Breaking News

Gregory J. Scheuermann, 64, of Duluth, passed away on Thursday, December 10, 2020 at his residence. Family arrangements have been entrusted to Kerntz Funeral Home of Ely.

Audrey Frances Storrs (Pechek), 82, Bemidji MN, died 12/3/2020 at her residence.

Adolph B. Austreng, 87, of Babbitt, passed away on Saturday, December 5, 2020 at Carefree Assisted Living in Babbitt. Family arrangements have been entrusted to Kerntz Funeral Home of Ely.

An Ely man was located and found to be safe several days after he went missing.
The Ely Police Department confirmed Tuesday that Michael Jacobson, 37, was “located safe by law enforcement” that day.
Further details, including where he was located, were not immediately available.
The announcement capped days of speculation, including a search by law enforcement and searches of area lakes and landings by numerous Ely area volunteers
The search for Jacobson was fueled in part by social media reports and announcements, particularly late Saturday and into Sunday.
On Sunday morning, many hours after volunteers had been searching for Jacobson, police announced that he was missing and sought public assistance.
Jacobson had last been seen at his place of employment, a local bait and tackle story, the morning of Dec. 3.

Mary Ann Franz, former longtime resident of Babbitt, MN, passed away on Friday, November 27, 2020 at Fairview Range Medical Center in Hibbing, MN. Mary Ann was born on November 18, 1945 in Mobridge, SD to Carl Arthur and Frieda (Nies) Larson. As a child, the family moved to Emily, MN where Mary Ann eventually attended nursing school and also met her husband, Conrad. Mary Ann and Conrad made their residence in Babbitt, MN where she had many fond memories of friends and the community. Mary Ann was a nurse for 30 years at Ely Bloomenson Hospital. She had two children, Tom and Lisa and two grandchildren, Mason and Zeb. Mary Ann enjoyed watching and attending rodeos. She loved spending time with family and especially her grandsons. Mary Ann was preceded in death by her parents; Carl and Frieda, husband; Conrad, brother; John Larson and nephew; Jesse James Larson.

by Nick Wognum
A new way to shop for different products from the Ely area is now available online at boundarywatersmarketplace.com.
“We were going to use Elyzon but it wasn’t available so we went with the Boundary Waters Marketplace,” said Eric Sherman who is coordinating the project with Melissa Hart.
Sherman said the goal is to give people looking for locally made products a one stop option and to give sellers a way to market their products more effectively.
“The goal is to keep local businesses in the spotlight and steer potential shoppers that way,” said Sherman. He posted the idea on Facebook where Hart saw the favorable comments.
For Hart, this was a natural next step.
“I actually had the platform that was doing what he was describing, “I had a website set up where I do fundraising selling shirts for clubs,” said Hart.

Longtime readers of the Ely Echo know that I’m a fan of Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org)
People from all over the world who want something helpful daily in their mailbox look for strange words or the quote of the day like the following:
If I can do no more, let my name stand among those who are willing to bear ridicule and reproach for the truth’s sake, and so earn some right to rejoice when the victory is won. -Louisa May Alcott, writer and reformist (29 Nov 1832-1888).
We have been lucky at the Echo since its beginning almost 50 years ago. Among the recognized writers and columnists besides Bob Cary were Sam Cook, Doug Smith, Jim Dale Vickery, Nick Wognum, Walt McElderry, David Krikorian, Pam Roberts, Trout Whisperer, Ken Hupila, Diana Mavetz Petrich and some who have been forgotten over time.

Good things come to those who wait.
Well that might be a bit dramatic given the topic, but city officials in Ely can rightly be proud of the work that led to approval Tuesday of a short-term rental ordinance.
The vote this week was the culmination of roughly two years of research, investigation and discussion of the issue.
One local official often jokes about things progressing “at the speed of government,” and that was clearly the case here as the city moved tediously to come up with a plan that best serves Ely.
But there was no pressing need to jump the gun and rush to come up with a half-baked solution or plan. At first glance, it looks like the city got this one right.
There’s no doubt that market demands have changed the landscape of lodging across the country.
Websites such as airbnb.com and vrbo.com have taken off, giving visitors to urban areas and rural communities the option to rent private homes or apartments.

by Tom Coombe
Ely’s high school football season has been capped with individual honors for three Timberwolves.
Senior Lane Anderson, junior Eddie Prijatel and sophomore Jason Kerntz were all named to the All-District Team, as selected by district coaches.
The recognition comes on the heels of a winning regular season for the Wolves, their first since 1987.
Anderson, a multiyear starter, played a key role in that success.
The 250-pounder anchored the offensive and defensive lines and came up with 39 tackles, second-most on the team.
Ely also utilized Anderson as a running back out of its “Heavy Jumbo” set, and he delivered, amassing 178 rushing yards and plowing into the end zone a team-high five times
Prijatel was a two-way starter for the Wolves and helped anchor the Ely defense, leading the team with 59 tackles for the season. He also started at running back and picked up 131 yards on the ground.

The firearms deer harvest was down 23.1% in permit area 118, which includes much of the Ely area.
Tower area DNR wildlife manager Tom Rusch said, “Buck kill is down the highest in permit areas on the north and east end of the Tower area consistent with winter severity and deep snow winters over the last eight years.
“Hunting conditions improved considerably after the record setting high temperatures experienced on opening weekend. Colder temperatures improved day time deer movement and rutting activity after opening weekend
“Hunters who were persistent and continued to grind it out on stand had higher success rates than hunters on the opening weekend,” said Rusch.