Hall of Fame
Sometimes, when peering down the road of life, it is difficult to foresee the success that lies ahead. When Col. Dale Etka came to Coe and joined the Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps, he could not have imagined the great things that were to come. Besides his involvement in ROTC, Etka lettered three years at left end for Moray Eby football teams that won two Midwest Conference championships. He was captain of the 1935 football team and an All-State mention his junior and senior years. Coach Eby referred to him as his best team leader and blocker in ten years. Etka was also a three-year letter winner in track under the guidance of Forest Rittgers and played basketball for four years. Serving under these coaching luminaries paid off for Etka, who was elected president of the education fraternity, a member of the National Classical Society and of Sachem, the senior men's honorary society. He received an honorary appointment as Cadet Lt. Colonel and graduated cum laude. For the next five years, Etka used his leadership skills teaching and coaching at Vinton High School, as well as other youth sports teams. It was in Vinton that he met his future wife, Louise, who went to Coe at his urging. In the fall of 1941, his country needed his leadership even more than the children of Vinton. As in his days at Coe, Etka served his country with distinction when the war ended, Etka decided to remain a member of the regular Army. He was repeatedly cited for his good conduct and leadership in a career that spanned two decades. Those qualities earned him the Bronze Star for his service during the Korean War as well as a very exclusive invitation, which allowed him to become the only U.S. officer to attend the Canadian Army Staff Course. His career culminated with his appointment to serve on the Joint Chiefs of Staff, which is reserved for only the finest officers in the armed services. In 1960, Etka was promoted to colonel before retiring six years later. 2600 In looking back on a career that really began at Coe, it would be too easy to say that Etka was ticketed for big things. That would minimize all those achievements that resulted from his strong work ethic combined with his winning personality. For no matter, if it was the battlefield or the game field, Etka was a leader in every sense of the word.
