Senior Class History

In August, 1948, the mountaineers: Linda Asher, Ed Bear, Eugene Buthman, Jane Daleske, Douglas Fillbrandt, Karla Frerichs, Caroll Gaubatz, Art Jaspers, Patty Klatt, Mary Last, Karen Mennenga, Carole Reiter, Lynnette Simester, Gary Wright, Charlotte Havens, and Barbara Wulff, being the first class in the history of Steamboat Rock to attend Kindergarten, started up the Mountain of Knowledge at Steamboat Rock, Iowa, where Mrs. Rosenberger was our guide. Our first stop was at a ranger station where Mrs. Oscarola Newby joined our group as our new guide and we also picked up Gary Eckhoff and Joyce Freese. Charlotte Havens made friends with a bear and decided to stay. With Miss Mary Hicks as our guide we continued the climb. We then decided to stop and explore a cave - there losing Eugene Buthman and finding Janice Tegmeier, Larry Eisentrigger and Daphne Hudspeth. We progressed with Mrs. Kenneth Amsberry as our new guide. We stopped at a stream to get a drink and Janice Tegmeier and Barbara Wulff decided to stay and fish awhile. As we continued our climb, we met Donald Geerdes, Bonnie Voll, and Richard Dirkising who joined our group. With Mrs. Amsberry still our guide and Puddin Head, our mascot, we started on but during the landslide we were very unfortunate to lose Bonnie Voll. Coming down another path were Nancy Blosch and Phillip Eggleston who tagged along for awhile. Continuing on, we acquired Mrs. Guy Norris as our leader. Charlotte Havens, David Luiken, George Nichols, and Phillip Sherbon decided to stay with our little band before being chased by a bear. Gary Wright, Richard Dirkising, Douglas Fillbrandt, Carrol Gaubatz and Lynnette Simester wanted to take a shortcut so they left our group. Continuing on with Mrs. Norris still our guide, we stopped at another Ranger station where we acquired Norman Nichols, Karen Wikert, Jim Harris, and Kenneth Crosser. George Nichols and the ranger seemed to get along quite well so he decided to stay. Mrs. Lucille Person was hiking along the path and so became our new guide. By this time we had reached a small peak in our lives and there perched in the top of a pine tree were Rex Heard, Don Campbell, and John Campbell. We sent a rescue crew - Norman Nichols, Phillip Eggleston, Gary Eckhoff, Patty Klatt, Karen Mennenga, and Phillip Sherbon after them but they liked the view and decided to stay. Proceeding upward with Mrs. Pierson still our guide, we came to a quiet lake where Kenneth Reed and Ray Wilson floated to our side on a raft. Karen Wikert and Don Geerdes wanted to go swimming and so left our group. At this point we reached a higher point on the mountain. The trail grew rougher and steeper, so we had Mr. Beane, Mr. Rhoades, Mrs. DeVault, and Mrs. Zender as our guides. We reached a high Pine forest where Don Campbell, John Campbell, and Larry Eisentrigger got lost but Dale Guill, Nella Mae Moore, Keith Norris, and Dennis Meints took their places. We acquired Mrs. Sheldon and Mr. Andershok as our new guides. While looking at a huge boulder, Ivan Niehaus came galloping up on a mountain goat. Jim Harris, Joyce Freese, David Luiken and Daphne Hudspeth followed the mountain goat to an unknown trail. Mr. Githens and Miss Burge joined our group as new guides and we discovered Dale Guill and Ray Wilson were missing so Floyd Heetland joined up to fill in. With Mr. Beane, Mr. Rhoades, Miss Schlampp, Mr. Githens, and Mr. Andershok now guiding us, we remained in the same group with the exception of Diana McCall who joined us - Linda Asher, Nancy Blosch, Nella Mae Moore, Carole Reiter, Karla Frerichs, Mary Last, Jane Daleske, Charlotte Havens, Diana McCall, Rex Heard, Ken Crosser, Kenneth Reed, Floyd Heetland, Keith Norris, Ed Bear, Dennis Meints, Art Jaspers, and Ivan Niehaus have now reached our destination, the top of the Mountain of Knowledge. From the Eldora Herald Index Note: We lost David Luiken (1955) and Ken Crosser (1999)

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