Stifter also writes for the Herald Journal, the Waconia Patriot, and the Carver County News as a part-time correspondent.

“When I was a kid, an aunt of mine was a newspaper correspondent and in the back of my mind I always thought that was kind of a cool thing,” said Stifter. “When someone approached me about being a correspondent in 1968, I jumped at the chance.”

Stifter enjoys her small town life, volunteering her time to help out others, spending time with her family, and being there to help out anyone in need.

Stifter has been volunteering her time within the community for over 40 years, ever since she and her husband Vince moved to Mayer from Watertown in 1963.

Vince owned the R and B Service in Mayer and did not want to have to commute any longer, so they packed up and moved to Mayer, where they have been happily living ever since.

Growing up in a big city, Milwaukee, Wis., Cathy was determined to settle down in a small town. She refused to learn how to bake and can from her mother. She envisioned herself married to a rich farmer who would provide for her and she would have 13 children.

Of course, things do not always work out the way we see them at a young age.

Instead, Stifter married a farmer’s son and has a slightly smaller family, consisting of her six children, Joe, Paul, Mary, Tom, Anne, and Laura and her eight grandchildren, Kayla, Zach, Kinsie, Dylan, Matt, Joe, Caitlin, and Paige.

Stifter also went against what her mother tried to teach her about the kitchen and now bakes 79 dozen cookies for her yearly garage sale and cans about 200 jars of jam for it as well.

“I am so busy, but I just love what I do, “she said.

Stifter is also a prominent member in the community as she was the Senior Citizens Club founder and director for about 25 years.

As the Senior Citizens Club director, she hosted about 30 people at the community center twice a month so that they could play cards and enjoy each other’s company.

Stifter and her daughter, Laura, also do volunteer work for Heartland Hospice of Roseville. They work together to compile packets for new patients.

She taught religious classes at Immaculate Conception in Watertown for about 30 years.

She was also a member of the Booster Club and helped out with the town festival.

Not only does Stifter volunteer her time to help out members of the community, she also helps out the local farm animals.

Around Mayer she is known as the “garbage lady.” Stifter received this glorious title because she often picks up newspapers and cardboard from the garbage at the local gas station to bring out to a nearby farm where her son works to put in the animal’s bins.

Stifter is very fond of her community and is glad to see it growing and prospering.

In her opinion, the low taxes and easy commute to the city are the main reasons why people decide to move to Mayer.

“It’s a great community with a small town feel in which everyone can get to know one another, although with so many new people, I don’t know as many people as I used to,” Stifter said.