District 241 counselors, social workers and administrators had the opportunity to receive training regarding the effects that the deployment of parents, brothers, sisters and other special people can have on students attending Albert Lea Area Schools.

Gail Mossman, state youth coordinator for the Minnesota National Guard and Reserve Families, provided important information regarding the impact of pre-deployment, deployment and re-integration has on the families with special emphasis on the children and how they handle the absence of a loved one.

District counselors and social workers said they are now much better prepared to assist families with loved ones serving with the National Guard in Kosovo.

Chorale goes on retreat

The Albert Lea High School Chorale went on its annual retreat Thursday and Friday. Members traveled to Good Earth Village and spent a day and a half getting to know each other better and learning their holiday set of music in a concentrated time.

The members of the group are: Korbin Wayne, Christine Balsley, Ashley Hagen, Ali Schmitz, Ashley Trail, Katie Schou, Corissa Ranum, Devan Miller, Kelsey Forman, Erin Miller, Jessica Blanshan, Kelli Hanson, Merissa Kittleson, Katie Rust, Josh Klapperick, Tyler Petersen, Nick Parsons, Louis Tufte, Eric Bowron, Evan Anderson, Josh Sousa, Chris Dorman, Andrew Knutson, William Sturtz, Ross Pirsig, Liam Moore, Jordan Elleby anad Kevin Zogg.

They will be ready to call upon for entertainment during the holiday season.

Make your reservations early by calling Diane Heaney at the high school.

ALHS choirs, orchestra to present first concert of year

The Albert Lea High School Music Department will present its first concert of the year on Tuesday, Oct 30. (Note the change in date because of the state soccer tournament.) The concert will be held at First Lutheran Church in Albert Lea at both 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. to accommodate the traditionally large crowd. The concert will feature the Chamber Orchestra and the ALHS Symphony Orchestra, directed by Rebekah Crissinger, and the Concert Choir, Varsity Choir, and Tiger Choir, directed by Diane Heaney.

The ALHS Chamber will first perform the first and fourth movement of &8220;St. Paul&8217;s Suite&8221; by Holst. The ALHS Orchestra will perform a piece by Mozart.

All three choirs will perform with both secular and sacred works. The Concert Choir will join with orchestra to perform several movements of Schubert&8217;s &8220;Mass in G.&8221;

Tickets for the concert are $7 for adults and $5 for seniors and students and are available at the door.

There will also be a family music concert pass sold for $35 that will admit a family to all regular music concerts for the whole year.

Students work on mural at Sibley

Fifth-grade students have been working on a mural at Sibley Elementary. The students were asked to design a mural about &8220;How words are used.&8221; Chloe Kleinschrodt created the winning design. Chloe said she wanted to use the right words so they don&8217;t hurt people. Some of the words Chloe used for the mural were &8220;please,&8221; &8220;thank you,&8221; &8220;you&8217;re welcome,&8221; and &8220;say nice things.&8221; She said that she hopes people will be nice to people after they look at the mural. The mural is located outside Sibley on the north side facing Front Street.