The Luverne speech team beat its competition in the small schools division March 18 during the Big South Conference virtual meet.
Nine Luverne students on the first-place team also received individual honors.
Earning all-conference speech honors by placing first or second in their category were Luke Thorson, Chance Tunnissen, Burke Johnson, Brianna Kinsinger and Bethany Behr.
Honorable mentions (earning third place) were Xavier Carbonneau, Destiny Matthiesen, Mia Wenzel and Josie Golla.
“We are so proud of them and how they have adapted and worked hard to achieve their goals and represent Luverne Public Schools and their community,” said Caroline Thorson, who co-coaches the team with Gavin Folkestad.
Local students competed alone in front of Chromebooks set up in various rooms at Luverne Middle-High School as students from the other eight schools competing in the small school division met at their own home schools also in front of computers, due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Students competed virtually in three competitive rounds with multiple judges.
“Sixteen Cardinal speakers competed and 13 advanced to the final round of competition,” Thorson said.
Students competing in dramatic duo, however, are not competing in hybrid competitions as students in other categories. They pre-record a single performance for the judges to watch.
The following students placed in the final round:
•Dramatic duo: Brianna Kinsinger and Bethany Behr, second; Mia Wenzel and Josie Golla, third.
•Extemporaneous reading: Destiny Matthiesen, third.
•Discussion: Burke Johnson, second; Maddy Schepel, fifth.
•Extemportenous speaking: Chance Tunnissen, second; Parker Carbonneau, fourth.
•Storytelling: Xavier Carbonneau, third; Roselyn Hartshorn, fifth.
•Serious poetry: Zoe Perkins, fourth.
•Humorous: Luke Thorson, first.
“The students have competed every weekend through February and March and we will begin subsection competition on April 6,” Thorson said.
“The students have persevered through a very different season of hybrid and virtual competitions.”

Card showers
Curtis and Mary Smook will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on Friday, March 26. Greetings may be sent to them at 212 N. Washington Street; Magnolia, MN 56158.
 
Fred Cook will celebrate his 80th birthday on Saturday, March 27. Greetings may be sent to him at 720 S. Donaldson; Luverne, MN 56156.
 
Sylvia Niessink will celebrate her 80th birthday on Monday, April 5. Greetings may be sent to her at 1005 N. Jackson Street, Luverne, MN 56156.

LSS meals at Generations
Monday, March 29: Chicken-fried steak with gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans, bread, fruit.
Tuesday, March 30: Baked chicken, au gratin potatoes, peas, dinner roll, bar.
Wednesday, March 31:  Beef roast with gravy, mashed potatoes with gravy, California Normandy, bread, bar.
Half-Price Day sponsored by American Reformed Church.
Thursday, April 1: Barbecue pork on a bun, coleslaw, fresh fruit, gelatin with whipped topping.
Friday, April 2: Fish, baked potato, carrots, dessert.
 
LSS Dining offers well-balanced and affordable meals in a community atmosphere.
Call Lynette Hoiland at 283-9846 to arrange to pick up a dinner or for home-delivered meals.
Gift certificates are available at the meal site or online at www.lssmn.org/nutrition.

10 years ago (2011)
•Blue Mounds State Park manager Rick White has been retired since December, so he’s had some time to reflect on his 34 years in the state park system.
“I enjoyed the buffalo,” he said. “If you have a prairie and no buffalo, you really don’t have a natural prairie.
Under White’s tenure at the Blue Mounds, the buffalo herd grew from 40 to more than 100 animals, and their grazing area grew from 100 to 550 acres of prairie.
“So it was a real natural setting that allowed the buffalo to interact with the prairie,” he said. …
He also said he enjoyed springtime at the Blue Mounds and the enthusiastic return of park visitors.
“That spring interaction with families as they came back to the park…” he said.
“Especially the kids – and with a name like ‘Ranger Rick’ how could that not be fun? The kids were always enthused about nature.”
 
25 years ago (1996)
•Several of the guidance counselors surveyed for this comparison of local schools’ ACT test scores for 1994-95 said ACT test scores are a very poor analysis of how well a school district academically challenges its students.
Luverne High School Guidance Counselor Craig Nelson said, “The ACT is not a very good judge of your school system. It’s a voluntary group of students who take the test, not the entire graduating class. It would be better to use a test that all students take. Also, score results can vary greatly from year to year. A five-year analysis would give you a better picture of a school’s performance.
“I would agree with Craig,” said H-BC Guidance Counselor Dan Ellingson. “There are two groups of students who can take the ACT test. The group of students who are college-bound is called the ‘core’ group by the ACT program. Sometimes only the college-bound kids in a school take the ACT. Sometimes students not intending to go to college take it, so the scores might go down. It depends on which group of students takes the test and which set of results is announced. The ACT is intended to measure a very specific thing. It’s not a very accurate measure if the students taking it are not college-bound.”
 
50 years ago (1971)
•A Luverne high school team this week will be playing basketball in a state tournament for the eighth time since 1913.
In those eight appearances in state competition, Luverne won the championship once, in 1964.
Planning for this year’s tournament, the first where separate meets are held for Class A and Class AA schools, was in marked contrast to the first meet in the state in 1913, in which Luverne also had an entry.
 
75 years ago (1946)
•Among students at the University of Minnesota school of agriculture to win the gold letter “A”, the school’s highest awards were Ruth Lowe, Beaver Creek, Curtis Gibson, Beaver Creek, and Donald Gewecke, Jasper.
Only 14 members of the student body received the award, it being given on a point basis for participation in extra-curricular activities and for scholastic standing.
 
100 years ago (1921)
•A comparison of taxation figures of cities in southern Minnesota of approximately the same size as Luverne discloses that while taxes in Luverne are high, they are not as high as in some other cities in this section. In fact, of five cities in those of the fourth class section — Luverne, Pipestone, Worthington, Marshall and Fairmont — the per capita tax for Luverne is next to the lowest, and there is not a lot of difference between the lowest and Luverne.
A municipal reference bulletin issued by the extension division of the University of Minnesota gives a table on comparative taxation in Minnesota cities and furnishes the data for the comparison referred to.
Complaint is made by Luverne taxpayers that the assessed valuation is too high, but a comparison of valuations fails to bear out the charge. This is particularly evident when one considers the apparent and recognized wealth of Luverne. Of the five cities named, Marshall has the lowest assessed valuation, and Luverne comes next.

Spring is a transition between winter and summer, and this week we have been transitioning.
The snow added some much-needed moisture to our top soil and that gives me confidence after last year’s prolonged dry season.
Today I will remind you that now is a good time to rejuvenate your indoor plants if they are needing that attention. Taking cuttings from old plants to get new plants is the best way to get energy into a plant that is looking “tired.” The longer hours of daylight give plants more energy; consequently, those cuttings root faster than in the short days of winter.
Getting new plants started now means that you should have great specimen plants next fall to give your indoor space much-needed “living green” for the winter.   Several types of propagation get employed here:  leaf cuttings, stem cuttings, dividing or air layering.
Leaf cuttings are how we propagate African violets. Remove one of the larger leaves from the base of the plant by pulling it to the side so it snaps off the stem. Place the stem in a container with one inch of water and set it in the same place as the mother plant is growing. You should have roots on the bottom of the stem in about three to four weeks.   Plant the cutting in potting mix in a small pot and keep it in the same bright light. In a few weeks you will notice little leaves pushing up through the potting mix, and those are the new babies … yes, babies. … There are usually several new plants. Once they are large enough to determine each individual plant, separate the plants and pot them singly in small pots. The reason for small pots is that violets will bloom sooner and better if they are root-bound. Growing with a large pot will give lots of leaves and you will wait much longer to get flowers.
Leaf cuttings are also the most common way to propagate most succulents. However, here you just remove the leaf and stick about half the length directly in a small pot of growing mix and keep the mix just slightly moist. They root quite quickly and often have the same multiple plantlets.
Stem cuttings are the method of propagating plants like ivy, geraniums, hibiscus, dieffenbachia, and similar house plants. The stem of the cutting should have four to five leaf nodes. Remove a couple of the lower leaves, dip the cut stem in rooting powder if you have it, and put the cutting in a container with an inch of water. Set the container in bright light. To help prevent the stem from rotting, you may have to change the water if it starts to get cloudy. The rooting process can take three to six weeks, depending on the plant.
Air layering is a bit more complicated. That is how we propagate larger plants like rubber plants, fiddle leaf figs, dracaena, and similar plants that grow with a harder stem. It is not hard but requires wet sphagnum moss for the root ball to form into. The process is pretty fool-proof and is the safest way to propagate from a large plant. If you want to try it, there are lots of YouTube videos that will coach you through the process, and pictures are easier to follow than words.
Division is the way to propagate plants with a multiple crown like ferns or peace lilies. Here you remove the root mass from the pot, use a knife or similar tool to cut the crown into the number of new plants you want and repot the divisions.
     I mentioned succulents earlier and this is a category of plants that have become amazingly popular in the last couple of years, largely because of the vast number of new and interesting varieties available. They are low-maintenance but specific in what they need to survive indoors. The most important requirement is bright light. In low light, the plant will gradually decline because insufficient light will not give the plant the energy it needs to grow. Second specific is amount of moisture … they store water in their “leaves” … that’s the reason they are called succulents. Overwatering will result in the plant rotting; under-watering will result in plants with shriveled leaves. To maintain the wonderful color on these plants, very bright light is an absolute necessity.
     The benefit of indoor plants is being realized and is appealing to younger generations. Those of us who have always appreciated the “life” they give to our indoor environment understand how stark a space looks without them. I’m not saying that Grandma’s philodendron growing up the wall and over the window is the look they will appreciate … but who knows?
Bonnema is a gardening enthusiast and former greenhouse owner. He can be reached at flowersgb@iw.net.
 

The following appeared in The Rock County Herald on June 24, 1892.
 
Death and Disaster
 
One Death in the County and Serious Injuries to Buildings and Crops Occasioned by the Storm Monday Evening
 
Between four and five o’clock last Monday afternoon one of the severest storms of wind and hail ever known in this section swept over a narrow strip of country in the southern part of the county and did great damage to buildings and the growing crops. The loss to individuals in the destruction of property in many cases is very serious but everything fades into insignificance beside the sad calamity which befell the family of Ole Nelson Toppol, in Martin township, and resulted in the instant death of his wife and serious injuries to one of her twin daughters, two years of age. The family lived about six miles northwest of Hills. When the storm came on, they felt the house giving way and attempted to escape to the barn, the father taking the two other children and the mother and the twins. Just as they got outside, the wind carried the woman against the side of the house and a moment later the building went over, burying the victim in the ruins. When the body was rescued it was found that the head had been crushed and that death must have been instantaneous.
The first reports of the storm were received from Manley, on the west line of this county. As nearly as its course can be traced, it appears that the storm passed from that point in a southeasterly direction, over portions of Martin, Clinton, and Kanaranzi townships. After leaving Manley the storm seems to have divided, and a distance of about half a mile can be traced between the two tracks in which but little damage was done. One section of the storm swept diagonally across the center of Martin township, but this branch seems to have been accompanied by less hail and did less damage to the crops. The other section extended as far north as Mr. A. Engels’s farm in the northeast corner of Martin township but missed the German church in the adjoining corner of Luverne township. No damage of importance is reported beyond a mile west of Mr. Engel’s farm. From that point southeastward, through a strip from two to three miles wide, extending as far north as T. Johnson’s place on section 7 in Kanaranzi, and as far south as Ash Creek, great damage was done by the hail. As the storms passed southeastward, it appears to have increased in severity.
Considerable damage was done at Manley and in the surrounding country. J. L. Helm, of this place, was a passenger on the belated Omaha train Monday evening, and is quoted by the Sioux Falls Press as follows:
“The open prairie between Valley Springs and Beaver Creek was in one place a perfect lake of water, horses in the pastures being knee-deep in the water. At Valley Springs numberless chimneys were laid low. We were able to get a view of Manley from the train as we passed by. The roof of the Great Northern depot was blown off and the north end knocked out. The leading mercantile house was swung around and the store front was completely ruined. Every house in the town seemed wrecked except Lasche’s bottling works and that seemed to have escaped uninjured.”
At Valley Springs many windows were broken. T. B. Riley’s lumber office was blown to pieces and piles of lumber more or less disturbed. The creamery, the ice house and outhouses generally were tumbled about greatly to their damage. One outhouse was picked up and blown against a dwelling, knocking in a side of the residence.
All along the entire course of the storm most of the window lights exposed to the storm were broken. In some cases the sash was broken, wire window screens were cut and curtains were torn. At Ash Creek a wagon was blown against Mr. Baker’s house and the wagon tongue was driven its entire length through the wall. E. A. Brown’s wind mill was blown down, and windows in all the buildings were broken. Wm. Spracher’s windmill on section 6 in Clinton was blown down and his crops were badly damaged.
It is impossible to give anything like an approximate estimate of the losses sustained by reason of injury to the crops. On some farms it is claimed that the crops are totally destroyed, while on others the injury is confined to portions of the crop. It is hoped, however, that the injured crops will recover to a large extent and that the loss will not be so large as at first seemed to be certain. Among those who have suffered loss are A. Engel, John Lynch, Ed. Maloney, James Fitzgerald, James McCeon, C. Webster, Linnel Brothers, George Griffith, L. B. McCollum, J. W. Johnson of the Eau Claire farm, L. Appleby, T. Johnson, N. P. Jensen, Sid Johnson, Ed Morgan and S. H. Griffin. It is reported that the crops on the Sunnyside farm in Kanaranzi were totally destroyed. The list above given is by no means complete and it is probable that full reports would add many names to it.
A letter received by R. E. Moreland from his son at Ocheyedan states that half the buildings in town were racked and that 12 or 13 were blown down. Three men were badly hurt.
The funeral of Mrs. Ole Nelson Toppol took place at Hills Tuesday afternoon. The deceased was a sister of Nels, Gullick, and Andrew Sunden, and Mrs. Andrew Rogeness.
Later reports state that one of the twin daughters of Mr. Toppol above referred to is not expected to live. All the other members of the family are considerably injured.
 
         Donations to the Rock County Historical Society can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, 312 E. Main Street, Luverne, MN 56156.
Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.

For a second straight year, the Luverne Cardinals girls’ hockey team is heading to the Xcel Energy Center for the Class A State Tournament.
On Friday, March 19, the Cardinals punched their ticket to the state tournament by defeating Mankato East 7-2.
“To win a section championship on your home ice is pretty cool,” Luverne head coach Tony Sandbulte said. “It’s never been done before. It has to be a special feeling for those girls to leave this rink.”
It was a battle for the Cardinals just to get to the section championship. With the COVID-19 pandemic, it was unclear if there was going to be a winter sports season. If there was a winter sports season, it was unclear if there would be postseason play.
The Cardinals put their nose to the grindstone and took care of what they could control. That hard work resulted in the Cardinals finishing the regular season with a 14-4 record to earn the No. 1 seed in the section tournament.
“We knew coming into the season that everybody was going to be after us,” Sandbulte said. “Everybody was going to want to beat us because we were the team that went to state last year.”
He said the team did a good job staying on course.
“You get yourself to the point where you’re the No. 1 seed,” Sandbulte said. “You did everything right. We just stayed on it and finished through to the end.”
Mankato East scored the game’s first goal to take a 1-0 lead over the Cardinals.
Kamryn Van Batavia scored a power-play goal to even the score at 1-1. Reghan Bork and Shelby Kracht both recorded assists on the goal.
Mankato East scored the first goal of the second period to take a 2-1 lead.
Bork scored the equalizer four minutes later to tie the game at 2-2. Van Batavia and Brynn Thier both recorded assists on the goal.
With Mankato East on the power-play, Van Batavia scored a short-handed goal to put the Cardinals up 3-2. Following Van Batavia’s second goal of the game the Cardinals never looked back.
“We didn’t make a lot of adjustments,” Sandbulte said.
“We liked where our game was. Mankato East is a really good team. It was back and forth there. We just stayed with it. We were down 1-0. We were down 2-1. The girls kept fighting. We knew once we got the lead we weren’t going to look back.”
Van Batavia scored her third goal of the game to wrap up the scoring in the second period to give the Cardinals a 4-2 lead.
Peyton Behr scored the first goal of the third period to put Luverne up 5-2.
“That fifth goal, Peyton Behr buried it,” Sandbulte said. “That broke their back. We just went from there.”
Van Batavia scored the next two goals for the Cardinals to put the final touches on the section championship victory. The talented sophomore finished the game with five goals and one assist.
“We were really waiting for her to shine against a good opponent,” Sandbulte said about Van Batavia. “She showed it tonight. When she’s going, watch out.”
The Cardinals will open up the state tournament on Friday, March 26, at the Xcel Energy Center against Proctor/Hermantown.
Proctor/Hermantown finished the season with an 18-0 record. They won their section championship over Duluth Marshall 6-0.
The Cardinals advanced to the section championship by defeating Windom 11-0 on Wednesday, March 17 in Luverne.
The Cardinals scored six goals in the first period to squash any hopes that Windom may have had about pulling an upset.
Oye opened the scoring in the first period to put the Cardinals up 1-0.
Bork scored the next two goals to put the Cardinals up 3-0.
Van Batavia buried one to put the Cardinals up 4-0.
A goal from Gee put the Cardinals up 5-0.
Van Batavia scored her second goal of the period to put the Cardinals up 6-0.
Oye opened the scoring in the second period to put Luverne up 7-0.
Behr scored a goal to put the Cardinals up 8-0.
Van Batavia scored the next two goals to put Luverne up 10-0.
Oye scored her third goal of the game to put the Cardinals up 11-0.

The Luverne boys’ hockey team opened the section tournament with a 9-4 victory over Fairmont on Tuesday, March 16, in Luverne.
On Thursday, March 18, the Cardinals ended their season with an 8-0 loss to Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato.
 
LHS 9, Fairmont 4
Luverne entered Tuesday’s opening round in the section tournament having outscored Fairmont 16-4 during their two regular season meetings.
The two teams played to an even 1-1 tie in the first period before Luverne scored five goals to pull away from Fairmont, 9-4.
The visiting Fairmont Cardinals scored the first goal of the game and held that lead for nine minutes, putting the home crowd inside Blue Mound Ice Arena on the edge of their seats.
With four minutes left in the opening period, Cade Wenninger drew Luverne even by putting one between the pipes. Carlton Oftedahl recorded the assist on the goal.
It was Wenninger scoring the first three goals in the second period for Luverne to put them up 4-1.
Brock Behrend and Oftedahl scored the next two goals for Luverne to give them a commanding 6-1 lead.
Fairmont wrapped up the second period by scoring two goals to trim Luverne’s lead to 6-3.
Fairmont opened the scoring in the third period to inch closer at 6-4.
Behrend put the Cardinals back on top with his second goal of the game.
Oftedahl scored his second goal of the game to put the Cardinals up 8-4.
Behrend wrapped up the scoring by recording his third goal of the game to make the final score 9-4.
Shaid Shearer recorded 48 saves for the Cardinals.
 
LDC 8, LHS 0
Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato used a four-goal second period to pull away from the Cardinals on Thursday en route to an 8-0 victory.
The Dragons scored two goals in the first period, including a goal with 18 seconds left in the period to take a 2-0 lead into the locker room.
In the second period, the Dragons added three more goals in the first 10 minutes to build a 5-0 lead.
The Dragons added one more in the period for good measure and took a 6-0 lead into the locker room.
The Dragons scored two more goals in the third period to make the final score 8-0.
The Cardinals finished the season with an 8-12 record.
The game against the Dragons marked the final time seniors Cade Wenninger, Shaid Shearer, Cooper Arends and Carlton Oftedahl took the ice for the Cardinals.
“They truly held us together,” Luverne head coach Phil Paquette said. “We relied so heavily on them to be leaders. To be there each and every day. Without them it would have been a huge struggle. Those four seniors kept us on the tracks and helped keep us in every game.
Shearer finished the regular season as the saves leader in the state of Minnesota. Paquette said he was the glue that helped keep the team together.
“Shaid’s stats speak for themselves,” Paquette said. “He stuck with it and worked through those challenges. Facing shot after shot. Without him back there each and every night, I don’t even want to think about it. He was huge for us. He was accountable game in and game out.”
Wenninger finished his senior season with 14 goals and 17 assists.
“He’s been a steady leader his entire career,” Paquette said. “You always know what you’re going to get from him. You can rely on him day in and day out. He’s always going to give you his best. We needed that this year.”
Oftedhal finished his senior season with 27 points. Arends finished with 13 points.
“Cooper and Carlton both came so far from the time they were sophomores with us to their senior years,” Paquette said. “If we don’t have that growth from them, the rest of the group would have struggled.”

As a seventh-grader, Luverne’s Ella Reisdorfer qualified for the gymnastics state tournament in the bars.
Fast-forward to this year and she qualified for the state tournament on the beam with a score of 8.875. That score was good enough for sixth place.
“It’s always such a great accomplishment to make it to the state tournament for any athlete, and to make it two consecutive years is tremendous,” Luverne head coach Phoebe Flom said.
“Ella and the rest of the team worked tremendously hard all season and it paid off for Ella this year. The competition is fierce in our section and we are proud of Ella’s accomplishment. It’s exciting stuff.”
As a team, the Cardinals finished fifth in the section tournament with a score of 129.550.
“We were just glad to have a season,” Flom said.
“The schedule was shortened quite a bit and the girls jumped right in and got things done. They were always motivated and practices were never dull. Everyone was always moving. We couldn’t be prouder of this squad and all that they accomplished as a team this year.”
The Worthington Trojans took home first with a final score of 143.050.
In the all-around, Reisdorfer finished sixth with a final score of 34.550.
Amira Cowell finished 10th with a score of 33.050.
In the floor routine, Cowell and Reisdorfer tied for sixth with Worthington’s Addison Gerber. All three gymnasts recorded a score of 8.975.
Kiana Woods finished in 11th place with a score of 8.525.
In the bars, it was Reisdorfer tying for ninth place with Jackson County Central’s Makayla Holzler. Both athletes recorded a score of 7.750.
Sarah de Cesare finished 13th with a score of 7.375.
Cowell finished in 14th place with a score of 7.325.
In the vault, Reisdorfer tied for seventh place with Redwood Valley’s Riley Franklin. Both gymnasts recorded a score of 8.950.
Cowell finished in eighth place with a score of 8.925.
Tiana Lais finished 11th with a score of 8.725.
Woods tied for 15th with JCC’s Daysia Tomlin.