As communities across the nation prepared to celebrate America’s bicentennial in 1976, an idea surfaced in the small town of Braddock, about an hour’s drive southeast of Bismarck.
“It was at a parent-teachers meeting, and I said, ‘Well, why don’t we thresh?’ I said, ‘Nobody’s done that for years,’” recalls 91-year-old Del Svalen, who had moved to Braddock from Minnesota to teach and coach.
“Cooperatives were born in politics and will die in politics.”
This oft-used phrase in the cooperative world both recognizes the circumstances through which most cooperatives emerge – in response to political and economic conditions, often as an alternative to traditional business models or power structures, seeking to empower individuals and communities – and acknowledges a critical function for their survival – advocacy.
Spanning across the U.S.-Canada border like a floral handshake, the International Peace Garden is a botanical haven rooted in friendship and bursting with natural beauty.
“The most unique thing about it is that it’s in two countries at the same time. It’s a garden dedicated to peace between those two countries,” says Johannes Olwage, International Peace Garden curator of living collections.
Like a warm hug, laughter echos through the dining room as a group of ladies gathers for coffee, gleefully cajoling cookies from the kitchen staff inside the Mott Health Care Center (MHCC).
The scene is the culmination of a mighty community effort.
“Perseverance is never giving up and never losing hope” was once scripted onto a wall of the physical therapy room in the center. That seems appropriate.
As the musical notes drift over the Badlands backdrop and into the summer night sky, the Medora Musical will herald a milestone with its 2025 season. This year, it celebrates a 60-year tradition of gathering friends and families in the Burning Hills Amphitheatre for a magical evening of entertainment.
A handwritten note in the archives describes the vision for the early Medora Musical: Theodore Roosevelt, fireworks, horses and Western action.
While the performances and the venue have undergone transformations over the decades, that early vision remains.
Nearly five years ago, two North Dakota farmers had an idea to market their barley crop to beer brewers. A local surplus of barley and shortage of malt presented favorable market dynamics, and the pair were willing to bet on themselves, their barley and beer.
There is a place in western North Dakota where you can experience a rodeo on Saturday night and a church service on Sunday morning.