Classmate Profiles
Instructions: Hello, Classmate! Our once-in-a-lifetime GOLDEN class reunion is coming soon, and your classmates hope to see you in August! Even if you aren't able to join us, please share below about your after-high school life (~350 words), favorite high school memory/ies, and include a current photo of just you, with your face and hair - or lack thereof. And although your contact information won't be visible on this website, your classmates can contact you via email by clicking on "send [name] a message" link at the bottom of each classmate's profile. Enjoy reading the profiles!
One classmate per profile. To change your profile click Log in. Username = your email.
Jerry Herrick
| State / Province: | OH |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 3 |
| Occupation: | Sales Management |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: | Spent 7 years after AHS traveling the west, working all levels at restaurants and construction, and sporadically sputtering through college at the U of I. Managed to get my degree and met my lifelong companion, Miriam, in Iowa City. Moved to KC and started my career in athletic sporting goods sales, had 2 of our 3 children there. We moved to Central Ohio in 1991 for the company I'm still with. Was blessed with the third of our brood shortly thereafter. I've been a manager and owner for 25 years for a sporting goods sales agency that originated in Ames in 1951. We are proud grandparents of 5. Our youngest son is in Madison with his 3, our daughter is in Columbus with her two, and our oldest son lives and works in the DC area. Figuring out this retirement thing may take me as long as my undergrad degree, but we are entertaining the possibilities and traveling to see our kids and family or wherever else time allows. |
| Share a high school memory: | One of my fonder ones is Buckem's prodigious carpentry skills on the doors of Genuine Johns...... |
Doug Hills (Hills)
| State / Province: | TX |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 2 |
| Occupation: | Retired |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: | After HS I attended DMACC for Tool & Die making. After graduation I worked in Des Moines for 6 months at a industrial transmission test stand manufacturer. Next I was able to get a job at Bourns out by the airport in Ames. I was there 14 years and formed some wonderful friendships that are still very strong. For whatever reason Bourns decided to close the plant in 1989 but prior to that I met and married my wonderful wife Karla in 1983. We moved to Austin Texas in 1990 to work for 3M. I was in the shop another 6 years. 3M afforded me many opportunities while I was there. In 1996 I moved from the shop into an engineering group that specialized in machine design. We designed and built manufacturing equipment for 3M plants scattered all over. I got to do a little traveling and along the way met some incredibly smart Brainiac scientists that allow 3M to make all the crazy products they do. I'm incredibly proud of a few of the products that I had a hand in. If you sat in the passenger seat of a mid 2010's GM car or SUV you sat on an airbag deployment occupant sensor that I designed all the product manufacturing specifications and the tooling to assemble them. The second is if you have a government issued identification product a section of that document was processed on a machine I designed. Both very challenging and complex projects but I learned so much and worked with great team members along the way. Karla and I have two fantastic kids/adults. Kate came along in 1989. She has her masters in food science from Texas A&M and is a quality manager for a food manufacturer in Rockwall Texas. She's married to Doug who is also an Aggie(Gig Em) and works for Rockwell/Collins Aerospace in the DFW area. I have no idea what he does as my security clearance is not good enough. :) Our son Geoff is also a quality manager at a computer game company in Austin Texas. Both are outstanding adults and we are so proud them. We are both retired now and have moved from the hectic pace of Austin and live in Clifton Texas. It's a smallish community of 2500 and have pretty much everything we need here. If there's something else to get Waco is 35 miles away. I ride my bike a lot on the quiet gravel roads around Clifton. Yes I said gravel. I have a good band of gravel grinders locally and there's lots of great roads around here. If you've read this far and wonder about my photo it's from Stillwater Oklahoma where I just did a 100 mile gravel event. It's so much fun with like minded people out enjoying the ride. Cheers |
Deb Hoemann (Gustofson)
| State / Province: | OK |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 3 |
| Occupation: | retired teacher |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: | The reunion committee was kind enough to include me even though I attended school in Ames through age 15. I do remember many of you and have enjoyed reading your bios. We were lucky enough to grow up in Ames and enjoy an idyllic childhood! After HS graduation I attended college at Phillips University in Enid, Oklahoma. My college roommate for several years was Shera Shirley another Ames student. We got into lots of shenanigans and studied just enough to be accepted into grad schools (law school for her) and I escaped with a BS in Education. I went on to graduate with a Masters in Special Education from the University of Central Oklahoma. I taught at the elementary level in 1st grade and special education for 33 years. Mostly in Harrah, Ok but a few years in Norman, Ok. In 1980 I married my husband Bill. He was a telephone engineer for several telephone companies including AT&T until retirement. We have 3 children. Twin boys Matt and Nick and a daughter Meghann born 3 years after the twins. We are lucky enough to see Nick and Meghann often and son Matt lives in Kansas with his son. Five beautiful grandchildren in all. I spend a lot of time attending their soccer and basketball games and was a big time soccer mom myself back in the day. These days I enjoy reading, gardening and hanging out with the dog. We used to enjoy more travel but my husband had a stroke 5 years ago so now I am a caregiver. |
| Share a high school memory: | At CJH, (maybe 7th grade?) I remember Tom Jorgensen our Math teacher slipped out into the hall for a minute. One of the kids drew a picture of the Lone Ranger with the caption “Hi ho Sliver!” He came back in shaking his head and reprimanded the guy for not spelling Silver correctly. That was probably the last time I enjoyed a Math class! |
Kevin Hoff (Hoff)
| State / Province: | FL |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 0 |
| Occupation: | Retired now |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: | I have had fun and quiet life, only spent one night in jail. After High School I joined the Marines. I was a helo mechanic/crew chief/door gunner. To young for Vietnam. Stationed 2 years New Orleons and 1 year Okinawa. I came back to Ames and while working at Bourns I met my wife from Cleveland who was attending ISU. We ended up movng to New Jersey where I attended college. Over the years I aquired three degrees. We spent about 20 years there then moved to Illinois. Quality Assurance was my passion and worked for Coca Cola, Sunkist and a few other small Manufacturing /companies. Finnally gave it up and opened a shot and beer resturant in northern Illinois which also became a biker bar as I was located out and away. The bar life was not healthy for me and I gained 50 some pounds, but I met alot of nice people, bad people and some that just belonged in jail. Finnally moved to Florida about 6 years ago. Panama City Beach, retired and watch the college spring breakers have their fun. They are funny! Sunny Florida is nice. Thats it. |
| Share a high school memory: | Most people remember or know Gregg Matters, (74). Always fun times with him. One summer a group of us went to Black Hawk lake for the weekend. I met a girl and we decied to go skinny dipping. Gregg came down to the dock and quickly figured it out. A few funny remarks and he was looking for our swim suits. Luck had it for me as he did not find them sitting on the edge of the boat. that it. Just fun times at Ames High. |
Steve Holdredge
| State / Province: | IA |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Single |
| Children: | 2 |
| Occupation: | Construction |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: | Upon graduation I served the next four years in the Marine Corps. I attended Military Police school and then worked at the U.S. Military Prison at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. (there was only one major riot when I was there). I attended college during my off duty hours and received a B.A. in Criminal Justice. I got married in November of 1974 and we had two wonderful daughters in 1977 and 1981. Both daughters are married and live close by (near Roland and Ankeny) My daughters blessed me with 5 grandchildren and I enjoy spending most weekend with them. During the 80’s I was a Police Officer in Story City. Highlight of that job was finding a body in Little Wall Lake and then testifying in two murder trials. I then returned to school at Maharishi International University in Fairfield. I worked on my masters in the Science of Creative Intelligence and meditated twice a day in the golden domes. Two years later I returned to Ames and started building custom homes with my brother Brian. I also contracted with Lowe’s in Ames to install kitchens, windows and tile. Four years ago I purchased a semi and hauled parts for Danfoss in Ames to Chicago and Wisconsin. I sold my truck last summer and now just do projects for family and friends. I purchased an old church 40 miles NE of Ames. I remodeled it into my home and live in it part of the year and in my RV the rest of the time. I have traveled overseas to Hamburg, Berlin and Prague. |
Susan Holloway (Stephan)
| State / Province: | MI |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 2 |
| Occupation: | Content and creative strategy -- retired |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: | My highlights story lede has to be my "Now" photo. I'm grateful every day for my best guy and dear husband, Dave, and our 42+ years together. We met at Iowa State and in 1981 began the first chapter of our marriage on the Holloway family farm in Indiana where Dave grew up and where our daughter and son got their starts as well. My "Then" yearbook staff photo reminds me of the many hours I've spent at keyboards over the years. Hard to believe that in the days of typewriters we literally cut and pasted! As writing tools evolved, so did my career after earning an ISU journalism and mass communications degree -- from marketing in Cedar Falls and Shreveport, Louisiana; to PR writing in Chicago; magazine writing and editing in Indiana; and higher ed communications in Michigan. In 1999, a career change for Dave took our family to Muncie, Indiana, and Ball State University, where I earned a master's in literary journalism. I also had the good fortune to work in university communications for a talented woman I gladly followed to Michigan State University in 2007. I loved leading a content and creative team that produced inspiring, brand-aligned communications. A couple years ago I retired, but I'm still tap, tap, tapping away on the keyboard. Dave and I are happy to continue living in the East Lansing area as retirees. There's just something about college towns, right? And the mitten state, especially northern Michigan, is pretty magnificent. (Did you know Michigan has the longest freshwater coastline of any state?) Best of all, our son and his wife and our daughter, her husband, and their three-year-old son live and work nearby. We're crazy about our little grandson and are delighted to spend a lot of time as Nonnie and Granddad. We also appreciate spending time walking with our sweet rescue doggo; following Spartan and Cyclone sports; being part of a wonderful, inclusive church; and expanding our travels a bit. I make regular visits to Montana, where my folks are now, and to the Southwest, where forever friends Teri Hough Engle, Nancy Sassaman Lott, and Kathy Peters Dagestino live. Our 55+ year friendship is a joy. I'm looking forward to our reunion and to catching up with many of you. Shoutout to the reunion planning team! PS I've now had an opportunity to read many of the bios. Your stories of finding your way through life are interesting and often heartwarming. Well done! |
| Share a high school memory: | Here are two that come to mind: -- Hilarious moments with Nancy Sassaman (Lott) in English class-- with sincere apologies and appreciation to Mr. Forssman for his patience and excellent teaching. -- Being a small part of the movie productions of Nancy and Mark Homer and friends. Especially memorable (only to me) is my starring role as Lovely Rita Meter Maid, aka Superwoman, and riding parade style in our '65 Buick Wildcat convertible through downtown. Where else but 1970s Ames, Iowa?! |
Mark Homer
| State / Province: | CA |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 2 |
| Occupation: | Happily Retired |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: | After college and film school I had a number of jobs including teacher, animator, various Hollywood film crew positions, and cash control worker at Disneyland where I literally counted hundreds of thousands of dollars each day. Let’s just say Mickey Mouse is not poor! For the last 25 years I’ve worked mostly as a screenwriter and during that time have sold 1 feature film and 8 TV movies. Most of my scripts that have been produced are in the “thriller with a smart female protagonist” category where a clever, capable career woman (doctor, FBI agent, NTSB investigator) who looks absolutely stunning wearing the latest designer clothes (Mel Harris, Jaclyn Smith, Sean Young) saves the day in just 90 minutes. They’re not art but they are fun to write. Screenwriting has also been a great job as it allowed me to stay home with our two daughters while my wife worked as a physician at the local clinic. I learned to write while kids took naps and always had a notebook when driving the girls to soccer, dance practice, piano lessons, etc. We live in Napa, California (yes, that grape growing town!) so I could easily drive down to LA for meetings. It’s worked out well and both girls are just now finishing up their graduate degrees in engineering. In retirement, I’ve gone back to animating some funny short cartoons for kids like "Deadly Geometry" and "Ace Integer and the Farting Fractions". You can find them on YouTube. |
| Share a high school memory: | My favorite high school memories involved making 8mm films with our classmates. At past reunions, people always asked me if they can see the films and so I finally got industrious and had every film scanned. Now they’re all on YouTube under the “Mark Homer Film Stuff” channel and available to everyone that worked on them (and I can’t imagine anyone except those people would want to watch them!) |
Lindy Hunt (Good )
| State / Province: | MS |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 5 |
| Occupation: | Retired |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: | After high school I married Mike Myers .We divorced and I started attending DMAC for Nursing.I had worked at Randall Foods since Age15. Had the opportunity to manage in a store in Des Moines. Shortly after had the opportunity to move to Memphis as a specialist in Bakery Deli and floral for SuperValu Corporate covering Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee.Opening and training in stores.I met my present husband Mark while taking martial arts. we have been married 31 years and have a combined family of 5 children and 16 grandchildren and soon to be 1 great grandchild ! I am happily retired where I take art classes ,travel and attend weekly bible studies.And now starting to lead a class myself.But most of all is being there for children and grandchildren.My oldest daughter is a physician and medical director for Blue Cross Blue Shield.My son is a web developer and designer.My youngest daughter owns 2 restaurants.My 2 stepsons have followed my husband and own construction companies. |
| Share a high school memory: | ???? I skipped a lot???? |
Richard Ingraham
| State / Province: | MD |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 4 |
| Occupation: | Biochemist/Scientific Review Officer at NIH |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: | It is amazing how so much time has passed and how many things have happened and changed during the last fifty years. I love the quote from Kierkegaard that: “Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” It is quite a puzzle and it could be that we will still not have sufficient understanding till our 70th reunion, if then. So, to summarize, after graduation, my family moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana where I studied chemistry which was followed by my move back to Iowa, where I did graduate work in biochemistry in Iowa City beginning in 1978, followed by a post-doctoral fellowship in biochemistry in Edmonton, Alberta, in Canada which began in 1984. In Iowa City, classmate Paul Stone became both a roommate and a lifelong friend and was best man at my wedding to Kim McBride of Zearing in 1981. Also, in Iowa City, my eldest daughter Rachel was born in 1984, followed later by Stephen in 1986. I enjoyed living in all three of these places and valued the friends I made in them as well as the amazing landscapes in Alberta. In 1988, I moved with my young family to Danbury and then New Fairfield, CT where I started a twenty- year career in drug discovery R&D at Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals and where I got to focus on many different therapeutic disease areas. It was great as was living in western Connecticut where I also got to do genealogy research with my Dad when he visited as that is the area where some of my ancestors had lived back in the 1700s. In Connecticut, there were two more children, Owen born in 1989 and Claire in 1992 and we were involved in church, and I got to enjoy camping with my sons in Boy Scouts and serving as Life-Science Judging Fair for the Connecticut Science Fair which my kids participated in. In Fall of 2008, I left Pharma and did some substitute teaching at an elementary school (which was very fun) followed by serving as a visiting professor at Quinnipiac University for a semester. An opportunity then arose to join the National Institutes of Health as a scientific review officer (SRO) and I have lived in Maryland ever since the start of 2010 and continue to work as an SRO setting up and running grant review meetings which is generally enjoyable and I have gotten to know interesting scientists and clinicians from all over the country. In 2016, Kim and I divorced and the following year I had the good fortune (with God and e-harmony’s help) to meet Mary Boone and we became happily married in 2018. Between us, we have seven adult children scattered around the country and four grandchildren who are a delight and we love Facetime as well as getting to visit in person. In addition to family and an excellent church, I have gotten involved with the C.S. Lewis Institute here in northern Virginia and very much enjoy learning about Christianity and science and how they are connected in apologetics. I look forward to the reunion and seeing folks and Iowa again! |
| Share a high school memory: | Going to Ames High was wonderful, among my favorite memories are Choir with Mr. Wiser and Biology with Mr. Spatcher when Len Griffen and I helped dig a small pond next to the classroom. I have wondered how that "pond" worked out in the years that followed. Also a lot of fun was the Project Eco 3 week camping trip in the Yellow River Forest area of northeast Iowa! |
Tony Irwin
| State / Province: | CO |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Single |
| Children: | 0 |
| Occupation: | Retired |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: | Hello 1974 ! I still surf all the time, and love it. Just got back from a surfing trip to Baja. Here I am surfing recently, click: https://flic.kr/p/2pzihBw and https://flic.kr/p/2pziT2u . My Then photo above, is from my motocross days, This was 1972, the summer before our AHS Junior year. I graduated half way through our Senior year so I could go to Florida and race the winter pro series. Some great memories. I miss those years. The now photo above was taken near Rifle CO a couple years ago. I hope to see you all at our 50 year reunion August 2024. |