Ralph Lentz of Lake City died on October 1, 2017. Many memorials in his name have been provided to the Sustainable Agriculture & Forestry Scholarship Endowment Fund because he represented the essence of sustainable thinking. He was an Agricultural Teacher at the Lake CIty High School were he was an advisor to the Future Farmers of America, and he owned a farm outside town where he practiced what he taught.

Here is what donors had to say:

In memory of Ralph Lentz, the passionate grass farmer who was a pioneer in the industry in Minnesota. He led the way in studying, demonstrating, and implementing rotational grazing management in a sustainable agricultural system.  

                                                                   —Ralph’s Buddies

In memory of Ralph Lentz: who gave us the wisdom

to sustain the future of our environments

and our agriculture.  

                                                          —Deirdre Flesche & Dag Knudsen

In memory of Ralph Lentz who taught sustainable farming techniques to students in the USA and overseas.  

                                                               —Bruce and Kathleen Ause

Donors have offered

the following honors and memorials and comments as reasons for their donations:

My donation is in Honor of my Husband Lawrence Svien.

—Patty Svien

My donation is in honor of my father Ray Parrott.

—Bob Parrott

My donations are in honor of Dag & Deirdre.

—Cheryl Hubbard Brown

My donations are in memory of Dr. Bernhard & Kathleen Flesche “because of their lifelong commitment to caring for their community,”

—Deirdre Flesche, Lake City, MN

“In memory of Tine Thevenin who was a passionate defender of the natural environment.” —Donation from the Tine Thevenin Memorial Fund and Dag Knudsen

In memory of my father, Lester L. Martin.

—Carolyn J. Bizien

In memory of Dorothy Rohner (1936–2015)

—Ralph and Filomena Kaehler

Our donation is in memory of Roy & Ruth Geppert because of their hard work as farmers who made it possible for me to obtain two college degrees in forest management and forest tree physiology/plant ecology.

—Rollie and Susan Geppert

“My donation is because I am passionate about agriculture.”

—VF

Our donation is in memory of Paul Gruchow because of his graceful and knowing writing about both the richness and the realities of the prairie,”

—S & DH

My donations are in memory of Jack & Rosanna Goihl because of my parents and hard-working farmers of Lake City, MN”

—Elisabeth Goihl, St. Paul, MN

“My donation is in memory of

Dr. David Sontag ”

—Deirdre Flesche, Lake City, MN

In Memory of George O’Brien

—James A. O’Brien

“In honor of Dorothy’s 100th Birthday—with thanks for showing the rest of us how to lead a long and memorable life”

—Deirdre Flesche, Lake City, MN

Donations have been provided

In Memory of

Kathryn “Katie” Schmidt

of Lake City, MN

(1926—2019)

You enriched our lives!

—Constance Anderson

—Deirdre Flesche

—Dag Knudsen

—and several others

In memory of

Stephen Baard Flesche (1941–2014)

Kirsten & Hamilton Kurtz

In Honor of:

        Allison Harvey

Your Honorees and Memorials here:

When you make a doantion in memory or honor of someone, feel free to give us some background and a photo so we can honor that person.

Dick Broeker (1942–2004) formerly of St. Paul and Lake City, MN working as an aid to Mayor George Latimer, helped launch the City of St. Paul’s District Energy system that heats and cools most of downtown, was a co-founder of Taste of Minnesota, helped the city get the World Trade Center (now Wells Fargo Plaza), helped save historic buildings in Lowertown and start the Farmers' Market, and led the effort to redevelop the St. Paul riverfront.

Broeker later became president of the St. Paul Riverfront Corporation, helping to restore the city’s ties to the river. Patrick Seeb, president of the St. Paul Riverfront Corporation, said Broeker was the impetus of the corporation.

“He was a genius and had incredible energy and incredible ideas,” Seeb said. “The stuff we are doing today traces back to the principles and core values that he led with.”

More recently, Broeker had been director of Southeast Minnesota’s Experiment in Rural Cooperation, one of five University of Minnesota regional partnerships.

Dag & Deirdre:

My donation is in Memory of Dick Broeker:

What a wonderful thing you’ve created.

Thanks for letting me know—I know Dick

would be right there with  you on this

     —Mary Broeker

Dean Harrington (1950—2019) Dean was an avid reader of philosophy, fiction, poetry, and economics, and he engaged in many pursuits to improve communities and enhance environmental sustainability. Dean sang and played songs on his guitar that he wrote for his grandchildren. He was on many organizations’ boards over the years, such as Land Stewardship Project, Jon Hassler Theater, Rural America Writers’ Center, Experiment in Rural Cooperation (University of Minnesota), Plainview Area History Center, Plainview School Board, and Plainview Area Development Corporation. Before beginning his banking career, Dean worked on a dairy farm and maintained a professional and warm appreciation for agriculture throughout his banking career.

Donations in honor of Dean and his legacy comes from Larry Gates, Jeff Gorfine, Roger Steinberg, and others.

Text and photo from Post Bulletin