We have been learning about Verlane and Lois Willard growing up with their three sisters on their farm in Sodus Township, Lyon County and attending the District 84 country school.

The sisters well-recalled the visits of the Lyon County Schools Superintendent to their school.

(Both sisters) Jenny Frost! (Verlane) She would bring books. (Lois) Yes! She would come to our school and then you would pick (books); read them; and bring them back. Then she’d go on to another school. (Verlane) I think every six weeks she would bring a new box of books for us. She had a puppet, Felix the Cat. (Lois) I don’t remember that. (Verlane) That was probably before you started. It was a hand puppet and she’d say, ‘Oh, I think I see him behind that desk.’ We’d all turn and look and then, all of the sudden, here Felix showed up. (Verlane laughed) It was like magic to us.”

Ms. Frost’s visits augmented District 84’s existing library.

(Verlane) That was behind the teacher’s desk along that wall because there were windows all along the east side. The bookcase was where the windows quit there. I remember “The Five Little Peppers and How They Grew” because I read all of those books.”

The sisters also recalled sharing a fun chore at the end of the school day at District 84.

(Verlane) “Teacher (Oma Johnson) swept the floors after school was out. (Lois chuckled) We got to do the erasers. (Verlane) Yeah, we got to dust the erasers outside. That was fun.”

The end of the school year brought other special events.

(Verlane) “We’d have a picnic at the end of the year. (Lois) We got to ride the train from Tracy to Springfield one year when I was in school. (Verlane) I didn’t. (Lois) This was a passenger train. It really was an experience, though, to go on that train. And then we got to see things in Springfield including the brick factory. It was amazing for a kid who had hardly been outside the home.”

Lois explained that she experienced another type of life lesson during her time at District 84 after Verlane moved on to Marshall High School.

“Oma Johnson lived a half mile from school. She went to summer school in Marshall and was killed in a car accident while coming back from summer school. Then her sister, Lena Taylor, from Marshall, rode the school bus out (and took over). She was as good as Oma and I was so glad. She lived in Marshall, but rode the school bus to our school, so she got there before we did.”

Lois began attending Marshall’s East Side Grade School in the 6th grade.

“So, Lena was (at District 84), but the school was closing as there were only five students because (sister) Fran and I were going to Marshall. (Verlane) We were consolidated.”

The sisters described their transition experiences to the Marshall Public Schools.

(Verlane) “Our parents didn’t believe in taking us to school ahead of time to show us where our rooms were. You were on your own. You got off the bus and it was up to you to find your classroom. (Lois) Our neighbor girl, Joyce, who lived a mile and a half from us, rode the same bus as I, so she showed me where the room was. Fran (younger sister) was in 4th grade when she went in. I didn’t even tell her where her class was or help her with it because Joyce was showing me where our classroom was. But Fran found it.”

Verlane graduated with the Marshall High School class of 1954 and Lois graduated six years later with the Marshall High School class of 1960.

Verlane met and married Stanley Ross, who had attended Lynd Public Schools.

“We met on a blind date. My roommate was Lillian Serryn from Lynd. She was dating Jim Dale and they were all in the same class, but Stan was in the Navy at the time. When he came home on leave, Lillian asked, ‘Would you like to meet him?’ I thought, why not? I think we went to a movie together. (Verlane laughed) That was pretty much it.”

Verlane and Stanley raised five children in the Plymouth/New Hope area where Verlane worked in different positions for North Memorial Medical Center. The couple later moved to a farm near Ivanhoe before ultimately settling in Balaton.

Lois met Darrell Giles and they began dating when they were sophomores at Marshall High School. She chuckled as she recounted how their relationship began.

“I think I went with him on six dates before he ever kissed me and I thought, ‘Oh, I don’t know what’s going to happen here.’ (Lois laughed) We have been blessed with 62 years together.”

Darrell enlisted in the Air Force shortly after graduation. The couple married two years later; were a military family for 18 years; and raised two boys. They relocated to Balaton after Darrell retired from the Air Force.

Verlane and Lois reflected on the benefits of their time at District 84.

(Verlane laughed) “I think my sisters were my best friends because I was the only one in my class. (Lois) We used phonics right away. That was the most important thing to learn in country school. (Verlane) We learned a lot of the basics. I think we also learned to be patriotic. We always started with the Pledge of Allegiance. (Lois) Mm hmm, and be prompt for everything. Don’t be late. (Verlane) It’s just a good memory.”

©2026 William D. Palmer.