On this President's Day, The Courier reflects on George H.W. Bush's visit to Freeman on Feb. 5, 1988. Then the Vice President of the United States, the visit came fewer than three weeks before the presidential primary election — an election he would go on to win before becoming the 41st President of the United States the following January. About 1,200 people (including all Freeman Public students) attended Bush's visit, held inside what was then the Freeman High School gym — today the Freeman Community Center auditorium.

Those photo, taken earlier this year, shows the frozen pond of the Freeman Prairie Arboretum. Frozen is a good word on this day; Sunday morning dawned with a temperature well below zero, with today's highs expected to be around 7-below.

Tracks in a freshly-fallen dusting of snow show a dog on a walk on another below-zero morning — this one Saturday, Feb. 13.

This photo taken by Willard Waltner, who was famous for his photography from the 1950s into the 1980s, is appropriate on this cold stretch of days the region is currently experiencing. Highs are below zero Friday morning and temperatures aren't expected to reach double digits again until the middle part of next week. Lows this weekend will reach more than 20 below zero. The gentleman pictured here checking the thermometer is Herb Waltner, who was an uncle to Larry and the late Dr. Lonnie Waltner. 

The region remains in the deep freeze as the weekend nears, with highs in the single digits at best and lows well below zero. And the worst is still to come; temperatures this weekend aren't expected to get above zero.

Say hello to Courtney Unruh, who took over as CEO at Freeman Regional Health Service on Jan. 1 following the retirement of Nick Brandner. Unruh, a community native who returned to Freeman with her husband, Patrick, five years ago, is the subject of this week's 5-Minute Interview. Read it online later Wednesday and in print tomorrow.

These icicles hanging from the AMPI building near the corner of Main and Third streets illustrate the sharp cold air that has moved across the region. Highs are in the single digits at best and are expected to hover around zero heading into the weekend. It's the first sustained stretch of cold air the community has seen this winter.

The Freeman Middle School/High School is pictured on a bitterly cold but sunny Monday morning — the second Monday of the month. That means the Freeman School Board will be meeting in regular session at 7 p.m. The agenda includes several items of interest, including public input from Chris Sayler on wrestling facilities, a look at the 2021-22 calendar, a report on district reorganization/consolidation, a discussion on the land identified as a possible location for new youth ball fields and a discussion on possible sports cooperatives in cross-country, basketball, volleyball and track.

This is a screen shot from the opening of the most recent Dakota Life episode, which aired from Freeman and featured, in part, the history of Freeman and what the community has to offer. Emily Hofer, pictured here holding a framed photo of her grandfather, Harris Hofer, was one of several from the community interviewed for the program produced by South Dakota Public Broadcasting. It aired the evening of Feb. 5 and can be found online by clicking here.

Directors Betsy Knodel and Martin Sieverding join the cast of "Pandemic" for a photo following the home performance in Menno late last month. Menno is one of 16 Class B schools participating in the State One-Act Festival in Brookings; "Pandemic," a one-act original, is set to take the stage at 11:45 a.m. today. Click here for the livestream.