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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER NO 7, 2019 VOL. 16 NO. 23 www.readthecitizen.com www.r $1.00
HAPPY VETERANS DAY
Watershed district sheds light on 2020 budget
Army veteran continues to find ways to serve BY SHANNON GRANHOLM EDITOR
With a list of service projects that could fi ll a novel, it is no surprise that Army veteran Jeff Loeks will be recognized with an award later this month. Loeks is a 2019 Wilbur Thomas Community Service Award recipient. The award is presented annually to HealthPartners team members who strive to improve their communities through outstanding volunteer service. Loeks, a White Bear Township resident, is no stranger to coverage in Press Publications newspapers. Numerous articles have been published about him, all with the common theme of service. Loeks served in the Army’s 3rd Ranger Battalion from 1988 to 1992 and was deployed to the invasion of Panama and Desert Storm. Serving in the military is a tradition in Loeks’ family. “Since I was 5 years old, I just knew that that was what I would do. It has been a lifelong dream of mine to continue that (tradition) and to serve my country,” he said. “It wasn’t something that you thought about in our family, it was just when do you leave to do it. I took a lot of pride in that.” Loeks later found out that his biological family (he was adopted through the foster care system at a young age), including both of his parents and his sisters, also had a tradition of serving in the military — specifically, the Army. Upon leaving the military, Loeks moved to Denver to pursue his dream of becoming a police officer. After waiting for more than a year on the waitlist to get into the academy, he decided to move back to Minnesota, where he worked in the business world for 15 years. “I didn’t feel like I was making any kind of difference. I had an office job and it finally hit me one day that nothing I was doing there was making a difference at all,” Loeks recalled. Eight years ago, he switched careers and became an emergency room technician at Regions SEE JEFF LOEKS, PAGE 10
BY SHANNON GRANHOLM EDITOR
SUBMITTED
White Bear Township resident Jeff Loeks served in the Army’s 3rd Ranger Battalion from 1988 to 1992 and was deployed to the invasion of Panama and Desert Storm.
HUGO — After a council member expressed concerns with a proposed watershed district budget, city staff invited the district to attend a City Council meeting. The proposed budget for the Carnelian-Marine-St. Croix Watershed District (CMSCWD) was fi rst brought up by Councilman Chuck Haas at the Oct. 7 meeting. “I received an email from the district talking about their upcoming levy. They are having a levy increase next year, which will affect the taxpayers of eastern Hugo. Their capital projects are going from $79,000 to over $600,000, they have a lake monitoring program that is going from $29,000 to almost $80,000,” Haas explained. “They are appointed folks that have tax authority responsibility and I think that whatever they are doing over there, they are taxing excessively.” Haas then asked if the city could invite the district administrator and board managers to a future meeting. City Administrator Bryan Bear said he planned to attend the district’s public information SEE WATERSHED DISTRICT, PAGE 11
Elementary fitness program establishes healthy habits BY SHANNON GRANHOLM EDITOR
HUGO — Students in grades 3-5 at Oneka Elementary School are not only preparing to complete a 5K, but are developing essential life skills to help them navigate challenges they might be facing now or in the future. This is the fi rst year that Oneka Elementary School has participated in the Girls on the Run program. The nonprofit organization
OOF NEW R S! NT DISCOU
inspires girls in grades 3-8 to recognize their inner strength and celebrate what makes them unique. Trained coaches lead small teams through a curriculum that includes dynamic discussions, activities and running games. Over the course of the 10-week program, participants develop essential skills to help them navigate their world and establish a lifetime appreciation for health and fitness.
Principal Lori Mosser, who is passionate about running and fitness, said she was approached about starting the program by a couple of parents at the elementary level before she officially became principal at Oneka in July. “It is all about self-esteem, getting them to think about leadership, connectedness, anti-bullying and selfconfidence,” she said. “It is SEE GIRLS ON THE RUN, PAGE 12
SHANNON GRANHOLM | PRESS PUBLICATIONS
Around 20 students in grades 3-5 at Oneka Elementary line up at the start line for a practice 5K Oct. 28, as part of the Girls on the Run program.
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