Tell us why you became a teacher

When I was younger I always like working with kids. I first started with babysitting and then I would help with vacation bible school during the summer. I also had a third grade teacher who was an amazing teacher. I decided I wanted to be like her and help all kids feel good about learning. She was special and she had a way of making every child feel that they could learn. I wanted to have the opportunity to be a positive influence in a child’s life so I became a teacher.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

It’s hard to pick just one memorable teaching experience in my 37 years of being a teacher. One year in my first grade class I had a sweet child whose mom was sick with covid. I received a call after school from her Dad and he told me his little girl had something to tell me. She was crying and her sweet little voice said my Mommy is now in heaven. This year was so hard but I was giving the job to love and support her education. As teachers we wear so many hats but it’s such a honor.

What would you do with the $25,000?

I was just involved in a car hitting me while I was walking up to our school entrance to go to work. I have not been able to return to work yet. This money would definitely help with some of the financial stress that this accident has brought on. I would also like to look at getting a safe way for our teachers and families to walk up to our school entrance. I could use some of this money to go towards helping the school put crosswalks in before someone else gets hurt.