Fair Issue is Here!

Jayla Prosch of Lake Benton at the Livestock Auction on Sunday.

Check out the Souvenir Fair Issue in this week’s Lake Benton Valley Journal.

“An Enemy of the People” to be performed in Lake Benton and Pipestone

A group of professional actors and musicians will team up with local residents to present “Enemy of the People” at Lakeside Park in Lake Benton on Thursday, Aug. 16 and Sunday, Aug. 19. Both shows will be presented at 7 p.m.

Sod House Theater is excited to present a new, bluegrass-in­fused adaptation of “An Enemy of the People,” written by Henrik Ibsen, adapted by Darcey Engen, Luverne Seifert, Brian Laidlaw and Ashley Hanson. Known for their fantastically fun produc­tions, Sod House will join forces with local talent and audiences to celebrate summer and com­munity through the experience of live, site-specific theater. The production will play in Pipe­stone at Hiawatha Pageant Park on Aug. 17 at 7 p.m. and Aug 18. at 1 p.m., and in Lake Benton at Lakeside Park on Aug 16 and 19 at 7 p.m. Tickets are available at www.sodhousetheater.org.

For the full story, read this week’s Lake Benton Valley Journal.

Lake Benton School will hold their annual open house on Aug. 21

By Shelly Finzen
lbvjeditor@gmail.com

 
The countdown to the first day of school is nearly finished. To get kids excited about the new year, Lake Benton Elementary School will hold their annual Back-to-School Open House on Tuesday, Aug. 21 at the school, with activities and a light lunch at School Park. The school will also hold a dedication ceremony for the new playground equipment, which was installed just before the end of the last school year.
Doors open at 5:30 p.m. Families can bring school supplies and get desks and lockers stocked before the first day…

For the full story, read this week’s Lake Benton Valley Journal.

County says “no” to full-time deputy sheriff, “go” on property tax abatement bonds

Robert Olsen, left, of the Lincoln County Environmental Office spoke about concerns that area farmers are having with the installation of the new wind farms in the Arco area. Eileen and Richard Nielsen are Arco farmers whose property has been undermined by the installation of the wind tower power lines. According to the Nielsens, they have uncovered power cables running across their property.

By Shelly Finzen
lbvjeditor@gmail.com

The Lincoln County Commis­sioners met for their regular meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 7 at the Lincoln County Courthouse in Ivanhoe.
The scheduled public hearing regarding the proposed proper­ty tax abatements in connection with the issuance of Tax Abate­ment Bonds began at approxi­mately 9:05 a.m. Vince Robinson and Shelly Eldridge were both on hand to speak to the commis­sioners and community during the hearing…

For the full story, read this week’s Lake Benton Valley Journal.

Canadian wildfires create smoky haze in local area

By Shelly Finzen
lbvjeditor@gmail.com

Wildfires are not often a threat to southwest Min­nesota. We are a land of fields and lakes rather than forests. However, the wild­fires currently burning in western Canada had an impact on the local region this past weekend. Accord­ing to several news sourc­es, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is­sued an air quality alert for most of the state over the weekend, Aug 10-12.
According to the Star Tribune, smoke from Ca­nadian wildfires spread across Minnesota through­out the weekend, causing poor air quality conditions…

For the full story, read this week’s Lake Benton Valley Journal.

The Class of 1958 — 60 years later

The Lake Benton High School Class of 1958 gathered for a 60-year reunion, June 14 and 15. Attend¬ing the reunion, pictured left to right in front, are Gayle (Trautman) Koster, Kay (Steinberg) Hughes, Romelle (Trade) Pritchett, Audrey (Herschberger) Swanson and Faye (Tellinghuisen) Moody; in back are Lowell Dorn, Curtis Charter, Eugene Steufen, Dale Koster, Jerry Van Eckhout, Ron Gieneart, Douglas Jordahl, Lyle Rochel, Roy Hinz and Jim Koster.

Back to school tips for parents of students with special needs

By Shelly Finzen
lbvjeditor@gmail.com

The first day of school is often anxiety inducing for the average student and their parents. When a special need is added into the equation, the anxiety that exceptional students and their families experi­ence can be multiplied ex­ponentially. Fear not; here are some back to school tips for parents of excep­tional students.
Special needs in children can range from a behavior­al disorder to severe food allergies to something else entirely. No matter where the student falls on the spectrum of special needs, organizing records and upcoming meetings is the first step to a successful school year…

For the full story, read this week’s Lake Benton Valley Journal.

Lake Benton Yard of the Week

Congratulations to Jim and Pam Veire at 309 E. Lakeview St. Their yard was named Yard of the Week.

Avera Tyler Foundation hosting benefit golf tournament

By Mark Wilmes
tributeeditor@gmail.com

The Avera Tyler Founda­tion will be hosting a three-person best-ball scramble golf tournament on Mon­day, Sept. 17 at the Tyler Golf Club. All proceeds from the 2018 Avera Tyler Foundation Golf Tourna­ment will benefit the Area of Greatest Need fund at Avera Tyler Hospital.
Avera Tyler Foundation Executive Director Abby Ahmann said she hopes the first-year event catch­es on.

For the full story, read this week’s Lake Benton Valley Journal.

Fair fun!

Connor Christensen had a front row view of the Dairy Show last week at the Lincoln County Fair. Watch for next week’s fair supplement with lots more photos from the fair.