Bret Armstrong was born at Nashville, Kansas on May 8, 1958, to Jim
     and Carolyn Armstrong. He spent the first eighteen months of his life as
     a resident of Sawyer, moving then to a farm northwest of Isabel, where his
     parents started afarming. In August of 1963, a sister, Staci Kay, joined
     the family. Another move was made to a farm residence east of Sawyer in 
     1964. He continued his schooling through the eight grade in the Isabel
     Schools. The next four years of his education was obtained in the Medicine
     Lodge High School, from which he graduated in 1976. He then attended Pratt 
     Community College at Pratt, graduating in 1978.
          In 1977, Bret purchased a combine and truck and started custom
     harvesing wheat in Oklahoma and also helped his Grandfather, Leo House
     with his farming and ranching until 1983, when Grandpa Leo retired. Bret
     and his dad then took over the farming and ranching operation. Doing
     business as Armstrong and Armstrong, they custom harvest wheat in Oklahoma;
     return to Kansas to harvest their own crop and then custom harvest milo 
     locally, in the fall. Bret also harvests soybeans and works for Becker 
     Manufacturing Company in Isabel, at times when they need part-time help.
          Bret especially enjoys the farming and makes, rebuilds and updates
     machinery and equipment as needed in the farming operation. He has also
     rebuilt a dune buggy and made a trailer to haul it. Several times a year,
     with other members of the Gyp Hills Sandbusters Club, he takes it to the
     Little Sahara Desert in Oklahoma, where they enjoy riding the dune buggies
     in the sand dunes.     
             
     Source: Isabel, Kansas - The First 100 Years, 1887 - 1987,  pg. 32
     
     Submitted by: Carolyn Armstrong.