Wild disorder at East Wabasha Street tavern
WINONA, Minn. – Everyone at the usually convivial neighborhood tavern Pootz’s agreed that Mike Goodwin was out of line. He had slapped one patron and ranted vulgarities and threats. Told to leave, he wouldn’t. Police arrived about 8:40 p.m. and escorted Goodwin to the street, but, they said, he pushed his way past them to go back in. The officers weren’t sure who was the target of Goodwin’s rage. Among his rants: “The bitch needs to get wiped down.” Was he addressing a passerby on the street? Or someone in the bar? The officers couldn’t tell but told Goodwin he was under arrest. He tensed in resistance and crossed his hands in front, not behind his back.. Officers eventually cuffed him there in the street in the 500 block of West Wabasha. Through all this, police said, he was clutching a bottle of New Amsterdam brand vodka. At the jailhouse his blood-alcohol level tested at 0.17% — almost triple the legal limit.
Michael Eugene Goodwin Jr. Age 40. Booking charges: Disorderly conduct, resisting police.
District 3 chooses Elsing for Winona County Board
WINONA Minn. – Farm supply dealer Josh Elsing handily won election to the Winona County Board from rural northern and western parts of the county. Elsing’s victory was a landslide 607 to 330 over Bill Spitzer, a former five-term mayor of St. Charles. Elsing too lives in St. Charles. There were two write-re-ins. Turn-out was slack, only 14% of 6,400 registered voters. The election came after almost eight months without District 3 having a representative on the County Board. The seat was vacated mid-term in January by Steve Jacob, who was elected to the state legislator.
Voters on Houston school projects: No and no
HOUSTON, Minn. – Voters in the Houston School District smacked down a pair of school projects that would have required $30 million in new taxes over 20 years. The negative vote was overwhelming. A proposal for $18 million for maintenance, safety and academic programming went down 868 to 113. A separate proposal, $12 million partly to upgrade the high school auditorium, lost 896 to 72. The voter turnout was 52%.
Cops: Man barred from house hiding in basement
WINONA, Minn. – Police responding to a disturbance saw a 5-year-old old yelling from a window for help. Inside they talked with his mother, who was under a court-protection order from Roy Charles Glissendorf. She said he wasn’t there. The boy said he was. Police found Glissendorf, 34, hiding in the basement. He was arrested without resistance. This was about 3:40 p.m. in the 250 block of Cummings Street on the West End. The boy, police said, was unhurt.
Glissendorf. Tentative charges: Domestic abuse, violating a protection order.
Rattlesnake removed from Garvin Heights Road
WINONA, Minn. – Yet another rattlesnake, the eighth this season in the Winona bluffs and coulees, was removed by a handler and relocated. This was about 11:15 a.m. on Garvin Heights Road. There also been rattler removals away from the city, one Sunday near Twin Bluffs and one at Cedar Valley Golf Course in July.
Winona clerk accused in $13,000 trading card theft
LACROSSE, Wis. – A Winona man was charged with stealing $13,000 in boxed trading cards from an Onalaska game shop where he worked. Joshua Allan Mueller, 43, was shown in surveillance video putting boxes in his backpack, according to the criminal complaint. The store manager reported various thefts between July 2 and 12. The manager noted that the store inventory was missing $20,000 in products but that surveillance video was wiped clean routinely every four months. The criminal complaint said Mueller was a frequent card trader on eBay. Police said he attempted to make a $765 sale after he had been arrested and fired.
Welcome home for LaCrosse’s Old Style beer
LACROSSE, Wis. — An historic LaCrosse beer, Old Style, whose roots go back to a predecessor label in 1899, is returning home. The current Old Style owner, Texas-based Pabst, announced yt wll move production from its Milwaukee brewery back to LaCrosse. The news Old Style flow from the City Brewing facility on South Third Street begins in November. Said a Pabst spokesperson: “We will embrace modern techniques while preserving the traditional craftsmanship that has defined Old Style for generations.” Old Style was noted for a double fermentation process that that connoisseurs said gave “extra carbonation and complex richness.”
Biker injured in Eyota collision
EYOTA, Minn. — A Rochester motorcyclist was injured when she collided with a pickup truck making a left turn across State Highway 42 at West Fifth Street. Anna Elizabeth Stacy,20, of was taken 16 miles to a Rochester hospital with non-life threatening injuries. The accident was about 6:20 a.m. near the town ballpark. The pickup driver, Brandon Robin Himle, 43, of Chatfield, was not injured. The vehicles: A 2014 BMW X1 and a 2019 Ram 2500.
R.I.P.: Florence Kupietz
PINE CREEK, Wis.. – Florence J. “Tootie” (Mertes) Kupietz, of Pine Creek, who was employed with the Marigold dairy and the Schueler candy factory in Winona, died at age 92. She also was employed 25 years at Sacred Heart Church and helped a son in his cleaning business until retiring at age 82. She grew up in Bluff Siding, attended a one-room schoolhouse for six years, then St. Joseph’s School for two years, and then Cathedral High School in Winona. She belonged to the VFW Auxiliary and the Hilltop Polka Club.
Detail: Watkowski-Mulyck Funeral Home
1932-2023
Winona man in custody after assault report
WINONA, Minn. – A Winona man, Rayshun Boler, 42, was arrested after a report of a domestic assault at an apartment on the 800 block of West Fifth Street. A woman reported being slapped in the face twice and pushed into a door so hard she fell back and cut her elbow. This was about 2:20 a.m.
R.I.P.: Peggy Benoit
WINONA, Minn. – Peggy Kay (Bielefeldt) Benoit, 74, of Winona, who worked at Winona Knitting, LaCrosse Milling and Covidien, died at Benedictine- St. Anne nursing home. She grew up on the family farm and graduated from Gilmanton High School. She enjoyed casini trips to Red Wing.
Details: Hoff Funeral Home
1948-2023
R.I.P.: Shirley Beck
WINONA, Minn. – Shirley M. Beck, 81 of Winona, who served 18 years in the U.S. Army, died at Benedictine St. Anne nursing home. She graduated from Cotter High School and went on to attend the University of Minnesota and vocational school. In the Army she attained the rank of sergeant first class. She was a member of the Eagles Auxiliary and American Legion.
Details: Hoff Funeral Home
1942-2023
Fair fodder / 7: Nobody hungry at Great Get-Together
FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn. – Among 34 new foods on the ever-growing menu at the Minnesota State Fair, which opens August 24:
Holey ham loaf breakfast sandwich: Hamline Church Dining Hall ham loaf, tangy glaze, caramelized onions and cheese in a sandwich made with fried egg-in-a-hole toast. At Hamline Church Dining Hall on the north side of Dan Patch Avenue between Underwood and Cooper streets,
Hot honey cheese sticks: Fried Halloumi cheese topped with hot honey and honeycomb crunch. (Vegetarian.) At The Blue Barn at West End Market, south of the History & Heritage Center.
Irish butter ice cream iver brown sugar cinnamon toast: Ice cream made with European-style butter. Served on brown sugar cinnamon toast, drizzled with butter syrup. Sprinkled with sea salt flakes. At Blue Moon Dine-In Theater on the northeast corner of Carnes Avenue and Chambers Street.
R.I.P.: Mellissa Barnewitz
WINONA, Minn. – Mellissa Christine (Brink) Barnewitz, 60, of Winona, who had a 42-year career at Sauer Health Care, died of cancer. She also worked briefly at Semcac. She was a Winona High alum. She loved planting flowers and reading
Details: Hoff Funeral Home
1962-2023
R.I.P.: Renee Munson
WINONA, Minn. – Renee Munson, 61, of Winona, who had a 39-year career as an optician, died with early-onset Alzheimer’s and Lewy body dementia. She was a 1980 graduate of Winona High School and was active in choir, tennis, softball, skiing and scouting. After high school she attended Eveleth Technical Institute. Her interests included the outdoors, dogs, music, friendship, and travel.
Details: Hoff Funeral Home
1962-2023
City Council punts for now on banning marijuana
WINONA, Minn. – The City Council delayed a decision on whether to ban marijuana in public places. The ban, drafted by the city staff, will now goes to a future Council agenda. The 2023 state Legislature has legalized marijuana for adults but left it to localities to set their own regulations. Violations of the proposed Winona restrictions would be punishable as a misdemeanor.
Cops to hospital ruckus for man on 72-hour hold
WINONA, Minn. – A man on a 72-hour police hold at the Winona hospital became unruly and told attendants he was leaving. By the time officers arrived, they said he had he had calmed down. The night before the man had been taken into custody wandering down East Burns Valley Road in his pajama bottoms during a storm. Police were investigating an earlier commotion outside a house. The house and lawn furniture were damaged.
Rattlesnake spotted, removed in Gilmore Valley
WINONA, Minn. – A volunteer Winona snake-handler removed a rattler, the eighth such incident this summer, in a yard in the 1500 block of Gilmore Valley Road. There also have been rattlers reported downriver at Brownsville.
Earlier: Busy season for on-call Winona snake-handlers
Turnout key for rural Winona County Board race
ST. CHARLES, Minn. – The election of a new Winona County Board member Tuesday may pivot on voter turnout. In a primary run-off in May, only 824 votes were cast. Former Altura Mayor Josh Elsing won the run-off with 456. The other two candidates together had 368. Although the margin was wide, the turnout represented only 13% of eligible voters. The hope of Bill Spitzer in the two-candidate election Tuesday is that he will attract:
> Most of the April run-off votes he shared with Pat Heim.
> Most of the voters who skipped the run-off will be in his favor Tuesday.
At issue is the largely rural District 3 seat on the County Board. The seat had been held by Elba farmer Steve Jacob. Jacob was elected three times from District 3, then in 2022 he was elected to state Legislature. Since then his County Board seat has been vacant. The current election has been characterized as the Battle of the Mayors: Elsing once was mayor of Altura, although he lost a re-election bid badly, 126-40, in 2016 and then moved to St. Charles. Spitzer was mayor St. Charles mayor for five terms. He also is a retired Winona County sheriff’s deputy.
Earlier: If elected, Spitzer vows to follow constituents’ will
District 3 profile
St. Charles, with 3,900 residents, is the population center of Winona County’s District 3. Rural voters dominate the largely agricultural district. There is core distrust of governance in the district, which historically its County Board Representatives have characterized as a preference for small government. Many District3 farmers call themselves land-rich and cash poor, which translates as a sometimes reflexive reluctance on school bond issues and tax wariness, and also conservative outlooks.
Fair fodder / 6: Yummies for tummies
FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn. – Among 34 new foods on the ever-growing menu at the Minnesota State Fair, which opens August 24:
Fried green tomato sandwich: Two varieties – BLT and vegetarian: Two deep-fried locally grown green tomato slices in a crust of Whole Grain Milling Co. High Lysine cornmeal, with mustard mayonnaise made with Lost Capital Economics coarse spicy ale mustard, and local lettuce. On toasted brioche bun from Good Bread Company. BLT with bacon from Pastures a Plenty & Hidden Stream Farm. (Vegetarian option is served with locally produced charred sweet corn relish.) At Minnesota Farmers Union Coffee Shop on the north side of Dan Patch Avenue between Cooper and Cosgrove streets.
Fruity cereal milk biscuit: A Betty and Earl’s biscuit made with fruity cereal milk and cereal bits, drizzled with icing flavored with fruity cereal, and topped with more cereal bits. At LuLu’s Public House at West End Market, south of Schilling Amphitheater.
Galabao: Traditional Hmong-style steamed bun stuffed with ground pork, egg and spices – a recipe from Chef Yia Vang’s mom. Served with choice of Krunchy chili oil, Kua Txob hot pepper sauce or lemongrass scallion dressing. At Union Hmong Kitchen at the International Bazaar, south wall, west corner.
Earlier: Fair fodder / 5: Many items promising, some daring
R.I.P.: Kivden Cornelius
ST. CHARLES, Minn. – Kivden “Kiv” Burdell Cornelius,73, of St. Charles, an information technology specialist for IBM in Rochester for 25 years and later at Response IT Services and Mayo Clinic, died at The Homestead of Rochester with Parkinson’s. He served un the U.S. Navy in Vietnam aboard the USS Lynde. He belonged to the the VFW in Owatonna and the American Legion in Eyota. His hobbies included gunsmithing and soloing his own plane.
Details: Hoff Funeral Home
1950-2023
A strange, strange night up East Burns Valley
WINONA, Minn. – A deputy maced a pajama-clad man walking down East Burns Valley Road, apparently with no effect, but then managed to wrestle him to the ground and take him to the hospital. The deputy had encountered the man while en route a violent break-in attempt at a nearby house. The chain of events began about 10:30 a.m. with a call to police from an upscale section of the East Burns Valley Road, just short of Big Valley Ranch.
The incident
The caller said a man had been yelling and banging on doors and windows and then heaved a brick through two panes of a kitchen window. The caller said the man was screaming over and over: “Let me in. It’s raining outside.” In the house was a husband and wife and two children. The first deputy to arrive found yard furniture smashed and overturned. The kitchen window had been shattered by a large cement brick from along the driveway, the deputy said.
The take-down
A second deputy en route to the house found a man walking down the road in his pajama bottoms. The deputy said he tried to talking to man but he walked right by. To get the man’s attention, the deputy said he grabbed him by an arm but he pulled away. The deputy said he ordered the man to halt but he still didn’t. The deputy shot canned pepper spray at the man but. seemingly oblivious, he kept walking. The deputy physically took him down, into the ditch on the shoulder-less road, and cuffed and carried him to the police cruisier to wait for an ambulance. Ter man was taken to the hospital, a mile away, and placed on a 72-hour hold. The man had a deep cut on the bridge of his nose and bruises on one shoulder and left side of his face. The deputy had minor injuries.
Boozhoo profile
Deputies have recommended that Patrick Stephen Boozhoo, 51, be charged with damaging property and obstructing the legal process. He is well-known in the Ojibwe community for maintaining tribal customs. These included annual wild rice-harvesting in northern Minnesota, which he was passig on to the next generation. Since 2017 Boohoo has lived up East Burns Valley. The family whose house on East Burns Valley Road was attacked said,m however, ttat they couldn’t identify the intruder. It wa a dark and stormy night. Boozhoo has a court record of drunken-driving violations in Wisconsin and one in 2012 for misdemeanor damage to property.
Money Creek hunting cabin burgled
MONEY CREEK., Minn. – Somebody broke the lock on a pre-fabricated hunting cabin and stole thousands of dollars worth of gear. The cabin is off State Highway 76 south of Money Creek. The owner told deputies he last had been to the cabin in early June and had no idea when the break-in occurred. Among missing items, he said, was a portable generator valued at $500. The break-in was reported about 1:50 p.m.
Two-vehicle I-90 wreck injures passenger
LACRESCENT, Minn. – A LaCrescent woman suffered non-life threatening injuries in a two-vehicle collision in the Interstate 90 spaghetti interchange at the LaCrescent ramps. Kay Ann Kies, 84, was taken across the river to a LaCrosse hospital. She was riding in a 2007 Ford Freestar driven by Robert Michael Kies, 91, of LaCrescent, The other driver, Ross Arlen Horstman, 32, of Winona, was unhurt. He was on a 2002 Ram 1500 pickup. The accident was about 12:45 p.m.
Busy season for on-call Winona snake-handlers
LAMOILLE, Minn. – A snake-handler removed a rattler caught in a fence up Miner Valley Road near Twin Bluffs. It was the seventh time that a Winona snake-handler has been called out this summer.
Earlier: Two rattlers in two days at ballpark
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