Tucked away in a far corner of the Iola High School basement is an assortment of trophies, some dating back more than a century, doing little more than collecting dust.
A lack of space in the high school prevents administrators from showing off the relics.
Iolan Paul Sorenson thinks that if the trophies can’t be displayed, the public should at least be aware of what they represent.
Sorenson approached members of the USD 257 Alumni Endowment Association Thursday about an alternative way to show off the trophies.
Sorenson’s propsal: Take a picture of each trophy, then put laminated photos in an album set up next to one of the existing display cases.
The idea sparked a flurry of ideas about what to do with the trophies, many of which are in various degrees of disrepair. Some have been exposed to water as well, Superintendent of Schools Brian Pekarek noted.
“It’s just not ideal to have these trophies here,” Pekarek said.
The trophies’ fate will be brought up at the July 23 Board of Education meeting. Pekarek said he would propose the trophies be donated to the Endowment Association.
One idea proposed Thursday was to have the trophies restored, then made available for purchase when IHS alumni return for their annual school reunions.
“With each of these trophies is a story,” said Endowment Association member Deniece Edson, who found in one storage box a framed letter addressed to Edson’s graduating class — from President Richard Nixon.
The trophies also could be marketable to the public.
For example, if somebody’s great-grandmother or great-grandfather won a trophy, it might make for a cherished family keepsake, Edson said. Some might even prefer to have the trophies in their current state, and not refurbished.
Many of the trophies were removed from their former cases when the high school was renovated in 1989, according to one report uncovered by Endowment Association members. A subsequent effort to have the trophies cleaned and refurbished was partly successful. Dozens were improved, “but that was just the tip of the iceberg,” Endowment Association President Laura Cailliouet-Weiner said.
THE ENDOWMENT Association hopes to maintain a strong presence in the school district.
