Gardiner's Chosen As Peetz Parade Marshals

Glenn (Mike) and Evelyn Gardiner have been selected by the Peetz Lions Club to serve as parade marshals for the 2018 For Peetz Sake/Homecoming parade to be held at 10 a.m. on Sept. 29.

Mike and Evelyn are both lifetime members of the Peetz community. Mike was born in Windsor, Co., and raised in West Plains where he attended country school at Stoney Buttes, which was located on a corner of the homestead of his grandfather, Isaac Stortz. Mike later donated

the one-room school building to the Overland Trail Museum in Sterling. Mike's younger years were spent working as a farm/ranch hand for various neighbors and working with his older brother Jerry at horserace tracks in Denver, El Paso, Texas, and Omaha, Neb.

He was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1965 and served a year and half in Baumholder, Germany. After his honorable discharge in 1967, he purchased the former Francis Hruza farm west of Peetz from his twin brother, Pat, and is still farming and ranching there today.

Evelyn attended school in Peetz, graduating in 1970. After attending Northeastern Junior College (NJC), she transferred to Greeley and graduated with an education degree in 1975. Evelyn taught fifth grade in Lodgepole and coached junior high girls volleyball and basketball for two years.

Mike and Evelyn were married in Peetz in 1977. They are the parents of Jim Gardiner of Peetz, Kelli Ferkovich of Crook, Ben Gardiner of Sterling, and Kristin Gardiner of Colorado Springs. The couple has eight grandchildren.

In 1985, Evelyn began her 27-year teaching career at Peetz School, teaching junior high English and Reading and Life Skills, and high school Publications, which produced the Bulldog Yearbook and the school newspaper, "The Bulldog Bytes," every year. Extra duty included serving as class sponsor for junior high and high school classes, taking the Classes of 1989 and 1996 on senior trips and as Student Council sponsor, responsible for planning the Peetz Homecoming activities for many years. Evelyn received a Boettcher Foundation Teacher of the Year award in 2005. She retired from teaching in 2013, and has been employed as a legal secretary for J. Curt Penny in Sterling since then.

Mike is a 28-year member of the Peetz American Legion Post 134, serving as a member of the Color Guard for Memorial Day services at the Peetz Cemetery and the For Peetz Sake parade every year. He also served two terms on the Peetz Fire Protection District Board. Mike is an avid Rockies and Broncos fan.

Evelyn is a lifelong member of Peetz Sacred Heart Church, serving as a lector and secretary of the Parish Council and as a member of Altar and Rosary Society. She joined the Peetz American Legion Auxiliary two years ago and serves as president.

Together, Mike and Evelyn were members of the staff of "The Peetz Bridge," a monthly community newspaper that was published out of their home for 25 years from 1978 to 2003.

The couple says they feel honored to be chosen as parade marshals and to be a part of such a progressive and generous community, working alongside so many other community members who strive to make Peetz a great little community. Evelyn says she feels especially proud to have been part of the Peetz Bulldog legacy for so many years.