By Lori EhdeIn a bad-news, good-news announcement this week, owners of the Luverne Country Store told the Star Herald the business is closing.That’s the bad news.The good news, what they’re focusing on now, is that they’ll continue operating True Value, on a smaller scale, with a new name in a new location."The good news is, and what we hope people understand is we’re not leaving," said Gary Golla owner of the Country Store, which opened September 2002 in the old Jubilee Foods building downtown. "We’re going to be moving and doing something different."The new location will be at the Luverne Farm Store on South Highway 75, where the True Value store will have a paint department, Just-Ask Rental, lawn and garden and pet center."The sad part is the store is closing," said Country Store part-owner and manager Nate Golla, Gary’s son. "But the exciting part for us is that the transition is going to mean we can improve and expand on the areas we’ve been strong in."For example, the paint department will offer new computer color matching software, a new line of paint and new color charts.The lawn and garden department will thrive next door to the Farm Store staff, which includes four licensed turf and ornamental applicators.The new True Value will also remain a catalog store where customers can still order all the products they were used to getting in the Country Store."We already place 20 to 30 catalog orders a week, and those deliveries will still be weekly," Nate said.Departments that won’t be making the move include plumbing, electrical, hardware, giftware and housewares.The timing of the move will depend on the location the Gollas decide on for the venture.One option, they said, would be to remodel the feed storage building adjacent to the east side of the Farm Store office. The other option would be to build new on property just north of the Farm Store along Highway 75.Either way, the Gollas estimate they’ll need about 3,000 square feet to operate the new True Value business.They currently own the 11,000 square-foot building downtown and have spoken with city and county officials, two local retailers and one out-of-town retailer regarding potential interest in the facility."It’s a building I don’t think will stay empty very long," Gary said. "But there’s nothing definite right now as far as the future of the building."Meanwhile, Nate said he’ll start reducing stock in the Country Store to prepare for the move, which will likely occur by the end of this summer."We would hope to make the transition as seamless and smooth as possible," he said. "When we close one location, we hope to immediately open the other."Current bridal registries will be honored through the summer, but the store will no longer accept new listings.The Gollas pointed to a slow local economy and a long learning curve in the retail business as reasons some Country Store departments didn’t thrive."There’s obviously not one particular reason," Gary said. "The local economy has changed — and Ace Hardware [which opened last fall] was certainly a part of that. But the economy in general hasn’t been that good, and people are more mobile.""When we put up the store, we did it based on the model True Value provided us," Gary said. "But as time changes, maybe the product mixes that were correct before aren’t today, especially areas like plumbing where the technology is always changing."Both Gary and Nate said they’ll feel more comfortable with the four departments the new store will offer. "We’re going to streamline the business into one we feel can be successful," Nate said. "It will allow us to focus on our strengths, and that what’s going to make it fun."Efforts of many …The Gollas said they have a long list of people to thank for their efforts in starting and supporting the Country Store."We thank all the local contractors for their continued business and support, and all the local businesses, too," Nate said. "… anyone who’s ever come through the doors to spend time with us and shop our store. We look forward to servicing them in the future as our business changes."The Gollas specifically appreciated the efforts of part-owners Greg Uithoven and Dean Fey, plus contributions by Diane Leuthold and Bill Jarchow, all current Farm Store employees.The thank-you list also includes former Country Store manager Beki Weber and the Weber family — Charlie, Shirley, Brian and Lynette Weber.Other former employees include Melissa Anderson, Jessica Beyenhof, Brandon Johnson, Kyle Kreun, Jesse Leuthold, Jen Luitjens, Don Schouwenburg, Vicki Steensma, Jan Van Eck, Merrick Van Otterloo and Bruce Wilson.Current employees are Stephanie Christensen, Christy Csobor, Carol Dohlman, Orrie Frahm, Kelley Fransman, Matt Kruger, Deb Remme, Teresa Reu and Barry Shelton."A good share of the employees will come along," Gary said. "We’re fully busy here at the Farm Store, and we’ll need to have these enterprises fully staffed."He also thanked the community for its support. "We look forward to demonstrating our value as a local business that prides itself on quality and service."

So, you think you know everything? Add this to your database …The school year is just days from being over, and it brings to mind the popular lesson, "Everything I Need to Know I learned in Kindergarten." It also reminded me of a fun little e-mail message that landed in my file earlier this year. I reprinted a few of my favorites from the list, which is longer than anyone really needs. Read, enjoy, and then forget, (like I did):A dime has 118 ridges around the edge.A cat has 32 muscles in each ear.A crocodile cannot stick out its tongue.A dragonfly has a life span of 24 hours.A goldfish has a memory span of three seconds.A "jiffy" is an actual unit of time for 1/100th of a second.A snail can sleep for three years.Al Capone's business card said he was a used furniture dealer.All 50 states are listed across the top of the Lincoln Memorial on the back of the $5 bill.Almonds are a member of the peach family.An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.Babies are born without kneecaps. They don't appear until the child reaches 2 to 6 years of age.Cats have over one hundred vocal sounds. Dogs only have about 10."Dreamt" is the only English word that ends in the letters "mt".If the population of China walked past you, in single file, the line would never end because of the rate of reproduction.If you are an average American, in your whole life, you will spend an average of six months waiting at red lights.It's impossible to sneeze with your eyes open.No word in the English language rhymes with month, orange, silver, purple.Our eyes are always the same size from birth, but our nose and ears never stop growing.Peanuts are one of the ingredients of dynamite.Rubber bands last longer when refrigerated."Stewardesses" is the longest word typed with only the left hand and "lollipop" with your right. The average person's left hand does 56% of the typing.The Bible does not say there were three wise men; it only says there were three gifts.The cruise liner, QE2, moves only six inches for each gallon of diesel that it burns.The microwave was invented after a researcher walked by a radar tube anda chocolate bar melted in his pocket.The sentence: "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" uses every letter of the alphabet.The winter of 1932 was so cold that Niagara Falls froze completely solid.The words 'racecar,' 'kayak' and 'level' are the same whether they are read left to right or right to left (palindromes).There are 293 ways to make change for a dollar.There's no Betty Rubble in the Flintstones Chewables Vitamins.Tigers have striped skin, not just striped fur.Winston Churchill was born in a ladies' room during a dance.Women blink nearly twice as much as men.Your stomach has to produce a new layer of mucus every two weeks; otherwise it will digest itself.Now you know everything!

Edgerton will dedicate Veterans MemorialA new Veterans Memorial, on Edgerton’s Main Street will be dedicated on Monday, May 31, as part of the community’s Memorial Day program.Gold Star veterans will be given special attention at the ceremony and will be seated in a special section.A retired captain in the U.S. Navy will be the keynote speaker for the event.The program will start at 10 a.m. Memorial Day, Monday, May 31.Do you know an outstanding senior citizen?Nominations are being solicited for 2004 Outstanding Rock County Senior Citizens.If you know either a man or a woman over the age of 70 by Aug. 1, whose community involvement can serve as an example to others, you should consider putting his or her name in the hat.The winners will be honored at a special luncheon at the Rock County Fair on July 30.The chosen ones will receive a certificate from the governor and their names will be submitted to the Minnesota Board on Aging for the state selection process for the Outstanding Senior Citizen of Minnesota.The Outstanding Senior Citizens of Minnesota will be announced at the Minnesota State Fair.The criteria for receiving the award is based on the number and variety of contributions the nominees made to their community after age 65.Nominees must be residents of the state of Minnesota and the county they represent.Previous county winners are no longer eligible as they were in previous years.If you have someone in mind for this award, contact Carol Wulf at 283-5070.Poppy sales todayToday is poppy sale day. Volunteers will be manning the doors at several Luverne businesses as well as the Luverne Post Office to give you an opportunity to buy a poppy.The poppies were first sold to remember fallen soldiers from World War I.Money raised from the sale of the poppies will go toward veterans’ welfare. Last year the sale raised $1,550.Locally, representatives from the American Legion & Auxiliary Post # 123 and Rock County VFW and Auxiliary Post #2757 jointly coordinate the sales.We are not going to be traveling as much this summerThe latest Myvesta report says we are going to be traveling less this summer, and spending 5.3 percent less because of it.This year’s average summer vacation will cost $2,252.In past years when people looked for lower cost summer vacations, they tended to stay closer to home, which could be good news for the Minnesota tourism business, including the Blue Mounds State Park.Vacations tidbits:
77.8 percent plan to use a credit card to pay for all or part of their trip.
29.3 percent plan to take three or more months to pay for their vacation charges.
If the average vacation cost of $2,252 is placed on a credit card and only the minimum payment is made, it will take almost 33 years to pay off the balance and cost an additional $5,687 in interest payments.
41 percent plan to take a trip this year, down from 48.5 percent in 2003.
Of the four regions of the country, people in the Midwest plan to spend the least on their vacation.Publisher Roger Tollefson can be reached by e-mail at tolly@star-herald.com

By Jolene FarleyTuff Memorial Home resident Grace Walters, 97, was excited when she received a letter in the mail with an unfamiliar name and return address. That letter meant someone had found the balloon she let loose Wednesday, May 12, during National Nursing Home Week at Tuff Memorial Home. "I sure was surprised," Walters said. "I thought, ‘Who could be writing me with that address?’"More than 50 balloons, one for each Tuff resident, were let loose with the help of student volunteers from the Hills Christian School. So far, Walters is the only one to receive a reply. Her letter, signed Mr. and Mrs. Dennis Lund and Jodi, was from Fairfax, a town about 120 miles northeast of Hills. Dennis Lund found the deflated, shredded balloon while mowing his lawn on Friday, May 14. A laminated note with Walter’s name and address that detailed why the balloons were released was intact. The note, written by Tuff Activity Director Lou Kellenberger, invited anyone who found a balloon or note to write. "I just tell them, ‘If you find this, we’d like to hear from you,’" Kellenberger said. In their reply, the Lunds wrote about enjoying bird watching and gardening. They also wrote about the cold weather in their area. Walters hopes the Lunds will keep writing back and forth with her. They have been invited to visit if they are ever in the area.Tuff Memorial Home residents have released balloons each year for the last five or six years and received responses twice before. One balloon made it intact to Wisconsin and another to Iowa. Walters plans to release another balloon next year. "We did one and succeeded," she said. "It could happen again."

By Jolene FarleyThe communities of Hills and Beaver Creek will honor those who died in our nation’s service during separate Memorial Day programs Monday, May 31. In Hills, Memorial Day services begin at 9 a.m. in the American Legion hall. Father Eagan, retired United States Army, will give the invocation. Hills American Legion Commander Scott is Master of Ceremonies. Guest speaker Dennis Strassburg, Magnolia, will talk about fallen heroes and the World War II Monument in Washington, D.C. Strassburg was an U.S. Army Special Forces Green Beret during the Vietnam War from 1968 to 1971.He will read a poem a Kenneth boy wrote about his grandfather who served in World War II and another poem entitled "I’ve Got Your Back, I’m a Soldier." The Hills-Beaver Creek band is playing and the choir is singing for the event.After a memorial service at Bethlehem Cemetery, refreshments will be served at the Hills Legion hall. After a 9:15 a.m. social hour, Memorial Day services in Beaver Creek begin at 10:30 a.m. at the Beaver Lodge on the golf course.Alan Harnack, a Vietnam veteran from Beaver Creek, is the speaker. Details about Harnack’s speech were unavailable at press time. Beaver Creek Mayor AlGean Blank is the Master of Ceremonies and Carolyn DeBoer will read the invocation and benediction.Organizer Kitty Helgeson and the Boy Scouts will host a flag folding ceremony.Keith Elbers will sing patriotic songs and the Hill-Beaver Creek band will play. A remembrance service follows in the Beaver Creek Cemetery.

By Jolene FarleyThe Hills-Beaver Creek School Board passed budget cuts and fee increases at a Monday meeting taking a $112,750 bite out of the projected $150,000 budget shortfall for the 2004-05 school year."Our goal — my goal — is to try to balance the budget as simply and painlessly as we can, but there is always pain in cuts," Superintendent Dave Deragisch said.Board member Lloyd DeBoer thanked the finance committee for their work, reminding everyone that budget decisions are "always tough."The only difference to the proposed cut list shown to the board at a Monday, April 26, meeting was a cut to $10,000 from $15,000 for a reduction in office personnel. In their vote, the board combined short-term and long-term cuts and didn’t designate them either way.But in a handout from Deragisch, $80,850 of the cuts were designated permanent and $31,900 were designated temporary.Deragisch advised the board to address the cuts and fee increases during Monday’s meeting and a possible referendum levy could be discussed at a later meeting.He passed out an analysis of tax impact of a referendum levy for the board to study before further discussion.Cuts and fee increases passed by the board:
Decrease requisitions by $15,000 by delaying the purchase of new science textbooks,
Decrease office supplies use by $1,500.
Reduce the staff development budget by 67 percent or $8,400.
Reduce school board staff development (travel and education) by $2,000.
Reduce the computer budget by $5,000.
Reduce the substitute teacher budget by $1,000.
Raise lunch prices by 10 cents to add $4,500 in revenue.
Reduce the Learning Readiness budget by $3,000.
Raise driver’s education fees from $150 per student to $180 and increase revenues by $600.
Eliminate the high school early morning coverage. Deragisch or Dean of Students Steve Wiertzema will cover to save $1,500.oReduce office personnel to save $10,000.
Reduce a teacher position to save $20,000.
Eliminate extended computer coordinator contract for a savings of $2,250
Raise athletic fees from $20 to $30 per activity with a $100 maximum per family to increase revenues by $1,500.
Raise Community Education fees to increase revenues by $2,000.
Increase facility use fees by 25 percent to raise $1,500.
Attrition (retirements) will decrease expenses by $30,000.
Reducing bus use (including using smaller vehicles, possible coach drivers, charging more for Little Patriot and Learning Readiness busing) will reduce expenses by $3,000.Mental Health School Social WorkerOver the last year, the Hills-Beaver Creek and Luverne school districts and Rock County Family Services have discussed implementing a mental health school social worker to serve both school districts and work collaboratively with children’s mental health services provided by Rock County.The board voted to serve as the employer of record for the position. Wages will be paid for by State Special Education funds (68 percent of salary) and County Children’s Mental Health funds. The board agreed to provide phone service, computer, fax, office space, etc. for the employee. The Rock County Board will advance about $20,000 a year to the district to cover a two year delay in special education reimbursement payments from the state. In personnel …Angie Blasmo was rehired at $23,205 as the Little Patriot, Early Childhood Family Education and School Readiness teacher, a .7 position. Jason Blasmo was hired as half-time fifth-grade teacher and half-time high school industrial arts teacher at $33,150. Deragisch read a letter of resignation from band director Brent Steinert, who is pursuing graduate studies in a different state.The .5 art position currently filled by retiring Gregg Ebert and a .75 high school special education position still need to be filled.

By John RittenhouseHills-Beaver Creek High School junior Zach Wysong helped the Luverne High School baseball team complete Southwest Conference play with a winning 7-5 record Thursday.Luverne ended conference play by nipping Worthington 6-5 in eight innings in Luverne.Wysong emerged as the leading hitter and winning pitcher during Thursday’s Southwest Conference finale against Worthington in Luverne.The Cardinals rallied from two late deficits to beat the Trojans 6-5 and finish league play with a 7-5 record.Wysong went 3-4 at the plate and scored one run during the contest.With Luverne trailing 5-3 heading into the bottom of the eighth, Wysong ignited a three-run rally by singling and scoring the first run of the inning.He was called on to make a relief pitching appearance in the top of the eighth, after Worthington scored two runs to take a 5-3 edge. Wysong induced the only batter he faced to ground out, and he became the winning pitcher when Luverne rallied to score three times in the bottom of the frame.The Cardinals were scheduled to play a game in Adrian Monday, but the game was postponed until Wednesday, May 26.Luverne begins defense of its 2003 Section 3AA title by playing Redwood Valley in an opening-round game at noon Saturday in Jackson.

By John RittenhouseThe Hills-Beaver Creek-Ellsworth boys made a bid to win the Red Rock Conference golf championship before falling three strokes short Thursday.The Patriots served as hosts for the annual league tournament at the Beaver Creek Golf Course, and they nearly stole the show by putting together a 370-stroke team tally.H-BC-E, however came up three shots off the pace.Westbrook-Walnut Grove and Southwest Christian turned in 367-stroke totals to finish the event in a tie. W-WG was awarded the championship because its fifth player outscored Southwest’s 101-105.Sioux Valley-Round Lake-Brewster (386), Red Rock Central (414) and Southwest Star Concept (417) capped the six-team field.Three Patriot players earned spots on the All-RRC Team by placing in the Top-10 individually during the tournament.Tom Janssen led the Patriots by shooting an 87 to place third.Ben Herman placed sixth with a 90, and Tom Scholten finished ninth with a 94.SWC’s Collin Broekhuis edged W-WG’s Kenny Willers 82-83 to win the individual championship.SWC’s Evan Fey and W-WG’s Jordan shot 89s to share fourth place.SWC’s Matt Mulder placed seventh with a 92, SV-RL-B’s Tyler Hogan eighth with a 93 and SV-RL-B’s Jay Malenke 10th with a 96.Jason Marten contributed a 99-stroke round to H-BC-E’s team tally.Jeremy Elbers and Nick Deutsch shot 103- and 108-stroke rounds without influencing the scoring.

By John RittenhouseThe Hills-Beaver Creek-Ellsworth-Edgerton track teams helped form nine-squad fields at the annual Red Rock Conference meet in Slayton Thursday.The H-BC-E-E teams won a combined six conference championships and placed second in four events during the outing.The Patriot boys won five meet championships on the way to scoring 103 points and placing fourth in the team standings.The H-BC-E-E boys won five individual events on the way to fourth place in the boys’ field.Tyler Bush led the way by winning the 800- and 1,600-meter runs with respective 2:01.62 and 4:48.08 efforts.Todd Alberty, Cody Scholten and Tom LeBoutillier won one individual event each.Alberty covered 39-10 in the triple jump, Scholten cleared 6-0 in the high jump and LeBoutillier cleared the 110-meter hurdles in 16:06.H-BC-E-E’s 1,600-meter relay team placed second with a time of 3:33.18. Bush, Kale Wiertzema, Lee Jackson and Alberty formed the team.The H-BC-E-E girls produced one RRC title and placed second in three events.Cassi Tilstra, who ran 400 meters in 1:01.16 to place second, won the 800-meter run in 2:25.9.H-BC-E-E’s 1,600- and 3,200-meter relays placed second with respective 4:17.06 and 10:15.3 times.Mya Mann, Jocelyn and Ashley Bucher and Tilstra ran the 1,600. Amanda Tilstra, Mann and the Buchers teamed up in the 3,200.The H-BC-E-E teams will compete at the Sub-Section 10 Track and Field Championships in Pipestone today.Here is a look at the final team standings and the rest of the top six performances turned in by H-BC-E-E athletes during the RRC meet.Girls’ standings: Murray County Central 100.5, Fulda 99.5, Westbrook-Walnut Grove-Red Rock Central 95, Adrian 93, Mountain Lake-Butterfield-Odin 71, Southwest United 67.5, Southwest Christian 61.5, Comfrey-Springfield 61, H-BC-E-E 52.Boys’ standingsSWC 161.5, MCC 113.5, Fulda 110.5, H-BC-E-E 103, Adrian 66, ML-B-O 61, W-WG-RRC 38, SWU 25, C-S 23.5H-BC-E-E girlsFifth place: A.Bucher, 800, 2:31.6; 400 relay (Amanda Connors, Rosie Lewis, Chelsi Fink and Kelly Mulder), 55.31.H-BC-E-E boysThird place: LeBoutillier, 300 hurdles, 42.67; LeBoutillier, long jump, 19-7; LeBoutillier, discus, 123-3; 3,200 relay (Alberty, Wiertzema, Jackson and Derek Haak), 8:43.69.Fourth place: Curt Schilling, shot, 42-2; Alberty, 400, 54.08.Sixth place: 400 relay (Paul DeLeoncepeda, Cody Rozeboom, Javier Cisneros and Roger DeBoer), 49.57; 800 relay (John Sandbulte, Soeren Trebesch, Devin DeBoer and R.DeBoer), 1:43.8.