Alexander Ramsey, Roseville, MN class of 1979

Monday September 1, 2025
🍂 Welcome September, Rams! 🍂
We hope that everyone enjoyed an awesome August and a wonderful summer of 2025! As we turn the calendar to September, we’re excited to welcome in a brand-new month filled with opportunities to connect, celebrate, and share time together. There’s no better way to kick off fall than with your fellow classmates from the Ramsey Class of ’79!
One of the highlights this month is our Class of ’79 Pizza Party 🎉🍕. It’s a perfect chance to gather, catch up, and enjoy some fun. Be sure to head over to the Events/Activities page for all the details — we’d love to see as many of you there as possible!
As always, we’re on the lookout for fun ideas from you, our classmates. Whether it’s a casual get-together, a creative event, or something brand new, your input is what makes our activities special. Plus, we’ve made updates across several pages of the website, so take a little time to explore and see what’s new. You never know what you might discover!
Most importantly, thank you, Class of ’79 Alumni, for your continued participation. Your involvement is what helps keep our bonds strong, and with even more of your support, we can make this community an even greater source of connection and enjoyment for everyone.
Here’s to a fun, healthy, safe, and enjoyable September — let’s make it another month to remember, Rams! 🐏💙
Attention Rams......
Help Make the Ramsey Class of ’79 Website Even Better!
Dear Ramsey Class of 1979,
Well, it's that time again. We've made some updates to our class website—be sure to check them out! Pay special attention to the Missing Classmates, Birthday, and Events and the Memorial pages for the latest information.
I want to personally invite each of you to contribute in any way you can to our class website. Whether it’s sharing photos, personal stories, upcoming anniversaries, sales, event updates, retirements or just fun memories from our school days, your input will help make the site more engaging, meaningful, and enjoyable for all of us. This is more than just a webpage—it’s a living space where we can stay connected, reminisce, and celebrate the friendships that have lasted over the years.
While I truly enjoy maintaining the site, I realize that it’s not just my project—it belongs to all of us. The best way to keep it fresh and exciting is by having a variety of voices, stories, and ideas from our amazing classmates. Your memories and perspectives are what make our class special, and they deserve to be shared!
So please, if you have a funny story, an old class photo, an update on your life, or even ideas for new features, send them in! This site is a reflection of our incredible class, and the more we all take part, the better it becomes. I can’t wait to see what you bring to the table!
We truly appreciate your continued visits to our site, as well as your engagement on our Facebook and LinkedIn class pages. Your participation helps keep our class community connected and thriving!
Stay tuned for more updates, and let’s keep the spirit of ’79 alive! So from Sheila Johnson Youngquist, Mary Falkowski Conway, Bob Kaye, Don Sazma, Chuck Bufton, Lori-Anne William, Dianne Wilson Carlson, (keeping behind the screen Nancy Olsen Reed) and myself, stay in touch, and have a great day, Rams.
If you’d like to contribute, join or contact the reunion committee feel free to text Randy Reed at 651-238-6785 or at email Randsr16@comcast.net
Looking Ahead: Our Goals for the Future
As we continue building momentum and excitement within the Alexander Ramsey Class of 1979 community, the Reunion Committee is proud to share a list of some of our short-term and long-term goals — all designed to keep us connected, informed, and ready for an unforgettable 50th Reunion in 2029!
Short-Term Goals (Next Few Months):
Long-Term Goals (Next Few Years):
Every bit of support and participation helps us move closer to these goals, and we’re excited about what’s ahead. Thank you for being a part of the journey — the best is still to come!
Mr. Duane "Dewey" Nelson was a mathmatics teacher and coach at Alexander Ramsey for 31 years. Mr. Nelson was born in Pipestone, Minnesota, and grew up in Mankato. Similiar to a number of other teachers at Ramsey, he was a World War ll veteren, having served in the U.S. Navy. After his service Mr. Nelson went to school and obtained a masters degree in Mathmatics from Mankato State University. During his run at M.S.U. Duane participated in both basketball and tennis, and was later inducted into Mankato State's Hall of Fame in both sports.
After Graduation Duane began his fifty-one year teaching career as an educator as an educator in Staples, MN. and then after that he began his thirty-one years of teaching at Ramsey. As well as teaching mathematics to many of us Rams he also coach many of us in football, basketball & tennis. Duane retired from teaching us at Ramsey but he continued teaching young minds. First at Macalester College for three years, and then at the University of Minnesota for another fifteen years. "Dewey" was married (Ardyce) and had a son (Douglas), daughter (Laurie), sister (Marcia Lacore), and eight grandchildren and twenty great-grandchildren.
"Dewey" was a gifted storyteller, and was known for telling stories about the people he met and places he had gone
Mr. Nelson passed away in February 22, of 2022.
Used with permission from Craig Klausing (Administrator) Alexander Ramsey High School 1953 - 1986 Facebook Group
From the Ramsey Class of ’79 Reunion Committee
Our reunion committee is proud of the strong history of classmates who have stepped up over the years to help keep our class connected. While we already have a solid list of past committee members — and we’re excited to share that a few new names have been added since last month — we know there are still some we may be missing. We would love your help in identifying all the individuals who served on past committees, so that we can properly acknowledge their hard work, dedication, and the important role they played in bringing us together through the years.
If you are a former committee member, or if you have knowledge of classmates who participated in the past, please reach out and share that information with us. Your input will help us preserve and celebrate the efforts of those who have contributed so much to the Ramsey Class of ’79.
In addition, we are kindly asking for photos from past reunions — especially from the 5th through 25th. These pictures are treasured memories and would be a wonderful addition to our website, allowing classmates to look back and relive the fun moments we’ve shared. If you have photos tucked away, please consider sending them in so we can share them with everyone.
Thank you, Class of ’79, for your continued support and contributions. Your participation is what makes this website a richer, more enjoyable space for all of us to stay connected and celebrate the bond we share.
FORMER MEMBERS
Committee Members 1984 05 year
Committee Members 1989 10 years
Diane Lecuyer Snuggerud
Sue Jungbauer Cunningham
Dianne Wilson Carlson
Committee Members 1994 15 years
Diane Lecuyer Snuggerud
Sue Jungbauer Cunningham
Dianne Wilson Carlson
Committee Members 1999 20 years
Margo Denman Martin
Becky Street
Lori Rajacich Purdham
Kathleen McGough Patri
Laurie Boche
Barb Thompson KirkPatrick
Mary Jean McGough Sargent
Shelley Boege Koren
Lori Anne Williams
Jacque Beavens
Committee Members 2004 25 years
Shelly Boege Koren
Margo Denman Martin
Lori Rajacich Purdham
Kathleen McGough Patri
Mary Jean McGough Sargent
Kim Nelson Beecham
Laurie Boche
Rick Feidt
Committee Members 2009 30 years
Jeff Lutz
Mary Falkowski Conway
Julie Kruse Ledvina
Nancy Schmedeke Petrun
Sheila Johnson Youngquist
Mary Koppy Nicklay
Larry Meissner
Paula McCarthy Aherns
Rhonda Battisto
Kathleen McGough Patri
Becky Street
Rick Feidt
Dianee Wilson Carlson
Committee Members 2014 35 years
Jeff Lutz
Mary Falkowski Conway
Julie Kruse
Nancy Schmedeke Petrun
Sheila Johnson Youngquist
Mary Koppy Nicklay
Randy Reed
Committee Members 2019 40 years
Mary Koppy Nicklay
Sheila Johnson Youngquist
Mary Falkowski Conway
Julie Kruse
Nancy Schmedeke
Bob Kaye
Randy Reed
Nancy Olsen Reed
Committee Members 2024 45 years
Sheila Johnson Youngquist
Mary Koppy Nicklay
Mary Falkowski Conway
Bob Kaye
Chuck Bufton
Don Sazma
Randy Reed
Nancy Olsen Reed (behind the scene)
Committee Members 2029 50 years
Mary Koppy Nicklay
Sheila Johnson Youngquist
Mary Falkowski Conway
Bob Kaye
Chuck Bufton
Don Sazma
Diane Wilson Carlson
Randy Reed
Nancy OLsen Reed (behind the scene)
434 Karen Way, Unit F, Woodbury, Minnesota 55129, United States
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