Pike Township Family Stories

FLOYD AND EDNA KIRCHNER
Nichols, Iowa Centennial Book 1884-1984, pages 318-319
By Loretta MacKenzie

         Floyd Kirchner is a life long resident of Nichols. His father, Henry Kirchner, was born in Nichols and, with the exception of a three-year period when he farmed in Illinois, spent his entire life in Nichols.
         Henry Kirchner and Emma Hacke Kirchner reared three daughters, Alvina Kirchner, Elsie Kirchner and Marguerite Kirchner, and one son, Floyd Kirchner. Henry owned the Kirchner General store and was an undertaker for many years. Floyd worked in the store, and in 1936 he bought the grocery, hardware and dry goods store from his father. Henry continued in the undertaking business until 1948.
         Floyd received his early education in the Nichols schools. Since the Nichols High scool went to eleventh grade, he took his senior year at West Liberty High school. He graduated from The University of Iowa College of Commerce (now known as the College of Business Administration) in 1925.
         He owned and operated the grocery and dry goods store for a number of years. In 1938 he installed a frozen food locker in the back part of the store. At that time few people had home freezers and these lockers could be rented to store food and meat.
         In 1948 Floyd bought an insurance agency and started working as manager of the Nichols office of the Farmers and Merchants Savings Bank of Lone Tree. He sold the store and the locker plant. Several years ago he sold the insurance agency and continued to work part time in his job as bank manager until his retirement 1 January 1979.
         Floyd Kirchner is a member of the Nichols Christian church and has held many positions in the church. He was chairman of the church board for many years, chaired other committees and was church treasurer. He is on the board of trustees of Ramsey Memorial Home, a Disciples of Christ care center for the elderly, in Des Moines.
         Floyd has been a member of the City council, has held the position of city clerk and was city treasurer for a number of years. He was a trustee of the Muscatine county hospital board at one time. He is a member of Kaaba Temple Shrine and of the Masonic lodge.
         Edna Josephine Peterson was born and spent her childhood in the gold mining town of Victory, Colorado. Lowell Thomas was also a graduate of the Victor High school several years before Edna was a student there, but his sister, Pherbie, was one of Edna’s classmates.
         Edna came to Iowa to live with her grandparents while she attended William Penn college in Oskaloosa, where she graduated with a B. A. degree in music. Her first teaching job was at Somers, Iowa, where she taught for two years.
         Edna came to Nichols and taught music in the Nichols school, starting in 1928. She taught for three years, and in 1931 she married Floyd Kirchner. She returned to teaching about 1944 and taught music at Nichols for 13 years and in Conesville for ten years, retiring from her teaching job in 1967. Edna gave private piano and organ lessons from her home for 40 years.
         Although raised in the Lutheran faith, Edna was an active worker in the Nichols Christian church. She was choir director and organist at the church for many years. She also served as deaconess and on the worship committee.
         The Kirchners have enjoyed traveling over the years. They have gone to Europe, and since Edna has relatives in Sweden, they have visited them in Sweden and traveled in the other Scandinavian countries.
         Floyd and Edna Kirchner celebrated their golden wedding anniversary in 1981. They are now living in the Oaknoll Retirement center in Iowa City.


40 YEARS OF PIANO LESSONS
Nichols, Iowa Centennial Book 1884-1984, page 144
The following story was in the West Liberty Enterprise on Thursday, 15 June 1978.

         Mrs. Floyd Kirchner presented her piano and organ pupils in a public recital Sunday, June 4 at the Nichols Christian Church. This year marked her 38th annual recital, with her first one held in 1940. She has been teaching the 30-minute piano lesson routine in Nichols over 40 years, and the organ for more than 20 years. She also taught before she came to Nichols.
         Edna Peterson was born in Victor, Colorado, a gold mining town which is now a ghost town. She graduated from high school in Victor before she went to Oskaloosa where she attended William Penn College. In 1928 she arrived in Nichols to teach music in the school. Three years later she and Floyd Kirchner were married.
         She has always been interested in music. She says, “It is my whole life. I always enjoyed practicing and listening to music. It was always easy for me. I enjoy working with young people and am happy to broaden their education with the love of music.
         Edna as a certificate in piano and a b. A. in music form William Penn College. She has also taken courses at The University of Iowa. She taught music in public schools for 28 years 16 of them at the Nichols school.
         At the present time (1978) she has twelve pupils. She has had as many as thirty students. She adds that since she chose music as a career, she has always been interested in giving lessons. She sets aside certain days for teaching and gives them at the pupils’ convenience.
         The teacher feels that the ideal time for most boys and girls to begin taking piano lessons is in third grade. However, this does vary with the individual pupil.
         Each child has a different approach to learning music. Some become easily upset if they don’t do well at a lesson. Edna stated, “If they are perfectionists, they realize that they will have to practice more. Some do not take corrections well and will become drop outs. I find that most of my pupils take lessons because they want to learn to play, and that is the kind it is a pleasure to teach.”
         A magic formula is not the answer in learning how to play the piano or organ. Some degree of practice is needed outside of the regular lesson, depending on how well the child wants to perform. Each one advances to a different book at a different rate, according to their interest and ability. “Probably the most difficult step in learning to play is learning the notes and watching their positions on the staff, and remembering what has been taught in the previous lessons,” according to Edna.
         To round out her musical talent, she is the organist and music director for the Nichols Christian Church and plays for weddings and funerals.
         Although music plays a big role in her life, she still finds time for enjoying her other hobbies of traveling and taking slides. She has been to the Scandinavian countries twice, had a tour of nine European countries, and visited Hawaii and many of the states.
         She has a tape recorder with which she has taped all of her school programs and recitals. She also enjoys collecting souvenirs of her travels, such as plates, spoons and salt and pepper shakers.
         Sunday’s public recital participants were Kory Kaalberg, Mark Pruitt, Dennis Pruitt, Brian Pruitt, Stephen Pruitt, Emma Mae Pruitt, Paul Sprague, Teresa Schultz, Mary Sprague, Donna Church, Susan Menzer and Heather Townsley.
         Organ music before the program was provided by Donna Church.
         Beginners recognized as having completed their first book were Kory Kaalberg, Mark Pruitt, Teresa Schultz, Paul Sprague, Mary Sprague and Sue Menzer. They received certificates.
         Dennis Pruitt, who began taking lessons in 1975, was awarded a certificate for completing the Blue Book. Heather Townsley, Stephen Pruitt and Brian Pruitt also received awards. Donna Church, Mrs. Kirchner’s only organ pupil at the present time, received a certificate.
         Kory Kaalberg, a first grader, was noted as being the third generation in the Kaalberg family to have taken lessons from Edna, with his grandmother, Mrs. Marie Kaalberg, and her daughter, Sister Ramona Kaalberg, at the recital. Kory is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Gayle Kaalberg.


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