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VOL. 37 NO. 14 www.presspubs.com $1.00
LINO LAKES: Tax levy to increase, tax rate to decrease PAGE 15
Men’s club brings Christmas cheer to seniors BY JANICE COLLOVA CONTRIBUTING WRITER
SUBMITTED
Santa’s Helpers The Lino Lakes Park and Recreation Department held its annual Secret Holiday Shop event on Wednesday, Dec. 12, and Thursday, Dec. 13, at City Hall. Miss Lino Lakes Ambassador Emma Pierson helps a young girl pick out gifts for her family. See more photos on page 10.
On Dec. 12, residents at Keystone Place at LaValle Fields in Hugo were enjoying cupcakes and ice cream as a men’s volunteer group led everyone in “Here Comes Santa Claus.” Then sleigh bells began to ring. Heads turned. Eyes and smiles widened. “Ho ho!” one resident shouted. Santa Claus himself had arrived. St. Nick shook hands and offered hugs to residents before joining the men’s volunteer group — the St. John the Baptist Men’s Club of St. Genevieve’s Church. “Here Comes Santa Claus” was followed by 30 minutes of Christmas classics such as “White Christmas” and “Silent Night.” Even though the men’s club stood at the front of the room and told residents which songs from the caroling booklets to sing, both the club and residents seemed to sing with one voice. Each person seemed to enjoy the singing as much as the other. A “very active” men’s club Serving desserts and caroling at senior homes in Hugo and Centerville is a tradition the club started 15 years ago to spread Christmas cheer to the area’s senior community. Along with Keystone, the club also brings this tradition to Muller Manor in Hugo and Chauncey Barrett Gardens in Centerville. The caroling is just one of many ways the club gives back, both to the parish of St. Genevieve’s and to Hugo and Centerville as a whole. According to Men’s Club President Bill Courteau, the group donates about $15,000-$20,000 every year to community and parish causes, including disaster relief and food shelves. A few service events the club participates in include repair and maintenance within the parish and the annual Lenten fish fry that attracts visitors from all over the Twin Cities. SEE MEN’S CLUB, PAGE 16
Longtime resident 1-man ice maker BY SHANNON GRANHOLM EDITOR
CIRCLE PINES — Growing up in Montana, longtime Circle Pines resident Bob Holmberg always dreamed of one day creating an ice rink on a lake for kids to enjoy. “When we lived in Montana, I always had visions of children skating on frozen lakes. Out in Montana, I tried to get an ice skating rink going out there but I would get the ice started and then it would melt. It never worked,” He said. “I didn't put on a pair of
skates until I was 28.” In 1993, Holmberg moved to his home on Golden Lake Road and for the past 24 years, weather-dependent of course, he has tried to maintain ice skating paths on the lake. “That's my goal — to see people skating. It makes my day when I see somebody out there skating,” he said. He also enjoys the physical exercise component and spending time outside. The 1.2 miles of paths are all created using a shovel and snowblower. “With just me and a shovel or snowblower, I can
go out there sooner when the ice is thinner and get the snow off and preserve it earlier,” Holmberg explained. Holmberg also gets some help in making the paths from his son Neil. The paths have expanded now that Holmberg is retired from the printing industry. The main loop is 0.8 miles and there is another trail near Golden Lake Park. He said the past two years the trails have been fairly easy to maintain, as they were SEE SKATING PATHS, PAGE 9
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Longtime Circle Pines resident Bob Holmberg has taken it upon himself to create beautiful skating paths on Golden Lake.
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