2008 Year in Review

Gronner Estate Presents Check to Morrison Historical Society

Jack Ottosen and Bruce Gronner

Jack Ottosen resceiving check from Dr. Bruce Gronner

Wayne Brooks accepting check for Boy Scouts

Bruce Gronner accepts certificate for his father's years of service

by Mary Ellen Brackemyer

“Today is Curt Gronner Day in Morrison, IL,” declared Jack Ottosen, President of the Historical Society Board of Trustees. He spoke to 20 guests at Morrison’s Heritage Museum on Saturday, December 27. Ottosen remembered Dr. Gronner as “the man with the answers. People would come [into the museum] with their questions, and Curt always had the answers.”

Upon graduation from dental school, Curt opened a practice in Milwaukee, WI. During World War II he practiced dentistry in the U. S. Navy. After his discharge Curt and his wife, Bernice, came to Morrison.

When Ottosen joined the Board of Trustees, Dr. Gronner took him upstairs in their old building on East Main Street to show him many things that were not on display. Curt told Jack, “They used to have dances on the third floor. We danced here and so did Bruce, because Bernice was then 8 months pregnant.” Jack introduced Dr. Bruce Gronner, DDS, Curt and Bernice’s son.

Bruce told the group not only did he attend the dance on the third floor, he also went to the Cubs World Series before his birth! “My dad and mom enjoyed Morrison so much and missed it a lot after their move. It is with great honor that I present this check for $26,552.66 to the Morrison Historical Society in my father’s memory.”

Curt had always been a very generous man, donating many documents, his stamp collection, and arrowheads to the museum. He wrote “The History of Whiteside County Postal Service.”

Orville Goodenough commented, “When you do any kind of research, you know Curt is still around. You start looking into things at the library that he researched first.” Bruce replied, “I had access to Dad’s email for awhile, and there were many people he was doing research for.”

Curt was President of the board when they obtained the current building, through the hard work of Ruth Mitick. Morrison’s Heritage Museum is listed on the National Register of Historic Buildings.

Wayne Brooks, Erie, IL, a 50-plus year member of the Boy Scouts of America, asked to make a presentation to Bruce. Brooks acknowledged Curt Gronner as the Blackhawk Area Council’s longest standing member, with a membership than spanned over 83 years!

Curt and Wayne first met in 1972. They would meet in Dr. Gronner’s office and often discuss Scouting over/across a patient while Curt worked. Some of the patients included Bill Shirk and Dr. Tomasino, who were both recruited into Scouting. Curt and three others were instrumental in establishing the Blackhawk Area Heritage Society Trust Fund.

Curt was previously honored as a Distinguished Eagle Scout. He was only 1 of 6 men with 83 years of service. In the United States today there are only 1553 Distinguished Eagle Scouts. This is not an honor you receive for service to Scouting alone: you must be an Eagle Scout for 25 years; you have to be nominated; you must give back to the Country. Other Distinguished Eagle Scouts include the late President Gerald Ford, Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, and former Secretary of State Colin Powell.

Brooks then presented Gronner with a lapel pin recognizing the First Chief Scout Executive of the Boy Scouts of America, James E. West; a certificate; a replica of the 1st Boy Scout Handbook (1910) engraved in gold with Curt’s name. On behalf of his father, Bruce presented a check in the amount of $26,552.66 to Brooks for the Blackhawk Area Heritage Society Trust Fund.

Jack Ottosen said it best, “[Curt] may not be with us physically, but his memory lingers on.” So does his love of Morrison and his generous nature.

by Dawn Zuidema, theCity1.com
December 31, 2008