(Reprinted from the Hills Crescent, Dec. 31, 1970)

Beaver Creek Co-op Elevator is leveled by fire Monday evening.

The Beaver Creek Co-op Elevator, a farmer's cooperative, burned to the ground last Monday night. The fire was noticed when an automatic siren sounded at about 6 p.m. Mel Kinsey, employee of the firm, heard it from the cafŽ in Beaver Creek and went to investigate.

He sounded the fire alarm and then attempted to put out the fire with a fire extinguisher, but the blaze was far too hot for a small extinguisher. Trucks located in the elevator were removed safely, but that turned out to be the only property in the building saved. Total loss mounted to about a quarter of a million dollars, directors indicated.

The cause of the fire is another question. A corn cracker was used Monday, and the possibility of an electrical failure exists. The fire did start in this portion of the building.

A storage building, just east of the main elevator, was saved. It was filled to capacity with feed and other supplies. A grain dryer and outside mixer was also saved, or so it seemed at this writing. Internal damage could change the picture, however.

The Beaver Creek Lumber Co., another cooperative firm, also was endangered almost throughout the fire. Constant cooling was necessary on the end of the building and roof in order to prevent a spread. Had it caught fire, the village of Beaver Creek probably would all be black at this writing, for it is quite well stocked with lumber and other material that is highly combustible. No doubt the fire would have spread rapidly to other buildings, all of which are frame, save two or three. North of the fire a filling station and another building were endangered.
The Hills Fire Department answered the call for help shortly after six o'clock Monday evening and got there while the building was still standing, but very much ablaze. It was readily known that it couldn't be saved, but the other nearby buildings could be.

Seven fire departments were present: Beaver Creek, Hills, Valley Springs, Brandon, Garretson, Luverne and Hardwick. Water was hauled in from various sources as the Beaver Creek supply rapidly ran out as the seven fire departments poured it on.

Damage other than to the elevator resulted in the complete destruction of a railroad car standing alongside of the elevator. Extreme heat melted it and the rails into a twisted mess.

Residents of Beaver Creek were reminded of a previous fire that took a cafŽ, grocery store and another building about 20 years ago. They, too, burned on a cold night, like Monday night. Like then, the fire Monday night was not helped by a strong wind. Had it been, the story would be much different.

We talked to one of the directors and plans are already under way to put up a new building. In fact, some discussion had been had by the board in regards to a more fire-proof structure. Elevators throughout a wide area have been burning quite frequently, and they are getting concerned. The many pieces of equipment being used by elevators and feed companies these days is no doubt one of the main causes of fire, and the board was anxious to remove it. They now have their work cut out for them.

Manager Frank Ponto is presently on vacation in Texas and is no doubt in for a big surprise when he learns what has happened at the Beaver Creek Co-op Elevator.

By Jolene Farley
At the regular meeting Tuesday night, the Hills City Council approved a fire department budget of $21,850 for 2002. This is about $1,000 more than the 2001 budget.

In other business:
-The council proclaimed the city’s Arbor Day to be Sunday, April 27.
-The council asked Connie Wiertzema, city clerk, to invite playground equipment sales representatives to attend the next council meeting to demonstrate their products.
The council budgeted $3,000 for playground equipment this year.
-Wayne Ward, maintenance supervisor, asked the council to purchase a pump for use at the city ponds.

The council approved a $2,500 purchase providing Ward obtains another bid before the purchase.

By Sara Quam
A Luverne native's world was literally rocked Feb. 28 as he experienced the Seattle earthquake from his sixth-floor office at Starbucks.

That Wednesday morning, a frightened Anthony Carroll peeked out from under his desk to witness what the 6.8-magnitude perpetrator was doing to his office.

"I've never experienced anything like it, and given the chance to choose, I wouldn't do so again," said the 1988 Luverne High School graduate and son of Laurin and Rose Carroll.

Growing up in Minnesota, Anthony was accustomed to hiding from storms in basements. "But with this, you can't do anything but wait it out. There's nowhere to go," he said.

When the first tremors started at 10:55 a.m., Anthony's co-worker announced that it was an earthquake and they both darted under a desk. It was all over in about 45 seconds.

"First it was a swaying back and forth," he said, "and then it became what they call the Jell-O effect where the ground moves and the buildings follow. Things were really moving."

Anthony said he won't soon forget the feeling of the quake, but he remembers the sound, too. "It's almost like a train rumbling by, but multiplied times 100."

The nine-story Starbucks building is one of the most recognized landmarks in the hardest-hit part of Seattle. It is currently operating out of an office across town. Part of the repairs the office has to complete is water damage from the sprinkler system and bursting water pipes.

Anthony's home was unaffected by the earthquake, and the office fared as well as it did because of reinforcement efforts a few years ago.

He expects to be back in his regular office in four to six weeks, but it could take the rest of the city a lot longer.

Even though the recovery will take time, Seattle ended up better off than most cities with a quake that strong. Typically, 26 would be dead and 2,600 injured with $3.9 billion in damage. But no deaths were attributed to the earthquake, and damage was half what was expected.

The natural disaster scared Anthony, but it's not enough to make him want to leave his job in product management as an analyst. "I do have a slight longing to work on the first floor, though," he said.

By Lori Ehde
Reading failure is costly. Children who cannot read suffer from low self-esteem and have academic difficulties. Once they fall behind, it's difficult to catch up to their peers.

Every time a child fails first grade, the school community loses more than $3,700, the national yearly average for education one child. Once a child is identified as a "reading failure" the cost continues to increase - for special help, special classrooms and special materials.

Moreover, the consequences of reading failure do not end with the cost to the child or the school district.

Society bears the costs, too. Illiteracy often results in unemployment and a life of poverty.

These facts were provided to Luverne School Board members during their Thursday, March 8, meeting.

But board members also heard good news about a promising program called Reading Recovery.

It's a supplementary reading and writing program for first-grade children who are at risk of failure in reading. Through early intervention, Reading Recovery helps children become independent readers.

"It's a preventative program," said Title 1 Teacher Angela Ahrendt. "In first grade, kids are just learning how to read. We want to catch the kids who are struggling and teach them good reading habits before they move on to second and third grade, so hopefully they can work within the average range of their regular classrooms."

Luverne implemented Reading Recovery four years ago through Title 1 monies.

"It’s exciting to the children's progress and to see the lightbulb turn on to reading," said Ahrendt, who has been teaching Title 1 for six years."

Ahrendt and Lisa Lundgren have been teaching Reading Recovery in Luverne for four years, and they presented the board with statistics pointing to the program's success.

A total of 66 children in Luverne have benefited from Reading Recovery, which targets students reading at the bottom 20 percent of their class.

Of those, 72 percent have successfully discontinued Reading Recovery and score in the average range on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills.

Local statistics show the students who participated in first-grade Reading Recovery, continued to fare well in second and third grades as well.

According to Ahrendt and Lundgren, the program is meeting and exceeding its anticipated goals.

The short-term goal of Reading Recovery is to accelerate children's progress in learning to read. The long-term goal is to have children continue to progress through their regular classroom instruction and independent reading within an average range after intervention is completed.

Following their presentation to the board, Superintendent Vince Schaefer said he was impressed by the information.

"I want to congratulate you ladies," he said. "Good job. Keep up the good work."

By Sara Quam
Struggling to keep adequate health services isn't new to most rural areas, but Luverne's plans to maintain dental practices is unique.

The Luverne Economic Development Authority heard from Chamber of Commerce Director Dave Smith in a special Monday morning meeting.

The entire nation has a shortage of dentists, and graduation rates of dental schools can't keep up with demand.

Attracting dentists to Luverne may be more difficult than in other areas of the country, since southwest Minnesota doesn't carry a reputation of economic good fortune.

Luverne has three dentists who keep busy with customers. But with one dentist approaching retirement and others well into their careers, Luverne wants to make sure new dentists consider filling those shoes when the time comes.

Right now, Smith's efforts are limited to marketing the community as a family-friendly place to run a successful practice.

"Is there something we can do to get someone to come into Luverne?" Smith said.

Some cities are actually building practices to combat the shortage of dentists, but Luverne is a long way from that.

Luverne Economic Development Authority Director Tony Chladek is, however, starting to look over former physician recruitment programs to see where dentists might fit in.

LEDA member Keith Erickson said, "Our dentists are just as important to this community as doctors."

The economic impact of one office closing and not being replaced by another dentist is big. The trickle-down effect for lost wages of about four employees and tax losses can reach into the millions of dollars.

Dentists in demand
One of Luverne's practicing dentists, Dr. Bob Kaczrowski, said the marketing plan "makes a lot of sense."
He said his career in dentistry has been positive, even though he's in a smaller town.

"There's a lot of opportunity here," Kaczrowski said. "It’s a good place to raise a family and there's a camaraderie between dentists and their patients. We don't really compete with each other."

Kaczrowski has seen the decline in dentists just locally. When he started in Luverne in 1979, there were five dentists. The population has remained almost constant since then, but dentists haven't.

"Access to dental care is getting tough in out-state Minnesota," he said.

Kaczrowski attributes part of Luverne's decrease in practices to dental hygienists doing some of the work that dentists used to. But overall, dental schools aren't putting out the number of graduates they used to.

Jasper's dentist retired last year, and Edgerton's is scheduled to retire this summer.

Dr. Bill Bollinger in Luverne has said he's waiting to retire, but he wants to make sure his customers have a place to go before he leaves.

As for Kaczrowski, he said, "I'm open to having an associate with me rather than a new dentist having to go solo." The associate could join his office and eventually take over when Kaczrowski is ready to retire.

That option may allow the Chamber's marketing to reach dentists who don't have the ability to purchase their own practices right out of college.

Dental school is long and expensive. Combine that with buying a facility and equipment, and new dentists have a major debt on their hands.

The industry, though profitable, requires large start-up costs, and most dentists own their own practices rather than joining an existing company.

The Chamber will send marketing information to upcoming graduates of dental schools and hope that Luverne's assets will overshadow any misgivings new dentists may have about locating in rural Minnesota.

By Lori Ehde
As thoughts turn to spring, local "nasal rangers," as they're affectionately called, are turning their noses in the air.

Since the Agri-Energy Ethanol Plant in Luverne installed its new 175-foot stack in January, Concerned Citizens for Quality Life have been hoping the modification will improve the smell.

The taller $300,000 stack is intended to reduce corn processing odor by sending emissions a greater distance through air dispersion before odors fall on the city.

"We have never stated we will eliminate it all," said plant manager Rick Serie. "Can we reduce it? Absolutely. Have we reduced it? Absolutely."

Some say the baked bread and sour beer smell has lessened. Others say it's as bad as it's always been and are demanding further action.

The fact is, any real improvement in air quality won't be measurable until spring returns southwesterly breezes.

On April 27 the air surrounding the ethanol plant will be scientifically tested for odor.

It was a year ago at that time when consultant Chuck McGinley measured air quality in Luverne to establish a baseline for improvement.

At that time he measured all emissions coming out of the plant.

Despite efforts to diminish the smell, some residents say it's affecting their health.

"I think we can deal with the odor, but there are toxins coming out of that plant," resident Tom Studer told the Star Herald.

"I feel my family has suffered health problems because of the plant, but we haven't been able to prove it yet."

Serie said he's aware of residents' health concerns, but he said the plant has already met stringent state guidelines, before the building was even constructed.

"It took a year and a half to get the plans approved," Serie said. "It was a very extensive EAW (Environmental Assessment Worksheet)."

Since the plant began operating in 1998, it remains under constant monitoring of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, EPA and most recently the Minnesota Health Department.

"If there's a health concern, I want to be the first to know about it," Serie said.

"I live here, too, and our 29 employees and their families live here. We want to make the situation the best for everyone."

Meanwhile, in addition to raising the stack, the plant is exploring other ways to improve air quality.

One approach the plant is taking toward odor reduction is marketing its modified wet feed.

Nearly 90 percent of the plant's odors come from the process of drying corn by-products, so the plant is actively selling the modified wet feed to niche cattle markets.

So far, this has reduced the amount of syrup in the dryers by nearly 24 percent. "This is where we'll see the most improvement," Serie said. "That's 24 percent less going through the dryer."

Plant management is also considering a larger blower for the fermentation scrubber stack. Only about 6 percent of the plant's odor comes from the fermentation process, but Serie said it may be worth doing.

"It's logical to concentrate on the larger dryer stack, but to me, the fermentation scrubber is where the sour beer smell comes from," he said.

Another promising area for improvement may be in the process of separating ethanol from the other compounds.

Serie said a plant in Preston cut its emissions of volatile organic compounds by 50 percent after improving this process.

"It's a substantial capital improvement," Serie said. "But it would also increase plant efficiencies, so we're taking a close look at this upgrade."

Both residents and ethanol plant staff are now waiting for the results of McGinley's April 27 air test.

"Everything's subjective at this point," Serie said. "What we need is objective data."

Girl Scouts Jenna Lange (with book) and Angie McClure (at right) share a story about "Clever Tom and the Leprechaun" with Community Education children Tuesday afternoon at the Minnesota Veterans Home.

The event, which focused on St. Patrick's Day activities, was part of Community Educations' Adventure Club series. It also served as a service project for the Girl Scouts, who helped young children with activities. At right, Girl Scout Alonna Huston glues Froot Loops, marshmallows and other snacks to her shamrock.

By Lori Ehde

By Jolene Farley
Hundreds of Minnesota schools and libraries participated in Read Across America this week, an annual event commemorating the birthday of children’s author Dr. Seuss, creator of "Cat in the Hat."

Hills-Beaver Creek Elementary served traditional Dr. Seuss fare, "Green Eggs and Ham," for lunch on Thursday. The menu included hard-boiled eggs dyed green and ham sandwiches with cheese topping.

Friday Peer Helpers from H-BC High School read to elementary students. Some teachers added a stripe on their Dr. Seuss hats for every book read.

Monday afternoon Sioux Falls Sky Force player Carlos Daniel came to visit the elementary school. Students asked Daniel a variety of questions about his life. Daniel is a 6-foot-8-inch forward for the basketball team.
Daniel good-naturedly answered all questions, including his favorite cartoon character (Dark Wing Duck) and his shoe size (15).

After their visit with Daniel, students warmed up for their game against the H-BC faculty. The faculty won the game 36-26, but the students put up a good fight.

Read Across America helps encourage adults to read aloud with children, enhancing youngsters' reading skills and promoting the fun of reading.

Read Across America is sponsored by the National Education Association and by Education Minnesota, in cooperation with the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Other partners include BookPALS and the Minnesota Twins.

Photo by Jolene Farley

Shingles are the newest addition on the Tuff Memorial Assisted Living project. Subcontractor Dave Dressen, from Dressen Roofing, Magnolia, was plugging away Monday trying to get the maximum amount of work done in the sunny weather.