The Indianola High School Class of 1967 held its 45^th reunion on Sept. 15 & 16. Those attending were:

First row, left to right: Lynne Van Clark, Kayla Wright Ballard, Leonard Butters, Donna Conn JIrsa, Myrna Sill Couch, Bambi Cero, Larry Aldridge

Second row, left to right: Monica Barry McCollom, Carolyn Johnson Caskey, Diana Fry Pfaff, Barb Norris Baldwin, Jacque Deaton, Louise Welshhons Johnson, Cheryl Runciman Shipman, Betty Stutsman Griffiths, Ruth Utsler Smith, Terri Needles Crabb

Third row, left to right: Judi Vanordstrand Ferguson, Dennis Bellman, Bud Wheeler, Bob Hale, Dennis Chaplin, Sharon Orfield Utsler, Frank Rasko, Susie Shupe, Kathy Goodwin Brackney, Sarah Herrick Keegan, Sue Sorden, Helen Davitt Ripperger, Galen Vinson

Fourth row, left to right: Cindy Mock Kretzmeier, Barb Johnson Downey, Steve Pfaff, Daryl Marks, Ken Mika, Gary Downey, Clayton Overton, Kurt Wells, Dennis Davison, Duane Robinson, Steve Hoover

Not pictured: Larry Barr, Joe Blake, John Criswell, Lynne Davey, Linda Decker Hoch, Diane Mathias Potter, Larry Turner, Roz Wood

I am in the process of retiring from my part of an accounting & tax practice. 
My husband is retired from working for the federal government.
We spend over half of our time enjoying marina life and sailing our 30' sailboat on Lake Michigan.
My hobby is conversation - you can do it with anyone & it doesn't cost anything and you never know what you may learn.
As most of us I have some medical issues. In Feb 2011 I had a small stroke. I fully recovered except for some balance issues. Next month I am having surgery on my toe.
Our 2 daughters and their husbands & a 10 year old stepson live within an hour of us.  My daughters and I are going on a trip to New York City(along with one of my son-in-laws). So, we are happy & busy.
Nancy Kail Worfel

Join us at the 45th Reunion on Septemer 15 & 16, 2012.

Gary's Address

To send Gary a card:

3349 S Saratoga Ave.
Springfield, MO 65804

A SMILE TO LIGHT UP THE WORLD

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

When I think of Patti Ashbaugh, I think of her SMILE! It could light up a room. She may have been small in size; I actually think petite is the more politically correct way to put it, but her smile was larger than life, and oh so genuine!

Others from the class of 1967 have reminisced about our Bluebird days. Yes, I do remember those days fondly. I remember going to Patti's farm, and I was one of the BRAVE ones who actually rode the horse!

Since leaving Indianola in 1967, I have probably only seen Patti a handful of times at our class reunions. I know I can speak for the entire class of 1967 when I say we were blessed to have our paths cross hers in this life. And in looking at her life's work, the children of Missouri and beyond have been blessed to have such an advocate working on their behalf.

My heartfelt sympathies to Gary and her children and the rest of Patti's family. I am sure she was the very best wife, partner, friend, mother and grandmother that one could ask for. Cherish your memories of this very special person.

Diane Mathias Potter

Re: Patti Ashbaugh and the diving tower @ Ahquabi

I was at 4-H camp with Patti. All week I had been working up my nerve to jump off the top of that big diving tower at Lake Ahquabi. Every day I climbed up the rickety ladder, feeling the whole structure move whenever anyone jumped off. I never could make myself jump, though, until I saw Patti do it.

I thought, "if that little squirt has enough courage to do it, so can I!" That was the first of many jumps off the tower! Joanne Croat Beck

So many memories

The Ashbaugh family lived just down the road from us so we spent many hours together. Favorite memories include sledding down our favorite hill playing "rescue 8". The goal was to stop the victim's sled before it went off the bank and into the stream below. Most of the time we made a successful rescue........but not always. When the snow was really deep we would dig a snow cave back into that same bank. Several times it caved in and we had to dig quickly to extricate the trapped victims.
One summer the Woodruff and Ashbaugh kids and Jerri Lou Sutton built a dam on the stream that ran thru our pasture. We worked really hard on it for several days and backed up a lot of water. One night it washed out and there was a big fight over whether one of the bridge builders had slipped in and torn it down. I still don't know the answer to that question but our families didn't talk for several days!
Another memory is May Day when I was about 9 or 10 years old. Roger and I had taken May baskets to the Ashbaugh house about dusk. We knocked on the door and then ran for our lives! As we ran around the back of the house I hit the clothesline and ended up flat on my back!
When I came to everyone was standing around and laughing pretty hard at my misfortune.

Then there was the winter that we decided to go skiing. Since we didn't have any skis we took barrel staves and sanded them smooth and fastened pieces of rubber inner tube to the top for foot straps. Unfortunately the "skis" weren't flat enough or slick enough and they didn't work at all. Undaunted by that failure we decided to be hockey players. Fortunately we did have skates. After scooping snow off the pond we set up buckets at each end for goals. Hockey sticks and a puck were the next issue. A corn cob worked fine as a puck. Hockey sticks were tougher to come by. We used broom handles, 2x4's, branches off of trees and anything else we could find. We played for hours and hours and then would argue about who had won over a cup of hot cocoa and cookies in the Ashbaugh kitchen.

I still use Patty as an example when I am talking with clients that have overweight pets. I tell them that everyone's metabolism is different. Then I describe Patty, my 95 pound neighbor girl who could eat me under the table and not gain an ounce. They nod their heads in agreement and then we continue the discussion. I have told Patty that story although she wasn't particularly impressed.

My thoughts and prayers go out to Gary and Patty's kids and grandkids, to Jane and Jim and the rest of her family and many friends. She was a wonderful friend and she took great joy in life. I will treasure the memories.
Denny Woodruff

Blue Birds

How can we ever forget BlueBirds? I know we went to the Ashbaugh farm in the fall. Some of the brave girls got to ride the horse, I don't think I was brave. How many of you still have your headscarf?? I do, somewhere?
So many accomplishments in such a short time, I am in awe of this strong, lovely, tiny woman!
Bless each and everyone who knew and loved her!
Terri

Dearest Patti,

May the road rise up to meet you,
May the wind be always at your back,
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
May the rain fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

Here's to Bluebirds, dear one!

Love,
Mary (Carpenter MacKenzie)

I am sad to report that we have lost a class member -- Patti Ashbaugh Brown passed away. Helen Davitt Ripperger reported this to me and will get back to me today with more information. I will pass that along when I receive it. Keep Gary, their children and the rest of the family in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you.

Susie Shupe

From the Springfield News-Leader

Patricia Sue "Patti" Ashbaugh Martin

Patrica Sue "Patti" Ashbaugh Martin, Ph.D., 58, passed away April 5, in her home in Springfield, Mo., following a 2 and a 1/2 year battle with metastatic melanoma. Patti was a long-time resident of Springfield, where she worked tirelessly as a child advocate and raised five wonderful children. Always a natural with children, she pursued her goal of higher education while working with young children and nurturing her own children, imbuing them all with the same vision and attitude toward education that she possessed. The culmination of her educational quest came in 2002, with the presentation of her Ph.D. from the University of Missouri at Columbia. As proud as she was of her own educational achievements, she was proudest that all of her children have college degrees (or soon will have), and that all of her daughters and daughters-in-law hold advanced degrees. Patti's career included jobs such as preschool teacher, director of a shelter for battered women, Head Start mental health specialist, director of the Missouri State Head Start Collaboration Office and recently retired as the Director of Head Start for the Ozarks Area Community Action Corporation for the past eight years. OACAC Head Start has 37 locations in 10 counties of southwest Missouri, serving the needs of 1,600 low income children with 450 employees. Patti was a 2001 Johnson & Johnson Head Start Management Fellow. Patti also found the time to serve on many state level committees, the Greene County Board for the Developmentally Disabled and the Mayor's Commission on Children. In addition, she was a licensed professional counselor. Patti's biggest source of pride and enjoyment was always her family and many friends. Her five grandchildren held a special place in her heart and "Grammy" will forever be watching over them. She was preceded in death by her parents Max and Florence Ashbaugh of Indianola, Iowa. She is survived by her older sister, Jane McCall of Dubuque, Iowa; her younger brother, Jim Ashbaugh, Indianola, Iowa; her daughter, Dr. Jennifer Foersterling and husband, Dr. Brett Foersterling, son Josef, and twin daughters Madeleine and Natalie of St Louis, Mo.; her son, Derek Brown and wife, Alexis, and son, Thomas of Springfield, Mo.; her son, Rob Brown and wife, Andrea, and son Sam of The Woodlands, Texas; her daughter, Emily Brown of Springfield, Mo.; her step-son, Michael Brown of Springfield, Mo.; and the children's father, her partner, and best friend since 7th grade Gary Brown. A celebration of Patti's life will be held this Friday, April 11, in Gorman-Scharpf Funeral Home, 1947 E Seminole, Springfield, MO 65804. Visitation will be held from 4 to 6 p.m., followed by a short memorial service and then a gathering at Patti's home. In lieu of flowers, Patti and her family request that contributions be made to the OACAC Head Start Patti Martin Memorial Fund, 215 S Barnes, Springfield, MO 65802. The fund, established by Patti's family, is designated for serving the mental health needs of Head Start children in southwest Missouri.

Greetings from Denmark

Dear class mates of 1967,

Sorry I was not able to attend the reunion on August 4th and 5th. The trip was just too long for a week-end reunion, and due to illness in Lisa's family we were unable to make it longer. Now we are planning to go to the US for a real vacation next year, and I shall not miss Indianola then. And of course I plan to be there in our 50 year reunion - and from then on every 10 years, as we shall hopefully all of us have more time available!!

Some of you may not remember me, since I was only with you for a year. I am the lucky Danish exchange student, who had the pleassure of spending a year with you as a senior. Let me take this oportunity to tell you all how much I enjoyed that year, and how gratefull I was - and still am - for the many good moments I spent with a lot of you in school and social events. That year also helped me very much later as a business person to understand the American way of thinking. So it was not only a year of pleassure, it was also very beneficial for my personal development.

In 1967 I returned to Denmark and spent 3 years in prep school, thereafter 5 years to complete my masters. Then I joined a multinational group called Alfa Laval. It's a process engineering group, which makes dairy plants, breweries, vegetable oil plants etc. I stayed there for nearly 20 years of which most time was spent in South America (Peru, Venezuela), and I have also lived 3 years in the UK.

I returned to Denmark with my family end 1993, when decissions had to be made about the further education of our 3 children, who had attended an American school system untill high school level.

The two oldest have now finished their masters and are working, one as an IT specialist and one as a psychologist in a hospital. The third is still working on his masters. My wife, Lisa is an advisor on social wellfare, which in our countries is quite extensive. My own work now-a-day is to serve as a member of board of directors in approx. 10 companies inside - and outside of Denmark.

I used to go to the USA with much frequency, but not so much any more. Should any of you come over this way, please let me know. It would be great to see a few of you again and hear news. I have studied the photos of the blog, but so far I have not recognized any person. But I have not given up yet. I am sure that it would help to see you alive and hear your voices. But that will have to wait.

All the best wishes from Denmark,
Johs (Bogh Christensen)

Hello!

I live in Emmetsburg, Iowa. My husband just retired from coaching and teaching and now owns his own construction company. His first assignment was to build USA new home on the lake in Emmetsburg. We now have a beautiful lake home with 169 foot of lake front. I have four grandkids now, and they all love to come and visit! We have wave runners, kayaks and a jet boat. Fun for all. I am now a Financial Specialist for Farm Credit Services of America. I enjoy working for a corporation, our corporate office is in Omaha and we serve four states, NE, SD, WY and IA.Clint and I have two children and four grandkids, so between work and family we live a full life. My parents are still alive and living in Indianola.

Sue Lewis Young

Hello 1967 Classmates!

I'm so sorry to have missed you all for this 40 year reunion. It turned out I was, and still am, recuperating from carpal tunnel surgery so a big trip was out for me. I still live just north of San Francisco and have been here for 33 years. Years ago, after I moved here, eventually two of my sisters moved to the bay area also, so my mom and dad finally left Indianola to move here to be near us 15 years ago. It's been wonderful to have them nearby. Last summer, I drove with them to make their annual pilgrimage back to Indianola and had a great time staying with Sue Sorden for a few days. Then last November my mom passed peacefully away at age 86. My dad is still hanging in there at age 90.

I teach 2nd/3rd grade and will be for quite a few more years I'm sure. I have two wonderful daughters. Ashley, 25, got married a year ago last June, and lives in Prescott, AZ. She was just accepted to graduate school in counseling psychology so will be commuting to southern CA one weekend a month to go to school as well as continue her full time job. Emily, 22, went to Lewis and Clark College in Oregon and after 2 + years decided it wasn't the right place so she is back living with me and going to college locally. I'm delighted to not have an empty nest again for awhile! Over the years, I loved camping, hiking, and backpacking with them in the great national parks of the western U.S.

I've loved reading about your lives, all you who have blogged. Thanks and see you at the next one I hope.

Lois Smart Sheridan

IHS 1967 Class Reunion Photos

There are two ways to view the photos:
1. Click on the arrow to view an auto-play slideshow.
2. Click the link in the lower left hand corner and then click on on the first slide and proceed through the photos using the arrows.