Tag: blood drive

The Rooster Crows – Feb. 4, 2022

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By Bill Anderson

Here it is! The Rooster Crows is back! This writer’s move to a different residence in Rutland is still a work in progress, but the people and pets have relocated somewhat successfully. There are still boxes to open and unpack, and needed items to locate, but, on the bright side, some items have been found that haven’t been seen since the last move, back in 2019. If anyone finds a Rutland High School letterman’s jacket, Class of ’63, please let me know.

The bitterly cold weather endured by North Dakotans throughout the month of January has continued into February. The Ground Hog, Rutland Rasputin, saw his shadow on Ground Hog’s Day, Wednesday, February 2, presaging at least 6 more weeks of winter for this area. Had Rasputin not seen his shadow, winter weather would only have lasted for another 42 days. The high winds and blowing snow that hit the region on the evening of Monday, January 31, and continued on into Tuesday, February 1, even caused Waste Management to reschedule the regular Tuesday morning trash pickup to Wednesday, February 2. Rutland residents were notified of the change by telephone on Tuesday morning. A personal robo-call from the community’s garbage service provider is always appreciated.

The Rutland community was saddened to learn that Violet (Olson) Wyum, a lifelong member of the Rutland community, had passed away on the evening of Tuesday, February 1, at the age of 97 years. She was residing at Four Seasons Healthcare Center in Forman at the time of her death.  Additional information about Violet Wyum’s life among us will be in next week’s column.  Funeral arrangements had not yet been made as of this writing.  Price Funeral Chapel of Forman & Britton will be in charge of arrangements.

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The Rooster Crows – February 14, 2020

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By Bill Anderson

Mother Nature has been providing Rutland and vicinity with a roller coaster ride through the month of February, at least so far. The temperature has fluctuated from sub-zero to the verge of thawing a couple of times, with each change in the level of the mercury in the thermometer being accompanied by a change in the direction and velocity of the wind. On Wednesday, February 12, Lincoln’s Birthday, a 40 mph wind accompanied 2 to 3 inches of new snow as the temperature roller coaster began a plunge from the high 20’s to a predicted -15 below zero by Thursday morning, closing schools, courthouses and highways in its path. According to the assembled Wise Men, the changing locations and degrees of severity of arthritic aches and pains are as sure a predicter of changes in the weather as anything in the meteoroligists’ arsenal of scientific methodology, and the latest prediction from the Round Table is that Spring weather is bound to arrive sometime in the next 4 months, come heck or high water, or both. Something to look forward to!

Once again, on The afternoon of Thursday, February 6, sturdy volunteers in the Rutland community stepped forward, bared an arm and offered up a donation of a pint of 100% Grade “A” American blood to aid others in need of the life-saving fluid. According to local coordinator Janet Kiefer, 25 volunteers showed up for their donation appointments at the Rutland Town Hall and donated a total of 27 units of whole blood and red blood cells. Janet reports that there was one first time donor in the group. The February 6 event was the first of 2 blood drives scheduled for 2020 in the Rutland community. The second drive is tentatively scheduled to occur during the month of June. Among those who assisted during the February drive were: Janet Kiefer; Sheila Wyum; Joanne Harris; Renee Cramton; Diane Smith; and, Ron Narum. The post-donation lunch for donors was supplied by the Rutland Sportsmen’s Club. The Rutland community extends congratulations and thanks to the volunteers who assisted the professional staff during the drive, and to all those who donated the gift of life to someone they may have never met. Continue reading “The Rooster Crows – February 14, 2020” →

Hens Do Crow! Jan. 31, 2020

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This is the one of the big weekends in Rutland. Sonja Christensen reported there are now more than 40 teams registered for the Pinochle Tournament on Saturday, February 1. The Rutland Community Club will be serving a noon meal and afternoon snacks. Watch for details next week on the names of the big winners. It is always a fun weekend in Rutland!

The American Legion breakfast slated for Sunday, February 2, has been cancelled so everyone now has a free Sunday to gear up for Superbowl– or for a quiet Sunday evening at home.

The Rutland Blood Drive will be held at the Town Hall on Thursday, February 6, sponsored by the Rutland Community Club. Call Janet Kiefer, Diane Smith or Sheila Wyum to sign up to donate. You can also sign up online at bloodhero.com and use the sponsor code rutland. Walk-ins are welcome so be sure to come on in to donate blood and snack on some have some great homemade treats and beverages after.

Just a reminder that this coming week, on Friday, February 7th, the Rutland Community Club will be hosting the live improv comedy troupe, The LineBenders. The Lariat Bar will sell homemade pizza by the slice and there will be a cash bar. Tickets at the door are $10.00. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the show starts at 7:30 p.m. Mark your calendar for a fun night in town!

Valentine’s Day will be here before you know it – so you better plan to treat your sweetheart to an afternoon or evening out that Friday.  St. Mary’s Church in Forman will be holding their annual Valentine Luncheon on the 14th at the Parish Center from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.  The price is $8.00. They will be serving open-faced sandwiches, salads, desserts, coffee and punch and there will also be door prizes.

That’s it for this week from Rutland. The Rutland City Council will hold its next meeting on Monday, February 3, at 5:00 p.m. and the Rutland Community Club will meet on Monday, February 10. Check out other upcoming events in Rutland on the City website at www.rutlandnd.com. There are some fun events in March including the Sportsman’s Club Fish Fry on the 6th and the Rutland Community Club Fun Night on March 15th.

Hens Do Crow! Jan. 24, 2020

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Mother Nature packed another wallop for the three-day weekend which became a four-day weekend January 17-20 for many. She rolled in the winds and snow on Friday resulting in school closings to the delight of many children and the angst of parents. Kids not only got an extra day off but they were restricted to the indoors for most, if not all, of the weekend.

Rutland residents received an extra surprise in the early evening of Saturday, January 18th, when water slowly trickled out of the faucets. The City of Rutland sent out an alert to not use water around 5 p.m. that evening. A hearty crew bundled up and drove around town in an attempt to find the problem. The water tower was checked and appeared to be functioning during the storm, although it had a malfunction earlier in the week. The piles of recent snow did not help in that effort. Mike Mahrer and Rodney Erickson, along with the help of Calvin Jacobson, soon found the break near the intersection of First and Front Streets. By this time an army of helpers had gathered to assist with turning off the valve to stop the flow. Mike, Rodney and Calvin were joined by Rutland residents Mitch Mahrer, Chuck Sundlie, Colton Corry, Brad Wyum, Andy Harris, Kyle Mahrer and Mac Pherson. Staff from Southeast Water Users also traveled to Rutland to assist with the locating the break. Turning the valves proved to be a huge task as it takes about 21 turns to shut the valve and one turn of the valve was nearly a Herculean task.  The entire town was without water until about 5 p.m. on Sunday. When the water returned to the south side of the tracks, it was again just a trickle. The water in the tower itself had a thick sheet of ice on top and needed to be thawed. A two-man crew from Maguire Iron of Sioux Falls drove to Rutland on Tuesday to thaw the tower; however, they had to give up due to the high winds that followed the storm. They resumed the job on Wednesday thawing out the large chunk of ice that reduced the water flow. On Wednesday morning, the parts needed to repair the main break were on their way from Fargo to Rutland so that they could be installed to hopefully restore water to the North side residents on Wednesday.

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Hens Do Crow! June 7, 2019

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By Deborah Banish

Mother Nature decided to skip Spring it appears as the temperatures have jumped into the 80s this past week. That has provided farmers a chance to try to get the fields planted but the rains and heavy winter snow melt make many fields impossible to reach or to even plant. The predicted rain for the coming weekend will be putting an end to the planting season. There will be many a disgruntled farmer this year so best not to mention this again!

Globe-trotting, or cycling, Cayuga native Randy Kiefer, also known as Singapore Slim, recently informed friends here about his progress on his most recent adventure, a bicycle ride from his Winter roost in Anchorage, Alaska, to his ancestral homeland in North Dakota. Here is Randy’s report, dated June 1, 2019:

“Greetings From Cold Lake, Alberta. Not much news since my last transmission. A few bears, foxes, moose, bison, mountain goats, deer, an elk, and even a badger. The latter was just 10 feet in front of me, then stopped in my lane, and gave me a look. YIKES!!! I didn’t know what to do. Wanted to grab the camera, but didn’t want to take my eyes off him (or her). At any rate, before I knew it, Mr., or Ms., Badger was off to the other side of the road, and into a pasture. That was a treat. So a brief by the numbers update: 1) How I got to Cold Lake, Alberta. 2) I rode the AlCan Highway from Tok, Alaska, to Fort St John, British Columbia. There I exited east on Cecil Lake Road, (British Columbia), Highway 64 (Alberta), to Grimshaw, then highways 2 and 55. 3) Some events: a) The winds north of Haines Junction, Yukon, were horrendous. They said up to 60 mph (100 kilometers per hour). Dust across the road was the least of my problems. At times I was riding at 65 degrees(?). Then I didn’t want to become an OCW Gloria. A rider from OC who went down and broke her hip in strong winds. So I walked, more than once. And at times it was all I could do to just stand upright. There is no winning on a bike in the wind. b) Fast forward to the highest pass on the AlCan, Summit Lake. Camped the night of the 19th. The lake was frozen over, a sunny frosty PM/AM in the tent. c) Next is the smoke deviation. Some of you noticed I planned a major loop to Yellowknife, Northwest Territory (NWT). After checking a map more closely, I had scaled my plan to Fort Providence, and maybe hitching in and out of Yellowknife. But the fires near High Level, Alberta, killed all of that. d) I rode north on Highway 7 to within 12 miles (20ks) of Fort Liard, but with all the smoke I hitched back to the AlCan, to Fort Nelson. The Alberta fires had forced the evacuation of High Level, and some roads were closed. The ups were killing my lungs, so I gave the loop a miss. Not likely to have another go at this area, but really had no choice – RATS!!! 4) The only news for me in riding in northern Alberta is the agricultural land. Enormous fields of tilled land. Large equipment, some even red. Also seeing the cow/calf operations was fun for me. 5) Tomorrow (June 2, 2019) I start across Saskatchewan toward Manitoba to meet fellow Apple Dumpling Gang members, Dick Reis and Don Isensee on 19 June. They will escort me to Fargo. That will be the end of my journey. This adventure started last April from Santa Barbara. Then I had a most enjoyable 7 month lay-over in Anchorage. And now will soon end my journey in Fargo. Thank you for travelling along. r/randy”.

Thanks to Randy for the report, and for allowing his more sedentary friends to enjoy the tour with him.

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The Rooster Crows – February 1, 2019

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by Bill Anderson

Mother Nature’s vocabulary of four letter words seems to be limited to3 this past week: cold; snow; and, wind. The coldest weather of the week, the month, the year and the Winter arrived on Tuesday & Wednesday, January 29 & 30, with the daily lows bumping off the -35 mark and the daily highs hovering around -10. According to the weather experts, this week’s weather is the coldest since this time of the year back in 2004, so, if you thought that you were experiencing déjà vu, you were right. The weather system that moved through ahead of the cold brought about 1½” of new snow on Saturday night, and another 4 or 5 inches on Sunday. The snow was hard to measure, because the wind brought it in sideways, piling it up at intersections, around buildings and in the trees. Tuesday’s winds of 20 to 30 mph, combined with the sub-zero air temperatures, produced a “wind-chill” index of 55 to 60 below, according to the weather gurus. Ground Hog’s Day is coming up on Saturday, though, and the TV Weathermen are predicting a high in the upper +20’s to low +30’s, just so Rutland Roscoe, the local ground hog, can wander out to see his shadow. Well, Saturday, February 2, is also the date for the 24th Annual Rudy Anderson Memorial Pinochle Tournament in Rutland, so it just might be the aroma of scalloped potatoes with ham that lures him out. Another cool down for the first week in February is predicted, but, with a little bit of luck, the worst cold may be behind us. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, “This is not the end of the winter. It is not even the beginning of the end of the winter; but it may be the end of the beginning of the winter.” That Winston sure had a way with words, didn’t he?

FYI. Paul Anderson’s electronic digital thermometer recorded a low of 36 degrees below zero on the morning of Wednesday, January 30, in his backyard at 309 Gay Street in Rutland, and Jesse Brakke’s electronic digital thermometer recorded a low of 37 below in his Ransom Township farmyard between Rutland and Cayuga that same morning. Mike Anderson stated that he was sure glad that he lives a mile north of Jesse, because his thermometer only got down to 31 below before it froze up.

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