FUND-RAISERS

Lions host fish fry
The Jordan Lions will host a Lenten fish fry from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 19, at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, 210 Broadway St. N. in Jordan.
The menu includes lightly breaded fish, coleslaw, potato salad, baked beans, rolls, and homemade desserts.
The cost is $8 for adults and $4 for children ages 12 and younger. All proceeds will go toward Jordan community projects.
For more information, call Jerry Langsweirdt at 952-492-2166.

Church holds fish fry

Lori Carlson or the Prior Lake American reports:

A Haitian pastor who worked closely with Prior Lake church missionaries was killed March 12 by burglars in his Port-au-Prince-area home.

The Rev. Doris Jean Louis was shot during a confrontation with two men who had entered his home. He and his wife had returned home from doing mission work and found the intruders in their house, demanding tuition money from the schools they helped to run, said Rev. Robert Nowak, pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church.

A press release from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources:

Families can have sweet fun participating in the spring ritual of making maple syrup during programs being offered at several Minnesota state parks this month.

Shannon Fiecke of the Shakopee Valley News reports:

Having lost out on the last batch of federal stimulus dollars, the next best shot for the Interstate Highway 494 and Highway 169 interchange will come Wednesday at a meeting of an important, but little-publicized advisory board.

The interchange failed to get funding last month from the federal highway department through the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery Grant.

Staff Writer Katrina Styx has taken a job at the Hastings Star Gazette. Today is her last day in the downtown Jordan office.

"In the past 1-1/2 years, I’ve learned about Jordan and all of you who live here," she wrote in her column for this week's print edition. "More importantly, I’ve learned from you, and those are lessons I will never forget."

Styx covered police, schools, and other general assignments for your local newspaper.

Read Styx's column in the March 18 print edition of the Jordan Independent.

A weekend after Twin Cities TV stations blabbed the bad news to the world, Jordan Public Works Director Dave Bendzick offered a different, more reassuring message:

"If you listen to the news, you'd swear that Jordan was going to flood, and that Jordan was going to be gone," he told the city council Monday. "The Minnesota River will not cause Jordan to flood."

A press release from the Office of the Governor of Minnesota:

Governor Tim Pawlenty today issued Executive Order 10-04 declaring a State of Emergency in Big Stone, Blue Earth, Brown, Carver, Chippewa, Clay, Dakota, Goodhue, Hennepin, Kittson, Lac Qui Parle, Le Sueur, Lyon, Marshall, Nicollet, Norman, Polk, Ramsey, Redwood, Renville, Scott, Sibley, Swift, Traverse, Washington, Wilkin, Wright, and Yellow Medicine to protect property and infrastructure from damage due to flooding.

A press release from state Sen. Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook:

In an effort to protect our lakes and rivers from invasive species, I have introduced a bill, S.F. 2890, placing a 5-year moratorium on new public boat access. Invasive species are nonnative species that cause ecological or economic problems.

The Jordan Area Visioning Alliance (JAVA) will meet from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday, March 23, at Riverland Bank, 700 Seville Drive in Jordan.

JAVA will discuss observations, issues, options, and opportunities that impact the Jordan community as a whole.

This meeting is free and open to the public. For more information, call Jon Lee at 952-492-2938 or Deb Ewals at 952-492-3435.

Shannon Fiecke of the Shakopee Valley News reports:

Mark Themig, the parks manager for Scott County, has reason to beam.

Last month, Scott County landed its first federal grant for a recreational trail.

And it’s a lot of money.

In its first-ever known try at federal highway dollars, Scott County parks was allocated $1 million, the maximum amount possible, to connect two state trails along the Minnesota River in Shakopee.

A press release from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources:

Citizens who want to view video and presentations from this year’s Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) annual gathering of conservation leaders can do so by visiting the agency’s web site.

The DNR Roundtable Web page at http://mndnr.gov/roundtable includes information from conservation and DNR experts, including a brief video in which DNR Commissioner Mark Holsten speaks to opportunities and challenges facing Minnesota.

Elroy Huebner, 67, of Jordan, passed away Saturday, March 13, 2010 at his home.

Visitation will be held Thursday, March 18, from 4-8 p.m. at Ballard-Sunder Funeral Home, Jordan, and also one hour prior to the service at church on Friday.

Mass of Christian Burial will be Friday, March 19, at 11 a.m. at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Jordan.

Arrangements made by Ballard-Sunder Funeral Home, Jordan Chapel. www.ballardsunderfuneral.com

A press release from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources:

Turkey hunters who were unsuccessful in this year’s spring hunting season lottery may apply for surplus permits starting at 5 p.m. on Monday, March 15.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) makes surplus permits available at all license agents and online at www.mndnr.gov/news. Online information also includes details on surplus license availability and the status of lottery applications.

A press release from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources:

When the spring thaw signals wet, soft trail conditions, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) temporarily closes some state forest roads and trails to vehicle traffic. Those closures are expected to begin in the next few weeks.

The department urges forest users to check on trail conditions and temporary road and trail closures before planning trips.

The National Weather Service (NWS) has extended the flood warning until 11 a.m. Sunday due to an ice jam in Sand Creek north of Jordan.

The ice jam is located roughly 1½ miles south of the junction of 173rd Street and the west side of Highway 169 in Sand Creek Township.

Officials report that the ice jam was larger and the flow of the creek around the jam was changing. Water could rise behind the jam as long as it remains in place.

The National Weather Service has issued a warning about ice-jam flooding on Sand Creek, 1.6 miles south of the junction of 173rd Street and Highway 169 in Sand Creek Township, just north of Jordan.

The warning is in effect until 7 a.m. Saturday. Water may continue to rise behind the jam overnight as long as it remains in place, said the weather service. Those in the vicinity from Jordan to Carver should be aware of the situation, said the weather service. Carver could experience flooding.

The Jordan Friends of the Library will meet
Thursday, March 18, 2010 at
6:00 pm at the Jordan Library.
All interested community members are invited to attend.

Margaret Bushaw, 91, of St. Paul, passed away peacefully Thursday, March 11, 2010 at Woodbury Nursing Home in Woodbury, MN. Among others, she is survived by her son, the Rev. Robert (Karen) Bushaw of Jordan.

Celebration of Life Service will be Tuesday, March 16, at 11 a.m. at St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church, 765 Margaret Street, St. Paul, with visitation one hour prior to the service.

Arrangements made by Ballard-Sunder Funeral Home, Jordan Chapel. www.ballardsunderfuneral.com

A press release from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources:

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is asking for public comment on a proposed rule that would allow anglers to use bullheads up to 10 inches long as live bait. The fish could not be transported north of Minnesota Highway 210, to prevent non-native bullhead populations from establishing themselves in any more northern Minnesota lakes.