Rutland Ramblings – Nov. 24, 2023

Three Montana deer hunters with roots in the Rutland community: Glenn Kulzer of Dillon MT; Ross Kulzer of Whitefish MT; and David Kulzer of Condon MT; reported a Whitetail Trifecta on the weekend of November 17 & 18. Glenn & Ross had arrived at their parents’ home in the Swan River Valley near Condon on Friday, intending to do some deer hunting during the week of the Thanksgiving holiday. Ross recalled that they had often seen deer wandering around Dave & Pat Kulzer’s log home and decided to place his rifle near the door, just in case.  Ross’ brother, Glenn, was standing on the front porch, checking out the mountains on the other side of the valley with field glasses, looking for signs of deer in the area. When he lowered the glasses, he discovered a nice four-point buck about 15 yards away, looking at him. Glenn, a National Champion long distance shooter, reached in the front door, grabbed Ross’ rifle, put a round in the chamber and dropped the buck with one shot. On the following day, Saturday, Nov. 18, Ross duplicated Glenn’s success by bagging a second four-pointer in the front yard of the cabin. Ross, too, dropped his quarry where it stood, with one shot. As Ross, Glenn & David went out to field dress the second buck, they spotted a third buck pursuing a doe in a shallow ravine just down the hill to the south of the cabin. This time it was David’s turn to show the boys how the old-timers do it, and he, too, dropped the buck, this one a monster six-pointer, with one shot.  So, in two days the Kulzer boys of Rutland filled all three of their whitetail tags. Everyone, including Miranda, Lilah, Cohen, Sarah, and Granny Pat pitched in to cut up the deer and begin processing the venison. According to Pat, Dave’s big buck was so tough that a sharp knife would be needed to cut the gravy. Congratulations to the Montana branch of the Kulzer clan on bagging their winter supply of venison on the weekend before Thanksgiving! Maybe they’ll bring some along on their next trip to the homeland.

About a dozen members of the 28th District Dem-NPL Executive Committee met at the Rutland Town Hall at 8:00 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 20.  The meeting was preceded by a 7:00 p.m. social gathering.  Among those present were Co-Chairpersons Mary Schlosser of Edgley and Sarah Dux of Forman.  Also present were Gene & Deb Elhardt of Ellendale, Jenny Millerhagen of Forman, Hal Nelson of Rutland, Bill Anderson of Rutland, Richard Schlosser of Edgeley, Dale Radermacher, Sonja Albertson, Sharon Brady of Ellendale, Kelly Brady of Ellendale, and several others via Zoom.  Among the topics discussed were the success of recent fund-raisers, the Oct. 29 event honoring former State Senator, State Representative and Dickey County Commissioner Jerry Kelsh of Fullerton for his many years of public service, issues raised during the 2023 Legislative Session, the search for 2024 Legislative candidates, and tentatively scheduling the 2024 District 28 Convention for March 23, 2024, two weeks ahead of the Dem-NPL State Convention in Fargo on April 4-6. The date of the district convention is subject to change.  The next meeting of the 28th District Dem-NPL Executive Committee was scheduled for 7:00 p.m. on Monday, December 18, 2023, via zoom.

The holiday season is upon us now and the family gatherings and school concerts have begun.  The Gulleson and Wyum’s held their Thanksgiving celebration on Sunday, November 19, at the Coteau de Prairies Lodge. All reports indicate that the food was delicious, the time spent with family and grandchildren was pleasant, and the weather certainly cooperated for the gathering. Chuck and MaryBeth Anderson drove up to Grand Forks on Monday, November 20th, to attend their grandchildren’s school concert. Brynn played the saxophone and Braiden performed a solo and according to MaryBeth they both did great.

The Sargent County Food Pantry 2023 Giving Tree tags for Christmas gifts are available at several locations including Stock Growers Bank (Forman, Rutland, Milnor), and Trinity, GA and Zion Lutheran churches and St. Arnold’s Catholic Church in Milnor. The deadline for dropping off the gift wrapped presents is Friday, December 8.

The Sargent Central student winter concert night was switched to Thursday, December 7th, at the Activity Center. They will have a free will spaghetti supper fundraiser for the student Washington DC trip and a SC Supporters for Education bake sale. For those who will be unable to attend the concert due to the change of date or distance, it will be live streamed at Youtube.com/@SargentCentral.

That’s it for this week. Be sure to follow Rutland activities and news on the city website, through the blog, and on Facebook. Let the Holiday celebrations and the spirit of the season begin and continue throughout the year.

Rutland Ramblings – Nov. 17, 2023

Rutland was well represented at the Sargent Central School Veterans Day program on Thursday, November 9. The American Legion Bergman-Evenson Post #215 was the Color Guard, with Commander Larry Christensen, Tom Manley and Roger McLaen.  Many Rutland residents attended to help honor our Veterans from the area. The school youth put on a wonderful program which had a record attendance from parents, relatives, and veterans. The Teller is covering the event with photos so be sure to check out that news as well.

On Monday, November 13th, the Rutland Seniors celebrated the birthday “kids” of the month – Mark Wyum and Phyllis Wyum. Mark stopped in for the birthday photo opp and then headed out to the field for harvest work. Phyllis is such a busy lady that she was unable to attend and partake in the delicious and festive birthday cake.

The District 28 Dem-NPL Party will meet on Monday, November 20th, at Rutland City Hall at 7 p.m. with a social gathering before the monthly Zoom meeting. They will discuss last year’s legislative changes, upcoming events, and updates to the 28for28 Club for District fundraising. Feel free to attend the social and stay for the meeting.

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Rutland Ramblings – Nov. 10, 2023

Harvey and Judy Preble of Eagan, MN, were visitors in Rutland on Saturday & Sunday, October 28 & 29. They were in town to help Harvey’s younger sister, Dianna (Preble) Anderson celebrate her birthday. Harvey and Diana share the same birthday November 7, although Harvey was on the scene two years prior to Dianna’s arrival. According to gamblers’ superstition, number 7 is a lucky number, and this birthday should be double lucky for Dianna.

The Rutland City Council met on Monday, November 6, and approved the Engineer contract for services for the sidewalk improvement project, renewed the water sampling contract with SE Water Users, and adopted the 2024 meeting schedule. Water rates were also discussed as SE Water will be raising the City’s cost of water in January. Rates were last increased in 2017 for water. The Council voted to raise water rates by 5%. The current rate for water is $23.00 for the first 3,000 gallons; the increase will result in a new rate of $24.15 for the first 3,000 gallons and $5.25 for overage use per 1,000 gallons. An update was provided on the Post Office reopening and it may be at least another four months before it happens; stay tuned as time (and mail) moves slowly – but surely. The next Council meeting will be Monday, December 4.

The Sargent County Extension Office is seeking individuals willing to become a NDSU Extension Master Gardener in the county. The application deadline is November 15. If you love gardening and are community-minded, now is your chance to apply. Complete weekly online classes from January 19 – March 22, 2024 on vegetable and fruit production, soil health, flowering plants and more! Application and more information is available at this link: ndsu.ag/mgcourse. Contact the Extension Office at (701) 724-3355 if you have any questions!

The Sargent County Commission passed a preliminary resolution that would redesignate the elected positions of County Auditor and County Treasurer/Recorder Clerk of Court as appointive positions. Before a final resolution can be passed, public hearings are requested. The Commission will hold a public meeting on Wednesday, November 15, at 6 p.m. at the Milnor Senior Center. The commission would like to receive public input on whether or not to proceed with the change. The meeting can also be joined via GoToMeeting at https://global/gotomeeting.com/join/504808517. A copy of the preliminary resolution can be obtained from the Sargent County Auditor or online at http://sargentnd.com.

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The Rooster Crows – Oct. 13, 2023

By Bill Anderson

Nature seems to have exhausted its ability to super heat when it topped the 95 degree mark on Sunday, October 1, Uff-Da Day. Since then, the mercury has plummeted more than 65 degrees, bottoming out at a freezing temperature of 30 degrees for more than 2 hours on Saturday morning, October 7. The 2023 growing season was definitely put to rest on the morning of Tuesday, October 10, when the low for the night hit 28 degrees, and stayed there for 5 hours. The final nail in the coffin of summer ’23 was driven home by a low temperature of 26 degrees on the morning of Wednesday, October 11. Goodbye to green leaves, and hello to the lawn rake. The snow shovel is still on standby, confidently and patiently waiting for its turn on the front line.

Combines are grinding away on corn and soybeans, and some local growers are getting close to being done with the 2023 bean harvest. Joe Breker estimated that about 1½ days of soybean harvest remained on his farming operation as of Tuesday, October 10. Joe reported that the yield had generally been better than average, running from 45 bu. per acre to much better than that. No corn has been harvested on the Breker farm, yet, but Joe estimates that the 2023 corn crop will come in well above average, too.

Noah Breker, grandson of Joe & Patty Breker of this community, established an outstanding record in track while a high school student in Minnesota, but he is now a freshman at the University of North Carolina, and is getting ready to make his mark in big college, national track meets. Noah will be competing at the U of Wisconsin in the Honeycombe Classic this coming Friday, October 13. Joe & Patty are planning to be there to see their grandson compete. On their way back home they plan to stop to observe another grandson’s sports debut. Their grandson, Gideon Breker, will be playing football for Armstrong High School of Plymouth MN.

Wedding Bells were ringing from the hilltops on Saturday, October 7, when Jacob Mehrer and Courtney Stevens were married in an outdoor ceremony up at the Coteau des Prairies Lodge. The reception and dance were held at the Rutland City Hall. Courtney is the daughter of the late Lisa Stevens and Rian Stevens of Luck, Wisconsin. Jacob is the son of Hilary and Shannon Mehrer of Rutland. The bride and groom are currently making their home in Grand Forks ND where Jacob works for a property management company while finishing his college degree at UND, and Courtney works as a legal secretary for a law firm in Grand Forks. The Rutland community congratulates Jacob & Courtney on their marriage, and extends best wishes to them for a long and happy life together.

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The Rooster Crows – Oct. 6, 2023

By Bill Anderson

Uff-Da! Sunday, October 1, 2023, Uff-Da Day XXXVIII, was a hot time in the little city that can, any way it was measured. It started out as a warm day, with a stiff breeze out of the south, and just got hotter and hotter all day long, with plenty of sunshine and enough wind to keep the flies grounded, hitting a record high for the day in the mid-90’s by midafternoon. The Sun really does always shine on Rutland, even when it’s sizzling! The streets were full of people, approximately 3,000, by some estimates, and every face had a smile. Thousands of lefse, many roasters of scalloped potatoes with ham, more roasters full of rice pudding, gallons of rommegrot, hundreds of Krumkakke, sandkaker & abelskievers, Uff-Da Tacos, hot dogs and bratwursts had been consumed by the time activities started to wind down. All that was left was the lingering aroma of good cooking. Among the highlights of this year’s event were: the 2023 car show organized by David & Pat Bladow, and members of their family, that included 112 antique, classic, restored & modified automobiles from throughout North Dakota, South Dakota & Minnesota; the sawmill operated by Dale McLaen, Alan Olstad, Joel Susag, and Sod Buster volunteers from Fort Ransom, powered by David Susag’s 70 Oliver tractor; musical performances by local talent at the Seniors’ Center and Town Hall throughout the day; The American Legion Color guard composed of Ted Lee, Larry Christensen, Andy Hoflen, Andy Harris & Calvin Jacobson that led the Uff-Da Day Parade through town; and, The now permanently reopened Lariat Bar, now under new ownership and new management, that supplied refreshments to patrons throughout the afternoon and evening hours.  Arts & craft vendors, more than 30 of them, reported a great day, and local youngsters with their wagon loads of pumpkins, squash and other garden produce did a land office business. The Nickel Scramble, once again sponsored by Joe’s Ag Supply and the Kenny & Tanya Hamilton family, had enthusiastic participation by kids of all ages.  According to Rutland Community Club President and Uff-Da Day XXXVIII Chairperson Katie McLaen, planning for Uff-Da Day XXXIX will begin at the next meeting of the Rutland Community Club on Monday, October 9, at the Rutland Town Hall. Uff-Da Day XXXIX will be on Sunday, October 6, 2024. Mark it on your calendar now, and don’t miss it.

Some of the Uff-Da Day visitors to Rutland on Sunday, October 1, included: Mary Ann (Nathe) Scheffler, Barnesville MN; Dave & Sharon (Lee) Butz, Chaska MN; John Hoflen, Bismarck; Bev (Bartunek) Schons, Fargo; Steve & Vicki (Bartunek) Renner, Des Moines IA; Sonja (Anderson) Christensen, Wahpeton; Judie (Anderson-Seavert) Grohs, Rosholt SD; Stephanie (Seavert) Watson, Rogers MN; Hannah Watson, Wahpeton; Blair Watson, Wahpeton; Marilyn Anderson, Wahpeton; Tom Thayer, Colfax ND; Pat Prindiville, Fargo; Mark Prindiville, Horace ND; Mr. & Mrs. Erling Lee, Columbus OH; Sarah (Lee) Dobmeier, Alexandria MN; Randy & Cheri Pearson, Milnor; Carol (Welle) Fridgen, Nevis MN; Telmer “Tex” & Lynn (Pederson) Kraig, Enderlin ND; Chuck & Mary Beth (Kraig) Anderson, Havana ND; Connie & Carol Newman, Ortonville MN; Clarence “Stub” & Sharon (Lee) Sundlie, Fargo; Kathy (Rien) Lee, Wahpeton; Mary (Olstad) Indridson, Cavalier ND; Tom & Linda (Fust) Young, Coon Rapids MN; Bruce & Jackie Peterson, Havana ND; Lonnie Hicks, Gwinner ND; and, many more.

Rutland was awakened by a rumbling, roaring thunderstorm on the morning of Friday, September 29. The rain gauge at the Lyle & Ann Erickson farm just east of town indicated that .75 of an inch of rain had fallen by the time the storm had moved on. It was reported that 1.0 inch of precipitation had been received at Forman.

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