Page Title

Lori Treff * Chaska * 952-368-4440

Flowers. Dresses. Tuxedos.

Chanhassen * 952-934-3434

“Trees Are Our Roots”

8099 Bavaria Rd * Victoria * 952-443-2990

For all your home financing needs.

Bob Merrill 952-746-9555

Dolce Vita

Wine Shop

Hwy 41 & 212

Chaska

952-361-0044

The Victoria Gazette Archives

Past issues are pushing up daisies at

www.VictoriaGazette.com

To the Editor:

Thank you to everyone for their cards, gifts, and well wishes for our 50th wedding anniversary. God bless you and your families. Love,

Charlie and Georgiana Johnson

Victoria, Minnesota

To the Editor:

Back before suburban expansion exploded Victoria’s population, Victoria was a sleepy German immigrant community of farmers and townsfolk. These people were served by Franciscan friars who served Catholics of the Minnesota River Valley region.

Though they lived in the “Old Friary” located in downtown Chaska, the Franciscans belonged in humble service to the people of Victoria, Excelsior, Chanhassen, Chaska, Carver, Deephaven, Jordan, and what was once called “Eden” ... now Eden Prairie.

The Franciscans and their beautiful friary belonged to everyone -- so much so that when the Franciscans’ clocktower needed repair in the 1940’s, it would be repaired by the area’s Chamber of Commerce.

How did the Franciscans serve the area community?

Before there was formalized “hospitalling” in the area, the Franciscans helped care for people. They also instructed the German immigrants in the Catholic faith as they helped preserve German culture -- that is, before a certain World War at the beginning of the 20th Century dampened area interest in preserving German culture.

The hub of all their activities was the friary that exists today in remarkable shape in spite of being 141 years old. It has been mothballed for over a decade and was now opened up for guided tours during Angel Fest, the fall festival for Guardian Angels Catholic School and Parish held on September 26th. Directions for finding the place: “Just look for the steeple.”

The Franciscans were self sufficient and so within the walled garden of the friary’s enclosure were not only flowers but also fruits and vegetables. There is a wine cellar in the friary that just may be where grapes were made into wine.

The old friary holds other secrets, like a library filled with old texts in German and Latin, museum quality statues and banners and more. Then there’s an old refectory in the lower level that was only recently discovered when decades and dumpsters of junk were removed from one of the state’s oldest buildings.

The refectory was one of the most important rooms in the original friary, as it was a place for communal prayer and eating, each friar eating in silence as a friar read aloud from a German text. There is incredible woodwork in this dining room that escaped notice under dirt, pipes, and other basement-type stuff.

One of the best views of the church’s basilica-type structure (remember, the nearby Guardian Angels Church would have been a veritable cathedral in the valley back in the 1800’s) is from the unique prayer loft just off the second level, where the friars’ cells were located, overlooking the church’s incomparable interior.

There are many surprises in the old friary that were discovered by many visitors to Angel Fest. These visitors were also privy to the music of the Mary Jane Alm Band, Jerry Steel’s Contemporary Gospel, the Wendinger Trio’s Polka Band, and a Latino Mariachi Band.

In addition to the entertainment were friary exhibits from the Chaska Historical Society, the Carver County Historical Society, the Minnesota Preservation Alliance, and Guardian Angels’ own cultural treasures, plus the multicultural food festival.

Angel Fest was truly an ecumenical affair, as a great many people came to enjoy the food, explore the old friary, listen to the music, and watch the kids play. More than a few came to the Polka Mass. A great number extended greetings from nearby congregations of all denominations and pastors who wished us well. From all the parishioners and school parents of Guardian Angels and all of us, Thank You Very Much.

Father Paul Jarvis

Guardian Angels Catholic Church

Chaska, Minnesota

To the Editor:

As you are aware, the Metropolitan Council Environmental Services (MCES) is beginning the Victoria Interceptor Sewer Tunnels Project in the vicinity of Rolling Acres Road and Highway 7 in Victoria. This three-year project involves construction of improved and expanded regional sanitary sewer facilities to serve the City of Victoria and seven neighboring communities.

We’d like to start off by introducing ourselves. Our names are Tom Buchal and Tim O’Donnell, and our jobs at MCES include managing the construction of this project, providing you timely information about the project and how it may affect you, and working with you to resolve concerns that may arise from the project.

Click here to continue this letter.

Weinzierl

Jewelers

Waconia 952-442-2885

Buying or Selling Victoria?

Call Nan Emmer. 612-702-2020