Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media, Author at Big Sioux Media Sports Network

Five Quarrier Wrestlers Qualify for State

February 24, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

The Dell Rapids Quarrier wrestling team participated in the Region 1A meet on Saturday, February 22nd, in Watertown. The Quarriers finished sixth as a team with 71.5 points. Sioux Falls Roosevelt finished first with 196 team points, Brookings was second with 178 points, Watertown finished third with 158 points, West Central fourth with 130 points, and Madison fifth with 118.5 points.

Individually for Dell Rapids, five wrestlers qualified for the state meet. Leon Maxwell placed first in the 220-pound weight class. Jacob Habeger finished third in the 285-pound weight class. Brock Reinhiller had a fourth place finish in regions in the 170-pound weight class. Austin Eulberg also placed fourth in the 160-pound weight class, and Scott Warwick finished fourth in the 113-pound weight class.

All five wrestlers will participate in the 55th Annual South Dakota State A Tournament on Friday, February 28th, and Saturday, March 1st, in Rapid City. The tournament will be webcast live on South Dakota Public Broadcasting’s website, sports.sdpb.org.

KSFY/KWSN SD Broadcasters Prep Basketball Poll

February 24, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

Regular Season Week 11 – Feb 24, 2014

Boys
Class AA
1 – Huron (18-1), 75 (15)
2 – Pierre Riggs (17-2), 57
3 – SF Roosevelt (15-3), 42
4 – Rapid City Stevens (16-3), 30
5 – Sioux Falls Washington (11-8), 8, unranked last week
Also Receiving Votes: Yankton (12-8), 6, #5 last week; Brandon Valley (11-8), 3
Blog Notes: Huron, which received unanimous support for the fifth straight week, continued a strong hold on the top spot in AA. The Tigers have put together a 13-game winning streak, when they have had a 65.38-to-44.15 point differential. On the season, Huron, which faces equally red-hot #2 Pierre at home on Feb. 25, have outscored opponents, 1,222 (64.32)-to-891 (46.89) or a 17.43 ppg victory margin. #2 Pierre Riggs, which has won 10 straight games, own a 64.79-to-55.21 per game or a 9.58 victory margin. They have 13 wins by 10 points or more and sit 2-1 in games decided by five points or less. #3 Sioux Falls Roosevelt has five straight wins and 9-of-10 overall. In 13 of the past 15 games, they have held opponents to 50 points or less. Additionally, they own eight wins by double digit margins, stand 4-1 in games decided by five points or less and are 1-1 in OT. The Rough Riders have a 60.2-to-47.89 or 13.13 victory margin and finish with a road game at Lincoln on Feb. 27. Holding firm at #4 is Rapid City Stevens, which has won five straight games after a 57-42 win over Rapid City Central as Steve Schaefer scored 24. Stevens, which has two wins over #3 Roosevelt, owns an 1180 (62.10 ppg)-to-986 (51.89 ppg) scoring differential or 10.21 ppg. Stevens has nine wins by double digit totals and stand 6-2 in games decided by eight points or less.. Moving into the poll was previously unranked Sioux Falls Washington, which dropped a 50-48 decision to #3 Roosevelt. The Warriors, which barely edged out Yankton (8-to-6 in ballot points), have gone 3-1 in OT games, playing in OT in four of the last seven games. SFW has won 5-of-8 with the three losses by a combined seven points. The Warriors, which have won eight of the past 12 games, are 6-6 in five point games and 2-1 in games decided by one point. Yankton dropped out of the top five after two losses this week. Overall, the Bucks have a 55.3-to-49.9 ppg margin.

Class A
1 – Madison (19-0), 70 (15)
2 – Sioux Valley (17-3), 49
3 – Clark-Willow Lake (18-2), 40, #5 last week
4 – Pine Ridge (17-2), 35
5 – Aberdeen Roncalli (16-3), 24, #3 last week
Blog Notes: Madison was the unanimous choice in Class A for the ninth time in 11 weeks as they moved to 19-0 on the season. The Bulldogs, which are the only unbeaten high school basketball team in South Dakota, has now extended their overall winning streak to 31 games. The Bulldogs, which stand 11-0 against teams with winning records this season, have built an overall 67.1-to-46.26 ppg margin and will host Milbank Area on Feb. 24. #2 Sioux Valley closed out the regular season with an 86-49 win over Garretson, ending a two-game slide. The Cossacks have a commanding 1,312-to-841 scoring margin (65.6-to-42.05 ppg). Moving into the #3 spot is a sizzling Clark-Willow Lake squad, which has a 15-game winning streak following a 53-39 road win over Aberdeen Roncalli. The Cyclones, which has nine straight wins by double digit margins, maintain a 62.3 ppg-to-44.95 ppg margin. Holding firm at #4 is Pine Ridge, which has a three-game winning streak since a loss to Aberdeen Roncalli. The Thorpes, which have held 14-of-20 opponents to under 50 points, own a 68.75-to-51.0) ppg differential. Pine Ridge has 12 wins by double digit margins and stand 5-1 in games decided by eight points or less. Aberdeen Roncalli dropped to #5 after the loss to Clark-Willow Lake. The Cavaliers, which have won 12-of-14 games, own 13 wins by double digits this season. They have a 59.0-to-43.05 ppg differential.

Class B
1 – James Valley Christian (19-1) 75 (15)
2 – Langford Area (17-2), 59, #3 last week
3 – White River (15-4) 33, #2 last week
4 – Potter County (18-2), 31, #5 last week
5 – Sanborn Central-Woonsocket (16-3), 24, #4 last week
Also Receiving Votes: Oelrichs (16-4), 3
Blog Notes: For the third straight week, top-ranked James Valley Christian was the unanimous choice in B. JVC has concluded the regular season on a 16-game winning streak, the longest in Class B. The Vikings, which has registered 14 wins by double digit totals, also have scored 70 points or more in 11-of-20 games. JVC, which is 4-1 in games decided by eight points or less, has a 1,389 (69.45)-to-1,035 (51.75) ppg margin. Previously #2 and now #3 White River fell to New Underwood, 47-46, and suffered its second straight for the first time since December 15-16, 2010 when the Tigers dropped games to McLaughlin and St. Francis Indian School. White River rebounded with an 81-52 win over Todd County. White River, the highest scoring team in Class B at 75.0 ppg., has compiled a 29.32 victory margin. Langford Area moved into the #2 spot after surviving a scare against Aberdeen Christian, 54-52, and defeated Warner. The two wins extended the Lions’ winning streak to eight straight. Overall this season, Langford Area has 13 wins by margins of 10 points, including five of the past six opponents. They have held 13 opponents to 50 points or less and eight others to less than 40. Langford Area, which is 3-0 in games decided by eight points or less, has a 61.53-to-40.37 ppg margin. Potter County moved into the #4 spot after extending their winning streak to 15 games. The Battlers own a 70.75-to-47.25 ppg margin. Falling to #5 was Sanborn Central-Woonsocket, which had a 1-1 week, including a 77-66 loss to #1 JVC. SC-Woonsocket, which has won 8-of-9, has a 69.74-to-48.26 ppg margin. Also receiving votes this week is Oelrichs, which has seven straight wins and 13 in 14 games. The Tigers have a 72.35-to-52.75 ppg margin (19.6 victory margin) and nine times over have scored over 80 points in a game.. Also of note, Parker has won 10 straight games after a 54-49 win over Hanson. In their current stretch, they have a 734-to-466 point per game edge and a 75.56-to-46.33 ppg margin or 29.23 victory differential. Faith also is hot with a 10-game winning streak, winning nine of those games by double digit totals. In addition, Steve Koch of Harding County recorded a rarity, a triple double (16 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists) in an 83-46 win over Lemmon.

Girls
Class AA
1 – Mitchell (18-1), 73 (13)
2 – Sioux Falls Washington (17-2), 62 (2)
3 – SF O’Gorman (14-5), 40
4 – Sturgis Brown (15-5), 27, #5 last week
5 – Sioux Falls Roosevelt (10-9), 12, #4 last week
Also Receiving Votes: Spearfish (14-4), 8; Pierre (11-8), 2; Brookings (12-7), 1
Blog Notes: For the third straight week, Mitchell was the near-unanimous choice for #1, polling 13-of-15 first place votes. The Kernels, which own a nine-game winning streak, have a 65.11-to-44.57 point per game differential or a victory margin of 20.54 ppg. Mitchell has held 15-of-19 opponents to 50 points or less, including seven of the last nine. Mitchell’s star guard Macy Miller now has 571 points (30.05 ppg, 19 games), including 1,724 career points which leaves her just 37 points from setting the school’s career scoring record. #2 SF Washington received two first place votes after two more wins by 10 points or more. Through 19 games, SF Washington has 17 double digit wins and a 61.74-to-37.0 ppg differential and a victory margin of 24.74 ppg. Next for Washington will be a home game with #3 Sioux Falls O’Gorman on Feb. 25. #3 Sioux Falls O’Gorman, which has seven wins in eight games, maintain a 56.63-to-44.32 ppg margin. The Knights have held 13 opponents under 50 points and six under 30. Moving up to #4 was Sturgis Brown, which defeated Harrisburg, 62-58, as they ended the regular season on a three-game winning streak. They own a 51.0-to-42.55 ppg margin. Sturgis is 6-3 in games decided by eight points or less. They accumulated eight wins by double digit margins. SF Roosevelt, which was 1-2 this week, fell to #5 in the rankings. The Rough Riders, who are 5-8 against teams with winning records, will host Sioux Falls Lincoln on Feb. 25. Also receiving votes was Spearfish, Pierre and Brookings.

Class A
1 – St. Thomas More (18-1), 75 (15)
2 – Winner (19-1), 59
3 – Pine Ridge (18-2), 43
4 – Elk Point-Jefferson (18-2), 31
5 – West Central (17-2), 17
Blog Notes: St. Thomas More continued to control the top of Class A after receiving unanimous support for the fourth straight week after the Cavaliers finished the season with eight straight wins. The Cavaliers, which has 16 wins by double digit margins, have a 67.79-to-35.05 ppg differential or a 32.85 victory margin. This season, STM is 16-0 vs. South Dakota opponents, 15 of them by double digit margins Sitting at #2 is Winner, who closed the season with two wins by a margin of 168-to-59. The Warriors, with eight consecutive wins, has a 72.15-to-37.55 point differential, or a 34.6 ppg victory margin. Ten times in 20 games, Winner has scored at least 76 points, including the last four. They have 18 wins by double digit margins and 14 by at least 20 points or more. #3 Pine Ridge finished the regular season with a pair of double digit wins. The Thorpes, which have won 11-of-12 games, own a 74.25-to-43.95 ppg differential or a 30.3 victory margin. #4 EPJ extended their winning streak to nine with wins over Centerville, 61-39; and Tea Area, 79-28. EPJ has a 1,264-to-892 or 63.2-to-44.6 ppg differential. The Huskies have 17 wins by double digit margins, including the 8-of-9. #5 West Central closed out the regular season with a 12-game winning streak and now has a 54.58 ppg-to-39.53 ppg scoring differential. They have 15 wins by margins of 10 points or more and have held opponents to under 40 points 10 times. Also of note, Clark-Willow Lake (17-3) has put together 10 straight wins.

Class B
1 – Sully Buttes (18-1), 74 (14)
2 – Warner (17-2), 54 (1)
3 – Sanborn Central-Woonsocket (19-1), 49
4 – DeSmet (18-2), 29
5 – Lemmon (19-1), 10
Also Receiving Votes: Hanson (18-2), 4; Castlewood (16-2), 4; Summit (18-2), 1
Blog Notes: For the third straight week, Sully Buttes held the top spot in Class B. This week, they polled 14-of-15 first-place votes. Since a loss to DeSmet on Jan. 18, the Chargers have strung together nine straight wins, including seven by margins of at least 32 points or more. The Chargers have a 66.58-to-30.63 ppg differential or a victory margin of 35.95. Sully Buttes, 10-1 against opponents with winning records, has held 16-of-19 opponents to under 40 points. Warner, which received a first-place vote, held firm at #2 as they stretched their winning streak to 13 games heading to postseason. Warner, which has held 18-of-20 opponents to 43 points or less have a 57.45-to-31.55 ppg differential. The defending champs have 18 wins by double digit margins, including 15 by at least 20 points or more. At #3 is another hot team in Sanborn Central-Woonsocket, which closed the regular season on a 12-game winning streak. In total, they have built a 61.4-to-36.8 ppg differential and a victory margin of 24.6 ppg. The Blackhawks own 14 wins by double digit margins and sit 4-0 games decided by eight points or less. #4 DeSmet closed with five straight wins and a 53.25-to-29.6 ppg margin. They have held 14-of-20 opponents to under 30 points which is unmatched by any team in any of the three girls classes. In total, DeSmet has held 15 opponents to 40 points or less. Previously #5 Estelline fell out of the rankings after a pair of losses. Moving up to #5 was Lemmon, which has a 15-game winning streak heading into the postseason. The Cowgirls, which stand 14-0 vs. South Dakota opponents, own a 61.55-to-38.05 ppg margin. Lemmon has held 11 opponents to 40 points or less and three under 20. Lemmon owns 15 wins by double digit totals and a 3-1 in games decided by eight points or less. Also receiving support in the poll was Hanson, Castlewood and Summit, which has eight straight wins. Hanson has won six straight and Castlewood, four. Other teams on winning streaks but not receiving votes included Avon, 8; Faith, 7; and Ethan, five.

Dell Rapids School Board Meeting: 2/24/14

February 23, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

The Dell Rapids School Board will meet in regular session on Monday, February 24th, at 7:00 p.m. in the HS/MS DDN room. Some of the items on the agenda include discussion and consideration of designating the old elementary building as surplus, approval of the United Way application for Haven, the administrative report, and other committee reports. The full agenda can be found by clicking here.

The school board meeting will be webcast live on Big Sioux Media and then will be available as an archive.

Quarriers End Season with Win

February 23, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

The Dell Rapids Quarrier boys basketball team ended their regular season with a win, their third in a row. Dell Rapids defeated the Lennox Orioles 71-47 on Friday, February 21st.

Dell Rapids jumped out to a 16-11 after the first quarter and led by just four points at halftime, 27-23. The Quarriers were able to extend their lead after the third quarter to 54-43. In the fourth quarter, the Quarriers defense held Lennox to just four points, while the offense scored another 17 for the win.

Head coach Jason Fersdahl said, “Lennox is an athletic and physical team, and they were able to get off to a quick start by pounding the offensive glass against us. After the first quarter, we did a much better job of boxing out, and that allowed us to get out and run in transition offense. Defensively we were flying around all game long, and we really made them work for quality looks at the basket, especially in the second half. For the night we had four players in double figures, giving us the balanced scoring that we have not had in the past few games.”

Ty Hoglund had a team-high 17 points along with three rebounds. Zach White and Cody Nielsen each had 13 points in the game. White also had four rebounds and three assists. Ben Hammer finished the game with 12 points, seven rebounds, and five blocked shots.

“Zane Schumaker had a very good floor game, finishing the night with seven assists, as he was able to drive into the lane and find his teammates for great looks at the basket. Our post players did a great job of going strong to the basket, and we will need to continue to do that heading into postseason play,” said Fersdahl.

Dell Rapids finishes the regular season with a record of 13-7. The Quarriers currently are seeded second in Region 3A. The Region 3A tournament begins on Tuesday, March 4th, with the top two seeds receiving byes in the first round.

	1	2	3	4	F
Lennox	11	12	20	4	47
Dell Rapids	16	11	27	17	71

JV Results:
The Dell Rapids JV rally fell a little short on Friday night. The Quarriers lost 36-42. Dell Rapids trailed at all of the quarter breaks, but had a chance to tie the game in the final minute. Lennox shot 7 -14 from the free-throw line, while Dell Rapids was 2-2. This proved to be the difference in the game. Sheldon Siemonsma led the Quarriers with 13 points in the game. Mason Peter had nine points, and Hunter Hansen finished with six points. The JV team finished their season with a 9-8 record.

Jr. Sioux Wheelers Holding Fundraiser Event and Hosting Conference Tournament

February 22, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

The Junior Sioux Wheelers will be holding a fundraiser event on Thursday, February 27th. The event will be held at Axtell Middle School in Sioux Falls, SD at 7:00 p.m. The event is a basketball challenge, the Wheelers will be playing against the Shriners. Some of the Wheeler players are also “Shriner kids”.

Then on Saturday and Sunday, March 22nd and 23rd, the Wheelers will be hosting the NWBA Junior Division Northern Conference Tournament. There will be teams from Minnesota, Nebraska, and Kansas attending the tournament. The games will be held at the Dell Rapids High School gym. There will be six JV teams and two prep teams competing in the tournament. Two senior players from the Wheelers, Michael Mitchell and Hunter Gronli, are from Dell Rapids.

Internationally Renowned Violinist to Perform with Aberdeen University/Civic Symphony

February 22, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

ABERDEEN, S.D. – Internationally renowned violinist Stephanie Chase will join the Aberdeen University/Civic Symphony at its winter concert, “Musical Adventures,” on March 1.

The concert, which begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Johnson Fine Arts Center theater, will feature three romantic masterpieces. The program will open with the “Overture to Struensee” by Giacomo Meyerbeer and also includes Richard Strauss’s “Waltzes from Der Rosenkavalier.”

Chase will perform Felix Mendelssohn’s “Violin Concerto in E Minor” with the orchestra, conducted by Northern State University Associate Professor of Strings Robert Vodnoy.

Audience members will have an opportunity to meet Chase and learn about the music at a pre-concert conversation, which begins at 6 p.m. in Berggren Recital Hall.

As part of a multiple day visit to Aberdeen, Chase will also join Vodnoy and members of the AUCS string section for a chamber music concert at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 27 in NSU’s Krikac Auditorium. That program will feature the music of Telemann, Vivaldi and Haydn. The concerts are sponsored by Dacotah Bank. The AUCS also receives a grant from the South Dakota Arts Council.

Hillary Sward of Dell Rapids is part of the symphony playing the horn.

About Chase

Chase has been hailed as “one of the violin greats of our era” by Newhouse Newspapers and has had solo appearances with more than 170 orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, Atlanta Symphony, Hong Kong Philharmonic and London Symphony Orchestra. Her interpretations are acclaimed for their “elegance, dexterity, rhythmic vitality and great imagination” (Boston Globe), “stunning power” (Louisville Courier-Journal) and “matchless technique” (BBC Music Magazine. Chase is a top medalist of the prestigious International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow and is a recipient of the esteemed Avery Fisher Career Grant.

Born in Illinois to one of America’s oldest and most prominent families, Chase’s first violin teachers were her mother and her father, Bruce Chase, who was a noted music arranger and composer as well as a violinist. At age 2 she was already performing in public. She debuted with the Chicago Symphony six years later as the youngest winner ever of the orchestra’s Youth Competition. She made her Carnegie Hall debut as soloist with the National Orchestral Association at age 18. Shortly thereafter she became a favorite pupil of the legendary Belgian violinist Arthur Grumiaux. She is currently a professor of violin at the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development at New York University and gives master classes at prominent music conservatories throughout the United States.

Chase performed Samuel Barber’s “Violin Concerto” with Robert Vodnoy and the Northwest Indiana Symphony in 1992 in Orchestra Hall in Chicago, Ill. She plays a 1742 Petrus Guarnerius violin, which is noted for its power and beautiful tonal qualities.

About the March 1 program

Mendelssohn (1809-1847) was a brilliant composer, conductor, pianist and educator. His great “Violin Concerto in E Minor” was his last major orchestral work. It is one of the most popular and frequently performed violin concertos in the repertoire. He wrote the work for his friend Ferdinand David, the great German violinist. The two men were kindred spirits: they were born one year apart and were both famous child prodigies.

Meyerbeer (1791-1864) was a Prussian-Jewish composer who has been described as the most successful stage composer of the 19^th century. Meyerbeer, born Jakob Liebmann Beer, first trained as a pianist. By age 24, he was composing successful operas. Meyerbeer composed the overture and incidental music to his brother Michael’s play “Struensee” in 1856. The overture is considered by many critics to be Meyerbeer’s finest instrumental work.

The date 1864 figures prominently in the selection of music for this concert. It is the death-year of Meyerbeer and the birth year of Strauss, whose music is also featured on the program.

Strauss (1864-1949) is one of the most important German Post-Romantic composers of the late 19^th and early 20^th century. “Der Rosenkavalier” is comedy about the aristocratic Marschallin and her young lover Octavian, Count Rofrano. The libretto, by Hofmannsthal, is loosely based on a play by Moliere. The Marschallin has a boorish cousin named Baron Ochs who has a fiancée name Sophie, the daughter of a rich bourgeois. When Octavian presents Sophie with a Silver Rose as a tribute of Ochs’ love, the young people fall in love.

About the Feb. 27 program

Chase will open the Feb. 27 program with Bela Bartok’s “Sonata for Solo Violin.” Bartok’s solo sonata was commissioned by the great English violinist Yehuda Menuhin and premiered in 1944, one year before Bartok’s death. The monumental work is in four movements and is one of the greatest challenges for violinists to perform. In the second half of the concert, Vodnoy will join Chase for a performance of “Sonata for Two Violins in F Major” by Franz Joseph Haydn. The program will conclude with the “Concerto for Four Violins in B Minor” by Antonio Vivaldi, with soloists Chase, Vodnoy, Kira Makeever and Lindsey Fluharty. The four soloists will be accompanied by a chamber orchestra of strings and piano from the Aberdeen University/Civic Symphony.

Tickets

Tickets for the orchestra concert are $13 for adults and $11 for seniors. The box office opens at 5:45 p.m. March 1. Tickets for the chamber music concert are $7 for adults and $5 for seniors. The box office opens at 6:45 p.m. Feb. 27. Students are admitted free to both concerts. Tickets for both concerts may also be purchased in advance at Engel Music in downtown Aberdeen.

For more information, call 605-626-2497 or visit www.aberdeensymphony.org. To learn more about Chase, visit www.stephaniechase.com.

News release courtesy of Northern State University

Photo courtesy of Joshua John Frachiseur, NSU assistant professor of theater

Baltic Picks up Win on Big 4th Quarter

February 22, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

Nathan Klein

The Baltic Bulldogs defeated the Dell Rapids St Mary Cardinals in boys basketball action on Friday, February 21st, in Baltic. The Bulldogs earned a 58-36 win over the Cardinals. Dell Rapids St Mary held a four-point lead after the first quarter at 11-7. Neither team scored in the first couple of minutes in the second quarter, but by the half-way mark, the Cardinals were hanging on to a 13-11 lead. Baltic finished the second quarter on a 13-5 run and held a 24-18 halftime lead. The Bulldogs pushed their halftime lead to 10 by the 4:00 mark of the 3rd quarter, but St Mary ended the quarter on a 7-2 run to pull within five at 30-35. The fourth quarter proved to be difficult for the Cardinals as they didn’t score their first field goal until 2:00 left in the game. By that time the Bulldogs reeled off 18 points to give them the win.

St Mary was led by Mitch Brown with nine points. Jared Scholten finished with eight points. Ryan Welbig added six points, and Nathan Klein had five points. The Bulldogs were led by David Boer with a game-high 22 points. Joe Muston had 15 points. Baltic finished the game 17-22 from the free-throw line.

The Cardinals fall to 5-14 on the year. St Mary will host the Chester Flyers in their final regular season game on Monday, February 24th.

	1	2	3	4	F
Dell Rapids St Mary	11	7	12	6	36
Baltic	7	17	11	23	58

Highlights:

Thomas Fields

February 21, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

Thomas Dale Fields died in Grand Junction, CO, on Feburary 20, 2014, after heart surgery.

He was born to Dale and Mary Ellen Fields on December 30, 1954, in Dell Rapids SD, and graduated from St. Mary’s High School in Dell Rapids. He worked as an electrician and owned his own business.

Tom is survived by his wife, Kathy, and his children Mariah and Noah; his mother, Mary Ellen Fields of Dell Rapids; his 3 brothers Richard (Melinda) of Fortine MT, Douglas (Linda) of Sioux Falls, SD Dennis (Marcella) of Golden CO; his 3 sisters, Kathy (George) Hanson of Littleton CO, Colleen (Kevin) Smith Ramsey MN, Lisa (John) Rivera of Austin, TX.Tom Joins his dad, Dale Fields in heaven.

VeLoris Daugaard

February 21, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

VeLoris Veronica Vasgaard Gerken Daugaard, 93, died Tuesday, February 11, 2014 at Menorah Manor Nursing Center in St. Petersburg, FL. VeLoris was born May 8, 1920 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the daughter of John H. and Engila L. (Lukken) Vasgaard. She grew up on a farm north of Centerville, SD, attending the Ash Grove Country School, Lennox High School and graduating from Centerville High School in 1938. She graduated from South Dakota State College (now University) with a degree in Home Economics. VeLoris taught school for a short time prior to her marriage. On June 26, 1943 she was united in marriage to Arvid Gerken of Lennox, SD at Yuma, AZ. While they were married the couple had two children, and the family lived in South Dakota California, Nevada and Cincinnati, Ohio.

In 1975 VeLoris moved back to Sioux Falls, and on August 12, 1978 she was united in marriage to Arthur Daugaard, of Dell Rapids, at West Prairie Lutheran Church, Lennox, the church she had grown up attending. She and Art lived in Sioux Falls until 1997 when Art passed away, and then she moved to St. Petersburg to be close to her daughter in 1998. Throughout her adult life, VeLoris was always very active, either working or participating in organizations or activities. She worked as a teacher’s aide and in sales in a department store while in Cincinnati, and several years at Herberger’s in Sioux Falls.

While in Sioux Falls VeLoris was a member of Our Savior’s Lutheran Church where she was active in E.L.C.A. She was also a member of the Sioux Valley Hospital Auxiliary and volunteered at the Senior Center. After moving to Florida she was an active member of Pasadena Community United Methodist Church and The Garden Club in St. Petersburg. She was on the Board and President of her condominium association for eight years. After a fall in September, 2006, she moved into an independent living facility and then an assisted living facility before moving into Menorah Manor in June, 2013. Besides her parents and an older sister, Inez, who died in childhood, and a brother and his wife, Elayton and Vivian Vasgaard, VeLoris was preceded in death by both of her husbands, Arvid on January 26, 1988 and Arthur on July 29, 1997.

Grateful for having shared her life are her two children: Bea (Bill) Rahter, St Petersburg, FL and David (Dianne) Gerken, San Diego, CA; two grandsons: Bill (Charisse) Rahter, Syracuse, UT, and Robert (Elizabeth) Rahter, Windeermere, FL; eight great-grandchldren: Alyssa, Will, Hannah and Bryce in UT and Madeline, Colton, Nathan and Ashton in FL. Also her step-children: Jean (David) Rave, Dell Rapids, SD, Carol (Don) Riswold, Sioux Falls, SD, Janet (Leo) Schwahn, Robbinsdale, MN and Allen (Mary Daugaard) Roy, UT, and their families; her sister and husband, Donna and Orval Fodness, Sioux Falls and brother and wife, John and Patty Vasgaard, Centerville and Mission, TX; and many other family members and friends. Services will begin at 1:30 Tuesday, February 25 at West Prairie Lutheran Church, rural Lennox with burial in the West Prairie Cemetery. Visitation will begin one hour prior to the funeral, also at West Prairie Lutheran. Dindot-Klusmann Funeral Home, Lennox is in charge of arrangements.

Congratulation Grace Williams of Dell Rapids!

February 21, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

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