Brown Earth Church Renovations Will Preserve Historic Bell Tower
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
www.grantcountyreview.com • [email protected] • 605-432-4516 Volume 141, Number 19 • Milbank, South Dakota • Wednesday, October 7, 2020 Fourth Quarter Food Giveaway Scheduled Brown Earth Church Renovations Today, October 7 Cancer Fundraiser Grant County individuals and Hartman’s Family Foods in families who are in need are wel- will Preserve Historic Bell Tower Milbank is once again sponsor- come to receive a free set of boxes of ing “change for a change,” a food at the food giveaway that will fundraising option to fight be today, Wednesday, October 7. Serving as an entry to the historic breast cancer. During October, The event will be staged at the Grant Brown Earth Indian Church, the Breast Cancer Awareness County 4-H grounds from 4 to 5 dual-purpose bell tower is undergo- Month, the store invites cus- p.m. There are no income guidelines ing renovations to preserve it. Kevin tomers to round up to the next to partake. Locke of Midwest Landmark Con- dollar when they make a pur- The giveaway will be conducted as struction Company is the contractor chase and the extra change goes a drive-through event. Although the for the project. to Grant County’s It Only Takes food will be prepackaged from Feed- Located northeast of Stockholm, a Spark Cancer Walk. See the ad ing South Dakota, the Grant County the church is owned by the Grant inside for details. Christian Service Council coordi- County Historical Society. nated the giveaway. The boxes will The repair estimate came in at include dry products, frozen food $10,687, and the Grant County Com- and fresh produce. Those wishing to mission earmarked $5,000 for the pick up food for their families can renovation. Venita and Bob Mittel- enter the 4-H grounds and receive staedt donated $500 to support the further traffic flow instructions. restoration, and the historical soci- To minimize contact and comply ety will use financial reserves to DATE HI LO PREC with guidelines from the Centers for cover the remaining expenses. Sept. 29 56 45 0.02” Disease Control and Prevention, or- Work began on Tuesday, Septem- 30 71 45 tr ganizers ask that recipients open ber 22, with the removal of the sid- Oct. 1 63 42 tr their trunks or back liftgates of their ing and sheeting boards. Many of the 25135 vehicles once they are in line, and boards crumbled as they were re- 35029tr volunteers will place the boxes in moved, according to Arlo Levisen, 45226 the vehicle. They also ask that an president of the historical society. 5 62 26 0.02” open space has been cleared for the Several of the boards removed ap- Courtesy Wastewater peared to be original to the structure Treatment Plant boxes. There will be a limit of one set of which was built in 1877. boxes per family and no more than Also original to the structure are We do not have two sets of boxes per vehicle. Those the four 6” x 6” corner beams and who need to pick up food for more wooden pegs that secure the tower to government by the majority. than themselves and one other fam- the log church. The foyer’s interior boards contain many carvings of ini- We have government by the ily will be required to exit the park- ing lot and get back in line. tials and other messages and will be majority who participate. The Christian Service Council is retained. Levisen noted the foyer’s ceiling was not in very good shape, funded primarily through the Com- Submitted Photo Thomas Jefferson munity Thrift Shop and donations. and required repair. The crew installed new plywood CAULKING THE NEWLY installed cedar is one of the final steps in the restoration of the bell tower sheeting and house wrap in prepara- of the Brown Earth Church near Stockholm. Working on the project is Kevin Locke, on the lift, and tion for the new cedar siding on the Tucker Getzlaff, below. The tower will be painted white, a past tradition. Milbank Native Darin Bergquist, exterior. According to Locke, it was a challenge to install trim pieces on The icon has undergone repairs in ing repairs, crews added extra brac- Members of the Swedish Christian the corners. The existing corner the past. The first restoration oc- ing. The historic church has under- and Evangelical Free congregations State DOT Secretary, to Retire wood was extremely hard and every curred in 1910, and a second major gone other maintenance projects as in Stockholm have owned the church nail hole had to be pre-drilled. The restoration was undertaken by the well. during its history. It became Grant Darin Bergquist, secretary of the rector of operations. He started Stockholm-Strandburg American The Brown Earth Church was County’s property in 1905, and South Dakota Department of Trans- working for state government in tower has been white throughout its history and the new siding will be Legion Post No. 171 in 1928. Neglect erected by Sisseton Christian Native leased to Post #171 for 99 years in portation, will retire effective No- 1996 as an administrative law judge had left the structure in bad shape. A Americans who settled in that area. 1931. vember 13, according to a news with the Department of Labor. painted white to honor that tradi- tion. large bolt installed at the base of the The Presbyterian Mission sponsored The church was placed on the Na- release from Governor Kristi Noem’s “After more than 22 years with the tower in the 1928 restoration re- them and Rev. Daniel Renville tional Register of Historic Places in office. He is a Milbank High School department, the decision to resign Assisting Locke on the job is Tucker Getzlaff, a Sioux Tribal mem- mains in place. served as pastor from 1877 to 1888. 1984. graduate. has not been an easy one,” said The 1928 repairs also included in- – Debbie Hemmer “Darin has been a tremendous Bergquist. “I’ve been extremely ber, who recalled attending services in the church when he was nine stalling 2” x 6” boards to add stabil- servant to the people of South blessed in my career to have had the ity to the bell tower. Woodchucks Dakota for over 20 years, including opportunity to serve as a member of years old. He has not been back since. did considerable damage to the 13 years as Secretary of Transporta- cabinet for three different governors wooden bell tower in 2009, and dur- Atyeo-Gortmaker Named tion, and his service will be greatly over the last 13 years. I will miss the missed,” said Governor Noem. “He’s department and all the outstanding helped our state navigate countless people that I’ve had the chance to Executive Director GCDC challenges over the years. We wish work with throughout my career. Milbank School District Adopts Krista Atyeo-Gortmaker, a 20- him all the best in his retirement.” However, I am also looking forward year resident of Grant County, has Bergquist was appointed secretary to the next chapter in my life and been hired by the Grant County De- of transportation by Governor Mike what it may have in store for me.” Policy to Encourage Mask Usage velopment Corporation (GCDC) to Rounds in 2007 and continued in Bergquist graduated from serve as the executive director. the administrations of Governor Jamestown College in North Dakota The Milbank School District has • The student remains symptom Atyeo-Gortmaker will succeed Dennis Daugaard and Governor with a degree in business adminis- updated its COVID-19 quarantine free, Bobbie Bohlen, who announced her Noem. He joined the department in tration. He then earned his J.D. policy. The policy was approved by • The student must wear a mask at resignation in July. Bohlen has held 1998 as an assistant attorney gen- from the University of South Dakota the school board at a special meet- ALL times (with the exception of the position for nine years and has eral in the office of legal counsel. He School of Law in 1993. ing Tuesday, September 29, in the lunch), accepted employment with HME subsequently worked for the depart- Bergquist and his wife, Leslie, re- high school lobby. • The student will be subject to Management, facilitating housing ment as the program manager for side in Pierre. The update was prompted by the daily temperature check(s). projects. She plans to continue to re- the Right of Way office, then as di- uptick in the number which has also 4. Students NOT following the side in this community. increased the number of students in District recommendation of wearing When Atyeo-Gortmaker moved to quarantine. “This policy is designed a mask OR students identified as a Grant County in 2000, she worked to not have as many students out “close contact” (as determined by as a teacher, network administrator and designed to increase mask paragraph 5) may return to school and administrator for the Grant- usage,” said Justin Downes, super- under the following conditions: Deuel School District. During that intendent, in a live video posting on • If upon the 7th day of quarantine time, she also worked for a federal Facebook Tuesday evening after the or later, a student does NOT exhibit grant program called LOFTI to inte- meeting. any symptoms associated with grate technology into the classrooms The new policy will potentially de- COVID-19, the student may seek of 11 ECI consortia schools. With her husband, Nick, and sons, crease the number of students who COVID-19 testing to determine if While employed with the school Justus, nine, and Kolsyn, six, Atyeo- must quarantine after a close con- he/she is positive or negative.