by Dennis Dalman
Once again, St. Joseph will be proudly in the media limelight when a YouTube series called “My Town” presents a 30-minute documentary of the town on an upcoming, yet-to-be-determined date.
That date will be announced for our readers as soon as it becomes known.
In the past year or so, St. Joseph was featured on the “Town Ball” TV program, and it was a destination for walk-the-city events by officials from the Small Business Administration and the Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities. The visitors gave the city a big thumbs-up.
The “My Town” series began last year with Season 1, with each documentary featuring one of seven towns in the Upper Midwest – among them Perham and Willmar, Minn.
Season 2 this year will include eight towns: Fairmont and St. Joseph; Rock Valley, Iowa; Linton and Watford City, N.D.; Grand Island, Neb.; Chamberlain-Oacoma, S.D.; and Watertown, S.D.
The premise that gave rise to the “My Town” series is that small-town living is not at all inferior to life in the fast lane in a big city, a metro area.
The “My Town” host and commentator is Cory Hepola, who grew up in Perham in Otter Tail County, Minn. and who in his youthful restlessness longed to escape small-town doldrums for the dazzling razzmatazz of a Big City.
Later, as an adult, Hepola moved to Minneapolis and made a success of himself, including winning two TV Emmy awards as Outstanding TV Anchor at KARE-11 and for creating and hosting a docu-series called “Rural by Choice,” which also featured small towns and their residents.
Married and with three children, Hepola gradually realized small-town and rural areas offer comforts, pleasures and treasures so often overlooked by hot shots eager for big-city successes.
Last year, Hepola was honored by his alma mater, Concordia College, with the “Sent Forth Award,” which is presented “to a young alumna who has made an impact early in their career, emphasizing service to others and demonstrating a strong vocational commitment.”
In one of his online postings, Hepola wrote the following:
“Young people are choosing to live in rural communities at higher rates than we’ve seen since the 1970s, and ‘My Town’ is showing the world the many reasons why. There’s opportunity, innovation and a connectedness in rural America. And the overwhelmingly positive response to our Season 1 communities has shown there’s a large audience excited to experience it.”
Hepola is currently serving as vice president of Communications, Growth and Strategy for The Brookshire Co., based in Bloomington. He and the company help businesses reach their full potential in a number of ways. He is also a board member for Allegro Marketing and volunteers at Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Maple Grove.
To view programs of “My Town” Season 1 on YouTube, google “My Town Cory Hepola.”
Cory Hepola
