WEDNESDAY, JUNE 3, 2020
Serving Polk County’s St. Croix Valley since 1897
VOL. 122 NO. 44 www.osceolasun.com $1.00
SPORTS: Saint wrestlers named academic All-Americans. PAGE 8
Osceola farmers market will open June 12
Braves season still up in the air BY C.L. SILL EDITOR@OSCEOLASUN.COM
The Osceola farmers market will take place this year, but will undergo changes to keep customers safe while shopping during the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. The 2020 market will be held in the parking lot of the Osceola United Methodist Church. This location will make the flow of traffic easier, according to market organizer Christine Elmquist. “It lends itself a little better than the Mill Pond this year to having some of those safety procedures in place,” she said. The market is doing everything it can to ensure the safety of both those working and the shoppers, and Elmquist said her main objective is to make sure everyone feels comfortable enough to attend. “We’re really keen that the market is as inclusive as possible,” she said. “It’s important that people who are elderly or are high risk for varying medical conditions can also come.” To accomplish that goal, Elmquist has implemented a number of safety procedures. There will be one entrance and exit to the to help with traffic flow and to limit the number of shoppers in the market at one time. The sides of the space will be roped off, with vendors on either side.
The Osceola Braves Baseball Club is still waiting to find out whether or not they’ll have a season. The 2020 schedule has been put on hold due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and the club’s board is not sure when a resolution will present itself. The board met May 28 to discussion possible solutions, but determined more time was needed to make a decision. Board member Kate Cloutier said all the teams in the area are struggling with that decision. “Everybody is sitting in the same spot,” said board member Kate Cloutier. “Wondering if it’s taking too much of a chance to play.” The players are generally young and thus less susceptible to coronavirus, but the board needs to consider the health of those in attendance as well. The Braves attendance is around 200 people per game, sometimes closer to 400. This is much higher than other teams in the area, which does make Osceola’s situation slightly unique. “Most of the teams don’t gather the crowds that we do,” Cloutier said. “So we’re kind of in a different situation than a lot of them are.” Some professional sporting leagues across the world are continuing their seasons without allowing fans to attend
SEE MARKET, PAGE 14
SEE BRAVES, PAGE 10
BY C.L. SILL EDITOR@OSCEOLASUN.COM
SUBMITTED
The Osceola Braves may still have an abbreviated season, but the team’s board hasn’t made a final decision yet.
Coronavirus is still a threat to our elderly communities, and so is isolation BY DAN JOHNSON STAFF WRITER
A breath of fresh air. Storefronts are coming to life just like the flourishing summer greenery. Businesses are starting up. Doors are opening. Despite the global pandemic, much of Wisconsin is itching to return to normal. This could leave the state’s elderly residents even more suscepible to COVID-19. Heidi McGeehan, the campus administrator of Christian Community Homes and Services (CCHS) in Osceola said as lockdowns and quarantines have become engrained in everyday life, the world in assisted living homes
looks very different than much of the rest of the state. Because CCHS is following the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Department of Health guidelines, their doors are closed to all visitors and non-essential staff. “Upon coming into our building, all staff are doing a screening check and then they are also taking their temperatures,” McGeehan said. “And this is every shift that they come in to work.” The residents are also screened three times a day – checking vitals, temperature, and symptoms. Every resident and staff member is wearing a mask, maintaining distance from each other and ritualistically
hand-washing. Communal dining is closed for residents, as are group activities, and residents eat meals in their rooms. The only social interactions are one-on-one. Just a mile down the road, Eagle Ridge Senior Living and Memory Care in Osceola is facing much different obstacles – they haven’t opened yet. Eagle Ridge is scheduled to open their doors soon. For their managing company, Senior Housing Companies, this isn’t the first time they’ve opened an assisted living home during a pandemic. Senior Housing Companies operates over 65 communities across Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Kentucky. Earlier this year they added
a new location in the Minneapolis suburbs. Melisa Wiebenga, the director of community relations for Senior Housing Companies, described the grand opening of a senior living facility like freshman move-in day at a college campus. During a pandemic, however, the jovial meetings and chaos of welcoming new residents are replaced by carefully scheduled move-ins, one at a time, with lots of disinfecting. “What we would do is work with moving companies and disinfect, sanitize, (the residents’) furniture and things before they brought them into the
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