Category Archives: State

By Lura Roti for South Dakota Farmers Union

South Dakota Farmers Union (SDFU) recognizes Jim Woster and Joel Keierleber for their dedicated service to South Dakota agriculture. The state’s largest agriculture organization named them the 2021 Ag Ambassadors during an awards ceremony held December 16 and 17 in Huron during the organizations 106th State Convention.

“South Dakota’s agriculture depends on strong leadership. And for decades, Jim Woster and Joel Keierleber have provided wisdom, advocacy and support for South Dakota’s family farmers, ranchers and the organizations that serve them,” said SDFU President, Doug Sombke.

Jim Woster grew up on his family’s Reliance crop and cattle operation. He is a 1962 graduate of South Dakota State University. Woster went on to become a cattle buyer, agriculture columnist, Associate Editor of Tri-State Neighbor and an enthusiastic advocate for South Dakota agriculture.

Joel Keierleber fought all odds to follow his passion for farming when as a young man, the third-generation Tripp County farmer endured a devastating farm accident. A conservation-minded and progressive crop and cattle producer, Keierleber saw the need to step away from his farm from time to time to advocate for policy to support family farmers and ranchers in Pierre and Washington, D.C. Keierleber is a lifetime Farmers Union member, serving seven years on the SDFU board of directors.

To learn more about Woster and Keierleber’s passion for South Dakota Agriculture, its people and what they see for the future of agriculture, SDFU recently interviewed the 2021 Ag Ambassadors. Below is the Q&A from this interview.

Q: Tell us about how you got your start in your career?

Jim Woster: My dad, Henry, like a hundred other dads of his generation, was not able to go to college. He insisted that the Woster and McManus clan would go to college. As the oldest, I was the first to attend. And there was never any discussion about where I was going. I was going to South Dakota State University.

He also insisted that no matter what we did after college, we did something that would get us out and off the farm to see what the world has to offer.

From my first trip to the stockyards as a 10 or 11-year-old with my dad and Uncle Frank, I have always been intrigued with the stockyards. I was able to get a job at the Sioux Falls Stockyards working for the Farmers Union Livestock Exchange and never had any urge to go any other place.

Joel Keierleber: I knew I wanted to farm from the time I was 5. I grew up on a dairy farm near Clearfield. The fifth of nine children, I was driving the pickup to help dad feed small bales before I started kindergarten. After high school, I took a course in diesel mechanics and returned home to help dad. Audrey and I began saving money to buy a place of our own before our wedding. A few months before the wedding I was in a serious farm accident. My arm was caught in a silo unloader.

When I was in the hospital, they told me that I would never lift my arm above my head again. They recommended I go back to school so I could get a desk job. I did not listen to them. I figured I had not failed yet. It’s my belief that you have to fail two or three times to see if you can succeed. And Audrey stuck by me.

In 1978 we found our farm, 320 acres, three and some odd miles from Colome. It was a less than ideal time to get started. The Farm Crisis was underway, but somehow, with Audrey’s small teacher’s salary and a lot of pencil to paper, we made the payments. And we’re still here.

Q: What did you enjoy about this career in agriculture?

Joel Keierleber: Caring for the land and livestock. And I get to be creative because I have to be creative. I never stick to one plan. I sit down and pencil it out to see what the most cost-effective way will be to farm and that is what I go with.

Frugal farming led me to no-till management practices. I could not afford tillage. When I started in 1980 the fields were only at .8 percent organic matter, and they did not hold moisture. Today, my fields are between 4 and 6 percent organic matter. I also plant cover crops.

In addition to improving soil health, Audrey and I have planted thousands of trees.

Today, I enjoy sharing what I have learned with the next generation. We are helping a young man who wants to make a career of farming, take over our farm.

Jim Woster: The people. In my work, I represented farmers in the sale of their cattle, hogs and sheep. In the mornings, I’d be at the sale barn and in the afternoons, I’d be out in the country driving up and down the side roads, meeting with farmers to let them know the value of their cattle.

These customers were people like my own family and the neighbors I’d grown up with. I’d pull into a place, walk through their 80 or 90 or 100-head of cattle, tell them what they were worth and then they’d say it was coffee time or lunch time. (It got to where I knew who would invite me in for lunch, so I’d purposefully plan to be at their place around noon.) So, we would sit and visit. I got to be really close with these families.

Like I said before, Stockyard customers were just like the families I grew up with. I always say how blessed I was to have been born and raised where I was, when I was, with whom I was. It may sound hokey, but neighbors helped neighbors. They shared farm equipment and labor. Everybody worked together.

Q: Joel, tell us what you enjoyed about raising your daughters on the farm?

Joel Keierleber: Because Audrey worked fulltime as a teacher, I was always involved with raising our now grown daughters, Brecky Cwach and Christine Wood. I got up in the night to feed them bottles just as much as Audrey did.

When they were old enough, they worked right alongside us. I have always said that our two daughters can push cows through a chute faster than any of the help, who were all boys. When I was in the hospital last fall, the girls worked all the cattle – they got them DNA tested and helped wean.

*Trauma from the farm accident left Joel a Type-1 diabetic at 23. In 2020, he received a kidney transplant. While he was recovering from the transplant, he contracted COVID-19 and suffered multiple strokes. He spent 100 days in the hospital, and away from his beloved farm. Today, he is not fully recovered, but he is farming once again.

Q: Jim, tell us how you became a columnist?
It went back to my work at the Stockyards. As secretary of the Exchange, I would do the markets for radio and TV. And because of this visibility, I would get asked to volunteer to MC different events – SDSU basketball games, FFA banquets, community fundraisers, well one day, I get this call from a Sioux Falls businessman who told me he was starting a farm paper. He was up front with me. He said, “everybody knows who you are, and I need someone everyone knows to be a part of my paper.”

I was up front with him and said, “I am not a journalist or writer.” He told me to just write how I talk.

Q: Tell us about your passion for agriculture advocacy?

Joel Keierleber: Well, somebody needs to stand up for the family farm and individual farmers. I grew up watching my dad’s involvement in farm organizations. He was part of the National Farm Organization. As a child I would go to meetings with him.

I know that as farmers we are busy trying to make money. And some say they do not have time to get involved. But if we do not take time away from the farm to stand up for better prices, we will not be able to make money on the farm.
I have seen what involvement in organizations can do. Farmers Union advocated for Country of Origin Labeling (COOL). And it was good for cattle producers during the short time that we had it.

Jim Woster: The importance of agriculture and family operations really started hitting home to me with the struggles of the 1980s. We lost a lot of good farmers. And I knew a lot of farm families who lost their farms. The 80s were tough, not only economically, but socially for our state.

Q: What are your thoughts about South Dakota agriculture today and into the future?

Jim Woster: For many years, to help solve problems, farmers and ranchers formed groups – whether it be co-ops or commodity organizations. And not all these organizations may have been on the same page when it came to ways to solve these problems. Well, it appears to me, that today, when it comes to working to fix this cattle market issue, everyone is back on the same page. We are one group working together. This is encouraging.

Another thing that we are all on the same about is sustainability. You can’t attend an ag conference without at least one session focusing on sustainability. To ag people, sustainability of the environment makes sense. The land is our life and livelihood.

Joel Keierleber: I hope to see more young people get involved in farming. But it’s tough to get started in agriculture if you do not inherit land from your family. I encourage farmers looking to retire, to seek out a young farmer trying to get started and work with them to take over. I think this is a better plan than selling land to the big farmer buying up all the land in the county.

To help the next generation of small farmers, I feel they need more rural access to non-agricultural income. Since the early 90’s I have worked to get wind development started. Our area is a Class 4 wind area, one of the best in South Dakota. But we do not have the large power lines to move the electricity to areas that need it. There have been numerous groups interested. It has not happened yet.

The South Dakota Supreme Court has issued the decision in Thom, Miller v. Barnett and In re Election Contest as to Amendment A. In a four-to-one decision, the Court held that Amendment A, as submitted to the voters in the November 2020 general election, violated the single subject requirement in the South Dakota Constitution. As a result of the constitutional violation, the Court has declared the amendment invalid.

The Court determined that the provisions of Amendment A embraced three separate and distinct subjects:

(1) Recreational Marijuana—by creating a comprehensive plan to constitutionally legalize, regulate, and tax marijuana for all persons at least twenty-one years of age;
(2) Hemp—by constitutionally mandating that the Legislature pass laws regarding hemp; and
(3) Medical Marijuana—by constitutionally mandating that the Legislature pass laws ensuring access to marijuana for limited medical use for qualifying persons.

In reaching its decision, the majority opinion explained that the provisions involving recreational marijuana, hemp, and medical marijuana each have separate objects and purposes, which were not dependent upon or connected with each other.

The drafters’ failure to comply with the single subject requirement in the South Dakota Constitution Article XXIII, § 1 meant that voters were unable to separately vote on each distinct subject embraced in Amendment A. The Court noted in its decision that the Proponents of Amendment A failed to identify a single “instance when voters in another state have been asked to approve a constitutional amendment to legalize recreational marijuana, medical marijuana, and hemp in a single vote.” One member of the Court issued a special writing joining the majority in finding a violation of the single subject rule, and expressing the view that a violation of the single subject requirement is not necessarily fatal in all instances; but adding that here there was no argument or proof that South Dakota voters would have adopted Amendment A in the absence of the medical marijuana and hemp provisions.

A separate opinion was filed by another member of the Court, concurring in part and dissenting in part, that focused on the long history of the initiative in South Dakota, the deference to be paid to initiated constitutional amendments passed by the voters, and the belief that Amendment A appropriately contains parts of a comprehensive plan addressing the related issues of recreational marijuana, medical marijuana, and hemp. Based on the conclusion that there was no single subject violation, the writing also addressed whether Amendment A is a constitutional revision that should have been submitted to the voters through a constitutional convention rather than by an initiative and concluded that it was not a constitutional revision.

Finally, the Court unanimously held that (1) the circuit court properly dismissed the election contest filed by Thom and Miller; (2) neither Thom nor Miller had standing to challenge Amendment A, but Governor Noem’s written ratification of Miller’s declaratory judgment action allowed for the action to proceed as if it had been commenced by the Governor; and (3) the challenge to Amendment A was not required to be brought before the election.

The Court’s opinion can be accessed on the UJS website at https://ujs.sd.gov.

The Association of Mature American Citizens magazine has listed Winner as one of three places to retire.

Choosing the best place to retire is the top priority of many older Americans who seek to live well and use their money wisely.

In an informal survey of AMAC members, eight points were identified as important to retirement: affordability/ lower cost of living (housing and expenses), lower taxes, health care access, safety/low crime rates, favorable year round weather, abundance of activities, conservative government, proximity to family and friends.

In addition to Winner, the other cities chosen were Brandon, Miss and San Antonio, Texas.

The report in the magazine says the town of Winner is picturesque with the town sign boasting “Winner the beginning of the real west.”

This is a great town for people who want to escape the hustle and bustle of big city life.

Most residents own their own homes.

Winner has experienced a job market increase over the last year and it is predicted to rise in the future but not as fast as the U.S. average. There are several reasons why Winner may be good fit for some retirees. Winner regional hospital is headquartered in the town and handles trauma, cardiology, vascular surgery and care of the critically ill as part of its service.

Winner is in the 66^th percentile for safety, meaning that 66 percent of the cities are more dangerous. The small town experiences 226 days of sunshine with 46.2 inches of snow per year as compared with 28 inches as the U.S. average.

Thus, it is ideal for retirees who enjoy snow. The summer high averages 88 degrees in July and the winter low in January is about 12 degrees

For activities, there is a drive-in theater, a community playhouse, a historical museum, library, park, pool, rodeo, gun club and a veterans memorial. There are also recreational trails and an abundance of nature.

The magazine says choosing a retirement location is a deeply personal experience.

Mike Scott, executive director of the Winner Area Chamber of Commerce, says his office has had several inquires since this article was published.

During the annual conference of the South Dakota Emergency Medical Services Association (SDEMSA) last Friday-Sunday, Oct. 29-31 in Pierre, Brian Ring was promoted to the office of state president.

Ring is originally from Colome. He graduated from Colome High School in 1985. He is the son of Don Ring of Colome and Jolene Ring of Spearfish.

As president, Ring will preside over SDEMSA meetings, work closely with the South Dakota Department of Health on EMS related legislative affairs, act as a spokesperson on EMS, encourage association membership, coordinate association activities, and make committee appointments.

A Lifetime Member of the SDEMSA since 2018, Ring has served as SDEMSA Vice President for the past four years. He has also served numerous years as District V Secretary.

Ring received his EMT training thirty years ago. He says that he felt like the knowledge would be beneficial to him as he was growing his family. He worked for ambulance services in Chamberlain and Milbank, and joined the Onida Fire Department soon after arriving here in 1995.

During his tenure with the OFD, Ring has undergone training to become an EMT Intermediate I-85, responsible for providing basic emergency treatment for respiratory, trauma and cardiac emergencies, as well as obstructed airways, and trained to administer some medications, as well as intravenous fluids. He also became a firefighter instructor and has conducted firefighter courses. He currently serves the OFD as department secretary, and has held other offices including serving as training officer for ten years and as chief for five.

Ring has worked for the USDA for more than 31 years. This summer, the USDA announced his selection as the new Community Programs Director for the Rural Development agency in South Dakota.

Ring makes his home in Onida with his wife Sheila. They have two grown children, Lyndsey who lives in Denver, CO, and Cordell who recently moved to Mobridge.

By Dan Bechtold

Editor

This is an exciting time of year. It is hunting season.

Pheasant hunting statewide opens on Oct. 16. The season has been extended again this year to Jan. 31, 2022. Shooting hours all season start at 10 a.m. until sunset.

Dillon Bates, South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks conservation officer in Winner, is looking for a good pheasant season this year.

Bates said it was looking good coming into the spring then the drought hit and changed everything.   He said a lot of chicks were lost during the drought. Pheasants eat bugs the first six weeks of their lives. “No bugs means no pheasants,” explained the conservation officer. “I did see a lot of late hatches this year so hopefully some of those survived,” he said.

Bates is still optimistic it will be a decent year for bird numbers. “Some of the areas held birds a lot better than others. It has been kind of spotty,” he said.

Historically, northern Tripp County has  more birds and he says this seems to be true this year.

Bates noted places with cattail slews and water held the birds better.

GFP no longer does brood counts where they count the number of birds in a certain area.

In August, Bates spent a few mornings driving around. “It was not good,” he said. “In the past when I would drive north of town I would see tons of pheasants and this time I saw 1 or 2.”

With the drought farmers are scrambling to hang onto every piece of grass which could have a negative impact on pheasants.

Bate has been the conservation officer here for a year. He serves the four county area of Tripp, Todd, Gregory and Mellette County.

What asked what he looks forward to this year he noted he was not sure what to expect.

COVID-19 is still hanging around.

Last year a lot of hunters did not come due to COVID-19. Now that there is a vaccine available and many people are fully vaccinated there should be more hunters. “I think we will have more hunters than last year. I do not think as many will sit out due to COVID. A lot of them that sat out last year will be itching to get back out,” said Bates.

He checked  with some hunting lodges in the area and they reported good numbers coming into the season. “I think it will be busy year,” he said.

When asked what he wanted hunters to know when they come here he said  to be respectful of private property. If hunting road right of ways know where the road right of way ends. Know what birds you can shoot and what birds you cannot shoot.

Make sure to ask permission if you  are going to go on someone’s property.

Bates stresses that hunters should know the rules and requirements of transportation of birds.

He explained a lot of guys go hunting with  their buddies and only one person brings the birds to town to the processing plant.

The rules are  the bird is tagged with the name of the hunter, the hunter’s address, the total number of species of birds taken, the date the bird was killed and signature of the hunter.

Bates also reminds hunters they cannot shoot within 660 feet of farms, livestock, school, and homes.

He said a lot of farmers are putting up signs about the 660 feet limit. Bates has signs in his office if landowner would like them.

The conservation officer continues to receive calls from hunters seeking information of pheasant season. Each day he gets one or two calls from individuals wanting to know bird numbers and where they can go to hunt.

Tripp County does not have a lot of public land for hunting. So, Bates would like to get more people interested in signing up for walk in areas. They will provide more public lands for persons to hunt.

Bates explained GFP has another program called controlled hunting access but he says is more restricted that a walk in area.

He says soon GFP will be getting a private lands biologist that can work with landowners. This person will be stationed in Chamberlain.

Bates is hoping for good weather for the opening weekend. “I am looking forward to the season and I hope everyone has a successful year and enjoys the hunt.”

South Dakotans are encouraged to start using 10-digit dialing to make all local phone calls. This could be a harsh realization for many that dialing all 10 digits of 605-(area code)-(last four digits) might not be programmed into cell phones or in land-line speed dials, or other electronic communications devices.

This transition is a necessary first step in the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) move to establish 988 as a new three-digit dialing code for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. This will be required beginning as early as Oct. 24, 2021, and no later than July 15, 2022, depending on your telephone provider.

Every customer with a number from the 605 area code will change to the mandatory 10-digit dialing for local calls. Dialing 7 digits for  local calls will be prohibited for all customers in the entire area code.

“South Dakota’s area code remains 605,” said Leah Mohr, deputy executive director S.D. Public Utilities Commission. This action describes “the FCC’s move to establish 988 as a new three-digit dialing code to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, which would require states with a 988 prefix to begin using a 10-digit code, including area code, to make local calls beginning Oct. 24, 2021.

In addition to changing your dialing patterns, the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission recommends you take steps to update all contact lists ahead of the upcoming deadlines.

The PUC also suggests you take the time to update or reprogram all services, automatic dialing equipment or other types of equipment that may be programmed to complete calls using only seven-digit phone numbers.

“If you take a look at the technology you use on a daily basis or have in your home or office, you may find many devices or services with programmed call settings that will need to be updated. These can include smart home devices, home security systems, medical monitoring devices, calling networks within companies and call forwarding or voicemail services, just to name a few,” said Kristie Fiegen, vice chair PUC. “Taking the time to update these systems now will help ensure they continue working properly long past the required implementation deadlines.”

South Dakota is not the only state required to make the change. Nationwide, over 80 area codes in 36 states will be affected to ensure easy connection to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline,” said Commissioner Gary Hanson.

Cal’s Angels “War on Wheels” bike ride will travel through Winner on Oct. 1.

Cal’s Angels is a leading pediatric cancer nonprofit.

The ride will kickoff at Mt. Rushmore on Sept. 29.

Riders will bike nearly 1,000 miles from Mount Rushmore to St. Charles, Ill. to support pediatric cancer patients.

The route on Oct. 1 is Murdo to Winner and then Oct. 2 Winner to Platte. The group will have a rest day in Platte on Oct. 3.

There will be about 20 cyclists raising awareness and funding for pediatric cancer research and Cal’s Angels wish program.

The ride will end Oct. 11 in Illinois.

The seventh cohort of Build Dakota Scholarship Fund students will begin classes this month, helping to fill the gap of essential workforce needs for South Dakota.

Area students who are Build Dakota Scholarship winners at Mitchell Tech are: Bailey Brown, Winner,  medical laboratory technology; Evan Farner, Winner,  ECM; Nathaniel Hansen, Colome, welding; Casey Taylor, Colome, LPN.

 In January 2021, Governor Kristi Noem announced an additional $20 million in continued support of the Build Dakota Scholarship Fund, securing funding for the program for another five years.

“The state’s commitment to the Build Dakota Scholarship is one of the best examples of how government can partner with private business to make real change in our state,” said Governor Noem. “As more and more businesses look to South Dakota to escape overregulation and high taxes, the Build Dakota Scholarship will allow our workforce the chance to train and meet the needs of our growing economy.”

Over 70% of scholars are backed by an industry partner, meaning these students are guaranteed a job upon completing their degree. Industry partners provide a match with scholarship dollars. In return, students commit to working for the industry partner for three years following graduation. With workforce recruitment challenges facing businesses across the state and nation, Build Dakota offers security and stability for businesses who invest in their workforce through the industry partner program.

“As we enter our seventh year of offering Build Dakota Scholarships to young people, I think we have even more momentum than we did when we announced the program,” said Build Dakota Chairman Dana Dykhouse. “This scholarship is moving the needle for South Dakota employers and helping create successful careers for our state’s workforce.”

Each technical college manages their own industry partner program, working with local businesses and economic development organizations to find future employment opportunities for Build Dakota scholars in high-need workforce areas. This cohort is supported by over $2.6 million in funding from industry partners like Sanford Health, Fiegen Construction, CHS, and many more.

“Our industry partner program has allowed more scholars to be awarded these scholarships, through a match program,” said Deni Amundson, program manager for Build Dakota. “Scholars with an industry partner are guaranteed a job after graduation, and the industry partner has a steady stream of highly trained employees.”

“Year after year, we have a very high level of interest from both students and industry partners wanting to utilize the Build Dakota Scholarship at Southeast Technical College,” said Southeast Technical College President Robert Griggs. “This program has changed the narrative about technical education in our state, and I’m excited to see continued growth and partnerships.”

South Dakota Farm Bureau (SDFB) and County Farm Bureaus are hosting informational sessions to inform producers on issues relating to Climate Smart

Agriculture and the Drought Monitor. An update will also be provided on the SDFB Health Plans.

  Each session will include three experts to address topics relating to carbon and climate. Speakers include Brian A. Fuchs with the National Drought Mitigation Center,

Ben Gordon with Corteva Agriscience and Shelby Myers an economist with American

Farm Bureau Federation.

The meetings include a meal and are free and open to the public. They will be

held four different times, in four separate locations.

August 3, at 12 p.m. (MT) at the Branding Iron, Belle Fourche

August 3, at 6:30 p.m. (MT) at the Mueller Center, Hot Springs

August 4, at 12 p.m. (CT) at the Holiday Inn Express, Winner

August 4, at 6:30 p.m. (CT) at the Miller Community Center, Miller

This event is made possible in part by grant funding from American Farm Bureau and area County Farm Bureaus.

PIERRE, S.D. –  Governor Kristi Noem signed an executive order declaring a statewide state of emergency for drought conditions and allowing ditch mowing in Eastern South Dakota to begin effective immediately. As drought conditions continue to negatively impact feed availability for livestock across South Dakota, this order will increase access to hay for farmers and ranchers.

“Growing up on the family ranch, I know how difficult it can be to feed cattle during dry times,” said Governor Kristi Noem. “This increased flexibility will allow producers to immediately gain access to hay for their livestock. With a mild winter and early spring, most of the pheasant hatch is well behind us, and we do not expect this move to affect pheasant numbers.  Reports from the field look fantastic for the upcoming pheasant hunting season.”

Executive Order 2021-09 is effective immediately and will remain effective through Aug. 31, 2021.