It was an exciting week of play for Dakota Valley Esports as many matches were won from Dec. 11 through Dec.

The Panther boys basketball team had their 1st away game in Beresford on Tuesday, Dec. 12.

Eston Monical, of Dakota Dunes, competed in the men’s novice division at the Iowa State Judo Championship in Ames, IA, on Dec. 9, 2023. Monical is a 10th grader at Dakota Valley and won the Nebraska State Games Judo Championship this past July. He is currently studying Judo at Siouxland American Judo and Jujitsu with sensei, Johnny Trudeau also of Dakota Dunes. Monical, along with his younger brother, Hayes, plan to complete in the National State Games in San Diego, CA in the spring of 2024.

The Dakota Valley girls basketball roster went to Beresford on Tuesday, Dec. 12 for their first away contest and came home with a victory.

.

An annual tradition, the much loved “Cookies, Cocoa and Santa” event, took place at the North Sioux City Library on Thursday, Dec. 14. It was hosted by the library’s staff and ran from 10am to 6pm with Santa Claus making stops to visit children at 10:30am and 5pm.

For 30 years Kary Collette, of McCook Lake, and her family have set aside a special time for what they call their annual cookie day. It is a baking tradition that occurs during the holidays. This year they gathered on Sunday, Dec. 17. Goodies were made and more importantly fun times were had with family.

Just shy of two hours, the Union County Board of County Commissioners met in regular session Dec. 12. Toward the beginning of the meeting, the commissioners approved closing the courthouse on Dec. 25 and 26 which follows the state government closure. They then moved the commission meeting to Wednesday, Dec. 27 at 8:30 a.m.

The Dakota Valley School District’s Back to School Plan was reviewed at the Board of Education meeting Dec. 11. The plan, which was adopted on Aug. 9, 2021 has been reviewed and adopted at the end of every school semester since it’s first adoption.

There are various opportunities being made available to generate interest for future seniors to work in the state of South Dakota or help fill the labor gap. While programs such as Build Dakota Scholarship and others have formed, there are other opportunities available on the local level to those looking forward to high school graduation.