Schocks named grand marshals of fair parade

For more than half a century, Mary and David Schock of rural Holton have been involved in the Jackson County Fair — at least since their daughter, Rosemary, was old enough to follow in her mother’s footsteps as a 4-H kid.

“I was a member of the Beattie Musketeers in Marshall County,” Mary Schock said. “Since I was involved in 4-H over there, we got our kids into 4-H.”

David Schock, however, didn’t have a 4-H upbringing, although he grew up on a farm near Hiawatha where his family raised sheep. But the Schocks have been active with the Jackson County Fair, serving as open class superintendents and trophy sponsors — and Mary is believed to be the first woman who served on the Jackson County Fair Board.

For their support of the fair, the Schocks were chosen to serve as grand marshals of this year’s Jackson County Fair Parade on Wednesday, July 15.

“I thought, what did I do? Did I deserve this?” Mary said.

“She asked me about it and she was like, ‘I don’t know why they picked me,’” her daughter, Rosemary Wilkerson, added. “I started naming all the stuff she did, and she said, ‘Yeah, I guess I did do a lot!’”

David Schock and the former Mary Allgeier met while at Highland Community College, and the two of them got married in January of 1967. They moved to Topeka, where David worked at Goodyear Tire for several years.

“He worked there until he retired at 62,” said Mary, who recalled stories of her husband loading tires onto trucks and trains at the Goodyear plant.

They later moved to Jackson County along with Rosemary and their two sons, Roger and John, and the family got involved in 4-H in 1974, when Rosemary was seven years old. Mary served as a club and project leader with the Lucky Stars.

“She would do everything,” Rosemary said of her mother’s work in 4-H. “She would take kids from all the 4-H clubs in the county on trips.”

That was back when Margaret Hund was in charge of the Extension office in Jackson County. Hund would lead trips for 4-H girls, while Mary took care of the boys.

“She would take kids to the Rock Springs Ranch 4-H camp,” Rosemary said. “She would always volunteer to help — not just with her club, but all the clubs.”

During her time with the Lucky Stars, Mary also served as a member of the fair board, from 1982 to 1984. Current fair board secretary Deb Dillner said Mary is believed to be the first woman to serve on the fair board, according to board records.

“We know those dates for sure from old fair books,” Dillner said. “She may have served longer or more.”

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