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Celebrating area business longevity in the Brainerd Lakes area of Minnesota
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brainerddispatch.com | Brainerd Dispatch • pineandlakes.com | Echo JournalS2 January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015
7 Years
13631 East Shore RoadCrosslake, MN
218-692-6650 00
1184
725
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30 Years
DAN CHISHOLMSTUCCO
14611 Birchwood TrailMerrifi eld, MN
765-4022
00
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32 Years
1mi. west of Emily on Co Rd 1
(218) 763-2169
www.emilygreens.com
00
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2776
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90 Years
PO Box 70Crosslake, MN 56442
800-992-8220
218-692-2777
Your hometown choice providing local customer service and support since 1925
48 Years
Downtown CrosslakePhone 218-692-2711
SERVING THE CROSSLAKE AREA
SINCE 1967
001195242r1
45 Years
CLOW STAMPING COMPANYMetal Stamping • Fabrication• Weldments & Assemblies23103 County Rd. 3
Merrifi eld, MNPhone (218) 765-3111Fax (218) 765-3904
00
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40 Years
00
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36685 County Road 66CROSSLAKE
(218) 692-3752
Shopping Us LastSince 1975
Sales & Service, LLCSales & Service, LLC
41 Years
HEATING &AIR CONDITIONING
Bonded & Insured
Serving the lakes area since 1974.
218-692-2177 1-800-692-2177 0
011
930
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35762 County Road 3Crosslake, MN 56442(218) 820-3800(218) 692-4521
www.jaginteriorsolutions.net
00
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14 YearsYour area
Pharmacist since 2001
Steve KappesRegistered Pharmacist
Crosslake Town Square • 218-692-2502
00
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6r1
46 YearsJim’s Camper Sales
Exclusive Jayco Dealer• New & Used Units
• Rental Trailers Available
• Mobile Service for All Makes & Models
218-765-3291Take your kids camping!!!
59 Years
00
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Marine Sales & Service… A Family Tradition
Since 1956
218-692-3570www.ccboatworks.com
BY JODIE TWEEDCorrespondent
Customers have remarked that when they step inside Norway Ridge Supper Club, they feel as if they’re having dinner at a home of co-owners and sisters Jackie Clark and Alicia Elson.
In a way, this is true.The sisters pride themselves on
creating a warm, home-like atmosphere with a hint of nostalgia in the fine dining restaurant, soon to start its 67th year. It’s a place where families return every year to celebrate milestones and couples spend their anniversaries. It’s where old friends go to meet up for dinner and drinks. They know many of their customers by name.
The restaurant, overlooking Kimble Lake in Ideal Township, is open from April through October and seats 140 guests.
Norway Ridge has a lengthy history in Ideal Township. It opened in 1948 on Kimble Lake as part of a 10-cabin resort, Norway Ridge Resort, owned by, ironically, two sisters Evelyn Thompson and Bess Newman. The resort dissolved and the cabins were sold off in the 1970s, but Norway Ridge remained in operation, changing hands every seven years by various owners until Clark and Elson became the fifth owners in 1982.
Clark and Elson had always enjoyed going out for dinner at Norway Ridge when Elson would come up north from Ham Lake to visit Clark and her family.
“We would end up here four of the seven nights I was up,” Elson recalled of her trips to Norway Ridge.
Clark called her up one day in April 1982 to tell her that their favorite restaurant was for sale, and they immediately decided to buy it,
even though neither of them had any restaurant management experience. At the time they both sold and were managers for Tupperware. Elson and her family decided to make the move north, too.
“We loved this place, and it sounded like a great thing to do,” Clark said of purchasing Norway Ridge.
They took ownership of the restaurant on July 1, 1982, the height of the busy summer season. While it was a crazy time to learn how to run a restaurant, they learned quickly and the restaurant thrived.
One of their first changes was to make it a two-fork restaurant, said Clark. Servers worried that dishwashers couldn’t keep up with the addition of a salad fork, but it all worked out.
“We dressed things up, although a lot of the décor is original,” Clark said. “We had to get rid of deer heads that were falling apart.”
The original knotty pine furniture, pine floors and double fireplace gives the restaurant its up north feel. The restaurant has about 30 employees, and both Clark and Elson have had their children and grandchildren working alongside them.
Norway Ridge is known for many of its original recipes, sauces and dressings that have been passed down from each owner for six decades.
“They are fresh and delicious – you can’t get them anywhere,” Clark said with a smile.
Their signature home-smoked ribs, along with roasted duck, hand-cut steaks and homemade sourdough appetizers, are popular house specialties. Their chef is Dewey Albrecht, a seasoned chef well-
Sisters continue 67-year tradition at Norway Ridge Supper ClubClark, Elson bought Ideal Township restaurant in 1982
Jackie Clark, left, and Alicia Elson, sisters and owners of Norway Ridge in Ideal Township since 1982, feel they are stewards of the landmark restaurant, which will open for its 67th year in April.
PHOTO BY JODIE TWEED
Jackie Clark, left, and Alicia Elson, sisters and owners of Norway Ridge in Ideal Township since 1982, feel they are stewards of the
See NORWAY RIDGE, Page S8
Penny and Karl Skog, owners of Crosslake Sheetmetal.PHOTO BY PETE MOHS
BY DAN DETERMANEcho Journal Staff Writer
For more than four decades, Crosslake Sheetmetal has been an industrial mainstay in the area. The company has stayed promi-nent for so long by keeping with traditions.
Frederick Skog founded the company in 1974. The Pequot Lakes native spent a number of years working in sheet metal - along with heating, ventilation and air conditioning - in Minneapolis before bringing his family to his homeland.
“He was very talented and very driven,” said Karl Skog, Frederick’s son. “He could make anything. He was smart in electronics and in sheet metal fabrication. When it came to special fittings, there real-ly wasn’t much he couldn’t do. He came to the area with a lot more knowledge of fabricating that material than many others had at the time.”
Frederick retired from the industry in 1990 - when Karl and his wife, Penny, assumed owner-ship - and he still lives in the area.
Karl has been working at Crosslake Sheetmetal since he was in junior high school. Since that time, he has seen a lot of changes, especially to the community.
“The homes are much larger on the lakes,” Karl said. “It seems the income levels and the homes being built are much, much larger than back when we started.”
Other changes have come from technology and a crew’s ability to construct a building without wor-rying about the seasons as much.
“In the early days, construction
was such that a house would get started in the summer or fall, but once the frost hit, there was no more digging or building,” Karl said. “Now they can punch holes and the building can go up right through the winter.”
So how have the Skogs main-tained the business amidst these changes? By sticking with the beliefs and philosophies of the founder of Crosslake Sheetmetal.
“We have always had the atti-tude that the customer is always right,” Karl said. “We will do everything to make a customer satisfied. Our philosophy has always been that good news trav-els a lot faster than bad news, so we will do what it takes to make a happy customer.”
Karl said the business has been able to stay around thanks to the ability to maintain a quality staff that does good work.
“We have a tremendous crew of employees,” Karl said. “I really
feel that they have their hearts in the business and are not just here for the paycheck. They like what they are doing. ... and we do what-ever we can to stay on the cutting edge.”
The Skogs currently have no plans to change anything in the foreseeable future, but are willing to expand their business if they see a demand to do so.
For now, they - along with their 19 employees - will continue installing and servicing furnaces, air conditioners and heat pumps for area homes as they have for the past four decades.
“We have been serving the area since 1974, and we greatly appre-ciate the customers,” Karl said. “Without them, we wouldn’t be who we are today.”
Dan Determan can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him at facebook.com/PEJDan and on Twitter @PEJ_Dan.
Family-owned Crosslake Sheetmetal has served lakes area for 40 yearsTraditions, loyal employees cited as reasons for longevity
Crosslake Sheetmetal, owned by the Skogs, has spent 40 years building a loyal customer base.
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Karl and his dad, Frederick Skog.SUBMITTED PHOTO
Penny and Karl Skog, owners of Crosslake Sheetmetal.PHOTO BY PETE MOHS Karl and his dad, Frederick Skog.
BY NANCY VOGTEcho Journal Editor
When Bill Mattson landed a part-time job after graduat-ing from high school in 1962, little did he know it would lead to a longtime career in the lumber business.
“I decided rather than ask my mother for 2 bucks to go into town, I’d swing into Nisswa Standard Lumber and get a part-time job,” said
Mattson, owner of Mattson Lumber Company in Nisswa for 29 years.
Mattson Lumber is tucked just off of Highway 371, across from Gull Lake’s Hole-in-the-Day Bay, on 10 acres. The bulk of business comes from local builders and contractors, though jobs also come from the Twin Cities and Canada.
“We cover a pretty good
range,” Mattson said.He credits his 11 employ-
ees - including his son, Bill Jr., and daughter-in-law, Lori Mattson - for the company’s longevity.
“One of our blessings is low turnover,” he said, noting his son was 14 when he bought the lumber business and has worked there ever since. “We can’t run this busi-ness on high turnover employ-ees.”
Mattson took over the for-mer Gull Lake Lumber on April 1, 1986. It was a bold step to buy the business, which had existed since around 1970, he said, proudly
noting he never missed a con-tract-for-deed payment.
Mattson grew up in the area, on Lake Edward Township property his grand-father homesteaded in 1896. He’s now the third generation to live there. He attended Nisswa Elementary School and graduated from Brainerd High School. He then studied business at Brainerd Junior College for two years and attended the University of
Minnesota School of Business for a year.
Mattson then served in the Air Force for four years, from 1966-70, and upon returning to Minnesota he worked for Standard Lumber in Mankato. He finished his four-year degree in business at Mankato State University, and in 1972 moved back to the lakes area to work for Standard Lumber in Brainerd. After about a year, he was asked if he want-
ed to be a manager at the Standard Lumber in Ely.
“I was trying to climb the corporate ladder, if you will,” he said, noting he worked for 3 1/2 years in Ely. “If I had been there a year or two more or if I wasn’t so rooted here, maybe I would have stayed.”
But he was called back home to be manager of the Standard Lumber in Nisswa in the fall of 1977.
January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015 S3 brainerddispatch.com | Brainerd Dispatch • pineandlakes.com | Echo Journal
00
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36 Years
blackridgebank.com
Nisswa
Member FDIC
00
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Upscale Casual Dining
77 Years
North End of Gull Lake on CR 77
(218) 963.2568www.barharborsupperclub.com
MARKETING ANDADVERTISING, INC
1026 BIRCHWOOD HILLS TRAIL963-3400
33 Years
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SANDY STROM-GIESEKEIndependent Sales Representative
PO Box 1382Lake Hubert, MN 56459
218.963.3901Toll Free 877.963.3901
[email protected]/sstrom
The Company for Women.
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66
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59 Years
00
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3738
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25673 Main StreetNisswa, MN 56468
218-963-7645North end of Main Street
29 Years
218-963-747022386 State Hwy 371 S
“Better Boards, Better Service”
00
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23521 Nokomis Ave Nisswa MN 56468
218-963-2234
www.grandviewlodge.com
www.NISSWADOCK.com
Hwy. 371, Nisswa800-322-3525 | [email protected]
69 Years
00
1188
367r
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& SPA24463 Hazelwood Drive, Nisswa, MN
Store: 218-961-PETSSpa: 218-961-7389
00
119
522
1r1
00
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310
5r1
88 Years
25451 MAIN ST.NISSWA, MN 56468
218-963-2341
Quality Sporting Goods
SPORTS SHOP
00
119
285
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28 Years
963-79085445 City Hall Street
Nisswa(across from City Hall)
001194373r1
69 Years
25807 Main St. Nisswa
00
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757r
1
5 1/2 Years
24400 SMILEY RD #9NORTHLAND CENTER
NISSWA, MN2 1 8 - 9 6 1 - 0 0 9 5
51 Years
23590 Smiley Rd., Nisswa 218-963-7333
00
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7r1
19 Years
25545 Main St.Nisswa, MN
218.963.3306
JEWELERS
“Your Lakes AreaCustom Goldsmiths”
Celebrating 20 years in May!
00
1184
802r
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91 Years
00
119
330
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Serving The Brainerd Lakes Area
829-6507Nisswa, MN
13 Years
23930 Smiley Rd.Nisswa, MN
218-963-7488
BEER - LIQUOR - WINE
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218-963-7700 @ Love Lake
Boating Season: Gull-Love Lake Marina: 19571 Love Lake Rd, Brainerd
Snowmobiling Season: 4758 County Rd. 77, Nisswa - Right on the trail system!
218-963-7700218-963-7700218-963-7700218-963-7700218-963-7700218-963-7700218-963-7700218-963-7700
Boats • Jet Skis • PontoonsSnowmobiles Fish HousesSnowmobiles Fish HousesSnowmobiles Fish Houses
9 Years
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00
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78 Years
24238 Smiley RoadNisswa, MN 56468
Phone: (218) 963-2292Fax: (218) 963-4402
25532 Murray Rd.Nisswa, MN 56468
218-963-0085
64 Years
001195229r1
00
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50 Years
218-963-2575800-247-6573
Nisswa, MN
www.vikinglabel.com
(218) 963-2265www.SchaefersFoods.com
Schaefer’s Corner Hwy 371, Nisswa
Open Daily 7am-10pm 00
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A new building housing Mattson Lumber Company’s office, show room and sales area was built in early 2005.
PHOTO BY NANCY VOGT
Mattson Lumber has been a staple in Nisswa for 29 yearsFamily business appreciates longtime employees, customers
staple in Nisswa for 29 years
Mattson Lumber Company is just off Highway 371 south of Nisswa, across from Gull Lake’s Hole-in-the-Day Bay.
PHOTO BY NANCY VOGT
See MATTSON, Page S12
ees.”
mer Gull Lake Lumber on April 1, 1986. It was a bold step to buy the business, which had existed since around 1970, he said, proudly
Mattson Lumber’s main office in 1993.SUBMITTED PHOTO
BY JODIE TWEEDCorrespondent
Back in 1965, Mick and Rose Bilyard opened a sea-sonal drive-in restaurant, rec-ognizable with its A-frame roof, along Highway 371 at the County Road 16 intersec-tion in Jenkins.
While the concept of drive-in restaurants fell out of favor in the 1970s, that iconic A-frame restaurant still flour-ishes as the A-Pine Restaurant 50 years later.
Rick and Leah Beyer pur-chased the restaurant 30 years ago from its former owners, Rodney and Karen Anderson. The Bilyard family had owned the restaurant for a few years and after Mick Bilyard passed away, his wife and children continued to operate it. The A-Pine had been closed for a number of years before it was purchased by the Andersons, who added on a seating area in 1977, Rick Beyer said.
The restaurant was pur-chased in 1982 by a dentist, Byron Hoffman from International Falls, and his son ran it for a year before the Beyers purchased it in 1984.
Rick Beyer’s grandfather bought a hotel and grocery store in New Ulm in 1911, a family business that his father also took over and ran until 1972. Beyer was too young to work in the family business, but he also found his interests and talents were found else-where. He got his first job at age 15 cooking at a Country Kitchen, a job he held for five years.
After he and his wife were married, he opened a Perkins restaurant in New Ulm and
served as a restaurant man-ager at 21. He worked at the Perkins corporate office in Burnsville for seven months but felt the desire to run his own restaurant.
Beyer’s father-in-law saw an ad in a Twin Cities news-paper about a restaurant for rent in the Jenkins area, and they drove north to check it out.
“I was 24 years old, had no money and a baby, and we came up here,” Beyer recalled
with a smile. “We liked the area and decided to take a chance.”
On Sept. 1, 1984, they officially rented the A-Pine Restaurant and hoped to one
day own the place. Those first few years were tough, he said. They both worked long
hours at the restaurant and lived in a mobile home behind the restaurant. Soon, they not only had a son, Andy, but also a daughter, Katie.
The restaurant hours were expanded to include break-fast, open from 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day, except for Christmas and Thanksgiving. Breakfast can be a busy time of day, but they also get a lot of carryout orders for dinner. They used to do more cater-ing, including pig roasts and dinners in the 1980s and 1990s on the former Clamshell Queen riverboat on the Whitefish Chain.
Back in the early days, traffic along Highway 371 would slow down consider-ably between Labor Day and Memorial Day. People would often drive their snowmobiles right down the highway dur-ing the winter, Beyer said.
The railroad tracks have long been removed and replaced by the Paul Bunyan Trail, but long ago when the trains would travel along this route, they would often stop on Sunday nights right across Highway 371 from the A-Pine. The train engineer and employees would walk over for dinner.
S4 January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015 brainerddispatch.com | Brainerd Dispatch • pineandlakes.com | Echo Journal
00
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9 Years
ShowroomOpen 7 Days a Week
by Appointment
Design Service • Cemetery LetteringVeteran Memorials • Benches
Precision Graphics • Home Appointments( Don’t Drive To Us / Let Us Drive To You )
218-562-4771
32224 Northwoods LaneBreezy Point, MN
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33 Years
Make a trashy phone call today!
218.568.4630
...and our business is still picking up!
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41 Years
218-568-8664
OPEN AT NOON DAILY
Kitchen:Tues., Thurs., Fri., Sat. 5-8pm,
Wed. 5-7pm
JenkinsVFW
NORTHERN POST 3839
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2 1 8 - 5 6 8 - 5 6 6 6 pequotlakesphysicaltherapy.com
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HARLAN V. JOHNSONAGENCY,
INC.Harlan V. Johnson, LUTCF
31113 Front St.Pequot Lakes, MN
218-568-4900
00
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30849 1st St.Pequot Lakes, MN
218-568-5025
Escrow & Title, Inc.
00
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Pequot Lakes, MN218-568-4473
Crosslake, MN218-692-4478
Baxter, MN218-822-4480
2 1/2 Years
Mon-Fri 6am-5:00pmSat 7am-5:00pm
Sun 7am-2pm31039 Cty Rd 112 Pequot
218-568-5550
Located next to Wild Daisy & Across from Leslie’s
Mon Fri 6am 5 00pm
00
119
515
6r1
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4657 Engen Road, Pequot Lakes
Owners/Contact:
Chris & Brenda Greer
218-568-8812
00
119
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1r1
001194289r1
24 Years
CompleteSharpening Service
Current Owner of 7 YearsChris Wohlers
218-562-4107
29641 Aspen Lane,Breezy Point, MN 56472
IDEAL SHARPENING
11 Years
31099 Edgewater Farm DriveBreezy Point
218-562-4140 00
119
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4r1
95 Years
00
1184
443r
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9252 Breezy Point Dr. Breezy Point, MN 56472
800-432-3777www.breezypointresort.com
2 1/2 Years
4484 Main St. Pequot Lakes, MN
218-568-5454
00
119
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00
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30671 State Hwy 371Pequot Lakes, MN 56472
5 Years
00
119
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2r1
Health Food Store
Located on Main Street in the JACK PINE CENTER,
Pequot Lakes MN
218-568-8288
Health Food Store
Seeds of Sommer
47 Years
00
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3r1
Owner Elaine BilbenIdealBoardingKennels.com
35062 County Road 39Pequot Lakes, MN 56472
218-543-4215
IDEAL KENNELSPet Boarding
24 YearsMathias C. Justin, Ltd.Certifi ed Public Accountants
Mick Justin, CPAJudith Moravec, CPA
Stephanie Murray, CPASusan Schiessl, CPA Jane Erickson, CPA
www.mjustincpa.com
Pequot Business Center | 4325 W. Woodman St.P.O. Box 90, Pequot Lakes, MN 56472
00
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00
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259
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30839 Old Hwy 371 Pequot Lakes
(218) 568-8771www.saloncouturemn.com
001192775r1
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30503 State Hwy 371Pequot Lakes, MN 56472
218-568-5001pequotlakessupervalu.com
19 Years
29279 State Hwy. 371Pequot Lakes, MN 56472
218-568-8448001195261r1
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218.568.477031089 Front St Pequot Lakes
www.thinkgiovannis.com
00
119
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9r1
00
119
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23 Years
30960 Government Drive, Pequot Lakes218-568-5555
www.pequoteyecenter.com
35280 Cty Rd 3, Crosslake218-692-4700
001194281r1
9 Years
34010 2nd Avenue, Jenkins, MN 56472218-568-5225 or 218-820-1469
ANNIE’S ATTICANNIE’S ATTICANNIE’S ATTIC
Seasonal Business Open May through November every year, Wednesdays thru
Sundays – 10:00-5:00.
25 Years
Tim Hidde Master Taxidermist33488 State Hwy 371
Pequot Lakes, MN 56472www.trophytimetaxidermy.com
218-568-4856
TROPHY TIME
TAXIDERMY & Antler Reproductions LLC
Preserving a lifetime of memories since 1990
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18 Years
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218-568-8323HWY. 371 & CR 16
2 MILES NORTH OF PEQUOT LAKES
A-PINEExpressExpress
www.ApinePlaza.com
31 Years
31067 Front StreetPequot Lakes, MN 56472
218-568-4695www.merrittjewelers.com 0
011
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246
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30 Years
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747r
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Pequot Lakes, MNwww.TimRoggenkampCPA.com
218-568-5559“Working for You,
Not the IRS”
25 Years
29281 State Hwy 371
Pequot Lakes, MN 56472
218-568-4343
CROW WING AUTO BODY& TOWING
00
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00
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407r
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Pequot Lakes, MN 218-568-4673
37 Years
4326 E. Sibley Street, Pequot Lakes218-568-4040
401 S. 8th Street, Brainerd218-829-2891
www.probuild.com
Brainerd Lakes Market
00
119
525
3r1
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Featuring Irish Specialties218-568-4177
On Government Drive in the Mayson’s Grille Building
00
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3587
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001184775r1
4285 W Lake St, Pequot Lakes, MN
(218) 568-8521www.pineandlakes.com
00
1184
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5 Years
30176 Old Hwy 371, Suite 2Pequot Lakes, MN 56472218-568-4940
St
onemark
La
n
d Surveying, In
c.
00
1184
864r
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50 Years
www.ApinePlaza.com
A-PINEARestaurantRestaurant
218-568-8353
HWY. 371 & CR 16Pequot Lakes
A-Pine Restaurant celebrating 50 years in businessBeyers have owned restaurant for 30 years
Back in 1965, Mick and Rose Bilyard opened a sea-sonal drive-in restaurant, rec-ognizable with its A-frame roof, along Highway 371 at the County Road 16 intersec-
While the concept of drive-in restaurants fell out of favor in the 1970s, that iconic A-frame restaurant still flour-ishes as the A-Pine Restaurant
Rick and Leah Beyer pur-chased the restaurant 30 years ago from its former owners, Rodney and Karen Anderson. The Bilyard family had owned the restaurant for a few years and after Mick Bilyard passed away, his wife and children continued to operate it. The A-Pine had been closed for a number of years before it was purchased by the Andersons, who added on a seating area in 1977,
The restaurant was pur-chased in 1982 by a dentist, Byron Hoffman from International Falls, and his son ran it for a year before the Beyers purchased it in 1984.
hours at the restaurant and lived in a mobile home behind the restaurant. Soon, they not only had a son, Andy, but also a daughter, Katie.
expanded to include break-fast, open from 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day, except for Christmas and Thanksgiving. Breakfast can be a busy time of day, but they also get a lot of carryout orders for dinner. They used to do more cater-ing, including pig roasts and dinners in the 1980s and 1990s on the former Clamshell Queen riverboat on the Whitefish Chain.
traffic along Highway 371 would slow down consider-ably between Labor Day and Memorial Day. People would often drive their snowmobiles right down the highway dur-ing the winter, Beyer said.
long been removed and replaced by the Paul Bunyan Trail, but long ago when the trains would travel along this route, they would often stop on Sunday nights right across Highway 371 from the A-Pine. The train engineer
Beyers have owned restaurant for 30 years
See A-PINE, Page S11
The A-Pine Restaurant has been a landmark at the corner of County Road 16 and Highway 371 since 1965. Rick Beyer has owned the restaurant for the past 30 years.
PHOTO BY JODIE TWEED
January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015 S5 brainerddispatch.com | Brainerd Dispatch • pineandlakes.com | Echo Journal
00
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13 Years
218-587-5900209 Barclay Ave.Pine River, MNOpen Mon-Sat 9-5
[email protected]/stonewomanherbals
Facebook: Stone Woman Herbals
STONE WOMANH E R B A L S
Vitamins Herbs Health Essentials
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24 YearsBarnum’s
Auto Parts
Hwy 371Pine River, MN
218-587-2900
15 YearsTerry and Kim Have Owned
Cottage Cafe 15 Years.
Kim has worked here for 30 years.
218-587-2588 2 Blocks Off Hwy. 371,Downtown Pine River
Terry & Kim’s
DOWNTOWNPINE RIVER
Terry & Kim s
Cottage Cafe
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00
119
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r1218.270.0009www.brainerdroofi ng.com
Lic. # BC586859
Roofi ng Specialist
38 Years
309 Barclay Ave Pine River
218-587-4154Mon-Fri 9-5, Sat 9-Noon or
by appointment
00
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8 Years
www.bearpausetheater.com
On County Road 5 just 1 block East of Hwy 371, Hackensack
Movie Hotline
218-675-5373
00
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40 Years
Dairy QueenNISSWA
25312 Smiley Rd, Nisswa • (218) 963-2163PEQUOT LAKES
30699 Minnesota 371, Pequot Lakes • (218) 568-5440PINE RIVER
306 Front St S., Pine River • (218) 587-4762
Dairy Queen
00
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Serving You Since 1902www.fnbwalker.com
BY TRAVIS GRIMLEREcho Journal Staff Writer
Today, a building on Front Street in Backus continues to capture the imagination of residents.
It looks like a brick build-ing from the time of cowboys. In 1908, it opened as a bank, and it’s easy to imagine wooden booths and wrought iron gates separating tellers from the general public.
Though Backus State Bank is no longer located there, in a way - maybe two ways - the bank lives on in the form of First National Bank of Walker and Lakes State Bank.
Backus State Bank was an average community bank, opened by members of the Zaffke family and maintained through good and bad times. Sometimes the bank fared better through bad times than others.
In 1933, President Franklin Roosevelt declared a bank holiday the day after his inau-guration in an attempt to combat the Depression and the collapse of banks through-out the country.
Chuck Nelson, current
chief executive officer of Pine River State Bank and presi-dent of Backus State Bank from 1978-90, said the bank defied the collapse and fought to continue to provide the services its community need-ed.
“The president of the bank at the time called up the state and said, ‘Our loans are good, so why can’t we open?’ The state banking commission
said, ‘Sure, go ahead and open tomorrow.’ It was one of the first banks to open,” Nelson said. “A lot of them never opened again because they were in such bad shape, but it was told to me that Backus was one of the first ones to open after the bank holiday.”
The Zaffke family owned the bank initially, and it was eventually sold to Len
Gizvold, who maintained it for some time until Nelson approached him in 1978 with a proposition. This was when the state changed a law, allowing banks to open branches.
“I had started the Cass Company Insurance Agency just selling insurance,” Nelson said. “I went to Len Gizvold, the guy who bought the Backus State Bank from
Zaffke. I said, ‘Look, I know you can branch now. I’d be willing to build you a branch in Hackensack, but keep my Cass Company Insurance building in the same building. You would have the Backus State Bank in the same build-ing.’ We got to arguing so much he said, ‘Chuck, why don’t you just buy the bank from me?’”
Nelson did just that, in
spite of a slight hiccup.“We argued more. I finally
bought the Backus State Bank. I became president and didn’t know much about it. I’ve learned a lot. I didn’t know what I was doing,” Nelson said.
Under Nelson’s care, the bank grew. In the early 1980s, Nelson built at the current location of what is now First National Bank of Walker in Backus, on the east end of town on Highway 87. The building housed several other businesses as well.
“When I worked at Backus from ‘83 to ’90, we housed the Cass County Housing and Redevelopment Authority offices downstairs,” said Jay Cline, former Backus State
Backus State Bank survives complicated historyName has changed, but community bank is still strong
The current First National Bank of Walker building was constructed in the early eighties. Today the First National Bank of Walker owns the building and carries on the tradition started by the Backus State Bank.
PHOTO BY TRAVIS GRIMLER
This check is an example of those used by patrons of the Backus State Bank during its time on Front Street in Backus.PHOTO BY TRAVIS GRIMLER
See BACKUS BANK, Page S8
BY RENEE RICHARDSONBrainerd Dispatch Senior Reporter
Instead of the expected party-line conver-sation, a clinking sound came through the phone lines.
The sound of moving metal in the distance. Somewhere on an 11-mile stretch a phone receiver was off the hook.
The only clue was the distant, irregular sound of clinking metal. Finding where the sound originated and where the exchange was off the hook would be a time-consuming effort. For half a day, Consolidated Telecommunications Co. (CTC) lineman Jerry Palm climbed telephone poles along the line before narrowing down the culprit - a phone off the hook in a barn. The clinking sound? Cows in the stanchions.
Palm, now a member of CTC’s board, was one of 10 workers at the cooperative telephone company in the summer of 1968. He wit-nessed the incredible changes in technology from telephone wire strung on wooden poles in rural areas maintained by farmers eager to be connected to the outside world to touch-tone phones to the Internet.
“Quite a change,” Palm said of the technol-ogy in play from those days to today. The world went from 10 people on a party line who could listen to each other’s conversations, to homes with a nearly unquenchable thirst for bandwidth for smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, even smart crockpots.
Now, instead of climbing poles for half a day, technicians can use computers to search for the problem, find it and even correct it all without leaving the office.
Connecting people, information, servicesBroadband connects people with the
Internet with a high-speed transmission and may even be more recognizable to end-users as high-speed Internet. To borrow an often used visual, if broadband is the pipe linking people to the Internet, bandwidth is the size of the pipe. Bandwidth measures how much data can be sent over a specific connection in a certain amount of time.
Fiber optic cable has the ability to deliver
more bandwidth than other broadband tech-nologies and at a lower maintenance cost. Fiber converts electrical signals to light, send-ing the signal on transparent glass fibers the size of a human hair.
Consolidated Telecommunications Co. now connects rural homes, cities, clinics and schools through fiber optic cable and offers much more than a phone line with digital tele-vision, digital video recorders, high-speed Internet and information technology services to meet the growing demands of both the smart home and businesses.
“We have a tremendous amount of technol-ogy at our fingertips,” said Kevin Larson, CEO at CTC.
It all began in the spring of 1950. “It was May 19, 1950, when seven men
joined for the first official meeting of the Crow Wing Cooperative Rural Telephone Company, which was later to become Consolidated Telephone Company,” CTC notes on its website. “After obtaining personal loans, the seven directors started selling mem-berships to residents as part of the new coop-
erative.”The cooperative is owned by its members
who vote for a board of directors. CTC serves Sullivan Lake, Randall, Pillager, Outing, Nokay Lake, Nisswa, Motley, Mission, Lincoln, Leader, Freedhem, Little Falls, Brainerd and Baxter. Services went from the telephone exchanges to private lines with rotary phones to touch tone phones.
Early beginnings and a fiber optic ringIt all started when the Bell companies
didn’t see the cost effectiveness of serving
rural areas, so cooperatives got together to fill the void. Farmers sold memberships in the co-ops to finance the work to get telephone lines.
“They couldn’t get service otherwise if they hadn’t done that,” said Andy Isackson, CTC marketing manager. Isackson said what has evolved in the last 60-plus years is the installation of fiber optics so those rural areas once without phones now have voice, Internet and television with better digital service than most metropolitan areas.
Later, CTC expanded service into Brainerd and Baxter. Larson said in the early 2000s service issues in the two cities had the Brainerd School District earmarking money for tech-nology infrastructure in the bond for Forestview Middle School in Baxter. The plan was to put a fiber optic ring around Brainerd and Baxter to connect the schools.
The plan called for 37 miles of fiber optics around the cities with an extension to Nisswa Elementary School. In February 2004, CTC was a successful bidder and by Nov. 1 it was in place and operational. With the agreement, CTC built the line and would maintain it for 25 years. The project involved six partners - Essentia Health, cities of Brainerd and Baxter, the school district and CTC.
“To maintain it they offered us to use half the fiber to take services to other entities around Brainerd and Baxter,” Larson said. “And ever since 2005 we have been trying to build out from that core ring to other busi-nesses and other residents with fiber optics.”
S6 January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015 brainerddispatch.com | Brainerd Dispatch • pineandlakes.com | Echo Journal
112 Years
Brainerd
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218-829-4216 124 Front Street, Brainerd
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Park United Methodist Church315 North 6th Street, Brainerd
218-829-4116www.parkunitedmethodist.org
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702 Industrial Park Rd, Brainerd
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Celebrating 92 years as the nation’s largest not-for-profit
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ANDERSON CLEANERS
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brainerdrotary.com
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506 James StreetBrainerd, MN
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St. FrancisCatholic Church
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It began May 19, 1950, when seven men joined for the first official meeting of the Crow Wing Cooperative Rural Telephone Company, which was later to become Consolidated Telecommunications Company. Today CTC services the areas of Sullivan Lake, Randall, Pillager, Outing, Nokay Lake, Nisswa, Motley, Mission, Lincoln, Leader, Freedhem, Little Falls, Brainerd and Baxter with local phone service, high speed Internet and now digital TV with all the latest features. To compliment its service offerings, CTC also offers I.T. support to local businesses in need of professional and timely service with their computers, network setups and troubleshooting.
PHOTO BY STEVE KOHLS/BRAINERD DISPATCH
CTC builds on history of communication Instead of the expected party-line conver-
sation, a clinking sound came through the
The sound of moving metal in the distance. Somewhere on an 11-mile stretch a phone
The only clue was the distant, irregular sound of clinking metal. Finding where the sound originated and where the exchange was off the hook would be a time-consuming effort. For half a day, Consolidated Telecommunications Co. (CTC) lineman Jerry Palm climbed telephone poles along the line before narrowing down the culprit - a phone off the hook in a barn. The clinking sound?
Palm, now a member of CTC’s board, was one of 10 workers at the cooperative telephone company in the summer of 1968. He wit-nessed the incredible changes in technology from telephone wire strung on wooden poles in rural areas maintained by farmers eager to more bandwidth than other broadband tech- erative.”
rural areas, so cooperatives got together to fill the void. Farmers sold memberships in the co-ops to finance the work to get telephone lines.
“They couldn’t get service otherwise if they hadn’t done that,” said Andy Isackson, CTC marketing manager. Isackson said what has evolved in the last 60-plus years is the installation of fiber optics so those rural areas once without phones now have voice, Internet and television with better digital service than most metropolitan areas.
Later, CTC expanded service into Brainerd and Baxter. Larson said in the early 2000s service issues in the two cities had the Brainerd School District earmarking money for tech-nology infrastructure in the bond for Forestview Middle School in Baxter. The plan was to put a fiber optic ring around Brainerd and Baxter to connect the schools.
The plan called for 37 miles of fiber optics around the cities with an extension to Nisswa Elementary School. In February 2004, CTC was a successful bidder and by Nov. 1 it was in place and operational. With the agreement,
CTC builds on history of communication
A Consolidated Telecommunications Co. crew works to set up communication cables.SUBMITTED PHOTO
See CTC, Page S10
January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015 S7 brainerddispatch.com | Brainerd Dispatch • pineandlakes.com | Echo Journal
56 Years
Das Auto.
AUTO IMPORT, INC.22 WASHINGTON ST.
BRAINERD, MN218-829-3307
WWW.AUTOIMPORTVW.COM
Your Area Volkswagen Dealer Since 1959
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830 Brook Street • Brainerd, MN
829-4332www.pikeplumbingandheating.com
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2020 South 6th StreetBrainerd, MN829-2020
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Westgate Mall Brainerd/Baxter
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218-829-8770www.northlandarb.org
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RESIDENTIAL • COMMERCIAL • INDUSTRIAL
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58 Years
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218-829-3624
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804 Laurel StreetBrainerd, MN218-829-9065
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First National Bank of Deerwood Bank builds on traditionCommitted employees, consistent service lead to success
BY RENEE RICHARDSONBrainerd Dispatch Senior Reporter
For Deerwood Bank, through 105 years of changing times and changing technologies, the mainstay is the focus on people and relation-ships.
It all began in 1910 in the city of Deerwood, which sported a popula-tion of 590 along the Northern Pacific Railway line. Logging, lakes and a developing resort industry helped the area grow and the bank grew with it. In 1968, the bank added locations outside the immedi-ate Deerwood area. A branch arrived in Brainerd in 1995.
Now eight locations employ about 75 people in central and north-ern Minnesota.
John Ohlin, president/CEO at First National Bank of Deerwood, said if there is a secret to longevity it’s in the people. Employees, he said, have a commitment to the community. He credited consistency in service as well.
In the past, banks were noted for giving out toasters to lure customers to open accounts. Technology has changed what customers are looking for in bank services. Now Deerwood Bank offers customers the conve-nience of depositing checks by tak-ing photos of them with smart-phones and tablets.
Being nimble and not only able to change with the times but excel is one thing Ohlin said stands out to him when he considers the bank’s history and tradition.
Looking back to 1910 and the years following, Ohlin said the small town bank survived the Great Depression and endured.
The philosophy of the bank, he said, comes with a focus on local ownership and community roots. Ohlin said believing in the commu-nities the bank serves, being flexible and able to react to change quickly
have been key. The Great Recession came with
its own challenges. Ohlin said Deerwood Bank’s long history, track record and capital provided strength to survive the recently lengthy eco-nomic downturn.
“It wasn’t easy,” Ohlin said. “It was a lot of hard work, but every-body has come through it a lot smarter.
“I think the industry has healed
up and is back in the business of making loans and servicing custom-ers. We are back to being on the offense and serving the needs of the customers,” he said.
For those customers, Ohlin said a community bank offers residents and business owners a chance to know the people they are working with. The relationships that devel-oped between banker and client through savings accounts, home
purchases, business start-ups and expansions are what stand out, Ohlin said. Customers, he said, can pick up a phone and talk to someone who knows their name.
“It’s still a relationship business,” he said. “We still believe that rela-tionships make a difference and hav-ing that personal relationship makes a difference.
“We’re a local business just like everyone else. We want to see the
local economies doing well,” he said.
Ohlin said the economic climate is looking positive, much better than it did five years ago.
In the last century, Ohlin said some of the biggest changes are the increased competition with more banks in the market. Technology continues to change how services are provided. Online banking.
Committed employees, consistent service lead to success
For Deerwood Bank, through 105 years of changing times and changing technologies, the mainstay is the focus on people and relation-
It all began in 1910 in the city of Deerwood, which sported a popula-tion of 590 along the Northern Pacific Railway line. Logging, lakes and a developing resort industry helped the area grow and the bank grew with it. In 1968, the bank added locations outside the immedi-ate Deerwood area. A branch arrived
Now eight locations employ about 75 people in central and north-
John Ohlin, president/CEO at First National Bank of Deerwood, said if there is a secret to longevity it’s in the people. Employees, he said, have a commitment to the community. He credited consistency
In the past, banks were noted for giving out toasters to lure customers to open accounts. Technology has changed what customers are looking for in bank services. Now Deerwood Bank offers customers the conve-nience of depositing checks by tak-ing photos of them with smart-
The First National Bank of Deerwood in 1910. In the last 105 years the bank has grown to include eight branches and about 75 employees in central and northern Minnesota.
SUBMITTED PHOTO
See DEERWOOD BANK, Page S9
Bank computer operations manager and current First National Bank of Walker vice president. “It had Heartland Real Estate Office downstairs. It had a CPA office downstairs. Cass Company Insurance had an office upstairs, and then they had Backus State Bank. It also operated as the computer hub of both Pine River State Bank and Backus State Bank in those years. It was quite a Mecca of business there in that building, if you think about it. They had a lot of stuff going on. There were a lot of people there at one time. Of course, now there is just the bank in there.”
In 1983, Nelson had pur-chased the Pine River State Bank, and by 1990 the two banks began to grow too big, collectively, for Nelson. One of them had to go. Nelson found a buyer in the First National Bank of Walker under former president John Elsenpeter, but the bank was only interested in part of the business.
“I think we just wanted to expand our service area to the residents of Backus and Hackensack,” said Toni Morrison, First National Bank of Walker marketing officer.
“When I sold to the First National Bank, they didn’t want the charter. They wanted to purchase it on an assets-only basis, so I still had the charter,” Nelson said.
That’s when things begin to get complicated.
First National Bank of Walker continued operation of the bank in its current location, but left Nelson with the char-
ter. With the closing of the Farmer’s State Bank in Pequot Lakes, Nelson decided to move the charter and rename it, in a way splitting the former Backus State Bank in two.
“Technically, the charter now known as Lakes State Bank is the old Backus State Bank,” Cline said.
The First National Bank of Walker eventually owned both parts again.
“I took the old Backus charter, moved it to Pequot and created the Lakes State Bank in Pequot as a freestand-ing bank using the Backus State Bank charter,” Nelson said. “Everything that goes around comes around. The same thing happened again. It grew so fast I couldn’t afford to keep putting money into it. I sold it and shortly after that First National Bank of Walker bought it from the people I sold it to. They got the charter back that they didn’t want from the old Backus bank. That’s the charter that now has moved to Baxter. That’s (Lakes State Bank in Baxter) a free-standing bank, but it’s owned by First National Bank of Walker.”
In the meantime, the former Backus State Bank location, now belonging to First National Bank of Walker, con-tinued its faithful service to its faithful patrons through good times and bad, including one 2004 robbery and the econom-ic downturn of 2008. The bank persevered with the help of its personal customer relation-ships.
“It’s caring, and it’s always been there to serve the local
people. The First National Bank local branch has always been there to provide service to the locals and to help people in the area,” Cline said. “They’ve always been a strong supporter of the economic development of the area. They’ve always been proactive in the community and support-ing anything the community wants to do. It’s always been a very good community part-ner.”
In addition to its communi-ty services, the faces at the bank have always been impor-tant. Locally, the late Mary Sheley, former branch manag-er, was almost famous locally for her personal service.
“Mary Sheley was with Backus State Bank originally (1979-2011), and then she managed the branch for many years (1993-2011). She was really well liked in the area,” Morrison said. “She was the
sweetest lady in the world. She was truly an asset to the Backus bank and the popular-ity of the bank there.”
“I had the pleasure of work-ing with Mary Sheley. She was just a wonderful gal,” Cline said. “Shortly after she retired from the bank, she passed away. She was always just a sweetie.”
Over the years, through sometimes complicated means, Backus’ bank - under
any name - has survived and even thrived. Cline said First National Bank of Walker has no plans to change that.
“They look forward to serv-ing the community in the future. It’s not going any-where. The bank will stay right where it is and it will remain an integral part of the community for years to come,” Cline said.
S8 January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015 brainerddispatch.com | Brainerd Dispatch • pineandlakes.com | Echo Journal
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Greg A. Anderson, LUTCF Agent
17373 Dewes Road Brainerd
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S8 January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015 brainerddispatch.com | Brainerd Dispatch • pineandlakes.com | Echo Journal
While Norway Ridge has seen improvements in its 67 years, the pine furniture and much of the up north décor that give the restaurant its warmth and character has remained the same.
SUBMITTED PHOTO
known in the lakes area, who joined them last summer. Albrecht is responsible for the weekend chef specials and he comes up with their soups, all made from scratch.
The sisters added a gift shop, Kimble Kottage, and other gifts, many of which are made by Elson and Clark. Clark makes scarves and knits, and they both enjoy quilting together, often going to “quilt camps” with a group of quilters called the Close Knit Quilters. They also enjoy traveling during the winter months when Norway Ridge is closed.
Clark and Elson aren’t yet ready to retire, but when they do, it could be a challenge to find the next owners of the landmark restaurant.
“Jackie always says we are stewards of this establishment,” said Elson.
“I would hope eventually new owners would continue to maintain the flavor of Norway Ridge,” Clark said. “It really is the staple of the area to me. It is what you’d expect to find when you go up north.”
Elson and Clark said they thrive on getting to know their guests and look forward to seeing them return each summer.
“We love the people, the fast pace and the challenge of it. We love the atmosphere and charm. We are very hands on,” said Elson.
“And that’s very important,” added Clark. “One of us is always here, and on busy nights, we’re both here.”
Norway Ridge is open Tuesdays through Sundays from April to October.
Jodie Tweed is a freelance writer living in Pequot Lakes.
NORWAY RIDGE, From Page S2
in those years. It was quite a parts again.
BACKUS BANK, From Page S5
ter. With the closing of the Farmer’s State Bank in Pequot Lakes, Nelson decided to move the charter and rename it, in a way splitting the former
“Technically, the charter now known as Lakes State Bank is the old Backus State
The First National Bank of Walker eventually owned both
“I took the old Backus charter, moved it to Pequot and created the Lakes State Bank in Pequot as a freestand-ing bank using the Backus State Bank charter,” Nelson said. “Everything that goes The former Backus State Bank location on Front Street in Backus sits unused now, though it was the start of
something that continues today. PHOTO BY TRAVIS GRIMLER
January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015 S9 brainerddispatch.com | Brainerd Dispatch • pineandlakes.com | Echo Journal
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1022 Madison Street Brainerd, MN 56401
218-828-6424www.lakecountryjournal.com
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Candy & SupplyCash-N-Carry Superstore
Serving the area since 1938Paper, Janitorial, Food Service Equip-ment & Supplies, Candies, Kitchen
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DEERWOOD BANK, From Page S7
Mobile banking. Customers may access Deerwood Bank accounts through their smart-phones, tablets and text messages. Bank cus-tomers are now accustomed to checking bal-ances online, transferring funds, even paying bills.
“You have to provide the clients with all the technological changes that are out there,” Ohlin said.
Regulatory conditions have also changed significantly in the last five years with more checks and balances.
“One of the challenges going forward is capturing the next generation and what is important to them,” Ohlin said. “We have to stay on top of what we have to provide them.
“I think the online banking and access to information - just the immediate access - to balances and information, that’s probably been the most beneficial for the consumer,” he said.
Tools continue to increase. Bankrate.com recently reported voice rec-
ognition will eliminate the need for passwords as technology continues to revolutionize how account holders access their money. Ohlin
said having all the methods to access informa-tion and accounts is important. He doesn’t see checks disappearing anytime soon, but he also has a 24-year-old son who has never written one.
What is certain is banking, like everything else, will look a bit different in the future than it does today. There may not be toasters or cutlery to attract bank customers, but people skills will still stand out no matter the latest incentive or mobile way to get there.
“We’re really proud of our heritage and what we do to assist the community and the people that live in it,” Ohlin said. “And we are looking forward to the next 105 years.”
Renee Richardson, Brainerd Dispatch senior reporter, may be reached at 218-855-5852 or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Dispatchbizbuzz.
January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015
Present day: Deerwood Bank on a chilly January afternoon in 2014.SUBMITTED PHOTO
Present day: Deerwood Bank on a chilly January afternoon in 2014.Present day: Deerwood Bank on a chilly January afternoon in 2014.SUBMITTED PHOTO
John Ohlin
said having all the methods to access informa-
“You have to provide the clients with all the technological changes that are out there.”
~John Ohlin
Taken from the historic water tower. Note “Van’s Lunch” sign on corner and the shape of the old sawmill office building moved there in 1908.
ECHO FILE PHOTO
Van’s Lunch circa 1928
Brainerd’s historic water tower was erected after World War I and was one of the first constructed with poured-in-place concrete.
ECHO FILE PHOTO
Brainerd’s historic water tower as seen from North 6th Street.
ECHO FILE PHOTO
Views from North 6th Street, Brainerd
Larson estimates 60 per-cent of Baxter and 40 percent of Brainerd now have fiber optics to the home.
“Our world is going toward a broadband world,” Larson said. “We need broad-band in order to function.
In a partnership with Crow Wing County, CTC took fiber optic out to the Brainerd Lakes Regional Airport area a few years ago.
“It just continues to grow like that,” Larson said. “That was the seed money back in 2004 to get something start-ed. ... it was a great opportu-nity for us, but we’re proud to be a partner with all those
entities and what we brought to Brainerd and Baxter - sec-ond to none across the coun-ty. There are lots of commu-nities that don’t have this connectivity.”
And CTC continues to look to expand coverage in residential areas with a focus on areas without Internet ser-vice or with limited service.
“There are a lot of under-served areas, believe it or not,” Isackson said. “We still have a long way to go to con-nect people.”
Larson said CTC could never have completed the fiber optic ring without the support of its board of direc-tors who were willing to take a risk.
“Quite frankly we knew there was risk, but it was really hard to quantify how much risk,” Larson said. “And it’s all paid off. But it’s easy to sit here 10 years later and say, ‘What a great proj-ect,’ but there were some real discussions around this table about how we were going to make this work.”
Larson said CTC could have had a board of directors so conservative they thought the idea was too far out of the company’s realm. Instead, he said it’s flourished because the board provided leadership and the ability to move the project forward.
“Over the last 10 years, CTC - in the Brainerd, Baxter, Nisswa areas - we probably invested $25 million,” Larson said. “It takes a lot of capital to build fiber optics and maintain it. So it’s a huge investment into this commu-nity.”
Now Pillager, Motley, Lincoln, the city of Randall, Sullivan Lake, Nokay Lake and Mission have fiber optics to the homes and they are working on Outing. The cooperative has an applica-tion in to finish the rest of Randall, Leader and Freedhem, representing another $12 million invest-ment. If funding comes through those rural areas could be served by fiber in
the next two years. With fiber optics, as needs grow, capac-ity can be increased by chang-ing connections at the ends instead of digging up entire ditches.
The cooperative has about 12,000 members.
Challenges and opportunities
Neighborhoods contact CTC to bring in fiber optic to increase service providers and television options. One of the challenges in expanding is the expense of putting in infrastructure and putting fiber optics for neighbor-hoods in a competitive envi-ronment where people may switch carriers with regulari-ty in search of a less expen-sive service. Getting a cus-tomer to express interest in switching is no guarantee of revenue.
“You just can’t build it and hope that they will come,” Larson said. “It just doesn’t work that way.”
Moving into providing television services proved to be one of CTC’s biggest ser-vice challenges. The compa-ny moved into TV service and DVRs at a time when the technology was a moving tar-get. Larson said the first two software companies they worked with weren’t up to the challenge and provided an inferior service.
“Until we got to the cur-
rent platform we are on it was a huge struggle for us,” Larson said. “It was inferior service and we know it was and it’s taken us years to get some of those customers back.”
Now CTC offers high definition television and fully functioning DVR ser-vice.
Isackson said television is going to change signifi-cantly in the next few years. For CTC, there is frustration in the lack of ability to con-trol the channels it will offer to viewers. Certain content has to be bundled together, which Larson said gives them little control over the cost.
In a competitive and changing environment where technology and smart appli-ances become more integral to everyday living, Larson said CTC is committed to providing the connectivity. What does the future hold? It could be anything consider-ing the short distance in time from the cows at the end of the party line to now when smart refrigerators can pro-vide a recipe for dinner based on the contents inside. Larson said it means CTC has to know its customers better
than they know themselves. What if the future includes
transportation devices? Larson didn’t blink. He just asked how much bandwidth would be needed.
Renee Richardson, Brainerd Dispatch senior reporter, may be reached at 218-855-5852 or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Dispatchbizbuzz.
S10 January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015 brainerddispatch.com | Brainerd Dispatch • pineandlakes.com | Echo Journal
39 1/2 Years
“Custom...delivered.”
218.829.1381www.bercher.com
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829-5137
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Since 195259 Years
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Crosslake • 218-692-5200
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BAXTER LIONS CLUB
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Jenny’s HallmarkWestgate Mall • 218-829-2069
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Second Time AroundSECOND HAND STORE
218-829-1224Open March-December
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CTC, From Page S6
Jerry Palm, board member, talks about the past and the future expectations for Consolidated Telecommunications Company.
PHOTO BY STEVE KOHLS/BRAINERD DISPATCH
BD Photo Gallery & Videobrainerddispatch.com
Kevin Larson, general manager and CEO of Consolidated Telecommunications Company, talks about the past and the future.
PHOTO BY STEVE KOHLS/BRAINERD DISPATCH
rent platform we are on it was a huge struggle for us,” Larson said. “It was inferior service and we know it was and it’s taken us years to get some of those customers
Now CTC offers high definition television and fully functioning DVR ser-
Isackson said television is going to change signifi-cantly in the next few years. For CTC, there is frustration in the lack of ability to con-
PHOTO BY STEVE KOHLS/BRAINERD DISPATCH
In the early years linemen had to climb poles to find a problem, now technicians monitor computer equipment at Consolidated Telecommunications Co. offices to pinpoint maintenance needs.
SUBMITTED PHOTObe a partner with all those Nisswa areas - we probably
invested $25 million,” Larson said. “It takes a lot of capital to build fiber optics and maintain it. So it’s a huge investment into this commu-nity.”
Lincoln, the city of Randall, Sullivan Lake, Nokay Lake and Mission have fiber optics to the homes and they are working on Outing. The cooperative has an applica-tion in to finish the rest of Randall, Leader and Freedhem, representing another $12 million invest-ment. If funding comes through those rural areas could be served by fiber in
Andy Isackson, marketing manager at Consolidated Telecommunications Company, talks about the coverage area for the company.
PHOTO BY STEVE KOHLS/BRAINERD DISPATCH
January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015 S11 brainerddispatch.com | Brainerd Dispatch • pineandlakes.com | Echo Journal
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Paul Bunyan stands tall outside the A-Pine Restaurant on Highway 371 in Jenkins/Pequot Lakes. A-Pine owner Rick Beyer commissioned the statue in 2008 by local sculptor Josh Porter to greet passers-by along the highway. Many people stop and take a photo with Paul.
PHOTO BY JODIE TWEED
A-PINE, From Page S4
Beyer and his son would then hop aboard and ride the train to Pine River where his wife would pick them up.
Railroad customers have been replaced by customers who now bicycle to the restaurant on the trail.
In 1997, Beyer built the gas sta-tion next door. In 2008, he commis-sioned the large Paul Bunyan statue, created by Josh Porter, which greets motorists along Highway 371. When people stop for gas or to eat, they often walk over and take a photo with Paul before they go, he said.
The restaurant has gone through several upgrades throughout the past 30 years. They’ve added new win-dows, new equipment and four years ago upgraded to all new electrical wiring and lighting, including new dining room décor. The restaurant seats 90 guests.
Many families who stop in at the A-Pine for breakfast, lunch or din-ner each summer while vacationing in the Brainerd lakes area look for-ward to the annual tradition of visit-ing the restaurant that doesn’t look exactly like the chain restaurant they may visit back home.
“Tradition is very important to me,” said Beyer. “I often hear things like, ‘My grandpa used to bring me here.’ When people come up here, in a sense, they want time to stand still.”
Beyer credits his staff for the longevity of his restaurant. He has many longtime employees, includ-ing server Judy Pitschka, who has
been with the restaurant for nearly 24 years. His cook, Ginny Waldron, has been with the restaurant for 18 years.
“The success of this business is the people working here and their commitment to their job,” Beyer said. “Any business is only as good as the people who work there.”
While breakfasts are popular, so are many other items on the menu. The restaurant mixes its own spices and coatings for its fried chicken and cooks its own roast beef in-house. Their hot beef sandwiches, homemade cinnamon rolls and but-termilk pancakes are also guest favorites.
Diners may notice several bird feeders outside. One of Beyer’s favorite and loyal customers, the late Millie Nelson, once told Beyer he needed some bird feeders. She would keep track of how many times she and her husband, Bob, would eat at the A-Pine; one year they logged in 271 meals. She bought him a bird feeder and seed. Soon, other people started bringing in more feeders.
The A-Pine now has nine bird feeders outside its windows, and many customers enjoy eating while watching their fine-feathered friends do the same.
Many items on display through-
out the restaurant have a story. Beyer found a 6-foot wooden Paul Bunyan silhouette at a garage sale in Nisswa years ago. The owner wouldn’t sell it to him – unless he bought up and hauled away everything else at his garage sale. Beyer took him up on his offer. A fish mounted on the wall was caught by his father, Huckyl, who passed away in 1998.
A large oil painting of a lake scene in the back dining room, painted in the 1950s, was purchased at an auction 20 years ago. The couple pictured in the boat had been A-Pine customers. When the hus-band later walked into the restaurant and saw the painting of him and his late wife on the wall, he cried. It was the perfect spot for that painting, the man told Beyer.
“This business is a lifestyle,” said Beyer. “I love the people.”
Jodie Tweed is a freelance writer living in Pequot Lakes.
A-Pine owner Rick Beyer said his restaurant’s success can be attributed to the people who work there. Beyer, who has owned the restaurant for 30 years, has several longtime employees, including cook Ginny Waldron, left, who has been an A-Pine employee for 18 years, and Judy Pitschka, who has been a server for more than 23 years.
PHOTO BY JODIE TWEED
While the A-Pine Restaurant’s signature sign has been updated, it is the same sign that has been there since the restaurant opened as a drive-in restaurant in 1965.
PHOTO BY JODIE TWEED
Paul Bunyan stands tall outside the A-Pine Restaurant on Highway 371 in Jenkins/Pequot attributed to the people who work there. Beyer, who has owned the
Many families who stop in at the
“The success of this business is the people working here and their commitment to their job,”
~Rick Beyer
S12 January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015 brainerddispatch.com | Brainerd Dispatch • pineandlakes.com | Echo Journal
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MATTSON, From Page S3
“I threw my hat in the ring because that was my hometown,” he said. “So I came home and bought the homestead from my parents, who moved to Baxter.” He still lives on that land with his wife, Betty.
At the time, Standard Lumber had facilities in Pequot Lakes, Nisswa and Brainerd, In 1984, the Nisswa facility was closed and Mattson found himself unemployed. He moved to Forest Lake, “but I really didn’t want to leave Nisswa,” he said.
Less than a year later, while home for a weekend, Mattson saw a “for sale” sign at Gull Lake Lumber. He bought the business, and has been in that location ever since. It was first called Mattson’s Gull Lake Lumber Company, and later was shortened to Mattson Lumber Company, though the logo still includes a gull and a lake, Mattson pointed out,
The lumber business is more complex than it used to be, though not as seasonal as in the earlier years. Another business strength is its association from its first year with Marvin Windows, Mattson said.
“As an independent location, they give us credibility in the mar-ketplace,” he said.
Bill Jr., manager at Mattson Lumber, said the choices customers have now compared to 15-20 years ago is staggering. And with the Internet, customers come in more informed and educated.
“Home integration will become more common with a focus on ener-gy efficiency taking the lead,” he predicted.
Bill Jr. also works in sales, and does a little bit of everything at the business.
“With a small family business the title depends on what needs to be done,” he said.
He graduated from Pequot Lakes High School and attended St. Cloud State University before returning to the family business.
“I started at age 14 and just kept working here,” he said. “I have always enjoyed working in the building industry. I have been blessed. I get to work with my dad and my wife. We’ve been fortunate to have a great crew that has been with us for a long time, a couple with 20-plus years and most others 12 to 15 years. That makes every-thing so much easier.”
Nancy Vogt can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her at facebook.com/PEJNancy and on Twitter @PEJ_Nancy.
January 15, 2015 · January 16, 2015 brainerddispatch.com | Brainerd Dispatch • pineandlakes.com | Echo Journal
Bill Mattson, owner of Mattson Lumber Company in Nisswa for 29 years, sits in his office.PHOTO BY NANCY VOGT/ECHO JOURNAL
“As an independent loca-tion, they give us credibility in the marketplace.”
~Bill Mattson
Stacks of lumber sit at Mattson Lumber Company in Nisswa.PHOTO BY NANCY VOGT/ECHO JOURNAL
Bill Mattson shows Marvin Windows products offered at Mattson Lumber Company in Nisswa. The lumber company became a Marvin Windows dealer the first year the company opened.
PHOTO BY NANCY VOGT/ECHO JOURNAL
