'The Grandpas' Come with Cards to Castle Elementary School Class

Don Novak and John Henke are affectionately know as "The Grandpas" by the scores of kids they've helped learn cribbage over the past six years. 

An annual mainstay in the classroom of third-grade teacher Barb Ives, cribbage classes begin once a week just after Christmas break and culminate with a championship tournament the day before Spring Break. 

As far as Ives is concerned, the Grandpas provide much more than just a break from the rigors of third grade. 

"Cribbage gives the kids a way to connect with their grandparents," Ives said. "Parents have told me that cribbage in their household has become a fun, social opportunity that pulls kids away from (computer and television) screens."

While Novak and Henke clearly enjoy being around the kids, they too admit to an ulterior motive rooted in academics.

"(The games) are about teaching the kids the math of the game," Novak said. "They have so much fun, they don't even realize they're learning math."

According to Ives, the students don't forget the grandpas once they move on.

"Every year when John and Don show up to teach another group of kids, the older ones come out of the woodwork to see them again," she said.

For the men whose friendship began at the 1958 Harding High School prom and who were neighbors for 57 years, the joy of the game is second only to the joy of volunteering with the children.  

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