This is my first-ever letter to the editor. Way back in 1956, I transferred from Holyrood to Ellsworth USD 327 because they offered Latin. My loving sister convinced my parents that I couldn’t consider going to medical school without Latin, which Ellsworth offered. That decision was not popular in Holyrood.
Not only did I receive an excellent education, I met exceptional friends that continue, like Ron Svaty, John Grothusen, Frank and Judy Toman and my cousin Bill Gwinner, to just name a few.
Another VIP was my loving wife, Roberta Gray. Because of her, we returned to continue my optometric practice when her father, Dr. Robert Gray, decided to retire. We raised our four children in Ellsworth, with Dr. Kyle Gwinner and two sons and Kassie Pflughoeft and four sons still residing in Ellsworth. My oldest daughter married another EHS grad, Dr. Jamie McAtee, a renowned orthopedic surgeon in Manhattan, who has served many Ellsworth citizens with exceptional healthcare.
So, why am I writing this letter to the editor? It was inspired by the school board decision not to court Wilson students because of class size. I am a past school board member and president with some knowledge of school issues. It was my privilege to serve with exceptional board members David Bircher, Sam Pflughoeft, Alvin Erichsen and George Place, to name a few. I would not have lived and raised my family in Ellsworth if I would have been denied access to Ellsworth High School. It seems ironic with declining rural school populations in rural communities in Kansas, that a progressive school district would turn away students.

Derrill Gwinner
Manhattan, formerly of Ellsworth