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"Scarlet Cord" Huge Success

"Scarlet Cord" Huge Success

It's called the Scarlet Cord, and it's been a huge success.

Austin High School unveiled the new program last fall.

The purpose of the Scarlet Cord program was to encourage students to volunteer in the community.

And with the school year coming to a close, the numbers are in:

93 students turned in hours under the program

There were 1896 volunteer hours, including 778 by freshmen, 288 by sophomores, 281 by juniors and 549 by seniors.

27 students completed at least 40 hours.

11 seniors will graduate with a Scarlet Cord at Commencement on June 8th for meeting the terms of the program.

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Students Collect For Personal Care Shelf

Students Collect For Personal Care Shelf

It's something most of us take for granted.

"Many people have to make a choice: food, gas, these products" Mower County Red Cross Director Elaine Hansen told a group of students from the Southland school district.

The students turned it into a competition, and the real winners were the people who use the care shelf at the Mower County Red Cross.

"We brought in over 200 items in our home-room" said Southland student Drew Lewison. "The winning class got to get a home-room party".

On Tuesday, the Southland kids carried box after box into the Red Cross to replenish the personal care shelf:

178 toothbrushes

51 tubes of toothpaste

35 bottles of shampoo

43 containers of deodorant

38 disposable razors

35 hair brushes

22 rolls of toilet paper

26 bottles of conditioner

14 boxes of Kleenex

... and more -- nearly 600 items in all.

'Sheltered Reality' In Austin

'Sheltered Reality' In Austin

Sheltered Reality is coming to Austin.

Sheltered Reality teaches youth music and performance skills while empowering them to make positive changes in the world through mission.

SR's choreographed drumming provides fun and invigorating entertainment, with a deeper purpose -- speaking to audiences by way of personal stories and letters, with the idea that we're all one human family.

You can be part of it Thursday night starting at five o'clock in the courtyard at Sumner Elementary School in Austin.

Supper will be available for $2.

Refrigerator & Freezer Recycling Program Starts May 15th

Refrigerator & Freezer Recycling Program Starts May 15th

The Conserve & Save program, serving Austin Utilities, Owatonna Public Utilities and Rochester Public Utilities, is back for a second year. The program allows people looking for new refrigerators and/or freezers to turn in operating but energy inefficient units for a $35 incentive. The incentive is good for each qualifying appliance, with a maximum of two units per program life.

This is the 2nd year for the program, which generated an incredible response in 2011. The 2012 program starts today, May 15th, and runs through October 31, 2012 or until funds are exhausted.

In order to qualify, the refrigerator or freezer must be 10-30 cubic feet, operating secondary unit, in working order and owned by an RPU customer. The appliance will also be picked up, free of charge, inside the customer's home from the address listed on their billing account.

You can get more information by calling 1-877-341-2259 or at www.rpu.org

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Austin's New Intermediate School Breaks Ground

Austin's New Intermediate School Breaks Ground

It's been more than two years in the making and now Austin welcomes its new intermediate school.

The ground breaking ceremony took place Monday. The new building will help deal with an overcrowding problem.

Semi Truck Goes into Ditch

Semi Truck Goes into Ditch

 

Take a look at this jackknifed semi caught on our tower cam just before 11 p.m. last night.

It appears the driver was attempting to turn into the B-P truck stop just off of I-90 in Austin.

Extra Seat Belt Patrols Unite to Recognize Teen Crash Survivor

Extra Seat Belt Patrols Unite to Recognize Teen Crash Survivor

(ABC 6 News) -- You’ve heard it over and over again, and Monday more than 30 law enforcement agencies from across southern Minnesota gave "click it, or ticket," a whole new meaning. From Faribault to Caledonia, law enforcement from 11 southeast Minnesota counties united to send a clear message about seat belt use.

The numbers don't lie, traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for teenagers. To help drive that message home, they introduced a woman who wouldn't be here today, had she not been wearing a seatbelt.

"When the car stopped, the seatbelt was like pushing me up against the seat, so I just know that my seatbelt kept me where I was," said crash survivor Dani Fiebelkorn. She rolled her car 7 months ago and credits her seat belt for that second chance. "I was wearing my seat belt and without it I probably would have died," she said.