For months of relative calm, area hospitals worked to develop complex and ever-adapting plans for how to handle what may lie ahead in the coronavirus pandemic.  Now facing more COVID-19 patients than ever before, an influx of people who’ve delayed care for chronic conditions, and reduced staff due to illness or quarantine, the difficult days that were once hypothetical are becoming more and more frequent. The "DispatchCast" shares the interviews and process behind the weekend story featuring health care leaders, who shared the hospitals' surge plans and pleaded with residents to comply with public health directives surrounding the pandemic. Producer/Host: Chelsey Perkins Guests: Dr. Jon Pryor, Essentia Health; Jessica Herron, Essentia Health; Kyle Bauer, Cuyuna Regional Medical Center; and Joel Beiswenger, Tri-County Health Care.

DispatchCast

The State of Lakes Area Hospitals as the Pandemic Surges

The Last Turn Saloon is one of Brainerd’s oldest and most iconic businesses, dating back to the early pioneer and railroad days of the city that grew from the banks of the Mississippi River. Its current location on South Eighth Street is not the original — the first Last Turn was located at the corner of Fourth Street South and Front Street. The original saloon was the site of one of Brainerd’s darkest moments, as was recently recounted in the pages of the Dispatch by contributor Jeremy Jackson. A public lynching of two brothers of mixed Native American and European heritage accused of murdering a white woman named Ellen McArthur took place outside. That was July 1872. The brothers pleaded not guilty, were never tried and no verdict was ever brought in the case.  With a morbid history like that, it would be understandable if a creepy feeling persisted with the place. But it’s actually the second location on Eighth Street that appears to be haunted by any number of apparitions. At least, that’s what many former employees would swear by. The DispatchCast speaks with one of those employees to hear the haunted tales of the Last Turn Saloon. Host/Producer: Chelsey Perkins Guests: Jennifer Karas, Ed Mattson

Haunted Brainerd: Last Turn Saloon

It was 1918 in Brainerd, Minnesota, and residents were focused on the sacrifices they were making for the war effort abroad. Little did they know they would soon face an enemy much closer to home as the Spanish flu made its way to the rural northern reaches of the state. Join former Brainerd Dispatch publisher Terry McCollough as he takes us back a century to a time when faced with numerous other challenges, lakes area residents were forced to grapple with an unusually deadly pandemic as well. Host: Chelsey Perkins, community editor. Guest: Terry McCollough, former publisher, "This Was Brainerd" columnist.

How the Spanish flu affected Brainerd 100 years ago

Deborah Erickson is not only the elections head in Crow Wing County. She also serves as chair of the elections committee for the Minnesota Association of County Officers, as the Minnesota-designated local representative on the national Elections Assistance Commission Standards Board and on the federal Government Coordinating Council for elections critical infrastructure. She joins Community Editor Chelsey Perkins to discuss the impending changes to how residents vote, as more voting precincts shift to mail balloting for the 2020 election due to the coronavirus. Host/Producer: Chelsey Perkins Guest: Deborah Erickson

Everything You Need to Know About Mail Balloting

With this week's epic misinformation on social media, we thought it would be a good time to revisit this 2018 conversation on journalistic ethics. What makes a journalist ethical? How can journalists develop and maintain public trust? Just as in many newsrooms, the reporters and editors of the Brainerd Dispatch must regularly grapple with ethical decisions regarding news coverage. How we arrive at decisions and what principles guide that decision-making process is the subject of this week's DispatchCast episode. Have you ever wondered why we chose to include -- or not include -- certain information in a story? This just might be the episode for you. Producer/Host: Chelsey Perkins Contributors: Jennifer Kraus, Frank Lee and Gabe Lagarde

REBROADCAST: Ethics, Journalism and Public Trust

Likely the most recognizable Brainerd Dispatch ambassadors, staff photographers Steve Kohls and Kelly Humphrey capture images of the passions, tragedies, laughter and fun of the lakes area community. They are just as likely to appear at a community picnic as they are a house fire, and each day presents a new challenge for the dedicated pair. In this week's episode of the DispatchCast, we look back at a July 2017 conversation when Kohls and Humphrey reflected on their gusto for the art of photography, shared inspiration and practical tips for aspiring photographers and revealed the personalities behind the photographs of north-central Minnesota's only daily newspaper. Host/Producer: Chelsey Perkins Guests: Steve Kohls and Kelly Humphrey, Brainerd Dispatch photographers

REBROADCAST: The Faces Behind the Dispatch Cameras

Many unknowns still surround COVID-19, including its potential effects on household pets. With the lingering uncertainty, pet owners should be prepared to take special precautions to protect their furry family members in the event they themselves get sick, local animal experts told Brainerd Dispatch reporter Theresa Bourke. Catch her story along with the week's top lakes area headlines. Host/Co-Producer: Chelsey Perkins Contributor/Co-Producer: Theresa Bourke

How the Pandemic Affects Pets, Plus Headlines - April 24, 2020

We all could use a break from the reality we currently face, right? Here's your chance. We're bringing you a rebroadcast of our most popular DispatchCast episode ever. Ironton native John Henry Seadlund was the central figure in a captivating series of crimes 80 years ago -- crimes that led FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover himself to visit the Brainerd lakes area. The story of small-town boy turned brash criminal made headlines across the country, and a close look at the Brainerd Dispatch archives adds some local flavor. Listen to Seadlund’s story, as told by former Brainerd Dispatch publisher and "This Was Brainerd" columnist Terry McCollough, on this episode of the DispatchCast.  Host/Producer: Chelsey Perkins Guest: Terry McCollough

REBROADCAST: The Twisted Tale of John Henry Seadlund

Nick Anderson is one of the nine rising Major League Baseball stars who should be a household name, according to MLB.com's Richard Justice. The 2008 Brainerd High School graduate had his breakout season in 2019, ending it with the AL Wild Card game-winning Tampa Bay Rays. Anderson talked with Brainerd Dispatch sports reporter Conrad Engstrom about what it's like to not be playing baseball right now, along with what his experience was like as a rookie in the majors last year. Plus, the Brainerd Dispatch's top headlines of the week. Host/Co-Producer: Community Editor Chelsey Perkins Contributor/Co-Producer: Sports Writer Conrad Engstrom

Brainerd's own Nick Anderson talks MLB shutdown, first year in majors

Brainerd City Council members have a big decision ahead of them with choosing a new mayor, students and teachers weigh in on the first week of distance learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and we catch up on this week's news in the Brainerd lakes area Host/Producer: Theresa Bourke

This Week in Brainerd - April 3, 2020

Leaders in the Brainerd lakes area business development community join Community Editor Chelsey Perkins to talk developments in federal and state aid to businesses over the week, ways they've seen small business leaders adapt and what makes them proud to be involved in this community. Host/Producer: Chelsey Perkins Guests: Greg Bergman, regional director of Small Business Development Center at Central Lakes College; Tyler Glynn, executive director of Brainerd Lakes Area Economic Development Corp.; and Matt Kilian, president of Brainerd Lakes Chamber of Commerce.

How Local Businesses Can Find Help in Today's Economy

"Something like this happens and the cynics might say, 'Oh, it takes a crisis for us to actually come together.' And I guess the optimist might look at is as, 'Yeah, in a crisis, we can still come together.' Maybe that’s the good way to look at it," said Brainerd Dispatch Editor Matt Erickson. "Something big comes up, we still have the ability to put everything else aside and work for the common good." On this week's episode of the "DispatchCast," Managing Editor Renee Richardson, Community Editor Chelsey Perkins and Erickson discuss how our newsroom is covering the COVID-19 crisis, what we're seeing emerge in our community and where we're finding hope to hold onto. Host/Producer: Chelsey Perkins Contributors: Matt Erickson and Renee Richardson

How is the Dispatch covering COVID-19? The editors discuss

Coronavirus concerns are sweeping across the state, a large fire hit Brainerd, new inductees made it into Brainerd Public Schools' Legendary Women Hall of Fame, Second Amendment rights activists want county officials to take action, and new data sheds light on the county's housing situation. Host: Chelsey Perkins Producer/Contributing Reporter: Theresa Bourke Contributing Reporters: Jennifer Kraus, Gabe Lagarde and Frank Lee

This Week in Brainerd - March 12, 2020

Catch up on all the top Brainerd area headlines of the week, plus step inside to Brainerd High School for a rundown on the Tech Warriors program, connecting students and technology in a new way. Host/Producer: Chelsey Perkins Reporter: Theresa Bourke

This Week in the Brainerd Lakes Area - March 6, 2020

Who killed Rachel Anthony? On the 19th anniversary of her disappearance, we take a look back at the case. Plus, Dispatch reporters Gabe Lagarde and Theresa Bourke take us inside the grassroots action at the DFL and GOP caucuses this week, and the Brainerd Dispatch's top headlines. Host/Producer: Chelsey Perkins Contributing Reporters: Theresa Bourke, Gabe Lagarde, Conrad Engstrom

This Week in the Brainerd Lakes Area - Feb. 28, 2020

Stories that will reel you in about life in the Brainerd lakes area.

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DispatchCast

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