Discovering The Mature Lifestyle
Medtronic ‘garage gang’ was a good career beginning for Fridley man. Page 3
Careers
September 16, 2016
September Issue
Farmington woman forges a new path after job loss BY SUE WEBBER CONTRIBUTING WRITER Lois L otze had w orked f or F rontier C ommunications for 30 y ears, when her en tire department was do wnsized in 2009. “The economy was in the tank,” she said. “When you’re in your 50s or 60s, no one wants to hire you. I was eternally grateful my house was paid for. I’m Scotch-Irish. I can operate on a shoestring with knots. I can stash cash.” She knew she wasn’t ready to spend her days watching TV, Lotze said. “You’ve got to have something to do,” she said. So she reinvented herself. “I was t old they needed hel p in t he schools,” she s aid. Since then, Lotze has worked as a substitute aide in every school in Farmington, serving 3-year-olds to students who are 18. “I’ve subb ed f or s ecretaries, in t he lib rary a nd in t he kitchen,” she said. “You name it, I’ve done it, short of custodial work.” She r eceives a co mputerized call a t 5:30 a.m. e ach school day, informing her where she is needed that day. “I’m grateful I have no medical issues,” she said. “I’m so blessed. I’m upright and mobile.” Lotze was b orn in W ashington, D .C., a nd o riginally wanted t o b e a flight at tendant. The f act t hat she wo re glasses ruled that out, however. She spent her school years in Minneapolis and returned to classes in clerical studies at Metropolitan State University at the age of 30, planning to be a secretary. “I’ve always liked typing, and I t ook those kinds o f courses,” she s aid. “That’s pretty much what I have done.” At F rontier, she w orked as a n administ rative assistant, c lerk a nd st enographer in different depa rtments. “I got an overall idea of the whole operation,” Lotze said. “I hate math, but God has a sense of humor. I had to balance numbers, too. “What I ’m do ing no w is a co mplete 180 f rom w hat I used to do.” She has w orked wi th y oungsters in w heelchairs, a nd
Lois Lotze, a self-described “costume person, ” wore an authentic outfi t for a Back to the ‘50s party a t Trinity Care Center. (Submitted photo) those in sp ecial ed ucation c lasses. S he’s b een in S panish and calculus classes, too. “I can still sit criss-cross applesauce,” she said. “People think I’m crazy, but I think it’s fun. To me, age is just a number.” The first time she w orked in t he ki tchen a t t he hig h school, L otze was t old t hey s erve 700 st udents in s even minutes. “Those kids only have so much time to eat,” she
said. “It’s like t he Burnsville C enter food court. If you’ve got that hot ticket item of the day, look out!” In addition to her work in the schools, Lotze also volunteers at Trinity Care Center. And she does water exercises at the Farmington pool and at the Rambling River Center. She’s als o b een a r egular tic ket t aker a t t he D akota County Fair since 2009. L ast year, she s erved a four-hour shift on one gate, and then worked the grandstand in t he evenings. “We used to have themes at the fair, like Western Day, Military Day or Red, White and Blue Day,” she said. Lotze was a n en thusiastic pa rticipant. “ I’m a cost ume p erson,” she said. “I have buckets of costumes.” She’s als o a mem ber o f t he A g S ociety, w hich ties in with the county fair, Lotze said. “I was part of a task force a couple years ago that wanted to develop a water park in the ‘to be developed’ Jim Bell Park,” Lotze said. “We worked very hard on the project and were shot down by the City Council.” Now she’s part of a F armington task force working on another project for the park, to include a new outdoor pool and five ballfields, not to exceed $10 million. The question will be put to Farmington residents in the general election in November. “The pa rents o f t hose sp orts en thusiastic c hildren would really like to see it happen, as would those of us who use the very old current outdoor pool,” Lotze said. “Lois is one of our many wonderful volunteers we have at t he RR C,” s aid N icole G orman, r ecreation su pervisor at t he R ambling Ri ver C enter. “She has b een v ery ac tive within t he co mmunity, inc luding r epresenting t he R ambling Ri ver C enter a nd t he ci ty’s s enior p opulation b y volunteering t o s erve o n t he A quatic F easibility S tudy and more recently the Recreational Facilities Task Force. She has b een a v ocal leader when it was time t o have the interests of the senior population heard while serving on those tw o co mmittees. S he has als o b een in strumental in t he promotion of t he Farmington Outdoor Pool’s wa-
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