Lake Minnetonka - June 2023

Returning Home

English Rose CEO Joshua Wert turns his childhood house into Oak Ridge assisted living facility

WAYZATA SCHOOLS

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Phil Rustad 612-309-8245

MINNETONKA SCHOOLS

Spectacular 5 bedroom, 5 bath walkout two-story set on almost an acre featuring high-end cherry finishes, generous gathering areas and an inviting screen porch. Enjoy easy access to parks, trails, and other amenities from this convenient location.

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MINNETONKA BEACH!

Estate setting with 1.42 pristine acres of privacy and an in-ground swimming pool. Crisp, clean aesthetics creates a sophisticated style and comfort within this light filled 5B/6B home. Lake Minnetonka dock available thru city! Orono Schools.

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“My smile has always been my biggest insecurity and now I can’t stop smiling. I’m a whole new confident me. Thank you for creating a beautiful smile while keeping me looking like myself!”

JUNE 2023

“It was June, and the world smelled of roses. The sunshine was like powdered gold over the grassy hillside.”

DEPARTMENTS

18 — Home for the Ages

Burwell House opens its doors to historical appreciation.

20 — Embrace the Next Phase

New cooperative provides active living experiences.

22 — Go Fetch … a Beverage

Restaurant group is brewing up its own pet project.

FEATURES

26 — “King” of the World Wayzata man pens autobiography detailing his storied life and career.

32 — Returning Home

English

TASTEMAKERS

43 — Buon Appetito !

Long

IN EVERY ISSUE

10 — Editor’s Letter

13 — Noteworthy

39 — On the Town

48 — Last Glance

Photos: Chris Emeott

—Maud Hart Lovelace, Betsy-Tacy and Tib

Rose CEO Joshua Wert turns his childhood house into Oak Ridge assisted living facility.

Lake eatery celebrates food and family Italian style.

The Byes Photo

At Artessa Mound Harbor, you’ll find a brand new building with a built-in social network, amenities designed for you, and maintenancefree living in a walkable soughtafter community that allows you the freedom to enjoy life in an idyllic lakeside neighborhood with everything you need and nothing you don’t.

FROM THE EDITOR

RENÉE STEWART-HESTER — RENEE@LOCALMEDIA.CO

Welcome, readers, to our June issue, which highlights family, pets and senior living. I appreciate dovetailing these topics because, while they can stand alone on their own merits, they also blend beautifully together. I hope you enjoy moving through the magazine to read articles that touch on all three topics. Pause. Read. Discover.

As I read our writers’ contributions in this issue, the word legacy kept coming to mind. Have you thought about what your legacy might be? Will it come by way of familial relationships, career accomplishments, philanthropic endeavors or special interests and hobbies?

When visitors tour Minnetonka’s Burwell House (page 18), how will they interpret the legacy of Charles Henry Burwell? Will visits to the home underscore the importance of preserving historic venues? When it came time to bring a new residential care service to Minnetonka, a CEO’s childhood home was transformed to house and support aging residents (page 32). Here, too, is an interesting way to reinvent a family home—this time to create a legacy of care for those in need of specialized attention.

Others have turned to the written word to underscore their legacies. A good autobiography or biography often leads us to examine our own life stories. Kingston Fletcher of Wayzata (page 26) penned his autobiography. (“The written word is something you can hold onto. Money won’t do it,” he says.) In the book, he shares with readers a legacy of a life well-lived and a successful business career that took him around the globe— and right back home to Lake Minnetonka.

How about the legacy that is found through generations of shared recipes?

I won’t spoil “the dish” by writing too much here. But be sure to read our Tastemakers (page 43). Tony Ostlund of Long Lake’s Primo Plates & Pours shares how his family has built its delizioso legacy—one plate at a time.

I hope you find, in our pages, an appreciation for the shared lives of others and inspiration to create and share your legacy.

Until next month,

Photo: Chris Emeott

Joshua Wert and Lois Berman, photo by Chris Emeott, page 32

publisher Susan Isay editor president Pete Burgeson

PET APPRECIATION WEEK

ARE YOUR PETS PART OF THE FAMILY?

Are they included in family portraits? As a society, are we embracing pets more so than in prior years?

In 2022, the American Veterinary Medical Association surveyed pet owners, and, among the pampered pet segment of the population, 96 percent consider their pet a family member. Celebrating birthdays, letting them sleep on beds and being concerned for their mental health may be new concepts for many.

Pets are dependent on us for food, shelter, care and love. In return, they may show appreciation by snuggling with us on the couch, wagging their tails when we come into a room or giving us kisses. They give us so much, so let’s celebrate them during Pet Appreciation Week on June 4–10.

Jackie Piepkorn, DVM, co-owns Westonka Animal Hospital and the Lake Minnetonka Pet Wellness Center. Learn more at westonka.vet.

VIEW

Princely Memory

Prince’s beloved doves, Majesty and Divinity, are credited for “singing” on the album One Nite Alone... (May 2022). Since his death, however, it has been reported that the birds have remained silent, according to artist Richard Merchán. Prince was electric and a musical genius. June 7 would have marked his 65th birthday.

Hollie Blanchard is a founder and art concierge with The Art Girls. View more at artgirlsmpls.com. Art Girls Minneapolis @artgirls_mpls

Title: Majesty and Divinity

Artist: Richard Merchán

Scale: 48”x48”

Medium: Acrylic on Canvas

DISCOVER

A Shared View

In the early 1900s, Grays Bay, with its outlet into Minnehaha Creek, was used by duck hunters in rowboats and canoers, paddling through the wild rice. Sailboats floated across Wayzata Bay on the other side of the Bushaway Road (Highway 101) bridge.

The first cottage was built on the southwest shore of Grays Bay in 1902. Over the decades, the most noticeable landmark for many was the Grays Bay Marina and Resort, located on the southwest shore of the bay, just east of the bridge. Since it was the closest Lake Minnetonka marina to the Twin Cities, it enjoyed a booming business as an access for boating. There also were many popular shops and restaurants in nearby Wayzata and Excelsior that boaters could visit.

Paul Pedersen owned the marina from 1978 until 2000, when he sold it to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. The marina had 120 boat slips, a bait shop, a fuel station and a repair shop. Pedersen said he could have made more money selling it to private condominium developers, but he believed, “The public had a right to enjoy the lake, not just an exclusive few.”

Today, the landmark marina still stands with 133 public parking spaces and three launch lanes for boaters, who want to enjoy the beautiful lake and its amenities.

Jan Cook serves as president of the City of Minnetonka Historical Society. Discover more at minnetonka-history.org.

An Annual Reminder

New Location, Same Great Care!

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I’ve noticed that some people confuse the terms perennial and annual. As we kick off a new growing season, let’s refresh our memory. Perennials are plants that grow year after year in our zone 4 climate. In the poem Desiderata, Max Ehrmann wrote that love “is as perennial as the grass.” Whereas annuals grow for one season only and die off from the first frost. Remember: Annuals are replanted annually.

Some people find it frivolous to grow a plant that lasts only a few months, but let me assure you, they are worth it. Here are a few reasons why.

Annuals have a longer flowering period. Perennials come up without a fuss, and we eagerly await the precious window of time when the iris unfurls its iridescent bloom or the sedum bursts open pink, attracting many pollinators. However, perennials bloom briefly

and then work to establish seed and store energy in their roots for a long winter ahead. Annuals, on the other hand, can continue producing flowers until a freeze.

Many of these annual blooms are visited by pollinators, such as butterflies and hummingbirds. Some of my favorite varieties are zinnia, cleome, verbena and sunflower.

Lastly, annuals make a statement as some grow rapidly in a few months’ time. Dahlia, Mexican marigold, castor bean and cosmos can grow from a 3-inch potted plant into a 5-foot bush in a few short months.

Alison Feik of Excelsior has a degree in landscape architecture and holds a wealth of knowledge about local plants and gardening. Grow more at beingstronginnature.com.

GROW

A Gripping Novel

Readers should consider marking Juneteenth with Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing, a sprawling tale following the descendants of two Ghanaian half sisters, born in the 18th century. (The author also penned Transcendent Kingdom.)

In a castle occupied by European colonists, one sister enters a new echelon, becoming the mistress and wife of a governor, while the other is tortured in the dungeons below. Just as the sisters must grapple with their race and social status under slavery and colonization, so will their ancestors throughout the next several centuries.

Each chapter brings us into a new time period, point of view and place as the ancestors of the sisters move through the world, grappling with their shifting positions, always under the constant constraints of race and generational trauma. Rather than centering one character, the throughline of the family carries with it the importance of heritage and belonging.

The term “homegoing” is the belief that an enslaved soul returns home after death—the characters are forever linked to their families and their home in an emotionally gripping and historically significant story.

—Clare Greeman

Home for the Ages

Burwell House opens its doors to historical

appreciation.

By Renée Stewart-Hester

BE HONEST. Have you ever thought, “I’d love to see the inside of that house” as you walked or driven by a home? I’ll go a step further. I sometimes wonder about the people who called the abode “home.” Who are they? What do they do for a living?

Here’s a chance to do so by getting an inside view into the life of Charles Henry Burwell and his family, who resided at 13209 E. McGinty Road in Minnetonka. Since 2002, the City of Minnetonka has offered tours the home during select times of the year. More on that later. Who was Burwell?

From 1874 to 1886, Burwell served as the secretary and manager of the Minnetonka Mill Company. “It was one of the largest and most important of the six flouring mills that stood on Minnehaha Creek in the 1870s,” says Kathy Kline, Minnetonka’s recreation administrative coordinator.

Many people were employed at the mill, which was near the Burwell House, built after the mill opened after the Treaty of Traverse des Sioux was signed on July 23, 1851. (The treaty was between the United States government and the Upper Dakota Sioux bands.) To learn more about the Minnetonka Mill Company, visit minnetonka-history.org/history

The Burwell House was built in 1883 along the Minnehaha Creek at Minnetonka Mills and was home to Burwell; his wife, Mary; daughter, Louise; and son, Loring. The dwelling was eventually sold in 1958 to the William Smith and his wife, Dolores. The couple had five children. The City of Minnetonka purchased the home from the Smith family in 1970.

“It is lovingly and authentically

renovated by the City of Minnetonka …” says Petey Ellis, tour guide. “It is unique because visitors walk through the house with a tour guide, who can entwine the history of the area, the customs of the Victorian Age and era furnishings to reimagine how people once lived and prospered.”

In 1974, the venue was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The grounds also include a cottage, a woodshed, an ice house and the Minnetonka Historical Society Museum, which was Burwell’s former workshop and was the original office for the mill.

Petey Ellis

ONCE A TEACHER …

Ellis of Minnetonka has been heading up tours for about eight years and is one of about 20 Burwell House tour guides. “I love history, and I’ve grown up here and saw the Burwell House a lot of times when it was a private house,” she says.

The retired teacher from the Osseo School District is still a student of history. “I try to read everything I can about Minnetonka and put information that is exciting about history [into the tours] because I think history is so exciting,” Ellis says. “I think it’s important for people to know that where they live has a history and people live on. So many places lose that history if someone doesn’t write it down or keep the history.”

Ellis not only shares her love of history with the touring public, her granddaughter, Ella Davidman (Wayzata High School Class of 2024), is also a Burwell House tour guide. Interested in becoming a tour guide? Shifts are typically three hours, twice a month, but scheduling is flexible. Training is provided.

Additional information is available by calling 952.939.8350.

MARK THE CALENDAR

» Guided tours are available from 1–4 p.m. Tuesdays, Saturdays and Sundays from June–August.

» There are also tours from 1–4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays in September.

» Tours last between 30–60 minutes and are free, but donations are accepted.

» The City of Minnetonka hosts Spooktacular at the end of October.

» The Minnetonka Historical Society decorates the home for the holidays and offers tours on Sundays in November, and a Holiday Open House is held usually on the first Sunday of December.

» Permits are available for private use of Minnetonka Mills Park and the Burwell grounds for events, such as weddings and receptions. To request a permit, call 952.939.8354.

For tour information, visit minnetonkamn.gov.

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Embrace the Next Phase

New cooperative provides active living experiences.

By Mollee Francisco

NADIA KOZAK’S LIFE is in transition. She dreams of getting out of the city without giving up access to groceries, restaurants and a sense of community. She lives in a house but is ready to give up some of the fuss that entails. “I want to get back to single-level living,” Kozak says. “I want to be able to lock the door and go.”

As she imagined what the next phase of her life would look like, the Golden Valley resident learned about Artessa Cooperative at Mound Harbor, a proposed 62+ cooperative living community on Auditors Road in Mound. She was intrigued. “It was far enough out of the city but still on the lakes,” she says.

In addition to being uniquely situated off Cooks Bay and Lost Lake Harbor, the four-story, 52-unit cooperative will be adjacent to downtown Mound and the Dakota Rail Regional Trail. That notion strongly appealed to Kozak. “I like to bike and walk,” she says.

Mound Harbor joins a fleet of more than 40 senior cooperatives that Lifestyle Communities has developed across the Midwest. (At press time, ground was set to be broken in the previous months.) It is also currently developing active living communities in Golden Valley, Maple Grove and Shakopee.

While the zip codes may vary, the mission remains the same—boutiquesize buildings in amenity-rich locations with a neighborhood feel all designed to attract residents interested in active adult living. “That’s the mantra,” says Dena Meyer, president of Lifestyle Communities. “The site has to be walkable, first and foremost.”

Kozak

“It’s all about community,” Meyer says. “We’re specifically looking for smaller sites where people want to be.” She says that 70 percent of its residents previously lived within five miles of the developments. They generally range in age from 62–72, Meyer says. “They want maintenance-free, one-level living. They want to pursue their passions, [and] they

Photos: Chris Emeott, Artessa

Nadia

want to work, volunteer, be engaged and they want their lifestyle and housing choice to avail that, too,” she says.

Meyer says the company makes that possible by listening to what potential residents want and stacking the developments with loads of amenities from pickleball courts and fitness studios to maker spaces and technology hubs. Mound Harbor also includes access to 10 city-maintained boat slips and storage for kayaks and e-bikes. “Every time I made the drive out, I loved it even more,” Kozak says.

Meyer says the “magic” of Artessa developments is bringing together people who are looking for a similar lifestyle in their senior years. “It’s about the clubs and committees that form,” she says. “Vitality skyrockets.”

Kozak, who just qualified for Artessa’s age threshold, is looking forward to being part of a similarly-minded community. She’s already spent time getting to know her future neighbors. “It’s not a senior living center,” Kozak says. “This is a community, and I can tell Mound Harbor’s going to be an active community.”

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Rendering of Artessa, featuring two private pickleball courts for members and green space.

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By Renée Stewart-Hester

GRIEGER GROUP

THE MINDS BEHIND TAIL CHASER

DOG BREW hope their target audience laps up their latest business venture—one 12-oz. can at a time. The clean-ingredient brew features beef or chicken bone broth that can be added to dog food to enhance flavor or poured into water bowls for a low-calorie, low-sodium beverage.

Ingredients include beef or chicken bones and water (broth), carrots, cabbage, rice, malt and thyme. “It’s a really clean label,” says Edina’s Luke Derheim, one of the owners behind the brand, along with Minnetonka’s David Benowitz.

Other Tail Chaser owners include John Mihajlov (Wayzata High School graduate), who co-owns Finnegan’s Brew Co. in Minneapolis along with Jacquie Berglund, Finnegan’s founder and coowner. The brew is made at and distributed out of Finnegan’s.

Is Tail Chaser a novelty item? Is the product only feeding into pet owners’ penchant for humanizing their pets, e.g., clothing for fashion sake? The answer is: No, if one considers the shelf-stable ingredients. Derheim explains that the bone broths, rice and cabbage aid in dogs’ digestion. Thyme helps improve pet breath odor. The water, while obviously assisting with hydration, can aid dogs with food texture concerns (It happens.) or older pets, suffering from tender dental issues. As a food topper, the brew softens dry dog food, making chewing easier.

Derheim and Benowitz are also part of the ownership team of Craft & Crew Hospitality (Dukes’s on 7, Minnetonka; The Bar Draft House in Hastings; The Block Food + Drink, St. Louis Park; The Howe Daily Kitchen & Bar in Minneapolis; Pub 819, Hopkins; and Stanley’s Northeast Bar Room, Minneapolis). Their restaurant experience is important to the story of how Tail Chaser got its start. “We really thought there was a market for it,” Derheim says. “We see how much people spend on their pets at our restaurants.”

Each of the restaurants has tapped

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Left to right: Luke Derheim, John Mihajlov, Jacquie Berglund and David Benowitz at Finnegans Brew Co., where Tail Chaser is brewed.

Where to Buy

Tail Chaser is available online ($17.99/eight pack) and locally at Chuck & Don’s, Cub and Lunds & Byerlys, and more sites are in the offing ($10.99/four pack). Craft & Crew venues sell it for $4/can. Product is also available in North Dakota and Wisconsin. “We think long term it will continue to grow in this market and other states, as well,” Derheim says. “Feedback has been really positive since we launched in 2022. We have regulars who come in with their dogs now and purchase Tail Chaser weekly,” Benowitz says.

into the market with dog-friendly, heated Pawtios and menus for the canines to enjoy while their two-legged friends enjoy meals and beverages off another menu. And if you doubt the success of a menu that features “dogs drink free Tuesdays” and eight menu items, the 100,000th meal was served to some lucky “good boy or gal” in 2022 after seven years of offering a menu that caters to the canine set. “Our dog food sales on our Pawtios have also increased every year since we launched our dog menu in 2016,” Benowitz says. “We know there is a target market, and people love to spoil their dogs.”

Knowing there is a market for a product isn’t enough to garner success in the retail game—there are other important ingredients. “… A lot of planning and conversations went into launching this product. It takes a dedicated team to get a dog product like Tail Chaser to have the visibility we are seeing now,” Benowitz says. “We had many people at the beginning tell us not to launch this product or that it wouldn’t work. However, we kept pursuing aggressively and meeting with everyone we could in the pet space and have now found some great partners. We don’t take ourselves too seriously, so the stress levels for the most part have been relatively low.”

tailchaserdogbrew.com

Tail Chaser Dog Brew

@tailchaserdogbrew

tailchaserdogbrew

Photos: Chris Emeott

Written by Mollee Francisco — Photos by Chris Emeott

“KING” of the WORLD

Wayzata man pens autobiography detailing his storied life and career.

It would be impossible to reach 96 years of age without collecting a few stories along the way. Kingston Fletcher has amassed an entire book of them— 300 pages worth—in Divergent Paths: A Life Reexamined. “Part of it is an ego trip,” Fletcher says. “I wanted to be remembered.”

With the help of business journalist Carol Pine, Fletcher self-published his intensely readable autobiography last September. Among the many tales of his fascinating life, the book details Fletcher’s 33 years with Procter & Gamble (P&G) as he traveled the world, opening new markets from Venezuela to Italy to Germany. “It’s post-World War II, and Procter & Gamble realizes there’s a whole world to sell their products to,” Pine says. “Fletcher was given free rein to invent an international business. I told him, ‘I think you had the best job ever.’”

“I preferred the heady freedom of choice,” Fletcher writes. “I thrived on

independence, and I saw the opportunity when faced with the unknown or untried. Risk didn’t haunt me. It stretched me. I was more competitive than ambitious; more studious than free form; more optimistic than wary.”

Privileged Upbringing

Fletcher’s book begins with the death of his father when Fletcher was just 16— a pivotal moment for a young man, who was expected to follow in his father’s footsteps. Fletcher was born and raised in Minneapolis, the youngest son of Alice and Clark Fletcher. His father was a senior partner at the Minneapolis-based law firm of Fletcher, Dorsey, Barker, Colman and Barber.

Fletcher enjoyed a privileged upbringing, attending Blake School and Yale University. Summers were spent at the family’s Lake Minnetonka cottage known as Sunset Point in Deephaven—a home that Fletcher later purchased for himself in 1990. It was there that he began a lifelong relationship with sailing—one that would earn him the distinction of being

The WRITTEN WORD is SOMETHING YOU can HOLD ONTO. MONEY WON’T do it.

the oldest continuous racing member of the Minnetonka Yacht Club at 89 years old. “He’s inspirational,” Pine says. “A truly remarkable man.”

Student of the World

Fletcher knew that his father expected him to study law, but his untimely death meant that Fletcher was free to chart his own course. “I don’t think I would have liked to be a lawyer,” Fletcher says. Though he didn’t want to study law, “I certainly wanted to emulate my father’s success,” he writes. “I had a vision for myself, however murky. ‘I know I’m going to be successful,’ I whispered. ‘I don’t know how … but I will.’”

Fletcher opted to study English literature at Yale, emphasizing the importance of “being able to express yourself in written form.” Despite dropping out of school to pursue sports broadcasting, Fletcher graduated from Yale in 1948 and spent several months writing press releases at a small public relations firm in Minneapolis.

Fletcher would get his first taste of international business when his brother, Clark Jr., invited him to sell Studebaker cars at a dealership in Mexico City. Though it was not a fruitful venture, Fletcher got his foot in the

door at Studebaker’s corporate offices, which would eventually land him a job in Belgium as the assistant to the manager for its Western European division. “There, I found I had some affinity for languages,” says Fletcher, who has picked up French, German, Italian and Spanish over the years.

Being in Europe following the end of World War II was a fascinating experience for Fletcher. “Most of it was being rebuilt,” he says. Fletcher found that he “became a student of the world,” playing witness to the aftermath of war. He would continue his global education in Venezuela when he became Studebaker’s regional manager in Caracas in 1950.

Two days after arriving in Venezuela, Fletcher met the woman who would become his wife. “Across a crowded room, I saw a 5-foot-2 enchantress, who I wanted to know,” he writes. “She was Doris Eileen Calderwood, who the American State Department had just transferred to Caracas. She had a warm smile, an engaging personality and obvious intelligence. I was smitten.”

But it was Fletcher’s pursuit of Calderwood that would spell the end of his career with Studebaker. After 14 months of nonstop work, Fletcher informed his boss that he would be taking

a vacation with Calderwood, leaving no forwarding address or phone number. When he later returned to headquarters, Fletcher was told that he was no longer employed with the company. “It was one of the luckiest things that ever happened to me,” he says.

A New Opportunity

In 1951, connections Fletcher made in Venezuela resulted in a job offer from P&G. Fletcher jumped at the opportunity. “That’s what I did for the rest of my business career,” he says.

According to Fletcher, post-World War II, P&G was one of a handful of large American companies “exploring the frontier of international business.” But before Fletcher could travel the world again, he had to earn his stripes stateside. He began calling on grocers in southern Florida. After five months on the job, Fletcher was one of the company’s top salesmen. He was encouraged to stay on the U.S. sales track, but he had international dreams. In 1952, Fletcher went to Toronto as an assistant to the brand manager of Tide—the company’s top product. Fletcher was on his way— until he was unexpectedly drafted into the U.S. Army.

Fletcher took a leave of absence from

Kingston Fletcher author, businessman, raconteur

Top: Kingston Fletcher, photographed around 1931, spent childhood summers at a summer cottage on Lake Minnetonka.

Bottom: This portrait shows newly married Doris and Kingston Fletcher around the time of his basic training at Fort Dix in New Jersey.

P&G, reluctantly joining the 9th Infantry Division at Fort Dix in New Jersey. “Everyone tries to avoid heavy weapons,” Fletcher says. “I got active in trying to get into something else.”

He landed a special assignment in the Public Information Office where his background in public relations, marketing and sports announcing paid off. Fletcher helped produce a 13-week, 30-minute radio variety program “aimed at giving Americans a better understanding of Army life while promoting goodwill.”

World-wind

Following his stint in the Army, P&G called on Fletcher to take on a position as an advertising manager in Mexico City. While there, Fletcher and his wife welcomed their only child—a daughter, Alison Fletcher. Alison would hardly know Mexico, however, as just two years

after her birth, Fletcher was transferred to England and then Venezuela.

“It was an exciting time,” Fletcher says, summing up their time in Venezuela in three words: “Bombs and bullets.” He recalls violent riots stirred up by Fidel Castro sympathizers and the threat of terrorist attacks against American companies. “Through all of this, we made our own rules,” Fletcher writes. “P&G headquarters in Cincinnati had no useful experience with 1960s international terrorism.”

In the ensuing years, the family tried to put down roots in Cincinnati, but P&G kept finding new work for Fletcher, first in Italy and then Germany, “the largest and most profitable gem in the company’s international crown,” says Fletcher.

By 1972, Fletcher had returned stateside as vice president of International “with a portfolio of countries that read like roll call at the United Nations.”

Advancing his skills, Kingston Fletcher, in the Yngling fleet with the Minnetonka Yacht Club, races on the Kingling.

Kingston Fletcher and Alison Fletcher return to the U.S. in 1970 on one of the earliest flights of a Jumbo Jet.

Kingston Fletcher and Anne “Topsy” Simonson share a laugh and their lives together.

Fletcher’s last assignment for P&G came in 1977 when he was asked to be the Cincinnati-based point man for Japan, a division known as a “graveyard for careers.”

“Overall, I had more executive experience with our international businesses than anyone else,” he writes. “The assignment in Japan was my duty to take—not my preference.” Culture clashes and differing values abounded, and after seven years of trying to stem the losses in Japan, Fletcher was taken off the job and ushered into retirement. He was 59.

Energy to Spare

“I thought, ‘Well, what am I going to do?’” Fletcher says. He still had plenty of gas left in the tank, so he worked to save the Cincinnati Opera Company from ruin, dabbled in teaching, headed up a Sister Cities program and joined a literary club. “I wanted to stay busy,” he says.

At 70, Fletcher also took up competitive sailing. He bought a 21-foot Yngling racing keelboat, named it Kingling, brought it to Lake Minnetonka and got to work assembling a team. “I was 75 in 2001 when our team began to show real promise,” Fletcher writes.

On a Clear Day

In a life that saw Fletcher moving frequently, summers at Lake Minnetonka were a rare constant for him. “I loved growing up on a lake,” he says.

Fletcher witnessed the area transform from a summer cottage getaway to a full-fledged suburban area of Minneapolis. “The standard of living has raised,” he says, noting that Wayzata was once so quaint, it didn’t even have a restaurant to its name.

Much of Fletcher’s beloved Sunset Point, which Alison now owns, has remained as it once was. “It became a family center,” Fletcher says. Perched on an arm that extends into Saint Louis Bay, directly across from the Minnetonka Yacht Club, Sunset Point is known for its stunning 180-degree views of the lake.

Seven years after Doris’s 2008 death, Fletcher moved to Minnesota permanently. He now lives with the “second love of his life”—Anne “Topsy” Simonson—at her home just off of Shoreline Drive. On a clear day, it is possible to catch a view of Sunset Point from their deck. “We don’t know how much life we have left,” Fletcher says. “But we’re going to enjoy it.”

Fletcher now has his sights set on a second book—a collection of papers he wrote for his literary club in Cincinnati. He may be 96, but he’s certainly not letting that hold him back.

amazon.com.

HOMEReturning

English Rose CEO Joshua Wert turns his childhood house into Oak Ridge assisted living facility.

When a Minneapolis man moved his 96-year-old mother from a nursing home to a newly opened assisted living facility in Minnetonka, he says her quality of life instantly improved.

Robert says when Oak Ridge assisted living in Minnetonka was suggested to him by a friend, he decided to check it out. As a new property of English Rose, a provider of professional and personalized care for people with Alzheimer’s disease, other dementias, Parkinson’s disease and complex medical conditions, there was an opening in the six-bed facility. Within a week, Robert’s mother was in her new home. “This is such a beautiful place,” he says. “The staff are very loving and caring to my mom, and she’s much happier there.”

It’s that sentiment that drives English Rose owner and CEO Joshua Wert to do what he does. As a career businessman and entrepreneur, Wert loves serving his community and helping others. The Minnetonka resident purchased English Rose in 2020 and, shortly after, began looking for ways to serve a growing waitlist of clients. “So, I made a list of what I needed in a dream home to add to our English Rose properties,” he says. “The biggest thing I needed was six bedrooms on one level.”

One of the unique features of English Rose is that each of the six properties only has six beds. It helps create a personal, intimate feeling among residents and staff. Knowing the housing model Wert needed would be challenging to find, especially with a limitedinventory market, he began his search. He focused on the Minnetonka area, since several of English Rose’s clients are from the lake area. Wert wanted to secure a location that would keep them close to their most recent homes. “Families need support and help when loved ones start to require 24/7 care,” he says. “But they don’t want to be segregated or separated.”

The search continued to come up short until Wert says a “serendipitous moment” happened. His childhood home on Oak Ridge Trail in Minnetonka would be perfect for the next English Rose property. “It was exactly what I needed,” he says of the home. “I remember thinking if only there was something out there like my mom’s house. That’s when the light bulb turned on.”

Coincidently, as that idea was percolating, Wert’s mother, Lois Berman of Minnetonka, started voicing her desire to relocate into a more manageable home. “I’m in my 80s, and the upkeep was getting to be too much,” Berman says of the 3,651-square-foot property. “The house needed more love.”

The Next Chapter

Wert and Berman have a noticeably close relationship. As the two recalled events that led to Wert purchasing the home, they were able to laugh about a slight disagreement that popped up during the process—they couldn’t agree on a price. “I knew what I thought the house was worth, and my mom knew what she thought the house was worth, and there was quite a gap,” Wert says. “We could not come to terms.”

In the end, the mother-son pair worked through a broker, and it turns out that Berman’s price was more accurate. “I was just glad it worked out in the end,” Wert says. He adds that the first night he owned the home, he turned on every light in the house and played his music loudly—two things he was never allowed to do growing up. “The neighbors were probably worried it was so bright in the house,” Berman says.

WRITTEN BY EMILY GEDDE

PHOTOS BY CHRIS EMEOTT

Joshua Wert and Lois Berman

Becoming Oak Ridge Berman’s home was originally designed by an Edina-based architect, Arthur Dickey, and has gained some attention for its midcentury modernism. Wert says his mother always had an eye for art and design. “For me, I needed a home with details that would feed my soul as well as provide refuge and peace—a space made for longevity and life transitions,” Berman says of her original view for the home when construction began in 1970. “I wanted clear distinctions between public and private spaces and something that accommodated children as well as aging adults.”

The result was a design before its time, as many of the features are now best practices for creating optimal living spaces for aging adults or those progressing with Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia.

Beautiful accents, liberal use of wood, splashes of color and high-end, timeless materials bring in character to create an atmosphere that is both engaging and warm and entirely accessible inside and out. Clear cedar, cathedral ceilings and clerestory windows bring in natural light

“THIS HOME LIVED LARGE IN MY LIFE AND TO HAVE IT ADDED ON TO MY MISSION AND VISION OF GROWING ENGLISH ROSE IS VERY EMOTIONAL. IT’S PROBABLY THE MOST HEARTFELT THING I’VE EVER DONE IN THE BUSINESS WORLD.”

Joshua Wert, owner and CEO of English Rose

while maintaining privacy. Several decks, patios and gardens make for easy access to outdoor living and activities.

Thanks to Christian Dean Architecture and Dovetail Renovations Inc., based out of Edina, Oak Ridge now hosts six-private assisted living suites, some with shared bathrooms. The kitchen has been opened up to increase caregiver sight lines, and hardwood floors

replaced woolen carpets to accommodate wheelchairs. Other than a touch of new paint, all of Oak Ridge’s architecturallysignificant features remain intact, including the stunning double-sided stone fireplace.

“This home was a character in my upbringing,” Wert says. “It was so elaborately detailed. It’s hard to put into words how it feels to have my childhood home

part of English Rose. It’s very emotional and warm. This home lived large in my life and to have it added on to my mission and vision of growing English Rose is very emotional. It’s probably the most heartfelt thing I’ve ever done in the business world.”

English Rose, 6400 Timber Ridge, Edina; 952.983.0412; englishrosesuites.com

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Wayzata Bay Car Wash is locally owned and operated in the heart of downtown Wayzata. We strive to lead the industry in top-of-the-line equipment and exemplary customer service.

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things to see and do around Lake Minnetonka

SWEET 16

Sailing club funraising event celebrates anniversary.

SAILING IS AN INTEGRAL PART of the lake community and Minnesota. Since 1981, Wayzata Sailing has been educating the public and supporting the sailing endeavors of sailors of all abilities. To note: It is one of 35 US Sailing Accredited Community Sailing Centers.

In an effort to offer sailing to everyone interested in learning, Wayzata Sailing hosts the annual Windward Festival, supporting community programs, clinics, training, camps, STEM, adaptive sailing and more—all happening at Wayzata Sailing’s Mike Plant Community Boathouse on Lake Minnetonka.

From 5–10 p.m. June 23, the Wayzata Yacht Club, 1100 Eastman Lane, will host the event, which will feature a silent auction and raffle. Special musical guest Nato Coles & the Blue Diamond Band is on deck, and a shoreside picnic supper (included in the ticket price) will be offered overlooking the beautiful lake. Beverages, including local wine, beer and spirits, will be available along with nonalcoholic sips.

This lakeside festival wouldn’t be complete without free sailboat rides until sunset. —Clare

Greeman

For additional details and tickets ($45 and $100) for the 21 and older event, visit windwardfest.org.

LOCAL EVENTS

Senior Celebration Concert 06/04

Minnetonka’s school-age choirs celebrate seniors in this musical tribute. All ages. Prices TBD. 2–4 p.m. Minnetonka Theatre, 18285 MN-7, Minnetonka; 952.401.5700; minnetonkachoirs.org

Excelsior Art on the Lake 2023 06/10–06/11

Enjoy the work of more than 120 local artists while enjoying live music and food. All ages. Free. Times vary. Downtown Excelsior, Water Street, Excelsior; 952.607.7658; excelsiorlakeminnetonkachamber.com

Compiled by Hailey Almsted and Clare Greeman

Photo: Matthew Thompson

in digital format!

Never miss an issue of Lake Minnetonka Magazine with free, anytime access to our digital editions. Full screen viewing on your digital device allows easy cover-to-cover reading. Share your favorite Lake Minnetonka Magazine articles with friends and family.

Lake Minnetonka 4th of July

July 4th, All-Day!

The Commons Park, Excelsior | Fireworks at Dusk

Lake Minnetonka Triathlon

06/17

Challenge yourself, or cheer on the challengers, during this run, bike and swim benefitting Interfaith Outreach and Community for the Commons. All ages. Prices vary. 7:30–11 a.m. Excelsior Commons Park, 135 Lake St., Excelsior; lakeminnetonkatriathlon.com

Wayzata Art Experience

06/24–06/25

Shop and peruse the work of local artists while enjoying music, food and the sights of downtown Wayzata. All ages. Free. Times vary. Lake Street, Wayzata; 952.404.5300; artexperience.wayzatachamber.com

Charmin and Shapira

06/30

Every year, the spectacular Excelsior Firework show is hosted by the Excelsior- Lake Minnetonka Chamber of Commerce. We can’t host this event without donors like YOU ! We are grateful for donations from the cities, sponsors and Excelsior Rotary, but still need to community donations to make this event a success.

Art on the Lake

June 10-11, 10 AM- 6 PM

Water Street, Downtown Excelsior

Come out to enjoy a loyal following of 18,000+ art admirers, collectors and buyers. Over 120 artists will be displaying original works amidst live music and a variety of food o erings.

Excelsior Firecracker Race

July 4, 7:30 AM

Excelsior Elementary School

Join the Excelsior-Lake Minnetonka Chamber of Commerce for a 4th of July Run! With options to run a 10k, 5k, or 1 Mile, anyone can join.

Consider donating today to see your favorite fi reworks BOOM!

Come for a night of fine food and drink, serenaded with the ballads and bossa novas from Charmin and Shapira. All ages. Free. 5:30–8 p.m. Blue Birch, 5801 Opus Parkway, Minnetonka; 952.935.5500; bluebirchrestaurant.com

AREA EVENTS

Susie Park and Silver Ainomäe

06/01–06/02

Minnesota Orchestra members Susie Park and Silver Ainomäe perform the music of Brahms. All ages. Ticket prices vary. Times vary. Minnesota Orchestra, 1111 Nicollet Mall, Mpls.; 612.371.5600; minnesotaorchestra.org

The Prom

06/01–06/04, 06/07–06/10

Chanhassen Dinner Theatres presents The Prom, a comedic, over-the-top musical that celebrates unapologetically being yourself. Ages 5 and older. Ticket prices vary. Times vary. Chanhassen Dinner Theatres, 501 W. 78th St., Chanhassen; 952.934.1525; chanhassendt.com

Flint Hills Family Festival

06/02–06/03

This interactive and kid-friendly festival features art activities, workshops

and thrilling performances to enjoy with the whole family. All ages. $5. Times vary. Ordway, 345 Washington St., St. Paul; 651.224.4222; ordway.org

Grand Old Day

06/04

After a three year hiatus, Grand Old Day is back in full swing this year with products for sale from local makers, food, music and more. All ages. Free. 8:30 a.m.–6 p.m. Grand Avenue, Dale Street to Fairview Avenue, St. Paul; grandave.com

St. Paul Summer Beer Festival

06/10

What could be better than beer samples from 45 local craft breweries, live music, food and the Minnesota State Fairgrounds? Ages 21 and older. Ticket prices vary. 2–5 p.m. Minnesota State Fair Grounds International Bazaar, Underwood Street amd Judson Avenue, St. Paul; stpaulsummerbeerfest.com

Stone Arch Bridge Festival

06/17–06/18

Every art medium you can think of is brought forth by local artists, framed by music, food, drinks and the view surrounding the Stone Arch Bridge. All ages. Free. Times vary. Locations vary. 952.473.6422; stonearchbridgefestival.com

To have your event considered: email lakeminnetonkamag@localmedia.co by the 10th of the month three months prior to publication.

Due to the fluidity being experienced in the current environment, please note that some events/dates and even some business operations may have changed since these pages went to print. Please visit affiliated websites for updates.

lakeminnetonkamag.com

Buon Appetito!

LONG LAKE EATERY CELEBRATES FOOD AND FAMILY ITALIAN STYLE.

Written by Mollee Francisco

Photos by Chris Emeott

WHEN YOU SINK your teeth into a plate of Spaghetti & Meatballs at Long Lake’s Primo Plates & Pours, you’re taking a bite of Tony Ostlund’s family history.

According to family lore, during World War II, Ostlund’s grandmother, Phyllis, took the train from Excelsior to New Orleans to marry her sweetheart, Woody, before he departed to serve in the military. The night of their wedding, the newlyweds ate at an Italian restaurant, enjoying a plate of spaghetti and meatballs. When they told their server how much they loved their meal, the chef insisted on giving them the recipe as a wedding gift.

That treasured spaghetti and meatball recipe became a tradition in the Ostlund family. Woody and Phyllis made it for their four sons every Christmas. Those sons made it for their children, including Ostlund. And, now, he makes it for his own chil dren—Neveah and A.J.

The recipe also became the signature dish for Primo Plates & Pours when Ostlund opened the upscale Italian eatery seven years ago in the former Birch’s space. “It was my tradi tion growing up,” Ostlund says. “I built my menu around that red sauce.”

Tony Ostlund

It’s a menu that Primo regulars Sutton McGraw and Lori Goodsell can’t say enough good things about. Ask either one what they would recommend and both will happily give a list of nearly everything Ostlund offers. “I love the [Insulate Rustic],” McGraw says. “All of the pizzas are amazing. The Bolognese is handmade. I get two meals out of the Spaghetti & Meatballs. There’s the Linguine & Clams, the sea bass, the Chicken Parmesan … The quality of the food is very good.”

“Tony does an absolutely fantastic job,” Goodsell says. She was among Ostlund’s first customers. “The first night, we were the only ones there,” she says. “The food was amazing, and we were terrified that it was going to close. We started bringing everyone we knew.” Today, the restaurant is buzzing, and Goodsell has a nameplate on one of the stools at the bar. She’s not the only one. “We get tons of regulars,” Ostlund says, noting that many of them have nameplates scattered around the restaurant or their own chairs at the bar.

Primo Plates & Pours has been embraced by the Long Lake community—so much so that Goodsell says she hates to let their little secret get out. “It’s a great neighborhood joint,” she says. “Like an upscale Cheers [referencing the bar in the similarlynamed NBC TV program that ran from 1982–1993].”

At the height of the pandemic, Ostlund says his customers were fiercely loyal, keeping the restaurant afloat through robust takeout orders. “We got so much support, it was ridiculous,” he says. “We had the right food for it, I guess.”

McGraw lives less than a mile away from Primo. She says the restaurant seems like an extension

“It makes me feel like I’m coming home. It really makes a difference.”

SUTTON MCGRAW, CUSTOMER

Risotto Arancini

Cheesecake

Grilled Mushroom and Gorgonzola Salad

Primo Plates & Pours, 1935 Wayzata Blvd., Long Lake; 952.479.1143; primolonglake.com

Primo Plates & Pours @primolonglake

of her home. “I feel like I know everybody,” she says. “It makes me feel like I’m coming home. It really makes a difference.”

That’s music to Ostlund’s ears. “I wanted to create a restaurant with a quiet, cozy neighborhood feel where people could come and enjoy good food and great service,” he says.

McGraw believes he’s achieved that and much more. “The beauty and magic is that it’s small and the attention to detail,” she says. “The personalized service and quality of food is top notch.” Goodsell says, “It’s super consistent.”

Other than a burger, which he begrudgingly put on the menu at the request of his regulars, Ostlund says you won’t find nonItalian fare at Primo. According to Ostlund, customer favorites include the Risotto Arancini, the Grilled Mushroom and Gorgonzola Salad, the Pappardelle Bolognese, the Four-cheese Ravioli and the cheesecake—a recipe that came to him courtesy of his ex-wife and includes a strawberry Grand Marnier topping. Ostlund’s personal favorites at Primo are the Spaghetti & Meatballs, Baked Strozzapreti and the “Bucatony,” a variation of Primo’s Bucatini Rosa that includes diced chicken breast and veggies.

As Ostlund looks to the future of his restaurant, he wants to continue growing, noting that he’s considered delving into prepared meals and meal kits. Until then, he’s going to keep whipping up batches of that red sauce and thanking his grandparents for sharing their wedding gift.

WOMEN’S HEALTHCARE SERVICES IN THE TWIN CITIES

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Ourprovidersofferpersonalizedcompassionate careforallyourwomen’shealthcareneeds.This includesadolescentcare,infertility,obstetrics, gynecology,incontinenceissues,weightloss, ob/gynphysicaltherapy,andmenopause. Maintainingstrong,caringrelationshipswithour patientsisimportant.AtOBGYNWest,youwill findaproviderthatwillbewithyoueverystepof theway.

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Chaska Minnetonka

KatieJ. Toft,MD MatthewA. Weinrich,MD SarahM. Talbott,PA-C

THIRD PLACE: PETS

Lens on Lake Minnetonka

It’s never too early to teach a young pup new tricks.

SITTING. STANDING. Either way—paddleboarding can be great fun. Lake Minnetonka served as an outdoor classroom for this darling (and daring) pup as it navigated relatively calm waters.

“I liked the fact [the owners] were starting the dog off young, and they could do everything with the dog as it grew up and could involve it in all the family fun they do together, so the dog is never left out,” says Ann Beadle-Reinitz of Mound. The photography enthusiast was “… just driving around with my hubby, looking for interesting things to photograph and came across this lovely couple and their cute puppy.”

Photographer: Ann Beadle-Reinitz

Title: Puppies and Paddleboards

Equipment: Nikon D850 and a Tamron 70–200mm lens

Location: Grays Bay

To view other Lens on Lake Minnetonka photo contest winners, visit lakeminnetonkamag.com.