Here are 14 Minnesota stories and videos that made us smile in 2024
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2024 was filled with with ups and downs. But for this end-of-year roundup, we’re focused on the heart-warming, feel-good news that made us smile. From felines being reunited with their families to a rare and stinky flower with thousands of fans, here are some of the stories that lifted our spirits this year.
Forbidden catch, happy ending: Minnesota trapper uses CPR to save wayward marten
A northern Minnesota trapper in January checked on one of his traps he set in hopes of catching a bobcat — but he found an out-of-season pine marten instead. He then took the unusual step of giving CPR to the animal. A Minnesota Department of Natural Resources conservation officer shared the story of how he helped release the revived and “very angry” pine marten.
“He described to me in great detail how he actually put his lips on the nose of the pine marten and blew air into it,” said conservation officer Nicholas Prachar. “It scampered off into the woods and lived to tell the story to its friends.”
‘Tom the lost trucker cat’ found 9 miles from St. Cloud after 40 days missing
“Lost trucker cat. Help me get home, call my team. Leave tuna for me,” read the signs plastered around St. Cloud at the beginning of 2024. Tom is originally from Arizona and jumped out of his owner’s semi truck at a truck stop in St. Cloud. With help from local animal lovers, the gray and white cat was finally found after a lengthy adventure in central Minnesota.
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On his journey it is likely he ran into wildlife, including predators, and the Mississippi River. While we may never know what Tom did for all those days, it is clear he was determined to survive.
Meet the ‘Queen Spinner of Shell Shock,’ a local celebrity at MOA
In her nearly 1 million spins, Tara Maldonado has kept her cool riding the Mall of America’s Shell Shock ride over the past 12 years.
“I don’t get sick or nothing like that. I’m used to it,” she said.
The Ninja Turtles-themed flying ride has 12 seats shaped like turtle shells with wings and is designed to allow riders to spin as much as they can. But few are actually able to do a full spin in their seat, much less achieve Maldonado’s 60-plus spins in under two minutes.
Rare corpse flower blooms, stinks up Como Park Zoo and Conservatory
The corpse flower (Amorphophallus titanum) affectionately nicknamed “Horace” bloomed in May for the first time since arriving at Como in 2019. The line to see the flower was long because thousands showed up to catch a whiff.
Funeral directors Oliver Perkins and Makenzie Lacina visited Horace to compare the smell.
“I really wanted to see if it smelled what we smell at work,” Lacina said.
“It definitely smells, but not as bad as what we are used to,” Perkins said. “Kind of disappointed it didn’t make me gag.”
“A bit more waterlogged smell, a bit fishy, but it’s very similar,” Perkins added.
Minneapolis cat tour delights
Cats were on leashes, in strollers or gazing out windows for tour members to adore in June. Hundreds of people gathered in the Wedge neighborhood of Minneapolis for the seventh annual Wedge LIVE cat tour. There were 22 stops and this year’s theme was “fear and loathing on Hennepin Avenue.”
A memorial tattoo, a car and a cosmic coincidence
Becky Gilbert lost her beloved Grandma Jean back in 2010 when she was just 15 years old. She wanted to get a tattoo to memorialize her Grandma and decided on an image of her Grandma’s green Subaru Forester. Little did she know when she selected a tattoo artist, he would be the new owner of her grandmother’s beloved car.
Blossoming late: A new State Fair crop artist emerges in retirement
After retiring from 3M, Maureen Sorensen began doing stained glass in her free time. After she mastered that, moved on to painting and did 1,200 pieces in two years. She again switched to crop art and, at her daughter’s suggestion, she submitted two pieces to the Minnesota State Fair in 2023: Bryndal the dog and the Stone Arch Bridge.
The pup got fifth place in her category, and the bridge now hangs in Terminal 1 in the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
This year she submitted a kaleidoscope fully decorated in seeds representing different parts of Minnesota including Scandinavian folk art, Hmong embroidery, indigenous flowers and Somali weaving. When you look through the glass, there are over two dozen discs to examine. Her creation ended up winning first place in its category.
After swimming to a Minnesota angler, stray kitten now has a new fur-ever home
A Minnesota man made an unlikely friend while fishing when a light orange kitten emerged from a lake and swam to his paddleboard. The two spent the rest of the day fishing; the kitten slept on the back of the paddleboard in a sunny spot. Later, Erik Koffski brought him home. The cat charmed Koffski’s wife and son. Then the family picked what seems like the perfect name: Fisher.
Minnesota wins inaugural PWHL championship, takes home Walter Cup
Minnesota won 3-0 over Boston in the winner-take-all Game 5 to claim the inaugural championship of the Professional Women’s Hockey League in May.
“We’re the State of Hockey,” said Taylor Heise, who was the league’s No. 1 overall draft pick. “And I think this proves it.”
Explaining how to pronounce Walz to the rest of the country
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was propelled onto the national stage when he was named as the running mate to Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris. As a radio station, we take pronunciation very seriously.
A Duluth cat was found underground after missing for nearly 2 months
Drifter’s family was beginning to plan a small memorial service for him after he had been missing for nearly two months. Then the family’s neighbors came to tell them they could hear meowing from construction near the sewer and sidewalk.
“We ran and started digging, everything was covered in dirt and landscape fabric,” Clifton Nesseth said. “A little paw shot out of a tear in the fabric. It was a tabby cat paw.”
Rising star from Minneapolis brings LGBTQ+ representation to pro wrestling
When Devon Monroe enters a wrestling ring, he’s loud, energetic and oozes sex appeal. Local wrestling fans know him through his larger-than-life personality. Everything about him is flashy and authentic — his outfits, his wrestling moves and his storyline.
“Devon is kind of just the confidence, the showmanship, the femininity, like just the gorgeousness that I feel like I never really got to live out in my real life.”
‘The best weekend of my life‘: Minneapolis Chef Christina Nguyen lifts up family after big award night
The annual James Beard Awards are sort of like the Oscar Awards, but for cuisine. And this year, Minneapolis chef Christina Nguyen brought home high honors after being named Best Chef in the Midwest. The high praise shines a light on Hai Hai, the restaurant where she serves as Executive Chef.
“Thank you to my parents, who have always had my back. As refugees from Vietnam, they had to start their lives over from scratch when they moved here, with no warning, and they've taught me that anything is possible, to not be afraid,” Nguyen said at the awards ceremony.
Minnesota Zoo animals play in 1st big snow of the season
Are “snow zoomies” a thing? The Minnesota Zoo shared video of Asian wild horses, camels and a pine marten romping around in several inches of fresh snow on Dec. 19.