Show J4 The Salt Lake Tribune NOT-SO-GREA- SUNDAY Sunday March 15 1998 PLAINS T Small towns getting smaller as young people flee BY SHARON COHEN called for less fanning and more tourism and parklike preserva-- i tion That idea ii ked so many SHEYENNE ND Its Sunnatives that the couple received and Norris Rud is day morning death threats singing hymns in the tiny white Folks here celebrate their soliclapboard church he has prayed tude they revel in their resilat since the days of lantern ience Its a great place if you light His pew offers a view of want to lead an uncomplicated ' flat frozen endless prairie But life says Sheyennes school his eyes see something else: principal Shirley Lindstrom Family history But today Popper is con- It was a mile down the windvinced he was right with one caing gravel road past the shutveat: He thought the federal school-hous- e tered rotting government would have to step where his grandfather in but instead changes are ocNets planted the first trees more curring on their own than 100 years ago staking We predicted there would be claim to a chunk of Americas in the rural Plains depopulation frontier with younger people he says It was at the same altar where Thats come true We predicted Charles BenaettTbe Associated Press Rud takes communion that he economic difficulty Thats cerIt started as a hobby but Ken Throlson was baptized one morning 73 bison turned has out to be lucrative says raising tainly come true We predicted years ago the rise of tourism in some of Charle BennettThe Associated Press And its just outside the d these places and the emergence stained glass windows David Schneider principal of p of buffalo All thats come true where his kin Ruds and HenEdmore High School in North The Nature for Conservancy dricksons Norwegian emigrees one has acquired more than Dakota sees size of his graduwho journeyed by ship then by BY SHARON COHEN The buffalo is slaughtered Theres nothing I could 100000 acres in the Plains in class shrink each ating year to rail this windswept land here and sold to restaurants that would return for the last THE ASSOCIATED PRESS decade for grow preservation now lie buried among clunky and meat distributors grocers me the a bison boom too Theres way the buffalo does NEW ROCKFORD ND weathered gray headstones in the big city New Rockford across the United States with thousands of the creatures says Ken Throlson North More than a The small cemetery at Grand-fiel- d century after About 20 percent is shipped pop 1525 Like most members American p president and returning to Indian reservations Lutheran Church is growthey were hunted to the brink of their to Europe congregaa veterinarian who began raisor being bred by ranchers of extinction buffalo are ing tion they are in their autumn While some experts say this North Dakota has the first meating buffalo as a hobby before back Most everything else around buffalo boon could help reyears turning it into a livelihood packing plant in the nation dehere is not Theyve returned to ranches Well have to close somevive the troubled farm econovoted to buffalo solely Buffalo which once providand reservations across the The congregation numbers 37 day says a philosophical Rud my in the Plains Roger JohnThe Plains have never been ed Indians with everything Great Plains hunwith 62 six who compared remembers when his church generating son state agriculture years just short of elbow room for man from tools to teepees to shoes dreds of millions of dollars in ago echoed with the squeals of 80 commissioner is cautious and beast In 10 states spanning to food also are back on tribbusiness The nearest town is Sheyenne children in Sunday school a The a is a fifth of the territory of the industry tiny al lands 272 souls In 1970 the populaNowhere is evimore that shut down niche that fits for some proprogram long ago lower 48 the 1990 population In the last four years tribal dent than in this small town tion was 362 It has a gas staFamilies are getting smaller ducers he says Its another was 65 million less slightly to herds have grown from 1500 home the tion a gram elevator an impleNorth American the older people die and everyway of making a living out than that of Virginia to more than 10000 on a halfBison Cooperative The proment dealer a beauty parlor here thing else is shrinking says Since then the region has million acres mostly in the and a summer Tastee Freez But 60 perMrs Rud a former teacher cessing plant supplies is Buffalo a that a as delicacy whole gained population Plains says Mark Heckert dicent of buffalo meat in the its cafe and gift shop are closed The church is like Sheyenne has found its way onto tables and unemployment in some rector of the Intertribal Bison So is its bar the owner recently United States an in Were just hanging on industry from states is so low that jobs go begeverywhere trendy New where demand outpaces supdied The grocery is up for sale Cooperative in Rapid City A decade ago two East Coast York restaurants to ging But growth has blossomed SD Its a familiar scenario for plyin professors triggered a raucous West the in urban joints areas Its largely bypassing Its growing as fast as the debate when they argued that many The cooperative which repremote rural hamlets: 61 perappealing because it is grown towns across the Great Plains: buffalo will allow says Denresents 45 tribes wants to rethe was Plains one without hormones and is settling cent of towns with fewer than nis Sexhus chief operating ofturn buffalo to the daily life Younger people are leaving oldleaner and lower in fat and whopper of a mistake: There 2500 people in the Dakotas er people are staying schools ficer of the co-o- p which plans of Indians using the animals were too many towns too few cholesterol than beef It also Kansas and Nebraska have lost a second plant within two churches and stores are strugfor food ceremonies and touris two to three times more expeople too much dry land too people in the 90s according to gling farmers are giving up or ist attractions years little investment pensive government figures More than 260 US and CaThis land of homesteaders and being gobbled up Small is getThe casino will come and For towns smaller than 250 Despite its popularity it is nadian ranchers buffalo Sitting Bull and Wild ting smaller too small a market to be conranging the figure is worse: 71 Heckert says The tribes go people p And fears are growing that from Bill Hickok of big sky and open sidered a competitor to beef operators will be there They have to percent are declining some places now are just a gento media Ted Turner magnate Only about 20000 buffalo are prairie had become in their It didnt get this way oversustain something in perpetueration away from extinction owner of the nations largest view Americas steppes: too hot slaughtered a year compared Thats what the buffalo ity night Our countryside is just empherd are co-o- p members or too cold with too short a with 135000 beef cattle a day will do Nearly 40 percent of the tying out of people says Roger season So the academgrowing counties in the Plains have been Johnson North Dakotas agriics offered a modest proposal to losing people continuously since culture commissioner Its just stem the decline: 1950 and the migration has part on the Great Plains for Department of Health and HuTogether the two lead five scary Turn the land into a home for been largely young people most food and fiber But there could man Services d The reality doesnt escape congregations Lindorffs the buffalo to roam of those places now have elderly an be to end some communiNorth Dakota already is facRud a spry wiry man who still Cherokee Frank and Deborah Popper Jeep already ties he adds Weve already populations above the national has logged more than 120000 ing that question with its confarms though he and his wife dubbed their vision the Buffalo seen some burgs withered on the average says Richard Rathge miles tinuing farm exodus Fewer than Gloria now live 10 miles away Commons a long-terdirector of the North Dakota plan that vine Were probably going to 10000 kids under 18 are expectBut the man who dons green State Data Center see more ed to be living on the land by and white vestments over brown Decades ago combines and Every time David Schneider centurys end according to cowboy boots enjoys the life of a tractors replaced many workers glances at the walls outside his Rathge state demographer country preacher on the farms Puzzle solutions school office he sees the future Still no one wants to shut a Its just a totally different Year by year the senior gradNowadays droughts blizzards schoolhouse door the bearded pastor mentality and low cattle prices force farmuation pictures in Edmore ND The perspective is if our says in his lilting voice Here ers off have fewer and fewer smiling school closes our town will die Great Britain (lion) you automatically do things for Summers here can rival the faces Tom Decker of the North d says Czarist Russia people Thats the way we have Dust Bowl days winters evoke Schneiders own face is grim Dakota Department of Public Inexisted eagle) those as he bluntly summarizes the struction Mike Loe a town Tammany Hall (tiger) in seen the trend: Slow death landscapes The truth is the reverse of council member agrees He removie Fargo Thus the Republican Party (elephant) His school district spans 400 that If the town hadnt failed to turned in 1975 to raise his famPeace (dove) cheeky local slogan: 40 Below square miles and draws kids students the school produce ily Out United States (bald eagle) from five towns but enrollment Keeps the Riff-Rawould remain open He remembers when there Fewer farms mean fewer famis just 147 from kindergarten Mexico (bird and serpent) The long-helnotion is a high were more stores more people ilies fewer kids The grocery Soviet Union (bear) school diploma is a one-wa- y through high school more things to do in Sheyenne closes jobs move on The school Ten years from now well be G eriymandering ticket out of town because good One night he says he and bis closes teachers move on The non-farlucky if we have a high school son who has left jobs are scarce (gerrymander) hospital closes doctors move on says Schneider who has been Whats there to take over? town went driving around France (Gallic cock) At the same time farm subsiasks Schneider whose two adult superintendent for 32 years in counting people not in their Farm Workers (eagle) dies are dwindling this district an hours drive children moved out of state hcuces anymore I For 150 p Progressive Party from the Canadian border years theyve been Its late Sunday morning in But Loe is committed to Shey(Bull Moose) pumping money into these m - m-m - -m Summing up he says Its and Pastor Neil enne Sheyenne War (hawk) places to get people to stay damn bleak thats what it is is on his second sermon of The only thing we can do is here says Mark Heckert direcJoin or Die (snake) Schneiders plight isnt unusuthe day survive and keep going he tor of the Intertribal Bison Coal 11) Democratic Party (donkey) Hell repeat the prayers the says Where would we go? In a 1997 article in The Atlanoperative in Rapid City SD 9) Black Power (panther) hymns even the joke he used Without these subsidies those I tic Monthly a Nebraska official for the Grandfield congregation places would dry up Thats Harlow Hyde warned that deHis intern meanwhile is conSUTTON-BAXE- R whats happening right now clining birth rates had created a services nearby ducting The importance of agriculture child famine in parts of the ensure the Plains grain and beef Plains are not going to become For example he said that in a pasture for buffalo roaming 1995 South Dakota had fewer thousands of miles says Don than 10500 births fewer than Adamchak a professor of sociolin any year during the Depresogy at Kansas State University sion And in Hayes County North Dakota is the nations Neb there were five births Shenl Sutton top wheat producer Kansas is compared with up to 72 a year Sheri! Lynn Sutton daughter 2 No for both cattle and wheat of Mr and Mr Bill Sutton was during the baby boom Hundreds of meatpacking plants married March 8 1998 to Mr Dean The problem is the next genBaker con of the late Mr and Mrs dot the Plains eration is not being sown in Robert Baker Mr Baker Is formeriy The world is becoming too 2025 who will do the reaping? of La Canada California populated it needs to depend in asked Hyde of the Nebraska The ceremony was THE ASSOCIATED PRESS one-roo- frost-covere- buffalo herds may be boon Beefed-u- co-o- er mom-and-po- plum-colore- (two-heade- snow-blindin- g ff d 0 d 0 Lia-dor- ff 0B00 p HAPPY (Mi &S7HDAY MOM! Katim (Draw) Gfag StSsu LOKDY LORDY 3LOOK jDim I touched many' WHOS lives over 82 years Family udiitwdivlo jI celebrate her 1 love at ee omen J j bouse held oa I FORTY! Happy p See The Real Puzzle crossword and Brain Numbers on Blrtfiday to We love you! Steph Jeni Connor L Quinton i March 21 1998Saturday from 200 to m at the Majpistic Me- p 1 ' Clubhouse 4580 So i Drive (1055 W) iAAAAAAAAAAAAi HAPPY 65th ANNIVERSARY ATflE & MARIE COX MEEKS Miml (Mildred) Swtmn j I With Love Your family m-- mmrmooH your TSX23&BZTk J Keith & Rcva T Parker S0tfe Wedding Anniversary 1 2 y Love your loving wtte Beth your children grandchildren a I Lynn Mathie J-- y H MARRIED MARCH 15 You are greatly loved and appreciated by your family Congratulations from Lany and Edith Meeks Kent ami Sue Meeks Rose Marie Rowley and your grandchildren and iAAAAAAlki performed by the Reverend Patricia Vandeipol at Community of Grace Preshyte-a- n Church A reception followed at Cottonwood Country Club Mm Baker ht a Neonatal Intensive Care Nurse and Mr Baker Is a pilot for Transworld Express After a wedding trip to Fiji ihe couple will reside in Salt Lake City The chddraa of James Keith Parker and Reva Thome Parker Utah to thank their for 50 yean of low loyalty and funparents Keith and Reva were married in the Sah Like LDS on March 19th 1948 They spent Temple their Uvea in sendee to family and community Keith worked for Kennecott Copper Corp where he wan respected as an excellent worker and appreciated for his friendliness Revs worked for Dr Paul Richards as a woman When she returned to the wotk young force to later yean sin worked for Dr Eason and then at LD5 hospital She wm respected and loved by her Ratoh K Parker Marilyn Jeanne Parker King and Judy Lyim Parker SomnoL atono with theto spouses and children wish to thank Mom and Bad for the hmern Ae boats the camping the listening the love Those who would like ms Iota in celebrating the 50th armtversan' of this at the Crewmctate LDS ward house at 1325 W 5550 S Bern ton UuTon March 710 pji f i i ) i |