Goodbye 2015.

 

Hello 2016.

 

It’s time again to look back over 2015 at the events that shaped the year.

 

Here we’ve chosen stories that had the most impact -- or received the most attention.

 

Ellis Bakery opened their doors in 2015 in the Jimmy’s Pizza building and owner Linda Ellis features made-from-scratch breads, cookies, muffins, rolls, donuts, cakes, pies and bars — as well as a breakfast menu.

 

Gas prices below $2 appeared around the area to the delight of commuters.

 

Mike Keigan was selected to author the Clear Lake History Book — which is still in production and due to be complete in January of 2017.

 

Becker Police Officer Jonathan Batterberry was honored (along with a Wright County Deputy) with starting life-saving measures on an elderly man who collapsed at the Fitness Revolution gym in Sartell.

 

Local auto repairman, Dave Larcom, barely escaped death when a vehicle he was working on that was high in the air on a hoist — came crashing down when the hoist failed. Larcom, fortunately, had been called to the front desk to help a customer and avoided being underneath the vehicle at the time of the accident.

 

Mikey James, a Becker eighth-grader, earned a spot on the National Junior High Rodeo team and traveled with fellow teammates to Des Moines, IA in June to compete at the 11th annual rodeo finals.

Becker Officer Chris Lindbloom — along with Big Lake Police and the Sherburne County Sheriff’s Dept. — made a traffic stop in June of a vehicle traveling through Becker that held three people who were wanted for facilitating an escape from a locked unit at a hospital in Brainerd by setting a bed on fire.

 

Becker United Methodist Church closed their doors for Sunday services July 1 after serving the Becker area for over 130 years.

 

Clear Lake Firefighter Barry Schuldt was named CLFD Firefighter of the Year and in August named the American Legion State of Minnesota Firefighter of the Year.

 

Eight-year-old Bryce Roelike of Becker held a special garage sale the weekend of June 26-28 to honor his grandmother, his mom and his aunt who have all been affected by cancer. Bryce raised over $3,000 and plans to hold the sale annually.

 

McDonald’s Meats of Clear Lake took home one national  and two second place titles at the 2015 American Cured Meat Championships in Springfield, IL June 18-20.

 

The Becker Fire Dept. was dispatched to Xcel Energy’s Sherco plant in mid-July after receiving a call on a reported fire. Plant Director Ron Brevig reportedly called 911 after he noticed some smoldering coal near a coal shed.

 

Nineteen youths and four adults from the Youth of Truth youth program at the Church of Mary of the Visitation in Becker and Big Lake went to the 24 local homes to serve each homeowner in whatever capacity they could. They cleaned, raked, painted and organized homes in Becker, Big Lake and Clear Lake.

 

Construction on the Co. Rd. 24 bridge from Rolling Ridge Rd. to Lobelia Street began in July and finished in late fall.

 

Nine-year-old Lucy Pink of Clear Lake held a lemonade stand to honor the Chuck Maurer family after Chuck and his daughter, Cassy, were killed in a two-vehicle accident along Hwy. 10 at Co. Rd. 11 in Becker Twp.

 

A string of thefts from mailboxes brought an arrest of two people in August.

 

Hollyhock Farm Alpacas in Becker and owners Darryl and Teresa Kukowski held their final farm tour in September before moving to Grasston, MN.

 

Former BPD Officer Jason Lawson originated a non-profit organization in 2013 for the police department called “Defenders” to allow them to raise funds, donate to worthy causes and forge positive partnerships with their communities. 

 

Ten different fire departments from area fire stations responded to a call in October for a large barn that was on fire in Clear Lake. It took firefighters over 12 hours to extinguish the blaze and save several nearby outbuildings, sheds and silos.

 

Long-time high school sports supporter and photographer and Becker resident Tom Cobb lost his long battle with cancer in October, leaving behind a wife and two children.

 

BB gun hoodlums took to the streets during MEA week and shot out car windows in several neighborhoods of Becker and Big Lake.

 

 The Friedman family — behind the concerted efforts of 16-year-old Adair —packed and shipped out over 500 shoeboxes for the Operation Christmas Child program in November.

 

Adam Lumley of Becker came upon a two-vehicle accident in November and aided a Becker man who was seriously injured at the intersection of Hwy. 23 and Co. Rd. 16 in Becker Twp.

 

Oakwood Church in Becker held their sixth annual Journey to Bethlehem live nativity  earlier this month in the parking lot of Becker Furniture World.

 

Seventeen-year-old model Ashley Graaf of Becker went to Paris in May in an open modeling call featuring talent scouts from all over the world including Paris, Milan, London, Munich, Barcelona and Tokyo, to name a few.

 

Rick Hendrickson and Lori Keller were sworn in as Becker City Council Members in early January.

 

The city’s industrial park saw business growth, retention and expansion and former Community Development Coordinator, Amanda Outhoudt said “the most important thing she can do for the city right now is help to retain the current business entities, expand business growth and help increase Becker’s tax base.”

 

Xcel Energy and the Becker Sherco plant worked tirelessly over the year coming up with a plan for the future of the Sherco Plant under the new regulations bestowed by the state and federal governments. In May, Xcel came to an agreement to bridle emissions at Sherco Power Plant in Becker. Xcel plans to shut down Units 1 & 2 by 2026 and convert one unit to natural gas.

 

In June, a call for censure of Mayor Lefty Kleis came from Member Keller  after Kleis went on WJON Radio in St. Cloud and apparently gave false information to the public on the city’s golf course. The censurship was eventually dropped.

 

Becker Twp. resident  Philip Moran asked the Becker Township Board in June to help alleviate the problems associated with a low maintenance road near his property.

 

The Clear Lake American Legion Post 354 was named Sixth District Post of the Year at their annual convention June 6 in Brainerd. 

 

A representative from NTP Wireless appeared before the Clear Lake Twp. Board in July evening to apply for a CUP to erect a wireless cellular tower within Clear Lake Township.

 

Two new police officers were sworn-in to the BPD in late August — Paul Hickerson and Brian Flynn.

 

Clear Lake City started looking at bringing in solar farms to the area with the hope of providing solar energy in the future.

 

A number of residents in Bridgeview Addition of Becker Twp. appeared before the board in August to complain about their flooding issues. The residents of the development have been plagued by flooded basements for years and they had taken the issue before Sherburne County, Becker Twp. and political representatives in an attempt to get a resolution.

 

Rep. Jim Newberger commissioned a job growth and energy affordability meeting in Becker in August where members discussed EPA emissions and the effect the new mandates would have on the power industry in the area.

 

The City of Becker is working to develop a vision and framework plan for guiding the transformation of the Hwy. 10/1st Street Corridor into an attractive, vibrant, sustainable mixed use corridor, recognized by the community as a great place to shop, work, live and entertain. They held an open house in October to present their vision and asked for public input.

 

The Becker Police Dept. said goodbye to two officers who moved on to other jobs — Jason Lawson left for Texas and Jon Kurtz for Crystal, MN.

 

A new restaurant, called the Hideout Bar & Grill, opened their doors in the old “Chico’s” building along Hwy. and Co. Rd. 11.

 

The Becker Bulldog football team won the Class AAAA Prep Bowl last November when they destroyed DeLaSalle, 24-6 at TCF Bank Stadium.

 

Pebble Creek Golf Course introduced two new activities to their golf course including FootGolf and FlingGolf, which turned out to be very popular over the summer.

 

Michael Garland of Santiago set out in mid-May to ride his bicycle from Becker to Oregon and back to help raise money and awareness for the local Relay For Life American Cancer Society.

 

The Becker White fifth-grade girls basketball team toom home first place last January at the 2015 White Hawk Classic tournament at Mound-Westonka.

 

Michael Veldman, after leading the Becker Bulldogs to their first state title in football since 2005, signed on to play football for the NDSU Bison.

 

Becker’s Samantha Lorette was one of over 6,000 girls who play high school softball in Minnesota selected to play in the 27th Annual Minnesota High School All-Star Girls Softball Series in early June 7. 

 

Hannah Schmidt, Samantha Angell, Luke Lahr and Dillon Radunz made state — Schmidt in the high jump, Angell in the 100M hurdles, Lahr in the 1600M and Radunz in the shot put.

 

Jason Baune’s girls softball team advanced to state in May and finished fourth.

 

The girls golf team finished second in the GRC, just one point behind Cathedral.

 

The boys tennis team lost in the section final to St. Cloud Tech, but Dawson Brown made state as an individual. He lost to Shakopee sophomore Jackson Allen in straight sets in the quarterfinals. 

 

The baseball team lost in the Section 8AAA playoffs in June when they failed to beat the #1-seeded STMA Knights — a team  that beat the Bulldogs just days before by a score of 17-5.

 

Jackson Fluck made state in boys golf and proceeded to finish 19th at the Ridges of Sand Creek Golf Course in Jordan.

 

Cheyenne Piccolo made state in girls golf and finished in a tie for 37th at the Ridges of Sand Creek Golf Course in Jordan.

 

The Becker Bulldog trap shooting team took home the title in the Class AA Conference 4 standings and finished 19th at state.

 

Becker’s Steve Whittaker claimed his first MPGA Mid-Public Links title at Riverwood National Golf Course in Otsego  in June.

 

Three Becker girls Brianna Corey, Payton Williams and Hailey Fitzpatrick — helped the Minnesota Moose softball team win a championship in July.

 

The Becker Buzzards finished the regular season with a 2-10 record, then proceeded to win the state title in September in Cologne, MN.

 

The Pebble Creek Women’s Club Birdies & Bogeys for Becker Backpack Buddies guest day event and fundraiser held  July 28 at Pebble Creek Golf Club was a tremendous success, as $11,000 was raised to help local kids be fed.