An email landed in my inbox last fall simply titled “Wind Turbine Visit.”
The author was a Maple Grove dad whose daughter is enamored with wind turbines.
Yes, that’s right. Those 300-plus-foot tall white metal towers affixed with three Fiberglas blades that spin to generate electricity.
A turbine is a rather unusual item for a 5-year-old to like, but Deviana is not your typical kindergartner.
Her dad, Surya Pidaparti, wanted his young daughter to get an up-close look at a wind farm and thought I could help.
I was happy to oblige.
On my drives to and from home, I pass the Enel Green Energy office in Hardwick. They operate Prairie Rose Wind Farm.
Site manager Kindel Nelson agreed to be the tour guide.
Almost daily, Deviana visits “Windy,” a lone 200-kilowatt wind turbine near her home. Windy powers the Great River Energy’s Maple Grove office campus.
Her dad often shared stories from his childhood growing up in India. His early introduction to renewable energy was necessitated during the ’70s oil embargo when his mother had no fuel oil for the stove used to cook food for the family.
Surya learned to use resources wisely, which influences his upbringing of Devianna to live a sustainable lifestyle.
With Windy as an example, Surya tells Deviana to turn overhead lights and fans off so Windy doesn’t have to work as hard.
He’s also told her that Windy has many other “family members” in Greater Minnesota, which they visited in late May.
Deviana was more than excited as she stood in the footprint of 119 turbines of Prairie Rose Wind Farm outside of Hardwick.
She often spun in circles with her arms wide, mimicking the rotating blades.
Her mom, Snigdha, explained their drive from Maple Grove was uneventful until they reached the Buffalo Ridge, where Deviana received her first glimpse of hundreds of Windy’s relatives dotting the 60-mile ridge.
“Can we stop?” was Deviana’s immediate question because she wanted to hug them, Snigdha said.
Dozens of photos were taken of the visit, and more of them are included in our online Star Herald.
The Pidaparti family said they would not have had such an experience if it wasn’t for my help, and in reflection, I wouldn’t have either.
They handed me a thank-you card.
Inside, Deviana handwrote her name with a drawing of four wind turbines in four different colors. Two blue clouds drifted overhead.
I’m a little more appreciative of Windy’s family, thanks to a little girl who loves wind turbines.
