Renee Berg

Minnesota

Writer at Freelance

Contributor at Mankato Free Press

Articles

New restaurant to open in North Mankato

1 week ago | mankatofreepress.com | Renee Berg

NORTH MANKATO — When Mike Rakun was a teenager, one of his favorite things to do was grab a bite before school with his buddies at a neighborhood diner outside Chicago, his hometown. Breakfast ruled for his gaggle of friends and that’s still true today as he looks to open his fourth Benedict’s Morning Heroes restaurant on July 1 in North Mankato, 1107 Range St. The others are in Fargo, Rochester and Wayzata. The menu revolves around eggs Benedict dishes, with eight signature entrees.
Mental health services increasing

1 week ago | mankatofreepress.com | Renee Berg

MANKATO — As mental health needs increase, traffic at the Blue Earth County Mental Health Center has been growing, according to center leadership. “We’re seeing it in so many of our programs,” said Angela Youngerberg, human services director of business operations of the Mental Health Center. “The need for services is increasing. There isn’t one driving factor, there’s many. People are seeking services, which is fantastic.
Mayo expands with new sports medicine clinic at The Pond

1 week ago | mankatofreepress.com | Renee Berg

MANKATO — There will be an open house for the public 3-6 p.m. Thursday at Mayo Clinic Health System-Orthopedics and Sports Medicine at The Pond on Madison. The facility opened this past month and is neighbors with ETS Performance. Together they are providing area athletes and active adults with a wide spectrum of sports medicine care in one convenient location, according to a Mayo press release.
Minnesota State to Offer Robotics Engineering, AI Degrees

1 week ago | govtech.com | Renee Berg

MSU's new robotics engineering bachelor's degree program is the first and only robotics degree program in Minnesota, and its artificial intelligence master's degree program is the first and only graduate program of its kind in the Minnesota State system. Mohammad Alam, dean of MSU’s College of Science, Engineering and Technology, said it’s important for the university to keep pace with industry demands.
Elsa shows up to make local girls' dreams come true

2 weeks ago | mankatofreepress.com | Renee Berg

NORTH MANKATO — Four-year-old Olive Michaletz of Madison Lake loves to tell anybody and everybody that the “real” Elsa from the Disney movie “Frozen” came to her birthday party on May 18. It was actually Mollie Fischer of Once Upon A Party-Mankato masquerading as Elsa, but that’s not what Olive took to be true when Fischer appeared on her doorstep in her full Elsa getup, including a wig and dress that likened her enough to the princess to win over Olive.
A Life Remembered: Architect Paulsen built a gleaming reputation

2 weeks ago | mankatofreepress.com | Renee Berg

MANKATO — As a boy growing up in Mankato, Bryan Paulsen loved playing with blocks. So one could say he was always destined to be a premier architect, said his wife, Tami Paulsen. “He always enjoyed building things,” she said. “His brothers and parents would tell me he was always building with blocks.
St. Peter High School gets grant to build affordable homes

2 weeks ago | mankatofreepress.com | Renee Berg

ST. PETER — St. Peter Public Schools received a $99,999 grant from Minnesota Housing to create affordable housing in the community. The district will team with Habitat for Humanity of South Central Minnesota during the school year to build a house in St. Peter. Students from St. Peter High School will help construct a home from start to finish, said principal Annette Engeldinger. Ten to 15 students will take on the project. “We start in the fall,” she said.
MSU welcomes vocational students from Curacao

2 weeks ago | mankatofreepress.com | Renee Berg

MANKATO — For the first time, Minnesota State University is hosting a group of eight vocational students from the Caribbean island country of Curacao for an international internship from June 4 through Sunday. Kearney International Center, which is a branch of the Department of Global Education at MSU, organized the program. Violet Kind, international enrollment coordinator for the Kearney International Center, said the goal of the internship was to educate the students about business.
Minnesota’s Help Me Connect website grows doula list

2 weeks ago | mankatofreepress.com | Renee Berg

NEW ULM — A year after launching a list of doulas, Minnesota’s Help Me Connect website has grown to one of the largest lists of doulas in the state, and Kelsey Kober of New Ulm is one of them. The Minnesota Department of Health is encouraging families to find a doula through the Help Me Connect website and is sending a request to all doulas to sign up for the free service.
County EDA approves affordable housing project

2 weeks ago | mankatofreepress.com | Renee Berg

MANKATO — At the Blue Earth County Board meeting Tuesday, the Economic Development Authority approved an $150,000 investment into a community land trust program. It’s Phase 5 of the project, which will build 10 new-construction homes for lower-income residents in Mankato in coming years. In a presentation to the EDA, Nancy Bokelmann, housing coordinator for the city, said a matching $150,000 state grant was announced for the project on Monday.