Connected Forever to Central

The extended family of Orville ’33 and Ermina Dunn Dykstra ’35 visited campus May 3, 2021.

The connections at Central College run deep for the family of Orville ’33 and Ermina Dunn Dykstra ’35.

So when 10 members of the extended family — children, grandchildren and cousins — visited campus in May 2021, they did their best to take it all in.

“This is where Mom and Dad met,” says Judy McCubbin, one of the couple’s two daughters. “They talked about it a lot.”

McCubbin, nor any of the 10 visiting from around country, attended Central. Still, they certainly feel a part of the Central community.

Ermina and Orville gave nearly $2.2 million to Central over their lifetimes, supporting student scholarships and the Roe Center. Education was their passion, their daughter says, so helping finance the building in which the education department is housed certainly made sense.

Together, the couple donated more than $1 million in May 2000 to endow the Ermina and Orville Dykstra Scholarship. This year, 23 scholarships in their name were awarded to students, and a total of 113 students have received the award since it started.

The scholarship provides financial assistance to deserving students, taking into consideration academics, need and interest.

The Dyskstras’ daughters, Judy McCubbin and Linda Johnson, brought along on their visit the thank-you letters received from those 23 students. They shared them with their family who also visited campus.

“I think it just blew their minds thinking about the number of students they have impacted,” Linda says. “We passed around those thank-you letters because we wanted everyone to get a feel for the students and where they come from and what they’re interested in.

“You read their praise for Central and what it means to them. They’re happy and like it here. It makes you feel good about helping them.”

Ermina’s grandfather was Lewis A. Dunn, who served two terms as Central president, from 1871-81 and 1886-88. A house on campus, located where Lubbers Center for Visual Arts is now, was named Dunn Cottage.

The cottage was named for Ermina’s father, John Dunn, by his father-in-law, Deacon Chandler Jordan. It was home to the college’s president until 1948. Jordan also provided the naming gift for Jordan Hall, the oldest building on campus. Jordan’s daughter, Josie, was John Dunn’s first wife.

“I don’t think our younger generations knew how extensive (the connections) are,” Judy says. “This school was very important to them.”

Orville Dykstra earned a degree in sociology from Central and a law degree from the University of Iowa. He was a deacon at Central Presbyterian in Des Moines, where he was a lawyer, before moving to California to work for Utah Construction and Mining Company. Orville was a Central trustee from 1956-57 and again in 1965-70. He died Dec. 4, 2000.

Ermina Dykstra taught school for one year in Derby, Iowa, and spent her time as a homemaker. She died in 2020 at age 106.

During the family’s time growing up in Des Moines, McCubbin, Johnson and their brother, David, spent a lot of time in Pella. David died in 2018.

“I think (our parents) would be proud,” Linda says. “Central was a good place for them.”

You can create your own legacy at Central College and support generations of students with a gift in your estate plan. Contact Deb Calderwood at 641-628-5138 or calderwoodd@central.edu to get started.