Sharon "Sherry" Metz, age 66 of Philip, S.D., died Saturday evening, June 25, 2011, at her home in Philip.

Sharon Lee Andersen was born July 23, 1944, in Chicago, Ill., the oldest of six children born to Carl H. and Marjorie (Ritchey) Andersen. She was raised in Highland, Ind., and graduated from Highland High School in 1962.

She met her husband, Peter Metz, at Madura's Dance Land in Whiting, Ind. They married in 1963 and were married for 48½ happy years. They started out their married lives together in East Chicago, Ind.

Out of every 100 people needing blood, more than 50 percent will use type O.

That is the reason the local blood drive is trying to sign up more O-positive and O-negative donors for its upcoming drive. The next Philip area United Blood Services blood drive is scheduled from 10:00 a.m.

As part of the Historic Bad River Trail Scotty Philip Memorial Ride send-off activities July 15-17, a quilt show will be held at the Philip High School gymnasium.

The Philip hours will be from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Sunday. Quilts will also be displayed in the Ft. Pierre/Pierre area July 22-24. Transportation to and from there will be provided.

by Del Bartels

The Haakon School District 27-1 Board of Education meeting Monday, June 20, was the last official meeting of board president Bill Slovek's term.

"It's been fun and a real learning experience. I made more friends," said Slovek. In honor of Slovek's seven years on the school board, he was presented a keepsake pen set by Superintendent Keven Morehart.

The meeting times and dates for the board for the next year do not initially include a monthly meeting at either of the rural schools.

Thomas Petersen, 39, appeared in Jackson County court for a preliminary hearing Thursday, June 16, at 10:00 a.m. with Judge John Brown presiding.

Petersen has been held in jail following an incident in Jackson County on Sunday, June 4.

After his wife, Judy Petersen, of Greene, Iowa, was found dead, Thomas was named the suspect in the murder, and their two-year-old son, Jacob Duncan Petersen, was missing.

An Amber Alert was issued, which listed Petersen as armed and dangerous. He was later found in Jackson County.

The fifth annual Philip Invitational Matched Bronc Ride, held Friday, June 17, drew over 1,400 at the gate. With spectators, contestants, their families and all the workers, over 2,400 people were in attendance.

The starting 25 cowboys were cut down to a continuing 12. The top bronc ride scorer of the first round was Jeremy Meeks, Alzada, Mont., who stayed on the horse Jukebox for a score of 82.

Three South Dakota cowboys earned a score of 81 in round one.

Letter to the Editor,

First of all, I would like to express our sympathy to those people along the Missouri River who are being affected by this year's flooding, and to say thank you to all of the countless volunteers who have come together to help with the flood relief efforts. The amount of work that has been completed is nothing short of amazing, and truly shows the spirit of the people of our great state.

With all of the news coverage on the flood affected areas, it is easy for people to forget there are areas of the Missouri River that are usable.

Dear Editor,

I am a former resident of Haakon County and read with interest the article of "Little House on the Prairie" told by Steve Clements.

I ... was born and raised at Topbar, S.D., where my uncle, Gilbert Durston, homesteaded in 1906 or 1907. His parents, my grandparents, Paul and Caroline Durston. and my Uncle Curtis, who was blind, and my parents, Herbert and Jane Durston, with my brother, Fred, and sisters, Dorothy and Emily, came in 1908.

I was born September 3, 1918, delivered by a midwife by the name of Stella Wells, a local neighbor.

The Haakon County Commission approved to try for another opt-out, half of the original amount, but still for a three year time period.

Commission Chairman Gary Snook said when he spoke with some of the opponents of the original opt-out they stated they would be more in favor of a $250,000 opt-out that was designated just for the highway department. Commissioner Ed Briggs likened that figure to a band-aid with Commiss- ioner Steve Clements in agreement.

The South Dakota Department of Public Safety has dispatched an Incident Management Assistance Team (IMAT) to southeast South Dakota to help local entities coordinate their response to recent flooding on the Missouri River.

The 10-member team has been sent to Dakota Dunes to assist officials in Union, Clay and Yankton counties.