A Woman to Be Remembered

As a student, there were many teachers who inspired me to become an educator. I first thought of becoming a teacher in the seventh grade. Ironically, my inspiration came from a teacher who was not my own. Mrs. H. was the special education teacher in my middle school. I have vivid memories of her candy jar, and her warm and caring feelings for students even if they weren't in one of her classes. My middle school did not have classes for special education students. Students with special needs were included in regular classes, and the special education teacher would be present in those classes to help her students. I can remember her sitting on the side taking notes almost everyday.

What really stood out about Mrs. H. was her ability to touch the lives of almost all the students, not just her own. She was the cheerleading coach, the student body advisor, and she ran 'Safetytown' during the summer. Safetytown was a program where middle school and high school students along with Mrs. H. taught pre-schooleris in town about safety in the community. They met firemen, policemen, and learned about safe ways to play in the community. This was just another way Mrs. H. showed her dedication to the community.

Although Mrs. H. was not my teacher, she was my cheerleading coach. I remember how terrified I was about tryouts when she came over and comforted me. Her warming and encouraging words instantly filled my heart and made trying out a memorable experience. When I found out I made the team, she approached me and said, "Lacey, I can't wait to work together, we will have a great year." I stayed on the cheerleading team my three years in middle school and our relationship blossomed, especially when she gave me a chance for captain. It was incredible to work with her for those years.

I vividly remember our eighth grade graduation. The one teacher everyone wanted to hug and kiss was Mrs. H.. It did not matter whether they had her as a coach, a teacher, or a friend: everyone loved her. To this day, one of the saddest moments of my life came in high school when I found out that Mrs. H. had Lou Gehrig's disease. I wanted to go see her that second, tell her how many people she inspired, especially me. Unfortunately I never had the courage to tell her that. The last memory I have of Mrs. H. is seeing her in the latter stages of her life, half her size and with a extremely raspy voice. She looked at me and said, "Lacey you look wonderful, how have you been?" And all I could say was, "Good" and "Thanks for asking," a sad memory that remains with me to this day.

As in most High Schools, the loud speaker went off every morning in my school with the day's announcements. I remember one particular morning during my senior year when the usually chipper voice of the morning announcement crew was replaced by the melancholy voice of our principal. Completely confused I listened: "Students I have some extremely bad news to relay this morning, Mrs. H., a beloved friend and co-worker has passed away." I am not sure what I remember more, how many tears rolled down my eyes or how many people around me were shedding their own tears. The halls were quiet that day, nobody felt much like talking. My high school combined two middle schools, and even those who never met Mrs. H. could feel the pain from those who did.

Two days later there was an announcement that the funeral was on Thursday afternoon, a school day. I was pleased to hear that all the schools in our district would be closed early in order to allow all the students and teachers to attend. The day of the funeral I remember how many people hurried out to the parking lot in order to reach the funeral home in time. When I got to the funeral home, there were students, teachers and even parents from the community standing in line waiting to get in to pay their respects to the H. family. It was at that point that I realized that she did not just inspire me, but she inspired an entire community, and becoming an educator became even more important to me.

-- Lacey B.