Rhonda blogging today for Cindy. I just had to share a picture of my son John at the 100 Days of School celebration on Tuesday. Each student was asked to wear a hat with 100 items on it -- John wore one with 100 words on it. The 100th day of school really sneaks up on you. It comes right after the Christmas holidays, at which time we are all shaking our heads, wondering how the school year has passed so quickly, and marveling at how big our children are getting. When you think about it, our children spend about 8 hours in school each day, so our teachers have a pretty large hand in molding and shaping the thoughts, attitudes, and aptitudes of our kids. We've been so lucky that all four of our children have gone to school at Wilchester Elementary, a perfect little bubble of a school. I walk my John, Katie and Cullen up the same sidewalk that I did for my fifteen year old son several years ago. I count us blessed to be able to have teachers, school nurses, and other staff that can comment how much Joey looks like John, or how different Katie is from Cullen. They have an interest in my family, and we also have a history with these folks. One special teacher in particular has been Beverly McKenty. All of my children have grown accustomed to Ms. McKenty's familiar face in the halls at Wilchester. We photographed Beverly in the studio at Cindy Crofford Photography last week.
Ms. McKenty's portrait is going on the "Wall of Fame" in the new school building at Wilchester, having been a teacher at Wilchester for over twenty years. Twenty years! Imagine the stories Ms. McKeny must have. I think that all teachers, new ones and veterans, all belong on a wall of fame in my book. There is Ms. Stovall the kindergarten teacher, who taught first Joey, and then seven years later, Katie, to read chapter books. There was Mrs. Penner who would call to check on us if we were sick, or running late, and even asked moms to bring meals to us when we had a sick baby in the hospital. Ms. Dailey has taught all of my kids Health Fitness, and each day in the carpool line, she plucks John from his carseat to help him to class. I can't forget Coach Heathcock and Coach Thornton ("that's not gonna fly son!") at Memorial Middle School, who took a 7th grade boy who had never played football and turned him into a hard driving, football loving machine. My daughter loves her teachers like Ms. Bielik, Ms. Morgan, Ms. Luong and regularly makes cards for them or incorporates them into her fiction stories. My son Cullen thinks that Ms. Farahani is the most fun teacher he's ever had, and I can't thank Ms. Marks, Ms. Palkot, Ms. Dionne, Ms. DeLeon, Ms. Pope, Ms. Finley, Ms. Painter, just to name a few...you are forever engrained on my child's heart...and mine. Thank you for all that you do!
