I love this time of year: cooler mornings, the back-to-school shopping craze is in full swing and the anticipation of early Christmas deals is already gaining momentum. There was a time when I’d get caught up in all of it. When I was a postmaster, our office personnel would have a lottery each summer to see when the first pre-Christmas sale ads would appear. The record was July 9th — but that was a decade ago!

It’s also the time of year when teachers are getting classrooms ready for another year of students. I admire their profession; the potential for igniting that spark of “hey, I want to learn more about that” in youth is tremendous. So, this week I’d like to introduce a couple that reside in Our Neighborhood.

These two invested their lives into teaching and coaching — which is teaching outside the classroom.

Keith Bahrenfuss and his future wife, Mary Lou Adams, were both born in Webster City in 1935. Both graduated from Lincoln High School in 1953 and attended Iowa State Teachers College. They were married in June of 1955 and lived in Waterloo for a short time while Keith finished his education and Mary began teaching.

The couple returned to Webster City in 1957 and Keith began teaching elementary PE, moving to high school history and finally to teaching science. He also coached football, boys’ basketball and boys’ track before working as the athletic director for 25 years.

Following their children’s births, Mary returned to teaching elementary classes. She was also involved in the local Cub Scouts as a den mother and was a part-time realtor for Abens Realty for several years.

Keith and Mary really enjoyed life together; travel was one of their interests and they had many great adventures in places like Africa, Costa Rica, Peru and going on cruises. I can only imagine being the same age, going to school and college together, working in the same field and even retiring at the same time in 1994. They both had a real love for young people, as evidenced by their teaching and coaching careers.

Keith and Mary moved into Windsor Manor in 2017; Mary was in the memory care area later, in 2018. She became a resident of Our Neighborhood in January of 2021 due to complications from Covid-19. Keith joined her there in August of the same year.

This is a couple I’d like to have met, I’m sure. Their love for travel and spending so much of their lives close together are two things that are shared by my wife and myself, as well.

Let’s enjoy the waning days of summer now as we get ready for the coming school year and all it brings … including the change in morning and afternoon traffic patterns if you live near a school.

Our Neighborhood is a column by Michael Eckers focusing on the men and women whose presence populates Graceland Cemetery in Webster City.