Pioneer Editorial: Community pauses to honor heroes

A community can do no finer a duty than to pause and give praise to its heroes and to share in the successes. We will do that twice this week, as later in the week our sons and daughters, husbands and wives, friends and neighbors who are members of the Minnesota National Guard are deployed to Iraq from training grounds they've occupied in Mississippi since last fall. We will honor them, wish them Godspeed and carry them in our prayers.

Today we also honor heroes of our community, the men's and women's curling teams who struck out from Bemidji to so ably represent us in the Winter Olympic Games in Italy. We hope that the Pete Fenson and Cassie Johnson rinks receive the rich accolades today from the community that they so richly deserve in events planned to honor their successes.

The U.S. Senate, behind the efforts of Minnesota's Sens. Norm Coleman and Mark Dayton, on Thursday passed a resolution of commemoration, and it speaks well of the Bemidji tradition:

Resolution

Recognizing the history and achievements of the curling community of Bemidji, Minnesota.

Whereas the citizens of Bemidji, Minnesota, have enjoyed the sport of curling ever since the Hibbing Curling Club demonstrated the sport during the Winter Carnival of 1932;

Whereas many families who live in Bemidji have participated in the sport for over four generations, the latest of whom enjoy the opportunity to enroll in high school courses that are held at the Bemidji Curling Club and focus on the fundamentals of curling;

Whereas members of the Bemidji community gathered at the Tourist Information Building and organized the now famous Bemidji Curling Club on January 13, 1935;

Whereas the Club brought the Bemidji community together, as members routinely shared their equipment with fellow curlers until the Club could afford to purchase a sufficient supply of stones, brooms, and other items;

Whereas the Bemidji Curling Club has promoted the participation of women in the sport of curling for almost 60 years;

Whereas the tireless efforts of parents and fellow members of the Club have inspired a large number of youths in the Bemidji community to participate in junior leagues;

Whereas teams belonging to the Bemidji Curling Club have won over 50 State and national titles;

Whereas, after producing generations of champion curlers, the City of Bemidji, the Bemidji Curling Club, and the town of Chisholm have the honor of calling themselves the home of the 2006 United States Men's and Women's Olympic Curling Teams;

Whereas the citizens of Bemidji and Chisholm celebrated the strong performances of each Olympic curling team, and watched with pride as the Men's Olympic Curling Team captured the bronze medal in Torino; and

Whereas the Bemidji Curling Club and the City of Bemidji continues to foster the growth and development of curling by hosting the United States World Team Trials in March of 2006: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate --

(1) recognizes the curling community of Bemidji for its efforts in promoting the sport of curling in Minnesota and the United States; and

(2) respectfully requests the Enrolling Clerk of the Senate to transmit an enrolled copy of this resolution to --

(A) the City of Bemidji; and

(B) the Bemidji Curling Club.