Lewis & Clark Behavioral Health Services (LCBHS) maintenance supervisor Donna Freng stands
in front of one of the program’s multiple facilities located in downtown Yankton, which houses
LCBHS’s IMPACT program. Freng has worked for LCBHS since 2010.
On Call 24/7
vBy Reilly Biel
Donna Freng is a common face for those that associate with
Lewis & Clark Behavioral Health Services (LCBHS). As maintenance
supervisor, Freng visits each of the five LCBHS-owned facilities - three
located in Yankton and two in Vermillion - on a weekly basis.
During her rounds, Freng checks the building’s security cameras
and makes sure everything is working properly, from the boiler to the
lights. If an apartment has recently been vacated, she is tasked with
cleaning and repairing anything that sustained damage from either
time or the previous occupant.
Prior to joining LCBHS, Freng worked as a contractor, a profession
that led to her garnering enough attention to warrant a HerVoice article
back in 2003.
Freng began her contracting career in 1987 when she resided in the
Volin area. She had previously gotten her start with hard labor at age
18 driving a hot-mix truck for Sioux Falls Construction.
In 1996, Freng joined the Yankton Habitat for Humanity board
of directors and assisted in building several houses. After moving
to Yankton in 1999, she was named construction supervisor for
Habitat and oversaw the work of more homes being created by the
organization.
Meanwhile, she continued her independent contracting work on
the side.
“I got a double garage (when I moved to Yankton), so it evolved into
me having more room to work and being able to build cabinets and
such,” she said.
Freng was able to add the Mead Building to her resume when she
became one of the first people to begin initial cleaning efforts as part of
a project to restore the building and make it into a museum. Clean-up
efforts during her seven years on the job included clearing trees off the
roof and sweeping away dust and animal droppings.
In 2010, Freng began working for LCBHS as the on-site inspector
when remodel work began on the organization’s newly purchased
downtown apartment building, which has formerly been known as
the Hotel Charles Gurney (among other names) and is also known as
the place where Jack McCall was hanged for the murder of Wild Bill
Hickok.
Much work had to be done renovate the facility, from reconfiguring
the hallways to installing a sprinkler system. Freng oversaw it all and
also learned additional building maintenance skills.
“I’d never worked in a building (on this level) until then,” she said.
“I learned about fire systems, boilers and all the different monthly
inspections of fire alarms.”
It took approximately two years to complete renovations on the
complex, which now contains 34 apartment units and 12 offices to
house LCBHS’s IMPACT program.
While the other workers left upon the project’s completion, Freng
found herself staying around to oversee all of LCBHS’s existing
buildings.
“I really evolved into it,” she said. “It works for me at my age since
I’m no longer able to do the type of physical work that I did before.”
Her new job entailed learning the ins-and-outs of each of the
buildings, which includes a lot of small details to remember.
Freng admits she sometimes has to be reminded to do things like
changing a lightbulb, a task which can get lost in the bustle of a day’s
work.
“I come to work thinking I have a plan for what my day is going to
be, and it usually doesn’t pan out like that,” she said. “It depends on a
lot of variables, from the weather to what disaster may have happened
overnight.”
Her duties range from ordering toilet paper for the 116 toilets she’s
in charge of to purchasing a car to be used by LCBHS members.
“I’m all over the place,” Freng remarked.
She is on call 24/7, including weekends, to deal with any
emergencies that come up. The most recent ones involved two fire
alarms being pulled within days of each other. Most often, Freng
is called to let someone back into their unit after they’ve locked
themselves out or to clean up after a water leak.
Due to LCBHS being a nonprofit, Freng occasionally receives
assistance from trustees involving snow removal, mowing and
painting. She also recently hired someone to assist her in her various
duties.
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