Theborderlandpress.com
Friday, December 24, 2021
Christmas Edition
say, “keep the change.”
In this Issue:
Letter from the Editor on Page 4
Students in Bata’s class hand out homemade Christmas cookies that have been donated for the event, and they manage the cash box.
“Remembering Holiday Favorites” with Sara Goodman in The Morning Run column on Page 4
“It’s exciting to have their other classmates coming into their classroom,” Bata said.
Osnabrock woman takes the charcuterie trend to the next level on Page 5.
Bata said Asher is in a wheelchair but is gaining strength through physical therapy.
Index: Public Notices News Briefs Opinion Feature Obituaries Sports Community Santa Letters
“His mom works at the daycare, and she has taken care of both of my babies,” Bata said. “So, we wanted to do something to help them out.”T The event raised just over $1,500 for Asher. Another place you’ll find the spirit of the season is at The Bread Pan bakery through its annual Giving Tree. This is the 4th year the tree has been at the bakery; it existed in a few other businesses in years prior. All along, the setup has remained the same: people who need items or gifts for kids for Christmas work with the bakery to put those items on the tags that hang on the Giving Tree. People from the community come and take a tag, shop for the item, and bring it back either wrapped or unwrapped. Everything is confidential.
Letter from the Publisher on Page 4
Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Pages 7 - 8 Page 9 Pages 10-11
SUBSCRIBE TO THE BORDERLAND PRESS Local, including 582 and 583 ZIP codes - $49 per year North Dakota - $53 per year Out of State - $63 SUBSCRIBE NOW and your subscription will run 2/1/22 – 1/31/23. Mail a check with your address to: The Borderland Press - Subscriptions P.O, Box 230, Langdon, ND 58249 Or call with your credit card information – 701-256-1080 What do you call a kid who doesn’t believe in Santa? A rebel without a Claus.
The Spirit of Giving By Sarah Hinnenkamp
It’s the time of year when people think more about giving to a cause or to someone who needs a little extra help. From a Christmas Giving Tree to a hot chocolate stand, the Langdon area is supporting the causes that need help. Langdon Area Elementary students and staff enjoyed sweet treats as part of the 2nd Annual Hot Chocolate Stand, which originates in the school’s special education classroom and raises money to donate to a cause. Last year proceeds benefited the Cavalier County Emergency Food Pantry. The idea for a hot chocolate stand came out of a need in Jacy Bata’s classroom. “Math was getting boring,” said Bata, special education teacher at Langdon Area Elementary school.
Bata came up with a solution to make math more exciting and fun. With Bata as the mastermind, seven paraprofessionals she works with helped her pull it all together. (Pictured above with the hosting class of students). The project helps her students with math, communication, and social skills. For the steady stream of classrooms that come from other parts of the school all day long, they benefit from the idea as well. “Other kids come in to see that my room isn’t scary – it’s welcoming,” Bata said. “It helps them become aware of where some of their classmates go when they come to my room for a little extra help.” This year, all the funds raised will be donated to a first grade student at Langdon Area Elementary, Asher McKay, to help with his medical expenses. (Pictured above. Submitted photo.)
Asher had experienced severe leg pains for over a week when he went to see a doctor. After multiple tests and blood work, he was transferred to Fargo where he was diagnosed with Guillain Barre Syndrome (GBS), which is caused by an overreaction of the immune system (basically attacking itself), that had attacked Asher’s peripheral nerves in his legs. Asher is getting medication through an IV to stop the confusion of the immune system. At school, his classmates help him get around in a wheelchair. His leg muscles will need lots of stretching and physical therapy to get him walking again. The math lessons come after the event, but the life lessons happen right in the middle of it. While there is a price list for the hot chocolate, the number of toppings like marshmallows and sprinkles, and the homemade Christmas cookies, most customers hand over their payment and
While most people get a tag from the tree and fill the tag by wrapping and dropping off a gift, individuals and the Eagles Club donate money to cover the tags that might not get picked up. This year another person donated all the wrapping supplies, including paper, tape, and scissors. Marie Mack owns The Bread Pan with her husband, Billy. They have seen cont’d. on page 9
Goals and Visions for the Future of the Rendezvous Region By Melanie Thornberg “Steeped in History and Blessed with Beauty” is not just a trite tourism slogan used to describe the Pembina Gorge - one of the internationally significant treasures located here in the Rendezvous Region of Northeastern North Dakota. The Pembina Gorge is home to three different biogeographical biomes including the Eastern Deciduous Forest, the Northern Boreal Forest and the Central Grasslands. Numerous species of rare, threatened, endangered -- and cool! -- species of flora and fauna have flourished in the Gorge, the only true gorge in all of North Dakota. Since the Gorge and surrounding areas are also sprinkled with remnants of the 80-million-yearold Western Interior Seaway (Cretaceous Sea), the 10,000-year-old Ancient Glacial Lake Agassiz, and the Ancient Paleo-Indians who hunted the Ice Age Animals who lived here think Woolly Mammoths, Mastadons and Sabre-Toothed Tigers - and the more recent Red River Oxcart Trails and fur trade era remnants from the French-Canadian trappers and voyageurs, the best is yet to be for tapping into this area’s potential for attracting people to explore and to enjoy this unique area. The Gorge and surrounding areas are also home to numerous historic sites, prairie churches, one-room schoolhouses, and other intriguing “must-sees” that would appeal to future visitors and residents, too. The term, “Rendezvous Region,” was named for the original “rendezvous” that were held twice a year at the Gingras Trading Post as hunters gathered provisions for the buffalo hunts that started from the Post in
Walhalla. Rita Maisel from Langdon is the local historian who suggested the name, “Rendezvous Region,” when this newest tourism marketing strategy was getting developed several decades ago.
recreational amenities that appeal to tourists, many new plans and initiatives have also been in the works involving a number of state and local agencies working in coordination with Frost Fire Park.
Langdon and Walhalla are the two closest “gate-way” communities that benefit the most from tourists coming into the area to enjoy the wildlife viewing and recreational opportunities that exist in the Pembina Gorge, but all of the towns in the Rendezvous Region benefit in various ways by having tourists traveling through their respective towns to get to the Gorge and the four-season recreational area located in the heart of the Gorge, Frost Fire Park. Whether folks are birders, bikers, hikers, skiers, boarders, kayakers, tubers, canoeists, snowshoers, cross-country skiers, horseback riders, or photographers - there is literally something for every member of the family to enjoy in the Pembina Gorge and Frost Fire Park.
Then, COVID-19 happened . . . stopping much of the world, America, and the Rendezvous Region in its tracks. Local small businesses throughout the Rendezvous Region were adversely affected due to this international pandemic. The pandemic was, and is, a federally-declared economic disaster. To that end, the Red River Regional Council based out of Grafton has stepped up to the plate to work with towns and businesses throughout the Rendezvous Region to recover, to mitigate, to build resiliency, to rebound, and to revitalize their communities. In recent months, the Regional Council has been conducting Business Retention & Expansion (BR&E) surveys, hosting workshops, organizing town hall meetings, initiating the Roger Brooks Destination Development Initiative Plan, and talking to numerous business owners and residents regarding ways in which the Council can help businesses and communities survive, recover, and ultimately prosper through the pandemic.
New initiatives, scenic overlooks, trails, maps, interpretive signs, and brochures have been developed in recent years to market and to promote the Pembina Gorge and Frost Fire Park as world-class tourism destination areas. A new mountain bike terrain park, for example, has been created out at Frost Fire Park to complement the skiing, snowboarding, and summer theater musical offerings that have been enjoyed by thousands of tourists for several decades. Since the area has so many other nearby scenic, historic, cultural, and
One of the forums organized by the Regional Council was the Walhalla Town Hall Meeting held on Wednesday, December 8, hosted by the Walhalla Area Chamber of Commerce. Over 80 merchants, bankers, resicont. page 10
Frost Fire Park Open Over Christmas Break Frost Fire Park will be open to skiing and snowboarding from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m., Dec. 23 - Jan. 2, with the exception of being closed on Christmas Day. The regular season schedule is 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.
Skiing and snowboarding lessons are available with certified instructors. Call the lodge Wednesday through Sunday to schedule at 701-549-3600 or book online at frostfirepark.org. Skis, poles, snowboards, and helmets are all available in the rental department.