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We have been learning about Larry Van Moer, the second of five children born to Marie (Marcotte) and Herbert Van Moer. Larry and his siblings grew up on their family farm north of Amiret.
Larry attended the nearby District 64 country school. He estimated their average enrollment at 15 students for most of the seven years he attended school there. He had five different teachers during his country school career and he thought all of them were nice. He felt well-prepared for his 8th grade year at Holy Redeemer School in Marshall.
Larry recalled special times at District 64. Some, like recess, were daily experiences.
"We'd have recess twice and a noon break. There was one game called Pump-Pump Pull-away. You'd have two teams and you'd hold hands with your teammates. Then someone would run across and try to break through. We had another game where you'd throw the ball over the schoolhouse and there were kids on each side of the school. And then we would have softball games."
Sometimes their teachers arranged softball games with other country schools.
"Every once and a while, they'd have a game with another district. We'd travel to another school like District 81 or another one close by and play that school. Then they'd come to our school. A couple times the mothers would bring a picnic lunch to share on the school grounds. That was probably in the spring before school let out. Those ball games with other schools were fun and were always something to look forward to."
Larry described another, recurring, special event he and his classmates enjoyed.
"The Methodist Church in Amiret was two miles down the road. Every month the church ladies would have a church dinner fundraiser. So, we kids could eat there for a quarter or 50 cents. Our teacher, Mrs. Berniece Larson, was (with us) two years and had an old, '48 Nash that was ugly and almost as big as a Buick Roadmaster. She'd put the whole group of us school kids in that car. There were no seat belts. We were just sitting on everybody's lap, stacked up. She'd drive us to the Amiret church and we'd go in; pay our 50 cents, unless she collected it at the school; and eat this big dinner. I still remember the scalloped potatoes."
Larry also recalled annual visits by the Lyon County Schools superintendent that were less festive.
"I don't know if that was scary for the teachers. They'd say, 'Mrs. Frost is going to be here next week,' and we were supposed to be on our best behavior. She'd sit in on the classes and listen to the teacher."
The Christmas program was an annual highlight.
"The Christmas program was another thing. The teachers put together a curtain on a wire that slid across the front of the school, like the old movies. The kids who were going to be a character in the program had to get their costumes ready. Some had to give a speech or recite verses. Then there would always be a couple songs that the whole group would sing."
Larry's District 64 education not only equipped him for success in the higher grades, but led to friendships with classmates.
"My best friend was probably Tom Bamford, who was a year younger. Wesley Westphal was my classmate and he was OK, too. Tom was a good ball player. He also liked to visit me and hunt, even as we got into 6th and 7th grade. My dad was kind of lenient because on Saturdays I could walk across the section and meet Tom. There was a big swamp in between they called the Ted Hecht Slough. It's still there. We'd go there and shoot rabbits."
Larry also described disciplinary issues that sometimes arose at school.
"I never got in trouble. (Larry chuckled) But there were a couple who did. These Bamford boys, not the one that I knew, but his older brothers, would sneak outside and smoke a cigarette. I think they carried cigarettes in their dinner bucket. (Larry chuckled) They were older. (Larry laughed) They should have been in high school."
Larry continued his education in the 8th grade at Holy Redeemer School in Marshall. This or a similar school change was forced on the District 64 families when a local referendum passed to close the school. Larry explained that referendum caused a long-lasting schism in the rural neighborhood.
"When the referendum came up to close the school, there was a shouting match between a lot of the parents. There were two families who were from the old school, you might say, that felt the old, country school should go on and on forever. There were (five families) who were all for closing the school. They had to consolidate because I guess there wasn't any money left. I know my mom and dad felt bad about it because those neighbors wouldn't talk to each other. Some people were just too upset about that school closing. Their kids went to the Tracy school. As far as the building, it sat there empty quite a while."
Larry reflected on what he learned from attending his country school.
"It helped me learn how to be with people and to be under the instruction of an adult teacher whom we didn't know. I learned discipline, that's for sure. But I learned that at home, too. I went right into 8th grade at Holy Redeemer, which was a big school, but I don't think I felt behind or scared."
©2026 William D. Palmer.