By Pastor Jeff Jacobs Unity Lutheran Parish - St. Paul, Saetersdal and St. Matthew’s, Granger One could say this for a “COVID” summer last year – it sure lasted a looong time. Chances are, like me, you felt this summer by contrast sped quickly. August has ended, September is upon us, school resumes and autumn is practically here – already?!? Of course, that is only our … [Read more...]
Stellar 181 Taphouse a confluence of passions in Spring Valley
By Axel Gumbel Stellar 181 Taphouse - Spring Valley’s newest eatery - was buzzing last weekend. Locals and visitors are catching on quickly to the many offerings owner Alex Slifka and his team are serving up. That includes 20 beers on tap, a full liquor lineup and a quarterly menu that Slifka describes as a “step up from regular bar food” with a focus on house made and not a … [Read more...]
Reflections on 9/11
September 11, 2001, found me getting ready for a day of applying driveway sealer to my dad’s condo driveways. Right before I shut off the TV to leave, Katie Couric came on screen with a special report. In the background, I saw the twin towers. With a sense of pride, I noticed my son Paul’s office building next to one of the towers. Katie was just reporting that an airplane had … [Read more...]
Reflections on 9/11
I was working downtown St. Paul, taking my morning walk through the skyway system. It started becoming unusually quiet and people were staring at the televisions located throughout. I stopped and watched as well and felt an overwhelming feeling of grief, then the second plane hit. Rushing back to my office, my boss told us to go home and be with our families, as nothing … [Read more...]
Reflections on 9/11
My memories of 9/11 unfolded over several days. We were in an Irish Bar in Roppongi, a nightspot in Tokyo, celebrating my 50th birthday with several teaching friends. As the day had been as a typhoon day, (like Minnesota’s snow days) we were relaxed and joyful. With the time difference between Tokyo and New York being 15 hours, the evening of the 11th was early morning in … [Read more...]
Reflections on 9/11
On the morning of September 11, 2001, I was teaching English at Fillmore Central High School in Harmony, Minn. That morning, underclassmen were getting their pictures taken for the yearbook, and my students had been dismissed to the old gym, where the pictures were taken. When one of my students returned to the classroom, she told me that a tower went down in New York City. … [Read more...]
Reflections on 9/11 – A day we’ll never forget
Dale and Joann Meiners Eitzen, MN September 11, 2001. A day my wife Joann and I will never forget. Why? Because we were on a bus tour with Hawkeye Stages of Decorah, Iowa. We were scheduled to be at the World Trade Center at 9 a.m. to meet our tour guide. He was to be our guide for the day in New York City. As we were ready to unload the bus on Monday evening … [Read more...]
Reflections on 9/11
Since 9/11/2001 was a Tuesday, I was getting ready to go to the Fillmore County Board Commissioners meeting. I briefly noticed on the Today Show that something had occurred in New York City. When I arrived at the courthouse, several employees and a couple other county commissioners were in the coordinator’s office watching the Today Show on a small TV. It had been determined … [Read more...]
Reflections on 9/11
My wife Carol and I were visiting our son and his family in the Memphis, Tenn., area and were about to check out of our motel as we were on our way to St. Louis, Mo., to attend a U.S. Air Force reunion. The first we heard of the tragedy was that a small plane had crashed into one of the World Trade Center towers. Soon after that we learned that it had been an airline … [Read more...]
Reflections on 9/11
It hardly seems possible that it’s been 20 years since the September atrocity. My “where was I” story started at the hospital in Faribault. I was in for gall bladder surgery that day. When they finished operating on me and wheeled me out I heard a TV someplace telling about an airplane crashing into a building. I was still loopy from the anesthesia so it didn’t make sense. A … [Read more...]