Eric's adventures

“Education crosses into everything I do. The skills I learned at Minot State go much further than just the job field. I learned how to communicate properly — to be able to present in front of a classroom is just like the set or when I’m directing something. It’s all about how to get assignments in on time. All of that is the same thing, just different environments.”
Eric Thoemke, ’15

By Michael Linnell
University Communications Director
michael.linnell@minotstateu.edu

MINOT, N.D. – Eric Thoemke ’15 considers himself a teacher at heart.

While the entrepreneur doesn’t spend much time in a traditional classroom, teaching has been at the core of his many endeavors.

“Education crosses into everything I do,” he said. “The skills I learned at Minot State go much further than just the job field. I learned how to communicate properly — to be able to present in front of a classroom is just like the set or when I’m directing something. It’s all about how to get assignments in on time. All of that is the same thing, just different environments.”

And, for Thoemke, there have been many environments in just a few short years.

His first venture was writing a children’s book — at the tender age of 19 — that is still on bookshelves in Minot.

“The Adventures of Stache,” is one of two books Thoemke worked on with illustrator Elizabeth Woods.

“It was a cool thing, I needed an illustrator and she was like, yeah, we can figure that out,” he said of his work with Woods. “She’s almost 90 now, we would meet Sunday mornings and work on the books. The ‘Adventures of Stache,’ is about a mustache that travels the world, so it’s kind of crazy.”

The book set in motion his series of projects. He met Matt Maldonado, who has been a business partner and friend since his second year at MSU, while trying to become a hip hop artist.

“I was trying to do some songs here in Minot and a friend (Austin Zorn ’16) said I should shoot a video. I met Matt and we worked on it, filmed it, but never edited it. It’s sitting on a drive somewhere,” he said.

But that chance encounter has produced nearly every project since. Thoemke and Maldonado formed the nonprofit company NDstrong — an organization that serves as a film source for the state of North Dakota. Through the work of the nonprofit, Thoemke has taught classes in Minot, helped with Minot State’s College for Kids program, and even taught — through an exchange program with the North Dakota Council for the Arts — in Iceland.

“All Matt and I wanted to do was to make movies,” Thoemke said. “There have been opportunities to move to Los Angeles, but I’m born and raised here, my family is here. We both are community orientated, so we thought, let’s combine those two loves and formed the nonprofit. We brought in a bunch of filmmakers from the state and made an awesome film (Heads or Tails).”

From there, the business world called.

Thoemke and another former Minot State student Scott Gordon, along with Maldonado, formed “The Putt District,” a downtown, indoor mini golf course. A year after it opened, they now have nine employees.

“I’m still learning about the bookkeeping, IRAs and 401ks, and all that,” he said. “It’s been a lot of trial and error.”

Thoemke and Maldonado also joined forces to rebrand InDak Media, a for-profit, brand-building creative marketing production house that specializes in video production, photography, graphic design, website design, and social media integrating/marketing.

“That is what people sometimes call ‘my baby.’ It’s been around forever, but with different names,” Thoemke said. “We started that from the ground up.”

About Minot State University
Minot State University is a public university dedicated to excellence in education, scholarship, and community engagement achieved through rigorous academic experiences, active learning environments, commitment to public service, and a vibrant campus life.

Published: 11/19/18   


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