LEFT SIDE — The Panthers’ Anna Schlaak goes with her left hand as she drives to the basket against JWP last Thusday. (Star Eagle photo by Chris Schlaak)

By JIM LUTGENS

Editor/Publisher

Carlie Wagner remained almost unstoppable and the NRHEG girls’ basketball team stayed undefeated, drilling Blooming Prairie 61-32 and JWP 81-38 last week.

Wagner, a sophomore, scored a triple-double against JWP, Thursday with 31 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. She also had six steals. Classmate Jade Schultz was hot from long range, hitting five three-pointers among her 17 points.

Others: Katie Cole 10 points, 11 rebounds; Raelin Schue 10 points, eight rebounds; Danielle Krueger five points; Abby Crabtree three points; Anna Schlaak three points, nine rebounds, four steals; Tori Raimann two points; Hannah Lundberg nine rebounds.

The Panthers outrebounded JWP 64-16 and had 25 steals to the Bulldogs’ four. NRHEG had 11 turnovers, JWP 30.

“This was a great team win,” said coach John Schultz. “Our girls played with poise.”

OFFENSIVE BOARD Lucas Meyer of NRHEG (5) looks for a put-back against Blooming Prairie. (Star Eagle photos by Chris Schlaak)

TO THE HOOP — The Panthers’ Tyler Sorenson drives to the basket between a pair of Blooming Prairie defenders in New Richland last Tuesday.

By JIM LUTGENS

Editor/Publisher

It was a tale of two starts for the NRHEG boys’ basketball team.

The Panthers got off to a bad one Tuesday and lost 62-52 at home to Blooming Prairie. Two nights later they started strong and topped JWP 61-42 for their first conference and home win of the season.

“We came out unprepared,” said coach Josh Churchill of the BP game, in which they fell behind 17-2. “They came out and got after us. We weren’t executing in our motion. I did not do a good job of getting our guys ready to play.”

The Panthers pulled within six before halftime, but BP went on a 5-0 run to take a 31-20 lead at the intermission. The Panthers battled in the second half and came within one point with six minutes remaining while BP’s Michael Thomas sat with foul trouble. Thomas, who finished with 22 points, took over when he came back and the Panthers ran out of gas, according to Churchill.

What is in a name? Mention the word "lutefisk" and it sends some people into a crisis. To others it will bring on a sweet mellow smile that radiates warmth and love through the room. Dry cod or stack fish, which lutefisk is, is as rich in history as it is in flavor and nutrition.

Lutefisk means lyefish, which refers to the early process of soaking the fish in a lye solution which had been made of birch ashes which was used in the luting process.

My dad and uncle went uptown, in New Richland, for meat for supper when they were young boys. They prided themselves on their "catch of fish" from the wooden barrel of lyefish (lutefisk) outside the grocer’s door.

They made the fastest trip back uptown when Grandma Mary saw what it was. A true Irishman, she admonished the boys on their choice and went so far as to insinuate that the yellow cod somehow got that way because the town hounds had made their mark on it as they went by.

My mother recalls back when she worked for Lerberg’s in Ellendale in her earlier years, the weighing of the scale process when some good Scandinavians came in to buy the fish, probably a whole one that was split from tail to head. She remembers trying to balance a half frozen fish on a slippery butchers' scale and said she was apt to get a bath of icy water and sticky fish before the pricing process was accomplished.

My Irish, German, French, American father about died when he was first introduced to the fish at my Scandinavian uncle’s home, but dad would try anything. At first he wasn't so sure it was fish. Back then it was about 5 cents a pound. The more he liked it the more expensive it got, but it didn't stop him from enjoying it. Most people say the butter gives it its good taste but he and Glen Hanson could have cared less if it had butter on it or not. They just devoured it, slicking their plates clean when they were done.

Lutefisk, once a poor man’s food, has changed through the years to a delicacy. Today a new meaning has been given to the word lutefisk. Now it means family, fellowship and good times. It now comes packaged in air-tight plastic, white as snow and skinned to boot.

The old methods of preparing it have changed too, at least at the Schember house. Old-timers put it in a cheesecloth bag and put it in a pot of boiling water and it cooked fast. The old-fashioned method of preparing boiled lutefisk was to combine 3 quarts of water with 1 1/2 tablespoons of salt. Once it began to boil, the fish was added. The fish was cooked for 8-11 minutes or until the fish flaked. Once it was done cooking the fish was removed from the water and served immediately with melted butter or cream sauce. The Schembers always ate their lutefisk with melted butter.

If you are feeding many, it can be prepared by preheating the oven to 375 degrees and placing the lutefisk in a casserole, covering it with foil. It should then be baked for 30 minutes or until the fish flakes. It is important to not overbake. Once the fish is ready it needs to be removed from the pan and served immediately with melted butter or cream sauce.

I would also suggest that you not prepare your lutefisk as my mother’s cousin Beulah did. She prepared a whole roaster full for a family gathering. Her guests were late in arriving. Can you imagine her surprise when she removed the cover on the rooster she had filled with lutefisk, there was very little lutefisk in her big roaster. Thank God there was a store nearby that was open and she made a quick trip to the store, bought a supply of lutefisk and returned home and cooked it - the "old-fashioned way," using the cheese cloth method. Everybody was happy and full.

Cooking lutefisk is all in the timing. Too much time dissolves the fish. Actually my dad cooked his lutefisk by placing a small amount of it in a covered CorningWare casserole, which he put in the microwave. It seemed to work good for him, especially if he was preparing it for only a few people.

At this time of the year you will find that many churches will serve typical lutefisk suppers, which include lutefisk, meatballs, mashed potatoes and lefse.

Watch out for the stampede of people who really enjoy this Norwegian delicacy. Lutefisk will always outlive its prejudicial name and be enjoyed by Scandinavians and others alike.

Don't turn your nose up to lutefisk. You might not like the smell.

Some of our Star Eagle readers have commented that they like to read about the local happenings and family events such as family and school reunions, birthday and anniversary celebrations, and birth and wedding announcements.

In order to read about these important things we need our faithful readers to pass along the information to us, so we can then pass along the news to you. If you have news to share, 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.

• Thursday, December 29th: Maxx Greyson Richards, Maya Grace Richards, Gary Hunnicutt, Seth David Petranek, Brent Born, Craig Haberman, Darlene Underland, Benjamin Paulson, Whitey & La June Hagen, Amy & Joe Louks

• Friday, December 30th: Anita Casteron, Matt Christensen, Ryan Schrodt, Jane Simon, Lucille Goodnature, Jim Dobberstein, Gladys Peterson, Mark & Gail Skroch, David & Arianna Arends, Kyile & Rachel Aase

• Saturday, December 31st:  New Years Eve!  Bailey Joy Ihrke, Bree Olivia Ihrke, Larry Paulsen, Dean Pospesel, Lynne Flor, Brent Wiersma, Brent Worrell, Isabelle Wayne, Dorothy & Adrian Kilian, Greg & Cindy Oswald, Larry & Elaine Howell

• Sunday, January 1st: Happy New Year!  Ross Aronson, Elmer Dobberstein, Jerry Seath, Larry Schwartz, Amanda Beach, Lois & Duane Aitchison

• Monday, January 2nd: Grace Jolie Wangen, Brian Bedney, Jay Crabtree, Mark Dobbstein, David Lageson, Brenda Wayne, Aaron Nelson, John & Lorraine Lent, Kelsey (Wayne) & Matt Duncomb

• Tuesday, January 3rd: Jerret Utpadel, Andrea Avery, Stan Nelson

• Wednesday, January 4th: Sophie Elizabeth Stork, Kelsey Christensen, Delphine Pence, Jeff Cornelius, Dennis Hill, Monty Mrotz, Jeremy Nelson, Corey Johnson, John Butler

With each passing year, grow stronger, grow wiser, grow richer in spirit. May the year ahead be filled with new discoveries!

As I take the time to reflect on the past year, I realize how lucky I am. I have been able to spend a lot of time in the North Woods this season and that is something I do truly enjoy. I don’t think that there is anything I enjoy any more than spending time in the outdoors and when I can spend it with family it gets just a lot more special.

This year I was able to get in a lot of fishing while up at the cabin. I was also able to see my oldest grandson Trevor catch his personal best northern pike (10 lbs.) while also fishing with his brother Taylor while he caught his first walleye. Their younger brother Grant out-fished a whole boatload of Herfindahls while trolling for northern pike on a small area lake. This success actually fueled his interest in fishing and I have a feeling that he is now actually “hooked” for life. Their cousin Dylan was able to spend quite a bit of time up north with us this year and he, like his cousins’ almost lived on our small lake fishing for crappies and bluegills. Dylan also caught some nice pike while fishing on some of the other area lakes. All the boys helped put some nice meals of fish on the table and I have to say that we never have any leftovers when it comes to these kids and eating fish.

For me this is what it is all about. I used to look for my own personal bests in a fish and it is still nice to look forward to that challenge, I guess if I didn’t care I wouldn’t be fishing. Like my sons before them now my grandkids are my focus, I am always trying to put them on fish but in many instances I am learning from them, especially Trevor who never ceases to amaze me in his ability to catch fish.

There is only one grandchild that I have not had the chance to bring to the cabin yet. Maybe this year our little Emma will be able to go there with me and Grandma for a few days. Her Dad has already introduced her to fishing when at the age of 2 when he took her to "Take a Kid Fishing", this June. She was excited to get her “Snoopy” fishing pole and when they caught a sunfish on it she got really excited. Emma couldn’t wait to tell grandpa – showing me the pole and saying “fishy, fishy” over and over. I think there just may be another fisherperson in the family one day.

This season I also found out that had some health issues to take care of and thanks to the VA, Mayo Medical System in Albert Lea and the fine doctors and staff at Mayo Clinic and St. Mary’s in Rochester I am on the rebound and hope to be back on the ice fishing and coaching hockey again soon.

Speaking of hockey, this past year was a good one for our B Bantam hockey team. The 2010-2011 team finished with a very good record and they were a great group of kids that were fun to coach and they got the most out of their ability. This season I have another fine group of kids and am looking forward to watching them develop into very good hockey players as the season progresses.

Although hockey does take up much of my time in the winter I will be looking forward to spending time on the “lake ice” with my grandson Trevor. I know that he will be spending all of his spare time fishing this winter. Just the other day he said that he and a friend caught about 40 walleye in a single evening. Two of the fish were 19 & 18 inchers which they kept, while the rest were in the 10-12 inch range and were released. I am not one to tell people what to keep but it is my own personal guideline that over 14 and under 20 is my personal slot limit. Keeping a limit of 10-inchers might put some meat on the table or make a sandwich but it doesn’t do much to help our area fisheries. Hopefully everyone heeds the limit and doesn’t get greedy; it seems that the punishment really doesn’t fit the crime in most of these cases. Once a fish has been harvested it takes a long time to replace it and if there are great numbers of illegal fish involved it is pretty hard to take.

This past year also saw a number of our area soldiers deployed for duty in Kuwait. This was a large number of our friends and neighbors that have to spend their holidays away from family. Please do whatever you can to show your support for them and their families.

Until next time, play safe, watch out for thin ice and enjoy the Minnesota outdoors experience. Have a very Merry Christmas and a Joyous New Year.

Please remember to keep our troops in your thoughts and prayers during the holidays and the coming year. They are the reason we are able to enjoy all the freedoms that we have today.

ECHOES FROM THE LOAFERS' CLUB MEETING

“Who’s playing?”

“I don't know.”

“What's the score?”

“I have no idea.”

“Why watch the game?”

“I need something to watch until the next game starts.”

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: where does the road paved with bad intentions go?

I'VE LEARNED

1. To take the advice of the hairs on my arms.

2. I like being blessed when I sneeze. What else can a man do and have strangers bless him?

3. A little is a lot when it's all you've got.

CHRISTMAS IN THE REARVIEW MIRROR

Jean Shepherd’s wonderful book that became a swell movie titled, A Christmas Story, told the tale of a young boy obsessed with getting “an official Red Ryder, carbine action, 200-shot, range model air rifle, with a compass in the stock.” Red Ryder was a cowboy from a comic strip that made it big. Everyone told 10-year old Ralphie that he would put an eye out. My mother told me the same thing. I did get an air rifle. My father bought it for me at Einar's Hardware. It held at least 200 BBs and I didn’t put a single eye out. I couldn’t say the same for light bulbs. I tried to see how close I could come to the bulbs in the barn without hitting one. I became good at replacing light bulbs. That’s why mothers worry.

LEARNING LEFSE

Margarit Moe of Roseville was born in Germany. She met her husband, Harold, there. When she moved with her new husband to Minnesota, she tried hard to fit into a family of Norwegian ancestry. She got off to a rocky start. When she was served lefse, she put mustard on it. Fortunately, she and Harold were already married.

FROST PLUGS

George Lincoln of Frost and I talked of many things. We talked of what the residents of Frost are called. We dismissed “Frosties,” no matter how good it sounds. George suggested “Frostbites” as an appropriate name in the winter. We talked of old cars. We didn't lament their passing. George told of being a young fellow who needed to awake every couple of hours in order to go outside and start his car so that he could make it to work. We discussed the need for having a device such as an engine block heater or frost plug heater plugged into an electrical outlet during frigid weather. I remember such gadgets being regular Christmas gifts. Most cars had electric plugs hanging from their grill. I've seen a plethora of plugs hanging from cars in Fairbanks, Alaska. Some parking lots there offer electrical outlets. The first car I owned couldn't be driven into a wind. When I saw a speed limit sign indicating 55 miles per hour, I’d tell everyone in the car, “Hold on, I'm going to try to reach it.”

LUTEFISK

Gene Leif of Austin tells me of his friends. The husband is of Norwegian ancestry and the wife is from Mexico. They eat lutefisk with salsa.

CLEVER CAT

I watched the cat sleep. It sleeps 23 hours a day because it’s sleeping for nine lives. It was the middle of the night and the world was quiet. Suddenly, the cat's head pops up. Its eyes were wide and the feline had that “Oh, no!” look. I rose from my chair and looked out the window to see if I could pick something out of the darkness that the cat's keen ears had detected. I saw nothing. I returned to my book to find the cat sound asleep in my chair.

FWHA

The Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) mission is to improve road safety. One-quarter of all travel occurs at night, but about half the traffic fatalities occur during nighttime hours. To address this, the FHWA adopted traffic sign retro-reflectivity requirements. Nighttime visibility of traffic control devices is becoming increasingly important as our population ages. Declining vision and slowed reaction times of older drivers require signs easier to see and read at night.

I drove home on a rainy, foggy night darker than the inside of a pants pocket. I saw the signs with no difficulty. What needs to be made more visible are the lines on the highway.

NATURE NOTES

Where might we see ravens? Common ravens are found primarily in the boreal zones of northern Minnesota. Ravens have shaggy throats, heavy bills, wedge-shaped tails, and guttural calls. Crows have slim throats, slim bills, square-shaped tails, and higher-pitched calls.

MEETING ADJOURNED

“Slow down, simplify, and be kind.” — Naomi Judd

With the slight chance of snow last Wednesday circling the bowl, the chances of our white Christmas went down the toilet as predicted by the scurs. Are our odds any better for the New Year? Starting on Wednesday. Partly cloudy with a chance of overnight snow. Highs of 35- 40 and lows around 30. Partly cloudy for Thursday with a slight chance of a rain/snow mix in the afternoon into the evening. Highs once again of 35 – 40 and lows near 30. A slight chance of rain and snow for Friday under mostly cloudy skies with highs reaching 40 and lows of 25. Partly cloudy on Saturday with highs near 45 and lows close to 25 for New Years Eve. Partly cloudy and slightly cooler on New Years Day with a slight chance of flurries. Highs around 35 with temps dropping to a brutal low of 20. Monday mostly sunny and cooler with highs around 30 and lows of 15 – 20. Slightly warmer and mostly sunny on Tuesday with highs of 35 and lows of 15 – 20. Our normal high for New Years Day is 23 and the normal low is 5. We will have gained four minutes of daylight since the winter solstice so things are looking up. The scurs will be putting their party favors in storage for another year.

Quite the winter we’ve been having so far or lack thereof. If you wanted a white Christmas you needed to look for snow on the north side of a building or grove. The warm trend seems to be hanging in there although some forecasters are indicating that by mid-January our luck may have run out. We shall see although at the same time we’ve burned up quite a chunk of what we typically consider winter. This one is beginning to remind me somewhat of the winter of ’86 – ’87 when it stayed relatively open and warmed up enough so that wheat was drilled into some area fields as early as late February. Something that was also typical that winter was blowing soil in the peats such as was seen in areas on December 26. Some snow cover would be welcome not only from a moisture standpoint but to help decrease the amount of wind erosion. 

Minnesota Nice? It apparently doesn’t exist once we get behind the wheel of an automobile anymore. This past Christmas demonstrated the lack of courtesy many are displaying toward their fellow drivers. On the way to and from New Hope on Christmas Eve, it was almost epidemic the number of times I was passed while moving with the traffic flow only to have a driver cut in front of me at the last second to get off at the next exit. To make matters worse, on Christmas Day while travelling in excess of the speed limit myself on bumpy and rough Fillmore Co. 1, someone was on my tail until they turned off a few miles north of Spring Valley. Not to be outdone, while on Fillmore Co. 2 west of Chatfield, someone rode my rear bumper on the sloping, blind curves that were showing signs of becoming frosty as temperatures fell below freezing. I finally pulled over and let the clown by then followed them into Chatfield where they very immaturely stayed stopped once the light turned green to prove a point. They sure did alright. They proved to me as a result of their stupidity they arrived no sooner than they would have had they slowed down for the icy conditions and we have a growing problem with people who think the roadways are a racetrack and they’re self appointed NASCAR drivers. 

Here’s a novel concept for the New Year: Let’s back off and drive more courteously. The few seconds you think you’re saving by riding someone’s tail could turn out to be among your costliest and deadliest. Deer can and do suddenly appear on a roadway in a fraction of a second. I know because I’ve hit them. That and you just never know who you’re messin’ with. When I was living in rural North Dakota, it was assumed that everyone was driving around with a loaded weapon because basically everyone actually was driving around with a loaded weapon, including me. I’m not advocating that here but oddly enough, the aforementioned poor driving habits were never an issue. Same holds true in regard to some of the unmarked cars (plain brown wrappers) floating around. You don’t know when they’ll show up either. I’ve stumbled across them a few times making my heart sink once the grille lights came on only to discover they were after someone far ahead of me who was making my own speeding look like I was in a Roman chariot race. If you’re offended by what I’ve written, good. I hope you’re ticketed appropriately and your insurance rates are jacked up big time if you’re unable to control yourself behind the wheel. Some of us are getting real tired of this type of behavior. I have a feeling I’m not alone.

On to a more pleasant automobile related note: The Studebaker project. The factory production order as they were known by Studebaker arrived last week. By supplying the serial number to the Studebaker National Museum I was able to obtain a copy of this informational document. Studebaker apparently kept fairly meticulous records of their production. The production orders from prior to 1959 are on microfilm and from 1960 – 1966 are original paper so the document I have is a direct copy of the original. It tells me the car was ordered on March 22, 1960 and the final assembly date was April 6 which coincidentally happens to be Bert Blyleven’s birthday. As I guessed, the paint color is the latter color blue that Studebaker used that year, Pacific Blue. Gulfstream Blue was discontinued on March 1, 1960. The serial number, the body number and the engine number all match those listed on the production order as do the key codes. The codes used for the various packages and options are exactly as they appear on the car with only a few minor add-ons from the dealership. This was not a high-end automobile and the Lark was never meant to be. Considering that this was Otto Hendrickson’s last car when he ordered it, that’s exactly what one would expect.

See you next week…real good then.  

Lois Ann Evenson, age 84, of Freeborn, MN, died Tuesday, December 27, 2011 at Parkview Care Center in Wells, MN. Funeral Services will be held Friday, Dec. 30, 2011 at 11 a.m. at the Freeborn Congregational United Church of Christ in Freeborn, MN, with Reverend Cherie Daniel officiating. Visitation will be held Thursday, Dec. 29, from 4-6 p.m. at Bruss-Heitner Funeral Home in Wells and will continue one hour prior to services at the church on Friday. Burial will be at a later date in the Freeborn Cemetery.

Bruss-Heitner Funeral Home in Wells is in charge of arrangements. 

Lois Ann Evenson was born February 11, 1927, in Freeborn County, Minnesota, the daughter of Carl B. and Marie S. (Lutteke). On June 22, 1951, she was united in marriage to Galen H. Evenson in Freeborn, MN.

Lois worked in the area, including the Oak View Golf Course in Freeborn and the Millhouse Bar. In her early years, she had worked at the family owned Mink Farm. Lois was a member of the Freeborn Congregational UCC Church, and a night circle member. She enjoyed playing cards, dancing and Polka Club, and wintering in Florida for 35 years.

Lois is survived by two sons: Allan (wife Kathy) Evenson of Hartland, and Mark (wife Sue) Evenson of Alden; 5 grandchildren: Adam (Jodi) Evenson, Aaron (Angie) Evenson, Rhonda (Steve) Haglund, Kelly (Glenn) Snyder, Darcy (Troy) Newman; 9 great-grandchildren: Elizabeth Snyder, Kyle Haglund, Kayla Haglund, Miranda Snyder, Kelsey Newman, Carter Newman, Brayden Evenson, Ethan Evenson, Grace Evenson; brother: Merlyn (Ruth) Peterson of Waseca, MN; 2 sisters-in-law: Ruth Ludwig and Janice Orth; 2 brothers-in-law: Donald Evenson and Frank Evenson.

She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband Galen in 2010.

Donald “Bill" W. Klemmensen, 84, of Ellendale, died Tuesday, December 20, 2011 in Berlin Township.

He was born October 31, 1927 in Summit Township, Minnesota the son of Harvey and Gertrude (Calverly) Klemmensen. Donald was baptized in 1929 and confirmed in 1942 from St. Ansgar Lutheran Church.  He graduated from Ellendale High School in 1945, and then married Ann Thompson on June 11, 1947.  Donald took pride in farming, and farmed on the Thompson Farm which was in Ann's family.  He was a member of First Lutheran Church in Ellendale, where he also was a Trustee, and on the Berlin Township Board for thirty three years.  He enjoyed watching sports, feeding the birds, going to the casino, and his travels to Europe, Asia, Hawaii, South America, and Caribbean Cruises.  Don also enjoyed his coffee partners very much.

He is survived by his wife Ann Klemmensen of Ellendale, three sons Doug (and Jan) Klemmensen of Ellendale, Larry (and Carol) Klemmensen of Coon Rapids, MN,  and Lonny (and Sue) Klemmensen of New Richland.  He is also survived by ten grandchildren, twenty two great grandchildren, two great great grandchildren,  and two brothers Richard (and Elaine) Klemmensen of Blooming Prairie, David (and Carol) Klemmensen of Woodbury, and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents and one sister Margie Betlach.

Visitation will be at First Lutheran Church Ellendale on Friday December 23, 2011 from 4 to 7 p.m. and on Saturday from 9 to 10 a.m..  Funeral services will be held Saturday December 24, 2011 at 10 a.m. at First Lutheran Church Ellendale with The Reverend Richard Sliper officiating.  Interment will be in the First Lutheran Cemetery in Ellendale.  Michaelson Funeral Home is handling arrangements.

Funeral services for Donald Selmer Peterson of Ellendale, MN, will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, December 23, 2011 at the First Lutheran Church in Ellendale. Pastor Richard Sliper will officiate. Visitation will be held Thursday evening from 4 until 7 p.m. at the First Lutheran Church in Ellendale, MN, and one hour prior to the service on Friday. Interment will be in the First Lutheran Cemetery.

Donald died Tuesday morning, December 20, 2011 at St Mary’s Hospital in Rochester, MN. He was 70 years of age.

Donald was born June 3, 1941 in Berlin Township the son of Selmer and Myrtle (Smith) Peterson. He graduated from Ellendale High School. On June 4, 1960 he was united in marriage to Cheryl Hansen at the LeSeuer River Lutheran Church.

Don drove a fuel truck for the coop in Preston, MN before taking up farming in Ellendale. He farmed for over 20 years and then moved to Rochester, MN, where he was the Petroleum Manager for the Greenway Coop. He later managed the Southern Valley Coop in Mankato until his retirement and moved back to Ellendale.

He was a member of the First Lutheran Church and was active on the church board. Don was a member of the Lions Club and the Elks Club. He had served on the Ellendale School Board, Ellendale Coop Board and was active in the Pork Producers and Soybean Association.

Don loved to hunt and fish, play golf, card games, woodworking and any outdoor recreation. He enjoyed going on trips with the RV, especially the trip to Alaska. Spending time with the grandkids always came first at all of their sporting events and activities.

Donald is survived by his wife Cheryl of Ellendale, MN, daughters; Kathy and her husband Ross Murphy of Knoxville, TN, Deb and her husband Jeff Schmidt of Ellendale, MN, Barb and her husband Chuck Hagen of New Richland, MN. There are four grandchildren; Kelly (Drew) Nelson, Tiffany Schmidt, Brett Hagen and Ryann Hagen. Two special great grandchildren; Lily Olson and Elena Nelson. Also surviving are one sister; Shirley (Tyler) Hanson of Rush City, MN, and brothers; Sam (Sharon) Peterson of Hope, MN, Mike (Carol) Peterson of Citrus Heights, CA, and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents and one sister Mary Jane (Milton) Jensen.

Dennis Nesdahl of Rodney, Ontario, Canada died suddenly at Four Counties Health Services, Newbury on Saturday, December 17th, 2011.

Mr. Nesdahl was the dear husband of Bonita Berge, loving father of Daniel Nesdahl of Oklahoma and Michael (Melissa) Nesdahl of Minnesota, grandfather of Brooke and Brenna, dear brother of Janice (Earl) Klinger of Minnesota, Jerry (Shirley) Nesdahl of California, Karen (Orlo) Krause of Texas, Anita (Bill) Francesco of Minnesota, Curt Nesdahl of Minnesota, Duane (Roberta) Nesdahl of Arkansas and Linda (Greg) Caron of Missouri,
son-in-law of Angela Berge and favorite uncle of Gregory Dancel. He is also survived by many in laws and nieces and nephews.

Friends called at the Rodney Chapel of Denning Funeral Directors on Monday, December 19th, 2011 from 7-9 p.m. Funeral Service was conducted from the chapel on Tuesday at 11 a.m. Pastor Skip Patterson officiated.

If desired, memorial contributions can be made to the Canadian Electric Wheelchair Hockey Association as an expression of sympathy. Donations and condolences may be left online at www.denningfuneralhome.com.