Blooming Prairie News

Thousands of people came together Saturday for what some have called the largest parade in southern Minnesota.

The Old Fashioned 4th of July in Blooming Prairie was a family affair, bringing in kin from as close as Hayfield, Minn., and as far way as Texas and Arizona.

As the Fourth of July approaches, many Steele Countians will hit the road on a long trip to the lake or to see family.

Steele County has been put on notice. The Minnesota Pollution Control agency conducted its annual inspection of the Steele County Landfill near Blooming Prairie in May.

For those who attended Steele County's Breakfast on the Farm on Saturday, the hosts hoped they would not just savor the cheese, milk and butter, but leave with a new-found appreciation for the process.

Despite the nearly 100-degree heat and stifling humidity Tuesday afternoon, the Mussman family was outside preparing to welcome hundreds of strangers to where the family has lived and worked for the past 25 years.

Even as southeastern Minnesota is recovering from Wednesday night's tornadoes, weather conditions are right for more severe weather, according to the National Weather Service.

Only in Minnesota can one be ankle-deep in mud with dust blowing in your face. The weather changes fast up here, if you blink, sneeze, turn away from just a second or two, the sky draped overhead is likely to change on you, often taking a sudden turn for the worse.

" Gov. Tim Pawlenty would not need to cut budgets so deeply if he would listen to a state union's ideas, the organization's executive director says.

Storms, including tornadoes, ravaged the area to the north and south of Blooming Prairie Wednesday night, but the city itself looked relatively calm and unscathed Thursday.

A tornado touched down in Austin.Numerous cars, semis have been flipped, as well as homes damaged.

Employees at Albert Lea Medical Center's dialysis unit, located on the HealthReach campus, are banding together to raise money for National Kidney Foundation through the 2009 Kidney Walk.

BLOOMING PRAIRIE -- William Taylor, age 41, of Blooming Prairie, died Monday, June 8, 2009, at Austin Medical Center.

For nearly seven decades, the Red Oak Grove Lutheran Church, just south of Blooming Prairie, has hosted its annual Strawberry Festival, a time for fellowship, fundraising and that red fruit that goes well on ice cream and shortcake.

In addition to the Mower County Fair and ideal biking and running conditions, summertime in southern Minnesota is home to various festivals specific to each small town.

A few local athletes finished up play at the Class a Aa state golf meet at Pebble Creek in Becker, Minn.

The Rushford-Peterson boys golf team is just one solid round away from a Class A state title at Pebble Creek Golf Club.

Ita s a time for caps and gowns, pomp and circumstance, and for our graduates to say goodbye to the past and hello to the future.

Three local school districts will be bidding their seniors good-bye this weekend.

Lee Ottman and the other veterans in American Legion Post No. 140 return from visiting 13 cemeteries Memorial Day, there will be work to do.