Author: Stuart Sudak

When beginning work at the PROP Food Shelf in 2008, Janet Palmer learned something new about her longtime community. Eden Prairie is home to many big hearts. If their neighbors struggled, residents stepped up to help. That eye-opener came while she saw People Reaching Out to People’s (PROP’s) founding principle of neighbors helping neighbors by donating time, food and money in action. “I learned just how much the community supports PROP and all the other non-profits here,” said Palmer, an Eden Prairie resident for 30 years. “I lived here, but working full-time, I didn’t know all the organizations that were helping people.…

Since retiring as Eden Prairie city clerk last month, Kathryn “Kitty” Porta’s life moves at the pace of a stroll rather than a dash. That became clear to her during a recent walk around Round Lake with her dog Max, a 5-year-old yellow Labrador. “I realized I’m not rushing (to finish),” she said. “I can slow down a little bit.” Porta, the city clerk from 1999 until her Aug. 20 retirement, is delighting in her new free time. In all, Porta worked 33 years for the city, 26 of those years full-time. The Eden Prairie city clerk’s responsibilities include administering…

The Eden Prairie Police Department reported the following incidents. The Eden Prairie Police and Fire departments responded to a report that a plane flipped over upon landing at Flying Cloud Airport at about 11 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 23. The pilot was the only passenger on the fixed-wing single-engine plane. He was treated at the scene for minor injuries and released. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will investigate. There are no further details available at this time. A catalytic converter was stolen from a 2008 Honda Element parked in the employee portion of a lot…

The Minnesota Festival of Jazz on the Prairie began about 30 years ago to showcase big band jazz ensembles in the Twin Cities. That’s according to Rob Estrine, director of the Jazz on the Prairie Big Band. It is one of seven bands performing in the festival from noon to 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 26, at the Staring Lake Amphitheatre, 14800 Pioneer Trail.  Each band plays for 45 minutes at the start of each hour of the festival. The bands perform in this order: Just Friends Big Band; Good News Big Band; Bend in the River Big Band; ACME Jazz…

We, the kids and the adults of the Olympic Hills 9/11 Lemonade Stand, want to thank you for your most generous donations to our 21st stand. This year the stand made over $20,000, and we were gifted a match of $20,000. $1,000 will be taken out for a tree and bench to be placed at the Veterans Memorial in Purgatory Creek Park. The bench will have a plaque with the stand’s name. Our stand is about community and never forgetting. With all your support, we have made such a difference. Thank you from our hearts! The kids of the Olympic…

Winnebago Industries, which manufactures recreational vehicles, will shift its corporate headquarters from Forest City, Iowa, to Eden Prairie effective Dec. 1. The change will not affect where Winnebago employees are currently located, said company spokesman Sam Jefson. It is “simply an address change” for its corporate headquarters, Jefson added. Winnebago’s executive offices have been located at 13200 Pioneer Trail since 2016. That space will become Winnebago’s corporate headquarters in December. Winnebago established the executive offices after hiring Michael Happe as its president and CEO. The former head of Toro Co. lived in Eden Prairie before reportedly moving to Edina this…

Despite a 14-year age gap, Anthony Amatuccio and his younger brother Joseph were very close. Amatuccio was the godfather to Joseph’s son, and Joseph was the godfather to Amatuccio’s youngest son. “We were pretty similar,” Amatuccio said. “We had good times together. Both of us loved to cook. Both of us loved to eat.” Those bonds remained strong even after Amatuccio relocated to Eden Prairie and Joseph remained in their native New York City. Joseph came out to visit Amatuccio a few times in Minnesota and loved it. “There’s no doubt that he would have been out here many more…

When life gave the country lemons, the Olympic Hills neighborhood made lemonade. Twenty years after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the Eden Prairie neighborhood continues to do so during its annual Olympic Hills 9/11 Lemonade Stand. This year’s lemonade stand will mark the 20th anniversary of 9/11 from 2 to 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 11, at 9497 Painters Ridge, Eden Prairie. “It’s actually our 21st anniversary because we had one a week after 9/11,” said Sue Donkersgoed, the event’s one constant through the years. “My son (Van) was in second grade, and now he’ll be 28. It’s hard to…

Judith Mary (Nelson) Ellingson of Friendship Village in Bloomington passed away peacefully on September 5, 2021, at age 86. Born to Denise and A. Herbert Nelson on January 25, 1935, Judy grew up in the Linden Hills neighborhood of Southwest Minneapolis, spent many of her summers at the family cabin on Big Sandy Lake, and graduated from the University of Minnesota. While at the U of M, Judy and the love of her life, Dave Ellingson, made lifelong friends as they participated in Theta and SAE events. Judy devoted herself to her children and grandchildren. She was the kind of…

Two people have died from injuries suffered in an early Sunday, Sept. 5, one-vehicle crash in Minnetonka. The crash occurred after several vehicles suspected of street racing in Eden Prairie fled police. KSTP-TV and social media posts identified Devlyn Voss, 19, of Maplewood, and Marina Emms, 19, of Woodbury, as the crash victims. According to an Eden Prairie police statement, officers responded at 1:41 a.m. Sept. 5 to a 911 call indicating multiple vehicles were street racing at Flying Cloud Drive and Crosstown Circle. Several vehicles fled the area as officers arrived, leading to a short pursuit of one vehicle…