Premier Partners
Today, Dustin VanHale has a thriving business with numerous employees. He’s come a long way from where he started, which was in his garage in Madelia mowing lawns part time as a high school student back in 2007. What started out as a part-time job to earn extra money, slowly grew and today Total Lawn Care and Landscape, with Dustin in the driver’s seat, brings attention to detail to everything that the company and its crews touches
Just 10 blocks from the heart of Mankato’s Old Town district, the Kato Ballroom is nestled in the thick of an industrial zone, just off of bustling Riverfront Drive. But, you likely already know the spot. If you’ve lived in the greater Mankato area for any amount of time, you’ve probably been there yourself. Or at least heard tales of its whirling, dancing nights.
The U.S. wedding industry hit the $72 billion revenue mark in 2016. Good news for the 300,000-plus wedding vendors operating in the United States. That industry’s far reaching impact could even be felt in the small southern Minnesota town of Easton. Population 199. Â
Breanna Ludeman knows a thing or two about seizing the moment and making the most of opportunities that come your way. She also knows the value of hard work in supporting those moments and opportunities. As a wife, a mother of two, a former Mrs. Minnesota, a registered nurse, a personal trainer and a successful business owner she feels it is her calling to help others lead a healthy lifestyle.
Growing up in a racing family in Mapleton, it was weird for Jesse Olson if he wasn’t spending a weekend at the track. Whether it was him, his brother, his dad or his mom, someone was always competing. However, he was just as excited about gunning it down the tracks in Arlington and Fairmont as he was about fiddling with his car’s throttle or suspension at home.
Shannon Beal, Realtor at JBeal Homes, certainly believes in making the most out of life. Whether it’s helping people find their dream home, or playing the piano, or planning a performance for the Mankato Symphony Board, or being a mom of 3, she tackles each role with zesto! Here’s a glimpse into how she does it all day in and day out for family and community.
Chad DeBlieck grew up around the lumber yard. He didn’t really know it then, but watching his dad manage the operations of Standard Lumber was giving him tools he didn’t even know he would want or need. But that he now knows, helped get him where he is today.
DeBlieck’s father managed the yard in St. Peter for almost two decades, before purchasing it in 1988 and changing the name to St. Peter Lumber Company. And that started a new history for a new family-owned business. As his father eventually sold the business to him in 2011.
Runner-Up: Business Person of the Year 2018
Springfield, Minnesota sits quietly on the edge of Brown County in the southern part of the state, surrounded by prime agricultural land. It is a rural community, population of 2,200…give or take. But in the heart of this small town is a giant talent, David Milbrath of Prairie Plans Asset Management. Milbrath founded the company in 1992 and today it manages $500 million for households throughout the country.
Runner-Up: Business Person of the Year 2018
It was 68 years ago, back in 1949, that a Norwegian immigrant found his way to Minnesota Lake, Minnesota. Building a life there, by designing and building homes for others, as Nordaas American Homes. “Haakon’s story was almost a rags to riches to almost back to rags story. He was on the downside of business when we got involved. It’s taken a lot of years to bring it back. His thought and idea was that you work hard and when you do something, you do it right.”
