Walter “Walt” Valentine, Linfield Class of 1972, speaks during a Wildcatville video recorded June 4, 2017, in Omaha, Nebraska, where he lives and works. His message relates to BWC activities during Linfield Homecoming 2017 on Sept. 29-30, 2017, in McMinnville.
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Walter
“Walt” Valentine, Linfield Class of 1972, and his wife, Linda Murray Valentine, Class of 1974, are public school teachers
in Omaha, Nebraska, where they live. He teaches math and she is a kindergarten
teacher.
Walt grew
up in Arthur, Nebraska. He transferred to Linfield after earning an Associate
of Arts degree from McCook (Nebraska) Junior College in 1970.
Linda is
from Woodland, Calif., entering as a freshman in 1970. She studied at Linfield
and graduated from the University of Nebraska at Kearney.
At
Linfield, Walt was editor 1971-1972 of Linews
student newspaper, and president 1970-1971 of the Linfield Christian
Student Union. Linda’s student activities at Linfield included the Christian
Student Union and tennis.
Walt and
Linda married in 1972. They served together in Peace Corps Honduras from 1973
to 1976. They have five children. Oldest son, Domingo, was adopted from
Honduras. Second son, Brandon, served in Peace Corps Jamaica from 1999-2002. He
also served in Peace Corps Panama from 2006-2009. He stayed in Panama training
new volunteers until his death in 2013. His widow/their daughter-in-law and
children/their grandchildren live with Walt and Linda in Omaha. Third son,
Dagen, served in Peace Corps in Armenia from 2008-2011. He met his wife in
Armenia. Fourth, daughter, Shay, graduated from the University of Nebraska in
Lincoln last spring with a degree in Civil Engineering. Youngest child, son
Whit, has one year remaining at the Air Force Academy.
Walt and
Linda Valentine spent more than 20 years teaching, coaching and counseling at
schools on or near Indian reservations:
·
Winnebago
Public School, Winnebago, Nebraska
·
Crow
Creek Tribal School, Stephan, South Dakota
·
St.
Francis Indian School, St. Francis, South Dakota
·
Gallup
Public School, Gallup, New Mexico
·
Todd
County High School, Mission South Dakota
· St. Francis Indian School, St. Francis, South Dakota
· Santee Community School Santee, Nebraska
· St. Francis Indian School, St. Francis, South Dakota
· Santee Community School Santee, Nebraska
Walt has
written two books:
LITTLE
OWLS: A TEA BIG THUNDER ADVENTURE,
published
in 2016.--Little Owls is a great adventure story. Twelve-year-old orphan and warrior, Tea Little Thunder, rescues owls, schoolmates, a crazy Vietnam era veteran, and herself with the help of her great-grandfather and the spirits of her mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. Walt wrote this book because, “Native American girls need heroes."
85 DAYS IN
CUBA: A TRUE STORY ABOUT FRIENDSHIP AND STRUGGLE,
published
in 2006--Although this book is by Brandon Valentine, Walt and Linda’s son, the reality is that it by Brandon as told to Walt. After finishing three years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Jamaica, Brandon went to Cuba to visit his best friend and to learn Spanish. In this memoir Brandon tells how he struggled to find a Spanish class while enjoying Cuban hospitality and culture.
