More than meets the eye

“Forget the vin, it’s just Mel”

By Nicole Solum and Kara Smyth

When you take a first glance at Melvin Nygaard you might think that he is a nice older gentleman, or a fun- loving grandpa, or even your nice neighbor who you greet every morning when you get the morning paper. Nygaard’s silver hair is mostly hidden by a BSU beaver hockey hat.  He stands at just 5’7’’ and can strike up a conversation with just about anyone.  “I’m a people person, I can’t just sit at home and watch Oprah and Judge Judy,” said Melvin Nygaard.  That is exactly what Nygaard is - a people person.  You can see him working in, what athletes call, “the cage” down by the gym, cleaning up the John Glas field house, or walking around Haag-Sauer. Nygaard always has a smile on his face and a story to tell. There is more to Nygaard than a maintenance man who works at BSU.  

          Mel’s story begins way before his time here at Bemidji State University.  Born in Rugby, North Dakota, he is the middle child in a family of five children.  After growing up in Minot, North Dakota Nygaard joined the Navy and was stationed in Yokosuka, Japan for three years.  “Yes, I was in Vietnam,” Nygaard said with a humble laugh.  “That’s a question I always get asked.” Stationed as a signalman, Nygaard would send and receive messages as well as encode and decode messages. Mel was also on the football and baseball team while he was in Yokosuka. 

            Nygaard graduated from the Northwest Technical School (no longer an institution) as a dental technician, in the Twin Cities.  For 35 years, he traveled the United States working in dental labs making crowns and bridges.  “I loved traveling and meeting new people all the time,” Nygaard said.  While working at a dental lab in Houston he met his wife “. . . Peggy, not Margaret, she’s the real deal.”  Mel and Peggy have been married for 30 years and have two sons, Andrew, 27 and Adam, 23. 

         In 2003 he began working at BSU, while continuing to work in dental labs.  Two years ago Nygaard decided to leave the dental profession and only work at BSU. Currently his title is GMW, general maintenance worker.  He works 2:00p.m. until 10:30p.m. Monday through Friday. He has worked in every building on campus except Bangsburg and the library.  He is most commonly known by the athletes.  He works in the cage where laundry is done and where athletic equipment is stored.  The cage is located by the downstairs entrance to the gym.  Student athletes can get their laundry done and team jerseys can be stored.  The cage also stores athletic equipment, when not in use, such as hockey sticks and pads, football pads, and tennis racks.  “He always has a smile on his face,” said sophomore volleyball player Bethany Thompson “it’s always great to talk with him.” 

            Mel has also coached football Bemidji middle school.  “I believe in playing everyone equally,” Nygaard said. Even though he truly enjoyed coaching at the middle school, due to time conflicts he could no longer continue to coach there.  “I can see him being a great coach for middle school,” said junior football player Alex Mock.  “He has this love for life that’s hard to find.” 

         Nygaard believes that it’s the people that make the job, “I enjoy the people more than the job.”  His favorite part about working at BSU is the students.  “Every time I would go to the cage to grab our laundry he would have a joke or a story for me,” said senior volleyball player Nicole Olson.  “He can always make me laugh.” 

            During this time of budget cuts and downsizing at BSU Nygaard and his position is still up in the air.  “I don’t have a permanent position,” said Nygaard.  He is currently waiting to hear if he will return next year.  Even with his job unsecure for next year Nygaard continues to stay positive, “I love my job,” Said Nygaard. “I just like to be around the students.” 



Melvin Nygaard works as a general maintenance worker at BSU.
Photo/Nicole Solum

Inside "the cage" athletic uniforms are stored.

Photo/Nicole Solum

Mel works in "the cage" where laundry is also done.
Photo/Nicole Solum

Total Non-Stop Action Has Arrived

Sanford Center pulls in its’ biggest act yet

By: Frank Panzer and Andy Brown

 Total Non-Stop Action wrestling, TNA, rolls into Bemidji Saturday March 26 and more importantly into the Sanford Center, bringing on arguably the biggest thing to be seen in Bemidji in the Sanford Center’s young life.  You don’t have to be a fan of the soap opera storylines or men in tight clothes to see that TNA is a legitimate company given the weekly television show and many well-known superstars that have even starred in movies.  TNA is most well-known for the amazing “fan experience” they provide at their house shows, a house show is a show that is just for the venue, none of what we see will be aired on TV, their focus on fan experience is what makes people pay the money and enjoy an entertaining experience for a night.   

This is more than an opportunity to see a great show however, according to TNA President Dixie Carter, who wrote on her twitter and facebook page that it is “these shows that decide whether a location is suitable for a TNA PPV,” TNA does all their TV shows out of Orlando, Florida but the company does travel the US and will do their monthly Pay-Per-View (PPV) shows from different locations.  Carter went on to inform TNA fans that, “attendance at the event is what counts, attendance, and how loud you can be.  Show us you want it bad enough there is no reason we couldn’t do a TNA PPV right out of northern MN.”  Although it seems unlikely it certainly is a possibility more now than ever.   

The new Sanford Center will be the site for this event and is the reason we are getting to see all these great things here in Bemidji.  A brand new state-of-the-art venue with potential to sell tickets is exactly what a city needs to bring in big acts, this was one of the main selling points through the entire process of getting the Sanford Center built, as Northwest tech student Kelly Hoge put it, “there is no way a major event comes up here and runs a show out of the John Glas or the Memorial gym, we needed a place, a special place to attract big names, like The Harlem Globetrotters, Blake Shelton and TNA.”  And that is exactly what  Bemidji can provide.

TNA is definitely adult oriented entertainment, scantily clad women and blood are common on their programming. Senior Katie Holsapple had this to say on the topic.  “Ya, it’s wrestling I get it, but for me it seems like an insulting use of the Sanford Center, there should be an honor, a tradition to what comes here, not whatever we can get let’s throw in front of people.  Regardless of the warnings, people are going to bring kids who are too young and just complain about the appropriateness of the material later.” 

 

The city of Bemidji can only benefit from this visit by TNA if in no other way than the sheer numbers of people who will be out and about moving through town and especially people coming from a little ways away, getting a hotel room perhaps, pumping money right back into our city.  TNA is really a stepping stone to the types of things that could be put on in the Sanford Center, there is nothing stopping them from getting a mega-star act and attracting people from miles and miles away.  When that day comes we will look back on TNA’s visit, the first nationwide, corporate guests The Sanford Center had, and thank them for opening the doors to all the possibilities and to helping Bemidji grow.

Electronic Locks Finally comes to BSU

Residence Halls take a Further Step to Increase Safety for Students

By Max Hodgdon and Tony Barber

A few months ago, two separate security incidents where two different male students exposed themselves to the public in Oak Hall and A.C. Clark Library respectively. BSU security documented these incidents and posted warnings on fliers around campus. As a result, all residence halls are locked 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

This is an example of how the BSU campus is vulnerable to crime. The electronic locks help security during times when the external doors are locked. Security is able to know who is using the 200 + doors they monitor at all times.

With electronic locks all security has to do is push a button and these doors automatically lock. Security is alerted every time a door opens and will always send a security guard to the specific location if the door remains open for 15 seconds or longer.

BSU Residential Life has been considering updating locks on campus for years. The project finally got started in January. According to Ludeman, The project was delayed due to several student surveys about safety and convenience in residence halls. Students responded to the surveys given that they felt safe and all accommodations were convenient.

The half million-dollar project is determined to be necessary by BSU officials. “We know the residence halls are vulnerable,” said Ludeman. “There is a lot of activity, and there are a lot of people who come to visit.” Because of a lot of activity, monitoring student safety becomes difficult. The academic buildings have had the keyless locks for approximately two years.

There are many benefits in using the electronic locks, according to the Director of Public safety, Casey McCarthy. The campus security office is able to monitor all doors on campus that have an electronic lock installed.

The system allows security to investigate a potential problem if they notice a door that is propped open longer than it should be. The electronic key cards are linked to a specific person on campus. Security then can narrow possible suspects to suspicious activities through out campus, and respond to an incident faster.

Traditional keys can break in the keyhole, and they have access until the locks are changed. “ If someone loses their card you go in and report it and it is deactivated,” said McCarthy. Deactivated keys are more cost efficient than re-coring every door and distributing new keys.

“I would classify the university behind the times,” said McCarthy. Most major public buildings have been equipped with card entry for some time. BSU was unable to make this transition due to lack of funding for this kind of project. Residential Life made the decision that student safety was a big enough concern that the change had to be done immediately.

Even though the decision was made to go forward with this project there were significant delays. The project was put on hold for a semester due to supplies being back-ordered. The university made an effort to save money by waiting to renovate the campus with new facilities rather than to retrofit all the old doors. “The cost of the new doors was approximately $1,000 per door,” said Jeff Sande the Physical Plant manager, “it cost $1,500 to retrofit the old doors.” The total approximate cost of the exterior locks was about a half-million dollars according to Ludeman.

According to the VP of Finance and Administration Bill Maki, the money came from a fund that residential life set aside for maintenance. The money for this fund comes from student room and board fees. There are no other major projects planned for the near future. The cost of the locks is being paid for with the surplus money from room and board and will not take away from everyday life in the dorms. The amount taken depends on the square footage of residential buildings in use; this works out to be about three dollars per square foot.

Students in Oak and Tamarack Halls will be required to use two keys to get into their room. The electronic card key will allow students to get into their perspective buildings, but the traditional key will still have to be used for people to get into their rooms.

The electronic card reader that students must use to enter residents halls 

Photo by Tony Barber 

 Student using the new keyless entry system in Linden Hall 

Photo by Tony Barber 

BSU Senate Meeting Informs

Student Senate Discussed Tobacco Ban, Recalibration, and Budget

By DJ Haffely and Maggi Stivers

Twenty-five student senators gathered around a horseshoe shaped table, surrounded by three cameras and an audience of eight in the Crying Wolf Room at 4:02 p.m. on March 23rd. BSU Student Senate had an impressive agenda for the afternoon with scheduled time for Ty Patterson, expert about tobacco free campus, President Richard Hanson and Vice President William Maki to discuss important issues. 

A new addition to meetings was the cameras along with their operators. Student Senate meetings are now being broadcast on the BSU campus television station KSBU-TV, channel 17 on Paul Bunyan cable system. The senators have made some changes so that this can be made possible. Placed along the tables, there were several microphones so that the senators could be heard by the cameras.

On the agenda, Student Senate has several questions regarding ways to stay positive about implementing the tobacco policy on BSU campus. “My biggest fear about making the campus tobacco-free is that the smokers will rebel against the idea and they will still smoke on campus,” said Kristi Bernat, sophomore senator. Ty Patterson, director of the center of excellence for tobacco-free campus policy, answered these questions and helped the senators remain positive about the policy.

Ty Patterson discussing the tobacco-free
policy on campus.
Photo By DJ Haffely

 Patterson has been on BSU campus for the past two days and has discussed several aspects of the policy with student leaders, including resident assistants. He expressed that Student Senate needed to get feedback from the students because that’s what makes or breaks this policy. Also to make sure that smokers are aware of the programs that are available to them so they can ease their way into the policy.

There were also talks of designated areas on campus in which smokers could smoke. Some senators were concerned that smokers would simply walk across the street and smoke at the neighbors’ yards. Patterson mentioned from previous experience with this policy, the most important thing is to respect smokers who will be dealing with this change. This policy can assist BSU in maintaining its efforts to be known as a “green university”. Eliminating smoking can also help the environment.

The highlight of Patterson’s talk was that he extended an invitation to BSU to attend a Tobacco Free Campus Workshop next year. This year is the 8^th annual workshop and students from University of Buffalo, University of Kentucky, University of Oregon, Westminster College and Lane Community College. All these institutions have gone through the change of enforcing a tobacco free policy. The main thing they want to stress through this policy is to respect others and the environment.

President Hanson speaks during the
Student Senate meeting.
Photo By DJ Haffely

President Hanson spoke regarding his response to the response that given by Student Senate regarding the budget recalibration plans. President Hanson was very general speaking only touching base on the things that will be impacted. His main focus was that student leaders will always have a say in what goes on.   Michael Meehlhause, co-president of Student Senate, said “thank you for listening to us and taking us so seriously,” in regards to Hanson’s response. Bernat thought the response was fair and reasonable and shed enjoyed that “President Hanson stated how some of the ideas we "the students" came up with at the forums may be put into action.” Also, President Hanson discusses briefly about a pilot program for three year degree being tested fall semester 2011.

Bill Maki, Vice-President for Finance and Administration, explained all about enrollment and what the upcoming budgets will look like. It is predicted that by the 2011 to 2012 school year there will be a 3% to 4% increase in tuition. Maki explained that enrollment trends from 2010 to 2011 continued to look positive. The 2011 credit enrollment was up 7% over last year and overall fall credit enrollment is up 5% over the prior year. BSU’s balance budget is expected to be at $663 million dollars for the 2011 fiscal year.  Also $984 million increase in revenues over the next 3 year period plus a $176 million decrease in spending.

Towards the end of the meeting, there were small features regarding events and ideas being discussed. One idea brought up was the idea of having security cameras placed in the tunnel system and also to install a speaker system in which to play music such as the campus radio station FM 90. Also regarding the tunnels, the math club has been given permission to paint a mural in the tunnels. Following the meeting, the Student Senate went on a safely walk around campus looking for potential hazards.

Student Senate Recap

March 23rd, 2011

By John Hanson and John Andringa

For the first time, the BSU Student Senate meeting was recorded and later broadcast on KBSU-TV Channel 17 on March 23. Ty Patterson, co-director of the National Center of Tobacco Policy, started off the meeting with a discussion about BSU becoming a smoke-free campus. Patterson has been working with campuses across the country to make the transition to smoke-free campuses since 1997 when he helped the Ozark Technical College, in Springfield, Missouri, to become the first higher education institution in the country to go smoke-free in 2003.

During his tobacco policy presentation, he challenged the student senators to “always think about how that policy can be accomplished through respecting others and respecting the environment. And I particularly want to emphasis the importance of respecting tobacco users.” Patterson advised the Student Senate to work on the tobacco policy as a process and continually work on it by having a permanent agenda item to the student senate meetings.

When Senator Charlie Woodson inquired how the senate could make the students aware of the smoke-free policy and respectfully help them understand the policy, Patterson suggested electronic communication. He believes updating the Student Senate, BSU, and other social media websites with information on the progression of the policy is the easiest way to reach out to the students. Also, he mentioned there must be ongoing discussions in the residence halls and continue the dialogue with forums and discussion groups. He also advised the tobacco users to attend the meetings in order to continue the policy debate even if policy is enacted.

Next on the agenda was Pres. Hanson’s response to the Student Senate’s response on the recalibration. He read his response to the Student Senate and complimented the students for their "tenacity" and the leadership of the Student Senate. He said he would continue to reach out to the community for adjunct professors, extending the teach-out program to graduate students and communicating with the Student Senate. In addition to his response Pres. Hanson said the recalibration has been one of the most difficult tasks in his educational career and told the Student Senate, “I want to thank you for what you did and I really appreciate the spirit of communication.”

Vice President for Finance and Administration Bill Maki presented his findings that will affect the fiscal ear 2012-2013 budget. Bemidji State University’s fiscal year 2011 budget remains balanced with a 4% operating reserve and a $400,000 surplus. Summer 2011 enrollment is up 7% over last year and fall enrollment is up 5%. He also talked about federal and state budgets which could affect Bemidji State University’s budget. These include the possibility of some student grant and work study being cut.

Student Senate’s Minnesota State University Student Association (MSUSA) lobbying effort was postponed from March 22nd to March 29th due the snowstorm. Select Student Senate members plan to meet with local legislators such as State Representative for District 4A John Persell, State Representative for District 2B Dave Hancock, State Senator for District 4 John Carlson, State Representative for District 05A Tom Rukavina, who sits on the Higher Education Policy and Finance Committee. Student Senate member will be doing training on lobbying before meeting with legislators at the MSUSA office. There will be a Student Senate debate Sunday March 27th at 7 p.m. in HS100. The debate will be videotaped and broadcast by KBSU-TV Channel 17.

Pres. Hanson speaks to Student Senate Photo by John Hanson

Pres. Hanson speaks to Student Senate

Photo by John Hanson

BSU Student Senate members gathered for the March 23 meeting in the Crying Wolf room

Photo by John Hanson

BSU Men’s Hockey Team Advanced to The Final Five

BSU made their goal

By Jillian Gandsey and Raielle Peterson

BEMIDJI, Minn. – “Our goal this year was to get to the Excel Center,” said head coach, Tom Serratore, of BSU’s men’s hockey team on Tuesday, March 15^th.  They did exactly that.

BSU along with the University of North Dakota, University of Denver, University of Minnesota-Duluth, Colorado College, University of Alaska-Anchorage in the WCHA (Western Collegiate Hockey Association) participated in the Final Five hockey tournament, which began on Thursday March 17^th.  The Beavers started the action off at 3:37 p.m. against the UMD Bulldogs.

BSU men's hockey coach, Tom
Serratore, lead the Beavers to a
Final Five birth in their first season
in the WCHA.

Despite being ranked 10^th out of the 12 WCHA teams, Bemidji State pulled off a series win against 3^rd ranked Nebraska-Omaha last weekend.  Although being heavily outshot, BSU swept the Maverick’s on the shoulders of junior goaltender Dan Bakala. Without those wins BSU wouldn’t have advanced into the Final Five.  “Once you win a series like that you’re one step closer to where you want to be,” said Serratore on the Tuesday before facing Minnesota-Duluth.

In the final season rankings by the WCHA the Bulldogs were ranked 4^th, while the Beavers finished 10^th.  These two teams previously met for a two games series in late October during regular season play and the result was a loss and a tie for the Beavers.  Both games went into overtime. 

An essential player for the Beavers is senior forward Matt Read.  In the Nebraska-Omaha series he contributed two goals and an assist for Bemidji State, leading them towards their victory.  He was also a factor in the game against Minnesota-Duluth, scoring one goal.  “He’s been the best player on the team since he came here as a freshmen, which is very uncommon,” claimed Serratore.  “He’s tough as nails.”

“They really have two good lines and that’s been the key for them,” said Serratore about Minnesota-Duluth prior to the game.  As the underdogs, the Beavers were seemingly able to keep up with the Bulldogs, pulling off a thrilling 3-2 overtime win. 

UMD’s Jack Connolly scored the first goal of the game just 6:05 into the action of the first period.  The Beavers came back with a goal just seven minutes later, scored by junior Brad Hunt.  At the end of the first period the Bulldogs added a shorthanded goal, making the score 2-1. 

The second period was scoreless.  Shortly into the third is when Read tied up the game, scoring his 22^nd goal of the season.  That would be the last goal of regulation and the Beavers and the Bulldogs went into their third overtime game of the year.  Just 6:12 into overtime and junior Shea Walters scored his first goal of the season and making the final score of the game 3-2.

The win set Bemidji State up to play the University of Denver on Friday, March 18^th at 2:07 p.m.  The Beavers weren’t so fortunate this time and their tournament play was put to an end.

Bemidji State put up a good fight in the first period, ending it with a 2-1 lead.  Jordan George and Radoslav Illo were the goal scorers.  However, that was the end of scoring by Bemidji State and Denver ran with lead for the rest of the game.  The Final score was 6-2. 

That was the end of Bemidji State’s season and they finished with an overall record of 15-18-5 and in their conference 8-15-5.  

THIS IS IT books shows around local area

The Suit plays Bemidji Elks Club

By Taylor Klinke
Word Count 759

Bemidji is a town with a lot of high school and college students – many looking for something cheap or free to do in their free time. Brandon Scherf, who lives in Grand Rapids, decided to start a booking company with friends Sara Oak and Alex Orozco. They call their booking company “This Is It”. They gather bands from around Minnesota and North Dakota for shows around the Grand Rapids/Bemidji area.

“First we make a list of bands and what they charge to play a show. Then we figure out which bands people in this area want to see most,” said Brandon Scherf, “After that I email the bands and give them a guarantee for the pay, and they guarantee to show up.”

However, it doesn’t always work out that smoothly  – Sara Oak used to book shows but soon realized it was difficult to actually get people to come out to the shows. So Brandon stepped in and started booking and now they both work together inviting people and hanging up fliers around town.

On March 18, This Is It set up a show at the Elks Club in Bemidji – with local acts Lethal Interjections & Boi Pollo, Foundations, Summoned to Rest, If I Ran The Zoo, Tribes, and The Suit.

The show was set to start at 6:00 p.m. and with 206 “attending” on the Facebook event – Brandon and Sara were hopeful there would be a good turnout.  People lingered into the Elks Club at different times, but in the end there was a total paid attendance of 122 – which is considered good for a Bemidji show.

The headlining band for this show was The Suit – a band from Fargo that formed in 2005. Paul, Dustin, Joel, Richie, and Greg have been working their way up the ladder and have found recent success. Last spring they entered an online voting contest, sponsored by Ernie Ball, for a chance to win a spot on the 2010 Warped Tour. With votes casted by fans, The Suit ended up being a selected band and got to play at the Warped Tour location in Shakopee on August 1, 2010.  

Grateful for the opportunity to play one date on Warped Tour, The Suit went back home to their jobs, families, friends, and continued playing shows wherever they could – until this past fall when they received an unexpected phone call from Ernie Ball – informing them that they had been chosen as one of four finalists to compete in the annual Ernie Ball Battle of the Bands held in Los Angeles.

At the beginning of December the members of The Suit were flown down to Hollywood where they performed at the famous Key Club on Sunset Boulevard. They ended up winning the grand prize – two weeks on the 2011 Warped Tour, $15,000 shopping spree at Guitar Center, three songs produced by multi-platinum producer Matt Squire, a full Ernie Ball endorsement, and an Atticus clothing sponsorship.

“Every decision revolves around the band,” said Suit guitarist Joel Knipple, “I give up all my free time for this band but I have gained a great feeling of accomplishment.”

The Suit took the stage around 9:45 p.m. on Friday; following Grand Forks band Tribes.

Tribes, who have played Bemidji shows several times before, played a solid seven song set followed by chants for an encore. But with time running short, they decided against playing another song because The Suit needed to start setting up all their equipment.

"We had a really fun time," said Tribes guitarist Josh Gessler, "Kids were moving and digging the music and we got to hang out with our friends in The Suit. Bemidji is awesome and has great people."

Paul, Dustin, Joel, Richie, and Greg from The Suit entertained the crowd with their comedy while setting up their instruments and doing sound check.

The Suit followed with the five songs from their latest album The Way That We Fall. When they announced  their last song and thanked everyone for coming out – A chant started requesting one more song. Not just any song, but fan favorite Just Dance.

After the show, all the bands spent about thirty minutes talking to friends, signing autographs, and taking pictures.

“My favorite part about playing shows is talking to people that care about what I’m doing with my life,” said Joel Knipple, “I love seeing their faces and the way they react when they appreciate a good show.” 

The next show This Is It has set up is on April 1^st – with bands Sons of Levi, Six Feet of Silence, Scarleta, I Apparatus, Summoned to Rest, and A Day of Plague. That will also be held at the Elks Club on fourth street with doors opening at 5:30 p.m. and show starting at 6:00 p.m.

Fargo Band - THE SUIT
(L-R) Richie Odegaard, Joel Knipple, Paul Olson, Dustin Carpenter, Greg Lindholm 

 


Grand Forks Band - TRIBES
(L-R) Ben Prout, Cody Griffin, Navy Thompson, Andrew Cook, Josh Gessler

 

The flier Brandon and Sara of This Is It made
for the March 18 show



The Suit guitarist Joel Knipple posing for a picture in between
one of their songs.



A Great Tradition

Through the Eyes of College Students

By Andy Brown and Frank Panzer

                St. Patrick’s Day is a religious holiday that everyone likes. College students just happen to love it. St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated internationally on the 17^th of March every year.  The day is celebrated by attending church services, wearing green, and eating and drinking alcohol all day. You don’t have to be from Ireland to celebrate this holiday. St. Patrick’s Day was a holiday I looked forward to celebrating in school the most during my middle school and high school days.

Photo taken by Frank Panzer: Picture of green beer. Very popular on St. Patrick’s Day.

 St. Patrick’s Day is more than just another holiday for college students. It’s a time student’s mark on their calendar to go out and have fun with their friends and family. Wearing green and drinking alcohol is the way most students celebrate it and it’s not a time to just go out and get blackout drunk, but to enjoy yourselves whether you are Irish or not.  I was curious to see what students at Bemidji State University thought of St. Patrick’s Day and got some interesting answers. BSU Junior John Karp, a Biology major, said,” St. Patrick’s Day is 100% my favorite holiday. It even beats out Christmas. I have a little Irish in me and there is nothing better than going out wearing green and drinking green beer. It’s not about getting drunk. It’s about celebrating a tradition that has been around for hundreds of years.”  

Another student I talked to was BSU Senior Luke Barthel and he said” he never really celebrated St. Patrick’s Day until he got to Bemidji. I never really saw the big deal in wearing green and this whole holiday because I am not Irish. Ever since I was a freshman here I have celebrated St. Patrick’s Day every year. It’s really a blast to wear green, laugh, and drink some beers with some good friends.” It seems the best part about St. Patrick’s Day is you don’t have to be Irish to celebrate it. Everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day!

                St. Patrick’s Day wasn’t made an official holiday until the 17^th Century but was celebrated long before then. The color green actually wasn’t associated with St. Patrick’s Day when it first was being celebrated. It was actually Blue which is strange to picture. Over the years and as St. Patrick’s Day grew the color was changed to green. The actual wearing of the green originated from a song name. The phrase means to wear a shamrock on one’s clothing (which is green.)  The first St. Patrick’s festival was held in 1996 in Ireland. It was a three-day event and by 2000 it became a four-day event. It just keeps growing and growing and by 2006 it was a five-day event. In 2009 around 700,000 people attended the parade in Ireland. The festivities included concerts, fireworks, and theatre performances where close to one million people attended. The people that attended this parade were bigger than the population of Vermont, Wyoming, North Dakota, and South Dakota. 

Photo taken by Frank Panzer:  Supporting St. Patrick’s Day with the Green!

 St. Patrick’s Day is a great holiday to learn about and celebrate for people of all ages. One of my greatest memories during my childhood was wearing green during school and pinching everyone who didn’t have green on that day. I hope it will continue to be celebrated for centuries and centuries and passed on to my grandkids and to their grandkids. St. Patrick’s Day is one of my favorite holidays and it’s a blast to celebrate with the people closest in your life.