Glenn A. Swenson, 85, Hills, died Friday, May 28, 2021, at the Sanford Luverne Hospice Cottage in Luverne.
A memorial visitation will be from 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, June 2, at the Hartquist Funeral Home in Luverne. Burial of cremains will be at Memory Gardens Cemetery near Luverne.
Arrangements are provided by Hartquist Funeral Home of Luverne, hartquistfuneral.com.        
(0604 DN)

Helen Viola Fitzer, 94, Luverne, died Thursday, May 27, 2021, under hospice care at Good Samaritan Society – Mary Jane Brown Home in Luverne.
Visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday, June 6, at Hartquist Funeral Home in Luverne. A private family service will be Monday, June 7, with burial to follow at Maplewood Cemetery in Luverne.
Helen Stein was born June 4, 1926, to Julius and Katherine (Johansen) Stein in Brookings, South Dakota. She moved to Rock County in Minnesota in 1936 where she graduated from Luverne High School in 1944. Following graduation, she was employed at Creeger’s Clothing Store in Luverne as a bookkeeper.
Helen married Maurice Fitzer on April 9, 1948, at the First Presbyterian Church in Luverne. The couple made their home south of Luverne on the Fitzer family farm. Helen took on the role of farm wife and mother. In 1983 the family farm transitioned to their son Geff, and Helen and Maurice moved into town. They later downsized from their home to an apartment before moving to Poplar Creek Assisted Living and later to the Good Samaritan Society – Mary Jane Brown Home. Maurice died on Jan. 4, 2016.
Helen was a 60-plus-year member of the First Presbyterian Church in Luverne where she was involved in Anchor Group and the women’s circle. She enjoyed gardening, cooking and baking and was skilled at needlepoint and cross stitching. She enjoyed spending time with her grandchildren and loved having family up at their cabin on Lake Benton. She was known for her rum cakes and pizza burgers.
Helen is survived by her children, Gregg (Laurie) Fitzer of Surprise, Arizona, Geff (Jackie) Fitzer of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and Sally Fitzer of Verona, Wisconsin; eight grandchildren, Gina (Kris) Jacobsen, Katie (Dennis) Haugland, Grant (Alexandra) Fitzer, Brynn Fitzer, Tori (Matthew) Carper, Chris Fitzer (Jessica Quittem), Mikki Fitzer and Connor Fitzer (Lauren Muller); 13 great-grandchildren; and other family.
She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Maurice; son Gary Fitzer; and three brothers, Clarence Stein, Raymond Stein and Leonard Stein.
Memorials may be directed to FAST (Foundation for Angelman Syndrome Therapeutics), PO Box 608, Downs Grove, IL 60515.
Arrangements are provided by Hartquist Funeral Home of Luverne, hartquistfuneral.com.
 (0603 F)

During Mother’s Day Week the Luverne Lions Club was at Little Lambs Preschool and Luverne Elementary School testing children for eye diseases through “Lions KidSight USA Foundation,” which works to test children’s eyes early to preclude major disease later in life. Pictured are (from left) Bill Martin, Gordon Mulder, Larry Harms, Glenda Schomacker and Lois Mulder. Using special camera that detects deformities in the cornea surface, the group saw 36 preschoolers and 486 kindergarten through fifth-graders. Funding for the effort comes from Lions District 5M3 which is dedicated to Lions International causes of eyesight and diabetes.

A.C.E. of Southwest Minnesota will present its third one-act play about memory loss in the educational online series titled “Fortune Cookies,” by Bonnie Dudovitz.
In this production a vibrant octogenarian is determined to be the first to know if her recall is slipping beyond what is considered normal, age-related memory loss. 
An unexpected visit from her son, David, reveals that she has cooked up a way to help herself and others to be on the lookout for the early stages of dementia.
The production is an educational tool for both community and families navigating the Alzheimer’s and dementia journey.
The free virtual play is at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, June 17, through Eventbrite at https://marshall-fortune2021.eventbrite.com.
This play is supported by a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board through the arts and cultural heritage fund.
The Remember Project is a program of Metropolitan Area Agency on Aging, sponsored in part by a dementia grant from the Minnesota Board on Aging, awarded to A.C.E. of SW Minnesota.
For questions, contact A.C.E. of SW Minnesota County Coordinator Linda Wenzel at 507-283-5064 or www.aceswmn.org.

Southwest Crisis Center is offering free trauma-informed yoga sessions to the public through July 13.
They’ll be from noon to 12:45 p.m. Tuesdays, June 8, 15, 22, 29, and July 6 and 13 at the Luverne City Park.
Rock County Advocate Jennifer Lindsey has led the regular yoga support group for three years and decided to open the sessions to the community for the summer.
“Although the trauma I work with is domestic and sexual violence, there are all kinds of other trauma people have that would benefit from our yoga sessions as well,” Lindsey said.
“Plus, I think this pandemic has been traumatic in its own way for everyone, and we could all use some yoga.”
No one will be required to share anything personal and the yoga is come and go, Lindsey said.
Participants are encouraged to bring their own mats, but a limited number of mats are available before each session.
Contact Lindsey at 507-283-9917 or jennifer@mnswcc.org with questions.

Luverne Elementary Principal Stacy Gillette gives students a thumbs up Friday morning as she and several staff members wave good-bye to students as they leave on buses for the last time during the 2020-21 school year. For the first time in about 170 days, students were able to see Gillette and staff members without masks. Restrictions on outside use of masks in public places were lifted recently but had remained in place at the school until Friday’s half-day of classes were completed. The second semester of the 2021-21 school year was completed in person, but the first semester involved a combination of in-person, hybrid and distance learning for the 1,200 K-12 students.

The Luverne Education Association hosted its first Future Educators reception before school on May 25. The event recognized ten Luverne High School seniors who have declared their intention to major in education and become teachers in the future. LEA members encouraged the future educators with warm wishes, some advice and gifts including the book “What Teachers Make.” Future educators pictured above are (front row from left) Trevor Halverson, Rozilyn Oye, Sadie Reisdorfer, McKenzie VanGrootheest, Elise Jarchow (back) Russell Aanenson, Jayson Rops, Josie Golla and LaShad Smith. Not pictured is Rebecca Austin.

The Chamber is working with the Plaza Committee from LIFT to host some free community events for the public. The following are the announcements about the events:
Night at the Zoo, Thursday, June 10, 3:30 until 7 p.m., Luverne City Park
Free activities for children including Great Plains Zoomobile, fantasy face painting, Tracy Area Animal Rescue, kids activities and prizes.
Brown Bag Concert, Friday, June 11, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Luverne City Park. Bring your lunch, lawn chair & enjoy! Featuring Ron and Jane Cote. Sponsored by Main Street Financial Services
Yoga in the Park with Stephanie Hoven, Saturday, June 12, 8 a.m. to 9 a.m., Luverne City Park. Bring your mat and relax. Event is free & open to the public
Walk, Run and Roll, Saturday, June 19, 7:30 to 10:30 a.m., Luverne Trailhead (at Main & Blue Mound). Put on your shoes, grab your bike & water and head out for a morning walk, run or ride on the Luverne LOOP. Stop by the trailhead on your trip to enjoy a treat from 75 Diner!
For more information. contact the Luverne Area Chamber at  507.283.4061 or www.luvernechamber.com

USD Vermillion announces dean’s list
The University of South Dakota, Vermillion, has released the Spring 2021 dean’s list for full-time student with a 3.5 GPA or higher and the president’s list for part-time students with a 3.5 GPA or higher.
Named to the dean’s list were the following students:
Luverne: Jack Baustian, Grace Bosch, Mackenzie Petersen, Madison  Reisdorfer.
Hills: Ashley Esselink, Megan Gehrke, Mary-Frances Ladd, Kailey Rozeboom.
Adrian: Avery Balster, Hannah Bullerman, Bailey Lonneman, Skylar Polzine.
Lismore: Dakota John, Mitchell Veld.
Amanda Sterling, Luverne, was named to the president’s list.