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Karl Oskar Days is just around the corner and as anticipation for the festival increases, so does the curiosity of who will be the Grand Marshal this year.  Here is your newsflash, the 2024 Karl Oskar Days Grand Marshals are Mike and Trudy McKenzie.   Mike and Trudy have been the owner operators of the Swedish Inn restaurant for over 33 years.  

Trudy and Mike both grew up in the Chisago Lakes area  with Trudy growing up in Taylors Falls, and Mike's family operated a farm in Almelund.  The two met by having mutual friends and finally made it official in their early twenties.  They have raised two boys and have resided north of Center City for years.

What got them into the restaurant business?  Mike took a job at “The Swede" when he was 15 years old working for Pinky Peterson.  He never left.  Trudy who worked for years at Plastic Products tells it "One day Mike came home and said, Well, we're buying the Swede." Shortly after that she joined him as the floor manager of the restaurant.  As you can imagine with a small town restaurant, they have had their share of employees over the last 33 years.  When asked how many employees they have had, Mike did some figuring in his head and thought around 1,000.  That's a lot of ties to the area.  Trudy mentions the name Mary Turitten who worked faithfully at the Swedish Inn for over 25 years.  She also points out that sons Jake and Alex have put in 20 plus years themselves.

Running a business on main street Lindstrom has had its share of changes and challenges over the years. Mike points out Lindstrom used to support two grocery stores in the 70's and 80's.  The two reminisced about "old Lindstrom" and Edsons, Larson Shoes, a bunch of video stores and the good old Sport Shack  

When asked about the challenges, Mike points out that Lutefisk is not what it used to be, the Swede used to "pack them in" for Lutefisk nights. 

Trudy and Mike both agreed that Covid almost put them under.  "When they shut the state down and we could only sell take-out, we were lucky if we made $50." Mike said. But the restaurant somehow managed to survive and thrive since.  

Running a business in Lindstrom for 33 years, you would think they have been Grand Marshals before right? 

"Never been asked" Mike says.  But looking at the wall in the Swedish Inn you can see the restaurant has been a part of Karl Oskar Days for decades.  They have a wall lined with photos of past queens the restaurant has sponsored and Trudy points out they don't have all of the photos hanging up yet.  They both smile when they remember driving floats in past parades and throwing candy until their arms were numb.  

When asked if they were nervous about being a focal point of the parade, they agreed that they will most likely throw candy out instead of doing the non-stop waving.  They are excited and the fact that they just completed the sale of the Swedish Inn, the parade just caps off a spectacular run as a major part of Lindstrom and of their lives.  

Please come out to the Karl Oskar Days parade next week and wish Mike and Trudy good luck on their next adventure.

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