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Community Voices

Laying groundwork for strong start this fall

Even with most students and staff out of our buildings, summer is a busy and important season at Marshall Public Schools. Summer learning is well underway across all grade levels, with students building connections, strengthening skills, and continuing their academic journeys. This time of year also allows us to complete critical projects across the district. Our custodial and maintenance teams are hard at work preparing our buildings for the upcoming school year — deep cleaning, addressing repairs, and ensuring our facilities are ready to welcome students this fall. These summer ...

Ravishing radishes

Every morning at this time of year I go outside and dig in the dirt for my breakfast. This isn’t because we’re destitute. It’s because I have this scandalous craving for radishes. As with many things, fresher is always better. And it’s impossible to be any fresher than eating food moments after it’s plucked from the earth. I wash my radishes first, of course. I’m not a total barbarian, at least not anymore. When I was a kid, a fresh radish or a green onion would find its way into my mouth after the dirt was removed with a cursory swipe on the leg of my jeans. Jeans that ...

City celebrations bring us back home

The city of Marshall is fortunate to have many organizations that put forward a variety of events, whether it be a summer festival, downtown music event, historical presentations, a parade or the county fair. These occasions do more than entertain, they bring people home and create a genuine sense of belonging. Visit Marshall helps the city promote these events along with supporting them through marketing or putting on the event themselves. The last couple of years, Visit Marshall has sponsored downtown music performances. Eats & Beats brings live music, food trucks, and a lively ...

On fatherhood

Every day, rain or shine or Shinola, I take our dog, Bella, out for a walk. It’s good for both of us, and as her doggy daddy, it’s my responsibility to ensure that she gets her minimum daily requirement of free-range fun. During our walks Bella chases rabbits that she never catches and digs for gophers she never finds. She seems to have learned that it’s not about the destination so much as it’s about the journey. As her dad, I will gladly take credit for her acquiring that nugget of wisdom. East of our farmhouse is a slough that the government and Mother Nature have designated ...

Dog House owner soaking up the success of self serve dog wash

In 2017, I interviewed the owners of a unique new business in Marshall located on Mustang Way near the Southwest Minnesota State University campus. Justin and Wendy McKinney opened the Dog House, which offers a “home away from home” for dogs while their owners go on vacation. At the ...

Be careful with the hugging

I attended a young woman’s graduation from Blaine High School. Most of my graduation ceremonies have been at Sleepy Eye’s schools. The two experiences were different. A lot. On Sunday, May 31, three high schools from the Anoka-Hennepin school district took turns having their ceremony in U. S. Bank Stadium at two-hour intervals. Blaine was in the middle, at 1 p.m. Hailey was among about a thousand graduates down on the football field. There were maybe 10,000 friends and relatives in the stadium bowl on that side. We were all looking for glimpses of our graduates on the giant ...