Recipes for Living Roger Cole

My family consisted of my mom, dad and older brother, Rodney. We lived in the southwest part of Iowa, on a farm south of Stanton, Iowa. Dad rented the farm on a share-crop arrangement. It was Dad's machinery, and he split the profits with the owner of the farm. Dad had grown up on a farm and knew what it was to work long, hard hours. He quit school in the eighth grade to help his father, and in addition he worked for a friend who was a dairy farmer. It was before the days of milking machines, so there were 20 cows to milk by hand, morning and night. There were times when he had to do that by himself.

World War II struck both Dad and Mom. Dad was drafted into the army and fought in the South Pacific from 1942 to 1946. He was there after they started the occupation of Japan, and until they surrendered. Mom grew up around Essex, Iowa. During the war she worked at Earl May Seed and Nursery. She was engaged to a young man who was killed during the Battle of the Bulge.

Mom and Dad met on a blind date after Dad got home from Army. They were married in 1948. They had a baby boy who lived only a few hours, so they had some trying times and drew on their faith to get them through. Both Mom and Dad were very strong Christians. We went to a Lutheran church in Stanton. Mom was a Sunday school teacher and sang in the choir. It was in that church that I was confirmed and started my church life.

My brother Rodney was born in 1952 and I in 1956. I lived on the farm until I was 16. It was a good way to grow up. There were chores to do. Dad had lots of livestock- cattle, hogs, and chickens. He had a cow-calf herd, and we milked up to five cows. All of this meant intense work which I consider good training for life. It gave me a sense of purpose, responsibility, and self-esteem. My contribution was important to our family's livelihood.

There was another advantage - it made my brother and me very close. There were no other kids to play with so Rodney and I worked and played together. Dad was 39 when I was born, which made him 49 when I was 10; but after he had worked hard all day, at night he still could find the energy to play ball with Rodney and me. My kids are now 18 and 21 and I can't even imagine trying to find the energy to play with 10 year olds.

Dad developed health problems when I was about 14 or 15. They were vascular problems that affected his legs. He was in Veteran's Hospital for months during which he had several surgeries. It was hard on the family not only because of our concern for him, but the three of usMom, Rodney, and me-had all the care of the livestock, which made it a very difficult time.

There came a point when the doctor told Dad he couldn't farm anymore. Except for his years in the Army, Dad had never done anything else. My parents were greatly concerned about what they would do, but knew a first step was to schedule a sale of the machinery and livestock. Here again their faith was important. Even though they didn't know what they would do or how they would survive, they felt that something would come along and God provided. It was probably about a month before the sale that someone in Stanton approached Dad and offered him a job. It was vast relief! In December 1971, Dad started working for the Rural Electric Co-op (REC) in Stanton, and he worked there until he retired. We moved to town when I was 16.

I went all through school, kindergarten through 12, in Stanton. After graduation, I attended Iowa Western Community College in Clarinda. That is where I met Kathy Whitney. I was taking Business Management and she was in a pre-nursing course. We met in 1975 and were married in 1977. I received a two-year associate degree and Kathy went on to get her LPN (Licensed Practical Nurse) degree.

In 1976 I started working for REC in Greenfield. I worked there in various positions for almost 17 years. Dennis was born in 1980. He was affectionally known among doctors as the "stuck" baby. It was a very difficult delivery. I was in the delivery room and watched as one doctor climbed up on the table and was pushing on Kathy's stomach while the other was trying to deliver Dennis with forceps. In the process Dennis collar bone was broken. There was nothing to be done about that. They just warned us to be careful when picking him up and assured us that it would heal on its own, which it did. ·

Dennis had another complication when he was very young. He developed a knot on the side of his neck. Our doctor examined him and called in his associate. Neither of them had ever seen anything like this. They began looking in medical books and discovered it was a congenital tortacolis, which is basically a muscle mass. They sent us on to Des Moines and we were taught to do exercises. We had to hold him on the bed and twist his head to stretch these muscles. He would scream with pain and we had to do this several times a day for 12 to 18 months. People thought (and we felt) we were being horribly cruel, but we had no choice.

Heather was born in 1983. We were still in Greenfield and had been doctoring with the local doctor who delivered Dennis. Remembering the complications with Dennis' birth, he thought they should perform a Caesarian section. They sent us to a Des Moines doctor who decided it was best that Kathy have her monthly check-ups with the local doctor, who would send reports to the doctor in Des Moines.

Kathy was about 30 days away from her due date when everything came to a head. The local doctor wanted a C-section performed and the Des Moines doctor said he wasn't going to do it. He wanted to wait and see what would happen. At that time we discovered they had not been communicating at all, so at this stage before delivery, we were at the point of questioning if Kathy was getting the best care and went about the process of changing doctors.

On the very day Heather was born, Kathy was scheduled to see another doctor in Red Oak. He instructed us to pick up and bring him all the records from both doctors. He examined Kathy and looked over the records. He found that her blood pressure was a bit high and said he was going to put her in the hospital overnight.

I didn't realize the seriousness of the situation. I was on my way home and stopped at my parents' house. Mom put the coffee on and we were drinking coffee when the phone rang. The word was that I had better go back. They were going to deliver the baby and by the time I got there, several doctors were preparing to perform a C-section. Kathy had gone into preeclampsia and didn’t even know me.

We felt that God was really working with us through it all. We felt that the previous doctors would not have found the problem. We just happened to be there on that day without a clue that Heather would be delivered that night. She was about a month premature and was in the hospital about a week, but both Kathy and Heather got along fine. That same night another lady was in delivery and her baby was stillborn. Around the corner from where I was sitting, I heard a minister talking with the father and realized how lucky we were that our child was okay.

As Heather was released from the hospital about a week later, Kathy started having serious problems with her speech, and within a few hours she was life-flighted to Omaha. We found out quite awhile later that she'd had a stroke. It took her about a week to get her speech back. She returned home and over the course of the next year she developed migraine headaches. When they occurred, the problems with speech and coordination returned. To this day Kathy has problems with migraines but they are not as severe as shortly after Heather was born. Kathy doesn't remember a lot about that first year.

We belonged to the United Methodist Church in Greenfield and the kids went to Sunday school there. I served on the Staff-Parish Relations and the Finance Committees. During those years Kathy and I were also involved in the Sunshine Day Care Center. I was on the Board of Directors and Kathy was the Board President. There came a time when she had to fire me. They needed someone to do the books and keep the payroll. I seemed to be the designated one which meant that I couldn't serve in that position and be on the Board as well, so I was replaced on the Board.

We lived in Greenfield until 1993 when I was offered a job with the REC in Osceola. We moved to Osceola when Dennis was in eighth grade and Heather in fifth. Clarke Community Schools were almost double the size they had been accustomed to. It was really tough on Dennis and Heather, and they would have been willing to go back. However, after a couple of years they wouldn't have wanted to leave Osceola.

Both Dennis and Heather had jobs during high school. Dennis' first job was at Subway and Heather also worked there. Kathy is working there now. Heather also helped Jan Lloyd clean and did miscellaneous jobs for her. She also baby-sat for Brad Lampe's kids. Heather is very creative, and some of her poems are in the 1998 edition (purple book) of Recipes for Living.

Dennis and Heather both graduated from Clarke Community High School, and both are attending Drake University. This year (2002) Dennis is a senior and Heather a freshman. Dennis is studying computer science with a minor in music, and Heather is studying psychology with a minor in sociology. Dennis is working in the computer programming department at Barton Solvents, which makes and distributes chemicals. Heather currently is working in Drake’s athletic department. Her job includes a variety of duties. She is at the front desk, answers the phone, and even does some of the cleaning.

Dennis met Jennifer Breen from Gardner, Kansas, at Drake. They dated for a little over a year and are now engaged. All three are in marching band, so we enjoy going to football games and watching them march.

It has been fascinating to look back over the years that I have been at REC. I started as office manager. In those days the company's main purpose was to distribute electricity, which included upkeep of the lines and all kinds of maintenance and service. REC started in 1939 and now the systems are old, so it requires a lot of rebuilding to make sure everything is in good condition.

Clarke Electric has expanded a lot even since I have been here. First we added a cooling and heating department, then internet services. Most recently I have been heavily involved in many of the new services that all take hours of time. I spend many days doing a completely different job than the one I was hired for.

Security Systems have been added to our list of services. These systems not only protect against burglary, water and fire damage, but include medical alert for the elderly who might need assistance. This system involves wearing a pendant on which is a button they can press if they need help. This will contact designated persons or an emergency number. The most recent diversification is high speed wireless internet which will be available within the next few days.

We have been in Osceola for almost nine years and have been involved in the United Methodist Church, for which I have served on the Finance Committee and the Church Council. I have also taken on some community responsibilities. I am in my second term of serving on the school board and that has been a challenge! First there was the building project in which I was involved from the time it was still in the idea Stage. I was on the committee to promote the bond issue, and later elected to the board just before construction began. There were all sorts of challenges all along the way. Presently we are trying to deal with the state budget cuts. Our school budget was not excessive. We've had many meetings discussing how we can reduce it and still maintain adequate services for students. It has been a difficult year.

I attend Clarke County Development Corporation meetings and agree with their optimism about southern Iowa. Granted, this area is not as prosperous as some other parts of the state, but I know that if we show companies the quality of life and education we enjoy, new business and industry will be attracted. It is important to keep employment and continue bringing jobs to southern Iowa, and I am glad to be in a position where I can help promote that.