This part of the look back on 2008 isn’t a ranking or a some listing of the best. Rather, it is simply a selection of people who in 2008 generated news. They are newsmakers. You might find other people who deserve to be named newsmakers and think some of these should not. That said, it should be fun to take a look at what these people did to generate news in 2008. They are in no particular order:

Barry Soskin

News broke last March that the Albert Lea Parks and Recreation Department had been in talks with the North American Hockey League, which competes at the Tier II Junior A level, to bring an expansion team to Albert Lea. Soskin is the owner of Junior A teams in Canonsburg, Pa., and Jamestown, N.Y. He is the former owner of the minor league pro hockey team Toledo Storm and the Tier I team Waterloo Black Hawks. He is from the Chicago suburbs and makes his income in real estate. He decided to take a step into owning a team in the North American Hockey League and needed a true hockey town with a nice hockey facility. The end result has been Junior A hockey team Albert Lea Thunder, which was in the news before the season started when it went through the usual growing pains faced by any outfit where everyone is new and its players and games have been in the sports pages as it struggles with its initial season, typical of any expansion team in any sports league. Fans gather at the City Arena to watch the games.

Sue Miller

The Freeborn County engineer in May was elected the president of the National Association of County Engineers. She also tackled reporter questions when heavy June rains washed out a section of Freeborn County Road 34, resulting in a traffic fatality the night of the washout. She fielded more questions when the driver of a Chevy Avalanche went around barricades at the site, resulting in the death of two passengers. She was in the news with various steps of the reconstruction. Miller this year also let county leaders know about the importance of replacing the bridge over the Shell Rock River. Whether the bridge was to be part of a dam project or not, the change needed to happen next year because of rotting timber pilings, she said.

Craig Nelson

The Freeborn County attorney role as criminal prosecutor means various major cases will bring him under public scrutiny. Usually, they might be a murder case here or a big drug bust there. But Nelson couldn’t have imagined the two major cases that had him in the news in 2008. 1. Two young women face an array of criminal gross misdemeanor charges relating to alleged elder abuse at the Good Samaritan Society of Albert Lea and four others face juvenile charges in the case. Reports say the abuse took place from January to May this year. 2. A young man faces felony charges for reportedly driving drunk through barricades June 29 and landing a Chevy Avalanche sport-utility truck in a washed-out road, killing two of his passengers. The two cases, and Nelson, have been in the news through much of the second half of the year. Nelson also made news in his role as the county’s lawyer, advising the commissioners on matters such as hog lot permitting, dam replacement and decision-making procedures.

Randy Erdman

The mayor of Albert Lea was present at many ceremonies, such as ribbon cuttings, groundbreakings and check passings. However, he also made the news for the hard issues. He lobbied at the state Legislature to get funding to clean up the old landfill beneath North Edgewater Park. He implemented the Broadway Ridge Renewal Fund. He worked to improve the city’s housing. He worked to sell the city’s quality of life. He also was quoted defending the city’s property taxes, defending changes to the loan payment schedule for Tiger Hills and defending not treating Fountain Lake last summer. He also made changes to the public forum at the City Council meetings, stirring local debate, and he wasn’t afraid to use the gavel to maintain decorum at council meetings. He was in the limelight during his re-election campaign, which he lost to challenger Mike Murtaugh.

Ann Austin

This former Tribune reporter and former Montessori school teacher began as the director of the United Way of Freeborn County in August. She replaced Dave Bonnerup, who decided to retire after two years in the community-minded post. Austin went to work with enthusiasm for the annual fall campaign, being the one fielding the questions instead of the one asking them. The campaign each year has many events, which means being in the news a lot. In addition, the campaign means explaining how the United Way works, and what better way than through the news.

Dan Dorman

Dorman settled into his role as executive director of the Albert Lea Economic Development Agency in 2008, letting the people — through the newspaper — know about successes and failures in the never-ending mission of economic development. Albert Lea successfully landed companies, such as ITC Midwest and Rainbow Play Systems, and failed to get some others, such as Novozymes and Martifer. Two wind farms have intentions for the county, while hopes for a second ethanol plant fell through. Some local companies, such as Mrs. Gerry’s and Albert Lea Select Foods, decided to expand in Albert Lea. Dorman argued at Albert Lea City Hall for lower sewer rates on wet industries to ease the decision-making at Mrs. Gerry’s. He also was active in sharing his views on the Albert Lea comprehensive plan, right up until the night of the council’s approval.

Al Larson

By simply saying yes, this man made some of the biggest news this year. A Freeborn County family would get a new home because Larson agreed to build it as part of an ABC television show called “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.” He rounded up all the skilled labor and trades companies and workers in the region to help him and Larson Contracting his employees to get it done. He also roped several local movers and shakers into helping him coordinate all the hubbub. People volunteered in droves and others came to the site to watch all the fun. Other companies jumped on the bandwagon and donated goodies to the family, too, from a college scholarship to a pickup truck. Larson’s giving became contagious in 2008.

Ty Pennington

For one week at the end of September and start of October, thousands in the area were on the lookout for “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” host Ty Pennington or any of the designers from the show. The spotting of any of these people was text-message worthy. When anyone came back from the site of the construction in Hayward Township, the first question people asked seemed to be, “Did you see Ty?” Pennington made a splash when he showed up during the filming of an intro scene at the parking lot of Skyline Plaza, near the old Wal-Mart. He appeared in front-page photographs in this newspaper with contractor Al Larson and with the Dirk and Susan DeVries family.

Dirk, Susan, April, Derik and Hanna DeVries

This local family made news locally when they were revealed Sept. 30 to be the deserving family for a new house as part of an episode of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.” There had been local speculation for weeks before the show’s crew knocked on their door. Everyone knows what happened after that. The family went to Niagara Falls. Larson Contracting and several other companies and volunteers tore down their old house and rebuilt a new house. Many people came to watch the house be built and to holler “Move that bus!” Their story was shared nationally when the show aired Dec. 7. People came to know details about the family, such as Susan’s heart condition or Derik’s love of duct tape.

Bob Graham

The Albert Lea community development director shepherded a long-overdue update of the comprehensive plan through the year. The comp plan hadn’t been revised since 1970. The comp plan process made more news in the first half of the year, then it seemed to slow down until December, when concerns about the final product brought a last-minute debate. Graham also was in the news when Albert Lea was contacted by Blue Zones, an authority in longevity, on a possible community health makeover. Apparently, Albert Leans live long. Graham also led the city staff in recognizing the late Albert Lea Police Department Lt. Phil Bartusek.

Dave Prescott

It’s hard for city managers, county administrators and school superintendents to not be newsmakers, but Prescott made a particular splash when in October he announced his intention to retire in June 2009. He has been superintendent of Albert Lea Area Schools for 13 years. He was principal of Sibley Elementary School for nine years before that. Prescott. He was in the news when nine-year school board member Ken Petersen, chairman for seven years, announced in August he would not seek re-election. Prescott made news for various school issues, such as school nurse shortages, drug and alcohol awareness, state funding of education, teacher contracts, state-mandated test results and the donation of a sign to Albert Lea High School.

Marion Ross

This Hollywood actress lives in California but considers Albert Lea her hometown. The returned in June to give the commencement speech to Albert Lea High School graduates and to be present at the renaming dedication for the Albert Lea Civic Theatre in her honor. It became the Marion Ross Performing Arts Center. She performed “Love Letters” with Paul Michael, too. In July, she received the first star on the Minnesota Walk of Fame. Whenever Ross is in Minnesota, she makes news.

Ron Kraus

This local man built a Midwestern empire of Dairy Queen restaurants but this year he made the news by selling 33 Dairy Queen restaurants in Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin to Fourteen Foods. The headquarters for Kraus Foods was based in Albert Lea, and Bloomington-based Fourteen Foods decided to keep the Albert Lea office and its employees as the administrative office for the company. Kraus kept eight Dairy Queen restaurants he owned in Florida. Kraus Foods started as Kraus Petroleum in 1981. He bought his first Dairy Queen in Dodge Center in 1988 and as the company grew he changed the name to Kraus Foods. Kraus made news again in April when he sold his two Korner Mart convenience stores to local couple Kevin and Tami Weitzel. Kevin worked for Kraus Foods for 14 years and worked his way up to chief operating officer. Tami is the property manager for the couple’s business, TK Properties.

Tyler Olson

In Lake Mills, Iowa, they call him “T.O.” He suffered a spinal cord injury during a Bulldog football game Sept. 5 during what coach Bill Byrnes described as a “routine tackle.” The crowd that night fell quiet as they pondered what would happen to the boy. It was one of the worst sports injuries in recent years among local sports teams. The city and the school gave an outpouring of support for Olson. Thousands crowded the Caringbridge.org Web site to see updates on his recovery. He spoke to the football team later that month through videoconferencing and told them he broke the C5 vertebra and also sustained some damage to the C4 and C6 as a result of the football tackle. Olson could move his biceps and had some sensation in his legs and hands, but could not move his legs and hands. After some progression, he visited the school in Lake Mills in November in wheelchair and was joking with friends as usual. His upbeat humor in spite of his situation marveled onlookers.

Susie Petersen

Petersen seemed to be all over the place in 2009, dealing with more than the usual visitor events for Albert Lea. She was involved in getting the April Sorensen Half-Marathon off the ground and she was on the “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” committee, along with several other local movers and shakers. She wasn’t always in front of the camera, but she was behind the scenes.

Greg Jensen

This local real-estate owner, auctioneer and radio station owner in May bought some land adjacent to land he owns in the Jugland area on the southeast corner of Albert Lea Lake. It had been owned by Lloyd Palmer. The Shell Rock River flowed through the property as it exited the lake and headed south and across the river was an old fixed-crest dam that controlled the lever of the lake. Palmer had been in talks with the Shell Rock River Watershed District for a possible easement for recreational amenities and a parking lot. The district had been working with the county on removing the dam and building a new one with a variable crest where a county road crosses the river, closer to the outlet. With Jensen opposed to those plans, others changes their votes, too. The watershed district’s board narrowly approved the matter, where once it had been all in, and the county commissioners narrowly rejected the plans, where once they had been unanimous. The matter created story after story until it culminated in October at a hearing before the county commissioners.