Litomysl Annual Summer Festival

Holy Trinity Catholic Church of Litomysl will be showing off their country church pride at their 52nd Annual Summer Festival on Sunday, July 28, 2024. The 170 families of the parish will host the event which is one of the largest summer parish festivals held in Minnesota each year. The country style festival draws people from all over.

Czech traditions, from delightful pastries to polka music will be alive and well once again in Litomysl, Minnesota, south of Owatonna, where can you combine Mass, music, games, silent auction, eats and treats, a used a bit sale, face painting, live pony rides, raffles, pull tabs, and wagon rides.

You may not be able to find Litomysl on a map, but miles and miles of motor vehicles will line County Road 4 and 24th Avenue Southeast in rural Owatonna for the annual Litomysl Summer Festival. At 10:15 a.m. in the air conditioned, handicapped accessible, Holy Trinity Church, there is the traditional Polka Mass that has participants sing traditional hymns to the beat of polka music, led by the Litomyslaneous Polka Group. Also participating in the morning Mass will be the Owatonna Knights of Columbus #945’s Fourth Degree in full regalia. 

Music will echo throughout the grounds. The “Dan Stursa Band” and the Gary Brueggen Family Band from Wisconsin will entertain the crowd when they grace the stage north of the church. The Klecker Band, who have played at all of the past 51 Festivals, will delight listeners on the south side of the church. Hans Hohrman will be playing by the Parish Center.

The Festival, now in its 52nd year, brings several thousand people to one small spot in Steele County for fundraising, music, food, games and perhaps most importantly, fellowship. The Litomysl Summer Festival, a Steele County tradition, is always held on the last Sunday in July. People come from all over as they look forward to this as something fun to do every year.

By 11 a.m. all outdoor activities begin with many food booths available to delight anyone’s appetite. Festival-goers won’t leave hungry, as the Holy Trinity community will be stocked with pork rib sandwiches, pork burgers, brats, hot dogs, walking tacos, root beer floats and refreshments to quench the thirst of all ages. 

In the air conditioned church basement pie and ice cream and filled biscuits will be available, as well as a place to sit and relax. Everyone will have the opportunity to view the old gas engines and water pump action between the school and the garage. In the St Isidore Parish Center there will be a Silent Auction, along with a used-a-bit sale, with bargains galore. A country store with garden produce will be by the church. 

People of all ages will be eager to await their turn to partake in the many games they choose from plinko, bingo, spin the wheel, fish pond, dime toss and the ever popular root beer barrel game. As has been the case in years past, many local businesses and individuals have donated thousands of items to be used for prizes in the games. Thousands of items have also been donated for the used-a-bit sale in the Parish Center and for the Silent Auction. The annual "Big Ticket" raffle, has many prizes (with a value of over 6,000), the first 3 prizes being $500. The drawing will be at 4:00 p.m. north of the church.

The ladies of the parish will make many, many dozen prune, poppyseed and apricot biscuits (or "buchty" in Czech). They will go on sale at 11:00 a.m. in the church basement. Buchty, is a traditional Czech biscuit filled with prunes, apricots, or poppy seed. The women make sweet yeast dough, roll it out, cut it into small squares and fill the squares with prune, poppy seed or apricot filling. The corners of the square of dough are lifted up kitty-corner and folded in the middle and dough is pinched together. The dough has four eyes on top with the filling peeping out: these eyes are called the four eyes of God. 

A tractor pulling a tram will help people get to the Festival more quickly, when they park their cars on the roads surrounding Litomysl.

Everyone is invited to come for a Fun Filled Day to the Litomysl Summer Festival, on Sunday, July 28th There is something for everyone! A grand time can be had by every age who attends the annual Litomysl Summer Festival.

Litomysl is located 8 miles south of Owatonna on Co. Rd. 45 then 2 miles east on Co. Rd. 4 (SE 98th St); to 9946 24th Ave SE;

or 5 miles north of Blooming Prairie on Hwy 218 to Bixby, then 4½ miles west on Co Rd 4 (SE 98th St) to 9946 24th Ave SE;

or 6 miles south of Owatonna on Interstate 35 to the Hope exit #32, then left on Co. Rd. 4 to Co. Rd. 3, go 1/2 mile south, then 3 miles east on Co. Rd. 4 (98th St.) to 9946 24th Ave SE; 

or from Ellendale east on Hwy 30 to Co. Rd. 45, then 5 miles north on Co. Rd. 45 to Co. Rd. 4 (SE 98th St), then 2 miles east to 9946 24th Ave SE.