Anna Bernstetter, daughter of Chris and Joe Bernstetter, St. Joseph, was recently named to the dean’s list at Bethel University, St. Paul. She is a senior.
Four St. Joseph students were recently named to the dean’s list at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. They and their majors are as follows: Elaine Caspers, liberal arts; Samantha Evander, liberal arts; Chelsey Hinnenkamp, food, agriculture and natural sciences; and Evan Johnson, biological sciences.
Six St. Joseph residents are part of the Great Northern Theatre Company’s summer musical production, Guys and Dolls, which will be performed Aug. 1-4 and 7-9 at Rocori High School, Cold Spring. They are the following: Brad Busse, director; Carla Durand, promotions; Ethan Wittrock, lead character Sky Masterson; Dan O’Connor, Nicely-Nicely Johnson; Courtney Kroska, Hot Box Dancer; Andrew Kroska, Liver Lips Louie. All shows are at 7:30 p.m., except for the 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday, Aug. 4. Tickets on sale now. To order, visit www.gntc1.com or call 320-241-4682.
Jacob Wetterling Resource Center receives national award
The American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences presented the prestigious 21st Century Community Champion Award to the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center.
Alison Feigh, JWRC program coordinator accepted the national award at the AAFCS conference held in Houston, Texas in June. The 21st Century Community Champion Award recognizes groups, organizations and companies that promote the connection between strong families and strong communities by creating viable projects and activities that build communities in which families are valued, supported and strengthened. Evaluation criteria include leadership, inclusiveness, impact, visibility, sustainability and involvement.
The Jacob Wetterling Resource Center was founded in 1990 by Patty and Jerry Wetterling after their son, Jacob, was abducted on Oct. 22, 1989. The Wetterling family, through JWRC, has been committed for more than 23 years to making a difference in the lives of children. JWRC is a program of the National Child Protection Training Center and advocates for child safety through education, public policy, seminars/workshops, training, speakers and webcasts on the issues of child abduction and sexual exploitation of children locally, nationally and internationally.
The JWRC staff provides positive education sessions on a variety of topics focused on personal and online safety. Since its inception, the resource center has been a key player in the supportive services provided to families in missing children cases. JWRC has provided direct case management to more than 750 missing person cases and assisted thousands of victims and their families struggling with the effect of child abuse and exploitation through support, resources and referral calls.
JWRC has been instrumental in organizing a three-day national conference “Prevention and the Child Protection Professional…Implementing Effective Child Abuse Prevention Programs” held at the Mall of America’s Great Room July 22-24, 2013. This conference is designed for child abuse attorneys, investigators, faith community leaders, teachers, medical/mental health providers, service providers, students and other child protection professionals.
Also, each year in November, JWRC hosts a Family Gathering in an effort to reach, support and empower families who have been impacted by the pain of experiencing a missing and/or murdered child in Minnesota. The Family Gathering is a time to honor a loved one, give and receive support, and renew hope.
The nomination for the AAFCS 21st Century Community Champion Award was written and submitted by members of the Minnesota Affiliate, Minnesota Association of Family and Consumer Sciences. They selected the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center because its vision and mission also focused on empowering individuals and families, and strengthening the well-being of individuals and families. This award honors and recognizes the commitment, passion and vision of JWRC to strive to ensure every child grows up in a healthy, safe world free from abuse, exploitation and abduction.
CMCU ranks 22 on SNL’s list of top 50 credit unions in the nation for 2012
Central Minnesota Credit Union, headquartered in Melrose, was recently selected as one of the Top 50 credit unions in the nation in 2012 according to analysis by SNL Financial. Ranked #22 nationwide, CMCU is one of three Minnesota credit unions to make the list.
“It’s an honor to be included with such a premiere group of financial institutions,” said Rick Odenthal, CMCU CEO. “I am proud to be a part of such a dedicated team here at CMCU and for the ongoing loyalty of our members, who continue to embrace the product s and services we provide.”
For the 2012 ranking, SNL graded the best-performing credit unions using five core financial performance metrics that focus on growth, asset quality and operating efficiency for a 12-month period. The metrics used were: member growth; net charge-offs as a percentage of average loans; operating expenses as a percentage of operating revenue; delinquent loans as a percentage of total loans; and market growth. SNL is a financial information firm which collects, standardizes and disseminates relevant corporate, financial services, insurance, real estate, energy and media market communications data.
CMCU is a 74-year-old member-owned financial cooperative that offers a complete line of financial services at branch offices located in St. Joseph, Avon, Albany, Belgrade, Cold Spring, Grey Eagle, Freeport, Little Falls, Long Prairie, Melrose, Moorhead, New York Mills, Paynesville, Perham, Sauk Centre and coming soon Wadena; as well as by phone, online at myCMCU.org and on your mobile phone at m.myCMCU.org.