South Dakota

Feeding South Dakota celebrating 50 year while focusing on next 50

Published

8 months ago

July 11, 2025

Feeding South Dakota celebrating 50 year while focusing on next 50

This year marks 50 years of Feeding South Dakota and the organization’s work in the state.

While the organization is celebrating the past, leaders say they’re focusing on helping South Dakota in the present and future.

After half-a-century, CEO Lori Dykstra said Feeding South Dakota’s goal remains the same: fight hunger every day.

“We can’t only just continue to feed the line; we need to get people out of that food line. And so, what does that look like?” Dykstra asked. “That means educating people, advocating for the people who can’t advocate for themselves and really making sure that we’re creating programs that are that hand up, that step out of poverty to hopefully to shorten the [food] line.”

She said though they can’t control every variable that puts people in food lines, they can do everything in their power to help.

Dykstra said, more importantly, the goal isn’t to be complacent at 50 years running. The goal is to continue to achieve more over the next 50.

Feeding South Dakota Board Chair Kim Tyler agreed. She said there’s a blueprint on how to do just that: working with the 250 partner agencies to improve rural outreach.

“I think in the next five years we want to make them more effective. Because we cannot just do it in Sioux Falls, and Rapid [City] and maybe Pierre or Aberdeen. We need every county to have folks that are helping their neighbors,” Tyler said. “And so I think we really have a lot of optimism about the partnerships that we have both from, frankly, the people who support us: donors and people who are very altruistic and want to help our cause, and then we have tremendous agencies that work with us to provide solutions in those rural areas, as well as our South Dakota cities.”

She said they aren’t acknowledging 50 years to pat themselves on the back, it’s to shed light on the food insecurity South Dakotans face every day.

“Not because we’re celebrating, Yeah, okay. We made it 50 years. It’s that we want to make sure folks know how much impact we make every month in our state. How many people we’re impacting and helping,” Tyler said. “It’s more that we’re trying to shout about the need and the really really important mission that we’re doing.”

Dykstra said it’s also an open invitation to everyone.

“We’re also hoping it invites people in to be a part of this mission, because we can’t do it without the volunteers who help us support it,” Dykstra said.

Volunteers like Whitney Heubrock and Rebecca Thompson. They are special education teachers with T-12 Thrive. They have brought students to volunteer at Feeding SD since 2017.

Heubrock said helping around the holidays especially resonates with students.

“The Thanksgiving box, or the project we do around Thanksgiving, is always fun because that always clicks with the students: that they’re helping a family have a good, big Thanksgiving meal,” Heubrock said.

Thompson said volunteering helps eliminate some of the stigma surrounding food insecurity.

“And I think being here and being physically present every week maybe takes away any shame or embarrassment if you ever do need the support,” Thompson said. “It’s like, ‘Yeah. It’s here. You know where it is. It’s not a bad thing. [Food insecurity] just happens.”

CEO Lori Dykstra said she’s seen firsthand how it can be hard to ask for help.

“It actually was in a farm community. And people roll down their window, we’re putting food in the back of the car,” Dykstra said. “And the gentleman immediately the first thing he says to me is, ‘You know, I don’t normally need the food line. I’m here because this happened with my job, and I’m switching jobs, and I’m in-between and as soon as I get my paycheck I won’t need to be here. I know this is bad, other people need this more than me.’ And I said, ‘No. We’re here for you.’”

She said they want to help people, no shame or judgement attached.

On the flip side, Dykstra said Feeding South Dakota also has plenty of happy stories to pass along. She told one of a single mother who brought her 4-year-old child.

“And she was asking her mom, ‘What are these? What are these?’ She had never seen them. And her mom was like, ‘I don’t know what they are either.’ And I said, ‘It’s a plum.’ And the woman running the pantry said, ‘Well you can try it.’ And so we washed it up and we gave it to her,” Dykstra said. “And the sheer joy on this little girl’s face. She had never tried it. And she was like, ‘That’s the best thing ever.’ And she just took a pile of them and put them in her bag. And she was so excited to try this fresh plum. Something the sheer joy that a plum can give to a 4-year-old, I mean, it was pretty amazing.”

Dykstra said in her time as CEO, she’s learned that people who aren’t food insecure may take things like a fresh plum for granted.

She added, while the organization is happy to celebrate 50 years, she hopes they can continue to fight food insecurity even further in the future.

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South Dakota

SD Lottery Millionaire for Life winning numbers for March 8, 2026

Published

5 hours ago

March 9, 2026

Press Room

The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at March 8, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 8 drawing

01-31-32-45-52, Bonus: 05

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize

Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.

When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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South Dakota

Kristi Noem’s term as governor freshly roasted by former South Dakota mayor: ‘She did a Sarah Palin’

Published

17 hours ago

March 8, 2026

Press Room

Kristi Noem’s term as governor freshly roasted by former South Dakota mayor: ‘She did a Sarah Palin’

Kristi Noem’s stint as governor of South Dakota has come under fresh scrutiny by a former local mayor, who said she “did a ‘Sarah Palin’ and quit,” just days after she was fired from her role as Homeland Security secretary.

Noem, who served as governor from 2019 to 2025, became the first cabinet member to be fired by Trump during his second term.

The embarrassing dismissal came amid growing scrutiny of her aggressive immigration operations across the country, DHS’s purchase of multiple luxury jets for staff, major reductions in FEMA staff, and rumors of an affair with adviser Corey Lewandowski.

Mike Levsen, the former mayor of Aberdeen in Noem’s home state of South Dakota, says her dismissal came as no surprise given her “lack of any significant accomplishment” during her time as governor of the state.

“The Noem governorship covered six years — then did a ‘Sarah Palin’ and quit,” Levsen wrote in a blog post, comparing Noem to the former Alaska Gov. who resigned midway through her first term, citing mounting legal fees being brought by various ethics investigations being brought against her. Palin was Senator John McCain’s running mate during the 2008 presidential election.

Kristi Noem’s tenure as governor has come under criticism following her firing as DHS secretary (AFP/Getty)

“Her legacy was minimal involvement with the Legislature, frequent absences, no transparency, repeated operational screwups, soaring turnover and instances of self-dealing for herself and her family,” Levsen wrote.

Levsen criticized Noem’s Covid-era ad campaign, “Freedom Works Here,” as a “Trump-based ploy that likely contributed to South Dakota’s listing high on some periodical per capita death lists.”

The campaign, which attempted to draw new residents to the state, cost $6.5 million, and South Dakota News Watch reported at the time that there were “hurdles” with the campaign.

Levsen also noted Noem’s “difficult relationship” with tribal governments, as all nine of South Dakota’s indigenous tribes voted in 2024 to ban Noem from their lands, according to CNN.

“Is there a single thing in South Dakota now better as a result of her time in office?” Levsen questioned in the post.

Noem was fired by Trump amidst mounting scrutiny over fallout in Minnesota, following DHS’s disastrous Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis, which saw two U.S. citizens shot dead in confrontations with federal agents.

Noem described the two Americans, Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, as domestic terrorists. She has refused to apologize for the comments.

She also drew fierce criticism with her purchase of multiple luxury jets, a $220 million ad campaign, gutting FEMA, and her rumored affair with Lewandowski.

Noem was axed by President Donald Trump in a Truth Social post Thursday (Getty)

The final nail in the coffin appears to have been Noem’s congressional testimony this past week, during which lawmakers from both sides of the aisle criticized her management and judgment.

A day after her second hearing, Trump wrote on Truth Social that Noem was out at DHS — and that he was nominating Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin to replace her.

An administration official told NBC News that the president axed Noem due to “a culmination of her many unfortunate leadership failures, including the fallout in Minnesota, the ad campaign, the allegations of infidelity, the mismanagement of her staff, and her constant feuding with the heads of other agencies, including CBP and ICE.”

“Kristi’s drama sadly overshadowed and distracted from the Administration’s extremely popular immigration agenda, which will continue full force,” the official added.

Before she was fired, Noem defended her performance during her hearings on Capitol Hill.

She also drew fire for insisting that the $220 million DHS ad campaign had been launched with the president’s approval, which Trump has denied.

Days after her humiliating firing, Trump named Noem as special envoy for “The Shield of the Americas,” a new security initiative that Trump says will focus on the Western Hemisphere.

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South Dakota

SD Lottery Powerball, Lotto America winning numbers for March 7, 2026

Published

1 day ago

March 8, 2026

Press Room

The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at March 7, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from March 7 drawing

17-18-30-50-68, Powerball: 24, Power Play: 3

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lotto America numbers from March 7 drawing

06-08-17-18-45, Star Ball: 05, ASB: 05

Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Dakota Cash numbers from March 7 drawing

01-02-06-22-26

Check Dakota Cash payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 7 drawing

10-32-45-53-54, Bonus: 02

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize

Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.

When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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