Local News

On Monday night at 11:31 p.m., the Meeker County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a structure fire in the 25200 block of Meeker County Road 24 in Darwin Township. Meeker County Deputies, Fire Departments from Litchfield, Dassel and Cokato and Mayo Ambulance all responded to the scene.  Deputies found a large shop in flames. 

The shop is owned by 62-year-old Julie Johnson-Reeck.  61-year-old Kurt Jackson of Bloomington was at the shop working on a motorcycle at the time of the fire.  Although initial injuries reported were minor, Jackson later requested transport to Meeker Memorial Hospital for observation.  The preliminary investigation revealed the fire started as gasoline was being drained from the motorcycle.  The shop and contents received major damage as a result of the fire.

On Monday morning at 11:56, the Meeker County Sheriff’s Office received a report of an accident at the intersection of Meeker County Road 1 and 608th Avenue in Litchfield Township. Meeker County Deputies, Litchfield Rescue, Litchfield Fire Dept., and Mayo Ambulance all responded to the scene.

When deputies arrived, they found that a passenger vehicle and an ATV had collided.  The driver of the passenger vehicle, 18-year-old Mackenzie Straumann of Cosmos, received no injuries. Straumann’s passenger, 18-year-old Kenna Lund of Litchfield, also reported no injuries.

The driver of the ATV, 33-year-old Dean Nystrom of Litchfield, received minor injuries, as did his passenger, 27-year-old Autumn Wieling of Willmar.  Both were transported to Meeker Memorial Hospital.  The preliminary investigation revealed the ATV was illegally on the County Road and Nystrom failed to signal his turn.  Nystrom was issued a citation for Driving After Revocation.

The commencement ceremony at Litchfield High School is coming up this Saturday – May 30th – at 11 a.m. Diplomas will be handed out to 112 graduates.

Litchfield High School Principal Jason Michels says there will be 4 student speakers – Kelsey Palmer, Abbigail Thoma, Josh Blomberg, Kala Ziegler, and they have asked 1967 LHS graduate – federal court judge Ann Olson Montgomery – to speak as well. He says Judge Montgomery will likely talk about bumps in the road in life and he says the members of this class are very resilient and can handle those bumps.

Michels says there are so many opportunities available for students at Litchfield High School for academics, sports, fine arts and other activities and it helps to make them well-rounded. He says the seniors have their last day of school on Tuesday and then they’ll have graduation practice on Thursday, but the rest of the students in the Litchfield School District have classes through Friday and then they’ll be released that day around 12:30.

The Minnesota State Patrol responded to a 2-vehicle crash on Monday afternoon at 2:19 near Atwater.  It occurred on Highway 12 and 150^th Street Northeast in Gennessee Township in Kandiyohi County.

A 2023 Acura MDX was eastbound on Highway 12 – driven by 76-year-old Charles Terry Schadt of Palmdale, CA. and a 2018 Jeep Renegade – driven by 21-year-old Chloe Lea Louwagie of Cottonwood was southbound on 150th Street NE. Vehicles collided in the intersection.  Louwagie was not injured.  Schadt and a passenger in his vehicle –  69-year-old Marcella Louise Kimbrell of Palmdale, CA – both received non-life threatening injuries and were taken to the hospital in Willmar.  Also responding to the scene were Atwater Ambulance, Centre Care Ambulance, and Kandiyohi County Sheriff’s Office.

At a special board meeting Thursday evening, the ACGC School Board unanimously voted to select Jennifer Mahan-Deitte as the district’s next superintendent.  She currently serves as a principal at Hutchinson Public Schools.

ACGC School Board Chair Jeanna Lilleberg said, “Throughout the selection process, we listened to our families, staff, and community members, and Jennifer Mahan-Deitte reflects the values and aspirations of ACGC Public School.  The Board is confident that she will build strong partnerships and lead with integrity, transparency, and a deep focus on student achievement where our students will thrive academically, socially, and emotionally. We are excited to begin this new chapter together.”

Three semifinalists were interviewed on May 16, and two finalists were interviewed on May 21^st.  To help capture a broad range of perspectives, a group of 19 individuals representing groups across the district and communities provided feedback on the finalist interviews.  The ACGC School Board will be conducting negotiations with Mahan-Deitte and a contract is expected to be approved by the school board at a May 26^th board meeting.  The pending start date for Mahan-Deitte will be July 1, 2026.