50TH ANNUAL SINCLAIR LEWIS DAYS July 14TH - 18TH
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Visions iss o of ccelebrating elebrating the the past, past, present present and and future futur
The Stroeings’ great adventure Couple takes Sinclair Lewis advice, travels America’s Great Loop
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BY SARAH COLBURN | STAFF WRITER
ary Agrell Stroeing and her husband, Dan Stroeing, have been traveling the Mississippi River, living on a tugboat for the better part of three years. Though the two took a 17-monthlong hiatus that began as a brief stop for winter and continued due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Minnesota natives headed back on the water in May 2021 to finish their journey. They’re following one of the many routes known as America’s Great Loop. The trip was inspired by writers. Specifically, stories of Huck Finn and family stories of the Sinclair Lewis variety. Mary Stroeing is the granddaughter of Claude Lewis, brother to Sinclair Lewis. Her mother, Isabel, shared stories through the decades of her relationship with her cousin, Wells Lewis, son of Sinclair Lewis and Grace Hegger Lewis Casanova. The Stroeings’ inspiration to travel has been handed down through the generations. It’s said that Sinclair told Claude, “The most important education you can get is travel.”
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Publications The newspaper of today is the history of tomorrow.
And so began a lifetime of journeys for the Stroeings. Despite Dan Stroeing’s near blindness, a side effect of being exposed to Agent Orange during Vietnam, he serves as the tugboat captain for the currentladen journey across the country. He turns the wheel to bring the boat to the dock, guided verbally by Mary on a headset. They started in Minnesota on the Mississippi River and headed down to the Gulf of Mexico, they crossed the Gulf and travelled up the side of Florida to Fort Myers, they crossed Florida by way of lock and dams and through Okeechobee, Florida. They went up the east coast side of Florida to New York City and then up the Hudson River to the Erie Canal, onto Lake Erie, Lake St. Clair and Lake Huron. They paused in September of 2019, and as of late June 2021, they were docked in Waukegan, Illinois, as they work to complete their trip. Through the years they’ve followed the examples of Mary’s ancestors, visiting Switzerland, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, to name a few. The two have traveled the world together in search of the Lewis history and in search of adventure. They even stopped once in Florence, following a post-marked letter from Sinclair Lewis to Isabel. They tracked down the old address, finding someone who knew it was how homes were identified during the Medici Era in Florence.
Stroeings page 2
PHOTOS SUBMITTED
(above) Mary and Dan Stroeing and their seeing-eye dog, Tori, leave Red Wing for a journey on the Mississippi River. (right) The Stroeings cruise into New York Harbor to greet Lady Liberty.
“The most important education you can get is travel.” Sinclair Lewis
Page 2 • Star Shopper - Gazette - July 9, 2021
Stroeings from front
Their helper said it was an appropriate avenue for Lewis, because the address translates to “Avenue of the Jesters.” The place was grandiose, according to the Stroeings, and though they tried to communicate their desire to see the place where he lived to those in the guard house, it was to no avail. However, a neighbor came by inquiring about their mission and allowed them to come view as much as they could from his balcony overlooking the building. The stories they have of Sinclair Lewis and Wells Lewis came from Mary’s mother. She attended Columbia University while Wells, son of Sinclair, went to Harvard University. One such story from Isabel described a visit to The Carlyle Hotel in New York City at the invitation of their cousin, Virginia Lewis. The three had drinks at the hotel and secretly felt “adult,” having gotten together for drinks without the supervision of their parents. Mary’s mother was named after Isabel Warner Lewis, Sinclair Lewis’s stepmother. Mary and Dan traveled to Greenwood Cemetery in Sauk Centre where she was buried along with Sinclair and other members of the family. Just before they left on their 2021 tugboat journey, they spent two days tending to the footstones in the cemetery, cleaning them up and reminiscing about the family stories told through Isabel. “She kept the history alive; a lot of times we would sit with her and (just listen),” Dan said. Prior to the war, Wells was a member of the New York National guard. He was called into active duty in February of 1941 and at the time, according to historical paperwork, was employed as an author, editor/ reporter. Wells served as a First Lieutenant and personal
aide in the 36th Infantry Division of the U.S. Army during WWII. At age 27, Wells Lewis, only child of Sinclair Lewis, was killed in action by a sniper in Piedmont Valley, France during the war. Wells was awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and the French Croix de Guerre. As Isabel shared stories of Wells with Mary and Dan, she couldn’t speak of her young cousin without tearing up. “We knew him through Isabel who was so emotional about him,” Dan said. “She felt he was just such a lovely person and they had a deep friendship.” The Stroeings are invested not only in the history of the Lewis family, but in history itself. Their daily blog posts since they began their journey on the Mississippi River often highlight historical parks, monuments and memorials. Mary was born in Minneapolis and grew up west of Excelsior. She met Dan through a mutual nursing friend from Melrose, Dan’s hometown. They’ve had a life of change, sometimes choosing to house sit for one person or another for an extended period of time. They’ve been traveling the globe together since they met in 1974. Mary Stroeing retired from a lifetime of professional nursing and Dan retired from his work on the Alaska parole board. The couple spent two decades in Alaska living and working. Through the years they’d studied adventures, attending a seminar while in Washington state about The Great Loop, hosted by a Nordic Tug Owners group. They learned how people stopped along the way to resupply, get fuel and stay at marinas with showers and electricity and courtesy cars for gathering supplies. After the seminar, they were overwhelmed. “We said we are so over our heads, we can’t do this trip,” Dan said. “Growing up you read Huck Finn and hey, the Mississippi is right in your back door.”
PHOTO SUBMITTED
Mary Stroeing adds fluids to the engine of the tugboat she and her husband, Dan, are using to make America’s Great Loop.
From the time he was in school, Dan said he’d always had a desire to hit the river and see where it would take him as the waters emptied into one another. They’d done some canoe trips and thoughts of the larger trip kept creeping in. In 2013, the couple bought a tug boat, specifically the 1982 tugboat they have today named the “Gammel Dansk,” meaning “Old Dane,” after the Danish man who built the boat. They spent a year updating the wiring, hoses, depth sounder and thruster and spent some time learning how to run it. They took some trips around the northwest into Canada and British Columbia. In 2017,
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they bought a condo in Red Wing to call home base and Mary said, “We better have the boat shipped from Washington – or not. It’s ok if we don’t do the Great Loop; we’ve learned a lot and it’s ok if we don’t go.” That was the end of debating. Dan promptly began planning the river trip and went online to find a company to transport the boat from Seattle, its location at the time, to Minnesota. “We had no idea of the river,” Dan said. “We have been on the ocean with tides and stuff, but currents, they’re never as strong as they are on the river.” The boat was transported and they began the Great
Loop adventure in September 2018 and got as far as Rock Island, Illinois before they had to wait out three weeks for the river to recede from its flooding stage. In preparation for the trip, they learned more about the waters and adjusted their safety protocols. When Mary fell overboard one day, they immediately determined they’d never be on the boat without life jackets. They invested in inflatables that they wear the minute they step on the craft and they deploy once they hit the water. They are very safety conscious when they’re on the water. They have stories galore about their travels, excitedly talking about the
minute details of everyone they’ve met along the way – they remember them all and they’ve made mental space for each relationship they’ve forged. “Some of the people we met on this journey we call them friends for life; we will see them again,” Dan said. “On the river, you’re always looking out for each other and helping because it’s just fraught with peril – things can happen or do happen.” The two have a language all their own when it comes to life on the Mississippi and their travels in general. Mary watches the clouds and the birds as they journey, relaying things to Dan when it’s of particular interest. She communicates navigational directions by using the clock system, with the bow as 12 o’clock. She puts out the lines and fenders as he eases into the dock. Tori, a German Shepherd seeing eye dog, travels with them and learns a new marina every day to guide Dan safely on the land. On the water, she alerts them when the waters are too rough; they lovingly call her their “barometer.” Mary also has an alert system. “I can tell the urgency of the danger by the intensity of Mary’s screams,” Dan said. “It’s a leap of faith for me to drive the boat and Mary to remain calm.” Calm they are, adventuring together as have generations of their relatives before them. “We handle the boat really well because our goal is to work as a team,” Dan said. They travel 30 to 40 miles a day on the water. They anticipate returning back to Red Wing via boat the end of July or August, wrapping up the journey that began so many years ago. To follow along on Dan, Mary and Tori’s journey go to: http://danmarygammeldansk.blogspot. com/2018_08_31_archive. html
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Star Shopper - Gazette - July 9, 2021 • Page 3
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Page 4 • Star Shopper - Gazette - July 9, 2021
Miss Sauk Centre Pageant Miss Sauk Centre Pageant Thursday, July 15th 2021
We asked the Miss Sauk Centre candidates the following question: If you could send a message to everyone in Sauk Centre and they would listen, what message would you give?
Nancy Cervantes
Teagan Felling
Parents: Robert & Nancy Cervantes Sponsor: Centrefuze Talent: Cultural Presentation If I could send a message to everyone in Sauk Centre and they would listen, I would say to accept everyone. You never know what someone is going through, or what their home life is like. You don’t have to be their friend but you can surely be friendly or generous. Even saying hello or just sending a kind smile can make someone’s day.
Parents: Ben & Amy Felling Sponsor: Snap Fitness Talent: Singing & Guitar Performance If I could send a message to everyone in Sauk Centre and they would actually listen, I would say be true to yourself. No matter the hate or the judgement, your opinion on yourself is the one that matters the most. Be confident in your own skill and own it.
Sara Kampsen
Ethnee Nelson
Parents: Curt & Christine Kampsen Sponsor: Minnesota National Bank Talent: Violin & Piano Performance If I could send a message to everyone in Sauk Centre and they would listen, I would tell them to try everything. There is no limit to what you can do. Do what you love and love what you do. This small town is full of big opportunities.
P H O T O G R A P H Y
Parents: Pete & Jennifer Nelson Sponsor: Main Street Real Estate Talent: Dance Performance If I could send a message to everyone in Sauk Centre and they would listen, I would tell them to make the most of every opportunity given. Life is too short to reach the end and realize you weren’t living to your fullest. Everything happens for a reason even if that reason reveals itself years later.
Robyn Gierke
Parents: Pam & Bob Gierke Sponsor: Centre PowerSports Talent: Speed Painting If I could send a message to everyone in Sauk Centre, I would say to always try to spread kindness and to try to act with a good attitude. Be a role model, no matter who you think may be watching.
Tania Salgado
Parents: Arturo & Maria Salgado Sponsor: Felling Trailers Talent: Traditional Dance Performance If I could send a message to everyone in Sauk Centre, I would tell them to always be kind. We don’t always know what someone is going through and giving people a smile or even saying “hi” can change someone’s mood completely.
All Miss Sauk Centre pageant photos on this page courtesy of Jenn Kerfeld Photography, Sauk Centre
Star Shopper - Gazette - July 9, 2021 • Page 5
We are proud to sponsor Miss Sauk Centre candidate
Good luck to Nancy and all the candidates!
Good luck to all Miss Sauk Centre candidates!
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GOOD LUCK TO OUR MISS SAUK CENTRE CANDIDATE
Robyn Gierke AND TO ALL THE CANDIDATES!
Good luck to all Miss Sauk Centre candidates, and our candidate
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Page 6 • Star Shopper - Gazette - July 9, 2021
die ! Fo oalert New food trucks join longtime favorites for this year’s celebration BY SARAH COLBURN | STAFF WRITER
Pulled pork, slow-smoked for days and slathered in homemade BBQ sauce, wood-fired Neapolitan pizzas made with farm-to-table ingredients, nachos complete with homemade chips, cheese sauce, coleslaw, grilled shrimp and a spicy sweet drizzle. These delectable eats are the things food trucks are made of and they are just some of the new options at Sinclair Lewis Park during this year’s Sinclair Lewis Days. “Food, I feel, draws people from all over and food trucks are widely popular,” said Stacie Michels, president/executive director of the Sauk Centre Area Chamber of Commerce. “If you can bring in some new offerings it’s fun to have a nice variety.” Jaime Chambley and Jodi Hinnenkamp will be on site with their bright orange South Meats North BBQ truck. The ladies have a brickand-mortar restaurant in Sauk Centre, but the food truck allows them to create relationships with different communities. “It’s the people … they support local and they keep it in the community and it’s fun to people watch and hear the comments on
how good the food is,” Hinnenkamp said. Their creations include a pulled pork sandwich topped with their homemade BBQ sauce, spicy or original, and a brisket grilled cheese topped with grilled onions, Muenster and pepper jack cheese. Among other things, they also have a pulled pork wrap and a cheeseburger topped with brisket, onions, BBQ sauce and pepper jack cheese. Their truck will be on site Saturday during the festival. Also new to the celebration this year is The Back 40 – Wood Fired Pizza. They’ll be on site Friday night serving up Neapolitan, wood-fired pizzas. As much as possible, Owner Al Arends said he pulls inspiration and fresh ingredients from his farm. “We use our imagination,” he said. “A lot of times when we’re out or have a meal or something that was really good, we talk about how we can do that in a pizza. We try to be creative with the ingredients we have and make something that layers flavors well without being overbearing." They also feature American classics such as traditional pepper-
PHOTO BY SARAH COLBURN
Jodi Hinnenkamp (left) and Jaime Chambley pose in front of their bright orange South Meats North BBQ truck. They will be one of the vendors offering delicious foods from their trucks at this year’s Sinclair Lewis Days celebration.
oni and sausage. They reach further with dessert pizzas like a strawberry cheesecake dessert pizza and a smores pizza. Another set of new food offerings this year comes from Flavor Shack, which will be on site at the festival Friday and Saturday. Flavor Shack is best known for their loaded shrimp nachos made with homemade chips and topped with cheese sauce, coleslaw and homemade Flavor Shack sauce. They also have pork nachos and chicken strip nachos for those who
don’t love shellfish. Flavor Shack also serves up specialty sandwiches like spaghetti and meatball grilled cheese and a pulled pork sidewinder, along with 12-15 flavors of eggs rolls including crab rangoon, pickle cream cheese, buffalo chicken, raspberry cream cheese and strawberry cheesecake. “It’s interesting to see the different towns and what they gravitate to,” said Owner Connie Levin. “Alexandria is more of a spicier town; Long Prairie is sweeter.”
The food truck line-up at Sinclair Lewis Days includes all the historical favorites, too, including At the Hop Concessions and Blondie’s Lemonade, which is under new ownership. Both will be available Friday and Saturday along with Otte’s Kettle Korn, who is additionally covering the parade route. To give festival-goers more opportunity to sample the foods at Sinclair Lewis Park this year, the kiddie parade will be Friday and the food trucks and beer garden will open at 6 p.m. Friday to give people a chance to grab dinner before the kiddie parade 6:30 p.m. Then, after the parade DJ Pete will play music on the west end of the park near the playground and the HoneyBadgers will take to the stage on the east end in the bandshell beginning at 7 p.m. Michels, who considers herself a foodie and loves to try new food adventures, encourages people to choose things that are out of their comfort zone. Advice from the food-truck eating pro: “Eat earlier,” she said. “Then you have time to rest a bit and try something new.” For her, coordinating the food trucks has been a great way to support local. “To have all these people come back (to join with our new offerings) and showcase what they have to offer is important,” she said. “Everybody is so quick to look outside for great food options and it’s important to look closer.”
STREET DANCE
July 17th, 2021 | 8:30 pm - 12:30 am Music by:
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Car show July 17th, 2021 | 10 am - 2 pm
On Sinclair Lewis Ave! Sauk Centre, MN
Sinclair Lewis Days
Star Shopper - Gazette - July 9, 2021 • Page 7
Events Calendar Events Calendar For additional addittio onall information infform matiion or or to to sign sign up up for for events, even ntss g go o to: to: saukcentrechamber.com saukcen ntrec chamb ber com or or follow us on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/saukcentreareachamber/
Wednesday, July 14 • 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm at Sinclair Lewis Park Bandshell - Crystal Breeze Band
Thursday, July 15 • 10:00 am at Lynx National Golf Course Pins & Needles Quilt Guild’s Quilt Program • 2:00 to 4:00 pm at Senior Center Pie & Ice Cream Social to Go ($4.00) • 7:00 pm Miss Sauk Centre Pageant at Sauk Centre Auditorium, doors open at 6:30 pm
Friday, July 16 • 7:00 am at Sinclair Lewis Park - Yoga in the Park w/Heather Zollman of Yoga Mama’Z • 7:00 am to 5:00 pm Sauk Centre American Legion - Garage Sale • 3:00 pm at Sauk Centre Civic Arena Parking Lot Amazing Race Medallion Hunt (register on Chamber website) sponsored by Minnesota National Bank • 6:00 pm at Sinclair Lewis Park Food trucks start serving • 6:30 pm at Sinclair Lewis Park Kiddie Parade (Line up at 6:15 pm) • 7:00 pm at Sinclair Lewis Park - DJ Pete - West End near Playground sponsored by First State Bank
- Honey Badgers - East End in Band Shell sponsored by First Lutheran Church, CMAB Grant, and Sauk Centre Area Chamber of Commerce - American Legion Beer Garden serving until 9:30 pm • 10:00 pm Fireworks at Dusk at Sinclair Lewis Park sponsored in part by Sauk Centre Fire Department and Community Connection
winners of individual races. Sponsored by The Bear Trap - 1:00 pm - Sandy Weisser’s School of Music - Games, Face Painting, Pet Rock Craft and More! • 11:00 am – 3:00 pm Family Fun Festival Inflatable Games & Obstacle Courses – FREE to kids thanks to a sponsorship from Community Connection • 10:00 am – 2:00 pm Car Show Downtown Sinclair Lewis Avenue Country Cruisers Car Club – Contact Mike Noe (320) 333-8908 • 10:00 am at Lynx National Golf Course – Call 320-429-5707 to register Centre Mat Wrestling Golf Outing – • 8:00 am at Sinclair Lewis Park Shotgun Start – See Chamber Website for details Sinclair Lewis chip-timed 5k & 1 Mile Kids • 7:00 pm Parade Starts Fun Run/Walk (register on Chamber website) (*Line-up at Industrial Park) • 8:00 am to 3:00 pm Sauk Centre Theme: “Visions of Gold - Celebrating the American Legion - Garage Sale 8 am-2 pm Past, Present and Future” Brats & Kraut Plate serving 10:30 am -3 pm • Dessert Extravaganza - Immediately ($8.00) following parade at First Lutheran Church of • 9:00 am in Downtown Sauk Centre Sauk Centre – Free will offering with Sauk Centre Crazy Days proceeds going to Caring & Sharing Hands • 9:30 am in front of Sinclair Lewis Library • 9:00 pm in Downtown Sinclair Lewis Avenue - Chalk Drawing Contest - begins at Street Dance – Out of Line & The Issue 9:30 am, prizes awarded at 10:10 am • 10:00 pm Downtown Sinclair Lewis Avenue Theme is “Your Favorite Place in Sauk Centre Chamber of Commerce Cash Sauk Centre” - chalk provided. Event is Raffle Drawing sponsored by the Sauk Centre Area History Museum and Research Center • 9:00 am to 3:00 pm at Sinclair Lewis Park Craft Fair & Flea Market (organized by Sauk Centre History Museum & Research Center) • 10:30 am to 3:00 pm at Sinclair Lewis Park • 12:00 pm – Corner of 3rd St. N & Ash St. - 10:30 am – Turtle Races (bring your own Soap Box Derby – Sauk Centre Lions turtle) Prizes for bringing a turtle and to Registration: Jeff Quistorff 320-761-9405
Saturday, July 17
Sunday, July 18
Sinclair Lewis Days
Parade Parade PARADE ENTRIES Park Ln Pacific St S
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1. Sauk Centre Police 2. 50th Celebration Banner Carriers 3. American Legion Post 67 - Color Guard 4. Stearns County Sheriff 's Office 5. City of Sauk Centre (fire department) 6. Sauk Centre Ambulance 7. Grand Marshal - Sinclair Lewis Foundation 8. Miss Sauk Centre Royalty 2021 9. American Legion Float 10. State Farm Insurance Chris Johnson Agency 11. Sauk Centre Herald 12. 2021 Miss Sauk Centre Candidates 13. Felling Trailers, Inc. 14. Redhead Creamery 15. Fairway Pines Senior Living 16. Miss Sauk Centre Royalty 2019-2020 17. Old Course - Sauk Centre 18. Central MN Realty 19. Sauk Centre Melrose Youth Hockey Association 20. Robotics Team 7257 21. Knights of Columbus 22. Country Cruisers Car Club 23. Get Outside Clothing Co. 24. First State Bank of Sauk Centre 25. Kracker Jacks Drumline 26. U Lock It Storage 27. Miss Brooten 28. Sauk Centre Seniors 29. Centra Sota Cooperative - Country Store 30. Sauk Centre Sno-Cleats Inc 31. Girl Scouts Troop171 32. Sauk Centre United Methodist Church 33. Centre PowerSports & Marine 34. Zuhrah Flyers - The Shriners 35. Belgrade Ambassador Program 36. 510 Art Lab 37. Elite text of Sauk Centre 38. Unique Movers 39. Neighborhood Realty 40. Minnesota National Bank 41. Arnold's of St. Martin 42. Simply Surfacing
43. Edward Jones 44. Sauk Centre Lions Club 45. Lions Club International 46. Miss Melrose Royalty 47. Stearns County Dairy Princesses 48. Oakridge Homes 49. Sprinkle of Joy & Joyful Blooms 50. Pemberton Law 51. River City Rhythm 52. Truckers Inn 53. Big Sauk Lake Association 54. Glenwood Waterama 55. Cornerstone Trailer Electric & Repair 56. Hoffman Tree Service 57. Miss Sauk Rapids Royalty 58. CentraCare - Sauk Centre 59. Town Link 60. Take it to the Cross Marketing 61. Miss Paynesville 62. First Lutheran Church 63. Midwest Machinery Co 64. Arrow Health 65. Dockworks 66. AJ'S Cafe 67. Winters Recreation 68. Stearns County DFL 12-B 69. Todd County American Dairy Association 70. Sauk River Players 71. Ace Hardware 72. Modern Farm Equipment, Inc. 73. Waste Management 74. Worms Lumber & Ready Mix 75. Dairyland Supply 76. Eagle's Healing Nest 77. Sauk Centre Rambling Riders Saddle Club 78. Superior Seamless Gutters 79. Representative Paul Anderson 80. Schwan's Home Service 81. Cold Spring Fire & Rescue Relief Assoc 82. Ag Tech Drainage 83. Sauk Centre Tire 84. Engle's Polishing and Detail 85. West Central Sanitation 86. Otte's Kettle Korn
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Page 10 • Star Shopper - Gazette - July 9, 2021
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Star Shopper - Gazette - July 9, 2021 • Page 11
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Page 12 • Star Shopper - Gazette - July 9, 2021
A celebration to remember Michels on Sinclair Lewis Days reaching 50 years BY SARAH COLBURN STAFF WRITER
Kids clad in knee socks and shorts touting thick-rimmed glasses, others wearing wide-collared button-up-the-front shirts, their mothers nearby with aluminumframed baby buggies … all were anticipating the start of the first Sinclair Lewis Days Parade. The year was 1971 and the community was gathering for the first big Sinclair Lewis Days celebration. It was said the turnout, according to the paper, topped that of “Butter Days, the last large Chamber of Commerce promotion” at the time. The parade was part of a three-day festival that included local fire department members jousting with lances of water to force an empty oil drum to one side of a wire. There were costume contests, including one in which a group of kids portrayed the Farkel Family – a skit-based television family featuring a couple with a bunch of kids all sporting freckles and red hair. Today’s celebration in some ways is similar, and in some ways, very much different. The pageant, the kiddie parade and the Grand Parade still remain from the early years but the costume contest has been replaced with a chip-timed fun run, a chalk-drawing contest, inflatable games and an obstacle course, a car show, a golf tournament, yoga in the park, and an Amazing Race Medallion Hunt. Last year’s celebration would have been the 50th for Sinclair Lewis Days but, with COVID-19 regulations, the festival was canceled. That left Stacie Michels, president/executive director of the Sauk Centre Area Chamber of Commerce, and her colleagues to brainstorm how to hold an event this year that wouldn’t be lackluster even if precautions were required. “I’m just so elated to be able to have inperson events, to be able to do these things maskless for those who are vaccinated, to have a sense of normal,” she said. “After a year of quiet, I’m excited for the noise and excited for the people and really excited about shopping downtown and fireworks.” This celebration, she said, is one she hopes people will remember. For her, it’s a community-wide acknowledgement of the importance of Sinclair Lewis to the area. She gets calls each and every week from people who want to know about the Sinclair Lewis Boyhood Home. Oftentimes, the fact he was a Nobel Prize-winner drives
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(above) Decades of programs from the annual Miss Sauk Centre Pageant are displayed in this photo taken at the Sauk Centre Chamber of Commerce office (left) SAUK CENTRE HERALD ARCHIVE PHOTO: Area residents wait for the beginning of the very first Sinclair Lewis Days parade in July 1971.
the calls. Universities have called her wanting to bring entire groups and literary teams over to visit. She gets not only calls from across the country, but across the globe. “It’s a much bigger draw than the community realizes,” she said. “People don’t understand the depth of the reach.” She didn’t until she took on the role at the Chamber. The new gig prompted her to take one of the history tours offered at 6:30 p.m. Thursday evenings and beginning at the 510 Art Lab on Sinclair Lewis Avenue. The free, hour-long tour, she said, gives people a lot of information about the area and some unexpected stories and factoids. “It’s simply fascinating,” she said.
The guided walking tour called “A Stroll Down Main,” is made possible by the 510 Art Lab, the Sauk Centre Rotary and American Legion Post 67 as well as the Sauk Centre History Museum. The tour includes information about Lewis as a boy and about his family and parents; it covers the community’s historic buildings and their history. Lewis’s book, “Main Street,” was published in 1920 and celebrates a century on the shelves. The Minnesota Historical Society has curated an exhibit that’s currently open to the public titled, “Sinclair Lewis: 100 Years of Main Street.” “I don’t think people realize the reach that Sinclair Lewis has,” Michels said. “The more people knew and understood about that type of history, the more the celebration would mean.” In order to set the stage for a proper celebration – one worthy of 50 years and 100 years respectively – Michels focused on one thing she knew would move guests of the festival: fireworks. She stood on the shoreline in 2019 listening to people “oooh” and “aww” as the 21-minute show commenced. As one spectacular burst of shells lit up the night sky and people thought the show was over, another surprise burst garnered a cheer from the crowd, screams of joy and clapping. “People were saying this was the best
we’ve ever had,” Michels said. “A really good fireworks show really does bring people from all over, it brings people out to bars and restaurants and gas stations and the next time, they decide to book a hotel for the weekend because they don’t want to risk missing anything.” For her, the lure of community and the potential benefit to local businesses as families stop for ice cream and do some shopping, spurred planning for what she says will be the largest fireworks display yet. As Michels has prepared for the upcoming event, she’s studied some of the history of the community. She’s flipped through decades’ worth of pageant programs highlighting the young of the area. She has programs dating back to at least 1977 and they tell her a little bit about the nuances of Sauk Centre life. “You notice the joy all the way through, smiling girls talking about their studies, parents and activities,” she said. “Things haven’t changed much.” She recognizes names of current community members, some who’ve always lived in the area and some who have returned to Sauk Centre. The relationships, the families and the people, she said, have often come full circle in a way that continues to provide more history to the Sauk Centre area. “It’s really cool to see people coming home,” she said. “They’re making it and doing their thing here.”
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Page 16 • Star Shopper - Gazette - July 9, 2021
Visions of Gold CELEBRATING THE Sinclair Lewis Days
2021
PAST, PRESENT and FUTURE
WEDNESDAY, JULY 14th - SUNDAY, JULY 18th
Wednesday, July 14 • 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm at Sinclair Lewis Park Bandshell - Crystal Breeze Band
Thursday, July 15
• 10:00 am at Lynx National Golf Course Pins & Needles Quilt Guild’s Quilt Program • 2:00 to 4:00 pm at Senior Center Pie & Ice Cream Social to Go ($4.00) • 7:00 pm Miss Sauk Centre Pageant at Sauk Centre Auditorium, doors open at 6:30 pm
Friday, July 16 • 7:00 am at Sinclair Lewis Park Yoga in the Park w/Heather Zollman of Yoga Mama’Z • 7:00 am to 5:00 pm Sauk Centre American Legion - Garage Sale • 3:00 pm at Sauk Centre Civic Arena Parking Lot Amazing Race Medallion Hunt (register on Chamber website) – (sponsored by Minnesota National Bank) • 6:00 pm at Sinclair Lewis Park - Food trucks start serving • 6:30 pm at Sinclair Lewis Park NEW DAY! Kiddie Parade (Line up at 6:15 pm) • 7:00 pm at Sinclair Lewis Park - DJ Pete - West End near Playground (sponsored by First State Bank) - Honey Badgers - East End in Band Shell (sponsored by First Lutheran Church, CMAB Grant, and Sauk Centre Area Chamber of Commerce) - American Legion Beer Garden serving until 9:30 pm • 10:00 pm Fireworks at Dusk at Sinclair Lewis Park (sponsored in part by Sauk Centre Fire Department and Community Connection)
- Thank you sponsors DIAMOND STATE BANK
Saturday, July 17
• 8:00 am at Sinclair Lewis Park Sinclair Lewis chip timed 5k & 1 Mile Kids Fun Run/ Walk (register on Chamber website) • 8:00 am to 3:00 pm Sauk Centre American Legion Garage Sale 8 am-2 pm Brats & Kraut Plate serving 10:30 am -3 pm ($8.00) • 9:00 am in Downtown Sauk Centre Sauk Centre Crazy Days • 9:30 am in front of Sinclair Lewis Library - Chalk Drawing Contest - begins at 9:30 am, prizes awarded at 10:10 am - Theme is “Your Favorite Place in Sauk Centre” - chalk provided. Event is sponsored by the Sauk Centre Area History Museum and Research Center • 9:00 am to 3:00 pm at Sinclair Lewis Park Craft Fair & Flea Market (organized by Sauk Centre History Museum & Research Center) • 10:30 am to 3:00 pm at Sinclair Lewis Park - 10:30 am – Turtle Races (bring your own turtle) Prizes for bringing a turtle and to winners of individual races. Sponsored by The Bear Trap - 1:00 pm - Sandy Weisser’s School of Music - Games, Face Painting, Pet Rock Craft and More! • 11:00 am – 3:00 pm Family Fun Festival Inflatable Games & Obstacle Courses – FREE to kids thanks to a sponsorship from Community Connection • 10:00 – 2:00 pm Car Show - Downtown Sinclair Lewis Avenue Country Cruisers Car Club – Contact Mike Noe (320) 333-8908 • 10:00 am at Lynx National Golf Course – Call 320-429-5707 to register Centre Mat Wrestling Golf Outing – Shotgun Start – See Chamber Website for details • 7:00 pm Parade Starts (*Line-up at Industrial Park) Theme: “Visions of Gold - Celebrating the Past, Present and Future” • Dessert Extravaganza - Immediately following parade at First Lutheran Church of Sauk Centre – Free will offering with proceeds going to Caring & Sharing Hands • 9:00 pm in Downtown Sinclair Lewis Avenue Street Dance – Out of Line & The Issue • 10:00 pm Downtown Sinclair Lewis Avenue Sauk Centre Chamber of Commerce Cash Raffle Drawing
Sunday, July 18
• 12:00 pm – Corner of 3rd St. N & Ash St. Soap Box Derby – Sauk Centre Lions Registration: Jeff Quistorff 320-761-9405
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