As COVID impacts TenHaken household, mayor shares experience

It took almost two years – as far as he knows – but Mayor Paul TenHaken now can add himself to the list of those recovering from COVID-19.

“It burned through our house,” said TenHaken, who shared the news during a Facebook Live with his youngest daughter last week.

“Three of us had it. Me and my son quarantined in the basement together, so it was a little bonding time.”

He began developing mild symptoms about two weeks ago, he said.

“I just didn’t feel good one morning, just woke up feeling off … and I’ve been preaching for a year and a half if you’re sick don’t go to work, and that’s honestly the first time I’ve felt sick,” he said. “I thought I would have caught it by now, but I hadn’t.”

His case was fairly mild but involved a loss of taste and smell he hasn’t fully regained yet and the infamous “brain fog” he describes as “very real.”

The mayor worked from his basement, relying on Zoom “without the video” until he was able to return to work.

“I’m glad I was vaccinated,” he added. “Get your vax. We know people who get it are less likely to get it in a bad way and be hospitalized. I still think just the confusion among people is so great, it’s hard to correct at this point.”

He said he is in regular communication with both health systems, which he describes as “very busy but not overrun yet, not what we’ve seen in Minnesota even right next door,” he said, adding he doesn’t anticipate calling for additional requirements or restrictions at this point.

According to the most recent data published by the South Dakota Department of Health on Friday, there were 26,835 active cases statewide and 349 hospitalizations.

“It’s not that the mayor doesn’t think it’s bad. I do. I know the (hospital) census is at record levels, but the nuclear button is a big button to push right now because the community appetite for this is very small,” TenHaken said. “If there was some magic wand we could do to change this, we would, but … we’re at the point of figuring out how we’re going to live with it. I need our residents to start getting a little more comfortable with that reality.”