Good news, Twins TV is now available through PBTV Everywhere!

If Twins TV is a part of your Paul Bunyan Television service then you can watch with PBTV Everywhere!

Twins TV: https://www.mlb.com/commerce/mvpd/twins

Note: Must be in the Twins TV market area which is Minnesota and parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, and Wisconsin.

After decades of rumors, tall tales, and speculation, an iconic piece of Paul Bunyan lore has finally surfaced—literally.

In the wake of the devastating storm that struck Bemidji in the early morning hours of June 21, powerful waves unearthed a massive object near one of Paul’s favorite winter fishing holes. By dawn, that object—a 100-pound smartphone belonging to Paul Bunyan himself—had washed up on shore, reigniting one of northern Minnesota’s most beloved legends.

Thanks to the quick action of locals, the colossal phone was safely recovered and brought to the Bemidji Tourist Information Center. With years of underwater wear, it needed some serious TLC. Locals did what anyone would: they placed it in the largest bowl of rice they could find, then rushed it to Paul Bunyan Communications for expert restoration.

Miraculously, the phone is fully operational again—though the lake sadly wiped Paul’s camera roll clean. Visitors are invited to snap a selfie with the massive device, leave Paul a message, and sign his digital guestbook. Help refill his camera roll and be part of this new chapter in the Bunyan legend—one legendary photo at a time.

“Paul’s giant smartphone adds a whole new twist to his legend and gives visitors a chance to be part of the story. We can’t wait to see the photos, messages, and smiles this larger-than-life addition brings to our community and all those visiting the area.” said Josh Peterson, Executive Director of Visit Bemidji.

“It’s only fitting that our namesake’s smartphone would be repaired by our cooperative.  Not only are we Paul Bunyan Communications, but we are also northern Minnesota Certified Apple Service Center.  We were thrilled to help restore Paul’s phone and bring it back to life for everyone to enjoy,” said Brian Bissonette, Paul Bunyan Communications Marketing Supervisor.

Now, thanks to a partnership between Visit Bemidji and Paul Bunyan Communications, Paul’s giant smartphone is proudly on display at the Bemidji Tourist Information Center for all to enjoy. A special thanks to Meyer’s Signs and Graphics as well, they had the tough task of building a new phone case for Paul’s super-sized smartphone.

Paul Bunyan Communications is proud to support the Bemidji Area Chamber of Commerce’s new Chamber Bucks Bonus Gift Card Program with a $7,500 donation to help boost local storm recovery efforts.

This innovative program adds value to every Chamber Bucks gift card purchase, with a special focus on local restaurants and grocery stores—two sectors hit hard by the recent severe storms. A $100 gift card purchase earns the buyer a $75 bonus card, giving families more value while driving immediate revenue to local businesses.

“Our cooperative is deeply rooted in this community; it’s been our home for over 70 years.  We show up every day to support the communities we serve, even more so when our region faces such devastation,” said Chad Bullock, CEO of Paul Bunyan Communications. “This program is an impactful way to help families stretch their dollars while supporting local businesses at the same time.”

“I also want to commend our team at Paul Bunyan Communications.  Like so many others, they rose to the challenge with incredible dedication and resilience,” added Bullock. “Despite significant damage at many of their own homes, our employees worked around the clock to keep our network running, restore service, and support our members. It was a powerful reminder of the strength and commitment that defines our cooperative.”

Thanks to contributions from Paul Bunyan Communications and others, over $75,000 has been raised to fund this limited-time effort, with more than 70 local businesses—including nearly 20 restaurants and grocery stores—already participating.

The program is expected to generate an estimated $1 million in local economic impact, but the bonus cards are only available while funding lasts.

To purchase gift cards and see the full list of participating businesses, visit www.bemidji.org

Paul Bunyan Communications continues to make progress on its broadband expansion across parts of Itasca and St. Louis Counties.

Status of Paul Bunyan Communications Broadband Expansion projects

Itasca County:

City of Coleraine- Construction is in progress with 25% completed

City of Bovey- Construction will start once completed in Coleraine

Bearville(s) Township- Waiting on easements.  Construction hopefully can still take place this year

St. Louis County:

Sandy (except east side) & Wuori Township- Construction is done, fiber splicing has started.  Services should become available by September

Sandy (east side) and Pike Townships- Construction in progress with 35% completed

Alango & Owens Township- Construction in progress with 80% completed.  Services should become available by September.

Angora Township- Construction will begin once it is completed in Alango and Owens Township

Balkan Township- Construction expected to start in September

French Township- Construction expected to start in September

Great Scott Township & unorganized township north of Great Scott- Construction expected to start in September

Once the network is operational in a project area, customers who signed up for service will be contacted to schedule service installations.

Sign Up Now to Ensure Fiber Optic Connection
Residents and businesses in these expansion areas are encouraged to sign up for service now, before construction crews move on to ensure the fiber optic connection is brought up to the location. That can be done online at www.gigazone.com, by phone, or in person at our Grand Rapids Customer Service & Technology Center.

Services Available Upon Completion
Once the network is live, customers will have access to Paul Bunyan’s GigaZone® services, including high-speed fiber-optic Internet with speeds up to 10 Gig and dependable, low-cost unlimited local and long-distance GigaZone® voice services.

Our offices will be closed on Friday, July 4 in observation of the Independence Day Holiday.  Our regular office hours will resume on Monday, July 7.

The recent storm that struck the Bemidji area has been devastating and our cooperative headquarters, like so many other homes and businesses, sustained some damage. Nonetheless, our fiber network, which is primarily underground, has remained operational throughout for those with power and/or unaffected by storm damage.  Our Bemidji Cooperative Headquarters is open for business, as is our Grand Rapids Customer Service & Technology Center, with regular office hours of 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday.

However, some members may still experience outages as the recovery effort continues that are caused by fiber optic cuts, power issues, or damaged equipment.

Important Safety Reminder:
If you plan to remove uprooted trees or dig on your property, please call Gopher State One Call at 811 before you begin.

Many utilities—fiber optics, electric, gas, water, and more—are buried underground. Hitting a buried line can be dangerous and may result in further service interruptions.

Please also use caution and watch for utility pedestals when removing storm debris. They are part of our network and can easily be damaged or pulled out if you’re not careful.

PBTV Customers:
You may notice some intermittent channel outages, even if your area wasn’t directly hit by the storm. While we’ve realigned several satellite dishes, a few were left with unstable foundations. This may cause dish movement during windy conditions and temporary service disruptions until full repairs are made.

If your power has been restored but your internet or TV service is still out, please call us at 888-586-3100. In most cases, services will resume automatically when power is restored unless additional damage occurred.

Our entire team—technicians in the field and staff behind the scenes—has been working tirelessly to restore service and support our members. We’re incredibly proud of their commitment and thankful to everyone showing patience and support through this difficult time.

Please stay safe and know that we are here for our members.  We will continue to monitor the situation and address any outages as they arise as quickly as possible.

We proudly serve rural areas of Park Rapids and invite you to join us Thursday, June 26 for  Park Rapids 2nd Street Stage in downtown Park Rapids from 6-8 p.m.

Enjoy the music of Walking Phoenix and be sure to stop by our table to pick up a free gift while supplies last. There is also a beer garden and door prizes.

Bring your own lawn chair and we’ll see you there!

Please note that our offices will be opening at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, June 19

That is 1/2 hour later than our regular opening time of 8 a.m.

Our offices will be closed on Monday, May 26 in observation of the Memorial Day Holiday.