January 2012 - Office for Equity and Diversity - University of Minnesota

Marshall/Marshall University High School
ALUMNINewsletter
Volume 20, Number 3 January 1, 2012
LAUGHLIN 2012 Update
Marshall/Marshall U High School All Class Reunion
Page 1
Winter is here!
The reunion is scheduled for March 5-7, 2012 at Don Laughlin’s Riverside
Resort and Casino in Laughlin, Nevada.
Don’t take a gamble on missing the registration deadline of February 20, 2012.
There is a schedule of events and registration blank included in this newsletter. You
may copy it and please encourage your former classmates as well as others to join
us in Laughlin. Everyone is welcome.
The cost of the reunion is $75.00 and includes a welcome party with a social hour, hors d’oeuvres,
and entertainment. There is a boat ride on Tuesday at no extra cost to you, On Wednesday evening
there is a social hour, followed by a buffet dinner and a brief program. The registration fee of these
scheduled events is $75.00 and does not include your air and hotel.
You are responsible for making your own flight and hotel room reservations. For the best air/hotel
pricing, call the Riverside Resort at 800-227-3848 and use the code CMARSR.
As usual we will have a hospitality room which opens each day.at 9:00 am. This room is where you
can meet with former classmates and friends to recall your high school stories, while enjoying a cup
of coffee and cookies (at no charge to you.) This has proven to be a very popular place to gather.
You will also have enough free time to just relax and enjoy your vacation in sunny, warm Nevada.
However, the committee cannot guarantee the weather or your gambling outcomes, but do
guarantee good food, entertainment, prizes and fun for all.
We urge you to turn the page and find the schedule of events and registration form. Your mailing
instructions are on the form. Please fill out one form for each person attending along with a check
and mail to the people listed on the form.
Remember … registration deadline is February 20, 2012
SEE YOU IN LAUGHLIN–
The Committee

Schedule and Registration
It’s time again for all former Marshall classmates, spouses and friends to gather for the All Class Reunion, which will be
held at the Riverside Hotel and Casino in Laughlin, Nevada, March 5-7,2012. Laughlin is about 90 miles south of
Las Vegas and is accessible by Sun Country Airlines.
If anyone is interested in attending the reunion and has a need for any special services, e.g. wheel chairs etc., please call
the Riverside Resort to communicate your needs at least two weeks prior to your arrival. You may also want to reserve
a room in the NORTH TOWER for closer access to the Mirror (hospitality) and Starview (banquet) rooms.
The Schedule
Monday, March 5 Mirror Room Hospitality room will be open for registration all day .
9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. When you register you will receive your welcome packet.
with your name tag, schedule, coupon book etc.
The Mirror room is a great place to meet for coffee and conversation.
Complimentary coffee and cookies served daily
6:00 p.m. Starview Room Social Hour with cash bar
7:00 p.m. Welcome party w/Hors d’oeuvres, entertainment, and prizes.
Tuesday, March 6 Mirror Room Hospitality room 9:00 a.m..– 10:00 p.m.
Time TBD Dockside One hour Boat Cruise
Wednesday, March 7
6:00 p.m. Mirror Room Open 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
.
7:00 p.m. Starview Room Social Hour with cash bar
Buffet dinner, brief program and prizes
Hotel and transportation are your responsibility. For best pricing on air/hotel package contact the Riverside Travel Dept. at
800-227-3849. Please use the code C/MARSR.
The cost for the reunion is $75.00 per person. Please use a separate form for each person attending.
.
CLIP AND MAIL THE REGISTRATION FORM BELOW
Please Print
My reservation:_______________(_______________)________________________MHS Class of_______
First name Maiden Name Last name
Address______________________________________________________________________________
City_____________________________________State____ Zip__________Phone__________________
Submit $75 for each person to:
Sharon (Butler) Padula -or- Shirley Stemper Rasmussen
3818 Russell Av N 8879 Monteque Terrace
Minneapolis, MN 55412 Brooklyn Park MN 55430
Phone: 763-486-9141 Phone: 763-493-4562
Page 2

WCCO radio’s Susie Jones is a Marshall grad!—
an interview by Tom Daly, Co-Editor of Alumni News
When Susie Jones emceed
the Marshall/Marshall U
High All Class Reunion
on August 28, 2010, it was obvious
that Susie was at home behind a
microphone, and it came as no surprise
that she has a successful career at
WCCO Radio. Susie’s good work at
the Reunion and the warm glow of
friendship that still persists led us to
feel that an interview with her would
brighten the Alumni Newsletter. On
Friday, November 25, I met with
Susie in the kitchen of her home in
St. Louis Park. The following article
is the result of that interview.
Susie Jones grew up in Prospect
Park living first on Seymour Avenue
and then moving to a house that her
family built on Melbourne Avenue.
Her mother still lives there.
Susie began her school years at
Sidney Pratt (K-3) and then Motley
(4-5). It was at Motley Grade School
that she met her all time favorite
teacher, Laura Leigh Madsen.
Laura Leigh Madsen earned
Susie’s affection by allowing her
students to call her “Laura Leigh”
when all the other teachers insisted on
being called “Miss” or “Mrs.” Susie
also remembers that Laura Leigh wore
a button that proclaimed “Uppity
Women Unite.” Susie believes that
Laura Leigh was probably the first
feminist woman in her life. Susie
said that she was “quite open and
unconventional. . . . She will always
be my favorite.”
Susie’s favorite activity in grade
school was writing. She wrote poetry
and kept a journal. Nevertheless, she
never felt very strong academically.
A tomboy, Susie loved sports and
played a lot of them at Luxton Park.
In those days, “Minneapolis had a
very well run park system,” she said.
Wendy Foster, a park employee,
taught Susie and her friends how to
skate. They also learned how to play
softball, flag football and basketball.
They played teams from the other
parks like Windom and Van Cleve.
Susie and her friends won the city
championship in basketball as sixth
graders. Susie played guard, “I was
scrappy. I always fouled out,” she
said proudly.
Susie Jones also loved playing
softball. She played 3 rd base, the hot
corner, and had “a great big mitt” that
had been her grandpa’s. She said that
with that mitt she could really catch
line drives.
Refreshingly honest and open,
Susie admitted that during her high
school years she got into various
kinds of trouble and was often in the
principal’s office. “I was a rabble
rouser,” she said. The principal, Mr.
Donovan Schwichtenberg, must have
seen in Susie a diamond in the rough,
because they became life long friends.
In fact, when he retired, he asked
Susie Jones to emcee his retirement
party at the German Institute in St.
Paul.
Susie started going to Marshall U
High in the 6 th grade, and at that time
she and some of her classmates were
enrolled in an ungraded program
in which the kids were expected to
progress “at their own pace.” Looking
back, Susie said, “It was horrible for
me. I had no pace. . . . I just never did
anything. It was the 70s.” The next
Page 3
year her mom insisted that Susie be
put into the more traditional graded
program.
Susie Jones made up for her
modest academic achievements
by excelling in the social aspects
of Marshall. She liked the racial
diversity and making friends with
“kids in wheel chairs.” She made
strong friendships that have lasted
a lifetime: friends like Lisa Lee,
Cate Murphy, Joe Westerberg, Kobi
Conaway, and Sylvia Rhodes. In her
senior year Susie was elected class
president and was a candidate for
homecoming queen.
Susie recalls with a smile that
when Sylvia, who is Black, was
asked, “Why do you hang out with
that white girl” Sylvia replied,
“Susie’s not white, she’s my friend.”
Reflecting upon her years at Marshall,
Susie says that her fondest memories
are of “a great sense of camaraderie
and friendships.”
Following high school, Susie
worked, went to the University, spent
one year at Arizona State where she
said she hoped to become “tall, tan,
and rich” (it didn’t happen). She
juggled college classes, part-time
jobs, boys, and partying. She worked
at Tower Grocery, Annie’s Parlour,
made sub sandwiches, and as a
senior worked at KTWN, a jazz radio
station, from midnight to 6 a.m.
In 1987, she got her first real job
as a grown-up, selling advertising for
WXOW TV in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
It was a terrible job. Susie told a
friend that she was going to quit
and go back to Minneapolis. He told
her that she couldn’t quit. A short
time later, when she thought things
couldn’t be worse, Susie Jones had
a transformational experience. In her
WCCO Jones Continued on Page 4

WCCO Jones Continued from p. 3
words, she “surrendered to a higher
power.”
She went back to the station
and asked the manager if she could
become a reporter. He said yes she
could, but he had no money to pay
her. So Susie worked without pay as
a reporter for the next six months.
The manager agreed to pay her after
that, and she was on her way. In 1989
Susie became the weekend anchor
at WXOW and before long she was
anchoring the news at 6 and 10 p.m.
In 1991 Susie married David
Verhasselt. In 1993 she gave birth to
her son Ben and in 1995 her daughter
Josie was born. They moved back
to Minneapolis in 1995. Susie had
a number of part-time jobs with
Channels 4, 5 and 11 and WCCO
radio. In 2000 David and Susie
divorced. She started a business
radio station called KCCO in 2001
and also hosted an afternoon show.
Susie began working as a morning
street reporter on WCCO radio in
2003. She began co-hosting a radio
talk show with Pat Miles in 2004 and
continued on with Eleanor Mondale
and then John Hines. Recently Susie
has returned to the newsroom as a full
time reporter.
Hard work, perseverance, a strong
will and spirit combined in Susie
Jones to get her where she is today.
As we concluded our interview, one
of her good friends arrived to help
Susie string up Christmas lights
on the outside of her house. Susie
introduced me to Joe Westerberg from
the Class of 1981. He and Susie have
been friends for more than 30 years.
I asked Joe to give my best wishes to
his parents, Joel and Eleanor, who are
two of my Marshall friends. We’ve
been friends for more than 50 years.
TMD
Two U of M Students Receive MAEF
Scholarships
On September 15, 2011, two very deserving University of Minnesota students
were awarded Marshall Access and Education Fund (MAEF) Scholarships at
the Disability Services Scholarship Awards Luncheon. The luncheon was held
in the Presidents Room of Coffman Memorial Union on the U of M campus.
The two MAEF Scholarship winners were Sonja Youngquist and Carmen
Van Valkenburg. Sonja is a freshman in the College of Science and Engineering.
She is an excellent student, hard working, conscientious, and very proactive.
Sonja wants to become a biomedical engineer. In her scholarship application
she wrote that she “would like to work on developing a biosynthetic human
heart.”
Carmen is a non-traditional student who is returning to the university after
a 28 year absence to earn a degree in human development. Carmen suffered a
stroke in 2009 and feels that she has been given a second chance in life. She
is determined to make the most of it. Carmen has a very positive attitude and
looks forward to a career of helping others.
Twenty-one students were awarded scholarships and honored by Disability
Services at the luncheon. The other scholarships were provided by the Gail
Buuck Family Fund for Disability Services, the Angela Brooke Warner CF
Scholarship Endowment Fund, and the United Health Group. Sonja and
Carmen received MAEF Scholarship awards of $1,000.
Otto Lausten, Class of 1955, and Harvey Johnson, Class of 1939, very
ably represented the Marshall Alumni Newsletter and the MAEF Scholarship
committee. Peggy Mann Rinehart and the staff of Disability Services did a
very lovely job providing the luncheon, making the scholarship awards and
honoring the guests.
TMD
Harvey Johnson Suggests MAEF Memorials
As we get older, we find ourselves attending more funerals of relatives and
friends. It’s all part of living this life and leaving it. Harvey Johnson, Class
of 1939, reminds us that one way to remember a friend or a loved one is to
provide a memorial donation in their name. Harvey suggests a donation to the
Marshall Access and Education Fund (MAEF).
Believe me when I say that Harvey matches his words with his actions.
During the past 15 years, Harvey has made 44 donations to the Marshall
Access and Education Fund, and 41 of those donations were in memory of
some other person. Most of those donations were $10, but they add up to
nearly $600, a very nice total of donations to help disabled students at the
University of Minnesota.
So, in other words, if you want to remember a friend or a loved one and
remember Marshall also, you can combine those memories by making a
donation to the Marshall Access and Education Fund (MAEF). Send your
tax-deductible donation to MAEF, CM9407, P.O. Box 70870, Minneapolis,
MN 55455. If you are on the mailing list for the University Foundation, you
can just check the box for “MAEF” and mail your donation to the foundation
in the envelope provided. Those donations, like Harvey’s, will help deserving
students at the University of Minnesota.
TMD
Page 4

REMEMBERING
those whom we knew and have passed away
George Patten–Math Teacher, Uof M Gymnast,
Marshall University High Coach.
Known for dedication to his students he also likes a good joke and was extraordinarily modest.
Patten, an
All- American
gymnast at the
University of
Minnesota & 30-
year Minneapolis
public schools
math teacher,
died Nov. 19 from
mesothelioma. The
Plymouth resident
was 87.
When he enrolled in the U.S. Navy
at the height of World War II, George
Patten knew he’d suffer his share
of wisecracks. Wherever he went,
every smart aleck within shouting
distance had the same question:
Are you related to the Gen. George
Patton
Although their names were
spelled differently, Patten played
along, time after time.”Yep, Old
Blood and Guts is my uncle,” he’d
tell them with a straight face, leaving
soldiers and sailors whispering as
he walked off.”
“He liked to pull people’s legs,”
said Patten’s son, Dan Patten. “He
was an instigator and motivator.”
As a student at North High in
Minneapolis, where he was an allcity
and all-state gymnast, Patten
would pile his teammates into his
father’s car to get them to meets,
said Stan Dotseth, a high school
friend.
After graduating in 1942, Patten
competed for one year at the U
before leaving to serve his country.
After a three-year tour of duty, he
returned for his sophomore and
junior seasons, placing second
overall in the Big Ten both years
and earning All-American status as
a junior, excelling as a tumbler.
Before returning for his senior
season, Patten sold insurance for
two years as he recovered from
wrist and back ailments. He often
joked that he graduated from
college and walked right across the
street in Dinkytown to take a job
at the former Marshall-University
High School, where he taught his
entire career and where his physical
fitness and dedication was the stuff
of legends.
Former colleague Ed Prohofsky
recalls the day a punishing winter
storm forced the district to cancel
classes. Patten never got word
and, with the roads impassable
by car, he jogged the 5 miles to
school in driving snow only to find
out that no one else was there.”
He wasn’t going to miss school,”
Prohofsky said.“He loved the kids.
He was dedicated.”During his time
at Marshall, Patten revived the
school’s moribund swim and tennis
squads, volunteered for a decade
with the Gophers gymnastics team
and taught private lessons in all
three sports during offseasons.
Colleagues admired Patten’s
ability to connect with people inside
the classroom and out. In the staff
lounge, he had a playful knack for
sparking heated discussion, then
sitting back and laughing while
co-workers argued, Prohofsky
said. After retirement, he tutored
Page 5
students through a volunteer program
in the Robbinsdale School
District and through his church,
sometimes unsolicited. His wife,
Adele, remembers his approaching
a teenager at church one day, telling
him, “I hear you’re having a hard
time with math.”Before the teen
had a chance to respond, Patten
was shaking his hand and saying,
“You’re just the man I wanted to
see.”
Patten was modest, shunning
honors or recognition — teaching
or otherwise, colleague Don Sovell
said. Family and friends never
learned about Patten’s exploits as a
gymnast from him; they heard from
others.”Recognition bothered him,”
Sovell said. “That was George.”
About three years ago, Patten
received a call. The man on the other
end wanted to know what Patten
would think of being inducted into
the Gophers athletics Hall of Fame.
“Not interested. What I did years
ago doesn’t matter,” Patten’s wife
recalls her husband saying.
∞
Services for Patten were
Tuesday, November 22,2011
He is survived by his
wife, four children, three
stepchildren, a sister and 17
grandchildren and
great-grandchildren.
∞
REMEMBERING: Continued on page 7

Class Reunion News—Recap and Announcements
Class of ’71 Celebrated
their 40th Reunion
The class of 1971 had their fortieth
reunion the weekend of September
23rd. It was a low key event with
a reception Friday evening and a
brunch on Saturday. A few stayed
together for the rest of Saturday
touring Minneapolis using the
Minneapolis bike share program.
We met up at the U Garden
Restaurant at 6:00 PM Friday.
There were about sixty classmates
and spouses. By 6:05 everyone
was talking and reconnecting and
it never slowed down until we
had to leave when they closed the
restaurant. The most often heard
comment was that we need to have
reunions more often. Afterwards
about half the people kept the
evening going by walking two
blocks down University Avenue
to the Leaning Tower of Pizza.
That group broke up a little after
midnight.
Saturday morning we met up at
Psycho Suzi’s on Marshall Street
Northeast. We lucked out and had
a beautiful fall morning sitting on
the terrace overlooking the river.
Though some might have thought
people would be talked out from the
night before it didn›t work that way.
Most had left their spouses at home
and everyone kept yakking it up until
we broke up in the early afternoon.
Then a few diehards drove a few
blocks over to University Avenue
and picked up green bikes at the
closest Nice Ride station. The rest
of the afternoon was spent exploring
the riverfront around downtown
and the St Anthony Main area. We
finished up the afternoon at the
Astor Bar.
Everyone seemed excited to
have the opportunity to catch up on
what’s been going on in our mutual
lives over the past forty years. We
all committed to getting together
again sometime before the fiftieth
reunion.
Members of the Class of ’55 to
Celebrate their 75th Birthday
at an upcoming Van Cleve
picnic
The class of ’55 will be celebrating their
75 th birthdays collectively at Van Cleve
Park on a date to be announced. All
Marshall U-High alums are invited.
Complete details in the May issue
of Alumni News. If you need to know
to make summer plans email Tom Daly
at:TMDALY@q.com
Class of ’51 Celebrated their
60th Reunion
Our Marshall class of 1951 celebrated
our 60th reunion at a luncheon at Jax
Restaurant in northeast Minneapolis on
September 17th. We had a great time and
had a great turn out. Eighty classmates
attended plus spouses. Jerry Ingaldson
was M.C. – Along with Bob Roff, Ardelle
(Swenson) Lilja and Lois (Torkildson)
Hendrickson who make the contacts to
our classmates. Our age is showing as we
have a number of classmates with health
problems, fortunately all are on the road
to recovery. Our class meets every 3-4
months for a luncheon at Old Country
Buffet in Fridley. We have had anywhere
from 25 to 40 classmates join us. We love
to get together to see each other and talk
about the good old times at Marshall. It
was a wonderful time to grow up in.
Thinking is like loving &
dying–each of us must do it
for her/himself!
The best way to escape from a
problem is to solve it.
It takes as much energy
to wish as it does to plan!
∞
CLASS OF 1951 PARTICIPANTS: Lois (Anderson) Luitka, Alice (Brecht) Kleszyk, Joan (Darges) Coulombe,
Jan (Houg) Schroeder, Joane (Gunderson) Rice, Joan (Smisek) Jensen, Carolyn (Olson) Canfield
Page 6

REMEMBERING-
Continued from p. 5
George Keprios–
1924-2011
Every Student’s Favorite Teacher.
Reflections of many of his
students –
Known for dedication to his students
he also liked a good joke and was extraordinarily
modest. His students
had the following to say about him—
John Dennison Vice-President, Labor
Relations, Minneapolis Star and Tribune
(who delivered a heartfelt eulogy at George
Keprios’ memorial service) writes the
following:
“My computer’s password prompter
asks “Who was your favorite
teacher”
My answer was and is “George
Keprios” and I wonder how many of
his other students have that answer.
George Keprios was well-loved
and remembered. George
Keprios was my favorite teacher
of all time and I know he was for
many others also. He was my math
teacher in 8 th , 11 th and 12 th grades.
However, he was also my friend
every year I attended Marshall
Junior and Senior High School; for
several years afterwards, I would
visit him during vacations from
college.
He did so much for us kids. He
stayed after school to talk with us
and help students who needed extra
help with math. I remember that
some years he came early to school
to play sports with students. One
year, we played basketball one-onone
every morning, at least that is
how I remember it.
He was so much fun, even in
the classroom. I talked too much
in class, but he didn’t kick me out.
Instead, he wrote in the air a big
“B” for “Brat” to me during class. I
don’t know if that quieted me down
or encouraged my bad behavior. He
was supportive and kind, he really
liked students and he made us feel
worthwhile.
In retrospect, I see that his
encouragement and confidencebuilding
helped to put me on the
right track to pursue my math and
science education and subsequent
career in science. Now I am doing
immunology research in a medical
school. In the days I knew Mr.
Keprios, the late 1950s and early
1960s, multiple factors were
arrayed against women believing
in themselves, pursuing their education
and being assertive. For
me and for many of my friends of
both genders at Marshall High, Mr.
Keprios was a key factor in the other
direction.
I know that Mr. Keprios will
live on in our memories of how his
help made such a big difference in
our lives.
–Janet Nordgren (Stavnezer), PhD
Class of 1962
Professor of Microbiology and
Physiological Systems,
University of Massachusetts Medical
School
Worcester, MA
Outside of family, high school
teachers are the most influential
individuals in making a difference in
our lives. And, it’s unfortunate and
even unfair, that we rarely let these
individuals know how much we
appreciated their efforts. For most
of us, our value and meaning in our
lives resides in our family, and so it
is for Mr Keprios and his wonderful
wife, children, and family.
So, it may console his family
and friends that Mr Keprios, in
Page 7
the twilight of his life, received a
wonderful gift of his own making.
His students had found him via
email 2 years ago, and contacted
him.
At the 2010, Marshall All-Class
Reunion, hobbled by arthritis, Mr
Keprios sat in a large chair in the
lobby of the University Radisson.
A line formed as his students from
many generations waited patiently
to re-connect with Mr Keprios,
to tell him of their careers and
family, and talk about “cabbages
and kings.” Like an emperor on a
throne, his subjects paid homage to
their teacher and mentor. He learned
that he was respected, admired, and
loved.
He had influenced his students
to a depth that he never could have
anticipated. How did he learn of
this We told him. Victor Yu MD
Most precious to me about Mr.
Keprios is that he believed in
me professionally and personally
when I had very few people
supporting me (even my parents).
Always in his warm, light way that
was still strong.
I must have been a disappointment
not to have continued
in math, but calculus and analytic
geometry were my undoing. Instead
I had a career in management,
government and private sector.
And now with a late life Masters
in organization development I am a
management consultant, facilitator
and coach. There’s no telling where
a good beginning will allow us to
land.
I can only imagine what a wonderful
father and family man George must
have been.
Kate Trygstad, Class of 1964
Principal
Creative Facilitating
Arlington, VA
Remembering (Continued on Page 8)

Remembering (Cont. from page 7)
GEORGE KEPRIOS —
with a twinkle in his eye
was something of an unusual student
because not only had I skipped
I
first grade, but also when it came time
to do tenth-grade math, my parents
convinced the Marshall High School
authorities to let me directly into eleventh-grade
math.
Who taught upper-grade maths
Why George Keprios of course. Being
two years younger than every one
else in the class, I entered with no little
trepidation. Mr. Keprios was a little
surprised too. “Are you sure you’re in
the right class” he asked.
“Yes, I replied, “I was promoted.”
So, he took me in hand. He soon had
me correcting in-class exercises. At the
time, we did them on square sheets of
off-white paper furnished by the school.
One day, he was called out of the classroom
briefly. When he returned, he
caught me sailing the exercises folded
into paper airplanes back to the original
owners. After he stopped laughing, he
sent me out to stand in the corridor to
reflect on my misdeeds. He signed my
1960 yearbook: “I accept full responsibility
for spoiling you.”
My two years of math classes with
Mr. Keprios were the highlight of my
high school education. When it came to
choose a university major, I chose economics
because I saw it as a cross between
sociology (what both my parents
taught) and mathematics. Although I
never quite finished my Ph.D. (and not
because of the math), I spent 35 years
as a university professor in economics
at the University of Quebec in Montreal.
Whenever I went back to Minneapolis,
I always went to visit Mr. Keprios
to talk over fond memories of high
school and beyond.
Ruth Rose (Lizee), Class of 1961
Professor of Economics
University of Quebec
Montreal, Canada
Lois Luhman Reese died in Seattle,
Washington on October
7, 2011. Lois was a member of the
Class of 1939 and a valedictorian.
She was a literacy teacher for many
years.
∞ END OF OBITUARIES ∞
And in the end, it’s not
the years in your life
that count. It’s the life
in your years.
—Abraham Lincoln
Greet each day
with your eyes
open to
beauty, your mind
open to change,
and your heart
open to love.
Page 8
Greet each day with your
eyes open to beauty, your
mind open to change, and
your heart open to love.
Friendship consists in
forgetting what one
gives and
remembering what
one receives.
A good thing to
remember, a better
thing to do—
work with the
construction
gang...
not with the
wrecking crew.

Sonny Carlson,
Class of 1954
Sonny Carlson lived in Prospect Park
and attended Sidney Pratt elementary
prior to attending Marshall.
At Marshall Sonny was an active
participant. He was a member of Hi-Y,
E.M.R.A. and S.E.Y.C. Sonny played
football and basketball and went out
for track because it was coached by
football coach Mr. Straiton. Football
was his favorite sport and he was voted
onto the All City Football Team at Right
Tackle in 1953. Sonny was voted Most
Athletic in his senior class and a Feb.
26, 1954 article in The Judge stated:
Results of a Recent Survey:
Best Looking....................Sonny Carlson
Wittiest.............................Karlo Swenson
Best Athlete......................Sonny Carlson
Best Dressed ....................Karlo Swenson
Best All Around Guy.........Sonny Carlson
& Karlo Swenson
–Submitted by Sonny and Karlo
Following graduation, in 1954
Sonny joined the Minnesota National
Guard, playing in the band after
encouragement by his Sea Notes’
friends. The joke was: he hit the bass
drum every time Larry Wood told him
to. Actually, during a formal review,
a visiting general walked up to Sonny
and told him “that was the best job of
any bass drum he had heard; you kept
everyone on the beat”.
Sonny attended the University of
Minnesota and graduated in 1959 with
a double major in Physical Education
and Social Studies.
Sonny married his high school
sweetheart Gloria Clark. They have
two children: son Michael and daughter
DeeAnn.
Sonny worked his first year out of
college in Watertown where he served as
head football coach. They then moved
to Bloomington High School where
he taught Social Studies and served as
assistant football coach under Shorty
Cochran for five years. Sonny then
became Bloomington Kennedy’s head
football coach when that school opened
in 1965. He also coached Kennedy
girls’ track and ski teams along with
several junior high squads. He served
in that position for 13 years. Sonny was
then selected as Bloomington School
District Athletic Director where he
continued for 14 years until he opted
for early retirement at the age of 57.
Upon his retirement Sonny
received high praise for his 33 years
in Bloomington as teacher, coach and
administrator. Among the accolades
from administrators and coaches as
stated in the June 9, 1993 Bloomington
Sun-Current: “Sonny has made
significant contributions to the school
system since he came as an athletic
director, he was a strong supervisor
and organizer with a positive set of
values. He was a quiet leader who
could personally inspire others around
him.” “Sonny was a coaches’ athletic
director, he gave as much support as
possible . . . he was fair to all sports,
not just the so-called major ones.”
Following retirement, Sonny and
Gloria moved to a new home they had
built on Lone Lake near Aitkin “…
where I can fish, ride my snowmobile,
cross country ski and enjoy the
outdoors. I want to get more exercise
after having been stuck in the office for
so many years”. They are enjoying their
retirement. They are Gideons and as
Sonny said “…we are always passing
out Bibles”. They have traveled to the
Ukraine and to Africa three times where
they have done short time missions
work. In the winter they “…go to
Florida and have been volunteering
at Wycliffe Bible Translator (largest
mission in the world) doing all sorts
of manual work to working with kids
from So. Korea on learning English.
Then we rent a home until the second
week in April and then return.” Every
Monday for the past nine years Sonny
has provided Jail Ministry in Aitkin
where he does Bible study with
inmates and has “…seen many (guys)
experience a changed life…one great
story – one of my first guys in jail is
now a Chaplin in the Ramsey Co. jail”.
Sonny has also kept his fingers in
high school football. For the past 23
years he has been Game Manager for
the semis- and finals of the Minnesota
High School Prep Bowl. He has been
selected to the Minnesota State High
School League’s Hall of Fame and the
Bloomington Kennedy and Jefferson
Halls of Fame.
Sonny remembers the faculty at
Marshall especially Walt Chapman,
Howie Straiton, Don Sovell and Mr.
Mikkelson. He has communicated
with them in the past and most recently
had talked with Don Sovell who
continues to speak well of Marshall.
Sonny agrees with Don that Marshall
was a special school with a close-knit
faculty that helped the broad spectrum
of students mesh together successfully.
Sonny also communicates regularly
with his Marshall classmates especially
Karlo and his Sea Notes’ friends.
Bloomington athletic director Sonny Carlson played a major role in the district’s success
during the last 14 years.
Page 9

A Book Review
“Father Joseph Baglio and the Catholic Youth Center”
by Thomas M. Daly
Tom Daly, 1955 Marshall graduate, was involved with
the Minneapolis Catholic Youth Center (the CYC) from
1952 to 1965. Father Joseph Baglio was head of the CYC
from 1945 to 1967. Tom’s association with Fr. Baglio was one of
learning and inspiration. Tom states: “I wrote the book because
I thought Fr. Baglio was a great man who was important in the
lives of many people”. This is exactly what this book illustrates,
both in words and pictures. Tom details the programs that Fr.
Baglio implemented in the CYC, all in an effort to offer students
a place to be at home with one’s Catholic faith and a challenge to
become an advocate of Christian values. The programs reached
an estimated 150,000 youths and young adults.
Tom interviewed over 70 people and reviewed material from the
Chancery Archives and from 17 years of CONTACTS and took
almost two years to put together this inspiring story of an unforgettable
man. Any reader from Minneapolis schools, both public
and parochial, during that period will recognize names of friends
and classmates and have their nostalgia stirred.
Tom Daly is also the author of “For the Good of the Women”.
Copies of these publications may be purchased through Tom Daly
at tmdaly@q.com.
RKH
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Page 10

Mark your calendars!
Another all-class reunion is
this Spring
March 5-7, 2012
Riverside Resort & Casino
Laughlin, Nevada
Questions Call—
Ardelle (Swenson) Lilja
763-427-2736
or Sharon (Butler) Padula
763-486-9149
Watch for the May, 2012
issue of MUHS Alumni
News
It will be posted at:
www.ds.umn.edu
In the lower right corner select
“John Marshall Alumni Newsletter”.
MH/MUHS
Alumni Newsletter
180 McNamara Alumni Center
200 Oak Street SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455
Editors: Bob Hayes & Tom Daly
Production: Otto Lausten
•
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Page 11
Page 9
Bob Hayes
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Peoria, AZ 85382