Arden Tewksbury served on an unpaid school board longer than anyone else in the United States. He died Friday — eight weeks after his final term on the Elk Lake School Board ended.
He joined the board in 1961, completing his 64-year tenure in December. For more than 50 years, he operated a dairy farm in Meshoppen, retiring in 2003, and continued to advocate for small, rural, family-owned dairy farms.
In recent years, he became a passionate advocate for the reintroduction of whole milk in schools, his obituary explains.
"The passage of the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2025, with bipartisan support, would have been especially meaningful to him," the obituary states.
The law, signed by President Donald Trump last month, allows schools to offer whole and reduced-fat milk, both flavored and unflavored.
The school district and Pennsylvania School Boards Association honored Tewksbury in October. His health prevented him from attending the meeting, but his family accepted the recognition on his behalf. Those at the meeting toasted Tewksbury with cups of whole milk.
