Finland News: Aug. 24

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Birthday greetings go out to Jack Nelson who celebrated the Big 50 on Saturday at his home with family and friends.

Deepest sympathy goes out to the family and friends of Eugene Kentala. Eugene died at his home on Friday, Aug. 17. A Graveside service was held on Wednesday, Aug. 22, at the Sawtooth Mountain Cemetery in Silver Bay.

Well wishes go out to Patsy Barstad who, after 29 days in the hospital and re-hab, is now back at home.

Deepest sympathy goes out to the family and friends of Lucille Housey. Lucille was a longtime area resident. She died at the age of 89 at Ecumen Scenic Shores in Two Harbors. A service was held at the St. Mary’s Catholic Church on Monday, Aug. 20. Burial was at the Isabella Community Cemetery.

Deepest sympathy also goes out to the family and friends of Merlin Kallinen. Merlin died at his home on Sunday, Aug. 12, at the age of 79. Services were held at the Bay Area Vineyard in Silver Bay.

Deepest sympathy also goes out to Micky and Janet McMillen in the loss of Micky’s father, Kenneth McMillen. Kenneth died on Aug. 3, at the age of 88 in Silver Bay. A graveside service was held on Aug. 9, at Forest Hill Cemetery in Northome, Minn.

John and Betty Pounds and Jean Cook left here on Wednesday to motor to Morton and New Ulm, Minn. This year is the 150th Anniversary of the Dakota War of 1862, also known as the Sioux Uprising, Dakota Conflict. Jean and Betty wanted to visit the site as they had relatives who were involved. Their great great grandfather, John Zimmerman was killed there during the Uprising along with his two sons, John Jr.21, and Godfrey who was 10. They had a home a half of block from the river and had lived there 3 years.

John Zimmerman’s daughter Elizabeth, 13 ( Jean, Betty and Diane’s great grandmother) along with her mother, sister and brother Sammy, survived. They made their way to Fort Ridgely and then to St. Paul. After a few years Elizabeth went to work for the Merritt family in Duluth. There she met and married Jacob Hangartner and moved to Beaver Bay.

Jean and Betty reported the whole trip was educational and was strangely moving to stand on that river bank and look across to where their relatives lost their lives.

The 1st Annual Friends of Charlie Dog Show and Fair at the Trestle Inn which was held Aug. 18, was a great success. They were able to raise over $1,000.00 for the Central Minnesota Animal Care and Control. The money will be used by the CMACC to install permanent kennels in their mobile adoption trailer. Aug. 18th was also National Homeless Animal Day.

The funds were raised through the many booths at the fair, including pet micro-chipping, hot dog/dog treat stand, dog dish decorating, “Putting on The Dog” grooming, Finland Fire Department raffle, silent auction, as well as through a donation box, dog show registration and the pet adoption trailer itself.

In addition to the success with all the donations, some pets found their forever homes when they were adopted. One dog, Peggy the Pug was adopted by Tommy Somnis, who was Charlie’s human. We all know Charlie would be happy that Tommy has a new dog to share life with. The Trestle Inn will be holding this dog fair and show each summer to continue honoring the memory of Charlie the Saint Bernard.

Congratulations to all the winners of the dog show. Special thanks to Tom Kingston for acting as MC for the event. For those that gave donations, Carol Bergeson, the Griffin family, Temperance Traders Gift Shop and the CMACC, thank you. Also thanks to” Puttin on the Dog” for having a booth and donating, and to Finland Fire and Rescue for their booth and raffle for the cause. Thank you to the judges, Tilly Schauland, Sue and Geannie Stoneburner and the staff of the Trestle Inn.

Betty Lillback had lots of company starting August 10. Her daughter Kim (Lillback) Adams flew in from Montana for a week and daughter Terri Mae Lillback drove up from Kansas arriving on Sunday to spend a week as well. Betty and the girls had a busy week traveling down to Duluth for some shopping and gambling. They also enjoyed a trip to Grand Marais for some shopping along the shore. They took a few days to just relax and visit with family and friends.

Tags: finland news, life