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Keith Olson handled both the invocation and then led us in songs. The Service Above Self Team or "SAS", consisting of Bonnie Denzel, Katie Johnson, Lois Josefson Russell, Laurel Nelson, Mary Pettit and Ryan Welle received chocolate mints for being the first (and so far only) team to report on their intentions concerning recruiting members. As Ryan was the only member of the team present for the meeting, he made a firm promise to distribute the treats to the other members, only consuming one himself. The presiding officer is rumored to have said he chose this reward because he wanted to take SAS's efforts and "mint it" for the other teams to follow. Certainly if that was said a loud groan was sure to have followed. Two other team names are now known - Group No. 1 is hopefully putting more effort into membership recruitment than worrying about what some may think was a silly challenge to come up with a unique name, as they are sticking with Group No. 1 as their name. Group 3 however, has apparently established Tim Hunt as their facilitator as they wish to be known, forever after, as "The Colonel and His Privates." Group 2 is apparently still choosing between the "Wanabees" or "Shakers or Movers" or possibly both, while Group 4 is yet to report. The Colonel and His Privates were reminded they are responsible for set-up and take-down during the month of November. Kathy Austvold led off the brags, reporting she will be gone the next three weeks as she and Steve celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary with a trip to England, with the trip back on a cruise ship. Keith Olson reported on stringent requirements, both monetary and otherwise, for his and Kim's trip to Thailand that have resulted in that plan being put on hold. Buzz Lundeen paid for missing two meetings, one while visiting Montana and the other due to being under the weather. Ryan Welle was happy to be part of the SAS team, while Anthony Nordan paid because he had to leave the meeting early. Our speaker was the Honorable Johnathan Judd, appointed as a Seventh District Court Judge by Governor Tim Walz on March 1, 2021. (The Seventh District consists of the counties of Becker, Benton, Clay, Douglas, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Otter Tail, Stearns, Todd and Wadena.) Prior to his appointment, Judge Judd practiced law in the Moorhead area and had been serving as the mayor of that city. He said that the judiciary is trying to build a sense of community, noting that he does not ascribe to the old school of thought that judges should stay out of public view to lessen the appearance of a possible bias. Nonetheless, he made it clear that his approach does not entail judges taking stances on any political issues as he appropriately sidestepped any comments in that regard. The changes brought by the pandemic have made it clear that "virtual court" is here to stay, which makes access to broad band not only important to economic development but to the smooth functioning of the judiciary. He talked about judges needing to have an aspect of humility in their roles. Judge Judd also spoke about the development of "specialty" courts, with Otter Tail County's DWI court earning a 2021 Excellence Award from the Minnesota Association of Probation Officers. Clay County also has set up such specialty courts for drug offenses, veterans and abuse and he believes this trend will continue. There is also a "safe babies court" in some counties, including efforts to address truancy levels and improve child protection outcomes. More effort is needed to address issues upfront to lessen how often they only come before a judge after-the-fact. Judge Judd promised to be back to us to continue what he believes to be an essential conversation between the judiciary and the public. |
