Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
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Four men buried in the New Rockford Cemetery decades ago will have proper stones installed to remember them, courtesy of a community effort. It all started with a Facebook post on the “New Rockford Friends” page, a photo of a Transcript newspaper article about Kirby Winfield. Many fondly remember this African American gentleman, who lived in the basement below two downtown stores nearly a century ago. Kirby Winfield was born circa 1863. He came to New Rockford from Carrington around 1924. He...
Eddy County Community Cares and the Carrington Area Healthy Communities Coalition have partnered to bring an incredible mental health resource to the area. On Nov. 16, witness the story of Kevin Hines, a young man who survived a jump off the Golden Gate Bridge in 2000. Since that day, he has traveled the world sharing his story and teaching people of all ages the art of wellness and the ability to survive pain with true resilience. His mantra: "Life is a gift, that is why they call it the... Full story
Good news came Thursday, Oct. 14 for the New Rockford-Sheyenne School District, as Southeast District Judge Troy LeFevre rejected Klemetsrud Plumbing and Heating’s request for an temporary injunction halting the boiler replacement project. The lawsuit, filed Aug. 26, alleged that the school district did not comply with N.D.'s competitive bidding statutes in awarding the contract for the boiler replacement to Minot Plumbing and Heating, as Klemetsrud had submitted the lowest bid. Klemetsrud c...
She greets nearly all of her customers by name, even though she has only lived in the community for a year. Janette Jackson, a cashier at Miller's Fresh Foods in New Rockford, was recognized with the Chamber's Employee of the Month award for October. A mother of eight and the widow of a U.S. Navy veteran, Jackson moved from Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, last summer. "I was tired of the city life," she recalls, stating that she was encouraged to come to New Rockford by her daughter, Melissa Bass, who...
The past few weeks have been a whirlwind. I’ve taken on two new roles, and I traveled more than 400 miles from home in the midst of it all. I became the 10th publisher of the Foster County Independent on Oct 1. I was also abruptly promoted to first vice president of the North Dakota Newspaper Association a few days later, and I will be considered for election as president in May of next year. Both of these responsibilities I accepted willingly, after thoughtful consideration. Then, as my h...
The Eddy County Commission proposed that the City of New Rockford pay 2% more for police service in 2022, prompting city officials to request a report from Eddy County Sheriff Paul Lies. Lies prepared a short written report for Monday’s meeting, which indicated that the department had received 1,493 calls for service so far this year. More than one-third of the calls, or 587 total, were to address matters occurring within the city limits, Lies said. He also outlined the budget for law enforcemen...
Monday night Wade Senger of Interstate Engineering unveiled street repair alternatives for New Rockford city officials to consider. The firm conducted a visual observation of all the city's streets and reviewed historical data from previous street improvement projects completed in city limits. Senger noted that in many areas the base of the roadway is damaged, and potholes, fatigue cracking and rutting are common. Much of the subgrade throughout the city has failed, he added, causing the...
A man who assaulted three men at a party this summer will not spend any time in jail. Cameron T. Hurst of New Rockford was charged with Class C Felony aggravated assault and two counts of misdemeanor simple assault, after the incident in New Rockford on June 6. Court records say he caused serious bodily injury to one man by “kicking him in the ribs and punching him in the face repeatedly,” knocking the victim unconscious and breaking several bones in his face, prompting the Class C Felony cha...
The New Rockford Community Foundation is bringing back game show excitement on Saturday, Nov. 20! Readers may remember Deal or No Deal, in which contestants were drawn out of the game one by one, revealing a small group who battled it out for part of the $2,000 cash prize! After a two-year hiatus, the foundation's board of directors is ready to resume the fun and games, while raising funds for the community's endowment fund. This time, though, there's a new game. Two to be exact. Enter Encore...
The basement of New Rockford’s municipal water plant was full of water at 2:45 am on Tuesday, when water plant manager Rick Swenson came on the scene due to an alarm. He carefully climbed a flight of stairs to assess the situation, then shut off a valve inside the plant. With water continuing to pour out, he turned off a shut-off valve outside the plant, under the sidewalk. When even that wasn’t enough to curb the flow, workers headed to another valve near the Johnson property north of the water...
September's Employee of the Month got an enthusiastic nomination from a young member of the community. JoAnn Gaffrey, who has served customers from behind the plexiglass at Casey's since July 2020, was nominated by NR-S senior Macey Wobbema. "JoAnn is the nicest employee at Casey's. She has the best customer service I've ever seen!" Wobbema told the Chamber board of directors. "I always look forward to seeing her when I go in. She makes you feel like family!" Gaffrey is enjoying her new career...
North American Bison, LLC (NAB) is breaking ground and moving forward with a major expansion project that's been four years in the making. On Thursday, Sept. 16, the entire staff of NAB's New Rockford plant participated in an early morning ceremony to commemorate the beginning of construction. The plans, which were announced last summer, call for two new additions, one each to the west and east of the existing plant. A second loading dock will be installed, and additional freezer and cooler sp...
Eddy County 4-H'ers gathered Sunday to reflect on one year and plan for the next. The annual Round Up event had a new element this year, as the county started a shooting sports specialty club this spring. Members learned the ropes of trap shooting in year one, under the direction of New Rockford resident Mike Brazil. At Sunday's finale, each 4-H member shot 100 rounds, and each took home items they can use in the field for hunting waterfowl. Brazil said he plans to expand the program this c...
The basement of the Eddy County Courthouse has gone from shabby to chic. As shown in the photos, the dark, dingy basement is a thing of the past. The asbestos tiles were safely removed and the wood paneling stripped, replaced by fresh drywall and durable vinyl plank flooring. Local contractor Randy Linderman took the lead on the renovation work, which he spent the winter months completing. A grid ceiling, featuring energy-efficient LED lights installed by Viking Electric, covers up the myriad of...
Street repairs in New Rockford could be underway in less than two years, if all goes according to plan. The New Rockford City Commission held a special meeting on Labor Day to get the ball rolling on engineering plans for an overhaul of the city’s streets. Wade Senger of Interstate Engineering walked commissioners through the proposed engineering services agreement, which consists of three distinct phases. The first, preliminary design, involves evaluating all the streets and recommending the b...
The New Rockford-Sheyenne School District filed its response to Klemetsrud Plumbing and Heating’s lawsuit regarding the boiler replacement project on Tuesday, Aug. 31. The district maintains that Minot Plumbing and Heating will “best serve the public interest” by being allowed to replace the school’s antiquated boilers, and argues that the district has the authority to choose the “lowest and best bidder,” a decision based on other factors besides money. In its 14-page response, the school dist...
Jeff Klemetsrud of Klemetsrud Plumbing and Heating told the Transcript that he wants to “set the record straight” about the competitive bidding process for the school boilers at NR-S. The Transcript reported in its Aug. 16 edition that the NR-S school board awarded the bid to replace the school’s aging boilers to Minot Plumbing and Heating, even though their bid was $14,313 more than Klemetsrud’s. The reason given at the Monday, Aug. 9 meeting, as the reporter who covered the meeting underst...
The first day of school looked vastly different last year. Masks were required at NR-S, students received daily screenings upon entry, and class sizes were reduced to minimize spread of the novel coronavirus. Secondary students entered school through a different door than the elementary students. On Tuesday, Aug. 24, students went back to school with mostly pre-pandemic protocols, as only one active case of COVID-19 had been reported in Eddy County since June 1. Elsewhere in the state, however,...
Not many people can say they've done the same work for 56 years, with no signs of slowing down. The Chamber's Employee of the Month for August, Kevin Johnson, has been in the landscaping and snow removal business since he was a young boy. He worked with his dad and two brothers growing up, and his twin brother Kim continues to help during snow season. It all started with helping neighbors, then more customers asked about his services. He chalks his success up to one thing: "I've always had a pro...
After winning an appeal to the N.D. Supreme Court regarding a $120,000 NSF check case, Eddy County State’s Attorney Ashley Lies watched the defendant walk away with a slap on the wrist. The origin of the case goes back nearly four years. On October 31, 2017, Orin Gedrose delivered a check for $120,000 to Peterson Law Offices, P.C. of New Rockford, payable to Peterson Trust Account, for earnest money towards a parcel of land for which he had signed an agreement to purchase. The check was r...
Bring your bestie, boyfriend or brother to Buck-It's Bar this Saturday for the inaugural Rockford Ribfest! Taste ribs prepared by 10 contestants, and take in a full day of family fun. The event will take place within and outside of Buck-It's Bar in downtown New Rockford, with 9th Street blocked off all day from Central Avenue to the alley. The pit opens at 9 a.m., so attendees can watch the contestants smoke, baste and finish their ribs. A light lunch/snack will be available for purchase...
"Herd over" to Hendrickson Park on Saturday for the Sheyenne Stampede! The day opens with High Stakes Barrel Racing and ends with live music by high profile band BlackHawk. Bessette Motors is the premier sponsor of this inaugural event on the outskirts of small town Sheyenne, and organizers expect thousands of people to take in the full day of activities. Brent Helseth, Sheyenne Rodeo Club member and sponsorship chairman, said Tuesday that organizers hope to make the Sheyenne Stampede an annual... Full story
An Oklahoma man passed through Eddy County earlier this month on a cross-country run. Randy Ellis, who is logging his journey on Facebook, spent two nights at the Rock Inn while on his way south to the Mexican Border. Home to Ellis is Sapulpa, Oklahoma, located on the southwest edge of Tulsa. Once known as "the Crossroads of America," due to its location at the junction of Route 66 and Route 75, Sapulpa is home to 20,000 people. Long distance running has been Ellis' passion for four decades. He...
As expected, the Eddy County Commission issued a Drought Emergency Declaration Tuesday. The declaration comes as conditions worsen across the area. Eddy County Emergency Manager Lisa Thompson drafted the document to make it possible for the county to allocate local emergency funds for drought relief measures as necessary, and also open up the county to potential federal aid should a disaster be declared by the federal government. "North Dakota producers continue to face unprecedented drought con...
Becki Schumacher has been appointed New Rockford city auditor. Commissioners officially voted to accept her appointment at their Aug. 2 regular meeting. She succeeds George Ritzke, who has served in the position since 1994. Schumacher's family moved to New Rockford in Feb. 2020, when her husband Lucas took over for Donn Frahm as the local agent for Farmers Union Insurance. She is just about finished with her bachelor's degree in accounting at Bemidji State University and is ready to take on the...
