COON RAPIDS

Open house coming for Fire Prevention WeekThe Coon Rapids Fire Department will hold open houses at three fire stations on Sat., Oct. 13 as part of Fire Prevention Week. They will take place from 10 a.m. to noon at Station One, 1460 Egret Blvd.; Station Two, 1199 121st Av.; and Station Three, 2831 113th Av.

In addition, fire department staff members will visit Coon Rapids elementary schools during Fire Prevention Week, and Domino's Pizza will partner with the department to promote fire safety. Anyone who orders a pizza on Sun., Oct. 7, or Thu., Oct. 11, from 5 to 8 p.m, may be randomly selected and surprised at the door by a crew of Coon Rapids firefighters.

Firefighters will be checking to see whether the homeowner's fire alarms are working. If the alarms are in working order, the pizza will be FREE. If the alarms are not working, firefighters will replace the batteries or install a fully functioning alarm.

For further information, call the fire department at 763-767-6429.

NORTH METRO

National Merit semifinalists namedThe following north-metro students are among 16,000 high school seniors nationwide who are semifinalists in the 2013 National Merit Scholarship Program. They qualified with their performance on the 2011 PSAT and will have a chance to compete for about 8,300 National Merit Scholarships worth more than $32 million. About 1.5 million juniors in more than 22,000 high schools nationwide entered the 2013 program by taking the 2011 PSAT.

BROOKLYN PARK/Homeschool

Melinda M. Carlson

CIRCLE PINES/Centennial H. S.

Marshall P. Johnson, Grant Luhmann

ELK RIVER/Elk River H. S.

Mathea J. Krogstad

FRIDLEY/Totino-Grace H. S.

Katharine H. McCormick, Stephen J. Yeung

HAM LAKE/Homeschool

Hannah G. Andrews

MAPLE GROVE Maple Grove H. S.

Aniket A. Ketkar, Sean P. McKenna, Martha L. Waterfield

ROBBINSDALE SCHOOLS

Armstrong H.S.

AllisonDomingues

ST. ANTHONY VILLAGE

St. Anthony Village H. S.

Adam L. Busacker, Meredith R. Severtson

NOWTHEN

Heritage Festival set for Saturday The city of Nowthen's fifth annual Heritage Festival will take place Sat., Sept. 22, running from 8 a.m. until dusk at Nowthen Park. Activities and features include a pancake breakfast, arts and crafts sale, hayrides, music, petting zoo, historical display and more. There will be fireworks at dusk. Nowthen Park is located at 8588 199th Av. NW.

ROBBINSDALE

Prostate cancer group to meet Sept. 26A prostate cancer support group will meet at 5:30 p.m. Wed., Sept. 26, at the North Memorial Outpatient Center, 3435 W. Broadway, Robbinsdale. Dr. Marvin Brooks of North Memorial Clinics will discuss treatment of prostate cancer from a complementary and cross-cultural viewpoint, as they relate to surgery and/or radiation. The group is free, and wives and friends are welcome. For further information, call 612-388-3588.

STAFF REPORTS