In anticipation of the Apgar Family Water Plaza opening on June 6 at 11am in the Linn Creek District, this is part two of the second of three articles documenting the legacy of the Apgar Family in Marshalltown.

For 3 generations the family documented, and therefore preserved, key moments in the lives of individuals and the community itself. Through Tom Apgar’s extraordinarily generous gift, the Apgar name will continue to be associated with memory making moments and community pride.

Tom didn’t tell their parents about John’s request, nor his thoughts on it, until he’d sat with it for a while, had decided. “He (John), put the challenge to me and it’s the best thing he could have done for me. It was like starting anew.” And, when Tom decided that he would indeed accept the challenge, he told his parents, “I’m coming into the family business.”

He acknowledges that at the time he was a ‘total rookie’ to the photography business. He had an instamatic camera. But he also had a deeply embedded commitment to his family. And to his community.

So, in the Spring of 1982, he started working at the family business as a gopher, in the truest sense of the word. The staff of professional photographers did not show favoritism towards the younger/only surviving son, despite his surname. Quite the opposite. Many had decades of their own work and reputations with the Apgar Studio and were not going to hand over the reins, nor any ‘solo job’ to the ‘newbie with an instamatic’, without him having proved himself. So, he listened and he watched and slowly they’d let him take control of the camera, or load the film.

From the moment Tom started what was effectively an apprenticeship at the studio, he worked hard to improve his skills. In addition to the day-to-day experiences with the staff, he attended conferences and lectures and week-long seminars to expand his knowledge through outside sources. Topics covered included wedding photography, (learning the importance of how a garment laid, how hands held a bouquet), portraiture, advanced portraiture, commercial photography, etc.

In the years that Tom was improving his skills, Pat encouraged him, built him up and asked his opinion on things. And after a prolonged period of intensive training, Tom exhibited the ability to work a solo job. To take a camera and lighting equipment, and serve a paying customer. And Tom eventually became a full-fledged, in-demand professional photographer for Apgar Studios.

He’d learned the craft and the business from the ground up and in so doing, became an artist and an entrepreneur. And he began to have his own ideas of how to secure and grow the business, thinking they needed to increase their share of high school senior portraits. He told his father as much. But Pat was still in charge and had the final say on such decisions.

In 1987, Tom approached Pat with the offer to buy the business. And after an extensive inventory was completed, and projected future earnings determined, Tom purchased the business at full value.

Tom shared that often people don’t appreciate how high the stakes and expectations are ‘for a business whose business is capturing another’s ‘once in a life-time moment’. “It’s like taking a plane off from the airport – you cannot crash and burn when photographing someone’s wedding. There are no second chances.”

Upon assuming ownership, Tom thought, “Well then, I’ll have the final say on things. But Pat’s input never stopped.” Nor did his help on big jobs. For even into his 70’s and 80’s, his father still helped out at high school proms, (where there could be as many as 200 couples, each allotted 60 seconds in front of the camera), and dance recitals on the 2nd story of the ‘old Y’, (Pat did the group shots).

During his 38 years of ownership, Tom Apgar amassed many repeat customers and was honored to document key moments in their lives; and their children’s and grandchildren’s. He achieved Certified professional photographer accreditation and for 6 years, served on the board of the Professional Photographers of Iowa. Locally, Tom served his community as a member of the Marshalltown Chamber Board and was heavily influential in the Oktemberfest celebration(s); being in fact, the one who named this signature event. Because of his contributions, Tom was named Marshalltown Area Chamber of Commerce Member of the Year.

In the last years of his tenure at the studio, Tom pulled back from recruiting new clients and in so doing could attend to his mother’s final affairs and then his father’s. In the Spring of 2020, Tom closed the business and sold the building at 18 W. Main.

After selling the property, one could think it might have been easy for Tom to leave Marshalltown behind, but he felt deeply that as the last surviving member of a family whose legacy was built here, it was appropriate that he give back.

A life-long supporter of scouting, in 2023, Tom was approached by the Mid-Iowa Council Scouting of America and funded the Apgar Family Pavillion at Mitigwa Scouting Reservation. For his generosity, he received ‘STAR’ recognition (Scouting Trailblazers Award Recognition).

He’s also been a long-time promoter of the value of Elmwood County Club as a family recreational asset. Such passion for the country club seems fitting; as his grandparent met there.

And after being approached by the fundraising committee for the Linn Creek District project, Tom decided the best way to celebrate his family name, honor his beloved brother’s history with water sports and contribute to the quality of life of residents of the community that meant so much to his family, he agreed to sponsor the Apgar Water Plaza, in the soon to be realized Linn Creek District.

Tom Apgar embodies the idea of ‘generativity’; the impulse to create and/or nurture things that will outlast one’s lifetime. To make possible positive experiences for children yet born. To read the full articles visit: https://artsandculturealliance.org/portfolio/apgar-family-water-plaza/.

Nancy Jeanne Adams is a local artist based in Marshalltown.

——-

Nancy Jeanne Adams is a local

artist based in Marshalltown.