March 2025

Live Well, Age Wisely: Medicare Fraud Prevention…

Can you believe that fraud, errors, and abuse cost Medicare more than $60 billion last year? Medicare fraud is one of the most rampant forms of fraud in the US. There are a variety of ways it is committed and ultimately all taxpayers end up paying for the dishonesty of others. The Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP) began in 1997 and they provide valuable tips for preventions and ideas for what to do if you believe you’ve been scammed. The following suggestions come from their web site at smpresource.org.

Ask a Trooper: Backing up on Freeway…

Question: The other day I was going down the freeway and I saw a vehicle that must’ve missed their exit as they were backing up near an exit ramp. This didn’t appear safe and I’m going to guess illegal. What do you say sir?

Guess Who?

Each week, the Montevideo American News will share a photograph from our archives for you to “guess who”. To submit your guesses, send us a message by email to jstolen-jacobson@cherryroad.com or message our Facebook page. We will publish the answers the next week.

Annual event provides opportunity for local students to experience agriculture

On March 12th, the annual Ag in the Classroom event was held at the Minnesota West campus in Granite Falls. Each year in March, Yellow Medicine County Farm Bureau hosts the event that allows for 4th grade students from area schools to gather with local commodity groups, electric industry representatives and farm safety instructors. This year, seven schools including Montevideo, Lakeview and YME attended, bringing more than 300 students to the venue to meet with the five commodity groups. Each group hosts a 20 minute session of educational information.

From the Editor’s Desk

It’s about that time of year again where I convince myself that I can, indeed, grow a magnificent garden such as my grandma has always done There’s only been a couple of summers in my life where I actually accomplished this. Whether it be because the weather is challenging, or I don’t have a yard, or because I put in all the effort to plant everything and then became too busy to manage the plot of land that was clearly going to always be a challenge with weeds growing over because it was a first year till - there’s always been a struggle.

Milan Community News

Wow. What a busy week. And the coming week will not slow down for many of you. Congratulations to all the young people in the area that competed or are going to compete this coming week in the State Basketball Championships. Your commitment to basketball is awesome.

Garrison Keillor & Friends: The beauteous face in utero…

I once walked down Wabasha Avenue in downtown St. Paul and was stopped by an old wino who asked for something to eat and when I gave him a couple bucks, he said, “You’re Garrison Keillor, you can do better than that.” The man had bad habits but his thinking was clear. I was a nobody from Anoka who got his picture on the cover of Time and my notoriety should mean profits for the needy. But that was many years ago and fame fades fast. I haven’t been recognized by a wino for at least thirty years.

Landowner enrollment begins for Walk-In Access program

Since 2011, the Walk-In Access program has enrolled parcels of 40 acres or larger with high-quality natural cover. These parcels are usually enrolled in conservation programs like the Conservation Reserve Program or Reinvest in Minnesota. Although it is not a requirement, it is preferred to ensure quality habitat for outdoor recreation. For enrolling in the program, landowners can receive $18 per acre.