10 Year Comparisons of Murray County 2007 & 2017
Lots of things have changed in the last 10 years in Murray County. Murray County, in the state’s southwestern corner, was established in 1857 and formally organized in 1872.1 From 2007 to 2017 Murray County’s population experienced a slight population decrease, dropping from 8,657 to 8,344.2 Total employment within the county, however, saw an increase from 2,744 to 2,964 over the same period.
The largest industry by employment in Murray County in both 2007 and 2017 was Elementary and Secondary Schools, employing 205 workers in 2007 and 203 workers in 2017. The average weekly wages in 2007 for workers in Elementary and Secondary Schools was $593. A decade later, this figure had increased to $734. These wages are higher than the average across all industries within the county. The average weekly wages for all industries in Murray County were $487 in 2007 and $701 in 2017.
Today the cost of living for a single individual in Murray County is $27,852, while the same measure for a typical family is $45,780. This is a lower cost of living than the average statewide cost of living for both a single individual ($30,900) and for a typical family ($55,548).
One thing that has remained consistent is the Murray County Classic Draft Horse Show. Held every year since 2006, the draft horse show is an exhibition and competition of equine transportation from yesteryear that was held at the Murray County Fairgrounds in Slayton this year in mid-July. Don’t miss it next year.
Slayton Women of Today get ready for annual Autumn Boutique
Decorated in fall hues and with the last thoughts of summer, the Murray County Fairgrounds is the location of the annual Slayton Women of Today’s Autumn Boutique. This 27th annual event will be held on Friday, September 6th from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday, September 7th from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. at the Murray County Fairgrounds in Slayton, Minnesota. During this two-day event this small community located on Highways 30 & 59 is transformed into a dynamic shopping haven.
This year there are OVER 90 exhibitors presenting such fine items as Traditional, Country, Wood, Seasonal Creations, Furniture, Home Decor, Clothing, Jewelry, Purses and much, much more. Traveling from the upper Midwest, exhibitors fill seven buildings plus outdoor booths. As a juried event, each exhibitor is reviewed on quality, pricing and uniqueness.
Besides the exceptional quality of shopping options, the Slayton Women of Today also manage a delicious food stand. The food stand opens at 8:00 a.m. each day. Throughout the event ongoing entertainment provides the proper atmosphere for a day of shopping and fellowship.
Admission and parking are free, plan to shop, eat and enjoy your time at the annual Slayton Women of Today’s Autumn Boutique.
For additional information, group/tour specials and packages, or exhibitor applications, please write: Autumn Boutique, PO Box 45, Slayton, MN 56172-0045 or email autumnboutique@yahoo.com. Slayton Women of Today is a non-profit organization. Each year we host the Autumn Boutique and make many worthwhile donations from the funds raised from our food stand. During this past year significant donations have been made to many worthwhile area organizations and individuals in the Slayton community.
Ken Burns Country Music Screening Event Planned For September 12 At The Breezy Barn
Pioneer PBS and the Murray County Historical Society will host a special screening, discussion and dance party to celebrate the release of Ken Burns’ new documentary Country Music at the Breezy Barn on 52 Tepeeotah Rd, near Tracy, Minnesota on Thursday, September 12 from 5 to 9 p.m. The agenda for the free event is as follows:
5:00 pm: Country music songwriting workshop with Ashley Hanson
6:30 pm: Special performance by the Roots of Oak Band
7:00 pm: Line dancing lessons with Ashley Hanson
7:30 pm: Country Music screening and discussion
A local history display featuring Dovray’s Walt Benton and his Hillbilly Rainbow Band will be available for viewing all evening. For more information visit www pioneer.org or call 1-800-726-3178
Country Music is an eight-part,16-hour documentary series that explores the history of a uniquely American art form. From its deep and tangled roots in ballads, hymns, minstrel music and the blues performed in small settings to its worldwide popularity, the series explores how country music evolved over the course of the 20th century and emerged to become America’s music.
Country Music focuses on the biographies of the fascinating characters such as the Carter Family, Jimmie Rodgers, Bob Wills, Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Loretta Lynn, Charley Pride, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, Garth Brooks and many more.
Pioneer PBS is also producing a companion documentary Country Music: Made in Minnesota which combines compelling interviews, commentary and dramatic readings from Minnesotans that have shaped the sounds of our beloved country music from the stage and audiences alike.
Funding for Country Music was provided by Bank of America, the Annenberg Foundation, the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, Belmont University, Tennessee Department of Tourist Development, the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Rosalind P. Walter and by members of ‘The Better Angels Society,’ including: The Blavatnik Family Foundation, the Schwartz/Reisman Foundation, the Pfeil Foundation, Diane and Hal Brierley, John and Catherine Debs, the Fullerton Family Charitable Fund, the Perry and Donna Golkin Family Foundation, Jay Alix and Una Jackman, Mercedes T. Bass, Fred and Donna Seigel, Gilchrist and Amy Berg, James R. Berdell Foundation, David Bonderman, Deborah P. and Jonathan T. Dawson, Senator Bill and Tracy Frist, Susan and David Kreisman, Rocco and Debby Landesman, Lillian Lovelace, John and Leslie McQuown, Mindy’s Hope Foundation, the Segal Family Foundation, Michelle Smith. Major funding was provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and PBS.
About Pioneer PBS
Established in 1966, Pioneer PBS is an award-winning, viewer-supported television station dedicated to sharing local stories of the region with the world. For more information visit: www.pioneer.org.
FREE Classes for People New to Medicare
There are important decisions that need to be made when you become eligible for Medicare. Making the wrong decision can lead to not having any or enough health care coverage and financial penalties. The Senior LinkAge Line® through the Minnesota River Area Agency on Aging® (MNRAAA) is sponsoring two classes for people who will soon be eligible for Medicare. Participants will learn the basics of Medicare and their coverage options in Minnesota during the first class. They will also learn how to research these options using non-biased tools, such as the Medicare website and the Medicare Plan Finder Tool during the second class.
Classes are held in Slayton on the second and third Monday of the month. Call the Senior LinkAge Line® at 1-800-333-2433 to register.
The Senior LinkAge Line® is a free statewide service of the Minnesota Board on Aging and Area Agencies on Aging. The Senior LinkAge Line® is the federally-designated State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) for Minnesota and is the place to call for Medicare and health insurance issues. Call 1-800-333-2433 for assistance or go to www.MinnesotaHelp.info® to chat live with a Senior LinkAge Line® specialist.
WHO: Senior LinkAge Line® and Minnesota River Area Agency on Aging (MNRAAA)
WHAT: Free Classes for People New to Medicare
WHEN: September 16th and 23rd, 2019
WHERE: Minnesota River Area Agency on Aging, 1939 Engebretson Ave., Slayton, MN
Visit our website at: www.mnraaa.org
Matter of Balance
Get registered today to attend A Matter of Balance! A Matter of Balance workshop is an eight class series that helps participants learn to view falls and fear of falling as controllable; set realistic goals to increase activity; change behavior to reduce fall risk factors; and exercise to increase strength and balance. This class is coming to Iona in September. It will be held at the Iona Community Center from 9:00am – 11:00am, on most Monday’s & Thursday’s, beginning September 9th. All are welcome and encouraged to participate! To reserve your spot, please pre-register by calling A.C.E. of SW Minnesota – Murray County at (507)836-8705. Class size is limited, so call today!
USDA Opens Signup for Market Facilitation Program
Signup opens today for the Market Facilitation Program (MFP), a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) program to assist farmers who continue to suffer from damages because of unjustified trade retaliation from foreign nations. Through MFP, USDA will provide up to $14.5 billion in direct payments to impacted producers, part of a broader trade relief package announced in late July. The sign-up period runs through Dec. 6.
“Our team at USDA reflected on what worked well and gathered feedback on last year’s program to make this one even stronger and more effective for farmers. Our farmers work hard, are the most productive in the world, and we aim to match their enthusiasm and patriotism as we support them,” said Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue.
MFP payments will be made to producers of certain non-specialty and specialty crops as well as dairy and hog producers.
Non-Specialty Crops
MFP payments will be made to producers of alfalfa hay, barley, canola, corn, crambe, dried beans, dry peas, extra-long staple cotton, flaxseed, lentils, long grain and medium grain rice, millet, mustard seed, oats, peanuts, rapeseed, rye, safflower, sesame seed, small and large chickpeas, sorghum, soybeans, sunflower seed, temperate japonica rice, triticale, upland cotton, and wheat.
MFP assistance for 2019 crops is based on a single county payment rate multiplied by a farm’s total plantings to the MFP-eligible crops in aggregate in 2019. Those per acre payments are not dependent on which of those crops are planted in 2019. A producer’s total payment-eligible plantings cannot exceed total 2018 plantings. View payment rates by county here: https://www.fsa.usda.gov/programs-and-services/market-facilitation-program/index
Dairy producers who were in business as of June 1, 2019, will receive a per hundredweight payment on production history, and hog producers will receive a payment based on the number of live hogs owned on a day selected by the producer between April 1 and May 15, 2019.
Specialty Crops
MFP payments will also be made to producers of almonds, cranberries, cultivated ginseng, fresh grapes, fresh sweet cherries, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, pecans, pistachios, and walnuts. Each specialty crop will receive a payment based on 2019 acres of fruit or nut bearing plants, or in the case of ginseng, based on harvested acres in 2019.
More Information
Payments will be made in up to three tranches, with the second and third tranches evaluated as market conditions and trade opportunities dictate. If conditions warrant, the second and third tranches will be made in November and early January.
MFP payments are limited to a combined $250,000 for non-specialty crops per person or legal entity. MFP payments are also limited to a combined $250,000 for dairy and hog producers and a combined $250,000 for specialty crop producers. However, no applicant can receive more than $500,000. Eligible applicants must also have an average adjusted gross income (AGI) for tax years 2015, 2016, and 2017 of less than $900,000, or 75 percent of the person’s or legal entity’s average AGI for those tax years must have been derived from farming and ranching. Applicants must also comply with the provisions of the Highly Erodible Land and Wetland Conservation regulations.
More information can be found on farmers.gov/mfp, including payment information and a program application.
