Cal Schwandt…I retired from Osco Drug in September 2001 after 30 years of service. Darleen and I moved 12 times during the 30 years and ended up retiring in Des Moines, Iowa where I was a District Manager.
It is hard to believe it is going to be 20 years since I retired. We have lived in Des Moines area since July 1997. Our son Andrew and his wife Kelly, live in Prior Lake, MN along with their 6 children. Grand children are a real blessing, and it is fun to watch them grow and change. Our daughter, Kimberly lives in Denver and we always enjoy visiting her in Colorado. After retiring from Osco, I worked as an Outpatient Pharmacist for Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines. Mercy Medical Center is the largest hospital in the Des Moines area. I worked in 3 different locations at the beginning and then was asked to work as a full-time staff Pharmacist at the Ankeny location. I enjoyed the challenges of working in the hospital environment and the relationships with the hospital staff and patients. I worked for 15 years for Mercy and retired in November 2019. I am very thankful for the opportunities I had at Osco and the relationships with so many great people. I have great memories from having worked with so many talented people. I have also been involved in some other things over the last 20 years which I will highlight: *Served on an Advisory Board for a new Pharmacy School at Cedarville University. I was one of 25 people on the board which met twice a year to make suggestions for the new Pharmacy School. I represented the Outpatient Pharmacy area on the board. We had individuals from a Medical School, Nursing School, other Pharmacy School staff, as well as Pharmacists representing retail, Pharmaceutical companies, and other clinical areas of Pharmacy. Interesting to see the work that has to go into a new Pharmacy School. I served on the board for 6 years. *Darleen’s 98-year-old mother came to live with us and passed away after 2 &1/2 years at age 100. We felt truly fortunate that she was in good health almost to the time that she passed away. *Our daughter, Kim worked as a producer for Fox News at the White House. She was invited to the White House Christmas party each year and could invite one guest. I attended in December of 2013 and Darleen attended in 2014. It is the only time during the year that many rooms at the White House are open to look in each room. Also, as you can imagine, the food was excellent. Both Darleen and I tested positive for Covid 19 on January 16, 2021. Darleen had mild symptoms with fatigue, low energy, and no taste or smell. I was not so fortunate. I went to the VA Hospital emergency room and was diagnosed with Covid pneumonia and was admitted to the hospital. I ended up having to stay in the hospital for 10 days. I was given oxygen, steroids, anti-virals and convalescent plasma antibodies during my stay. I was released to go home on January 25th and had to report my vitals every day for the next 4 weeks via Telehealth to a Covid nurse. I am feeling much better now and looking forward to golf, working in the yard and riding my bike. Stay safe and Healthy!