Joan Markytan of Elysian was the guest speaker at the Lake Area Historians meeting, Monday night, January 20. Markytan shared her experience of living with her husband, Ken, at Raspberry Island (near Kodiak) in Alaska in the mid-1960s.

The National Wheelchair Basketball Association announced that 16 athletes will remain in consideration for a roster spot on the 2020 U.S. Women’s National Wheelchair Basketball Team.
Among those selected as finalists are Rose Hollermann of Elysian, Abigail Bauleke of Savage, and Josie Aslakson of Jordan.
This announcement comes at the conclusion of the Toyota Team USA Women’s Selection Camp, a three-day camp at the Olympic and Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

Le Sueur County and the City of Kilkenny have reached an agreement pertaining to law enforcement services.
During the Jan. 21 Le Sueur County Board of Commissioners meeting, Sheriff Brett Mason presented a contract that has the county providing law enforcement to the City of Kilkenny.
City officials in Kilkenny have already endorsed the contract. The commissioners approved the contract unanimously Tuesday.
Sheriff Mason said the county had been patrolling Kilkenny without a contract for years.

For the first time this season, two different WEM boys basketball players scored more than 30 points in a given week.
Senior Grant McBroom dropped in 31 in a 80-47 win over United South Central Tuesday, Jan. 14.
Senior Cole Kokoschke scored a career-high 33 points in an 87-64 win over K e n y o n - Wa n a m i n g o Thursday, Jan. 16.
The two wins improve WEM’s Gopher Conference record to 6-0 and overall record to 13-1.

A crash has stopped traffic on Highway 60 between Waterville and Elysian. At 11:24 a.m. on Tuesday, January 21, tow trucks were arriving on scene. Traffic is backed up in both directions. Take a different route.
Information regarding the crash will be posted when it becomes available.

Constance “Connie” McGuiggan, age 62 of Waseca died on Thursday, January 9, 2020 at the Mayo Clinic Health System in Mankato.

Michael George Sikel, age 69, of Waterville, died on January 13, 2020, at Mayo Clinic Health System in Mankato.

Bernard Jerome Meyer
January 25, 1939 - January 06, 2020
Passed away peacefully January 6, 2020.

Pamela Jean Reid, age 67 of Le Sueur, formerly of Waterville died on Tuesday, December 31, 2019 at the Hennepin County Medical Center.
Born on November 21, 1952 in Faribault, Minnesota, she was the daughter of Lyle and Marion (Shifflett) Reid. She graduated from Waterville High School and attended South Central Technical College. Pam worked as a machinist at various companies. She was a very private person and enjoyed walks, coffee with friends, and trips to the casino.

MANKATO, Minn. – (3:45 p.m.) With significant snow and strong winds forecast for Friday and Saturday, the Minnesota Department of Transportation advises motorists to plan for difficult driving conditions or make alternate plans.
Heavy snowfall combined with moderate winds can dramatically reduce visibility during the storm and continued wind gusts after the storm may prolong MnDOT snowplow drivers’ ability to recover the roads.

Secretary of State Steve Simon is reminding Minnesotans about the beginning of absentee voting for the March 3, 2020, Presidential Nomination Primary. The primary will help determine both the Democratic and Republican party candidates for the November general election.
“The presidential nomination primary opens up the selection process and allows more Minnesotans to participate,” said Simon. “Caucuses are limited to a few hours on one evening; this primary will give more people more ways to participate, and over a longer period of time.”
How to request an absentee ballot

On Tuesday, Jan, 14, Bevcomm, the Blue Earth based telecommunication company, announced it has reached a definitive agreement with Lonsdale Telephone Company to acquire ownership of that Lonsdale based business. Transfer of ownership is pending regulatory approval, which is expected in the first half of this year.
According to a press release from Bevcomm, “Existing employees of Lonsdale Telephone Company will become employees of Bevcomm, and will continue to manage the day-to-day office functions.”
For more on this story see upcoming print issue.

The Le Sueur County Board of Commissioners held their 2020 Reorganizational Meeting Tuesday, Jan. 7 in Le Center.
Fifth District Commissioner Steve Rohlfing was named the Board Chairman and Second District Commissioner Danny O’Keefe was named the Board Vice Chairman.
The Le Sueur County LifeEnterprise News was named the 2020 first legal newspaper. The Montgomery Messenger was named the second legal newspaper.
Mileage reimbursement for Le Sueur County employees will be 57.5 cents per mile, in accordance with the federal IRS mileage rate.

A Waseca Police Officer was shot in the head and “gravely injured” while responding to a report of a suspicious person with a flashlight in the backyard residence on the 900 block of 4th Avenue SE in Waseca after 8 p.m. on Monday night, Jan. 6. The suspect was shot twice and sustained non-life threatening injuries.

High winds and icy conditions may continue into the morning
MANKATO, Minn. –  (3:30 p.m.) Motorists in south central Minnesota are advised to expect difficult driving conditions to remain into Tuesday (December 31) with forecasted additional snowfall, dropping temps and even higher wind gusts.

Georgene Freida Roemhildt, age 73 of Elysian, died at her home on Thursday, December 19, 2019.