John "Jack" Billion (born March 4, 1939,

Minnehaha County, South Dakota Minnehaha County is a County (United States), county on the eastern border of the U.S. state, state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 197,214, making it the state's most populous county. It con ...

) was the 2006

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

candidate for

Governor of South Dakota The governor of South Dakota is the head of government of South Dakota. The governor is elected to a four-year term in even years when there is no presidential election. The current governor is Kristi Noem, a member of the Republican Party who t ...

and served as a Member of the

South Dakota House of Representatives The South Dakota House of Representatives is the lower house of the South Dakota Legislature. It consists of 70 members, two from each legislative district. Two of the state's 35 legislative districts, Districts 26 and 28, are each subdivided into ...

from the 13th district from 1993 to 1997.

Early years

John "Jack" Billion, the second of eight children of Henry and Evelyn Heinz Billion, grew up in what is commonly known as the "North End" of Sioux Falls.

Education

Billion attended elementary and high school in Sioux Falls. He graduated from Cathedral High School in 1957. He received his BA degree from

Loras College Loras College is a private Catholic college in Dubuque, Iowa. It has an enrollment of approximately 1,600 students and is the oldest post-secondary institution in the state of Iowa. The school offers both undergraduate and graduate degree ...

Dubuque, Iowa Dubuque (, ) is the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. At the time of the 2020 census, the population of Dubuque was 59,667. The city lies at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a r ...

and was admitted to the Loyola University Chicago in August 1960. He was awarded his Doctor of Medicine degree in 1964 and began his internship and residency training at St. Francis Hospital in Peoria, Illinois.

Career

After completing his orthopedic residency in 1969, Billion served two years in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...

as a Major. He returned to Sioux Falls in 1971 to begin his

orthopedic surgery Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics ( alternatively spelt orthopaedics), is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and nonsurgical means to treat musculoskeletal ...

practice. He has been active in the Sioux Falls and South Dakota medical communities since that time. Billion practiced as a Board Certified Orthopedic Surgeon from 1971 through 1997.

Political career

In 1992, Billion was elected, along with fellow

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Linda Barker, as one of two South Dakota State Representatives from the

Sioux Falls Sioux Falls () is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into Lincoln County to the south, which continues up t ...

-based 13th District. Billion was re-elected in 1994. In 1996, Billion declined to seek a third term in the State House, instead choosing to run for the State Senate from the 13th District. However, he lost to

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Kermit Staggers by an 876-vote margin. In 2006, Billion re-entered politics and emerged as the Democratic nominee for

in 2006. He selected

Rapid City Rapid City ( lkt, link=no, Mni Lúzahaŋ Otȟúŋwahe; "Swift Water City") is the second most populous city in South Dakota and the county seat of Pennington County. Named after Rapid Creek, where the settlement developed, it is in western So ...

historian Eric Abrahamson as his running mate, but was overwhelmingly defeated in the general election by incumbent

Governor

Mike Rounds Marion Michael Rounds (born October 24, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving as the junior United States senator from South Dakota since 2015. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 31st governor of South Dakota ...

. https://gw.geneanet.org/billion1_w?lang=nl&pz=ivo+lodewijk+johan&nz=billion&p=john+joseph&n=billion

Family

He and his wife Deborah raised seven children. They attend Spirit of Peace UCC in Sioux Falls.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Billion, Jack 1939 births American surgeons American United Methodists Living people Loras College alumni Loyola University Chicago alumni Democratic Party members of the South Dakota House of Representatives Politicians from Sioux Falls, South Dakota Physicians from South Dakota United States Air Force officers