BETH HOLCOMB

Profile Updated: June 18, 2024

Residing In:	Pella, IA USA

Spouse/Partner:	Brian Huddle

Occupation:	retired high school english teacher

Children:	Brenna Vogel (1982) married to Adam Larson Charlie Larson (2013)--grandson Hannah (Vogel) Fahey More…

What have you been up to since graduation?

i graduated from Central College in 1974 and started teaching high school english at Twin Cedars, Bussey, that fall. i taught there for 35 years and "decided" to retire in 2009 when the school cut an english position.
in 1979 i was married to Dennis Vogel, we lived in Oskaloosa, and we had two daughters. Dennis and i divorced, and i have been married to Brian Huddle since 1992. we live in Pella, IA where Brian was the at-risk coordinator, assistant varsity football coach (Pella High--class 3A state champions 2014/2015/2016--GO DUTCH), and junior high boys track coach at Pella Community School District. he is retired now and spends most days on a ladder painting or on a lawn mower landscaping for a local roofing business complex.
i spent 35 years doing very little other than raising my daughters and grading papers. since my retirement, however, i have been able to do lots of other things. i babysit Bella and Charlie, the most amazing grandbabies in the history of the world, whenever i am needed. i go to movies and out with friends. i sit and read books more (i even joined a book club). these past ten years i have been substituting at Pella High a day or two every week and loving it. i get to be with the kids, and i go home at 3:30 and don't have papers to grade.
the activity that takes up most of my time, though, is going "to the farm." i play at a stable, Timber Hills Farm, which is owned and operated by Mark and Renae VanZomeren. they breed, raise, and train American Saddlebreds. i used to show some, but now the most enjoyment comes from just being around the horses, dogs, cats, chickens, sheep, and the dear friends. i clean stalls, clean tack, water, feed, spoil all the animals, chase chickens, pull lambs, and do whatever else needs to be done to help. i'm living a dream i have had since i was little, and even though Huddle's truck often comes back from the farm caked in mud and smelling like horse, i am loving this adventure.
another activity in which i was involved for many years was flying hot air balloons. (not so much anymore. i can watch the balloons, but i'm much too old to help with it.) my brother Jay and my "brother" Jim Gebhart are the pilots whom i helped down through the years. Jay lives in Spokane now and has sold his balloon. Jimmy and his son Aaron fly when they can. it was always fun to be around Indianola for a week during the classic. i would drive all over town remembering the place where i grew up, and several times during the week i would stop at the Corner Sundry to get a vanilla coke, just like i did so often during high school.
i had my second knee replacement done this summer. still trying to figure out how to walk since it's been a long time since i could walk correctly. i hope i am not the only one who is thinking "it stinks to get old."
i am hoping to get to the reunion next summer. 50 years? really? at this point i consider every day to be a gift so hopefully next september is in the cards.

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School memories?

i remember--
scooping the loop uptown before they put in all the stop signs.
Mr. Pellant's brit lit class.
band with Mr. Peterson and Mr. Modlin.
drill team (oh, those white gloves).
PE uniforms.
manual typewriters and three electric typewriters that we had to take turns on.
ice cream vending machines.
early bird classes (gov't and econ at 7:00 or whatever time it was in the morning. were any of us awake?)
having a secret sis (was that for FTA?).
homecomings.
jumping on the trampoline during gym class.
graduation outside.

my goodness. those were the good old days, weren't they? (and how old are we now that we have "good old days"?)

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