North Dakota
A quick ‘Hello’ … again … from The South
When a person L-O-V-E-S their job, vacation can be interminable and excruciating.
The very first thought that popped into my head — after buying the plane tickets — was North Dakota’s May sports calendar (which features the glidepaths of track & field, baseball, softball and all the rest for prep student/athletes trying to finish strong) combined with a genuine need for a vacation, along with seeing Mom for Mother’s Day. But THE WORK is important because while my existence in North Dakota only is 15-months-old, those young people have been working hard for years and I owe it to them.
So, The Dickinson Press has allowed me to write from the road and it took a bit of weight offa my shoulders. Having a conscience also can be an encouragement and I know how important y’all’s kids are to you … that matters.
So, since May 5, Florida-Man has returned home and dwelt in his old-stomping-grounds and my southern neighbors, friends and family have been oh-so accommodating (see: photo-gallery contained within) to meet me for cocktails, invite me onto the boat and just relax to shoot-the-breeze. Yes, I’m only a week-in, but the plans are to maximize the next few days before returning to Dickinson.
It still am happy to do the job while I’m on vacation because I love doing it with all my heart … and one of the reasons I’m grateful to Forum for allowing me to write from home is because the stories still need to be told, and the job simply HAS to get done because the games always will go on for the young people we cover in community journalism. I always was sold from the start on community journalism because there is only one place you can read about a game between Richardton-Taylor and Beach (or: Insert area high school teams here _________) so I know how important it is to you.
Nonetheless, my birthday always coincides with Mother’s Day and so I decided to go home for the first time in a few years. The first thing I noticed was that while we in ND have I-94, the East Coast of Florida has I-95, and that’s a striking difference. I brag on my adopted hometown in Dickinson for having very-little traffic, and I’d forgotten just how bad it is down here. It’s misery-inducing.
Don’t get me wrong, the weather is great … but it’s still incredibly hot. And yet, there’s a pool outside to take the edge off and if you’re fishing out on the boat in the Atlantic the water is just over the side (likewise at the beach). Hanging out at the bar for a couple of cocktails with the locals also means one shall sweat a little, but there are awnings, water-mister-fans and air conditioning inside if the humidity starts to create problems. You get used to it.
Connecting the dots of seeing friends also can be complicated, because while I’m on “vacation” they still have jobs to do from Monday through Friday and I don’t like making demands on my buddies. But it’s been relatively easy to catch up with people because I know their habits. Truth-be-told, it’s still quite obvious that life hasn’t changed here much, and there’s less of it to miss each day.
In the meantime, my life has altered dramatically. Frankly, I’m grateful for those changes, because — while it’s awesome to get back down to Jensen — every day in my new home is different. Not one is precisely the same, and while there are similarities each 24 hours is unduplicatable and not one week is anything like the other. I’ve known for quite awhile that I live a charmed-life, and it takes a few days’-worth of time to step away and remind me just how charming it is.
Yeah … I’ve been asked how I could move away from “paradise” to Dickinson — countless times — and I always say roughly the same thing: It was time for a change and I love being a sportswriter. Because I’m somewhat selfish, I managed to work it out and be able to do all that while seeing my Mom and get a few stories in for y’all during the trip.
I’m about halfway in and it’s been fun, and I’ve sent some of y’all snapshots of what I’m been doing … but here are some more just so you know what’s happening down here:
Yes, Florida-Man is back in his element; but I sort of miss the elements up-home and definitely will be happy to get back to the 701 area code (side-note: When somebody asks me for my phone number at a restaurant or to get back in touch with me for something, they say, “Where’s that?” When I tell them “North Dakota” they invariably start doing that ridiculous imitation of the lady in “FARGO” … do they do that to y’all when you’re traveling?!? because it’s annoying).
In any event, I will see y’all in a couple of weeks and be home just-in-time for all the postseason North Dakota prep sports you can handle. See-you-soon.
Gaylon is a sportswriter who originally is from Jensen Beach, Fla. (and, currently writing from there) and his column generally appears on Mondays. He can be reached at
gparker@thedickinsonpress.com
and/or 701-456-1213.
Gaylon is a sportswriter from Jensen Beach, Fla., but has lived all over the world. Growing up with an athletic background gave him a love of sports that led to a journalism career in such places as Enid, Okla., Alamogordo, N.M., Pascagoula, Miss. and Viera, Fla. since 1998. His main passion is small-town community sports, particularly baseball and soccer.
North Dakota
North Dakota approves certificate of site compatibility for 400MWh BESS from NextEra Energy Resources
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BISMARCK, N.D. – Gov. Kelly Armstrong today announced the opening of the application period for school, community and church bands, orchestras and choirs across North Dakota to apply to serve as the Governor’s Official State Band/Orchestra Program and Choral Program for the 2026-2027 school year.
The Governor and First Lady will select the two groups from the applications received based on musical talent, achievement and community involvement. The governor may invite the groups to perform at official state functions held throughout the 2026-2027 school year, including the State of the State Address in January 2027 at the Capitol in Bismarck.
Interested groups should submit an application with a musical recording to the Governor’s Office by 5 p.m. Monday, May 4. The Governor’s Band/Orchestra Program and Governor’s Choral Program will be announced in May. Please complete the application and provide materials at https://www.governor.nd.gov/governors-chorus-and-bandorchestra-program-application.
North Dakota
Greenpeace seeks new trial, claiming jury pool biased in case over Dakota Access Pipeline
Greenpeace has asked for a second trial after a judge entered a $345 million judgment against the organization in a landmark case brought by the developer of the Dakota Access Pipeline.
The case “threatens to result in one of the largest miscarriages of justice in North Dakota’s history,” attorneys for the environmental group wrote in a brief filed last week.
After a three-week trial roughly a year ago, a Morton County jury directed Greenpeace to pay Energy Transfer about $667 million, finding the environmental group at fault for inciting illegal acts against the company during anti-pipeline protests in North Dakota in 2016 and 2017 and for publishing false statements that harmed Energy Transfer’s reputation.
Greenpeace denies Energy Transfer’s claims and maintains that it brought the lawsuit to hurt the environmental movement.
Southwest Judicial District Judge James Gion in October slashed the jury’s award to $345 million, though he didn’t finalize the award until late February.
Greenpeace is now taking steps to fight the judgment, which includes its motion for a new trial.
The environmental group’s reasons for the request include claims that the jury instructions and verdict form contained errors, and that Energy Transfer was allowed to present unfair and irrelevant evidence to jurors. The group also alleges the jury pool was biased.
Greenpeace says the jury’s award assumes that Greenpeace was entirely responsible for any injury Energy Transfer sustained related to the protests. Jurors were not given the opportunity to consider whether Greenpeace was only at fault for a portion of the damages, the organization wrote in its brief.
Attorneys for Greenpeace also referenced the mailers and other media circulated to Mandan and Bismarck residents before the trial that contained anti-Dakota Access Pipeline protest and pro-energy industry content.
The environmental group seeks a new trial in Cass County, arguing in part that the jury pool in the Fargo area would be more fair because its residents did not directly experience the Dakota Access Pipeline protests and because the local economy is less dependent on the energy industry.
If Greenpeace’s request for a new trial is denied, it plans to appeal the case to the North Dakota Supreme Court, the organization has said.
Greenpeace previously asked for the trial to be moved from Morton County to Cass County in early 2025, which Gion and the North Dakota Supreme Court denied.
The lawsuit is against three separate Greenpeace organizations — Greenpeace USA, Greenpeace International and Greenpeace Fund.
Energy Transfer as of Wednesday morning had not submitted a response to Greenpeace’s motion for a new trial. Previously, the company has defended the jury’s verdict and disputed Greenpeace’s claims that the court proceedings were not fair.
Energy Transfer has indicated it may appeal Gion’s decision to reduce the award to $345 million.
Greenpeace will not have to pay any of the $345 million judgment for at least a couple of months, Gion ruled Tuesday.
Court documents indicate that the organization could have to pay a bond of up to $25 million while appeals proceed, though the environmental group has asked the judge to waive or reduce this amount. Gion has not decided on this motion.
He noted that obtaining such a large bond will be challenging.
“The magnitude of this matter defies simple decisions,” Gion wrote.
Energy Transfer in court filings urged the judge to require Greenpeace to post the full $25 million.
Any bond money Greenpeace provides would be held by a third party while the appeals proceed, according to Greenpeace USA.
Greenpeace International has filed a separate lawsuit in the Netherlands that accuses Energy Transfer of weaponizing the U.S. legal system against the environmental group. Energy Transfer asked Gion to order that the overseas suit be paused while the North Dakota case is still active, which Gion denied. The company appealed his ruling to the North Dakota Supreme Court, which has yet to make a decision on the matter.
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