1
Philip Sorensen SIOUX FALLS — Philip Sorensen, 33 of Sioux Falls, passed away on Thursday, July 26, 2012, from in- juries sustained as the result of a tragic accident. Philip Lowel Sorensen, son of Terry and Cleo (Engen) Sorensen, was born on Janu- ary 2, 1979, in Yank- ton. He was raised in Sioux Falls, at- tending Bancroft El- ementary, Whittier, and graduating from Washington High School in 1998. Philip was bap- tized at Spring Valley Lutheran Church and confirmed at Hope Lutheran Church. He attended Southeast Technical Institute and graduated with an Associate's De- gree in business and marketing in 2001. He worked in sales at Ultimate Electronics and then moved to Mon- tana for a position with Orion Foods before returning to Sioux Falls. He was employed with Crimson Fire Equipment and Sears, and was cur- rently employed with Syverson Tile and Stone. Philip loved the outdoors and time with friends and family. He en- joyed numerous activities including kayaking, camping, rock climbing, fishing, bicycling, motorcycling, Frisbee golf, golfing, and wakeboard- ing. On the rare occasion he wasn't outdoors, Philip would spend time tinkering in his shed. He was the "go-to guy" when it came to helping others, always generous and giving of himself. In keeping with his giving spirit and desire to continually help others, Philip was an organ donor. Grateful for having shared his life are his parents Terry and Cleo Sorensen; sister Megan Sorensen; niece Jayden, all of Sioux Falls, SD; grandmothers Lorraine Engen, Irene, SD, Rosezella Olson, Yankton, SD; and many other relatives and friends. Philip was preceded in death by his grandfathers Sanford Engen and Lowel Sorensen. In lieu of flowers, the family re- quests that memorials be directed to the family for the establishment of a scholarship fund in Philip's honor. Visitation with the family pres- ent will be from 5 to 7 p.m. with a prayer service beginning at 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 31, 2012, at Hope Lutheran Church, 1700 South Cliff Ave. A funeral service will begin at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, August 1, 2012, at Hope Lutheran Church with burial at the Elim Cemetery, Irene, SD. For obituary and online registry, please visit www.millerfh.com Yankton Press & Dakotan July 30, 2012 Monday, 7.30.12 ON THE WEB: www.yankton.net NEWS DEPARTMENT: [email protected] 3 PRESS DAKOTAN the midwest Leonard “Bud” Conrad who passed away on July 31, 2011 Freeman French who passed away on July 31, 2011 Merina Kollars who passed away on August 1, 2011 Our care and concern does not end with the funeral service. This week we remember with family and friends the anniversary of the deaths of: Our Thoughts And Prayers Are With Them Guiding and serving families with compassion and trust. This remembrance is brought to you free of charge. If you have a loved one you would like remembered, contact us at Opsahl-Kostel Funeral Home & Crematory. Funeral Home & Crematory, Yankton Memorial Resource Center, Tyndall Memorial Chapels, Tyndall, Tabor & Menno 665-9679 • 1-800-495-9679 www.opsahlkostelfuneralhome.com Y ankton, 605-665-3644 wintzrayfuneralhome.com Garden of Memories Cemetery There’s a good reason why you didn’t always play ‘dress up’ with your friends on Saturdays. His name was Dad. With him, even fishing was fun. And while you’ve idolized Dad your entire life, you’ll want to celebrate these times after his death. A meaningful funeral allows you to grieve and say goodbye, as well as remember and laugh. It’s a significant celebration that honors Dad. One that in many ways, is also for you. Even a princess occasionally chooses to get dirty. Like us on 11am -2pm Diane Peterson Diane Peterson, age 71, of Wakonda, SD passed away sur- rounded by her family at Sacred Heart Hospital early Friday, July 27, 2012. Funeral Services will be 10 a.m., Tuesday, July 31, 2012 at Pleasant Valley Lutheran Church, Vermillion, SD with Rev. Anna M. Peck officiating. Burial will be in Pleasant Valley Ceme- tery, Vermillion, SD. Visitations will begin at 5 p.m., Monday, July 30, 2012 at the Opsahl-Kostel Funeral Home & Crematory, Yankton, with a Scripture service at 7 p.m. Visi- tations will resume one hour prior to the service at the church. Diane (Mary Diane) Deniger was born October 28th 1940 in Yankton to Al and Louise (Keller) Deniger. Diane grew up in Yankton spending much of her childhood at her Grandma Keller’s and with Grandma Deniger in Watertown. Diane at- tended Sacred Heart School and Mount Marty College. She grad- uated with a teaching degree. Diane taught in Springfield and Gayville. She mar- ried John Peter- son May 6th 1967, 3 children were born to this union, Theresa, Meredith and Chad. Diane worked at Wakonda Heritage Manor, Sun- set Manor and Ability Building Services, she retired in 2010. She was a member of Pleasant Valley Lutheran Church and served on the Wakonda American Legion Auxiliary. Diane enjoyed reading “trashy” romance novels, playing cards and board games with her kids and grandchildren. She would never turn down an invita- tion for a trip to a casino. After Diane retired, she liked to coordi- nate lunch dates with her girl- friends from her farming community. Diane is preceded in death by her mother and father, her brother Robert Deniger, her brother-in-law, Joe Johnson and her granddaughter, Jordan Peter- son. Diane is survived by her hus- band John of 45 years of Wakonda; three children: Theresa and David Gustafson of Greenbrier, AR, Meredith and Jeff Hunhoff of Yankton and Chad Pe- terson of Quitman AR; Grandchil- dren include Clay and Amanda Gustafson and Reid, Kendra and Walker Hunhoff; one brother, Dennis Deniger of Lakeville IN; two brothers-in-law, Sterling (Vir- ginia) Peterson of Wakonda and Stanley Peterson of Vermillion; three sisters-in-law, Laura John- son of Platte, Martha Peterson of Vermillion and Arlene (Tom) Ter- mes of Vermillion and many nieces and nephews. Diane would like everyone to know that she loved her grand- children and is very proud of them. Memorials may be sent to the Avera Health Foundation. Yankton Press & Dakotan July 30, 2012 Adolf Krcil Adolf Krcil, age 80, of Yank- ton,and formerly of Avon, passed away Friday, July 27, 2012 at his daughter’s home in Kearney, NE. Mass of Christian Burial will be 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, July 31, 2012 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Yankton with the Rev. Mark Lichter officiating. Burial will be in St. Leo’s Catholic Cemetery, Tyndall, SD, at ap- proximately 12:15 p.m. Tuesday afternoon. Visitations will be 3 to 7 p.m. Monday at the Opsahl-Kostel Funeral Home and Crematory, Yankton with a prayer service beginning at 7 p.m. Visitations will resume one hour prior to the service at the church. Pallbearers will be Collin Petri, Luke Krcil, Don Krcil, Terry Krcil, Tim Krcil and Lawrence Furney. Adolf Rudolf Krcil was born August 5, 1931 near Dante, SD to Adolph and Pauline (Cahoy) Krcil. Adolf attended school through the 8th grade and then worked on the family farm. On November 14, 1950 he married the love of his life, Phyllis Raabe. They lived by Dante, SD for 2 years until pur- chasing a farm near Avon, SD. Adolf and Phyllis farmed from 1950 to 1984. In addition Adolf worked part time doing con- struction work in Wagner, SD and the night shift at C.R. Indus- tries, Springfield, SD running a forklift. In 1984 they moved to Yankton, SD where they man- aged the Village Green Apart- ments. In addition he worked delivering donuts for Jim Putz (1985); cleaned at Alumax (1985) and in 1987 starting working at the State Hospital in Yankton as a painter. He retired from there in 2004. Also, in 1990 Adolf and Phyllis began manag- ing the Carriage House Apart- ments where he remained until his death. Adolf greatly valued his fam- ily friends and faith in God. His love and concern for his family and his tenants was evident in everything he did. He loved being a “Grandpa” and spent time with his grandchildren at- tending their events, playing games (especially cards), fish- ing and giving them that special “Grandpa love” that only he could give. Adolf and Phyllis at- tended many Polka dances and festivals and loved traveling throughout the country. He was also a skilled handyman who en- joyed fixing things. Those grateful for having shared his life include his son, Al of Yankton; daughter Kathy (Rick) Petri of Kearney, NE and Grandchildren Kaitlin and Collin Petri; Dani, Mikayla and Alex Krcil. Adolf was preceded in death by his wife; his parents; broth- ers, Henry and Joe; and daugh- ter-in-law Dorothy (Slama) Krcil. Yankton Press & Dakotan July 30, 2012 Peterson Online condolences at: www.opsahl-kostelfuneralhome.com Krcil Online condolences at: www.opsahl-kostelfuneralhome.com Sorensen Steven McGovern, Son Of Former S.D. Senator, Dies SIOUX FALLS (AP) — The son of former South Dakota senator George McGovern has died. Miller Funeral Home of Sioux Falls released a state- ment Saturday afternoon say- ing 60-year-old Steven McGovern died Friday after a lengthy illness. He was 60. The funeral home says Steven McGovern died on his birthday under the care of hospice. Says sister Ann McGovern, “Steve had a long struggle with alcoholism. We will all miss him deeply, but are grateful that he is now at peace.” Funeral arrangements are pending. OBITUARIES Kerrey, Fischer Offer Ideas In Wake Of Fires OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The wild- fires in north-central Nebraska have prompted the state’s candidates for U.S. Senate to weigh in on proposals that could help Nebraska’s farmers and ranchers suffering not only from the fires, but record drought. Both Democrat Bob Kerrey and Republican candidate Deb Fischer have toured the wildfire areas and called on Congress to pass the fed- eral farm bill, which includes disaster assistance for wildfires and drought. But they have different ideas about other ways to help. Kerrey wants to speed up the process of offering low-interest loans to pro- ducers affected by drought and to expand the crop insurance pro- gram to include grazing land. Fischer wants to waive conservation program obligations dur- ing severe drought and temporarily suspend weight and length re- quirements on vehicles transporting feed and livestock to disaster areas. Iowa Town Turns To Internet To Save Levee HAMBURG, Iowa — When floodwaters from the Missouri River threatened to wash away the small southwestern Iowa town of Hamburg last summer, residents helped the Army Corps of Engi- neers to hastily build a makeshift levee to save it. Now, the town of nearly 1,200 is asking for help from across the country to keep the levee. Town leaders have turned to the Internet to make their plea for help, building a site — www.hamburglevee.com — to try to raise the nearly $5 million needed to ensure the levee meets federal cer- tification standards. Short that, the city would have to spend more than $1 million to tear the levee down. The website notes that if 1.5 million give just $3 each to the ef- fort, the levee can be saved “for less than a latte.” Gering Man Killed, 5 Hurt In Rollover Crash MINATARE, Neb. (AP) — One man is dead and another is behind bars in a rollover crash near Minatare in western Nebraska. Scottsbluff radio station KNEB-AM reports that 21-year-old Tay- lor Magdaleno, of Gering, died in the late Friday night crash. Inves- tigators say Magdaleno had been one of six men in a pickup that went off the road and rolled several times. Magdaleno died after being thrown from the truck. The five others were taken to a Scottsbluff hospital for various injuries. Only one remained hospitalized Saturday, but his injuries were not believed to be life-threatening. EVANSDALE, Iowa (AP) — Family mem- bers of two missing Iowa girls are struggling with the unknowns while law enforcement continues searching for the young cousins. The Des Moines Register reports that life is far from normal for the families of 8-year- old Elizabeth Collins and 10-year-old Lyric Cook. The girls were last seen taking a bike ride in Evansdale on July 13. Marsha Gilmer-Tullis with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children says the uncertainty about what happened to a missing child can be unbearable for fami- lies. Most of the 800,000 U.S. children re- ported missing each year are found quickly. Elizabeth Collins’ mother, Heather Collins, says she sits up at night hoping a police car will drive up with her daughter. Dan Morrissey, father of Lyric Cook, says he struggles with the unknowns. BY DIRK LAMMERS Associated Press SIOUX FALLS — Broadband Internet access should start reaching more rural parts of the country after the Federal Communication Com- mission retooled a fund that has traditionally subsidized rural phone service, the agency’s chairman says. But a South Dakota official says the new $4.5 billion Connect America Fund is actually hinder- ing expansion, as companies in the state are backing off from future fiber optic projects be- cause the companies aren’t sure how much money they’ll get from the government. The FCC in November adopted a set of re- forms aimed at bringing the $8 billion Universal Service Fund into the digital age. Its goal is to get broadband to all of rural America by 2020, help- ing states such as South Dakota, where 44 per- cent of the rural population is without high speed Internet, said FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski. Genachowski said the Universal Service Fund, created in 1997, had become inefficient and wasteful, and it was leaving very large parts of rural America behind. Its replacement, Connect America Fund, is an attempt to bring things up to speed. “It was a reform that was many years in the making,” he said. “It was widely recognized for quite some time that the old USF program and only focusing on telephone service was out of date.” But Chris Nelson, chairman of the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission, said rural telephone companies in the state that had been expanding their Internet service through new fiber optic lines are scrapping future projects be- cause they don’t know how much the feds will help pay for the service. “Rural phone companies are completing their broadband infrastructure expenditures this year but are making very, very few plans for next year and literally nothing the year beyond that be- cause of the uncertainty the order has caused,” Nelson said. Why the uncertainty? Companies are subsi- dized based on a complicated formula that con- siders how many customers are served in how large an area. Critics say that the changed for- mula means companies can’t predict up front how much money they’ll get back, and are there- fore hesitant to invest. The Obama administration has identified uni- versal broadband as critical to driving economic development, producing jobs and expanding the reach of cutting-edge medicine and educational opportunities. The new fund, which continues to come from a surcharge on consumers’ and businesses’ monthly phone bills, will underwrite the cost of building and operating high-speed Internet net- works in places that are too sparsely populated to justify costly corporate investments. It in- cludes a $500 million “mobility fund” earmarked to help build mobile broadband networks in areas where businesses won’t invest so travelers can have continuous data coverage. The FCC announced this past week that Cen- turyLink Inc. has accepted $140,000 in Connect America Fund money to provide broadband in 180 locations in South Dakota. The company must complete two-thirds of its new broadband commitments within two years, and the remain- der by the third year. West River Cooperative Telephone Company in Bison serves about 6,300 square miles of northwest South Dakota from Lemmon to the Newell-Nisland area. The remote countryside has about one subscriber every two square miles, said general manager Jerry Reisenauer. Since 2003, West River has been rolling out fiber optic coverage to bring DSL Internet service to its customers, but uncertainty over the FCC’s funding formula is halting expansion that would allow it to provide higher speeds in some areas. “We’ve put our construction on hold,” Reise- nauer said. “We’re trying to understand more fully how the act will impact us.” FCC officials say the Universal Service Fund had some flaws, allowing some companies to spend much more per customer than other providers and allowing some companies to un- dercharge customers for service. Families Of Missing Iowa Girls Struggle With Worry FCC, S.D. Split On Broadband Fund “Rural phone companies are completing their broadband in- frastructure expenditures this year but are making very, very few plans for next year and lit- erally nothing the year beyond that because of the uncertainty the order has caused.” CHRIS NELSON Kerrey Fischer NEWS AROUND THE CLOCK www.yankton.net

Monday, 7.30.12 PRESS D FCC, S.D. Split On Broadband Fundtearsheets.yankton.net/july12/073012/ypd_073012_SecA_003.pdf · proximately 12:15 p.m. Tuesday afternoon. Visitations will

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Page 1: Monday, 7.30.12 PRESS D FCC, S.D. Split On Broadband Fundtearsheets.yankton.net/july12/073012/ypd_073012_SecA_003.pdf · proximately 12:15 p.m. Tuesday afternoon. Visitations will

Philip SorensenSIOUX FALLS — Philip Sorensen,

33 of Sioux Falls, passed away onThursday, July 26, 2012, from in-juries sustained asthe result of a tragicaccident.

Philip LowelSorensen, son ofTerry and Cleo(Engen) Sorensen,was born on Janu-ary 2, 1979, in Yank-ton. He was raisedin Sioux Falls, at-tending Bancroft El-ementary, Whittier,and graduating from WashingtonHigh School in 1998. Philip was bap-tized at Spring Valley LutheranChurch and confirmed at HopeLutheran Church. He attendedSoutheast Technical Institute andgraduated with an Associate's De-gree in business and marketing in2001. He worked in sales at UltimateElectronics and then moved to Mon-tana for a position with Orion Foods

before returning to Sioux Falls. Hewas employed with Crimson FireEquipment and Sears, and was cur-rently employed with Syverson Tileand Stone.

Philip loved the outdoors andtime with friends and family. He en-joyed numerous activities includingkayaking, camping, rock climbing,fishing, bicycling, motorcycling,Frisbee golf, golfing, and wakeboard-ing. On the rare occasion he wasn'toutdoors, Philip would spend timetinkering in his shed. He was the"go-to guy" when it came to helpingothers, always generous and givingof himself. In keeping with his givingspirit and desire to continually helpothers, Philip was an organ donor.

Grateful for having shared hislife are his parents Terry and CleoSorensen; sister Megan Sorensen;niece Jayden, all of Sioux Falls, SD;grandmothers Lorraine Engen,Irene, SD, Rosezella Olson, Yankton,SD; and many other relatives andfriends. Philip was preceded indeath by his grandfathers SanfordEngen and Lowel Sorensen.

In lieu of flowers, the family re-quests that memorials be directedto the family for the establishmentof a scholarship fund in Philip'shonor.

Visitation with the family pres-ent will be from 5 to 7 p.m. with aprayer service beginning at 7 p.m.Tuesday, July 31, 2012, at HopeLutheran Church, 1700 South Cliff

Ave. A funeral service will begin at11 a.m. on Wednesday, August 1,2012, at Hope Lutheran Church withburial at the Elim Cemetery, Irene,SD.

For obituary and online registry,please visit www.millerfh.com

Yankton Press & Dakotan

July 30, 2012

Monday, 7.30.12ON THE WEB: www.yankton.net

NEWS DEPARTMENT: [email protected] 3PRESS DAKOTANthe midwest

Leonard “Bud” Conrad who passed away on

July 31, 2011

Freeman French who passed away on

July 31, 2011

Merina Kollars who passed away on

August 1, 2011

Our care and concern does not end with the funeral service. This week we remember with family and friends the anniversary of the deaths of:

Our Thoughts And

Prayers Are With The m

Guiding and serving families with compassion and trust.

This remembrance is brought to you free of charge. If you have a loved one you would like remembered, contact us at

Opsahl-Kostel Funeral Home & Crematory.

Funeral Home & Crematory, Yankton Memorial Resource Center, Tyndall

Memorial Chapels, Tyndall, Tabor & Menno

665-9679 • 1-800-495-9679 www.opsahlkostelfuneralhome.com

Yankton, 605-665-3644 wintzrayfuneralhome.com

Garden of Memories Cemetery

There’s a good reason why you didn’t always play ‘dress up’ with your friends on Saturdays. His name was Dad. With him, even fishing was fun. And while you’ve idolized Dad your entire life, you’ll want to celebrate these times after his death.

A meaningful funeral allows you to grieve and say goodbye, as well as remember and laugh. It’s a significant celebration that honors Dad. One that in many ways, is also for you.

Even a princess occasionally chooses to get dirty.

Like u s o n

11a m -2pm

Diane PetersonDiane Peterson, age 71, of

Wakonda, SD passed away sur-rounded by her family at SacredHeart Hospital early Friday, July27, 2012.

Funeral Services will be 10a.m., Tuesday, July 31, 2012 atPleasant Valley LutheranChurch, Vermillion, SD with Rev.Anna M. Peck officiating. Burialwill be in Pleasant Valley Ceme-tery, Vermillion, SD.

Visitations will begin at 5p.m., Monday, July 30, 2012 atthe Opsahl-Kostel Funeral Home& Crematory, Yankton, with aScripture service at 7 p.m. Visi-tations will resume one hourprior to the service at thechurch.

Diane (Mary Diane) Denigerwas born October 28th 1940 inYankton to Al and Louise(Keller) Deniger. Diane grew upin Yankton spending much ofher childhood at her GrandmaKeller’s and with GrandmaDeniger in Watertown. Diane at-tended Sacred Heart School andMount Marty College. She grad-uated with a teaching degree.

Diane taught inSpringfield andGayville. She mar-ried John Peter-son May 6th 1967,3 children wereborn to thisunion, Theresa,Meredith andChad.

Diane workedat Wakonda Heritage Manor, Sun-set Manor and Ability BuildingServices, she retired in 2010. Shewas a member of Pleasant ValleyLutheran Church and served onthe Wakonda American LegionAuxiliary.

Diane enjoyed reading“trashy” romance novels, playingcards and board games with herkids and grandchildren. Shewould never turn down an invita-tion for a trip to a casino. AfterDiane retired, she liked to coordi-nate lunch dates with her girl-friends from her farmingcommunity.

Diane is preceded in death byher mother and father, herbrother Robert Deniger, herbrother-in-law, Joe Johnson andher granddaughter, Jordan Peter-son.

Diane is survived by her hus-band John of 45 years ofWakonda; three children:Theresa and David Gustafson ofGreenbrier, AR, Meredith and JeffHunhoff of Yankton and Chad Pe-terson of Quitman AR; Grandchil-dren include Clay and AmandaGustafson and Reid, Kendra andWalker Hunhoff; one brother,Dennis Deniger of Lakeville IN;two brothers-in-law, Sterling (Vir-ginia) Peterson of Wakonda andStanley Peterson of Vermillion;three sisters-in-law, Laura John-son of Platte, Martha Peterson ofVermillion and Arlene (Tom) Ter-mes of Vermillion and manynieces and nephews.

Diane would like everyone toknow that she loved her grand-children and is very proud ofthem.

Memorials may be sent to theAvera Health Foundation.

Yankton Press & Dakotan

July 30, 2012

Adolf KrcilAdolf Krcil, age 80, of Yank-

ton,and formerly of Avon,passed away Friday, July 27,2012 at his daughter’s home inKearney, NE.

Mass of Christian Burial willbe 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, July 31,2012 at Sacred Heart CatholicChurch, Yankton with the Rev.Mark Lichter officiating. Burialwill be in St. Leo’s CatholicCemetery, Tyndall, SD, at ap-proximately 12:15 p.m. Tuesdayafternoon.

Visitations will be 3 to 7 p.m.Monday at the Opsahl-KostelFuneral Home and Crematory,Yankton with a prayer servicebeginning at 7 p.m. Visitationswill resume one hour prior tothe service at the church.

Pallbearers will be CollinPetri, Luke Krcil, Don Krcil,Terry Krcil, Tim Krcil andLawrence Furney.

Adolf Rudolf Krcil was bornAugust 5, 1931 near Dante, SD toAdolph and Pauline (Cahoy)Krcil. Adolf attended schoolthrough the 8th grade and thenworked on the family farm. On

November 14,1950 he marriedthe love of hislife, PhyllisRaabe. They livedby Dante, SD for 2years until pur-chasing a farmnear Avon, SD.Adolf and Phyllisfarmed from 1950

to 1984. In addition Adolfworked part time doing con-struction work in Wagner, SDand the night shift at C.R. Indus-tries, Springfield, SD running aforklift. In 1984 they moved toYankton, SD where they man-aged the Village Green Apart-ments. In addition he workeddelivering donuts for Jim Putz(1985); cleaned at Alumax(1985) and in 1987 startingworking at the State Hospital inYankton as a painter. He retiredfrom there in 2004. Also, in 1990Adolf and Phyllis began manag-ing the Carriage House Apart-ments where he remained untilhis death.

Adolf greatly valued his fam-ily friends and faith in God. Hislove and concern for his family

and his tenants was evident ineverything he did. He lovedbeing a “Grandpa” and spenttime with his grandchildren at-tending their events, playinggames (especially cards), fish-ing and giving them that special“Grandpa love” that only hecould give. Adolf and Phyllis at-tended many Polka dances andfestivals and loved travelingthroughout the country. He wasalso a skilled handyman who en-joyed fixing things.

Those grateful for havingshared his life include his son, Alof Yankton; daughter Kathy(Rick) Petri of Kearney, NE andGrandchildren Kaitlin and CollinPetri; Dani, Mikayla and AlexKrcil.

Adolf was preceded in deathby his wife; his parents; broth-ers, Henry and Joe; and daugh-ter-in-law Dorothy (Slama) Krcil.

Yankton Press & Dakotan

July 30, 2012

Peterson

Online condolences at: www.opsahl-kostelfuneralhome.com

Krcil

Online condolences at: www.opsahl-kostelfuneralhome.com

Sorensen

Steven McGovern,Son Of Former

S.D. Senator, DiesSIOUX FALLS (AP) — The

son of former South Dakotasenator George McGovern hasdied.

Miller Funeral Home ofSioux Falls released a state-ment Saturday afternoon say-ing 60-year-old StevenMcGovern died Friday after alengthy illness. He was 60.

The funeral home saysSteven McGovern died on hisbirthday under the care ofhospice.

Says sister Ann McGovern,“Steve had a long strugglewith alcoholism. We will allmiss him deeply, but aregrateful that he is now atpeace.”

Funeral arrangements arepending.

O B I T UA R I E S

Kerrey, Fischer Offer Ideas In Wake Of FiresOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The wild-

fires in north-central Nebraska haveprompted the state’s candidates forU.S. Senate to weigh in on proposalsthat could help Nebraska’s farmersand ranchers suffering not onlyfrom the fires, but record drought.

Both Democrat Bob Kerrey andRepublican candidate Deb Fischerhave toured the wildfire areas andcalled on Congress to pass the fed-eral farm bill, which includes disaster assistance for wildfires anddrought.

But they have different ideas about other ways to help. Kerreywants to speed up the process of offering low-interest loans to pro-ducers affected by drought and to expand the crop insurance pro-gram to include grazing land.

Fischer wants to waive conservation program obligations dur-ing severe drought and temporarily suspend weight and length re-quirements on vehicles transporting feed and livestock to disasterareas.

Iowa Town Turns To Internet To Save LeveeHAMBURG, Iowa — When floodwaters from the Missouri River

threatened to wash away the small southwestern Iowa town ofHamburg last summer, residents helped the Army Corps of Engi-neers to hastily build a makeshift levee to save it.

Now, the town of nearly 1,200 is asking for help from across thecountry to keep the levee.

Town leaders have turned to the Internet to make their plea forhelp, building a site — www.hamburglevee.com — to try to raisethe nearly $5 million needed to ensure the levee meets federal cer-tification standards. Short that, the city would have to spend morethan $1 million to tear the levee down.

The website notes that if 1.5 million give just $3 each to the ef-fort, the levee can be saved “for less than a latte.”

Gering Man Killed, 5 Hurt In Rollover CrashMINATARE, Neb. (AP) — One man is dead and another is behind

bars in a rollover crash near Minatare in western Nebraska.Scottsbluff radio station KNEB-AM reports that 21-year-old Tay-

lor Magdaleno, of Gering, died in the late Friday night crash. Inves-tigators say Magdaleno had been one of six men in a pickup thatwent off the road and rolled several times. Magdaleno died afterbeing thrown from the truck.

The five others were taken to a Scottsbluff hospital for variousinjuries. Only one remained hospitalized Saturday, but his injurieswere not believed to be life-threatening.

EVANSDALE, Iowa (AP) — Family mem-bers of two missing Iowa girls are strugglingwith the unknowns while law enforcementcontinues searching for the young cousins.

The Des Moines Register reports that lifeis far from normal for the families of 8-year-old Elizabeth Collins and 10-year-old Lyric

Cook. The girls were last seen taking a bikeride in Evansdale on July 13.

Marsha Gilmer-Tullis with the NationalCenter for Missing and Exploited Childrensays the uncertainty about what happened toa missing child can be unbearable for fami-lies. Most of the 800,000 U.S. children re-

ported missing each year are found quickly.Elizabeth Collins’ mother, Heather Collins,

says she sits up at night hoping a police carwill drive up with her daughter.

Dan Morrissey, father of Lyric Cook, sayshe struggles with the unknowns.

BY DIRK LAMMERSAssociated Press

SIOUX FALLS — Broadband Internet accessshould start reaching more rural parts of thecountry after the Federal Communication Com-mission retooled a fund that has traditionallysubsidized rural phone service, the agency’schairman says.

But a South Dakota official says the new $4.5billion Connect America Fund is actually hinder-ing expansion, as companies in the state arebacking off from future fiber optic projects be-cause the companies aren’t sure how muchmoney they’ll get from the government.

The FCC in November adopted a set of re-forms aimed at bringing the $8 billion UniversalService Fund into the digital age. Its goal is to getbroadband to all of rural America by 2020, help-ing states such as South Dakota, where 44 per-cent of the rural population is without high speedInternet, said FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski.

Genachowski said the Universal Service Fund,created in 1997, had become inefficient andwasteful, and it was leaving very large parts ofrural America behind. Its replacement, ConnectAmerica Fund, is an attempt to bring things up tospeed.

“It was a reform that was many years in themaking,” he said. “It was widely recognized forquite some time that the old USF program andonly focusing on telephone service was out ofdate.”

But Chris Nelson, chairman of the SouthDakota Public Utilities Commission, said ruraltelephone companies in the state that had beenexpanding their Internet service through new

fiber optic lines are scrapping future projects be-cause they don’t know how much the feds willhelp pay for the service.

“Rural phone companies are completing theirbroadband infrastructure expenditures this yearbut are making very, very few plans for next yearand literally nothing the year beyond that be-cause of the uncertainty the order has caused,”Nelson said.

Why the uncertainty? Companies are subsi-dized based on a complicated formula that con-siders how many customers are served in howlarge an area. Critics say that the changed for-mula means companies can’t predict up fronthow much money they’ll get back, and are there-fore hesitant to invest.

The Obama administration has identified uni-versal broadband as critical to driving economicdevelopment, producing jobs and expanding thereach of cutting-edge medicine and educationalopportunities.

The new fund, which continues to come froma surcharge on consumers’ and businesses’monthly phone bills, will underwrite the cost ofbuilding and operating high-speed Internet net-works in places that are too sparsely populatedto justify costly corporate investments. It in-cludes a $500 million “mobility fund” earmarkedto help build mobile broadband networks inareas where businesses won’t invest so travelerscan have continuous data coverage.

The FCC announced this past week that Cen-turyLink Inc. has accepted $140,000 in ConnectAmerica Fund money to provide broadband in180 locations in South Dakota. The companymust complete two-thirds of its new broadbandcommitments within two years, and the remain-der by the third year.

West River Cooperative Telephone Companyin Bison serves about 6,300 square miles ofnorthwest South Dakota from Lemmon to theNewell-Nisland area. The remote countryside hasabout one subscriber every two square miles,said general manager Jerry Reisenauer.

Since 2003, West River has been rolling outfiber optic coverage to bring DSL Internet serviceto its customers, but uncertainty over the FCC’sfunding formula is halting expansion that wouldallow it to provide higher speeds in some areas.

“We’ve put our construction on hold,” Reise-nauer said. “We’re trying to understand morefully how the act will impact us.”

FCC officials say the Universal Service Fundhad some flaws, allowing some companies tospend much more per customer than otherproviders and allowing some companies to un-dercharge customers for service.

Families Of Missing Iowa Girls Struggle With Worry

FCC, S.D. Split On Broadband Fund“Rural phone companies arecompleting their broadband in-frastructure expenditures thisyear but are making very, veryfew plans for next year and lit-erally nothing the year beyondthat because of the uncertaintythe order has caused.”

CHRIS NELSON

KerreyFischer

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