Minnesota

An evening at the Long Drive-In, one of the last drive-in theaters in Minnesota

Published

3 hours ago

July 24, 2024

An evening at the Long Drive-In, one of the last drive-in theaters in Minnesota

My 12-year-old daughter and a friend bopped a volleyball around our campsite, a nicely shaded corner beauty at the edge of a meadow. My teenage son and another friend were off exploring on foot. I was pulling together blankets, bug spray and other necessities for our evening at the Long Drive-In, just down the road.

I’d imagined we’d all head down together when the gate opened at 7:30 to stake out a prime spot — only the first three rows have carside speakers — until my son texted.

“mom … people are already lining up … you should go like now.”

The girls and I picked up the pace, and soon we pulled into the line of cars filling the long approach and snaking out the entrance, 10 minutes before gate time. We stalled near the marquee, which advertised the night’s double feature in classic red plastic letters: “Inside Out 2″ and “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.”

Finally, brake lights ahead flashed like fireflies and we inched forward, one car-length at a time, gravel crunching under the tires, to the ticket booth. A tidy green field spread out before us, and at the far end, a giant white screen rose up higher than the trees.

The front rows were filling up, but we still had options. We backed into the second row, mid-screen, directly in front of the concessions building. Perfect.

On the upswing

This is the Long Drive-In’s 68th season. It was built on the outskirts of central Minnesota’s Long Prairie (pop. 3,600) in 1956, when drive-in theaters were America’s latest obsession. Minnesota boasted around 80 drive-ins at peak popularity. In the 1980s, as cars shrunk and movie nights shifted into living rooms, many drive-ins were shuttered. The Long endured. It’s now one of five left in the state.

“It definitely cycles,” said owner Michelle Claseman of the business. She’s run the drive-in alongside her family through peaks and valleys, like her parents before her. Special events helped create the current upswing, she said, like last fall’s “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” screening, when Claseman stocked a big table outside of the concession stand with friendship bracelet-making supplies, or the annual Classic Car Cruise (coming Aug. 24), when the types of vehicles this experience was created for fill the front rows before a retro movie selection.

Another smart move: After Claseman learned that many moviegoers were traveling an hour or more, she cleared some space at the edge of the field for bare-bones campsites that regularly sell out on weekends.

Making a day of it

We’d considered reserving one of the drive-in’s last available sites, but opted instead for Camp S’More a half-mile away. The campground’s bathroom/shower building, pickleball courts, tubing trips and other perks won us over.

“It looks like the Microsoft home screen,” one of the kids marveled about the gently rolling meadow topped in blue sky at the edge of our site. He wasn’t wrong. As we set up camp, one of the owners came around on a golf cart with little bags of fresh popcorn. We were happy with our choice.

I stopped to chat with a couple of RV-ing sisters hanging out with their four little dogs inside a portable fence. When I asked what they like to do around here, they didn’t hesitate: the drive-in. “It doesn’t even matter what’s playing,” one said.

Tubing was off the table for us, due to flooding on the Long Prairie River. We were content to explore the tidy campground, and the garage sales around town, until it was time for the movie.

Dinner and a movie

I popped the liftback, laid the third row of seats flat, shook out blankets and unfolded chairs. My daughter and her friend grabbed our Frisbee and joined the crowd of other kids in the green space in front of the screen, with their soccer balls, footballs and ladder toss. The Jackson 5′s “ABC” blared from the concession stand. The groups that scored front-row spots sat at picnic tables and prepped blow-up mattresses. It was opening night for the Disney/Pixar “Inside Out” sequel, bolstering both the attendance and wholesome family vibes.

An announcement over the loudspeaker encouraged ordering pre-show food ASAP, so I hopped into the short line to get dinner for our group. The menu and its prices contributed beautifully to the throwback theme: Hot dogs were $2, root beer floats $3.50 and sno-cones $1.50. I fed the five of us, including the two bottomless teen boys who’d finally caught up, for just under $40. By the time we set our haul down on a table outside the stand, the line was out the door and down the row of cars.

We cozied into our setup as the sky finally darkened enough for the first feature to start. It felt unique and beautiful to make this effort. Not to pluck something off a digital menu in our living room, or even pay a premium to sit in an immersive air-conditioned box, but to instead drive all this way, together, with our blankets and pillows and chairs.

To settle into this communal experience, where pre-show games, crackling vintage speakers, the stars overhead and chirping crickets are all part of the show.

Getting there

The Long Drive-In, outside Long Prairie, Minn., is two hours northwest of the Twin Cities. Showing July 25-28: “Deadpool & Wolverine” and “Twisters” (separate admission for each). $8 adults, $5 ages 5-11, free for 4 and younger (thelongdrivein.com).

Where else to stay

The Prairie Ridge Inn in town is a basic option with recently remodeled rooms. The drive-in website and locals recommended the Long Prairie Treehouse, a unique cabin perched in oaks and maples (but sold out until 2025).

More drive-ins

Minnesota’s other four drive-in theaters are the Starlite Drive-In (Litchfield); Elko Drive-In (Elko New Market); Verne Drive-In (Luverne); and Sky-Vu Drive-In (Warren).

Also within road-trip distance: the Stardust Drive-In (Chetek, Wis.); and the Superior 71 Drive-In (Spirit Lake, Iowa).

Berit Thorkelson is a St. Paul-based freelance writer.

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Minnesota

Initiative Foundation Awards $750,000 to Address Critical Needs in Central Minnesota

Published

10 hours ago

July 24, 2024

Press Room

(KNSI) — The Initiative Foundation has awarded 19 grants totaling $750,000 to nonprofits in Central Minnesota.

The grants range from $10,000 to $75,000 and are part of a partnership with the Otto Bremer Trust and its Community Responsive Fund. They aim to address basic needs, community asset-building, health and wellbeing, and restorative and responsive services.

Some of the grant funding includes:

Oasis Central Minnesota of Little Falls: $60,000 to help those experiencing homelessness by providing emergency shelter, a pathway to permanent housing, and housing support for those on the verge of homelessness in Morrison County.

Recovery Community Network of St. Cloud: $60,000 to provide peer support, education, advocacy, and prevention strategies to reduce substance use disorder impact and improve health and wellbeing in Benton, Crow Wing, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Pine, Sherburne, Stearns, and Wright counties, and the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe.

Feeding Area Children Together of St. Cloud: $50,000 to support a weekend food gap program for students facing food insecurity in Benton, Sherburne, Stearns, and Wright counties.

YES Network of St. Cloud: $50,000 to respond to the youth mental health crisis by providing community-based afterschool and summer health and wellness programming in Benton and Sherburne counties.

Central Minnesota Habitat for Humanity of St. Cloud: $45,000 to help low-income families achieve homeownership, focusing on those with generational barriers in Benton, Sherburne, Stearns, and Wright counties.

Central Minnesota Dementia Community Action Network of St. Cloud: $41,000 to support dementia-informed counseling for patients, families, and caregivers in Benton, Sherburne, Stearns, and Wadena counties.

Wright County Community Action of Maple Lake: $40,000 to expand services supporting independent living for low-income older adults in Wright County.

Too Much Talent of St. Cloud: $25,000 to reduce disparities experienced by children and families of color, providing tutoring and community programming in Benton and Stearns counties.

“We are so excited to give these Central Minnesota nonprofits a big boost,” said Nicole Clements, nonprofit development program officer at the Initiative Foundation. “We couldn’t have done this without our partnership with the Otto Bremer Trust. Through this collaboration, organizations are receiving transformative support for their important work.”

The Initiative Foundation serves as the administrative hub for all six Minnesota Initiative Foundations and distributes $3 million in OBT grants across rural Minnesota.

“The Trust’s mission has always been to provide funding to organizations and programs that effectively address challenges and opportunities,” said Frank Miley, OBT co-CEO and trustee. “Working with the Minnesota Initiative Foundations, which are fully integrated into the communities and regions we serve, allows us to have a deeper understanding of these challenges. We look forward to working closely together to increase our impact.”

The Initiative Foundation received nearly 90 applications for this funding opportunity.

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Minnesota

Attorneys at Fryberger Law Firm Named Minnesota Super Lawyers and Minnesota Rising Star

Published

17 hours ago

July 24, 2024

Press Room

Attorneys at Fryberger Law Firm Named Minnesota Super Lawyers and Minnesota Rising Star

Fryberger, Buchanan, Smith & Frederick, P.A. is proud to announce four attorneys: Stephanie A. Ball, Robert R. Kanuit, Paul B. Kilgore, and Paul A. Loraas were named 2024 Minnesota Super Lawyers. Through a rigorous selection process, Super Lawyers recognizes lawyers in their state who distinguished themselves within their practice – an honor only 5% of Minnesota lawyers are awarded yearly.

Stephanie A. Ball is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Law School and practices in the areas of civil litigation, including personal injury, wrongful death, products liability, construction, insurance and surety law, commercial litigation and lender liability. She is certified by the Minnesota State Bar Association as a Civil Litigation Specialist and is the immediate past President and a National Board Representative of the Minnesota Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates. She has been recognized as an Attorney of the Year by Minnesota Lawyer.

Robert R. Kanuit practices in the areas of real estate, banking and lending support services, bankruptcy and creditors’ remedies, business entities, collections, contracts, estate planning, trust and probate and project development. Mr. Kanuit graduated cum laude from William Mitchell College of Law.

Paul B. Kilgore focuses his practice on real estate acquisitions, finance and litigation, and on minerals and mining law. He graduated cum laude from the University of Minnesota Law School and is certified by the Minnesota State Bar Association as a Real Property Law Specialist. Mr. Kilgore was elected in 2012 to the American College of Real Estate Lawyers.

Paul A. Loraas practices in the areas of lender support, real estate, minerals and mining law. He graduated with distinction from the University of North Dakota School of Law. He is certified by the Minnesota State Bar Association as a Real Property Law Specialist and has been featured in the International Who’s Who of Mining Lawyers from 2012 – 2018, 2022 and 2023.

One attorney from the firm was named a 2024 Minnesota Rising Star: Daniel F Burns. Rising Stars are chosen by peers as top up-and-coming lawyers. Only 2.5 percent of attorneys receive this honor each year.

Daniel F. Burns attended the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., and graduated magna cum laude in 2011. Burns then found his way to Minnesota where he studied at the University of St. Thomas School of Law. After graduating in 2016, Burns decided to stay in Minnesota and gained experience in the public finance sector of law.

“We are incredibly proud to announce that four attorneys have been named Super Lawyers and one Rising Star,” said Mia Thibodeau, Fryberger President. “This recognition is a testament to each of their exceptional legal skills, dedication, and commitment to their clients.”

Fryberger, Buchanan, Smith & Frederick, P.A., is a 26-attorney practice providing a range of legal services that include business and corporate law, real estate transactions, employment and labor law, litigation, wills and trusts, finance, and personal injury. The group holds licenses across an array of states: Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, Arizona, and Michigan. For more information, call the Duluth office at 218.722.0861, the Cloquet office at 218.879.3363, the St. Paul office at 651.221.1044, or the Superior office at 715.392.7405.

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Minnesota

Sartell woman, 18, dies in central Minnesota crash

Published

1 day ago

July 23, 2024

Press Room

Sartell woman, 18, dies in central Minnesota crash

WCCO digital update: Afternoon of July 23, 2024

01:35

AVON, Minn. — Authorities in central Minnesota are investigating a crash that killed a teenager and seriously injured another Tuesday afternoon.

The Stearns County Sheriff’s Office says it received reports of a crash at the intersection of County Road 9 and County Road 52/Two Rivers Road in Avon around 2:17 p.m.

Upon arrival, deputies found two vehicles with heavy damage in the ditch of County Road 9.

Investigators learned a 62-year-old man had been driving his 2014 Chrysler Town and Country southbound on County Road 9 when he entered the intersection with County Road 52. As he entered, he allegedly saw a car enter the intersection in front of him from the west. That’s when he struck the driver’s side of the other car, a 2005 Pontiac Grand Prix.

The sheriff’s office says the westbound and eastbound traffic on County Road 52 at County Road 9 is controlled by two stop signs, while traffic traveling northbound and southbound does not stop.

The driver of the Pontiac, 18-year-old Ellie Wittstruck from Sartell, died from injuries suffered in the crash. The passenger, an 18-year-old woman from St. Cloud was airlifted to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.

The driver of the Chrysler suffered minor injuries.

Riley Moser

Riley Moser is a digital producer who covers breaking news and feature stories for CBS Minnesota. Riley started her career at CBS Minnesota in June 2022 and earned an honorable mention for sports writing from the Iowa College Media Association the same year.

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