Dalton couple had chemistry from the very start

If you drive down Church Road near Dalton, you may notice Hochstetler Orchards — several hundred fruit trees offering a stark contrast to the open fields.

In the late summer, if your windows are down, you may get the comforting scent of ripe apples and peaches at the orchard, managed by Marion and Carol Hochstetler, both retired from teaching science at Dalton Local Schools.

“Retirement hasn’t been much ‘retirement’ in the traditional sense,” Carol Hochstetler said.

In 2006 Carol Hochstetler retired to help take care of the Hochstetlers’ first grandchild. Their son is in the medical field, and their daughter actually teaches many of the same classes at Norwayne that Carol taught when she started her teaching career in 1974. “I couldn’t be prouder to pass on that legacy,” she said.

Carol Hochstetler keeps busy taking care of the orchard and working with plants in their greenhouse. Other activities she enjoys are using her embroidery machine, sewing, reading and keeping up with the grandkids. At their church she plays in the hand bell choir and is in charge of a blanket ministry.

Marion Hochstetler retired from teaching at the end of the 2007 school year. After that, he was a substitute bus driver. In 2008 he started driving Dalton’s blue school transportation van. “Me and my little friends have a ball singing songs and hopefully not crying,” he said. “Each has their own special need, and I try to make their day better and more enjoyable,” he said.

Recently, Marion Hochstetler completed his 368th blood donation to the Red Cross to reach the 46-gallon mark.

The couple met in chemistry class at the Stark County branch of Kent State University. “Marion claims now that he was ‘just a shy farm boy’ when we met,” Carol Hochstetler said.

But it turns out their chemistry matched, and after both graduated with science teaching degrees in 1972, they were married.

Marion Hochstetler graduated on March 18, 1972, and 10 days later he started teaching seventh- and eighth-grade science at Dalton Junior High. He taught his entire career at Dalton Local Schools, teaching various science classes.

“The only constant I had was teaching eighth-grade earth and space science. But I always felt that the outdoor education setting was my true calling,” he said.

He went on to be involved in outdoor education programs that included other Wayne County schools for over 30 years.

Carol Hochstetler substitute taught in Wayne County and was hired to teach science classes at Norwayne in summer 1974. She remained there for four years until their son was born. At the end of the school year in spring 1979, she took a tutoring position at Dalton High School. It became a full-time job, and she taught general science and then biology. She earned a masters degree with an emphasis on technology and added computer classes to her repertoire.

Over the years Marion Hochstetler helped construct different buildings at the school including the football concession stand, bleachers, storage buildings, dugouts and the high school auditorium. In fact, their family donated over 5,000 hours to help complete the auditorium.

“It was great to see people of all ages working side by side to bring to fruition a structure that was all funded by donated time and resources,” he said.

Meanwhile, in the classroom, “I had the privilege of being in the presence of some very great minds and also those who struggled, but there has been so much satisfaction in seeing the students in their aha moments as they grasped a difficult concept and the light bulb came on,” Carol Hochstetler said.

Many of their memories with students came from doing activities outside the classroom. But the memory that stands out to Marion Hochstetler the most is eating lunch every day with the students. “It always touched me to be able to talk with the students and occasionally, when asked, to give a hug to a student who was having a rough day,” he said.

Some former students call him Marion, others, Mr. Hochstetler or simply “Ho Ho.”

“I no longer have students; I have friends,”
he said.

Their former students are always welcome. “The orchard door is always open so stop in and visit,” Carol Hochstetler said.