A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
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With the passing of "Doc Puumala" last weekend, Cloquet lost its last country doctor, a man who made house calls and didn't worry how long an appointment lasted. Ricard Reino Puumala died Saturday, Aug. 19, at the age of 88. At one time, he and his wife, Barbara, worked at the family clinic with both of his parents, Reino and Marie Bepko Puumala. His daughter, Dr. Vicky Heren, said Ricard (and both his parents) were general practice physicians. They did it all: pinning hips, removing...
As horses and ponies raced around the dirt track at the Carlton County Fair last weekend, one could easily imagine similar scenes playing since the original races there in 1891. The first race Saturday in Barnum featured adults running alongside the three smallest riders and their tiny ponies in the lead-line race. Insiders say the winner is determined by which adult can run the fastest as much as anything. The second race saw children riding ponies solo, like a smaller, shorter and much slower...
At first glance, it looks like a typical farm. Chickens cluck as they wander freely about the yard, with occasional herding by the family dog. Two ponies and two horses are snacking on hay from a feedbag hung over the red metal fence. On the other side of the paddock, bison graze in a field. Rewind that pastoral scene. Bison? Yes. Farm owners David and Patra Wise brought 12 bison, also known as buffalo, to their small-scale family farm last fall. A great-great-grandson of Chief Buffalo, David...
Minnesotans will soon be getting emergency alerts through their cell phones and other mobile devices. The Minnesota Department of Transportation entered into an agreement with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to begin using wireless emergency alerts through FEMA’s national system for local alerting that shares emergency information with the public. The alerts use the same system that shares critical notifications like AMBER alerts with the public, as well as other time-sensitive information during natural disasters or threats to p...
Rhonda Peleski, clerk/treasurer for Thomson Township, submitted her resignation letter to the board of supervisors last week, after more than 30 years. Her retirement date is March 31, but Peleski has big shoes to fill, with the list of qualifications and minimum requirements spanning three pages. “We’ve accomplished many positive things through those years,” she wrote in her brief letter of intent to retire. The board reluctantly accepted her letter during its Aug. 17 meeting. In addition to attending and transcribing minutes for official town...
Those who have used the services of the Cloquet Area Fire District may have had personal information about them compromised, according to a report from vendor EMS Management and Consultants, Inc. On May 31 and again in June, Progress Software Corp. publicly disclosed that its MOVEit Transfer tool had been compromised. The CAFD’s billing services provider, EMS Management and Consultants, is a user of that tool. EMS/MC reports that it is unaware of any misuse of information in relation to the breaches but it is providing potentially affected p...
Three years after having its nonprofit status revoked, the Cloquet Amateur Hockey Association is in good standing again, having had its federal tax-exempt status reinstated late last week. “We’re not happy about it, but we took the steps to rectify it,” said board president Don Gentilini. “It’s a lesson-learned type of thing, and, hopefully, we’ll be better for it in the end.” The association oversees youth hockey in the city, as well as operating the two indoor ice facilities now owned by the...
While still awaiting final city council approval, the city of Carlton’s volunteer ambulance service looks like it will add its first two full-time positions beginning in 2024. That was the consensus Wednesday of an advisory committee featuring representatives from six of the 10 municipalities served under Carlton’s state ambulance license. “This is a big step for Carlton ambulance,” Mark Jones said, “to have a group like this come together not only to discuss financial matters of the service, but also for you to be able to take informati...
After considerable debate and public input, the Carlton School Board resolved to begin talks with Wrenshall about consolidation, with the condition a new district would have only one location — at the South Terrace Elementary School site in Carlton. Currently, Carlton has both a secondary and elementary school while Wrenshall serves grades K-12 in one building. According to numbers provided earlier this month, Carlton projects 295 students this year, with Wrenshall budgeting for 325. Monday’s meeting began with a Truth in Taxation Hearing for...
The application period to train to become a University of Minnesota Extension Master Gardener volunteer is open through Oct. 1. Master Gardeners bring science-based horticulture knowledge and practices to Minnesota, promoting healthy landscapes and building communities through volunteer efforts. They are respected as reliable sources of gardening information for Minnesotans. The University of Minnesota has trained thousands of Master Gardeners. This year’s training is all online and spread out over 14 weeks. To become a Master Gardener, i...
One could call it a mystery solved, but only partially, very partially, since one resolved fact has only led to more mystery involving a pair of 1950s Cloquet High School graduates and their children. This is the curious case of the 1952 CHS class ring. On Sunday, Jody Larson of Bemidji is expecting to meet up with Bill Gannon of Cloquet to hand him a ring that hasn't seen the light of day in decades. It is assumed that the ring belongs to Gannon, since he was the only 1952 Cloquet graduate...
By the time most of you read this, I will have undergone a mastectomy and hopefully will be on the way to a full recovery. This has been a long journey, but with the help of my friends and family it was much easier. I feel the support from so many, and now it’s on to better days. Have you noticed that everyone on Center Road has new mailboxes as of August 14? This mailbox replacement was part of the deal when the road was retarred. Sure looks nice and I’m sure it’s much easier for mail deliv...
Thank you to all the volunteers who helped make Ma & Pa Kettle Days happen again this year. Without you, it would not have been able to work. I am sure that those who complained about some events they wanted to see will be at the next meeting to volunteer to make it happen next year. If you want an event, arrange for all that is needed to make it happen. Do not expect old people to do the work you don’t want to do. Quilting at Holy Trinity resumes at 9 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 6. Everyone is invited to join us. Donations of new cotton fabric, t...
Beginning Friday, Sept. 1, the Cloquet Public Library will implement “Free from Fines,” eliminating overdue fines. This move aligns with the library’s mission and strategic plan. One of our main goals is to offer an open and welcoming environment without barriers, equally accessible to everyone in the community. Overdue fines are meant to encourage patrons to return borrowed materials on time. We are aware that fines are also punitive and act as a barrier, especially for those who benefit most...
Cloquet will, once again, be the place to go to celebrate Labor Day in Carlton County. The parade will return, marching down Cloquet Avenue at 11 a.m., with food trucks setting up in the city parking lot at the corner of Cloquet Avenue and 11th Street until 4 p.m. The Northeastern Hotel, Saloon and Grille will host its annual Labor Day car show from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Labor Day organizer Chad Tuura is hoping some community-minded folks will volunteer to help with the parade. Want to volunteer? Call Tuura at 218-590-0238 or email...
Thumbs down to preconditions on consolidation discussions with Wrenshall by the Carlton school board. It’s not really a good faith negotiation if the precondition limits the options to one plan. Carlton officials stipulated that a joint school needs to be at South Terrace, where the city’s elementary school is currently located. The school board members say it makes no sense to have two buildings, referring to previous consolidation discussions that included starting a high school in Wrenshall and elementary school in Carlton in existing bui...
I heard Ricard Puumala passed away last week. The funeral is tomorrow and I'm planning to go, out of deep respect for my old friend. Doc Puumala seemed old when I met him, back in 1999 when I first got to town. He was 30 years older than me. He was filling up his truck at the same time I was getting gas, and he struck up a conversation that seemed, to me, a bit odd. He was insinuating he carried dead bodies around in his truck. Well, he didn't actually insinuate it, he outright said he needed...
It will be an interesting slate of games for the Cloquet Lumberjacks football team this season as most, if not all, games will be on the road. Home games will be played at Egerdahl Field in Proctor while work continues on the Members Cooperative Credit Union Stadium in Cloquet. "We see the progress they are making every day we are at practice," said second-year Cloquet coach Jeff Ojanen. "We are excited about the new field and we are hoping we get to play our last home game there, and maybe a...
A year ago, the Esko football team was an offensive juggernaut that finished 11-1 with their only loss coming against Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton in the quarterfinals of the State Class AAA Football Tournament. There were 13 seniors on the 2022 roster, including six who will be playing college football this fall. Esko will look to reload and make another run to the state tournament. "We have 18 seniors, which is the most seniors we've had since I've been coach," said Esko head coach Scott Arntson....
If there is another high school football team more excited about the upcoming season than Carlton/Wrenshall you'd be hard pressed to find them. After taking a year off from varsity play due to low participation numbers, playing just a junior varsity schedule, the Raptors will once again hit the field as a varsity nine-man program. "Everything came together last year just fine," said Raptors coach Brent Pokornowski. "The whole program is excited about the upcoming season and the guys are working...
They still haven't accepted their Olympic silver medals. The 1972 U.S. men's basketball team lost to the Russians by a point in the championship game in what was a highly controversial and contested last minute of play. Up to that point, the United States, in the days of all-college rosters, had never lost an Olympic basketball game. Team captain Kenny Davis included language in his will preventing his children from ever accepting the silver medal. The team members have met several times since t...
Preseason training camp began Wednesday for the Minnesota Wilderness’ 2023-24 campaign. A roster of 29 players took to the ice with the first three days of practice set for Wessman Arena on the University of Wisconsin-Superior campus in Superior. Beginning Saturday, Aug. 26, the team will skate at Proctor’s St. Luke’s Sports and Events Center. The Proctor facility will also be the team’s home for its single pre-season home game, and first three regular-season home contests, due to an ice plant breakdown at its home venue — the Northwood...
Cromwell mayor Sharon Zelazny and Wrenshall resident Harold Ankrum were recognized as the 2023 Carlton County Outstanding Seniors for 2023 on Friday, Aug 18, during Senior Day at the Carlton County Fair. Harold Ankrum is well-known in the Carlton-Wrenshall area as the longtime owner of Harold's Service just west of the Carlton County Courthouse. He is in the process of selling the business. Yet, besides helping stranded motorists, Ankrum is noted for turning "fiascos into fortunes" for cancer...
Autumn Peterson has been a part of the Carlton County Fair for more than half her life. The Wrenshall resident started with poultry and goats at the age of 8; this year she brought only rabbits. The showing process is a combination of skill on the part of the exhibitor, and an assessment of the rabbit's physical qualities. The judge observes the exhibitor's ability to show they have knowledge of the rabbit, and will also compare the rabbit's physical appearance to what is normal for that...
Ricard Reino Puumala, 88, died peacefully Aug. 19, 2023, at Inter-Faith Care Center in Carlton. He was born July 23, 1935, in Chicago to Reino and Marie Bepko Puumala, both doctors. Growing up in Cloquet, he was active in debate, thespians, band (trombone) and orchestra (violin), and Boy Scouts, achieving the rank of Eagle Scout. He graduated from Cloquet High School in 1952 as a National Merit Scholar, then went on to the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis for his undergraduate and medical...
