Debra Keefer Ramage

Debra Keefer Ramage began writing freelance for Southside Pride in 2012, shortly after returning from a 13-year sojourn in England. She covers progressive politics, education, co-ops and neighborhoods. In 2017 she started doing Southside Pride’s restaurant review column, The Dish.


Andrew and Sean talk safety in the ‘hood

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Standish-Ericsson Neighborhood Association (SENA) hosted an open meeting under the auspices of the Crime and Safety Committee on Jan. 22 at Sibley Park. Executive director of SENA Candace Lopez played host, and two expert speakers—Council Member Andrew Johnson (Ward 12) and Inspector Sean McGinty (Precinct 3)—were…

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Your body aging — gracefully

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE In 2008, at age 55, I lived in a small town in England. I had recently been diagnosed with high blood pressure, and my blood glucose and cholesterol numbers were high too, though not demanding treatment. I started an exercise regimen at a private gym in…

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Redemption

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE This holiday season, I am contemplating redemption. I am initially inspired by a nontraditional modern Christmas carol by Bruce Cockburn, dating from an album released in the early 1990s, “Cry of a Tiny Babe.” The chorus proclaims, “Redemption rips through the surface of time in the…

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Dinkytown: Still Positively 4th Street

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE 1 Your sons and your daughters are beyond your command. Dinkytown is the University of Minnesota, and the Dinkytown experience is quintessentially the student experience. Even if, like me, you first experienced Dinkytown as a fully grown adult almost a decade away from your own college…

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If you’re so rich, how come you’re not smart?

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE We have come to a point in late-stage capitalism where a lot of the so-called philanthropy vying for well-meaning control of our lives is so inept, so blinkered by ideology, that it has become its own opposite. “Philanthropy” contains two Greek root words that mean, respectively,…

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What’s up At Midtown Global Market

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE As a “consumer,” you have three broad things on offer from Midtown Global Market: It’s a place to eat and drink, it’s a place to shop and hang out, and it’s a place with numerous neighborhood-based events to attend. The eating and drinking might seem similar…

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Interesting places to visit on Selby Avenue

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE We took a leisurely weekend ramble eastward on Selby Avenue and discovered some delightful places to share. Of course, most Minneapolitans know Selby Avenue is there, a couple of blocks south of Marshall Avenue, which is your handy gateway to St. Paul if you live near…

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Happenings in the Chicago and 48th vicinity

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE We have discovered some interesting goods and services on Chicago Avenue around the 48th Street commercial hub. In general, things are pretty stable around this location, with its prosperous but not flashy real estate, great schools, and strong neighborhood organizations and business owners’ association. The retail…

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Changing Fortunes of Grand Avenue Saint Paul

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Toward the end of 2018, a few high-profile business closings prompted concern in the media for the health of Grand Avenue’s business environment. In retrospect, this may have been unfounded. Although competing forces of gentrification and economic stagnation for all but the wealthiest consumers, as well…

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Celebrate! Open Streets Franklin Avenue

    DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Open Streets Franklin Avenue is on Sunday, Aug. 25, this year, as ever from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Just like last year, the route stretches from Portland Avenue to 27th Avenue in the east (a block shy of the Seward Co-op store). As each…

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Good Morning, Bloomington Avenue!

DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE This article is about good health, mental health—and breakfast. Obviously, these things are quite interconnected. We had a very fun Sunday morning breakfast at Hot Plate, a diner on Bloomington Avenue and 52nd Street. Hot Plate has been around for over a decade, having been started by…

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