'Old Friends Celebrate' First Day Of School

Tate's Barbecue in Ulysses was the placed to be for the first day of school - at least for a group of educators.

Retired teachers from USD214 gather each year on the first day of school to celebrate.

"It's a time to celebrate that we're not at school on the first day of school," said organizer Pam Patrick. "And, to celebrate all of the years of service that we gave the school district and an opportunity to reminisce with old friends."

Patrick and fellow organizer Becky Schloemer, worked together on this year's event.

"It kind of put's itself together," Patrick said. "We just get the word out."

Patrick is pleased with how the event went this year.

"It went great," she said. "I thought we had a nice crowd and everyone stayed around a couple of hours. They ate and visited. We had around 40 people who attended. We had some new faces and then there were some who were missing - so it all balanced out."

The event has been an annual affair for more than 20 years, taking a break during Covid-19.

"They used to have this for years and years," Patrick said. "Then when Covid came around it closed it down. Becky and I had been to one or two before Covid and we were talking one day and said, 'let's see if we can get this going again. So we contacted Esther Walker, Judy Scott and Deloris Currier - none of them really wanted to be in charge of it any more."

Currier is one of the original ones to get the event going.

"There were a few of us who belonged to the Kansas Association of Retired School Personnel at Garden City," Currier said in an interview last year. "Mary Gleason was one and Esther Walker. Because we had belonged to the KARS in Garden we thought it would be nice for the retired teachers here to get together."

Currier said  the KARS association is only for retired school personnel: teachers bus drivers custodians, secretaries...

"It doesn't matter," Currier said. "Anyone who gets KPERS - the organization focuses on health, the Kola we have not received. I'm still getting the same salary as a retired person that I received in 1995 - 29 years it's been the same."

According to Currier, they thought it would be awesome for them to get together and celebrate.

"Most of us miss the kids - just not the busyness and all the paperwork, etc., that goes along with the teaching profession," Currier said. "We thought it would be great for us to be able to visit and stay in touch."

Currier said she was approached last year by Patrick and Schloemer.

"Esther and I just hadn't gotten it going again," Currier said. "That's when Pam and Becky approached me and asked if I still had the old list of people we contacted who came to the meeting. I said 'yes' and I gave it to her. They took it from there."

Currier was grateful the women are carrying on with the event.

"We had a good turnout (last) year," she said. "It was awesome. We had more than 30 and at least that many back when we started this. We get together just for lunch and to visit."

Patrick said they chose to keep it simple.

"If we had an email address we emailed people," she said. "We talked to Tate's and they set it up for us - it's a great place to have it. We didn't have a formal program. Everybody there pretty well knew everybody. It was a time to get caught up with each other. People moved around and visited  with each other."

The one who traveled the farthest for the event, according to Patrick, was Pam Anderson.

"I believe she came the farthest," Patrick said. "She lives in Winfield."

Most of those who attended live in Grant County or the surrounding area.

"I know Jean Ann Troutt came from Satanta," Patrick said.

When asked if they plan to have the event again, Patrick said "absolutely".

"We will do it again the first day of school 2026," she said.