Talk of the Town by Patty Reiman

Reaching the milestone birthday of 95 years is one worth celebrating, of course! When it’s Clark the Crossing Guard, it’s definitely worth a Talk of the Town follow-up to see how Hudson’s favorite traffic assistant enjoyed his very special day.

Clark Rumiser has been a Hudson crossing guard for 52 years, and before that, he was a custodian for Hudson City Schools. He’s always been stationed on North Hayden Parkway; some of that time was at the Rt. 303 intersection, but most of his years have been spent at the intersection of Victoria Parkway.

You may already know that Clark celebrated his 95th trip around the sun on Sept. 17, because his granddaughter, Megan Duhon, posted on Facebook ahead of the big day since, “I know many Hudson residents care for my grandfather a lot.”

Hudson, you did a fantastic job of celebrating Clark – from the first bus that drove by to the last student who crossed his intersection to go home! He had so many gifts and greeting cards that he couldn’t see the top of his dining room table. Numerous school buses passed by his intersection with its passengers singing “Happy Birthday” to Clark.

Honks, hugs and high fives were too numerous to count.

Thanks to coach Leo Doty’s instruction to his team, Clark even had a birthday eve greeting from the Hudson Middle School cross country team members, who ran past him as part of their afterschool practice on the day before his birthday because they had an away meet on Clark’s actual birthday.

Mayor Jeff Anzevino took time out of his day to wish him well and stayed for a while, until Clark had to get back to business and help students cross the street.

“He felt so loved that day,” said Megan. “Our family is so proud of him. Not many 95-year olds can be out doing what he does every day with such happiness and love in his heart.” She said he’s a Korean War veteran and spends much of his time in Hudson, especially at Acme, Johnny’s Diner and Otani.

Two Facebook users agreed to share their message with us. Denise Minerovic wrote to Megan: “Your grandpa is one special man. He helped my children cross safely to school 30 years ago, and they still smile every time his name is mentioned. In fact, it’s known at our house that ‘it’s a half-mile to Clark.’ I see him every morning, I pray for him daily, and I won’t quit trying to convince him to buy a scooter to ride with me!” Tom Tobin said, “He recently told me that he plans to work until he reaches the age of 100. I won’t be surprised if he does. He is a very kind gentleman and a great example for our kids.”

Destination wedding? How about Rwanda? When your adopted Rwandan son meets his bride in their native country as orphans, it’s only natural that the nuptials take place there. So, while it was more of a homecoming than a true “destination wedding,” Mike and Jill Burke celebrated the marriage of their son, Pacifique Niyonzima, to his bride, Raissa Ishimwe, on Sept. 14 in Kigali, Rwanda. The Burke family, which also includes brother Fandira Murinzi, were pleased to welcome about 30 American friends and family members to the wedding, and about one-third of those Americans were from Hudson.

Total guest count? About 600!

“It is common in Rwanda for all the people who have known the bride and groom to attend the wedding,” said Jill. “There is a four-hour traditional ceremony in the morning that starts around 9:30 a.m. at the reception site. Lunch is served, and then the bride and groom, close friends and family go to the Catholic church for a traditional Catholic mass.” The day concludes with a reception celebration.

St. Mary’s Rev. David Chojnacki, who is a close friend of Pacifique, led the nuptial mass together with Rwandan priest, Rev. Jean Bosco Gakirage, who helped raise Pacifique and Fandira when the boys were orphans in Rwanda. One of Pacifique’s orphanage “siblings,” Bebe, introduced the happy couple to each other while they were growing up.

The couple now makes their home in Kigali, which is Rwanda’s capital city. Pacifique works for Kent State University as a recruiter in Sub-Saharan Africa. He leads study abroad trips and manages cooperative learning programs between KSU and the University of Rwanda. He is in the dissertation phase of his doctorate in education from KSU. Raissa recently earned her master’s degree in finance from the University of Rwanda.

“It was a dream come true for our family to have so many of our immediate family and dear friends participate in the wedding,” said Jill. “Rwanda is beautiful and one of the safest and cleanest countries in Africa. We consider it our second home.”

We’re always happy to share news of kids who grew up in Hudson and go on to be adults who do great things here or elsewhere. It’s especially fun to share that news when Hudson’s people and resources played an early part in that success.

Alli St. John recently was appointed casting director at Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis. She had her first taste of theater (and loved it) while at Hudson Middle School and then was active in band and involved in every drama production during her high school years, before graduating in 2010. She’s a member of the 13-year club, having attended Hudson City Schools from kindergarten through 12th grade. She has a Bachelor of Art in acting/directing and Spanish from Baldwin Wallace University and a master’s in theater for youth and community from Arizona State University.

“The most influential piece of my theater education in Hudson was the annual children’s play,” she recalled. “This is where my love for theater for young audiences developed, and it allowed me to be a well-rounded artist. I learned how to communicate across different production teams, which has served me well now as a director and arts administrator.”

Alli and her BW classmate husband, Eric Lucas, moved to the Twin Cities two years ago when she joined CTC as teaching artist and assistant director. He’s from Chesterland and also works for CTC behind the scenes on the run (or technical) crew and does most shows each season.

Alli is a strong advocate for community theater and loves the collaborative work she has done in the past and is doing in her new role. At CTC, she’s working with directors on auditions, casting decisions and actor contracts. She and the stage manager select and guide early-career apprentices through their nine-month program. She’s also part of the programming team to select plays and set goals.

“Not only is [community theater] a space for young artists to find themselves and develop their craft, it’s a space for folks who have taken other career paths to still engage those creative muscles,” she said. Whether it’s Hudson or Minneapolis, she points out how community theater makes the arts more accessible for families and youth, through lower ticket prices, performance variety and close proximity.

If you recognize Alli’s maiden last name, you’ll know her parents – Carl and Catherine St. John – owned and operated Western Reserve School of Cooking until it closed in 2021.

Best wishes in your upcoming productions, Alli!

Kudos as well to Hudson High School 2022 graduate Ali Menendez. Ali was one of  32 Baldwin Wallace basketball players who had the unique opportunity to participate in a faculty-led, 12-day study abroad program in Ireland and Northern Ireland in August. Ali is majoring in dual primary and primary intervention specialist.

Got family coming to Hudson for the holidays? Off for an adventure yourself? As always, please share your news and stories with us by emailing Hudson Life at news@scriptype.com.