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Austin
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ALBERT LEA CAMPUS2200 Riverland DriveAlbert Lea, MN 56007507-379-3300
AUSTIN CAMPUS 1900 8th Avenue NWAustin, MN 55912507-433-0600
OWATONNA CAMPUSOwatonna College and University Center965 Alexander Drive SWOwatonna, MN 55060507-455-5880
www.riverland.edu
Classes offered Days, Evenings, Weekends, and Online for our
PROGRAMS OF STUDY:TRANSPORTATIONAutomotive Service TechnologyCollision Repair TechnologyDiesel Technology: Commercial Vehicle MechanicsTruck Driving
LIBERAL ARTS & SCIENCES
COMMUNICATIONSEnglishFrenchSpanishSpeech
HISTORY AND THE SOCIAL & BEHAVIORAL SCIENCESAnthropologyBusiness & EconomicsGeographyHistoryPolitical Science PsychologySociology
HUMANITIES & FINE ARTSArtMusicPhilosophyReligionTheatre
MATHEMATICAL/LOGICAL REASONING
NATURAL SCIENCESAstronomyBiologyChemistryEarth SciencePhysics
PHYSICAL EDUCATION & HEALTHAthleticsCoachingHuman Performance
TRANSITIONAL STUDIESBe Your Best College Prep AcademyCollege Prep Writing/Reading/MathCycles for SuccessEnglish for Academic Purposes
CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION
ACCOUNTING, BUSINESS, BUSINESS AND OFFICEAccountingHealth Unit CoordinatorBusiness & Office TechnologyMedical Secretary
ALLIED HEALTHHome Health AideMammographyNursing AssistantNursing Pathway: Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) Nursing Program (RN) PN Mobility ProgramPatient Care AssociateRadiography
COMPUTER TECHNOLOGYCisco® Certified Network AssociateComputer TechnologyComputer Systems NetworkingMicrosoft® Systems EngineerWeb DeveloperWeb Page Design & Web Master
CONSTRUCTION AND MANUFACTURINGCarpentry TechnologyConstruction ElectricianIndustrial Maintenance & MechanicsProduction TechnicianSolar InstallerWelding TechnologyWind Turbine Technology
MANAGEMENTCommodity MarketingFarm Business ManagementSmall Business ManagementSupervisory Management
SERVICECosmetologyHuman ServicesLaw Enforcement/Criminal JusticeMassage Therapy
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COMPUTER TECHNOLOGYtifiedCisco® CerechnComputer TTechnolog
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Solar Installerechnoloelding TTechnologW
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GEMENTMANACommodity Mark
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TURAL SCIENCESNAATURAL SCIENCESAstronomy
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TRANSITIONAL STUDIESAe Prep our Best CollegYYour Best CollegBe
Prep Writing/Reading/MatheCollegCycles for Success
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Austin
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JANAGRAY
Sales and Operations
COLBYHANSENGraphic Design
SHERRITHISSENClassified Sales
SUSANDOWNEYGraphic Design
HEATHERRYKSMarketing
SUSANKAPAUNAccounting
BRENDALANDHERR
Marketing
DEEQUAMCirculation
MERRYPETERSEN
Marketing
TRINAMILLERHome Delivery
Manager
BENANKENY
Marketing
DAVECHURCHILL
Publisher
ADAMHARRINGAManaging Editorand Business
KEVINCOSS
Community Newsand Education
JASONSCHOONOVER
Layout Editor andCounty News
TREYMEWESCity News andEntertainment
ROCKYHULNESports Editor
MATTPETERSON
Religion,Courts and Crime
ERICJOHNSON
Photography
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PHOTOS THROUGHOUT:ERIC JOHNSON
DESIGN & LAYOUT:JASON SCHOONOVER,AND ERIC JOHNSON
MOWER COUNTY TOWNS
1188.. ROSE CREEK: 100 YEARS OF HARDWARE2200.. DEXTER: REBUILDING AFTER A TRAGEDY
2222.. ELKTON: A CENTURY OF BANKING2266.. LEROY: RESIDENTS ENJOY WELL-ROUNDED TOWN
3300 HAYFIELD/WALTHAM: DRYING THE SOIL
3322.. ADAMS: LOCAL HISTORY, GLOBAL IMPACT3344.. GRAND MEADOW: VIRTUOSOS OF VINYL3366.. BROWNSDALE: A MEANINGFUL EMPLOYER3388.. LYLE: SCHOOL IS UP TO SPEED
4400.. BLOOMING PRAIRIE: A MARKET FOR METALS4422.. BLOOMING PRAIRIE: MOTORCYCLE MAN
5522.. LYLE: UNCOMMONWATER
BELOW: Sparks fly from a laser cutter at Metal Services inBlooming Prairie. The company does a large amount of business in town and regionally.Turn to Page 40 for the story
PROGRESS 2013EDUCATION88.. BUILDING A FUTURE: EDUCATOR LEADINGWORK
ON I.J. HOLTON INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL1111.. PACELLI: CELEBRATING A CENTURY
1144.. RENE LAZARO: SUCCESS IN SERVICE
SPORTS4433.. DEER CREEK: THUNDER IN THE SUMMER4444.. CHATEAU: RACING FOR 30 YEARS4466.. BRUINS: RIGHT WHERE THEY WANT TO BE
4488.. GYMNASTICS: FINDING THEIR GROOVE
5511.. FOOTBALL: LIFTING A PROGRAM
FAITH5544.. RYAN SYNOGROUND: FOOTBALL AND FAITH5566.. PASTOR SIMON DUP: UNFINISHED BUSINESS5588.. BILL HOLDER: FAITH THROUGH TRIALS
COMMUNITY6600.. DANIELLE NESVOLD: MOM ON A MISSION
6633.. HORMEL: THE BUSINESS OF RUNNING6644.. PAINT THE TOWN PINK: ALL OUT FOR A CURE
HEALTH6666.. JEN HAUGEN: THE STORY OF SPROUTS6688.. JACOB BURKHART: FLYING HIGH
7700.. MAYOCLINIC: EXPANDED CARE
THROUGH THE YEARS7744.. THE HORMEL INSTITUTE7755.. RIVERLAND COMMUNITY COLLEGE7766.. AUSTIN DAILY HERALD
ORGANIZATIONS7788.. AAF: INVESTING IN AUSTIN8800.. VISION 2020: PROGRESS FOR TOMORROW
FEBRUARY 24, 2013
BUSINESS/INDUSTRY8811.. QPP: SERIOUS ABOUT SWINE
8822.. HORMEL: SURGING AHEAD
8844.. CLIMATE CHECK: HOW IS BUSINESS IN AUSTIN?8888.. ST. MARK’S: A $13.5-MILLION REMODEL
AGRICULTURE9900.. TECHNOLOGY: FUTURE ON THE FRONTIER9922.. LEE SACKETT: ‘EVERY TRACTOR HAS A STORY’
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Jack Erwin has been the Executive Chef at The Cedars of Austin since2007. You can sense Jack’s passion for food and compassion for our res-idents as soon as you set foot in the door. Jack’s message below will helpyou understand why the unique and enjoyable culinary experience pro-vided at The Cedars sets us apart.
“Cooking for others has been a passion of mine since I was a youngchild. I literally hold my breath every time someone takes a bite of myfood hoping that it is the best thing they have ever tasted. I realize thiswon’t happen every time, but I want people to be pleased with what Ido. Happy people atthe end of a meal aresuch a nice sight tosee for any chef.
At The Cedars wecater to a wide varietyof people. All our res-idents all have differ-ent likes and dislikesand I try very hard tosee to it that all oftheir needs and prefer-ences are met. Myday would not becomplete withoutwalking through thedining room filledwith all of our resi-dents, friends andfamily and taking timeto chat about every-thing from theweather to the grand-kids. We like to have a
good time here, and mealtimes are a great social event. I love putting asmile on people’s faces!
Our residents enjoy comfort foods the most. I tend to cook manythings the way my mother and grandmother made them, and peopleseem to love them. I like to take something simple, like a casserole, andlook for ways to add lots of flavor without adding salt or unhealthy in-gredients. One of the most popular dinner nights at The Cedars is ShrimpNight. We go all out for this event four times a year and the residents re-ally look forward to it. No one goes away hungry! I walk around the din-
ing room with moundsof shrimp and refillplates until everyonehas had all the shrimpthey want. There aredefinitely big smilesand a good time is hadby all. Homemadesoups are also verypopular, whether sum-mer or winter, and areone of my favoritethings to make. If Ihad to put my fingeron a number one fa-vorite food here at TheCedars, I would haveto say cookies are thehit. Not only do I loveto bake them, butknowing how muchour residents enjoythem makes me love iteven more!
Jack of all “treats”
Francis F., Martha E., Matt M., Jack E., Fern W. and Cleo S. enjoy a meal at The Cedars of Austin.
By Lisa Nelson, The Cedars of Austin
“Jack is very cordial to allpeople and will always stopand say hello and talk. Peoplelike that. The food is excellentand there is a good variety.”
Martha E.
“I always mention whensomething is extra good so wecan have it again. Jack is oneof the friendliest persons hereto the residents.”
Francis F.
“I’m very happy with all thefood. I like everything theyserve very much. Jack is veryfriendly with everyone andserves great food!”
Cleo S.
“Jack knows the residents andeveryone knows him. He is veryfriendly with all the residents andknows all of our names. I am as-tounded by the variety of food here!”
Matt M.
PAID ADVERTISEMENT
Austin
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Building a future
By Trey Mewes
Jean McDermott is coming full circle this fall.She’ll be back in a middle school, like the one where she taught math and
science for years. She’ll be the principal, just like she was at Woodson Kinder-garten Center. She’ll lead teachers and students in new, technological ways,just like she did at Ellis about 10 years ago.
McDermott is hard at work planning the opening of I.J.Holton Intermediate School, which is scheduled for thisfall. From the furniture to the classroom lessons, the tilingon the floor to the curriculum organization, she’s spear-heading Austin’s biggest education innovation, and ar-guably will have the biggest impact on Austin’s schoolsystem for years to come.
McDermott is an Austin native who graduated fromAustin High School in 1974. She has spent more than 20years as an Austin Public Schools teacher and administra-tor. Though she spent recent years as the principal atWoodson, her passion lies in educating middle schoolers.
She wasn’t always so sure of that, however. McDer-mott earned her bachelor’s degree from Bemidji State University in elemen-tary education.
“I really thought I was going to be in elementary [classrooms],” she said. “Iwas a camp counselor as a high school and college person, and really liked el-ementary teaching.”
Yet her first teaching job at St. Rose of Lima School in Roseville put her in a
middle school classroom, and 10 years later she still loves teaching middleschoolers.
She came to Austin in 1989, teaching for a year at Pacelli Catholic Schools be-fore getting a Title 1 specialist position at Ellis Middle School, where she stayeduntil 1998. With so much experience at the middle school level, McDermott hasan appreciation for what middle school and junior high teachers do.
“Every teacher at every level has a gift,” McDermott said. “You look at kinder-garten teachers and see the patience they have to have.... With middle school teachers, again, the patience theyhave to have to do the work they do is incredible.”
Classroom upgradeA new school means plenty of new routines to
learn. That includes major classroom technology up-grades, as the district may potentially roll out iPadsfor students in some capacity to solve engineeringand science problems, or to use in general musicclasses, for example. While students will get thosetechnology lessons, teachers will do a bit of learningon their own: I.J. Holton will have its own technology
integration specialist to help staff with any Science, Technology, Engineer-ing, Arts and Math, known as STEAM, curriculum questions of their own.The tech integration specialist won’t help with IT-related questions, butrather will help teachers find ways to use technology in lessons.
“The expectation for teachers is that they’ll be implementing a lot moretechnology into their curriculum,” McDermott said.
Longtime Austin educator Jean McDermottis leading work on I.J. Holton Intermediate School
“Every teacherat every levelhas a gift.”-Jean McDermott
The school will be organized to reflect that tech influence. Therewill be classrooms in pod areas, meaning classes will be organizedso they can open into larger commons areas. In addition, there willbe production labs where students can do multimedia-based proj-ects, and McDermott said students will have video productioncourses at times. Those same production labs will be home to a“tech café” of sorts, where students can use Kindles, e-book read-ers or other technology before and after school.
That dovetails with what parents, students and communitymembers were looking for in a new school, according to Superin-tendent David Krenz.
“We’ve tried very hard to make sure we’ve gotten input and par-ticipation from the community members,” he said.
Students will have elementary-style scheduling, so lessonsthroughout the week can be more flexible than a high-schoolschedule would allow. Though I.J. Holton’s school day will run from8 a.m. to 2:55 p.m., the same as Ellis, students will be able to ex-plore more of their lessons.
“At a high school, with kids all over the place, if I want to grab30 kids and do something I’ve disrupted 20 different teachers inthe building, and kids need to get to their classes,” McDermottsaid. “So the ability to [be flexible] is very difficult on a secondarymindset.”
Class sizes should run about 30 students per classroom, andclasses will be grouped together in teams, similar to what’s done infifth grade now. Each of their three main teachers will teach read-ing lessons in his or her class, and will also specialize in either sci-ence, social studies or math.
“Those three teachers will be the adult support for those 90 kids,and those kids will have a majority of those classes with these teach-ers,” McDermott said.
Sixth-graders will have similar schedules, only there will be fourclasses grouped into a team.
Students will be introduced to electives as well, since they willhave physical education and music two days a week. Each quarter,students will get what McDermott calls “exploratory” courses: key-board, industrial tech/robotics, and personal wellness classesamong others.
Higher learningThe classroom changes reflect a large shift in the school’s edu-
cational approach. Most teachers in the U.S. teach according tostandards-based lessons, or lessons requiring students to memorizeand recall information and processes, which each state tests forevery year, more commonly known as state comprehensive test-ing. I.J. Holton teachers will change things under a STEAM ap-proach, focusing more on critical thinking and having studentsmaster the process of learning. In effect, teachers will go one stepfurther in educating students, showing them not only what theyneed to know but how they can find out other things by them-selves.
“It’s going back to inquiry-based learning,” McDermott said. “Asyou look at standards and testing, because that becomes what’s
right in front of you ... it’s hard to get all those other things, too.”McDermott said the inquiry-based curriculum will be a “four-
year process,” where teachers will plan more projects and les-sons for students each year, slowly transitioning in more unitsand more hands-on activities. In addition, students will be ex-pected to pursue projects they’re interested in, based on ques-tions they’ve asked, as opposed to projects planned by theteacher. That means students will be introduced to many ad-vanced concepts at an early age, through their own curiosity.
“You want to introduce them to these things so they’ll try it,”McDermott said. “Not that they’ll master it, but so they’re ex-posed to it.”
Students will still be expected to meet state and federal edu-cation standards, but the hope is the critical thinking approachwill leave them in a better position to learn in high school andbeyond.
“Good teaching is going to hit all those standards,” McDer-mott said. “The standards will follow.”
That reflects the innovation Austin schools have gone throughover the past several years, from a push to individual educationplans for each student and new ways to organize lessons, to evenpromoting positive behavior inside a school.
That doesn’t cover the partnerships the district has formedover the years with local businesses and organizations. HormelFoods Corp. regularly accepts AHS students for mentorships, andarea organizations like The Hormel Institute are partnering withadvance-placement bio courses to offer students chances towork alongside scientists while learning at a college level.
Those partnerships should continue, as Austin educators arejoining forces with community members on the Vision 2020 “Ed-ucation Leaders” committee to find more ways the district andthe community can intersect. That’s all part of the plan, accord-ing to Krenz.
“We don’t believe status quo is OK,” Krenz said. “We believewe need to be finding new and innovative ways to educate ourkids. It’s not good enough where we’re at. We want to move for-ward.”
Getting readyMcDermott expects to start parent meetings this March at
each elementary school. Construction workers won’t finish I.J.Holton until mid-August, and school is expected to start on timenext year. The school won’t have an official open house untilthe end of September, as construction will finish just before theschool year starts.
Yet there’s plenty to get ready before then: Teachers are find-ing more things to include in each classroom, from garbagecans to pencil sharpeners. Science teachers are still requestingmore items for science labs, and everyone is trying to make surethe school is fully stocked before September.
And guess who’s responsible for those supplies?“I’m the one who’s going to have to get them,” McDermott
said. “I’m getting emails from all sorts of directions.”
Work progresses on the new I.J. HoltonIntermediate School next to Ellis Middle School.
$28.9millionThe levyamount
Austin votersapproved tobuild I.J.Holton
IntermediateSchool andto expandWoodson
KindergartenCenter.18
Number ofmonths tobuild I.J.HoltonSchool.30
Number ofstudents perclassroom.28
Number ofclassroomsin I.J. Holton
School.
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MARCH:Pacelli celebrates EugenioPacelli’s 1939 papalordinationStudents will make banners for allthree catholic churches in the areaand take part in a special Mass onMarch 1.
APRIL:Benefit auctionPacelli will host a benefit auctionApril 27 to raise scholarshipmoney for students.
MAY:Spring concertPacelli alumni will be invited backfor a special concert on May 16 or23 to sing with the school choir.
JUNE:GraduationPacelli graduates will also celebrate the school’s 100 years of history at theschool commencement ceremony June 5.
JULY:Fourth of July floatPacelli students, parents and volunteers will have a special school float forAustin’s Fourth of July Parade.
AUGUST:All-school reunionPacelli graduates will be in-vited back to Austin duringthe second annual DowntownArtworks Festival Aug. 24-26.Pacelli will also be involved inthe Mower County Fair, run-ning Aug. 6-11.
SEPTEMBER:Blessing of the schoolbuildingsPacelli students and staff willwatch as local priests bless theschool buildings on the firstday of school.
OCTOBER:Recognition of Pacelli’sFranciscan traditionPacelli students will learnmore about Pacelli’s associa-
tion with the Catholic Church’s Franciscan order in the beginning ofthe month, around the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, which takes placeOct. 4.
NOVEMBER:Spaghetti dinnerPacelli families will celebrate the school through its annual spaghetti dinner.
PACELLI CELEBRATES A CENTURY
St. Columbia High School, 1913 to 1923, the start ofwhat Pacelli is today.Photo provided
Pacelli Catholic Schools will commemorate its historythroughout 2013, staging one event a month throughout the year
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By Trey Mewes
Mary Holtorf is glad Pacelli is just as much a bedrock of faith in the com-munity as it was when she was in school.The Pacelli Catholic Schools vice principal at-
tended the school, after all. A 1984 Pacelli gradu-ate, she appreciates how special Pacelli is to thecommunity, and how many alumni have gone onto do good in the world. Holtorf is not alone, asshe and many other local residents will celebratePacelli’s 100th year anniversary throughout 2013.“We want to get the students involved, we want
to get the parents involved, we want to getalumni involved,” Holtorf said. “We want it to bean outreach to everyone.”After 100 years, Pacelli Catholic Schools still cen-
ters around its message of faith, somethingHoltorf knows all too well.“My mom and dad wanted me to have a firm
background in my faith,” she said, explaining whyshe attended Pacelli.After graduation, Holtorf earned her bachelor’s
degree in elementary education from Saint Mary’sUniversity, a private college Holtorf described as similar to Pacelli in its focus onfaith and education.
”I just always knew that I wanted faith to be part of my job,” Holtorfsaid.She worked briefly with Winona Catholic Schools as part of her under-
graduate and graduate work before accepting ateaching position at Pacelli in 1991. After that, sheserved as an administrator for six years, briefly actingas president of Pacelli Catholic Schools before ac-cepting her current position.She now serves as one of the main organizers for
Pacelli’s year-long celebration of 100 years of memoriesand service. There will be monthly events highlightingPacelli’s educational commitment, its alumni’s record ofpostsecondary education and career accomplishments,and the school system’s commitment to its faith and vol-unteerism. The highlight of the event will come whenPacelli alumni come back for a special Pacelli show atthis year’s Austin ArtWorks Festival.For someone who has known Pacelli from all perspec-
tives, from student to teacher to principal and parent,Holtorf carries a deep respect for the school’s history.“It makes me appreciate why it was started,” she said.
“I know test scores are really important and getting intoa really good college is really important, but at the end
of the day, if I don’t have the faith that was instilled in me as a younger child,and through middle school and high school, I don’t have much.”
Pacelli Catholic Schools celebrates its history this yearas a small school inside St. Augustine Church that transformedinto a powerhouse private school in the 1900s and 2000s
A bedrock of faith
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MaryHoltorf, Pacelli Catholic Schools vice principal, is spearheading Pacelli's 100th-year celebration,whichwill includean alumni reunion in August.
“At the end of the day, if I don’t have the faith that was instilled in meas a younger child, and through middle school and high school, I don’t have much.”
-Mary Holtorf, Pacelli Catholic Schools vice principal
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Rene Lazaro, who attended Riverland Community College, keeps busy with activities at the college and in public,including the local Latino rights awareness group P’adelante.
“I felt likeI should dosomething
for thecommunity
insteadof just
watch it.”-Rene Lazaro
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By Trey Mewes
Rene Lazaro didn’t expect college to work out for him as well as it did. Though the20-year-old Austin resident just finished his first semester at Riverland CommunityCollege, he never expected to work toward a postsecondary degree. In fact, he saidhe didn’t really want to go to school at all — he was pressured into it.
“If I wanted to succeed in life, I should get into college,” Lazaro said. “That wasthe idea why I wanted to come here first.”
Yet Lazaro has found the clichés of higher education do hold true: Going to col-lege opens up opportunities to volunteer, to learn about things you’re interested inand to grow as a person.
Starting outLazaro moved to Austin with his family in 1998, when he was in first or second
grade. A 2011 Austin High School graduate, Lazaro didn’t participate much in highschool. He never felt the need to, and there were other things to keep his interest.
Things like his camera. Lazaro found he wanted to take photos after following hisfriends around various house parties in town for a few months after high school,where he discovered his passion for documenting life as it happened.
“There’s a whole lot of things going on here,” he said.That transferred to his college career far easier than he thought. He jumped into
his classes starting in fall 2012 with ease.“[Riverland] was really easy and willing to work around your schedule,” Lazaro said.What’s more, he found immediate opportunities to get involved: Several of his
friends participated in P’adelante, a youth group dedicated to raising awarenessabout Latino issues in Mower County and beyond. Not just a Riverland group, P’ade-lante included area high school students, young professionals and Riverland alumni.
“I was interested in their message,” Lazaro said. “They wanted to work with Lati-nos and get their message out instead of just hiding or being scared of actually goingout and speaking with our voices.”
The group made its biggest impact last fall, when more than two dozen volunteersspoke at area churches, stores and events trying to register more Latinos in Austin andAlbert Lea for the 2012 elections.
“Several students came up to me and asked what they could do to help Latinos inthe community,” said Yesenia Mendoza, an adviser for P’adelante.
The 2012 elections were important for P’adelante volunteers, as a proposed voterID amendment to the Minnesota Constitution called for residents to present a state-approved license or identification card whenever they wanted to vote. Proponentsof the amendment said the measure would cut down on voter fraud, but political ac-tivists, county auditors and civil rights experts said the amendment was too broad,didn’t define what IDs were acceptable, and unfairly targeted minorities who maynot have a driver’s license or state ID card, among other groups of people. Min-nesota voters narrowly voted down the amendment.
“It was interesting, making an impact,” Lazaro said. “We got to see that we wereactually doing something, instead of just not doing anything.”
That’s why volunteers worked to raise awareness about the ID, asking people to callCentro Campesino, an Owatonna-based Latino rights group, for more informationabout the amendment, the DREAM act and registering to vote.
Yet P’adelante hopes to accomplish more. The group also plans to let people knowabout resources in the community, as well as urging local government officials toaccept matricula consular — a form of ID from the Mexican Consulate to the U.S.— during things like traffic stops or filling out forms at county offices.
Capturing the momentLazaro may not be taking classes at Riverland this semester, but he’s working on
his passion for photography. He’s become a chronicler of sorts for P’adelante, andfor Riverland. He took photos of Riverland’s “Be Your Best” program last year, andwas a photographer for Riverland’s Student Ambassadors group, which conductscollege tours for prospective students, hosts events and acts as an event planningboard, among other things. Lazaro has even taken promotional photos for River-land.
“I loved capturing peoples’ interests, what they liked to do,” Lazaro said. “I wascapturing Austin, the people in Austin.”
He hopes to continue his photography, studying either art or communications ata four-year college once he’s done taking his general classes here. He’s not sure howhe wants to further his career yet, whether that means becoming a documentarianor a photographic artist. Lazaro is sure of one thing, though: He’s glad to have cometo Riverland, and he’s glad to get involved in his community.
“I felt like I needed to switch up my life,” He said. “I felt like I should do somethingfor the community instead of just watch it.”
Success in serviceFormer student finds his passion through volunteer opportunities
Austin
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You are alwayswelcome here!www.semnrealtors.com
Nancy Ulwelling279-0427
Art Hollerud438-1090
William Danielson438-7728
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ROSE CREEK
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years ofhardware
100 years of hardwareBy Matt Peterson
Fred Ulven flipped through the pages in his binder and talkedabout the history of the hardware store he has owned for morethan 40 years. The story goes back much further, though.“This belonged to C.A. Anderson,” he said, paging through
old news articles and black and white photos.Fred’s grandfather, also Fred, took over the building nearly 100
years ago, in late 1913. A horseshoe he found in the mud stillhangs as a timepiece above the backdoor. Hundred-year-oldpromissory notes for $1,000 and $1,500, perhaps the sale of thebuilding, are yet another piece of the collection.The building looked
much different backthen, as Fred pointed atthe crack in the floorwhere a wall once stood.A house used to be at-tached.Fred remembers when
he was a toddler, hisgrandfather taught himthe basics, such as howto thread nuts on bolts —his earliest hardwarestore experiences. Everybolt needs a nut, Fred’sgrandfather believed. After years of working and growing up inthe store, Fred’s father, Stan, took over for a short while. Then itwas Fred’s turn. He has run the show since 1972.“When I found out they were going to close it, I decided to
come back and give it a shot,” Fred said.He made the right choice. Small-town hardware stores may be
a thing of the past, but somehow Ulven’s Hardware in RoseCreek continues to defy time.
Ulven's Hardware not long after it was purchased in 1913. Theword“Anderson” is faintly visible above theword “Hardware.”—Photo provided by Fred Ulven
“When I foundout they were
going to close it,I decided to comeback and give it
a shot.”-Fred Ulven
Serving the people of Mower County in areas ofEmployment and Contracted Services by building business
partnerships for over 50 years.www.cedarvalleyservices.org
• Community or Supported Employment• School to Work Transition• Center-Based Employment• Mental Health Service
• Specialized Transportation
JAMEY ULVENAge: 39Town: Rose CreekFun fact: Likes to golf, snowmobile and enjoys classic cars;has a 1977 Camaro
FRED ULVENAge: 63Town: Rose CreekFun fact: Enjoys snowmobiles, restores and collects old andnew cars; has a 1948 Chevy Coupe and 2005 Chevy SSR
Ulven’s Hardware in Rose Creek hit its 100th year of family business in 2013.Fred and Jamey Ulven have adapted to meet the community’s needs.
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“You don’t see toomany small-townhardware stores any-more,” Fred admit-ted.Paint, motor oil,
nuts and bolts, pliers,screw drivers andwrenches fill thestorefront like anyother hardware shop.By the smell alone,anyone can tell it’s ahardware store. For45 years, it has beena dealer of Stihlchainsaws. A shelf fullof different sizes andmodels lines the wall.But that’s only half
of it. The focus isn’tjust on selling toolsand parts anymore.It’s about fixingthings.“The main thing for
us is power equipmentand the service weprovide,” Fred said ashe stood in the backhalf of the building,which is essentially a repair shop. There, Fred and his son, Jamey, sharpen saws,service snowmobiles, fix small engines and do anything within their abilities.“I just had to change it to that,” Fred added. “Sales was just not going to do
it.”That approach has worked well for locals and the Ulvens. Both Fred and
Jamey said repair work is one of their favorite aspects of the business. Otherthan that, they enjoy the customers, who over an hour filtered in and out ofthe store. One needed repairs. Another simply had a question. One was new,
but already wellknown.“He’s a new cus-
tomer, but he’s agood one,” Jameysaid as the manwalked in the door.Many of the cus-
tomers are like Fred;they’ve lived in thearea for decades.They don’t work atthe hardware store,but they spend inor-dinate amounts oftime inside it.“There’s usually a
pretty good crew bythe end of the daythat comes around,”Fred said.Many of those who
frequent the shop arethird- and fourth-generation cus-tomers. It’s the samestore, familiar facesand the same familybehind the counter.Generations of Ulvenscontinue to punch
the clock.Since 1991, Jamey has been working at the store, and will likely take over
when Fred is done. Like his dad, Jamey has boyhood memories about grow-ing up in the store: his great-grandfather watching the traffic through the win-dow, or chasing Jamey around the store with his false teeth.Perhaps Jamey’s 2-year-old son, Mason, will be a fifth-generation Ulven to
learn the ropes. It isn’t taking him long to learn the inventory.“He goes right for the suckers under the desk,” Jamey joked.
The original scale at Ulven's Hardware still sits near the cash register as Fred Ulvengoes about the day’s work.
Family continues to pass down store through generations
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The Grundmeier family, Gina and Todd and their daughter, EmmaWaters, left, have seen their share of hardship. Their house burneddown in 2010, and several weeks later, Emma suffered a seizure andgot into a car crash. But hopes are high two years later as the familyhas started T'NG Plumbing, and Emma is going to college.
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By Matt Peterson
Life is anything but easy for one family from Dexter, which is why they cherish it somuch. They don’t complain, even during the toughest times.In November 2010, Todd and Gina Grundmeier’s house burned to the ground. Gina
and two of her daughters, Emma Waters and Madison Sladek, awoke to smoke andflames. By chance, they were all in one room, and they ran outside in panic.“The state fire marshal said the girls never would have made it out,” Gina said.While the fire department was on its way, the three shivered andwatched the second
floor of the house become the first floor. Nearly everything they had perished in theblaze.Several days later, Waters suffered a seizure while driving. She rolled her car at 55mph
and suffered injuries to her head and arms, although she has completely recovered. Evenbefore all that, Toddwasn’t getting enough hours at work. The problemswere piling up.“We were doing all we could to pay our mortgage,” Gina said.Furthermore, Gina had been pushing Todd to start his own plumbing business— not
an easy decision.“He wasn’t kidding when he said I pushed him,” Gina said. “I pushed him for three
years. I’m Irish and German.”Obviously, the Grundmeiers couldn’t afford another setback. But after being kicked
while down so many times, risk taking wasn’t a big deal. What could be worse? Some-times risks pay off, and they did.
Moving forwardIn just their second year of business, the Grundmeiers have already added one em-
ployee. Gina even said they’ll have to get another van soon.“I thought the first five years I’d just be by myself,” Todd answered, in a rush. He was
on the run, in the middle of another busy workday. He had a few minutes to chat, buta fewmore customers. The Grundmeiers started T’NG Plumbing (which stands for Toddand Gina) less than four months after the fire. In two years, T’NG landed accounts innearly every town in Mower County. Todd even goes to Albert Lea.Gina spends life with a phone by her side. Vacations include work, too.Some small businesses hesitate to advertise. T’NG puts up billboards.Gina told Todd to start the business. As a wife, she already tells him what to do. Now
she tells him what to do at work. Somehow, that’s been working out for two years.“I couldn’t have a better position,” Gina said. “As a wife, I get to tell him what to do
and tell him where to go.”That could be stressful, but it’s OK.“I can hang up the phone, too,” Todd joked. “I don’t have to listen, but it’s inmy best
interest if I do.”Make nomistake, though. The whole family is happy with the arrangement. As men-
tioned, they don’t complain.“We’re all in this together,” Gina said. “This is a family venture. He doesn’t want to let
anybody down when it comes to his business.”
Still at itTodd has been plumbing since 1993, after he got out of the Navy. After 20 years of
connecting pipes and fixing water heaters, that could’ve becomemundane for anyone.For Todd, though, it’s about pride. Even when he didn’t have his own business, he tookcare of his customers as if they were his own, Gina said. Perhaps he gets some of thatmentality from her. That’s Gina’s lifestyle.“I guess I really like it,” she said. “My lifestyle is taking care of people.”The fire still hangs in the back of their minds, but they moved on and moved into a
new house. Something like that sticks with people forever. But they don’t look back andask “why?” They’re thankful.“I still think about it, not the fire, but how lucky I was to make it out,” Waters said. “I
just try to look at the better sides of it, I guess.”And Waters, Madison and Gina already have enough to deal with every day. Waters,
19, copes with schizophrenia.Madison, 13, has Asperger’s syndrome, andGina has gen-eralized anxiety and post traumatic stress disorder. Waters and Gina aren’t afraid to talkabout it, either. Theywant people to know about such disorders instead of running fromthem. They want people to understand them, not avoid them.Besides the new business, Waters is progressing in college and practicing with the
Riverland theater department. And both Gina andWaters have become certified speak-ers through theNational Alliance ofMental Illness, andwill give speeches about how theycope. No matter how busy, stressful or painful life becomes, the Dexter family that hasbeen through a lot won’t give up.“We sustain and manage and press on,” Gina said.
Rebuilding after tragedySeries of setbacks can’t keep Dexter family down
By Kevin Coss
One hundredth birthdays are nothing to scoff at. Yet when Farmers StateBank of Elkton reaches its big anniversary in October 2013, one man in par-ticular will celebrate his and his family’slong line of dedicated work.
“This is where I’ve been since I left col-lege,” said Michael Schneider, presidentof the bank. “We know everybody by theirfirst name.”
A handful of people opened the bank acentury ago with only $3,500 of theirown money. In 1920, Michael’s grandfa-ther, J.F. Schneider, began his family’slegacy with the bank when he becamepresident. Today, it has total assets ofabout $50 million, and it continues togrow. There are 2,500-2,800 accounts in total —which belong to 900-1,200customers — at the bank between its main office in Elkton and a branch nearDexter.
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Michael Schneider, co-owner of Farmers State Bank of Elkton,shows anold picture of the bank. The bankwill turn 100 yearsold inOctober.
A centuryof bankingFamily-owned Elkton bankreaches 100-year milestone
“We knoweverybody
by their firstname.”
-Michael Schneider
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DEXTER & ELKTON
507.584.1215fax 507.584.1195
236 S. Main St., P.O. Box 69Dexter, MN 55926
Paul A. TangenCLU, ChFC, LUTCFAgent
But for Michael, it’s not just a numbers game. His favorite part is the role the bankplays in the community.
“I enjoy visiting with people,” he said. “Each person that comes into the bank hasa different issue or concern than the other.”
Michael, who started at the bank in 1974, suddenly became president in 1990after tragedy struck his family. His father, Robert, passed away unexpectedly while onvacation overseas. While the bank had been handed down from father to son before,his father’s untimely death meant Michael had to take the reigns on very short notice.
“It was quite an adjustment,” he said.During his time at the bank, Michael has seen it change from all-paper to personal
computers and servers. While there’s still a lot of paper involved, there’s not nearly asmuch as there used to be.
“The technology has changed banking a lot,” he said. “People don’t have to visitthe bank as often.” Even if clients leave Mower County, they can still maintain theirbank accounts, he added.
Recently, the holding companies for Elkton bank and Farmer’s State Bank in Adamsmerged. Michael said the plan is to merge the banks themselves in the near future,which could happen in late 2013 or early 2014.
“We’re going to have more resources to run the bank,” Michael said.While the Schneider family has led the bank for most of the past 100 years, they
aren’t the only ones to stick with it. Out of the nine employees that work at the twooffices, most have been on staff for a long time. The most recent hire was in 2005.
1913The bank ischartered asa commercial
bank inElkton. It
opens withjust $3,500in capital.
1920J.F. Schneideris the first in
a line ofSchneidersto begin hiscareer at the
bank.
1950Robert
Schneiderbegins his
career at thebank.
Late1950sThe bankbuilding
undergoesan expansion.
1974Michael
Schneiderbegins his
career at thebank.
1977A branch is
built inDexter as anextension ofthe Elktonlocation.
1990Robert goeson vacation
and diesunexpectedlywhile away.
Michaeltakes over as
president.
2001The Dexterbranch is
moved to theintersectionof Interstate
90 andHighway 16.
2010Michaelʼsson, Tim,
startsworking atthe bank incompliance
and as aloan officer.
TIMELINE OF FARMERS STATE BANK OF ELKTON
Co-owner Michael Schneider is the third generation Schneiderto run the bank.
Farmers State Bank in Elkton will reachthe 100-year mark in October.
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By Kevin Coss
Justin Brandau will be the first to tell visitors to LeRoy:there’s more to this small town than they might expect.Brandau is a perfect example of a LeRoy expert.“I’ve lived here almost my entire life,” he said.Brandau is lead bartender at Sweet’s Hotel, a prominent at-
traction in LeRoy. Originally constructed in 1898, the build-ing features eight themed suites and rooms to reflect itshistory, five of which haveWhirlpool tubs. The hotel caters toall guests, from business travelers to those looking for a ro-mantic getaway. Local legend says the hotel is even haunted,and “ghost investigators” visit from time to time.The bar is open all day at Sweet’s, from 8 a.m. to 1 a.m.
With advance notice, the restaurant accommodates partiesof up to 35 people. It also has won several awards for bestfood in Mower County, Brandau said, and a lot of the estab-
lishment’s business is out-of-towners coming to visit therestaurant they’ve heard about so much.For Brandau, bartending is a fitting trade. He has been
doing it at Sweet’s for about three years.“I seem to be good with people, so that’s where I’m at,”
he said. “Eventually, I would like to own my own place.”If he were to open his own place, Brandau said he would
like to keep it about the size of Sweet’s. The establishment issmall enough to keep a cozy atmosphere, but large enoughto accommodate a crowd.When friends come to visit from Rochester or Austin, Bran-
dau will routinely take them to Sweet’s to enjoy drinks, foodand a bit of conversation.While he does enjoy spending leisure time at Sweet’s, he
also likes to mix it up once in a while and head over to theTravel Lanes Supper Club, just a block down Main Street.Travel Lanes is a blend of bar, liquor store, bowling alley andrestaurant in the heart of town.
Locals enjoy the benefits of a well-rounded town
Living in LeRoy
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THE
NUM
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“It’s a very nice place,” he said.Newly-elected LeRoy Mayor Jennifer Gumbel
said she was pleasantly surprised by the commu-nity when she and her husband moved to town.“We initially were just looking for a place equally
distant from Austin and Preston, for our jobs, andwhere we could find the type of home we wantedfor our budget,” Gumbel said. “We found out thatLeRoy has so much more to offer than just loca-tion and home prices.”
Amenities like a gro-cery store, two restau-rants, hardware storeand a florist make thetown more self-suffi-cient, and residentsdon’t always have todrive to Austin to runerrands or catch ameal.“We couldn’t be
more thrilled welanded here,” Gumbelsaid. “It’s a great placefor young families juststarting out and forretirees looking for asmall-town atmos-phere.”During his free time,
Brandau can often befound pedaling the
Shooting Star Bike Trail for a workout. The trail ex-tends about 23 miles and runs from LeRoythrough Taopi, all the way to Rose Creek. On theway, it passes through all sorts of natural scenery,from prairie and woods to Lake Louise State Park.“I usually ride my bike out on that at least once
a day for a couple of miles,” Brandau said. “Thestate park itself is a beautiful area and a very en-joyable place to spend time, especially in the com-pany of friends or family.”Gumbel also highlighted the town’s relation-
ship to the outdoors.“We’re just a walk away from a bike trail and
state park,” she said. “We literally feel like natureis in our backyard, while still having access to thenecessities.”
When the weather gets cold, there are still waysto keep in shape. Brandau frequents an Olympic-size, indoor swimming pool in town, which be-comes very popular during the winter. Residentscan get memberships in three-month, six-monthor yearly rates.If Brandau isn’t wrapped up in physical activity,
chances are he will be at the local library. He ap-preciates the resources available and has made ita regular facet of his life.“I’ve always been a huge reader,” he said. “The
city librarian I’ve known since I was a kid.”So often did Brandau go to the library that he
asked if he could volunteer. Now he spends agood chunk of his spare time helping in any wayhe can.Lately, Brandau has also become involved in the
workings of the city. He was elected as a LeRoyCity Council member in November 2012.According to Gumbel, it’s the LeRoy way to be
an active community.“Even in our small town, there’s a theater com-
pany and numerous ways to get involved and getto know your neighbors,” she said.Brandau is one of those who keeps active in
LeRoy’s theater community, where he both takeson acting roles and assists in the stage crew. Notlong ago, he participated in an old-time radio-style show, where the audience observed whatwas happening in a typical serial drama from backin the day. The actors dressed in period clothingfor the performance and even had someone onsound effects detail to imitate the way old radioshows used to run.Overall, Brandau said LeRoy is an active, pleas-
ant community, and likens it to the types of townsthat were prevalent in early television.“You watch enough of those old shows like
Andy Griffith, Leave it to Beaver,” he said. “Peopleare always helping each other out, waving hello.”
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LEROYA small townthat lives big!
Sweets Hotel bartender Justin Brandau talks with a customer during his shift.Brandau looks at home behind the bar, calling those he serves by name.
930Approximate number
of people living in LeRoy.
5Number of churches
in LeRoy.
115Age in years of the
Sweetʼs Hotel building.
1856Year the first school
in LeRoy openedat a home in town.
LEROY & OSTRANDER
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Weather conditions can prove fickle forgrowing crops, but Century Plastics in Hay-field gives farmers a measure of control.The farming business produces agricultural
drainage tile, which increases yields and re-duces compaction, says Century Plastics plantmanager Alan Dahlen.Too much water below the surface of the
soil can harm crops by preventing root devel-opment and inhibiting growth, according tothe University of Minnesota Extension. Soil
with too much moisture will also suffer fromcompaction when heavy farm machinery rollsover it, and can cause a tractor to get stuck.
Many soils in the Upper Midwest have poornatural drainage and would stay waterloggedfor days after rainfall without maintenance.
Dryingthe soilManufacturerkeeps farm cropsfrom floodingBy Kevin Coss
Chris Root maneuvers the forklift to collect a spooled drainage tileat Century Plastics in Hayfield.
36U.S. manufacturingfacilities owned byCentury Plasticʼsowner, Advance
Drainage Systems.
35Years the company
has been in business.
45Minutes it takes
to manufacture onemaxi of tiling.
3,200Feet in length of one
maxi of tiling
8-12Truckloads shipped
out per day
32Employees workingat the Hayfield plant
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Ryan’s Foods4 East Main Street • Hayfield, MN 55940
Video, Lottery, Food Stamps, WICDelivery Wednesday - Call by Noon
Senior Citizen Day every Wednesday: 5% discountLaundromat - located behind the store
507-477-3804
WALTHAM & HAYFIELD
Fresh tile is run out during manufacturing at Century Plastics.
19,200Feet in length of tiling
in each truckload
10Acres oncampus
4Buildings on Century
Plasticʼs campus
Drainage tiling, which comes in the form ofcorrugated tubing buried in the ground, is away of removing standing or excess waterfrom the soil, the opposite of using irrigationto add water to soil that’s too dry. Certaincrops depend on specific conditions to growwell, and drainage can help optimize the soilfor that growth.
How effective drainage tiling is depends onhow deep it’s laid, how far apart it’s put in
the ground and how much is used, Dahlensaid. Drainage contractors as far out as St.Cloud or central Iowa are Century Plastic’smain customers.
“It’s all based on footage,” he said.The company ships out supplies by the
truckload, then contractors use it to installdrainage systems. The plant runs 24-hours aday, three shifts a day, five days a week.
“We run around the clock,” Dahlen said.
By Trey Mewes
History books in Mower County tell studentsabout the wars U.S. soldiers fought over thepast century. Yet the books can’t show whatthose soldiers felt, thought, or experienced likethe Adams Veterans Museum can. After morethan five years, members of the Adams Ameri-can Legion collected thousands of uniforms,medals, patches, rifles and relics from local vet-erans to tell their tales and carry on the memo-ries of what it was like to serve their country.“There’s a lot of history here,” said JerryMathies, one of the museum’s board members.Legion members banded together to buypart of the building next to the Legion Post146, off of West Main Street in Adams a littlemore than five years ago. They used the layoutof what used to be part of a furniture store andstarted to fill it with memorabilia from localfamilies.Mathies will point out various items when hetakes people on a tour through the museum.On a stand just a short way from the door,there’s a door from a Humvee that was dam-aged with an IED roadside explosive device.The door was donated by National Guardmembers from Austin, Mathies said. Visitors cansee various punctures in the door, as well as thebroken pieces of thick glass that once formed awindow, the results of an improvised explosivedevice.Not far from the door are uniforms from Viet-nam, like the ones Mathies used to wear. Hewas drafted into the Army in 1966, served inVietnam in 1967, and was discharged in 1968.
He kept a diary during his time there, which hedonated to the museum.And less than 10 feet away from where hisdiary sits is a large shelf with photos of veter-ans who’ve passed away. Richard Mathies’photo is on that shelf. Richard is Jerry’s brother,who passed away in Cambodia in 1970.“My mother’s got his medals, but she’s not
ready to give them up yet,” Jerry said.Many residents have contributed other pre-cious items, as well. Dave Whalen contributed hiscollection of weapons, ranging from Civil War ri-fles to modern-era guns, for people to remem-ber what local residents like him did.“When I’m gone, I know where they’re goingto be,” Whalen said. “That’s forever.”
Jerry Mathies, a board member for the Veterans Memorial inside the Adams Legion,talks about the museum’s impressive collection and the interest it draws.
A small town boasts a museum showing how importantlocal soldiers are to our nation’s history
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Local history,global impact
Mathies said donated itemsstay there, and the museum isready to accept more items fromarea veterans. The museumwon’t accept uniforms, as boardmembers have hundreds to po-tentially display.
The museum is open on thefirst and third Saturdays of themonth during chicken feeds atthe Legion, but Mathies saidanyone can call the Legion at507-582-3266 to schedule avisit. In addition, board members
are willing to open the museumto area schools or social studiesclasses interested in finding waysto tie local history to large classunits.“It’s real nice for a small town,”
Mathies said.
Dr. Joseph P. RayFAMILY DENTIST
(507) 582-3563407 LINCOLN STREET NWADAMS, MN 55909
HOME (507) 582-1019
Dental Carewith a personal touch
ADAMSDENTALCLINIC
Adams Office15 4th Street SW, Adams, MN • 507-582-3448
Rose Creek Office61255 170th, P.O. Box 156, Rose Creek, MN • 507-437-4678
www.fsbadams.com
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Carl Krebsbach, along with his three brothers Gerald, Lawrenceand Richard, all have portraits displayed at the museum.
ADAMS
By Matt Peterson
Hundreds of big rigs roll past GrandMeadow every day along Highway 16, andmany of those drivers don’t even glancewhen they pass Durst Grain Co. Neitherwould anybody else, for the most part.But little do those people know behind
those mammoth, steel storage bins liessomething entirely different: the reasontheir big rigs often look fancy in the firstplace.Welcome to Featherlite Graphics. There’s
no sign out front, which is ironic: Thesepeople make signage for a living.“I just slid in as Featherlite Graphics,”
said owner Steve Durst, who started thebusiness in 1989.“When we
started out, wedid nothing butFeatherlite Trail-ers,” he said, not-ing FeatherliteTrailers’ long list of services now.The business has expanded. Durst and
his employees make semi trailers, vans andcompany cars look pretty. Every year thenumbers are different, but there’s alwayssomething sitting in the paint shop orwaiting to receive vinyl graphics. Durstbuilt a 25,000-square-foot shop in 2000just for painting trailers.“We do a lot of government jobs: Coast
Guard, Marines, Air Force,” Durst said.FOX Television’s broadcast rig, NASCAR
on FOX, was one of many jobs Durst willsee in 2013.
Pride in workRuss Schaalma wheeled around the big
trailer with squeegees in his tool belt andmade sure the graphics were on straight,with no air bubbles or defects.“This place consumes you pretty good in
the winter,” Schaalma said.
Darin Funk removed excess vinyl fromhinges and cracks and made things flushwith a heat gun. The process is the same asit has always been, but technology hasmade it easier. Vinyl sheets now have thou-sands of grooves on their adhesive side,which helps eliminate air bubbles.The smell of vinyl is rampant in a nearby
room where there are chemicals, cuttingtools, giant printers, computers, straight-edges and numerous 50-yard rolls of vinyl.About three of those rolls will cover onesemi trailer.Working for Featherlite Graphics is grat-
ifying for the employees, too. Jeremy Ped-ersen handles graphic design and makessure all the measurements fit. He sees the
Cedars’ bus orR i v e r l a n dCommun i t yCollege truckand is proudof the workF e a t h e r l i t e
Graphics did. Schaalma feels the sameway, especially when work is showcased ina magazine or on TV, for people aroundthe world to see.“I love doing this,” Schaalma said. “You
turn a motocross race on and you see atrailer you did. Not a lot of people can saythat.”Featherlite has wrapped trailers for Ford,
State Farm, KTM Racing, Drag Specialties,Medtronic and many more companies.On the other end of the spectrum, how-
ever, it prints simple things, too, like stick-ers. Most people, Durst said, thinkFeatherlite Graphics just works with largetrailers and expensive accounts. That’s nottrue.“We want to do more local stuff,” Durst
said, “Vehicles and stuff like that. ... Andthat’s what we’re after, the vans for thenewspaper, the TV station. That’s what Iwant.”
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GRAND MEADOW
507.584.1215fax 507.584.1195
236 S. Main St., P.O. Box 69Dexter, MN 55926
Paul A. TangenCLU, ChFC, LUTCFAgent
Business at Featherlite Graphicsis showing many positive signs
Virtuosos of vinyl
RaymondPtacek holds downapiece of the vinylwrapgoing on aNASCARon FOXbroadcast trailer as RussSchaalmapulls the backing away.
“I love doing this.”-Russ Schaalma
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STEVE DURSTOwner of Featherlite Graphics. The businesshas been a staple in the graphics industry,putting art on many iconic big rigs.Age: 61Town of residence: Grand MeadowFun fact: When not working, he enjoysgolfing in the area
SteveDurst, owner of Featherlite Graphics east of GrandMeadow, stands in front of aNASCARon FOXbroadcast trailer ofwhich his company is in themidst ofwrapping,one of several big jobs the company undertakes.
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By Matt Peterson
The huge, white building that shows “IBI Data” on its front has sat on the northend of Brownsdale for years, yet many people are clueless about what’s inside.Is Iblings Bergstrom Industries somehow tied to a farm that sits on the sameproperty, or is it some type of agricultural marketing company? The truth is,people who work there can’t explain it very well, ei-ther.“It’s very difficult to tell people what we do,” saidDagna Simmons, one of several program managersand nearly 50 employees inside the building.IBI Data is essentially a middle man for large foodproduction companies like Kellogg’s or General Mills,and small-time food service providers like restaurants.The company owned by Katherine Harte started inChicago in 1986 and moved onto Harte’s propertynear Brownsdale where it processes coupons and distributes checks to com-panies. It houses food samples and sends them to clients from its 123,000-square-foot facility. It designs promotional banners, brochure display cases,and much of the work companies don’t have the time or means to do.That may not be entirely clear, but one thing is: IBI Data is a great place towork. There’s a Nintendo Wii, exercise machines, a reading room, huge break-room, walking trails and plenty of employee incentives.In 2012, it was rated one of the 100 best companies to work for in Min-
nesota by Minnesota Business Magazine, continuing from its track record from2009 and 2010 as one of the Workforce Development Inc.’s best places towork in southeastern Minnesota.“I think the biggest thing is we definitely try to be very flexible and ac-commodate people’s schedules,” said Geoff Smith, vice president.Both Smith and Simmons have been with the company for more than 20
years. Simmons’ husband is battling cancer.Throughout that, Simmons has had to take a lotof time off. People are OK with that.“I can’t say enough good about being able todo what I needed to do and when I needed to doit,” she said. “There was never a question of, ‘Whyare you taking so much time off?’”Even newcomers seem comfortable with thecompany. Cynthia Xicara is one of the freshestfaces at IBI Data, where she does data entry with
others who have stuck with the company for 20 plus years. She, too, likes theflexibility and the learning curve.And IBI Data’s services are ever changing to meet customer needs. Thatadded variety keeps Simmons on her toes.“I find it very interesting and at times very challenging,” Simmons saidabout new projects and problem solving for clients. “It hasn’t become boringto me at all. And I don’t get up in the morning and go, ‘Ugh, I have to go towork.’”
IBI Data’s business is complex, but it is consistentlyranked as one of the leading employers in the state
Dagna Simmons, a program manager for IBI Data in Brownsdale, talks about writing checks for coupon vouchers.
Mysterious company,meaningful employer
“I don’t get up in themorning and go, ‘Ugh,I have to go to work.”
-Dagna Simmons
BROWNSDALE
507-567-2016305 West Main Street
Brownsdale, MN
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IBI Data awardsand accolades:•2012 AIB Superior Rating•Minnesota BusinessMagazineʼs 100 BestCompanies to Work forin the state•Promotional ProductIndustriesʼ PPAI GoldPyramid Award•Certified Womenʼs BusinessEnterprise•2012 Jade Team: Relay forLife•2010 Woman BusinessOwner of the Year•2010 and 2009 Best Placesto Work in Southeast Min-nesota award by WorkforceDevelopment Inc.•2007 Employer of Choiceaward: Best EmployeeRetention Program
IBI DataemployeesBret Canny, left,andAnthonyDavis take abreak and playWii disc golf.The chance tounwind aswellas exercise andtake advantageof quiet timeare part of theperks ofworking at IBI.
By Trey Mewes
Lyle Public Schools is on the cusp of a techno-logical breakthrough.The district has focused on classroom technol-
ogy over the past two years, starting with anorder for 30 iPads in 2011. Teachers found agood use for those tablets, as the district has ex-panded to about 120 iPads this year.Yet Superintendent Joe Guanella said the dis-
trict’s technological innovations aren’t over yet.As more educational applications are released,Lyle students will use tablets and other com-puter-based learning systems.“We’re going to grow into it in a logical, re-
sponsible fashion,” Guanella said.While other districts in Mower County put
technology in older students’ hands — PacelliCatholic Schools and Grand Meadow PublicSchools, among other districts, give computersto high schoolers — Lyle is going with a differentplan: Elementary teachers will emphasize tablet-related lessons.As there are far more elementary education re-
sources for elementary students, Lyle teacherswill integrate iPads and other tablets into fourth-and fifth-grade classrooms over the next year,Guanella said.
“If you think about that for a minute, it kindof makes sense,” he said.
Middle school and high school students willstill benefit from increasing technology in otherways, specifically the “Flip Classroom” concept.Students will receive instructional videos goingover new material to watch at home as part oftheir homework. Some students will understandthe lesson in the video and can do further workwhen they come to class the next day. Thosestudents who still need a little help understand-ing a concept will get it from the teacher, whowill have more time to work with students inclass.“The idea is to cut down that amount of time
for the kids that get it,” Guanella said.
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Lyle Public Schools Superintendent and Principal Joe Guanella has been a driving forcein advancing technology in the school. He set up a training system for teachers in theiruse of 120 iPads the school purchased.
Lyle studentKim Krulishworks on aniPad inchemistryclass. Theschool hasembracedthe use oftechnologylike theiPad.
Lyle is up to speedLyle schoolswill put iPads in students’ handsgoing forward
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Austin
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By Matt Peterson
The odor of burnt metal waftedthrough industrial buildings in Bloom-ing Prairie and out through the venti-lation units. The stronger that odorgrows, the more it smells like success.Dennis Heimerman pushed thepause button on his busy day ofphone calls, running numbers andbidding jobs and opened the door tothe 32,000-square-foot shop. That’sthe same spot he’d often rather beworking, side-by-side with his labor-ers, instead of punching numbers be-hind a desk.Heimerman is the owner of MetalServices in Blooming Prairie, the cat-alyst that fuels several other busi-nesses within the small town, such asTyler Mundy’s Heavy Metal and GregPeterson’s Extreme Powder Coating.While Heimerman is more than qual-ified to talk about the business side ofthings, he can’t help but chatterabout the fabrication side. That’swhere he got his start, worked foryears and built his own company.
First and last stopHeimerman eagerly maneuveredaround a delivery truck and piles of
steel to his newest tool, a computer-ized laser cutter he purchased in Oc-tober for extremely accurate cuts.“It’s crazy that a light beam can cutsteel,” Heimerman said as he peeredthrough the window at the laser cut-ter, which trimmed fine notches andcurves for materials to eventually goon firetrucks.Cuts like that — along with plasmacutting, pipe bending, sawing andwelding— are just the beginningstages for chunks of steel about to beshipped around Blooming Prairie forfurther trimming or painting and re-turned to Metal Services as finishedproducts to fire departments, wasteservices and construction sitesthroughout the region.Across town, several more of Heimer-man’s 25 employees are working onsmaller, local projects — welding,cutting, repairing and fitting piecesonto machinery — often for localfarmers and laborers.“We try to take care of the little guyand the big guy both,” Heimermansaid. “It presents its own challengessometimes.”But Heimerman isn’t alone in thosechallenges. One company doesn’tneed to specialize in everything.
A market for metals
ABOVE: Dennis Heimerman showsoff someof thework going on athis business,Metal Services in Blooming Prairie, and talks about thecompany’s connectionwith HeavyMetal and ExtremePowderCoating, both of Blooming Prairie. BELOW: Shane Shinabarger cleansfabricated pieces as a plasma cutterworks behind him.
A panoramic viewofMetal Services in Blooming Prairie.
A budding business is fabricatingjobs across Blooming Prairie
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Heavy metal — literallyLongtime acquaintance of Heimer-man and seasoned machine operatorTyler Mundy opened Heavy Metal inone of Heimerman’s buildings inBlooming Prairie — a short jaunt fromMetal Services.“He had this vision of bringing a lot ofbusiness into Blooming Prairie,”Mundy said about Heimerman.That vision is working. Mundy, whomachined parts for years and thentransitioned into sales for a while wasready for another career change. Heeven sold cars for a stint; that wasn’tnearly interesting enough for him. SoHeimerman negotiated with Mundywith hopes that Mundy would open abusiness.“It was just an opportunity, and I hada building that was open,” Heimer-man said.Sure, an electric guitar hangs onMundy’s office wall next to a graphicof the company logo, but rock ’n’ rollhas nothing to do with the name ofhis business.Heavy Metal does the tedious work.Mundy and his employees machineand finish the bushings and small, spe-cialty parts that connect to larger ma-chinery. The business wasn’t fullyoperational until October; however,Mundy said about 30 percent of hisbusiness now comes through MetalServices. Not only does that keep busi-ness churning in Blooming Prairie, itmakes operations easier for thoseBlooming Prairie businesses and theircustomers.“A lot of times, peopledon’t want to deal withmore than one per-son,” Heimerman saidabout his customers.So that’s why MetalServices handles theload for them. Partscome in to Metal Serv-ices, and they leavefrom Metal Services.“Even if it’s going to besubbed by a machineshop, we try to handlethe whole thing,”Heimerman added.But there’s more.
A ‘trifecta’Just around a couple corners, Greg Pe-terson runs Extreme Powder Coating,where he puts the finishing touches ofcolor on cars, sheets of metal, all theway down to simple railings.In 2000, Peterson started his businessas he saw the influx of dirt track rac-ing in the area but saw few people in
the region offering powder coating.He, too, was ready for a careerchange. But he didn’t roll the diceuntil he spoke with Heimerman. Nowthey’ve been doing business for 12years.“Dennis was absolutely the first personI called to start a powder coat busi-ness,” Peterson said, who frequently
does business with MetalServices. “Every day, thereis something different inhere from those guys.”And Peterson exchangesbusiness with HeavyMetal, too, all the waydown to painting custombeer taps for one ofMundy’s customers —beer taps that Mundymade. The three busi-nesses feeding off of eachother has formed a “tri-fecta,” as Peterson calls it.“I’m pretty excited aboutTyler being around,” Pe-terson said. “I think there
is a need for that sort of thing.”Even a few more, nearby businessessometimes fit into the equation.
Picking upBack at Metal Services, Heimerman re-turned to his phone calls and paperworkwhile his son, Ryan, sat in another office,negotiating with other professionals.
People say the metals industry isn’twhere it used to be in the early 2000s,but it’s slowly creeping back from therecession. Heimerman noted whenconstruction projects hit a lull andheavy machinery companies stoppedneeding parts, he was the next to takethe brunt of it.“A lot of our customers took a hit, so,inevitably, we did,” he said.In 2006 Heimerman built his new,32,000-square-foot facility andmovedinto it in 2007, but after 2008, the re-
cession hit the metals industry, alongwith plenty of others.“We’re not quite back to where wewere in 2008,” Heimerman said.Yet the outlook is promising. A pile ofparts often waits at Mundy’s shop,ready to go back toMetal Services be-fore finally being returned to the cus-tomer. And like every day, a truckloadof new material rolls through thegarage door at Metal Services, as thearoma of freshly cut steel hits thebreeze.
Daryl Bowmanof ExtremePowder Coating sprays parts fromMetal Services. Thecompanies, alongwith HeavyMetal, often trade business, promoting a healthy industryin Blooming Prairie.
“He had thisvision ofbringinga lot of
business intoBloomingPrairie.”
- Tyler Mundy aboutDennis Heimerman
We can produce & fabricate entireprojects or parts for your project.Laser and High Definition Plasma Cutting,
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Austin
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By Rocky Hulne
Terry Trom has been riding motorcycles since hewas 8 years old, and he found a way to keep them abig part of his life.For the better part of the last 27 years, Trom has
operated a motorcycle shop. He started operating itout of his farm, but for the past seven years he hashad a sweeter gig: TT Motorcycles in BloomingPrairie.“I’ve always been into Harleys,” Trom said. “It’s
much easier to be in town. It’s much more accessi-ble. We have one of the most competitive-pricedshops in the area.”Trom’s shop offers a variety of custom-made bikes
and draws customers from all around southeast Min-nesota.He started the shop at his farm in 1984 but closed
for six years after 1994 to spend more time with hischildren. Then he reopened in 2000 and moved itinto BP in 2005.Through it all, Trom maintains his farm and stays
very busy between his two jobs.“It has its days,” Trom said. “It’s been a little trying
at times, but I’ve got two certified techs who do agood job when I can’t make it to the store.”Trom has attended many of the big bike rallies and
has been to Sturgis, S.D., several times. Yet thebiggest drawback to having his own business is quiteironic: He spends less time on a bike. Somehow, hemanages to squeeze in 6,000 miles a year, some-times more.“That’s the downfall of being an owner,” Trom
said. “You don’t get much time to ride becauseyou’re trying to keep everyone else on the road.”While riding a motorcycle can be liberating, Trom
wants riders to remember to watch out for driverswho may not see them.“It’s very safe if you realize that you’re the only one
watching out for yourself,” Trom said. “It’s so relax-ing, and you get rid of all of your daily worries.”
BLOOMING PRAIRIE
TERRY TROMOwner of TT MotorcyclesAge: 49Town: Blooming PrairieHobby: Motorcyclesand farming
Blooming Prairie’s motorcycle man
“It’s so relaxing, and you getrid of all of your daily worries.”
-Terry Trom,owner of TT Motorcycles
Terry Trom, owner of TT Motorcycles in Blooming Prairie, poses in the showroom of his business, which is enjoyinga successful run supplying motorcycles, parts and services.
TT Motorcycles boasts a repair and customization shopbehind the showroom.
By Rocky Hulne
When the Queensland family’s realestate company was dealt with the taskof marketing and selling Deer CreekSpeedway 11 years ago, a light bulbwent off. The rest is history.
Ryan Queensland, who is now mar-keting director and event coordinatorat Deer Creek Speedway, had just beenmarried at the time, and his family de-cided to purchase the property and op-erate it by themselves.
The Queensland family had a back-ground in marketing, but they weren’tsure what to expect from a race track.
“There was certainly a lot of baptismby fire,” Ryan said. “A lot of peoplegave us advice, and we had to bring ittogether. It’s had its hills and valleys,but it’s an affordable family venue forentertainment.”
Over the years, the track — which islocated 15 miles south of Rochester onHighway 63— has been redesigned, andVIP Suites added. In 2010, Deer Creekwas awarded Regional and National Pro-moter of the Year by Racing PromotionMonthly magazine, and in 2009 the trackwas awarded the World of Outlaw LateModel promoter/event of the year.
There are currently six members ofthe Queensland family working at DeerCreek, so work days can feel a little likefamily get-togethers.
“Blood is thicker than water,” Randysaid. “We’re very fortunate as a familythat we can work together. It’s beenawesome and great.”
The track is very popular every sum-mer, and 2012 was no different. It drew555 drivers from 23 states and paid$840,000 in prize money. Cars over-flowed from the parking lot and intothe ditches. Swarms of campers, trail-ers, race cars, four wheelers, golf cartsand children flooded the grounds.
On a typical night at Deer Creek,one can expect 130 racers, 60 employ-ees and 1,200 to 4,000 fans in thegrandstands.
“It’s like any major sporting event,”Randy said. “There’s adrenaline, andthe sounds are very exciting. It’s prettyawesome watching all the work we’veput in come together and to sit backand watch all of the employees puttingpride into their job.”
Last season, Deer Creek drew a totalof nearly 54,000 fans.
“It’s grown locally, regionally andnationally,” Randy said. “We try to be agood community partner and provide afan-friendly environment with good en-tertainment value.”
Deer Creek is a 60-acre facility thathosts an average of 30 events a year. Ithas a high-banked, three-eighths,dirt/clay track with 24 VIP Suites, 36 VIPDecks and a total seating capacity of8,000. A
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State-of-the-art, high banked, 3/8mile dirt track. Don’t miss as local
and national “Dirt Daredevils” battleit out at speeds up to 100 mph!
Take advantage of reserved,discounted tickets, seating
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Conveniently located next tothe speedway. Bring the familyand join in the fun.With com-petitive pricing and a familyatmosphere Deer Creek
Campground has become agreat getaway.
Weekly,monthly and yearlydiscounts available!
Tickets available at thespeedway or online!
Don’t waste time “in line”when you can buy “online”
An aerial shot of Deer Creek Speedwayand its adjacent campground.
—Photo by Gene Miller
Thunder in the summerEach year,Deer Creek
Speedway roarswith family fun,plenty of thrills
Modifieds head into a turn.—Photo by Scott Gulbranson
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Like the back of his hand
By Rocky Hulne
Bryan Hernandez is a wealth of knowledge onauto racing at Chateau Raceway in Lansing,Minn.The Blooming Prairie resident grew up just
three miles away from the track and al-ways watched the races on Fri-day nights when he was achild. By the time he turned22, Hernandez was competingin the Bomber Class, which isthe equivalent of today’s PureStock Class, and he instantlydeveloped a love for the brightlights and high speeds.Since picking up the sport, Her-
nandez has raced for 30 seasons andwon Midwest Modified titles in2002, 2004 and 2009.Hernandez has always been suc-
cessful, but it’s getting harder for himto get to the track on a regular basisbecause he works construction 10- to16-hour days all week.“You need dedication,” Hernandez said. “The
last couple of years, I haven’t gotten to run asmuch. To be up front all of the time, you’ve gotto be on the track all of the time and not missany races. You’ve got to work on it pretty muchevery night.”Hernandez is also finding racing to be much
more expensive over the years, and it can bephysically draining for someone who works hardall week.“At one time it was pretty affordable, now you
really have to have sponsors no matter what classyou’re in,” he said.
“The older I get, theless energy I have. My family and a couple offriends help. They get the car out there and I justshow up to the track.”Even after 30 years on the track, Hernandez
still gets amped up for a Friday night at Chateau.Races became especially exciting for him whenhis 28-year-old son, Jesse Hernandez, joined theMidwest Modifieds last summer.
The elder Hernandez enjoys winning, but hesaid he learned over the years not to get tooupset after coming up short.“The only time I get down on myself is if I
crash or I do something stupid,” he said. “Yearsago I used to get mad about losing, but it’s justa hobby. You’re not going to be a millionaire offit, and you’re not going to NASCAR off it. It’s justa hobby, and you try to do the best you can atit.”While he has been in a few wrecks, Hernan-
dez has never experienced anything worse thana little soreness.
There is a sense of camaraderieon the track, and theonly thing that cancause hard feelings iswhen a driver gets a
little too close. But it’snothing they can’t shakeoff.“You’ll have a little con-
flict here and there, butmost of the guys I’veraced with for years, andwe’ve all moved up to-gether,” Hernandez said.
“We all get along pretty decent.”Hernandez hit Chateau Raceway just 16 times
last season. He used to race about 40 or 50 timesa summer. He’s clearly slowing down, but he’snot done just yet.“I’ll do it as long as I keep my sponsors, and I
feel like I still have a little drive for it. I’m takingit one year at a time,” he said.Chateau Raceway features a third-mile dirt
track and it holds races every Friday night at 7p.m. from April to October.
BRYAN HERNANDEZ
Hernandezhas raced a
t ChateauRaceway fo
r 30 years and has won
three titles in Midwest M
odifieds.
Age: 52. Town: Blooming Prairie. Fun fact: His son, Je
sse, also races.
Bryan Hernandez knows his wayaround the Chateau racetrack
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Pictured Left to Right:Johnny, Amy, Stephen, Alvina LeTendre(Owner), Josh, Gary LeTendre (Owner),Ben, Debbie, Erich, Gene
Mike Rand, Sales Representative • Toll Free: 1-800-544-2679E-mail: [email protected] • Web: www.tsbm.com
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Serving Southern Minnesota Since 1963203 North Main Street • Austin, MN 55912www.heartman.com • Phone: 507-437-450
Bryan Hernandez has been around racing a long time, and can boast three track championships at Chateau Racewayin Lansing.
Austin
Daily
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“I can’t envision Austinwithout the Bruins
at this point.”-Craig Patrick,Austin Bruinsowner
By Rocky Hulne
The Austin Bruins are in their thirdyear in Austin, and things couldn’t bemuch better. The team is winning andfans are showing up in big numbers.
It’s everything owner Craig Patrickimagined when he brought the teamto Austin.
“When I come to the arena and Isee all of the Bruins apparel in thecrowd, it’s incredible to me. It’s allturning out how I’d hoped it would,”Patrick said. “It’s the town’s teamnow, and they should be here for avery, very long time. I can’t envisionAustin without the Bruins at thispoint.”
The Bruins have already left a markin Austin, and it goes far beyond theFriday and Saturday nights in River-side Arena. Some of the Bruins’ play-ers are becoming local celebrities, asthey are often spotted by children andstore owners around town.
They also give back to those samechildren as the team makes school vis-its throughout the year.
“The kids really love our visits, andsometimes when we’re at a restaurantwe’ll hear a kid kind of mutter one ofour names,” Austin goalie Nicholas
Lehr said. “ It’s really cool to be at thisage and have kids looking up to you.”
Lehr, who was named goalie of themonth for December 2012, hasgrown into a solid player for the Bru-ins. He said it helps that he feels rightat home with the team.
“Coming into junior hockey I was-n’t sure what to expect,” Lehr said.“We spend eight or nine months ofthe year [together] and everybodygets close. It’s really like a whole newfamily.”
Patrick gives credit to Bru-ins head coach Chris Tokand his assistants JamieHuffman and KeatonWolf, who have done alot of recruiting to bringtalented players to Austin.
“Our goal is to win a nationalchampionship every year, and playerdevelopment and improvement isparamount,” Patrick said. “Chris hasdone a really good job ofteaching them abouthockey and being in-volved in the community.”
The more the Bruins stay in-volved in the community, the betterthe chances of them sticking aroundin Austin will be.
Right where they want to beIn year 3, Bruins giving hockey fans what they want
Lehr is a goaliefor the BruinsAge: 19Town: Roseville, Minn.Fun fact: Also likes to playtennis and golf.
NICK LEHR
CRAIG PATRICKOwner of the Austin BruinsAge: 48Town: Hudson, Wis.Fun fact: Likes hunting and fishing.
Years in existence: 3Record through 2 seasons: 40-22 in 2011-12, including 4-4in NAHL playoffs; 23-31 in 2010-11League: North American Hockey League, Central DivisionHead coach: Chris Tok
AUSTIN BRUINS
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NEW ORLEANS & LAFAYETTE, LA APRIL 12-22, 2013 $1599
NEW YORK CITY MAY 4-11, 2013 $1399
MAY BRANSON MAY 9-12, 2013 $559
HOLLAND, MI TULIP FESTIVAL MAY 10-12, 2013 $429
SPRING MYSTERY TOUR MAY 16-19, 2013 $559All New 4 Day Tour!
MYRTLE BEACH & CHARLESTON, SC MAY 18-26, 2013 $1299
NW CIRCLE & YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK JUNE 13-28, 2013 $2249
NASCAR - MICHIGAN SPEEDWAY JUNE 14-17, 2013 $529Sprint Cup & Nationwide Races
NIAGARA FALLS & TORONTO, ONT JUNE 17-22, 2013 $849
MACKINAC ISLAND, MI JUNE 21-23, 2013 $429
CALGARY STAMPEDE & CANADIAN ROCKIES JULY 6-14, 2013 $1519
CHICAGO, IL Gangster Tour JULY 19-21, 2013 $429
SUMMERTIME ON THE MISSISSIPPI JULY 23-25, 2013 $449
TRAINS IN THE COLORADO ROCKIES AUGUST 8-17, 2013 $1489
CODY, WY & YELLOWSTONE AUGUST 25-31, 2013 $999National Park
UTAH CANYON COUNTRY PARK TOUR SEPTEMBER 1-12, 2013 $2299
MACKINAC ISLAND, MI SEPTEMBER 13-15, 2013 $429
FALL MYSTERY TOUR SEPTEMBER 18-22, 2013 $699All New 5 Day Tour!
NEW ENGLAND FALL COLOR TOUR SEPT. 28-OCT. 9, 2013 $1689
ALBUQUERQUE, NM Balloon Fiesta OCTOBER 9-16, 2013 $1179
AUTUMN IN THE SMOKY MOUNTAINS OCTOBER 14-19, 2013 $849
WASHINGTON DC & GETTYSBURG OCTOBER 21-27, 2013 $1059
HAWAII-MAUI & HONOLULU JANUARY 18-26, 2014 $3499Complete Package with Air
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ALL OF OUR TOURS ARE FULLYESCORTED IN DELUXE MOTORCOACHES& LUGGAGE HANDLING IS INCLUDED.
FOR MORE INFORMATION,OR TO BOOK A TOUR, CALL TODAY!
Only a Few Seats Left on Some Tours!
Gift CertificatesAvailable in Any Amount!e-mail: [email protected]
Curbside ServicesCurbside services for recycling pickup (twice per month)are available for residents in the cities of Austin, Maple-view, Brownsdale, Grand Meadow, and LeRoy (within citylimits). Visit our website at www.co.mower.mn.us/Recycling-HHW.htm to see the curbside schedule.
How do I sign up for recycling andhow much does it cost?Come to the MC Recycling Center (1111 8th Ave. NE)Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday from 1-5 PM to pickup three bins and be given a brief overview of the pro-gram. Recycling fees are included in the taxes paid byMower County residents. As long as you are a resident ofMower County there is no additional cost to you.
Why should I recycle?We have to do something with the garbage we produce.American’s produce on average 1600 lbs. of garbage perperson every year - about 4.4 lbs. per day
Acceptable materialsNewspaper, magazines, white office paper, corrugatedcardboard, pressed board (ex: cereal box), tin cans, alu-minum cans, glass bottles & jars, plastic bottles withor . Visit our website at www.co.mower.mn.us/Recycling-HHW.htm for more information
WE DO NOT accept the following wastesWaxed cardboard (ex: fruit box), frozen food containersmade of paper (ex: frozen pizza box), juice container madeof paper, window glass or mirrors, ceramic glass (ex: cof-fee cup), any plastic not in bottle form through ,no styrofoam of any kind, no plastic bags of any kind.
Drop-off for recyclingWe do have a drop off area at the Recycling Center locatedat 1111 8th Ave. NE in Austin.
Questions?www.co.mower.mn.us/recycling.html or callMower County Recycling office located at1111 8th Ave. NE, Austin, MN 55912.Call (507) 437-9551.
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Members of the Austin gymnastics teamwork out above a foampit on bar format the YMCA. In recent years,the gymnastics programhas progressed by leaps and bounds to becomeoneof the best inMinnesota.
Finding ‘Ubuntu’By Rocky Hulne
Watch the Packer gymnasts compete, and you’ll see why they’ve been sosuccessful the past few years.
No matter the event, no matter the competitor, no matter the result,you’re most likely to see a lot of support coming from the Austin bench.
It’s an attitude that didn’t change overnight, but after six years of build-ing, the Packers have found “Ubuntu” — a South African phrase that signi-fies togetherness.
“Our concept of team goes beyond the five that happen to be [compet-ing]. We have the same expectations for the No. 1 one girl to No. 12, andall 12 are training the same way,” Austin head coach Mark Raymond said.“It isn’t that the numbers are different or the kids are different. It’s that theirattitude and work ethic has gotten better every year. We’ve learned what itmeans to encourage each other.”
When Raymond came back to coach the Packers six years ago, the pro-gram was on the chopping block, and the Packers were putting up scores of128. By comparison, the Packers are now scoring 130s — on junior varsity.
The Austin varsity squad, which has taken fifth atthe Class ‘A’ state meet two of the past three years,has scores as high as 145, which is a mark only fiveteams in the entire state hit in the 2011-2012 schoolyear.
Austin sophomore Abby Bickler, who has com-peted since seventh grade, has seen the programchange. She also happens to be the niece of Austinassistant coach Amy (Bickler) Hajek, who was athree-time Class ‘AA’ state qualifier and state cham-pion in the floor exercise in 2002.
Bickler doesn’t remember much of Hajek’s highschool career with the Packers, but she recalls fol-lowing her aunt’s gymnastics career at Winona StateUniversity.
“When I was little, I’d go hang out with her. We’djump on the trampoline, and she’d teach me allthese cool things,” Bickler said. “I kind of grew uparound it and she taught me it. I started to lovedoing it, and I wanted to be just like her when I waslittle.”
Hajek remembers Bickler traveling to Winona tolearn about gymnastics from her, and Hajek evenflew to Washington, when Bickler lived there for astint, to train with her.
In 2012, Bickler took fourth on the floor at state,and that wasn’t even the best performance by aPacker that day. Sela Fadness, a junior, won a titleon the floor and third in all-around.
Gymnast AbbyBickler andAmyHajek, a former Austin gymnast andnowassistant coach, bring some family ties to the team: Bickleris Hajek's niece.
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“It’s really cool to see how Abby has grown,and to be a part of that success is huge.”
-Amy Hajek,aunt to Austin gymnast Abby Bickler
“It’s really cool to see how Abby has grown, and tobe a part of that success is huge,” Hajek said. “They’vejust got a great group of girls. They all genuinely likegymnastics, and they’re in it together. They’re inter-nally competitive, and it’s kind of like ‘I’ll do it if youdo it.’”
By the time Bickler got to middle school, trainingfor gymnastics had become second nature. With herin the gym at that young age were current PackersCarolyn Hackel, Abby Snater and Fadness. That squadgradually learned they needed to work as a team andnot as individuals.
“We put a lot of time and energy in encouragingeach other and being happy for each other,” Ray-mond said. “Carolyn Hackel’s a hell of a gymnast, andthere’s been nights where she’s thrown on JV. Whenshe does, she stands on the sideline and cheers as loudas she can for the girl who’s in the spot that she wasin two nights ago, knowing she can get it back. Thatattitude has helped them get better. They don’t getupset with each other.”
Bickler said that the gymnastics team has becomelike a second family. The group, which includes be-tween 12 and 16 athletes on a given year, works to-gether in the summer, and the girls support eachother during the season.
“We went through a lot, and we’ve seen lots of dif-ferent situations,” Bickler said. “As we’ve gotten bet-ter, the biggest difference is how we work together,and we’re excited when other people succeed insteadof being jealous. We use it to push ourselves to get tothat level.”
Like any good family, the Packers watch out fortheir younger “siblings,” as well. Austin had threenewcomers on this year’s team, and all of them weretaught to embrace the team mentality.
Raymond said once that attitude is installed, it’svery hard to lose it.
“Once you have a system, an attitude and a men-tality, there’s no reason why it doesn’t transfer everyyear,” he said. “You graduate one or two, and youwelcome one or two back on to the squad. Gymnas-tics will reward those that work really hard.”
The Packers’ closeness is probably the biggest mo-tivating factor they have. The whole roster is con-stantly trying to reach its full potential as everyonetrains together and everyone is expected to bring theirbest.
“Before it used to be that girls were waiting to bevarsity girls when other girls graduated,” Raymondsaid. “That’s kind of gone away. Girls understand thatthey’ve got to challenge themselves and competeagainst their own best score. Everything else will takecare of itself.”
The Packer gymnastics team practices withthe YMCA youth gymnastics program at the Y.
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Austin head football coach Brett Vesel watches Matt Anderson lift weights after school as Damian Ryks spots.
Lifting a programBy Rocky Hulne
In his first year, Austin head coach Brett Veselhelped the Packers snap a two-season winlessstreak. Now, he’s hoping for even bigger things.
While football doesn’t start until the fall, the sea-son has been very much alive in the Austin HighSchool weight room during the offseason. Vesel hasbeen front and center in the team’s weightliftingprogram, which includes workouts on Mondaythrough Thursday.
Since he came to Austin, Vesel has beenadamant about the importance of the weight
room, and he’spleased with theturnout this year.
“It’s the back-bone, the legsand the neck [ofthe program].It’s everything,”he said. “If youdon’t lift, you’renot going towin, and that’sthe bottom line.Hopefully wecan get theseguys to buy intolifting consistently,and things hopefully can change.”
The Packers went 2-7 in 2012, and many soph-omores and some freshman received a trial by fireby playing varsity. Those players are now hopingto build some strength for 2013.
Austin junior Gabe Gerstner is hoping theyounger players buy into the weightlifting pro-gram this winter and the offseason program thissummer.
“I talked to some of the underclassmen, andthey said the game is really fast and the guys are re-ally big. I told them, ‘you’ll get that way if you workhard and lift. It’ll come to you,’” he said. “The off-season is really important, because you can’t liftduring the season. You get bigger, stronger andfaster in the offseason.”
Gerstner said Vesel picked a few leaders amongstthe upperclassmen, and those leaders draftedweightlifting “teams” to keep things competitive.
“It makes the offseason more of a team aspectinstead of being an individual,” Gerstner said.“That’s a good way to do it.”
Vesel came to Austin last year from La Crescentand had to spend much of his early time getting toknow his team. Besides coaching football in the fall,Vesel was the junior varsity hockey coach this win-ter, which helped him get to know a few more stu-
dents who might be interested in playing footballin the fall.
“I feel better now,” Vesel said. “I know who ac-tually plays football, and I know who we need totry to get to play football. Now I know the kids bet-ter and know what they can do. That makes it eas-ier.”
Austin’s younger players are slowly coming inmore often, and the veterans on the squad havebeen in almost every day.
As the program grows, Vesel is hoping his num-bers increase.
“Football is a numbers game, and if you get de-cent success, that’ll help the numbers,” Vesel said.“We didn’t win nearly as many games as wewanted to last year. I think kids can see we’re onthe road to improvement, and hopefully we canget some more numbers.”
Of all the players working in the offseason, jun-ior Cory Hepler may be one of the more motivated.Hepler injured his knee on one of his first carries ofthe season last year, and he’s aiming to come backstrong for his senior year.
“I’m very hungry,” Hepler said. “I really want tostart next year and make up for junior year. It’s es-pecially competitive between me and ElijahDammen, because he started last year and it’s be-tween me and him at running back.”
BRETT VESELVesel is entering his second year as thehead football coach of the Packers,who went 2-7 in his first season.Age: 49Job: Math and physical educationteacher, and Austin football coachTown: AustinHobbies: Vesel likes motocross racing,hunting and spending time with family.
Packers hit the weight room to boost their record
Vesel spots Gabe Gerstner. Vesel islooking to build a strong foundationfor a better program.
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Kevin Binkley, one of the owners of ArtesianWell south of LeRoy, stands in the company’s
warehousewith pallets of bottledwaterready for shipping.
Few people get as jazzed about something as simple as water as Kevin Binkley.The CEO and one of several co-owners of Artesian Well in LeRoy is fascinated by
it, especially the stuff that’s right under his feet.“How the water was found here is an awesome story,” Binkley said as he sat in
the lobby among display cases of Artesian Fresh water bottles. “But it wasn’t me.”In 2004, a farmer built a house on the property and while drilling the well, he
struck an aquifer. Water shot into the air like a geyser, and a business of naturallypure water was born.Binkley and the other owners acquired the business in March 2012 and have big
plans to market the water, expand their customer base and to make sure peopleknow they exist. Why they exist and why their water is superior, Binkley said, is themessage he wants to deliver.Almost every bottle on a store shelf, Binkley says over and over, is inferior.“Almost all of the water you buy and drink is essentially filtered tap water,” he
said.However, he swears, the water underneath the large metal building south of
LeRoy is of the most virgin sort in the world.“This water hits the atmosphere when the user pops the top and opens the bot-
tle,” Binkley said. “This water has been sealed forever in an aquifer.”Artesian wells aren’t common, and that’s why Binkley jumped at the business
opportunity. The uniqueness, the potential, the implicit quality: All of those as-pects pry at him. The whole process — water coming from the ground and goingout the door in a bottle — still fascinates Binkley after a year. The man is giddyabout it.Inside a corner of the warehouse, water rises into the building at the earth’s dis-
cretion. There are no pumps. A steady stream of water spills into a drain in thefloor. That way, the water won’t sit in the lines and become stagnant.“Then we would have water sitting in pipes,” Binkley said about what would
happen if they capped the flow. “I don’t want to drink that water.”
As a precaution, the naturally pure water still passes through UV and mechani-cal filters before it is routed to the bottling area of the building, where ArtesianWell blows and forms its own bottles out of small, plastic vials.“It goes, ‘poof,’ and there’s your bottle,” Binkley illustrated as he meandered
throughout the warehouse and showed the machines.The bottles travel along a conveyor, through a filling room, where they are rinsed
upside down and filled with the pure water. Then they are sealed, labeled, shrink-wrapped and placed on pallets, ready to go to their customers.Binkley and his nine employees are proud of it.“Now that I am general manager, I just love the ins and outs of it,” said Gerald
Payne. “We have great employees and great companies we work with.”Yet Binkley knows the company can do better, and he and Payne are ready to ex-
pand their marketing.“We believe that most people in Rochester and Austin don’t know that we exist,”
Binkley said.That’s why Binkley wants to land at least 100 more local accounts and drill the
public with a marketing campaign in 2013.“I think I want to communicate to people what they don’t know,” he said. “They
don’t realize the quality of product we offer.”Thus far, Artesian Well has a distributor in Atlanta and several local buyers, such
as small-town grocery stores and gas stations. It also custom prints labels and bot-tles cases for insurance companies, graduations, town celebrations and more. Ahost of its examples sits proudly in a display case in the front of the lobby. Otherbusinesses buy cases for their employees, which was clearly indicated by Binkley’senthusiasm when the afternoon call came from a client.“Viking is out,” Binkley shouted at Payne. “I took them five cases yesterday!”Meanwhile, rows and columns of pallets sit in staging, waiting to be loaded on
a truck for their weekly shipments — but that’s not enough. Binkley has big plansfor 2013: 2 million bottles.
Uncommon waterBottled beverage company looking to make a splash
Story by Matt Peterson
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By Kevin Coss
n November 2011, Austin High School athlete Ryan Synoground took his friend’sadvice and went to a Fellowship of Christian Athletes meeting — referred to as a“huddle.” He immediately felt at home.“It was just awesome to see a bunch of Christians like me,” he said. “It was fun tobe around like-minded people.”Interested in athletics since kindergarten, Synoground was a junior in 2012, hisfirst year playing varsity football as a quarterback for the Packers. He has been onthe football and basketball teams for three years each, and runs track in the spring.The FCA’s huddles, which take place every two weeks and attract 20-30 students,opened the door for Synoground and other stu-dents to talk about their faith, play games or study.Not long after joining, Synoground became Austin’sFCA captain. Now it’s up to him to encourage hisfellow students to come to meetings, put postersup around the school and spread the word aboutFCA. He also leads Bible studies every Friday morn-ing.“I kind of took on that role toward the end of[2011],” he said.Math teacher Will Pazurek, huddle coach forAustin’s FCA chapter, said encouraging leadershipand accountability is one of the group’s goals.“That’s where FCA can really have a big influence,” Pazurek said. “It’s studentdriven. Ryan does a good job of keeping it going.”The boys basketball team started FCA in Austin four years ago. Today, the groupis split evenly between boys and girls, and students of all fields of interest.“We have some people who aren’t athletes but just love to come,” Pazurek said.During the fall 2012 semester, FCA became an official student group. The newdesignation makes it easier for the group to use school facilities, which Pazureksaid could encourage growth.“That’ll really help us explode,” he said.The Austin chapter is also looking to help other areas start, he said. While there arealready chapters in nearby communities like Rochester, Owatonna and Faribault,the Austin group has set its sights on helping Lake Mills, Iowa, get started. A chap-ter in Lyle might also be a possibility.
Christian student athletes find common interest
Austin Highmulti-sport athlete Ryan Synoground is a leader on the football field, but he's also a leader off it with a prominent rolein AHS’ Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
Football and faith
“It was funto be aroundlike-minded
people.”-Ryan Synoground,Austin FCA captain
Austin'sRyanSynogroundstepsup in thepocket to throwduringagameagainstMankatoWestatArtHassStadiumin2012.
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Come visit our showroom
By Trey Mewes
In just a short time, Pastor Simon Dup will travel to South Sudan to finish amission he started years ago: He’ll see a new school built in southeast Africa,one of many he hopes will sprout up across the new country.“We try to help our people,” Dup said.Dup came to the U.S. in 1994, one of many Sudanese refugees from the
southern part of the region to escape violence and persecution by Sudanesearmies in the north. He came to Albert Lea in 2003 from Des Moines, Iowa,where he started school at a seminary. Dup, who graduated in 2008 and com-pleted ordination in 2009, formed the Sudanese Evangelical Lutheran MissionChurch of Southern Minnesota. He leads two Sudanese congregations, one atSt. John’s Lutheran Church in Austin and one at Zion Lutheran Church in Al-bert Lea.Yet Dup, like many Sudanese refugees, thought of ways to help people back
in Sudan who were trapped in the fight between the Sudanese governmentand its Christian residents. Dup resolved to raise money to build a school, col-lecting $9,700 in 2010. Dup ran into harsh reality in 2011, however, when hetried to go back to the region: The road needed to get to his small part ofsoutheastern Sudan was closed because of fighting.“North Sudan tried to destroy anything they could,” Dup said. “So they blew
up the way to the place I want to go to build the school.”South Sudan declared its independence in July 2011, after
residents overwhelmingly voted to split the regioninto its own country. Though the countryhas made great strides sincethen — South Sudanis a mem-
ber of the United Nations and signed the Geneva Convention in July 2012 —its government has yet to centralize enough to offer municipal services U.S. res-idents have long been accustomed to, such as a country-wide education sys-tem.“Right now, [U.S. refugees] try to help people to build things, to build a
church, help children by building a school,” Dup said.That’s why Dup will go to South Sudan in March. His church still has the
money to build a new school, all $9,700 of it.“This school is not a special school that we have right now,” Dup said, as it’s
more important children simply have a place to go and learn.Dup will go to Africa and attempt to get back home either through Sudan
or by renting a car in nearby Ethiopia, though he speculates he may have towalk. He and other Sudanese volunteers will only have two months to build be-fore summer rains complicate the process, but Dup is confident he’llbe there for a couple months at most.“I will stay there until the school is done,” he
said.
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PASTOR SIMON DUPAge: About 45
Town: Albert LeaInteresting fact: Dup got to choose his own birthday. InSudan, people don’t usually keep track of birthdays or
how old they are. That’s why a lot of Sudanese refugeeswrite their birthdays as Jan. 1, and pick a year based onhow old they might be. Dup thinks he was born in 1967,
and chose April 5 as his birthday.
Unfinished businessLocal minister to travel to South Sudan
to complete construction of school
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Pastor SimonDupof the Sudanese Evangelical LutheranMission Church of SouthernMinnesota is heading to Southern Sudan inMarch to help build a school. He raised $9,700 in 2010 to build it, but fighting in the Sudan prevented him fromgetting to the villagewhere the schoolwill be built.
Some people go to breakfast after church on Sunday. Others relax at home. ButBill Holder has a different routine. Each week after attending the serviceat Grace Baptist Church, Holder goes to the Mower County Jail and Jus-tice Center.Holder is one of three people who go to the jail to do-
nate religious literature and talk with the inmates. Overthe last 39 years, Holder has visited the jail on a weeklybasis. He has touched many inmates and encouragedthem to seek guidance through faith.“I would just talk to them, get to know them a little
bit,” he said.Holder moved to Austin in 1970 and worked as a
school teacher at Ellis Middle School. About six monthsafter he arrived, he experienced a life-changing momentwhile talking with a song leader at his church.“He asked me: If I died tonight, would I go to heaven?”
Holder said.Following a divorce, Holder was having a rough time.
This question got him thinking, and changed his viewson life. He remembers Jan. 6, 1971, as the date he wassaved.Two years later, Holder’s friend, Ken Binkley, got the
idea to go to the jail and help the inmates there. Heurged Holder to come with.“He just went to the sheriff and asked if we could do
that,” Holder said.And so began many years’ worth of dedication to in-
mates.When meeting inmates, Holder asks if they have a church, and if they
have accepted Christ as their personal savior. Often, he will ask the samequestion he credits as sparking his salvation in 1971. These days, his mostcommon role is leading Bible studies at one of the classrooms in the jail.But he also works with inmates one-on-one.
“There’s so many guys who didn’t know what it took to be a Christian,”Holder said.One former inmate Holder used to visit, Jim, said Holder’s visits deep-
ened his faith with God and Jesus, and convinced him toread the Bible more.“He helped open my eyes to God and Jesus,” he said.
“He definitely got me thinking more along the lines thatprayer can help.”Holder came to visit regularly during Jim’s six to eight
months in the county jail. He would ask Jim about his sit-uation and spend time getting to know his interests. Theywould also pray together.“I looked forward to him coming to see me,” he said. “I
had never been in trouble before in my life.”Although their jail meetings were about 23 years ago,
the two still keep in touch to this day via letters andphone. Holder was a big influence for Jim, and helped himmake the decision to never want to harm another humanbeing again.“I got a bigger high out of helping others rather than
harming others through Bill’s influence,” Jim said.During his visits, Holder tells inmates his own story, and
the difficulties he has faced over the years. It helps themrelate to him and understand accepting faith into theirlives is more of a process than a simple switch. Some in-mates will identify ways they would like to change andwork to embrace their beliefs, but get frustrated or con-
fused when they make mistakes along the way. Being born again doesn’tmake you perfect, Holder said. It takes time and dedication.“I can tell them it’s not an easy road all the time,” he said. “You do have trials.”One of the biggest problems inmates will face, he said, is starting to be-
lieve circumstances have conspired against them. That sort of thinkinghampers any positive change.
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By Kevin Coss
FAITH THROUGH TRIALS
BILLHOLDER
Voluntarilyteaches faithat the Mower
County jailAge: 74
Town: AustinFun fact: Holder
and his wife,Helen, have a
large collection ofnativity scenes
they displayduring the
Christmas season.
Bill Holder has been bringing the Word of God to inmates for many years, praying with them and handing out literature.
“Don’t think the system’s against you,” Holder tells inmates. “Just get outand help people.”
The Bible is a big part of Holder’s visits, along with religious literature inboth English and Spanish. He gives a copy of the book to any inmate whowants one, and gives them pointers on how to make sense of it.
“I tell them what to do and how to read it,” he said. “It touches their heart.They tell me what they read thatday.”
Holder is a Gideon, part of theinternational group that distrib-utes one Bible about every twoseconds. There are about150,000 of them across theworld, he said. In Austin, theyspeak to local congregations toraise money for the books.
Along with the three Gideonswho go to the jail, Holder said,there are also Catholics who givecommunion to those who wishto receive it, and a woman whocomes in specifically to talk to thewomen inmates.
Holder doesn’t leave his serviceto the inmates at the jaildoorstep. Instead, he keeps a cal-endar at home of who he praysfor each day and for how long.
And sometimes, his prudence is returned. Not long ago, Holder was wor-ried about his wife, Helen, who would soon be undergoing surgery. He men-tioned it during one of his visits, and an inmate told him he wanted to prayfor her.
“He said the most beautiful prayer for Helen,” he said.Holder’s work at the jail has shown him there are misconceptions about in-
mates, and the stigma is mostly not true. Many have a desire to better them-selves, and are enthusiastic about participating in Bible study and other services.
Of course, different inmates have a different reaction to Holder’s presence.“A large number would come up and talk, and some wouldn’t have any-
thing to do with me,” he said. Some people warmed up over time, after afew weeks of seeing Holder show up.
The same goes for former inmateswho he had spoken with at the jail.There are those who forget abouttheir experiences and ultimatelyleave unchanged from Holder’s visits.But there are plenty of the opposite.
Through the work he does, Holderestablishes a strong connection withmany of the inmates. Some of themstay in touch after being released.Holder makes a point of calling themduring the Christmas season to seehow they are.
One inmate he used to visit regu-larly told him he had really changed.He had taken a completely differentattitude in life, and was earning goodgrades in classes like chemistry andphysics.
“I really can’t tell you the excite-ment I get from some of the results,”
Holder said.Another had called him toward the end of summer to let him know how
inspiring Holder’s visits had been, and to say he was now married, doingwell and very involved with his local church.
Even when he walks down the street, people approach Holder to see howhe is. Though the visits only go until inmates are released from jail, the per-sonal relationships last much longer.
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Volunteer helps inmates see light of God
There’s so many guyswho didn’t knowwhat it took to bea Christian.-Bill Holder
“
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Danielle Nesvold has taken an aggressive stance against bullying in Austin. She started Community Against Bullyingwith fewexpectations, but it has blossomed into a large-scale group of parents, educators and residents hoping to reduce the issue.
By Trey Mewes
Sometimes it takes one woman to bring a community together. That’s whatDanielle Nesvold found out, as she went from concernedmom to community leaderover the past two years.The group she founded, Community Against Bullying, cele-
brated its two-year anniversary in February 2013, and Austin’sparents, educators and active citizens are planning bigger thingsto combat bullying in this town.Nesvold started CAB in February 2011, just a few weeks after
her son, Sam, was bullied at Southgate Elementary School. Bul-lying was a hot topic at the time, as the sudden suicide of 18-year-old Tyler Clementi sparked a national and internationaldiscussion over bullying and LGBT rights. For Nesvold, the factthat her son was being bullied by another student — who did-n’t show any sign of stopping — drove her to act.“I guess I didn’t have [CAB’s sudden growth] in mymind at the
time,” Nesvold said. “What I did have was just trying to reallyexplode awareness, and really to gauge what would happen afterthat.”Nesvold described CAB’s early days as “driving off the adren-
aline of what happened to her son.”Within weeks, CAB had a purpose and a big surprise for Austin:
Volunteers would raise money to bring The Scary Guy, an inter-nationally recognized anti-bullying motivational speaker, to Austin to speak to stu-dents.They did just that, bringing Scary to town in late October 2011 for almost two
weeks. Scary spoke at each Austin school and even held public events for parents andresidents on what they could do to curb bullying in the community.Since then, CAB has put on or helped with a series of smaller events including a
parenting clinic at the Paramount Theatre, and a partnership with Desperate Tears,
a local suicide prevention group, for several events related to area tragedies.Yet CAB is planning much, much more. Nesvold, the president of CAB and ar-
guably the glue holding the group together, is working with CAB volunteers on“Paint the Town Orange,” a month-long event recognizing positive aspects of thecommunity and educating people about bullying. “Paint the TownOrange” is sched-
uled for this October, which is National Anti-Bullying Month.“It’s going to be kind of a gathering of the community,”
Nesvold said.As CAB has grown, so too has Nesvold. The long-time school
volunteer and Austin Jaycees organizer has fielded calls from jour-nalists both local and national, graduate students studying bul-lying from as far as Texas, and various communities around theU.S., all wondering how CAB has become so successful and howbest to duplicate the awareness CAB has fostered.“It’s an issue that really binds people together,” Nesvold said.
“What’s really wonderful about Austin is people are really effec-tive. They’re immediately thinking, ‘What can I do to be a partof this?’”Nesvold is also embarking on a new path. She speaks to
groups and organizations about anti-bullying efforts, and thingsthey can do to foster a peaceful environment. She’ll soon speakto about 90 girl scouts from Kasson, Minn., who experiencedtheir own tragedy when an area teenager committed suicide lastyear.
“There’s simple things that I’ve learned that I can address with these girls,” Nesvoldsaid.Bullying is not an easy issue to tackle, however. But Nesvold and other CAB vol-
unteers are well-aware of the effort they’ll have to give to make Austin a better place.“It brought me an awareness that I realized how big bullying is, and what it’s going
to take [to combat it],” Nesvold said. “It’s going to be a continuing process to stopbullying. But I’d rather do that than just let a problem exist.”
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DANIELLENESVOLDFounder of CommunityAgainst BullyingAge: 38Town: AustinFun fact: She is distantlyrelated to Celine Dion andMadonna on her mother’sside. She also lettered inwrestling in high school,because she was thewrestling team manager.
Mom on a missionThrough CAB, Danielle Nesvoldis taking a stand against bullying
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By Adam Harringa
In a gang of fit business types, Greg Baskin considers himself the old-timer.But at 56 years old, he has been running for about 18 years, and doesn’t act like
an old-timer — he still comfortably knocks off four- to five-mile runs at aneight-and-a-half-minute per-mile clip. And almost every weekday just beforenoon, he and a handful of other Hormel Foods corporate employees meetfor a run — inclement weather and interruptions be damned.
“The one thing about this running group is, we will run 365 days ayear, and we do not let the weather stop us. We’ve been out in some verybad storms in the winter time that we probably shouldn’t have been,” saysBaskin, the director of Hormel’s specialty products division, with a laugh.“Sometimes we’re maybe not the most intelligent people running insome of that weather, but somehow you just work your way throughit.”
Hormel employees in Austin have been running together in one formor another since roughly 1991, Baskin says, when the company carvedout a trail behind its corporate office. Since then, employees havebeen transferred, others have retired, but a core of dedicated runnersremains, a group that now includes Baskin, Hormel’s Corporate Man-ager of Business Development Jeff Grev, and one of their biggest moti-vators, Brent Brehmer.
“His philosophy is nothing stops us,” Baskin says of Brehmer, once a col-legiate runner from Fargo, N.D., who nowworks in food safety. “You can’t say‘no,’ or he will come after you.”
Many in the group, like Nicole Shute, also compete in road races and eventriathlons.
“I joined the group about a year ago, and started getting into long-distancerunning three years ago to help with my training for triathlons,” Shute said.
And while Baskin says they all have a passion for running, the atmosphere islight-hearted, and they all enjoy each others’ company.
“The whole purpose of this is to go out and have fun and clear your mind,”he says. “Then come back more energized and be able to attack the after-noon.”
But often the run not only refreshes, it’s a time to get work done.“It’s not only fun, but you can bounce ideas off other people,” Baskin
says. “And it’s surprising howmuch business gets done during the run.”Because of that, and because there probably always will be an excuse
not to swap the suit for running shorts, the group has another mantra.“You need to treat it like another meeting,” Grev says. “If you get it on a sched-
ule, you’re much more likely to get it in.”And that’s something with which Hormel is completely on board, they say.
When Hormel began planning for the multi-million dollar corporate expan-sion it finished last summer, the designers actually asked for the group’sinput. The result is a small kitchenette off the east end of the expansionwhere the sweaty runners can cool off and grab a bite to eat without dis-turbing other workers in the new cafeteria.
The company also allows the group to take more than an hour forlunch, as the run itself takes 35 to 45 minutes, and that doesn’t in-
clude time to cool down, eat and shower.“Hormel is pretty flexi-ble,” Baskin says, “and Ithink at the end of the
day, they really wanthealthy employees.”
he business of running
Hormel Foods employees, including Jeff Grev,Greg Baskin, Brent Brehmer, Nicole Shute, TimGarry and Scott Nemec leave, Hormel Foods’corporate north office for their daily run.
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By Kevin Coss
Austin turned pink in February, and itwasn’t for Valentine’s Day.
The 10-day sophomore run of Paint theTown Pink, which raises funds for TheHormel Institute to fight breast cancer,built off the well received 2012 debutwith a number of new events and stillmore community support.It began with a kickoff in mid January at
The Hormel Institute, where Austin BruinsForward Chris Fischer and his father, Joe,honored Chris’ mother, Debra, who died inMay 2012 after a six-month battle withbreast cancer. The Fischers placed a memorialpanel in The Institute’s Donor RecognitionWall.
“There was not one dry eye in theplace,” said Cheryl Corey, executive di-rector of the Austin Convention andVisitors Bureau. “Hearing their storyjust made you want to say, ‘I’m onboard, what way can I help?’”
And the response was en-thusiastic. Churches, non-profits and businesses allgot on board to set upevents and fundrais-ers under the pink
theme. Corey said it helped that the event’sdebut in 2012 was such a success.
“Now that we’re a viable event and havesuccess behind us and visibility, it’s easier toask for things,” she said. “People are reallybeing creative on how they can raisemoney.”
Last year, a number of businesses got onboard with activities, but this year, manymore individuals stepped up.
“Every day our phone was ringing off thewall,” Corey said during the weeks of plan-ning leading up to the events.
Corey was one of a dozen people on thePaint the Town Pink planning committeewho whittled away at the event’s second go.Representatives from the Bruins, the city ofAustin, the Austin Area Chamber of Com-merce and other groups were also involved.
“We have a really nice, well-rounded mixof community partners that want to help,”she said.
The event may only be in its second year,but the roots of the idea go further back. Anumber of years ago, the CVB board hadbeen talking for a while about how to put to-gether a winter festival that would get peo-ple to spend the night in Austin. The CVB isfunded by lodging tax, and relies on guestsbooking stays at local hotels.
Painting Austin pinkPainting Austin pinkLocals went all out in effort
to fund local cancer researchBY THE NUMBERSMore than $62,000
Total money raised in 2012inaugural Paint the Town Pink
$39,819Amount raised during 2013
Paint the Rink Pink,not counting town-wide events
About $22,000Amount raised at the Bruinsʼ
first Paint the Rink Pink
$500-$3,500Amount jerseys sold for at the
2013 Paint the Rink Pinkauction
2Year of Paint the Town Pink
10Number of days event
ran in 2013
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Then, three years ago, the Austin Bruins put together the Paint the Rink Pink event.Mike Delhanty, director of community relations with the Austin Bruins, said it was anidea players and staff were eager to try.
“A lot of teams around the league had done different benefits for cancer,” he said.“We didn’t know what to expect.”
The turnout was a resounding success.“The first season, it sold out the night of,” Del-
hanty said. “We had to turn people away at thedoor.”
The CVB board soon got the idea to build offit, and approached Bruins owner Craig Patrick forpermission.
“He and the Bruins were very receptive tothat,” Corey said.
The event took off in 2012, and the communitypulled inmore than $62,000 from the Bruins gameand the other events around town.
During Paint the Rink Pink, 100 percent of sales from the jersey auction benefitedThe Hormel Institute’s cancer research. This year, jerseys fetched anywhere from $500to $3,500. Paint the Rink Pink T-shirts also support the cause. Those looking to do-nate smaller amounts purchased raffle tickets, which put them in the running for
local prizes like Holiday Inn stays, Torge’s Bar andGrille gift cards, golf gift certificates and more.
“A lot of the businesses do love to help out,”Delhanty said.
Players also got involved at the pink pancakebreakfast, where they help serve, bus dishes andmingle with locals.
LEFT: Bruins’ playerNolanKirleyhasa little funduring theauctionas theHulkHogan themeblares.BELOW: PaulKuehnemanofRoseCreekbidson JayDickman's jerseyduring this year’sPaint theRinkPink jerseyauction.
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By Jason Schoonover
To Jen Haugen, the idea to formSprouts was natural: Children growfood, they learn about food andthey eat food.
The dietitian debuted Sprouts:Get Out and Grow at Austin’s Hy-Vee in 2011 to expose children togardening and healthy home-grown foods, and to expand theirpalates and improve their eatinghabits.
In its first year, the program wassuccessful enough in Austin to at-tract the attention of corporate of-ficials, who later decided toimplement the program at manyother Hy-Vee locations.
“It just kind of was like a smallsnowball that started to grow as itrolled down the hill,” Haugen said.“More people just got excitedabout it because they saw how itwas working here, and it was reallysuccessful.”
In its second year, similar com-munity gardens started at about 40Hy-Vee stores across eight states,most using Haugen’s lesson plansand template.
That commitment isn’t waningas Sprouts nears its third year inAustin. While some may find a die-titian and community garden un-
conventional for a grocery store,store manager Todd Hepler said thebusiness has a responsibility to helpcustomers be healthy and livelonger.
“[Haugen] is probably one ofthe most important people in ourstore,” Hepler said, noting he oncesought Haugen’s help to changehis diet and lower his cholesterol.
An idea sproutsThe idea for Sprouts dates to
when Haugen, a Minnesota StateUniversity, Mankato graduate,
worked as dietitian at the MayoClinic in Rochester. To Haugen, theidea hit close to home.
“I’ve always been around gar-dening through my parents, mygrandparents,” she said. “And Iafter I got married, we had a gar-den. It’s just something we alwaysdid.”
When Haugen interviewed forHy-Vee’s dietitian position in 2008,Hepler asked if she had a dreamproject.
“That’s when I said I would loveto have a kids’ garden where kids
learn how to grow their own foodand what to do with it,” she said,noting she even envisioned the gar-den where it is now.
Haugen got the job and by2010 began planning to make theproject a reality. Originally, Haugenfeared the project wouldn’t takeoff, and that it was just her brain-child.
“I felt like I was birthing anotherchild,” Haugen said. “Because it’sthis project that was mine, and Ididn’t know if anyone else thoughtit was a good idea.”
The story of SproutsJEN HAUGENFounder of SproutsAge: 34Town: AustinJob: Hy-Vee dietitianFun fact: In high school,Haugen wanted to be anaccountant, but shejob-shadowed her aunt,Peggy Saxton, anoutpatient dietitian inWorthington, anddecided to follow herlead.
Her co-workers would soon giveher a vote of confidence. A few weeksbefore the first Sprouts, Haugen wasworking a long day to build the gar-den and a fence to enclose it whenshe took a break. She returned to findmany Hy-Vee employees building thefence.
“It really just brought me to tears,”she said. “I was like, ‘They do believein me. They do think this is a goodidea.’”
Learning throughthe senses
In the first year, Haugen planted sixvegetables, as Sprouts kicked off as ahands-on program. She said it was im-portant for children to explore thefood.
“There’s lots of research that showswhen the kids are involved with gar-dening and cooking their own food
they’re more likely to eat it,” Haugensaid.
Over 10 weeks from June to Au-gust, about 80 children from Kids Ko-rner and the Austin YMCA took turnsgoing to Sprouts.
The children would learn fooddoesn’t come off a grocery shelf.They’ve learned how it grows, how it’scooked, and then they taste the food.
“It’s kind of a cool circle,” Haugensaid.
Even after a successful first year,Haugen worried she wouldn’t be ableto quantify Sprouts’ effect on chil-dren’s daily eating habits. But thenHaugen sent a survey to parents andreceived overwhelmingly positivefeedback, with all the parents sayingthey wanted their children to be inSprouts again.
“I knew it wouldmake a difference,but I didn’t know how I could show it
until I got the parent survey done,”she said. “That just kind of gave methe chills.”
Sprouting successThe success of Sprouts did not go
unnoticed.Hepler said Haugen’s vision to help
families and children eat better mir-rored leaders’ goals at Hy-Vee’s cor-porate level. Some officials visitedAustin’s garden, and Haugen laterspoke to a group of store directorsabout Sprouts.
They liked what they saw, and theydecided to employ Sprouts at otherstores, with Haugen training other di-etitians.
“I was just really amazed thatsomething I thought of was going tobe implemented in other places,”Haugen said. “It made me feel good.It made me feel valued.”
The second year of Sprouts sawchanges in Austin, too. Haugen grewthe garden to about 19 differentitems, including vegetables, herbs andsunflowers. The Salvation Army sum-mer program joined Kids Korner andthe Y, bringing the total to about 150participants.
Haugen also added a key partner,The Hormel Institute, which sent lead-ers to Sprouts to teach children abouthow different foods affect cancer.
Growing forwardEven though Haugen’s lesson
plans are now used at the otherstores, she hasn’t changed her tech-nique.
Hepler still sees the program as adefinite positive for Hy-Vee.
“Anytime that you can take chil-dren and healthy eating and combinethem, you’re going to win.” he said.
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Swiss Chard• Swiss Chard is an excellent source of vitamins A,C and K, making it a powerful vegetable for theeyes, in preventing cancer and in bone formation.• Grows quickly and can repeatedly be harvested.The children caught on quickly on how to harvestthe large leaves.• The leaf and the stalk are edible.• Chard is a member of the beet family.• Looks like a giant spinach leaf (and tastes like it,too).• Can be eaten cooked or raw.• The leaves make good additions to salad, orcooked can add to soups and stews, or pizza. Thestalk can be used like celery.• The children prepared it in cheese quesadillas –they loved eating them.• The kids prepared it as a salad along with straw-berries and cantaloupe as a topping.• By the end of the season, the children rated SwissChard as their favorite vegetable. And throughoutthe summer, they were able to take some leaveshome, along with the recipes, to enjoy with theirfamily.
Tomatoes• They planted the Burpee Boost variety of cherrytomatoes called “Cherry Punch.”• These tomatoes boast a 30 percent higher vitaminC and 40 percent higher lycopene content com-pared to regular tomatoes.• Lycopene has a strong connection to preventingcancer and during the season, The Hormel Instituteplayed a “mix and match antioxidants” game withthe children to help them learn more about whichantioxidants came from which plant.• The children planted these tomatoes in early Mayof 2012, and by the first class in early June, theywere already producing red tomatoes that could beharvested that day.• The children were able to harvest frequently foruse in recipes in class, as well as some for home.In fact, up to 700 cherry tomatoes were taken offthe vines each week.• From all ages, this tomato frequently was given afive-plus star rating for flavor, they were sweet andjuicy, similar to a grape.• The recipes the children made with these toma-toes included fresh garden salsa and pizza toast.
Basil• Basil is a good source of essential oils, which actlike antioxidants in fighting inflammation.• During class, the children explored the herb with allfive of their senses. The children were surprised toknow how much this herb reminded them of pizza andspaghetti.• Because basil is so easy to grow, the childrenwere amazed each week at how quickly it gainedheight. They were able to harvest the basil almostweekly, using the leaves for various dishes, includ-ing pasta salad, rainbow wraps and pesto sauce.• They had an herb area of the garden where variousherbs were featured, and by the end of the season, thechildren were able to identify each of the five herbs.
Cassidy Davidson picksa carrotwith the help ofher sister, Allie,at theSprouts: Get Out and
Growprogram's openhouse in August 2011.
Children’s gardengrows to promotehealthy lifestylesin eight states
A FEW EXAMPLES OF WHAT HY-VEE DIETITIAN JEN HAUGEN TEACHES AT SPROUTS
Flying high BY MATT PETERSON
Scar tissue ran down Jacob Burkhart’s right leg like a red, gnarly zipper.He dropped the denim back over his sock and got back on the bike.“The pedal comes around and just gets you,” Jacob said. “My leg is just scar tis-
sue now.”Pedals were invented for efficiency, but they can be nasty, too.Jacob — a 15-year-old Austin High School student who is as comfortable riding
bike as he is walking — is one of many who use Austin’s skate park. He’s just theremore often than most. After all, who goes to an outdoor skate park in Minnesota inJanuary?
A riding sessionIt was cold and windy, and the Austin skate park was slick, dotted with puddles
and covered with leaves on a gloomy October day. Sure, it wasn’t winter. But thiswas different than the time he and his buddies rode in January.Yet Jacob emerged from the distance that fall day with a backpack and a broom
— on a bike, of course — about 20 minutes after school. Plenty of youngsters fre-quent the skate park, but Jacob was the only one there for quite some time thatday.“I think I rode every day,” he said about that cool, unpredictable week. After
sweeping leaves and pushing puddles around, he was ready to shred. By all means,the conditions looked sketchy: greasy, wet concrete and decayed leaves. Regard-less, pain would be a small price for Jacob. He won’t complain because he knowspain is inevitable.“There’s no way you can do this and not get hurt,” Jacob said.Jacob has been luckier than many others who do what he does: ride wheelies,
tail-tap, spin 360s, grind on rails, jump boxes and push their limits. Besides bloodyshins, Jacob’s worst injury has been a badly bruised heel, which kept him from rid-ing for about a week.He has avoided the dreaded broken bones that would prevent him from riding for
weeks at a time.“I’ve gotten lucky,” Jacob said. “I haven’t done that yet.”
Austin High studentis honing his BMX skills,avoiding broken bones
Burkhart gets air on a sunny day, practicing at the city'sskate park.
JacobBurkhart is an aspiring BMX riderworking rain or shine to get better at his craft. During the spring, summerand fallmonths, Burkhart is at Austin's skatepark nearly every day after schoolworking on his style.
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Jacob is safe and knows his limits. That’s one of thereasons why his dad, Jon Burkhart, is supportive ofBMX as a hobby. After all, he used to do it himself.
“The best part for me is he’s really safe when herides,” Jon said, whose views would be different if hisson were breaking bones and riding beyond his capa-bilities. “He has to be responsible while he’s riding. Hehas to wear a helmet; that’s always a requirement. Hehas to be respectful to everyone.”
Jacob’s bikes take more abuse than he does, though.Just after Christmas, he bought a new bicycle frame, asthe past one was cracked, worn out from serious use.
As always, he got his new equipment from RydjorBike shop in Austin where he is often seen with hisfriends. Jacob, as others will say, is not the typical skate-park dude, but he is part of the culture. And the bikeshop isn’t such a bad hangout.
“It’s not like some mass, chain bike shop where yougo to, and they’re all just worried about their pay-check,” Jacob said. “They are actually into what youdo — take the time to talk to you about what you’redoing.”
Because Jacob’s dad used to work at the store, thefamily has built quite a rapport with those at Rydjor.They’ll say it, too; they can respect a kid with a goodhead on his shoulders.
“He’s a great kid,” said Jens Raffelson, “comes froma really nice family.”
Raffelson and manager Chad Burma see Jacob aboutonce a week, and much more often in the summer, ofcourse. While they don’t get opportunities to watchone of their best customers ride, they’ve seen videos ofhim on YouTube and know that he works hard. Jacobisn’t just wasting time at the skate park. He’s exercising,building muscle, improving his social skills and pushingfor more.
“He seems pretty hard-working at what he’s doing,”Raffelson said, who like others hope Jacob will keep rid-ing, improving and heading the right direction in life.
Yet with life skills and responsibility aside, Jacobclearly knows his way around a skate park and a bike.
“I definitely think he’s one of the best in town,”Burma added.
While many youngsters about to turn 16 worryabout cars and parties, Jacob may keep focusing onthe craft he’s been honing for years. Like his dad, Jacobis passionate about cycling.
Pushing the limitsSo how does one learn a new trick, anyway?Like anyone else, Jacob started by hopping curbs
and popping wheelies and progressed from there.But learning newer, tougher tricks not only takes guts,it takes sacrifice and a different mindset.
“Learning a new trick, it’s all a mental game,” Jacobsaid. “It’s just getting over the fear of crashing.”
But Jacob isn’t blindly throwing new tricks he’snever attempted, he said. Once he learns the aspectsto a new trick, he focuses on perfecting that one be-fore moving on to the next. His dad can understandthat from watching him.
“The way to describe him is ‘responsible,’” Jon said.BMX may not look like the most responsible sport
in the world, but at least it’s easy to tell who is com-fortable and safe with their tricks and who isn’t. With-out hesitation, Jacob hit the ramp and stomped a 360at the Austin skate park for his first trick on anotherlate-fall afternoon. Then he started warming up.
“I just got those down this year,” he said about360s.
Though Jacob couldn’t land every trick that day, henever bit the concrete, either. It was somewhat ap-parent why that right leg takes so much abuse: Sonothing else has to. The right leg is his power leg, andhis safety valve when things go wrong.
After all the seasons at the Austin skate park, Jacobcompeted in his first competition last summer inZumbro Falls, Minn. Then, in November, he com-peted in another in Lake Elmo, Minn. He’s not surehow he placed, but that didn’t matter. Soaking upthe experience, watching pros, storing ideas for fu-ture tricks and simply meeting other riders was agood start.
“That’s probably one of my favorite parts of goingto competitions is meeting new people and gettingto chat to people who you wouldn’t get to know ifyou weren’t riding bikes,” Jacob said.
One thing is certain: Jacob will do more competi-tions, as he’s only getting better.
After the fun and gamesTo some, it may seem like Jacob is simply wasting
his time. The pros of any era started competing whenthey were toddlers, but becoming a professional isn’tnecessarily Jacob’s motive. That would be nice, butJacob is realistic, too. He knows becoming a profes-sional is a tall task.
“To go pro ... that’s asking a lot,” he said.That’s why Jacob is gaining valuable knowledge in
another form just from being around the sport: audioand video production. Music and extreme sportsvideos go hand in hand, something Jacob is figuringout well now that he’s tooling around with compila-tions of his riding videos to catchy songs. Regardlessof how far he pushes himself, Jacob may indeed havea way to hang around the sport he loves. Or, he cando anything else he wants, too.
“I see he’s got a pretty good future for himself,”Raffelson said about the multi-talented teen whoplays baseball and the trumpet, too. Though Jacobwanted to push even further by competing in an-other indoor BMX competition this winter, he waspreoccupied with a high school band function, so hedid that instead.
That may not sound like a typical BMX’er; but thenagain, Jacob isn’t.
Learning anew trick,it’s all amentalgame. It’sjust gettingoverthe fear ofcrashing.-Jacob Burkhart
“
”BMX rider Jacob Burkhart works on his moves on a rainy day at the Austin skate park.
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• Land Drainage• Backhoeing • Consulting• Conservation Construction• Wildlife Ponds • Road Boring
• 3 Day Mattress• Acclaim Studio of Dance• Anytime Fitness• Artistry Wedding Events• Austin Area Art Center• Devriess Boutique• DFL Headquarters
• Gypsy Imports & Consignment• Just For Kix• Legacy Comics & Games• Mower County Human Services• Piece by Piece• Spirit Bear Academy• Two Bears Trading Post
• Vision Works• Weight Watchers• Willow Cove• IMPACT Martial Arts & Fitness• Kids Against Hunger• Enchantertainment• PC Tech Connect
Expanded CareBy Kevin Coss
Dr. Darryl Barnes, an orthopedic physician, has been with Mayo Clinic HealthSystem — Albert Lea and Austin for about four years. He came from the MayoClinic in Rochester, where he worked since 1996 and did his residency. Barnesheaded to Austin in 2009 to help the clinic estab-lish its musculoskeletal division. At that point, a$28-million expansion project was still in its in-fancy.
“The planning actually started in 2008,” hesaid. “It’s really exciting to see it come to fruition.”
The expansion, which opened in January 2013,brings orthopedics, radiol-ogy, pain management,podiatry and physical ther-apy all to the same branchof the hospital, where eachare given their own hall. Doctors in those areas have officesnext door to one another, so they can easily collaborate
and possibly cut down on the number of visits a patient has to make.“It allows us to see patients more efficiently,” Barnes said.While these services were all previously offered by the clinic, they traditionally
were organized in a way that was difficult for patients to understand. The eye clinicwas in a separate building in a different part of town altogether, but now it will be
right by the expansion’s new entrance.“It’s all been all over the place,” Barnes said.At the same time, patients can more easily un-
derstand the layout and use color-coding cues tonavigate. It’s no longer a trip up and down stairsto find the radiology department for an X-ray; apatient can walk down the hall and even hit thechanging room along the way. Educational ma-terials will be available in the spacious waitingrooms — part of the sleek, clean appearance ofthe expansion.
The expansion allows for a patient-centeredapproach, where the same group of people can work with a patient again andagain.
“It’s really exciting to see it come to fruition.”
-Dr. Darryl Barnes, orthopedic physicianat Mayo Clinic Health System — Albert Lea and Austin
New Mayo wing boostspatient experience
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SKILLED NURSINGHOME CARE
Individual Care To MeetEach Resident’s Needs:Physical, Occupational
& Speech Therapy
ASSISTED LIVINGAPARTMENTS
The Privacy of IndividualizedApartments, Combined withthe Ease of Living that comesfrom Fully Prepared Meals,
Housekeeping andLaundry Services
HOME HEALTH CAREProviding Assistance in theComfort and Privacy of
your home.
ADULT DAY PROGRAMLive at Home
But Spend The Day With Us.
ADULT DAY PROGRAM 2Separate Day Program
Specializing In Memory LossDisorders
DR. DARRYL BARNESBarnes, who assisted in the $28-million expansion project at Mayo Clinic Health System — Albert Leaand Austin, will be one of the doctors moving into the new wing to work in its musculoskeletal division.Age: 44Town: AustinFun fact: Barnes designed his new home in Austin shortly before the expansion, which got himthinking about design elements that would be important for the hospital.
“One person being taken care of by a team,” Barnes said. “It’sgoing to serve them better.”
Jennifer Levisen, public affairs specialist at the medical center, saidthe effort was part of a refocusing that changed the concept of sickcare to “well care.”
Barnes’ role in the expansion project focused on the design of thelower level. He had finished his new house in Austin just before the ex-pansion began, and that experience left practical design concernsfresh in his mind.
“How can we do it and make it attractive to our patients?” he said,pointing to the inclusion of natural light even on the lower level as key.
But the importance of aesthetics goes beyond patients.“It’s key in retention of staff,” Barnes said. “It’s nice to be in a place
that looks good.”He also helped fundraise 10 percent of the total cost needed
through donations. He helped spur staff, community members andother physicians to contribute.
The expansion, which includes a new entrance, a cafe and a med-ical supply shop, finished four months ahead ofschedule. Gentle winter weather expedited theconstruction schedule.
The expansion was a time of change for every-one, including Barnes, who had yet to settle intohis new office in early January.
“I don’t have anything in there yet,” Barneslaughed.
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The Austin area has enjoyed significant growthin recent years. Last year was no exception withover $80 million in capital projects completed.
Employment is growing, and our economy isexpanding and diversifying.Austin is a great placeto be today.We are working to make it an evenbetter place tomorrow, through the work of
community partners involved with Vision 20/20and the Business Friendly Committee.
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The Hormel InstituteTHROUGH THE YEARS
1941The Hormel Foundation is founded by Jay C. Hormel,the second CEO of Hormel Foods Corp. and the son ofits founder, George A. Hormel.
1942The Hormel Institute is founded on Nov. 20 by Jay C.Hormel, with a mission to conduct research in biologicalsciences with applications in medicine and agriculture. Formany years, The Hormel Institute is the sole recipient ofthe foundation’s funds, outside of the Hormel family. TheFoundation enters an agreement with the University ofMinnesota to operate a400-square foot biologi-cal research lab in thehorse stables of theHormel family’s estateoutside of Austin. Theestate is now GerardAcademy.
1943H.O. Halvorson,Ph.D., becomes TheInstitute’s first execu-tive director. Halvor-son serves as anadvisor to Jay Hormelon food stabilit y.
1949WalterO. Lundberg,Ph.D., becomes its secondexecutive director, servingformore than 25 years.
1960The Hormel Institutemoves in June from itsoriginal location in thehorse stable, now at12,000-square feet notcounting animal barns, to its current location at 801 16thAve. NE, next to Hormel Foods’ corporate headquarters.Its new home has 10 labs to start.
1960sThe Institute supplies “Arnold” the pig for the TV show“Green Acres.” The show airs from 1965 to 1971.
1963Dr. Ralph T. Holman first names Omega-3 fatt y acids ina scientific journal. He also names Omega-6 fatt y acids.His work involves collaboration with people from 15 dif-ferent countries.
1975Holman becomes The Institute’s third executive director.
1981Holman is named to the National Academy of Sci-
ences in Nutrition.
1985Harald H.O. Schmid, Ph.D., becomes its fourth executivedirector.
2001The Institute names Dr. Zigang Dong its fifth executivedirector.
2004-2009The research of Dong and Dr. Ann Bode, associate direc-tor — which makes the world’s No. 1 cancer research jour-nal “Nature Reviews Cancer” — is the most cited in theworld in molecular biology for five years.
2006A busy year for The Institute, as it signs an agreement forcollaboration with Mayo Clinic in Rochester, and breaksground on a $23.4-million expansion. While the agree-ment with Mayo is the start of the entities official partner-ship, a Mayo representative has been on the Institute’sboard of directors since the lab’s inception.
2008The Institute finishes its expansion, which triples its sizeand takes it from 60 to 120 employees. The expansion,which opens on Oct. 3, creates 20 new state-of-the-art can-cer research labs.
• The Institute partners with IBM, bringing aBlueGene/L Supercomputer to its lab. At the time, it’sthe world’s fastest supercomputer.
•The International Carcinogenesis Symposiumis held in Austin, attracting cancer researchers fromaround the world.
•Dong is selected as a National Institutes ofHealth Merit award recipient.
2011The Institute officially announces in October its plans fora $27-million, 74,000-foot expansion, which it says willadd 120 jobs.
2014The Institute plans to break ground on its latest expan-sion.
—By Adam Harringa
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Riverland CommunityRiverland CommunityCollegeCollege THROUGHTHROUGH THETHE YEARSYEARS
Join us at
1940Austin Junior College opens on the third floor of Austin HighSchool Sept. 3 with 138 freshmen and a faculty of five full-timeand four part-time instructors. The school is formed as part ofthe public school system, with ReubenMeland serving as deanand later president. Tuitionwas $4 per semester hour. That firstyear, the college has football, basketball and hockey teams.AustinDailyHerald Sports Editor TomKoeck calls the footballteam the “Blue Devils” in an article, and the name sticks.
1941-1945Enrollment drops to as low as 37 people one year duringWorld War II — 36 women and one male on medical dis-charge from theNavy. However, the college is still busy. Thecollege begins workwith theCivilianTraining Pilot ProgramandWar Training Service, an introductory training programfor pilots going into theAirforce andNavy.Meland andAir-port flight instructorMarcellusA.King are among the teach-ers for the class.
1951The Austin Area Vocational-Technical School is establishedin the annex of Austin High School as a part of the publicschool system, but separate from Austin Junior College.
1963A report states the Austin Area Vocational-Technical Schoolenrollment is about 250 in programs for carpentry, farm equip-mentmechanics, welding, machine shop (tool and die), auto-motivemechanics, autobody rebuilding, industrial electronics,practical nursing and cosmetology (beauty school).”
1964Austin Junior College officially becomes a part of the statesystem of junior colleges.
1966Austin Junior College changes its name toAustin State Jun-
ior College and moves to the current east campus. Classesstart Sept. 22 that year with about 850 students and 40 fac-ulty members. The new $2.75million wing is officially ded-icated on Jan. 29, 1967. The 90-acre campus is said to be onthe “outskirts of Austin.”
1968OnNov. 4, the State Board of Education formally approvesthe formation of Albert Lea Area Vocational-TechnicalSchool, with Wayne Broecker as the director.
1970Reuben Meland retires as president.
1971Austin State Junior College Owatonna Extension Centerbegins classes on Sept. 20. That same year, KSMQ is estab-lished as part of Austin Public Schools.
1972AustinAreaVocational-Technical School changes its nameto Austin Area Vocational-Technical Institute. The newtechnical school is completed that March. That same year,the school moves to what is now Riverland’s west campus.
1976The Austin Community College Foundation forms; it laterbecomes the Riverland Foundation. The board forms underthe direction of Greg Meyer and 18 members with the goalof providing financial support to strengthen the quality andavailability of education.
1985TheOwatonnaHigher EducationCenter opens as away to cre-ate a seamless link between education,work and the community.
1991Minnesota Riverland Technical College forms July 1 and
consists of the Austin, Faribault and Rochester campuses,and the Owatonna Technical Training Center.
1992Austin Community College receives $7.2 million for an ex-pansion that includes the currentmain entrance and 33,000-square-foot library and renovations to bring the building upto date for handicap accessibility and safety codes.
1996Riverland Community College is established July 1. Themove merges Austin Community College, South CentralTechnical College—Albert Lea, and Riverland TechnicalCollege locations in Austin and Owatonna.
2002The first day of classes are held at Owatonna College &University Center on Jan. 14. While Riverland is thehost institution and has classes at the center, ConcordiaUniversity, St. Paul; Minnesota State University,Mankato; Southwest State University; University of St.Thomas; and South Central Technical College also offerclasses.
2003Terry Leas becomes Riverland President.
2004KSMQmoves to Riverland’s east campus.
2008Minnesota State Colleges and Universities acquires Owa-tonna College and University Center, with Gov. Tim Paw-lenty signing it as part of the bonding bill in April. The saleis finalized Dec. 31.
2011Terry Leas leaves his post as president.
RiverlandBonnie Rietz, from left, Frank W. Bridges andJames Wegner pose near a sign for London,Minn., to promote a trip to London, England,for RCC’s London Dash.
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On Nov. 9, the Heraldprints its first issue as aweekly under the directionof A.B. Hunkins. Thepaper is published on thesecond floor of a buildingat Fourth Avenue andMain Street. Austin had apopulation of 6,000 then,and a total of three week-lies plus one daily newspa-per. Herald carriers make$160 per year.
The Herald office sharesspace with the MowerCounty Democrat newspa-per in a building on NorthMain Street only five feetfrom the edge of the CedarRiver. The machinery atthe building was operatedby steam power, as electric-ity wasn’t available. Whenthe presses ran, the entirebuilding trembled.
The Herald reviews itsprogress on its 50th an-niversary with a special“Golden Anniversary”edition, which includes areprint of a letter of con-gratulations from Presi-dent Franklin Rooseveltas well as University ofMinnesota School ofJournalism DirectorRalph Casey. Instead of
bringing in news by ex-press delivery, the news-paper now uses a wireservice via teletype fromthe Associated Press thatruns constantly from 7a.m. to 3 p.m.
Geraldine Rasmussen ac-quires the originalMarigold Dairy buildingand turns it into the Her-ald’s pressroom.
Thomsom NewspapersInc. purchases the Herald.
A fire destroys the Herald’spressroom, which stood
across the street from theHerald offices on “HeraldSquare,” the intersectionsof First Drive and FirstStreet NW. Lacking a pressin Austin, the Heraldprints in Albert Lea.
On Oct. 2, the Herald be-gins the move from the oldto the new. Dozens of work-men and Herald staffersload up the desks and type-writers of the old office onFirst Drive Northwest andmove them to the Herald’spresent home on SecondStreet Northeast.
On March 30, the Heraldswitches from letter press tooffset printing, which im-proves the quality of photosin the paper. Pictures be-come clearer, sharper andshow a higher contrast.“We are doing this to pro-duce a better looking news-paper,” Editor Edmund E.Smith says.
On Feb. 5, the Heraldprints its first Sunday edi-tion under the masthead“Austin Sunday Herald.”
The Herald celebrates 100years in print.
Even an organization dedicated to recording the events around it hassome newsworthy milestones along the way. Below are a few entries
from the Austin Daily Herald’s own history book.By Kevin Coss
HOME OWNER GREETS NEWS CARRIER — A paper boy delivers the day’s editionto a subscriber in town. (Photos courtesy of Mower County Historical Society)
TELEPHONE OPERATOR — A DailyHerald telephone operator places acirculation call.
PRESS WORKERS PLAN NEXT EDITION —Four Herald employees work on a linotype ma-chine.
NEWS CARRIERS DELIVER THE GOODS —Early 1920s paper carriers gather outside a for-mer Daily Herald building.
AUSTIN’S LEADING NEWS SOURCE —The old Austin Daily Herald building decadesago.
AUSTIN DAILY HERALD OWNERS —Daily Herald owners gather for a photo in 1940.From left: seated are John Skinner and HarryRasmussen; standing are Arnold Daane and FredUlmer.
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Men and women from around the county have beendonating their time, money, hearts, and souls tospecial young people in the Mower CountyMentoring Program so they have better opportunitiesfor success in life. These people deserveyour thanks and congratulations.Greg BaskinCarolyn BogottBrytnie CarolanJeremy CarolanSamantha DietrichMiguel GarateJolynn GentzSandra HalbachRoyce HelmbrechtAlly HendriksonMichael Jordal
Nicholas JohnsenArlen KnightKen KroupaJohn KrugerVicki KuhlmannPete KuhlmannMelissa LadlieKathy LeisenJennifer LloydJames LovenMary Mangskau
Jill MarshShari MasonSteve MasonMark NibaurHeidi OlsonJane OrvikKate SchoonoverLinda SheelyGreg StoreyRobert StrattonPamela Vaughn
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Parade of Progress
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By Dave Churchill
From helping to feed hungry children to sponsoring concerts, the Austin AreaFoundation has had a growing role in the community for a decade.This spring, as AAF marks its 10th year, a growing pool of managed assets as-
sures the community-supported and funded foundation will continue its workinto the foreseeable future.Like other community foundations, AAF provides a vehicle for individuals and
families to leave a legacy for the peopleof their town. Donations and bequestsgiven to the foundation are managedfor investment income and the pro-ceeds of the investments returned tothe community in the form of grants.Although it has been operating for
nearly 10 years, AAF had its genesiseven earlier.“It was about 1999 that I had heard
of other community foundations andwondered why Austin’s didn’t haveone,” said Mike Ruzek, AAF’s chairmanand a trustee since the organization’sinception.With seed money from the Blandin
Foundation, AAF formed in April 2003.Unlike many community foundationswhich consolidate their assets with oth-ers, AAF is independent.AAF’s grants to community organiza-
tions have grown steadily, along withthe value of the funds it manages. From$5,769 in 2007, the total grantsawarded reached $15,000 in 2012 andis expected to be about $17,000 in2013.The Mower County Historical Society
is using an AAF grant to help preservehistorical photographs.With AAF funds, “We upgraded our
print scanner to a more robust scannerthat can do a larger format,” HistoricalSociety Executive Director Dustin Heck-man said. “It’s really been great to workwith the Austin Area Foundation.”From the perspective of donors, AAF
offers a means to leave a gift that willbenefit the community for many, manyyears. The Qual family of Austin made a$500 gift to the foundation in memoryof family members Jim and Bob. The in-vestment income goes annually toMower County ARC to support its pro-grams.“I’m very happy with the whole
idea,” said Alice Qual. “And with theway the Foundation has worked for us.”AAF also assists with community proj-
ects by serving as an umbrella, of sorts,under which other organizations canoperate to avoid the time and expenseof getting their own federally recog-nized non-profit status. The Austin Dog
Park and Veterans Memorial projects have taken advantage of AAF’s administra-tive services in that manner.The Foundation’s Austin Legacy Endowment is valued at $529,000, but that’s
only a start toward what the foundation board hopes will become a much largerasset pool. Ruzek noted that the community foundation in Grand Rapids, Minn.,which started about 10 years before AAF, has $11 million in managed assets.AAF’s goal, for now, is to reach $3 million in assets, a benchmark that wouldallow it to employ a full-time director to help further boost growth — and fur-ther boost service to the community.“In a nutshell, our mission is that we enhance our community through chari-
table giving,” Ruzek said. “We work through donors to achieve their goals andintentions.”More information on AAF is at www.austinareafoundation.org.
Investingin Austin
2012 AAFgrants� Matchbox Children’sTheatre’s production costsfor Pinocchio $1,000� Paramount’s card accessreader $500� Austin Symphony concertsponsorship $2,500� Mower County HistoricalSociety’s large-formatscanner $1,200� Children’s dental health“Happy Smiles Kits” $1,200� Summerset Theatreproduction funding $1,000� MC Advocacy Classes$1,500� Austin Community Bandoperational costs $700� Freedom Fest 2013 eventsand activities $1,000� St. Olaf’s backpackprogram, and weekend foodbags $1,000� Mower County HumaneSociety’s cages for cats andkittens $1,000� PRC fridge for CatherwoodHome $650� Cornerstone Church’s carrepair for single moms $750� Arc Mower CountyScholarship Funds $1,000
TOTAL................$15,000
Austin Area Foundation continuespromoting community groups
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AUSTIN, MINN. Since 1961
Austin’s Oldest Locally Owned & OperatedFree Estimates • Free Loaner Car • State of the Art Shop
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Daily Lunch & Evening Specials437-4135
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1964Grand Meadow
Healthcare Centerand The Meadows Assisted Living
...because the journey matters.210 E. Grand Ave • PO Box 365
Grand Meadow, MN
(507) 754-5212(Tealwood facility since 1996)
1963
203 North Main StreetAustin, Minnesota
437-4503
Eric J.Connett
IsraelBenitez
LindaEspinoza
TeresaHanson
LindaSistek
SERVING SOUTHERN MINNESOTASINCE 1963
PROGRESS FOR TOMORROWAustin’s Vision 2020 organizers will have a busy 2013
schedule, as this year is arguably the first year residents will seebig changes from the community improvement project. Here’sthe latest rundown on each of the Top 10 Idea Committees’progress.
1.) Embrace and Maintain Our Waterways—City workers have cleared trees near Turtle Creek off of 12th Street SW.—Committee members split into subcommittees to work on improving waterquality, enhancing local waterways, educating residents on water conservation,and promoting recreational activities.—The group hosted a first annual “Plunging for Pink” polar plunge in January aspart of Paint the Town Pink, to raise money for The Hormel Institute.—There are two planned enhancement projects for the Cedar River: one nearthe Old Mill Restaurant to denote where the first mill in the area stood, and oneby the Fourth Avenue Northeast bridge.—The city and committee plan to install another aerator in Mill Pond to combatalgae, pending flood mitigation work.—The education subcommittee is looking for volunteers to help shape educationcampaigns for residents.
2.) Gateway to Austin Attraction—Committee members met with and received preliminary approval to build an“iconic overpass” for walking and biking over Interstate 90.—The committee will work with city officials to secureMinnesota Department ofTransportation funding for a landscaping project along the I-90 Corridor this sum-mer. MnDOT would reimburse the city for building materials and look at the de-sign, but the committee must provide volunteers for the effort.
3.) Community Wide Technology—The committee hopes to create a high-capacity Internet fiber infrastructurethroughout Austin, where the fiber cable would be publicly owned throughAustin Utilities, but Internet service would still go through private companies.—Members will work with Bill Coleman, a broadband consultant paid througha Blandin Foundation grant, to plan the next steps and find state funding.
4.) Expanding Bike/Walk Trail System—The committee is pursuing a MnDOT grant through the “Safe Routes toSchools” program to gather information to improve dangerous intersections forstudents walking or biking to school, which will also improve several bike trailsthroughout the city.—Members will work with the Shooting Star Trail group to connect the regionalbike trail through Mower County.
5.) Downtown Austin Destination Point—The committee hopes to improve the plaza area off North Main Street, whichcould include building a stage for outdoor performers.—An inventory of downtown businesses will be taken, as the committee wantsto have no vacancies in the downtown business district.—Members want to increase downtown events this year.—Members want to preserve vacant fire property lot for prospective buyers.
6.) Education Leaders—Committee members are preparing a community assessment toward a collec-tive approach to education, similar to the Strive collective group in Cincinnatiwhere a group of public and private partners improved public education offer-ings.
7.) Community Pride and Spirit—The committee launched the Spread the Spirit campaign in January, askingresidents to perform random acts of kindness and setting up a website to reportsuch acts throughout town.—Members are planning a small-scale fix-up project for the neighborhood northof Queen of Angels Catholic Church.—There could be a Peer Power Partners group at I.J. Holton Intermediate School,where students with physical or mental disabilities would partner with general ed-ucation peers throughout the school year.
8.) Revitalization of Austin Utilities Building—The committee is pursuing a historical site designation from the state histori-cal society.—Members still plan to create more residential space inside the vacant building,though a public or retail space is still in the works.
9.) Business-Friendly Environment—The committee hopes to organize events to encourage and help local entre-preneurs.—Members want to create a personalized job connection for families whomovehere for a job and bring a “trailing spouse” looking for work.
10.) Community Recreation Center—The committee is securing funding for a feasibility study by Anderson, Niehbur& Associates over a five-month period. The study will cost $53,000 and the cityof Austin has donated $5,000 to the effort. Researchers hope to find how a newrecreation center can help even more members of the community, such as mi-nority families and older residents.
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Parade of Progress
By Kevin Coss
It isn’t a stretch to call Kelly Wadding a busy man. As CEO and president ofQuality Pork Processors in Austin, a company that processes 19,000 hogs aday, there’s a lot to do.Wadding wakes up early every day and gets to work at about 6 a.m. He goes
through emails and reviews the previous days’ activities before meeting withthe vice president of operations and the plant manager.“We take a tour through the plant,” he said. “It probably takes us an hour
and a half.”After that, Wadding meets with depart-
ment heads, then drives to Select Foods inAlbert Lea. As the owner of that company,also, he does the rounds through theplant and meets with the plant manager.It’s about noon when he heads back toAustin for more meetings, emails andphone calls. It’s 4 p.m. or later by the timehe leaves the office.Wadding is a graduate of Albert Lea
Senior High School. Between then and histime at QPP, he traveled, and worked atcompanies like Wilson Foods in Oklahoma City, Iowa Pork Industries in SouthSt. Paul and John Morrell & Co. in Sioux Falls, S.D.It was July 1993 when QPP’s then-owner Richard Knight hired Wadding as a
general manager. He held that role for a few years before buying into part-nership with Knight. They remained partners until 1997, when Knight retiredand Wadding took his current position.“I bought his share of the company out and became sole owner,” Wadding
said.Since then, things at QPP, which leases its property from Hormel Foods Co.
and delivers the processed hogs to Hormel, have only been getting better.“We’re probably as steady and stable as we’ve been in years,” he said.He attributes a lot of that success to his workers, and commends them for
their contributions to community projects like the United Way and local blooddrives.“I really think QPP employees do not receive the credit in the community
that they deserve,” Wadding said. “I’m very, very proud of the work force.”There are no big changes on the horizon, Wadding said. He intends to keep
QPP going as-is, and make it better along the way.“We’re constantly looking at automation and improvements in our process,”
Wadding said. “Hopefully we’re going to do it for a lot longer.”
QPP’s Kelly Waddingbrings the companyonward and upward
As president and owner of Quality Pork Processors, KellyWadding has a busy job in the day-to-day operations of thecompany,whichworks side-by-sidewith Hormel Foods.
KELLY WADDINGCEO and president ofQuality Pork ProcessorsAge: 60Town: AustinHobbies: Golf, andhunting in the fallwith his yellow labs
Seriousabout swine
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• LP Gas• Hubbard Feed• Chemicals & Fertilizer• On Sight Grain Pick-up
1976
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Austin
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Parade of Progress
1995
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Jim Splinter went to Austin Packer cross country meets last fall like the otherparents. His daughter, senior Haley Splinter, was second on the team mostof the year and qualified for state meet. But unlike the other parents, the
day after each meet Splinter was back at work as group vice president ofHormel’s grocery division, which tallied $1.17 billion in sales in 2012. Splinter, who has been with Hormel Foods Corp. or a subsidiary for about 30
years, lives in Austin with his family, and says the company now netting morethan $8 billion per year in sales is still focused on being a part of the Austin com-munity and maintaining the family feel upon which it was founded in 1891.“We want to be engaged,” said Splinter, a Vision 2020 Community Recreation
Center committee member also active with the Austin YMCA.But Hormel isn’t the company it was 100, 50, or even 10 or five years ago.
When Splinter became senior vice president of sales and marketing at Jennie-O in 1999, the meatpacker had less than $4 billion in total sales. In 2012, Hormelcleared $8.2 billion in sales and $500 million in profit, both records. Over thepast decade, through acquisitions of household name brands like Jennie-OTurkey Store, Farmer John, Country Crock and now Skippy, and through a heavyemphasis on product innovation, the company has positioned itself as a U.S.meat industry leader.
Recession proof?Like much of Hormel, Splinter’s grocery division has had substantial, steady
growth through the recession that started in 2008. The grocery division has grown 38 percent in the past six years, or a $324-mil-
lion increase from $846 million in sales in 2006. The segment increased 10 per-cent, or by $106 million, from 2011 to 2012 alone. The company as a wholewent from $5.75 billion in total sales in 2006 to $8.23 billion last year, a 43.3 per-cent increase.In addition, Hormel’s annual profit has increased four years running; by 20.1
percent in 2009, 15.4 percent in 2010, 19.9 percent in 2011, and 5 percent in2012. The only dip occurred during the first year of the recession, from $301.9million in 2007 to $285.5 million in 2008, a 5 percent drop.“We’ve done quite well [throughout the recession],” said Hormel President
and CEO Jeff Ettinger at the company’s shareholders meeting in January. “Wehave seen some phases where [some areas] of business were down a little bit inthe early days of the recession, but overall if you look at our track record over thepast four or five years, we’ve found ways to continue to grow the business.”Ettinger talks about Hormel’s diverse portfolio, which he says allows the com-
pany to grow even when certain segments are down. So when the recessionhit, Hormel relied on its cheaper meat products to pick up the slack.“I think especially early on we did see some benefits in the canned meat seg-
ment of the business,” he said. “During the first year or two of the recession,Spam, Dinty Moore and Hormel Chili were up double digits, and that’s proba-bly a little bit higher growth rate than we typically see for those products.”Since then, those products’ growth has moderated, he says, and now Hormel
is battling increased grain costs because of the drought, something that’s re-flected in the refrigerated division, the only one of Hormel’s five segments to re-port a decrease in profit — down 22 percent — in 2012 from the year before.
Hormelsurgesahead
Acquisitions, innovationpush company’s profits
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When the drought hit, grocery products — in particular Spam and the DonMiguel brand of MegaMex Mexican food, Hormel’s recent acquisition —made up the difference. For the year, Hormel reported a 12 percent increasein profits and a 10 percent increase in total sales for its grocery products di-vision, which includes Don Miguel.The company cited a strong year for Spam — as Hormel unveiled two newflavors of the canned meat and a strong marketing campaign based on its75th birthday — and even more so for Don Miguel. Taking the Mexican brandout of the equation, the grocery division only would have had a 1 percent in-crease in sales over 2011.“Last year, the grocery division had a very good year,” Splinter said.“MegaMex continues to perform very well, driving volume growth, and ithas very good margins.”And Spam helped, too.“We don’t believe in product life cycles, or that [products like Spam] reachmaturity and decline,” he said. “We think of extending them for the longterm.”
Skippy and ChinaTo Splinter and others at Hormel — a company based on meat for nearly122 years — buying Skippy peanut butter makes perfect sense.“It’s a very strategic move,” said Splinter, explaining that Hormel sells pro-tein, and Skippy gives them a non-meat protein to diversify their portfoliofurther. And through innovation, they hope to make Skippy much more thanpeanut butter in a jar.
“It balances risk exposure,” Splinter said. “But it also helps us extend into un-tapped categories [for peanut butter]; baking, snacking, breakfast, a lot of veryfun innovation opportunities.”Hormel announced on Jan. 3, 2013, it had acquired Skippy for $700 million,and immediately started discussing ways to innovate the brand, along with usingit to tap into the international and Asian, specifically Chinese, markets.Skippy is the No. 2 peanut butter brand in the U.S. behind Jif, and the topbrand in China, where Ettinger says peanut butter is a growing category. WhileHormel’s international sales only accounted for 4 percent of its total sales in 2012,the division has been growing much faster than the company’s others, andSkippy’s projected $100million in sales outside the U.S. — including $30 to $40million in China — would be an immediate boost of 30 percent for Hormel’stotal sales abroad.“When we compare ourselves to other food manufactures within our indus-try, we’re really quite low in terms of our sales outside the United States,” Ettingersaid. “We’ve said we’d really like to increase that. The Skippy acquisition wascertainly one great opportunity to do that.”The company expects the peanut butter category to grow domestically, too,even as some schools move toward a no peanut butter lunch policy because ofsome children’s severe allergies.“In terms of allergies, I think society is figuring out best how to handle that,”Ettinger said. “But overall, the category continues to grow. It’s a great tasting,convenient, inexpensive protein, so we’re confident it will find avenues to get tomultiple consumers.”
A bigger familyEttinger says the company will continue to look for acquisitions as they comeup if they’re a good fit. And through acquisitions, innovation and a balancedbusiness model, the goal is for the company to grow at a clip of 5 percent in salesand 10 percent in earnings. So how big is too big?“There’s no magic number,” Ettinger said. “One of the things I think aboutand talk about with our team is to make sure we keep the family feeling, to makesure we keep a lean organization where everyone has a lot of access to the de-cision makers within the company.”Ettinger says as they’ve grown, and more than doubled sales in 12 years,they’ve preserved most of that family feel.
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Austin
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Climate check:By Adam Harringa
Corey Anderson says the 2012 holiday shopping season was one of the bestGames People Play had in years.He has managed the Austin clothing and screening specialty store for roughly
18 years, and while he’s not sure how the recent recession ranks, he knows saleswere down in 2009. But they weren’t hit as hard as some other areas of the coun-try, he says, and since then business has “absolutely picked up.”“Three years ago was the worst, where it really seemed to slow down,” he said.
“The [recession] that hit the country has affected us, but we’ve been lucky enoughto have decent sales. ... And sales were definitely up compared to the last fewyears.”That’s the same picture many other business leaders in Austin are seeing.“I think overall we didn’t have as large a downturn as other sectors of the coun-
try,” said Sandy Forstner, executive director of the Austin Area Chamber of Com-merce. “Our unemployment rate remained below the state and national level,and that helped.”
The national jobless rate hovered just below 8 percent for much of 2012, andMinnesota’s rate was between 5.5 and 5.9 percent. But Austin’s rate was below 5percent six times last year and was 4.5 percent in November and December 2012,according to the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Devel-opment. And as the national rate was above 9 percent for 20 of 24 months in2009 and 2010, Austin’s highest during that span was 8 percent in March 2009,and it was below 7 percent for 18 months and below 6 percent for nine months.Forstner said Austin’s agriculturally based economy and the success of Hormel
Foods Corp. through the recession have kept the town from hitting the low muchof the nation did.“The ag economy has really gone through the best years I’ve ever seen,”
Forstner said. “And Hormel has been adding jobs.”Hormel — by far Austin’s largest employer, with 2,689 jobs between its Austin
plant and corporate offices, not counting the 1,300 jobs at its meatpacking facil-ity, Quality Pork Processors — added 135 jobs in Austin last year alone, and nowhas about 19,800 total jobs throughout its corporation, a huge jump from theroughly 12,000 in 2000, according to CEO Jeff Ettinger.
Most business sectorsin Austin on the mend
Games People Play managerCorey Anderson has seen hisshare of hard times, butbelieves the worst is behindAustin and the recession iseasing locally.
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All that translates intomore shoppers, Anderson says. But as the economy improves,one thing that may drag it down is consumer confidence.“The media does play a role for some,” Anderson said. “The mindset as people are
out thinking about spending, what they constantly hear is the country is struggling.That does play a role.”Nowhere is that more evident than in the housing market.
Better than perceivedHome sales hit a four-year high in 2012 for Austin, but some locally are quick to
point out that sector of the economy is one of the slowest to recover. One of the mainculprits: hesitant buyers.“We’ve been fighting that perception for years,” said Jerry Wolesky, associate broker
andmanager of the Fawver Agency in Austin. “The national perception is it’s the wrongtime to buy, when it’s actually the right time to buy, mainly because of low interestrates.”Wolesky said because the demand is lower, prices remain low. In addition, home
loan interest rates in early 2013 were between 3.25 and 3.5 for a 30-year loan, and 2.5to 3 percent for a 15-year loan, he said.Meanwhile, the number of homes sold in Austin hit a four-year high in 2012, at 362,
up from 357 in 2011, 303 in 2010 and 345 in 2009.“Locally, we certainly seem to be doing better than we’ve been doing,” Wolesky
said. “Each year seems to be doing a little bit better. The way the economy is now, wethink we should improve in 2013 like we did in 2012 and 2011.”
Eating the bottom lineSteve Davis, owner of Steve’s Pizza in Austin, says the restaurant business is good
and sales are going up, but so too is the cost of doing business.“Sales have increased, but expenses have been going up,” he said.Davis cites insurance costs, property taxes—
which will increase for many commercial busi-nesses in the county after a property valuechange begins this year — and the price ofcheese as the three biggest hits to his bottomline.“Food prices, especially dairy, have been
going up and up,” he said. “We’re actuallybringing in more money, but profits are lessbecause of expenses.”Davis said when dairy prices spike, he some-
times pays $1,500 to $2,000more per monthon cheese, and because he doesn’t increase hisprices, that comes out of the bottom line.“It fluctuates, and sometimes you just have
to eat that increase,” he said. “We haven’tchanged our menu prices for over sevenyears.”But more business is always a good thing,
and that’s been the trend in Austin, accordingto Forstner.“Restaurants really saw a sharp downfall in
business, but that seems to be improving,”Forstner said. “Everyone tightens the belt a lit-tle bit [during a recession], and as you tighten,you look at things you can cut that don’t havea dramatic affect, so you don’t eat out asmuch.”Forstner said now that restaurants are doing better, it’s a clear indication people are
feeling better about their jobs and the economy.“I’ve been fortunate,” Davis said. “Our business has been good.”
Shop like it’s rainingAnderson lives in Austin, and buys into the Chamber’s “Buy Mower, Grow Mower”
campaign.He said when the weather is bad, he gets more business because Austinites are less
likely to travel to Rochester or the Twin Cities in poor conditions. But he thinks residentsshould look locally first, and not make it an afterthought.“I’m a firm believer in it,” Anderson said of the Chamber’s shop local campaign. “If
I can buy anything local, I do to support the economy.”He said a change in mindset, which is improving, will also help the local economy.“It is positive now,” he said. “We’re starting to see some new businesses coming to
town, and I love to see it grow. I definitely think we’re starting to see an upside.”
1. Hormel Foods Corp. Austin plant— 1,7402. Quality Pork Processors— 1,3003.Mayo Clinic Health System - Albert Lea and
Austin (Austin location)— 9854. Hormel Foods Corp. corporate offices— 9495. Austin Public Schools— 6276. Hy-Vee Food Store— 3737.Walmart— 3508. Riverland Community College— 2439. Austin Packaging Co.— 28510.Mower County— 24311. St. Mark’s Lutheran Home— 22512. REMWoodvale Inc.— 16113. Sacred Heart Care Center— 15014. Holiday Inn/Days Inn/Perkins— 14815. International Paper— 14616. Gerard School— 14517. City of Austin— 13718. The Hormel Institute— 13019. Cooperative Response Center— 11020.McFarland Truck Lines— 9321. Austin Utilities— 8921. Cedar Valley Services— 8923. Southland Public Schools— 8224. Target— 8025. Shopko— 75
Mower’s 25largest employers
Mayo Clinic Health System - Albert Lea and Austin(Austin location) came in at No. 3.
“Restaurantsreally saw a
sharpdownfall in
business, butthat seems
to beimproving.”
-Sandy Forstner,Austin Area
Chamber of Commerce
Austin
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Austin
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By Jason Schoonover
When Chris Schulz started as administrator of St. Mark’s Lutheran Home & Apart-ments a little more than a year ago, people told him the facility was the Cadillac ofAustin nursing homes.
Before the home celebrates its 50th anniversary in July, St. Mark’s will finish a bigstep in maintaining that status. St. Mark’s will complete a $13.4-million remodel thisspring to add memory rooms, a new wing of living quarters, new community space,
dining areas, rehab facilities and more.It has been some time since St. Mark has had a remodeling project of this magnitude.“It’s a 50-year-old nursing home,” Schulz said. “Structurally, it’s still solid, but the
inside is what I would consider a traditional nursing home that’s 50-years old thatneeds to be remodeled.”
While the facility needed cosmetic updates for things like paint and carpet, Schulzsaid, the remodel represents a shift to match the changing direction of the industryand the needs of residents.
A fireplace anchors the rehabilitation,dining and living room portion of theSt. Mark’s expansion.
The home is on the verge of completing a $13.4M remodel
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“Our clients— the people who we take care of— theirneeds and their wants are changing, so we have tochange along with that,” he said.More people want to stay in assisted living, rather than
traditional nursing home beds to maintain a level of carebut still have personal freedom. Schulz said residentswant to feel safe and comfortable, but also independent.The assisted living unit is increasing from 15 beds to
25, and each will be a private roomwith a bathroom andshower.Changes in the industry also show in other shifts. St.
Mark’s will still offer 61 skilled nursing home beds, butthey’re changing from 12 short-term rehab beds to 16for people who typically return home.One reason to revamp the rehab wing is to meet en-
hancements in health and technology. In the past, a pro-cedure like a hip surgery meant a stay of more than fourmonths or even permanent residency at St. Mark’s, butthat’s not the case anymore.“Hips aren’t putting people in the nursing home for
months andmonths now,” Schulz said. “They’re in, theyget their surgery, they come here; sometimes they’re outof here in 20 days.”After a short rehab stay, most people are able to return
home.The biggest change will be the addition of 21 memory care rooms for residents
with dementia and Alzheimer’s, which will take the place of the current assisted liv-ing and short-term rehab wings.Other facilities offer memory care in Austin, but experts in the industry predict the
need for memory care to increase with a projected rising number of Alzheimer’s pa-tients.“I still think if you put the numbers that are coming out with the amount of beds
there are, I just think you’re looking at there needed to be more beds,” Schulz said.Schulz admitted the move will be a culture change, but he said residents have
been excited to watch the progress and are eager to move.Along with the change in room styles, the facility will feature a new chapel. It will
be slightly larger than the old one, and will boast higher ceilings and a better at-mosphere with a good sound system.“Our chapel is beautiful, very high ceilings, lots of windows,” he said.While services are held at the chapel during the week, Schulz said they’re looking
to bring back Sunday morning services.There will also be an enclosed courtyard, community rooms, sun rooms and a lot
of social area for the residents.Even with the remodel, the number of St. Mark’s employees will stay at about 115.
St. Mark’s administrator Chris Schulzchecks out an apartment in the newaddition.
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By Matt Peterson
The combine revved louder with a higher pitch asit turned into another swath of corn. Jim O’Connordropped the head and rumbled forward in his 2006Case IH combine.
A view from the road suggested he only neededto steer between the rows. Simple enough. But har-vesting isn’t quite what it was decades ago, whenJim first took the helm in a combine at age 11.
Inside the cab, both Jim’s brain and his onboardcomputer were bombarded with information. Hewas multitasking, just like countless farmers acrossthe Midwest that day.
“A lot of people collect the data, but it’s all whatyou do with it,” Jim said, as his eyes shifted back andforth from the ground to the computer.
A good day for pickingDespite an extremely dry year, that October
morning was a perfect day for harvesting — teeter-ing on that brink of almost warm just southwest ofBlooming Prairie. Leaves and debris flew in the air.Jim’s son in law, Sam Wencl, pulled a wagon just afew feet from the combine. Craig Strand, whose fam-ily owns the cropland, shuttled a truckload of cornto the elevator as the hour passed.
Inside the combine cab, the computer screen justto the right of the driver’s seat was filled with dataabout moisture content, continuous yield informa-tion, rate of harvest, hopper level, head height, fuelconsumption and other statistics.
One could tell it was indeed dry, as indicated bythe moisture content on the screen. Right there, Jimalready knew the corn wouldn’t have to sit for weeksin a dryer bin. Jim stopped at the end of the pass —joystick in one hand— and unloaded his hopper intoWencl’s wagon. The two repositioned, and Jim creptinto another pass of corn, scanning — field, screen,field.
Usable dataJust like with a computer or camera, Jim holds all
his information on removable memory cards.“It’ll hold all the information for the whole year,”
he said.That’s where technology offers significant advan-
tages. Jim can look back and see not only what his
yields were in every field, he can see which area ofeach field did better or worse. Last year, farmers re-ported crop yield fluctuations all the way from 0 tomore than 200 bushels per acre in one field. Jim and
those farmers use that data to apply more or less fer-tilizer and seeds each spring.
Like any tech-savvy youngster would, Jim’s son,Patrick O’Connor, learned the concepts of the newonboard features. That still required hours of famil-iarization with new equipment, however.
“As far as the combine and stuff, it probably tooka good five or 10 hours just to figure out how thingswork with monitors and making sure everything iswhat it needs to be,” Patrick said. “It can mean alot of time on the phone with the tech guys fromthe dealership.”
But the features may be improving faster than ittakes to figure them out. Yield monitoring is almostbecoming old technology for the O’Connors andmany other farmers. Jim suspects at least 90 per-cent of farmers now use GPS technology to maptheir fields. In 2011 the O’Connors bought a newplanter with more features, as well.
“In the spring, when we are planting, that iseven more complicated yet, as far as all the tech-nology we are using,” Patrick said. “That’s kind ofmy area of focus.”
Patrick said the new planter has features such asvariable rate planting. Furthermore, computers cannow talk to planters and shut off rows that may beoverlapping. By combining GPS coordinates, anauto-steer system and computers that communi-cate with farm machinery, farmers can achieve sub-inch accuracy. They apply fertilizers and seeds towithin an inch of where they want them. Sure, theauto-steer aspect sounds nice, but that’s not just forconvenience. The whole key is efficiency.
“I see it all as improving efficiency, where youcan maximize profits through reducing costs,whether it be labor, fuel inputs, whatever,” Patricksaid.
With that type of accuracy, farmers inevitably useless fertilizer, fewer seeds and save time, so they cansave on input costs.
A long day of pickingWith all that technology, GPS mapping for every
field and auto-steering, Jim’s day of picking corn mayhave seemed a little easier. But he’s not using auto-steering on his combine. There are risks. The opera-tor still plays a role, indeed.
“A lot of peoplecollect the data,
but it’s all what youdo with it.”
-Jim O’Connor,farmer
Technology has bridged the gap betweenthe old ways of farming and the future
A GPS sensor sits on top of Jim O'Connor'scombine, allowing him to map everyinch of his field.
Futureon the rontierF
Jim tried to pry under the stalks pre-viously flattened by strong wind, so helowered the head, dangerously close tothe ground as he crawled through thefield. Here, an auto steer system woulddo no good. With precision, Jim slid theteeth under the stalks and turned themupward just enough.“There’s no monitor to tell you how
to water ski,” Jim said. “The same thingwith the combine: You just have thefeel.”The stalks evenly slipped into the
teeth, and the ears disappeared intothe combine. It worked quite well.There was no time to look at the mon-itor now, though. While eyeing theground closely, Jim discussed the rigorsof such a process.“Yesterday we ran a rock in it,” he
said, “That was no fun.”Despite all the autonomous ma-
chinery, no machine will tell a farmerwhere the rock is — not yet, anyway.Like Jim says, picking rock is still a jobevery kid should have at least once.“All the automated stuff is nice, but
somebody has got to dig the rock out,”Jim said. “Somebody has got to put thegrease on.”Patrick still knows plenty about dig-
ging objects out of fields, more thanjust rocks, too. Some people use crop-land to hide their trash.“Someone’s got to pick that stuff
up, and usually it’s me,” Patrick said.“It’s no fun. That’s one part of farmingthat I really hate, especially the tires.”Jim spoke about his irritation with
trash in his fields. He feels the sameway about the tires, too, perhaps more.Last year, the combine ate one. It tooka pickup truck and a chain to removeit.Not more than a few minutes after
discussing the ordeal, it was as thoughJim had somehow angered the cropgods ... a rock.“Just like that, a $250,000 combine
comes to a screeching halt,” Jim saidwhile reaching for the door. He knewwhat had happened.The bells and whistles sounded —
the quintessential sound that indicatessomething clearly is wrong. The com-bine automatically stopped as a safetymeasure. Jim climbed down the ladderto investigate. Though he hoped to re-move the rock before it passed throughthe head, it was too late. Still, the com-bine has its own defenses. The machinedetected the object before it ranthrough all the inner workings andsafely stored it in a separate bin. Thefarmer wins some and loses some. Thistime was a tie.Jim climbed back into his seat.
Everything seemed OK. The enginerevved, and the combine lumbered for-ward again as it toppled the stalks, 10rows at time.
The future of future farmingAt the end of a long day, people like
Wencl, Strand and the O’Connors havedone more than just pass responsibili-ties to the machines. They have toknow their equipment, stay current onever-changing features and deal withoccasional headaches.Still, some wonder if or when that
day will come, when machines actuallytake over operation. Jim doesn’t seethat happening, at least not anytimesoon. Regardless of how far technologygoes, he knows the farmer will alwaysplay a role, and will want to.There is no doubt equipment has
made aspects of farming better foraging farmers. Yet the high-tech fea-tures imply farming could become ayoung-man’s game.“I think technology as a whole is
going to get more complicated as wego down the road,” Patrick said. “Andone thing that concerns me about thiswhole farming career and the industryin general is the lack of young farmers.”
Few people wake up and simply de-cide they are going to be farmers; theygrow up on farms, like Patrick. AndPatrick knows the average age of farm-ers is increasing. More people are mov-ing to urban areas, and feweryoungsters are staying on familyfarms. To start farming fromscratch isn’t feasible, especially asland prices steadily increase.“Young people just ab-
solutely cannot afford to com-pete,” Patrick said. “I don’tknow how that problemcan be fixed. I’m22 years old, andthat’s something Ideal with everyday. How, can I deal with farmingpersonally?”Patrick knows he and his peers
won’t go far in farming without signif-icant assistance from their elders. Butat the same time, he and those bud-
ding, young agriculturalists have a fewchips on their side, as they will invent,
decipher and employ the farm-ing practices of decades tocome.
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“All the automated stuff is nice,but somebody has got to dig therock out. Somebody has got to
put the grease on.”
-Jim O’Connor
Corn is transferred fromcombine towagon as JimO'Connor harvests his crop. Technology allows farmers amore efficient harvest and helps them reach better yields.
JimO'Connor harvests his field southwest of BloomingPrairie last fall. Likemany farmers, O'Connor has investedin technology that improves planting and harvesting.
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‘Every tractor has a story‘Waltham shop grinds, wrenches new life into old machines
By Matt Peterson
Outside of the big, old building, the scene looks like any old machinery repairshop. Tractors, lawnmowers and parts that have seen more weather than work liewaiting for someone to fix them, to do anything with them. Perhaps they are junk.Even inside, the workers are covered in dirt, their hands caked in grease. But
those laborers are bringing back to life pieces that tell stories from decades past.They’re the grimiest artists of any sort, wrenching, grinding, sanding and pound-ing for hours at Lee Sackett’s tractor restoration shop in Waltham. They may bemechanics, but they’re artists— keepers of time.“Every tractor has its own
story, and each customer hasan emotional attachment totheir own tractor,” Sackett said.“And I think that emotional at-tachment rubs off on us.”By a stroke of luck, Sackett,
38, has a knack for awakeningold rust buckets from the dead.Now he does it for a living,along with 17 others: his em-ployees at Lee J. Sackett Inc.The run-down pieces keep ar-riving, waiting to be revived bySackett and his fleet of artists.Were there a slight shift in
circumstances, the whole sceneinside the building wouldn’teven be happening. With Sack-ett’s background, it shouldn’tbe.“I continued to look for jobs
for a few years,” Sackett said,who now lives in Ellendale.“Eventually I stopped lookingfor jobs and started hiringpeople.”Sackett, an an engineer and
production manager, lost his job in 2002. As a way to fund his job search, he re-stored a tractor with the intent of selling it at a tractor show. But the first customerdidn’t buy Sackett’s work. Instead, he asked Sackett to restore another tractor.
“So that’s when I felt I’d be able torestore another one,” Sackett said.From that point, 11 years ago, Lee has-n’t had time to finish his own projects.“It’s the old saying: ‘The cobbler’s kid
is the last to get shoes,’” he said.Sackett hired his first employee in his
second year of work. And the hoards ofcustomers kept coming. He quicklystarted a website and now displays
much of his work on Facebook.Last year, Sackett and his employees completed 27 restorations. Since he
started, his business has cycled through more than 175 projects. He even took oncar restorations and now runs a shop in Ellendale. The work keeps coming, fromfarther away, too.“We have customers from all over the U.S.,” Sackett said. “Last year, we hauled
two tractors to Florida.”In January, Sackett crunched numbers and attempted to land a customer in
Switzerland. Somehow, he’ll make it happen. Even executives at Toro like Sackett’swork, so they hired him to re-store several pieces for their100th anniversary. At any giventime, Sackett has 20 to 30 proj-ects underway, with 20 to 30more on deck.“That’s why I keep hiring
people because the work justkeeps coming,” he said.Yet some of Sackett’s best
customers are right in his back-yard, so to speak. By chance,again, Sheldon Sayles of ruralRose Creek bumped into Sack-ett at a tractor show in Owa-tonna in 2008.Sayles has brought several
projects to Sackett and ishappy with the results. Sackettrestored a tractor that be-longed to Sayles’ father. ThenSackett helped Sayles find thesame model of tractor Sayles’grandfather used and restoredit. Like everybody else, Sayleswas tied up in the emotions ofit. He wanted the stories back.He needed the illustrations.“Each one of these projects,
there’s a story behind it,” Saylessaid. “It’s not something that’s economically feasible. It’s not something you do toresell because you could never resell it for what it cost you to do the project.”As he does with every customer, Sackett took special care of Sayles’ projects. He
didn’t keep any secrets or cut corners. Restoring machinery isn’t cut and dry. Thereare hiccups along the way. Sayles understands that, and he keeps going back toSackett’s shop.“We tease him that he’s our best customer,” Sackett said about Sayles.About once a week, Sackett eats lunch with the guys at work. Besides restora-
tions, Sackett offers more. The storefront, which he took over in 2007, orders andsells parts, another feature Sayles likes.When little Waltham is quiet, Sacket’s shop is a bustling place. People are calling,
wondering if their tractors — their stories — are progressing. Sackett is the editor.He’s busy, critiquing, tweaking and making sure all of them are done right.
Lee Sackett of Lee J. Sackett Inc. stands in the display area of his tractorrestoration business in Waltham. The business is the result of a single tractorrestoration a number of years ago that he did while searching for a career.
LEE SACKETTSackett started a tractorrestoration business yearsago, and it keeps growingand gathering more clientsaround the world.Age: 38Town: EllendaleHobbies: Enjoys music,plays percussion andguitar, also plays hockeyand likes to ski
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