LOOKING BACK in the Early Files by Lora Stull

The homecoming under the auspices of the P.T.A. organization was held at Lone Star school in Benton township Saturday,  April 24. About 80 people were present.

Former teachers present were Monroe Newton, Oscel Brown, Velora Campbell Stephenson.

Monroe Newton, now president of the board, and a former pupil, also teacher, gave a very interesting history of the school. Following are some of the facts brought out in his history of the school:

The first school house was built on “Prairie Hill” about 1876. Rachel Barcus Northrup, who lived near the site where Benton now stands, was the first teacher. When she made a personal application for the school, she rode an ox. While teaching she rode a two-year old heifer to school; turned it in the pasture for the week and rode home again on Friday evening.

Three of the first pupils who were also present at the homecoming, were Sarah Eaton Drake, James C. Newton and Mary Supinger Reynolds.

Rev. Noris gave the school the name “Lone Star,”  because it stood alone on the prairie with so few houses around it for many miles.

The building was burned by lighting in 1879. The next school house was built in 1780 by Rev. Stark, assisted by Dan Propst. It was painted by Marsh Dennis. This school was also called “Lone Star.”

Attorney Frank Wisdom,  of Bedford, was the first teacher in the new building. School continued in this building for twenty-three or twenty-four years. For several years it stood idle because there were so few children to attend, the children were being transported to Blockton and other places.

Dedicatory services for the new Free Methodist church in Mount Ayr will be held Sunday May 20.

At this time Rev. George Golay comes to Mount Ayr as pastor of the new church.

The annual sale of purebred Aberdeen-Angus held Tuesday by John D. Warin and Mary C. Warin at Maloy, was a most successful event with gross saled from 52 lots amounting to more than $134,000.

The Mount Ayr Vets coasted by their first game of the season by a score of 13-0 against Prescott on the home diamond.

Young Kenny Johnson was on the mound for the Vets. He is the only son of Mr. and Mrs. Ernie Johnson of Tingley, and is a cousin of catcher, Claire Johnson. He has plenty of style and poise and has promise of making an outstanding pitcher. He went six innings when he was relieved by Lefty Geist, who showed top form by striking out the first six to face him.

Births: May 9, a son to Mr. and Mrs. Lavern Novak..May 9, a daugther to Mr. and Mrs. Billy Duffield..May 9, a daughter to Mr. and Mrs. Marshall Barker..May 11, a son to Mr. and Mrs. Max Pottorff..May 12, a daughter to Mr. and Mrs. Donald Hinton..May 12, a daughter to Mr. and Mrs. Albert Deemer..May 13, a daughter, to Mr. and Mrs. Don Harvey..May 14, a son to Mr. and Mrs. Howard Burgher..May 15, a daughter to Mr. and Mrs. Lee Ayers.

Obituaries in this edition were: Bernard B. Dolecheck, William Jackson and Maude Miller Griffith.

Grand Valley to graduate 14. Graduation ceremonies at Grand Valley school will be held Tueday, May 18.

Members of the class this year include: Monte Greenland, president; Gail Palmer, vice president; Teresa Ingram, secretary-treasurer; Diana Wegner, Michele Stuck, Marlin Binning, Stanley Minnick, Duane Mickael, Mindy Zarr, Robert Newton, Mark Boles, James Eaton, Debra Wicker and Steven Vanderflught.

Regina Lynch of Maloy has been promoted to the position of Loan Officer with the Creston Production Credit Association at the Branch office in Mount Ayr. She has been an employee of PCA for 15 years, having served as office assistant unitl her recent promotion.

Her husband, Cleo Lynch, farms in Maloy vicinity and they have two daughters, Mrs. Wendell Jackson of Redding and Mrs. Richard Weehler of Maloy.

Mr. and Mrs. Rex Sickels just completed a two-week vacation to Denver, CO where they visited with Mr. and Mrs. R.E. Mosier and Terry, Mr. and Mrs. Dan Hanson and son, all of Denver; Mr. and Mrs. Cliff Mosier and family of Littleton, CO.

En route home they visited their daughter and son-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Guthland of Maryville, MO. Sunday they attended the graduation excerises for grandson and granddaugher, Rex Guthland and Vickie Sickels from NWMS college. John Sickels and Ross King cared for the Sickels farm while they were gone.

Births: May 6, a son to Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Moss..May 6, a son to Mr. and Mrs. Richard Scott..May 9 a daughter, to Mr. and Mrs. Melvin Moe..May 7, a daughter, Sondra, to Mr. and Mrs. Mike Shields..April 30, a son, Clinton, to Mr.and Mrs. Lynn Kesterson.

Obituaries in this edition were: Avery Ray Sanderson, Mae Elizabeth Osborn Horne, Harold Shorty Davis, and Lyle Spencer.

A Mount Ayr Community high school student came home with two awards from the National Business Professionals of America contest in Anaheim, CA, last week. Melissa Winkler took second place in the business knowledge skills contest and fifth place in the management concepts contest at the national meeting.

Amy Hynek will represent Mount Ayr Community Raiderettes in the girls state track meet in Des Moines Saturday. Hynek will be taking part in the Class 2A discus throw after qualifying for state with a 114 foot throw to win the district.

Brick layers were putting up the brick walls for the addition to the Mount Ayr Community elementary school as progress on the addition moved forward this week.

Marriage: July 8, 2000 Tami Trullinger and Matt Fahnlander, March 21, 2001, Russell Stewart and Jacqueline Faris, May 2, Frances Burton and Brett McNutt.

Obituaries in this edition were: Evelyn Pauline Greimann Creveling, Vernadene Nichols Gabriel,