Grand Prairie Events, Luverne, served as a staging area for COVID-19 response Wednesday, Feb. 3.
The setup was similar to the COVID-19 testing clinic the facility hosted in October — cones and signs directed traffic, carefully placed chairs kept people six feet apart, and health professionals with medical supplies were stationed at tables around the large conference room.
And everyone was wearing masks, just like the October event.
This time, though, the community clinic was set up to offer the COVID-19 vaccine to individuals who filled the 300 appointment slots for the day.
The lines were long — sometimes with people waiting outside — and there were some slowdowns at registration tables, but no one complained.
Most people who received their shots were happy to be finally getting some protection against the virus that's sickened and taken the lives of so many in the area.
Marcia Moeller said she looks forward to having some protection from the vaccine so she can see her children and grandchildren again.
They risked a holiday gathering after some had already had the virus and others tested negative. Moeller said she saw them only that one time since the pandemic began nearly a year ago.
“I haven’t done anything,” she said. “We don’t go to church. We don’t go to Sioux Falls. We don’t go anywhere. I’ve been to the grocery store, and that’s about it.”
Laurin Carroll, 82, said he looks forward to life after pandemic.
“It’s a relief to get the shot,” said Laurin Carroll, 82. “We stay home all the time … the grocery store is it.”
Marlene Wassenaar, 82, normally spends winters with family in Arizona, but she didn’t go this year because of the pandemic.
“All the activities are canceled, so you can’t do anything down there,” she said. “So I might as well sit here as sit there.”
Also, she knows it isn’t safe to travel.  “I’m glad to get the shot, because I didn’t really want to get the COVID either,” Wassenaar said.
Bill and Judy Miller, also both in their 80s, contracted COVID-19 in November, but they’re seeking extra protection that comes with the vaccine.
“I just hope we can rid of it and get this country back to normal,” Bill said.
 
Life after the pandemic?
Jason Kloss of Southwest Health and Human Services said the Feb. 3 clinic was a step toward life without COVID-19.
“SWHHS and our partners have been working diligently in COVID response since the beginning of the pandemic, but providing this vaccine to the public is what we have all been working toward,” he said.
“[We] were thrilled to offer the vaccine to our senior population.”.
The Feb. 3 vaccination clinic was primarily staffed by employees of SWHHS — 17 staff members, which included about 10 licensed nurses, some of whom have been hired on a temporary basis to help with vaccination clinics.
County Administrator Kyle Oldre assisted as the local emergency management director. Deputy Craig Martinson assisted, as did retired nurse Karen Roberts, who volunteered to help with clinic operations.     
Kloss said as vaccine supplies increase, the plan is to offer more clinics to wider age groups.
“It won't happen overnight,” he said. “With these community clinics, combined with vaccination clinics that Sanford Luverne is doing, we hope to provide vaccination opportunities to those at higher risk for COVID-19 as quickly as possible.”
Tammy Loosbrock of Sanford Luverne said most of Sanford’s 85 and older local patients have been called.
“We encourage anyone that is 85 or older that lives in Rock County or doctors at the Adrian, Edgerton or Luverne clinics to call in and we will get them on the schedule,” Loosbrock said. 
“We are starting our 80- to 84 group this week.  We will be reaching out and calling them as we get vaccine to schedule, but if people in that group want to call in to ensure their name is on a wait list, they can sure call the clinic.”
 
Get on a list
Meanwhile, Southwest Health and Human Service is taking names and contact information for those interested in getting the COVID vaccine.
To register, go to swmhhs.com and click on the COVID List Link.
As of Feb. 6, more than 12 percent of Rock County’s population had been vaccinated. This is according to the Minnesota Department of Health COVID-19 dashboard, which is about a week behind actual numbers.
The majority of people in Phase 1a have been vaccinated and Phase 1b is underway.
Phase 1a includes health care workers, EMS, nursing home and assisted living facility staff and residents, dental offices, pharmacies, mental/behavioral health settings, school nurses, funeral directors, correctional settings, and group homes settings.
Phase 1b includes teachers, grocery store workers, fire, food processing, day care workers, correctional workers, public transit and postal workers, as well as the 75-and-older population.
Staff in education and child care settings will be contacted directly if selected to sign up for appointments for the vaccine at a state site or community pharmacy this week.
Local public health departments will partner directly with school and child care programs in their communities.

Several Rock County road improvement projects are planned in 2021, according to Highway Engineer Mark Sehr.
Also possible are more bridge replacements, the number of which is dependent on state funding.
Sehr estimates $3.3 million will be spent this year improving roads. He will present more details in his annual road and bridge report at the commissioners’ Feb. 16 meeting.
At their Feb. 2 meeting, commissioners approved the advertising for bids to improve county roads in Battle Plain and Luverne/Beaver Creek townships.
Sehr anticipates state notification next month whether any of the dozen deficient bridges still on his list will receive replacement funding.
He said he’s made bridge replacement a priority and regularly submitted annual funding requests for the state’s first-come, first-served allocations.
“When I first came here in 1996, we had 130 deficient bridges,” he said. “The goal was to get to a manageable number.”
This year’s road improvement projects total about 16 miles of roadway.
The road improvement list includes:
•County Roads 3 and 7, five miles, full-depth reclamation and paving north and west of Kenneth in Battle Plain Township.
•County Road 2, mill and overlay from County Road 7 to the north three miles.
•County Road 5 (Dodge Street), seven miles, mill and overlay from Hwy. 75 west to County Road 6.
•County Road 9, one mile, full depth reclamation from Kenneth east to the Nobles County line.
Sehr said curb and gutter work along Main Street Luverne will continue this year. The work prepares the street for a planned mill and overlay in 2022.
The 2022 road project includes 7 miles of County Road 4 from Luverne, through Magnolia to the Nobles County line.
Road improvements are also earmarked for Blue Mound Avenue in 2022.

Volunteers with the Rock County Food Shelf are raising money to remodel a former Luverne dental office into a new home for their operations.
So far, they’ve raised $60,000, and they’re asking local officials and the public for help to reach their $225,000 goal.
Board chairman Pastor Roger Sparks and board member Katie Baustian presented the information about the campaign at the Rock County Board’s Feb. 2 meeting.
They outlined the food shelf’s local impact and asked commissioners for additional financial support of $20,000 over a five-year period.
Late last year, commissioners approved allocating $25,000 in coronavirus relief funds to the food shelf.
Commissioners finalized their 2021 budget in December and tabled any decisions on the capital campaign request to a later meeting.
“This is a very strange thing to be doing as a board — to ask for assistance — we don’t have to do that,” Sparks said. “We spend a lot of time thanking people for giving to the ministry and for supporting it.”
However, six months ago, the city of Luverne purchased the former dental office on Maple Street, which presented an opportunity for the food shelf to move distribution and storage operations to its own separate location.
Improved parking, more storage space and a larger distribution area will allow the group to purchase and distribution perishable items currently available from its supplier, Second Harvest Food Bank.
For more than two decades, volunteers have worked out of two rooms in the basement of the United Methodist Church in Luverne.
Due to limited space, the food shelf distributes only non-perishable items from the church. Paper vouchers are provided for perishable items at Sunshine Foods in Luverne.
“We have been able to serve a lot of people at that location,” Sparks said. “The challenge is to raise the funds to … make the building serviceable, functional and a real blessing, not only to the volunteers, but to the many people who come to receive assistance.”
City officials agreed to lease the building to the food shelf for $1 a year and challenged the group to raise $225,000 to complete improvements.
These include new doors and windows, shelving, a bathroom, commercial refrigerators and freezers, insulated walls and a heating, ventilation and air-conditioning unit.
The larger building means more items for clients.
“We will be able to better serve our clients with this building, because we will have to ability (to store items) with freezers and refrigerators ” Baustian said.
 
40 tons of food distributed locally in 2020
The Rock County Food Shelf served 4,249 children and adults last year.
People are encouraged to seek help from the food shelf only once a month, but in some instances a second visit is granted, due to food insecurity within local households.
Distribution occurs each Thursday from 1 to 3 p.m. The third Thursday of each month the food shelf is open from 5 to 6 p.m.
 An average of 30 households request food shelf assistance each week.
“Pre-COVID, my largest day was 32 families, and we very rarely saw that,” Baustian said. “We are seeing that weekly now with different families. We are seeing a lot of people that are working but just cannot make it.”
Food insecurity occurs when meals are skipped or consumption of inexpensive, less nutritious food takes place because monthly budgets have become stretched too thin.
The age group of 18 to 64 use the food shelf the most.
However, more recently, the age group has been shifting.
“We do see a lot of different age groups, maybe seeing a little more of the elderly than we have seen in the past, and I am glad they come,” Baustian said.
Volunteers estimated more than 79,000 pounds (40 tons) of food were distributed in Rock County.
Of that amount, 23 tons (45,000 pounds) were distributed through the food shelf basement distribution site with the rest by vouchers. Vouchers cost the food shelf an average of $3,500 a month.
The new building, complete with refrigeration, will allow the food shelf to store perishable items, such as free milk from Second Harvest Food Bank, where some perishable items can be purchased in bulk, provided the food shelf has access to refrigeration.
“We will be able to serve our clients better with this building because we’ll have that ability with freezers and refrigerators,” Baustian said.
The new facility on Maple Street is 2,000 square feet and is all on one level.
The basement facility required elevator access.
According to the food shelf’s reports to the state, Luverne addresses top the list for usage, followed by Magnolia, Hills, Beaver Creek, Hardwick, Steen, Kanaranzi and Kenneth. The food shelf has asked city councils in those communities to commit $5,000 each to set up the new food shelf.
 
Increased food shelf usage is statewide trend
Second Harvest Heartland recently released its 2020 annual report. One in nine Minnesotans, including one in six children, is facing hunger.
“Over the past 12 years, we have made slow but steady progress in reducing Minnesota’s food insecurity rate, reaching a decade-low in recent years,” the report stated.
“COVID-19 has undone this progress, with a record number of people now experiencing hunger in the heartland.”
Projections suggest the increase in hunger persisting at least through 2021.
The Rock County Food Shelf began in 1983 through the Rock County Ministerial Association.
A single cupboard at Grace Lutheran Church in Luverne provided families with an emergency three-day supply of food.
In 1989 the food shelf expanded to two basement Sunday school rooms at United Methodist Church.
“Our guess is the need for our food shelf in Rock County will not disappear,” Sparks said. “We’ve been serving the community for many, many years already. With uncertain economic times, the demand has gone up and down throughout the years. Last year was certainly a busy year for the food shelf.”
In addition to Sparks and Baustian, other food shelf board members include directors Mary Gehrke, Tammy Loosbrock, Mary Lou Mulligan, John Oksness and Lynette Hoiland.
 
One-time pledges accepted at LACF
As a nonprofit organization, donations to the Rock County Food Shelf are tax-deductible.
Funds are held at the Luverne Area Community Foundation. One-time donations or pledges over a five-year period can be made to LACF, P.O. Box 623, Luverne, MN 56156.

Bluestem owner Skyler Hoiland continues to create ways to offer his food selection to customers looking to bring tastes from the popular eatery home.
On Monday Hoiland and his staff of 14 officially opened Bluestem Grab & Go in the East Main Street catering facility he opened several years ago.
While Hoiland continues to offer catering services, the new Grab & Go service offers individual and family meals in a more convenient way.
“We will have certain aspects of the Bluestem here,” he said. “I’ve been super excited that more people have been spending time at home eating together and I want to help promote that a little more.”
The coronavirus pandemic caused the closing of the Bluestem restaurant last spring, and Hoiland chose not to reopen the South Highway 75 location.
Instead, for the past 10 months, he recreated many former restaurant menu items for a Take & Bake business, utilizing online ordering and Thursday-Friday pickup from his catering facility.
Now with more than three dozen reheatable or cold meal options, Hoiland is expanding selections for the in-person Grab & Go store.
The Take & Bake selections, which are ready in an hour for a family sit-down meal, will continue to be available.
All items continue to encompass Hoiland’s passion for food and cooking.
“The best part about this is that I don’t have to stay with a dedicated menu that I serve every day and every night,” he said. “I get to change the menu up weekly and come up with daily specials.”
The Grab & Go will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays. The business is closed on Sundays.
A handicap-accessible entrance on the catering facility’s south side allows customers to enter, peruse the display shelf and grab items for breakfast, lunch and/or supper.
The facility features no indoor seating.
As a Grab & Go, Hoiland said he’s able to offer daily specials of hot breakfast and lunch meals, along with a selection of microwavable and cold meal options, which include sandwich wraps, Bluestem salads, soups and fresh bread.
All items are sold individually, and beverages including coffee, juice, pop and energy drinks are also available.
Some items, such as the restaurant’s popular rib eye steak, will not be available exactly as they were on a restaurant menu.
“What I could give to you on a plate is definitely different than in an oven-able container,” he said. “But I can take elements of steak and give customers a touch of the Bluestem.” 
Those elements may include the sale of his compound butter or meat seasonings for at-home use.

Luverne’s $5 million pool and fitness center expansion project will get a financial boost with a KAHR Foundation grant of $400,000.
Mayor Pat Baustian shared the news last week with members of the city pool commission.
“This is such a wonderful gift to the Luverne community and in a larger scale the citizens of Rock County,” he said Feb. 3. “We are so fortunate to have a long-term relationship with the Herreid family and the KAHR Foundation.”
The KAHR Foundation was started in 2005 by Warren Herreid II and his wife, Jeannine Rivet, for philanthropic endeavors, the first of which was the Rock County Veterans Memorial on the courthouse lawn in Luverne.
Since then, the foundation has poured millions of dollars into the Rock County community for projects and civic organizations with causes that improve the lives of local citizens.
In a letter to the city, Rivet commended city leaders for their progressive stance on supporting quality-of-life features for residents.
“We appreciate all you do for the Luverne community and look forward to seeing the new addition to the Aquatics and Fitness Center building,” she wrote.
The grant will be disbursed in two parts, $200,000 in June 2021 and $200,000 in June 2022.
Facility manager Sam Honerman said she was speechless about the donation.
“It is so hard to wrap my head around generosity like this,” she said. “A simple thank you just doesn’t seem enough.”
The funds will be used specifically toward the $800,000 outdoor splash pad that will be constructed on south side of the facility.
Other planned improvements to the facility include:
•new locker rooms.
•four family changing rooms.
•flat space rooms for group aerobic exercise.
•new office space and staff area.
•larger rooms for both 24-hour weightlifting and aerobic exercise machines.
•new mechanical and heat, ventilation and air-conditioning for the facility.
According to the proposed project timeline, work will start in March or April of this year and be completed by May of 2022.

Pet Meet and Greet comes to Rock Ranch
Tracy Area Animal Rescue is hosting a Meet and Greet from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Rock Ranch near Hills.
The event will take place in the Ranch’s heated arena.
Visitors will meet adoptable animals from the animal rescue along with the horses of Rock Ranch. “Oh My Cupcakes” will have refreshments and a professional photographer will be available to take pictures of owners and their pets.
 
Aging Mastery Program
Luverne Community Education is offering a 10-week health and wellness Aging Mastery Program developed by the Minnesota River Area Agency on Aging.
The class, for adults 55 years and older, is virtual through Zoom on your computer or iPad. On Feb. 4 the class addressed how to use Zoom. Class begins on Feb. 11. Fee is $5. Call Community Ed at 507-283-4724 to register.
 
Monthly food giveaway
New Life Celebration Church will host its monthly free food giveaway at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 18, at the Generations building at 319 E. Lincoln Street in Luverne. Those in vehicles go to the double class doors on the west side of the building where volunteers will load groceries into vehicles. (Stay in your car). Walkers should go to the east side of the building where volunteers will have grocers pre-packed for pick-up. Call 507-283-4366 with questions.
 
Nutrition Assistance for seniors Feb. 18
Nutrition Assistance Program for Seniors will be from 2 to 3 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 18, at the parking lot at 319 E. Lincoln (Generations Building). The event is a drive-through distribution. Call Linda Wenzel at 283-5064 with questions. Sponsored by A.C.E. of Southwest Minnesota.
 
Tax assistance for Rock County residents
United Community Action Partnership will be providing free online virtual tax assistance for residents living in Rock County and surrounding communities. See website for details at https://www.unitedcapmn.org/services/community-family-services/tax-clin…
The number to make an appointment and to get intake forms sent via mail is 507-537-1416 ext. #2163. You can also email Courtney Newgard at courtney.newgard@unitedcapmn.org with questions.
 
Rock County Library winter activities
Register now at the library to participate in the Rock County Library 2021 Winter Reading Program, which began Jan. 1. Patrons who read at least 12 books from now until March 31 will win a prize for their efforts — and enjoy some good books.
Call the library at 507-449-5040 or email the library at rocklibrarystaff@gmail.com.
Check with the library to participate in Virtual Trivia. Receive weekday trivia to break up our quarantine schedules (until Trivia Nights in person can continue again.)
 
Take and Make bird treat kits
Stop by the Luverne Area Chamber at 213 East Luverne Street to pick up one or more Take and Make bird treat kits. Kits are free, but a $5 to $10 donation is welcome to benefit Project Food Forest in Rock County. (Or donate online at https://donorbox.org/support-pff)
 
Community Ed
Call the Luverne Community Education office, 507-283-4724, for registration information.
Come to Use It or Lose It class on Feb. 22 to learn some simple exercises using your own weight, fitness bands and YouTube videos to improve your fitness. Class will begin with Coach Wenninger giving a tour of the new weight room.
Paint a Winter Wonderland class on Feb. 23 is for students in grades 1-3. Listen to a story and enjoy snacks. Class meets at Coffey Contemporary Arts. Fee is $33.

Seniors Ethan Beyer and Ainslie Robinson receive stocking hats during a lunchtime coronation Monday as the 2021 Snow Week king and queen at Luverne High School. The ceremony — and Monday’s pajama day — kicked off the first of four days of Snow Week activities. Only seniors and royalty candidates attended the coronation in person. Students in grades 9 through 11 and the public were able to watch live over social media.

The Hills-Beaver Creek High School mock trial team wrapped up the 2021 season last week with a 1-3 win-loss record.
The team’s single victory came in the third round of the four-round season.
The H-BC defense earned a seven-point advantage Jan. 19 against Fairmont High School White, winning with a score of 228-221.
Adviser Megan Klumper said this mock trial season was a whole new experience for both herself and her students.
“Due to the restrictions of social distancing, mock trial students were not allowed to have competitions in the courthouse like previous years,” she said.
“This year, thanks to Zoom, the mock trial season was not canceled like so many other events. Instead, the competitions were held from right here in our school.”
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, many courthouses are appointment-only and some schools haven’t been able to conduct in-person classes. (H-BC has been able to conduct in-person classes since the start of the 2020-21 school year.)
The Minnesota Bar Association, which organizes mock trial competition, moved all events to virtual formats, coordinating schools and judges using the video conferencing application Zoom.
“Rather than viewing the judge’s bench, jury box and the witness stand during the trial competitions, the students have been able to view living rooms and home offices across the state,” Klumper said.
The H-BC mock trial team members are Taylor Durst, Abby Knobloch, Allie LaRock, Kyler Hartz, Jacob Sheppard, Hannah Fick, Lauren Tatge, Tahliya Kruger and Madison Gaugler.
They opened the season Jan. 7 against St. Peter High School White (loss, 216-219), followed by the Jan. 13 meeting with Rochester Century High School (loss, 198-230). H-BC ended Feb. 3 against Northfield High School Gold (loss, 197-209).
H-BC competed in the newly organized super region 4-6 that contained 16 schools throughout the state.
“Since no one had to travel this year, the distance between schools and school districts was irrelevant when planning competitions,” Klumper said.
“This year we were able to go up against schools that H-BC has never before competed with in mock trial.”
While H-BC won’t compete in this week’s Round 5 to determine state tournament participants, Klumper is looking forward to next year.
“I think we really learned a lot this year,” she said. “I’m looking forward to the chance of a regular season in the courtrooms. It is more exciting for the students.”

For the seventh-straight year, the Luverne High School mock trial team is competing for a possible return trip to the state tournament.
The 9 a.m. Wednesday mock trial competition occurred (after the Star Herald press deadline) with the LHS prosecution team against St. Peter High School.
The two teams finished the 2020-21 season with identical 4-0 records, with St. Peter taking the No. 1 spot.
“We finished second in the standings to St. Peter based on points,” said LHS mock trial adviser Jason Berghorst.
Six teams from the newly organized super sub-section 4-6 competed in Round 5, where the three winning teams move on to the state competition.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Minnesota Bar Association, which organizes the competitions, changed the in-person, in courtroom competition to a virtual competition.
Instead of the traditional five schools in Luverne’s region, the super sub-regions involve 16 schools with each competing in four rounds.
Judges awarded LHS an accumulated 847 points. St. Peter earned 900 points.
The LHS prosecution team earned wins against Owatonna (190 to 174) on Jan. 14 and Fairmont (200-170) on Feb. 2. The defense team earned wins against Rochester Century (229-221) on Jan. 7 and Waseca (228-221) on Jan. 20.
The state tournament takes place virtually March 3-4. Sixteen teams across the state compete for a virtual appearance in the national tournament.
LHS has competed in the state tournament every year since 2014.
Prosecution team members include Lauren VerSteeg, Griffen Jarchow, Chance Tunnissen, Luke Thorson, Jadyn Hart and Xavier Carbonneau.
The defense team consists of Kaitlyn Anderson, John Miller, Ross Bergman, Ainslie Robinson, Solveig Tofteland and Parker Carbonneau.
Alternate team members include Simon Boyenga, Ella Lanoue and Cedar Viessman.