THOUGHT FOR TODAY

Our life in March weather—savage and serene in one hour.

TOURNAMENT TIME ROUNDUP

STATE BOYS HOCKEY

The Oahe Capitals will play the first game of the state tournament in Brookings Friday with a 9 a.m. faceoff against Sioux Falls 2. In the same bracket the other game is #2 Brookings vs. #7 Aberdeen at 11:30 a.m. In the opposite bracket #4 Rushmore tackles #5 Mitchell at 2 p.m., followed by #1 Sioux Falls 1 vs. #8 Watertown at 4:30 p.m. The tournament continues with four games Saturday and three place games Sunday.

STATE ‘B’ GIRLS BASKETBALL

The quarterfinals of the state ‘B’ at the Huron Arena today (Thursday) see these games on tap: Wolsey-Wessington vs. Jones County, noon; Sully Buttes vs. Wall, 1:45 p.m.; Ethan vs. Castlewood, 6 p.m.; Viborg-Hurley vs. Howard, 7:45 p.m. The tourney continues with four games Friday and four place games Saturday.

STATE ‘A’ GIRLS BASKETBALL

The ‘A’ tournament is being held at the Watertown Civic Arena, starting with these quarterfinal contests today (Thursday): Hamlin vs. Flandreau, noon; Red Cloud vs. Lakota Tech, 1:45 p.m.; Wagner vs. Rapid City Christian, 6 p.m.; Sioux Falls Christian vs. Sisseton, 7:45 p.m. The tourney continues with four games Friday and four place games Saturday.

STATE ‘AA’ GIRLS BASKETBALL

The Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls is the site of the state tournament starting today (Thursday) with these quarterfinal matchups: Sioux Falls Washington vs. Watertown, noon; Sioux Falls Jefferson vs. Mitchell, 1:45 p.m.; Pierre vs. Rapid City Stevens, 6 p.m.; Sioux Falls O’Gorman vs. Harrisburg, 7:45 p.m. The tourney continues with four games Friday and four place games Saturday.

STATE ‘B” BOYS BASKETBALL

Lower Brule, Aberdeen Christian, De Smet, White River, Viborg-Hurley, Ethan and Castlewood have qualified for the tournament in Aberdeen next week. The other spot will go to Faith or Northwestern; they play their SoDak 16 game today (Thursday). If higher-seeded Faith wins that game, the pairings will be: Lower Brule vs. Castlewood, Faith vs. White River, Aberdeen Christian vs. Ethan De Smet vs. Viborg-Hurley.

STATE ‘A’ BOYS BASKETBALL

Dakota Valley, Sioux Falls Christian, Sioux Valley, Hamlin, Mount Vernon-Plankinton, Elk Point-Jefferson and Hot Springs have qualified for the tournament in Sioux Falls next week. The other spot will go to St. Thomas More or McLaughlin; they play their SoDak 16 game today (Thursday). If higher-seeded STM wins that game, the quarterfinal pairings will be: Dakota Valley vs. Hot Springs, Sioux Valley vs. Hamlin, St. Thomas More vs. Elk Point-Jefferson, Sioux Falls Christian vs. Mount Vernon-Plankinton.

STATE ‘AA’ BOYS BASKETBALL

Pierre will be the closest thing to a “home team” in Rapid City when the state tournament begins next Thursday, March 16. The quarterfinal pairings: Sioux Falls Jefferson vs. Harrisburg, noon; Yankton vs. Sioux Falls Washington, 1:45; Sioux Falls Lincoln vs. Sioux Falls Roosevelt, 6 p.m.; Pierre vs. Mitchell, 7:45 p.m.

PIERRE GOVERNORS SPORTS ROUNDUP

Girls basketball: The Governor girls opened up their SoDak 16 game against Brookings in the second half and won going away, 68-42, to qualify for the state tournament. It is Pierre’s first state tourney trip in girls basketball in six seasons. The last time a Pierre girls team made it to state was at the end of the 2017 season. In this game Pierre forced 27 Brookings turnovers. Remi Price with 27 points and Reese Terwilliger with 18 were high scorers.

Boys basketball: In a rocking Riggs High gym Pierre’s boys earned the school’s first trip to a boys state tournament since 2017 when they sent Sioux Falls O’Gorman home in defeat, 64-49, in a game that was closer than that final score indicates. Pierre led 18-14 after a quarter, 28-24 at halftime, and, after a strong third quarter, 46-33. But the Knights came on strong, cutting a 16-point deficit down to only for points at 53-49. But from that point on the Governors went on an 11-0 run to end the game. After a three-pointer by Brecken Krueger with 1:45 left that gave Pierre a 56-49 lead, the rest of the Pierre points came on free throws—two by Ben Heisler with 1:28 left, two more by Jacob Mayer with 1:05 remaining, a crucial Jackson Edman offensive rebound after a missed free throw, two more free shots by Mayer at 0:35, and two free throws by Edman at 0:28 to end it all. The Govs held a 25-13 rebounding advantage over O’Gorman. Edman scored 18 points, LIncoln Kienholz 13, Heisler 11, Krueger 10 and Mayer eight.

ESD all-conference teams: Jackson Edman and Lincoln Kienholz from the Governor boys team, and Remi Price and Reese Terwilliger of the girls team were all first-team all-conference selections in the ESD.

ESD all-conference wrestling: Seven Governors were accorded all-conference recognition by the ESD. They are Elijah Boutchee, Chance Carda, Deegan Houska, Trey Lewis, Alex Oedekoven, Josh Rydberg and Tristan Spencer.

ZESTO SHERBET SCHEDULE

Thursday: coffee.
Friday-Sunday: raspberry.
Monday-Tuesday: orange.
Wednesday-Thursday: almond.

SULLY BUTTES CHARGERS SPORTS ROUNDUP

Girls basketball: The Chargers won their SoDak 16 matchup with Harding County in Gettysburg without any trouble. Sully Buttes led 30-10 at halftime en route to a 44-26 victory that sends SBHS to another state girls tournament with a 20-3 record. Calleigh Chicoine was high scorer with 11 points.

WORDS OF WISDOM

“During Lent let us find concrete ways to overcome our indifference.”
— Pope Francis

COUNTDOWN

1 day: State boys hockey tournament, Brookings (March 10-12).
3 days: The Oscars, ABC-TV (March 12).
3 days: Daylight Saving Time begins (March 12).
5 days: Riggs High fine arts festival (March 14).
7 days: State boys basketball tournaments, ‘AA’ Rapid City, ‘A’ Sioux Falls, ‘B’ Aberdeen (March 16-18).
11 days: Buchanan Elementary spring concert (March 20).
12 days: Kennedy Elementary spring concert (March 21).
12 days: NCAA Div. II men’s basketball Elite 8, Evansville, Ind. (March 21-23).
14 days: Jefferson Elementary spring concert (March 23).
16 days: All-State Band concerts, Sioux Falls O’Gorman (March 25).
18 days: Legislature veto day (March 27).
21 days: Minnesota Twins season opener (March 30).
22 days: Pierre softball season opener (March 31).
22 days: NCAA Div. I women’s basketball Final Four, Dallas (March 31, April 2).
23 days: NCAA Div. I men’s basketball Final Four, Houston (April 1, 3).
23 days: NCAA Div. II women’s basketball national championship game, Dallas (April 1).
24 days: Palm Sunday (April 2).
26 days: Bob Judson Invitational track meet (April 4).
28 days: NCAA Div. I men’s hockey Frozen Four, Tampa (April 6, 8).
29 days: Good Friday (April 7).
31 days: Easter Sunday (April 9).
37 days: Riggs High jazz night (April 15).

HOCKEY UPDATE

Midco Sports Network live games this week:
— Friday, 6:30 p.m.; Saturday, 5:30 p.m.; Sunday, 5:30 p.m. (if necessary): The NCHC playoffs quarterfinal best-of-three series between UND and Omaha.

State girls hockey: In their opening game at the state tournament in Sioux Falls the Capital girls lost to Brookings, 3-1. Kiersten Miller scored the Oahe goal at 2:22 of the third period for a 1-0 lead, but Brookings scored three straight goals to win the game. Abigail Stewart Fromm made 42 saves. In the consolation semifinals the Capitals lost in overtime, 7-6, to Sioux Center ending their season. Brylee Kafka scored six goals, accounting for all of the Oahe scores. Her sixth goal came with 16 seconds left in regulation time to force overtime, but Sioux Center put in the game-winner just 12 seconds into the extra period. Fromm made 23 saves. Brookings won the state championship, surprising Aberdeen, 2-0.

State JV boys hockey: The Oahe Capitals JV boys reached their state championship game before losing to Rushmore, 6-3, and settling for second place. Earlier they had beaten Brookings, 4-0, and Brandon Valley, 6-0. The tourney was hosted at the Expo Center by Oahe Hockey Association.

Sioux Falls Stampede: The Herd lost twice to Tri-City, 7-4 and 7-1. Now 16-22-7 in their conference, the Stampede is home vs. Waterloo Friday and Fargo Saturday before a game down at Sioux City Sunday.

Badlands Sabres (Mason Martin): The Sabres’ season ended with 6-2 and 4-3 losses to Sheridan. Their final record was 11-31-5.

Aberdeen Wings: The Wings split with Minot, losing 4-2 and winning 6-1. Aberdeen is in second place in its division with a record of 24-19-3-2 but remains 14 points behind first-place Austin. The Wings are home vs. Austin Friday and Saturday.

Rapid City Rush: The Rush lost twice in Texas to Allen, 3-2 and 7-5. Rapid City is home Thursday, Friday and Saturday vs. Wichita.

Minnesota Wild: The Wild’s streak of games in which they gained at least a point in the standings is at 10 now. Minnesota beat Vancouver, 2-1; beat Calgary, 3-0; lost to Calgary in a shootout, 1-0, and beat Winnipeg, 4-2. The Wild goes west to San Jose Saturday and to Arizona Sunday, then on to St. Louis next Wednesday.

BASEBALL UPDATE

Minnesota Twins spring training schedule:
— Thursday, Dominican Republic, 12:05 p.m.
— Friday, Baltimore, 5:05 p.m.
— Saturday, Boston, 12:05 p.m. (Bally Sports North)
— Sunday, Detroit, 12:05 p.m.
— Monday, New York Yankees, 12:05 p.m.
— Tuesday, Pittsburgh and Tampa Bay (split squads), 12:05 p.m.
— Thursday, Tampa Bay, 12:05 p.m. (Bally Sports North)

Minnesota Twins this week: The Twins at spring training beat Tampa Bay, 4-2; lost to Boston, 9-4; lost to Atlanta, 7-5; lost to Pittsburgh, 5-2; beat Detroit, 6-2; beat Baltimore, 7-6, and beat Toronto, 7-0.

World Baseball Classic, schedule of USA games in pool play:
— Saturday, Great Britain, 8 p.m. CST, Fox.
— Sunday, Mexico, 9 p.m., FS1.
— Monday, Canada, 9 p.m., FS1.
— Wednesday, Colombia, 9 p.m., FS1.

BASKETBALL UPDATE

Summit League update:
— USD men: Lost to NDSU 70-68 in tournament quarterfinals.
— SDSU men: Beat Omaha 63-55 in quarterfinals; lost to NDSU 89-79 in semifinals.
— USD women: Lost to Oral Roberts 92-69 in quarterfinals.
— SDSU women: beat St. Thomas 87-59, beat Oral Roberts 87-60, beat Omaha 93-51 in championship game.

Minnesota Timberwolves: The Wolves completed a sweep of a three-game California trip by beating the Lakers, 110-102, and the Kings, 138-134. Then they lost at home to Philadelphia, 117-94. Minnesota is home vs. Brooklyn Friday, at Atlanta Monday and home vs. Boston next Wednesday.

Sioux Falls Skyforce: The Force lost twice to Iowa, 131-128 and 112-109, then beat South Bay, 135-133. Sioux Falls plays at home vs. Austin Sunday, then plays G League Ignite at Henderson, Nev., next Wednesday.

ONE YEAR AGO IN THE MIDWEEK UPDATE

March 9, 2022: The Stanley County boys team had their best season in years with a 15-8 record. The Buffaloes beat Chamberlain in the Region 6A semifinals to earn a SoDak 16 berth, but then they had to go to Box Elder to play St. Thomas More. Their season ended with a loss there. The team lost seven seniors via graduation after that season.

SOCCER UPDATE

Minnesota United FC: Idle since their season-opening win, the Loons play Saturday at home against New York.

GOLF UPDATE

PGA Champions Tour (Tom Byrum): Tom did not play at the Cologuard Classic in Tucson, Ariz. The next stop on the tour is the Hoag Classic at Newport Beach, Calif., March 17-19.

FOOTBALL UPDATE

Rapid City Marshals: In their regular-season opener the Marshals lost at Sioux City, 75-34. Now 0-1, Rapid City is home vs. Gillette at 6 p.m. Sunday.

Sioux Falls Storm: The Indoor Football League season begins for the Storm on April 1 on the road at Quad City.

COLLEGE SPORTS ROUNDUP

Dakota Wesleyan wrestling (Aric Williams, Tyson Johnson): At the NAIA national tournament in Wichita, Aric scored a stunning pin win over #4 national seed Andreus Bond, a defending national champion, in the first round. Then he lost an 8-7 decision to national #13 Trent Johnson and lost by a 4:40 fall in his first consolation-round match, ending his run.

South Dakota men’s basketball (Max Burchill): In their quarterfinal game at the Summit League tournament the Coyotes gave #3 seed NDSU a battle down to the final minute before losing, 70-68. Max was 2-of-4 in three-pointers for six points with three rebounds. USD ends its season with a 12-19 record.

Texas State baseball (Peyton Zabel): The Bobcats lost two of three at Grand Canyon, losing 5-3 and 11-0 and winning 3-0 in Phoenix over the weekend. On Tuesday Texas State lost to neighbor Texas-San Antonio, 11-2. Peyton was starting pitcher but faced only one batter, walking him, and throwing only six pitches before being relieved. He was the first of seven Texas State pitchers. The Bobcats are home for three vs. North Dakota State Friday through Sunday, then host TCU Tuesday.

Rollins College baseball (Spencer Sarringar): Spencer, in addition to undergoing thyroid surgery two weeks ago and before that breaking his hand in a bunt attempt, may be back with the Rollins team this week. The team took two of three from Lynn University, winning 11-3 and 6-3 and losing 11-6, then swept Saginaw Valley State, 9-3 and 10-9. Now 13-4, Rollins hosts Notre Dame of Ohio today, Minnesota-Crookston Friday and Notre Dame of Ohio again Saturday.

SOUTH DAKOTA COLLEGE TEAMS IN THE POSTSEASON

— Black Hills State women.
The Yellow Jackets earned an at-large bid into their NCAA Division II regional hosted by Angelo State at San Angelo, Texas, starting Friday. Black Hills State will play fellow RMAC member Regis out of Denver. In the same bracket are Texas Women’s vs. Lubbock Christian. In the top bracket it’s Angelo State vs. West Texas A&M and Colorado Mines vs. UT-Tyler. The champion advances to the Division II women’s national quarterfinals and semifinals in St. Joseph, Mo., March 20 and 22. The national championship game will be in Dallas on April 1 as part of the Division I Final Four weekend.

— Black Hills State men.
The Yellow Jackets deserved an at-large bid into the Division II tournament, and they got it. They will play in their regional hosted by West Texas A&M at Canyon, Texas, starting Saturday. BHSU will play fellow RMAC member Colorado Mines. In the same bracket are Fort Lewis and Lubbock Christian. The top bracket has West Texas A&M vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville and Angelo State vs. Colorado-Mesa. The regional champion advances to the men’s Division II Elite Eight at Evansville, Ind.

— Northern State men.
The Wolves received an at-large bid and will polay Emporia State (Kan.) in the regional quarterfinals at Maryville, Mo., starting Saturday. In the same bracket is the Central Oklahoma vs. Minnesota-Duluth game. In the top bracket there are host team (and perennial national champion) Northwest Missouri State vs. Southern Arkansas and Minnesota State-Moorhead vs. Southern Nazarene. The champion goes to the Elite Eight at Evansville, Ind.

— Augustana women.
Though upset in their conference tournament, the Vikings earned their deserved at-large bid into the regional hosted by Minnesota-Duluth starting Friday. Augie will play Missouri Southern. In the same bracket is the Nebraska-Kearney vs. Pittsburg State (Kan.) game. In the top bracket it’s Minnesota-Duluth vs. Southern Nazarene and Central Missouri vs. Minnesota State-Mankato. The champion goes to the national quarterfinals and semifinals at St. Joseph, Mo., and the national title game will be in Dallas.

— South Dakota State women.
Winners of the WNIT tournament last year, the Jackrabbits are back in the NCAA Tournament after blowing out three opponents at the Summit League tournament. Whom and where they will play will be known on the Selection Show on ESPN at 7 p.m. CDT Sunday.

— Dakota Wesleyan women.
The Tiger women earned an at-large bid into the 64-team NAIA national tournament. In the four-team first round at Fayette, Mo., DWU defeated Hope University (Calif.), 85-56, but last night they lost to Central Methodist (Mo.), 57-53, one game short of the 16-team national finals at Sioux City.

PARKER’S PERSONAL NOTES

• Before we learn where the SDSU women are headed next week, the men’s tournament brackets will be revealed on their Selection Show on CBS-TV at 5 p.m. CDT Sunday.
• How to watch the girls state tournaments on television? There is a rotation system among their three channels, so this year the girls ‘AA’ tournament will be on SDPB’s main #1 channel, the ‘B” tournament on SDPB2, and the ‘A’ tournament on SDPB3. All games are also streamed at SDPB.org/basketball and on YouTube. The same pattern will hold true for the boys tournaments next week. All tournament sessions will begin at noon and 6 p.m. At the East River sites that’s Central Time of course, but in the case of the boys ‘AA’ in Rapid City next week those tipoffs will be at noon and 6 p.m. Mountain Time.
• I read this week that in the school year after next (2024-25) Tea Area will become an ‘AA’ school for basketball, volleyball and all the rest, and Titans teams will be members of the ESD Conference.
• Just as Coach Steve Steele did for the football team last fall just ahead of their state championship game, Governor boys coach Brianna Kusler welcomes anyone and everyone to send messages to the team through her. The messages will be read to the team next week ahead of the state tournament. Send your message via e-mail to Brianna.Kusler@k12.sd.us.
• The Riggs High band has a fund-raising project under way to help fund the cost of their upcoming trip to a St. Louis festival and competition. The website has various coffee, beverage and snack products. You can help by going to this website: https://www.drivencoffeefundraising.com/…/riggs…/ or check in through the Riggs High Band page on Facebook.
• You folks who I see on Facebook having gone to concerts in Sioux Falls and Rapid City every month or so have your own way of finding out what concerts are coming and when. I don’t go to those things, so I don’t pay attention. I do, however, check out theater schedules. The Washington Pavilion yesterday announced the shows coming in its Broadway season of 2023-24 to Sioux Falls. “Beetlejuice: The Musical” will perform eight times at the Pavilion in September. Disney’s “Aladdin” will be there for eight shows in November. “To Kill a Mockingbird” comes in January, “Pretty Woman: The Musical” in February, “Jesus Christ, Superstar” in March and “Mean Girls” in April.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“The will to succeed is important, but what’s more important is the will to prepare.”
— Former basketball coach Bob Knight

BIRTHDAYS/ANNIVERSARIES

Thursday, March 9:
Kieran Williams, Larry Kuszmaul, Jon Schaack, Gretta Durick, Raeann Schlenker, Caleb Olson, Terry Hipple, Alex McLain, Ted Parsons, Allison Meintsma, Kasi Nystrom, Theresa Beastrom.

Friday, March 10:
Tanner Prince, Adeline Schutz, Anna Bondy, Carol Gengler, Jerid Jaeger, Marty Javurek, Ryan Bisbee, Lincoln Bisbee, Thielynn Wire, Brian Drapeaux, Barak Tibbs, Travis Ruby, Jesse Beesley.
— 5th anniversary, Sheridan/Camille Cronin.

Saturday, March 11:
Devan Kleven, Tricia Heien, Starla (Ludwig) Luoma, Rebekah (Lawver) Boyer, Samantha Dewell, Parker Ripperger, Cheryl Stoeser, Maya Herrscher, Garrett Boe, Zach Edman, LiAnn (Nuttall) Currier, Doug Osnes, Kelley (Bechtold) Larson, Marlin Smith (#89), Stacie (Zastrow) Dumford, Micah Rounds, Sam Maurice, Andy Ogan, Layla Stoeser.
— 8th anniversary, Tom/Megan Lehmkuhl.
— 25th anniversary, Bob/Lynette McCarty.
— We fondly remember Shane Cronin, who passed away 9 years ago today.

Sunday, March 12:
Jena Forsch, Hallie Getz, Alan Dale, Nathan Brakke, Vicki Brooks, Kyle Rausch, John Morris, Aurelia Kerver, Alison Kennedy, Layne Heller, Susan Stahl.
— We fondly remember Whitney Barnett, who passed away 5 years ago today.

Monday, March 13:
Brian Cazan, Jvonne Heard-Ellingson, Bobby Oleson, Myron Bryant, Elise Holcomb, Deanna Sutton, Lexie Rausch, Vicki (Fosheim) Dant, Anne Severson, Sharla (Cass) Steever, Alicia (Hicks) Malstrom, Carole Olerud.
— 8th anniversary, Adam/Courtney Korkow.

Tuesday, March 14:
Lucas Lindholm, Maria Melius, Tara Hiller, Tarrent Stoeser, Kevin Huxford, Darcy Sorenson, Jim Iverson, Ann (Beemer) Candler, Jennifer (Lomheim) Sieveking, Kenley Boyer, Dee Dee Raap, Isaiah Melius, Mary Voeltz.
— We fondly remember Jon Olinger, who passed away 11 years ago today.

Wednesday, March 15:
Mariah Heiss, Justin Elrod, Kasey (Anderson) Cappellano, Tavis Weidenbach, Seb Axtman (#90), Brooks Hanson, Nora Wheeler, Loren Thompson, Arlene DeVany, Ward Judson, Allison Klucas, Cassie (Rausch) Stoeser, Lance Spears

Thursday, March 16:
Patrick Burger, Avery Askew, Ava Bauck, Deb Mortenson, Leah Ries, Jennifer (Brink) Anderson, Bob Frieberg.

NEWS OF PEOPLE AND EVENTS

Wendy Birhanzel, as Colorado’s Superintendent of the Year, recently spoke at a leadership conference. Her speech led into the keynote address by football legend Peyton Manning.

Max Burchill, third-year sophomore on the USD men’s basketball team, was one of three Coyote players named to the Academic All-District team selected by college sports information directors.

Russell Beck of Pierre died Feb. 26 less than a month shy of his 90th birthday. A celebration of his life will be held at a later date. A native of Pennsylvania, he was stationed at Ellsworth Air Force Base and met his future wife, Betty Lebeda. They were married in 1956 and raised their family of four children in Murdo. He worked for local contractors, as a railroad lineman on the Milwaukee Road and as a mechanic at the Department of Transportation shop in Murdo. After his retirement in 1995, he and Betty, who were married for 65 years, moved to Pierre. They were active at Grand Avenue Wesleyan and Community Bible churches. He is survived by his children, Bernadine (Randy) Headley of Kennebec, Darsey (Sharada) Beck of Riverside, Calif., and Robin (John) New of Pierre; seven grandchildren; four great-grandchildren, and his sister, Betty Long of Spring Mills, Pa.

Fort Pierre will not have a municipal election this spring because the only city council candidates to file petitions are the three incumbents. Greg Kenzy, Callie Iverson and Todd Bernhard will keep their council seats for new terms without opposition.

The deadline for candidates in Pierre to file petitions is March 28. There is no city commission race this spring, but the mayor’s office is up for grabs. So far Mayor Steve Harding is the only announced candidate. On the Pierre school board the seat held by Dan Cronin is up for election this spring.

The Riggs High chapter of National Honor Society inducted its new members at a ceremony in the Riggs theater Tuesday night. Alumna Molly Weisgram was the featured speaker. This year’s inductees are: Ryann Barry, Corbn Beastrom, Jarron Beck, Campbell Boddicker, Gracelyn Bowman, Jenna Bucholz, Justyn Bush, Andre Carbonneau, Aleise Christopherson, Jocelyn Corrales, Ava Doyle, Miles Doyle, Madilyn Eckstine, Gunner Edson, Haley Fabel, Isaac Gill, Ashton Griese, Tatum Gunderson, Jillian Hansen, Chase Humphrey, Isabella Jackley, Morgan Johnson, Chyler Jones, Cade Kaiser, Abigail Kropp, Milania Lamb, Emalee Larson, John Lees, Erin Leiferman, Levi Letellier, Abigail Lott, Jared Lutmer, Jordan Mayer, Matia Mchedlidze, Alex McIntire, Lucas Miller, Brock Moser, Andrea Masteller, Madison Murphy, Taylor Newell, Hans Nixon, Caitlin Ott, Jackson Ottenbacher, Daylen Palecek, Nolan Petersen, Lainey Reinke, Nicholas Roggenbuck, Jazzlyn Rombough, Brianna Sargent, Xander Schmitgen, Rebekah Seamon, Claire Steffensen, Ayden Syll, Reese Terwilliger, Sean Thompson, Henry Thronson, Samantha Ulmen, Blake Weisgram, Ruby Wyatt, Sapphire Wyatt.

The holdover members of the NHS chapter who were inducted last year include: Hudson Allen, Robert Arnold, Katelynn Axtell, Jack Baker, Hattie Baldwin, Danielle Beck, Landon Bertram, Sara Bierne, Madilyn Brakke, Kasey Broers, Hannah Brost, Chase Carda, Alexandria Childs, Nathan DeGreef, Mason Dell, Rylan Derry, Danielle DeVaney, Alexis Dilges, Jackson Edman, Braedon Foster, Elias Gilk, Karly Harris, Arthur Hodges, Deegan Houska, Elli Hughes, Emma Hunt, Autumn Iverson, Gavin Jacobson, Ayvrie Kaiser, Hannah Kari, Lincoln Kienholz, Brecken Krueger, Jenna Kruger, Hattie Larson, Hannah Lemieux, Morgan Lisburg, Jonathan Lyons, Jason Maciejczak, Margaret Maher, Kaeley Malm, Jacob Mayer, Jack Merkwan, Srah Mohr, Brooke Morris, Cameron Morris, Kate Mullett, Raileyn Myers, Kimber Natvig, Tate Nesladek, Ellie Noyes, Madison Oedekoven, Remington Price, Taya Rattling Leaf, Emma Reitzel, Kendra Rounds, Angela Rowse, Skyler Rath, Lily Sanchez, McKenna Schlekeway, Cordell Schlichenmayer, RhyAnna Schoenhard, Marlee Shorter, Maya Shorter, Oliver Smith, Sydni Snyder, Grace Soma, Gianna Stangeland, Kylie Sterling, Gavin Stotts, Olivia Strand, Madison Swenson, Joshua Switzer, Sydney Tedrow, Alec Venner, Kyra Wallace, Kourtney Walti, Tyler Want, Kara Weiss, Michelle Weiss, Bastian Westergren, Jayden Wiebe.

Pierre native Andy Smith marked the second anniversary of his move from this country to Copenhagen, Denmark, to accept a new job. He lives in his own apartment in Copenhagen while working to construct and commission high-seas platforms in shipyards. Meanwhile, he enjoys the ease of European travel to see the sights in many countries on a regular basis.

Long-time Stanley County teacher Shirley Swanson, whose retirement is imminent, was honored with a legislative commemoration this week. A native of Redfield and a graduate of USD, Shirley began teaching at a Todd County rural school and as a Title I teacher at Colome. She came to Stanley County in 1979 and has taught sixth grade; middle school English, reading, math and social studies, and high school German. She has also been an adviser for numerous school activities and a participant in community organizations and activities.

Liz and Jay Vogt posted photos from Marble, Colo., where their son Josh and his wife, Kelsy, live. That is one location where snow is measured in feet rather than inches, and snowfalls require moving feet of snow from roofs of houses.

Scott Jones, who has worked for Delta Dental of South Dakota for 46 years, will retire in April. He is currently the president and CEO there.

Larissa FastHorse’s “For the People,” a comedy formed from experiences of Native folks in the Twin Cities, will be staged Oct. 7-Nov. 12 in Minneapolis at the Guthrie Theatre’s McGuire Proscenium Stage. The show comes to the Guthrie as a community engagement partnership between the Guthrie and Indigenous Direction.

PONDER THIS

Celebrate the ides of March with a donut. In fact, eat two, Brute’.