Who is Ryal Haakenson?

WHO IS RYAL HAAKENSON?

Chapter 2 - College and Military Years

Iowa State University 1952-1954

I attended Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa for two school years with Electrical Engineering as my major. I had been told that since I had an aptitude for math, this would be a good major. I continued my interest in sports, placing second in a basketball free throw shooting contest as a freshman and playing intramural sports throughout the years. I became a member of the Delta Sigma Phi fraternity and began to become more active socially. During the summers I worked at various jobs including being a parts runner for my uncle's car dealership, working in a meat packing plant, working construction on flood cleanup (I crawled under the oven at a bakery to clean up mud and debris because I was the only one small enough to fit), and as a draftsman drawing plans for microwave towers. My Engineering Drawing classes came in handy for this. I also played in a recreational softball league during the summers. But I was getting burned out in school, and my grades slipped from a 3.5 GPA my first quarter to barely 2.0. I decided to volunteer for the draft and enter the Army after my sophomore year. I felt I needed the time to mature before returning to school.

United States Army Signal Corps 1954-1956

I spent Basic Training in Fort Bliss, Texas finishing just before Christmas in 1954. Fort Bliss is located just outside of El Paso and borders Juarez, Mexico. After Basic Training, I had a brief leave in Sioux City, but was in Fort Monmouth, New Jersey by Christmas. I spent Christmas Eve on guard duty. I spent the rest of my Army time at Fort Monmouth, where I was classified as a Field Radio Repairman, although my job was as an Instructor's Assistant, which included first echelon maintenance of the radio equipment used in Basic Signal Officer Training Classes, demonstrating the equipment and showing training films during the classes, and cleaning blackboards for these classes. I spent leisure hours playing on the Battalion softball and basketball teams. Weekends were spent either in Asbury Park, New Jersey - a beach resort, or in New York City. I loved the time I spent in New York. USO and other service clubs provided a good social outlet. Also the legal age for consuming alcoholic beverages in New York was 18 at the time, so I learned about the bar scene. But the best part of New York was the many major league baseball games, movies, and Broadway plays I was able to attend at no cost. At the tail end of the Korean War, servicemen were given a lot of freebies. For more detail about my army experiences, click here to access "My Experiences in the Army", an account of both on duty and off duty experiences during my two years in the army.

Iowa State University 1956

I was able to get an early discharge from the Army to go back to school, and I attended summer school at Iowa State. I also attended the fall quarter, but decided that engineering was not for me and transferred to the University of South Dakota at the end of the Fall Quarter.

University of South Dakota 1957-1959

I changed my major to Business Administration and commuted to school from my home in Sioux City. It was only a 30 mile drive from Sioux City, Iowa to Vermillion, South Dakota and a number of people carpooled to school. I continued my interest in sports during that time playing in recreational softball and basketball leagues in Sioux City and an intramural softball team at school. Our team of commuters was the undefeated champion of the intramural league. During this time I resumed part time work as a draftsman. Social life during those years was enhanced by the fact that the Holiday on Ice show formed every summer in Sioux City before going on their nationwide tour. The chorus girls, many under age 21, had leisure time and some of the young men about town were only too glad to show them around. For more detail on my experiences with the Holiday on Ice girls click on The Girls of HOLIDAY ON ICE on Ice - Circa 1957 & 1958. I graduated from the University of South Dakota with a BS degree in Business Administration in January of 1959.

This page was last updated on September 11, 2003