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Black Hills Stock Show Pioneer Breakfast

One of the Pioneer Breakfast honorees, Jenner Equipment.
Jenner Equipment

Saturday, Feb. 1 at the Hilton Garden Inn 

Doors open at 8 a.m. 

Breakfast 8:30 a.m.  



Program 9 a.m. 

Tickets: Adults $15, Children $10 (10 and under)  
Tickets will be available at the door or call Dick Bray 605-342-8678  or NanCee Maynard 605-390-0109  



HONOREES:         
Pioneer Awards: Individuals in the Ranching and Agriculture Business/Community that have made significant contributions to or impacted the BHSS & Central States Fair throughout  the years.  
Ron Bearid (Posthumously) 
Jim & Joni Hunt  
Jim Reed  
Spirit Award:  People who do not fit into the ranching/ag area but have made a notable contributions to the area/community 
 Jenner Equipment 
Pioneer Ranch Award: A continuing original generational operating ranch  
Painter Ranch   

Ronald D. Beaird

Ronald D. Beaird was born on July 23, 1939 to John and Christine Beaird of Rapid City. He had four brothers and one sister. His surviving brother is Roy Beaird of Brandon, SD. He attended school in Rapid City, graduating in 1957. Ron was united in marriage on Sept. 4, 1960 to Janice Carlson. Janice resides in Rapid City. 

Ronald served in the Army National Guard. After his discharge he drove truck for Seastrom Trucking. In 1969, he purchased the company, which became known as Beaird Trucking Inc. This company existed for 30 years, hauling livestock for both local and long-distance ranchers, sale barns, and the Black Hills Packing Co. Over those years, you would also see Ron donating his time and trucks hauling fat cattle from the Western Junior Livestock show to the Black Hills Packing Co. His favorite pastime was getting to play pitch at the sale barns with the cattle buyers. In 2001, the business was sold. Ron went on to drive over the road for East West as an owner operator. He later became safety manager before retiring in 2004.  

Ron was a lifetime member of the Elks Lodge, President of the South Dakota Livestock & Grain Association from 1974 to 1977 and President of the South Dakota Trucking Association from 1978 to 1980. 

In 1977 Ron became involved in the Central States Fair as a director. He served on the board with Dick Bray, Jerry Godfrey, Ted Pfister, and Kent Rasmussen. While on the board he was always looking for advancement and activities for the fair, especially in horse or rodeo events. During his involvement he worked closely with the board and Jim Sutton on the start of the Black Hills Stock Show & Rodeo. For many years rodeo stock for the Central States Fair and the Black Hills Stock Show & Rodeo was kept at the Beaird residence north of town. 

His pastime involved fishing, golf, playing cards, and spending time with his family. Ron passed away on May 26, 2005. Ron had one son and one daughter. Rodger followed his dad’s passion of truck driving as owner operator with Ricklefts Ltd. Rodger is married to Robyn and lives in Rapid City. Pam is married to Jim Tiltrum who owns and operates Triple R Tack in Rapid City and lives in Hermosa. He was the proud grandfather of six and great grandfather of eight. 

Jim & Joni Hunt 

Jim and Joni Hunt are both fifth-generation western South Dakota cattle ranchers and horse breeders. They married in 1987, while Jim was in Wyoming working as an ag loan officer in the Hulett National Bank. They returned to their roots in ranching and established their own operation in southwest Ziebach County, south of Faith and Dupree, in the Cheyenne River breaks. They live about 35 miles west of where Jim grew up on the ranch of his parents, Geno and the late Effie Hunt. 

Geno’s dad cowboyed for several big outfits before settling on Dupris Creek and putting together his own ranch. Jim’s Grandma Jennie’s family lived in this part of the Dakotas since before statehood; she is part of the Dupris family, credited with saving the buffalo. Jim’s maternal grandpa had one of the state’s first bands of registered Quarter Horse mares, numbering in the hundreds. 

Joni, daughter of Keith and Bunny Berry, grew up near White River on part of the ranch established by her great-grandfather, Tom Berry. Known as the Cowboy Governor, Tom Berry served South Dakota during the 1930s. The Berry families raised remount horses for the Army and ran horned cattle and big steers in the Badlands; many of the Berry grandchildren are still involved in agriculture.  

Jim Reed 

Jim attended SDSU on a rodeo scholarship, graduating with an agricultural business degree. During his bronc riding career, Jim rode many times at the Central States Fair and Black Hills Stock Show PRCA rodeos. Joni has a B.S. degree in nursing, homeschooled their children and for the last 26 years has managed the family horse sale, held annually at the Central States Fairgrounds. In 2011 the Hunts were honored with the Stockman of the Year award from BHSS. Jim has served as director for the Central States Fair Board, several years on the BHSS Horse Committee, and is a national director for AQHA. In 2011 they helped establish the AQHA Young Horse Development Program, which pairs registered weanlings donated by ranch breeders, with youth. Jim also established the Lloyd Rypkema Memorial Horse Award, given each year to an area youth, ages 12-18. 

In addition to commercial Angus cattle, the Hunt family raises registered American Quarter horses for ranch and arena use, as well as for their annual production sale. Their seven children, two daughters-in-law and four grandchildren are actively involved in the ranching operation: J. Tom (and wife Sage and their children Jackson and Hanna, and twins, Rebecca and Elizabeth) Jessica, Justin (and wife Erica), Josh, Jordan, Jeb and Jimmie Jean. 

Jim and Joni are very proud of their pioneer heritage, and credit the pioneers who went before them who have made it possible for them to live this life—their parents and grandparents, who survived the Depression, hung on through droughts, grasshoppers, down markets, served our country in the military—setting the example of independence, hard work, sacrifice and service to family and community. 

Thank you so much for this honor, we feel very humbled to be included with the true pioneers that made this area of the country so special. 

Jim A. Reed, known to “Ride for the Brand,” was born with a rope and clippers in his hand. He was born on a ranch near Oshkosh, Nebraska. The Reed family moved often for work while Jim was growing up. Jim graduated high school in Fort Pierre, South Dakota in 1956. He then served in the Navy from 1956-1960 on the USS Bennington. 

Jim started his brand-inspecting career in 1960, serving the Brule, Chamberlain and Winner, South Dakota areas until 1963. In 1964 he went to Wyoming and was the main inspector at both Stockman’s and Torrington Livestock sale barns. In 1974 he went to work for Jim Holloway, taking him the open market in Sioux Falls Stock Yards in South Dakota. Jim was the last inspector, as the inspection program ended there in 1976.  

From there, Jim being born and raised on a ranch, he was ready to go back to that way of life. He worked on a ranch for Mike Madden. When he left there he worked on the S Bar B Ranch at Chinook, Montana, then on to a ranch in Harrisburg, Nebraska. In 1985 Dan Holloway hired Jim to come back to the Black Hills and work as the main inspector at Belle Fourche, St. Onge and Sturgis sale barns, calling Belle Fourche his home. 

In 1992 Jim was appointed chief brand inspector for South Dakota Stockgrowers, which proudly and efficiently served until 2008. Jim worked endless hours on behalf of ranchers and livestock producers, preventing theft and returning animals back to their rightful owners.  

Jim is a Lifetime Member of South Dakota Stockgrowers. He was honored by the South Dakota Stockgrowers in 2001 for his many years of dedication to the cattle industry.  

Jim was the recipient of the 2007 Black Hills Stock Show Agribusiness Person of the Year award. 

Jenner Equipment 

In 1960, Elmer Jenner and his family moved to Rapid City to run a Case dealership for Michelson Equipment. In 1966 they bought out Michelson Equipment and founded Jenner Equipment. The store was located on Creek Drive and Highway 44. Shortly thereafter, Elmer was approached by Melroe to take on the Bobcat Skid Steer Loader dealership.  

Jenner Equipment is unequivocally a family owned business. Elmer’s wife, Alleen helped with accounting and secretarial duties. Their two boys Dennis and Doug grew up working various jobs throughout the business. While there were a few lawn mower races from time to time, some work did get done too.  

In 1978 Jenner Equipment moved to its current location at 3200 Deadwood Ave. just off interstate 90. Deadwood Avenue was sparser back then with the Windmill truck stop being the only other business nearby. Over the years, Deadwood Avenue filled in and Jenner Equipment grew. They were lucky to add some great lines like New Holland and Kubota to their portfolio of manufacturers. All of Doug’s and Dennis’s kids grew up working for the dealership at various points in their lives. There were plenty of coffee breaks with grandpa and even a few times driving grandpa to the parts store before they had their driver’s licenses. In January of 1999 Elmer passed away. His two, boys Dennis and Doug took over the operations of the business. Alleen continued to work a couple of days a week before finally retiring completely around 2012. Alleen lived to the age of 87 and passed away in late 2018. Though both founders of the business are greatly missed, their values and ideals continue on through their family, employees and business.  

In 2018, Doug decided to retire, and Dennis and his two sons, David and Dustin bought him out of the business. Jenner Equipment currently offers Bobcat, New Holland and Kubota Equipment. Jenner Equipment prides itself on after sales service and support. Their success over their first 53 years wouldn’t have been possible without their amazing customers and employees, some of which have been with the business for over 40 years.  

We would like to thank all our customers for their continued support. We are lucky to be part of such a great community. Thank you for helping us make this business succeed. Because of your support we are able to remain, one of the few locally owned equipment dealerships in the area. We look forward to serving the ag community for many more years to come.  

Painter Family 

The Painter family began its ranching legacy on the Little Missouri River in South Dakota back in 1885 when Lewis Levi Painter trailed a herd of cattle with the CY Cattle Company out of Wyoming. The CY headquarters were on the west side of the Little Missouri River. Lewis was the head horse wrangler and homesteaded on the east side of the Little Missouri River, where the ranch headquarters are to this day. In the late 1800s, Lewis registered the brand UT on the left rib for his cattle and to this day the family still uses this brand. 

Lewis married May Bovell in 1902 and had three sons, Joe, Fred and Preston. The Painter sons attended elementary school in a small schoolhouse a few miles north of the ranch headquarters. May was the first teacher at this schoolhouse, resulting in the school being named “Painter School.” 

One of the Painter sons, Joe, attended Black Hills Normal School (presently known as Black Hills State University), where he met Mildred Ellis. The two were married in 1927 after graduation. They moved back to the family ranch, where they had four children: May Ruth, JoAnne, Dolly and Paul. The only son, Paul, dedicated much of his life to work on and growing the family ranch. In 1955, Joe and Paul bought out Preston’s share of the ranch, an expansion that commenced Painters Inc., which still exists today. 

Joe was very active in community programs. He was on the Harding County School Board for many years. He took pride in being a member of the Ladner Lutheran Church and served on the Council. Joe was a member of the Harding County and South Dakota Stockgrowers Association for years, helping in any way he could. He was a director of the Western Junior Livestock Show for many years and the family received an award in his honor for his service. For years, Joe was a Custer Trail Rider and enjoyed the rides in the Black Hills. 

After helping expand the ranch, Paul attended Colorado State University, where he met Marilyn Scott. The two married in 1956 and had four children: Laurie, Cindy, Joe Scott and Judy. Joe Scott’s family remains on the homestead today. Times were tough in those days, but over generations the family managed to buy up several surrounding parcels of land vacated by homesteaders. Paul used to say, “the only survivors were those with a strong back and a weak mind!” Hard work was just a way of life for the Painter family. 

Paul was also active in the community and held many important positions in the organizations he was in. Like his dad, Paul was a member of the Ladner Lutheran Church and was on the Council for many years. He was instrumental in building the new church where it sits today. He was on the Harding County School Board and served as president for years. Paul was also past president and Lifetime Member of the Harding County Stockgrowers and a member of the South Dakota Stockgrowers, as well as a member of the National Cattlemen’s Association. Paul enjoyed riding with the Western South Dakota Buckaroos in Western South Dakota as he was a lifetime member and director. 

Laurie and her family still ranch south of the main place near Harding, South Dakota. Cindy ranches with her husband in Gillette, Wyoming, and Judy and her family operate a horse ranch in Paradise, Texas. 

Like the generations before him, Joe Scott also attended college at BHSU, where he met Cindy Schutt. They were married in 1983 after graduating and had three children: Jessica, Paul Jay and Joey. The family continued to work the family ranch and purchase enough surrounding land to support future generations. Borrowing money at interest rates as high as 18 percent was risky, but the family kept expanding and improving the ranch.  

Paul married LuAnn Evridge in 1975 and they ranched with Joe and Cindy until 1992, when Paul passed away unexpectedly. Joe and Cindy continued to ranch with Luann for several years, until she semi-retired from the ranch and moved to Spearfish to the home that she and Paul had built. Because of Luann’s generosity, Joe and Cindy were able to purchase Painter’s, Inc. 

All of the Painter kids attended Painter School at some point in their life. Lots of fun was had throughout the years as the kids often rode horses or drove snowmobiles to school. The education the family gathered from Painter School led to many academic scholarships and awards throughout the years. The kids all played sports throughout their educational careers: basketball, football, volleyball and rodeo. Joe Scott coached elementary basketball teams at Painter School to give them an early start. The kids all went on to compete for state championships in their various sports. 

The entire family loves to train horses and rodeo. The Paul Painter family was inducted into the South Dakota Rodeo Hall of Fame for Rodeo Family of the Year. 

Marilyn was the very first Miss Rodeo America, back in 1955. Joe won the College Finals Rodeo in the team roping in 1982. Jessica, Paul Jay and Joey al won all-around championships for the Great Plains region in college, along with winning several titles in 4-H, youth, high school and amateur rodeos. Jessica and Joey followed in their dad’s footsteps; they won breakaway titles at the Ntaional College Finals Rodeo. Jessica also won the National High School Rodeo Finals in the pole bending two years in a row. Jessica, Paul Jay and Joey each won an all-around pickup truck and trailer and the Elks Youth Rodeo in Sheridan, Wyoming. The family has lost count of buckles and saddles won throughout the years. Joe Scott jokes about needing to add on a room for all of the prizes because it was getting hard to practice roping in the house next to so many trophy saddles. 

Jessica met her husband, Casey, at National American University in Rapid City. She got her Master’s Degree in business at BHSU, where she was the assistant rodeo coach. The two were married shortly after. They now have two children: Tommi Jo and Trey. They ranch on the original Joe and Mildred Painter place, where the town of Gallup used to be. 

Paul Jay graduated from BHSU and then went to law school in Vermillion, South Dakota. He presently works as an attorney in Louisville, Kentucky. 

Joey met her husband, Taylor Williams, at BHSU. Upon graduation, the two were married. Joey continued to get her master’s in business and the two ranch on the main homestead. They have one son, Landon. 

The family enjoys riding and training horses and takes pride in selling finished rodeo horses each year. During the summer, the ranch hosts team ropings to help season their young horses. When they can get away from ranch work, they are found competing at rodeos, barrel races and team ropings. Cindy enjoys getting to spend extra time with the grandkids while the family competes. The whole crew looks forward to attending the Black Hills Stock Show and Rodeo every winter. 

The ranch today consists of Black Angus cow/calf pairs, grass yearlings, Quarter Horses, sheep and buffalo. The family takes pride in their cattle genetics, so the AI program has grown immensely over the years, as they AI at least 400 replacement heifers and around 175 hand-picked, AI-sired, mature cows. From these, they raise replacement heifers and bulls that are sold to the public and also keep many for themselves to ensure a great herd. 

The family is constantly working on improving all aspects of the ranch, from hay fields to water tanks to stockades. Throughout the years they have built over 50 windbreaks and laid pipe for fresh water tanks in every pasture. They have subdivided or cross-fenced many of the pastures to improve grazing management and practice proper rotational grazing. The Painter Ranch was awarded the Harding County Conservation Family of the Year in 2001. 

Joe and Cindy are a huge part in the community. Joe has served as a county commissioner, South Dakota Stockgrowers director, Harding County Stockgrowers president, Harding County Activities Club president, and Ladner Lutheran Church president. Cindy is and EMT, Sunday school teacher, Community Club officer and both have been on many other committees in the state. The entire family stays active in the community and now the younger generations are stepping up in these places. 

In 1895 the ranch was 160 acres with Lewis Levi Painter. Six generations later, the ranch is over 35,000 acres with an additional 30,000 leased acres providing for three families, and counting.