Custer County Chronicle

Governor did the right thing

Published by admin on Thu, 10/10/2019 - 10:15am
The good news is we have a compassionate governor in South Dakota who listens to the voice of reason. The bad news is we have some less compassionate people working at the Department of Corrections (DOC).
The good news is that the 11 residents at the former STAR Academy, former SLIC-e LLC property south of Custer will not have to vacate the premises by the end of this month as first decreed in an Oct. 1 letter to them. They now have until March 1 to find new places to live, thanks to the intervention of Gov. Kristi Noem.

Country roads, the place I belong

Published by admin on Thu, 10/10/2019 - 10:15am
There is a special fondness in my heart for country roads. 
You could take the song “Country Roads” by John Denver and change the words “West Virginia” to South Dakota and “Blue Ridge Mountains” to Black Hills Country and it would fit my sentiments exactly.

State needs to give answers

Published by admin on Thu, 10/03/2019 - 9:33am
On Oct. 31, 11 families, a restaurant and several artists are going to be evicted from the former Sustainable Light Industrial Complex and energy (SLIC-e) and State Treatment and Rehabilitation Academy (STAR) campus while the state “evaluates all its options.”

Float riders are disadvantaged

Published by admin on Thu, 10/03/2019 - 9:32am
Gold Discovery Days (GDD) Parade riders on class floats may be at a distinct disadvantage at any future event due to action taken at the Sept. 3 city council meeting. It’s an unfair advantage, we would say as we have always believed in the Constitutional right to defend oneself in the face of any kind of attack.

James Buchanan

Published by admin on Thu, 10/03/2019 - 9:26am
James “Tiny” Buchanan was born June 25, 1963, in Marshalltown, Iowa, to Ernest Eugene and Mary Jane Buchanan. He attended LDF High School.
On Oct. 5, 1990, James was united in marriage to Tina Carr in Custer, S.D.
He was employed by Midwest Manufacturing as a forklift driver. James was a member of Ducks Unlimited and Pheasants Forever.

Jeri Hewitt

Published by admin on Thu, 10/03/2019 - 9:25am
Jeri LeRoy Hewitt was born Feb. 5, 1966, to Robert and Maxine Hewitt.  He attended school in Custer, S.D.
Jeri worked as a welder and in the timber industry for several years. Later, he took a position with the City of Custer and worked there until the time of his death. 
Jeri died Sept. 24, 2019, at his home in Custer. He was 53.  
He was preceded in death by the love of his life, Kathy Herrlein; his parents, Robert and Maxine Hewitt;  brother, Jim Hewitt; sister, Angela Hewitt; sister, Jacque Wood; and brother-in-law, Jon Amick.

A love letter to autumn

Published by admin on Fri, 09/27/2019 - 4:00pm
Autumn. It is a season of contradictions. On one hand, it is the harvest season; it is fullness and bountiful goodness, a reward for hard labor. On the other hand, once the world has reached full ripeness, there is nothing left but rot. The leaves fall, the pumpkins cave in upon themselves, and the apple orchard smells like a brewery. But, much like life itself, while it lasts, it is pure magic. 

Launching a week of work

Published by admin on Thu, 09/26/2019 - 9:05am
In 1879, a 16-year-old boy told his parents he wanted to learn how to build machinery. He moved nine miles away from his parents’ farm to take an apprenticeship as a machinist at a shipbuilding firm in Detroit. From there, he went on to become an engineer for the Detroit Edison Company where he developed plans for a horseless carriage. Twenty-four years after accepting that apprenticeship, Henry Ford established the Ford Motor Company.
We see it through Henry Ford’s story, and we see it time and time again: work-based learning works.

Autumn yearnings

Published by admin on Thu, 09/26/2019 - 9:04am
With acknowledgement to Joshua and his column in last week’s issue, I must agree that fall has always been my favorite season too. 
(Admittedly, with the short, cool summers we’ve had here recently I’m starting to think my preference may be changing to that other season, but that is a subject for another day.)

SLIC-e can only be called a total fiasco

Published by admin on Fri, 09/20/2019 - 10:25am

For the record, we were never in favor of the State of South Dakota selling the former STAR Academy property. The facility was an effective means of dealing with troubled youth and getting them back on the right path. That is, until former Gov. Dennis Daugaard decided to close the place and send these troubled youth back to their communities where many of them got in trouble again and reentered the judicial system.