Dee Locken went to work for Northwestern Bell Telephone Company right out of High School in May of 1947. Thirty nine years later she retired from US West in March of 1986. During her career she worked in Aberdeen, Omaha and Sioux Falls. Her assignments included "operator", "records clerk", "records supervisor", "OSP engineer", and finally in the Division of Revenue. She was active as a Pioneer and ultimately became President of Casper E. Yost Chapter 38. About 25 years ago during her time in office she inaugurated the "Huggy Bear" program which provides stuffed bears to children in hospitals. It has since become a national Pioneer program. We have tried to establish her as the originator of the program but since few records were kept it cannot be fully documented.. In 1988 she moved to Pagosa Springs Colorado. She kept involved in many community affairs, she was president of the United Methodist Women in Pagosa Springs, member of Pagosa Gray Wolf Ski Club, Pagosa Women's Club, Pagosa Homemakers, and the Pagosa Civic Club holding various offices in all these clubs. Dee passed away as the result of an automobile accident January 30, 1995.

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Edna (Thompson) Helberg, a Sioux Council Pioneer member, is listed in the International Poetry Hall of Fame. She has two children, a son, David W., and a daughter, Judy Benson, four grandchildren and seven great grandchildren. Retiring in 1978 from N.W. Bell, Edna is a member of the National Travel Club, AARP, Telephone Pioneers, and the Life Goes On Group - Methodist Church Groups. She has been writing poetry for fun since a child. Edna likes spur-of-the-moment poems about people, parties, anniversaries, children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren, and also trips with great grandchildren where we play a game of only talking in rhyme. "It teaches them to enjoy nature and seek new ways to describe it." Some of her work can be read on the internet at the International Poetry Hall of Fame site.

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George Nelsen, a Sioux Council Pioneer member, is "The Norman Rockwell of Storytellers". George is a nationally renown storyteller and he has been featured in major festivals and founded the very successful Northern Prairie Storytelling Festival held in June of each year at the University of Sioux Falls. He is a member of the National Storytelling Association and serves as the South Dakota State Liaison. He also has served on the Board of Directors for the Northland's Storytelling Network. For seven years he was a touring artist for the South Dakota Arts Council. George has shared his stories with thousands of listeners at festivals, fairs, schools, churches, banquets, hospitals and prisons in twenty states. He has received many awards and was a national semifinalist in the KFC Arts category for senior citizens in 1996. The award he treasures the most was presented to him in 1987 by the Casper E. Yost Chapter for his service to children of South Dakota. Thousands of listeners from coast to coast, both young and old, have enjoyed hearing George "Grandpa" Nelsen share his stories. He plans to continue his "second" career as long as he is able to touch people, young and old, with his poignant and hilarious stories. The National Storyteller Network presented Life Member George Nelsen their Oracle Award, their highest, at a ceremony at Brown University on July 14th, 2001. The inscription reads "For exemplary leadership and significant contribution to your community through storytelling". His community consists of eleven states. Congratulations George!

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Addie Donaldson was a dedicated worker in the Pioneer Store in the '80s and now spearheads the Hug-A-Bear project. Twice a month she gathers the 10-12 faithful volunteers to make Hug-A-Bears for donation to the hospitals and shelters in the area. Addie also is Fellowship chairperson and "keeps an eye open" for those that may need a card from the Pioneers. (Awaiting added data from honoree)

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After Bob Ness retired in Dec. l983, he helped with various jobs that needed volunteers through the Pioneer Program. He drove "Project Car" for ten years with the Senior Companion Program. He was appointed to the Salvation Army Advisory Board in l987, and still is on that board. During this time he has been on committees there especially helping with families in need at Christmas time. This also included gift wrapping and mailing Christmas gifts to children of prisoners at the Sioux Falls, Yankton, and Springfield facilities. In l994, he started volunteering at Sioux Valley Hospital one day a week serving as an escort helping people find their way to various locations within the hospital for needed tests, x-rays, etc.

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Hal Clark is another Salvation Army volunteer who has donated countless hours on projects for the "Army", including chairing the annual "Bell Ringer" kettle program for a number of years. He has also served a President of the Sioux Council. Hal passed away in May, 2003.

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Gordon Paulson named top volunteer of 2003. More than any other recreational or cultural resource in American, the success story of trails in the United States has been written by volunteers. The American Hiking Society has named Gordon Paulson of Rapid City as its Volunteer of the Year for South Dakota. The award honors volunteers for their efforts to preserve and maintain America's trails. Paulson has coordinated trails projects through the Telephone Pioneers of America at Badlands National Park for nearly a decade. A resident of Rapid City, Paulson retired from US West in 1986. He came out of retirement for a few years, and then officially became a full-time retiree in 2000. The Telephone Pioneers recently changed its name to the Telecom Pioneers, which is the world's largest industry-related volunteer organization. At Badlands National Park, the local chapter has provided boardwalking at the Cliff Shelf Nature Trail, Door Geology Trail, Fossil Exhibit Trail and the Bigfoot Pass Picnic Area. The four areas serve more than a million visitors each year. Roads and Trails Foreman Galen Livermont, who nominated Paulson for the award, said, "We always know when spring has officially arrived because in addition to the flowers and the birds, Gordon also returns to the Badlands." Paulson was presented his award at a volunteer banquet held at the park on June 5.

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AL (Lofty) Loftesness began volunteering for the Pioneers in the first part of 1973. Some of the activities he has been involved in through the years are: Lifeline, guide at the hospital, helping at the "Hard Times" parties, driver for Project Car when it first started, painting maps on school playgrounds, in charge of the Pioneer store, and on the Historical Committee. Lofty remembers working the Pioneer store out of a gray cabinet located on the 8th floor of the tower, mainly selling jackets. With the aid of his helpers, he figured approximately $10,000 worth of sales was accomplished one year. When contractors began tearing apart the Pioneer room, he remembers trying to locate some of the historical items that were moved before he was informed of the work. Most recently on the Historical committee, he was working with members from Canton to get some of our historical items displayed in the train depot turned museum. After being discharged from the Army Air Corp in 1946, I returned to Sioux Falls & my wife Hilma. Being a relatively new husband and a child on the way I was in desperate need of a job. I truly believe that Mr. R.E. Nichols hired me out of shear desire to get rid of a pest, because I had virtually camped out near his office door at 10th & Dakota.As penitence he sent me to A. M. Jacobson (unlocated construction). After "serving time" under Jake, I was finally transferred to Slim Schaffersman and became installer repairman. I was one of the "odd balls" who worked for NWB, for practically my whole career was spent in Sioux Falls and was involved in every dial conversion in this exchange from the first cut over from "Manual" in 1947 to the advent of the #1 ESS in 1972. In between I spent some time in equipment engineering, other Plant assignments and finally settled down on the South Dakota Area staff. At the advent of the break up of the Bell System, I was declared "surplus" and was put on loan to AT&T and worked on a project involving Long Distance Service. Over the years I have worked with many fantastic people who have helped me in countless ways for which I am forever indebted and they have been the driving force behind my desire to preserve and save as much of our (Telephone) heritage as possible. We came close to loosing it all when the Company had to rid the buildings of asbestos. I was offered "retirement" in June 1982 I haven't really sat down, I have been active in the Sioux Empire Gem Society, the Telephone Pioneers and have done volunteer work at Sioux Valley Hospital. I also have assisted some older folk in providing transportation and just plain moral support. For as we all are finding out - growing old is not easy. Thank you Lofty for your time and effort you have given to the Pioneers.

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