The Garden City Telegram
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Residents tell their stories
Published 1/16/2009 in News : Education
By EMILY BEHLMANN
Her grandpa came to the United States from Germany.
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Laurie Sisk/Telegram — Ingalls High School seniors Carmen Herrera, center and Vicky Andazola, right, interview Garden Valley retirement Village resident Maxine Saiz as part of a school project on Thursday morning at Garden Valley.
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Laurie Sisk/Telegram — Ingalls High School seniors Danny Roecker, left, and Matt Snyder, right, interview Garden Valley Retirement resident Raymond Kowalke.
She has four children, but she has a hard time keeping track of all their ages — "I don't even know how old I am. Numbers, ages — don't ask me," she says.
She used to sing in her church choir, and she went to school with the Clutter children in Holcomb. Hearing of their murder was shocking.
"Mercy, it really was," she said.
These are tidbits of the story of Helen Smith, a woman living in Garden Valley Retirement Village who shared information about her past Thursday morning with two seniors from Ingalls Junior/Senior High School.
"They're nosy," she said of her interviewers, laughing.
The students, Valerie Ceja and Tessie Huelskamp, said they thought their interviews with Garden Valley residents were fun, and a good idea. According to Ingalls Superintendent Dave Novack, the school's juniors and seniors began their contact with the residents by writing letters to introduce themselves and explain their aim — to develop an appreciation for their elders and the way of life in earlier times.
Other goals for the project included promoting good social skills and creating a feeling of pride for the residents, according to Novack. He said he had done the project when he was a principal in Holcomb, but this was the first time it was tried in Ingalls. He hopes to make it an annual event.
Garden Valley staff matched the interview subjects with pairs of students who will follow up by giving residents small gifts, such as a plant or a favorite food.
Their interview was to include questions on topics ranging from their nationalities to their families to their school experiences to the greatest inventions of their lifetimes.
Angel Varela, a junior, said he thought the visit was a good way to meet someone new. He and classmate Marty Wendel talked with Garden Valley resident Gene Thompson, who said it was interesting to talk to youth who lived and attended school somewhere else, Ingalls, since he has spent his whole life in Garden City.
The students learned from Thompson, too, they said.
"It was cool to learn about what the past was like — how easy we have it today," Wendel said, adding that he takes for granted the fact that he can get into his car and drive to school, while Thompson and his classmates generally walked to class.
Garden Valley resident Glendoris Siefkes said that as she told her life story — she's from Great Bend and moved into Garden Valley because of additional medical services available in Garden City — she saw her interviewers develop this same sort of appreciation for what they have.
She said she thought the project was "excellent."
"I think it's good for them," she said. "Youth forgets to look back. ... But they were receptive of what we were talking about. They came for information."
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