Ramona
By JESSICA GILBERT
Ramona correspondent
(785) 965-2621
You know how it is in small towns — information travels in strange and mysterious ways! A couple of weeks ago when I was inquiring about Betty Ohm, somebody said, "Oh, the Ohms went on a cruise." I thought to myself, "How grand!" I tried envisioning Harold and Betty on an ocean liner, basking in the sun and playing shuffleboard.
Then a couple of days later I heard another snippet of information as to the location of the Ohms' adventure. "They're somewhere here in the Midwest." And as I tried envisioning an ocean liner cruising the prairie, I realized my imagination had gone astray.
When Betty and Harold returned home Saturday from their trip I told Betty about the "cruise" I'd imagined she was on.
"Oh, no, we weren't on a cruise ship, we were on a house boat at the Lake of the Ozarks near Camdenton, Mo.," she said with a laugh. "All our kids and grandkids — except two grandsons — were there. It was six days of water fun and playing cards. We played everything from slapjack to spoons and double solitaire."
Betty's son-in-law, Brad, got his parents to bring their boat and join the party for three days. "This houseboat was great," enthused Betty. "It had two decks, two bathrooms, could sleep 12. It even had a grill and we cooked all our meals on board. The only time we ate out was when we reached shore."
It's Tuesday morning, and Betty's standing in the midst of her garden, telling me this vacation story. She's holding her machete and is cutting down the brown corn stalks, making way for other crops.
If you're needing vegetables, come to Ramona and visit Betty. "I have a little of everything," she says with a grin. There's potatoes, green beans, squash, tomatoes, okra, and watermelon and pumpkins are on their way. Betty's produce and gardens are legendary. Not only are they profusely productive, they're beautiful, with zinnias rimming the garden's edge.
"Her gardens look like a picture postcard," said my sister, Pat, who delights in Betty's passion for gardening. "Her gardens are the closest thing we have to an outdoor tourist attraction!"
Tony Meyer returned home from the hospital this past Monday and I could tell he was thrilled to be going home because as we drove from Herington to Ramona he noticed all the precious nuances of freedom.
"Oh, look at those green fields," exclaimed Tony as though he'd seen them for the first time this summer. "Take a look at those cattle under the tree — they're enjoying the shade in this heat!"
As we neared Marion County, he chuckled and said, "And now we're about to the cross the county line — and the roads will get noticeably rougher." And so it continued until we reached the doorstep of his cottage on Main Street in Ramona.
Tony decided to go to the hospital late in the evening on July 12. "I probably should have gone sooner," said Tony in retrospect. Tony called late on Monday evening — I was at my office tidying up after a city council meeting. "My right leg just isn't going where it should," said Tony over the phone.
When I arrived and he demonstrated, it was clear that his right leg wasn't receiving the signals as quickly as possible. "That leg is supposed to be up here," and Tony pointed with his cane to an imaginary line on the floor where his right leg should be standing.
So off to the hospital he went and indeed they confirmed he'd had a slight stroke and they kept him in the hospital for several days to ensure no more tiny clots would cause problems.
The first thing Tony wanted to see when he got home was the stock market report — the only accouterment they didn't have at the Herington Hospital!
Next year is the 68th reunion for alumni of Ramona High School, and the planning committee already is cooking up a fun and unusual event. The alumni of RHS gather only once every three years and at the last reunion in 2002 the group voted to hire Pat and I to help orchestrate the next reunion in 2005.
The RHS alumni officers met with us Tuesday, and if the committee meeting is anything like the reunion, it will be bushels of fun! The moment the group walked into the Dirt Gambler's Museum (where we also have our offices) the stories started flying!
Anna Mae Stika of Tampa and her cousin, Millie Rowe of Herington were laughing like school girls as they related the stories of a stolen kiss in a school play, the excitement of cake walks and analyzing the best dancers at school parties. Anna Mae is the secretary-treasurer for the alumni association and Millie is her assistant.
"I could spend days in here," said Rev. Gene Hicks of Herington, vice president of the alumni association, as he stood by the old Ramona switchboard. Before the meeting started we looked at Ramona High School photos the alumni association has allowed us to exhibit at our mini-museum in Ramona. I needed help identifying the players in many of the sports pictures, and Gene named all but a couple.
Merv Deines, president of the alumni association, went to country school before coming into Ramona schools. So you can imagine Merv's embarrassment when he's told to dress like a girl during freshman initiation.
"It was 1950, and we were all initiated. I had to wear high heels, a dress, and an onion necklace to school — all day long!" emphasized Merv.
There's no telling a high school memory without the nicknames punctuating the story — Trotsky, Spike, Spooks, Stiff, Kink, Fuzzie, Dynamite, Dobber, Babe. Pat and I are collecting those nicknames for something special we want to do at reunion next year, so if you know more nicknames (and who they belong to), give us a call 785-965-7110 . or write PO Box 12, Ramona 67475.
And that's the news from Ramona where a nickname outlives you, and a traffic jam is still two parked cars and a dog in the road.
