‘Commentary’ Archives
The Heroes of Phillips Clean Sweep
from the series Reflections of Phillips... By SONJA ELISE CLIVE ORBAN It’s nice of local politicians to show up and moonlight for their photo ops. It’s a compliment to the community that residents put something together that was amazing enough to get their attention.Here’s the thing. The true creators of this wonderful tradition are too modest and too busy doing necessary things to make themselves known. So I’m going to. The real heroes of this year’s event are it’s founder, Jana Metge. Second in command was her protege Nathaniel Anderson. His suit and cape are made of spread sheets.Closely followed by the spectacular efforts and investment of Banyan staff. And a big thank you to Welna Ace Hardware. Serving our neighbors for 3 generations. What’s the big deal? Don’t people just show up and do their thing easy peasy? Actually no. Behind the scenes are weeks of planning. Discussing what went well and what didn’t from the previous year. [...]
Spirit of Phillips Dec ’25
Dave Moore & Linnea Hadaway have lived here since the Reagan 80s and became life partners while originating the cartoon series “Spirit of Phillips.”
Reflections of Phillips
Thoughts on the enduring value of being involved and supporting your community. By DIANA PATINO-CRUZ My name is Diana Patino-Cruz and I come from a Hispanic household. I currently live in Coon Rapids, but lived in Minneapolis for many years. I work for Tri-Valley Opportunity Council Inc., which offers Head Start, child, and family programs for agricultural workers in rural Minnesota and North Dakota. I really appreciate my job because it gives me the opportunity to work with families I can relate to. I work with migrant workers who have many different stories. Some travel every year and work in different fields. Others come from their home places to a new country in hope of finding a better opportunity. I love giving back to my community which needs help and support. I lived a block away from Waite House in the Phillips Neighborhood. We visited Waite House often and it was always important to me and my family. We would go to the food shelf, and this helped us financially. [...]
