The annual Salvation Army Red Kettle campaign is underway, and the kettles are located at Family Fare, Running’s and Walmart in Litchfield. Volunteers are needed to ring the bells at the kettles.
Heather Jeseritz says people are more likely to make donations if someone is at the kettle and the bell ringers can be individuals, couples, families or groups such as members of a church or service club. She says the money they collect helps local people who will maybe face some type of emergency such as a car repair or medical problem and are struggling to make ends meet.
Jeseritz says they accept cash or checks and they usually get a gold coin each year and if you do not have cash on you, you may send a check to either 409 North Sibley Avenue or 120 North Sibley Avenue in Litchfield. She says anyone willing to volunteer to ring the bell may schedule a time with her by calling 320-699-0461. You can also sign up at registertoring.com.
Jeseritz says you can ring for an hour or all day – whatever works in your schedule and you can make it fun by dressing in a costume or playing music. She says the red kettle at Running’s is inside; the red kettle at Family Fare is between the inside and outside doors and the red kettle at Walmart is outdoors.
The Litchfield School Board had a visit last night from representatives of some of the fall sports teams that excelled this past season. Members of the cross country team and the girl’s tennis team spoke to the Board about the highlights of their successful seasons.
Cross country coach Julie Dengerud was accompanied by team members August Swanson and Jude Allen – two of the all-state runners and they spoke about being section champions this year after finishing last year as runners-up. Girls tennis coach Matt Draeger was accompanied by Elly Woelfel and Emma Wuotila. They took second place in the state tournament and spoke about their final match against St. James.
Student Council representatives Kelsey Palmer and Kalla Ziegler spoke about the successful blood drive they hosted last week in the Litchfield Area Recreation Center. Palmer says they collected 46-units which was over their goal of 41-units. She says they may have had more students if it was held right in the high school, so they will analyze the location for next time.
Superintendent Susan Burris says American Education Week included a visit from State Representative Scott Van Binsbergen who toured the Litchfield Schools on November 19th. She says the parent-teacher conferences last week at Lake Ripley Elementary School included an opportunity for families to take shoes for their children from Trade Home Shoes. Burris says the pool at the high school has been drained and work has started on the filtration system as that renovation project progresses.
The Litchfield School Board will have a work session on December 8th at 4:45 p.m. to meet with ICS officials to discuss future capital projects, prior to the regular meeting and truth-in-taxation hearing at 6 p.m. The Board will decide that evening whether a December 22nd meeting is necessary. The Board also approved of the 2025-2027 food service contract.
Also last night, the Litchfield School Board approved of a resolution accepting three donations: $2,516.14 from the Goal Line Club for athletics for paint for the football field; $7,000 from the LDC Hockey Boosters for Litchfield Boys Hockey for extra coaches; and $75 from Darlene Kotelnicki for the FFA Chapter.
The Minnesota State Patrol responded to a 2-vehicle crash on Monday night at 8:44 at the intersection of Highway 55 and County-State-Aid-Highway 34 in Forest Prairie Township.
A 2007 Mazda 6 sedan was travelling westbound on Highway 55 and a 2017 Ford Escape was travelling northbound on County Road 34 and the vehicles collided in the intersection resulting in a T-bone type of crash.
The Escape was driven by 49-year-old Ernesto Delgadovazquez of Cold Spring. He received non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to the St. Cloud Hospital. The Mazda was driven by 50-year-old Perry John Philippi of Eden Valley. He received non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to Meeker Memorial Hospital. Also responding to the scene were the Meeker County Sheriff’s Office, Mayo Ambulance, Watkins Fire & Rescue and Custom Towing.
