PRSRT STD ECR U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT #861
Postal Customer
7 Second Avenue Sauk Rapids, MN 56379
“Minnesota’s Oldest Weekly Newspaper”
Vol. 161, No. 30
Sauk Rapids, Benton County, Minnesota 56379
A continuation of the Frontiersman, The Free Press, Sauk Rapids Sentinel and St. Cloud Sentinel.
(USPS 482-240)
November 4, 2015
Dale Grau lives two seasons: building and driving by NATASHA BARBER STAFF WRITER RICE – If you pose the question, most would be able to tell you the make and model of their first vehicle, but few would be able to say they still own it. “I bought my first ‘32 2 Ford when I was 16 years old d in 1961. I still have that car. It’s been rebuilt about five times,” said Dale Grau of Rice. Grau, like many young boys, worked on cars with his dad and built plastic models as a kid, but it was his first purchase of a Rod and Custom m magazine at the age of 12 thatt ultimately transformed him m into the hotrod enthusiast hee has become. Along with a 1946 Chevy, a 1950 Buick and 1956 pickup, Grau owns 14 different 1932 Ford Hotrods. The “Deuce Garage” holds all the ’32 Fords, and the rest of the collection is stored in a nine-stall garage with the family’s other vehicles. The display spaces are
...more photos on page 2 PHOTO BY ANNA SALDANA
Hannah, 5, Ava, 7 and Chloe, 3, daughters of Jamie and Alex Phillipp of Sauk Rapids, dressed up as Minnie Mouse, Grau’s first car, a 1932 Ford, a vampire and a witch before coming to the trunk-or-treat has been rebuilt five times. It event at Petra Lutheran Church and School in Sauk Rapids. resides in his “Deuce Garage” with 13 other ‘32s in Rice. PHOTOS BY NATASHA BARBER
Dale and Elvis Grau live outside of Rice. Although Dale is the hotrod enthusiast, Elvis has supported his hobby by being power and speed. All of Grau’s a parts-runner, completing some interiors and helping as vehicles are customized and have all been updated with V-8 needed. engines and good brakes. “I wouldn’t get any excitefilled with pictures and memo- most everything. rabilia of Grau’s hotrod obsesHotrods are vehicles speGrau sion along with a story for al- cifically modified for extra continued on pg. 2
From war-torn Sudan to Sauk Rapids Bakou accepts call to lead Anyuak congregation by NATASHA BARBER STAFF WRITER SAUK RAPIDS – It was a series of callings that led Vicar John Omot Bakou on his journey to become the first Anyuak pastor ordained in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. Bakou was born and raised in Pochalla, Sudan. The Sudanese people have been at war for as long as Bakou has been living. The first civil war spanned from 1955-72, ending for a 14-year period, before the second civil war, which lasted 21 years from 1986-2005. Even now, after South Sudan split from the larger country, there are still major conflicts between the two largest tribes over who will have leadership, power and control. “A lot of Sudanese are here now [the United States]. It’s terrible back home. It’s really really different,” Bakou said.
Sheriff warns of scams
Benton County Sheriff’s Department wants seniors and community members to be on the lookout for scams asking them to send money. The office has received reports of a check scam circulating through the area. The scam appears to be targeting senior citizens. Criminals perpetrating this scam are manufacturing fraudulent checks which are mailed to senior citizens with a letter telling the victim they have won a lottery. The letter instructs the victim to send money to cover a transaction fee associated with these lottery winnings.
The individuals who have called about this letter have not sent any money to the suspects. The checks received by the victims have been verified as forgeries. Anyone receiving a check with instructions to send money should always suspect the check is a forgery. The Benton County Sheriff’s Office warns people to never send money to someone who contacts them unexpectedly, regardless of the reason. Anyone receiving one of these fraudulent checks may contact the Benton County Sheriff’s Office.
One plan tabled, another passed for BMI by NATASHA BARBER STAFF WRITER
PHOTO BY NATASHA BARBER
Vicar John Omot Bakou will become the first ordained Anyuak minister in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod on Nov. 7 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Sauk Rapids. “My people have been fighting for many years. The people are starving and have no food. They are eating leaves and grass. Our people said we’d sign for peace,
security and development, but school in Khartoum, Sudan. He it has been forgotten.” believes the constant conflicts At 18 years old, Bakou was baptized into the PresbyteAnyuak rian Church and attended Bible continued on pg. 5
Welsh family spends time hunting, fishing, trapping by ANNA SALDANA STAFF WRITER
Not many teenagers can say they spent their toddler years wearing camouflage and sitting in tree stands searching for a big buck. But Tiffany and Cally Welsh can. They have been spending their lives in the woods along with their mom and dad, Tracy and Mike. “We would always get them involved, whether it was following the blood trail or getting in the pictures,” Tracy said. “They got to see a gutted deer way before anybody would think a kid should see something like that. When they were 2 and 3, they were with us just yapping away. It PHOTO BY ANNA SALDANA didn’t even faze them that dad The Welsh family (from left) – Tracy, Tiffany, Cally and Mike shot the gun.” – are avid hunters, and are proud of all of the game they’ve From that point on, they harvested over the years.
continued to be around hunting with their parents, and eventually came of age to hunt on their own. At age 10, both Tiffany and Cally shot their first deer. While that was a memorable experience, there is one night from last year that really stands out. “The girls went out on the first night of bow hunting and they both shot a doe. It was really cool,” Tracy said. Ever since their first hunt the girls have had a continued passion for hunting, shooting down deer and turkey, fishing and trapping animals like fox, fisher, raccoons and coyote. Mike and Tiffany have only recently begun trapping, but have had several catches, including three fox, a fisher and a handful of raccoons just last year. “Every night, we go check our traps,” Tiffany said. “We snare and put footholds, too.” The family also goes hunting every night. For Mike, it has been that way all
Welsh continued on pg. 3
RICE – One Bolton & Menk, Inc. (BMI) project was tabled and another plan passed at the Rice City Council meeting on Nov. 2. BMI’s Mike Rardin, PE spoke to the mayor and council about a main lift station backup power project and a phosphorous management plan. The estimated cost of the backup power project would be approximately $70,000. According to the paperwork presented by Rardin, a power outage at the main lift station could possibly cause wastewater backup into the Field of Dreams development area. The council tabled approval of proceedings from BMI until an audit is done on the city’s books. When the original go-ahead was given to BMI to scope out the plan and $100,000 was set aside in the 2015 budget, the city was misinformed about the available funds within the water and sewer account. The council will make a decision when they have more information about funds available for this project. The city did approve a smaller BMI project to develop a Phosphorous Management Plan (PMP) for the city of Rice.
The plan would be in compliance with the new terms set forth by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency in permit No. MN0056481. The PMP must be submitted no later than June 2, 2016. Rardin’s schedule is to have the plan ready for submittal by April. In other council news: • Approved the annual memberships for 2015-16 to the League of Minnesota Cities and League of Minnesota Cities Mayors. • Approved liquor licenses for the American Legion Post No. 423, Westside Liquor and Rice Clubs, Inc., and approved a liquor license with 2 a.m. renewal for O’Brien’s Pub. • Approved liquor license for Shady’s Railside pending the receipt of 2016 certificate of liability insurance by Nov. 6, 2015. • Approved liquor license and 2 a.m. renewal license for the Corner Pocket pending the receipt of a completed application. The Corner Pocket’s application was missing the commercial general liability information. • Approved the ongoing rental of the Old Village Hall for Two Rivers Baptist Church until Dec. 31, 2016.
Rice city council continued on pg. 2
Benton County Sheriff ’s Office seeks participation The Benton County Sheriff’s Office along with the Minnesota Sheriff’s Association is seeking input from Benton County citizens to help shape law enforcement services in the 21st century. Providing the highest level of service and protection is a key goal of the Benton County Sheriff’s Office and the Minnesota Sheriff’s Association. Members of the public are invited to participate in an on-line survey to provide
their thoughts and input on this topic.The survey may be accessed at: www.mnsheriffs. org/PUBsurvey. Additional information concerning this initiative and survey may be found at the Benton County website, www.co.benton.mn.us. Anyone with additional thoughts or questions on this subject is invited to contact Sheriff Troy Heck, (320-968-7201) or troy. heck@co.benton.mn.us.