NEW ULM — Brown County commissioners will present Minnesota 9/11 Global War on Terror (GWOT) Commemorative Coins to county employees who are GWOT veterans at their meeting on on Tuesday, Oct. 26.

In recognition of the 20th Anniversary of the 9/11 attacks and subsequent Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), the Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs created a commemorative coin as an expression of appreciation to Minnesota Veterans who served since that fateful day.

As a governmental arm of the State, Brown County recognizes the tremendous efforts and sacrifices that its employees contributed to our Nation’s security during their military service.

Brown County Board Chairman Anton (Tony) Berg and Brown County Veteran Service Officer (CVSO) Greg Peterson will present coins to First District Commissioner Dave Borchert, corrections officers Lucas Emineth, Alex Lux, and Charles Rehbein; probation officer David Munson, CVSOs Greg Peterson and John Schotzko, sheriff’s deputies Justin Robertson and Joseph Shaffer, and emergency manager Shawn Stoermann.

Recipients and supervisors are encouraged to attend. Recipients are encouraged to share when and where they served.

Other Minnesota GWOT Veterans are invited to register for the free coin by visiting https://bit.ly/GWOTvetcoin. Coins will be distributed by CVSOs.

Commissioners will also consider approving:

• A follow-up contract to the two-year Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP) employment contract with the Minnesota Valley Action Council (MVAC) to administer employment services. Brown County’s 2022 and 2023 allocation is $289,662 each year.

• Brown County’s 2022 Opioid Epidemic Response Plan. Brown County’s 2022 allocation is $75,100.

One of the approved funding uses is developing new or expanding staff positions to support families affected by addiction. In discussing on how to support Brown County Human Service’s child protection unit with a intense case increase, the consensus was that another family-based worker to do parent education and family support is needed.

Currently, some tasks that could be done by a family-based worker are falling on the child protection worker since staff has more work than they can do. Funding was used to contact with someone to provide a suport group for mother’s affected by addiction.

“It is our goal that this would be continued by the new family-based worker,” reads the human services request.

• Award the County Ditch 63 partial open ditch clean out contract in Linden Township to the low bid of $22,375 from Walters Excavating. Rickert Excavating bid $24,881. It was requested by a number of landowners to clean out 17,900 feet. The project is scheduled to be completed by April 1, 2022.

• Award the Judicial Ditch 29 partial open ditch clean out contract in Eden and Prairieville Townships to the low bid of $15,535 from Walters Excavating. Rickert Excavating bid $16, 610.50 and Lohrenz Excavating bid $18,283.50.

A number of landowners requested cleaning out 11,950 feet. The project is scheduled to be completed by April 1, 2022.

The meeting begins at 8:30 a.m., Oct. 26 in the courthouse commissioner’s room with ditch authority teleconferences for Judicial Ditches 12, 18, 24 and 25.

(Fritz Busch can be emailed at fbusch@

nujournal.com).