Monday, July 28, 2008

Wright/Cromwell News

07/28/2008

Wright/Cromwell News by Jennie K. Hanson July 28, 2008

By the time you read this there will only be a month left before school starts.  How does summer seem to go by so fast?  But, then again, it always seems to go pretty fast.  Then, by the end of August, it just feels right to get back into a schedule again.  It seems that after the county fair, folks are ready for school, and fall sports, etc.

And with school in mind, do you save those labels from Campbell’s Soup, etc?  Well, there are a few changes in the program and here is some information about it.

For more than 30 years, Labels for Education™ has been awarding free educational equipment to schools in exchange for proofs of purchase from the Campbell family of brands. It’s a fun, easy program where students, families and members of the community work together for a common goal.

Today, over 80,000 schools and organizations are registered with Labels for Education™, benefiting more than 42 million students. Over the years, we’ve been able to provide more than $100 million in merchandise to America’s schools!

EFFECTIVE JUNE 2, 2006 FRONT PANEL PRODUCT LABELS for the Campbell’s soup labels WILL NO LONGER BE ACCEPTED. You just need to clip the UPC symbols and they will be mailed in for redemption.

So, please remember, you no longer need to clip the entire label – just the UPC code itself.
Wrong Days was a success again this year.  Adam Merritt of Wright won the groceries at the Co-op Store for the contest and Kaylan Risacher and Ashley Johnson won the candy counting contest. They will each receive a $5.00 Gift Certificate to the Co-op Store.

There will be a Wrong Days Wrap-up meeting at the Fire Hall on Tuesday, August 12th at 7 PM and a Picnic for all the Wrong Days Volunteers on August 24th.

2008 Carlton County Outstanding Senior Volunteer Award

Do you know a Carlton County senior who is active in their community?  If so, please nominate them for the 2008 Minnesota Outstanding Senior Volunteer Award.  This award, a joint effort of the Minnesota Board on Aging, State Fair Board, and the Minnesota Federation of County Fairs, recognizes the vital role volunteers have in helping communities carry out their mission of providing programs and services for older adults, allowing them to maintain their independence.
Award eligibility criteria includes:
• nominee must be a resident of Minnesota,
• nominee must be the age of 65 by August 1, 2008,
• nominee must be currently doing an activity in Carlton County which is unpaid and demonstrates their commitment to their community.

The award will be presented at the Carlton County Fair on August 15, 2008 to one male and one female winner.  These winners will then be submitted to the Minnesota State Fair Award ceremony which will be held on August 28th.  Official nomination forms are available at Volunteer Services of Carlton County, 1219 14th Street, Cloquet, MN or by calling 218-879-9238.  Nomination forms need to be submitted by Friday, August 1st to the Volunteer Services office.

Marvin Kempi, 70, passed away July 19, 2008.  His funeral was held in their home town, Cresco, Iowa on Wed. July 23, 2008.  His daughter DeeDee Haines, a pastor from the Isle of Man off the coast of England, did the service.  Sons; Jon came from England, and Ross and his wife Debbie came from Miami, Florida.  It was very nice.  He had been struggling with cancer for the past two to three years.

The YOT from Cromwell-Wright area brought 53 people to Finn Fest on Friday, July 25th.  They had a wonderful time, didn’t lose anyone, and made it home again.  Thanks to Carolyn Krogh for setting up the trip, making all arrangements for the bus and tickets to the event.  She is a wonder!  So many things she has become involved in and we are all grateful for her hours and hours of volunteer service to the community!!

Finn Fest was held in Duluth for 5 days and many, many area folks participated and/or attended this wonderful event.  This year’s Finn Fest was dedicated to the honor and memory of 1992 Finn Fest organizers: Andrea Mikkola, Donald Wirtanen and Arne Santa, who were the 1992 Finn Fest co-chairs. As some of you know, the late Andrea Mikkola was a 1963 graduate of Cromwell High School and was very active in volunteer activities in her hometown and in Duluth.

Margaret Olson Webster participated in Finn Fest by having a booth at the Tori (Market Place) and having a workshop session.  Her topic for workshop was entitled: “Kalevala Today”. She recently received the Hubert Humphrey award for her work in community art and recently published Life Times Six, intimate glimpses into the joys and struggles of six generations of Northland immigrants.

Don’t forget to call Happy Trails Tours at 1-800-635-7779 if you are interested in going on the “Little House on the Prairie” trip on September 12 – 14th.  Tell them you heard about the trip from Jennie Hanson.

Vacation Bible School will be held at Bethany Lutheran in Cromwell on August 4 – 8 from 9 AM – Noon. Call Lynn Odegaard or the church for more information or to register your kids or volunteer to help out in any way.

Many area residents attended the funeral of Floyd Lammi in Cloquet on July 24, 2008.  Floyd, age 88, of Cloquet, died on July 17, 2008 in his home.  Floyd was described as a man that could fix anything except a broken heart.  He had worked for Cummins Diesel for over 30 years as a mechanic, engineer, salesman and executive. He will be deeply missed by his sons; Ted and Vic and their families.

Did anyone see the wonderful article about Karla and Charlie Kiheri in the Duluth News Tribune?  If not go to their website and read the whole article and view several photos of their interesting Finnish gardens.

The 100th Anniversary of Lake Side School will be held in September.  Look for details in future articles.

The Farmer’s Co-op Store’s Annual Meeting will be on August 12th, at 6:30 PM in the Wright Senior Citizen building.  There will be a short business meeting, election of officers, entertainment, door prizes, and lunch.  Board members up for election this year are Janet Hansen and Leland Tippett.  Other board members are Madelyn Adelsgruber, Lois Sulkowski, and Chairperson: Jennie K. Hanson.  Deb Johnson is the Manager and Jill, Donna and Jan are employees at the store.  Jeff is at the feed mill. We thank these dedicated volunteers and employees for their years of service to one of the only Co-op Stores left in Minnesota.  I think this is their 90th year in business.

Lonnie Bradford and Tiffany Riewe are getting married on August 2nd and his mother Melinda and her husband, Scott Ferry are hosting an Open House at their home on Tamarack School House Road the following week on Saturday, August 9th from 2 - 6 for the community of family and friends to attend.

Do any of you listen to the Northland Magazine show on Saturday mornings on WKLK Radio?  Well, if not, it’s worth your while to tune in to 106.9 or 96.5 FM from 7 – 9 AM.  You might even hear me on the radio from time to time as I am a regular caller. I know that’s early for a Saturday, but I set my alarm so I don’t miss it.

That’s all the news from Lake Finnsandfinnwannabes and Hello to all the visiting Finns from all over the area. Have a great week! 

Monday, July 21, 2008

Wright/Cromwell News

07/21/2008

Wright/Cromwell News by Jennie K. Hanson July 21, 2008

WOW, what a weekend!  With all the Wrong Days events and then Alice and Kenny Lake’s 50th Anniversary, there was plenty to do this weekend.

Wrong Days started out with the Steak Fry at the Big Top, which was well attended.  Then the coronation of this year’s Queen (Keiara Allenspach) at the beginning of the Talent Show and the many talent acts. The Pie Social was a success and that was followed by a great fireworks display.  The Big Top was a full of friends and neighbors and many class reunions took place this weekend, so that was fun for all involved.

This years Wrong Days candidates were Queen: Keiara Allenspach, Kaylee Besch, Tiffany Richards, Autumn Gary-Denny, and Emma Hassel.  Keiara was crowned by last year’s Queen: Amber Cahoon.  These candidates sold over 1500 buttons.  Great Job, gals!!

I see that Diane Hansen is limping around with a sprained ankle.  I told her dad that he must have had to twist her ankle to get her to sing with him on Friday at the Wrong Days Talent show.  Diane and Bill always do such a good job singing together.  Other talent show acts were Angie Luna’s Dancers, The Schatz girls dance number, Diane and Deb singers and Bill and Diane.  All in all it was a great talent show. Thanks for all the participation, it’s only tough when it is so hard to hear in the Big Top.

The parade started at 10 AM with the smorgasbord, which followed at 11 AM.  There were also many other events such as softball, cribbage and horseshoe tournaments, BINGO at Seniors, etc.  It seemed that the attendance was better than average.  It is always hard to keep people coming to such community events when there is so much competition from the surrounding area, too.  This year we had to compete with Moose Lake’s Agate Days and the Air Show in Duluth.  If you have other ideas or suggestions for Wrong Days please attend the next meeting in a couple of weeks. 

Our sympathy to the family of Marvin Kempi, who died on July 19, 2008.  I don’t have any other details at this time, though.

Our sympathy to the family of Sandy Nylund who died on July 13, 2008 at age 72. Sandy and her husband Bob lived for several years on Eagle Lake.  Her funeral was held on July 16th, 2008 at Forbes Methodist Church in Proctor.

Congratulations to George Tuomi on finally being awarded the Bronze Star Award for heroism during WWII.  George received this award 63 years after his years of service.  George was only one of 13 of the 50 soldiers in his platoon to make it off the island of Okinawa alive. We also want to thank George for his service to our country during this trying time.

Barb Dahl spent three days in Chicago attending a conference for the FonduLac Ojibwe School. The conference was titled Accommodating Special Diets In The School Nutrition Programs. Tara Wolters, the school nurse, also attended.

For those of you who read this article in time, the Forest Hill Cemetery Lot Owners will meet at the cemetery on Saturday, July 26 at 9:00.  We will have a short business meeting and then spend time cleaning up the grounds.  We’d like to raise some of the sunken stones, so please bring the necessary equipment.  Please mark your calendar for this ‘uplifting’ experience.  Thanks., Carolyn Krogh

Happy 65th Birthday to Bob Schultz on August 7th.

Alice and Kenny Lake were overwhelmed with the response to their 50th Wedding Anniversary Party on Sunday, July 20, 2008.  There must have been over 300 people there to wish them well and also visit with friends and relatives from the present and the past 50 years.  It was neat to look through the old wedding scrapbook and see the names of so many friends who have since passed on.  Alice and Kenny and their family want to Thank Everyone who attended or sent greetings.  They were very thankful for all the cards, gifts, greetings and well wishes.  It’s only in communities like Cromwell and Wright that friendships last so long and mean so much!  Thank You Everyone for everything and especially to their children who did so much to make this event happen!!

There is no way to mention all the folks that attended the party, but special note must be made that Retired Pastor Bill Simpson and wife JoAnne were there as it was Kenny and Alice’s wedding that was preformed by Pastor Bill.  This was his first wedding ceremony when he came to Cromwell back in 1958.

Lonnie Bradford and Tiffany Riewe are getting married on August 2nd and his mother Melinda and her husband, Scott Ferry are hosting an Open House at their home on Tamarack School House Road the following week on Saturday, August 9th from 2 - 6 for the community of family and friends to attend.

Lonnie and Tiffany met while both were attending the University of Minnesota, Morris Campus.  Tiffany is a sweet and talented girl, from Lake Crystal, MN, who presently works as an office manager in Cincinnati, Ohio.  Lonnie is finishing up his doctorate in Psychology at Xavier’s College in Cincinnati and is an Army Officer.  After their wedding in New Ulm, MN on August 2nd, they will cruise the Caribbean and return to Minnesota for their celebration Open House on Saturday, August 9th at the home of his mother, Melinda and Scott Ferry on School House Road in Tamarack.  They will return to Cincinnati to continue in their careers.  Lonnie and Tiffany along with their families would love to see many family and friends from the community at their Open House.  Please join us in celebrating their marriage, have fun and please bring your lawn chair to sit on outside, weather permitting or indoors.

Heather Bradford, recently made an educational trip to Cuba.  She enjoyed the tropical scenery and weather their while learning about the country’s educational system and about their high literacy rate and how they promote literacy.  Her trip went well despite getting stung by jellyfish during her first days there. Her mom, Melinda, is always glad for her when she can travel, but very happy when she returns safely home, too!

That’s all the news from Lake Gotothefair and Hello to all the friends and family of Kenny and Alice Lake, Congratulations on 50 years of marriage.