To place an obituary, please include the information from the obituary checklist below in an email to [email protected]. There is no option to place obituaries through our website. Feel free to contact our obituary desk at 651-228-5263 with any questions.
### General Information:
– Your full name
– Address (City, State, Zip Code)
– Phone number
– An alternate phone number (if any)
### Obituary Specifications:
– Name of Deceased
– Obituary Text
– A photo in JPEG or PDF format is preferable; TIF and other file types are accepted. We will contact you if there are any issues with the photo.
– Ad Run Dates
There is a discount for running more than one day, but this must be scheduled on the first run date to apply. If a photo is used, it must be used for both days for the discount to apply. Contact us for more information.
### Policies:
**Verification of Death:**
To publish obituaries, a name and phone number of the funeral home or cremation society handling the arrangements is required. We must contact them during business hours to verify the death.
If the body of the deceased has been donated to the University of Minnesota Anatomy Bequest Program or a similar program, their phone number is required for verification. Please allow enough time, especially during limited weekend hours.
A death certificate is also acceptable for this purpose. Only one of these two verification options is necessary.
**Guestbook and Outside Websites:**
We are not allowed to reference other media sources with guestbooks or obituaries placed elsewhere when placing obituaries in print and online. We may include a funeral home website or a family email for contact instead. Contact us if you have questions regarding this matter.
### Obituary Process:
Once your submission is complete, we will fax or email a proof for review prior to publication in the newspaper. This proof includes pricing and the days the notice is scheduled to appear. Please review the proof carefully.
We must be notified of any errors or changes before the notice appears in the Pioneer Press, based on each day’s deadlines. After publication, we are not responsible for errors that occur after final proofing.
**Online:**
Changes to an online obituary can be handled through the obituary desk. Please call us with further questions.
### Payment Procedure:
Pre-payment is required for all obituary notices prior to publication by the specified deadline. Please call 651-228-5263 with your payment information after you have received and approved the proof.
Accepted payment methods:
– **Credit Card:** Payment accepted by phone only due to PCI (Payment Card Industry) regulations
– **EFT:** Check by phone (please provide routing and account numbers)
– **Cash:** Accepted at our front counter Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 3:30 PM
### Rates:
– Minimum charge is $162 for the first 10 lines.
– Every line after the first 10 is $12.20 per line.
– If the ad is under 10 lines, it will be charged the minimum rate of $162.
– On a second run date, the cost is $8.20 per line starting with the first line.
**Example:**
If the first run date includes 20 lines, the cost would be $164.
Each photo published is $125 per day. For example, two photos on two days would be four photo charges totaling $500.
### Deadlines:
Please follow deadline times to ensure your obituary is published on the requested day.
| Item | Deadline (No Exceptions) |
|————–|—————————|
| Ad, Photos | See schedule (call obituary desk) |
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## MEMORIAM (Non-Obituary) Requests
Unlike obituaries, memoriam submissions are remembrances of loved ones who have passed. Their rates differ from obituaries. Please call or email us for more information.
– Phone: 651-228-5280
– Email: [email protected]
– Hours: Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM (Closed weekends and holidays)
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## Starwatch: Favorite Monsters of the Night Sky
With Halloween this Friday, it’s fitting to highlight two favorite “monsters” of the night sky: Draco the Dragon and the head of Medusa, complete with a hairstyle of snakes.
### Draco the Dragon
Draco is one of the larger constellations visible every night due to its proximity to Polaris, the North Star. It can be challenging to locate because most of its stars are faint, but it helps to imagine Draco more like a coiled snake rather than a dragon. The constellation forms a reversed letter “S” in the sky and is presently hanging in the northwestern sky.
To find Draco:
– Start by locating Vega, the brightest star in the western sky, in the constellation Lyra the Harp.
– To the right of Vega is a trapezoid of four modestly bright stars outlining Draco’s head.
– About two fist-widths to the upper right at arm’s length are two faint stars that mark the end of Draco’s neck.
– From there, a vertical crooked line of stars extends down two and a half fist-widths representing the body.
– A faint horizontal kinked line depicts the tail, located just above the Big Dipper.
**Mythology:**
In Greek mythology, Draco was Hera’s loyal dragon pet guarding her castle on Mount Olympus. Hercules encountered Draco during a mission, resulting in a fierce battle. Hercules ultimately killed Draco with a dagger. To honor Draco’s loyalty, Hera transformed him into the constellation we see every night.
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### Medusa’s Head and Perseus
The head of Medusa is found in the constellation Perseus the Hero. Perseus was sent by Zeus to defeat Medusa, a monster with a snake-covered head who turned people to stone with her gaze.
Using Mercury’s wings and Athena’s magic shield, Perseus beheaded Medusa without looking directly at her. Zeus honored Perseus by placing his image in the stars, which is visible rising this Halloween week.
– Perseus looks like a crooked stick figure located halfway between the horizon and zenith in the northeastern sky.
– The Pleiades star cluster lies near his feet.
– He holds Medusa’s severed head, marked by Algol, the “Demon Star,” known for its blinking brightness—it dims every three days in a cycle lasting about nine hours.
**Algol’s astronomical nature:**
Algol is an eclipsing binary variable star, actually a three-star system where two stars eclipse each other every three days.
*Be careful when looking at Algol—you don’t want to get “stoned!”*
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### Comet Lemmon
A faint “ghost” in the early evening sky this week is Comet Lemmon (C/2025 A6 Lemmon), a dust- and gas-spewing dirty snowball making a close approach to Earth.
This weekend, it will be about 60 million miles away and possibly visible to the naked eye in dark countryside skies near the low western horizon around 7:30 p.m. The comet will appear small, with a faint tail and a ghostly glow. In urban areas, binoculars may be necessary.
For help locating Comet Lemmon, consider using free stargazing apps such as Sky Guide or Celestron Portal.
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### Happy Halloween from Mike Lynch
Mike Lynch is an amateur astronomer and retired broadcast meteorologist for WCCO Radio in Minneapolis/St. Paul. He is the author of *Stars: A Month by Month Tour of the Constellations* (Adventure Publications) and is available for private star parties. Contact Mike at [email protected]
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### Upcoming Starwatch Programs
– **Monday, Oct. 27, 7–9 p.m.**
Rice Lake Elementary School, Lino Lakes
Reservations: 763-792-6100 or visit isd12.ce.eleyo.com
– **Tuesday, Oct. 28, 7–9 p.m.**
Bayview School, Waconia, MN
Reservations: 952-442-0610 or visit isd110.org/community-education/community-education
– **Thursday, Oct. 30, 7–9 p.m.**
City of Ramsey Park and Recreation
Information & reservations: 763-443-9883 or www.ci.ramsey.mn.us/269/Parks-and-Recreation
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Enjoy the spooky skies this Halloween week!
https://www.twincities.com/2025/10/26/skywatch-celestial-monsters-and-a-ghost/