Rademachers: Love for tennis spilled down to the grandchildren
serif head Rademachers named Kiwanians of 2021
with kh logo By MARY JANE SKALA
Hub Staff Writer
KEARNEY — Earl and JoAnn Rademacher were humbled this fall when Golden K Kiwanis named them Kiwanians of 2021 for their community involvement.
Married for 62 years, both are retired educators. Rademacher, 88, served as the vice chancellor of business and finance at the University of Nebraska at Kearney. JoAnn taught second grade at Park and Glenwood elementaries and then worked as a substitute teacher for 15 years. “I liked all the schools and the kids,” she said.
The couple volunteers at Kiwanis programs that involve education, such as providing toothbrushes to Emerson School pupils as part of the Golden K Dental Program. “A lot of the kids don’t have toothbrushes at home. I’ve been real impressed,” JoAnn said.
People are also reading…
As part of the Golden K Reading Program at Bryant School, they present year-end certificates to pupils who have brought up their grades. “It’s a positive experience. Kearney has a lot of good teachers,” she said.
They’re also helping with the annual Kiwanis drawing and garage sale, set for early February as part of the annual Kiwanis Pancake Day at the Buffalo County Fairgrounds.
A Loup City native, Earl graduated in 1954 from what was then Nebraska State Teachers College — now the University of Nebraska at Kearney. He was drafted and spent 18 months in Japan with the U.S. Army. He came home and earned a master’s degree in business from the University of Northern Colorado.
He began teaching in Douglas, which is where the couple met. JoAnn, a native of Douglas, was attracted to Earl right away when he coached her younger brother in basketball.
“I didn’t want just anybody. I knew he was the one I wanted,” she said.
JoAnn graduated from Peru State College. The couple taught in York, married in 1959 and moved to Kearney in 1960 when Earl accepted a job at what is now UNK as assistant to the registrar and director of admissions.
By 1975, he was named vice chancellor for business and finance. He retired in 1997.
When they moved to Kearney, a neighbor invited Earl to join Noon Kiwanis. JoAnn followed when Kiwanis began accepting women, even though, she now says, “I had enough going on in my life.”
That included four children still at home. She forged ahead and earned a master’s degree from UNK. “I wanted to be a better teacher. I loved my work,” she said.
Tennis has been in the spotlight throughout their married life. Earl learned to play tennis in college and excelled as a varsity singles tennis player. He has played ever since and passed that passion on to his children.
Son Steve won a doubles title at UNK in 1979, and all four children have coached tennis and competed in recreational leagues.
The Rademacher grandchildren are continuing that tradition. In 2018, the family received the Nebraska Tennis Association Family of the Year Award in Omaha.
Earl is a staunch supporter of the proposed Kearney indoor sports complex, which voters are being asked to approve Dec. 14.
The Rademachers enjoy Kiwanis tremendously. “We make friends. We’ve met a lot of people,” JoAnn said. The 40-member club is eager to welcome new members. “There’s always going to be a need for people our age to help with kids,” she said.
The couple also enjoys bowling. Earl plays golf; JoAnn plays bridge and also likes to read.
Family remains extremely important. Their four children, all graduates of Kearney High School and UNK, include Buffalo County Court Judge John Rademacher; Dr. Steve Rademacher, an infectious disease specialist in Lincoln; daughter Jane Strawhecker, a professor in UNK’s College of Education, and Susie Doerr, who owns a fitness studio in Olathe, Kan. The couple also has 11 grandchildren.