BASEBALL UPDATE

Pierre Trappers schedule:
— Friday-Saturday-Sunday: at Western Nebraska (Gering).
— Monday-Tuesday: at Fremont.
— Wednesday-Thursday: at Western Nebraska.
— July 3-4-5: home vs. Hastings.
— July 6-7-8: at Badlands (Dickinson).

Pierre Post 8 schedule:
— Friday at Minot tournament: vs. East Grand Forks, 3:30 p.m.; vs. Bismarck, 5:45 p.m.
— Saturday at Minot tournament: vs. Mandan, 10 a.m.; vs. Minot, 2:30 p.m.
— Sunday morning at Minot tournament: potential championship game.
— Wednesday, July 1: at Watertown (doubleheader, 5 p.m.
— Thursday, July 2: home triangular vs. Mitchell and Sturgis, 5 p.m.

Post 8 vs. Aberdeen: Pierre swept a home twinbill, 11-1 and 5-3. In the first game Jack Van Camp was winning pitcher, going five innings, striking out seven and allowing four hits and a run. Garrett Stout homered, and Lincoln Kienholz, Grey Zabel and A.J. Goeden each had two of Pierre’s 10 hits. In the second game Post 8 was down 3-0 till scoring three in the third, then went ahead in the fifth. Cobey Carr threw five innings, giving up only one hit and fanning four. Matt Lusk pitched two innings for the save. Andrew Coverdale and Stout each had two of Pierre’s 10 hits.

Post 8 vs. Sioux Falls West: Pierre and West split a home doubleheader, West winning 12-9 and Pierre winning 9-0. In the loss a six-run third gave West the lead for good. Andy Gordon, Stout and Zabel had two hits each while River Iverson, Lusk and Cade Hinkle each drove in a pair. Pierre had 10 hits and West 14. In the nightcap a five-run fifth made it a comfortable win for Pierre. Stout and Zabel combined for a two-hit shutout, Stout striking out 11 in 5 1/3 innings and Zabel striking out four in 1 2/3 innings. Goeden, Coverdale, Stout and Gordon had RBIs in a five-run fifth. Stout had a 3-for-4 game while Lusk, Gordon and Coverdale each had two hits.

Post 8 vs. Aberdeen: The Pierre bats were humming in a doubleheader sweep on the road, 9-1 and 15-2. Jake Mayer threw six innings in the opener, striking out four and giving up six hits. Jordan Houlette pitched one inning of relief. Coverdale had three of his team’s 10 hits, and Lusk drove in two. Pierre swiped eight bases with Hinkle getting four of them, including a steal of home. In the second game Bennett Dean had five RBIs before the second inning was over, getting a two-run single in the first and a three-run homer in the second as part of a six-run Pierre inning. Coverdale had four of Pierre’s 15 hits, Goeden had three hits, and Stout, Dean and Lusk had multiple hits. Will Van Camp’s three-run double ended the scoring in the fifth. On the mound Aaron Booth pitched five innings, giving up only two hits and two runs while walking one and fanning six.

Post 8 vs. Yankton: On Tuesday morning in Brandon, Jack Van Camp had struck out 13 batters through the top of the sixth, but the offense trailed 1-0. The hitters came to Van Camp’s rescue in the bottom of the sixth. After Coverdale walked to lead off the inning, Stout’s hit tied the game. A Gordon hit put Pierre ahead, and Lusk climaxed the huge inning with a grand slam home run. Van Camp finished his complete game in the top of the seventh and brought his strikeout total to 14.

Post 8 vs. Sioux Falls East: Just as in the Yankton game on Tuesday, a close game was blown open by a Pierre grand slam home run against Sioux Falls East. This time it was Jack Van Camp who unloaded on East as the highlight of a four-hit fifth inning that led to an 8-1 Pierre victory, the team’s 12th in 16 games so far heading into last night’s Mandan doubleheader. Post 8 had a 2-1 lead entering the top of the fifth. Starting pitcher Zabel went five innings, striking out seven and giving up only two hits. Carr finished the game on the mound, getting four strikeouts in his two innings. Pierre pitching in Tuesday’s two games gave up a total of five hits and struck out 25 batters.

Post 8 vs. Mandan: Trailing 1-0 in the bottom of the second inning in Pierre last night, Post 8 had a five-run inning to break open the game. A bases-loaded walk, a bases-loaded wild pitch, a two-run single by Coverdale and an RBI double by Kienholz produced the five runs. Pierre added a wild-pitch run in the third and two more scores in the fourth. Finally in the fifth RBI singles by Collin Bruggeman and Coverdale ended the scoring, and Post 8 won by 10-4. Lusk pitched five innings, giving up six hits, three earned runs and four walks while fanning three. A.J. Goeden in relief pitched the final two shutout innings. In the second game Stout’s leadoff homer in the bottom of the first was enough of a lead until the top of the fifth when Mandan’s very first hit off starter Bruggeman was a two-run home run. Mandan added an insurance run in the top of the seventh for a 3-1 lead. In the bottom of the seventh, needing two runs to tie, Pierre started with a leadoff single by Goeden, followed by a walk to Zabel. Dean’s single loaded the bases, and a Mandan throw to the plate got away, allowing Goeden to score to make it a 3-2 deficit. Jack Van Camp was hit with a pitch to load the bases, still with nobody out. Will Van Camp’s hit with a two-strike count tied the game at 3-3. After a line drive out but with the bases still full and the winning run at third, Justin Houlette waited out a 3-2 count and lined out to the center-fielder. However, the fly was not deep enough to let Dean score from third. Mandan took its starter out as Stout waited at the plate to greet the reliever. He greeted him all right, slugging a grand slam homer for a 7-3 Post 8 triumph. It was Pierre’s seventh win a row and a 14-4 record.

Minnesota Twins: There will be a cheapened 60-game season starting the weekend of July 23-24-25, but there is no reason to list for you the home games because there will not be any fans present in any of the home ballparks. The designated hitter will be used in both leagues for this season, and the same number of playoff teams will be in effect as in past years. The worst new rule says that each extra inning will start with a runner on second base! How MLB handles the threat of coronavirus remains to be seen, where the Toronto Blue Jays will play home games remains to be seen because no one can enter Canada without being quarantined for 14 days, and what happens when a half-dozen players on a team test positive remains to be seen. So don’t count on a happy season. If somehow it happens, the season will end at the end of September, and the playoffs will end by the end of October. During the 60-game regular season the Twins will play 10 games each vs. the other teams in their division—White Sox, Tigers, Indians and Royals. And the Twins will play four games each vs. the teams in the National League Central Division—Cubs, Milwaukee, St. Louis, Cincinnati and Pittsburgh. (No Yankees; no Red Sox!) Among the protocols demanded of players—no spitting, no licking their hands, no showers! Good luck with that.

Sioux Falls Canaries: The Birds will open the American Association season at home vs. St. Paul July 3 (7:05), July 4 (6:05), July 5 (5:05), July 7 (7:05), July 8 (12:05) and July 9 (7:05).

SOCCER UPDATE

Minnesota United FC: The dates and times have been announced for the Loons’ three group-stage matches in the “MLS Is Back” tournament, which starts July 8. The Loons’ games: July 12 vs. Sporting Kansas City, 7 p.m.; July 17 vs. Real Salt Lake, 9:30 p.m.; July 22 vs. Colorado, 9:30 p.m. All of those games will be on ESPN.

ZESTO SHERBET SCHEDULE

Thursday: almond.
Friday-Sunday: strawberry cheesecake.
Monday-Tuesday: orange.

COUNTDOWN

1 day: Pierre Trappers season opener (June 26).
1 day: Daytime Emmy awards, CBS-TV (June 26).
5 days: Fort Pierre Ward II election (June 30).
8 days: Fort Pierre Fourth of July rodeos (July 3-4).
8 days: Pierre Trappers home opener (July 3).
9 days: Independence Day (July 4).
9 days: Capital City Band season-opening concert (July 4).
13 days: Major League Soccer season resumes (July 8).
24 days: National High School Finals Rodeo, Guthrie, Okla. (July 19-23).
28 days: Major league baseball season openers (July 23-24).
36 days: Sioux Empire Fair, Sioux Falls (July 31-Aug. 8).
36 days: NBA season resumes (July 31).

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

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

Clues:
ACROSS—
(1) It makes the world go ’round.
(5) Home of Utah Valley University.
(6) U.S. attorney general.
(7) Kill.
DOWN—
(1) Tennis strokes.
(2) Spoken.
(3) Fashion designer Wang.
(4) —- Heiss, Riggs athlete.

(Puzzle answer at the bottom of this Update.)

HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS UPDATE

Wrestling: Girls wrestling will happen in South Dakota this coming winter. The SDHSAA adopted the sport for which there will be only one classification of schools for now and four weight classes. That will eventually change when more girls and more schools take up that sport. The eight top wrestlers in each weight class as determined by TrackWrestling criteria, will qualify for the state tournament.

Football: A mercy rule will now apply in all classes of football as the 103-0 Pierre win over Spearfish has its final repercussions. When a team goes ahead by at least 35 points in the second half, the clock will run continuously except for timeouts and scores. Regular timing resumes if the lead drops below 35 points. Also, if a team leads by at least 50 points at halftime or takes a lead of 50 in the second half, the game ends immediately.

Girls basketball: The new head coach of the Pierre Governors girls basketball team will be Kirk Beebout, who has coached and taught at Hamlin High School at Hayti for the last seven years.

PARKER’S PERSONAL NOTES

• Pierre Post 8 alertness caused Aberdeen to score only one run on a two-run home run in one of the games up there last Sunday. The Smittys player hit the two-run homer but did not touch home plate. Catcher Cade Hinkle noticed that, and when play resumed, Pierre made the claim, and the batter was ruled out.
• There is no guarantee that there will be college football this fall as the coronavirus pandemic continues. If there is football, these are the homecoming dates we have been able to confirm:
  * USD, Oct. 3.
  * SDSU, Oct. 31.
  * Northern, Sept. 26.
  * Black Hills State, Oct. 3.
  * Presentation, Oct. 3.
  * Dakota Wesleyan, Sept. 26.
  * USF, Oct. 3.
  * Dakota State, Oct. 3.
  * Augustana, Oct. 10.
  * S.D. Mines, Sept. 19.
  * Jamestown, Oct. 10.
  * Valley City State, Oct. 3.
  * Northwestern (Iowa), Sept. 19.
  * UND, Oct. 10.
  * NDSU, Oct. 3.
  * Mary, Oct. 10.
  * Nebraska, Oct. 10.
  * Minnesota, Sept. 26.
• If awards shows are your thing, here finally is one. The Emmy awards for daytime television shows and performers will be bestowed this Friday at 7 p.m. CDT on CBS-TV.

BIRTHDAYS/ANNIVERSARIES

Thursday, June 25:
Piper Word, Joe Schueller, Muryl Paxton, Drew Brandner, Katie (Lakner) Dill, Steph Flyger, Krista Smith, Shelby Smith, Diane Kehrwald, Shavonne Mitchell, Larry Mosiman, Jenny (Sprenkle) Terveen, Adam Mentele, Dayna (Ludwig) Husman, Brett Stewart.
— 9th anniversary, Alex/Rachel Beckwith.
— 14th anniversary, Philip.Nicole (Krueger) Whitewitt.
— 15th anniversary, Tyler/Jessica (Wood) Steele.
— 9th anniversary, Brad/Rachel Lowery.
— 10th anniversary, Lucas/Jenna Oehlerking.
— 4th anniversary, Andy/Brittany Hanson.
— 4th anniversary, Neil/Kelsey Nemec.
— 4th anniversary, Brian/Amy Pope.

Friday, June 26:
Matthew Kachelmyer, Todd Taylor, Dick Stolp, Ed King, Jenna Everson, Ryan Bass, Alex Roberts, Landon Miller, Ryan Kennedy, Steve Bass, Deb (Micklos) Nelson, Jodi (Cowan) Harder, Grace Dozark, Jase Blair, Jesse Martin, Linda (Matzen) Aaker, Jason Fuhrer, Elizabeth Weber.
— 16th anniversary, Matt/Kendra Hall.
— 16th anniversary, Jesse/Whitney (Palmer) Flottmeyer.
— Anniversary, Scott/Sandra (Kern) Mollman.
— 10th anniversary, Chad/Amanda (Cerney) Johnson.
— 16th anniversary, Chris/Jodie (Reede) Crutcher.
— 16th anniversary, Jeremy/Julie Hand.
— 16th anniversary, Mark/Julia Schlekeway.
— 16th anniversary, Joshua/Heather (Konechne) Proff.
We fondly remember Darlene Grace Harmon, daughter of Erin and Susanne Harmon, on the anniversary of her passing.

Saturday, June 27:
Craig Keller, Byron Reed, Jenna Nielsen, Gordon Van Ash (#89), Carrie Messer, Keith Weigandt, Brian Dozark, Justin Kraemer, Heidi Vogel, Willard St. Claire.
— 5th anniversary, Michael/Sarah Jo (Even) Tveidt.
— 22nd anniversary Trent/Krista (Lovald) Miller.
— 50th anniversary, John/Roberta Lovald.
— 17th anniversary, Corey/Tiffany (Winkler) Carr.
— 11th anniversary, Darin/Heather Noyes.
— 11th anniversary, Jafar/Jessica Karim.
— 39th anniversary, Jerry/Jo Mikkelsen.

Sunday, June 28:
Fran Welch (#90), Torin Coolidge, Brendan Newman, Hilary Gray, Brooke (Drewes) Dozark, Leah Ahartz, Kari Porch, Kathryn Rich, Pam (Welch) Wenbourne, Brent Sutton, Derrick Hskins, Clayton Colson, Kathy Sarvis, Amanda Frederickson, Spencer Wedin, Samantha Bahe, Trey Johnson, Zach Kinsman, Cole Uecker, Marcia Mentele, McKayla Kirkpatrick, Addison Van Houten, Nick Formanek.
— 23rd anniversary Eric/Julie (Shangreaux) Sibson.
— 23rd anniversary, Cory/Dawn (Henderson) Holmes.
— 6th anniversary, Zach/Alisha Kemink.
— 12th anniversary, Michael/Heather Herman.
— 7th anniversary, Cody/Aimee (Vogel) Van Houten.
— 56th anniversary, Bob/Janet Judson.
— 56th anniversary, Arden/Judy Rapp.
— Anniversary, Monny/Karen Karim.
— 6th anniversary, Matt/Allison Englund.

Monday, June 29:
Laurie (Koehn) Gilman, Leo Storms, Addison Eisenbeisz, Corbin Heiss, Jessica (Wilson) Bosma, Craig Dilley, Quinn Palmer, Hudson Stoeser, Tyler Smith, Scott Rislov, Mya Parsons, Mike Clegg, Daphne Jones, Matt Joens, Esther Barnes, Aaron Denton, Mark Knudson.
— 2nd anniversary, Jack/Eileen (Leong) Markel.
— 1st anniversary, Cody/Kashia (Axthelm) Rosenau.
— 24th anniversary, Todd/Roberta Peterson.
— 46th anniversary, Don/Darla (Pollman) Rogers.
— 46th anniversary, Jay/Beverly Mickelson.
— 7th anniversary, Chris/Tracy (Shangreaux) Boom.
— 18th anniversary, Troy/Kristina (Buxcel) Fredde.
— 7th anniversary, Josh/Alana Breske.
— 7th anniversary, Bryon/Karen (Engbrecht) Reiser.
— 7th anniversary James/Mandy (Jung) Moisan.

Tuesday, June 30:
Sequoyah Chavez, Melita Hauge, Laurie Gill, Wesley Huxford, Ross Wright, Dylan Nielsen, June Hansen, Phyllis (Bollweg) Perkovich, Taylor Anderson, Parker Merriam, Arick Graham, Chris Williams, Trait Thorne, Lilllian Bell, Dick Bradley, Raury Cruse, Maggie thorne, Zane Erickson, Deryn Beck, Greg Adams.
— 8th anniversary, Tyler/Jill Merriam.
— 2nd anniversary, Blake/Nicole Simon.
— 30th anniversary, Revi/Kea (Boyd) Warne.
— 58th anniversary, Lou/Pauline Manus.
— 14th anniversary, Derek/Michelle Hunsley.
— 13th anniversary, Josh/Katie (Shoup) Nebelsick.
— 13th anniversary, Ty/Cathy (Comes) Richter.

Wednesday, July 1:
Quinn Reimers, Nadine Kepford, Catie Schroeder, Trevor Samuelson, Eleanor Berghorst, Hazel Leidholt, Nathan Dryden, Cathy (Comes) Richter, Dennis Ries, Misty (Keller) Skinner, Crystal Dvorak, Reese Richardson, Owen LeBeau, Joseph Nebelsick, Jodi Hartmann, Beckett Larson.
— 15th anniversary, Jeremy/Amy Webb.
— 15th anniversary, Justin/Shawna (Claussen) Diedrich.
— 58th anniversary, Ron/Marlys Mullivan.

Thursday, July 2:
Heather (Nuttall) Westover, Taylor Smalley, Matt Clark, Kellie Parker, Eric Juhala, Kelly Mikkelsen, Luke Edwards, Linda Steele, Sandi (Hindman) Laird, Ashlie Tisland, Grace Kachelmyer, Gerry Barnes-Baucom.
— 4th anniversary, Devin/Laranda Bruns.
— 1st anniversary, Drew/Heather Osnes.
— 9th anniversary Jeff/Kim Marso.
— 9th anniversary Dan/Susan (Gregory) Walker.
— 4th anniversary, Chad/Andrea (Bartel) Sharkey.
— 15th anniversary, Chris/Aftin (Riehle) Eich.

NEWS OF PEOPLE AND EVENTS

Regan Bollweg, one of the stars of last fall’s Pierre Governors football state champions, will be a senior at Riggs High this fall, but he has already made his college decision. He revealed last week he will attend South Dakota State and play football for the Jackrabbits.

Nate Sprenkle, oldest of the three sons of Eric Sprenkle and the late Amanda (Weaver) Sprenkle, is playing Legion baseball this summer with the Sioux Falls East varsity. Nate played in the outfield in East’s game against Pierre Tuesday.

Gordon Van Ash will observe his 89th birthday this Saturday. Greetings can be sent to him at 217 E. Missouri Ave., Pierre SD 57501.

Edward Kafka, 90, formerly of Dante, S.D., died June 21 at Avera Maryhouse. Mass of Christian burial is being celebrated this (Thursday) morning at Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Catholic Church in Dante. Mr. Kafka attended Wagner High School for two years, dropping out to help on the family farm. Drafted into the U.S. Army, he served on the ground in Korea. He earned the Purple Heart and other medals for combat service. He completed his GED while in the Army. He married Marjorie Pravecek in 1955, and they worked on the family farm. Later he managed the Dante Farmers Elevator, then ran Ed’s Bar until retiring. In 2014 he moved to Pierre’s Lincoln Apartments where he lived until moving into Maryhouse last December. He is survived by five children, Donald Kafka and his wife Susan of Council Bluffs, Iowa, Gary Kafka and his wife Diane of Pierre, Renee Moysis in South Dakota, Kenneth Kafka of Sioux Falls, and Laurie Lear and her husband Jim of Jacksonville, Fla.; nine grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren, and a sister, Leona Horst of Yankton.

Pierre’s nominees were shut out of the winner’s spotlight when the Argus Leader Sports Awards for the 2019-20 school year were presented in an online program last week. The Governors football team was one of three nominees for Team of the Year, but that award went to the Canton wrestling team. Garrett Stout was one of the three nominees as Player of the Year in football, but that honor went to Canton’s Kayden Vesley. Other winners: Athletes of the Year, Nash Hutmacher, Chamberlain wrestling, and Emma Ronsiek, O’Gorman volleyball and basketball; Coach of the Year, Jayson Poppinga, O’Gorman football; Comeback Athlete, Nash Grantham, Hamlin; Courage Award, Burke athletics; I Am Sport award, Mitch Eickacher, Sioux Falls Lincoln.

The 90th birthday of Fran Welch will be celebrated at an outdoor reception from 1 to 4 p.m. this Sunday. Friends can come and go during that time. Greetings can be sent to her at 302 E. Wynoka where the party will take place (the corner of Highland and Wynoka).

The Rev. Karl Kroger, who formerly served the Southeast United Methodist Church in Pierre, and his family moved Tuesday from Piedmont to Bismarck, N.D. Karl has been serving Grace United Methodist Church in Piedmont. He will join the pastoral staff at McCabe United Methodist Church in Bismarck where he will join Jenny (Hallenbeck) Orr, a former associate pastor at Pierre’s First UMC, on the staff. Karl Kroger is the son of the current head pastor at Pierre First, the Rev. Greg Kroger.

The Dean’s List for the spring semester at Northern State University includes these area students: Tori Thorpe (4.0), Abigail Arhart (4.0), Jocelyn Gray (4.0), Lacey Hepker (4.0), Jacob Howard (4.0), Judah McKinley (4.0), Alison Woodmansey (4.0), Dustann Norris, Cordell Ring, Rachel Guthmiller, Joshua Albright, Joe King, Spencer Sarringar, Haley Switzer. Part-time students on the Dean’s List through NSU include Alexandra Burke (4.0), Haelly Pease (4.0) and Ashley Even (4.0).

Bruce Johnson, 75, died at home in Sioux Falls June 12. He spent most of his life running heavy equipment, and he worked as county highway superintendent in Sully and Potter counties. He is survived by his children, Julie Thelen and her husband Mike of Fort Pierre, Curtis Johnson of Pierre, Holly Clifford of Pipestone, Minn., Bruce Johnson Jr. of St. Louis Park, Minn., Joel Johnson of Pierre, Kathryn Johnson of Pierre and Jessica Johnson of Lincoln, Neb., and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. A graveside service will take place at 10:30 a.m. this Saturday at the cemetery at Montrose.

Openings/reopenings:
— (1) The Sully County Fair at Onida will go on as scheduled Aug. 7-9.
— (2) The Sanford Fargo Marathon and accompanying events are going ahead as scheduled Aug. 24-29.

Cancellations/closings/testings:
— (1) The Black Hills Powwow and Games scheduled for October in Rapid City have been postponed to 2021.
— (2) The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., has canceled all of its remaining performances through the end of 2020.
— (3) The Pierre Trappers baseball organization learned that a player on its roster tested positive for coronavirus and was placed on 14-day quarantine. He acquired the virus after arriving in Pierre but had not yet made contact with other team members, whose first practice was not until Monday of this week. Every player is being screened upon arrival at the ballpark each day.
— (4) Bob’s Lounge in downtown Pierre is being very transparent about its coronavirus situation through its Facebook page. Bob’s said Tuesday it is closing temporarily because two regular customers have had positive tests and one employee was undergoing testing. Other employees are being tested and, “if necessary, we will quarantine until after the July 4 weekend,” their page said. Last week two other local bars, the Chuckwagon in Fort Pierre and The Fieldhouse in Pierre, were advised that a customer who had patronized those establishments had tested positive, and persons who might have come in contact with that person were advised to watch for symptoms.
— (5) The European Union nations are preparing to ban travelers from the United States when their borders reopen next week because of the United States’ inability or unwillingness to combat the pandemic.
— (6) The New York City Marathon, which was not to have taken place until Nov. 1, has nevertheless been canceled for this year.
— (7) At midnight last night the states of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut imposed a 14-day quarantine on any travelers coming into their states from those states with high infection rates.
— (8) Concerts by the Charlie Daniels Band and the Marshall Tucker Band scheduled at the South Dakota State Fair have been canceled until 2021. The fair is going on as scheduled, and other grandstand events will take the place of those two concerts.
— (9) The annual BluntFest scheduled for Aug. 21-23 in Blunt has been canceled for this year.

Marge Seeley, 86, died June 23 at Avera Maryhouse. Graveside services are pending through Isburg Funeral Chapel. She and husband Wayne came to Pierre in 1990. Wayne worked at the YMCA, and Marge worked in home health care with Avera in Pierre and the surrounding area. She is survived by her son, John Seeley and his wife Brenda of Pierre; two grandchildren, three great-grandchildren and six siblings.

Dr. Brian Maher, who has been superintendent of the Sioux Falls public schools for five years, will become chief executive of the South Dakota Board of Regents effective July 6.

Sixty-nine soldiers with the South Dakota Army National Guard’s 152nd Combat Sustainment Support Battalion were welcomed back to Pierre Wednesday afternoon, concluding their 11-month deployment to Iraq. Their deployment farewell ceremony had taken place July 27 last year. The entire 152nd includes more than 500 soldiers in six South Dakota cities but headquartered in Pierre.

Mary Gales Askren, former reporter at the Pierre Capital Journal, received good news last Tuesday. Her chemotherapy seems to have worked, and Mary will continue to receive a study drug and undergo monitoring closely as she continues her cancer battle.

Chief Justice David Gilbertson and the late Justice Steven Zinter received the McKusick Award named after Marshall McKusick, who devoted decades to the legal profession and the USD School of Law. The awards were presented June 17 by the Student Bar Association.

Jason Culberson has been appointed interim fire chief in Rapid City, succeeding Rod Seals, whose retirement was effective June 19. Jason has 27 years of fire/EMS experience. He holds a degree in business and organizational communications from Montana State-Billings and an MBA from Dakota Wesleyan. Meanwhile, Matt Culberson retired June 19 as training section chief of the Rapid City Fire Department, a position he has held since 2014. Matt began his career in May 1990, was promoted to lieutenant and stationed at the Rapid City Regional Airport’s Station 8, was a fixture in the department’s Hazmat team and was promoted to captain in 2008.

Kendall “Kay” Smith, 84, died June 12. His funeral took place Saturday at New Life Assembly of God church in Pierre. He was a native of Oregon and married Sharon Cool there. He moved his family to South Dakota in 1981, and he became a crop consultant in central South Dakota. After retirement he worked as a county weed supervisor and also worked for Farm Service Agency. He also established Dakota One Realty. He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Sharon Smith; two daughters, Kristi Smith of Pierre and Trisha Moya of Charlottesville, Va.; two sons, Kasey Smith and his wife Dawn of Fort Pierre and Kerry Smith and his wife Kathy of Pierre, and five grandchildren.

According to a Chamber of Commerce calendar, the Fourth of July rodeo in Fort Pierre will have 7:30 p.m. performances on July 3-4. The Independence Day parade there will step off at 9 a.m.

Wearing a T-shirt that said “Plot Twist,” Blunt native Jason Christenson, his wife Manda and their three children revealed in a Facebook photo that they are expecting an addition to the family in November. A comment beneath the photo read, “2020 just keeps throwing curveballs.”

Short Grass Arts Council will continue its Thursday night “Tales on the River” program series at 7 p.m. tonight (Thursday) and continuing into July. People can’t attend in person, but everyone is welcome to connect with the programs via Zoom technology. Loren Diggs’ program topic tonight will be “The Virtues of Vinegar: The South Dakota Vinegar Museum.” On July 2 Joni Willoughby’s topic will be “Spray Crazy: How to Make Beautiful Art Using Spray Paint.” On July 9 Katie Dwyer’s topic will be “Soulful Songs: A Singer/Songwriter Shares Her Story.” On July 16 Taniya Bethke’s topic will be “BioBlitz: How Citizen Scientists Interact with Nature.”

The political parties held their state conventions last Saturday, so now we know who the candidates for Public Utilities Commission in the general election will be. The Republican candidate will be Gary Hanson, who has been on the PUC since 2002. The Democratic candidate will be Remi Bald Eagle, the intergovernmental affairs coordinator for the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe.

Steve and Deb Bumann spent Fathers Day weekend in the Kansas City area with Aaron Bumann, his wife Erin and their two children. Aaron works at Dentistry for Children and is an adjunct faculty member at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Dentistry.

Florence (Rathbun) Bruce, 85, died at home in Pierre June 20. A graveside service was held Wednesday at the Draper cemetery. A graduate of Pierre High School, Florence married Clarence Bruce in 1956. She worked at Ferley Jewelers for more than 30 years and volunteered at the gift shop at St. Mary’s Hospital. She is survived by three sons, Jerry Bruce of Piedmont, Dennis Bruce of Pierre and Jim Bruce of Highmore; three grandchildren; four great-grandchildren, and a sister, Dorothy Mueller of Pierre.

The South Dakota School of Mines announced its spring semester Dean’s List. It includes these area students: Kara Huse, Ethan Unruh, Nicholas Boudreau, Erick Colman, Matthew Darnall, Caleb Ehrisman, Douglas Griese, Shelby Guthrie, Aaron Hoelscher, Chloe Jungwirth, Dillon Muntefering, Matthew Pugh, Micah Runner, Samuel Ryckman, Avery Schroer, Theron Singleton, Seth Snyder, Zackery Culberson, Jennifer (Duba) Erlandson.

Casey Crabtree has been appointed by Governor Noem to the state Senate from District 8, which includes Lake, Miner, Moody and Sanborn counties. He is unopposed in the November election, so he will take his seat early due to the appointment. He replaces Sen. Jordan Youngberg, who resigned to take a job in the state treasurer’s office. Casey, the youngest son of Onida natives Kenny and Cinda (Garrett) Crabtree of Arlington, lives in Madison with his wife, Ashley, and their two children. He is director of economic development and governmental affairs at Heartland Consumers Power District.

Riggs High alumna BryAnn (Becker) Knecht has been hired by Mayor Paul TenHaken of Sioux Falls as head of public relations and communications for his office. BryAnn has been handling communications for the Sioux Falls public works department. Prior to that, she worked for POET managing that bio-fuels company’s magazine. She is also a former journalist with the Sioux Falls Argus Leader. The daughter of Dr. Eldon Becker and his wife of Pierre, BryAnn earned her bachelor’s degree at Augustana and her master’s at USD. Her husband, Andrew Knecht, is an attorney in Sioux Falls.

William Schumacher, 96, died June 19 at Avera St. Mary’s Hospital. A family service took place Monday at St. John’s Catholic Church in Fort Pierre. He grew up on his family’s farm and attended the Plainview rural school. He married Ethel Smith in 1945. He was a life-long farmer. Survivors include his half-sister, Marcia Roberts; four children, Judith McLaughlin in Arizona, James Schumacher and his wife Charlene of Pierre, Marvin Schumacher and his wife Melanie of Pierre, and Theresa Schmitz in Texas; eight grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.

The South Dakota Bankers Association announced the retirement of its president, Curt Everson, by the end of the year. Curt has led the SDBA since September 2002.

Onida native Jayne (Knox) Kraemer of Rapid City will be one of this coming school year’s recipients of the Distinguished Service Award from the South Dakota High School Activities Association in the contributor category. Jayne as assistant manager at the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center coordinates all of the SDHSAA state events hosted by the civic center. She will receive her award at one of the state-level events held in Rapid City during the school year. She has worked at the civic center for 21 years so has handled numerous basketball, wrestling and volleyball state tournaments, All-State Chorus and All-State Band events and state student council conventions.

Five area high school students have earned their way into the National High School Finals Rodeo in Guthrie, Okla., next month as the result of the final events at the state rodeo held in Fort Pierre last week. Josi Stevens of Pierre placed first in both pole bending and breakaway roping and second in reined cow horse. Layni Stevens of Pierre was third in goat tying. Chase Yellowhawk of Blunt was second in bareback riding. Sully Paxton of Onida was third and Rafe Wientjes of Onida fourth in tie-down roping. The national rodeo was to have been held in Lincoln, Neb., but was moved to Guthrie due to the coronavirus pandemic from a state where restrictions exist to a state where everything has been opened.

Speaking of high school rodeo, a benefit taco feed to help Sully Buttes student Chase Yellowhawk make the trip to Guthrie, Okla., for the National High School Finals Rodeo will be held at the Medicine Creek Bar & Grill in Blunt on Sunday, July 12, starting at 4 p.m.

The President’s Academic Honors List for the spring semester at Dakota State University in Madison includes these area students: Katherine Anderson, Lisa Reuland, Angela Hupf, Blaine Humann, Nicole Sarringar, Veronica Kinkler, Kristen Sieck, Bridgette Fanger, Caitlin Mohr, Morgan Metzinger, Aarne Nixon, Joshua Goeden.

Four segments for the “KELO-land Living” television show were filmed this week at the home of Riggs High alumna Janelle (Kvislen) Carda outside of Sioux Falls. The first segment will air next Wednesday, July 1. The program airs on KELO-TV at 2 p.m. CDT weekdays. The subsequent segments will be broadcast on July 13, 20 and 28. Janelle, besides being a realtor, owns a home decor store in Dell Rapids.

Riggs High alumnus Dr. Todd Peterson, who works at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, was selected to be inducted as a Fellow of the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging. The induction ceremony was to have taken place last week in New Orleans but will happen instead as part of a virtual meeting in July. Todd was also inducted into the AIMBE College of Fellows in early June. He is the son of Wilfrid and Carmen Peterson of Pierre.

Our sympathy to the Hostler family of Blunt on the passing of Judi Hostler Tuesday night. She was the wife of John Hostler and the mother of Shawn Hostler of Brookings and Shelbi Hostler Schimpf of Boston.

Cheryl Krier retired this week from the Department of Revenue after 18 years of service.

Lilian Cruse, daughter of Brandon and Melanie (Bunkowske) Cruse of Rapid City, pitched a no-hitter and shutout in her softball game last night.

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