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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMay 2012 Gem Lake Newsletter mail boy May, 2012 Volume 6, Issue 5 Gem Lake News Special Interest Articles: • Local Student Wins Scholarship • Farewell to Al Drummond • City News Page 4 • Little Red School House in Gem Lake, Sort of... Upcoming Recycling Dates: May 16 May 30 June 13 Gretchen Artig-Swomley, Newsletter Editor Gem Lake resident and high school senior Rachel Andert has won this year's Gem Lake Scholarship Award. The $500 award was voted on by the Gem Lake City Council at its April 17th meeting. This 3rd annual award is intended to pay for costs of post secondary education for Gem Lake graduates. It is funded by charitable gambling receipts. Rachel is a four year honor roll student who intends to study design management with an emphasis on Advertising. She has already been accepted to the Art Institute International. Her goal is to obtain a Bachelor of Science from the Institute in three years. (continued page 5) Rachel Andert Wins Scholarship th Extra Patrols Now Helping Out in Gem Lake At the request of the Gem Lake City Council, the Ramsey County Sheriff's Department has begun extra patrolling of city streets. The added patrols will amount to about an hour twice a week at random times throughout the day or night. The new program began on April 9 to increase the overall police presence in the area. The move resulted from discussions between the mayor and the Sheriff's Department at a meeting on March 30 at Heritage Hall. At that meeting, strategies for further improving law enforcement capabilities in our community were discussed.. The extra patrols will take place for a short period of time and will then be evaluated by the council to determine if they should continue, according to Mayor Bob Uzpen. The city will be paying for the extra patrol services at a rate of $52 per hour. Hand-in-hand with this new service, the Sheriff's Department urges you to play an active role in your own safety. if you see something suspicious or out of the ordinary in your neighborhood, please report it. Gem Lake News Page 2 of 6 It might not have been right out of "Little House on the Prairie," but there was once a cute county school house located on the current site of Barnett Chrysler's showroom building near the intersection of County Road E and Highway 61. It was a small brick building, officially known as school 19-B in the White Bear School System. In the 1930's the school had between 30 and 40 students, grades 1-8. All students were taught from the school's only classroom by the school's only teacher, who was named Miss Frances Merry. Lorraine Birkeland, who walked across the street from her home to attend the school, remembers Miss Merry as a "very patient woman." Millie Scheuneman LaBathe, daughter of Charley Scheuneman, who operated nearby Scheuneman's Market, attended grades 1-8 in 19B and remembers Miss Merry very well. The teacher lived in St. Paul and rode the bus to work each day. Her work day was a full one, as she called on each grade separately for reading, writing and arithmetic instruction. There Really Was a "Little Red School House" in Gem Lake (sort of) The grades were organized by rows, running from front to back, with first graders on one side of the room and eighth graders on the other. A section of the large classroom was set aside as a library area, but all activity took place within this large open area. Blackboards covered the walls on all four sides. The school was opened sometime around 1929 and was noteworthy for its indoor plumbing. "I remember how excited we would get at Christmas time," said Millie. "The parents would come in and build a little stage where we would have our Christmas plays and events." Millie lived only about a block away in a brick house on a hill, located at the other end of the Barnett Chrysler lot. The basement of the school was one large room, often used by the Community Club for local card parties." I remember my mother often took part in these events," said Millie. (continued on page 3) Gem Lake News Page 3 of 6 By 1950, the school was still in operation. On Memorial Day weekend, neighborhood families would gather at the school for a picnic and the annual doll parade. One year, Dick Arcand and his friend Art Birkeland, who ran White Bear Floral with his wife Lorraine, dressed up as dolls and participated in the parade. (See photo below. Dick is riding, Art is pushing.) The doll parade tradition had not yet started when Millie was attending school there, but her daughter participated in the parade at some point. Another fun event was a game day that schools in the county participated in. Schools competed against each other in sports such as dodge ball. "The kids all had a lot of fun," said Millie. No one knows exactly when the school was shut down, probably sometime during the mid 1950's. The School District #624 was formed in 1952 for the White Bear area and a period of consolidation began for small district schools in the vicinity. Central High School in White Bear was opened in 1918, but the much larger North Campus school was built in 1964. This school is still in use today. In 1972, the South Campus, then called Mariner School was added. School 19-B was eventually torn down and the land sold to Henry Hoffman, who eventually sold it to the car dealership. By 1969 when the Roth Tavern was moved to another location, the little brick school next door was a distant memory. Above: the inside of School 19-B showing teacher Miss Frances Merry standing in the back, about 1936. Below: Millie Scheuneman LaBathe, about 1936. Bottom left, the annual doll parade, about 1950. The two "dolls" are Dick Arcand and Art Birkeland. Bottom right is Shirley Hoffman Arcand, about 1950. Gem Lake News Page 4 of 6 BuBu Ramsey County Traffic Safety Initiative The Ramsey County Sheriff's Office hosted another high visibility DWI Saturation Campaign on March 23 from 8:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. Twenty four officers focused their efforts on major roadways north of Highway 36. This resulted in 272 traffic stops. Of these stops, 118 citations were issued including 29 people who were taken into custody, 19 DWI arrests, 21 drivers who were cited for "Driving After Revocation or Suspension of License," and 2 vehicle forfeitures. More High Visibility DWI Campaigns are planned for future weekends. National Night Out Scheduled for August 7 The 29th Annual "National Night Out" will be held on August 7 throughout the United States, with Gem Lake participating with a community gathering at Heritage Hall. "National Night Out" is designed to generate participation in local anti-crime programs, strengthen neighborhood spirit and police- community partnership and heighten crime and drug prevention awareness. Last year's "National Night Out" campaign involved citizens, law enforcement agencies, neighborhood organizations and local officials from over 15,000 communities. In all, over 37 million people participated in last year's event. Gem Lake invites residents to meet their neighbors, gather crime fighting information from the Ramsey County Sheriff and enjoy food and refreshments from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. on August 7 at Heritage Hall. Mark your calendar now. We hope to see you then. City News Page WaterFest 2012 Scheduled for June 2 Families from around the Twin Cities are invited to a day of lakeside fun at WaterFest 2012. The event is scheduled from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday June 2 at Phalen Lake Park in St. Paul. Sponsored by the Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District, the cities of St. Paul, Maplewood and North St. Paul, as well as Ramsey County and other partners, the event is a celebration of our clean lakes and offers an opportunity for outdoor fun and hands-on learning about the water quality, wildlife, and special ecological aspects of our beautiful watershed. Here are some special features: *Enjoy the WaterFest parade featuring students, clowns and mascots *Experience the lake with Voyageur canoe rides, solar pontoon boat rides, sailing, fishing and stand-up paddleboard lessons *Participate in "Kids and Carp, Fishing for Fun!" Prizes for the biggest, smallest and most carp caught *Learn to Geo-cache and participate in the Discovery Hunt Enjoy a climbing wall, jump castle, archery, art, water games and bird watching. Almost all events are free and will be located in the vicinity north of Phalen Drive and Wheelock Parkway. For more information call event manager Debbie Meister at 651-647-6816 or visit the web-site at www.rwmwd.org. Gem Lake News Page 5 of 6 Long Time Gem Lake Resident Al Drummond Leaves Us Long-time Gem Lake resident Al Drummond passed away January 22 at the age of 83. Al is survived by his wife of 58 years, Edith, four children and four grandchildren. Al and his wife ran St. Paul Pottery Company from the late 1960's to the early 1990's. Starting in about 1974, the company took over the building that once housed the old Scheunemann's Market on County Road E. The building now houses the Gun Shop and several other businesses. As the business expanded, Al and Edith built another building behind the original site and expanded into it. They rented out the original building to various tenants. Later, they made part of the new building into their residence also. He and Edith, who was a school teacher, moved their home from White Bear to Gem Lake, where Edith still resides today. St. Paul Pottery was a retailer of all kinds of pottery that Al bought from various sources. He also specialized in making things from concrete that were very popular through a variety of retail outlets, such as fountains, bird baths, benches, tables and chairs, etc. "They were all made from molds and they were pretty popular with everyone," said Edith. Al moved to Minnesota from Wisconsin when he was about 12. His family owned and operated the Daylight Food Market, which was located for years on 4th Street in Downtown White Bear Lake. They were four children in the family, including Al, and they all worked at the market. Al worked all his life and was a very good business man. "He was a very friendly guy and loved people," said Edith. "He loved to walk around and talk to all the people in the building he owned and rented out." Gem Lake Scholarship Award (continued from page 1) She intends to study Design Management, with an emphasis on Advertising. Rachel impressed her school counselors at White Bear Lake area High School as an active and engaged student. "In the time I have known Rachel, she has demonstrated herself to be a natural leader," according to Counselor Jeffrey Nowak. "Rachel has distinguished herself at White Bear through her active participation and leadership in the classroom. Rachel is very creative and has excelled in our art courses. Her creativity is infectious. Rachel's academic skills and success continue to grow each year and she has chosen to attend the Art Institute International, which is a great fit for her talents." Any resident of Gem Lake who is a high school senior can apply for the Gem Lake Annual Scholarship Award by contacting their school counselor. The application deadline is March 1. Pictured above: The building that once housed Scheunemann's Market on County Road E later became the St. Paul Pottery Company, which was founded in the 1960's by Al Drummond and later expanded to a new building behind this one. Pictured at left: Al Drummond on his 83rd birthday. Bob Uzpen-Mayor Phone: 651-492-5083 City Council Members: Gretchen Artig-Swomley Phone: 651-260-9742 Rick Bosak 651-426-9695 Jim Lindner Phone: 651-429-7597 The following Gem Lake Meetings will be held at Heritage Hall for the next few months: May 15, 2012 City Council Meeting at 7:0 p.m. June 4, 2012 City Council Workshop at 7:00 p.m. Meetings: May and June 2012 Meeting Dates Your Gem Lake City Council The City of Gem Lake PHONE: (651) 747-2790 FAX: (651) 747-2795 City Hall Address: 4200 Otter Lake Road Gem Lake, MN 55110 GENERAL E-MAIL: City@gemlakemn.org Newsletter e-mail: gretchenas@comcast.net Kiki Sonnen: 651-747-2790, or Kiki.Sonnen@CO.RAMSEY. MN.US To report incidents for the Neighborhood Watch program or for information on that program contact Block Captain Chuck Watson 651-653-8319; Charles.Watson@bdk.com We’re on the Web! See us at: www.gemlakemn.org CITY OF GEM LAKE 4200 Otter Lake Road Gem Lake, MN 55110 June 5, 2012 Planning Commission Meeting at 7:00 p.m. June 19, 2012 City Council Meeting at 7:00 p.m. Tom Rasmussen Phone: 651-426-8854 For more information on meetings, city ordinances, recent events, permit procedures, etc. please consult the Gem Lake web-site. The address is www.gemlakemn.org Each Gem Lake Newsletter is also posted on the web-site under the news section. Please email your ideas, comments and suggestions. See box at left for detailed contact information.