Nick Jay Mann, 26, Luverne, died on Wednesday, July 31, 2002, in Luverne, as a result of an accident.

Services were Sunday, Aug. 4, at First Presbyterian Church in Luverne Burial was in Maplewood Cemetery, Luverne.

Nick Mann was born to Richard and JoLeah (Twito) Mann on Aug. 23, 1975, in Luverne. He was raised in Luverne and attended Luverne Schools graduating in 1994. Following his education he worked at Mel's Alignment, Luverne, and Lundstra Farms of Sioux Falls, S.D.

He married Angi Van Klei on Oct. 9, 1999, at First Presbyterian Church in Luverne. Following their marriage they moved to an acreage northwest of Luverne. He began working at Cor-Tech Manufacturing in 2000 where he was currently employed as a welder.

Survivors include his wife, Angi Mann and their two dogs, Keeli and Kasey, Luverne; his parents, Richard and JoLeah (Twito) Mann, Luverne, one brother, Anthony Mann and Candace Kopp, Luverne; maternal grandmother, Charlotte Twito, and paternal grandmother, Betty Mann, both of Luverne; parents-in-law, Leroy and Sue Van Klei, Adrian; sister-in-law, Amy and Dusty Ely, Eagle Lake; grandparents-in-law, Ernie and Nart Van Klei, Adrian, and Ann Fritz, Lismore.

Mr. Mann was preceded in death by his maternal grandfather, Kenny Twito; paternal grandfather, Verlyn Mann, grandfather-in-law, Wilfrid Fritz, and his aunt, Deb (Mann) Barnes.

Engebretson Funeral Home, Luverne, was in charge of arrangements.

Shirley Ann Mundahl, 75, Luverne, died Sunday, July 28, 2002, at Mary Jane Brown Good Samaritan Center in Luverne.

Services were Wednesday, July 31, at St. John Lutheran Church in Luverne. The Rev. Gary Klatt officiated. Burial was at Maplewood Cemetery in Luverne.

Shirley Ahrendt was born to Louis and Cora (Nelson) Ahrendt on Nov. 17, 1926, in Luverne. She graduated from Luverne High School in 1944. She worked at J.C. Penney in Luverne periodically for a number of years. Later she owned and operated a children's clothing store, The Children's Circus. She recently worked at Luverne Style Shop.

Mrs. Mundahl was a member of St. John Lutheran Church in Luverne, where she taught Sunday School and was active in the WomenÕs Circle and Stevens Ministry.

Survivors include her husband, Keith Mundahl, Luverne; two sons and daughters-in-law, Larry (Linda) Stoterau, Orange, Calif., and Dennis (Nancy) Stoterau, Redwood Falls; one stepson, Mitchell Mundahl, Pismo Beach, Calif.; eight grandchildren, Andy (Katie), Ben, Sarah, Nick, Samuel and Joseph Stoterau, and Erik and Evan Mundahl; two brothers and sisters-in-law, Norma (Jean) Ahrendt, Hackensack, and Ron (Lois) Ahrendt, Sioux Falls, S.D.; and a sister-in-law, Evelyn Ahrendt, Spirit Lake, Iowa.

Mrs. Mundahl was preceded in death by her parents, one daughter, Janice Stoterau, in 1961, and two brothers, Wayne and Gordon Ahrendt.

Dingmann Funeral Home, Luverne, was in charge of arrangements.

Beaver Creek farmer Jim Willers assesses the damage to his cornfield south of Beaver Creek Tuesday. Willers said rain in the next week or two could still help his crops.

By Jolene Farley
Rock County officials will meet today to assess crop damage caused by a lack of rain in the region.

The purpose of the meeting is to decide whether an application for disaster declaration is necessary, according to Roger Carlson, director of Rock County's Farm Service Agency.

"There is certainly some crop loss in the county," Carlson said. "The question is how much, and whether we are eligible for a disaster declaration."

A disaster declaration is typically issued if there is 30 to 35 percent crop loss in the county.

"It looks like it is about as bad in this county as any year of drought I've seen here," Carlson said.

Rainfall in Rock County has been below normal for the last five months, according to Carlson. Rainfall totals are reported from five locations in Rock County to the Soil and Water Conservation Agency. The numbers are averaged together for monthly totals.

This year, Rock County received 1.37 inches of rain in March, 2.32 inches in April, 1.8 inches in May and 1.8 inches in June this year.

In a normal year, Rock County would receive 1.95 inches of rain in March, 2.58 inches in April, 3.12 inches in May and 3.9 inches in June.

Totals for July haven't been reported yet, but the normal rainfall for the month is 3.66 inches. Carlson knows rainfall in the county for July was below normal.

"I'd be surprised if we had 2 inches (of rain) in July," he said. "I think it's going to be between one and two inches."

If rain falls in the next week or so, it will benefit the soybeans, but July is a more crucial month than August for corn, so corn yield may already be severely affected.

Beaver Creek farmer Jim Willers said it might take a week or two to determine how his crops will fare in Rock County, but the outlook isn't good.

"They are slowly deteriorating a little every day," he said. "The northern part of Rock County is drier than the southern part. The lighter soils are already burned."

About 250 acres Willers farms in Pipestone County received about an inch of rain from Sunday's storm. However, some corn on those acres was already too far gone before the storm, according to Willers.

Rain could save 180 acres of soybeans he has planted in northern Rock County.

Carlson, Rock County Emergency Coordinator Kyle Oldre, Natural Resources and Conservation Services representative Dave Rose and a representative from the Rock County Extension office will attend today's meeting.

They will present their findings to the Rock County Commissioners during their regular County Board meeting Tuesday.

By Lori Ehde
The Nobles County Sheriff's Department is investigating a rural Lismore accident that took the lives of two young people Wednesday afternoon.

Emergency crews responded to a 911 call at 3:42 p.m. on 190th Street about three-quarters of a mile west of Durfee Avenue.

There were five juvenile girls in the van, which had rolled.

Three were taken to Luverne Community Hospital, and two were pronounced dead at the scene.

One was airlifted to Sioux Falls.

One of the victims was Christine Taylor, 15, of Tim and Deb Taylor, Adrian. Dingmann Funeral Home is handling arrangements.

By Lori Ehde
It was a busy 48 hours for local law enforcement officers who made two drug arrests Thursday and Friday.

In the early morning hours of Friday, July 26, officers executed a search warrant at the rural Hills residence of 49-year-old Donald Frederick Wilson.

At about 1:30 a.m., 12 members of the regional Emergency Entry Team entered WilsonÕs home. They were accompanied by seven Rock County deputies, three Minnehaha County deputies, two highway patrolmen and two South Dakota Drug Enforcement Agency officers.

According to Rock County Sheriff Ron McClure, the warrant didn't yield a substantial seizure of drugs, but all the evidence of a methamphetamine lab was there, including paint thinners, lithium batteries and drug paraphernalia.

Wilson, who has a history of drug-related offenses, was arrested for conspiracy to manufacture meth, possession of controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Also in the home but not arrested were Wilson's wife and adolescent son.

McClure said the search warrant was prompted by numerous tips to Rock County and Sioux Falls law enforcement of suspected meth production in Wilson's home.

In another drug arrest Thursday night, July 25, 42-year-old Kevin Dale Smiens, Luverne, is in custody in the Nobles County Jail, Worthington.

He was pulled over at 6:30 p.m. in Luverne on a moving violation when officers found 3 grams of meth in his 1992 blue Chevy Beretta.

Also found in his possession were large quantities of Suphedrine, a cold medicine that contains pseudoephedrine, which is commonly used in the manufacture of meth.

McClure said drug arrests like these two and investigations into countless other suspected cases are keeping his office busy.

"I really want to commend my staff - including the dispatchers," McClure said. "They put in a lot of hours. The guys really pull together and do a good job."

The Rock County Sheriff's Department continues to seek local support in its drug control efforts.

"We do work with other agencies in Sioux Falls and Iowa, but if you see something out in the county thatÕs abnormal, let us know," he said.

For example, if there's suddenly traffic on a dead-end road, or if there's activity at an abandoned farmhouse, residents should call the Sheriff's Department at 283-5000.

"It may be nothing, but you never know," McClure said. "The more eyes we have out there watching, the better our chances are of catching them."

At the traffic lights on Main Street and Highway 75 in Luverne I saw a bumper sticker on the pickup in front of me. It said something like "Kids who trap, hunt and fish don't mug little old ladies."
That's a fascinating concept and it just might be true.

Instead of thinking about the concept, though, my thoughts wandered to the driver ... Wondering all kinds of general things about him. Did he really believe that or was the sticker just placed on a whim? I assumed he liked beer with his steak instead of wine and that he probably had children and they had lots of fun bonding in nature. He would make a good neighbor - the kind who lets you borrow a weed wacker when yours is out of plastic cord.

But who knows? The light turned green and I didn't exactly get to introduce myself.

That's why I don't use bumper stickers. I open myself up for analysis enough by writing about my personal life and general views in this column. I don't need the grief bumper stickers could bring.

Bumper stickers carry private thoughts and opinions too far into the public for even me. I think I can figure out a lot about people from their bumper stickers, and I'm not alone.

In a law class, my professor said that as a trial lawyer, during jury selection she would often ask potential jurors what their bumper stickers said. She said it was a question that carried a lot of weight in some cases. It helped her eliminate some jurors and made her want to keep others.

Even though I won't put one on my car, I like some funny ones. I don't like the stickers with political statements or insults on them, though.

I'm puzzled by some of them. There seems to be a "fish" competition out there. They aren't quite bumper stickers, but more like stick-on decals. Some have the standard Christian religious symbol of the outline of a fish. Some have words inside the outline that say "Darwin." Others say "Jesus." Others have a rainbow, which I guess is some sort of symbol for homosexuality or support of gay rights, with a Christian twist.

Whatever the fish is on your car, I won't share in that kind of openness. If anything will invite road rage, it's the Jesus fish tailgating a Darwin fish.

Even though I don't feel like placing a sticker on my bumper, I realize they give me a little free entertainment at a stop light.

Emergency crews responded to an explosion at Cor-Tech Manufacturing Wednesday afternoon. Luverne's Nicholas Mann was killed in the accident.

The current Berkley Information Services building will expand by 8,500 feet to accommodate roughly 100 Tri-State employees who will vacate their current 30,000 square-foot building. W.R. Berkley Corp., which owns the Tri-State Building, will will donate it to the City of Luverne in exchange for new space at BIS. Tri-State has become Continental Western Group and BIS is now known as Berkley Technology Services.

By Lori Ehde
Tri-State Insurance, a company that's been in Luverne for nearly 100 years, is staying in Luverne after all. Story inside.

Drivers on County Road 4 use extreme caution and don't feed the animals! An elephant has taken refuge in the middle of Jim Moser's corn field while a grove further north is home to two giraffes. The safari animales were reportedly made by the Hills-Beaver Creek High School Industrial Arts class.

Photo by Jolene Farley