2014 Watertown Winter Farm Show Dedicated to
Deb Sundem
Watertown Winter Farm Show 3
By Terry O’Keefe, Public Opinion Staff Writer
When Deb Sundem retired last January,
she had spent more than a decade and a
half as one of the main forces behind the
Watertown Winter Farm Show.
After 28 years as a home economics
and nutrition educator with the S.D. State
University Extension Service, she stepped
down, but don’t expect her to step away
from the Farm Show any time soon.
“I’m still doing as I always did (at the
Farm Show),” Sundem said Friday.
So visitors to the Farm Show in Febru-
ary can expect to see Sundem as she
works to oversee the home and family ac-
tivities in the old National Guard Armory
next door to the Extension Complex in
Watertown, as well as programs in the
classrooms of the complex.
But this year the Farm Show will hold a
little more special meaning for her.
Each year the Watertown Area Cham-
ber of Commerce Ag Committee, which
organizes the annual event, honors some-
one who has spent years contributing to
its success by dedicating the Farm Show
in their name.
This year, that person will be Sundem.
Growing up on a farm near Garretson,
Sundem graduated from SDSU in 1979
with a double major in home econom-
ics and Extension education. Her first job
out of college was as a home econom-
ics teacher at Sandhills Public Schools in
Dunning, Neb.
Five years later, she joined SDSU Ex-
tension as a home ec agent, now called
educators, for Day and Marshall coun-
ties before coming to Codington County
is 1996.
Right from the start, part of Sundem’s
job was taking care of the home and
family activities during the Winter Farm
Show.
“When I came here, all the home and
family programs and exhibits were done
at the National Guard Armory,” she said.
“The exhibits are still done at the Armory,
but with the new facilities, programs
are now held in the Extension Center
classrooms.”
The exhibits Sundem oversees in the
old Armory include needlecraft, cloth-
ing, foods and food preservation (can-
ning), photography and arts and crafts.
The office areas of the Armory, as well
as the hallway outside, are packed with
fresh-canned jars of colorful fruits and
vegetables, quilts, various fashions
and photos — lots of photos.
“I really have seen, as things have
changed, a lot more photo entries,”
Sundem said. “In 2013 we had right
at 300 photo exhibits.
“And I attribute that to digital
cameras — it just really exploded
the last few years.”
She said the home and family
portion of the Farm Show truly
has something for everyone who
is interested in those types of
activities.
“We have youth and adults cat-
egories, they do not have to be
residents of Codington County
and it’s open to the entire area,”
Sundem said. “In 2013, we had
right around 850 (total) home and
family exhibits.
“We have fewer participants in the
food preservation areas and also
clothing. But we have also seen an
increase in quilting — I think today
there are more and more people doing it
(quilting) as a hobby, a craft.”
Since she has been a part of the Farm
Show, there have been a few more areas
added to the home and family activities.
“We added the farm safety poster con-
test where youth are invited to submit
posters on an aspect of farm safety, which
are then judged and displayed through-
out the show,” Sundem said. “We also
added the youth Lego contest, the honey
contest and ‘adapt-a-recipe’ contest for
more health benefits.
“They’ve really become a part of the
Farm Show tradition.”
She said the chance to mix city and
farm folks through one event is a great
opportunity.
“The Farm Show provides an excellent
opportunity for the Watertown/Coding-
ton County area to salute the ag produc-
ers of our state,” Sundem said. “Having
grown up on a farm, I recognize the love
of the land that farmers and ranchers
have. Their hard work and dedication en-
sure that we have an ample food supply.
“The Farm Show is one way in which
we can say ‘thanks,’ but also extend op-
portunities for the producers to gain fur-
ther knowledge for continued success in
their operations.”
Sundem can point to a lot of things
when asked to name her favorite memo-
ries of the Farm Show.
“One of things I’ve enjoyed most is the
support of the community,” she said.
“With the food contests, the judging of
exhibits — we could not do it without the
volunteers.
“Another is the people I’ve met, the op-
portunities I’ve had to meet new people
because of the Farm Show.”
She said the support of the volunteers
as well as others directly involved in the
Farm Show is critical to its continued suc-
cess as one of the largest annual events
in South Dakota.
“In all my years of the Farm Show, it
hasn’t just been me,” Sundem said. “The
staff of the Extension Center office have
been very gracious in lending assistance
when we needed it.
“And the Chamber Ag Committee does
a fantastic job. Everybody has a job to do
and it just comes together.”
She said when former Extension Ag
Educator Chuck Langer told her she had
been chosen for this year’s show dedica-
tion, it was a huge surprise.
“Yes, I was, I was very surprised,”
Sundem said. “There are a lot of people
who are worthy of this, so it is truly an
honor.”
Public Opinion photo by Terry O’Keefe
The Watertown Area Chamber of Commerce Ag
Committee has announced that the 2014 Watertown
Winter Farm Show will be dedicated to former Cod-
ington County Extension Educator Deb Sundem, right.
Pictured with Sundem are some of the county Exten-
sions staff she worked with over the years before retir-
ing last January. From left are 4-H Advisor Jodi Loehrer,
Deputy Office Coordinator Crystal Neale and Office
Coordinator Becky Goens.
