Biography
by Bev Novak
January 01, 2008
When thinking back to my youth and childhood, I find myself right here in Northeast Nebraska. I was born in Wakefield and grew up on a farm close to Pender. I have an older sister and a younger brother, so I am the “middle child”. I tackled all of those farm-oriented chores of feeding animals, cleaning chicken and hog sheds, guiding hogs and cattle from one yard to another, building forts in the groves, and playing with baby kittens in the haylofts. These are only a few of the many adventures I experienced on the farm. I could go on and on. I have many fond and wonderful memories of growing up and living on the farm with my parents and siblings. Through these years my parents taught us the value of a good work ethic and how important it is to being successful in life. They also taught us the value of having fun and being part of a family. I went to a country school through eighth grade and later graduated from high school at Pender Public School.
After graduation I lived in an apartment and spent two years as a dental assistant in Sioux City, Iowa.
Then I returned to Pender and married Curt Novak who was a high school classmate. For the following four years I had a secretarial job at a manufacturing company in Pender. We lived in Pender and Thurston and were blessed with three wonderful children. Amy, the oldest, and Jeff live in Gretna with their four adorable children. Our grandchildren are Tyler (13), Kennedy and Keathen (10), and Kate, the youngest at 4 years old. Heidi and her husband Jarrett live in Kansas City. Randy lives in Yankton, South Dakota. As you can tell, I have the opportunity to travel the Midwest and visit them.
Curt owned a business in Thurston, so we built a home there. Then ten years later we had quite an exciting day while we watched our home being moved to Pender. Actually I was too nervous to watch that morning and decided to leave. Eventually our home made it to Pender safe and sound and was placed on its current foundation. When all three of our kids were in school, I attended Wayne State College. While in high school, my ambition was to be a high school Math teacher. Years later I changed that to becoming an elementary teacher. After college graduation I was a substitute teacher for a few years. My first job at Emerson-Hubbard was in the Computer Lab and Library. I have been teaching Fifth and Sixth Grade for the past ten years here. It is so exciting for me to see the students grow, learn and be successful. I really enjoy working with the children and staff here, and every day is a new adventure!
