FORT PIERRE – To help address the need for more foster and adoptive families for children in South Dakota, Governor Kristi Noem is kicking off an ongoing recruitment initiative called Stronger Families Together. The Department of Social Services (DSS) in partnership with South Dakota Kids Belong aims to recruit,...

HILL CITY, S.D. — On Monday,  a ribbon cutting was held officially welcoming a Smokey Bear sculpture to the community of Hill City. The statue, symbol and reminder of 1939, when 25 Hill City High School students helped put out one of the largest fires ever in the Black Hills....

BLACK HILLS, S.D. — Vacant gift shops, closed amusement parks, and empty tourism caves in some parts of the Black Hills – not due to a lack of demand. Tourism businesses seeking workers, and not drawing many, causing many to cut back services or limit the days they’re open. “Each...

RAPID CITY, S.D. — A group gathered at Old Storybook Island Saturday morning to support life. Held the day before Mother’s Day, the Walk for Life was sponsored by the Black Hills Pregnancy Center. The center is a nonprofit organization that provides services for women and men involved in unexpected...

SPEARFISH, S.D. — The Spearfish Community Garden is now open. On Saturday morning, new members of the garden community met to go over the amenities of the garden, which is in a partnership with the City of Spearfish and the Northern Hills Master Gardeners. Those looking after the garden say...

RAPID CITY, S.D. — Kids at the YMCA in Rapid City took advantage of a beautiful day Friday for Healthy Kids Day – an event full of games, activities, and educational displays designed to get kids moving and teach them the importance of staying active. “Monument Health brought their blow-up...

RAPID CITY, S.D. — The Rapid City Area Schools Board of Education will consider lifting its mask mandate for the remainder of the school year when it meets Monday night. The meeting is at 5:30 p.m. Monday, May 10. The RCAS Administration recently surveyed staff and student families about continuing...

RAPID CITY, S.D. — It’s been a challenging year for teachers, making teacher appreciation week that much sweeter this year. Between Zoom classes and stressing the importance of masks to students, teachers have been challenged like never before. Meadowbrook teachers say they’ve taught students about building and taking care of...

RAPID CITY, S.D. — The Black Hills area is being recognized for its work supporting early school success with the “Bright Spot Community” award by the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading. The campaign honors the Black Hills community for developing a statewide focus on early learning, as well as adapting resources...

RAPID CITY, S.D. — This year, the Rapid City Area School District unveiled their “Academies and Pathways” approach designed to equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary to transition beyond high school. The program works to build connections with employers, higher-learning institutions, community-based organizations, and families, as well as...

BLACK HILLS, S.D. — Our state of “Great Faces, Great Places” is welcoming visitors who are ready to travel for the summer. Early reservation sales for Black Hills campgrounds and beyond point to a strong outdoor recreation season this year. KOAs in the area are up over 60 % —...

RAPID CITY, S.D. — Workforce instability has been a concern in Rapid City recently. Elevate Rapid City held a workshop to Revitalize the Workforce, specifically for employers of high crisis individuals. Hiring and maintaining a workforce has been difficult, and although the unemployment rates are returning to normal, the labor participation...

RAPID CITY, S.D. — Many of us rode our bikes to school growing up. The act is celebrated on May 5 in National Bike to School Day and for Roman Slack, it was just another day in the seat. “When I wake up, all I have to do is take...

PIERRE, S.D. — Stronger Families Together is an ongoing initiative of the Department of Social Services to recruit, prepare, and support foster and adoptive families. Foster parents open their homes and hearts to children whose families are in crisis and play a key role in helping those families heal and...

RAPID CITY, S.D. — The COVID-19 pandemic changed things for many small businesses. “When things changed, our business model changed,” said Lisa Denherder. Denherder owns Kicks & Giggles Baby and Kids Boutique in downtown Rapid City. Like many small business owners trying to survive through the pandemic, the way of...

RAPID CITY, S.D. — With the warmer weather, the start of May, and the approaching end of the school year, many parents are beginning to look for things for their kids to do this summer. Black Hills Parent hosted the 2021 Summer Camps Expo at the Evergreen Media building in...

RAPID CITY, S.D. — Pennington County Sheriff’s Deputy Matt Wilson threw the first pitch to kick off the Canyon Lake Little League 2021 season on Saturday.   Categories: ConnectCenter1-Events, ConnectCenter1-Family, Local News, Sports Tags: Canyon Lake Little League, first pitch, PCSO Deputy Matt Wilson, Pennington County Sheriff’s Office Looking for...

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Kimberly Damron, a registered nurse and military spouse, shared this video on TikTok of her daughter marshalling in her dad, a U.S. Air Force pilot, after his final flight and 20 years of service. Their boys also got to spray him down after the aircraft landed. (media...

BOX ELDER, S.D. — Peter & Monika Johncour have spent nearly half their marriage apart. The military lifestyle is unique in that many milestones like holidays and birthdays are missed. And for the children, many challenges arise, especially when both parents are service members. They are often faced with nontraditional...

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is expanding a program to feed up to 34 million schoolchildren during the summer months. The expanded program uses funds from the coronavirus relief package approved in March. The Agriculture Department is announcing Monday it will continue through the summer a payments program that replaced...