If daily tasks are getting harder, it may be time for a little more support—before a crisis forces the decision. Winter can make everyday tasks feel harder than usual. Assisted Living at Saint Therese of Corcoran offers comfort, support, and peace of mind when it matters most.
For a limited time, the Assisted Living residents who reserve an apartment and take possession by March 31, 2026, will receive $1,000 off rent for their first six months, a total savings of $6,000.
Assisted Living at Saint Therese of Corcoran includes:
• Personalized care and support available day and night, based on individual needs
• Less responsibility for home maintenance and seasonal chores
• Enjoyable meals without cooking or cleanup
• Opportunities for social connection and activities
• Peace of mind knowing support is available when needed
For a limited time, the Assisted Living residents who reserve an apartment and take possession by March 31, 2026, will receive $1,000 off rent for their first six months, a total savings of $6,000.
Artwork: Dan McAvey
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FROM THE EDITOR
Beading was all the rage when I was in middle school, and I was by no means immune to the glittering trays of Czech glass, Swarovski crystals and semiprecious gemstones that filled the independent bead shops of my youth. A family friend would invite me over and demonstrate the finer points of crimp beads and jump rings. Soon, I had my own formidable collection of beads and spacers that I would use to craft bracelets and earrings for birthdays and holidays. My mom still regularly wears pieces I made for her years ago. When the mood strikes me, I’ll break out my bead organizers and pliers and noodle around with a new design idea.
When planning this annual arts and culture issue, I’ve been continuously impressed by how many people turn a hobby into an opportunity to share their creativity with the broader community. For Bilal Mamdani, this meant turning his affinity for Basque-style cheesecake into a new bakery (page 24). For Danielle and Shane Vinup, this took the form of transforming a lifelong passion for theater into a plan for a new performing arts center (page 10).
I think the need to create is one of the most unique drives humanity possesses, and along with creation comes the inclination to share it. We are richer for it. When a resident singer-songwriter shares her hope after heartbreak, we can resonate with the bitter and the sweet (page 20). When a local en plein air painter shares his recent sojourn in nature, we’re invited to see our daily surroundings differently (page 13).
This spring, I invite you to consider how your creativity can more broadly connect you to your neighbors and Maple Grove.
Until next time,
Madeline Kopiecki madeline@localmedia.co
On the Cover: Travel Through Taste , page 24
Photo by:
Chris Emeott
Photo: Chris Emeott
VOL. 20 NO. 4
March/April 2026
PUBLISHER
Susan Isay
EDITOR
Madeline Kopiecki
MANAGING CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Renée Stewart-Hester
MANAGING EDITOR
Hailey Almsted
DIGITAL EDITOR
Madeline Kopiecki
COPY EDITORS
Kellie Doherty and Sherri Hildebrandt
STAFF WRITERS
Mollee Francisco, Emily Gedde, Jennifer Pitterle, Alexandra Tostrud and Paige Udermann
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Gabrielle Clark, Sharon Noble, Katie Tomsche and Kate Wodtke
DIGITAL INTERN
Claire Krieger
EDITORIAL INTERNS
Diane Meyer and Avery Vrieze
EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD
Anne Anderson, Experience Maple Grove ; Abbigail Ciesynski, I-94 West Chamber of Commerce ; Roee Hecht, City of Maple Grove ; Carol Morris, City of Maple Grove ; and Kate Wodtke, Maple Grove Historical Preservation Society
If a picture’s worth a thousand words, then the thousands of pictures in the Jim Deane Photography Collection at the Maple Grove Historical Preservation Society’s museum undoubtedly speaks volumes. Capturing the evolution of Maple Grove from small town to vibrant city, his photos of athletes, co-workers, pastoral scenes, recreational pursuits and road construction crews span decades. Take a drive along scenic James Deane Parkway, and enjoy the
All the World’s a Stage
Yoko Yamasaki originally went to Town Green Park after work to take photos of butterflies and flowers. To her surprise, Cross Community Players was doing a dry run performance of Once Upon a Mattress when she arrived. “The shimmery costumes and props reflected so beautifully against the light of the setting sun,” Yamasaki says. “The
scenes Deane sought to preserve. Even better, visit our museum and browse his collection. Deane saw the world through an allencompassing lens.
Kate Wodtke is a research and inventory specialist with the Maple Grove Historical Preservation Society and a Minnesota Author Project judge. Discover more at maplegrovemnhistory.org.
golden sheen of the crown stands out on its own, but I loved how I was able to capture the actor trying to get his performance just right.”
—Madeline Kopiecki
Photographer: Yoko Yamasaki
Title: Backstage at The Bandshell
Equipment: Canon R6 Mark II
Location: Maple Grove Bandshell
Photos:
Jim Deane; Yoko Yamasaki
Rivalry to Romance
Jessie Kim has reached a low point in her life. Laid off from a high-powered Wall Street bank, despite her skills and hard work, she returns home to Nashville, Tennessee, with no idea of what to do next. Annoyingly, her childhood nemesis, Daniel Choi—now a successful and wealthy lawyer—is also back in town. Soon, living at home and cooking traditional Korean food with her umma gives Jessie the idea for a business to help home cooks bring some Korean flavor to their meals. And the more she sees Choi, who always seems to be around and even offers to help her with her business, the more she likes him. So We Meet Again by Suzanne Park tells the story of a relatable young woman working to find her place in life.
Kathryn Zimmerman is a supervisor at Maple Grove Library. Read more at hclib.org.
Independent Study
A freelance photographer creates a coaching platform for fellow creatives.
By Madeline Kopiecki
A photography education and mentorship program with global reach has local roots. Paul Weaver says his senior photo session with Maple Grove’s well-known Sandy Jones Photography sparked something in him. He realized there was a way to turn his creativity into a full-fledged business. Like many budding photographers, the class of 2011 Osseo Senior High School alum got his start shooting portraits of friends before gradually building up a client roster for senior photo shoots and weddings. “Then I feel like that led me to branching out and shooting in the music industry, which led me to shooting commercially,” he says.
As a freelance photographer, Weaver is self-taught. “I think I created The Freelance
Photographer out of something that was missing in my own journey when I first started,” he says. Weaver leveraged his economics degree from the University of Minnesota and his real-world photography experience to develop the courses that would evolve into The Freelance Photographer, a platform that offers coaching, community and mentorship to budding freelancers. “I always tell people it’s easier to be creative; it’s more difficult to be business-minded,” Weaver says.
Weaver has always been interested in the business side of his creative pursuits. Postcollege, he hosted a beginner photography workshop that quickly sold out. Through trial and error, Weaver identified that teaching
Photos: Paul Weaver
Left: Photographer and Maple Grove native Paul Weaver.
Right: Paul Weaver leads an in-person freelance photography workshop.
technique wasn’t where his passion lies, and in 2018–19, he launched his first online course to share his insights on pitching and pricing. “That’s where it kind of blew up during [COVID-19],” Weaver says. His subsequent virtual workshop, How to Land Brands as a Photographer Without Leaving Your House, saw traffic jump from 40 attendees to thousands within months. “It resonated with a lot of people,” he says.
In 2023, Weaver and his business partner, fellow Maple Grove photographer Cole Hennen, decided to pivot The Freelance Photographer from a course to a program. “You throw a course at somebody—especially a creative—most people aren’t going to go through the entire course because it’s like self-based/self-study, and it was lacking the community and live coaching aspect,” Weaver says. By the end of 2024, he says it had gained a lot of traction. “And that’s when VSCO discovered us.”
VSCO, a photo and video editing app, acquired The Freelance Photographer in July 2025, and Weaver assumed the position of director of education. Weaver says there’s a lot of synergy in the merger. “We’ve always been focused on the business side,” he says. “That’s why VSCO acquired us, because [business coaching] was a missing element of their ecosystem.” Weaver says that the creator-led nature of The Freelance Photographer also drew VSCO’s interest. “People want to learn from people who have done it before,” he says.
The Freelance Photographer thefreelancephotographer.com @thefreelancephotog
A Place to Call Home
Avalanche Arts lays the foundation for a new performing arts center.
By Madeline Kopiecki
In October 2025, Danielle and Shane Vinup signed a 99 year lease with the City of Maple Grove. “We’re good through October 15 of 2124, which was really odd to write,” Shane says. “2124 felt pretty good.” But while the ink might be dry, the Vinups’ work has only just begun. By 2029, the husband-wife duo aim to open the doors of Avalanche Arts of Minnesota’s performing arts center. Theater troupes and performance organizations abound in Maple Grove, but stages do not. Bunce Performing Arts and Cross Community Players, for instance, book church basements and the occasional high school auditorium, but it’s tricky to find space in the community. “We realized that was
our mission pretty quickly, that we needed to build something for lots of organizations to use,” Danielle says.
The two lifelong theater kids pack a onetwo punch when it comes to approaching the Avalanche Arts project. Danielle is a choir and voice teacher at Anoka Ramsey Community College, and Shane started an IT business in Maple Grove. “I’m the business side of the equation, where Danielle is the creative side of the equation,” Shane says.
This duality is mirrored in how the performance center will function. “We really want to make sure that the space is open to nonprofits, ones that are based in Maple Grove or the surrounding area,” Shane says. But the
Bottom: An early rendering of Avalanche Arts’ performing arts center.
Top: The Goosed! The Musical team includes Abbey Dibble, stage manager; Danielle Vinup, co-writer, composer and assistant director; Kelly Kadlec, co-writer, composer and music director; and Luis Ventura, director and choreographer.
SAYING, “HELLO”
Avalanche Arts is introducing itself to the community in an aptly artistic way. Danielle Vinup and her friend Kelly Kadlec have been working on a musical together for the last three years. Goosed! The Musical features the characters from Mother Goose’s Nursery Rhymes all grown up with grown-up problems. “Humpty Dumpty falls in love with Little Miss Muffet, that kind of thing,” Danielle says. “So it’s a big cast, a big sing, big orchestra. It's going to be really fun.” Avalanche Arts is partnering with Bunce Performing Arts to bring the show to life and bring awareness to its fundraising efforts. Catch a performance March 6–15 at the Osseo Senior High School auditorium.
space will also be available for paying groups, the proceeds of which are earmarked for supporting the nonprofits by either greatly reducing or ultimately eliminating the cost of renting the space. “That’s the mission of Avalanche Arts: that these groups will have the ability to use the space without a huge expense or no expense at all,” Shane says. But any way you slice it, the Maple Grove community will benefit from the addition of a new performance space. Located next to the Community Center and Town Green, the venue will draw in year-round acts, ranging from comedians to college choirs and bluegrass bands to magic acts. Avalanche Arts’ capital campaign to get the center’s funding over the finish line kicked off in earnest in January. Visit avalanchearts.org to learn about donation and volunteer opportunities.
Avalanche Arts of Minnesota avalanchearts.org
Avalanche Arts of Minnesota
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Brush With Nature
A landscape artist incorporates rest and healing into his paintings.
Artwork: Dan McAvey
Last summer, painter Dan McAvey spent a week deep in the Sax-Zim Bog, an internationally known birding and conservation area in northern Minnesota. “The bog is dense with tons of trees and shrubs and peat moss … it’s a floating landscape,” he says. The residency brought together six artists who immersed themselves completely in the bog environment and then created work to help promote conservation efforts.
Painting outdoors there required both creativity and resilience. “It was insanely buggy,” McAvey says. He came prepared with what he describes as a “four-pronged approach” that included bug spray, full-body mosquito netting, permethrin-treated clothing and a Thermacell repellent device.
The problem-solving aspect of en plein air painting is, in fact, a big part of its joy. “How am I going to solve the problem of communicating the sounds and the smells and the experience of being out in nature on this flat, two-dimensional surface?” he asks.
Closer to home, McAvey often paints at Elm Creek Park Reserve. “We live just a couple blocks from the edge, and there are some beautiful spots along the prairie that I really love to paint,” he says. He sometimes loads his gear into a repurposed bike trailer and cycles into the park to paint. The combination of creativity, environment and movement is, he says, “a trifecta of happiness.”
Photo: Chris Emeott
Page 13: Dan McAvey painted this en plein air landscape at the St. Paul-Changsha Friendship Garden in Phalen Regional Park.
St. Paul-Changsha Friendship Garden, oil on panel, 10”x8”
Left: Dan McAvey regularly packs up his painting supplies and bikes to nearby Elm Creek Park Reserve for outdoor inspiration.
Right: “On one of the very smoky days this [past] summer, I biked into Elm Creek Park Reserve to paint in the prairie,” Dan McAvey says.
Wildfire Smoke, Elm Creek Prairie, oil on panel, 24”x12”
Artwork: Dan McAvey
Above: “I started the summer with a trip to Oregon with friends,” Dan McAvey says. “This studio painting was made from a photo I took while hiking in Willamette National Forest.”
Light Spills In, oil on panel, 24”x24”
Dan McAvey painted this pastoral landscape by referencing photos he took during an outing with the Outdoor Painters of Minnesota. “It was a stormy day, but the rain let up for a few moments, so the day wasn’t a total washout,” he says.
A Pause, oil on panel, 24”x48”
Right:
McAvey describes his work this way: “I explore ideas of human connection through the genre of landscape painting.” Nature is both subject matter and metaphor. During COVID-19, he painted about isolation and hope. When his mother developed Alzheimer’s, he created work exploring memory and loss. And most recently, his art has focused on the restorative psychological effects of the outdoors.
When you speak with the Champlin artist about the landscapes he paints, you get the sense that McAvey sees nature as not only a place of beauty but a place of rest and healing. It’s an approach shaped by his lifelong relationship with the outdoors—and by a career path that has woven together psychology, education and art.
After graduating from Osseo Senior High School, McAvey attended Carleton College, where a love of helping others drew him to psychology. “For me, it was kind of a tossup between art or psychology … wanting to help people live happier lives,” he says. He ultimately majored in psychology and received a master’s degree in educational psychology from the University of Minnesota.
McAvey’s work in the years that followed centered on supporting young adults—first in mental health research and later in college residential life, including six years in Massachusetts, where he and his wife, Laura McAvey, got married. But art never faded into the background. “I always had a studio space in my apartment or home,” he says. He took drawing and painting classes whenever possible. When he and Laura returned to Minnesota in 2008, McAvey continued painting and decided to try teaching some art classes for community education departments. “I just wanted to kind of test the waters and see, is it something that I actually do enjoy?” he says. Not only did he love teaching—but his students started returning for more classes and brought their friends. That confidence led him to pursue a Master of Fine Arts degree at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD). McAvey graduated in 2022 and took the leap to making art full time. Today, he teaches at MCAD and remains deeply connected to the local arts community as a board member for the Maple Grove Arts Center. His kids, Piper, 15, and Teagan, 12, attend Osseo schools and are artists themselves. “They’re both into music and drawing and writing and creativity,” he says. McAvey has recently focused on the concept of “soft fascination”: the gentle, meandering attention that happens naturally outside. “We spend our days in focused attention, but when we get out in nature, it’s kind of the opposite,” McAvey says. “Your mind kind of bounces from one thing to the next.” His en plein air landscape paintings are full of atmosphere and light. They invite viewers to slow down and breathe.
Last fall, McAvey exhibited new work at the 410 Project community art gallery in Mankato. He titled the show Soft Fascination, and the pieces reflected not only the landscapes that inspire him but the deeper emotional experience of being present within them.
Dan McAvey danmcavey.com @danmcavey
After a series of popular performances,
FINDING HER VOICE
Singer-songwriter Rebecca Aadland returns to the recording booth.
Written by Emily Gedde
Rebecca Aadland doesn’t just sing the songs she writes; she shares the life she’s lived. The Maple Grove singer-songwriter is busy working on her third album, an eclectic project that ultimately delivers the optimistic message that it’s never too late to begin again. “I started many things late in life,” Aadland says. As a licensed therapist, it’s something she sees many people struggle with. “I hope to help inspire others,” she says.
Aadland studied art at the University of Minnesota but later became a psychotherapist
Photo: Sammie Jean
singer-songwriter Rebecca Aadland will return to Crooners Supper Club for a concert on April 9.
due to her fascination with human behavior.
“I’m intrigued by what this life is for,” she says.
“I always ask people all the time how they create their story. It’s a question not everybody likes, me included. Everyone has pain in their stories, and being vulnerable and sharing it might resonate with others and help them heal. I try to do that with my songs.”
Her second album, Stronger Broken, put words to a painful series of events in Aadland’s life. Between 2018–19, she underwent critical heart problems that resulted in multiple
open-heart surgeries. She spent six weeks in the ICU, and the staff at the Minneapolis Heart Institute later called her recovery a Christmas miracle. Aadland, in part, drew from this uncertain time to compose her second album, which was completed on March 23, 2022. That same day, Aadland lost her husband, Brian Tillotson, to sudden cardiac arrest. For the next year, she felt incapable of picking up her guitar, much less singing.
“When I got past the shock and trauma going on in my life, I knew I wanted to do a
show with the wonderful musicians on my album,” Aadland says. Working through grief and self-doubt, Aadland began her return to the stage. She says it’s what Tillotson, who was her biggest fan, would want. “Every person who dares to get on a stage must go through these feelings,” Aadland says. “I knew I had to take a chance and let myself have the possibility of failure.” Shortly after that revelation, Aadland performed a soldout show at Crooners Supper Club Main Stage in Minneapolis in 2023. “Right there
Rebecca Aadland’s band at the sold-out Crooners Supper Club show in 2023 included Lantz Dale on guitar, Kelley Larson on backing vocals, Greg Schutte on drums, Jacqueline Ultan on cello and Paul Winchester on keyboard.
Top: Rebecca Aadland was born into a very musical family and demonstrated an aptitude for singing at an early age.
Bottom: Rebecca Aadland performed a sold-out show at Icehouse in Minneapolis on September 28, 2025.
was the miracle,” she says. “The show sold out, and everyone on the album said yes to joining me. It was incredible.”
Life threw another curveball, however, and Aadland was rushed to the hospital the night after the Crooners performance due to atrial fibrillation. Even with another gap in her performances, Aadland knows she has what it takes to return to the recording studio with her third album and eventually, to the main stage. She is determined not to let anything stand in her way.
The currently untitled album’s first single, I Could Use a Miracle, originally came from a place of grief after Tillotson’s untimely death. “The original lyrics were, ‘I could use a miracle / I lost the love of my life just a year ago’; it was therapy for me,” Aadland says. But that version of the song never came to fruition. Instead, Aadland took time to heal and allowed herself to seek love again. As her story evolved, so did the song, which is infused with a rock beat and newfound optimism. The first verse now goes, “Take me to green pastures and happy ever afters / Maybe it’s not too late for me / Show me where the dance is and sweet second chances / Could another love be there for me, could another love be there for me.”
As the new album develops, Aadland continues to seek out her next large performance while staying in practice with smaller cafe shows at venues like Aster Cafe in Minneapolis. She’ll return to the Crooner’s Main Stage on April 9 alongside her supporting band to release her second single, God Stuff. “I’m honored they’re playing with me again,” she says. “We make up a good ensemble.”
Aadland is excited for people to hear her latest project and hopes the new songs will resonate with others. “We can become bitter and resentful from horrible things that happen to us, or we can learn and grow in faith and hope,” she says. “My songs show [that] we can take pain and make it something … When people listen to my album, I hope I can be a piece of inspiration and transformation.”
Rebecca Aadland rebeccaaadland.com
Rebecca Aadland Music
Photos: Arthur Aadland; Sammie Jean
Try a slice of something new.
Written by Madeline Kopiecki — Photos by Chris Emeott
TRAVEL THROUGH TASTE
When looking at a Basque-style cheesecake for the first time, you’d be forgiven for thinking the cake was a bit, well, overdone. Its trademark exterior belies a rich, custardy interior. “Where this dessert really shines is in that textural variation,” Bilal Mamdani says. The Maple Grove resident notes that there’s an educational aspect to introducing this style of cheesecake to customers, but, “Once they do try the cheesecake, they’re amazed at the creaminess and the texture.”
Mamdani has always had a sweet tooth. “Then, over [COVID-19]—when things were closed, and we couldn’t go out as much—I decided to dabble in cooking and baking,” he says. The engineer and management consultant discovered that the precision of baking resonated with him. He tried his hand at a number of desserts before landing upon Basque-style cheesecake, which was making the rounds on social media at the time. The unique texture captured his interest, and the science behind getting it right appealed to his analytical nature.
Bilal Mamdani
“Where this dessert really shines is in that textural variation.”
MAMDANI
BILAL
THE MENU
Dubai Chocolate
This viral sensation includes shredded phyllo dough, a chocolate hazelnut sauce and drizzled pistachio cream framed by a ring of crushed pistachios. (Page 24)
Cookie Butter
This cake is a Biscoff cookie triple threat, touting infused batter, sauce and cookie crumble topping. (Page 26)
Classic
The original for a reason, this cake features a caramelized exterior and creamy interior. Since it’s not too sweet, it’s also the perfect pick for adding your own toppings. (Page 28)
Seasonal Flavors
Seasonal flavors at crème are designed based on community input. “I typically send out a poll and ask our [customers] what they’d like to see,” founder Bilal Mamdani says. “If we get a good idea and it’s something that we can implement, then we make it, and we invite the community to do a sampling.” Mamdani then incorporates community feedback into the final recipe.
His friends and family were fans of his early experiments, and Mamdani started to see an opportunity. “I was like, ‘OK, I’ve got a product that my friends and family really like,’” he says. “Let me see if I can try to commercialize it and then leverage those lessons in the other set of work that I do.”
Mamdani founded crème in February 2025 and set to work at Plymouth’s MSP Kitchenery, adapting his recipe to work in commercial ovens. “Everything made a difference,” Mamdani says. “The way we wrap it, there are different methods of using the parchment paper to line the pan, the kinds of pans we used.”
The experimentation stage was frustrating, but the community of bakers and makers that call MSP Kitchenery home were supportive of his efforts. “Both [Nikkolette Krumheuer, owner of MSP Kitchenery] and her husband, John [Krumheuer], foster a community of entrepreneurs, and they’re all very helpful,” Mamdani says. He had never used commercial baking equipment before, but people were willing to take time out of their day to show him the ropes. “Then, finally, something clicked, and we were like, ‘OK, I think we’re on the right path now.’”
crème introduced itself to the community by handing out free slices of its Classic,
Cookie Butter and Dubai Chocolate Basquestyle cheesecakes. Of those first-time customers, Mamdani says many have become regulars, ordering cakes through the company’s drop system and picking them up at Nikolette’s Macarons in Plymouth. Mamdani also spent many Sundays at the Linden Hills Farmers Market this past summer, and he’s hoping to get into the Maple Grove Farmers Market for the upcoming season.
Aside from local farmers markets, crème cheesecakes also make pop-up appearances at coffee shops around the Twin Cities, including Càphin in Edina and The Golden Nuts in Columbia Heights. Mamdani’s next goal is to
secure a long-term residency at a coffee shop. “If I could have that, then that would hopefully pave the path for [a] brick and mortar of my own,” he says.
What started out as a crash course in launching a startup has evolved into a sustained passion. Although he still does some consulting work on the side, Mamdani is ready to take on crème fulltime. “This ended up being so fulfilling for me that I was like, ‘I want to pursue this,’” he says.
crème cremefoods.com @creme_foods
Big City Talent, Small Town Vibe
Come
03.13
Go Green
A springtime art show turns trash into treasure.
After a hiatus, Maple Grove Arts Center’s (MGAC) The Green Show returns for its next installment from March 16–May 1 at MGAC’s new Grove Square mall location. (Learn more about the new location at maplegrovemag.com.)
Lise Spence-Parsons, president and treasurer of MGAC (maplegroveartscenter.org), says that while it’s an all-medium show, pieces need to either be predominantly green or feature recycled or upcycled materials. “One year, we had someone make a sculpture using old tin cans,” Spence-Parsons says. Photography also features prominently in this show, she notes.
The Green Show’s opening night on March 26 serves as a celebration and opportunity to acquire art from local creatives. Artists and their families are welcomed to view their loved ones’ art alongside the public from 6:30–8:30 p.m. and enjoy appetizers, soft drinks and wine.
In addition to speeches from MGAC staff members, professional judges will name first, second and third place winners who will receive a monetary prize. Attendees can also vote for their readers’ choice pick online or through QR codes posted throughout the gallery. The readers’ choice winner will be announced May 1. —Avery Vrieze
Top: First Place: The Queen of Green by Diana Pierce, photography
Middle: Second Place: Ice Fishing by Melissa Proulx, collage
Bottom: Third Place: Green Power Wind Energy by Barry Dyar, digital art
Open Art Studio
Join other artists from 11 a.m.–2 p.m. at the Maple Grove Arts Center to work on a current project and meet other artists who are working on their own creations. The program is meant for adults 18 and older. maplegroveartscenter.org
03.14
Home Show
Meet up to 120 local home experts from 10 a.m.–4 p.m. at the Maple Grove Community Center. Find professionals with experience in everything from windows to driveways at this free event. minnesotahomeshows.com
03.21
Rock Your Socks
Celebrate World Down Syndrome Day from 9:30 a.m.–noon at the Maple Grove Community Center by rocking your colorful socks. Enjoy a fun, festive atmosphere with carnival games and music. maplegrovemn.gov
03.28
Health and Wellness Fair
Learn about and meet holistic health and wellness providers from 10 a.m.–5 p.m. at the Maple Grove Community Center. Entry is $5 and also includes presentations from four speakers. rootedholisticfairs.com
04.03–04.19
Marie and Rosetta
Embark on a musical adventure about legendary musician Rosetta Tharpe and her protege, Marie Knight, as they prepare for their tour. Staged at various times, the Yellowtree Theatre’s production of Marie and Rosetta is an inspiring story about friendship. yellowtreetheatre.com
04.25
Arbor Day Celebration
Explore booths with tree care experts, master gardeners and more from noon–3 p.m. at the Maple Grove Community Center. maplegrovemn.gov
04.27
Animal and Egg Hunt
Look for eggs and monkeys at the third annual egg hunt for ages 3–12 from 2–3 p.m. at Weaver Lake Community Park. Registration is required. maplegrovemn.gov
MAMA’S HAPPY
Compiled by Diane Meyer and Avery Vrieze
To have your event considered: email maplegrovemag@localmedia.co by the 10th of the month three months prior to publication. Please note that some events may have changed since these pages went to print. Please visit affiliated websites for updates.
A Fleeting Phenomenon
“No matter the subject or shooting location, I’m capturing a particular moment in time,” photographer Dean Scheidler says. “I’m happy to share my photos on social media so that others can enjoy the beauty of locations that they might not ever be able to visit in person.” Discover more of his work at deanscheidlerphotography.com and learn more about his creative pursuits at maplegrovemag.com. —Madeline Kopiecki
FOCUS ON MAPLE GROVE
Photographer: Dean Scheidler Title: Fire & Ice Equipment: Nikon Z7II camera, Nikon Z 24–120mm F/4 lens
Location: Weaver Lake Community Park Category: Seasons Award: Honorable Mention
To view other Focus on Maple Grove photo contest winners, visit maplegrovemag.com.
