In the Portage News

Staff Writer

Retreat Golf Course, located five miles east of Floodwood, one of the top 9-hole courses in the state. That goal, along with the excellent support of the area residents, has Dan optomistic about the future of the course.

In July of 2008, Dan and his two sons purchased The Retreat Golf Course. The sons assisted in getting the course up and running, but then followed different career paths leaving Dan as the main owner.

Because he works full-time at RBC Wealth Mangement, Dan has hired people from Floodwood to run the golf course. “I’m a CPA by background, and I’m a fi nancial consultant now, so I know how to run a business,” Dan explained. “But I don’t necessarily have a good background in running a golf course. I’m kind of depending on the people from Floodwood.”

All of The Retreat’s employees are from Floodwood. Susan Heine, Shelly Tahja, and Bonnie Hall manage the duties inside, while the outside responsibilities are completed by Kerry Heine, Josh Tahja, Justin Hall, and Steve Gregory.

“When I bought the golf course, the economy was a bit better. Right after we bought it, the economy kind of took a down turn,” Dan shared. “It’s been a couple of not so good years, but the people from Floodwood support it.”

Between the men’s league, women’s league, couple’s league, season passes, and weekend events, the golf course sees quite a bit of traffi c from area golfers. “We try to have some kind of an event every weekend,” Dan said. “We’ll combine with the local businesses to do an event. For example, the bar might do a scramble at 3:00 in the afternoon and then at 5:30, we’re sending them back to their bar where they can give away the prizes.”

Both businesses benefi t from the deal.
The Retreat has hosted scrambles for various
local businesses, including Country Corner and…

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Publisher

Members of the Southwest St. Louis County Fair Association received someexcellent news this past week. It was announced that the Fair Association has been awarded $17,000 for the purpose of enhancing the Southwest St. Louis County Fair.

This grant is in addition to the $7,368.42 already received earlier this year. All totalled, the Fair Board has $24,368.42 in new money coming in to enhance the fair.

“The money is all part of the Minnesota Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment (Legacy Amendment),” said Fair Association President Rob Benson. “Minnesota Legacy taxes raised 1.4 million dollars this year to improve or enhance County Fairs.”

Fair Board member Roger Hill noted that there are 96 county fairs in the state of Minnesota...“and we are one of the smallest, if not the smallest County Fair in the state,” he said. “The impetus is to draw new people to the fair and these enhancements have to be something new we have not done before.”

Rob agreed that increasing attendance is very important. “It seems most fairs have declining attendance,” he said. “The goal is to add programming that will appeal to and educate a broader section…

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Publisher

Eighth grade student Connor Houle has participated in the National Geographic Bee at South Ridge (AlBrook) School every year since he was in fourth grade. In most cases, he has made it to the top 10, but this year he accomplished the ultimate goal—winning it all.

Connor got off to a good start at this year’s competition. “My fi rst question was the easiest ever, ‘Which state in the U.S. is the largest in terms of land size—Texas or Alaska?’” Connor recalled. “Alaska is twice the size of Texas.”

Winning the competition also involves a little luck. “I got a question about the Nazca Plate and totally guessed,” Connor shared. “The answer was South America and I couldn’t believe I got it right.”

Connor reached the finals, along with a seventh grader, Ethan Drew. They were asked three questions:

Question #1: Barrier Islands help shelter a nature reserve on Apalachicola Bay, an arm of what large gulf?

Question #2: Name the Asian Country at the eastern edge of the South China Sea that includes about 7,100 islands.

Question #3: Timbuktu, a center caravan trade for almost 1,000 years, is located north of the Niger River in which landlocked country?

Connor got question #1 and #2 correct and missed #3. Ethan answered #1 correctly, but missed #2 and #3.

Ethan finished second, while Caleb Luomala (6th grade) was 3rd; Reed Clark (8th grade) was 4th and Paige Wagner (6th Grade) was 5th.

The National Geographic Bee is designed to encourage teachers to include geography in their classrooms, spark student interest in the subject, and increase public awareness about geography. Schools with students in grades four through eight are eligible for this entertaining and challenging test of geographic knowledge.

Schools throughout the United States hold the competition from November 14, 2011 through January 13, 2012.

Connor will now take a qualifying test and the top 100 individual school winners will advance to the State Bee to be held on March 30, 2012.

The winner will advance to the National Bee to be held May 22-24, 2012 in Washington, D.C.

Looking back on his accomplishment, Connor attributes being …

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Publisher

Friends, Sue Sillanpaa and Trish Polich recently found themselves unemployed and were in need of another source of income. They were working as personal care assistants at Pointe Estates, a business that closed it doors this Fall.

The two made a decision to start a new business called ST Home Services. Their goal is to provide personal care, cleaning, cooking or whatever a customer might need for personal services in a confidential manner.

According to Sue and Trish, providing assistance is what their business is all about. "When a person needs assistance there are often limitations within the guidelines or regulations of many service organizations. We are offering an alternative service. We want to provide a service people need so they can remain as independent as possible."

If a customer needs groceries, they want their dog walked, house or garage cleaned, laundry, holiday decorating, piling firewood, or requiring a ride to an appointment, we are able to provide these services.

Recently we had an inquiry to hold a rummage sale, "It was something we had never thought of, so we added to our list of items we would be able to do."

Sue and Trish met Bernice Korhonen at Riverview Manor in Floodwood. Bernice considers herself blessed to have found two professional ladies to help her out at home.

"I am very, very pleased with their service," said Bernice with a smile. "They do more than what is asked of them and they are very thorough."

The relationship started with Bernice not being able to reach her ceiling fans and then it blossomed from there. "Little did I know that I would fracture my arm in two places," shared Bernice. "When Sue and Trish came the following week, they were asked to clean everything."

"They continually ask if there is anything else they can do and that is very pleasing to a client," added Bernice. "There is always something."

Driving is also a challenge for Bernice and she recently took advantage of a ride from Sue and Trish. "They do that too," concluded Bernice.

Mary Felknor utilizes FST Chore Service for some of her needs but states, "ST Home Service helped me move some furniture, dusted books, vacuumed and organized everything in an orderly fashion and charged a reasonable hourly rate for a thorough cleaning."

The idea to start ST Home Services came about while working at Pointe Estates, a business that recently closed their doors. Sue and Trish met while working there and have been friends ever since. "We are the same age and we really work well together," said Sue. "She is a get-up-and-go, get-it-done, and do-a-good-job type of person. So am I."

Sue and Trish are also interested in cleaning jobs at local businesses. Their first business cleaning job was at Carolyn's Hair Care. Business owner Carmen Thompson shared the two did a great job. "They cleaned my entire shop with a toothbrush," said Carmen. "No, they actually had a toothbrush."

Carmen will consider hiring them again.

Sue and Trish have had great reviews. "The people we have assisted so far have been very happy," Sue concluded. "We are not saying we are professional at anything, but we will do a very good job."

"However, we might be (professional) by the time we are done," Trish said with a confident smile.

If you have a question of what service we offer, do not hesitate to give us a call." You may call Sue at 218-476-2138 or Trish at 218-476-2959.

Interior Cabinetry

Creative Wood Masters originated over twenty years ago designing and building custom kitchens. During that time, we have designed, built and installed thousands of custom kitchens, entertainment systems and furniture throughout Minnesota, Wisconsin and beyond.

Creative Wood Masters is one of the leading custom cabinetry establishments in northern Minnesota.

A big reason—quality at lower prices. Our all-wood cabinetry specifications, hardware and furniture finish are the finest in the industry. Creative Wood Masters combines traditional hand-worked craftsmanship with the best practices of automated processing.

Let us design your kitchen. Whatever your lifestyle, Creative Wood Masters can fulfill your dream for a centerpiece of your home. We’ll create a space that feels good for your first cup of coffee, works well cooking for family and friends and impresses the casual observer.

We understand that no matter how good your kitchen looks, if it doesn’t function well for your needs, or is beyond your price range, you probably won’t be happy with it.

That’s why we approach each design with three primary considerations: function, budget and aesthetics.

Over the years, I have also spent some time developing my art skills, specifically wildlife. Several clients have requested the addition of artwork to cabinet door fronts, park benches, and anything where an extra uniqueness is desired.

Whether you’re building, remodeling or restoring, our designers have the experience and expertise to create cabinetry that complements your home style. Our custom design service is easy to use. Provide us with some simple information about your kitchen space and requirements and we can offer you a detailed plan.

Thanks for considering Creative Wood Masters for your cabinet needs. Creative Wood Masters is located at 7190 Hwy. 53 in Canyon, Minnesota. Call us at 218-345-6769 or 888-901-WOOD; or go to the website at www.creativewoodmasters.net