Argus Leader
U.S. submarine sinks Iranian warship
Trump administration officials pledged more firepower in the war with Iran after officials said a U.S. submarine sank an Iranian warship, with reports of at least 80 people killed. The United States and Israel will soon control Iranian airspace, and...
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Strikes hit U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia
The United States ordered nonemergency government personnel and their family members to leave Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Iraq and Jordan and closed several diplomatic missions across the Middle East on March 3 as the war with Iran escalated. The move...
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U.S. fighter jets crash in Kuwait
Three American fighter aircraft crashed in Kuwait on March 2, with crews surviving “unscathed” and in stable condition, the Middle Eastern country’s defense ministry and the Pentagon said, as the congressional debate over President Donald Trump’s...
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Iran air strikes mark Trump’s biggest gamble
WASHINGTON – With his large-scale attack on Iran, President Donald Trump has seized a legacydefining moment to demonstrate his readiness to exercise raw U.S. military power. But in doing so, he is also taking the biggest foreign policy gamble of his...
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Vitriol. Profanity. Politics. Experts warn about role social media has played
WASHINGTON – Most of this story isn’t fit for a family newspaper. The country’s political discourse has deteriorated to the point – or become so robust – that the president can drop an f-bomb and get one lobbed back in return. Of course, caustic...
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Trump claims on Iran’s missiles are questioned
WASHINGTON –President Donald Trump’s claim that Iran will soon have a missile that can hit the United States is not backed by U.S. intelligence reports, and appears to be exaggerated, according to three sources familiar with the reports, casting doubt...
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Push to automate science with AI has constraints
University at Albany, State University of New York THE CONVERSATION Consistent with the general trend of incorporating artificial intelligence into nearly every field, researchers and politicians are increasingly using AI models trained on scientific...
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Trump touts economic gains in State of Union
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump declared the country is booming, his opponents are “crazy” and his administration is engaged in unprecedented levels of “winning” in a marathon State of the Union address that comes as polls showed deep skepticism of...
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Removal of at-risk trees begins at Yankton Trail
The City of Sioux Falls announced on Monday, Feb. 23, that ash tree removal begins this week at Yankton Trail Park. As part of Sioux Falls Parks and Recreation’s Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) management plan, several ash trees along the Big Sioux River have...
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Peace deal for Ukraine continues to be elusive
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump has taken extraordinary action when it comes to confronting authoritarians in places like Venezuela, where U.S. forces captured leader Nicolas Maduro, and Iran, where Trump bombed nuclear sites in June 2025 and is...
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SD near the bottom in rate of kids prepared for kindergarten
Nearly half of South Dakota children under the age of 5 are not on the right track to start school and find early success in the classroom, a rate that puts the state near the bottom in school readiness across the country. Data from the most recent...
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The Ribbon at Jacobson Plaza glows up
Bright lights and neon nights! Jacobson Plaza reopened after a windy week for a fun glow party on Feb 19. Barring inclement weather, The Ribbon is open all week long, with extended weekend hours. You can buy 45 minutes on the ice and rent skates at...
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Supreme Court strikes down Trump’s tariffs
WASHINGTON − A furious President Donald Trump slammed the Supreme Court after a landmark decision striking down his power to impose sweeping tariffs. “I’m ashamed of certain members of the court, absolutely ashamed for not having the courage to do...
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What’s next for a new $1.3 billion pork plant?
Before officials with Smithfield Foods returned to Virginia after their historic announcement earlier this week, they met with the Sioux Falls City Council on Tuesday, Feb. 17, to propose a tax incentive for the new $1.3 billion pork plant being built...
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Smithfield Foods building new plant
What a way to go for Paul TenHaken. Our Sioux Falls mayor for the last eight years will leave office by the end of the year, but he couldn’t let his desk get away before announcing one of the most “monumental” changes for the city yet: The Smithfield...
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Civil rights icon ‘kept the dream alive’
The Rev. Jesse Jackson, a towering civil rights icon who battled alongside the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., negotiated global hostage releases and shamed corporations for their lack of diversity and failure to support voting rights, died on Feb. 17. He...
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State officials announce Smithfield Foods is moving
After 115 years commanding the Falls Park neighborhood, Smithfield Foods will continue its generational impact in a newly built plant. Gov. Larry Rhoden, alongside Mayor Paul TenHaken and Smithfield CEO Shane Smith, announced Feb. 16, in what will be...
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SD native killed in bus crash was ‘greatest human’
Carter Johnson loved baseball. But he used to loathe it. He would have rather played football than follow in his dad’s footsteps. Jeff Johnson, who played baseball for South Dakota State University, said his son thought baseball was a “stupid sport”...
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Custer’s Scandinavian restaurant named one of best in U.S.
Chic Newport Beach to the Black Hills of South Dakota? That’s a new one. But, oh, this fine-dining duo made it worth every mile to the Midwest, and now we have the most decadent lobster steam buns all to ourselves. Until now. Skogen Kitchen, Custer’s...
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Compartmented
Dakota State University will have a sensitive compartmented information facility (SCIF) in its applied research lab in Sioux Falls, DSU President José-Marie Griffiths confirmed Feb. 5 to appropriators in Pierre. Potential for a SCIF at DSU was first...
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Student informants spur academic freedom debate
Texas A&M University told philosophy professor Martin Peterson in early January that he could not teach some of Greek philosopher Plato’s writings that touch on “race and gender ideology.” The university’s local chapter of the American Association of...
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Corn harvest revision hits USDA’s credibility
CHICAGO – The U.S. Department of Agriculture, long the world’s gold standard for crop estimates, faces mounting doubts about the reliability of its data from farmers, grain traders and economists following deep staff losses and a sharp upward revision...
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6 more suspects found in Epstein files, officials say
WASHINGTON – Two House members who led the effort to force the Justice Department to release more documents about accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein said they discovered at least six more suspected accomplices. The department began Feb. 9 allowing...
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Hundreds protest against ICE outside Super Bowl
SANTA CLARA, CA – They came, they marched, they chanted − all under a close watch. But it wasn’t ICE agents who patrolled the streets on Super Bowl Sunday, as many had anticipated. Hundreds of people on Feb. 8 took over a main thoroughfare less than 2...
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SD House defeats voting on school district opt-outs
Thirty-nine legislators voted against a bill Feb. 4 in the South Dakota House of Representatives that would’ve brought every single school district optout to a public vote. After Senate Bill 85 failed to pass, with 29 lawmakers voting for it and two...
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‘America, why am I not yours?’
There’s a 25-pound bag of rice on a doorstep in the Whittier Neighborhood. h A Sioux Falls resident, referred to here as Jones, says behind the door is a family afraid to leave and soon to be evicted if the primary provider doesn’t return home from...
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Pedestrian deaths by trains persisting
In 2018, high-speed passenger trains branded as Brightline started running along the formerly freight-only Florida East Coast Railway. Initial service from Miami to West Palm Beach was extended to Orlando in 2023. Unfortunately, the southern end of the...
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How to cheer on Team USA from Sioux Falls
Winter Olympics begin this week. h The Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 will be held in Milan, Italy, with opening ceremonies, figure skating and women’s ice hockey starting Feb. 6, and closing ceremonies, curling and men’s ice hockey finishing...
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Gassen’s gift $1M to USD for new track & field fieldhouse
VERMILLION — Bill and Jill Gassen have gifted the University of South Dakota’s athletics department $1 million as the university aims to raise money for a new fieldhouse. The fieldhouse would host the Coyotes’ track and field programs. Athletic...
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Bills to loosen gun laws fail in committee
PIERRE — A pair of questions that struck the bullseye contributed to a South Dakota legislative committee’s uncharacteristic rejection of two bills to roll back concealed gun laws Monday at the state Capitol. The first bill would have relieved college...
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WONDER HOUND
The search for a 10-year-old boy, who was missing in Sioux Falls for roughly 20 hours, involved a wide range of police resources, including a bloodhound named Gary. Gary, a 1-year-old bloodhound, and his handler, North Dakota Highway Patrol trooper...
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Restaurants to compete in third annual contest
The Southside Slamwich has announced this year’s 16 restaurants that will participate in its third annual food competition. Co-organizer Jess Jones says the 12 participants from last year’s contest, which includes any restaurant south of 41st Street...
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Sioux Falls nonprofits experience donor fatigue
Though the holidays have come and gone, the spirit of generosity continues, especially as the new year begins. In the rapidly growing Sioux Falls metro area, residents have no shortage of causes and organizations to choose from when deciding how and...
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Deportations from ICE street arrests increase
The Trump administration dramatically increased deportations by arresting migrants on American streets, often without criminal records, according to a new report. The Deportation Data Project’s report, released on Jan. 27, shows the sweeping effects...
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Independents slam SD GOP for ICE shooting responses
PIERRE — After the killing of two American citizens at the hands of federal agents, South Dakota’s red line between the Trump administration and executive overreach may be more of a scarlet wall. At least, that’s how Craig Brown says he views...
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Sheriff Mike Milstead announces retirement
Wanted: A new Minnehaha County sheriff. After nearly 30 years behind the badge, Mike Milstead says he will not run for re-election and will retire at the end of his term. In a surprise appearance made Jan. 28 on KELO’s Greg Belfrage weekday morning...
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The Cattitude Cafe to close at end of month
The Cattitude Cafe in downtown Sioux Falls will close its doors Jan. 31, after 2.5 years of business, according to posts on its Facebook, Instagram and TikTok pages Jan. 24. The post stated that the decision “didn’t come easily,” but the business...
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Trump reports ‘very good call’ with Walz
MINNEAPOLIS – President Donald Trump on Jan. 26 said he had a “very good call” with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, and the two “seemed to be on a similar wavelength” amid the fallout from the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by Border Patrol agents. “Governor...
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Burger Battle once again set for record attendance
CH Patisserie in downtown Sioux Falls sells French macarons. Ah, the pistachio and salted caramel, the lemon and the one with the sprinkles. There’s gold-leafed Petit Gateau as well, Viennese pastries and chocolate croissants you may dream about...
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See the ceremonial flag South Dakota revealed
The South Dakota Commission unveiled an “absolutely stunning” ceremonial flag on Jan. 20 to help celebrate America’s 250th birthday in 2026. The ceremony, held at the newly reopened Security Bank in Lennox, raised a “uniquely designed” flag that...
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Minnesotans start strike to protest surge by ICE
MINNEAPOLIS – Scores of businesses across Minnesota were closing up for the day on Jan. 23 in what religious leaders and labor unions described as a general strike to protest President Donald Trump’s deployment of thousands of immigration enforcement...
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Sioux Falls Lutheran School still has some room to grow
Sioux Falls Lutheran School has expanded multiple times in the years since it relocated to its new spot in 2020 on Boe Lane in the southwestern part of the city. The school, easily viewed from the intersection of Interstate 29 and Interstate 229, has...
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Chef couple are James Beard semifinalists
A married couple in South Dakota has been named a semifinalist for the 2026 James Beard restaurant and chef awards. Camillia Hjortnaes and Erik Hjortnaes, who run Hjem A.M. in Custer, South Dakota, were named semifinalists for the Best Chef: Midwest...
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Advocates: Do more to nix mussels
Emails obtained by clean-water advocates show the state of South Dakota declined $290,000 of federal funding for zebra mussel decontamination stations at Pactola Reservoir, which the advocates say is evidence that the state isn’t taking the invasive...
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Lallycooler Music Festival posts headliners
Headliners have been announced for the second annual Lallycooler Music Festival happening this summer. Country star Darius Rucker, who last performed in Sioux Falls during the 2021 Wagon Wheel festival at the W.H. Lyon Fairgrounds, will headline the...
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‘Unprecedented growth’
You are officially one among nearly a quarter million residents in the Queen City. Mayor Paul TenHaken announced during the weekly One Sioux Falls media briefing on Jan. 14 that the Sioux Falls population hit 224,676 in 2025, a 2.3% increase (or 5,088...
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Dems seek to impeach Noem
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Democrats Wednesday introduced three articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, after a deadly shooting of a woman in Minneapolis by a federal immigration officer. The Department of Homeland...
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Bloom and Branch opens downtown
Landscape Garden Centers is bringing a new presence downtown. After 605 Florista in the Jones421 Building went up for sale last fall, a new business bloomed, in partnership with the city’s well-known nursery and landscaping business (LGC). Bloom and...
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Trans athlete debate reaches high court
WASHINGTON − Becky Pepper-Jackson was in elementary school, already sure she was a girl despite being designated male at birth, when the nation took notice of two transgender athletes. The debate over whether the high school runners in Connecticut had...
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Furor continues over ICE shootings
Tensions remained high Jan. 9 after shootings involving immigration agents in Minneapolis and in Portland, Oregon, drew protesters to the streets and deepened fractures between federal and state officials. In Portland, a U.S. Border Patrol officer...
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K-12 student population dips as more choose homeschool
South Dakota’s K-12 population dropped slightly this year, along with public and private school enrollment, but enrollment in alternative instruction grew once again. That’s according to headcount numbers taken Sept. 26, 2025, and released by the...
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SD Rose Parade float recognized for depicting a ‘national treasure’
South Dakota’s float in the annual Rose Parade – a celebration of the state’s iconic landmarks, particularly Mount Rushmore – received an award that recognizes outstanding depictions of “national treasures and traditions.” Travel South Dakota, the...
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Sanford, Avera ring in the new year with newborn joy
As the clock struck midnight, the new year arrived not just with cheers and fireworks, but with newborn cries as Sanford Health and Avera Health hospitals welcomed babies born at the turning point of 2025. The two babies, one at each hospital, were...
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The ‘crown jewel’ of downtown Sioux Falls celebrates 100 years
Maybe a young couple had their first kiss under the sparkling marquee after watching “Gone with the Wind” in 1940. Maybe there was excitedly a first date in 1950, or unfortunately a last date in 1970, or a child’s first time watching “The Lion King”...
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‘Trump’ is everywhere during second term
WASHINGTON – As a New York businessman, President Donald Trump put his name on real estate, golf courses, vodka, steaks, bottled water and his own university. As president in his second term, he is merging his personal brand with national institutions...
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‘Beautifies the neighborhood’
Staff and guests at the Oak View Branch Library on the east side of Sioux Falls are enjoying some much-needed and appealing updates to their 20-yearold facility. Siouxland Libraries director Alysia Boysen announced in December that the library has...
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All Things Sioux Falls hosts first-ever Dinner Club
Winter says Brr, stay in, but Dinner Club says, Let's make new friends. All Things Sioux Falls, a weekly newsletter team that lists events in the Sioux Falls area, announced they will be hosting their first-ever Sioux Falls Dinner Club on Jan. 7, a...
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First reptile-exclusive zoo opens in Sioux Falls
Upon entering the new immersive Reptile Adventure Zoo in Sioux Falls, with more than 100 reptiles and amphibians, be sure to watch your step for any tortoises that may be ambling across the floor. Owner Andrew Adam may be speaking to a group of...
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50 participants to compete in Burger Battle
Nothing says new year in Sioux Falls more than its well-attended Burger Battle. h Downtown Sioux Falls released its lineup on Dec. 26, featuring a record-breaking 50 participants and 13 new restaurants on the list − a nary gluttonous season to us all....
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Arrowhead House now open for rent, classes
Once a private residence of the late Dale and Dorothy Weir, the Arrowhead House is now open as a space for all of the community to enjoy views of nature outside and events by the fireplace within. The Arrowhead House is a 2,440-square-foot open...
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Heroes Behind the Badges blood drive celebrates 30 years
The Community Blood Blank is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its Heroes Behind the Badges blood drive during the holidays. The city-wide event is a partnership with the Sioux Falls Police Department and Sioux Falls Fire Rescue. It will run through...
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Sioux Falls zoo now has 2 new tigers to visit this winter season
A new baby girl has arrived at the zoo. The Sioux Falls Zoo and Aquarium announced Dec. 17 that 2-year-old Amur tiger Mila is officially on exhibit with her male neighbor tiger, 2year-old Zuzaan. Mila was born in 2023 at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo...
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Jackley targets jailhouse drug smuggling
South Dakota’s top law enforcement officer wants greater deterrents for smuggling drugs into the state’s prisons. Attorney General Marty Jackley announced in a Dec. 19 press conference that Natalie Bernice Krause, a former medical aide at the South...
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Christmas at Cathedral brings packed houses
As guests walk up the stairs and take their first step inside the Cathedral of St. Joseph, they are gazing above their heads at the architecture among the pews. It is not until the orchestra, choir and organ fill the air with music that they navigate...
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Flu cases on the rise ahead of holidays
Flu cases in South Dakota have surged during the month of December, with hundreds of new infections reported in just a few weeks. As of Dec. 18, at least 476 new cases had been reported statewide since the last day of November, bringing the season...
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Breaking stereotypes
McCrossan Boys Ranch has to turn down one boy a day from admissions, newly-appointed CEO Christy Vastenhout said. In those cases, the family can’t pay for them to come to the Ranch, insurance isn’t an option or there’s no government funding available...
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China pulls back from soybean buying; farmers in tough position
RYDER, North Dakota — Tyler Stafslien is a fourth-generation farmer who’s worked his family’s land in central North Dakota for about 20 years. Roughly half of his 2,500 acres are typically dedicated to soybeans, a major crop in the state and in the...
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Luminary Lane back in Parkridge neighborhood
For one night only every holiday season, the Parkridge neighborhood glows. h Luminary Lane, a nostalgic tradition that began as early as the 1960s in Sioux Falls, will run from dusk till 9:30 p.m. Dec 21. h With hundreds of paper lanterns, the...
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Johnson introduces education initiative in SD governor bid
U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-South Dakota, unveiled a “strong schools initiative” Dec. 15 that he hopes to implement if elected governor in the 2026 election. Johnson wants improved school funding, better math and reading scores, and a new skilled trade...
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Darkness shadows Festival of Light
On a popular beach in Australia, the darkness of antisemitism intruded on the Festival of Light. Instead of celebrating a Jewish holiday, Jews were slaughtered. For the second time in two months, Jewish people on opposite sides of the world were...
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Oldest-ever resident at Trail Ridge Senior Living turns 105
Anne Huff will be celebrating her 105th Christmas this year. As the oldest ever resident at Trail Ridge Senior Living Community in Sioux Falls, Huff enjoyed birthday celebrations last month with many flower deliveries, cake, music and memories. Huff...
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SD universities, foundations have spent millions on property
South Dakota’s public universities and their foundations own everything from out-of-state space for research and university presidents’ million-dollar homes to houses near campus that students, staff and faculty can rent. After a more than six-month...
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Noem asked to explain deportation of veteran
WASHINGTON – Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was grilled on Capitol Hill, facing questions related to her department’s immigration efforts, including whether United States military veterans have been deported under the Trump administration’s...
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U.S. farmers warn of broken system
A few years ago, Wisconsin soybean farmer Doug Rebout was getting $14.50 a bushel for his crop. Now, amid a trade dispute with China and rising production costs driven by inflation, that price has plummeted to around $9.30. Rebout’s farm, which grows...
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‘Save this species from extinction’
On World Wildlife Conservation Day, Dec. 4, Great Plains Zoo staff, Greater Chamber of Commerce members and others in the community huddled together in the South Dakota below-zero windchill elements. The residents inside the newly renovated American...
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