The Lisbon Alumni Association held their induction ceremony for the Lisbon Hall of Fame ahead of the homecoming game Friday, Sept. 30.
Inducted for the Service Award was Bob Caspers, class of 1964.
Caspers joined the US Marine Corp after graduating in 1964. He served in Vietnam during the 1968 TET offensive. He was there a combined 15 months. He has been a member of the Lisbon American Legion Cyclops Post 109 for 40 years. He proudly flies three flags by his driveway just down the road from the Lisbon Schools, the USA flag, the POW flag, and the US Marines flag. Locally, Caspers served on the Lisbon Fire Department for more than 20 years including several years as captain. After completion of the original football field in the early 1970s, Caspers was part of the chain gang for approximately 15 years.
Caspers is married to Helen (Sievers). Together they have raised all their children in Lisbon, all alumni as well.
Bob and Helen also donated funds for the current Walmer Football Field scoreboard.
Inducted for the Fine Arts award was Diane Marri Opatz-Muni, class of 1974.
Praised for her “silky tone” and “strikingly beautiful voice”, mezzo-soprano and master teacher, Mari Opatz-Muni, has enjoyed a rich and varied career in opera, concert and teaching. During her singing career, Opatz-Muni won many prestigious awards, including being in the original cast of Nixon in China, which won an Emmy, Grammy, and Best Recording of the Year. She was also a semi-finalist in the Metropolitan Opera Auditions in both her home state of Iowa, and in New York City, where she lived for eight years. She sang leading roles, solo recitals and concerts throughout the United States and in Europe, specializing in pants/trousers roles. She made her debut in the United States and in Europe signing the role of Hansel, more than 75 times singing.
In her 25-year teaching career, Mari was in a dual tenured position, teaching voice and producing opera at Miami University. Her undergraduate, graduate and professional singing students won roles, scholarships, and competitions during their study with her. She also was the director of the award-winning Miami Opera Program for 12 years, which won several National Opera Association Best Collegiate Opera awards. For the past nine years, she was the chair of the voice area.
Opatz-Muni recently retired from full-time teaching at Miami University and has moved to Bradenton, Fla., where she continues to travel, adjudicating several national voice competitions. She has also opened a private voice studio.
Inductees for the Achievement award were Kent Allison and the late Roger Teeling.
Teeling holds a special place in the hearts of the students and staff at Lisbon School. He grew up in Sumner and graduated from Sumner High School. He went on to Loras College where he played golf and basketball, even breaking the Loras all-time free-throw record.
Teeling taught in Ventura and Denver before accepting an administrator position at Calamus-Wheatland Schools. In 2004, he became a Lisbon Lion when he was offered the elementary and middle school principal position following Dr. George Karam’s retirement.
While Teeling was principal, he spearheaded the implementation of the Positive Behaviors Intervention and Supports program (“PBIS”), in the Elementary. During their quarterly school celebration assemblies, Teeling was often a highlight, including the time he was duct taped to the wall. As an incentive for improving student test scores, he did memorable acts like shaving and dyeing his beard, dressing ridiculously and he even slept on the roof of the school overnight. Teeling truly cared about all of his students and lovingly referred to them as “his kiddos.”
One of Teeling’s greatest accomplishments while at Lisbon was the forming of lifelong relationships with staff and students. He thought of his staff as family and cared for them and their families. He rejoiced with them in times of happiness and cried with them in times of sorrow. Teeling touched many, many lives while at Lisbon Schools during his tenure, and he will not easily be forgotten.
The Lisbon community continues to honor Teeling’s memory with the Annual Teeling Walk-A-Thon. The funds raised from the Walk-A-Thon were used to build a custom basketball court for Lisbon students to enjoy.
Allison taught junior high and high school science from 1993 to 2019. He also coached varsity football from 1999 to 2016. Lisbon went 150-42 during that time, with eight District Championships and qualifying for the state playoffs 15 times, including the State Class A Champions in 2011. Thirty-five athletes received all state recognition during his coaching tenure.
Inductee for the Community Impact Award was Lavonne Bova, class of 1945.
Bova has made volunteer work a major part of her life for more than 60 years. She has volunteered for Lung and Cancer Association Drives. She has been on the Lisbon-Mt. Vernon Ambulance Board, the Lisbon City Council, and served as a poll watcher for many years. Her work as a volunteer for the Lisbon History Center is unrivaled. She still shows up there two times a week. She has been honored twice by the Governor of Iowa for her work; once in 2010 and again in 2021.
Inductees for the Athletics Award were Alexina “Alex” Wilson Tuebel, class of 2011, and Jeremiah “JJ” Butteris, class of 2000.
Tuebel had an outstanding running career while attending Lisbon High School and was part of the Mount Vernon/Lisbon Class 3A Girls cross country and track teams. Some of her many accomplishments include competing in the Class 3A state cross country meet all four years with placements from 19th to eighth overall, competing in the Class 3A state track meet all four years, where she had first place finishes in several events, including 4×400 and 4×800 relay teams. She also competed at the Drake Relays her junior year, where she placed fourth in the open 800 and second in the 4 x 400 and 4 x 800 relay.
Tuebel also ran with the University of Northern Iowa. She still holds the school record for the best cross country time, as well as nine school records in indoor and outdoor track. Tuebel graduated in 2016 with a major in criminology and sociology. She is currently UNI’s assistant track coach, and this year was named head coach of the UNI Cross Country team.
She also continues to run professionally. She has competed in two Olympic Trials, finishing 12th in the country in 2021 in the steeplechase.
Butteris was an outstanding four sport athlete. He was a four-time All-Conference and All-District team member for baseball, was a single season home run leader, and was a two-time first team All-State player. In football, he was named three times to the All-District team and an honorable mention to the All-State team. In wrestling, he had a career record of 134-12, with 97 pins. He was a three-time state meet finalist and two-time state champion. He also qualified for the state track meet, was a two-time KCRG “Athlete of the Week” and finished third in the Cedar Rapids Gazette’s “Athlete of the Year” finals his senior year.