Veterans harvest honey with beekeeping organization

RAPID CITY, SD (KOTA) – Last year, South Dakota produced 18.4 million pounds of honey and was ranked second for honey production. Hives for Heroes was responsible for 110 of those pounds.

The non-profit organization set to work on Saturday to harvest honey for the year, hoping to improve on last year’s numbers. Unfortunately, with such a hot summer in the Black Hills area, the numbers were unlikely to match.

“This year we had queen problems in the spring and we didn’t get any brood build-up and then it was back to the heat, no nectar flow, they brought in some pollen, but we just didn’t get brood build-up. brood we should have this year. It’s not just a local thing right here in the bee yard. It’s all over. It’s been a terrible year for bees,” said Slim Buckley of the Rapid City Parks Division.

Buckley has hives at home and said problems have occurred in his hives as well as those of others he knows.

This is the second year for the Hives for Heroes organization. The nonprofit is nationwide and focuses on sustainable conservation. Mentors are paired with veterans to teach them the art of beekeeping. Brian Maschino is a beekeeper in Sturgis and oversees the Rapid City project.

The collection began at the beehives located behind the Parks Maintenance Unit in Rapid City, the group geared up and began collecting the honeycombs that held the honey. Then they took what they gathered inside to keep the bees out. From there, they were able to extract the honey and bottle it.

Aleta Leeknect has been working with bees for three months and said it started as a way to get out of the house during the day before the night shifts. She said she not only learned about bees and what they do, but also about herself.

“I learned a lot about how to control your own emotions, I think. Bees really feed off of your energy, so I get into this issue a lot. I know ahead of time that I have to do that self-meditation aspect and calm down before I approach the bees so they can’t pick up that energy,” Leeknect said.

Buckley said working with the program is just one way he could give back to veterans, and that without the help of donations from the City of Rapid City and community members, it wouldn’t be possible.

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