Independent
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CALENDAR 2
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THE OF BARNES COUNTY& BEYOND
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THE ROUNDTABLE
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Fourteen-year-old Jo Gabel of Valley City captured this striking image of the photographers horse Boon and a North Dakota sunrise. Thanks Jo! To share your favorite photos of life in and around Barnes County with our readers, email them to: submissions@indy-bc.com
ALENDAR C
COMMUNITY
ARTS n COMMUNITY n GROUPS n GOVERNMENT n SCHOOL n SPORTS
Maple Valley high school girls basketball plays Sargent Central at Tower City starting at 6 p.m. A spaghetti feed fundraiser for Susie Mullen will be held at the Buffalo Community Center.
town Valley City. Beginner musicians welcome. More info: John Andrus, 701762-4891. First Annual TUBA CHRISTMAS event starts with 9 a.m. registration at the VCHS Band Room; rehearsals follow from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.; with a 2 p.m. public performance at the Barnes County Historical Museum, Valley City. The event, hosted by VCHS band director Tom Kjelland and VCSU band director James Adams, is part of an intenational schedule of events associated with the TUBA CHRISTMAS organization. Free admission for audience. $5 charge for participants, plus book fee if needed. Valley City State University hosts high school boys basketball at the annual Barnes County Tournament Dec. 6, 8, and 10. A youth basketball tournament for grades 4, 5 and 6, hosted by Valley City Parks and Recreation, is today. All teams are guaranteed 3 games.
ith Fargo Republican Rick Berg vacating his House seat in favor of a bid to replace retiring Sen. Kent Conrad (D), the race for a replacement is already underway. Republican candidates include: Public Service Commissioner Kevin Cramer, former Department of Commerce Commissioner Shane Goettle, state Rep. Bette Grande, and Public Service Commissioner Brian Kalk, as well as state Rep. Kim Koppelman, who has formed an exploratory committee. All five will appear in a candidate forum and debate, to be held at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 14, in Vangstad Auditorium on the campus of Valley City State University. The Republian candidate forum and debate for U.S. House hopefuls in Valley City is the first in the partys 2012 election cycle, and is hosted by District 24 Republicans. Event chairman Rick Ross says the party wanted to start dialogue about this race early, noting that there are an unprecedented five Republican contenders in the 2012 race. We feel its important to start the dialogue early and allow the public to get acquainted with each candidates message, Ross noted in a written statement. Party supporters will endorse a Republican candidate for the House race in March. Attending G.O.P. candidates will give opening and closing statements, followed by a Q&A from conservative organizations, according to the state GOP. Serving as event emcee will be Jon Wagar, Valley City. The moderator will be conservative Chris Berg, of 1100AM The Flag. To date, former state Rep. Pam Gulleson (DRutland) is the lone Democrat to announce candidacy in the run for the U.S. House seat. The Jan. 14 event is set to conclude with a straw poll.
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Friday, Dec. 9
An artists reception and gallery opening for the VCSU Fall Student Art Exhibition is 5 to 6:30 p.m. in the VCSU Gallery, third floor of McCarthy Hall, and continuing in the Ceramics Lab. First Church of the Nazarenes Annual
Journey Through Christmas, a a drive-through Christmas presentation of the birth of Jesus Christ presented in six scenes, concludes this evening. Attendees receive a CD or cassette that narrates the Christmas story through your car stereo. The event Includes more than 30
costumed characters and live animals. Take 8th Avenue Southwest to Riverview Drive and Hannah Avenue, in Valley City. The music of Andrew Reichenberger-Walz performed live at Sabirs, Valley City, from 6 to 9 p.m.
Thursday, Dec. 15
The Adhoc Downstream Group and CONTINUED 11
Wednesday, Dec. 14
The Brown Bagger Series continues with the Rev. Brad Edin bringing sounds of the season to the sanctuary of Our Saviors Lutheran Church, 138 Third St. NW, Valley City, from 12:10 to 12:55 p.m. Bring a lunch and celebrate Advent. U.S. House G.O.P. Candidate Forum and Debate begins at 6:30 p.m. at Vangstad Auditorium on the campus of Valley City State University. The Barnes County Soil Conservation District Board meets every second Wednesday of the month at 4 p.m., 575 10th St. SW, Valley City. More info: 701-845-3111, ext. 3. Valley City Planning and Zoning meets every second Wednesday fo the month, starting at 4 p.m. Valley City Kiwanis Club meets meets every Wednesday at 12:04 p.m. at the Val-
Email Me at bbrsconstruction@gmail.com
Sunday, Dec. 11
The Community School of the Arts holds two recitals, at 2 p.m. and again at 4 p.m. in Froemke Auditorium on the campus of Valley City State University. Both recitals feature a wide variety of performances by community music students on instruments such as piano, guitar, flute, trombone, violin, as well as voice. Free to the public.
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VCSU Garage Bands perform at 4 p.m. in Vangstad Auditorium, on the Valley City State University campus. Maple Valley high school girls basketball plays LaMoure/LitchvilleMarion at Tower City starting at 6 p.m. Buffalo Senior Citizens meet every Monday at the Community Center, Buffalo, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Remember: If youre not the lead dog, the view never changes.
Tuesday, Dec. 13
The annual Barnes County Courthouse Sing begins at 7:30 p.m. in the courthouse rotunda. The Troubadours, Valley Voices and Valley Childrens Choir will perform and lead singalongs. NARFE will meet at
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Barnes County property owners whose annual tax bill usually contains special assessment charges received a surprise in the 2011 tax statement sent out by the county on Thursday, Dec. 1: The tax statement failed to note special assessments owed. County officials note that the lack of fees owed for special assessments in
2011 was an oversight and ask property owners to disregard the Dec. 1 statements. Barnes County plans to send out corrected statements later this month and requests that residents wait to make payments on the 2011 tax bills until the new, corrected statements have been completed and mailed.
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Scholarship winners for December announced Tori Eggert, Jacob Marshall and Nichole Wendt are the recipients of $250 college scholarships. Eggert, daughter of Wayne and Debbie Eggert of Valley City, attends Minnesota State Technical College in Moorhead, Minn. Marshall, son of Jacob and Lori Marshall of Valley City, attends North Dakota State
University. Wendt, daughter of Michael and Melissa Wendt of West Fargo, attends North Dakota State University. Eggert and Marshall were selected as the VFW Post #2764s December scholarship recipients. Wendt is the December scholarship recipient of the American Legion Edgar A. Fisher Post No. 60.
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The Department of Garme and Fish stocks fish into North Dakota waterways after considerable study and planning. State anglers are prohibited from stocking fish species in the states lakes and rivers. (Photo/NDGF)
well-researched, matching sh species with available habitat. Success was predicated on the fact that approximately onehalf of the states water bodies managed for shing are reservoirs, and nearly all fishable waters in North Dakota have been altered by humans in one form or another. Random and illegal introduction of sh into new waters can often cause irreparable harm. As a result, the Department spent a lot of money and time, especially in the 1990s, killing undesirable fish and along with those the desirable ones as well in a number of waters in an effort to remove white suckers, bullheads, stunted perch or other detrimental fish and start over. Recently, the state has put more regulations into place relating to sh movement and transport. The most recent of these made it illegal to transport any sh other than legal bait fish in water away from a water body. Winter and summer,the primary purpose of this rule is to help reduce the potential spread of aquatic nuisance species. However, this regulation also serves to reduce the temptation for those few misguided anglers who think its a good idea to transport and intentionally or unintentionally stock sh into new waters. High water in rivers and lakes across North Dakota has produced extensive and unprecedented damage to property, homes and disrupted lives. On the other hand, sloughs that for years seemed nothing more than another dot on the prairie now harbor healthy pike or perch fisheries, and provide many new places for winter anglers to enjoy the fruits that nature has provided.
Leier is a biologist with the North Dakota Game & Fish Department. He grew up in Valley City. Reach him by email at dleier@nd.gov
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By Andrew Reichenberger-Walz Photos by Kinsly Tarmann cup of coffee. A crazy concoction of colorful critters. A headless peacock. A wilderness of brick. A group of Totem portraits. A pot with ears? These are but a few of the subjects portrayed in the current art exhibit now on display in the gallery and ceramics studio at Valley City State University. The student exhibition features multiple mediums and formats, including colored pencils, graphite, charcoal, pastels, crayons, and ink, with each telling a different story and having a different purpose. Katie Oakes, a junior majoring in Art with a concentration in small sculpture, said shes excited to show her work, which includes both two-dimensional and threedimensional pieces. This is the first time we will have sculpture included in the fall exhibit, said Oakes, who comes to VCSU from Alaska.
Oakes says she chose to display a collection of Native American Totems she created in charcoal and ink as part of an independent study in drawing. An independent study is an opportunity for students to roam free on their own and make things they are interested in, Oakes said.Instead of specific assignments, students are given rough parameters to follow and are allowed to be more creative. She noted that in Alaska there is a greater awareness of the pre-existing cultures. For this work, I took what I like about the form of the Totem and with that created my own images. In addition to Oakes Totem Portraits collection, she is also displaying in the ceramics studio a group of sculptures, which she says are sculpted to portray a variety of verbs such as to dissolve or to remove. I have used a variety objects in making these sculptures such as pieces of wood, wire, baby toys, cardboard, and paper, Oakes said. Oakes work is on display along with numerous other pieces crePot drawing by Jacob Leno (below): When I was drawing this image I ated by art students at the univerwanted to bring out the natural colors that were already on the pot. I did sity, including Jacob Leno, whose several sketches of the pot to study its form and get used to its presence. chalk pastel drawing is shown at Once my eye was accustomed I focused on its subtle coloring and more left. boldly portrayed it in chalk pastel. (Photo/VCSU Art Department) In addition to the 2-D art on display in the VCSU gallery, the ceramics studio is also hosting a mix of 3-D sculptures and 2-D work from the design class.
WHAT: Valley City State University hosts the opening of the fall semester Student Art Exhibition. The Exhibition consists of work created by students currently attending classes in drawing, printmaking, design, and sculpture. All 2-D work is installed in the VCSU Art IF YOU GO: An artists reception runs this evening (Friday, Dec. 9) from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in the VCSU Art Gallery, third floor of McCarthy Hall. The exhibition continues on to the Ceramics Lab, located directly east of McCarthy Hall. The exhibition will remain on display through Tuesday, Dec. 13.
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CHECK YOUR PLASTICS. We accept PLASTIC #1 & #2.
Milk jugs, laundry soap, pop and water bottles, dish soap, shampoo and conditioner bottles, lotion, etc. Items should be rinsed or contents emptied. Dispose of caps when possible. The plastics #1 and #2 which we accept MUST HAVE a neck or twist-off cap. Items with snap-off lids such as coffee containers, ice cream, yogurt, butter, or Cool Whip containers are NOT accepted at this time. The rule of thumb is....Does the container have a neck or twist-off cap AND say #1 or #2?
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sity, a vital component of the Roundtable, has also benefited, including with funding for the new Shelly Ellig Field. Still, the Roundtables goals indeed, the Roundtable itself remains confusing for some residents, according to Jennifer Feist, the economic groups director of development. Calling it an initiative, she says the Roundtable is a way to use limited resources to meet community needs. So what exactly is the Roundtable? How does it work, and why is it implemented through four cornerstones? The Independent asked Feist those questions and more, including about the Roundtables so-called cornerstones: Quality of Place, the Sheyenne Valley Growth Alliance, Valley City State University and Partnerships. Q. What is the Roundtable? A. The Roundtable itself is the arm of the Development Corp. that helps to grow the rest of the community. The Development Corp. itself works to grow jobs and it has as an arm of that organization the Roundtable. Q. How well has the Roundtable worked since its inception in 2003? A. Its worked out really well. Its just a good way we organize ourselves to make sure were doing that (not doubling up on projects). We just know in Valley City that you have to be very efficient and you have to be very persistent and you have to be very organized, and thats how you get things done. Q. When the Roundtable was created, why was it important for the EDC board to make VCSU one of its cornerstones? A. You go through the standard conversation about what we ought to be doing with our resources and how do we capitalize on the strengths of our university. I think its standard to say strong-growing communities have ties to a strong-growing university. You can clearly see the ties between community growth and prosperity and universities. Q. How does the universitys success translate into economic growth for the community? A. If you take the (universitys budget) and roll that into the economy probably three or four times, you can look at the dollars-and-cents impact. You can look at the student growth and the kind of business they do in the community, where they spend their money. To economic development, though, its important to us because they are generating the work force. Eagle Creek Software Services is the first company in what we hope to be many that would locate in Valley City and create some technology jobs and employ some university grads. Firstly Valley City State grads, but also North ROUNDTABLE, 11
By Sue. B. Balcom
oel Salatin has left the state. Fortunately for this Shenadoah Valley, Va., farmer-author, he slipped in and out of North Dakota between an ice storm and our first substantial snow. Not that he hasnt ever experienced snow, but we didnt want any delayed flights or excuses for people not to attend this fabulous weekend. Salatin visited our state for the first time as the keynote speaker at two events hosted by FARRMS The Art of Eating and Sustainable U. We gathered at Mezzaluna and the Holiday Inn in Fargo for these two well-attended and enthusiastically received opportunities to hear Salatin speak. Of course, Sustainable U included many of our local sustainable ag gurus also in six special breakout sessions on Saturday. If you have never heard of Salatin, a quick Google search will bring you site after site filled with videos, movies and books that feature the work of this humble farmer. He told me he never expected to become famous farming, but he did and heres why Polyface Farm has become a model of sustainable farming with an emphasis on beef, pork and chickens. There are four generations of Salatins on the farmstead purchased by Joels dad. Rather than follow conventional advice for what to do on a farm, the family began building up the soils and forest areas rather than depleting them under a plow. Using technology and logic, Polyface has become the place for clean meat as well as a place of learning for young people wanting to get into farming debt-free. The website puts it this way, Polyface, Inc., is a family-owned, multi-generational, pasture-based, beyond organic, localmarket farm and informational outreach in Virginias Shenandoah Valley. The operation is transparent and the
Executive Director Annie Carlson, Administrative Assistant and Grant Writer Jonathon Moser, and Marketing and Outreach Coordinator Sue Balcom are pictured with author-farmer Joel Salatin at The Art of Eating. The event was held at the Mezzaluna in Fargo and included the premiere showing of Farmageddon, the movie.
(Photo/Submitted)
products are marketed directly to the public. People are invited to visit the farm to see where their food actually comes from. And, if you want to be entertained, or learn some new words like pigaerator, then you must take the time to listen to Salatin speak. Producers, farmers, gardeners, seed savers, greenhouse builders, farmer market managers, extension employees, NDSU faculty and others from many facets of life attended our conference. We can say it was an international event because one couple came from Canada to spend some quality time with Salatin. The weekend zipped by way too fast, but that was because theres only three part-staff with FARRMS and so we relied on many of our friends and some great new volunteers to assist in the details of the weekend. We made a mark on Fargo and people will be talking about this event for weeks to come. If you missed it, there are opportuni-
ties to see some video footage of Salatin as well as an interview by Cindy GomezSchempp by visiting the High Plains Reader Website (http://hpr1.com/) or you can find links on both the FARRMS and High Plains Reader Facebook pages. Photos and the Art of Eating video can be found at www.farrms.org. Also, you can put Salatins eighth book called Folks, This Aint Normal: A Farmers Advice for Happier Hens, Healthier People, and a Better World on your Chistmas list. Its available from Amazon. com and other booksellers. So for this weeks small bite of local information, listen to one of Salatins compelling talks promoting the economic, health and social benefits of knowing where your food comes from. Next week, Ill go back into time and tell you a little more about FARRMS before we move on to seasonal eating. As always, send me your questions or comments at sbalcom@ farrms.org.
commentary PAGE 9
LLOYD OMDAHL
t all started during the President Ronald Reagan administration when a blue ribbon committee startled the country with a dismal prognosis for American education in a report called Nation At Risk. This was reiterated by No Child Left Behind legislation, a federal blueprint for upgrading education laid out by President George W. Bush. This law set out the goal of having every child in America reading at grade level by 2014. As Congress now considers renewal of the law, there isnt an educator in the country who believes that the goal will be achieved. The federal government has opted to become some sort of national school board because international test scores indicated that we were 25th in math and 21st in science among the devel-
oped nations. The high school class of 2011 scored the lowest SAT scores of all times. Most of North Dakota schools By Lloyd failed to make Omdahl adequate yearly progress in the 2010-2011 go-around. Of the 179 school districts, only 77 made the grade. Awash in prosperity, there is no excuse for us to be running this kind of a school system. North Dakota is not alone. Many schools across the country got failing scores. The problem is nationwide. The national reform efforts for the past 30 years have been made to cope with a world economy. However, states and local school districts think locally. Consequently, they have been resisting
reform efforts. It should be obvious that education reform will not happen rapidly enough to gain ground on the likes of India, China and Japan. As we have seen over the past 30 years, major education reform is virtually impossible in the United States for a variety of reasons: Parents are key players in the education process and they will not change their lifestyles to help their children develop an affinity for learning. They expect the schools to pick up their failures. Too many homes consist of mixed unstable relationships that impair the learning process. Authority over education is so fragmented among the national, state and local governments that decisions cannot be made. The national government may have the international perspective, but the states have the laws and
the school districts have the students. States resist mandates from the national government and school districts fight mandates from state governments. Its the good old American attitude of you cant tell me what to do. This creates a political environment that obfuscates change. Technology has made it possible for students to avoid learning through a variety of shortcuts to high school and college degrees. The stampede to on-line education will dumb down quality instead of raising it. Our students spend too little time in class compared to students in other countries. We have too much sports, too short of a school year, and too much binge drinking. Compared to students in other countries, American students lack the personal discipline it takes to
compete on the world stage. Upgrading the educational system is expensive and the public is unwilling to pay for the quality required to compete globally. Because we are unable and unwilling to attack the deficiencies head-on, we end up with BandAid experiments, such as special schools, that create the illusion of progress but none of them are reaching the parents, the children, the schools, the school boards or the legislatures across the country. The gains made since President Reagans blue ribbon committee report have been incremental at best. We may be picking up the pace but not enough to compete on the world stage. We are still a Nation At Risk.
Omdahl was the Lieutenant Governor of North Dakota, taking office after Ruth Meiers died in 1987. Previously he was a professor of political science at the University of North Dakota.
The Independent welcomes your letters to the editor or columns of opinon. Please via email at submissions@indy-bc.com or through our website at www.indy-bc.com Be sure to include your full name, address and phone number for verification purposes.
sk people on the street how many Devils Lake outlets there are and how many are being planned or built and they will not be able to tell you. That's the tip of the iceberg. The real problems surface when people find out that there are four outlets being planned or built, and the amazing thing is what the four plans will do to the Sheyenne River. In total and when all are operating, four outlets to drain water from Devils Lake into the Sheyenne could more than double the flows in the river. When the river is already at flood stage, that amount of water will be catastrophic. In their attempt to take water off Devils Lake, the State Water Commission (sometimes with the help of the Corps] will add to downstream flooding and bank erosion, not prevent it as they claim. Look at the four plans and see how. First, the West Bay Outlet is already built and it will pump
outlets, the State Water Commission is planning to dig a ditch from West Stump Lake to the Sheyenne River. This ditch could add all of the water in the lake to the river flow, right now that would be over 200,000 acrefeet of water. The main problem with the Tolna Coulee and the West Stump Lake outlets is that they would in effect lower the spill elevation of Devils Lake. That means the Devils Lake watershed becomes part of the Sheyenne River watershed, doubling the runoff area and more than doubling the chances of continual flooding in the Sheyenne River. And even harder to believe, none of the results of these outlets have been studied to determine what the downstream effects will be. Hard to believe. But ask people and see if they know what is happening, what is being planned.
Betting is a member of the group People to Save the Sheyenne. He lives in Valley City.
cannot believe another semester will be ending rather soon! We have already celebrated Thanksgiving, and in a few short weeks, we will be celebrating yet another wonderful holidayChristmas! Every university has a student senate, for students to bring about matters to the By Derek student senate so we can better serve the Davis students. This semester has been different from the rest at Valley City State University considering that this is the first semester in which students can fill out a little sheet with their questions, comments or concerns. A comment box was installed in October, and we have had at least five comments thus far. The comments range from housing issues, such as having the privilege to have nerf guns in the dormitories, to comments about the bulletin board in which senators faces looked back at students. We also have had the pleasure to make official new student groups such as the coloring club, the winter sports club, and the gay/straight alliance. We are also trying to get out to the public so they know who represents them on a daily basis. The week of November 21st brought about senator information on the televisions that show the weather as well as other university happenings. The info shows for about 10 seconds, then moves on to the next picture, or to the constantly changing weather. As the academic year progresses, I am hoping to continue working on my active public relations so that the students can be more willing to come to us with their problems, as well as know that student senate is not a stuffy, boring university organization. If you have any comments about what we can do to improve our image or to make this communication bridge much stronger, please let me know!
Derek Davis is secretary of the Student Senate at Valley City State University for the 2011-12 academic year.
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Roundtable projects
The following is a summary given to the city of Valley City on projects implemented by the Roundtable, as provided by Jennifer Feist: Total spent on approved projects: $375,000 Cash on hand: $28,880 Projects as of Sept. 30, 2010: A. Sheyenne Valley Growth Alliance Walker, Dan / Wadeson Cabin: $7,204 Marketing ND Tourism, Prairie Business: $2,729 Ladies Line Kathryn: $2,000 Marketing brochures, ads, etc.: $48,067 Total: $60,000 B. Roundtable Fort Ransom State Park improvements: $3,000 Clausen Springs Park improvements: $2,500 Community Gardens: $2,500 North Country Trail expansion easements/conference: $11,000 City of Kathryn: $9,796 City of Kathryn School: $2,000 Annual Roundtable meeting: $180 VCSU Track and Field/ Cross Country*: $60,000 VCSU Business Institute**: $14,978 VCSU Technology Ed***: $18,500 VCSU architectural services for Community Center project: $4,900 Byway/SVGA computer equipment****: $2,000 A Living and A Life marketing campaign*****: $45,000 Transfer to operating budget: $30,000 Technology park analysis: $4,763 Total: $211,117 * Raised over three years; raised another $95,000 in private-sector donations ** Student training *** Move from Regional Technology Center to campus **** Marketing presentations ***** Raised another $79,500 of which $50,000 is private sector donations
The VCSU Community School of the Arts (CSA) will hold two recitals on Sunday, Dec. 11, at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. in Froemke Auditorium on the campus of Valley City State University. The recitals will feature a wide variety of performances on instruments such as piano, guitar, flute, trombone, violin, and voice. The CSA students are proud of the work they put into each piece they will perform and are excited to present what they have learned. The performers are students of CSA teachers: Preston Laib, Amanda Adams, VCSU faculty Dr. Sara Hagen, Dr. Beth Klingenstein, Dr. James Adams, Jon Rudolph, Peggy Hammerling, Dan Italiano, and Dr. Leesa Levy and VCSU student intern Sarah Rhyan. Students playing on these recitals include pianists: Rachael Schauer, Kassidy Ronningen, Alexa Zinke, Taylor Johnson, Mariah Schroeder, Abby Lemnus, Caitlin Reiten, Hannah Wieland, Lydia Watkins, Sarah Paulson, Hannah Paulson, Caitlin Giesbrecht and Natalie Lemnus; guitarists: Michael Donnelly, Dylan Buck Elk, Layne Larson, Chandler Avans and Carter Aarestad; flutist: Sarah Paulson; trombonist: Michael Donnelly; vocalist: Rachael Schauer; and violinists: Clara Wieland, Mikey Meester and Sarah Schauer There will be a reception in the lobby of Foss Hall following each recital. The recitals are free and open to the public.
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The holiday season in Barnes County is packed with seasonal events, performances and other holiday activities. Valley City on Saturday, Dec. 3, was no exception - with a Smithsonian Institute Exhibition and VCSU service learning display of international foods and cultures having influence on current regional preferences and performances by Quantum Brass at the Barnes County Historical Museum, and the indoor Farmers Market which also featured live acoustic music. (Photos/Dennis Stillings)
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