CNA-SS-03-26-2015

Our Educators View this Section Online at www.crestonnews.com/eEdition

Pete Nett Jane Briley Barb Gerber

2 3 5

Linda Caviness Lee Klug Mindy Oswald

7 9 10

Photo page Lori Hefflefinger Gary Smith

12 13 15

Robert Peinelt Dick Stephens

17 19

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Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

Writing in all sorts of places

Southwest Valley English teacher Pete Nett published a young adult novel, “Dream Season,” on Amazon Kindle, a form of e-book.

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By BAILEY POOLMAN

CNA staff reporter bpoolman@crestonnews.com

CORNING — Writing takes many forms, and for Pete Nett, it’s young adult fiction.

Nett, 57, published a young adult novel on Amazon Kindle, a form of E-book. The book, “Dream Season,” takes place during a high school junior’s basketball season.

The teenager’s team gets a new coach, and the story follows the team’s remaining season.

“I fictionalized some of the day-to-day things that were going on during the school year I was writing it, and then I also stole a couple stories from my school days and embellished them,” Nett said. “I originally wrote that novel as a New Year’s resolution in 2001.”

Dream Season “Dream Season” came about in 2001. Nett wrote journal-like entries based on day-to-day activities, even using dates of real school events as the backbone for the timeline. He entered the novel in a young adult novel contest that same year, but did not get it published until 2013.

“After setting it aside for a decade, I revised it and updated it the summer of 2012 before putting it on Ama-

Contributed photo

Pete Nett, front left, hunches over during a family photo with his daughter, front middle, Chelsea, wife Andrea and son Caleb, back.

zon,” Nett said.

Nett self-published through Amazon Kindle.

He said he has no plans for a sequel, even though the possibility is out there since the main character was a junior in high school.

“The book is very much narrator-driven, and when I re-read it after setting it aside for that long, it wasn’t difficult to get back into the context of that kid and what he would expect to have happen, and how he would present it on paper,” Nett said.

Nett said he and his wife Andrea were working on books at the same time, and his family was supportive of him continuing with the book.

“My wife and kids have always been tremendously

supportive when it comes to anything like this I try. ... My wife Andrea is a far more accomplished and prolific writer than I am,” Nett said. “She is happy for the attention I’ve gotten from ‘Dream Season.’ ... To be honest, once I finished the rewrite, I just wanted it gone; Amazon self-publishing wasn’t around when I started the book, but it is now, so I went that route.”

Teaching Nett said he prefers working with the students on their pieces of writing for speech contest because it’s more task-driven.

“I enjoy helping kids develop pieces for their entries for speech contest. I enjoy editing other written works into scripts that I use for group

speech contest,” Nett said.

“In that regard, most of the writing I do now is task-driven; there is a dilemma posed by an outside force, and I get to create or help create something to solve the problem.”

As a speech coach, he found the end result of the work involved in each kid’s journey as satisfactory.

“One of the most satisfying parts of being a speech coach is being involved in that gradual transfer of ownership of the piece from ‘mine’ to ‘theirs,’ and watching some kids truly embrace that responsibility,” Nett said.

“Watching those products at state contest is pure delight.”

Even as an English teach-

Contributed photo

“Dream Season” is the book Pete Nett, Southwest Valley English teacher and speech coach, published several years ago after having written it in 2001. The book focuses on a high-school junior in the midst of his basketball season.

er at Southwest Valley High School, writing has had an impact on Nett’s life.

“I talk in the senior dual-enrollment class a lot about rhetorical stance — the attitude the writer has toward the subject matter. In my own writing, I generally find it easier to establish the ‘stance’ that I am looking for in first person (voice),” Nett said.

Background Nett grew up in Wisconsin.

He earned a bachelor’s

degree from University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, in Wisconsin before attending Iowa State University in Ames.

He earned a master’s degree from Iowa State in English composition.

Nett has been teaching high school students in southwest Iowa for 30 years.

He and his wife Andrea teach English at Southwest Valley High School in Corning. They have two children, Chelsea, 25, of Chicago, Ill., and Caleb, 23, of Bear, Del.

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Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

3A

Technology improves Briley’s teaching strategies, research for hobbies

By JAKE WADDINGHAM

“I learned a lot about the students and how you have to work one-on-one with them to really get into the skills they need. I have noticed that as a regular education teacher too, I am doing more one-on-one work with those kids.”

CNA associate editor jwaddingham@crestonnews.com

AFTON — Self-described as being part of the first group of “techies” because of her background in genealogy, East Union’s Jane Briley has watched technology bring a wide variety of resources to her students.

Smart boards and swivel cameras have changed the way she presents lessons in the classroom. Student textbooks are in PDF format and they can drop off their assignments online with Google Drive.

With more than 30 years of teaching experience, Briley is still learning new ways to be effective in the classroom. In addition to her role as a middle school math teacher, Briley covers the middle school special education classes at East Union.

“I learned a lot about the students and how you have to work one on one with them to really get into the skills they need,” Briley said. “I have noticed that as a regular education teacher too, I am doing more one on one work with those kids.”

Briley said the improvement in technology has happened quickly.

When she worked as a technology instructor at Orient-Macksburg (19992004), the school district was just starting to update their computer lab for students to use.

Today, every student in

— Jane Briley

East Union middle school math and special education

Contributed photo

Jane Briley, right, gives a tour of Creston’s restored depot to former Lt. Gov. Patty Judge.

her math class has access to a tablet to help complete their assignments.

Genealogy When people first started to dabble with the internet, Briley said some of the first computer programs were geared for genealogy.

She was the first webmaster for Union County’s www. usgenweb.com site that pro-

vided free records for people online.

“Almost all our members that I have met are really into technology,” Briley said. “It has not been a major learning curve for most of us because we have been doing it for so long.”

The internet has also sparked a renewed interest in family lineage. Briley and the Union County Gene-

alogical Society provide a beginner-friendly course to help show new genealogists where to find key initial information and records.

They cover online sources and how to search for records in courthouses and libraries.

“We are trying to get a website for the Union County Genealogical Society that is password protected,” Bri-

ley said. “Our members can pay a fee and have access to records they wouldn’t be able to get other than book form. Hopefully by the end of this year we will have a good start on it.”

Briley has traced most her own family back to the 1700s, with two individuals who came from overseas.

She said her goal is to go

Tracing her family tree

visit the hometowns of her ancestors in Ireland and Sweden.

Another project Briley and the Union County Genealogical Society worked on was putting signs up at all the cemeteries in Union County. They also walked the cemeteries, making sure the records were accurate and adding any new burials to the records.

“Just recently, we have been able to republish the Please see BRILEY, Page 4

10th

Jane Briley has traced most her own family back to the 1700s, with two individuals who came from overseas. She said her goal is to go visit the hometowns of her ancestors in Ireland and Sweden. Briley also has an ancestor who fought in the American Revolution.

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Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

BRILEY: Continued from Page 3A

Afton Cemetery book,” Briley said. “The main reason we were able to do that is they keep all their records on computer now.”

Historian Briley’s education career started in Clearfield.

One of the topics they covered in elementary social studies was the Mormon Trail.

At that time, a group of historians was making a push for the counties involved with the Mormon Trail to gather information and help re-enact the journey for the 150th anniversary of the event.

Briley started attending the county meetings to learn more details to share with her students and got hooked. She is now the secretary for the Iowa Mormon Trail Association.

Bob Brown, who owns the land around Mount Pisgah in Union County, said his experience working with Briley and the Mormon Trail Association has been a rewarding and great learning experience.

“We promote tourism across southern Iowa along the trail,” Briley said. “We collect history, stories about people that were on the Mormon Trail and then we try to set up activities or more tourism

Contributed photos

Above, Jane Briley spends a lot of her free time doing genealogy research for her family and teaching others how to find information and leads. This tombstone is of Briley’s ancestor, Matthew Burress of Ribolt, Ky. He fought in the Revolutionary War. Right, Briley went to Tennessee for a Rugles family reunion to meet some of her distant living relatives and visit the cemetaries where some of her family members are buried.

related functions at those different places.”

At a history symposium in Des Moines, Briley helped present local information about the portion of the Mormon’s trip through southwest Iowa to historians from across the nation.

“Our little Union County group — we had four or five people that were working on the history from here — they asked us to speak,” Briley said.

“I was excited about it because some of the information we gave, a college historian for the Mormon Trail from Illinois came up to us at the end and wanted our information.”

Briley is still called to give presentations about Mormon History and helps organize events and tours at Mount Pisgah.

“Her commitment is great,” Brown said. “She has helped talk to people about the Mormon Trail.

She is a special person.”

Briley has also served as the president of the Union County Historical Society and still volunteers for the group during her summer vacation.

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Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

5A

Mount Ayr counselor renovates antique home in Lenox After buying the house that had been in her family for four generations, Barb Gerber worked to restore it to its former Victorian glory and open it for events.

■

By IAN RICHARDSON CNA staff reporter irichardson@crestonnews.com

MOUNT AYR — Barb Gerber likes to see progress. And it shows.

A self-proclaimed “workaholic,” Gerber spends her weekdays teaching at Mount Ayr and her nights and weekends working at the Heritage, a Queen Anne Victorian house that has belonged to four generations of her family since its construction 110 years ago.

Since purchasing the house in 2008, Gerber and her husband, Tim, have put years of hard work into renovating it, and it’s a place they find themselves—like any true doit-yourself-ers—constantly finding ways to improve.

Hide-and-seek—in the casket room Lenox resident Samuel Wainwright built the Heritage for his family in 1904.

Samuel’s wife, Anne, was Barb’s great-great-grandmother’s cousin.

In 1922, while Barb’s grandparents were living in the house, they turned the first floor into a funeral home, keeping the second floor as a living space for the family. It would remain a funeral home for the next 86 years.

Barb grew up two blocks from the Heritage, and she

fondly remembers when she and her friends would play inside her grandparents’ home.

“We had this whole entire house, which is 5,000 square feet, as a playground,” Gerber said. “My friends and I would come here on a rainy day, and we would play hide-and-

“We had this whole entire house, which is 5,000 square feet, as a playground.”

— Barb Gerber Contributed photo

seek in the casket rooms.”

As a child, Barb had always dreamed of owning the house. Seven years ago, when she learned the home was for sale, she realized her dream of owning it could finally come true.

“All these dreams that had been about 25-26 years ago—they just opened up,” she said.

Barb considered her options and talked it over with Tim, who agreed to make the move from the Cedar Rapids area to Lenox.

“We bought it with the idea of opening it to a fine dining facility and restoring it to as close as what we

The Heritage house has been in Barb Gerber’s family for four generations. Originally built in 1904 for the family of her great-great-grandmother’s cousin, her grandparents turned it into a funeral home in 1922. It continued to be a funeral home until she and Tim bought it in 2008 and began renovations.

assumed it would be at the turn of the century,” Barb said.

After laying hardwood floors for 27 years, Tim had been diagnosed with stenosis of the spine, a narrowing of the vertibrae which damaged the nerves that give feeling to his feet.

It sent him into early retirement at the age of 42.

But the new house would give him an opportunity to channel his other interests.

The “gold mine” under the carpet Barb’s grandfather had made some modifications to the house while he lived there, like covering the hardwood floors with horsehair carpeting and

Please see GERBER, Page 6A

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“We moved to a home where we could create something where he could utilize his other many talents,” Barb said. “His love and mastery of the grill, enchanting personality and supporter for my dreams guided us here to Lenox.”

Barb applied for a position at Mount Ayr and was hired as a home economics teacher. She then moved down ahead of Tim to begin her job.

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6A

Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

GERBER: Continued from Page 5A

Barb salvaged woodwork from another house and restained it to replace the former woodwork.

And when she pulled up the multiple layers of carpet, she discovered a patterned hardwood floor that Tim recognized as a “gold mine.”

Underneath the decades-old layers of carpeting, varnish and wax was a floor made of cherry, maple and oak. Each room had a different pattern, and the look of the floor changed depending on the angle of the light.

Tim worked to restore these floors back to their original splendor—a difficult, but worthwhile, job.

“I came down on the weekend and started sanding and finishing,” he said.

“The hard part was to sand it down because they had years and years of varnish and wax. You have to get

it all off to make it equal.”

The Gerbers continued their work, installing chandeliers, replacing windows and hanging sheet rock.

The renovations on the lower level took more than a year.

Now, groups come from all over the state—and some from out of state—to hold events at the Gerber home, ranging from wedding receptions to birthday parties to murder mysteries. As it turns out, fine dining plays well into the skill set of a home economics teacher and a man who passed his University of Iowa bartending class with flying colors.

“She’s a great cook, and I like to socialize with people, so it all works together,” Tim said.

Another dream come true While Barb is living one childhood dream as the owner of her family’s an-

“She’s a great cook, and I like to socialize with people, so it all works together.”

— Tim Gerber

tique house, she is living another by being an Iowa teacher.

After graduating from college, Barb taught in Kansas City, but left after a year to move to Iowa, where she found a teaching job in Ogden.

While in Ogden, she met Tim, and they married in December 2005. Barb moved to Lenox in 2008 to become a home economics teacher, and two years later she also became an elementary counselor. She said her position gives her a unique opportunity to work with multiple age

CNA photo by IAN RICHARDSON

Barb Gerber stands in one of the dining rooms of the Heritage, which she renovated seven years ago. The hardwood floors beneath her feet are made of cherry, oak and maple wood. These floors are original to the house and were restored by her husband, Tim, who worked in the hardwood floor business for 27 years.

groups.

“Honestly, I just love the kids,” Barb said. “To watch them go from kindergarten all the way up to being a senior is not something everyone gets to do.

I really look forward to that.”

And as she teaches the kids in the classroom, the same skills that helped her renovate the Heritage help her encourage her stu-

dents.

“I try to get the kids to be able to visualize,” she said. “Then you have to just really work.”

And if her students’ vision and hard work turns out anything like their teacher’s, soon they’ll be achieving their dreams, too.

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Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

7A

Running under the stars O-M teacher pulls community together to support a student’s battle with cancer

By JAKE WADDINGHAM

CNA associate editor jwaddingham@crestonnews.com

ORIENT — When the going gets tough, Linda Caviness keeps going.

And going, and going for 26.2 miles to prove to her students, athletes and coworkers that anything is Caviness possible if you set your mind to it.

So when an Orient-Macksburg student started a long battle with a rare soft-tissue cancer, Caviness hit the ground running — literally and figuratively — to support the Orient family.

“Linda is a great asset for the Orient-Macksburg school district and the town of Orient,” said Bill Huntington, a former O-M coach and teacher. “She is a tireless worker who is always willing to take on any task to ensure that students are successful.”

Caviness has taught at O-M for 21 years, starting her career in the preschool before switching to first grade in 2006. She has also worked as an assistant coach in little league baseball, track and cross country.

“I was very blessed to have Linda as an assistant coach during track and cross country while at O-M,” Huntington said.

“We had a great run for Huntington m a n y years with conference championship teams in both sports, state qualifying teams and multiple runners qualifying for state. Linda was a big part of that success.”

She first met the Cruz family while taking a class for expecting mothers.

Susan Cruz and Caviness were both expecting their first child.

Soon after, Susan starting working for the school district as Caviness’s classroom aide. The duo was frequently paired together to host class parties for their children and spent a lot of time together at sporting events to cheer on the Bulldogs.

“She always wants what is best for the kids,” Susan said. “She would push them pretty hard to do their best because she knew they could do it.”

Brittany Brittany Cruz was a spry sophomore who loved playing volleyball and dancing.

On Feb. 24, 2012, she was

Brittany Cruz, center, sits with her family in their home in Orient in 2012.

Family friend Linda Caviness helped fundraise to support the Cruz family.

CNA file photo

practicing for the Bulldog’s dance team when Brittany noticed a bump on the back of her thigh.

“I thought she had just hurt it,” Susan said during an interview in June 2012.

“It was like a softball on the back of her thigh. We went to the ER in Creston and at first they thought it was a hematoma (broken blood vessels) from an injury, but they told us to follow up with our doctor.”

An MRI indicated a growth on Brittany’s leg which was later diagnosed as high-grade differentiated sarcoma. The soft-tissue cancer is usually found

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in adults, but rare for a 14-year-old, according to doctors at Children’s Specialty Clinic at University of Iowa Hospitals.

Brittany started chemotherapy three months later and had two surgeries to remove cancerous spots.

Radiation treatments were delayed because of her age and because the chemotherapy was reducing the size of the spots.

For almost two years, Susan and her husband Louis shuttled Brittany back and forth from their home in Orient to Iowa City.

Back in Orient, Cavi-

ness helped organize several events to help bring the community together to provide emotional and financial support for the Cruz family.

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“It helped a lot,” Susan said. “We were able to stay in Iowa City with Brittany and not have to worry about one of us going to work to pay the bills.”

Caviness set up a tip night at Pizza Ranch in Creston and a silent auction and dinner in Orient.

She started a campaign called “Blue for Brittany” on social media, providing updates on Brittany’s condition and upcoming events.

“I just wanted to let Susan know I was there for her,” Caviness said. “Brittany’s favorite color was teal (blue). I asked people on Facebook to change their profile pictures to blue to show Brittany we were supporting her.”

Brittany was enrolled in the Make-A-Wish Foundation and was on track to have her wish fulfilled to

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Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

CAVINESS: Continued from Page 7A

visit Disney World. Before she could make the trip, Brittany passed away Jan. 14, 2014.

“Brittany did get her wish granted, but unfortunately she was not able to use it,” Susan said. “That money went to grant a wish for another child in Brittany’s honor.”

Running in her memory Caviness said she does all of her training for fun, but had set a goal to beat her time from the 2013 IMT Des Moines marathon.

While training for the 2013 marathon, she had injured her ankle while walking her 150 pound dog. The injury limited her training, hindering her race.

“I do this to help motivate the kids,” Caviness said. “When I tell them about (my races), I hopefully inspire them to do better in their practices and their races.”

When she crossed the finish line for the 2014 IMT Des Moines marathon, she was a full hour ahead of her previous finish.

Caviness maintained that fitness, running the Chocolate Charity run for cancer research Nov. 15 in Des Moines. Then she doubled up on races Nov. 22, conquering the challenging seven-mile cross country course at Living History Farms in the morning and the Make-A-Wish

Foundation 3.5-mile run that evening in memory of Brittany.

“That type of commitment to young people speaks volumes about her character and her passion for student success,” Huntington said.

Caviness said it was a special moment getting to run under all the stars with the names of children who have had their wish fulfilled, but have passed away. Caviness helped make sure Brittany’s star would be included with the others, since Brittany’s wish was granted, but could not be fulfilled.

“She (Caviness) is just a very caring person,” Susan said. “When a family is having trouble, she steps CNA photo by JAKE WADDINGHAM in and tries to help out as Orient-Macksburg first grade teacher Linda Caviness hangs her medals and bib numbers on her classroom wall to much as she can to help.” show her students how hard work and committment can accomplish difficult tasks.

Currently, Caviness “Linda is a great leader running and friends like leads a workout group of because she is always will- the Cruz family thankful teachers after school for strength and conditioning. ing to spend her time with their daughter’s memory Quick Service! Low Prices!

McKenzie Wallace, us,” Wallace said. “She is will continue to live forevO-M’s agriculture instruc- like a drill sergeant. She er because of friends like Caviness. tor and FFA adviser, regu- never lets us quit.”

That never-quit mental“It is not just a school, it larly attends the workouts ity is what keeps Caviness is almost like another fami- The Creston News Advertiser with Caviness. ly,” Caviness said.

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Susan Cruz, left, and Linda Caviness wear shirts that say they are “sisters.” Caviness helped fundraise money for Cruz’s daughter Brittany while she battled soft tissue cancer.

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9A

Klug: Well-traveled trucker turns beloved bus driver Whirlpool Corporation

By IAN RICHARDSON CNA staff reporter

irichardson@crestonnews.com

In over 40 years as a truck driver, Lee Klug carried his cargo a combined 4 million miles without an accident. But for the past 14 years, he has taken to transporting more precious cargo: Creston school children.

It’s been nearly a decade and a half now since Klug began busing children for the Creston School District. During that time, his commitment to care for his vehicle and the kids who ride in it have made him a favorite in the eyes of his students and coworkers alike.

Klug grew up on a farm in DeSoto, Iowa. After serving in the Navy from 1956 to 1960, Klug began working as a truck driver for Schneider Transport, based in Green Bay, Wis. He would continue there until 2001. Through his job, he traveled to all 48 contiguous states and Canada.

One day, while passing through Creston, Klug stopped by King’s Restaurant, which was located where The Windrow is today. While eating there, he met a waitress named Melinda. As time went on, he made it a point to stop

by King’s when he passed through Creston in order to see her.

Klug moved to Creston

in 1970, and in 1974 he and Melinda were married.

After working 70-hour weeks for decades, Klug said the idea of driving a bus for a few hours a day for Creston Schools sounded like a nice change of pace. He heard about the job from some friends and, after retiring from trucking in 2001, joined the team.

“I knew some guys who did it, and they told me when I retired they’d give me the job,” Klug said. “It beats the rocking chair, definitely.”

With about 25 students on his route, which extends northwest of Creston, Klug said he gets to know them pretty well over time.

“I got a pretty good bunch of kids,” he said.

One of the fun things he likes to do for the students is bring treats on special days. Around Christmas, he brings them boxes of candy, and on Easter he brings chocolate bunnies.

He also tries to catch the students’ birthdays and bring them something special as well. Kindergarteners have even been known to get a $5 bill slipped into their gifts.

Bob Beatty, Creston transportation director, said Klug’s care for the students, coupled with his care for the bus, makes him a good driver.

“My kids used to ride his bus,” Beatty said. “Even when they weren’t riding anymore, he would give

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Lee and Melinda attend their granddaughter Cassie’s wedding last fall.

me their candy bar to take home to them. He really cares about the kids on his route.”

Darwin West, who has been a bus driver with Creston for 24 years, agrees.

“He’s a good egg,” West said. “He takes good care of his bus and everything.”

West met Klug when he was still driving with Schneider. West said that now he and Klug often take activity buses to sports and other events together. He also likes how Klug is able to keep order on his bus.

“He’s kind of like an old sergeant, you know,” West said. “He makes them toe the mark with what they’re all supposed to do.”

But, while he may keep the kids in line, Klug is anything but humorless.

West said he and the other bus drivers enjoy Klug’s fun-loving personality.

“He’s always pulling something, you know, on somebody—just to be do-

ing something,” West said.

“He’s just a corker.”

Lee and Melinda have two children. Greg and Chris, and four grandchildren, Cassie, Samantha, Caden and Aubree.

Klug said some of his favorite bus driving memories are when he would drive the athletic team buses when his granddaughter played sports. He said the other drivers would often let him have first dibs on those assignments.

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Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

Chromebooks, online tools enhance Oswald’s teaching in the classroom Oswald has been teaching high school math at Murray since 2011, and has continued to teach at SWCC in Osceola.

■

By AMY HANSEN OST news editor

ahansen@osceolaiowa.com

MURRAY — Mindy Oswald has been aiding students in the south central Iowa area for a long time, in various educational positions.

Oswald graduated from Central College in 1992, and after that, she started working for Southwestern Community College (SWCC).

She taught at SWCC’s Osceola campus as an adjunct starting in 1993.

After teaching at the campus for awhile, Oswald took a full-time position as a director of SWCC’s Osceola center. She was in this position from 2004-09. It was around this time that Oswald decided to go back to school.

“I just missed the teaching and loved that,” Oswald said.

She graduated from Simpson College with a master’s

CNA photo by AMY HANSEN

Pictured is Mindy Oswald, a high school math teacher at Murray School District.

degree in education.

High school math Oswald has been teaching high school math at Murray since 2011, and has continued to teach at SWCC in Osceola.

“I like their energy, their enthusiasm,” Oswald said about teaching high school students. “I like that there’s

“I enjoy teaching the upper-level classes, particularly calculus, because I think students go into calculus thinking that it’s going to be hard, and then we’re able to make it something they can understand and get their heads around.”

so much to learn and they are excited. I have an opportunity, because at a small school, I get to teach a variety of courses. Like, I don’t just teach geometry all day long. I get to teach lots of courses. So here, I get to have students sometimes as young as their freshman year, and then I can maybe watch that growth from algebra all the way through calculus.”

She added, “I say this to kids all the time, you couldn’t have done this a year ago. You couldn’t have done this three months ago.

So, it’s exciting for me to see that growth. So, that’s one of the things I love about high school.”

As for the types of cours-

es Oswald likes to teach, she said it’s hard for her to choose a favorite because she likes all subjects of math.

“I enjoy teaching the upper-level classes, particularly calculus, because I think students go into calculus thinking that it’s going to be hard, and then we’re able to make it something they can understand and get their heads around,” she said. “It does feel like they really accomplished something when they can say ‘I got an A in calculus.’”

When it comes to being a teacher, Oswald said she enjoys helping students conquer the subjects they think are going to be hard.

the opportunity to teach two college-level classes — trigonometry with analytical geometry and college algebra.

The two classes are offered during the day to Murray students as a concurrent enrollment class.

This means, while students are taking it for high school credit, they can also get college credit from the class through SWCC. “That’s been really good for me, to kind of expose kids at the high school level to a college textbook, and what college level mathematics looks like, and those expectations. It’s great for students,” Oswald said. “So,

they can have six math credits, college math credits, if they take those two classes here.”

The college level classes don’t cost anything to the students taking them through Oswald, and free college credit is an obvious incentive to students.

Murray High School students have taken advantage of the two classes Oswald can offer them. She has had as many as 15 in her largest college-level math class. For the size of Murray’s school district, that is significant.

“They get to take a difficult course that challenges them with a teacher that they know, that they feel comfortable asking questions with, in a group of peers that they’re comfortable with,” Oswald said.

“So, rather than taking a class that would be a step up and a greater challenge to them, in an environment that’s new with a teacher that’s new, in maybe a situation they’re more intimidated, they have an opportunity to do that in a small class with people they know. It’s good for them that way.”

Chromebooks Oswald is also advancing with technology as a teaching tool in the classroom.

This school year, Murray issued a Chromebook to students. Essentially, it’s just an internet browser for students to use.

“Chromebooks are a tremendous tool,” said Murray Superintendent Alan Miller.

Please see OSWALD, Page 11

College math At Murray, Oswald has

— Mindy Oswald

Murray math teacher

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Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

11A

OSWALD: Continued from Page 10A

“The next generation is online learning. Students learn by digital access and using mobile devices.”

If Oswald sends an email to her class with an assignment to watch a math video on differential equations for homework, students have a Chromebook to view it.

Murray also purchased new geometry and algebra textbooks this year. In addition to those textbooks, the school was able to access an online website for the textbook. So, when a student logs in to the website, they can access the geometry or algebra textbook online.

“If they wanted to go to the assignment, they don’t have to take their book home or have it in their backpack. They just have this handy little Chromebook, so they can go to like, page 237, and take this quiz that we did yesterday. No big deal,” Oswald said.

Online aid Every lesson is outlined online and there’s also a student resource tab. Students can access practice tests and extra practice work for each lesson they might find difficult. There’s also videos students can watch on a certain subject.

CNA photo by AMY HANSEN

This school year, Murray issued a Chromebook to students. Essentially, it’s just an internet browser for students to use. Murray also purchased new geometry and algebra textbooks this year. In addition to those textbooks, the school was able to access an online website for the textbook.

This is beneficial when a student might be sick and not able to be in the classroom for a day.

“Having the ability to access online help when working out a problem is beneficial,” Miller said.

“It has opened up a wave of communication that we didn’t have before.”

Oswald also discussed using Chromebooks and being able to incorporate a “flipped classroom” into lesson plans, which is assigning videos as homework and students coming to class the next day and actually working out math problems.

This frees up class time for ac-

tual mathematics work, instead of the teacher talking about a subject all period, students taking notes, and assigning homework problems at the end of the class.

Oswald said there are many benefits of the teaching aides and technology she’s incorporating into her classroom. She said stu-

dents are becoming more responsible of their own work and what they need for each class.

“We’re getting better at, ‘I don’t know how to do this, but I can figure it out.’ And, ‘I’m going to look for those videos. And I have the responsibility to seek out what I need for that class,’” she said.

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Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

Payton Davis and Owen Davis make their way across Lincoln Street after an early dismissal for Creston Community Schools Tuesday because of snow.

CNA file photo

CNA photo by AMY HANSEN

Children’s books by author Jan Brett are laid out in the Murray preschool classroom of Stacey Feehan.

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Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

13A

Retiring Enarson Elementary teacher plans future writing pursuits

By IAN RICHARDSON

CNA staff reporter irichardson@crestonnews.com

VILLISCA — Lori Hefflefinger is known for her lively reading in the classroom. But when the Enarson Elementary teacher retires this May after a 30year career, she plans to be the one not only reading children’s books, but also writing them.

Hefflefinger grew up on a farm in eastern Iowa. While attending school in West Liberty, she joined 4-H. One of the things she remembers doing during her childhood was singing to her father’s cattle.

“My dream in life was to become a famous singer,” she said.

“I used to sing to my dad’s cows in their feed bunks.”

After graduating from high school, Hefflefinger attended Central College in Pella. Her days of aspiring to sing profes-

Contributed photo

Lori Hefflefinger sits with her class in August 2012. Class sizes fluctuate over the years; this year her class numbers 29.

sionally now long past, her future goals were uncertain.

“In college, I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” she said. “I just

decided to do what my older sister did, which was take education classes.”

Hefflefinger decided on a de-

gree in elementary education.

During her studies at Central, she began working with Down Syndrome adults at Christian

Opportunity Center. This experience motivated her to add special education to her degree.

“Those adults touched my heart,” she said. “They were always so positive and happy.”

After graduating with her bachelor’s degree, Hefflefinger lived in Red Oak and worked two years with the Green Valley Area Education Agency as a work experience instructor. She traveled to six schools a week to find places in town where high school students in special education classes could earn work experience. During this time, she became acquainted with the southwest Iowa area, as well as the school districts.

She also became acquainted with a farmer named Steve Hefflefinger—in a rather interesting way.

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14A

Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

HEFFLEFINGER: ily,” Lori said.

Continued from Page 13

A local hog buyer who both Lori and Steve knew planned to set the two of them up.

But, having never met Steve before, Lori had her doubts as to whether he even existed.

“At first I thought the hog buyer was pulling my leg,” she said. “Who really has a name like Steve Hefflefinger, you know?”

The buyer also told Steve that if he would ask Lori out on a date, he’d give him extra money the next time he sold hogs.

Whether the money clinched it for Steve or not, he went ahead with the date, and it turned out that extra cash was just the start of a good deal. Lori and Steve married in 1984.

The Hefflefingers now live on Steve’s farm, which lies south of Corning. They have a daughter, who is married and works at Principal Financial Group in Des Moines, and a son, who is 24 and works as an accountant for Cargill in Eddyville.

Lori began teaching in the Villisca Community School District in 1984, the same year she was married. In 1987, she earned her master’s degree in learning disabilities from Northwest Missouri State University. For her first 25 years at Villisca, she taught elementary special education.

“I felt these kids really needed someone who cared about their futures,” she said.

Six years ago, the former second grade teacher at Villisca retired, and Lori decided to take the job.

“I love this age group because they are still easily motivated and are like little sponges that soak up information very quickly and eas-

Story time One of the things Lori does in class nearly every day is read to her students. And Lara Top, Enarson Elementary principal, said she never gets tired of listening to it.

“She is the best reading teacher,” she said. “I could go into her room and listen to her read to the kids every day if I had to.”

What makes her reading so engaging? Top said it’s how Lori immerses herself in the story and brings it to life through the characters.

“She’s so passionate about reading. She gets into the characters, and she just builds so much character with the book,” Top said.

Lori said she prepares for story time in class by reading through the matierial beforehand and imagining how it should sound when read aloud.

“I try to read the stories and poems the way I imagine the author meant them to be read,” Lori said. “It’s an awesome feeling when a captive audience hangs on your every word.”

for so long. And, for the past three decades, free time has been scarce. However, she said her goal of writing novels will be something worth striving for.

“Everyone always says to follow your dreams, so for the first time in my life, I’m going to try that,” she said.

Lori said she would like to begin by writing children’s books.

“I wrote one in college entitled ‘Eek and Beek from Planet Zeek,’ and my professors thought it was really good,” she said. “I also like to rhyme, so I may start with a Dr. Seuss-type book that will hopefully make children giggle or laugh.”

As her students will likely agree, if her writing is anything like her reading, she has a great chance of succeeding.

Contributed photo

Above, Lori and Steve have two children, both of whom are now grown and married.

Pictured, left to right, are (back) Lori, daughter-in-law Sara Hefflefinger, daughter Megan Mitchell, (front), Steve, son Jason Hefflefinger and son-in-law Jason Mitchell. Below, Lori sits with her dog, Shadow. For exercise, Hefflefinger enjoys walking outdoors with Shadow.

The journey into retirement This spring, when Lori retires, she said she is going to miss the interaction with her students.

“I will miss the daily hugs and ‘you’re the best teacher in the world’ notes,” she said.

Top said Lori’s presence as a teacher will missed as well.

“I just could not find a more passionate teacher, and losing her is like losing a member of a family,” Top said.

Lori said retirement will be strange for her since she has been immersed in teaching

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15A

Tearing down language barriers Gary Smith is an award-winning English as a second language teacher at Lenox Elementary School ■

By BAILEY POOLMAN

CNA staff reporter bpoolman@crestonnews.com

LENOX — Gary Smith of Lenox is just one person, but he has been instrumental in breaking language barriers for kids who attend Lenox Elementary School.

Smith, 57, is the kindergarten through sixthgrade English as a second language (ESL) teacher at the elementary school, and even received an award on behalf of the school acknowledging the work he, the staff and students have put into building English language skills among children.

“I think part of it would be our compassion for the kids,” Smith said. “I think kids know that we care for them in here. Not just the ESL staff, but teachers in general. It’s a team work kind of thing.”

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Smith, with help from staff and students, accepted the Breaking Barriers to Teaching and Learning award from the Iowa Department of Education Board of Directors on behalf of Lenox Elementary School in November 2013.

The award winners, which Lenox was one of six, were recognized based on the high proficiency rates in math and reading among a specific subgroup of students. Lenox Elementary received the award because the school housed the highest percent of English language learning students proficient in math and reading at 86.4 percent, compared to the state average of 42.6 per-

cent.

“When we went, there were six different schools recognized,” Smith said.

“We were the very best in combined reading and math proficiency among English language learning students, and that’s on the Iowa Assessment.”

Smith said the effort wasn’t just his, but everyone’s.

“We were happy about it. A lot of it had to do with the kids, just like coaching. If you have the kids, it makes it a little easier, and we had some exceptional kids in that group,” Smith said. “So that makes a big difference. And, we have a caring staff.”

Teaching While teaching sixthgrade at Lenox, nine free college hours of ESL training were offered, which Smith took advantage of.

Soon after completing the hours, Smith was approached by the principal of the elementary school to see if he was interested in being the ESL instructor for kindergarten through sixth-grade students “I didn’t see myself doing it when I first started,” Smith said.

Smith, who has worked at Lenox between 12 and 15 years, then received his ESL endorsement, and said he enjoys the work he does with the kids.

“I really enjoy it. I like working with small groups,” Smith said. “I really enjoy getting to know the parents and the kids, getting to know the culture a little bit. If I had a chance to do it again, I still would.”

Smith said some students

Contributed photo

Gary Smith accepts the Breaking Barriers award from Iowa Board of Education President Rosie Hussey in this Iowa Department of Education photo taken in November 2013 in Des Moines. Smith accepted the award on behalf of Lenox Elementary School for having the highest combined reading and math assessment scores among English language learners across the state.

“I really enjoy getting to know the parents and the kids, getting to know the culture a little bit.

If I had a chance to do it again, I still would.”

— Gary Smith

have gone on to attend college, including one who became a nurse and another who became an X-ray technician. He also said several families are in their second and third generations in Lenox, which was unusual for awhile.

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“When they first come, they take a home language survey. Then, if there’s anything that shows up other than English, we give them an assessment,” Smith said. “Then, based on that assessment, that’s when we decide whether to serve them or not.”

Students arrive at Smith’s classroom at a variety of levels, such as barely knowing the English language.

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16A

Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

SMITH: Continued from Page 15A

“We try to build their language around content area,” Smith said, “so, instead of just teaching English, you know, we may do it around a social studies unit, or a science unit.”

There are approximately 30 students in the kindergarten through sixth-grade program.

“I have one young man who came this year, well, two actually, one in second and one in sixth, that knew very little English,” Smith said. “The sixth grader we had come in went to a really good school in Mexico, so he had a lot of content area background, so it all basically was for him was transferring from one language to another, ... but we have the second grader that his experiences are more limited, so it’s harder for him to pick up the language because his first language vocabulary isn’t as advanced either.”

The students are taught by using flash cards, picture word induction models, picture dictionaries, repetition and some technology.

“The older they get, the easier it is to take it all in,” Smith said. “They start learning those words, and then these kids, the newcomers, will go through a silent period. It’s longer for some than for others, where they’re just sitting

Contributed photo

Gary Smith, center, poses for an Iowa Department of Education photo with Lenox Elementary Principal Derek Morris and Dulce Zapata, Lenox Elementary English language learning aide, after receiving the state’s Breaking Barriers award on behalf of Lenox Elementary School November 2013 in Des Moines. The award was given because Lenox Elementary had the highest percentage of English language learners who were proficient in combined math and reading based on the Iowa Assessment.

there gathering the information.”

Eventually, the students are able to group words together to form sentences, much like a young child learning to speak a first language.

Background Smith attended the former Northeast Missouri State University in Kirksville, Mo., which is now known as Truman State

University. He earned a bachelor’s in education with physical education and driver education endorsements.

As a teacher, Smith taught a variety of subjects in the Clearfield Community School District before going back to college to earn his bachelor’s in elementary education. He then went back to work at Clearfield Elementary School, totalling 10 years

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Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

17A

Peinelt dedicates time to public safety

By JAKE WADDINGHAM

CNA associate editor jwaddingham@crestonnews.com

Former firefighter

weather conditions throughout the school year change from the extreme heat and

humidity in August to the bitter cold in January and February.

“It was definitely cold for us out there on the corner this year,” Peinelt said. “The weather is one of them (challenges) and drivers are the other.”

Even though there are stop signs to alert drivers of the pedestrians, Peinelt said some drivers get distracted or do not obey the signs.

“People ignore them and keep going,” Peinelt said. “It irritates me, but that is what we have to deal with.”

Peinelt started working as a crossing guard in the mid-90s in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. At that time, the crossing guard duties were handled by the city’s police department.

Peinelt said his shift was two hours each morning and another two hours each afternoon, making sure students safely crossed the street and made it onto the bus or to

their ride home.

He added more experience with crossing guard duties in Tennessee before moving to Creston. Peinelt said the volume of students is much smaller here in Creston, but that helps him get to know the students and parents that pass by his intersection better.

“I usually try to keep an eye out, just to make sure nobody strange is trying to pick one of the kids up,” Peinelt said. “I try to get to know the students and parents. Not by name, but I know who is suppose to be there.”

Public service In addition to Peinelt’s responsibilities as a crossing guard in Fort Lauderdale and Tennessee, he served the public by driving a lead car during funeral processions and respond to calls when people would lock keys in vehicles.

He also served more than 30 years as a volunteer fire-

fighter.

“Those were the days,” Peinelt said. “You never knew what you were going to get into. If it was a car accident, you might have vehicle extraction to worry about. If it is a structure fire, you might have people inside to worry about.”

In those moments, Peinelt said he would rely on his training to control his actions.

“When you are going to a structure fire and you see the smoke and flame ... that is when the adrenaline rush comes like, whoa,” Peinelt said. “When you get that, you are in emergency mode.”

Continuing to serve Today, Peinelt is a member of the community citizen response team through Union County Emergency Management.

“He attends every meeting that he can and he actively participates,” said Union

County Emergency Management Director JoAnne Duckworth. “We rely on good volunteers like him.”

The community citizen response team has a variety of duties. They help control traffic and monitor street corners during city parades and events. They also help during

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“When you are going to a structure fire and you see the smoke and flame ... that is when the adrenaline rush comes like, whoa. When you get that, you are in emergency mode.”

The last bus of the morning pulls away from the Lincoln School bus stop just south of Robert Peinelt’s corner at Peterson and Adams streets.

He has worked as a crossing guard for more than 20 years in Florida, Tennessee and Creston.

$

During the hustle and bustle of the morning and afternoon commutes, local children make their way to and from the bus stops in Creston while motorists navigate their way around town.

All of the excitement and activity can make it easy to forget a simple task such as looking both ways before crossing an intersection.

That is where Robert Peinelt steps up to help out.

For at least 45 minutes in the morning and 45 minutes in the afternoon, Peinelt keeps a watchful eye for area students at the Adams and Peterson street crossing.

“We keep the kids safe and try to look out for them,” Peinelt said.

Peinelt said crossing guards have several challenges that make their job difficult. The

emergency situations to help shut off gas lines or do damage assessments.

Peinelt is a member of the Southwest Iowa Amateur Radio Club and has a Federal Communications Commission Ham Radio license. He said the test to get the license is very difficult and an individual cannot communicate on radio waves without the license.

“We have our meetings and coffee time,” Peinelt said.

“And when there are tornadoes or bad weather, we are right there to provide communication.”

Duckworth said Peinelt helps with the communication during severe weather, relaying information to the National Weather Service.

He recently took storm spotter training March 12 at Southwestern Community College.

Peinelt said storm spotting gives him the same rush he used to get when responding to accidents and fires when he was a firefighter.

In the future, Peinelt plans to continue to serve the public, but hopes to visit Tennessee and Florida again and enjoy the warmer weather.

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18A

Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

Feehan wins national contest for Jan Brett children’s books

By AMY HANSEN

OST news editor ahansen@osceolaiowa.com

MURRAY — Stacey Feehan, a preschool teacher at Murray School District, has an eye out for new and exciting things to incorporate into the classroom.

Feehan said she has always liked working with young children.

Feehan went to college straight out of high school and originally thought she wanted to be a kindergarten teacher. She student taught preschool, kindergarten and second grade. Feehan was offered a mid-year position with Headstart in Osceola as a maternity substitute. She ended up staying with Headstart for almost 10 years.

“They (Murray) got word from the state of Iowa that they were going to get some money and they wanted to open a second classroom,” Feehan said. “So, that kind of offered a nice opportunity for me to stay local and stay with preschool, which I found I really like, probably better than I would’ve kindergarten, even.”

Feehan has been with the Murray School District for six to seven years.

Fun with learning “I like that we’re preschool, we can still choose some of the things that we do, which is kind of hard,” she said. “With the school district, there’s so much being told they have to do from the state level or from the national level. With preschool, we have things that we have to follow that are developmentally appro-

ive of, basically, anything we need or want from them,” she said. “They have been able to help us out.”

Murray Superintendent Alan Miller said he was appreciative of his staff’s extra efforts for incorporating new learning tools in the preschool classroom.

“They’ve taken time away from their own lives to benefit the students and incorporate it into the curriculum,” he said.

Stacey Feehan, a Murray preschool teacher, holds a children’s book authored by Jan Brett.

CNA photo by AMY HANSEN

Into the classroom

priate, but we can also choose to be a play-based preschool, to be child-led. We don’t do a lot of sitting down and working on papers so much, we do a lot of hands-on, full-body play. And, I love that I can make that choice for the kids I work with.”

Since Feehan also works with special needs students, she said in some ways it can be more challenging, but in other ways, “they’re still just kids.”

“Whether they’re special ed or gen(eral) ed, they’re still just kids,” she said. “Sometimes it’s hard for them to understand, why does this child do this differently? But, you can explain, well, everyone’s different and we each have our own skills. And, they get it, probably more than adults do sometimes.”

Jan Brett

in Des Moines and saw that acclaimed children’s author Jan Brett was going to be in Des Moines the next day at a bookstore.

Gilbert texted Feehan the news about Brett being in the area.

“I was like, ‘Wow, I don’t have anything special going on. I may just run up and see if I can meet her.’”

According to Brett’s website, she has more than 39 million books in print and is one of the nation’s foremost author illustrators of children’s books. Brett lives in a seacoast town in Massachusetts, close to where she grew up.

Feehan went to Brett’s presentation during the bookstore visit in Des Moines and purchased a few of her books for her classroom.

At that visit, Brett’s bus was decorated artwork with

Earlier this winter, Feehan’s fellow preschool teacher Gerry Gilbert was

A&G

her new book, and Feehan was told if she posted a picture of it online, she would get a free poster. However, if a picture got the most online votes, the winner would get 10 hardcover books signed by Brett.

Helpful response Feehan shared the link on social media, and one could say, it went viral.

“Between my friends and family, and our parents’ friends and family of the preschool kids, I ended up with, like, 200 more votes than the second place. So, we got the books,” Feehan said.

Feehan said it felt amazing to have so many people help support the preschool’s cause of getting more books for its students.

“We have a great group of parents, especially this year, who have been very support-

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During that time, Feehan’s class was doing a study on snow and ice, which was multi-week lesson. The delivery of Brett’s books was good timing because three of them involved snow or ice.

Feehan said many of Brett’s books tie-in really well to her lesson plans or learning new things.

“We find that kids pick up on more things if you read a book more than once,” she said. “Also, she (Brett) is an illustrator, so the books, the illustrations are awesome.”

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Once the books arrived, Feehan took the box of delivered books and showed it to her students, who didn’t realize what was in it. One child guessed a coyote was in the box. Other children thought the box was full of blocks. A few did guess books.

The children decided to open the box, and realized if scissors can open their daytime snacks, they can open a big delivery box.

“It took a good 10 minutes to get into that box that was already beat up and had a hole in it with it came,” Feehan said. “They were very excited to find the bubble wrap

that came out first. But, then the books came out, and they were like, ‘Oh, we got books, too!’ It was fun. It was fun having them become owners of that experience and take over the ownership of receiving that package and getting into it. I think that will make the books that much more exciting, too, because they can tie that other experience into it.”

At the time of the interview, the books had been delivered only the day before, so the children hadn’t had much time to read the books.

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Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

Stephens builds long teaching career, custom woodwork in southwest Iowa

By JAKE WADDINGHAM

CNA associate editor jwaddingham@crestonnews.com

CLEARFIELD — A small piece of advice from a college instructor became the building block of Dick Stephens’ 47 1/2-year teaching career in rural southwest Iowa.

Stephens was enrolled at Northwest Missouri State College (now Northwest Missouri State University) with a major in industrial technology and a minor in drafting. Stephens’ father was the manager of a lumberyard in Mount Ayr. One day in class, an instructor said it might be a good idea to diversify their academic experience to avoid locking their future into a technical field.

This provoked Stephens to switch his minor to biology.

“The two weren’t completely incompatible, but one wasn’t that closely related to the other,” Stephens said. “That has been a benefit to me over time because when a school starts looking for an industrial arts teacher, there are very, very few that have a science minor.”

Stephens found a job immediately after graduation in Clearfield and moved back to southwest Iowa. He married Jennie and started a family, raising two boys, Scott and Darin.

He taught industrial technology and 6th-12th grade life sciences for 24 years until Clearfield dissolved the high school. Luckily, Stephens was able to find a position just eight miles down the road in Diagonal.

Brandi Goodale, a 2010

CNA photos by JAKE WADDINGHAM

Above, Dick Stephens runs a piece of wood through a machine in his shop in Diagonal. Right, Stephens built a display case for his model car collection.

Diagonal graduate, said Stephens was a major part of the positive learning experience she had at Diagonal.

“He always had a giant smile on his face and you could tell that he genuinely loved teaching,” Goodale said. “Mr. Stephens kept class fun and kept students engaged in learning.”

Stephens said he enjoyed working in small, rural school districts. His class sizes ranged from around 25 students to his smallest class of one student.

“By working in low population areas, you don’t get the high salaries that you get in bigger schools, but to me, it was worth the difference to be in a small school where I could get to know

“He always had a giant smile on his face and you could tell that he genuinely loved teaching. Mr. Stephens kept class fun and kept students engaged in learning.”

the kids and the parents,” Stephens said.

With almost half a century of teaching experience, Stephens said he saw two full generations of area families go through the school districts. He attended several retirement parties for former students while he was still teaching.

“Any time I see him in the community, he makes a point to ask how I am

doing,” Goodale said. “He never forgets to make fun of me for being an Iowa Hawkeye fan.”

Stephens started out teaching industrial technology and science in Diagonal.

Eventually, the shop classes were moved to Mount Ayr and Stephens switched to teaching science full time.

Please see STEPHENS, Page 20

— Brandi Goodale

2010 Diagonal Graduate

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20A

Creston News Advertiser Thursday, March 26, 2015

STEPHENS: Continued from Page 19A

“Over the years, the schools have started phasing out industrial arts,” Stephens said. “Without the biology major, I would have been out of a job a long time ago.”

Building hobbies Before his retirement in December 2014, Stephens spent three years building a two-story woodworking shop south of his house so he would have a place to continue his passion for industrial technology.

“I have always enjoyed building things, but as far as teaching it, I didn’t enjoy that as much as I did teaching science,” Stephens said.

He has built two houses — one in Clearfield and one in Benton — and pieces together custom woodwork like raised flower beds, grandfather clocks and furniture.

Stephens’ shop is an organized cluster of projects in various stages of completion. Hundreds of tools decorate the walls and piles of wood wait to be transformed.

In another garage is Stephens’ pride and joy, a cherry red 1957 Chevy Bel Air, complete with chrome fins and leather interior.

He remodeled the car with help from his brother.

When Stephens drove the car to school, he would challenge his students — with the reward of a quarter — to find the gas cap, which blends into the car’s fin.

Beside his car is a bundle of bags that contain a

drum set. Once a month, Stephens plays with Jimmy George and the Country Classics, providing dance music for couples at the Chicken Inn on Highway 34 about 5 miles south of Creston.

“We’ve been playing off and on for about 20 years,” George said.

Kevin Glick said a common req u e s t whenever Stephens is on stage is for him to sing “The Auct i o n e e r ’ s Glick Song” by Leroy Van Dyke, a fastpaced song with a variety of auction chants.

“To sing ‘The Auctioneer’s Song,’ it takes a unique individual,” George said. “After your band has played some CNA photo by JAKE WADDINGHAM good slow dance songs, it Dick Stephens, a retired teacher from Clearfield and Diagonal, sits behind the wheel of his cherry red 1957 Chevy is good to cut loose and Bel Air. Stephens and his brother remodeled the car. When Stephens would drive it to school, he would challenge the song does just that. He students to try to find the gas cap. does a good job with it.” to pull back a compound gone goose hunting with Hunting More than 13,000 southern Iowans make us a part of their lives each weekday! bow, so Darin encouraged my son in Canada.”

Another pastime Ste- him to try crossbow huntStephens and Jennie phens enjoys is hunting ing. Stephens bagged a have four grandchildren with his two sons.

10-point buck his first sea- and enjoy when the entire Both boys took after son trying the crossbow. family is able to get togethStephens with a passion “That was pretty excit- er in Clearfield.

Need Your Computer for science and hunting. ing,” Stephens said about “It’s been a good ride,” Scott has a doctorate de- the deer hunt. “I’ve also Stephens said.

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