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Nov 9, 2019

'No regrets': Longtime Sioux Falls florist leaves legacy of success - Argus Leader

Jean said. In addition to running his own business, he was involved in the Lions Club and helped found the South Dakota Floral Association. According to his obituary, Gustaf was also a devoted Catholic who served at Christ the King Catholic Church in Sioux Falls and later St. Mary. "One thing he always said was, 'Get out into the community. The town supports you if you support the town,'" Jean said. Although he never went to college, Gustaf valued education. He made time to teach floral design at Southeast Technical Institute for several years and would often mentor other florists, along with attending every floral convention he could find. "He was never afraid to die, but he just wasn’t quite ready to leave this party," his obituary read. Gustaf's death comes only nine days after that of his daughter Emily Gustaf, who died at age 37. Despite having a brain injury since babyhood, Emily lived a life that was "big and bold," according to her obituary. She participated in Special Olympics for many years and took home a gold medal in swimming from the 1999 International Special Olympics. "She could talk to anyone about anything," Emily's obituary read. "She was quick to love and slow to judge." Pat Gustaf's funeral will be held at St. Mary Catholic Church on Saturday at 10:30 a.m., with visitation scheduled for Friday at 4:30 p.m. at St. Mary. Although his illness made it difficult for him to work as it progressed, Jean said Pat never wanted to slow down. When he was unable to go into the shop during rounds of chemotherapy, he set up a small studio in his home where he continued making silk bouquets for as long as he could. That dogged perseverance was what served him all his life, allowing him to continue a decades-long career in the floral business. "That's probably his legacy: Keep trying," Jean said. When the Argus Leader spoke with Pat as he closed up his shop last December, he said that more than anything, he was thankful for the customers who made his business the long-lasting success that it was. "I got to do what I love for 42 years," Gustaf said. "I want them to know how grateful I am – grateful from the bottom of my heart." ...

Aug 22, 2019

Eugene Day Obituary - Pacifica, CA | San Francisco Chronicle - Legacy.com

Cecelia and Gene also remodeled a second home in Ramona, South Dakota (the town where "Celia" was raised) and they spent a good portion of the year there. Gene became not only the "handyman" for the town, but even a bartender when the bartender couldn't make into work.Eugene had a productive life full of love, joy and service to others and he will be missed by the many people whom he has touched. He has chosen to be cremated and buried in Ramona, South Dakota. Services will be held in Pacifica on Saturday, September 7 at 10:30 AM at Saint Peter Parish located at 700 Oddstad Blvd. We welcome all to join the family for a reception directly following services at St. Peter's.In lieu of flowers, Eugene would request that donations in his honor be made to the Rebuilding Together Peninsula 841 Kaynyne St. Redwood City, CA 94065 or Missionary of Charity Gift of Love 160 Milagra Dr. Pacifica, CA 94044...

Aug 22, 2019

Council: Sioux Falls would benefit from hemp, bee-friendly flowers and more cop training - Sioux Falls Argus Leader

The South Dakota Legislature's 2020 to-do list from the Sioux Falls City Council will include legalizing industrial hemp, planting pollinator-friendly plants on state grounds and training more police officers. Each year, councilors establish what are called "legislative priorities" that are sent to state lawmakers as well as the South Dakota Municipal League, the lobby group that works on behalf of South Dakota cities and towns each winter during the legislative session. Many of the 20 items on this year's provisional list (meaning it could be changed ahead of the next session) aren't new ambitions of the city, like the desire to do away with the state's public notice requirement that legal publication be published in newspapers and support for a local tax on alcohol. More: Why lawmakers are frustrated with S.D. officials' lack of hemp research This year, though, councilors through last-minute amendments added three more items to their wish-list: "The City Council supports legislation to legalize the growth, production, and processing of industrial hemp in South Dakota. The Sioux Falls Council supports legislation to increase the student capacity at the South Dakota's Law Enforcement Training facility. The city council supports legislation that promotes pollinator friendly plantings on all state-owned properties and right-of-way.” Hemp and the biotech industry Industrial hemp has been a hot-button topic in South Da...

Jul 26, 2019

Beargrass and yucca: two signature Montana plants - Valleyjournal

Lewis and Clark discovered and named the plant. However, while traveling along the Missouri River above present-day Yankton, South Dakota, in Sept. 2, 1804, Clark’s journal entry mentions seeing “bear grass” (actually yucca) on the dry river plains. In those days, yucca was called beargrass, and since there is a great deal of similarity between the two, it may explain why Lewis and Clark applied the name “beargrass” to the mountain plant when they encountered it in the Rockies. Interestingly, it isn’t a grass and bears won’t touch it, but mountain goats will eat the leaves, and deer, elk and bighorn sheep dine on the blossoms. On the return trip from the Pacific, as the Corps of Discovery neared what would become Montana, they gathered samples of beargrass plants. On June 26, 1806, Lewis wrote: “There is a great abundance of a species of beargrass which grows on every part of these mountains. Its growth is luxuriant and continues green all winter but the horses will not eat it.” During their long winter at Fort Clatsop in Oregon, Lewis noticed the Clatsop Indians making baskets. He recorded: “Their baskets are formed of cedar bark and beargrass so closely interwoven with the fingers that they are watertight without the aid of gum or rosin; some of these are highly ornamented with strans of bear grass, which they dye of several colors and interweave in a great variety of figures; this serves them the double purpose of holding their water or wearing on their heads.” It is for the construction of these baskets that the beargrass becomes an article of traffic among the natives. This grass grows only on their high mountains near the snowy region: “The young blades, which are white from not being exposed to the sun or air, are those most commonly employed, particularly in their neatest work.” Of the beargrass samples collected on the expedition, two still exist: one at the Lewis and Clark Herbarium and the other at the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew near London. Also called “soapweed,” “Spanish bayonet” and, as we have just learned, “beargrass,” yucca blooms from a low cluster of long, pointed, spikey leaves. During the growing season, a tall stalk will emerge and produce large numbers (10 to 15) of substantial, 2.5-inch-long, greenish-white, bell-shaped flowers...

Jul 5, 2019

Summer Solstice Marks Beginning Of Fun In Apple Valley-Rosemount - Apple Valley, MN Patch

It was aligned with the sunrise and sunset on the solstice, and is accessible only in the summer months. Similar wheels have been found in South Dakota, Montana and parts of Canada. Another ceremonial ritual is the Sundance, originated by the Sioux tribe in the western and northwestern U.S., because it was believed the sun was a manifestation of the Great Spirit. The four-day celebration of singing, dancing, drumming, prayer and meditation, and skin piercing concluded with a ceremonial felling of a tree, symbolic of the connection between the heavens and Earth. 2. Thousands will gather at Stonehenge, a Neolithic megalith monument in the south of England, to celebrate the summer solstice. Stonehenge, built around 2500 B.C., lines up perfectly with both the summer and winter solstices. There are some conspiracy theories about the formation of rocks — including that Stonehenge was built as a landing zone for alien aircraft, according to Popular Mechanics. A more believable explanation is that Stonehenge was built as an ancient calendar to mark the passing of time. 3. Not all cultures called June 21 the summer solstice and it meant different things to different people. According to History.com, in northern Europe, the longest day of the year was known as Midsummer, while Wiccans and other Negopagan groups called it Litha, and some Christian churches called it St. John's Day in commemoration of the birth of John the Baptist. On ancient Greek calendars, the summer solstice and the beginning of a new year coincided, and it also marked the one-month countdown to the opening of the Olympic games. 4. The summer solstice is steeped in pagan folklore and superstition. According to some accounts, people wore protective garlands of herbs and flowers to ward off evil spirits that appear on the summer solstice. Among the most powerful, according to History.com, was "chase devil," known today as St. John's Wort because of its association with St. John's Day. Lore also holds that bonfires on Midsummer, as the solstice was known among northern Europeans, would banish demons and evil spirits and lead young maidens to their future husbands. Also, the ashes from a summer solstice bonfires not only protected people against misfortune, but also carried the promise of a bountiful harvest. 5. June 21 marks the beginning of winter in the Southern Hemisphere. The forecast high temperature for the first day of winter in Esperanza, located on the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula (the coldest place on Earth), is 8 degrees, with a low of minus 3. However, at the height of summer ...