By Lori EhdeWhen 46-year-old Vicky Lee wakes up in the morning, she no longer has to grope for her glasses in order to see.The Magnolia woman now has 20-20 vision without the aid of contact lenses or eye glasses, thanks to lens implant surgery recently approved by the FDA."It’s amazing," said Lee, who had surgery on one eye at a time, 90 days apart. "They took that patch off, and I saw 20-20 with that eye right off the bat."Lee was part of an FDA-monitored clinical trial in January 2002 that studied the success of surgical eye lens implants.Lee’s surgeon, Dr. Vance Thompson, Sioux Falls, was one of two surgeons to testify in Washington, D.C., on the safety of the procedure. His clinical experience, along with that of 20 about other doctors, was used by the FDA to give final approval to the procedure in September.Lee said it didn’t bother her that her eyes were part of a clinical study. "I didn’t care," she said. "My eyes were so bad, I was just excited to get it done."Lee’s prescription before surgery was +10 and she had astigmatism, which meant it was difficult and costly to get contact lenses.Her glasses, which she referred to as "Coke bottles" had become so thick, she hated to think about not wearing contact lenses.Because her vision was so poor, she wasn’t a good candidate for laser procedures, because they would thin her corneas too much.All this made Lee the perfect candidate for the Verisyse Lens implant, as it’s now called.Instead of wearing the lens in front of the eye, as with glasses or contact lenses, or reshaping the eye with laser technology, the Verisyse Lens is made to fit inside the eye.The procedure takes about 15 minutes and permanently corrects nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism.Since no tissue is removed, severe visual disorders like Lee’s are now correctable, and the operation is reversible.Lee and other patients with the implanted lenses say there’s no eye irritation."I would definitely recommend having it done," Lee said. "It really is painless."Thompson is director of refractive surgery at Sioux Valley Clinic — Vance Thompson Vision, Sioux Falls. He’s one of the world’s leading eye surgeons and conducted more than one-third of the nationwide clinical trials.There are currently 100 people on a waiting list to have the Verisyse Lens procedure performed on their eyes.

The Luverne Area Chamber of Commerce announces its plans for the eighth annual Winterfest celebration, "Traditions of Christmas," to be celebrated Friday, Dec. 3, through Sunday, Dec. 5. On Friday the D-Light-Full 5K Run will start at 6 p.m. at the Rock County Community Pool.On Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. a huge craft show with more than 90 vendors will be at the Cardinal Gymnasium in the elementary school. The Sno-Masters Snowmobile Stock Drag Races start at 11 a.m. at Papik Motors. This year the annual Hockey Association Parade of Homes is from 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday, instead of Sunday, and the annual lighted parade follows on Main Street at 7 p.m. Gingerbread houses will be displayed at local businesses, and neighborhood lighted lanes are ready for tours. Maps will be available at the Chamber of Commerce and local convenience stores.For more information, contact the Luverne Area Chamber of Commerce at 283-4061 or email at luvernechamber@iw.net

By Lori EhdeSeven new wind turbines will begin turning next week near Beaver Creek, bringing the total number of wind turbines in Rock County to 11.A public ribbon cutting for the new Beaver Creek towers and substation will be from 9:45 a.m. to noon Friday, Dec. 3, in the Beaver Creek Lodge.Ground broke on the new project 2 1/2 miles north of Beaver Creek this spring, and the new blades will start making energy on Nov. 30."That’s really going to be an exciting day," said Minwind Energy president Tom Arends.The Beaver Creek wind towers are a sister operation to the four turbines northeast of Hills, which began producing energy in October 2002.Both campuses are owned/managed by Minwind Energy, a limited liability corporation made up of 250 member investors — mostly farmers — in southwest Minnesota.With all 21 blades turning (three blades per each of the seven new towers), the turbines in the new project alone will produce enough electricity to meet 90 percent of the city of Luverne’s needs.Of course, the turbines don’t supply electricity directly to Luverne, which buys its power from Missouri River Energy Services.Minwind Energy has agreements with major power companies to transmit energy captured by the blades.The Hills campus feeds power to Alliant Energy, which serves southern Minnesota and northwest Iowa. The new Beaver Creek turbines have signed on with Xcel Energy, which serves Sioux Falls and Minneapolis.With a national push to develop stable sources of renewable energy, wind turbine technology is rapidly changing to capture more power more efficiently.For example, the new Beaver Creek turbines will produce nearly twice as much power as their sister turbines built only two years ago by Hills.The new towers are the same size, about 225 feet tall, anchored on 35-foot-deep reinforced foundations. But blades on the new towers are 132 feet long — compared with the 86-foot blades on the Hills turbines.Each of the new turbines weighs about 190,000 pounds, with the blades and hub. That’s equivalent to about three semi loads of corn, Mark Willers said.Willers and Arends, both farmer investors in the Minwind projects, said their foray into wind energy has already started paying off."That’s why we do these projects," Willers said. "As a rural community, we’re always looking for ways to bring urban money down here."Minwind investors are quick to point out that money stays in the local economy."This project is community-based all the way," Arends said. "It’s owned by people in this community and that money all stays here."Willers said the two locations add to Rock County’s tax base. Generating $7,000 to $10,000 in property taxes each year, depending on output.Other bragging points for wind energy is that it’s renewable fuel — the source will never run out.And it’s clean. There’s no waste, like that left behind in nuclear powered energy production for example, and there are no emissions or raw sewage involved in wind energy production."What a beautiful project," Arends said.Minwind Energy is affiliated with the American Wind Energy Association. More information about wind energy can be found on the AWEA Web site at www.awea.org.Local Minwind representatives can be reached through their Luverne office on south Highway 75. The phone number is 283-9140.

By Mark HaugenIf the first game is any indication, Luverne girls basketball fans are in for an exciting season.In the first of five consecutive road games to start the year, Luverne pushed Murray County Central to the limit before falling 51-49 in overtime on Friday night in Slayton. The back-and-forth game also included three lead changes in overtime.Luverne had its chances to win, as they led by two with 40 seconds left in regulation, were fouled, but missed the front end of a one-and-one. MCC’s Rachel Christiansen, who was a thorn in the Cardinals’ side all night (21 points, 19 rebounds), tied the game with 20 seconds remaining. Luverne got a shot off in the lane and the rebound and put-back, but neither fell and the game went to OT.Trailing by one with 25 seconds to go, Luverne had the ball but turned it over. The Cardinals fouled and MCC made both free throws to take a three-point lead. Luverne tried a tough 3-pointer at the buzzer, but it missed the mark."We played all right and had a good third quarter," Coach Jason Phelps said. "It was an evenly matched game. Both teams did some things well and I’m sure both teams found some things to work on. That’s what you expect from the first game of the year. They had a girl who was tough to stop and we had a girl who was tough on them."Maggie Kuhlman led the Cardinals with 22 points, 18 in the second half and three 3-pointers. "She made some big shots, especially starting the third quarter and fourth quarter when the game was going back and forth," Phelps said. "The threes that she hit were big shots for us when we were either down or tied."Sophomore Mindy Nieuwboer and junior Tori Snyder each had eight points for Luverne, 0-1. Kuhlman also had seven rebounds and five steals. Snyder nabbed six steals.Foul trouble hit Luverne early as two starters sat out most of the second quarter. Samantha Gacke, who was matching up most often inside against Christiansen, fouled out after playing about three minutes in the second half. "That gave them a little better chance inside," Phelps said. "Jackie Petersen did a good job defending the Christiansen girl, but they looked to her so often and made it a point of getting her the ball."

By Mark HaugenNatalie Domagala recorded her 200th career goal and then some, as the Luverne girls hockey team notched its first victory of the season last week.The Cardinals hosted two games last week, losing 5-3 to Sioux Falls Blue Thursday night and then bouncing back to defeat New Ulm 5-3 Saturday afternoon.Luverne, 1-2, plays at Waseca on Saturday and returns home to take on Windom Area Tuesday.Sioux Falls Blue 5, Luverne 3The Cardinals took a 2-0 lead in the first period after goals by eighth-grader Liz Solma at the 12:29 mark and senior Sadie Dietrich with 15 seconds left. Domagala got the assist on all three goals in the game.Sioux Falls struck quickly in the second period, scoring at the 14:30 mark, but Dietrich answered a mere seven seconds later with her own goal that put the Cardinals ahead 3-1.Then, as coach Dave Siebenahler describes it, "They let up a little again and ran out of gas."Sioux Falls pulled within 3-2 after the second period and hammered home three more goals in the third to secure the win.Luverne goalie Sarah Schneekloth stopped 23 shots, while Blue goalie Brittany Salisbury stopped 25.Luverne 5, New Ulm 3Coming into the game one goal shy of the 200-career mark, Domagala erupted for four goals in the game."The high school league doesn’t keep track of it, but it’s a pretty great accomplishment," Siebenahler said. "She’s the first one for Luverne. Getting the 200th makes her feel better, got the monkey off her back, and now she is ready to play hockey."She struck the 200 mark with 10:08 left in the first period and slapped home another a few minutes later. She added two more in the second. Ninth-grader Heather Kruse assisted on two of the goals, and Dietrich had a goal and an assist as well."The girls played very well," Siebenahler said. "They played hard for three periods. They passed real well and Sarah Schneekloth had an awesome game." The eighth-grader had 54 saves on 57 shots. Luverne had never beaten New Ulm before this weekend. "That was one of Natalie’s personal goals, to beat them. She asked me again before the game started, ‘Have we ever beat New Ulm?’ So that’s what she went after. We haven’t been shut out by too many, but New Ulm was one. Now this week gives us a chance to work on some things we need to work on and get ready for Saturday."

By Mark HaugenAfter an ugly season-opener for the Luverne boys hockey team Friday night, things started looking better by Saturday.Mankato East came to town to open the Cardinals’ season and dealt them an 8-0 loss Friday. Luverne then hosted Holy Family Catholic the next afternoon and played much better before falling 7-3.Luverne plays at Waseca on Saturday and at Benson/Morris on Friday, Dec. 3.Mankato East 8,Luverne 0East scored four times in the first period, twice in the second and twice in the third to roll to victory.Luverne was outshot 39-11."They just outplayed us," Coach Nick Nafziger said. "They’re a pretty good team and our guys were chasing a lot and out of position. Those were the biggest things I noticed."Holy Family 7,Luverne 3The penalties were a bigger story than the final score, as both teams piled up 40 total penalties (21 for Holy Family, 19 for the Cardinals). "They called absolutely everything," Nafziger said. "There was absolutely no flow to the game."The tone was set early as two penalties were called in the first 20 seconds of the game. "At meetings earlier this summer, they said they were going to call tighter games," Nafziger said. "Friday night they let them play, but we had a different set of refs Saturday and they called everything."In between penalties, the teams managed some goals. Luverne skated to a 1-1 tie after the first period, as Matt Reverts scored unassisted at the 11:29 mark.Two Holy Family goals later, Nick Otten slapped home an unassisted score for the Cardinals with 4:19 to go in the second.Reverts’ second goal, assisted by Tim Drost, came with 3:50 left in the game."We played much better," Nafziger said. "We were passing much better. Holy Family is a team we could skate with more. They are a pretty young team, too."

I’ll generally try to touch on local subjects in this spot every week, but when national sports news is all the hub-bub I can’t help but dive in, especially while I’m still getting my feet wet on the local scene.That being said, the hot topic these past few days has been the Indiana Pacers-Detroit Pistons melee with fans in the Motor City. It probably best exemplifies why my interest in the NBA has been waning over the past several years.I used to be a hard-core Lakers fan, especially in the glory days of the Lakers-Celtics-Pistons rivalries. I even convinced my wife to enjoy our first anniversary at a Lakers game in Denver, during Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s last season. I was on the floor during warm-ups, taking pictures of Kareem practicing his patented sky-hook. Once the game started, I returned to my seat at the top of McNichols Arena, where the only guy with worse seats than mine was seated right behind me. Yes, we were two rows from the top. It was still a memorable night in my life.A few years later, we learned what a sleazeball Magic Johnson was. Then we put up with fellow degenerate Charles Barkley. Even Michael Jordan’s shiny facade was blemished by gambling accusations. Then the free fall started — enter the Riders, Sprewells and Iversons of the day. It’s hard anymore to even separate them from the hip-hop thug world. Need I mention Kobe Bryant?The NBA seems to target the young urban crowd, and the Kevin Garnetts and Karl Malones of the NBA world get overshadowed by the negative attitudes of their brethren. So Midwestern farm boys like me, who grow up to live in small towns like Valley Springs, Hills, Adrian and Luverne, find little in common with whiney, spoiled rap star wanna-be’s like the Pacer guys we saw slugging fans over the weekend.On the flip side of that, on Saturday I watched whom I consider to be real inspirational athletes, who toil in anonymity. They were featured during the Iron Man Triathlon. Men and women swam, biked and ran 140 miles through Hawaii, the race lasting from eight to 15 hours depending on where they placed.There were many inspirational stories among the athletes, and none of them stopped to plug their newest hip-hop CD.They were out there to test themselves, better themselves and not to get on Sportscenter. They behaved like … well, adults.In the NBA, these players in their 20s and 30s act less mature than most 13-year-olds I know. Until I start seeing NBA players grow up and behave like mature adults on and off the court, I'll stick to watching The Simpsons, whom I at least expect to act like idiots.

I like my life, my job, my family, my friends, and I’m thankful for all the blessings I receive on a daily basis. Some time ago, however, I decided to beef up my income level by purchasing a Power Ball ticket each week. I even devised a secret plan that is sure to make me a winner. Although I must admit it hasn’t worked yet, certainly it’s just a matter of time. When I do win, I have a plan in place to distribute my winnings to various family members, friends and charitable institutions. I got started on this "exercise in futility" one day at the Korner Shop when the jackpot was $10 million. Distributed over 30 years, I felt I could handle that much money. Of course, I didn’t win the first time out, so I tried again for the $15 million jackpot. Each week I continued to "not win." Apparently no one else was winning either, because the jackpot grew and grew to more than $100 million. I continued in my efforts until one Sunday morning I opened the newspaper to see if I had won the $155 million jackpot. Suddenly I panicked. Do I really want $155 million? My life as I know it would be over. I could afford to hire a gardener and take all the joy out of life. I could afford to go Blue Marlin fishing every weekend and forget how much I love crappie fishing with the loving husband. I was afraid to look. Finally I worked up my courage, assuring myself that I could always buy a professional basketball team if I wanted to get rid of the money. You can probably figure out that I didn’t win, since I’m still writing this column for the library. I continue to buy a ticket each week with my sure-fire winning numbers. I have big plans: Gordon needs a new boat; the loving husband needs a lawn tractor; the library needs new carpet, a new boiler, and new computers. I promised to give Barb and April a few bucks and I’m going on an African Safari. As it is now, I like my life and I am grateful for the many blessings I have. If I never win the Power Ball jackpot, so be it. It’s still fun to contemplate the possibilities. It’s possible that you might want to check out the new book by James Patterson, "London Bridges." Terrorists have seized the world’s largest cities. London, Washington, D.C., New York, and Frankfurt will be destroyed unless their demands are met — and their demands are impossible. After a city in the western United States is firebombed, Alex Cross knows that it is only a matter of time before the bombers’ threats to the other cities are brutally executed. Heading up the investigation by the FBI, CIA and Interpol, Alex Cross is stunned when surveillance photos show Geoffrey Shafer, the Weasel, near one of the bombing sites. He senses the presence of the Wolf as well, the most vicious predator he has ever battled. With millions of lives in the balance, Cross wonders if the most powerful law enforcement agencies in the world can stay ahead of these two cunning men. The library will be closed on Thursday so we can be properly thankful. We will be open Friday and Saturday with regular library hours.

The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on July 7, 1939:Ashcreek Farmers’ Elevator closesHad Been in Business Here Four Years; Carter Goes to HardwickThe Ashcreek Farmers’ Elevator, which had been operated in this city for the past four years, in the elevator building formerly known as the E.E. Maloney elevator, discontinued business and was closed Saturday. Closing of the elevator followed a decision of the Cargill Co., of Minneapolis, which has been financing operations of the elevator, to close all of its plants in this territory. Chas. A. Carter, who had been manager of the elevator since the business was moved here from Ashcreek, has accepted a position as manager of the E.A. Brown elevator at Hardwick, and assumed his duties at that place yesterday. While withdrawal of the Cargill company and their closing of the Ashcreek Farmers’ Elevator does not necessarily mean that the organization will go out of business, no definite announcement has been made by officers of the concern, which consists of Albert Busse, president; Andrew Jensen, secretary; and Henry Meester, Frank Drost, Fred Kuyper and Chas. Carter, Board members. The Ashcreek Farmers’ Elevator company was organized about 28 years ago and continued in business at Ashcreek until about four years ago, when discontinuance of the Doon branch of the Omaha railway deprived them of railroad facilities. Donations to the Rock County Historical Endowment Fund can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@i.net.