![Larissa Donovan in Bemidji on Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6bd6323/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1280x1707+0+58/resize/150x200!/brightness/8x0/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fe9%2F28%2F9de515594fe4a38da274f1c5f612%2F04-larissa-donovan-in-bemidji-on-wednesday-feb-14-2023.jpg)
Larissa Donovan
Bemidji Area ReporterLarissa Donovan has been in the Bemidji area's local news scene since 2016, joining the KAXE newsroom in 2023 after several years as the News Director for the stations of Paul Bunyan Broadcasting.
Larissa studied communications at Bemidji State University.
Larissa enjoys traveling, crafting, and volunteering with the Bemidji Jaycees, as well as spending time with her family.
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Unicon21, a two-week convention and competition for a global community of unicyclists, wraps up in Bemidji on Friday, July 26.
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Plus: Reminders for WE Fest attendees, flaming puck hockey on unicycles in Bemidji, Grand Rapids to host annual swap meet, and American Pickers are coming to town.
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Bemidji is the center of the unicycling universe through July 26, 2024, for Unicon 21, where about 1,000 competitors from around the world gather for two weeks of unicycle sports.
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Plus: Test drilling at a manganese deposit near Emily suggests the highest grade manganese on the continent; and a Minnesota Housing Partnership study confirms many renters pay more for housing than they can afford.
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And: A Grand Rapids berry farmer is adding solar power to his revenue stream and a Brainerd-based pilot will be honored for her actions during a canoeist rescue in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
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While Fosston and Essentia Health wait for an arbitrator's decision on terminating the affiliation agreement, local leaders are looking to operate the hospital with a 501(c)3.
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Plus: As Fosston and Essentia Health's contract may soon end, the city hires the former Fosston hospital admin for transition under new leadership; and Amazon will build a distribution center in Baxter.
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U.S. Sen. Tina Smith visited with farmers in Blackduck about the soggy start to the planting season. Congress still has far to go on the already-delayed 2022 Farm Bill.
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With partners Beltrami County Health and Human Services and Bi-County Community Action Plan, or BiCAP, the new seminar seeks to eliminate barriers to housing conversations.
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Plus: MnDOT is repainting turn arrows, crosswalks on Hwy 169 in Grand Rapids; Bemidji will host its first-ever rental housing summit; MN will begin challenging a federal broadband map; and a new law aims to encourage education among older drivers.