A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
Sorted by date Results 2914 - 2938 of 3909
Last week, Gov. Tim Walz announced that schools will continue distance learning through the end of the school year. I wouldn’t normally use this column to air petty annoyances but I’ve noticed some terminology that I want to address. Schools are not “closed” for the year. While the physical buildings are inaccessible, the administrators, teachers, and students are working really hard to figure out how to make distance learning work as best it can. Parents and caregivers are putting in a lot of...
It’s now the sixth week of the “stay at home” order by our Minnesota governor and we are trying to do our best to follow this directive. And now we hear that the schools will not resume this year at all. All I can say is I feel for the students, staff and especially the parents as they go through these trying times. Our senior class will miss their spring sports events, awards banquet, the prom, their class trip and even a graduation ceremony unless some alternative plans can be made soon....
A few days before Gov. Walz's decision to keep Minnesota schools closed through the end of the year, I ran out to Wrenshall School to scan materials for my classes. The only person in the building, I walked the hallways and looked into several empty classrooms - desks, books, decorations, teaching materials, all packed away. The senior hallway that had only weeks before bustled with noisy students and slamming lockers now stood silent, locks removed and lockers cleaned out. Although it was...
Esko Annabelle Adkins Kaitlyn Adkins Alexandra Aker Ashley Aker Claire Anderson Karin Anderson Keone Anderson Siri Anderson Santiago Anich Joseph Antonutti Rachel Antonutti Ellahna Barnes Joel Barta Alena Beare Mollie Belich Aspen Berg Hunter Berg Cade Berger Cuinn Berger Carli Bloom Sierra Boitz Joshua Bolgrean Nickolas Borden Alexander Bourgeault Cadence Brissett Emma Calverly Tyler Campanario Emma Cekalla Joseph Cekalla Jordan Chopskie Megan Chopskie Ty Christensen Jager Christenson Liberty Clifford Aubrey Compo James Cornell Michael... Full story
The Pine Knot News contacted seniors in Cloquet, Esko, Wrenshall and Carlton this past week after they learned the state extended its order to keep students out of schools through the final month of the school year to guard against the spread of COVID-19. Cloquet senior Caleb Swanson, a writer for the Pine Knot News, collected most of the following comments from seniors, including his own. Cloquet Caleb Swanson High school is a funny thing. We get there, we learn, we grow, and we get attached... Full story
Extreme fire conditions today across much of Minnesota have resulted in the National Weather Service issuing a Red Flag Warning for the following counties: Aitkin, Anoka, Becker, Beltrami, Benton, Big Stone, Blue Earth, Brown, Carlton, Carver, Cass, Chippewa, Clay, Clearwater, Crow Wing, Douglas, Grant, Hennepin, Hubbard, Isanti, Itasca, Kanabec, Kandiyohi, Lac Qui Parle, Le Sueur, Mahnomen, McLeod, Meeker, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Nicollet, Norman, Otter Tail, Pine, Polk, Pope, Red Lake, Redwood, Renville, Scott, Sherburne, Sibley, Stearns,... Full story
The fate of spring sports lies in the hands of the governor and the Minnesota State High School League - for now, nothing until May 4 - but coaching contracts are another matter. To pay or not to pay, that is the question school boards across the state are facing as it looks less and less likely that in-person classes will resume and prep sports seasons will happen after all. On Monday, Gov. Tim Walz said it was unlikely that the sports season would be salvaged. He planned to talk with school of...
It’s an image everyone knows. A young Native woman kneels on a patch of grass, blue waters and green trees behind her. She’s wearing a buckskin dress and has two feathers in her hair. She holds out both hands, smiling, as she offers the viewer a pound of Land O’Lakes butter. “Mia the butter maiden,” as she’s called, first appeared on packaging in 1928. Her presence at the American kitchen table has spanned generations — until the last several months, when Land O’Lakes phased her out. In the 1950s, Red Lake Chippewa artist Patrick DesJarlait was...
Northwoods Credit Union's board of directors recently appointed Jeff Kletscher as its new board chairperson. Kletscher has served on the Northwoods Credit Union board since the 2018 merger with Floodwood Area Credit Union. Prior to that, he served on the Floodwood Area Credit Union supervisory committee for many years. Kletscher is a licensed real estate broker and owner of Northland Woods-n-Water Realty in Floodwood. He also works for Hope Lutheran Church as the church administrator. In the...
Gwen Carman, superintendent of the Carlton school district, has resigned. In a letter to school board chairwoman LaRae Lehto dated April 14, Carman said she had accepted the superintendent position in the Lewiston-Altura school district in southeastern Minnesota. Her resignation will be effective June 30. Her new job begins with the start of the school calendar year on July 1. The Carlton school board voted to accept the resignation during its regular meeting Monday, which was held online. “We’re sad to see her go,” board chairwoman LaRae...
Neighbors’ voices beat out public safety officials and educators in the debate on whether or not to include a sidewalk in the upcoming Prospect Avenue street reconstruction project, as Cloquet city councilors voted 5-2 Tuesday to reject the sidewalk bid. Councilors Bun Carlson, Sheila Lamb, Kerry Kolodge, Steve Langley and Mayor Roger Maki voted against the sidewalk while councilors Chris Swanson and Lara Wilkinson were the two “nay” votes. The vote in favor of the street project itself was u...
Cloquet city councilors unanimously approved an agreement Tuesday that will give naming rights for a new meeting hall to Northwoods Credit Union in exchange for a gift of $80,000 from the local credit union. Under the terms of the agreement, Northwoods will pay $40,000 upon execution of the agreement, followed by four $10,000 gifts beginning in 2021. In years six through 20 of the 20-year agreement, Northwoods agreed to provide additional support of $1,000 per year. The Cloquet Shaw Memorial Public Library Foundation has been working with...
Following interviews with the two finalist candidates for the position of Cloquet Area Fire District chief, members of the CAFD board opted to not hire either candidate, citing the difficulty of finding someone with the skill set to lead the district as both CEO and fire chief. Board chair Jim Langenbrunner said the board’s succession committee is shifting its attention to coming up with an interim plan to cover the fire chief position, as current fire chief Kevin Schroeder is retiring at the end of June. “Kevin is a very difficult person to...
A Moose Lake man shot by a Carlton County deputy last summer is suing the deputy, the county and other participating agencies for $35 million, claiming that the deputy used unnecessary force by shooting him twice, that the deputy was poorly trained, and that he had been drinking prior to the incident. Shawn Michael Olthoff, 35, was paralyzed from the chest down after being shot twice by Carlton County deputy Sgt. Jason Warnygora during a Consolidated Emergency Response Team (CERT) operation on...
The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota filed a petition against the state Department of Corrections April 15 to keep prisoners and staff at the Minnesota Correctional Facility in Moose Lake safe from the rapidly spreading COVID-19. Filed on behalf of three inmates — Roger Foster, Kristopher Mehle and Adam Dennis Sanborn — and “all other similarly situated,” the petition asks for the release of the three prisoners and others in a similar situation to a safe location during COVID-19 pandemic because the state has failed to take reasona...
It was the stand of white pines that sold us this spring. We turned off the gravel road, stepped out of the car and you could hear it: The wind whistling through the pine needles. We were home. Or, we thought we were. The 40-acre parcel of land was just down the road from Cromwell and near where we now rent a farm. It had most of the things we were looking for - decent land, a few outbuildings, and a large buffer of woods and wetland. My partner could run her vegetable farm from here and I...
The snow has melted, the grass is turning green, and the weather is warming up. This can only mean one thing: It's tick season. Ticks can be out at any time of year, but they have surges in the spring and fall. Although ticks can infest any mammal, dogs seem to be at a higher risk. This may be due to a combination of reasons. Dogs run through the bushes and grass where ticks are found, their fur makes it harder to see the ticks, and they are not the fastidious groomers that cats are. Cats can...
If there's one lesson to be learned from the history of the St. Louis River it's this: Let us not be complacent. That Earth Day message comes from Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College Environmental Institute director Courtney Kowalczak, who has also served as the coordinator of the St. Louis River River Watch Program, which engages students in water sampling of the river. Kowalczak recalls a day not long ago when the river was an industrial dumping ground. "With the St. Louis River the...
Every year, there seems to be more and more buzz about bees, butterflies, and pollinators. More information seems to come out about their benefits, pesticide alternatives for your plants, or the “top 5” things you can do encourage more visits to your flower or vegetable garden. Great as it is to have an abundance of resources, it can turn into quite the task to sift through and turn it into action. It’s understandable that for many, the process of picking out plants that are well-suited for thei...
Cloquet High School student Abigail Smith has been dazzling judges at science fair competitions since she was in middle school, and that hasn't stopped now that she's a senior. PolyMet Mining officials awarded Smith its top scholarship of $5,000 at the boys state hockey tournament in early March. The photo above is from the on-air presentation of the award by Ch. 45 sportscaster Joe Schmit. In the presentation, PolyMet president and CEO Jon Cherry said the company likes to support students...
Wrenshall A HONOR ROLL Joseph Bergman Liam Bruce Megan Carlson Lillian Eckdahl Sage Fernquist Hunter Holmes Kaylie Lammi Elliana Lattu Hannah Lattu Alex Murray Alexis Nelson Samantha Nyberg Andrew Olesen Jenna Rabold Abbie Resberg Jack Riley Zeke Rousseau-Sheff Magdalene Sowada Kaya Stark Kyra Stark Alexis Swanson Hailey Tauzell Randy Wimmer B HONOR ROLL Joshua Anderson Emma Andrews Connar Ankrum Patrick Ankrum Eli Beetcher Gavin Beetcher Taylor Bryce Corey Despot Easton Everett Brennen Fisher-Merritt Ashley Hart Natalya Kacer Wyatt Kelley... Full story
Carlton A HONOR ROLL Grade 12 Alaina Bennett Alisha Broneak Madelyn DeCaigny Spencer Hoeffling Abigail Mickle Brynne Mickle Taylor Nelson Annabell Pearson Matthew Santkuyl Benjamin Soderstrom Jessica Sutter Justin Swanson Grade 11 Haley Adkins Arianna Griak Kristian Herman Elizabeth Hey Tyler Hill Annabeth Johnson Samantha Matarelli Seth Mlodozyniec Pablo Moran Johnette Ostlund Ella Palmer Spencer Rousseau Jairid Ward Grade 10 Olivia Anderson Kash Gibson Alaina Kiehl Morgan Laveau Carly Parker Joseph Solomon Grade 9 Korah Crane Eliza DeCaigny... Full story
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz today extended his order for all schools to engage in distance learning through the end of the school year, which means students will remain at home for their learning and extracurricular activities sponsored by the schools will not resume. He made the order as part of the state's ongoing response to the coronavirus pandemic. The full test of his order is below: Emergency Executive Order 20-41 Authorizing and Directing the Commissioner of Education to Extend the Dista... Full story
Just before Easter, a single chick-in-an-egg toy was left at the end of the day after a customer brought in a birchbark basket of 30 of them. The toys were free. Another woman brought in homemade facemasks on Friday that anyone could take for free. "They went like crazy," said Renee Gaffney, one of the owners of TJ's Country Store. Those are just two examples of how people in the tiny community of Mahtowa have pulled together during the statewide stay-at-home order in response to the...
At least a few Carlton County residents found a pleasant surprise in their bank accounts this week: money from the federal government’s Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, passed by Congress and signed into law by President Trump on March 27. There is no exact schedule for payments but officials said the first wave of payments includes mainly people who filed a 2018 or 2019 tax return and gave the IRS direct deposit bank information. Paper checks are scheduled to be issued at a rate of 5 million each week until September, s...
