Gerhard Gary Besel

Flag Day has always been a special day for Gerhard "Gary" Besel of Bella Vista.

He was married on June 14, 1953.He has served as a choir director for 51 years.

Flag Day this year is a "biggie" for him.Saturday he will celebrate his 50th wedding anniversary, and will also retire from his position as choir director of Bella Vista Lutheran Church where he has served the last 10 years of his music career.

On Sunday, June 15, he will direct his farewell concert at the 8:30 a.m. service, and it will be a patriotic cantata with flags, horns, five Besel children and nine grandchildren in attendance.A reception will follow in the parish hall.

He received his teaching degree from Concordia Teachers College in River Forest, Ill., in 1951.His minor was in music.

He wore a variety of hats in 51 years, 20 years in parochial schools and 20 years in public schools in Minnesota.The last 10 years he has been choir director here.

He was a teacher, principal, choir director, youth counselor for the Walter League, an athletic coach, led the church youth group and was a summer camp coordinator.He was an effective role model, and made many friends among the youth and adults.

His first assignment was teaching in a one-room school in Huchinson, Minn.He was involved a bit in drama coaching with the young people, who produced a three-act play every year.

Gary likes to talk about young people and his experiences in the field of education.

"I made a search for clues to determine what factors increase the chances a student may be successful in the classroom," he said."For my thesis for my master's degree from Mankato State University in Minnesota, I made a three-year study comparing the students' school achievements with their listening skills.

"The study indicated that there is a statistical correlation.In other words, students who listen carefully and pay attention to their teachers' directions and remarks, and to classroom discussions of the assignments, generally do better on achievement tests, on classroom assignments, and are assigned higher grades by their teachers.

Besel said there are many exciting facets related to what happens in a classroom.

"In the years when there was much debate about the validity of intelligence testing in the schools, I devised a pilot study in the classroom relating to the many and varied facets that make up human intelligence," he said.
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The years have provided a rich and joyful experience to work with fellow musicians that have the love of God as their motivation, for Besel.