The Good Life – January-February 2018
Featuring musician Todd Ruzicka. Local Hero - The Jail Chaplains. Having a beer with John Lamb and more in Fargo Moorhead's only men's magazine. #givingheartsday
Featuring musician Todd Ruzicka. Local Hero - The Jail Chaplains. Having a beer with John Lamb and more in Fargo Moorhead's only men's magazine. #givingheartsday
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NOT IN MY FAMILY - PART FOUR / HOPE AND DIGNITY<br />
06 OPIOID ADDICTION TREATMENT AND RECOVERY IN OUR COMMUNITY<br />
10<br />
12<br />
16<br />
18<br />
ASK 30 WOMEN<br />
WHAT IS YOUR IDEA OF THE PERFECT VALENTINE'S DAY?<br />
HAVING A BEER WITH / JOHN LAMB<br />
LOCAL MAN SURVIVES INTERVIEW IN BREWERY<br />
CAR CARE<br />
SHAKES, WOBBLES AND PULLS<br />
ON THE COVER / TODD RUZICKA<br />
IMMUNE TO THE EXPECTED<br />
CONTENTS<br />
JAN-FEB <strong>2018</strong> / VOLUME 5, ISSUE 4<br />
4 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com
24<br />
26<br />
FATHERS / MR. FULL-TIME DAD<br />
WINTER IN TODDLERVILLE<br />
THE LONG, SLOW JOURNEY OUT THE DOOR<br />
GIVING HEARTS DAY<br />
MORE THAN JUST RECEIVING<br />
PUBLISHED BY<br />
Urban Toad Media LLP<br />
www.urbantoadmedia.com<br />
LOCAL HERO / JAIL CHAPLAINS<br />
30 BRINGING JESUS TO JAIL...<br />
AND CHANGING LIVES IN THE PROCESS<br />
OWNER / GRAPHIC DESIGNER<br />
Dawn Siewert<br />
dawn@urbantoadmedia.com<br />
OWNER / PHOTOGRAPHER<br />
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darren@urbantoadmedia.com<br />
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS<br />
Meghan Feir<br />
Brittney <strong>Good</strong>man<br />
Ben Hanson<br />
Matt Lachowitzer<br />
Krissy Ness<br />
Danielle Teigen<br />
ADVERTISING INQUIRIES<br />
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darren@urbantoadmedia.com<br />
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<strong>The</strong> <strong>Good</strong> <strong>Life</strong> Men’s Magazine is distributed six times<br />
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the views urbantoadmedia.com or policies of <strong>The</strong> <strong>Good</strong> / <strong>Life</strong> THE Men’s GOOD Magazine. LIFE / 5
NOT IN MY FAMILY // PART FOUR<br />
“<strong>The</strong> biggest key<br />
is to treat someone<br />
with addiction with<br />
respect and dignity<br />
and to not judge.<br />
And to provide them<br />
with hope so that<br />
they can believe in<br />
themselves.”<br />
— Connie Longie<br />
6 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com
NOT IN MY FAMILY - PART 4<br />
Hope and Dignity<br />
WRITTEN BY: BRITTNEY GOODMAN<br />
Opioid Addiction<br />
Treatment and Recovery<br />
in Our Community<br />
Seventy-eight people die every day in the United<br />
States from an opioid overdose, numbers that have<br />
nearly quadrupled since 1999. Although effective<br />
treatment exists in our community, only one in five<br />
people who currently need treatment for opioid use<br />
receives it.<br />
“<strong>The</strong> social stigma attached to addiction and<br />
recovery inflicts innumerable harms to individuals,<br />
families, organizations and communities,” stressed<br />
William White, addiction scholar. <strong>The</strong> Surgeon<br />
General’s 2016 report called for “a cultural shift”<br />
regarding addiction: “For far too long, too many<br />
in our country have viewed addiction as a moral<br />
failing. This unfortunate stigma has created an<br />
added burden of shame that has made people with<br />
substance use disorders less likely to come forward<br />
and seek help.”<br />
Connie Longie is a certified addiction counselor<br />
with Prairie St. John’s. Licensed in Minnesota and<br />
North Dakota, Longie has been in the field since<br />
2000. <strong>The</strong> numbers of people seeking help with an<br />
opioid addiction, particularly heroin, are increasing.<br />
Some people, Longie said, also have “an addiction<br />
to using the needle itself,” which means even a<br />
blood draw or using a needle because of diabetes<br />
can be a trigger.<br />
For many, the hardest part of overcoming addiction<br />
is the withdrawal. Counseling, coupled with<br />
connecting people with helping services can be<br />
essential to recovery. According to Longie, “most<br />
addicts have other issues in their life that need to<br />
be addressed. Some people have traumas that<br />
are unresolved. Many have relationship, social,<br />
economic and a multitude of other issues to be<br />
addressed. Some are homeless.”<br />
<strong>The</strong> government agency, Substance Abuse and<br />
Mental Health Services Administration has<br />
published “Eight Dimensions of Wellness.”<br />
Longie recommended all eight be addressed for<br />
“a successful, sustained recovery”: emotional,<br />
environmental, financial, intellectual, occupational,<br />
physical, social and spiritual.<br />
Longie said: “I have seen people recover and I’ve<br />
seen people have to come back for repeat services.<br />
Even after near death experiences, people may go<br />
back to using. <strong>The</strong> key to success is to have wraparound<br />
care services that address their needs.”<br />
“<strong>The</strong> biggest key is to treat someone with addiction<br />
with respect and dignity and to not judge. And to<br />
provide them with hope so that they can believe in<br />
themselves. <strong>The</strong>y are deserving of respect rather<br />
than stigma and punishment. <strong>The</strong>y need safety and<br />
structure and being connected to supports in the<br />
community,” Longie asserted.<br />
Longie explained: “I love what I do and I do what<br />
I do because I have a passion for people who have<br />
lost their way. I have been in recovery for numerous<br />
years. I’ve seen people succeed. It is wonderful to<br />
see the amazing changes in those people and the<br />
confidence they have in themselves and gratifying<br />
to be able to guide and connect them to services so<br />
that they have a continuum of care.”<br />
Many people addicted to opioids also need help<br />
with safe housing. Longie said: “We need more<br />
transitional living services. <strong>The</strong>y need to have that<br />
safety and structure. Many have burned bridges<br />
through their addictions and need a second chance.”<br />
She asserted: “<strong>The</strong> key for working in the addiction<br />
counseling field is not to judge. When you see people<br />
have to come back in, to repeat services, you have to<br />
show them that you care, do not judge, encourage<br />
them to change and believe in them. I have people<br />
who have been through counseling with me come up<br />
urbantoadmedia.com / THE GOOD LIFE / 7
NOT IN MY FAMILY // PART FOUR<br />
to me and thank me. But I always<br />
say ‘you did the work.’ I give them<br />
back the empowerment. Keeping<br />
humble in the field is important.”<br />
Longie called for new<br />
perspectives: “Don’t look down<br />
on them. Look at it as an illness.<br />
You don’t label a diabetic because<br />
their levels are up due to that extra<br />
pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving. It<br />
happens across all walks of life:<br />
doctors, lawyers, clergy, teachers,<br />
mothers, fathers, grandparents.”<br />
Longie affirmed: “If we treat the<br />
addict with dignity and respect,<br />
along with working on the areas<br />
of wellness that need to be<br />
addressed, we will have a higher<br />
recovery success rate.”<br />
Eric Bailly oversees the substance<br />
use disorder strategy for Anthem,<br />
Inc. with an emphasis on opioid<br />
addiction strategy. He is a licensed<br />
alcohol and drug counselor in<br />
Minnesota. Bailly has worked in a<br />
number of clinical and treatment<br />
settings for the past 20 years.<br />
Nationally, Bailly has seen<br />
creative and improved strategies<br />
for helping people with opioid<br />
addiction and other substance<br />
use disorders. For instance, in<br />
Connecticut and New Hampshire<br />
Anthem works with AWARE<br />
Recovery which delivers treatment<br />
in the home with psychiatric,<br />
case management, peer recovery<br />
support and counseling: “It’s a<br />
great model that embraces people<br />
in their home, recognizing the<br />
impact of social determinants<br />
of health. It is much more<br />
effective to work with people<br />
at home in their own context.”<br />
Another improvement is in rural<br />
and chronically underserved<br />
areas. Clinicians are able to<br />
leverage video case consultation<br />
to connect with experts. Bailly<br />
sees a future with increased<br />
telemedicine for addiction and<br />
mental health services: “In these<br />
circumstances, a provider can get<br />
much of the support they need<br />
through videoconferencing to<br />
subject experts.”<br />
Bailly cautioned against<br />
treatment centers that can “take<br />
advantage of vulnerable people”<br />
by offering big promises and<br />
beachside resorts but no evidence<br />
of sound treatment strategies or<br />
results and calls for holding them<br />
“accountable for demonstrating<br />
outcomes and efficacy.”<br />
Bailly explained his drive to<br />
8 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com
working with substance use<br />
disorders: “I’m a person in<br />
long-term recovery since 1990.<br />
Some people will say I hit the<br />
wall or the bottom at a very<br />
young age, 18, when I made a<br />
commitment to turning things<br />
around. I made a decision<br />
pretty early on that I wanted<br />
a career to focus on helping<br />
those with addictions. <strong>The</strong><br />
underlying thread for me, as<br />
a recovering person, is that I<br />
care. I really do.”<br />
Both Bailly and Longie see<br />
naloxone training as important.<br />
Bailly said: “Although the<br />
jarring mental image some<br />
people have of addicts is on<br />
the street, there are a number<br />
of senior citizens using a lot<br />
of opioids. For instance, for<br />
a professional working in a<br />
senior care center, knowing the<br />
signs of overdose is important<br />
and knowing how to administer<br />
naloxone is also invaluable.”<br />
Bailly suggested that, under<br />
certain circumstances, doctors<br />
who prescribe high levels<br />
of opioids for pain to senior<br />
citizens or others should<br />
prescribe a co-prescription of<br />
naloxone.<br />
Bailly recommended the<br />
National Urban League’s<br />
website whatsupwithopioids.<br />
org, supporting community<br />
conversation about the risks<br />
associated with opioids.<br />
<strong>The</strong>re is hope. Fargo-Moorhead<br />
is making a concerted effort to<br />
end opioid addiction. <strong>The</strong> Mayor’s<br />
Blue Ribbon Commission<br />
on Addiction recently presented<br />
emerging recommendations<br />
for prevention, early intervention,<br />
treatment and recovery.<br />
<strong>The</strong> commission has begun<br />
expert panels and community<br />
talks and also plans to create<br />
transitional housing for people<br />
in treatment programs. •<br />
urbantoadmedia.com / THE GOOD LIFE / 9
Ask 30 WOMEN<br />
WHAT IS YOUR IDEA OF THE PERFECT<br />
VALENTINE'S DAY?<br />
Valentine's Day is fast approaching. Causing<br />
millions of men to go into a gift buying, dinner<br />
planning panic!<br />
You spend time in an awkward card buying stance<br />
next to men with the same card purchasing<br />
anxiety. You find the perfect card, look at the back,<br />
check the price and off you go! <strong>The</strong> perfect card<br />
in 3.3 seconds. Well done sir!<br />
But wait... Is this enough? Will she appreciate the<br />
effort? Fear not gentlemen, <strong>The</strong> <strong>Good</strong> <strong>Life</strong> Men’s<br />
Magazine is here to help!<br />
We asked 30 women from various walks of life,<br />
"What is your idea of the perfect Valentine's Day?"<br />
flowers<br />
hitting the gun range<br />
clean house<br />
simple dinner<br />
bottle of wine<br />
watching movies<br />
holding hands<br />
steak<br />
a new puppy<br />
LADIES <strong>–</strong><br />
If you would like to participate in<br />
our next Ask 30 Women,<br />
follow us on our Facebook<br />
page at: http://www.facebook.<br />
com/urbantoadmedia<br />
10 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com<br />
1. Roses, a heart-shaped pizza and<br />
a movie. <strong>–</strong> Jane D.<br />
2. A home cooked meal at<br />
home with a little present that is<br />
homemade and meaningful.<br />
<strong>–</strong> Krista D.<br />
3. Romance is for suckers.<br />
“Galentines” day all the way.<br />
<strong>–</strong> Carlie B.<br />
4. Jimmy John's delivered for<br />
lunch, stay home, cook together<br />
and watch a movie. <strong>–</strong> Shelby S.<br />
5. Flowers at work, coming home<br />
to a dinner made and doing the<br />
dishes while I relax. <strong>–</strong> Shanna P.<br />
6. Going out for dinner and<br />
spending time with my husband.<br />
<strong>–</strong> Sonja<br />
7. A quiet dinner. <strong>–</strong> Crystal C.<br />
8. Any type of small thoughtful<br />
surprise. A single flower or a<br />
thought out card. <strong>–</strong> Pam S.<br />
9. Holding hands and having a<br />
glass of wine. <strong>–</strong> Kathy L.<br />
10. Being with the person that<br />
means the most to you. <strong>–</strong> Cindy C.<br />
11. Stay in and watch a movie, and<br />
order in take out. <strong>–</strong> Alexis N.<br />
12. A simple dinner somewhere<br />
quiet, a walk after and a late movie.<br />
<strong>–</strong> Jenifer W.<br />
13. Sitting by the fire, my husband<br />
cooking my favorite meal, and<br />
enjoying a bottle of wine snuggled<br />
up together. <strong>–</strong> Brie B.<br />
14. House cleaned would be great!<br />
<strong>–</strong> Deniece M.<br />
15. A nice quiet dinner at home<br />
that I don’t have to cook and a new<br />
puppy! <strong>–</strong> Alex T.
16. Staying in and having someone<br />
cook for me. And chocolate!<br />
<strong>–</strong> Heather T.<br />
17. A perfect Valentine’s Day is<br />
with a little surprise for me. Does<br />
not have to anything big, and a<br />
little attention. A date in a nice<br />
restaurant or he cooks something<br />
delicious and we sit at a fancy<br />
table setting. <strong>–</strong> Lena W.<br />
18. I will never scoff about getting<br />
flowers or a plant delivered to my<br />
work. I love flowers and plants<br />
and will proudly display them. <strong>–</strong><br />
Amanda G.<br />
19. Having a nice dinner at home<br />
followed by an evening of watching<br />
some of our favorite old movies<br />
together. <strong>–</strong> Michelle H.<br />
20. A concert . <strong>–</strong> Alex S.<br />
21. Spending the evening with my<br />
husband, getting some flowers,<br />
having a nice supper with some<br />
wine and watching a movie at<br />
home. <strong>–</strong> Connie N.<br />
22. Me and the old man, a concert<br />
in a small venue, drinks, and a<br />
really good steak. <strong>–</strong> Gretchen P.<br />
23. My perfect Valentine's day is<br />
spent at home with my husband<br />
and the dogs. I'd cook a nice<br />
supper <strong>–</strong> steak or something <strong>–</strong> and<br />
then we'd watch movies and drink<br />
beer. <strong>–</strong> Darcy W.<br />
24. A nice quiet day with my<br />
husband and zero responsibilities.<br />
Roses are overpriced and cliché so<br />
I prefer a more creative bouquet.<br />
Alongside a bottle of wine.<br />
<strong>–</strong> Gina B.<br />
25. Flowers, perfume and<br />
chocolate. <strong>–</strong> Michelle B.<br />
26. An alone day with my honey<br />
doing something we both enjoy.<br />
<strong>–</strong> Beth R.<br />
27. Spend time relaxing, watching<br />
a movie, or hanging out. <strong>–</strong> Jojo<br />
28. Walking the dog, taking a<br />
trip, hitting the gun range, baking<br />
cookies - anything that gives<br />
us time to enjoy each other’s<br />
company. <strong>The</strong> best gift is<br />
something simple and small. A pint<br />
of my favorite ice cream.<br />
<strong>–</strong> Teresa T.<br />
29. A sweet card and romantic<br />
dinner with my love. <strong>–</strong> Patty N.<br />
30. A nice dinner and a yummy<br />
dessert. <strong>The</strong>n head home and be<br />
with our fur babies the rest of the<br />
night. <strong>–</strong> Molly K.<br />
urbantoadmedia.com / THE GOOD LIFE / 11
HAVING A BEER WITH // JOHN LAMB<br />
12 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com<br />
Every week, John Lamb, a content provider<br />
for Forum Communications, supplies the<br />
F-M area with the latest news on arts,<br />
entertainment, culture and events in town—<br />
the things that make Fargo more chic, relevant<br />
and “hipper” than it was 20 years ago. He’s a<br />
seasoned Fargoan, and besides his time living<br />
in the incomparable city of Duluth, Minn., he’s<br />
always lodged within a mile of the house in<br />
which he grew up.<br />
Although Lamb has inadvertently avoided<br />
eating hotdish his entire life, he wasn’t able<br />
to elude this interview with yours truly at<br />
Drekker Brewing Company. Read on to learn<br />
the usual unusuals about the local writer.
LAMPCHOP • L-CHOP • EL-CHOPO • LAMMERS<br />
<strong>Good</strong> <strong>Life</strong>: Do people perpetually<br />
annoy you with wordplays of your last<br />
name?<br />
John Lamb: Sometimes. Sports guys<br />
do. <strong>The</strong> mom of my best friend growing<br />
up would call me Lambchop. And then<br />
Lambchop became L-Chop, and then<br />
L-Chop became El-Chopo—I didn’t<br />
deserve that one. Some of my friends<br />
call me Lammers, but they never put<br />
the B in there. Most people go full<br />
name: John Lamb. Not even a pause.<br />
John Lamb.<br />
GL: Do you beat people up in dark<br />
alleys for calling you those nicknames,<br />
or do you like them?<br />
JL: Oh, I couldn’t beat anybody up. I<br />
live up to my name with that. I would<br />
gnaw at people and just eat all their<br />
food and shed, but I would not beat<br />
anybody up. And none of the names<br />
have provoked any kind of fist-to-cuff<br />
or anything like that. I’d probably drink<br />
their beer when they’re not looking.<br />
Sneaky consumption.<br />
urbantoadmedia.com / THE GOOD LIFE / 13
HAVING A BEER WITH // JOHN LAMB<br />
HOTDISH<br />
Would you consider<br />
lasagna a hotdish?<br />
<strong>–</strong> John Lamb<br />
GL: What’s your favorite hotdish?<br />
JL: Would you consider lasagna a<br />
hotdish?<br />
GL: Umm, no. It needs to be more like<br />
Campbell’s soup mixed with something<br />
or other.<br />
JL: Ya know, I grew up in a house<br />
where my mom never did that, and my<br />
dad mostly just liked a hunk of meat or<br />
eggs. We never really did hotdish.<br />
GL: So never any tator tot hotdish?<br />
JL: I don’t know if I’ve ever actually had<br />
that. My girlfriend says we’re going to<br />
make it sometime, and I’m like, yeah,<br />
bring it on. Let’s do it. What are some<br />
other notable hotdishes?<br />
GL: I can’t think of any names for any<br />
other ones because you pretty much<br />
just throw stuff together.<br />
JL: Like noodle koodle.<br />
GL: Yeah, like noodle koodle, dippity<br />
doodle. Just whatever oodle.<br />
JL: I’m probably going to have my<br />
Midwest card revoked, aren’t I? I’m<br />
going to have to go through a remedial<br />
course, and I‘ll probably have to go ice<br />
fishing again.<br />
GL: You’ll be ejected from the Midwest.<br />
JL: I’ll have my badge or belt buckle<br />
taken away. <strong>The</strong>y’ll have to sand the<br />
North Dakota tattoo off my arm. I<br />
should’ve just eaten the hotdish.<br />
GL: It could’ve been so simple, John.<br />
JL: That’s what we should say: Just eat<br />
the hotdish. Take the hotdish.<br />
GL: Leave the gun, take the hotdish.<br />
JL: Yes, exactly. <strong>Good</strong> catch.<br />
THE GOOD LIFE<br />
<strong>The</strong> good life for me would be<br />
going to another city, having a<br />
good day, and being able to come<br />
back to a job I like, having a place<br />
where I like to live, and kind of<br />
just where everything makes me<br />
happy. <strong>–</strong> John Lamb<br />
14 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com<br />
GL: How do you make your office space/cubicle/quad cozy?<br />
JL: I don’t clean. <strong>The</strong>re are piles and piles of papers and newspapers,<br />
lots of empty bottles, and, sometimes, empty coffee cups. On the<br />
little divider, I post cards that friends have sent or interesting<br />
postcards for events.<br />
GL: Which movie has spoken to you in such a way where it’s like,<br />
“This is my life” or “I can totally relate to that character”?<br />
JL: It certainly wouldn’t be a super-hero movie. It would be a movie<br />
about somebody who would interact with people regularly, but<br />
who would probably do fine just keeping to himself. He could go to<br />
lunch by himself and read a newspaper and even go out and have<br />
a drink by himself as he watches a band play at the VFW. This is
why no one is going to turn my life into<br />
a movie.<br />
GL: It would be more of a documentary.<br />
JL: Maybe it would be a music video.<br />
GL: Which song would it feature?<br />
JL: Maybe some Hold Steady songs,<br />
the ones that aren’t so druggy.<br />
GL: If you had to give us a headline of<br />
your week so far, what would it be?<br />
JL: Do I have to use the phrase “local<br />
man” in there? “Local man gets<br />
through ‘nother week.” Oh, it would be<br />
“Local man consoles dog after eating<br />
brick of Brie.”<br />
GL: Brick o’ Brie. That should be a<br />
band name.<br />
JL: That would be good ‘cause it could<br />
go either way; it could be about cheese<br />
or a person. It sounds like bric-à-brac.<br />
I don’t know what that is, but it’s fun<br />
to say.<br />
GL: Exactly. Now I just want to start a<br />
band called Brick o’ Brie.<br />
JL: Brick o’ Brie. Do it. I’ll give you a<br />
good write-up. If only more people<br />
realized they just needed to buy me<br />
drinks to get good coverage.<br />
GL: What’s one of your favorite types<br />
of writing?<br />
JL: This may sound really odd,<br />
but obituaries can be really kind<br />
of fulfilling. You’re kind of giving a<br />
little portrait of someone’s life. If<br />
it’s someone who was noteworthy,<br />
a newsmaker, you can look through<br />
their files and find out what they did<br />
that was remarkable and unique and<br />
write about why they’ll be missed.<br />
GL: What does living the good life<br />
mean to you?<br />
JL: <strong>The</strong> good life for me would be going<br />
to another city, having a good day, and<br />
being able to come back to a job I like,<br />
having a place where I like to live, and<br />
kind of just where everything makes<br />
me happy. If I’m not there, I’m pretty<br />
close. I think I got the big ones. I just<br />
need to figure out retirement funds. •<br />
urbantoadmedia.com / THE GOOD LIFE / 15
WRITTEN BY: MATT LACHOWITZER<br />
You’re on your way to work, driving your<br />
normal route and you start to feel a slight shift<br />
to the right. It’s a windy day so you pass it off<br />
as the wind, but as the week goes by you start<br />
noticing the shift becoming more noticeable.<br />
You now realize it must be more than just the<br />
wind, and may be something wrong with your<br />
vehicle. If you start to experience abnormal<br />
feelings while driving, like maybe you are<br />
feeling an unfamiliar vibration, an extra<br />
bumpy ride, or abnormal resistance, be sure<br />
to keep your hands on the wheel, feet on the<br />
pedals, and your eyes the road to try and detect<br />
the issue. Your own body is a great tool for<br />
feeling out vehicle problems, so it is essential<br />
to utilize this sense. Below you will find some<br />
descriptions of some of those uneasy feelings<br />
that your car might be making, telling you<br />
something is not quite right.<br />
Vibrating or Shaking<br />
If you are feeling some sort of vibrating or shaking sensation,<br />
it can be coming from several different places so make sure to<br />
inspect all possible conclusions before making assumptions.<br />
Check your wheels and tires, the shaking could mean that the tires<br />
are misaligned or unbalanced. <strong>The</strong>se feelings can also indicate<br />
suspension failure or warped brake rotors. Vehicle vibration is<br />
one of the most common and bothersome problems and it can<br />
sneak up on you gradually or just suddenly happen.<br />
Pulling or Leaning<br />
It can be quite a scare if you are driving and your vehicles begins<br />
to pull itself in an undesired direction on its own. Most often<br />
this feeling can suggest that there is an issue with the steering,<br />
tires, failed shocks, wheel bearing, linkage, or suspension. While<br />
there are several things that can cause this sensation, the most<br />
common one is low tire pressure, so make sure you check your<br />
tire pressure and fill up your tires if they are low and see if your<br />
pull lessens or gets worse. If the pulling persists, bring it in to a<br />
trusted automotive service center to test the issue.<br />
16 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com
Loose Steering /<br />
Difficult Turning<br />
If you are experiencing either<br />
increased resistance with the<br />
steering wheel or if it feels<br />
disconnected or loose, it can<br />
become much harder to control<br />
your vehicle safely. If this sounds<br />
like a familiar feeling, then<br />
you could be facing a steering<br />
or suspension issue. <strong>The</strong>se<br />
components work to connect your<br />
front wheels to the steering wheel<br />
and chassis of your vehicle, which<br />
allows you to control your vehicle<br />
safely. If you are having difficulties<br />
turning because of resistance it<br />
could be an issue with the power<br />
steering system like low on power<br />
steering fluid, the pump, or the<br />
belt.<br />
Spongy or<br />
Low Brake Pedal<br />
It is no argument that brakes are the<br />
most important safety function in<br />
your vehicle. Routine brake checks<br />
are vital for vehicle safety. Any<br />
indication of abnormalities with<br />
your brakes should be assessed<br />
immediately. Spongy brakes can<br />
be caused by air in the brake lines,<br />
lack of brake fluid, or even old<br />
brake fluid. Old brake fluid can be<br />
topped off but if it’s too old the fluid<br />
will absorb moisture, which will<br />
make it difficult for your vehicle to<br />
maintain its pressure which allows<br />
you to brake consistently.<br />
It is crucial that you are relying<br />
on all your senses to help indicate<br />
any possible issues. Make sure<br />
you are paying attention to those<br />
vibrations, extra bumpy rides,<br />
or resistance. Your safety while<br />
driving is important, and these<br />
feelings could be telling you<br />
something more than just hitting a<br />
pesky bump. Whether your vehicle<br />
is shaking, vibrating, or pulling to<br />
one side too much, it is important<br />
to stop by your trusted automotive<br />
service center to ensure that your<br />
vehicle is safe to drive. •<br />
urbantoadmedia.com / THE GOOD LIFE / 17
COVER // TODD RUZICKA<br />
18 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com
WRITTEN BY: MEGHAN FEIR<br />
PHOTOGRAPHY: URBAN TOAD MEDIA<br />
Todd Ruzicka never considered<br />
himself much of a risk taker, yet the<br />
thought of spending his life confined<br />
to a cubicle seemed riskier than<br />
the many times he’s sacrificed the<br />
illusion of security and stability.<br />
What Ruzicka wanted was a story<br />
to tell. After going on music tours<br />
with bands and moving to the United<br />
Kingdom, the Mayville, N.D., native<br />
has continually returned to the roots<br />
he laid down in Fargo-Moorhead<br />
when his family moved for his father’s<br />
previous position at MSUM.<br />
Since his last homecoming, he’s<br />
delved deeper into his solo project,<br />
Immune System, an industrial<br />
electronic band, and his music<br />
licensing company, Immunity<br />
Productions, as he connects<br />
more deeply with the community<br />
surrounding him.<br />
Music in the Veins<br />
As a child enveloped in inspiration<br />
from musicians like Buddy Rich,<br />
the rhythms of the drums came<br />
naturally to Ruzicka. From listening<br />
to records to attending his father’s<br />
choral concerts, Ruzicka regularly<br />
pretended to conduct and play the<br />
drums on pillows.<br />
Throughout high school and college,<br />
Ruzicka played in local bands inside<br />
and outside of school. Although<br />
music was always his first love,<br />
he majored in English and mass<br />
communications at MSUM. But that<br />
didn’t deter the feral call of music<br />
from beckoning him.<br />
“After I got my English degree, I<br />
did the normal thing and joined a<br />
country cover band and hit the road.<br />
I hate country. But it was enjoyable<br />
urbantoadmedia.com / THE GOOD LIFE / 19
COVER // TODD RUZICKA<br />
20 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com
ecause I loved the people I was<br />
with,” Ruzicka said.<br />
Following a three-year tour in the<br />
Midwest, Ruzicka joined other<br />
bands, moved to Chicago and moved<br />
back home. Eventually, he decided to<br />
reach out to a successful industrialelectronic<br />
band from Madison, Wisc.,<br />
to let them know he was available to<br />
drum. <strong>The</strong> following day, he’d already<br />
received a message. “Hey, man. Are<br />
you serious?”<br />
Two days later, Ruzicka arrived in<br />
Madison. “I got there, we practiced<br />
once, and then the next time we<br />
played was in Denver for the first<br />
night of our national tour,” Ruzicka<br />
said. “That was a little nervewracking,<br />
but it was so much fun.”<br />
Making Music Work<br />
Although many musicians are<br />
hesitant to turn hobbies into<br />
professions for fear of it becoming<br />
more a drudgery than a passion,<br />
making music his work has always<br />
been Ruzicka’s goal.<br />
“When I was living in the UK, there<br />
was a good chunk of time where I<br />
didn’t have an outlet at all. That was<br />
my most imbalanced time in life,<br />
creatively speaking. I was unhappy<br />
and physically unhealthy. I didn’t<br />
realize how important it was to me.”<br />
After suffering from that long lull,<br />
Ruzicka had to power his creative<br />
outlet once more, and in 2005,<br />
Immune System was born. It featured<br />
industrial-electronic mixes and<br />
exuded darker sounds and emotions<br />
than his past endeavors.<br />
“I didn’t have much of an idea of what<br />
I was doing when I started,” Ruzicka<br />
said. “I just had some software and<br />
went for it.”<br />
Since he began mixing music, his<br />
sound has evolved. His desire to<br />
continually learn has added maturity<br />
and depth to his projects.<br />
Idols. I’m just experimenting with<br />
orchestral instrumentation. Writing<br />
a bassoon part—that’s new. I’m<br />
sort of branching out and my dad<br />
didn’t hate it, so it means it’s all<br />
right,” Ruzicka said with a laugh.<br />
After living in the UK for six years,<br />
Ruzicka returned to Fargo in<br />
2011 and started a music<br />
licensing company called<br />
Immunity Productions,<br />
the more commercial<br />
offshoot of his solo<br />
project. He began the<br />
company out of interest<br />
and necessity as the<br />
music industry continued<br />
to grow more untamed and<br />
unpredictable.<br />
“Right now, music is my job,<br />
but it doesn’t mean I can<br />
always rely on it. I don’t think<br />
anyone can really count on it<br />
anymore in the music industry,<br />
even the bigger bands,” Ruzicka<br />
said. “A lot of people now call<br />
the music industry the Wild<br />
West. You do what you have<br />
to do. <strong>The</strong>re are no record<br />
sales. A lot of bands now see<br />
themselves as traveling T-shirt<br />
salesmen, and they survive on<br />
merch. <strong>The</strong> reason I found my<br />
way into licensing is because it’s<br />
one of the remaining ways musicians<br />
can still make money from their art.<br />
I started studying it and just kind of<br />
jumped in to see if anybody could use<br />
my stuff.”<br />
While his work remains<br />
unpredictable, Ruzicka has<br />
had several pieces featured in<br />
video games, business videos,<br />
documentaries and indie films.<br />
“Often in films, a little bit of a<br />
song plays. That’s licensed<br />
music. <strong>The</strong> first company that<br />
used my music was for a film<br />
called ‘Kessler’s Lab.’ <strong>The</strong>y<br />
used a huge chunk of one<br />
of my songs,” Ruzicka<br />
said.<br />
“I recently started a neo-classical<br />
ambient project called Altars and<br />
urbantoadmedia.com / THE GOOD LIFE / 21
COVER // TODD RUZICKA<br />
That’s what he now calls beginner’s<br />
luck. Due to the difficulty of being<br />
discovered in the ocean of fellow<br />
musicians, networking is a vital<br />
aspect of survival in the industry, and<br />
persistence a necessary virtue. But<br />
the unknowns add to the intrigue of<br />
his calling.<br />
“Ninety-nine times out of 100,<br />
you’ll either get<br />
ignored or rejected.<br />
You’re usually ignored<br />
completely. But every<br />
now and then you strike<br />
gold,” Ruzicka said. “You<br />
can’t take it personally, but at<br />
first you do.”<br />
Following the first indie film, the<br />
documentary and a video game for a<br />
company out of Singapore, Ruzicka<br />
licensed his music for a short film<br />
called “Free Ride” that circuited film<br />
festivals around the globe.<br />
“I got a call one night.<br />
<strong>The</strong> guy said, ‘Hey is this<br />
Todd from Immune System? This<br />
is Kevin. I make films. I’ve always<br />
wanted to use your music and now<br />
I can. Would you consider licensing<br />
something?’ I was like, ‘Let me think.<br />
Yeah.’ Sometimes you’re really firing<br />
on all cylinders, and other times it<br />
seems as though nobody wants your<br />
stuff at all. It’s up and down.”<br />
Paying It Forward<br />
While producing and licensing<br />
music is a daily part of Ruzicka’s<br />
routine, teaching drum lessons and<br />
interacting with his students adds<br />
another layer of joy and fulfillment.<br />
“I always thought I would like<br />
teaching drums, but it turns out that<br />
I really love it,” Ruzicka said. “I’m<br />
insanely proud of all my students.<br />
When you connect with them and see<br />
that spark and that they get it, I get<br />
goose bumps.”<br />
Ruzicka hopes to pass along the<br />
same passion and knowledge that<br />
his great inspirations and colleagues<br />
have given and stirred in him.<br />
22 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com
"My father had a huge influence on me, in terms<br />
of discipline and musical professionalism. My<br />
first drum instructor, Mike Blake, was also super<br />
influential. He taught me the concept of having big<br />
ears and always listening to the other musicians<br />
I might be playing with,” Ruzicka said. “I’ve had<br />
a lot of people higher up in the industry who have<br />
been very generous to me and very willing to help<br />
when I’ve had questions, though they didn’t have<br />
to. It’s kind of along the lines of teaching drums;<br />
I want to share what I know. I'm still learning<br />
and it's a huge learning curve, but I'd like to help<br />
anyone who might be interested in this area of the<br />
music business.”<br />
Taking the Right Path<br />
While Ruzicka never knows what will be on the<br />
next page, the mystery and challenge drives his<br />
curiosity and keeps him persistent as he follows<br />
his unique pathway in life.<br />
“I’m naturally kind of anxious, and I don’t see<br />
myself as a risk taker. But in looking back, that’s<br />
completely wrong because I’ve done a lot of<br />
weird things,” Ruzicka said. “Certainly, there’s<br />
an element of security that I don’t have that was<br />
instilled in me that I should have, but that’s not<br />
the route I chose. I’ve tried the everyday, 9-to-5,<br />
cubicle jobs, and they make me miserable. I can’t<br />
do it. This is really the only way I can be.” •<br />
urbantoadmedia.com / THE GOOD LIFE / 23
FATHERS // MR. FULL-TIME DAD<br />
WRITTEN BY: BEN HANSON • PHOTOGRAPHY: URBAN TOAD MEDIA<br />
At one point in my life, I held firm to the philosophy that if<br />
you can’t get ready to go — shower, shave, get dressed, etc.<br />
— within 15 minutes, you should consider yourself a mild<br />
failure. No matter how tired, stressed, lazy or hungover I<br />
might have been, I could always muster the wherewithal<br />
to get cleaned up and out the door on time. But that was<br />
before fatherhood really set in.<br />
For the first year or so of his life, Macklin was an immobile<br />
pile of dough that was relatively easy to manipulate. He<br />
maybe added five minutes to my 15-minute rule. His life<br />
was onesies, formula and spare diapers. It was predictable<br />
and entirely manageable. At the age of two, the process<br />
of getting us out the door is still manageable, but rarely<br />
predictable.<br />
Winter, however, has changed the game even more. Cold<br />
conditions coupled with Mack’s expanding awareness of the<br />
world around him means we could be stuck in our entryway<br />
half the morning trying to wrestle on 72 layers of winter<br />
gear. <strong>The</strong> challenges are many…<br />
Winter Boots<br />
Getting velcro booties onto a limp newborn used to be my<br />
daily challenge, and it was cute. Winter boots are only cute<br />
once they’re walking out the door. At one point, Mack had<br />
four different pairs of winter boots, all of which were about<br />
as easy to get on as one of those full-body suits Olympic<br />
swimmers used to wear.<br />
We’ve since found a pair that were designed by what I’m<br />
going to call a modern day Isaac Newton, built with parents’<br />
sanity in mind. Thanksgiving may be long over, but I will<br />
never stop giving thanks for these easy-on boots that Mack<br />
can now put on by himself. That one pair has given me back<br />
about eight minutes of my morning.<br />
Two Sizes Too Big<br />
Emily and I are a pragmatic couple. When you combine my<br />
frugality with her forward thinking, you end up with things<br />
like three pairs of snowpants that are all two sizes too big.<br />
Bought on sale with the future in mind, theoretically Mack<br />
should be set for at least one more year, with our wallets<br />
none the wiser.<br />
<strong>The</strong> problem comes in the daily execution of pulling on that<br />
extra foot of leg room. It’s a multi-step process that involves<br />
a few rounds of sitting then standing, then sitting again, and<br />
a whole lot of wiggling (and, on a good morning, a helpful<br />
amount of giggling). <strong>The</strong> oversized snow pants are too<br />
long to stand and put on, and, ironically, too long to put on<br />
sitting. It’s a weird in-between-world of I don’t know what.<br />
Parenthood.<br />
Myriad Mittens<br />
If a child’s wealth were measured in mittens, Mack would<br />
be king of winter wonderland. He’s got spare pairs at<br />
home, at school, in his diaper bag, in my jacket pocket and<br />
probably under the ottoman. Thankfully, I have convinced<br />
myself this is inevitable, as the first piece of winter gear<br />
to become soggy and utterly useless is whatever pair of<br />
mittens Mack puts on first. Spares are a necessity. In fact,<br />
“things you need duplicates of” should be the first chapter<br />
of any parenting book.<br />
24 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com<br />
Abundant Excitement<br />
You can’t fault a kid for wanting to get outside and play,
ut trust me, I’ve certainly tried. Getting dressed to go<br />
outside in the winter may be the greatest test of a kid’s<br />
patience there is. Mack usually passes with flying colors,<br />
but there are days when his feet are already stomping<br />
the frozen snow before we even get down the stairs.<br />
<strong>The</strong> fact that I often would prefer to stay comfortably<br />
warm in my recliner instead of putting on my own snow<br />
pants also complicates things. “Begrudgingly” is a word<br />
Mack will learn years before his peers.<br />
Overstuffed Car Seat<br />
<strong>The</strong> last hurdle to going about our day is getting<br />
Mack, fully winter clothed, into his carseat. Everything<br />
gets bigger in the winter, except the car seat. It’s like<br />
squeezing toothpaste back into the tube. Arms get<br />
stuck, buckles go missing and minds get lost.<br />
I remember the day when I learned kids aren’t supposed<br />
to wear big winter jackets when strapped into their<br />
car seat, but that’s just not realistic here in the Upper<br />
Midwest. No rational parent would ever consider<br />
bringing their child out to the car without a jacket on<br />
in the middle of winter. Graco’s safety precautions<br />
be damned. I’d rather Mack be immobilized and<br />
uncomfortable than frozen and purple.<br />
I suppose the lesson I’m learning is one of patience.<br />
Like everything else in this life with a toddler, I’m forced<br />
to slow down and pay more attention than I otherwise<br />
would. Mack’s laser-like focus on fun helps me reconnect<br />
with all those things that also brought me joy at his age.<br />
For that, I am grateful… albeit not as punctual. •<br />
urbantoadmedia.com / THE GOOD LIFE / 25
WRITTEN BY: KRISSY NESS<br />
Teaming up with Dakota Medical Foundation and<br />
the Impact Foundation, Giving Hearts Day has been<br />
making an impression in our region for more than<br />
10 years. Over 41 million dollars have been raised<br />
through GHD with 571 profiled charities and 100+<br />
volunteer opportunities.<br />
“It is not just a giving day, we are trying to grow<br />
them to be exceptional charities for the long haul,”<br />
said Pat Traynor, Executive Director, Dakota Medical<br />
Foundation & Impact Foundation.<br />
This is not about how much you can or are willing to<br />
donate it is about helping your neighbor. GHD takes<br />
place every <strong>February</strong> right around Valentines Day,<br />
this year it falls on the 8th and takes place online.<br />
This was strategic because Valentines Day about<br />
showing others that you love and care for them.<br />
“We find people are generally good, and they want<br />
to help, but if you don’t ask it wont happen,” stated<br />
Traynor. “People want to give and we kind of create a<br />
platform for that to happen.”<br />
26 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com
Working alongside Traynor is Scott Holdman, the<br />
director of the Impact Institution.<br />
“It is not just a giving day,<br />
we are trying to grow them to<br />
be exceptional charities<br />
for the long haul.”<br />
<strong>–</strong> Pat Traynor,<br />
Executive Director<br />
Dakota Medical Foundation and<br />
Impact Foundation<br />
“Scott and I have been working together for 10<br />
years and he is pivotal in all of this,” said Traynor.<br />
Holdman is an innovator in nonprofit fundraising<br />
who, through training and coaching, helps charities<br />
as they solve complex community challenges. “ I am<br />
so grateful and exceedingly proud of Scott and the<br />
work he has done here,” boasts Traynor.<br />
“Last year we had almost 22,000 individuals give, we<br />
had over 300 charities and they raised almost 10.7<br />
million dollars,” Said Traynor. “This doesn’t happen<br />
unless you live in a very generous region, so our<br />
fundamental philosophy is you need to create those<br />
mediums for people to ask; people need to know<br />
about these causes.”<br />
Both Minnesota and North Dakota and ranked in the<br />
top 15 stated for volunteer rates based on the pooled<br />
data from the last four years and over 70 percent of<br />
the top 15 are from the Midwest region, which show<br />
that we are living in the most generous region in the<br />
United States.<br />
PHOTO urbantoadmedia.com BY: KAYLEIGH / OMANG THE GOOD - DMF LIFE / 27
PHOTO BY: KAYLEIGH OMANG - DMF<br />
“Charities are doing a spectacular job,<br />
credit goes to them for getting the<br />
word out and following their<br />
own path for fundraising or this<br />
wouldn’t happen.”<br />
<strong>The</strong>re are many ways in which the DMF and GHD<br />
work to gain as much notoriety as they can. First, they<br />
begin with the 5 T’s: Transformation <strong>–</strong> Trends, Tactics,<br />
Tools, and Team. By transforming the minds of the<br />
organizations and teams, following trends, and using<br />
appropriate tactics and tools they are able to reach<br />
many more people.<br />
Next, they utilize social media. #GIVINGHEARTSDAY<br />
and #COUNTME are connected to this event and<br />
raise a lot of awareness. “Our job is to bring social<br />
media around; that is exciting because the<br />
fundamental thing is that people will give if they<br />
are asked,” reaffirms Traynor. “Charities are doing<br />
a spectacular job, credit goes to them for getting<br />
the word out and following their own path for<br />
fundraising or this wouldn’t happen.”<br />
<strong>The</strong>n, they follow up with the location of the event<br />
— online. Holding the event online makes hosting<br />
the even so much more convenient for people to<br />
donate.<br />
28 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com
Finally, the finish with the three R’s: Recruiting,<br />
Retaining, and Reaching. By finding earnest charities<br />
they are able to keep them in their inventory for GHD<br />
and the right volunteers are able to reach people<br />
willing and wanting to give back.<br />
Giving back doesn’t have to happen once a year, and<br />
we know that here in Fargo-Moorhead. You can find<br />
something charitable happening every day whether it<br />
is a food drive, riding motorcycles to raise awareness,<br />
or receiving free food, beer, or merchandise just for<br />
participating in events around the community. But it<br />
is events like GHD that really reminds you that when<br />
you have all of the right ingredients at just the right<br />
time you can make a big splash in the community<br />
and raise more than just money, but the spirits of<br />
those giving and receiving.<br />
Medical Foundation or the Impact Institution. <strong>The</strong>y<br />
will gladly speak with you about options in regards to<br />
your favorite charity.<br />
Most people want to give to what they are passionate<br />
about, and other want to find something to be<br />
passionate about. With Giving Hearts Day you can<br />
search through variety of causes and charities that<br />
are just waiting to hear from you. What is unique<br />
about it is that there is something for everyone. After<br />
all there is a reason it is called Giving Hearts Day, it<br />
attracts giving hearts. •<br />
If you have a particular charities you want to see a<br />
part of this event don’t hesitate to contact the Dakota<br />
urbantoadmedia.com / THE GOOD LIFE / 29
LOCAL HERO // JAIL CHAPLAINS<br />
PHOTO BY: BEN WHITE<br />
30 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com
WRITTEN BY: DANIELLE TEIGEN<br />
PHOTOGRAPHY: URBAN TOAD MEDIA<br />
JAIL Chaplains<br />
Bringing Jesus<br />
to Jail...<br />
and Changing Lives<br />
in the Process<br />
On a Thursday afternoon in November, the<br />
Cass County Sheriff’s Office team gathered at<br />
the jail for a lunch hosted by Jail Chaplains, a<br />
local nonprofit focused on providing inmates<br />
with spiritual support and sharing the gospel<br />
of Jesus Christ.<br />
Jesus and jail?<br />
You read that right. Jail Chaplains is a small<br />
organization with a big mission, and God is<br />
literally changing lives through their work.<br />
At the lunch, officers and administrators<br />
chatted easily with one another as well as<br />
with Mike Sonju, full-time chaplain with the<br />
organization. He’s been with Jail Chaplains<br />
since 2007, and he’s seen countless inmates<br />
get involved in the organization’s programs<br />
in the Cass County Jail and walk out at<br />
the end of their sentence with a renewed<br />
purpose and a heart for Christ. Sonju works<br />
with a team of 30 volunteers who help lead<br />
the 20 hours of faith based programs offered<br />
weekly.<br />
“Jail is the end result of a problematic life<br />
that didn’t occur overnight, and it won’t go<br />
away overnight,” Sonju said. “<strong>The</strong> message is<br />
greater than the messenger. We want people<br />
to walk with God, and we help them get to<br />
that relationship, in any way we can.”<br />
One person who has been helped is Wil Dort.<br />
A Haitian native who came to Fargo in 1997<br />
with his mother and two sisters, Dort’s early<br />
childhood was influenced by a voodoo priest<br />
father who required his children to attend<br />
church every Sunday (even though his father<br />
didn’t attend). Dort obeyed, but didn’t really<br />
believe in the message. His aunt was the only<br />
Christian he knew in Haiti and family often<br />
ridiculed her for her beliefs.<br />
urbantoadmedia.com / THE GOOD LIFE / 31
LOCAL HERO // JAIL CHAPLAINS<br />
“Anything good from these programs<br />
doesn’t come from us; it comes from<br />
God and the hope of His message.”<br />
Chaplain Mike Sonju, Jail Chaplains<br />
<strong>The</strong>n, in 2006, he was arrested<br />
and jailed on drug charges and<br />
sentenced to nine months in the<br />
Cass County Jail. A light bulb went<br />
on.<br />
“I didn’t want that to be my life,”<br />
Dort said. So he immersed himself<br />
in the Jail Chaplains Bible study<br />
and met Sonju, setting in motion<br />
a friendship that would lead to<br />
Sonju officiating at his wedding<br />
and speaking on his behalf to a<br />
pardon board.<br />
“We were brought together on this<br />
journey, and Mike has been very<br />
involved with my walk with Christ,”<br />
Dort said. He recalled reading the<br />
Bible in jail - it was the first book<br />
he’d ever finished.<br />
“I was praying for change and a<br />
better heart,” he said. “I wanted a<br />
sense of purpose.”<br />
During those first Bible study<br />
sessions together, Sonju saw that<br />
the young man was serious about<br />
making a new start.<br />
“Some people rise to the top and<br />
show a sincere desire for a new<br />
life and getting on with the life God<br />
has for them,” Sonju said. “I could<br />
see it in Will that he walked the<br />
walk and talked the talk. He had a<br />
lot going against him, but a life for<br />
Christ was what he wanted.”<br />
Looking back on that time, Dort<br />
can see various ways God was<br />
working in his life - like when<br />
he was cutting a client’s hair on<br />
work release (from jail) at the<br />
local barber college and lamented<br />
that his financial aid was being<br />
revoked; the client asked him to<br />
join him in a barbershop he was<br />
opening even though Dort didn’t<br />
yet have a diploma.<br />
Or when he felt God telling him<br />
to visit Haiti in 2012, so he did,<br />
having been reassured by social<br />
services that he’d be fine to travel<br />
on his green card despite having<br />
two class A felonies on his record.<br />
When he returned to the United<br />
States, he was detained and<br />
should have been incarcerated.<br />
But he wasn’t.<br />
Dort said God was at work there,<br />
and when he applied for a pardon<br />
32 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com
“God made a way for<br />
me, and I need to<br />
take it serious while<br />
I’m here...I believe<br />
the reason we are<br />
here is to share the<br />
Gospel and its truth<br />
and light.”<br />
Will Dort,<br />
Jail Chaplains<br />
returned citizen<br />
from the governor. Sonju and Capt.<br />
Andrew Frobig, Cass County jail<br />
administrator, spoke on his behalf,<br />
as well as former Gov. Ed Schafer.<br />
Despite the impressive lineup, the<br />
outlook for recommendation for<br />
a pardon seemed bleak, and only<br />
Dort’s faith in God buoyed him.<br />
And his faith came through for<br />
him. On the way back to Fargo<br />
from the Bismarck hearing, Dort<br />
received a phone call that he would<br />
be recommended for pardon.<br />
“Things like that just don’t<br />
happen,” Dort said. “God made a<br />
way for me, and I need to take it<br />
serious while I’m here...I believe<br />
the reason we are here is to share<br />
the Gospel and its truth and light.”<br />
As the jail administrator, Frobig<br />
sees firsthand how inmates benefit<br />
from being in the Jail Chaplains<br />
programs.<br />
“<strong>The</strong>y’re skeptical at first, but<br />
they’ll check it out,” Frobig says. “A<br />
lot of them haven’t had any support<br />
before so they don’t know what to<br />
expect. <strong>The</strong>y have to be willing to<br />
be open and talk about their faith<br />
and personal issues with others;<br />
it’s counter intuitive.”<br />
While Jail Chaplains hosts an array<br />
of programs that seem typical for<br />
a religious organization - Bible<br />
studies, ALPHA, church services,<br />
anger management, Stepping Up<br />
- it’s one of the atypical programs<br />
that seems to also have a profound<br />
effect on participants.<br />
Frobig said the knitting program<br />
offers inmates an opportunity<br />
learn a new skill and practice<br />
socializing, which can offer a<br />
constructive outlet for many of the<br />
individuals.<br />
urbantoadmedia.com / THE GOOD LIFE / 33
LOCAL HERO // JAIL CHAPLAINS<br />
For Jail Chaplains to achieve its<br />
mission, Executive Director Gerri<br />
Leach serves as a driving force.<br />
She’s been with the organization since<br />
May 2012, and she considers the role<br />
a “God appointment.”<br />
She had worked for a seed company<br />
for 27 years and then for <strong>The</strong> Salvation<br />
Army during the historic floods of<br />
2009, 2010 and 2011.<br />
“God changed my heart (at <strong>The</strong><br />
Salvation Army), and I didn’t realize<br />
how much he was preparing me,” she<br />
said.<br />
In her role at <strong>The</strong> Salvation Army,<br />
Leach had created relationships<br />
with churches, businesses, and law<br />
enforcement officers - all of which<br />
have been crucial in her role with Jail<br />
Chaplains.<br />
<strong>The</strong> core team of volunteers, staff<br />
and board members attend 16<br />
different congregations in the area.<br />
<strong>The</strong> volunteer time invested equals<br />
more than 1,600 hours or 41 40-hour<br />
workweeks.<br />
Last year, attendance at Jail<br />
Chaplains programs was more than<br />
11,000, which is an average weekly<br />
attendance of 300 inmates.<br />
For Leach, the good life is seeing the<br />
lives of men and women change.<br />
“I see the barriers some returning<br />
citizens (former inmates) have to<br />
overcome, and the joy and tenacity<br />
they approach it with is incredible,”<br />
she said.<br />
“It’s surprising, but we often<br />
have more men than women<br />
(in the program),” Frobig said.<br />
In an environment often fueled<br />
by testosterone and sadness,<br />
Frobig said it’s great to see<br />
many men laughing and enjoying<br />
themselves while they knit. Plus,<br />
it’s a special moment for them<br />
to be able to create something<br />
themselves they can offer as a<br />
gift to a loved one.<br />
Frobig said the officers and<br />
administrators watch for inmates<br />
who may benefit from talking<br />
with a chaplain, but they never<br />
impose any beliefs on anyone;<br />
additionally, they can connect<br />
inmates with a person from a<br />
different faith, if they request.<br />
<strong>The</strong> connections Jail Chaplains<br />
offers are extensive.<br />
“<strong>The</strong> community connections<br />
are really starting to turn lives<br />
around,” Frobig said. “<strong>The</strong>y<br />
never give up on anyone.”<br />
To show his gratitude to the<br />
organization that led him to a<br />
new life in Christ, Dort gives<br />
back to Jail Chaplains any way<br />
he can, whether that’s through<br />
volunteering for events, offering<br />
financial donations, sharing his<br />
story to encourage others, or<br />
connecting with other inmates<br />
and returned citizens through<br />
Bible studies.<br />
Sonju is quick to point out<br />
that people like Sheriff Paul<br />
Laney, Frobig and the other law<br />
enforcement and corrections<br />
officers are a “tremendous asset<br />
to this community.”<br />
34 / THE GOOD LIFE / urbantoadmedia.com
“I don’t know how they do<br />
it,” he said. “Without them,<br />
we wouldn’t have these<br />
programs...For people who<br />
are incarcerated, these<br />
(programs) are like bringing<br />
light into the darkness.”<br />
When it comes to the good<br />
life, Dort’s answer is simple:<br />
It’s a Christ-centered life.<br />
“A good life is finding<br />
contentment with the life<br />
God gave you, with the<br />
happiness God put in you<br />
because no one can take<br />
that from you,” he said.<br />
Sonju agrees. “A new life in<br />
Christ is a good life,” he said.<br />
“Jesus didn’t die on a cross<br />
to make bad people good<br />
but to make dead people<br />
live...the good life is abiding<br />
in Jesus Christ. Anything<br />
good from these programs<br />
doesn’t come from us; it<br />
comes from God and the<br />
hope of His message.” •<br />
“A good life is<br />
finding contentment<br />
with the life God<br />
gave you, with the<br />
happiness God put<br />
in you because no<br />
one can take that<br />
from you.”<br />
Will Dort<br />
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