Kenneth M. “Pizza” Piazza, age 77, of New Prague, died suddenly while riding his bike close to his home at Cedar Lake on Wednesday, July 12, 2023.  Ken was born on February 16, 1946 in Joliet, IL to Mario and Anne (Belom) Piazza.  He graduated from Joliet High School and went on to attain his Bachelor’s degree from Central College in Pella, IA.  While in college he wrestled and played football competing in several bowl games and was named to the All Iowa Conference Football Team.  It was while he was in grad school at Mankato State College, that he met Jean H.

Hadley Dorick, left, Emmett Ryks and Malachi Watson enjoy treats from Dairy Queen in New Prague Friday, July 14. The three were the winners in the New Prague Police Department’s coloring contest of posters that celebrated the Fourth of July. For more see an upcoming print edition of The New Prague Times. (Patrick Fisher photo)

He remembers the fear sweeping through his being in 2003 when he heard his wife had cancer. Two years later, Chris Smith heard a doctor direct those same words at him.

When he was 4 years old, Jay Williams introduced his son, Zack, to motocross racing. By the time he was 18, he won an amateur national championship. A year later, he turned professional and began racing for prize money.
He was initially attracted by the speed, the grit and determination of motocross racing. Later, Williams grew to appreciate the individual nature of the sport.
“You put the helmet on and it’s just you and the bike,” he said.

It’s almost like they had New Prague in mind. In addition to the biennial funding increase the Minnesota Legislature sent to school districts this spring, public schools were allowed to renew an expiring levy without voter approval. For some, it was a godsend.
In New Prague, the legislation allowed the school board to approve the $246.70 per levy one time for six years without voter approval. This is as close to free money as it gets.

Demolition of the house at 208 Central Ave. N by Deutsch Construction began around 7:30 a.m. Wednesday, June 28. By that evening, the roughly 100 year-old-house was gone and crews were spreading dirt around the site. Plans by the City of New Prague call for the spot to be seeded with grass.
The house had been rented by Irene Ellman and her late husband, Kenneth. The couple raised their three daughters in the house.

She never imagined an unexpected knock on the door in 1974 would start a friendship that would one day save her life.
Forty-eight years later, the two women remain close friends. They know the importance of sharing a gift and hope others will consider doing the same, be it for someone they care about or someone they’ve never met.
“Never did I think this girl would save my life,” Pat (Pumper) Christensen said. “She means everything to me. I was running out of options. I was running out of people.”

Governor Tim Walz and Agriculture Commissioner Thom Petersen visited the Heldberg Dairy Farm, owned and operated by Karl Heldberg, south of Le Sueur the afternoon of July 6 to talk dairy and agriculture. The governor and commissioner spent a great length of time speaking with Heldberg and exchanging thoughts about farmers, their struggles and the state of the dairy industry in Minnesota.

James “Jim” Deutsch, age 80, formerly of Wells, MN, of Woodbury, MN died Thursday, June 22, 2023 at Prelude Assisted Living in Woodbury, MN. A Funeral Service with Military Honors will be held on Saturday, July 8, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. at Nasinec Funeral Home (789 Business Park Dr. Wells, MN 56097) with Father Greg Havel officiating. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service at the funeral home (10:00 to 11:00 a.m.). Interment will be in Rosehill Cemetery in Wells, MN. Nasinec Funeral Home in Wells is entrusted with arrangements.

Galen G. “Gater” George, age 71, of New Prague, Minnesota died unexpectedly at Mayo Clinic Health System Hospital New Prague on Monday, March 27, 2023.  Gater was born on April 2, 1951 in Winfield, Kansas to Harold Gene and Molly (Larsson) George.  He grew up in the the Wichita area, served in the US Army and returned to Wichita before finally settling in New Prague about 10 years ago.  

St. Patrick’s Trevor Divinski and Ryan Friedges combined for a shutout win over the Orioles Wednesday, June 28, in New Prague.
The Irish jumped to a 2-0 lead in the opening frame and held New Prague scoreless. St. Patrick added another three runs in the seventh inning. Ben Taxdahl led the Irish offense with a two-run home run while Joe Weiers drove in two RBIs.

Rudolph J. Skluzacek, age 92 of Lonsdale, Minnesota, went home to the Lord on July 1, 2023.
He was born May 29, 1931 to Frank J. and Hedwig (Pekar) Skluzacek on the home farm in Wheatland Township.
Rudy farmed on the family century farm his entire life.  He also was employed at McQuay, in Faribault, and McNamara Construction. 
He served his country in Alaska during the Korean War.  He was a proud, active, lifetime member of the American Legion Post 586 for 71 years. 

LeArnold “Lee” Klingberg, age 79, of Prior Lake, MN, passed away on July 1, 2023. A visitation will be on Thursday, July 6, 2023, from 4-7 p.m., at Ballard-Sunder Funeral & Cremation, Prior Lake and on Friday, July 7, 2023, from 9:30-10:45 a.m., followed by a celebration of life, at 11 a.m., at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Prior Lake. Interment at St. Paul’s Lutheran Cemetery. 

Lillian J. “Bella” Hertaus, age 83, of New Prague, died unexpectedly, Friday, June 30, 2023, at her daughter’s home on the Whitefish chain in Pequot Lakes, MN. Bella was born on May 29, 1940 to John C. and Josephine (Douda) Mracek. She grew up in rural Northfield and was a 1958 graduate of Northfield High School. At 15, Bella met an “older gentleman” age 18, at a dance. She invited him to go to the Sadie Hawkins dance at her school. That was the start of a romance that would continue through his service in the US Navy and thereafter.

Maybe you read about Larry Olimb over the weekend. If you love ice hockey, you might have heard the former U of M standout defenseman and former professional lost his job as head girls’ coach at Orono High School.
Some say he was run out of the job. Others think he has nobody to blame but the guy in the mirror. The only hope here is nobody in New Prague ever endures the same treatment.
And if it has happened, we hope it won’t happen again.

Summer has officially started. The summer solstice, the longest day of the year, was Wednesday, June 21.
Others may say it was already summer when temperatures were in the high-80s and low-90s Fahrenheit last week.
Another sure sign of summer was the number of outdoor events that were going on this past weekend. Among the events were Elko New Market’s Fire Rescue Days, the Home Run Derby at Union Hill and the start of the Music at the Broz concert series.