An Owatonna Way to Help People in Minneapolis

Owatonna High School is a collection point for donations to be taken to Minneapolis to help people in need whose neighborhood stores may have been damaged in the unrest over recent days. Non-perishable items can be dropped on Monday, June 1 and Tuesday, June 2 from 8 am to 4 pm at the School Street doors.

Owatonna principal Kory Kath tweeted Sunday, "Watching the events of the last week unfold in Minneapolis has thrust upon many Minnesotans a deep sadness and outrage over the death of George Floyd...Tragically, the populations that are being most negatively impacted are the communities of color-further compounding the trauma."

Suggested items include laundry detergent, non-perishable canned foods, baby formula, pasta, diapers. Cereal, bathroom tissue, and individually wrapped granola bars were among items people had dropped off by early Monday afternoon.

In response to a growing pile of donations Monday morning, Kath tweeted, "Our Owatonna High School community has collected this in only 3 hours for our friends and family in Minneapolis! We are one Minnesota!"

In his Sunday message, he said, "Many of us are connected to Minneapolis...and have witnessed this injustice and feel compelled to help."

Meanwhile Sunday, protests in Owatonna reportedly remained peaceful and at times showed solidarity between those rallying and police officers. There is a striking photo of officers and marchers 'taking a knee' together included in the website post. Protesters marched around parts of downtown and at the Owatonna Police Station where several officers observed the crowd from the rooftop.