Gertrude Witkop, 93, of Marion, S.D., passed away on Oct. 22 at the Tieszen Memorial Home in Marion. A service will be held on Thursday Oct. 29 at 11 a.m. at First Church of Monroe, with burial in the Spring Valley Baptist Cemetery. Visitation will begin at 10 a.m. on Thursday at the church one hour prior to the service. The family encourages all guests and visitors to wear a mask and follow Covid guidelines.  

The Freeman Community Center, the Wipf Street building that was constructed as the Freeman High School gym in 1957, is now available to the public for recreational use at no charge. Meeting Monday night, Oct. 26, the Freeman City Council, which owns and manages the facility, voted 6-0 to let families and individuals use the auditorium for free, pending other scheduled activities like wedding receptions and wrestling practice. Those wanting to use it should check in at City Hall for availability and an access code.

Snow that fell over the weekend mixes with the colors of fall Monday morning, Oct. 26.

Freeman Academy's Jada Koerner and Titus Roesler were all smiles after turning in outstanding showings at the 2020 State Cross-Country Meet in Rapid City on Saturday. Koerner, a sophomore, finished third in the Class B girls race while Roesler, a senior, was fourth to lead the FA/Marion boys to second place in the Class B standings. Snow and cold weather conditions were the reality for runners and spectators, but the lack of wind made it more pleasant than it otherwise would have been.

JEREMY WALTNER  - PUBLISHER The 2020 State Cross-Country Meet will be remembered for the wintery weather conditions that moved across the Black Hills Saturday morning, Oct. 24. Freeman Academy runners and fans will remember it for something else, too: One of the best all-around finishes in recent memory, if not program history.

Menno’s Morgan Edelman gets ready to run in her final cross-country race at state on Saturday. 

Yes, that's a fresh dusting of snow on the facade of Jamboree Foods, Freeman's downtown grocery store, Friday morning, Oct. 23. It can down during the overnight hours, giving residents a white surprise when they woke up. It's not much, at least, and should be gone sooner rather than later; temperatures are expected to climb above zero this afternoon.

Menno had no trouble with Freeman Academy/Marion in volleyball action in Marion Thursday night, Oct. 22, downing the Bearcats 25-19, 25-5, 25-9. The win moved the Wolves to 7-10 while FA/Marion dropped to 0-11. Jesse Munkvold had 11 kills, 10 digs and three aces for Menno while Kylie Harriman had a great all-round game with four kills, 12 set assists, five digs and seven aces. Grace Nusz added 10 set assists and three aces and Bridget Vaith had three kills and a block.

Tyce Ortman scored a pair of touchdowns in the first quarter, Isiah Robertson scampered for a 66-yard touchdown run and Collin Helma caught a 63-yard touchdown pass from Ortman as Canistota/Freeman built a 32-0 lead over Chester Area in the first round of the Class 9A playoffs in Freeman Thursday night, Oct. 22. The Pride ended up winning 48-14 behind 128 rushing yards from Ortman and 83 from Robertson; Blake Anderson also ran for a touchdown and a two-yard conversion to keep Canistota/Freeman well in front.

These helmets will be on full display as the Canistota/Freeman Pride host Chester Area in Freeman in the first round of the playoffs tonight, Thursday, Oct. 22. Game time is 7 p.m., and it's going to be cold. The winner moves on to the quarterfinal round Thursday, Oct. 29. The Pride are 7-1; the Flyers are 6-2.