Minnesota
Business People: Longtime NAMI Minnesota executive director to retire
HEALTH CARE
NAMI Minnesota (National Alliance on Mental Illness) announced that Sue Abderholden will retire as executive director effective Oct. 15. Abderholden has led NAMI Minnesota since October 2001.
AIRPORTS
The Metropolitan Airports Commission announced it has promoted Kelly Gerads to director of reliever airports, responsible for the operation and maintenance of its six general aviation airports in the Twin Cities metro area: St. Paul Downtown Airport, Flying Cloud Airport, Anoka County-Blaine Airport, Crystal Airport, Airlake Airport and Lake Elmo Airport. Gerads was promoted from assistant director of reliever airports, a position she’s held since 2007. The MAC also operates Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
ATTRACTIONS
Transwestern Real Estate Services announced the planned opening of a Soar N Bounce Trampoline and Adventure Park at Aurora Village Shopping Center, located at 1801 County Road 42 West in Burnsville; it’s the chain’s first Minnesota location.
CONSTRUCTION
Empirehouse, a Mounds View architectural glass and metal contractor, announced the retirement of General Manager James Bringle.
EDUCATION
Blaze Credit Union, Falcon Heights, announced it was honored with the Minnesota Credit Union Network’s 2025 Desjardins Youth Financial Education Award, recognizing Blaze’s initiatives promoting financial wellbeing of students in St. Paul Public Schools.
FINANCIAL SERVICES
U.S. Bank, Minneapolis, announced that it has united its Global Fund Services and Global Corporate Trust teams into a single Investment Services division led by Jay Martin, president of Investment Services. Martin has led Global Fund Services since joining the bank in 2023. Prior to joining U.S. Bank, he spent time at Citco, where he was head of operations within the Fund Services division. … Merchants Financial Group, Winona, announced the reelection of three directors to three-year terms: Molly Jungbauer, Hollstadt Consulting; John Killen, WinCraft; and James Rogers III, Mayo Clinic.
HEALTH CARE
Nura Pain Clinics, a subsidiary of the Capitol Pain Institute family of practices, announced the opening of a clinic at 707 Bielenberg Drive, Suite 108, Woodbury. Dr. Larry Studt, who joined Nura in 2024, will serve as the Woodbury clinic’s primary provider. Nura Pain Clinics also has locations in Edina and Coon Rapids.
HONORS
The U.S. Small Business Administration announced it has named ATEK Distribution, of Minneapolis, as SBA’s Minnesota Veteran-Owned Small Business of the Year. The business is owned by Jeffrey Anderson, who previously served as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps. ATEK Distribution provides wholesale electrical construction materials, including wiring supplies, electrical light fixtures, EV charging stations, light bulbs, and solar and electrical power equipment. … Better Business Bureau of Minnesota and North Dakota announced this year’s winners of BBB’s Torch Awards for Ethics: Category 1 (1-2 employees): T & J Construction, Rogers; Category 2 (3-15 employees): Front Burner Accounting Services, Eden Prairie; Category 3 (20-99 employees): Paris Painting, Brooklyn Center; Category 4 (100+ employees): Coordinated Business Systems, Burnsville.
LAW
Faegre Drinker announced that Berglind Halldorsdottir Birkland has joined the firm’s litigation practice as counsel in the Minneapolis office. Birkland, a native of Iceland, also serves as an adjunct professor at the University of Minnesota Law School and chairs the International Business Law Section of the Minnesota State Bar Association.
REAL ESTATE
HomeServices of America, a Minneapolis-based Berkshire Hathaway franchised real estate agency, announced the following executive appointments: Alex Seavall, promoted from chief financial officer to chief financial and operations officer; and Candace Adams has been named executive vice president. Adams has served as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New England Properties.
SERVICES
Restaurant Technologies, a Mendota Heights-based provider of cooking oil waste management to restaurants, announced it has named Matthew Micowski as chief financial officer, succeeding Bob Weil, who has held the position since 2007 and has transitioned to a strategic adviser position within the organization.
TECHNOLOGY
Calabrio, a Minneapolis-based provider of human resources software and services, announced it has appointed Frank Ciccone as chief revenue officer. Ciccone most recently was with Verizon, where he managed a $400 million collaboration and customer experience business.
EMAIL ITEMS to businessnews@pioneerpress.com.
Minnesota
Utah Mammoth take down Minnesota 5-2 to end the Wild’s winning streak at 6
The Wild were taken down by the Utah Mammoth 5-2 on Friday night to end Minnesota’s winning streak at six games.
Lawson Crouse scored twice and U.S. Olympian Clayton Keller had a goal and two assists for Utah.
Logan Cooley and Barrett Hayton also scored and Karel Vejmelka made 21 saves to help the Mammoth rebound from a 4-2 home loss to NHL-leading Colorado on Wednesday night in their return from the Olympic break. Utah began the night in the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
U.S. Olympian Matt Boldy scored and assisted on Kirill Kaprizov’s goal for Minnesota. Second behind Central Division-rival Colorado in the West, the Wild are 9-2-1 in their last 12. They beat the Avalanche 5-2 on Thursday night in Denver.
Cooley opened the scoring with a short-handed goal with 6:37 left in the first period. The former University of Minnesota star got the puck on the right side off a deflection and put a shot between Wallstedt’s legs for his 15th goal.
Keller scored his 18th at 4:26 of the second. Nick Schmaltz forced a turnover on a forecheck and fed Keller on the right side.
Crouse made it 3-0 at 7:49 of the second. He came down the middle, took a pass from Keller and beat Wallstedt with a backhander.
Kaprizov countered for Minnesota on a power play with 5:57 left in the second. He has 33 goals this season.
Hayton made it 4-1 on a power play at 1:19 of the third, and Crouse added his 16th of the season on a tip with 7:12 to go.
Boldy got his 35th of the season with 5:57 remaining.
Up next
Wild: Host St. Louis on Sunday.
Mammoth: Host Chicago on Sunday.
Minnesota
Shorthanded Clippers can’t keep pace with Anthony Edwards and Minnesota
Anthony Edwards scored 31 points, Donte DiVincenzo added 18 and the surging Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Clippers 94-88 on Thursday night.
Jaden McDaniels and Ayo Dosunmu each scored 12 points and Rudy Gobert had 13 rebounds to help the Timberwolves improve to 5-1 since Feb. 9 and 3-1 since the All-Star break.
Edwards, returning to the site of the All-Star Game, where he was the MVP, was 12 for 24 from the floor and sealed the victory with a step-back three-pointer over two defenders for a 92-88 lead with 42.9 seconds left.
Minnesota improved to 2-0 on a three-game trip.
Derrick Jones Jr. scored 18 points and Bennedict Mathurin added 14 for the Clippers, who struggled from the outset with a season-low 38 points in the first half. Kris Dunn had 11 points for the Clippers (27-31), who have lost three consecutive games for the first time since December.
The Clippers struggled on offense without star Kawhi Leonard, out because of ankle soreness. The Clippers shot 40.5% from the floor, including 18.2% (four for 22) in the second quarter. Minnesota shot 43.4% in the game.
The Timberwolves (37-23) scored just 15 points in the second quarter and still topped the Clippers, who had 11. Minnesota led 44-38 at halftime behind 12 points from DiVincenzo and 11 from Edwards.
The Clippers led by six in the third quarter and were up 68-63 heading into the fourth. Edwards’ drive and reverse layup put the Timberwolves up for good at 76-74 with 7:40 remaining.
The Clippers pulled within one three times in the last 2½ minutes, but Edwards answered each time. He scored the Timberwolves’ last nine points.
Up next for Clippers: vs. New Orleans on Sunday night.
Minnesota
Church congregant filed lawsuit against alleged Minnesota church protesters
A St. Paul church member has filed a federal lawsuit alleging that a group of individuals, including journalist Don Lemon and activist Nekima Levy Armstrong, unlawfully disrupted service last month as part of a coordinated political demonstration.
The complaint, filed by Ann Doucette in the U.S. District Court of Minnesota, alleges that a Jan. 18 demonstration at Cities Church interfered with her ability to worship and caused her to suffer damages, including emotional distress and trauma.
In addition to the former CNN anchor and Armstrong, the complaint names journalist Georgia Fort and activists Will Kelly, Jerome Richardson, Trahern Crews and Jamael Lundy. It also names St. Paul school board member Chauntyll Allen.
Doucette and seven of the defendants did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Doucette filed the complaint without the representation of an attorney. In an emailed statement to NBC News, Crews denied the lawsuit’s allegations “with empathy and compassion.”
The lawsuit accuses the group of civil conspiracy, aiding and abetting, intentional infliction of emotional distress, interference with religious exercise and trespassing.
“As a result of Defendants’ actions, the worship service was disrupted, congregants experienced fear and distress, and Plaintiff’s ability to freely exercise her religion in a private place of worship was unlawfully interfered with,” the lawsuit states.
All eight defendants are also facing federal charges for conspiracy against the rights of religious freedom at a place of worship and for interfering with the exercise of the right of religious freedom. Lemon has pleaded not guilty to all charges, saying outside the court, “I wanted to say this isn’t just about me, this is about all journalists, especially in the United States.”
Fort, Crews and Lundy were released on bond and entered not guilty pleas, according to The Associated Press.
This is the latest legal action tied to protests in the Twin Cities, where tensions remain over the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown and the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.
According to the lawsuit, the demonstrators engaged in “coordinated conduct” by organizing meetings ahead of the “Operation Pullup” protest and promoting it on social media.
The lawsuit alleges that on the morning of Jan. 18, a coordinated group of individuals entered Cities Church, halting the worship service, and chanting “‘ICE Out!’ and ‘Hands Up, Don’t Shoot!’” while obstructing aisles. Protesters could allegedly be seen “confronting the pastor and congregants in a menacing manner,” the lawsuit says, noting that their chanting and “aggressive gestures” caused “severe emotional distress, fear, anxiety, and trauma” and caused children “terror.”
Demonstrators gathered at the church because they said its pastor, David Easterwood, was the acting director of an ICE field office in the city, the lawsuit says.
Lemon was arrested in January in California and accused of violating federal civil rights law after covering the protest on Jan. 18. He was released on a personal recognizance bond before a federal grand jury in Minnesota returned the indictment against Lemon and eight co-defendants, all of whom are also named in Doucette’s lawsuit.
In the lawsuit, Doucette alleges that Lemon specifically livestreamed the protest, “noting congregants’ fear and distress, and appeared to take satisfaction in the disruption.”
Levy Armstrong, a Minneapolis-based civil rights attorney and activist, was also arrested for her participation in the St. Paul protest. Her arrest drew national attention after the White House shared on social media doctored photos where she appeared to be crying.
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