Fillmore County Journal

"Where Fillmore County News Comes First"

Dr. Stephanie Jakim, with OMC Preston since the beginning, retires after 29 years

by

After almost 29 years of providing medical care to residents of Fillmore County, Dr. Jakim, of the Preston Olmsted Medical Center, is ready to retire. Whether it’s a routine immunization, or treating injuries, many have become familiar with Dr. Jakim’s friendly face. Dr. Stephanie Jakim is originally from Lima, a town in Ohio named after the capital of Peru. She grew up in a … [Read more...]

Peering at the Past Church memories: Love Boat, bad-language basketball and a wedding mouse

by

Part one of a series The youth played table tennis without incident, but basketball was once curtailed because of cursing. It was the 1940s at the South Ridge Evangelical United Brethren Church (E. U. B.). Since 1968, when that denomination merged with the Methodist Church, the Houston County congregation has been known as South Ridge United Methodist Church. In those early … [Read more...]

Bluff Country Singers concert to be held April 23

by

Bigger and better than ever, the Bluff Country Singers Spring Concert, now with over 50 voices, comes to Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Spring Valley on Sunday, April 23 with concerts at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. A stirring combination of popular, patriotic, and soul arrangements, as directed by Elliott Grandall and accompanied by Suz Eberle, shares the stage with solos by soprano … [Read more...]

Local woman revives skateboarding as favorite pastime

by

Sally Gibson, owner of Sally’s Hair to Dye For in Preston, is well known in the area as a business owner and artist as she styles hair and uses her artistic talents to paint business windows throughout Preston’s downtown. She may also be known for helping set the stage at one of her daughter’s productions or volunteering in the community. However, many may not know about … [Read more...]

Peering at the Past Up the river to Rushford on steamboats built in Houston

by

Part five of a series In the autumn of 1857, the steamboat “Key City” ran into and sank the freight boat “Ben Coursin’” on the Mississippi River near Dresbach. One account says 12 to 15 people were killed or drowned. David Watson mortgaged his farm and secured $300 in gold to purchase the wreckage and worked all winter to pull the “Ben Coursin’” out of the river in order to … [Read more...]

Fostering dogs is a passion for Chatfield couple

by

By Janette Dragrold The ASPCA estimates that over six million pets enter shelters in the United States every year. Around half of that number are dogs. How do shelters handle all these animals? By enlisting the help of volunteers who are willing to foster them in their homes.  For Mike and Louise Mandt of Chatfield, fostering dogs is a big part of their life. Louise started … [Read more...]

Father’s Day Cruise for a Cause

by

This upcoming Father’s Day is going to be extra special. Dads like cars, and dads like helping people. So, why not have an event that gets fathers out on the roadways of scenic bluff country, and raise some money for an important cause along the way? On Sunday, June 18, 2023, Visit Bluff Country Magazine will be hosting the first-ever “Father’s Day Cruise for a Cause.” … [Read more...]

Peering at the Past Clams, ice men, muskrats and moonshiners on the Mississippi

by

Fourth of a series During the first three decades of western migration into southeast Minnesota – for most residents in the 1850s, ’60s and ‘70s –rivers were both a welcome highway and an unwelcome obstacle (depending on which direction you wanted to travel). Steamboat transit for passengers and cargo was an early commercial enterprise during warm weather until an 1880 public … [Read more...]