Lynn Jackson Legacy

Barbara Jo Anderson Lewis, 68, was born on April 9, 1956, in Rapid City, South Dakota, to Wayne R. and JoAnne Anderson.  She was the second of five children and grew up in town, and then at the ranch in Rapid Valley.  Barb was a helping hand on the ranch, working cattle and putting up hay the old-fashioned way.  She loved sharing stories of riding horses through the grasslands, avoiding snakes, and bonding with her siblings through it all.  When she visited home later in life, she would offer to help her father, Wayne, who always teased, “You forgot everything I taught you and now you talk back.”

Barb’s early education was at White Eagle, a true country school.  She graduated from Rapid City Central in 1974, where she excelled in band and debate.  Barb then attended Black Hills State College, discovering her natural ability to argue and her strong analytical skills.   This led her to pursue law school at the University of South Dakota, where she earned her JD in 1984.

While friends in high school, Barb and Mike reconnected at their tenth high school reunion.  Barb and Mike were married in Sioux Falls on December 21, 1985.  They were blessed with a son, Adam Theodore, on August 7, 1989.

After law school, Barb blazed her path by becoming the first female attorney at the state’s oldest and largest law firm, Woods, Fuller, Shultz & Smith.  On the day Adam was born, Barb broke the glass ceiling by becoming the first woman partner at Woods Fuller. She continued her legal career in Fargo before finally joining Lynn Jackson in Rapid City in 2012, where she practiced until her passing. Barb was known as a tenacious but fair opponent. She was impeccable with her words.  Timeliness and respectfulness were truths she held dear.

Barb was a friend, a colleague, a sister, a daughter, a wife, and a mother.  Her kindness, honesty, and appreciation for life touched everyone she met.  While she took her professional responsibilities very seriously, she always made time to travel, to try new things, and to enjoy the outdoors.  Barb cherished supporting Adam, whether it was through Scouting adventures like the Philmont trek in 2009 and the World Jamboree in 2019 or cheering for him in Taekwondo. She was a longtime member of PEO (serving as President of two different Chapters) and supported the Black Hills Boy Scout Council.  She was also a member of the Central Region Trust Fund Committee for the Boys Scouts of America and the Executive Committee of the BSA Central Region.  Barb served on and was chair of the Westhills Village Retirement Community Board of Directors. She was an avid reader with a voracious appetite for books.

Just as she began to enjoy preretirement activities, such as a European river cruise in 2022 with one of her siblings, Barb started experiencing early symptoms of ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease.  She faced her two+-year battle with the same grit and determination she brought to everything in life, never giving in and embracing every possible activity and treatment; including taking time for an Alaska cruise and a trip to see the New England colors.

Barb died on July 27, 2024, while a resident of Westhills Village Healthcare. The staff there providing incredible support, and her family is forever grateful.

Barb was preceded by the death of her father Wayne R. Anderson. She is survived by her loving and devoted husband Michael; her son, Adam (Jessica) Lewis; her soon-to-be-born grandson, Baby Boy Lewis; her puppy, Misty; her mother, JoAnne Anderson; her siblings Bruce Anderson (Martha), Jill Carpenter (Bryan), and Karen deWit (Damon), Doug Anderson (Kristin), and many nieces and nephews.

A service will be held on Saturday,  August 3, 2024, at Faith Lutheran Church, in Rapid City at 11am, with visitation before and after the memorial service,  In lieu of flowers, a memorial will be established to the ALS Association and Westhills Village. If you have a charity you would prefer, please consider remembering Barb.

Kelton S. Lynn (Kelly), a native of Deadwood, South Dakota, and one of the founders of Lynn Jackson, was an aggressive, imaginative, passionate, and compassionate lawyer, who earned and held the respect of his fellow lawyers, the courts, his clients, and the community. He practiced law with the law firm that bears his name from 1946 until his death in 1976. Kelly was an active member of local, state, and national bar associations, including a stint as a Uniform Laws Commissioner from South Dakota. He also served on many community and civic boards and commissions, including the Rapid City School Board and the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology Endowment Association. Kelly was a “Lawyers’ Lawyer” and has left an enormous legacy to this law firm.

Donald R. Shultz, a Huron, South Dakota native, has anchored the law firm since 1956. Under his leadership, the firm grew from four lawyers in Rapid City to one of South Dakota’s premier law firms, with offices in Rapid City, Belle Fourche, and Sioux Falls. Don served as President of the South Dakota State Bar and as National President of the American Board of Trial Advocates and was a member of many other legal organizations. His steadfastness, friendliness, courtesy, and perseverance were the character traits that his mentoring brought to all members of the firm. Don’s example of love and respect for his fellow lawyer has made congeniality a distinguished hallmark of Lynn Jackson.

Horace R. Jackson joined Lynn Jackson in 1961 after practicing law in Lemmon, South Dakota, and serving as Special Attorney General for the State of South Dakota. Horace was best known for his analytical skills and his ability to comprehend the most challenging and difficult legal and factual issues of a case and translate them into winning strategies for his clients. He represented many clients in condemnation matters throughout South Dakota and the City of Rapid City following the flood of 1972. An avid reader, bird watcher, and perpetual student, Horace was a true renaissance man. He was a guiding light for Lynn Jackson until his death in 1988.

Gene Lebrun, a native of Langdon, North Dakota, came to Lynn Jackson in 1964. His practice grew to include large public and private clients that have remained with the law firm throughout the years. Gene’s love of public service gained him prominence in local, state, and national organizations. He served as Speaker of the South Dakota House of Representatives, President of National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, Chairman of the Board of Westhills Village, Chairman of the Board of South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, and President of the Mount Rushmore National Memorial Society. Loyalty to his family and the law firm, a firm belief in the rule of law, and the principle of freedom and democracy best describe Gene’s philosophy of life.

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Steve was born and raised on a farm near Colton, South Dakota.  He graduated magna cum laude from the University of South Dakota and received his law degree from the University of Minnesota, graduating cum laude in 1990.  Steve began and ended his legal career at Lynn Jackson, first in the Firm’s Rapid City office, where he practiced from 1991 until 2017 when he moved to Sioux Falls and continued practicing out of the Firm’s Sioux Falls office until recently. Steve was a litigator.  He loved analyzing facts and the law, loved hashing them out with others, and he loved trial work, where he excelled.  Steve successfully litigated a number of commercial and personal injury cases, both for plaintiffs and defendants. Regardless of whose side he was on, he zealously advocated for them.  During his career, Steve was given many awards and recognitions, including being named to the list of Best Lawyers in America® in the areas of personal injury, products liability, commercial litigation, and insurance litigation, and being named a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA).

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Haven Stuck, born and raised in South Dakota, was a member of Lynn Jackson’s business and real estate teams since 1975. He specialized in real estate and business transactions and disputes as well as banking and financial services, land use and zoning, and natural resource and agricultural issues. Haven has been selected for many years by his peers for inclusion in Best Lawyers in America, Super Lawyers and Chambers. He has served as board member and chair of many state and local organizations including the South Dakota Investment Council, the Rapid City Area Chamber of Commerce, the Black Hills Area Community Foundation, the Central States Fair, and the Elevate Rapid City Public Policy Committee. Haven also serves on the South Dakota Brand Board, the Rapid City Planning Commission and as Chairman of the Central States Fair Foundation.