Bemidji State News Reporting S'11

More than meets the eye

“Forget the vin, it’s just Mel”

By Nicole Solum and Kara Smyth

When you take a first glance at Melvin Nygaard you might think that he is a nice older gentleman, or a fun- loving grandpa, or even your nice neighbor who you greet every morning when you get the morning paper. Nygaard’s silver hair is mostly hidden by a BSU beaver hockey hat. He stands at just 5’7’’ and can strike up a conversation with just about anyone. “I’m a people person, I can’t just sit at home and watch Oprah and Judge Judy,” said Melvin Nygaard. That is exactly what Nygaard is - a people person. You can see him working in, what athletes call, “the cage” down by the gym, cleaning up the John Glas field house, or walking around Haag-Sauer. Nygaard always has a smile on his face and a story to tell. There is more to Nygaard than a maintenance man who works at BSU.

Mel’s story begins way before his time here at Bemidji State University. Born in Rugby, North Dakota, he is the middle child in a family of five children. After growing up in Minot, North Dakota Nygaard joined the Navy and was stationed in Yokosuka, Japan for three years. “Yes, I was in Vietnam,” Nygaard said with a humble laugh. “That’s a question I always get asked.” Stationed as a signalman, Nygaard would send and receive messages as well as encode and decode messages. Mel was also on the football and baseball team while he was in Yokosuka.

Nygaard graduated from the Northwest Technical School (no longer an institution) as a dental technician, in the Twin Cities. For 35 years, he traveled the United States working in dental labs making crowns and bridges. “I loved traveling and meeting new people all the time,” Nygaard said. While working at a dental lab in Houston he met his wife “. . . Peggy, not Margaret, she’s the real deal.” Mel and Peggy have been married for 30 years and have two sons, Andrew, 27 and Adam, 23.

In 2003 he began working at BSU, while continuing to work in dental labs. Two years ago Nygaard decided to leave the dental profession and only work at BSU. Currently his title is GMW, general maintenance worker. He works 2:00p.m. until 10:30p.m. Monday through Friday. He has worked in every building on campus except Bangsburg and the library. He is most commonly known by the athletes. He works in the cage where laundry is done and where athletic equipment is stored. The cage is located by the downstairs entrance to the gym. Student athletes can get their laundry done and team jerseys can be stored. The cage also stores athletic equipment, when not in use, such as hockey sticks and pads, football pads, and tennis racks. “He always has a smile on his face,” said sophomore volleyball player Bethany Thompson “it’s always great to talk with him.”

Mel has also coached football Bemidji middle school. “I believe in playing everyone equally,” Nygaard said. Even though he truly enjoyed coaching at the middle school, due to time conflicts he could no longer continue to coach there. “I can see him being a great coach for middle school,” said junior football player Alex Mock. “He has this love for life that’s hard to find.”

Nygaard believes that it’s the people that make the job, “I enjoy the people more than the job.” His favorite part about working at BSU is the students. “Every time I would go to the cage to grab our laundry he would have a joke or a story for me,” said senior volleyball player Nicole Olson. “He can always make me laugh.”

During this time of budget cuts and downsizing at BSU Nygaard and his position is still up in the air. “I don’t have a permanent position,” said Nygaard. He is currently waiting to hear if he will return next year. Even with his job unsecure for next year Nygaard continues to stay positive, “I love my job,” Said Nygaard. “I just like to be around the students.”