to be here,’ he walked in and of course I just lost, totally lost it,” Machholz recalled tearfully. “That was memorable, it will always be there.” With Mike being the associate athletic director and head wrestling coach, players came to know Sandy as, “Grandma Machholz.” During her time at Valley, Machholz enjoyed meeting students and becoming friends with many professors and staff members. She witnessed thousands of people walk through the halls of Missouri Valley. One thing is certain, Machholz’s blood runs purple and orange. “I’m proud of Missouri Valley College,” said Machholz. “It always comes out of any kind of problem there has been. This is a team and they work as a team. It has produced a lot of wonderful alumni out there.” Fifty years of service to a single institution is a tremendous milestone to reach. When asked what it meant to her to have worked at Missouri Valley for 50 years, Machholz simply stated, “It’s my home, it’s my second home. I love Missouri Valley College.”
In 1970, the Valley Dames was formed. It’s an organization made up of women associated with Missouri Valley. Machholz was the first staff member to join and took over leadership in 1974 after the passing of Mrs. Dorothy Gibler. The Valley Dames would later become Valley Women. Each year they host a Women’s Hall of Fame event inducting one woman in the Hall of Fame and selecting a Senior Woman of the Year, and awards a Junior woman scholarship. Machholz has many fond memories of her time at Valley but the one memory she’ll cherish forever is being inducted into the Valley Women’s Hall of Fame in 2005. “They inducted me into the Hall of Fame and they said Sandy would you like to speak?” said Machholz. “I got up to tell them how much I really appreciated it because I had been handling it for a lot of years and there were wonderful, wonderful, wonderful ladies ahead of me.”
Like your poem says, thanks for the memories, Sandy.
Machholz’s son, Mike, who was supposed to be out of state at a convention, surprised his mom during the ceremony. “About the time I said, ‘My son is in California and he’s unable
22 Viking Views | 2021
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs