4 Broadcaster Press November 28, 2017 www.broadcasteronline.com Finalists Set For 10th Anniversary SD Big Idea Competition (November 22, 2017, Aberdeen, SD) Eight high school finalists have advanced to the 10th Anniversary of the BIG Idea Final Competition set for Thursday, December 7th, at Northern State University. The eight finalists were selected from the 243 applications submitted from 37 different schools. First round judges included 108 volunteers along with 204 college entrepreneurship and business students. During the BIG Idea Final Competition, finalists will have six minutes to present their idea to a panel of judges and compete for nearly $5,000 in cash prizes and scholarships. The eight finalists are: Morgan Selchert, Lexi Pinkert and Reed Hartman of Milbank High School. The name of their business is Pribyl Pool. Taylor Evans of Pierre T.F. Riggs High School, with a business called Hot Look. Dhwani Kharel of Brookings High School with a business called Kharel’s Kolors. Michael Crawford, Angelica Jones and Kaelin O’Leary of Lead-Deadwood High School. The name of their business is Antisocial-Eats. Julie Neuharth of Eureka High School and her business, Soap Opera Laundromat & Dry Cleaning. Jasmine Gengerke of Groton High School and her business, Safe Haven Shelters. Colt Brink of Pierre T.F. Riggs High School and his business, Hire a Ranch-Hand. Danielle Eliason and Bess Seaman of Warner High School and their business, Know-How. Christian Westhoff of McCook Central High School and his business, Dakota Cubs. In addition, 55 teams submitted entries to the Marketing Design Competition and 53 submitted entries to the Wellness Competition. The Marketing Design and Wellness Category competition winners, below, will be recognized at the Final Competition. The marketing design winner is Madyson Adams of West Central High School. The wellness category winner is Conlan Rendell of Pierre T.F. Riggs High School. Prizes for the eight finalists include $1,000 for first place, $500 for second place and $250 for third place. Scholarships to both Northern State University and Presentation College will also be awarded. The Marketing Design winner will receive $500 in cash, sponsored by McQuillen Creative Group. The Wellness Category winner will receive $500 in cash, sponsored by Sanford Health. The competition encourages students to consider new ideas and opportunities for creating a business in their own region. All students who have participated in the competition are invited to the Awards Ceremony which will feature keynote speaker Michael Grabham, innovator of Package Guard, as well as a panel discussion with local business owners. For more information about the competition, see www.BIGIdeaSD.com. Students from the following high schools participated: Aberdeen Central, Belle Fourche, Bowdle, Brookings, Canistota, Chester, Custer, Deuel, Doland, Eagle Butte, Edmunds Central, Ethan, Eureka, Faulkton, Gregory, Groton, Hamlin, Ipswich, Madison Central, McCook Central, Milbank, James Valley Christian, Lead-Deadwood, Leola, Mobridge-Pollock, Montrose, Northwestern, Pierre T.F. Riggs, Sully Buttes, Sunshine Bible Academy, Vermillion, Wagner, Warner, Watertown, Waverly/South Shore, West Central, and Yankton. The competition is coordinated by the Small Business Development Center and funded by Sanford Health, East River Electric, REED Fund, Student Loan Finance Corporation, Aberdeen Development Corporation, Northwestern Energy, McQuillen Creative Group, The Tom and Danielle Aman Foundation, Midcontinent Communications, Dacotah Bank, and First Bank & Trust. Scholarships are provided by Northern State University and Presentation College. The competition is a result of the input and collaboration of these organizations along with: Aberdeen Area Chamber of Commerce, Aberdeen Downtown Association, Aberdeen Catholic School System – Roncalli High School, and Aberdeen School District – Central High School. Questions regarding the competition can be directed to Kelly Weaver of the Small Business Development Center at (605) 626-2565 or info@bigideasd. com. South Dakota Lottery Warns Citizens Of Potential Scams The South Dakota Lottery reminds citizens to take caution when receiving information about a potential prize from any of its games. The South Dakota Lottery has been informed of several instances in which South Dakotans have received mailers and phone calls informing them of a prize related to the Mega Millions game. The South Dakota Lottery has no affiliation with these messages, and citizens should be vigilant when communicating with these entities. If you receive a phone call or any com- munication regarding a potential prize related to a South Dakota Lottery game, do not share any of your personal information with these entities. If you have questions about the legitimacy of any communication you receive, please contact the South Dakota Lottery at 605-773-5770. South Dakotans who believe they have fallen victim of this scam should contact the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division at 800-300-1986 or consumerhelp@state.sd.us. YOUR RADIATOR HEADQUARTERS! Brady Christmas • Great Parts • Great Warranty On-Hand & In-Stock! NO WAITING! Cox Auto 1007 Broadway Ave Yankton, SD 605•665•4494 Tree Farm Mon.-Fri. 1pm-5:30pm Sat-Sun 9am-5:30pm Choose & Cut Your Tree • Balsam Fir • Black Hills and Colorado Blue Spruce • Scotch Pine We sell the World’s Greatest Tree Stand 4 Miles East of Yankton on Hwy 50 Turn South at our Sign 605-665-4726 Finding The Perfect Christmas Tree BROOKINGS, S.D. - Thanksgiving marks the start of the Christmas tree season with more than 36 million trees being sold between Thanksgiving and Christmas. While you're hunting for the perfect tree to grace your family's home, John Ball, Professor & SDSU Extension Forestry Specialist and S.D. Dept. of Agriculture Forest Health Specialist is here to help answer some questions. While artificial trees enjoyed increased sales during the past decade, those sales have stagnated to about 50 million homes using them. "A traditional Christmas tree can be the environmental friendly way to celebrate the holidays," said Ball. He explained that the average artificial Christmas tree may have a life span of six years before it ends up in a landfill. "The traditional Christmas tree, while used only one season, can become valuable mulch, a winter bird feeder or even used as a fish habitat after the holidays," he said. If you take his advice and go with a live tree, here are some tips he offers on picking out the perfect tree. 1.The way to obtain the freshest tree is to harvest it yourself at a choose-and-cut Christmas tree farm. This way you are guaranteed a "fresh" tree rather than one that may have been harvested several weeks earlier. 2.If cutting your own tree is not possible, here are some ways to check for freshness at a Christmas tree sales lot. First, give the tree a light but vigorous shake. Only a few interior needles should fall out of the tree if it is fresh. If a pile of brown needles appears on the ground after shaking, it is not a fresh tree. 3.Next, reach into a branch and pull the needles gently through your hand as you move out towards the tip. The needles should bend, not break, as your fingers run across them and the branch should only slightly bend. If they break off completely this is another indicator that the tree has already dried out too much. Regardless of whether you buy a tree from a lot or cut it yourself, Ball said once you get the tree home, leave it outside in the shade while you set the stand up. "The choice of a stand is probably the most critical factor in maintaining the freshness of the tree once in the home," Ball said. The stand should be able to hold one-half to one-gallon of water as the new Christmas tree may absorb this much water from the stand on the first day. "A good ruleof-thumb is a tree will use 1 quart of water per day for every inch trunk diameter at the base. If you have a tree with a 3-inch base, it may use 3 quarts of water per day," he said. Just before you bring the tree in the house cut the base between a half and oneinch from the bottom. "This will open the sap-filled pores responsible for transporting water and allows water to be absorbed into the tree," he said. "The base cut does not have to be slanted; the angle makes little difference in the amount of water absorbed so cutting perpendicular to the trunk is best." Ball said not to drill holes into the trunk or whittle the trunk smaller as neither will improve water uptake. Also, he said to brush off any debris or dirt on the base before placing it in the stand. Once the tree is in the stand, add water and then never let the stand become empty. Ball said that if the stand becomes empty for more than six hours, the tree's pores plug up again. Water uptake will be significantly reduced, the tree will dry out and the needles will soon begin to fall. "If the tree stand does dry up for half a day or more there is nothing that can be done other than pull the tree out of the stand and recut the base - not a pleasant task once the lights and ornaments are already up," he said. Nothing needs to be added to the water in the stand to improve needle retention. The commercial "tree fresher" products do not significantly increase the life of the tree and the home remedies such as aspirin, sugar, soft drinks and vodka do not work and may be harmful to pets that may drink from the stand. Place the tree in a spot that receives only indirect light from the windows and not near any heat duct, as Ball said this will reduce water loss from the tree and prolong its freshness. Another tip he shared to prolonging freshness is to start out with a clean stand. "Before setting up the tree wash the stand out with a solution of about a capful of bleach to a cup of water, to reduce the growth of microorganisms that may also plug up the tree's pores," he said. Which is the best tree? Each species has its good points but the Fraser fir, is probably one of the top favorites, Ball said. "The tree has a very pleasant scent, excellent needle retention - they will last the entire holiday season and the branches are stiff enough to hold most ornaments," he said. "The bright green needles are white on the underside and this makes a very attractive display." However, if heavy ornaments are desired, Ball said to go with a spruce. Balsam fir is another good choice, said Ball, though the needles do not last as long and the branches are not quite as stiff. Canaan fir, another popular fir which appears to have qualities similar to Frasier fir is also becoming a popular Christmas tree. Ball said that pines are very popular, with Scotch pine probably being the most popular tree in the country. "It also has a pleasant scent, excellent needle retention and the branches are stiff enough to hold heavy ornaments," he said. White pine is another pine commonly sold at Christmas tree stand. Ball explained that the needle retention is not quite as long as Scotch pine and the branches are very flexible meaning heavy ornaments may fall off. White pines do have very soft needles and if you are going to run into the tree in the middle of the night this is the one! Spruces are not as popular a choice for Christmas trees, Ball said this is primarily due to their relatively poor needle retention. "If you want to have a blue spruce as your Christmas tree, you probably should wait until a couple of weeks before Christmas to set it up as the needles may only last that long," he said. He added that once the needles begin to fall, blue spruce are about the worst tree in the house as the fallen needles are sharp and seem to find their way into socks and slippers. Blue spruce has the best needle retention of all spruces. "They may last a few weeks or more - but does not have much of a fragrance," he said. "The branches are very stiff, however, and can support the heaviest ornaments." White spruce, or Black Hills spruce is not a commonly available Christmas tree at lots, however Ball said it is used in the Black Hills where it can be cut from the National Forest. "It does make a nice tree, particularly when cut fresh, as needle retention is poor. The tree also does not have much of a fragrance and occasionally Black Hills spruce trees can produce a slight musky odor," he explained. With an ad in the 624-4429 Broadcaster NOTICE TO CLAYWith an ad in the RESIDENTS COUNTY Broadcaster 624-4429 DETRIMENTAL USE OF RIGHTS-OF-WAY ALONG COUNTY HIGHWAYS IS ILLEGAL Instances have come to the attention of the Clay County Highway Department of violations of South Dakota Codified Law 31-32-3.1, entitled INTENTIONAL DUMPING ON HIGHWAY RIGHT OF WAY PROHIBITED. This statute applies to all public highways, all County Highways, and Township Roads. The piling of snow on County Highways, or within the Right-of-Way thereof, causes a serious hazard to the traveling public and constitutes a Class 1 misdemeanour. These piles of snow can cause serious injuries or fatalities if struck by a vehicle. They also cost the County funds to remove or push back. Because the piles of snow can become very solid, and at times contain debris, serious damage to County snow removal equipment can occur. The County can recover the cost of equipment damage from the individual responsible for the snow piles, SDCL 31-32-9. In addition, the person performing this misdemeanour also may be legally liable in the event of a vehicle accident. Please remove or flatten any piles you may have placed on public highways, as well as refrain from piling snow in the future. CLAY COUNTY COMMISSION CLAY COUNTY HIGHWAY DEPARTMENT Arrrrrre you advertising in the Broadcaster? Watch the “treasure” pile up when you advertise in the 201 W Cherry Vermillion, SD Phone: (605) 624-4429 Fax: (605) 624-2696