Around the State: October 28, 2024

The counties and cities within the state of North Dakota hold many interesting news stories.

Here are just a few of the feature stories that others are reading in communities around the state.

Diehl riding high after winning world title

Michele Diehl's collection of trophy belt buckles got a little bigger during her recent three-day visit to the Lone Star State October 10-12.

Diehl finished first in her class and took top honors as the senior ladies overall world champion at the AQHA Cowboy Mounted Shooting World Championships in Amarillo, Texas.

After finishing in the middle of the pack in Amarillo aboard a different horse a few years ago, Diehl's return trip to Texas turned out to be a memorable one for the Hillsboro cowgirl.

Cowboy mounted shooting requires riders to guide their horses in a pattern while shooting balloons along a specific, pre-approved path.

Riders use revolvers loaded with black powder blanks to target the balloons, which can be arranged in more than 80 different patterns.

Diehl has been working her way up the competitive circuit in cowboy mounted shooting the past decade, starting out as a level one rider and reaching level five on a scale of one to six, last year.

She headed south with her horse, Deuce, from Hillsboro to Texas on Sunday, Oct. 13 and arrived in time for the start of the three-day world championship shooting competition four days later.

Nearly 300 shooters descended on Amarillo to take part in the event and Diehl estimated she had about 20 other riders from across the country competing in her division.

Diehl went into day three on Saturday with a 3.5-second lead on her fellow riders and navigated her way through her fifth and final ride of the competition without missing a balloon.

(Story by Cole Short, the Hillsboro Banner)

Authorities investigating threats sent to city official

The Divide County Sheriff's Office says it is investigating a series of text messages received by a Crosby City Council member from an anonymous sender that contain a racial slur and a threat of an "old school hanging."

Marzell Trussell, the only Black member of the city council, said he received the messages the evening of October 9.

Sheriff Zach Schroeder said local law enforcement and the state Bureau of Criminal Investigation are gathering information on the text messages, which were brought to their attention that evening.

The text messages reviewed by The Journal make reference to a New Century Ag employee vote the following day on whether to form a union for the Crosby truck stop's petroleum department, as well as the proposed Hendrickson-Holmes water and sewer infrastructure project in Crosby that the city council approved and then backed out of earlier this year.

Trussell is an employee at the truck stop.

"Hey n-----," the first message said, followed by, "I heard what you guys are doing with the union and you better vote no."

"There might be an old school hanging in the town. We have more of us and less of you."

"Remember this you black a-- b----- we will end you and your whole family, Keep looking over your shoulder we will come for you."

New Century Ag employees voted on whether to approve union representation on Thursday.

Trussell's family has lived in Crosby for about 12 years, moving here from the Milwaukee area.

(Story by Journal Staff, the Journal, Crosby)

Westhope buses go electric

The Westhope School District in the near future will have two electric buses, which it said will save the district money and provide the students a safer ride to and from school.

Superintendent Mary Bratrud said the district is acquiring the buses through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Clean School Bus Program, which covered most of the cost.

"The only cost we carry after rebates is half the cost for chargers, the electrical infrastructure for the chargers and the line into the bus barn and breaker box," Bratrud said.

"The cost of a brand-new bus has gone from $85,000 to $125,000 for a bus that runs on gas and $145,000 for a bus that runs on diesel, which is something the school district didn't want to put on the taxpayers," Bratrud added.

(Story taken from the Journal, Crosby)

Fieldstone group finalizes purchase of WDAY radio

Fargo-based Fieldstone Group announced recently that is has finalized the purchase of WDAY Radio from Forum Communications.

The sale provision is part of a five-year management agreement that was signed by the two parties in November of 2020. The purchase includes the AM/FM radio station, its online properties, social media accounts and transmitter/tower site.

The station will be operated as part of the company's Fargo broadcast operations. The sale is subject to Federal Communications Commission approval.

WDAY Radio celebrated its 100th year of broadcasting in 2022.

(Story taken from the McKenzie County Farmer)

CTE centers still needed in rural N.D.

The North Dakota Department of Career and Technical Education (CTE) has 10 CTE centers in the state, from Grand Forks to Williston, Fargo to Dickinson, in addition to the cities along the major 4-lane highways crossing the state: Jamestown, Bismarck, Devils Lake and Minot.

Wahpeton and Watford City make 10 cities with CTE centers.

With the city centers covered, the state has wanted to locate CTE centers in the rural areas to provide high school graduates and adults there with the opportunity to learn a skillset in demand across North Dakota.

All this is nothing new to Harvey and Wells County.

Paul Gunderson, former job development director, first broached the idea of establishing a post-graduate learning center in Harvey, where high school graduates and adults could learn the trades that businesses, large and small, in the north central region and across North Dakota, are in desperate need of: auto mechanics, welders, plumbers, electricians, pipefitters, dental hygienists, wind turbine technicians, ironworkers, carpenters, LPNs, machinists; the list is endless.

It should be noted that neither Harvey's school board nor its administration have discussed at any time, since the bond referendum failed at the polls, the probability of establishing a CTE center in Harvey.

(Story by Neil O. Nelson, the Herald-Press, Harvey)