Remember When

10 years ago (2011) •Beginning this fall parents of Luverne students will use a new information system to follow their children’s academic progress. The program, Infinite Campus, replaces the former JMC system. Luverne Middle/High School Principal Ryan Johnson said the data manager system will be easier for parents, students and teachers to use. “The layout of the new program is more intuitive,”…

10 years ago (2011) •A tumble prairie flower was the focus of much attention this week at Touch the Sky Prairie north of Luverne. Local volunteers, members of the Youth Conservation Corps and Iowa Lakes Community College students searched ditches and tall grass to monitor the progress of the rare western prairie fringed orchid. The western orchid is listed as a threatened plant species. Its…

10 years ago (2011) •The Rock County Star Herald is once again challenging fairgoers to a friendly competition for the 2011 version of the Rock County Fair. Star Herald General Manager Rick Peterson announced this week the creation of a Star Herald paper medallion that will be hidden on the fairgrounds to be turned in for a prize. “I’m hiding it myself and I’m not telling anyone where it is,”…

10 years ago (2011) •The Luverne Area Chamber invites everyone to visit Luverne for its annual customer appreciation event, Hot Dog Night. In its 49th year, Hot Dog Night features local Chamber members giving away more than 12,000 hot dogs and 350 gallons of drinks. Hot dogs and beverages will be served from 6 p.m. Thursday until they’re gone at participating Chamber members all over Luverne. The…

10 years ago (2011) •The Rock County Sheriff’s Department is investigating a burglary on Main Street that occurred in the early morning hours of Sunday, June 26. According to Sheriff Evan Verbrugge, officers were called to the Herb ’N Legend store on East Main Street at 4:40 a.m. Employee Andrew Van Hoof, who lives in the apartment above the store, told officers he heard a crash around 4:20 a.m.…

10 years ago (2011) •A huge bolt of lightning struck the ground near the Rock County Law Enforcement Center June 14 causing $30,000 in damage to the county’s communications systems. Rock County Administrator Kyle Oldre updated County Board members at their regular Tuesday meeting. He said all but $1,000 of the damage is covered by insurance and the extent of the damage to county communications…

10 years ago (2011) •Corn prices surged to nearly $8 per bushel last week in response to news that global corn inventories will drop. On the Chicago Board of Trade, corn closed at more than $7.99 per bushel Friday. In Luverne, corn prices at Eastern Farmers Coop Elevator closed at $7.59 per bushel, more than twice what it was a year ago. That compares with the past three-year average high-cash…

10 years ago (2011) •A pair of Luverne High School girls extended their track seasons during Thursday’s Section 3A Track and Field Championships in Redwood Falls. The top two finishers in individual events at the section level earn automatic invitations to participate in the state meet. Luverne senior Katlyn Sawtelle and junior Paige Nath met that criteria. Sawtelle won a section title in one…

10 years ago (2011) •A Luverne High School sophomore will pull double duty at the Minnesota State Class A Tennis Championship next week. One week after helping the Cardinals win the Section 3A Team Tournament, Joey Vajgrt qualified for the Class A Singles Tournament by placing second at the Section 3A Individual Tournament Thursday and Tuesday in Redwood Falls. It’s the second straight season…

10 years ago (2011) •The storm drainage pond behind the Minnesota Veterans Home is chemically treated several times during the summer to control weeds and algae. … A fountain and aeration system will continuously move water to discourage growth of weeds and algae. It will have the added benefit of increasing oxygen levels in the water, which would allow the fish to grow larger in size. The cost…

10 years ago (2011) •The world-famous wood-carved sculptures of Fred Cogelow are on display at the Brandenburg Gallery in the Rock County Veterans Memorial Building. Cogelow is widely known and acclaimed in fine art circles. His work appears throughout the country in museums, private residences, art studios and businesses. Cogelow hails from Rock County ancestors — the Bush family from Hills.  …

10 years ago (2011) •Timing has been everything for Sgt. David Klein and his wife, Leslie, this spring as they relocated from Valley Springs, S.D., to their newly purchased century-old house in Ellsworth. David has been deployed in Afghanistan since May 2010 with the 196th MEB unit. And his homecoming on Tuesday, May 3, included a surprise home makeover by family and friends to make their place…

10 years ago (2011) •Area health enthusiasts are paying attention to the latest business news on Luverne’s Main Street. A 24-hour fitness center is opening in the former Final Touch building, and it promises top-of-the-line equipment and programs. Branagen Powers, rural Luverne, and Brian Beuning, Luverne, signed papers this week to purchase the 5,000-square-foot building from Mike and Lori…

10 years ago (2011) •The year was 1962 when three teenagers from Pipestone and Luverne formed a group called The Starflies. They were lead singer and guitarist Steve Ellis, Pipestone, drummer Butch Hatting and guitarist Jim Brandenburg, both of Luverne. The band was widely known in its day, and on April 16 it was inducted into the South Dakota Rock and Roll Music Association Hall of Fame. Hatting…

10 years ago (2011) •Officials from Sanford Health attended Luverne’s City Council meeting Tuesday to discuss the logo change on the water tower north of the hospital. The water tower was erected in 2003 to serve the needs of the new hospital and residents in northern neighborhoods of Luverne. It was painted with the logos of what was then Sioux Valley Hospital on two sides, and the city of…

10 years ago (2011) •Since the spring of 1979, Rock County Highway Department Maintenance Supervisor Walter Stearns has worked through more than three decades of Minnesota season changes. Friday, April 29, is his last day at the highway department, which concludes 32 years of work for the county in which he was born and raised. … On May 7, 1979, Stearns was hired as a fulltime equipment operator…