GRANITE FALLS, Minnesota, April 17, 2025—On Friday, April 25, Pioneer PBS will be at the Willmar Lakes Area’s Life Connections 2025 event at the Willmar Civic Center at 2707 Arena Drive in Willmar, Minnesota, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Not only is the event filled with vendors, but Pioneer PBS will have a booth near the main stage (booth #307). Meet Mary Holm, host of Prairie Yard & Garden; Dana Conroy, producer of Postcards; Aaron Petras, Development & Communications Director; and Tracy Hanson, Market Development Manager! Be sure to stop by to say hello, learn about all things Pioneer PBS, and enter for a chance to win a door prize. Life Connection 2025 is a fun time all around! Be sure to come early and enjoy pancakes served from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. by Chris Cakes of Iowa.
The following will be on the main stage:
- Outstanding Senior Presentation at 9:45 a.m.
- Featured Speaker Cory Hepola at 10 a.m.
- Kingery Family at 11:30 a.m.
- Bingo at 1 p.m.
- Larry Olson Polka Band at 2 p.m.
“It’s good to be back in Willmar for Life Connections 2025,” said Hanson. “But we’re even more thrilled to be able to connect with Willmar members who love their stories being told.” Conroy and her Postcard team have produced many Willmar-area stories, including “Frieda's Cafe,” “Willmar Area Symphonic Orchestra History,” and “Karen Immigration Storytelling,” to name a few, with their story about the Willmar 8 entitled “Eight Women Together Alone” receiving a 2024 Upper Midwest Emmy Award. Other Willmar winners include “Haiti Love,” which received a 2014 Upper Midwest Emmy Award, and “Somali Culture in Willmar,” which received a 2014 Telly Award. These and more Willmar featured stories are all available on pbs.org, the PBS app, and YouTube. We also have a curated Willmar playlist on our website at pioneer.org/storiesfromwillmar/.
For more information, contact Pioneer PBS at 1-877-726-3178 or yourtv@pioneer.org.
About Pioneer PBS
Established in 1966, Pioneer PBS is an award-winning, viewer-supported television station dedicated to sharing stories from rural Minnesota with the world. Pioneer PBS is headquartered in Granite Falls, Minnesota, with towers in Appleton, Worthington, and Fergus Falls. Pioneer PBS reaches more than a million people in rural areas and small towns in western Minnesota, the eastern Dakotas, and northern Iowa. Pioneer PBS is honored to be your television station—the only station in western Minnesota telling your stories and raising your voices into the media landscape. Our members help make programs like this possible with their generous support. For more information about Pioneer PBS or how you can help us make these stories a reality, visit pioneer.org/support or call 800-726-3178.