There is a lot going on in the area

Congratulations are in order to the city of Kasson for being one of six small towns in the 20-county area served by the Southern Minnesota Initiative Fund’s (SMIF) Rural Entrepreneurial Ventures (REV) program.
The three-year program provides resources to help rural communities as they strive for economic growth. According to SMIF, the framework of the program has a “proven track record” of accelerating entrepreneurial activity in rural communities.”
The Kasson Economic Development Authority made the decision to apply for the program and its’ acceptance was announced in September.
On another note, last Saturday’s Oktoberfest sponsored by the Kasson Chamber of Commerce was, by all accounts, a successful event.
The Wurst Dog Derby, aka Wiener Dog Races, drew a large crowd to watch the short-legged pups race to the finish line. As I predicted last week, there were moments when this was not exactly a “race.”
For the most part the dogs took off at the signal in each of the heats, but after that they did have a tendency to go off in different directions. Some went straight down the course, others veered off to one side or the other, and some just took their time. Nonetheless, they all made it to the end where their owners were waiting with treats in hand.
The event was so successful it will be back next year.
Two other contests also proved successful – the Beer Mile and the Sauerkraut Eating contests. And, of course, both of these events will be back next year.
There were many other fun events also. Especially popular were the llamas. Carlson’s Lovable Llamas from Waconia brought several of their animals. Visitors, young and old, enjoyed feeding them and getting a chance to take them for a walk.
All in all, it was a great afternoon and we will look forward to the 3rd Annual Oktoberfest in September of 2024.
The weather has been playing tricks on us recently and it has been difficult to know if it is fall or still summer. Oktoberfest definitely seemed more like summer. But the next weekend event on the docket is Mantorville’s Fall Festival on Saturday, October 28, and the weather should be more seasonal by then.
The day’s events will include Ghost Tour Hay Wagon Rides, a Farmers Market, pumpkin painting for the kids, a coloring contest display, pet costume contest, historic home and log cabin tours, Halloween cookie kits, and more.
The Fall Festival events run all day, but if you like to be up and moving early you should probably plan to take part in the Haunted Hustle 5k and Family Fun Run, sponsored by Dodge Refreshed, that starts the festival at 9 a.m. It’s a fun, friendly, family event and participants are invited to wear costumes. And in the past there have been some quite imaginative costumes.
The 5k starts at 9 a.m. and the 1 Mile Fun run at 10 a.m.
On-line registration is available through the end of the day on October 20. There is also race day registration before the first event.
Both races start and end at Clay and 4th Streets.
On a final note, I hope everyone is enjoying this week’s issue of the Dodge County Independent. Some of you may have been surprised to find the newspaper in your mailbox even if you do not subscribe. That is because this week we are mailing a copy of the paper to everyone in our circulation area.
The DCI is now the only newspaper serving Dodge County and the Byron area.
We strive to do our best to provide coverage of news and sports.