This year’s Halfway to St. Paddy’s Day celebration in Kilkenny brought in nice weather with abundant sunshine with pleasant temperatures. One of the largest marching bands in the area, perhaps the state, also made an appearance during Saturday’s 35-unit parade at the request of Andrew McGuinness, mayor of the Kilkenny Municipal District in Ireland, the Lakeville South High School Marching Cougars.
A 911 call on Friday, Sept. 2, at MGM Apartments in Lonsdale, 321 Southeast 1st Avenue, is a suspected suicide.
Lonsdale Police Chief Jason Schmitz said that a call came in at 12:09 p.m. for a welfare check by the person’s employer after they had not showed up to work the last three days.
Montgomery Police Department were dispatched to Seneca Foods Corporation at 11:26 p.m. for a motor vehicle crash of a supposed intoxicated driver that may have struck the business’ building, according to a statement of probable cause.
According to the statement, the officer saw a white pickup truck with an enclosed trailer driving on the railroad tracks behind the main Seneca building on the West side. It was noted that the vehicle was lunging forward and reverse trying to free it from the tracks.
At first, it appeared as if Le Sueur County would need to set a considerable increase in levy rates going into next year. However, after months of work sessions, the county board of commissioners is now in good position to approve one of its lowest annual increases.
The county had anticipated a large increase in property taxes because of changes to how the human services department is funded. The Federal government shifted the financial burden of funding the department to the state, as the state shifted much of the burden to the county level.
Many around the area noticed the out-of-place Ferris wheel on Wednesday, Sept. 2, at Next Chapter Winery between New Prague and Montgomery, especially after the lights came on at night.
The Ferris wheel was rented by husband Jeff Nelson of the late Shonna Nelson, who passed away on Sept. 3, 2025 after a battle with cancer. It was part of “Shonna’s Yahrzeit.” A Yahrzeit, sometimes spelled jahrzeit, is a Yiddish word meaning “year time” and is a Jewish tradition that celebrates the anniversary of a loved one’s death, specifically a parent or near relative.
The incident
Steven Goettl, 41, of Le Center, was driving his motorcycle on his way home from work at Le Sueur, Inc. on Thursday, Aug. 27, at about 4:45 p.m. when he drove over some rocks or gravel on a curve where 356th Street turns south and changes into 305th Avenue, which is a paved road approximately two miles southeast of Le Sueur, Minn.
Goettl lost control of the motorcycle, passed over the opposing side of the road, took out a road sign and landed next to his motorcycle in the ditch.
Monday, Aug. 31
- Traffic stop (TS) and issued a warning for failure to maintain lane.
- Assisted (Asst.) with a medical at Traditions.
- TS and arrested an individual for cannabis open package, obstruct legal process, driving after revocation and no insurance.
- Asst. with a medical on Deer Trail.
Tuesday, Sept. 1
Meghan Bastyr has had multiple jobs over her time here on Earth, including being a mom, a heavy equipment operator, farmer, and more. She went to college to be a nurse, but that isn’t what she went straight into out of college.
After graduating nursing school in 2008, she worked with her father Rick Renslow, who was also a late-1980’s World Wrestling Federation pro wrestler, in a landscaping business building boulder walls on lake shorelines. That ended when her father passed away in 2008.
Tri-City United Schools is one of about 10 schools to try out an expanding partnership program with Minnesota State University, Mankato (MSUM) called RESEPI, which is short for Rural Experiential STEM (science, engineering, technology and mathematics) Education Partnership Initiative.
The program was piloted by MSUM last year in Mankato’s three public schools with hopes to expand the program to about 100-plus school districts in the 2027-2028 school year and hopefully to all the 277 non-metro school districts in the state eventually.
Monday, Aug. 24
- Assisted (Asst.)an individual with a vehicle lock out.
- Traffic stop (TS) and issued a warning for no front license plate. (2)
- TS and arrested an individual for driving while intoxicated (DWI), unlawful firearm possession, drug possession, and driving after revocation.
- Asst. an individual with a civil manner.
- TS and issued a warning for an equipment violation
Tuesday, Aug. 25
A “Meet Your Candidates” event has been coordinated by Jean Keogh at the sponsoring Revival on Main ahead of this year’s mid-term elections on Tuesday, Sept. 22.
Area residents are encouraged to attend this free event to hear from and ask questions to candidates for Minnesota Senate District 22, Minnesota House District 22B, Le Sueur County, City of Montgomery, and Tri-City United School District #2905.
Social period will start at 6:30 p.m., with kolacky, cookies, coffee, and a cash bar, where residents will be able to interact directly with candidates.
SOL-I.S. Technology Solutions gave the first of about four-to-five more learning events sponsored by the Montgomery, Lonsdale, Northfield, Belle Plaine, and Elko New Market chambers of commerce. These events are free for chamber members.
The company was started by an eight-year U.S. Navy veteran, Troy Solis, with the first session focusing on the simple ways small businesses get hacked and what that means for your small business.
His best days were spent on a dirt bike, on some other form of motorized machine or in the garage building or improving anything with a motor he could make run better. Levi Schelhaas died way too young doing exactly what he loved. And in his death, he helped other people enjoy life in their own way.
The numbers are in for those exhibiting at the Le Sueur County Fair last month. Le Sueur County 4-H says that 269 youth exhibited 1,613 projects, 145 youth exhibited animals and livestock, and 198 youth exhibited general projects at this year’s county fair.