One of their teachers, Lois Gugel, recently began contacting the students in hopes of having them return to town this spring. It was during this process that she realized something interesting. But once I started to make calls, I noticed that most of the parents still had the same numbers. It was pretty easy to contact the students. I think that says a lot about this community.
People are pretty grounded.
There's a lot of stability here. Another distinguishing characteristic of this town of 2,400, located 25 miles south of Iowa City, is its diverse population. The Amish and the Mennonites are two groups that help define the area. It got its official name from a famous registered sire. Kalona originated as a train station of the English River Township railroad system.