By Brenda Erdahl
If you are a reader of the Maple Lake Messenger, you’ll no doubt have noticed something is missing.
Brutes Bleat, a staple of the Messenger for 50-some-odd years, is no more.
At just shy of 92-years old, author of the column, Harold Brutlag has finally decided to put away his pen.
Since he bought the paper in the late 1960s, Brutlag has been as consistent in his writing as the sunrise and there is probably less than a handful of issues without one of his commentaries.
“I honestly think he loved what he did,” Publisher Michele Pawlenty said. “Unfortunately, over the past couple of years, there has been a few health issues that have made it a little more difficult to get into the Messenger office, so I knew it was coming. . . It was time for Harold to step back from the business and take some time to rest. He certainly deserves it.”
The Pawlenty’s joke that Brutlag came with the paper when they bought it back in 2011.
“I guess you would call him an added bonus,” Pawlenty said.