A total of 44 seniors will graduate Friday, May 25 at WEM High School. Emily Stiernagle is the valedictorian and Elijah Bass is the salutatorian. A total of 19 students were named honor students. For more on the graduation ceremony, the Class of 2018, and the top students, check out the May 25 edition of the LIFE/Enterprise.

Waseca County Jail Administrator Tim Kinniry received an honor Tuesday, May 15 from Waseca County Sheriff Brad Milbrath. Kinniry was one of eight county employees who were cited for efforts above and beyond the call of duty. Kinniry was awarded the Medal of Valor for his work during a January 17, 2018 high speed chase which started in Waseca and ended just west of Owatonna. For more on the honor check out the May 25 edition of the LIFE/Enterprise.

The 33rd Annual Morristown Dam Days Celebration will begin with the coronation of Miss Morristown 2018 on Wednesday, May 30, at 7 p.m. in the Morristown Community Center, 402 Division Street South. Four young ladies, Heather Thompson, Ellenor Whitney, Alexis Morsching, and Iszabela Kalis, will vie for the Miss Morristown 2018 crown.

Larry Ahlman, a life-long resident of Morristown, has been named the 2018 Dam Days Grand Marshal. 
 
Pick up a copy of the March 31, 2018, LIFE or Enterprise to read more.

The rural church closed in 1968, but Memorial Day Masses continue to be held at St. Jarlath's Catholic Church once every three years. And, this is St. Jarlath’s year to open its doors and host. It also happens to be church’s 150th anniversary.

A lone bear was spotted walking in a field north of Kilkenny, near the intersection of Highway 99 and County Road 3, on May 1, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
DNR Wildlife Resource Biologist Andrew Tri, who is one of two bear research specialists in the state, spoke to the Faribault couple who reported the bear sighting.

A Warsaw man was transported to North Memorial Hospital following an accident at approximately 11:45 a.m. Thursday, May 17. Anthony Arthur Ernste, 69, was driving his 2006 Harley Davidon Roadster eastbound on Highway 60 approximately 1 mile west of Waterville . According to the Minnesota State Patrol report, a Dodge Ram Pick-up driven by John J. Gustav Moore, 76 of Waterville, was also travelling east on Highway 60 when the two collided. The report said the motorcycle slowed for an accident on the left shoulder and the pick-up was not able to stop fast enough to avoid the crash.

A two-vehicle accident in Eagle Lake Saturday evening, May 5, injured three.

A 2012 Ford Fusion driven by 32-year-old Amber Atherton of Waterville, and a 2010 Ford F-150 driven by Matthew Anderson, 42, of Clear Lake, IA, were involved in the crash at approximately 7:45 p.m. at the intersection of Highway 14 and 598th Ave near Casey's General Store.

More than three dozen couples attended the 2018 WEM Junior/Senior Prom in Waterville Saturday, May 5. The Grand march was held in Waterville followed by dinner and dancing at the Owatonna Country Club. More than 70 students also attended the Post Prom Party at The Village in Waterville.

Waterville-Elysian-Morristown High School’s Fine Arts Department presented another crowd-wowing performance last weekend, April 27 thru 29, with the third annual WEM STOCK. The theme for this year’s student-led production was “Shock Me All Night Long” and kept audience members entertained by spotlighting students’ vocal and instrumental talents. Choreographed dancing, artistic backdrops, and technical lighting added a nice polish to the show.
Pick up a copy of the May 3, 2018, Life or Enterprise for more photos.

O'Leary's Service Station, which stood at the corner at First Street North and Sakatah Boulevard in Waterville for more than 90 years, was demolished Monday, April 30. The station has not been operated since late December 2018 / early January 2018 when John "Johnny" O'Leary retired, and the iconic building was considered dilapidated. The property owners plan to use the land to create two pads for campers.

The small service station at the corner of First Street North and Sakatah Boulevard in Waterville is slated for demolition.
Locals refer to it simply as O'Leary's.
The place is as iconic as its manager, 98-year-old John "Johnny" O'Leary, who operated the station for almost 80 years, up until winter 2018 when his body no longer allowed him to work at the station.

Waterville-Elysian-Morristown High School junior Sarah Best, daughter of Dave and Cherie Best, earned first place in the Original Oratory division at the Class A Speech Tournament in Apple Valley on Saturday, April 21.
Senior Buccaneer Elijah Bass, son of Angela Sweetland, also competed in the State tourney and finished 12th in Extemporaneous Reading.
Pick up a copy of the April 26, 2018, Life or Enterprise to learn more.

A set of sisters, Claire and Natalie Elness, claimed top honors in the Annual Spelling Bee of Lutheran Elementary Schools in Southern Minnesota that was held at St. Paul's Lutheran School in Truman on April 21.
The girls are the daughters of Troy and Aubrey Wetzel and Alec and Nicole Elness.
Big sister Claire, a fifth grader at Trinity Lutheran School, North Morristown, competed in the fifth and sixth grade division, and little sister, Natalie, represented Trinity Lutheran in the third and fourth grade division.

Minnesota has new Czech Slovak ambassadors when the royalty was crowned at the annual Miss Czech Slovak MN Pageant at the American Legion Post 79 in Montgomery on Saturday. The new royalty is pictured with the night’s Czech Helpers. 

Pictured are: Czech Helpers Melanie Le Brun, Miss Congeniality and Second Princess Michelle Vlasak, Queen Heather Vikla, Czech Helper Hayden Dietz, First Princess Mary Carson and Czech Helper Alenka Jans. The royalty was crowned after interviews, parent introductions, and talent and kroj competition. 

Because of the severity of the winter storm, the Miss Czech Slovak MN Pageant has been moved to Saturday,  April 21. The location and times will remain the same. It will be held at the Montgomery American Legion Club. A public reception and dinner will be held prior to the 7 p.m. pageant. 
 
Pageant contestants include: Mary Carson, daughter of John and Rosalind Carson, Heather Vikla, daughter of David and Kelly Vikla, and Michelle Vlasak, daughter of Ed and Debbie Vlasak.