A free food distribution for those in need of food or newly struggling to make ends meet due to the COVID-19 crisis is being held Tuesday, May 18 from 2 p.m. until 3:30 p.m. at the Le Sueur County Fairgrounds, 320 South Plut Ave, Le Center. The event is being hosted by Le Sueur County and Second Harvest Heartland with food provided from the COVID Food Assistance Program (CFAP).

The Czech Heritage Club announced Friday that it was recently awarded a monetary gift (grant) from the Government of the Czech Republic for 2021.
The grant was 25,000 Czech koruna or Czech crown (Kč/CZK), which converts to $1,114.67 US dollars.  According to Czech Heritage member, Jean Keogh, the funds will be used for the Club’s monthly cultural and historic programming, and printing updated cemetery books listing Czech immigrants and their decedents in the two New Prague cemeteries.

Thirteen teams will be vying for the top spot in the DRS Amateur Baseball league this spring and summer.
Last year the league was as good as ever, with St. Patrick’s advancing all the way to the Class C State Championship.
Coaches/team managers were asked to fill out a short questionnaire about their teams and what they are looking forward to this season. Here are their responses:

Curtis Erwin Kuethe, 81, of Montgomery died May 5, 2021, at Central Health Care in Le Center. Visitation will be held on Saturday, May 8 from 1 to 2:45 p.m. at the Le Center Funeral Home. Funeral services will follow at 3 p.m. at the St. Paul Lutheran Church in Le Center with Pastor Ally Bowman officiating. Interment will be held in St. John Lutheran Cemetery in Montgomery.

She’s a Topiary Designer/Botanical Mosaic Artist, originally from Montgomery. She was the 2001 Kolacky Queen, and next week she will show the world her artistic skills on the new discovery+ show, “Clipped.”
Meghan Petricka, a 2002 Montgomery- Lonsdale High School graduate, joins six other artists in the competition series set in the topiary world. According to a press release, they create, “breathtaking sculptures out of meticulously trimmed shrubbery, plants and flowers - designing colorful, largerthan- life, living works of art.”

An extensive search for a new Le Sueur County Administrator is coming to a close.
After final interviews with four candidates Monday, May 3, the Le Sueur County Board of Commissioners extended the job offer to Joseph Martin during the Tuesday, May 4 board meeting.
Martin, lives in rural Waterville with his wife, Staci (Bohlen), and their two children. He is the son-in-law of Curtis and Joyce Bohlen of rural Kilkenny.

The TCU boys’ and girls’ track and field teams finished in second place at the Belle Plaine meet on April 20. Host Belle Plaine took first for boys and girls.
Among the highlights, the boys took first place in the 4x800-meter relay with a time of 9:58. The team was made up of Aven Prigge, Aidan McNamara, Chase Goecke, and Austin Rutt.
The 4x100 relay also took first with a time of 50:11. The team was made up of Jack Erickson, Brant LeMieux, Jordan Meyer, and Janik Wagner.

Going into last week’s doubleheader against the Le Sueur-Henderson Giants, Titan Coach Kelly Jo Closser, knew it was going to be a tough game. She said the team is still working to get into its groove, something it was looking for when it fell to the host in both games.
Tri-City United 1 - Le Sueur-Henderson 11 “We knew coming into the games Le Sueur was going to be a tough competitor. The girls came in pumped up,” Closser said.

Nancy Creger, 86, passed away peacefully with her family at her home in rural Kilkenny, Minnesota on April 29, 2021. Visitation will be held on Tuesday, May 4 from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Schoenbauer Funeral Home in Montgomery. An open house Celebration of Life will take place May 22 at the family farm beginning at 2 p.m. Arrangements by Schoenbauer Funeral Home in Montgomery.

Road construction season has begun in Montgomery.
A lot has been happening in the Circle Drive area in preparation for the 2021 Street and Utility Improvement Project. According to a project update by SEH, the engineers for the project, most of the work has been CenterPoint Energy replacing gas mains and tree removal work.
Phase 1, which is North Circle Drive, included...
To read more on this article, pick up the April 29, 2021 print edition of the Montgomery Messenger.

Motorists on Highway 21 in Rice County at Shieldsville are encountering lane closures that began April 19 as crews start resurfacing, making intersection improvements and repairing culverts, according to the Minnesota Department of Transportation.
Work includes resurfacing approximately eight miles of Hwy. 21 from about one mile west of Interstate 35 to Highway 99. New turn lanes/bypass lanes will be installed at Shields Court, Mazaska Lake Trail, Lake Mazaska Boat Launch and French Lake Trail.

Last week Thursday was Earth Day!
Earth Day is an annual global event, observed on April 22, that celebrates the environmental movement and raises awareness about pollution and ways to maintain a clean habitat. It started in 1970.
Whether you agree with the notion of a climate crisis or not, we should all choose to be better and more respectful inhabitants of Earth. We can support environmental conservation for ourselves and for living things with whom we share the planet.

After missing out on last year, buyers and sellers were ready to wheel and deal at what has become the seasonal kick-off location to the swap meet season in the Midwest.
From Friday to Sunday, approximately 700 vendors gathered to sell their wares at the 44th Annual Le Sueur Pioneer Power Swap Meet.
“Everybody was happy to be out and among...
To see more on this article, pick up the April 29, 2021 print edition of the Montgomery Messenger, The New Prague Times or the LifeEnterprise papers.

A prescribed burn of a waterfowl area in Montgomery last week will ensure it continues to be a productive habitat for waterfowl and other wildlife.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) conducted a prescribed burn at the Erin Prairie Waterfowl Production Area (WPA) on Tuesday, April 20. Erin Prairie WPA is a unit of the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge and Wetland Management District.

Artwork created by Tri-City United High School students is now on display at the Montgomery Arts and Heritage Center. The exhibit will be open to the public during the center’s regular hours, now through May 15. Pictured: TCU Art Team President Reagan Gaul (left) and Monserrat Ruiz put the finishing touches on the display. Both young women have pieces in the exhibit.

The Montgomery Area Community Club (MACC) is currently seeking Grand Marshal nominations for Kolacky Days.
Nominated individuals must be in good standing in the community, have displayed outstanding service, pride and commitment to the community, county, state and/or country, and should either live or work in the Montgomery area.