The Lincoln County Board of Commissioners met Tuesday, August 4 in the Lincoln County Boardroom. Commissioners heard agenda items including the legislative audit, intersection study, and justice center conversations. Auditor Sheri Lund requested board action to approve and authorize the Chair and Auditor to execute the letter of engagement with the South Dakota Department of Legislative Audit for the Audit covering 01.01.2025 through 12.31.2025. David Weidler of South Dakota

In their largest mission trip yet, 41 youth group members from Tea Trinity Lutheran Church traveled from Tea to Belle, West Virgina, where students repaired homes, built relationships, and reflected on what it means to serve. Andrew Tuohino has taken over the official role of Youth Coordinator, but he is not new to the work. “While I just graduated college, I have been working as the youth pastor for a full year. I was honored when they asked me to chaperone the youth group

The Tea Area School Board met Aug. 10 and approved policy amendments. Superintendent Tonia Warzecha said that with new legislation they needed to update some of their policies. As a result, they approved the new policy for Assignment to Alternative Setting and designated the superintendent to have authority to assign students to alternative settings through SDCL 13-28-19.3. The board approved amendments to the Tea Area Policy Manual for the following policy areas: Wellness, E

The Tea Chamber for Development will host another full day of community activities this Saturday, Aug. 15, with Saturday in the Park returning to Tea City Park from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., followed by the inaugural Bites, Brews & Bands celebration from 5 to 11 p.m. Saturday in the Park continues its third season of bringing together local businesses, artisans and families for a free community market. Visitors can shop a wide variety of vendors offering handmade goods, boutique item

The Tea Steam bounced back from an opening-round loss to punch its ticket to the 2026 Class A State Amateur Baseball Tournament with a 6-3 victory over the Brandon Belugas in district tournament action on Aug. 1. Tea opened district play on July 31 with a 13-3 loss to the Renner Monarchs before responding with the must-win victory over Brandon to earn a berth in the state tournament. The Tea Steam will travel to Yankton for the opening weekend of the Class A State Tournament

By Seth Tupper South Dakota Searchlight South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden won the Republican Party’s nomination for governor Tuesday, July 28 in a runoff election, earning the chance to seek his own four years in office after filling out the remainder of former Gov. Kristi Noem’s last term. The Associated Press called the race at 8:08 p.m. central time. Complete returns several hours later showed Rhoden with 71% of the votes and a 42-point win over Aberdeen businessman Toby Doed

With all members present, the Lincoln County Board of Commission met Thursday, July 30. Deputy States Attorney, Joe Meader was present for a public hearing regarding the termination of hangar leases for Sites K-1, K-2, & R-6 and intent to enter into lease agreements for Sites K-1, K-2, & R-6, for a term exceeding 120 days and an amount exceeding $500.00 at the Marv Skie/ Lincoln County Airport. “These are the agreements that we updated for lease rates at the start of this ye

Construction is underway on a new pickleball complex at Prairie Trails Park following a groundbreaking ceremony hosted by the City of Tea on Monday, July 20. LT Companies has begun work on the three-court facility, which is being built in the southwest corner of the park. The project is expected to be completed by October 2026. The new facility will include three pickleball courts, fencing, lighting, a small shade structure and a concrete walkway providing access to the court

Members of the Tea Fire Department’s Wildland Crew are currently deployed in northeastern Wyoming, where they are helping battle the Newton Fire burning near Devils Tower National Monument. The Tea firefighters assigned to the deployment include James Madsen, Parker Wilson, Jaikob Week and Steve Oberle. The four are working alongside crews from across the region to help contain the wildfire. The Newton Fire, which was discovered around 1:15 p.m. on Saturday, has burned nearly

A group of young Tea swimmers made a big splash at the 2026 South Dakota State Swim Meet, bringing home two state relay championships and several individual honors during the three-day competition held July 24-26 in Rapid City. Competing for the Sioux Falls Swim Team, four Tea students—Mia Willard, Layton Boots, Carly Koppes and Addison Koppes—captured state championships in both the 8-and-under 200-yard freestyle relay and the 200-yard medley relay. All four swimmers are thi