Kevin Crawford who owned and operated Crawford’s Standard Services, 126 Main St. E, in New Prague for 40 years is retiring and closed the auto repair business on Friday, March 25. Crawford’s two employees will be going to work for his son Nick Crawford who, with Ronnie Bastyr, recently bought New Prague Auto Repair on the town’s west side. From left are Alex Palma, Kevin Crawford, Wes Bennett and Nick Crawford. For more see an upcoming print issue of The New Prague Times. (Patrick Fisher Photo)

New Prague High School for its spring play will perform the classic production “Our Town” by Thornton Wilder. Show times are Friday, March 25, and Saturday, March 26, at 7:30 p.m. at the high school auditorium, 221 12th St. NE.

St. Wenceslaus Catholic School seventh and eighth graders spent Thursday night, March 17, sleeping outside in cardboard boxes to experience homelessness first-hand, to raise awareness of homelessness, learn the circumstances that often lead to homelessness, and raise money to benefit organizations that help alleviate homelessness.
According to St. Wenc teacher Jill McBroom, who helped organize the event, 42 students participated in the project, with 40 of the students spending the night outside.

It was a near perfect performance for the New Prague/TCU/ LSJ/Belle Plaine/Jordan CI Division Adapted Floor Hockey team at the 2022 State Tournament held at Bloomington Jefferson High School March 18 and March 19.
The Trojans won their second State title. The first was in 2014. They defeated three teams at State by a total score of 35-4. They finished the year with a perfect 10-0 record.

New Prague VFW Post 5145 recently announced the winner and three honorable mentions for its essay contest. The participants are all students in Jill Bailey's seventh grade class and the essay theme was “How can I be a good American?” Orelia Slavik won the local contest and Annie Blaschko, Daniel Erickson, and Bella Web received honorable mention. Each of them will receive $30.

Kathleen Budin, age 92 of Northfield, passed away Thursday afternoon, March 17, 2022, at Three Links Care Center.

Robert J. Goggins, age 85, of New Prague, died peacefully on Sunday, March 20, 2022 at Praha Village in New Prague.  He was born on June 10, 1936 in Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin to Patrick Henry and Anna Mae (Duffy) Goggins.  He grew up in Chilton, WI, attending St. Augustine Parochial School and graduating from Chilton High School.  He attended college for a brief time before entering the US Army for 3 years.  He attained his Bachelor of Science Degree in Math from Oshkosh State College, where he was voted prom king and served as the captain of his college baseball team.

Beverly Bissell Graf, age 79, of Aitkin, Minnesota, formerly of New Prague, passed away at her home on Friday, March 11, 2022, with her loving family by her side.

Marie Nelson, 104, of Northfield, passed away Saturday evening, March 19, 2022, at the Long Term Care Center in the Northfield Hospital.
Arrangements are pending with Bierman Funeral Home & Crematory, Northfield. www.biermanfuneralhome.com

Kathleen Budin, age 92 of Northfield, passed away Thursday afternoon, March 17, 2022, at Three Links Care Center.
Arrangements are pending with the Benson & Langehough Funeral Home.  www.northfieldfuneral.com

Mary Ann Bauer, age 85, of Jordan, MN, entered eternal life on Tuesday, March 15, 2022, at Oak Terrace Senior Living, in Jordan, MN. She led a simple life by example! Mary Ann grew up with her parents instilling the values of a strong faith foundation, family closeness and working hard together.  

This Sunday, March 20, the 14th annual Roman Barten Memorial Breakfast will benefit Emma Burns, age 3, daughter of David and Carissa Burns of rural Henderson. The breakfast of pancakes, sausages and cinnamon rolls will be held from 8 am. to 1 p.m. at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 411 Fourth Ave. SW in New Prague and it is a free will donation.

The New Prague boys hockey team knew they would have to face some of the top teams in the state in their Class A State Tournament appearance last week.
Even knowing the strength of their competition, the Trojans battled and represented New Prague with the utmost integrity.
The Trojans were unseeded and faced No. 1 ranked Hermantown in their State Quarterfinals Wednesday, March 9. Hermantown defeated New Prague, 5-1, and went on to claim the 2022 Class A State Championship with a 3-2 win over No. 2 seeded Warroad.

They may be young, but New Prague’s first all girls wrestling team shows a lot of promise. With around 23 members from kindergarten to sixth grade these young grapplers had a fantastic first season.
“We have ten girls who will compete in the girls state tournament this year,” said Simon Kallal, head coach of the team. He and his wife Sarah helped organize the team.

Youth at St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church performed the Living Stations of the Cross on Friday, March 4. Participants ranged from fifth grade students to New Prague High School juniors. They portrayed a very moving mediation of the Stations of the Cross with more than 100 people in attendance. Brittney LaVigne led the youth in the performance, which was preceded by a soup supper.

The Trojans will be heading to the Adapted Floor Hockey State Tournament this weekend which will be held at Bloomington Jefferson High School on Friday and Saturday, March 18 and 19. The local team is made up of students from New Prague, Tri-City United, Belle Plaine and Jordan high schools.
The floor hockey team finished the regular season with a record of 7 wins and 0 losses. The Trojans scored 79 goals in those 7 games and only gave up 10 goals all season. The Trojans won the southern conference and were given an automatic bid to the state tournament.