I am so disappointed

John Pilger is a journalist from London. Since his early years as a correspondent in the Vietnam War, Pilger has been a strong critic of the American and British foreign policy, which he considers to be driven by an imperialist agenda. 

Tonight I am at a local drinking establishment to catch up on what's going around town. Early in one conversation I heard this:

"I heard my mom say it will cost $165,000 a year to have a police department in Brooten."

Wow.

I quickly corrected the record.  It's more like $75-80K a year, but why let that stop a good rumor from running around town suggesting that Brooten can't afford proper police coverage. Right?

So we have the council using Atwater's PD budget of 110K. Sorry, that's completely wrong. Atwater has three officers on their staff (and a fourth who clocks in about one day a month) and a total of 60 hours a week of town coverage.

Another number I heard being thrown around on the rumor mill is 127K....sorry that's Belgrade's PD budget and before humpty-dumpty fell down they had a staff of two full-time officers. Now I hear 165K on the rumor mill. I have no idea what city that's from.

Hopefully my newspaper can get out in front of this ugly and dangerous rumor mill.

I have combed through the Belgrade police department budget countless times and can't get an estimate for an annual cost for Brooten of more than $72,061!

Do the math. At the end of Officer Bjork's tenure with the Belgrade police department his salary was $19 an hour. If he was given an offer of $18 an hour, would he take it? Yeah, he would. Do the math. On a 2,080-hour contract that's $37,440. Add parts of the following to the budget, but factor in the fact that a line item such as "$1,000 for uniforms" would not be that high for a one-person department in Brooten:

Belgrade's 2015 police department budget:

$81,308 for salaries

$1,179 for FICA

$6,420 for employee insurance

$1,000 for uniforms

$2,000 for equipment

$1,200 for training and dues

$1,300 for telephone

$1,500 for supplies

$1,700 for computer-car

$2,000 for repair/maintenance (my guess is squad car)

$6,500 for motor fuel

$3,000 for a Stearns County legal contract

$4,000 for "legal fees"

$11,966 for retirement/PERA

$300 for miscellaneous

$2,000 for capital outlay (this part of the budget is meant for budgeting for squad car replacement...in 2013 that figure in Belgrade was $35,177 when they upgraded to the Chevy Tahoe)

TOTAL: $127,373.

For 2015, the city of Brooten is contracted to pay Belgrade approximately $40,560 at $39 an hour for 20 hours a week of police coverage. The B-B-E school district, from a health and safety levy that is assessed to every district taxpayer from Lake Gilchrist to the Lake Henry area to Elrosa to Padua to Sedan and everything inbetween, pays another sum of money to subsidize the Belgrade PD budget. News flash: I pay into that levy, so you can bet the farm that I will make noise if I am unhappy with how that money is being spent. Because of a bad case of "Dereliction of duty" I have not retrieved that dollar amount in recent weeks. My guess is that it is between $15,000 and $20,000 a year. Rest assured, the moment I find out what was paid on that school police liaison contract during the 2013-2014 school year, it will be posted here. **UPDATE: I was way off in my estimation. I definitely want to learn more about that. During the 2013-2014 school year, from what I read in October 2014 school board minutes in the Bonanza Valley Voice, the B-B-E school district spent only $3,200 on that contract. (The school had budgeted $6,000 for that contract.)

Let's use $15K as the figure for the school/police payment. That would mean over $55,000 of Belgrade's police department budget is paid by "OPM" a phrase you should Google. So we're looking at $43K to $45K or so of the Belgrade police department paid for by OPM.

Please refer to another update posted on Sunday:

http://bbejaguars.blogspot.com/2015/02/schoolpolice-contract.html

This will get straightened out next week. If anyone believes they can pull the wool over my eyes, they're sadly mistaken. I was built for this. I can find my way around a school or city budget as well as anyone. If I have to pull back the curtain to see whether or not the emperor has any clothes you can bet I will do just that.

B-B-E schools had an excellent anti-bullying program going under Officer Bjork that I was very proud of along with every other parent in the district. That is no more. The thing about bullying is, those evil seeds are planted at a young age. We all know that children need a good "gardener" to tend to them (parents, teachers, clergy...and yes, cops) in order to lead them on the right path and to help raise them into good people who help others and not hurt them. Well we had that and it got chewed up and spit out by pure, unadulterated small town arrogance. When kids heard Officer Bjork talk about how wrong it is to bully others, THEY LISTENED. Did it stop all bullying? Of course not, just like when you weed your garden...it doesn't keep future weeds from growing. But it helps. Any gardener or farmer knows that weeds are constant in life. You keep fighting and fighting and fighting in order to get your crops to grow.

Officer Bjork taught us one lesson when he resigned: sometimes you have to let the bully win. It's a difficult pill to swallow. It takes a wise person to know when to fight and when to retreat.

Because the Belgrade police department has been severely understaffed since December 1, I have seen no game coverage by the terms of the school police liaison between the Belgrade PD and the school district. No anti-bullying program going in the classroom with Office Bjork leading it.

I'm finally putting the whole picture together. I am ashamed in myself that it's taken me two months to do this.

We're not in a good situation. The school is missing a very important piece: a full-fledged school police liaison that was in place until last November. Ask yourself: is having a police officer who every student in the two school buildings respects and listens to important? Is it important to have someone like that leading anti-bullying forums at both schools?

See what one parent said last November that echoed what every other parent I have talked to since then:

"My children know him from school and are not scared to speak with him. They know that if anything was wrong they could go to him." 

Here's what a father said just last week: "(child's name) has come home from school all excited because Officer Derrick was at school today and talked about bullying. I think these guys are role models that have the respect and appreciation that can't be replaced by just anybody. Let's not let our kids down."

My two cents: we are letting our kids down. Shame on us. It's time we fight back.

*Update on Tuesday morning, February 3: http://bbejaguars.blogspot.com/2015/02/game-notes.html

Jaguars!!

Jacob Tensen hit two big three-point shots at Pierz tonight to help his team snap a long losing streak.

The B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team is in a heated battle at Pierz tonight. The Pioneers entered the game 9-9 overall and 3-6 (sixth) in the Central Minnesota Conference. The Jaguars led by two points at halftime and with just two minutes to go in regulation...they have a two-point lead!!!

Final: B-B-E Jaguars 66, Pierz 61! Shooting 48 percent on field goals was a big key to this very important and badly needed win. Next is a home non-conference game on Tuesday against the Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta Tigers.

Central Minnesota Conference boys' basketball scores on Jan. 30:
Kimball Area 63, Rockford Area 54
Maple Lake 67, Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted 51
Eden Valley-Watkins 70, Holdingford 44

Area boys' basketball scores on January 30:
Melrose 58, Sartell 57 OT   
New London-Spicer 53, Glencoe-Silver Lake 47
BOLD 65, Central MN Christian 53 (CMCS's first loss after a 16-0 start)
Sauk Centre 79, A-C-GC 54
Browerville 94, Ashby 39
Upsala 78, Isle 57
West Central Area 66, Osakis 38
Wheaton/Herman-Norcross 75, Clinton-Graceville-Beardsley 74 OT (Wow! Now that is a crazy border battle game!) ##epic

Area girls' basketball scores on January 30:
Browerville 69, Swanville 34
West Central Area 64, Long Prairie-Grey Eagle 53
Osakis 59, Upsala 32
Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City 50, Melrose Area 49
Minnewaska Area 61, BOLD 48
MA/CA 58, Benson 22
YME 43, Montevideo 40

Don't forget to put this event on your calendar for next Wednesday! Squeeze it in before going to church that night!

On a lighter note...

Much has been written and said about the police/law enforcement situation in Belgrade and Brooten in recent weeks / months.

I've said it to many people in person but wasn't sure if I had done so in print, etc. While I'd much, much rather we in Brooten have our own police department, in the mean time I find it a very good thing that we have coverage from members of the Paynesville Police Department who are also staff members of the Belgrade P.D. What was forgotten that was printed in the Jan. 15 issue of the Bonanza Valley Voice was that officers from the Paynesville P.D. were hired by the Belgrade P.D. They are employees in Belgrade, not contracted workers. They are hard-working men and women who take their jobs in law enforcement very seriously and put their lives on the line every day they suit up whether that's in Paynesville, Belgrade or Brooten. Let's not lose sight of that even as we move heaven and earth to get something positive going in the city of Brooten.

For now, I am thankful that we have this arrangement going with Paynesville. It beats Stearns County any day. (No offense to Sheriff Sanner's officers either...but we all know that we do not want Stearns County providing all of our police coverage in Brooten!)

##truth

Mistake

An incorrect dollar amount was reported at Monday night's Brooten city council meeting as the estimated cost for a police department. The number $110,000 was given, which is way off. There's no way it will cost $85,000 for a one-man force. In fact, after follow up I learned that the $110,000 figure was given from the city of Atwater as an attempt to illustrate how much a PD costs. Fact: in Atwater they have three on their PD staff with 60 hours a week of coverage.

I have other issues with what was said on Monday night in Brooten at January's final regular council meeting. I will address them at a later time.

Gotta admit: it seems like a full-time job keeping track of what goes on with our local government in Belgrade and Brooten! On Brooten's end, I completely understand that it will require extra work for all of us in re-establishing a police department. What are we afraid of? What some have forgotten are two very important facts: 1.) Brooten has had an independent police department in the past, as recently as 2006. 2.) Belgrade currently has a department, although I am wondering if it will dissolve due to lack of applicants for their open police chief position.

We know Belgrade's 2015 budget is $127K. Of that, $81K is earmarked for salaries. There's no possible way that Brooten could spend the difference ($46K) on the other annual costs of a department when Brooten's would be a strictly one-person department and Belgrade's is a two-person department. News flash: of that $46K, Belgrade has budgeted $6,500 for gasoline. It makes sense as their Chevy Tahoe does a whole lot of driving between Belgrade and Brooten. Last I checked, a one-person police department in Brooten would not have the police car making multiple trips between Brooten and Belgrade each week. The Brooten police car will not burn $6,500 a year on gasoline. That is one of multiple examples of how the cost of a Brooten police department will not be as high as the Belgrade police department.

##simpleconcepts

Parents Night success!

The Jaguars welcome Adam Jaeger back to the huddle after he earned a pin in just 90 seconds at 138 pounds in tonight's win over Royalton/Upsala.

A great deal of energy and excitement was in the air tonight as the B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team hosted Royalton/Upsala for a non-conference dual meet on Parents Night. The crowd was huge! The student section was the biggest I've seen at a home wrestling meet. Awesome! The Jaguars jumped out to a 22-3 lead after Adam Jaeger stuck his guy at 138 pounds, and they held on after slipping in the middle weights to earn the last 12 points through forfeits. Wrestling final: B-B-E 35, Royalton/Upsala 21. The Jaguars are 12-3 heading into their final dual of the regular season next Tuesday at Sauk Centre/Melrose. They will be the number two seed (a strong hunch) for the upcoming Section 5A playoffs in February.

Girls' hoops: Jaguars 45, Rockets 41! At Rockford tonight, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team trailed 26-20 at halftime and proceeded to limit the Rockets to just 15 second-half points. Whew! They improve to 7-1 in the Central Minnesota Conference despite shooting just 32 percent (18-of-56) from the floor. This keeps them in first place in the CMC in a tie with Eden Valley-Watkins. The Eagles won at Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted in convincing fashion by a 63-35 score.

Fun fact: no B-B-E girls' basketball team has ever been 7-1 in the CMC. The best start in the first eight games in past seasons was 6-2 in the 2008-09 season.

Central Minnesota Conference girls' basketball scores on Jan. 29:
Maple Lake 56, Holdingford 49
Kimball Area 59, Pierz 54
EV-W 63, HL-W-W 35

Radio

Tonight's girls' basketball game will be on 106.5 FM the Train.

Three important advertisements!!!!

Bank, Robotics and church youth group related advertisements from this week's Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper:

Those unable to attend the fish fry event can mail private donations to the B-B-E high school and mark it "Robotics donation"...staff will ensure it gets to the Robotics team!

Don't let this happen at B-B-E!

Parents, remember that every day or at least every week you need to consistently repeat the message with your kids that bullying is NOT okay and will NOT be tolerated.

Let's not let this headline creep its way into B-B-E:

http://www.wctrib.com/news/local/3665841-acgc-parents-express-concerns-about-bullying

What I read in that article is terrible!!!!

Police update

In case you were wondering, currently two applications have been turned in for the position of the Belgrade Chief of Police for their police department. They have been seeking applicants since the first week of December, 2014.

Also, there is some confusion right now whether or not just one or both of the applicants they have are qualified for the job.

Hmm...

##curiousminds

Are you surprised? I can't imagine why they only have two applicants for the position after having it advertised and posted for close to two months. Two applicants for perhaps one of the most important positions in town! Personally I'd rate the chief of police as the most important position in town.

Why the lack of interest?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0usI6H4zxhY

Shifting gears...
We in small town newspapers don't do our jobs to make it easier for local government officials (school board, council, etc.)....we are not here to hurt them or demean their positions or badmouth them. To do such things is unfair and not right.

But at the same time, we have a job to do and the U.S. Constitution gives us a certain level of protections that allows us to carry out our business with rights that make newspapers a valuable part of our democracy. It is anything but easy. It's nothing that allows you to go months on end without a single sleepless night. That's anything but the truth.

##sleeplessnights

Wrestlers clinch second place!

The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team clinched second place alone in the Central Minnesota Conference with a 48-27 win at Rockford Area tonight. The Jaguars are 11-3 overall and went 5-1 in the CMC, the best record they’ve ever recorded since joining the CMC in 1999.

The boys' basketball team outscored HLWW 24-19 in the second half but lost 44-43. For the game, the Jaguars shot just 32 percent from the field.

In a home game, the girls’ basketball team shot at a very good 48 percent mark from the field, scored a total of 59 points but ended up getting hammered by Sauk Centre in a 92-59 loss.

Halftime

Boys game: Lakers 25, Jaguars 19.

Girls game: with eight minutes left in the first half, Sauk Centre has a 32-16 lead.

Home games

Tuesday night features two home games: the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team hosts HL-W-W, while the girls' basketball team hosts #3-ranked Sauk Centre.

The wrestlers, meanwhile, travel to Rockford to complete the Central Minnesota Conference portion of their schedule. It will be their final-ever trip to Rockford, as the Rockets will be replaced by Paynesville in the CMC next season.

Go Jaguars!!

Robotics Fish Fry! Mmmm

Mmm Mmm good! I can't wait. Please spread the word on the upcoming third annual B-B-E Robotics Fish Fry and Silent Auction fundraiser. This is the fourth year that B-B-E has a Robotics team, and they have become more and more successful year by year at their competition in March. They need support from the community to keep it going.

Wednesday, Feb. 4 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Belgrade V.F.W.

See you there! I sure love a good fish fry!

Pledge for a Pin!!

Click on the graphic for best viewing.

The coaches and players of the B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team are asking everyone to come join the excitement on Parents Night later this week when the Jaguars host Royalton/Upsala in a non-conference dual. Adding to the fun is the first-ever "Pledge for a Pin" night with a unique opportunity to help raise funds for the B-B-E wrestling club. JV action should start around 6 p.m. with the varsity dual to follow.

The Royalton/Upsala Royals are 2-10 overall with their lone Park Region dual win coming against Prairie Valley. The Jaguars are 10-3 overall and 4-1 (second place) in the Central Minnesota Conference.

B-B-E Family Fun Day

It's today! Read all about it on page eight of the Jan. 15 and Jan. 22 issues of the Bonanza Valley Voice. 

Eagles win

After the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team had a 27-25 halftime lead today, Eden Valley-Watkins pulled away in the second half to win 69-57. The Eagles are 15-1 and sit in first place (tied with Maple Lake) in the Central Minnesota Conference.

At the prestigious Chanhassen meet, the rocking-and-rolling and incredibly fabulous B-B-E speech team opened their 2015 season. Molly Tengwall took third place in storytelling out of 52 competitors. Overall, 1,400 speechers were in attendance. Whew!!

Read more about all this in the Jan. 29 issue of the Bonanza Valley Voice.

Results

The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team went 2-1 at Browerville against some excellent opponents. Their lone loss was to West Central Area/Ashby by a 39-30 score. The Knights/Arrows are ranked 11th as a team in the in Class 1A Guillotine rankings. The Jaguars throttled Class 2A Long Prairie-Grey Eagle/Browerville 44-18 and also beat Border West by a 42-31 score. They are 10-3 in dual meets with three left on the schedule before the Section 5A playoffs. That 10-3 mark equals the record at this point in the 2012-13 season. What a fun ride it's been so far for our wrestlers! Next is an away dual at Rockford Area (2-9) next Tuesday in the last Central Minnesota Conference dual of the season. Parents Night is Thursday at home against Royalton/Upsala. Also that night, "Pledge for Pins" will take place. (Details to be posted on Sunday about that event.)

At home tonight B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team lost to Minnewaska 55-42 in a very disappointing game. At the half, the Lakers led 32-26.

Here's video from the exciting JV basketball game won by B-B-E in overtime:


Next for the Jaguars (9-5) is a home game with Sauk Centre (13-1) on Tuesday.

8th grade boys' basketball

Against EV-W on Tuesday, the Jaguars jumped out to a 21-1 lead with 9:43 left in the first half.

Coach Montbriand has the eighth grade Jaguars boys' basketball team tuned up and firing on all cylinders to start their 2015 season. Here's video from their win on Tuesday over EV-W:

Wrestlers get 8th win

At Minnewaska in an important Section 5A dual, the B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team buried the Lakers early and won 51-26. They are 8-2 heading into the Browerville duals tomorrow night.

Late in the Kimball game the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team trails 51-44 with 5:30 left. Final: Kimball 59, B-B-E 54.

The B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team won 70-56 at Pierz. They host Minnewaska Area on Friday night, and the B-B-E Dazzlers dance team will perform at halftime. On Saturday the Dazzlers compete at the Camden Conference championships at LQPV high school.

Halftime scores

At halftime at Kimball: Cubs 31, Jaguars 24 in conference boys' basketball action. The Jaguars trailed by 11 points a couple of times, cut it to five points late at 27-22, trailed 31-22 before Dalon Bitzan hit a putback shot at the buzzer.

At Pierz in girls' basketball action at halftime: Jaguars 35, Pioneers 24.

"A Senior's View" article No. 1

For any former Brooten elementary school student of Mrs. Hauge, you won't want to miss this week's Bonanza Valley Voice!

And check out the current girls' basketball standings!

And by the way, 106.5 FM the Train of Norway Lake/Sunburg is making tracks to Kimball tonight to cover the very important sub-section and conference showdown between our B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team and the Cubs. Kimball Area is 10-4 overall and 4-3 (tied for third place) in the Central Minnesota Conference.

Basketball

In their attempt to snap a two-game losing skid, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team came up with a double-digit win over visiting Holdingford tonight. After leading 26-20 at halftime, the Jaguars built the lead up as much as 20 points in the second half with a final score of 61-45.

The Huskers fall to 0-5 in the Central Minnesota Conference with their fourth straight loss; they are 2-9 overall. B-B-E improves to 8-4 overall and 5-1 in the CMC. Their next game is Friday at home against Minnewaska Area. Like tonight's game, that game will be on Smooth Magic 107 FM of Glenwood. The B-B-E Dazzlers dance team will perform at halftime on Friday as a final tune-up before they compete at the Camden Conference championships on Saturday at LQPV high school.

The boys' basketball team lost at New London-Spicer. Their next game is Thursday at Kimball Area in a game that will be on The Train, 106.5 FM of Norway Lake-Sunburg.

The wrestlers were idle tonight and battle Minnewaska Area on the road on Thursday.

That's all to be posted until Wednesday afternoon. Time to wrap up this week's Bonanza Valley Voice before it goes to press!

Radio

The boys' basketball game tonight will be on 106.5 FM the Train.

Fourth CMC win

As far back as my records go, the B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team has never earned four CMC dual wins in a season. That is no longer true after the Jaguars rolled over Holdingford 42-16 tonight to improve to 4-1 in the conference and 7-2 overall.

Very impressive!!!

Next is a section showdown on Thursday at Minnewaska Area against the 1-8 Lakers. The Jaguars need to pick up a big win that night to keep their hopes of a number two playoff seed alive.

Radio coverage this week

Find Smooth Magic's online coverage at http://www.kmgk1071.com 

Browerville games

Updates...

With 1:22 left the Browerville Tigers are ahead 23-13 over our boys' basketball team. At halftime the score is Tigers 23, Jaguars 15.

In the JV girls' basketball game, a very exciting final score: Jaguars 63, Tigers 39!

Final varsity boys score: Browerville 65, B-B-E 38.

In the varsity girls' basketball game: 51 seconds left and the Tigers have a four-point lead. The final score was Browerville 75, B-B-E 68.

Wrestling team second at NL-S

Team photo by Roger Mischke.

By the smallest of margins, the B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team missed out on earning the championship at the New London-Spicer tournament on Friday night. Glencoe-Silver Lake/Lester Prairie/Holy Trinity, a Class 2A program, edged the Jaguars by just two and a half points to take first place.

Of the 13 wrestlers competing for B-B-E in the varsity division, 12 earned medals. Of the 12 medalists, 11 placed in the final four. That is very awesome!

Next is a tough dual at Holdingford for the team's fifth Central Minnesota Conference match of the season.

Here's some video from Friday night:


At Rockford on Friday night, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team lost 92-61 to the Rockets in their final basketball trip ever to that school. They play at Browerville (7-7) at 5 p.m. on Saturday. The girls' basketball team follows with a game at once-beaten Browerville at 6:30 p.m.

Good luck today to the B-B-E Dazzlers dance team as they compete at the Yellow Medicine East invitational.

Central Minnesota Conference boys' basketball scores on Jan. 15:
Kimball Area 51, Holdingford 36
Eden Valley-Watkins 68, Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted 50

Area girls' basketball scores on Jan. 15:
Battle Lake 60, Hancock 22
Osakis 74, Royalton 34
Upsala 49, Swanville 35
Browerville 90, West Central Area 51
Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg 70, Lakeview 58
Albany 54, Melrose Area 44
Minnewaska Area 61, A-C-GC 37
Sauk Centre 78, BOLD 57
Montevideo 56, Paynesville Area 41

Area boys' basketball scores on Jan. 15:
Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City 63, Minnewaska Area 60
Albany Area 84, Milaca 66
West Central Area 64, Henning 38
Tracy-Milroy-Balaton 60, Dawson-Boyd 58
Long Prairie-Grey Eagle 52, Melrose Area 44 (Dutchmen's first loss of the year after a 13-0 start)

Wrestlers

Tyler Bents, Kaleb Voss, Adam Jaeger, Ben Feuerhake and Josey Tensen have advanced to the finals at the NLS tournament.

As a team the Jaguars wrestlers are in the running for first place!

Update: all five Jaguars in the finals took second place. As a team, the Jaguars finished second behind Glencoe-Silver Lake/Lester Prairie/Holy Trinity.

**Catch an interview of our head wrestling coach, Jack Mueller, at 7:30 a.m. tomorrow morning on Smooth Magic 107 FM of Glenwood. I didn't get that this morning. I must have heard the wrong time.

Video will be posted after midnight. Internet trouble cost me a chance at blogging last night.

Here's an event tomorrow:

Eagles tough as nails at home

The final score tonight from Eden Valley in a Central Minnesota Conference girls' basketball game: Eden Valley-Watkins 51, B-B-E 38. The Eagles (9-1) led 24-13 at halftime.

Good luck to the B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team as they battle at the NL-S tournament tomorrow. Updates will be posted from the finals at this blog right after they're completed.

And the boys' basketball team takes their final trip ever to Rockford tomorrow night.

Go Jaguars!!!

Cafe grand opening in Belgrade

Shined up and ready for the Grand Opening.

Best of luck to Michelle and her staff as they gear up for an exciting day on Friday.

By the way, tonight's B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball game at Eden Valley-Watkins will be aired on 106.5 FM the Train of Norway Lake/Sunburg. Pass the word!

This advertisement appeared on page eight of the Bonanza Valley Voice. The new owner of the business is from Brooten. Good luck, Michelle!

Ice fishing tournament coming!

Click on the graphic to view it in the best fashion.

Tully (Anthony Tullis) was a 2007 graduate of B-B-E. He died at his home in rural Brooten in August 2014. RIP.

Sixth win

The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team beat Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted 48-12 tonight to improve to 6-2 in dual meets. In their other dual at the HLWW triangular, the Jaguars lost to Pierz 50-18. They hold a 3-1 record in the CMC.

In a home boys' basketball game, the B-B-E Jaguars lost to Maple Lake 73-46. The Irish improve to 10-1 overall and 5-1 in the Central Minnesota Conference. The Jaguars are in action at Rockford (11-4, 3-3) on Friday.

That's all that will be posted from tonight's action. I am literally neck deep in a major police article right now for my newspaper that has full priority.

By the way, have you subscribed yet to the Bonanza Valley Voice?

Central Minnesota Conference boys' basketball scores on Jan. 13:
HL-W-W 70, Pierz 60
Eden Valley-Watkins 77, Kimball Area 58

In one noteworthy area girls' basketball game, the Osakis Silverstreaks handed the Browerville Tigers their first loss of the season by a 74-72 score. The Tigers drop to 10-1 overall and 4-1 in the Prairie Conference.

In boys' basketball action, I found it interesting that Benson beat Paynesville Area 71-62 in Paynesville. In another boys' basketball game tonight, state-ranked Battle Lake drubbed previously-unbeaten West Central Area 61-32 in a non-conference game.

Radio coverage

Spread the word! Tonight's boys' basketball game will be on Smooth Magic 107 FM of Glenwood. And 106.5 FM the Train of Norway Lake-Sunburg. Cool!

Game Day

Three varsity events are in store tonight for B-B-E Jaguar fans. Two are on the road at Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted high school, where the B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team faces HL-W-W and Pierz in a conference triangular. At home, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team hosts state-ranked Eden Valley-Watkins. The B-B-E Pep Band will also be performing.

I haven't heard yet on how the B-B-E Dazzlers dance team fared last night in Melrose.

The Jan. 15 issue of the Bonanza Valley Voice is coming along well. After having close to nothing for news in my Jan. 1 issue, I had a list of over 18 different news-related items for this week's issue. Good grief!!!!! From famine to feast. One item for this week's paper that everyone will want to read is a story on police coverage in Brooten and the ccurrent status of the Belgrade police department. Only subscribers of the newspaper will see that.

Haven't subscribed? Here's how you can handle that:
1. Checks to Bonanza Valley Voice.
2. Mailed to:
Bonanza Valley Voice
PO Box 250
Brooten, MN 56316

Cost? $18 for residents of Swift, Pope, Kandiyohi and Stearns counties. For everyone else it's $20 a year. The subscription special ends this weekend. Right now for the regular cost of a 12-month subscription you get 15 months instead! What a deal!

Tough afternoon

MACCRAY improved to 6-7 overall with a 76-72 win today over the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team. The Jaguars led 34-28 at halftime. A sudden turn of events hurt the Jaguars early in the second half. They built a 38-30 lead with 15:35 to go on a Jordan Wosmek three-pointer. Just 100 seconds later in the game, the Wolverines had regained the lead at 40-38 with a 10-0 run that included two quick three-point shots.

B-B-E's next game is on Tuesday at home against Maple Lake on a night when the B-B-E Pep Band will also be in action.

Both Kimball and Maple Lake's head coaches were in attendance scouting this afternoon.

The C-squad Jaguars won 37-34.

That's all until later tonight.

Game day

The JV/C-squad boys' basketball games at home against MACCRAY today start at 1:30 p.m. Is today's varsity game on the radio? Look at page eight of the Jan. 8 issue of the Bonanza Valley Voice to find out.

I enjoyed a trip to Sunburg this morning to see the opening day of Kaffestua, the town's cafe.

Tonight comes the Padua Conservation Club and Brooten Commercial Club annual meetings. Busy busy busy busy!

Another double-digit win

Successsvill

Tonight brought another double-digit Central Minnesota Conference win for the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team. This time it was Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted as the opposition, with the Jaguars hosting the Lakers in front of a nearly-packed home crowd.

A three-pointer by Peyton Miller with 10:12 left in the second half put the Jaguars up by double digits for the first time in the game.

Next for the Jaguars (7-2, 4-0) is a tough road game at Eden Valley-Watkins (7-1, 2-0) next Thursday night. More will be posted after midnight tonight including game video.

Video from a second-half timeout:


At Paynesville, the wrestling team placed third in a tough field. Ben Feuerhake won the heavyweight division.

Central MN Conference girls' basketball scores on Jan. 9:
Kimball Area 59, Holdingford 29
Maple Lake 52, Rockford Area 50
Eden Valley-Watkins 61, Pierz 38

Halftime

The B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team is ahead 27-25 over Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted.

With 6:40 left, the Jaguars are ahead 50-40.

Sunburg's cafe will reopen

Here's some community-related news from the area...Sunburg, as some of you may know, holds a special place in my heart.

http://lifeinbonanzavalley.blogspot.com/2015/01/sunburgs-cafe-will-reopen.html

School out early today 1-8-15

WEATHER ANNOUNCEMENT: B-B-E Schools will be dismissed at 1:45 pm on Thursday, January 8th. All activities have been cancelled.

I haven't gotten a read on what's happening out in the rural areas, but what others have said suggests that travel conditions on rural roads is getting worse this afternoon.

Parents Night

Tonight will be Parents Night when the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team hosts Eden Valley-Watkins.

The game will also be aired on the Train, 106.5 FM of Norway Lake-Sunburg! Pass the word!

No school after 1:45 p.m. today!!!

(Hi Def Video) B-B-E Dazzlers high kick, jazz squads

Here's the B-B-E Dazzlers varsity high kick team lighting up the gymnasium on Monday at their home invitational:


And here's the Dazzlers varsity jazz team:


I haven't uploaded the Dazzlers JV team's performance but hope to do so later today.

This week's Bonanza Valley Voice has four color dance photos plus a color team photo of the JV jazz team with their runner-up trophy from Monday night. If you haven't signed up for the newspaper please do so this week while the "15-month" subscription special is running! Paying for a regular 12-month subscription ($18 for Swift, Kandiyohi, Stearns and Pope county residents and $20 for all others) gets you a 15-month subscription or a 15-month extension if you are a current subscriber. This is a huge special you can take advantage of, basically giving three free months to the newspaper.

Bonanza Valley Voice
PO Box 250
Brooten, MN 56316

Closed

B-B-E schools are closed today. The windchill is 34 below zero at 7 a.m.

This day will be made up on Monday, January 12.

By the way, here's the address to subscribe to the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper. This week's issue has a big B-B-E speech team season preview plus a light mention of the B-B-E robotics team starting their 2015 challenge. The paper this week has no less than 11 stories plus a sports column (not mine) and a pastor's column by Pastor Bryant Kaden of Trinity/West Lake Johanna Lutheran churches.

Bonanza Valley Voice (checks to that name)
PO Box 250
Brooten, MN 56316

And a big THANK YOU to the folks out there who have signed up this week. Later today I'll be adding you to the mailing list for next week's newspaper. Prices for a subscription is $18 for Pope, Stearns, Kandiyohi and Swift county residents and $20 for everyone else.

Heating up the gyms

The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team pounded Prairie Valley 52-17 tonight in a non-conference dual meet. They are 5-1 and next travel to Paynesville for a tournament on Friday.

At Maple Lake, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team beat the Irish 67-51 to improve to 6-2 overall and 3-0 in the Central Minnesota Conference. Their next game is this Friday at home against HL-W-W.

Read more details on these two wins in this week's Bonanza Valley Voice, which hits newsstands in Brooten early Wednesday afternoon.

Terrific home meet!

Here's video from the awards ceremony tonight at the B-B-E Dazzlers dance team's home invitational:


Don't miss this week's Bonanza Valley Voice for a full spread of color photos on page eight from tonight's dance meet.

At Minnewaska Area, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team lost 71-57. At halftime, the Lakers (6-4) held a 30-22 lead on a night when they won their fourth straight game. Next for the Jaguars (3-7) is a home game on Thursday against state-ranked and undefeated Eden Valley-Watkins. The Eagles are rated fourth in the latest Class 2A state poll and have an 11-0 overall record. This is their best season at this point since 2007-2008.

*Two business sponsors tonight: Glacial Ridge Health System in Glenwood and Big A Auto Parts in Brooten.

Glacial Ridge Health System is seeking a responsible and self-motivated full-time Occupational Therapist for inpatient and outpatient services. Please click below if interested or share if you know someone who may be. http://www.glacialridge.org/career/occupational-therapist

Feature article on the Dazzlers

Sign up for the Bonanza Valley Voice and catch all the coverage of B-B-E student-athletes!

Have you subscribed yet to the Bonanza Valley Voice? If not, take a moment this week to sign up and get all kinds of in-depth coverage of extra-curricular activities taking place at B-B-E. Last week the January 1 issue featured an exclusive article on the B-B-E Dazzlers dance team.

The Dazzlers host a 10-team invitational at 6:30 p.m. on Monday this week at the elementary school.'

Subscribing is pretty straightforward. Right now you can get a 15-month subscription (or a 15-month extension if you're a current subscriber) by paying for the regular 12-month price of $18 if you live in Pope, Swift, Kandiyohi or Stearns counties. It's $20 a year for anywhere else.

Checks payable to: Bonanza Valley Voice

Mailed to: 

PO Box 250

Brooten, MN 56316

This is one small way you can help expand coverage for the Jaguars, Dazzlers and all other B-B-E activities taking place each week. I want to add 200 subscribers to the newspaper in 2015!!! In this coming issue, subscribers can learn all about the B-B-E speech team as their 2015 season is underway. Summertime brings more coverage of youth activities and sports as well as Elrosa Saints and Stearns County League baseball coverage. It's hard to imagine summer weather and summer baseball with the temperature plunging below -10 degrees tonight. BRRRR.

Oh, by the way, don't miss out on the Bonanza Valley Voice online photo gallery. Over the past couple of days I've added 10 photo albums to the sports section from sporting events that took place in December.
http://bonanzavalley.smugmug.com/BBE-Jaguar-winter-sports-1415

Or simply bookmark this website URL:

http://bonanzavalley.smugmug.com

This B-B-E Dazzlers update was sponsored by the Belgrade Hardware Hank store:

Eleven wrestlers earn medals!

Coach Mueller is shown talking to his Jaguars after today's home invitational.

In today's home wrestling invitational, the B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team turned in a fabulous day at the office with a second-place finish out of eight teams. Eleven of the Jaguars finished in the top four, a huge accomplishment for the team.

Placing for the Jaguars were: 
106: Tyler Bents (second)
120: Josey Tensen (second)
126: Kaleb Voss (fourth)
132: Spencer Amundson (fourth)
138: Adam Jaeger (fourth)
145: Colby Schramel (third)
152: Isaiah Gilbert (second)
160: Steven Mady (fourth)
182: Ben Thompson (third)
195: Joe Reller (third)
285: Ben Feuerhake (first!)

Team standings: 
1st - Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg 166; 2nd - B-B-E 144; 3rd Long Prairie-Grey Eagle/Browerville 133; 4th Bertha-Hewitt/Verndale 119; 5th Ottertail Central 109.5; 6th Becker 91; 7th Minneota 51; 8th Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted 25.

Here's video from the wrestleback round:


Here's a quick shout-out to the B-B-E Dazzlers dance team!! They travel to the Rocori dance invitational tomorrow. The dance meet starts at noon at Rocori high school.

Including that, it is a crazy busy weekend in Jaguar Country!! The B-B-E Robotics team travels to Staples tomorrow for their 2015 season kick-off event. On top of that, the B-B-E Speech team hosts their season-opening mock speech meet that starts at 3:30 p.m.

Click here for the Bonanza Valley Voice online photo gallery from the wrestling meet:
http://bonanzavalley.smugmug.com/BBE-Jaguar-winter-sports-1415/Jaguar-wrestling-invitational

If you haven't already, and if you are a fan / follower of the B-B-E Jaguars, please take a moment to subscribe to the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper. In December the Bonanza Valley Voice merged with this B-B-E Jaguar sports blog. The two are one in the same in terms of promoting the Jaguars and the good things happening in Jaguar Country, as each does for the other what the other can't do for themself. (Makes sense, right?) Right now the newspaper has about 800 subscribers, and I have an ambitious goal of increasing that figure to 1,000 subscribers by the end of 2015. I need your help to do that! More subscribers means the ability to solicit more business advertising. With more business advertising, the Bonanza Valley Voice goes from eight to 10 pages to 10 to 12 pages each week. More pages means more coverage of all things B-B-E and in the Bonanza Valley.

For example, in this week's January 1 issue, the Bonanza Valley Voice had a large feature article on the B-B-E Dazzlers dance team. The only way to read that article is to get a copy of this week's newspaper. Each week the newspaper will include exclusive stories such as that.

See the details below.

How to subscribe? Here's the best way right now. (Credit card payments will be an option but probably not until February):

Checks written to:
Bonanza Valley Voice

Mailed to:
PO Box 250
Brooten, MN 56316

e-mail with any questions is:
lifeinbonanzavalley@gmail.com

Or, of course, cash payments can be taken at the office in Brooten.

For subscribers in Swift, Pope, Kandiyohi or Stearns counties: $18 a year

All others: $20 a year anywhere else in the U.S.