Seeing the dentist is a little more convenient for people in the Northern Hills -Orchard Meadows Family Dental & Denture Clinic is now open in Spearfish. Not only are we offering the highest quality patient care in the region, we’re also making sure our patients have a great experience. TVs in each dental suite, massaging dental chairs, and warming blankets are all part of the experience. We’ll even give you a fresh baked cookies before you leave!
You can visit the dentist at a lot of clinics, but in our office, you’ll feel like you’re visiting family. Call today and schedule your next dentist appointment in our brandnew Northern Hills office.
From left to right: Kimberlee, RDH; Mark Garner, DDS; Mason Hericks, DDS
At one point in her early career, Hollie Strand remembers telling people that she’d never live in South Dakota again. It wasn’t that she didn’t like South Dakota, it was just that she’d been born and raised in Rapid City and wanted a change.
She had never envisioned herself working with kids. In fact, she describes herself as having a fear of commitment when it came to having her own children, getting married and owning a home.
“But God tapped me on the shoulder and said, ‘That’s your job,’” she shares. She couldn’t ignore that whisper from God, and now she couldn’t imagine her life being any other way.
After eight years with the Children’s Home Child Advocacy Center, interviewing almost 1,200 children, she took a position as a forensic examiner with the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office. She specializes in Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC).
“I have the most rewarding job ever,” she says. “I work with the best team and best advocates who walk alongside children and their families until the case is over. Regardless of the outcome, Hollie ultimate goal is to always help children and families leave better than when they came to me.”
“Well, I was wrong about never living in South Dakota again, because here I am,” laughs Hollie, 47, who lives with her husband, Aaron and their five children— ages 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14. The family also includes five chickens; two dogs; two indoor cats; and 12 outdoor farm cats. “There’s never a dull moment in our house!”
Hollie had always been familiar with the foster care system and eventually she and her husband decided to become foster parents. She and her husband have fostered children for 12 years and invited 20 children into their home. They’ve adopted three of their five children out of the foster care system.
“My best friend grew up in foster care, so it was something I was aware of,” she explains. “It does take a village, and I’m fortunate to have a wonderful support system with my family and my in-laws being in town to help.”
When Hollie was growing up, she loved animals and wanted to be a veterinarian. Plans changed as she ventured out on her own. She graduated from Central High School in 1995 and then attended South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, where she majored in psychology and criminology.
Studying these subjects inspired Hollie to want to continue her education in counseling, and she earned a Master of Science in Counseling degree from South Dakota State University. After that, she studied forensic science at Nebraska Wesleyan University in Lincoln, earning a Master of Science in Forensic Science with a specialty in Investigative Sciences.
During her time in Lincoln, Hollie worked as a full-time counselor at Lincoln Correctional Center and at Tecumseh Prison. She also worked as a waitress and spent her Saturdays all day on campus in class.
“We’d have nine-hour sessions at school, where
There’s nothing that compares to putting an end to abuse against kids.
In graduate school restoring serial numbers on firearms
Lying in a grave from death scene training in Las Vegas
we did hands-on things like ballistics and blood spatter analysis,” she says.
“My favorite class in my program was Forensic Linguistics. It was about the psychology behind how people speak.”
For her program, an internship with a coroner’s office was required. Hollie did her internship in Las Vegas. On her second day there, she was able to cut a human scalp and remove the brain. She also took fingerprints on a severed finger and watched homicide interrogations—experiences that solidified her interest in the field of forensics.
Hollie lived in Las Vegas for a year and a half, spending time counseling sex offenders and working with chronically mentally ill people. She also had a stint as a bouncer at Palms Casino night club.
Then Hollie did the unexpected. She moved back to South Dakota for a job at the Martin Police Department.
“I didn’t have any police training, but it seemed like a good challenge,” says Hollie. “I went through the Police Academy after I became the Chief of Police—something I never thought I’d do. I learned a bit of everything there.”
The most important lesson she learned was the importance of collaboration. “I worked with state, local, tribal, and federal agencies. I learned that unless we worked together, the victims would suffer. When we worked together, we got the best solutions.”
Hollie’s two years in Martin gave her invaluable experience for her future job at the Pennington County Sherriff’s Office, where collaboration continued to be essential for her success.
Volunteer Firefighter in Martin, SD
Hollie stays active in the community when she isn’t at work. She’s the current president of Love INC of the Black Hills, and she is also involved in Esther’s Rising, Freedom’s Journey, the Western South Dakota Human Trafficking Task Force, and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force where she is part of undercover stings, pretending to be children online.
“A lot of people have helped me along the way. I couldn’t have done it on my own,” says Hollie. “Gayle Thom was a huge mentor and inspiration for me in Martin. She was former law enforcement and reminded me to be who God called me to be. She is my spiritual mentor, and she mentors me to set boundaries so I can balance work, marriage and kids.”
Hollie says she’s learned that in some places, she is replaceable and in some places she’ll never be replaceable. “If I miss something important with my kids, they’ll remember that. I am irreplaceable when it comes to my family.”
When she’s not working or spending time with her husband and kids, Hollie enjoys spending time with her parents and brothers who all live in Rapid City. She particularly enjoys the peace and quiet of fishing with her dad in Montana, where there’s no people around or cell service.
One specific trip to Montana when Hollie was 19 stands out in her mind. “I caught a 105-pound paddlefish when I was fishing with my dad at the James Russell National Wildlife Refuge.”
A perfect day for Hollie would include waking up, having coffee on her deck and reading her Bible, feeding her chickens with her kids laughing in the background, and doing a few puzzles.
“My ultimate goal is to live out in the country and get even more chickens,” she says with a laugh. “I also want to continue doing meaningful work and give back to my field by helping mentor new people coming in by providing them resources— just like people did for me.”
Hollie’s 105lb paddlefish
5 FUN FACTS ABOUT HOLLIE
1. Hollie has a hard time knowing when to say something is done. She’s detail oriented and will exhaust all possibilities before moving on.
2 2. People say Hollie is “Jesus-loving and helpful.”
3 3. She used to drag race motorcycles in Sturgis.
4 4. Hollie used to be an amateur boxer.
5 5. She is an introvert at heart and needs plenty of alone time.
In line to drag race in Sturgis
Hollie boxing
Hollie and her boxing trainer
Hollie and her husband, Aaron At Children’s Home Child Advocacy Center
The UNSUNG in the FOUNDING of BLACK HILLS WORKS HERO
As Black Hills Works enters its 67th year of helping adults with disabilities thrive in Rapid City, we would like to take this opportunity to recognize someone who has been overlooked in Black Hills Works’ history: Jim Kibben.
Founded in 1958, the story of Black Hills Works usually centers on Alice Kibben and her work organizing families of children with disabilities, with the promise of a bright future for their family members. Like the parents she pulled together, her motivation was the birth of the Kibben’s son, Winfield.
Win was born in 1949 during an era when professionals told parents that they would be better off institutionalizing their children with disabilities.
The Kibbens refused to accept this conventional wisdom, and Alice led the charge to organize families
from across the state to call for education, research, community opportunities, and favorable legislation for all children and adults with disabilities.
It was her husband, Jim, however, that convinced Alice to carry the torch that led to the eventual founding of Black Hills Works, and he was an advocacy force in his own right.
Roxanne, one of the four Kibben children, describes her mother, Alice, as very driven, especially for a woman in the 1950s. Roxanne’s parents did not start their family until their late-30s, focusing instead on intellectual pursuits and running a successful business.
According to Roxanne, when Win was born, her mother was devasted. For Alice, having a child born with a disability felt like a personal failure. Like
First classroom in the Kibben’s basement
Jim, blind himself, saw a different path: a happy future for all children with disabilities.
so many mothers of that era, she blamed herself for his disabilities and saw a bleak future for him.
Her father, Jim, however, saw a different path. Blind himself, he could envision what Alice couldn’t: a happy future for Win and all children with disabilities.
“Win will be our happiest child,” he assured Alice.
Jim’s heartfelt confidence in a bright future for Win helped Alice and ultimately buoyed her into action. Alice wanted to give all children with disabilities a fair shot at life, and she was equally motivated to tell other mothers not to blame themselves.
Together, Jim and Alice organized families from across the state. Jim served on the statewide board, chartering the small aircraft to meetings in the eastern part of South Dakota. He also spearheaded fundraisers and used his company supplies and secretarial support for early communication efforts.
Jim and Alice were involved nationally, connecting with families from across the country through the then-called National Association for Retarded Citizens, now simply The Arc. They attended conferences, networked with other families, and learned all they could about supporting children with disabilities in their home communities.
In 1958, the Kibbens adopted The Arc’s national preschool curriculum for children with disabilities and hired Alma Kuster to teach ten children with disabilities, with the first classroom in the basement of the Kibben home. This modest classroom was the start of Black Hills Works (then called the Black Hills Workshop).
Jim’s influence and encouragement even went well beyond Black Hills Works, Rapid City, and the state. On August 12, 1968, the then-Executive Director of The Arc, Gunnard Dybwad, recalled a visit to the Kibben home where he met Win. He thanked Jim for teaching him “a lesson that I have restated literally around the world – a new look at the child with [disabilities].”
From these humble beginnings, Black Hills Works supports nearly 600 people with disabilities in western South Dakota, offering affordable, accessible housing, employment support, essential needs, and access to an inclusive community that welcomes them. The voices and lived experiences of the people we support and their families continue to show us the beauty of diversity and the strength of human potential.
Celebrating the future often means looking back at the trailblazers, to include Alice and Jim Kibben, who made it all possible. Sixty-seven years later we continue to embrace their mission and vision, celebrating opportunity through community. Today, a supportive community stands on their shoulders, and their donations of time and treasure make so much possible.
If you would like to support Black Hills Works and be part of our still unfolding story, give today at blackhillsworks.org/donate or contact Tamie Hopp, Director of Philanthropy, at thopp@bhws.com for more information.
Thank YOU for making the difference you do!
Dean, who has been with Black Hills Works for 63 of the past 67 years, signing his name to the Journeys of Hope book
We’ve always believed that dining should be a social occasion, a time when friends, family, and coworkers can enjoy great conversation over a great meal.
We believe in supporting our local artisans and staying connected to our Black Hills community. At a time when the area is growing and expanding, we’re striving to keep the flavor of the region alive.
Inspired by the history of this area, both the aesthetics of the building and the diversity of the menu are true to our local roots, something no nationwide franchise can duplicate. Certainly, there are other steakhouses out there, but none like ours.
ORDER THE SALMON and Other Rules to Live By in 2025
By Dorothy Rosby
I stumbled across an article called Rules to Live By today while I was breaking one of my own: Don’t squander time wandering around the internet.
Among the dozen rules listed were some old standards: Never give up, practice gratitude, believe in yourself, and of course, follow the Golden Rule: Treat others as you’d like to be treated unless they’re not from your political party. No, they didn’t say that last part. I was just making sure you were paying attention.
Anyway, I was so inspired by the article that I continued breaking my rule about wasting time on the internet for the rest of the day. That’s because, out of curiosity, I typed the words “rules to live by” into the search bar and came up with 5,580,000 results. I didn’t read them all because that would
have taken a lot of time and another one of my rules is “never miss a column deadline.”
I did read a few though. And there were some unusual rules. One list author said she never trusts anyone who doesn’t like animals or small children. One said he only sets thermostats, volume controls and other dials at numbers ending in 0 or 5. And another believes in having a clean kitchen before going out to eat. I believe in that one too. I don’t live by it. But I do believe in it.
We all have rules we live by, either consciously or unconsciously. And I think a new year is a good time to recommit to them since it’s easy to let them go the way of my rule about not wasting time on the internet. Here are some of the other rules I live by with equal success. You’re welcome to try them. Maybe you can do better.
• Be kind to everyone you meet. It’s a tough world out there. Besides, you never know who might win the lottery next.
• Don’t make life harder for other people—especially me. Obviously this means you shouldn’t steal identities, rob anyone at gunpoint or spit your gum on the sidewalk. But it also means you shouldn’t have more than 13 items in your grocery cart in the express lane. Or leave it sitting in the middle of the parking lot. Or take up two parking spaces no matter how nice your car is or how bad you are at parking.
• Keep your feelings about other drivers to yourself—unless you have heavily tinted windows.
• Take care of yourself—not so that you can live a long life, but in case you live a long life.
• Don’t bite the hand that feeds you. And don’t feed the mouth that bites you either.
• Always park as far from the door as possible. Walking is good for you. Plus it leaves the best parking spaces for me.
• When nothing else on the menu sounds good, choose the salmon. That’s what I do. I like salmon, it’s nutritious and my husband isn’t likely to want to taste my dinner when I order it. Incidentally, he has a rule for dining out too: Never order the same thing as your dining companion. That’s not one of my rules though, so he doesn’t get to live by it if he orders first and what he orders sounds good to me.
• Never go to sleep angry. Always keep your partner awake until he admits he’s wrong. You’ll sleep better. He might not. But you will.
• Never carry on a lengthy cellphone conversation with one person while you’re having lunch with another, especially if they’re buying.
• Save energy. Always turn off lights when you leave a room. Be firm about this no matter how much it annoys those who are still in the room.
• Always remove your stylish, dangling earrings before you undress, otherwise your ear and your sweater may become attached. This is not stylish at all.
• If you find pants that fit, buy a pair in every color. Or anyway, buy them all if you’re like me and aren’t shaped like the people pants are apparently made for.
• Get two identical pairs whenever you buy socks. That way if you lose one sock in the dryer you’ll still have a pair. Plus you’ll have a spare. For now.
• Don’t believe everything you read on social media or hear from political pundits. For that matter, don’t believe everything you hear from your neighbor down the street since he might not be living by this rule.
• Never behave as badly as the political party you think behaves badly.
• And finally, recommit to your rules for living every new year. It’s easier than making resolutions.
Dorothy Rosby recommitted to not squandering time on the internet in 2025. She made it to January 2.
HAVE A MOM, DAUGHTER, GRANDMA, FRIEND, SISTER OR WIFE THAT YOU THINK DESERVES TO BE QUEEN FOR A DAY?
Tell us why you think that special someone should be Queen for a Day by sending us a story (200 word max) with a photo to jess@michelscom.com by March 31, 2025.
be ‘crowned’
Snow Me the Way
By Lauren Johnson
BLACK HILLS REGIONAL SKI FOR LIGHT
is an all-volunteer nonprofit organization that provides visually and mobility-impaired individuals with access to vigorous outdoor activities that enhance their independence, quality of life, and fun. The 46th annual four-day event takes place across Terry Peak, the Michelson Trail, and Deadwood from January 19-23, 2025. This unforgettable experience offers downhill and cross-country skiing venues as well as snowshoeing and snowmobiling.
“I’ve been doing this for 44 years now,” says John Gould. “It’s quite the operation. There’ll probably be 100 people at Terry Peak during the day and about 130 at the crosscountry site. And we pretty much take over Deadwood. People come in from all over the U.S. and sometimes internationally to participate and volunteer.”
Participants generally split into two groups, with one in the middle of the woods for the cross-country area. “We put up three canvas tents with wood stoves and cook the meals,” John says. “Everyone busts out every morning to snow and ski. We serve mostly visually impaired in that area, but a lot also ski downhill.”
The second group takes off for Terry Peak. “Sometimes people in a chair sit-ski, using their arms to power with poles, which is very physically demanding,” John says. “We have about 30 to 40 people who are in chairs or have other disabilities, and we have a lot of adaptive equipment, such as skis with a bucket, one ski, dual skis, you name it. We
take pride in the fact that we used to have a harness and someone behind them with the guides yelling ‘left/right/ stop!’ But we came up with putting radios in helmets, and now you can ski and talk in a normal voice. That’s a step up in giving them a lot of freedom. The younger ones like that a lot.”
If a skier is not as good with balance, the mountain men can guide them down the slope. A guide is always along for the ride in case of an emergency if there’s a crash or if someone falls.
The goal of Black Hills Ski for Light is to provide a warm and inviting environment, free of judgment, for individuals to explore new experiences, create life-changing memories, and experience incredible friendships.
“Our volunteer guides have been coming back each year for over thirty years from everywhere in the U.S.,” John says. “You make lifelong friends. You might only see them once a year, but you can count on them being there. You figure out pretty soon just how much this week means to people. Everyone’s there to have a good time. We don’t make participants ski; they can do what they want. One day we give snowmobile rides in the afternoon or morning.”
The Ski for Light has become a family vocation of sorts, with all ages of the Gould family actively supporting the cause. “My kids started out and went through the whole process of volunteering, doing whatever was needed,” John says. “The kids pick up valuable lessons about dealing with people and how to engage with the disabled. I have a son who’s now vice president of Ski for Light. My granddaughter has been coming for four years. She’s in 6th grade now, and she takes it so seriously. She designed the medals that will be given out this year (below).”
Many participants bring their guide dogs with them, and now a lot of younger school kids show up to volunteer. “It’s really heartwarming to watch the young people interact and be so serious,” John says. “The younger people take care of the guide dogs as participants go out skiing, and they serve lunch and help out anyway they can with the participants.”
No experience is required, and volunteers serve as a friendly face or voice if anyone needs assistance throughout the events.
In the evening, Saloon Number 10 hires a band, and a lot of crew members show up there. “Many people who come in and just happen to meet us and find out why we’re there will show up and volunteer the next day, or they’ll give a donation right there. The public embraces it when they see our operation, and we’ve got many people involved in that way.”
“One of my proudest things is that we’ve never had a paid employee, even with hosting 350 at the banquet. We provide most of the meals and the lodging, and we’ve managed to keep the cost down to $275 for the week. The majority of our participants receive scholarships, and all we ask in return is that they sell raffle tickets.”
For more information about the event or to donate please visit BHSFL.org. (605) 341-3626
Photography by Raven Lily Creative On location at Besler’s Cadillac Ranch
DAKOTA SKY STONE Jaclyn Marie Photography
The beginning of a new year is a time when many people take stock of their lives, addressing important tasks like getting wellness exams or scheduling home maintenance. To help protect your home and property, these two steps should be at the top of your list: Getting an annual insurance check, and taking a home inventory. These steps can help you have peace of mind that you’ve got the coverage you need, should the unthinkable happen.
Annual Insurance Checks
During your annual insurance check, your agent can help you estimate the replacement cost of your home. While the amount of coverage you select is ultimately your choice, your agent can explain your options so you’ll make an informed decision based on the amount of coverage to rebuild if necessary. This is also a good time to ensure that you’ve told your agent about changes to your home that may impact your coverage needs, such as additions or remodeling.
It’s critical to understand the difference between the market value of your home and the replacement cost:
Market value: the amount a buyer would pay for your home, including the land, regardless of how much it would cost to rebuild the home.
Replacement cost: the rebuilding cost necessary to replace your entire home.
Insurance agents recommend purchasing an amount of coverage at least equal to the estimated replacement cost, but the choice is yours. To determine the most accurate current replacement cost for your home, you could ask if a replacement cost estimate is available during a home appraisal, or consult a local builders association or reputable builder for an estimate. Building contractors or professional replacement cost appraisers are good sources for determining the estimated replacement cost of your home.
When you upgrade or improve your home, you may need to increase your home’s estimated replacement cost, which is another good reason to reevaluate this regularly. Replacement cost estimates are also influenced by labor and materials costs that are subject to change, so keeping up with the current market conditions in your area and changing your home insurance coverage amount accordingly will help you maintain coverage that’s at least equal to 100% of your estimated replacement cost.
