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.
Kay Anderson (Kay Jones)
| Marital status: | Married |
|---|---|
| Children: | 1 |
| Occupation: | Retired |
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Highlights of your last 50 years:
Beatrice “Kay” (Jones) Anderson graduated from Ames Senior High School in 1974. She married Curt Anderson (of Odebolt, IA) on December 13, 1975, at the First Methodist Church in Ames, IA. From that union a daughter was born, Melissa A. Anderson. Kay worked at Mary Greeley Hospital as a cook for approximately 13 years. She then changed work goals in her work life she went to DMACC. After graduation she started working 1990 working for the Iowa Department of Transportation and then retiring after 27 years. |
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Mark Anderson
Then
Now
| State / Province: | ID |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 1 |
| Occupation: | Retired |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: Graduated from San Jose State University in 1981, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Worked at Lockheed from 1981-1999, operating top secret satellites for the U.S. Air Force. Married Holly Thies in 1992. Earned Masters Degree from University of Colorado in 1999, majoring in Telecommunications. Worked as an Electronics Systems Contractor from 1999-2018, installing high end home automation systems in high end residences in Maui, San Francisco, Napa Valley and Lake Tahoe. I have maintained contact with Steve and Deb Craig, John Craig, Kirk Farrar and Fazeela Walker (Kahn) through the years. Our favorite activities include countless houseboat trips to Lake Powell and Lake Shasta. Holly’s daughter, Tomel, and her husband Lenin (who now have my 1968 GTO) have our two grandkids: Holiday (12) and Elijah (8). We recently adopted two mini-Austrailian Shepard puppies (Truckee and Sierra) | |
| Share a high school memory: Hanging out in the gravel parking lot at Ames High. | |
Mary Anderson (Childs)
Then
Now
| State / Province: | VA |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 2 |
| Occupation: | Retired |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: Took classes at Iowa State, completed the Paralegal Program at DMACC, moved to Virginia Beach, Virginia, and eventually ping ponged between Virginia, Iowa, and California over the years. During those years I worked for a few different law firms, a title insurance company, State Street Bank, and a federal agency in DC. Met my husband, Erik, in Virginia Beach in 1985 and we were married at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California in 1989. We’ve been living in Falls Church, Virginia (just outside of Washington, DC), since 2001 when we bought my husband’s childhood home. We have two wonderful sons, Ross and Ryan, now grown, but no grandchildren (yet). I retired in April 2023 after working 24 years as Web Content Manager for CSOSA, a federal agency supervising DC offenders. I filmed and photographed lots of our boys’ lacrosse games when they were younger, helped with Cub/Boy Scouts activities, planning/coordinating a few ski trips to Wisp Resort and oceanside camping at Assateague Island being highlights. Had some great vacations, ski trips and family get togethers with some favorites being houseboating in Voyageurs National Park, beach trips to the Outer Banks, North Carolina, visiting family in Minnesota, trips to Maui, Sanibel Island, and Germany. Looking forward to checking off some travels from the bucket list after Erik retires. | |
| Share a high school memory: Two trips our Junior year: the UN/DC trip – loved visiting the Smithsonian museums and seeing the Godspell performance at Ford’s Theatre in DC, also Jesus Christ Superstar on Broadway in New York; Band trip to St. Louis – remember visiting the Gateway Arch when the tram was shut down for maintenance, so we had to walk up the steps to the observation level at the top – warm day + hot, sweaty bodies = all the windows were fogged over! So many memories: playing clarinet in the band, working at ISU Office of Industrial Education for Office Education, writing articles for the Ames High Web staff. I was in Tom Jorgensen’s homeroom (remember him singing to us in the mornings) and all was good as long as we showed up before he had to turn in the attendance slip. After I started driving, I remember Robin Haugland’s mom wouldn’t let her ride to school with me because she kept getting in trouble for being tardy. I think that might have been the beginning of a trend for me with struggling to be on time. | |
PF (Pat, Patty, Patricia) Anderson (Anderson)
Then
Now
| State / Province: | MI |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Single again |
| Children: | 2 |
| Occupation: | Medical librarian |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: I'm the Emerging Technologies Informationist at the Taubman Health Sciences Library, University of Michigan, where I've made apps, comics, a video game; written/published articles, book chapters, and books; taught workshops and built a library collection (with alien and animal costumes!) in a virtual world; 3D printed cool stuff, and soldered chips on circuit boards, which officially makes this the coolest job ever. Her job lets her hangout with the microbiome researchers, precision medicine folk, AI researchers, and get to talk about her explorations in personal genomics. She publishes on social media (especially in cancer communities), online health and search engines, wearables, text mining and tech mining (which are different things), textual analysis, and systematic reviews. In other words, she happily revels in geekery of many sorts. On a personal note, she is very proud of her two wonderful & much beloved kids; sings tenor in the local LGBTQIA choir; writes/publishes poetry & poetry reviews as a side gig; is compulsively crafty; identifies as a brawling broad of budo; and collects graphic medicine (aka health comics), art decks, and edugames. Fun stuff! My current work, art, and life focus on Long COVID. | |
| Share a high school memory: When I came to the last reunion, health issues causing amnesia had wiped most of my HS memories. Now several have come back, and it's hard to choose! Sitting in the hallway in my hippie petticoats before homeroom opened, passing out candy kisses at Christmas and chocolate drops at Valentines. Hank teaching Nancy Sass how to dance on stage with her arm twisted half behind her back (Miss Jean Brodie?). He was almost twice as tall as her! Standing in the back of the auditorium to check how my makeup jobs looked for Pirates of Penzance. Mr. Buss (German) forgetting my name, over and over again, and calling me Panderson (which devolved into Panda). Al Wiser, the choir director, telling us about his vacation in Germany, describing the beers (one translates into "courage"), and then the rest of the year urging the sopranos to hit high notes with "Take COURAGE!!" My favorite memory might be that crazy party at Nancy Sass's house with Twister, and whispered stories of how folk visited "Genuine John's" while underage and told their parents they were going over to John's (implying John Hansen). That was a revelation to me! Another revelation was the National Merit Scholar crew talking about having hacked the school records and getting the data to show that the smartest kids in the school were also those in the drug scene. Since this didn't include me, I was dubious. | |
Kathy Andrews Andrews (Harmison)
Then
Now
| State / Province: | IA |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 2 |
| Occupation: | Retired musician and teacher now a hand embroidery designer and teacher |
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Highlights of your last 50 years:
My first husband and I had two wonderful daughters and now 4 granddaughters who I love to bits! After graduating from ISU in music, I was lucky enough to have a career I absolutely loved - that of an elementary, and then secondary, music teacher. For 25 years, I also played in the Des Moines Symphony and free-lanced at the Civic Center. I retired from performing in 2000. In 2001, I moved to Bonn, Germany, where I continued to teach music in international schools. It was there that I met my second husband, who is English. We taught in Turkey, Germany, Qatar, Washington D.C and then we moved back again to Berlin, Germany where we lived until we retired in 2018. At the end of my teaching career I enrolled at the Royal School of Needlework in Hampton Court in London, England, to study the art of hand embroidery. We returned to Ames in 2018 and I am now a hand embroidery designer and teacher. During the reunion, I will be in Atlanta, GA, teaching at the EGA National Seminar. Who knew this was even a career?! When we moved back to Ame, we were very lucky to purchase from my parents the beautiful home my grandparents built in 1954. We both love living in Ames! |
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| Share a high school memory: A Dr. Farrar memory: I played oboe in high school. I wanted to play in the band and in the orchestra. However, in order to play in the orchestra, you had to play in the band. And in order to play in the band, you had to march. But...oboist's can't march with their instrument because the reed will slice up your mouth. We had to play the bells. (I can still play the fight song by heart on the bells if asked - go figure!) I told Mr. Trexel that I would not march. He said I had to march or no orchestra. I took it to Dr. Farrar. He listed respectfully, but supported Mr. Trexel's decision. I quit the band, took up the cello and played cello in the orchestra for a year with Mr. McCoy. The next year...the rule had changed - no more mandatory marching for double reed players. Victory! I learned that standing up for what you believe is fair sometimes pays off. | |
Jim Asp
Then
Now
| State / Province: | DC |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 0 |
| Occupation: | Retired |
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Highlights of your last 50 years:
The summer of 1974 I was clueless. My parents and I couldn't agree on a college so by default I ended up at Iowa State for my freshman year. I wanted to attend a big university - preferably in New York City - and my parents saw me at a Lutheran college in a small town. The eventual compromise was the University of Minnesota where I focussed on the very practical major of Art History. Following graduation I went to grad school at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. After a couple of years of study and acceptance into the Ph.D. program it dawned on me that there were no jobs in Art History. But plenty of student debt. So I made the logical choice to move to New York City with no job, no friends, no place to live and no money. Our classmate Dennis Dubberke came down to North Carolina to help move my meager possessions to the Big Apple. While on the beaches of North Carolina Dennis found a large horseshoe crab which he packed into his backpack as a souvenir. And which, by the time we were riding the New York subways, stunk worse than the subway itself. We move into the YMCA for a week to avoid homelessness. I was content to just play around in my new city, but Dennis was intent on helping me find an apartment. I told him if he could find a place in my price range I'd visit it. Our first - and last - apartment visit was a tiny walk-up on the Lower East Side with garbage in the vestibule, naked children running in the halls, and a dead mouse in the refrigerator. At least it was dead! Eventually I sublet a room and found a job in the Development Office of Marymount Manhattan College. And so began a 40-year career as a fundraiser. I also met my future husband, Perry Streidel, in 1981. He lived in Washington, DC where he owned a vintage clothing store in Georgetown. After commuting for three years I moved to DC and got a position at George Washington University. From there we had the good fortune to live all over the country and to work in some wonderful institutions - the University of California, Irvine in Southern California; then a return to New York where I switched to medical fundraising at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Next I became Chief Development Officer at the University of California, San Francisco and then made a move to Boston where I was Chief Development Officer at Brigham and Women's Hospital, part of the Harvard system. While in Massachusetts Perry and I married which we were finally able to do legally. My last professional stop was as Chief Development Officer at The Nature Conservancy, the world's largest environmental organization. This necessitated a move back to Washington and Georgetown and so we have come full circle. I retired just before the pandemic which was incredibly fortunate timing. After so many decades of work it was very enjoyable to do nothing for a while, especially since that was what we were supposed to do at that stage of the pandemic. We love travel and so were very happy when restrictions were lifted. A few years ago I set a goal of "70 by 70" - visiting 70 countries by the age of 70. I'm pleased to report that I'm currently at 69 countries with three more "new" country visits planned for this spring. So barring a catastrophe I should make my goal. I read an article about a poll of hundreds of people of all ages, who were asked to rate their level of contentment and happiness. The group that rated the highest were people in their 60s. My personal experience reflects this, as I feel more at ease and fulfilled now than at any other point in my life. And I consider myself very fortunate. Thank you to the members of the reunion committee who are organizing the activities. I know it's a lot of work and I appreciate it! |
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| Share a high school memory: Playing in the pit band for Guys and Dolls. And looking ridiculous in the marching band uniform. | |
Gloria Bailey Meiborg (Lawson)
Then
Now
| State / Province: | IA |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 3 |
| Occupation: | Health Care Assistant |
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Highlights of your last 50 years:
I continued to waitress after Ames High School. I married in March of 1975. My Husband Tim Bailey was killed in a motorcycle accident 5 months later. I went to work for Hach Company in June of 1976. I met my Husband George Meiborg in the Spring of 1978 and married him the in the Spring of 1979. I worked at Hach till our first Daughter, Heather, was born. We were also blessed with another Daughter, Jennifer and Son, Mike. I was able to stay home with my kids. I went to DMACC for a couple of years before my oldest graduated from High School. I earned my CNA and worked as an HCA for Mary Greeley Medical Center in Ames IA for 23 years. Our oldest Daughter is married to Harold and lives in Park City Utah. Our son Mike is married to Juana. They blessed us with 2 grandkids Daenerys (10) Cameron (6). Daughter, Jenny, also blessed us with 2 granddaughters, Gloria (22) and Stella (14). We enjoy traveling to see our kids and grandkids. I love the ocean and the mountains. I enjoy planting and taking care of the flowers in the Sumer. Another thing I really love is clothes and I love to shop! George and I are retired ! |
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Goga Bal
Then
Now
| State / Province: | IA |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Divorced |
| Children: | 2 |
| Occupation: | Attorney |
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Highlights of your last 50 years:
I joined the Navy out of high school and was stationed for four years at Annapolis. I got my psych. degree at ISU and law degree at Drake. I served as a Judge Advocate General in the Army achieving the rank of Major. I've supervised a litigation office in Boston and the Student Legal Services Clinic at the University of Iowa where I also chaired the UI Human Rights Committee and taught a study abroad class Social Justice and the Law in India. I've had the opportunity to write and argue two winning Iowa Supreme Court briefs. I've worked in the litigation department for the Oregon DOJ where I lived for the past ten years. I recently returned to Iowa due to my mom's health issues. On a more fun level, I stayed active in competitive sports after high school and won competitions in Tae Kwon Do, fencing, and triathlons. I've also parachuted, and hosted 4 radio music shows in classic rock, blues, jazz, and world music. I love to travel and explore other cultures. Some of my travels destinations have included Finland, Morocco, Portugal, Spain, S. Korea, Honduras, Turkey, Cuba, and Italy. I took up photography a few years ago and my works have been published in the New York Times and Vogue. I've received several awards at the Iowa State Fair Photography competition, won Best in Show at the Octagon Center for the Arts in Ames, and exhibited my work at the Center for Fine Art Photography in Colorado. A few years ago, I was selected as the official photographer for the World Spirit Festival in India which hosted performers from 19 countries. I have two children, Heather and Michael, and 4 grandsons. :) |
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| Share a high school memory: Ames High winning the state basketball championship. | |
Mark Barnett
Then
Now
| State / Province: | AZ |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Occupation: | Retired |
| Highlights of your last 50 years: Wow, my 50 year high school reunion bio. "Well, here goes nothing" as we used to say back then. After high school, I attended ISU where I was on the swim team with other Ames High grads including Dexter McBride, Nelson Thompson, and Tom Bliss (72). After college, I attended the University of Iowa Med School with Tim Moody and Paul Schattauer (73) in my class. Following med school I was married, and we had three children. In order to become a heart surgeon I did residency training in Madison, Wisconsin, Richmond, Virginia, and Houston, Texas for 8 years total. After completing residency, I worked for 3 years as a heart, and vascular surgeon at St Louis University Hospital. In 1994 we moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa where I worked as a heart, lung, and vascular surgeon for 24 years, retiring in 2017. In 2007 I married my college sweetheart, and the love of my life, Robin Warren. We live in Mesa, Arizona. Robin is working on pickle ball, golf, and becoming a bass guitarist. I am building, and flying radio control model airplanes, and playing the acoustic guitar while singing Happy Trails To You and other country hits. | |
Robin Barnett (Warren)
Then
| State / Province: | AZ |
|---|---|
| Marital status: | Married |
| Children: | 2 |
| Occupation: | Physician |
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Highlights of your last 50 years:
Attended ISU in Textiles &Clothing. Extensive travel as a clothing buyer. Returned to ISU for premed. Family Practice Physician since 1991. Have 2 wonderful grown sons. Married my college sweetheart, Mark Barnett, in 2007. |
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| Share a high school memory: All the fun and laughter with my AHS friends. What adventures we shared! | |