Listen Now
Pledge Now



 
 

North Shore News Hour

  • Monday 12-1pm
  • Monday 5-6pm
  • Tuesday 12-1pm
  • Tuesday 5-6pm
  • Wednesday 12-1pm
  • Wednesday 5-6pm
  • Thursday 12-1pm
  • Thursday 5-6pm
  • Friday 12-1pm
Genre: 
News

The North Shore News Hour includes up-to-the minute weather, North Shore happenings in local news, sports and entertainment, as well as a variety of features from WTIP staff and volunteers. If you miss the North Shore News Hour at noon, tune in for a replay Monday through Thursday beginning at 5:00 p.m.


What's On:
Donna Lunke was greeted with these signs when she came home from work for the last day, Dec. 3. Submitted photo

A new chapter for insurance representative Donna Lunke

Many people don’t recall a time when Donna Lunke was not the local State Farm insurance representative. Indeed, she was the person to contact for nearly 30 years. Donna closed the door to the local office for the last time on December 3.  WTIP checked in Donna as this chapter of her life came to a close. What was it like to be an insurance person on the North Shore?

Donna says she loved her job, noting that “clients became my friends and friends became my clients.” She enjoyed helping young people buy auto insurance for the first time. For some, she became “Auntie Donna.” WTIP asked, and Donna shared, an anecdote about one client/friend who never failed to disappoint with his escapades.   

It was hard, notes Donna, to help people through tragedy—serious auto accidents or house fires. But as difficult it was, it was an honor to walk alongside those folks, she said.

During her career at the insurance agency, Donna and her husband, Orvis, also managed to volunteer with several organizations such as Ruby’s Pantry, Northern Harvest, and Honor Flight Northland. Donna said they will continue working with those organizations.

Donna and Orvis also established an interesting community program dubbed “Small Requests.” Donna explains it started when the coronavirus economic stimulus checks were sent out. She said together, they decided they didn’t really need the financial boost and decided to share it with others. They knew of community members who lost their jobs or who had medical issues and they sent a small amount of money to them to help them get over what Donna calls “a bump in the road.”

The couple continued the “Small Requests” initiative with the arrival of the second stimulus check. Word got around and she said others wanted to help out and they sent checks. Donna said the community project will continue as long as they are able to sustain it. Anyone who would like more information is invited to call Donna at 218-387-1607.

Another community outreach activity for Donna is serving on the Arrowhead Cooperative board. She was elected to the board last summer. She said she is greatly enjoying learning how co-ops work and about the energy industry as a whole. She said she is very proud of the cooperative staff and especially expressed appreciation for all who worked in the recent wind and snowstorm.

Retired or not, Donna is a busy woman. WTIP asked what she will be doing now that she is retired. She said she will continue the things she is currently involved in but will take a few months to “be retired.” She said she will do “lots of reading!” And, she added being outdoors with Orvis is “my happy place,” so there is likely a lot of fishing in her future.

However, she does plan a new project. After seeing her mother and other elders struggling with the bureaucracy involved with health care and other services, she realized there is a need for people to help with that. She hopes to connect with the local senior citizen groups to lend a hand.

WTIP’s Rhonda Silence spoke with Donna about her insurance career, about serving the community, and more. Here’s their conversation.
 
 

Listen: 

 
Bob Carter - December 9, 2021 Photo by Rhonda Silence

Bob Carter: Looking back at life as a North Shore realtor

Bob Carter bought a house on County Road 14 in 1999, working with Realtor Sue Hakes with Red Pine Realty. After getting settled in Grand Marais, he began exploring employment opportunities in the community. His realtor friends pointed him in the direction of real estate and the rest, as they say, is history.

When he announced his retirement this month, WTIP’s Rhonda Silence reached out to Bob to talk about his career here on the North Shore and the changes over the years.

Bob got his realtor’s license and hit the ground running, selling somewhere between 200 and 300 properties over the years—a few places more than once. He worked for Red Pine Realty, Sue Hakes Realty, and most recently Coldwell Banker North Shore. Bob jokes that he is a “job hopper.”

Jokes aside, Bob said it is wonderful that the local realtors communicate and work well together. “I can honestly call every realtor in the county my friend. I’m going to miss that,” he said.

Bob said the real estate business is very, very good right now, but it is quite stressful. He said in the past a realtor would contact a client about a property that just came on the market. The buyer would come to visit in a week or 10 days. Bob said that is not possible at this time. Properties are sold within days of being listed.

Another change, he said, is that it used to be uncommon to have multiple offers on a property. Lately, every property gets numerous offers, including a recent one with 23 offers. That is hard, said Bob, as that means one happy client—and 22 others who are disappointed.

The internet has definitely changed the real estate business with the ability for buyers to take online tours of homes. Bob said more and more people are buying a property sight unseen. That is something he is not really comfortable with, said Bob. "I think people really need to visit and to ask, 'How do I feel in this house?' "

So, it is time, said Bob, to retire. Although he will be keeping his license and continuing to work with current clients. But he won’t be taking on new clients.

The very good news is that he and Helen, aside from leaving for a few months in the winter, are not leaving Cook County. “We’re not going anywhere,” Bob said, “Cook County is our home.”

Click and listen to WTIP’s Rhonda Silence speaking with Bob Carter about all this and more. 
 

Listen: 

 
Grand Marais artist Nita Anderson - Photo by Rhonda Silence, Dec. 4, 2021

Talking art and history with Nita Anderson as Eight Broadway gallery closes

The Eight Broadway Gallery in downtown Grand Marais has been a fixture in the local art scene for 30 years, serving as an incubator of sorts for local artists. Co-owners Nita Anderson and Sandra Hyne are closing the gallery and considering new adventures.

Before the sturdy Eight Broadway door closed for the last time, WTIP’s Rhonda Silence stopped by to visit with co-owner Nita Anderson.

Nita shared some history of her hardworking family—her father, Ed Anderson, a commercial fisherman, and her mother, Lil Murphy Anderson, a woman who had her own businesses, baking and sewing, and more. Those entrepreneur enterprises included keeping baked goods safe from local wildlife.

Nita graduated from Cook County High School in 1961 and went off to college but she says, “I’m not a college person.”

She found a career in working with young people on the streets, in the inner city of Minneapolis. It was rewarding and she is still in touch with many of those people who she describes as her foster kids. But in her mid-30s, Nita realized it was not something she could do forever. It was then that she began experimenting as an artist.

She says she was a “total failure” in her first art class. But, the desire—the calling—to pursue art continued and she taught herself how to paint. And that calling to art led her to the idea of purchasing the Eight Broadway building—a former commercial laundry and clothing store. At a class reunion, she pitched the idea as a joke. Her classmate, Sandra Hyne, decided to join the adventure and the two women wrote a proposal for the building owner, Vi Wonser. They offered—and Vi accepted—a $500 down payment.

Still somewhat amazed that Vi took them up on the offer, Nita explains that was the start of the gallery which has been an incubator for probably more than 100 artists through the years. All of them like family to Nita. 

WTIP’s Rhonda Silence visited with Nita to learn more about her ties to the community, her art, and the future.  Here's their conversation. 
 

Listen: 

 
A look at skiing operations at Lutsen Mountains, courtesy of the Lutsen Mountains webcam

Deadline for comments on Lutsen Mountains expansion is Dec. 9

There are just a few more days for citizens to weigh in on the proposal to allow Lutsen Mountains to expand ski hill operations onto approximately 500 acres of adjacent federal land. The comment period on the U.S. Forest Service environmental study of the proposal ends December 9.

Lutsen Mountains first applied for a special use permit that would allow the resort to expand its existing ski hill operations onto Superior National Forest land in December 2017. Lutsen Mountains is seeking use of approximately 50 acres on what the ski area calls Eagle Mountain, and about 400 acres on Moose Mountain.

Preliminary expansion plans include the construction of seven new chairlifts and one surface lift; development of 324 acres of additional ski terrain; additional guest services, maintenance and ski patrol facilities; additional parking areas and snowmaking operations, including two reservoirs with a combined capacity of 13 million gallons.

As of today, December 7, the Forest Service had received 569 comments. Tofte District Ranger Ellen Bogardus-Szymaniak said all of the questions raised in submitted comments – ranging from climate change to increased traffic on Highway 61 – will be considered by the Forest Service before a decision is made on the proposed expansion.

When that decision will be made is not known. Bogardus-Szymaniak said she anticipates a decision late spring 2022, but in November told WTIP, “…It’s fluid. It all depends on the number of comments and how that can all be pulled together."

Online comments may be submitted until December 9 on this Forest Service comment management page.  For further information about this project or questions about commenting, please contact Michael Jimenez, project coordinator, at [email protected].
 = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = == = 

Past WTIP coverage of this ongoing story can be seen here:

Meetings set for talks on Lutsen Mountains expansion, May 31, 2017

Update on Lutsen Mountains expansion plan, March 17, 2018
 
County hears update on Lutsen Mountains expansion plans, March 21, 2018

U.S. Forest Service beginning review of Lutsen Mountains expansion request

Forest Service opens public comment period on Lutsen Mountains expansion proposal, September 10, 2021

Variety of concerns about Lutsen Mountains expansion shared during public forum, November 17, 2021

 
 
 


 
North Shore Health entrance in the midst of winter. Photo by Rhonda Silence (1)

Staffing crisis at North Shore Health not related to pending vaccine mandate

There continues to be concern about the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in Minnesota and the number of hospital beds available to treat seriously ill patients. However, another concern is the staffing situation at hospitals around the region, including North Shore Health in Grand Marais.

Complicating the staffing issue was the federal directive that all medical facility workers must be vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus. The deadline for medical workers to receive a first dose of the coronavirus vaccine, including those at North Shore Health in Grand Marais, was December 6. WTIP checked in with North Shore Health CEO Kimber Wraalstad on that date to learn how the vaccine mandate was impacting the local medical facility.

Wraalstad said there has been little impact so far, as there are legal challenges that have halted the enforcement of the mandate. On Monday, November 29, a federal judge issued an injunction against the mandate which applies to a coalition of states that are suing the government--Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming.

The court order said that the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid had no clear authority from Congress to enact the vaccine mandate for providers participating in the government health care programs.

Wraalstad said the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid has appealed that injunction, but the vaccine mandate is on hold. She said, “Everything is up in the air now.”

However, Wraalstad acknowledged that the question for patients and visitors to North Shore Health relates to the local healthcare staff. Wraalstad said, “As of today, either 100 percent have been vaccinated or have requested a religious or medical exemption.”

When WTIP Community Radio spoke with Wraalstad about this back in November, she said there were potentially 14 employees who would lose their jobs if not vaccinated or granted an exemption by November 6. Asked if any staff members left the hospital rather than comply, Wraalstad said there were a “couple of” employees who resigned. She added they were casual staffers, not full-time employees.

Regarding alternatives for the still-unvaccinated employees, Wraalstad those staff members will have to be routinely tested for the COVID-19 virus. The frequency depends on the community positivity rate, which is based on the overall number of cases in the county but could be anywhere from twice a week to once a month.

Wraalstad notes that the vaccine mandate has not had a significant impact on staffing at North Shore Health, but there is a staffing shortage in many departments. She said health care facilities regionally and nationally are in what has been dubbed a “staffing collapse.”

Wraalstad said there are currently 23,000 direct care provider positions open in the state of Minnesota, including right here in Cook County. She said there is a need for workers in direct care, in dietary and housekeeping, etc.

“If anyone has ever had an interest in health care, now would be a great time,” said Wraalstad.

There is training available for some positions locally. Wraalstad encouraged anyone interested in working in the medical field, to make a difference in the lives of others, to consider entering the medical field. Anyone who would like to learn more about positions at North Shore Health, visit the North Shore Health website or call the hospital’s human resources department at 218-387-3796.

WTIP’s Rhonda Silence checked in North Shore Health CEO Kimber Wraalstad on December 6 to learn more.
 

Listen: 

 
Manager of Cook County Whole Foods Co-op Ahren Grunow - Photo by Rhonda Silence

Getting to know the new Whole Foods Co-op Manager Ahren Grunow

The Cook County Whole Foods Co-op has had a change of leadership. Longtime manager Jennifer Stoltz retired in November and the co-op welcomed Ahren Grunow as the new manager Nov. 15.

Ahren took an interesting path, starting at REI, the outdoor gear store that is a cooperative. Ahren said he enjoyed the cooperative model and when he sought work closer to where he lived at the time, he looked at different co-ops. He took a job at Valley Natural Foods in Burnsville and worked in the meat department, eventually becoming a journeyman butcher. That store supplied wholesale meat to co-ops around Minnesota, which expanded his knowledge of co-ops in the region.

Mississippi Market in St. Paul was the next step in his co-op career. Ahren helped set up the meat market there. He eventually managed not just the meat department, but all of the divisions in three Mississippi Markets in the Twin Cities. He said he learned a lot and appreciates those who mentored him along the way.

WTIP asked Ahren, why the move to Cook County? He said he and his wife were frequent visitors to the North Shore and he always thought of managing the Cook County Whole Foods Co-op in Grand Marais as a “dream job.” So, when the position became available, he applied and was thrilled to get the position.

He has learned a lot in his short time at the co-op, such as the fact that the parking lot periodically floods. He is also getting to know where items are so he can help shoppers, but he said there are a lot of “hidden gems” in the store.

Ahren doesn’t foresee making any major changes but would like to expand the co-op's selection of locally produced items.

WTIP’s Rhonda Silence visited with Ahren Grunow at the co-op to learn more about his background and co-op philosophy. Here’s their conversation. 
 

Listen: 

 
Plow trucks, large and small, are out in force today clearing roads, driveways and parking lots. Photo by Rhonda Silence

Road conditions and wind chills dangerous today

Cook County Highway Maintenance Supervisor Josh Dix reminds the public that difficult driving conditions continue this morning, December 6.  Dix tells WTIP that plows are out scraping and sanding but explained it will likely take all day and into tomorrow to get everything cleaned up.

In addition to blowing snow, roads closer to the shore where temps were warmer yesterday evening are now very icy. Dix says, “Today continues to be a good day to avoid travel if possible.”

The Minnesota Department of Transportation also has its plows on the roads. There are also private plowing companies and homeowners snow blowing decks and driveways, so if you do travel be very aware of these operations.

If you are out in the weather, be sure to dress appropriately and limit exposure. Temperatures are expected to fall to around 3 degrees by 5 p.m. With winds of 15 to 20 mph and possible gusts as high as 50, frostbite is possible. Wind chills as low as 25 below zero could cause frostbite on exposed skin in as little as 30 minutes.

Stay safe and warm everyone! 
 


 
Significant snowfall with anticipated high winds have led to school closures. Photo by Rhonda Silence

Local schools declare snow day Dec. 6

Looking ahead to continued snow and high winds overnight and into the early hours tomorrow, several local schools have decided to call a snow day.

School District 166 and Great Expectations School in Grand Marais and Birch Grove Community School in Tofte have notified parents that there will be no school tomorrow, Monday, Dec. 6. The Birch Grove Saplings preschool program will also be closed. 

**Update 6:51 p.m.**  Oshki Ogimaag in Grand Portage has announced that there will be no school tomorrow. 

WTIP would like to remind the public that Cook County Highway Department Maintenance Supervisor Josh Dix stresses that travel should be restricted to emergency travel only.

Dix said, “Visibility is getting quite poor as we settle into the evening.”

Dix also reminds the public that the Cook County Highway Department is not staffed for round-the-clock service. He said snowplows will be pulled off the road as the conditions deteriorate tonight. Motorists should expect worsening road conditions as the night goes on, until the plows are back on the road again in the early morning.

Blizzard conditions are expected to last until 6 a.m. on Monday.
 


 
Snow is definitely accumulating in the Northland. Photo by Rhonda Silence

County Highway Department urges caution in blizzard conditions

Cook County Highway Department Maintenance Supervisor Josh Dix would like to remind everyone of the National Weather Service blizzard warning guidance. Dix stresses that travel should be restricted to emergency travel only.

Dix said, “Visibility is getting quite poor as we settle into the evening.”

Dix also reminds the public that the Cook County Highway is not staffed for round-the-clock service. He said snowplows will be pulled off the road as the conditions deteriorate tonight. Motorists should expect worsening road conditions as the night goes on, until the plows are back on the road again in the early morning.

In the latest update at 2:50 p.m. on Sunday, December 5, the National Weather Service predicts additional snow accumulations of 7-11 inches.
The National Weather Service adds that travel will be difficult as patchy, blowing snow will significantly reduce visibility. Winds gusting as high as 45 mph are expected.

Blizzard conditions are expected to last until 6 a.m. on Monday.
 
 


 
The first significant winter storm is heading our way. Image courtesy of the National Weather Service

First winter storm brings cautions, winter parking reminder

The National Weather Service continues to provide updates on the winter storm on track to impact the Northland from late tonight through early Monday. A Blizzard Warning on the North Shore near Grand Marais is now in effect. This first significant snow event is expected to bring over a foot of snow across much of the area with the highest totals along the North Shore.

The snow should be moderate to heavy after midnight tonight, December 5, with increasing amounts at approximately 5:00 a.m.. Sunday. The National Weather Service anticipates 10 - 16 inches of snow. Blowing snow will also be possible late Sunday through Monday as Arctic air surges south over our region. 

For residents of Grand Marais, the city’s winter parking ordinance is in effect. All vehicles must park on one side of the street to allow snow plows to clear the roadway.

To keep track of where to park, just look at the calendar -- on even days (Dec. 4, Dec. 6, Dec. 8)  vehicles must be parked on the side of the street with even house numbers. On odd days (Dec. 5, Dec. 7, Dec. 9) vehicles must all park on the side of the street with odd house numbers. 

On-street parking is also prohibited downtown between Lake Superior and Highway 61 on Broadway Ave, 1st Ave. W, 2nd Ave. W, Wisconsin Street and First Street between 2:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. If vehicles are found to be in violation, owners could be cited and could be towed.

Travel should be restricted to emergencies only. The National Weather Service advises that if you must travel, have a winter survival kit with you (an extra flashlight, food, and water). If you get stranded, stay with your vehicle and wait for help.

Be safe everyone!