Four homes were burglarized in Eden Prairie in late August.

EP police reported the following:

Between 12:59 and 6:45 a.m. Aug. 24 someone removed a window in a kitchen of a residence on the 18000 block of Winnfield Road and stole a laptop. The residents were home at the time of the burglary but discovered that the window was open and the laptop stolen the next morning.

Are you interested in reading the public notices published in the September 2, 2010 print edition of the Eden Prairie News newspaper? The page or pages on which those notices were printed are attached to this item, in the form of .pdf’s that can be opened with Adobe Acrobat.

By True Grimes

Eighth-graders will usually have at least one adult in their family. Maybe even two.

But when an adult outside of their family takes the time to be a mentor to them, that is pretty powerful stuff, says Central Middle School counselor Stephanie Bender.

That’s why the “Hope for Tomorrow” mentor program is in need of Eden Prairie women to step up as mentors at the middle school at 8025 School Road.

The following obituaries are from the Sept. 2, 2010 print edition of the Eden Prairie News newspaper:

This year, Eden Prairie plans to replace canned vegetables with fresh vegetables. The bakery will be trans-fat free.

By Karla Wennerstrom

It’s two weeks before the start of school, and the Eden Prairie School District kitchens are steaming, stirring, whipping and chopping hubs of activity.

In one kitchen, Production Manager Don Colbrun is working on spaghetti sauce, which will be frozen and ready for the school year to begin on Tuesday, Sept. 7. Spaghetti sauce is one of a variety of soups and sauces the district makes from scratch.

An Irene Lev Memorial fly-in/drive-in pancake breakfast and silent auction is set for 8 a.m. to noon Sunday, Sept. 12, at Flying Cloud Airport Modern Avionics Hangar.

Proceeds from breakfast and raffle will go into a scholarship for her son and for other future aviators, according to a news release. For information, contact Jessica Miller at 320-296-5200.
Cost is $8 for adults, $5 for children under 12.

A new season for the St. Andrew Cancer and Extended Illness Support Group begins from 6:30-8 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 7, at St. Andrew Lutheran Church in Eden Prairie.

Kick-off speaker for this monthly group is Ruth Bachman, a St. Andrew member and member of the Eden Prairie community.

Proposed boundary maps for the 2011-2012 school year may not be available to the public until October, according to an update the Eden Prairie School Board received Tuesday.

According to a district communication plan, feedback will be accepted in a variety of ways through October, with a final decision in early November.

The Boundary Committee again asked the School Board its opinion on non-contiguous boundaries.

Wes Dunsmore has probably earned a break. Dunsmore, Eden Prairie’s retiring park operations supervisor, has been working in parks since he was 16, and, following a stint in the Marines, he’s been working in the Eden Prairie parks since 1972. That’s 37 years and eight months on the job in Eden Prairie.

And he’s never taken a sick day.

You do what you’ve always done and “time takes care of itself,” said Dunsmore, 60, who had his last day of work in Eden Prairie Tuesday.

In 1981 Tracy Luke was finishing up her officer training program at Normandale Community College and needed to find an internship. The head of her program recommended Eden Prairie. It turned out to be some life-changing advice.

“They expected a lot more from an officer here, and I wanted that. I wanted to be at some place that had really high expectations of all its workers,” said Luke.

Luke, now Lt. Luke, was hired full-time in Eden Prairie 1985, and hasn’t looked back. She’s retired this month after 25 years of work in Eden Prairie.

By John Molene

With a pickle-on-a-stick in one hand, and a Pronto Pup in the other, Joel Fuller of Eden Prairie was well on his way toward achieving his state fair dreams.

“My goal is to eat at least one of everything that’s on a stick,” said Fuller, 17.

A noble goal, and Fuller wasn’t alone. Each year thousands of Minnesotans head for the annual food-on-a-stick festival, also known as the Minnesota State Fair.

The corner service station at Singletree Lane and Flying Cloud Drive is in the midst of a massive makeover. By the start of next year, Bobby and Steve’s Autoworld will have expanded to a two-story, 22,400-square-foot service station. Owner Randy Neis said it’s all based on a vision he had for the location when he purchased it four years ago.

Architect Brian Cluts, who also designed Windsor Plaza, said the idea is for the new service station to be a landmark.

“That’s the No. 1 reason why I bought that location,” said Neis.

The job offer is in place — the next question is if Eden Prairie will soon have to begin its own search for a new city manager. Tuesday, the Edina City Council unanimously picked Eden Prairie City Manager Scott Neal to be hired as Edina’s new city manager.
The next step, as Edina City Council member Scot Housh remarked, will be to “close the deal.”

A negotiating team that includes Mayor Jim Hovland and Council member Ann Swenson will be contacting Neal to negotiate the terms of his contract.

CHASKA — A Chaska man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for violating his probation and failing to register as a predatory offender.

The Eagle Band will hold a preview night at 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 2. The event is open to the public and will be held at Aerie Stadium. The event is sponsored by the Band Parent Organization (BPO).

Marilyn Dutcher, 77, of Eden Prairie, died Monday, Aug. 30, 2010.

Services are Wednesday, Sept. 8, at noon at Oak Grove Presbyterian Church, Penn Ave. S. and Old Shakopee Rd. Visitation is one hour before service at the church on Wednesday, and 4-7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 7, at Washburn-McReavy Werness Brothers Chapel, 2300 W. Old Shakopee Rd., 952-884-8145.

Dona laPlante Rowland, Eden Prairie, died Saturday, Aug. 14, 2010.

A memorial service is planned for Dona on her 51st birthday, Sept. 4, in her hometown of Grafton, ND at 2 p.m. at Leistikow Park. A reception follows at Shananigans Restaurant from 4-8 p.m. All are welcome. For more information call Louise laPlante at 505-617-1669.

Wildfire (3020 Eden Prairie Center, Eden Prairie) will feature Summit Brewing Co. and its founder Mark O. Stutrud at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 17. The beer dinner will include four courses of food and craft beer by Summit.

The Eden Prairie Chamber of Commerce Gala, “Bahama Breezes,” is set for Saturday, Nov. 13, in the new clubhouse at Hazeltine National Golf Club. A VIP sponsor reception is set for 5:30 p.m. with a live steel drum performance. General admission and silent auction start at 6 p.m. Dinner and a brief live auction is at 7:30 p.m. The Funkeys dueling pianos, sing-along and comedy show follows dinner.

By Forrest Adams

The storyline for All Shook Up is simple enough, but the bottom line is one that would make the “King of Rock and Roll” proud.

A sideburns-sporting hunk in blue suede shoes rolls into a small Midwestern town vowing to help the people live a little and love a lot. He’s opposed by a prudish, overbearing mayor.

Sounds similar to the storyline of the most recent Main Stage hit, Footloose, right?

By Lauren Carlson-Vohs

Watershed officials on ‘high alert’

By Forrest Adams

Last summer zebra mussels were discovered in Prior Lake and this summer in Lake Minnetonka, sandwiching the communities of Chanhassen, Eden Prairie, Victoria, Chaska and Shakopee.

Could the non-native aquatic species be coming soon to a lake near you? The answer depends a lot on how much vigilance is practiced by boaters and anglers who transport boats, bait and water between lakes and other bodies of water.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty today announced the appointment of Dave Beal and Corey R. Elmer, and the reappointment of Jennifer DeJournett, Keith Dixon, Ph.D., Robert H. Gotwalt, Jr., Pamela M. Harris, Kate Kelly, Cal Larson, David Metzen, Ed.D., Sakawdin Mohamed, Kera Peterson, Nathan Prouty, Robert Rumpza, Judie Russell and Christine Wiegert to the Minnesota Commission on National and Community Service, also known as the ServeMinnesota Commission. Their three-year terms expire in 2013, according to a news release.

One recent article caught our attention and has led to a 1000-word response from SouthWest Transit CEO Len Simich. The Star Tribune

recently looked at the issue of the differences of both subsidies and perception of quality between suburban bus services (specifically EP-based SouthWest Transit) and Metro Transit, which serves more city-dwellers.

Eden Prairie News spoke with Jill Rasmussen and Mary Morgan, two stay-at-home moms from Eden Prairie who will be among more than 100 women age 50 and older taking the “Martini Jump” Saturday. The event, a record-breaking sky dive in Wisconsin, will raise funds for Cornerstone, a local organization that works to prevent domestic abuse. The event is being organized by a company called “Aging but Dangerous,” and will include a party on the ground where the parachutes land. The public is invited to attend the event, scheduled to run all day Aug. 28 in Baldwin, Wisc.

Peter Henningsen, 83, of Eden Prairie, died Friday, Aug. 20, 2010.

Visitation is Thursday, Sept. 2, from 4-7 p.m. at Washburn-McReavy Eden Prairie Chapel, 7625 Mitchell Rd. Service is Friday Sept 3, at 11 a.m. with visitation one hour prior at Eden Prairie United Methodist Church, 15050 Scenic Heights Rd.

Washburn-McReavy Eden Prairie Chapel, 952-975-0400.

By Karla Wennerstrom

When Nicole Foyt attended scholarship night at Eden Prairie High School, she had no idea that she was the winner of the biggest scholarship that would be awarded, the Holasek-Griffiths Scholarship.

“It was a huge surprise,” she said. “I was shaking in my chair. … So many emotions were going through my mind. That is one of the highlights of my four years of high school.”

Sam and Charlie Bradley of Eden Prairie held their eighth annual Bradley Backyard Carnival last week to raise money for The Foundation for Retinal Research (www.TFRR.org) in honor of their friend Mary Rose Bushland, according to a news release. The carnival raised $1,020, which “will be used to help researchers find a cure for those afflicted with retinal type blindness.”