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ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-FIFTH YEAR
BELLE PLAINE, MINNESOTA, JUNE 1, 2016
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NUMBER 23
Margaret McCue Morrison Luke Hennen Takes Over Speaks at Memorial Day Program as Scott County’s New Sheriff by Dan Ruud A wet, dry, wet and dry again weekend stayed dry for Monday’s Memorial Day Program at Veterans Park in Belle Plaine, where a good turnout of people basked in sunshine and temperatures in the mid-70s. Retired U.S. Army Reserves Lt. Col. Margaret McCue Morrison was the guest speaker. She is the daughter of Ed Morrison and Cora Ellen McCue Morrison and is a 1975 graduate of Belle Plaine High School. Morrison received her commission as a second lieutenant with the Minnesota Military Academy, Camp Ripley, in June 1989. Presenting her with the honor was fellow Belle Plaineite, retired Gen. Roger Delgehausen, who introduced Morrison to the audience Monday. “I am very honored to be speaking with you today on such an important occasion,” Morrison said. “We are here to honor our service members and to remember the sacrifices they made for duty, honor, country. We remember and reflect on our heroes, appreciate their achievements, their courage, their dedication, and to say thank you. “The service members we honor today came from all walks of life and they shared fundamental qualities,” Morrison continued. “They possessed courage, pride, determination, selfless service, integrity and dedication to duty – all the qualities needed to serve a cause larger than one’s self. We recall the ordinary men and women of Belle Plaine and realize they are not ordinary, but extraordinary men and women.” Morrison then spoke about her father, who served during World War II. “My dad, PFC Morrison, served for a total of three years and nine months (in World War II). He was not exactly happy to leave his family farm near
Margaret McCue Morrison was the guest speaker at Monday’s Memorial Day program at Veterans Park. St. John’s Lutheran Church in Faxon Township, but like other young men and women, he stepped up and proudly served our community, our state and our country. He was truly a lifetime inspiration for me. I have his World War II Army trunk (foot locker) with uniform, unit badges, shaving kit, map case and other military service items.” Morrison then shifted her speech to her own military experiences, including her time with the 329th Postal Company as a platoon leader, executive officer and commander. “We trained overseas in Seoul, Camp Casey, Camp Humphreys and Camp Red Cloud, Korea. I was fortunate to be able to visit the DMZ (demilitarized zone). My goodness, what a surreal experience. The
Sundblad Murder Trial to Extend into July, Maybe Longer Although Joshua Sundblad’s defense attorney wrapped up his case last Tuesday (May 24), a verdict in the trial of the Belle Plaine man who allegedly murdered his infant son won’t likely be issued until later this summer. Michael McDonald, Sundblad’s attorney, said Judge Christian Wilton’s schedule for submitting written closing arguments, rebuttal and a verdict will take the case well into July, possibly longer. Prosecutors have until July 7 to submit their closing arguments. McDonald has until July 11. Prosecutors will have until July 18 to submit written rebuttal of McDonald’s closing argument. Wilton will then issue his verdict some time after that. “Who knows how long that
will take,” McDonald said. Sundblad, 26, is charged with first-degree murder of his infant son while allegedly maintaining a pattern of child abuse, plus first- and third-degree assault. The child died in May of 2014. Sundblad was initially charged with third-degree murder in the baby’s death in September of 2014. Those charges were increased to first-degree murder following a grand jury indictment last fall. The trial began May 10. Sundblad waived his right to a jury trial, leaving the decision on his innocence or guilt with Wilton. Unable to post the cash $500,000 bail/bond, Sundblad has been in the Scott County Jail since September of 2014.
Swimming Pool Kickoff Party Next Thursday The Belle Plaine Community Swimming Pool will hold a kickoff party on Thursday, June 9 from 5-7 p.m. The pool will open for the season June 10.
Activities for the kickoff party will include an inflatable water slide, a slip-n-slide, treats and more. The pool itself will not be open during this event. The public is invited to attend.
Postal Company also trained in Germany – Heidelberg, Kaiserslautern, Wiesbaden, Frankfurt and Baumholder. I was lucky enough to visit the Ray Kaserne Barracks in Friedberg, where Elvis Presley was stationed from October 1958 to March 1960. While in Germany, we visited Dachau (prison camp), where there were 31,591 reported deaths during 1935 to 1945.” At the start of her speech, Morrison, who was the emcee at this year’s St. Patrick’s festivities in Belle Plaine, called two young boys to the podium – brothers Jack and Sean Townsend – to present both of them with an Army T-shirt. She explained how impressed she was with how the two of them conducted themselves during a St. Patrick’s planning meeting this past winter, and how they were studying state capitals while the adults planned the St. Patrick’s events. In 2011, Morrison assumed command of the 1106th Mobilization Support Battalion at Fort Eustis, Vir., to which she would fly to on a monthly basis. Morrison, who retired from the U.S. Army Reserve last July 31, has three children – Donna Bergman of Seattle, Wash., Andrew Dahlberg of Minneapolis and Shannon Dahlberg of Wilmington, N.C. Morrison is a registered nurse in nephrology with HealthPartners Clinic in St. Paul. Monday’s program began with the introduction by Roger Delgehausen, which was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance and National Anthem, the latter of which was sung by Belle Plaine High School students Schuyler Sterk, Neil Bigaouette, Lauren Murphy and Patrick Selly. The Invocation was provided by Rev. Sarah Timian of St. John Lutheran Church. Presenting Symbolic Tributes were Belle Plaine Veterans Club Senior Vice President Larry Ruehling, VFW Auxilia-
Memorial Day
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After completing the oath of office Friday morning, new Scott County Sheriff Luke Hennen looked over toward his family in the audience and smiled. The Jordan native had plenty to feel good about. Hennen is Scott County’s 19th sheriff. He replaces Kevin Studnicka, who retired midterm. Hennen will have nearly two years to try the job on for size before deciding if he wants to seek elected office in 2018. Hennen thanked his wife, Deborah, daughters Audra and Lucille, and family for their support. He also thanked former sheriffs, the Scott County Sheriff’s Office and county commissioners for their backing. “I promise to work hard to earn your trust and respect in this humbling opportunity to serve as your sheriff,” he said. Hennen, 39, was appointed to the office in mid-February. The appointment was effective May 27, the day Studnicka retired. Since his appointment, he graduated from Minnesota State University, Mankato with a master’s degree in public administration. Hennen has also had the opportunity to participate in significant discussions and decisions regarding operations and staffing, he said. He thanked Studnicka for allowing him to have a say in key decisions, like the hiring of analyst Laura Wiger to support the work of deputies and investigators in the field. “I’m going to have to own it,” he said of the decisions he’s helped make since his appointment and promotion from chief deputy. “We talked through decisions. It made the transition a lot easier.” Hennen selected Capt. Adam Pirri as his new chief deputy. A 12-year veteran of the sheriff’s office, Pirri’s background is in emergency management and communications. Hennen figures Pirri’s background will complement his own background in corrections and investigations. The new sheriff plans to take a more public role in policy issues and promoting the work the sheriff’s office performs. He plans to be more active in public organizations like the Scott County Association for
Lyle Noah
Scott County’s new sheriff, Luke Hennen, took the oath of office from District Court Judge Rex Stacey Friday morning in the county board chambers. Hennen replaces Sheriff Kevin Studnicka who retired mid-term. Leadership and Efficiency (SCALE) – a partnership of the county, cities, school districts and townships -- dealing with issues like housing, transportation and education and their impact on the sheriff’s office. Hennen sees no glaring need for the way Scott County sheriff’s deputies and staff do their
jobs. He said they already do good work. “These people know their jobs very well. If there are any ideas on things we need to change, I’d rather it come from them,”
Hennen
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More Added to List of Candidates for City Offices There will be a primary for the job of Belle Plaine mayor following this past Tuesday’s 11thhour filing by Mark Gerdes. His filing came two weeks after Chris Meyer and incumbent Mike Pingalore filed the first morning of the filing period. Now that there’s at least three candidates, a primary will need to be held on Aug. 9 to narrow the list of candidates to two. As of early Tuesday afternoon, there still weren’t enough candidates to require a primary election for three seats on the city council. However, with several hours still left to file before the 5 p.m. deadline, each one of the available seats were just one candidate shy of a primary. Adding their names this past week were incumbent Henry
Pressley Jr. for a four-year term and Theresa McDaniel for the two-year term. Pressley joined fellow Council Member Cary Coop and newcomers Nickole Shetka and Ben Stier as the candidates for the two-four year seats. If a fifth person was to file, there would need to be a primary to narrow the field to two candidates for each seat. Meanwhile, McDaniel has challenged incumbent Gary Trost for the two-year term on the council. If there were no more late-hour candidates Tuesday, those two will go head-to-head in November. The seat was previously held by Scott Schneider, who moved to Shakopee. Pressley was appointed to fill the void until this year’s election.
Carol Schultz
Sue Stier
Three Longtime Belle Plaine Teachers Calling it a Career Noah, Schultz, Stier to Retire
Teaching has always come naturally to them. It is, after all, their life’s work. But when the summer begins to slip away and fall nears, for the first time in decades, a trio of longtime Belle Plaine School District teachers won’t prepare to return
to school. Lyle Noah, Carol Schultz and Sue Stier have all announced plans to retire next week, at the end of the 2015-16 school year. Cumulatively, they represent about 100 years of teaching experience in the Belle Plaine School District. Noah is No. 2 on the list of years of service, one spot ahead of Schultz. Stier is also among the district’s most
experienced staff.
Lyle Noah
After teaching in North Dakota for a year and substitute teaching for a year in the Ano-
Teachers
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