BRAINERD, Minn. — Working at the town's paper mill was more than a job for most Brainerd people. For more than a century, it became a way of life that gave birth to generations.

It was an “extended family,” according to an account by David Jackson and published in the Brainerd Daily Dispatch in 2002, just before the paper mill closed. When the mill shut down, it was like mourning a death.

The Zelinske family collectively dedicated more than 103 years to the business that helped put Brainerd on the industrial map. Their paychecks put food on Ken Zelinske’s table, as well as his father-in-law, his four sons, as well as his daughter, Kim Brown, who worked at the mill to help pay for a college education.

Brainerd was a perfect spot for a mill in 1903. The area had dense forests, the Northe

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