DeWayne "Skip" Eatheron, 81, was born on June 25, 1942, on the "S" curves while enroute to Sturgis, South Dakota and he died May 9, 2024, at the Fort Meade VA Hospital in Sturgis, SD. He was the youngest of 7 children born to Alma (Wallace) and Robert Eatherton, living in Hereford, SD. After the death of his mom, at the age of 2, he went to live with his oldest sister and her family, until he was 10 yrs. old. He attended the Haley Country school through the 8th grade, all while working on the family ranch.

In June 1960, DeWayne enlisted in the Army and completed his basic training at Fort Riley, Kansas, specializing in heavy equipment and infantry. He then went on for more training at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma. His first and only duty station was located in Germany.

He returned to Sturgis at the age of 20 and was employed at various underground missile sites in western South Dakota. He learned many other trades, like driving heavy equipment, welding, carpentry, and fur trapping (with his older brother).

He met the love of his life, Elma (Lewis) and they married on June 13, 1963, in Wyoming. They made their home in the Sturgis area, welcoming their first child, Brenda, in 1964, and Barbara in 1965, who passed shortly after birth. They moved to Interior, SD, where he worked as a ranch hand. The winter of 1966, they welcomed the twins Betty Jo and Bonnie. Bonnie passed away shortly after birth. Moving to Nisland, SD, to work for a dairy operation, they welcomed Beverly in 1968.

The young family then moved to Wisconsin in the fall of 1969, where they lived for 13 years. He worked at Delmonte and farmed. They made many close friends, calling them family, as their own families were still back in South Dakota.

They returned to South Dakota in 1982, making their home in Belle Fourche, and Buffalo for a few years then settling in Newell. DeWayne took pride in the purchase of their land and home. It was something very special to both he and Elma and it showed with the way he kept the property looking. He went to work for the Belle Fourche Irrigation District in the mid 80's and worked for them until his retirement. Needing to keep busy, he went back to work as a beekeeper and lent a hand to a feed lot operation in Nisland.

DeWayne and Elma moved to Sturgis in 2012, Dewayne was known for frequenting the many places in Sturgis, sharing coffee with various friends and family members.

He always enjoyed fishing. "Drowning the worm", he'd say. He could also be found in his woodshop "tinkering" on different projects. He loved his old pick-ups, "Ol' Green", a 1971 Chevy and, "Ruby", a 1989 Dodge pickup.

DeWayne is survived by his wife of 61 years, Elma, of Sturgis, SD; daughters, Brenda, Betty Jo (Dan) Huff, Beverly Eatherton, all of Sturgis; grandchildren, Rebecca McCusker, Aaron Winchester, NM, Lars Dunavant (Keeley), Larissa (Bridger) Norstegaard, Nick Huff (Cecily), LaNaya Huff (Tobi), SD, Allysa Smith , Tracey Jo and Francies Smith, MS; great grandchildren, Alicia, Sydney, Regan, Nevaeh, Breckin, Mikka, River, Ava, Ronin, Conway, Brixx, Branch, Winter (Winnie), K'Shawn, J'Koriean, J'Kobie, Kaisen, Kinlei, and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Robert and Alma Eatherton; his daughters, Barbara and Bonnie; brothers, Harold (Bud), Albert (Abb); and sisters, Lois, Grayce, Ellen, and Lila.

. Click on the link to view service folder