bio

Article Hi! I’d like to take this opportunity to tell you a little bit about myself. My full name is Kathleen Hendryx-Peterka. I grew up in rural Iowa, but have lived in Minnesota for the last 28 years. My husband and I operated Charlie’s Pizza for MANY years. Before moving to Minnesota I did quite a bit of traveling in the United States and Northeastern Canada. I landed and worked for brief periods in Utah, South Carolina, and (my favorite!!) New Orleans. My most memorable adventure was a six week van trip around South Africa. Apartheid was still in place, Nelson Mandela was in prison, and the Soweto riots were only a recent memory. That trip is an important point of reference in my life. On my 40th birthday I decided that if I was ever going to go to college I had better get to it. I am proud to be the first in my family to earn a college degree. This is my 9th year as a fourth grade teacher at Mary of Lourdes. It suits me fine. I have two beautiful daughters. Bailey attends college at St. Ben’s and is majoring in Nutrition. Donna attends St. Cloud State and is majoring in Rhetorical English and Humanities. We have 3 sweet, crazy, dogs- all shelter rescues of assorted shapes and sizes. I am not really a “hobbies” person, but I like reading and biking, I practice a little T’ai Chi and Hatha Yoga. They keep me healthy and calm, and they help me learn. In the future I hope to take up gardening and perhaps do more traveling.