The first Wednesday of every month the chaplain group on base organizes what are referred to as Dorm Dinners. It’s really a chance for a local business, or businesses, to show their appreciation to those young Airmen who live in one of the dorms at Minot AFB.

This week’s dorm dinner was supported by North Star Community Credit Union and the Northern Sentry. We also received some very much appreciated organizational help from the 91st Maintenance Group.
One call to a local food truck known as the Hitchin Kitchen and our menu was set. We would have a “Cowboy Supper” complete with pulled pork sandwiches, their famous Cowboy Beans, and chips. Sure enough, that was an appropriate description for a North Dakota, on the prairie, Cowboy Supper. The 91 MXG stepped up to the plate and offered to serve dessert. Could it be more perfect?

All of the partners in the monthly dorm dinners at Minot Air Force Base have one goal, and that is to in some way say “Thank You” to those who serve our country, and the missions at the base. For the Hitchin Kitchen, they just wanted to supply a quality meal that represented North Dakota. Pulled Pork sandwiches is one of those meals. For North Star Community Credit Union, also supplies volunteers to help serve the meals, and add a smile to those in line as a token of their appreciation.
And then there’s The Northern Sentry. Besides advertising the dinner in our paper, we’ll be helping to transport and serve the meal. And oh, by the way, there may be a few photos in next week’s paper of the event, so make sure you pick up the September 16 edition of The Northern Sentry.

And Now What Do We Do?
I think you can tell a person who is serving at Minot AFB from the person who has been assigned here before by the “now that summer is over, what do we do?” questions. It is certainly true that the days will get shorter, and nights will get longer. The temperatures will start to have that fall feel, warm days and chilly nights. For those of us who consider ourselves to be photography buffs, fall affords an absolute endless array of colors. The fall harvest will give us spectacular blaze orange sunrises and sunsets. North Dakota is not always given a lot of credit for our forested areas, but there are countless river and coulee valleys that will start to show fall colors. Some folks enjoy fall hunting season, and hey, fishing isn’t over, you just need to dress a little warmer when you hit your favorite lake. For me, fall is the perfect time for camping. Gone are most of the bugs that make the end of summer a bit of a challenge. Instead, you can gather wood for an early evening campfire. There is nothing quite like sitting around the warmth of a campfire on a crisp, fall evening.

This Week’s Best Kept Secret?
Well, it’s not exactly a best kept secret, but be sure to watch any one of the many web sites that monitors the Northern Lights activity in our region. Those chilly fall temps also give you crystal clear evening to star gaze and watch for Northern Lights activity. Some nights they just explode in the northern sky. Getting away from the city lights is advised, and once again, dress appropriately for fall temps.

This Week’s Chuckle
A global economy is known as goods that are built in other countries by people who can’t afford them, then shipped here where we can‘t afford them because the global economy took all our jobs.