Spotlight on Residents

May/June Resident of the Month

Arlington Place Assisted and Independent Living of Oelwein

Rudy Potratz

Rudy Potratz is the May/June Resident of the Month at Arlington Place.

He was born 7/11/1935 at home on a farm in Maynard to Rudolph and Agatha Detterming. Rudy had one brother and eight sisters.

As a youngster, he attended Harlan # 1 Country School, Lutheran School for the 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th grades in Westgate, and Maynard High School. Rudy remembers unhitching horses at school so they could run after them. The school children even threw rocks to make them run faster! He also recalls that the school had mice. Rudy’s teacher would pay the kids five cents for each mouse they caught in the basement. They would then save up the money for a week and have enough money to purchase a soda pop!

He married Shirley Ann Buhr at St. John’s Church in Sumner in 1954 and they honeymooned at Niagara Cave in Minnesota..Three daughters and five sons were born to this union. He has 46 grandchildren and two step grandchildren.

Rudy was a farmer, worked in a cheese factory, Carlen Muller Furniture in Waterloo, and Chamberlain’s in Waterloo for 35 years. He had two dogs (German Shephards) and was sad when they died. He loved camping in Minnesota and Wisconsin in his early years and also traveled to Washington, Montana, North Carolina, and Wisconsin.

Rudy has been a resident at Arlington Place for a month. What does Rudy like best about Arlington Place? “I love it! It is clean and the people are so very friendly!”

July Resident of the Month, Gwen Gamm	August Resident of the Month, Dorothy Malget	September Resident of the Month, Mardelle Birchard	October Resident of the Month, Letha Givens	November Residents of the Month, Esther and Bob Rechkemmer	December Resident of the Month, Wendell Epp
February Resident of the Month, Letha Kappmeyer	March Resident of the Month	April Resident of the Month	May Resident of the Month	Summer Resident of the Month	October Resident of the Month
November/December Resident of the Month	January Resident of the Month	February Resident of the Month	March/April Resident of the Month