With the advent of spring, the OWLs will leave La Crosse for our May outing. We will fire up the bus and travel to Rochester, Minnesota, to visit the Mayowood Mansion and have a delicious lunch at the 5 West Kitchen and Bar. This wonderful excursion will take place on Saturday, May 25. We will leave the church at 9:30am. The Mayowood Historic Home is one of the top attractions in Rochester, drawing thousands of visitors each year! A tour of Mayowood is to experience the personal lives of Dr. Charlie Mayo, co-founder of the Mayo Clinic, and his son, Dr. Chuck Mayo, and gives visitors an opportunity to celebrate their amazing achievements in medicine and human service. The 23,000-square-foot, 38-room home was built in 1910 by Dr. Charlie and Edith Mayo. The home is built of concrete construction, the first of its kind in southeast Minnesota. Once a 3,300 acre country estate, the home has seen many changes over the years. Indoors, original Mayo family artifacts tell the story of their world travels and how the home was used as a house of hospitality to entertain the community and VIP celebrity guests. Outdoors, this home is surrounded by a grand terrace overlooking the Zumbro River along with beautiful botanical gardens and an oriental tea house. Cost of the tour is $20 and lunch is on your own. To experience the beauty of the home and estate, please call or email volunteer Brian Narveson to reserve a spot: 630.816.5917 / owls@firstlu.org.
