Written by Doug Goodnough
Growing up on a family farm in the southern part of Hillsdale County, Wendell “Wendy” Shiffler, ’65, initially felt like a “foreign” student when he attended Hillsdale College.
He said he wasn’t sure he was going to adapt to the college environment and didn’t think he could even afford to attend.
“I don’t like using the term ‘poor’ because we weren’t poor,” Wendell said of his rural upbringing. “We had everything we needed. We didn’t get everything we wanted.”
However, that farm-life work ethic served him well at Hillsdale, where he ran track and cross country and was able to work on campus to pay for his tuition.
Wendell’s Hillsdale College story began at Camden-Frontier High School, where he was a strong runner. With help from his high school coach and mentor Don Eby, he caught the attention of then-Hillsdale track coach Dr. Leo Phillips.
“I was working at the Hillsdale County Road Commission the summer between high school and college,” Wendell said of what he did immediately after his high school graduation. “I didn’t think I was going to college. But Dr. Phillips came down to the road commission building, and we talked about going to school.”
Once on campus, the biology major was a member of the Delta Sigma Phi fraternity and the Omicron Delta Kappa leadership honorary. He also learned he had another group he could rely on—his track and cross country teammates. In fact, the team ran a special relay “race” out to the Shiffler family farm, where his mother would prepare a large meal for the team. It was then he realized that his two worlds weren’t that different.
“After the relay, I became aware of the fact that I appreciate more and more of what my family had there,” he said.
In fact, when Wendell was working in the College dining hall, his father delivered eggs there once a week.
“That way, I got to see my dad, and I had lunch with him at least once a week,” said Wendell, whose father eventually worked in the College’s maintenance department later in his life. “And my cross-country buddies all came over and ate lunch with my dad.”
After he and his wife, Judy Mendenhall Shiffler, ’66, graduated, they set out on a path to become teachers. After a brief stop in New Mexico, they decided to accept teaching jobs in Fairbanks, Alaska. It was a Hillsdale connection that led the Shifflers to Alaska. Then-Hillsdale education faculty member Dr. James Ryan, who was a former school superintendent in Alaska, recommended the couple for teaching jobs in Fairbanks. Both were soon offered positions: Wendell as a high school biology teacher and Judy teaching elementary students. More than 55 years later, the now-retired teachers are fixtures in their community and continue to contribute to the place they call home.
“We went there in ’68 with the idea that we would stay there for two years,” Wendell said. “We just never left.”
Settling in a small rustic cabin on five acres of land, the Shifflers still live on the property today. They raised twin daughters who both went on to become teachers. Wendell and Judy continue to remain active in the Fairbanks community.
Wendell, an avid outdoorsman, is a longtime member of the Alaska Trappers Association. In fact, he was named the 2021 Trapper of the Year by the ATA, and often speaks to many groups and organizations on the responsible way to trap.
“I’ve talked to a lot of groups about that way of life,” said the 81-year-old. “It’s a lot like farming. We are good stewards of the land. We trap, and our goal is not to kill all the animals. We understand population dynamics, and we’ve been trapping in our area long enough to know how many animals we can take and not hurt the population.
“And we take the carcasses from those animals we don’t eat back out into the wilderness to distribute them so that other animals can process (eat) them. That helps the food chain.”
For many years, he was involved with the Arctic Winter Games, an Olympic-like biennial multi-sport and cultural event that specifically focuses on circumpolar communities from areas like Canada, Alaska, Kalaallit Nunaat, and Northern Scandinavia. Wendell eventually became a member of the committee, which allowed the Shifflers to travel around the world to help with the site selection of the games.
A cancer survivor, Wendell is still actively involved in the local Relay for Life event, and the Shifflers often work with the local Chamber of Commerce to help welcome visitors to Fairbanks.
“When people come to town, and they want to meet somebody, or they want to ask somebody questions, we’ll go have coffee with them and sit down and talk with them about what to do and where to go,” Wendell said.
And that includes anyone from Hillsdale College who may want to visit.
“You should come and visit,” Wendell said. “I’d love to share our interesting Alaskan way of life.”
Doug Goodnough, ’90, is Hillsdale’s director of Alumni Marketing. He enjoys connecting with fellow alumni in new and wonderful ways.
Published in May 2024
