South Dakota
Republican factions fighting for control of the party in Tuesday’s primary election • South Dakota Searchlight
Most of the action in Tuesday’s South Dakota primary election is in Republican legislative races, where a fight for control of the party has drawn in players ranging from upstart challengers to fundraising groups affiliated with members of Congress.
There are 44 Republican legislative primary races across the state, and only one Democratic legislative primary. Winners will go on to represent the party in the Nov. 5 general election, when all 105 seats in the Legislature will be up for grabs.
Republicans currently hold all but 11 of 105 legislative seats, and their grip on the majority is not in doubt. But the party’s direction could be influenced by Tuesday’s results, many of which will be the final result. Among 35 districts, 16 of them lack general election contests for House seats and 20 lack general election contests for Senate seats, due to candidates running unopposed or one party (mostly Democrats) failing to field a candidate. In other words, in some districts, the primary election is the de facto general election.
One of the Republicans trying to influence the primary results is Toby Doeden, who considered challenging Republican U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson but decided against it. Doeden has since launched Dakota First Action, a political action committee aiming to remove “fake Republicans and their whole crony crowd” from the state House of Representatives, replacing them with “America First” candidates, according to Doeden.
“Then we’ll take the Senate and governor’s office,” Doeden said, referring to future elections.
Doeden contributed $100,000 of his own money to the committee and reported it as a donation, according to a campaign finance report. After online commenters pointed out the $10,000 limit on individual contributions to political action committees, Doeden said the contribution should have been reported as a loan, not a donation.
Pat Powers, a Republican blogger, has filed an affidavit alleging Doeden is “flagrantly violating” campaign finance laws. Powers also published correspondence from Attorney General Marty Jackley indicating that Jackley’s office is investigating.
As of the last filing deadline, Doeden’s committee had spent $25,000 on “data acquisition,” and recently sent text messages to District 25 voters alleging a Republican candidate he dislikes is a liberal in disguise.
Another political action committee seeking to challenge the Republican establishment in Pierre is Spearfish Republican Rep. Scott Odenbach’s Liberty Tree. It spent $58,000 ahead of the primary.
Former executive director of Rapid City Catholic Social Services Jim Kinyon’s Protecting SD Kids donated $37,000 to similar candidates, as did anti-abortion activists’ South Dakota Right to Life PAC, spending $11,600. The PAC is affiliated with the nonprofit South Dakota Right to Life, which includes Rep. Jon Hansen, R-Dell Rapids, Rep. Fred Deutsch, R-Watertown, Sen. Al Novstrup, R-Aberdeen, and former representative and current candidate Spencer Gosch on its board.
None of the money spent by those committees went to Republican candidates currently serving in legislative leadership positions.
One such Republican, former state senator Tom Dempster, of Sioux Falls, warns that confrontational politics within the party will contribute to further divides in an already divided country.
“We have way too many candidates on the fringe that want people to rally around them because they simply want to upset the system,” Dempster said. “It’s just the opposite of what our democracy needs today. We need people who know how to handle conflict and pull people together.”
The kinds of candidates Dempster favors are receiving help in the primary from longtime Republican state lawmaker Lee Schoenbeck, of Watertown, who isn’t seeking reelection. He founded a political action committee in 2021, South Dakota Strong. The committee spent $46,000 on nine candidates ahead of this primary, according to its campaign finance report.
Schoenbeck said today’s Republican party consists of two different groups of people.
“There are the normal Republicans, and there are these strange individuals who are not conservative. They’re just unusual,” Schoenbeck said. “But they turn out big in primary elections. So, if normal, regular-thinking conservative folks don’t vote in this primary, the highly unusual folks will win.”
Mort PAC, run by House Majority Leader Will Mortenson, R-Fort Pierre, spent $48,271 to help some of the same candidates. It received $10,000 from Republican U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds’ Peter Norbeck Leadership PAC and $10,000 from Republican U.S. Sen. John Thune’s Heartland Values PAC.
Dusty PAC, managed by supporters of U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson, donated $25,750 to many of the same candidates and more.
Dakota Legacy PAC, run by Senate Majority Leader Casey Crabtree, R-Madison, took a similar approach, giving $16,700 to candidates and spending $10,000 on advertising. The committee also received $10,000 apiece from Thune’s and Rounds’ PACs.
Following are summaries of some races that people on both sides of the Republican divide say they’re watching closely.
House of Representatives
In state House of Representatives primaries, the top two vote-getters from each party advance to the general election, where they will vie for two House seats in each legislative district.
District 18 (Clay, Yankton counties): Incumbents Mike Stevens and Julie Auch, and challenger John Marquardt, all of Yankton.
Auch received money from South Dakota Right to Life PAC and a 91.7% scorecard rating from South Dakota Citizens for Liberty, a group that says it advocates for limited government. Stevens received money from Dusty PAC and a 33.3% rating on the Citizens for Liberty scorecard.
Meanwhile, Auch received a D rating from a scorecard published by the Republican blogger Powers, the Real Conservative Scorecard, and Stevens received a B+ rating.
Yankton County Commission Chairman Marquardt received donations from Mort PAC and Dusty PAC.
District 13 (Lincoln, Minnehaha counties): Incumbent Tony Venhuizen and challengers Brad Jankord, John Hughes and Penny BayBridge, all of Sioux Falls. There is no Democratic or independent candidate, which means the two Republican primary winners will win the two House seats.
Venhuizen formerly served as chief of staff for Governors Kristi Noem and Dennis Daugaard and has been involved in Republican state politics for many years.
Jankord received donations from Dusty PAC, Mort PAC, former Gov. Dennis Daugaard, Venhuizen and others, totaling over $60,000.
Hughes has received funding from Odenbach’s Liberty Tree, South Dakota Right to Life PAC, Protecting SD Kids and others, totaling over $40,000.
BayBridge took in $4,703 from various individuals.
With Venhuizen taking in over $100,000, plus the fundraising by other candidates, the district’s primary election is the most expensive South Dakota Searchlight found.
District 9 (Minnehaha County): Incumbent Bethany Soye, of Sioux Falls, and challengers Kristi Golden, Daryl Christensen and Tesa Schwans, all of Hartford.
Soye has a 97.5% Citizens for Liberty rating and contributions from Liberty Tree, South Dakota Right to Life PAC and Protecting SD Kids. She was given a D rating on the Real Conservative Scorecard.
Schwans received donations from South Dakota Right to Life PAC, Protecting SD Kids and Liberty Tree.
Golden received donations from Dusty PAC and Mort PAC, and Christensen received donations from Venhuizen and Daugaard.
District 2 (Minnehaha County): Incumbents John Sjaarda, of Valley Springs, and David Kull, of Brandon, face challenger Jake Schoenbeck, of Sioux Falls. There is no Democratic or independent candidate, which means the two Republican primary winners will win the two House seats.
Sjaarda has an 87.5% Citizens for Liberty rating and contributions from Liberty Tree and Protecting SD Kids. Schoenbeck is the son of longtime legislative leader Lee Schoenbeck (who isn’t seeking reelection). South Dakota Strong gave Jake Schoenbeck $5,000. He also received contributions from Mort PAC and Dusty PAC.
Kull has an A rating on the Real Conservative Scorecard and received donations from Dusty PAC and Mort PAC.
District 21 (Aurora, Charles Mix, Douglas, Gregory and Tripp counties): Incumbent Marty Overweg, of New Holland, and challengers Lee Qualm, of Platte, and Jim Halverson, of Winner. There is no Democratic or independent candidate, which means the two Republican primary winners will win the two House seats.
Overweg has a 97.5% Citizens for Liberty rating and contributions from Liberty Tree and South Dakota Right to Life PAC. Qualm, a former legislator, also has Liberty Tree and South Dakota Right to Life PAC contributions, plus an endorsement from Dakota First Action.
Halverson, whose daughter is involved with U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson’s reelection campaign, received donations from Dusty PAC and Mort PAC.
District 23 (Brown, Campbell, Edmunds, Faulk, Hand, McPherson, Potter, Walworth counties): Incumbents Scott Moore, of Ipswich, and Majority Whip James Wangsness, of Miller, and challenger Spencer Gosch. There is no Democratic or independent candidate, which means the two Republican primary winners will win the two House seats.
Gosch previously served as speaker of the House. He received contributions from Protect SD Kids, Liberty Tree and a PAC affiliated with the South Dakota Freedom Caucus, whose members sometimes clash with Republican legislative leaders.
Wangsness has an A+ rating on the Real Conservative Scorecard and received contributions from Dusty PAC and Mort PAC.
Moore’s pre-primary finance report includes donations from Dusty PAC, Protecting SD Kids and the South Dakota Freedom Caucus PAC.
Senate
In state Senate primaries, only the top vote-getter from each party advances to the general election to vie for one Senate seat in each legislative district.
District 16 (Lincoln, Turner, Union counties): Kevin Jensen vs. Eric Hohman, both of Canton. There is no Democratic or independent candidate, which means the Republican primary winner wins the seat.
Jensen, a current state representative, is term-limited in the House. He has an 83.3% Citizens for Liberty rating and a contribution from Liberty Tree and South Dakota Right to Life PAC.
Hohman’s campaign has received contributions from Lee Schoenbeck’s South Dakota Strong PAC, Senate Majority Leader Casey Crabtree’s Dakota Legacy PAC and the Dusty PAC.
District 3 (Brown County): Carl Perry vs. Katherine Washnok, both of Aberdeen. There is no Democratic or independent candidate, which means the Republican primary winner wins the seat.
Current state representative Perry is attempting a switch to the Senate against Brown County Republican Chair Washnok.
Washnok says she “grew up in” the state Republican Party. She has a contribution from Dakota Legacy PAC and Dusty PAC.
Perry has a 75% SD Citizens for Liberty rating, a Dakota First Action endorsement, and checks from Liberty Tree and South Dakota Right to Life PAC.
District 30 (Custer, Fall River, Pennington counties): Incumbent Julie Frye-Mueller, of Rapid City, vs. Amber Hulse, of Hot Springs, and Forrest Foster, of Rapid City.
Frye-Mueller is one of two Republicans with a 100% rating from Citizens for Liberty. The state Senate censured Frye-Mueller in 2023. She had allegedly verbally harassed a Legislative Research Council staffer, including criticism of the staffer’s decision to have her baby vaccinated.
Hulse is a lawyer and former Miss South Dakota who worked as an intern in President Donald Trump’s administration. She received a donation from Dusty PAC.
Foster received $1,600 ahead of the primary, including $1,000 from himself.
District 8 (Brookings, Kingsbury, Lake, Miner counties): Incumbent Casey Crabtree, of Madison, vs. Rick Weible, of Elkton. There is no Democratic or independent candidate, which means the Republican primary winner wins the seat.
Crabtree is the Senate majority leader and reports taking in about $69,000 on his pre-primary finance report. He has a 31.8% rating from Citizens for Liberty.
Weible is a leader in attempts to get rid of vote-counting machines and force hand-counting. He received a donation from the South Dakota Freedom Caucus and took in $6,000 total.
District 4 (Clark, Codington, Deuel, Grant, Hamlin and Roberts counties): Fred Deutsch, of Florence, vs. Stephanie Sauder, of Bryant. There is no Democratic or independent candidate, which means the Republican primary winner wins the seat.
With term limits forcing John Wiik out of the Senate, current representatives Deutsch and Sauder are seeking the open seat.
Deutsch has a 66.7% Citizens for Liberty rating and received donations from South Dakota Right to Life PAC and Protecting SD Kids. Sauder has a 43.5% Citizens for Liberty rating and contributions from South Dakota Strong and Dusty PAC.
District 35 (Pennington): Incumbent Mike Walsh, of Box Elder, vs. challengers Greg Blanc and Curtis Nupen, both of Rapid City. There is no Democratic or independent candidate, which means the Republican primary winner wins the seat.
Walsh was appointed to an open seat this year by Gov. Kristi Noem. He has a contribution from South Dakota Strong. Blanc has contributions from Liberty Tree and South Dakota Right to Life PAC. Nupen gave himself $6,000.
District 34 (Pennington): Jason Green vs. Taffy Howard, both of Rapid City.
With incumbent Michael Diedrich not seeking reelection, former legislator Howard is seeking a return to the Legislature. She is a former primary challenger to U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson, whom she described as insufficiently conservative. She has contributions from Liberty Tree, South Dakota Right to Life PAC and Protecting SD Kids, and a Dakota First Action endorsement.
Green is endorsed by outgoing Sen. Diedrich and received donations from Dusty PAC and Lee Schoenbeck.
District 25 (Minnehaha and Moody counties): Incumbent Tom Pischke, of Dell Rapids, vs. challenger Jordan Youngberg, of Colman.
Pischke has an 80.7% rating from Citizens for Liberty, a contribution from Liberty Tree and a Dakota First Action endorsement. He made statewide news for being banned from the House during the last days of the most recent legislative session for a breach of decorum.
Youngberg, a former legislator, has contributions from South Dakota Strong and Dusty PAC.
District 17 (Clay and Union counties): Incumbent Sydney Davis, of Burbank, vs. Jeffrey Church, of Vermillion. There is no Democratic or independent candidate, which means the Republican primary winner wins the seat.
Church has contributions from Liberty Tree and Protecting SD Kids, and is highlighting Davis’ 20% Citizens for Liberty rating in his campaign material. Davis has donations from Dusty PAC and others totaling about $39,000.
District 9 (Minnehaha County): Joy Hohn, a vocal opponent of eminent domain for carbon dioxide pipelines, faces off with former representative Mark Willadsen. There is no Democratic or independent candidate, which means the Republican primary winner wins the seat.
Doeden’s Dakota First Action endorsed Hohn, and she has donations from Liberty Tree and South Dakota Right to Life PAC.
Willadsen has donations from Dusty PAC, former Gov. Daugaard, and former speaker of the state House, Mark Mickelson.
The South Dakota Prep Media Basketball polls for the week of Dec. 23 are listed below, ranking the top-five teams in each class, record, total points and previous ranking. First-place votes received are indicated in parentheses.
Boys
Class AA
1. Mitchell (14) 3-0 74 1
2. Lincoln (1) 3-0 61 2
3. Tea Area 2-0 22 RV
4. Jefferson 2-1 21 5
5. Brandon Valley 2-1 19 3
Receiving votes: Huron 14, O’Gorman 8, Harrisburg 3, Spearfish 2, Sturgis 1.
Class A
1. SF Christian (12) 3-0 72 1
2. Hamlin (3) 2-0 63 2
3. Dakota Valley 3-0 38 3
4. RC Christian 5-0 32 4
T-5. Lennox 2-1 9 T-5
T-5. St. Thomas More 5-0 9 T-5
Receiving votes: Pine Ridge 1, West Central 1.
Class B
1. Castlewood (14) 2-0 74 1
2. Dell Rapids St. Mary (1) 3-0 61 2
3. Viborg-Hurley 2-1 36 4
4. Gregory 4-1 18 RV
T-5. Leola/Frederick Area 4-0 11 RV
T-5. Howard 3-1 11 RV
T-5. Freeman 2-0 11 RV
Receiving votes: Wessington Springs 1, Dupree 1, Estelline/Hendricks 1.
Girls
Class AA
1. O’Gorman (15) 4-0 75 1
2. Washington 3-0 59 2
3. Brandon Valley 2-1 41 3
4. Stevens 4-1 29 4
5. Spearfish 2-1 10 5
Receiving votes: Mitchell 7, Brookings 3, Aberdeen Central 1.
Class A
1. SF Christian (8) 4-0 66 2
2. Vermillion (4) 4-1 47 1
3. Hamlin (1) 3-0 43 3
4. Wagner 4-0 35 4
5. Mahpiya Luta (2) 5-0 30 5
Receiving votes: Mobridge-Pollock 2, Dakota Valley 1, Elk Point-Jefferson 1.
Class B
1. Centerville (15) 5-0 75 1
2. Sanborn Central/Woonsocket 2-0 51 3
3. Parkston 4-0 45 4
4. Lyman 3-0 27 5
5. Andes Central/Dakota Christian 4-0 20 5
Receiving votes: Ethan 6, Castlewood 1.
MITCHELL — It’s been nearly a full calendar year since the Mitchell High School boys basketball team last lost a game.
Since its last loss on Jan. 2, the Kernels have rattled off 20-straight victories — 17 in a row to end their championship run last season, plus a 3-0 start to the current campaign.
Mitchell is the first Class AA boys basketball program with a 20-game win streak since Sioux Falls Roosevelt won 35 in a row between the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons.
During the current streak, Mitchell has defeated 16 different programs. The only current Class AA teams Mitchell hasn’t beaten during the streak are Harrisburg, Douglas and class newcomer Tea Area. Included in the 20 wins are 13 double-digit victories, including five of 20-plus points. Nine wins came against Eastern South Dakota Conference foes, with seven against Metro Conference opponents and four against West River squads.
Here’s a closer look at how the Kernels reached 20 wins in a row:
No. 1: Mitchell 49, Yankton 45
Jan. 5, 2024, at the Corn Palace
Three days following an overtime loss to Harrisburg on the same court, Mitchell went to an extra period again to survive a stern test from ESD rival Yankton in the first meeting since the 2023 state title tilt. Landen Soulek’s 12 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer in overtime, carried the day for the Kernels.
No. 2: Mitchell 67, Huron 56
Jan. 9, 2024, at the Corn Palace
No. 3: Mitchell 57, Sioux Falls Lincoln 51
Jan. 18, 2024, at the Corn Palace
Adam Thury / Mitchell Republic
No. 4: Mitchell 68, Brookings 55
Jan. 25, 2024, at Brookings
No. 5: Mitchell 71, Sioux Falls Jefferson 58
Jan. 30, 2024, at Jefferson H.S.
One week after taking over the No. 1 ranking in the South Dakota Prep Media poll for the first time in 12 years, the Kernels won a fifth-straight game by taking out an eventual state tournament team on the road. Mitchell led by eight points at halftime but ballooned the cushion to 22 points in the second half. Colton Smith had a big night with 20 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three steals.
Landon Dierks / Mitchell Republic
No. 6: Mitchell 71, Sturgis 42
Feb. 2, 2024, at Sturgis
No. 7: Mitchell 59, Spearfish 45
Feb. 3, 2024, at Spearfish
In the last of four consecutive road games after claiming the top spot, Mitchell cemented its place atop the rankings. The Kernels won the third quarter 24-9 to turn a three-point halftime lead into an 18-point advantage entering the final frame. Gavin Soukup tossed in 21 points to lead the way.
No. 8: Mitchell 68, Aberdeen Central 56
Feb. 6, 2024, at the Corn Palace
Landon Dierks / Mitchell Republic
No. 9: Mitchell 60, Sioux Falls Washington 55
Feb. 13, 2024, at Washington H.S.
No. 10: Mitchell 74, Pierre 50
Feb. 16, 2024, at Pierre
With a blowout road win over another ESD rival, the win streak reached 10 games in a row. Colton Smith posted a 23-point, 10-rebound double-double with five assists, and Markus Talley added 20 points, six rebounds and six assists.
No. 11: Mitchell 75, Sioux Falls Roosevelt 53
Feb. 17, 2024, at Roosevelt H.S.
Capping a stretch of three road games in five days, the Kernels dominated. Colton Smith scored 14 points in each half to spur Mitchell’s season-high scoring output. It was also the Kernels’ first win at Roosevelt High School in 20 years
No. 12: Mitchell 59, Brandon Valley 54
Feb. 20, 2024, at the Corn Palace
A preview of the eventual state championship contest, Mitchell overcame an early 12-point deficit to snap the Lynx’s own 12-game win streak. Gavin Soukup, Markus Talley and Colton Smith all provided 15 points for the Kernels, while Parker Mandel tossed in 10 points off the bench. Mitchell clinched a share of the Eastern South Dakota Conference title.
Adam Thury / Mitchell Republic
No. 13: Mitchell 60, O’Gorman 50
Feb. 23, 2024, at O’Gorman H.S.
Powered by 23 points and seven rebounds from Gavin Soukup, the Kernels polished off a 19-1 regular season record and secured the No. 1 seed in the Class AA postseason.
No. 14: Mitchell 60, Yankton 46
March 2, 2024, at the Corn Palace — Class AA SoDak 16
Facing a postseason rematch of the 2023 Class AA state title game to reach the state tournament, Mitchell roared out to a 20-point halftime lead and didn’t let Yankton closer than eight points the rest of the way. Six Kernels scored at least six points as Mitchell punched its tournament ticket, paced by Markus Talley’s 25 points, four rebounds and four assists. The win secured a fourth-straight state tournament berth for the program.
Adam Thury / Mitchell Republic
No. 15: Mitchell 69, Sioux Falls Jefferson 61
March 14, 2024, at the Premier Center, Sioux Falls — Class AA quarterfinal
Mitchell’s championship charge received a stern test in the opening round, as the Cavaliers chopped down a double-digit deficit to just two points in the fourth before the Kernels put the game away.
Adam Thury / Mitchell Republic
No. 16: Mitchell 72, Sioux Falls Washington 51
March 15, 2024, at the Premier Center, Sioux Falls — Class AA semifinal
Following a sweat-inducing quarterfinal, the Kernels’ semifinal affair was never in doubt. Mitchell’s lead was 13 or more points the entire second half, growing as large as 27 points. Gavin Soukup propelled the effort with 22 points and eight assists.
Adam Thury / Mitchell Republic
No. 17: Mitchell 46, Brandon Valley 45
March 16, 2024, at the Premier Center, Sioux Falls — Class AA championship
Markus Talley found Gavin Hinker for the title-winning layup with _ seconds to play, and the Kernels came up with a pair of defensive stops on the final possession to capture the program’s first state championship since 2005. Mitchell’s 17th state championship all-time, the most in state history, ended with a 23-1 record.
Adam Thury / Mitchell Republic
End of 2023-24 season; start of 2024-25 season.
No. 18: Mitchell 70, Watertown 44
Dec. 17, 2024, at Watertown
Kernels open title defense with a blowout road win in ESD play. Markus Talley drops in 27 points, while Gavin Hinker nets a career-high 14 points in the victory.
No. 19: Mitchell 55, Rapid City Stevens 52
Dec. 30, 2024, at Stevens H.S.
After trailing for much of the second half, the Kernels went on an 8-0 run late in the fourth quarter to swipe a road win. Markus Talley led the way with 26 points, including the last five to clinch it for MHS.
No. 20: Mitchell 61, Rapid City Central 47
Dec. 21, 2024, at Central H.S.
Tackling a third road game in five days to open up the new season, Mitchell pulls away late behind 19 second-half points from Colton Smith. All told, Smith (24) and Markus Talley (26) combined for 50 points in the win. It was coach Ryker Kreutzfeldt’s 60th career head coaching win in 75 games, a win percentage of .800.
South Dakota
There was ‘no room at the inn’ for this dog, but a St. Paul rescue helped save her (and her puppies)
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It was a Saturday afternoon in December and the Petco on Ford Parkway in St. Paul was busy with shoppers coming and going, some of them accompanied by dogs wearing holiday sweaters.
At the center of the store, enticing customers to pause, was a gaggle of six puppies from three litters, up for adoption through Pooches United with People (PUP).
“Where’s their mom?” asked a volunteer about two of the puppies.
“She’s in my basement,” said PUP founder Jeanne Weigum. “It’s a good story and a bad story.”
“Most are,” said the volunteer.
True, and this one is our Christmas story.
Jeanne
If anyone in St. Paul has a big enough heart to rescue dogs, it’s Weigum, who at 80 is still volunteering on several fronts.
It was a year ago that the St. Paul City Council voted to declare Dec. 13, 2023, as “Jeanne Weigum Day” in honor of her volunteer work, which includes serving as the president of the Association for Non-Smokers-MN. She has also fought against billboards and planted ornamental gardens, spending decades working to improve the city where she lives.
The city council’s resolution called her the “grande dame of advocacy and community building in St. Paul … and beyond for the past 50-plus years.”
Weigum’s work with animals is rooted in both St. Paul and western South Dakota, where she grew up.
“I still have a home in Mobridge,” she said of her hometown.
While Weigum started volunteering locally with the Animal Humane Society and then Second Chance Animal Rescue, she also wanted to help in South Dakota, especially alongside her neighbors from the Standing Rock Indian Reservation.
“I was connected to Judy White Bull of Wamakaskan Onsaka, which in Lakota loosely translates to ‘animals in need,’” she said.
While her friend has since passed away, South Dakota is still Weigum’s focus for helping animals and the people who love them. Working with locals, Pooches United with People coordinates wellness clinics, animal rescues and more.
It was one such local who saved a dog called Lola.
Lola
Weigum emailed the Pioneer Press about a dog from South Dakota on Nov. 30.
“I have a pooch that I think you and your readers might find interesting to learn about and follow,” she wrote.
It was Lola.
“Lola was abandoned by her family in a 300-person town,” Weigum explained.
Rudy Little Shield of Mobridge, a volunteer with PUP, was familiar with the young dog, a mutt with floppy ears and a reserved disposition.
“I first saw her as a little pup. We vaccinated her along with a couple other ones,” Little Shield recalled in a phone interview. “I knew Lola’s family, but they ended up moving. I don’t know why they left her, I just knew she didn’t have anybody. She was always running around — I don’t think she stayed anywhere.”
“Then, as nature would have it,” Weigum said, “she got pregnant.”
“A friend called,” Little Shield said. “She said, ‘Can you come check on this dog?’”
It was Lola, and she was having her puppies outside of the friend’s house.
“She had dug a little hole right where the vent comes out to the dryer, maybe because it was warm there,” Little Shield said.
“When she started to deliver there was literally no manger and no room in the inn,” Weigum said. “She started having her puppies out in the open.”
Little Shield brought Lola and her litter a dog house for shelter, a protected space away from other dogs and curious children, but Lola quickly disappeared.
“And then, about a week later, my sister called me,” he said. “She said, ‘There’s a dog under my porch and it has puppies.”
It was Lola, again. Unfortunately, only five of her nine puppies had survived.
This time, Little Shield was able to get Lola into a kennel with the help of pieces of chicken.
Soon, Lola and four of the surviving pups were on their way to St. Paul with PUP, where our story continues.
“I just hope they get a home,” Little Shield said.
The fifth pup already found a home — with Little Shield.
A new life
Temperatures were falling in St. Paul on Dec. 10, but Lola and her puppies didn’t seem to notice as they romped around Weigum’s backyard.
“Look how happy she is,” Weigum observed of Lola.
It’s a big change, having shelter and food and companionship.
“She has gained weight and her coat is no longer dull and rough but beautifully shiny,” Weigum says.
There are still challenges, though.
“She is learning to associate treats with hands and is starting to like human company at least a wee bit,” says Weigum.
With her puppies weaned and three of them adopted, Lola has been placed in foster care with Katie Holmes of Minneapolis, a new volunteer.
“I was at Petco during their adopt-a-puppy event and chatting with somebody there,” Holmes said. “I said, ‘I’m just looking, I can’t take on the financial responsibility of a puppy right now.’ They said, ‘The mom of some of the puppies is going to need a foster, do you want to meet her?’ Let’s go drive over to Jeanne’s house.’ So we did and when I saw Lola’s stupidly large ears and her sweetness, I just kind of fell in love.”
So far, Holmes has learned that Lola loves car rides but does not love being left home alone. She is also willing to tag along to Holmes’ dog-friendly office, where she has made a friend, a dog/mentor named Mishka. Back at her foster home, she enjoys sleeping on a futon and tolerates Holmes’ cat.
After a “chill” Christmas with Holmes, there’s work to be done before Lola is ready for adoption.
“The foster will work on socializing and desensitizing to the frightening things from the past,” Weigum says. “We are at the middle of this story, with much yet to come.”
Joy
Sara Janssen and her family were reeling this fall after losing both of their dogs in the span of a week: Bella was 15 years old, but Frida — adopted through PUP — died at age five from a rare autoimmune inflammatory disease.
“Jeanne was the first person I called,” Janssen said after Frida’s death. “I hadn’t spoken to her since I adopted Frida, but I needed to talk to her. She is such a warm and loving person, representing all the best things about the adoption and rescue community.”
Weigum knew what Janssen needed: She needed to cuddle some puppies; she needed to hold new life in her hands.
That’s just what she did, after Weigum brought Lola and her puppies 400 miles from South Dakota to St. Paul.
Soon, one of those puppies — Cricket — was driving a few more blocks, to Janssen’s home.
“If there are people out there like myself, people who have lost a pet who left a hole in their heart and they don’t know where to turn to regain what their heart is missing, what I want to share is how it felt when Cricket was in my lap as we drove the four blocks home from Jeanne’s.
“The joy that comes from having a puppy next to you,” Janssen says, “it’s an unadulterated joy you regain that day.”
A joy that feels like Christmas.
PUP adoption event
Two of Lola’s puppies, Stash and Shirley, are available for adoption and still waiting for homes. Learn more about them at https://pupmn.org/.
The puppies will attend a Pooches United with People adoption event from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3 at Arbeiter Brewing, 3038 Minnehaha Ave., Minneapolis.
Follow updates about Lola in foster care on PUP’s Facebook page at facebook.com/PUP.MN).
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