There are no limits for Circle Pines rower

BY BRUCE STRAND SPORTS CONTRIBUTOR

Perseverance is Skylar Dahl’s favorite word.

They could put her picture next to it in the dictionary. Born with two club feet, Dahl refused to accept limitations placed on her. She played soccer and basketball in grade school until the pain in her feet forced her out. Then she discovered rowing.

This spring, the 2021 Centennial graduate helped the University of Virginia rowing team capture the Atlantic Coach Conference championship and place 10th in the NCAA meet as a sophomore.

Also eligible for Paralympic rowing, she’s in a group that won a meet in Paris in July and will compete in the World Rowing Championships in Serbia, Sept. 3-10, trying to qualify for the 2024 Paralympic Games.

“I was built to compete,” Dahl declared, in a film she put out last November called “The Power of Perseverance and Why it Matters” to share her story and perhaps inspire others. The film can be viewed at YouTube.com/watch?v=OVve86pKC58.

To make the film she teamed with Uncut, an organization that spotlights student/athletes’ lives outside their sport, especially those with a unique personal story. “I received an incredible amount of support and positive feedback,” she said.

Dahl was born with bilateral club feet (both in her case; in some babies it’s just one) meaning that the bones are out of the standard position. Typically, the front half of the affected foot turns inward and the heel points down.

Her early childhood was marked by surgeries, casts, braces, specialized footwear, physical therapy and trips to the Children’s Hospital. Her situation improved.

“By the age of three I was walking without casts or braces,” she said. “At that point I was wearing braces only at night.”

Dahl expressed great appreciation for all the help and encouragement she received from doctors, nurses, and therapists, but one thing rankled her a bit.

SEE ROWER, PAGE 10

• Christopher Stowe continues to visit the City Council with concerns he has regarding a couple of letters he has received from the city about his property at 426 Pine Street. He explained the last letter from the city informed him that someone from the city would be doing an inspection on the property for his conditional use permit. “I was here last month and told by the mayor that I needed to talk to Michael (community development director Grochala) about my questions … The bottom line is my questions weren’t answered.”

Mayor Rob Rafferty once again directed Stowe to work on getting his questions answered with Mr. Grochala.

• Ham Lake resident Ruth Castle is hoping the City Council will consider making changes to its privacy policy. She explained that she recently went to apply for a job with the city when she was instructed that she had to agree to the privacy policy. “It includes consenting to all biometric such as 26 measurements of the face … and fingerprints as if we are machines, access to all emails and web traffic,” she said. “I’d really like the City Council to put it to a vote to prohibit any use or collection of biometric information for all of Lino Lakes. I think it is unconstitutional and it shouldn’t be going on.”

• St. Joseph’s Catholic Church will once again host its annual Parish Festival Aug. 12-13, which will include games, food, bands, silent auction and a bar.

• The new Kwik Trip, located on the corner of Lake Drive and Hodgson Road, will open its doors Aug. 1. The council recently approved a 3.2 off-sale liquor and tobacco license.

• Starting July 31, the city will have a new community service officer. Kara McGregor is enrolled in a criminal

CONTRIBUTED justice program seeking her bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and currently serves in the U.S. Army Reserve as military police. Her hourly rate of pay will be $23.88, which is the starting rate of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) labor contract.

• The city has a new accounting clerk. LeighAnne Sachi was appointed to the clerk 2 position. She has over 15 years of experience in accounting and processing payroll and recently served as a senior accountant for Gaughan Companies. Her hourly rate of pay is $31.26, which is step 3 of the AFSCME labor contract.

• Steve and Rye Gaustad, representing House of Praise, Inc., will plat a 1-acre out lot for the purpose of constructing a single-family home to be known as Bluebill Ponds Second Addition. The site is located on Woodduck Trail and will be addressed 580 Woodduck Trail.

• The city will pay $19,800 to Gethsemane United Methodist Church (DBA Lino Lakes Community Church) to acquire a 7,595-square-foot easement along Lake Drive as part of the Lake Drive trunk utility improvement project.

• A change order will be necessary for the 2023 Pheasant Run reconstruction project, which was scheduled to begin this week. Due to the proximity of the houses to the street, the age of the houses and the native soils, city staff is recommending a precondition survey to evaluate the condition of the homes in the project, as well as the vibration monitoring throughout the duration of the project.

The project contract will increase by $29,800 for a total of $919,686.