SOUTH DAKOTA – Since March 16 the South Dakota Wing has been flying over flooded areas of the state and taking geographically tagged aerial photographs of ice jams and flood damage for the state’s Office of Emergency Management. “During last year's spring flooding, we impressed the South Dakota Office of Emergency Management with our capabilities,” said Col. Teresa Schimelfening, wing commander. “This year we were asked for our help again.” The wing is one of the beta testers of a new aerial photo system developed by the North Central Region, which has won raves from both CAP mission participants and state officials throughout the region. “The pinpoint accuracy of our photo system has helped solidify CAP as being a reliable search and disaster assessment resource for the state,” Schimelfening said. The system allows state officials to view photos as soon as they are uploaded. Each image is tagged with latitude/longitude, time and date.

SOUTH DAKOTA – Maj. Teresa Schimelfening, a U.S. Army veteran who spent nearly nine years on active duty, will accept command of the South Dakota Wing at the wing’s 2010 conference in Chamberlain on Jan. 23. Schimelfening will take the reins from Col. Mike Beason, the wing commander for the last 4 1/2 years. Upon assuming command, she will be promoted to colonel for the duration of her four-year term. After joining CAP in February 2004 as a member of the Lewis and Clark Composite Squadron and starting out as the unit’s personnel officer, Schimelfening became the squadron’s commander six months later and held the position from September 2004-April 2008.

Bite-sized bits of wisdom distilled from life, the Buddha and elsewhere.

We bloggers are taking off our pajamas, leaving our basements and going out into our communities to try and engage you. That's the message that seven South Dakota bloggers discussed over hot dogs and colas Saturday on the shores of beautiful Lake Herman State Park near Madison. We even had time for a little kayaking.

Frankly, the choices for Harrisburg school board on June 17 could not be clearer. Do we want a continuation of the recent past, where the will of the citizens wasn’t respected and the two incumbents expressed disdain for the views of the patrons over the firing of HHS principal Keith Huber? Or do we want two new faces with deep ties to the community who stand for openness and listening to the patrons?

EqSD PAC Endorses Primary Election Candidates For the first time in South Dakota electoral history, a state LGBT group has given political action money to state legislative candidates. Equality South Dakota PAC (EqSD PAC) has recently provided over $5,000 in funding to both Republican and Democratic candidates involved in the June 3, 2008 South Dakota primary.

Harrisburg High School’s Class of 2008 has less than a month in school before they graduate. The seniors are making plans for graduation parties, summer jobs, college, work, the military and lives that lie beyond high school – and even beyond Harrisburg. But it isn’t only the students who are making plans and looking back.

Getting a grocery store into Harrisburg was apparently one of the “issues” in the just-concluded Harrisburg mayoral race. But let’s think this through for just a minute. What exactly can the city of Harrisburg do to bring in or attract a grocery store here to The Garden Spot of Lincoln County? Now, being the bleeding heart liberal Democrat that I am, I think there is often a role for the government in the economy.

SIOUX FALLS—Equality South Dakota (EqSD) and Equality South Dakota Political Action Committee ( EqSD PAC) announced their formation prior to the start of the South Dakota Legislative session on Tuesday. Both groups spring from the work of South Dakotans Against Discrimination, the 2006 ballot committee that nearly defeated the so-called "gay marriage" state constitutional amendment in the 2006 election.

Amendment C is a bad law that will hurt South Dakota families and could reduce domestic violence protections and cause chaos in our state's courts.

The KELO-TV/Argus Leader poll shows my guy, Democrat Jack Billion, trailing Gov. Mike Rounds. But it's no big surprise. Gee, Jack is running against an incumbent with lots of cash and a registration advantage. And you know what? Our own polling shows us behind -- but not nearly by as much -- as the not always predictive Mason-Dixon Poll that the two local media giants commissioned last week.

Sioux City and Sioux Falls are often considered the same place by the national media, and the two Siouxs do share a first name and geographical proximity. However, they are different towns. Sioux Falls, S.D., has gotten most of the recent attention with high Money magazine livability rankings and has a booming economy.

What to know Population: About 83,000. Airport: United Express, Transworld Express and Northwest Airlines connect to Sioux Gateway Airport. Getting there: From the Twin Cities, take Hwy. 169 south to Mankato, Minn. At Mankato, take Hwy. 60 south through M