Last week we met Dan Markell and learned about his childhood in Green Valley during the 1950s and ’60s. He began his public school education at the Green Valley School, but his education changed after the fourth grade.

“When I was in fifth grade my folks decided it was time to get to the big school, so I went to East Side Grade School in Marshall,” he said.

Dan began riding a school bus to Marshall, where he completed his elementary grades, junior high, and high school. He smiled as he recalled his Marshall teachers.

“I remember them all. They were a great bunch. They kept pretty good discipline. I can’t think of a time where there was any real conflicts.”

Dan, who runs an antique furniture restoration business, recalled a couple of his Marshall teachers with particular fondness and respect.

“Mr. Kienholtz was our shop teacher. I had him all through high school — he and Mr. Ahlen. They were probably the ones that had the greatest influence because they taught me stuff that I am still using today.”

Dan was involved in Marshall Tiger football and wrestling and remembered his experiences with a smile, “I played football — mainly as kind of the ‘bench captain.’ I practiced a lot, but I didn’t get to play too much. Wrestling was my best sport. I was able to hold my own in wrestling.”

He described the fashion scene of his high school years.

“The girls all wore dresses. Once in a while after school they’d get into jeans, but otherwise the girls always wore a dress. But the guys — mainly blue jeans and a (collared) shirt. You were supposed to be wearing a belt. That was part of the dress code: wear a belt. I don’t remember who it was, but they cut the loops off their blue jeans,” he said, laughing.

Dan always worked at a job of some kind, from his grade school days, right through high school.

“I had a paper route until ninth grade and then I worked for a farmer. I biked about half a mile and worked on a farm when I was in ninth grade.”

Dan explained how this job was a challenge both physically and socially, as Dan’s farmer-boss was an immigrant with limited English.

“It was Oscar G. Louwagie. It was all hands-on, literally — baling and picking rock and it was very physical, very physical.”

Dan chuckled, recalling how he and his boss navigated their language divide.

“There were two Oscar Louwagies at that time. There was an Oscar who was the home-grown Oscar. And then Oscar G. — he was actually an immigrant. He spoke very broken English. A lot of the directions I got from him were written in the dirt to give me an explanation of where I should be going next or whatever. He had a good understanding of English, but to converse with somebody in English, it was a struggle.”

After a year working for Oscar Louwagie, Dan hired on at Schwan’s, “I worked for Schwan’s for three years out at the ice cream plant when it was downtown where their office is now.”

Dan also recalled his high school social scene with great fondness.

“Dad had a 1954 Chevy that was kind of beat up and he let me drive that, so I didn’t have to buy one. With that ’54 we could get 15 kids in there sometimes,” he recalled, laughing.

Dances were big events.

“A lot of times when I wasn’t working in the summer, we’d go to a dance on Saturdays — a lot of times in Ghent. Or, back in those days the Armory sponsored a lot of dances and they’d bring in some pretty well-known bands and they’d get huge crowds: The Fabulous Flippers and we saw the Castaways. They had a car club that would sponsor. It was called The Idlers Car Club. That was kind of a forerunner to Shades of the Past.”

Dan added, “Some of the incorrigibles would go to Lake Benton (The Showboat), I was there once. I wasn’t that impressed. There was some underage drinking. I don’t want to be like a ‘goody two-shoes,’ but I didn’t drink in high school. So, that was the main function down there, I think – drinking,” he concluded, laughing.

Going swimming at Camden was also big.

“We spent practically every Saturday and Sunday there. We’d call each other on the landline — that was way before cell phones — and I’d come into town and pick up a bunch of kids. We were way over the limit in my ’54 Chevy. I’m sure sometimes there’d be 10 kids in the car. Those were fun times. We spent a lot of time at Camden. You could get a frozen candy bar for a nickel — a frozen Snickers.”

During high school, Dan was aware of the war in Vietnam, “When I got to be about a sophomore or junior, I was aware that there was stuff going on.”

Dan’s father had served during World War II. That family history and registering for the draft at the Courthouse when he turned 18 left little doubt that Dan, too, would serve. He enlisted in the Army in April of 1966, just before graduating high school. His enlistment contract guaranteed him a slot as a rotary-wing repairman.

Next week we will explore how the Army taught Dan to fix Army helicopters and his first assignment in an Army aviation unit.

I welcome your participation in and ideas about this exploration of prairie lives. You may reach me at prairieviewpressllc @gmail.com.