Shirley Frances Krogmeier

Shirley Frances Krogmeier was born to Alois S Krogmeier and Elva Pearl Greene on November 21, 1932 at Fort Madison, Iowa.   She passed away July 13, 2022 at Sedgwick County Nursing Home in Julesburg, after a two year fight with cancer and a fall which broke her back. Her injury prevented her from the use of her lower body.

  Shirley attended Sacred Heart Catholic School in Fort Madison for the first 8 years of her education.  When the family moved to Holyoke Colorado on August 26, 1946 she attended her high school years at Phillips County High School graduating with Salutatorian honors in 1950. After high school attended college at the University of Colorado graduating in 1954 with degrees in English language and literature and German. After college she taught at the Amherst school and Aspen, Colo.  for a time.

Received Master’s degrees in German and Education in 1968, University of Minnesota at Minneapolis, Passed  preliminary exam for a Ph. D in German and Education, 1981 at University of Minneapolis, completed work for ESL (English as a Second Language) License Summer of 1981,Hamline University, St. Paul, Minnesota.

In 1956 she and her friend traveled abroad for a year when the friend decided to come home. Shirley stayed in Germany and while there she started her efforts to locate the Krogmeier relatives.

Her professional experience continued through the years .1954 to 2004.  She tutored high school students in ESL, English Speech, General Math, Biology and Social Studies since retirement.  Taught ESL at Edison Senior High School.  In addition, she led training sessions for ESL teachers on techniques for teaching ESL, especially how to adapt Profile of Learning high standard packages for use with ESL students.  Served as cooperating teacher for Hamline University and the University of Minnesota ESL education programs. 

Spent four years in Thailand training Thai speakers at a refugee camp in ESL methods.  Coordinated two Federal ESL /bilingual grants, conducting training and career counseling sessions as a major part of her duties.  She served as assistant director and director of the Minneapolis Public School System and South Dakota summer language camps again training teachers as part of her assignment.  Trained ESL and bilingual teachers at Phanat Nikhom Refugee Processing Center inThailand and wrote curriculum for ESL and German instruction.  Taught elementary school grades 4 – 8, in Colorado and U.S. Army Dependent Schools, Rochefort, France. Taught German and English at Phillips Junior High School, grades 7 – 8.  Taught high school freshman English in Minneapolis, high school and college undergraduate German in Minneapolis and English as a Foreign Language in Germany.  After returning home to Colorado she continued teaching.  She would substitute teach in Holyoke when ever needed and taught GED until the program transferred to Sterling.

After moving to Holyoke she was very active in the Holyoke Art’s Council and when she was asked, and if she was able she would help wherever the need.  Education was very important to her.

She is preceded in death by her parents and Brothers Tom and Gene, Vince , Joseph and Phillip Krogmeier and Sister Betty Kafka.  Shirley is survived by Brother Bill Krogmeier and Sister Dolores Haskell and many nieces and nephews.

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