by Elyse Kaner
Staff writer

Arising from a forest of white pines and an advertisement that sold lakeshore property for a bonus along with the cost of a newspaper subscription in 1925, Coon Lake Beach Community and Senior Center has reinvented itself once again, breathing new life into a struggling landmark that was nearly lost to a lack of interest.

Never mind that the center's location is brandished with a mishmash of addresses: the city of East Bethel, a Wyoming post office, a St. Paul phone number, and children who attend the Forest Lake School District. Members of the center clearly have one goal in mind - to build community.

"When I became president, I vowed that this building would be used - that was my mission," said Kathy Paavola, who has headed the organization for three years.

"And it's happening," treasurer Marlene Collen quickly chimed in.

Up at the crack of dawn every other Sunday, Paavola, who worked as a cook at the local Tap and Grill for 17 years, fires up the fixings for its bimonthly pancake breakfast by 5:30 a.m.

About 125 people, tempted by pancakes, eggs, sausages, bacon and french toast, turn out for the popular get-together.

But that's only a smidgen of activities offered by the center, which has burgeoned to about 250 members. There's coffee times, a monthly noon lunch, holiday parties, sign language classes, teen dances and an annual pig roast.

In fact, the center's annual pig roast after 9-11 was so sucessful that it ran short of food.

"I think they wanted to be with and meet people," said Paavola, who also serves on East Bethel City Council.

In addition to hosting holiday parties, during Thanksgiving and Christmas, members deliver food baskets to seniors who can't get out.

"I would just cry because these people were so thankful that they were remembered," Paavola said. "We're all going to be there one day."

The center prides itself on participating in civic duties as well. Volunteers clean litter from Lexington Avenue to Lincoln Drive to Forest Road.

Its Cans for Kids initiative, in which volunteers collect and recycle aluminum cans, has raised funds for children to attend summer events, like trips to Valley Fair.

Last fall, the center started a neighborhood watch, which has resulted in an even closer-knit community.

"We're just watching out and taking care of each other," Paavola said.

She believes the move has built a better relationship with the Anoka County Sheriff's Department.

Collen had such good childhood memories of Coon Lake Beach - costume contests, dunking for apples at the Halloween party, fishing for prizes in the fishing-pond game - that she vowed to become active in the senior center when she retired.

Months after her Dec. 31 retirement from an electronic distribution company in Minneapolis, Collen is keeping her promise. She spends hours working on events to keep the center going.

I like meeting the people," she said. "It's reconnecting with the community again."

Over the years, the center has begun to show wear. It needs repairs. Recently, a new carpet was installed and the walls in the main hall received a fresh coat of paint. But soon it will need a new roof and siding. And the kitchen needs to be painted.

"We're chewing at it a little bit at a time," Paavola said.

The original Coon Lake Beach Clubhouse was built in 1925, where the center now sits. It was the hub of activity for the community. The Minneapolis Star had just bought Coon Lake Beach from landowner Sen. Bob Swanson. The paper then turned around and offered a bonus of 20- by 100-foot lots with the purchase of a six-month subscription. A subscriber could buy no fewer than two lots and not more than 10 for $67.50 apiece, with $10 down and for $2.50 a month, according to a March, 1993 Forest Lake Times article. Buyers jumped at the chance.

In the mid 1980s the old clubhouse was torn down to make way for the present building. The outside picnic shelter on the tree-lined lake and playground for kids have served the community well.

But Collen and Paavola will rally for more activities and services at the center. They hope to provide rides for people who can't drive to the grocery store. They would also like to offer a 55 Alive refresher driving class, help for the disabled and tutoring classes for the children.

So the center, which is partially supported by charitable gambling funds, will continue to seek new members. It will continue to rent out for special occasions. And it will continue to hold fund-raisers to enhance a neighborly feel throughout the community.

"The members feel like we're one great big family," Paavola said. "Everybody who comes out here .... They just love it."

For more information call: (651) 982-4628.

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