Zest For 50+ living
Working in World War II
Wanda Nordlie cared for men in a liberated Nazi concentration camp
Hutchinson Living History Tour focuses on the lives of local veterans
Bev Barrett shares ‘Best’ recipes in new cookbook
Salute to veterans: A closer look at those who served
NOVEMBER 2014
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Prairie Senior Cottages
Calendar of events Litchfield Area Male Chorus Spaghetti & Song Litchfield Area Male Chorus will present an evening of music along with a spaghetti dinner from 5 to 7 p.m. Nov. 1 at First Lutheran Church in Chilstrom Hall, 703 Sibley Ave. S., Litchfield. Cost for the Spaghetti & Song event is $8 for adults and $5 for children 10 and younger. Tickets are available from chorus members and at the door.
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‘BINGO: The Winning Musical’
Prairie Senior Cottages features
“BINGO: The Winning Musical,” will take the stage Nov. 6-8 and 12-14 at Crow River Winery, 14848 Highway 7 E., Hutchinson. “Bingo” is about a group of diehard bingo players. Tickets are $40 and include dinner and a show. Doors open at 5:30 p.m., with dinner at 6 p.m. and the play at 7 p.m. Buy tickets online at www.hutchtheatre.org/box-office or in person at Hutchinson Center for the Arts or Hutchinson Chamber.
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Hector Holiday Happenings
For more information, call John Peterson. Hutchinson: 320-587-5508 Alexandria: 320-763-8244 Willmar: 320-235-6022 New Ulm: 507-359-3420 www.prairieseniorcottages.com
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Built on Preserving Dignity
Hector will be busy during the annual Hector Holiday Happenings on Nov. 15. A variety of events are planned from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., including a bake and craft sale at Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart High School, open houses at Flowers by Jerry and at Totally U Salon & Gifts, a quilt show at Farmers and Merchants Bank, and the Historical Center will reflect on holiday traditions of the past. In addition, Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart Theater Department will perform “The Foreigner” at 7 p.m. Nov. 14 and 15, and at 2 p.m. Nov. 16 at Palace Theater, 301 Main St. S., Hector.
‘1940s Radio Hour’ Dassel-Cokato High School presents, “The 1940s Radio Hour.” Full of music, dancing and sound effects, the musical portrays the final holiday broadcast in 1942 of the Mutual Manhattan Variety Cavalcade on the New York radio station, WOV. Shows are at 7 p.m. Nov. 14 and 15, and at 2 p.m. Nov. 16 at D-C Performing Arts Center, 4852 Reardon Ave. SW, Cokato. Tickets, which are $6 for adults, and $4 for youth 18 and younger, can be purchased at D-C High School, by phone at 320-286-4100, ext. 1811 or 1813, or at the box office if still available before the show.
Trees and Traditions Trees and Traditions, a holiday event in Hutchinson, will feature Christmas trees, table settings, collections, music, quilts, lefse and krumkake demonstrations, country store, bake shop, coffee bar, and train display. The event runs from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dec. 6, with a light lunch from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., at Christ the King Lutheran Church, 1040 South Grade Road, SW.
Submit holiday calendar items early 1040 Hwy. 15 South, Hutchinson • 320-234-9453 (in front of Hutchinson Mall)
Call ahead for convenient take-out!
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02778z
Open daily 11 am — 1 am
Do you have an event for the December calendar? Submit information by Nov. 10 to have it included in this free calendar listing.When sending information, include the time, date, place and cost of the event. Email information to thill@independentreview.net, send to Juliana Thill, 217 Sibley Ave. N., Litchfield, MN 55355 or call her at 320-593-4808.
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Zest For 50+ living
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CONTENTS
10 Cover story:
Wanda Nordlie shares stories of her time as a nurse in the U.S.Army during World War II
NOVEMBER 2014 Vol. 5 No. 9
PUBLISHED BY Litchfield Independent Review P.O. Box 921, Litchfield, MN 55355 320-693-3266 Hutchinson Leader 170 Shady Ridge Road NW, Suite 100 Hutchinson, MN 55350 320-587-5000
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PUBLISHER Brent Schacherer schacherer@hutchinsonleader.com 320-234-4143
ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Kevin True true@hutchinsonleader.com 320-234-4141 CONTRIBUTING WRITER Doug Hanneman SUBSCRIPTION OR ADDRESS CHANGE Michelle Magnuson 320-234-4142 magnuson@hutchinsonleader.com PRINTED BY Crow River Press 170 Shady Ridge Road NW Hutchinson, MN 55350 Zest is published monthly by the Litchfield Independent Review and Hutchinson Leader newspapers. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior consent of the publisher.
cookbook featuring favorite recipes from her 14 years as a newspaper columnist
Senior spotlight:
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EDITOR Juliana Thill thill@independentreview.net 320-593-4808 Litchfield office 320-234-4172 Hutchinson office
spotlight: 6 Senior Bev Barrett publishes
History buffs learn about boot camp & battles when residents portray veterans buried at Oakland Cemetery in Hutchinson
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In the news: Medicare begins its Fall Open Enrollment
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Medicare: What guidelines insurance companies must follow when marketing Medicare plans
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In the news: A salute to veterans with interesting facts
14 Recipes: Blushing Cranberry and Pear Turkey Salad, and Pumpkin Cheesecake Tarts NOVEMBER 2014 | ZEST
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here’s no question that World War II required the commitment, dedication and sacrifice of millions of men, women and children in the 1940s. As men fought on the front lines, women were serving their country in other ways, both at home and overseas. Wanda Nordlie of Litchfield was a nurse in the Army during World War II. While she didn’t treat wounded U.S. soldiers, she saw plenty of horror as she cared for prisoners in an Austrian concentration camp, which the United States liberated in 1945. In recognition of Veterans Day on Nov. 11, it’s appropriate that we feature a local veteran on our cover and with a story in this month’s magazine. It’s important to honor all veterans, especially the 20th century veterans’ sacrifice before they are no longer with us. During World War II, 16 million Americans served their nation. Today, there are about 1 million of those veterans still living. Of those, about 18,000 live in Minnesota, and we are fortunate to have many in McLeod and Meeker County. By 2036, it is estimated there will be no living veterans of World War II left to recount their experiences. We need to share their stories; it’s part of our history. Also in this magazine is a story about Bev Barrett, a food columnist for the Litchfield Independent Review for 14 years, who recently published a cookbook featuring a collection of her favorite recipes.
My favorite Christmas memory Name: Hometown: Photo of myself included: (
) Yes
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) No
My favorite Christmas memory:
* Use an additional sheet of paper, if needed. Mail by Nov. 10 to: Juliana Thill, Zest editor c/o Litchfield Independent Review 217 Sibley Ave. N., Litchfield, MN 55355 Or drop off at: Independent Review office, or the Hutchinson Leader office: 170 Shady Ridge Road NW, Hutchinson.
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Also in November, we celebrate Thanksgiving. We are thankful for you — our readers and advertisers. We appreciate your support through the years. The next big holiday for many people is Christmas. In fact, 95 percent of Americans celebrate Christmas, according to Gallup. Many of us will put up a Christmas tree and decorations, exchange gifts, and get together with family and friends, according Juliana Thill Editor to Gallup findings. This got me to wondering, what is your favorite Christmas memory? Is it something special that happened last year or 50 years ago? Call me, email me (my numbers and email address are on Page 3), or fill out and return the form on the bottom of this page and share your fondest Christmas memory. We will include all of the Christmas memories in our December magazine. To participate, though, we need you to think ahead a little bit and send your Christmas memory by Nov. 10. We need time to include it in our December magazine, which goes to press in mid-November and comes out at the beginning of December.
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A WARM HELLO
IN THE NEWS
Medicare’s Fall Open Enrollment offers annual opportunity to change plans Fall Open Enrollment, from Oct. 15 to Dec. 7, is the time of year when all people with Medicare can change their Medicare health plan and prescription drug coverage for 2015. If people are satisfied that their current plan will meet their needs for next year, they don’t need to do anything, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. People with Medicare can call 800-MEDICARE or visit www.medicare.gov for plan information. People on Medicare can change their coverage by joining a new Medicare Advantage plan or by joining a new stand-alone prescription drug plan. People can also return to Original Medicare with or without a stand-alone Part D plan from a Medicare Advantage plan during this time. For people who enroll in a plan during Fall Open Enrollment, new coverage starts Jan. 1. People also can disenroll. If dissatisfied with their Medicare Advantage plan, people can disenroll from that plan and join Original Medicare during the Medicare Advantage Disenrollment Period, from Jan. 1 to Feb. 14.
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NOVEMBER 2014 | ZEST
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SENIOR SPOTLIGHT
Cookbook highlights recipes from 14-year newspaper column By Juliana Thill EDITOR
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ev Barrett has shared her love of cooking with students as a home economics teacher for 34 years at Eden Valley-Watkins High School and as a food columnist for the Litchfield Independent Review for 14 years. So, it seemed like a natural progression for Barrett to select some of her favorite recipes and bring them together by publishing a cookbook, “The Best of Baking with Bev.” “It’s fun. People have said, ‘I have a whole bunch of cookbooks, but I’m buying yours because it has a whole bunch of recipes.’ It appeals to a lot of people,” she said. Some of the recipes in her cookbook came from her students, family and friends, and even from her days as a judge at county fairs. Through teaching, as well as being a wife and mother, she accumulated a number of recipes. She began sharing those recipes, as well as cooking and baking secrets, with readers of the Litchfield Independent Review. Her first “Baking With Bev” column was published in September 2000, and still runs every other week. “My goal was to share recipes that readers would find interesting and ones they would actually make,” she said. “Hopefully, I’ve accomplished my goal through the years.” After writing columns for 14 years, she had amassed about 1,000 recipes. “I decided it was time to put some of these favorite recipes in a cookbook where they would be in one place,” Barrett said. She paged through 14 three-ring binders of recipes she had included in her “Baking with Bev” newspaper columns to select the best ones. The cookbook features 397 recipes, which are divided into eight categories — appetizers & beverages, soups & salads, vegetables & side dishes, main dishes, breads & rolls, desserts, cookies & candy, and this & that. In each section, Barrett wrote a page of helpful hints. And with some of the recipes, she included notes or memories that a particular recipe conjures up for her as a way to personalize the cookbook, just as she does in her newspaper column. “That’s my style. That’s what people say they like about it. My cookbook is a cookbook you can read,” she said. Though retired from teaching, Barrett, 65, keeps busy writing her newspaper column and managing her family’s business, 4B’z Event Center in Litchfield. “The Best of Baking With Bev” cookbook costs $10 and is sold in Litchfield at DeAnn’s Country Village Shoppe, Cricket Meadow Tea, Meeker Memorial Hospital’s Open Door Gifts store, and the Independent Review. She will have them available Nov. 8 at the Home Business Holiday Sale at 4B’z Event Center. People also can buy one directly from Barrett by calling, 320-593-2691.
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Bev Barrett of Litchfield published a cookbook, “The Best of Baking With Bev.” It features 397 recipes that she has included in her “Baking with Bev” column she writes for the Litchfield Independent Review. SUBMITTED PHOTO
No Fail Cookie Mix 8 cups flour 2 1/2 cups sugar 2 cups brown sugar 1 tablespoon salt 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 3 cups shortening In your largest bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, salt, brown sugar and white sugar. Add the shortening and stir or mix with your hands until the mixture is mealy. Store in a large air-tight container. To make cookies 3 cups basic mix 1 tablespoon milk (more if necessary to mix) 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 egg 6 ounces (1 cup) of chips or M & M's Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease cookie pans. In a large bowl, combine milk, vanilla and egg. Blend well. Stir in chips or candies. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto prepared baking sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes until lightly browned. Makes 24-30 cookies-depends on how large you make them. Note: It is quick and easy to make chocolate chip cookies, as this cookie mix makes enough for five batches of cookies. It would also work great for holiday gifts using seasonal chips or M&M’s. For a gift: Package 3 cups mix in a quart Ziploc bag. Put 1 cup chips or M&M’s in a snack size Ziploc bag. There is enough room to insert the chips in the quart bag. Attach a pretty label with the above directions and you have a gift that will be appreciated. This cookie mix recipe replaces a similar recipe on Page 151 of the first cookbooks she had published. The second printing has this recipe.
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MEDICARE
Insurance companies must follow guidelines when marketing Medicare plans Dear Marci, I’ve been receiving a lot of mail lately from Medicare Advantage plans, with information about joining their plan. I’m not sure that I want to switch my coverage, and I would rather that these plans do not contact me. Are there any rules that Medicare Advantage plans have to follow when marketing their plans? — Joel Dear Joel, Yes, there are guidelines that insurance companies have to follow when marketing their Medicare Advantage or Part D plans to you. Both Medicare Advantage plans and stand-alone Part D plans are run by private insurance companies. Insurance companies are allowed to mail you marketing materials without your permission. They also can place advertisements on the radio, in the newspaper and on television. However, insurance companies and brokers must get your permission before directly calling, emailing or visiting for an appointment. Cold calls are not allowed. A broker cannot visit “Dear Marci” you in your home or nursing is a service of the home unless you request that Medicare Rights they do so. You can schedule an Center, the largest appointment to meet with a plan independent representative, and meet in either source of Medicare your home or a public place. information and In health care settings, plan assistance in the representatives can provide sales United States. For information in common areas like more information, conference rooms or cafeterias; go online to www. they cannot provide plan informamedicarerights.org. tion in hospital or doctor’s waiting rooms. Representatives cannot approach you in public areas. However, if you put your name and contact information on a list at a promotional or marketing event, this can give the plan permission to contact you. Also, plans cannot call and imply they are calling on behalf of Medicare; Medicare will never ask these insurance companies to contact you. No one from Medicare or a private plan should call you asking for private information, such as your Social Security number, Medicare number, or a bank account number. If someone does call asking for your personal information, it is fraud. Do not share this information with people besides your doctors and health care providers. If you suspect an insurance company has broken a rule, contact 800-Medicare to report it. Call the Office of the Inspector General at 800-447-8477 to report fraud. Medicare will not use your name without your permission when investigating fraud. — Marci
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Transportation • Meeker Public Transit • Meeker Council on Aging Volunteer Drivers
For more information: Call 320-693-2472 ————————— Visit our website: www.ecumenoflitchfield.org
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IN THE NEWS
A SALUTE TO VETERANS
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eterans Day originated as “Armistice Day” on Nov. 11, 1919, the first anniversary marking the end of World War I. Congress passed a resolution in 1926 for an annual observance, and Nov. 11 became a national holiday beginning in 1938. President Eisenhower signed legislation in 1954 to change the name to Veterans Day as a way to honor those who served in all American wars.
Service-connected disability
3.6 million
Number of veterans with a serviceconnected disability rating. A “serviceconnected” disability is one that was a result of a disease or injury incurred or aggravated during active military service.
Education & Workforce
26.8 percent Percent of veterans 25 years and older with a bachelor’s degree or higher. In comparison, 29.9 percent of nonveterans had a bachelor’s degree or higher.
7.7 million
Number of veterans 18 to 64 years old in the labor force, of those 7.1 million were employed.
Voting
14.7 million
Number of veterans who voted in the 2012 presidential election. Seventy percent of veterans cast a ballot in that election, compared with 61.8 percent of all U.S. citizens 18 years and older.
Saying goodbye U.S. Census Bureau offers a look at veterans by the numbers for 2013:
Veterans
19.6 million
Number of military veterans in the United States.
1.6 million
Number of female veterans in the United States.
9.3 million
Number of veterans 65 years and older. At the other end of the age spectrum, 1.6 million were younger than 35.
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The United States has been saying goodbye to its veterans at an increasing pace. The men and women who won the great conflict are now mostly in their 90s. They are dying at the rate of approximately 555 a day, according to the U.S.Veterans Administration. Veterans living in 2013: N 5.2 million Gulf War-era veterans (representing service from August 1990 to present). N 7 million Vietnam-era veterans. N 2.1 million Korean War veterans. N 1.3 million World War II veterans. N 4.7 million veterans who served in peacetime.
Living history tour honors area veterans
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SENIOR SPOTLIGHT At left, Kurt Schultz portrays Civil War infantryman Warren Ives. Ives enlisted in New York and was transferred to the Army of the Potomac, where he participated in battles from Gettysburg to Cold Harbor. He married Maria Goodnow and joined her brother in business in Hutchinson as Goodnow/Ives Mercantile.
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istory buffs visiting Oakland Cemetery on Sept. 21 learned about boot camp, battles, the homefront and more when local residents portraying veterans buried at the cemetery presented their stories. The event was the first time Historic Hutchinson’s Living History Tour focused on a theme. The occasion coincided with the 100th anniversary of the start of World War I, “The War to End All Wars.” Standing at the veterans’ gravesites, the actors presented oratories prepared after several hours of research, which included talking with the veterans’ family members. — By Doug Hanneman
PHOTOS BY DOUG HANNEMAN
Hutchinson High School senior Jack Drahos and Bill Arndt and tell the story of Leander Radtke, the first pilot and flight leader of a B-24 bomber in World War II. Radtke was active in various Hutchinson community organizations and was an avid outdoors enthusiast.
Call today for your personal introduction!
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SUBMITTED PHOTO
U.S. Army nurses, including Wanda Nordlie of Litchfield, front row far left, traveled the country and part of the world during World War II. Her nurse counterparts, mostly from Minnesota, include, front row, Dorothy “Julie” Juhlin,Vivian Bakken, and Florence Haapala, who was from Dassel; back row, Louise Olson (Nordlie’s good friend from Wisconsin, whom she met in nursing school), Dotty Leppa and Jeanine House.They wore dark green, wool pants, tan blouses and jackets.“Combat boots is what we lived in.They’re not pretty, to say the least. So, I bought some loafers at the PX (Post Exchange) — a tent where they sold things, like shoes and socks,” she said.
Serving others M & her country As a second lieutenant nurse in the U.S.Army, Wanda Nordlie spent part of her time caring for men at a Nazi concentration camp in Austria after the camp was liberated during World War II. BY JULIANA THILL • EDITOR
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ore than 60 years after Wanda Nordlie returned from her service as an Army nurse during World War II, she can recall the horrible conditions of the liberated Nazi concentration camp in Ebensee, Austria, where she cared for the malnourished prisoners. “It was a long time ago, but you never forget stuff like that,” said Nordlie, who’s 91 and lives with her husband, Don, in Litchfield. Nordlie, then in her early 20s, served with the 139th Evacuation Hospital. She was among 40 nurses, 40 doctors and 200 enlisted men, who cared for thousands of men who had been Nazi prisoners. The 139th Evacuation Hospital arrived about one week after the American troops liberated the camp
on May 6, 1945. Before the Americans arrived, the mortality rate among prisoners averaged about 400 per day. About two weeks after the 139th Evacuation Hospital arrived, the mortality rate was reduced to about 15 per day, she said. The 139th was sent to restore some semblance of humanity amid the filth, starvation and stench in one of the worst concentration camps other than Auschwitz, she said. About 3,000 men needed hospitalization, while about 15,000 more required care but did not need to be hospitalized, she said. Early on, servicemen and women worked 12-hour days. Medical personnel administered plasma on an assembly line scale, she said, while tending to the prisoners’ medical needs. Others with the 139th cleaned up human feces that covered the floors, beds and blankets, which also were insect and lice infested. Nordlie, along with each of the nurses, was given one tent of 60 men to care for during their two-month stay at the camp. “I don’t think anybody weighed over 65 pounds, and these were full-grown men. There were some that had wounds. Some of them had broken bones. Most were malnourished,” said Nordlie, who described the men as human skeletons that were still alive. “We fed them the best we could when we got there.” After the camp was liberated, some Nazi troops hid in the mountains and returned to the camp to steal food. The Army gave guns to some nurses for protection. However, Nordlie never encountered much trouble. “I was a little scared once,” she admitted cautiously. “I didn’t tell anybody about this until a couple of years ago because it was so awful. I was on my ward with 60 patients in a tent. I went outside to take a breath of air, and here I saw two Nazis. They had these gorgeous uniforms, so we always knew them, and they were maybe 40, 50 feet away from me. They had a man, and I realized they were killing him. And there was nobody I could say, ‘Come and help.’ I wanted to do something, and I thought, if I go (help), they’ll take me on next. They were heartless. So, I went back in my tent. I’ve always felt bad about it, but there really wasn’t anything I could do.”
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COVER STORY
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Wanda Nordlie’s hospital unit was assigned to care for prisoners in a liberated Nazi concentration camp in Ebensee, Austria. The harsh conditions of the camp stood in stark contrast to the beauty of the Austrian Alps behind it. PHOTO BY JULIANA THILL
Despite all that she and the other nurses experienced, “None of us, at least not in public, ever shed a tear. Nurses have a way of doing that. There wasn’t room for tears. It’s hard to understand. We laughed and giggled like girls do. I think you kind of cover up with foolishness. It helps to have a sense of humor,” she said. For her, the tears didn’t come until much later. “The crazy thing is, I used to cry over it, but not until after I had been in the service. You just took those things in stride,” she said.
Nurses’ training Nordlie, who was Wanda Thoen at the time because she didn’t marry until after the war, enrolled in a nursing program at Fairview Hospital in Minneapolis after graduating from Litchfield High School in 1941. For Nordlie, nursing school was a cheaper option than college for her family. “It was during The Depression, and we didn’t have much money. I could go through four years of nursing for $200,” she said. She borrowed money from her mother and moved to Minneapolis.
Wanda Nordlie reflects on her time as a nurse in the Army as she pages through a photo album full of black and white photos of the 1940s. “You worked eight hours and went to school full time,” she said. “It was good training. I was able to pay my mother back after the first year.” As nurses’ training ended at home, World War II waged on overseas. Nordlie and her close friend, Louise Olson of Grantsburg, Wis., who passed away last year, were among a group of five friends who enlisted in the Army Nurse Corps together after graduating from nursing school. “She and I, we both signed up at once. When we signed up, they asked us, ‘Would you like to stay in the service together all the time?’ I said, ‘Can you do that?’ (They said,) ‘Yes, we call it the buddy system for women,’” she recalled. “They thought it was better if we had a friend if we were going hither and yon. I think women were thought of as the weaker sex in those days.” As promised, the Army kept Nordlie and Olson together throughout their time in service, “Which was really
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COVER STORY
wonderful,” she said. The Army offered an excitement for this Minnesota farm girl who had never left the state. Once she was called to duty, she traveled to military bases across the country. “We didn’t stay long in one place,” she said. “They kept moving us. We went to various Army posts just to help and to learn. We had classes all the time.” The training Nordlie received was to prepare her for the Japanese campaign. She became part of the 139th Evacuation Hospital unit, similar to the hospital unit featured on the TV show, “M*A*S*H.” They were trained to catch casualties right off the front line, and then fix up soldiers so they could move to the hospital, said Nordlie’s husband, Don. “But they couldn’t catch up to the war because it was moving so fast.” Nevertheless, her hospital unit boarded a ship and headed toward the war. “We landed at Le Havre, France. We were only there a couple of weeks and took care of anybody who came around,” she said. “I have one experience that really haunts me. I had to go down to the main desk at the hospital. There was a very good-looking, young man who just walked in, and he said that his plane had gone down. He said, ‘I’m fine. I just walked out of it.’ He stood there and was signing in, and he dropped dead. That was just a horrendous moment. He was admitting himself because he figured something must be wrong with him. I presume he had internal injuries that led him to death. It was traumatic because we hadn’t been in the service very long and to have somebody die right in front of you,” she said. More trauma and horrific images were yet to come, though, as the 139th Evacuation Hospital unit left France and headed to Austria.
Caring for prisoners After American troops liberated the Nazi concentration camp in Ebensee, they needed servicemen and women to care for the prisoners. The 139th Evacuation Hospital unit arrived and went to work. The beauty of Ebensee, which was a little summer resort town in the midst of the Austrian Alps along the shores of an emerald-green lake, stood in
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A World War II veteran,Wanda Nordlie of Litchfield raises the U.S. flag in June at a Minnesota Twins game. stark contrast to the horrific conditions inside the gates of Ebensee Concentration Camp. “The lakes were so gorgeous and clean. The mountains were beautiful,” Nordlie recalled. However, the condition of the camp and the prisoners, “was just horrendous, just terrible.” The prisoners, now patients, were from neighboring countries, including Poland, France and Russia. “Fortunately, I took German in high school, so I could communicate to some extent,” she said. The men weighed 65 pounds at the most when she arrived. “We got them up to 80, 90 pounds,” she said. As they grew stronger, they returned to their hometowns. She did whatever she could to care for the men in her ward, including standing up to a high-ranking official. “This huge Russian officer came in and wanted to look my patients over. He didn’t tell me why he wanted to see them, but a lot of people came to visit,” she said. He looked at each patient and would point to certain ones, saying “this one.” He told her he intended to bring them back to Russia with him because they were all Russians. “I looked at him and said, ‘I’m not aware of that, but we will go and speak to every one of them. I went to the
guys and in my broken German, I said, ‘Are you Russian?’ And their eyes would get just huge. They were so scared,” she recalled, and one by one, each man told her he was not Russian. “They were so afraid. It was so sad.” Russia had lost many men in the war, and the officer was looking for more men to serve, Nordlie said. She knew the prisoners were in no condition to leave the camp much less go into battle. So, Nordlie told the officer that the men he had pointed out were not Russian. “This big Russian (officer) got so angry ... He said, ‘You are wrong, and I’m going to take these men.’ I said, ‘You are not. I am in charge.’ He was a big guy from Russia and, of course, I was second lieutenant, that’s as low as you could get (in rank) and still be a nurse,” said Nordlie, who refused to back down. “I said, ‘I am in charge of this ward and nobody outranks me in my ward.’” The officer had a chest full of medals on his uniform, Nordlie recalled, and after she refused to release the men, “He got so mad and jumped up and down. All those medals went tinkle, tinkle, tinkle. I got the giggles and that made him madder than ever.” The officer talked to the head nurse, who told him that Nordlie was in charge. “He couldn’t understand that,
the minor officer I was, and half his age,” she said. However, the officer left without the men. “I have never felt so important in my life to scare off a Russian. I was so happy because I really thought he could kill me, he was that big,” Nordlie said. After weeks of continuous care, the prisoners’ conditions improved. The 139th Evacuation Hospital left the camp and boarded ship to care for American casualties in Japan. “The bomb dropped just as we were leaving for Japan. When we got past the Rock of Gibraltar, the war was declared over,” she said. The ship turned and headed to Boston instead. After she was discharged, Nordlie almost re-enlisted because she loved the work, even though caring for men in a concentration camp was not what the nurses expected they would do. “We thought we were going to take care of our men, and we didn’t take care of one of our men,” she said. Yet, “We felt good about it. We did what we could and loved every bit of it.”
Returning home Nordlie returned home from the service in the spring of 1946. Even though Don and Wanda had graduated together from Litchfield High School, they had never dated. After graduation, he served as a sergeant in the Marines during World War II and landed on Iwo Jima about two hours after the initial forces landed in February 1945. He returned home in December of that year, and went to work at Litchfield State Bank. Don recalled how he and Wanda reunited. “In March 1946, she just got home after leaving the service and she got a mysterious letter from an agency called the IRS. She had never heard of income tax,” Don said, and the April deadline for filing taxes was looming. Wanda laughed at the recollection. “I don’t think my folks ever had enough money to have to pay it (income tax), so my father didn’t know what I should do. He said, ‘Go down to the bank. There are people down there who can help you.’ I walked in and there was Don,” she said. After helping his former classmate with her taxes, Don felt a connection to Wanda. “She had been in the service, and I had been in the service, and it
Documenting history Some of Wanda Nordlie’s experiences at Ebensee can be read in the book, “Inside the Gates,” by Dr. Richard Macdonald, which is available at local libraries, as well as online at www.amazon.com. The book is mainly about the role played by his father, Lt. Col. Hugh Macdonald, M.D., in liberating the Nazi concentration camp in Ebensee.The author wrote the book, according to his website, because the military units involved with liberating the camp, together with the U.S.Army 139th Evacuation Hospital, became phantom units in historical archives. The book details this group’s involvement in the liberation and freedom of the camp so that the men and women who served in these groups could receive their rightful place in history.
was interesting getting the stories together,” he said. They started dating, and “That was the best thing that happened to me,” she said. Once back from the service, Wanda took classes at St. Olaf College, “because we got as many months free (in tuition) as we put into the service. I had always wanted to go to St. Olaf, but it was an expensive college. I loved every minute of it.” She had worked on the student newspaper while at Litchfield High School and wrote constantly. “Oh, I loved writing. I liked nursing, but I really wanted to write,” she said. Her St. Olaf English teacher knew
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COVER STORY
she couldn’t afford college, so he told her if she returned, he would see to it that she received a full scholarship for her remaining three years. “However, Don was in the picture then, and I thought, ‘I don’t think he’d wait for me for three years,’ and I wasn’t going to lose Don. I decided rather quickly I wouldn’t continue my education. I’d get married instead. I never regretted it,” she said. “I went into nursing (initially) because that’s all the money I had. It was the best thing I ever did.” She and Don were married in 1947, and she went to work as a nurse at Litchfield Hospital. The Nordlies soon adopted two sons, Ryan, now 60, who currently lives in Hutchinson, and Dan who has since passed away. The Nordlies moved around Minnesota, living in Albert Lea, New Prague, South St. Paul and Cottage Grove as Don worked in various banking jobs. Ultimately, they returned to Litchfield to enjoy retirement. “Really, we are so fortunate to have had this life because there’s been so many good, mostly good, things. We’ve had a very good life,” Wanda said.
A part of history Some of her experiences at Ebensee are included in the book, “Inside the Gates,” by Dr. Richard Macdonald. The author wrote the book mainly about the role played by his father, Lt. Col. Hugh Macdonald, M.D., in liberating the Nazi concentration camp in Ebensee. However, he devoted a chapter to her. “That started a long friendship,” Don said. “It’s been very interesting.” May 6, 2015, will mark the 70th anniversary of the opening of the gates to Ebensee Concentration Camp. After Macdonald’s book was released in 2010, a former prisoner of the camp who was 16 at the time, along with Nordlie and others met to promote the sale of the book. The former prisoner is a successful businessman and has offered to pay for the Nordlies and several others to travel to Ebensee in May. The Nordlies are giving serious thought to his offer. “I was so pleased that I got to go overseas,” during the war, Wanda said, adding she would like to go back to see Ebensee again. “It would be pretty wonderful.” ■
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FOOD & FUN >> A tasty way to use up leftover turkey after Thanksgiving
Blushing Cranberry and Pear Turkey Salad 1/2 cup Hellmann’s or Best Foods Real Mayonnaise 1/2 cup whole berry cranberry sauce or cranberry relish 4 cups torn romaine lettuce leaves 2 cups baby spinach leaves or mixed salad greens 2 cups diced cooked turkey 1 medium pear, cored and thinly sliced 1/4 cup toasted chopped pecans 1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion In medium bowl, combine mayonnaise and cranberry sauce; set aside. In large bowl, combine romaine, spinach and turkey. Just before serving, toss with mayonnaise mixture. Top with pear slices, pecans and onion. Garnish, if desired with dried cranberries. Serves four.
SOURCE: WWW.CULINARY.NET/HELLMANN’S
Crossword puzzle Across 1. Scramble 8. Deal with 15. Embossment 16. Bakery offering 17. Unfasten by turning 18. Sent by electromagnetic waves 19.Attack 20. Bully 21. Heroin, slangily 22. Novice 23. Evergreen shrub of Pacific coast of N.Am. 25. Radial, e.g. 26. ___ Khan 27. Up, in a way 28. Feet 29. Extending over much time (hyphenated) 31. Ran quickly 32. Comply with 33. Bucks 34. Mexican vine used as a cathartic 36. Russia’s Trans-___ Railway 40.Antiquated 41. 100% 42. PC “brain” 43.The “E” of B.P.O.E. 44. Jeer 45. Disease cause 46. Brickbat 47.Aggravate
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Crossword puzzle answer on Page 15 48.Any Platters platter 49. Having a fringe of hairlike projections 51.Ace 53. Some (2 wds) 54. Crater formed by volcanic cone collapse 55. Chinese fruit with sweet jelly-like pulp (pl.) 56. Small sail for keeping ship’s bow to the wind
ZEST | NOVEMBER 2014
Down 1. Pertaining to a planet’s hard outer layer 2. Freckle 3. Election loser (hyphenated) 4. Prefix with surgery or transmitter 5. Road shoulder 6.“The Three Faces of ___”
7. Brouhaha 8. Overseas 9. Southern speech 10.“___ not!” 11. Noisy, unrestrained merrymaker 12. Destruction of the natural environment 13. Cut 14. Marsh plants 20. Chowder morsel 23. Blind followers 24. Ethereal 27. Cornered (2 wds) 28.Went white 30.Au artisan 31.Addiction 33. Oven for firing pottery 34. Merrily 35. Having a pH greater than 7 36.Arab open-air market 37. Brewer’s non-alcoholic product (2 wds) 38. Deductive 39. I, for one 40. Intoxicant 41. Hindu women’s garments 44. Deed 45. Sword lilies, for short 48. Greasy 50.Absorbed, as a cost 51.Appear 52.Alt. spelling
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FOOD & FUN
>> A delicious, mini alternative to pumpkin pie
Pumpkin Cheesecake Tarts 2/3 cup (about 15) crushed gingersnap cookies 2 tablespoons butter, melted 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened 1 cup Libby's 100% Pure Pumpkin 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 large eggs 2 tablespoons sour cream (optional) 2 tablespoons NestlÊ Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels (optional) Preheat oven to 325. Line 12-muffin pan with paper cups. Combine cookie crumbs and butter in small bowl. Press scant tablespoon onto bottom of each paper cup. Bake five minutes. Beat cream cheese, pumpkin, sugar, pumpkin pie spice and vanilla extract in small mixer SOURCE: WWW.CULINARY.NET/LIBBY’S bowl until blended. Add eggs; beat well. Pour into muffin cups, filling 3/4 full. Bake 25 to 30 minutes. Cool in pan on wire rack. Remove tarts from pan; refrigerate. Garnish with sour cream. If desired, place morsels in small, heavy-duty plastic bag. Microwave on high for 20 seconds; knead. Microwave at additional 10second intervals, kneading until smooth. Cut tiny corner from bag; squeeze to drizzle over tarts. Makes 12 tarts.
Answer to Crossword Puzzle published on Page 14
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If you would like more information on planning ahead, please giv e ErRiebe in Riebe Erin a call at (320) 693-8151.
(62+/ Disabled)
NOVEMBER 2014 | ZEST
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