Crews were out this morning (Wednesday, May 16) installing the first of Northfield's sidewalk poems in the vicinity of the Northfield Public Library. The poems are winners of the first Sidewalk Public Poetry Contest in 2011, which was sponsored by the Friends and Foundation of the Northfield Public Library and the Northfield Arts and Culture Commission. As of noon, two of the poems had been installed, one on the Third Street side of the library (pictured, right), and one on the Division Street side. Places have been prepared for two more poems, another in front of the library, and one across the street in front of the Archer House. According to a member of the Arts and Culture Commission, downtown business owners have been enthusiastic about having the poems in front of their businesses.

For more good photographs of the installation, see the story on Northfield Patch.

This Week at the Northfield City Council Meeting

A Northfield.org reader emailed to ask about clothes recycling in Northfield. She had read a story about Denmark-based group called The Teacher's Group that collects recycled clothing allegedly as part of a money-laundering scam. The story, which you can find here, identifies USAgain as a for-profit subsidiary of the group. USAgain used clothing bins can be found in several locations in Northfield. According to published news reports (from the Lincoln Courier in Nebraska and KIRO-TV in Seattle), USAgain disclaims any connection with The Teacher's Group. Update: In an email to Northfield.org, a representative from USAgain writes: "USAgain is based in Chicago and owned by an American citizen.  We have no affiliation whatsoever with the Teacher's Group."

Northfield.org was able to confirm (from looking at the USAgain bins in the Econofoods parking lot, pictured here) that USAgain is up front about being a for-profit venture. Donations to USAgain are not tax deductible. If you have used clothing to donate to charity, here are some other options in Northfield:

Northfield Retirement Community (NRC) invites the community to participate in its 6th Annual NRC Golf Classic, held on Monday, June 4, at Northfield Golf Club. The NRC Golf Classic is a fundraising event put on by the Northfield Retirement Community Foundation and is designed to provide broad support for the NRC mission of delivering premier living environments and outreach services to aging individuals.

Event organizer and NRC Vice President of Long Term Care Operations Tom Nielsen said, “Last year’s event went extraordinarily well and we’re looking forward to building on its success. The Northfield community – those who are familiar with NRC, those who know us by reputation alone, as well as others – has been tremendously supportive and we’re anticipating a full house once again this year.”

How can you help make the Cannon River a little bit cleaner and Northfield more beautiful?  Join in a community planting day to plant the new rain gardens in Way Park.  The rain gardens will help to filter polluted runoff and allow more water to sink in on site instead of running over the land and streets to the storm drains. The storm drains in this part of town go directly to the Cannon River.  Come for 15 minutes or stay all day!  No gardening experience necessary.  Bring gloves and a shovel if you have them. Please wear comfortable clothing and sturdy footwear.  

Questions?  Contact Leslie at 507-786-3915 or leslie@crwp.net.

High school mountain bike racing is coming to Minnesota this fall and a regional Cannon Valley Mountain Bike Team is forming for student-athletes, grades 9-12, in the area.  Come hear all about it this Tuesday, May 15, 7 pm at the Northfield High School cafeteria.

Gary Sjoquist, Founding Chair of the Minnesota High School Cycling League will be the featured presenter. 

See our blog post for more details about the meeting as well as links to news coverage about the upcoming event by the Northfield News, Northfield Patch, and KYMN Radio.

With summer approaching, many of us have started to acquire unrealistically massive reading lists. If you’re like me, the list serves more as a fantasy than a goal. You’ll probably get through about one eighth of the list if you’re lucky - not surprising considering that the list includes items like “all of Dostoyevsky.” But why relegate the pleasure of reading to some far-off summertime when you have inexplicably acquired the ability to read a book every minute and sunlight dapples your favorite reading spot round the clock? Carleton classics professor Clara Hardy and Carleton Educational Studies professor Anita Chikkatur have created a way to enjoy reading, *gasp*, during the school/work week!

The idea for the event was planted when Clara heard an NPR story about a protest in Tunisia where protestors sat in the street and read. The protest was to mark the lifting of a ban on protests on one of Tunisia’s most symbolic streets, Habib Bourgiba – the original ban had been placed because street vendors complained that they were losing business.

The school year's end is approaching fast!  The Northfield Public Library's summer reading program is just around the corner!  It's so important for children to read during the summer to help keep their skills fresh and help eliminate "summer reading loss" for the next school year. To help kick of the 2012 "DREAM BIG-READ! summer reading program- some crazy people will entertain us all on Saturday, May 19th at 11 am.  We will be outside on the Washington Street side of the library, or if the weather is not cooperating we will be in the meeting room.  "Mixed Nuts" has tickled funny bones throughout the region with its special blend of hilarious hijinks, guaranteed to produce side-splitting laughter! 

Rice County Public Health is pleased to announce a series of free skills sessions, e-newsletters and turn-key tools to help employers build and strengthen their employee wellness program.

A kick-off meeting is being held Tuesday, May 15. Attendees will receive an overview of the series, guidance on building a stronger business case for workplace wellness and learn about workplace wellness best practices. The kick-off meeting is Tuesday, May 15 from 8:15 to 10:30 am in the Teleconference Room at South Central College, 1225 3rd Street SW, Faribault. A light breakfast will be served.

The Friends of Way Park invite you to a benefit concert for Way Park on May 12 at Northfield's First UCC Church. The music of Edvard Grieg, and the Vestlandet and Telemark fiddle styles that inspired it, will be performed by Andrea Een, Hardanger fiddle and violin, and Sonja Thompson, piano, along with guest fiddlers from the Lars Skjervheim Spelemannslag of St. Olaf College. The concert will be followed by a dessert reception.

Saturday, May 12 at 7:30pm. First UCC Church, Third and Union St. Doors open at 7pm.

Suggested Donation: $15 general admission, $10 students, $5 children 12 and under. Total donations up to $3500 will be matched dollar for dollar!

Renowned writer Uday Prakash, considered one of contemporary Hindi’s most important voices, is visiting Carleton College for the month of May as the Lindesmith Distinguished Lecturer and Writer in Residence. During his residency, Prakash will present a number of public lectures and film screenings; these events are free and open to the public.

On Friday, May 11 at 7 p.m. in the Weitz Center for Creativity Room 236, Carleton will present a public screening of Mohandas, the 2009 film directed by Mazhar Kamran and written by Prakash, based on his award-winning story of the same name. The film tells the tale of a young man from a poor family whose newfound success is brutally disrupted when his identity is stolen and he finds himself in a Kafkaesque story of corruption and conspiracy. Following the screening, Prakash will discuss the film and answer questions from the audience.

The second annual Latino Play Festival/Coffee House Gathering is happening this weekend with the play festival and coffee house gathering at 6pm in the high school auditorium on Friday, and the play festival only at the same time on Saturday.

The annual Girls Night Out is happening downtown on Friday, with shopping, giveaways, hors d'ouvres, refreshments, music, and more. Music on Friday includes New Moon Trio at the Cow 5-7pm, Sasha Mercedes at the Tavern Lounge 8-11:30pm, Ova Yonder at the Upstairs Rueb 10pm-1am, Whiskey Trick at Froggy Bottoms at 9:30pm, and Fred the Bear at the Cow 11pm-1am.

It's Girls' Day Away on Saturday at the Cannon River Winery with music by Michael Loonan in the afternoon. The Northfield Arts Guild's 2012 Spring Dance Concert is happening at 3pm at the high school. Saturday's music includes Jim Lenway at the Cow 5-7pm followed by Jon Larson 8-10:30pm, Keeley Susienka at Hogan Brothers 6-8pm, a Grieg and Norwegian Folk Music Concert at the First United Church of Christ at 7:30pm, Jon Manners at the Tavern Lounge 8-11:30pm, Willie Murphy at the Grand at 8:30pm, and Chad & Russell at the Frog at 9:30.

Conducted by Memorial Blood Centers, there will be a blood drive on Tuesday, May 15, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Northfield Senior Center. In our region, Memorial Blood Centers is the primary supplier to over 30 area hospitals in Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin.  To meet the demand, they must collect over 2,000 units every week. 

Memorial Blood Centers has been saving and sustaining lives for over 60 years. A Minnesota-based, independent nonprofit, the Centers supplies life-saving blood, state-of-the-art laboratory services, and biomedical expertise to area hospital and clinic partners, national blood centers, biotechnology companies, research institutions, and international clients from Australia to Switzerland.

 For more information, or to make an appointment, contact Diane Gehler at (507) 645-8719 or jdgehlers@msn.com. The Senior Center is located at 1651 Jefferson Parkway. 

For the second year, Jennifer Lompart's English as a Second Language class will present a Latino Play Festival at the Northfield High School auditorium this Friday and Saturday evenings, May 11 and 12. The perfomances start at 6 pm each evening, followed by coffeehouse entertainment on Friday night from 8-10 pm. Admission is $5.

According to Lompart, the first half of the show will delve into challenges that Latinos face living in America. Examples are living with parents who work long hours in factories, misunderstanding the importance of athletics, and even stories about how some students came to live in Northfield. The second half will be more upbeat, taking a peek at the positive aspects of the actors' lives and their dreams for the future.