The 13th Annual Tractor Ride rolled through Garretson on August 7th. The Gazette caught up with organizer Loren Konda post ride.
“This ride was a huge success,” he said. “We had drivers from South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska. We had 37 tractors, 4 wagon riders, and we traveled 65 miles, raising $1,600 for the flood victims of Rock Valley!”
“Kibble Equipment gave us some very tasty donuts and coffee starting out, so I want to thank them for that and giving us a place to park and launch the ride from,” he said. “We had a fantastic lunch provided by C&B Edgerton, with a wonderful crew at Southwest Christian School serving it, and to top it off they had an ice cream machine! I want to thank everyone who helped and everyone who came out to our 13th tractor ride. We’re planning on August 6th 2025 for the next one, so hope to see you there!” See more photos below.
Editor’s Note: When the Gazette reached out to the DSU coaching staff to talk about Oliviyah Thornton we got this big response from Coach Glover, in the form of a great big sports feature he wrote himself about her. To us, that spoke of how much of an impact she’s making at DSU! Thanks Coach Glover! Go get ‘em Liv!
If there are other standout students that our readers would like to know more about, drop us a line with your ideas.
Report by Alex Glover,
Associate Head Men's & Women's Track and Field Coach in Throws / Combined Events for Dakota State University, Madison SD
I had actually reached out to Liv pretty late in the recruiting process. I was looking to have a large recruiting class for the fall of 2022, so I was going through the list of marks in the state of South Dakota and saw that she had thrown well in shot put as a junior at Garretson. Her and her dad, Omar, visited that February and I thought it went really well. She had expressed that she pretty much had her mind made up that she was just going to go to SDSU for school and not do any kind of sports in college before I had reached out to her. If I remember correctly, I offered her a scholarship within the next few days after her visit and she committed a couple weeks after that.
Dakota State University Coach Alex Glover with Olivyah Thronton after her national qualifying throw! //submitted photo
I always make a point to tell all of my recruits that heading into their senior seasons, if they need help with their technique that they can send me videos of them throwing and I will do my best to help them out before they get here to DSU. In early March, she started sending me videos of her throwing both shot put and discus and it was easy to tell that there was a lot of raw potential there. She had never done any kind of rotational shot put yet, which is typical of your average high school shot putter, and her discus technique was interesting, to say the least. It was easy to see that there was a lot of room for potential.
Her first year here at DSU was great. No different than almost every freshman, she was learning a lot of new techniques and was being introduced to hammer throw, as well, so it can be a lengthy process to becoming comfortable with everything. She was extremely inconsistent from meet to meet, which again, is typical for your average freshman, but you could see the speed and explosiveness and I knew that with the way she was progressing that she was eventually going to catch on start hitting some huge throws. She would also never say it because she was pretty quiet as a freshman, but you could tell that she possessed some really great leadership skills. She's much more of a lead by example type of person, but I spent a lot of her freshman year having to tell her to be done throwing for the day. As things started to click, she would throw a million times in a day if she could. As a coach, that is the type of athlete you want. The person that you have to reign back once in a while because they want to work so hard to get better.
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It was a short meeting of the Garretson School Board on Monday, Aug. 12, with only three board members in attendance: new president Natasha Mendoza, Justin VanDeBerg, and Wyatt Compton.
They removed one item from the agenda, which was committee assignments for board members because they wanted the whole board there for that discussion item and Mendoza requested to be added to the administrative reports. She wanted to give a report about the training she’d so far received to be the new board president.
Their first major item was a budget review, and Business Manager Jacob Schweitzer had no changes to present to the board, so it was tabled to be voted on by the next meeting.
The only policy items up for review were informational, no first or second readings or drafts for new policies. The board read over their complaints and conflict resolution policies, and noted that it had not been modified since 2014. Superintendent Guy Johnson said that with updates to state law it was time to look it over and make sure everything was correct, but so far he didn’t see a need for any changes.
With no other business, they went to administrative reports, and Mendoza led off these reports. She attended ASBSD conferences and training seminars and said it was extremely helpful to get her acclimated to her new role as board president.
“I just wanted to give a little bit of a summary of what I did last week,” she said. “On Wednesday, I went to a President training I thought it was really good. This was included in it eight characteristics of effective school boards. I actually met with the same the person who was going to train this in September too. Referring back to the policies we just were speaking about, something that we certainly should utilize more is committees. Committees are a very effective way to sometimes get a lot of work done. Some of the things that were suggested was a policy committee, a budget committee, strategic planning committee and activities committee. So that's something that in future board meetings, we can look at doing more of. A pretty big topic was the use of cell phones or other such devices in schools. A lot of schools are or have adopted policies for this. We've been hearing a lot about schools like Gettysburg right now in the in the news, so they possibly think there might be some legislation coming out at some point as well. I'm sure we'll be talking about that and deep diving into it. Probably ask our teachers, our administrators, what the issues in our school are with it too. There have been numerous studies about the mental health effects that social media has, the bullying that can go along with it. So that might be something we form a committee about.”
Superintendent Guy Johnson then gave his report.
“Teacher in-service is starting next week, so summer is pretty much over. We’ve got three days scheduled with a lot of content for our teachers and staff,” he said.
Aside from required state mandated information, teachers will be briefed by representatives of Children’s Home Society to help them recognize signs of abuse, and teachers will undergo CPR training.
Supt. Johnson reported that the water damage in the FFA building has been repaired and the source of the problem found. When the roofers found no problems in the area, Steve’s Electric and Plumbing did an intense search and found a huge clog in the floor drain. They cleared the clog, and replaced the drain pipe with a wider-width drain, a deeper basin, and a much larger pan underneath the HVAC unit, which should clear the standing water problem. Intek Cleaning and Restoration is coming on August 29th and after that, they will decide on what materials the walls should be replaced with to prevent future mold issues.
Elementary Principal Katie Hoekman gave her report, stating that she and Middle School/High School Principal Chris McGregor attended the South Dakota Principals and Associated School Board events last week and said they were productive. She told the board that they were gearing up for the start of the year.
“This week, we have our kindergarten one-on-one meetings,” Hoekman said. “Students in kindergarten get to come in and meet their teacher. Teachers get to do a little assessment on them and stuff, and kids get to see their classrooms, and parents fill out some forms and things for us as well.”
“August 20th, we have Open House with elementary. We're going to do something a little bit different this year,” Hoekman said. “I know, in the newsletter it said that we're just going to do a six o'clock time, but we're going to offer two times. I said that to parents today, six o'clock and a seven o'clock times. And we're going to, one, want to talk with parents about our SOAR initiative this year, which stands for Safe, Optimistic, Accountable, and Respectful. Mr. Steckler is going to be there as well, and talking about expectations at activities too. So just maybe about 10 minutes is all we're asking for parents to commit to. But I like to be able to talk with parents as well before they go to their classrooms. We have first day of school on August 22nd and then first day of preschool is August 26th.”
Hoekman is also in charge of curriculum updates and she had plenty to report about this as well.
“As far as curriculum updates, like I said, we went to a curriculum directors meeting there at the conference last week. We'll have the DOE meetings on zoom this year as well, and then other curriculum director meetings throughout the year.”
“On Thursday this week, middle school, high school staff are coming in, and we're going to go through a six-hour training with the new curriculum that they have received for this school year, and looking at that and preparing them for that. And then this year, Social Studies will be our big review this year. So just letting you all know, because next year, is the year the new standards have to be implemented. We have received enough books that have all the K 12 standards in them, so going to utilize that in our review so we can see what standards have we been teaching and what standards do we now need to be teaching and which ones overlap. We did have three teachers attend the South Dakota civics and history summit that was this past summer, so we’ll be utilizing that knowledge. And they actually got a stipend for going to that. So hopefully those teachers will be key in developing what curriculum we're looking at for next year.”
Chris McGregor had little to add to the principals’ report, save that he was able to attend the National Principal’s Association convention in Tennessee this year, and that it was both very uplifting personally and professionally satisfying, with good ideas and practices he’ll be applying to make him better at his job.
With nothing else on the agenda, the board adjourned. The next regular meeting of the Garretson School Board will be held on Monday, September 9 at 6:00 p.m. in the Garretson School Library.
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Over the past month, several children have been participating in Fit Kids, a 4-week summer program run by The Exercise Place owner Bailey Tempel.
One of their activities has been "Dodgeball Gauntlet," where participants get to dodge, weave, and move as quickly as possible through an obstacle course.
"[It's] a program meant for all youth, ages 6-12, with all different types of athletic history or just starting," said Tempel.
This summer has been the program's second year, and has been popular with those who have attended. Between 10-20 participants received agility training, endurance training, and worked on building strength in both one-on-one and group formats for an hour, two times per week. During those sessions, they are not only taught proper form for certain exercises, but they learn about good warm-ups and stretching, important components of any exercise program.
The second year confirmed that this type of program is wanted in Garretson, as it was just as popular as the first year. Tempel is making big plans for the third year already. To keep abreast of news regarding next summer's program, Tempel said she posts throughout Facebook and puts up flyers, and has great success with word of mouth.
"We already cannot wait for next year," Tempel said. "We try to plan our class times around other sports and camps. We’re hoping for two sessions again next year like last. We’re aiming for June and July next year!"
The Henry G. Fix Post 23 meeting opened on Thursday, August 1st at 7:52 pm. The meeting was opened by Commander Jon Schmidt with a salute to the Colors, POW/MIA observance, the Pledge of Allegiance, and Preamble to the American Legion Constitution. Chaplain Lampe offered the prayer. 35 members were present.
A special thank you was given to Mike Swenson who graciously donated the corn and cucumbers. The minutes of the previous meeting were presented and approved. The finance and social reports were approved. Bills were approved for payment.
Special guests were Department Commander Kevin Morello, Auxiliary State President AnnaMae Warnier, National Executive Committeeman Denny Brenden, Department Vice Kevin Hempel, Department Adjutant C.P “Van” Van Delist, Department Historian Fred Lee, and District 7 Auxiliary President Joyce Smith.
Commander Smidt turned meeting over to Cheryl Lyngen for guest recognition. The National Good Deed Award was presented to Jakob Gnadt, Brecken Weir, and Levi Top. Girls State attendees were Jade Bertotti, Eliza Potter, and Courtney Rogich. Boys State participants were Noah Schotzko and Calvin Larson.
Brian Siemonsma introduced the baseball coaches: 8U Coaches Aaron Christensen & Sam Johnson were not in attendance. 10U Coach Kevin Steckler, 14U Coach Cody Linneweber, and 16U Coaches Kiley Buettner & Kevin Jessen each thanked the Legion for our support and discussed how the teams did this season. Brian gave the 8U recap and presented the Post with a plaque from the 8U team. All the coaches agreed that the support Post 23 provides has improved youth baseball in Garretson. The coaches also praised Brian Siemonsma for his work as Post 23 baseball coordinator.
Teacher of the Year Jacob Heumiller was recognized by Commander Schmidt. Jacob thanked the Legion for the award and discussed how honored he is to be part of the Garretson Community and school. Commander Schmidt also recognized Garrick & Carrie Moritz from the Garretson Gazette for their support of our Post and programs. Unit 23 and guests departed following the presentations.
Service Officer report was given by Nancy Grandy. A thinking of you card was sent to Tom Vandersnick. A happy birthday card was sent to Owen Wiese. A condolence card was sent to Lois Wiese, Meg McPadden, and Sean McPadden on the passing of Owen Wiese. Nancy passed out the August Post newsletter. Nancy Grandy was recognized for her selection as the South Dakota Legionnaire of the Year! Congratulations to Nancy for this achievement.
The membership report was given by Nancy Grandy. She reported that our 2025 goal is 201 members. Go-getters will receive their membership cards next week. Our September goal is 50%. We currently have a total of 99 renewed members at this point. That puts us at 49.3% right out of the gate. This is largely due to individuals taking advantage of the 3 year renewal.
Legislative Officer Paul Evenson had no report. The color guard participated in the Independence Day event, Pack the Park, the 14U State Tournament, and military honors for Owen Wiese.
The bathrooms were discussed. Gary Lyngen has coordinated to have the bathroom work done August 12th for two weeks. Three bids were reviewed for the replacement of the floors for the bathrooms, hallway, and kitchen. The executive committee supported not moving forward with the bids and instead doing a deep cleaning of the floors. A motion passed for the deep cleaning option.
Our next Post meeting will be Thursday, September 5th with the meal at 7 pm and meeting at 8 pm. The next Post breakfast will be October 6th from 9 am to 1 pm with scrambled eggs and ham. The next county meeting will be held in Colton on August 13th with a start time of 7 pm.
Department Commander Kevin Morello provided brief remarks. His theme for the year is “Legion Family Uniting Communities”. He congratulated the Post for the outstanding job we do and how we already are doing great things in Garretson. Kevin also is encouraging posts to donate to his cause which is the Scouting Program.
NEC Brenden thanked the Post for their hospitality and always enjoyed visiting in numerous roles he has held. The National Commander will be visiting South Dakota on 12-13 August in the Black Hills. Paul Evenson discussed how Denny Brenden has been an outstanding friend and Legionnaire during his many years of service. Other Department Officers also thanked the Post for inviting them to our August meeting.
Jim Kurtz reflected on the life of Owen Wiese and his contributions to Post 23 over the years. Owen was a 73 year member, past commander, and served as Historian for 50 years. He was a driving force behind many projects at the Legion as well as in Garretson.
Beth Welch discussed the Post clothing website. If you can’t order online contact Beth and she can help order items.
The monthly raffle drawing took place. There were 4 drawings for July. Winners were: Jerry Hunsley, Joe Schwebach, Ruth Christopherson, Renner Corner, and Todd Pierret. Each will receive $150!
Commander Jon Schmidt closed the meeting with the usual ceremony at 9:07 pm.
Jerry Dean Christensen, age 76, of Garretson, passed away Friday, August 9, 2024, at Palisade Healthcare Center in Garretson. Memorial services will begin at 11:00 AM Thursday, August 15, 2024, at the United Church of Garretson. Interment will precede the service at 10:00 AM Thursday at Summit Hill Cemetery, rural Garretson. Visitation will be from 5:30-7:00 PM Wednesday, at the Minnehaha Funeral Home, Garretson. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the family.
Jerry was born on March 7, 1948, to Alfred Sr and Marvena (Carlson) Christensen. He grew up around the Sioux Falls area and attended Baltic High School. After school he worked for Nordica Frozen Foods in Sioux Falls. He then attended Southeast Area Voc-Tech school for boiler and industrial maintenance and went to work for the Sioux Falls School District at Lincoln High School and Renberg Elementary as a custodian. He married Sue Olson on June 13, 1970, at the Methodist Church in Garretson. They settled in Garretson and Jerry later began working for the Garretson School as a custodian. Additionally, Jerry delivered the newspaper for many years and helped some of his children deliver the paper, so they could earn extra money.
Jerry loved all children and would do anything for his own children and any other children who needed his help. Jerry and Sue had guardianship of their nephew, Leroy Austin, for a period of time. Additionally, they opened their home to countless foster children over the years.
While at Lincoln, Jerry found his love for wrestling. He loved to attend wrestling meets and helped start the wrestling booster club in Garretson. Jerry also coached baseball and softball in Renner and Garretson for years. He loved camping, fishing, and hunting.
Survivors include his wife, Sue; children: Cindi Christensen (Neal Pelham), Aaron (Stacy) Christensen, Will (Janelle) Christensen, Dena (Jerome) Garcia, Alexandria (Jason Hewer) Christensen, and Chandra Christensen; grandchildren: Kailyn and Alaina Garay; Kylie, Mia, Mitchell, and Miles Christensen; Avery Christensen; Faith and Brooks Garcia; Chloe Christensen; Elli Adams; Aryana Franka, Liliah Vande Pol; and Ava Christensen; sisters-in-law: Barb Christensen and Diane Christensen; and many nieces, nephews, and other relatives and friends.
He was preceded in death by his parents, granddaughter Alivia, brothers, Alfred Jr. and Jim, sisters, Thora Krier and Betty Prouty; and a niece Corine Gustafson.
Soccer is off to a "running" start this year, hosting Belle Fouche on Friday and St. Thomas More on Saturday.
The Blue Dragon Soccer Team for 2024. Front Row (L to R): Leighton Kindopp, Harper Andera, Ava Ockenga, Lydia Frerk, Stella Frewaldt, Brooklyn Trudeau, Malena Qualm, Bethany Rusanowski. Back Row: Meiah Olson, Amaya Millwood, Taylor Schmidt, Cortney Rogich, Kaylin Leedy, Kaylynn Leudtke, Jovie Snedeker, Alyssa Olson, Ella Frerk, Anna Ebbing. //photo submitted.
Both West River teams will be facing a roster of 18 players on the Blue Dragon team this year from Garretson and Dell Rapids, with seniors Kaylin Leedy and Cortney Rogich leading their team.
" We started the season on August 5th with the first day of practice and have hit the ground running," said Head Coach Amber Bos (formerly Williamson). "Leedy and Rogich are our two seniors who will be looked at to lead our young team. We have some returning players who have been staples on our team since they were 7th and 8th graders who will also bring a veteran presence to the field.
"On the defensive end, Rogich will be returning in goal as well as an experienced back line in Meiah Olson, Alyssa Olson, and Ava Ockenga. Being called upon to help in the back line, as well as some mid field this season, will be Brooklyn Trudeau, Amaya Millwood and Taylor Schmidt.
"Returning on the offensive side of the field is Andera, Ella Frerk, Anna Ebbing, Leedy, Trudeau, and Millwood.
After a run to Devil's Gulch. //photo submitted
"We are fortunate enough to have a large group of 7th/8th graders joining our team this year as well; Harper Andera, Bethany Rusanowski, Stella Frewaldt, Leighton Kindopp, Lydia Frerk, Taylynn Leudtke, Malena Qualm, and Jovie Snedeker. They will be leaned on to provide some strong minutes throughout the season."
With no shortage of players, the deep roster will help the team play hard this year. The Dragons will take on Belle Fouche on Friday beginning at 5:00 p.m., and St. Thomas More at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. Both games will be at the Athletic Complex in Garretson.
In the first round of State Class B Tournament play on Sunday in Mitchell, the BlueJays won!! The Jays beat the Horned Frogs of Corsica, SD, 8-1.
The day started off with Coach Vanhove and Nick Bonte scrambling to find their gear in Deadwood at the crack of dawn to get back to the game. We stopped in Oacoma so someone could call some dinosaurs before the big game.
Coach Vanhove left the player card up to rookie Tayson Swatek, and he couldn't have messed it up more by leaving our pride and joy, Jack Sparro, off the lineup because Jack was in the bathroom while Tayson was making the card and forgot about him. Jack was upset, to say the least, kicking the water cooler when he got in the dugout and saying, "Why did I even make this trip?"
Labrie started on the mound and during warmups, looked at us and said, "Get someone else ready; my arm hurts," but that didn't stop him from doing what he does best, giving up only 3 hits and making the Frogs look foolish.
Trey Buck took batting practice without a shirt on again and hit a big double off the wall in the first to score 2 runs. Old man Chute looked like his arm might fall off throwing to first but managed to rope two doubles down the left-field fence. Brockhouse stole 3 bases, and Nick had two great hits.
Brady Bonte hit into a double play, and at one point, hit the ball right to the first baseman and didn't even get out of the box, walking back to the dugout in frustration. Vanhove didn't do much other than hitting the ball to the third baseman, and Steckler had a great 2-run RBI but had a slow grounder hit to him at third. The batter tore his hamstring and still made it to first because of such a bad throw. Koch got one at-bat, got beaned, and then was gunned out at home. His dad and uncle will be doing sprints with him in the backyard, getting ready for the next game.
After the game, 605 Sports needed and I mean *needed*—to know who the legend Jack Sparro is, but Jack was not in the mood for his interview and stormed off, getting two burgers before he left. The Jays play Wednesday against Four Corners, which we have no idea who they are or where they are from, but we expect a great game that will come down to the wire. #JaysFlyTogether
1st Place Championship Flight winners: (L to R) Cody Linneweber, Skyler Hoyer, Shea Stoltenberg, Travis Williamson. 1st Place First Flight: (L to R) Chandlar Austin, LeRoy Austin, Gary Eulberg, Audi Baker. 1st Place Second Flight: (L to R) Kayli Coburn, Michael Coburn, Scott Howe, Macie Coburn. //photos by Bob Jacobson
20th Annual Commercial Club Golf Tournament Results
(Straight Flight)
Championship Flight
1st Place w/ 57 score – Cody Linnewebber, Shea Stoltenberg, Travis Williamson and Skyler Hoyer.
2nd Place w/ 57 score – Jason Janssen, Sandy Janssen, Jake Heumiller and Jordan Doane.
3rd Place w/ 61 score – Ernie Smith, Mandy Smith, Jason Williamson, and Leah Williamson.
First Flight
1st Place w/ 64 score – LeRoy Austin, Chandlar Austin, Audie Baker and Gary Eulberg.
2nd Place w/ 65 score – Rod Wolforth, Steve Frerk, Jeff Frerk and Brad Frerk.
3rd Place w/ 67 score – Jeff Johnson, Bryce Kindt, Cherie Kindt and Kacie Kupsky.
Second Flight
1st Place w/ 74 score – Macie Coburn, Scott Howe, Kayli Coburn and Michael Coburn.
2nd Place w/ 74 score – Brenda Jones, Kari Stoltenberg, Renee Nelson and Traci Christensen.
3rd Place w/ 74 score – Sheila Schroeder, Char Johnson, Linda Bly and Sam Williamson.
The other participating teams received door prizes.
Shannon Nordstrom, Art Nordstrom, Jeff Spurling and Norm deWit.
Pete Connell, Collen Nath, Adam Siebenahler and Bobby Holmgren
Scott Altman, Tracy Altman, Jeff Hove and Tina Hove.
Keith Eitreim, Marv Fuerstenberg, Tim von Holt and Kim Schmidt
Bert Risty, Barb Risty, Mark Johnson and Lisa Johnson.
Tim Mallatt, Colleen Mallatt, Steve Carlson and Mary Ann Carlson.
Lourdes Parker, James Eagle Chasing, Michael King and Amber King.
Scott Monger, Ryan Riley, Brendan Fiegen and Shawn Brands.
The weather conditions were 90 degrees F, sunny and very humid, and calm wind.
Thanks to all the helpers – Megan Rollag and Logan Jacobson #5 + #14, Robert Jacobson and Linda Johnson #8, Nora Bonte and Ava Nordstrom on the Putting Green. Ron and Lorie Luke from Garretson Food Center, Inc. served an excellent smoked pork chop meal. A thank you goes to Ernie Smith, Sheila Matthiesen, Julie Gnadt, Afton Heitkamp, Dani Vinz, Dennis Northrup plus all the ground crew at the River Ridge Golf Course and a special thank you to Papik Motors, Inc. for sponsoring the hole in one prizes.
Hole Prizes
Holes #1 & #10 – Closest to the Pin, 3rd Shot off the Green and Fringe – Shea Stoltenberg.
Holes #2 & #11 – Longest Drive in the Fairway – Travis Williamson.
Holes #3 & #12 – Longest Putt – Shea Stoltenberg.
Holes #4 & #13 – Closest to Stakes in the Fairway w/out going past.
Cash prizes
Men’s and Women’s from Steve’s Electric & Plumbing
Men’s – James Eagle Chasing Women’s – Barb Risty
Holes #5 & #14 – Accuracy Hole - Cash prizes.
Holes #6 & #15 – Closest to Pin on 2nd Shot – Steve Frerk.
Holes #6 & #15 – Closest to Shear Magic’s Cooler – Scott Monger.
Putting Contest – Travis Williamson, Colleen Nath and Bryce Kindt.
Holes #7 & #16 – Closest to Stake on the Fairway from Tee Box – Steve’s Electric.
Holes #8 & #17 – Closest to Pin from the Tee Box – Jason Janssen.
Holes #9 & #18 – Longest Women’s Drive in the Fairway – Sandy Janssen.
Skins Game – Mulligan sales were $340. Cody Linneweber’s team won three skins with an eagle on holes #2, #9 and #13. Jeff Johnson’s team won a skin with a birdie on hole #6.
Hole-In-One Prizes from Papik Motors, Inc. included a 2024 Chevrolet Trax and $1,000 credit to spend at Revo.com. Unfortunately, there were no hole-in-one winners in 2024.
Thanks to all the golf participants along with Papik Motors, Inc., the Business Sponsors, River Ridge golf course and staff, Ron Luke and his staff at GFC plus all the hole-in-one workers.
South Dakota's increase of foreign-born population over the past 12 years exceeded the national average by three times, according to theAmerican Community Survey Brief of the most recent U.S. Census Bureau report.
The Lutheran Social Services Center for New Americans, shown in Sioux Falls, S.D., on July 25, 2024, has a variety of programs to help refugees get integrated into American culture and society. (Photo: Mariia Novoselia / South Dakota News Watch)
The state's population of people born overseas grew by 45.5% between 2010 and 2022, or 10,000 people, compared to 15.6% across the entire United States.
Only North Dakota, where the foreign-born population grew from 17,000 to 38,000 people within the same 12 years, had a larger percentage increase.
Nassir Yemam moved to South Dakota in the early 2000s as a refugee from Ethiopia and lives in Sioux Falls.
"I haven't had any bad experience, the people are good. I like the American way of life," he said. "I'm really happy with the place where I am, that's why I stayed here for a very long time."
Weiwei Zhang, state demographer and South Dakota State University professor, said that despite the increase, the number of foreign-born residents in South Dakota is still low, compared to states like California and New York.
In fact, analysis of the American Community Survey Brief shows that South Dakota has the fifth-lowest share of foreign-born residents in the country. Out of South Dakota's estimated 910,000 residents, nearly 32,000, or 3.5%, are from outside of the United States, according to the brief.
Zhang added that the increase in foreign-born population in South Dakota is an extension of the national trend. What's notable, however, is where foreign-born residents come from, she said.
Before 2000, the largest number of people came to South Dakota from Latin America, which was closely followed by Asia and then Europe. Since 2000, more people have been moving to South Dakota from Asia and Africa, moving Latin America to third place.
In 2018, according to anAmerican Immigration Council report, most foreign-born residents in South Dakota were from Guatemala, the Philippines, Mexico, Sudan and Ethiopia.
Financial impact of immigration in South Dakota
Households led by foreign-born residents paid $137.7 million in federal, state and local taxes in 2018, the same report said.
Zhang said some of the industries with the most workers from abroad are manufacturing, health care, transportation, and human and social services.
While official statistics do not contain data on why people might be moving to a particular place, Zhang said she speculates job opportunities, housing supply and existing ties with family or friends might be some of the reasons why people move to South Dakota from overseas.
For some people, moving to the United States is caused by "the fear for their lives and the lives of their family," said Rebecca Kiesow-Knudsen, president and CEO at Lutheran Social Services of South Dakota.
Those people are refugees.
"No individual wishes to become a refugee. That's not something that people desire," Kiesow-Knudsen said.
Current affairs affect where people resettle from
As of July 31, more than 280 refugees have resettled in South Dakota in fiscal year 2024, which started in October, according to theRefugee Processing Center. This is an increase compared to last year's 206 people.
Nassir Yemam follows Orthodox Christianity. There are several Ethiopian Orthodox churches in Sioux Falls, S.D., like this one, shown on July 25, 2024. (Photo: Mariia Novoselia / South Dakota News Watch)
So far, most people came from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Archives from the Refugee Processing Center show that 509 people from there have resettled in South Dakota since 2012.
Ahead of the Democratic Republic of Congo, in terms of arrivals in South Dakota, are Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, and Bhutan with 821 and 1,085 people, respectively.
Kiesow-Knudsen said countries from which people resettle in the United States tend to change based on conflicts that are happening around the world.
Kiesow-Knudsen added that it is difficult for the center to accurately say how many refugees are in the state. The organization only knows of those people who come to it and seek assistance.
"We know that there are many individuals who arrive, maybe in a different part of the country, and decide to move to South Dakota because it's a good place for their families and never talk to us," Kiesow-Knudsen said.
The process behind the scenes
The decision on how many refugees will relocate to the United States starts in the White House, said Kiesow-Knudsen. In 2023, the U.S. government sponsored more than 60,000 refugees to enter the country, according to theLSS Center for New Americans.
For fiscal year 2024, President Joe Biden authorized the admission of up to 125,000 refugees, according to theBureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration. As of July 31, the United States has already welcomed more than 74,000 refugees, according to the Refugee Processing Center.
Kiesow-Knudsen said that once the president signs the determination that authorizes refugee admission, the U.S. Department of State begins a "very robust process" of background checks for individuals, registered as refugees, to gain approval status into the country.
LSS's Center for New Americans is an affiliate of Global Refuge, a nonprofit organization, formerly known as Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service.
Organizations, like the Center for New Americans, start "a back-and-forth conversation" with Global Refuge and local stakeholders about the number of refugees that they can serve, considering factors like employment environment, school situation and housing market, Kiesow-Knudsen said.
"The United States has this wonderful tradition of welcoming refugees and helping to integrate them into the country, and we are just a part of that process to help people become successful," she said.
Center for New Americans consolidated with Multi-Cultural Center
The LSS Center for New Americans began the process of merging with the Multi-Cultural Center of Sioux Falls in October 2022.
Kiesow-Knudsen said the Multi-Cultural Center, which had previously worked with Native American and immigrant populations, was trying to find a new executive director and reached out to the Center for New Americans.
Because the two organizations had been providing similar services and had a lot of synergy, both their boards of directors decided to merge.
"The vision of LSS is that every South Dakotan is healthy, safe and accepted, and that last part is really what the MCC focuses on – that feeling of acceptance in Sioux Falls and in South Dakota, being able to celebrate our community and the diversity that's here," said Valeria Wicker, leading supervisor for the LSS Multi-Cultural Center.
Upon arrival: Community orientation
Kiesow-Knudsen said as a resettlement agency, LSS's Center for New Americans has the responsibility to "make sure that people get integrated into the community."
This means that a few weeks before a refugee lands at the Sioux Falls Regional Airport, the Center for New Americans receives a case file about them. This way, the organization's case management team arranges housing and provides "basic, 'What do I need to have in my home in order to live there?' items," Kiesow-Knudsen said.
The team then meets the refugee at the airport, provides them with interpretation and translation services, takes them to their new home and welcomes them with a culturally appropriate meal.
Soon afterwards, new arrivals are invited to take part in community orientation, which spans two weeks. Ethiopia native Yemam remembers his orientation as "very, very helpful."
He said the program covered topics like getting a job, doing groceries and "starting a new life in America." To Yemam, this means "depending on yourself."
Yemam said the center paid a lot of attention to preparing refugees to enter the workforce by connecting them with different opportunities and helping them get ready for job interviews.
"Some people who come to the United States get the feeling that when they come here, dreams come true, but life is not easy the way you think," he said. "To make life easy, you need to work hard. That's what the American dream is like."
Yemam works at the African Community Center of Sioux Falls, providing services to African immigrants and their families.
Kiesow-Knudsen said the federal government provides financial assistance to refugees for up to eight months, which is "a quick turnaround."
She added that orientation leaders often invite members of the Sioux Falls community, representatives from law enforcement, Falls Community Health, the school district and more.
One of Yemam's biggest dreams is to send his 17-year-old son to college.
"My whole success is his future," he said. "I tell him that if he works hard on his education after high school, he will have a better life for 40 years."
English 'is the key' to enjoying life in America
Aside from community orientation, the Center for New Americans also provides English classes that can range in length, depending on the student's fluency.
"English here, in this country, is the key," Yemam said. "The more you speak English and the more you understand English, the more you enjoy life."
Kiesow-Knudsen said the process of acquiring a driver's license can be long for refugees, and not speaking English can make it particularly difficult. She said the center offers classes in several languages to help people understand the basics of what they will need to pass the written examination.
Yemam said he had driven a car with a manual transmission before coming to the United States, so he was able to pass the driving exam with ease. He recalls the first vehicle he bought here, a $300 Nissan.
"It was a big deal for me," he said.
Community keeps culture alive: 'We feel free'
Yemam said one of the traits that American and Ethiopian cultures share is respect.
"Americans are very, very respectful people," he said. "That's why when we come to the United States, we feel free because nobody took away our faith, our culture or our anything. They respect what we have, and we have the right to practice our culture."
Yemam said the community of Ethiopians in Sioux Falls is sizable and vibrant. People tend to gather for church services, celebrations or mourning ceremonies.
For such occasions, Ethiopians usually dress up in traditional clothing, cook authentic food, meet up or call each other, he said.
Because many Orthodox churches use the Julian calendar to set days for religious holidays, some Ethiopian families in the United States celebrate two Easters, for example: one with their American neighbors and another that aligns with fellow Ethiopians, Yemam said.
"I say, 'Thank you, God' for everything that I have," Yemam said. "I always believe that I am blessed, I have no complaints."
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