People

A recent story by Minnesota Public Radio's Elizabeth Baier looks at the 'agripreneurial' activity happening on a patch of farmland near Northfield where Reginaldo Haslett-Marroquin, director of the Rural Enterprise Center, has helped immigrant farmers start their own operations.

"The way he sees it, if hundreds of thousands of Latinos already work in the nation's food and agricultural sectors, many of them could also branch out and be their own bosses," reports Baier.

"Rather than letting someone in a factory define what you're worth, why don't we try to create a path so you can decide what you're worth?" Haslett-Marroquin asks.

The Northfield Area YMCA is hiring youth coaches. For further information, please contact visit our website (to include an employment application) or call 507-645-0088.  You may send application to info@northfieldymca.org or mail to 519 Division Street, Northfield MN 55057.  More details about these and other positions are available on our website at www.northfieldymca.org (under "About Us" and "Jobs").

The public is invited to the 3rd Annual Northfield Retirement Cemter Walk to Remember on Sunday, September 19 at 1:00 p.m to benefit the Alzheimers Association.  Meet at the main entrance of the Center, 900 Cannon Valley Drive. Participants are asked to donate a money gift to the Alzheimers Association. Donations can be made by those choosing not to walk as well. If you would like to make a direct donation to the Alzheimer’s Association for NRC using the internet, go to: http://memorywalk10.kintera.org/twincities/nrc.

To pre-register, contact Emily Kerling, 507/664.7340 or : ekerling@northfieldretirement.org.  One may register the day of the event from 1-2 p.m.

Editor addendum: If you've got video from that day, feel free to add it into the comments or use our contact for to let us know about it.

• Here's our original page from that day.

Where were you four years ago today? Remember the tragedy (to our roofs) on that fateful day?  This is a video I shot from my house here in Northfield on August 24th, 2006 during the biggest hailstorm in recent history.  

The Northfield Area Family YMCA is hiring for fall positions.  If you (or you know someone) who loves working with children, has experience giving children direction and would love to be a role model - we'd like to hear from you.

Whether you want to work just a few hours a week or more - we've got a wide variety of positions available ranging from our Wiggles & Giggles program (open gym) to basic crafts classes to youth sport programs. 

You do not need to be a flag football expert to give direction to Preschool or early school age flag football programs.  If you are interested in learning a bit more, please contact the YMCA at 507-645-0088.  View job descriptions on our website at www.northfieldymca.org.

Referrals make the BEST staff team members - if you know someone, let us know (or let them know)!

A riverboat in need of repair was donated to ARTech School in Northfield, MN. The boat is now being restored by students and parents for a science classroom. Students are striving to get the boat readied to launch in the Mississippi river in May, 2011.

Now boat owners, ala the students, parents and other volunteers work on the boat. A recent hot August day was one of the ‘coordinated work days.’

What is the goal of the boat project?

Bringing science to life is one goal. Just 50 miles from the Mississippi River, it could be a world away without access. Now, with a riverboat, Tami Kasch-Fulgum, science teacher, envisions the floating science classroom as a place to:

The Minnesota Habilitation Coalition recently named Heather Duban (at left in photo with award committee member Becky Girvan), a personal support assistant working with adults with developmental disabilities for Dundas-based Epic Enterprise, the recipient of this year's Enrichment Focus Award. The statewide award recognizes Duban's efforts to enrich Epic’s developmentally disabled clients, specifically those who are less active in Epic’s work program.

Early this morning, my wife and I said goodbye to our oldest son, Will, as he passed through security at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport to begin a twenty-four hour journey to Thailand, where he will spend the next eleven months as a Rotary Youth Exchange student. 

But the adventure really began a year ago, when Will and I met with Vicki Dilley, the Northfield Rotary Club’s youth exchange officer, to find out about the exchange program.  The months that followed were punctuated with important milestones leading toward the big day of departure.  In early November, the application was due. In early December, Will joined more than a dozen other Northfield students in Roseville for the district interviews.  In late December, Will learned that he had been placed in Thailand.

The following information submitted by Emma Wilhlem, Northfield High School Class of 1995.

The Northfield High School Class of 1995 will hold its 15-year reunion in Northfield on Saturday, September 25, 2010. All classmates, their guests, and families are welcome to attend an informal gathering from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Odd Fellows Park. Bring your own picnic lunch and beverages, or consider picking up lunch from one of Northfield's great sandwich shops. Registration is not required for this event.

The Saturday evening event will start at the Northfield Golf Club with dinner from 6 to 9 p.m. After dinner, the party will move to the Rueb 'N' Stein, where Priceless, a band featuring classmates Johnny Eells and Tyler Tripp, will provide entertainment in the upstairs area. These two evening events are for classmates and their guests (adults only). The cost is $60 per person, and the Early Bird ticket price of $50 per person will be available through the month of August. Pre-registration at http://northfield1995.eventbrite.com/ is required for the evening events.

The three 2010 Northfield High School graduates who organized the "Beat Cancer: Cancer Jam 2010" benefit—Heidi Strike, Leigh Langehough, and Rachel Hanson—have been named the recipients of the July 2010 "Making a Difference" Award by the Northfield Healthy Community Initiative.  The award "celebrates those groups or individuals in the community who have a positive influence on Northfield's youth."  For more, see Zach Pruitt's Northfield Healthy Community Initiative blog post.  

In our small town of Northfield, there is a large percentage of students who graduate from Northfield High School that decide to pursue their secondary education locally at either St. Olaf College or Carleton College. This year, twenty-three graduating seniors have chosen St. Olaf as their new home, and four have chosen Carleton. What is it about staying local that appeals to students?

Staying local to attend college comes attached with both advantages and disadvantages. No matter if a student chooses to be an Ole or a Knight, there are similar perks and downsides.

A new trail link was dedicated this morning behind Just Food Coop.  The riverside trail, linking the Mill Towns Trail to downtown Northfield, was dedicated to Maggie Lee, who cut the purple ribbon to officially open the trail.  Speakers at the event were Meg Otten, chair of the Friends of the Mill Towns Trail; Chip DeMann; Spencer Jones, the architect of the trail link; Mayor Mary Rossing; and Maggie Lee.  After the ribbon cutting, attendees were offered purple coneflowers from Mayor Rossing's garden, and invited to toss them into the river and make a wish.  

Just Food provided coffee and scones before the ceremony, and music was provided by brass from the Cannon Valley Regional Orchestra.  Coffee was offered after the ceremony on the new deck behind Butler's Steak and Ale.  Click "Read More" to view a short slideshow of the event.  For better quality photos, see the gallery in the Northfield News or Griff's set of photos on LocallyGrown.

If we haven't heard from you then it's you we want feedback from!

Spend just a few minutes (we promise under 3 minutes) to complete our online survey and give us your thoughts about the bringing of a full YMCA facility to Northfield and partnering with the School District to build the YMCA on High School Property.  A complete Executive Summary and Appendix filled with details of our evaluation process is available online.

YMCA/School Partnership Proposal Informational Meetings - Join us!

Learn more, ask questions, provide your thoughts.  Open to the entire community.  We'll provide a short presentation on the proposal and then have time for Q&A.

Tuesday July 6th

Thursday July 22nd

Tursday Aug 3rd

7:30-8:30 pm

Location:  Community Resource Bank

For more information or to view the Summary Proposal and Appendix, visit the YMCA website at www.northfieldymca.org.

So far this summer, 1,712 people have started a Northfield Community Services recreation program. 

It is not too late to join in on the fun.  Many more sessions of tennis, swimming lessons, tae kwon do, soccer, volleyball, basketball, football, lacrosse, archery and more will begin in the months of July and August.  For more information or to register for upcoming sessions of summer recreation programs:

• Visit the Northfield Public Schools Community Services Division office, located on the first floor of the Northfield Community Resource Center (NCRC) at 1651 Jefferson Parkway, Northfield
• Call 507-664-3649
• Go online to http://www.nfldcommserv.org/Northfield/Default.aspx.

Recreation programs are financially supported by the City of Northfield and Northfield Public Schools Community Services Division.