NAOMI DUNAVAN

Vegetable lasagna: A great make-ahead dish

This “Vegetable” Lasagna is the best recipe that has ever crossed my path. No other lasagna I’ve made sets up like this one. My family eats meat, so I cheat in this recipe and add hamburger of the buffalo variety — raised by my nephew, Mike, in north central North Dakota.

By Naomi Dunavan , April 24, 2013

IN THE SPIRIT: Grand Forks Youth for Christ names new leader

Sean Patterson stepped into the emcee’s shoes when his church, Grace Baptist in Grand Forks, served as a viewing site for the “Stepping Up” simulcast. Thousands of men across the country watched it the day before the Super Bowl.

By Naomi Dunavan , April 12, 2013

NAOMI DUNAVAN: Add zing to meatloaf with this secret ingredient

This recipe has one ingredient I’ve never seen before in meatloaf. The raves at the table that night told me I had hit the jackpot.

By Naomi Dunavan , March 12, 2013

IN THE SPIRIT: Every game a blessing, every fan an energizer

The cross tattooed on Troy Huff’s upper right arm is big and bold and beautiful just like the picture of Jesus tattooed on Shane Benton’s upper left arm.

By Naomi Dunavan , March 09, 2013

IN THE SPIRIT: Learning lessons written on wall of Mayo Clinic

Sometimes having to wait is annoying, but it recently paid off in a big way for me. I had time to reflect on someone’s words of wisdom which left me clothed in peace and reassurance. Both of which I needed.

By Naomi Dunavan , February 16, 2013

IN THE SPIRIT: Seeing the fruit makes Eunita yearn to do more

Never will she leave — permanently. Never will she forsake — her people — her mother country. It is for them that Eunita Odongo is temporarily away, learning in the United States what she can do — with her heart and hands — to improve the lives of people in her beloved Kenya.

By Naomi Dunavan , January 12, 2013

IN THE SPIRIT: His life overflows with music, message

Even at the ripe young age of 7, the Rev. Bob Ludwig was dead serious about his piano lesson. So much so that he rolled out of bed to practice every morning from 6:30 to 7:30 before the school bus came to his country home near Culver, Ind.

By Naomi Dunavan , December 08, 2012

IN THE SPIRIT: Trip to Norway provides heritage enlightenment

In a picturesque country setting within a triangle formed by the towns of East Grand Forks, Alvarado and Oslo, sits a 132-year-old house of worship known as Kongsvinger Lutheran Church.

By Naomi Dunavan , November 10, 2012

IN THE SPIRIT: My sister, my friend, my mentor

The memory is as clear to me as if it’s happening as we speak. The door opens and in walks someone who brightens my day like a beacon in the night. She has come from her upstairs classroom to wrap an arm around me and assure me that all is well. She is my one and only sister!

By Naomi Dunavan , October 12, 2012

IN THE SPIRIT: From the lakes of Minnesota to the hills of Tennessee

For a homebody, I’ve been gone a lot lately. This year’s travels began the end of March with a trip to West Virginia when I was invited by John Reitmeier to be there when he met his biological brother for the first time.

By Naomi Dunavan , August 11, 2012

IN THE SPIRIT: Golden opportunities lead to golden celebration

We’re speaking here of Holy Family Catholic School whose name became Holy Family-St. Mary’s Catholic School in 2005 when St. Mary’s School in downtown Grand Forks closed its doors and its students were welcomed into Holy Family School.

By Naomi Dunavan , July 21, 2012

IN THE SPIRIT: Found: Long lost words of wisdom

For starters, I asked my grandchildren, Elyn and Ethan, if they knew the meaning of the word “multitude?” Two little heads shook from side to side. Ethan just completed first grade and Elyn third. I guess those words are yet to come for them.

By Naomi Dunavan , June 08, 2012

IN THE SPIRIT: A ‘bonus family’ for John Reitmeier

Crookston man finds his biological family at age 60
Anyone who knows John Reitmeier knows he’s never lost for words. Otherwise known as the Cool Site Pick of the Day guy for 1310 KNOX radio, Reitmeier has quick and witty comebacks for everything, stemming from many years in radio. But on the evening of April 13, John was somewhat subdued as we neared a white house with a full-width front porch situated on a flower laden street in Charles Town. When John spoke it was softly. As our car pulled into the driveway, a man and his wife came down from the porch to welcome John. Over the past few months they had spoken on the phone several times and now, John, 60, and Michael Terry, 63, were meeting for the first time.

By Naomi Dunavan , April 27, 2012

IN THE SPIRIT: We shall gather at the farmyard, the beautiful, beautiful farmyard

Beginning with a potluck supper at 5:30 p.m. sharp on Sunday, Mark and DeeAnn will host a huge old fashioned country gospel music festival on the farm which is about 30 minutes out of Grand Forks. Directions in a minute!

By Naomi Dunavan , August 13, 2011

IN THE SPIRIT: An around the world rosary

Praying it forward
Over the years some of his U.S. Army paraphernalia, like uniforms and boots, have disappeared. But for more than four decades, Jeff Bakke has hung on to something “pretty special to me,” he said.

By Naomi Dunavan , June 11, 2011