Gary Inter State THE Established Sept. 6, 1878; the only newspaper in the world solely interested in the welfare of Gary, SD and vicinity. Gary Historical Association OctoberOctober A monthly newspaper with news of the past and present. 20142014 www.experiencegarysd.com "The opinions in this paper do not necessarily reflect the views of the Gary Historical Association.” This paper printed for you by DNB NATIONAL BANK Gary and Clear Lake SD We want to thank them for this service! Gary 605.272.5233 Clear Lake 605.874.2191 Odd Fellows Lodge Members lay Grave stones at Grandview Cemetery January 15, 1892 the two story Odd Fellows Lodge building was built in Gary. (the Lodge members always met in the upstairs and rented out the ground level). $1500.00 was paid when the joist was laid, an- other $1500.00 when the plastering was done and $995.00 when the building was complete. A total of $3995.00. The Independent Order of Odd Fellows started an or- ganization in Gary in 1898. There used to be a lodge hall and meeting place in Gary, and many of our ancestors belonged here, but as the enroll- ment dwin- dled they merged with the Watertown order #24 chapter. A number of Gary resi- dents are still members. [On June 3, 1976, the building was put on the Nat’l Register of Historical places for its architecture. The architect was A. Oakes.] (Wikipedia) This year as a project we decided to put grave stones on some of the unmarked graves in Grandview Cemetery where a lot of our members have been buried. Our organization has been serving lunches at the July 3rd and 4th celebration in the barn at Buffalo Ridge in Gary for three years and the money we make is used to purchase the grave stones. Thank you for your support. The Gary Lodge had initiated several hundred members over the years who all have been true to the motto of the Lodge Friendship Love and Truth to visit the sick, educate the orphans and bury the dead. We, as an organization, are very proud of what we have accom- plished. We encourage you to drive out and take a look at our progress. 1 James Robert Miller December 7, 1928—September 4, 2014 James Robert Miller, 85, Bis- marck, died September 4, 2014, at a Mandan care center. James “Jim” was born on De- cember 7, 1928, in Gary, SD, the son of Frank and Carrie (Fritz) Miller. He grew up and attended school in Gary and graduated from Gary High School. In May 1951, he entered the U. S; Army and served in Korea. Following his discharge from the Army in April 1953, Jim lived for a brief time in Gary, SD, and Jamestown, ND. In 1956, he moved to Facebook photo. Bismarck where he began his 39 year career with Northern Improvement. On October 30, 1965, he Save the Date: Friday, November 7 the Gary Legion married Irene Thomas at St. Mary’s Catholic Church will have their membership party at 6:00 pm with a in Bismarck. catered meal. Jim was active with the VFW and their Honor Guard, American Legion, and 40 et 8. He was also active at Church of Corpus Christi, serving as an Save the Date: The Gary Legion’s Flag disposal will usher. He enjoyed gardening, lawn maintenance, bird take place on Tuesday, November 11 [Veteran’s Day] at watching, reading, watching movies and ball games, the Gary Legion beginning at 6 pm with a Pot Luck and was a big Vikings and Twins fan. He also en- Supper. joyed traveling, especially to the west coast. Jim is survived by his wife, Irene of Bismarck; one sister, Ione Schulte of Eden Prairie, MN; and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, two Gary Legion brothers, Pat and Al; and two sisters, Armetha and Mary Ann. Following the funeral mass, the family invites you to join them at the church for fellowship and refresh- ments. Blessed be his memory. Eastgate/Parkway Funeral Service Bismarck, North Dakota October 25, 2014 7:00 pm Gary Legion Hall · Bingo · Chances on the wheel · The Gary Historical Association will hold its Raffle tickets annual meeting at the Gary Community Cen- · Door Prizes ter (Fire Hall) on October 16th at 7 pm. Auxiliary will serve pie and BBQ’s 2 Benjamin “Ben” Reifel ~ Lakota Sioux Published on March 20, 2012 by Amy Benjamin “Ben” Reifel, also known as Lone Feather (September 19, 1906 – January 2, 1990) was a public administrator and politician of Lakota Sioux and German-American descent. He had a career with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, retiring as area administrator. He ran for the US Congress from the East River region of South Dakota, and was elected as the first Lakota to serve in the House of Representatives. He served five terms as a Republican United States Congress- man from the (now obsolete) First District. Born on the Rosebud Indian Reservation, Reifel graduated from South Dakota State College. During World War II he achieved the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He worked for the Department of the Interior beginning in 1933, retiring as the Aberdeen, South Dakota area administrator of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in March 1960. Awarded a mid-career fellowship in public administration to Harvard University for a master’s degree, he went on to earn his PhD in 1952. Elected to the Eighty-seventh Congress and to the four succeeding Congresses (January 3, Ben Reifel Visitor Center Sign 1961-January 3, 1971), Reifel chose not to run in 1970. Early life and education Reifel was born in a log cabin near Parmelee, South Dakota, on the Rosebud Indian Reservation. He was the son of Lucy Burning Breast, a Lakota Sioux, and William Reifel, of German-American descent. Ben Reifel was enrolled in the Rosebud Sioux Tribe and his Indian name means “Lone Feather” in English. He attended a Todd County school as well as the Rosebud Reservation boarding school as a child. He graduated at the age of sixteen from the eighth grade, speaking both English and Lakota. For three years Reifel worked on his family’s farm before entering the School of Agriculture, a vocational high school in Brookings, South Dakota. After finishing high school in 1928, Reifel enrolled in the South Dakota State College. He paid his own tuition for his first four years of schooling. He took out one of the first loans offered to Native American students under a Merriam Report-recommended In- dian education program. Reifel graduated with a B.S. in agriculture in 1932. He was elected the President of the Students’ Association dur- ing his senior year. Career Following his graduation in 1932, Reifel was hired by Hare’s School in Mission, South Dakota as an adviser for boys. He began working at the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) in 1933; he was assigned to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation as a farm agent to the Oglala Lakota. After a year, he was promoted to field agent at the Pierre, South Dakota regional headquarters. Reifel’s duties including promoting the new programs of the Indian Reorganization Act, signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1934. Allotment of reservation lands was ended, to enable tribes to hold communal lands and better preserve their territories. Under the new law, tribes could reorganize self governments. They were encouraged to write constitutions and to use models of elected government pro- posed by the BIA, rather than the life chiefs previously supported by the clans. The American Indian people had endured hard times during the Great Depression, as well as the drought that caused Dust Bowl conditions in some parts of the Great Plains. Reifel was largely successful in garnering support for the Act. He started at Pine Ridge and later made his way to other reservations in South Dakota, ensuring that the programs of the Bureau were effective in the South Dakota reservations. World War II Reifel’s BIA career was interrupted by World War II. In 1931, he had been commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army Re- serve. In March 1942, the Army ordered Reifel to active duty, and he served until July 1946. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel. Postwar career After being discharged, Reifel continued working for the BIA. He was selected as a Tribal Relations Officer and later promoted to the position as Superintendent of the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota. Harvard In 1949 Reifel was awarded a scholarship to study public administration at Harvard University under a Civil Service Commission program for man- agement development of career government officials. He earned his Masters degree in 1949. He received a John Hay Whitney Foundation Opportunity Fellowship and com- pleted his Doctorate in Public Ad- ministration in 1952. Fol- lowing his graduation, Reifel re- 911 St. Olaf Avenue North YOU CAN COUNT ON US FOR P.O. Box 148 turned to the Canby, Minnesota Quality Service Freshness 507-223-5505 BIA. www.jims-market.com Cont. on page 5 3 Mrs. Marietta Thomas 4 He worked briefly at its national headquarters in Washington, D.C. before returning to the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation as Superinten- dent. Reifel later served as Superintendent at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. In 1955 he was promoted as the Area Director of the Aberdeen Area Office in Aberdeen, South Dakota. He was responsible for numer- ous employees and the application of federal programs and policies for American Indians of a three-state region: Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota.