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Presorted Standard U.S. Postage Paid St. Joseph Newsleader St. Joseph, MN 56374 Permit No. 21 ECRWSS Postal Customer
Newsleader Sauk Rapids-Rice
Friday, Dec. 11, 2015 Volume 1, Issue 32 Est. 2015
Town Crier No Newsleader published Dec. 25 or Jan. 1
The Newsleader office will be closed Dec. 21-Jan. 1. A Dec. 25 and Jan. 1 edition will not be published. The office will reopen on Monday, Jan. 4 and will resume weekly publications beginning Jan. 8.
Dinner with Santa set Dec. 21
Dinner with Santa will be held Monday, Dec. 21 at the Holiday Inn Hotel and Suites in St. Cloud. Volunteer Santa and Mrs. Clauses (in costume) are still needed! To sign up, please call 320-251-1038. An estimated 600 residents and helpers from 25 Central Minnesota senior community locations are being invited to this festive holiday event. Each resident is served a holiday dinner. Entertainment will feature groups of chorale singers, handbell players and musical accompaniments. All guests will receive wrapped gifts and have a photo taken with Santa.
‘Little House’ children learn from play, more play by Dennis Dalman editor@thenewsleaders.com
Too many children have apparently forgotten how to play, and Veronica Clour, owner-operator of Little House Family Center in Sauk Rapids, worries about it. “Play is the ‘work’ of the child,” she said. “Through play, children learn about life, about relationships and about themselves. Without play, a child is empty.” And when Clour says “play,” she means child-directed play; she means children must themselves decide what to play and how to play. That is why the children ages 3 to 7 at Little House direct their own play indoors and outdoors. Using their considerable, natural imaginations, they
interact with one another while learning about the world, all through their playing and their games. In the morning, after they arrive at Little House, they decided which games to play with a variety of plain toys: big wooden blocks, clothes, a basket of seashells, capes, a basket of fruit, dolls. They use those toy props to create their playtime “scene of the morning” – a restaurant, say, or a hospital or a home. “They direct the play within that scene,” Clour said. “I just provide the direction. Sometimes they disagree about the games to play, and that’s OK, it’s wonderful because they will find their needs and express themselves. They are respectful and listen to one another.” House • page 3
photo by Dennis Dalman
Little House owner/operator Veronica Clour (center) and one of her asistants, Brooke Seia (right) lead children in a rhymed story about a cat and mouse, recited partly in French.
Two students honored for ‘Live United’ essays by Dennis Dalman editor@thenewsleaders.com
Metro Bus announces holiday service hours
Metro Bus Fixed Route and Dial-a-Ride will be closed on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. It will operate a reduced schedule for Christmas Eve. Getting around in the winter requires extra planning for everyone. Riders should anticipate a little delay during poor weather conditions and times of high traffic congestion, such as shopping at Crossroads Center now through Christmas, and consider taking an earlier bus to keep themselves on time. Those who drive are reminded to yield to buses merging in traffic. For more information, visit thenewsleaders.com and click on Dec. 11 Criers.
Postal Patron
Henry
Kobluk
Two Rice Elementary School students have been honored as runners-up in the United Way “Live United” Essay Contest. The students are Cammille Henry and MacCayle Kobluk. They are two of the 14 area-wide students named as runners-up in the contest, for which 350 essays were received from throughout central Minnesota. Each will re-
ceive a $75 VISA gift card. The grand-prize winner was Breanna Stueve, a student at All Saints Academy, St. Cloud. She received a $200 VISA gift card. About two months ago, United Way of Central Minnesota partnered with US Bank and Times Media to sponsor the contest for fifth-graders. Each student was asked to describe in a short essay how they, personally, “Live United.” Essays • page 2
Family Fun Day draws crowds, donations
Juniors may win MAT scholarship
The Minnesota Association of Townships will again offer a township scholarship program for high school juniors in the state of Minnesota. Up to six $1,000 scholarships will be awarded. The Minnesota Association of Townships Scholarship Program is designed to heighten awareness among young people about Minnesota’s Grassroots Township government. MAT is a non-profit corporation representing Minnesota townships while promoting an understanding of the heritage, future and being a voice for its roughly 9,000 officers. For more information, rules and submission deadlines, visit thenewsleaders. com and click on Dec. 11 Criers.
photos by Carolyn Bertsch
Left: John Fuls of Sauk Rapids and Mandy Neuman of St. Cloud head out from the starting line at the Trots for Tots 5K Race. Middle: The Sauk For additional photos, see page 4. Rapids Fire Department hosted its annual collection for Toys for Tots Dec. 5. This is the first year both a pickup truck and a boat have been filled with toys. They attribute the success of this drive to wider promotion through means of newspapers, radio and school announcements. See additional photos on page 4. photo by Hannah Marie and Myles B. Photography
Right: Santa Claus joins the Sauk Rapids Community Ambassadors on their float at the Sauk Rapids Parade of Lights.
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Sauk Rapids-Rice Newsleader • www.thenewsleaders.com
2
Friday, Dec. 11, 2015
Sauk Rapids police arrest armed burglar Dec. 4 A man has been arrested for allegedly breaking into a number of homes in Sauk Rapids and Benton County. Sauk Rapids police arrested 32-year-old Derek Stirn.
On Dec. 4 at about 2:30 a.m. a resident who lives in the 900 block of Oak Crest Drive in Sauk Rapids reported someone burglarizing a neighbor’s home. The homeowners were
not home at the time. Officers arrested Stirn after he ran out of the back door carrying property taken from the home. Police say Stirn was also in possession of a handgun that
had been taken on Dec. 2 during a burglary of a garage in south Sauk Rapids. As a result of the arrest, search warrants were done to recover stolen property from
other break-ins. Sauk Rapids police encourage you to lock your cars, garages and homes. Also, if you see something suspicious, call 911.
Essays
cause she is disabled. I also feel good when I donate clothing and shoes to charities for those less fortunate. I like walking dogs in our neighborhood for elders because they can’t always do it themselves. I even rounded up all of my friends this summer and we walked around and picked up garbage on the roads. I sure had a lot of fun! These are just some of the ways ‘I Live United.’”
MacCayle Kobluk:
moms with babies would have the things they could not afford. We met a mom with her little baby and she was very thankful to us for helping. I am glad I did that.”
my family and I collect 8,00010,000 pounds of food and cash donations in his memory to feed the hungry. I also use my allowance to fill two boxes with personal items and toys for ‘Operation Christmas Child’ for kids in need around the world. Helping others fills my heart with love and joy! If everyone did one thing to help those in need, we could make the world live united.
long-time Task Force member and maternal and child-health advocate. Peitso joined CentraCare Clinic in 1991 and worked as a pediatrician in the Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine Clinic until joining the Pediatric Hospitalist and care coordination teams in January 2015. Peitso continues to have great passion for working with families of children with special health care needs. In her current role, she works to improve care coordination in partnership with patients and families across CentraCare Health. Peitso is a recognized leader at CentraCare Health, in Minnesota and in the nation. Since 2001, she worked on an Institute for Clini-
cal Systems Improvement project to bring patient- and family-centered care principles to the Pediatrics Clinic. She worked closely with the Minnesota legislature, the Minnesota Department of Health, a parents’ advocacy group called Family Voices and the Minnesota Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics to develop Health Care Homes in pediatric practices across the state. This work culminated in 2008 with Health Care Home legislation being passed in Minnesota. Peitso has seen this Minnesota model influence
the national health-care home movement.
If you have a tip concerning a crime, call the Sauk Rapids Police Department at 320-251-9451 or Tri-County Crime Stoppers at 320-255-1301 or access its tip site at www.tricountycrimestoppers.org. Crime Stoppers offers rewards up to $1,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for crimes.
driver of the truck had previously had his license revoked. Due to conducting a traffic stop, however, police were unable to stop the vehicle. After clearing, officers checked the plates of the truck and found the driver’s license had indeed been revoked. A formal report was forwarded to the City Attorney, charging the driver with the appropriate offense. 11:03 a.m. Medical. Eighth Street S. Police responded to an elderly female who was experiencing difficulty walking. Upon arrival, the female stated her knee was sore. She was transported to the St. Cloud Hospital by Gold Cross Ambulance. 4:40 p.m. Arrest. 13th Street Circle. Officers were handling a civil dispute when a suspect was recognized from past contacts. After running his license plate, the suspect was found to have an outstanding warrant for failure to pay child support.
from front page The following are the winning essays:
Cammille Henry:
“Hi, I am Cammille and I’m 10 years old. When I go to my grandma’s I enjoy helping her with cooking and cleaning be-
CentraCare Pediatrician and Pediatric Hospitalist Marilyn Peitso, MD, received the 2015 Betty Hubbard Maternal and Child Peitso Health Leadership Award for her statewide leadership and advocacy on behalf of mothers and children in Minnesota at a Dec. 4 reception in St. Paul. This annual award was established by Minnesota’s Maternal and Child Health Advisory Task Force and the Minnesota Department of Health to honor the memory of Betty Hubbard,
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“Hi, my name is MacCayle and this is the story of my eighth birthday party. I decided rather than getting gifts, I wanted to help other people. At my party, my friends brought money instead of presents. We went shopping with our money. We bought baby clothes and baby supplies. Then we dropped them off at New Beginnings so new
People
Nov. 22 5:01 a.m. Arrest. Second Avenue N. Police were dispatched after a report of male and female arguing in a parking lot. Upon arrival, authorities identified the male, who initially denied having a verbal dispute but then admitted he had been arguing with his girlfriend. The male party had a warrant which was confirmed, resulting in his arrest and transportation to the Benton County Jail. Nov. 23 Driving complaint. Benton Drive N. While conducting a routine traffic stop, officers noticed a red truck with a particular license plate and driver that authorities had dealt with in the past. The
Breanna Stueve:
“Hello! My name is Breanna. I live united by collecting food for the food shelf in my great-uncle Randy’s name. He died of cancer. Every year
HealthPartners Central Minnesota Clinic was recognized as a Triple Aim “All-Star” at HealthPartners annual Partners in Excellence awards ceremony. The award is based on achievement in top-tier clinical quality, patient experience and affordability as measured by the total cost of care. HPCMC met the organization’s highest four-star standards of quality and experience, a rating based on 95
Blotter
Nov. 25 7:10 a.m. Fire. Police were dispatched after receiving a complaint of some construction equipment that had caught fire. Upon
discreet quality and patient-experience measures. Competing medical groups throughout the state were considered for the award, which is the highest honor of the Partners in Excellence Program, and only one medical group is chosen each year. “This honor is further validation of our dedication to serving the primary needs of the St. Cloud community,” said Julie Johnson, MD and HPCMC medical doctor. “This is a tremendous honor, and a reflection of the hard work of all our team members.”
arrival, officers found coals and evidence of a fire that was out. There was no damage. 3:40 p.m. Public assist. East St. Germain Street. Police were dispatched to speak with a female regarding a child-custody issue. The woman stated she did not have any concerns about her custody but simply wanted authorities to do a welfare check on her 5-yearold son in Cambridge. She was provided with advice and phone numbers to further assist her. Nov. 27 9:50 p.m. Informational. Frontier Court. While off duty, an officer received a text message on his personal cell phone requesting extra patrol at her residence. She stated her husband’s handgun and wallet had been stolen. The police officer texted the information to the night officers who were on duty. Nov. 28 5:10 a.m. Alarm. Broadway Avenue S. Police were dispatched to an alarm at a local residence. The area was checked, and nothing suspicious was found.
Published each Friday by Von Meyer Publishing Inc. Publisher/Owner Janelle Von Pinnon Editor: Dennis Dalman Admin. Assistant Cady Sehnert
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Friday, Dec. 11, 2015
House from front page Clour’s children clients come from Rice, Eden Valley, Little Falls, Clearwater, Monticello, Princeton and other towns near and far.
Waldorf
Clour’s Little House Preschool is the only one of its kind in central Minnesota, though there are some in the Twin Cities area. Clour’s playing-teaching methods are based on the Waldorf Method, a learning theory and practice started in 1919 in Germany by a genius educator from Austria, Rudolf Steiner. His learning method revolves around hands-on activities and creative play, a holistic approach to develop the intellectual, practical, artistic and spiritual development within children as they grow into adults. There are about 1,000 Waldorf-style schools in 60 countries, with many other schools that use one or more aspects of the method. Steiner’s approach, in fact, has influenced virtually all schools during the past century. It’s sometimes dubbed “experiential teaching.” It is not surprising the German Nazis and later the communists shut down so many Waldorf schools. Its success with developing free-thinking, open-minded children, adolescents and adults did not set well with dictators and conformists. One of Steiner’s betterknown quotations is this: “Where is the book in which the teacher can read about what teaching is? The children themselves are this book. We should not learn to teach out of any book other than the one lying open before us and consisting of the children themselves.”
Little House
Little House is indeed a rather small house, owned by Clour, on a corner of Sauk Rapids’ Seventh Avenue N. and Second Street. She and her husband bought the house many years ago before moving into St. Cloud and converting the Sauk Rapids house into Little House. The interior of the home is plain. There are few adornments other than wood floors, fairly plain walls and all kind of little furniture suited for children – a little dining table and its little chairs, for example. Toys are plain and simple – nothing noisy or electronic in the house. Outside, too, the play equipment is simple, basic, unadorned – tarps, straw bales, wooden stools, play frames. In warm weather there is a gar-
Sauk Rapids-Rice Newsleader • www.thenewsleaders.com den in which children can plant seeds, watch them grow, harvest them and eat the results. Children spend anywhere from 90 minutes to two hours every day outdoors because, Clour noted, contact with nature is very important in releasing in children their sense of wonder, imagination and play. Outdoors, the children discover all kinds of surprises and mysteries. One day they will pretend they are in a spaceship, next day they might devise a grinding machine or a sifting machine made of milk cartons in which they pretend to grind kernels of corn. They also like to harvest walnuts from the walnut trees from which they make, with Clour’s or her assistants’ supervision, a golden-brown dye they use to dye little square blankets. They also make dye out of grapes and marigolds. “The children love the outside world. If it’s cold, the children decide it’s too cold, and we will go back into the house,” Clour said. In all seasons at Little House, there are games galore: musical instruments, sing-a-longs; dance sessions; and story times. During a recent morning, when a Newsleader reporter visited Little House, the children, Clour and her two assistants gathered in a circle. As Clour recited a story about a mouse and a cat in French and English, the children participated in movements mimicking the critters in the story and repeating lines from the story. After story hour, the children sat at their long little table for a lunch featuring organic brown rice. The children often help with cooking. They have even helped grind wheat to make bread.
Worldwide experiences
The daughter of an American father in the U.S. Air Force and a French mother, Clour was
born in Normandy, France. From 1979 to 1992, she worked for a children-development program in the U.S. Air Force. In London, England she became interested in the Waldorf Method of education, which has inspired her ever since. She met her husband-to-be, Charles Clour, an Air Force man from Sauk Rapids. They moved to Colorado, then to France, then back to England, then to Maine, back to England and finally back to Charles’ home town, Sauk Rapids. All the while, Veronica was involved with the education of children. “I’ve never felt de-rooted with all that traveling,” Clour said. “I can find the essence of a culture in a different country.” Her dream was always to open a Waldorf Method type of learning center, and that is what she did in Sauk Rapids about 20 years ago. As Clour researched the history of the Sauk Rapids house, built in 1890, she was delighted to find out a Norwegian woman with eight children had once lived there and that the woman would sit all the children down and read from her Norwegian Bible, in Norwegian. She also kept an herb garden. Even though the Norwegian woman is long gone, Clour relates to her and her love of children that went on in the “Little House” long before Clour opened her family center in it. The Clours have one daughter, Andreya, 9, adopted from Guatemala, who is a talented violinist and singer. “Andreya was just as I had always imagined,” Clour said. “She is the same little soul I always wanted, ever since my 20s. She was meant to be my daughter. It’s just that we had to find the doorway to connect, and we did. She was only four months old, in a foster home in Guatemala. And we were very, very
3
photo by Dennis Dalman
With the table set for a mid-morning meal, children and adult leaders finish up their storytelling-pantomime session before sitting down to eat organic brown rice. The children at Little House thrive on hours of creative play, learning knowledge and social skills while having fun. Many of the activities they initiate themselves. lucky to be able to adopt her.” “They need time to play before they enter the world of acaFuture demics,” she said. From years of observing chil“Children need one thing at dren at play and at learning. a time. They need time proClour is convinced one reason vided by ‘slow parenting’ that children – and adults – seem goes back to simplicity and basometimes to have shorter atten- sics. The world is different now, tion spans is they are not allow- the family structure is different. ing enough down time, enough There are attention-span probroom for play as an integral part lems, too many tired children. There are more children with of life. She also believes there is too issues nowadays, and there are much emphasis on academics at many reasons depending on what you read.” a too-early age. But, whatever the reasons, Kindergarten these days, she said, is often considered “the Clour is convinced parents new first grade,” and children should slow down, relax and are pressured to learn before provide lots of unpressured, they are ready. quiet play time for their children.
Sauk Rapids-Rice Newsleader • www.thenewsleaders.com
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Friday, Dec. 11, 2015
Family Fun Day draws crowds, donations contributed photo
The Sauk Rapids Ambassadors stopped by the fire station on Dec. 5 during the Toys for Tots drive. Pictured, from left to right, are the following: (front row) Tom Muelhbauer, Brad Peterson, Toby Peterson (on shoulders), Jason Adamski, 2015 Ambassadors Nikki Bukowski, Kelsey Christensen and Tana Hendrickson, Neil Bueckers and Greg Bomstad; (back row) Jason Fleming, Jeff Jahnke, Scott Schroeder and Jared Powell.
photos by Caroly
n Bertsch
Ken Dehn (left) of Sauk Rapids was second to cr oss the finish lin e at the Trots for Tots 5K Race. Craig Za ck (right) of Sauk Rapids was the th ir d runner to cross the finish line. First was 13-year-old Daniel Perrault of St. Cloud.
photo by Hannah Marie and Myles B. Photography
Members of the Waters Church ride in the Parade of Lights, portraying a nativity theme. Luckily for everyone, all was calm weather-wise the night of the parade.
photo by Hann ah Marie amd Myles B. Photo graphy
All-Care Towin g had a truck lit up br ightly Saturday night, drawing the eye.
photo by Carolyn Bertsch
Runners spanning the ages of 13-72 gather together at the starting line for the Trots for Tots 5K Race that took place Dec. 5 at the Sauk Rapids Fire Station. The race is one of many events that Fat Guys Hot Chicks organizes in an effort to raise money for charity.
There’s No Place Like Home! Want to be in the paper without being in the paper? Tell us about someone who deserves to have their story shared! Story tips and photo opportunities can be submitted to news@thenewsleaders.com. Or head to thenewsleaders.com, and click on the news tip button seen below!
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Friday, Dec. 11, 2015
Sauk Rapids-Rice Newsleader • www.thenewsleaders.com
5
Faith-based Cornerstone cooks up down-home foods by Dennis Dalman editor@thenewsleaders.com
Entering the Cornerstone Buffet and Restaurant in Sartell is a bit like entering another era. Inside the door are blackand-white photos of scenes from the old Sartell paper mill, some of the photos at least 100 years old. To the right are scenes from Sauk Rapids, some dating back to the late 1800s. Those photos are there because the Cornerstone’s owners live in Sauk Rapids. Once past that small entrance, visitors see ahead of them what looks like a grandma’s farm kitchen, a nostalgic rush of rows of jams, baking supplies, old-fashioned candies like Bonomo’s Turkish Taffy and the eye-catching centerpiece – an old wood-burning stove. The restaurant itself is filled with unadorned but beautiful plain wooden tables and chairs. The all-around look is almost austere but welcoming. In a separate large room is a banquet and party room, which can be rented. Taken altogether, the oldfashioned ambience of the place is not accidental. It reflects the quality of the foods – freshly prepared comfort foods, rather basic, untrendy and delicious. The old-fashioned, basic look of Cornerstone (a name taken from the Bible) also reflects its faith-based inspiration.
Its owneroperator and head chef Jeremy Kenning of Sauk Rapids said Jesus Christ and the Gospel teach- Kenning ings inspire him and his staff in how they do their jobs and how they treat one another and their customers. The Cornerstone is owned by Kenning, his wife, Jennifer, and their children: Christian, 18; Hailey, 17; Chandler, 14; Cole, 13; and Creed, 10. Cornerstone, open every day from 6 a.m.-9 p.m., is located in Sartell River Plaza across from the Sartell Middle School, in the place where an Oriental restaurant used to be. The restaurant offers buffet-style dining with scores of entrées and side dishes kept warm under the long buffet table. It also provides cook-toorder dinners from the menu, such fare as hamburgers, pizzas, appetizers, pasta, fish, chicken, steaks, breakfasts, sandwich wraps, soups and salads. Cornerstone diners can expect something new and different every day of the week. On Mondays, for example, there is a chicken buffet from 4-8 p.m. featuring fried, barbecued or baked chicken. Next day, Tuesday, is Comfort Food Buffet with choices such as meatloaf, roast turkey
and Tater-Tot casseroles On Thursday there is a German Buffet from 4-8 p.m. with hearty foods like cabbage rolls, pork schnitzel, sausage and sauerkraut, German chocolate cake and much more. For fish and seafood fanciers there is Friday Surf and Turf Night from 4-9 p.m. with crab legs, baked tilapia, shrimp and also “turf” foods like steak. Sunday, from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. is Brunch Buffet, with everything anyone could ever want for breakfast (pancakes, French toast, eggs, bacon, sausage and more), as well as homemade caramel-cinnamon rolls, fresh fruit, mashed potatoes and much more. Every Saturday and Sunday there is a breakfast buffet from 8-11 a.m. and a brunch from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. The lunch buffet is offered from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday. Cornerstone is a family-owned restaurant inspired by another Cornerstone, the one in Melrose that has been open for years and that Kenning used to work at as general manager, along with its owner Steve Danzl, who also operated for many years the Twin Pines Restaurant on Hwy. 10 just south of Rice and Funky’s Restaurant in Melrose. Born in St. Cloud, Kenning, 39, started in the restaurant business at the tender age of 13 when he made pizzas at Funky’s. Later he worked for four years at MT’s on Eighth in
photo by Dennis Dalman
Alan and Odessa Scherr and their 10-year-old son Kenny enjoy a burger lunch at Cornerstone Buffet and Restaurant at Sartell’s Riverside Plaza. Asked if the food was good, Kenny, wide-eyed with a mouth full of French fries, nodded vigorously up and down yes, yes, yes. The Scherrs, of Sauk Rapids, are part-owners of Central Perk, a coffee-and-wine shop next to the Paramount Theater in St. Cloud. St. Cloud, two years at the St. Cloud Holiday Inn, then again at Funky’s with Danzl. “I love the restaurant business,” he said. “I feel I was born to it.” His wife, Jennifer, agrees. “He’s an amazing cook,” she said. “He’s a cook at heart; he’s done it forever. He cooks anything. My favorite is his chicken-and-dumpling soup. The new restaurant has been so busy. There are 30-35 employees now, and we need more. We’re busy, but that’s a good problem to have.” Jennifer helps when she can
at the restaurant, although she is busy most often with her own job as a chemical-health counselor at Sauk Rapids-Rice High School. Cornerstone is definitely a “family affair.” Daughter Hailey works there part-time as a waitress. Sons Chandler and Cole do come dishwashing, and the youngest, Creed, likes to come along to try his hand at any chores, even vacuuming. To see a complete menu and more about Cornerstone, visit its website at: www.cornerstonebuffetrestaurant.com.
Rice Holiday Party set for Dec. 11 by Dennis Dalman editor@thenewsleaders.com
A Rice Holiday Party is planned by the Rice Women of Today from 4:30-7 p.m. Fri-
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day, Dec. 11 at the Old Village Hall in downtown Rice. The festive party will include horse-drawn sleigh rides, a cookie-decorating activity and treats for kiddies.
Santa, of course, will attend the party and greet everyone with hearty jollity. It’s free and all kids are welcome.
Arson survivor asks for Christmas cards A little girl in upstate New York who suffered burns over 75 percent of her body and lost her entire immediate family in an act of arson in 2013 is hoping to receive lots of Christmas cards this year. Safyre Terry, 8, has a Christmas card tree she likes to fill with cards, and a family friend has put out an appeal on the internet to fill the tree with cards.
If you’d like to send Safyre a Christmas card, you can send it to: Safyre, P.O. Box 6126, Schenectady, NY, 12306.
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6
Our View
Obama ISIS speech a disappointment President Barack Obama’s address to the nation Sunday evening was a disappointment because he did not say anything new regarding the threat this nation – and the entire world – faces from terrorists. Obama choosing to address the nation on Sunday, an unusual day for presidential pronouncements, led many of us to believe he would announce a new tactic for degrading and destroying ISIS and its so-called caliphate. Instead, his talk, though heartfelt, was what we have heard for months. What he has told us never varies, even as the crisis escalates. After the San Bernardino massacre and the Paris butchery, there should have been a renewed urgency in the president’s message or some new plan to destroy ISIS. There wasn’t. Meantime, presidential candidates are crowing about how they would fix the mess. The loudest, Donald Trump, has a solution that would bar Muslims from entering the United States for an undetermined period of time. His other suggestions have included the surveillance of mosques and reintroducing water-board torture. Other critics of Obama want to introduce troops on the ground, something a sudden majority of Americans seems to support, according to polls post-San Bernardino. These angry emotional reactions against ISIS from political candidates and the rest of us are understandable. Who wouldn’t want to see that mob of vicious killers wiped out, and the sooner the better? Republican presidential candidate Rand Paul, whose words often get ignored or drowned out in this crowded debate season, said some insightful things earlier this week. First, he said, when the United States topples a secular dictator, chaos and anarchic butchery usually follow. Second, this nation’s attempts at nation-building in the most troubled areas of the world have had disastrous outcomes. And third, the only hope to degrade and destroy ISIS for certain will be the day when the civilized Islamic world rises up and puts an end to extremists who completely pervert the Islamic religion to suit their own bloody, power-hungry ends (ISIS, to name just one). Rand Paul is correct. And that’s the missing piece of the anti-ISIS puzzle. Military strategists agree ISIS will never be defeated by bombing alone, that it will take boots on the ground. The question pops up: Where are these “boots” going to come from? Obama has talked for months about how countries in that region, like Saudi Arabia, are going to join the fight. But the unanswered question is this: When is that going to happen? This battle against terrorism is so complicated, so unlike all other wars, partly because these fiends rely upon Internet propaganda to recruit gullible lunatics to their cause, a “cause” that is nothing but marauding sprees of murder and destruction. Thus, being far-flung and Internet-connected, the enemy we face is largely unseen – possibly lurking here, there and everywhere. Destroying ISIS won’t be easy; it might not even be possible unless countries in that region of the world do the lion’s share of boots-on-the-ground combat. That is what Obama has been promising will happen; when is he going to tell us when? We are tired of waiting. We are tired of this nation and a few European countries taking sole responsibility to try to eradicate the ISIS scourge. That scourge is aimed most of all at civilized Muslims, who had better wake up to that fact before it’s too late, before the ISIS Hydra-headed monster devours them and what’s left of their countries.
The ideas expressed in the letters to the editor and of the guest columnists do not necessarily reflect the views of the Newsleaders. Letters to the editor may be sent to news@thenewsleaders. com or P.O. Box 324, St. Joseph, MN 56374. Deadline is noon Monday. Please include your full name for publication (and address and phone number for verification only.) Letters must be 350 words or less. We reserve the right to edit for space.
Friday, Dec. 11, 2015
Opinion Reject massacres as ‘new normal’ Massacres in the United States and elsewhere are occurring with such accelerating frequency that some people, sadly, have come to view them as the “new normal.” We should never, ever come to dismiss such violence as any sort of “new normal,” which implies a defeatist acceptance. As Hillary Clinton said after the San Bernardino slaughter, “I refuse to accept this as normal. We must take action to stop gun violence now.” It’s a pity Republican presidential candidates did not react with similar outrage. Almost every one of them called for prayers for the victims and their families, which is a good thing to do, of course. But they stopped at prayer, almost as a way to avoid mentioning the appalling problem of guns and gun violence in this nation. The giant tabloid headline in the New York Daily News said it best: “God Isn’t Fixing This.” And underneath that headline were these words: “As the latest batch of innocent Americans are left lying in pools of blood, cowards who could truly end the gun scourge continue to hide behind meaningless platitudes.” Whether the San Bernardino killings would have been prevented by stiffer gun laws (most probably not), it should still be a reminder for us to do something about gun violence, especially on the heels of several recent other mass killings, including the lethal attack at the Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado. On the Morning Joe show the day after the San Bernardino killings, presidential candidate Carly Fiorina, smiling with a mixture of sarcasm and condescension, indulged in all kinds of ludicrous verbal contortions to cut down any suggestions from host Joe Scarborough for new gun laws. We should enforce the gun laws now on the books, she said. Then she added this Alice in Wonderlandish rationale: No, we shouldn’t deny gun purchases
Dennis Dalman Editor to people whose names are on the “No Fly” list because some of those people are on that list by mistake. The government, she said, is so stupid it can’t be trusted to do anything, which begs the question: If government is so stupid, why does Fiorina so badly want to become a part of it. Apparently, she is stupid enough to fit right in. Scarborough became visibly rattled and impatient during his verbal exchange with Fiorina. A former U.S. House member from the Florida panhandle, he told Fiorina that part of Gulf-Coast Florida is often dubbed the “Redneck Riviera.” People there cherish their guns and their hunting, as Scarborough himself does. But, Scarborough was quick to add the gun-owners he knows back home are overwhelmingly in favor of universal background checks for gun purchases. Fiorina, sporting her snide smile, was having none of it. Scarborough explained as a legislator and gun-rights advocate, he had a 100 percent positive rating from the National Rifle Organization. What turned the tide for him, he said, is when 20 children were slaughtered by a deranged loser at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. Scarborough is now in favor of common-sense restrictions concerning guns. He also knows such restrictions will not result in the government “taking our hunting guns away,” as so many gung-ho gun lobbyists claim, nor will reasonable restrictions keep any law-abiding citizen from purchasing guns for protection. Last week, politicians by the score, including some Democrats, trotted out the lamebrain excuse new gun laws won’t stop all these killings, therefore
if they can’t stop all killings (but just some), nothing whatsoever should be legislated to restrict the easy accessibility of guns. They love to parrot that fools’-gold nugget of nonsense: “Guns don’t kill people.” They also love to claim jerks intent on mayhem will steal their guns or use bombs. True enough, but wouldn’t it be nice if there were black-market crackdowns, iron-clad restrictions for gun shows, resulting in fewer ill-gotten guns to steal? Next day, Fiorina let this pearl of wisdom fall from her lips: “Now is not the time to call for law-abiding citizens to put down their guns.” Who said it was? I didn’t. Did you? Who did? As Scarborough has said many times in the past, Congress will not approve gun legislation, not any time soon, because too many of its members, with constant pressure from the Gun Lobby, have embraced the notion (and convinced gullible constituents to embrace it) that the Second Amendment is sacrosanct, that gun ownership is an absolute right and must never be limited, as if there are any absolute rights in the U.S. Constitution. Scarborough, who is a very intelligent conservative, often berates his fellow Republicans about their bullheaded stubbornness against any and all gun restrictions. He’s even been accused of being a traitor to his party. It’s a crying shame there aren’t more conservatives like Scarborough – men and women who have the guts to point out the connection between so many mass killings and easy access to guns, including the military-assault kinds of weapons that should be banned once and for all. Yes, it’s a national disgrace there aren’t more men and women who articulate the problem, then do something about it – men and women who do what they’re supposed to do – represent us rather than gun manufacturers. But, no, that’s not going to happen, not when the Gun Lobby rules the roost. This “new normal,” the slaughtering, will continue.
Through silence, moderate Muslims grant approval Because of the season I had planned to write a light-hearted column. I wanted to talk about peace and love and Christmas. But I don’t feel very light-hearted right now. In fact, I feel downright angry. I feel let down by a government that is supposed to be protecting me and its citizens. So what do we have here in San Bernardino, Calif.? We have Muslim extremist jihadists hell bent on the destruction of everything we hold dear. We have a young man born in this great country who decides he’s too good for the country that spawned and nurtured him. He goes across the ocean to find a bride who appears to be a sadistic murderer. A woman who had no problem abandoning her baby, strapping on guns and committing a bloodthirsty massacre. A woman who incidentally lied on her visa application to get into our country to kill innocent neighbors who were doing nothing more than celebrating a Christmas party. Neighbors who had recently held a baby shower for her and her new baby. These killers are the epitome of human filth and waste. This also speaks to our ability to vet people coming into this country. The politically correct police would have me not be unkind to Muslims. They want me not to offend. Well guess what. Today I don’t care if Muslims are offended. They should be offended and they should be
Ron Scarbro Guest Writer embarrassed and ashamed. By their silence they are granting tacit approval of the actions of their brothers and sisters in the Muslim Community. If I were a Muslim, I would be ashamed to show my face and they should be too. What exactly do you suppose these idiots see as the end game of their killing sprees? Are they so stupid as to believe the free world will allow themselves to return to the 12th Century where Muslim men led their several wives around by collars and leashes? Where Sharia Law is the law of the land? Where nobody enjoys freedom of speech and thought? Are they really that stupid? I guess so. I’ve got some bad news for them, though: It ain’t gonna happen. What will happen instead is the Muslim religion may well be destroyed by these very jihadists themselves. In a battle between goat herders and modern free people, the goat herders lose every time. There is no doubt there will be some interruption of our lives and it
will be painful, but in the final analysis, it won’t even register on the scale of human events. To any Muslim who might be reading this. You can’t have it both ways. This is America. We are free people who live by laws handed down to us by our forefathers. We are never going to give in to your threats. We are far more likely to rush your trip to paradise and your journey will be far more horrendous than you could have ever imagined. To the so-called moderate Muslims: If you and your religion intend to survive, remember this. Your days are being numbered by the very brothers and sisters you seem to want to ignore. ISIS, like so many arrogant philosophies before it, will crumble and all the people who attend that ignorance will crumble with it. Speak up and take charge of the thugs who have hijacked your religion. Clean up your act before it’s too late. The entire free world is after you and the clock is ticking. Scarbro is retired and spends most of his free time with his grandchildren having moved from Sartell to St. Simons Island, Ga. Writing and commenting on the news of the day is a pastime. Visit his weekly blog at ronscarbro.blogspot.com for more commentary.
Friday, Dec. 11, 2015
Sauk Rapids-Rice Newsleader • www.thenewsleaders.com
Community Calendar
Is your event listed? Send your information to: Newsleader Calendar, P.O. Box 324, St. Joseph, MN 56374; fax it to 320-363-4195; or, e-mail it to news@thenewsleaders. com.
Friday, Dec. 11 Holiday Sing-a-long, 10-11 a.m., Whitney Senior Center, 1527 Northway Drive, St. Cloud. 320255-7245. Tae Guk Kwan Do, 3-4 p.m., Independent Lifestyles, 215 N. Benton Drive, Sauk Rapids. 320-267-7717. Saturday, Dec. 12 Sartell-Sauk Rapids Moms Club, 9-10:30 a.m., Celebration Lutheran Church, 1500 Pinecone Road N., Sartell. Surviving the Holidays, 9-11 a.m., Westwood Church, 5719 Walnut Drive, St. Cloud. 320-230-6700. Winter Market, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., Sartell City Hall, 125 Pinecone Road N. marketmonday.org. 55+ Driver Improvement program (four-hour refresher course), 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Miller Auto Plaza, 2930 Second St. S., St. Cloud. 1-888-234-1294. mnsafetycenter. org. Origami Ornaments, 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Minnesota Street Co-op, 27 W. Minnesota St., St. Joseph. St. John’s Bible pages on display, now through mid-December, noon-4 p.m. Saturdays, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday, Hill Museum and Monastic Library, St. John’s University, 2850 Abbey Plaza, Collegeville. 320-363-3351. 320-3633514. Federation of the Blind of Minnesota, Central Minnesota Chapter, 12:30 p.m., American Legion, 17 Second Ave. N., Waite Park. Kwanzaa, 6-9 p.m., Whitney Senior Center, 1527 Northway Drive, St. Cloud. 320-255-7245.
Sunday, Dec. 13 Knights of Columbus Breakfast, 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m., St. Boniface Church, 501 Main St. S., Cold Spring. Children’s Christmas Pageant, 9:30 a.m., First United Methodist Church, 1107 Pinecone Road S., Sartell. fumcscr.org. Winter Extravaganza, 11 a.m.2 p.m., St. Stephen City Hall, 2 Sixth Ave. S.E.
Monday, Dec. 14 Benton County Historical Society, Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., 218 First St. N., Sauk Rapids. 320253-9614. mnbentonhistory.org. Fare For All, 3:30-5:30 p.m., Resurrection Lutheran Church, 610 CR 2, St. Joseph. www.fareforall. org. 1-800-582-4291. Sauk Rapids City Council, 6 p.m., Sauk Rapids Government Center council chambers, 250 Summit Ave. N. ci.sauk-rapids.mn.us. Sauk Rapids Sportsmen’s Club Monthly Meeting, 8 p.m., Molitor’s Quarry Grill and Bar, 425 35th St. N.E., Sauk Rapids. Tuesday, Dec. 15 55+ Driver Improvement program (four-hour refresher course), 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Life Assembly of God, 2409 Clearwater Road, St. Cloud. 1-888-234-1294. mnsafetycenter.org. St. Cloud Area Genealogists meeting, 7 p.m., Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave. S., St. Cloud. stearns-museum.org. Thursday, Dec. 17 Coffee and Conversation, a senior discussion group, 9 a.m., Country Manor, 520 First St. NE, Sartell. 55+ Driver Improvement program (four-hour refresher course), noon-4 p.m.., Salem Lutheran Church, 90 Riverside Drive S.E., St.
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Cloud. 1-888-234-1294. mnsafetycenter.org. Miracle at Midnight, performance by All Saints Academy, 5:45 p.m., CSB Escher Auditorium, 37 College Ave. S., St. Joseph. Rice Lions Club, 8 p.m., Lions Building, Westside Park, 101 Fourth St. NW. Friday, Dec. 18 St. Joseph Farmers’ Market, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., Resurrection Lutheran Church, 610 CR 2, St. Joseph. Tae Guk Kwan Do, 3-4 p.m., Independent Lifestyles, 215 N. Benton Drive, Sauk Rapids. 320-267-7717. Dave Cofell’s Christmas Show, 7-10 p.m., Local Blend, 19 W. Minnesota St., St. Joseph. Restless Heart Christmas Show, 7:30 p.m., Paramount Theatre, 913 W. Saint Germain St., St. Cloud. 320259-5463. paramountarts.org. St. Cloud Singles Club Dance, 8 p.m.-midnight, American Legion, 17 Second Ave. S., Waite Park. 320-3394533. stcloudsingles.net. Saturday, Dec. 19 Winter Market, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., Sartell City Hall, 125 Pinecone Road N. www.marketmonday.org. Because He Lives, 4:30 p.m., Salem Community Church, 220th St., Paynesville. 320-243-4005. 320-2599556. salemhistoricalchurch.com. Restless Heart Christmas Show, 7:30 p.m., Paramount Theatre, 913 W. Saint Germain St., St. Cloud. 320259-5463. paramountarts.org. Sunday, Dec. 20 B u i l d - Yo u r- O w n - O m l e t t e Breakfast, 8 a.m.-noon, Waite Park American Legion, 17 Second Ave. N., Waite Park. 320-251-5498. Central Minnesota Market, noon-4 p.m., Sauk Rapids VFW Post 6992, 901 N. Benton Drive, Sauk Rapids. 320-251-2498. Purchase of any Political Collection. Just in Time for the Holidays. Merry Christmas. www.WeRPotus.com (MCN) DISH NETWORK - $19 Special, includes FREE Premium Movie Channels (HBO, Showtime, Cinemax, and Starz) and Blockbuster at home for 3 months. Free installation and equipment. Call NOW! 1-866-8204030 (MCN) $14.99 SATELLITE TV. Includes free installation. High speed internet for less than $.50 a day. Low cost guarantee. Ask about our FREE IPAD with Dish Network. Call today 1-855-331-6646 (Not available in NE) (MCN) GET HELP NOW! One Button Senior Medical Alert. Falls, Fires & Emergencies happen. 24/7 Protection. Only $14.99/mo. Call NOW 1-888-840-7541 (MCN) ADT Security protects your home & family from “what if” scenarios. Fire, flood, burglary or carbon monoxide, ADT provides 24/7 security. Don’t wait! Call Now! 1-888607-9294 (MCN) 19.99/mo. for DIRECTV - HD Channels + Genie HD DVR + 3 months FREE HBO, SHOW, MAX & STARZ + FREE NFL Sunday Ticket! Call Now 1-888-552-7314 (MCN) DIRECTV Starting at $19.99/mo. FREE Installation. FREE 3 months of HBO SHOWTIME CINEMAX, STARZ. FREE HD/DVR Upgrade! 2015 NFL Sunday Ticket Included (Select Packages) New Customers Only. CALL 1-800-203-4378 (MCN) DISH NETWORK - Get MORE for LESS! Starting $19.99/month (for 12 months). PLUS Bundle & SAVE (Fast Internet for $15 more/month). CALL Now 1-800-390-3140 (MCN)
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Wetterlings speak to crowd in Paynesville by Logan Gruber operations@thenewsleaders.com
Patty and Jerry Wetterling stood before an auditorium of people in Paynesville and thanked them for Wetterling speaking out about the attacks in the 1980s that have been possibly linked to the abduction of their son, Jacob. They asked for help in finding answers about what happened to their 11-year-old, who was taken from a rural road near their St. Joseph home on Oct. 22, 1989. The Wetterlings organized the meeting in the Paynesville High School auditorium on the evening of Dec. 6 to help residents shocked by revelations about crimes committed in that area in the 1980s. Daniel James Heinrich, 52, of Annandale, was arrested Oct. 28 and charged with several counts of receiving and possessing child pornography. He has recently and in the past repeatedly denied having abducted Wetterling. At the same time as the above charges, he was named as a “person of interest” in the unsolved Wetterling abduction. Authorities also are now investigating Heinrich for a A PLACE FOR MOM. The nation’s largest senior living referral service. Contact our trusted, local experts today! Our service is FREE/no obligation. CALL 1-800-442-5148 (MCN) ALL THINGS BASEMENTY! Basement Systems Inc. Call us for all of your basement needs! Waterproofing, Finishing, Structural Repairs, Humidity and Mold Control. FREE ESTIMATES! Call 1-800-640-8195 (MCN) HOME BREAK-INS take less than 60 SECONDS. Don’t wait! Protect your family, your home, your assets NOW for as little as 70¢ a day! Call 855-614-5579 (MCN) HEALTH & MEDICAL Viagra!! 52 Pills for Only $99.00! Your #1 trusted provider for 10 years. Insured and Guaranteed Delivery. Call today 1-888-4037751 (MCN) VIAGRA 100mg, CIALIS 20mg. 50 tabs $90 includes FREE SHIPPING. 1-888-836-0780 or Metro-Meds.net (MCN) AS SEEN ON TV: Burn fat quickly & effectively with Garcinia Cambogia. Blocks fat. Suppresses your appetite. Safe - 100% natural. Satisfaction Guaranteed! Free bottle with select packages! 844-587-6487 (MCN) Stop OVERPAYING for your prescriptions! Save up to 93%! Call our licensed Canadian and International pharmacy service to compare prices and get $15.00 off your first prescription and FREE Shipping. 1-800-2634059. (MCN) ATTENTION: VIAGRA AND CIALIS USERS! A cheaper alternative to high drugstore prices! 50 Pill Special - $99 FREE Shipping! 100 Percent Guaranteed. CALL NOW: 1-800795-9687 (MCN) Got Knee Pain? Back Pain? Shoulder Pain?
series of earlier attacks in Paynesville, which occurred within blocks of his residence at the time. Years ago, Heinrich had been under suspicion of having assaulted at least five boys in that city, groping them sexually before letting them go. The incidents occurred in a time frame between 1986-89. Several of the boys he allegedly groped were riding bicycles in the city. In years past, law enforcement tried to find solid connections between Heinrich and the Wetterling abduction but connections were impossible to prove. The Wetterlings urged anyone to share anything they know about Heinrich or Jacob. Those who came to the meeting were offered blank forms for tips and comments. If you have information about any of these cases, call the Stearns County Sheriff’s Office at 320-2593700 or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678).
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Sauk Rapids-Rice Newsleader • www.thenewsleaders.com
8
Friday, Dec. 11, 2015
Tears, hugs make Toys for Tots all worth it by Dennis Dalman editor@thenewsleaders.com
The best things of all are the tears and hugs Steve Titus gets when he hands out bags of toys and treats to parents in need for their children. He’s been doing it for 24 years, and he never tires of the good feelings he gets right from the center of his heart when he sees happy parents. Many times their tears are a mixture of embarrassment and gratitude. Sometimes they are too shy to hug, but Titus gives them a hug anyway, and they always let him. Titus, a St. Cloud resident, is the local coordinator for the U.S. Marines’ Toys for Tots program for children in east Stearns County, west Benton County and a bit of Sherburne County. Children in need in those areas have happy Christmases thanks to the generosity of so many businesses and people, including Titus and his staff of nine former U.S. Marines who promote the program and
who pick up toys at nearly 250 donation sites in the area. Titus, 67, is also a U.S. Marine who served a tour of duty in Vietnam. Here’s how the program works: Unwrapped toys or money is donated. There are big Toys for Tots donation boxes at businesses all throughout the central Minnesota area, including such places as Coborn’s stores, ShopKo stores, Menard’s, Whitney Senior Center, Curves for Women St. Cloud, Coldwell Banker/Burnett Realty, Sam’s Club and many more. Shoppers often buy toys and put them in those big boxes. Periodically, in the pre-Christmas weeks, the nine volunteer former Marines make the rounds and gather the toys. With cash or check donations, they buy many more. Meantime, Catholic Charities, based in St. Cloud, registers parents or guardians so they can shop free at a special “store” set up at Catholic Charities Emergency Services at 157 Roosevelt Road in South St. Cloud. Parents/
guardians must register in person up until Dec. 14 to be part of the Toys for Tots program. The shopfor-toys dates are Dec. 15 and Dec. 17 when they can shop for toys for their children. Typically, a parent or parents can choose a gift worth up to $30 or even more and then a smaller toy or two. They also receive a family board game, a book, other treats and knitted scarves and mittens. Titus and other volunteers bring the big bags to the recipients’ cars, and that’s where the tears and hugs begin. “Sometimes they are so embarrassed and humbled,” Titus said. “But they shouldn’t be. It makes us feel so good to make them happy.” So far this year, the local Toys for Tots volunteers have collected and/or purchased close to 2,000 toys. More than 970 of them came from the Jingle Bells run-walk event held recently in Sartell. Titus said he expects many more toys will be gathered or purchased as the season progresses. To register for toys, call Cath-
olic Charities at 320-229-4560 or 1-800-830-8254, ext. 4560. To contribute toys, just buy some and put them in the big boxes located in the lobbies or entrances to so many businesses in the area. Otherwise, make an online donation via: st-cloud-mn. toysfortots.org. Checks can also be sent, made out to “Marine Toys for Tots,” and mailed to: 1905 13th Ave. S., St. Cloud, Minn. 56301.
Titus
Why did Titus become involved in the local Toys for Tots?
Duet for Jolly St. Nick
The answer is easy. The effort touched his heart from the get-go. Twenty-four years ago, a local World War II veteran, Don DeChambeau, now deceased, said he was getting a bit too old to keep coordinating the Toys for Tots program and asked Titus if he would consider taking the volunteer job. Titus did, and he’s never had regrets. “What’s great about the program is every time, every toy, collected stays right in this area,” he said. “My wife, Carol, gets so involved in the effort. So do my daughter and grandkids. It’s so good to help others.”
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photo by Dennis Dalman
Alyssa Laudenbach, 8, St. Cloud, and piano teacher Christina Van Heel of Rice perform a duet, Jolly Old St. Nicholas, Dec. 5 in the annex of Immaculate Conception Church in Rice. Young children, all of them students of Van Heel, performed holiday classics for the annual “Christmas Piano Recital,” which took place at the same time as a cookie sale in the dining hall of the church.
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$17.99
12pks
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1.75L
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Brown Jug Bourbon Cream $16.99 750ml You save $3!
La Marca Prosecco
$9.99
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Bota Box 3L
Dark Horse Wines
$14.99
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Ménage á Trois All Styles
$8.99
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PRICES EFFECTIVE 12.14.15 – 12.19.15 FREE BEER- & WINE-TASTING EVENT 1.7.16 • 4-7 PM • Over 35 items to sample!
1001 2nd Street S., Sartell • 320-240-8866 99BottlesSartell WE DELIVER 4-9PM
Join our team! Von Meyer Publishing seeks a full-time, experienced advertising sales representative for three local, weekly newspapers and one website serving the greater St. Cloud region. A successful candidate will be: a self-starter, highly motivated and excited to be on the bleeding edge of print and digital advertising. Qualifications include: 3-5 years in advertising sales, extensive experience in the greater St. Cloud region and previous experience selling digital advertising. Resumes and cover letters can be addressed to Logan Gruber, operations manager, at operations@thenewsleaders.com. For any questions, call 320-363-7741.