By Jolene Farley
For those who think nothing exciting ever happens in small towns, just look over the year in review.
Communities were rocked by local bad news as well as the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, which led the United States into war.
To counter the bad news, however, the weekly Crescent issues are also peppered with happy, heartwarming tales as well.
January
The Mike Jess household, Steen, was destroyed by fire. A passerby reported the blaze, but when firefighters arrived at the scene the structure was engulfed in flames. The Hills, Luverne, Beaver Creek and Rock Rapids fire departments battled the blaze.
Cindy Niessink and Cindy McGowan organized a soup supper benefit for the family that raised $2,300 with a $1,000 match from A.A.L. Branch 9510 and Blue Mound Lutheran Brotherhood Branch 8608.
The first baby in Luverne Community Hospital in 2001 was born to Eric and Lisa Kiers, Luverne. Nicholas Johan Kiers was born Jan. 5 and weighed 6 pounds. Eric Kiers is a teacher at Hills Christian School.
Hills-Beaver Creek School mailed a survey out to residents of the district asking if the school should proceed with plans for new locker rooms and a community fitness center. The board received more than 200 responses from the 700 surveys mailed out.
February
Spencer and Pam Sells and their two children, Lindsy and Lee, Beaver Creek, were selected as 2001 Farm Family of the Year by the Rock County Extension Committee. The annual award honors families for their contributions to agriculture and their communities.
Participants in the 19th Annual Helge's Father and Son Pool Tournaments in Beaver Creek racked up more than $3,512 for Hospice of Luverne. Gordon Helgeson and his son, Gary, won first place in the event.
Hills-Beaver Creek Elementary students collected 12,270 Pepsi notes in the Share the Joy with Music Program sponsored by Pepsi. A goal of 2,000 Pepsi notes was surpassed by far. With the points, the music program was able to purchase more than $1,000 in equipment.
March
The Hills-Beaver Creek Board of Education interviewed architects to design the proposed locker room and fitness center.
At a later meeting, Group II Architects, Sioux Falls, was selected for the project.
Sioux Falls Sky Force player Carlos Daniel came to visit H-BC Elementary School as part of Read Across America Week, an annual event commemorating the birthday of children's author Dr. Seuss, creator of "Cat in the Hat."
Hills-Beaver Creek student Adam Finke was chosen as one of 15 People to People Middle School Student Ambassadors for the Sioux Falls area. As an ambassador he visited Spain, France, Germany and Switzerland over a period of three weeks.
Due to higher-than-normal fuel costs and longer labor hours, Beaver Creek Township spent nearly 40 percent more on snow removal this year than during a normal winter.
Patriot Millworks was awarded a $4,095 Youth Entrepreneurship Grant by the Southwest Minnesota Foundation. Students used the funds to purchase a trailer to deliver finished wood products.
April
Census 2000 tallies showed Rock County with fewer people than 10 years ago. The county's final count was 9,721, down 85 from the 1990 census. Hills ended up with 565 people, down from 607 in 1990; Beaver Creek was up one person. Steen's population increased from 176 in 1990 to 182 in 2000.
Hills-Beaver Creek and Ellsworth combined their track and field programs. The two schools had previously teamed up for baseball and golf.
A storm with strong straight-line winds traveled through several farms northeast of Beaver Creek, damaging buildings and trees. A bin landed on an attached garage at Bob Beyenhof's farm. Delmar DeVries lost part of a cattle shed roof, and a greenhouse was severely damaged. A cattle shed at Orville Bork's farm collapsed. Damage was also reported at the Gary Top, Jim Van Santen and Frank Matus farms.
After a year as elementary principal, Kim Grengs resigned, effective June 30, 2001. Grengs and her family returned to Farmington to the district she taught in before moving to H-BC.
oH-BC students scored among the top 10 schools in Minnesota on the math portion of the eighth-grade Basic Standards Tests.
May
Fire destroyed a calf barn, granary, two garages and a milking barn on a farm east of Valley Springs. Minnie Vis owned the property and her son, Alan, lived on the premises. Norman Vis used the buildings for his farming operation.
The Hills Economic Development Authority accepted a bid of $2,400 for the former American Salvage building from John Schwing, president of Technical Services from Sioux Falls, and Don Packard, president of Northland Precision Machine Inc..
The Rock County Sheriff's department began investigating Superintendent Tom Knoll for an alleged assault at Hills-Beaver Creek High School.
Parents expressed concern about the music programs to the Hills-Beaver Creek School Board at a regular meeting. A spokesperson for the group stated the quality of the music program deteriorated greatly in the last few years. At a later meeting the H-BC School Board accepted the resignation of vocal and instrumental teacher Dawn Griepp.
Former Hills resident 20-year-old Carrie Nelson was murdered while working at Blue Mounds State Park. She died from multi-traumatic injuries to the head due to assault. Investigators are still seeking information on the crime.