THIS PROGRAMMING MESSAGE is targeted at you, my readers, and also at bloggers I follow.
You’ll see minimal posts and comments from me over the next week. I have family arriving today from Boston and from eastern Wisconsin tomorrow. I intend to spend my time with them, not writing.
Secondly, we are in the midst of a major house re-siding project which I’ve termed “The Nightmare on Willow Street.” What started as seemingly routine work to replace hail-damaged siding turned nightmarish upon the discovery of rotted wood on the driveway side of the house.
This necessitates bringing in specialized professionals to replace rotted wood, including rotted studs. Yes, it’s that bad.
I’m thankful this was found so the structural integrity of that side of our nearly 100-year-old house can be reinstated. But, as you may guess, this will cost mega money. Thankfully homeowner’s insurance has covered the re-siding and re-shingling of our house due to hail damage. We’re uncertain whether the additional work will be covered.
I’ve cried. I’ve lost sleep. I’ve raged. And I’ve tried really hard to feel thankful for this unexpected discovery before the situation got worse. It’s not easy to stay positive. There’s a lot of work ahead. I don’t even want to consider the final cost if more issues are found.
Randy and I are thankful for the team at Bloomington-based Minnesota Precision Construction, our general contractor for our siding and roofing projects. They have been responsive, caring and compassionate through everything. I ask a question, raise a concern and get immediate answers from people I trust. Yes, they are an out-of-town company. But, with all the hail damage caused by a mid-April storm, local contractors can’t possibly handle all the jobs in and around Faribault. We vetted the company before we went with them and have been pleased thus far with their professionalism, workmanship and compassionate response.
So, that, my readers, is what’s happening in my life right now. As I type this Tuesday morning, the construction workers are working to re-side the front of our house. They will have to wait until the framers finish to continue on the north and west sides. Framers arrive Monday. The parts of the house and garage with new siding look stunning.
My adult kids protested initially that we would no longer live in “the green house.” The new siding is gray and will have a black batten board gable accent on the front. They were joking, of course. But when I’ve referred to our house location, I’ve always described it as “the green house on the corner with black shutters” or as “the Swanson house,” referencing the previous owners.
I think now, after 42 years of ownership and a color change from green to gray, we can officially term our home “the Helbling house.”
© Copyright 2026 Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
My take on the state-hosted Allina-Sutter community forum in Faribault July 31, 2026
Tags: Allina Health, Allina Health Faribault Medical Center, commentary, community forum, health, healthcare, listening session, Minnesota State Attorney General's office, news, proposed acquisition, Sutter Health
I’VE BEEN SITTING on pages and pages of notes from a community forum held in Faribault earlier this week on the proposed sale of Minnesota-based Allina Health to California-based Sutter Health. The Minnesota State Attorney General’s Office hosted the meeting, which drew around 200 people.
The intent of the listening session, according to Attorney General Keith Ellison, was to evaluate if the proposal is in the public interest. He cited concerns like wages, competition, unions and access to services. By state law (Statute 145D.01), Ellison is required to consider public input and then make a decision.
But Wednesday’s listening session, which allowed those who signed up in advance to comment for one minute each, seemed anything but a community-oriented event. Rather, Sutter flew in top leaders. Likewise Allina was well-represented by leaders and employees. This seemed well-orchestrated and slanted toward the proposed acquisition. Sixty-two people, nearly all healthcare leaders or professionals and others in leadership positions, spoke.
AVERAGE PERSON UNHEARD
I felt like the average person, the patients, the people in my city and surrounding areas served by Allina Health, were not well-represented. Maybe it’s their fault for not showing up more than they did. Maybe they weren’t aware of the meeting. Maybe they were, like me, intimidated by speaking before a crowd. Maybe jumping through the hoops to comment and/or register online and then waiting to learn the meeting location proved too technologically difficult. I think all factored into the voice of everyday people being mostly left unheard. Two friends of mine who registered online never received email notification of the meeting location.
I didn’t speak. I could have. But I’m uncomfortable standing in front of and addressing a large audience. I’d prefer a roundtable approach, where every voice, not just those of polished professionals, is heard, in person, not via a comment form.
AN IMPACTFUL STORY
Yet it was the voice of a rural Faribault resident who made the most impactful comment of the evening, in my opinion. And it was because of a personal story he shared. Stories connect us, proving to be undeniably powerful in making a point.
This man spoke of a neighbor finding him unresponsive, an ambulance transporting him to the Faribault hospital and then learning from his healthcare team that he had been within minutes of death. His point: He likely would not have survived a longer transport to a hospital in another community.
“If we have to go back to the municipal model, let’s do it,” he said. The Faribault hospital was community-owned until Allina bought Rice County District One Hospital in 2015. And now, 11 years later, change could be, likely will be, coming again with a large California-based healthcare nonprofit buying a smaller Minnesota healthcare nonprofit.
FROM OUT OF STATE & BIGGER
That concerns me—a much larger entity from out of state buying a healthcare system that currently provides services throughout Minnesota and western Wisconsin, including in Faribault and neighboring Owatonna. Allina just recently closed Faribault’s birthing center.
The CEOs of both Allina and Sutter used the word “partnership” multiple times in describing the proposed purchase of Allina by Sutter. In my head, I was thinking, “Call it what it is, a sale.”
EMPHASIS ON LOCAL CARE
Allina CEO Lisa Shannon, stating that “healthcare is in real trouble,” something we all know, promised access to affordable and high quality care, keeping the patient as close to home as possible. Likewise Sutter CEO Warner Thomas said several times that “Local care is best care.” I agree. I prefer local to going out of town for my healthcare, although I understand sometimes that’s necessary.
I hope the two CEOs mean what they said. Numerous commenters asked for assurances in writing to protect patients and employees. That seems a valid request.
TECHNOLOGY & FINAL THOUGHTS
The topic of technology also came up repeatedly in referencing benefits of the acquisition by Sutter Health. That bothered me, not because I don’t consider advances in technology in healthcare to be important, but because technology was emphasized so much. It is people who are at the heart of healthcare, not technology.
I could write much more about the positives and negatives expressed during the state-hosted listening session. But rather I’ll stop, hoping that the distrust, doubts and concerns I feel are unwarranted. I will continue to stay informed.
I hope, if this purchase happens, that healthcare in Faribault remains strong—available, accessible and affordable for everyone. That means no closures, no loss of services. I hope I can continue to get most of my healthcare locally from professionals I’ve grown to know and trust. That’s important to me, especially as an aging Baby Boomer.
THOUGHTS?
© Copyright 2026 Audrey Kletscher Helbling