Month: December 2021

Local veteran and provider at Altru, Kevin Mork, M.D., was recently recognized with the SSG Andrew P. Nelson Award for Outstanding Leadership & Service at the 3rd Annual Heroes and Leaders Gala.

This award was developed to recognize local veterans who quietly make a difference in their community in the way they work, volunteer and make life better for others.

“We are indebted to and grateful for Dr. Mork’s exemplary service to the communities we serve,” shared Steven Weiser, M.D., president of Altru Health System. “Dr. Mork is deeply committed to both community and country and this dedication shines brightly throughout his career and life. In addition to working as an anesthesiologist at Altru, he also serves as an Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) instructor, ensuring surgeons and emergency room physicians throughout the region have the knowledge and skills necessary to provide lifesaving care to their patients.”

Dr. Mork received the award last month at a ceremony in Fargo. Recipients are nominated by their friends, family, or coworkers and selected by a panel of community leaders. The qualifications for this award are that the nominated is a great employee, a veteran, and a volunteer in the community. The award is presented by the Northern Lights Council, Boy Scouts of America; however, no Scouting affiliation is required.

Dr. Mork has been an anesthesiologist at Altru for 11 years. He is extremely dedicated to his patients and the Altru Team. “He is the first one in, the last to leave, and stops by every Saturday, checking in on cases, making sure no extra help is needed for the anesthesiologist on call,” explained Jonathan Haug, M.D. “Dr. Mork is an asset to our community.”

Dr. Mork’s trauma skills were well-honed during his time with the U.S. Army as a Colonel and anesthesiologist, having served several tours in the Middle East for a total of 22 years of military service.

About the SSG Andrew P. Nelson

SSG Andrew Nelson was an Eagle Scout from Troop 644 in Moorhead. He was a remarkable young man who exemplified the Scout Oath and the Scout Law and dedicated his life to serving others. Unfortunately, Andrew died on August 29, 2007, in Iraq while serving his 4th Tour of Duty with the 82nd Airborne Division.

SSG Andrew Nelson lived his life unselfishly in service to others. The SSG Andrew P. Nelson Award for Outstanding Leadership & Service honors his memory and recognizes others in the community who exhibit the same kind of servant leadership as they work daily to make our community better.

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The Crookston Community Christmas Food Basket Committee will once again be helping families in need this holiday season. Due to COVID-19, instead of packing boxes for families this year, they will be mailing out gift cards to Hugo’s Family Marketplace in Crookston for families to buy groceries.

Greg LeBlanc is the Chair of the Committee along with his wife Marlene, and he talked about why he first got involved. “I got involved because when the kids were younger, we would help fill the boxes and volunteer our time for those in need,” said LeBlanc. “It’s really what Christmas is about rather than just receiving presents, so that’s why I got involved.”

According to LeBlanc, the Food Basket Committee and project have been around for 52 years. LeBlanc also said the keyword to the entire project is “Community” because without the giving community of Crookston or the committee’s hard work and volunteers hard work; the project wouldn’t be possible.

The Crookston High School partnered with the project last year to help pass out the gifts to the families and help raise money for the project. LeBlanc said the kids at the school loved being involved with the project. “The winter sports teams had a competition last year to see who could raise the most money for the project,” said LeBlanc. “Then once we received the money, I got the gift cards, got them back to the kids, and the school helped pass them out to the families.”

151 Letters have already been sent out to businesses in the Crookston area asking if they’d like to donate this year and help raise funds for all the families in need. The Crookston High School will also be having their competition again this year to see which winter sports team can raise the most money for the project. Donations will end on December 10, so if you’re interested in helping with the project, you can send a monetary donation by making the gift payable to “Community Christmas Food Baskets” and sending it to Trinity Lutheran Church P.O. Box 598, Crookston, MN, 56716.

LeBlanc also went over how families who need the groceries can sign up to receive a gift card. “There is a number that people can call, and it’s 218-521-0585, and when they call that number, we need their name, phone number, address, and size of their family,” said LeBlanc. “The size of the family will determine how much they receive in gift cards. The bigger the family, the more money they’ll get.”

Ray Dusek has been on the committee for the past 16 years, and he says it is a lot more organized than it once was. “It is a lot more organized than it used to be. I must say that Greg and Marlene have done a tremendous job as the chair of the board,” said Dusek. “It is more organized than it was. It used to be the same for the most part, but it was never this big. More people are involved, the High School is involved, and we can accomplish more.”

The gift cards will be mailed out sometime after all the donations have been received. Roughly 205-220 families benefit from the project each year, which makes up approximately 10% of the population in Crookston.

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The University of Minnesota Crookston had nine student-athletes earn placement on the 2021 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) Fall All-Academic Teams as announced Wednesday, December 1 by the conference office. The Golden Eagles had six student-athletes earn placement on the NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence.

To be eligible for the NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence, a student-athlete must have a 3.60 cumulative GPA or higher, while NSIC All-Academic Team members must have a 3.20 cumulative GPA or higher. Additionally, the student-athlete must be a member of the varsity traveling team and in at least their second year of competition at their current institution (true freshmen, red-shirt freshmen, and ineligible athletic transfers are not eligible). Furthermore, the student-athlete must have completed at least one full academic year at their current institution (student must be in at least their third academic-year semester at their institution). Since the 2020 fall season was canceled due to COVID-19, student-athletes who were in their second year on campus but were in their first full year of competition in the sport, were not eligible for the award.

The men’s cross-country team had one student-athlete, Paul Hendrickx (Sr., Butler, Minn.) garner the accolade. The women’s cross country squad had four student-athletes earn the awards with Brooke Benson (Jr., Monroe, Wash.), Alyssa Stillman (Jr., Hortonville, Wis.), Rena Sakai (Jr., Chiba, Japan), and Nicole Schilling (Sr., Little Falls, Minn.). Benson, Stillman, and Sakai were named to the NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence. Ashley Chomyn (Jr., Winnipeg, Manitoba) of the women’s soccer team was honored as a member of the NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence. Lauren Wallace (R-Sr., Bloomington, Minn.), Bailey Mulcahy (Sr., Fertile, Minn.), and Natalie Koke (R-Jr., Caledonia, Wis.) earned the accolades. Wallace and Mulcahy were named to the NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence. 

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RiverView Health Auxiliary will be hosting their annual Cookie Walk, but this year with a twist. They are including a silent auction to compliment the cookie walk and are excited to include homemade aprons that were made by talented RiverView Volunteers that will be for sale. It’s an event you won’t want to miss.

The popular event is on Tuesday, December 7th starting at 9:00 a.m. in the RiverView Conference Room’s, 1-3. Come early as the treats seem to go fast. All proceeds will go towards hospital and clinic projects to enhance patient care. Masks and social distancing will be required.

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