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Unfortunately, Highway 8, the road we all use and seem to take for granted, has taken more lives. Sadly, we lost a young man from Shafer this past weekend. Along with the community losing one of its own, the highway also claimed the life of an Arizona man. I'm not even going to try to speculate on the details, all I know is that Highway 8 has claimed more victims. If you drive Highway 8 (which for most of us is unavoidable), please be careful. Don't get complacent and forget to watch the others around you. This highway has taken far too many lives.

It is with a heavy heart that I must tell you the readers, we are losing a great employee here at the Press. Dave Ambers, our sports editor for over three years now, is starting his next phase of his life. Dave came here at the perfect time for me. Just losing my dad, and former sports writer Andrew Vitalis leaving to become a police officer, Dave just walked into my office one day. Having coached everything (high school sports), he was well versed in most sports the Press covers. The ones he was not familiar with he made a point of learning as much as he could about them.

Dave is a special person with a sense of humor like no other. If you have read any of his columns you know what I am talking about. It is his light-heartedness that everyone here at the Press has come to love so much. Dave, if you are reading this, I would like to publicly thank you for all the great work you have done. I would also like to thank you for being such a wonderful friend and mentor. You will be missed.

Keeping on that same subject, we at the Press are excited about Dave's replacement. We would like to welcome Jeff Norton into our newspaper family. Jeff (a Stacy native) comes by way of the Cambridge Star. He has written sports for the Star for several years now. Jeff also loves to write feature stories which we are very excited about. I know I just went on and on about losing Dave Ambers, but we also feel that Jeff is going to make an impression on people much like Dave did. Welcome aboard Jeff. We are very glad you are here.

The United States Congress has designated May 15 as "Peace Officers' Memorial Day." This year, United States citizens will be honoring fallen law enforcement officers from May 11 to May 17, also known as National Police Week. Members of Lakes Area Police Department, North Branch, Wyoming and the Chisago County Sheriff's Department all play such huge roles in safeguarding you, me, our children and our homes. These good men and women of law enforcement continually put themselves in harms way to protect the good citizens of Chisago County.

Today, there will be a vigil held at the Capitol for fallen officers. It begins at 8 p.m. and the public is invited. If you can't make it, they ask for a moment of silence to honor those who have served our communities and lost their lives while doing so.

If you happen to bump into a local officer, make a point to let them know how important they are in our community. Let them know that they are appreciated.

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