Roger Kasa, journalist and community leader, has passed away
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HURON — Persistent. Community Pillar. Frustrat-ing. Driven.
These words and many others all fit in describing Roger Kasa, Sr., a monumental figure in the newspaper business in South Dakota and, to his eminent delight, the community of Huron. Kasa passed away Friday at Violet Tschetter Memorial Home in Huron. His obituary, listing his numerous awards and honorariums, can be found at plainsman.com or kuhlerfuneralhome.com. He was 83 years old.
For more than 40 years, Kasa worked at the Daily Plainsman, in a variety of editorial roles. But he was always happiest when he was out covering a meeting, taking in a concert or a ball game, taking notes and preparing to share the story with the readers of the next day’s newspaper. After returning to Huron in 2015, Kasa had faithfully turned in a column most weeks.
And while it is through the newspaper that many became familiar with Roger Kasa, it was through his work in the community that he will be best remembered.
“The power of the pen is a tremendous tool,” said longtime friend, singing partner and fellow community activist Barb Valer, “which can be used for the betterment of man or for its destruction. Roger Kasa chose the former.” Valer said she met Kasa when her family joined Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, where Kasa was the choir director, more than 40 years ago. “I soon found out that he was the heartbeat of Huron,” Valer said. “If you wanted anything done or needed a champion for your cause, he was the go-to guy. Roger’s motto was, ‘The train is moving — either get on board or you’ll be left behind.’”
Deannie LeRoux also worked with Kasa on a variety of events and projects in their five decade friendship.
“Roger was a very wonderful and important part of this community,” LeRoux said. “It would be nearly impossible to list all of the things in which he had a hand. He got me involved and from then on, he presumed that I would be helping him. He was frustrating at times, but I loved him and his wife Ora Lee. He expected a lot from people, but then he always expected a lot from himself too. He was a remarkable man, and I shudder to think what the Huron community would be without his hard work.
Many, if not most, of the projects that Kasa either began or helped nurture involved the youth of the area. He coached Little League baseball and was an avid high school basketball fan. Covering a game was never work for Kasa.
“Roger Kasa was very much a champion for youth sports with the idea that everyone who wanted to play should have the chance to play,” said LaRon Klock, the Parks and Recreation director for the City of Huron. “Many youth baseball tournaments were brought to Huron through Roger’s persistence and time in the announcement booth. He served on the Park and Recreation Board for more than 18 years and was always at the forefront in organizing and developing youth sports programs and facilities.”
Klock noted that it was through Kasa’s tireless lobbying that the baseball fields - which would eventually be renamed Roger Kasa Little League Complex - came to be.
“He was a key player in many organizations including Huron Hockey, Huron Little League, the arts in Huron, Huron Youth Leadership Counsel and so many others … starting several from scratch,” Valer said. “He knew how to bring the right people together to make it all work!”
Rhonda Kludt said she met Kasa when she and her husband Doug moved to Huron in 1985.
“The name Roger Kasa was synonymous with making things happen here when we moved to Huron,” Kludt recalled. He was one of the pillars of our community who simply got things done. His causes were many, yet they all had an overlapping common theme - to make Huron an even better place to call home. Kludt agreed that one of Kasa’s great passions was creating opportunities for youth, as evidenced when he and Shelly Fuller organized the Huron Youth Advisory Council. When he returned to Huron, Kludt said he reached out and said he wished to meet the students in the Youth Leadership Council and get to know them.
She added that on a personal note, Kasa also was very influential in the lives of her daughter Rachel and son Tom. “Both Rachel and Tom were involved with the Youth Advisory Council and Tom had his first job with Roger at the Plainsman. I remember Tom was in middle school when he asked me for a stamp because he had written a letter to Roger Kasa asking him for a job as a writer at the Plainsman. Roger not only gave Tom his first writing job, he gave him a column “Tom Talks” and sent him on his journalistic path. Roger believed in youth and their abilities and gave them opportunities to prove themselves.”
Roger Kasa, right, with the S.D. High School Activities Association’s Distinguished Service Award, presented to him by SDHSAA executive director Wayne Carney, during the 2010 Class “B” Girls’ State Basketball Tournamentt at Huron Arena. PHOTO COURTESY OF SOUTH DAKOTA PUBLIC BROADCASTING
Next, Campbell Park has been the place to be for the past several years, to hear a wide variety of musical entertainment, due mostly to a team of volunteers started by Roger Kasa. FILE PHOTO BY ANGELINA DELLA ROCCO
Huron residents choose their piece of pie during last year’s “Pie in the Park” night at Campbell Park. “Pie in the Park,” traditionally closes the summer-long Thursday evening entertainment, which Roger Kasa helped create. PHOTO BY MIKE CARROLL/PLAINSMAN