Becker, Clear Lake, Clearwater and surrounding communities saw a lot of activity over the past year; here’s some of the highlights.

New Minnesota traffic laws went into effect in July, including the Hands Free law and the Left Lane Slowpoke law. Area residents expressed excitement regarding both, hoping to see safer and less congested roads as a result.

In May Snake River Farm, owned by Tom Barthel and his wife Gail Wilkinson, hosted an archeological dig for 16 paleontologists and volunteers from around the country to dig for Bison Antiquus bones, which have been found in great numbers at the farm. The dig was deemed a huge success, and the scientists plan to come back next year for additional excavations.

In August Wright Co. residents of all ages attended and participated in the Wright Co. Fair, having fun, winning ribbons and bragging rights for the year. Local 4-H groups also had a successful run at the fair, with members of Northern Peak 4-H Club bringing home numerous ribbons for their hard work. Some went on to compete successfully at the State Fair later in the month.

August also saw the dedication of the new Iraq and Afghanistan Fallen Veterans Memorial at the Lee and Rose Peterson Tree Farm. The first of its kind in the area, the memorial honors members of the armed forces who gave their lives in service of the country as part of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Once completed, the memorial will include a personalized dog tag for each fallen U.S. soldier.

In November Plum Creek in Lynden Twp. was delisted from the state’s list of impaired waters. In 2012 the creek was found to be impaired by E. coli, although no one knew why at the time. 

Led by former Lynden Twp. Supervisor Jerry Finch, members of the Plum Creek Neighborhood Network, numerous state government agencies and members of academia worked for over five years to achieve the goal. 

Also in November, the Becker American Legion Post 193 celebrated its 100th year anniversary with a ‘birthday party’ for the public at the Legion building in Becker.

Haven Twp. spent much of the year beginning work on the Sherwood Shores road project. Palmer Twp. paid off its capital improvement plan bond, so the township now has full ownership of the fire hall and sheriff’s office.

Santiago Twp. purchased a 1993 fire engine for $20,000 to replace Fire Engine 3, which wasn’t passing pump testing, wasn’t up to date with current safety measures and was starting to need expensive repairs. 

Clear Lake

The City of Clear Lake and Clear Lake Twp. finalized their orderly annexation agreement in October, and the city continued to look into the possibility of getting a new Northstar Link commuter bus stop located in the city. 

The city also began work on their new well #3 project, which is scheduled to be completed by spring.

Clear Lake Twp. moved out of their historic town hall building in May and into City Hall, where they expect to be located until the new township hall is built at Clear Lake Twp. Park. The building is scheduled to begin in spring 2020 and the township hopes to move in either later in the year or early 2021. The old town hall building was purchased and is being used for storage and woodworking.

The township also continued working on the new fire fill station on Co. Rd. 8 throughout the year, which was completed and ready for use this fall. 

In January the Clear Lake Fire Dept. presented 11 year-old A.J. Riservato with a Citizens Lifesaving Award, hailing him a hero for helping to save the life of Henry “Hank” Koren, his elderly neighbor whom he found lying outside unconscious.

The Clear Lake Lions donated money to help the Clear Lake Fire Dept. purchase an extractor and drying system to decontaminate firefighter’s gear while maintaining the integrity of their suits.

Clearview and 

Becker Schools

Clearview Elementary School and the PTA offered students a number of fun and educational events to participate in during 2019, including Orbit Earth and Family Forest Nights. The school also participated in fundraisers to benefit Clearview and the community, including the food shelf, Milk for Africa and the annual walk-a-thon.

Clearview concluded its successful first year of the Morning Mile last spring with its 386 students walking 21,275 miles, averaging 55 miles per student. The program went over so well they started it up again when school began this fall.

Physical Education Teacher George Bienusa, who started the Morning Mile, was named a Health Hero by CentraCare’s Feeling Good MN initiative for his work in bringing the program to Clearview.

The Morning Mile is a before-school walking program that gives students the chance to actively start each day with music and friends. The goal of the program is to increase activity and help fight childhood obesity.

Clearview continues to work with the DNR to restore Clearview Forest, and this year received a Great River Greening General Mills Foundation Grant that was used to purchase plants for pollinator gardens next to and in the forest. Along with members of Great River Greening, local Boy Scouts and community volunteers, Clearview students spent time planting the 6,300 native Minnesota plants purchased with the grant. 

In February, fifth grade teacher Andrea Coulter was awarded Educator of the Week by Mix 94.9 and Educator of the Month by 99.9 LITE. She was nominated for both awards by student Jonathan Hegge and his mom, Denise, for everything she’s done for him as well as all of Clearview.

Over in the Becker School District, they began offering a new club for students to participate in, archery. Although archery had been in the schools for a while, Archery Coach Scott Brake was instrumental in bringing the sport in as a club. The inaugural year was a success, with the upcoming season forecast to continue gaining popularity among students.

Four Becker Bulldog wrestlers made it to state competition this year; Ethan Anderson (113), Jake Nelson (126), Lukas Paulson (132) and Brayden Weber (220). Nelson came home with 5th place in his category and Weber came in 6th in his.

For the fifth straight year, the Becker Robotics Team FRC 4607 C.I.S. competed at the World Championships, this time coming home with 5th place, the best they’ve ever done. Their entire season was filled with a record number of accomplishments, including Northern Lights Regional finalist, Hardhat Safety Award and Chairman’s Award,* 10,000 Lakes Regional finalist, Volunteer of the Year (Chris Roadfeldt), UL Safety Award, Team Spirit Award and Dean’s List finalist (Diana Bellefuille), ranked number one team in Minnesota throughout the competition season, Championship Detroit qualifier, Championships Detroit Carson-Tesla Division Quality Award, Championships Carson Sub Division Winner, Championships Einstein Field fifth place, MSHSL State Qualifier, State Tournament Engineering & Design Award by Dunwoody College**, and State Tournament fourth place. * The only team in FRC history to do so in consecutive years at different events. ** First team to receive award twice.

In March the middle school entertained friends, family and classmates with the musical Mary Poppins, and in May the high school performed the play 45 Seconds to Broadway. 

Clearwater

The 3rd annual Explore Clearwater/Clear Lake Business Expo was once again held in May at the Clearwater American Legion in conjunction with the Legion’s made-to-order omelet breakfast. Growing each year that it’s been held, this year 30 businesses and organizations were on hand to promote themselves and any employment opportunities they were hiring for.

Our Dance Place began offering weekly dances for the disabled at Driftwood Golf and Fitness in Clearwater. Our Dance Place is a social entertainment club for persons that are developmentally disabled and people with disabilities where they can get together with friends in a safe, hassle-free social environment, dancing, dining, talking and having fun; a place where they can be themselves, meet new people and have a sense of belonging.

Clearwater weightlifter Amanda Lawrence was named ‘strongest female in the world’ after winning the International Powerlifting Federation World Championship in Helsingborg, Sweden, setting world records in squat at 535 pounds and deadlift at 556 pounds.

This fall the second generation, family-owned Clearwater Travel Plaza was sold to Dave Olson of Clear Lake, who, along with his three adult children, also owns a few convenience stores and two additional truck stops. Olson plans to keep the Travel Plaza and Nelson Bros. Restaurant and Bakery running as is.

The Clearwater Lions donated a personalized wooden bench to the Clearwater Library engraved with the phrase “Love to Read.” It was exactly what Librarian Cyrene Bastien had been looking for; one of her goals had been to get a bench for the front door of the library to welcome patrons and provide a place for them to sit and rest while they wait for their rides.

The Lions also donated a new sign for Sportsman’s Hill Park in Clearwater, replacing the original which had become faded and difficult to read.