When Nathan Davidson was a Rushford High School student back in the late ‘60s, he knew he liked music but had no idea how it might fit into his future life. “I didn’t have much self-confidence in those days,” he remembers. “I could see myself maybe working in a music store, but I also thought about becoming a barber or a photographer. I didn’t know where I was headed.” Fast … [Read more...]
Harmony woman seeks kidney transplant
Your cell phone rings and you feel annoyed. “Car warranties… student loans… Medicare plans.” So many scams wasting your time. You hang up immediately, if you answer at all. But what if an unexpected phone call had the potential to save your life — how would you feel then? That’s what Ann Junge Thacher has been dealing with for the last three years. Thacher, who lives in … [Read more...]
Eagle Bluff Learning Center offering new Nature Preschool
Parents of preschoolers face a big question: how do we best get our child ready for success in kindergarten? Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center has a creative new answer, one involving fresh air, trees, birds, animals, and maybe even a few bugs! Since last fall, Eagle Bluff — in partnership with Head Start in Fillmore County — has been offering a Nature Preschool for … [Read more...]
A princess comes to Lanesboro
Americans have a fascination with “royals” it seems, from the “Crown” of Queen Elizabeth to Princess Diana to Harry and Meghan. More proof—the popular new PBS television series “Atlantic Crossing” that offers not only a “Norwegian” flavor to that fascination but a connection to Lanesboro, Minn., history as well. “Atlantic Crossing” tells the story of Crown Princess Martha of … [Read more...]
The Dybings’ “Weekend Musical Messages” filling “virtual” pews
Do you remember the word puzzle about the tree in the forest? If it falls and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? Here’s a local twist: If a gifted pianist is playing in a church but there are no people in the pews, is there still music? That dilemma faced Heidi Dybing, that gifted pianist, last March at the beginning of Holy Week. Heidi had prepared … [Read more...]
Sisters, and love, and sharing music… it’s “Sister Luv”
It was a gift, a wish, a promise and a prayer (maybe a bunch of those), that created “Sister Luv.” Add to all that a dose of colorful creativity, dogged determination and some pretty big dreams, and you have a four-sister vocal quartet from Spring Valley that’s entertaining people and touching hearts across southeast Minnesota. The name captures it. Four sisters — Xena (21), … [Read more...]
More than a name…it’s The Rutabaga Brothers!
What’s a rutabaga? It’s a vegetable, kind of like a potato. The name is funny. (It could be funnier. In some countries they’re called “neeps.”) What’s a Rutabaga Brother? That sounds funny, too. It’s actually the name of a band. A local band. A very good band. To learn more about them, how they got started, the music they play, and how they’re faring in the pandemic, I checked … [Read more...]
Matt and Brenda Stier: Sharing life — and the gift of music — together
Steve and Eydie. Sonny and Cher. Johnny and June. Let’s add John and Yoko, too. Who are these people and what do they have in common? Depending on your birthday and generation, you recognize them as married couples who became well-known for singing together. If you’re from Spring Valley, Harmony, Lanesboro, Preston, St. Charles, or Chatfield, anywhere in southeast Minnesota, … [Read more...]
Loving, writing and sharing music fills life of Canton man
Charlie Warner is a long-time resident of Canton, Minn. His wife Karla grew up there. Their daughter Megan is on the staff of the Fillmore County Journal. Charlie has been a member of Canton’s city council for the last dozen years. Those are all important to Charlie. What’s also hugely important to him is music. Charlie Warner loves music. He loves listening to it, playing it … [Read more...]
A band called Trouble Shooter: Local kids, local band, make very good
It’s not unusual for junior high kids to play around with guitars and drums and to think about being musicians. Some even dream about forming their own band some day. If you didn’t do that yourself, you probably remember classmates who did. Fun stuff, kid stuff. What’s very unusual — “extraordinary” is more like it — is for a group of kids like that to actually pull it off. To … [Read more...]
Arnold-Bradley Band: Sharing friendship and a love for country music
If you live locally and enjoy the excellent live music so often available here (before the pandemic squeezed us into strange boxes for the time being), you’ve probably heard of — and hopefully enjoyed — the classic country/bluegrass music of the Arnold-Bradley Band. Family and friendship first connected Steve Arnold and Walter Bradley. “We’d known the Arnold family,” remembers … [Read more...]