Carmi Odegaard and Jim Marking Pass Away

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Steve Odegaard and his family.  Recently, Carmi Odegaard, Steve's father, passed away.    http://osheimschmidt.com/sitemaker/sites/OSHEIM1/obit.cgi?page=profile&section=info&user_id=875635  Steve attended Hillcrest, so I did not become acquainted with him until we were in the same classes in 7th grade.  We also had the same classes in 8th grade, and most of our others years in the school system.  We became rather good friends during our Jr.-Sr. High days.  We were on the same basketball teams from 8th through junior varsity.  JV. especially,  was  a fun time. 

In 9th grade, we were placed into homerooms according to the alphabet.  Each HR selected one person to run for Jr. Hi student body president.  For some unknown reason, I was selected in our HR.  Steve was my "campaign manager".  After the election, Lefty Johnson went around to our classes, pulled those of us who ran out of class for a few minutes, and told us who won and how many votes we each received.  Kevin (O'Connell) won, Tom (Bozied) was second.  I think I had all of two votes.  I don't recall who the others were.  If anyone has that information handy, please make a comment and I will update this post.

Steve's dad had a number of jokes that were truly hilarious and clean.  Many of them poked fun at his Norwegian heritage.  HIs dad also had a big Chrysler, a 1958 model if memory serves me correctly.  We spent many hours driving around in that.  I seem to recall riding around around in a green and white Dodge Coronet (?), perhaps 1956 vintage, that Steve had in high school.  There was also an early 1960's Pontiac Tempest, and later a Ford Falcon.  I think we took the Falcon to Minneapolis to watch the Twins play baseball when we were in college. 

A memorable period in high school was the time Steve and Tom owned the driving range, just south of the drive-in.  Many of us spent numerous hours out there, particularly during the summer of 1968.
We would hang out there, and hit a bunch of golf balls, but we had to go out and pick them up afterwards.  Today, there are a number of apartments on that parcel of land. 

Steve's younger brother Les played football at SDSU, and later coached in Rapid City.  I sometimes ran into him at coaching clinics and at track meets.  Joe, Steve's youngest brother, was 10 years younger than we were.  He was a student and athlete of ours during his school days.  Lee Colburn also had a younger brother, Jon, in that same class, while Susan Redmond (Zimmerman)  had a younger sister, Teresa, in that class.  They were some of my first students when I started teaching in 1973. 

Also passing away was Jim Marking (http://eidsnessfuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/Eidsne1/obit.cgi?user=875907Marking).  I believe his wife, who passed away ten months ago, was Rodney Koehn's aunt.  Coach Marking was the men's basketball coach at SDSU when we were in high school and college.  His teams were known for their intensity.  They were much fun to watch, as they like to fast-break at every opportunity, and were capable of scoring quickly and in bunches.  Lee was a great fit for Coach Marking's style of play.  In high school, Coach Thury said that if we were a little winded, that we could take it easy on offense and rest a little bit if we needed to, but that we should never rest on defense.  Otherwise, the opponents would likely score.  Lee, though, had a different approach.  He said something like "I might be too tired to play defense, but I'm never too tired to play offense."  That attitude was why he was so fun to watch.  I was fortunate enough to get to know him somewhat; he was a tremendous influence on me and many others that were in his basketball coaching class at SDSU. His eldest child Nancy was a little younger than we were.  She married Marty Johnson, Lefty's son (a fine tennis player).  Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Marking family.

The Mother of Jim Antonides Passes Away

Our thoughts, prayers, and condolences go out to Jim Antonides on the passing of his mother, Marion Antonides, on January 7, 2013. The complete obituary can be found at http://rudesfuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/RudesF1/obit.cgi?user=862440Antonides.  Jim was in our catechism class at St. Thomas More from kindergarten through high school.  He attended Hillcrest, so I never really got to know him very well.  Even in junior high and high school, our paths, unfortunately, seldom crossed.  Up until a few years ago, I would see Mrs. Antonides quite often at church.  She really was a very special individual. 

It's been quite a while since I checked in on this blog. Recent efforts to connect with people from the area brought me back, it seems.
I see that some folks have noticed the '67 Bobcat online. There are some pages missing from that one, including what were, in the original, pages 96 and 97, though I think they would have been between 93 and 94 of the online version. These are the first two pages of pictures of the junior class, and include both my brother Rob Dimit and Dave Adamson, both of whom became relevant in my communications.

Both of them were members of a band called the Military Pickle, along with Georgia Wright's older brother Jim, David Bugg, and John Behrend. Eric Lagerstrom, who moved to town in '66 or so, was also in that band. He came around to the high school and gave a performance or two of flamenco guitar and, as I recall, my brother corrupted him and got him to play rock and roll. Eric taught most of the good guitar players to come out of Brookings during the next few years and, I recently learned, had also been teaching drums and some keyboards. I've heard that Stan Lorenz was one of his drum students.

Anyway, John Behrend is looking for pictures of the Pickle and/or its various members. To put all our begs in one ask-it, we would also appreciate any pictures of:

The Outsiders (John, Jim Wright, Dave Adamson, and a pair of Bortnem twins--a band later re-named Specter when a nationally known band used the other name):

The Last Rites (Rob Dimit, Dave Bugg, John Richards, Jim May, and Steve Miller--the one from our class);

The Strangers (don't remember all members there, but Doug Lund, Gordon Johnson, Curt Lee and I were among them);

Touch (Hal Marken, Gordon Johnson, Stan Lorenz, Susie Whipple, Dave somebody from SDSU playing sax, and I);

Fresh Grass (Bob Kenny, Gordon Johnson, Rick Lundquist, Mark Denton, and I--later exchanging Mark for Doug Lund);

The (early) Ride (Fresh Grass simply changed our name a bit after Doug joined, and several months later Bill Williams replaced me);

The (later) Ride (many different configurations existed, and pictures from the time when Jim Wright was doing his "Singing Light Man" routine or after he took up drumming duties would be most appreciated)

Cocoon (some configuration of Lyle Behrend, Tom Burchill, Mike Barnes, Tom Barnes, Jay Flora, and Eric Adams--all Brookings folk several years younger than we. There was another band with many of the same members, but the name eludes me as I type.);

The Harvey Wallbanger Big Time Show Band (a house band at the Last Step ~1971 comprising at one point John Behrend, Stan Lorenz, "Jake" Jacobsen, David Law, Larry Gruseth and I but also including Hal Marken at some time);

Little Henry (Al Leiffort, Steve Ahles, Al Remund, Tom Villa, Bruce Kelly and I for a time, later including John Behrend and, briefly, Brian Gallagher who played trumpet for a time before his appendix burst and killed him--there were other members later as well, but these are the configurations we would be most interested in).

We would, of course, be pleasantly astonished if anyone has recordings of these groups and is willing to share.

If anyone has pictures of Eric Lagerstrom's teaching time/place, that might be nice as well. I never took lessons from him so don't really have any idea of what his setup might have been.

If you aren't in direct communication with John, you can contact me at bedlamm@hotmail.com if you have relevant stuff. Actually, you probably can whether you do have or not, but I don't know why you would want to.

Beatty (Ed) Dimt

End of the Year News

It's been a while since we have posted.  In that time, some noteworthy events have transpired  A number of people close to us have passed away (sorry to be the bearer of such bad news).  Tom Osterberg's aunt passed away on Nov. 10, 2012 (http://rudesfuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/RudesF1/obit.cgi?user=818272Melcher).

 James Dornbush passed away on Nov. 23.  He was a professor in the civil engineering department at SDSU.  Those of us who were civil engineering students after high school may have had him as a tprofessor(http://eidsnessfuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/Eidsne1/obit.cgi?user=827889Dornbush). 

Passing away on Dec. 9 was Marion Finn (http://rudesfuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/RudesF1/obit.cgi?user=840578Finn).  Her oldest boys Jim and John were a little older that we were.  Her youngest daughter Patti was an outstanding athlete in the early days of girls' athletics in South Dakota.  She is still part of many track and field records at BHS, and is a member of the BHS Hall of Fame.  Those of us who attended St. Thomas More probably had her as a catechism teacher.  8th grade seems to stick in my mind. 

Steve Kron passed away on Dec. 14 (http://rudesfuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/RudesF1/obit.cgi?user=844669Kron).  He was two years behind us in school, and was an outstanding bowler and good friend of Stew Linn during those heyday years when they were burning up the alleys at the Prairie Lanes.  I became somewhat close to him because he lived across the street at first the Revell Apartments, then the Hendricks Apartments, and finally, the Burkhardt Apartments.  That building has since been moved to second street south a couple of blocks west of Southside Park because there is a new government building occupying most of the block where the apartments were located.  He also was a custodian in the school system for many years. 

The mother of Harry Rossow passed away on Dec. 22 (http://eidsnessfuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/Eidsne1/obit.cgi?user=854632Rossow).  Harry and his family moved here our sophomore year.  Harry was our tough and dependable catcher on our slo-pitch softball team, Aurora Body Shop.  If memory serves me right, he was also a fine lineman on our Bobcat football team.  In my first year of teaching, Harry's younger brother Kurt was a student in one of my 8th gradae science classes. 

Wilma Herold passed away on Dec. 23 (http://eidsnessfuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/Eidsne1/obit.cgi?user=855205Herold).  Her oldest son Bill was a year ahead of us in school (a member of the first class to graduate from the new high school), while twins Dan and Doug were a year or so behind us.  Those three were on some of my little league baseball teams.  Two of the younger girls, Jodie and Lori, were also our students in their middle school years. Some of her grandchildren were also our students. 

 Dr. Robert Wahlstrom passed away on Dec. 25 (http://eidsnessfuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/Eidsne1/obit.cgi?user=855686Walstrom).  He had a couple of sons, Robert and Jim, that were a little older than we were.  He later married Erma Vandall.  I believe she was the mother of classmate Scotty Vandall. 

Darlene Hofer passed away on Dec. 28 (http://rudesfuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/RudesF1/obit.cgi?user=857305Hofer).  Her oldest son was Steve Niklason, a couple of years older than we were.  He was the catcher on my first little league baseball team.  Her other son was Allen Hofer, a year behind us in school.  He was one of the few juniors on our basketball team when we finished second to Rapid City Central in 1969, and was also quite a fine baseball player. 

Our condolences and prayers go out these wonderful people and also to all of those who have lost loved ones during this past year.

Rodney Koehn's Mother Passes Away

Doris Koehn, the mother of Rodney Koehn, passed away recently.  Her obituary can be found at http://www.brookingsregister.com/v2_news_articles.php?heading=0&story_id=16248&page=80.  If memory serves right, the wife of Jim Marking, the SDSU basketball coach from about 1965-1975, was Rodney's aunt.  Her maiden name was Carola Emilie Koehn (http://eidsnessfuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/Eidsne1/obit.cgi?user=595703Marking).  Rodney went to Hillcrest, so those of us who went to Central never knew him very well until perhaps high school.  He was in Guy O.'s physics and chemistry classes, and then later earned his degree in civil engineering at SDSU, I believe.  Rodney was also on our basketball teams up through our junior year.  We had a good time on the JV team that first year at the new high school.

Interestingly,  Rodney's nieces, Deanne and Dawn Ganter, were students at the middle school during my early years of teaching there.  They inherited some of Rodney's height, and were excellent students.  I never knew they were close relatives of Rodney. 

Our condolences and prayers go out to Rod and his family. 

The Wife of Don Mohlenhoff Passes Away

Many of us may remember Mr. Don Mohlenhoff, as he was the classroom instructor for driver's ed when we were sophomores in our last year at the old school.  He was also head varsity basketball coach from 1963-1967.  Russell Anderson, Teresa Steen's husband, was one of his players.  Some of us had older brothers who played for him:  Mike O'Connell, Bob Bozied, Zoell Colburn, Jim Iverson are some who come to mind.  Jim Kortan and Tom Osterberg from our class were on his last team our sophomore year.  The best player during his tenure was undoubtedly Eric Bundgaard.  He was one of those rare players who started as a freshman, and as a sophomore was an all-state player.  Unfortunately, he moved after that year (his father Axel was athletic director at SDSU, and took a similar position at St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN.  An interesting article on Dr. Bundgaard can be found at http://www.startribune.com/obituaries/120156569.html?refer=y)  If you are interested, you can do a web search and find some other good stories about him.

When we started at the new high school in the fall of 1968, Mr. Mohlenhoff became a health/PE teacher  and coach at the middle school, the former high school.  My first year of teaching at the middle school was 1973-4.  Mr. Mohlenhoff was the head 7th grade basketball coach, and I was his assistant.  One of his sons, Joel, was in that class.  Lee Colburn's younger brother Jon was also in that class. 

Mr. Mohlenhoff passed away about 10 years ago (http://www.millerfh.com/index.php?option=com_obituary&task=details&oid=2946.  Another intriguing site is http://www.fanbase.com/Don-Mohlenhoff  He played basketball at then South Dakota State College in the late 1940's, and was selected for the all-NCC team in 1947, 48, and 49--scrool down about a thir of the way on this website--http://northcentral.prestosports.com/Record_Book/mbb.pdf.  (You can also find Lee's name there for 1971, 72, and 73, and Jim Fergen, who started Fergen's Men's Wear in Brookings, who earned honors in 1938 and 1940.)    Among his teammates were Duane Colburn, Lee's father, Herb Bartling (of the Bartling family that owned Bartling's Furniture downtown), and Harry Forsyth, whose father owned the Dairy Queen (before Beth Billings' father did), and who himself later became athletic director at SDSU.  Mr. Mohlenhoff's wife Betty passed away on Oct. 20, 2012.  Her obituary can be found at http://www.argusleader.com/viewart/20121024/OBITUARIES/210240302/Betty-Mohlenhoff?odyssey=tab%7Cmostpopular%7Ctext%7CLIFE and at http://www.brookingsregister.com/v2_news_articles.php?heading=0&story_id=15939&page=80

Does anybody remember those films we saw in Mr. Mohlenhoff's drivers ed class?  One vivid memory, not from the films, but from the class was that he had a machine that could test our reaction time.  It had a gas pedal and a brake.  When a red light came on, we had to hit the brake.  There was a timer in there somewhere, and it would display the reaction time. One of the boys who had an exceptionally fast reaction time was Stewart Walz.  In gym class, he wasn't exactly one of the speediest ones on the playing field, but he was quicker than most of us when it came time to hit the brakes. 

Also passing away recently was Grace Sanderson, mother of Reed, Mark, Kwen, Laun, Jan, Terry, Dell, and Joy.  Some of us had older siblings that were in their class.  Laun was a year ahead of us, and Jan a year behind us, so we knew them better than the others.  He obituary can be found at http://www.brookingsregister.com/v2_news_articles.php?heading=0&story_id=15905&page=80

The Father of Pat Collins Passes Away

Our prayers and condolences go out to Pat Collins on the recent passing of her father, Paul Everett Collins, 95,  who died Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012, at Brookview Manor in Brookings. The obituary from the webpage of the Register reads:

Funeral services are at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at Ascension Lutheran Church in Brookings. Burial is at First Lutheran Cemetery in Brookings. Visitation is from 5-8 p.m. Wednesday at Eidsness Funeral Home in Brookings. Memorials may be directed to Ascension Lutheran Church or to the Collins Scholarship in HFLP administered by the SDSU Foundation.

Paul was born on Feb. 22, 1917, on a farm near White Rock, Minn., to Eric and Mary (Wiberg) Collins. He attended Goodhue County rural school through the eighth grade and graduated from Cannon Falls High School in 1934. He was captain of the football team and Senior Class president in 1933-1934. He received American Legion medals for leadership and scholastic achievement. He graduated magna cum laude in 1939 from Gustavus Adolphus College with educational degrees in history, social science, and chemistry. He taught high school at Bigfork, Minn. in 1940.

Paul enlisted in the US Army Air Corps in 1941 and graduated from photo school. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in December 1941. He served at Salt Lake City Air Force Base, Geiger Field (Spokane), Davis-Monthan Air Force Base (Tucson), Alamogordo (NM) Air Field, Ephrata (WA) Army Air Base, and Great Falls Air Force Base. He was deployed to North Africa with the Second Bomb Group in April 1943 as group photo officer. He later served in Foggia, Italy until the end of the war. He was awarded the Air and Bronze Star Medals. He returned to the States in September 1945 and separated from the Air Corps in January 1946. He stayed in the Air Force Reserve until 1972, retiring as a lieutenant colonel.

In 1946, Paul returned to college at the University of Minnesota and studied forestry, earning a BS degree in 1948, MS in 1949, and Ph.D. in 1967. He worked at Kansas State University as an Extension forester from 1949-1951. He moved to Brookings in 1951 and joined the faculty of the Horticulture, Forestry, Landscape and Parks Department at South Dakota State University. He taught and conducted research in forestry until retiring in 1983 with emeritus status.

Paul married Mildred (Mickey) Johnson on Sept. 4, 1948. They were married for 48 years until Mickey’s death in 1997.

Paul was a charter member of Ascension Lutheran Church and served as its first president from 1962-1966.. He enjoyed singing and was a choir member until age 90. He was also a soloist and sang in a men’s quartet at the church.

Paul was a member of the Brookings Lions Club for 55 years, serving as its president in 1965-1966, leading the club in singing until age 93. He was also a member of Sigma Xi scientific research society and Gamma Sigma Delta (honor society of agriculture). In addition, he remained active as a volunteer driver for the Brookings Volunteer Service Bank and Meals on Wheels, logging more than 500 service hours and more than 25 years.

Paul was an avid early morning long distance walker. He enjoyed photography, gardening, and crossword puzzles. Until late in life, he took pride in maintaining an impeccable lawn. He loved history. His children struggled to keep him in stock with fresh history books. He and Mickey liked to travel, especially to Civil War sites, and in the process managed to visit every state except Hawaii.

He is survived by his children Patricia Collins (Dan Cherryhomes) of Minneapolis and Michael (Isabel) Collins of Elm Grove, Wis.

He was preceded in death by his wife Mickey, and two sisters, Mildred and Ethel Collins.

Another recent article from home concerned the daughter of Sue (Cavanaugh) Ribstein.  Her daughter has been diagnosed with MG, myasthenia gravis.  The complete article can be accesses at http://www.brookingsregister.com/v2_news_articles.php?heading=0&story_id=15704&page=76