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Friends of Minnesota Barns (FoMB) announced the winners of the Barn of the Year award at the group's first annual Fall Harvest Celebration, held at the Woodhill Country Club barn in Wayzata. FoMB is a non-profit organization actively supporting efforts to keep traditional barns and other historic farm buildings part of Minnesota's rural landscape.

The Grand Prize in the family-owned division was awarded to barn owner Lee Leysen of Tracy. Grand Prize of the Group-owned division was Murray County, which owns the fairgrounds barn in Slayton. Runner-up barn owners included Wayne and Helen Zuelch of Le Center and Val Mondor of Chisago City. Other finalists included Herman Hamann of Wadena, Larry & Jennifer Lahr of Cold Spring, the Lund family of Dawson, Kenneth & Maxine Lebsock of Dent, Gerard & Lila Brogan of St. Charles, and Arthur Schoening of Milaca.

The panel of judges included: Marvel Anderson, Volunteer Coordinator of the Preservation Alliance of MN; Steve Edwins, AIA, of SMSQ Architects; Susan Granger, Historical Consultant of Gemini Research; Sherry Stirling, Executive Director of Chisago County Historical Society; and Ruth Tremblay, Artist & Photographer.

Preservation examples from the entries will be posted on the FoMB website at friendsofminnesotabarns.org. Awards recognizing barn preservation will be offered by the organization next year with a slightly revised format, an agriculturally based corporate sponsorship, and even more entries. The next function sponsored by the Friends of Minnesota Barns will be a coffee chat in Red Wing Sunday, November 16.

Out of 72 entries from around the state, Mondor's small 100-year-old hip-roofed, gabled barn greatly appealed to the judges.

Over the last few decades, owner Valerie Mondor has renovated the structure in stages.

Many small trees growing around the barn were removed and the gaping hole through the roof and second floor was repaired. During the mid 1990s, the barn was lifted, a foundation laid, a cement floor poured, a stairway built, the upstairs wood floor repaired, salvage-yard windows installed and the building was washed and painted. Then in 2003, after a few dances in the barn, the walls and floors were reinforced.

Last year, Val and friends repainted the barn. And this year, an old metal star ornamentation from the Pennsylvania Dutch farm country, was mounted high on the barn and backlit.

Future renovations are planned, says Mondor, "but more money has to be saved.

So I'll continue to take my lunches to work and drive an old car."

The mission of Friends of Minnnesota Barns is to educate the public and raise awareness to the importance of historic barns and farmsteads in Minnesota, and to help advocate for barn preservation.

Mondor recalled when she moved to 28225 Lamar in Chisago Township back in 1987, the barn was so enveloped by trees it could barely be seen. The doors were hanging off the hinges. "But I loved that old hip-roofed, gabled, faded-paint beauty. Its small 24' x 44' footprint hints that its initial use was as a horse and carriage barn but I have no way of knowing for sure. I do know that the family that lived on that property in the 1960s through the '80s used the barn for a woodworking shop and a chicken coop and the kids used to shoot hoops in the upstairs loft."

The owner of the property before the people who sold the property, gave Mondor the precious gift of an ancient black and white photo of the first owners of the property, "proudly standing in front of their home, circa 1911, the home I live in now."

Partially displayed behind the couple in the photo is my dear old barn.

The initial work on the barn in 1987 was to cut back all the trees and weeds around its base. Then shortly thereafter, a roofing contractor to repair the hole in the barn's roof.

"In 1993, I hired a contracting company to do major work. The barn was lifted, a foundation laid, a cement floor poured, a stairway built, and the upstairs wood floor repaired.

"In 1994, I bought three large windows from a salvage yard and installed them upstairs on the south end of the barn (shown in the newest photo submitted). Three smaller windows were installed upstairs on the north end. Then I scraped, washed, and painted the barn. In 1995, the electricity was upgraded. After having a few barn dances upstairs (where the barn danced with us!)." the barn walls and upstairs floor were reinforced. Work projects continued in 2003, 2007 and 2008.

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