Community Announcements, Member Updates

Free Public Wi-Fi Hotspots 

Coming to Most Golden West Communities

As part of Golden West’s commitment to keep everyone connected, the company is installing Wi-Fi hotspots in public places and outdoor locations in most of the communities across its service area. The Wi-Fi hotspots will be available to anyone who needs them for free.

“Golden West cares about the communities we serve,” said Golden West CEO and General Manager Denny Law. “During this unprecedented time, the company is supporting these communities by providing internet access to people who currently don’t have broadband services.”

As people practice social distancing, the internet connects family and friends and keeps people informed and safe during the pandemic. The internet also enables remote learning, working, health care solutions and more.

Wi-Fi Hotspot Locations
Golden West public Wi-Fi hotspots are currently active in:

 Allen  Humboldt  Philip
 Armour  Ideal  Plankinton
 Avon  Kadoka  Porcupine
 Bridgewater  Kyle  Potato Creek
 Bonesteel  Manderson
 Reliance
 Burke  Marion  Rosebud
 Canistota  Martin  Scotland
 Colton  Menno  Sharps Corner
 Corsica  Mission  Springfield
 Custer  Montrose  St. Francis
 Dell Rapids  Murdo
 Wall
 Edgemont  New Underwood  Wanblee
 Evergreen  Norris  White River
 Freeman  Oglala
 Winner
 Gregory  Okreek
 Wounded Knee
 Hartford  Parmelee
 
 Hot Springs  Pine Ridge  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Additional locations coming soon.

Golden West will send Wi-Fi hotspot information to newspapers as communities come online, and Golden West encourages everyone to share this information with those who need it. 

Once at a hotspot, visitors should select “Golden West Cares” from the list of available Wi-Fi networks and then launch a browser. No password is required.

 Town  Location  Physical Address
 Allen  Golden West Utility Building  Allen Road
 Armour  Golden West Utility Building  606 Second St
 Avon  Football Field Crows Nest  612 E. 2nd Street
 Bridgewater  Golden West Utility Building  422 E. 3rd Street
 Bonesteel  Football Field Crows Nest  215 Birdsell Street
 Burke  Court House  221 E 8th Street
 Canistota  Football Field Crows Nest  51 W. Ash Street
 Colton  Golden West Utility Building  303 S, Sherman Avenue
 Corsica  Golden West Utility Building  179 S. Pleasant View Ave.
 Custer  Old Hospital Lot  1039 Montgomery  St.
 Dell Rapids  City Swimming Pool  Beach Avenue
 Edgemont  Museum  603 2nd Avenue
 Evergreen  Golden West Utility Building  Evergreen, SD
 Freeman  Baseball Field Crows Nest  Wipf Street
 Gregory  St. John's Lutheran Church  110 W 2nd Street
 Hartford  Christ Lutheran Church  701 N. Main Avenue
 Hot Springs  Butler Park (Near Baseball Field)  S. 14th Street
 Humboldt  Humboldt Community Center   201 S. Main Street
 Ideal  Ideal Presbyterian Church  31204 266th St
 Kadoka  Sports Complex Crows Nest  Old Highway 16
 Kyle  Senior Center  405 Main Street
 Manderson  Golden West Utility Building  Manderson, SD
 Marion  Katie's Malt Shop  301 N Broadway Ave
 Martin  Fair Grounds  Bennett Avenue
 Menno  Total Stop  551 US-18
 Mission  Boys and Girls Club  435 2nd Street
 Montrose  Fire Department  100 Main Street
 Murdo  Golden West Utility Building  116 Main Street
 New Underwood  Community Center  500 S A Avenue
 Norris  Corn Creek Community Center  307 Good Bird Street 
 Oglala  Golden West Utility Building  Governor Avenue
 Okreek  Community Center  1 SE 1st Street
 Parmelee  Parmelee Community Center  212 First Street
 Parmelee  Upper Cut Meat Community Center  28630 Elk Drive 
 Pine Ridge  Billy Mills Hall  Jct Hwy 18 and, SD-407
 Pine Ridge  Sacred Heart Church  40 E Hwy 18
 Philip  Football Field Crows Nest  Pine Street
 Plankinton  Golden West Utility Building  101 E, 1st Street
 Porcupine  Golden West Utility Building  Big Foot Trail
 Potato Creek  Golden West Utility Cabinet  Potato Creek, SD
 Reliance  Fire Department  101 N. 1st Avenue
 Rosebud  Boys and Girls Club  100 Akicita 
 Rosebud  Soldier Creek Community Center  26207 N Iron Rd 
 Scotland  Golden West Utility Building  630 2nd Street
 Sharps Corner  Golden West Utility Cabinet  BIA 2 Porcupine, SD
 Springfield  Swimming Pool  1011 Pine Street
 St. Francis  St. Francis Community Center  108 W. Cherry Avenue
 St. Francis   Golden West Utility Building  225 Oak Street
 St. Francis  Spring Creek Community Center  109 Yellow Hawk Circle 
 Wall  Food Pantry/Parking Lot West of PowerHouse  505 Glenn Street
 Wanblee  Golden West Utility Building  312 1st Street
 White River  Golden West Utility Building  217 East 4th Street
 White River  Horse Creek Community Center  208 Eagle Street 
 Winner  Winner High School  431 East 7th St
 Winner  Winner Housing Building  31653 279th Street
 Wounded Knee  Golden West Utility Cabinet  BIA Hwy 28


Practicing Social Distancing
Golden West also strongly urges everyone to follow the Center for Disease Control’s (CDC) social distancing guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19 at all times, including when using the Wi-Fi hotspots. Visitors should remain in vehicles, when possible, or stay six or more feet away from others. The CDC also recommends using hand sanitizer or frequent hand washing and wearing a cloth face covering. For more information, visit cdc.gov.

Staying Safe on Public Networks
Keep in mind that these are public networks. To protect personal information when using public wireless hotspots, the Federal Trade Commission recommends only sending information to sites that are fully encrypted (have an https at the beginning of their URL), and to avoid using mobile apps that require personal or financial information.

Connecting More People
With proper precautions, these free public Wi-Fi hotspots can connect even more people during this extraordinary time. Golden West will continue to monitor needs as we face the coronavirus together. 

“Broadband internet access is vital to everyone’s overall quality of life,” Law said. “Golden West is committed to connecting rural South Dakotans to the world.”