Welcome to this issue of Elevate, where we’re looking at all the Mayoral candidates as people, not as politicians. You’ll get so much of the political stuff in the next few months, we decided to take a different approach. Yes, we’re here to remind you to get out and vote on June 6th for Mayor, City Council, and School Board. And that elections matter. But we’ve also decided to play to our strengths, to do what we have always done, and to tell stories. Hopefully, when you’ve finished this issue, you’ll get a better sense of who these candidates are as human beings. Click here to view the full issue.
Editor's note: Candidate profiles will be released once each day, in ballot order. Elevate Rapid City does not endorse candidates, and order does not indicate any preference. Rapid City's election will be June 6. Head to Vote Black Hills and pledge to vote today!
Meet the Candidate: Ron Weifenbach
Ron Weifenbach loved his childhood.
He grew up on the south side of Rapid City spending his summers at the Robbinsdale Swimming Pool and his winters on the iced over rink near South Middle School. He scoured the neighborhood asking for pop bottles to trade in for money he used to buy candy at Remphere’s, the local drug store.
“I loved growing up in Rapid City. My dad had a hard time keeping jobs, so we didn’t have a lot of money, but we didn’t know that.”
Weifenbach’s parents worked hard to provide what they could for their four kids.
Looking for new job opportunities, Weifenbach’s dad moved the family from Aberdeen to Rapid City in 1970. His dad sold vacuum cleaners and microwaves, the hottest new technology at the time. His mother, who immigrated to the United States from Germany in 1959, worked as a bartender. Weifenbach’s parents met in Kaiserslautern while his father served in Germany with the U.S. Army.
Weifenbach’s maternal grandparents died early, leaving his mother to be raised by a high-ranking German police officer. “My grandfather was a medic in the German Army. He was forced to fight. After the war they sent them to Romania to fight. He goes and never comes back.”
The family recently discovered he was held captive by the Russians for two years before being brought out to a field with 2,000 other soldiers and shot. “My sister found his grave in a small town in the Czech Republic. There was a cross with three names and the same date in 1947.”
With his grandfather gone, his grandmother took over the day-to-day responsibilities with the household. While gathering sticks for the fire one day, she was shot and later died of her injuries.
Weifenbach’s parents started their family in Germany, moving to his father’s hometown of Aberdeen in 1959 and later to Rapid City.
Weifenbach graduated from Central High School in 1980 and headed to National Guard training. He joined the Guards as a senior in high school and served until 1987. “That is what really started off my commitment to community and helping other people. It just grew from there.”
He got a job working at the Lewis Drug in the Rushmore Mall, which is where he met his wife of nearly 40 years, Penny. The couple married and had two daughters, Nicole and Brittany. Weifenbach continued managing other drug stores in the city while going to Black Hills State University for business and accounting. “I was working full time, going to school and had a young family. I was just trying to make a living and pay for my education at the same time. I took me 10 years to get my degree, but I got it.”
He then earned his master’s in business from Chadron State College in Nebraska. He worked for different financial institutes before starting Premier Home Mortgage with a few other local businessmen.
His first inclination to run for public office came during his time coaching for his daughters’ sports teams. I learned a lot about the challenges that people encounter. “I was coaching young girls and everything we did was harder than what I would see with my counterparts who had boys.”
With his daughters grown, Weifenbach decided to run for a seat on the Rapid City Common Council. “I was definitely naïve. I had no idea about politics. I didn’t even make it out of the shoot my first election. I think it took me two or three times to get elected.”
Weifenbach, however, did not give up knowing he had something to give to the community. He eventually got elected and served a total of four, nonconsecutive, terms. “Everybody has assets. I feel like mine is the ability to get results. I felt like I contributed a lot to the community.”
He also learned a lot about the community he loves and the people that make it great.
“I love Rapid City. I’ve been all over the world. I don’t think I can find a better place. The people here are welcoming and compassionate. We really do a lot of things right.”