THOUGHT FOR TODAY

You can get excited about the future. The past won’t mind.
— Hillary Depiano

PIERRE GOVERNORS SPORTS ROUNDUP

This week’s schedules:
— THURSDAY
Gymnastics: home triangular, 5 p.m.
Boys basketball: home vs. Sioux Falls Lincoln.
— FRIDAY
Boys wrestling: at Big Dakota Monster, Presho.
Girls wrestling: at Harrisburg.
— SATURDAY
Girls/boys wrestling: at Big Dakota Monster, Presho.
Gymnastics: at Brookings invitational, 11 a.m.
Boys basketball: home vs. Sioux Falls Washington.
Girls basketball: at Sioux Falls Washington.
— TUESDAY
Boys basketball: at Winner.

Boys basketball season so far: 4-2.
L Rapid City Stevens 44-39
W Rapid City Central 53-43
W Sturgis 73-59
W Spearfish 61-45
L Watertown 43-40
W Bismarck 78-73

Girls basketball season so far: 5-2.
L Rapid City Stevens 63-35
W Rapid City Central 54-39
W Sturgis 51-13
W Spearfish 49-46
W Watertown 57-33
L Bismarck 49-45
W Sioux Falls Lincoln 41-25

STANLEY COUNTY BUFFALOES SPORTS ROUNDUP

This week’s schedules:
— THURSDAY
Girls basketball: home vs. McLaughlin.
Boys basketball: home vs. McLaughlin.
— FRIDAY
Wrestling: at Big Dakota Monster, Presho.
— SATURDAY
Wrestling: at Big Dakota Monster, Presho.
Girls basketball: at Redfield Classic.
Boys basketball: at White River.
— TUESDAY
Girls basketball: home vs. Potter County.

Boys basketball season so far: 3-3.
W Miller 73-69
L Winner 56-26
L Philip 67-53
L Jones County 82-79 (OT)
W Herreid-Selby Area 69-47
W Highmore-Harrold 67-60

Girls basketball season so far: 0-8.
L Chamberlain 44-25
L Miller 46-38
L White River 55-38
L Winner 61-31′
L Philip 44-40
L Jones County 39-30
L Herreid-Selby Area 37-25
L Highmore-Harrold 63-23

SULLY BUTTES CHARGERS SPORTS ROUNDUP

This week’s schedules:
— THURSDAY
Boys basketball: home vs. Highmore-Harrold.
— FRIDAY
Girls/boys wrestling: at Big Dakota Monster, Presho.
Girls basketball: at Highmore-Harrold.
— SATURDAY
Girls basketball: at Redfield Classic.
— MONDAY
Girls basketball: at Aberdeen Roncalli.
Boys basketball: at Aberdeen Roncalli.
— TUESDAY
Boys basketball: home vs. Ipswich.

Boys basketball season so far: 2-1.
W Lyman 72-56
L Winner 61-25
W Wolsey-Wessington 62-61

Girls basketball season so far: 4-2.
W Ipswich 65-30
W North Central 54-47
L Lyman 66-48
L Herreid-Selby Area 57-50
W Wolsey-Wessington 46-41
W Philip 58-44

COUNTDOWN

3 days: FCS national championship game, ABC-TV (Jan. 7).
4 days: FBS national championship game, ESPN (Jan. 8).
9 days: NFL playoffs begin (Jan. 13-15).
11 days: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Jan. 15).
11 days: Iowa Republican presidential caucuses (Jan. 15).
22 days: Rodeo Rapid City (Jan. 26-Feb. 3).
28 days: State one-act play festival, Brandon (Feb. 1-3).
30 days: South Carolina Democratic presidential primary (Feb. 3).
31 days: Grammy awards, CBS-TV (Feb. 4).
33 days: Nevada Democratic presidential primary (Feb. 6).
35 days: Nevada Republican presidential primary (Feb. 8).
36 days: State gymnastics meet, Pierre (Feb. 9-10).
37 days: State wrestling team dual tournaments (Feb. 10).
38 days: Super Bowl LVIII, CBS-TV (Feb. 11).

COLLEGE SPORTS ROUNDUP

South Dakota State swimming (Morgan Nelson): The Jackrabbits return to the pool in a dual at USD Jan. 20.

Augustana swimming (Ella Ward-Zeller): The Vikings’ schedule resumes in a dual against Minnesota-Morris Jan. 12.

North Dakota State football (Grey Zabel): The Bison reached the FCS national semifinal round but lost at Montana in a 31-29 double-overtime heartbreaker. NDSU’s final record was 11-4 with the losses coming at the hands of SDSU, USD, UND and then Montana.

Dakota Wesleyan men’s basketball (Nick Wittler): The Tigers now stand at 8-6 overall, 3-4 in the GPAC. They returned to action against Viterbo last night, play at Concordia Saturday, and return home vs. Morningside next Wednesday.

University of Sioux Falls women’s wrestling (Toby Bryant): Coach Toby’s women are yet to be beaten in duals. They have a 4-0 record in duals. Their next meet is the Bronco Open at Hastings Sunday.

South Dakota men’s basketball (Max Burchill): The Coyotes are 8-7 overall and 1-1 in the Summit League. Max has started 13 games and is averaging 6.7 points per game and 4.5 rebounds per game. USD after a non-league game vs. Eastern Washington at home last night plays at Montana Saturday as the Summit League and the Big Sky Conference hold their home-and-home exchange games this week.

South Dakota State men’s track (Rylan O’Donnell): The Jacks’ indoor season resumes at NDSU’s meet Jan. 13.

South Dakota State wrestling (Regan Bollweg): SDSU returns to the mat in a dual at Nebraska Jan. 16.

South Dakota State women’s track (Jessica Lutmer, Lydia Hill): The Jacks’ indoor season resumes at NDSU’s meet Jan. 13.

Dakota Wesleyan wrestling: The Tigers have a 4-3 dual record. Their next meet is the Avila duals on Saturday.

University of Sioux Falls men’s wrestling (Josh Rydberg): The Cougars are 1-4 in duals. They return to the mats against St. Cloud State Jan. 13.

Northern women’s basketball (Katie Bourk): The Wolves women have a 9-93 overall record, 5-1 in the NSIC, as they hit the road to Minnesota State Friday and on to Winona State Saturday.

Black Hills State men’s basketball (Jackson Edman): The Yellowjackets stand at 5-6 overall and 3-2 in the RMAC. They return to league play at home Friday vs. Adams State and Saturday vs. Fort Lewis.

Dakota State track (Houston Lunde): The Trojans’ indoor season resumes at Mount Marty’s meet Jan. 13.

Northwestern (Iowa) football (Morris Hofer): After winning the NAIA national championship there last year, the Raiders returned to Durham, N.C., for the national title game but lost to Keiser (Fla.), 31-21. Northwestern finished the year with that one defeat. Morris played for the first time in the playoffs after returning from an arm injury and was credited with one assisted tackle. For the season he had 27 tackles, two sacks and a fumble recovery in his role as a starter on defense. This was his fifth season as a member of the Northwestern team.

University of Mary women’s basketball (Chloe Lamb): The Marauders are 8-6 overall and 4-2 in the NSIC. They hit the road to Minnesota-Duluth Friday and down to Concordia-St. Paul Saturday.

Georgia Tech women’s basketball (Caleb Currier): With an overall record of 9-4, the Yellowjacket women are now on a 100% conference schedule in the ACC, starting with Virginia tonight and Pitt on the road Sunday.

Ohio State football (Lincoln Kienholz): The Buckeyes were stunned by two fourth-quarter Missouri touchdowns in a 14-3 loss at the Cotton Bowl in Arlington, Texas. With regular-season quarterback Kyle McCord already transferred to Syracuse, Devin Brown was the scheduled starter. He sustained a foot injury early in this game and could not return, so Lincoln became the Buckeye quarterback. He completed six of 17 passes for a total of 86 yards and was sacked once. He and his offense were backed up against their own goal line in all three of his first three possessions. Lincoln carried himself six times for a net yardage of 2. Lincoln was under pressure on 11 of his 19 dropbacks and also was blitzed on 12 dropbacks. Ohio State led 3-0 into the first minute of the fourth period before giving up the lead. The result of the game and the lack of offense has the Columbus and Ohio State websites up in arms, and a long winter and spring of what-is-to-come-at-quarterback lie ahead. The Buckeyes’ final record was 11-2.

ONE YEAR AGO IN THE MIDWEEK UPDATE

Dec. 20, 2022: Pierre schools were closed four straight days the week before Christmas break because of a long blizzard.

Dec. 27, 2022: Laurie Gill announced she would be leaving state government after nearly 25 years, including various leadership roles. She had also been Pierre’s mayor for three terms.

WORDS OF WISDOM

The secret of change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old but on building the new.
— Dan Millman

MIDCO SPORTS NETWORK LIVE GAMES THIS WEEK

— THURSDAY
Wrestling: SDSU vs. Michigan, 7 p.m.
— FRIDAY
Men’s hockey: Augustana vs. Minnesota State, 7 p.m. (MS2).
Men’s hockey: UND vs. Alaska, 7 p.m.
— SATURDAY
Girls basketball: Rapid City St. Thomas More vs. Minot, 1 p.m. (MS2).
Women’s basketball: UND vs. Eastern Washington, 1 p.m.
Boys basketball: Mobridge-Pollock vs. Grand Forks Red River, 2:30 p.m. (MS2).
Men’s hockey: Augustana vs. Minnesota State, 6 p.m. (MS2).
Men’s hockey: UND vs. Alaska, 6 p.m.
— SUNDAY
“Jackrabbit Journal: Road to Frisco,” 11:30 a.m.

HOCKEY UPDATE

Oahe Lady Capitals girls varsity season so far: 6-1-1.
T Mitchell 4-4
W Watertown 4-2′
W Sioux Center 4-2
W Sioux Center 6-4
W Brookings 6-3
L Aberdeen 7-1
W Watertown 6-2
W Rushmore 6-3
— Next game: Jan. 13 at Brookings.

Oahe Capitals boys varsity season so far: 4-3-1.
L Mitchell 8-6
W Huron 8-5
L Sioux Falls East 5-2
L Watertown 5-3
W Aberdeen 8-5
T Sioux Falls East 2-2
W Brandon Valley 8-0
W Sioux Falls West 4-1
— Next games: Saturday, Sunday at Sioux Center.

Aberdeen Wings: With a record of 15-14-1-2, the Wings go on the road to North Iowa this Friday and Saturday.

Augustana men’s hockey: The Vikings have a record of 6-10-2 after a pair of weekend losses at Notre Dame. Augie is home Friday and Saturday vs. Minnesota State-Mankato.

Sioux Falls Stampede: The Herd stand at 15-13-1-1 and are tied for third in the USHL Western Conference. The next games are at home Friday and Saturday vs. Chicago.

Rapid City Rush: The Rush, after a three-game sweep at home over Iowa, have moved into third place in the Mountain Division. At 14-14-2-0, the Rush will play three at Tulsa Friday through Sunday, then play at home vs. Fort Wayne next Wednesday.

Minnesota Wild: Minnesota has a record of 16-16-4 and is seventh of eight teams in the Central Division of the Western Conference. The Wild plays at home vs. Tampa Bay tonight, at Columbus Saturday, home vs. Dallas Monday and at Dallas next Wednesday.

FOOTBALL UPDATE

SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 2024 SCHEDULE
Aug. 31: at Oklahoma State.
Sept. 7: Incarnate Word.
Sept. 14: Augustana.
Sept. 21: at Southeast Louisiana.
Oct. 5: at Northern Iowa.
Oct. 12: Youngstown State (Hobo Day).
Oct. 19: at North Dakota State.
Oct. 26: South Dakota.
Nov. 2: Murray State.
Nov. 9: at North Dakota.
Nov. 16: Southern Illinois.
Nov. 23: at Missouri State.

FCS national championship game: South Dakota State vs. Montana at Frisco, Texas, Sunday, 1 p.m. CST, ABC-TV.

Minnesota Vikings: With one game remaining the Vikings are not quite yet eliminated from the playoffs, but they are as close as a team can get. Four have to happen this weekend for them to make the playoffs, the first of which is winning at Detroit in a noon Sunday game on Fox. Even if that happens, help has to come from three other games—Green Bay has to lose to the Bears, New Orleans has to lose to Atlanta, and Seattle has to lose to Arizona. So you see what the chances are! Minnesota’s record is 7-9 after an embarrassing loss at home Sunday to Green Bay.

Denver Broncos: Despite a win Sunday, the Broncos were eliminated from the playoffs. They take a record of 8-8 into their last game at Las Vegas at 3:25 p.m. Sunday.

NFL live games on local TV this weekend:
(NOTE: The games on local stations are subject to change without notice.)
— Saturday: Pittsburgh at Baltimore, 3:30 p.m., ABC/ESPN.
— Saturday: Houston at Indianapolis 7:15 p.m., ABC/ESPN.
— Sunday: Jacksonville at Tennessee, noon, CBS.
— Sunday: Minnesota at Detroit, noon, Fox.
— Sunday: Kansas City at Los Angeles Chargers, 3:25 p.m., CBS.
— Sunday: Dallas at Washington, 3:25 p.m., Fox.
— Sunday: Buffalo at Miami, 7:20 p.m., NBC.

FOOTBALL CONTEST #24

Send your 10 winners of these games to parkerhome16@hotmail.com by noon SATURDAY:
(1) NFL: Houston at Indianapolis.
(2) NFL: Minnesota at Detroit.
(3) NFL: Atlanta at New Orleans.
(4) NFL: Chicago at Green Bay.
(5) NFL: Tampa Bay at Carolina.
(6) NFL: Jacksonville at Tennessee.
(7) NFL: Dallas at Washington.
(8) NFL: Buffalo at Miami.
(9) FCS national championship: South Dakota State vs. Montana.
(10) BCS national championship: Michigan vs. Washington.

BASKETBALL UPDATE

Other college basketball besides what is mentioned above in College Sports Roundup:
— USD women (11-4 overall, 1-1 Summit).
Next: last night at Montaha, Saturday home vs. Idaho State.
— SDSU men (7-7 overall, 1-0 Summit).
Next: last night at Weber State, Saturday home vs. Montana State.
— SDSU women (11-4 overall, 1-0 Summit).
Next: last night at Northern Arizona; Saturday home vs. Montana State.

Minnesota Timberwolves: The Wolves are still in first place in the NBA’s Western Conference with a 24-8 record. After a home game vs. New Orleans last night, the Wolves go to Houston Friday, to Dallas Sunday, to Orlando Tuesday and to Boston next Wednesday.

Sioux Falls Skyforce: The Force’s record is 8-8. They play at Birmingham Friday, at home vs. Salt Lake City Sunday and at Memphis Tuesday.

BASEBALL UPDATE

Oahe Zap: The Zap continue to announce players joining the team for the 2024 season. Collin Quandee is a junior right-handed pitcher from Indiana-South Bend whose hometown is Lake in the Hills, Ill. Emiliano Curiel is a freshman outfielder from Cerro Coso College whose hometown is North Las Vegas. Also new to the Zap will be Jack Barnett, junior right-handed pitcher at Bemidji State from Montgomery, Minn., and Lucas Crichton, freshman left-handed pitcher from Minnesota State-Mankato whose hometown is Sioux Falls.

Oahe Zap: The 2024 schedule was released this week. The Zap will open the season at home vs. Fremont May 23, 24, 25 and 26 and May 28 vs. Spearfish. The season runs through July 28.

PARKER’S PERSONAL NOTES

• Thank you sincerely to those who sent cards, made phone calls, offered prayers and asked about my condition during my five days in the Rapid City hospital and since returning home the week before Christmas. I have been feeling better a bit each day and am doing just fine.
• I won’t promise anything from now on, but we will definitely try to have a Midweek Update each Thursday starting today.

BIRTHDAYS/ANNIVERSARIES

Thursday, Jan. 4:
Josh Joy, Charlotte Stewart, Joanie (Flottmeyer) Blair, John Sterling, Jack Baker.
— 4th anniversary, Brian/Paige Hermanson.

Friday, Jan. 5:
Jeff Schlekeway, Mike Shoup, Bowen Goehring, Mary (Hight) Wire, Maren Formanek.

Saturday, Jan. 6:
Patrick Baker, Stephanie (Ellenbecker) Vandel, Brad Englund, Bradley Dean, Nancy McKenney, Scott Lovald, Dan Currier, Ruth Ann Scharnweber, Crystal Ortbahn, Riley Hausmann, Deneen Clausen.
— 2nd anniversary, Anthony/Angie (Iverson) Hoekman.

Sunday, Jan. 7:
Jordan LaBrie, Eileen Briggs, Hannah Waack, Ellen (Gormley) Hopper, Amber (Russell) Lockwood, Alisa (DeMers) Bousa, Peter Mickelson, Bryan Beck, Kim de Hueck, J.D. Pollman, Lucy Bradley.

Monday, Jan. 8:
Sigrid Wald, Schelle Fuchs, Hudson Jarecke, Erik Osterkamp, William Coolidge, Drew Garry, Perry Job, Keaton Schneider, Bruce Pearson, Grayson Hunsley.

Tuesday, Jan. 9:
Dan Rounds, Mabel Kusler (#89), Phil Howard, Aaron Chittum, Dan Rasmussen, Amy (Tate) Mancuso, Jamie (Jaeger) Spaid, Gavin Picchietti, Melissa Foss, Katie Douglas, Cheri (McComsey) Wittler, Susan Pietrus, Deb (Marshall) Harkless, Carol Uecker, Chiles Heien.
— 14th anniversary, Merlin/Nicole (Mikkelsen) Schwinder.
— 8th anniversary, Max/Kylie (Mundt) Erickson.

Wednesday, Jan. 10:
Mallory (Petersen) Dekker, Ben Gloe, McLean (Thompson) Kerver, David Johnson, Rich Zabel, Tara (Dieken) Mangan, Kelli Koll, Ryan Fowler, Evelyn Rounds, Landon Russell, Jason Irion.

Thursday, Jan. 11:
Nolan Bisbee, Naomi Lors, Beverly Mickelson, Michelle Rose, Laura Truax, Mitch Foth, Susie Rilling, Kristi (Hallock) Moore, Ben Kramer Terri Disburg, Chris Mangan, Kyle Kurth, Lowell Gordon.
— 4th anniversary, Cody Tibbs/Laurie Johnson.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Plant seeds every single day that you know who you are, you know what you’re about and you know what goals you’ve set for yourself.
— Steph Curry

NEWS OF PEOPLE AND EVENTS

A long-time presence in the downtown Pierre business scene, Al Kundert died Dec. 29 at the age of 92. A funeral service will be held at a later date. He was a native of Bowdle and graduated from high school there in 1949. As a sophomore in high school, he began a long career in the grocery retail business at his hometown Red Owl store. He became manager of Red Owl stores in Hot Springs, Sioux City, Austin, Mnn., and eventually Pierre. He purchased and managed the Dakotamart in Pierre until selling the store in 1999. He served as a consultant for three more years and retired in 2002. He was also an Army veteran of the Korean War. He is survived by his partner of the last 22 years Bev Krietlow; his daughters, Debbie and Cindy; his son-in-law Doug; three grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; Bev’s children, Kurt (Tanya) and Kara (Steve), and her four grandchildren. Among those preceding him in death were his parents, three sisters, and his wife of 44 years Bev.

Logan Eckhoff and Allison Fedoriuk were married Dec. 21 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Logan is the son of former Pierre residents Jeff and Gea (Gjesdal) Eckhoff of Sioux Falls.

Mike Wolforth, 43, died Dec. 18 at home after a three-year battle with brain cancer. Services were held Dec. 28 at the Agar auditorium. The son of Kaleen (Brunmeier) Wolforth and Terry Wolforth grew up at Agar and graduated from Sully Buttes High School in 1999, then attended Lake Area Technical Institute in Watertown for building trades. He worked for Hire a Husband in 2001-2003, then started his own construction business in 2003. In 2010 he went to work for Nye Lumber in Onida, then began work at the new ethanol plant in 2019. He is survived by his wife, the former Valerie Osterkamp, of Onida; his stepchildren, Karissa Wolforth of Pierre, Darwin Osterkamp of Fort Bliss, Texas, and Adrianna Wolforth of Onida; one grandchild; his parents; his maternal grandmother, Edna Brunmeier of Onida; his brother, T.J. (Rebekah) Wolforth of Agar, and many other relatives.

Mike Weisgram announced he will seek re-election to the state House of Representatives from District 24 during the 2024 election cycle. Weisgram has served two terms in the House.

Dana Garry-Reiprich of Summerset and a friend were involved in a head-on accident at Wall on Dec. 16. Another driver from Idaho died at the scene. He had headed the wrong way on I-90 after taking an off-ramp that he apparently believed to be an on-ramp, and his vehicle collided with Dana’s vehicle. She was hospitalized for several days and will require foot surgery once swelling subsides.

Cedric Hall, 86, died Jan. 1 at Avera Maryhouse. Visitation will be from 5 to 6 p.m. tonight (Thursday), followed by a 6 p.m. rosary, at the Isburg Funeral Chapel. Mass of Christian Burial will be at 2 p.m. this Friday at Ss. Peter & Paul Catholic Church.

Sandra Kitchens 73, died at home in Pierre Dec. 28. Her funeral was held Tuesday at the Isburg Funeral Chapel. She was the second child of Elsie and Robert Dickinson and was born in Pierre. She earned her GED at a community college in Oregon and also attended Black Hills
State University. She lived in Oregon, South Dakota, Arizona and the last four years back in South Dakota. She is survived by her children, Tim Clark, Kimberly Jones Jeremiah Clark and Ezra Clark; 12 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren. Among those who preceded her in death were her parents; her sister, Roberta Stevens, and a grandson, Paydin Jones.

The Christmas letter from former Pierre residents Dana and Jeanne Hess reveals that they are still in Brookings where Dana still does free-lance writing, covering meetings of the S.D. Newspaper Association and writes opinion columns for South Dakota Searchlight. Jeanne still sews infant garments for the Avera Health System but this year decided to give up her doll clothes business. Son Alan is a highly successful real estate agent with offices in Brookings and Lake Preston. Alan’s wife Ann writes for and edits two online agriculture magazines. Their daughter Dylan is a high school senior headed to NDSU next year. Their son Benson is an active second-grader. The other Hess son, Paul, still lives in St. Paul and continues to work for Daktronics as a user experience designer. Paul is also building his Topogra clothing line and is a talented home chef.

Matt Bernard died Dec. 9. Memorial Mass was celebrated Dec. 18 at Ss. Peter & Paul Catholic Church. He graduated from high school at Kidder S.D., and earned a degree in wildlife management at South Dakota State University. Matt married Linda Pomeroy in 1977. His career took him to Arizona, Utah, North Dakota and Wyoming, and it culminated in his role as manager of the Valley City and Garrison Dam national fish hatcheries in North Dakota.

Jim Mehlhaff, who is completing his first term as state senator from District 24, announced he will seek re-election this year.

Lorraine Tople, 94, died Dec. 28 at Avera St. Mary’s Hospital. Her funeral will be at 11 a.m. Friday at Faith Lutheran Church, preceded by visitation from 10 to 11. Burial will take place later at Pierpont. Lorraine married Emil Tople in 1947, and they moved to Blunt in 1956 and on to Fort Pierre in 1967. She worked at Buhl’s Laundry. She is survived by son Terry (Sue), son Steve and daughter Renee (Rick); eight grandchildren, 22 great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren. Among those who preceded her in death were her husband in 1980, her daughter Faye (Roger), her daughter-in-law Teena, and four siblings.

The Lady Govs state championship basketball team from November 1991 (the 1991-92 school year) will be inducted into the Pierre High School Athletic Hall of Fame at halftime of this Saturday’s home girls basketball game.

Sully Buttes senior athlete Stevie Wittler signed a letter of intent to attend Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa, and play basketball there.

Chase and Courtney Harmon revealed they are expecting twins in June. The excited paternal grandparents-to-be are Joe and Stephanie (Colwill) Harmon.

Larry Lantz, 83, died Jan. 1. Visitation will be from 5 to 6 p.m. this Friday at Feigum Funeral Home, followed by a prayer service at 6. The funeral will be at 10 a.m. Saturday at Capitol Heights Baptist Church, followed by burial at Presho. Larry grew up on a farm between Presho and Vivian and graduated from Presho High School in 1959. He worked on the family farm until joining the Pierre school district in a custodial position at Jefferson Elementary School in 1986. He retired in 2003. Then he worked for Zander Auto Parts as a parts delivery man until his final days. Larry married Karen Erickson, and they had two sons. He later married Denise (Thompson) Smith, and her two sons joined their blended family. Surviving are his wife, Denise; his son, Lawrence (Rebecca) Lantz; his son, Dr. Leonard (Dr. Krista David) Lantz; his stepson, David (Paula) Smith; his stepson, Derryl (Kelly) Smith; 11 grandchildren, four great-grandchildren; his sister Nola Rae (Michael) and many other relatives.

From Karen Lindbloom’s Christmas letter we know that she has been music director at Faith Lutheran Church since 2001 and choir director there since 1978. She also continues as accompanist for the music groups at Riggs High School, even though her younger son, Rodd Bauck, is no longer vocal music director there. Rodd took a new job at the end of the last school year as director of worship and music at Lutheran Memorial Church. Rodd’s wife, Megan (Vockrodt), moved from teaching fourth grade at Buchanan to teaching Spanish at Riggs High. Meanwhile, Karen’s older son, Chris Bauck, changed jobs this year at Centracare in St. Cloud, Minn., and is now an inventory services supervisor at the Monticello hospital just down I-94. Chris’ wife, Robin, is now the LPN care coordinator for Cherrywood Advanced Living. Their two children, Ian and Ava, are a senior and a seventh-grader, respectively, and bonus grandson Brayden Kelash is in the eighth grade.

Mark Hoines, 57, died Dec. 12 at the Sanford Health hospital in Sioux Falls. A celebration of his life is planned for 1 to 5 p.m. Jan. 13 at Drifters. He grew up in Rapid City and graduated from high school at Elkhorn, Neb. He earned a civil engineering degree from South Dakota State in 1990. Mark worked for the Federal Highway Administration and eventually achieved a permanent position with the FHA’s Wisconsin division. He married Jill McClanahan. They moved to Pierre where Mark continued working for the Federal Highway Administration in the South Dakota division. In 2017 he married Nancy Surprenant. He is survived by his wife, Nancy; his daughter, Bailey (Lucas) Adams of Monee, Ill.; his sisters, Kathleen (Barry) Hoegermeyer of Custer and Linda (Willis) Hassell of Dallas, Texas, and many other relatives.

The fall semester Dean’s List at Black Hills State University includes these local students: Jackson Edman, Riley Hannum, Saige Heath, Teyah Lewis, Hunter Martell, Mikah Moser, Bailey Siedschlaw, Khalan Smart, Sydney Theobald, Allysosn Wittler.

Matt Blake’s current term as a city councilman at Urbandale, Iowa, in the Des Moines suburbs has come to an end after four years of service. His pursuit of public service continues, however, as he is a candidate this year for the Iowa state senate from District 22.

Among the winter commencement graduates from Northern State University were these local students:
— Paige Brandt, B.S. education (elementary education), magna cum laude.
— Grace Campbell, B.A. sociology and criminal justice.
— Page Smit, A.A. criminal justice.

Riggs High alumnus Mike Post will be joining the Kansas City Royals baseball club as vice president/general counsel. Mike has served as an assistant general counsel since 2002, including at Inergy L.P. and most recently with Crestwood Equity Partners, beginning after its merger with Inergy in 2013. Mike will be assuming the responsibility of being the primary contact for all club legal matters. After high school and college Mike graduated from the Creighton University School of Law in Omaha. He and his wife, Anne, live in Kansas City, Mo., with their sons, Alan, 19, and Johnny, 16.

PONDER THIS

“Jan. 6, 2021, was a wakeup call, and both federal and state government officials are far less likely to be caught by surprise in future elections. None of this suggests violence is impossible or even highly unlikely. Many politicians and ordinary Americans alike seem too willing to consider violence, should elections not go their way. As long as law enforcement remains vigilant, however, it will be more difficult for politicians to incite violent mobs and for dangerous groups to organize—important factors in reducing the scope and scale of the danger even if it remains a strong concern.”
— Daniel L. Byman, The Brookings Institution