Celebrating 50 Years of “Cuppy’s Corner”

Readers from across the nation and throughout the centuries old history of small town newspapers may know the tidbits of news as “society columns” or “country correspondence.” But in the Jerauld County area of South Dakota, it’s “Cuppy’s Corner” that has stood the test of time, celebrating 50 years of the column written by Wessington Springs woman Darleen Cuppy.

“I began writing in 1973. Back then, each township had a little article but there wasn’t anyone in the City of Wessington Springs writing at that time. I thought it would be nice there was a little news from town,” Cuppy recalled, referring to the snippets of day-to-day news volunteers would send to the paper from townships and communities nearby. “I probably thought, I’ll do this a few years, I guess. I don’t think I ever imagined I’d do it for 50 years.”

Visits to the doctor and meals enjoyed with neighbors share space with church and sports. Like other columns of this nature published throughout the decades in the True Dakotan, Cuppy’s Corner includes no embellishments or exaggerations, rather it gives readers a peek into the everyday life of Cuppy’s orbit.

In the 1970s when Cuppy began writing her column, the True Dakotan published different columns. As columnists aged and technology created different avenues for people to share their news, the gossip column page continued to shrink in size. When Kristi Hine purchased the paper in 2015, “Cuppy’s Corner” and “Gann Valley News” were the two that remained, with Elaine Wulff penning the news from Buffalo County until 2017.

“I asked Dar if she remembered the conversation we had when I bought the True Dakotan,” Hine said with a smile. “She called me on the phone and said, ‘Well I don’t imagine you’re going to want to publish my news anymore.’ To which I answered, ‘I have no intention of not — please keep sending me your column every week.’”

The conversation between editor and columnist sparked a few laughs and Cuppy didn’t recall the exact conversation but she did remember the sentiment.

“I don’t remember saying that but I thought, ‘why would she want to keep publishing this? Have this old lady still reporting the local stuff,’” she reflected.

Cuppy shared that she receives notes, phone calls and comments regarding “Cuppy’s Corner on a regular basis, while also realizing that this method of sharing her day-to-day information is representative of a time gone by, much like the “party lines” of yesteryear.

“Party lines” refer to a shared service line for the telephone, also known as a local loop telephone. Phone providers utilized these multiparty lines to connect many homes to the same telephone line at a time when the supplies needed to install a telephone system were expensive and difficult to obtain. Rural areas were where they were most utilized.

Cuppy explained that party lines provided no privacy. They were frequently used as a source of entertainment and gossip, as well as a means of quickly alerting entire neighborhoods of emergencies.

“People could ‘rubberneck’ that’s what we called it. That was a big way the news was spread back then,” Cuppy said.

Now active on Facebook and well aware that social media is the “party line” and “gossip column” du jour, she still sees value in writing her column.

“I have people who say to me they look forward to Cuppy’s Corner,” she shared. “Now there is Facebook. We know things progress and it should. It’s just a different time. I enjoy Facebook but I look forward to the True Dakotan every week and people tell me they also look forward to my news.”

When asked about her writing process, Cuppy pointed to her daily planner, filled with detailed notes inside the boxes for every day of the week.

“First thing I do — and I have to do it pretty quick — I put it on my planner. I also put in school and sporting events that I watch on 382 — boy do I enjoy watching school sports on that school channel. Having my great grandson Brock (Krueger) on the team makes it fun,” she said. “Then for my closing each week I use a positive saying that I get mailed to me from my daughter Cindy Zenk’s mother-in-law Judy. She sends cards with dozens of the sayings I can use.” Reflecting on the past 50 years, fond memories of her late husband Howard rise to the surface, including how she, an Alpena High School alumna, met her husbandto- be who attended Wessington Springs High School through 4-H.

In addition to raising eight children with her husband, she also ran “Auntie Dar’s Day Care” for 30 years while operating a cake decorating business on the side for three decades.

“Back then, I’d write my column late at night after I finished decorating cakes,” she remembered, adding that she was also active in the extension club and along with a group of other local women, performed the “Singing Flag” across South Dakota for many different occasions. “I’m 90 years old now and don’t do all that much. Looking back, I think, ‘I did all that?!’” In addition to writing her column, Cuppy continues to stay quite busy with birthday correspondence with her 47 great grandchildren.

“I send a card to each and every one of them. The little ones I give a dollar for a treat and I also fill the card with balloons and stickers,” she said. “I feel they enjoy it and I enjoy doing it.”

Hine said that Cuppy’s column is an example of how small town newspapers play such an important role when it comes to community cohesion.

“We cover everything from government to high school sports to local events. It’s peeling back the layers and truly telling the community’s story. Without the local newspaper, there’s no one to tell that story. And the stories that Dar shares are an important part of what makes community newspapers so unique.”

After 50 years, Cuppy recognizes that the day-to-day offers more in the way of community connection than sensational news.

“I think people think it’s kind of a special memory type thing more than flashy news, a comforting column. Like I say, there are people who say they enjoy it in the paper and it is fun to hear that,” she said. 'One time I received a note from a guy who said, ‘Dar, I missed your Cuppy’s News lately. I especially missed knowing what you had to eat that day, it always makes me hungry.’” Hine said she is delighted that Cuppy has every intention of continuing her column into the future.

“As long as the marbles are working,” Cuppy said as she tapped her head with a smile. “Otherwise, someone will need to say, 'Grandma Dar, I think we had better quit this.’ But I feel good for 90 years old. None of us know what tomorrow brings but I’ll keep writing as long as I’m able.”