New Prague city councilors approved the purchase of two Matrice 4TD Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAV) from Vertex Unmanned Solutions for $24,598. Last Monday, April 20, drones the police department will use to serve the public in times of urgent need – when searching for a lost person, searching for a suspect or someone in need.

Bryan Francis Pexa, age 68, of Elko, MN, passed away on Tuesday, April 28, 2026.

Bryan was born to Emil and Sophie (Havlicek) Pexa on February 25, 1958. He grew up in Elko and attended New Prague High School. Shortly after, he met his wife, Bonnie (Fredrickson), while they were working at the same job. The first time they met, Bryan offered her a red Tootsie Pop. The two began dating soon after and were married on May 13, 1978, beginning a life together that would span nearly 50 years.

    Minnesota legislators passed a new school bus safety law by a 133-0 vote in the house and 67-0 in the senate in March to close some safety loopholes. It was the first bill of this legislative session to pass. 
    Stopping for school busses allowed for some gray area in the wording that drivers shall stop when busses are “… displaying extended stop signal arm and flashing red lights.” This left the door open for people faced with a fine to argue that the arm was not extended or not fully yet when they passed.

Gladys L. Mader, age 85, of Lonsdale, passed away on April 23, 2026.

Gladys was born in New Prague and grew up on her family farm near Cedar Lake. She graduated from New Prague High School and remained deeply connected to farm life, continuing to work alongside her family. In 1960, she met the love of her life, Roman, and they were married in 1961. Together, they purchased their own farm in Lonsdale, where they built a life and raised their family.

Michael "Mike" P. Bohnsack, age 40, of Montgomery, passed away surrounded by his family on the morning of Saturday, April 18, 2026, following a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer.

    Minnesota Valley Electric Cooperative (MVEC), which serves much of our readership area, held its annual meeting at Jordan High School on Tuesday, April 7, where over 200 members gathered.
    A total of 20 $1,500 scholarships to high school seniors were given out or a total of $30,000. To be eligible for the scholarship, students must have a parent or legal guardian who are MVEC members, be enrolled to attend an accredited post-secondary institution as a full-time student, and have at minimum GPA of 2.0. 

Dennis L. Swenson, age 88, of New Prague, passed away at home April 20, 2026, with his loving wife of 53 years, Miriam, by his side.

Dennis is survived by his wife Miriam; many nieces, nephews; and other loving family and friends.

He is preceded in death by his parents, S. August and Cora (Jacobson) Swenson; siblings, Alta Loy, Orvin Swenson, Carroll Swenson, and LaVerne Gibbins.

Gregory Jon Bruzek, age 75, of Minneapolis, died unexpectedly at his home on Saturday, April 18, 2026.  Greg was born in New Prague on April 5, 1951, to Johnny and Helen (Herda) Bruzek.  He attended St. Wenceslaus Parochial School and New Prague High School.  Greg was met with many challenges throughout his life but handled them with positivity and grace.  He worked in a variety of sheltered workshops throughout his earlier years and successfully lived independently.   

Jacqueline "Jackie" C. Ruehling, age 92, of New Prague passed away peacefully on April 14, 2026, at Praha Village.

Jackie was born on May 10, 1933, to Frank J. and Blanche E. (Kubesh) Rehor, in New Prague, MN. She attended St. Wenceslaus Catholic School, and New Prague High School, followed by a secretarial school in Mpls.

Margaret Mary Christine “Peggy” Hartman, passed away peacefully surrounded by her family on April 18, 2026, just 4 days short of her 77th birthday.  Peggy was born in New Prague on April 22, 1949, to Virgil and Armella (Dohmen) Hartman.  She attended St. Benedict Parochial School and graduated from New Prague High School. She spent her entire career at the IDS Financial Center in Minneapolis.

Saturday evening, April 11, at the 138th annual New Prague Firemen’s Dance & Drill, drillmaster Drew Koloc (left) handed over the whistle to new drillmaster Sam Peterson. Koloc is retiring with 14 years on the fire department, 11 as the drill team’s drillmaster. Peterson is a three-year member of the fire department and the department’s lone military veteran. Tradition calls for the drillmaster to be a military veteran. Peterson served in the U.S. Navy Seabees from 2009-2012. The 16-member drill team went through its paces before the dance at Park Ballroom.

The New Prague City Council moved forward with its ambulance service contract with North Memorial Ambulance. City Administrator Josh Tetzlaff said he would make the changes discussed at the Monday, April 6, meeting and then present the new contract to North Memorial.

New Prague’s indoor softball team is off to a fast start with a pair of important wins and two big games this week.

The New Prague High School boys’ volleyball team saw a lot of action with two matches and then its first tournament.

“The first week of competition for the boys’ volleyball program was one that kept everyone's heart rate up,” said head coach Greg Sayuk.

The Trojans were on the road for two matches this week. The first was at Richfield Tuesday, April 14, and New Prague faces Eagan tonight (Thursday, April 16).

Trojans first two matches

Back in the late-1980s, when Shakopee’s ‘Bubble,’ home of the community’s fledgling hockey program, went down for the last time, community members matter-of-factly assumed they could go to an area indoor rink for hockey practices and games. For many years, a dedicated group of guys had mended the bubble. They repaired the ripped fabric by hand, sometimes in sub-zero temperatures, and reinflating the Bubble after snowfalls.

Some of her students and colleagues spent their spring break at the beach while others traveled with their families to various other vacation destinations. New Prague High School instructor Allison Olson spent a portion of her time away from the classroom learning how thousands of sailors work together aboard a US Navy aircraft carrier at sea.