Mother's Day, graduation, concert

A friend suggested I visit a Mother's Day buffet to honor my late mother. Well, it would be a pleasure and honor. So of course I did. That's two buffet-style meals in two days. Sunday was Mother's Day of course. On Saturday the occasion was UMM graduation with the day's schedule including all-you-can-eat at the dining hall. I attend there for both graduation and Homecoming, re-affirming my connection to the place. 

The connection is about entirely through family. Many people have long considered me to be little more than Ralph and Martha Williams' son. Obviously I made the rounds as a newspaper representative for many years, actually 27 years. When Mom got the Martelle Award at the UMM graduation, Jack Imholte was at the microphone and all he could say about me was that I had played in the "Morris community band!" 

I was present with my camera for the newspaper. Mom getting the award made it a priority. She ran the campus post office. She was not directly a UMM employee, rather she was Civil Service. 

My father was the music man. His image and reputation get revived whenever his musical compositions are performed. And wouldn't you know, one such occasion happened this past Monday night at the public school concert hall. After all these years the concert hall still makes an impression with its sterling quality, really its opulence. I attend concerts there often, really just for band. 

I had a disappointing experience the last time I went there for a choir concert. This was the Barb Wilts retirement concert. A picture of her was projected up on a screen. And as I recall the concert included a whole lot of grades. This led to my problem. I arrived maybe ten minutes before the concert. Man the place was packed! I was rather stunned. Then I got rather humiliated as my attempts to find a seat were met with the comment "these seats are saved." 

What's with so many seats being "saved" for music concerts? 

When I heard this remark again for the recent grades 5-8 band concert, I got a break. Initially this person gave me the old refrain "these seats are saved" and I stood there mute for a moment, showing disapproval. But the very nice band mom then offered me the seat on the other side of her. I ended up enjoying the concert very much. 

I'll finish my story about the Barb Wilts retirement concert: After getting frustrated 3-4 times, I stood in the aisle making a gesture of frustration and I was spotted by someone I knew who was sitting higher up. He knew of a seat I could use. So bless him. 

 

Ice cream and music

Let's move to the present. This past Monday was the big annual spring ice cream band concert. And a feature is that for an hour prior to the concert, various soloists and ensembles are featured in the cafeteria area. A joyous event, yes, as are all the spring events that culminate in graduation. 

I'll be getting one graduation card this year but it's for someone at the Herman school. My Herman friend has educated me on the difference between "Border West" and "Wheaton." As a young person I took in some football games involving the tried-and-true "Herman Panthers." Cyrus High School also had the "Panthers" nickname. The Herman kids today go between "Border West" and "Wheaton" in their sports involvement. 

I graduated from Morris when it was "Morris High School" without the word "Area." At least we're still "Morris." I would like to see the "Morris" name return by itself someday. Then we could go back to singing the school song as it was intended by its composer, Bob Schaefer. The fans would chant "M-H-S" in the opening section. Today it's four initials for reasons that must still be relevant. I might demur. 

And of course it's "MACA" for sports. Man, I can remember when it was a pretty heavy lift to get Chokio-Alberta to fully join us, to fully join in and have their hearts in it. The C-A community must have suddenly made a collective resolution. I wrote countless articles for the Morris newspaper about C-A sports. Got rather attached too, I might add. The days of Neal Hofland coaching the football Spartans are fading into the past. He has become well-established in Morris as an assistant. 

As the numbers diminished, C-A tried adjusting with, shall we say, fits and starts. So we saw some short-lived combos. Like, CACG for boys basketball. Was it the "Thunder?" I wrote articles on that. Later we had CAHN for football. "Chokio-Alberta-Herman-Norcross." I well-remember that. I would guess people over there to the west of us were stubborn about a full pairing with Morris. I would guess things even got emotional. Oh, I've been around the block a fair number of times. Today it's one big happy family? That's what I gather. 

And look how awesome the baseball and softball teams are this spring. 

I believe C-A still has its own band. So, everything happens at the Chokio building now? So much was in Alberta once. I covered so many Homecoming coronations and pep rallies in Alberta. 

Legend has it the Alberta location had to be abandoned because it was too close to Morris. The state figured that if the building was going to be that close to Morris, the kids might as well go to Morris.

 

A drag for Morris

Here's an important asterisk to add for all recollections about past pairing/combo proposals: for a long time the small high schools resisted greatly any thoughts of coupling with Morris because of a negative impression of the Morris school, particularly its extracurricular. The small schools sensed that Morris extracurricular was handled "like an extension of phy ed class," to quote a high-standing friend of mine at the time. 

My own observations from working at the paper was that my friend's analysis was dead-on. It took time but I think Morris got things straightened out. I will always feel it could have been done faster. We had an ossified and cynical teaching staff. A fire hose needed to be taken to that. And that took time. I think a new breed of school administrators came on the scene that were trained to be true no-nonsense managers with the manager mentality. 

At present the Morris school looks to be running quite fine. And the band concert of this past Monday underscored that. Underscored that in spades, actually. A friend tells me that Wanda wants to keep directing for as long as she's physically capable. Capable of getting up on the podium as she most certainly did with her typical panache. 

I was disappointed by only one thing Monday. Whereas in the past we'd get a nice bowl of ice cream, maybe three scoops, along with a choice among maybe four toppings, well this year we were served a small plastic cup of ice cream only! There was a basket for free-will offerings. 

I was happy to pay for the greater quantity of ice cream! 

But what a concert it was to close out the academic year! And of course a super bonus was that the bands played a composition by my late father, "Testament of Nations." But I'm happy to attend anytime, not just when Dad's work is on the program. I showed my appreciation by exchanging a hug with Wanda after the concert. 

I enjoyed my Mother's Day buffet at DeToy's Restaurant. Why would I go anyplace else? The other places have prices that have launched into orbit. Ridiculous. 

The weekend featured of course the UMM graduation. My reflections on that are on my companion blog "Morris of Course." I invite you to read with this link:

https://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2025/05/assessing-umn-morris-for-its-2025.html 

My late parents having some leaf-raking fun at our residence on Northridge Drive. You might remember their names were Ralph and Martha.

Addendum: The late Chuck Spohr would have loved the MAHS band concert and the trumpet playing of his grandson, Charlie Hanson. We lost Chuck not long ago.

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Girls win 7-1 and 10-0 at Minnewaska

Look at all the W's for the MACA softball Tigers on the "Minnesota Scores" website. On this Sunday morning we see a 15-1 record. Phenomenal as the post-season gets closer. Can the Tigers overcome the jinx of playing the southern Minnesota teams? 

The 15-1 numbers show that we are not world-beaters. Melrose found a way to defeat us on May 1. That was a 5-2 score. So outside of that game it's a series of W's to certainly please the fans. 

Most recently our success was on the road. Not far away, to Minnewaska Area. Our former activities director "defected" to 'Waska, or was "poached" or however you might like to describe it. It's a competitive marketplace. So while that individual gets paid more in 'Waska than our cheapskates were willing to offer - just kidding (?) - our softball team showed superiority in a doubleheader. We get the last laugh. 

MACA turned back the Lakers 7-1 and 10-0. The scores indicated it was business as usual for the orange and black. But again, can we do this against the likes of JCC? The goal is state. Looks like there's a home doubleheader coming up on Tuesday. After that, there are just two remaining regular season games. Will anything be done to accommodate fans better at our softball complex? 

Game 1 against the 'Waska Lakers had the 7-1 score. Haley Kill performed from the pitching circle. She was quite in command as shown by her 14 strikeouts. She allowed three hits and one run and walked one. Our line score showed us playing errorless ball. Our seven runs came on seven hits. The hits were pretty spread around. 

Brenna Jergenson had the multiple-hit game with a two-for-four line and a run-batted-in. Lauren Hottovy had a double, drew a walk and stole a base, plus she scored three runs and drove in one. Kaylin Steen had a hit, stole a base, drew a walk and drove in a run. Then we see Samantha Konz with a double, a run scored and two RBIs. 

Harmony Cloverdale went one-for-three, drew a walk and scored a run. Makenzie Konz walked and scored a run. Leah Berlinger tripled and scored a run. BTW I love the name "Harmony Cloverdale."

 

Game 2: Tigers 10, 'Waska 0

In command again, this time shutout-style. Nora Boyle was handed the ball for pitching duties. In her six innings she allowed three hits and struck out two. She also contributed a hit, one of eight by the Tigers. 

Again we played errorless ball. Boyle scored a run and drove in two. Samantha Konz had a hot bat with a double and triple as part of her three-for-three showing. Her RBI total was four. 

Lauren Hottovy had a hit in her only at-bat. She had a SAC fly, a walk received, an RBI and two runs scored. Kaylin Steen scored twice and stole a base. Haley Kill walked and scored a run. 

Harmony Cloverdale had a hit, drew a walk and scored a run. Makenzie Konz had a hit, drew a walk and scored a run. Ryla Koehler scored twice, rapped a hit and drew a walk.

 

UMM graduation

Memory tells me the UMM graduation has had to be moved indoors on many occasions. It's best when it can be outside of course. That's how it was for UMM's first graduation in 1964. I remember. 

The campus was blessed to have an outdoor ceremony for its 2025 edition. Very pleased to be in attendance. I'm sure the numbers are not as high as they once were. Still, a very impressive atmosphere for the grads and the proud family members and friends. 

I stopped by the dining hall for the graduation brunch. I told the attendant that the price was $12 back in the fall for Homecoming. So, what might it be for the spring graduation? Well, it was $13. So, isn't that how inflation works? The prices inch upward and we largely just absorb it. What else are we going to do? 

I enjoyed the brunch. Nice to have some Rice Chex cereal for a change. I don't have the refrigerator connected in my home. I live pretty conservatively. I have confronted diabetes and decided I don't need food temptations from the 'fridge. Good news: My most recent medical exam showed I am now "pre-diabetes" which is an improvement! Maybe I can progress further. 

We hope there are many more UMM graduations to come. But I don't know, as the Washington D.C. leaders are on the warpath against DEI. And, DEI is how UMM largely packages itself these days. Do I care? I really don't. I just care that the institution can survive or isn't driven into spasms of uncomfortable change. We'll see what things look like in the fall. 

Nice to see instrumental music again for the 2025 graduation: a brass group, very sharp. Simon Tillier directed. The group even played "Pomp and Circumstance." In an ideal world we'd have the regular symph. winds playing again. That was the norm for a long time. We took it for granted. Changing times bring adjustments.

 

MAHS music reminder below. And note there's an ice cream social set for 6 p.m.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

MACA buries Benson on the diamond

How about 14 runs in the seventh frame? Quite the offensive outburst for the orange and black of the baseball diamond. The Tigers were already showing command before the seventh inning. But their bats got going for a decisive final flourish. 

This was in Game 1 of the Thursday doubleheader against the Benson Braves. Yes they're still the "Braves." The nickname goes against the wishes of our state government but oh well. 

Our 14 runs in the top of the seventh were en route to the final 26-6 winning score. Benson hosted. 

We always must make clear which "Asmus" we're talking about. So let's acknowledge Alex Asmus as the winning pitcher. His stat line was not outstanding this time around. But the "W" looks nice next to his name. Benson was able to get through with offensive punch at times. 

Alex pitched six innings and allowed six hits and four runs which were earned. He set down nine Brave batters on strikes. Jackson Hallman finished up on the hill. Benson had a parade of five different pitchers trying to subdue the MACA batters. I guess a futile cause on this day. 

Can we all envision the orange and black in the state tournament? Our line score was 26 runs, eleven hits and two errors. Benson rapped ten hits but fumbled in the field with seven errors. Not a pretty sight for the Benson fans. 

 

Eleven MACA hits

Now, on to the MACA offensive story where we see Riley Asmus with a three-for-four line, three runs scored, an RBI, walk received, a stolen base and on once via HBP. 

Jonah Huebner had a two-for-three line and drove in four runs while scoring three. Jonah doubled, stole a base and drew a walk. 

Alex Asmus had a hit, drew a walk, stole a base and scored two runs. Riley Saito walked, scored a run and drove in one. Jack Letendre had a hit in his only at-bat, plus he scored a run and drove in two. Jack Kehoe socked a triple. Kehoe scored three runs, drove in four and walked twice. 

Hallman worked the Benson pitching for four walks. He was a terror on the basepaths with three stolen bases. He scored four runs and drove in one. Kye Suess drove in three runs on his one-for-four line. He walked and scored a run also. Justin Giese was busy with a stolen base, two walks received, two RBIs and two runs scored on his one-for-three line. 

Hunter Smith walked twice and scored two runs. Leo Perez walked and scored a run. We have to remember there are two "Huebners" too. Drew Huebner had a hit and also reached three times on walks and once on HBP. Drew crossed home plate three times. 

For the "Braves" - excuse that reference - Landon Skarsten and Alex Claussen both went three-for-four and Noah Goossen had two hits. The losing pitcher was Claussen. 

The Tigers took Game 2 by a score of 11-0. Riley Asmus and Hallman shared the pitching. Drew Huebner hit a home run. 

Let's take a look at the "Minnesota Scores" website for MACA baseball. My we're a juggernaut. We learn that our W/L is a superlative 16-0. Looks like we don't play again until next Thursday. Action will be at BOLD where the school district has controversy with a criminal investigation. In Morris the biggest issue is the substantial staff cuts that drew 125 members of the public to a recent board meeting. 

Is the public calming down about that? In the old days I knew about everything that was going on. Today I have to go out of my way.

 

That long ago?

The last MAHS graduation I covered for the Morris newspaper was in 2006. It was the first graduation in the new gym and I was proud to be part of it with my newspaper work. But, so long ago now. 

Would I have liked to continue it? Well of course I would have. Ditto with being at the Hancock graduation. Maybe I was even more emotional about saying goodbye to that event. I still remember the song that was played for the slide show there. Made me get a little misty in fact. My last graduation there was when the "Grunig twins" graduated. 

One of those guys played football and the other one didn't. I was amused to hear coach Adam Steege talk about that. Of the non-football-playing twin, Steege said he was a "pacifist." Hey, that attitude is right in line with me. 

Also re. the Hancock graduation, the Grunig twins' father Ken had his Hanocck band start "Pomp and Circumstance" with a percussion intro that always startled me! I think I got a bit of a reputation for that. Oh to pay a visit again someday. Today's graduates weren't quite born yet when I left the paper. I haven't aged a day, have I? 

The Hancock graduation had more of an intimate atmosphere to it. But the MAHS atmosphere was great too. I found it was easier to take notes in the new gym compared to previously. Oh for years the 1968 gym had terrible acoustics for that IMHO, or a mishandled sound system. The standards are much higher today for everything. But I still think my work would "cut it." We can only speculate. 

The memories are stored in my head from years and years - no one can take these away from me. I still remember when we had the literal earthquake during the MAHS graduation. The Lopez boy was speaking. He's no longer a boy. I recall him saying later that he wasn't sure at first what the rumble was. Actually I did think earthquake right away. There is a history here. There are no train tracks next to the high school building! It is very rare for me to get invited to graduation receptions anymore. I carry on with life.

 

Maybe a footnote

My own graduation from 1973 is quite secondary in my thoughts, to all the graduations I covered with the Morris Sun Tribune. These included graduations at Cyrus High School. I remember seeing a Japanese exchange student with the Cyrus grads who I had interviewed for a feature article. She was emotional as she participated in CHS graduation! Wonderful thing to see. 

I have no emotions reflecting on my own MAHS graduation. I concluded high school with no useful skills at all, but I had been dragged through endless tedious and boring "academic" classes that are a scar on my memory, sorry. 

Wally Behm was our principal. His stock seemed to fall rather suddenly here. But he was the "principal to the boomer generation" of Morris. Each community has someone like this ensconced in its history: "principal or superintendent to the boomers." A wholly unique niche. Wally was a smart and good person. But I think he was a product of another age. He had a stately presence. He had a sense of humor but when he got mad you'd quickly shudder. 

Our superintendent up to 1970 was Oscar Miller who seems to have vanished from community memory. After Oscar it was the very well-remembered Fred Switzer. Fred knew the value of a dollar to a fault. Whereas Oscar clearly had a "PR personality," Fred did not. Fred was rather cold and dry. To the extent there were problems with him, it was probably due to the board. I went to a 10K run once with one of Fred's sons and he told me "people don't seem to realize he works for the board, it isn't the other way around." 

It's really hard to feel joyful about anything that happened in 1973 because the whole Vietnam tragedy was not yet over. The fall of Saigon happened two years later. And to think we could have just avoided the whole thing. The U.S. lost the war. Whatever bad memories I have, I wasn't sent to that hellhole. 

My family had a family friend who was killed by friendly fire in 1966. Bless today's young people who don't have to deal with something like this. As for the Iraq adventure, why did the U.S. have to send National Guard troops to fight? Why didn't the American public rise up to question it?

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

A Carter quote echoed by. . .Trump?

Peanut farmer from Georgia

Another quote that is really more a paraphrase from what was really said? I don't know about taking this kind of license. So I ought to verify the "tighten our belts" comment from Jimmy Carter. Already I knew that he did not use the word "malaise" in this famous or infamous speech. 

America has never been afraid of excess. The more the better for our personal lifestyle and possessions - that's the credo. And I'm not totally putting it down. Going for the moon is quite fine for anything. We must be thoughtful and be guided by the Judeo-Christian ethic. 

Republicans more than anyone would diss the idea that we'd have to "tighten our belts." They had an opportunity to show their attitude on this after the noteworthy Jimmy Carter speech in 1979. Americans were still listening to disco music. While our memories have been fading, think of disco and the decade should be revived nicely. 

Protests in Iran were persisting. The revolution there was causing international worry. A fundamentalist cleric took power. Oil production became limited, thus Americans faced rising prices. Carter saw his stock diminished. How about a speech to try to remedy? These were the days before our attention got carved up by the Internet. 

Bring on July 15, 1979. Carter gave his most important address to the nation. "Angst" might describe our collective state. I thought Carter's manner of speaking was fine. Most others thought otherwise. Through the prism of time the speech has not aged well. 

 

Movie flashback

I wonder how many people reacted like me to a scene in the movie about the "Miracle on Ice" hockey team. The team was unwinding with a game of touch football, as I recall. We heard the Carter speech in the background. What stood out for me was that the guys were oblivious to Carter's words. They were sharing some unbridled fun and paid literally no mind. 

The message: It is against the American nature to hear about sacrifice. I mean sacrifice to your personal lifestyle and living standards. Our capitalistic system ought to afford us the chance to "go for the moon." Earn and live well. I have no issue with the Republican pols on this. 

Then there is the separate matter of the sacrifice of lives for the sake of war. George W. Bush sold us on that for the Middle East. The sands have clearly shifted on this. Whereas you used to risk being called a "commie" for opposing war, today the leading element of the Republican Party appears totally against war. As a 70-year-old who certainly followed the tragedy of war, it's kind of mystifying. I mean the shape-shifting going on here. 

William Kristol

So the vice president J.D. Vance assails William Kristol on this front. Vance was responding to criticism. And I must say as a Democrat, Vance totally and decisively put Kristol in his place. Should have left him mumbling. 

The Republicans now just happen to have a leader that influences the party with such firmness, he can get them in line on anything. While I am scared of this about 100 percent, it is interesting how the party is now thumbs-down on war adventurism. So we've gone from George W. Bush to Donald Trump. And the self-styled and self-marketing "conservative media" has tagged along with each one. 

 

Word out of the ether?

Jimmy Carter gave what came to be called the "malaise speech." Which is fascinating because Carter never used the word "malaise." Sounds like a popular word for college professors. Yes, they're responsible for this I'm sure. Amidst the disturbing international circumstances which had ramifications here, Carter decided to question the self-indulgence and consumption of America. At the same time, he preached the need for sacrifice - individual and collective. 

Carter was certainly most well-intentioned. Sacrifice can be a noble thing, if we're not talking wartime death. If you're going to associate such an attitude with a political party, it would be the Democrats. They are cautious about pumping up "materialism." 

Republicans? I remember when "Fred Mertz" of the "Lucy Show" had a little kiosk called "Big Hunk of America" to compete with "Ricky's" "A Little Bit of Cuba." "A big hunk" is what Americans seek to go for, n'est-ce pas? I'll repeat that it is ingrained in our nature. 

I am fascinated to see that not only the word "malaise" was a post-speech invention, so too were the words "we'll have to tighten our belts." Man, I remember that quote being bandied about back in the day. But hey, it was a paraphrase! Ethical questions about journalism maybe, I mean if the wrong words gained currency. 

Today we have the grand "meritocracy of the Internet" enforcing precision. Don't let the professor types hold forth. Put aside "malaise" and "tighten our belts" as interpretations i.e. paraphrasing,which granted was accurate. 

 

Incongruous

Why am I bringing this up today? A very good and timely reason. You see, not only has DJT transformed the Republican Party into anti-war, he has now come out against excess consumption! This was with his "dolls" comment of the other day. Maybe these remarks will become a defining part of his presidency. Sheesh, there are so many other dubious parts clamoring for attention. 

Excess consumption? Girls wanting "too many dolls?" Really? DJT is trying to get us ready for the trials lying ahead because of his tariffs. Rising prices to be sure. Haven't we had enough of rising prices? Maybe we have. The Trump-supporting element of the USA wants to follow him so automatically, knee-jerk you might say. 

Michelle Fischbach

Ask our congressperson Michelle Fischbach about the need for sacrifice to "get along with less." She ought to put down such ideas. She is a Republican. But she is 100 percent Trump-supporting. Of course she will not question the Orange Man. I'll repeat: Someone should ask her sometime if there is anything Trump could do or say that she would disagree with. 

I predict that Americans are not vigilant or thoughtful enough about what is coming in the way of higher prices. I predict it really will "cross a line." And then we may fall into a true "malaise." Can it be remedied? 

The scary thing is that DJT has built up such a wall of power around himself, assisted often by the Supreme Court. Can the dam break? That is the big question. 

I'd love for someone like Carter to be our president again. Ah, memories come back of the story he told about the rabbit swimming toward his boat in the swamp!

  

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Take time to reflect on change

American resilience has always paid off, right? Can we count on the past always setting the upbeat example? The year 1961 was watershed here in Morris. Really for all of Minnesota too. So many ways we might contrast life then with today. Well, the cost of bread was 23 cents for a pound in 1960. And that was up from 12 cents in 1950. 

I'm thinking of the year 1961 specifically because of the impact felt. For the first time us Minnesotans had top-tier pro sports teams to cheer for! Can you imagine life without that? Maybe my generation of the boomers was proliferating in numbers to the extent that the need for more entertainment was obvious. And of course the boomers' potential cried out. 

Baseball moved west when the practicality of air travel pushed for this. Previous to the page-turning new age of baseball, "a trip west" meant St. Louis or Chicago. It was the habitual way of thinking. And we'd like to think that surely Minneapolis and St. Paul were well-enough developed to support the top tier. But the economy was not ready. If it had been ready, surely the enterprising owners would have moved out here. 

Interesting how we got the Twins and Vikings in the same year. So just think: before that we were really bereft. Of course we had sports. I have gathered that U of M football was the really big deal. And it was super-competitive through the early 1960s. We had quarterback Sandy Stephens. Rose Bowl trips. All of that seems rather faded history now, doesn't it? Because, the Vikings really supplanted the Gophs. 

The quality of TV technology with the super color picture paved the way for football to become the obsession. "Color" programs were announced on NBC with the peacock, remember? This was satirized in the original "Police Squad" TV show. "In color." Well, it really was a big deal once. 

The football Gophers became like an afterthought for quite a few years. We could not conceive of the Rose Bowls any more. We watched as Nebraska, Michigan, Penn State and others somehow found the formula to excel. And I was puzzled. Isn't Minnesota a more prosperous state than Nebraska? 

I don't think we felt the need. Well, we had the Vikings. Nebraska certainly didn't have that! 

Metropolitan Stadium was built to attract big league baseball. The Vikings were "the other tenant." Bud Grant was certainly on record commenting on that. 

I wrinkle my forehead because Met Stadium was such a breakthrough when it was built. Yet only a couple decades later, it had to be abandoned. It was literally left abandoned and to totally decay. 

As  a little kid my father told me about the Minneapolis "Millers." It was the top-notch minor league baseball team in Minneapolis. While St. Paul had the "Saints." Dad directed the Apollo Male Chorus of Minneapolis through part of the '50s. 

I still wonder what the atmosphere of "Nicollet Park" was like. It was the Millers' home before Met Stadium came to be. Was it a special experience to be there? The great WCCO TV newscaster Dave Moore thought it was. Maybe he courted someone there once. I have never noticed much gushing about the place, generally speaking. 

St. Paul had "Lexington Park" for a long time, located close go the old Prom Center which eventually got close to my heart. It's gone now, having gotten out of the way for progress. 

And what of life in our Morris for the year 1961? The new UMM went into the first spring of its existence. However, no graduation yet. The first graduation would not happen until 1964. I remember being out on the campus mall that night. There were no "hills" on the mall in UMM's early days. Thus, kids would get out there to fly kites in the spring. A friend and I have joked about the "hippie" kids doing that. 

Prior to the hippies or the protesters we had the "beatniks." The boomers started exhibiting their counterculture. We didn't want to fit into the old mold. We must have found fault with some of those values. The Vietnam war was certainly not our idea. Quite to the contrary. The grand WWII generation got fooled on that one. Those people should have seen that Vietnam was nothing like the worldwide crisis that drew us in, in the 1940s. 

Our UMM has now had such a long history. So long, we should accept the institution's viability into the long-term future, right? But it's never so simple. 

We're all thinking about graduation because that's what is coming up this weekend out on campus. I would surely never miss it. There's a brunch at the dining hall earlier in the day. I will watch with interest to see if the total amount of humanity on the mall is large enough to retain optimism. 

I'm told there will be an instrumental ensemble. Well that's a step up from having no band at all. My, for so many years we took the band for granted at graduation. I never dreamt this could fade away. 

Is it possible that UMM will take on a new mission for its future? Recently many of us have had to feel concern over the attacks on "DEI" coming from the most powerful people in Washington D.C. UMM has basically been branding itself with "DEI." Whatever works, I root for it. I do feel there is substantial cause for concern. 

But on graduation day we should feel overcome with joy. I just hope there's a good turnout of "humanity." 

I spent kindergarten as a little kid at East Elementary in Morris. UMM was finding its legs. And then for the next three years, I attended school at "Longfellow" which today houses offices for St. Francis Health Services, or at least that's my understanding. It's across from Faith Lutheran. 

"Longfellow" was where my third grade teacher informed us in such a somber manner about JFK's assassination. The kaleidoscope of history moves onward. We hope UMM can open routinely for business next fall. But I don't know.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Riley Asmus unstoppable in big win

The MACA diamond teams are showing they can be merciless when winning! So even though our school board is making pretty noticeable staff cuts - noticeable enough to draw 125 members of the public to the recent meeting - this apparent austerity is not affecting sports or at least certain programs. 

The last time I wrote about softball, the Tigers had just taken care of business in a 26-0 win over Benson. Mercy! 

This morning (Saturday) as I check the prep sports news, it's redux. This time it's with baseball. Here we see a crushing 22-3 victory over Lac qui Parle. Bart Hill has retired as LQPV coach. So he did not have to deal with this misfortune for the Eagles. Bart is of course a Morris native. He had a heckuva run with his LQPV Eagles. 

In the present time the Eagles are licking their wounds. Our Riley Asmus was like a wrecking drew at the Madison diamond. Riley's bat launched three home runs among five total by the orange and black. What a crowd-pleasing game for the Tiger partisans who made the trip! Riley is committed to Creighton for his future athletic pursuits. 

Look at Riley's boxscore line: five-for-five! He drove in ten runs. He crossed home plate five times. It doesn't end there. We saw his pitching flair on display too. He got the "W" by his name. He set down six Eagle batters on strikes. 

The other MACA home runs were off the bats of Drew Huebner and Justin Giese. The complexion of the game was established right in the first inning: nine runs for the Tigers. Let's acknowledge it was a bleak afternoon for the LQPV fans. Dylan Keimig supplied a LQPV highlight with a home run. Also hitting safely for the home team were Davis Patzer, Gavin Meyer, Tyler Erp and Brandt Schommer. Schommer's hit was a double. 

The MACA offensive review shows Andrew Marty with a hit in his only at-bat, a double. He worked the LQPV pitching for three walks. He crossed home plate four times. Riley Asmus had a double to go with his home run blasts. 

Ozzy Jerome had a hit, drew three walks and scored two runs. Alex Asmus had two hits and got hit-by-pitch twice. He scored a run and drove in a run. Jack Kehoe had a hit and a run scored. Jonah Huebner scored a run, drove in one, walked and stole a base. 

Jackson Hallman stole three bases and scored a run. Justin Giese went two-for-two with one of his hits a home run. He scored two runs, drove in three, drew a walk and stole a base. Hunter Smith doubled and scored a run. 

Drew Huebner had a two-for-three line including his round-tripper. He scored three runs. Kye Suess drew a walk and scored a run. 

Riley Asmus shared pitching duties with Jack Kehoe. Asmus worked four innings and Kehoe one. Asmus fanned six batters and Kehoe two. Only one walk issued by the Tiger pair. 

Onward and upward now for the MACA baseball crew? Just like the softball team? The school staff cuts sure aren't having any effect with these programs! Do I understand correctly that hockey is being made self-supporting? Is the public going to be good with this? You know what might happen: we'll hear cries for other programs to be self-supporting as well. 

I mean, why not? Why not football? Football is not even a safe sport for our boys to be playing. 

Some people consider band and choir to be "extracurricular." This has always been bandied about, whether music is extracurricular or part of the core learning. I don't care as long as it gets financial support. And wouldn't you know, band is not affected at all by the staff cuts. 

So we saw quite the exciting band concert this past week at the concert hall. The band program absolutely flourishes. Never a doubt about how committed the band directors are. We can always feel assured that the directors are idealistic people who go for the moon. Believe me, I have seen a number of Morris teachers through the years develop weaknesses when it comes to this. There have been times where I've had a hard time containing my discontent. 

There was a huge audience for the band concert which involved grades 5-8. I sat next to the mother of the seventh grade bass clarinet player. I told her "we all remember who the bass clarinet player was when we were in high school band." 

As an aside, let me say that I visited the Morris Public Library twice last week and did not see Anne Barber there. Certain people had assured me she'd be back. I can't believe it totally until I see her there sometime. I'm actually a little cautious about going to the library now. I mean, after all that has happened. Unfortunately there has to be a winner and a loser at the end of all this - maybe that's the most dispiriting aspect. 

I have never met our city manager. I refuse to make any negative assumptions about her. Is there anything the city council and mayor could have done to prevent the actual controversy, because controversy is never a good thing? The council has surely discovered how popular Anne is. She has ties to the UMM community. 

Do y'all think Donald Trump has a chance to become Pope? So many people have actually put DJT on a level with God and Jesus. We see this locally.

 

Addendum: The bass clarinet player when I was in band here was Peter Timmons! He has had quite the career as an attorney.

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Softball Tigers look to rule regular season

A rather typical spring so far for the MACA softball Tigers. Year after year this program performs so superbly in the regular season. Lots of joy for everyone involved with the program, of course. The disappointing part happens when we get into the post-season tournament. 

Oh our first couple games at least go fine. Sub-section is usually played at our local "complex" where unfortunately fans struggle to get a good and comfortable seating position. Maybe they would deny this but I'm sticking to my opinion. 

We were sold this complex being such a grand facility. The city said "no" to a second request for funds from the project's promoters. The city was nice enough to make an initial contribution. I would actually question the wisdom of that. 

IMHO we needed assurances that the facility would live up to original conceptions. The announcement at the start was with a flourish, including a row of supposed VIPs with shovels as if there'd actually be a lot of digging out there. 

Let me remind you that I cannot help but pay attention to all this because Prairie Lane is on my daily walking route, both coming and going. It's great to head out east of town to the wild surroundings, away from the trappings of civilization. I spent 27 years in the rat race of writing for the Morris newspaper. A day doesn't go by where I don't wonder what it would be like to try to do it again. 

The odds are slimmer for me having any kind of repeat of that, mainly because my eyesight is diminishing. We resist the effects of aging until finally we capitulate. God sees to it. 

Again, nice to see MACA softball performing so well in the regular season. Good chance we'll roll through the season this way. And then we'll wonder: can MACA break the "jinx" (or whatever it is) of playing the teams from southern Minnesota? Surprising how long that handicap has gone on. 

Sharon Martin gave me an interpretation once: The Tigers "play in a weak conference," she said. The Tigers would benefit from being tested by a higher caliber of competition. And why would our West Central Conference be hindered in this way? Seems like a respectable conference overall, at least that's my impression. 

Well, I have no idea about the weakness that Ms. Martin alluded to. These days she's the smiling presence at the Willie's bakery. The Martin name and groceries go hand in hand. I think the stresses of teaching were getting to her and I fully understand. And look at the stresses being added on at present for our Morris Area school system. Phenomenal, earth-shaking and no hyperbole with those descriptions. 

Holy cow, over a hundred members of the public at the school board meeting last Monday? The number I first heard was 100, given by the superintendent himself on the radio station website. The website offered just two brief snippets of interview comments by the super. But was it really an "interview?" 

Hard questions? Well I'd say the interviewer just tossed softballs to the super. Maybe it wasn't even that much - I think the radio station just gave him a platform to take over for a minute or two and give us his carefully massaged comments about how, well, the board just had to make some cuts and it's all so routine. Life goes on as if a breeze. That's what we were supposed to take away from it. 

Well I didn't of course. I'm a cynical old journalist who came up during Watergate. And I know that if 125 people turn out for a board meeting to show concern about the significant staff cuts, we cannot describe it all as "routine." I heard from my friend Randy Olson of Bonanza Valley on this:

 

Hello Brian, I tell you what: having 100 people (hell, having TEN people) at a school board meeting is nothing to sneeze at. Something must be happening.

I've been covering B-B-E school board meetings for over 10 years now as publisher. In that time, I can't add up to 100 the number of visitors from the public at a school board meeting. Back in 2017(ish) we probably had 15 to 20 regarding class sizes for a kindergarten section. That would be a high water mark.

As a newspaper, you have to keep the public informed, and when things get tough - they may get upset but at least they won't be looking for their pitchforks.

I suppose if I go to the library today (Tuesday) to look more at the Morris paper, I'll see Anne Barber back as director there. Given the length of her suspension from duties, I was almost assuming we'd never see here there again. The whole thing started out as "allegations of misconduct" which were awfully strong words, almost pushing us to a bias of some kind. 

So the suspension was carried out and now she's back as if everything was so routine? Well I guess we'd have to suspect "yes." But the city (led I presume by the city manager) dragged us through a most unpleasant episode. And if Anne can now resume duties as if not missing a beat, are we to assume then that there was no serious misconduct, misjudgment, oversight lapses of whatever? 

Barney Fife

And if it was truly small potatoes, I don't understand the huge spectacle of it all. I mean, the three Barney Fifes that had to be called to protect the physical safety of our city council members? Sheesh. Very strange. And so now normal life resumes in our "Peyton Place." 

What will come of the school staff cuts? Can Supt. Monson sell us on the idea that "it's just one of those things?" "Nothing to see here?" 

Will the remaining members of school staff be bitter in the aftermath? I have seen this consequence before. The teachers are a hugely powerful political bloc in the community, if past is precedent. Of course, "past" for yours truly goes back further all the time. Maybe people are more civilized today. I cut my teeth during Watergate. 

The place to look for uncivil behavior and ignorance now is Washington D.C. The congressperson MTG wanting to celebrate the Pope's death, coming right out and saying it. No uprising to try to get her to resign from Congress. So maybe a whole lot of Americans agree with her? How do Catholics in Morris feel? Of course MTG represents a state of the old Confederacy. 

There's plenty of ignorance in the Upper Midwest too. We have a MAGA congressperson.

 

Follow the Tigers

Can MACA softball beat the likes of Jackson County Central this year? Stay tuned. Are the fans having to place their own chairs in the muddy ground by the softball complex again? Way out by the outfield fence? This is progress? 

As I write this, MACA softball is 10-0. Way to go Tigers! Sharon Martin attends the games. Looks like she hasn't got a new dog yet to replace the never-to-be-forgotten "Goldy." "All dogs go to heaven."

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com