The Dell Rapids Tribune from Dell Rapids, South Dakota • A1

VOLUME 128, NUMBER 43 PART OF THE USA TODAY NETWORK 60 CENTS, PLUS TAX Tribune DELL RAPIDS WEDNESDAY, OCT. 25, 2017 LIFE IN DELL RAPIDS For the latest sports and news from the Dell Rapids area, go to www.DellRapidsInfo.com ONLINE TO SUBSCRIBE TO THE DELL RAPIDS TRIBUNE, CALL TODAY: 428-5441 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER: Free rubble site days set The city dump will be accept- ing free loads three days this fall: Thursday, Oct. 26, Satur- day, Oct. 28 and Saturday, Nov. 4.

On Saturday, Oct. 28, un- wanted technology items like cellphones and tablets will also be accepted without charge. Shoes for Shoeless Program hosted by Dells FCCLA Do you have shoes in your home that are no longer need- ed or worn by a family mem- ber? If so, consider donating them to the for Shoe- program. They are col- lected and given to the needy in the Sioux Falls area. Slight- ly used, wearable shoes of any size are accepted.

Donations may be brought to the main office of the Dell Rapid Public School in the high school or middle school through Monday, Oct. 30. The project is sponsored by the Dell Rapids Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) Chapter. Lions Club announces meet raffle schedule The Dell Rapids Lions Club will again host a series of meat raffles at Bar and Grill this fall to raise money for charities. This Friday night raffles will be Nov.

3 and 17 and Dec. 15. The raffles begin at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $1. Variety of events slated for Legion A Veterans Mass will be at 10 a.m.

Sunday, Nov. 5 at St. Ma- ry Catholic Church. The Dell Rapids Ameri- can Legion will host a Veter- ans Day supper at 6 p.m. Sat- urday, Nov.

11. The guest speaker is LTC Shelly Bunk- ers, U.S. Army. The cost is $13 per person. Call Joe Thornell at 261-0934 to RSVP.

The Legion will also host their annual feather party at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 17. City Alerts Anyone interested in receiv- ing text alerts from the City of Dell Rapids should text to 605-206-2927. Dell Rapids Transit offers community service Dell Rapids Transit is a pub- lic transit system and offers rides to all ages for local ac- HAPPENINGS See EVENTS, Page 2B Dialogue Page 2A Community Pages 3-7A Cardinal Rev.

Page 8A Sports Pages 1-3B Legals Pages 4-6B Classifieds Pages 7-8B Ben Gruis, a building inspec- tor and code enforcement offi- cer for the City of Dell Rapids was presented Wednesday, Oct. 4, with the Jim Fjerestad Memo- rial Safety Leadership Award during the South Dakota Munici- pal annual conference in Sioux Falls, according to a press release. The award, sponsored by the SDML Compensation Fund and the South Dakota Pub- lic Assurance Alliance, is pre- sented to an individual for their outstanding leadership in guid- ing their safety and loss control program. has transformed the knowledge and focus of our or- ganization to a safety-oriented mindset in a short amount of said Dell Rapids City Ad- ministrator Justin Weiland. has fast become an important as- set to the city and the community of Dell Gruis developed the current safety program for the City of Dell Rapids seven years ago.

The city did not have an official safe- ty program prior to devel- opment of the program. The pro- gram extends from training of both public works and office em- ployees to identifying safety is- sues, to ensuring workers are safe. The city had a work- compensation incident since 2014. Gruis oversees all depart- safety protocols, makes amendments to the safety man- ual and organizes and conducts safety training meetings. Gruis is a member of the South Dakota Association of Code Enforcement and the Building Officials Association.

He is a member of Dell Rapids Lutheran Church and a volun- teer with the local Modern Wood- men chapter. He has volunteered as a coach and assistant for vari- ous sport activities with his three children over the years. The Jim Fjerestad Memorial Safety Leadership Award was first presented in 2011 to Jim Fjerestad, an employee for the City of Brandon. Fjerestad was not only instrumental in estab- lishing a safety and loss control program for Brandon but he also reached out to neighboring com- munities and invited their em- ployees to attend his month safe- ty meetings. Additionally, he was a very active volunteer for his church, his community and to the youth in his area.

Fjerestad died in 2012. Since that time this award has been dedicated in his memory. Dells building inspector receives safety award Gruis recognized during SDML annual conference SUBMITTED Ben Gruis was name dthe 2017 Fjerestad Award winner. From left are Brad Wilson, Insurance Benefits, Gruis; Lynn Bren, SDPAA Director of Member Services; and Doug Kirkus, Safety Benefits, Inc. SUBMITTED For the eighth consecutive year, the local business commu- nity will celebrate Halloween with children and their parents.

Downtown Dell Rapids Trick- or-Treat Night, which drew an es- timated 800 kids last year, will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, on Fourth Street, which will be closed off with barricades from Clark to State avenues. really a fun thing for the said Deb Mergen, a co-chairwoman along with her sister, Diane Bunkers, and Blooms on Main owner Thelma Busk. think the community en- joys it because they know a safe zone.

They know we close the street off and their kids can run back and Not all of the businesses that attend are from downtown. New this year, BX Civil Construc- tion will bring a large truck and hand out hard hats, Mergen said. Musical entertainment will be performed by the Kuper Family Band. Other attractions include free candy, barrel rides, a petting zoo, a haunted house at Alliecat Creations Friends, face paint- ing at Corduroy Pixie Dust, a photo booth at LaDelle and Fourth Coffeehouse, zumba by Revive Fitness, Mr. Twister, Gold Star Kettle Corn and more.

The cost for the haunted maze is $1 per person or patrons can bring a canned food item to donate to the Daily Bread Food Pantry. In the future, Mergen said she might pursue starting a zombie walk. Mergen said her favorite part of the event is seeing the kids and their parents in costume. costumes get better every year, and fun to see the parents because a lot of the par- ents will dress up, too, which is really she said. Trick-or-Treat Night slated for Friday Kuper Family Band to perform during the festivities MICAH BADER Residents of Dell Rapids and neighboring cities attended Downtown Dell Rapids Trick-or-Treat Night in 2017 on Fourth Street in Dell Rapids.

This event will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27. MICAH RAPIDS TRIBUNE Two high school studentsfrom Dell Rapids decidedto make keeping track of the score and inning a little easi- er for players and fans at two baseball fields in Dell Rapids City Park. Jack Prasek, a senior at Dell Rapids High School, and Ethan Geraets, a junior Dell Rapids St.

Mary High School, received permission Monday, Oct. 23, from the Dell Rapids City Coun- cil to construct wooden score- boards for Fields A and which will also count as their seperate Eagle Scout projects. The tab about $375 per scoreboard will be picked up by the Dell Rapids Baseball Association, according to DRBA board member Jeff Holm. inning you have two or three people sitting, (and) I think those kids would actually really enjoy going out, updating the Holm said. a relatively low cost, around 400 bucks, I think it would be worth Although they go to different schools, Prasek and Geraets have been friends since they were kids.

Before becoming members of Dell Rapids Boy Scout Troop 53, they met as first- and second-graders in Cub Scouts. Both troop members are student-athletes: Prasek plays in the trenches for the Dell Rapids football team, competes and wrestling and participated in drama; Geraets played football in the fall and is gearing up for basketball this winter and track and field in the spring. Prasek and the No. 3-seed Quarriers will take the gridiron against St. Thomas More at 6 p.m.

Thursday, Oct. 26, in the Class 11A state playoffs at Dell Rapids. After graduating, Prasek said he plans to attend the University of South Dakota to study medi- cine, and Geraets said he is undecided. Materials for the scoreboards will be purchased from Dells Lumber, where Geraets works part-time, he said. Although he have much experience woodworking, Geraets said he enjoys using hand tools and welding items on his family farm.

Prasek said he has wood- working experience from help- ing his family build a deck around their cabin and DRHS instructor Craig cabinetry class, where he built a TV stand. The boards which Prasek said will be either 7-by-10-feet or 5-by-10-feet and anchored in concrete will feature three boxes: the home score, away score and inning. He said it will be above the fence line and have a bench about two feet off the ground at the bottom so kids can step up and change the numbers. Scoreboards for scouts Prasek, Geraets to construct displays for Eagle Scout projects MICAH BADER Jack Prasek, left, and Ethan Geraets stand Friday, Oct. 20, on Field A in Dell Rapids City Park.

Prasek received approval from the Dell Rapids City Council to build a scoreboard for Field as did Geraets for Field A.MICAH RAPIDS TRIBUNE.