Month: November 2020

A well-known member of the Crookston Hockey Community and Crookston Pirates Hockey Superfan John Lyczewski passed away last week. His obituary is below –

John M. Lyczewski, age 63, of Crookston, MN, passed away on Thursday, November 19, 2020, at the Villa St. Vincent in Crookston, MN.

John was born on November 26, 1956, in Crookston, MN, the son of the late Henry and Rosalia (Gruhot) Lyczewski.  He was a lifelong Crookston resident and well-known Crookston Pirates Hockey superfan.  He was a fixture at their games until late in his life but was able to be brought to see them last February with many of his family and friends in attendance with him.  In addition to hockey, John enjoyed trains and model trains, swimming, riding his bike, traveling, arm wrestling, helping construction workers, and especially getting his head rubbed.  His family loved him deeply, as did the many whose lives he touched by his presence.  He will be sorely missed.

John is survived by his siblings, Dot (Terry) Parnell, Toni Lyczewski, Sandy (Rob) Mayer, and Scott Lyczewski, as well as many nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.  He was preceded in death by his parents, Henry and Rose Lyczewski; 3 brothers, Joe, Henry, and Kevin Lyczewski; and niece, Leah Lyczewski, and many other relatives.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic a memorial service celebration John’s life will be held in the summer of 2021.

Online Guestbook:  www.stenshoelhouske.com

Arrangements entrusted to Stenshoel-Houske Funeral Home of Crookston, MN.

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A group of a handful of Crookston School District teachers walked out of the Crookston School Board meeting on Monday after the Crookston School Board didn’t act on a motion made by board member Dave Davidson (a former Crookston teachers union head) to allow teachers to teach from home during distance learning.  

KROX received emails, texts, and messages from a few teachers sighting the Governor’s Executive order that states if any employee can work from home they should be allowed to do so.  While that is true, if the employer (in this case the school district) deems it essential to work from the school, it is within their rights to do so.  In this government order, there isn’t a true black and white case that says either side is wrong.

Crookston School District Superintendent Jeremy Olson had reached out to the Minnesota Department of Education, the Minnesota School Board Association, and others to make sure what they were doing was within the district’s rights and they weren’t doing anything wrong. 

Superintendent Olson sent KROX the following statement Tuesday afternoon.
The district considers it an essential function of the job to teach from the classroom and have access to technology support, educational equipment, materials, and resources in the classroom. The district also considers an essential function of the job to have collaboration opportunities with other teachers, support personnel, and administration during a short term distance learning period. 

The Minnesota Department of Education’s Wendy Hatch sent KROX the following in an email on Tuesday.  (KROX didn’t receive a yes or no from MDE and you can tell from the response, it actually says both ways are acceptable).  

I’m going to point you to page 16 in the Safe Learning Plan that lays out the staff accommodations and how that intersects with Governor Walz’s work from home executive order. Executive Order 20-74 states that all employees who can work from home must work from home. This is a broad mandate that applies across industries. For school districts and charter schools, this means that if a staff member can perform their essential job functions from home, they must work from home. The purpose of this order is to limit unnecessary travel and intermingling of people to limit transmission of the coronavirus and spread of COVID-19. The analysis about whether the essential duties of a job can be done at home should be done on a case-by-case basis and will be dependent on the circumstances of a position. School districts and charter schools should not issue blanket orders that require all staff to work in person. If a staff member cannot perform all their essential job duties from home, they can be required to come into the school building to perform those duties that cannot be performed remotely.

Under the Governor’s Safe Learning Order (Executive Order 20-82), if a staff member is medically at-risk for complications as a result of COVID-19 or has members of their household who are at-risk, the school district or charter school must allow them to work from home to the extent possible. This obligation extends beyond the more general work from home mandate in Executive Order 20-74 and applies to those employees who may not typically be able to work from home but who may be able to as an accommodation for being in the at-risk category or having a member of their household in the at-risk category. School districts and charter schools should use the same HR processes and ADA analysis that they normally use when an employee with a disability requests accommodations in order to perform their essential job duties.

Today Governor Tim Walz announced a COVID-19 economic relief package to keep businesses afloat, support workers struggling to get by and help Minnesota families keep food on the table. Governor Walz will work with legislators on both sides of the aisle to move forward with this much-needed proposal, integrate additional proposals, and call a special session when an agreement is final.

“Our small businesses and the Minnesotans whose livelihoods depend on them are bearing a huge weight for the good of their entire community. As cases skyrocket and hospital capacity is pushed to the brink, our small businesses should not have to bear the financial consequences alone. We’re in this together,” said Governor Walz. “I am committed to turning over every stone to find funding that will help make sure our businesses stay afloat, our workers are supported, and our families can put food on the table.”

 “In the restaurant industry, we are all too familiar with 90-hour workweeks,” said Mike Runyon, co-owner of The Nook in Saint Paul. “We know what it’s like to wake up and head into work feeling like you just went to bed two minutes ago. And we’re not out here saving lives! We understand the urgent need to support our health care workers and protect hospital capacity right now. But as we know, the hospitality industry is drowning. There’s no stimulus money or extra unemployment for our staff. We are in desperate need for our governments to step in and help during these restrictions.”

 Since the beginning of the pandemic, Governor Walz has invested $100 million to support more than 8,000 Minnesota businesses. The state has also given nearly $840 million in support to local governments, much of which has been distributed to small businesses across the state. Last week, the Governor wrote a letter urging House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to act quickly to provide assistance for workers, families, businesses, and states.

 “We know the vast majority of our small businesses are doing the right thing,” said Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan. “And these restrictions are hard. But they are necessary to save lives. That’s why we need to come together to provide aid that will support Minnesotans and our small businesses as we weather this surge in cases and hospitalizations.”

 The COVID-19 relief package includes critical measures to:

• Keep Small Businesses Afloat
  • Provide direct aid to businesses through the Business Assistance Program
  • Waive State and regulatory fees for bars, restaurants, event centers, craft breweries, and more
  • Establish eviction moratorium so small businesses can stay in their locations

• Support Workers Struggling to Get By

• • Extend unemployment benefits for an additional 13 weeks, helping as many as 100,000 workers whose benefits currently end next month
  • Provide a $500 one-time emergency payment to struggling families

• Help Minnesota Families Put Food on the Table
  • Establish one-time grant to restaurants to provide food for healthcare workers, homeless shelters, and long-term care facilities
  • Provide a tax credit for businesses that donate food that would otherwise spoil or be thrown away 

The Governor will continue to work with agencies, stakeholders, and legislators on additional measures to help Minnesotans and our economy.

“COVID-19 has brought unprecedented challenges to Minnesotans and businesses, and we need to help them now,” said Department of Employment and Economic Development Commissioner Steve Grove. “Today’s package, crafted in response to requests from industry leaders and others, provides solid support to help businesses through this time and support Minnesota workers affected by the pandemic.” 

WALZ PREPARED TO CALL SPECIAL ELECTION FOR COVID-19 RELIEF, SENDS LETTER TO US CONGRESSIONAL LEADERSHIP

In a letter to state legislative leaders this week, Governor Tim Walz emphasized the need for immediate action to provide relief to small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. He stated his eagerness to partner with legislators on both sides of the aisle to get it done and said he stands ready to call a special session as soon as the legislature agrees on a package to provide this much-needed relief.

“As cases skyrocket and hospital capacity is pushed to the brink, the COVID-19 pandemic demands immediate action to save lives. Necessary public health measures bring hardship for all Minnesotans—but this hardship falls disproportionately hard on our small businesses and workers,” Governor Walz wrote. 

“This is not fair,” Governor Walz continued. “The pandemic is not fair, and it is our job as leaders to make it more just. Small businesses across our state are in dire need of relief. Many workers are struggling to make ends meet. As we take action to protect the health of our neighbors, we must also take action to support the people who are sacrificing so much.”

“That’s why I directed my team to begin work on a comprehensive COVID-19 relief package for our small businesses and communities,” Governor Walz said later in the letter. “We have laid out the principles around which a package should be structured. I know legislators on both sides of the aisle have engaged on this issue and been working tirelessly to find common ground, and I will continue working with you to get a deal done.”

“Let’s come together to ensure our businesses stay afloat, our workers are supported, and our families can put food on the table,” Governor Walz concluded. “I will call a special session as soon as the legislature agrees on a package to provide this much-needed relief.

To support small businesses that are struggling as they do their part to combat the spread of COVID-19, Governor Walz recently announced an additional $10 million in Small Business Relief Grants. This funding will support an additional 1,000 businesses that have applied for the grant program. It supplements hundreds of millions of dollars in small business support that Minnesota has allocated since the beginning of the pandemic. Minnesotans with questions about unemployment insurance are encouraged to visit uimn.org.

The Minnesota Department of Health released the COVID-19 numbers for Tuesday, November 24.  The state reported 6,099 confirmed cases out of 81,183 tests for a positive rate of eight percent.  The state also reported 324 probable cases and 38 new deaths.  No deaths were reported in northwest Minnesota.
Polk County reported 20 new cases.  Roseau County had 21 positive tests with one probable, Pennington County-20, Marshall County-11, Norman County-7, Red Lake County-6, Mahnomen County-6, Lake of the Woods County-2.  All the information is below.

Updated November 24, 2020
Updated daily at 11 a.m., with data current as of 4 p.m. the previous day.

In observance of the Thanksgiving holiday, we will not be updating the data on this page on Thursday, Nov. 26. Updates will resume on Friday, Nov. 27.

Data is for cases that were tested and returned positive. All data is preliminary and may change as cases are investigated. Many data points are collected during case interviews. Data presented below is for all cases, regardless of interview status. Data for cases pending interview may be listed as “unknown/missing.”

Positive PCR test results are considered confirmed cases. Positive antigen test results are considered probable cases.

All probable cases get the same public health follow up and recommendations as cases confirmed by PCR tests.

Other Statistics

• Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome In Children (MIS-C) Statistics
• Minnesota COVID-19 Public Dashboard
• Minnesota’s COVID-19 Response and Preparation Capacity
• Dial Back Dashboard
• CDC: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Cases in the U.S.
• Minnesota COVID-19 Modeling