Dell Rapids Middle School Band Numbers Increase

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DRMiddleSchoolBandThe Dell Rapids middle school band numbers will see a significant increase this coming school year.  Dell Rapids Middle School Principal Fran Ruesink reported that 52 fifth graders were going out for band this year during the Dell Rapids School Board regular meeting on Monday, August 14th.

Ruesink said, “Bryan Timperley has been pretty busy this summer.  He’s been giving free lessons to a lot of kids.  Last spring he worked pretty hard at opening the door and getting kids acclimated and getting them introduced to instruments.”

The 5th and 6th grade band will have a total of 82 students this year with 30 sixth grade students joining the 52 fifth grade students.  That number is up 20 students from the previous year.  Last year there were 40 fifth grade students and 22 sixth grade students.

“It’s a testament to his character,” said Dell Rapids School Board President Matt Weiland.

Ruesink also mentioned that due the large number of students that will be participating in band this year, there is still more work to be done to get lessons scheduled.

“We’re trying to get the lessons and everything in the morning.  It might bump up a little bit into the afternoon.  There’s just a lot of kids, and he’s got to see them.  It’s a good problem,” said Ruesink.

Gene Larson

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larsonG picEugene “Gene” Larson, 80, of Crooks, passed away on Monday, August 14, 2017 at the Dougherty Hospice House. Visitation with the family present will be from 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, August 17, 2017 and a prayer service will begin at 7: 00 p.m. all at Miller Funeral Home West Chapel in Sioux Falls, SD.  A graveside service will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, August 19, 2017 at Volga Lutheran Cemetery, Volga, SD. Funeral arrangements are under the care of Kahler Funeral Home, Dell Rapids. www.kahlerfh.com

Eugene “Gene” Larson was born on October 20, 1936 at Sioux Falls, SD the son of George and Nellie (Olson) Larson. He grew up in Sioux Falls spending the summer months in Lake Preston. He attended school in Sioux Falls and graduated from Washington High School in 1955. He managed a grocery store in Sioux Falls until he went to work for John Morrell. He worked for John Morrell for 54 years until retiring at age 77. He married Dorothy Sigfried and to this union, three children were born. He later married Janice Witt on March 21, 1975 at Madison, SD. To this union one son was born. The couple made their home on Lake Brandt and then moved to Baltic.  They later bought an acreage near Humboldt before moving into their home in Crooks in 1987. He remained there until the time of his death.

Gene was an avid hunter and fisherman. He enjoyed writing songs and playing his guitar.

He was preceded in death by his parents, one brother, Clifford and his wife, Janice.

He is survived by his sons, Jerry (Donna) of Valley Springs and Chad (Carolyn) of Slayton, MN; his daughters, Kathy (Roy) Keiser of Arlington and Nancy Peterson of Harrisburg; his 13 grandchildren, 19 great-grandchildren and one great-great-granddaughter; his sisters, Darlene (Robert) Kennedy of Beresford, Bonnie (Richard) Shogren of Sioux Falls and Delores (Gordon) Hansen of Sioux Falls and his many nieces and nephews.

Showing at the Dells Theater

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Ending Thursday: “EMOJI MOVIE” – This new animated family comedy unlocks the never-before-seen secret world inside your smartphone.  It delightfully combines humor for grownups as well as kids.  Hidden within the messaging app is Textopolis, a bustling city where all your favorite emojis live, hoping to be selected by the phone’s user. In this world, each emoji has only one facial expression – except for Gene, an exuberant emoji who was born without a filter and is bursting with multiple expressions. Determined to become ‘normal’ like the other emojis, Gene enlists the help of his handy best friend Hi-5 and the notorious code breaker emoji Jailbreak. Together, they embark on an epic ‘app-venture’ through the apps on the phone, each its own wild and fun world, to find the Code that will fix Gene. But when a greater danger threatens the phone, the fate of all emojis depends on these three unlikely friends who must save their world before it’s deleted forever.

 

Starting Friday: “DUNKIRK” – Director Christopher Nolan, the writer and director of “The Dark Knight” movies and “Man of Steel” tells the true story of the heroism of soldiers and civilians who snatched victory from defeat in the battle of Dunkirk during World War Two.  400,000 British, Canadian, Belgian and French soldiers were surrounded and trapped with the German army about to push them into the sea. The Navy didn’t have enough ships to get them home across the English Channel. Civilian fisherman braved German fire to help rescue the army. The evacuation changed the course of World War Two, saving England and providing the base for America to join the fight to defeat the Nazi’s.  “Dunkirk” starts Friday for one week at the Dells Theatre. 107 minutes. It’s rated PG-13 for intense war experience and some language.                                                                

Link to Trailer:
http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/wb/dunkirk/

SPECIALS!!
  • NEW BARGAIN TUESDAYS–save on tickets and concessions!  Every Tuesday ALL AGES are only $5.  Plus you can get a small popcorn and pop for only $5.

  • EVERY MONDAY is MILITARY MONDAY!  Just show your current military I.D. and get in for only $5!

(check Logan Luxury Theatre for more information)

Dell Rapids Boys Golf Starts 2017 Season

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NewDRLogoThe Dell Rapids Quarrier boys golf team started their 2017 season at the West Central Early Bird Invitational on Monday, August 14th.  Thirteen total schools competed in the event held at Central Valley Golf Course in Hartford.

Dell Rapids finished 11th as a team with a team score of 389.  Dakota Valley won the team title with a team score of 327.  Beresford was second with 330, and Tea Area placed third with 334.  Jacob Lee of Parkston was the top individual finisher with a round of 71.  Brock Murphy of Tea Area was second with 72.  Payton Borah of Beresford, Tanner Hensley of Dakota Valley, and Heston Jorgenson of Madison all finished with a 79.

Mason Schmidt finished with the low round for Dell Rapids.  He shot an 88 on the day.  Karsen Welbig had a round of 95.  Zach McKee and Brandon Kubly both fired a 103.  Lucas Berg had a 119, and Jack Weber finished with a round of 121.

The Quarriers will be in action again on Wednesday, August 16th, at the Dakota Valley Invite at Two Rivers Golf Course.

Bill Boyda

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Bill BoydaWilliam “Bill” Boyda, 77, of Sioux Falls, formerly of Dell Rapids, passed away on Friday, August 11, 2017 at the Sanford Hospice Cottage. A graveside service will begin at 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 16, 2017 in St. Williams Cemetery, Ramona, SD. His Memorial Service will begin at 3:00 p.m. following the graveside at Kahler Funeral Home. Visitation with the family present will be from 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, August 15, 2017 at Kahler Funeral Home, Dell Rapids. On-line condolences may be left at the Kahler Funeral Home website.

William “Bill” Earl Boyda was born on April 19, 1940, the son of Nicholas and Rosalyn “Mary” (DeCurtins) Boyda. He grew up in Ramona, SD where he attended country school. He then started working for area farmers and eventually moved to Dell Rapids where he worked for the Dell Rapids Elevator. He married Donna Haugse on June 1, 1963 in the Baltic Lutheran Church. The couple made their home in Dell Rapids. Bill started working for the Minnehaha County Highway Department in 1969 and retired in 1999. He and Donna moved to Sioux Falls in 2006.

Bill was a member of Active Generations. He enjoyed model cars and trucks.

He is preceded in death by his parents, his three brothers, John, Jim and Bob and his three sisters, Mary Lois, Martha and Pat.

Bill is survived by his wife, Donna of Sioux Falls; his two sons, Brian (Cindi) Boyda of Breezy Point, MN and their daughter, Betsy and Darrel (Beverly) Boyda of Lonsdale, MN and their children, Collin and Emily; his brothers, Ronald (Diane) Boyda of Tyler, TX and Christopher (Rolien) of Phoenix, AZ and his many nieces and nephews.

City of Dell Rapids Receives Grant from GF&P for Trail Updates

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RecreationTrailDell Rapids has received a grant from the Game, Fish, and Parks department to be able to expand the recreational trail.  This announcement came from City Administrator Justin Weiland at the Dell Rapids City Council meeting on Monday, August 7th.

The city applied for $249,000 with the Game, Fish, and Parks Recreational Trail Grant.  The grant application included two extensions to the current trail.  One extension would run south to the overlook on Dells Drive, and the other extension would run west to the dam area.

Game, Fish, and Parks representatives said the full grant request was for nearly 100% of the grant’s available funds for the entire year.  Dell Rapids was instead awarded a $55,000 grant to be able to do the south extension project.  The estimated cost of that project is between $68,000 – $70,000.  The city will be responsible for the remaining funds needed to complete the cost.  Weiland mentioned that the city will work with the Sioux River Red Rock Trail Committee to assist with the funding for the remainder of the costs for the project and will budget for this to occur in 2018. Overlook

“I think it will get more people there to experience that, and potentially put the city in a position to make some improvements down there, or at least get it cleaned up and looking sharper,” said Weiland of the south extension.  The extension of the trail would start at Dells Drive and run to the overlook area of the Big Sioux River.

Weiland also said that since Game, Fish, and Parks couldn’t help fund the dam extension, the city sent a letter of intent to the Department of Transportation for the Transportation Alternatives Grant.  Recreational trails were added to that grant this past year.  Weiland said that the Department of Transportation will be meeting with city officials to look at the area and hear plans to potentially get that funded through this grant in the future.

Dell Rapids Library Sees Increase in Numbers During Summer Programs

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LibraryDedication-2Dell Rapids Carnegie Library Director Brittany Moeller gave an updated report from the summer programs to the Dell Rapids City Council during the council’s regular meeting on Monday, August 7th.

“We’ve had a really good year so far and an amazing summer,” Moeller said.

She reported that the library has seen a little over 430 people registered for the summer reading program which is up about 30 people from last year.  Moeller says they have seen an average increase of about 20 people per year over the last three years.

A new addition to the library this summer was the addition of summer programs for adults.  An average of 10 to 15 people attended the program per week.  The library also saw an average of 15 to 20 teens per week for their programs.

Computer classes for seniors were also held for the first time by the library.  Moeller said that between 5 to 10 people came every week to learn everything the basics of turning on a computer to learning Facebook.  There are plans on doing more classes for seniors sometime during the fall.

Dell Rapids City Council member James Borchert said, “I just want to say in the last few years if you look at where the library has been and where it’s gone with the increase in programming for adults and now seniors and children, it’s just been the gem of this community. A lot of towns this size don’t have a library, and they certainly don’t have a library like this.”

Dell Rapids 15/16 Teeners Finish Season in Beresford

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DellsBaseballLogoThe Dell Rapids 15/16 Teener team finished their 2017 season at the 2017 15/16 State A VFW Tournament in Beresford on Friday, August 5th, and Saturday, August 6th.  Dell Rapids lost both of their games in the state tournament.

In their opening game of the tournament, Dell Rapids lost to West Central by a score of 13-3.  West Central scored early in the game with four runs in the bottom of the first inning.  Dell Rapids got one run back in the top of the second to make it a 4-1 game.  West Central, however, scored three runs in the second inning, three more in the third, and two runs in the fourth to take a 12-1 lead after four innings of play.  Dell Rapids scored two times in the top of the fifth inning, but West Central scored a run in the bottom of the inning to end the game on the 10-run rule.

Dell Rapids then played Milbank on Saturday, August 6th, in a back-and-forth game.  Milbank scored first with three runs.  Dell Rapids closed the gap in the top of the third with two runs, and Dell Rapids trailed Milbank 3-2 after three innings of play.  Milbank added two runs in the bottom of the fourth to push their lead to 5-2.  Dell Rapids was able to tie the game in the top of the fifth with two runs, and then Dell Rapids took the lead in the top of the sixth inning with two runs.  Milbank scored one run in the bottom of the sixth, and Dell Rapids led 7-6 heading to the final inning of the game.  Dell Rapids was unable to score in the top of the seventh, and Milbank was able to push across two runs in the bottom of the inning for the win.

Dell Rapids finished with a 9-5 record in the I-29 League this season and finished runner-up in the Southeast Regional to qualify for the state tournament.

Vince Bunkers

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Vince BunkersVincent “Vince” C. Bunkers, 95, of Brookings, formerly of Dell Rapids, passed away on Thursday, August 3, 2017. His Memorial Mass will begin at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, August 7, 2017 in St. Mary Catholic Church, Dell Rapids. Visitation with the family present will be from 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 6, 2017 at Kahler Funeral Home with the wake beginning at 4:00 p.m. On-line condolences may be left at the Kahler Funeral Home website.

Vincent “Vince” Bunkers was born on September 14, 1921 at Dell Rapids, SD, the son of Emil and Leona (Full) Bunkers. He grew up on the family farm near Dell Rapids and attended school at St. Mary School. He graduated in 1940. He enlisted in the US Navy and served in WWII until he was honorably discharged. He returned to Dell Rapids and attended South Dakota State. He married Phyllis Wheeler on June 14, 1946 at St. Mary Catholic Church in Dell Rapids. The couple made their home on the family farm. In 1959 they moved to Alexandria, MN where they owned and operated a summer resort on Lake Miltona. Vince and Phyllis moved back to Dell Rapids in 1966. He was the building inspector for Minnehaha County until his retirement. In retirement, Vince and Phyllis spent their summers at their lake home on Lake Miltona.

Vince was an avid outdoorsman who loved to hunt, fish and garden. He won a soil conservation award during his farming career for being the first farmer in South Dakota to contour farming. He was a member of St. Mary Catholic Church, the Dell Rapids Sportsman Club and the Dell Rapids American Legion Post.

He is preceded in death by his parents, his four brothers, Harold, Melvin (Geneva), Otto and Yvo and his sister, Lois (George) Schwebach.

He is survived by his wife of 71 years, Phyllis of Brookings; his children, Sharon (Randy) Ostraat of Buckeye, AZ, Mary (Mike) Campbell of Brandon, Steve (Loreen) Bunkers of Brookings and Anne (Gary) Schwartz of Renner; his brother, Terry (Emily) Bunkers of Buckeye, AZ; his eight grandchildren, five great grandchildren and his many friends and extended family.

Memorials may be directed to St. Mary Catholic Church.

Marjorie (Hodgson) Lemme

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Marjorie LemmeMarjorie Alene Lemme, age 97, of Sioux Falls, SD died on Thursday, July 27, 2017 at the Alcester Care and Rehab Center in Alcester, SD.  On-line condolences may be left at the George Boom Funeral Home website.

Funeral services will be held at 10:00 AM on Tuesday, August 1, 2017 at East Side Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls with burial to follow at Woodlawn Cemetery in Sioux Falls, SD. Visitation will begin at 5:00 PM on Monday at George Boom Funeral Home in Sioux Falls with the family present to greet friends from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM. In lieu of flowers please direct any memorials to the East Side Lutheran Church Building Fund.

Marjorie Alene was born on December 7. 1919 in Wessington Springs, SD to Robert and Daisy (Gillette) Hodgson. Marjorie was raised and received her education in Wessington Springs graduating from Wessington Springs High School in 1936. Marjorie received her teaching degree at Dakota State and Augustana College.Marjorie moved with her family to Madison SD in 1937. She was united in marriage with Lester LeRoy Lemme on February 4, 1946 at First Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls. Marjorie and Lester first lived in Madison where she taught country school until making their home in Sioux Falls, SD in 1960. Following 44 years of teaching Marjorie retired in 1982. Lester passed away on December 9, 2007.

Marjorie was a member of East Side Lutheran Church, Life Member of the South Dakota Teachers Association and the Sioux Falls Retired Teachers Association.

Marjorie enjoyed crocheting, embroidering, baking, gardening, reading and playing the card game UNO. Above all she loved spending time with her family and friends. Marjorie was a loving wife, sister, sister-in-law, aunt, cousin and friend who will be dearly missed.

Grateful for having shared her life are: two nieces, Corinne Severtson of Eden Prairie, MN and Julie Hodgson Hawkinson and her husband, Dan of Brookings, SD; nephew, Jim Hodgson of Dell Rapids, SD; many great nieces & nephews; sister-in-law, Donna Jorgensen of Sioux Falls, SD; many friends; and a host of Lester’s nieces, nephews, great nieces & nephews and other relatives.

She is preceded in death by her parents; husband, Lester; one sister, Hazel Cummings; and a brother, Harry Hodgson.