A young woman pulled chalk from this tub to create sidewalk art several years ago in a residential neighborhood of Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
WHENEVER I HAPPEN upon chalk art, I feel a child-like giddiness. Chalk is often a first art medium for children. Easy to use. Forgiving. And just plain fun.
Chalk art photographed several summers ago on a residential sidewalk in Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
But creating with chalk isn’t only for kids. It’s an art form that all ages can embrace, no matter one’s artistic skills.
Matt Ristrom posted this sign on a music stand outside his music store inviting people to create chalk art. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo August 2026)
In downtown Faribault, I recently happened upon an invitation to create chalk art outside Ristrom Amplifiers, owned by Matt Ristrom. Having met Matt earlier this year and knowing him to be a kind and compassionate person and a gifted creative—he’s a musician, custom builds amplifiers and more—I was not surprised to see a sign and box of chalk outside his music shop.
“Everybody Love Everybody” reads a sign at Ristrom Amplifiers. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo August 2026)
If you stand and study the eclectic mix of items showcased in the storefront display windows, your eyes will surely land on the sign, “Everybody Love Everybody.” That’s so Matt. Offering the public an opportunity to create with chalk fits right in with his loving and inclusive perspective.
Follow the FUN into Ristrom Amplifiers. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo August 2026)
The singular sidewalk-chalked word “FUN” with oversized arrows pointing to the entrance and open front door of Ristrom Amplifiers surely held dual purposes—to welcome customers inside and to encourage chalk art fun.
Happiness in chalk outside Ristrom Amplifliers. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo August 2026)
“You are my Sunshine” circling a smiling sun with added musical notes instantly caused me to smile at the chalk art. Lyrics cycled through my brain. “You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. You make me happy when skies are gray.” Already I felt happy. Chalk art can do that to a person.
Chalked outside Books on Central. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo August 2026)
Next door outside Books on Central, my original destination, someone had chalked “Read More Books.” I stepped inside to the Rice County Area United Way bookshop teeming with customers. Exactly what I like to see—people perusing the shelves for used books to read or gift to others.
One of many quotes posted at Books on Central. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo August 2026)
But I saw more than customers, bookshop volunteers and books. I also noticed inspirational quotes scattered throughout the bookstore. I always appreciate messages that cause me to pause and think, or that simply uplift me.
Chalking art onto a residential neighborhood sidewalk in Faribault several years ago. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
On this weekday along Central Avenue in Faribault’s core downtown business district, I delighted in the unexpected. Chalk art and quotes. Neither proved particularly profound. Yet each showed creativity and a connection to community that felt meaningful. And that matters to me.
The hail that fell in Faribault and the surrounding area on April 13. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo April 2026)
IN THE FOUR-PLUS MONTHS since destructive hailstones pummeled Faribault and the surrounding area, my community has been the site of ongoing exterior construction. Drive nearly anywhere in town and you will see roofing and siding crews or newly-repaired houses.
Seven hail-damaged houses within sight of mine, including ours, have been repaired, or have yet to be fixed. That’s a lot in a single neighborhood.
Business is booming for local and out-of-town roofers and other construction companies. Local contractors can’t possibly meet the immediate demand for work.
Removing two layers of siding from our garage and back of our house. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo July 2026)
EMPATHETIC OBSERVATIONS
But blocks from my house, an underway construction project seems a community undertaking. I know because I talked with the owner. He bought the house with the intention of fixing and flipping it. Good for him if he can improve a dilapidated house and make money by selling it.
This particular renovation caught my eye because, when I passed by, I saw a house with rafters totally exposed, loose insulation inside and workers busy sheeting. Similar work was done on our house with new sheeting laid over the existing, mostly-solid roof boards. Rafters were not exposed. I appreciate that we now have a sturdier, straighter roof.
When I saw the condition of the flip house, my first thought was “that looks worse than ours (looked).” At least on the roof. I felt instant empathy for the homeowner. So, although I don’t usually stop at construction sites, I did at this one. I felt bad for the owner.
He just happens to be Hispanic. I learned from him that the Hispanic community is deeply connected. He tapped into the strength and skills of community for his house renovation. This did not totally surprise me. I’ve seen how Hispanic/Latino communities care for one another, how they work together, how they value family, culture and community.
If not for Hispanic roofing crews, hail-damaged houses in Faribault would go mostly unrepaired. These crews work hard and fast, putting in long days, often finishing roofs in a single day.
The north side of our house in the process of being re-sided with LP Smartside. The siding project is now completed. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo August 2026)
THE VALUE OF COMMUNITY
My conversation with the flip house owner got me thinking about other communities which come together to help one another on construction endeavors. In the past, and maybe even still today, the Amish raise barns in a day. Habitat for Humanity brings volunteers together to build homes alongside professionals. Decades ago, friends came over to help shingle our roof. During this past year, volunteers rehabbed a rental house owned by my church.
And in 1967, extended family arrived at my childhood family farm to help my dad and a local carpenter build our new home with a walk-out basement. If not for helpful family, I don’t think my parents could have built new. The cost would have been out of reach. We needed a new house to replace the cramped, drafty 1 1/2-story aged farmhouse with a partial dirt cellar, no bathroom, three small bedrooms, and an oil-burning stove centered in the living room.
A protest sign I crafted earlier this summer and have held at recent Saturday morning protests in Faribault. I’ve been peacefully protesting locally for nine months. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo June 2026)
WORSE THAN A HAILSTORM
All of this came to mind when talking with my new Hispanic acquaintance. I praised him for improving the neighborhood by buying and fixing up a run-down home. I also told him I’m sorry for the aggressive and often illegal detainment of Hispanics, Latinos and others by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during Operation Metro Surge (and beyond) in Minnesota. That includes right here in my city.
Suddenly that April hailstorm in Faribault doesn’t seem all that bad in comparison with what’s unfolding in this country. And I’m not talking only immigration. I’m also talking about government surveillance, an unnecessary war, tariffs, efforts to suppress voting rights (especially those of Black voters and of women), high gas and food prices, a failing economy and on and on. So much damage has been done to our country that will take years, if not decades, to recover, to repair the destruction hailed upon this nation.
This crockpot flag mural in downtown Willmar reflects the city’s cultural diversity. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo June 2026)
WHENEVER I DISCOVER a public mural that celebrates community, especially the cultural diversity of a place, I get excited. Such art builds community in a strong, vibrant, visible way.
Mexico’s flag on the mural in Willmar. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
Earlier this summer, while traveling through west central Minnesota, I found a pop art mural in the heart of downtown Willmar. Titled “Bring Some to Share,” the art by Minneapolis muralist Lili Lennox makes a bold statement on the exterior of Midtown Plaza Mall.
Hanging out in downtown Willmar near Midtown Plaza, this young man invited me to take his portrait. He represents the changing face of this west central Minnesota city. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo June 2026)
The public art speaks to the diversity of this city of some 21,000 which, when I grew up an hour to the south, was overwhelmingly White. Today Hispanics, Latinos and Blacks account for nearly 40 percent of Willmar’s population.
The Honduran flag on the Willmar mural. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
Thus the eight aluminum panels featuring flags of the USA, Somalia, Mexico, Honduras, India, Norway and the Karen National Union, plus the old Minnesota state flag, painted on slow cookers certainly represent Willmar today.
A Somali man walks past the “Bring Some to Share” mural on Midtown Plaza in Willmar. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
The location of the mural on Midtown Plaza seems especially fitting, The building serves as a business center and gathering space for East African immigrants. It once housed Erickson Furniture, a long-time regional business with connections to Faribault. The Erickson family also operated a furniture store in Faribault beginning in 1956 until its closure in 2025. The store has since reopened as Erickson Family Furniture, but is no longer in the Erickson family.
This mural in downtown Faribault reflects the city’s diversity. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
Faribault, slightly larger than Willmar at 25,000 residents, is also a diverse city with sizable Somali and Hispanic/Latino populations. And Faribault, too, celebrates its diversity via a public mural in the heart of downtown. “Love for All” features multi-hued hands signing the word “love” in American sign language.
This photo taken in June shows two Somali women in downtown Faribault, where many Somalis live, work and own businesses. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
I appreciate that Minneapolis artist Jordyn Brennan’s inclusive artwork depicts how this county seat town has evolved—no longer mostly all White, but rather of differing races. Today Whites comprise about 66 percent of Faribault’s population.
A mural on Lucky Cat Records in Minneapolis celebrates community and the diverse culture of the Whittier neighborhood.More and more, communities in greater Minnesota are growing culturally diverse, just like their big city counterparts. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo)
Statistics aside, Faribault and Willmar are examples of a changing rural Minnesota. Like long ago European immigrants, East Africans, Hispanics, Latinos and others come here for jobs, for opportunities, for a new life. They come to work, to start businesses, to raise their families, to pursue the American dream. Some have escaped war, poverty and other violence in their native countries.
The Somali flag on the Willmar mural. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that not everyone values the cultural diversity of cities like Faribault and Willmar. I’ve heard and read the derogatory comments, which I won’t repeat. Rather, it’s important to remember that all of us in Minnesota, except Native Americans and descendants of slaves, are either immigrants or the descendants of immigrants.
Carrying a crockpot from an event in Kerkhoven, just northwest of Willmar, in June. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
So let’s bring our crockpots brimming with assorted flavors to the table to share. Let’s celebrate each other by connecting in conversations, gathering in community and understanding that we are more alike than we are different.
An old International made rat rod. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
ARTSY FLAMES BLAZED across the hood and doors of the 1940 International Harvester pick-up truck, grabbing my attention as I walked among the vehicles parked along several blocks of historic Central Avenue during the June 19 Faribault Car Cruise Night.
Historic buildings lining Central Avenue make a fitting yesteryear backdrop for the car show. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
The creative rat rod, with its handcrafted claw hands grasping the side mirrors, its interior plastered with stickers, brown paper bag “air bag,” back end wrenches, rat sculptures and more proved a draw and a conversation starter.
People stop to chat between looking at vehicles while a driver heads for a parking spot. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
And, for me, that’s part of the point of these summer cruises—bringing community together in conversation with each other. Owners of rat rods, collector, antique and other vehicles are always open to chatting it up. And so are those who come here. Friends. Family. Neighbors. And strangers become acquaintances via introductions.
Rockin’ it with Triple Stitch, the featured band. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
While I like to talk, I also like to unobtrusively observe. And listen. On this evening, the music of Lonsdale-based Triple Stitch blasted, a guitarist rocking it to “Summer of 69” on the portable stage set up in the street.
One of several food trucks parked downtown during the car cruise. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
Across the way, an employee at the Twisted Chicken food truck grilled. Other food trucks and local restaurants also offered food. Several shops opened their doors for special Friday evening hours during the cruise.
When I arrived at 6 p.m., people were just beginning to show up. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
The downtown filled with more and more people as the evening progressed. It was good to see a crowd along Central enjoying themselves on a comfortable summer evening that later cooled to jacket weather.
Fashion meets vintage at the car show. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
I saw babies in arms and strollers. A little girl cradling her baby doll. Couples walking hand-in-hand. A young man dressed in a fashionable suit leaning against the side of the Black Sheep Auto Sales vintage pick-up truck.
Dogs, people and automobiles. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
Teens on scooters. Dogs on leashes and one running loose, the owner seemingly not caring about her dog roaming among the throngs of people. I kept my distance.
This racer tried blowing on his race car to move it down the track. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
A race track outside the toy store drew kids to race mini-cars down a swooping race track. It was sheer joy to watch their excitement, to see their smiles.
These mini models proved popular with the kids. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
Across the street, kids clamored into small-scale vehicles meant just for them.
Craig, proud owner of a vintage ambulance. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
I caught up briefly with Craig, who owns an old ambulance, which he sold then somehow managed to buy back after realizing he’d made a mistake by selling the emergency vehicle.
This shiny vintage Plymouth drew lots of admirers. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
A show volunteer advised me to check out his rusty truck parked on the south end of Central. He showed me a photo on his phone so I could be sure to find it. I later found the pick-up near a shiny black Plymouth on a trailer, just as he said I would.
Even something as simple as a beautifully written name appeals to me artistically. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
Faribault has its own car club, the Drag-On’s. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
Sticker love. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
Occasionally I asked my automotive machinist husband questions. Randy is incredibly knowledgeable about anything vehicle-related. He views this show from a mechanical perspective unlike my artistic viewpoint. I’m drawn to shiny chrome reflecting buildings, hood ornaments, car emblems, the fancy floral patterned upholstery in a vintage Cadillac, the curve of a fender…
A special red, white and blue car became a canvas for car show attendees to sign their names after donating $1 to do so. Proceeds will support veterans and suicide prevention through the organization Operation 23-0. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
Interests in car shows can be as diverse as the people who attend, including those who signed a patriotic car promoting an upcoming car show. The BlackTop Cruisers Midwest “Fall of Summer Car Show” is set for 11 a.m.-3 p.m. on Saturday, October 3, at South Alexander Park in Faribault.
Checking out a car on the south end of Central Avenue during Faribault Car Cruise Night. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo June 2026)
I love seeing the mix of people crossing paths, mingling, mixing and coming together at car shows. While cars, trucks and motorcycles draw people to downtown Faribault on a Friday evening, the summer car cruises are, at their core, about community.
Little Prairie United Methodist Church, rural Dundas. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
SET AMONG THE FARM FIELDS of Rice County south of Dundas, Little Prairie United Methodist Church joins several area congregations hosting free family-oriented mid-week summertime concerts aimed at connecting community.
Gathering on the prairie for a 2025 summer concert at Little Prairie with music by The Old Country Boys. (Photo courtesy of Little Prairie UMC)
Little Prairie kicks off its second summer of “Music on the Prairie” concert series from 6-8 p.m. on Wednesday, June 10, with The Old Country Boys performing old country and rock songs. Subsequent concerts also happen on Wednesday evenings with the Over and Back Band on July 22. Minnesota Music Hall of Fame fiddler Dr. Mike Hildebrandt plays with the band, presenting a unique blend of funky rock n roll and gypsy bluegrass. At the season’s final concert on August 19, The Rockin’ Hep Cats will perform roots rock n roll.
The food service area at a 2025 “Music on the Prairie“ concert. Serving starts at 5:30 p.m. (Photo courtesy of Little Prairie UMC)
Besides listening to music, attendees can purchase affordable $5 meals prepared by Little Prairie church members. Up first on June 10 are grilled burgers crafted from locally-raised beef, Jim’s famous German beans (originally created for Oktoberfest in Dundas), chips, dessert and pop or water. July’s main menu item is locally-made hotdogs from Greg’s Meat Shop. And on August 19, Sloppy Joe’s will be served. Serving begins at 5:30 p.m.
Kids can play with bubbles at Little Prairie, just like they did in this photo from “Holy Smoke” at Christ Lutheran Church in Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
“Music on the Prairie” also includes activities for kids featuring yard games, big bubbles and several small crafts.
Enjoying the music of The Old Country Boys at “Music on the Prairie” on a beautiful summer evening in 2025. (Photo courtesy of Little Prairie UMC)
While the concerts are free, free will donations are welcome to benefit Little Prairie’s ministries. This is a wonderful opportunity to connect with community and enjoy a variety of music, plus a meal, in a quiet countryside setting.
The “Holy Smoke” pizza baking crew at Christ Lutheran Church, Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
The same can be said for the Wednesday evening summer concert series at Zwingli United Church of Christ in Berne, located in the country south of Wanamingo or a half hour northeast of Owatonna. This summer marks the 15th year Berne has served up music and its handcrafted wood-fired pizzas. The church grounds open at 5 p.m. every Wednesday, June-August, for the themed events benefiting Zwingli UCC, other churches and area non-profits.
It was Berne’s long-running, successful concert series which inspired the Rev. Penny Bonsell to try a summer mid-week music series at Little Prairie. After a pilot run in 2024, the event really took off in 2025, she said, with a goal of growing community.
Wood-fired pizza is also on the menu at Christ Lutheran Church, high atop a hill on Faribault’s east side. The second Wednesday of the month, June-August, “Holy Smoke” pizza and music event runs from 5:30-8 p.m. Proceeds benefit local nonprofits, this summer the Paradise Center for the Arts, Habitat for Humanity and St. Vincent de Paul.
Connecting over music and pizza at “Holy Smoke.” (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
I’ve only ever been to “Holy Smoke,” multiple times, but intend to check out the newest of these summer concert series at Little Prairie. Perhaps eventually I’ll make it to the more distant, larger and busier gathering at Berne.
If you opt to attend any of these, remember your lawn chair. Also bring your appetite, your appreciation of music and your enthusiasm for connecting with others. These three concert series build community with music and food, giving us just one more reason to get outside on a summer evening in southern Minnesota.
A street scene in the heart of downtown Kenyon. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
TO WRITE A FICTIONAL BOOK, you begin with an idea, which births words. Words beget sentences, then paragraphs, then chapters. But the process is not quite that simple. Creating a work of fiction requires attention to detail from character development to dialogue to setting to plot. I’ve written short stories that have published, thus understand the craft.
I want to hone in on one word—details. They are a hallmark of a good story, of creative writing. And they are also the hallmark of small towns. Let me explain.
Just as you drive into Kenyon from the west, you’ll see this TARDIS in a residential yard. It’s the featured mode of transportation in the BBC sci-fi television show “Doctor Who.”
How many times have you driven through a community without really seeing it, without noticing the rich details that, like details in a story, make it unique, interesting?
I notice the little things. Perhaps it’s my journalism and photography background that draw me to look closer, beyond the surface. I seek out anything that is different, unusual, surprising. And I’m never disappointed.
Help wanted in Kenyon. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
Drive slowly around any small town or walk along Main Street with a focused perspective and you will soon see the details that integrate into the story line of a community. That includes Kenyon, a Goodhue County town of around 1,900 best known for its Boulevard of Roses.
Sign painter Mike Meyer, formerly of Mazeppa, painted the sign for the former Martin Fox Garage. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo 2026)
Minnesota State Highway 60, along which all those roses grow, runs right through the heart of Kenyon, intersecting with state highway 56. The intersection thrums with traffic. But I wonder how many motorists notice the bold Fox’s Garage Firestone Tires sign painted on the side of a stalwart brick building half a block away from that busy intersection? It’s an artsy nod to local history.
This memorial is located in the veterans park along Minnesota State Highway 56. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
Nearby, at the Kenyon Veterans Memorial Park, I discovered Jacob’s Tree and a plaque honoring Jacob Wetterling and all missing children. It was an unexpected memorial in a place focused on veterans. But it also seemed fitting to honor the 11-year-old Minnesota boy who was abducted by a stranger in 1989, his remains found 27 years later. Jacob was, after all, a small town boy grabbed while biking to a video store.
The video store is closed, but the sign remains. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
Kenyon once had a video store, now a tobacco and vape shop. The K-Town Video sign tells me that.
For a small town, Kenyon offers several downtown food options, including Che Che’s Lunchera at a former corner gas station. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
Likewise, remnants of fuel pricing signage still banner a former gas station where today Che Che’s Lunchera food truck serves up Mexican food under the station canopy.
Old, faded signage posted long ago for snowmobilers. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
Details like these point to a town’s history, to its evolution. Back at the vets park, a fading vintage sign once directed snowmobilers to gas and food along a designated trail route.
The newest sign at Kenyon Meats. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
I hold a fondness for signs and Kenyon offers plenty of homegrown signage. That includes clever and humorous messages posted outside Kenyon Meats along highway 60. I expect many motorists have noticed SMOKE MEAT NOT METH and DON’T FRY BACON NAKED. And now the newest—YOUR MOM LIKES OUR MEAT.
A tractor and a pick-up truck, rural hallmarks. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
But it takes a turn onto a side street and through an alley to see an old John Deere tractor parked next to a pick-up truck behind a building. This is a farming community rooted in rural.
A basketball hoop in an unexpected place. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
Along that same alley, next to the post office parking lot, I noticed a basketball hoop standing between dumpsters and a recycling bin. It seemed out of place until I realized there’s probably an apartment above the post office. The hoop hints at teens dribbling a basketball across the pavement on a hot summer evening, arms and legs flailing in a pick-up game, sweat beading their foreheads.
An honoring message on a door at the VFW. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
Across the street at the Kenyon VFW, I spotted the silhouette of a veteran on a side door with an honoring message of “WE SALUTE YOU.” More characters, more dialogue, more stories. On this visit to Kenyon, I looked for details that often go unnoticed. And when I looked, I saw community.
Colorful, eye-catching art decorates a collection box for donations to the Faribault Community Action Center. This box is located just inside the entry to the Shattuck-St. Mary’s School athletic complex. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
While I’ve not read Clinton’s book, I understand the importance of a village, of community, in the lives of children. Kids learn, not only from their parents, teachers and each other, but also from being out and about in their communities.
They learn, and teach us adults, about care and compassion, about service and giving back, of lifting up community. In these days of innumerable challenges in America, such lessons are truly more important than ever.
Some of the items collected at St. John’s Lutheran Church, Lakeville, during a special food shelf drive earlier this year. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted file photo)
I need only look within my own core family to see this. In mid-February, my two elementary-aged grandchildren helped their mom, my eldest, transport items from their Lakeville church to a food shelf in nearby Farmington. The kids sorted donated items. And my first grade grandson wrote about the experience for a school assignment complete with illustrations. “I helped at church (beacus (sic) of ICE),” Isaac wrote.
He knew. His mom has been working tirelessly soliciting cash donations, buying and delivering groceries to a south metro food shelf, and sorting and bagging donations during and after Operation Metro Surge. Not only has she assisted those sheltering in their homes, but she has also taught her children an important lesson in helping others.
Kids are never too young to learn about generosity, about loving their neighbors. About giving of themselves in service to community.
This shows the entry to the Shattuck-St. Mary’s athletic complex, a gym on the left, the soccer dome (where I sometimes walk) to the right and the ice arenas straight ahead. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
That brings me to Shattuck-St. Mary’s, a private college prep school in Faribault. While heading to walk at the Shattuck dome on a recent morning, I noticed several cardboard collection boxes in the public gathering space/hallway of the athletic complex. I stopped to investigate.
Promotional photos of Shattuck are posted on a wall behind a collection box set outside an ice arena and the hallway leading to the soccer dome. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
While the boxes were empty, I read about their purpose. Students, calling themselves “Sabre Storm,” “The Breakfast Club” and “Team Cheese,” are collecting non-perishable food and household and personal care items for the Faribault Community Action Center.
Signage details the project. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
Most needed are: dry beans, canned soups, ramen noodles, canned chicken/tuna, size 7 diapers and pull-ups. I expect those attending hockey and soccer games, and other activities inside the sports complex will drop donations into the collection boxes.
A dozen Shattuck students signed their names on a collection box outside an ice arena. Sabre is the school name and symbol. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
I love that students like Jorge, Lara, Max, Miranda, Yujin, Rhys, Gael and 38 others, who signed the boxes, are connecting with the Faribault community via this drive. There’s not only a “heightened need” for food, household and personal care items at the Community Action Center, but also for cash donations.
Loving this “Sabre Storm” collection box art showing diverse hands reaching out and encircling a state of Minnesota map. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
I read that on the CAC website. But I’ve also heard this from a friend who volunteers at the CAC. The increased need all circles back to my grandson’s words, “beacus (sic) of ICE.” Many people in Faribault were sheltering in place, unable to work, during the height of federal immigration enforcement. And just because that operation has scaled back, the crisis has not ended.
A group of students calling themselves “The Breakfast Club” have signed on to collect donations for the Community Action Center in Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
The CAC has established a Community Response Fund “to meet urgent and evolving community needs” for food, rental assistance, etc. Every donation helps, my friend says. Even $10.
Growing generosity and kindness at Shattuck-St. Mary’s School via collecting donations. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
It takes a village. It takes a village to raise children. And it takes a village to help our neighbors through a crisis, a crisis created by the federal government. A crisis that has left too many Minnesota families facing overwhelming financial challenges, trauma, personal struggles and an uncertain future.
Fifteen Shattuck students signed this donation box as “Team Cheese.” (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo April 2026)
FYI: Please consider making a financial gift to the Faribault Community Action Center Community Response Fund. Click here to learn more. To those of you who have already donated, thank you. I appreciate your generosity during these challenging times in my community. It takes a village.
(Promo sourced from The Grand Event Center Facebook page)
THE GOOD FOLKS of Northfield, Minnesota, are organizing again to help their neighbors. This time it’s via a 12-hour Mutual Aid Marathon from 10 am-10 pm Saturday, March 7, at The Grand Event Center in this college town south of the Twin Cities.
Proceeds from the fundraiser will go to organizations—such as Sharing Our Roots and Northfield Community Action Center—providing mutual aid to those in the community impacted by federal immigration enforcement.
Doors open at 10 am at the event center, 316 Washington Street, just a block off Division Street in the heart of this historic downtown. Suggested donation at the door is $10.
From 10 until noon, attendees can enjoy a breakfast with 30 percent of entree sales going to organizations doing vital work in the community. Likewise, profits from a “pay what you can” appetizer buffet, which starts at 4 pm, will also be donated.
Event planners promise a full day and evening of live music, performances, poetry, political education, and powerful speakers. See the event poster promo above for a complete schedule.
Organizers are calling upon the public to: Bring friends. Bring family. Bring your appetite and your solidarity. Come for a while or stay for the entire marathon.
As I see it, the Mutual Aid Marathon is all about neighbors helping neighbors, which is the very definition of a loving and caring community.
THE MINNESOTA WRITING COMMUNITY has always impressed me as talented, prolific and generously giving.
Now add united activism to that list as 50-plus Minnesota authors join from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, February 28, in an Authors for Minnesota Day event at 24 independent bookstores across the state. Their efforts focus on “A Day of Books, Community, and Support for Immigrant Rights.”
I could not be more proud of these writers and booksellers who are publicly raising awareness of the challenges our immigrant neighbors, our communities and small businesses (including indie bookstores) have faced, and continue to face, in the wake of massive federal immigration enforcement throughout Minnesota.
These authors and bookstore owners are taking their support to the next step—action. Anyone who makes an on-site donation to the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota and/or the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota Immigration Rapid Response Fund on Saturday will get a free, signed copy of a participating author’s book, while supplies last. (See online donation options at the end of this post.)
Bestselling mystery writer William Kent Krueger will be at Once Upon a Crime bookstore in Minneapolis along with Allan Evans and Patrick Barb. (Graphic sourced online)
Saturday it will be all about community and supporting community as book lovers meet with authors in bookshops across Minnesota. While most host sites are located in the metro, three are in greater Minnesota—Drury Lane Books in Grand Marais, in the far northeastern corner of Minnesota; Hey Darling in Austin near the Iowa border; and then Content Bookstore in Northfield, south of the metro and a 20-minute drive from my home.
(Book cover sourced online)
Bestselling mystery and thriller author Allen Eskens of nearby St. Peter, and one of my favorite Minnesota writers, will be at Content Bookstore signing his latest novel, The Quiet Librarian, now out in paperback. Northfield writer Mary Bleckwehl will also be at Content with her children’s picture book, ARRRGH! Me Have to Wait.
Signage on Content Bookstore along Division Street in downtown Northfield. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo February 2026)
Here’s a complete list of independent bookstores hosting Authors for Minnesota Day from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday: Avant Garden (Anoka), Big Hill Books (Minneapolis), Birchbark Books (Minneapolis), Black Garnet Books (St. Paul), Comma, a Bookshop (Minneapolis), Content Bookstore (Northfield), Cream & Amber (Hopkins), Drury Lane Books (Grand Marais), The Enchanted Quill (North Branch), Excelsior Bay Books (Excelsior), Hey Darling (Austin), Inkwell Booksellers (Minneapolis), Irreverent Bookworm (Minneapolis), Lake Country Booksellers (White Bear Lake), Moon Palace (Minneapolis), Next Chapter Booksellers (St. Paul), Niche Books (Lakeville), Once Upon a Crime (Minneapolis), Red Balloon (St. Paul), Scout and Morgan (Cambridge), Subtext (St. Paul), Tropes and Trifles (Minneapolis), Valley Bookseller (Stillwater), and Well Read Books (Elk River).
Joseph Mbele shares stories, proverbs and culture on February 11 at Books on Central, Faribault. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo February 2026)
Last Wednesday evening, Joseph Mbele, retired St. Olaf College professor of post-colonial literature, cultural consultant, author and storyteller, shared three African proverbs during a literary event at Books on Central. This man, who calls himself an African and a Tanzanian, held the rapt attention of attendees gathered in the used bookshop in the heart of downtown Faribault, home to many Somalis.
THE CROCODILE
While I enjoyed the two African folktales Mbele told, I really appreciated the proverbs. They are, by nature of a proverb, succinct. A few words carry a whole lot of punch. First up, this proverb: “Before you cross the river, don’t insult the crocodile’s mouth.”
Immediately the image of a crocodile’s sharp teeth popped into my mind. As it should have. This proverb, Mbele explained, is about being respectful to people in our relationships and in life in general. Be anything but respectful and we risk negative consequences. Snap.
THE BLACKSMITH
Second up this African proverb: “It’s because of man that the blacksmith makes weapons.” Thinking in African terms, the weapons would be knives and spears. I thought of guns. Mbele repeated the proverb, letting it sink into our brains. “It’s because of man that the blacksmith makes weapons.” The lesson here, Mbele said, is that we can be better than this—be kind, helpful and supportive—so we don’t need to bear arms/weapons. That’s an oversimplification, of course. But proverbs are not meant to be complex.
THE VISUALLY-IMPAIRED
Third, Mbele recited this proverb: “The one-eyed person only thanked God after he saw a blind person.” As someone with vision issues, that hit home. The proverb is a way of teaching gratitude, Mbele said. The contrast between seeing with only one eye and total blindness put the situation in perspective. The thought that there’s always someone who has it worse probably flitted through the minds of everyone in the bookshop.
THE STORYTELLERS
Mbele talked about the tradition of Africans sitting around telling stories to entertain and teach. Languages like his native Matengo, an indigenous language in Tanzania, are oral, not written. As he spoke, I began to understand the importance of folktales in African life. Stories connect people and, like proverbs, teach lessons.
Applied to my own community, Mbele explained that Somali men gathering on downtown Faribault street corners are simply socializing and sharing stories and are not to be feared. “It’s un-African to be by yourself,” he said of a culture that focuses on family and togetherness.
He even went so far as to say an African could be considered evil or a witch if living alone. That surprised me, but drove home the cultural importance of community and family. Now if only everyone in Faribault could hear these proverbs and insights from this native Tanzanian. Then perhaps they would not fear that which they don’t understand, like the Somali elders gathered on street corners downtown telling stories, sharing news or simply sitting in each other’s presence.
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
Destructive ice, the help of community & more August 27, 2026
Tags: commentary, community, construction, Faribault, hail, hail damage, hailstorm, Hispanics, immigration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Minnesota, Operation Metro Surge, opinion, storm, United States of America
IN THE FOUR-PLUS MONTHS since destructive hailstones pummeled Faribault and the surrounding area, my community has been the site of ongoing exterior construction. Drive nearly anywhere in town and you will see roofing and siding crews or newly-repaired houses.
Seven hail-damaged houses within sight of mine, including ours, have been repaired, or have yet to be fixed. That’s a lot in a single neighborhood.
Business is booming for local and out-of-town roofers and other construction companies. Local contractors can’t possibly meet the immediate demand for work.
EMPATHETIC OBSERVATIONS
But blocks from my house, an underway construction project seems a community undertaking. I know because I talked with the owner. He bought the house with the intention of fixing and flipping it. Good for him if he can improve a dilapidated house and make money by selling it.
This particular renovation caught my eye because, when I passed by, I saw a house with rafters totally exposed, loose insulation inside and workers busy sheeting. Similar work was done on our house with new sheeting laid over the existing, mostly-solid roof boards. Rafters were not exposed. I appreciate that we now have a sturdier, straighter roof.
When I saw the condition of the flip house, my first thought was “that looks worse than ours (looked).” At least on the roof. I felt instant empathy for the homeowner. So, although I don’t usually stop at construction sites, I did at this one. I felt bad for the owner.
He just happens to be Hispanic. I learned from him that the Hispanic community is deeply connected. He tapped into the strength and skills of community for his house renovation. This did not totally surprise me. I’ve seen how Hispanic/Latino communities care for one another, how they work together, how they value family, culture and community.
If not for Hispanic roofing crews, hail-damaged houses in Faribault would go mostly unrepaired. These crews work hard and fast, putting in long days, often finishing roofs in a single day.
THE VALUE OF COMMUNITY
My conversation with the flip house owner got me thinking about other communities which come together to help one another on construction endeavors. In the past, and maybe even still today, the Amish raise barns in a day. Habitat for Humanity brings volunteers together to build homes alongside professionals. Decades ago, friends came over to help shingle our roof. During this past year, volunteers rehabbed a rental house owned by my church.
And in 1967, extended family arrived at my childhood family farm to help my dad and a local carpenter build our new home with a walk-out basement. If not for helpful family, I don’t think my parents could have built new. The cost would have been out of reach. We needed a new house to replace the cramped, drafty 1 1/2-story aged farmhouse with a partial dirt cellar, no bathroom, three small bedrooms, and an oil-burning stove centered in the living room.
WORSE THAN A HAILSTORM
All of this came to mind when talking with my new Hispanic acquaintance. I praised him for improving the neighborhood by buying and fixing up a run-down home. I also told him I’m sorry for the aggressive and often illegal detainment of Hispanics, Latinos and others by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during Operation Metro Surge (and beyond) in Minnesota. That includes right here in my city.
A recent media report states that the 5,000th immigrant detainee (since November 2025) was recently flown out of the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. That’s documented by a Minnesotan with boots on the ground at the airport video-taping departures of shackled detainees.
ICE has targeted Hispanic roofers. In December 2025, ICE arrived at a construction site in Chanhassen, southwest of Minneapolis, stranding two workers on a roof for hours during sub-zero temperatures resulting in hypothermia. In Bemidji in far northern Minnesota, roofing companies lost nearly all of their crews during ICE raids this summer. Many other such detainments have happened across the state and country and are ongoing.
Soon a new ICE detention center will open in a former abandoned private prison in Appleton in far western Minnesota. CoreCivic, a name familiar to anyone who has followed ICE actions, sold the prison to the federal government and is now contracted to run the detention center.
Suddenly that April hailstorm in Faribault doesn’t seem all that bad in comparison with what’s unfolding in this country. And I’m not talking only immigration. I’m also talking about government surveillance, an unnecessary war, tariffs, efforts to suppress voting rights (especially those of Black voters and of women), high gas and food prices, a failing economy and on and on. So much damage has been done to our country that will take years, if not decades, to recover, to repair the destruction hailed upon this nation.
© Copyright 2026 Audrey Kletscher Helbling