Your week, simplified: Oct. 16, 2024

Megan Raposa -

Happy Wednesday! Megan here.

Weather check: Windy and a tad warmer mid-week

Oh hey, this is important: The voter registration deadline for the November election is Monday, Oct. 21. So you still have time to register to vote or to update your voter registration (but you do not have very much time – so hop to it!) Need help? Read this! Still need help? Reply to this email, and I'll find the answer for you.

How to register to vote – and why to do it now
Simplified: It’s election season, and there’s a lot more on the November ballot than the presidential race. If you want to have a say in who’s representing you in Pierre, whether South Dakotans pay sales tax on groceries, our state’s abortion access, and much more, now is the time to
Sioux Falls SimplifiedMegan Raposa

This week, you'll get smart about Domestic Violence Awareness Month, meet a nonprofit helping women heal and find so, so many events – my gosh, I thought summer was busy!

  • Also, I've been working behind the scenes calling every person running for a state legislative office in the Sioux Falls area.

And now, news:

GET SMART

Get smart about Domestic Violence Awareness Month with Kate Feilmeier and Darlene Hillmer

Kate Feilmeier and Darlene Hillmar both work at the Children's Home Shelter for Family Safety (formerly Children's Inn). Feilmeier works as an outreach advocate, and Hillmar is the assistant program director. They sat down with Sioux Falls Simplified to talk about domestic violence and the upcoming Take Back the Night event.

Answers are edited for length and clarity.

We’re all about simplicity here. Can you describe the significance of Domestic Violence Awareness Month in 10 words or fewer?

Hope for victims, hope for working ourselves out of a job.

What’s something that’s often misunderstood about domestic violence, and can you help us set the record straight?

Darlene: People will say, why did she (or the victim) go back, or why did she let this happen? It really should be a focus on why did it happen in the first place.

  • That's probably one of the biggest things that a victim chooses to stay or chooses not to leave. There's so many nuances. Housing is hard to find, jobs are hard to find, maybe you have kids ... I think people blame the victim for staying or they get blamed for leaving.
  • They get blamed a lot for things that aren't their fault.

Kate: Something I think is so not understood is that domestic violence is a lot of coercion or control – even if there isn't a physical aspect of it – and that is what makes it so hard to leave.

That's not what's portrayed in movies or anything like that. ... It's that power, control or manipulation that the abuser has done to trick (victims) into believing they need to stay or whatever it is.

  • It isn't as simple as, "if he hit me, I would leave," or "if she hit me, I would leave." There's so much more intertwined with that coercion and control.

See the full interview here

TL;DR

Super Simplified Stories

  • School board approves ag building. Sioux Falls School Board members this week authorized a $9 million project to construct a 16,000-square-foot addition at the Career and Technical Academy including a barn, greenhouse, animal science lab and more. See more background on the project here.
  • Pick a painted plow. Kids around town have painted snow plows, and now it's time to vote for your favorite. The City of Sioux Falls is hosting its 15th annual Paint the Plow event on Saturday, October 19, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Levitt parking lot. Winning plows will be featured in the Parade of Lights, and kids can also sign up for a chance to win a snowplow ride to school.
  • Get spooked at the library. Siouxland Libraries is hosting a series of events as part of "Scary on the Prairie." You can experience an adult lock-in, do some "shelf care," and even investigate a crime scene. Learn more and register for events here.

SIMPLIFIED PRESENTS

Meet the nonprofit making space for women to seek care and healing

This is a paid piece from Selah Space.

Simplified: Selah Space, a local holistic wellness cooperative, is now a nonprofit – a move that will allow the organization to better serve both women in need of healing and the providers tending to them. Here's what you need to know.

Why it matters

  • Selah Space – founded by Jada Dobesh – has been facilitating holistic healing for women in Sioux Falls since 2020, with an ever-increasing number of offerings and connections to providers from counseling to massage therapy to mother wound and feminine healing.
  • A shift earlier this year to a nonprofit model allows that work to have an even broader reach, Dobesh said. Selah Space will soon be able to provide scholarships to women who are in need of healing and care services but who may also be experiencing a challenging and financially straining transition in life.
  • With the new structure, Selah Space will also ensure providers are cared for by ensuring their time and work are fairly compensated.
  • Additionally, women who've been helped through a hard time can come out on the other side and pay it forward to others who were in their shoes.
"It's the 'it takes a village' vibe," Dobesh said. "This is the best way I can see us living in a village in 21st Century America."

Tell me more

EVENTS

Stuff to do: Oct. 16-22

  • Bop with the kidz.* Kidz Bop returns to Sioux Falls this November with covers of today's hottest songs. They'll perform Nov. 2 at the Sioux Falls Arena in an all-ages show that promises to be fun for the entire family. Tickets for the show start at $24.50, and you can snag yours here.
  • See live music.* Live on Stage's season of affordable concerts continues Tuesday with a new-to-Sioux Falls musical group. MusiKaravan is a strings trio who came together during the pandemic when they toured in a 1971 VW bus to bring music to farmers, winemakers and others. They'll be presenting works by Brahms, Vivaldi, Mozart and more. Get your tickets here.
  • Get Halloween-y. There's lots of fall fun to be found (roundup here), but if you want specifically Halloween vibes, you can find something for everyone. There's a Trunk or Treat at Hy-Vee on Saturday, ZooBoo, and then real spooks at the Twisted Nightmare Haunted House or the Fright Nights at the "Creepy Cage" (i.e. the Birdcage.)
  • Support local theater. Experience live radio theater with Fear Falls, followed by a mix of rock and heavy pop with local band Bangers & Mash. It's all part of the first performance of the Washington Pavilion's Live & Local series. Get your tickets here.
  • Shop and swap. Give your clothes new life and find some new-to-you pieces this weekend at Terra Shepherd Boutique's Clothing Swap. People who contribute clothes to the swap by Wednesday get a discounted ticket to shop the sale Sunday afternoon. Get all the specifics here.
  • Channel your inner kid. Ride go-karts, play laser tag, go bowling, bump in bumper cars – it's all part of Thunder Road's Adult Night from 9 p.m. to midnight on Friday. Learn more here.
  • Watch the stars dance. Catch local celebs dancing their hearts out to raise money for Empire Mental Health Support during the "Dancing with the Sioux Falls Stars" event Saturday at The District. You can get tickets – and shop the silent auction – here.
  • Play some trivia with me. Sioux Falls Simplified is hosting a Sioux Falls trivia night at Good NAtured on Wednesday, Oct. 23. Come, play, win, learn more cool local stuff and meet cool people who support cool local news. Get the details here.

THIS AND THAT

What I'm falling for this week:

ICYMI

More Simplified Stories

How well do you know Sioux Falls?
Sioux Falls Simplified is putting on a Sioux Falls-themed trivia night at 6 p.m. Oct. 23 at Good NAtured.
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How to find fall fun with the zoo, butterfly house
From making treasure maps with the Little Mermaid to a family fun run through the zoo, there’s a lot of fall fun to be had this month with the Sioux Falls Zoo and Aquarium.
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This Sioux Falls school is building a barn
Sioux Falls high schoolers will soon have a new facility where they can learn about caring for farm animals, maintaining a tractor, horticulture and all things urban agriculture.
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Thank you

Thank you to Sioux Falls Simplified sponsors, including Dakota Adventure Supply, the Sioux Falls Development Foundation, the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation, Panther Premier Print Solutions, Barre3 Sioux Falls, the Great Plains Zoo, and the Sioux Metro Growth Alliance. When you support them, you're also supporting Sioux Falls Simplified.

Oh, by the way

Your feedback is extremely helpful – hit the reply button and send any news tips, typos, complaints, compliments or cups of coffee my way. ❤️