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Art
Rix reflects
on 100 Years
of life in Manning
Story
published November 08
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Listen
to Art Rix as he speaks about the past or the present and you will
notice that he never misses a beat. Without a doubt, he is an amazing,
engaging man. Few would believe he is 100 years old. He said he, too,
finds it hard to believe 100 years have passed.
“Seems to me like I’ve just lived from one year to the next and didn’t
realize it was getting up there, really,” said Art. “It depends on
how good you feel. If your health is good the years go by and you
enjoy them. I feel quite fortunate that, at the age I am, I am still
able to carry on a conversation, enjoy reading and keeping up with
the world. It does a whole lot in making your life go by easy, and
it’s a big help if you are mentally alert. And I am thankful, very
thankful for that.”
When Art thinks about the past, the things that have happened and
how long ago they happened, it helps him realize the years that have
passed.
He said, “I’ve experienced living through the trials and tribulations
and also the victories that come along at different periods in your
life.”
Art was born in south Manning. The doctor had to walk through snow
drifts to arrive for his birth. His parents, Minnie and Peter Rix,
were German immigrants who came to the U.S. to be Americans.
The youngest of four sons, Art said he was the final resting place
for all the hand-me-downs from three brothers, “something that worked
out very well for my parents,” he chuckled.
He attended the Manning school and reflected on the differences between
then to now.
“There were no buses; most everybody walked. One boy from the country
had a Model-T sedan that he drove to high school, and one young lady
rode a horse to town,” he noted. “There was no band, but there was
a football and basketball team. We did have a pretty good football
team.”
Music turned out to be a big part of Art’s life. His interest was
first sparked by the school music teacher. Since there was no band,
she knew some of the kids who played instruments – piano, drums, saxophone
and trumpet. Art said she put a little orchestra together which gave
the students some musical training.
Art’s brother Harry was a musician who played violin, trumpet and
saxophone. He taught Art to play saxophone when he was about eight
years old.
He said, “I spent many a Sunday afternoon playing duets with him and
learning about music.”
Art helped a friend deliver the Des Moines Register and Tribune on
Sunday mornings. They arrived on the Milwaukee passenger train at
5 a.m. When his friend earned enough money to buy his saxophone, the
two of them played together. They were later invited to play with
an area band.
“During my junior and senior years in high school I played in a dance
band besides trying to keep up my studies in school. It was good experience
and a good thing because when I went to Iowa City that was my main
means of getting through that school - playing at a café for
noon lunches and for sorority and fraternity dances on the weekends,”
he commented.
He was in his junior year of college in October 1929 when the stock
market crashed.
“That changed everybody’s plans, including mine. My family was running
the Manning Monitor, and we saw fit that I stay home and help keep
the Monitor afloat,” he said. “I liked that business so well that
I didn’t go back to college. They made me the editor of the thing,
and that’s really how I got started in business in Manning.”
The Rix family operated the paper until 1945.
“My dad was anxious to retire, and we were all sick and tired of trying
to run that business through the Depression. When things got really
tough, we got calls from our suppliers, like our paper supplier, who
said ‘Don’t quit. We’ll send you all the paper you need and you pay
for it when you can.’ Everybody worked with that kind of system, and
that’s what kept everybody together,” he explained.
His family and their employee took the money they needed to live from
the till.
“We made a note of it and did not draw wages. That’s how we got by,”
he said.
“That’s how we all got by and eventually things worked out all right,
but it’s a period that will forever remain in my memory. I am certainly
very hopeful that we’re not headed for anything as drastic as what
that was.”
After the Monitor was sold in 1945, Art didn’t know what he was going
to do.
“One day Mr. Lewis of Lewis and Reinhold, a well established old time
drug store, called me in and said he heard we sold the business and
asked me ‘Where are you going and what are you going to do?’ and I
said, ‘That’s one of the biggest questions in my life right now’.”
Lewis was at the point of retirement and offered Art the chance to
buy his stock in the company, if he was interested. The offer led
to a partnership with pharmacist Orval Fink who operated the business
with Art for 33 years. During the last nine years at the drug store,
Art established and operated a paint and wallpaper business on the
lower level of the store.
“I had a good time running that paint store. There are still people
around that say, ‘You sold me some paint or I bought some wallpaper
from you.’ That’s kind of fun,” he said with a smile.
Over the course of his 50 years as a Main Street businessman, he was
active with numerous organizations and committees. He is a 50-year
member of the Masonic Lodge and Order of the Eastern Star. While serving
as president of Manning Rotary in 1955, he attended the Rotary International
Convention in Chicago, IL. He said it was a highlight in his life.
One of his involvements gives him pride.
“Dorothy Kusel was responsible for senior citizen meals and they were
being served at the VFW hall,” he recounted. “I got on that committee,
and we got to thinking about having a senior citizens center. I am
very proud of the fact that we worked and worked and went down to
Des Moines many times and met with the Commission on Aging.”
The group was aware of state grant monies which were available, and
after presenting their case, Manning was awarded a $60,000 grant.
He said, “In the meantime, word got around amongst the senior citizens
and they got together and held bake sales, and sold handwork and need-lework,
and they raised quite a bit of money. In a couple years we had enough
money to build the senior center on South Main Street. I take pride
in getting that job done.”
Art is a lifelong member of the First Presbyterian Church.
“I’m probably the oldest living member of the church,” he said with
a chuckle. “I joined in 1925, and I think I sang in the choir for
70 years.”
His photography hobby and music have given Art joy throughout his
life. In 1979 he was singing in a quartet with Ray Pratt, Claus Bunz
and Warren Puck. During practice someone mentioned the approaching
centennial and the possibility of German ethnic music.
“Somebody said, ‘Maybe we should start up the Liederkranz.’ Well,
that did it. We thought we could revive it, so we went out recruiting
and had no problem getting about 25 men who were anxious to take part.
To me, it was one of the greatest pastimes of my life.”
Art was actively involved with Manning’s Centennial in 1981, serving
as editor of the town’s 100-year history book, and in 2006, when the
community celebrated its 125th anniversary; Art was honored as grand
marshal of the parade.
When asked if he could name the most special event or memory in his
life, he paused only briefly and responded, “Yes, my family; my wedding
and my two daughters. They did it. My two daughters still do it. They
are very faithful in visiting me and so that marriage value was about
the most special of anything that I experienced in my life. The marriage
was one that I really enjoyed very much.”
Art’s wife, Ila, died in 2005. They were lifetime partners, graduating
together and sharing 72 years of marriage. Both of his daughters had
careers in education. Diane of Omaha, NE, was an education administrator.
Karen of Wheat Ridge, CO, worked in speech therapy and learning disabilities.
Art has four grandchildren, five great-grandsons and a new great-granddaughter.
“One of my biggest
pastimes is reading. I really like history,” he commented. “During
the election I read a dissertation on Lincoln’s election and I learned
a lot about that.”
Art also enjoys music and televised sports. He also remains active
at the Plaza. He was interviewed by a television crew when it came
to the facility to film a feature, and he recently met with state
representatives at the nursing home and spoke on behalf of residents.
Art was honored on Dec. 7 at the Hausbarn restaurant where his family
gathered for a family dinner which was followed by an open house.
Many, many people attended the event to congratulate Manning’s newest
centenarian who officially turned 100 on
Dec. 11, 2008.
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