Category Archives: News

Funeral services were held May 16 at the Episcopal Church in Winner. Burial followed at St. Mary’s Cemetery in Wood.

Tim Roubideaux was born on November 7, 1955 in Mosher, SD to Charles and Virginia (Williams) Roubideaux. He was raised in Winner and attended school in Winner and worked various jobs throughout the area. He also attended Mitchell Vo-Tech and earned a Certificate in Welding.

He enjoyed family gatherings, powwows, watching softball games, working on cars, reading and most of all he enjoyed spending time with his grandchildren and children in whom he took great pride in. He will be greatly missed by many.

Clifford Klein of Hidden Timber passed away April 12, 2016, at Pine View Good Samaritan Center in Valentine, NE. He was 93. Celebration of Life will be held at Trinity Episcopal Church, Winner, SD, on May 21 at 10:30 a.m.

Clifford Klein was born at home near Valentine on June 14, 1922, to Coral (Hobson) and George Klein. The family moved to Todd County, SD, shortly thereafter and lived on rented farms before finally settling on Rock Creek, south of Hidden Timber.

Clifford attended country school and graduated from Mission High School in 1938. Following graduation, he began farming and ranching with his father and brother Lawrence. In early 1945, Clifford volunteered for military service in place of his drafted brother and chose the Marine Corps. His military service included a tour of occupied China where he earned the rank of sergeant as a telephone man. Following his military service, he returned to the family farm. In the fall of 1949, he re-connected with JoAnn Kositzky of Winner, SD, the sister of his good friend Paul, at a dance on Dog Ear Lake. They were married Sept. 30, 1950, in Winner, and moved into the home he built for them on the farm.

JoAnn and Clifford raised three sons: Robert, Jim, and Milton. They were particularly proud when all of their sons and grandchildren received their college degrees.

Clifford became a supervisor of the Todd County Conservation District, a position he held for over 30 years. During that time, he served on the South Dakota Association of Conservation Districts’ board of directors, as vice president, and as president. He was also a member of Trinity Episcopal Church, was a 32nd degree Mason at the Mission Masonic Lodge, and American Legion Post 90.

Clifford was happy to help his family with their building and electrical wiring projects. He helped to build or remodel homes for his sisters, in-laws, and for his sons. Clifford loved his work on the ranch. He often told folks he’d rather drive a tractor or ride a horse than anything else. He took pride in being able to plant corn in straight rows and was proud of the improvements the Kleins made in their land and cattle.

Clifford and JoAnn traveled to Europe to visit Milton during his Army service. They also enjoyed travelling in the United States, sometimes on conservation business, sometimes to visit family.

Clifford never met a stranger and would strike up a conversation with anyone he met. In his seventies, a series of strokes affected his speech, a real blow to a person who loved to talk. During his later years, he was debilitated by worn-out joints and bones from decades of hard work and unforgiving farm equipment.

In 2006, Clifford and JoAnn moved to Cherry Hills Assisted Living in Valentine. JoAnn passed away in December of 2007, and Clifford later moved to Pine View Good Samaritan where he passed away April 12, 2016.

Joe Assman, age 92, of Winner, passed away on May 9, 2016 at the Winner Regional Long Term Care Facility.

Mass of Christian Burial was held at 2 p.m. Thursday, May 12, 2016 at the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Winner. Burial followed at the Winner City Cemetery.

Joe Assman was not your average Joe. Although a remarkable life of 92 years is difficult to summarize in a few short paragraphs, Joseph James Assman was born August 9, 1923 to Isabelle (Coyle) Assman and William Assman. He was the last survivor in his family of eight. Older siblings were Ed, Bill, Don, Clarence, Margaret, and younger siblings were Nick and Isabelle. Growing up during the depression he learned to work hard and make wise business decisions like others of his generation. He attended St. Mary’s Catholic School and graduated from Winner High School in 1941. He was very proud that he was a golden glove boxer and was called “Winner’s Joe Lewis”.

Shortly after graduation he moved to Todd County to run his father’s cattle operation. He eventually bought a quarter of land where Assman Implement currently is located and he continued to add to his farming and ranching operation. He met a blonde, blue eyed beauty in 1945 that was working at the Todd County Conservation Office by the name of Esther Elizabeth Einspahr. The romance blossomed and they were united in marriage on October 18, 1947 at St. Thomas Catholic Church in Mission, SD. Tragedy struck early in their marriage with the loss of their first child, Jean, who died at birth. They were blessed with sons Greg, Chris, Ed, Brad, Dave, and tragedy struck again with the loss of another daughter, Kimberly, she was followed by Mike, Mary Beth, and Gordon. In 1965, a devastating farm accident occurred and took the life of Gordon at the age of 21 months. Joe and Esther’s strong Catholic faith helped them endure and accept his loss. In memory of Gordon, there is a large rock as a memorial of his life at Assman Implement, where the accident occurred.

Joe’s nickname was “Sparky” which was shortened by his kids as he would often tell them that “he was the sparkplug of the operation”. That was often heard when the boys had a late night on the town and were not very energized the next morning and were not getting out of bed as early as expected. Joe was a very optimistic, cheerful, friendly, generous, and gracious person and he loved babies and children. He was always patient, rarely critical, and was able to transition the management of his operation to us kids, which is sometimes difficult for men of his generation. He had strong family values and during the 1980’s we experienced financial difficulties with high interest rates and low commodity prices. There was a lot of family stress and problems and he gave us a copy of a letter his father had written to him and his siblings in 1941, it was a parable of the six sticks: “A man had six sons, who were always quarreling. They left their work and studies to quarrel among themselves. Some bad men were looking forward to the death of their father to cheat them out of their property by making them quarrel about it. The good old man one day called his sons around him. He laid before them the six sticks that were bound. He said “I will pay a hundred dollars to the one that can break this bundle.” After a long but vain trial, they said it could not be done. “And yet my boys,” said the father “nothing is easier to do.” He then untied the bundle and broke the sticks one by one with perfect ease. “Oh” said his sons, “it is easy enough to do it, and anyone could do it that way.” Their father replied, “As it is with these stick, it is with you my sons. So long as you hold fast together and aid each other, you will prosper, and none can injure you. But if the bond of union is broken, it will happen to you just as it has happened to these sticks, which lie broken on the ground.”

One of Sparky’s accomplishments was becoming a Case dealer in 1969. Although the location was not an ideal business climate, he was able to make a success out of it in spite of the location. In 1983 the dealership won top sales west of the Mississippi and won a Chrysler convertible car and a trip to Hawaii. Years later Joe asked the dealer rep “why would you ever allow a dealer in our location” he replied “I never figured you would have made it but they were having a contest for who could sign up the most dealers and they were giving away a free color TV to the rep the that signed up the most dealers and I wanted that TV.” He was lifelong member of the 4th Degree Knights, an active member of the Republican Party, and a former Todd County Commissioner. He was also very proud of his family and all their accomplishments and appreciative of his employees.

Joe made a great life for himself and his family and he remained optimistic, cheerful, and complimentary up to the end. We are so grateful for the wonderful staff at the Winner Regional Long Term Care and the excellent care he received. Several of the staff have told us “when I am having a bad day, I go see Joe and he makes my day brighter.” He never complained of the pain and remained positive in spite of being in the nursing home for over two years after undergoing a major cancer surgery. He was preceded in death by his parents William and Isabelle, brothers Ed, Bill, Don, Clarence, Nick, sisters Margaret and Isabelle, infant daughters Jean and Kimberly, infant son Gordon and his beloved dog Toby.

Shirley Ahlers, age 91, of Jackson, Calif., passed away peacefully in her sleep on Sunday, May 8 at the Avalon Health Care Center in San Andreas, Calif. She was born on Dec. 27, 1924, in Dallas, SD to Carl Victor and Ida (Iburg) Lindholm.

The family relocated to Galva, IL, where she grew up and attended school. During WWII she engaged in the war effort by weaving ropes and doing assembly line work. Shirley was approximately 17 years old when her family returned to Clearfield, SD. While living in Clearfield she met her husband, Eilert Ahlers, they were married May 2, 1946. They engaged in farming on the Ahlers Homestead and raised their five children, Linda, Donald, Marlene, Roger and Dale.

Shirley was a lifetime member of the American Legion and the VFW Auxiliaries. She loved being a homemaker. She loved spending time with her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. She also enjoyed gardening, canning and made a hobby of collecting and trying new recipes. She was a lifelong avid Chicago Cub’s fan and in her later years enjoyed watching ice hockey games.

In 1981 Shirley and Eilert retired and sold the homestead and moved to California, where four of their five children were residing. They lived in Mokelumne Hill, Calif., for 21 years. While living in Mokelumne Hill they were part of the founding members of the first Missouri Synod Lutheran Church in this area, which is now the Foothill Lutheran Church in Valley Springs. After losing her husband she moved to Jackson, Calif., until her passing. She is most remembered for the wonderful role model she was due to her honesty, integrity and high moral standards.