Survey and Raffle!

Answer questions about diversity, immigration and what it means to be a citizen for the chance to win one of the two $50 Target gift certificates. Survey closes on at 5 PM on March 31, 2012. The survey takes between 5 and 10 minutes to complete.

This is not a political survey: we gather information only for academic purposes. The survey is anonymous. The information you provide for the raffle is kept separate from your answers and is not handled by those who conduct the survey.

To view the survey, click here: http://tinyurl.com/nfld2012

If you have any questions or need help with filling out the survey, please contact Anna Moltchanova by phone (507) 222 7163 or e-mail amoltcha@carleton.edu.

The One Acts Plays at the high school continue this weekend with performances on Friday and Saturday at 7:30pm.

Also on Friday, the Cow is having a Winter Dance Party at 7pm, and Ben Aaron is playing the Tavern Lounge 8-11:30pm.

A Chess Tournament is taking place in the middle school media center on Saturday 9am-12pm. The Cow is hosting Jon Larson's Neil Diamond Tribute 8-11pm, and Lonesome Dan Kase is playing the Tavern Lounge 8-11:30pm.

Head to Froggy Bottoms on Sunday for special deals during Super Bowl Sunday at the Frog!

Marion, Susan and David Hvistendahl, three long-time supporters of Northfield Historical Society, will be the honorary chairs at the society’s annual meeting Saturday evening, March 17, at Carleton College’s Great Hall.

Marion retired to Northfield in 1990 with her husband, Jake, following rich and varied college teaching careers. She volunteered in the Museum Store and brought local historical figure Ann North to life as part of her Women in History presentations. Marion has also teamed with Brad Ness to present Ole and Lena Night, an NHS benefit.

Rice County Habitat for Humanity is holding a fundraising breakfast at the American Legion in Faribault (112 NE 5th Street) on Sunday, February 19 from 8:30 a.m – 12:30 p.m.  This is an omelet breakfast.  Tickets are $8/adults; $4/ages 3-10; free for ages 2 and under.  Tickets can be purchased at the door or by calling 507-744-2933.  Brought to you by the Sons of the American Legion.  All proceeds go to Rice County Habitat for Humanity.

At their precinct caucus on Tuesday, February 7 at 7:00 p.m.,  Minnesotans have the opportunity to help launch the electoral season by getting involved in their party’s organizational and nominating process and helping create the party platform.  In Northfield, the Republican Party caucuses will meet at the Northfield High School, and the Democratic Farmer-Labor Party at the Northfield Middle School. To find your precinct go to: http://caucusfinder.sos.state.mn.us/

Precinct caucuses are open to the public. Anyone eligible to vote in the 2012 general election, who lives in their precinct and is in general agreement with the principles of the political party, may participate in their caucus.

Common Good RSVP (Retired & Senior Volunteer Program) partners with Three Links Apartments in Northfield to offer a FREE exercise class at Three Links  two times each week.  BONE BUILDERS is a class that has been shown to prevent and even reverse osteoporosis-the loss of bone density.  The class is held at Three Links year round, is open to all community members and currently has openings.

Participants use adjustable ankle and hand weights that are provided free of charge.  The resistance caused by exercising with these light weights is what causes bones to stay strong.  Participants have had some great results. Those who attend regularly report increase in strength, balance and improvement in bone density scans.

Epic Enterprise is pleased to announce receipt of a $1,000 donation from Dundas auto dealership CarTime Auto Center. "All of us at CarTime are proud to support and be a part of the community efforts of Epic," said CarTime General Manager Jared Hubers (in photo) as he presented the check to Linda Hibbard, executive director of Epic. The money will go toward the purchase of a new bus for the Dundas-based nonprofit that serves adults with disabilities.

The bus will join Epic's fleet of two dozen vehicles that together transport 100 clients per day from their residences to various area locations, including workplaces. Epic vehicles drove 250,000 miles in 2011. 

It truly was a grand event – celebrating 20 years of Northfield Citizens Online. The organization, run by a committed crew of volunteers (typical of our town), gathered on Jan. 20th for the shindig. The celebration was of “All Things Northfield” noting the efforts of many - most importantly the public - in building a successful online community in town covering events and a collection of unique stories throughout the years.

What sparked the interest of the crowd right away was tech guru Adam Gurno’s presentation of a “Flashback on Northfield’s Past 20 Years” which included video clips such as a high voltage electrical wire fire that apparently topped the charts in the number of online views, along with the flood, the hail storm, the stand up jet ski river jump … need we say more.

The intensity climbed as the trivia questions played out.

Civil War enthusiast and amateur historian Jim Stark will discuss the origins of the American Civil War in his presentation, “Why the Civil War was Fought: The Antebellum Period,”Thursday, Feb. 16, at 6 p.m. at the newly renovated Northfield Historical Society. The event, sponsored by KYMN Radio and the Northfield News, is the first of a series of discussions about the Civil War during the war’s ongoing sesquicentennial.

A few St. Olaf-related news items of note from the past week include an alumnus winning his second Caldecott Medal, longtime Northfield resident and Professor of Philosophy Gordon Marino (in photo) writing about the legacy of Joe Paterno in the Chronicle of Higher Education, and a Star Tribune obituary about how the late Frank Gery (find the Strib link at the end of our story) transformed the St. Olaf Economics Department "into a bastion of modern economics, steeped in statistical analysis." 

Shelton Johnson, a ranger with the National Park Service for 25 years and author of the fictional memoir Gloryland (Sierra Club Books, 2009), will deliver Carleton College’s convocation address on Friday, February 3. Johnson’s presentation, entitled “Gloryland: Using History and Literature as Tools for Social Change,” will look at his book, a portrait of a fictional African-American “buffalo soldier” in the 19th-century U.S. cavalry. A booksigning will follow the presenation, with copies of Gloryland available for purchase at a 15% discount. Convocation is held from 10:50-11:50 a.m. in the Skinner Memorial Chapel, and is free and open to the public.

The City of Northfield and the Streetscape Task Force will host a Public Open House and Input Gathering Session on Monday, January 30th, 5 to 7 p.m., in the Riverview Conference Room of the Archer House, 212 Division Street.

This is the second in a series of three open house events for the public. The first session focused on the seven Gateway Corridor Areas identified for study. These Areas were the western portion of Highway 19, the eastern portion of Highway 19, the southern portion of Highway 3, the northern portion of Highway 3, Highway 246 at the south of town, Highway 23 at the northwest of town, and County Road 78 at the west of town. Initial concept drawings can be viewed and downloaded from the City’s website.

The high school's One Act Plays are finishing up this weekend, with performances on Friday and Saturday 7-10pm in the Northfield High School Auditorium.

Also on Friday, Kinda Kinky is playing the Contented Cow 8pm-12am while Mike Pattinson plays the Tavern Lounge 8-11:30pm and Whiskey Trick begins their set at Froggy Bottoms at 9:30pm.

The Paradise Center for the Arts in Faribault is holding January Thaw on Saturday, an evening of music and dancing that begins at 7pm. The Cow's music includes The RCAs 8-11pm followed by Fristad Jazz Combo 11:30pm-1am, and Jeff Ray is playing the Tavern lounge 8-11:30pm.

Southeastern Libraries Cooperating (SELCO) and the Northfield Public Library encourage you to submit your original unpublished poetry to be considered for publication in a regional poetry anthology. Please send your poetry submissions by February 15, 2012.

Submission Guidelines:

 Poets must be 16 years of age or older and must reside in Dodge, Fillmore, Freeborn, Goodhue, Houston, Mower, Olmsted, Rice, Steele, Wabasha or Winona counties.

 All poetry styles are welcome for submission.

 Poems must be typed and can be submitted as either digital attachments through e-mail or mailed paper copies.

 Submit digital files by e-mail to poetry@selco.info as one of the following document types: .doc, .txt, .rtf, or .pdf.