By Deborah Banish

The thunderstorm that rattled, roared and raged across Rutland and vicinity at about 10:30 on the evening of Wednesday, May 15, dropped .28 of an inch of rain here, according to Paul Anderson’s electronic rain gauge at 309 Gay Street, and .3 of an inch, according to Norbert Kulzer’s gauge at 415 Gay Street. Jesse Brakke reports that his electronic gauge recorded .15 of an inch, but he’s not too sure how accurate that reading was because he hadn’t emptied the spiders and spider webs out of it yet.  Harvey Bergstrom stated that the gauge at his farmstead three miles south of Cayuga only registered .08 of an inch on Thursday morning, and Cam Gulleson reported that .2 of an inch was measured at the Gulleson farmstead 1½ mile east of Rutland. The rain brought planting activities to a halt for a while, but sunshine and wind on Thursday soon had the wheels turning, again.

Saturday morning rain gauge readings after the thunderstorm of Friday, May 17 & Saturday, May 18: Norbert Kulzer at 415 Gay Street, 1.7 inch; Roger Pearson at 309 Gay Street, 1.75 inch; Harvey Bergstrom 3 miles south of Cayuga, 1.45 inch; and, Jim Lunneborg four miles north of Rutland, 1.9 inch.  Norbert figures that his gauge might have had a larger reading on Saturday morning if the rain had arrived vertically, rather than horizontally. Kurt Breker reports that all of the sloughs and potholes that were farmed through last year are now full of water and running together.  “We were wet before this rain,” Kurt stated, “and now we’re too wet.” Spring planting activities are now halted due to wet field conditions, and, with the forecast calling for rain nearly every day, it is doubtful that any wheels will turn prior to Memorial Day. Some of the Assembled Wise Men were reminiscing about “the good old days” when they could plant millet at the beginning of July and still get a cash crop, plus enjoy some good waterfowl hunting shooting ducks and geese off the millet swaths in October. Those were the days!

The Rutland Community Club Theater group presented “Lou Sanderson Says” on Saturday, May 18^th. The recent rains may have contributed to the attendance that exceeded 100 people who enjoyed the freewill supper prepared by the Sargent Central Ambassadors students who are raising funds for their Europe performance tour in July. The play showcased the talents of the writer/director/producer Diane Smith and the entire cast including: Tom Manley as Lou Sanderson; Diane Smith as Mildred Myers; Card Players Gaven Christianson, Tyson Siemieniewski, Jaylin Ross and Devonte Allen; I Love Lucy skits (one as Lucy and Ethel with Norwegian husbands) with Taryn Jensen as Lucy, Shannon Mehrer as Ricky, Pam Maloney as Ethel and Tyson Siemieniewski as Fred; I Bet Your Life skit with Jacob Mehrer as Groucho, Jaylin Allen as George, with contestants Carolyn Christensen as Miss Sacket and Tyson Siemieniewski as Ole Johnson; Can-Can Girls Emily Hamilton, Josie Hamilton, Kaycee Hamilton; and the Hags played by Carolyn Christensen, Diane Smith, and Pam Maloney. Songs were performed by Cher Spieker as Doris Day; Earl Fust as Hank Williams and Johnny Cash; Thomas Mehrer as both Frank Sinatra and Buddy Holly; Eric Bergeman as Elvis Presley serenading Bev Kulzer to the delight of the audience. It was another spectacular production by everyone involved.

Four members of the Rutland American Legion Auxiliary drove up to Fargo on Monday, May 20^th, to welcome home the veterans who participated in the most recent Honor Flight to Washington, DC. Among the veterans and family members returning was Leonard Heinen and his daughter Marcia Brakke of Rutland who accompanied Lenny on his flight along with her twin sister, Margot Ganske of Park City, Utah. Marcia provided the following information on the trip:

Here are some of my thoughts about the honor flight I was lucky enough to experience.

There were 181 of us approximately with 91 of those being veterans including 15 from World War II. The rest are volunteers and escorts including doctors and nurses. They were amazing. And well prepared for anything. We all felt so grateful to have them there.

We saw people on the streets waving at us. The travelers at the Washington D. C. Reagan airport were waving and smiling at our group to show their appreciation to the vets. Their faces reflected their reverence. It was emotional. So many came up to shake my dad’s hand and to say thank you. I could see he wasn’t sure if he deserved it. I heard others express that feeling. But of course, they do.

I was excited to see all the capital’s sites but the emotions that came over me was a surprise. We were escorted everywhere by police, one on a motorcycle in the front and a police car behind us with sirens heralding our presence. It was incredible how they paved a way for us to go through traffic, getting everyone else out of the way so we could drive straight to our destination through red lights and up the wrong way on one-way streets. Awesome. Did this tell the veterans on board how special we Americans regard them? Yes indeed. I experienced the reverence from people all around us towards the veterans, wherever we turned. It was sobering to see the memorials of World War II, Korea and Viet Nam. But we also felt awe to see the original documents of the Declaration of independence, Bill of rights and our Constitution at the National Archives building. The ink on the parchment paper is almost completely faded. But the fierceness to preserve the freedoms those documents spoke of has not faded. And here were the veterans to prove it. I felt pride. And gratitude to all the veterans I was lucky enough to ride along with. So lucky to be a part of it all.

Seeing all the people who had come to welcome us home, filling both floors at the Fargo airport, was the most emotional time for me. Beautiful smiling faces met us with waving flags, cheering us while a band played patriotic songs. I wept. I am not a veteran. Just a daughter of a veteran. That was a surprise to see all the people there.

At the FDR Memorial we experienced the words of this great president. It is all about his words. They apply still today, if not even more so.

“We must scrupulously guard the civil rights and civil liberties of all citizens, whatever their background. We must remember that any oppression, any injustice, any hatred is a wedge designed to attack our civilization.”

I am so proud to be a part of America. I am proud of my father for entering the army at a very scary time for the world. Every American Veteran and active duty person symbolizes to the world the spirit of America…we stand up bravely and boldly to preserve the freedom that every human being on this earth deserves.  Thank you to all veterans. You served to keep us free. And it is apparent that after what I saw and experienced, Americans have not forgotten. You deserve all the honor we can give you. Thank you, dear Veteran. God bless you all the days of your life. 

Thank you, Marcia, for sharing your thoughts and appreciation for our veterans.

This Sunday, there will be ten students graduating from the Sargent Central High School with Commencement beginning at 2:00 p.m. at the Activity Center in Forman. Two Rutland students are part of the graduating class: Thomas Mehrer and Tyler Banish. Congratulations to the two on what they have already achieved and on their future endeavors.

Monday, May 27, is Memorial Day and the Rutland American Legion Bergeman-Evenson Post #215 and the Rutland American Legion Auxiliary will begin ceremonies at the Nordland Cemetery at 10:15 a.m. them move to the Rutland Cemetery at 10:30 a.m. followed by a program at City Hall commencing at 11:00 a.m. A potluck will follow the program and the Rutland Community Club will be provided scallop potatoes for the dinner. Be sure to get to Rutland for this year’s Memorial Day program.

Upcoming events in Rutland: Rutland City Council meeting, Monday, June 3, at 5 p.m.; Rutland Community Club Summer Block Party, Thursday, June 6, starting at 5:30 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Park next to City Hall. It’s a BYOB and lawn chairs event with supper and activities for all ages. Be sure to come and enjoy the fun.

Well, that’s it from Rutland for this week. If you have any news or events to announce, be sure to send an email to rutlandnd@drtel.net to have it included on the new Rutland website at www.rutlandnd.com.