LOCAL BRIEFS

CROSSLAKE - "Building Tomorrow's House Today" is the topic of a Crosslake Chautauqua planned 1:30-3:30 p.m. Oct. 8 at the Crosslake Community Center.

Steve Northway, chief executive officer of Northway Construction and past CEO of Building Knowledge Inc., is a recognized expert on energy-efficient housing and on green construction. He will share his knowledge of how to build high performance houses that are long lasting and environmentally friendly.

Admission is free.

Family forest certification class to be offered in Brainerd

A class on family forest certification will be offered in Brainerd from 8:30 a.m. to noon Oct. 18 at the Brainerd Pubic Library, 416 S. Fifth St., Brainerd.

Minnesota has more certified forestland than any other state in the nation. Forest certification is a way to sustainably manage a forest, using a system of practices, that is independently verified by a credible third-party organization.

This class offers continuing education credits for Woodland Advisors. The cost of attending this class is $20.

Woodland Advisor is a program of the Minnesota Forestry Association, the University of Minnesota Extension and the Minnesota DNR Division of Forestry. Partial funding support is provided by the Forest Stewardship Program.

For more information on this workshop, contact Diomy Zamora at 828-2332 or zamor015@umn.edu or visit http://cfc.cfans.umn.edu/wa/.

To register for the class, contact Sue Crotty at (888) 241-0720 or crott012@umn.edu. Pre-registration is required.

Legislative candidate debates set for Monday and Tuesday at BHS

Candidates for Minnesota House Districts 12A and 12B will conduct debates on Monday and Tuesday at Brainerd High School's Little Theatre.

In addition, a separate candidate forum is set for Oct. 21 at the Little Theatre. The Oct. 21 forum will include candidates for the Crow Wing County Board, Baxter City Council and Brainerd City Council. The time for that forum has not yet been determined.

The 12B candidates, Rep. Al Doty, and Republican Mike LeMieur of Little Falls, will debate Monday. The 12A candidates, Rep. John Ward, DFL-Brainerd, and Republican David Allan Pundt of Baxter, will debate Tuesday.

Next week's debates, which start at 7 p.m., are co-sponsored by the League of Minnesota Voters of the Brainerd Lakes Area and the Brainerd High School debate team.

Meet the Candidates session set for Crow Wing candidates

The Brainerd/Baxter Business Council of the Brainerd Lakes Chamber will sponsor a Meet the Candidate session from 7:45 to 9:15 a.m. Oct. 22 in the lower level of the Northland Arboretum building.

Crow Wing County Board candidates Frank Ball and Philip "P.J. Trusty (District 1) and Daniel Lewis Hamm and Doug Houge (District 5) will offer comments and discuss why they are the best individuals for the jobs. Round-table discussions will follow and those attending will have an opportunity to visit individually or in small groups with the candidates.

The event is free of charge and for chamber members only. Coffee, water and pastries will be provided. Pre-registration with the chamber is requested.

Wallin proclaims Scouting for Food Week

Brainerd Mayor James Wallin proclaimed this week as Scouting for Food Week in Brainerd and urged Brainerd residents to participate in the Scouts of Central Minnesota's drive to collect food donations. Scouts have already placed plastic collection bags on many area residents' doors and the food will be collected Saturday.

Wild and Free fundraising breakfast

Wild and Free is hosting a fundraising breakfast from 8-10 a.m. Saturday at Applebee's Bar and Grill, 15240 Dellwood Drive in Baxter.

Tickets are $5. Tickets may be purchased in advance by contacting Becky Miller at (218) 764-2627 or at the door on Saturday.

Wild and Free is a wildlife rehabilitation center located in Garrison. Its goal is to rehabilitate injured or orphaned wild animals and release them back into the wild.

Brainerd School District early release days announced

The Brainerd School District will have five student early release days this school year. This means students will be released from class earlier than a typical class day so teachers can attend training.

The first early out day will be Wednesday. Additional days scheduled this year include Nov. 6, Feb. 4, March 3 and April 2.

Teacher training sessions will run from 1:30-3:30 p.m. on these days. Specific student dismissal times will vary by building and will be determined by each building's principal. Buses will run approximately two hours early.

Middle school athletics will be canceled on these days. Activities through the district's Youth Connection program will be offered. For more information on available activities, call the Youth Connection office at 454-6950.

Chamber's Lakes Vybe to host Peanuts and Politics on Oct. 15

The Lakes Vybe, formerly known as the Lakes Area Young Professionals, will host Peanuts and Politics with Minnesota State House Candidates from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 16 at Forestview Middle School in Baxter.

Candidates include Rep. John Ward, DFL-Brainerd, Republican David Allan Pundt, Rep. Al Doty, DFL-Royalton, Republican Mike LeMieur, Rep. Larry Howes, R-Walker, and Democrat Meg Bye. Each candidate will give a five-minute speech on why they are running and what issues matter most in this election. Following the speeches, each candidate will be available for individual questions. A boxed lunch and peanuts will be provided.

This event is open to all members of the chamber. Cost to attend is $10 per person.

Lakes Vybe is a networking group for individuals age 21 to 40.

Long Range Planning Committee to meet Oct. 22

The Brainerd School Board Long Range Planning Committee will meet at 11:30 a.m. Oct. 22 in the board room at Washington Educational Services Building, 804 Oak St., Brainerd.

Agenda includes a review of the long range plan, identification of previous board focus areas, revision/addition of focus areas for 2008-09 and the direction of goal area task force teams.