I love teaching! I entered the teaching profession with an array of life experiences to my credit. I have experienced the roles of mother, wife, grandmother, employee, and college student. I entered the teaching profession a little later than planned, but it is a choice I stand behind proudly. I knew when I was young that I wanted to teach, but life itself waylaid me.
I began life in rural Stony Creek, Virginia, the hometown of my father, a field hand who served two tours in Vietnam. My mother was from the small French Canadian town of Fitchburg, Massachusetts and stayed home with me during my early years. Back then life consisted of playing on tractors and swing sets with nothing between me and the sky except for vast fields of green. Money was tight for my parents and my dad had to move to find work as a mechanic. Rural folks know that unless you own the farm, farming is not a profitable occupation. At the impressionable age of five, I moved to Petersburg, Virginia. This change was indeed hard for me, but necessary for the family. I moved from a tight knit community where safety was not an issue into a city where safety was my main concern.
I completed my first three years of primary school at Robert E. Lee Elementary and Blandford Elementary in Petersburg. I then changed schools again and attended St. Joseph’s Catholic School in Petersburg. I received a next to free education there because my mother became a classroom aide and my father became a repair person for the school and convent. At the age of fourteen, my life drastically changed again. My dad was earning better money as a diesel mechanic and I now had a brother and sister; we needed a bigger home. We moved from Petersburg to Colonial Heights. I finished my secondary education there. I faced a lot of change and diversity growing up but it has made me strong and I learned to maintain my sense of self.
I went quickly from high school to having a family of my own. I spent many years raising children and working in customer service, advertising, real estate, and substitute teaching. I spent many hours serving on the PTO, being a room mother, attending teacher’s conferences, chaperoning field trips, cheering on children’s sporting events, and did everything else every other busy working mother does. I fulfilled civic and spiritual duties as well, such as being a Weblos leader, serving on the After Prom committee, campaigning for a city council member, teaching Sunday School at Wesley United Methodist Church in Hopewell, being Children’s Church Coordinator, and an Awana’s teacher.
I finally came to a point in my life where I felt it necessary to fulfill my dreams of becoming a teacher. It was very scary to think about returning to school after twenty years, but I took a giant leap of faith and dove right in with the support of my family and friends. It was not always easy, but I knew that I made the right choice. I received my Associate in Science from Richard Bland College, my Bachelors in Interdisciplinary Studies from Virginia State University, and my Gifted Endorsement by the Virginia Department of Education from the University of Richmond. I held a 4.0 grade point average throughout college because my goal to teach kept me focused. Just about everything I learned excited me and I felt blessed for the opportunity to attend college.
I taught at DuPont Elementary School in Hopewell at the beginning of my career. My first year teaching, I taught the fourth grade CPO (gifted) class, the next three years I taught the fifth grade CPO class, and for the past four years I have taught the fifth grade gifted cluster class at South Elementary. Whenever I have the opportunity, I attend continuing education classes and conferences to enrich my teaching, often with a focus on teaching the gifted and talented. I feel it is important to never stop learning or bettering one's self. I was selected Teacher of the Year for South Elementary for the 2016-17 school year and currently serve on several committees for the school and district. I look forward to every day because I can share what I have learned with the children I teach. There is nothing better than the look on a child's face when he "gets" what you are teaching him!
When I am not teaching, you can often find me spending time with my family. I have been married to my husband, Kevin, for over 21 years and we have two grown children, Colleen and Tyler. We also have three grandchildren, Mason, Lily, and Marlee. They all spend a lot of time at our home in Stony Creek! You may also find me on the water in my kayak in the warmer months, at hockey games with Kevin (We love the Capitals, the Admirals, and REALLY miss the Richmond Renegades!), sitting on the beach in the summer months, working in my flower gardens, walking for health, or taking yoga. I don't have much down time...but I am loving life! Isn't that what it's all about?