Living In Carver County Minnesota
By Greg Anderson
Living In Carver County MinnesotaFeb 08, 2022
Doug and Lynn Nodland- Sharing a lifetime of wisdom
Have you ever read those thoughtful editorials about the human condition in the Chaska Herald or Chanhassen Villager? Doug and Lynn Nodland offer readers wisdom and assurance based on years of life experiences as accomplished professionals, Lynn in counseling and Doug practicing law. They now run a successful coaching business and work with clients of all ages but with a specialty with people going through profound live changes. Whether it is in caring for family members at end of life or people going through career or personal changes, they help clients navigate with grace and confidence. I invite you to really listen for their warmth and sage insights. To find out more and to read other columns they've published, visit them online at:
TheBalanceCenter.com
SharingLifesLessons.com
Erika Rivera Kennedy- A story of perseverance and growth
City of Carver Mayor Courtney Johnson on managing growth
Carver County Sherriff Jason Kamerud talks policing in MN in 2024
Policing has changed radically over the past several years. Bad policing makes the news and affects public opinion, making a hard job, even harder to do and a challenge to recruit new officers. Given the fact that the Carver County Sheriff's Department are responsible for policing everywhere in Carver County except Chaska, we thought an update from Carver County Sherriff Jason Kamerud was due.
Jason is a lifelong Carver County resident and is fully invested in the community. He talks about recent challenges and the proactive way the department is addressing those issues. As our area continues to grow, the spotlight will get even brighter. Innovations and strategic thinking will make all the difference. We hope you enjoy this fast paced conversations with Sherriff Jason Kamerud. (This episode was recorded before the Burnsville shootings. Our hearts go out to everyone affected by this terrible and senseless tragedy)
Chaska City Manager Matt Podhradsky talks about the massive changes in Chaska during the past 12 months
Eckankar-What is it? What do they believe? David Maloney and Heather Davari share their journeys
Bob Roepke- Community outlook and some serious gratitude for responders
Back for another visit is long time Chaska community advocate Bob Roepke to discuss happenings in Chaska and broader Carver County Minnesota. Bob has a great deal to be thankful for and we discuss that in detail and as always, Bob drops a ton of wisdom for anyone wanting to make a difference in their community. We also talk about some important changes happening downtown Chaska with Cooper's Grocery store and Bob graciously acknowledges the decades of contribution the Coopers have made to Chaska and Carver County. Please enjoy this conversation with one of my very favorite people!
Welcome to Season 6! So what are we trying to do here anyway? Also, where have we been???
Thank you for your interest in Living In Carver County Minnesota and our hyper-local podcast. What started as a bit of a lark is now in season 6 and we've been humbled by your feedback and inspired by your feedback and guest recommendations. Our lofty objectives are to educate listeners about local events, happenings and introduce them to the people who make them happen. We try to do that in an informal and hopefully entertaining way, we are not "60 Minutes" so we don't try and trip people up to make them look bad, but we do try and go beyond a Facebook Meme or a bumper sticker and ask the questions you would ask if you were sitting down for coffee. Lastly, we hope to inspire you to get engaged and maybe even involved in Carver County organizations, activities and for you to make your difference.
This season we have some wonderful guests who have already agreed to talk and of course we are always looking for interesting people, stories and causes, so please reach out to me with YOUR ideas. Greg :-)
Grecia Lozano, Latino Voices is making a difference locally with people from around the world
Grecia is the Executive Director of Latino Voices, an organization formed in 2019 with a mission to connect and inform the Latino Community in Carver County with resources, news, events, and activities that will improve their livelihoods and give them opportunities to thrive and succeed. Grecia and her team also help people in our local communities and organizations learn about the Hispanic Culture and are committed to recognize the contributions of Latinos to Carver County. VOICES= Voice, Organize, Inspire, Connect, Equip, Serve.
To find out more about Latino Voices, visit or reach out to-
Email: betzygf@gmail.com
Kris and Rachel Residence, owners of Red's Savoy Pizza along with Matt Udermann
Kaycee Stanley- Founder of The REEL HOPE Project talks about their group's efforts to help kids find their "Forever Family" and out of Foster Care
Kaycee Stanley started THE REEL HOPE Project during her time working as a youth pastor in Elk River and now it is a thriving entity with over 300 kids featured. She also speaks about the foster care system and the societal challenges posed by kids who become adults and don't have family as a life base. The numbers she shared are staggering about people in the penial system, in abusive relationships and more about how they themselves can end up having kids entering the foster care system. These kids do not have what so many of us take for granted.
You can find out more by visiting their web site at www.thereelproject.org or on social @reel_hope
Carver County Commissioner District 1 Candidate Q&A with Gayle Degler & Lisa Anderson
Rich Wagner, President Dunwoody College of Technology- The value of an education in the trades
What Minnesota institution of higher learning has the highest ROI (return on investment) on tuition dollars spent relative to earning???
Dunwoody College of Technology has been turning out highly productive workers since 1914 and according to several metrics, has the best return on investment for your educational dollar. President Rich Wagner talks about the innovations, initiatives and programs their students are having wild success in being a part of for their post high school training. He also talks about the opportunities and the challenges in providing a robust, well-trained workforce in 2022 as well as touching on some of the things people say about learners that are unproductive. Rich is a smart, committed educator and innovator who has some very talented staff implementing programs to be inclusive of a changing population and Dunwoody is wanting the graduates to be reflective of the community.
I invite you to listen to this fast-paced interview with someone committed to making productive graduates.
Bob Roepke- A conversation about community, leadership and the upcoming elections
Jill Zieroth of the MDI (Minnesota Dairy Initiative) discusses the future of the family dairy farm
Do you love Llama's? Have we got a show for you! Amanda Bloomgren, founder of "Llama-Rama" talks about service and making a difference.
Clint Mack- Supervisor with Carver County FOSTER CARE talks about the acute need today for foster families here in Carver County.
Have you ever thought about being a foster parent? Good :-)
Carver County Foster Care Supervisor Clint Mack explains what the needs are here and how you can be a foster parent so you can support kids and families. Opportunities beyond being a host family include being a "respite care" family who helps out when a break is needed. One other very cool way to help is through "Forgotten Initiative" where you can support families with gifts of meals and gift cards to help offset the stress of a family transitioning to sometimes a multiple child family all at once.
We also discuss how kids end up in the program and what the objectives are for reuniting families going through tough times. There's real need here and we want to be on the solution side of things.
Visit www.co.carver.mn.us/foster care for details about how your family can help.
Chaska High School Football Coach Bryan Dahl on developing great humans & doing the daily hard stuff
Welcome to Season 5 The Living In Carver County Podcast! ("how can my kid get credit?" )
Denis Halleron CEO of Carcierge, a private car shopping service dishes on all things cars or what I call; "Car buying 101"
Visit www.carcierge.com
Chaska Police Chief Ryan Siebert talks about police work in 2022
Lyndon Robjent- Director of Public Works and County Engineer talks about ROADS (and parks and trails)
Khai Tran; Executive Director of the Community Foundation for Carver County among other hats
Char Zielin- Mental Health Coach, Trauma Specialist and all around Bad Ass
Charlotte Zielin is Mental Health Coach who takes her clients beyond therapy. Her method involves not just dealing with the issues around the source of the trauma but going beyond with a strategy to equip her clients with the tools and distinctions to function at their best going forward. We discuss the way those things work together on the this fast-paced conversation. She is funny, smart, vulnerable, dedicated and committed to making people's lives better. She was fun to talk to and I hope it comes through on this episode even though we talk about hard stuff that people are going through as well as hearing her talk about her personal challenges and how she thinks that makes her better because of her life's lessons. You can find out more by visiting her website at www.charmariecoaching.com
Sue Schmidt, Lead Teacher at New Beginnings helps young Moms prepare for their new world
Pastor Greg Snow of St Johns in Chaska- Church in a changing time
Pastor Greg Snow has been the pastor at St Johns in Chaska since coming out of the seminary, first as a Vickers and then as Pastor. He is heavily involved in community outreach programs and was one of the original leaders that were involve with starting Love Inc here in Carver County. St Johns is one of the three historic churches in town and the only one with an elementary school. We talk about legacy faith communities and some of the changes brought about by changing times, Covid-19 and the emergence of a whole group of people not choosing to engage with a faith community. Greg has a passion for the community and a calling to lead people to faith. I enjoyed our talk and although he has a South Dakotan sense of understatement, we covered loads of ground. To find out more about St John's Parish, visit- https://www.stjohnschaska.org/
Tina Stofferahn, Director of Day Services with MRCI- Helping people with special needs find meaningful work
Tina Stofferahn of MRCI discusses the many services they offer for people in the community with special needs get trained, develop interpersonal skills, find employment, and continually get educated about a myriad of things. They do amazing work. I have several friends who have family members as clients of MRCI and the work they do changes lives. (I know that can be an overused description but, in this case, it is completely warranted) One thing we discussed is how much work means to all people for dignity and purpose regardless of what limitations one might have. MRCI has been around since the 1950's and started by helping Polio victims and returning veterans. Today they serve individuals with disabilities and disadvantages throughout the state. Tina is a local who grew up here in Eastern Carver County, received her degree in Psychology from Crown College in Waconia and lives here in Chaska. She is a real asset to Carver County. To find out more about MRCI, visit www.mymrci.org
Cory Whitmer- Mustard Seed gives tips for those of us who don't have a green thumb.
Len Simich- CEO of SW Transit talks about his legacy and some of the cool stuff they have in the works
Len Simich Chief Executive Officer Len Simich has served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Southwest Transit Commission since 1997. He has received numerous awards for his personal and academic achievements including being selected as the Minnesota Transit Professional of the year, and one of the top 40 business leaders in the Twin Cities by the Minneapolis – St. Paul Magazine. Under his leadership SW has grown into a thriving enterprise beyond just a bus company branching into real estate development, short trip ride providers and a leader in green innovation. Len is passing the torch at the end of Feb but will remain a leader in the community. Len describes SW Prime is one of those innovative services that allow eastern Carver County to be a place for everyone regardless of what stage of life there are in currently. Please enjoy this loaded conversation. Also- be sure and download the SW Prime app if you or anyone you care about needs transportation to shopping or Dr appts.
Carla Beaurline- of Around Town TV; from tiaras to elder care
Carla Beaurline is one of those people you know you know, even if you're not sure from exactly where from. She's been a local beauty pageant participant, a MC for numerous charity events, a television talk show producer and host for the show, "Around Town" for going on 20 years, as well as a dedicated caretaker for her parents as they were going through end-of-life stuff. She's smart, funny, and as polished of a professional as you'll ever meet. I enjoyed talking to her about her upbringing, how beauty pageants shaped her career wise, her love and admiration for her parents as well as her adventures as a female entrepreneur. Please enjoy this wide-ranging conversation with a very professional communicator.
Welcome to Season 4!!! I've been thinking...
Bob Roepke; aka Mr Community talks about the cool stuff happening in Chaska right now.
Jay Rohe, former Chaska Councilman and upcoming Mayoral Candidate talks Chaska, leadership and civility
Deb Barber- Carver and Scott County representative at the Metropolitan Council talks about growth in our area
Some of the topics we discussed are; What exactly is Met Council? What work do they do for us? How does the Council work with the county and the various cities of Carver and Scott County? How does that work fit in with the rest of the Metro? What does our future look like?
Deb is clearly a very competent, committed public servant and I enjoyed our conversation very much.
Clark Machtemes, teacher, musician, farmer and all around renaissance guy
Clark is a long time teacher at Waconia High School, (although not music) a maple syrup farmer, a talented songwriter (which we get a look behind the curtain on that process in this interview) and the founder and lead signer. He has toured nationally with Crystal Gayle as well as numerous other performers before coming back home to Waconia to marry and settle down and raise a family. He went back and got a teaching certificate and has been teaching young minds for over 30 years. His main passion is music and he and the band played over 50 gigs in 2020 despite being hampered by the pandemic.
Clark is smart, funny and a fantastic story teller. Please enjoy this wide ranging discussion with one of Carver County's originals. Clark was exactly the type of person I had in mind when we started this podcast experiment about giving a voice not just to elected officials and business people but also to ordinary people who just happen to be extraordinary.
Mary Hernandez with CAP and Esperanza discuss how she addresses unmet needs in our community
Andy Schornack- President of Security Bank speaks about the value of community banking
Tom Workman- (2.0) a follow up conversation with District 2 Commissioner Workman.
Jennifer Spalding, estate attorney discusses "How to get your S#@t together" ( My description, not hers)
Jennifer is a terrific attorney with Chestnut Cambronne, a downtown law firm and she specializes in estate planning. Jennifer also has an office here in Chaska.
Many people think that estate planning is only for people who have big bucks. That is a big mistake that has real serious and negative impact on your loved ones if something were to ever happen to you. In this conversation, he discusses what we called; "The minimum effective dose" for responsible adults to have in place and although costs can vary, it is surprisingly inexpensive, especially compared to the huge expense of not having something proper completed.
Jennifer can be reached by visiting; www.chestnutcambronne.com/bio-jspalding.html
Please note: this content is for information purposes only and is NOT LEGAL ADVICE. Be sure and call her and have it done right; your family is counting on you! ;-)
"Motch Across America"- Why is this mostly sane, generally happy, couple bicycling all the way across America???
Ellie Krug- Changing the world with empathy, compassion and inclusion
To find out more about Ellie's work and or to book her for a speaking engagement, visit- elliekrug.com/ Her memoir, Getting to Ellen: A Memoir about Love, Honesty and Gender Change, is available on Amazon, Kindle Nook, and Apple iBook. If your book club reads Ellie's book, she will speak to the club (either in-person or virtually) at no charge.
Sarah Carlson- Quiet leadership behind the scenes, everywhere.
Sarah Carlson is one of those people who make things happen, quietly leading on social justice and housing issues. She chairs the commissioners on the CDA. She is active on the Chaska Human Rights Commission. She is active with the League of Women Voters. She volunteers with Launch Ministries. She forgot to mention her work with the Historical Society and she was one of the original founders of the "Blessed Bee Thrift Shop." Sarah was fun to talk to because she is passionate and smart. We are a better community because of her commitment to doing good work.
Waconia Champion Dean Hilgers talks about community
After selling the dealership, Dean made a major life decision and went back to graduate school. He also started developing land and dove head first into serving the community through his involvement with various organizations. He and his wife both have a passion for Waconia, Carver County and are committed to leaving a legacy of making things better for all who follow. Please enjoy this wonderful conversation with a great guy. Also, be sure and visit: www.carvercountyhistoricalsociety.org/peterson_farm.php
Tom Workman, District 2 Carver County Commissioner (Chanhassen/ Victoria)
Carla Struble- CEO of EPS and Wingen Farms talks about families in business
Elise Ryan, Mayor of Chanhassen gives a 2021 Update
In case you've been living outside the area, Chanhassen has just exploded in the past several years. New restaurants, a new brewery, a funky barber shop and lots of new homes have created a major shift in what was at one time, "the first town on your way out of town." Mayor Elise Ryan is leading the city during this shift. She is smart, driven and fun to talk to because of her passion for Chanhassen and it's direction keep her inspired. In this interview, we discuss the recent past, the booming present and the city's realignment to a set of values going forward. Please enjoy my visit with Elise Ryan.
Should I buy a business? Keith Payne, business broker offers some insights
Carl Pierson- From the WHS classroom to the Waconia City Council Chamber
Recently elected to represent Waconia's Ward 2 city council, Carl Pierson dishes on some new things on the horizon for the City of Waconia and then we talk about connecting civics in a classroom setting with "Boots on the ground" involvement in local government. We discuss how things have changed for local governance in a hyper-politized world and his optimism for the power of a local, involved community. We riff on the demise of "Just the news" and the responsibility of people in a democracy. Carl is engaged, unchecked and in the midst of coming to grips with a changing political landscape. This conversation could have gone on for another hour, easy.
Bob Moeller, talks about a life of service and creating a safe place to run
Bob Moeller has been a major driving force behind the biking/ walking trails that connect several cities in Carver County. What started out as a response to the frustration from getting run off the road by irritated and/or distracted drivers has become a serious group of citizens committed to making Carver County a place where people can walk, run or bike between the cities and connect to amazing regional trails. Bob along with many other residents have become a major force after starting out as a small ad-hoc group trying to advance something they all thought would be a huge benefit to our area. Quality of life, economic benefits for local businesses and a places for residents to fulfill our ranking as Minnesota's Healthiest County, are outcomes of years of work. (I love this about our area that a small group of committed citizens working with local government, property owners and businesses can have a profound long term positive impact for years to come.)
Bob and his wife Sharon have been active volunteers and leaders in a wide variety of service initiatives, so much so that several years ago, they were jointly awarded the "George C. Klein, Service Above Self Award", something that had never been done jointly before or since. Both Sharon and Bob are two of the kindest, most competent, humble people you'll ever meet. Please enjoy our talk.
Carol Lagergren, Mayor of Norwood Young America
With the 212 expansion looking like a near term reality, the western part of Carver County will soon experience a rush of new people moving out. Long time resident, educator and civic volunteer and now Mayor Carol Lagergren is guiding NYA (The "Mini-Twin Cities") into this new era. Her passion for small town living and her enthusiasm for her community are evident in this conversation. Carol seems to be the right leader for times. She is thoughtful and engaged and has a strong sense of service. Please enjoy this conversation with one of Carver County's leaders.