NEWS
--Royalton seventh grader William Rausch took first place honors in the 2023 Regional Spelling Bee Wednesday at Sourcewell in Staples. Rausch’s winning word was ‘comportment.’ Rausch now moves on to the 2023 Scripps National Spelling Bee the last week of May in National Harbor, Maryland. Following Rausch’s successful spelling of ‘comportment’ and being declared by judges as the winner, Sourcewell Student Academics Coordinator Phillip Olsen approached the stage to congratulate Rausch and asked how he studied and prepared for the spelling bee. “I just did it in my living room with my mom,” he said before the crowd, pointing to his mom in the audience. “She said the word out loud and I wrote it down.” Each year, Sourcewell hosts the Regional Spelling Bee for third through eighth graders of member schools in the five-county service area of Cass, Crow Wing, Morrison, Todd, and Wadena counties. The winner earns an all-expenses paid trip to the national spelling bee for themselves and a parent/guardian. Each participant was a finalist or champion in their respective district. The representation formula is one speller per 1,000 students based on K-12 enrollment, which also includes private and parochial schools within the geographical boundaries of a district. Others who competed were from Pierz, Zedrick Fleck 5th Grade, Nathan Milner 3rd Grade, Gabe Stangl 8th Grade. Maggie Grunewald 5th grader from Staples-Motley. Milo Hutchins 7th grader from Swanville. Other schools from Cass, Aitkin and Wadena Counties were represented at the event also.
--A major road construction project in east St. Cloud will get underway this spring and the Minnesota Department of Transportation is holding a public meeting ahead of time to lay out the details. Starting in mid-April, and lasting two seasons, Highway 10 and Highway 23 will be reconstructed including a new Highway 23 bridge, a pedestrian overpass across Highway 10, and reconfigured on/off ramps. Highway 10 will be reconstructed from 15th Avenue Southeast and Benton Drive. Highway 23 will be reconstructed from east of Wilson Avenue to east of Benton County Road 1. Crews will also install a noise wall along the south side of Highway 23 and east of 14th Avenue southeast. The public meeting will be held at the MNDOT office in St. Cloud at 3725 12th Street North. You'll be able to see the detailed plan layouts, ask questions and learn about the traffic impacts in 2023. The meeting will be Monday from 3-6pm.
--A level 3 sex offender is planning to move back into Sherburne County. The Sheriff's Office says 35-year-old David Kangas Jr has served his prison sentence for sexually assaulting a teenage girl. He plans to live in Princeton in the vicinity of 307th Avenue Northwest and 147th Street. Kangas has lived at the home previously and therefore there will not be a community notification meeting as one was already held when he moved to that home before.
--Wild turkey hunting season starts in Minnesota April 12 and runs through May 31. The DNR says turkey numbers look good but he says it might be a different setting this year with snow likely to be on the ground to start the season. The turkey numbers in central Minnesota are good because people can tell because turkeys have been spotted near road ways and fields all over the area. The majority of the turkeys are hens and they've been more vocal lately. Now if snow is still on the ground to start the season it will be harder to sneak into the woods without being detected. The DNR speculates that participation could be down if winter lingers into April.
--Eighty ladies participated in Ladies Night Out Pierz Style yesterday. Our grand prize winner was Debra Meyer-Myrum who won a $500 Pierz Foods/Pierz Floral Gift Card. The best dressed contest was won by Lexi Kieffer and Courtney Carlson who dressed up like members of the Rockford Peaches from the movie A League Of Their Own. View photos on the Little Falls Radio facebook page and our website at fallsradio.com. Thank you to each of the sponsors and those who attended making it a successful event.
--An extremely busy weekend of events. Tonight fish fry meals across the area including Pierz Lions having one tonight in Pierz, Sacred Heart in Staples with a Fish Fry and many others to take in local entities. The Fishing Pros Fundraiser for the Fishing Museum is tonight social at 4 and dinner at 6 at Rice Creek, tickets can be purchased by calling the museum at 616-2011. The Morrison County Dairy Princess Coronation and Banquet is Saturday at 8pm dinner, social at 7:30pm at the Falls Ballroom, tickets at the door for the 5 candidates vying for Dairy Princess. Empty Bowls Fundraiser for Oasis Central Minnesota will be held on Sunday from 11:30am-2pm at First Lutheran Church in Little Falls, tickets at the event and you can keep the handmade painted bowl after eating the soup, bread and dessert plus there is a silent auction at the event. Ham Bingo Sunday at 1pm at St. Stanislaus Church basement in Sobieski, Quilt and Ham Bingo at St. Rita's Church in Hillman at 1pm Sunday put on by Immanuel Lutheran Church. Bethany Lutheran Church of Ramey has a quilt and ham bingo on Sunday at 1pm. Holy Trinity School in Pierz has their annual carnival on Sunday from 11am-3pm with grand raffle starting at 3pm with many kids games and events through the day to help out Holy Trinity Catholic School in Pierz.
--Little Falls Community Schools are reminding parents and students that there is no school on Monday, March 27th as it is being used for an in-service day for staff and faculty members.
--The Pierz City Council meets on Monday night at 7pm at City Hall.
WEATHER
TODAY= sunny skies, high 38.
TONIGHT= partly cloudy skies, low near 14.
SATURDAY= sunny skies, high near 40, low around 20.
SUNDAY= partly sunny, breezy and cooler, high 33, low 16.
MONDAY= sunny and cool, high near 30, low around 10.
SPORTS
TWINS= more Twins spring games this weekend on Q92 WYRQ also the Twins announced Home Opener information. The home opener will be April 6th against Houston at Target Field at 3:10pm. It was announced that Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis the music producers will throw out the first pitch. The National Anthem and God Bless America in the 7th Inning Stretch will be performed by members of the musical Hamilton that will performing at the Ordway Theater in Minneapolis during the week of the home opener for the Twins. America's Service Members will be recognized at the game and a flag will be raised by a 100 year old World War II Veteran and the 148th Fighter Wing out of Duluth will do a flyover before the game begins.
HS BBB= Totino Grace defeated Alexandria on Thursday in state semi-finals. Alexandria goes for 3rd place in AAA. Nevis won and moves on to consolation championship in Class A. Pequot Lakes after losing to Albany won two in a row to win the Consolation Championship on Thursday. Class A and AA semi-finals are today.