Nissen shows us the path to a big world

Cedar Rapids lost a wonderful son last month. George Nissen died at 96 in California. Everyone knows him as the “inventor of the trampoline” of course, but it goes far beyond patent No. 2,370,990.

I was a close observer of this dynamic individual. In the late '40s, my family moved from Coralville to a new development on Franklin Avenue in Cedar Rapids. As an 8-year-old, I wandered into George's 27th Street NE backyard to look at this weird piece of equipment. “It's a trampoline, hop on and I'll show you how to use it.” I loved it and was there constantly.

George was constantly on the move with refinements to his bouncing machine, taking trips around the country to demonstrate, opening a factory in Cedar Rapids, then a second one with a gym. Then he went into another area, all school gymnasium equipment. There he was opening branches in England, Switzerland, Germany, Japan and Australia. It wasn't Collins or Iowa Man, but he sure put Cedar Rapids on the international map and brought in many visitors.

As for me, the backyard bouncing evolved to the Big Ten, NCAA and NAAU trampoline championships. George and wife Annie had showed me one thing: There is a whole world out there waiting for you.

Larry Snyder

Washington High School, 1958

Coral Gables, Fla.