After eight years of existence, recommendations by three different independent consultants, and two solid years of debate, the Northfield 
Area Fire and Rescue Service has a full-time chief.
Tom Nelson who served for two decades as Assistant Chief under former chief Gerry Franek and has spent the last year as the interim chief becomes the first full-time fire chief that either the Northfield Fire Department or the Northfield Area Fire and Rescue Service has ever had.
The job of Chief has become too big, with too many responsibilities and too many time demands to serve in a part-time role, even for a department that is served by paid-on-call firefighters. Nelson, who has been a well-respected radio engineer for 36 years, said the transition to full-time fire chief will be a strange experience, but something he is looking forward to.
“It’s an odd transition for any of us that have worked somewhere for a long time. I’ve been at Minnesota Public Radio for 18 years, and before that I was at WCAL at Saint Olaf. You know it’s really exciting to think about being able to wake up in the morning and just think about one full-time job. I mean what both John Mahacek and Gerry Franek as chief before me, and me in this interim period [have had to deal with] is you [already] have a full-time job. And we try to do these things that we all know need to be done, but there aren’t enough hours in the day.”
Over the last year, in his role as interim chief, Nelson has re-organized the NAFRS leadership structure so that the two Assistant Chiefs, Jesse Thomas and Sean Simonson, as well as the captains below them have all been delegated important responsibilities. As Chief, Nelson is not only responsible for overseeing the organization’s operations, but he is also the chief fire code inspector for the entire NAFRS area. As such, Nelson has put a renewed importance on the role.
The Northfield City Council recently adopted, on the recommendation of Nelson and Polce Chief Mark Elliott, a new public safety ordinance that will among other things, require that every commercial building in the NAFRS area submit their designs. Nelson said the new ordinance will also enforce fire lane parking bans and public and private property. He will also be meeting with both the Carleton and St. Olaf College staff about planning for people in large tents n case of a fire, something he said which would also affect the Defeat of Jesse James Days.
As he assumes his new position, Nelson said he is also doing his best to speak with other chiefs and fire fighters about how to best go about the job. He said he has exchanged ideas with different people through conferences and meetings over the past months, and there have been some interesting conversations.
“I can actually talk to some of these landlocked cities that are doing similar things different ways, as well as having people that have moved from the part time ranks to full time and are still managing paid-on-call departments, you’re always able to pull things away from that, so that’s really been a help.”
While today is Chief Nelson’s first day in his full-time position, he said he will officially retire from MPR at the end of the week.
Rice County Master Gardeners hosting Rice County Horticulture Day
After a three-year hiatus thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Rice County Master Gardener Volunteers are hosting the return of the Rice
County Horticulture Day on March 11 on the campus of St. Olaf College.
Prior to the Covid pause, the event had become a very popular seminar. This year they will offer four speakers throughout the day on a range of relevant gardening topics.
Katie Derwitz of the University of Minnesota Extension will give a talk entitled “How Not to Kill Your Trees” at 9am.
At 10am Becky Swenson of Swenson Gardens in Howard Lake will answer the “Top Ten Peony Questions.”
Meg McAndrews Cowden, the author and operator of seedtofork.com will speak at 12:30pm about “Gardening in a New Climate.”
Dr. Lisa Philander of the University of Minnesota’s Earl E. Bakken Center for Spirituality & Healing will wrap the day up 1:30pm discussing the “Healing Power of Gardens.”
The cost to attend this day full of gardening conversation is $45. A light breakfast will be available, and lunch is included in the ticket cost. Vendors will also be on hand for shopping and there will be a silent auction as well.
The Rice County Horticulture Day event is set for March 11th, at Tomson Hall, on the St. Olaf Campus. The event begins at 8:30am with registration and will conclude at 3:15pm
Funds raised will go toward programming the Master Gardener Program in Rice County.
Participants are encouraged to register online at the University of Minnesota Extension website, where the event brochure can also be found with more details. Registration deadline is March 1st.
Servers, Clean Up, others needed for LBSA Dinner Theater
And the Laura Baker Services Association has announced the return of yet another event put on hold by the Covid-19 pandemic, the LBSA 
Dinner Theater, on Friday, February 17th.
The LBSA Dinner Theater is billed as an elegant evening of dining and entertainment for Laura Baker clients and guests. As such, the event requires a substantial number of volunteers to be successful, and the organization is reaching out to the community asking for help.
According to an email received from LBSA, the organization needs 23 more people to help out. Volunteers can sign up as table attendants, dishwashers, servers, kitchen attendants, or for the cleanup crew. Volunteers will be asked to arrive by 4:30 and will most likely be finished by 7:30.
Laura Baker Services Association has been working with the developmentally challenged and disabled members of the Northfield and greater Rice County are for more than 125 years, offering Living & Support Services, Family Support & Resources, and much more.
The LBSA Dinner Theater will be February 17th at St. John’s Lutheran Church. For more information on how to sign up to volunteer, contact Andrei Sivanich at andrei@laurabaker.org
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
[recent_post_carousel slides_to_show=”1″ limit=”5″ slides_to_scroll=”1″ category=”10″ media_size=”medium” dots=”false” show_read_more=”false”]
