December 7 EVW Update
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- Published on Saturday, 15 December 2012 13:03
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Progress on the secondary construction project continues, and we’re hopeful to move into the offices in January. Contractors have the windows and doors installed, most of the painting completed, casework and cabinets are hung, and the flooring is getting installed. Grazzini Brothers is on-site and completing the prep work for the terrazzo flooring that will be poured and then ground on Brook’s Street Lobby. This is a labor-intensive process with a very attractive end product that will take us into the New Year for completion. The gymnasium concrete continues to cure and dry, and if moisture content meets the industry standards, we could install the hardwood flooring sometime in January. Again, we’re very excited about the project, ongoing progress, and direction provided by Kraus-Anderson Construction.
Please stop in for a visit with your questions and comments, and be sure to exercise caution when you’re in the proximity of the construction zone.
Officer’s death brings back memories of another police tragedy
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- Published on Wednesday, 12 December 2012 11:47
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His death reminds me greatly of another Central Minnesota police officer who was killed in the line of duty, St. Joseph’s Brian Klinefelter.
I was the senior writer at the St. Cloud Times in 1996 when Klinefelter was killed and one of the lead reporters on the story. In fact, the night of the shooting, the two men who are serving sentences for being a part of that shooting were arrested just a block from my St. Cloud house. I was asked to cover the story that night and was outside in my neighborhood when it suddenly was blanketed by law enforcement officers from several jurisdictions.
It turned out that as I approached the spot where the two men were arrested, I found myself walking alongside then Stearns County Sheriff Jim Kostreba. The night was frigid, well below zero. I remember Kostreba didn’t have a hat on and I made a comment about that. It was all I could think of to say in such a tragic situation.
I remember the look on Kostreba’s face as well as the officers’ on the scene. It was a look of sadness, of anger, of great loss.
The daytime high the day of Klinefelter’s funeral was 40 below zero. I say that only because the chill of the air that day was not outdone by the chill of the scene as squad cars with lights and sirens blaring came filled with officers from around the state. They came to pay respects to their fallen brother.
There are many similarities between the deaths of officers Klinefelter and Decker. Both men were “ambushed” at night. Klinefelter as he pulled over a vehicle in St. Joseph, and Decker as he was checking on a man who was apparently suicidal. Both officers were young, Klinefelter 25, and Decker, 31. Both were married with young children.
And by all accounts, both were upstanding young men and officers, a job they loved and were dedicated to.
I’ve thought of Klinefelter often during the past 16 years. I always feel the same. What a gigantic loss to his family, friends and community. Now, I will think the same of Decker, a man I never met but whose life touched mine nonetheless. I lived in Cold Spring, the city Decker was serving, just a few years ago when he began his work there. I grew up near Kimball, a community Decker also served in exemplary fashion. Today I call St. Joseph home and live just blocks from where Klinefelter was shot and he died.
But regardless of where one lives, when a life such as Klinefelter’s or Decker’s is taken, it affects us all.
Police officers in small towns receive little pay for the jobs we ask them to do. Sure, there are times when they respond to a rabid squirrel in a tree or stray dog walking the streets, but there are countless more occasions where they respond to domestic disputes which are often the most volatile situation any officer can be asked to respond to.
According to Decker’s Police Chief, Phil Jones, one of Decker’s strengths as an officer was a skill he possessed that calmed people in such situations. Decker was particularly skilled in dealing with people struggling with mental health problems or suicidal tendencies, Jones said.
Unfortunately, on the night he was killed, Decker never got the chance.
Get busy with it
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- Published on Sunday, 09 December 2012 12:08
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We hang our calendar in a prominent location in the kitchen because it is an important piece of property. It is the singular item within our home that tells us where to go and what to do. A simple glance lets us know if we are headed to the orthodontist or a soccer game, or maybe both.
November 23 EV-W Update
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- Published on Saturday, 01 December 2012 15:18
- Hits: 150
The past week of construction includes the completion of all exterior concrete work to sidewalks, stairs, and curbing. Hanson Construction performed some minor modifications to improve the visual appearance at the top of the southwest pre-cast panel. We also approved a 5-foot band of white acoustical treatment to be sprayed around the top of the gym to improve sound quality and speaker performance. In addition, contractors plan to install more windows and the aluminum entrances in the office and lobby next week. Other vendors and construction progress includes office and bathroom painting, tile installation in bathrooms, and fire protection and sprinkler installation. Again, we’re very excited about the project, ongoing progress, and direction provided by Kraus-Anderson Construction.
Please stop in for a visit with your questions and comments, and be sure to exercise caution when you’re in the proximity of the construction zone.
Finding Beauty
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- Published on Saturday, 01 December 2012 14:01
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My mom loved animals. She passed this wonderful gift on to me.
Growing up, our house served as home to all sorts of critters. We owned hamsters, bunnies, an ever-expanding tank of fish and a parakeet named Snickers. When my fourth-grade teacher needed a home for our classroom mice, guess who cleared a shelf for the beloved rodents? My mom.
When I was 10, my sister and I saved our money ($17.50 each) to buy a white toy poodle. We named her Princess. (Why not?)
If it crawled, crept, chirped or barked, chances are we experienced the joy of that kind of pet. We had everything – except a cat.
My mom loved cats. They were her favorite critter in the whole world. She talked often of the cats she had while growing up on a farm. We even owned a kitten for a short while when I was very young. I vaguely remember the soft ball of purring fur, but not what she looked like. I do remember her name: Beauty. Our kitty lived with us for only a week before we had to give her to another family because Beauty made my dad sneeze.
Even though my mom loved cats, she loved my dad more. Our household moved on to other furry and fuzzy friends. We were critter people – just not cat ones.
My mom never forgot about her love of cats and she was (I believe) happy when I married a cat person. My husband and I got our first cat shortly after getting married. I became a full-fledged, card-carrying cat-lover.
The years went by. In addition to our cats, we got fish, tree frogs and a dog. My mom got Alzheimer’s. She passed away two years ago, and for months afterward I sensed her presence beside me.
At the time, our house had its fair share of critters, with no plans to add to the brood.
Then, I experienced a sudden and unexplained urge to get a kitten. My daughter and I went to the shelter – just to look (famous last words). My husband reminded us before leaving, “Look only at male kittens. Maybe a white or gray one,” he said. “Anything but black.”
(I understood his thinking. We’d always been a boy-cat family. The color request was practical in nature. Pets shed. We have a yellow (shedding) lab and light colored furniture to help hide the occasional pet hair. Black fur would not coordinate with our overall camouflaging technique.)
We held many kittens at the shelter that day but only one was available for immediate adoption. We returned home with a sweet purring ball of fur. A black female with radiant topaz eyes. We named her Gertrude. She’d been abandoned, but by the shelter’s estimates she’d been born around Oct. 12 – my mom’s birthday.
Officially, we got the kitten for our youngest son, but she was my baby from day one. She showed a special attachment to me and I welcomed her attention. Having Gertrude helped me deal with the grief of losing my mom. I gradually stopped sensing her presence; I believe because I was finally ready to let my mom go.
This isn’t the end of the story. Recently, I found an old pile of photographs. As I flipped through, I came across one of my sister and me with the little kitten named Beauty we’d owned for a short time years and years ago. There, in the photograph, the bright topaz eyes of an exact replica of Gertrude stared back at me. I’d forgotten, but Beauty had been a black kitten too.
The coincidence made me catch my breath as I became conscious of something I’d already known: my kitty’s name may be Gertrude, but to me, she’s always been a Beauty. (Thanks, Mom!)
Follow Slices of Life on Facebook and hit Like (please). Jill Pertler is an award-winning syndicated columnist, playwright and author of “The Do-It-Yourselfer’s Guide to Self-Syndication” E-mail her at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ; or visit her website at http://marketing-by-design.home.mchsi.com/.