Mattress fundraiser set April 9 at SRR Middle School
Sauk Rapids-Rice High School band and choir will host its second annual mattress fundraiser from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, April 9 at Sauk Rapids-Rice Middle School to raise funds for band equipment, instruments and student fees. This one-of-a-kind fundraiser allows parents and community members to support music and athletic programs by purchasing new, name-brand mattresses, with each purchase benefiting the program. CFS offers delivery, free lay-away and many of the same beds available at stores. Beds also include factory warranties, all at retail sale prices or below. Faculty, staff and civil servants may obtain a referral coupon available from any member of the band.
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Travel to Italy without leaving home
Join the Sartell Senior Connection for Second Tuesday for Seniors at 2 p.m. Tuesday, April 12, at the Sartell District Service Center when retired teacher Pat McNeal will regale the public with his latest travel adventure to Italy. The free presentation is open to the public. Refreshments will be served.
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Student documentary focuses on women in agriculture
Extending the Link is a student-run documentary film team that focuses on a social justice issue both locally and abroad. This year, the team focused on women in agriculture and conducted more than 40 interviews and spent 18 days in Rwanda and created a film that uncovers those stories. The documentary, Ubumwe, will premiere at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 14 at the St. John’s University Stephen B. Humphrey Theater. The public is invited to attend the Collegeville event.
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Volunteer training set for therapeutic horseback riding
Volunteer training for Project ASTRIDE will be held at 9 a.m. Saturday, April 16 at the Rock Creek Coffeehouse in Sauk Rapids. The volunteer organization provides therapeutic horseback activities to individuals with cognitive and physical disabilities. Contact Marti at martiastride@yahoo.org or visit www.astride.org for more information.
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Red Cross asks for blood donations
The American Red Cross encourages eligible blood donors to donate blood this spring to ensure a sufficient supply for patients at approximately 2,600 hospitals across the country. Donated blood is perishable and must constantly be replenished to keep up with hospital patient need. Red blood cells are the blood component most frequently transfused by hospitals and must be used within 42 days of donation. Donors with all blood types are needed, especially those with types O, A negative and B negative. Whole blood can be donated every 56 days, up to six times a year, and double red cells may be donated every 112 days, up to three times per year. To make an appointment to give blood, download the free Red Cross Blood Donor App, visit redcrossblood.org or call 1-800-RED CROSS.
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SCSU presents Japan Night
“Matsuri Festival” is the theme of Japan Night at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, April 9 in the Atwood Memorial Center Ballroom at St. Cloud State University. The event features a dinner with authentic Japanese food including Yakisoba (Japanese stir-fried noodles), Gyu-don (beef bowl), chocolate banana and miso soup. Carnival games, a photo booth and other activities are planned throughout the night. The event is open to the public. More than 1,000 students from 90-plus nations attend SCSU, and cultural festivals give them an opportunity to share elements of their culture with the campus community.
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Northstar Rail, Link to serve Twins home games
Northstar Commuter Rail and Northstar Link Commuter Bus will provide service for all Minnesota Twins baseball home games at Target Field, starting with the home opener on Monday, April 11. Northstar Link bus service from St. Cloud and Becker is timed to connect with Northstar Line trains at the Big Lake Station. After the game, at either the scheduled departure times or 30 minutes after the end of the game, fans will be able to board the train to Big Lake where the bus will be waiting to bring them back to Becker or St. Cloud. The northbound train will leave Target Field 30 minutes after the fireworks show (instead of last out) on June 3, 10 and 17; July 1, 15 and 29; Aug. 12; and Sept. 2. Northstar Link bus rides cost $2.00 one-way. Northstar Line train fares are paid separately. Game schedules and train fare information are available at metrotransit.org/Twins. Schedules for Northstar Link Bus Route 887T, which serves Minnesota Twins home games, can be found online at CatchTheLink.com and on Northstar Link buses and Northstar Line trains.
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Energy assistance still available for low-income Minnesotans
The Cold Weather Rule that protects Minnesotans from natural gas or electricity shut-off will end Friday, April 15. To keep the heat on through the spring, Minnesota Commerce Commissioner Mike Rothman urges low-income residents who need help paying their utility bills to apply for the state’s Energy Assistance Program and establish a payment plan with their utility if they have not done so already. Applications will be taken until May 31, and households are served on a first-come, first-served basis. To apply, call 1-800-657-3710 or visit the Minnesota Energy Assistance Program on the Commerce website.
Minnesotans who are struggling with heating costs should contact their utility now to establish and maintain a monthly Cold Weather Rule payment plan. Keeping the monthly payment plan current will protect a household from disconnection during the Cold Weather Rule season, Oct. 15 through April 15. To be eligible for the Cold Weather Rule, customers must contact their utility to work out a payment plan and they must make those payments. For more information on the rule, email consumer.puc@state.mn.us or call 651-296-0406 or 800-657-3782.
Conference to offer perspectives of Minnesota immigrants
Music, economics, labor organizing and oral history are among the perspectives on the immigrant experience at St. Cloud State University’s Global Goes Local Conference. In its sixth year, the conference on social conditions of Minnesota immigrant workers is April 11-12 in Atwood Memorial Center. The conference is free and open to the public. Parking is $1.50 an hour in the Fourth Avenue Ramp.
Among the presentations:
Economist and Concordia University professor Bruce Corrie will discuss the economic benefits Minnesota derives from immigrants, including more youth, high rates of entrepreneurship, connections to global opportunities and high rates of civic engagement.
Mike Hasbrouck and Stearns County Pachanga Society will perform “Cruzando Fronteras: A Musical Story about Immigration Told in Words, Music and Images.” A guitarist and singer, Hasbrouck is a St. Cloud State professor of Spanish. The seven-piece Pachanga Society will welcome guest accordionist Dan “Daddy Squeeze” Newton.
Saket Soni will talk about organizing guest workers and day laborers. Soni is the executive director of New Orleans-based National Guestworker Alliance. Among other positions, the alliance argues the federal government’s guest worker program encourages labor exploitation, wage theft and worker mistreatment.
Students in Mary Wingerd‘s HIST 675 Oral History class will host a panel discussion on its “We Are Minnesota: Recent Immigrant Oral History Project.”
Global Goes Local is organized by the Faculty Research Group on Immigrant Workers in Minnesota. The research group is directed by Stephen Philion, professor of sociology. For more information, email sephilion@stcloudstate.edu.
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SCSU offers ‘Voices of Youth’
“Voices of Youth: High school students as community uniters,” will be held at noon Wednesday, April 13 in the Atwood Memorial Center on the campus of St. Cloud State University. This free lecture-series session gives voice to the experiences, goals and dreams of two young women, currently Tech High School seniors, through a performance of spoken word, stories and reflection on their lives as female students of color in St. Cloud. Through pieces including Privilege, My Name is Not…*, Don’t Hate Me, Police, and Essay, they explore themes such as equality, compassion (see the person, not their problem), (im)migration and community understanding. The lecture series, put on by the SCSU Women’s Center brings diverse women and programming to SCSU to cover political, social, legal and economic issues affecting women’s lives.
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United Way Volunteer Opportunities
Foster Grandparent Program seeks volunteers
The Foster Grandparent Program, a program of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of St. Cloud, is looking for volunteers aged 55 and older to mentor children. Volunteers are needed in St. Cloud area Schools District 742, elementary schools in Paynesville, Journey Home daycare (working with infants and toddlers), the St. Cloud Children’s Home (working with teens) and several after-school programs. Foster Grandparent volunteers might help students with a reading assignment, work with a small group on a craft, or help kids cook an evening meal. An hourly stipend, transportation reimbursement and paid training are included. Contact Emily Chaphalkar, Catholic Charities Foster Grandparents, at 320-229-4597.
STEP force enhances patient care
Speedy Transport Escort Pool volunteers provide a friendly caring walking escort or wheelchair transport for patients and guests throughout the facility. Volunteers work as a team to complete errands and deliver flowers, mail and packages to patients at St. Cloud Hospital. Enhance a positive patient-care environment to provide a superior patient experience. Contact St. Cloud Hospital Volunteer Services at 320-255-5638.
Engage, connect, involve in RSVP
The Greater St. Cloud-area RSVP engages men and women aged 55 or better in meaningful volunteer opportunities at more than 200 human-service agencies throughout the community. They are seeking compassionate volunteers in a variety of positions; including many roles with flexible commitments. RSVP staff will work with you to cater your volunteer schedule so it fulfills your needs and has a positive impact on your community. Contact Jennifer, RSVP, at 320-255-7295 or RSVP@ci.stcloud.mn.us.
CentraCare Hospice seeks volunteers
CentraCare Health Hospice Program is seeking men and women who are interested in volunteering. They are currently looking for volunteers in Sartell, Sauk Rapids, St. Cloud, Foley, Milaca, Monticello, Becker, Paynesville and the surrounding areas. If you are a person who has the compassion and desire to serve the dying by helping them live their final weeks and months to the fullest, contact Sherry Rausch, CentraCare Hospice volunteer specialist, at 240-3276
For more information, contact Mary Krippner, United Way volunteer engagement coordinator, at 320-223-7991 or mkrippner@unitedwayhelps.org.
