Verna Rankin:
CLASS OF 1963
Nashua High SchoolClass of 1963
Nashua, IA
Verna's Story
Last weekend (06/28/08) was the Class of '63 reunion where I reconnected with quite a few classmates that I inadvertently left behind when I got into the business of school/marriage/family/working world. It was good and another reunion is planned in 5 years, so, if you graduated in 1963, PLEASE CONSIDER STOPPING IN! I was hard to find for a few years from moving and mail not forwarded; for other reunions I just plain got the flu and was stopped cold from coming. Through "Classmates"it's my hope to reconnect with more of you!
After highschool I went to Mason City Junior College, worked in New Hampton for the two years after that and met my husband (Ron Rankin) who had returned from Viet Nam and stopped in to see his father (my boss) at the Chickasaw County ASCS office. We married and have lived in and around the Minneapolis/St Paul area for 41 years, now residing in Big Lake. When the city catches up to us us we just move out a little farther!
We do enjoy being near the city, but prefer to life in a small town atmosphere on or near a river (sound familiar)! We live on the Mississippi, but its a lot smaller up here! We prefer the quiet and stealth of a canoe and we took our "Scanoe" out last weekend into the backwater where we saw a deer up to its belly in water just playing....a 1st! We love bonfires, too, and have a pit in the back yard. We also love camping with our small motorhome, but haven't taken it on longer trips lately....cost less to drive, stay in a hotel/motel and eat in restaurants...also less packing!
We have two grown children, Cale, 37 with a great wife and 4 children, and Rhonda with a great hubby and one child. They live within 40 minutes of our home and we generally see them every week or so satisfying our need for a "grandchild fix."
I worked at Land O'Lakes (butter people) headquarters for many years in a clerical capacity and semi-retired in 1994 to start my own in-home window coverings business....a lot of fun and only customers who were happy and excited about what they were doing! My nitch was to bring product samples into their homes, which I loved, but my knees hated. When we moved from Dayton to Big Lake I officially retired to be a free spirit and grandma. I also worked in the transportation world. As each of three businesses closed their doors in the 70's and 80's I knew it was time to get back to a stable industry....back to Land O'Lakes!
Ron is in partnership in a mid-sized auto body repair business. The shop did vintage car restoration for many years, receiving two Number 1 ratings in two different national shows. Because so much time is spent on researching exact detail and for rebuilding close...Expand for more
-to-perfect old cars he and partner opted to go into the "crash" end of things and now work mostly with insurance claims. The business has been good to us over its 30+ years of existence.
I do a lot of research on the internet.....have become a need-to-know kind of person, and believe it or not, somewhat of a scholar. I'm still creative and love to paint and write. We enjoy uplifting movies and concerts and are involved in grassroots politics. We have a great love for our Lord Jesus Christ and try hard to walk the walk, not just talk the talk, tho we fail, frequently!
I signed up with a personal trainer and had my first session today....I am sore! I am optimistic that if I do I will reach at least and maybe surpass the ripe old age of 90! Ron is in great shape....really, I am working to keep up with him!
If you feel inclined, drop me a note. I would love to hear from classmates and others.
Sincerely, Verna
The main purpose of this post is to thank all of you who served our country in the military....especially those of you who spent time in Viet Nam, and now, your sons and grandsons in the Middle East. Years after the Viet Nam war I learned that it was really between the US, China and the Soviet Union; proliferated on Viet Namese soil in a most political but deadly way for many. Most don't know that there was also a bit of spill-over into Indonesia (specifically, Bali) as China, for the Soviet Union, attempted to dominate trade waters between Viet Nam and Indonesia. And, most don't realize that because the Soviet Union overspent on Viet Nam they were forced to end the Cold War a few years down the road. To you I extend my most honorable if belated and clumsey salute. And, thank you to all of your families for the obvious sacrifices they made while you and yours were, have been, and are in service so that we can speak freely on web sites like Classmates, Facebook, You Tube and more. After all these years a few news outlets opted to tell the real story.
Yesterday our families were here. We had fun and ate too much. School is out soon so we've made plans to go fishing in a week or so when Ron is off (I might not have to put anything on or take anything off of those hooks.....Woo Who!)
Our old fashioned flowers are out. Right now I'm enjoying our neighbor's flower bed that sits on the lot line. She makes it look like I might have done a lot of planning and planting. Carol....You go, Girl!
May God bless you all. I pray that God will choose to bless America as the times are getting harder for lots of folks....But, we might all just have to get on our knees, confess a few things, and ask His forgiveness if we want that to happen.
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