The two-room practice near the city center combines the Aberdeen native’s love of nature with his young career in Chinese medicine.
        At school, Kempf always knew she wanted to make a difference in healthcare. But the place where she landed was an accident. Or maybe it was fate.
        After graduating from Northern State University, Kempf decided to attend the College of Chiropractic at Northwestern Health Sciences University in Bloomington, Minnesota. While on campus, she also visited the School of Traditional Chinese Medicine out of sheer curiosity.
        “I have always been interested in alternative medicine, which still works. An integral part of Western medicine must be very tangible. TCM combines these two aspects well,” she said.
        Practitioners believed that acupuncture, originating in ancient China, balances the flow of energy in the body. Modern acupuncturists use it to stimulate nerves, muscles, and collective tissues.
        Acupuncture is a whole system of medicine that involves piercing the skin or tissues with hollow stainless steel needles that are always sterile. Since the needles are very thin, they do not tear, pierce or break the skin barrier.
        However, the body perceives the needle as a foreign object and in response releases histamine, an immune system chemical that protects against threats. This is why acupuncture is especially helpful for localized healing sites, because histamine is somehow attracted to where it hurts.
       Kempf typically uses 30 to 40 needles per treatment, depending on the tolerance and needs of each patient.
        Acupuncture can treat common ailments such as headaches, neck and back pain, and body aches. It can also help with more unique health issues, from asthma to fertility problems in men and women and psoriasis, she says. This applies even to mental and emotional states.
        “He has treated one of the largest industrial populations in the world for millennia,” Kempf said. “So whatever’s bothering you, there’s a good chance we can help.”
        Not only is acupuncture a widely accepted form of medicine, but it also comes with extremely low risk, she says. For example, according to Kempf, the chance of infection during surgery is one in 10,000 needles.
        “I want to help people, and whenever I read the statistics that more people die each year from NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) than from firearms, it just drives me crazy,” explains Kempf. “I thought, why do we do this to people when there are other options?”
        In addition to acupuncture, Medical Stone offers herbal medicine, cupping, massage, diet therapy, moxibustion and guasha, or skin rubbing. These are all alternative therapies that originated in the ancient world.
        Because they’ve been around for so long, there’s plenty of research backing their effectiveness, Kempf says. The ability to treat people in such a safe way is something she has been working on for almost 10 years. That is why she is currently working on her PhD.
        “It’s a medically legal and evidence-based form of the drug that’s relatively safe and can treat just about anything you can bring through the door,” says Kempf. “It made an impression on me. I never want to lose that feeling when people leave the table saying, “Oh my God, I’m better.” It’s a really special feeling to see it happen.”
        Properties at 502, 506, and 508 S. Main St. will be demolished earlier this week. Estimates are not included in building permits issued by the Department of City Planning and Zoning.
       Participants will be able to sample a different holiday cookie at each participating location:
        The Skal Moon boutique, located at 3828 Seventh Ave.SE, Suite E, is expected to open in December, according to a Facebook post from owners Kiernan McCraney and Joe Dee McCraney. It’s in the mall north of Walmart.
       According to them, internal repairs are underway and should be completed in the next few weeks.
       The store will primarily offer women’s clothing and accessories, as well as some specially designed gifts for children and men.