VandeGriend joins Sanford Luverne
 
Rachelle VandeGriend recently joined Sanford Luverne Clinic as a certified nurse practitioner. She will be a family medicine provider, caring for patients of all ages.
She lives in rural Edgerton with her husband and three children.
VandeGriend graduated from South Dakota State University, Brookings, and is board certified in family medicine by the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.
In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family, running, reading and drinking coffee.

Allen Dale Croat, 69, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, died peacefully on Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2022, at Good Samaritan Villages in Sioux Falls, surrounded by friends and family.
A memorial service was Monday, Sept. 12, at Hartquist Funeral Home in Luverne, followed by a gathering at the St. Catherine Catholic Church parish hall before a burial at St. Adrian Catholic Cemetery.
Allen Croat was born July 12, 1953, to Wilfred and Ina (Fox) Croat in Luverne. He was baptized at St. Catherine Catholic Church in 1953 and attended school at Hills-Beaver Creek public school, graduating in 1971.
After graduation Allen completed X-ray tech school in 1972 and moved to Sleepy Eye, where he worked first as a lab tech and then as an X-ray tech. In 1981 Allen accepted a position as an X-ray tech at Sioux Valley hospital in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. After four years he was promoted to CAT scan tech, a position he held for the next 33 years.
Allen was also a very active member of the American Society of Radiologic Technologists from 1981 through 2020. He served as vice president and president for one year each on the local and state boards and was president of the national board for a year. He also served two years as president, two years as chairman of the board, and six years on the board for the South Dakota Society of Radiologic Technologists. He was very proud of his career and dedicated a large portion of his time and energy to serving his community by improving and bettering his field of work.
After his retirement he continued to live in Sioux Falls with a close friend, Roxie Rauk.
In March of 2021 he moved into the Good Samaritan Villages of Sioux Falls for rehabilitation following a surgery.
In his free time Allen enjoyed reading, listening to music, doing needle point and crocheting. Allen loved all types of music, especially the golden oldies, and his collection of music grew over the years.
He also developed a love for Disney and worked part time at the Disney Store in Sioux Falls. He learned to know every Disney character, which movie they played in, and which songs were in that movie. He also collected Disney memorabilia and loved wearing anything Disney.
Allen is survived by his best friend, Roxie Rauk of Sioux Falls; his nieces and nephews, Mary Krumwiede of Bingham Lake, Terri Birman of Canby, Larry (Jill) Karsten of Milroy, Sherri Karsten of Ivanhoe, Lynette (Jeff) Werner of Wilmont, Tammy (Kevin) Stude of Sioux Falls, and Amy Dammer of Rushmore; and many great-nieces and great-nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents and his siblings Gene, Duane, Beverly, and Donna.
Arrangements were provided by Hartquist Funeral Home of Luverne, hartquistfuneral.com. 
(0915 F)

Marvin M. Gradert, 87, of Terre Haute, Indiana, and formerly of Luverne, Minnesota, passed away Sunday evening, July 17, 2022.
He was a retired Lieutenant Colonel from the United States Air Force, serving 27 years as a fighter pilot.
He was born December 8, 1934, in Virgil, South Dakota, to Carl Gradert and Martha Micheel Gradert.
Survivors include his wife of 66 years, Donnalee Boland Gradert; a daughter, Tamara Gradert of Texas;  a son, Scott Gradert (Fariba) of California;  and a granddaughter, Nakissa Gradert (Dominick).
He was preceded in death by his parents, a brother and a sister.
Marvin was a graduate of Hampton Institute in Hampton, Virginia, where he earned his bachelor’s degree and received his MBA degree from Golden Gate University in San Francisco.
During his career with the Air Force, he served 2 ½ tours during the Vietnam War. During the Vietnam War he taught at The Fighter Weapons USAF (Top Gun) School Nellis AFB.
Upon retirement from the Air Force, Marvin continued working as a pilot, flying for Piedmont/US Airlines.  He was a member of Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church, American Legion Post #0123 of Luverne, and VFW Post #972 of Terre Haute.
Marvin was a golfer and enjoyed running, but most of all loved woodworking and making furniture and all kinds of useful items out of wood.
Funeral services were conducted at 4 p.m. Sunday, July 24, 2022, in Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church, 645 Poplar Street, with Pastor Philip G. Meyer officiating.    Visitation was prior to services on Sunday from 2-4 p.m. in the church.
Graveside services with military honors were at 1 p.m. (CDT), Wednesday, July 27, 2022, in Maplewood Cemetery in Luverne.
Arrangements were under the direction of Callahan & Hughes Funeral Home, 605 South 25th Street, callahanandhughes.com
If friends should so desire, memorial contributions may be made to Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church, 645 Poplar Street, Terre Haute, IN 47807 or to Shriners Hospitals for Children, 4400 Clayton Ave, St. Louis, MO 63110.
(0915 V)

Robert Edward Cook, 73, Luverne, died Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, at the Good Samaritan Home in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Arrangements are pending with Dingmann Funeral Home and Creation Services in Luverne.
(DN 0915)

September is the time to get your lawn in shape for winter and the next growing season.
If you are a “do it yourself” person, now is when to tackle perennial weeds like dandelions and similar broadleaf weeds. Those little seedlings are busy storing nutrients in their roots so next spring they can put on a spectacular growth spurt and impress with their robust energy. Spraying with a broadleaf herbicide now will eliminate those problem weeds.
Persistent weeds like creeping Charlie, also known as ground ivy, will take more than one spray application, so hitting it now gives time for another application in early October.
Weed sprays are most effective when the weeds are growing actively. After the heat of summer and with the shorter days of autumn, they are making the most of the time they have left for this growing season.
I was in a “big box store” this week and checked out the assortment of bulbs for fall planting that were available. The price of some of them was really cheap, but when I checked the bulb size in the package, I understood the reason for the price.
Most consumers don’t understand that small bulbs may not even produce a blossom. The tulip bulbs I saw for that cheap price were smaller in diameter than a quarter and likely will produce a very small flower if they bloom at all.
Larger bulbs were available also, and the size was reflected in the price. I generally order my bulbs from a reputable mail order source, so I am not enticed by these great impulse deals.
I know you are probably sick of pulling weeds in your garden, but the weeds are not tired of making sure they get to come back next year. Even the smallest weed seedlings will attempt to make seeds at this point in the season, so eliminating them will help reduce the weeds you have to battle next season … sometimes I wonder if there is such a thing as fewer weeds, but I battle on none the less.
Purslane is one of the most persistent of the weeds we deal with. It grows low to the ground and has succulent-like leaves and stems. If you pull it and leave it lie in the hot sun, it will wilt, but during the night it will absorb enough moisture from dew to survive long enough to root back into the ground, even if it is just part of a stem. I bring a bucket to collect this weed and either feed them to the chickens (and they like it) or add it to the compost pile.
Our perennial flower beds are beginning to look tired, but cutting off the dead flower heads will help make the last of the season bloomers look better, and if you have annual flowers planted with your perennials, many of them are really coming back for a great color show after the heat of summer.
Same is true for potted assortments of annuals … keep feeding them and they will reward your efforts with renewed energy and color, for however long that will last.

Philippe died peacefully the evening of Aug. 4 surrounded by his beloved Colette and their three children, Emmanuel, Karine and Antoine. May his memory be a blessing.
Luverne in the 1940s and ’50s was still in the grip of not only the trauma and losses of the war but also religious separation.
Myths about “the other” still existed in small midwestern towns, and when Phil arrived as a Catholic, Wayne Hoffman, the Presbyterian pastor, and Stan Eyberg, the ELCA Lutheran pastor, suggested that Monsignor Michael Doyle from St. Catherine’s Church be added to the AFS sponsors. 
From his arrival, Philippe was a healer and bridge builder. The pastors and other sponsors became friends, and the congregations and community followed.
Fifty years later when Phil and Colette attended mass, Father Tom Jennings mentioned that “after half a century Phil is still remembered by our members as a significant influence.”
The gentleman from Chambery, who would become a rare Chevalier of the French Legion of Honor, would also prove himself early on the Chevalier of Rock County. 
Philippe lived in my family’s home, with my parents, Dr. Jerry and Clara Getman, and my four siblings during the 1957-58 school year. Before this time, foreign language wasn’t taught in Luverne.
As his Luverne roommate he became a brother as close as my Getman brothers especially as we reconnected in later life. We honor the huge faithful gift Philippe was to his far-flung family and friends. Nothing conveys this more than the treasured memory of our Christmas 1957.
Bill, then 4, remembers, “Each day I took my little red chair and sat out by the driveway to await Phil’s return from school. He still spoke only broken English, as did I, so he would hold my hand and take me down to Al’s Market near the high school and buy me a popsicle. We communicated better than anyone else in the family.”
My cousin Bill Keitel provides this childhood perceptive of Phil, speaking for all the Keitels and many other “children” from that era:
“As a child of six my remembrances are vague and shadowy. But I remember the excitement of a person who spoke a different language than our own.
We accepted him into our communal family and embraced his presence. The years carried on and I never encountered him again ... yet he lived on in the periphery
of my imagination. A person from far away who made a great impression on a small homogenous community in the Midwest.
AFS and the sponsors were fully responsible for creating this international relationship in which all benefited mightily. He helped us become aware of a larger world and create a spirit of recognition beyond the watershed of the Rock River.
Though we never crossed pathways again, I was made aware that the world was bigger and better than I could imagine. I share the whole joint family sorrow.”
 
Class of ’59 Eleanor Rober Guilder conveyed:
“He will always be in our hearts … thinking of the love, smiles and kindness he showed to every LHS classmate. I will always smile when I hear his name or hold the senior photo of him on which he wrote a note and signed. He loved our class just like his own. He was our first exchange student and the best.”
Dr. David Piepgras (Class of ‘58), remembered Philippe joyfully:
"I have thought of him often over the years, as a fine outstanding ambassador. How fortunate we all were to have him as a classmate our senior year at LHS. We enjoyed many times together with a group of close friends; Phil was not only a unique center of attention and affection at our many evening gatherings but became the nucleus of our group.
During my time in the military, my wife Jane and I located him at his office (with Peugeot Company) in Paris and had a delightful reunion. His presence at our 2008 Class reunion in Luverne was very special and we pass on our sincere condolences to his family, along with thanks to AFS and his American family and sponsors for bringing Phil into our lives.”
In a 1980 Paris visit my parents reestablished personal contact with Philippe, and subsequently Karen and I and our three children visited the Piot family in 1984 in Chambery.  
It was the first of back-and-forth visits almost every year since, resulting in the two sets of same gender and age children becoming as brothers and sisters. 
Philippe was a principled businessman, public leader and generous loving husband, father, grandfather, brother, and friend to all who knew and loved him. Our lives will not be the same without his presence.
Something truly special and universal happened with Philippe as an ambassador. He had a unique purpose and place in this world … especially to our small out-of-the-way town so soon after World War II. 
He was of course the first of a long string of wonderful exchange students, however unique in that he was a mindful survivor anointed with the grace needed to manage the actual horrors of war along with those of his iconic historic family.
He was likely the last (possibly along with the 1958-59 German student) foreign exchange student who actually watched bombing from the mountains overlooking their occupied cities. His sense of purpose was underscored.
May his gracious and vibrant spirit of friendship and healing linger much longer in our lives.
For once again we are facing alienation that comes from warlike partisanship and ideological division that can only be healed by love that embraces the strangers and aliens in our midst.
The affection of Phil’s caring in his radiant manner — especially for the little children here and his many grandchildren, nieces, and nephews in France — is a treasure that will be cherished for the rest of my days. What a privilege and what a gift.
Thank you, Philippe Piot and family. Our memories of you are truly a blessing to your friends in France and the United States.
May his spirit live on in all who knew him.”

The LHS girls’ tennis players continued their winning ways with two victories over the past week.
On Tuesday, Sept. 6, the Cardinals defeated Blue Earth Area 5-2 at home and finished the week with a 4-3 road win over Marshall on Thursday, Sept. 8. 
The Cardinals are scheduled to travel to Worthington Tuesday and to Pipestone on Thursday. 
The Pipestone meet is for the coveted Battle Racket, and the winner will have the upper hand for the No. 1 seed in the section tournament. 
 
LHS 5, Blue Earth Area 2
In the Blue Earth match, LHS won two singles contests and was victorious in all three doubles matches. 
Roselynn Hartshorn and Cassi Chesley continued their strong play at No. 3 and No. 4 singles. Hartshorn defeated Abby Prescher 4-6, 6-1, 6-1 and Chesley defeated Erin Prescher 7-5, 6-2. 
At No. 1 singles, Rayann Remme lost to Addison Armstrong 6-1, 6-0. Morgan Hadler lost to Liv Dutton 6-0, 6-0 at No. 2 singles.
In doubles play, Sarah Stegenga and Katharine Kelm defeated Grace Hanson and Carol Schrader by scores of 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 at No. 1 doubles. 
Tori Hemme and Priscilla Muehr defeated Ashlyn Klinkner and Lauren Survis 6-4, 6-4 at No. 2 doubles. The No. 3 doubles team of Augusta Papik and Caitlin Kindt defeated Erika Gaydon and McKinnley Hansen 6-1, 6-2.
“All of the doubles teams played great today. I was really pleased with how Roselynn and Cassi are playing singles right now,” said LHS coach Jon Beers. 
“Any match that we can win two out of the four singles matches will give us a great chance to win.”
 
LHS 4, Marshall 3
In the Marshall contest, Luverne won two singles matches and two of three doubles matches for the 4-3 win. 
At No. 3 singles, Hartshorn again came out on top with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Taylor Miller. Chesley defeated Naomi Schroeder 6-3, 6-3 at No. 4 singles.
Remme was defeated 6-0, 6-2 by Regan Loft at No. 1 singles, and Hadler was defeated 6-1, 6-0 by Taylor DePores at No. 2 singles.
“Rayann and Morgan have been playing some very talented girls the last four matches,” Beers said.
“They really have been playing some good tennis but just need to find the confidence that they were playing with at the beginning of the year.”
Stegenga and Kelm defeated Cecily Aufenthie and Siri Christensen 3-6, 7-6(2), 6-1 at No. 1 doubles, and Papik and Kindt defeated Aubrey Schaefer and Justine Kirst 7-6(3), 6-1 at No. 3 doubles.
Hemme and Muehr lost to Eliza Holmgren and Olivia Penske 6-1, 6-3 at No. 2 doubles.
“Sarah and Katharine lost the first set and were down in the second set,” Beers said.
“But they were able to come back and take the second set in a tie breaker and then win the third 6-1 to get a win for themselves and the team.”
He said the team match was tied at 3- 3, and the winner of this match would give their team the victory.
“Sarah and Katharine played a great third set, and as a coach, it was really fun to watch how they played,” Beers said. “Augusta and Caitlin won both of their matches last week at No. 3 doubles and have not lost a match yet this season when playing together.” 
He said next week is important for the team.
“Pipestone has been playing some very good tennis so far this year,” Beers said.
“We will need to be ready to play when we meet them on Thursday. The winner will get to keep the Battle Racket for the next year and will probably be the No.1 seed in the section tournament.”

The Luverne girls’ volleyball team played three events in five days, bringing their record to 6-2 on the season.
The Cardinals fell to Marshall at home Tuesday 3-0, but they went on to defeat Westbrook-Walnut Grove Thursday 3-0 and took first place at the Cardinal Invitational on Saturday.
The 6-2 Cardinals play Windom at home Thursday, Sept. 15, participate in the Jackson County Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 17, and meet Redwood Valley in Redwood Falls on Tuesday, Sept. 20.
 
Marshall 3, LHS 0
Luverne hosted Marshall Tuesday, Sept 6.
Luverne fell behind in the first game and was unable to stop the Tigers from running away with the score. The Cardinals fell 7-25.
Game 2 also went to Marshall with a score of 7-25.
The Cardinals made some adjustments in Game 3 but were unable to outscore the Tigers, losing 17-25. 
Seniors Kamyrn Van Batavia and Emma Beyer led the Cardinals in serving. Van Batavia was eight for eight and Beyer was five for five with one ace. 
Seniors Anja Jarchow and Christina Wagner had seven and five kills respectively.
Senior setter  Emma Beyer led with eight set assists and Averill Sehr recorded five set assists.
Senior Carly Olson charted eight digs and Jarchow recorded seven digs.
Junior Tori Serie had four blocking assists and senior Elizabeth Wagner contributed one solo block and three assists. 
 
LHS 3, WWG 0
Luverne hosted Westbrook-Walnut Grove on Thursday, Sept 8. Luverne took the lead early in Game 1, but WWG was able to tie the game up at 20. The game went back and forth with Luverne coming out on top 26-24.
Game 2 also went in Luverne’s favor and the Cardinals kept the lead the entire game. Luverne outscored WWG winning Game 3 25-20. 
Seniors Carly Olson and Emma Beyer led at the serving line.
Olson completed 14 of 14 serves, and Beyer completed 11 of 11 serves with one ace.
Senior Anja Jarchow recorded 10 kills, and Kamryn Van Batavia charted six kills.
Senior setters Beyer and Averill Sehr recorded 12 and eight set assists respectively.
Olson contributed 19 digs in the three games, and Jarchow recorded nine digs.
Junior Tori Serie had three assists and one solo block at the net, and senior Christina Wagner added three solo blocks and two assists. 
 
Cardinal Invitational:
Luverne hosted the Cardinal Invitational on Saturday, Sept 10.
Luverne beat George-Little Rock in the first round 26-24 and 25-16.
Luverne then took on Hills in Round 2 and won 25-14 and 25-14.
Luverne met Windom in the championship game. The Cardinals won Game 1 25-16. Luverne dropped Game 2 by a score of 12-25 but came back to win the third game 15-12 for the championship. 
Windom finished in second place after losing to Luverne. Adrian took third place, George-Little Rock placed fourth, Edgerton Public came in fifth, and Hills-Beaver Creek ended in sixth place.
No team stats were available from the tournament.

Writing about dogs is my favorite subject. If you have been a reader of my column for any length of time, you can already tell this by the number of times they occupy this space.
Dogs, especially hunting dogs, are a 12-month-a-year effort.  Whether it’s training a new dog or keeping the older dog sharp as a tack, both take consistency, time and commitment.
With dove season opening a few days back and prairie grouse and pheasant season opening in short order, there are a few things you should be doing with your dog if you had not already been doing so.
The first one is as good for you as it is for the dog, and that is just an uptick in the exercise level. Dogs that lay on the couch all summer are far more likely to die of heat-related stroke and other muscle/joint problems than dogs that are in great physical condition. This can be hard to do when daytime temperatures are still in the 80s and 90s. This requires you get up a little early and do these condition exercises in the cooler morning temperatures before work for most working stiffs.
Add to this effort the need to exercise your dogs on a gravel road, and it might mean getting up even earlier. A dog’s foot pads get soft when they are not in contact with hunting conditions for a period of time. I make a dedicated effort to take my boys on a 2-mile walk/run on the gravel starting about Sept 1. This contact with rougher ground will toughen up their pads to avoid the all-too-common issue with sore feet after the first two days afield. Not many hunters take the time, and it shows about half way through Day 2 of the pheasant season.
Have you ever spent any time teaching your dog to drink from a squirt water bottle?  Not many hunters do.  They get to drag on a collapsible dog bowl to water their dogs in the field. To each their own, but my hunting vest needs to carry other important stuff, and dragging on a dog dish is not one of them.
Have you squared away you hunting lands app?  I use ON-X for all my hunting maps identifying all of the public lands available to utilize. For $29 you can pick any state. I pay $99 for the whole U.S.
Just because you might have the app on your phone does not tell me that you can utilize all of the features. I know I cannot. I try to explore that app on a regular basis to become more familiar with its features. It has a plotter to tell you how far you walked. It can measure distance on a map in order to help you determine the yardage to a deer shot you might want to take. It does all sorts of stuff, and if I can use half of what it does, I will be more able than most of their other users.
If you don’t have this app, get it and you will find out just how much more flexible you can be when hunting in new areas.  I use it when deciding which public lands to hunt in states like the Dakotas, Nebraska, Kansas and Montana. You use the app to see which units have a food plot nearby or which ones have a water source that you could never see from the road.
If you don’t travel out west much, a rattle snake vaccine might not be in your wheelhouse, but for many it is a real thing. You don’t have to go all that far west either. You get west river South Dakota and you could run into a prairie rattlesnake. I have only seen them about three times, but other hunters tell me they are more common than you think. It is a two-shot vaccine, and the second shot is 30 days after the first. Proper planning done now for grasslands hunt out west can keep your hunting companions out from under a cross.
One other item you should have, and in some cases is required, is a health certificate for your dog. If you travel outstate you are required to carry proof of rabies vaccination and a health certificate. These are issued by your vet and have to be current within 60 days or so.
If you would ever get stopped by a CO, you might very well get asked to see these documents. I have never been required to show proof before, but it would just be my luck that my dogs could get impounded for lack of the proper documents. Each traveling hunter will have to make their own decisions on that one, but I do carry them to keep in the clear.
Don’t let the hunting seasons find you unprepared. Start working the dog now and make time now to get yourself prepared as well. Nobody ever went on a hunting trip and lamented they were too well prepared
Scott Rall, Worthington, is a habitat conservationist, avid hunting and fishing enthusiast and is president of Nobles County Pheasants Forever. He can be reached at scottarall@gmail.com. or on Twitter @habitat champion.