Ashley White
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Ashley White is the community content coordinator for the West Central Tribune. Follow her on Twitter @Ashley_WCT.
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By Ashley White awhite@wctrib.com wo Willmar High School graduates have broken into the biz. Show business, that is. For two months last year, Ashley Foster, class of 1999, and Chris Axelson, class of 2005, worked on TLC's summer reality show "Mall Cops: Mall of America." The show featured Foster in her job as mall security's special operations supervisor, and Axelson worked on the crew as a field production coordinator. "I've always had an interest in photography and filmography," said Axelson, who now lives in Duluth.
By Ashley White awhite@wctrib.com Minnesota native and singer/songwriter John Elliott won't say he's made it big -- yet. But with five albums, an international following and featured spots on Prime Time television shows like "Grey's Anatomy," most people would say he already has. This Friday, Willmar area residents can catch Elliott perform live at 7 p.m. at Whitney Music on North Business 71 in Willmar. He'll present an acoustic concert with his guitar and a piano, and the audience can even expect a sing-along at some point.
WILLMAR -- For one Korean War veteran, his 82nd birthday might just be the best one yet. Lloyd Tollefson will be celebrating his birthday today by traveling to Minneapolis with 65 other veterans to watch the Twins take on the Cleveland Indians at Target Field. His two daughters, Sharon Tollefson and Kathy Thonbold, paid for him and a friend to go on the trip, sponsored by the Kandiyohi County Veterans Service Office. "It was a real surprise and a real pleasure," Lloyd Tollefson said of his daughters' birthday gift.
WILLMAR -- The 29th annual Sonshine Festival finished as planned Saturday evening after a potential storm threatened to cancel the festival's closing performances. At around 5:30 p.m. Saturday, the Sheriff's Reserve patrolling the grounds advised all festival campers to take down their tents because of a possible storm with high winds and hail expected. Security had been preparing for a storm all afternoon, according to Sgt. Julie Asmus of the Willmar Police Department. At 6:40 p.m., festival-goers were sent to their cars, the high school or the Civic Center to wait out the storm.
WILLMAR - Sonshiners were forced to evacuate the festival grounds Saturday night after a potential tornado cloud was spotted over the city. At around 5:30 p.m., the Sheriff's Reserve patrolling the grounds advised all festival campers to take down their tents because of a possible storm with high winds and hail. Security had been expecting and preparing for a storm all afternoon, according to Sgt. Julie Asmus of the Willmar Police Department. At 6:40 p.m., festival-goers were sent to their cars, the high school or the Civic Center to wait out the storm.
WILLMAR -- High temperatures Friday didn't stop Sonshiners from enjoying the festival to its fullest. The second day of the 29th annual Sonshine music festival offered with a diverse line-up of artists, including concerts from big-name bands Superchick, the O.C. Supertones and the David Crowder Band. Friday ended with a performance by the newsboys, a band that has been representing the Christian music genre for 25 years.
WILLMAR -- From rap music to social networking, young people at Sonshine are finding new, fresh ways to express their Christian faith. Friday, a number of hip hop, heavy metal and rap bands performed on the festival's indoor stages. These bands had Sonshiners headbanging, praying with their fists in the air and "making some noise for Jesus." Tyler Wivstad, 18, from Annandale, rocked out to several of the bands on the Holy Hip Hop Stage yesterday afternoon.
WILLMAR -- When most people camp out at Sonshine, they make sure to bring the essentials: a sleeping bag, sunscreen and plenty of snacks. But when Amanda Krause, 23, and her mother Martha come to camp at the festival, they have to haul along everything from a Hoyer Lift to an oxygen tank to a portable air conditioner. Amanda, from Fergus Falls, has Friedreich's ataxia, a rare neuromuscular disease that causes muscle loss, severe scoliosis, heart failure, hearing and vision loss, slurred speech and sometimes -- as in Amanda's case -- diabetes.
WILLMAR -- The 29th annual Sonshine Festival officially began yesterday with more than 30 bands hitting the stage. The evening ended with concerts by Tenth Avenue North and Casting Crowns, an 11-time Dove Award winner and 2005 Grammy winner for best pop/contemporary gospel album of the year. Some of the festival-goers were there for the first time, others were veterans who keep coming back because they enjoy the music and the atmosphere.
WILLMAR -- Not even heavy bouts of pouring rain could dampen Sonshiners' spirits as they continued to arrive at the festival Wednesday. All morning and afternoon, groups of people showed up at the grounds surrounding the Willmar Civic Center ready to pitch their tents, settle in and enjoy a night of music on the Main Stage. Sonshine kicked off Wednesday evening with a free concert by Remedy Drive and Family Force 5, and the festival officially begins at 9 this morning and continues until late Saturday. Campers, however, could begin showing up as early as Tuesday, and many were finding creat