April 14, 2023, was a day that changed Khadar Greer’s life.

Greer’s cousin, who he thought of as his big brother, lost his life in a shooting.

Greer, now 21, asked himself, “What do I want to do next?” And he decided: “Make my community proud” by continuing to spread a message of violence prevention.

Weeks earlier, in March 2023, Greer hosted the Stop the Violence Basketball Event he created in St. Paul. He thought it would be a one-time gathering, but the homicide of his cousin led Greer to decide it should be an annual event. The next gathering will be Saturday, May 11, in St. Paul.

Greer, a lifelong St. Paul resident, is being noticed by community leaders as a young person making a difference.

He’s “reminding us of the importance of togetherness and wanting to give our babies an opportunity and a sense of hope. There’s a lot of us that want to see our young folks prosper and have that type of energy,” said Johnny Allen Jr., executive director of the JK Movement, the nonprofit that operates and manages the Jimmy Lee Recreation Center at the Oxford Community Center.

Now in college and working with kids

Greer grew up in the Rondo neighborhood, the youngest of Rose George-Greer and Paul Greer’s two children. He saw his parents in community-oriented careers: George-Greer is in her 31st year at the St. Paul Public Schools and works with special-education students. Paul Greer formerly owned a barber shop and now works in the mental health field with young people in juvenile detention.

Basketball is Khadar (pronounced “kah-DAR”) Greer’s favorite sport. He started playing when he was 5 and became a point guard, playing junior varsity at Como Park Senior High School and varsity at Highland Park Senior High School.

Greer graduated in 2021 and he’s in college now for graphic design. He hopes to find a career that will allow him to continue bringing the community together for events.

He works for St. Paul Public Schools’ Discovery Club, at the after-school program for elementary students.

“He tells me: Dad, I see what you mean when you say, ‘These are my kids,’” Paul Greer said of his son also connecting to kids at his work. “I say: Now you see why I care so much about these kids.”

Another tragedy led to first community basketball event

Greer organized his first community basketball event last year after another tragedy.

His friend Johntae Hudson, a 19-year-old St. Paul resident, was tackled at the Mall of America and fatally shot at point-blank range just before Christmas in 2022. Two teens were charged with murder and one has pleaded guilty.

“When Khadar first lost his friend at the mall, the first thing he said was, ‘I have to do something to bring this community together,’” George-Greer said. “It wasn’t a second thought.”

Greer got to work and organized the Stop the Violence Basketball Event last March at Jimmy Lee Rec Center. Hundreds of people attended, Allen said.

Jeff Jackson (Courtesy of Jasmine Jackson)

His cousin in Chicago, Jeff Jackson, told him afterward that he should keep it going, though Greer was initially undecided. But when Jackson was killed on April 14, 2023, Greer decided he should continue the event for the 32-year-old, who he said was a great basketball player.

Jackson was one of the people who Greer was closest with and someone he talked to daily.

“He was that person in my ear that always kept me calm whenever I felt down about something … he was always that person I could go to for advice,” Greer said.

Basketball, entertainment, fun

For Saturday’s free event, Greer has arranged for a magic show, dancers, vendors who will sell food, a dunking contest, three-point contest and more.

The first basketball game of the day will be for teenagers, which Greer said will allow them to showcase their skills for middle school and high school coaches. The second will be a community game for adults. The last game will be a face-off between elementary school-age kids and St. Paul police officers.

“At the end of the day, a lot of kids don’t really have a lot of outlets and I just want to be that outlet for them,” Greer said. “It’s really just giving the community a chance to have fun,” Greer said.

There will be tables set up with information about community resources, including financial literacy and leadership programming for youth and families.

“Those resources are aimed at the root causes” of violence, said Rashad Turner, the event’s emcee, who will coach one of the basketball games and is also president of Minnesota Parent Union.

Andrew Tyler, Greer’s uncle, said he’d like to see corporate sponsors supporting the event and panel discussions about overcoming systemic racism and poverty to get to underlying causes of violence. He’s proud of his nephew’s work and understands that Greer is from a new generation that grew up when the country had its first Black president.

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“Khadar’s a very strong Black man, coming from a generation of survivors in America,” Tyler said. “He’s here to make a difference.”

There will also be therapists at the event with a message of community healing: “It’s OK to talk to people and not keep everything bottled up,” George-Greer said.

George-Greer lost her own mother to violence. Magdaline George was killed on George-Greer’s 16th birthday in St. Paul in 1990. George-Greer found her mother’s body in a closet of their apartment the following day. Her homicide remains unsolved.

Though George-Greer found a support group for families of homicide victims, she sees support for people affected by trauma as more widespread now.

Community building

Khadar Greer, left, and Jamir White, 13, at Jimmy Lee Recreation Center with flyers they created for Greer’s second-annual “Stop the Violence Basketball Event.” (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

Basketball is a way to get people together, and the violence-prevention piece comes from building connections, Greer said.

“I think being active with your community is one of the best things to build something,” he added. “I’m trying to build a bond as a community.”

Allen and Turner also grew up in the Rondo neighborhood, and they remember it as a village of people looking out for each other. “Everyone knew everyone. And everyone knew everyone’s family,” Allen said.

There was a liquor store and bar near Allen’s home and if anyone saw him around those places when he was an adolescent, they asked, “What are you doing over here?”

“It’s that type of community sense and relationship that we’re trying to bring back,” Allen said.

While Turner and Allen have been doing that work from their organizations, they said they love seeing the next generation take up the cause and hope people are inspired by Greer to also do so.

“Tragic situations led to his passion, but he’s using that as fuel to show positive outcomes and positive opportunities for our young folks,” Allen said. Greer’s event planning and skills in networking also show young people that “whatever you set your mind to, you can achieve it,” Allen added.

For Greer’s parents, they always imagined big things for him.

When George-Greer was pregnant, Paul Greer felt his unborn son kick and he said, “That was so powerful.” When he was looking in a baby-name book for ideas, he saw, “Khadar,” meaning powerful.

“Fast forward, here’s Khadar trying to move things forward, make a movement, make growth and try to bring a community together at 21 years old,” Paul Greer said.

Stop the Violence Basketball Event

When: 11:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, May 11. Brodini the Magician will perform first, before the games.
Where: Jimmy Lee Rec Center, 270 N. Lexington Pkwy., St. Paul.
Sign up: People who want to play in a game should fill out the contact form by Monday on Khadar Greer’s website, itsyoboykhadar.com, and indicate what game they want to play in. If space is available, signups may be available on site.
Cost: There is no charge to attend the event, which Greer funds through donations and his own paychecks. The nonprofit JK Movement accepts donations on Greer’s behalf for the event at thejkm.org/donate (note the basketball event in the “Public Message of Support” part for online contributions).

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When Deb Ryun was hired in 2009 to be the executive director of the St. Croix River Association, the organization had 300 members and an annual budget of $35,000.

She was the first – and only – employee.

As Ryun readies for retirement, the organization now known as Wild Rivers Conservancy of the St. Croix and Namekagon has more than 1,300 members, an annual budget of $1.4 million, and 13 full-time staff members and 13 part-time staff members.

Ryun’s last day will be June 28. A national search for her replacement is underway; the application period closed Friday.

The Osceola, Wis.-based organization serves as the nonprofit partner of the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway. It works with the National Park Service and different conservation partners on land conservation, water-quality protection and river corridor and watershed stewardship.

Ryun, 67, of Trade River, Wis., said leaving the organization is bittersweet. “I am both excited and sad,” she said. “But after working for 50 years, it’s time to relax a little bit.”

Accomplishments

Ryun’s first job was working as a “grunt” at a greenhouse in her hometown of Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. She was 15. “I watered plants, toted dirt, repotted plants, you name it,” she said.

Ryun later worked as a naturalist, a communications and education coordinator, and as the executive director for Conservation Districts of Iowa in Chariton, Iowa.

Some of Ryun’s proudest accomplishments at the Wild Rivers Conservancy include broadening the mission of the organization from “a one- or two-issue organization” to an organization that has a “watershed-wide scope” in the St. Croix River basin.

Deb Ryun (Courtesy photo)

Another major accomplishment: In 2011, the Wild Rivers Conservancy of the St. Croix and Namekagon became the official nonprofit Friends group for the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway, supporting and complementing the National Park Service’s work within the riverway, she said.

“The biggest issue facing (the riverway) is development – whether it be urban or rural,” she said. “People want to build closer to the river and bigger than what is allowed.”

Invasive species are a huge threat, and there are always concerns about water quality, she said. “We have to watch for nutrients constantly,” she said. “Another issue is the PFAS plume heading our way. If people are fishing in water that has PFAS in it, well, suddenly people can’t eat the fish.”

‘Heartbeat of the organization’

Ryun said her post-retirement plans include a weeks-long road trip with a friend to Glacier National Park in Montana. “I’m going to relax for a bit,” she said. “I hope to be in my kayak an awful lot this summer.”

Ryun has been “the heartbeat of the organization for as long as she has been there,” said Board Chairman Stu Neville, of Hayward, Wis.

“What would this organization be without Deb Ryun?” he said. “She is very passionate, she is very persistent, and she has a really strong grasp of the issues facing the entire riverway. There is always so much going up and down the entire riverway and the watershed, and Deb has the ability to see the entire picture.

“She also has a really true and abiding love for the riverway itself. She loves to spend time on the Namekagon and St. Croix more than anything.”

Interviews for Ryun’s successor will begin next week, Neville said, and the board hopes to have someone hired before Ryun leaves in order to “facilitate a clean transition” between the two.

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Now that we’re well into May, as soon as darkness sets in, you can easily see the Big Dipper, a celestial marvel, upside-down in the high northern sky. It’s pouring its celestial magic on us. According to old-time lore, the overturned Dipper is one of the reasons we get so much rain this time of year. That and some tender loving care will keep lawns green, gardens growing, and farm fields productive, along with helping maintain weeds, dandelions, and the livelihood of mosquitoes!

At my stargazing programs and parties, I always ask the folks how many constellations they can find in the sky. Most can point out two or three, but almost everyone can locate the Big Dipper, a starry friend who’s always there for us. Actually, it’s not a constellation but rather what astronomers call an asterism, which is defined as an easily recognized pattern of stars in the sky. It is not one of the “official” 88 constellations that can be seen from Earth, as agreed on internationally back in 1930.

(Mike Lynch)

The Big Dipper makes up the rear and the tail of the constellation Ursa Major, or the Big Bear. The four stars that outline the pot section of the Big Dipper also outline the bear’s derriere. The three stars of the handle outline the bear’s stretched-out tail. How it got stretched out is a story for another day. The rest of the stars (see diagram) that make up the head and legs of the Big Bear aren’t nearly as bright but can be spotted relatively easily this time of year, even in areas of moderate light pollution.

Just as the official constellations have mythology and lore associated with them, so does the Big Dipper. It can be argued that it’s as American as apple pie. Before the Europeans settled in America, the stars we know as the Big Dipper weren’t called the Big Dipper. In England, the Big Dipper was known as the Plough. In Germany, those stars were called “Charles’ Wagon”; in Ireland, “King David’s Chariot”; and in ancient Egypt, “The Leg of the Bull.” Several Native American tribes pictured the bowl of the Big Dipper as a giant bear. They imagined the three handle stars as a family chasing the bear, with the father leading the charge, followed by Mom with a frying pan and one of the kids tagging along in the rear.

No one knows for sure how the Big Dipper got its name in America, but there’s reason to believe that enslaved African-Americans before the Civil War in the 19th century had a lot to do with it. They drank from dippers made from hollowed gourds. The enslaved people pictured a bright giant gourd in the northern stars and referred to it as “The Drinking Gourd.” They associated it with freedom because it’s always in the northern sky, in the direction of where they could experience freedom. Enslaved people who managed to escape followed that drinking gourd northward to a new life. Eventually, the gourd evolved to the present-day moniker, The Big Dipper.

Constellations or asterisms in the night sky are mainly just an accidental scattering of stars that appear in the same general direction of space. Physically, the stars have nothing to do with each other. One big exception is the Big Dipper. Five of the seven stars in that constellation are believed to have formed together in the same nebulae. They began their stellar life about 200 million years ago as a small cluster that’s been breaking apart ever since. More than 30 other stars in the sky also used to be part of this same cluster. Dubhe and Alkaid are not part of the cluster, but the rest of the stars in the Big Dipper are. All of these stars are about 80 light-years away, give or take.

There’s a wonderful natural eye test in the Big Dipper, in the form of double stars Mizar and Alcor in the middle of the handle. Mizar is a bright star, but Alcor is much dimmer. If you can see Alcor, your long-range vision is in great shape; if you can’t, maybe it’s time to visit the eye doctor.

Alcor and Mizar are sometimes called the horse and rider, with the brighter star Mizar playing the part of the horse and dimmer Alcor as the rider. Looks can be deceiving, though.

These two stars are known astronomically as optical double stars. That is, they have no physical relation; they happen to be in the same line of sight. Mizar is 78 light-years away, and Alcor is nearly 82 light-years distant. By the way, just one light year equals about 6 trillion miles.

Take a look at Alcor and Mizar with even a small telescope, though, and you’ll see that Mizar is a double-star system. But high-tech astronomical analysis reveals that Alcor has an invisible companion star to the naked eye and that the two stars are a binary system, slowly orbiting each other. Get this, though: Astronomers have also discovered in the last year that Mizar is more than just a binary system. It’s actually a quintuple-star system with five stars in a highly complex orbit around each other.

Forget about Mizar and Alcor being the horse and rider, but five horses being driven by a pair of riders!

Mike Lynch is an amateur astronomer and retired broadcast meteorologist for WCCO Radio in Minneapolis/St. Paul. He is the author of “Stars: a Month by Month Tour of the Constellations,” published by Adventure Publications and available at bookstores and adventurepublications.net. Mike is available for private star parties. You can contact him at mikewlynch@comcast.net.

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Life as we know it

A story from MILAN MOCKOVAK: “While visiting my son in Sacramento, I got up of a Saturday morning to go to the grocery store. When I got to the parking-lot exit, I discovered I didn’t have my wallet. I parked the car on the street next to the entrance, which was shorter than parking in the lot.

“When I returned, my car wasn’t where I thought I had left it. I looked around to make certain, because I was starting to get forgetful.

“Sure enough, it was gone. Stolen. I really liked that car, too. An Olds 88 that I’d driven for a few years — never any trouble.

“I called the police, did the paperwork, and called my insurance company. I was ready to get a pickup, anyhow. This helped make the decision — medicine out of poison.

“The next morning, my son and I were driving down the boulevard when a car passed us. It moved into our lane, and I said to my son: ‘That car looks just like my . . . THAT IS MY CAR!’ I shouted. I quickly called the police. They told us to stay behind the car and not engage the driver in any way.

“They finally pulled into a gas station and parked. Two teeny-boppers got out and went into the store. We pulled in and parked so we’d block their exit. The police arrived shortly and took the girls into custody after they entered the car.

“After much discussion and filling out reports, the police said I could go. Saved me a towing fee, they said. But I didn’t know how to start the car. ‘I’ll show you,’ one of the girls said. She came over, picked up the screwdriver on the seat, and showed me how to steal a car. I got one practice shot and did it.

“When she got out to leave, she said: ‘Can I have the screwdriver? It’s my aunt’s.’”

Now & Then

JOHN IN HIGHLAND writes: “Subject: Get rid of AM radio?

“Recently many automakers have stopped including AM radio in their electronic vehicles (EVs). They state that the electric motors interfere with radio sound quality.

“Defenders of AM say that it is necessary for public-safety warnings and is an excellent forum for talk-radio programs (thanks largely to Rush Limbaugh!).

“Discussions concerning the end of AM radio should catch the attention of classic-car aficionados everywhere. To be classified as original, cars from the 1950s and older should have the authentic original radio or no radio at all!

“P.S. The car in the picture is a 1948 Plymouth Special Deluxe Coupe. I owned it for about 15 years. I found it in South Dakota. I sold it to a guy who grew up with a similar one and really, really wanted it!”

Dept. of Neat Stuff . . . Let Them Eat Cake Division

GREGORY J. of Dayton’s Bluff writes: “Here is another cake creation from my niece Amy. It is the famous Laser Loon — which could have been part of the new Minnesota state flag design, but instead ended up on a limited-edition library card from the Saint Paul Public Library.”

See world

From WAYNE NELSON of Forest Lake: “Subject: Just keeping warm.

“I would like to share these pictures with the BB readers.

“Here are a few of my many favorite bird pictures that I took through a window from my porch a couple of years back. They show a blue jay sitting in a heated birdbath in a snow storm just relaxing and keeping warm.

“He looks like he is really relaxed and enjoying his bath in the hot water.”

The highfalutin amusements . . . Closed Captions Division

COS ON THE EAST SIDE writes: “Subject: The sounds of music.

“I recently watched a very strange movie hosted by Svengoolie on MeTV. It was ‘The Time Travelers,’ released in 1964. I’m not sure how I had never encountered this movie over the past 60 years, but I hadn’t. I don’t know if I’d call it good or bad, but it was certainly entertaining.

“However, this is not a movie review. It is instead a closed-captioning review. I believe this topic has previously appeared in Bulletin Board due to its often unusual interpretation of dialogue. But not this time. What caught my attention were the closed-captions describing the music. Usually the captions say something boring like ‘somber orchestral music’ or ‘light music,’ etc. But not these musical descriptions. I don’t know who came up with them, but that person deserves some sort of award for creativity.

“Without further ado, I am listing as many descriptions as I could write down. I know there were more. Each preceded the word ‘music.’ Here goes: perky, kindly, bumbling, affectionate, thrilling, glaring, imposing, enchanting, gut-wrenching, frustrating, imperious, searing, panicky, buzzing, menacing, jittery, feverish, beaming, giddy, delicate, shivering, delirious, disjointed, punchy-drum-kit, scampering, touching, momentous, weighty, creepy, hectic, despondent, perplexed, obscura, apprehensive, intimidating, manic, pathetic, afflicted, graceful, entrancing, sensual, restrained, worried and brooding.”

Everyone’s a critic! . . . Headline Division

Email from DONALD: “Subject: Clever headline.

“After the Twins struck out 15 times while losing their home opener, this was the headline on the front page of Sports in the Pioneer Press: ‘WHIFFS OF SPRING.’”

Fellow travelers

BILL OF THE RIVER LAKE: “Subject: Camping surprise.

“Our neighbor and I were talking about past RV-camping experiences.

“Many Walmart stores in several states allow RVers to park overnight in their ‘back 40.’ This is a win-win, as it’s good for their business and allows weary campers a free night’s stay.

“My neighbor stopped at a Walmart store in Montana a few years back and entered the store to ask permission to park in their lot.

“The kindly Walmart employee said yes, but my friend ‘could stay no longer than two weeks.’

“Of course, the neighbor was gone early the next morning to continue on his cross-country trip.

“Wow! You never know till you ask.”

Dumb Customer Jokes

RUSTY of St. Paul: “I went to a gas station to buy my North 5 lottery tickets. I wanted one for tonight and one for the drawing after tonight. ‘I would like a North 5, two draws, please,’ I said.

“There was an experienced cashier training in a newbie. The experienced cashier said: ‘When a customer asks for “two draws,” you push this button and then this button. He will get one ticket with one set of numbers on it, but two different drawing dates on it.’

“Maybe she has a little bit of a drawl, as it sounded to me as though she said: ‘When a customer asks for “two drawers . . .”‘

“I thought I should clarify a bit for the trainee, so I said to her: ‘When a customer asks for “two drawers,” that means he needs new underwear. Pronto!’

“The older women thought this was hilarious and said through laughs: ‘I don’t think we have any drawers.’

“I said: ‘Oh, I think you do, right over there!’ and pointed to a spinning rack that had scarves, hats and mittens on them. [Bulletin Board interjects: Hmmmmmmmm?]

“The younger woman didn’t laugh, just raised her eyebrows and rolled her eyes. ‘Yet another Dumb Dad Joke,’ she was likely thinking. [Bulletin Board muses: Or, perhaps, “Please, God, don’t let this doofus win the lottery!”]

“I thanked them — and as I left, I could still hear the older woman chuckling.”

The indignities of age

THE DORYMAN of Prescott, Wis.: “Subject: The games people play.

“The Runabout and I played tennis again yesterday. There are no backhands or aces involved in our match; nor are there any rackets or nets. The serves are determined yet gentle. Nothing is out of bounds (the only white lines are those for parking cars).

“At our age, each set is a brief, creaky routine of grunts and groans that involves getting in and out of our parked car — and, while doing so, announcing every move, with a loud and determined UFF . . . AHH . . . UFF . . . AHHH! And when it ends, the score is always love-all.”

Where we live

AL B of Hartland: “It’s a state law that drivers on a country road must wave as a greeting. Well, it’s not really a law, but it’s expected we acknowledge a fellow traveler. We wave at strangers and non-strangers. No one wants another to think he’s gotten too big for his britches.

“My signature wave is an index finger extended in a one-digit wag. My father left that flip to me in his will. I’ve tried a two-finger wave, but found it a bit ostentatious. Some wavers use the entire hand to make sure people know they aren’t uppity. You get more exercise that way — and that’s good, as we’re more likely to find extra fries than exercise in a vehicle. Others wave as if they’re wiping the windshield as a signal they aren’t stuck up.”

The Permanent Maternal Record

KATHY S. of St. Paul: “Subject: We’re Having an Adventure!

“When things went south and frustrating (and I was whining about it), my mom would uber-cheerfully announce: ‘We’re having an adventure!’ Over time, I learned that she would then change the flat car tire or do whatever could be done to fix a situation. As the author of the recent ‘The Book of Charlie’ might say, Mom was a thriver rather than a survivor.

“She encouraged me to be an inventor, because she always wanted to patent an invention — and that was rarer than rare for a woman, back then. I never patented anything, so I am passing this goal on to her descendants, to get one in her honor. I figure some of her spark and resourcefulness have been passed on, and we will all (including Mom) be proud.

“Ironically, after I wrote this about my inventive mom, the terrible accident in Baltimore damaged the Key Bridge — and killed some workers who were on it when it was hit. I found myself trying to design procedures that might have helped more workers survive it. From our cellphones, I figure we could copy from Amber Alerts — with warnings in English and Spanish. Borrowing from the periodic warnings we get about driving on thin ice, we could order workers to race off bridges with their doors and windows open.

“And finally, copying from Mom’s schoolteacher sister, I would ask everyone hearing about an accident like this one to close their eyes and pray for those involved. Because, to quote Joan Baez: ‘There but for fortune go you or I.’”

BAND NAME OF THE DAY:  The Dumb Dad Jokes

Your stories are welcome. The address is BB.onward@gmail.com.

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