Carrie Overgaard, Luverne, of the Chamber Pots gives her best toss in the Green Earth Players-sponsored buffalo chip throwing contest. Participants were given plastic gloves to wear while handling the dried buffalo chips.

Renee Sawtelle, Luverne, gives her daughter, Cammie, a boost while watching the spotlight dancers.

Buffalo Days drew an estimated 12,000 people to the city park Saturday for the 17th annual celebration.

Free performances and countless booths kept the town busy with sights, sounds and, of course, food.
Jim Brandenburg paid his hometown a visit for an artist's reception and book signing Friday and Saturday. The Brandenburg Gallery saw increased sales, especially of the new posters "Dream Back the Bison, Sing Back the Swan." Proceeds from the poster go to the Brandenburg Prairie Foundation.

Sunday's weather was less than perfect, but it was nice enough to bring about 1,000 people to the free buffalo burger feed at the state park.

Luverne's Elementary Choir started off entertainment Saturday at Arts in the Park with a performance of "Buffalo Days" written by Emily Lodine Overgaard.

Three-year-old Ryleigh Beers, daughter of Brad and Jane Beers, Luverne, almost makes it to the end of the line in the tractor pedal pull contest Saturday but stopped just short of qualifying.

By Lori Ehde
Carrie Nelson's favorite color was orange, and her friends and family continue to honor her memory this week by wearing orange ribbons.

Carrie's father, Stan Nelson, Hills, wore an orange ribbon to Tuesday's press conference at the Law Enforcement Center in Luverne.

He told the Star Herald after the conference that he believes his daughter has joined the angels in heaven.

"I know it," he said. "Just when I think I'm falling apart, I can feel her spirit holding me up."

He said he could feel her presence when he was choosing her gravesite in Flowerfield Cemetery near Hills. "A Baltimore oriole, with its orange color, was out there singing in a tree, and I could feel her presence."

The orange ribbons were made available at Luverne High School and at her funeral, which drew nearly 600 people to Grace Lutheran Church Friday.

Her mother, Nan (Karr) Kaufenberg, said she appreciated Lowell Berg's funeral message, which reminded everyone of the power of love over evil.

He drew the connection between Carrie's life, which was filled with love and happiness, and the life of Jesus, who was also murdered.

Nelson had attended Berg's church, Bethlehem Lutheran in Hills, for much of her life.

Kaufenberg said she doesn't worry that rumors and speculation surrounding the murder investigation will mar her daughter's name.

"She was such an honest, good person," she said Tuesday. "The kids have even told us how they looked up to her and wanted to be like her."

Nelson's fiancŽ, Mike Kellen, Sioux Falls, said he is also unaffected by local speculation on the case.

"I just blow it off and let the investigators take care of it," he said Tuesday.

He said they hadn't been officially engaged but were planning to be married in a year or two. "I just still can't believe she's gone," he said.

Gov. Jesse Ventura ordered all flags at state government buildings to be flown at half-staff Friday in Nelson's honor.

By Katrina Vander Kooi, summer intern
Standing on a deck 40 feet in the air, Chuck McGinley of McGinley Associates collected samples from the Luverne Ethanol Plant Tuesday. The plant is being tested in order to determine the change in air quality from the last test on April 22, 1999.

"This is part of our action plan," said Rick Serie, plant manager. "Once we get the results, we will analyze them to see if we have made any improvements."

The test was in response to concerns from residents about the odor. In March 1999, CCQL wrote a letter to the editor calling for action to be taken.

Agri-Energy responded by trying to find ways to lessen the odor. "We cannot eliminate the odor, but we are working on ways to reduce it," Serie said.

In December of last year, in an effort to reduce odor, the plant put up a taller, 175-foot smokestack. With the increased height, the emission has a longer distance to disperse before odors fall on the city.

"I'm cautiously optimistic," said Dave Knips, a member of the CCQL, about the current odor test. "I've been working on this for the third summer, and the neighbors still have not seen a difference."

Sampling process
The vials taken Tuesday were from the dryer exhaust stack, the source of most of the odors. This was done by inserting a tube in the stack and letting the air flow out into a vial for about 15 to 20 minutes.

The samples will be directed to two separate places. One goes to a human panel in Stillwater. There, a group of local people has been recruited and trained to smell samples. The members are screened to test their smell ability. Once the panel receives the sample, each member gets a little sniff. They have no idea where the samples come from. The smellers are paid a stipend for their service. McGinley compared it to a taste test for the food industry.

The results of the smelling test are expected by the end of next week.

The other sample will be sent to California for a chemical test. This is not expected to be completed until the end of June.

McGinley was hired in April 1999 by Agri-Energy. He is from Stillwater and has also worked with the ethanol plant in St. Paul. That plant, Gopher State Ethanol, faces similar complaints as the Luverne ethanol plant. In August, the plant will be taken to court by the city of St. Paul in order to declare it a public nuisance. The problems are noise and odor.

David Nelson (left) and Tom Ward have caricatures drawn by Twin Cities artist Jennifer Wigen at Saturday's Arts in the Park. At left, Spotlight Dancer Hanna Hemme is backstage watching some of her older counterparts dance. More photos inside.

Photos by Sara Quam.

By Katrina Vander Kooi, summer intern
Tuesday night the Hills-Beaver Creek Board accepted the resignation of the vocal and instrumental teacher, Dawn Griepp.

The vote was five to one with Alan Harnack being the only dissenter. Board Member Rollie Crawford was not present for the vote.

Many concerned parents came to the meeting to show their support for the music program.

Bob Sandbulte was the spokesman, and he voiced concerns about the quality of the music department. Sandbulte interviewed 19 band parents concerning this, and he "got an ear full" of information.

Among those 19, only one parent was pleased with the Griepp. Sandbulte handed out a sheet full of comments from the survey.

The survey showed that the parents were not just blaming the teacher. They were also blaming the school district.

"My kids are artists not athletes," one parent wrote. Sandbulte expressed his concern about the district's lack of support for the music program.

"We are losing students this year partly because of the music program," Sandbulte said.

One parent recalled an incident last year at homecoming when the band students were not acknowledged with the rest of the sports activities. "We need to draw more attention to our band," she said.

Parents also brought up scheduling problems that students have with band. "To do industrial arts, you have to drop band," one parent said.

Board member Ann Boeve suggested that band be a zero-hour class that would meet before school, but this idea was not well-received.

Another suggestion was that Hills Beaver Creek share a band director with another school district in order to keep a more qualified teacher.

"You get a good program, and you get pride and students will want to participate," one parent said.
Overall, the group emphasized the need for a stronger commitment to music by students and the administration.

In other business, Monday the board:
oApproved Jolene Hannett as the new area school psychologist. She is contracted to work in the Ellsworth and Adrian school districts along with Hills-Beaver Creek for the 2001/2002 school year.

oVoted 6-1 to cancel a dance taking place in the high school gym this Friday. The dance was being put on by a group of students in order to help pay for the damage the students had done on a school track trip to Sturgis, SD.

Many of the Board members believed that this was an improper use of the school's facilities.

oAdopted the negotiations settlement for the 2001/2002 and 2002/2003 school years. One of the main changes in the contract was the severance plan. The district is now using an investment system instead of severance packages. The current retiring teachers will have a choice whether to use this system or not, but "for new teachers this is this only option," said Board member Gary Esselink.

oDiscussed OSHA violations. "On a scale from 1 to 10, our district is in the middle," said Superintendent Tom Knoll. The concerns by the agency ranged from machine hazards to air quality problems.

oSet the next board meeting for June 12. One item on the agenda will be a possible dress code for students for graduation.

Memorial Day services were held at the Beaver Creek Community Hall on Monday, May 28. The program featured music by the Hills-Beaver Creek Band and included guest speakers. Everyone moved to the Beaver Creek Cemetery for a tribute from Post 2757 Veterans of Foreign Wars and Taps.

Pictured above, a representative from Post 2757 Veterans of Foreign Wars places flowers on the veteransÕ memorial in the Beaver Creek Cemetery.

By Katrina Vander Kooi, summer intern
Rick and Lori Scholten arrived at the Hills-Beaver Creek School Board meeting Tuesday night hoping to discuss the alleged assault by Superintendent Tom Knoll.

He is accused of assaulting a their son, 19-year-old Derek Ehde, on Thursday, April 26.

In a letter sent to all of the Hills Beaver Creek School Board Members, Lori Scholten asked for Knoll's suspension.

"This serious indiscretion on the part of Mr. Knoll warrants serious review and action on your part," she wrote.

"Although we are pursuing criminal charges against Mr. Knoll, we believe that our school board also needs to take appropriate action. Mr. Knoll's actions merit immediate suspension by the board.

"We are sure that you appreciate your duty to provide a safe learning environment for our children and one where they do not have to be fearful of physical assault."

Rick Scholten said he'd requested at a previous meeting to be placed on Tuesday's agenda, but it was not, and the school board declined to comment on the issue. "The school board is not doing their job," said Rick said.

The couple left before the meeting began.

He called the Crescent office Wednesday to say that he wonders who's working for whom.

"He's an employee of the school district," he said. "If this would have been a school bus driver, or a teacher or a student, they would have been out of there. Who's supposed to be responsible for whom?"

Cody Harr (second from left) shares "Max" with his second-grade classmates Mitchel Anderson (left), B.G. Xaisongkham and Cody Benson at Luverne Elementary School Friday afternoon for show and tell. Harr's parents, Roger and Kathy Reu, raise about 30 registered miniature horses on their farm west of Luverne. The horses fall into A class, which includes horses under 34 inches tall, and B class, which includes horses 35 to 38 inches. Max is in the A classification.

Photo by Lori Ehde