Actress Michelle Trachtenberg has died at age 39. The New York Post first broke the news of Trachtenberg’s death.
The actress’ rep confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday morning: “It is with great sadness to confirm that Michelle Trachtenberg has passed away. The family requests privacy for their loss. There are no further details at this time.”
A report from ABC News stated that Trachtenberg was found dead on Feb. 26 by her mother at around 8 a.m. Wednesday at One Columbus Place, a 51-story luxury apartment complex in Manhattan’s Central Park South neighborhood. Police stated that “her death is not being investigated as suspicious.” According to sources, Trachtenberg recently underwent a liver transplant, which may have led to complications leading to her death.
Trachtenberg got her start in commercials before landing her roles on Nickelodeon’s The Adventures of Pete & Pete and on All My Children. She rose to fame as a child star in the 1996 movie Harriet the Spy. She went on to join the cast of Buffy the Vampire Slayer as Sarah Michelle Gellar’s sister, Dawn Summers, and guest starred on Gossip Girl as Georgia Sparks. Her last credited role was in 2023, when she reprised her role as Georgina Sparks on Max’s Gossip Girl reboot.
Trachtenberg had sparked concerns from fans who were worried due to a drastic change in her appearance. While she did not publicly reveal any health conditions prior to her death, she did respond to those questioning her wellbeing after she posted a selfie on Instagram in January 2024: “Fun fact. This is my face. Not malnutrition no problems. Why do you have to hate? Get a calendar.” She later shared another post, writing: “I’ve received several comments recently about my appearance. I have never had plastic surgery I am happy and healthy. Check yourself haters.”
Editorial credit: Silvia Elizabeth Pangaro / Shutterstock.com
Saturday Night Live will return to its normal programming and has announced the hosts and musical guests for its first two episodes of March
Comedian Shane Gillis will return as host for the second time on the March 1 episode, with Tate McRae to perform as musical guest (also for the second time); and Lady Gaga will perform double duty as both host and musical guest, on the March 8 episode. It is Lady Gaga’s second time hosting, and fifth time performing on the show.
Gillis currently stars on the Netflix series Tires, while Gaga’s album Mayhem drops March 7; Tate McRae’s third album, So Close to What, was just released.
Welcome to another edition of the Sports Feever Column! I have a serious question. After driving to and from Sioux Falls on Wednesday, I was craving Bit-O-Honey candy and I stopped at four gas stations (Crookston, Fargo, Brookings, and Sioux Falls) but none of them had the candy. That is my question and my biggest problem of the day! I live a tough life when that is the problem of the day!
Remember if you have any sports information, like milestones, honors, signings, etc email them to me at chrisjfee@yahoo.com. We continue to get a bunch of them and I appreciate everyone that is getting the info in so we can honor and highlight these outstanding accomplishments.
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The University of Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagle Men’s Basketball team got another big area commitment when Red Lake County’s Owen Chervestad verbally committed to play at UMC on Tuesday!! Chervestad is a senior and has been selected to play in the Minnesota Boys Basketball Coaches Association All-Star game. he was also a fantastic football player, and he was named to the All-State team and played in the All-Star game at U.S. Bank Stadium. UMC is getting a great player, kid, and he will bring some fans into the seats!
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The Minnesota State High School State Wrestling tournament is this weekend at the Excel Energy Center in St. Pau. Let’s take a look at the Section 8A and 8AA wrestlers and some other participants of interest.
Crookston’s Gavyn Hlucny received the eighth seed and will wrestle the ninth seed Gage Mullenbach of Westfield in the first round. Whoever wins will take on the top seed Carson Rowland of Chatfield who is 36-2 on the year. Hlucny is a junior and is 33-5 and making his third state tournament appearance. He missed last year’s state tournament because of injury, but placed as a freshman. He will be looking to do that again. His opponent Mullenbach is 21-22 on the year.
Other Section 8A wrestlers competing at state and their seeds –
HWT – #5 Kevin Dailey (UNC) 27-3 #11 Jack Leiser (Fertile-Beltrami) 20-10
MSHSL Section 1AA Individual 107 1st: Owen Parish (8th grader) of Cannon Falls 127 2nd: Adam Parish (Soph) of Cannon Falls The Parish boys are sons of former Crookston City Administrator Aaron Parrish
MSHSL Section 2AA Individual 145 1st: Tate Olson (Soph)of Delano Olson is the son of Jeff Olson (former Crookston lad), who is also the Delano wrestling coach and grandson of Rodd & Francine Olson of Crookston/Mentor.
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The Section 8A Boys Hockey Championship game will be held on Friday at 7:00 p.m. at the East Grand Forks Civic Center
The #1 ranked and #1 seed Warroad Warriors will take on the #2 and unranked East Grand Forks Green Wave.
Warroad is 20-6-1 on the year and hasn’t lost to a section opponent in eight games. East Grand Forks is 12-13-2 on the year and had three losses in section play, with two of them to Warroad.
In the first meeting of the year, Warroad beat East Grand Forks 3-1 on January 16. The second meeting of the year had Warroad winning 4-0 on February 4. Warroad beat #9 ranked Delano 5-3, they tied #6 ranked St. Cloud Cathedral, beat Grand Forks Red River 4-2 and Grand Forks Central 4-1, #3 ranked Cloquet/Esko/Carlton 4-0, #7 Northfield 4-3, Roseau 2-1, and #8 Northern Lakes 5-3. They lost to unranked Grand Rapids 6-1, unranked Mahtomedi 4-0, #2 in Class AA Moorhead 6-5, to #2 Hermantown 4-1, Roseau 3-2, and Bemidji 4-3.
East Grand Forks wanted to play a tougher schedule this year, and they have a record below .500 because of it. They haven’t beaten a ranked teams this season. (Ranked teams in North Dakota don’t count because every team is ranked, almost) They beat Grand Forks Red River 7-2 and 3-0, Grand Forks Central 3-2. They also beat Roseau 4-3 in OT, The Green Wave lost to unranked Gentry Academy 6-1, #9 Delano 6-5 in OT, lost to #2 Hermantown 4-0, Lost to #3 Cloquet/Esko/Carlton 4-3, #5 in AA St. Thomas Academy 4-2, unranked Wayzata 4-0, #2 ranked in AA Moorhead 6-3.
Who is going to win? Warroad is the favorite, but with the game at East Grand Forks one would think that EGF might have a big crowd in their favor, but there might actually be more people cheering for Warroad!!!!!!!
It should be a great game, with a great crowd. But don’t be surprised if Warroad wins 5-0.
Class A Boys Hockey Champions and Championship matchups Section 1A – Northfield vs Rochester Lourdes Section 2A – Orono Section 3A – Luverne Section 4A – Chisago Lakes vs Mahtomedi Section 5A – St. Cloud Cathedral Section 6A – Northern Lakes vs Alexandria Section 7A – Hibbing/Chisholm
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The Section 8AA Girls Basketball Tournament seeds and bracket have been announced, and the Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton Rebels are the top seed. The tournament seeds and bracket are below.
TEAM SEEDS – 1. DGF 2. Barnesville 3. Pelican Rapids 4. Menahga 5. East Grand Forks 6. Perham 7. Thief River Falls 8. Hawley 9. Wadena-Deer Creek 10. Frazee 11. Park Rapids 12. Crookston 13. Roseau 14. Warroad
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE –
FIRST ROUND GAMES – Thursday, February 27 at high seed 7:00 PM #1 DGF, #2 Barnesville have first-round byes #9 Wadena-Deer Creek at Hawley #13 Roseau at #4 Menahga #12 Crookston at #5 East Grand Forks – on KROX RADIO (5:00 PM) #10 Frazee at #7 Thief River Fals 14 Warroad at #3 Pelican Rapids #11 Park Rapids at #6 Perham
QUARTERFINALS Saturday, March 1 at high seeds – 7:00 PM
SEMIFINALS – Tuesday, March 4 at Concordia College at 6:00 and 7:45 PM
CHAMPIONSHIP – Friday, March 7 at Concordia College at 8:00 PM
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The Section 8A Girls Basketball tournament seeding has been released, and Kittson County Central and Kelliher-Northome have received the top seeds in their respective sub-sections. The seeds are below.
WEST SUBSECTION – 1. Kittson County Central 2. Warren-Alvarado-Oslo 3. Sacred Heart 4. Badger/Greenbush-Middle River 5. Northern Freeze 6. Fertile-Beltrami 7. Stephen-Argyle 8. Red Lake County Central 9. Goodridge/Grygla 10. Climax-Fisher
EAST SUBSECTION – 1. Kelliher/Northome 2. Cass Lake-Bena 3. Fosston 4. Mahnomen/Waubun 5. Blackduck 6. Bagley 7. Clearbrook-Gonvcik 8. Lake of the Woods 9. Win-E-Mac 10. Red Lake
The tournament schedule and bracket are below –
FIRST ROUND GAMES – Thursday, February 27 West Sub-Section at UMC 6:00 PM – Warren-Alvarado-Oslo vs Stephen-Argyle 7:30 PM – Sacred Heart vs Fertile-Beltrami on KROX at Northland in TRF 6:00 PM – Kittson County Central vs Goodridge-Grygla 7:30 PM – Badger-Greenbush-Middle River vs Northern Freeze East Sub-Section – 7:00 PM at High Seed Lake of the Woods at Kelliher-Northome (at Kelliher) Blackduck at Mahnomen-Waubun (at Waubun) Clearbrook-Gonvick at Cass Lake-Bena Bagley at Fosston
QUARTER-FINALS – Saturday, March 1 – at Ralph Englestad Arena in TRF
SEMI-FINALS – Tuesday, March 4 at Ralph Englestad Arena in TRF
CHAMPIONSHIP – Friday, March 7 at Ralph Englestad Arena in TRF
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MILESTONES/HONORS – (If you have a milestone, record, or honor, email them to chrisjfee@yahoo.com)
Hunter Nicholas of Crookston became the Pirate Boys Basketball all-time leading scorer on Monday night when he hit 1,439 points in his career. Passing Kenley Wahlin (2005).
Connor Duden of Red Lake County became the Red Lake County Boys Basketball career leading scorer on Tuesday night as he hit 1,796 points in his career. He passed Drake Englestad (2016) and then passed the Plummer scoring record by passing his mom Jody (Pahlen) Duden’s total of 1,796 points!!!
Chase Lindgren of East Grand Forks scored the 1,000th point of his career last week.
Carson McDonald of East Grand Forks scored the 1,000th point of his career last week.
Asher Blaine of Frazee scored the 1000th point of his career on January 28 vs Menahga.
Adam Vigen of Frazee set the school record for career steals at 204.
Carter Sonnenberg and Adam Vigen of Frazee each hit 1000 career points against Battle Lake on February 21.
Joey Courneya of Win-E-Mac reached the 1,000th point of his career on
Ashlyn Bailey of Crookston has committed to play hockey at UW-River Falls after she graduates next school year.
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The Minnesota High School Girls Hockey Coaches Association announced a lot of awards, including All-State. All the awards are below-
Class A Girls Hockey All-State Team – Taylor Lesnar – Academy of Holy Angels Harper Poehling – Academy of Holy Angels Mika Cichosz – Albert Lea Blake McGawn – Blake Nora Carstenen – Dodge County Ida Huber – Dodge County Maysie Koch – Dodge County Alexa Van Straaten – Dodge County Brooklyn Mauch – Marshall Lizzy Callahan – Mound Westonka Maddy Kimbrel – Orono Zoe Lopez – Orono Alex Paulsen – Orono Macy Rasmussen – Orono Katy Comstock – Warroad Jaylie French – Warroad Taylor Reese – Warroad
Class A All-State Honorable mention – Zoe Rimstad – Academy of Holy Angels Jayda Moyer – Albert Lea Addie Wethington – Blake Nora DeVries – Chisago Lakes Jocelyn Field – Crookston Mollie Koch – Dodge County Blake Schultz – East Grand Forks Sarah Stauber – North Shore Nina Thorson – North Shore Viv Anderson – Orono Rhiannon Ashworth – Pine Area Lily Pachl – South St. Paul Kaiya Sandy – Warroad
Class AA All-State Team Mackenzie Jones – Andover Makayla Moran – Apple Valley Bailey Rupp – Bemidji Campbell Rucinski – Benilde-St. Margaret’s Teagan Kulenkamp – Centennial/SLP Lorelai Nelson – Edina Mercury Bischoff – Grand Rapids (Ms. Hockey winner) Emily Pohl – Hill-Murray Josie Skoogman – Hill-Murray Josie Linn – Holy Family Catholic Layla Hemp – Minnetonka Taylor Kressin – Moorhead Mia Miller – Northfield Viv Anderson – Orono Jasmine Hovda – Roseau Sophie Stramel – Rosemount Alida Ahem – South St. Paul Alaini Gnetz – Woodbury Brooke Gnetz – Woodbury
Class AA All-State Honorable Mention – Courtney Little – Andover Millie Knott – Bemidji Bailey Gray – Benilde-St. Margaret’s Talla Hansen – Benilde-St. Margaret’s Kayden Larson – Blaine Grace Laager – Centennial/SLP June Semling – Champlin Park/Coon Rapids Kasey Senden – Hill-Murray Jaycee Chatleain – Hill-Murray Katya Sander – Holy Family Catholic Kayla Swartout – Holy Family Catholic Bella Prosser – Maple Grove Lauren Mack – Minnetonka Ruby Rauk – Minnetonka Ellie Zahrajsheck – Minnetonka Olivia Kortan – Moorhead Sydney Bailey – Rogers Haley Solnitzky – Stillwater
The Minnesota Girls Hockey Academic Team Champions by section and class are listed below.
Class A Section 1- Dodge County 3.912 Section 2- Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato 3.858 Section 3- Marshall 3.769 Section 4- Minneapolis 3.913 Section 5- Orono 3.867 Section 6- Fergus Falls 3.797 Section 7- North Shore 3.895 Section 8- Detroit Lakes 3.895
Class A State Winner- Minneapolis 3.913
Class AA Section 1- Lakeville South 3.935 Section 2- Eden Prairie 3.951 Section 3- Park 3.922 Section 4- Stillwater 3.947 Section 5- Maple Grove 3.937 Section 6- Hopkins/Park 3.950 Section 7- Blaine 3.944 Section 8- Moorhead 3.874
Class AA State Winner- Eden Prairie 3.95
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JOKES
An avid golfer was late coming home from his weekly game. As he dragged himself wearily through the door, his worried wife met him. “Honey,” she said, “How was your game? Why are you so late?”
“Well,” he replied, “this had to be the worst, hardest game of my life. Jack died out there on the golf course. Just had a heart attack at the second hole and then died.”
“Oh, no!” she cried. “How awful for you! He was your best friend! No wonder you are late…..”
“Yes, the ordeal really wore me out.,” he said, “the whole rest of the game it was hit the ball, drag Jack, hit the ball, drag Jack……”
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A pastor’s wife was expecting a baby, so he stood before the congregation and asked for a raise.
After much discussion, they passed a rule that whenever the preacher’s family expanded, so would his paycheck.
After 6 children, this started to get expensive and the congregation decided to hold another meeting to discuss the preacher’s expanding salary.
A great deal of yelling and inner bickering ensued, as to how much the clergyman’s additional children were costing the church, and how much more it could potentially cost.
After listening to them for about an hour, the pastor rose from his chair and spoke, ‘Children are a gift from God, and we will take as many gifts as He gives us.
Silence fell on the congregation.
In the back pew, a little old lady struggled to stand, and finally said in her frail voice, ‘Rain is also a gift from God, but when we get too much of it, we wear rubbers.’
The entire congregation said, ‘Amen.’
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A group of 40 year old girlfriends discussed where they should meet for dinner. Finally, it was agreed upon that they should meet at the Ocean View restaurant because the waiters there had tight pants and nice buns.
10 years later at 50 years of age, the group once again discussed where they should meet for dinner. Finally it was agreed that they should meet at the Ocean View restaurant because the food there was very good and the wine selection was good also. 10 years later at 60 years of age, the group once again discussed where they should meet for dinner. Finally it was agreed that they should meet at the Ocean View restaurant because they could eat there in peace and quiet and the restaurant had a beautif ul view of the ocean.
10 years later, at 70 years of age, the group once again discussed where they should meet for dinner. Finally it was agreed that they should meet at the Ocean View restaurant because the restaurant was wheel chair accessible and they even had an elevator.
10 years later, at 80 years of age, the group once again discussed where they should meet for dinner. Finally it was agreed that they should meet at the Ocean View restaurant because they had never been there before.
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A very shy guy goes into a bar and sees a beautiful woman sitting at the bar. After an hour of gathering up his courage he finally goes over to her and asks, tentatively, “Um, would you mind if I chatted with you for a while?”
She responds by yelling, at the top of her lungs, “No, I won’t sleep with you tonight!” Everyone in the bar is now staring at them. Naturally, the guy is hopelessly and completely embarrassed and he slinks back to his table. After a few minutes, the woman walks over to him and apologizes. She smiles at him and says, “I’m sorry if I embarrassed you. You see, I’m a graduate student in psychology and I’m studying how people respond to embarrassing situations.”
To which he responds, at the top of his lungs, “What do you mean $200?”
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How are former Crookston Pirates athletes doing in college or elsewhere? ****LET ME KNOW OF OTHERS TO ADD TO THE LIST. Email me at chrisjfee@yahoo.com
Paul Bittner is an assistant coach on the University of Wisconsin-Superior Men’s Hockey team.
Reese Swanson is a freshman playing hockey at St. Olaf.
Carter Coauette is a freshman playing football at Minot State.
Isabelle Smith is a freshman playing Tennis at Concordia College.
Isaac Thomforde is a freshman playing Tennis at Northwestern College in St. Paul.
Emilee Tate is a Sophomore playing Softball at Northland Community and Technical College.
Halle Bruggeman is a Sophomore on the University of Wisconsin-Stout Women’s Rugby team.
Ethan Boll is a Red-shirt Freshman on the University of North Dakota Football team.
Breanna Kressin is a Junior on the Hockey Cheer Team for THE University of Minnesota Golden Gopher Hockey team.
Jacey Larson is a Sophomore playing hockey at Dakota College at Bottineau.
Aleah Bienek is a Junior playing hockey at Trine University in Indiana.
Joslynn Leach is a Senior playing golf at Concordia College in Moorhead. The Cobbers wrapped up the Fall season.
Brooks Butt is a Junior playing football at the University of Jamestown.
Ty Hamre is redshirt Junior playing football at Bemidji State University.
Elizabeth Erdman is a coach for the Moorhead Red Dragon swim team.
Crookston School District Coaches Blake Bergeron is the head Pirate Wrestling Coach. Ben Parkin is the head Pirate Baseball Coach. Amy Boll is the head Pirate Girls Track head coach Sarah Reese is the Pirate Head Girls Soccer coach Marley Melbye is an assistant girls golf coach Connor Morgan is the Pirate Boys Hockey assistant coach Ben Trostad is the Pirate Boys Hockey assistant coach Ethan Magsam is the Pirate Boys Hockey assistant coach Chris Dufault is a youth wrestling Coach
Non-Crookston High School coaching/Admin/etc
Elise Tangquist is the Head Girls Golf Coach at Horace High School in Fargo, ND.
Carmen (Kreibich) Johnson is the head Little Falls Volleyball coach.
Tim Desrosier is an Assistant Coach for Warren-Alvarado-Oslo Pony Boys Basketball
Pat Wolfe is the head wrestling coach for Fosston/Bagley.
Austin Sommerfeld is an Assistant Athletic Director for Strategic Communication at the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth.
Collin Reynolds is the head baseball coach for the University of Colorado Buffalo Club Baseball team.
Trent Stahlecker is a School Security Specialist & he works for the Brevard Public Schools, Florida.
Cody Weiland is an assistant wrestling coach at Proctor/Hermantown.
Josh Edlund is the head football coach and phy ed teacher at Flandreau, South Dakota.
Allison Lindsey Axness is Assistant Varsity Volleyball Coach at Champlin Park
Jeff Olson is the Head Wrestling Coach and Head Baseball coach at Delano.
Jake Olson is an Assistant Football Coach and Head Boys Tennis coach at Delano.
Matt Harris is an Assistant Principal/Athletic Director at Saguaro High School in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Marty Bratrud is the Superintendent and High School Principal at Westhope High School.
Gordie Haug is an assistant football coach at the University of North Dakota.
Mike Hastings is the Wisconsin Badgers Men’s head Hockey coach.
Mike Biermaier is the Athletic Director at Grand Forks Schools.
Stephanie (Lindsay) Perreault works with the North Dakota State stats crew for Bison football, volleyball, and basketball in the winter. Stephanie’s husband, Ryan, is the assistant director for Bison media relations.
Jason Bushie is the hockey athletic trainer at Colorado College.
Chris Myrold is the Director and Fitness at Mission Ranch and Fitness in Camel, California. Kyle Buchmeier is a Tennis Pro at the Reed-Sweatt Family Tennis Center in Minneapolis
Ben Andringa is serving our country in the Army and is now a Ranger.
Jarrett Butenhoff is serving our country with the U.S. Navy.
Joshua Butenhoff is serving our country on a Submarine with the Pacific Fleet with the US Navy.
Peter Cournia is a 2002 Crookston High School Graduate and a grad of West Point and currently serving in the U.S. Army.
Philip Kujawa class of 2004, from Crookston High School. He is an Army recruiter in Rochester.
Rob Sobolik is the General Manager of the Fargodome
That’s it for this week. Thanks for the comments, and if you have anything to add or share, please e-mail chrisjfee@yahoo.com or call. Thanks for reading and listening to KROX RADIO and kroxam.com.
Look no further if you want something fun to do in early March and help a great cause. The Crookston Eagles Auxiliary would like to invite you to their St. Jude St. Patrick’s Day Escape Room, which will run from Tuesday, March 4, through Saturday, March 8. “I’ve done a lot of these before, and what we do is we pick a week, times from about 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. usually, eight slots per time, and we pick a charity.” says Local Club Secretary Ellie Fee. “So, what we do is ask our members what theme they want to do, and the theme we are running with, we thought, St. Patrick’s Day for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.” St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital was chosen by the state madam president as her charity this year, according to Fee.
For those unfamiliar with Escape Rooms, we asked for an idea of what you would be getting yourself into. “An escape room is a series of puzzles and clues and keys and locks, and you are “locked in,” we aren’t physically going to lock you in,” says Fee. “There is a theme, a story, everything works together, and you work to escape.”
If you are interested in participating in the event and raising money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, you can sign up in a few different ways. “If you are interested, you can go to the event page on the Crookston Eagles Club Facebook page and see what is available,” says Fee. “Go ahead and call or text me, or you can simply message the Eagle’s Club on Facebook as well to see what is still available.”
Fee says the sign-up will be updated daily and that Tuesday and Thursday are filling up quickly. You do not have to have a group of eight to sign up. “You can do it as a date night, a couple, or we can try to put you in with someone, so you are not all by yourselves doing it,” says Fee. “Just because of the room constraint and size, we can’t fit more than eight in a room. I do have groups of eight coming in, I do have groups of five, and I do have a couple joining them, so don’t feel overwhelmed or nervous if you are the only two in there; I will be in the room with you.”
What is the cost to participate in the St. Jude’s St. Patrick’s Day Escape Room? “We are asking for $20 for each person,” says Fee. “All of that money goes to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.”
If this sounds like something you would like to participate in, get signed up, as slots are filling up quickly. Although kids are welcome with supervision, Fee says the event is geared toward adults. “This escape room is St. Patrick’s Day and kind of a bar theme, so it’s not necessarily kid-friendly,” says Fee. “However, kids can join you, I just ask that there is a parent present.”
Fee says that she is hoping this summer she might be able to put together an escape room for kids as it is a passion of not just hers but of her kids as well. “My children and I are working on one because this is one of our passions, and we like to come up with clues and puzzles together,” says Fee. “This summer, once school is over, they would like to do a kid-friendly one.” Fee says that her son is autistic, and with that in mind, they plan to make it not only a kid-friendly escape room but sensory-friendly as well.
Call your friends and family or set up a date night to support St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital by participating in St. Jude’s St Patrick’s Day Escape Room at the Crookston Eagle’s Club March 4th -8th.
The Crookston Airport Commission met on Wednesday, February 26, 2025, at 7:00 a.m. at City Hall in the Conference Room.
The first item on Wednesday’s agenda was the T-Hanger Project. In 2023, a grant was awarded for designing a 5-bay T-Hanger at Crookston Airport. The bids based off that design went out in March 2024 and returned higher than anticipated. The job was rebid for the taxi lanes only that would meet up with this hanger, and that work is almost complete. Wednesday morning, the building itself was back on the table for re-bid.
The commission was provided with two designs on Wednesday morning by SEH Inc., an engineering and designing firm that designed the T-Hanger that was bid on in 2024. The previous design was provided, along with a hanger design of the same overall building size but with three larger box compartments. SEH was looking for the commission to choose one to put out for a bid, and ultimately, after discussion, the commission decided they would like to see bids on both the original design and the three compartments as an alternate. Not knowing what kind of cost-saving it would be to go with the three compartments, a decision couldn’t be made on one or the other. It was clear that the original T-Hanger was what they preferred, but they wanted options. The commission agreed, and SEH will put both designs out for bid.
The commission was updated on the AWOS (Automated Weather Observing System) project that will get underway this summer at the Airport and on the zoning ordinance. Some discussions were held about aircraft tie-downs at Crookston Airport, which will continue to address non-airworthy airplanes being tied down.
The commission also discussed the state-funded wind cone replacement project. This project is a 70/30 project, with the city covering 30%. The project will cost about $50,000, and the City of Crookston has budgeted for this item for 2025.
Lastly, the commission discussed reviewing some items in the Non-Commercial Hanger Lot Lease agreement that is currently in place for Crookston Airport. There is interest in building a private hanger on the premises, and after discussion, City Administrator Jeff Shoobridge said he would review the agreement with the city attorney and city council.
Cherith Janelle Grove, 30, of Fargo, North Dakota, sadly passed away on Thursday, February 20, 2025. She was born on July 25, 1994, into the loving family of Ward and Pamela Grove, in Warren, Minnesota.
A memorial service for Cherith’s family and friends will be held on Tuesday, March 4, 2025, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Crookston, Minnesota at 2:00 p.m., followed by a luncheon. Visitation will be one-hour prior to the service.
Duane C. Hanson, 83, Fertile, MN, died Wednesday, February 19, 2025 at Villa St. Vincent in Crookston, MN.
Duane was born on December 3, 1941 to Elmer and Mabel (Larson) Hanson in Fertile, MN. He graduated from Fertile High School in 1960 and joined the MN Army National Guard shortly thereafter. He was honorably discharged in 1968 as a Sergeant E5. Duane married Carole (McBain) Thorson in 1980 and became a stepfather to Scott, Cheryl and Ross. They resided in Bagley, MN before moving back to the farm in Fertile.
Duane was a farmer for most of his life. He also worked several other jobs, including acting as Crew Leader at the Oak Lake rest area for 23 years. He served as the Garfield Township treasurer and was an involved lifetime member of Little Norway Lutheran Church where he served as trustee and taught Sunday School, among other things.
Outside of work, Duane loved to spend his time outdoors hunting, fishing, trapping, gardening and traveling. When not busy outdoors or on the road, Duane loved spending time with family and visiting over a cup of coffee.
Duane is survived by his stepchildren, Scott (Mary) Thorson of Carson City, NV, Cheryl Thorson of Rochester, MN, and Ross (Kristin) Thorson of Grand Forks, ND; four grandchildren, Christopher (Chrissy) Thorson of Carson City, NV, Rachel Thorson (Eric Stein) of Owatonna, MN, Nicole (Kevin) Kilbride of Grand Forks, ND, and Erika Thorson of Grand Forks, ND; two great-granddaughters, Emma and Mia Thorson of Carson City, NV; a number of cousins; and special friend, Yvonne Berhow. He was preceded in death by his parents; and his wife, Carole.
The family would like to thank Edgewood Memory Care in East Grand Forks, MN, Villa St. Vincent and Riverview Hospital in Crookston, MN, and Hospice of the Red River Valley for the wonderful care they gave Duane.
In lieu of flowers the family requests memorials be given to the Little Norway Cemetery Fund, Hospice of the Red River Valley, or a dementia care facility of your choice.
Memorial Service: 11:00 AM, Friday, March 7, 2025 at Little Norway Lutheran Church, Fertile, MN.
Visitation: One hour before the service at the church.
Inurnment: Little Norway Lutheran Cemetery, Fertile, MN. (At a later date)
The University of Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagle Women’s basketball team takes on the University of Sioux Falls Cougars in the first round of the Northern Sun Conference (NSIC) tournament in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, tonight. UMC is 9-19 overall and 7-15 in the NSIC and is the #12 seed. USF is 16-13 overall and 12-10 in the NSIC and comes in as the #5 seed. USF beat UMC 75-65 on January 4 in Crookston and 83-64 on February 14 in Sioux Falls. The game is scheduled to start at 6:00 p.m., and KROX will have the RiverView Health pre-game show at 5:30 p.m.
The Crookston Fire Department (CFD) responded to the following call on 2/25/25:
At 9:24 a.m., CFD responded to the intersection of 230th St. SW and 320th Ave. SW after reports of a car fire. When crews arrived, the passenger was already out of the vehicle. All others from the vehicle made it out safely. Crews extinguished the fire, and the car was towed away from the scene.
The Crookston Fire Department (CFD) responded to the following call on 2/25/25:
At 9:24 a.m., CFD responded to the intersection of 230th St. SW and 320th Ave. SW after reports of a car fire. When crews arrived, the passenger was already out of the vehicle. All others from the vehicle made it out safely. Crews extinguished the fire, and the car was towed away from the scene.
