Update on the Grandkids

 We have been enjoying the school activities the grandkids have been participating in this fall. 

The Lincoln High School Chorus groups had a Fall Concert, inviting 8th grade students who will be attending Lincoln next fall, to partipate with the choirs. Our 8th grade grandson chose NOT to participate. Miss W was in one of the 3 groups who did perform that evening.

the full Lincoln High School choir

Cadet Choir

Miss W, second row from bottom, in the center

Miss W, 3rd from right, in a special quartet 

Lincoln High School Band had their concert earlier this month. Again, 8th graders who will be attending Lincoln were part of the performance. McBe participated. Miss W is no longer in band.

McBe is in the blue hoodie

8th graders getting organized before the concert

8th graders with most of the band members

McBe on percussion, first on the left of the 4 percussionists

McBe waiting his turn to play the timpani

This one has nothing to do with school activities, but it was a proud grandparent occasion. McBe participated in a regional TKD (martial arts) tournament in Sioux City last Friday. 

He won 3 gold medals at the event in his class (brown belt), one in each of the 3 categories of TKD: basic technique (demonstration), sparring (most points in 3 matches), and breaking boards. His outstanding effort resulted in winning an invitation to the National Competition in Alabama next summer.

Lucky us that we get to be a part of our grands' performances and honors!

Some Butts - No Boots Rodeo

 We attended the Governor's Cup rodeo last Sunday in Sioux Falls. We had good seats with a good view for the events on one end of the action, but not very good for the Tie-Down, Steer Roping, Team Roping, or Break-Away events.

Sunday afternoon marked the final day of the three-day event. The top eight money-winning cowboys and cowgirls in each of the events participated on Sunday, 

the opening ceremony with fireworks

bareback rider

another bareback contestant

saddle bronc

break-away (women's event)

South Dakota's famous Lisa Lockhart from Oelrichs SD

she had the best time, but knocked over the third barrel

adding 5 seconds to her time and taking her out of the top 4

she did win $9500+ at this rodeo

some bull riding

The top four contestants in each event then participated in the finals where the first place was awarded $32K, second place $24K, third got $16K and fourth place took $8K. This money was above what they may have already won in the first three go-rounds.

bareback event

saddle bronc

bull riding

bull fighters doing their job to protect the bucked off rider

This photo is to show the number of men (usually) who are in or near the chute helping the cowboy get situated on his horse or bull (rough stock). There were 10 flankmen, two per chute. An official (striped shirt) was also at each chute. Usually, two flankmen lean into the chute from the back, making certain the animal is in position (head up, not leaning on the walls of the chute, keeping the cowboy on the animal if it is bucking, helping to tighten any ropes or straps, etc.). In this photo two men (chute bosses) are in front of the chute to open the gate. They watch for the nod from the rider when he is ready. Sometimes, they also prod the animal away from the gate. 

There's usually a guy (often another cowboy/contestant) on the gate helping the rider get ready and helping get the animal in position. Also note the cameraman leaning in from the back getting video of any action in the chute. We have seen horses and bulls rear up and once in awhile lay down in the chute. All those extra people are there to protect the cowboy and the animal. And then there are those standing around getting a good view of the action. Some of them are other contestants. Sometimes they are the parent of the rider. 

10 new saddles were awarded after the final event

10 new buckles and trophies were awarded to the winners of the 2025 Governors Cup Champions. The total payout for the 3 days, 4 events was $1,080,314. 

2025 Governors Cup  is the link if you'd like more information.

Some Geocaching

 We traveled to Cherokee IA last month for a day of geocaching. We geocached in and around Cherokee before attending an event in nearby Cleghorn that afternoon.

a geocache in the city library in Cherokee

and a Little Library geocache

a birdhouse gadget cache called DKOI

Hubby solved all the puzzles for the pie geoart

that was the easy part

going down and up the ditches was the hard part

he attached a rope to the step of the truck

to let himself down into the steep ditches

and then used it to pull himself up and out

we did not finish finding the pie caches 

we will have to go back to Cleghorn

I attended an event in Sibley and completed some geocaches

I earned this souvenir for attending the event

Hubby stayed home and attended a college football game

some of the geocachers who collected trash along the ditches of 

Rice Street in Brandon

our collection of collected ditch trash

the geocachers who participated in the city-sponsored 

Cache In Trash Out event

we earned this virtual souvenir for the event

 

Banquet and Welcome Home Reception

Sanford Event Barn hosted the Honors Flight Banquet for the veterans and their guardians. (Each veteran and guardian could bring a guest.)

The trailer is used to transport items (post cards, caps, shirts, pins, coins, Christmas ornaments, etc.) for sale. The for-sale items are one of the fundraisers to help support the Honor Flight program. The trailer also brought 168 T-shirts and lightweight pull-overs for the veterans and their guardians. 

three-course meal with delicious cheesecake for dessert

Karl and Curt

Curt with the two guests

82 of the 83 veterans were present and answered to roll call. Five branches of service were represented: Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force, and 1 from the Coast Guard.

I mentioned in yesterday's post that every veteran had to have a guardian in attendance on the flight. At our table we met Don (the veteran) and his wife who have three children. None of the children were able to accompany Don for the flight to Washington DC for the day. His guardian, Arlene and her husband, were also at the table. They had met earlier that day at the hotel. They did not know each other prior to last Monday. Arlene volunteered to be an Honor Flight guardian because of her nursing and health care background and because of her strong belief in the mission of the Honor Flight Program. 

The concourse of the Sioux Falls airport hosted the Welcome Home Reception on Tuesday evening.

last minute sign making

family members and friends gathered for the reception

some of the crowd waiting

Curt's signs

I was so proud of our two grands. They shook hands and talked to every veteran who passed, thanking them for their service.

the flag line at the bottom of the escalator & stairs

The Patriot Guard Riders were invited to stand flag line for the “Gary & Connie Grittner Foundation” Midwest Honor Flight, Mission 27. A bagpipe troupe was also present. In the background you can see guardians and veterans in wheelchairs, as they were the first to deplane.

I know some of the veterans did not receive the kind of Welcome Home Curt and the 1742nd National Guard unit received on May 22, 1991 when they returned from active duty in Desert Storm. The city had a parade. His staff and students had a program at school. And our families gathered that weekend for our daughter's high school graduation. An emotional time in May 1991 and an emotional one in September 2025.

and finally from the back of the plane...

grandson is getting a hug

some of the signs thanking the service members

three generations gathered for this veteran

Thank you to Tommy Biehl for your donation from this year's River City Truck Fest! $5,300 was raised from the event to send 5 Veterans on a future flight! The 2025 River City Truck Fest took place Saturday, September 20 in Platte. Pictured are 3 Veterans from Platte who recently flew on Mission 27 along with Tommy presenting the check at our Welcome Home.

Aaron Van Beek (in the red shirt) is the president and CEO of Midwest Honor Flight. Aaron is a history teacher in NW Iowa and is responsible for organizing all 27 missions from South Dakota. The Honor Flight Program is possible because of private donations such as this one. Veterans from SW Minnesota, NW Iowa, NE Nebraska and South Dakota are eligible for the Honor Flight Program. Application forms are on the website I mentioned in the previous blog post.