R.I.P.: Bev Nelson
ALTURA, Minn. – Beverly A. (Boelter) Nelson, 93, of Altura, who retired in 1991 as office manager for the Hubbard turkey processing plant, died at Cottagewood Senior Living in Rochester. Earlier she was at the Altura State Bank. She was a 1947 graduate of Rochester High School. She learned secretarial and office skills at Rochester Junior College. After college she She worked in the business office of the Rochester Public Schools.
Details: Hoff Funeral Home
1929-2023
R.I.P.: Patricia DeVetter
ELBA, Minn. – Patricia Ann DeVetter, 82, of Elba, a former president of the Winona Council of Catholic Women, died at home in the Whitewater valley. In her home parish she played organ until she was 60. She graduated from St. Charles High School. She studied nursing and worked in St. Paul, Mankato and Rochester. She also attended Mankato State University.
Details: Hoff Funeral Home
1940-2023
By single vote Minnesota Senate goes pro-choice
ST. PAUL, Minn. – After a night of heated debate with the galleries packed and hundreds of partisans milling and chanting outside, the Minnesota Senate voted 34-33 to end the last of the state’s abortion limitations. The party-line vote came – finally— at 3 a.m. The debate had gone on 15 hours. Republicans tried repeatedly to weaken the bill with amendments, each of which failed. The bill, called the PRO Act, short for “Protect Reproductive Actions,” earlier passed the House. The bill now goes to pro-choice Governor Tim Walz to sign into law. The state already has abortion-friendly policies, but the PRO Act would make it difficult for courts to nullify them. This has become a critical cause for reproductive right advocates after the U.S. Supreme Court reversed federal protection for abortions in June.
Verbatim
Senator Jennifer McEwen, a sponsor of the PRO Act: “We have a duty to answer the call of Minnesotans to truly protect those reproductive freedoms, to enshrine them not simply in case law but in our statutory law. These are our values. This is the practice in Minnesota. This is what we believe.”
McEwan. Duluth Democrat
Verbatim
Senator Mark Johnson, PRO Act opponent: “Today we are not just codifying Roe v. Wade or Doe v. Gomez, as the author has indicated, we are enacting the most extreme bill in the country.”
Johnson. East Grand Forks Republican.
Passions outside the chamber
Passions ran strong outside the Senate chambers during the marathon debate. Abortion rights supporters chanted, “Hey, hey! Ho, ho! Abortion bans have got to go.” Opponents sang the hymn “Amazing Grace.” Demonstrators, packed shoulder to shoulder, were filmic, waving placards and posters, mostly red, white and blue with some yellow:
> “Believe the Science: Abortion Kills”
> “Abortion Is Health Care”
> “Abortion Rights Are Citizen Rights”
Partisans gladly spouted sound bites to news reporters. “Mothers and babies deserve a far more humane and compassionate approach,” said Cathy Blaeser, of Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life, said. Sarah Traxler, chief regional medical officer at Planned Parenthood, said decisions on terminating a pregnancy decision should not be made kn floor of the Senate but between a patient and her medical provider. “Minnesotans and all people who travel here for care need to know abortion access isn’t going away just because political winds change or an ideological judge overturns precedent,” Traxler said.
Earlier: How they voted: Minnesota abortion reform / 1
Earlier: Biden emissary shows flag on abortion
Earlier: Abortion rights clear Minnesota House hurdle
Earlier: Bishops call abortion bill’s pace destructive
Earlier: Pelowski sits out abortion bill; foresees passage
Earlier: Minnesota DFL looks to enact reproductive reforms
Earlier: Prinsburg mystery: Outgoing anti-abortion solon did it
Keinen woodblock prints at Winona museum
WINONA, Minn. – Works of Japanese woodblock print-maker Omao Keinen will be on exhibit through April 30 at the Minnesota Marine Art Museum. The collection features historic woodblock prints of bird and flowers with naturalistic detail. By trade Keinen was a textile designer. Eventually he was invited to serve on theArt Committee of the Imperial household. In 1919 he became a member of the Imperial Art Academy.
“Ryukyu Flycatchers and Holly.”A print from Keinen’s Flower and Bird Painting Manual.
Keinen. Specialized in kacho-e, or bird and flower pictures, with naturalistic detail. He lived 1845-1923.
Injured snowmobiler airlifted to hospital
DOVER, Minn. – A snowmobiler hurt in a moonlight wreck north of Dover was airlifted to a Rochester hospital. The man, age 30, suffered beck and back injuries but didn’t appear in serious peril, police said. A rider was not as seriously hurt. This was about 10 p.m. Fellow snowmobilers said the man lost control and was thrown from the vehicle.
College scores
Basketball (men): Northern State of South Dakota 77, Winona State 74
Basketball (women): Winona State 73, Northern State of South Dakota 66
Hockey (men): Bethel 4, Saint Mary’s 2
Hockey (women): Bethel 2, Saint Mary’s 0
Minnesota prep
Basketball (boys): Rochester Marshall Rockets 64, Winona Winhawks 45
Basketball (girls): Winona Cotter Ramblers 66, Rushford-Peterson Trojans 54
Basketball (girls): Lewiston-Altura Cardinals 71, Wabasha-Kellogg Falcons 41
Basketball (girls): Winona Winhawks 52, Rochester Marshall Rockets 37
Wisconsin prep
Basketball (boys): Cochrane-Fountain City Pirates 53, Viroqua Blackhawks 35
Basketball (girls): Plum City/Elmwood Wolves 37 Mondovi Buffaloes 31
Basketball (girls): Independence Indees 42, Eleva-Stum Cardinals 19
Basketball (girls): Cochrane-Fountain City Pirates and Gilmanton Panthers, cancelled
Basketball (girls): Blair-Taylor Wildcats 75, Galesville-Ettrick-Trempealeau Red Hawks 33
WSU at mid-year: 10th year of losing students
WINONA, Minn. – Despite signs that that Winona State University’s enrollment losses were beginning to bottom out, the mid-year numbers aren’t encouraging. Spring semester enrolment is 5,600 – 5% fewer than January last year. The January shrinkage over 10 years has been 2,532 students. The current data were collected on the 10th day of spring classes and are subject to change as students drop and add classes and jockey their schedules between now and the 30th day, when numbers are locked in for reporting to the state system headquarters.
Earlier: Glimmer of hope: WSU enrollment uptick
Earlier: Stats: WSU student loss at 29% to 35%
Earlier: Earlier: WSU fall enrollment still slipping: Down 5%
January headcount
Spring 2014: 8,132 (7,630 undergrad, 502 grad)
Spring 2015: 8,075 (7,536, 539)
Spring 2016: 7,790 (7,300, 490)
Spring 2017: 7,491 (6,994, 497)
Spring 2018: 7,301 (6,770, 531)
Spring 2019: 57,128 (6,582, 546)
Spring 2020: 6,686 (6,267, 619)
Spring 2021: 6,490 (5,764, 726)
Spring 2022: 5,902 (5,138, 764)
Spring 2023: 5,600 (4,855, 745)
Heavy smoke damage at LaCrosse apartments
LACROSSE, Wis. – Tenants either weren’t home or escaped from a burning apartment building on the North Side about 2:15 p.m. Firefighters arrived to see smoke from the first and second floors. They managed to contain the fire to the first floor. This was at 809 Winneshiek Road. Neighboring structures were unaffected. Damage was mostly heavy smoke.
SMU looks to Spain for new provost
WINONA, Minn. – Saint Mary’s University has a new chief academic officer. Max Bonilla most recently was the international director for the Expanded Reason Institute at University Francisco de Vitoria in Spain. Bonilla joins Saint Mary’s in the middle of major curriculum overhaul that has eliminated several academic majors and included massive faculty layoffs. The university’s president, James Burns, who engineered the downsizing, announced Bonilla’s appointment. Bonilla said he fully support the university’s strategic plans. His title will be provost and dean of faculties.
Bonilla. A graduate in educational nanagement at Harvard University. Advanced degree in 2000 from Gregorian University in Rome in Biblical theology. Has been at University Francisco de Vitoria in Madrid since 2018.
Verbatim
Bonilla: “As I learned of the heritage, legacy and teaching philosophy that grounds Saint Mary’s University, I recognized the same inspiring fundamentals that have informed my own educational approach throughout my career: The dignity of every person; the essential importance of community; the great need for character education and ethical formation; and the ever-present need for a practical, accessible education.”
Verbatim
Burns: “Saint Mary’s, like most higher education institutions, is facing significant industry change and challenge, and we are fortunate to find a leader who has a demonstrated track record of innovative thinking that has advanced and helped stabilize several institutions. I am confident he will elevate the reputation and recognition of our academic programs on a regional and national level, and most importantly, he has expressed how deeply he values and relates to our mission and our Lasallian Catholic heritage.”
Vehicle rolls, driver hurt near Lewiston
LEWISTON, Minn. – A driver was injured in a one-vehicle rollover atop the narrow and curvy U.S. Highway 14 grade in the coulee east of Lewiston. Guillermina Lopez, 60, of Winona, was taken 12 miles to the Winona hospital with non-life threatening injuries.The accident happened about 3 p.m. at the crossing with Rolling Hills Road. Lopez was heading west toward Lewiston. in a 2002 Dodge Ram pickup.
Post brings home lots of bacon from news contest
BROOKLYN PARK Minn. – The Winona Post earned 21 awards from the Minnesota Newspaper Association for 2022, including six first places.
> Chris Rogers: First for best columnist. First for an article on why the painting “George Washington Crossing the Delaware” left the Minnesota Marine Art Museum. First and second for editorials. Third for a report on the Winona City Council’s reversal of a mayoral mask mandate.
> Cesar Salazar: First for breaking news coverage on Winona police subduing an armed suspect as he was drawing a gun. Second place for a news photo. Third for business reporting. Third as a new journalist.
> Alexandra Retter: Second for coverage of the Winona Schools Board’s ending its masking requirement. Third for the article integrating interviews and data on the shortage of substitute teachers.
> Monica Veraguth. Third with Rogers and Salazar on useful news for infographics on how to navigate roundabouts.
> Emilio DeGrazia. Third for his “Scents” essays.
> General: First for a special section on the Post’s 50th anniversary. First for its opinion section. First fir advertising. Second for general reporting. Second for its website. Second and third for reporting government. Third for photography. Third for pandemic coverage
Heavy smoke damage in trailer house fire
WITOKA, Minn. – A man called 911 that his rural trailer house was on fire, then tried — successfully — to put the fire out. The fire was under control by the time that Wilson firefighters arrived from four miles away. The trailer was in the 29000 block of Kassica Road across Interstate 90 from Witoka.
How they voted: Minnesota clean energy / 1
ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Minnesota House voted 70-60 for a 2040 deadline for utilities to be 100% on clean energy.
For 2040 deadline
Tina Liebling, D-24B (Rochester)
Kim Hicks, D-25A (Rochester)
Gene Pelowski, D-26A (Winona)
Andy Smith, D-25B (Rochester)
Against
Pam Altendorf, R, 20A (Red Wing)
Steve Jacob, R-20B (Elba)
Duane Quam, R-24A (Byron)
Not voting
Greg Davids, R-26B (Preston)
Earlier: Nod for 2040 asclean-energy deadline
Question: She still his girlfriend?
WINONA, Minn. – A jail inmate needed to make a deposit to an account, so he asked his girlfriend on a jailhouse visit to do it for him. He gave her the account number and online password. This was a few days ago. Now, he told police , there’s been a $2,900 withdrawal. Police investigators are on the case.
R.I.P.: Robert Frank
WINONA, Minn. – Robert A. Frank of Winona, who managed the meat section at Albrecht’s Fairway Foods when it opened in 1953. died at age 89. He also was the meat manager at several IGA locations, then at Tushner’s Meat Market. He was a 1951 graduate of Winona High School. He held his butcher certificate from the National Meat Cutting School in Toledo, Ohio. He was n the U.S. Army, mostly in Germany
Detail: Watkowski-Mulyck Funeral Home
1933-2022
Probe clear cops in Winsted stand-off death
WINSTED, Minn. – A man found dead in his house where he had barricaded himself during a police stand-off had indeed shot himself, the state crime lab confirmed. Investigators from the lab said two pistols and an assault rifle were next the body of Daniel Paul, 50, of Winsted. The stand-off began after two deputies went to Paul’s house with an arrest warrant. Once they we inside, the deputies said, Paul opened fire. The deputies, Darrell Caturia and Angie Malz, were in protective gear. Neither was badly wounded. Caturia has been in police work eight years, and Malz 24. Caturia told investigators that he tried to return fire but his gun failed to discharges. Caturia’s body cam supported his account, the crime lab report said.
Ice, snow make I-90 transit perilous
WILSON, Minn. – An 18-wheeler jack-knifed on Interstate 90 near the Wilson ramps into Winona. This was about 8 a.m. and in the same time frame as five other vehicles going into ditches in the 24-mile stretch from Wilson to Dover. No injuries were reported. Traffic was slowed while the vehicles were towed out. There was no major back-up. The freeway was slick from icing and a new inch of overnight snow. This same section had multiple accidents the previous morning too.
New skin doctor at Winona Health
WINONA, Minn. – A graduate of the Indiana School of Medicine, dermatologist Chad Weaver, has joined Winona Health staff. He interned at the University of North Dakota in Fargo and completed residency at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester.
Weaver. Holds a Compassionate Physician Award and a Top 1% Patient Satisfaction Award.
Regional chefs progress for Beard awards
MINNEAPOLIS – Five Minnesota chefs are semifinalists for the 2023 James Beard awards in the Midwest:
> Ann Ahmed: Khaluna, Minneapolis
> Shawn McKenzie: Cafe Ceres, Minneapolis, for pastry.
> Christina Nguyen: Hai Hai, Minneapolis.
> Karyn Tomlinson: Myriel, St. Paul.
> Yia Vang: Union Hmong Kitchen, Minneapolis.
How they voted: Juneteenth /1
ST.PAUL, Minn. – The state Senate voted to create Juneteenth as a state holiday. The vote was 57-8. The bill next goes to the House. Here’s how southeast Minnesota senators voted:
For Juneteenth
Liz Boldon, D-25 (Rochester)
Gene Dornick, R-23 (Hayfield)
Rich Draheim, R-22 (Mankato)
Jeremy Miller, R-26 (Winona)
Carla Nelson, R-24 (Rochester)
Against
Steve Drazkowski, R-20 (Mazeppa)
Minnesota prep
Basketball (boys): Rushford-Peterson Trojans 66, Winona Cotter Ramblers 44
Basketball (boys): Chatfield Gophers 75, Lewiston-Altura Cardinals 55
Basketball (boys): Plainview-Elgin-Millville Bulldogs 86, St. Charles Saints 39
Basketball (girls): Plainview-Elgin-Millville Bulldogs 60, St. Charles Saints 51
Basketball (girls): ): Chatfield Gophers 72, Lewiston-Altura Cardinals 59
Hockey (boys): Rochester Marshall Rockets 3, Winona Winhawks 2
Hockey (girls): Winona Winhawks 4, Rochester Century Panthers 2
Wisconsin prep
Basketball (boys): Melrose-Mindoro Mustangs 55, Alma/Pepin Eagles 34
Basketball (boys): Whitehall Norse 81, Eau Claire Immanuel Lancers 57
Basketball (boys): Galesville-Ettrick-Trempealeau Red Hawks 67, Westby Norsemen 34
Basketball (boys): Onalaska Luther Knights 72, Cochrane-Fountain City Pirates 38
Basketball (boys): Arcadia Raiders 47, Viroqua Blackhawks 37
Basketball (girls): Arcadia Raiders 58, Viroqua Blackhawks 48
Nod for 2040 as clean-energy deadline
ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Minnesota House voted 70-60 to require utilities to be using 100% carbon-free energy sources for generating electricity by 2040. The bill moves now to the Senate. The current Minnesota clean-energy standard is 25%. The new bill allows exceptions if developing technologies prove too expensive or insufficiently reliable. The bill had solid Democratic support. Republicans objected that the requirement may mean higher energy costs and unreliable, service. They derided it as “the blackout bill.” During floor debate, Republicans tried unsuccessfully to amend the measure to cancel Minnesota’s moratorium on on new nuclear power,
Elsewhere
Twenty- one states have 100% renewable energy as a mandate or goal for “clean energy” electrical generation.
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