Remember When
- August 25, 202010 years ago (2010) •There was a time in Rock County when pioneer families didn’t have insurance to protect them financially from the devastation of natural disasters. The founders of Beaver Creek Mutual Insurance Company recognized a need for protection, and back in 1885 the business was established in Beaver Creek. The company, now located on Main Street, Luverne, will observe its 125th…
- August 18, 202010 years ago (2010) •When nurses Eileen Hocking and Glenda DeBoer retired from Sanford Hospital in July, they had accumulated 100 years of nursing experience in Luverne between them. The two sit in a restaurant booth reflecting on their 50 years together working in the medical field in Luverne. Both arrived in Luverne as newlyweds in the early 1960s. Hocking came fresh from St. Mary’s nursing…
- August 11, 202010 years ago (2010) •It all started five years ago with five tractors and 50 people. Now the annual event has grown to include more than 35 tractors and 150 guests. Ken and Phyllis Vos, Luverne, hosted their annual tractor party July 30, and the event again lived up to its colorful reputation. A banner above the garage door declared, “Hay! It’s a tractor party!” in John Deere green and yellow…
- August 04, 202010 years ago (2010) •In May the Star Tribune reported “Foreclosures in Minnesota in the first quarter rose for the fourth straight quarter, reaching the third highest level during the current housing crisis.” Scam artists are taking advantage of the increase. The number of foreclosure scams continues to rise; from radio ads to online “guarantees,” the deceiving messages are reaching hundreds of…
- July 28, 202010 years ago (2010) •The National Weather Service determined Monday that Friday night’s storm damage was caused by straight-line winds gusting up to 80 mph. Uprooted trees and destroyed buildings were thought to be the work of a tornado, but meteorologist Todd Heitkamp said strong winds were to blame. “I didn’t see any evidence on the ground or on radar of any tornadic activity,” said Heitkamp,…
- July 21, 202010 years ago (2010) •Bison is one of Rock County’s prairie attractions, and for one family the tourist draw is part of their farm operation. John and Jeanne Bowron are Rock County’s Farm Family of the year. They own Prairie Heights Bison, located north of Luverne on Highway 75. Their website can be found at www.buybison.com. Farm Family honorees are named by the University of Minnesota and…
- July 14, 202010 years ago (2010) •Congregation members of the American Reformed Church in Luverne broke ground Sunday morning on a major expansion that will begin this summer. This is a significant day in the life of the American Reformed Church in Luverne,” said the Rev. Dave Sikkema during the groundbreaking ceremony outside the church. “It has been said before and will be said again, ‘This is a faith-…
- July 07, 202010 years ago (2010) •Students throughout the state of Minnesota will learn about nature through the lens of a camera following a training event for teachers this week in Luverne. Nature photographer Jim Brandenburg and his wife, Judy, will lead a program Saturday, July 10, at Touch the Sky Prairie and Luverne High School. “I’m very honored and flattered to be a part of this,” Jim Brandenburg said…
- June 30, 202010 years ago (2010) •St. John Lutheran Church, Luverne, hosted its Second Annual Block Party Sunday, June 27. “The entire community was invited,” said one of the organizers, Elaine Fick, “especially our close neighbors through special invitation by our awesome Vacation Bible School kids who hand-delivered invitations to a large area of our neighbors.” Block Party attractions included balloon…
- June 23, 202010 years ago (2010) •Deb Vogt has been living two miles north of Magnolia for most of the 34 years she has taught in the kitchen classroom of Luverne High School. Just as the smells of ovens and whirls of sewing machines led the way to her Family and Consumer Sciences (FACS) room, her homemade Cardinal flag marks her home. Vogt hand-sewed and displayed the flag for her daughter Laura’s and her…
- June 16, 202010 years ago (2010) •The Luverne girls made an everlasting mark on the state’s track and field landscape last weekend. After winning a Minnesota State Track and Field Coaches Association True Team title in the middle of May, the Cardinals added another state title to their credit by taking top honors as a team during the Minnesota State High School League’s Track and Field Championships staged at…
- June 09, 202010 years ago (2010) •Ryan Johnson will return to the Southwest Conference at the start of the 2010-2011 school year. Johnson, a 1993 Worthington High School grad, has been named the new Luverne Middle/High School principal. Luverne Superintendent Gary Fisher said the offer was made Friday, May 28, and accepted that Sunday. Johnson has 11 years of teaching experience in the Twin Cities metro area…
- June 02, 202010 years ago (2010) •Philo Hawes is credited as being the founder of Luverne, but until now his name wasn’t on the monument marking his family grave in Maplewood Cemetery. That bothered Rock County Historical Society President Betty Mann. “He’s the founding father of Luverne, and his name wasn’t even on the monument,” she said. After enlisting the help of former Maplewood caretaker Vance Walgrave…
- May 26, 202010 years ago (2010) •Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s unallotments to Local Government Aid are coming up more frequently in conversations at Luverne City Council meetings. At Tuesday’s meeting, unallotments came up during discussion about routine street maintenance. The city had let bids for sealcoating streets in the east central part of Luverne and in the Tri-State Addition surrounding the pool and fitness…
- May 19, 202010 years ago (2010) •Three Rock County families own farms that have been passed down for at least 100 years. Of the more than 200 Century Farms honored this year, two are in Jasper and one in Luverne. Kevin and Kim Hunstad as well as Ryan and Patty Hunstad were recognized from Jasper, and from Luverne was the Arthur G. Hansen farm. Hunstads have farmed since 1908, while the Hansen farm has been…
- May 12, 202010 years ago (2010) •Just in time for the summer tourism season, Luverne’s travel and information center is ready for visitors on South Highway 75. Vance and Becky Walgrave gave their business, Those Blasted Things, a makeover with a new façade of rustic cedar, reminiscent of a Black Hills lodge. Along with that, they’ve been working with the city and the Luverne Chamber to become an information…
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