Upstream Minnesota

09/02/2026

🇺🇸Stars & Stripes Fergus Falls Chamber Golf Scramble ⛳ was a hit! Our West Central Community Engagement & Partnership Coordinator, Naomi RaMona Schliesman, brought some extra fun to Hole #11 by leading two creative challenges for local business golfers.

1️⃣ For the first challenge, golfers traded their golf balls for marshmallows and competed to see who could hit a marshmallow the farthest from the tee.

2️⃣ For the second challenge, golfers could draw a card to determine which golf club they had to use off the tee:
🃏Ace = Wild Card
🃏King = Driver
🃏Queen = Fairway Wood
🃏Jack = Hybrid
🃏All other cards = Irons

Both challenges brought plenty of laughter and friendly competition. Naomi also enjoyed hearing golfers share stories about their favorite outdoor memories, the places and experiences that still make them smile. We are grateful for the opportunity to connect with local businesses, hear their stories, and celebrate the outdoors together.

🙏 Thank you to the Fergus Falls Area Chamber of Commerce and everyone who made this a memorable day on the Pebble Lake Golf course!

08/31/2026

🥐 ☕Join Upstream's Executive Director Rolf, Community Coordinator Rich, and Development Manager Afton at Pastries in the Parks on September 19th from 10-11am. We'll be meeting a East Side Sculpture Park to share pastries, coffee, and stories about what you love about the natural places on the East Side. Take an hour to start your Saturday off right with good food and great community.

Free to attend - help us not waste food! Please RSVP here so we know how much food to bring. 🔗https://app.gametimehero.com/share/event/KU5KlZUni4z4a3MUJK7z

08/27/2026

⭐Community Coordinator Rich & Development Manager Afton spent the afternoon talking about their careers with local East Side teens at Urban Roots Career Panel day. hosts up to 85 paid youth interns where they develop leadership, entrepreneurial, and life skills while connecting with one another and the world around them. 👏

Upstream will be at Urban Roots Rivoli Bluff Bash on Sept 12th from 10 am to 2 pm. This celebration of the Autumn season will take place at Rivoli Bluff Farm and Restoration Site. We hope to see you there!👋

08/17/2026

NOMINATIONS CLOSE TODAY MONDAY, AUGUST 17 AT 5:00 P.M
Who’s Your Community’s Unsung Caretaker?

We all know someone who quietly makes Minnesota a better place—through the big things, the small things, and all the caring work in between.

Maybe they…
Restore habitat
Plant and care for community gardens
Organize neighborhood or community cleanups
Inspire others to care for our shared natural places
Bring people together to make their community stronger

Now is the time to celebrate them! Nominate the person who shows up. The neighbor who cares. The volunteer who keeps going. The group that makes a difference without asking for recognition. Upstream is accepting nominations for the 2026 Unsung Caretakers Awards, recognizing five individuals, organizations, or community groups from Minnesota.

Each recipient will receive $250 to support their volunteer work and will be celebrated at an Upstream event in October in the Twin Cities and Fergus Falls.

If someone came to mind while reading this, don't wait take a few minutes today to nominate them! Nominate someone who deserves to be seen, celebrated, and thanked for the care they give to Minnesota.

Link in Bio
Direct link to nomination form: https://mnupstream.org/unsung-caretaker/

08/15/2026

Another great event that we will be at in St Paul, Saturday, September 12!

Come by and say, “Hello!”

🌱 Join us at our 6th annual open house at the Rivoli Bluff Farm and Restoration Site! 🌱

📆 Saturday, September 12
🕙 10am-2pm
📍 749 Arkwright St, St. Paul (near the intersection of N Rivoli St and Minnehaha Ave E)
🔗 See comments for link to more information and free registration

Thank you to event sponsor East Side Funders Group!

The event will feature:
🍎 Free produce giveaway supported by Xcel Energy for their Day of Service
🎒 Free backpacks with school supplies from Greater Twin Cities United Way
📚 The Free Book Buggie (11am-1pm)
☕ Tiny Footprint Coffee samples
🥕 Farm tours
🎧 DJ Kool Akiem
🖌 Children's Garden activities, including free face painting provided by A Touch of Magic
💁🏽 Community organization information tables, including:
Community Power, Face to Face Health & Counseling, Metro Food Justice Network, MSP LTER, Patagonia St. Paul, Saint Paul Public Library/Metro State University Library and Learning Center, Trilingua Cinema, Habitat for Humanity - Twin Cities, Upstream Minnesota, Wakan Tipi Awanyankapi, Wilderness Inquiry

📷 Photos by Yasmin Yassin, excluding upper-left

08/11/2026

Who’s the Unsung Caretaker in your community?

Do you know someone who makes Minnesota a better place through the small and big things they do?

Maybe they:
Restore habitat
Plant community gardens
Organize cleanups
Inspire others to care for our shared natural places
Now’s the time to celebrate them!

Upstream is accepting nominations for the 2026 Unsung Caretakers Awards, recognizing five individuals, organizations, or community groups from the Twin Cities and West Central Minnesota.

Recipients receive $250 to support their volunteer work and will be celebrated at an Upstream event in October in the Twin Cities and Fergus Falls.

You can nominate a neighbor, friend, coworker, community group, organization or yourself!

Nominations close Monday, August 17 at 5:00 p.m.

Know someone who deserves to be recognized? Nominate them today!
Direct link to nomination form: https://mnupstream.org/unsung-caretaker/

08/11/2026

Last Thursday, our Community Engagement & Partnership Coordinator, Naomi RaMona Schliesman, brought our Story Trailer to West Central Initiative’s 40th Anniversary Open House and what an incredible celebration it was!

We had the opportunity to capture 13 stories from residents across our region, sharing the people, places, experiences, and connections that make our communities special in Minnesota.

We’re collecting stories from Minnesotans to uplift and celebrate the stewards in our communities and to capture the places we love to live, work, vacation, camp, gather, and be in community. Every story helps paint a bigger picture of who we are and what makes Minnesota such a special place to call home.

What’s your story?
We’d love to hear from you! Share your story with us and help celebrate the people and places that make our communities thrive. https://mnupstream.org/shareyourstory/

08/06/2026

Celebrating a Former Unsung Caretaker

Alex Blondeau, owner of Windflower Natives, was an Unsung Caretaker Awardee for his dedication to restoring Minnesota's native landscapes, one seed, one plant, and one story at a time.

Alex never imagined he would become a native plant grower. He once envisioned a life as an adventure guide, an artist, or a professor. Instead, he found his calling on the western edge of Otter Tail County, where he now nurtures native plants and helps others reconnect with the natural world.

For Alex, every native plant begins with a journey. He spends countless hours exploring remnant prairies and wild places, carefully observing the land, building relationships with landowners, and collecting seed at just the right moment. Each adventure deepens his understanding of Minnesota's ecosystems and reminds him that these landscapes are living treasures.

Through Windflower Natives, Alex is growing much more than plants. He is cultivating a deeper relationship between people and natural places. His work invites others to rediscover the beauty, resilience, and interconnectedness of Minnesota's native prairies and woodlands, inspiring communities to care for the land with curiosity, respect, and wonder.

Congratulations, Alex, on being recognized as an Unsung Caretaker. Thank you for reminding us that caring for the natural places begins with listening, learning, and growing alongside it. If you know an Unsung Caretaker in West Central MN or in the Twin Cities nominate them for their work and stewardship!

The application is easy and awardees will receive $250 to help with their efforts and we will celebrate the nominees at Prairie Wetlands Learning Center and in the Twin Cities this October. Nominations are due by Nominations close Monday, August 17, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. Central.

Help us uplift the people making a difference in your communities.
Submit a nomination today! Link in Bio.
Direct link to nomination form: https://mnupstream.org/unsung-caretaker/

08/05/2026

Upstream's East Side Community Coordinator, Rich Garland, attended the Story Lodge Indigenous Literary & Book Fair presented by Mashkiki Studios on Aug 1st, at Indigenous Roots. Rich had a great time making relatives with new faces from the East Side and the arts community.

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