Photo by Jenny Kirk Outgoing board member Kerry Knakmuhs takes time recently in his office at Knakmuhs Agency to reflect on the challenges and rewards as a long-time board representative for Walnut Grove School and later, Westbrook-Walnut Grove.

WALNUT GROVE — When Walnut Grove native Kerry Knakmuhs decides to be involved in something, he passionately puts his best effort into it. So those who know him well probably weren’t surprised when he ran for a local school board position, was elected and then spent the next three decades devoted to the district and community.

“A friend of mine and I were kind of considering (a run for school board positions) at the same time,” Knakmuhs said. “We saw some real issues that were coming up, with consolidation amongst them. Our kids were young at that time and we thought we should have a say in it, so we both ran at the same time and we both got on.”

Knakmuhs remained committed even after his friend moved away later on. This past January, Knakmuhs received his 30-year service award at the Minnesota School Board Association Leadership Conference. Westbrook-Walnut Grove (WWG) Superintendent Loy Woelber and fellow board members were alongside him to commemorate the milestone.

“It’s with a whole bunch of gratitude on my part as well as the Logger and Charger communities that we thank Kerry Knakmuhs for over 30 years of service on the Walnut Grove and then the Westbrook-Walnut Grove board,” Woelber said. “He served during the tough times of the end years of Walnut Grove and figuring out a future. He was there when the partnership with Westbrook and Walnut Grove came to be — and still thrives today.”

Knakmuhs was on the board when a 34-year-old Woelber and his family came to town in 2001. He was also there when a large Hmong population was welcomed to the community.

“I’d say the consolidation of Westbrook and Walnut Grove was the most important issue in my time,” Knakmuhs said. “That and the assimilation of the Hmong community has been really important. It was really a challenge, but our staff and administration did a super job of welcoming people in and working as best we could to solve some of those language barriers.”

Knakmuhs said the increase in enrollment was exciting in so many way.

“We’d never had much diversity before, so it was a new experience for everyone,” Knakmuhs said. “The kids got along very well and with the numbers that were growing, we could actually see things with a different financial look on it. It turned out to be very positive and it kept us a very strong financial district for many, many years.”

This past month was Knakmuhs’ last as a school board representative. Reflecting back, he notes a lot of satisfaction in being involved with decisions with the best interests of the school and community at heart. He attributes ongoing challenges as the reason for his longevity on the board.

“It always seemed like there was another really important set of issues coming up,” he said. “You’d work on things for a few years, then it would settle down. But then there’d be another challenge for a few years before that settled down. Then another.”

Knakmuhs said he was relieved to have good candidates from the community step up to serve on the board — Maury Kuehl was elected in November to fill the open position. While he offered experience, wisdom and consistency, Knakmuhs acknowledged that fresh perspectives are also good.

“There are so many more people who are capable of making decisions based on the modern world than what maybe more of my experience came from,” he said. “You have to change with the times.”

Knakmuhs believes professionalism has been the key to past success.

“You have to have civil discussions, not like today’s politics where everybody has a different idea,” he said.

Knakmuhs said he’s appreciative of the supportive community.

“Sure, we had tough times, but the community has been very, very supportive,” he said. “If you make good decisions, there’s not a lot of reasons that people would have to make complaints. Hopefully that’s what we’ve done over the years as a rule. Most of the time, you have a good idea of how constituents are going to feel when something comes up, especially if it’s something financial where you don’t have enough money, like passing a referendum.”

While no one is happy about a tax increase, Knakmuhs said the community has shown its support by voting overwhelmingly in favor of it. WWG’s most recent referendum in 2017 passed by 74 percent percent.

While most people agree that the kids should be the top priority, Knakmuhs believes that involves making good financial decisions.

“In the ultimate sense, we’re doing this for kids, however, if you no longer have any money and you can’t operate a school, that’s not exactly good for kids,” he said. “So one of my primary areas of concern is that we control our fiscal habits.”

Even board member pay ($30 a meeting) is aligned with that.

“We never have enough money where we think it’s worthwhile to go ahead and raise that amount,” Knakmuhs said. “Everybody feels like when money is tight, you can’t ask for more for yourself. That would be crazy. Our school board is very underpaid, but everyone is willing to do it. And you don’t do it for the money.”

When his first term began in 1988, Knakmuhs recalls the board spending a lot of time on negotiations between Walnut Grove and Tracy.

“It just didn’t click, though, and we couldn’t come to a long-lasting type of agreement,” he said. “So we gave it up. We didn’t want to lose our whole persona of the school. Tracy was very welcoming to let us be a part of their school, but we wanted it to be our school, too.”

Knakmuhs said that around the same time, Storden, Jeffers and Westbrook were negotiating.

“We got involved in that a little bit and then finally decided Westbrook and Walnut Grove were probably more in common and had similar visions of the future,” he said. “That’s why that negotiation worked. That was in 2001, I believe.”

The community expanded even more when the Hmong population settled in around the same time frame.

“At our peak, about 50 percent of our students were Hmong,” said Knakmuhs, adding that family and education seem to be very important to the culture. “We were very fortunate when they came into town, that this was an area they wanted to concentrate on.”

Woelber calls WWG an educational oasis amidst the rolling prairie of southwest Minnesota. It takes a lot of hands, including that of board members, to provide a quality education and experience for the students in preschool through 12th grade, he said.

“Kerry was there to be a part of the amazing growth our district had with the Hmong community and the many projects that were completed since,” Woelber said. “Kerry has always been a big supporter for the kids and a well-rounded education in the arts, athletics and academics.”

About five years ago, Knakmuhs said student enrollment numbers began trending downward. He said he’s seen that kind of fluctuation before.

“When I went to school — I just had a 45th class reunion — there were 48 kids in our class,” he said. “That’s when it was just Walnut Grove. Westbrook probably had similar numbers in those days. Now we’re back having 30-some kids in a class and we even have some that are in their 20s. We have to work through that because now the trend is starting to go the other direction again.”

One reason for the recent rise in numbers again might be because a lot of past graduates are returning to the area to educate and raise their children.

“They knew they had a good life and family is important, so they want to have their kids grow up here, where they can also know their grandparents,” Knakmuhs said. “Most can find some kind of job or work they can do, so it’s a great opportunity.”

Knakmuhs knows that firsthand as Knakmuhs Agency is now a three-generation business. He joined his father, Richard, more than 40 years ago and gradually picked up more of its ownership. While his dad — who is also a former school board member — continued to have an office there until he was 85, expansions took place in order to accommodate the next generation.

There are now offices in Walnut Grove, Tracy, Westbrook and Storden. Knakmuhs, his wife, Becky, and their sons Matt, Nate and Justin, are all part of the business.

“We’re really lucky,” Knakmuhs said. “When our kids wanted to come into the business, we were going to find a way. The expansion provided my three sons an opportunity to be around here. And my daughter (Andrea Porter) is nearby in Marshall. So we get to watch all of our grandkids grow up.”

While he admits that there will likely be times he wishes he hadn’t relinquished his seat on the While he admits that there will likely be times he wishes he hadn’t relinquished his seat on the board and could still be part of the decision-making process, Knakmuhs believes the board is in good hands and he is looking forward to more free time. He plans to continue singing in church — like he’s done for more than 30 years — and singing in the Southwest Minnesota Men’s Chorus — like he’s done since 1978