As a member of the Southwestern Minnesota Habitat for Humanity Board, I would like to share information about our affiliate’s current projects with area residents. Currently, a new house is being built in Pipestone. The homeowner will be Mavity Winter. She and her five boys will move into the house this fall. They are working alongside of contractors and other volunteers to complete the home. To date, the house is up, has been sided, the windows and doors have been installed and the dry walling has been completed. Volunteers have been working on Wednesday evenings and Saturdays. Some of the upcoming projects for volunteers include painting and staining. People who would like to volunteer may contact Habitat for Humanity by calling at 507-562-1001.Additionally, the Family Selection Committee is accepting applications from families, who live in Rock, Pipestone and Nobles counties, who are interested in partnering with Habitat for Humanity to be the next homeowners. Once a family has been selected, the process will move on to selecting the site. We are eagerly looking forward to the completion and dedication to the Pipestone house this September and the groundbreaking for another house next spring. Southwestern Minnesota Habitat for Humanity is an ecumenical housing ministry that partners with donors, volunteers, and homeowners to create simple, decent, affordable housing for people in need. The houses are sold to the homeowners at no profit and with no interest. Habitat is committed to the development and uplifting of families and communities, as well as the building of houses. I invite the residents of Nobles, Pipestone and Rock counties to join us in our efforts to provide decent and affordable housing in Southwestern Minnesota. Your continued prayers, financial contributions and volunteer efforts would be greatly appreciated!Sharon JohnsonBoard MemberSouthwestern Minnesota Habitat for Humanity

Once upon a time there was a small city within a small county. Over the years they worked together fairly well, but a time came when there were some small disputes which grew out of control. Through an odd set of circumstances the county was forced to raise taxes significantly. These taxes fell largely on ag land. Many farmers decided to move much of their spending to neighboring towns thereby costing the small city many millions of dollars in lost business. Other organizations watched how the city government dealt with things and also decided to go elsewhere. The end result was the city suffered significantly while the county survived fairly well.(Any similarity to real people and places is purely coincidental.)Ron BoyengaKanaranzi Township

By John RittenhouseLocal drivers represented the Star Herald coverage area well at different speedways around the area over the weekend.Area drivers posted a total of five feature victories at three different tracks in Minnesota, Iowa and South Dakota during a weekend full of racing action.The local talent experienced the most success at Rapid Speedway, in Rock Rapids, Iowa, Friday, where three different drivers posted feature wins.Feature titles went to Kanaranzi’s Colter Deutsch and Luverne’s Robert Carlson in the hobby stock division.Deutsch, who placed second in the second heat, took top honors in the A feature.After placing fifth in the second heat, Carlson went on to win the B feature before placing ninth in the A feature.Luverne’s Seth Stegenga, Ellsworth’s Mike Deutsch and Magnolia’s Josh Klay also raced in the hobby stock class at Rapid Speedway.Stegenga won the first heat race before placing 12th in the A feature. Klay won the second heat race and placed second in the A feature. Deutsch finished sixth in the first heat race.Adrian’s Mark DeBoer also posted a feature win at Rapid Speedway.Competing in the late model street stock class, DeBoer placed second in the second heat before taking the checkered flag in the feature attraction.Luverne’s Scott Overgaard won the second heat race before placing second to DeBoer in the street stock feature. Former Rock County resident Darrin Korthals won the first street stock heat race before finishing eighth in the feature. Adrian’s Brad Klaassen placed third in the first heat and ninth in the feature in the street stock competition at Rapid Speedway.Ellsworth’s Greg Roemen and former Luverne resident Anthony Mann competed in the sportsmen class at the Iowa track.Roemen placed second in the first heat and fourth in the feature. Mann placed fourth in the second heat and seventh in the feature.Korthals picked up a pair of wins during Saturday’s races at I-90 Speedway in Hartford, S.D.The street stock driver from Rock Rapids won the first heat race and the A feature.Luverne’s Jesse Akkerman and Adrian’s Klaassen competed against Korthals in Hartford. Klaassen placed second in the second heat and second in the feature. Akkerman placed third in the first heat and third in the feature.Luverne’s Mike Steensma accounted for another feature win during Saturday’s races at Nobles County Speedway in Worthington. Steensma won the modified feature.Brett DeJager, a modified driver from Luverne, raced his way to a third-place finish during the feature event at Murray County Speedway in Slayton Friday.Adrian’s DeBoer raced in the street stock competition at Lake County Speedway in Madison, S.D., Saturday. DeBoer won the first heat race and placed second in the A feature.Six area drivers competed in the street stock and hobby stock classes during Sunday’s races at Huset’s Speedway, near Brandon, S.D.Luverne’s Akkerman won the first heat race and placed fifth in the street stock A feature. Adrian’s DeBoer finished fifth in the first heat and 16th in the feature in the same class.Kanaranzi’s Colter Deutsch had a good night in the hobby stock division, placing second in the second heat and second in the A feature.Magnolia’s Klay, Larry Kracht and Bobbi Kracht competed against Deutsch in the hobby stock class at Huset’s.Klay won the first heat race and placed ninth in the feature. Bobbi Kracht placed fourth in the second heat and eighth in the feature. Larry Kracht finished fourth in the first heat and seventh in the feature.

By John RittenhouseA former Luverne resident bested a field of 16 golfers to win the Master’s Tournament at the Hillcrest Country Club in Lincoln, Neb., over the weekend.Mark Iveland, a 1986 Luverne High School graduate who earned a pair of club championships (1990 and 1999 during his playing days at the Luverne Country Club, shot a three-under-par 141 to win the two-day, 36-hole event that was staged Saturday and Sunday.Iveland said the event is similar to the championship flight of the LCC’s Men’s Club Tournament, where the Hillcrest’s best players compete against each other for the same title."The 24 players with the lowest handicaps are invited to play, and the first 16 guys to sign up get to play in the championship," he said. "They all are really good players, so it takes a really good weekend like the one I had to beat them."Iveland opened the tournament by shooting one-under-par 71 on Saturday to take a one-shot lead into the second day of play.He carded a two-under-par 70 to win the event by two shots on Sunday, but it took a late-round charge to settle the issue."I actually lost the lead on the 12th hole Sunday, but I played the last six holes at four-under-par to win by two. I had two birdies and one eagle during the last six holes," Iveland said.The fate of the tournament wasn’t decided until the final hole.Iveland sported a one-shot lead over a close friend, Neal Roehrs, entering the last hole of the event.Roehrs put some pressure on Iveland when he put his second shot on a 472-yard, par-5 finishing hole within six feet of the cup. Iveland met the challenge by hitting his second shot at the same hole within three feet of the cup.After Roehrs missed his eagle putt before eventually recording a birdie, Iveland converted his eagle putt to win the tournament by two shots.

By John RittenhouseConsidering the outcome of the Seniors’ Club Tournament played at the Luverne Country Club, George McDonald likely felt a bit greedy Sunday.For the first time in the history of the event, McDonald completed a tournament sweep by winning the low gross and low net tournament championships.McDonald was hesitant when accepting both trophies that go along with winning the tournament titles during the awards ceremony following the event.As some time passed, and the significance of what he accomplished sank in, he unleashed his unique sense of humor."My wife is going to have a hard time sleeping tonight with both of these trophies in our bed," he quipped.McDonald is no stranger to winning LCC titles, but he seemed especially pleased with his performance on Sunday. He shot a two-over-par 74 over 18 holes to win his gross championship. Subtracting his eight shot handicap, McDonald turned a net 66 to lead the 23-player field.Counting Sunday’s victory, McDonald has earned eight LCC championships. He won four Men’s Club Tournament crowns between the years 1968 and 1984. After repeating as the low gross champion of the Seniors’ Club Tournament Sunday, McDonald has captured four Seniors’ titles since 1998."I played really well today. I made five birdies today, and I probably didn’t make five birdies the first four months of the season," he joked."I putted very well," he added. "I only had 10 putts during the first round, and 15 putts during the second round. I usually think I’m playing pretty well when I finish 18 holes with 32 putts. I finished with 25 putts today, which is seven fewer than 32."McDonald, who became the first player in the 60-69 division to win the tournament’s gross championship by winning a one-hole playoff against Tim Connell in 2003, made an early statement Sunday.After taking a double-bogey on the first hole, McDonald finished the first round with a one-under-par 35. He recorded four birdies (holes No. 2, No. 3, No. 5 and No. 9), made par three times and recorded one bogey over the final eight holes of the opening round.Dave Iverson, who was playing in McDonald’s threesome in the 60-69 division, emerged as McDonald’s top challenger.Iverson carded a one-over-par 37 during an opening round that consisted of one birdie, six pars and two bogeys to trail the leader by two strokes.Connell, competing in the 50-59 division, was three shots off the pace at the end of the first round after turning in a three-over-par 38.McDonald and Steve Sehr, a member of the 50-59 division, shot tournament-low 39s during the second round of the event.Iverson, however, was the player McDonald was concerned about as Connell slipped out of contention after shooting a 44 during the second round.Iverson trimmed McDonald’s lead to one shot when he made par on the par-5 11th hole during the final round, and he found himself trailing the leader by one shot again when he recorded a birdie on the par-4 15th hole.McDonald extended his lead to two shots by making par on the par-3 16th hole, and picked up two more shots on Iverson by registering a birdie on the par-5 17th hole.McDonald finished the event with a bogey on the par-4 18th hole, where Iverson made par to finish three shots (74-77) behind the champion at tournament’s end. Jack Bennett, a member of the 50-59 division, shot a pair of 40s to finish the event with an 80. Bennett placed third behind McDonald and Iverson in the gross competition."I had to be the luckiest player out there," McDonald said. "When Dave’s (Iverson) ball went into the trees, it ended up behind the trees. Every time I hit the ball into the trees, it seemed like I had wide open paths to shoot out of."Iverson finished second behind McDonald in the low net standings (66-67), too.Claude Van Driel, a member of the 70-and-over division, shared second place with Iverson in the low net competition.Bennett and Dave Gangestad, another member of the 50-59 division, shared fourth place in the net competition with net 68s.Bennett’s 80 gave him the gross championship in the 50-59 division. Gangestad (41-41-82) and Connell (38-44-82) share second place in the division’s gross standings.Bruce Olson and Luck Fey both carded net 72s to finish tied for third place in the net competition in the 50-59 division.McDonald and Iverson placed first and second, respectively, in the gross and net competition in the 60-69 division.Ray Hoogeveen carded an 86 (42-44) to place third in the 60-69 division’s gross competition. Virgil Van Hulzen and Elmer Menage shot net 72s to share third place in the flight’s net competition.Van Driel emerged as a double-winner in the 70-and-over division. Van Driel shot a gross 85 (42-43) and a net 67 to win both titles.Don Cashin placed second to Van Driel with gross 95 (46-49) and net 73 efforts in the 70-and-over division. Marv Gonnerman placed third in the division with gross 104 and net 79 tallies.

All of this propaganda — lawyers, letters-to-the-editor and survey — are grandstanding insults to our intelligence. It is even more degrading to see this display of unprofessional tone and conduct being contributed to by an administrator who has turned his position into that of a ‘hired gun’ type. He’s blown the good will that existed and could have been the basis of good faith on both sides. The wasted money on the above efforts and the good civil tone here-to-fore present would have been better spent getting together. The city and county have a common problem, that being the state thinking it solved its problem by shifting the burden to the shoulders of local governments. Making that case here at home and in St. Paul would have built a stronger bond and led to an atmosphere of solution instead of dissolution. The community of Luverne has a history of generally taking the long view. Being asked to pay in the short run for the opportunity to have the long run result in a community that continues to be a great place to live is the norm here. We have and want to continue a progressive, civil and yes, even a premium community. It has happened because we know it takes additional effort, additional money and additional sacrifice to have ‘community’. Les MahaffayLuverne

In regard to the feuding going on with the city and county — just where do I start?! So much time and money has been wasted figuring out how to divide up the cost of the law enforcement (which was and is doing a great job) and other things, that no one can say that they are going to save money anywhere!I don’t understand how dividing up the law enforcement and dispatch is going to save money? More officers will have to be hired, new uniforms will be needed, new squad cars (and I am sure they come real cheap, not!) plus the benefits for the new officers. Do they think all this comes free? Well, I’m not getting paid to do an in-depth study and I can bet that they won’t get anything for free, or even on a "blue light special." Also, on the saving money issue, why was LaFond given a raise already? He hasn’t done anything to prove himself since he has been here other than to get everyone at each other’s throats! I was always under the impression that you don’t get a raise unless you have proven yourself.Speaking of LaFond, I remember reading in the June 3, 2004, issue of the Star Herald that he stated, "I was asked to submit a resume, and I was pleased to be selected based on that, but I have withdrawn from consideration," in regard to a city administrator position in Hibbing. Well, after getting on line and reading several articles from The Daily Tribune in Hibbing, it doesn’t sound to me like he withdrew his resume. In the first article dated June 4, it states that LaFond was interviewed via phone, as he was sick with E-coli. In another article, dated June 8, the first part of the article reads as follows: "Confidence and candor have made Brian Redshaw of Syracuse, Ind., the city council’s first choice for the position of city administrator. Without any discussion, Redshaw received the first and only nomination for the post during a special meeting of the council Monday." LaFond didn’t withdraw, he wasn’t selected, so he had to make himself look good!How long is it going to take to figure out that the people — friends, co-workers, family and community — are at battle with one another? I thought this was a community — which I would think would be city and county! But oh, no. The council and LaFond make it out like the city is the one and only and they don’t have to work with anyone else. Well wake up! If everyone in the community that they don’t want to work with, went elsewhere to do their business, we can bet that Luverne would shrivel up to nothing. Is that what they want?Our city leaders need to quit acting like a bunch of 2-year-olds (I think 2-year olds act better than our city leaders do)! Leave things alone and quit wasting any more money!Linda LenzLuverne

Don’t put too much if any stock in the recent "survey" conducted by the city of Luverne. The very use of the word survey is inappropriate as it is completely unscientific and obviously biased to serve certain special interests. First, every question was prefaced by carefully selected "facts" designed to solicit a predetermined response. If I asked a randomly selected survey audience if they would eat a worm I strongly suggest the overwhelming answer would be "No." However, if I prefaced my question with these supposed facts: Worms, being high in protein prevent cancer and heart disease. Eating a worm will effectively cause you to lose 40 pounds. You will receive $1 million for eating a worm. Now if I asked, would you eat a worm, I suspect I could generate a significant numbers of "yes" responses. But can I safely assume the majority of those surveyed would really eat worms? Secondly, but perhaps most important, since this is a Rock County issue not just a Luverne city issue, the survey was immediately flawed by limiting responses to those receiving city utility bills. According to the U.S. Census online, Rock County has a population estimated at 9,614, with Luverne at about 4,600, meaning roughly 52 percent or a majority of the county’s populace was not involved in the survey. The survey suggested that payment for county services should be based on property tax shares. I suggest that services should be based on consumption, those who use the most pay the most. The survey also suggested that a majority of other county/city entities sharing services base payment on property tax structuring. I would like to know how many such relationships exist in Minnesota and exactly who they are before I agree that apples and oranges are exactly the same because they are both fruit. We may very well have a unique situation in which we are one of the state’s smallest counties where a large percentage of its population is located in one community. Let’s be careful not to make decisions based purely on self-interest, misinformation and tainted surveys but rather on facts and fairness. By the way, if future county-wide issues are based on voting decisions and decided purely on city/county population numbers, who would win? Jim Hensley Luverne

The recent "Outlook" letter and city survey from the City Administrator prompt me to write to express my disdain at what he is doing to diminish the cooperative spirit of our city and county governments in the name of claiming to find an "equitable solution" to funding the shared costs.When the joint powers agreements were established and put into effect, both county and city government officials then were convinced that the expenses incurred for county services were fairly shared by the city residents. Mr. LaFond stated in the "Outlook" letter that many contracts that were established 15-20 years ago have never been evaluated. Is he assuming that they were not evaluated simply because they were not amended in all that time? My interpretation would be that the officials felt that there was no need to rewrite contracts that were working well. LaFond also states in the "Outlook" that the city taxpayers are responsible for 60 percent of the costs of the Sheriff’s Department when the city accounts for only 19 percent of the county property value. Since when do the sheriff and deputies respond to calls from parcels of land? TAXPAYERS need the services of law enforcement, not PROPERTIES. The city represents at least 46 percent of the population of Rock County. It seems inequitable to expect that the remaining 54 percent of the outlying residents of the county should be expected to fund 81 percent of the cost for the services that are heavily demanded by city of Luverne residents. As a taxpayer, I don’t care whether my city taxes or my county taxes fund the services that are needed. I just want to have a strong, fairly paid sheriff’s department, reliable dispatch services, and the other services that we as taxpayers have come to expect in this beautiful, peaceful city where most of us got along with each other until LaFond took over as city administrator. And one final comment. It’s a shame that our tax dollars were used to print and send out such a biased, poorly worded, inflammatory questionnaire. LaFond needs to work for his high salary by finding innovative ways to save real dollars in the city budget, not simply to try to shift the deficit to the county board as their responsibility. A very concerned resident of Luverne,Esther Spease Frakes