Story behind the statue

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Who hasn’t seen this wood carving next to the Stage Stop in Mandan? It’s been a landmark since I was a kid. Part of it may be due to its location, or despite its location. Obscured by a power pole and a streetlight in the parking lot of a bar, that’s hardly glamorous. But thousands of people have probably “turned left at the statue” over the past 20 years or so.

I remember riding my bike past this statue when the guy was carving it. His name is Peter Toth, and at the time he claimed he was going to make one of those statues in each of the fifty states. He calls them his “Trail of Tears” series if I remember correctly. Well, he’s made a lot of them. Google “Peter Toth carving” and you’ll get a lot of hits from the states and Canada.

Sadly, no other information popped up on a quick search. Toth was born in Hungary and obviously traveled all over the country making these things, but there’s nothing recent mentioned about him. Did he make all fifty? If you ever find out, let us know.

“Lefty” Faris Field set for refurb next year

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For any of you who have used the facilities that Mandan High has for track & field or football, this should be good news. They’re going to build some locker rooms and sports medicine rooms at the facility and give it an overhaul.

The locker rooms in that field were…well, let’s leave it at that. It’s good to see the improvements on the way.

“Lefty” Faris was a long time Athletic Director for Mandan. I met him back when I was in high school, and he passed away my junior year. The field was named in his honor a short time later.

In 1987 the kids painted the Braves logo you see on the back of the facility. I resurrected a grainy picture:

It’ll be good to see the facility once it’s completed!

Happy New Year!

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Well, we’re off and running! Hopefully this is the start of something useful. I plan to highlight upcoming events, relevant news and/or minutiae from the Bismarck-Mandan area, and perhaps be a source of information for people who have moved away but still enjoy knowing what’s happening in our fair cities.

Enjoy!

Clint
Moderator

Credit where credit is due

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I stopped in at JC Penney in the mall yesterday with my wife to exchange a jacket for a different size. While she was tending to that and perusing that 50% off sale, I grabbed a bunch of sale Nike stuff and wandered over the men’s suits department. Boy, am I glad I did!

First off: I’m like a lot of guys…I’d buy more dress clothes if 1) I only knew what the heck I was doing, and 2) I had any idea what my size is and how to buy stuff that fits nice. I was in luck Sunday. An older gentleman there by the name of Dick came up to me and started out by helping me find my shirt size. This guy helped me out as if I was at a custom tailor. So we ventured over to the suits after finding my proper shirt size.

I’ve been meaning to get another suit (I love suits) and they were 50% off yesterday. So with Dick’s help I tried on a few, he explained how they should fit in the shoulders, waist, and sleeves, and we found one that worked perfectly. He spent all the time necessary to make sure both my wife and I understood what we were trying to achieve in fitting a suit. All the while he was very professional, courteous, and great conversation.

At one point another customer came up with a question. He explained that he was fitting a suit and couldn’t help them right away, apologized, and found another employee to help them. Talk about feeling like I was being attended to – again, as if I were at a custom tailor. I forgot I was in a department store.

Employees seem to be treated as a disposable commodity these days, especially since many of them seem incapable of proper customer service. A gentleman like this suit salesman at JC Penney stands out as one in thousands, perhaps even more rare than that. I am going to buy all my dress clothes from JC Penney in the future, as long as a guy like Dick works there to help me out.

So, if you’re like most guys – willing to dress up, but uncertain about (even intimidated by) shopping for dress clothes, go to JC Penney and see this man. You’ll be glad you did.

Aside: I value good customer service and professionalism in general more than most, or at least I make a bigger deal about it. When I have a positive experience at an establishment, I make sure that someone in charge knows about it. They need to; most of the time the only people who seek out a manager are the angry ones. Employees who go above and beyond deserve recognition, and I am always more than happy to give it.