Thousands are expected for the 9th annual Pope County Expo, one of the largest free events in the area. The Expo will take place on Saturday, April 6 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Minnewaska Area High School (located halfway between Glenwood and Starbuck). “There will be something for every age and every interest at the Pope County Expo,” said Janelle Negen, executive director of the Glenwood Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce and an Expo committee member. This is a scene from the

Seventy percent unemployment is not something I can imagine. I’ve been reading some histories of the Civilian Conservation Corps. They say that unemployment on Minnesota’s Iron Range ran that high in the early 1930s when the government started the CCC program. It seems like 70 percent unemployment would mean that there would be no money around. It would make economic activity nearly impossible. Clair T. Rollings described the impoverished group of young men who enrolled at th

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Residents of central Minnesota facing mental health challenges should know that help is one quick phone call away, thanks to a project that began in 1995. The CommUNITY Adult Mental Health Initiative (CAMHI) serves adults with serious and persistent mental illness in Benton, Sherburne, Stearns and Wright counties. “One in four people experience mental health challenges. Many people live with symptoms of a mental illness for 10 years before seeking treatment, largely due to st

Farm Rescue brings relief to farmers in desperate need Nic Hendrickx of Elizabeth often works in the background of many Farm Rescue operations, but late this summer, he was on the front lines. Nic Hendrickx of Elizabeth is usually in the background of Farm Rescue events, making sure the trucks and equipment keeps running when used to help family farmers plant, harvest or receive hay assistance if they are ill, injured or suffering from a natural disaster. In late August, he t

Breitenfeldt Group offers guidance, support, reviews at no charge “It’s so confusing! There are so many companies and choices available in today’s Medicare marketplace.” This is the phrase most often heard when meeting with members, said Dennis Breitenfeldt, V.P. of Medicare at Breitenfeldt Group. Are you confused by Medicare? Not sure you are taking the right path? Feel like you need a road map to Medicare? “We have that road map,” said Breitenfeldt. “Just about everyone we

Legacy Benefits Consultants offer health care options from multiple carriers Legacy Benefits Consultant CEO Tim Jopp, right, speaks with a customer in his office about the various health care options at his new office in Waconia. Photo by Scott Thoma Founded 15 years ago by Tim Jopp, Legacy Benefits Consultants, of Waconia, offers its clients several options instead of being tied solely to one health insurance company. “Being a multiple insurance agency, we give clients more

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Care fueled by technology, dedication, results Lon Linke had enjoyed an active lifestyle from a young age, even landing a career riding horses, and water skiing regularly for leisure. The inevitable wear and tear took a toll on his everyday activities, and at 55 years old, simple things like getting in and out of a car, bending down to tie shoes, and sitting in a boat seemed nearly impossible. He had begun to accept these limitations as his new normal until he attended a free

“This place has been here for a long time…a little bit of prairie held loosely in the fingers of sparkling blue lakes clothed in gloves of the dark green foliage of oaks and other trees that grew along the shores,” wrote Harold Anderson, a local historian and businessman of Alexandria. In 1871 the Alexandria Post reported: “Alexandria as a summer resort compares in its air to sunny Italy. Indeed, the whole of Douglas County seems to be intended for one grand pleasure garden.

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On the surface it seems unlikely that two storytellers, a wood carver and a zombie crawl enthusiast would have much in common, but they do have a special bond: Each has applied for and received a Lakes Region Arts Council grant to hone their artistic works. Paulette Friday, of Alexandria, received a Legacy Grant for her work she titled, In Pursuit of a Dream, Stories and Songs of 19th Century Immigration. Jan Smith from Clitherall focuses her storytelling abilities on Scandin

When you think of crop farming in Meeker County, you envision corn stalks, oats, barley, soybeans and wheat fields. But one thing that may surprise you is quite a few farmers in Meeker County grew tobacco. In fact, in 1931 the Eden Valley area was the largest producer of tobacco in Minnesota. Approximately 550,000 pounds of tobacco was shipped from Eden Valley that year. Tobacco was first raised in Minnesota, according to the USDA agriculture census, in the 1860s. The results

City has largest Dala Horse in the United States Mora is home to the largest Dala Horse in the United States. It’s 25 feet high and weighs 3,000 pounds. Photo by Cathy Nelson Travelers who drive north of the Twin Cities to east central Minnesota notice birch trees, fields, small towns, farms. If they happen to come across an enormous, shimmering, orange-red horse towering over a town, they’ll know they are in Mora. Mora is known for being the home of the largest Dala Horse in

Cafe designed for those suffering from memory loss Here is the idea – form a memory cafe so people with dementia can meet and visit with each other over a cup of coffee and goodies. Renita Thonvold (left) and Kathy Thonvold (right) are the co-facilitators of the new memory cafe in Willmar called Forget Me Knot. The cafe is located on the second floor of the Willmar Public Library. It is open for those with memory loss, including dementia and Alzheimer’s, the second Tuesday an

Knute Nelson Hospice care focuses on quality of life, support for patient and family Don Carlson, of Alexandria, learned he had pulmonary fibrosis in 2011. He was in his 70s. The disease scars and damages lung tissue and makes it hard to breath. It is debilitating and eventually fatal. Marilyn Carlson (front) and her daughter Nancy (right) have high praise for Knute Nelson Hospice, who helped care for Marilyn’s husband, Don, during his final year of life. Working closely with

Open the scrapbook of your mind and look back to your childhood. Do you remember the first organization or club you joined as a child? Perhaps it was the Brownies, Cub Scouts or 4-H? I became a Brownie and then a Girl Scout, and it was through this organization that I learned how to properly set a table and how to make a “nurse’s corner” when making a bed. But the Brownies was not the first organization I joined. While a first or second-grader in Cook, Minn., my family served

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Inside the historic Porter Jail. Photo by Scott Thoma With a population slightly under 200, Porter isn’t exactly a mecca for sightseers. But tucked away in this modest community 11 miles west of Minneota stands a small brick building, no bigger than a one-stall garage, that has significant historical value. In 1898, 17 years after Porter was incorporated as a village, citizens were determined that there was a need to construct a “hoosegow,” a popular term for jail in those da

It’s not often that a student can reconnect with a teacher sixty-plus years after spending time in their classroom and still have the teacher remember them!  But that is the case with my elementary school teacher, LaVerna Noland.  Back during my school years she was a young teacher, about 18, and a first-year graduate of the teachers college in Litchfield. She was new and fully qualified to teach all eight grades in my little country school. She was a good teacher, but, what