Author Archives: Rita Pravecek

Dorothy Vivian Wells (Pochop), 92, of Arvada, Colo.,, passed away at San Marino Retirement Village, on Friday, Oct. 21, 2022.

Dorothy was born in Colome, South Dakota on April 1, 1930 to Mary (Spinar) and Otto Pochop.  Riding her horse to school nearly every day, Dorothy attended and graduated from Witten High School. Dorothy then studied nursing at the Methodist Hospital School of Nursing in Mitchell, South Dakota and graduated in 1953.

Dorothy had many great experiences, but the greatest adventure of her life took place on March 11, 1956, when she married her sweetheart, Samuel Wells. The couple met at the wedding of Dorothy’s best friend Lena, who was marrying Sam’s brother, Marlin; Dorothy was Lena’s maid-of-honor and Sam was Marlin’s best man. Exactly six-months later, and in the middle of a record-breaking blizzard, Dorothy and Sam were married in Witten, South Dakota.

Dorothy and Sam began their life together in Grand Island, Neb., where their son, Michael LeRoy, was born. In November of 1958, the couple moved from Nebraska to Arvada, Colo. Shortly after their arrival to Arvada, their daughter, Donna Denise, was born. Dorothy enjoyed working as a nurse at various locations from 1953 until February 1990, when she retired from Lutheran Hospital, in Wheat Ridge, Colo. Throughout her career, Dorothy worked in the surgical, maternity, and rehabilitation wards, and was employed as head nurse for many years.

After her retirement, Dorothy enjoyed helping Sam with his antique and collectibles business. Dorothy also loved harvesting and cooking delicious homegrown fruits and vegetables from her and Sam’s family garden. Dorothy and Sam reveled in traveling throughout the world to places, including France, Japan, Hawaii, Germany, Switzerland, Russia (then the Soviet Union), Lichtenstein, England and Belgium. Dorothy also enjoyed watching baseball – genuinely, apparently, because her favorite team was the Colorado Rockies. Dorothy took several trips to Arizona to see Rockies’ spring training; on one visit, Dorothy and Donna even took a hot air balloon ride. One of Dorothy’s most favorite things was dessert – notably, Dorothy and Sam would frequently make homemade ice cream with fresh raspberries and homemade chocolate syrup for their families. As delicious as the ice cream was, the memories are even more sweet and endearing.

Dorothy is predeceased by Sam, her husband of 56 years, as well as her parents Mary and Otto.

Dorothy is survived by her son Mike Wells (Joey) of Westminster, Colo., and her daughter Donna Greenawalt (Kevin) of Rapid City, SD. Dorothy has three grandchildren: Katyie Wells of Broomfield, Colorado; Tyler Greenawalt of Brookings, South Dakota; and Samuel Wells, of Westminster. She also has one great-granddaughter, Ayda Rea, of Broomfield, Colo.. Dorothy is also survived by her brothers Harold (Judy) Pochop and Larry (Beverly) Pochop. Dorothy has many nieces, nephews, grand-nieces, and grand-nephews – all of whom she loved very much.

Dorothy made every activity fun and always made you feel welcome and loved; she and Sam were the epitome of kindness, compassion, and warmth. Thank you, Dorothy, for blessing our lives with much love and laughter. We will miss you every time we enjoy chicken noodle soup, potato casserole, four bean salad, zucchini bread, and premixed brownies without oil. We will miss you dearly and love you oh so much.

Funeral services were held at Aspen Mortuary in Arvada, Colo., on Nov. 3, followed by graveside services at the Arvada Cemetery.

Janet Bruun, 84, Winner, passed away on Nov. 5 at the Sanford Medical Center in Sioux Falls.

Memorial service will be Friday, Nov.18 at 11 a.m. at  Trinity Lutheran Church in Winner. Burial will follow at a later date.

A visitation will be held on Thursday, Nov. 17, at Mason Funeral Home from 6-7 p.m. with  prayer service at 7 p.m.

Janet Jane (Schramm) Bruun was born on June 29, 1938, to Howard and Irene “Chic” (Hight) Schramm. Janet was born in Winner, SD and was baptized Aug. 5, 1938, at the Trinity Lutheran Church in Winner. She was later confirmed in 1952; Janet was proud to be a lifelong, active member of Trinity Lutheran.

 She grew up in a loving home at 126 Liberty St. in Winner, SD with her parents and younger brother Chuck. She was blessed having her Uncle Herbert’s family living right across the street. Howard and Herbert were identical twins and always wore matching blue and white striped Oshkosh overalls. While growing up, Janet would often mistake her uncle for her dad and would go to him for money; Janet benefited greatly! Her cousin Jim Schramm was from June to November younger than Janet, but he was like a big brother to her. They had an incredibly special bond. Janet’s mother was a nurse, and during Janet’s childhood years, she spent many hours at the hospital while her mother was working. Janet remembers being put to work cleaning needles and other medical supplies; they were hoping to instill an interest in nursing, but it had the reverse effect, and she disliked every minute of it.

Janet’s school years began in Winner, and she later graduated from Winner High School in 1956. Highlights of this time were spending time at baseball, football, and basketball games with close friends Bev Mason, Rita Reckling, Vesta Bice, and Gloria Rowe. Janet’s dad loved taking the girls to games and spoiling them with treats. Janet felt very blessed growing up in Winner with seven uncles and one aunt; they made her proud to be a Schramm, and she had a special relationship with each one of them. Janet was the oldest cousin on the Hight side and the second oldest on the Schramm side. She was proud of this role and loved all her cousins dearly.

Janet met Carroll Bruun in 1951 on a bus ride going to 4-H camp. Janet was seated behind the bus driver, and when she would look into his mirror, she could see this cute, blonde, blue-eyed boy sitting a few rows behind her winking at her. So yes, they got acquainted and were dance partners at camp! That was the beginning of their dancing career. They started dating in 1953 and were later engaged on Janet’s high school graduation day, May 21, 1956. In the fall of 1956, Carroll went to Huntington Park, CA to work for General Motors on a car assembly line. In January, Janet headed to Los Angeles, CA to work at a bank. In May of 1957, Carroll wanted to move back to farm with his dad, so he and Janet headed back to South Dakota. One year to the day after getting engaged, they broke off their engagement. Over the next seven years, their paths crossed about once a year.

Janet started college at Drake University for dental hygiene; that was not the right choice for her, so she quit at semester. She followed her cousin Jim and enrolled at South Dakota State University declaring Spanish as her major. She graduated with her Bachelor’s Degree in 1961 from SDSU and later with her Master’s in Business in 1969 from USD. Janet’s first teaching job was at Rapid City Central; she taught there from 1961-1964. In July of 1963, Janet was home from her teaching job in Rapid City. She went to Frank Day’s in Dallas; she walked in the door, and Carroll grabbed her hand and said, “Here’s someone I can dance with!” Second engagement was in September of 1963 with a wedding to follow on Feb. 22, 1964. Carroll continued to farm, and Janet started her teaching career in Winner.

In the early years of their marriage, special twins, Donnie and Ronnie Matthews (neighbor boys to Howard and Irene Schramm), started making frequent trips to the farm on weekends. They eventually stayed and became part of the family. Johnyne Carol was born on Dec. 16, 1968; Jacey Jane on Dec. 6, 1973; and Jad Howard on February 13, 1975. Janet wrote, “My favorite place in the whole world was our farm living with my best friend and special blessings Johnyne, Jacey, and Jad. We had a great life, and I never wanted for a thing.”

Janet retired from teaching in May of 2002. Over the course of her career, she touched so many lives both inside and outside of the classroom. She started the Winner High School Warriorettes, youth track, and youth basketball. She was an outstanding teacher and wonderful role model. Janet and Carroll moved back to the farm after Carroll and Jad completely rebuilt the old farmhouse. Janet and Carroll lived in that house for many years during their retirement before moving back to town full-time. Janet enjoyed attending every sporting event possible and was proud to wear her favorite color – purple! She also loved sitting in her chair crocheting while looking at her pride and joy wall – pictures of her grandchildren. Janet and Carroll loved following their six grandkids in all their activities; they also enjoyed taking as many trips as they could, especially to Branson, MO. Spending time in Brookings while attending SDSU basketball games and staying in Parker, which became their second home, were highlights of their lives. Fondest memories were having all six grandkids together at the farm and most recently visits from new great-granddaughter, Murphy.

Grateful for having shared her life are her three children: daughter Johnyne (Brad) Horstman of Winner; daughter Jacey (Dale) Peters of Parker; and son Jad (Suny) Bruun of Dallas. Grandchildren: Zachary (Tayler) Horstman of Mitchell; Jayden Bruun of Spearfish; Kylie (Jayd) VanDerWerff of Gregory; Kelby Peters of Sioux Falls; Joren Bruun of Dallas; and Karley Peters of Parker. Great-granddaughter Murphy Jean Horstman. Brother Chuck Schramm of Sioux Falls; sister-in-law Marlene (Tom) Hansen of Canyon Lake, TX; and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Janet was preceded in death by her husband Carroll; her parents Howard and Irene (G’ma Chic) Schramm; in-laws Helmer and Mae Bruun; sister-in-law Ginny Canon.

Jeanetta “Boots” Louise Moses, aka “Bootsie Lou,” passed away peacefully at home the morning of Oct. 24, 2022, in Loveland, CO, at the age of 83.

Boots was born Dec. 19, 1938, in Winner, SD, to Carl Harrison Moses and Emelia Anna Jares Moses. She was number 9 out of the 10 siblings: five brothers and five sisters.

She graduated in 1956 from Winner High School, worked and retired from Northwestern Bell Telephone Co. in Winner, SD. She worked at Nelson and Sally Miller’s print shop, Plains Printing Co, in Gregory SD, for 13 years.

She loved her crossword puzzles and jigsaw puzzles.

Boots lived and took care of Grandma Emily until her passing in 1985. Boots loved all the nieces and nephews. She always loved the company and card playing, especially during hunting season. All of the cousins have very fond memories of 417 Lamro St.

Boots was an awesome athlete and loved sports. She enjoyed watching sports and influenced some of the nephews to become Chicago Bears fans, which is why nobody was allowed to watch the Vikings on her TV.

In 1998, shortly after sister Dorothy “Dot” passed away, Boots decided it was time to move to Colorado to live with brother “Cookie” and sister Kate. Jares Moses and Dean DiPaola drove up on a Friday, loaded the truck, left on Saturday showed up in Colorado on Sunday and moved her in.  

Boots loved animals and loved to watch the horses and dogs on the race track. She even grew to like cats, offering her lap to the two that shared her home the final years of her life.

Boots had an amazing gift for making the nieces and nephews feel like they were her favorite.  She could always bring out the best in us and give us an “atta boy, boy!” or “atta boy, girl!”. While she never warmed up to the new electronic gadgets, we can’t function without, she got the biggest kick out of looking at photos and posts on Facebook and keeping up with our growing family. 

Boots is survived by sisters: Bernice Moses Weickum of Bozeman, MT, and Shirley Moses Hart and husband D.L. Hart, of Gilbert AZ; sister-in-laws – Evelynne Moses of Gregory, SD, and Beverly Crew Moses of Florida; and countless nieces and nephews.