GRAND OLD TIME — A retirement roast for Carl Anderson was held at the 3-in-One in Hollandale March 3. From left are Dale Miller, Anderson, Greg Bartsch and Darrell Hanson. (Star Eagle photo by Kathy Paulsen)

By KATHY PAULSEN

Staff Writer

On Saturday night, March 3rd, an enterprising brother-in-law, Dale Miller, a fellow fire fighter, Greg Bartsch, and good friend Darrell Hanson of Blooming Prairie organized a "Retirement Roast" for Carl Anderson at the 3-In-One Bar in Hollandale, which is owned and operated by Miller. Firemen, along with their spouses or dates, from many of the local fire departments had been invited to the surprise roast.

Carl and his wife, Nancy, along with Carl's mother, Lettie, and Nancy’s parents, Eddie and Arlene Miller, were invited for supper at the 3-In-One Bar by Miller, Carl's brother-in-law.

NRHEG Elementary to present ‘Cinderella’ March 23-24

Prairie Fire Theatre and NRHEG Elementary students present “Cinderella” (A rock & roll version set in the 1950s.) Public performances are scheduled for Friday, March 23 at 7 p.m. and Saturday, March 24 at 2 p.m. in Ellendale. Admission is $5.00 adults and $3.00 students. The residency and production is sponsored by the NRHEG PTO. Cast List:

Leads: Cinderella: Lillian Bell; Fairy Godmother: Solveig Stafford; Rona: Michelle Katzung; Zona: Kyra Possin; Dinah: Avery Hill; Click Dark: Caitlin Goette; Mikey: Benjamin Lewer; Queen Cash: Emily Crabtree; Assistant 1: Jazzlyn Johnson; Assistant 2: Sophia Mrotz; Assistant 3: Kylie Lembke; Mistake 1: Lauren Herrmann; Mistake 2: Rebecca Peterson; Mistake 3: Hayleigh Williams; Mistake 4: Karenna Strom; Poppa: Gavin Nachtigall (PFCT Tour Actor and Director); and Wynona: Jo Gimbel (PFCT Tour Actor and Director.)

Now that Christmas is long over, many of our gifts are forgotten and  tucked away in a corner of the closet. Why am I telling you this? I was given a bag full of beautiful wrapped miscellaneous gifts, all of them receiving the usual “ooh - ahh” and “just what I wanted.” 

In the bottom of the bag was a plain brown envelope. When I opened it, I then found a plain brown book. It wasn’t large or thick or beautiful, until I read it and realized its value as a gift. 

The book titled “A Christmas Gift” by Keith Gaddy Davis, revealed how he had been given a bag of gifts from a friend he hadn’t expected to get anything from. He was embarrassed because he had no gift to give in return. He nevertheless dug into the gifts. 

The giver was obviously intrigued with the gift of a calculator because he was poor at math. He picked up the next elegant package. When he shook it there was no sound. After unwrapping it, he discovered the box contained only tissue paper and cotton! Had she forgotten the gift? 

He held the box, not knowing what to say. Then quietly in explanation she said, “It’s a pause, use it anywhere, anytime you need it. It will always be there.” The empty box seemed to overflow. “I know you’ve been busy, and I thought you could use a pause,” she added.

Since that Christmas, I have found how often I had to use that pause. It is always with me and as good as the day it was given. It will always be uniquely mine and yet I don’t mind giving it away. I want to share my treasure because it has been so good for me.

When I find myself burdened with activity, I can stop and pause and put things back into perspective. When I need to make a decision, I can pause and think. If I am tired, I pause. 

The pause is there when I can’t sleep, and I am all alone with my thoughts. It’s there when the morning sky starts to light the world around me, or the sun goes down so red in the west. The pause has given me time to hold back words I shouldn’t say, or given me time to find the words I should.  

I pause and look at the pictures of my grandchildren on the wall. I pause to review a recipe. I pause in wonder. I pause in pain. I pause before I say yes and also before I say no. I pause to speak with friends and I pause to speak to strangers. It is funny how your mind instantly thinks pause. There are countless time I think pause and thank God for something.  

It isn’t Christmas. It isn’t wrapped in gold paper. But, it is still as good as new and I want you to have it too. Like a quiet moment, quick but reverent as a prayer. I hope you accept a pause and use it as I have. It is a gift which has done so much for me. I can only pause and share it with you.

One size fits all. The older it gets the more I realize the importance of it. Even if you choose to give it away, it remains forever your personal private pause. Thank you, God, for The Pause!

Why am I telling you this? Because it was a gift which was given me that will live with me forever and it means so much to me. Good things should be shared. Pause to look at snow flakes, rain drops, flowers that grow; birds that flit and sing, and squirrels that hustle to find corn, nuts etc.

A pause gives us the time to enjoy life and see the little things which make us happy.

Some of our Star Eagle readers have commented they like to read about events such as family or school reunions, birthdays and anniversaries, or birth and wedding announcements. In order to read about these important things, we need our faithful readers to pass along the information to us. If you have news, please contact me.

Also, if our NRHEG Star Eagle readers would like to share birthdays and anniversaries of your family and friends, or you know of some that should be deleted, or names have changed, please contact me via e-mail, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; by postal mail, P.O. Box 192, Geneva, MN 56035 or telephone, 507-256-4405.

Birthdays and anniversaries:

• Thursday, March 22nd: National Goof Off Day! Gordy Carroll, Brenna Lynn Hagen, Shannon Johnson, Karin Lieberg, Bob Sommers, Leah Elaine Bergerson, Jerry Peterson, Nancy & Jerry Walterman, Dennis & Glenda Blouin.

• Friday, March 23rd: Chris Newgard, Penny Obermoller, Alan Edwardson, Troy Johnson, Troy Wagner, Jason Dwight, Alexi Jo Kitzer, Alex Dobberstein, Delaney Sue Vander Syde, Alexander James Thompson, Peter Bergerson, Chris Rutheford, Phyllis Anderson, Glea & DeLores Hyland, Rick & Liz Wangsness.

• Saturday, March 24th: Gail Ottesen, Seth Chad Staloch, Dave Meixner, Kurt Hanson, Laurie Phagan, Lucetta Kermes, Wes & Ruth Neidermeier, Angie & Cory Klemmensen, Tony & Sandra Tonsing, Lonna & Dean Broitzman.

• Sunday, March 25th: Brad Hagen, Michelle Ritz, Pam Anderson, Faith Jensen, Tom Marlin, Trevor Loverink, Bernice Farr Mattson.

• Monday, March 26th: Nikita Zelpha Peterson, Mary Lou Faldat, Jackie Draayer, David Hanson, Ray Coxworth, Lonnie Misgen, Ginger Cornelius, Dillon Hanson, Daryl Jensen, Duane Morreim, Amy Dobberstein, Marge Wobschall, Mary Lou Spurr, Gerrit & Jean Molenaar, Jeff & Robin Christensen, Jennifer & Matthew Dinneen.

• Tuesday, March 27th: Kim Weckwerth Farr, Jim Ottesen, Verona Winegar, Tom Lund, Tina Jensen Wangen, Jodi Loverink, Neil Born, Ralph Randall, Todd & Sheri Utpadel, Wes & Julie Schroenrock.

•  Wednesday, March 28th: Jordan Brye Wagner, Katie Ann Lee, her 8th; Daryl Van Ravenhorst, Alan Olson, Paul Marlin, Josh Stevens, Daniel Suleter, Richard & Lisa (Long) Hocking.

 It is your special day. Get carried away!

The other day I went into Preston Foods to see what the deli had to offer for lunch. I was hoping for home style goulash, but was willing to consider something else. As I walked toward the deli, there was Old Foolish Fan. I hadn’t seen the old boy for months and wondered if he had forgotten me during my leave of absence from the paper. 

He was ordering lunch and seemed surprised to see me. I was glad to see him and knew that he usually had something interesting to say about the political and sports scene. I asked if he had a few minutes to visit, but he seemed anxious to be on his way. I noticed he had ordered goulash and mentioned that I enjoyed goulash and suggested we take a few minutes and eat on the tables outside. After I paid for the meals, he joined me in the early afternoon sun.

As you may remember, Old Foolish Fan can get the crux of an interview answer by saying, “You mean?” The following is a fictitious account of Old Foolish Fan’s recent interviews.

We dug into the goulash and I asked if he had recent political and sports interviews. He said he had, and through the intervention of ex-Governor Tim Pawlenty, he had the opportunity to have a short telephone conversation with Republican candidate Mitt Romney.

Old Foolish Fan: “Tell me Governor Romney, do you think Newt Gingrich should drop out of the race in view of the fact that he and Rick Santorum are dividing the conservative vote and make it a true test between you and Senator Santorum?"

Romney: “It is entirely up to Newt Gingrich as to whether he continues in the race or not. Speaker Gingrich brings a unique perspective to a very interesting contest. He provides a meaningful dialogue in the truest sense of the word. His presence is welcome and speaks well of the American political process.”

Old Foolish Fan: “You mean?

Romney: "I hope not."

Old Foolish Fan was happy to leave the political scene and talked about his sit down with Zigi Wilf, owner of the Vikings.

Old Foolish Fan: “Tell me Mr. Wilf, it appears that the Vikings will get their stadium, but not in Arden Hills, which you would have preferred because of the real estate opportunities. What is your reaction?”

Wilf: “It’s true that we would have preferred Arden Hills, which would have given us the opportunity to provide Minnesota with a wonderful new addition to the Twin Cities scene. However, downtown Minneapolis is acceptable.

Old Foolish Fan: “You mean?”

Wilf: “Something is better than nothing.”

Old Foolish Fan was able to spend some time in Southwestern Florida watching the Twins as well as the Orioles, Pirates and Red Sox. He corralled Twins manager Ron Gardenhire for a quick five-minute interview before the team bus left for Port Charlotte.

Old Foolish Fan: “Tell me Mr. Gardenhire, how is the team shaping up this year and do you anticipate them being a contender for the Central Division title?"

Gardenhire: “As you know we have a great many people in camp this year, particularly pitchers. We feel that with a return to fundamentals and the puzzle pieces that Terry Ryan has provided we will enter the season with a competitive team."

Old Foolish Fan. “You mean?”

Gardenhire: “It can’t be any worse than last year.”

Old Foolish Fan had finished his goulash and was anxious to depart for his next interview. I bid him farewell and decided that I would again show up on goulash day in hopes of another visit.

Have you ever wondered why a bow hunter could spend hours sitting in a tree stand without seeing a deer and come away feeling great? I can relate to it in time spent in a boat or fishing off shore without a bite. It has to be the feeling of self-satisfaction you get from just being there.

This is what separates most outdoorsmen from others; it’s the feeling you get from just participating in the sport. I know it’s always nice to put fish in the live well or strap that big buck across the hood of the car (do people really do that anymore?). I guess I’m dating myself with that one but you get the idea. I’ve just always felt that just being there is the most important part.

There are too many times that the emphasis is put strictly on how many fish you can catch or how much meat you can put in the freezer. There is nothing wrong with that as long as it’s within the legal limit, and if the fun is measured in pounds for you, then have at it.

The reason I mention this is that when my son Brian first started bow hunting as a teen, his Uncle Lynn took him under his wing and taught him about the sport. After Lynn moved away, Brian still had that love for the sport. One day, he asked me if I’d like to ride along with him to check out some of the places that he had hunted with Lynn. 

We visited a couple of places over by Bricelyn and Frost looked promising. Although he didn’t hunt on that day, I walked with him into the woods to check it out. I immediately got the feeling that this could be a good way to spend part of a day. It was not so much about the hunting but about the outdoors. I could see that spending a few hours in the woods; deer or no deer; could be quite satisfying.

In lieu of the weather we are experiencing this spring or almost spring, I can’t help but get pumped up for the upcoming fishing season. I suspect that with the early spring everything could evolve a lot earlier as far as water temperatures and spawning. It will be interesting to see if it holds or if we suffer a minor setback in the next couple of weeks. Either way it has been a mild winter and my wallet was very appreciative when it came to the heating bill.

Now is the time to stock up the old tackle box. And with the early spring, I know most of us are rearing to go. But, I have to admit it’s easier to spend time doing that when the weather doesn’t call you to the outdoors. 

I’m not saying that I missed a snowy winter or the case of “cabin fever” that accompanies it, but there are times when I’ve almost enjoyed a snowstorm and the cozy feeling that being “holed up” in the house brings.

If you are trying to come up with a different plan for a vacation because of high gas prices you might want to think about camping. It can be a great experience and relatively inexpensive to get started. 

I have written numerous times about what a fun family experience camping can be. If you choose to go to a state park, it can be a pretty minimal camping expense. 

You can start by purchasing a state park permit for $25, which will get you and your vehicle into any of the 74 parks for the whole season. If you want to sticker more than one vehicle, it is $18 for each additional one. Whether you go to a state park and spend a day, spend a couple of nights or even a week camping, there is something for the whole family to enjoy. If you love nature and love the outdoors, then this could be for you. A sticker is good year round and there are plenty of parks that schedule both summer and winter events.

What a great way to introduce the kids to an outdoors adventure and get them interested in nature. There is nothing better than sitting around a campfire roasting hot dogs or making smores. You’re never too old to be that kid again. This was probably the number one thing that our family looked forward to on every camping vacation.

Camping in a state park starts at $12 a night for rustic. Or you can also get a modern site with bathroom and showers anywhere from $12 to $22. A remote site (a site that cannot be accessed by vehicle) goes from $12 to $22 and an equestrian site can range from $20-$22.

Camping equipment can be as extravagant or as simple as you like. A good flashlight and a lantern are two things that I would highly recommend. I also suggest   a tent, sleeping bags, eating and cooking utensils, a box of wooden stick matches, drinking water, wash clothes and towels and last but not least, insect repellent. I did not mention food because unless you are fasting, it is a necessity.

If you are at a park near a lake, you may want to pack some fishing equipment. I don’t think that I’ve ever gone camping without at least taking one fishing rod and some tackle along. That’s just me of course but I have found that you can almost always find a place to wet a line within a few miles of any campground.

If you are interested in planning a visit to a state park, you may purchase a sticker by calling 1-888-646-6367 or buy one when you visit the state park of choice. You can visit the DNR Web site at www.state.mn.us/state_parks/permit to find out about parks and campsites. Some parks have a limited number of cabins available for a fee of $45 without electricity and $50 with electricity. No matter what your pleasure a state park adventure can be a fun and pleasant family experience.

Until next time, take advantage of the nice weather and enjoy the great Minnesota outdoors experience.

Please remember to keep our troops in your thoughts and prayers because they are the reason we are able to enjoy all the freedoms that we have today.

Echoes from the Loafers’ Club Meeting

“I planted some birdseed.”

“Trying to grow a bird?”

“No. If a bird comes up, I won’t have anything to feed it.”

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: two words have opened a lot of doors for me — push and pull.

I’ve learned

1. To make myself into someone with whom I’ll enjoy spending time.

2. Roy Rogers taught me that if I wanted to wear a white hat, I sometimes need to saddle up and ride.

3. If I use my head, I can find a low doorframe.

Ride ’em cowboy

I was teaching a writing class at Bethany Lutheran College when a student from New Ulm leaned too far back in his chair and tipped over. I was relieved to see that the young man was unhurt. I told him that it was nothing to be ashamed of. The chair was a former rodeo chair and had never been ridden before.

Does the five-second rule apply to what I hear?

My mother was adamant that I washed my hands thoroughly before coming to the table. She even demanded that I washed behind my ears. I guess that was so I could hear the food better. I scrubbed my hands briskly before sitting down to eat. The meal wouldn’t be of long duration before I dropped a piece of food to the floor. Mom advised me to pick the food from the floor under the five-second rule. Apparently, it takes germs five seconds to climb onto fallen food. It was part of a mother/germs agreement. I snatched the food from the floor with my extremely clean hands and ate it. The area behind my ears remained immaculate.

Church shoes

As the minister talked, my attention was diverted to the bright white shoes worn by the man seated next to me. I call such shoes "tennis shoes." I’m sure they have another name, but I’m not sure what it is. They were so incredibly white that I wished I’d been wearing sunglasses. The man was sound asleep, snoring lightly. Occasionally, he’d make a "huh" sound in his sleep. He was entertaining, to say the least, but I couldn’t stop looking at those white shoes. I wondered how he kept them so white. His wife glared at him as if she wished that he had a snooze button. I noticed she was digging around in her purse. I feared she was searching for a hammer to use to awaken her husband. She pulled out a small, folding scissors. I worried that she was going to stab her slumbering spouse, but she used the scissors to clip a product tag (it looked like a price tag) from his brand new shoes. That was why they were so white. I went back to listening to the minister. I hoped I hadn’t missed too much important stuff.

My neighbor

My neighbor Bob the Olson told me that he was tired. I asked him if he had stayed up too late. He told me that wasn’t the problem. The problem was that he got up twirly.

Twirly? Oh, too early.

Bob the Olson names all of his dogs after himself. That way he doesn’t forget their names.

Nature notes

“A crazy robin is bashing into my window. What can I do?” It's likely a male that feels a powerful urge to chase other males away from his territory. The window turns into a mirror when the light hits it right. When a territorial bird sees its image in a reflective surface such as a window, it perceives its reflection as a rival and tries to drive the intruder away. This is how the fight starts. Reflections in windows refuse to retreat, so the fight continues. When the robin assumes an aggressive pose, so does his opponent in the glass. Cover the outside of the window with a screen, soap, cardboard, painter's drop cloth, wax paper, spray frost, or opaque plastic that breaks up the reflection. If you cover the inside of the window, draw the blinds, or close the curtains, it aggravates the problem because it enhances the mirrored image. If the robin is intent on finding a fight, it will search for imaginary opponents in other windows. I’ve had robins fight with the outside mirrors on a car. I covered the mirrors with a bag held in place by a rubber band until the robin’s hormonal level dropped or he became too busy with nestlings.

Meeting adjourned

A kind word is a spring day.

The scurs were pretty sure we were in for a rare treat and were we ever! Will we head back into anytime winter soon? Starting Wednesday, mostly cloudy with an increasing chance of rain towards evening. Highs of 65 – 70 and lows of 50 - 55. Thursday, mostly cloudy with a good chance of rain. Highs of 65 and lows around 50. Partly cloudy on Friday with a slight chance of showers. Highs of 65 and lows of 50. Partly cloudy on Saturday with a high of 60 and lows of 40. Partly sunny Sunday through Monday with highs of 65 - 70 with lows around 50. Slightly cooler on Tuesday with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs of 65 and lows of 35 – 40. The normal high for March 25th is 46 and the normal low is 26. Now that June weather has come and gone the scurs are thinking about setting off some fireworks. Surely the fireworks police wouldn’t expect anything yet.

What a week of record setting March weather! Every day brought more warmth and a little higher temperatures. At the ranch we topped out on St. Patrick’s Day with a high of 79. Several of our car thermometers read as high as 80. Pastures have greened up and as if on cue, several of the last ewes decided to lamb. One of the main reasons to shear the ewes before lambing in February is so they will lamb inside. However when it’s nearly 80 degrees, that goes out the window so they decide to drop them wherever it’s convenient away from the other ewes. Makes the lambs a dirty mess sometimes but the ewes lick them off so it’s all good. In the fields as expected, small grains were seeded and fertilizer applications have begun. Alfalfa has broken dormancy and so far the survival looks good. 

The evening skies were also a treat as the planets Venus and Jupiter continued to impress, low in the western sky when coming in from the barn about 11 p.m. Mars has also been at about 10 o’clock in the sky around 8 p.m. in the evening. Vista’s noted Swedish astronomer recently phoned me with a startling discovery. The three planets as viewed through his telescope are still round!

There have been several firsts for the season as a result of the warm weather. A few Western Chorus frogs were first heard on the pond at the ranch on the evening of the 15th. The next night they were at full volume, with thousands of them all croaking at a fever pitch. March 15th was also the night I saw my first mosquito. The thing was huge, almost the size of a buzzard and I stared in disbelief as it landed on my arm and attempted to bite me. This meant one thing: It was time to start Ruby on her heartworm meds already. Trouble was, we’d given her the last dose back in December. Luckily good old Gus had left behind a couple unused tubes of topical material that also controls ticks, something else that will no doubt be running ahead of schedule. Am purposely staying out of the tall grass. I don’t want to know if the ticks are out there although tormenting them once discovered gives me perverse pleasure.

Ruby had another big weekend. The world’s largest Border Collie, Zip and his owner along with another friend were visiting so Ruby had someone to play with. In addition Ruby shared her sheep with Zip so he could enjoy staring and growling at them too. Ruby enjoyed to wrestling with Zip so it seemed like there was always some action somewhere. The wrestling matches were fine except when they took place inside the house. When they started crashing into the furniture it was time to take it outside. Not much different than a couple kids truth be told. Older dogs like Zip can teach younger dogs new tricks too. While watching TV we heard a strange sound the other night: Ruby lapping water from the toilet. She’s never done that. Monkey see monkey do. 

The weekend brought with it a whole list of things to get done before spring. It was time to pick up the pruning mess from the weekend before, move ewes and lambs, take the tree wrap off, and plant some early garden. Again, there was plenty of dog help especially with Zip being a stick lover. Taking off the tree wrap is always a good way to take stock of the progress the trees are making. All the trees appear to be in excellent condition even the peach tree. The pears were heavily budded and close to breaking dormancy as were the apple trees. The nannyberries were starting to leaf out too. Outside the window where I work at my confuser, the Silver Maple was flowering. Spring has sprung. 

The aforementioned weekend guests pitched in and helped out with chores including moving ewes with lambs. Unfortunately there were no newbies born over the weekend so the opportunity for them to witness a live birth went unfulfilled. The odds of seeing one are getting slimmer. There are only three or four ewes left to come in. After resisting temptation on Saturday, Sunday I had to plant some garden. The ground worked up beautifully with just one pass. Cherry Belle and Scarlet Globe radishes to put in along with some Oregon sugar pod peas. Will they make it? Hard to say but if they don’t, there should be plenty of time to plant more. If they do produce, being early season crops it should allow us to plant something after they’re done. Double cropping!

I would be remiss if I didn’t congratulate the NRHEG Panther girls’ basketball team. While we haven’t made any games this year we have listened in on the broadcasts on the radio. It probably doesn’t hurt that we’ve watched these young ladies grow up right before our eyes. Even though they didn’t bring home the big prize, they played well enough to bring home the third-place hardware, something no other basketball team has ever done here. And the not-so little-anymore neighbor girl set the single-game tournament scoring record at 48 as well as the three-game tournament record at 112 points. All in all, very impressive and important enough so that all things at the ranch came to a screeching halt as history was being made. That takes some doing. Congratulations ladies!

See you next week…real good then.

The funeral Service for Eileen A. Seberson will be held on Friday, March 23rd at 2 p.m. at Grace Lutheran Church in Albert Lea. Visitation will be from 4-7 on Thursday at Bonnerup Funeral Service, as well as one hour prior at the church. The Reverend Todd Walsh will officiate.

Eileen passed away peacefully surrounded by her family on March 20th at the Albert Lea Medical Center. She was 81 years old. 

Eileen was born on May 10th, 1930 in Ellendale, MN. The daughter of Edward and Ida (Johnson) Miller, she grew up and graduated from Ellendale High School. On November 5th, 1950, she married LaVerne Seberson at the Trinity Lutheran Church in New Richland. After marriage, they spent a  year in California before returning to Albert Lea, where they spent 61 years together and had 4 wonderful children.

Eileen enjoyed embroidery, puzzles, reading, taking walks and occasional rides on the tandem bicycle with LaVerne. They took family trips up north and many vacations to Colorado.  They enjoyed weekly games of cards with her sister and brother, as well as afternoon coffee parties with the neighbors.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Edward and Ida (Johnson) Miller; brother, Dwight Miller; and brother-in-law, Vernon Reistad.

Eileen is survived by her loving husband, LaVerne Seberson; children, Pam (Mick) McClary of Austin, MN, Polly (John) Holbrook of Greely, CO, Steve (Annette) Seberson of Albert Lea, MN, and Mark Seberson of Chaska, MN; grandchildren, Jenny Westerlund, Angie Finley, Adam (Gabe) McClary, Dan McClary, Shaun (Jessie) McClary, Josh Holbrook, Nathan Holbrook, Hayden Holbrook, Mindy (Dustin Weber) Seberson, Callen (Alicia Un) Seberson, Kellie Seberson, and Andrew Seberson; great-grandchildren, Dalton, Triston, Chantell, Devin, Demi, Abby, Tate, Teegan, Laura, Ronan, Kain, Karter, Kayde, and Ian; great-great-grandchild, Sawyer; sisters, Ethel Reistad of Waterville, MN, and  Phyllis (Milburn) Nelson of Albert Lea, MN; twin brother, Ed (Arlene) Miller of Clarks Grove, MN; sister-in-law Betty Miller of Kasson, MN; many nieces and nephews; and other loving relatives and friends.

Eileen was a wonderful and loving wife, mother and friend. She will be deeply missed by those who knew and loved her. 

Memorials are preferred to Albert Lea Hospice or Grace Lutheran Church.

By JIM LUTGENS

Editor/Publisher

The NRHEG Panthers finally met their biggest nemesis of the season.

It was themselves.

The Panthers picked a bad time for perhaps their poorest performance of the season Friday night in a 56-39 loss to Sauk Centre in the semifinals of the state girls’ basketball tournament at Target Center.

The loss brought an end to the Panthers’ 31-game winning streak and dropped them into the third-place game Saturday at noon at Concordia College in St. Paul.

So what went wrong for the Panthers?

“What went wrong was when they went to a triangle-and-two (defense) and went man-to-man on Carlie and Jade,” said coach John Schultz. “Others had trouble hitting their shots.  Sauk Centre just kept on scoring. We got what we wanted for shots. They just wouldn’t fall.”

That’s for sure.