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WADENA, Minn. 鈥� Standing in Wadena鈥檚 historic downtown on Wednesday, July 28, Mayor George Deiss began pointing this way and that, listing off the developments that took place over the last year.

His audience was Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon, his executive assistant Jamie Ebert and a local reporter. Simon鈥檚 goal in visiting that day, as has been his goal in the 40-plus stops he鈥檚 made throughout the state so far in 2021, is to ask how the community had fared through the COVID-19 pandemic.

In this small town of just over 4,000 residents, shutdowns and precautionary measures kept much of the local restaurants and bars shut for weeks at a time. Coffee shops once bustling with loyal patrons were kept quiet. The Cozy Movie Theatre was left to close down its three screens and sold popcorn and fountain drinks to-go as a means of paying their staff. Retail suffered from closures followed by a lack of traffic from customers who just didn鈥檛 know if they should leave their homes.

Even so, Simon heard, when the community pulled together there was not only stability but growth in the pandemic.

Just going by memory, Deiss listed off a restaurant, The Iron Corral, which opened its doors and tapped its kegs in November 2020. A day later they heard was coming, restricting social gatherings to prevent the spread of the virus. Through support of take-out meals and an eventual reopening, the business is now standing strong and continues work on an outdoor seating area.

Another new business that decided to give it a go during the pandemic was Little Round Still, a distillery of rum, bourbon and vodka. They entered the business scene on Black Friday while the dial was being turned back to limit the spread further. Despite being unable to fully open their tasting room, they made it through and now welcome guests to live music and drink concoctions inside the former JC Penney store.

Simon entered the distillery and heard from staff that business was good thanks to collaboration in the community. Behind the counter along with liquor made in-house are bags of popcorn made by another Wadena business, Canoe Paddle Kettle Corn; roasted coffee beans from Owly Coffee Roasters, a coffee roaster two blocks away; and barbecue sauce made from a collaboration of their bourbon and sauce from Rose City, a short 30 mile drive to the south.

As the group exited the distillery and walked further downtown, Deiss pointed out a bakery, wellness center, new clothing store, and more, which got their start either during the pandemic or shortly before it started. All survived what鈥檚 been seen of the pandemic so far.

Ebert excitedly shared how a visit to Mahnomen, Minnesota, earlier in the day had them viewing not just a thriving business sector but new construction ongoing through the pandemic.

鈥淭he amount of retail and restaurants downtown is really healthy,鈥� Ebert said as the group waited to cross a street of steady traffic.

After about 45 minutes of walking Wadena, Simon asked Deiss other questions related to the town's recovery.

Deiss spoke about steps he took to try to keep morale going with a scavenger hunt of letters found downtown, using the #WadenaStrong message to promote the good things happening and even asking the community to sing with him and his wife, singing 鈥淕od Bless America鈥� on Facebook live.

鈥淚鈥檓 glad to hear that through businesses helping businesses, individuals with restaurants, doing take out and the PPP money, that you feel that you鈥檝e come through in a solid place after the pandemic,鈥� Simon said.

鈥淎nd with a real solid attitude,鈥� Deiss added.

Simon shared that he and his wife adopted restaurants in their hometown of Hopkins, Minnesota, during the pandemic to order even more take-out than usual. While less cooking was good, the Simons still understood the difficulties that COVID measures placed on people. Having two young children in the school system, he said patience has gone a long way.

While much could be said about the good growth going on in town, issues persist. Deiss hears the most from locals about labor and day care shortage. Simon agreed that the top issues he hears out on the road are day care, labor and housing shortage. All of which continue to hold back even more growth in those communities.

Wadena County has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the state with only Todd, Pine and Clearwater counties showing lower rates, according to the Minnesota Department of Public Health. In Wadena County, 47% of those 16 and older have had at least one dose.