Dylan Town: Minnesota Brown Talks About Life on the Iron Range and Its History, Past & Present (Part 1)

Mahoning-Hull-Rust Open Pit Mine--Hibbing, MN

When Bob Dylan’s "Murder Most Foul" was released a few weeks ago a friend shared with me how John F. Kennedy made three visits to this part of the world, creating quite a sensation each time. Two, in 1959 and 1960, were related to his running for the presidency. The third was in September of 1963, just weeks before his fatal visit to Dallas.

As I wrote about the visits I read the speech that JFK delivered in Hibbing. It intrigued me, but also raised some questions. In looking for answers I naturally turned to Aaron Brown, a columnist for the Hibbing Daily Tribune and creator of the popular blog Minnesota Brown.

Just as many families have their genealogist who collects the family lore, so also many of our communities have local historians who research and share their region’s histories. Tony Dierckens (Zenith City Press) exemplifies this description for the City of Duluth. For the Iron Range we turn to Minnesota Brown, whose research has resulted in the book Overburden: Modern Life on the Iron Range.

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EN: The Mahoning-Hull-Rust mine forced the city to move. How many homes were transported to new foundations 2 miles away? When did that happen and are those vacated lots still visible?

Moving houses to expand the mine. (MN Historical Society photo)

Aaron Brown: The move of Hibbing was more complex and drawn out than most contemporary histories take time to explain. Indeed, the Oliver Mining Company made a deal with the Village of Hibbing to move the town so that it could access the rich vein of iron ore under the townsite. The exact terms of the deal were unclear, even to townsfolk at the time. It was broadly understood that the Oliver Mining Company would build a new high school and village hall, that it would pay for the infrastructure, and that it would build downtown commercial buildings for existing businesses using low interest loans.

The Oliver, as it was called, would buy North Hibbing lots at market value, allowing people to move the structure if they wanted. However, when major businesses and property owners began to move, the value of the real estate in North Hibbing plummeted. That meant that anyone who waited to sell was given a pittance for their land. This led to a protracted lawsuit that the village would ultimately win, but that arguably cost Victor Power the 1922 race for Village President, a humbling fall from grace for the man who orchestrated the town's rise to prominence.

North Hibbing consisted of three 40-acre “additions.” The northernmost was the original townsite. Histories often refer to this as the “North Forty,” and it was subject to the most legal and political controversy. That’s also where the ore was located beneath a very dense, valuable commercial district. The North 40 was cleared first, very dramatically. Iconic buildings like the Power Theatre, Itasca Mercantile, and village hall, were razed while a steady stream of houses and stores puttered by on wheels. They were headed to a brand new townsite next to an annexed village called Alice. The new downtown was cut into undeveloped land to the northeast of Alice. All new, a city raised from the mud. For longtime residents of Hibbing, the sight was equal parts exhilarating and disconcerting.

Colonial Hotel being moved to a new resting place.

I don’t know exactly how many structures were moved. Hundreds. The entire North 40 was cleared quickly, but the other two additions of North Hibbing moved more slowly. Pillsbury (the middle section) and Southern addition moved bit by bit for decades. The last buildings weren’t moved or razed until the 1950s.

If you go to North Hibbing now you can still see the street layout from Southern Addition. Washington Street, Lincoln Street, Garfield and McKinley. You can see the foundation of the Lincoln High School and the old Carnegie Library. People camp there in the summer. But the heart of the old townsite has been atomized. Not only are the buildings and streets gone, but the very earth beneath them.

EN: The iron range is no longer just a blue collar culture here. What is the biggest industry on the Range? What are the signs that this is an uneasy synthesis of cultures?

AB: Mining remains a very large part of the Iron Range economy. It’s still the biggest industry in terms of GDP, but its employment numbers have dropped over the past four decades because of industry consolidation and automation. The Iron Range’s largest industry in terms of employment is health care. For instance, in Hibbing the largest employer is the hospital. Hibbing Taconite is #2. This is broadly true across the region. And more workers fall into the category of service workers than either health care or mining, but this is dispersed across many different kinds of generally low wage work and hard to classify.

Churches were moved, too. (MN Historical Society) More than 200
structures were moved from 1919 to 1921.

Because mining is a dominant force in the culture of the Iron Range it has retained political and social power despite losing economic power. Mining companies and workers alike want consistency. They want to keep mining uninterrupted for any reason, for as long as possible. When this is happening, everybody involved is making good money and living their best lives. Anything that disrupts that goal — markets, regulations, technology — is perceived as a threat not just to mining but to the whole region’s culture.

Now, the actual population could use some new industries, new people, new tech and ideas. But making that happen isn’t a priority for those committed to a mining-first culture. In fact, talk of bringing in people who either don’t care about mining or who might actually oppose it is broadly discouraged. People of that description generally find that there is a limit to how far they can go in local politics or cultural assimilation.

One specific example is the challenge in recruiting and keeping doctors and specialists. As I said, health care is the biggest industry and pays a lot of bills around here. But highly educated doctors tend to have highly educated spouses who want to do something meaningful with their lives. They struggle to find work outside of mining or health care, and are often stymied when they try new things. Similar for a lot of college educated professionals. If you like fishing, hunting and four-wheelers, you’re set. But if that doesn't interest you it’s tough sledding. There is a culture of support for educated professionals, but it operates more as an underground network than as an elite society. And for many that's just not appealing long term.

Economically, new entrepreneurs — no matter their politics — often feel it’s not worth trying to navigate a parochial network of local politicians and feckless bureaucrats that isn’t curious about anything other than mining. Especially when their high skilled human resources will have to come from someplace else, and might not be welcome if they do.

EN: With increased automation, it’s become apparent many of the jobs will never return. What are the mineworkers doing who no longer have work?

Mining was once far more labor intensive. (MN Historical Society photo)

AB: Well, this is a little more complex than the question implies. Automation and job losses have been happening slowly over many years. Layoffs can happen, but so does attrition. Many of the workers first affected by automation have long since died of old age. But going back to the localized depression of the 1980s, you saw a lot of miners leave the area, while others retrained for new work. In 2001 when LTV closed many were retrained in health care or other industry. But a lot of them found their way back into the industry when older baby boomers began to retire. And highly skilled people are also finding their way into the industry. If you can understand the computer code that is used to load trains or operate automated machinery you can be a miner as long as you like. But that’s a small subset of the bigger mining workforce.

It’s attrition mostly.

EN: This didn’t really happen overnight. Were there promises made – by mining companies or politicians or union leaders – that were never kept?

AB: This is a tough question to answer. There is a long and winding promise that began a century ago and still persists. That promise is that if you put your head down and stick with the company (and, to a somewhat lesser extent, the union) you will always have work in the mines. This is an impossible promise to keep, but it has endured because demand has persisted. When the steel industry convinced Minnesota to underwrite the development of taconite in the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s they bought another half century of the same promise. But you can't look at this from afar and say that it’s headed in a good direction for the long-term health of the region. A ton of ore can be mined with less and less labor each year.

More recent developments strongly suggest that the strength of unions in local politics was more a marriage of economic necessity than a “workers of the world unite” situation. It’s always been about keeping the trains rolling south while the checks wheel through everyone’s bank accounts.

TO BE CONTINUED
Tomorrow: Questions about CPUSA, Hubert Humphrey and Mining Today

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Related Links
Overburden: Modern Life on the Iron Range
Minnesota Brown
JFK's Speech to the Northland Shows What Hibbing Was Like During Dylan's Youth 
Pussyfoot Johnson Arrives to Clean Up Hibbing
Zenith City Press

JFK's Speech to the Northland Shows What Hibbing Was Like During Dylan's Youth

A couple weeks ago when Bob Dylan unexpectedly released his Murder Most Foul, I shared here some anecdotal information about John F. Kennedy's three visits to the Northland.

The aim of this recap of the Kennedy visit is to present a glimpse of the economic and political landscape of the Northland that young Bobby Zimmerman left behind when he left home to create the persona we know as Bob Dylan.

Shaking hands and warming hearts, JFK on the campaign trail in Hibbing.

The campaigning Kennedy opened his speech with these remarks, which show how staunchly devoted Hibbing and the Iron Range had been to the Democratic Party:  "I must say I would not have missed coming to the strongest Democratic area that I have seen in this campaign." [Applause] I used to think they were pretty good in South Boston, but we are going to send them out here for indoctrination." [Applause]

After the intro Mr. Kennedy demonstrates his awareness that the boom times that have been lifting the rest of the country in the 1950s during the Eisenhower-Nixon years had not helped the Iron Range all that much. Here in the Northland, during Dylan's youth, the Iron Range had struggled through three recessions in eight short years.

From here the presidential hopeful praised the enthusiasm of his hearers, then he gets right into the meat of his message.

Once the largest open pit mine in the world.

Here in 1960, after the recession of 1958, the steel strike of 1959, we see steel mills of the United States working 50 per cent of capacity. Steel is the basis of the industrial power. How can the United States meet its commitments around the world and to our own people if we use our capacity 50 per cent? And it isn't just the steel mills; it is the men. 100,000 steel workers are out of work in the steel mills, with others working part time, and you feel it back here where it all begins. This is the iron range and the iron range is the power of the United States.

Young Bobby Zimmerman saw what was happening. He was aware of the Hollis Browns who lived on the outside of town. That's the kind of thing that was going down, hence his identification with Woody Guthrie and the folk music folk with their calls for justice, voices raised for the downtrodden.

Kennedy's speech continued down this track with an interesting stat from the Gallup organization.

Our hope for winning the support of people around the world does not rest in great propaganda programs, however important they may be; does not rest in the great aid programs, however desirable they may be. It rests upon the power of the United States. The people of the world can make a judgment as to which way history is moving. A Gallup Poll taken in February among ten countries scattered around the world, was very revealing. It said to them which country do you think will be ahead by 1970 scientifically and militarily? And a majority of the people in every country, except Greece, said the Soviet Union will be first militarily and scientifically.

The Soviet Union had leveraged its Sputnik satellite launch to produce a compelling argument as regards who was winning the technology race. The U.S.A. had an image problem. No wonder JFK made NASA's Moon Program one of his major initiatives. Both ambitious and audacious, it captured the imaginations of a generation.

Kennedy continued:
Why should it be? The Soviet Union was the most backward country in Europe forty years ago. If they are able to convince the people of the world that they are going to be No. 1, that they are going to be the leader in 1970, what are the leaders of these under-developed countries going to say? Which way will they want to go? They want to tie in with the future, and if they think the future belongs to the Communists, they will move with them. If they think the Communists, they will move with them. If they think the future belongs with us, they will move with us. I think the future belongs to us. I think it can belong to us. But it can not belong to us possibly, and this we might just as well understand, because we will see it in the Sixties, it cannot possibly belong to us if we are content with being second in space, if we are content to turn out one half as many scientists and engineers as the Soviet Union, if we are content to use our steel capacity 50 per cent.

Notice that Iron Range tie-in. If you're a speechwriter, this is a good model. Note how this key idea from the intro has been woven into the body.

Ad for a living room suite at Abe Zimmerman's store.

Last week the Soviet Union produced more than we did in steel, not because we could not produce twice as much, but because we did not, because the economic and fiscal policies of this administration, because the leadership of this administration, because the vision of the Republican Party has put a damper on our energies at the one time that we need it. I do not say the future is easy, and I do not come to this community and say that if I am elected life will be easy and the problems solved. But I do say we can do better. 

Note the authenticity in the last part of this paragraph. He doesn't guarantee that everything is going to be solved, but he's noting their plight and the plight of America if things don't change.

After acknowledging the work of Democrats in Minnesota and the Northland, he begins his summing up.

A hard tough question for the next decade, for this or any other group of Americans, is whether free society, organized as ours is, can endure in the face of the Communist challenge. That is the question which we face as citizens. And we will mark that specially in those days when we will witness not only new breakthroughs in weapons of destruction, but also a race for mastery of the sky and the rain, the ocean and the tides, the far side of space, and the inside of the ore fields of this district.

Micka Electric, co-owned by the Zimmerman brothers.

These words were delivered 60 years ago. For most of this audience the history and significance of the Iron Range was fresh in their minds. 90% of the steel that went into building armaments and battleships during World War Two was made possible by the mines of the Iron Range. That was only 15-20 years earlier. The North Country made a major contribution to the war effort.

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For those unaware, Hibbing is more than the boyhood home of Bob Dylan. It was also where NBA basketball star Kevin McHale grew up as well as the birthplace of Roger Maris. By geographic area it is the largest city in Minnesota and the home of one of the largest open pit iron mines in the world, the Mahoning-Hull–Rust Open Pit Iron Mine.

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Times Have Changed
Over time the blue collar working class of the Iron Range has fallen upon harder times. According to an article in the Minnesapolis Star Tribune, "Rangers say the DFL Party has been co-opted by 'extreme greens' at the expense of Iron Range livelihoods. This longtime complaint rose to siren pitch last year when Rangers cast plentiful protest votes for the DFL’s anathema Donald Trump, with spillover losses of two “sure-bet” DFL legislators: Rep. Tom Anzelc of Balsam Township and Sen. Tom Saxhaug of Grand Rapids."

Ron Way's article is titled Iron Range: Conflict over future of mining is unearthing a new political force in Minnesota's north country. It offers details about the history of the Iron Range at its immigrant population and is worth reading.

When I moved to Duluth in 1986 I was told that there was really only one party up here, or so it seemed. The Democrats were so strong in the North Country that Republicans in some districts would try their luck getting endorsed as Democrats in order to fulfill their political ambitions.

But things have changed, and in the 2010 Congressional election a Republican, Chip Cravaack, was elected to serve in the 112th Congress for Minnesota's 8th District. Quickly booted two years later by the DFL's Rick Nolan, the GOP regained the seat once again in 2018 GOP Pete Stauber's election.

More to come.

Related Links
You can read the JFK speech in its entirety here in the JFK Library Archives
Here's What Politico Got Wrong About the Iron Range (by Iron Range blogger, journalist and historian Aaron Brown)
Latest Dylan Release Brings Back Memories of JFK's Three Visits to the Northland

Almost Wordless Wednesday: New Books Inspired by the Music of Our Lives

I'm missing my library. Two months ago I took these photos of book covers 

that were on the New Books shelf upstairs here at our Duluth Public Library. 

I have so many favorite sections of the library, but when upstairs I often find myself 

scanning the New Books. Here's some of what I found in February.

You like music? You like books?

Our local library's got you covered.

Another Echo of Ishiguro's The Unconsoled: Dreams of Frustration

A year ago I went on a cross country road trip out East to visit kin, friends and family. It was a very special time during which I listened to a powerful novel by Kazuo Ishiguro's The Unconsoled. It's an amazing, surreal story which I wrote about here last April.

I'd already read a couple of his books, and when visiting my daughter earlier that year I saw that she also had several books by this Nobel Prize winning author on her bookshelf. When I asked her favorite she said "this one." I ordered the audiobook to accompany me on that road trip.

A primary feature of this story is its dreamlike scenes and imagery coupled with extreme frustration. From time to time since reading it I've had similar dreams, including this morning, which I'll try to relate to you here. It's an interesting tale.

14 APRIL 2020

The setting is Canal Park here in Duluth during it's busiest season, summertime. Sidewalks are crowded, parking lots crowded, and the Lakewalk is crowded, which is totally contrary to the emptiness you'll find there right now during our lockdown.

I'm driving near Lake Avenue and returning to my car when I see a friend whom I haven't seen a while, so I pull over to chat. It's not a legal parking spot but it will only be a minute. I cut the conversation short for some reason, perhaps anxious about where I'm parked, so I return to my car and start to pull away.

But my conscience bothers me for the abrupt ending to our conversation and I stop again, leaving the car running as I jog over to properly close our conversation with a Minnesota goodbye. A police officer pulls into the slot where my car had just been and blocks the view of my car with its engine running. When I return to my car it's now missing.

I swing around to tell the cop and he's gone, too. Now what?

When I pull out my cell phone there's some problem getting it to function properly. I press the buttons for 9-1-1 but instead the screen shows 9-11 and says this is not a number. No matter how many times I try the error message comes up.

I begin walking through the crowded sidewalks, jostled and disturbed. I find myself in front of a small sidewalk cafe and see a woman whom I recognize there serving customers. I go take a seat and John Heino, another friend who retired a few years back, steps out from within. He's a server there and he comes over and sits with me, as does the other woman whom I recognized but couldn't recall her name.

Two more people join us from the sidewalk and everyone is chattering on about things. I can only think about my car being stolen. I wait patiently for my turn to say something, but it never comes so I finally interrupt and tell them my car has been stolen and I need to call the police.

Everyone stops talking, not knowing what to say. Then John and the woman, who may have been the manager, get up and return to work. As they do I overhear her comment to John something like, "I don't remember him being so rude."

The other couple gets up and leaves also. I want to defend myself but now don't know what to say, so I head over to the Lakewalk. There's a long sandy path there with something like an arts and crafts show taking place with lots of vendors on my right and left, and people jostling me. My mind is in a fog as I weave through various comical scenes. Some of the vendors are in teardown mode. One vendor had a tipi-like cone shaped display with a dog in the middle wearing something like a millstone collar around its neck like those paintings by the Dutch Masters of the 16th century.

As I look down I see a leather case on the ground, slightly larger than a checkbook. When I open it there's a cell phone inside, but just as I start to call 9-1-1 a middle aged man with a dark mustache leathery skin grabs it out of my hand saying, "Hey, that's mine." He's very angry with me for having his phone.

I ask him to call 9-1-1 but he turns and walks the other direction in a huff.

As I proceed down the path I continue to be jostled, and then come to a mottled grey-green wall that I can't get over. Looking up I see a walkway going perpendicular along the top of the wall which is heading back to Canal Park where I'd started.

When I finally get atop the wall and start heading back I have someone's infant accompanying me. Now I must not only find a phone and my car but also the child's parents. The thought I'm having at that point is that if I call the police they'll accuse me of kidnapping.

It's at that moment of extreme frustration that I awake.

* * * *

In the event that you are wondering how I, or anyone, could remember so many details from a single dream, well, there's some backstory to be aware of. I first began recording my dreams when I was in seventh grade. Upon awaking I would write what I remembered. Over time, and I did this for near six years, I could pull up three, four and sometimes five dream sequence stories. It is a skill one can cultivate, like playing the piano. It's a matter of practice. It also involves writing what you remember as soon as you wake.

The seed for a few of my published stories began with a scene from a dream. My novel The Red Scorpion began that way. A crisis point late in the book began with eight or ten pages of notes that I wrote out longhand one morning upon waking. More than a dozen years later it became fodder for what developed into a full length book which many have found rewarding to read.

As for this morning's nocturnal misadventures, let's just say that fortunately I haven't felt as stressed as that dream during our quarantine period here in our coronavirus era. The dream, however, does seem to hint toward an underlying anxiety beneath the surface of my consciousness. One way or another we'll get through.

These Are The Times That Try Men's Souls. Is Paine Still Relevant Today? You Decide

Washington Crossing the Delaware by Emanuel Gottlieb Luetze

This weekend the quote "These are the times that try men's souls" crossed my mind. Certainly these have been quite trying times for our lives and our nation, so I decided to investigate further into its origin. 

I knew that Thomas Paine, pamphleteer and author of Common Sense, was the man who penned it, but I recalled little else.

When I found the quote I read the rest of this essay and found it quite illuminating with many passages quite relevant for our own trying times. It is the opening essay of a compilation of essays under the title The American Crisis.

I also discovered that in order to fortify the resolve of his troops, George Washington ordered that this essay be read aloud to his men the night before they crossed the Delaware in their December 26 surprise attack on Trenton. 

Portrait of Thomas Paine by Matthew Pratt

“THESE are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated” 

The American Revolution had one pre-eminent ideal: Freedom.

In the first section Paine writes:

'Tis surprising to see how rapidly a panic will sometimes run through a country. 

Does this sound like today? The next sentence amplifies that with the reminder that "All nations and ages have been subject to them."

Next, he points out that panics have value and can be useful. Why?

Their peculiar advantage is, that they are the touchstones of sincerity and hypocrisy, and bring things and men to light, which might otherwise have lain forever undiscovered.

* * * *
So it is that we are in a time of crisis, times that try men's souls. There are forces at war which have lain dormant and below the surface. What is emerging has been coalescing for a long time. The American Revolution did not "just happen." It had been evolving for quite some time.

I've been reading C.S. Lewis again lately. His book The Abolition of Man sheds light on this cultural rift, a collision of worldviews. In That Hideous Strength, the third book in his sci-fi space trilogy, he uses fiction to illustrate how these ideas emerged and what the intentions are.

Huxley's Brave New World and Orwell's 1984 point to seeming different dystopian scenes, yet they all have a common denominator, which I hope to elaborate upon in a future post.

* * * *
Paine's essay then outlines events that had occurred up in the vicinity of Hackensack and the Colonialists escape from the Brits there, which sets up this section a little further:

I love the man that can smile in trouble, that can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. 'Tis the business of little minds to shrink; but he whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves his conduct, will pursue his principles unto death. My own line of reasoning is to myself as straight and clear as a ray of light. Not all the treasures of the world, so far as I believe, could have induced me to support an offensive war, for I think it murder; but if a thief breaks into my house, burns and destroys my property, and kills or threatens to kill me, or those that are in it, and to "bind me in all cases whatsoever" to his absolute will, am I to suffer it? What signifies it to me, whether he who does it is a king or a common man; my countryman or not my countryman; whether it be done by an individual villain, or an army of them? If we reason to the root of things we shall find no difference; neither can any just cause be assigned why we should punish in the one case and pardon in the other.

How relevant are these notions to our situation today? I believe parallels can be drawn. This is why so many voices are being raised. Something big appears to be at stake.

There are persons, too, who see not the full extent of the evil which threatens them; they solace themselves with hopes that the enemy, if he succeed, will be merciful. It is the madness of folly, to expect mercy from those who have refused to do justice; and even mercy, where conquest is the object, is only a trick of war; the cunning of the fox is as murderous as the violence of the wolf, and we ought to guard equally against both.

* * * *
This document, one of a series, was written December 23, 1776, approximately six months after the Declaration of Independence.

Full essay:
https://www.ushistory.org/Paine/crisis/c-01.htm

Seeking Balance in a Pandemic by Guest Blogger Dr Ron Newman

In addition to being my brother for most of my life (I was two when he was born), Ron Newman is a psychologist in Mays Landing, NJ who received his PhD. at Temple University in 1990. In addition to his private practice in South Jersey he has made 26 trips to South America to train pastors and lay leaders in counseling. 

Seeking Balance in a Pandemic

Dr. Ron Newman, Mays Landing, NJ

Currently, the Coronavirus (COVID-19) has spread around the world, influencing world leaders to take measures which have caused both healthcare and economic crises. In February, I was in Disney World enjoying time with my family. Within a few short weeks the world was in lockdown mode. Now is an appropriate time for me to summarize some key points for those of you who want to manage your own wellness and build resilience.

Pandemics increase anxiety and fear, in large part due to the uncertainty principle. We don’t know the future, thus cannot control it. Our temper can flare and emotional reactions can feel overwhelming. Some key questions to ask yourself are: What is beyond your control? What are you able to influence by choices you make? For example, you may not be able to control the news about what is happening in the world, but you can control the amount of time you spend watching it. The following suggestions can help you find balance in your life so you can think clearly and cope rationally with this pandemic.

1) Calm yourself. Practice centering and mindfulness exercises. Relax your body and calm your emotions. Simple deep breathing with long, slow breaths and progressive relaxation techniques can help. Meditative prayers and prayers of surrender can help, along with petitionary prayers.

2) Grieve as needed. Losses come in many forms, and awareness of our grief can help us work through it and find the comfort and resolution we need over time. Acceptance of your emotional experience, maintaining healthy memories, forgiveness where needed, and talking it out with a supportive person, all have their place when grieving.

3) Renew your mind. Develop healthy thinking. Hold on to hope. Avoid “awfulizing”, where we focus on how awful things are, taking our minds off those things for which we can be grateful. Avoid “learned helplessness” where we get stuck feeling vulnerable and helpless, rather than understanding what reasonable action steps we can take. This is not a time for blaming and being judgmental of ourselves or others, but rather for showing grace and working toward healthy solutions. Maintain an appropriate sense of humor, in spite of the grief that comes at times like this.

4) Solve problems creatively. Engage your reasoning and critical thinking abilities. List problems separately, so you can take the time to brainstorm creative solutions for each more fully. Be proactive, recognizing the power you do have to act. Develop and work the plans you develop addressing each problem identified.

5) Listen to authorities. Experts on the spread of the virus have given advice regarding care for yourself and others, social distancing, and even what symptoms constitute a need to be tested. While this information may change as we learn more, look to specialists for their knowledge and expertise. Good sources of information can be found through various websites, including the CDC government sites or WebMD.

6) Practice extra hygiene principles. The COVID-19 virus at present is known to be easily transmitted in a variety of ways, such as surfaces that people touch and is even airborne through coughs or sneezes. It is reasonable to wash hands for 20 seconds, to avoid touching your face, to possibly wear gloves and masks when around others, and follow other recommendations from the experts.

Photo by LOGAN WEAVER on Unsplash

7) Socialize from a distance. Use this as an opportunity to connect with people via social media platforms, phone calls, or even personal conversations from six feet away. This may be with distant relatives and friends, or neighbors with whom you have little contact. We are all part of the human race, which unites us even with others whose cultures may be less familiar to us.

8) Practice physical health strategies. Sufficient sleep, nutrition and exercise are foundations for health, so consider your personal health practices. Build your immune system, strengthen your muscles, and take charge of your health. Eat less sugar and more plant-based nutrition. Walking in the woods, biking a lonely road, or hiking on a remote trail can all be positive healthy experiences for you.

9) Grow through new challenges. Fear and seeing the threats ahead, especially when health and financial crises are already present, can paralyze people and lead to unhealthy coping strategies. Turn your “threats” into “challenges” to think creatively about different options that are within your power to manage. Make specific plans for growth in different areas. Explore new ways to earn income. Read again, selecting various types of books. Write. Learn a musical instrument. Sing. Develop your spirituality. Explore your options for growth.

10) Practice mindful empathy. Care for yourself and others requires an awareness which we can call loving mindfulness. Tune in to your own struggles, emotions, and physiological sensations (such as rapid heart beat, perspiration, etc.) with compassionate acceptance. Then turn this empathy toward others. Isolation can be extremely detrimental, and crises can bring opportunities to address the needs of others. When others need food, for example, drop some off on a porch without physically handing it to them. Love your neighbor as yourself.

11) Accept changes. A “normalcy bias” leads people to think things won’t change, but will go back to things as they were in the past. This may not happen. Accept this possibility, and evaluate different potential scenarios. You can then plan for different contingencies to regain your balance in life.

12) Develop your faith. Crises often bring opportunities for spiritual growth and development for people. Explore your religious tradition more deeply. Read your Bible. Discover new ways to pray. Read the writings of spiritual leaders whom you respect. Coming to peace in this area can bring you full circle back to point #1 in this article, helping you find your equilibrium regardless of what life throws at you.

Ronald S. Newman, Ph.D. is a psychologist in Mays Landing, NJ who now does teletherapy. He can be reached by mail at: P.O. Box 2148, Vineland, NJ 08362; by email at: write2balance@gmail.com, or by phone at: 609-567-9022. His blog and other information can be accessed at: www.drronnewman.com This article originally appeared in the Hammonton Gazette April 8, 2020.

Related Links
A Good News Story: Death Estimates Shrinking
Seeking Balance When Experiencing Grief

The Impressive Work of Second Harvest Northern Lakes Food Bank In Response to COVID-19

Last May I had a chance to get a tour of the Second Harvest Food Bank. To say I was impressed is an understatement. The role Second Harvest plays in helping meet nourishment and health needs (you can't be healthy if you don't have enough to eat) was surprising. 

LAYOFFS and lost jobs have created painful disruptions across the nation. Locally, it's put pressure on our community's support systems, many of them dependent on contributions from generous donors. At Second Harvest there are no government funds used.

IN THE PAST THREE WEEKS Second Harvest has provided 388,000 meals for our NE Minnesota and NW Wisconsin neighbors.

According to Executive Director Shaye Morris, the Food Bank served a record 523 people last Tuesday, 38% of these being new to Second Harvest. 

FOR THIS REASON, I am reprinting my blog post from last spring after my visit to Second Harvest. 


The Surprising Scope and Impressive Work of Second Harvest Northern Lakes Food Bank
During the noon hour Thursday I took a tour of the Second Harvest facilities located in the Airpark just off Haines Road near the airport. Though I'd been previously familiar with Second Harvest, having written about their annual Hungry Bowl fund raising events many of the past several years, I had no idea how extensive was their reach, nor how significant their impact.

The tour is an educational experience that is given quarterly.

I remember years ago reading an article about how a shipment of more than 100 million dollars worth of food was delivered to Detroit to address nourishment needs there, but that because there were no mechanisms for distribution it spoiled before helping any humans.

By way of contrast, it's impressive to see the systems Second Harvest has created and established. There seem to be two missions operating in tandem. First, the obvious one, bringing food to hungry and needy people. The less obvious one, which you would learn about on the tour, is its Rescue Mission. Or rather, Food Rescue, doing whatever they can to keep good food from ending up in landfills so that it ends up in peoples' stomachs.

After writing about the programs taking place at Damiano Center earlier this year I was put in touch with Shaye Moris, executive director of Second Harvest. I love their slogan: Fighting Hunger / Feeding Hope. Shaye suggested that I attend one of their quarterly tours, which I was eager to do.

There were about a half dozen of us on yesterday's tour, including two people from Life House, someone from Whole Foods Co-op and a fellow from Anchor Point Church. We were also joined by a couple of folks from the Northern Harvest team. Ms. Moris led the tour, which began with the first "Aha!" moment. 2nd Harvest is not a food shelf. It is a Food Bank. It is the largest, and only, food bank in the region. Second Harvest belongs to a network of 200 other food banks in the U.S. designed to efficiently acquire and distribute food to eliminate hunger.

One facet of their labors could be compared to a rescue mission, rescuing food from retail partners so it isn't wasted. Did you know that 27% of the food in this country gets thrown away? And sometimes it's as high as 40%.

Managing food is 80% of the work of the Food Bank, distributing it to 180 different food programs, soup kitchens, food shelves and other programs. It's a massive undertaking and real needs are being met every day.

Another "Aha" was learning how vital it is to stay in touch with government regulations and the stringent health standards set by the USDA, OSHA, etc. There are baking audits, label requirements and other legal matters that the 17 staff embers of Second Harvest must stay current on.

Another insight was learning how important volunteers are to Second Harvest. If you want to become a volunteer for a cause that is making a real difference, you might want to visit their website and learn how.  Volunteers provided 15,000 hours of service last year, which made a tangible difference in fulfilling their aims, which include nutrition assistance programs for seniors (NAPS), for kids (BackPack Program), the Mobile Food Pantry and for the region's food shelves.

For the record, Second Harvest does have a Food Shelf here at the Airpark, open on Tuesdays, but the facility's primary function is being a Food Bank and Food Rescue operation. (25 volunteers help operate the food shelf there on Tuesdays.)

It's interesting how much thought has gone into every aspect of the operation. For example, it used to be that each of the various organizations that fed the poor (CHUM and Damiano Center, for example) would call on stores and restaurants to acquire goods before they were thrown. The result was a lot of inefficiency as multiple places were calling around, and lots of time consumption would be the result. Second Harvest, therefore, became a middleman, a food broker of sorts, so that a grocery store doesn't have to field 21 calls a week. Instead, it's one call that takes care of all.

Food distribution is an expensive part of feeding people in all countries, and in this case Halvor Lines has been helping mucho by providing $25,000 a year of donated transportation. Second Harvest services an 18,000 mile region from Hurley to Ely and points west, picking up or delivering food, so this kind of generous help is really appreciated here.

Our tour took us through the freezer (ten below) and the refrigerated room as well as 24,000 square feet of storage. Some of the sources for all this food include the hospitals, universities, grocery stores and more. Some food is picked up and delivered straight off the truck.

There are no federal, state or local government funds being used here. 100% of the operation is funded by donations, hence a big piece of the work involves fund-raising since the overhead for all this is 1.9 million dollars per year.

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DONATE TODAY: visit https://northernlakesfoodbank.org/donation/

Second Harvest Northern Lakes Food Bank is a 501(C)3 charitable non-profit and is the largest hunger-relief organization in the Northland. Each year we rescue and distribute over 5.8 million pounds of nutritious food, enough food for 4.7 million meals, to approximately 44,000 people in need.

Special thanks to Shaye Morris, Erin Makela and all the Second Harvest staff who helped get us more informed and for making time to share their passion with the wider public.

If you want to Rescue Food and Feed Families, or simply learn more, visit https://northernlakesfoodbank.org/ 
Second Harvest COVID-19 Response: 
https://northernlakesfoodbank.org/what-we-do/covid-19/