The Elkton Farmers

Baling the ditch hay

2010-02-04T14:09:00.000-08:00

I stopped to talk with Bill and Nella when they were out baling the ditch hay. Bill says he always likes to have some small square bales in the yard. He tells me, you never know when you'll need a few bales. There are always days in the winter when you have to get a cow and calf into the barn, and you have to feed and water them for a few days.

Farming is a way of life for Bill and Nella

2010-02-04T13:40:00.000-08:00

For Bill and Nella, farming is a way of life. It is just part of their daily living. When a neighbor has to take a few days off to take in a wedding or visit family out of state, Bill and Nella step in and take care of his farm for him. Whether it's feeding and watering cattle or just looking after the farm, Bill and Nella just find it the neighborly thing to do.

The bees, wind, and soybeans hard at work

2010-01-07T07:32:00.000-08:00

I took this picture of Henning spraying his soybean field, and you can see that he has the bees working for him, too. He has to be careful and look out for them. In South Dakota, you can almost count on the wind blowing at one time or another, so the farmer puts the wind to work for us, turning out electricity. Nowadays, when the farmer tries to make a living off the land, he has to work with mother nature in more ways than one.

Henning out spraying

2010-01-07T07:16:00.000-08:00

Hennning was out spraying his soybeans for the second time this season. He said he planned to spray them just once, but this year the weeds got a bit of a head start on him. Henning farms this field to get 40 bushels per acre: and he plants the seed, fertilizes, and sprays with that in mind.

But every farmer knows mother nature plays a very big part in farming. A farmer sometimes has to work with a late spring, not getting the rainfall at the right time, with an early frost, and so on.

A farmer or a gardener?

2009-12-17T07:17:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure what to call Rick, a farmer or a gardener? Rick has one of the largest, cleanest, and best- kept gardens in the area, and he still does most everything by hand. He also seems to plant just about a little of everything, and he does it in a big way--from flowers to onions.

What came first, the chicken or the egg?

2009-12-17T06:30:00.000-08:00

Rick has more then his share of animals on his farm, but he does things a bit differently from most farmers. He takes the eggs from his own chickens and puts them in an incubator to hatch them out. He takes complete charge of his animals from birth to the kitchen table.

The potato and corn field

2009-12-17T06:14:00.000-08:00

It was hard for me to find a weed in Rick's potatoes. It was so well kept, and his garden just seemed to run forever.

The oldest person in Elkton

2009-12-03T09:27:00.000-08:00

Ethel is 94 years old, and I believe she is the oldest, or one of the oldest, young ladies in town. Ethel grew up, married, and farmed all her life on a farm north of Elkton. She tells me that Elkton is home for her; and for now, that is how she plans to keep it. She says she feels good, and her health is good. But yet, one of the most difficult things for her about being the oldest in the community is that she has outlived most of her very close friends.

Ethel still enjoys a good game of cards with friends, and when the weather is nice a ride in country. She also enjoys having a good steak dinner with friends in one of our neighboring towns on Saturday night.

The tractor that was lost in a grove of trees

2009-11-18T08:13:00.000-08:00

Dave and his Dad found this tractor in a grove of trees, left to rust out. The transmission was gone, and the tractor looked like its better days were over, but Dave took the tractor home with him and took it apart piece by piece, replacing the hoses, nuts, and other parts and repainting every single piece. When he drives it out of the shop in a few months, it will run and look like a new tractor. Dave told me the has been working on it for about a year now; and in about two months, it should be ready to go into the field.

The farmer has to be comfortable

2009-11-18T08:02:00.000-08:00

Rather than trying to fix up and paint the old tractor seat, Dave went out and ordered a new one. When the farmer goes out to the field in the fall or spring, he will spend a lot of time on the tractor, and he should be comfortable.

This Ford got a new life

2009-11-18T07:37:00.000-08:00

Dave and his Dad bought this Ford tractor at a fire sale. It was burned badly and was ready for the junk yard to be sold for parts. Dave completely disassembled it and replaced every hose, nut, and screw that was worn out and repainted the whole tractor. When it left the shop, it looked and drove like a new tractor. Dave tells me that his Dad stops in the shop from time to time to ask a few questions and see how things are going.

Corn picking

2009-10-08T07:44:00.000-07:00

The above picture and the following two pictures and articles were sent to me from Bob Peterson of Brookings. I asked Bob if he would share them with you.

Sunday we went to a corn picking contest the way they picked corn in the old days. The high board was called the bang board. You would drive through the field picking the ears off and throw them against the bang board to keep them from going over the top. The guys that enter the contest see who can husk the most corn in a given time. In the picture it shows some of the teams and guys headed for the field to start the picking. It was a cold wet day but still fun to see all the horses and wagons and the corn picking. They had contest for different ages from 12-80 men and women. SD is the only state that still uses horses to pull the wagons like they used to. The horses get so they know when to move ahead to keep the wagon where it belongs. A 100 bushel a day was about all one man could pick in a day and scoop it off the wagon into a corn crib in a long day.

The bang board

2009-10-08T07:26:00.001-07:00

TOM==Sounds okay to me I am just getting mud off my shoes that I had on Sunday. I am 86 years old so I just got in on the end of the hand corn picking. Back then it was open pollinated corn so you were bent over all day long and a hundred bushels a day was a big day. I would guess a good picker could do a lot better in the highbred corn if he could get between the 20 inch rows. Back then we had 42 inch rows. The hired guys that picked got around .05 cents a bushel, maybe a little more if they brought their own gloves. A lot of young farm boys hired out to pick after they got their own or their dad's picked. rap

Bob Peterson

2009-10-08T07:08:00.001-07:00

A picture of an antique corn picker. Hard to find parts for it...

Bob has a great sense of humor.

Plowing with a horse in Oaxaca, Mexico

2009-10-05T13:36:00.000-07:00

Plowing a bean field with a horse and plow is much harder then I thought it would be. The young farmer made it look so easy; but when he let me try, I found out how much work it really was. I had a hard time keeping the horse moving and the plow in the ground. Sean Sheriff took this film with a flip camera.
Click on the button below the picture.

Plowing in Oaxaca, Mexico

2009-10-05T13:01:00.000-07:00

Sean Sheriff, who teaches at a local university here in Oaxaca, Mexico took the following film with a flip camera.

I found out that it is not easy to keep the plow level and the horse going straight and still get something done. As soon as this young farmer gets a few rows plowed, the ladies start planting the beans. (All by hand.) They first say a little prayer, and then off they go planting beans all by hand.

Taking a break with a little farm talk

2009-10-05T09:28:00.000-07:00

Amber riding Marshmallow

2009-09-11T20:58:00.000-07:00

Amber loves to visit Elkton. Not only does she get to spend time with her Grandpa and Grandmother (Diane and Dave), but she also gets to ride Marshmallow. Marshmallow was a special gift from her grandparents. Dave and Diane also see that Marshmallow is well taken care of when Amber is not here to look after her.

A little advice from mom

2009-09-11T20:39:00.000-07:00

Amber stops her horse Marshmallow on the streets of Elkton to get a little advice from Mom. Elkton is a pretty good town to ride a horse in, but you have to be aware of cars. There are kids riding their bikes and playing ball on the streets too.

City man likes living in small-town Elkton

2009-09-04T14:47:00.000-07:00

Dave, who works in the largest city in the state prefers to live in a small town. He enjoys going downtown in the morning and having coffee with the locals. When he wins the pot in the morning; I joke with his wife that he'll be taking her out to dinner, but she just laughs. Dave usually drives his VW diesel to work, but he tells me he feels more at home in his pick-up. I guess he's a farmer at heart. I asked him once if he thought people in small towns were friendlier then city folk, and he said not really. He told me he drove over the roads for years and always found good, nice, friendly people everywhere.

The card player

2009-09-03T15:06:00.001-07:00

I believe it would be hard to find a guy who loves to play cards more then Joker. He told me once that he plays cards just about every day of the week, and there have been times he said when he has played around the clock. Also, it would be difficult or impossible to find someone in Elkton who does not know him.

Joker

2009-09-03T14:51:00.001-07:00

I have known Joker all my life. In fact, he lived right next door to my grandmother, but yet if someone asked me his real name, I would have to say it is Joker. If there is a card game going on in town, you will be sure to find him there. He is either playing or anxiously waiting to get into the game.

Farming in southern Mexico

2009-07-08T10:08:00.000-07:00

Many of our young farm workers come from southern Mexico, and they know what it is like to work long days under the hot sun. The farms in this part of Mexico still use a lot of hand labor and the farm workers are used to working long hours in the fields.

The way grandpa used to farm

2009-07-08T09:45:00.000-07:00

I took this picture in southern Mexico and thought of my grandfather who settled on a farm southwest of Elkton. When he first started farming in the Elkton area, he farmed with horses and did most everything the hard way from sunup to sundown. Here in Oaxaca, Mexico many farmers still farm this way using some of the same methods. This farmer is using oxen.

Roger and his dairy farm

2009-07-07T14:06:00.000-07:00

Roger managed and ran a dairy farm north of town for over 47 years. He started milking when he was still in high school. In fact, he and his brother Leroy won the South Dakota State Dairy judging contest when they were still students at Elkton High School. Roger never left the farm he grew up on and managed to milk around 40 cows a day morning and night. There were nights when I was driving back to Elkton that I would see lights on in his barn at 10:30 at night, and I knew that he must be out in barn helping a cow deliver a calf.

Just as I planned to write here about Roger, I heard he was in the Sioux Falls hostipal. I gave him a call, and he said he was not sure how long he would be in the hospital. It could be days and yet it might be months, but if he had his rathers, I am sure he would be back on the farm as soon as possible.

These charlet cross find a new home

2009-06-02T20:13:00.000-07:00

Last Fall, Wes brought these charlet cross home from Fort Pierre, South Dakota, or West River as everyone in the state says. They came right off grass and were taken from their mothers that same day, so they bawled for about 3 days after their arrival at their new home west of Elkton. They might have enjoyed the new home in East River if they had not been weaned at the same time.

Charlet cattle in the feedlot

2009-06-02T19:53:00.000-07:00

These charlet feeder cattle are the same ones you saw in the picture above. It's just that they have been on feed for about 4 and half months. They have been eating well and gaining about 3 and a half pounds a day. In a few months they will be sold and shipped off to market.

3M man chooses Elkton to retire

2009-05-06T07:54:00.000-07:00

Leonard worked for 3M for over 32 years; but when it came time to hang up his hat and call it quits, he chose Elkton to retire, where he and his wife bought a nice home in the south part of town. Leonard tells me that he did retire, but he still plans to work for the company a couple of days a week. He is not quite ready to leave the work place all together.

A little lumber shopping

2009-05-06T07:32:00.000-07:00

Leonard had to take a little time off to visit the local lumber yard. After starting a project in his back yard for his 3 dogs, he realized that he needed a few more nuts and bolts to finish up the job.

Ready to till gardens

2009-05-06T07:14:00.000-07:00

Leonard did not have to wait to get a day off work to get his snow blower off his tractor and his garden tiller mounted. He was ready to till gardens before the frost was out and the ground was warmed up. The locals down at the coffee shop keep telling him that there is still time to get that garden in.

Steve doing his spring cleaning

2009-04-30T13:12:00.001-07:00

Steve runs a cow calf operation just outside of town. He tells me he starts calving about mid-February and finishes up around mid-April. He has the cows pinned up in a corral all winter so when it starts thawing in spring he finds he has lots of spring cleaning to get done.

My daughter Stormy

2009-04-13T12:30:00.000-07:00

My mother passed away recently, and my oldest daughter Stormy blogged about her. I thought she wrote a real nice article and would like to share it with you. I personally find it dificult to write about my mother at this time, so I left it up to my daugher to do it.

Stormy's post

2009-04-13T12:21:00.000-07:00

This is my grandma. She requested that her funeral procession not go around town and not take back roads. She wanted her funeral procession to drive straight down Main Street honking! When the priest read her request at her funeral mass, he said it was one of the funniest requests he'd ever had.

Her family and friends were more than happy to make sure she didn't go out quietly! We drove straight down Main Street blaring our horns for Grandma! (And we made quite a racket. Grandma left behind 11 kids, 21 grandkids, 23 great-grandkids, their spouses, a sister, cousins, and lots of lifelong friends and neighbors. The kids especially enjoyed honking the horns - Grandma would have appreciated that. Tickled her pink is what she would have said.)
My grandma was an awesome woman. While everyone had their stories to share, I think three main qualities come to mind:

Learning. Grandma loved to learn. She did her first years in this one room school house. She then talked her father into letting her attend not just high school but college. For a women born in 1917, that's quite a feat. She never stopped learning. She read a lot and she asked lots of questions. She was always interested in other people and not afraid to ask about topics most people would shy away from. She asked me if I felt guilty for not going to church. (She wasn't trying to pressure me at all. She shared that she felt terribly guilty if she missed mass, even if it was to help out preparing food for a family after a funeral mass.) She asked Frank about raising a kid as a single dad. (That was after she said she couldn't understand how people who had kids could get a divorce. Frank said "I think I should probably tell you then that I'm divorced and have a kid." Grandma just said "I sure stuck my foot in my mouth on that one." and then proceeded to ask him lots of questions.)

Enjoying life, playing games and fishing. My first memories of grandma are of sitting around her dining room table eating chocolate chip cookies and playing cards for days at a time. She always had time to play with the grandkids. Later, as her eye sight started to go too, we had to spend our time doing her other favorite things like going for drives and fishing. Or watching people fish. She was always disgusted that Frank would release the fish - he was throwing away a perfectly good dinner! (Although she lived through the Great Depression, Dad said it didn't affect her or her family much. They were very frugal to start with. They grew everything they ate, saved everything, spent very little. Their main entertainment was always things like fishing and playing cards.)

I'm not sure what to call this one. Good negotiator, good at making friends, good caregiver? Although she appeared extremely indecisive, over the years, I realized that Grandma always got what she wanted and nobody ever got mad at her for long. She consulted with the whole world on every decision - a characteristic that often drove her kids nuts - but she usually had a strong opinion and went with it. Like driving down Main Street with your horns blaring!
There is lots, lots more to say about Grandma but I think I'll sum it up by saying she will be missed very, very much.

A look at the editor

2009-04-11T10:44:00.000-07:00

This week I stopped in to visit with Robin, the editor of The Elkton Record to ask if she would write a little something about herself for The Elkton Farmers. Robin is one of those ladies who finds it hard to say no to a neighbor. I thought it would be nice for Robin's readers who do not know what she looks like to see a picture of her. I feel it makes the newspaper a little more personal.

An editor's voice

2009-04-11T10:36:00.000-07:00

Hello! My name is Robin Mulvey, and I’m the editor of The Elkton Record. I was born and raised in the Midwest and my family moved to Elkton nearly twenty years ago. We raised our children here and now the next generation chooses to call this home, as some of our grandchildren live across the street from us. Life is good in small town America. We try to work hard, do good and have good, clean fun when we can. Elkton isn’t Mayberry, but we’re probably about as close as you can come in 2009. I tend to draw a little fire from the liberals in town (especially when I publish my editorials), but I rather enjoy the spice it adds to my hum-drum life.

A hometown girl

2009-03-03T15:23:00.000-08:00

Connie is a real hometown girl; she grew up in Elkton and studied at the local school. After graduation from high school, she went off for a while to further her education, but returned to open a shop on Main Street. Today her shop is in the newest and nicest building in town.

Connie in her shop

2009-03-03T15:10:00.001-08:00

Connie not only feels very much at home here in the shop, but she knows most everyone in town on a first name basis. She grew up just 2 1/2 blocks from her shop and still spends a lot of time at her folk's place, working with her mom in the garden. The word is out that she and her mom have one of the best gardens in town.

Checking on the buffalo

2009-02-24T15:06:00.006-08:00

My 92-year old mother just loves to go for rides. We call it farming, or windshield farming. She enjoys checking the crops and watching the corn, beans, and wheat being planted and harvested, but her all-time favorite is checking on the buffalo south of Flandreau.

The round-up

2009-02-05T15:21:00.000-08:00

Bob and his son Kash are setting up a temporary corral to hold and sort the cattle before trucking them home for the winter. It is the time of the year when the calves have to be weaned and the cows get a chance to feed in the corn stalks until snow falls. Bob tells me he does not see any problems with the round-up. He brought his best behaved cows to this pasture, and they all know their job.

Homeward bound

2009-02-05T15:02:00.000-08:00

This set of cattle has made this fall round-up before, but there always seems to be a replacement cow or a first cow heifer that wants to test the cowboy. Kash seems to take this right in stride and makes it just part of the job.

Rounding up cattle

2009-02-05T14:49:00.000-08:00

The cattle are rounded up, but they still haven't entered the corral so Kash has to sit back and pay attention until the cattle decide to enter the corral.

The gardener

2009-02-02T17:12:00.000-08:00

Scharke somehow knows how to get the maximum production from his work. He seems to work in his garden effortless and with complete joy. As a result, his plants just seem to produce more and more.

Those of us that know Scharke personally know that he wears many hats. During WW II he worked as a welder in the ship yards. After the war he returned to Elkton and worked in the blacksmith shop. From there, he took a job at the local implement dealer as a welder and stayed until he retired.

The tomato harvest

2009-02-02T16:48:00.000-08:00

Last winter Scharke read seed magazines and planned for his spring planting. This summer, he reaped more then he ever hoped for from his garden. Scharke told me that he keeps his grass clippings in a pile near his garden and puts the grass clippings in the rows and around his plants to keep the weeds down. The clippings help hold the moisture in the ground. I am not sure if they help add favor to the vegetables, but I will say the vegetables sure taste good.

The Outhouse

2009-01-30T20:07:00.000-08:00

Not too many years ago the outhouse was a familiar sight on most Elkton farms, but with running water and electricty it has become a thing of the past like the B John Deere and M Farmal tractors. Usually when you visited the outhouse you found a Montgomery Ward catalog that was useful although it was not left there for reading.

A big decision

2009-01-19T14:57:00.000-08:00

Les and Wes are taking time out before the big football game to look at the two feeder cattle that will be auctioned off at half time. Wes is a little intrigued to see that they have a Herford and a Shorthorn, when a good many of the feeder cattle in the area are Black Angus.

The Beef Bowl

2009-01-19T14:44:00.000-08:00

The farmers have corn to be picked and beans to be combined, but yet they find time to take a half day off and enjoy a good football game. During the half time, Lenny, Jim, and Scott took time to auction off the two feeder cattle that are shown in the picture above. The money they raised was donated to the university.

The wind farms

2009-01-01T21:54:00.000-08:00

Driving north out of Elkton, you can drive for miles and see wind farms. For the Elkton farmer, it is a rather new farming operation although for years he has watched his Minnesota neighbor putting them up on his land.

A new way of farming

2009-01-01T21:38:00.001-08:00

Many of the Elkton farmers who farm north of town are putting wind towers on their land. They find that the towers bring a little extra cash to their farming operation.

Donnie at work

2009-01-01T21:06:00.001-08:00

Donnie is a people person, and working with the customers makes his day worthwhile. Here, he is weighing up hamburger meat and wants to be sure there is neither too much, nor too little fat in the meat.

Special cuts

2009-01-01T20:02:00.000-08:00

Donnie likes to take time out and make those special cuts. If he knows what people want or knows what they are looking for, he tries his best to see that they get it.

Beef for dinner

2009-01-01T19:38:00.000-08:00

Donnie supervises the fat cattle, the hogs, the buffalo, and the sheep being unloaded at the locker. He also walks the process through from the fifth wheeler where the livestock is unloaded to the packaging when it is going out of the supermarket. Donnie enjoys working with people and is happy seeing that the consumer is satisfied with his product.

The family and its champion dogs

2008-09-07T20:22:00.000-07:00

Kristie (center) grew up on a farm between Verdi and Elkton. For those of you who do not know where Verdi is, well, Verdi is part of the Tri-city area: Elkton, Verdi, and Ward. I believe Elkton is the only one of the three with a post office, so that makes Kristie a real country girl.

Kristie tells me that her mother, Kathy (on the right), started working with dogs as a young girl and raised collies. Both Kristie and her daughter Bailey (on the left) have continued the tradition. Recently, Bailey's dogs have been making headlines. Bailey's younger brother Lane (in front of Kathy) loves dogs, too.

Bailey with her dogs

2008-09-07T19:47:00.001-07:00

Bailey, a 12-year-old at Elkton Junior High, not only enjoys school, but also loves to play sports after school. She enjoys playing volleyball and says the team is improving day by day. These days a big part of her life are her three dogs which she works with on a regular basis. She started working with them as pups and is having fun turning them all into champions.

Grand champion 6 times

2008-09-07T19:16:00.000-07:00

Bailey knows what it's like to work with a champion. Her dog Tehya has won 6 grand champions in the last 4 years. This year she won 3 first places at the Brookings county fair and 1 first and 2nd place at the state fair. Bailey is proud of Tehya's title as a sixth-time grand champion.

The young champ

2008-09-07T18:43:00.001-07:00

Bailey and Zoe work well together. Zoe is half border collie, half blue healer. For Bailey, this has been an ideal mix. Zoe is still a pup, but she is working like a champ. She has already won 2 first places at the state fair and 2 first places at the Brookings county fair. If Bailey brings out a ball or frisbee, Zoe is ready to go to work.

Bailey with Koko

2008-09-07T18:20:00.000-07:00

Bailey is playing around with Koko in the front yard. Koko is still a very young dog and has only just recently entered the show ring, but she has already won a first and second place at the county fair. Bailey knows that this dog has a future in the show ring.

Lane and his dog

2008-09-07T18:01:00.000-07:00

Lane is taking a break with his dog Zoe. He is not old enough to show his dog in the county or state fairs yet, but that suits him just fine. He leaves those honors for his older sister. For now, he just enjoys playing with his dog.

Dutch Belted Cattle

2008-09-05T09:41:00.000-07:00

There are farmers in the Elkton area who are raising a few exotic cattle. Here's a picture of Wes' Dutch Belted cow with its new born calf. I wonder if Wes has this breed because of his own roots? He must be 100% Dutch.

The Elkton kayaking couple

2008-07-21T23:07:00.000-07:00

Jarett and Laura are an Elkton couple who spend a great deal of their time kayaking the rivers and lakes of South Dakota. They not only go kayaking on warm, sunny summer days, but on cold windy, rainy days as well. You can also find them paddling on the lakes way in the middle of the night, wearing their miners lanterns.

Setting out on a kayak trip

2008-07-21T22:32:00.000-07:00

Jay and Jarett are about to head down the Sioux River for the Flandreau dam. Today the river is high, and it is windy and rainy. This is a trip they have both made before, but each new day brings a new and interesting challenge. Find more details on Jay's blog, Kayaking the Lakes of South Dakota.

Kayaking the Big Sioux River

2008-07-21T21:39:00.000-07:00

Jarett is about to run a small rapids in the Sioux river at the Pow Wow grounds north of Flandreau and is heading for the dam in Flandreau. It is a short stretch of the Big Sioux, but an interesting and pretty trip. The river will wind through the city park past the golf course, and he will end the 2 hour trip at the dam. Read more about kayaking on his blog, South Dakota Canoe Association.

Hill Top Dairy

2008-07-11T13:03:00.000-07:00

When you think of Elkton, you don't usually think of rolling hills and pasture. Yet this dairy is called Hill Top Dairy because, surprisingly, it is located on a hill. Standing at the front door you can see for miles in any direction.

Touring the dairy

2008-07-11T12:35:00.000-07:00

Olga took time away from her office to give me a tour of the dairy. She pointed out a few new operations they have added this past year. One that seemed hard to believe is that the dairy takes its manure or used straw and runs it through a drying process that kills the bacteria. Once it comes out of the machine, it looks like foam, but is really just reused straw. It works great and sure saves on the manure hauling.

Mario's day in the hospital

2008-07-11T12:19:00.000-07:00

Mario spends his day working in the hospital. Not only does he give IVs , but he also cares for a good many milk cows and nurses along their new born calves.

Cows riding the carousel

2008-07-11T11:58:00.000-07:00

Hill Top Dairy is the only dairy, or one of the few dairies, in South Dakota that uses a carousel in the milking parlor. 40 cows at a time are milked, and cows continue getting on and off as they start or finish the milking process.

Two sides of managing the dairy

2008-07-11T11:42:00.000-07:00

Not only does Wilfried spend hours out in the barns looking over the livestock, but he also spends a good deal of time at his desk checking feed costs, milk production, and dry cows. The computer in the dairy barn is just one of many tools he uses to run a well-managed dairy.

The Elkton Harvest Festival

2008-06-29T00:06:00.001-07:00

It's Elkton Harvest Festival time and here comes a fine tractor. Tractors like this Farmal were once a common site in the Elkton area, but now about the only time you see one is in the local parade.

A parade's not a parade without horses!

2008-06-28T23:49:00.000-07:00

A parade would not really seem like a parade without horses. This father and daughter team took advantage of the day to ride together and help make the Elkton parade a success.

Basketball anyone?

2008-06-28T23:35:00.000-07:00

This young boy not only rides a unicycle, but he also plays a little basketball at the same time.

Hill Top Dairy

2008-06-28T23:20:00.000-07:00

This float says it all: It started with milk.

Here come the red hats

2008-06-28T23:04:00.000-07:00

These young ladies are decked out in red and purple and are ready to enjoy the festival.

A child enjoys the parade

2008-06-28T22:51:00.000-07:00

You are never too young to enjoy watching a parade. Even the very young find them awesome.

A favorite ride for the kids

2008-06-28T22:33:00.000-07:00

This was one of the most thrilling rides for the young children. Some seemed frozen in fear, but they all seemed to enjoy it.

Fun on the merry-go-round

2008-06-28T22:16:00.000-07:00

The merry-go-round is always a popular and enjoyable ride for young children, and

these young kids are certainly having fun on it.

Ed and his daughter

2008-06-28T22:06:00.000-07:00

Ed is just about worn out from the rides, so he and his daughter are ready to go home.

Playing games

2008-06-28T21:53:00.000-07:00

Adults love to be kids for a while too, and try their luck at playing games. These young men were trying to win a teddy bear, but is it for the kids or themselves?

Watching the merry-go-round

2008-06-28T21:42:00.000-07:00

For children, watching a ride can sometimes be as much fun as actually going on the ride itself. These kids seem to be having a great time just watching their friends and waiting their turn.

Farmers take time to talk

2008-06-28T21:33:00.000-07:00

Sometimes we just have to take a break from the rides, the food and the noise and have a friendly talk with a neighbor we haven't seen in awhile.

A family that loves horseback riding

2008-06-10T16:42:00.000-07:00

Victoria, Laura, Marla, Tiffani, and Jena are doing what they all love to do best--spending time together riding horses on a Sunday afternoon.

Dusty finds a good home

2008-06-10T16:12:00.000-07:00

Tiffani and Marla are spending Sunday afternoon riding Dusty. Dusty, a horse out of Wyoming, had a health problem, so Tim Davis, his owner, gave him to Marla and family. Tim was too fond of the horse to get rid of him, so he gave him a home where he knew he would be well taken care of in his old age.

Victoria and Laura working Bugs

2008-06-10T16:01:00.000-07:00

Victoria and Laura are giving Bugs, Laura's favaorite horse, a good workout. Bugs spends the school year at South Dakota State working with university students. I believe Bugs has more than enough hours in college to graduate, but she just loves her job.

Jena getting in some practice

2008-06-10T15:52:00.000-07:00

Jena, 11, is practicing barrel racing on her favorite horse, Vinny. She is using the trees at Theilen's Corner for barrels.

Steve & Diane's grand opening

2008-06-04T21:12:00.000-07:00

Steve and Diane are celebrating their grand opening with free meals, cookies, and ice cream. It has been a long time since Elkton has seen so many people on Main Street. Cars were parked on both sides of the street and everybody was coming into the local super market.

Time for ice cream

2008-06-04T21:00:00.000-07:00

Free ice cream anyone? You don't have to be a child to enjoy an ice cream cone at any time during the celebration.

Sausage or a hot dog anyone?

2008-06-04T20:34:00.000-07:00

These young men lined up to select their choice of meat to eat on this grand opening day.

NieeMa

2008-06-04T20:14:00.000-07:00

NieeMa, who is on the Elkton City Council, is in a festive mood. She is showing off her meal which she is eating with other home town folks on this grand opening day.

Chelsea & Bill Clinton

2008-06-04T19:53:00.000-07:00

Chelsea and Bill Clinton came to Flandreau this past week to campaign for Hillary. Chealsea spoke about why she thought her mother was the best person to be the next president of the United States, where as Bill talked more about issues and the role South Dakota would have in the future of this country.

The Clinton's in Flandreau

2008-06-04T19:32:00.000-07:00

President Bill Clinton and his daughter Chelsea are giving talks in South Dakota on why they think Hillary would be the best person to be the next president of the United States. It's not everyday that a past president of the United States comes to this area and meets with the local farmers and towns people to talk with them about changes that need to be made so America can be an even better place to live.

The plumber's son

2008-05-27T19:03:00.000-07:00

Shelby, who's a plumber like his dad, spends his day running new water lines, fixing irrigation systems, and laying water pipes for farmers. And some Sunday mornings when most of us are taking it easy, Shelby often does more, like fix a broken water pipe for a mother who needs to give her newborn baby a bath before she leaves the house. Shelby does this with a grin on his face. Then, when he has a little free time, he takes time out to mow his neighbors' lawns.

Marvy's Gator

2008-05-17T18:58:00.001-07:00

When some farmers retire they go out and buy a motorhome, a Harley-Davidson motorcycle, a motor-boat, but not Marvy. He gets himself a brand new John Deer Gator and drives it everywhere. Mornings he's downtown getting his morning coffee; later in the day he takes it for a drive in the country; and on Sunday he and his wife go off to church in it.

The bus driver

2008-05-12T09:10:00.001-07:00

Leonard has been driving a bus for the Elkton school district for over 12 years; in fact, he has been driving longer than any other driver in town. This entitles him to drive the newest bus, have the best bus stall, and have first pick of the routes. Riding on the bus with Leonard, you can see why he drives. He just loves the students, and he can't hide it one bit. Every single one of them is number one in his book.

"8 to10" of snow on April 25th

2008-04-26T10:32:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Elkton got 8" to 10"of new snow, and I-29 was shut down from North Dakota to Nebraska. This last week the farmers have been out planting corn, and now old man winter has moved back in. They tell me downtown if you don't like the weather around here, just wait a few hours...we live in South Dakota.

Spring planting

2008-04-25T22:29:00.000-07:00

This is the time of year the farmer has been waiting for all winter. Now it's a race against the weather. He has got to get the crop in the ground when it is warm enough and dry enough to be worked, but yet he loves to see a nice rain when the planting is done.

The planter box

2008-04-25T22:08:00.000-07:00

Jimmy is excited to be out in the field planting spring wheat. It is a nice warm spring day, and the ground is in ideal condition to be worked. With certified seed and good weather Jimmy hopes to have one of his best harvests ever in July.

The Lake Benton Opera House

2008-04-06T22:02:00.000-07:00

Not many small midwestern towns can claim to have an active opera house. But next door to Elkton, among rolling hills and alongside a beautiful lake, lies Lake Benton, home of the Lake Benton Opera House, which draws talent from the local area.

Broadway meets Lake Benton

2008-04-06T21:42:00.000-07:00

Sometimes to find great talent you only have to look in your local community. Pictured above are the people from our local area who sang and peformed at the Opera House in a musical revue called "Broadway Meets Lake Benton."

Elkton's opera singer

2008-04-06T21:07:00.000-07:00

Kayla opened the spring opera performance in Lake Benton with the song "Tomorrow" from the play "Annie." Later on in the program, she sang the song "Maybe" from the same play. Kayla is an Elkton high school student who seems a natural on stage. She is the youngest, or one of the youngest, members in the cast.

Meals on wheels

2008-03-31T14:35:00.001-07:00

Jessie and Cindy have the dinners all made and ready to be delivered every day for lunch. They do this with such joy and ease that you think it is an honor rather then a chore to do. They make the dinners for Meals on Wheels at the diner, along with the meals for 60 Plus and the regular customers.

Guests for dinner

2008-03-31T14:13:00.000-07:00

Donna was telling me that she had invited guests over for dinner. Now her meals have arrived, but her guests have not. She also said that she has joined the Elkton Fitness Center and is more then happy with the facilities. She likes the idea that she can use the facilities any time of the day she wants.

Larry and Harriet and world travel

2008-03-31T13:40:00.000-07:00

When I stopped in to see Larry and Harriet, we had a long talk about world travels. Larry lived for a number of years in Spain which he said he really enjoyed. He told me about traveling in northern Africa to bases and about life in Panama. The two have settled down now in Elkton.