By John Torgrimson Lanesboro, MN I first heard of the coronavirus in early January when my friends in Hong Kong started posting about a strange deadly SARS-like virus that was emerging in Wuhan, a city in Hubei province in China. This was right around the time of the Chinese New Year and my first thought was: the entire country will be returning to their ancestral … [Read more...]
What makes a successful politician?
One of the intriguing features of the coronavirus pandemic is how sharply it has illuminated the importance of effective political leadership. Wherever we stand on the political spectrum, we’re looking to elected officials to help steer us through this crisis. While I don’t want to talk about specific politicians, a lifetime in politics has given me a sense of what makes a … [Read more...]
Please be a friend, wear a mask Fillmore County
To the Editor, It’s easy to think, when you “know” you are healthy and well, that wearing a mask could be an unnecessary bother, or that you’ll stand out. You’ve possibly seen adults wearing a medical mask in the past, and wondered what’s wrong and maybe even if “it” is catching? But if you’ve had any significant medical challenges hit home, for anyone old or young - … [Read more...]
A Goodly Heritage
By Wenda Grabau My brush with the virus A few days after my family’s return from a trip they had been on, symptoms reared their ugly heads. Coughing uncontrollably, nearly sleepless nights, sore throat, and fever all descended on our little home in the country. Doing his regular chores drained my husband’s strength. Life was not going as usual. After several days … [Read more...]
Journal Writing Project: The man who was more than an artist
By Zara Wilkemeyer Renaissance. One simple word that nearly everyone has heard at one point or another, but what about a Renaissance man? A classic Renaissance man had many talents or vast knowledge, and one of these men was Leonardo da Vinci, who I’m sure, many have heard something about. His life, his inventions and creations, his intelligence, and his death may not be … [Read more...]
One Moment, Please… Now more than ever
As many of our readers grapple with the change that has taken place with our community newspapers over the past couple weeks, we are working behind the scenes at the Fillmore County Journal to expand our news coverage. With this transition, we realize that we have become the only newspaper serving all of Fillmore County and portions of Houston and Mower Counties. This is … [Read more...]
Lifeboat socialism
Howdy folks! Well, it’s the first day of having the kids home because daycare can’t keep them anymore. The morning was flash cards and working on handwriting for the 3- and 5- year-old respectively, then some games, then lunch, then a nap. Luckily, as my substitute teaching job was essentially covering the $300/week cost for their daycare, My wife and I are lucky to essentially … [Read more...]
From farm crisis to coronavirus crisis: a message of hope for southern Minnesota
In 1986, an economic crisis had shaken Greater Minnesota. Farms across the state faced bankruptcy and rural communities suffered. Accordingly, young people were leaving the small towns that had nurtured them in search of opportunities elsewhere. These developments created uncertainty about the future of rural Minnesota. In the midst of that “farm crisis” the urban-based … [Read more...]
Thank you to our political leaders
To the Editor, As a small business owner who has seen government mandates severely impact my business, I would like to thank our political leaders at all levels for shelving politics and working together to help us minimize the economic pain we’re experiencing from the coronavirus. In particular, I’d like to thank our Congressman, Jim Hagedorn, for joining with Rep. Chris … [Read more...]
How to beat the threat of a pandemic
By Mike Sieve Rushford, Minn. In these dark days of the coronavirus it’s important to believe that we will get through this and life will go on. But it’s also important to learn lessons so that we might be better prepared for threats like this in the future, as there almost certainly will be. With that in mind, it seems to me that there are three things that a country … [Read more...]