Lemont Furnace John Francis Kurilko, 57, of Lemont Furnace, passed away at his home with his loving family by his side on Friday, December 22, 2023. He was born January 12, 1966, the son of Jack and Margaret Gashie Kurilko of Dilliner. John was preceded in death by his wife, Marla Harris Kurilko. He is […]
Ron Ahlgren of Cloquet, MN, passed away peacefully in his Texas winter home on Monday, April 24th, 2023. He was born on February 2nd, 1942, the middle child of 7 (next to his twin sister Rose), to George and Senja (Ylikoski) Ahlgren. Ron grew up on a small farm near Cloquet, the town of his birth, and lived just down the road from his brother Bruce for most of his life. He met the love of his life, Kathy, in high school, graduating in 1960. Ron and Kathy were happily married on September 8th, 1962, the beginning of 61 beautiful years of being together. Ron attended the University of Minnesota, Duluth, where he received his Bachelor of Science in Biology in 1965. After graduation Ron returned home to teach in the Cloquet school system for 32 years, retiring in 1998. While teaching he also attended the University of Wisconsin, Superior where he received his master’s degree in Teaching in 1969. Ron was voted Teacher of the Year several times, was known for his lab experiments like the e
A Gracious Guide for How to Be a Good House Guest
It was shocking, if not surreal. The email message was from a woman I’d never met and whose name I recognized only because, a few months earlier, she mailed me a book she’d written.
The message announced that she and her family were planning a road trip to Disneyland and would just love to stay with us since (at the time) we lived nearby and oh, wouldn’t that be so much fun. She gave a tentative date they would be arriving.
Everything I know about what not to do as a house guest, I learned from that experience, from the moment they drove up (cue music for Cousin Eddie and family from “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation”) to the time they finally departed.