Wade Sand of Missouri River Energy Solutions presents a check for $22,429 to Rich Dreckman representing Greensmith Holdings as part of the MRES Bright Energy Solutions Rebate Program, which incentivizes businesses to make qualified energy-efficient improvements through rebates and 0-percent loans. Greensmith built Luverne’s PrairiE Loft I and II apartment buildings on South Highway 75. The apartments are named with a capital E for “environmental sustainability and smart building practices.” The rebate was awarded in Luverne City Hall Tuesday, Dec. 20, during the council meeting.

Happy New Year, Star Herald readers. We in the newsroom find satisfaction in reviewing and highlighting the top stories of the year in our final December edition.
It shows we have progressive and ambitious local leaders and residents, and it shows our news team takes our work seriously in documenting big things, whether good news or bad.
At a glance, this year’s top stories include:
•PrairiE Loft apartments accept first residents
•Luverne Child Care Center plans (and some funding) are in place
•Lineage Logistics $50 million cold storage warehouse goes up with opportunity for 75 jobs
•Premium Minnesota Pork announces $70 million smokehouse processing plant with opportunity for 100 jobs
•Minnesota National Guard’s 17.5 million Readiness Center in progress
•Luverne’s $14 million wastewater treatment plant improvements are done
•Luverne’s $11 million power generation project is complete and on standby
•Next Era’s 40-turbine Walleye Wind Farm is online in western Rock County
•Luverne’s $5 million pool and fitness center renovations and splash pad are complete
•Rock County THC ordinance is in place
•Luverne district’s 18-candidate school board election results in five new school board members
•Loop and Ashby Trail are complete.
•Derecho winds, tornadoes, heat, drought and blizzards make headlines.
The Star Herald has also reviewed top business news in this edition and our B section carries a story reviewing top sports stories of 2022.
Meanwhile, it’s true what “they” say, “'The days pass slowly but the years fly by.”
See you next year.

Why do we lose things?
The question nagged me during the two days spent at home as a blizzard raged outside.
It was especially brought to focus when my husband, Bryan, handed me a small pair of scissors he had used while in the horse barn and slid into his coat pocket.
The scissors, instead of becoming lost, is now permanently kept in my home office.
Engraved on several places around the blades are the words, “Avis Olson.” She didn’t leave any doubt as to the scissors’ owner.
Avis is my sister, and obviously she lost the scissors since I now have them at my desk.
How they ended up in my horse barn is what experts agree is just absent-mindedness.
They got picked up for use and left behind as my mind focused on another object.
We do it all the time.
We lose our car keys, our cell phones or the television remote.
Other experts say misplacing things is a normal part of aging.
They liken the feeling to running into someone and not being able to think of their name — and hours later, it pops into your mind.
Absent-mindedness or age, losing things happens frequently in my house.
Bryan and I often kid each other, “You can hide (and find) your own Easter eggs.”
In googling how to overcome losing items, here are some of their suggestions:
•When you put something somewhere, say its location out loud. This allows our brains to be more mindful where we put things.
•Take pictures. Ever leave a store and wonder where you parked your car? Most people annoyingly hit the panic button on their keys, setting off the car’s horn in short blasts. Experts suggest taking a picture of storage areas, where you store easy-to-lose objects. When you can’t find them, pull up the photo.
•Invest in technology that allows tracking of items. There are various fobs to attach to items that sound when pressed, signaling where the lost item is.
•Set up a routine where everything has a home. Place keys or purses in the same place, or place the item back in a certain drawer or cupboard to be found again when needed.
At home finding lost items has become a mystery game.
Bryan regularly loses his gloves when he works around the farm. He buys another pair, as the location of the original pair remains a mystery.
However, one mystery was recently solved in a funny location.
As last week’s weather forecast had us bracing for bone-chilling cold, he decided the heater in our well needed to be checked. I was recruited as the extra pair of hands for the project.
The well is topped with a heavy concrete slab and is not easily accessible without a crowbar and some muscle. Once removed, a ladder leads down some 10 feet until the pump is reached.
Within a minute of climbing down the ladder, an extra pair of gloves suddenly pops up from the hole — from this spring when Bryan previously checked the well.

Before I close the book on 2022, I want to thank all of you who took the time to write a note in a Christmas card or drew one of your own. We collected nearly 700 cards this year, and the last box was just shipped off last week to Military Missions Inc. in Lexington, Kentucky.
We also dropped some cards and coloring contest entries off at the Minnesota Veterans Home.
May you have a blessed new year knowing you helped make someone’s Christmas a little brighter.
New Year 2023 is at our doorstep, and frankly I am more than ready for a new year, especially with the winter weather we had in the last month of 2022.
The past year was kind of a cancel event year for me. It all started about this time last year. We had plans for a family gathering to ring in the New Year, but I came down with COVID, and that ended that.
I bought a South Dakota fishing license, only to have our annual fishing trip canceled. I bought a South Dakota pheasant hunting license only to have bad weather scrap that trip.
I still have the month of January … maybe I can squeeze a quick South Dakota trip in before the end of the season.
The weather didn’t help our plans for last weekend’s trip to the cities for the Vikings game.
Our Fourth of July celebration with our out-of-town friends was canceled due to an illness.
My plan for 2023 is to be a bit more spontaneous and make plans on the fly.
If I find myself with a couple of free days and the weather is cooperating, head to the hills – the Black Hills, that is – or make a couple of phone calls and get the fishing group together and drop a line in the Missouri River.
I am not banking on this, but if Mother Nature can get her act together in the next couple of weeks, who knows? Maybe a three-day pheasant hunting trip may still be possible.
Goodbye 2022 and welcome 2023! Happy New Year!

A Dec. 20 house fire near Steen destroyed a kitchen and left two people temporarily displaced, according to Luverne Fire Chief David Van Batavia.
The 911 call came in shortly after 6 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 20, of a kitchen fire above the stove.
Two occupants, including Kris Van Der Brink, were out of the house and at the end of the driveway when firefighters arrived.
A grease fire on the stove had climbed up the cupboards and traveled along a vent to the attic, requiring firefighters to rip out a segment of sheetrock to extinguish the blaze above.
The Hills Fire Department was dispatched to provide mutual aid, but Van Batavia said he sent them home moments later after it was clear Luverne had it under control.
“It was so cold, I didn’t want them out there longer than they needed to be,” he said.
He said damage was contained to the kitchen, which would likely need to be gutted, and there was smoke damage throughout the house.
While the plumbing, heating and electric remained operable, Van Batavia advised that a HVAC professional inspect it before Van Der Brink move back in.
She said she’s glad everyone is OK, and the house is insured.

Dispatch report
Dec. 16
•Responded to alarm on 150th Avenue near Hardwick.
•Complainant reported cattle out at 140th Avenue near I-90.
•Complainant on 171st Street reported trespassing.
•Complainant on Fairview Drive reported a driving complaint.
Dec. 17
•Complainant eastbound on I-90 near mile marker 4 reported debris on roadway.
•Complainant reported a pedestrian on County Road 4 near 200th Avenue.
•Complainant on E. Crawford Street in Luverne reported property damage.
•Complainant on North Blue Mound Avenue reported property damage.
•Complainant on South Kniss Avenue in Luverne reported a gas drive-off.
Dec. 18
•Complainant at 110th Avenue and 141st Street reported a driving complaint.
•Law enforcement assisted motorist on County Road 7.
•Debris was reported on I-90 near mile marker 11.
•Complainant on South Kniss Avenue reported property damage.
Dec. 19
•Complainant reported a disorderly person on East Sanford Avenue in Steen.
•Law enforcement assisted another department.
•Motorist reported debris on I-90 near Magnolia at mile marker 20.
•Complainant on South Kniss Avenue reported a gas drive-off.
•Complainant on East Luverne Street reported alarm.
Dec. 20
•An outage was reported in Luverne at 1:26 a.m.
•Complainant on 20th Avenue near Valley Springs, S.D., reported a civil issue.
•Complainant on 120th Avenue near Luverne reported a deceased person.
•Complainant at 180th Avenue and 221st Street near Hardwick reported debris on roadway.
•Complainant reported a fire on 61st Street near Luverne.
Dec. 21
•Complainant on Highway 75 near 131st Street required assistance.
Dec. 22
•Deputy responded to alarm on South Kniss Avenue.
•Complainant on North Estey Street reported power outage at 6:38 p.m.
•Complainant reported a public nuisance.
•I-90 was closed at 6:54 p.m. due to weather.
•Deputy assisted the Minnesota State Patrol on I-90 at mile marker 9 westbound near Beaver Creek.
•Motorist required assistance on North Kniss Avenue.
Dec. 23
•Deputy assisted Minnesota State Patrol on I-90 at mile marker 10 westbound.
•Deputy assisted another department at Highway 23 and County Road 5 near Garretson, S.D.
•Complainant on North Spring Street reported an alarm.
In addition, officers responded to 3 motor vehicle accidents, 11 stalled vehicles, 12 vehicles in the ditch, 2 weather report issues, 10 ambulance runs, 2 paper services, 2 animal complaints, 1 fingerprint request, 11 purchase and carry permits, 8 traffic stops, 10 abandoned 911 calls, 1 welfare check, and 1 follow-up.

The Rock County Sheriff’s Office and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) announced on Tuesday a break in a cold case homicide.
A murder victim whose remains were found 41 years ago in Rock County has been identified through genetic genealogy and DNA.
Louis Anthony Gattaino of Omaha, Nebraska, had been missing since October 1971. He was 25 at the time.
On March 13, 1981, a highway worker found skeletal remains of a man now identified as Louis Gattaino near a culvert along Minnesota Interstate 90 near County Highway 23 in Beaver Creek Township.
Despite an exhaustive investigation, the man’s identity remained a mystery.
BCA forensic scientists obtained DNA from the remains, but it did not match to anyone in convicted offender or missing persons databases.
Then this past August, researchers from the Doe Project working with a public genealogy database identified a likely genetic connection to Gattaino’s family.
BCA agents and Rock County investigators traveled to Omaha to collect DNA samples from several family members. BCA forensic scientists obtained DNA results that support the familial relationship last week, and Rock County investigators notified Gattaino’s family members of the results.
“While it’s not news anyone wants, Louis Gattaino’s family at long last has some answers,” Rock County Sheriff Evan Verbrugge said.
“And while there is still much to be learned about Mr. Gattaino’s death, knowing his identity – even decades after he died – is a critically important new clue in this case.”
The Rock County Sheriff’s Office, the BCA and the Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office urge anyone who recognizes or had contact with Louis Gattaino between 1971 and 1981 or who has information about his death to contact the Rock County Sheriff’s Office Tip Line at 507-283-5000.
“Forensic Investigative Genetic Genealogy continues to unlock mysteries and provide families with answers about their loved ones,” BCA Superintendent Drew Evans said.
“Although DNA testing wasn’t possible when Louis Gattaino died, we are grateful that it brings his family some resolution today.”
The BCA continues to urge families with missing loved ones to report them missing to law enforcement and to provide DNA for comparison to unidentified remains DNA in Minnesota and across the nation.
Families can start the process by contacting their local law enforcement agency or the BCA.
Investigators are grateful to the Doe Network for their efforts in this case that ultimately resulted in Louis Gattaino being identified. The Doe Network works to assist in resolving missing and unidentified persons cases.

Walter Tofteland was recently honored by the district Rotary International governor as the Luverne club was recently inducted into the Paul Harris Fellow Club.
The Paul Harris Fellow recognizes individuals who contribute or who have contributions made in their name of $1,000 to the Rotary Foundation. The Foundation uses the contributions to support service projects throughout the world.
All 36 members of the Luverne club are Paul Harris Fellows, and members credit Tofteland’s help in achieving the rare distinction. Tofteland often challenged members to raise at least half of the $1,000 Foundation donation by paying half the amount himself.
“Walter has been amazingly consistent in his support for the Luverne club and for Rotary in general,” said current Rotary president Dave Sternborg. “His commitment and motivation to other club members is unparalleled in my experience.”
Tofteland, 93, joined the presentation via Zoom from a retirement home in Sioux Falls. He joined the local Rotary International on July 1, 1958.
Tammy Loosbrock, Luverne Rotary foundation committee chairman, presented Tofteland with the Paul Harris Fellow Club banner.
“This honor is a true legacy to you as a Rotarian leader in our club.”

Open house
Marilyn Swenson will celebrate her 85th birthday with an open house from 9 to 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 7, at the Centennial Apartments. Refreshments will be served.
 
Card shower
Tony and Sadie Van Grootheest will celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary on Sunday, Jan. 1. Greetings may be sent to them at 305 N. Blue Mound Avenue; Luverne, MN 56156.