The Litchfield Rotary Club is in the midst of its annual Rose and Fall Bouquet Sale. You can order a dozen roses or a fall bouquet for just $25 from any Litchfield Rotary Club member.
Litchfield Rotary Club member Tim Swenson says they use the proceeds to help fund all kinds of local projects. He says the roses are available in red or an assorted color bouquet and he usually orders both the roses and a fall bouquet.
Swenson says the flowers will be available to be picked up at Davis Auto Body on East Highway 12 on October 30th and October 31st from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 4-to-6 p.m. and on November 1st from 9 a.m. to noon. He says the Litchfield Rotary Club meets on Tuesday mornings at 7 o’clock at the Litchfield Rescue Hall for breakfast and a speaker and new members are welcome.
One of the newest members is Mike Meyer from Edward Jones. He says he was involved in the Hutchinson Rotary Club and he says both clubs have well-attended meetings and attending those meetings is a great way to get to know other people in the community.
Meyer says, besides helping with local projects, the Rotary Clubs get involved internationally with educational projects, digging wells and eradicating polio in third world countries. He says there are posters around Litchfield with information about the rose and fall bouquet sale with the phone numbers of the Litchfield Rotary Club members and you can order flowers from any of them through October 15th.
On Sunday afternoon at 2:15, the Meeker County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant in the 23400 block of 650th Avenue in Darwin Township. The Sheriff’s Office received information that the owner of the property, 71-year-old Michael Homann, was in possession of firearms, and his criminal history shows that he is disqualified from possessing firearms.
Eighteen firearms were recovered along with consistent with methamphetamine use. Homann was arrested and charged with Felon in Possession of a Firearm and User of Controlled Substance in Possession of a Firearm. Homann made his first court appearance on Monday, and was conditionally released by the court on his own recognizance. The CEE-VI Drug & Gang Task Force assisted with the investigation.
The Meeker County Highway Department began an Adopt-a-Highway program for County-State-Aid-Highways about a year ago. Participants agree to pick up trash along 2-mile stretches of the highways twice a year and are recognized with signage along their segment of highway.
Meeker County Public Works Director and Highway Engineer Phil Schmalz says there are 273 miles of county highway, and with 8 participants so far, there are still 257 miles of roadway available. He says it’s a great way for families, service clubs or businesses to get out in the fresh air and provide a public service.
Schmalz says safety is a main concern so they have a list of conditions that participants need to follow. He says it’s amazing what types of trash that can be found so they want to make sure that participants do not handle anything that may be hazardous. You can find more information on the Meeker County website or by calling the Highway Department at 693-5360.
Schmalz says the Highway Department completed a pavement reconstruction project this past summer on County-State-Aid-Highway 12 and they are in the process of completing a similar project over the next couple of weeks on County-State-Aid-Highway 3. He says they will be working on bridge replacement projects in the coming years including bridges over County-State-Aid-Highways 26 and 34 next summer.
The Litchfield School Board heard a report last night from District Assessment Coordinator Stephanie Hansen regarding the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment and Minnesota Test of Academic Skills. Hansen talked about why the testing is done, when it’s done, and the requirements from the Minnesota Department of Education. Test results can be found on the Litchfield School District website.
Business Manager Jesse Johnson presented the preliminary levy information to the Litchfield School Board last night. The proposed levy is $6,629,247.16 – a decrease of .77% or a decrease of $51,645.04 from the previous year. The levy will be set in December, following the truth-in-taxation hearing which is set for 6 p.m. on December 8th.
Litchfield High School Student Council representatives Kelsey Palmar and Kalla Ziegler spoke to the board about homecoming activities this week which is “Dragon Week.” There are special observances each day, and 110 tickets have been sold so far for the homecoming dance. Supt. Susan Burris told the Board last night that enrollment this month is at 1,507 – up from 1,496 in May.
The Litchfield School Board has approved of the purchase of a fabrication mill for the CTE department from Productivity Tooling & Accessories of Plymouth for $35,982.50. Tyler Burgess says they are getting an education discount as this machine would typically cost about $70,000. He says the machine will enable students to produce and possibly sell metal fabricated parts and devices and develop career-related skills. Business Manager Jesse Johnson says the funds to purchase the machine will come from existing funds in the LHS CTE program.
Also last night, the Litchfield School Board approved of a resolution accepting donations, including $500 from the Darwin Community Legacy Foundation for the Litchfield High School Robotics program, and $200 from the Knights of Columbus for the Lake Ripley Elementary School Tradehome Shoes project.