Echo Press • May 2021

If these buildings could talk: Cowing Robards has nearly 150 years of history

“If these buildings could talk” is an occasional series providing an in-depth look at the historic structures in downtown Alexandria, businesses who previously occupied the spaces and the purposes they’re being used for today.

Echo Press • February 2021

Friendly faces in familiar places: Stacy Kron

This is a part of “Friendly faces in familiar places,” an occasional series telling the stories of the unique people that make up the Douglas County community through writing, photo and video.

Echo Press • January 2021

Local restaurants survive the pause

Evansville and Alexandria restaurant owners find creative ways to endure a round of Minnesota’s COVID-19 mandates, which shut their traditional dining option down for eight weeks.

Echo Press • November 2020

Donuts and detours with family

A personal column about delighting in unexpected delays.

Echo Press • September 2020

Sustaining in a shed days to non-tasting online parties, Tastefully Simple has thrived, survived into its 25th year

Jill Blashack Strahan founded a business in 1995 in a shed with no running water, packing orders on a pool table in the town of Villard. By the end of that calendar year, she hoped to hire seven salespeople to help her out. Today, Tastefully Simple is a multi-million-dollar business with thousands of sales consultants nationwide and 75 employees working from its Alexandria headquarters.

The Clarion • May 2020

‘We can do better’: Tackling sexual assault at Bethel and beyond

In recent years, researchers have studied the ways in which private Christian institutions approach and handle sexual assault cases reported by students, many finding an emphasis on purity that often leads to victim-blaming. A task force at Bethel University hopes to reframe that narrative.

Textura • February 2020

Off the cloth

Entrepreneurs make and promote sanitary napkins for village women’s health and empowerment.

Textura • January 2020

Discovering everyday delight

Aastha shifted in her seat, stirring her spoon around in the yogurt-type substance. India partners sat beside Minnesota students, exchanged small talk and pasted on smiles while internally panicking about whether or not their story ideas would pan out.

Royal Report • December 2019

Recalculating reality

WCCO podcast co-host Sheletta Brundidge navigates her next step on a winding path.

Royal Report • December 2019

Boondocks and boondogs

Actually, I have no idea what I’m doing.

The Clarion • September 2019

A never-ending ministry

Bethel Seminary alum becomes director of the new Office of Military and Veteran Services, retiring from a life of military service and chaplaincy.

St. Paul Pioneer Press • September 2019

Minnesota adoptions falling. International adoptions most affected.

Adoptions in Minnesota are plummeting, and Tim Young doesn’t know why.

St. Paul Pioneer Press • August 2019

Chronic pain patient leads charge in favor of opioids, despite addiction fears

Laura Johnson shuffled over to her coffee pot, hunched over at a 90-degree angle. She gazed out the window, watching birds land on her deck. The 62-year-old’s spine is twisted due to slow deterioration from multiple sclerosis.

St. Paul Pioneer Press • July 2019

DNR ended its frog and toad survey, but Maplewood volunteers wouldn’t quit

From a shrill chirp to a banjo-like strum, frog and toad calls are much more nuanced than the “ribbit” sound many children are taught. For years, Maplewood volunteers have listened and documented the variety of calls made by Minnesota’s 14 species.

The Clarion • April 2019

Bethel’s past, present and future

Shaped by founders and changed by time, Bethel tries to pinpoint its identity.

The Clarion • November 2018

From backyards to big leagues

As a middle-schooler, Tanner McCarron knocked on every neighborhood door to pick up lawn mowing jobs. Nine years later, he now manages his own company from 250 miles away.

The Clarion • November 2018

Processing the shortfall

Bethel community members discuss recent budget cuts and how to respond.

Royal Report • May 2018

Interview Project: Chelsey Whitman

Early dreams of becoming a dolphin trainer eventually morph into a passion for political science.