Home for the Holidays

Oh there’s no place like home for the holidays. . . the melody wafts through the air from my Pandora Christmas station, and I am instantly homesick. 

Indeed, nothing quite calls out to the Hibbing expatriate community like the hint of the holidays, particularly Christmas and the 4^th of July, but let us leave the later for another more time appropriate post.  I’ve been absent from this blog (and from Hibbing too) for a while, but like many of my fellow far flung Iron Rangers I can’t resist December’s annual beckoning to come home to family and familiarity. 

I’ve been counting down.  In fact, most phone conversations with my parents and/or my sister (all of whom are in Hibbing) in the last month have begun or ended with only X more days until I see you.  Dear Hibbing, the same sentiment applies to you.  Oh Town That Moved, I herby resolve to relish the time we spend together this holiday season, enjoying all of my favorite things about you at Christmas. 

• ·        How cute you look all dressed up in snow: It’s true, you’re adorable all covered in the white stuff (particularly this early in the season).  The beauty is particularly striking with the red glow of the Androy sign and the crisp white display of the lights at City Hall in the Centennial Fountain.  (Note: my sources tell me that it is not yet a white Christmas up in Hibbing.  Dear Universe, I expect this to be remedied in time for my arrival.)

• ·        Holiday foods: I know this is largely true in any community, but there is something special about those regional and local culinary delights that take center stage during the holiday season.  Lefse (one of my absolute favorite foods) and lutefisk (a tradition which I appreciate, but refuse to eat) are staples at my family’s Scandinavian celebration.  Sarmas, potica, pizzelles and other holiday favorites line tables and bakery shelves. 

There is something infinitely comforting about food traditions this time of year.  Even though I never drink them, it doesn’t seem like Christmas unless I’m being offered a Tom and Jerry at our annual Christmas Eve celebration.  Some tell me this is a sign that Hibbing is clearly stuck in the 1950’s, but the fact that my fashion-forward sister buys the mix every year from Sunrise Deli makes me smile at the charming wonderfulness of it all. 

• ·        Finally family: Yeah, I know what some of you are thinking.  Family is not unique to Hibbing, well for that matter neither is snow or holiday foods, so I’m clearly on a trend here.  Although returning home to see family is what drives people around the world to various communities, I think it’s worth mentioning in terms of Hibbing.  I’m thinking back to a conversation I’d had with a friend a few years back about a recent survey of Hibbing tourists.  Although motivations like business, mining history, and Bob Dylan were all mentioned as reasons for coming to town, nothing could hold a candle to returning home to see family. 

I have to smile this year, thinking of joining the great Iron Ranger Twin Cities exodus on my way up north.  I think instead of getting frustrated about getting stuck or slowed down in the mass of vehicles on the 35E/Duluth route, I will take a moment to appreciate that most of us are just trying to do the same thing—take a time out, return to our roots, and celebrate the holidays surrounded by family and friends. 

For those of you who are joining me on this journey, I wish us all freeways clear of snow and ice and a very happy Hibbing homecoming.  

Library Love

It was only a matter of time really, consider it a professional hazard.  As evidenced by the above title, tonight’s I [heart] Hibbing focus is the Hibbing Public Library.  Now the reason I’ve chosen to write about this actually has very little to do with the fact that I’m a librarian.  I was actually inspired to choose this topic by a suggestion to like a Facebook page from a friend the other day.  The page in question was “Arrowhead Legacy Events”, which is basically a central location for publicizing free history, arts, and culture events that are funded by Minnesota’s Legacy Amendment which are coordinated by the Arrowhead Library System (of which Hibbing is a member).

Perhaps the most popular and recognized component of this program are the free passes to select area museums, however, this program also covers various guest artists, musicians, and historians as I understand it.  Apparently it also provides funding for the creation of various art installations at public libraries in the region as shown in the pictures on the library system’s blog to be found here.  This, in my opinion, is a great example of how a community’s quality of life can be improved by people coming together for a common purpose. 

In my experience, it can be easy to brush aside local public libraries with the thought that their programming is solely for children and families with events like the popular children’s summer reading program.  Programs like the Legacy Amendment remind us that places like libraries can serve a much greater function in our community.  They are gathering places.  Places to seek information, knowledge, and entertainment.  And, in my observation, they are places that are easily overlooked or under appreciated.

Think about it.  When was the last time you visited the Hibbing Public Library?  What did you do there?  Have you ever taken advantage of the museum pass program or attended a cultural event?  Why or why not?  I invite you to share your thoughts below. 

    

  

Getting Back to Hibbing

Getting back to Hibbing.  It seems like a relatively simple endeavor, whether one is talking about getting back on track with a certain Hibbing-focused blog or returning to one’s hometown after being gone for a couple of months.  In theory, it’s easy; in practice, not so much. 

Multiple attempts to get back to this blog have been thwarted by the usual suspects: work deadlines, personal obligations, laziness and honest exhaustion.  Once an activity has been moved to the sidelines, it is difficult to return it to a place occupying front and center in one’s life.  For example, tonight after getting home from working the evening shift at the reference desk, the idea of crawling into bed was decidedly more appealing than sitting at my laptop and trying to come up with something coherent to say.  And yet, this blog is something important to me, something I’ve decided is worth getting back to. 

Getting back to Hibbing itself should also not be that difficult for me, particularly as I now live much closer than I have in the previous two years or so.  It is only a 7 hour drive from my current location, as opposed to a 7 hour plane ride from my previous home of Tallahassee, Florida.  However, a few weeks back when I returned home for the {moxie} fall style show, I was particularly frustrated by a string of road construction sites and detours (the one outside of Cloquet that routed me through West Duluth was particularly irritating). 

Either way you look at it, getting back to Hibbing takes a certain amount of resolve.  In the future, it may take even more resolve and varied transportation choices for those of us who live far from the town.  

I say this, of course, in response to the recent New York Times article about Delta Airlines looking at reducing or suspending air service to Hibbing through the Range Regional Airport.  This news is particularly sad to me, as I have flown out of and into what used to be called the Hibbing-Chisholm International Airport many times in my life.  I always appreciated how quick and easy it was to board in Hibbing versus the long lines of larger airports like Minneapolis-St. Paul.  After a long day of traveling it was also nice to not have to drive a long way (or have others drive a long way) to get to my final destination.  I think of how much harder it would have been for me to get home when I lived in Florida if I would not have been able to fly into Hibbing, how my family or friends would have needed to drive to Duluth or Minneapolis to fetch me.  Or I would have had to rent a car.  Of course either of the previous options would have been doable, and I know that many people take this approach, but the thought of losing the option of flying into and out of Hibbing makes me sad. 

So, the question is what to do about it.  Complain to Delta?  Complain to the government?  Complain to the public at large?  Eh, I have mixed feelings about what that would achieve.  My answer?  Fly HIB.  Seriously, book tickets to fly out of/into Hibbing.  Increase demand.  Show that this could be a more profitable venture for the company.  That type of collective action stands a chance of making a difference. 

The question is--citizens and ex-pats of Hibbing, business persons and tourists with an interest in visiting—is air service to Hibbing important to you?  If so, show it by how you purchase airline tickets.  I know plenty of people who prefer to drive to Duluth or the Twin Cities to fly to other locations across the U.S., largely because the cost of the ticket itself is cheaper.  That’s fine, do what you want to do; however, realize if you are consistently choosing to fly via airports outside of the region, our HIB has less and less of a reason to exist. 

So, the question comes back to: what kind of community are we trying to create?  What services are important to that community?  Are we willing to do something about maintaining something like air service, or will we simply lament its passing? 

Personally, I’m up for doing something.  What about you?  

Best Laid Plans

As you've probably noticed there have not been any posts here for a couple of weeks.  Illness earlier this month followed by significant professional and personal commitments have knocked me off the blog wagon, but rest assured, I will be back by next Monday.

In the meantime, I want to say "thanks" to those of you who read and comment on this blog.  It's been a great experience for me, and I always love running into people who love Hibbing as much as I do, whether we meet on the street or the interwebs.

All right, little blog. . . what’s your story?

This past weekend I was fortunate to attend the MN Blogger Conference held at the Allina Commons in the Midtown Exchange Building in Minneapolis.  This was a significant event for me for a number of reasons: 

1. It gave me the opportunity to yet again showcase my complete and utter lack of directional skills when it comes to navigating the streets of the Twin Cities in a timely manner.  

2. It encouraged me to dip more than my pinky toe into the pool of information exchange that is Twitter.  

3. It was a great chance to learn from all kinds of people who have been doing this blogging thing a lot longer and better than moi.  

And so what did I learn (beyond the fact that I should probably invest in a GPS device)?  

Probably the biggest take away from this experience is the idea that one’s blog is an opportunity to stand for something.  Keynote speaker Lee Odden from TopRank Marketing pointed out that to dominate in the blogging world you need to stand out for something specific.  Now, not saying that I have delusions of world domination in this area, but it did give me something to chew on.  What exactly do I want “I [heart] Hibbing” to be?  What do I care about and how is that part of this blog?  And once I answer those questions, I am faced with another—how does this connect with all of you out there?  Are there people who care about the same things I do?  

I’m starting to answer those questions and will be sharing my progress with you all (and asking for your feedback) throughout this next week.  So stay tuned.  

Also, before I sign off, a special thanks to Aaron Brown  at MinnesotaBrown for alerting me to the existence of this conference and for graciously giving this little baby blog a plug on his website.  Welcome also to those MinnesotaBrown readers who have found their way here.  Although I anchor myself in Hibbing, there’s a lot of Range-wide love to go around.  My hope is that as I experiment with the structure and content of this blog a virtual space can be created for Rangers near and far to celebrate our roots and promote positive development for hometowns like Hibbing that many of us hold dear.  

Hibbing as a 1980's Rock Musical, Er, Perhaps Something More Updated

Confession: I like NPR (yeah, I’m one of those geeks), I love the music of the artist once again known as Prince, and as you already know I [heart] Hibbing.  So color me happy the other day when the planets aligned and gave me all three of my loves in one neat little package—the story “Minneapolis’ Staring Role in ‘Purple Rain’” featured on Weekend Edition Saturday.

It was part of an on-going NPR series examining movies that have a very definite sense of place.  For five minutes and 48 seconds, I listened to clips from one of my favorite 80’s movies and reflected on how Minneapolis did indeed play a major role in the film.  While various interviewees debated the extent of its overall impact, no one could deny that the choice of the artist’s hometown setting was significant for both the film and the city.  One person even mentioned another musician who stopped off in Minneapolis for a year of college, who was originally from—yup, here it comes—“northern Minnesota” (a.k.a. Hibbing): Bob Dylan.  Of course this aside was to demonstrate an artist that had to leave his hometown for New York City in order to achieve success, but I digress.

 The veiled Hibbing reference was what made me smile, and I’m not going to get into reflecting on Bob Dylan and his relationship with our shared hometown.  That’s another story for another time and people who are more equipped to tell it.  What I am interested in are movies like Purple Rain that can anchor and connect people to particular places and how these films affect native citizens, former residents, and people who have never set foot in the area.  Those movies you watch where you can say, I know that place.  I’m a part of it. 

I remember trying to explain my hometown on the Iron Range to friends in Tallahassee during my brief sojourn in Florida.  There was no single film that I could refer to that would do any justice in capturing it.
The two movies that most readily come to mind are Iron Will (1994) and North Country (2005), both filmed in the region.  I was a young teenager when Iron Will was in production.  I smile thinking about how my dad would frequently talk about trying out to be an extra in my grandfather’s raccoon coat. (Note: he never did actually try out, but the talk of it was memorable enough.) I also chuckle thinking of a young cousin of mine (must have been around 6 years old at the time) raised in the Twin Cities, who was obsessed with the movie and thus developed the impression that those of us who live “up north” must all have easy access to sled dogs.

The filming of North Country, based on the story of a ground-breaking class action suit regarding sexual harassment in an area mine, was a much different experience.  I was an adult and there really wasn’t much joking around.  Excitement at having film crews (and the money they brought with them) in the region was palpable.  Someone’s son was a body double for an actor during a hockey scene, so-and-so was working on the crew, and a friend of a friend was helping Hollywood actors master a Ranger accent. It was exciting.  Yet, this did not erase the accompanying tension.  How were these people, these outsiders, going to portray a very raw and shameful part of recent Iron Range history?  The story exposed an ugly reality and although I (and many locals I knew) did not wish to deny that reality, we were concerned that it would bleed into and all over the big picture of the Iron Range and its people.

At the end of the day, each of these movies can tell you something about the Iron Range and by extension Hibbing.  Iron Will, I believe, captures something of the spirit and optimistic determination of this region, while North Country highlights some of the harsh realities of life on the Range by showing both positive and negative aspects of the local culture.

Still, neither of these films is the story of Hibbing.  As far as I can tell there is no Purple Rain for my dear hometown.  Some might argue the equivalent would be a Dylan-penned piece.  They are probably right.

Yet, there are so many other stories to be told, and so many other storytellers who could tell it.  Hibbing is filled with dramatic tension.  Think of the striking backdrops of the Hull Rust Mahoning Mine  or the Hibbing High School auditorium.  Think of the intriguing mystery old foundations north of town invite.  Think of the secrets exchanged and uncovered out at Mesaba Co-op Park.  Consider the people.  Proud.  Stubborn.  Survivors.  People in love with big ideas.  People who are pushed away from and pulled back into a town by the realities of economic opportunity and family ties.

There was the musical Home Again, which I never saw, and Growing Pains, which I did as part of the Hibbing Centennial celebration in 1993.  There is also this valiant effort by students competing in National History Day.

Yet. . . still. . . in my opinion, Hibbing could use a Prince.  Any takers?

Note: A dramatic piece that comes close in my imagination is the musical Mesabi Red (1990) about the 1916 miner’s strike.  Although I have never seen the show (originally produced for the History Theater in St. Paul) listening to the song The Strike Is On always conjures images and feelings of home for me.  Something about it resonates with the pride and strength that I associate with the heritage of Hibbing.  Talented musician Charlie Maguire is one of the few people raised outside of the area that I would say deserve the title of honorary Iron Ranger.  Listen to a clip of the song here on his website.

Action Idea #1 Continued: Share the Good News

So I was analyzing my Blogger stats the other day (I’m kind of an info geek like that) and I noticed that the post which has received the most reads in this little baby blog is “Action Idea #1: Support Local Independent Business”.  I’m assuming this means one of three things:

 1) You all really love the idea of local independent business (yay!)

2) You’re a fan of action and love it when people “do something” or at least suggest doing something

 Or

 3) You’re a fan of Alex, my tech support hero of the evening who was tagged in the Facebook post (which makes sense, because he’s pretty fabulous).

Or perhaps it’s none of the above and that post just happened to go live at the exact right moment when you were all attentively reading your Facebook feeds.

Whatever the actual reason for reading the blog is, I’m going to assume for the moment that you all are at least somewhat interested in local independent business.  And thus, the idea for this blog post, which begins with a question: just how do we support local independent business?  

The short answer: shop there, or perhaps to put it more broadly, purchase their goods and services.

Now, perhaps you already do this.  Maybe you’re an avid supporter of The 3/50 Project  or you have a more personal approach to patronizing your favorite local businesses.  Excellent.  Now, how do we get more people to join you? Well, first things first, we get people to know that these places exist.  Now, how do we do that?  I’m going to suggest two approaches: one that comes pretty naturally and the other perhaps not as much.

1. Word of Mouth: When talking with friends or particularly people who are new to the area, resist the urge to lament about the current state of the local business community.  Focus on the positive. Make a point to share the good news when you find a great salon, bookstore, bed and breakfast, boutique, restaurant, gift shop and so on.

2. Online Reviews: Think about it, if you're unfamiliar with a town, where do you go to find out about local businesses and attractions?  Chances are the internet is at least a part of the equation, whether you access it on your phone or via a computer. Do you ever review local businesses on the internet?  If not, I encourage you to visit websites like Trip Advisor, Urban Spoon, or Yahoo/Google Reviews and CONTRIBUTE! Upload pictures and share your insights about your favorite Hibbing businesses.

Now what good is this going to do?  Well, the hope is actions like this will contribute to building a critical mass of people who actively choose to spend their time and money in Hibbing.  Businesses will flourish and contribute to the tax base of the community as well as other civic projects.  This sustained success will encourage other entrepreneurs to take a chance on Hibbing.  Empty store fronts will fill.  There will be a renewed sense of hope and community pride.

A little idealistic and naïve?  Perhaps.  It is an idea that I believe can work though, if enough of us contribute.  What do you think?

Hungry for Hibbing

Donuts.  Fresh, delicious, glazed donuts in the case at Sunrise Bakery in Park Addition.  Mmmmmm. . .throw in an English toffee cookie and a fried apple pie and I am in baked good heaven.  Anyone there with me?

I ask because the other night I was making my casual rounds for keeping up on Hibbing in the social media world and I came across a post in Hibbing Trivia and Lore by a Hibbing ex-pat talking about longing for Sunrise glazed donuts and other Hibbing food-delights.  Of course this post sparked a flurry of comments branching off to a popcorn wagon and the current state of the bakery business, but it also meant that food was never far from my mind when thinking about Hibbing this past week.

Think about it.  Whether you’re celebrating or commiserating, getting ready to leave or returning home, food seems to be a consistent and defining element of these experiences.  Recently when I was a resident of Florida, I remember planning my limited trips back home to Hibbing.  First priority were the people I was going to see, coming in a close second was where and what I would be eating—because, quite frankly, they don’t have Bimbo’s pizza in Tallahassee and don’t even get me started on pasties.

I was clearly not alone in this experience as I noticed friends and acquaintances with Iron Range roots post to their Facebook profiles about having a Sammy’s pizza, or Rudi’s sub, or pancakes at Sportsmen’s during a trip home.  Of course comments would follow from those of us still far from The Range, usually along the lines of “ugh, jealous” or “Yum! My favorite!” or the ever hopeful “bring me back some!”

Now I am not going to launch into an extended lament about how people “never bring you back some” because I know it’s geographically ridiculous and when Rangers go home they have no obligation to feed the rest of us starving ex-pats longing for a taste of home.  Although if you are a clever entrepreneur that wants to perfect the art of food shipping and start a large scale delivery business, I am not getting in your way.  


In the meantime, I’m cherishing the opportunities I have to return to Hibbing to see the people and places I love and eat some delicious food that I can’t get anywhere else.

What is your favorite Hibbing food or eatery?

Note: For the record, I have already planned my first trip back to the North Country since the great Iowa excursion.  It will include a stop at old favorite Zimmy’s, new-kid-in-town Old Mexico, and recent favorite Rhythm Deli whose paninis are fantabulous.

Action Idea #1: Support Local Independent Businesses

I don’t pretend to have a deep understanding of economics, other than mastering some basic fundamental concepts thanks to my high school teacher Mr. Kearney (any other Hibbing High School grads that forever associate the concept of diminishing marginal utility with peanut butter sandwiches, please raise your hands).  Honestly, I struggle as much as the next person when it comes to understanding the current global financial crisis on one hand and regional/local economic development initiatives on the other.  

Growing up on the Iron Range, my understanding of economic development was as follows:

Economic development means studies and plans, which come from consultants, who come from the Twin Cities, who usually spend a limited amount of time in the area, create elaborate analysis, which is disputed by the local powers that be, and eventually abandoned.  Of course a significant amount of money has usually been spent on this process with little to show for it.  Everyone loses and cynicism mounts.  And thus, in my experience, the term “outside consultant” is sure to elicit icy glares at a minimum in my dear hometown.  

That said, I must say I was quite impressed when I learned of a project developed by Twin Cities retail consultant Cinda Baxter—The 3/50 Project.  There’s really a lot to like about this idea, which started with a blog post in March 2009.  Here’s the scoop:  “Think of three businesses you'd hate to see disappear, then pop in and say hello.... Pick 3. Spend 50. Save your local economy.”  You can find the details at the project’s website www.the350project.net.  Fifty bucks a month, split between 3 locally owned independent Hibbing businesses.  

What do you think Hibbing?  Are we up for this?  We often complain about businesses that close, those that never begin, and the empty buildings we are left with as painful reminders.  Is this something we can do to reverse the trend?  

I don’t know about you, but independent local businesses played a big part of my childhood in Hibbing.  I remember going school shopping and turning in S&H stamps at Feldman’s department store on Howard Street.  I also remember waiting in the car when my mother stopped at Geary’s (or was it Gary’s?) Grocery on the way home from figure skating practice. Picking up day old bread—and glazed donuts or apple pies if we were with my dad—was a standard Saturday routine at Sunrise Bakery.  I’d like to think that those kind of options will be around for the next generation of Hibbingites.  

As stated at the beginning of this post, I’m far from an economic expert, but I have to believe that coming together on something like this can have an impact on our local business community.  You know, collective action?  Something tells me that historically, Hibbing is kinda into that stuff.  

What do you think?  Are you on board with The 3/50 Project?  

Note: Special thanks to Alex, fellow HHS class of 1999'er who swooped in with the assist on this one.  Without his tech troubleshooting, half of this post would be illegible.  :)

Sometimes We Forget

I was in a bookstore in Rochester, MN the other day, trying to decide between buying either an issue of The Atlantic (advertised as “the idea issue”) or Minnesota Monthly (that caught my attention with a cover headline of “10 small town weekend trips”). Both options seemed equally intriguing. 

I opened up Minnesota Monthly to see what “small towns” they were talking about, saw this, and the debate was over.  

Go Hibbing!

If you’ve lived in town for years these are these are the type of places that you can forget, or perhaps I should say “take for granted.”  They are institutions that are so central to the idea of who we are as community sometimes they fade into the background.  The Hull Rust Mahoning Mine becomes that pit north of town, or HibTac: where “so and so” works, or just “the mine.”  The High School is just where you (or your parents or your kids) went to school, and the planetarium is an elementary school field trip. 

However, there is a lot to discover and love about our town if for a day or two we shake off the ordinary and look at Hibbing with the eyes of a tourist. 

For example, did you know that The Mitchell-Tappan House was the first house moved to South Hibbing in 1918 (in addition to serving AMAZING breakfasts in 2011)?  And when was the last time you were at the planetarium?  A field trip in elementary school?  I’m happy I can say I did have the experience of going to a laser light show there one January a couple of years ago.  Quite different from my field trip experience as a kid, this was a pretty funky light display set to the music of U2.  Popcorn and the show were under $5.  It was a great evening. 

The only downside was that my sister and I were the only ones there (which I think has at least a little to do with the fact the planetarium is now only open by reservation). 

See.  We forget.  We get into our day-to-day routines.  We stop paying attention and at that point it can become easy to believe the myth that there is “nothing to do here.” And once we believe that, it becomes routine for us to leave town looking for “things to do”.  Hibbingites regularly travel to Virginia, Grand Rapids, Duluth, the Twin Cities and miss what is right in their own backyard. 

Now, I’m not saying don’t leave the city limits or that traveling to the aforementioned places isn’t fun or sometimes necessary, but I am saying “give Hibbing a chance.”  You might be surprised. Seriously, I challenge you.  Whether you’re a current Hibbing resident or an ex-pat who will be home visiting family, spend a day (or two) looking at Hibbing with new eyes. 

If you take the challenge, I would love to hear about your experience (please comment below). I will share my own after my next visit to Hib-town, which is scheduled for sometime this fall.

Here’s the list from the MM article:

Hull Rust Mahoning Mine

Greyhound Bus Museum

Hibbing High School

Mitchell-Tappan House

Paulucci Space Theater

Hibbing Public Library

Sunrise Bakery at The Lybba

Bob Dylan’s Childhood Home

Any favorites?  Anything you think they missed?  Share! Also, if you’re looking for special programs and events in Hibbing, I recommend checking out the community calendar at http://oreandmore.blogspot.com/.  

I Remember When . . .

t’s been my experience that Hibbingites love history and have long memories.  People and places in this town are not merely what they are, but simultaneously what they used to be. 

A woman is not Jane Insert Married Name Here, but that plus the equally important used to be one of the Insert Maiden Name Here girls.  A house goes beyond matters of architectural style, current occupants, and street numbers; encompassing the wide range of everyone who has ever lived there and everything it has ever represented to generations of community members.  I remember driving through town with my dad as a kid (and as an adult for that matter) and listening to him point out and talk about various properties that used be grocery stores, or churches, or hangouts of different kinds.  We were looking at the same thing, but what we saw was completely different.  Somehow his long-gone version always seems more glamorous. 

Nostalgia.  Memories.  Back When I Was Your Age stories.  In many ways there is nothing particularly special about this.  The same could be said of many small towns where roots run deep.  But there is something about Hibbing that hangs on to the past with a stubborn tenacity I have not yet seen elsewhere.  Perhaps it has something to do with the fact the entire town was moved south to make way for an ever-expanding mine. 

So many places that hold precious memories for people have literally been obliterated.  Places where houses stood and hopscotch was played are now replaced with a gaping hole in the ground, traversed by giant dump trucks and other equipment.  The physical evidence is gone, so we must keep these memories alive through storytelling.  I love these stories whether they are tales from my father or an old family friend, or something a bit more formal like the Hibbing Trivia and Lore facebook group or the efforts of the Hibbing Historical Society. 

These stories anchor us and provide a sense of context and belonging to the bigger picture of Hibbing, but when do they become a force that limits our vision instead of expanding it?  By focusing so much on what is gone; do we lose sight of what is still here or what could be here?  Sometimes I think we do. 

What do you think? 

Stay tuned next week for further thoughts and discussion on “what is still or could be in” Hibbing. 

Here Goes Nothing. . .

Hibbing, MN, perhaps you've heard of it?  Richest Little Village in the World?  The Town That Moved? Hometown of Bob Dylan, Kevin McHale, Roger Maris, Jeno Paulucci and well. . . me.

I suppose that last little part isn't too impressive.  I am not the voice of a generation, a famous sports figure, or the founder of a multi-million dollar food empire.

Yet, I am a Hibbing girl--born and raised on Minnesota's Iron Range.  I've been fortunate to live here at several junctures in my adult life, but now as fate would have it I am leaving once again.

I am not alone in this experience.  Many children of Hibbing (and the Iron Range in general) find themselves living around the world pursuing education, work, and other things.  Iron Range roots run deep though.  Never before have I encountered a group of people so passionate and drawn to their hometowns as Iron Range Expatriates (of course I've never really looked for a similar group, but that's not the point.).

So, what is the point?  Well, the fact of the matter is I love my hometown.  I am fascinated by its past and committed to support its plucky future.  Like many small towns in this day and age, it has its struggles, but it also has hope in a number of people, ideas, and institutions.

I want to be part of that hope.  But what's a girl to do living 300+ miles away?

That's this blog poeple, and that's the power of the internet.

Stay tuned.