Dusting off the Archives
News from Verndale's Past
75 Years Ago, February 21, 1946
• Four more of Verndale’s servicemen returned home this past week with honorable discharges from military service. Thursday of last week, Cpl. Everette Beaver and S. Sgt. Wayne Conley arrived home from India. Monday of this week, Lt. Robert King arrived home from the India theater operation. S. Sgt. Ray Gadaire also arrived home Monday from Vancouver, Washington.
• Contrary to a recent ruling that the Verndale fire truck would not be permitted to make rural calls, the Village Council has now stated that the local fire department will answer rural calls. At the time the village council made known the ruling they could not make rural calls, it was due to the fact that they had to for their own insurance protection. Had a fire broken out in town at the time the fire truck was gone, the village would have to pay the insurance loss that incurred.
• J.B. Conley of Verndale was re-elected to the board of directors of the Minnesota Wool Growers Association at their annual meeting held in Wadena last Saturday and later re-elected by the board to serve again as president. Mr. Conley has been with the association as director and president since 1926.
40 Years Ago, February 19, 1981
• Police Chief Cedric Haugen introduced the new adult drug education program to the Verndale area Monday night at the regular monthly meeting of the Parent-Teacher Association. No family is immune to the problem, and for this year, concerned businessmen and organizations from the Verndale, Staples, and Motley areas have sponsored the program which is designed to provide a weapon for parents in the fight against drug abuse in the community.
• Something unique and different will be introduced to Verndale on Saturday evening by a committee of area residents seeking to provide entertainment, especially for youth and the young at heart. It will be a light show, featuring black lights, live music, films shown on a large screen, and espresso in a coffee-house atmosphere. The show will be held in the school auditorium/cafeteria.
• Four Boy Scouts from Troop 326 worked with their leader, Con VanBatavia, building a Klondike Sled in anticipation of competing in the Park Region District Sled Races at Nevis next Saturday. Involved in the construction were Kevin Baker, Randy VanBatavia, Floyd Suhl, and Tony Dolezal.
15 Years Ago, February 23, 2006
• Eight Verndale students, along with choir directors Joyce Manning and Deb Haraldson, participated in the University of Minnesota Duluth junior high/middle school honor choir festival concert. Participants were Jodi Kenyon, Beth Griffith, Becky Griffith, Keith Crismann, Evan Northrup, Curtis Barrett, Joshua Lucious, and Keifer Pesola.
• On February 12, Anthony Kern, third grade, of Verndale won first place at the Minnesota Open (Folkstyle) Wrestling Tournament held at St. John’s University near Sartell. Anthony’s current record is 34-1 and he wrestles with the Bertha-Hewitt/Verndale elementary wrestling team.
• The team competition for the BHV Raiders came to a finale when they lost in the first round of section action. The Breckenridge Cowboys came to Verndale to face their first-round opponent, the Warriors from Menahga/Sebeka. They defeated the Warriors 48-25 and then in their second match of the evening squeezed out a 31-30 victory over the Raiders. The Raiders were able to fill all 14 weight classes, but lost two matches in overtime and lost several other close matches that would have changed the outcome of the final score.