Progress EditionB R A I N E R D L A K E S A R E A

B R A I N E R D D I S P A T C H L A B O R D A Y S P E C I A L

www.brainerddispatch.com SERVING THE BRAINERD LAKES AREA AND CENTRAL MINNESOTA SINCE 1881 September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015

In the spring of 2015, Mann Lake LTD of Hacken-

sack, the world’s largest beekeeping supply com-

pany, was expanding — but not in Hackensack.

The company started on the shores of Mann Lake where Vice President Jack Thomas and his wife, Betty, �rst started constructing beekeeping equipment. It has been steadily growing ever since.

“During the recession when other companies were cutting back or laying off employees or making employees do more with less, we were growing,” said Vicki Dufner, human re-sources manager.

Since its inception, the company has moved, grown and expanded, all signs of economic health. Production relocat-ed from Mann Lake to the former Durkee’s location in Pine River and back to Hackensack. Today, they have a large fa-cility on the southwest corner of Hackensack. The company also has locations in Pennsylvania and California, as well as a distribution center in London. The company is still growing, but that growth has been slower in Hackensack due to the lack of available workers in the area.

“We can’t afford to put them in here (new pieces of equip-ment),” Thomas said. “The machines would sit idle.”

The company’s California plant is scheduled to begin pro-duction of wood products at the end of 2015 or early 2016 and a new production plant is ramping up in Texas to begin production in the fall of 2015. Some production and shipping from the Hackensack plant will relocate to those plants to reduce stress and improve shipping and response time.

“We are closer to the sources of lumber,” Thomas said. “Of course, that’s where our customers are. We wouldn’t have to ship the lumber or �nished materials.”

EMPLOYEES SOUGHTIn both California and Texas there are large agriculture

companies that depend on beekeeping companies to polli-nate their food crops. In those same locations, there are also larger pools to draw workers. Meanwhile, in Hackensack there were 224 employees in the fall of 2015, while 45 full-time positions with higher-than-average pay, dental insur-ance, vision insurance, health insurance, matching 401k, em-ployee ownership and other bene�ts were un�lled. The rural communities around Hackensack weren’t producing enough

dedicated workers.The company used newspaper, radio, Internet marketing

and other recruitment strategies to attract applicants.“(We’ve done) �yers,” Dufner said during an interview in

the spring of 2015. “We’ve done a program where people can get a $50 cash bonus if they refer an employee. We’ve done referral bonuses. Job fairs, not only on site here but at the ca-sino and other locations up to 60 miles away.”

“We’ve tried everything other than witchcraft,” Thomas said.

Those empty jobs range from production, loading, sales, �nance and forklift drivers all the way up to a warehouse manager position.

Thomas and Dufner said there simply wasn’t a big enough pool of workers.

“I think geography has a lot to do with it,” Dufner said. “We’ve got good bene�ts and everything, but does a person want to drive from Bemidji every day? We have people that do that, but I think geography is part of the equation.”

See MANN LAKE LTD Page S58

Mann Lake LTD• Location: Hackensack.

• Employees: 275.

• Looking to hire: 25 now and likely to increase this fall.

• Fun Fact: Some honeybee buyers pur-chase 20,000 to 30,000 bees at one time.

• To apply for a job: Those interested in a career with Mann Lake LTD can visit www.mannlakeltd.com/beekeeping-sup-plies/employee-opportunities.html for more information.

FO RYO U R IN F O

Mann Lake is

BUZZING to �nd workers, FILLS 50 JOBS BUT STILL SEEKING MORE EMPLOYEES

Employees assemble sections of the bee box called bee supers.

• Travis Grimler photo

By TRAVIS GRIMLERStaff Writer

Employees assemble sections of the bee box called bee supers.

In the spring of 2015, Mann Lake LTD of Hacken

sack, the world’s largest beekeeping supply com

pany, was expanding — but not in Hackensack.

The company started on the shores of Mann Lake where Vice President Jack Thomas and his wife, Betty, �rst started constructing beekeeping equipment. It has been steadily

SUPPLIES FOR BEEKEEPING www.brainerddispatch.comS58 September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015

Thank you to our employees

and patrons!Lakes Audio is excited to

announce that we will be moving to our new location on

371 N & Novotny Rd in Baxter in between General Rental and

Hilltop Trailers.

REMOTE STARTERS | HEATED SEATS | CAR AUDIOMARINE AUDIO | DETAILING | ACCESSORIES

218-829-5529www.LAKESAUDIO.com

Locally Owned and Operated

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Stay tuned for more details about our

GRAND OPENING coming up in October 2015

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Lakes Audio expands to new, larger Baxter location

Advertorial

By JODIE TWEED

Fall may be known for autumn leaves and the start of the school year, but at Lakes Audio in Baxter, it is now the be-ginning of the remote car starter season.

“In September and October, especially, we can book out 10 a day,” Stephanie St. Hilaire said of remote car starter instal-lations. She and her husband, Dan St. Hilaire, own Lakes Audio. They started the company in 2008 in Brainerd.

If you dread winter because of the brisk walk out to start a car in subzero temperatures each morning, then it’s time to make an appointment with the experienced technicians at Lakes Audio between now and the fi rst snowfall to get a remote car starter installed.

Lakes Audio will also install heated seats, keyless entry systems, car alarms, headrest screens and fl ip-down DVD players, as well as stereo and video systems. Anything you may want in any vehicle, which could be a car, truck, motorcycle, snowmobile, boat, camper, utility vehicle or golf cart, Lakes Audio can make that happen. They are known for their state-of-the-art equipment and custom design and installation services for audio, multimedia, security and navi-gation systems.

The company also offers detailing ser-vices for vehicles and boats. They work with many area dealerships, as well as in-dividual customers. More customers want their golf carts and utility vehicles decked out with lights and audio systems, so they’ve been doing a lot of these instal-lations. They do perform onsite installa-tions, so customers who want new audio,

video and lighting systems installed in their boats don’t have to pull the boat out of the water and bring it in.

The company has outgrown its loca-tion on Washington Street in Brainerd and will be moving Oct. 1 to its new shop, located at 7313 Novotny Road, just off Highway 371 in Baxter. The shop is located in between General Rental and Hilltop Trailers. Their audio and detail centers were previously at separate loca-tions, due to a lack of space, but now everything will be conveniently located under one roof.

The detail center is already located at the new Baxter location, and the audio shop will soon follow. They’re nearly fi n-ished with renovations inside the building and are beginning to start on the exterior.

“We have the ability to add on to the building, too, so we have room to grow in the future,” said St. Hilaire.

St. Hilaire said the business has been growing since they opened in 2008 when it was just she and her husband working out of their home or performing on-site installations. They now have fi ve full-time employees.

“We have a fantastic staff,” St. Hilaire said. “They all work really hard and are willing to put in the extra effort to help us. We want them to love their job and have fun with it. It’s a really laid back atmosphere, and that’s how we want our customers to look at it, too.”

To learn more about Lakes Audio and the services that they provide, visit their website at lakesaudio.com, or call 829-5529.

MANN LAKE LTD, From Page S57

Those positions the company had didn’t require any specialized education, either. Dufner and Thomas said most of the positions just require employees willing to show up on time for shifts and work well with others. They could be trained for most of the other job require-ments. They say part of the reason there are so few work-ers may be that local high school graduates often leave the area immediately after graduation, leaving an aging pool of employees.

Though �nding enough local employees was dif�cult, demand was growing for the company. A growing aware-ness of the declining numbers of honeybees and other pollinators ensured that.

“We have two markets,” Thomas said. “We have the hobby guys and we have commercial guys. The com-mercial beekeeping industry is responsible for over half the food you eat. Without bees, the world would starve to death. These are big guys. These companies are huge. They buy 20,000-30,000 at a time. Then you have hob-by people that buy one or two at a time maybe 10 or 20 for their backyard. What’s driving that market is the pub-licity out there on the demise of the honeybees. We are seeing this colony collapse disorder in the news about the value of bees. They (hobbyists) are getting into keep-ing bees. These are retired professional people. They are baby boomers that have retired and they are profession-al or semi-professional people because it takes smarts to raise bees.”

As a result, the company has to be able to keep up

with demand. They have to expand or lose customers.“We’d lose business to our competition,” Thomas said.“We’ve worked hard to gain the market share, so we

don’t want to lose that,” Dufner said.If the Hackensack location doesn’t get enough em-

ployees to �ll their positions, that could have a local im-pact as well.

“I think we’d consider putting more things in our branch locations and less here,” Dufner said.

Since spring, Mann Lake has had some more success in �lling positions. The company found particular suc-cess in their on-site job fairs.

“We tried a lot of advertising, but it didn’t draw as many people as the job fairs,” Dufner said.

Dufner and Human Resources Coordinator Jimmy LeBlanc said the company has added about 50 employ-ees, bringing the Hackensack location total close to 275 employees. Though they were looking for 45 in the spring, Mann Lake is looking for more employees yet. The company is currently seeking an additional 25 em-ployees, but that number may increase with the fall pro-duction of bee food.

“We could be hovering closer to that 35-40 people mark again,” Dufner said.

Dufner said the Hackensack site, at full capacity, could hold as many as 325 employees with spikes of up to 375 during peak seasons.

New positions include production of feed for bees and of�ce positions including salespeople.

One tactic Dufner said has been successful in getting completed applications has been the arrival of an Em-ployment Resource Center on-site recruitment profes-sional.

“I’ve already seen that help to improve and generate people walking in the door,” Dufner said. “We aren’t los-ing people as we have in the past because if they stop in and they are a walk-in applicant, he can get ahold of them right away and go through the new hire process, interview and everything all at the same time.”

Along with general employment growth, big things are expected at Mann Lake. Dufner hinted at possible expansions at all of the company’s four locations, but did not feel ready to reveal the ideas for Minnesota.

Thomas, however, has been busy in Minneapolis, at-tempting to bring Apimondia, a global beekeeping con-vention, back to the United States. This gathering hap-pens every two years, and Thomas said it hasn’t been in the United States since the ‘50s. He and other beekeep-ing authorities are pushing to have it located in Minne-apolis in 2019.

“We are in the process of bringing 10,000 plus people into Minneapolis for a week,” Thomas said. “We would be booking over 5,000 hotel rooms for the beekeeping situation.”TRAVIS GRIMLER may be reached at travis.grimler@pineand-lakes.com or 218-855-5853. Follow at www.twitter.com/PEJ_Tra-vis on Twitter.

The commercial beekeeping industry is responsible for over half the

food you eat. Without bees, the world would starve to death.JACK THOMAS, MANN LAKE VICE PRESIDENT

Pine River-based invention HITS THE WATERHITS THE WATERHITS THE WATERHITS THE WATERHITS THE WATER

INNOVATION www.brainerddispatch.com September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015 S59

www.atekaccess.com

As the entire country celebrates Labor Day, we want to take a moment to recognize the employees of ATEK Access Technologies. We are thankful for our dedicated, talented, and hard-working group. We can all be proud of what we have accomplished this past year, both individually and collectively. Now on this special day, we hope our employees can enjoy the rewards of hard work with their family and friends. Have a safe and enjoyable holiday weekend.

THANK YOU!

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Advertorial

Three years ago ATEK Companies invested about $1 million in its Brainerd facility to position the company to launch into the next level of high tech machine-to-machine manufacturing.

“We’ve got exciting things to come,” said Sherri McDaniel, president of ATEK Access Technologies, which is headquartered in Eden Prairie. “We’ve been in a big transition mode for the last couple of years and we’re seeing that transition come to an end as these new technologies take hold.”

ATEK Access Technologies in Brainerd is producing three strong product lines, Datakey, Larco and TankScan.

The Datakey product line offers a host of rugged, secure, portable memory products used by many OEMs including several government agencies around the world. On Sept. 11, 2001, Pres. George W. Bush was seen talking on a phone from Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, FL, with a Datakey inserted on the right side of the phone base to insure top security in communications.

The Larco product line consists of safety mats produced for many industries, including automotive, aircraft and other factories that use automated or robotic equipment. The mats and switches are also used for automatic door access where people step on the mat or press the switch to activate the door.

TankScan is a line of electronic monitors used to measure liquid levels contained in above ground storage tanks. This product allows anyone from fuel deliverers to heavy manufacturing companies – anyone with above ground tanks -- to monitor their tanks remotely. As an example, TankScan is used in the Gulf of Mexico to ensure helicopter pilots have enough fuel at the

unmanned landing spots to return back to home base.

The Brainerd plant was opened in the 1960s by the late Fred Bieber, primarily producing the reels that 3M used to wrap its magnetic tape around. The reel product line is obsolete now that everything

is digital, and the company chose to look to advanced technologies in order to prepare for the future.

Bill Bieber, chairman of the board, has been in leadership of the operation since 1976. Mark Osmanski is the current president and chief executive offi cer of ATEK Companies, which is the parent company to ATEK Access Technologies.

McDaniel said the Brainerd facility has about 50 employees, and the company is committed to remaining in the Brainerd lakes area. Overall the company has about 250 employees and most are located at its plant in New Hampton, Iowa.

McDaniel said at the Brainerd facility, the average employee has 13 years of service. One employee has been with the company for 35 years.

“It’s impressive how loyal and dedicated the people in the Brainerd area are,” McDaniel noted. “We are dedicated to that facility. We have no plans on manufacturing elsewhere.”

McDaniel said the Bieber family has long been committed to the Brainerd lakes area, and they have given back to the community through scholarships provided through Central Lakes College and remain active in the Brainerd Lakes Chamber, the Brainerd Lakes Area Economic Development Corporation and other community organizations.

To learn more about ATEK Access Technologies, visit the company website at atekaccess.com.

By JODIE TWEED

Atek Access Technologies Plans For Growth In

High Tech Manufacturing

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By TRAVIS GRIMLER Staff Writer

Al Bauman, former owner of Al’s Re-

pair in Pine River, �nally began sell-

ing his long-awaited Airwave Ped-

estal, a product inspired by his own

hardships.

Bauman began design of his pedestal fol-lowing back surgery in 2011, after which he could no longer sit in a boat to �sh. Instead, he was forced to stand and use his knees as suspension.

“Shortly after my back surgery I started scribbling stuff on paper, making my design,” Bauman said. “Three or four months later I had my �rst prototype in my boat. I only made one. That’s kind of where I started after riding on it on Leech Lake four months after my back surgery. I knew I had a winner. I just had to continue with it, and at that same time I took the draft of my picture down to my attorney in the Cities and started my patent format then and there.”

Bauman’s automotive shop closed in De-cember 2013, also due to back problems, but he continued using his mechanical know-how to design his boat pedestal.

“After 35 years of working on cars and trucks, you can put some stuff together. I’ve always been a person that fabricates things, whether it is a trailer I need or a �sh house,” Bauman said.

Bauman’s �rst design had issues. The de-sign used a simple airbag to cushion Bau-man’s boat rides. It cushioned him well when he hit a bump, but the seat also had a habit of “catapulting” him up too fast. Now, on design No. 5, Bauman has begun selling his improved product.

“I had to rearrange the accumulator, my pulse tube, to transfer air back and forth in the passages and give a nice rebound and doesn’t throw you off the seat,” Bauman said. “Upon compression, when the weight of a person drops down on a wave or rough ter-rain, as the pressure builds up in the bag, it transfers through the manifold into the accu-mulator and pushes a piston against air pres-

sure to dampen the ride. In the same token, when it pushes back up, it’s transferring the air into the bag at a slower rate so it doesn’t catapult you.”

The cushion is provided by a Goodyear airbag at the base of the pedestal. This airbag sets it apart from other shock-absorbing seat pedestals on the market. Bauman said other pedestals use springs or shocks that are more akin to what is found on a car. They perform differently and wear differently from the Air-wave, Bauman said.

The pedestal is constructed from 70 differ-ent pieces manufactured in the United States. Eight of those manufacturers are from central Minnesota, including Precision Water Jet and Pequot Tool.

“All my parts and pieces are brought in and made here in Minnesota, except my bot-tom base is Mahoney Foundries in Indiana. But everything is made in the USA,” Bauman said.

The product was ready in October, but he

was still working on a product manual and terms and conditions. The product went on sale just before the March 12-15 Sioux Falls Sportsmen’s Show. Since then, it has been available at Airwavepedestal.com - the com-pany website.

Bauman has presented at the Northwest Sports Show and several other expos, during which time he has spoken to boat manufac-turing companies such as Alumacraft and Lund, but he has decided to continue to pro-duce his product independently.

“Right now I’m trying to do it myself,” Bauman said. “The biggest problem a person has is getting the funding to make it happen. There are some companies that have come to me. Lund boats has looked at my product. I had Lund boats and Alumacraft in my booth last week. I think once it gets out there and people start to ride on it, it’ll speak for itself.”

The pedestal works for more than boats. Bauman has installed Airwave pedestals in a lawn tractor, skid steer and construction

truck. They are working on more adaptations.“I’m working on engineering one in a

snowmobile right now,” Bauman said. “I think that will go good.”

Bauman recently reported selling six ped-estals in and hopes other marketing through-out the country will keep the sales coming. When sales pick up, he hopes to bring back the people who once worked at his shop.

“Everybody will be joining that was here when I closed the doors as I continue moving forward,” Bauman said.

Bauman is more than pleased with his product, after all, it has gotten him back on the lake in comfort.

“I love it,” Bauman said. “I only get a cou-ple Saturdays and Sundays to go �shing. If the wind is blowing 30 mph, it doesn’t bother me a bit. The lake can be white and I’m out �sh-ing, but it doesn’t hurt my back. It’s a testimo-nial to my product.”

Bauman hinted at having other products in mind, but did not elaborate.

• Photos by Travis Grimler

After back problems made work dif�cult, Al Bauman of Pine River developed the Airwave Pedes-tal, for those suffering the same types of back problems but still want to �sh or operate other ma-chinery in bumpy environments. The Airwave Pedestal is manufactured locally and once installed, has a tasteful cover to keep the mechanical parts clean.

After back problems made work dif�cult, Al Bauman of Pine River developed the Airwave Pedestal, for those suffering the same types of back problems but still want to �sh or operate other machinery in bumpy environments. The Airwave Pedestal is manufactured locally and once installed, has a tasteful cover to keep the mechanical parts clean.has a tasteful cover to keep the mechanical parts clean.has a tasteful cover to keep the mechanical parts clean.has a tasteful cover to keep the mechanical parts clean.

Al Bauman, former owner of Al’s Re

pair in Pine River, �nally began sell

ing his long-awaited Airwave Ped

estal, a product inspired by his own estal, a product inspired by his own

hardships.

Bauman began design of his pedestal fol

Shamp’s Meat Market

REOPENSRENAMED — FRESH START MEAT MARKET

MEAT MARKET www.brainerddispatch.comS60 September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015

Open for Occupancy!

8182 Excelsior Rd. Baxter, MN 56425| Phone: 218-829-3337 | www.northernlakesseniorliving.com

Assisted Living Health Care Services Catered to Meet Seniors’ Needs

Memory CarePrivate Memory Care Apartments and Services for Seniors

Northern Lakes Senior Living offers private memory care studio and one-bedroom apartments designed to support seniors with de-mentia, Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of long-term memory loss. Staff members are trained and educated in the most up-to-date memory care practices that provide residents with comfort, tranquility and a sense of familiarity. Our Memory Care Neighbor-hoods are specifi cally designed to accommodate those who wander or become easily disoriented, and our dedicated Memory Care staff offers choices for personal care, and medical services.

We provide care that caters to the total well-being of your loved one and have created memory care programs and activities to meet those needs. The staff at Northern Lakes Senior Living un-derstands clinical diagnoses and therapeutic goals and incorporate these into recreational therapy to enhance the physical, cognitive, emotional, social, and leisure needs of residents. The Memory Care neighborhoods at Northern Lakes Senior Living are a place to celebrate each senior’s individual personality in a supportive environment.

Our memory care neighborhoods are surrounded by outdoor garden courtyards, and residents enjoy family style dining and living areas.

Enjoy the special bonds that form when socializing, laughter, and the sharing of life experiences come together in an exceptional setting.

Our Community Room is the hub of activity. Enjoy entertaining and educational programs, parties, events, and church services in this spacious and welcoming area. Stroll our beautiful grounds, or take a fi eld trip by shuttle to one of the area’s many shopping, arts and outdoors events.

No matter how many or how few assisted living services you need, Northern Lakes Senior Living brings the services to you in a bright, well-appointed apartment you may never guess was in an assisted living community. Apartment homes come in a variety of sizes – from studios, to one-bedroom and one-bedroom plus den fl oor plans – and feature full-sized kitchens and ample storage. Northern Lakes Senior Living offers seniors the full spectrum of care with individual care plans tailored to meet whatever needs may arise. Assisted living apartment homes offer support services that include extra assistance with housekeeping, daily activities, medication reminders, laundry, and personalized health care plans that recognize individual needs and preferences.

Assisted living also offers three chef-prepared meals a day.

55 + Luxury Senior Come Home to a VIBRANT COMMUNITY LIFE

8182 Excelsior Rd. Baxter, MN 56425| Phone: 218-829-3337 | www.northernlakesseniorliving.com

these into recreational therapy to enhance the physical, cognitive, emotional, social, and leisure needs of residents. The Memory Care neighborhoods at Northern Lakes Senior Living are a place to celebrate each senior’s individual personality in a supportive environment.

Our memory care neighborhoods are surrounded by outdoor garden courtyards, and residents enjoy family style dining and living areas.

Opening October 2015

Assisted Living/Memory Care Facility

Join the family - All facilities on the same campus

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Northern Lakes Senior Living to open new memory care, assisted

living facilities in October

Advertorial

Northern Lakes Senior Living, a 60-unit independent living facility for residents 55 years and older, opened last Octo-ber next to the Northland Arboretum in Baxter.

In October the facility will open its second planned phase of development, memory care and assisted living facilities, which will share the same campus and the same name as Northern Lakes Senior Living.

For Brainerd lakes area residents, this means that elderly parents or loved ones can continue to live in the same conve-nient location, yet receive the additional support that they need.

The private memory care studio and one-bedroom apartments are designed for seniors living with dementia, Alzheim-er’s disease and other forms of long-term memory loss. Northern Lakes Senior Living’s Memory Care Neighborhoods were carefully designed to accommodate residents who wander or who become easily disoriented. Memory Care staff provide services and activities that cater to meet the needs of those suffering from memory loss. The staff uses recreational therapy to help support and meet their needs, which include physical, cognitive, emotional, social and leisure.

Memory Care Neighborhoods are surrounded by peaceful outdoor garden courtyards, providing a beautiful back-drop for residents and their visiting family members to spend time. Residents also enjoy family style dining and living areas.

Northern Lakes Senior Living has devel-

oped partnerships with Fairview Health Services, the University of Minnesota and the Alzheimer’s Association to provide innovative programs for residents.

The Assisted Living facility allows resi-dents to receive as many or as few servic-es as they need. They may add support services, such as help with housekeeping, daily activities, medication reminders, laundry and other personalized services, whenever the need arises. Assisted Living also includes three meals a day prepared by a chef.

The existing Independent Living facility gives seniors the ability to be close to everything that Brainerd/Baxter has to of-fer, along with many amenities, including a fi tness center with wellness programs, a community room with a kitchen, under-ground heated parking with car wash bay, an outdoor fi re pit, rooftop deck, movie theater, library, Wi-Fi in all common areas and more.

Northern Lakes Senior Living is owned by Michael Development, a Twin Cities-based developer of innovative, supe-rior housing for individuals of all ages. Northern Lakes Senior Living is managed by Ebenezer.

At Northern Lakes Senior Living, residents can be as active as they want to be and enjoy life, without worrying about home repairs, mowing the grass or shoveling snow.

To take a tour of the facility, contact Northern Lakes Senior Living at (218) 829-3337 or to learn more about the fa-cility, visit northernlakesseniorliving.com.

By JODIE TWEED

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By TRAVIS GRIMLER Staff Writer

Fresh Start Meat Market• Location: Pine River.

• Fun Fact: They sell about 400 pounds of fresh ground hamburger per week.

FO RYO U R IN F O

After an abrupt closure Oct. 11, 2014, Shamp’s

Meat Market in Pine River got a fresh start with

new owners who reopened the business June 23

with a new name.

Michael and Mary Styx opened their new meat market fol-lowing several weeks of delays because of property appraisals and a retail license. The opening was originally planned for Memorial Day weekend.

They bring with them prior experience. At their home in Ironton �ve years earlier, the couple began a small market, at �rst focusing on fruits and vegetables and eventually moving to meat processing.

“That’s how we started, with fresh vegetables at the farm-ers’ market and we got into deer processing during the sea-son,” Mary Styx said. “We did hogs and beef and converted half of our garage into a shop. We did NSF (National Sanita-tion Foundation) processing for farmers. In January of 2015, we were approached by a gentleman who wanted a USDA processor for his hogs. So we started this journey and looked at some buildings. We remembered that Shamp’s had closed back in October. We drove up here and got the number and started our journey from there.”

BUILDING ON TRADITIONThough they have renamed the business Fresh Start Meat

Market, they will begin slowly changing the signs near Pine River. They are letting the old signs linger to associate their

Frank

Marshal cuts

larger-than-normal

steaks with a meat saw for

the store’s “man size” cuts.

• Photos by Travis Grimler

See FRESH START MEATS Page S61

After an abrupt closure Oct. 11, 2014, Shamp’s

Meat Market in Pine River got a fresh start with

new owners who reopened the business June 23

with a new name.

Michael and Mary Styx opened their new meat market following several weeks of delays because of property appraisals

MEAT MARKET www.brainerddispatch.com September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015 S61

Baxter’s Bar & Grill at Arrowwood Lodgeat Brainerd Lakes

Come in and check out our new menu

(but we kept your old favorites too!) Daily specials for food and drinks!

Come in and experience it for yourself...fi ne dining with a casual atmosphere.

Baxter’s Bar & Grill | 6967 Lake Forest Road Baxter, MN | (218) 822 - FOODwww.arrowwoodbrainerd.com

Happy Labor Day!

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A Charming HostArrowwood Lodge at Brainerd Lakes

Advertorial

Arrowwood Lodge at Brainerd Lakes would like to thank the community for visiting us here at the hotel, waterpark, Baxter’s Bar & Grill and our meeting and event spaces. We thank our staff for making wonderful memories and great experiences for our guests.

Arrowwood Lodge has 102 spacious rooms and suites – so large they call them cabins. Each room is comfort-ably designed for the business or vaca-tion traveler in mind with a refrigerator, microwave, coffee maker, hair dryer, iron and ironing board, free hi-speed internet, and rates now include a com-plimentary hot weekday breakfast Mon-day through Friday mornings from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. Their fi tness center is great for a workout when staying there. Some of the rooms and suites have outdoor patios overlooking the courtyard. An extra added value is the two complimentary bottles of water in all rooms and suites and two complimentary beverages in the lounge each week day night included in the rates.

Baxter’s Bar & Grill onsite is the place to dine and relax with your favorite beverage. Choose from appetizers, sandwiches, steaks, seafood, pasta, hand tossed and wood fi re pizzas, fresh salads with house made dressings and more. The Early Bird menu is the best value in town with six different entrees to choose from and for only $12 (plus tax and gratuity) – it includes a salad, entrée and bread service. A private dining room is available for groups. Come check out the new look and experience northwood’s dining at its best.

New changes to the Courtyard include the addition of the new zipline. We have a sand volleyball court, horseshoe pits and children’s play set. There are plenty of fun things to do outside. A newly remodeled fi re pit is a great addition for guests to have an evening out by the bonfi re

Meetings and events are even bet-ter. The Sands Ballroom can accommo-date groups and wedding receptions for up to 300 people. Three smaller meeting rooms can accommodate groups from 14 to 50 people. A new banquet menu is in place to take care of your next group event. Full service catering is available to serve all your guests needs for a wedding reception, meetings, board retreat or your next family gathering.

The Paul Bunyan Indoor Waterpark onsite is a great way to entertain “chil-dren of all ages.” Passes to the waterpark are included in room rates. Passes can be purchased for day visitors as well. The Gold Mine Arcade is a must to visit for video games and more. The snack bar at the waterpark has great new menu items now too. Plus they have the only indoor/outdoor hot tub in the area. Waterpark Party rooms can be rented for birthday parties, sports teams and more.

Check out the new website at http://arrowwoodbrainerdlodge.com or call them at 218-822-5634 for more details or to ask any questions you may have.

WELCOMEWELCOME

Former Shamp’s Meat Market owner Melissa Van Heerden has passed the torch, and family recipes, to Mary and Mike Styx (right) to make way for the new Fresh Start Meat Market.

shop with the former owners, especially since they were given all the favorite family recipes that attracted people to Shamp’s for years.

“They were in business for 50 years, so they obviously did something right,” Mary Styx said. “We are fortunate enough to be able to get the family recipes. We are going to continue a lot of the products people saw before. We will still have them. We’ll just be adding more variety and different variet-ies. We will have fresh brats soon. There will be a lot of the same, but new things as well.”

The familiar products are considered a major attraction.“We have award-winning brats and jerky,” Michael said.

“Regardless of location, it’s also about customer service. That will be something we’ll provide above and beyond. Our products are proven, going on 50 years. Things are only going to improve as we work on the business.”

Former owner Melissa Vanheerden offered to support the new owners if they need instruction or training, but only while the shop is closed.

“It feels wonderful. Mike and Mary couldn’t be a better couple to take this over. They have passion and desire to do this. That makes me feel in touch with them and makes me feel good,” Vanheerden said. “I know I can entrust them with the recipes, so I’m happy to show them how and give them over. It’s been a good transition.”

NEW SERVICESThe new owners have maintained many of the same tradi-

tions the shop has always been known for. The shop will offer deer processing and rental of specialty cooking devices.

They even named their mascot, a pig-shaped barbecue grill out front of the shop, with the help of customer votes.

Over time the couple intends to build an addition so farm-ers can bring live animals to the facility and leave with the processed meat. Michael and Mary Styx also have licensing

with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, allowing them to work with local farmers on meat processing. They even have the capability of processing meat at individual farms.

Another new service they have offered is their online “pro-vision planning” service for out-of-towners visiting with family.

“Basically, let us do the shopping for you, including all your meat goods, some of your dry goods. If you want Fresh Start to get your whole package, we can do that,” Michael Styx said.

“It’s exciting,” Mary Styx said. “We’re nervous and hop-ing we can continue the same family quality and traditions. We’ve been doing family business for the past �ve years and want to continue that. It was going to be their 50th year, so we want to continue the tradition and keep the same or better quality in customer service.”

In July, Michael Styx said the opening was a big success.“The opening went very well,” he said. “The people of the

community have been very supportive. They’ve been doing the one eye look, making sure this is what they want to see… We’re selling about 400 pounds a week of our fresh ground hamburger.“

Since the beginning, Michael Styx said the freshness has been a major attraction to the Fresh Start.

“We have probably the freshest product around,” he said. “We have deliveries every day. We aren’t into storing meat. We are into buying fresh meat and selling fresh meat. We recently started selling fresh brats, and we can’t keep them on the shelf, which is a great product to have.”

He said the business has also integrated itself into the community, helping other businesses with promotions and helping businesses and charities with fundraisers. Overall, the Fresh Start Meat Market found a very welcoming community.TRAVIS GRIMLER may be reached at travis.grimler@pineandlakes.com or 218-855-5853. Follow at www.twitter.com/PEJ_Travis on Twitter.

FRESH START MEATS, From Page S60

Former Shamp’s Meat Market owner Melissa Van Heerden has passed Former Shamp’s Meat Market owner Melissa Van Heerden has passed Former Shamp’s Meat Market owner Melissa Van Heerden has passed Former Shamp’s Meat Market owner Melissa Van Heerden has passed the torch, and family recipes, to Mary and Mike Styx (right) to make way

shop with the former owners, especially since they were given all the favorite family recipes that attracted people to We’ve been do-

ing family busi-

ness for the past �ve

years and want to con-

tinue that. It was going

to be their 50th year, so

we want to continue the

tradition and keep the

same or better quality in

customer service.MARY STYX

Flea Market FEVER

SHOPPERS GAIN MORE THAN GOOD DEALS AT COMMUNITY MARKETPLACESPhotos by Kelly Humphrey • kelly.humphrey@brainerddispatch.com

FLEA MARKETS www.brainerddispatch.comS62 September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015

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Thank you to our associates for

their dedication and commitment to

helping over 6 million Americans save

for the future. Your hard work has

contributed to our continued success.

Brainerd Lakes Communityin the

A career you value. A company that values you.TM

Find your opportunity with a leader in financial services at careers.ascensus.com. 415 8th Ave NE, Brainerd, MN

Ascensus® and the Ascensus logo are registered trademarks of Ascensus, Inc. “A career you value. A company that values you.TM” is a trademark of Ascensus, Inc. Copyright ©2015 Ascensus, Inc. All rights reserved.

Ascensus Named to the Inc. 5000 List

of Fastest-Growing Private Companies in U.S.

Advertorial

For more than 30 years, Ascensus, one of the largest employers in Crow Wing County, has been helping over 6 million Americans save for retirement and col-lege savings.

The company was recently named to the 34th annual Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing private companies in the United States. The Inc. 5000 is considered one of America’s most prestigious lists and represents a comprehensive look at a key segment of the economy – America’s private businesses.

Ascensus was recognized for its 93 per-cent revenue growth from 2011 to 2014. The company’s success contributes to continued hiring in Brainerd and its other locations. This is great news for not only Ascensus associates, but also the commu-nities in which they live.

Steve Schaitberger, vice president of client services at Ascensus, attributes this recent growth to a few factors, including the hard work and professionalism of the associates.

“We really do have a culture of service here, and our people really make the difference,” Schaitberger said. “Our busi-ness model is complex and each client requires a different type of support. Our people are able to develop relationships and help clients with their needs and re-tain their business, which earns their trust and brings us more business.”

Ascensus has been named a Top Work-place by the Star Tribune for two years in a row, 2014 and 2015. The company encourages its employees to volunteer in the community and is active in many or-ganizations, including Camp Confi dence, Junior Achievement, Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, and more.

“It’s a professional work environment that people enjoy coming to every day,” Schaitberger said of Ascensus. “We only

succeed through our associates, and we thank them for their hard work. It’s a complex business we’re in, and we ap-preciate their dedication and efforts to help us grow and retain our business.”

Ascensus is headquartered in Penn-sylvania and has over 1,400 associates who work in 11 locations throughout the country, including 425 associates who work at its Brainerd offi ces. Ascensus is the nation’s largest independent services provider of retirement and college sav-ings plans, supporting over 1.7 million retirement plan participants and admin-istering over 3.3 million 529 college sav-ings accounts and over 1.5 million IRAs and HSAs.

By JODIE TWEED

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Steve Schaitberger

Melissa Boons-

tra (left) talks to

customer Wendy

Famodu (right)

while Amina

Beres (left center)

and Carlotta Posz

pick out incense

at Boonstra’s

booth at the Niss-

wa �ea market.

Some come for the bargains. Others to socialize or spend

time with family. But if there is one thing �ea market

fanatics can agree on, it’s the fun, stress-relieving atmo-

sphere that keeps them coming back.

This year, enthusiasts saw their options expand as at least two com-munities once again are hosts to the popular treasure-hunting destina-tions. In Nisswa, an outdoor market is making a comeback, while in Brainerd, a recently opened indoor market is bringing together ven-dors who once sold at the �ea market located at the former Ben Frank-lin building on Highway 210.

Resident Nancy Jacobson is responsible for resurrecting the �ea market in Nisswa. She and sister Cheri Brandt maintain a market booth together and hoped to sell their items closer to home after spending a few years traveling as far as Annandale.

Although Jacobson said she never intended to lead the charge to bring the �ea market back after its extended absence, months later she continues to work on �nding new vendors and spreading the word.

“My sister and I just love to do garage sale-ing and �nding a deal

and upcycling things,” Jacobson said. “(We) get to spend the day to-gether. My mom and my other sister show up sometimes, too.”

On a morning in early August, both local residents and summer vis-itors poked through merchandise at the �ea market located on Smiley Road, just off of Highway 371. The wares included everything from used board games to handmade beauty products to antique tools, of-ten representative of what the vendors themselves collect.

Carol Meyers, Joanne Butler and Mary Henderson are three area sisters who’ve long enjoyed the tradition of shopping at �ea markets together. Carrying a small watercolor print of a cardinal and a new shirt she intended to wear on the boat later that day, Meyers described herself as a “lifelong scrounger.”

“It’s the social aspects of it and seeing what everybody’s got,” Mey-ers said. “It satis�es a little bit of my curiosity, and it’s fun, you can always �nd a treasure.”

It’s a treasure Meyers and Henderson stumbled upon years earlier at the previous Nisswa �ea market location that’s the stuff of legends among the sisters. While perusing a box of jewelry and other odds and ends, Meyers

By CHELSEY PERKINSStaff Writer

It’s the

social as-

pects of it and

seeing what

everybody’s

got. It satis�es

a little bit of my

curiosity, and

it’s fun, you can

always �nd a

treasure.CAROL MEYERS, FLEA MARKET SHOPPER

“My sister and I just love to do garage sale-ing and �nding a deal See FLEA MARKET FEVER Page S63

Some come for the bargains. Others to socialize or spend

time with family. But if there is one thing �ea market

fanatics can agree on, it’s the fun, stress-relieving atmo

sphere that keeps them coming back.

This year, enthusiasts saw their options expand as at least two communities once again are hosts to the popular treasure-hunting destina

Melissa Boons-

tra (left) talks to

customer Wendy

Famodu (right)

FLEA MARKETS www.brainerddispatch.com September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015 S63

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Park Avenue School ofCosmetology meets local demand

for skilled cosmetologists

Advertorial

There is a tremendous demand for skilled cosmetologists in the Brainerd lakes area as area salons and spas con-tinue to search for new employees.

So when students graduate from Park Avenue School of Cosmetology in Brain-erd, the reality is that they often have one or more jobs waiting for them after they complete the 11-month program and earn their cosmetology license through the state.

Kristine Walsh, Director of Park Avenue School of Cosmetology, offers programs in Brainerd, Park Rapids and Alexandria, said although her school cannot guarantee a job for students after they graduate, they do everything possible to fi nd them opportu-nities to apply for.

The school’s nationally accredited cosmetology program takes 1,550 hours to complete, and students enroll full time, attending class from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. They can earn certifi cations in esthetics and nail technol-ogy or earn a certifi cation in cosmetology, which includes hair, skin and nail services. They are then eligible to take the state board exam. After graduation from the 11-month program, which can be started at the beginning of any month, students have many options, whether it is working for a corporate chain store or an indepen-dent salon. Many choose to move into their own businesses and build a salon in their home or booth rent, Walsh said.

“I think this career as a whole is incred-ibly fl exible,” Walsh said of a cosmetol-ogy degree. “There is good money to be made in this industry. It’s a job that offers fl exibilities and many opportunities. They can really make it a lifelong career.”

The school has been in Brainerd for the past 3-1/2 years, and being local allows students to remain living in their commu-nity instead of having to relocate in order to earn the degree. The Brainerd program graduates about 30 students each year. Walsh opened the Park Rapids location ten years ago and the Alexandria program opened a year ago.

The school starts students once a month at each of their locations, which helps students get in school as soon as they can and complete their degree in 11 months. Some students choose to start in June, right after they graduate from high school, and then they are ready to graduate with their cosmetology certifi cation in May, at the prime hiring time for many salons and spas. Many students are older and have families and jobs that they work in

with going to school. They have students of all ages.

But hav-ing students graduate at various times also doesn’t fl ood the local market and

gives them fl exibility to start when they can.

Students are able to apply for fi nancial aid, as they would at a college or universi-ty, and the school will help them through the process.

Students not only learn technical skills, but also soft skills, such as customer service, being on time and job interview-ing skills, which are necessary when they graduate.

Park Avenue School of Cosmetology also operates a full-service student salon, where all their services are performed by the students at a discounted rate.

Haircuts are $5 and a basic manicure is $12, for example. They use professional salon products, including Matrix/Biolage for shampoo and conditioning, OPI for nail services and Scruples, a Minnesota company, for hair color services.

“Students get the best education possible when they get to practice on real hair and real nails, and to encour-age more clients, we have regular salon services at great low prices,” Walsh said. “It takes a little longer than at a regular sa-lon, because students also have multiple service checks done by educators, but in the end, the educator will make sure that the clients get what they wanted.”

Visit www.parkavenuecosmetology.com to look over the lengthy menu of hair, nail and skin services provided by students, or to learn more about the programs.

By JODIE TWEED

have families and jobs that they work in

Items for sale sit out at a booth at the Crosslake-Ideal Lions �ea market. Jean Mudderman owns Downtown Treasures, a Brainerd indoor market and consignment shop.

noticed a St. Christopher medal and picked it up to look closer.“My sister Carol (Meyers) picked up the medal and said,

‘This has your name on it,’” Henderson recalled.At that moment, Henderson realized she’d seen that very

medal before: when she had it engraved — with “I love you - Mary” — as a gift for an old boyfriend nearly 30 years earlier. She and the boyfriend broke up a month later, Henderson said, and she never expected to see a memento of their relationship again.

“I asked him (the vendor) where he got it, and the guy said, ‘I think it was from a pawn shop in St. Paul,’” Henderson said. “He said, ‘That’s been with me all over the country.’”

In front of a booth nearby, Beryl Bissell had just purchased a jar of all-natural bath salts she hoped would soothe her hus-band’s cramps. Bissell was on her annual pilgrimage to the Brainerd lakes area, where she and other former travel writing classmates have gathered at the cabin of writer Catherine Wat-son for each of the last 15 years.

“This is a once-a-year thing, that we come and we sort of go all around this area, hitting all the �ea markets and antique shops,” Bissell said. “My friends love to do this, and I like to be with them.”

Further down the way, Mike and Hiede Benedict of Brainerd manned a set of tables covered with secondhand �nds. What began as a way to pay off college for Mike Benedict turned into a full-blown hobby for the couple, whose offerings are aimed at those headed to the lake for the weekend.

“You have a little bit of everything,” Hiede Benedict said. “You have to have toys because people have kids with, and games and puzzles for at the lake, or movies at the lake for the bad weather.”

The Benedicts did not participate in �ea markets for a few years following the closure of the indoor Brainerd �ea market. During the same time, Hiede Benedict learned she suffered

from Hodgkin lymphoma, a cancer of the immune system, which made it even more dif�cult for the couple to maintain their passion.

With Hiede Benedict now cancer-free, the pair jumped at the opportunity to participate in the newly rejuvenated Nisswa �ea market.

“I’m a people person,” Hiede Benedict said. “You get to meet a lot of cool people. I like to shop and garage sale, so this is a way I get to do it, but don’t end up with a house full of junk.”

“I mean, high-quality merchandise,” she added with a smirk.Jacobson and others are hopeful the revived market will

continue to attract new vendors and shoppers to its location along the northbound lanes of Highway 371. Twenty minutes away on County Road 66 in Crosslake, a �ea market run by the Crosslake-Ideal Lions is in its fourth year, bustling with nearly 50 booths each month.

“This location in Crosslake has been really good,” Doreen Gallaway, co-chair of the market, said. “We’ve had really good vendors with good products and lots of good selections. It helps all the other stores in town, too, because people are here.”

Gallaway and husband Scott Gallaway, president of the Li-ons club, arrive early in the morning the third Saturday of the month to ensure setup is underway.

“It’s really a cool community event,” Doreen Gallaway said. “It’s totally social. People will stand and talk for hours, perfect strangers.”

Over in Brainerd, 72-year-old Jean Mudderman is the propri-etor of the newly opened Downtown Treasures, an indoor �ea market featuring 36 vendors. The store is a way for Mudderman to foster her passion for bargain hunting while also, she hopes, giving her the independence she desires after two retirements.

“I want my money to start working for me, instead of me working for somebody else,” Mudderman said.

Flea markets were once an activity Mudderman and her late husband enjoyed together while living in Texas, where he searched for �xer-upper lawnmowers and interesting guns and she for bells and thimbles.

“We used to go to the �ea markets just about every week-end, sometimes just to have something to do, and other times to look for speci�c items,” she said. “We both enjoyed browsing through each vendor’s booth to see what they had and try to �nd bargains.”

Mudderman saw a need for Downtown Treasures after the previous indoor market closed, and through advertising and word-of-mouth, she gathered vendors who once sold together there to open booths in her store.

“We’ve got a good variety. That’s what I like to see in a �ea market, where people can come in and �nd a lot of things in one place,” Mudderman said. “People just like to come in here to just spend time and relax and shop.”CHELSEY PERKINS may be reached at 218-855-5874 or chelsey.perkins@brainerddispatch.com. Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/DispatchChelsey.

FLEA MARKET FEVER, From Page S62

Photo by Kelly Humphrey • kelly.humphrey@brainerddispatch.com Photo by Steve Kohls • steve.kohls@brainerddispatch.com

Items for sale sit out at a booth at the Crosslake-Ideal Lions �ea market. Jean Mudderman owns Downtown Treasures, a Brainerd indoor market and consignment shop.

Flea MarketsFUN FACT: According to the Oxford Uni-

versity Press, the term “�ea market” origi-nates from the French “marché aux puces,” the name of a market in Paris that specialized in secondhand goods “of the kind that might contain �eas.” The term �rst appeared in the Oxford English Dictionary in 1922.

FO RYO U R IN F O

www.brainerddispatch.comS64 September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015

5 6 5 2 C o R d 1 8 , N i s s w a , M N 5 6 4 6 8 | ( 2 1 8 ) 9 6 3 - 2 5 7 5 | w w w. v i k i n g l a b e l . c o m

Viking Label & Packaging extends a sincere THANK YOU to each of our 51 fantastic employees!

Your dedication and commitment to excellence is second to none! We wish you and your families a safe and

enjoyable Labor Day holiday!

PRODUCTIONViking Label excels in meeting the challenges of demanding delivery schedules. We are able to manage these challenges through continued improvement initiatives, utilizing just-in-time suppliers, and implementing the Six Sigma methodology.

COATINGS:Aqueous or UVAdhesive PatterningLaminating

PRINTING METHODS:FlexographyUV FlexographyDigital

MATERIALS:PaperPrime FilmFoilTagNon PSPressure Sensitive

4 Color Process12 Color CapabilityCold Foil StampingSequential Numbering &

BarcodeEmbossingMulti-Panel BookletsIRC CouponsCustom Die CuttingBackprintingRoll Form/Sheet Form/

FanfoldedOnsertShimmer TechnologiesRotary Screen Printing

C A PA B I L I T I E S :

001295413r1

Viking Label & Packaging celebrates 50 years in business in Nisswa

Advertorial

NISSWA – Viking Label & Packaging celebrates its 50th Anniversary this year!

While their printed labels are every-where – from food, beverage, synthet-ic oil labels and even your fi shing line labels – many people still don’t realize that the business is right in Nisswa. Their customers are located throughout the country, but predominantly the upper Midwest. Clients include Jennie-O, Bar-rel O’Fun, AMSOIL, Berkley Pure Fishing and Highlights for Children magazine, to name a few.

“If it weren’t for the semi-trucks com-ing in and out of here, no one would know we exist,” said Kim Larson, Sales Manager and Director at Viking. “All of our parking is in back and what most people see is this quiet building.”

Viking Label was founded in 1965 by the late Ed Decker. Decker had retired from 3M in the scotch tape division and had moved up to Nisswa. Rumor has it, he got bored during retirement and put a printing press in a small building that is now home to Viking Label. He owned Viking until 1990 when current owners Tom Wetrosky and Don Engen purchased the company.

Viking has 51 employees; most are located in the Nisswa facility. There are three sales people in the Twin Cit-ies metro area and one in Kansas City, Kansas. They have products in nearly all 50 states, although their main presence is in the upper Midwest. Viking offers Flexographic and Digital printing with many custom options for materials, ad-hesives, decorations and coatings. The entire process from graphics through production is done in their Nisswa facil-ity, giving them complete control of the process from start to fi nish.

What sets Viking apart is the work eth-ic of their employees and the quality of work that they produce. Viking strives to build long-term relationships with their customers, working hard to consistently meet their customer’s needs.

Viking Label’s customer service rep-resentatives are easy to work with and offer the industry knowledge that is im-

portant. If your company needs a qual-ity label within a specifi c budget, then Viking Label’s job is to fi gure that out for you.

Selecting the right label for your appli-cation is one of the many factors to con-sider when developing custom labels. Viking has the knowledge and experi-ence to help businesses select materials that would best suit your projects. La-beling provides brand consistency and distinction to differentiate one product from the next.

Viking runs two production shifts, 6:30am-3pm and 3pm-2am during the week with the fl exibility to schedule over-time on week-ends. While the biggest segment of their business has been Flexo-graphic printing, they now have several clients in-terested in digi-tal printing, which offers quality print, small run sizes, and low up-front costs. Viking Label added a digital press three years ago.

“It’s been a good segue into other opportunities for us,” Larson said of the digital press. “We are able to offer smaller quantity orders for all types of clients at a fair cost. He added, “there will always be a need for traditional Flexo presses, which give clients more fl exibility when selecting materials, ad-hesives, and decorative technologies for all labeling needs.”

This year Viking celebrates 50 years in business. There are several employees

that have been with Viking for over 20 of those years. In fact, the 51 employees bring a total of over 640 years of experience, that’s an average of 12.5 years per employee!

“We’ve got the best crew around, there’s no doubt about it. Their dedica-tion and com-

mitment to excellence is second to none!” Larson said. “It’s a fun place to work, everyday brings new challenges and opportunities for improvement in

all departments. It’s that TEAM attitude that has led to 50 years of success for Viking Label!”

After a half-Century of service, Viking Label is positioned to grow, ready to meet the demands and changes that lie ahead for the company’s next fi fty years. Visit their website at vikinglabel.com to fi nd out how their employees can as-sist your business with all its custom labeling needs.

By JODIE TWEED

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We’ve got the best crew around, there’s no doubt about it. Their dedication

and commitment to excellence is second

to none!~ Kim Larson

“

”

MERRIFIELD — Upon entering The Woods

on Crow Wing County Road 3 between

Brainerd and Merri�eld, a person may feel

like they’re entering a forest.

The Woods — the former Chaparral Bar and Restaurant and Timbermist con-sisting of a bar, restaurant, hotel and event center — was not remodeled to look like the average lodging business. The Woods has walls in the seating area made to look like a wood pile and it is in fact a wood pile nailed and glued togeth-er. There’s a wall separating the entrance from the bar and restaurant made of birch trees that came from the woods in the back portion of the property. Tree slabs also grace the top walls of the bar where TVs are enclosed. The beer taps are held up from the ceiling by a concrete creation that’s covered to look like wooden branches and vines.

A large oak tree was split in half to create a wet bar on the outdoor patio and a vertical liquor bottle holder in the bar located indoors.

Everywhere a person looks on the 11-acre property, is a story The Woods owners — Luke and Terri Ebnet — could tell.

“Luke is full of ideas,” Terri Ebnet said of her husband. “We have done so much already on the property and we still have a lot more things we want to do.”

Creating The Woods is the �rst restaurant/bar/event cen-ter the Ebnets have ever undertaken. The Ebnets are not from the Brainerd lakes area, but have traveled through the lakes area to get to their cabin in Hackensack for many years. Luke Ebnet owned a rental car company in Minne-apolis but he sold the business. Terri Ebnet said they are too young to retire and were looking for a new adventure.

“We saw the restaurant up for sale and we loved the property and the opportunity that came with it,” she said. “And we don’t do anything small.”

And when people see the property they may agree the Ebnets don’t do anything small. The Ebnets wanted to do

weddings on the 11-acre property — not just the wedding receptions. The Ebnets created a wedding venue behind the restaurant and bar in a wooded area. Their outdoor gazebo also is unique. The large gazebo, made out of concrete,

looks like tree branches and vines to go with the woods in the background of where the ceremony would be held. The �rst wedding on-site was this past May. When a wedding takes place, The Woods staff get the venue ready and place the classic, white plastic outdoor chairs for seating on the grass. The venue seats 350 people. The bride and groom and their wedding party have a stamped concrete walkway bordered with colorful �owers and plants.

And the wedding party can stay right on site, in The Woods hotel, which has 12 rooms and a junior suite con-sisting of two bedrooms. There also is a four-bedroom guest house for rent that sleeps 10-12 people comfortably.

“We offer a very nice, affordable wedding for people here,” Terri Ebnet said. “This is a nice place to relax, be outdoors and we strive for good food and good service.”

The Ebnets purchased the property in June of 2014 and opened the restaurant July 3, 2014. The �rst thing the Eb-nets did was gut the restaurant — their main focus. They re-modeled the entire restaurant and updated it to follow their woods theme. They added the wood pile walls, and other wood accents around the entrance, dining area and bar.

See THE WOODS Page S70The Woods owners Luke and Terri Ebnet pose in the wed-

ding area of the property.

Photos by Steve Kohls • steve.kohls@brainerddispatch.com

The outdoor wedding gazebo at The Woods is

made of cement, and the �nished product looks like

tree branches and vines to go with the woods in the background.

Progress EditionB R A I N E R D L A K E S A R E A

B R A I N E R D D I S P A T C H L A B O R D A Y S P E C I A L

www.brainerddispatch.com SERVING THE BRAINERD LAKES AREA AND CENTRAL MINNESOTA SINCE 1881 September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015

MERRIFIELD — Upon entering The Woods “We saw the restaurant up for sale and we loved the

THE WOODS — more than a restaurant and bar

MERRIFIELD — Upon entering The Woods

on Crow Wing County Road 3 between

Brainerd and Merri�eld, a person may feel

like they’re entering a forest.

The Woods — the former Chaparral Bar and Restaurant and Timbermist con

MERRIFIELD — Upon entering The Woods MERRIFIELD — Upon entering The Woods

oggggB R A I N E R D

www.brainerddispatch.com SERVING

FORMER CHAP HAS NEW OWNERS, NEW STYLE

By JENNIFER STOCKINGERStaff Writer

Brainerd and Merri�eld, a person may feel

The Woods — the former Chaparral Bar and Restaurant and Timbermist con-sisting of a bar, restaurant, hotel and event center — was not remodeled to look like the average lodging business. The Woods has walls in the seating area made to look like a wood

And when people see the property they may agree the Ebnets don’t do anything small. The Ebnets wanted to do

weddings on the 11-acre property — not just the wedding receptions. The Ebnets created a wedding venue behind the restaurant and bar in a wooded area. Their outdoor gazebo also is unique. The large gazebo, made out of concrete,

looks like tree branches and vines to go with the woods in

By JENNIFER STOCKINGERStaff Writer

By JENNIFER STOCKINGERStaff Writer

By JENNIFER STOCKINGER

C CHAP HAS

OWNERS,

3-2-1 BOUNCE — A PLACE FOR KIDS TO BURN OFF ENERGY

RECREATION www.brainerddispatch.comS66 September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015

Celebrating 30 Years!

Thank you to our employees and

customers over the past 3 decades,

have a safe and happy Labor Day!

14305 Edgewood Dr., Baxter, MN 56425218-829-0770 | ldadmin@uslink.net

www.TheLightDepot.com

beau� � lbeau� � lbeau� � lbeau� � lRustic, Lodge & Northwoods Lighting | Patio & Home Furnishings | Department 56 & Holiday

The Light Depot is the area’s premier lighting show-room. We have many lighting products to choose from, including chandeliers, fans, table and fl oor lamps, pen-dants, outdoor lighting, kitchen and bath lighting, pic-

tures, mirrors, accent furniture and much more! We hope you’ll visit us at our store. Our sta� of lighting and home furnishings consultants will warmly welcome you to our

establishment. Whether it is a single light fi xture or a larger project, we provide services to fi t your needs.

� e Light Depot celebrates 30 years in business in the

Brainerd lakes area

Advertorial

By JODIE TWEED

Sue K., Jordan M., Margaret M.

Rick Mileski, Owner

001296990r1

Since 1978, the Light Depot of Baxter has been the area’s premier lighting showroom, providing customers with lighting options that fi t every style, home and need.

Rick Mileski serves as company president and has owned the business since 1985. The Light Depot has relocated three times due to business expansion and growth. Their current building, located at 14305 Edgewood Drive in Baxter, was built and designed specifi cally for the lighting business.

While many com-panies that rely on the housing industry were struck hard by the 2008 housing market crash, The Light Depot survived the economic downfall because of their high quality customer service and outstanding product lines.

While The Light Depot is best known for its lighting, they do sell more than light fi xtures, including:

Home décor • FurnitureMattresses/bed framesJewelry • Christmas décorDepartment 56 Landscape lighting • Ceiling fansOutdoor patio furniture (Homecrest, Tele-

scope)The Light Depot also repairs light fi xtures

and lamps. Lighting is a key element within a home.

The lighting can change the mood of the room, and make the room appear large or small. Lighting placement and the types of fi xtures are also an integral part of a room’s interior design. The right lighting and fi xtures, along with the right furniture and color selections, can transform a room into a beautiful display of style and function.

The Light Depot carries lighting fi xtures of all styles, including:

Modern • Industrial • TransitionalClassic • Crystal • Up North/woodsyIf you can’t fi nd the lighting fi xture you’re

looking for at The Light Depot, then you won’t be able to fi nd it anywhere.

“As the owner of The Light Depot, I strive to provide our customers with the most diverse and extensive selection of lighting in Minnesota,” said Mileski. “I complement this with indoor and outdoor home furnish-ings, home accessories and women’s fashion to provide our clientele with a unique shop-

ping experience. We focus on welcoming our customers to the store in a prompt, courteous and pro-fessional manner.”

The Light Depot works with hundreds of different ven-dors, including Troy, Kichler, Elk, Craft-

made and Capital, to name a few.

The Baxter company also sells its products nation-wide through its website, www.thelightdepot.com. You can fi nd them on Facebook at www.face-book.com/thelightdepot. The company also has a

Pinterest account where they pin photo-graphs that inspire them at the Baxter store. They hope they will inspire their customers to fi nd fi xtures and home décor that speaks to them. Visit their Pinterest page at www.pinterest.com/thelightdepot.

“Celebrating our 30-year anniversary al-lows me to pause and refl ect on the changes, the successes, and the challenges that we have experienced over this time,” added Mileski. “My business grew from a small rent-al space in downtown Brainerd in the Iron Horse Plaza to the current 20,000 square-foot destination showroom in Baxter. We are very grateful for the thousands of customers who allowed us to help light and decorate their homes, cabins and retreats! With the addition of the internet and the ‘Digital Age,’ our store now sells to homes across the Unit-ed States and into the Caribbean.

I want to say ‘Thank you’ to all my cus-tomers, my staff and business associates for supporting and growing with The Light De-pot to help us reach this great milestone!”

BAXTER — The name of the busi-

ness is 3-2-1 Bounce and that’s

what children do when they walk

through the doors.

They count down from three and start bouncing. 3-2-1 Bounce is �lled with in-�atable bounce houses for children and adults, but it’s geared mainly for children age 12 and under. 3-2-1 Bounce opened its doors May 1 on Audubon Way, off Highway 371 in Baxter.

There are �ve in�atable bounce hous-es which include a bouncy obstacle course; a double slide bounce house that is 16-feet tall; two smaller bounce hous-es geared for toddlers; and an obstacle course with a basketball hoop.

Owners Dan and Jennifer Petrie opened the business after moving to the area three years ago because they felt the

Jennifer and Dan Petrie recently pose with

their �ve children on one of the in�atable

bounce houses at 3-2-1 Bounce in Baxter.

Their children are Jadon (front left), 12, Jay,

12, Jennifer Petrie (back, left), Hunter, 2,

Jera, 9, Hailey, 7, and Dan Petrie.

Photos by Steve Kohls • steve.kohls@brainerddispatch.com

See BOUNCE Page S67

BAXTER — The name of the busiBAXTER — The name of the busi

ness is 3-2-1 Bounce and that’s

what children do when they walk

through the doors.

They count down from three and start bouncing. 3-2-1 Bounce is �lled with in

Jennifer and Dan Petrie recently pose with

their �ve children on one of the in�atable

bounce houses at 3-2-1 Bounce in Baxter.

Their children are Jadon (front left), 12, Jay,

12, Jennifer Petrie (back, left), Hunter, 2,

Jera, 9, Hailey, 7, and Dan Petrie.

See BOUNCE

By JENNIFER STOCKINGERStaff Writer

RECREATION www.brainerddispatch.com September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015 S67

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Parish Nurse Joy Nordby cares for Woodland, Bethany

Good Samaritan residents

Advertorial

A blood pressure cuff, some exercise bands and a few devotional books are the tools for the job.

Good Samaritan Society Parish Nurse Joy Nordby has enough experience to know what she needs to carry with her to do her job well each day. But, she said, it takes more than just the physical tools to be successful as a nurse, and that is where a workplace’s mission and values become important.

Good Samaritan Society – Woodland Administrator Jennifer Grams agreed.

“Anytime you are caring for people, you need to have a workforce that can see beyond themselves,” Grams said. “They need to have shared values --things we all think are important and can expect from each other.”

Good Samaritan Society lifts up eight traits they support as an organization, encouraging staff to celebrate co-workers strengths in these areas, fi nd their own areas of giftedness, and strive to help each other focus on them at work each day.

As Nordby said so eloquently, “Who doesn’t want to work for a place that thinks joy, compassion, acceptance, perseverance, love, humility, courage, and honesty should be the foundation for everything we do?”

Nordby knows a thing or two about the Good Samaritan Society mission. She has been with the organization off and

on for more than 35 years. In that time she has cared for residents, trained in new staff, and helped families through big transitions. Today she is the local Parish Nurse Coordinator, serving as an offi cial member of the welcome wagon for new residents, offering blood pres-sure readings for independent apartment residents and teaching faith and fi tness classes.

“I love being able to come to work and share my faith. It is not for everyone. But, I love that it is a big part of who we are, whether it is just the quiet founda-tion within us as we go about our work, or if you are like me – and like to sit and share a prayer out loud with someone,” Nordby said. “This place meets you where you are at.”

Grams added, “It’s true. And, regard-less of faith, our eight traits are gener-ally recognized as essential qualities for people living and working together and have been a good guideline for what to expect when you come to live or work at Good Samaritan Society. It is the chal-lenge we try to live up to each day.”

Good Samaritan Society – Commu-nities of Brainerd has more than 350 employees between its two Brainerd campuses at Woodland and Bethany. To learn more, visit their website at good-sam.com/BrainerdLakes.

By JODIE TWEED

001288572r1

Brainerd lakes area needed to have a fun place for children to go to burn off their energy. The couple has �ve children: Jadon and Jay, 12; Jera, 9, Hailey, 7; and Hunter, 2.

Jennifer Petrie runs the business with a staff of �ve. Dan Petrie helps out, but his main job is as a general contractor for Five Star Home Improvement.

“We wanted to open this business for families,” said Jen-nifer Petrie, who wanted a place to go with her own chil-dren. “We wanted a place for kids to go wild, have fun and to bounce. Kids here have free reign and can burn off all their energy.

“Our kids love it here.”3-2-1 Bounce also has a party room, an adult sitting area

with tables and a toddler play area that includes a mini slide and a mini bounce house. The Petries host Toddler Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. for toddlers to bounce for $2 during the school year.

The business opens at 10 a.m. daily and closes at 7 p.m. Sunday through Thursday. Friday and Saturday the business closes at 8 p.m.

The Petries offer several birthday packages for fami-lies, which include no decorations, plain decorations and themed-decorations, such as decorating the room with “Fro-zen” party favors. Party packages run from $129-$219 and in-cludes one hour of bouncing time for 10 kids and 45 minutes in the party room.

General pricing is $7 for children ages 4-16; $4 for tod-dlers 3 and under; and one adult is free per paid child; addi-tional adults, $2.

“For birthday parties we will have an employee help round up the kids, light candles, serve pizzas, do the setup and cleanup and take care of anything else that is needed,” Jennifer Petrie said.

Petrie said people who come to 3-2-1 Bounce can bring their own food, but they offer affordable items, such as piz-zas, string cheese, juice boxes, chips, pop, water, candy and fruit snacks.

“We’ve been pretty busy since we opened in May,” said Petrie. “We think winter will be crazy busy.”

Petrie said she does not have a daycare license, but par-ents can drop their children off and leave if they stay in the building. The building houses Fitquest, El Tequila Mexican Restaurant and Salon Seven.

“Parents can drop their kids off here and go work out or have dinner while their kids burn off energy,” Petrie said.

The Petries’ children are as excited as their parents for the success of their new business. The older children said they like the obstacle course the best. Hailey said she likes to play hide and seek with her siblings at the bounce house.

“This is one business where the kids don’t mind if they have to come to work with me,” Jennifer Petrie said. “We have a good time and this is the perfect place for kids to burn

off all their energy.”JENNIFER STOCKINGER may be reached at jennifer.stockinger@brainerddispatch.com or 218-855-5851. Follow me at www.twitter.com/jennewsgirl on Twitter.

BOUNCE, From Page S66

We wanted to

open this busi-

ness for families. We

wanted a place for kids

to go wild, have fun and

to bounce. Kids here

have free reign and can

burn off all their energy.

Our kids love it here.JENNIFER PETRIE

com/jennewsgirl on Twitter.

3-2-1 Bounce• Hours: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday through

Thursday; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

• Location: 15840 Audubon Way, Baxter.• Number of employees: Five, plus the

owners.• Cost: General pricing is $7 for children

ages 4-16; $4 for toddlers 3 and under; and one adult is free per paid child; addi-tional adults, $2.

FO RYO U R IN F O

Friendly neighborhood

CHOPPERSBRAINERD

HELICOPTER SERVICE GOES

INTERNATIONAL

HELICOPTER SERVICE www.brainerddispatch.comS68 September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015

THIS WAS THE

First South Sixth Street Home shown in the early 1920s

1996

1990

1881 First edition: Dec. 22, 1881 (weekly)

Composing room at 215 South Sixth Street offi ce in 1968Second South Sixth Street building

Dedicated employees as well as loyal readers and advertisers have kept Brainerd Dispatch the Brainerd community newspaper for over 130 years!

THANK YOU! Happy Labor Day!

Brainerd DailyDispatch

1990- The Brainerd Dispatch moves to

506 James St.

1968

1907

1920s

1907 Fire destroys original building. Paper moves to South Sixth Street

1996- The Brainerd Dispatch becomes available on the Internet

Brainerd Dispatch begins engaging socially on the web by creating forums, chat rooms and personals/dating pages

2001

2010s- Brainerd Dispatch gets a Facebook page and a Twitter feed

2010s

Earliest microfi lm issue: Vol II No. 33, published

on Aug. 2, 1883

June 16, 1883, City council votes Brainerd Dispatch as the city’s offi cial newspaper

Over 130 years and we’ve never missed a publication date. EVER.

1883

001281559r1

Brainerd Helicopter Service• Location: Brainerd.

• Number of Employees: 12-15.

• By the numbers: The Bell 206L4 �own by BHS has a maximum cruise speed of 109 knots (203 kilometers an hour), a fuel capacity of 111 gallons and weighs 2,331 pounds. It can carry up to one ton using its cargo hook — approximately 85 percent of its own weight.

FO RYO U R IN F O

The Brainerd Helicopter Service operates out

of a nondescript, unassuming, tan-colored

building near the south edge of the Brainerd

Lakes Regional Airport.

The company’s operations are anything but low-pro�le, however.

Since it began in the 1970s, BHS has fought forest �res, scouted oil pipelines for leaks, �own Twin Cities-based TV journalists over break-ing news stories and transported celebrities to �lm sets. They’ve helped �lm TV shows, including ABC’s “The Bachelor” and the documentary series “In An Instant” (the latter show actually stars one of BHS’s helicopters, which features in a recreation of a helicopter rescue). And BHS helped with production on the North Shore of

Lake Superior for the 1993 psychological thriller “The Good Son.”

Leland “Lee” Andrew, the company’s president, �ew until he was 61 and a heart attack grounded him. At

an age when most people would consid-er retirement, Andrew instead threw his effort behind managing the business’s op-erations, channeling his love of �ying into business acumen.

“That’s no reason to quit,” he said. “I really enjoy it.”

Andrew �nds aviation fascinating because it melds the use of one’s “left” and “right” brains. A good pilot must not only possess a thorough practical knowledge of how their machine works, but must also have strong

See HELICOPTER SERVICE Page S69

Friendly neighborhood

CHOPPERS

By ZACH KAYSERStaff Writer

HELICOPTER SERVICE www.brainerddispatch.com September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015 S69

Proud to be Your Single Source for

Polymer Components for 20 Years!

To all of our employees for theirservice and dedicationthroughout the years.

We wish you and your families a

Happy Labor Day!

20th Anniversary 1995-2015 1995-2015

218-828-5076 I sternindustries.com

Baxter Facility7756 College DriveBaxter, MN 56425

Brainerd Facility1100 Industrial Park Rd SWBrainerd, MN 56401

001288

555r1

After 20 Years In Business, Stern Companies Inc. Continues To Grow

Advertorial

Stern Companies Inc., with facilities in both Brainerd and Baxter, celebrated its 20th year in business this year.

The company was started in 1995 by chief executive offi cer Shawn Hunstad, who had worked at Stern Rubber in Sta-ples and saw an opportunity in providing companies with quality polymer compo-nents, not solely rubber parts. Through-out the years, the company has built a strong supplier base, along with its own in-house rotational molding and assembly facilities, to provide their clients with qual-ity products, along with professional guidance and expertise.

Knowledge comes through a lifetime of learning and doing. Stern Companies employees bring several lifetimes of com-bined experiences, knowledge, and ex-pertise in the rubber and plastics industry. Along with their supplier’s expertise, they have an infi nite knowledge base.

Some of their biggest clients include Polaris and Arctic Cat, but Stern employ-ees have their hands in developing qual-ity components for all types of products for large or small companies throughout the United States, including Canada. When you need a rubber or plastic product, Stern is there to help from idea through production, or any step along the way.

Today Stern Companies Inc. has ap-proximately 60 employees in Brainerd and Baxter. This year they purchased two new machines at the Brainerd rotomold-ing facility, which has helped the com-pany gain more business in this area and better service their existing clients.

When a client has a project that requires a new rubber or polymer part,

Stern has the ability to not only fi nd the right molder for their project, but the right materials for the job. They work hard to fi nd affordable solutions within their client’s tight deadlines. Sometimes it’s that one polymer component that is the key to solving an even greater problem.

Stern is an ISO 9001 Registered company, meaning they demonstrate the

ability to consistently provide their custom-ers with products and services that meet the applicable statutory and regulatory require-ments while enhancing customer satisfaction through the effec-tive application of the system.

Stern Companies would like to thank all their employees for the tremendous job they’ve done this year in working hard to meet and exceed company goals. The corporate goal for on-time delivery is a 95-percent rate, and employees have reached a 99 percent on-time rate, explained Jenny Ahonen, marketing coordinator at Stern Companies.

“Our employees are doing an amazing job with driving quality and effi ciency rates to an all-time high for the Compa-ny”, added Ahonen. “We’ve received so much positive feedback from customers and management on what the employees have been able to accomplish this year in keeping with our corporate goals.”

The future at Stern Companies is brighter than ever.

“We wouldn’t be where we are today without all the wonderful, dedicated people that have been a part of our his-tory. Thank you for being on this journey with us.”

By JODIE TWEED

001288

560r1

creative instincts so they can think extemporaneously while they’re in the air, he said.

“It really is one of those endeavors that requires both tech-nical and artistic sides of your mind in order to do it well,” he said. “You’re not going to get bored at this job.”

Together with a friend, who also happened to be a forest-ry of�cial, Andrew helped pioneer the technique of �ghting forest �res via water dropped from helicopters in Minnesota.

“He was able to get a bucket through his forestry connec-tions and I put a cargo hook on the machine, and we just went out and tried it,” Leland recalled. “It was very low key. He was paying me out of an account that was for (renting) bulldozers.”

In 1976, a huge �re year for the state, Andrew’s technique got a wide spotlight.

“We had a couple of years of �re experience under our belt, and the rest of Minnesota forestry wanted to know how we were doing it,” he said. “The whole state was on �re.”

Andrew is also an accomplished big game hunter whose trophies line the walls of not only his of�ce but also the work-shop/hangar. Having stalked game from Argentina to New Zealand, Andrew loves international hunting trips because he can access a particular country’s culture through the native guides he takes along with him.

“Somebody will say, ‘Let’s go hunt something,’ and I’ll say, ‘Where?’” he said.

In addition, BHS has done jobs in line with Andrew’s con-servationist ideals, including setting logs in a river in order to make ideal spawning habitats for trout.

“To me, it really adds a lot of worth to what we do,” he said of the nature �ights. “We’re not doing the same thing every day.”

The extreme passion Andrew carries in both his spare time and professional life could go a long way to explaining how the Brainerd Helicopter Service has gone from a sideshow attraction to a diversi�ed aerial juggernaut.

When they began, the helicopter service had two Bell 47 three-seat piston-engine helicopters, giving rides to curious tourists. The helicopters were once part of the lakes area sum-mer sky rising and landing by the former Paul Bunyan Amuse-ment Center near the intersection of Highways 210 and 371 in Baxter. The helicopter service is now equipped with the �ve-seat Bell 206, the civilian version of the military’s OH-58 Kiowa. Five helicopters based in Brainerd do charter �ights and inspection work. The sixth helicopter is based in the Twin Cities, where it �ies exclusively for television news station KSTP, the local ABC af�liate.

The BHS choppers have �own over some of the region’s most notable breaking news stories — from the Fargo �ood to the I-35W bridge collapse. Their staff has won multiple Emmy awards for their participation in covering the attention-cap-turing events.

Most of the other Twin Cities TV news stations pool their resources and share a helicopter, Andrew said, but KTSP leas-es its own from BHS. They feel as though the investment has paid off with exclusive shots the other TV stations can’t mobi-lize in time to get, Andrew said.

Brainerd Helicopter Service was also involved in an extra-terrestrial story that grabbed headlines — but as participants, not as journalists.

The company helped test a radar altimeter made by Hon-eywell for NASA’s Mars Lander. An altimeter measures how far helicopters are above earth — or how far the lander is above Mars. Brainerd Helicopter Service tested the altimeter by taking it up 11,000 feet above the ground in a helicopter to simulate the lander’s descent to the Red Planet.

“The day the Mars Lander landed on Mars, we got a call from (the lander program), they were congratulating every-one they had worked with,” he said. “It was a lot of fun.”

To develop even more business, Andrew said the company is extending its operations into interstate helicopter trips — jobs that may take them into places across the Midwest like Indiana, Illinois or Canada.

“Geographically, we’re reaching out farther than we’ve ever done before,” he said.

ZACH KAYSER may be reached at 218-855-5860 or Zach.Kayser@brainerddispatch.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ZWKayser.

HELICOPTER SERVICE, From Page S68

It really is one

of those en-

deavors that requires

both technical and

artistic sides of your

mind in order to do it

well. You’re not going

to get bored at this job.LELAND ANDREW, PRESIDENT OF BRAINERD HELICOPTER SERVICE

artistic sides of your

mind in order to do it

well. You’re not going

to get bored at this job.

Photos by Steve Kohls • steve.kohls@brainerddispatch.com

The couple tripled the size of the original outdoor patio, which includes a band shelter for live music. They added two �re pits — one made out of an old oil barrel and the other �re ring is a large upside down tree root. There are six heavy chairs, also made of concrete, which look like wood, that surround the �re pit.

The outdoor patio also has a game area, a large dining ta-ble made out of a 300-year-old white oak tree and a wet bar.

With the outdoor patio, the bar and restaurant has a max-imum capacity of 225 people. The Ebnets have a staff of 35 employees.

The Ebnets updated the event center with new paint and trim work and updated the front entrance with barn doors. They hired a professional on-site coordinator to help with scheduling or anything else needed to plan an event. The event center hosts events such as weddings, fundraisers and corporate meetings.

Terri Ebnet said they’d also like to do more entertainment events at the event center, such as dueling piano, comedy shows and live music.

Luke Ebnet said Tom Jacobson of Blackhoof Creek, east of Brainerd, was one of the miracle workers behind all the wood creations on the property. Jacobson created the wed-ding gazebo, the chairs and table around the �re pit, the beer tap creation, among other wood items. The Woods also hired other contractors to help with the work around the property. Wood used around the property include oak, black walnut, cherry wood, pine, rough-cut lumber and skins of telephone poles.

THE FOODThe Woods is open daily. Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

for food Monday through Saturday and drinks are served un-til midnight/closing. Sunday breakfast is served from 8 a.m.

to noon and the restaurant is open until 10 p.m.Executive Chef Thomas Young moved to the lakes area in

2005 and worked as a chef at several venues, before coming to The Woods. He has been a chef at The Legacy, Famous Dave’s and Grand View Lodge Golf Resort and Spa.

Young said a few of his specialties include their saute sta-tion with pasta, including the classic chicken Alfredo; beef tenderloin tips cooked with mushrooms and red onions and served in a wine sauce; raspberry glazed sockeye salmon or chicken served with Minnesota wild rice pilaf and seasonal vegetables; and a Champagne chicken.

The Woods has a broiler grill to make its steaks, which the owners said makes the steaks taste great.

The Ebnets said business has been going well and they have learned a lot in the past year on how to run a successful business.

“We are new to the hospitality business and there have been some bumps in the road,” Terri Ebnet said. “We’ve had a few upset customers, but we try to do our best and learn from our mistakes.

“We have a great core staff here who are willing to go an additional step for us. The Woods is a great place to be.”

Luke Ebnet said, “Our goal is to have everybody happy and satis�ed when they leave.”

JENNIFER STOCKINGER may be reached at jennifer.stock-inger@brainerddispatch.com or 218-855-5851. Follow me at www.twitter.com/jennewsgirl on Twitter.

RESTAURANTS www.brainerddispatch.comS70 September 3, 2015 • September 7, 2015

0012925

29r1

RETAIL INFORMATION HERE

AUGUST 26-OCTOBER 20, 2015

MAIL-IN REBATE

*See store for rebate form with complete details. Only valid at participating Maytag brand retailers. Rebate in the form of a Maytag brand MasterCard® Prepaid Card by mail. Cards are issued by Citibank, N.A. pursuant to a license from MasterCard International Incorporated. Cards will not have cash access and can be used everywhere MasterCard debit cards are accepted. MasterCard is a registered trademark of MasterCard International Incorporated. ®/™ ©2015 Maytag. All rights reserved. To learn more about the entire Maytag brand line, please visit maytag.com. NCP-18380

SAVE U P TO

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W ITH PU R C HAS E O F A S E LE CT MAYTAG® L AU N D RY PA I R*

$250

16603 State Hwy 371 North, Brainerd/Baxter

(Just North of the Pine Beach Rd)

schroedersappliance.com 218-829-3624

SAVE U P TO

0012925

32r1

Customer service sets locally-owned and operated Schroeder’s

Appliance Center apart

Advertorial

When local contractors need an entire set of household appliances, they know to stop by Schroeder’s Appliance Center in Baxter.

Owner Chuck Schroeder said he’s noticed that the housing market has been steadily improving because of all the or-ders for new appliances he’s seen come in from builders and homeowners.

“It’s going well this year, better than it was last year,” Schroeder said of busi-ness. “Housing drives everything, and all aspects of housing, from commercial to single family homes, seem to have increased this year.”

But then, Schroeder’s Appliance Cen-ter has a strong customer base. The locally owned and operated ap-pliance sales business has been in the Brainerd lakes area for more than 55 years. The company was founded in 1960 by Schroeder’s father, Ken, who bought the company from Mellon Communications. At the time, radio was popular, and the company sold and ser-viced radios. The business soon evolved into television sales and repairs, and then transitioned into selling appliances.

Today Schroeder’s Appliance Center is known for its quality name-brand ap-pliances, and the fact that the company services what they sell. This is a big rea-son why many people chose to purchase their appliances from Schroeder’s; they know if there is a problem, they have a local company to call for repairs.

“We have a service department that

takes care of customers,” Schroeder explained. “If you have problems, you’re not calling an 800 number. We get things taken care of right away. It’s very impor-tant to our customers and our customers rely on us. We service anything we sell.”

Schroeder’s Appliance Center remains a family business. Chuck Schroeder’s father and company founder, Ken Schro-eder, still works part-time there, and Chuck’s sister, Karen Schroeder-Stave, a fi rst-grade teacher, also works part-time.

Chuck Schroeder said word of mouth is one of the biggest reasons why new customers walk through the front door. They also keep prices low to compete

with the larger stores.

“This week-end I had two customers who told me they came here be-cause a neigh-bor and a family member had told them about us,” Schro-eder said. “Nine

times out of 10, our new customers say somebody told them to come here be-cause we take care of our customers.”

When you visit the store, you’ll get personalized service from one of Schro-eder’s knowledgeable sales staff. They offer a wealth of knowledge about the appliances that they sell, and they can work with you to fi nd the appliance that fi ts your needs, but also your budget.

Schroeder’s Appliance Center has six full-time and two part-time employees.

“On this Labor Day, I’d like to thank all my employees for their hard work,” Schroeder said.

By JODIE TWEED

The Woods• Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday

through Saturday and they serve drinks until midnight/closing. Sun-day brunch is served from 8 a.m. to noon and restaurant/bar is open until 10 p.m.

• Location: 19624 Crow Wing County Road 3, Brainerd.

• Number of employees: 35, plus owners.

• Other: The Woods is the former Chaparral Bar and Restaurant and Timbermist and it consists of a bar, restaurant, hotel and event center. The former Chaparral was owned by Randy Bye, and his late wife, Pam Bye. Randy Bye now owns The Log Cabin in downtown Brainerd, along with Paul Duncan. Bye is the executive chef and Duncan is the front house manager. The Log Cabin is open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

FO RYO U R IN F O

THE WOODS, From Page S65

The beer taps at The Woods are held up from the ceiling by a cement

creation that looks like wooden branches and vines. Tom Jacobson of

Blackhoof Creek is the mastermind behind the creation.

Terri and Luke

Ebnet tripled

the size of the

original outdoor

patio, which

includes a band

shelter for live

music, two �re

pits, a game

area, a large

dining table

made out of a

300-year-old

white oak tree

and a wet bar.

The beer taps at The Woods are held up from the ceiling by a cement

creation that looks like wooden branches and vines. Tom Jacobson of

Blackhoof Creek is the mastermind behind the creation.

Ebnet tripled

the size of the

original outdoor

patio, which

includes a band

shelter for live

music, two �re

pits, a game