The City of Vadnais Heights will be hosting a community celebration to welcome home Marissa and Hannah Brandt. The celebration will take place on Thursday, March 8 from 5:00 to 7:30 pm at the Vadnais Heights Commons, 655 E. County Road F, with a short program at 6:30 pm. The event is free and open to the public.

The sisters represented two different countries in the most recent Olympic Games in South Korea. Marissa competed with the Korean Women’s Hockey Team while Hannah played on the gold-medal winning U.S. Women’s Hockey Team.

The sisters, with Marissa being 11 months older, grew up in the Vadnais Heights community attending St. Odilia Catholic School, played hockey together in the White Bear youth hockey program and later at Hill Murray High School. Both played college hockey in Minnesota with Hannah playing at the University of Minnesota and Marissa at Gustavus Adolphus College.

The City of Vadnais Heights will host an Olympic Welcome Home Celebration for the Brandt family in partnership with other community organizations including the Vadnais Heights Economic Development Corporation, the White Bear Area Youth Hockey Association and Hill Murray High School.

Mayor Bob Fletcher stated, “The City of Vadnais Heights is extremely proud of our hometown Olympians. As a community, we are thrilled to host a celebration in their honor and thank them for the tremendous way they
represented their respective teams and countries as athletes. The women are excellent role models for our youth. We could not be more proud of what they have accomplished. We invite the entire community to join us in welcoming our Olympic stars home to Vadnais Heights.”