Envirodrum will perform at 6:30 p.m. Monday at the Townshend Theatre, located at the Fort Frances High School.
Another show in the Kids and Company Series is set for 6:30 p.m. Monday at the Townshend Theatre, located at the Fort Frances High School.
Envirodrum, a percussion group comprised of professional musicians who have a passion for music and an eye for engaging performance, will take the stage as the next performance of the series that aims to introduce children and their families to a wide spectrum of entertainment.
According to the group’s website, Envirodrum was formed in 2009 and has performed in more than 200 schools, festivals, and at private shows for corporate companies.
The founder of the group, Jeff Salem, is a professional percussionist from Toronto, Canada. Salem yearned to spread environmental awareness in his community and felt strongly that if he appealed to the young generation he could start a grassroots movement. His way of spreading that awareness was simple: percussion, the site said.
Each Envirodrum show has many interactive and entertaining moments wherein the group performs different styles of music while delivering environmental statistics in a way that is easy to understand. Envirodrum uses strictly recyclable products as percussion instruments including plastic, metal, glass, wood and paper products.
To compliment their rhythm section keyboards and vocals were added to create the best performance possible.
For those who do not have a season pass to the Kids and Company shows, tickets to Monday’s performance are $10 and are available at the Fort Frances Public Library, Betty’s, Revco Carpet, Coffee Landing Cafe and at the door. Children under the age of 3 get in free.
Tom
Landwehr
The Department of Natural Resources, the Metropolitan Council and the Greater Minnesota Regional Parks and Trails Commission are seeking qualified applicants to serve on the Parks and Trails Legacy Advisory Committee.
“The Parks and Trails Legacy Advisory Committee plays a critical role in helping us achieve the vision Minnesotans have for use of the Parks and Trails Legacy Funds and creates an accessible and equitable, integrated system of state and regional parks and trails in Minnesota,” said DNR Commissioner Tom Landwehr.
The purpose of the Legacy Advisory Committee is to promote and coordinate implementation of the 25 Year Parks and Trails Legacy Plan. Funding recommendations for individual projects is not a part of this committee’s work. The plan can be found at www.legacy.leg.mn/funds/parks-trails-fund/plan.
The deadline for applications is Monday, Dec. 22.
The committee is made up of 17 members, including, to the practical extent possible, geographical and demographic representation. The committee has a mixture of park and trail professionals and citizens. Committee members should have expertise in two or more of the four strategic pillars of the plan:
- Connect people and the outdoors.
- Acquire land and create opportunities.
- Take care of what we have.
- Coordinate among partners.
Terms are two years with the option of serving two terms. Meetings are scheduled every two months and are located around the state and can be attended remotely.
Interested individuals should complete the application form online (www.legacy.leg.mn/parks-and-trails-legacy-advisory-committee-member-application) or send applications to Darin Newman, Department of Natural Resources, Box 39, 500 Lafayette Road, St. Paul, MN 55155 or email to:darin.newman@state.mn.us.
Average retail gasoline prices in Minnesota have fallen 8.3 cents in the past week, averaging $2.83 per gallon Sunday, according to GasBuddy’s daily survey of 2,856 gas outlets in Minnesota. This compares with the national average that has decreased 1.7 cents in the last week to $2.89 per gallon, according to gasoline price website MinnesotaGasPrices.com.
Regular gas prices in International Falls ranged from $2.54 to $2.99 per gallon, according to the site. Midgrade fuel prices were listed at $2.79 per gallon; premium prices ranged from $2.99 to $3.46; and diesel fuel is available for $3.99 to $4.19 per gallon.
Including the change in gas prices in Minnesota during the past week, prices Sunday were 22.3 cents per gallon lower compared to the same day one year ago and are 11.5 cents per gallon lower than a month ago. The national average has decreased 25.5 cents per gallon during the last month and stands 29.8 cents per gallon lower than this day one year ago.
“Just a week ago, I was becoming concerned that the national average would level off unless crude oil prices kept dropping, and that’s exactly what happened,” said Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst with GasBuddy. “Suddenly, the market turned bearish again and crude dropped as low as $74 per barrel before closing the week out at a $2 per barrel loss. Either way, the decline in crude price renews the downturn at the pump that had stabilized last week and helped the national average tip back into a downward decline. In most places across the country we should see the downward trend continue or re-emerge this week,” he noted.
Holiday travel
When Americans hit the road this year for Thanksgiving family gatherings, 31 percent said they’ll be traveling more than 500 miles and another 31 percent will travel between 200 and 500 miles. This year 92 percent are driving and just 6.5 percent said they’ll fly, according to a release.
Of more than 81,000 Americans surveyed by GasBuddy this month, 71 percent said they expect to spend less on Thanksgiving this year.
“The Thanksgiving holiday is such a deeply-rooted part of who we are that families will always do what it takes to bring everybody together regardless of fuel prices,” DeHaan said. “But the mood we’re getting from our survey results suggests that notably lower gas prices have brought a sense of relief, perhaps some optimism, and also a sense of caution.”
Among those traveling, more than 16 percent said savings from lower gas prices is leading them to alter their plans. For some, that may mean stretching the Thanksgiving holiday and/or, avoiding traffic.
GasBuddy.com is a tool to help motorists save money at the pump by collecting gas price data and displaying it on websites and on a free smartphone app that has been downloaded over 37 million times. The site operates MinnesotaGasPrices.com and more than 250 similar websites that track gasoline prices at more than 140,000 gasoline stations in the United States and Canada.
