Delano Herald Journal

Serving the communities of Delano, Loretto, Montrose, MN, and the surrounding area

Ryan Gueningsman Column, 2/24/2003



As I was going through the basket of articles to be proofed
late last week, I came across a familiar face on one of the obituaries.

I’m talking about former Winsted druggist Herb Roufs, who
passed away Tuesday.

I had heard the name before, but never knew much about
Herb until early December when he was chosen to be the grand marshal of
the Winsted Winter Festival parade.

I was given the assignment to interview Herb, who was at
that time 90 years old. He was living at the Glencoe Hospital in the long-term
care unit, and I was told by several of his family members to stop in about
4:30 p.m. ­ after he woke up from his afternoon nap, and before he went
to dinner.

I found Herb’s room, introduced myself, and told him why
I was there. Although he humbly said he wasn’t sure why he had been chosen
to be grand marshal, he told me his life story.

Herb recalled that he was one of the first persons ever
from the community of Winsted to go to a college, and he remembered it like
it was yesterday.

“The gentleman reading my application looked at it
and said, ‘I’ll give you one year, then you will quit,'” Herb recalled.

“I asked him why he thought that, and the answer he
gave me was because I was from a small town.”

“The man looked at the application further and said
‘Wait a minute, I’m sorry, I take that back ­ I give you one quarter
­ you went to a private school.'”

Herb proved the gentleman wrong, earning his way to the
University of Minnesota’s honor roll, and graduated at the top of his class
in 1935, specializing in the pharmacy industry.

Although he retired from the pharmacy business before my
time, Herb went on to become Winsted’s pharmacist until he was 63 years
old, when he decided to sell the store to his employee Ken Kremer.

Herb was also a member of Holy Trinity parish, and very
active in church functions. He served many people who still live in Winsted
for many years, and did it not seeking recognition, but rather trying to
make his hometown a better place to live.

Not bad for a “small-town boy.” The hour I spent
talking to Herb flew by with tales of his fund raising efforts for St. Mary’s
Hospital, his different pharmacy jobs, as well as pride in his family.

When I left the Glencoe Hospital that afternoon, I realized
that everyone has a story to tell, whether it be a complete life spent on
a farm, or on an assembly line, in the entertainment business, in public
office, or as in Herb’s case a pharmicist ­ everyone has stories and
are generally more than willing to share if someone will take the time to
listen.

With my job, I’ve had the opportunity to interview and
listen to a lot of people.

From famous musicians, to farmers, to new business owners,
to mayors, fire chiefs, and many more. All three jobs I have had ­ at
the Pantry, Glenn’s Super Valu, and here at Herald Journal Publishing ­
have introduced me to many different people, all who have a story to tell.

Another example of this I found was while reading sports
editor Aaron Schultz’s article “Talkin’ a little baseball: it doesn’t
get any better.” Aaron called 76-year-old Glen Johnson to get some
information on the old Hollywood baseball team ­ information that could
have been compiled in under 10 minutes.

Aaron and Glen spent over half an hour on the phone ­
just talkin’ baseball. Glen was recalling stories of the ‘good ol’ days,’
and Aaron was in heaven hearing these stories.

Everyone has these stories. It’s just a matter of finding
someone who will listen.

It may mean taking a half an hour out of your busy schedule
to stop in and visit grandpa and grandma and see how their day is going,
chatting with the person next to you at the counter of your local restaurant,
or stopping to talk with the person picking up their mail at the same time
as you from the post office.

I know I do not do this all the time, but I’m going to
try to listen more.

Just listen to people, and you may learn a lot.

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