Library expansion project hearing held at council

The proposed Lake Benton Library expansion is illustrated above as presented during a Jan. 17 meeting.

By Dan Kuss

lbvalleyjournal@gmail.com

The Lake Benton City Council met in its regular meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 17 at 5:30 p.m. at the Heritage Center/city offices.

The council reviewed and act­ed on the claims presented to the city and the municipal bar and also accepted recent rehabilita­tion grant checks which were presented for payment.

At 5:45 the council held a pub­lic hearing on the library expan­sion project in which several interestedLakeBentoncitizens, members of the Friends of the Library and library board mem­bers were in attendance.

There were no public com­ments made referring to the project, so Mayor Mike Carpen­ter asked Executive Director Heather Ulrich-Glynn to present an update on the project.

The city would add on to the library using USDA loan and grant money in addition to funds donated by individuals and a $2,500 promise from the Lake Benton Area Foundation from proceeds from this year’s Gala fundraiser.

An anonymous donor has of­fered $1,000 per year for the life of the 40-year loan.

Carpenter said the whole thing started when City Maintenance Supervisor Todd Draper jokingly asked USDA Rural Development if they had any grant money fornew citytrucks or tractors.

The USDA Rural Development people said they did not, but there was grant money available for libraries.

The project originally called for an expansion of the library to create more room before Carl and JoAn Burk graciously of­fered to donate the John C. Fre­mont Emporium in honor of Jack Burk.

Banner and Associates per­formed an extensive study to update the building for use as a library, but the project was cost prohibitive.

The Library Board and Friends of the Library group had also researched other buildings in town for use as a library before deciding to revisit and pursue the expansion project.

Citizens of Lake Benton turned out for the public hearing on the library expansion project at the city council meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 17.

Motions were made on Feb. 23 and May 12, 2011 and the project was on the council agenda on April 26 and July 15, 2011.

A public hearing on the project was held last spring, though library committee members Barb Powell and Duff Traut­man thought this hearing should be held to update and hear citizens’ con­cerns about the project.

A detailed letter to the editor cowritten by Friend of the Library Shawna So­derholm and Librarian Lisa Schardin was recently published in the Valley Journal to inform the pub­lic about the project.

Other fundraisers such as the Lake Benton Lions Club Benefit Breakfast have been held with pro­ceeds going toward the public library, though they do not pertain to the ex­pansion project and deal with other expenses the library needs help with.

Mayor Carpenter sug­gested the library board stay in touch with Trust­ees Powell and Trautman on the timing of accept­ing the donation of the lot and also with Executive Director Ulrich-Glynn on interim financing through utility funds.

Ulrich-Glynn said she needs to speak with legal counsel on some of these issues.

In other business, the council said the $130,000 2008 Street Project bills have been paid though the Water Utility funds and that the funds need to be broken down.

The amount is the same but the categories need adjustment.

The next meeting of the Lake Benton City Council will be on Monday, Feb. 6 with a lengthy agenda.

Hwy. 68 Corridor Coalition requests county reps

By Tammy Mathison

hendrickspioneer@gmail.com

The Lincoln County Board of Commissioners heard reports and updates from county enti­ties at their Jan. 20 meeting.

Lee Amundson included in his report to the commissioners an update on the proposed shop in Tyler. The intention is to get a shop put up in Tyler for under $100,000.

Christin Berger provided an update on the DSI Trails Grant. In regard to the Hole-in-the-Mountain Trail, a water/wetland review will be done and, if need­ed, the trail will be rerouted to accommodate the wetland. Con­struction is slated to begin on the Hole-in-the-Mountain trail this year.

Jeanna Sommers spoke to the board regarding the county si­rens grant. Each city has applied for a USDA grant and would get $5,000 toward these sirens. “I would like the siren to go off each night in Ivanhoe at 6 p.m. like it used to,” said Commis­sioner Gillund, who appeared pleased with the favorable news regarding the sirens grant.

Rebecca Day of the Minneota EDA spoke to the commissioners about the Highway 68 Corridor Coalition, presenting a packet of information on Highway 68, of which 3.7 miles runs through a portion of Lincoln County. The packet contained information on the highway itself and the need to fix it. Maps were also in­cluded in the packet, as well as the dimensions of the road and shoulders. Safety issues con­cerning the road were brought up, including the narrow shoul­der widths, steep slope and the fact that it is a heavily travelled road.

The Coalition was at the meet­ing on Jan. 20 to request of the commissioners representation for Lincoln County so that needs and concerns regarding the stretch of Highway 68 in Lincoln County could be voiced at up­coming meetings. Commission­er Blumeyer and possibly the county engineer will represent Lincoln County.

Area finds first real snowfall of season

Milo Downs was finally able to break out the snow blower last week as Lake Benton got its first real snow of the season.

Historical Society to display works of Jack Burk

This year’s Lake Benton Area Historical Society Annual Meeting will feature the works of long-time Lake Benton resident and artist Jack Burk in a display entitled “50 Years from Lake Benton to France: The Artistic Works of Jack Burk.” Pictured above are more works ready to be displayed on the piano made to look exactly like Abraham Lincoln’s coffin, which was donated to the Historical Society by Burk. The event will be held Jan. 22 at the Heritage Center.

By Dan Kuss

lbnews@itctel.com

The Lake Benton Area Histori­cal Society (LBAHS) will display the works of Jack Burk at the an­nual meeting to be held on Sun­day, Jan 22 at 2 p.m. at theHeri­tageCenter.

A portion of the Heritage Cen­ter will be transformed into an art gallery with a display enti­tled “50 Years from Lake Benton to France: The Artistic Works of Jack Burk.”

“It’s cool to see a lot of Jack’s earlier works that we’ve never seen before,” said Executive Di­rector Heather Ulrich-Glynn. “Many of these works were from the 1950s and 1960s and were found while they were cleaning out his attic.”

The public is invited to come out to peruse the display, attend the brief annual business meet­ing, enjoy coffee and bars and discuss accomplishments and activities of the LBAHS.

Members of the public are also invited to join the LBAHS for a nominal fee in one of three categories—Student (under 18), Adult and Donor.

The Lake Benton Area His­torical Society has been a mem­bership organization since its beginning in 1999 and its goal is to keep working to preserve, protect and educate about the proud history in the area.

“The purpose of the LBAHS is to collect, preserve and dis­seminate knowledge about the history of the Lake Benton area and to relate that history to the State ofMinnesota,” said Ulrich-Glynn. “We feel that this is an important endeavor for future generations.”

“Our small town, located in beautiful surroundings, is rich in history and memories and those things need to be talked about and shared.”

Over half of LBAHS funding comes directly from the public through fundraising, donations and memberships. Members receive re­duced rates on microfilm usage for research and copying costs.

“More importantly, peo­ple will have an active role in preserving the history of Lake Benton and the satisfaction of supporting a good cause,” said Ulrich-Glynn. “It is not what the organization does for you, but what your member­ship does for the organiza­tion.”

Jack Burk graduated fromLakeBentonHigh Schoolin 1951 and re­ceived his Masters Degree in Art fromMankatoStateUniversity.

Burk had been an art teacher in the Mankato Public School System after beginning his teaching ca­reer in theLincolnCountyrural schools.

In 1961 Burk had the opportunity to become the art supervisor for the U.S. Army in Orleans,France and for two years he trav­eled throughout Europe and studied the Impres­sionist School of art while in France.

Upon his return he be­came the art supervisor for the Wayzata Elementa­ry School system for eight years.

“Every effort will be made to arrange the many works on display in a chronological setting starting with art projects required by Mankato State University in 1956 and concluding with Jack’s final painting in January 2010,” said Carl Burk. “Other projects were developed and demonstrated while teaching students how to work with different media and elements used to cre­ate art projects at both the middle and elementary school levels.”

Many techniques will be on display including chalk, watercolor, knife painting and various brush strokes.

Burk moved back to Lake Benton in 1976 with his mother Alvina and be­gan his long career in es­tablishing Burk Antiques, Christmas in the Valley, John C. Fremont Empo­rium, which later became the High Valley Art Gallery, and managing the Midwest Antique Guild.

“As an Impression­ist painter, Jack’s style changed over the many years, but the recurring theme for his painting wasLakeBenton,” said Burk. “His painting of summer in his neighbor’s backyard filled with summer flowers won for him the People’s Choice Award at Brook­ings Art in the Park.

“Nothing would change about Jack until his pass­ing on Feb. 24, 2010. Jack’s art will live on in the hundreds of paintings that have found homes throughout the country and the world.”

The display is in the process of being set up by Carl Burk, Heather Ulrich-Glynn and Gary Gussler using protective sleeves to protect the works.

Chamber of Commerce ramps up for an exciting year

By Dan Kuss

lbnews@itctel.com

The Lake Benton Chamber of Commerce met in its first meet­ing of the calendar year on Jan. 11 at the new time of 5:45 p.m. in hopes that more members will be able to attend the meetings.

Treasurer Jenny Nordmeyer reported that the budget appears to be at a loss due to the fact that the chamber paid for two years’ worth of Visitors Guides in the same year and that revenues for the guides haven’t been collected as of yet.

Nordmeyer also said that the organization paid out $5,000 for this year’s Red Wing Pottery and that $2,900 worth of the product has been sold.

Nordmeyer suggested that the chamber close out thenew cityfloat account with a balance of $32 since the float has been completed and all of the bills for that project have been paid.

Nordmeyer also said that a nice donation of $2,000 has been received from an individual who requested anonymity and that repayment of a book loan from the Historical Society will be re­turned to the general fund.

Special event insurance cov­ers the annual kickoff, flea mar­ket, Benton-Fremont/Te Tonka Ha, Santa Claus Day and Saddle Horse Holiday.

The chamber is still looking for a vice-president to fill that board position and President Mike Carpenter, Treasurer Jenny Nordmeyer and acting Secre­tary Heather Ulrich-Glynn have agreed to retain their positions for the coming year.

The chamber talked about the possibility of combining with the school and the city to pro­duce a community newsletter to be mass mailed quarterly to reach more people in order to get better activity and help with events.

The chamber would use the potential newsletter to spot­light businesses in town and will check with the Valley Journal about assisting with production and preparation for mailing, though someone would have to take on the project.

Secretary Heather Ulrich-Glynn suggested that office ex­penses be shared by the various community organizations that use them. Costs are currently split for advertising with the South Dakota Glacial Lakes Board of Tourism between the chamber and the Community Visitors Bureau (CVB) and there are copier codes for those organizations and the Historical Society and the Economic Development Association (EDA).

Ulrich-Glynn suggested sharing telephone and In­ternet costs as well.

President Mike Car­penter said the executive board needs more help with Saddle Horse Holiday 2012. Carpenter would like more people to get involved to help generate new and different ideas for events and help coordi­nate and run them.

Carl Burk said he would like to reestablish the Ben­ton-Fremont committee for the Te Tonka Ha Ren­dezvous. Burk has been doing a lot of the work and needs help generating new attractions and enter­tainment.

The event has been hold­ing its own but things are changing for many of the talent and attractions.

Burk would like to bring back the popular style show and add an evening program with a power-point-type living history show in addition to games for kids and rock painting with assistance from the High Valley Art Guild.

Several chamber mem­bers agreed to be on the committee, which will hold its first meeting in March.

The chamber received several thank you letters from winners of turkeys at the holiday open houses and also from winners in the holiday lighting con­test.

The chamber will pre­pare a First Dollar Award for the new owners of the Garden Gate Greenhouse, which recently changed hands.

In the Mayors Report Mike Carpenter invited everyone to come to the Historical Society Annual meeting on Jan. 22.

“It’s a great organiza­tion,” said Carpenter. “Ev­eryone should become a member of the Historical Society.”

The next meeting of the Lake Benton Area Cham­ber of Commerce will be on the second Wednesday, Feb. 8 at 5:45 p.m.

Trails Task Force meeting Jan. 19

The Lincoln County Trails Task Force will meet on Jan. 19 at 5 p.m. in the assembly room of the Lincoln County Courthouse in Ivanhoe. All are welcome to attend. The Task Force is meet­ing to develop a comprehensive trail plan forLincolnCountyand participation from county residents is essential to the pro­cess. Please call Christin Berger at 507-694-1552 or email her at christin@dsi-services.com if you have any questions.

Hurd to deploy to Afghanistan

Alex Hurd will deploy to Afghanistan in March and will serve for five months as an Air National Guard flight crew chief/mechanic. Hurd and his father Dean are pictured in Lake Benton prior to their family Christmas celebration last week.

By Dan Kuss

lbnews@itctel.com

Alex Hurd, son of Dean and Wendy Hurd ofRichfieldand grandson of Ray Hurd ofLakeBenton, is preparing to deploy toAfghanistanin March.

Hurd, a 2006 graduate ofRich­fieldHigh School. graduated from U.S. Air Force Basic Train­ing at Lackland, AFB on April 1, 2008.

“I was interested in planes since I was in grade school,” said Hurd. “My Grandpa Ray and my Uncle Dave served and I always wanted to experience it so I can say that I served, too.”

Hurd spent three years on ac­tive duty as a flight crew chief/mechanic at Nellis AFB inLas Ve­gas,Nev.and got out a year early in the Palace Chase program to join the Minnesota Air National Guard on April 4, 2011.

Hurd has spent one weekend a month and will be training at the 133rd Air Base inSt. Paulfor the next three months before his unit deploys to Bagram Air Base inAfghanistanthe first week of March for five months.

“The only place I went was to Tindahl AFB inPanama City,Fla.so I wanted to travel and seeAsiaand want to do my job in a de­ployed state,” said Hurd. “I have friends that have been there and have some there now.”

“I’m not nervous but don’t know what to expect going into a country at war, but I’m ready to go.”

Hurd was born inSioux Falls,S.D.and moved toRichfieldwhen he was two. His mother Wendy is from Tyler and his fa­ther Dean graduated fromLakeBentonHigh Schoolin 1978.

“I’m proud that he’s serving in the armed forces,” said Dean Hurd. “His grandpa’s proud too. My proudest moment was when he graduated.”

“We shook hands with a bird colonel whose son graduated with Alex and gave kids hugs whose parents couldn’t be there.”

Hurd was in town for the Hurd family Christmas and will be back in time for the Hurd Open, a family golf outing held in July at Pipestone.

“Mom’s not as worried now that we have Facebook and can stay in contact almost daily,” said Hurd. “Before she was anti-war and wouldn’t allow guns in the house. My dad wears a keychain which is a miniature version of a flight streamer that they remove before a plane takes off.”

“I’ve been waiting to go for a couple of years now.”

Silent auction to benefit Wilde-Duehn

By Dan Kuss

lbnews@itctel.com

The proceeds of a silent auc­tion to be held in conjunction with the American Legion break­fast on Sunday, Jan. 15 will go to Liza Wilde-Duehn to help defray funeral costs for her late hus­band.

Elwood “Woody” Duehn died unexpectedly on New Year’s Day inLakeBentonat the age of 29.

“They had no insurance and the funeral costs are mounting up,” said Jen Adolph, friend of Wilde-Duehn. “We wanted to do something to help take the pres­sure off of Liza during this dev­astating time in her life.”

Wilde and Duehn had been married for about six months and lived inLakeBenton.

Wilde-Duehn is currently a co-manager with Adolph at the Lake Benton American Legion, work­ing primarily in food service.

Adolph and Joyce Miller are seeking donations of items for the silent auction to be held from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. while the American Legion serves their monthly breakfast of pancakes and sausage.

Contact Jen Adolph or Joyce Miller at the Lake Benton Ameri­can Legion if you would like to donate items for the silent auc­tion.

“We appreciate all of the sup­port we have been given from the community,” said Adolph. “This will definitely help Liza in her time of need.”

A mild winter so far in Lake Benton

The temperature on the electronic sign at Creamery Park in Lake Benton read 44 degrees on Friday, Jan. 6. People all over the area took advantage of the mild temperatures to do things not normally done in January.

Krog U of M Farm Family of the Year for Lincoln Co.

The Ken and Laura Krog family of rural Lake Benton were honored as the University of Minnesota Lincoln County Farm Family of the Year for 2011. Pictured from left to right are Laura, Rachael, Ryan, Hannah, Ken, Nicholas and Nathan Krog with a few family pets, a 4-H sheep and a one-day-old calf.

By Dan Kuss

lbnews@itctel.com

The Ken and Laura Krog fam­ily of ruralLakeBentonwere chosen as the 2011UniversityofMinnesota Farm Familyof the year forLincolnCounty.

The Farm Family recognition program honored farm families from 75 participating counties throughoutMinnesotafor their significant contributions to the agricultural industry and their local communities in a ceremo­ny which took place at Farmfest on Aug. 4, 2011 at the Gilfillan Estate inRedwoodCounty.

Farmfest is the largest outdoor agricultural event inMinnesota.

“We are honored yet humbled by this recognition,” said Ken Krog. “There are a lot of other hard working farm families inLincolnCountythat deserve this award.”

Krog, a fifth generation farmer inLincolnCounty, grew up farm­ing with his parents Brian and Pat Krog and started his own op­eration as a sophomore in high school.

“When I was a senior in high school, I rented a piece of land fromVernonand Lucille Wil­liams who were retiring that year,” said Krog. “My brothers and I helped each other out, which we still do, and without Dad we wouldn’t have been able to do it.”

“My dad taught me a great work ethic, let me use his ma­chinery, supported us and had all the contacts necessary to be successful.”

Krog said he and his brothers got their start from a bunch of old farmers and neighbors who supported them and wanted to see family farming continue in the area.

Both Ken and Laura Krog graduated from Lake Benton High School, Ken in 1989 and Laura in 1990, and went on to school with Ken earning a busi­ness agriculture degree from Canby while continuing to farm and Laura earning her nursing degree at Watertown, S.D.

The Krogs married in 1993 and Laura Krog has been a regis­tered nurse atTylerHealthcareCenterfor the past 18 years.

“We started farming corn and soybeans in 1990 and have grown the operation from 120 acres to nearly 1,900 acres over the past 20-some years,” said Krog. “We now have sheep and cattle also. It started with two lambs Nathan received as his third birthday present from Grandpa and Grandma, John and Pam Nibbe. The next year we bought 80 ewes, put up a hoop barn and now we lamb, feed out and finish our own lambs.”

“Our flock has grown to 850 ewes and our cow-calf operation is at about 40 cows.”

The Krogs bought the family farm from Ken’s grandparents Arnold and Aletta Krog in 1998, though Krog has worked the land since he was a sophomore in high school.

“Great Uncle Leon Krog rented me some more land, which we still farm today,” said Krog. “We are very lucky and fortunate to have acquired a great group of land over the years.”

“Without the help and support of area farmers and neighbors in the early years, I’m not sure we would have made it.”

The Krogs have five children and each does his or her part to help out on the farm.

The Krog family has been in 4-H since their oldest child was in kindergarten and Laura is a livestock superintendent for sheep at the county level.

Nathan is 15 years old and a sophomore atElkton-LakeBen­tonHigh School. He plays foot­ball and basketball at the varsity level.

“Nathan is very essential to the farm and has a lot of responsibil­ity,” said Krog. “He does the fall tillage, has his own set of chores and cuts hay. Both boys do all my haying.” Nate has about 15 of his own ewes and is in FFA at school.

Nicholas is 13 and in eighth grade atElkton-LakeBentonSchool. He plays quarterback on the football team and also plays basketball.

“Nick lives on a sheep farm, but is a cattle man,” said Laura Krog. “He is a member of the Junior American Angus Associa­tion and gets a lot of sup­port from area cattlemen, neighbors and friends who help him with this oppor­tunity.”

Nick began showing cattle at the age of eight in 2006 and currently has 10 head of purebred Black Angus.

“Nick has a knack for running machines,” said his dad. “He was my com­bine driver this year at 13 and has been driving grain cart for several years now.”

Hannah is nine years old and a third grader at Lake Benton Elementary. She just started basketball this year and this is also her first year in 4-H, where she will show sheep and cattle.

“Hannah is a great help in the kitchen and around the house,” said her moth­er. “She hangs with her brother Nick around the cattle, has a very strong outside interest, likes to ride tractor and is her dad’s sidekick.”

“Some day she wants to drive truck for him, but not until she gets a bedazzled, bright orange semi with lots of bling.”

Hannah helps with laundry, dishes and en­joys cooking. Her favorite things to make are spa­ghetti and grilled cheese sandwiches.

Ryan and Rachael are seven-year-old twins and first graders at Lake Ben­ton Elementary.

“Ryan is a natural ath­lete and a man of action,” said his father. “He kind of lives in his brothers’ hip pockets and loves driving the utility vehicles and four-wheeler.”

“He wants to drive the grain cart, helps with chores and is the watcher of the gate when we go in and out of the pens.”

Rachael has a horse named Nevaeh (which is Heaven spelled backward) that she loves, a couple of her own ewes and gets very excited when she has sheep in the barn.

“Both girls share the horse and Rachael takes care of the dogs,” said her mom. “Shaggy is her favor­ite. She also likes to sit in the bottle lamb pen and talk to them to try to save them. She likes making cookies with her grand­mas and she names all of her animals.”

The whole operation is a family effort and everyone has their jobs to do.

“Laura is my ewe man­ager and an essential part of our operation,” said Krog. “She stays very busy working as a nurse, being a mom, running kids here and there and working with the sheep and on the farm.”

Both sets of grandpar­ents are also an integral part of the Krog family and help with preparing meals, taking care of or driv­ing the kids to practices, games or other events.

“We are very fortunate to have both sets of grand­parents living so close to us,” said Krog. “They are very family oriented and help out tremendously. Even the little things mean a lot to us.”

Laura’s parents John and Pam Nibbe rented them land in the early years and for the past two years John has been Ken’s right hand man on the farm, helping with spring tillage for he and his brother, haying, harvest, lambing and many other things.

“We start lambing in January with three groups, January, February and March,” said Laura Krog. “It gets very tiring as it’s a 24-7 operation and goes for three straight months.”

“Every ewe gets a pen with her lamb for 48 hours and then we put them in a larger pen with about 80 of each.”

Krog said the kids bring friends from high school home to help out with lambing.

“The kids all help out with different jobs,” said Krog. “Pen jobs, moving sheep, feeding, vaccina­tions, everything that’s in­volved.”

“We feed them all sum­mer long and sell them as fat lambs.”

In April the Krogs calve between 30 and 40 head.

“True farming is diver­sified with crops and live­stock so we aren’t relying on just one thing,” said Ken Krog. “We take a lot of pride in our operation and do things the right way.”

Krog says it is nice to live and farm inLincolnCountybecause they support local businesses from the gro­cery store, banking, parts, mechanics, fuel suppliers and the local businesses also support them.

“It’s nice that they sup­port us and we support them,” said Krog. “It means a lot when you can look a man in the eye and shake his hand. It’s important.”

Ken is a board mem­ber of the Lincoln County Corn and Soybean Grow­ers organization and also a member of the Knights of Columbus.

Laura is a member of the Lake Benton Volunteers for Education in addition to serving as a 4-H live­stock superintendent for sheep.

“I’m very fortunate to be a farmer,” said Krog. “It’s a great way to raise a family and make a living.”

“On any given day on our farm you will find us work­ing together or playing ball out in the yard.”

The Ken and Laura Krog family will reign as Lincoln County Farm Family of the Year until Aug. 9, when the 2012 winner will be intro­duced at Farmfest.

“We would like to take this opportunity to thank those who nominated us for Lincoln County Farm Family of the Year,” said Laura Krog. “It is indeed an honor to represent our county with deep agricul­tural and livestock roots.”

“We are humbled by this recognition and know there are many families inLincolnCountywork­ing hard every day to be good stewards to the land, herdsmen to livestock and raise their families and support their communi­ties.”