Rail workers on strike

Aug. 20, 1964 – A crowd of over 1,000 was on hand to see the area’s first-ever tractor pull, sponsored by the Glenwood Jaycees. First place in both the under 8,500 pounds and the under 13,500 pounds categories went to county farmer James Stephan, who pulled 173 feet and 290 feet respectively to win in those categories. Other winners were Ralph Elliott and Dick Mays.

Four of nine Benson swimmers who tried to swim Lake Minnewaska from Starbuck to Glenwood were still paddling when darkness called off the attempt.

Fourteen 4-Hers were named winners of state fair trips during the annual Achievement Day. They were Beverly Gunvalson, JoAnne Rundgren, LeRoy Lundebrek, Grant Magnuson, Allan Forbord, Oronah Forbord, Dennis Anderson, Greg Gaffaney, John Anderson, Donald McCrory, Kathryn Cihlar, Paul Peterson, Karen Hanson and Donald Schulz.

Aug. 22, 1974 – A 20-year-old Brooten youth died when his car left Hwy. 104 and rolled into the ditch. A 19-year-old Starbuck man was injured in a single-car rollover just south of the Pope County line on Hwy. 29.

Charles Gordon, of Villard, was named one of two Outstanding Senior Citizens in the state of Minnesota. He and a LeCenter woman would be presented at the Minnesota State Fair. Gordon was still selling real estate and doing tax work at age 83. Asked what kept him so active, he replied, “I just keep moving.”

A barn on the Orin Syverson farm in Rolling Forks Township was destroyed by fire after a lightning bolt hit the hay-filled structure.

Dave Dzeingel was hired to teach sixth grade at the Villard school. He and three other new teachers would greet, students on opening day along with other faculty members.

Aug. 22, 1984 – A retired Douglas County farmer was killed in Lowry when the tractor he was on was struck by a Soo Line freight. The 69-year-old man apparently had his view of the tracks blocked.

County students were expected to start back to school the week of Aug 27. New teachers in the Glenwood district were Arden Hyland and Art Forte. The Brooten district had hired a full-time computer coordinator, and the Cyrus school announced that Dorothy Jenum would fill the principal position. The Starbuck and Villard schools were also ready to begin the school year.

Pierce Serrin, a rural Glenwood resident, showed off his “farm” animals to the Tribune, including 11 buffalo, 11 deer, four swans, six wild turkeys, 50 or so peacocks and 30 or more ducks and geese of varying kinds.

The Tribune also visited a threshing bee at the Einar Jensen farm north of Brooten.

Aug. 22, 1994 – The hill adjacent to the education building of Sacred Heart Church had begun to disappear as Riley Brothers of Morris leveled the site known as the old Andert house. The site was to be brought down to street level and paved as a parking lot for Sacred Heart Church. The Andert house had been burned down earlier in the summer as a fire department exercise.

The largest strike in over 70 years continued to roll on into its fifth week. The longest strike prior to this was a four-day walk-out thought to be in 1982 according to Doug Sandeen, a local Canadian Pacific brakeman. Soo Line brakemen, switchmen, conductors and engineers were still honoring the strike although the engineers did have a current contract.

Members of the Janice Kelleher family were on hand at the Ann Bickle Heritage House for the dedication of a music library in her name. Kelleher had died the previous year, and the music library was the choice of the family for a memorial. On hand for the dedication were husband, Pat; daughters, Patrice and Karen; and son, Mark. Another daughter, Kathleen, had been unable to attend. The family unveiled a portrait of Janice painted by Nancy Lee of Glenwood.

Eleven former Glenwood telephone operators had gathered for lunch to remember the years up to 1961 when they worked together as operators for Northwestern Bell. Pictured in the Tribune were Beverly Lund, Carol Serrin, Sylvia Hoven, Dorothy Qually, Alvera Solvie, Marion Cross, Pauline Hoffman, Shirley Bogie, Leona Schumacher, Donna Hahn and Helen Hagen. Bill Noyes, the phone installer and switchboard repairman, was also pictured.

Aug. 16, 2004 – The cost of the new Lakeside Ballroom could reach $3 million if a list of restaurant revisions and additions discussed at the July 28 meeting was approved. The list of revisions was estimated to raise the cost of the ballroom for the city by $194,000 and the restaurant by $716,000. Base building enhancements to support the restaurant were estimated to be $78,000. Final costs would be determined when bidding was completed.

The Minnewaska cheer teams had been working hard to build their skills for the upcoming 2004-2005 season during weekly practice since tryouts in April. In July, all varsity cheerleaders attended a four-day custom camp produced by the American Cheerleading Federation. There the girls worked on stunting, motion and jump techniques as well as prepared new cheers and dances for their upcoming performances.

Aug. 18, 2014 – Bicyclists from across the area participated in the ninth annual Tour de’ Prairie Lakes bike ride on Saturday. The ride, featuring trails for all biking abilities, is a Habitat for Humanity of Prairie Lakes, Pope County Chapter fundraising event. All proceeds from the Tour de’ Prairie Lakes go toward building affordable housing through HfH of Prairie Lakes, Pope County Chapter.

Richard and Vicki Syverson, of Pope County, were recently honored by the University of Minnesota as the Pope County 2014 Farm Family of the Year. Richard and Vicki are the fourth generation to farm their family farm in Clontarf. Richard began farming with his father in 1979. Today the farm is 1,100 acres of corn and soybeans. In addition to the crops, Richard and Vicki feed out 80 dairy steers per year. They also have a 36kw solar power project, which they added in 2013.

While just the incumbents filed for the two open Glenwood City Commission seats, three residents filed for the Glenwood Mayor position. Incumbent Mayor Bill Ogdahl faces a three-way race in the November general election, against Shannon Bodeker and Scott Formo. While both Ogdahl and Bodeker had filed early, Formo entered the race by filing on the final day. Filings closed on August 12. Incumbents Sherri Kazda and Kyle Thompson both filed for their respective seats on the city commission, with no one else filing. The mayor position and the two commissioner seats are for four-year terms.