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Police seek public's help locating missing Northfield 6-year-old
The Northfield Police Department is requesting the public's assistance in locating an endangered missing child, after the apparent suicide of her mother. Elle Ragin, 6, is approximately 3'6" and 45 pounds with brown curly hair and brown eyes. Ragin's mother, Lisa Wade, 39, was located deceased of an apparent suicide on Saturday, July 2 in their Northfield apartment, according to police. Investigators believe Wade may have been involved in her daughter's disappearance. Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Elle Ragin or who has seen Ragin or Wade over the past two weeks is urged to call Northfield Police Department at 507-645-4477 or dial 911.
87-year-old offers car service around Northfield, up to Twin Cities
Whenever Evelyn Estenson returns to Northfield with City Gal Transportation service, she knows her driver will wait to make sure she has safely entered her townhome before driving away. That's just one of the small courtesies experienced driver — and grandmother — Virginia "Ginny" Klinger extends to her growing list of Northfield-area customers. Klinger started City Gal Transportation a year ago after passing a city inspection, a Minnesota Department of...
Autopsy: Elko New Market 20-year-old drowned in Lake Minnetonka
An autopsy released by the Hennepin County Medical Examiner confirmed that a Elko New Market 20-year-old drowned June 3 in Lake Minnetonka. Brady Alan Aune's death was declared an accident. Aune, a graduate of New Prague High School, was remembered for many things, according to his obituary. "… his ability to make friends everywhere, his true adventurous spirit, his passion to see the world and his kind and generous nature. He was compassionate to those in need and always a shining light to friends. His contagious sense of humor lit up every space he graced. He was adored and treasured by his family members and the innumerable people and friends he touched in his life."
New executive director to lead River Bend Nature Center
Connecting with nature is in his nature. Brad Bourn, a lifelong outdoor enthusiast with a long list of leadership positions with place-based organizations, will become the new executive director of the River Bend Nature Center in mid-July. Bourn, who was chosen by the RBNC’s board of directors, succeeds Breanna Wheeler who has held the position since 2016. ...
Rice County Historical Society receives Tilt-A-Whirl donation
”Hopefully, this is the final resting place,” Daryl Bauer, an avid carnival-ride collector, said as he donated a Tilt-A-Whirl car to the Rice County Historical Society. The red, white and blue piece of Faribault history now sits in front of the Rice County Historical Museum. The Tilt-A-Whirl car made its way to the town where it was invented after being retired from the Kingman County carnival.
1 man hospitalized, 1 man charged in alleged road rage assault
A man was hospitalized with multiple broken facial bones and a possible brain bleed following an alleged road rage assault between Faribault and Northfield. The suspect, Leslie Shawn Sanders, 52, of Faribault, was charged with felony first-degree assault Wednesday in Rice County District Court. Multiple witnesses reported seeing Sanders repeatedly punch another driver in the face on Cannon City Boulevard near 154th Street E. around 11 a.m. Monday, according to...
Local legislators expect little to no changes in state abortion protection — though some will try
It has been only a handful of days since abortion rights have been handed back to the states following the United States Supreme Court decision Friday to overturn the 50-year-old precedent that is Roe v. Wade. While more than a dozen states have already enacted their "trigger laws," designed to quickly ban abortion following the SCOTUS decision, 16 states have laws protecting abortion rights. In Minnesota, the Minnesota Supreme Court's 1995 ruling in Doe v. Gomez appears set to safeguard abortion rights for the near...
Norwegian tapestries unveiled at Valley Grove Stone Church
A set of four symbol-filled tapestries, made with bright wool yarn, now adorn the limestone walls of the 1862 stone church at Valley Grove, thanks to the authentic artistry of a Norwegian textiles weaver. Artist Robbie LaFleur said she did a lot of research on the history of the two Valley Grove churches, the adjoining cemetery and the surrounding natural prairie in Nerstrand, but she credits “the most marvelous group of people” who managed the project. ...
Conversion therapy discussion consumes last council meeting of June
A ban upon the controversial practice of conversion therapy that has warranted a lot of discussion at recent City Council meetings was approved during a first reading ordinance vote last week. Northfield councilors and the mayor agreed the practice of therapeutic measures for minors and vulnerable adults should be banned, but disagreed whether city government was the appropriate level with which to make the legislation. City Administrator Ben Martig said...
Cannon River Wilderness Area a 'favorite place in the world'
In the early autumn of 2007, Carl Henry sat with Roxi, his black Labrador retriever. Roxi’s adventurous spirit often led her to chase down animals, like the turkey vultures that circled above the two of them that day. While Roxi had her attention fixed onto the soaring scavengers, Henry snapped a photo of his companion. Looking back, he said, that was one of the reasons that the savanna is his “favorite place in the world.” ...
Vaccinations begin for southern Minnesota's youngest
While COVID-19 cases have fallen over the last several weeks, roughly 1,300 new cases are still reported each day in Minnesota, and many more likely go unreported, as the virus continues to impact families and communities. Even though more deadly variants could be on the horizon, local public health officials are hopeful they can still get the virus in check over the coming months, moving a two-year-long pandemic toward endemic status. ...
Oil costs hinder local garbage disposal companies
With fuel costs on the rise and supply chain challenges making truck maintenance a challenge, local waste disposal companies are dealing with steep cost increases, which operators say they've had to pass on to consumers. In many industries, corporate consolidation has swept aside small businesses, bringing with it a variety of downsides. Perhaps most importantly of all, these larger chain businesses have proven less effective at keeping the dollars spent on them within the communities they serve. ...
Airstream Club International holds rally in Ames Park last weekend
Last weekend, dozens of antique Airstream caravans rolled into Northfield for a rally held at Ames Park to coincide with the Northfield Historical Society exhibition “Fran Hall: Tin Can Traveler.” Cathy Osterman, NHS director said rally goers were given special tours of the exhibit, which outlines the world tour Northfield photographer Fran Hall and his wife Tallie took riding in an Airstream caravan in 1963. The exhibit is filled with photographs Hall snapped after he was hired as the official photographer of the journey. For 14 months, the group traveled across Asia and Europe seeing the sights and acting as unofficial ambassadors to the world. Through Hall’s amazing photography and the letters he wrote back to Northfield friends, as well as excerpts from his 2005 memoir, the exhibit follows the journey he called a ‘trip of a million lifetimes.’ “Tin Can Traveler” will be on display at NHS through December 2023.
Camp Invention enriches summer STEM learning
Ninety-two potential future scientists, technicians, engineers and mathematicians laid foundations at Bridgewater Elementary School last week during Camp Invention’s fun, action-packed STEM camp. The week-long summer camp is a nationally recognized, nonprofit enrichment program for students from kindergarten to sixth grade. Mark Langevin, a sixth-grade science teacher at Northfield Middle School, is once again the camp’s director. “This kind of hands-on learning is so different from regular school,” Langevin said....
Bus service suspends routes, expands dial-a-ride
A shortage of bus drivers is forcing Hiawathaland Transit to suspend its fixed bus routes in Faribault and Northfield. Beginning Monday, the nonprofit transit service will only offer its on-demand dial-a-ride service. A convergence of bus drivers resigning, retiring and on leave has necessitated the temporary stoppage of its regular route buses, according to Transportation Operations Manager Dianne Ford. ...
State and county park leaders continue efforts to draw people outdoors
After a surge of interest in outdoor activities during the COVID-19 pandemic, traffic at local county and state parks appears to be returning more toward pre-pandemic normals in 2022 — but programs at local parks remain popular. In contrast to 2020 and 2021, when campgrounds across the state were booked solid throughout the summer, there’s still some spots available at most state park campgrounds, even on popular weekends, such as around the Fourth of July. ...
Unsolved 19th century murder in Duluth subject for local author's book
Now Northfield historian and author Jeffrey Sauve can add true-crime mystery writer to his biography. Next week, Sauve releases his latest book “Murder at Minnesota Point.” Billed as the “crime of the century” in 1894, the book unravels a Duluth-area murder involving a young unidentified woman found slain on the isolated sandy shores of Minnesota Point. The violent nature of the story eventually took its toll upon Sauve, who served...
Northfield Little League Players of the Week
With summer in full swing, the Northfield Little League Players of the Week makes its return, honoring the youth baseball, softball, little league and tee balls players from the area. Player Name: John Chavis Sport: Little-League Grade: Second Age: Seven...
Affordable housing is becoming less affordable
Wages aren’t keeping up with property value in Rice County. With the current trajectory of the housing market, we could see an increase in the homeless population, says Rice County Assessor Josh Schoen. Over time, the average American’s wages have steadily increased. However, due to inflation, the American workforce has had the same purchasing power for the past half-century, according to the Pew Research Center. Gas prices, for example, have...
Longtime Northfielder releases another historical fiction book
This summer, author and former Northfielder Dan Jorgensen and wife Susan have followed the advice of Colorado authorities and packed their wild fire “go bags.” The Go Bags contain water, food, medicines and clothing — essentials in case of an emergency, like the one the Colorado Front Range experienced last January when over 1,000 houses burned in a massive dry wind fire. “We had a fire near us just yesterday,”...
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Northfield News has been serving Rice County, MN since 1876 and publishes Wednesdays and online at www.NorthfieldNews.com
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