Category Archives: Obituaries

Allen Tucker, 88, of Wood, SD passed away on Friday, July 19, 2019 at the Winner Regional Long-Term Care Facility in Winner, SD.

Funeral service will be held on Thursday, July 25, 2019 at 11 a.m. at the Wood Community Hall in Wood, SD. Burial will follow in the Evergreen Cemetery in Wood, SD. Visitation will be held on Wednesday, July 24, 2019 from 6-7 p.m. at the Mason Funeral Home in Winner, SD with a prayer service beginning at 7 p.m.

Allen “Buddy” Keith Tucker was born on April 24, 1931 along with his twin brother Alvin “Sonny” Wayne to Lonnie and Edna (Stevens) Tucker at their home on Horse Creek.

He attended grade school in White River and graduated high school in 1949 from White River.

Allen was united in marriage to Ila Galbraith on Oct. 27, 1951 in a double ceremony with Mike and Dola (Tucker) Dreyer.

Allen entered the Marine Corp in 1952. While serving in Korea Allen drove a M-51 tank. He was discharged in May 1954. At that time Allen and Ila moved back to Wood, SD where they resided for the next 63 years and raised their four sons.

Allen served on the church board, township board, first water board in Mellette County and served on the Cherry Todd Board for 21 years. He was also instrumental in the planning and fund raising of the Wood Community Hall. Allen was very proud to serve his community. He was a Legion member for 67 years, 32-degree Master Mason for 52 years, Naja Shriner for 50 years, Mason for 63 and an Eastern Star member for 61 years.

Allen loved to watch his children and grandchildren play sports. He was an avid fan of the Minnesota Vikings and the Minnesota Twins. He loved to farm and would spend endless hours on a tractor. He loved the smell of fresh turned soil in the spring, the smell of alfalfa, harvesting and Red Angus Cattle.

He is survived by his wife of 68 years, Ila, sons Wade and his wife Suzie of Wood, SD, Brad and his wife Connie of Rapid City, SD, Loren and his wife Gail of Gillette, WY and Shawn and his wife Natalie of Gillette, WY, 11 grandchildren, 14 great-grandchildren and 1 great-great grandchild, and a host of other relatives and friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents Lonnie and Edna, father and mother-in-law Stanton and Lona Galbraith, brothers; Calvin, Alvin, Norton, Nolan and sisters Winnie Green and Dola Dreyer.
The family will be directing memorials to the Wood Community Hall.

Memorial services for Robert “Bob” McKee, age 80, of Gregory, SD will be held on Monday, July 29 at 11 a.m. at the United Methodist Church, Gregory, SD. There is a visitation one prior to the service.

Bob passed away at the Avera Gregory Hospital on July 18, 2019.

Mr. McKee was born Nov. 8, 1938 in Gregory, SD to Clarence and Martisha (Goodwin) McKee. He attended elementary school in the Gregory area. His family moved to Pierre, SD in 1951 where he attended Pierre High School. He attended the University of South Dakota at Vermillion and served in the U.S. Army being stationed in Arkansas, Georgia, and Germany.

He worked in the banking business in Kennebec, SD and Wolsey, SD from May 1960 until July 1963. He became a governmental auditor for the state of South Dakota in July 1963 and was assigned to the Gregory area in 1964. He retired as a governmental auditor on January 1, 1996.

He was employed as manager of the Gregory Senior Village from Sept. 1, 1996 through August 31, 2003. During his lifetime he enjoyed baseball, football, Hunting, fishing, golf, model airplanes, do it yourself projects, politics, reading, traveling, listening to good music, gardening, computers, and especially his grandchildren.

He married Susan Rae Roberts in Kennebec, SD on Feb. 11, 1961. Susan passed away Feb. 11, 1969. He married Margaret Ann Lopour on April 4, 1970 in Gregory, SD. He was a member of the Gregory United Methodist Church and served on the Gregory City Council.

In addition to his wife he is survived by two daughters, Sandra of Pierre, SD and Amy and her husband Jamie Sachtjen of Colome, SD. He is also survived by three grand children Trevor, Nolan, and Emily and two sisters Sally and her husband Milo Lines of Sac City Iowa and Christine and her husband, Sherwin Nyberg, of Groton, SD and numerous other relatives including nieces, nephews, and cousins.

He was preceded in death by his parents, his son Mike, and his brother Lee.

Ethan Allen was born in Winner on March 7, 1945 and died June 1 with his wife of 50 years, Linda, by his side.

He graduated from Winner High School and decided farming and gas station work were not getting him where he wanted to be. So, he joined the National Guard in Winner. He liked it and stayed for awhile and realized his life was really not going anywhere or getting him where he wanted to be.

So, he decided to join the Navy. He did his basic training at Great Lakes Navy Training Center in Illinois. While he was training here he met his wife, Linda. Together they had three sons, Jody Charles, James Ethan and Jeremiah Earl. He was a great father to his sons and taught them many things to help them become great men.

Ethan was in the service for more than 25 years and traveled to many countries and spent two tours of duty off the coast of Vietnam.

He also traveled to many other ports of call and enjoyed most of it.
After all the years of service, he became tired of all the traveling. He retired an settled down in Lincoln City, Ore.

He had a religious book store for about 24 years and retired from the store.
He spent a happy, restful retirement with his wife, sons and friends. He was loved greatly by all who knew him.

He was preceded in death by his mother, Pearl; his father, James; brother, Donald; sister, Barbara and his oldest son, Jody.

Clara Mae (Thietje) Bailey passed from this world to the next on July 3, 2019 in hospice care in Billings, MT after a brief illness. Her daughters were with her during her last week.

Mourning her passing are daughter Desiray Bailey, grandson John Fitzgibbons (Erin) and great-grandson Olin, and grandson Ryan Fitzgibbons, all of Washington state; daughter Deion Hagemeister (Michael), granddaughter Danae Anceso, and great-granddaughters Anastasia, Isabella, and Violetta, and grandson Timothy Hagemeister, all of Wyoming. She is also survived by over 20 nieces and nephews.

Clara was preceded in death by her husband of over 70 years, John A. “Jack” Bailey, her parents Nicolous and Johanna Thietje, her brothers (John, Nic, Harry, George, Fred, Ernest, Rudy, and Bill), sisters (Magdalena, Helen Schweigert, Harriett Steimer, Anna Ehrlich Sybouts, Dorothy Schweigert, and Margaret Heying); and several nieces and nephews.

Clara was born on the family farm near Hamill, SD on May 7, 1928. Her parents were Nicolous Andrew Thietje and Johanna Helena (Bisping) Thietje. Clara graduated from Winner High School in 1947, and worked as a bookkeeper.
She was baptized in, and a member of the Congregational Church in Buffalo, SD, and later a member of the Methodist Church in Gordon, NE, as well as a Sunday school teacher.

In early 1947, Clara met her future husband at a dance, John A. “Jack” Bailey, son of Edward J. and Merle (Wheeler) Bailey of Lucas, SD. Clara and Jack were married on Christmas Day, 1947, and from this union daughters Desiray Claire and Deion Jacqueline were born. Jack and Clara celebrated their 70th anniversary December 25, 2017.

While Jack served in the Korean Conflict, Clara and Desiray stayed with family in SD and then moved to California to await Jack’s return. Upon his return, Clara, Jack, and daughters moved around SD while Jack worked nine years for his brother Jim in construction of dams and roads.

Clara and Jack then moved from SD to Gordon, NE in 1960, where they started Bailey Construction. Clara was bookkeeper for Bailey Construction for 26 years and for Bailey Storage center for 20 years. She volunteered at the Good Samaritan Center for 13 years and also at the Town Center, both in Gordon, NE. She took residents on shopping trips, read, wrote letters, and held Current Events and History sessions. Clara was Volunteer of the Year in Gordon in 1983, 1984, and 1985. Later she and Jack volunteered for over 10 years for R.S.V.P. (Retired Seniors Volunteer Program). In 1997, Clara received the First Lady’s Award for Outstanding Community Service in Nebraska from Diane Nelson, First Lady of Nebraska.

Clara and Jack enjoyed square dancing for many years and later also enjoyed senior dances with their friends in the Gordon area. After retirement, Clara realized a dream come true as she and Jack bred, raised, and trained two colts for both riding and driving buggies. They rebuilt an old barn for their horses, and restored old buggies and wagons for use and resale. Clara and Jack participated in parades from Crawford to Valentine, NE with their costumed horses, using their covered wagon, buggies, and buckboard for 20 years. Brides and grooms were driven to their weddings in style, and funerals were more symbolic with horses and buckboard draped in black.

In 1994, Clara and Jack received the Gordon, NE Family of the Year Award for these many activities. It was an honor they always cherished because Gordon was home for 50 years, and filled with friends.

In 2010, Clara and Jack moved to Cody, WY to be near their daughter Deion. They subsequently moved to Powell, WY in 2016.

Clara had a warm and generous spirit, enjoyed socializing with family and friends, had a great wit and sense of humor, and harmonized beautifully with Jack, both in song and life. She will be greatly missed, and never forgotten.

A Celebration of Life service will be held jointly for Clara and Jack on August 19, 2019 at 10 am at the Mason Funeral Home in Winner, SD. Following interment at Winner City Cemetery, a luncheon will be served at the Winner American Legion. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in their memories to the charity of your choice.

Mass of Christian Burial for Helen Higgins, age 86, of Naper, NE will be held on Thursday, July 18 at 10:30 a.m. at the Ss Peter & Paul Catholic Church in Butte, NE. Burial will be in the Sacred Heart Catholic Cemetery in Naper, NE. There will be a prayer service on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the Ss Peter & Paul Catholic Church in Butte. Visitation will be one hour prior to both services.

Helen Irene (Schmitz) Higgins was born Oct. 8, 1932 to Joseph and Bertha (Blum) Schmitz. Helen attended grade school at Naper and graduated from Naper High School in 1950.
On Nov. 28, 1950, she was united in marriage to Mervin John Higgins at Naper, Neb. To this union five children were born: Kathy, Joe, Cindy, Rich, and Steve.

Merv and Helen lived their entire married life of 64 years on a farm/ranch southwest of Naper. They loved farming and ranching. Helen was Merv’s “Righthand-Boss”. She was an avid fisherman and hunter. Helen was also an accomplished quilter and a member of the Rosebud Quilt Guild. She was a member of Sts Peter & Paul Catholic Church, Butte, Neb.

Helen is survived her children Kathy (Ed) Peppel of Butte, NE, Joe (Mary) Higgins of Naper, NE, Rich (Janice) Higgins of Bow Valley, NE, and Steve (Denise) Higgins of Winner, SD. Her son-in-law Mike (Linda) Schochenmaier. Her Brother Leonard (Thelma) Schmitz of Naper, NE; Brothers-in-Law Robert Peppel of Burke, SD and Roger Roth of Spencer, NE; Sister-in-Law Margaret Schmitz of Bonesteel, SD; 16 grandchildren and 25 great grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her husband Mervin in 2015; parents Joe & Bertha Schmitz; parents in law, John & Ada Higgins; daughter Cindy Schochenmaier; great grandson Brady Peppel; brothers: Donald Schmitz & John Schmitz; sister Bennetta Roth; brothers-in-Laws: Pat Higgins, Max Higgins, & Howard Stahlecker; sisters-in-law: Inez Schmitz, Janet Higgins, Joyce Stahlecker, & Lorraine Peppel.

Rose Enders, 69, formerly of Winner, SD passed away on July 31, 2018 in Jenison, MI.

A memorial service will be held on Monday, July 22, 2019 at 10 a.m. at the Mason Funeral Home in Winner, SD. Burial will follow in the Winner City Cemetery. A visitation will be held one hour prior to the services.

Rose was born in West Point, Neb., on June 15, 1949 to Richard (Dick) and Magdalene (Meg) Doescher (Heinecke). She was the eldest of 8 children: Richard (Bev), Randy (Linda), Ronda (Harland), Judy (Jack), Cheryl, Tom and Chris (Lisa).

Her parents lived across north-central Nebraska and south-central South Dakota. Rose graduated from Winner High School in 1967.

In March of 1969, Rose married Joey Leo Enders in Winner, SD. They made their home in Massachusetts as Joe finished his Air Force commitment.

After the Air Force, they initially made their home in Yankton, SD as Rose pursued her education at Yankton College; receiving her Bachelor of Arts in Secondary Education. She subsequently also received her Master’s Degree from California Lutheran as she and Joe pursued their life dreams in southern California.

Joe and Rose moved from life in the sun to western Michigan to accept new life challenges. Rose lived as an educator for the next 40 years spending her energy building self-esteem with disadvantaged youth in the inner city of Grand Rapids, MI school system.

Rose literally loved her work, which went beyond the normal commitment or dedication. Rose taught, coached and mentored many children which all had special places in her heart.

Joe and Rose welcomed children into their life and home, making each child feel accepted, special and loved. Rose’s desire to make all children feel cared for can’t be understated; just look at the Facebook page blow up’s.

Rose’s legacy in the Grand Rapids public school will be foundational, as all that she cared about was building children’s self-esteem and mentoring those students down an avenue to find a better way of life.

Rose was compassionate, firm and strict, but always putting herself at risk to make sure her students were cared for and could see a positive way forward in life. Rose’s legacy is carried forward with the love that she displayed daily to her children (students).

Rose’s and Joe’s special adoptions were Joyce (John) Jefferson and their children Jonte and Mya along with Takeia Sherman and her daughter Khyleice Grover.

Rose was preceded in death by her husband, Joe, both parents, and brother Richard. She is survived by her siblings (except Richard) and Joe’s sister Jana (Paul) Kemp.

Rose’s other passion was to care for her namesake rose gardens. She was fabulous at taking care of her plants and competing and judging shows across the central U. S.

Rose won many best of shows and would want to be remembered as a kind soul and being reunited with her lifelong love, Joe. Peace be with our sister, aunt, friend, mentor and confidant who always cared more for her acquaintances than she cared for herself.

Let’s celebrate Rose’s life legacy. Rest in peace our beautiful sister.

In lieu of flowers, or contributions please donate school supplies to your local schools.

Zelda Mae Dummer, 79, of Winner, SD and formerly of Rapid City, died Sunday, July 7, 2019 at the Winner Healthcare Center.

She was born Dec. 1, 1939 in Colome, SD to Ben and Sarah (Iler) Fischer. She grew up west of Dallas, SD, graduating from Gregory High School in 1957. She attended USD Springfield where she received her teaching certificate.

On June 6, 1959, Zelda married Marlin Dummer in Colome. They farmed in Herrick for five years when they then rented a farm northeast of Gregory for five years. They purchased a farm southwest of Dallas, SD where they lived until retiring to Rapid City in 1996. Zelda did alterations until her health failed.

She is survived by her daughter, Pamala (Rodney) Baumgartner, Rio Rancho, NM; her son Dudley Dummer (Tim Kenny), Minneapolis, MN and her sister Joan Zimbelmann, Hamill.

She is preceded in death by her husband Marlin, her brother Marvin, his wife Norma and brother-in-law Art Zimbelmann.

The family request all cards and memorials to be sent to Behrens-Wilson Funeral Home, % Zelda Dummer Family, 632 St Francis Street, Rapid City, SD 57701.

Family and friends gathered at 9:30 a.m., Thursday, July 11, 2019 at Behrens-Wilson Funeral Home followed by graveside services at Black Hills National Cemetery at 11:30 a.m.

Condolences may be conveyed to the family through the funeral home website.

Death Notice*

Zelda Mae Dummer, 79, Winner, died July 7.

Visitation will be 9:30 to 10:30 a.m., Thursday, July 11, 2019 at Behrens-Wilson Funeral Home,Rapid City,followed by graveside services at 11:30 a.m., at Black Hills National Cemetery.