Monthly Archives: September 2015

Tommie Joe Fox was born on January 11, 1933 in Winner, South Dakota to Thomas Fox and Kate (Scott) Fox. Tommie attended school in the Mission area until he dropped out in the 9th grade to help with the family ranches due to his father’s poor health.

Tommie married Dorothy Lee Dvorak on November 7, 1952. They lived and ranched on the ranch where he grew up north of Mission, South Dakota for many years. This ranch has been in the Fox family for almost 100 years. Tommie and Dorothy raised four children on the ranch and always seemed to have lots of family and friends visiting. Everyone gathered there as it was referred to as the “Home Place”.

Tommie loved the land, cattle and horses. He was a true cowboy in every sense of the word. He enjoyed ranch life and visiting with friends, neighbors, and family. He was witty and loved to talk, tell stories, and make people laugh. He also enjoyed attending rodeos and horse sales. In fact, in his younger years, Tommie Joe was quite the bronc rider and very proud of winning First Place among 40 contestants at a rodeo in the area. He cherished the belt buckle he won that day.

In the 1990’s his wife Dorothy’s declining health made it necessary to move to Winner to be close to doctors. Tommie did not like town life and traveled to the ranch almost daily. Eventually Dorothy was moved to the Winner Nursing Home and Tommie to the Elder Inn Assisted Living. Tommie was a faithful husband and visited Dorothy in the nursing home every morning and evening as long as he was able to do so.

In 2011 Tommie and Dorothy entered a nursing home in Lakewood, Colorado to be close to their daughter, Cindy, and her family. When Dorothy passed away in 2012 Tommie moved to a small Assisted Living facility with a home like environment where he resided until he passed away peacefully on September 24th after a long bout with Alzheimer’s disease.

Leuella was born December 4, 1927 in Bryant, South Dakota to Louis and Mabel Gilbertson. Leuella graduated from Hayti High School. She was united in marriage to Curtis Lee on September 7, 1947. The couple made their home near Lake Norden. While raising a family, Leuella attended SDSU and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Home Economics in January of 1969. During the summer of 1969 she accepted the position as Extension Agent for Tripp County and they moved to Winner.

As the Extension Agent she taught many classes of beginning sewing and bread baking. She thoroughly enjoyed teaching and assisting 4-H members and their 4-H clubs over the years. Leuella retired after 20 years of service.

After retirement Leuella enjoyed spending time on the farm with Curtis. She raised very large gardens and enjoyed giving away her harvest to friends and family. Another passion that she mastered was quilting. Leuella made beautiful quilts for family and friends. She was a charter member of the South Canyon Lutheran Church Piecemakers in Rapid City. Leuella is quoted as saying, “nothing gets in my way to keep me from being there on Thursday mornings.”

Leuella will always be remembered for her love of family and friends. She was well known for the beautiful flowers she grew, her peach pies and homemade buns. Faith was always an integral part of her life. Leuella attend Circle and Prayer Breakfast as a member of South Canyon Lutheran Church. Her values of kindness, respect of others, hard work, and strong faith were passed onto her children and grandchildren.