October 2026

Column for 10-14-26

     Not long ago, folks came out to support the Trail Guards while gathering up incredible items being sold at our dear friend Linda Liestman’s estate sale.  Linda needed to let some things go, and she wished for that to be of help to us. 

     Thank you so much to those who came out, thank you to Linda for her generosity, thank you to Jeanne and Bill Virant for spearheading that event, and thank you to everyone who volunteered in so many ways.

     There is a long history to Linda’s support of the Trail Guards.  She has been there for us from the very beginning, and in very important ways.

     Trail Guards came to be in a spontaneous and unintended manner from Governor Rudy Perpich’s statewide “Clean the River” initiative.  Mr. Dick Morelan led those annual efforts with the support of the City of Paynesville, the local US Army Reserve unit, and many local volunteers – including me.

     I decided at some point to carry those cleanup efforts a little further and proposed to our city council to gather adult volunteers and construct a trail system along the river.  As that began and local youth involvement quickly followed, the idea of a nonprofit youth organization had me looking for support in any way I could find it. 

     There was skepticism, of course, as anyone paying attention had seen countless well-meaning ideas come and go.  But Linda and her then-husband Larry Ellis saw something that caught their attention, and they asked me what we needed.  “A brush cutter,” was my answer.

     That 1992 “Stihl” gas-powered brush cutter, the very first donation the Trail Guards ever received, is still running great and getting occasional use at the park.  But it was much more of a gift than just a much-needed piece of equipment.  It was a green light, a validation, an acknowledgement, a show of confidence, and a big push forward. 

     Maybe it was the many campfires in very remote places I’ve shared with Linda and Larry over the years, an activity that sometimes lets us see a little deeper into each other.  Maybe it was our shared passion for preserving wild places and areas of intact natural landscapes as evidenced by their years-long involvement with the Minnesota Land Trust and now the new county park being constructed on properties they systematically procured for that exact purpose. 

     I guess it all adds up in the end, and what an incredible joy to receive Linda’s latest act of support for something that has become an enduring part of our community. 

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Tom KoshiolCrow River Trail Guards“Connecting Kids To The Outdoors”222 River StreetPaynesville, MN 56362320-250-0464www.trailguards.orgtom@trailguards.org