Each one of the sixty-one graduates in the Class of 2013 at
Mayer Lutheran High School has a unique story.
Some have overcome great obstacles to obtain a high school diploma. Three sets of twins, two of the identical
sort, have stories that only they can tell.
Several of the graduates are the very first of a family to receive a
MLHS diploma and a good number are the babies of their families. Kristen Mielke, of New Germany, Minnesota, is
one of those from the last group.
Kristen is the sixth child of Mary and Kendall Mielke. Her older siblings are all MLHS alumni. Rachel, the oldest, began her education at Mayer in 1996 and graduated in 2000, followed by Jonathan (2003), Laura (2005), David (2008), and Joshua (2010). On June 2, 2013, at around 2:30 PM when Kristen’s name is announced, she receives her diploma, walks across the stage, and enters into the prestigious club known as Alumni of MLHS, she will have ended an era of history that saw seventeen straight years of a Mielke attending the school.
Mary McManus, Kristen’s mom, shared that those seventeen years did not come cheap. “We spent between $120-140,000 on our kids’ education at LHS,” shared Mary. “Their experience is worth every penny. We would not have done it differently.”
Growing up near Fairmont, Minnesota, Mary had always dreamt of attending a Lutheran high school. There were no such schools in her region so she considered moving in with an aunt in Waconia and attending Mayer Lutheran High School. “I almost came to Mayer but at the last minute decided not to leave home. I never in my wildest dreams believed I would live near Mayer. I certainly never dreamt that my kids would be able to attend a Lutheran high school.”
But, the Lord had plans that Mary could not have predicted. Upon graduating from Bethany College in Mankato, Minnesota, she took a job teaching school at St. Mark’s Lutheran School in New Germany. A single girl, with hopes for finding a husband in a small town, Mary was not deterred. “A couple of local guys told me that if I was looking for a husband, New Germany was the wrong place to move to. Boy were they wrong!”
Enter Kendall Mielke, graduate of the MLHS Class of 1977. A farmer by trade, his love for music led him to become the organist and choir director at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church. Shortly after Mary arrived, she was invited by another teacher to the choir picnic. She saw Kendall standing next to his cousin, introduced herself, and they soon were engaged and married. The Lord blessed them with six children.
When Rachel began school in 1996, the Mielkes paid for tuition by selling cattle. “The tuition check arrived in the office from the beef processor,” shared Mary. The “beef-for-education” program came to a tragic end when in 1998, while the Mielkes were on vacation, Kendall died in an accidental drowning.
“Kendall had plenty of life insurance,” continued Mary. “His gift to Kristen and to the other kids was their LHS education.” Shortly before the family left for their ill-fated vacation, Kendall answered the phone and was convinced by the solicitor to buy additional life insurance. “He hung up and told me that he didn’t know why, but he just agreed to purchase more life insurance. We already had policies and we had thirty days to cancel his impulse purchase. The policy arrived just before we left for vacation. With all the commotion of getting ready for the trip, we decided to cancel it when we returned home. Boy am I glad we did not cancel it before. Kristen’s Lutheran High School education is a gift from her father.”
“When Kristen walks into the gymnasium on Sunday, the band will be playing Sine Nomine, the tune to the hymn For All the Saints, which was one of the pieces sung at Kendall’s funeral. I’m sure it will be an emotional moment for me as it has been at the gradation of all my kids,” Mary shared. “Other than that, it hasn’t been an overly emotional year. I’m not a sappy mom. Kristen is excited to move on.” Throughout the year, the Mielkes have experienced many lasts--the last volleyball game, the last Christmas concert, the last Prom. “As I sat in the Spring concert a couple of weeks ago, it began to dawn on me that this was the last concert of the Mielke kids’ career. It got me thinking about the significance of Kristen’s graduation.”
Kristen will attend Bethany Lutheran College in Mankato, Mary’s alma mater. She received the Luther Scholarship worth $26,000 over four years, which will help to pay for her tuition as she prepares to be a Lutheran elementary teacher, just like mom.
Four years ago, Mary met Dennis McManus, a pastor from a
small congregation in Benson, Minnesota, two hours west of New Germany. They were married a year later. “I believe in LHS, which is why I still live
here,” Mary explained. “Dennis and I see each other as much as possible. When
he retires in the next few years, he will join me on our farm here.”
Kristen Mielke’s graduation will be a bittersweet time for her and her family. It will be the culmination of a family’s testimony of the significance of Christian education. The seventeen-year reign of attending sporting events, concerts, plays and school events large and small to watch children and siblings perform will come to an end. Yet, their commitment to their Lord and to the precious school He has placed in Carver County will continue for a long time. In fact, Kristen’s nephew and niece are slated to be freshmen in 2023 and 2025.
