A mix of full-time and seasonal residents shared their stories - and their love for Ely - earlier this week.
The latest installment of “Meet New Elyites” at the weekly Tuesday Group luncheon brought together both retirees and those still relatively early in their careers, to the Grand Ely Lodge.
While all are relatively new to the Ely area, some had previous connections that brought them back while others took the plunge and decided to move to the area - with one couple recently buying their own business.
Beth Sutton, a server at the Grand Ely Lodge, was born here and lived for a time in Babbitt as a youth before moving to Pittsburgh.
She graduated from Penn State University and had a career as an activities director at nursing homes before moving to Ely three years ago.
Sutton has lived in Minnesota since 1994 and has a grown son who lives in the Twin Cities.
She lives in Ely with Charlie Perushek and enjoys a plethora of activities in Ely, ranging from swimming and boating to fishing.
“I like anything with water,” said Sutton. “I also like (that Ely) is slower paced and more relaxing to drive in.”
In addition to her work at the Grand Ely Lodge, Sutton works as a bartender at SamZ.
Drew and Janet Prest are the new owners of Timber Bay Lodge and Houseboats, on Birch Lake near Babbitt.
“We’ve finished season number one,” Drew said Tuesday. “We survived.”
The couple took over ownership in April and came to Ely with their two children, a daughter who graduated high school and is taking this school year off and a son who began his junior year this week at Ely Memorial High School.
Drew hails from the Twin Cities while Janet grew up in Saskatchewan. The couple met at a bible college in Canada over 30 years ago and recently celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary.
“Our kids are well adjusted to the smaller school atmosphere and I think we always looked forward to going to a smaller town like the one Janet grew up in,” said Drew. “So we’re excited for this change of pace.”
After a busy summer at the resort, the couple is looking to get more settled in and Janet noted, “We still have things in boxes” in one of the resort’s houseboats.
Dr ew cr edit e d t he strength of the business to Timber Bay’s longstanding employees and both indicated they’ve been “embraced” by the community.
“Having people pop in and say hi was just so welcoming, and reminded me so much of the small town where I was raised,” said Janet.
Whitney Woods is the new marketing director for the Ely Area Tourism Bureau, and she came to Ely this year after working as a marketing director for the Minnesota Historical Society.
“We were looking for a change in pace in terms of lifestyle for our kids,” said Woods, the mother of oneyear- old and three-year-old children. “And we had some connections up here.”
Woods also has a background in art, making and selling candles that have been available at local galleries.
She also is an aspiring writer, working on a satirical fantasy horror novel dubbed Transcendence.
“It’s dry humor mixed with dark imagery,” she said.
Woods said she is looking for childcare help and loves walking the Trezona Trail and listening to music.
In her work for the Ely Area Tourism Bureau, she’d like to see the area attract more power sports enthusiasts and to “pitch more of the arts and culture. We have a strong arts and culture scene that I don’t think people outside of the area know about.” Mary Floum moved to Ely in May, in part to be closer to family including her sister Kathy Vanderboom, an area resident.
“I feel like I’m back to my roots,” said Floum, who grew up in Wisconsin.
Floum came here from Oregon but has lived in seven states, including Minnesota from 1978-1985, and spent two years in China.
“I did live for two years in China, which was a thrill,” she said. “My husband was a scientist and his company offered him a position there. I enjoyed getting to know people in a different country, different culture. Everyone around me was Chinese. I thought it was a good experience to do that.” After her husband passed way, Floum said “I decided it’s just me, I can live wherever I want, and I wanted to live by family.”
Floum moved into a house on Garden Lake and has enjoyed swimming “every day” there. She also likes to garden, hike, travel, cook and kayak.
In a few months, she has quickly acclimated to Ely.
“I like the way people drive here - they don’t cut you off like they do in Oregon,” she said. “I like the small town feel. I like going into the grocery store or liquor store and running into somebody I know. I like going into Ace Hardware where Bob recognizes me. When I lived in Oregon, nobody at Home Depot or Lowe’s ever knew me.”
Chloe Wahlstrom is in her second summer as an employee at the Dorothy Molter Museum.
She was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri, and initially went to school in Los Angeles to pursue a career in fashion design. The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic sent her back home and she opted to study at Southeast Missouri State instead, where she earned a degree in interdisciplinary studies.
“I combined historic preservation with a focus on museum studies,” said Wahlstrom.
That led to work in Ely at the Dorothy Molter Museum, but Wahlstrom said she’s seeking additional employment because the museum job goes to part-time in the offseason.
Zoe and Greg Rochester have a cabin on Shagawa Lake but are here only from May through mid-October, spending the rest of their time at their home in Amery, WI.
“We love Ely, we love the energy here, we love the dynamics of the people,” said Zoe. “We started coming up here for the film festival. Everything we do here is so enriching, so exciting.”
Zoe was born and raised in Hibbing and worked as a middle school teacher, while Greg’s background is “from Wyoming and South Dakota,” but he eventually moved to Chisholm and worked in Hibbing as a clinical psychologist.
“I think that’s one of the things that got me interested in being here - I love the woods,” said Greg.
Both have an extensive interest and talent in the arts, as Zoe makes jewelry that has been sold in the gift shop at the Minneapolis Institute.
Greg is an accomplished painter, whose work is displayed in the Rochester Art Museum.
“I’ve incorporated some of my psychology background with my art and helping people heal from art,” he said.
Greg recalled a story of helping a person with a debilitating muscular disease extend his life with the help of art. He also donated a work that is now on display at the Ely Area Community Hub.
Both Zoe and Greg have grown children and, according to Greg, “have had a great time working in the arts together.”
