Friday; April 19
Do you know where you were thirty-one years ago today? April 19 is not one of those “remarkable” dates for a lot of people – but for some of us, it is engrained in our brains. For those in Waco, Texas it is probably memorable for being the final day in the standoff between agents of the federal government and the Branch Davidians that took the lives of about 80 people. However, for those of us who lived in South Dakota, it was another tragedy that captured our hearts and minds. On that day, eight of our friends, family and neighbors were killed in an airplane crash near Dubuque, Iowa – among them was Governor George Mickelson. To appreciate the impact this would have on the state, you need to understand just how small and close-knit of a community it is. A lot of people either knew those on board that plane or knew someone who knew someone who was killed in the crash. Some believe that Waco was a national tragedy, but I can tell you from first-hand experience, that plane crash w