Original article published in the Mower County Independent, Thursday, November 14, 2024. Reprinted with permission and gratitude.
By Gretchen Mensink Lovejoy
Nate wants to make dust, and Richard wants to make music.
That means that Rhonda makes lunch.
“Nate Johnson is our new program director who joined us last winter, and he has a program he gives called ‘Making Your Own Pixie Dust.’ It’s about his experience working at the Disney parks because he originally worked at Disneyland and at Disney World, and he’s going to be speaking at our next Lunch and Learn about how to apply the Disney way of doing things into our own work lives,” explained Good Earth Village’s (GEV) hospitality and re treat coordinator, Tyler Anderson, himself a former Disney and Uni versal Studios employee, inviting the public to join GEV for a Lunch and Learn event on Tues day, Nov. 19 – with GEV foodservice director Rhonda Musel waving her wand to bring on the Good Earth good eats.
Johnson spent six years as a Disney employee, working in several Disney parks, including Pandora: The World of Avatar, Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort, Disney’s Magic Kingdom, Blizzard Beach Waterpark, and Disneyland California. He highlighted, “My background before coming to Good Earth was six years at Disney, and I have developed a presentation, ‘Making Your Own Pixie Dust,’ about developing and growth of the business practices of Disney and how to apply them to Good Earth Village today. I worked at Walt Disney World in Florida and at Disneyland in California, and I think people would be interested in learning about this…a lot of people know about Disney, and I think they’d be interested in at tending because it’s my perspective on what makes Disney special and how I apply that to working here at Good Earth, making my own pixie dust, bringing the pixie dust up to Minnesota. I’m excited to share what I learned at Disney, bringing the changes to Good Earth. We’re definitely growing as a camp and as a year-round re treat.”
Once news of Johnson’s pixie dust has been spread from one end of the camp to the other, it’s time to sing with Richard Bruxvoort Colligan as the snow falls – wet and clumpy, or dry and dusty – in anticipation of Christmas. GEV will welcome his return on Dec. 17 as he shares music leadership in what the camp’s staff described as “nothing quite like singing with people who love to sing…join music leader Richard Bruxvoort Colligan for this half-hootenanny, half-concert among the beautiful Good Earth winter woods.” “Richard Bruxvoort Colligan is a touring musician serving Olive Branch Church ELCA in Rochester. His latest recording is ‘You Were My Midwife,’ a collection of community songs based on the psalms. His favorite things are laughter, naps, autumn, “The Beatles,” purple, gentle wind, and mango lassi. He lives in Strawberry Point, Iowa, with his wife, Trish, son Sam, and dog Winnie. Richard’s lyric voice and acoustic guitar will lead us in singing favorite tunes together, plus some songs to just relax and listen to. There’s sure to be laughter, stories, and good company.”
Lunch and Learn events begin at 11:00 a.m. with social hour, then lunch and a guest speaker, with most concluding by 1:15 to 1:30 p.m. if attendees linger to ask questions or chat. Registration is requested to allow Musel to work her kitchen magic. Also, GEV recently held its annual Good Gifts Gala, the camp’s biggest fundraising event held at the Rochester International Event Center. The Lutheran camp hosts the gala each October to garner monies to support its summer camp programs, its community outreach and its re treat opportunities for people of all ages.
Good Earth Village is located at 25303 Old Town Dr., Spring Valley. To register for Lunch and Learn events or to find more information on the camp itself, log onto the GEV website at www.goodearthvillage.org, or call 507-346-2494.
Courtesy of the Mower County Independent, 135 E Main St. LeRoy, MN 55951, (507)-324-5325
