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In this Issue:
Friday, February 24, 2023
Volume 2, Number 7
The right place at the right time
Langdon woman rescues stranded motorists during Valentine’s Day storm By Jessica Tull
Community: Langdon Prairie Health Walhalla Clinic welcomes new face to practice, building receives facelift Pg. A6
On Feb. 14, Hilary Nowatzki of Langdon was making her way back home from Cavalier through the Valentine’s Day blizzard when she came across a vehicle that had gotten stuck. With the blowing wind making it difficult to keep going, she pulled over and decided to stop. “This was about 5:30/6 o’clock,” explained Nowatzki. “I hadn’t run into visibility issues like that since I moved here.” Nowatzki moved to Langdon from Tennessee about two years ago. She is the editor of Valley News & Views and reports for The Borderland Press. Actually finding another car brought a moment of comfort. She hopped out of her truck and made her way across the icy highway. Hwy. 5 facing west on Feb. 14. Image courtesy Hilary Nowatzki.
Views from the Borderland: Local students learn about newspaper layout. Pg. A10
Sports: Photo highlights from the Pembina County North Grizzlies wrestling at N.D. State Tournament. Pg. B4 and B5
“If I was going to be stopped, I might as well not be stuck alone,” Nowatzki said. When she arrived at the car, all comfort dwindled as she saw there was an elderly couple and their cat in the car. “I discovered the man was already covered in snow and frost, and it seemed as though the heat in the car wasn’t working very well,” said Nowatzki. “The man had already taken a spill before I had gotten there.” Knowing they were at risk in the cold car, Nowatzki decided they needed to get to her warm truck. “I got the man loaded up into my truck, and I realized he’s very weak and very disoriented. I realized how weak she cont’d. on page A10
Horgan inducted into N.D. Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame
Hilary Nowatzki returned to retrieve her pick up on Wednesday after the storm had settled down. She said, “The hood was closed all night and this much still blew in!”
Photo taken on Hwy. 5 on Wednesday, Feb. 15 by Lori Hunt Lowery.
Bata hired to lead Langdon Area Elementary as principal By Sarah Hinnenkamp
During the meeting the board reviewed the path it took to hiring. On Feb. 6, the school board’s interview committee interviewed three principal candidates: Jacy Bata, Melissa Hiltner, and Samuel Preble. “All three interviews were fantastic,” Daren Christianson, superintendent, told the board. “All three have a very varied set of skills and are great leaders in their own rite.”
Jacy Bata. Photo by Larry Stokke.
At its regular meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 22, the Langdon Area School Board approved a contract for Jacy Bata to be hired as the Langdon Area Elementary School principal for the 2023-2024 school year.
Christianson said a couple of days after the interviews, Preble contacted him and withdrew his name from consideration, saying he decided he needed to stay where he is as elementary principal in Lakota. Preble had taught in the Langdon Area District, as had Hiltner. On Friday, Feb. 17, the board’s special interview committee, consisting of ad-
ministrators, instructional coach, and some school board members, had a 50 minute discussion about the two remaining candidates. “We had two very good candidates, and at the end of the discussion, we all agreed on Jacy Bata,” said Dave Hart, Langdon Area School Board president. Bata is in her 9th year teaching and is the lead special education teacher at Langdon Area Elementary. She was named Langdon Area Schools Teacher of the Year in December. Principal Todd Hetler resigned his position at the end of January, effective at the end of this school year. Next week in The Borderland Press: read a Q&A with future principal Jacy Bata.
Borderland avoids major snowstorm, deals with frigid temps Tuesday brought time to clear snow around Langdon, after Monday’s snowfall. It also brought a high near -1 with wind chill values as low as -30. High temperatures hovered near zero or below throughout the week, but the Borderland dealt with cold, not snowstorms. Points farther south, including Fargo and southeast North Dakota, parts of South Dakota, and Central Minnesota braced for a major snowstorm with some under a blizzard warning starting Wednesday night.
Index:
Pembina County North wrestling coach Shon Horgan was inducted into the North Dakota Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame during the state wrestling tournament in Fargo. Horgan was voted into the hall of fame by his peers. The induction ceremony was held on Saturday, Feb. 18. Horgan is pictured with his wife, LaRae, following the ceremony. Submitted photo. Photo by Larry Stokke.
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