Former Tri-City United and Montgomery-Lonsdale Schools FFA advisor Barry Schmidt was inducted into the Minnesota FFA’s 2026 Hall of Fame. He joins seven others inducted for 2026.

Tri-City United High School thespians are almost ready to show you their latest one act masterpiece, “The Last Firefly” by Naomi Iizuka.

It’s the story of “Boom,” who is the son of “Thunder,” and goes out to search for his father that left him and his mother “Kuroko.” It’s a mythical story that uses Japanese music and a style of puppetry.

The story was first commissioned and produced by Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis in 2016. TCU students are now putting their own spin on the tale.

Wanda Jean Roethler, age 68, of Le Center, MN, passed away on January 14, 2026, at the Central Health Care Center in Le Center after a courageous battle with cancer.

Late last week an emergency meeting was called for Monday, Jan. 12, of the city council for the City of Kilkenny. No large emergency was present other than information that Nicole LeBrun, the current city clerk, had found a new position elsewhere and a replacement would need to be figured out.

Kilkenny Mayor Tammy Holicky seemed happy for LeBrun, saying that she found an “amazing position somewhere else,” which LeBrun wanted to keep private.

Tri-City United High School was host to the Big South Conference Championship last Thursday, Jan. 8. Six other teams from the conference convened at Montgomery competing in both jazz and kick.

TCU dancers ended up in the middle of the pack for both jazz and kick, and for junior varsity jazz as well.

Head Coach Katey Weiss said, “All three of our dances were our best performances and scores to date. We work every week to improve our routines. I'm very happy with how we finished.”

Oscar Gene May, age 94, passed away on Monday, January 12, 2026, at Mala Strana Healthcare Facility in New Prague.

Jeraline "Jeri" Pulkrabek, age 93, of New Prague, passed away peacefully on January 11, 2026.

Born to Guy and Bessie Chumley on January 10, 1933, in Arp, Texas, Jeri was known for her vibrant spirit and unwavering devotion to family. After completing her education in Terre Haute, Indiana, she proudly served in the Army, where she met her husband Ralph at Camp McCoy in Sparta, WI. The couple married in January 1952 and soon made New Prague, MN, their beloved home, where they raised their nine children.

The Le Sueur County Sheriff’s Office and the Minnesota State Patrol (MSP) have released their incident report and crash reconstruction report regarding the fatal crash on Sept. 11, 2025, at the intersection of Country State Aide Highway (CSAH) 28/320th Street and CSAH 32/211th Avenue, a few miles north of Clear Lake in Derrynane Township.

Belle Plaine mother Mackenzie Jo Glaser, 23, perished in the incident. She was a new mother carrying her one-year-old daughter in the vehicle, who survived without injury. Glaser was on the way to drop off her daughter at daycare at the time.

Kay Barriball Keohen, age 89, of Montgomery, passed away peacefully Thursday, January 8, 2026, at Mala Strana Health and Rehabilitation Center.

Kay was born on April 3, 1936, in St. Anne, Illinois, to Orland and Vada (Coon) Beaupre. She fell in love with the first love of her life, Richard (Dick) Barriball and got married on May 10, 1956. They were blessed with four children, Scott, Craig, Pam and Faith.

Joseph Theodore Peerboom, age 97, of Le Sueur, MN, passed away peacefully at home on January 9, 2026. He was a cherished husband, father, Papa, and friend whose quiet strength and kind spirit will be deeply missed.

When Tri-City United (TCU) senior Ella Schmiesing grabbed her 1,000th career rebound Tuesday, Dec. 30 at Waterville, she became one of the select few in state history to have both 1,000 career points and 1,000 career rebounds.

The St. Catherine basketball commit is one of only 267 players in Minnesota history to record the milestone.

As a freshman Schmiesing played in all 26 games, recording 219 rebounds in 610 minutes of action.

Montgomery City Administrator Brian Heck formally announced to city council his retirement plans, which has a somewhat flexible target date of June of this year. This was announced at the Monday, Jan. 5, special city council meeting.

“What I told Tom (Mayor Thomas Eisert) and what I put in my notes to council is that my target is June. June is what I’m looking at, and I will commit to hanging around until someone is brought on,” said Heck.

Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF) recently approved $300,000 to support 14 capital projects in small towns under 10,000 through the Taylor Rural Improvements Grant. Each project provides services to underserved populations in the community. This grant round considered projects involving food, clothing, shelter, transportation and internet accessibility. An additional $100,000 was dispersed for food and direct assistance through a Good Neighbor Grant from The McKnight Foundation. 

The Rice County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday, Dec. 9, approved the county’s 2026 budget and property tax levy, which increased by 8.51% over 2025. That’s slightly less than the preliminary figure approved in September.

  While the $103 million budget is about $12 million lower than the current budget, the levy increase is largely due to cost shifts from the state, reductions in state grants and county program aid, the 2026 elections and higher personnel costs laid out in negotiated collective bargaining agreements.

Esther Grace Kabes, age 99, of New Prague, passed away peacefully on Thursday, January 1, 2026, at Mala Strana Health and Rehabilitation Center, just two weeks shy of her 100th birthday.

Tri-City United High School Assistant Principal David Reuhs was surprised when he walked into the school's media center on Monday, Jan. 5, for what he thought was a staff meeting.

Ruehs was met by the Minnesota Association of Secondary School Principals (MASSP) Executive Director Bob Driver, his family,  much of the staff of the school, and media, where he was presented the honor of being the chosen the 2026 Minnesota High School Assistant Principal of the Year award. 

He will be put up against others across the nation in April for the national award.