Category Archives: Local

The 9th annual Tripp County Prospect Show will be held at the Tripp County Fairgrounds on Saturday, Nov. 6.

This show has brought youth and their families to Winner from all over the state, Nebraska, and Minnesota.  Last year there were 66 youth exhibitors and approximately 125 head of cattle at the show.

New this year, the Tripp County Fair board will be hosting a vendor/trade/craft show the same day.  They will also be providing concessions for those attending the show and/or vendor/trade/craft fair.  This will add a whole new aspect to the event. 

The Tripp Co Prospect Show was started in 2013 after the Western Junior Stock Show in Rapid City was cancelled due to the Atlas blizzard.  In about two weeks’ time, a group of people rounded up a few sponsors, found a judge who was Miles DeJong, and put on a show for not only our local youth but anyone else who wanted to attend. 

Generous sponsors from our community have made this all possible.  The number of sponsors has grown over the years and are the backbone of this show.  Sponsors so far for this year include the following: 605 Sires, AgriMax, BankWest,  CC Photography, CHS, Covey Custom Application LLC, Covey Cattle, DeJong Ranch, DeJong Ranch North, DeMers Ranch, Elevate Agronomics, Engel Trucking, Farm Credit Services of America, Farmers Union Insurance, Fenenga Ranch Inc., Fidelity Agency, First Fidelity Banks—Winner and Colome, Frontier Motors, Gant Mineral Co., Grossenburg Implement inc., Hansen Mueller Co, Mathis Implement Inc., Pharmco, Runnings Supply Inc., South Central Livestock Supply, Southern Belle Cattlewomen, Statewide Ag Insurance Inc., Town and Country Sales Inc., Tripp County 4-H Leaders Corporation, Tripp County Farm Bureau, West River Ag Services and Winner Livestock Auction LLC.

In addition to sponsors, there are several families who helped start this show and continue to do the leg work to keep it going. These include the Craig Covey Family, Lou DeJong Family, Miles DeJong Family, Ross DeMers Family, Jeremy Schroeder Family, and the William Vogel Family.  On top of these families, there are several other volunteers from the community who have helped in many, many ways. 

The Tripp County Prospect Show is sanctioned by the South Dakota Junior Points Association.  Youth can accumulate points determined on their placings at these sanctioned shows.  There are approximately 15 shows throughout the state that youth exhibitors can attend.  The dates of these shows run from October – August.  There is an awards event each year at the South Dakota State Fair where those accumulating the most points are given awards. 

This show not only provides an opportunity for youth to learn about beef cattle and give them an opportunity to show, but it also brings people to Winner.  Several families choose to come in on Friday night before the show due to the distance they travel.  This gives them an opportunity to see more of what our community has to offer.  Hosting this show gives us an opportunity to show off our community and our fairgrounds.

We invite the community to come out to the fdairgrounds to watch the show and take in the vendor/trade craft show.  The schedule for the day is:

Tripp Co. Prospect Show – starts at 11:30 a.m.

Tripp Co Fairboard Concession – open 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Vendor/Trade/Craft Show – runs from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

By Keenan Knutelski

Community Connections

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month and  Community Connections would like to take this opportunity to celebrate with the community. It is self-evident that employment is a significant component to a person’s life. Whether employment is a means to a living or a method of self-expression, employment is an important part of a person’s identity. At its core, there is a great deal of satisfaction that emerges from a person’s ability to meaningfully contribute to the society in which they live.

At Community Connections, we strive to help facilitate opportunities for our participants to find meaningful employment and join the workforce around Winner. Historically, people with disabilities have been marginalized and excluded from employment opportunities which has led to persistent poverty and below average living standards. While some issues still exist, great strides have been made to improve the working conditions and opportunities for those with disabilities; most notably the Americans with Disabilities Act. It is important to highlight the importance of employment for those with disabilities, and thank the employers who provide these vital opportunities to our community members living with disabilities.

We would like to extend a grateful appreciation to:

Winner Food Center, Pharmco, Kucera Electric, Lil Feller, Winner Pharmacy, Black Lab, Holiday Inn, Kay’s Day Care, South Central Livestock Supply, Winner Airport, Harry K Ford/ NAPA, Dan Clark Realty, and The Elk’s Club. Please join us in celebrating National Disability Employment Awareness Month and thanking these wonderful employers.

By Dan Bechtold

Editor

The Highway 18 and 44 reconstruction project in Winner is in the home stretch according to the Department of Transportation.

A highway update meeting was held Oct. 27 in the city building. Doug Sherman, area engineer for DOT and Conner Christensen of T&R Contracting Inc. Sioux Falls, gave updates on the project.

T &R is the prime contractor for phase I of this project.

The main area of the project features new concrete highway from 7^th to just west of Monroe Street.

Sherman says the big push now is to open side streets like 4^th and 5^th St that have been closed due to the construction work.

Sherman thanked the public for being patient through the whole project but especially when so many side streets have been closed.

Morris Inc., Ft. Pierre, was to be in Winner on Oct. 28 to start doing the asphalt tie-ins on the side streets. Once this is done the street can be open again

Muth Electric of Mitchell is in Winner doing electrical work and placing the traffic light footings.

Big O Concrete is working on sidewalk getting the ready for pedestrian traffic.

Sherman added that most of the big concrete pour on the highway is finished. He hopes that by  Thanksgiving traffic will be allowed on the new concrete.

The DOT reported there have been some close calls and minor accidents as the traffic is going to head to head while construction crews work on the south side of the highway. “Please be careful, slow down and give motorists room,” said the DOT.

“We are in the home stretch and we thank the public  for being patient with us,” said Sherman.

Persons who want to follow the progress of the construction can follow on Facebook.

The public meetings of the DOT and T&R are live streamed for the public to view.

By Dan Bechtold

Editor

Felicia Hughes of Winner won the overall bikini division at the NPC North Americans bodybuilding show.

The competition was Sept. 4 in Pittsburgh, Pa.

There were over 1,200 competitors. Hughes, the daughter of Jon and Susan Hughes of Winner, competes in the bikini division. There were over 400 bikini competitors.

She said this was the biggest bikini show in history. “I think this is pretty neat,” said Hughes.

“To win a show of that magnitude felt really good. All the hard work I put in paid off,” she said.

She explained that pre-judging was held in the morning and a competitor has to win their height class to move on to the next round. Hughes competed in the 5-5 height class.

The Winner woman was proud to make the top five and competed before an audience in the evening. With winning her height class it earned her an IFBB pro card which was her goal.

Once the first place winners for each height class are announced they take all the winners in that division to compete against each other to determine the overall winner of the bikini division. Hughes came out on top winning the entire division in this national show.

“So I earned my pro card by placing first in my height class and am now considered a professional bodybuilder in the bikini division . Next year I will be invited to compete in pro status shows,” she explained.

This is not the only bodybuilding show she has entered. Hughes placed second   at a show last year in Omaha and then did two shows nationally both in South Carolina. In one she placed second and the other got fourth but missed getting her pro card.

“I thought I would give it more shot in Pittsburgh,” she said.

Her coach is from Canada who makes suggestions on her diet and how many calories she needs to eat each day.

A lot of lifting weights eventually turned into a love for bodybuilding.

Hughes went to school in Winner until her sophomore year in high school and then went to Colome High School her junior and senior year. She is a 2007 graduate of Colome High School.

It was Dean Keith who instilled the love of weight lifting in Hughes.

Keith was a former WHS principal and started a weightlifting class for girls in the gymnastics program.

“I just kept on weight lifting and when I went to college at South Dakota State University I used the wellness center.” In every town she worked one of her goals was to find a gym to work out.

In one of those gyms, someone asked her if she had thought about bodybuilding. “I kind of laughed at them but I did some research and found there were different  divisions for women and started looking into it more,” Hughes explained.

She started doing bodybuilding with a natural federation where they drug test, lie detector test each participant. She stayed with that federation for  year but was looking for something more challenging and that is when she joined NPC.

“NPC is where Arnold Schwanzengger got his start,” she said.

In bodybuilding, Hughes loves the regiment and the structure. “It was difficult for me at first because I am not someone who likes to diet but I love lifting weights. I like having something to keep me on track for my goals,” she added.

For Hughes, dieting is not fun but she does it to reach her goals. She says she eats a lot of chicken, rice and vegetables.

“You  have certain calories and as you get closer to a show you start to dwindle those calories down so you can get leaner and leaner. As you come off a show you eat more calories so you bulk up.”
Hughes works out five to six days a week  at Performance Fitness and Tan. She has used The Body Shop in Winner also but likes to have just one fitness gym  for consistency.

Her workouts are usually an hour to two hours. She makes her own routine, “It gets creative at times as I like to play around with it. I do a lot of lower body work in addition to working on my upper body.”

Hughes has a degree in graphic design from SDSU graduating in 2012. She then moved to Massachusetts and worked there for a year as an administrative assistant for ABLS.

From the Boston area, she moved to Sioux Falls and started work as a recruiter. She currently works as a recruiter for Interstates. In her job she recruits electricians.

Hughes travels all across the country to tech schools to attract these students to work for Interstates.

She is able to work remotely from home in Winner. When she is not traveling she spends a lot of time interviewing persons over the phone.

Interstates is a national company based out of Iowa.

Hughes moved back to Winner last June to continue her job.

Last week she was in Louisiana to talk to students.

“I enjoy talking to students who are bright eyed and bushy tailed about their future. I like being able to steer people in a certain direction it is sort of like being a career advocate. That is also why I like fitness because I am able to help people.”

That help has come as a personal trainer to some women in Winner. She does it for fun and a hobby.

The A’Cafellas Barbershop Chorus will perform its annual concert on Saturday, Nov. 13 at the Dixon Town Hall in Gregory at 3 pm and at the Winner Community Playhouse at 7:30 p.m.   The group has performed every year since 1997 with the exception of last year. 

“It is exciting to be back on the stage after all these months of COVID keeping us apart”, says the group’s director Don Tuttle.  “We have a very special quartet known as “Affinity” as our guest this year.  Affinity is a female quartet from Spirit Lake, IA who performed in Winner 20 years ago in 2001.  We are happy to have them return”.

Tickets are available from any of the 10 members of the group and are only $10 each for adults.  Children under age 18 are free when accompanied by an adult.  To make reservations call 842-1958 and tell how many people and whether you want the afternoon or evening show. 

“We are so happy to perform many songs for our communities giving you an opportunity to enjoy some of our favorites”, added the director.