John Charles Alm, age 57 of
Farmington, formerly of Austin, passed away peacefully Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2020, at his home, surround- ed by his loving family.

Just a few miles down the road from Blooming Prairie, it became perhaps the most bitter labor strife in Minnesota’s history. I’m referring to the 1985-86 Hormel strike by 1,500 workers in Austin.

Do you hear that? It’s absolutely silent.
After an all too short visit from our daughter and her three sweet little girls, it’s back to just noises like the furnace kicking in, the refrigerator running and the occa- sional car driving by the house.
What three young girls bring to an empty-nester home is nothing short of exhilarating. It also brings back memories.

Eugene Stanley Hyland passed away on Feb. 10, 2020, at the age of 77. Gene was born to Stanley and Elvina (Himle) Hyland in Burbank, Calif. on Nov. 30, 1942.
His family later moved back to Hayfield. In 1960, Gene graduated from Hayfield High School. He was a lifelong member of West St. Olaf Lutheran Church.
Gene served his country as a medic in the U.S. Army Reserves from 1964 to 1970.

Rita Rae (Ritz) Kruesel, 72, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020 surrounded by loved ones after a courageous, six-year battle with Lewy Body Dementia.
Rita was born on April 9, 1947 in Mantorville, the youngest of seven children. She excelled in school, played the drums in the marching band and was a cheerleader at high school football games.

For the second time in as many years, Dodge County’s Matt Maas is the state’s top emergency professional.

Something that I learned early on in my journalistic career dating back to the early 1990s is that if you ever want to get a pulse on the community and find out what’s going on, stop in and talk to the local chamber directors.

Daniel Allen Mischke, 44, of Owatonna, died Saturday, Feb. 1, 2020 at his parents’ home.
He was born March 16, 1975 in Owatonna the son of Keith and Tanya (Cassen) Mischke. Dan graduated from NRHEG High School. He worked for Owatonna Lamp Company, Viracon and most recently Tandem Products. 
Dan was a kind genuine person with a big heart and a memorable smile.

It’s always gratifying to win awards for one’s work. Such was the case last week when we came home with a whopping nine awards—the best ever for us in the state journalism contest.
There are a couple projects that I am especially proud of in winning awards this year. Among the many awards, we earned first place for local breaking news coverage and special section.