Simon Retires

by Michele Boy | August 8, 2024

The year was 1989 when there were three law firms in Syracuse, Kansas - Jim Terrill, John Stanley, and Gale & Gale. By the end of 1990, there were two - Terrill and Gale & Gale.   
Thirty-five years ago,  Janice Simon began working part time at Gale & Gale Law Office with her aunt, Laura Graber. When her aunt moved away in 1990, Simon went full time.
Last week, the office threw her a small surprise retirement party. 
While Simon hoped to leave quietly without any fuss, those who worked with her wanted to celebrate. 
I asked Janice about how different things are now.
“When I started this job, there weren’t computers like today. I learned on my own. I believe it was an IBM.”
While she worked at the Sale Barn and Wheatland Electric for a time, this is the job that stuck. “There was always something new.”
One incident that sticks out for Janice was the big crisis at the Sale Barn years ago. Ranchers had contracts for large amounts of money. January came and there was no money to pay the ranchers. They were furious. 
Today the office is busier than ever. But Janice wants to spend time with her grandkids. She has five with one on the way. She also has one great grandchild. 
After eight years,  Brooke Kuder crossed the street from working at the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office as  a Dispatch Supervisor to work at Gale and Gale, and she loves it.
“Being able to have steady days, holidays off, makes for a better home environment. It was the right time for me to make that change,” said Brooke. 
And family is everything to Brooke. She has four children - Memphis, 14, McCoy, 12, Monroe, 10, and Merrick, 6.and is engaged to local police officer Jesse Cagle. 
For a bit of history, Mabel Thornburgh, a Graber relation, was the first legal secretary who worked for Rob’s dad, Bob Gale, Sr. While Brooke is not a Graber, Rob joked that since her parents were in his class at school, it is basically the same thing, 

Pictured Left to Right - Brooke Kuder, Vicki Eads, Janice Simon, Rob Gale
/photo by Michele Boy