I wanted to contribute additional information to the stories and history of Blue Mound Cemetery as it was published in the 13 October issue of the Citizen-Tribune. 

In 1880, five of the eleven children dying of diphtheria in Blue Mound were children of William and Elizabeth Marsh. At the time of their death, William Marsh served as the secretary and grave digger for the Blue Mound Cemetery. Imagine the pain of burying five of your children. Not only suffering the emotional loss but physically digging the graves and laying them to their final rest. This was the life of William Marsh.

Tragedy continued to follow Marsh and his family as five more of his children were buried in Blue Mound before 1905. Only one son, out of eleven children, survived to adulthood. In addition, William Marsh buried a brother, a father, and wife in the Blue Mound Cemetery. 

After so much personal tragedy, William Marsh left Sherburne County in 1905. His family remains in unmarked graves, somewhere in the Blue Mound Cemetery.

Yet, the life of William Marsh illustrates the many challenges and tragedies of settling early Minnesota and Sherburne County.

 

I would like to take a moment here to ensure that all voters are aware and informed of some facts that are being overlooked about a couple of the candidates for the State seat in District 15B. 

At the Convention in Duluth, the Republican Party threw their support behind, and named, Shane Mekeland as the candidate for the seat in District 15B. Myron Wilson was also at that convention – but he failed to get enough support to make him the candidate. 

Now, he is running as an Independent and that will likely lead to more problems than the district wants to deal with. It will certainly cause a split in the votes on the conservative side and that could push the election to the democrat candidate. 

Oh, and that candidate, Karla Scapanski, doesn’t even mention in any of her fliers and campaign signage that she is the Democrat. I wonder why that is?

You can rest assured that Karla will continue to push for the same old, tired DFL agenda. Vote for a better District 15B and a better Minnesota – vote for Shane Mekeland. Let’s turn Minnesota RED!

 

Voters deserve a representative who listens to them and then works to represent them. This is why I’m voting for Jim Read for District 13A House of Representatives.

Jim campaigns the old-fashioned way by going door to door, talking to people of all parties and viewpoints. He’s as tired of partisan politics as most of us are. He recognizes that there are no easy solutions and that it takes working together to solve complex issues such as education, healthcare, the environment, and economic opportunity.

Jim has doorknocked at more than 8000 residences, so if you live in District 13A, it’s very likely that Jim has either visited with you or personally left you a campaign brochure. It’s just as likely that you’ve received anti-Jim Read mailings from a special interest PAC. These completely misrepresent Jim’s stances and are one of the reasons that people are so frustrated with politics.

Jim Read has demonstrated that he is willing to work hard to hear our viewpoints, learn about our issues and concerns, and represent us. Please consider voting for Jim Read on Nov. 6. 

 

On Wednesday October 10, I had a friend from out of town come and take me out to breakfast. We decided to go to the Coach House. I am always bragging about Becker, a town I have lived in for over 19 years. 

Well it was to my surprise when we were stopped at First and Rye Street and just about to go when a pick-up truck owned by Dennis Rzeszotanski did not stop at the stop sign on Rye Street and pulled out in front of us. He also was on his way to the Coach House. At no time while we were in the restaurant did he approach to apologize for his actions. A simple traffic law, a stop sign I am sure Mr. Rzeszotarski has been at plenty of times before at that corner. He knows it is there and he knows what to do at a stop sign. I get that people make mistakes, but when you are running for city government I would think you would want to be on your best behavior and put your best foot forward. I live in the City and I vote.