COVID-19 Vaccination Clinics
will be held every Thursday at Rice County Public Health, 320 NW 3rd Street, Faribault 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. throughout August and September  
Rice County Public Health continues to host COVID-19 vaccination clinics every Thursday from 9:00 – 4:00 p.m.  These clinics are open to those 12 years and older, with all three vaccines available.

The Czech Heritage Club will hold its August program on Tuesday, Aug. 17, 2021, at the Lonsdale Public Library, 1006 Birch St NE, Lonsdale, at 7 p.m. 
All Czech Heritage Club members and the public are invited to attend this free event. The program will be a “History of Lonsdale” presented by Steve Vosejpka.

Due to a breakdown at the printing press in Princeton, MN, the August 12th issues of The New Prague Times, Montgomery Messenger and the LifeEnterprise, which are mailed, will be a day late.
Area newsstand papers will be available on Wednesday as usual.
We are sorry for the inconvenience.

Effective Monday, August 9, 2021, all Rice County employees and visitors are required to wear a face covering in Rice County government buildings. This requirement is going into effect to help slow the spread of COVID-19.
Rice County is currently classified as “high” community transmission of COVID-19 by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention’s COVID-19 Data Tracker. The CDC and the Minnesota Department of Health recommend face coverings be worn in indoor, public settings by all individuals -- vaccinated or not -- when in a community with high transmission.

Mental Health Awareness Day at the Minnesota State Fair will be held on Monday, Aug. 30, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Dan Patch Park located next to the Grandstand. This event, which features about 60 mental health organizations from across the state, is an opportunity for all Minnesotans to raise awareness about mental health, which is more important now than ever before as everyone continues to recover from the negative impacts of the global pandemic.

The Scott County Sheriff’s Office honored Deputy Duane “Dewey” Jirik on Friday, July 30, as he retired after serving with the department for 24 and-a-half years.
“Deputy Jirik has served the residents of Scott County for over 24 years, working numerous assignments including Volunteer Reserve Deputy, Patrol Deputy, and as a Sergeant overseeing Court Security, Civil Process, Transports, and Campus Security,” said Scott County Sheriff Luke Hennen in a press release.

A large crowd was at Memorial Park on Thursday, Aug. 5, for Czech Out New Prague, for fun, entertainment, information and food. Held from 5-8 p.m. there was a steady stream of people coming through to look at the nearly 50 exhibitors and find out what New Prague has to offer for businesses, non-profits and other groups. Among the demonstrations were ones by New Prague ATA Family Martial Arts and To the Pointe Dance Academy. Weather in the 80s helped to bring out the crowds. For more see an upcoming print issue of The New Prague Times. (Patrick Fisher Photo)

New Prague Police Officer Cory Schmitz, center, hands out stickers during National Night Out at Heritage Park on Tuesday, Aug. 3. Area communities observed the evening that brings together residents, police, fire departments and ambulance services so people can get to know each other. It was a beautiful evening for National Night Out. The event at Heritage Park also had members of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the New Prague Fire Department, plus served ice cream treats. For more see an upcoming print issue of The New Prague Times. (Patrick Fisher Photo)

An honor guard leads the procession out of St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church in New Prague on Sunday, Aug. 1, for the funeral of Montgomery Police Officer Bryan Tupy. Officers and members of area police departments, sheriff’s offices, the State Patrol, the Montgomery Ambulance Service and Fire Department participated in the honor guard during the funeral. For more see upcoming print issues of the Montgomery Messenger and The New Prague Times. (Patrick Fisher Photo)

Author Kate Anne Kang had a lively discussion with 14 members of the Minnesota History Book Club at the New Prague Library the evening of Monday, July 26. Kang wrote “Given Away,” a memoir about her own adoption from South Korea and then finding and reuniting with her birth family. Early in her presentation she noted how she had lived in New Prague with her adopted family for three months.
“We then moved to St. Louis Park,” she said.

The Scott County Sheriff’s Office offered its congratulations to Deputy Duane “Dewey” Jirik on his retirement today. Deputy Jirik, left, is honored by Scott County Sheriff Luke Hennen. “Deputy Jirik has served the residents of Scott County for over 25 years, working numerous assignments including Volunteer Reserve Deputy, Patrol Deputy, and as a Sergeant overseeing Court Security, Civil Process, Transports, and Campus Security,” said Sheriff Hennen.

The Postal Service is good to go on its plan to slow down the mail and implement aggressive price increases, according to the Postal Regulatory Commission in a pair of decisions handed down this week.
The PRC expressed skepticism about the wisdom of adding an additional day to service standards for both First-Class and Periodicals mail.
But it stopped short of telling USPS not to make the change. Instead, it cautioned USPS to examine its assumptions about cost savings and to look into the root causes of mail slowdowns in recent months.

Jazmin Simon, center, of Coborn’s Marketplace in New Prague serves up a meal during the grocery store’s Drive-thru Guest Appreciation Dinner on Wednesday, July 28. Held from 4-6 p.m. Coborn’s hit 300 meals served at the 45 minute mark of the event. The meal included BBQ pork sandwiches with sides and sweets for a small fee per meal. Proceeds from the evening were going to United Way. For more see an upcoming print issue of The New Prague Times. (Patrick Fisher Photo)

Officer Bryan Tupy, who began with the Montgomery Police Department in October 2019, unexpectedly passed away on Monday, July 26, 2021.
Officer Tupy began his law enforcement career as a part-time officer for the City of Le Center in 2015. Officer Tupy generally worked the afternoon or night shift with Officer Jack Strand.

Hy-Vee in New Prague had a ribbon cutting ceremony at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, July 27, attended by representatives of Hy-Vee, its employees, City of New Prague officials, area dignitaries and special guests during its grand opening. The new grocery store had mascots from the Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx basketball teams providing some fun. Hy-Vee is also celebrating the opening of its new store with specials through July 27. For more on the ribbon cutting see this week’s issue of The New Prague Times. (Patrick Fisher Photo)