Kindschy named Hayfield Citizen of the Year

“I’m in shock,” Lori Kindschy said last Friday night as she was announced as Hayfield’s Citizen of the Year. She said she did not have a clue she was being considered for the honor and in the lead-up to announcing the name “I thought it was Kasey Krekling.”

The announcement came at the annual meeting and dinner of the Hayfield Chamber of Commerce held Friday evening at the Oaks Golf Club.

Before her name was announced, Kindschy, who is Hayfield’s city clerk, was described as someone who has shown pride in the town and done a lot for the community and also as someone who “has been around for a long time.”

Among the activities Kindschy has been involved with are the Hayfield Sesquicentennial, Cancer Auction, Chamber of Commerce, Legion Auxiliary, Trinity Lutheran Church, Oaks Women’s activities, Hey Days, Women of Today, and Hayfield’s Holiday Fest.

Kindschy has been city clerk in Hayfield since 1997 and will be retiring soon, she said.

The fact she was surprised by the honor was obvious. The entire topic had been avoided for the past two weeks, and even her family, including her husband and three daughters had managed to keep the secret with several family members making the trip to Hayfield from Wisconsin.

Kindschy proudly pointed out that her eight grandchildren were all in attendance for the evening.

In addition to the dinner and Citizen of the Year announcement, the evening also included a short businesses meeting where Justin Holtan, who is the gambling manager for the chamber reported that the charitable gambling operations had raised $402,290 in pulltab revenue and $2.73 million in e-tab revenues. Both of those amounts, he said, were increases from 2022.

After deducting the amount of the payoffs, the gross profit for the year was $193,582. An additional $117,000 was spent in Minnesota taxes and $21,000 in federal income taxes.

During 2023, the organization returned $65,000 to the community. Among the projects supported were the American Cancer Society, Little Vikes Youth Sports, Cedar Creek Church, Hayfield After Prom Committee, 203 Foundation, SMART Scholarship, City of Hayfield, Hayfield Fast Pitch softball, Hayfield Community Schools, Trinity Lutheran Church, Hayfield Community Food Shelf, Share A Christmas, Hayfield Celebrations, Inc., and a number of fundraisers for individuals in the community.