Sterling, CO--During the 69th annual
commencement exercises held at Northeastern Junior College (NJC) on Friday, May
11th, the college’s alumni association honored the Herman and Linda Gerk Family
with the 2012 Pride in Association Award. Between the years of 1989 and 2007, seven
of eight children in the Gerk Family attended Northeastern, collectively
completing over 25 semesters of coursework. All seven of these past students
joined their parents on stage to accept the award before a
packed crowd in Jackson and Edwards Arena at the Bank of Colorado Event Center.
In 2002, the NJC Alumni
Association established this award to be bestowed upon a family or individual
who has provided support, dedication and loyalty to the college over the years.
NJC Alumni Association Board of Directors President Ben Rainbolt introduced the
family and gave a brief background on each one.
The children grew up on a
farm outside of Iliff and graduated from Caliche High School. Parents
Herman and Linda both grew up
in Logan County and instilled in their children the value of work ethic and a
good education. He continues to farm and enjoys restoring old tractors. Linda
stayed home with the children when they were little, then found work in Sterling
after they were all of school age. She is now retired and she and Herman spend
much of their time following the activities of 15 grandchildren.
Jennifer, the oldest, was the first to
attend NJC. She graduated in 1991 and went on to Colorado State University
where she graduated with a degree in Business Administration. Her husband, Jeff
Dollerschell, graduated from NJC and Colorado State University with a degree in
Civil Engineering. Jen is a stay at home mom while Jeff is employed with the
State of Colorado Department of Transportation. They now make their home
outside of Stoneham with their five children who attend Prairie
School.
Alan was next to attend NJC. He graduated
from NJC in 1993 and went on to graduate from CSU with a degree in ag business.
Today, he, along with brother, Randy, own and operated Gerk Farms LLC, a farming
and ranching business. Alan married Michele Deroo, who was also a graduate of
NJC and the University of Northern Colorado (UNC). Michele is employed by
Premier Farm Credit in Sterling. They live near Iliff with their three children
who attend Caliche School.
Next to go to NJC was Randy. After
attending NJC and taking several ag classes, he decided that farming was in his
blood and returned to farm with his dad. Randy is married to Jaci Knaub who
also attended NJC and received a degree from Colorado State University. Jaci is
employed by Sterling Regional MedCenter. They also have three children and
reside on the family farm in Iliff.
Jonna attended NJC, graduating in 1996. She
went on to graduate from UNC with a degree in elementary education. She married
Brad Stromberger, another graduate of NJC. Brad graduated from CSU and is
currently farming with his family in the Iliff area. Jonna is a stay at home
mom, who has been a substitute teacher for RE1. They too reside outside of Iliff
with their three daughters who attend Caliche School.
Janell was the next to attend NJC as a
student athlete on the women’s basketball team. She graduated in 1999 and
continued her basketball career and education at the University of South
Carolina at Aiken, where her former coach, Mike Brandt, now coaches. Janell now
resides in Fort Collins, Co, where she manages a couple of medical supply
stores.
The only Gerk child who didn’t attend NJC
is Janise, because she had the opportunity to play basketball at Lamar Community
College, she went their instead. She also attended CSU and is currently employed
at Total Axcess in Sterling. She enjoys coaching basketball at Prairie Jr./Sr.
High School and lives in the Stoneham/Snyder area.
Jolene graduated from NJC in 2006. She
then transferred to the University of Wyoming, where she met her husband Andy
Samuelson. Andy is an elementary school teacher and Jolene is just finishing
her master’s degree in speech pathology. They currently reside in Riverton,
Wyoming with their infant daughter.
Jessica is the youngest of the family, and
she graduated from NJC and from the University of Wyoming with a degree in
speech and language pathology. She is now living in Sterling and working for
Northeast Colorado BOCES program. She is continuing her education with the
University of Northern Colorado pursuing her master’s in early childhood special
education.
Upon accepting the award, Jennifer spoke on
behalf of the family. “NJC has a special place in all our hearts,” she said, “It
gave us the opportunity to advance our lives not only academically, but socially
as well. It was a place close to home that still allowed us to gain
independence on our way to adulthood. We made lifelong friends, as well as some
of us meeting our future spouses. We all agree that it gave us the perfect
transition to the larger universities while still receiving a quality, top-notch
education.”
NJC President Jay Lee joked with the family
after the award was presented about raising another crop of NJC students.
“As the next generation of Gerks get ready
to hit the college scene in just a couple of years, we all will be highly
recommending they take a good look at Northeastern Junior College,” Jennifer
noted.
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