By Bill Anderson
THE ROOSTER CROWS
06/23/23
“hotter than the hinges of Hades,” the old-timers used to say about summer time temperatures that neared the triple digit mark, and on Monday & Tuesday, June 19 & 20, those hinges were smokin’! On Monday, June 19, the temperature hit a blistering+92 degrees, and on Tuesday, June 20, the high temperature in Rutland hit 97 above, just 1 degree shy of the 98 degree record for that date that was set back in 1910. Less than 2 months ago most of North Dakota, including Rutland, was still covered with ice and snow, and nighttime temperatures were still dropping below the freezing mark. The old timers also used to say, “If you don’t like the weather here, just wait a minute…it’ll change.” It has changed, and, if you don’t like this weather, just wait another minute and it will change, again.
Dick Johnson of Hot Sulphur Springs CO stopped in Rutland on the afternoon of Wednesday, June 14, for a brief visit with one of his cousins, Bill Anderson of this community. Dick’s paternal grandmother, Emma (Peterson) Johnson, and Bill’s paternal grandmother, Julia (Peterson) Anderson, were sisters who had accompanied their parents, Jon & Maria Peterson, from Sweden to a homestead in Rutland Township back in 1887. Dick grew up in Drayton ND where his Dad, Chad Johnson, served the community as President of the local bank. Back in the 1950’s, Dick was a member of the Drayton American Legion Baseball team that won the North Dakota State Championship, won the Midwest Regional Championship and went on to be one of 12 teams that competed for the National Title. Dick usually makes an annual trip to Drayton for a reunion with his old friends there, and usually includes a stop in Rutland and Forman to visit friends and family here. When he stopped last week, Dick was on his way back to Colorado after a visit in Drayton and a fishing trip up in Ontario. The fishing was good, he reported, as was the reminiscing with companions from the good old days.
Members of Bergman-Evenson Post #215 of The American Legion conducted a Flag Retirement Ceremony at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 14, at Lou Sanderson Field. Post Commander Larry Christensen; Acting Sergeant At Arms Tom Manley; and, Post Adjutant/Acting Chaplain Doug Olstad presided over the ceremony at which approximately 50 soiled or damaged American Flags were honorably retired from service and properly destroyed by fire. Other Post members and guests present included: Roger Pearson; Doug Spieker; Calvin Jacobson; Andy Harris; Bill Anderson; Carolyn Christensen; Pam Maloney; Joanne Harris; and, Kelly Hawkinson. Prior to 2022, the local Legion Post conducted the Flag Retirement Ceremony on Veterans’ Day, November 11, but the combination of cold, wind & snow that tends to prevail on Veterans Day convinced Post members to change the date to June 14, Flag Day, instead. It was hot in 2022, and hotter in 2023, but for the Post members who are, for the most part, in their 70’s & 80’s, heat is better tolerated than is cold. The 2024 Flag Retirement Ceremony is scheduled for Friday, June 14, 2024 at Lou Sanderson Field, weather permitting.
Rutland native Claire Brakke, now a resident of Madison WI, recently submitted the following report: “I am currently leading my company in the Walk to End Alzheimer’s. We will walk to support our residents that currently have Alzheimer’s, Memory Loss, or know a loved one that does. We will have many fundraisers throughout the year, and walk day will be October 1st, which is Uff-Da Day in Rutland. Here is a link to my personal page. I am walking in honor of my Grandma, Kathy Brakke, and have a picture of us together there. Any donations are welcomed. Feel free to share this page: http://act.alz.org/goto/clairebrakke. Thanks, Claire.” Claire is the daughter of Jesse Brakke and the late Michelle (Garot) Brakke. She is a 2014 graduate of Sargent Central High School and a 2018 graduate of The University of North Dakota. Claire is currently employed as an Occupational Therapist in the Madison WI community.
The estate of the late Gretchen Vann of this community is advertising for sealed bids for the purchase of the buildings formerly occupied by The Rutland General Store and the Rutland Café. The bid opening is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, July 13, at the Even Law Office in Cogswell. Interested persons may call Attorney LeeAnn Even at 701.724.3772, or send an inquiry to Even Law Office, PO Box 1, Cogswell ND 58017.
Jesse Brakke, Andy Harris and Bill Anderson of this community accompanied Bill’s niece and Andy’s cousin, Kelly Hawkinson, to Bismarck on Friday, June 16, to take in the Professional Bull Riders’ (PBR) competition held at The Bismarck Civic Center on Friday & Saturday evenings. The Bismarck Civic Center Arena is air-conditioned, keeping spectators, participating bull riders and participating bulls a lot more comfortable than they otherwise would have been. Kelly serves as secretary/statistician for the PBR Association in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota. She had been visiting in Rutland since June 11. At Bismarck, 40 riders competed for titles, prizes and cash on the backs of more than 100 bulls that had been selected for their tricky moves, fierce competitiveness and bad tempers. The bulls for the Bismarck event were supplied by the Chad Berger Ranch of Mandan ND. Riders earn points for completed rides that will go toward earning the National Championship at the end of the year, and the Bismarck event was also the 4th of 12 events in this region that will select the winner of “The King Of The North” title. Two riders, 2 time National Champion Bull Rider Daylon Swearingen of New York, and rookey rider Kade Madsen of Honeyville, Utah, tied for First Place honors at Bismarck. The bulls also compete, and Chad Berger’s bulls have been the best on the PBR’s national circuit for 12 of the past 23 years, an outstanding record of accomplishment. The Chad Berger Ranch also honors a North Dakota military veteran during the Bismarck event each year. This year’s honoree was Charles Murphy of Fort Yates ND, a Vietnam War veteran. Mr. Murphy is a Native American whose Great-Grandfathers fought the U. S. Army back in the 1870’s & 1880’s. His Grandfathers served in the U. S. Army during WWI, his father served in the Army during WWII and the Korean War, Mr. Murphy served in Vietnam and his descendants have followed in their ancestors’ footsteps. On Sunday morning Kelly headed west, toward her home at Dillon MT, and Jesse, Andy & Bill returned to Rutland. Kelly will be working at PBR events in Belcourt and Binford ND on Friday & Saturday, June 23 & 24.
While Jesse Brakke, Andy Harris & Bill Anderson were taking in the PBR event in Bismarck, Andy’s brother, Mike Harris, was attending a rodeo at Gardner MT, where he is now employed. Back in his Billings MT high school days, Mike participated in high school rodeo events as a bull rider, so he has some sympathy for, and empathy with, the current practitioners of the sport. Mike sent the following report to his cousin, Kelly Hawkinson: “…The bull fighters yesterday were a little standoffish. I could see one rider getting in trouble and the fighters were not moving in… the guy got hung up, lost his feet, and was shook up pretty good. I stood up as if I was going to help … I was 100 yards away and two fences…” were in the way. Mike sat back down. When a guy is 18, or even 22, 100 yards and 2 fences aren’t much of an obstacle, but when you’re in your 50’s and have 35 years in the Navy behind you, the distances seem longer and the fences get higher.
Well, that’s the news from Rutland for this week. For additional information about what’s going on in the little city that can, check out the community’s internet web site at www.rutlandnd.com and take a look at the Rutland Facebook page while you’re at it, too. Don’t forget to patronize your local Post Office, and remember to keep the pressure on the U.S. Postal Service and North Dakota’s Congressional delegation to SAVE OUR POST OFFICE! Later
rutlandramblings 