December 2013

The December issue of Edina Magazine features a guide to the latest dining trend in Edina, global small-bite cuisine! We also profile local superhero volunteer Dan Arom, who's leading a double life serving his community. We've also featured Edina's philanthropy leaders to discuss what fuels Edina's spirit of generosity.You'll also learn about local language immerson programs, a nonprofit working to help homeless teens in Edina, and Colonial Church's project to fight food insecurity.

Learning to make high cuisine at this Cooks of Crocus Hill Supper Club class in Edina.

 

There’s more than one way to build community. Little Free Libraries, which are popping up in cities and towns nationwide, are bringing neighbors together in Edina, too.

 

Kids need to eat healthy food in order to learn in school.

 
Andrea Knoll

When 17-year-old *Jason was working two jobs by day and living in his car by night, he didn’t concern himself with the irony of being a homeless teen in a wealthy suburb.  He wasn’t concerned about the sobering statistics on the growing number of homeless teens in the southwest suburbs.

 
Amelia Hauser, Liana Hazucha and Ellie Teien practice their French at Normandale Elementary French Immersion School.

Being bilingual is especially useful in today’s global economy. The process of learning a second language also provides students with neurological and cultural enrichment. Studies have shown that children in foreign language programs demonstrate greater cognitive development and creativity.

 
Co-founder of Little Hospice Bob Solheim.

Think for a moment about your own definition of “home.” Is it the bricks and mortar, the rafters and roof? Is it the family inside? The sense of belonging? As more Minnesota families are faced with caring for an elderly parent or grandparent, defining “home” becomes more important than ever.

 
Hockey rivals Zach Budish and Anders Lee team up for a good cause off the ice.

One college hockey game box score last season had Edina natives Zach Budish and Anders Lee each notching an assist as Budish’s Gophers beat Lee’s Notre Dame team, 4-1.

 

Susan Stiles is the president and founder of Stiles Financial Services, Inc. in Edina, where she also lives. We spoke with her to learn a little bit about her life outside the office.

What is your favorite thing to do when you’re not working?

 

Edina resident Erica Hacker shot this photo of her 2-year-old son, Jackson. He had fallen asleep in the car after playing all morning at Edinborough Park. Hacker was inspired to take the picture to capture this fleeting stage of toddler-hood.

 

Two storied Minnesota businesses will team up to offer a unique and local holiday line this season.

 

Last summer, Abdo Eick & Meyers celebrated its 50th anniversary as a certified public accountant firm. The company, founded in Mankato in 1963, moved to Edina in 2002.

 
Kendall Zilka

The Fox Sports North Girls competition gives Minnesota girls who double as sports fanatics a chance to exercise their interview and broadcast skills while vying to become the next Fox Sports North Girls.

 
This 1930s-style postcard uses a collection of images from the Edina Historical Society.

According to legend, the naming of Edina in 1888 stopped just short of bloodshed. On one side were the Scots, who favored Edina, a nickname of the Scottish capital Edinburgh. On the other were the Irish, who argued for Killarney Lakes, to honor their native country.

 
At Tavern on France, build your own burger, and enjoy it with a gluten-free beer.

By now we know about the perils of gluten, and many of us can recite a compendium of gluten-related ailments. Restaurants were slow on the uptake; for a long time a gluten-averse person could safely choose either a simple hunk of meat and steamed veggies or a pile of salad.

 

It crept up on us. Nibble by nibble, taste by taste, bite by bite, and then … KABOOM! We were besieged by “small-bite cuisine.” And what a lucky coup it was.

 
Karen Nelson, Executive Director of the Edina Education Fund.

What makes Edina such a great place to live, work and play? Ask a resident, and you’ll get a variety of answers: top-notch schools, a thriving arts scene, plenty of spots to connect with nature…and the list goes on.

 
Dan Arom

Superhero films are box-office gold. Moviegoers are drawn to the action, adventure and special effects. But there is also something very American about our superhero stories. We embrace the idea of apparently ordinary citizens leading double lives.