James Armstrong, Winona’s first Poet Laureate, taught English and creative writing at Winona State University in Winona, Minnesota for 24 years. He helps run the Maria W. Faust Sonnet Contest and plays guitar in the Bell House Band. Jim is author of “Monument in a Summer Hat”, “Blue Lash”, “Nature, Culture and Two Friends Talking” (with Kim Chapman), and “Crossings, the Poets Laureate of Winona, Minnesota” (with Emilio DeGrazia, Ken McCullough and Nicholle Ramsey).

Global travel and nature inspire Berta Aug’s poetry and prose. She resides in the wooded valley of Buffalo Grove near Preston, MN.

Delia Bell is a writer and poet, establishing herself as a regional visual artist under the tutelage of master potter Mary Denzer, owner of Seven Bridges Pottery near Houston, MN. She also works part-time with Lanesboro Arts, Sylvan Brewing, Scandinavian Inn, and Lanesboro Public Library.

Don Bell is a retired electrical and broadcasting engineer who grew up in Milwaukee and spent most of his professional career in Pittsburgh. His mother grew up in Lanesboro and he always thought of it as home. He now lives in Lanesboro with his wife, Anna Loney and two youngest kids.

Mary Bell lives with her husband Joe Deden in a solar powered home in Lanesboro. She is a clean energy advocate, food drying expert and author of many books including: Cutting Across Time, Mary Bell’s Complete Food Dehydrator Cookbook, Food Drying With An Attitude, Just Jerky and more.

Madelyn Bergey is a southeastern-Minnesota native and graduate of Fillmore Central High School in Harmony, Minnesota. She was a work-study intern at Lanesboro Arts in 2023, and is now a student at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. Madelyn enjoys exploring varied art forms and media and their ability to convey messages.

Renée Bergstrom is a photographer, weaver and painter whose artwork is available at Lanesboro Arts. Renée loves to dig in the dirt so you may see her in her garden along the Root River Trail. She is currently a Public Voices Fellow on Advancing the Rights of Women and Girls with the OpEd Project and Equality Now. The cohort of twenty women is publishing thought provoking articles.

Karla Bloem is founder and Executive Director of the International Owl Center and its International Festival of Owls in Houston, Minnesota.

Tom Brudvig lives in Lanesboro and is active in the community as a volunteer for the Rhubarb Festival, Buffalo Bill Days and Lanesboro Arts.

Dan Butterfass holds an MFA in poetry from the Vermont College of Fine Arts; he’s made his living as a college English instructor, freelance outdoor writer, bookshop proprietor, and entrepreneur in the field of tourism. His debut collection of poetry, Aerie, was published by Shipwreckt Books of Winona in May 2024 and spans a quarter century of his writing life. Dan has lived in Rochester with his wife, Ellen, for the past three decades, where they have raised three children. When not working in the Med City, he lives in a two-room cabin on forested land in the blufflands of southeastern Minnesota.

Laurie Byrne is a small business owner in Chatfield. Art, hiking, cooking, and reading are just a few of her favorite things.

Story author artist Charles Capek spent his childhood school years in Rochester and many summers with his Mulhern cousins on their Fountain, Minn. farm. He calls “Fillmore County” a paradise for artists and for anyone who appreciates the character and generational memories that exist in a particular land and its people and animals.

Contributor to the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk.

Rebecca (Becky) Damron’s move to Lanesboro was a return home to the Midwest after many years away. She earned her PhD in 1997 from Oklahoma State University in English with specialization in applied linguistics. For five years she taught at the University of Tulsa, directing the Writing Program and Writing Center. As an English professor in the Rhetoric and Professional Writing Program at Oklahoma State University, she directed the OSU Writing Center for 10 years. Under her tenure, the writing center developed a community outreach mission that included supervising development of a writing center at the local high school and collaborating with a children’s museum, domestic violence shelter and library to integrate writing activities. She also served as OSU Writing Project director for three years and worked intimately with teachers state-wide to improve the teaching of writing.

Joe Deden is the retired founding director of Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center whose interests range from prairie restoration and forest management to energy-efficient housing, sustainable living — and photography. He and his wife Mary Bell live in An All Electric, Solar Shingle, Amish Built, Forever Home featured in Root River Current in December 2023.

Ella Deutchman came to southeast Minnesota as an Environmental Education Fellow at Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center. She loves to write, run, read and spend her free time out in the sun.

Mike Dougherty is the Director of Communications and Public Engagement for the Minnesota Department of Transportation, District 6, an 11-county region in southeast Minnesota. Prior to joining MnDOT, he was a reporter and editor at the Post Bulletin newspaper in Rochester.

Katie Drewitz is the Extension Educator – Agriculture Production, Horticulture & Natural Resources, University of Minnesota Extension Fillmore and Houston Counties.

Kristi Eaton is a correspondent at The Daily Yonder, focused on rural and small-town stories.

After calling Minnesota’s bluff country home for more than 25 years, Drue Fergison returned to her beloved France in 2022. She settled into the town of Saint-Maixent-l'Ecole, from which her Protestant ancestor Pierre Chamois escaped religious persecution around 1635 during the religious wars. She lives in a very tall house with her husband Ralph and loves being two hours from Paris, which she considers the center of the world.

Bonnie Flaig is editor of the book, "Frank Walsh’s Kitchen and Other Stories." She's a teacher at Rochester Community and Technical College and lives in Rushford.

Colleen Foehrenbacher is Executive Director of Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center near Lanesboro. She grew up in Ohio, earned a biology degree from Wittenberg University, and studied environmental education at Hamline University in St. Paul. “My one-year plan was to come to Minnesota, deal with the cold, learn to be a quality educator, and head south.” But this place and its outdoor ethos pulled her in. “I fell in love with Eagle Bluff, with teaching, and with the beauty of the Driftless region.”

Hugh Gabriel is a writer, educator and scientist based in Minneapolis. His specialties are frog research and prairie restoration, and he currently works at the Bell Museum of Natural History.

Larry Gavin is the author of five books of poetry. For 15 years he worked as a senior editor at Midwest Fly Fishing magazine where he wrote about the challenges facing cold water fisheries. A southern Minnesotan, he fishes the Root River and its tributaries year-round.

Bonnie Gibson lives and gardens in the lovely Diamond Creek valley east of Whalan, Minn.

Jeff Gorfine of Rochester is a dad; retired community worker in areas of mental health, poverty, corrections & education; writer of strung-words; and lover of reading, long walks and ridin’ backroads.

Author Amy Jo Hahn’s historical work includes several published articles, an oral history project titled Voices of Harmony, various archival projects, research, and content contribution to PBS station KSMQ’s “R Town” historical segment. She is author of Lost Rochester (Arcadia Publishing, 2017). Hahn holds a BA and an MA in mass communication, and a certificate in historic preservation. Her hometown is Harmony; she resides in Rochester.

Steve Harris is a freelance writer from Lanesboro who can be reached at sharris1962@msn.com or (952) 836-7904.

Sharen Haugerud Storhoff is part of a seven generation Norwegian American family whose ancestors immigrated in 1853 from Telemark, Norway. Both Gausta and her family were founding members of Greenfield Lutheran Church in Harmony, of which she is still a member. She recently toured Telemark, Norway with her daughter, and continues to enlarge Gausta’s story.

Su Hwang (she/her) is a poet, activist, stargazer, and the author of Bodega (Milkweed Editions), which received the 2020 Minnesota Book Award in poetry and was named a finalist for the 2021 Kate Tufts Discovery Award in Poetry. Born in Seoul, Korea, she was raised in New York, then called the Bay Area home. She now lives in the Twin Cities.

Contributor to the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk.

When not otherwise drumming with area musicians or assisting customers at Rushford’s Ace Hardware, Craig Johnson’s photographer’s eye focuses on the region’s picturesque scenery and its sports teams. Look for his work in a variety of regional publications.

Erin Jordan reports for the Cedar Rapids Gazette. This story is a product of the the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk, an editorially independent reporting network based at the University of Missouri School of Journalism, in partnership with Report For America and the Society of Environmental Journalists, with major funding from the Walton Family Foundation.

Loni Kemp worked for 40 years bringing organizations together to create sustainable agriculture, renewable energy and a healthy environment. She gardens and forages at her home near Canton, Minn.

Diane Knight is an artist and poet who believes everyone can be an artist. “All of us can create, at every age,” she says. “It looks different for each person, from a little child arranging colorful rocks to young people and adults painting, crafting, doing needlework, dancing, writing, singing. There are so many ways to create. Even cooking is an art form.” Diane has lived in the Whalan, MN area since 1991. She is a visual artist and author of Putting Down Words, a book of poems and doodles available at Lanesboro Arts and through Amazon.

Rose Korabek owns Korabek Ink & Edit, LLC based in southeast Minnesota. She is an award-winning storyteller who enjoys exploring culture, cuisine and landscapes. She has been a writer for the Rochester Post Bulletin and the Caledonia Argus. Her hobbies include reading, taking nature hikes, traveling and visiting farmers markets.

Alison Leathers is a Preston native who has enjoyed learning about the region from a new perspective having moved back to the area after living out of state. She's studied at Northland College in Ashland, Wis., the University of Minnesota and Tennessee State University. She's an active volunteer with several area organizations.

Stena Lieb teaches art and journalism at Lanesboro High School.

Julie Little has degrees in journalism and education with experience in newspapers, schools and libraries. She firmly believes that words are one of humankind’s best inventions.

Tim Little discovered southeast Minnesota when joining friends at the Old Barn Resort and biking the Root River Trail. There was something about the place that spoke to his soul, and the word was “home.” Tim and his wife Julie Little built a house near Harmony in 2016. They enjoy writing original songs together and own Lyric Hills Music, LLC.

Happily “Driftless”, Anna Loney and family reside in Lanesboro, Minn., and can often be found hammering, soldering, forging and forming her world into objects of art or intrigue.

Greg Lovell’s love of writing began in middle school and continues through today. He has written for numerous publications and enjoys the creative process and learning about new people, places, and professions. Originally from La Crescent, Greg has lived in the Coulee Region his whole life and currently resides in La Crosse with his wife and son.

Poet and singer-songwriter Ann Lowe lives in Lanesboro, MN. Recently transplanted from Sheridan, Wyoming, she and her husband Andy have enjoyed exploring the beautiful and diverse landscape of the area with their dog, Reggie. Ann and Andy—AKA Needy Dog—perform at various events around southeast Minnesota.

Poet and essayist Ken Lubinski is a retired biologist from the U.S. Geological Survey. Former Brownsville-area residents, he and his wife Sara now live in Arizona. They make regular sojourns north, exploring old haunts along the Upper Mississippi River, including visits to the Root River valley.

Clare Mazack grew up in Madison, Wisconsin and moved to Minnesota in 2018 to work as an educator at Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center. She is passionate about environmental education.

Joy Mazur, The Columbia Missourian, contributed to this story, which is a product of the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk, an editorially independent reporting network based at the University of Missouri School of Journalism, in partnership with Report For America and the Society of Environmental Journalists, with major funding from the Walton Family Foundation.

Contributor to the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk.

Janelle Molony, M.S.L. has been recognized by the Minnesota Genealogical Society and the National Federation of Press Women. Her 2022 BookFest award-winner, Poems from the Asylum by Martha Nasch (2021), is available on Amazon and in specialty book retailers, worldwide. Learn more at JanelleMolony.com

Richard Montgomery is creator and producer of the Moving to France podcast featuring interviews and conversations with people who have made the move to France.

Dick Nethercut is a lawyer retired from private practice. He currently serves on several boards of directors for economic development and nonprofit organizations.

John B. Nicol is a theater artist, essayist and poet. He lives in Lanesboro.

Nancy Overcott is the author of several books about nature and living in the Big Woods of Fillmore County, including Fifty Common Birds of the Upper Midwest, Fifty Uncommon Birds of the Upper Midwest, and Living in a Dream, Bluff Country Offerings found in community libraries throughout the SELCO (Southeastern Libraries Cooperating) region. Overcott’s books were illustrated by Dana Gardner.

David Phillips lives in Spring Valley. He is a writer, photographer and editor who worked with various newspapers for 45 years until retiring as publisher of the Bluff Country Newspaper Group in southeastern Minnesota in 2020.

Various RRC photographers and contributors to the RRC photo gallery.

Elise Plunk is an environmental reporter for the Louisiana Illuminator and the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk.

Tom Pursell was born and raised in Illinois. He went directly into the Army after high school, then worked in a succession of hot, dirty jobs until he conceded that higher education was a good idea. After graduating from the University of Minnesota Law School he practiced law in the Twin Cities for 40 years before deciding that his garden and orchard couldn't do without him. Tom and his wife, Peggy, now contemplate the world from the brow of a bluff outside of Lanesboro, MN.

Jim Ruen is an agricultural journalist who lives and works on a small farm outside La Crescent, MN. “I have had the good fortune to spend the bulk of my career sharing the work of exceptional farmers and their agronomists, as well as public and private researchers working in agriculture and related fields throughout the United States and Canada.”

Greg Schieber is an attorney in Harmony, MN and an amateur homesteader. He lives with his wife and three young children on a small acreage in southern Fillmore County’s Big Woods.

Rachel Schieffelbein is a Chatfield native. She works at a Chatfield preschool and coaches speech and theater at the high school. She lives outside of town with her husband, their four kids, twelve dogs, three cats and a pet snake named Igor.

David Shaffer is a retired Star Tribune reporter who lives in Lanesboro and serves on the board of the Win-Cres Chapter of Trout Unlimited.

Jane Skinner Peck is a writer, historian, performer, choreographer, theater and dance educator and director of History Alive Lanesboro. She has written poetry since her teen years, and also writes history plays and essays performed around the state since 1995 and acted as a Minnesota State Arts Board resident artist in schools. She is committed to bringing alive the understandings of the past. She and husband Mike Jensen live on Leafy Legacy Herb Farm near Lanesboro.

Luke Slindee, formerly of Harmony, lives in Hopkins, Minnesota and is a pharmacist who studies monopolies and anticompetitive business practices in the healthcare industry.

Sara Sturgis is development director at Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center. After serving Eagle Bluff for 20 years, she explored other roles as executive director of Chatfield Center for the Arts and executive director of Fillmore County Historical Society before returning to a leadership role focused on environmental education.

Mary Swander is an award-winning writer of drama, poetry and nonfiction with a national and international reputation. A former Poet Laureate of Iowa, Mary is a member of the Iowa Writers Collaborative and was named one of four 2022 honorees by Iowa Women’s Hall of Fame.

Adrienne Sweeney is in her 22nd season with the Commonweal Theatre, where she is Associate Artistic Director, and Director of External Relations and actor. A Lanesboro resident originally from Philadelphia, she holds an M.F.A. in acting from the University of Arizona, and is a commercial voice talent heard regionally on radio and TV.

Members of the RRC editorial/production staff.

John Torgrimson is managing editor and co-publisher of Root River Current.

Pat Torgrimson has called the Root River valley home for more than 30 years. She was co-owner of the Fillmore County Journal for 13 years and graphic artist for Seed Savers Exchange. Her hobbies are gardening, gardening, and gardening.

Bonita Underbakke lives in Fillmore County and is grateful to learn from and live with neighbors in a widening community.

Frank Vaisvilas is a former Report for America corps member who covers Native American issues in Wisconsin for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Sandy Webb loves being outdoors under sky or water. She was director of the Lanesboro History Museum for 10 years, and is a skilled storyteller and regular with Lanesboro Community Theatre. She’s been active in southeast Minnesota’s arts community since moving to Lanesboro in 2010.

John Weiss was a full-time reporter for the Rochester Post-Bulletin for 41 years and wrote the Back Roads column for more than 10 years. His passions include hunting, fishing, birding, nature photography, hiking and just kicking around.

Ann Wessel is an information officer with the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources whose mission is to work with partners to improve and protect Minnesota’s land and water resources.

Richard Wolfgramm began journaling in 2006, shortly after buying a house in Lanesboro.

Melissa Wray is program director at Lanesboro Arts and founding director of Mainspring, a Houston County-based cultural center in Caledonia. Melissa earned a master’s degree in Arts and Cultural Leadership from the University of Minnesota. She was awarded a two-year Rural Regenerator Fellowship through Springboard for the Arts in 2022 and Emerging Artist grants from the Southeast Minnesota Arts Council in 2024 and 2025.