Darvin James Ryg was born July 19, 1931 in Rake, IA to John and Dora (Gullord) Ryg.  He married Donna Bowen in March 1950 in Rake, IA.  They lived in Rake, IA and they worked at the telephone office.  In 1954, they moved to a farm northeast of Milaca, MN.  He enjoyed spending time at Bay Lake fishing and spending time on his back porch watching wildlife.  Darvin died Monday, February 13, 2012 at Milaca Elim Home.

He is survived by children, Cynthia Ryg of Minneapolis, Ricky and wife Ruth Ryg of Foreston, Linda and husband Nick Marudas of Milaca and Rodney Ryg and significant other Elena Oseth of Onamia;  grandchildren, Selina and husband Jarrod Blackwell of Milaca and Shane Marudas of Milaca and Masha Ryg of Onamia ;  great-granddaughters, Alyssa Steglich, Sophia Blackwell and Jocelyn Blackwell;  step grandchildren, Michelle (Jerry) Peterson and Jeffrey Fielder, step great-grandchildren, Marrissa, Rachel and Mathew Peterson, adopted grand daughter Shirani Jayasuriya;  brother, Arden (Maxine) Ryg;  sister, Virgel (Mardel) Loge;  special friend, who was like a daughter to him, Liz Ryg;  also by many nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

He was preceded in death by wife, Donna and daughter, Connie.

George Erickson

15, 2012 at the Elim Care & Rehab Center in Milaca.

George Donald Erickson was born May 7, 1918 in Greenbush Township, the son of Oscar and Cora (Christopherson) Erickson.  On June 21, 1941, George was united in marriage with Helen Johnson.  The couple was blessed with over 70 years of marriage and two children.  George and Helen made their home on his family’s farmstead, where he was raised and continued to farm up until the late 60’s when he began a career in carpentry.  George instilled in his children the importance of hard work while growing up on the farm and enjoyed the rewards of family vacations in the summer.  George served many years on the Greenbush Township Board, was an active member of their church and always willing to help others.  He enjoyed annual deer hunting trips, fishing, gardening and traveling with Helen to visit their son, Marlin who was stationed in various military locations.  Above all, George valued his family and spending time with them.  He was the proud grandfather and great-grandfather of 6 beautiful girls.

George is survived by his wife: Helen of Milaca; son: Marlin of Washington D.C.; daughter: Ione (Dick) Miles of Lakeshore, MN; granddaughters: Jillayn (Mike) Brinker of Lake Nebagamon, WI and Jessica (Cory) Kampschroer of Buffalo; great-granddaughters: Claire Brinker, Avery Brinker, Riley Kampschroer and Reese Kampschroer; sister: Dorothy Meyer of Elk River; as well as nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

He is preceded in death by his parents; and siblings: Harvey Erickson, Clifford Erickson, Edwin Erickson, Lawrence Erickson, Gladys Peterson, Florence Deuel and Maurice Erickson.

Funeral service:  1:00 PM Saturday, February 18, 2012 at God’s Greater Glory Parish (formerly Good Shepherd) in Princeton.  Pastor Barb Peterson will officiate.  Visitation will be held one hour prior to the services at the church.  Interment will be in the Sharon Lutheran Cemetery.

On Monday morning, Feb. 13, President Obama sent to Congress his federal budget for fiscal year 2013, a sort of wish list of White House spending priorities. The proposal calls for raising taxes on the wealthy, spending cuts in certain areas of government and increasing the budgets of infrastructure projects and job training programs.

If it miraculously made it through both the House and the Senate, the White House says that the plan would decrease the federal deficit by $4 trillion within the next decade. But the deficit certainly wouldn’t decrease any time soon. The president’s budget leaves the federal government with a shortfall of $901 billion by the end of fiscal year 2013.

Strangely enough, Obama introduced his budget in a speech at the Northern Virginia Community College near Washington, D.C. where thousands of people who will be paying off our debt for decades to come were listening.

The plan unveiled Monday also includes $360 billion in cuts to federal health programs like Medicare and Medicaid. Most of those cuts come from reduced payments to providers, including drug companies. Nothing in the budget speaks to how we can expect to reverse the trend of rising costs of medical care.

Republicans accused the president of failing to do anything meaningful to reduce deficits that could threaten the country with a European-style debt crisis. And I agree — partly. The White House budget does fail miserably at reducing deficits (and therefore only adds to our already ballooning debt). But we are not even in the same ballpark as Greece. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the U.S. public debt will increase to and level off at most 74 percent of GDP. Greece’s debt had totaled 160 percent of its GDP. We would need to engage in another two or three unfunded war campaigns and approve another round of massive tax cuts before we would ever reach that level of debt.

Obama’s budget blueprint revives a litany of prior proposals: allowing tax cuts to expire on couples making more than $250,000 a year; eliminating tax breaks for oil and gas companies and a number of smaller tax and fee increases.

Of course Republicans criticized the tax increases.

Unfortunately, both the president and the Republicans are willing to yet again kick the proverbial can. The projections in Obama’s budget show that he is doing absolutely nothing to restrain the growth in entitlement programs that is expected with the retirement of baby boomers.

Obama’s budget projects that Medicare spending will double during the coming decade from $478 billion this year to almost $1 trillion in 2022. Medicaid, the government health care program for the poor and disabled, would more than double from $255 billion this year to $589 billion by 2022. So while the budget may trim that $4 trillion during the next decade, these programs will continue to consume more and more of the federal coffers.

We need to raise taxes and eliminate breaks to those who hardly need them. But we also need to make serious budget cuts and significant reforms if we ever expect to responsibly pay our bills.

And it needs to be done in a way that is truly a “shared responsibility” (one of the president’s favorite phrases). So far, any talks of reforming Social Security and Medicare promise today’s seniors that they will be held harmless. These promises only ensure more of the same — younger generations will continue to be responsible for mistakes made before they were even born.

A rural Milaca woman faces five child abuse allegations after charges were filed in Mille Lacs County this past Friday.

The charges stem from an incident Mille Lacs County Sheriff’s Deputies began investigating Dec. 10, 2011 when they arrived at the Fairview Northland Hospital in Princeton. At the hospital, deputies met with a 3-year-old child and the child’s mother. The woman told deputies that her child had been cared for by Mary Janelle Roelofs, 46, from 8:30 a.m. to around 6 p.m. the day before at her residence in Princeton. Deputies saw bruising on the child and photographed the injuries.

The child told his mother Roelofs had made him stand outside in the cold several times that day. The child and an adult also in Roelofs’ care told the mother and investigators that during one of these times, the child wet his pants. Both said Roelofs changed his wet pants, and put a pull-up on him. The child said later he was put outside again wearing only a t-shirt and pull-up.

The child told his mother and investigators that a few weeks before this incident, Roelofs had punched the boy all over. The adult witness told investigators that the 3-year-old had pushed another child and Roelofs began punching him all over his stomach, sides, arms, shoulders and on top of the head.

Law enforcement received the medical records for the 3-year-old child from the examination Dec. 10. Police also took a statement from the attending doctor. The doctor said he would have been concerned about the bruises even without the mother’s statements because they are located in unusual places. Bruises were found on the child’s upper back, chest, neck and shoulders. Superficial scratches were also found on the child’s face.

Roelofs has been charged with three counts of malicious punishment of a child, one count of child neglect and one count of endangerment of a child. She  faces a combined maximum penalty of nine years in jail and up to $22,000 in fines.

Roelofs’ next court date is Tuesday, Feb. 28.

For the full story, see the Thursday, Feb. 16 print edition of the Times.

The duplex across from Milaca graduate Dean Beutz's home on a military housing base in California exploded, shattering walls and sending Marines stationed there into action.

By LESLEY TOTH
Mille Lacs County Times

Being the “first to fight” isn’t’ just a slogan for the U.S. Marine Corps. An explosion at the Coleville, Calif., Military Housing Base Friday, Feb. 3, proved that statement has held true from World War I, to present combat engagements, to an emergency in the soldiers’ own neighborhood.

1992 Milaca High School graduate Dean Beutz said the evening was like any other at the Pickle Meadow mountain warfare base’s housing district. Families were putting children to sleep and parents were settling in for a little relaxation before calling it a night.

After four tours in Iraq, Beutz is no stranger to the sounds of rocket fire, detonations and bombs. But this wasn’t Iraq.

“I just got up from the chair in my man cave when the house exploded,” Beutz said over the phone. “First instinct — we thought we were being attacked. It sounded like a 500-pound bomb going off. A mortar was nothing compared to what this sounded like.”

The blast sent glass shattering into his man cave and blew Beutz out of the room and nearly 20 feet down the hall.

“I grabbed my daughter — she didn’t have a scratch on her,” Beutz gratefully recalled.

After seeing to the safety of their own families,  the training Beutz and his neighbors possess kicked in.

“It was raining insulation,” he said.

Marines, most of them wearing nothing more than boxers and t-shirts, rushed toward the showering remains of the duplex and other homes that once stood on their block. They immediately began fighting fires that had broke out and searching for anyone trapped inside.

“We run towards the fire, not away,” Beutz said of Marines. “I pulled the kids out of the adjoining house and then I got the man and his wife out.”

He found the woman under a pile of debris. She currently is recovering from third degree burns sustained during the explosion. But another woman in a nearby home was not so fortunate.

“I got her boys out, they’re 4 and 6,” Beutz said of the woman who was killed. “She was basically the same distance from the house that I was [when it exploded]. If it wasn’t for the Marines that came to their aid… there could have been six fatalities.”

For the full story, see the Thursday, Feb. 16 print edition of the Times.

Grant VanWyngeeren’s plans for a metal recycling center about three and a half miles north of Milaca took a detour at the Feb. 7 meeting of the Mille Lacs County Board.

Commissioners, after a half-hour discussion, decided to send his request for a conditional use permit (CUP) back to the county’s planning commission, meanwhile extending the review period for VanWyngereen’s request by 60 days.

VanWyngereen made his request for the CUP at the Jan. 9 meeting of the Mille Lacs County Planning Commission.

He told commission members that he intended to purchase material from within a 30-mile radius and then process the items at his Brainerd facility, with no shredding, torching or crushing taking place on site. He said also there would be no draining of fluids at the Milaca Township site.

A number of people spoke at the public hearing on Jan. 9, most expressing concerns.

For example, neighbor Carla Bruggeman said she didn’t think the permit process was fair. She said the applicant had already made substantial improvements at the site because he was sure he would get the permit.

Dennis Nelson, chair of the Milaca Township Board and speaking on behalf of the board, said the board felt granting the request would be good for economic development.

Discussion continued at the planning commission meeting, one member noting that he thought the property was zoned commercial in the early 1990s. (It turned out to be 1988.)

The commission passed a motion to recommend approval of the request, with 16 conditions to meet. The vote was 4-2, Randy Murrah and Robert Hoefert voting against.

With another veteran bailiff retiring, and two new district court judges coming on board soon, Sheriff Brent Lindgren told county commissioners on Feb. 7 that he’s wondering what direction to take for court security, transportation, etc.

Bailiff Janet Johnson retired at the end of 2011 and that means Lindgren has lost three experienced bailiffs in the past few years.

The only one remaining is former Princeton policeman Don Hubbard, usually scheduled for 20-plus hours a week.

“Over the years we have been filling in [for bailiffs]  with court security deputies who are licensed to do more things,” Lindgren said in an interview Monday. “I just want to take a look at things.”

With the retirement of Judge Steve Ruble on Dec. 31, Sarah Hennesy of St. Cloud will be seated in March and in July another judge will be added to the court to try to help pare down the ever-increasing backlog of cases.

“I’d like to get together with the judges, probation, the county attorney and court administrator and see what everyone requires,” Lindgren said.

Lindgren told commissioners last week that there could be multiple trials going on at once and that there might be transportation issues.

“Sixty percent of the court calendar is criminal cases and that can mean transportation issues for prisoner,” he said.

For the full story, see the Thursday, Feb. 16 print edition of the Times.

Dr. A. Quinn Strobl, medical examiner for Mille Lacs County, reported to county commissioners at their Feb. 7 meeting that there was an 11 percent increase in county deaths investigated in 2011.

Strobl told commissioners her office investigated 157 deaths last year, 15 more than in 2010.

Thirty percent (47) of the deaths required a scene investigation, jurisdiction was assumed in 33 cases, and 22 autopsies were performed.

Six of the deaths were due to motor vehicle-related crashes, one with an unusual circumstance.

A person injured in a 1965 accident in Anoka County, in which that person was paralyzed. died from complications from that accident.

There were three motor vehicle deaths in Mille Lacs County in both 2010 and 2009.

Those killed in the vehicle accidents last year ranged in age from 12 to 72.

“Only the 72-year-old was wearing a seat belt,” Strobl told commissioners.

For the full story, see the Thursday, Feb. 16 print edition of the Times.

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•Question:  Both the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Minnesota Wild entered the season with new head coaches, Rick Adelman for the Timberwolves and Mike Yeo for the Wild. The Timberwolves are 13-16 and did recently reach the .500 mark while the Wild is 25-22 with 58 points and challenging for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference after cooling down after a hot start. Which coach has done the better job?

-Dorr: I think that Adelman has better material than Yeo. It’s hard to judge Yeo’s performance because management still hasn’t provided many goal scorers for that team. It’s also hard to figure out how the team could start so well (best record in the NHL for a month) and then fall flat on its face. Do you give Yeo credit for the start and blame for the fall, or was it bound to happen, given the inability of the team to score goals? I’d have to say Adelman, a veteran coach, has done the better job but maybe he has better personnel. He doesn’t have a shooting guard and that’s the team’s biggest need. Ricky Rubio has displayed some talent, although he’s had more turnovers lately, a couple at key times, and Kevin Love is a budding star. Adelman has seemed to bring a certain calmness to the team. Let’s not get too wrapped up in the Wolves making the playoffs, though, until they display consistency. I told Gary a month ago I thought both Rubio and the Wolves were overrated and now the team has averaged 21 turnovers a game while losing four straight. Give Adelman the edge so far but let’s wait until the season is over to say he has done a better job than Yeo.

-Marxhausen: I feel both teams have shown vast improvement comparative to their previous seasons. Both coaches have arrived with some new players on their respective rosters. The Wild have Dany Heatley and Devin Setoguchi to add to their roster while rookie sensations Derrick Williams and Ricky Rubio are good additions for the Timberwolves. If the Wild would have been able to keep the pace they had at the beginning of the season, they would have won their division hands down. The Wild finished the season last year with a slightly above .500 record while the Timberwolves finished the season with a .200 winning percentage. I would give the edge to the Timberwolves because it took them 39 losses before they could muster 13 wins last year and because they are bringing fans back to the stands while the Wild have a stronger following.

-Larson:  While the Timberwolves are currently in a slump, their play has sparked more fan interest than at any time last year. A few games haven’t been televised this season and fans have actually called FOX to complain. That likely didn’t happen last year.

Adelman appears to have the attention of his players, something previous coach Kurt Rambis appeared to not have. Adelman is a more experienced coach than Rambis was and it shows. He handles his personnel better and he has better personnel. The Timberwolves will likely flirt with the .500 mark all season but at least now fans can see a flickering of light at the end of the tunnel. Yeo faces much the same problem previous coach Todd Richards did – not much scoring punch. There’s not much he can do except hope defense and goal-tending can keep the Wild in contention. I’d give Adelman a B for his performance so far and Yeo a C+.

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•Question:  Last week the Minneapolis Star Tribune ran a point/counterpoint feature on the merits of refurbishing Williams Arena, the legendary home court of the University of Minnesota’s men’s basketball team and the site of many state high school state tournament games. Columnist Michael Rand took the position that the 83-year-old facility, with its famous “raised” court, should be, at most, updated a bit. He said the building is too iconic to be discarded. Columnist Patrick Reusse wrote that “The Barn” has outlived its attraction and has too many blemishes and should be replaced by a new facility that will be more appealing to fans, players and potential recruits. What do you think?

-Dorr: I love Williams Arena and want to see it stay. My last trip there was a couple weeks ago when Minnesota beat Illinois in an overtime game and it was a loud, fun-filled night. I was at Target Center last week for a Wolves’ win without Kevin Love but it’s just not the same there. I’m not sure that getting a new facility is the answer to anything for the Gophers – recruiting or anything else. I began going to games there more than 50 years ago and still enjoy going back. I didn’t like it when the high school tournament was moved to other sites. I hope the Gophers stay there and I wish all the high school tournament games were still played there. The facility in St. Paul had a distant, artificial feel to it, while Williams Arena has a closeness that other facilities can’t match, even though you can’t even get 15,000 people in there now, compared to the old days of 18,000 or more for Big Ten games and state tournament games.

-Marxhausen: As far as I am concerned the court is still usable just the way it is. A place of that historical value could always be updated and brought up to present standards, but to replace the entire facility at the moment seems to be a waste of money. Minnesota is already wasting its money with that outrageous salary that they are giving ex-athletic director Joel Maturi. The old saying of spending money to make money can be used in this sense because a new stadium would be more appealing, but does not seem worth the investment at this time.

-Larson:  Reusse is almost always right on the money. This time he’s all wet. I think they needed someone to write the counterpoint and his name was drawn out of a hat. A guy who’s written colorful and compelling accounts of games played on the elevated Williams Arena floor and the players involved doesn’t stiff an old friend.

High school athletes I’ve seen over the years are a lot more in awe over “The Barn” than the other Twin Cities venues. If fancy modern facilities and sparkling new arenas have replaced tradition and the opportunity to play as recruiting tools, then this is a sad time for college athletics. Invest some money to spruce Williams Arena up, but don’t tear it down.

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•Question:  It was recently announced that the St. Cloud River Bats team in the summer collegiate Northwoods League has been sold to local residents Gary Posch and Joe Sexton. The team, which opened play in 1996, had a huge following for many years, but, attendance has dipped the past few seasons. The new owners plan a new mascot name and team colors and plan to stock the team with the best players they can get. Do you think the team can rejuvenate fan interest? How often did you attend River Bats games?

-Dorr: I attended a couple games when a player from Princeton was playing in St. Cloud for the Rochester team and have been to one or two other games in the 15 years of the team’s existence. As much as I enjoy baseball, I just haven’t gotten to St. Cloud to go to the games. If I lived in St. Cloud I would probably go to more games. I have followed the team, especially when it has players from Minnesota, in the St. Cloud newspaper. I have no idea if fan interest can be rejuvenated – just don’t know enough about the situation. I wish the new owners well and hope they can get things going again.

-Marxhausen: I have averaged one to two River Bats games every summer for the past three years, with most of them involving coverage for SCSU’s The Chronicle. The thing about the River Bats is that they have done a very good job marketing the team to fans. They have deals for groups of people or meal deals for fans. They keep the fans occupied with in-between inning entertainment that allows for fans to not get bored. Right now, though, they can pitch and sell their team all they want to fans and local viewers, but they will not rejuvenate interest unless they start winning consistently. Victories are the only sure thing to fill stands with fans and that is step one for the new organization to take care of.

-Larson:  Milaca High School graduate Marc Jerzak, now one of the owners of the Willmar Stingers in the Northwoods League and a former River Bats official, worked long hours to help make the River Bats a success before heading to Willmar two years ago. And, Janelle Packard, another Milaca grad, also worked for the River Bats. I know several Milaca area residents have made frequent trips to River Bats games since the team began play and I have several friends in St. Cloud who attend many games each summer. A drop off in the team’s success, the Twins’ Target Field and a poor economy have likely been the factors in the decline in attendance. It would have been nice if the team could’ve maintained its River Bats name but apparently that tag was held by the previous owner, Joel Sutherland. It may take some fans a while to tie the new name with the old name.

I’ve attended 10 or so games over the years and enjoyed the games. Personally, I’d rather watch top amateur teams like the Princeton Panthers, Cold Spring Springers, etc. The team is good for the St. Cloud area and I’m hoping the new owners are successful.

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Do you have an opinion on any of this week’s questions? Do you agree or disagree with the sportswriters? Let us know by sending an e-mail to editor.millelacscotimes@ecm-inc.com or a note to Mille Lacs County Times, 225 S.W. 2nd St. Milaca, MN 56353. Or comment online.

Mille Lacs County Times

Milaca is heading back to the Class AA State Team Wrestling Tournament!

The Wolves defeated Mora 45-25 in the Section 7AA Tournament title match Friday at Mora. It was not the easy victory that the score would indicate.

Milaca, which will be making its 10th trip to the state meet under coach Randy Zimmer, topped Hibbing 54-15 in the semifinals while Mora handled defending-champion Grand Rapids.

Against Mora, the Wolves got off to a quick 17-0 lead behind technical fall victories by sophomore Ray Hoffman at 106 pounds and junior Joey Curtis at 113, a major decision by senior Joe Moscho at 120 (his 100th career victory) and a decision by senior Chris Newgard at 126.

However, at 132, junior Jonah Gahm of Milaca suffered a shoulder injury and  lost by injury default. Gahm was leading when he was injured.

Mora received six points and a break that lit a fire. The Mustangs won four of the next five matches to take a 25-21 lead with four matches remaining.

Ninth-grader Josh Otten’s major decision at 152 was the Wolves’ lone win during the stretch.

That left Milaca in a position of needing to win at least three of the reaming four matches or win twice with a pair of pins.

The Wolves did even better, closing the match out with falls by senior Jake Earl at 182, senior Justin Ladehoff at 195, sophomore Brandon Merten at 220 and senior Jordan Ahner at heavyweight.

“It was one of the best finishes we’ve ever had,” said Zimmer, who’s stepping down at the end of the season after 24 years as Milaca head coach. “Mora was charged up. We beat a good team.”

Milaca’s last trip to the state team meet was two years ago.

The opening round of the Class AA State Tournament is Thursday, March 1, at 11 a.m. at the XCel Energy Center in St. Paul.

The seeding and pairings for the meet will be determined next week.

The Wolves will now head to the Section 7AA Individual Tournament Friday, Feb. 24 and Saturday, Feb. 25, at Mora. Friday’s first round begins at 4 p.m., with Saturday’s first session at 11 a.m.