At their April 19, 2022 meeting, the City of Rushford Village council members found it necessary to close their meeting to discuss pay and benefits for Public Works Director Trenten Chiglo. Chiglo had been offered a job elsewhere and had submitted his letter of resignation. Upon learning Chiglo was open to counteroffers, the council decided to do their best to retain a valued … [Read more...]
Houston Food Shelf revamped
Laurie LeGrande visited the Houston City Council meeting April 11 to share what she called “the most positive, uplifting news” about the local food shelf. LeGrande, who has run the program for the last eight years, thanked the council for allowing the food shelf to use the city-owned former ambulance building. During COVID, a table was set up near the door and staff … [Read more...]
Houston Schools ponders best use of recent building purchases
Houston Schools recently conducted a survey of students, parents, staff, and community members to gather input on the best use for the former ABLE building and St. Mary’s Catholic Church. A total of 208 people responded. St. Mary’s was seen as a location for extracurricular activities such as dance, one act play, musical rehearsals, lego robotics, and STEM activity space. … [Read more...]
Enrollment up at Lanesboro school
Elementary Principal James Semmen spoke at the Lanesboro School Board meeting April 13, to explain the need for hiring an additional teacher next year. When Semmen began as principal in 2000–2001, K-6 enrollment was at 181; administration anticipates an enrollment of 247 in 2022–2023. In the past two years during COVID, there was an increase of 50 students in the elementary, … [Read more...]
Hatlevig Valley, shared home and hearts
Jessica Hatlevig Bell and Elisa Hatlevig have just opened up their Airbnb near Peterson. “We needed to open our house and our hearts to others,” Elissa commented. They have decided to share their family treasure with the public to honor their parents, Ronald and Jacqueline Hatlevig. The home is built on the family farm, which was originally established in 1894 by Ron’s … [Read more...]
International Owl Center auctions owl art by Ukrainian children
Karla Bloem, executive director of the International Owl Center at Houston, was flabbergasted as she watched the ending of the recent online auction of 59 pieces of owl art created by Ukrainian children. “It was like high drama and every time I refreshed the total would go up thousands of dollars!” Bloem exclaimed. Bloem would have been happy to raise $6,000; at the end of the … [Read more...]
Bernard selected as first choice for R-P superintendent
After interviewing the six finalists for R-P Superintendent, the R-P School Board voted unanimously Tuesday night to offer the superintendent position to Benjamin Bernard. Since they were aware that Bernard was also a finalist for a position at a nearby school, the board also selected Craig Ihrke as their choice in the event that Bernard turned down the offer. Teacher … [Read more...]
Fillmore Skywarn — local weather spotters
With spring approaching, many of us begin thinking more about the possibility of severe weather. Thanks to Fillmore Skywarn, a volunteer storm spotting group, we can rest a little easier. The storm spotters stress safety as the highest priority as they look for storms; people are placed to the side or in back of storms and never cross a bridge without knowing there is another … [Read more...]
R-P superintendent interviews set
The interview and reference questions are set, the dates of March 28 and 29 have been chosen and the six interviewees have been notified for the position of superintendent at Rushford-Peterson. The R-P School Board put their final touches on the upcoming interviews at their regular school board meeting March 21, 2022. The six candidates who will be interviewed are: Benjamin … [Read more...]
Calvin Nagle, new Houston police officer
Calvin Nagle was sworn in as Houston’s newest police officer by Mayor Dave Olson at the regular Houston City Council meeting on March 14, 2022. Nagle will begin training with Police Chief Brett Hurley at once; both will take part in the yearly spring police training sessions as well. Hurley asked for pre-approval on purchasing a new squad car; currently the dealership in … [Read more...]