It was a beautiful afternoon for the dedication of the Schoolboy Soldiers of Rippey monument in the Old Rippey Cemetery in Washington Township. Several people from the old neighborhood attended the ceremony and it was good to see them. Larry and Darlene Johnson of Story City were there and since Larry grew up on the farm joining the cemetery, he has lots of memories to share about the neighbors surrounding the cemetery. With the help of Valerie (Heater) Ogren and Dennis Ulrich’s family information, I caught the genealogy bug and continued researching most of those families who aren’t on their family trees.
The dedication was impressive and the students, their teacher and others who helped with this project are to be commended for their dedication to see it through. For more information on the Rippey Schoolboy Soldiers you can Google Schoolboy Soldiers of Rippey where you will find articles by Chuck Offenburger, watch the Iowa PBS story and enjoy other media information.
The monument and bench were installed on October 22, 2023. Ryam Nelson, of Jefferson Monument Works donated the bench. Ironically, the previously owners of the Jefferson Monument Works, Lloyd and Lee Slone, repaired and reset the monuments and donated the new entry sign to the Old Rippey Cemetery after the Rippey Searchlight Club finished their community project of restoring the much neglected cemetery from 1958-1960. A much appreciated donations from both those business owners. Fortunately, Township Trustees have been able to levy a tax to care for their cemeteries for several decades. The current trustees for Washington Township are Neal Dollinger, Chairman, Greg Jacobs, and Mary Ann Hick. The clerk is Jean Borgeson, who has served since 2000 and did not seek election this year.