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  • My dad was a long-time member of the Lions Club, and my mom founded the Kaleva Lady Lions, a service auxiliary. The Lions members were good folks, good story tellers, and fun to hang out with. So many of my dad's contemporaries are gone, now, but it was nice to see that the clubhouse appears to remain alive. This is one of the best places to get breakfast on Sunday morning anywhere on the planet! One of the enduring memories of my life was to see the entire membership of the club, all wearing their yellow Lions' vests, arrive en mass at my mom's funeral visitation. I'll never forget that moment, or those people.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0940HR.JPG
  • I was a little bit shocked when I went over to the fire station, only to find ..... a body shop?? Later, I learned that Maple Grove Township built a nice new fire station, slightly outside of town. Anyway, stuff has a way of getting recycled in Kaleva, and auto body repairs are a great thing to have available when you need them. I'm thinking that a marketing consultant might suggest a really sharp paint job on the building, if you're business is putting really sharp paint jobs on cars?? But, that's just me.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0926HR.JPG
  • This little enclosure is the focal point of the Kaleva Village Park, where the annual Kaleva Days festival is held. It was well-built, and, with the exception of the same shingle problem that effects the Lutheran church, it' holding up nicely. I used to hang out in this park, years ago, with some very fine people that I haven't seen in ages. Good memories!! If only these trees could talk!
    GL5D_15.05.24_0935HR.JPG
  • Back in the day, it was called "the drug store". It was owned by the Gustafsons, then the Oresiks ... but I'm not really sure that it ever sold drugs. Nowadays, it's the Kaleva Art Gallery, which I would like to visit some day when its open.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0922HR.JPG
  • Well, it's just always been the Kaleva Bank. It's had probably 10 different names since I moved to Kaleva in 1974. It's kinda famous, in a way, because it was robbed back in 1933, and they made a movie about the robbery. It used to have a nice, architecturally correct set of steps, but that was apparently non-compliant with the ADA, leading to this cement block monstrosity of today.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0912HR.JPG
  • Here's the really tough one for me. Kaleva Hardware was my mom and dad's business from 1974 until 1996. Before that, from 1946, it was Weikko and Mary Pihl's. It was a successful business, looked attractive, and was always such a bustling place. Mom and Dad sold the store in 1996 to retire, and, from that point, it fell victim to the same forces that seem to affect everything, here. Today, it's a lifeless object on the real estate market. I have avoided this place ever since the 90s, and getting close enough to take these photos, well, was rather painful.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0931HR.JPG
  • Throughout Kaleva's history, the availability of medical care came in waves. For a time, this little building had a visiting doctor, who would see patients on certain days of the week. I don't know whether it's still a doctor's office, or a residence of sorts, now. It does have some nice landscape plants, out front, though, so there must be something happening.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0944HR.JPG
  • Here's the really tough one for me. Kaleva Hardware was my mom and dad's business from 1974 until 1996. Before that, from 1946, it was Weikko and Mary Pihl's. It was a successful business, looked attractive, and was always such a bustling place. Mom and Dad sold the store in 1996 to retire, and, from that point, it fell victim to the same forces that seem to affect everything, here. Today, it's a lifeless object on the real estate market. I have avoided this place ever since the 90s, and getting close enough to take these photos, well, was rather painful.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0930HR.JPG
  • Saved from the wrecking ball when the railroad left Kaleva in the 70s, the Kaleva Railroad Depot Museum is actually quite beautiful, in my opinion. The old building houses many railroad artifacts, photos, and displays pertinent to Kaleva's railroad era. Visitors can see one of the last two Switch Engines to work in the Kaleva Rail yards.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0914HR.JPG
  • Saved from the wrecking ball when the railroad left Kaleva in the 70s, the Kaleva Railroad Depot Museum is actually quite beautiful, in my opinion. The old building houses many railroad artifacts, photos, and displays pertinent to Kaleva's railroad era. Visitors can see one of the last two Switch Engines to work in the Kaleva Rail yards.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0915HR.JPG
  • Kaleva's claim to fame!! The Bottle House!! You just need to go there and check it out. To my knowledge, it's the only home made out of pop bottles in the world. And, of course, it's also the museum of the Kaleva Historical Society, and has some truly wonderful artifacts that trace the history of Kaleva.
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  • One of the unsettling parts of returning to Kaleva was a general sense of slow, but unrelenting, decline. Yards that were immaculate are grown over, beautiful old homes go uncared for, and much needs to be done. Kaleva Elementary School, built in the 1970s, is no longer used for much of anything. The flagpole is bare, the bench out front is broken, and the sign board says nothing. Simply put, there are no longer enough kids in the overall district to require this building .... so it sits.
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  • Rather vibrantly colored these day, the Kaleva Corners restaurant has had more lives than I'm even aware of. When I first moved to Kaleva, it was a restaurant, and gas station, and I think they even repaired cars. Over time, the gas station was removed, and many owners tried to make a go of the restaurant. While I was here, a lady came out and asked me why I was taking pictures. We didn't know each other, but we mutually knew lots of other folks around the area, and ended up have a great conversation ... until the rain came and ended it. Fun stuff, though!
    GL5D_15.05.24_0936HR.JPG
  • One of the unsettling parts of returning to Kaleva was a general sense of slow, but unrelenting, decline. Yards that were immaculate are grown over, beautiful old homes go uncared for, and much needs to be done. Kaleva Elementary School, built in the 1970s, is no longer used for much of anything. The flagpole is bare, the bench out front is broken, and the sign board says nothing. Simply put, there are no longer enough kids in the overall district to require this building .... so it sits.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0929HR.JPG
  • Saved from the wrecking ball when the railroad left Kaleva in the 70s, the Kaleva Railroad Depot Museum is actually quite beautiful, in my opinion. The old building houses many railroad artifacts, photos, and displays pertinent to Kaleva's railroad era. Visitors can see one of the last two Switch Engines to work in the Kaleva Rail yards.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0916HR.JPG
  • Yes, Kaleva has "city water", and has for as long as I can remember. Art Luhtanen used to look after the entire system when he wasn't running his appliance business. I'm sure that someone else must take care of things, now. Anyway, it was nice to see that the tower, which stores water from multiple municipal wells, had such a nice paint job, and in the same colors as the Finnish flag. Well, that's pretty much it for my rather quick visit to my old stomping grounds, on a cloudy, rainy day during the Memorial Day holiday weekend. I am glad I made the visit!
    GL5D_15.05.24_0913HR.JPG
  • Back in the day, it was called "the drug store". It was owned by the Gustafsons, then the Oresiks ... but I'm not really sure that it ever sold drugs. Nowadays, it's the Kaleva Art Gallery, which I would like to visit some day when its open.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0911HR.JPG
  • Here's the really tough one for me. Kaleva Hardware was my mom and dad's business from 1974 until 1996. Before that, from 1946, it was Weikko and Mary Pihl's. It was a successful business, looked attractive, and was always such a bustling place. Mom and Dad sold the store in 1996 to retire, and, from that point, it fell victim to the same forces that seem to affect everything, here. Today, it's a lifeless object on the real estate market. I have avoided this place ever since the 90s, and getting close enough to take these photos, well, was rather painful.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0946HR.JPG
  • Back in the 70s, Art Hilliard and his wife owned this barber shop. Art was a barber when he wasn't busy being one of the local school bus drivers. I didn't know Art well, but he was always kind to me, as were almost all the residents of Kaleva. I have no idea of who owns the place, now, or if it's still a going concern, but it's very cool to see that the building is cared for and looking fine.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0941HR.JPG
  • I was a little bit shocked when I went over to the fire station, only to find ..... a body shop?? Later, I learned that Maple Grove Township built a nice new fire station, slightly outside of town. Anyway, stuff has a way of getting recycled in Kaleva, and auto body repairs are a great thing to have available when you need them. I'm thinking that a marketing consultant might suggest a really sharp paint job on the building, if you're business is putting really sharp paint jobs on cars?? But, that's just me. Sign's pretty cool, though.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0927HR.JPG
  • Here's the really tough one for me. Kaleva Hardware was my mom and dad's business from 1974 until 1996. Before that, from 1946, it was Weikko and Mary Pihl's. It was a successful business, looked attractive, and was always such a bustling place. Mom and Dad sold the store in 1996 to retire, and, from that point, it fell victim to the same forces that seem to affect everything, here. Today, it's a lifeless object on the real estate market. I have avoided this place ever since the 90s, and getting close enough to take these photos, well, was rather painful.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0952HR.JPG
  • Here's the really tough one for me. Kaleva Hardware was my mom and dad's business from 1974 until 1996. Before that, from 1946, it was Weikko and Mary Pihl's. It was a successful business, looked attractive, and was always such a bustling place. Mom and Dad sold the store in 1996 to retire, and, from that point, it fell victim to the same forces that seem to affect everything, here. Today, it's a lifeless object on the real estate market. I have avoided this place ever since the 90s, and getting close enough to take these photos, well, was rather painful.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0932HR.JPG
  • Good burgers and beverages ..... and one of those shuffleboards machine thingies. Just kinda your basic small town bar, which is nice!
    GL5D_15.05.24_0918HR.JPG
  • Kaleva had three churches back in the 1970s, Kaleva Baptist Church, Kaleva Wesleyan Church, and this one, the Bethany Lutheran Church. The Lutheran church can be traced all the way back to Kaleva's founding, and I believe that this is actually the second Bethany Lutheran Church, as the first was lost to a fire. Despite its rather apparent need for a nice new roof, it really is a beautifully designed building, and, when I was younger, it's carillon rang out the hours, and played music, too, all of which could be heard throughout the town.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0908HR.JPG
  • Back in the 70's, this place was owned by a nice fellow named Bob Schmidt. I always loved visiting, as I do all greenhouses and flower shops. Wonderful smells! I understand that the business is owned by Norman Mackey, these days, who graduated a year or two ahead of me from Brethren High School.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0939HR.JPG
  • Kaleva had three churches back in the 1970s, Kaleva Baptist Church, Kaleva Wesleyan Church, and this one, the Bethany Lutheran Church. The Lutheran church can be traced all the way back to Kaleva's founding, and I believe that this is actually the second Bethany Lutheran Church, as the first was lost to a fire. Despite its rather apparent need for a nice new roof, it really is a beautifully designed building, and, when I was younger, it's carillon rang out the hours, and played music, too, all of which could be heard throughout the town.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0928HR.JPG
  • One of Kaleva's storied residents was Bob Rengo, who had a noted military aviation career, and very successfully operated a petroleum company that serviced airports all over the Midwest .... from Kaleva. Bob was Kaleva's longest serving Mayor (Village President, technically), too. This was Bob's house way back in the 70s. It was kinda mysterious, because there were so many trees surrounding it that it was nearly invisible from the street. In 35 years, though, pine trees grow upward 60 or 70 feet, or die off, so the house is quite visible, now.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0942HR.JPG
  • What makes a town a town? Some folks would say "a post office." This one is kind of special to me. Firstly, it had that post office smell ... all post offices seem to smell alike. Secondly, it had those two walls of post office boxes with the combination locks. I still remember the combination to Box 46 after 35 years, because, often, I would handle "the bank run" for the hardware store, which involved getting the mail, too. Most important, is that a visit to the post office meant a visit with Sue Hoeh and Liivi Wiitala, two of the nicest people that I have ever known. At my mom's funeral, Liivi, who I hadn't seen in 20 years, walked right into the funeral home and gave me a huge hug. I'll never forget that. She was very special, and I was saddened to learn of her passing a couple of years back.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0920HR.JPG
  • My memory is a bit unclear as to the story of this little architectural gem. Clearly, there's some painting to be done, and, maybe, some shingles that match in color. I think it was a hotel, at one time, perhaps the Dickson Hotel. Judging from the size, and the chimney, I'd say that the middle building must be the sauna. In Kaleva, you have to have a sauna. Anyway, it's an intriguing bit of real estate, as it's roomy, has a sauna, and appears to have a colossal man-cave off to the left. And, of course, it's right across the street from the Kaleva Tavern, so burgers and beer are readily obtained. I wonder if it's for sale?
    GL5D_15.05.24_0917HR.JPG
  • This was one of the downtown businesses of Kaleva back in the 70s. It had been Kaskinen Chevrolet for as long as anyone could remember, and the place was surrounded with new Chevys, with even more new cars across the street. There was a very nice repair facility out back, and the mechanic was my good friend and fishin' buddy, Denny Hoeh. I'm not sure what's going on here, today, but like everything else in Kaleva, it has changed rather dramatically.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0910HR.JPG
  • Well, I have said goodbye to some really nice folks at this place, including my mom. It's not one of my favorite places, but an important part of Kaleva, just the same. One of the great parts of Terwilliger Funeral Home was Neil Terwilliger. I'm not even sure of what a stereotypical funeral director is supposed to look or act like, but Neil was one of the most wonderful people I have ever known.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0924HR.JPG
  • A couple miles outside of Kaleva is the micro-hamlet of Marilla. The focal point of Marilla had to be Jack McDonald's store, which had absolutely everything! It was as if Jack and Adeline had the inventory of a supercenter in a building, well, the size of this. This is actually the second Jack's Store, as the first one burned down when I was younger. As the sign indicates, this was the place to get Oshkosh adult cloths, back when there was such a thing. Jack had massive amounts of Oshkosh adult wear .... every single product for men and women ..... every size imaginable .... seemingly endless inventory. People used to drive here from far away places just to buy their Oshkosh stuff from Jack. And, of course, while you were trying on your new pair of bib overalls, you could also munch on sausages and pickled pig's feet from those huge jars on the counter. Jack died in 1989, and Adeline passed in 2005, but the building remains, and I always have to smile when I drive by.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0953HR.JPG
  • For the period between 1974 and 1981, this was home for me. It was home for my parents until 1996. Before that, Weikko and Mary Pihl, the original owners of Kaleva Hardware, raised their family in this house. It looks a little bit different, now, than it did in the 70s, but it's a tough little house that experienced a major fire back in the 80s, and still carried on. My youngest brother still owns the place to this day.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0950HR.JPG
  • So, there's Kaleva, the village. And, there's Maple Grove Township .... two separate things. This building, if memory serves me correctly, used to be the HQ of Rengo Brothers Company, a petroleum products company that provided jet fuel, avgas, and other related stuff to airports all over the Midwest. But, now, it's the township hall. Not sure what became of Rengo Brothers Company.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0923HR.JPG
  • Lots of Northern Exposure charm, here. I keep staring at the image, waiting for a moose to walk by. Looks like you could start a business, or just live here. This is located right in the heart of downtown Kaleva. You are within 25 paces of a bank, a grocery store, a post office, a tavern, and an art gallery. And, at a far more attractive price than, say, SoHo!
    GL5D_15.05.24_0919HR.JPG
  • Kaleva wasn't a town full of mansions, but there were many truly beautiful and well-kept homes. On the one hand, I was so pleased to see that the Howes home is still well cared for. On the other, due to an apparent absence of development strategy, a four-plex apartment building was built on the wooded lot across the street, destroying the view out the front windows, and probably tweaking its property value, as well.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0943HR.JPG
  • In a way, a ride around Kaleva is kinda like a ride around Cicely, Alaska (for you Northern Exposure fans). I mean, there's the signs. I remember when this was a backlit yellow sign. Nowadays, it's kinda held up by some wooden braces, and it looks like a new sign has been glued over the yellow one. I had to laugh as I prepared this gallery, because it looks like I photoshopped the white one over the yellow one. I swear I didn't!
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  • Yes .... one of the tough parts of going back. But, it's getting a bit better, now. Each visit, I slowly inch my way up and down the roads through the Maple Grove Township Cemetery and, while I'm saddened by all of the names that I so immediately recognize, I can't help but smile about all of the great stories told, and the kindness shown to me and my family by all of those folks.
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  • And, of course there's Lenz's restaurant. When it first opened, it was a restaurant, gas station, and convenience store. Now, it's a restaurant only, I'm told. I used to love going to this place. Everybody from the area would be in there, drinking coffee and telling stories. Sometimes you would just end up sharing your table if they were busy. I had lots of good meals here, and learned lots of good gossip, some true, and some not so true.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0938HR.JPG
  • This little A-frame shop, back in the 1970s, was Iola Lagerquist's beauty salon. It's a cute little building, and I always remember thinking it was a lot bigger than it looks now. Despite the fact that I never went inside this building, ever, I always had the sense that it was a high-end establishment, and I'm sure it was. Iola probably wanted to retire, can't really say, but, I'm told it's a pet grooming business, nowadays, which is great!
    GL5D_15.05.24_0933HR.JPG
  • The Somsel Lumber Company has been here as long as I can remember, and it looks exactly as it did back in 1974. Actually, the Somsel family has been active in logging and lumber since the 1920s.
    GL5D_15.05.24_0934HR.JPG