The NRHEG High School wrestling team saw its dual-meet season end Thursday, Feb. 11 with a 65-3 Section 2A loss to Kenyon-Wanamingo.

The eighth-seeded Panthers defeated No. 9 seed Blooming Prairie in the opening round. Top-seeded Kenyon-Wangmingo went on to defeat Maple River and Blue Earth Area for the section title and state tournament berth.

NRHEG has individual section at Blue Earth this weekend.

I happened to come across some old pictures the other day that reminded me of the good old days attending Hammer School. One of the pictures was of all the classes and was dated 1955; the other was of just my class, but dated. Looking at those pictures brought back fond memories of my early school days. Those were simple times when a kid didn’t have any worries outside of school, and back then my only other concern was what I was going to do after the last bell rang.

We started each day by standing, facing the flag with hand over heart, and reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, which never offended anyone back then, but only taught us to respect our country. I have mentioned in past columns about the seating order which went from youngest by the inside wall to oldest by the window. There were only two rooms in the school with the library and restrooms on the north end. Other than books, the library was also where they kept the construction paper, glue, scissors, writing paper and paper cutter. The basement was used as a lunch room where I ate many an egg salad or peanut butter sandwich. That part of the school was also used for recess whenever the weather was bad.

Our school still had some of the older desks with ink wells in them. Ink wells were where you would put a bottle of ink and you would then take a fountain pen and draw the ink out, filling the pen for writing on paper. We all had to have a “Big Chief,” which was a heavy, coarse paper in which you could almost see the grain. It had two sets of lines, one for capitals and the dashed line for lower case. This also worked well for learning to write in cursive. I can’t believe they don’t want to teach that anymore.

Recess, like lunch, was usually a time when we went outside and were allowed to play without structure. When kids are left to find their own fun they can actually become quite creative. One of the games we played we called “chicken,” and in it one kid rode on another’s back and would challenge two other kids with the object being to knock the opponent off the other kid’s back. This was fun and seemingly harmless until someone (me) broke their arm. From that time on we were forbidden to do this type of “fun.”

Not to be deterred by this setback, we moved on and created another fun thing to do at recess. We were not even 10 years removed from WWII, so playing army was a popular game. We used sticks for guns and took turns being the enemy, but of course the older kids were usually always the good guys even if the younger kids felt they should really have been the bad guys. The thing that brought us all together wasn’t necessarily the game itself, but the digging of fox holes. Now, we didn’t just pretend to dig fox holes. We actually dug some pretty elaborate holes and to keep them from being noticed we dug them at the far end of the playground and spread the dirt out. We even found some old plywood to cover them up with so they wouldn’t be found. This went on for a couple of weeks until someone ratted us out or the custodian found them when he was mowing. Either way we were made to stay after school and fill our creation with dirt and were told, in no uncertain terms, that it was not to happen again.

Yes, school was fun and most of the time uneventful, but once in a while our creative genius would kick in and we would try to push the envelope. One of my favorite things to do on an indoor recess was to play with modeling clay. I could take that clay and make anything from army men to football players or even stock cars. The best part was when you were finished you could roll everything into a ball for the next time. I carried my modeling clay habit home and found that, although I didn’t have much money for toys, I could buy a box of modeling clay at the Ben Franklin store for a quarter and make almost any toy I wanted. Even though I had long outgrown the modeling clay thing, my mother would always make sure I got a new box every year for Christmas.

When I was overseas in the service I received a package from home at Christmas time. It was from Mom and Dad, and when I opened it up I found some clothes and, there in the bottom of the package, was a box of modeling clay. Even though I was halfway around the world, that box of clay sure made it feel just a little more like Christmas. I guess that’s just what moms do.

Once the school day was over, I would walk home and sometimes Larry Hubbell, who was a little older than me, would ask if I wanted to stop in for a while and watch “Crusader Rabbit” on TV. I always looked forward to that because we didn’t have TV at our house. We still hadn’t evolved from the entertainment-by-radio era.

Until next time, there is still time to enjoy the outdoor rinks, sledding and fishing on our area lakes, but always be careful when you do decide to venture out because no ice is ever 100 percent safe.

Please, remember to keep our troops in your thoughts and prayers, in not only during the holiday season, but for the rest of the year. They are the reason that we are able to enjoy all the freedoms that we have today.

The biggest question following Super Bowl 50? It wasn’t whether the Denver Broncos could return to the big game next year or if Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers would learn from their mistakes and make their own return. No, it centered around Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning: Would that be his last game as a professional football player?

It seems likely, given that he’s closing in on 40 years old. Wait, what? At the ripe old age of 42, I don’t often get asked if I’ll be retiring soon. Okay, sometimes my students ask, possibly out of hope.

When it comes to pro sports, retirement most often arrives before the magic number of 40. Kobe Bryant, the Los Angeles Lakers’ all-star player, will settle down at the age of 37 after this season of basketball. Kevin Garnett of the Minnesota Timberwolves also looks to be done, and since the Wolves will once again not be in the playoffs, it looks like Garnett’s run will end prior to him turning 40 in May.

Naturally, professional athletes take quite a beating, and they also rely on their athleticism to do their jobs. Most of us hit our athletic peak sometime between 18-25. I don’t need to be in shape to teach, though it, like many of your jobs, can be exhausting. Athletes are also financially secure pretty early in their careers, if they don’t blow all their millions of dollars on extravagances. Many of us are wondering how we might be able to afford retirement when that day arrives, not how many cars we might own or how many thousands of square feet our house(s) might be.

With scientific advances what they are, a number of athletes are looking at extending their careers longer than usual. Tom Brady, quarterback of the New England Patriots, who will turn 39 prior to the start of the next NFL season, has speculated he might be able to play another seven years. With the right diet and workouts, some athletes are able to go beyond the normal lifespan of an athletic career. Just think about Nolan Ryan, one of the greatest pitchers of all time, who was 46 when he retired from baseball. And he didn’t just hang on; the man threw two no-hitters in his 40s!

Why keep playing sports so long when you have more money than you know what to do with? What else are they going to do? What would I do if I could retire at the end of this school year? There are certainly bucket-list items to accomplish, but in reality, I’d have to get at least a part-time job. This is what we see with many retirees. They’re not just going to sit at home watching TV. Heck, my dad went right back to work after he retired. It wasn’t anything close to full-time, but it was something to keep busy and keep a little cash flow going as well.

So many people look forward to retirement and then realize they can’t afford to retire when they want. Insurance plays a big role, but the ability to save for retirement is not often on people’s minds when they’re in their 20s and 30s. I grew up watching my parents save money and learned all about 401K funds. A co-worker got me started on my own retirement account in my second year of teaching. I want to be able to retire when the time comes that my pension will kick in. I can’t count on Social Security, so there sometimes have to be sacrifices now so I can enjoy life someday without work.

I can imagine I’ll still work after retiring, but the beauty is you can often dictate just how much you want to work. Many substitute teachers are retired educators, and they love the ability to be able to say no if they’ve got plans or just don’t feel like it. When I reach that age, maybe I’ll feel like writing more novels and be able to do that at my leisure; who knows?

Many of these athletes don’t have hobbies or other options. Some go into coaching or broadcasting, but if you retire at 40, you hope to have half your life left, at least. How will you fill that time without going crazy? Maybe that’s why it’s not a slam dunk for Manning to retire on top after winning a Super Bowl.

Whenever one decides to retire, it’s a tremendous decision. It’s easy for us to sit back and say, “Why not retire? Now’s the time!” But I’m betting that will be a more and more difficult choice to make in the years to come. Best of luck to Manning, Bryant, and any of you nearing that point!

Word of the Week: This week’s word is contumacy (thanks to Galen Spinler!), which means disrespect for authority, as in, “The constant contumacy the teacher saw in her classroom helped make her decision to retire easy.” Impress your friends and confuse your enemies!

The scurs are glad to announce that global warming has returned. After copious amounts of PB Blaster, the control cables on the Weather Eye are back to predicting weather with the best of them. Will it be enough to make it to spring or will we get stuck with more winter? Starting Wednesday, partly sunny with highs in the mid-20’s and lows in the upper teens. Thursday, mostly cloudy with a slight chance of evening rain. Highs in the upper 30’s and lows in the mid-30’s. Partly sunny Friday with a modest chance of rain. Highs in the low 40’s and lows near 30. Saturday, mostly sunny with highs in the low 40’s and lows in the upper 20’s. Partly sunny and slightly cooler on Sunday with a slight chance of rain and  snow. Highs in the upper 30’s with lows in the low 20’s. Monday, mostly sunny and cooler. Highs in the upper 20’s with lows in the upper teens. Mostly cloudy skies for Tuesday with highs in the low 30’s and lows in the low teens. The normal high for Washington’s real birthday is 30 and the normal low is 12. This brings back temperature-wise to roughly the end of the first week in December. The scurs cannot tell a lie: They will be celebrating with cherry pie and ice cream of course.

The Full Moon for the month will occur on the 22nd, which coincides with Washington’s birthday. It goes by The Full Snow Moon as the snows were deep when the tribes of the Northeast got to February. For our area however, February ranks 4th in total average snowfall. The Ojibwe called this The Sucker Moon for the suckers began running in rivers and streams. The Sioux called it The Raccoon Moon as the raccoons would tend to awaken at this time of year and start to move around as the temperatures began to warm. At the ranch it is of course The Full Lambing Moon as soon the ewes unload their cargo. And not a moment too soon as far as some of them are concerned.

Last week was a cold one and thankfully not one where we were lambing. Temperatures were even below normal for early January. While temperatures were cold, they didn’t reach the predicted overnight lows Friday night. Nor was there much snow. For the month thus far we have tallied about 9” of snow with 6” – 7” of that coming early in the month. Frost depth continued to head downwards however from 12” at the SROC on the 8th, back to 13” on the 15th. As an anecdotal reference, the walk-in door on the barn at the ranch is beginning to get sticky, something it does as the frost gets deeper. It tends to heave the frame up on the bottom as a result. Typically it gets to the point where the only thing that will keep it shut on a windy day is a good old-fashioned bungee strap.

Tuesday afternoon will be shearing time at the ranch with the ewes having won a reprieve after the temperatures were so cold over the weekend. There should be only 40 or so to do, so it should go relatively quickly. Probably the biggest hang-up has been trying to keep the ewes out of the snow prior to shearing. The little nuisance snowfall events have provided just enough snow to make the wool wet if we don’t shut them in ahead of time. The shearer doesn’t like it, the catcher doesn’t like it, the bagger doesn’t like it and the mills don’t like getting moldy wool. Can’t blame any of them. It’s not good to keep bred ewes cooped up though for long periods of time so getting the shearing done will make all parties concerned breathe a collective sigh of relief. Fun to observe; not so fun to be a participant.

Luckily, the Gopher women’s basketball team has provided something to look forward to all winter long. Having been fortunate enough to attend several games and watch most of the rest on TV has made the winter seem to fly by. I do have to laugh at some of the BTN commentary however. They have generally given the Gophers very little credit all season long aside from Rachel Banham’s scoring prowess and occasionally the one-two punch of Rachel Banham and Carlie Wagner. Last Sunday while watching the Nebraska-Michigan St. game they tried to make it sound as if the Gophers’ 110-73 mauling of Nebraska back on the 11th was some kind of a fluke. Even Monday night they seemed preoccupied with putting Iowa into the NCAA tournament for much of the game. Funny how it suddenly stopped when Banham put a dagger in their heart with a last-second 3 ball to win the game. As one fan said: “There! Put that in your pipe and smoke it!” The only thing worse has been BTN’s network hockey coverage. It’s as bland and stale as a piece of white bread left out on the counter for three weeks. Watching the Ohio State band perform during the intermission between periods? Give me a break. Makes me long for the good ol’ days of the WCHA. 

Ruby is working on surviving another Westminster Dog Show. One more night and she should be in the clear. This is the only dog we’ve ever had that pays much attention to the TV. Even as a kid I don’t recall the dogs barking or growling at anything on the tube. I’m sure the advent of the HD signal probably has something to do with it. The agility trial on Saturday night served as a warmup for her. All the action and movement probably catches her attention more than just the handlers taking the dog around the show ring in a circle. The dogs Ruby gets most vocal about? No real clear pattern, although her favorite is usually the Border Collie.

See you next week…real good then.

I saw a big black fly in the house the other day. I couldn’t imagine why it would stick its ugly head out on such a cold day. He must have got his signals mixed. 

Flies drive my dad crazy. He becomes a bug killing monster. They drive him bananas. Of course thinking where they might have been before they come here sort of blows my mind too. A housefly can transport germs as far as 15 miles away from the original source of contamination.

Assuming that all the offspring survived, 190,000,000,000,000,000, 000 flies could be produced in four months by the offspring of a single pair of flies.

One thing can be said for this cold weather that we have been experiencing. I haven’t had to swat even one mosquito for quite a few days now. They must be tough little buggers though because they seem to come alive in quantities when warm weather hits again. Mosquitoes are the hardiest of all the world’s insects. It has been found that they live in the coldest region of northern Canada and Siberia and can live quite comfortably at the North Pole. It is equally at home in equatorial jungles.

Mosquitoes do not bite. They stab. A mosquito has no jaws; when attacking a victim it pierces it with its long proboscis and sucks the blood up through the nasal tube. At one “sitting” a mosquito can absorb one and a half times its own weight in blood.

The buzzing of flies and bees is not produced by any sound-producing apparatus within the insects’ bodies. It is simply the sound of their wings moving up and down and back and forth at a rapid rate. A mosquito’s wings move at the rate of 1,000 times a second.

I have always loved the story of the bumblebee. Attending a seminar in Texas the speaker, Mamie McCullough, challenged us that how different the goal or whatever the handicap is, one could convince themselves of the truth, “I can.” Strongly believing enough one can use power wisely.

We need to be like the bumblebee. Scientists can prove that it is aerodynamically impossible for the bumblebee to fly. Its body is too heavy and its wings too light to sustain flight. Since the bumblebee however chooses not to be affected by this sophisticated opinion - he flies, he works, and he achieves!

Bees create their own air conditioning. When the weather becomes hot and the temperature inside the bee hive threatens to melt the wax, one group of bees stations itself at the entrance to the colony while another remains inside. Both groups then flap their wings simultaneously, sometimes at a rate of 400 flaps per second. Thus they create a cross-draft that pulls the hot air out of the hive and draws cooler air in.

Remember the movie, “Karate Kid” where the old Chinese judo expert would catch them with chop sticks? Impossible? No! I have a couple of cousins and a nephew who use to be very skillful at catching them that way. Hard to believe as their wings vibrate 340 times a second and they have a rotating eye span better than a gunner pilot in an airplane.

My nephew Cam as a young child was always a good bug catcher.  Fireflies were easy and he would put them in a glass jar and they became little flashlights. He did get in trouble once. He was an expert at catching bees by their wings, seldom ever getting stung. It was something he was proud of and one day he took a collection of bees in a glass jar to school for “show and tell.” The teacher wasn’t so pleased, thinking he was up to mischief. When she saw the expression on his face and realized it wasn’t a prank but was an accomplishment of great intent, she did apologize but advised him to remove the jar from the classroom just in case someone might open the cover, or that the jar might fall onto the floor and break. 

 Without a doubt, bugs will be the last living thing on the earth. For one thing there are so many of them. There are more insects in one square mile of rural land than there are human beings on the entire earth. Scientists discover approximately 7,000 to 10,000 new insect species every year – and they believe that there are between 1 million and 10 million species as yet unfound.

It thoroughly disgusts me to see people eating bugs on repulsive TV shows, but in reality it is said that bugs are really high in quality nutrition. 

How could they know that? The thought of some research person on his hands and knees counting is rather hilarious.

Some bugs injure crops, but most are relatively harmless. They are usually controlled by chemical sprays or dust however other insects most often provide the best control of bugs.

Moral of the story: Size doesn’t give us power even though we are capable of killing the little beasties with a fly swatter or step on them with a foot.

— — —

Birthdays and anniversaries:

• Thursday, February 18th: Karson Kenneth Benning, 2015; Kris Munson McDonald, Janice Waage, Zola Wayne, Jamie Kunkel Riley, Brad & Rachel Lerum

• Friday, February 19th: Abraham Peterson, Allison Schmidt, Maklela Larkin, Deedee Hunt, Jason Jensen, Teri Ravenhorst, Marjorie Solberg

• Saturday, February 20th: Derek Dobberstein, his second birthday;  Hadley Routh, Derek Flesche, Amy Shaunce, David Swearingen, Joyce Lageson Hoddick, LuAnn Sommer Granholdt, David & LeAnn Hanson, Jim & Nancy Cornelius

• Sunday, February 21st: Jeannie Worrell, Andy Butler, Phillip Ingvaldson, Bryan Dirkson, Leanna Peterson, Chris & Kim Jensen, Darrell & Cynthia Farr, Max & Marlene Jensen

• Monday, February 22nd: Shelia Nelson White, Carlie Thompson, Dalys Waltz, Joan & Marian Mast

• Tuesday, February 23rd: Sharon Gasner Ramaker, Bernie Warnke, Josh Krueger, Daniel Suelter, Dale Waltz, Tiffany Mischke, Daniel Walterman, Laura & Jamie Baudoin

• Wednesday, February 24th: Jerry Hemingway, Rick Draper, Nathan Wayne, Roxy Menefee Ray, Sarah Zamora, Nancy Larson, Kathy & Daryl Reed

Wishing you quiet moments of beauty on your special day!

Echoes From the Loafers' Club Meeting

Here's your coffee. For you, it's only a dollar.

How much is it for everyone else?

It's a dollar. Who do you think you are?

Driving by the Bruces

I have two wonderful neighbors — both named Bruce — who live across the road from each other. Whenever I pass their driveways, thoughts occur to me, such as: How often did Batman’s cape get caught in his car door? I saw a guy in a coffee shop who wasn't using a smartphone, a tablet or a laptop. He was just drinking coffee. Weird. I guess it takes all kinds. You know what I think about telepathy? Some of you do.

The cafe chronicles

Mother would have called him a good eater. He dug into the mashed potatoes with gusto. If he’d been a beaver, there wouldn't have been a tree left in the county. There had been a slight complication with his order. The beef tips were gone.

"Do you like cold chicken?" asked the waitress.

"Sure, you bet."

"Well, then come back tomorrow. It's still hot now."

The next day, I stopped at the Happy Chef restaurant in Mankato, where it had opened in 1963. It offers breakfast throughout the day. I find that appealing. There had been 56 restaurants scattered throughout seven Midwestern states in the Happy Chef chain. A 36-foot tall Happy Chef statue welcomed me. An employee told me that this iconic eatery was the last remaining Happy Chef with a statue. Happy Chef sponsored a fastpitch softball team for many years. For no reason, I thought about Meadowlark Lemon, the clown prince of the Harlem Globetrotters, who died recently. Lemon, who was known for his humorous hook shots, played in 16,000 straight games. He played 325 games annually. I was in one of them.

Tales of a traveling man

My wife asked me if I knew Paul Thompson. I know a few Paul Thompsons. I knew that one of them had died just by the way my wife had posed the question. When I’m traveling and she asks a question from home about someone that way, there is a good chance the name was in the death notices. He either died or won the Nobel Prize and I don’t think I run with a crowd of potential Nobel Prize winners. I knew the Paul Thompson who had died. He was a wonderful guy and I’m pleased to have known him.

I landed in Frankfort Airport. I had to, I was in an airplane. I couldn't have done it on my own. I made my way to baggage claim to claim my baggage. The handle of my suitcase had been fully extended and then bent in half. There were tracks on the suitcase. It had been run over by something. The bag had been ripped and some of the contents had become free-range. Over many years of spending time in baggage claim areas of airports, I’ve seen the contents of many broken suitcases on carousels. I’ve felt sorry for the owners. Now I was one of those folks. I gathered up my belongings and placed them into what was left of my suitcase. Fortunately, one of my items recovered was a roll of duct tape that I used to repair the damaged bag.

A friend told me that he’d gotten one speeding ticket in his life. He’d thanked the police officer for giving him the citation.

I suppose I should have thanked someone for demolishing my suitcase, but I didn’t.

Slopping the cats

I was given a small sample of cat food. I opened the package and placed it in the bowl for our two house cats, Ethel and Purl. They’d been entertaining themselves with one of those self-service petting stations. I told the felines that four out of five veterinarians recommended the food. It was a lie, but that didn’t matter. I was talking to cats. The cats turned up their noses at the new food. They snubbed it because they figured that the fifth vet must have been the only one who had tasted the stuff.

Nature notes

"Could I have seen a raven near Albert Lea?" It’s unlikely. A common raven is a bird of the north here, but I’ve seen them as far south as Sherburne and Chisago counties in Minnesota and I’ve seen photos of common ravens in Washington County. Historical records show a few sightings in Iowa.

Meeting adjourned

Jimmy Johnson said, "Treat a person as he is and he will remain as he is. Treat him as what he could be and he will be what he should be." Be kind.

Early Tuesday morning, February 2, 2016, Genie got an e-mail message from a relative living in Clear Lake, Iowa. It read, “Great things are happening in Iowa – Trump got Trumped, the groundhog didn't see his shadow (thus, no six more weeks of winter – making for an early spring).”

By the way, gas is always 10¢ to 20¢ per gallon cheaper in Iowa than Minnesota. We will let you know when the Barrel Drive-in is opening – come on down, the chicken dinner is on us at the Barrel.

We live on a street that runs east and west in Albert Lea. Arlene Murray lives on a street that runs east and west in Albert Lea. Both homes are on the north side of the street laid out such that we can see the front side of her garage and she can see the back side of our garage. Over the years Arlene and Genie have developed their own definition of a blizzard: “When one can’t see the other’s garage because of snow and wind.” Groundhog Day, Feb. 2, 2016 met their definition of a blizzard.

On February 2, 2016, Genie and I were glad we’re members of NOS-SIC (Norwegians Over Seventy Stay Inside Club). We did just what the eligibility requirements are: either be a Norwegian or know a Norwegian and stay inside for at least 24 consecutive hours during severe weather. (The severity was up to 40 mph winds and a grand total of seven inches of snow. My Norwegian summarization of the blizzard was “UFF DA!”

I am not a go-to-the-movies fan. Genie wanted to go to Star Wars but I wasn’t interested. Genie dangled the carrot by saying she would pay the admission fee. Being a cheap Norwegian I said, “Okay, I’ll go.” We went to Star Wars Number Seven (I hadn’t seen any of the previous six) at the Flame Theatre in Wells, Minnesota on a Sunday afternoon. As we were driving into Wells, Genie asked me to buy each of us a box of buttered popcorn as she had been told it was really good. I said okay, seeing as how she was paying to get in. 

As we enter, a man and a younger lady are right behind us, so I hold the door for them. As they enter he says, “I’ll get the door on the way out.” Genie buys the tickets, $3 for each, and I buy the buttered box of popcorn, $4 for each box. (Once again, Genie proved her ability of bargain buying.)

Genie and I proceed on into the theatre and sit in two seats at the end of a row. The man and young lady sit right behind us and strike up a conversation. They introduce themselves – he is a farmer just outside of Wells and she is his daughter (an employee of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester).

The movie starts and Genie helps me catch on. (The wrap-around sound effects were excellent.)

The movie ends and we visit some more on the way out. As we get to the door, the dad says “my turn” and holds the door for us.

As we leave he says, “The Force be with you.” ‘Twas then I knew farmer Rick Feist was a member of the Wells “Minnesota Nice Club.”

———

Bob is a retired AAL (Aid Association for Lutherans) agent, currently working on his master’s degree in Volunteering. His wife, Genie, is a retired RN, currently working on her doctor’s degree in Volunteering. They have two children, Deb in North Carolina, and Dan in Vermont. Bob says if you enjoy his column, let him know. If you don’t enjoy it, keep on reading, it can get worse. Words of wisdom: There is always room for God.

Funeral services for Carol Mae Raben of Albert Lea, MN, will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, February 22, 2016 at the Crossroads Evangelical Free Church in Albert Lea. Pastor Jeffrey Phelps will officiate. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the church. Interment will be in Graceland Cemetery.

Carol died Wednesday, February 17, 2016 at the Albert Lea Good Samaritan Center. She was 82 years of age.

Carol was born November 23, 1933 in Superior, WI, the daughter of Clayton and Mae (Nolan) Thorgeson. She graduated from Central High School in Superior, WI, and from the Superior Vocational College. On April 23, 1977 she was united in marriage to Warren Raben at the St Paul Lutheran Church in Minneapolis, MN. Carol was a LPN working in Minneapolis and after moving to Albert Lea in 1977 she was a Home Health Nurse.

Funeral services for Iris W. Bell will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, February 22, 2016 at Hartland Evangelical Lutheran Church. The Reverend Shawn Stafford will officiate. Visitation will be from 2–5 p.m. on Sunday at the Hartland Evangelical Lutheran Church, as well as one hour prior to the service on Monday. Interment will take place at Hartland Cemetery.

Iris passed away on Thursday, February 18, 2016 at St. John’s Lutheran Home. She was 91 years old.

Hannah Lundberg is back from Down Under, and she’d like to give thanks to everyone who helped get her there.

Hannah, a 2014 NRHEG High School graduate, recently returned from a six-month mission to Australia and Africa, and will hold a thank you dinner Saturday, Feb. 20 from 6-8 p.m. at Vibrant Life Church in Ellendale. She will share stories about her experiences overseas. Anyone who supported her or wants to hear more about the mission trip is welcome.