “It’s something that she wants to do and she’s passionate about it,” her husband says. “I want her to follow her dreams.” Dr. Carrie Brimhall, president of M State Community and Technical College, says she was immediately impressed by Schermerhorn. “From the very first time I met her, it felt like I was talking to a colleague,” Brimhall says. “It felt like I was talking to someone who could make a substantial impact in our communities. She fights and advocates for everybody to have equal access to community strength and to opportunity, and that’s … something that we do in education.” With the onset of the COVID19 pandemic and remote learning, Schermerhorn’s home and family WOMEN 360 | 13
routines shifted and became noticeably harder. She shared that experience with the Minneapolis Star Tribune and was featured in a Feb. 13 article titled, “Minnesota college students with children face overwhelming balancing act during pandemic.” “Schermerhorn, 35, has sacrificed sleep, personal time and peace of mind this past year,” writes author Ryan Faircloth in that article. “(She) works around the clock, carving out time to complete her online classwork late at night and early in the morning.” Somehow, she still found time to serve in student government and join advocacy groups that were meeting virtually. “Although I was still online as a student, most of the organizations had moved online, as well, during COVID,” Schermerhorn says. Her involvement with M State’s student government is what brought her to Brimhall’s attention, as she was appointed to speak on behalf of the students and it was Brimhall’s duty to respond to her. But after that the two sought each other out, Brimhall says, for input and guidance on various school issues. “I’ve been here for 24 years and have
probably interacted with thousands and thousands of students, and she sticks out in my mind as someone who I knew would do great things,” Brimhall says. As a member of Lead MN, Schermerhorn represents the interests of
“I’ve been here for 24 years and have probably interacted with thousands and thousands of students, and she sticks out in my mind as someone who I knew would do great things.” -Dr. Carrie Brimhall, M State President
two-year and technical program students, advocating at the legislative level. The group named her their Student Leader of the Year for 2021. For them, she’s tracked state and federal policy changes, scheduled student programs, and helped schedule “legislative days,” during which students have the opportunity to meet with state legislators.
n e m o W l Rea
In November 2020, she began a fellowship for the National College Attainment Network, doing much of the same advocacy work she had been doing at the state level, at the national level. The goal of the nonprofit network is to close equity gaps among students in higher education. “When she feels passionately and strongly about something, she is going to bring that up and speak up,” says Brimhall, explaining that Schermerhorn has “that justice mentality, and that willingness to put herself out there in a way that may be a little bit more vulnerable than people are used to … She’s willing to stand up for what’s right, and she’s not willing to live in the systems that may have kept people from speaking up in the past.” In January, Schermerhorn testified in front of the Minnesota House Higher Education Committee about her path to higher education and the difficulties associated with it. “When you are meeting with people that are in charge of making decisions for society, I guess of course you are going to be nervous,” Schermerhorn says of that experience. “They actually enjoyed hearing our stories, but obviously, it was really nerve-wracking.”
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The Schermerhorn family smiles during a photo session at their home in Detroit Lakes in November. They are, top row, left to right: Izabella, Travis and Sylas. Bottom row: Amanda, Richard Jr., and Richard.
That testimony, along with all of her other advocacy work, led Schermerhorn to another federal advocacy group, Higher Learning Advocates, located in Washington, D.C. “They asked if I wanted to help out on a press call,” she says. “It was me on a telephone, listening on a conference call with the Secretary of Education, the acting chairwoman of the FCC, and a moderator.” Just as she had done with state lawmakers before, she shared her story during that call. “And then, two weeks later, I got the call from the vice president’s office,” she recalls. “I thought it was a spam call because it said ‘Washington, D.C.’... It was whoever was in charge of press over at the office of the vice president.” That led to her virtual chat with the vice president about two weeks after that. “It was just nice to have a discussion with (Vice
President Harris) and it felt like she was genuinely interested in what we had to say,” Schermerhorn says. “And also, it was nice to hear stories from people throughout the nation. It’s always nice to hear stories from other people so you know you are not alone. That’s why I do what I do.” She plans to graduate from M State in 2023 with a fouryear degree in criminal justice and political science, and a minor in pre-law. Her advice to other mothers who might be on the fence about going back to school is this: You need to be happy; that makes you a better person for your family. “Don’t give into the mom guilt — that’s gotta be the number one thing,” she says. “I think there is a lot of societal pressure put on women to stay at home and be a soccer mom, or be on the PTA or something like that. But don’t be afraid to go above the PTA.” n
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Forthright and tenacious Sucker Creek Preserve founder Sally Hausken is a passionate protector of nature — and a force of nature herself BY DAWN DUNCAN For Women 360
“If you’ve ever wondered whether one person can make a difference, look at what Sally Hausken has done for Detroit Lakes and wonder no more!”
T
“We must protect what we still have and find ways to keep our environment safe.” -Sally Hausken
16 | WOMEN 360
hese words, written by local resident Donna Dustin, greet visitors on a sign at the entrance to Sucker Creek Preserve. Hausken’s name is synonymous with environmentalism in the Detroit Lakes area, and she is revered as a fierce leader of projects that have impacted the community. She is admired as a force to be reckoned with, and is well known for her work in developing the Greater Sucker Creek nature preserve, located just off Highway 10 on the southeast side of town. She was named Becker County’s Outstanding Senior Citizen of 2021, is an active member of the Prairie Woods chapter of the Isaak Walton League of America, is a U.S. military veteran, and is a Becker County Master Gardener. Hausken’s upbringing in Wahpeton, North Dakota, was family-oriented, and on weekends her family motored to Detroit Lakes to stay at a South Shore cottage owned by her greataunt. There, she loved to be in the water, but on windy days would retreat into the woods to a delightful stream off a trout fisherman’s path. As an adult, she bought the land out of her great aunt’s estate and moved into the lake cottage, which has since been winterized and modernized.
“I had such fond memories of coming here as a child,” she says of her decision to purchase the property. Post-college, Hausken lived in San Francisco for a while, working for IBM. Next, she was off to Germany, where she served in the U.S. Army. From there, she moved to Colorado for five years, spending the first year as a self-described “ski bum” before teaching at Littleton High School. She also earned her master’s degree at Colorado UniversityBoulder, focusing on counseling. After that, moved
“Sally is a very persistent, honest, good person. Forthright. I appreciated working with her.” -Brad Green, former public works director for Detroit Lakes to Excelsior, Minnesota, where she worked as a high school counselor for 24 years before retiring to Detroit Lakes in 1992. Some years later, through the grapevine, she learned that there were 23 lots across the road from her property that were slated for development. She called the trio of landowners and offered to buy the entire plot. She was determined to save the land and somehow create a natural preserve for others to learn from; for her, the environment and the treatment of planet Earth reigns supreme over any other cause. “Globally, we are losing hundreds of species per year,” she laments. “We cannot let them become extinct. We must protect what we still have and find ways to keep our environment safe.” Tenacious in her pursuit to purchase those 23 lots, which were priced at $184,000, she went to her financial planner and discussed her options. She was advised against attempting to personally finance the purchase, and learned about some grants available from the Department of Natural Resources, funded by the Minnesota legislature. She was able to obtain enough grant money to cover half the cost, or $92,000. From there, the remaining $92,000 would need to be matched by cash locally. “I was retired and didn’t know many people here,” she recalls of that challenge. “I had to network and drum up support.” And that she did, raising the remaining amount needed through private and corporate donations. The acquisition was finalized in December 2001.
Dawn Duncan / Women 360
A pathway at Sucker Creek Preserve has been named in Hausken’s honor for all her efforts there. Below, that pathway is pictured in late fall 2021.
WOMEN 360 | 17
“Sally is a very valued member of our community and is an ardent protector of the environment.” -Bill Henke, Prairie Woods Isaak Walton League chapter co-president That wasn’t the end, however. Shortly thereafter, “Lot 3” was purchased, bringing the size of the preserve up to 64 acres. And in 2013, an additional 57.2 acres, dubbed “Upstream Sucker Creek,” was acquired, thanks to a grant of $495,000. That portion of land has mineral springs. “So now Greater Sucker Creek was its name, and its prime purpose was to help the planet, help persons recreate and learn,” exclaims Hausken. “The 117 acres is for education!” Throughout the process, research support came from the DNR, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, Pelican River Watershed District, and Becker County Soil and Water Conservation District. Brad Green, former public works director for the City of Detroit Lakes, worked closely with Hausken during the Sucker Creek project. He comments that, “Sally is a very persistent, honest, good person. Forthright. I appreciated working with her, and the work she has done preserves our history and secures the future through offering a place to
Contributed / Sally Hausken / Women 360
Hausken, second from left, during a Detroit Lakes High School freshmen field trip to test water clarity using turbidity tubes and invertebrates.
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teach kids about nature.” And Bill Henke, the co-president of the Isaak Walton League of America’s local Prairie Woods chapter, says, “Sally is a very valued member of our community and is an ardent protector of the environment. As a result, the city of Detroit Lakes and all its citizens are benefactors of our wonderful Sucker Creek Nature Preserve. She has worked tirelessly not only to help derive this beautiful preserve, but also to provide a voice for all of its inhabitants and, in the process, educate young and old on the benefits of clean water and pristine places.” On top of the Sucker Creek project, Hausken has been a dedicated Master Gardener, taking calls and making site visits to teach others about the identification and health of plants and trees, and speaking about the importance of natural resources. She is driven to teach
others about choosing native plants and trees, she says: “We cannot just plant maple and ash trees here. For biodiversity, we need to bring in more native species.” In addition, she and Detroit Lakes High School 9th grade chemistry teacher Steve Fode initiated a city/ school partnership that has allowed up to 120 students at a time to go on an outdoor field trip to learn how to test water using turbidity tubes and invertebrates. Substantial expenses were paid by a private donor, who insisted that the money be used for education. It’s Hausken’s staunch belief that it’s the youth of the world who will pave the way to a greener future. “We’re going to get there, I know it,” she says. “It’s the Greta Thunbergs of the planet who lead the way. It’s the younger generations that will get us there; they are the key.” n
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Steeped in service As a child, Julia Nelmark was taught to step in and help others whenever she could. She draws on that upbringing today, in her work as president of Midwest Minnesota Community Development Corporation. BY DAWN DUNCAN For Women 360
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“I love helping people, and the community. When something needs to be done, I’m going to be there.” -Julia Nelmark
20 | WOMEN 360
ith deep Midwestern roots and an upbringing steeped in goodwill toward others, Midwest Minnesota Community Development Corporation President Julia Nelmark has built her life on a foundation of service. The fifth of seven children in her family, Nelmark was taught the importance of helping others by her mother, a nurse, and her father, an accountant. Her parents were role models in terms of always stepping in to help others and doing whatever needed to be done. Nelmark continues to live out those values in her grown-up life today, through her work at the nonprofit MMCDC, as a volunteer for her kids’ sports activities, by supporting various events and fundraisers at Holy Rosary Catholic Church, and by serving on the church’s finance council as well as the board of directors of the Boys and Girls Club. Nelmark manages to balance a full-throttle position, family life, and volunteerism with an ease that seems to come naturally to her. Her upbringing in Springfield, Illinois led her to the big city of Chicago for college, where she earned her degree in accounting, following in her father’s footsteps. There, she met her husband of 31 years now, Tad Nelmark, who became an insurance underwriter while she began climbing the corporate ladder in finance. “I was working 60 to 70 hours a week,” she
Contributed / Julia Nelmark / Women 360
Julie Nelmark is pictured on King Isbit’s thrown during a day of volunteering at a past Polar Fest, with fellow volunteer Mary Ann Nelmark; in the group photo, she’s seen in the front row, third from the left, with other community leaders and volunteers at the Becker County Food Pantry, after a successful technology fundraiser for the pantry in 2017.
recalls. “We were both commuting over two hours each day through city traffic, and I was pregnant with my third child. We realized it was not the life we wanted, and the city wasn’t where we wanted to raise our kids.” Her husband had begun to split his time between his corporate job and returning to the Wolf Lake area with his twin brother to work on their parents’ farm, and it was those northern Minnesota family ties that eventually brought the couple to Detroit Lakes. He became a full-time dairy farmer (until 2020, when he returned to insurance underwriting), and she joined TEAM Industries, while their children attended Holy Rosary and then Detroit Lakes High School. She took a position at MMCDC in 2003, where she says she found the spark she had been missing. She became president of the organization in August 2018. “Something was missing in my former life in Chicago and working in for-profit corporations,” Nelmark says. “Detroit Lakes is a great community, and MMCDC has given me the purpose and satisfaction I was seeking. I love what I do!” MMCDC, which is celebrating
its 50th anniversary this year, American community are essential. is responsible for a significant MMCDC’s Native subsidiary, White amount of downtown Detroit Lakes’ Earth Investment Initiative, works redevelopment, including the building to serve the reservation and Native where the organization itself houses Americans throughout the state, its administrative offices, the 100-yearold Graystone Hotel. Its lending operations occupy the Blanding building on the opposite corner of the block, and the entire block is owned and operated by MMCDC. Through the organization’s funding and efforts, it has supported renovation and development of many buildings in Detroit Lakes and beyond, reaching into the White Earth Reservation and communities throughout Minnesota. Nelmark is particularly interested in her work -Jamie Marks Erickson, on the White Earth development officer at MMCDC Reservation, as she believes relationships, understanding and support for the Native
“Despite her incredible résumé, she is down to earth, not to mention enthusiastic with a capital E!”
WOMEN 360 | 21
including many White Earth members living in the Twin Cities. Along with the White Earth Investment Initiative, efforts that support business growth, employment, affordable housing, homebuyer education, and free tax services are the core of MMCDC’s efforts. Nelmark herself has put in substantial work on New Markets Tax Credit financing, locally and regionally, and has been instrumental in assisting several Detroit Lakes area businesses and nonprofits with obtaining this needed funding. The New Markets Tax Credit program attracts private investment in low-income communities through tax credits, incentivizing community development and economic growth. “New Markets financing helps businesses to start, grow, and thrive,” Nelmark says. Jamie Marks Erickson, the development officer at MMCDC, describes Nelmark as “exceptional.” “With experience ranging from corporate America to rural America, she is highly qualified to lead MMCDC,” Erickson says. “Despite her incredible resume, she is down to earth, not to mention enthusiastic with a capital E!” As big as her career is, and with as much as she has accomplished, Nelmark remains incredibly humble.
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Contributed / Julia Nelmark / Women 360
Nelmark with her daughter, Claire, who is working on her Doctor of Philosophy in chemistry.
Contributed / Julia Nelmark / Women 360
The Nelmark family (left to right): Julia, Tad, Sam, Matt and Claire.
“The most rewarding thing in my life has been watching our kids become thoughtful, caring adults,” she says. “When I hear their views and see them help others, I think, ‘We have succeeded!’” Their daughter, Claire, 25, is working on her Doctor of Philosophy in chemistry, while Sam, 22, is a student at the University of North Dakota studying managerial finance and accounting. Matt, the youngest, is 20 and studying computer engineering at North Dakota State University. The Nelmark family takes summer rafting trips together (with a bit of whitewater thrown in), and has visited several locations throughout the country. Glacier National Park is a favorite, along with trips to Duluth, Wisconsin and Michigan, West Virginia, and western Pennsylvania. Puzzles are also a favorite pastime of Julia’s, and she laughs as she compares her hobby to her work. “Structured finance, and community development, is like putting a puzzle together,” she says. “We have to figure out how to put pieces together and make them fit to assist communities.” “I love helping people, and the community,” she adds. “When something needs to be done, I’m going to be there, jumping in to do what it takes to make things happen.” n
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‘ Through good times and hard times’ During the chaotic COVID era, and for years before that, Christy Brinkman has shown ‘excellent leadership’ at Essentia Health Oak Crossing BY NATHAN BOWE For Women 360
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“Professionally, COVID has made things very busy for me for the past year and a half.” -Christy Brinkman
26 | WOMEN 360
hristy Brinkman was raised to have a good work ethic, and it’s a good thing she did. These days, she really needs it. Brinkman is the Operations Administrator of Essentia Health’s Oak Crossing long-term care center in Detroit Lakes, and is also part of the COVID-19 response team for all six of Essentia’s nursing homes. That’s kept her very busy lately. “Christy is an extremely talented health care executive and is committed to high-quality care for our patients and residents,” says Tanner Goodrich, senior vice president of operations at Essentia Health St. Mary’s. “She has been successful in developing relationships within Essentia, as well as externally, and has been able to leverage those relationships to improve our organization. She works extremely hard. Her skill set, communication style and approach to leadership command the respect of Essentia’s senior leaders, her peers and those that report directly to her.” Brinkman, 44, credits her talents to the lessons she learned in childhood, growing up on a dairy farm near Wadena. “I learned the strong work ethic from my parents — daily chores, haying, summer field work,” she says. Her parents are officially retired, but her 81-year-old dad is still involved in crop farming, and her grandpa worked on the farm until he was 95. She has always set a high bar for herself.
“Her skill set, communication style and approach to leadership command the respect of Essentia’s senior leaders, her peers and those that report directly to her.” -Tanner Goodrich, Essentia Health St. Mary’s
“In high school I was named, ‘Most likely to become a principal,’” she says with a laugh. “So it’s probably not a surprise I’m doing what I’m doing.” Her job involves “balancing the priorities of families, residents and teams providing the care.” Brinkman is focused, efficient and driven by a strong desire to do right by residents and staff at Oak Crossing, says Tonya Clem, residency manager at Essentia Health St. Mary’s. “There are so many things that Christy does every day that exude excellent leadership,” Clem says. “She starts each day with her incredible work ethic and tirelessly works to ensure that all of the people she serves are well taken care of.” Brinkman, who was born Christy Bendix, married Bob Brinkman in 2004. He is a regional supervisor for Strata Corp. Their son, Ryan, is a freshman at Detroit Lakes High School and is “big into football and basketball and band,” according to Brinkman. Their daughter, Emma, is a fifth-grader at Rossman Elementary School. Brinkman herself is a graduate of Wadena-Deer Creek High School. She discovered her fondness and compassion for older people as a youth volunteer at a local nursing home. “It was just visiting with local residents and playing the piano for
Contributed / Christy Brinkman / Women 360
Brinkman, wearing a mask at work during the COVID-19 pandemic. them,” she recalls of that experience. She played everything from Christmas carols to church hymns, sticking purely to the instrumentals: “I’m not a singer,” she laughs. Later on, while earning her bachelor’s degree in health care administration at Concordia College in Moorhead, she worked as a nursing assistant at a nursing home. “That sparked my passion to go into long-term care administration — the positive difference you can make, not only on staff but on residents on a dayto-day basis, to improve their quality of life,” she says. When she first came to St. Mary’s Hospital in Detroit Lakes, it was as a college intern. Then, after graduating from Concordia, she moved to Detroit Lakes in 1999 and was hired as administrator of the Winchester apartments on Washington Avenue, an independent-living unit owned by Essentia Health. During that time, she was deeply involved in the construction of Lincoln Park, a 60-unit complex on the Essentia campus that opened in 2001; it offers both independent and assisted living. She was in charge of the construction process, working closely with the general contractor and St. Mary’s maintenance staff. “You learn a lot,” overseeing a major
project like that, she says. In 2004, she became administrator of Oak Crossing, then called St. Mary’s Nursing Center. “Over the years, I’ve worked with a lot of different programs and services at the hospital and clinic, and home care, as well,” she says. Oak Crossing underwent major renovations in 2008, and Brinkman served as construction manager of the project. She recalls that, “The neighborhood concept was a big part of that, making the environment as much like home as possible, and less hospitallike.” Clem says Brinkman leads her teams “through good times and hard times” and calls her “a hands-on leader who is not afraid to do anything she is asking of any staff member that works for her.” Over the years, Brinkman has been recognized for her work with a number of awards. In 2019, she and her leadership team were honored by the American College of Health Care Administrators’ Eli Pick Facility Leadership Award. And in 2014, Brinkman won the Kal Michaels Outstanding Leadership Award from Aging Services of Minnesota. But she is most proud of the high ratings that Oak Crossing has received in U.S. News & World Report’s WOMEN 360 | 27
Contributed / Christy Brinkman / Women 360
Christy and Bob Brinkman with their children: Ryan, 15, and Emma, 11. annual national rankings of nursing homes. Most recently, in 2020-21, Oak Crossing was again named a Best Nursing Home — ranking highly in both long-term care and short-term rehab metrics. Oak Crossing was one of only 708 nursing homes in the
nation that received this highest-level designation for both types of care. When full, Oak Crossing has 94 residents and 225 full- and part-time employees. Brinkman is also proud of the consistent five-star rating that Oak Crossing has received for the past several years from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. She has compassion for people, “and is able to understand and relate to each person she interacts with, right where they are at,” Clem says. “She is able to see the fine details in the whole picture, and uses her collaboration skills to put those pieces together to provide care like nowhere else in our community.” When it comes to community service, Brinkman has served as president of the local Women of Today -Tonya Clem, Essentia Health St. Mary’s organization, as a member of the local United Way board of
“She starts each day with her incredible work ethic and tirelessly works to ensure that all of the people she serves are well taken care of.” 28 | WOMEN 360
directors and with the Minnesota Health and Housing Alliance. “In recent years, my efforts have been given to LeadingAge Minnesota,” she says, “in terms of helping to shape public policy and the long-term care industry’s efforts to improve safety and quality.” She has also been involved with Concordia College, helping to train future nursing home administrators and serving as a mentor for students. “It’s a wonderful experience to be able to contribute to the growth of future health care leaders,” she says. “I’m also looking forward to re-energizing with community organizations again (after the pandemic). We have such strong community organizations here. It’s phenomenal.” At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the shortage of personal protective equipment like masks and gowns created some fear of working in health care, she says: “Now, we have ample PPE.” Still, “COVID has brought out a lot of staffing challenges in long-term care in Minnesota, Detroit Lakes included, for local facilities.” At the time of this writing in midNovember, more than half of Oak Crossing workers were students in college and high school scholarship programs. “Professionally, COVID has made things very busy for me for the past year and a half,” Brinkman says. When things slow down, she plans to work on her Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives certification, a professional goal she hopes to complete in the next two years. As she advances through the ranks, there is one thing Brinkman never forgets: “I love working with people going through the aging process.” Her colleague, Goodrich, says she’s also serious about aligning her actions with the mission, vision and values of Essentia Health. “Christy is a patient-resident advocate,” he says. “She is able to center her decision-making around what is best for patient care.” In meetings and one-on-one discussions with others at Essentia, Goodrich says Brinkman “often ties our accountabilities back to Essentia Health’s value system. It’s critical for successful leaders to be aligned with the organization, and Christy embodies the values of our health system as much as any leader I’ve encountered in my time with Essentia.” n
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Thinking beyond the bench Becker County’s first female District Court Judge, Gretchen Thilmony, strives to use her position for positive change, providing the help, support and resources that people need to get back on track BY DAWN DUNCAN For Women 360
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“I strive to … be the person who can give encouragement and support to those who need it – really need it.” -Gretchen Thilmony
30 | WOMEN 360
retchen Thilmony has smashed through not just one, but two local glass ceilings – first, by becoming the first female Becker County Attorney, in 2014, and then, two years later, the first female Becker County District Court Judge. This year, Mothers Against Drunk Driving selected her as the Minnesota Judge of the Year for her work with a specialty court dedicated to DUIs. Detroit Lakes started its own MADD panel in 2019, allowing those charged with DUI, or Driving Under the Influence, to complete their attendance requirement here in town rather than having to travel to Moorhead. Thilmony has been deeply involved in the panel, working regularly with DUI cases in addition to other specialty divisions like drug court and veterans’ treatment court, as well as criminal court. She has attended many MADD panels, first to understand and become familiar with them and what’s presented, and later at the request of a specialty court participant who was going to be presenting and asked her to attend. “That really meant a lot to me, that she wanted me to be there,” Thilmony says. Since then, she’s attended at least three local MADD panels in support of specialty court participants, and is committed to going whenever asked. There is a down-to-earth quality about Thilmony, despite her groundbreaking success
as an attorney and judge; a genuine Midwestern warmth and an intrinsic appreciation for people that shines through in her personality. “Gretchen’s heartfelt compassion, advocacy and leadership for those in need is inspiring,” says Tiffiny Walz, who has known Thilmony for several years. “She is kind, intellectual and thoughtful, and these characteristics make her a real asset to our community… Gretchen is a cheerleader for anyone who wants to make change in their lives, and will be there at the finish line to watch you cross. She is a wonderful human being and friend.” A Detroit Lakes native and graduate of the University of North Dakota (she has a bachelor’s degree in English and also attended the UND School of Law), Thilmony is married to her high school sweetheart, Trevor, and is a mom to two kids: Hayden, who’s 19 and a UND freshman, and Lauren, 16, a junior at Detroit Lakes High School. She says her family is the thing she holds most dear to her heart, transcending her rise to being a judge at the age of 44, young for the achievement. When it came time for Thilmony to define her career path, she recalls, she decided to pursue law after first debating how to best use her English degree. It was after she got accepted into law school that she realized she wanted to be a trial lawyer. The courtroom was calling to her, she says. Once she earned her law degree, Thilmony returned to Detroit Lakes to intern for the Sinclair Law Firm, specializing in private and public real estate law. In 2002, the Becker County Attorney’s Office became a full-time office, meaning the lawyers couldn’t do both public and private practice. Thilmony had to choose a path. She chose to become a full-time Assistant Becker County Attorney. Joe Evans, who was the Becker County Attorney at the time, hired her. Years later, in 2014, it was Evans she took over for, when she became Becker County Attorney herself. “It meant so much to me to follow in Joe’s footsteps,” she remarks. Two years later, in July of 2016, she was appointed Seventh Judicial District Court Judge by Governor Mark Dayton; in 2018, she was elected to the position. She is a member of the Becker County Bar Association, the White Earth/Becker County/ Clearwater County and Mahnomen County Public Safety Committee, the Anishinabe Sexual Assault Response Team, and is a Public Safety in Indian Country Partner with the U.S. Department of Justice. She says it is her passion for law and for service that empower her to do the work she does each day – work that she loves. “You know that phrase, ‘To whom much is given, much is expected’? I try to live up to that,” she says. “While I worked hard for everything I have and haven’t been ‘given’ things in the sense of entitlements, I have been given a lot in my life, and I strive to really use my experience and what I’ve learned about human nature in my career to be the person who can give encouragement and support to those who need it – really need it.” Many times, she says, those are people who are in the court system. Whether they’ve been charged with a crime or are a parent whose children have been
“Gretchen is a cheerleader for anyone who wants to make change in their lives, and will be there at the finish line to watch you cross.” -Tiffiny Walz, longtime friend
Contributed / Gretchen Thilmony / Women 360
Thilmony, with her 2021 Mothers Against Drunk Driving Minnesota Judge of the Year award, which she received for her work with the local DUI court.
WOMEN 360 | 31
taken away from them, they need help, support and resources to get back on track to become law-abiding citizens and good, safe parents. “Not perfect parents, not perfect people; no one is either of those things,” she says, adding, “Sometimes, to get those words of encouragement from a person in authority can mean a lot. To many criminal defendants, I say,
who are intertwined with “the system” in multiple ways. Her work at the crisis center has honed her sense of compassion, which she believes helps her do her job to the best of her ability. “I love when I see people who have appeared before me in court, in the grocery store or Walmart, and I look at them because I recognize them, and I say, ‘Hello’ as we pass. Many
“As (Thilmony) has demonstrated through her dedicated work over the years, she cares deeply about our community,” says Walz. “She works with and supports local organizations and nonprofits to address community needs and is a willing speaker about issues impacting our community. She possesses a network of resources to make a
“I’m not any better than they are; I’m just a person who happens to be a judge.” -Gretchen Thilmony, on seeing people she’s worked with in her courtroom as equals ‘Your bad decision doesn’t define you.’” This is a woman who thinks beyond the bench. “You have to take a step back and see how a person got to where they are right now,” she says. A 10-year member of the Lakes Area Crisis Center’s Board of Directors, and a former president of the board, Thilmony has heard the tragic stories of countless people in need, both in and out of the courtroom – people
seem shocked. I can tell they know who I am,” she says, adding, “It’s because I do want them to know I see them as people and I’m not any better than they are; I’m just a person who happens to be a judge. And the majority of people I sentence in court are our community members; they aren’t people traveling through from elsewhere. They live among us and have grown up among us. Everyone deserves a second chance.”
significant difference in the lives of our community members. Putting these resources to use is a commitment Gretchen has shown time and time again.” But of course Thilmony’s life isn’t all about work. She loves to go fishing, and takes an annual trip to Lake of the Woods with six of her friends; the group has made the trip for 17 years. She reads extensively and is a member of the Stephen King Book Club, which
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Contributed / Gretchen Thilmony / Women 360
Thilmony with her husband, Trevor, and their kids, Hayden and Lauren.
she’s been a part of since high school. She’s also a member of the local VFW Ladies Auxiliary and Kiwanis club. She is still close friends with many of her classmates from Detroit Lakes High School, and her family lives in town or nearby. As a parent, Thilmony is dedicated to teaching her kids to always stick up for someone who can’t stick up for themselves. “Always try and speak for someone who may not have a voice,” she advises. “It’s so important. I learned that from my dad.” Thilmony is committed to helping others and to public service, noting that she is always interested in hearing the backstory behind every person or situation, and in not jumping to conclusions. This, she believes, is what makes her a good judge. “I absolutely love what I do, and I know we hear this often, but it’s really true that if you follow your heart and do work that maps to who you are, it doesn’t seem like a job,” she says. “You can enjoy life and have fun, plus work hard and make a difference. When you give back and never take for granted what you have, it all falls into place.” n
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‘All roads lead to DL’ After moving to Arizona for college, Mary Beth Gilsdorf returned to her hometown of Detroit Lakes to help run the family business and raise a family of her own; now, she’s an influential and creative community leader—and so are her husband and two daughters BY VICKI GERDES For Women 360
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“Great success comes when you showcase other people’s talents and uplift the community as a whole. This is what I have learned from her.” -Megan Gilsdorf, talking about her mom, Mary Beth
34 | WOMEN 360
s a teenager, Mary Beth Norby set her sights on moving away from her hometown of Detroit Lakes — far away, to Arizona. “I planned on it all the way through junior high and high school,” she says, noting that she had fallen in love with Phoenix during a family vacation there. “It was so different — and I loved that,” she explains, adding that she was also lured by Arizona State’s reputable engineering program, which fit well with her career plans. After graduating from college, she got her first job in Arizona, working at Motorola — an experience she describes as “mind-boggling.” “The company had its own post office, license renewal office, drug store — all the things you might have to leave work for, were right there,” she says. “The number of employees at the facility where I worked was more than (the population of) the city of Detroit Lakes.” While she was in Arizona, Mary Beth met and married artist Hans Gilsdorf, who happened to have grown up spending the summers at his family’s home on Pelican Lake, south of Detroit Lakes. “I spent five years there (at Motorola), and during year four of that, Hans and I got married,” Mary Beth recalls. It was barely a year into their marriage when the couple started feeling the pull of their Minnesota roots.
“We both decided that Minnesota more than that, I think the statement “Hans and I don’t have a lot of was calling,” she says, “and we both says a lot about Mary Beth. She grew up overlapping skills,” she says. “We got jobs in the metro area. I got a job in Detroit Lakes and went off to college complement each other well.” in Northfield, and he got a job in New in Arizona and then lived for a time in Matriarch of ‘The Gilsdorf Girls’ Hope, so we split the difference and the Twin Cities, but her path brought Mary Beth has taken on a number of lived in Burnsville. We were there for her back to Norby’s Department Store, community projects of her own, too, five years.” and back to DL. including the establishment of a new After welcoming their first “Her roots in this community are summer art festival, Street Faire at the daughter, Kendra, Mary Beth found deep, and she has a great love for the Lakes (in 2001), and leading a campaign community and for the region. She can herself contemplating a return to her to “Crush the Rush” — i.e., eradicate hometown. envision what this community needs, the flowering rush that was ruining “There is a strong draw to this and she’s not afraid to work hard to Detroit Lakes’ famed City Beach. community… I definitely love it,” she make it happen,” Amy continues. “While “The DNR had kind of pooh-poohed says. everyone thinks of Hans as the artist (the idea) that the weeds could be pulled In 1999, they made the leap. in the family, I “My brother would say that and sister Mary Beth is were both just as much of working at the an artist, but in store (Norby’s a very different Department way. She’s an Store in Detroit engineer, but not Lakes), and they a totally straightsaid that if I was line engineer. ever thinking She’s incredibly about or wanting creative in to come back, thinking about this would be a what this good time,” Mary community needs Beth says. “So and how to do Hans and I made it.” the ‘pro and con’ “Mary Beth’s list, and while love and pride the list of ‘cons’ for Detroit Lakes was longer, the shows through ‘pros’ were the in every project important things.” she is involved Mary Beth was in,” says another pregnant with longtime friend, second daughter Becky Mitchell, Megan at the time who’s the of the move, so she director of the divided her time Becker County between being a Museum. “From mom and working serving on as vice president committees to Contributed / Mary Beth Gilsdorf / Women 360 volunteering at of Norby’s. She ran the longtime family were all on hand for the unveiling of events to driving Kendra, Hans, Megan and Mary Beth Gilsdorf business alongside . the train on first Detroit Lakes Polar Fest Ice Palace in 2018 siblings Michael and the major projects, Jean, while Hans she always brings a smile and endless took on a series of public and private art and it’d make a difference, but look energy to make our community a better at it now,” says Amy Stoller Stearns, a projects. place to be.” longtime friend of the Gilsdorfs. “Mary From the “Sunny in DL” sunfish “I couldn’t be more proud, honored sculptures to the creation of the Detroit Beth was right out there in the lake, and blessed to call her my mom,” says pulling flowering rush stalk by stalk.” Lakes Ice Palaces, and numerous Kendra, Mary Beth’s oldest daughter. When Amy first met Mary Beth after creative endeavors in-between, Hans “It’s hard for me to sum up how moving to Detroit Lakes in the early has made his mark on the community, awesome I think she is.” 2000s, one of the first things her new and continues to do so. Kendra’s sister, Megan adds: “She friend told her was that, “All roads lead “I was worried about Hans at first, (Mary Beth) says that Kendra and I to DL.” but he’s found his people,” Mary Beth are her best work, which is true in the “Of course, I kind of laughed at that, says with a smile. sense that she and my dad inspired us and then I found it to be somewhat She has had a hand in more than a throughout our lives with all that they true,” Amy says. “It’s surprising how few of her husband’s projects over the do for others and for this community, many ‘roads’ really do lead to DL — but and we strive to do the same… I am years, mainly on the logistics end. WOMEN 360 | 35
truly blessed to have grown up with the parents I have.” Mary Beth beams with pride as she talks about her daughters’ accomplishments: Kendra’s, in the world of community theater and fine arts, and Megan’s, in fashion and design. In the years since graduating from Detroit Lakes High School, Kendra has conducted poetry workshops for the Historic Holmes Theatre, where she has also been involved in directing some summer musical theater camps for kids; she has also been active in Fargo-Moorhead Community Theatre, including a recent stint as stage manager for the fall production of “Young Frankenstein.” Megan, meanwhile, is in the midst of completing her senior Capstone fashion project at Arizona State University, where she will graduate in the spring.
Michael Achterling / Women 360
Mary Beth and Hans Gilsdorf are photographed after receiving a 2021 Detroit Lakes Regional Chamber of Commerce Splash Award during a ceremony at the Holiday InnLakefront in October.
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While Norby’s Department Store did its best to stay ahead of modern shopping trends, establishing a website shortly after Mary Beth started working there, the internet shopping revolution took a large toll on the downtown brick-and-mortar business, and Norby’s closed its doors in 2018 after more than 112 years. “It was pretty emotional,” said Mary Beth of the family’s decision to pull the plug on the store. “But it was good for us to be able to do it together.” That same year, Megan graduated from high school and moved away to attend her mom’s alma mater, where she majored in fashion design. Though Kendra had chosen the much-closer Minnesota State University-Mankato as her college destination, and often came home for visits, Mary Beth was nonetheless dealing with being an “empty nester” for the first time, along with an unanticipated career change. “I was taking 2019 to figure myself out, and to recharge, because I was drained,” she admits. Then, in the fall of that year, as planning got underway for Detroit Lakes’ 2021 150th birthday celebrations, Hans and Mary Beth began
to contemplate the possibility of another public art project like the highly successful “Sunny in DL” sculptures, which were unveiled in 2003. “It had always been in the back of our minds to do another one,” Mary Beth says. “The sunfish were such a hit.” Inspiration struck during the sesquicentennial planning process, and the “150 Sails Up in DL” sailboat project was born. Mary Beth wanted -Becky Mitchell, Becker County to be closely involved Museum Director with the project, and with her future career plans still undecided, pandemic created some unexpected it was the perfect time challenges for the ‘Sails Up’ planning to do so. She threw herself headlong team, sponsors and artists; at the same into the planning for “150 Sails Up,” time, it provided some unprecedented with the aim of producing 150 metal opportunities. sailboat sculptures in time for an April 30, 2021 unveiling, at what was dubbed “The pandemic hit everyone very hard the “Sailboat Regatta Party.” and in every possible way — financially, The advent of the COVID-19 emotionally, physically, socially — and
“Mary Beth’s love and pride for Detroit Lakes shows through in every project she is involved in. From serving on committees to volunteering at events to driving the train on major projects, she always brings a smile and endless energy to make our community a better place to be.”
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all throughout the community, people were trying to support those around them in any way that they could,” says Megan Gilsdorf. “My mom chose to save the people hardly anyone else was thinking of during this dire time: She saved the artists. “All across Minnesota and surrounding states, she gave artists the opportunity to be recognized for their talents, and a way to make money when money was tight. Not only that, this project brought
splashes of color to the area and gave tourists yet another reason to visit Detroit Lakes… The celebration and unveiling of all 150 sailboats brought the community together — in a safe manner — after being isolated for so long.” “Great success comes when you showcase other people’s talents and uplift the community as a whole,” she adds. “This is what I have learned from her.” In fact, Mary Beth was the source of inspiration behind
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Megan’s theme for her Capstone “She’s someone who says, fashion ‘Yes!’ to the possibility of collection at ASU, which something wonderfully focuses on crazy, unique and exciting other students’ talents instead to make the Detroit Lakes of just her community even more own, uplifting the fashion show-stopping.” community by -Kendra Gilsdorf, talking about focusing on her mom, Mary Beth diversity and inclusion on even more show-stopping,” the runway and says Kendra. “She isn’t the carrying the message that ‘we only one, as it does take a all belong.’ village of brilliant people to “Her work in life make it all happen, but she is continuously shapes what definitely one of those...people I do in fashion,” Megan who have been there since the says of her mom. “From considering local communities, beginning, saying ‘Yes!’” “Mary Beth is a bit like the to the importance of small wizard in ‘Wizard of Oz,’” businesses, and finding new says Amy Stearns. “She’s ways to collaborate with different people in all different behind the curtain, making industries.” things happen, working on “She’s someone who says, community events, sharing ‘Yes!’ to the possibility of ideas to Hans and her friends, something wonderfully crazy, and dreaming up ways to unique and exciting to make make this region better for the Detroit Lakes community everyone.” n
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