Buddy Lynn Ireland, 80, of Belle Fourche, SD died from post-surgical complications in his home on September 26, 2026, surrounded by those who loved him most.
He was born in 1946 in Rapid City, SD. He was the 5th child of Theodore and Gerri Ireland. Bud lived his first few years on the Ireland Family Ranch in Martin, SD before his family moved to Folsom, SD where he attended his grade school years. He and his brother Bruce rode horseback to and from school. He spent many hours playing baseball on the Hermosa fields. He loved to hunt and cause shenanigans with his brother Bruce, and he spent a lot of time working for the area neighbors in the Railroad Buttes.
When his family returned to Martin, Bud continued high school in New Underwood, SD residing in the dormitory for the first two years. His junior and senior years he lived with the Tisdale family and spent many hours brainstorming mischief with his buddies Jack Tisdale and Mick Simon. Bud was the quarterback of the New Underwood Tigers football team and played basketball and ran track. He graduated from New Underwood High School in 1964. While in high school he asked Peggy Cox out on a date and over the next six decades took her on many more.
Bud went on to receive his teaching degree from Northern State University in Aberdeen, SD in 1968. He spent his first year as an educator in Rawlins, WY while Peggy was finishing up her last year of college. He talked fondly about his first job teaching math and coaching in Rawlins, but he especially enjoyed fly fishing and hunting. Bud returned home to New Underwood in 1969 when he and Peggy were united in marriage. The two spent their first four years of marriage residing in Rapid City. After their home was destroyed in the Rapid City flood of 1972, they bought a small ranch in Box Elder where they stayed for 50 years. Bud started there with a tree, an outhouse, and a chicken coop, then built his entire place with his own two hands. In 1975 their oldest daughter Kami was born and Lana followed in 1978.
Bud continued his career as a math teacher and student council advisor at North Middle School. In addition to teaching and ranching, in the summers he worked as a mason and carpenter. He received his master’s in education from South Dakota State in 1976. He finished his 36-year teaching career as an algebra teacher at Dakota Middle School where he also coached wrestling and football for the Dakota Nuggets.
Bud’s favorite past times were spending time with his girls and raising cows and horses. Before his daughters were born, he loved heeling steers and roping calves. Later, he spent countless hours in the arena with his daughters opening the chute, holding goats, and helping train barrel and pole bending horses. He loved improving their basketball skills in the barn and could often be found in the gym helping them practice after normal practice was over. He never missed a ball game or a chance to push their calves at a rodeo.
Bud was full of wit and rarely passed on an opportunity to play a joke. From a birthday cake frosted with horse turds to a sheep put in the yard after dark, his friends always knew who was responsible.
Bud was the volunteer South Dakota State High School Rodeo Secretary for fifteen years. He was pivotal in the creation of the original point system and in the building of the New Underwood Rodeo Grounds and hosting of the SDHSRA Finals. He invested a lot of his life in high school rodeo and was instrumental in bringing the National High School Finals to Rapid City.
After Bud retired from teaching, he became a brand inspector for the state of South Dakota. Brand inspecting was another opportunity for him to serve the community while socializing with the agricultural people that he loved. He inspected until his death. Bud was a member of the New Underwood Lions Club, served several years on the Soil Conservation Board, was a past member of the SD Buckaroos, and was a dedicated member of the New Underwood Roping Club. He also spent many weekends running the tractor at his daughter Lana’s barrel racing productions.
He gained the son he never had when Lana married Levi Dacar in 2012. Two years later, his granddaughter Ellie was born. She was the apple of his eye and his partner in crime. He looked forward to weekly card games and shooting hoops with Ellie. He loved to watch her games and rodeo events. He instilled in Ellie her love for his way of life by helping start her own Longhorn herd and gifting her with his best horses.
Bud fulfilled his lifelong dream of finally owning a real ranch when he and Peggy moved to rural Belle Fourche in 2022. He would say the view out of his front window of Terry Peak, Bear Butte, and the Belle Fourche River Valley was beautiful, but the best view was out his back window – where there was nothing but pasture for miles. As his mobility declined, Bud could be found driving his Gator around his ranch to check cows and was rarely seen without his border collie dogs. He loved to put up hay and build and fix things in his shop. He loved to fish and was often out scoping and hunting for elk with his son-in-law Levi. He also loved to ride with his buddy, Caleb, in the Muleshoe Ranch airplane. And two days a week at 7am for the past three years he rarely missed a physical therapy appointment and his chance of being spoiled by the gals he adored at Pain & Movement Solutions.
Bud started ranching from scratch and built everything he owned himself and on his own dime. He was never given anything. He knew the value of hard work and hustle and instilled it deeply in his daughters. He believed in the value behind a handshake, standing up for what you believed, and dishonesty was never considered. He was a phenomenal carpenter and an accomplished horseman and rancher. But he will be remembered most as an incredible husband, father, grandfather, and friend. While his death brings an overwhelming sense of loss for those close to him, his legacy will forever live on in the way he showed them how to live and love.
Bud was proceeded in death by his mother Gerri, father Theodore, brothers Roger, Bruce, Don, and sister Shari. Grateful to have shared in his life are his wife of 57 years, Peggy, his daughter Kami, his daughter Lana and son-in-law Levi, and his granddaughter Ellie Ann all of Belle Fourche; his sister LaWanda Rayhill (Rodney) of Martin, and his beloved Border Collies Ty, Joe, Lyle, and Kate. He is also survived by his sisters-in-law Sandra Cox, Sherry Cox, and Rhonda (Kenny) Egle; brothers-in-law Ed Cox, Randy (Lynelle) Cox, Rick (Katrina) Cox; and many nieces and nephews.
Funeral services will be held Friday, October 2nd at 11:00 am at the New Underwood High School Gymnasium, 300 East Ash Street, New Underwood, SD 57761. A Visitation will be held one hour prior to services at the Gymnasium. A lunch will immediately follow at the Gymnasium. Interment will be at 3:30 pm at Pine Slope Cemetery in Belle Fourche.
In lieu of flowers, a memorial youth scholarship fund will be established. The funeral will be livestreamed and can be viewed on Buddy’s obituary page at klinefuneralchapel.com
Arrangements are under the care of Kline Funeral Chapel of Belle Fourche. An online guest book and video tribute is available at klinefuneralchapel.com
