 Joan Moser (left), presents a Thank You card to Scout Workshop owners Heather Rose-Dunning (center), and Kim Batcheller (right), for donating use of their facility to the Food Share program. In 2018, LHENA began issuing neighborhood awards at its annual meeting to recognize the good work of dedicated individuals in our community. Wedge neighbors submit nominations to the board of directors for the final vote.
Our 2020-21 neighbor of the year is a longtime LHENA resident and has been helping residents in the Wedge with many different programs and committees. She is as involved as a neighbor can be. She is humble, organized, a hard worker, cooperative and kind. This year's LHENA Neighbor of the Year award goes to the very deserving Joan Moser. Here is what Wedge neighbors had to say about Joan: Joan pulled us together in countless ways to create community and address deep yet unspoken needs. She was the lead organizer for two big projects were the LHENA Food Share and the Restaurant Fan Club. Joan organized tirelessly around helping people during the pandemic. She has helped to make sure help is getting to our most vulnerable neighbors and local businesses. Joan has boundless energy and assistance at her fingertips for whatever you need it for. She can pull together the impossible within hours. She isn't afraid to ask for what the neighborhood needs and figures out how to get it every single time. Whenever she is on a project, you know we're in good hands and she helps to make the time we spend together fun. Everyone she works with is impressed by how well the programs are coordinated as I have shown up to help sort the food. She has gone above and beyond to set up a program that serves those in the Wedge community struggling from the pandemic. Has continued to maintain and improve the program. The Food Share is an incredible project, reaching so many neighbors with an essential need! The incredibly organized way it has unfolded is simply astounding - volunteers in all kinds of categories and capacities that fit each person's skills/abilities - and the feeling of coming together to accomplish something truly meaningful, each of us doing a small (and for some people, like our neighbor of the year, not-so-small!) part, is incredible. She has made neighbors so grateful and proud to be a small part of this project! Joan is a force of nature! She has brought so many neighbors together to help each other in a wide variety of ways. The food share is the most well known of her projects, and the way it has grown into such a huge service is amazing, with so many volunteers coming together and so many neighbors receiving low-cost quality food! Joan also connects neighbors to help with small tasks, and her newest project, the Restaurant Fan Club, is a great idea to help local independent businesses - truly to support the livelihoods that depend partly on our neighborhood - that also brings an aspect of lighthearted and social fun, true connection, to our neighbors, during a time that has been challenging for all of these things. Joan is amazing! Led an amazing program that has helped so many neighbors and also started another program to show support for our small business neighbors. Joan Moser has been my neighbor for close to 30 years. I couldn’t ask for a better one. She is wonderful, responsive, kind and a master cake baker. It’s difficult to imagine us getting through this pandemic without her leadership, organizing and communications skills. Or getting through the park planning process without her. A few of Joan's many contributions:
Congratulations, Joan, on your well deserved recognition as Neighbor of the Year from your fellow community members!  The Twin Cities Uke Club performed on Bryant Ave. in our Fall 2020 lawn concert series. We're excited to announce our schedule for the Spring 2021 Wedge Lawn Concert series! Mark your calendars and plan to stroll by and hear some great music right here in the neighborhood. We were lucky to receive a grant from the Minneapolis Foundation to host these events, pay the artists, and promote neighborhood connectedness and safety. Eleven of 12 acts will feature BIPOC musicians.
Wedge Lawn Concert Series Schedule Thursday May 6 at 26th and Dupont (5:30-8pm) DeTrell Melodies - Soul Rumba Forever - Cuban Music (Son, Salsa, Rumba) Momoko Tanno - Japanese Folk, Classical, Opera, Fusion Saturday May 8 at 27th and Aldrich (2-5pm) Lisa and Jason - Vocal Upright Bass Duet Bahubali Featuring 69 - Bluntry (Blues/Country) Sachiya and Eri Isomura - Classical chamber music Charlie McCarron - Folk & Classical Tuesday May 11 at 25th and Bryant (5:30-8pm) The Red Hot Django Peppers - Gypsy Jazz Shahidi - Soul Songwriting Debbie Moore - Violin Thursday May 13 — 24th and Bryant (5:30-8pm) Jarelle Barton - Chinese Folk, Traditional & Classical Contemporary Chinese Music Art Dept - Blues and Rock Ellie Bryan of Crow Call - Old Time Banjo The Soulful Uke - Chill vibes and realness   Our Spotlight restaurant this week is India Palace, located at 2546 Hennepin Avenue South. India Palace has been at this location since 2016 and specializes in North Indian dishes, although their menu includes many dishes from all parts of India. There are additional locations in Woodbury, Burnsville, and Roseville. The first India Palace opened in Roseville in 1999.
The name India Palace was inspired by the owner’s background in catering large gatherings hosted at an ornate palace in the northern Indian state of Punjab. India is a mélange of many different peoples and cultures that have come together over the years and evolved into a vibrant culture that is unique. Indian cuisine draws its variety and strengths from all these different cultures and culinary influences and is characterized by its sophisticated use of spices and herbs to enhance and bring out flavor. India Palace offers a large menu featuring many types of dishes from across India, including a large selection of vegetarian specialties. The most popular dishes are chicken tikka masala, rogan josh with lamb, vegetable korma, and palak paneer (pureed spinach with homemade Indian cheese). India Palace is owned by Jatin Sharma, and the Uptown location is managed by Anil Kumar, who migrated to the Twin Cities 8 years ago to work at the Roseville India Palace. He became manager of the Uptown location in 2016, the year it opened. India Palace is not currently open for in-restaurant dining, only takeout and delivery orders are available. The restaurant looks forward to re-opening for in-person dining and the return of its popular lunchtime buffet. About the location: Prior to becoming India Palace this location was home to Baja Sol Tortilla Grill, a US Bank branch, and many years ago housed Little Dearborn, an automotive parts company that supplies parts for antique and classic Ford cars and trucks (Model T, Model A, F-100 pickup, etc.). India Palace Hours: Mon-Fri 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Sat-Sun 3:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. 2546 Hennepin Avenue South, Minneapolis MN 55405 Website Phone: 612 377 5000 THANK YOU to all 50 neighbor-volunteers who worked together Saturday, April 24, to clean up the Wedge neighborhood! Here are this year's spring cleanup stats:
Garbage: 272 lbs. (including a 3-pound bike lane bollard) Recycling: 39 lbs. Compost: 5 lbs. Metal: 2 lbs. Hockey stick - to be reused: 1 lb. Grand total: 319 lbs. !! (previous record: 234 lbs.) |
March 2023
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