Don Knapp

Our class was very excited to meet Mr. Don Knapp because the school community picked him to be our elder. His life story is very interesting. He is currently 96 years old. These days, he helps his son, Bob, at their family ranch. Every morning, they feed the cows and mend whatever needs to be fixed.

Mr. Don was born on October 19, 1929, on a farm south of what he called Underwood, but we know as New Underwood. When he lived on his dad’s farm, they had no running water, just a hand pump outside, and carried the water to the house. They had no electricity but used kerosene lamps for light. The only thing that they had close to electronics was a battery-charged radio, but his parents used it most of the time. To heat their home, they used wood
or coal.

His mom’s name was Mildred, and his dad’s name was Delmer. His mom was a pie baker, and his dad was a farmer; later in life, he worked as a firefighter. Mr. Knapp had three siblings: two sisters, Norma and Evelyn, and one brother, Kenneth.

Some of the games he enjoyed were sandlot ball games and hide-and-seek. For birthday parties, they made homemade ice cream. They generated their own activities.

When Mr. Don was about five years old, it was drought season. His dad had borrowed money for wheat seed to plant his crop. The crop was growing well, but then a huge hailstorm beat it to the ground. Because the wheat was lost, his father could not pay back his government loan. To cover the cost of the loan, the government had to take over his dad’s farm. Mr. Knapp saw cowboys on horseback riding down to the farm. They rounded up the livestock and took most everything away. All they left was one horse, a milk cow, and a team of work horses.

The family had to leave the farm, and they moved to Rapid City. When he was in high school, he walked everywhere. Mr. Knapp didn’t know any other way, but that was life, and he enjoyed it. During those years, he had several jobs. He worked at a creamery, bottling milk. He also worked at a farm implement dealership, Safeway, and as a ranch hand on various area ranches.

He was in high school when he and two other boys skipped school. The Dean of Boys caught them. The Dean took each boy to his parents and made them explain what they did.

After high school, Mr. Don enlisted in the U.S. Navy for three years. Serving in the military was one of his greatest honors. His first three weeks were difficult, and he wished that he could talk to his father, because his dad always helped him solve problems. The Navy trainers were very strict. However, all the training and strict rules helped him become a strong man.

Mr. Knapp married his high school sweetheart, and love of his life, Maxine, on December 21, 1948, while he was on military leave. Soon after their wedding, he returned to his duties in the Navy.

His ship sailed to Hong Kong; it served as a repair tender for seaplanes. The crew and ship were in Hong Kong for seventeen months. Mr. Don and his wife wrote letters to each other every day.

During their time there, they observed that there were some really poor people who lived on small raft-like boats. All the sailors threw coins in the water. The kids from the rafts would dive into the murky water to get the coins. They would not come up until they had the coins, most of the time in their teeth.

After the military, Mr. Don returned home to his wife, Maxine. In 1950, he began working for the Northwestern Bell Telephone Company (He worked there for thirty-one years). Their daughter, Nancy, was born in Rapid City.

In 1954, they bought a small ranch near Hermosa. He worked in town and ranched part-time. While living on the ranch, their sons, Bob and Richard, were born. When the kids were little, they were active in 4H. The whole family always loved Christmas time and believed in God.

Bob and Nancy went to Cobb County school, and the teacher did so much for the kids, like hauling water from her house to the school. When the country school closed, their teacher, Ms. Meiners, taught at the Hermosa School. In 1973, Mr. Knapp and his family moved to the Old Stinger Ranch, east of Hermosa. They are still living on that very same ranch right now.

Bob was active in sports and ranching. Richard was the mechanic on the ranch and later worked in the coal fields. Nancy was the bookkeeper.

Mr. Don Knapp is important to remember because he served our country and risked his life for ours. One quote Mr.Don said, “Love and be generous and find a mate that you can love and who will cherish you back.” Another quote Mr. Don Knapp said, “Be a good neighbor and a good person,” He also said that he wanted to be remembered as a good person too. “Have an enjoyable life.”