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A Visit To Illinois ALTHEA WALKINGTON, Domestic Engineer During the last few years. the population of McHenry County has skyrocketed faster than that of any other county in the state of Illinois. Towns that were once considered Rural areas are new thought of as ' 'Suburbia**. The area is no longer populated only by families who have been here for generations. Many "New comers' and even a few of the "old timers'! have preconceived ideas of what type of people inhabit these towns but they don't really know their neighbors. It is for this reason that this story has been written• We feel that the people chosen are representative of the town that they live in. SUSAN FOSSUM, Student A true picture of Ringwood can not be drawn unless we include the young people. Much has been written about the opportunities for higher education available to the youth of today. Reading about these opportunities is one thing, but finding a young girl with the ambition to take advantage of these opportunities is quite another story. There are many young people in Ringwood who are attending college. We couldn't write about all of them, so we selected one young lady to represent the group. Susan Fossum, at the age of 20, is the oldest of 10 children and a student at Kendall Junior College in Evanston, Dl. She has a great deal of talent, an optimistic outlook on life and a Christian attitude that she's not afraid to talk about. Sue has lived in Ringwood most of her life, attended the Ringwood Grammar school and graduated from McHenry High School in 1965. At Kendall she is taking part in the college "Work-Study" program. Forty per cent of the silents take part in this program which provides the opportunity to earn while they learn. Her classes are all scheduled for the morning so that she can work in the Library in the afternoon. Sue is a member of the social committee, the Student Senate, and is active in the Dramatic and Music departments. Last year she was first runner- 15) for Homecoming Queen and is president of the floor in her dormitory. In fall she will enter the National College of Education in Evanston, where she will prepare for a career in elementary education. Her schedule for the summer sounds impossible but after you have talked to her for a short time you have no doubt that she will manage to fulfill it. Her first stop will be a sixweek tour of duty in a slum area of New Jersey, as a member of the Christian Church Movement; she will teach music and education. Her next stop will be Camp Reynoldswood in Dixon,Illinois. This is a Methodist camp and for the two weeks that she spends there she will work with high school youth as a Counselor. While attending the National College of Education next year, she will be a Resident Advisor at Kendall, this will take care of her room and board. She is also looking forward to a State Upperclassman scholarship of (Hie thousand dollars, which she received last year and has reapplied for. Sue is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Gordon Fossum. Mr. Fossum has been a rural mail carrier for 10 years. He is also a talented musician who has performed all over the country. His latest project is a record album that he hopes' will be released around the first of next year. Last month the students at Kendall held their Spring Formal dance on the Showboat Sari S in Chicago. They danced to the music of Gordon Fossum but according to Mr. Fossum, the star attraction of the evening were the songs by Miss Susan Fossum. Mrs. Fossum is a native of Ringwood, she is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ken Cristy. Mrs. Fossum attended school in Ringwood, graduated from McHenry High and attended Illinois Wesleyan College. She is an active member of the Ringwood Methodist Church and f thinks nothing of whipping up a formal in one afternoon. Sue isnt the only college student in the family. Her sister Cristy is a freshman attending Wartburg College in Waverly Iowa. Candy Fossum, a junior at McHenry High is an alternate for Girls State and also received the McHenry Woman's club award which will enable her to attend Music camp at .^Western University this sum- #»er. According to Sue. growing up in a small town has its advantages, being part of a close knit community is a wonderful experience; but when you reach high school age it is a disadvantage to have to travel to another town for recreation and to attend school functions. She feels that her future plans will probable take her far beyond the boundaries of her home town, but if they do, you can be sure that Ringwood will be well represented. ' ~~h j . '«• jtt. • JOHN HOGAN, Farmer JAMES PEARSON, Artist If s difficult to do a story about a farmer, especially when the only contact you have ever had with a farm, is a ride on a hay-rack. For some unknown reason, the farmer of today is usually pictured as a man, overworked, underpaid for his labor, and overburdened by government regulations and red tape. It was with some trepidation that I approached the Hogan farm, located on Barnard Mill road in Ringwood, but the story of the town would not be complete without a glimpse into the life' of a typical farm family; since farms have been an integral part of the community, since the time it began. Meeting John Hogan was indeed a revelation. He is a farmer in every sense of the word. He may be overworked, underpaid and overburdened, but if he is, he doesn't complain about it. He is a complacent, articulate gentleman; proud of his farm, his home and his family. Unlike the harassed businessman of today, he isn't looking forward to retirement. He has absolutely no intentions of ever retiring. He can't think of any reason why he should or what lie would do if he did. Mr. Hogan came to Ringwood 55 years ago. He and his wife lit purchased their farm in 1942. it consists of 240 acres, they also rent an additional 600 acres. The Hogan farm is primarily a dairy farm, they have 70 cows, 36 Heifer6, and 30 Ifearlings. They produce 3200 pounds of milk a day. In addition they plant hundreds of acres of corn, oats and Hay. Farming today isn't what it was twenty* five years ago. In answer to my naive observation, that it must be a great source of satisfaction to "live off of the land", Mr. Hogan assured me that they shop for their groceries about the same as anyone else. They don't produce their own Chickens, butter, eggs, potatoes etc. The farmer of today specializes. If you have a large dairy farm, such as he has, that's your specialty. Three men can spend eight hours a day. just taking care of the livestock. The real trick is finding the three men. A successful farm isn't Mr. and Mrs. Hogan's only "claim to fame"; the primary accomplishment of their life has been their family of seven children and thirteen grandchildren. Their oldest son, John C. is married, lives in Bull Valley and is a Field Engineer. Gerald is also married, lives in Elgin and graduated from Northwestern University in June. Harry who plans to be married in August and Mike who is married and lives on the farm both work with their father. Charlotte, who is now Mrs. Richard Thompson of Greenwood, was the first McHenry County 4 H Queen, graduated from the University of Illinois with high honors, was the first recipient of the Golden Jubilee PTA Scholarship, and was awarded the Danforth Fellowship, which is given to the outstanding College Home Economics senior in the State. Mary Lynn is now Mrs. Earl Sonnemaker, she was. McHenry County Dairy Princess, attended the University of Illinois and now resides in Charleston, South Carolina with her husband, a Captain in the Air Force. Pat, the youngest of the Hogan daughters, was 4 H Queen, National Farm Safety Queen, McHenry County Dairy Princess and State Dairy Queen. She also was employed by a local Public Relations firm and was a Stewardess for T.W.A. Airlines. She is now Mrs. Thomas Parsley and resides in Crystal Lake. Mr. and Mrs. Hogan recently moved into a lovely new home built to replace their original home which was destroyed by fire in January. I must admit that I left the Hogans with an entirely new concept of farm life and firmly convinced that the dividends of this farmer's life, have outweighed the Investment. iI ' ' , . - rv" x: «. 4*-' * *4 4 ART LAV, Businessman Jim Pearson is a familiar name to many people in McHenry County. He grew up in Ringwood, graduated from Northern Dlinois University with a B.A. degree in Education, a M.S. degree in Education and a Master of Fine Art degree," studied art in eighteen European countries and has won honors and prizes too numerous to list. But he still lives in the town he grew 15) in. If you ask him why, he has a perfectly logical answer, "Why not? Everyone has to live somewhere, most artists live in small towns". Jim doesn't really consider his town a small town that no one knows about and he has proof to back this statement -up. He has a letter addressed to the Mayor of Ringwood, the first paragraph reads, Greetings from Ringwood in the State of Victoria, Australia, to you and your citizens in Illinois!!: We, in this city of some 27,500 persons are working on local, history, and gathering information on the people who pioneered this area. By chance we found that your town has the same name, and we have had some difficulty in finding out exactly why the place is named Ringwood, we are inquiring if you happen to know how your town got its name. Jim doesn't really know where the name of the town originated. There are some who say that the name stems from the town of Ringwood in England; others say that the early settlers found a perfect ring of trees growing there when they settled, but no one is quite sure. Regardless of where the name came from He's doing his part to keep it on the map. As Art instructor at Woodstock Community High School, he is working constantly to instill in his pupils an appreciation of the arts. As Art teacher for the Adult Pxlucation classes he is working to enrich the life of the more mature people of the community. Jim Pearson's paintings have been exhibited all over the country, in 1966 he had a One Man Exhibition at the Laura Davidson Sears Art Gallery. His name is listed in "Who's Who in American Art" and in "Who's Who in the Midwest", and for all we know, someday someone may publish a "Who's Who in Ringwood"; and if they do, I'm sure Jim Pearson will make the list. In 1942, World War 11 was still in progress, the postwar exodus to Suburbia was yet to come. The majority of the population of the city of Chicago had never heard the word "Suburbia". "The suburbs", as it was known as at that time, were thought of as outposts, inhabited by influential captains of industry or small towns, each a separate entity populated by people who were born and raised there. ^ If the suburbs seemed far away to the city dwellers, the small towns that existed beyond the established suburbs were a complete mystery. These were the towns that you drove thru when you were going on vacation or visiting relatives "in the country". The suburbanization of rural towns wasn't even thought of, and committors were few and far between. If in the year 1845, if a man decided to move his family from Chicago to Ringwood Prairie In McHenry Township, he was called a pioneer, but when Art Lau, a Chicago businessman decided to leave his home on the Northwest side, move his family to Ringwood Illinois and commute daily to his job in Chi - cago, he was probably called an eccentric. It was just 25 years ago, that Mr. Lau, after driving thru Ringwood many times on his way to Wisconsin decided that he too had a little pioneer blood, and moved his family to their present home. Mr. Lau had spent three years on a farm as a boy and his wife was a former Wisconsin farm girl. They looked forward to a life in a rural atmosphere and still provide adequate train service that would allow him to commute to his job in Chicago. The Lau home is a picturesque white frame house surrounded by five acres of land. He has a barn, a chicken house, an orchard of fruit trees and a large garden. Over the years, Mr. Lau has been somewhat of a paradox. As a resident of Ringwood, he has raised livestock, planted trees and been an active member of a rural community. as a successful businessman, What does a housewife do on a rainy day in Ringwood? Is there any difference being chief nurse maid and bottle washer in a small town than in a suburb or a large town? To get the answer to these questions and a few more like them, we went to see a Ringwood Homemaker. Althea Walkington moved to Ringwood from the neighboring town of Greenwood in 1939. Her husband Pafil has lived there since 1927. The Walkingtons have four children; Jay, their oldest son, graduated on May 21st from Perkins Seminary, Southern Methodist University in Dallas. He received his B.A. from Cornell University. His wife Jan graduated the same day from Southern Methodist. Jay has been assigned to serve as Chaplain at the State hospital in Madison, Wisconsin. Tom Walkington graduated from McHenry High this month and is planning on leaving for service in the United States Navy on July 15. Their youngest son Lee, is in second grade at the Ringwood school. We dkki't have to talk to her for long to come to the conclusion that being a mother in Ringwood isn't any different than the some roll in any suburb in the country today. All this job requires today is, the knowledge of a C.P.A.; the ability to negotiate, a strong back, a deaf ear and a drivers license. For the past twenty-five years Althea has been the leader of Ringwood's 4 H Club, consisting of 34 girls. These girls are not only from Ringwood but also from Wonder Lake, McCullom and Johnsburg. She has also been active in Boy Scouts, Church and school activities and is a member of the community club. At the Ringwood Methodist Church, she is a member of the Women's Society of Christian Service, she serves as Secretary of Program materials, and recently completed eight years as treasurer of this organization. In her spare time she demonstrates and sells clothing for a nationally known company. Paul Walkington is a trustee of the church and recently completed 18 years of service as a member of the school board. J. CLARENCE PEARSON, Antique Collector Tie has traveled throughout 1 Mid-West representing his company. As a member of the Kiwanis, he has been a delegate to International Conventions in many parts of the United States and as a seasoned traveler, he has visited many countries. Mr. Lau is a member of the Wonder Lake Kiwanis, the Ringwood Community Club, an active member of the Ringwood Methodist Church and is also a member of an inter-faith discussion group. His great interest in children has been an integral part of his life. He 'is a Sunday school teacher and recently was one of six adults who escorted thirty young.people on a trip to Chicago to visit the Holiday Court, the Chicago Christian Industrial League and the Catholic Charities. Since the death of his wife ten years ago, he has shared his hpme with his daughter and her husband, Mr. and Mrs. Russell Rasmussen and his grand-- daughter Michelle, a freshman at McHenry High. Ilsiitias^ He met Arline Harrison, daughter of Eland Harrison the operator of the local creamery, and in 1930 they were married. Mrs. Pearson has lived in Ringwood most of her life= She has been a school teacher for 31 WWMm Every small town has a meeting place, be it the town hall, the corner drugstore or the railroad depot, there's always a spot for the male element to meet to solve the earth shaking problems of the day. In the center of Ringwood, stands the Ringwood Garage; the meeting place for the town's self appointed City Council. If the "bqys" that congregate at the garage on Sunday morning can't solve your problems, they'll manufacture new ones for you. The proprietor and moderator of these sessions is J. Clarence Pearson; owner and operator of the garage and filling station since 1929. Mr. Pearson was born in Ridgefield and moved to a farm in Ringwood in 1914. It didn't take him long to decide that hs could do without milking cows and that his real interest in life was mechanics. So he switched from cows to Model T's. It was at the Ringwood dance hall, that Clarence Pearson made his next big decision. years. For the past 17 years she has been the kindergarten teacher at Edgebrook school in McHenry. The Pearsons have two sons, Jim who is also being featured in this story and Jack, who is married, has two children and is an Aeronautical Engineer in Wichita, Kansas. Since the age of 15, Mr. Pearson has collected Antiques, many of them recovered from the pioneer Ringwood settlement. His collection boasts of the finest array of firearms in Northern Illinois. Most of his antiques are on display in his garage,but there are also many unusual items diplayed in his home. It's hard to believe until you talk to someone like Mr. Pearson, that not too many years ago Ringwood was a bee hive of activity. People came from as far away as Belvidere to shop. There was a full time Railroad Agent, a large Nursery, a Drug store, an Ice Cream Parlor, two General stores, a feed Mill, a Lumber yard, and prosperous Bank. In fact the Bank was so prosperous that unknown thieves blew up the safe one night and escaped with the contents. If you don't Relieve that there was a Bank ^ robbery in Ringwood, just ask^~ Mr. Pearson and he'll show you a piece of the safe. The Bowman plant was also located in Ringwood, this accounted for a lot of the activity in town. Farmers from all over the County brought their milk to the plant for processing. If you would like to see a collection of "Ringwood Memorablia", you are welcome to stop in at the Garage any afternoon, or if you happefi to be driving thru Ringwood some Sunday morning and see an empty chair in front of Pearson's Garage, stop in and join the Council meeting.