September 23rd, 2023
By Faye Seidler
fayeseidler@gmail.com
On the first day of the month I ask people to thank a journalist they know or someone who contributes to papers in some meaningful way. When I grew up, my best friend's father was a journalist and there were times in my life I wanted to be one. And even back then, I was told, don’t get into this work, there is no pay.
Today we see the burn out in the fourth estate. We see papers shrinking, fewer reporters turning up, and tight deadlines for…
August 20th, 2023
By Faye Seidler
As someone in her thirties, I’m still at an age to have had active shooter drills as part of my school experience in Fargo. I was in middle school when 9/11 happened and grew up with the changing world as our national zeitgeist was overcome with grief and anxiety.
We tried to cope with 24 hour news networks, because of a belief that enough information would keep us safe. If only we knew everything, we couldn’t be surprised anymore. It was always a…
March 8th, 2023
By Ken and Alice Christianson
submit@hpr1.com
HB 1332 is currently before the North Dakota legislature. The bill proposes to permit social workers to use a discredited treatment method to convert the sexual orientation of gay and lesbian persons to be heterosexual. The same method is proposed to change transgendered persons to the declared birth gender.
The treatment method, called conversion therapy, is proven to be ineffective and often dangerous. Mental health professionals have…
January 8th, 2023
By Stacie Hansen-Leier
submit@hpr1.com
I’ve been a resident of Valley City for most of my fifty-one years, with the exception of short residencies in Jamestown, Fargo, the Park Rapids Minn. area and five years in the Cities.
I’ve been a voracious reader for most of my life and some of my best childhood memories come from days spent sitting in a bean bag chair downstairs in the children’s section of the public library, a pile of books at my feet just waiting to be read, as I paged…
November 17th, 2022
By Waylon Hedegaard
retiringwithcats@gmail.com
For I know you. I used to be you, and I never want to be that again.
I have heard you preach against lies, then lie about others. You fabricate new truths when the old no longer suit. You twist events into unrecognizable shapes, then use them as weapons to…
September 14th, 2022
By Andrew Alexis Varvel
mr.a.alexis.varvel@gmail.com
Will our congressperson be Cara Mund or Kelly Armstrong?
Back 75 years ago in 1947, American radio stations played the hit song “Feudin' and Fightin'.” Its refrain went, “Feudin' a fussin' and a-fightin'. Sometimes it gets to be excitin'.”
That sounds increasingly like North Dakota politics this year!
North Dakota's races for US House and US Senate have been tumultuous, as weird as they are exciting, and with momentous …
August 17th, 2022
By Stewart Rogers
On August 15, 1969, a half million long-haired freaky people gathered in the mud for the Woodstock Music Festival in Upstate New York. For some, the event symbolized the worst of American youth – dirty, drug-crazed dropouts, listening to the devil’s music, obsessed with free love, unwilling to take personal responsibility, spitting in the faces of hardworking…
June 18th, 2022
By Madeline Luke
madelineluke@ymail.com
Sonja Kaye, of CLEAN in Fargo gave the third of four talks on climate change issues specific to North Dakota for the “What in the World Series,” in Valley City on April 5.
While the topic of the event was Project Tundra, a carbon sequestration project proposed to operate at the Milton Young Coal Station, Sonja’s information introduced the audience to the science, finances, and possible limitations of this technology which is the cornerstone of…
June 5th, 2022
By Melissa Van Der Stad
m.forfargo@gmail.com
Michael Borgie was unable to be reached for comment on a tight timeline, so the following information has been taken verbatim from his campaign website.
“I live in the Prairiewood Golf Course neighborhood, but I also work in far south Fargo and downtown Fargo by Block 9. I have season tickets to the RedHawks so I’m up there 50 times a summer. I also have a pass for all the Fargo Parks golf courses as well, so you’ll see me all over in…
June 3rd, 2022
By Melissa Van Der Stad
m.forfargo@gmail.com
Tim has been the mayor for seven years and the deputy mayor for six.
He is from south Fargo, and he's enjoyed seeing it grow in his many years in the neighborhood. He spends a lot of his free time in our local parks and attends many of the different public events throughout the city. In particular, he enjoys visiting Broadway…
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By Alicia Underlee NelsonMore than 1,000 pro-worker events are planned for Thursday, May 1 across the country, including rallies in Fargo-Moorhead, Grand Forks, Minot and Jamestown. East Grand Forks and Bismarck will host protests…
From concerts and car shows to Japanese art and Juneteenth celebrations, there's so much going on around the region this summer. This year's High Plains Reader Summer Events Calendar is back and bigger than ever. It's packed with…
May 24-25, 1-4 p.m.Yunker Farm & Dog Park, 1201 28th Avenue N., Fargo.Who’s ready for a fun filled family friendly day of enchantment and imagination ignition? Kids of all ages file in for kite flying, a fairy parade, scavenger…
By John Strandjas@hpr1.com One description that perhaps aptly describes the mental state of many lately is that they feel they are attached to a string. Or several strings. Call it the notion that people are played like puppets,…
By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comHow many cardinals in red look at Michelangelo’s sexy ceiling?Michelangelo finished painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in 1512. It is examined and admired by millions every year. The…
By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…
By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com After a very inspiring conversation with Kayla Houchin of Sonder Bakehouse a few weeks ago, I decided that it’s an appropriate time to write a column about some of the sweet people who are involved…
Mooncats and Pert Near Sandstone play Empire TheatreBy Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comThe MoonCats describe themselves as “Americonscious Campfire Folk.” They have a clear acoustic folk sound with a sense of whimsy — think…
By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.com In a Sundance profile for feature debut “The Ugly Stepsister,” which opened the festival’s 2025 Midnight section, filmmaker Emilie Blichfeldt described growing up “in a tiny village…
By Raul Gomezraul@hpr1.com Minutes before Modern’s Celebration of Life opened its door at the Sons of Norway, I was fiddling with the bar computer, trying to pull up the playlists of Modern’s work I had set aside for the…
By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.comHigh Plains Reader had the opportunity to interview two mysterious new game show hosts named Milt and Bradley Barker about an upcoming event they will be putting on at Brewhalla. What…
By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…
By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…
By Ellie Liveranieli.liverani.ra@gmail.com There appear to be differences in the incidence of mental illnesses between men and women. For example, women are more likely to be diagnosed with depression, post-traumatic stress…
By Alicia Underlee NelsonProtests against President Trump’s policies and the cuts made by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) are planned across North Dakota and western Minnesota Friday, April 4 and…
By Vern Thompsonvern.thompson.nd7@gmail.com Our trucking business has me driving almost daily from gas plants in western North Dakota's oil patch to Canada. I haul natural gas liquids (NGLs) products we used to see flared off at…
