At its weekly meeting on March 13, the Chaska Rotary Club presented its George C. Klein Award for Service Above Self to the Chaska Historical Society.
The Klein Award is named for a third-generation business leader in Chaska whose banking family was instrumental in forming the infrastructure and community of Chaska. As a tribute to the memory and life of George C. Klein (1918-1979), since 1980 the award has been presented to individuals or groups who have performed outstanding service to the community.
Joining 11 previous recipients of the award who were present at the meeting, Lisa Oberski, society president, represented the Historical Society and thanked the Rotary for recognizing both the work of the all-volunteer organization over the last 45 years as well as the importance of preserving local history.
She also traced some of the many activities of the volunteers of the society. They include building and maintaining photograph and artifact collections, creating annual or biannual displays, giving guided tours, sharing local history through presentations and researching and writing various publications. A video provided comments from some of the many individuals who have built the services, resources, exhibits and publications offered by the Historical Society.
Key contributions include the two volumes of Chaska: A Minnesota River City, both Prehistory to 1950, written by LaVonne E. Barac, republished in 2018, and, 1950-2000, edited by Lisa M. Oberski, published in 2024.
Other contributions of the Chaska Historical Society have included in-depth research on the police department and the library, a historical walking tour map, and a series of informational kiosks on the early manufacturing and businesses of Chaska that are going to be revealed along historic downtown streets this year.
The society is also known for collecting and sharing genealogical resources of local families, for assisting local researchers by providing genealogy training sessions, and for bringing the stories of earlier settlers to life with their cemetery tours.
The Society maintains a 160-year collection of the Chaska Herald newspapers, which ceased publication in 2024.
Exhibits have covered a multitude of topics, from the Dakota to the brickmaking industry, to the time Chaska served as the local agricultural service center. Specific topics included the sugar factory, the repeated disastrous floods, the local school system, Second Street’s role as the earliest commercial district in Chaska, and the community’s connections to World Wars I and II.
The activities of the Chaska Historical Society strengthen civic pride and record the importance of individuals’ contributions toward their community. The Historical Society’s service above self is evident through the descriptions and features within its web page: www.chaskahistory.org.
In the group photo of Chaska Historical Society volunteers (left to right): Rick Engelhardt, Julie Wiese, Tracy Swanson, Lisa Oberski, Yvonne Welter. Presenting the award (standing) – Bob Lindall, Chaska Rotary.
