column
By Scott Rall, outdoors columnistFebruary 18, 2026At my tender age of 65 I have seen exactly two wolves in the wild. Both were in northern Minnesota and both were by pure accident. They were both seen running across the road in front of my travel vehicle. The timberwolf in Minnesota has had more of its share of litigation over the past 45 years. They were added to the endangered species list in 1978. In 2011 they were removed from the list…- By Pastor Bob Junak, Rock River Community ChurchFebruary 18, 2026This past Saturday was Valentine’s Day… that sacred, terrifying, chocolate‑coated battlefield where men everywhere suddenly remember the wise words of Proverbs 4:7, “The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight.” And nothing motivates men to seek wisdom faster than realizing they forgot to buy a gift. Every Feb. 14th, the average man goes on a spiritual journey…
By Brenda Winter, columnistFebruary 11, 2026I’m not sure who was more surprised: the woman who put her toes on my forehead during yoga class, or me when it happened. While lying on our backs, we had been instructed to lift our feet over our heads, stretching our toes toward the floor behind us. One of us was facing the wrong direction. The move, called “plow,” is an excellent way to stretch one’s lower back — or, in a crowded space, to…
By Lori Sorenson, editorFebruary 04, 2026Every so often my job puts me in touch with my “inner nature photographer.” An assignment last week was to capture a migrating trumpeter swan in his natural winter habitat. This majestic creature had been spotted in Rock County, and I was determined to document the rare occurrence for the paper. On this cold January day, I would need to prepare for the elements: that meant extra batteries for…
By Scott Rall, Outdoors ColumnistFebruary 04, 2026The dogs had such a sad look on their faces this morning when I was unloading my hunting vest. It was officially the end of the pheasant season in Minnesota. If you wanted to continue you can chase them in South Dakota which does not close until the end of January or a few days still remain in the state of Iowa. The Minnesota season was a stellar one. The bird numbers were much higher than the…
By Mavis Fodness, reporterJanuary 28, 2026A small envelope dropped to the floor. It was the size that comes with a bouquet of flowers. In it was single note that read “Thoughtful Thursday … Friendship/Joy/Caring.” The message was from Merecie Domagala, one of the many friends I had gained in the 11 years I’ve reported for the paper. The note brings back memories. I remember writing a column about Merecie’s Thoughtful Thursdays, where…
By Calla Jarvie, Rock County Library DirectorJanuary 28, 2026Ahh, February — a month traditionally associated with love. It is a lovey month at the library, too! It’s “I Love to Read Month!” Your Rock County Community librarians are always happy to offer book recommendations, but we are chomping at the bit to give you suggestions during this month dedicated to the love of reading. Since it’s such a romantic month, I have asked our resident romance…
By Brenda Winter, ColumnistJanuary 21, 2026We are celebrating Dad's 88th birthday on Saturday. Eighty-eight is not a "milestone" but, at 88, every birthday is worth celebrating. So, we're going all out. The Take 16 Event Center will feature yellow balloons and Dad's motorcycle — which he may or may not resume riding when it warms up next spring. We'll see. Bluegrass and country gospel music will be playing over the sound system. (…
By Rick Peterson, General ManagerJanuary 21, 2026Football, football and more football. If you like football, the past few weeks have been a football lover’s paradise. The NFL and NCAA have put on quite a show. From close games to a couple of blowouts, and some controversial calls by the officials, it has been entertaining. On Monday night of this week Indiana University won their first national championship while putting together an…
By Lori Sorenson, editorJanuary 14, 2026Many workplaces are like families. And the lucky ones are happy families. It makes sense if you think about it — we often spend more time with our co-workers than we do with our own family members. But, unlike real families, we don’t expect we’ll be with our co-workers for a lifetime. There’s a general understanding someone will end up leaving our workplace family for some reason or another…- By Rev. Dr. Steven Voris, First Presbyterian Church, LuverneJanuary 14, 2026In their 2023 book, The Great Dechurching, Jim Davis and Michael Graham point out that 40 million adults used to go to church in the United States but no longer do. They list a plethora of reasons people used for quitting church, including bad experiences with church leadership, mingling of faith and politics, loss of faith, simply not looking for a new church after a move, intolerance of…
By Mavis Fodness, reporterJanuary 07, 2026Twenty-one percent of U.S. adults ages 50 and older (about 24 million people) now live alone. They are “aging alone because they live without a spouse or partner or anyone else under the same roof,” according to an AARP magazine article I read from beginning to end, because I’m now one of these statistics. As 2026 began, I’m among the growing number of people aging solo due to a death of a…
By Rick Peterson, General ManagerJanuary 07, 2026Mary and I aren’t what you would call moviegoers. From our first date in 1976 and currently closing in on nearly 49 years of marriage in 2026, we have seen maybe four movies, and No. 4 happened on New Year’s Day. We both had seen trailers of the movie “Song Sung Blue” and thought this is one we would both enjoy. At 12: 15 p.m. on New Year’s Day I mentioned that “Song Sung Blue” was playing at…
By Scott Rall, Outdoors ColumnistJanuary 07, 2026To some folks these two words are pretty scary. These two words are “silencers” and “suppressors.” To others they are just the common names for a firearm accessory. Suppressors or silencers were heavily regulated starting in 1934. This intense regulation was to prevent criminal and others of ill intent during the days of prohibition. They were and are still regulated as an NFA item. NFA stands…
By Brenda Winter, ColumnistDecember 30, 2025As Jim and I reviewed our personal highlights of 2025, we were amused to conclude the year's "best" was the wooden patio screen we built from repurposed hog barn lumber. Seeds for the patio project were planted when we concluded something was needed to shield the patio from the comings and goings of the busy city park behind our house. We studied what we consider to be Luverne's best mid-…
By Scott Rall, Outdoors ColumnistDecember 30, 2025I really need someone to tell how much it is going to snow this winter. We got snow early on and in one weekend hunting pheasants in South Dakota it made it all the way to 12 below zero. I have a dog box equipped to handle this but it did not keep from checking on them several times throughout the night. The snow in this location was so deep that a group of 4 gave up after one morning of hunting…
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