As the deadline for this issue rapidly approached, I found myself with an acute case of writer’s block when it came to this column. Panic was about to ensue. (And trust me, panic only tightens the grip and prevents any useful thoughts from getting through). So, on the eve of the deadline, I decided to just let go of the chaos in my mind, by going to the chaos of the KISS concert at the Verizon Wireless Center in Mankato.
Davy Kreider is a long way from the Pennsylvania farm he grew up on. But what he learned there in the middle of Amish country, has traveled with him throughout his life; starting as a worker in his parents’ retail greenhouse business, to teaching at a Mennonite Parochial school in Pennsylvania
Spinner’s Bar and Grill on Belgrade Avenue in lower North Mankato has new ownership after almost 13 years, but new owners Clay and Sandra Oachs say Spinners will remain the same beloved neighborhood bar it’s always been.
When Janesville resident Gina Peterson started planning her wedding just more than six years ago, she kept running into a problem. Peterson says, “I just couldn’t find what I was looking for with my wedding invitations. Everything seemed very traditional or not in line with my style.”
As Steve Kibble looks back over the last 27 years, he’s still not sure just exactly what happened. When he graduated with a business marketing and management degree from MSU Mankato he had no intention of getting involved in the family business, Mankato Implement. His dad had owned the local John Deere dealership since 1973, so Steve grew up watching his father navigate the highs and lows of the business.
There are nearly 4,000 agriculture-related job postings in Minnesota alone, and not nearly enough talent out there to fill them. In fact, a recent study shows nationwide 39% of agriculture positions go unfilled.
Agriculture is the largest business segment in the area referred to as the GreenSeam, the southern Minnesota and northern Iowa agricultural region. The region has an economic link between production, processing, professional services, education, technology, research, manufacturing, transportation and more.
The week this publication hits your desk, marks the week seven years ago that I moved back to Mankato. Back after a 16-year adventure that took me to California, then to Washington D.C., then all the way back across the country again to Hawaii. But seven years ago, I came home.
Agriculture plays a vital role in our lives every day. And I’m not just talking about the food we eat. The economy in this region is very ag-centric. Agriculture is the base for which other businesses are able to start, grow and thrive here.
