Columns
By Brenda WinterOctober 29, 2025“Other duties as assigned” are not unique to Equipt Christian School where I’ve been volunteering the past few months. Every job and volunteer position includes them. As a K-2 classroom helper, I expected I might help students find lost papers, sound out complicated words, or write the No. 7 facing the right direction. I do all of those things. I thought I might carefully monitor the amount of…
By Rick Peterson, General managerOctober 29, 2025Halloween is on a Friday, and that is sure to bring out the trick-or-treaters. And the weather looks good for the candy collectors as well. The Luverne Area Chamber’s annual “Trunk or Treat” at the Luverne Elementary School parking lot starts at 4 p.m. and runs until 5:30. I am proud to say that I am the current reigning office participant in the annual “Truck or Treat” promotion. The following…
By Scott Rall, Outdoor ColumnistOctober 29, 2025When is the weather so bad that you will just not go hunting in it? That answer is different depending on who you ask. I, for one, will not chase my favorite ring-necked pheasants in a steady rain. The only other time I will take a voluntary pass is when the wind is above 25 miles per hour. Then just add in the fact that you have visitors who have traveled a long distance, and then these two…
By Lori Sorenson, editorOctober 22, 2025My creative colleagues at the Star Herald have been sharing social media posts about our staff members’ work anniversaries It’s been fun for the online community to get a glimpse of the humans behind the titles in our office, and community reactions to the posts have been delightful and encouraging. This week it’s my turn. We accidentally overlooked my actual work anniversary in April, but it’s…
By Betty Mann, Rock County HistorianOctober 22, 2025The following appeared in The Rock County Herald on Nov. 6, 1941. One of the most familiar sights on the Luverne streets now, and for almost 60 years, is one of Clarence M. LaDue and his horse drawn milk wagon. At the age of 86, he is hale, hearty and agile, and getting down from the seat of the wagon and getting back up on it is no trick at all for him. That he still uses the horse drawn…
By Mavis Fodness, reporterOctober 15, 2025Thirty-seven years ago, I stood looking out the second-story window of our rented acreage in Kanaranzi Township. A vast expanse of soybean and corn fields stretched out as far as the eye could see. A feeling of contentment filled me as I held my infant son Andrew. I briefly imagined him working in those peaceful fields, enjoying the feeling of growing something from the rich, black soil. That…
By RIck Peterson, general managerOctober 15, 2025I don’t order a lot of things off the internet, but from time to time I do order a few things. Recently I was in the market for a couple of dog collars. So, like most Amazon shoppers, I typed in what I was looking for, and dozens of options popped up. So, after scrolling through them, I started to check out the reviews. Most of the reviews fell into the three-, four- and five-star category,…
By Kent Thiesse, Farm Management AnalystOctober 08, 2025A partial shutdown of the U.S. government began on Oct. 1, with no indications regarding how long that shutdown may last. Most farmers in the Midwest are in the middle of harvest season, so there has probably not been a lot of attention paid to the government shutdown to this point. However, if the shutdown continues for several more weeks, it could start to impact financial decisions for…
By Brenda Winter, columnistOctober 08, 2025Fall 2025 has been pleasant and comfortable far beyond a Minnesotan’s ability to enjoy it. It’s been sunny. It’s been beautiful. It’s been ... unnerving. Grass that should be crusty and brown is still green. Leaves that should be clogging street drains still hang on trees happily fluttering in soft warm breezes. Children continue to play outdoors in the golden glow of October sunshine.…
By Sgt. Troy Christianson, Minnesota State PatrolOctober 08, 2025Question: I want to work for a farmer during planting and harvest season driving a semi. I have a valid Class D driver’s license but no commercial driver’s license. Can I cross a state line while working for the farmer, Minnesota into North Dakota? Answer: Yes, as long as you stay within 150 air miles of the farm. If you have additional questions regarding commercial motor-vehicles please…
By Greg Hoogeveen, Time OutOctober 08, 2025This past week the Star Herald had a visitor stop by with a surprise to show the office. Vicki (Frahm) Ewald pulled a framed original watercolor picture she had painted out of a large flat plastic bag. “I was going through your paper, and this photo caught my eye, and I had to paint it.” Jennifer Nelson and Deb Lusty in our front office area watched as she pulled out the painting and…
By Scott Rall, Outdoor ColumnistOctober 08, 2025The first day of fall has just passed us. This is my favorite time of the year and I can bet that most of you who have read my stuff already knew that. The waterfowl migrations are only a few weeks away, and as often as you might have marveled at that, there is one other creature that passes through Minnesota that many of you may know very little about. That is the sandhill crane. These birds…- By Lori Sorenson, editorOctober 01, 2025The Star Herald staff will visit the Luverne eighth-grade careers class Friday about opportunities in communication. I tell the kids that effective communicators are in demand across all job sectors. And I sometimes wonder about career paths I could have followed had I not landed at the Star Herald. For example, wordsmithing for chocolate marketing would be fun. “Close your eyes and taste the…
By RIck Peterson, general managerOctober 01, 2025My last couple of columns have been about things I love about this time of year. Well, here is one more. It’s not so much about what I love about this time of year, but more about the topic of conversation that really only happens this time of year. Pumpkins seem to be at the forefront of a lot of office conversation, as well at the Peterson household. Size, color, shape, how many and where to…
By Betty Mann, Rock County HistorianOctober 01, 2025The following article is part of the Diamond Club Member group. Members of this group consist of persons age 75 and older. This article appeared in The Rock County Star on Oct. 16, 1941. An interesting story of how Rock county gained much of its early day Norwegian population is told by Martin O. Wold, Luverne, this week’s Diamond Club member. Mr. Wold knows the story well because he experienced…
By Calla Jarvie, Rock County Library directorOctober 01, 2025I just got back from the annual Association for Rural and Small Libraries conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico. If you’re thinking it was one big nerd-fest, you would be right. And it was AWESOME. As you probably gathered from the title of the conference, it was focused only on small and rural libraries. Every session at the conference was aimed specifically at libraries in areas like ours…
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