Tag: News

HONORING A DONOR: DSU supporter Plummer’s likeness will grace Tournament of Roses Parade float

Courtesy Photo by Annika Plummer
A floragraph in the likeness of Tyler Plummer, a longtime supporter and volunteer for the Dickinson State wrestling team, stands on a table at the Lions Eye Bank in Bismarck on Dec. 18. The floragraph will appear on the Donate Life America float during the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, Calif., on New Year’s Day. Plummer died Jan. 25 of a heart condition. His corneas were donated to two people after his death.

Tyler Plummer was one of those people who was easy to like.

“He was someone who it didn’t matter if you knew him for a little bit of time or a lot of time, he made an impact and people just loved him,” said Annika Plummer, his wife.

Plummer continues to make an impact in people’s lives, almost a year after his untimely death.

The Dickinson State graduate and passionate supporter of the Blue Hawk wrestling team died on Jan. 25 at age 33. The Baker, Mont., native had battled cardiomyopathy, a heart muscle disease, since he was diagnosed with a heart infection as a 19-year-old DSU freshman.

In addition to being an avid wrestling fan and a cowboy whose claim to fame was his role as a stunt horse rider in the North Dakota-filmed movie “Wooly Boys,” Plummer was also an organ donor.

After his death, Plummer’s corneas were donated to the Lions Eye Bank of North Dakota. Today, there are two people whom Plummer’s family does not know who can see again because of his gift.

Continue reading “HONORING A DONOR: DSU supporter Plummer’s likeness will grace Tournament of Roses Parade float”

Former NBA All-Star Mark Eaton speaks at energy summit in Dickinson

Me standing next to 7-foot-4 former NBA All-Star Mark Eaton.

Everyone, it seems, wants to have their picture taken with Mark Eaton.

The 7-foot-4 former NBA All-Star center said he doesn’t mind. In fact, he’s used to it. “It’s who I am and you just kind of have to accept that and use it to your advantage,” Eaton said.

Eaton’s positive attitude, fan friendliness and rich, commanding baritone voice have made him an in-demand motivational speaker in the past five years.

He spoke about businesses eliminating internal competition on Friday morning during the 2012 Energy and Infrastructure Summit at the Ramada Grand Dakota Lodge in Dickinson. Afterward, he greeted people and, of course, took side-by-side photos with whoever asked.

Continue reading “Former NBA All-Star Mark Eaton speaks at energy summit in Dickinson”

Former DSU football player killed fighting fire in Black Hills

I was alerted to this story this evening and it is definitely worth sharing.

Former Dickinson State football player Trampus Haskvitz died Thursday afternoon from injuries suffered after he was caught in a burn over while fighting a fire near Edgemont, S.D.

Trampus and his twin brother, John, joined the Blue Hawks in the fall of 2006 as redshirt freshmen.  John left the team after that season but Trampus, a wide receiver, stayed on for the next two seasons, playing mostly on special teams.

Trampus went to Hot Springs (S.D.) High School. Along with his brother, he was employed by the South Dakota Wildland Fire Suppression Division.

South side of Dickinson devastated

The tornado, or tornadoes depending on who you talk to, left a path of destruction unlike Dickinson has seen in years.

Nearly ever elderly person I spoke with while walking around the south side of town and taking pictures on Wednesday night said they’ve never seen weather destruction like what had just happened. Tornadoes and wind not only uprooted trees, the forces of Mother Nature tore apart buildings — mostly homes and apartment buildings. I talked to countless Dickinson residents who will be without homes or apartments for some time. I saw at least four homes that are now uninhabitable. Two were completely gone.

One man I spoke with was standing in his kitchen after his wife and three young children had gone to their basement when a motorhome parked on his lot crashed through the side of his house, nearly hitting him.

Another woman was with her two small children in their upstairs apartment when the roof was ripped off. I walked around with her in the apartment for a couple minutes before she finally said, “It’s all destroyed.”

Greg Wilkinson, known by most all as one of the three Wilkinson brothers from the cooky Dan Porter Motors commercials and the owner of Blue Hawk Video, was walking down the street when I ran into him. He stared at a house to the right of us for a moment. It’s garage was ripped off, the car still inside it. “Is that your house,” I asked. He said bluntly, “It was.”

The devastation on the faces of residents who lost nearly everything said it all. As onlookers descended on Dickinson looking to see a piece of the action, they walked the streets in amazement as the residents of those streets picked up the pieces. I don’t know how many people I saw hugging, or with arms around one another, as if they were trying to figure out if what had just happened HAD really happened.

The only bright spot out of this was that, as of now, it appears that everyone is safe. I talked to some friends from the EMT service who said they had treated people only for minor cuts and bruises.

Now that this ordeal is past us, I believe it’s time for our community to band together, support one another and help our neighbors pick up the pieces. I’m sure in the morning, we’ll see just how extensive the damage really was and there will be hundreds of helping hands needed on the southside to pick everything back up.

P.S. Due to the power outage, there is very little chance you’ll see the print edition of The Dickinson Press in a timely manner Thursday. We’re experiencing an array of computer problems because of the storm. To get all the information from the storm (as well as sports), go to our Web site.