WORDS OF WISDOM

Pandemics are real, whether or not you know someone who is sick.
Racism is real, even if you aren’t a racist.
White privilege is real, even if you don’t feel it.
Police brutality is real, even if the cops you know are kind and just.
Your world isn’t THE world. Everything is not about you.

HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS UPDATE

Girls basketball: Scott DeBoer has resigned as head girls basketball coach of the Pierre Governors. He has been at Riggs High for nine years, six of those as head girls coach. DeBoer will be moving to Watertown where his wife, Heather, has accepted a position as principal of Roosevelt Elementary School.

Swimming: The Pierre School Board at its Monday meeting officially recognized swimming as a club sport. Coach of the Pierre Swim Team is Riggs High alumnus Kent Huckins, who has been head man of the swimmers for 15 years.

Football: The 34th annual all-star football game for graduated seniors wasn’t played this year due to the virus pandemic, but the All-Star rosters were announced anyway. Former Pierre Governor player Grey Zabel, Sully Buttes all-staters Nick Wittler and Jett Lamb, and Rapid City Stevens standout Colton Hartford, whose dad Joe is a Governor alumnus, were among the 90 athletes divided into what would have been two teams.

ZESTO SHERBET SCHEDULE

Thursday: key lime.
Friday-Sunday: cherry.
Monday-Tuesday: root beer.
Wednesday-Thursday: coconut.

BASEBALL UPDATE

Pierre Post 8 varsity schedule:
— Friday, at Rapid City Post 22, doubleheader 5 p.m. MDT.
— Sunday: home vs. Rapid City Post 22 and Renner, triangular (Pierre-Renner at 1:00, Post 22-Renner at 2:30, Pierre-Post 22 at 6:00).
— Tuesday: home vs. Rapid City Post 320, doubleheader 5 p.m.
— Wednesday: home vs. Aberdeen, doubleheader 5 p.m.
— Thursday: home vs. Sioux Falls West, doubleheader 4 p.m.

Pierre Post 8: Post 8 split its season-opening doubleheader at Mitchell Sunday. Mitchell won the opener, 14-4, the contest ending after five innings due to the 10-run rule. Brady Hawkins, who quarterbacked his Bridgewater-Emery/Ethan team to its state football championship last fall, pitched four innings to get the win, striking out four, walking none, and allowing four runs and seven hits. Jack Van Camp was the starter for Pierre, going two innings and allowing three hits and seven runs. Aaron Booth in relief gave up the other seven runs. Five Pierre errors didn’t help its cause. Garrett Stout, Maguire Raske, Matt Lusk and Andrew Coverdale each had a run batted in with Coverdale and Lusk recording two hits apiece. In the second game Post 8 took an early lead and kept it. Raske pitched four innings, striking out nine, walking one, and allowing two hits and two runs. Grey Zabel and Cobey Carr pitched in relief and held the lead for a 9-3 Pierre win. Andy Gordon had three RBIs, including a two-run homer in the sixth to pad his team’s lead. Zabel drove in two runs with two hits. Van Camp had two hits. Pierre heads into a busy week with a 1-1 record, facing two road games and eight home games in the next seven days.

Pierre Trappers: The Expedition League season will run from June 26 through Aug. 19, followed by a best-of-3 championship series between the Lewis Division winner and the Clark Division winner. Only six teams will play this season—Badlands (Dickinson), Souris Valley (Minot) and Pierre in the Dakotas and Hastings, Fremont and Western Nebraska (Scottsbluff-Gering) in Nebraska. Four other teams are expected to return in 2021—Spearfish, Casper, Wheat City (Brandon, Manitoba) and league newcomer Sioux Falls.

Trappers home dates:
— July 3-5: Hastings.
— July 9-12: Badlands.
— July 15-16: Souris Valley.
— July 17-18: Fremont.
— July 22-23: Western Nebraska.
— July 24-26: Badlands.
— July 31-Aug. 2: Souris Valley.
— Aug. 5-6: Souris Valley.
— Aug. 11-12: Badlands.
— Aug. 14-16: Hastings.
— Aug. 18-19: Badlands.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“We can unite without him (Trump), drawing on the strengths inherent in our civil society. This will not be easy as the past few days have shown, but we owe it to our fellow citizens, to past generations that bled to defend our promise, and to our children.”

— James Mattis, U.S. Marine and former Secretary of Defense

BIRTHDAYS/ANNIVERSARIES

Thursday, June 11:
Adam Wyly, Tripp Lindekugel, Kim DiBenedetto, Samantha (Hestdalen) Van Zee, Andrew Kightlinger, Aaron Roubideaux, Sara Weischedel, Mike Kelley, Francis Bies, Jim Protexter, Lindsay (Peitz) Rounds, Dawn Langley.
— 15th anniversary, Michael/April Hobert.
— 10th anniversary, Greg/Amanda (Ford) DeMeritt.
— 16th anniversary, Robert/Kay (Ricketts) Hanten.
— 4th anniversary, Justin/Michelle (Kopecky) O’Daniel.

Friday, June 12:
Annie Heath, Lois Sivage, Steve Cass, Blake Hyde, Trey Livermont, Jory Rogers, Sean Roemen, Jackie (Christenson) Jessup, Lindsey (Luers) Hyde, Jeff Marshall, Angela Hall, Kathy Heiss, Stacy Jo Johnson, Rolly Kemink, Jesse Gates, Kaden Hight.
— 38th anniversary, Bernie/Julie Linn.
— 5th anniversary, Kreighton/Brittany (Kirkpatrick) Baxter.
— 33rd anniversary, Dave/Joni (Welch) Lingle.
— 44th anniversary, Dave/De (Welch) Knudson.
— 16th anniversary, Michael/Amy (Kenzy) Strobbe.
— 16th anniversary, Brady/Sheri Douglas.
— 16th anniversary, Darrin/Brenda Dykstra.
— 16th anniversary, Waylon/Katie (Thompson) Rochelle.

Saturday, June 13:
Charlie Shives, Bob Holloway, Jamison Rounds, Renee Osterkamp, Rocco Huber, Nathan Zimmerman, Brittany Kenzy, Mark King, Mitchell Hansen, Jeremy Joel.
— 5th anniversary, Drew/April White.
— 5th anniversary, Jesse/Whitney Martin.
— 2nd anniversary, Jack/Dianne (Bickett) Nielsen.
— 17th anniversary, Brian/Amy (Ripperger) Grunewaldt.
— 56th anniversary, Greg/Karen Schaefer.
— 11th anniversary, Yohance/Ann (Schaack) Humphery.
— 11th anniversary, Jon/Torri (Ice) Lechtenberg.

Sunday, June 14:
Elouise Hanson, Larry Lyngstad, Katie Stager, Patrecia Nicholas, Jake Rysdon, Presley Jo Martin, Dana Houdek, Troy Kuszmaul, Travis Hull, Blaine Eagle Boy, Adriana Dvorak.
— 12th anniversary, Ben/Alyssa Gloe.
— 17th anniversary, Matt/Amy (Eldridge) Haase.
— 17th anniversary, Jeremy/Renee Hamm.
— 23rd anniversary, Scott/Stacy (Alt) Decker.
— 17th anniversary, Ryan/Sheri (Elenbaum) Doolittle.
— 18th anniversary, Aaron/Lindsey Weaver.
— 11th anniversary, Scott/Anne (Eichstadt) Saniuk.
— 17th anniversary, Collin/Danae (Darrington) Gregerson.
— 17th anniversary, Clark/Nicole (Roseland) Vold.

Monday, June 15:
Landon Van Zee, Lennon Husman, Tobie Jo Welch, Ray Smart, Kyle Tobin, Lou Manus, Holly (Vosberg) Nemec, Tyler Pruess, Stephanie Vietor, DeVante Miller, Kandi Hovis, Lucas Scheibe, Daniel Etzkorn, Molly Bock.
— 7th anniversary, Josh/Tessa (Bollinger) Hartmann.
— 7th anniversary, Kody/Blaine (Dryden) Bridger.
— 8th anniversary, Jesse/Timmie (Lunsford) Hutchison.
— 7th anniversary, Radley/Kelcie (Ness) Hohenberger.
— 47th anniversary, Tom/Peggy Huber.
— 8th anniversary, Alan/Courtney (Hackett) Frenz.
— 13th anniversary, Derek/Brittney (Lamb) Schiefelbein.
— 7th anniversary, Jhett/Jennifer Schuetzle.
— 8th anniversary, Jon/Jenna (Wickersham) Morin.

Tuesday, June 16:
Caleb Gilkerson, Ken Shelbourn, Chelsey Severson, Van Stewart, Jenna Schiefelbein, Nancy Hanson, Tanner Fitzke, Monica (Currier) Robbins, Chad Holsteen, Matthew Schlosser, Katie Eberlein, August Stofferahn, James Blackmore, Dustin Jordan.
— 14th anniversary, Dallas/Mindy Cronin.
— 2nd anniversary, Matt/Taryn (Wolf) Blaseg.
— 2nd anniversary, Brandon/Kayla Vockrodt.
— 13th anniversary, Justin/Krista (Schmidt) Sarvis.
— 8th anniversary, Dominic/Abby (Pitlick) Bottenfield.
— 8th anniversary, Chris/Becky (Barringer) Hoffman.
— 36th anniversary, Brian/Lisa Bondy.
— 44th anniversary, Ed/Julie (Stahl) Welch.
— 8th anniversary, Brandon/Amy (Breitag) Boulay.

Wednesday, June 17:
Brittany Hedman, Cathy (Wood) Georgis, Lisa (Ripley) Trenhaile, Logan Costello, Miles Orr, Kim (Hill) Burge, Katie Lingle.
— 31st anniversary, Karl/Joan Adam.
— 14th anniversary, John/Kendra (Jensen) Kallemeyn.
— 14th anniversary, Aric/Tracy (Stoeser) Frost.
— 15th anniversary, Kirby/Brooke (Hall) Cronin.

Thursday, June 18:
Don Dahlin, Chad Jungman, Terrance Waters, Rex Craven, Rob Hall, Dana Darger, Lacey (Boehmer) Hogan, Patti Stolp, Julene Yackley, Oliver Gordon, Tiffany Light, Tucker Light, Kasey Light, Kylie Light.
— 4th anniversary, Allen/Sadie (Fitzke) Goodman.
— 1st anniversary, Seamus/McKayla (Marso) McDonough.
— 8th anniversary, Johnnie/Ami (Hanson) Kennell.
— 15th anniversary, Matt/Allison Jahraus.
— 32nd anniversary, Brad/Tammy (Helgeson) Cruse.

SOCCER UPDATE

Minnesota United: The Loons and the other Major League Soccer teams will all resume play in Orlando on July 8. Minnesota had begun the season with a 2-0 record when the league stopped play due to the pandemic.

BASKETBALL UPDATE

Minnesota Timberwolves: With a record of only 19-45 when the NBA season screeched to a halt in March, the Wolves were left out of the NBA’s proposed 22-team resumption of the season. Teams that were within six games of a playoff spot will start with the end of the regular season before the playoffs follow into the fall. But at least the Timberwolves will have a good spot in next year’s draft.

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

Directions: Draw a 4×4 box of 16 squares. Number the top row of four boxes 1, 2, 3 and 4 from left to right. Number the left-hand row of boxes 1, 5, 6 and 7 from top to bottom.

Clues:
ACROSS—
(1) First responders.
(5) Dog sound.
(6) “—- Bayou.”
(7) Crockpot dinner.
DOWN—
(1) —- and flows.
(2) Grain used in brewing.
(3) Not false.
(4) Deviate from true.

PARKER’S PERSONAL NOTES

• The last week of August should provide some interesting television viewing if you watch the news channels. President Trump’s Republican National Convention will end on Thursday night, Aug. 27, with his acceptance speech, but overshadowing it the very next morning, Aug. 28, will be the National March on Washington.
• Back on schedule: Last week a day after the July 4 fireworks show in Sioux Falls was canceled by its sponsor, the Jaycees, other organizations stepped in and revived it, so that city’s fireworks show is back on.
• Black Hills Community Theatre in Rapid City has announced its mainstage season for 2020-21, calling it tentative at this time due to the ongoing pandemic there. The shows and their performance dates: “Sense and Sensibility,” Sept. 18-Oct. 4; “The Who’s Tommy,” Nov. 6-15; Alfred Hitchcock’s “The 39 Steps,” Jan. 29-Feb. 14; Roald Dahl’s “Matilda,” March 18-28; “Julius Caesar,” May 7-23. The BHCT’s holiday dinner theater show Dec. 10-13 will be “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever.”

COUNTDOWN

3 days: Post 8 varsity home openers (June 14).
5 days: State high school finals rodeo, Fort Pierre (June 16-20).
10 days: Fathers Day (June 21).
15 days: Pierre Trappers season opener (June 26).
19 days: Fort Pierre Ward II city council election (June 30).
20 days: First Capital City Band rehearsal (July 1).
22 days: Pierre Trappers home opener (July 3).
22 days: Fort Pierre Fourth of July rodeo (July 3-5).
23 days: Independence Day (July 4).
23 days: Capital City Band concert (July 4).
27 days: Major League Soccer season resumes (July 8).

THOUGHTS TO PONDER THIS WEEK

“This is a moment for each of us to lead in thoughts, words and deeds. I know people are scared for all kinds of reasons. They’re scared to speak up, scared to say the wrong thing, scared that they will be attacked if they do make a mistake. But everyone needs to push through their fear and try.” . . . . . What we each must do is bend. What we each must do is give. At the end of the day my friends who are black want and deserve what I want for my family as well. They want to wake up and have a good day, one in which they are treated with love, respect, justice and equality. They want love and order. They want to come home alive. That’s not too much to ask in the United States of America, is it?”

— Maria Shriver

NEWS OF PEOPLE AND EVENTS

Thousands of people have had trips canceled because of the pandemic. One of those is Pierre native and Riggs High alumnus Sean Califf of Ankeny, Iowa. He was to have left this month to visit Corazon de Esperanza’s transition home for at-risk youths, orphans and women in the South American nation of Peru.

Dakota Wesleyan basketball player Bradley Dean from Pierre last summer had an internship at Mitchell Telecom. That internship was not available this summer, but Telecom’s boss, Scott Peper suggested that Bradley schedule basketball workouts on home driveways for young athletes in Mitchell. That has blossomed into a busy summer for Bradley, who has about 20 kids in the age range of Scott’s own sons. Mitchell’s summer recreation activities have had to be reduced for this summer, so this is beneficial for these athletes as well as Bradley himself. The workouts are mainly for players in grades 3-6. Bradley works with two to five players each session and charges $10 per player for two workouts per week He teaches ball handling, shooting and passing drills and fun competitions. Bradley, who is also playing amateur baseball with the Mount Vernon Mustangs and working out to be ready for DWU basketball’s season next winter, will be a senior business marketing major at DWU when school reopens. (News courtesy of The Mitchell Republic)

Chris Ahlers marked his 20th anniversary with Microsoft in Fargo last Friday.

Joyce Curtis, 93, who had lived in Mobridge for the past 50 years, died June 2 at Avera Maryhouse. Graveside services were held Monday at Riverside Cemetery. The former Joyce Myers was a native of De Smet. She married William Stoneking in 1947 and Clifford Curtis in 1956. The Curtises lived in Philip, Gettysburg, Faith, Deadwood and Pierre. Joyce worked as a waitress and a bookkeeper. She is survived by two sons, Roger Curtis of Yulee, Fla., and Douglas Stoneking in Nova Scotia; a daughter, Ginger Suiter and her husband Mike of Pierre; a sister, Denice Stertz, and a brother, Bub Myers, as well as other relatives.

Capital City Band director Larry Johnson announced this week the band will have an abbreviated schedule for this summer, starting with the first rehearsal on Wednesday, July 1, just ahead of the traditional Fourth of July concert on Saturday night, July 4. For the rest of July the band will have rehearsals and concerts on Wednesdays, July 8, 15, 22 and 29.

Steven Gordon and his wife, Katelynn, left last week to make their home in Everett, Wash., near Seattle. Steven has secured remote work, and Katelynn has been hired for a physical therapy position at a speech clinic. Steven and Katelynn met while both were students and athletes at the University of Mary in Bismarck.

Add to the cancellation list: (1) Dakotafest ag expo scheduled for Mitchell in August. (2) All 10 weeks of Summer Nights in downtown Rapid City. (3) The Iowa State Fair scheduled Aug. 13-23. (4) At Aberdeen the Brown County Fair Board voted unanimously, 23-0, to cancel this summer’s fair, but the final decision rests with the county commission next week.

Opening or continuing: (1) Fort Pierre opened its swimming pool this week, Onida is doing the same. (2) Reptile Gardens in the Black Hills is open for the summer, joining the many tourist businesses outside any city limits that opened earlier. (3) It appears Custer’s Gold Discovery Days will go on as scheduled the weekend of July 18-19. (4) The Sturgis city council’s final decision on the motorcycle rally will come Monday night after a public hearing this past Monday, but you know what their decision will be. (5) The city of Pierre’s COVID-19 ordinance, which lasted 61 days, was allowed to expire and won’t be renewed unless a spike in virus cases locally demands it.

Chas Olson (’02) and Sheila Ricketts were married in Pierre on June 6.

A life-long resident of Pierre, Len Sheppard died at home in Fort Pierre June 8. Visitation without the family present will be from noon to 2 p.m. this Friday at the Isburg Funeral Chapel. A private funeral will take place at First United Methodist Church at 3 p.m. Friends are welcome to join the family for a reception at Drifters at 5 p.m. A graduate of Pierre High School in 1955, Len began his long career with Vilas Drug at the same time he enlisted in the National Guard from which he retired in 1997 as a lieutenant colonel. He married his high school sweetheart, Patricia O’Halloran, in 1955. In 1969 they opened the Hallmark Card & Candy Shop, and Len worked there with Pat until her death. Len married Sandy Nafziger in 2002. They enjoyed retirement life on the river in Fort Pierre. Len is survived by his wife, Sandy; his five children, Stephen Sheppard, Susan Ridgway, Don Sheppard, Linda Fridley and Joan Gonzalez and their families; his stepchildren, Roxann Sundermeyer, Denise Richards and Thad Nafziger, and their families; his brother, Jim Sheppard; 20 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.

Kay McLain retired Monday after 38 years as a state government employee.

Colleen Burchill passed away at Prince of Peace in Sioux Falls on June 6 at the age of 97 1/2. Visitation without the family present will take place from 2 to 5 p.m. today (Thursday) at Isburg Funeral Chapel. The funeral service will be at 10 a.m. Friday at Ss. Peter & Paul Catholic Church, followed by burial at Black Hills National Cemetery. Colleen was born at Cavalier, N.D. Her father, Bernard Harahan, had emigrated from Ireland in 1908, and her mother, Matilda Morrow, was a North Dakota girl. Colleen graduated from Manual Arts High School in Los Angeles in 1939, then returned to Cavalier. She graduated in 1945 from the Valley City State College School of Nursing. She met Jack Burtchill while she was caring for his mother in Valley City. After their marriage in 1947, they lived in Valley City and in Fort Thompson, S.D., before moving to Pierre in 1953. As a registered nurse Colleen worked in the St. Mary’s Hospital recovery room from 1969 to 1984. She was a devoted member of Ss. Peter & Paul Catholic Church where she was active in many of its ministries. She was also a passionate sports fan, both in person and by radio. The Burchills attended 47 state basketball tournaments. She is survived by her five children, John Burchill and his wife Linda of Pierre, Mary Swirzcki and her husband John of Gillette, Wyo., Pat Burchill and his wife Lucy of Rapid City, Anne Williams and her husband Brian of Sioux Falls, and Tom Burchill and his wife Paula of Sioux Falls; 11 grandchildren, three step-great-grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Capt. Brian Custer (Riggs High ’05) and his wife and three children are packing up at Fort Polk, La., this week. Brian is being transferred to Germany for a three-year tour of duty there.

Graveside services for the late Mike Currier will be held at 2 p.m. this Saturday at the Onida cemetery, followed by lunch at the Phoenix Center.

DAY BY DAY

THURSDAY, JUNE 4
When a person who has done his best to stay isolated for the past 2 1/2 months ventures out for any important reason these days, it can be awkward when he happens to meet someone he hasn’t seen since the middle of March. I drove a few blocks away this week to take a check to a Post 22 baseball player in exchange for a senior citizen’s pass to this summer’s games. When the door of his house opened, his dad swung open the door, recognized my name on the check and reached out to shake hands. That was my awkward moment. I had not shaken hands with anybody since the last church service I attended on the first Sunday of March. I momentarily hesitated. Do I shake his hand? Do I not respond and let him hang there with his hand extended? I did shake his hand, but rather tentatively, I must admit. I suspect there will be similar hesitation when our church eventually resumes in-person services. I usher there frequently. Will I be willing to shake hands and give hugs as back when things were “normal”? I don’t know, but I am sure it will continue to be awkward, both for me and probably for the huggee, too.

FRIDAY, JUNE 5
Nobody wants major league baseball back any more than I do, except perhaps for the billionaire team owners who are not padding their wealth when no games are being played. The back-and-forth negotiations in the press between the players association and the owners is infuriating. I don’t understand all the details although I do understand that the current players don’t want to give up anything that might affect future players. But if your salary of, for example, $15 million for playing ball for six months were cut in half for this year when you likely will play only half as many games as usual, couldn’t you or I squeeze by for a year on $7.5 million? Granted, that would cut into our lifestyle somewhat, but I for one think I could manage. It might require skipping a couple Starbuck’s trips per month or reducing my cable TV package, but I could do it. Baseball could be attracting fans during this lull without live TV sports, but instead the millionaires and the billionaires continue to quibble. If and when football starts, they may wish they had taken advantage of their rare opportunity.

SATURDAY, JUNE 6
It is easy for white people to go about our lives without realizing the white privilege we enjoy, especially in an area where almost everybody else is also Caucasian. But you and I know we have it, whether it is noticeable daily or not. My friend from my Custer years, Linda Fennell, made an interesting post on her Facebook page this week, recalling what our mutual friend, former Custer resident Jon Dahlstrom, once said, “We are who we are because of the lottery of the womb.” As Linda went on to write, “Each of us could just as easily been born a different race, born the other sex, born into a very different financial situation, born in a different country. My safe, protected life could be a totally different story had the lottery been drawn differently. Empathy, compassion and love are what I can freely give, knowing it could just as easily have been me walking in that other person’s shoes.”

SUNDAY, JUNE 7
Our church organist, Diane Ketel, and I played a pair of piano-organ duets for the 11:00 live-streamed service this morning. She had mentioned that her oldest sister recently passed away at the age of 93. “There was so much I still wanted to ask her,” Diane said of her sister who was going to a country grade school during the Dust Bowl days of the 1930s. That is the way it is, too, I am sure, with World War II veterans. There are so few of them still alive, and I hope their relatives have been asking them about those years and recording or writing down what they say. Diane remarked that she hopes today’s young people, such as this spring’s high school seniors, have been journaling their experiences. Fifty years from now the coronavirus pandemic and the other horrific events of 2020 will be in history books, and these kids will have grandchildren who will want to know about 2020. Get to writing, people!

MONDAY, JUNE 8
One of my guilty pleasures food-wise is the fruit pies that a Nebraska firm sells in our local Rapid City grocery stores. The strawberry-rhubarb pie is especially mouth-watering. This morning as I sipped coffee in the back yard, I looked across the yard where Macy and Charlie, two of our three dogs, were sharing something edible. What could they be devouring with such vigor, I asked myself. Walking over there, I discovered they were eating a rhubarb pie right out of the tin, and they were enjoying it. So how did the pie get from my downstairs closet/kitchen to the back yard? Well, in the closet the window is at ground level, and just inside the window is a shelf where I stash my loaf of bread, a pie, and other food items for which there isn’t room anywhere else. I had earlier cracked open the window about four inches to let in some of the cool morning air. The guiltiest-looking of the three dogs, Ollie, reacted immediately when I said aloud gruffly, “Where did you dogs get that pie?” She knew immediately she was in trouble and ran to cower under the deck. Ollie had stuck her beautiful white head through the barely open window and apparently grabbed the whole pie, pan and all, turned it sideways to get it outdoors and then either eaten most of herself or set it down to give to the other pooches. She kept her distance from me for the next couple hours.

TUESDAY, JUNE 9
My oldest grandson, Dylan, and I have been going to Post 22 baseball games together ever since I moved back to Rapid City seven years ago this summer in 2013. He’s playing with Post 320’s youngest team this summer, however, so his practice schedule and a summer job are going to cut into our Hardhats viewing, but we went this evening to the Expos game (they’re the middle of Post 22’s three ball clubs). It felt like football with a cold wind blowing. I was in a hoodie with the hood up over my head, and Dylan wrapped himself in a blanket. But, hey! It was outdoor baseball. There is plenty of seating room at Fitzgerald Stadium, so social distancing is very possible there if you’re into that sort of thing. In an attempt to at least persuade fans to keep their distance from each other, the number “22” has been painted at spots distant from each other on the bleachers. They hope we will sit on those 22s, I guess. As I surveyed the crowd, I saw four people wearing masks, all of them seated together in one group. A large part of Post 22’s fan base is senior citizens, many of whom have attended games there for decades. It’s very much a Rapid City thing. So whether the virus keeps those old folks like me away from the park or whether they attend and try to remain protected remains to be seen. My most disturbing realization from attending the Expos’ blowout win over Belle Fourche (it lasted only three innings due to the 15-run rule) is that the price of a walking taco at the concession stand is up to $6.00 this year. I may have to reduce my ballgame intake to a sack of popcorn.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 10
If I read correctly what the governor said in her statement the other day, some 25,000 people went online to order tickets for President Trump’s campaign bash up at Mount Rushmore. Since each applicant could ask for up to six tickets, something like 125,000 tickets were requested. The politicians planning this event and their employees are limiting the number of tickets allocated in their lottery to 7,500. Where that many people will watch the fireworks from on July 3 on top of a mountain is a question I can’t wait to see answered. If many of my friends and fellow anti-Trumpers get tickets and then refuse to use them, perhaps it will all work out. Think of the photo opportunities if it is a pleasant summer evening! We will be seeing the President alongside Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Roosevelt all through the campaign. It bugs me that my state is paying $350,000 to an out-of-state company to put on the fireworks for a few minutes. Even more, it bothers me that what they are deeming a wonderful patriotic event for the whole nation to enjoy could not possibly remain just that if this President gets anywhere near a microphone, and yet South Dakota is paying for it. The only thing about the President’s and the Vice President’s visit that I would enjoy would be watching Air Force One and Air Force Two arrive and depart. If somebody gave me a ticket to get into the air base or the airport—wherever they land—to watch the planes come and go, I might actually use it. On second thought, there is Legion baseball that night. South Dakota has enough Republicans and rednecks that the facilities at Rushmore will be full, and nobody will miss me. It would be fun to watch the traffic congestion in and out of Keystone, however. I admit I’m a bit evil that way.

CROSSWORD PUZZLE ANSWER

E M T S
B A R K
B L U E
S T E W

A POSITIVE THOUGHT TO END THE WEEK

What if 2020 isn’t canceled?
What if 2020 is the year we’ve been waiting for?
A year so uncomfortable, so painful, so scary, so raw that it finally forces us to grow.
A year that screams so loudly, finally awakening us from our ignorant slumber.
A year we finally accept the need to change.
Declare change. You can have change. Become the change.
A year we finally band together, instead of pushing each other further apart.
2020 isn’t canceled, but rather the most important year of them all.

— Leslie Dwight