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Aerosmith posts reaction video of U of M’s viral dance routine
The viral routine was good enough for silver. The team also captured their 22nd national title in the Pom category.
MINNEAPOLIS — The University of Minnesota dance team’s silver medal routine at the College Dance Team National Championship has garnered plenty of attention, including from the band behind the music.
Aerosmith posted on Instagram a video of people’s reactions to the team’s performance, along with the message, “DANCE On @uofmdanceteam,” a reference to “Dream On,” the song featured in the routine.
“Help I can’t stop watching this,” read one of the videos featured in Aerosmith’s compilation of reactions.
“Realizing I just witnessed dance history being made,” read another.
While the U of M’s performance, which was their Jazz routine, placed second, the team was able to capture their 22nd national title in the Pom category.
“I have honestly never been so proud of [the] team,” said longtime head coach Amanda Gaines of the attention the team – and the routine – have gained this week.
“They are doing this because they are passionate about dance and Minnesota,” Gaines added. “The more people can support these athletes, the better for everyone.”
University of Minnesota-Duluth, St. Thomas, St. John’s, Mankato and University of St. Cloud dance teams all made it to the finals in lower divisions.
St. Thomas placed fifth in Division I Hip Hop Finals and fourth in D-I Jazz.
In Open Pom, Mankato State University took first, Duluth took third, St. Cloud State took fifth and the College of St. Benedict took seventh.
Minnesota State-Mankato finished first, Duluth took second, St. Cloud State fourth and the College of St. Benedict took seventh in Open Jazz.
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“This Valentine’s Day, 2025, will mark the five-year anniversary of the premiere of ‘Love is Blind,” Vanessa said on the Season 7 finale. “And, it is gonna be the launch of Season 8, which takes place in Minneapolis.”
The episode also revealed three of the new cast members, one of whom, “Alex,” told Lachey Minneapolis is “not like a major city, but it’s also not a small town,” which he said is just one of the obstacles in his way of finding the one.
“I just never found the right person that clicked for me,” he said.
Meantime, you can bone up on Seasons 1-7 streaming now on Netflix.
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Gary Peterson and his friends are collecting donations to help people in their community.
ST. LOUIS PARK, Minn. — A St. Louis Park pumpkin display is raising money for their local food shelf.
Gary Peterson started carving and painting three pumpkins over a decade ago. It’s now grown to over 100.
“I’ve heard people say they’ve come from Hutchinson,” he said.
Peterson along with two of his neighbors have spent the last 14 years growing their display, turning it into a neighborhood event.
“It’s been incredible, I just can’t believe how much this has expanded,” he said. “We did it just because we like to and then people were asking to give us money to cover the cost.”
The trio refused to take people’s money, but then one of them had an idea.
“My neighbor, Steve Leensvaart, just mentioned how about we just do it for the STEP program and the STEP program is our local food shelf in St. Louis Park,” he said.
So, they started to collect donations to help families in need. They’ve raised hundreds of dollars and donated hundreds of pounds of food over the last few years, carving for a cause.
“It is more gratifying every year,” Peterson said.
He estimated they have over 100 unique pumpkins in their yard. They’ve created the displays and come up with new family-friendly concepts for people to enjoy. Peterson said about 30 of their neighbors carved their own pumpkins to be put on display, and it’s been a big hit.
“It’s great. In the last couple of years, it’s turned into more of a neighborhood event,” said Sarah Durch.
“We love this Halloween display, we come every year to see it. We love that the whole community gets involved to craft and carve the pumpkins,” said Jami Gordon-Smith.
“The shading and the details are unbelievable,” said Elizabeth Hanson.
Hanson hopes to take her 2-year-old son trick or treating for the first time but is worried the cold temperatures might keep them indoors.
“We’re going trick or treating hopefully,” she said. “He’s going to be a firefighter, but we’re probably going to have sweatshirts maybe like two pairs of sweatpants underneath. We’re going to be bundled up.”
Gordon-Smith said her family will be out Halloween night no matter the weather.
“Halloween only comes once a year, so you really have to take advantage and enjoy the evening no matter what the weather brings,” she said. “Guess it’s not totally unheard of in Minnesota to have a cold Halloween, but we are going to try and modify and do a lot of layers underneath our costumes and then we might add some hats and maybe some warmer socks.”
Durch also isn’t surprised they’re in for another chilly night.
“Well, what would Halloween be without Minnesota cold? I feel like every time you plan a costume you have to plan for how you can make this work if it’s snowing,” she said.
Peterson said they will have a bonfire and some hot chocolate and cider on Halloween to keep trick-or-treaters warm while they look at their pumpkins.
Click here to learn where you can see the pumpkins and how you can donate.
