 What’s the deal with the black & white saddle shoes?  Click here for the story of our farm in Greene County, Iowa. Here's looking at life at Simple Serenity Farm  Carla’s sister & brother-in-law Chris and Tony Woods, of Des Moines, were at the farm on Sunday, August 22, helping Carla do the lawn mowing and other yard work that we’ve struggled to keep up with lately, with all our medical appointments. The Woodses brought along their 18-month-old granddaughter Ari, who was a delight watching all the action from the porch with Chuck, catching up on her reading and then getting a moment on the lawn tractor seat! Click here for larger format Earlier photos in this series Iowa Hall of Pride netINS, Inc. Butler House on Grand B&B Sam's Barber Shop Douglas T. Bates III, Attorney KMA Radio's ''Chuck & Don Show'' Barack Obama story & coloring book The Monks of New Melleray Abbey RELATED LINKS About Offenburger.com Biographies Want to Reprint? Want Updates? ARCHIVES Chuck Offenburger's columns Christie Vilsack's columns Carla Offenburger's columns Carla's book reviews Jared Strong's columns Guest Columns The Simple Serenity Farm columns Farm Photos, 2006 - 2008 Our Iowa News Digest Along Our Way 
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 Our “Turkey of the Year” Grant Cuvelier has a special Turkey Valley High School heritage By CHUCK OFFENBURGER November 27, 2008 JACKSON JUNCTION, IOWA Grant Cuvelier told me how “sometimes you think your parents are coming down on you pretty hard, but then you usually realize later they were probably right.” So when his mother Leslie Cuvelier told him over the weekend to get his hair cut – she said “he was getting too shaggy” – he just did it. Moms, you know?  There’s even more fun Turkey Valley heritage on her side of the family. Leslie, a former teacher who is now a vocational counselor in a state employment program, is the daughter of Ron and Shirley Donn. When we started this “Turkey of the Year” fun in 1980, it was Ron Donn, then the principal at Turkey Valley High School, who authorized it. Now 77 and retired in nearby Decorah, Donn said this week that he “never imagined that I’d have a grandchild winding up being ‘Turkey of the Year.’ It’s been a wonderful tradition for the school, and it’s really been nice seeing how well all the past winners have done in life. And, of course, we were just delighted when we got the call that Grant is this year’s ‘Turkey.’ ” Indeed, this tradition has had a good long run. As I was driving across northern Iowa this week on my way to Turkey Valley, I was listening to President-Elect Barack Obama introduce the team that will administer his economic policies. My goodness, I realized, I’ve been doing “Turkeys of the Year” since Jimmy Carter was president! And Bob Ray was governor!
It made me realize it’s high time for another reunion. We gathered as many former Turkeys of the Year as we could find in our 20th year. Next year will be our 30th, so I hereby am setting a “Thirty Turkeys” celebration for the Saturday after Thanksgiving, 2009, to be held somewhere in the Turkey Valley School District. We’ll try to gather as many of them as possible that day for a high-noon feast – on you know what! So, anyway, Grant Cuvelier was telling me over a late lunch at the Hole in the Wall cafe in Lawler that he really likes “the small-town feeling around here. We all know each other. You get a feeling of safety and warmth here.” And it was just about then that the Hole in the Wall’s owner Deb “Fog” Straw, another Turkey Valley graduate, breezed by our table, telling us to watch the place because she was running across the street to the bank. He imagines he’ll probably be a part of the business community around here eventually. “You hear a lot of high school kids say they’re going to go on after college and live in cities,” Cuvelier said. “I’ll probably try some place the size of Cedar Falls or Cedar Rapids for a year or two after school, too. But I’d say chances are good that I’ll wind up right back here.” He’s a bright fellow, among the better students in his class of 63 members. He has been thinking that he’d “probably go into business, maybe insurance with Dad, or into investments like some of my uncles have.” But this school year, he has given psychology a try, in a course available from the Northeast Iowa Community College in nearby Calmar. “I’ve really found that kind of interesting,” he said, “enough that I’ve been doing some research on what kind of careers there are in psychology.” He said as he considers his college choice, he’s been interested in both Hawkeye Community College and the University of Northern Iowa. He’s made visits to older Turkey Valley friends who are now students at Upper Iowa University in Fayette and at Luther College in Decorah, “just so I could get a better feel of what college life is going to be like, and I think I’m going to like it.”  In high school, Cuvelier has been an avid musician. He’s been a trombone player for all of veteran band director Bob Huinker’s groups, including concert band, marching band and jazz band – and that jazz band has made it to the Iowa Jazz Championships in Des Moines all three years Cuvelier has been in it. He has also played in the “pit bands” for the school musicals. “Grant has worked his way up to where he’s playing first chair trombone for us now in concert band, and lead trombone in the jazz band,” said Huinker. “He’s a good behind-the-scenes kind of student, dependable, always there, wants to do a good job and yet doesn’t care about sticking out himself.” And he’s a top baritone in the show choir, chamber choir and chorus for director Shelley Mohling. He also sang as a member of the chorus in this fall’s “Jekyll & Hyde” musical. “What I really like about music, especially since I like to play and sing it, is that when you listen to groups that you like, then you can figure out just how they put it together,” he said. “For me right now, that’s mostly rock music. It’s interesting to think about how all the voices and instruments fit together.” While he’s done most of his music in school, he also has jumped into the church choir with both his parents to sing at Christmas mass at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic Church in Lawler. He also is a mass server there, and takes his turns as a Eucharistic minister. Grant’s been a good kid to raise, John and Leslie Cuvelier say. “One thing I’ll say is that, since I was the oldest of six brothers in my family, I didn’t have any idea what it was going to be like raising girls,” John Cuvelier said. “And after having our own three girls, it’s been a heck of a lot easier raising a boy.” Leslie Cuvelier then told Grant, “But tell Mr. Offenburger what your sisters tell you about that.” He smirked and said, “They tell me I’ve had it easy.” And that’s a nice haircut, I reminded him. THE ROSTER OF “TURKEYS OF THE YEAR” OVER THE PAST 29 YEARS 1980, Paul Barloon. 1981, Mike Kuennen. 1982, David Lusson. 1983, Barb Pinter. 1984, Steve Samec. 1985, Connie Mueterthies Frick. 1986, Carl Reicks. 1987, Chris Galligan. 1988, Paul Arens. 1989, Dana Reicks. 1990, Kris Kovarik. 1991, Greg Arens. 1992, Jenny Reicks Koudelka. 1993, Leon Arens. 1994, Lynn Smith Arens. 1995, Kim Kuennen. 1996, Jackson Hayek. 1997, Jeff Halverson. 1998, Mike Arens. 1999, Steve Nolte. 2000, Dana Croatt. 2001, Matt Hackman. 2002, Andy Pavlovec. 2003, Greg Stammeyer. 2004, Kyle Panos. 2005, Bryan Christophersen. 2006, Todd Schmitt. 2007, Keith Langreck. 2008, Grant Cuvelier.  You can write the columnist at chuck@Offenburger.com. You can send your congratulations to the new Turkey of the Year at grant_cuvelier@hotmail.com.
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