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O’ lutefisk!

Community Voices

Food can transport you into the past or push you forward. But there are some situations where food can cause familial friction. At least that’s how it’s been for forty-some years with my wife and me. The foodstuff that’s been at the center of our domestic distress is lutefisk. My Nordic ancestors must have looked at some fresh cod and thought, “I bet I can make that better.” They began by drying the fish on open racks where it was exposed to the effects of sea breezes and seabirds. The desiccated fish looked like wooden shingles. The cod could be rehydrated by ...

Lyon Co. board should have addressed nuclear waste storage issue

Editorials

Last week, Lyon County Commissioners voted to join a number of other Minnesota counties in signing a resolution urging state legislators to lift the moratorium on new nuclear energy development in the state. Sherburne County commissioners have been sending letters to other counties throughout the state to join the Minnesota Nuclear Energy Alliance which is a partnership calling on state lawmakers to lift the moratorium. “Through our administrator’s group, I see a lot of counties will be taking this up, either today or probably before the end of the year,” Lyon County ...

The Vietnam War – Marland Burckhardt – War College and brigade command

Local Columns

We have been following Marland Burckhardt, a Russell High School graduate who married his Russell sweetheart in college and began an Army career focused on Military Intelligence and Special Forces operations. He deployed to Vietnam in January 1970 and then he and Barb had assignments at multiple Army posts across the United States, including battalion commands at Fort Hood, Texas ,and Fort Douglas, Utah, before being selected for promotion to colonel and to attend the Army War College at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania. Marland had a family mission to attend to before leaving command ...

First snow of the year creates anticipation for all ages

Community Voices

Early November is a time to look ahead; to the holidays, the upcoming new year and the first snowfall of the season. People were talking about the first snowfall a week ago. It looked like the Marshall area might get at least one or two inches. It wasn’t supposed to be a snowstorm, just a bit of snow as a start to winter. On Saturday morning the prediction appeared to be coming true. I woke up to snow flurries. The first thing I did after getting dressed was to have some coffee. I enjoyed just having coffee and watching the flurries. The snow accumulated on cars but not on the ...

Seeing veterans light up with appreciation worth every stitch

Editorials

“You’ll see the sparkle in their eyes.” Area Quilts of Valor representative Nancy McClain was quoted after a ceremony held for veterans being awarded quilts at the Lyon County Fair in August. Fast forward to Veterans Day on Nov. 11 and that sparkle in the eyes of veterans returned. “You all, every single one of you, matter to all of us,” McClain told another group of veterans awarded quilts of valor ceremony at Boulder Estates in Marshall. “A lot of people think this is just another day, but it’s not,” McClain also said. Thanks to numerous volunteers and local ...

Living with the paranoia of DEI

Community Voices

When I was young, diversity meant that I knew some Lutheran kids. Around here, we were mostly German descended with a scattered few Irish and British. Norwegians lived by Hanska. Native Americans lived on the reservation. The Sleepy Eye of my youth is gone. Hispanic families started coming for work forty years ago. Thank God, they did. Otherwise, the economy around here would be significantly less than it is. Hispanics are indispensable in every occupation now. We all grew up learning that America is a “melting pot.” It was a point of pride. As kids, we understood that America ...