There’s a new scholarship at the University of Minnesota in honor of alums Curtis and Joan Smith – it’s from the foundation formed by their son, Chad, who’s also the drummer for Red Hot Chili Peppers. SEE: https://fluence-media.co/42o0EgZ
Yes, those were witches paddleboarding on Lake Nokomis this week. SEE: https://fluence-media.co/4nCgqNN
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CELEBRATING 70 YEARS: The Pine Bend refinery in Rosemount is a landmark like no other – the tall columns and bright lights can be seen from miles away. Generations of workers have helped operate, maintain and transform the refinery, making it one of the nation’s most innovative and efficient energy facilities of its kind. This year, Flint Hills Resources celebrates 70 years of dedicated employees at the Pine Bend refinery who have produced the fuels that help move us forward. LEARN MORE: About the Pine Bend refinery (SPONSORED: Flint Hills Resources Pine Bend refinery)
All Fluence tipsheets are now available to read and share online at our website, The Daily Agenda:
TOMORROW: From Lupulin Brewing via Facebook, VERBATIM: “Join us at the brewery on Saturday, October 4th, from 12 PM to 4 PM to celebrate this special release! A Face For Radio is a collaboration with Second Harvest Heartland, Jason DeRusha, and Shorewood Liquor. We aged this beer in a single Buffalo Trace barrel for 18 months, and we’re donating 100% of the sales to Second Harvest Heartland to help fight hunger in our communities.” SEE: https://fluence-media.co/3IOFVfp
TOMORROW: Via GIGI’s Playhouse, VERBATIM: “GiGi’s Playhouse Twin Cities invites media to attend and cover Ava’s Dance for Down Syndrome, a heartwarming community celebration honoring the memory of Ava Granger, a beloved participant who passed away in 2021. Ava loved to dance, and this annual event carries her joyful spirit forward with a night of music, movement, and inclusion. Proceeds benefit GiGi’s Twin Cities 100% free therapeutic programs, including the adaptive dance and fitness programs, which helps individuals with Down syndrome build strength, confidence, and connection through movement and expression.”
TATTOOS: Via Northern News Now, VERBATIM: “A weekend house fire destroyed the home of a Duluth family. The parents and kids made it out in time to avoid injury in Duluth’s central hillside neighborhood. However, all of their possessions, and two of their pets were lost in the flames Sunday. But the help of their neighbors has turned the family’s devastation into hope . . . The Rosendahl’s are tattoo artists, and now a weekend fundraiser at Benchmark Tattoo is being held to help raise money for whatever the family needs. Shop owner Kyle Grover says the flash designs people could get tattooed on Sunday mean more than just helping the Rosendahl’s.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/472Radz
FOOD SHELVES: Via Enterprise Dispatch, VERBATIM: “In Wright County, the Cokato Area Food Shelf and Meeker County’s Dassel Area Food Shelf are among the organizations responding to increased demand. Volunteers report a steady rise in families seeking help, especially seniors, single parents and households navigating job loss or medical expenses. Food shelf leaders cite a combination of economic pressures driving the surge. Inflation has pushed grocery prices up more than 20 percent since 2022, while housing and utility costs continue to climb. Pandemic-era relief programs have ended, leaving many families without the safety nets they relied on.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4o0LqXm
OUTDOORS: Via Minnesota Women’s Press, VERBATIM: “When Luisana Méndez immigrated to Minnesota eight years ago, the Mississippi River and abundant lakes reminded her of the Orinoco River winding through her homeland of Venezuela . . . Today, the same trails she grew to love are at the heart of Huellas Latinas — meaning ‘Latino footprints’ in Spanish — the nonprofit she founded in 2021 to help fellow immigrants find a sense of belonging through outdoor activities.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4nVqRvu
GRANTS: Via Otto Bremer Trust, VERBATIM: “The Otto Bremer Trust awarded $12,445,000 in grants and program-related investments from May through August 2025.” LIST: https://fluence-media.co/432w1xE
TODAY: Via Saint Paul Downtown Alliance, VERBATIM: “Community members, residents, downtown visitors and media are invited to “Party on the Pavement” and celebrate Robert Street businesses at a lively block party on Robert Street between 9th and 10th streets and in Pedro Park on Friday, Oct. 3, from 4-6:30 p.m. The party is being held as the City of Saint Paul prepares to reopen the portion of Robert Street between 9th and 11th streets.” MORE: https://fluence-media.co/472Qtkt
NEXT WEEK: Via Habitat for Humanity, VERBATIM: “Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity will hold a Grand Opening for its new ReStore October 10 and 11 at 9300 Winnetka Ave. N., Ste 200, Brooklyn Park, Mn 55445. The public is welcome from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 10, and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 11. The two-day opening celebration includes great shopping deals, swag bags, raffles, food trucks and visits from local radio stations.” MEDIA KIT: https://fluence-media.co/46LJlaL
NEXT WEEKEND: Via Brainerd Dispatch, VERBATIM: “A family-friendly program of short classical works from many different countries will take place at noon and 2 p.m. Oct. 12 at Sacred Heart Chapel, 116 Eighth Ave. SE in Little Falls . . . This is a benefit concert for Listen For Life. Donations will help sustain its award-winning projects, productions and programs here in Minnesota, across the U.S. and worldwide.
Listen For Life is supporting the creation of a Ukrainian music school in Warsaw, Poland called Voloshka Music House, where refugee children who have endured the hardships of war can continue their musical education as they adapt to their temporary new home.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/46Ujbmx
BOOKS: Via Lakeland PBS, VERBATIM: “The group Friends of the Brainerd Public Library kicked off their semi-annual book sale Wednesday morning at the Westgate Mall. The sale will run through Friday, Oct. 3 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. each day.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4o64CmS
MARATHON: Via Twin Cities in Motion, VERBATIM: “Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon weekend is right around the corner! If you’re still looking to sign up for the marathon and 10-mile, those races are officially sold out, which means the only way you can run is through a charity partner. Twin Cities in Motion, the organization behind the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon, has launched Raise the Community Pace, a three-year initiative to expand its charity running program. The goal of this initiative is to triple the number of charity runners, double the total number of charity partners and raise $2.62 million for charities annually by 2026.” CHARITY PARTNERS: https://fluence-media.co/4mI9U6V VOLUNTEER: https://fluence-media.co/477wlh2
MORE: Via Axios, VERBATIM: “Hundreds of blue and green ribbons honoring Annunciation shooting victims will line historic Summit Avenue for this weekend’s Twin Cities Marathon.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4gXP7uK
HOCKEY: Via WQOW-TV, VERBATIM: “In a few short weeks, a Minnesota-based nonprofit hockey team will be taking a trip to Black River Falls for a charity game. The Minnesota Warriors Ice Hockey organization started 15 years ago, and since its inception it has used the game of hockey to bring healing for veterans with disabilities.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3VIU8O5
SCHOOLYARD: Via MPR, VERBATIM: “At recess time at Franklin Elementary School in Rochester, students scamper around a new playground area covered with soft woodchips, weaving in and out and around wooden play structures, with some of the kids climbing and swinging from ropes. This redesigned schoolyard is generating a lot of excitement. The kids call it “the best” and say they love it. What was once a plain expanse of grass next to the playground is being remade into natural prairie land with newly seeded native plants. The yard is also dotted with newly planted trees that are scrawny saplings now but in time will provide large canopies of shade on hotter days.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4nCham3
FRESH15: The latest season of Fresh15 includes interviews with new Minnesota House members. So far, five new members have shared their goals, background and fun facts before they take office in a historic session this January.
Rep. Kari Rehrauer
Rep. Wayne Johnson
Rep. Julie Greene
Rep. Keith Allen
Rep. Peter Johnson
Follow on your favorite podcast platform, or at www.TheDailyAgenda.com/Podcasts. (SPONSORED: Minnesota Telecom Alliance)
NEXT WEEK: Via Apraxia Kids, VERBATIM: “At the Walk for Apraxia, we gather to celebrate the achievements of our Apraxia Stars, and to raise funds to support the programs that help our Stars shine. The Walk for Apraxia sustains educational opportunities, awareness, financial aid, support for research, and much more. By joining the Walk, you are making our apraxia community tighter, stronger, and ready for the road ahead.” SEE: https://fluence-media.co/3WibpOb
TEACHERS: Via KSTP-TV, VERBATIM: “A Twin Cities organization is working to close the achievement gap and increase representation in the classroom by thinking outside the box. At a Wednesday morning breakfast, Twin Cities nonprofit Black Men Teach hosted a ‘Coaches Champions Breakfast’ to reach coaches and help them support young Black men in pursuing a career in education. At the event, coaches learned about the mission of Black Men Teach and strategized with their counterparts on how to recruit and retain young Black men in the industry.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4pT7RzA
VETERANS: Via Lakeland PBS, VERBATIM: “Over 200 people attended an event outside of the old Crow Wing County Courthouse in Brainerd on Thursday to honor the nation’s veterans.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4o5t47H
50 YEARS: Via Minnesota Monthly, VERBATIM: “In 1975, Earl Bakken—an imaginative tinkerer turned visionary inventor—founded a museum that would grow into one of Minnesota’s most unique cultural treasures. Today, as The Bakken Museum celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, the institution reflects on a half-century of sparking curiosity, honoring history, and inspiring the next generation of innovators.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4gWXeYs
DULUTH: Via Northern News Now, VERBATIM: “A piece of the Incline Railway in Duluth’s Kenwood neighborhood is deemed historical, and now there’s signs to show it. Duluth city leaders joined Parks and Recreation staff Thursday for a ribbon-cutting to showcase the incline stairway on East Skyline Parkway.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/476tlS1
HIBBING: Via Mesabi Tribune, VERBATIM: “North St. Louis County Habitat for Humanity on Tuesday broke ground on a new home that will be built with student labor. Located at 3707 Third Avenue West, the site is the future home of Jessica McNiff and her two daughters, Rileigh and Charleigh.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/48dV0l7
RETAIL: Via Bring Me The News, VERBATIM: “Knitwear brand Love Your Melon, rebranded as LYM, has returned after a short hiatus. Not only is it back, but the company has announced that it will open an 8,500-square-foot retail space at the Mall of America, where it will continue its mission of supporting kids with cancer and other life-altering illnesses.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3WkQ2vG
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