Recently while attending a memorial service for a friend in LaGrange, Georgia, I met Sarah Funderburk, a retired teacher. What a delightful, bright, spirited soul to encounter!
Teachers always remember exceptional students or the ones who gave them a tad of trouble. Sarah discussed the mutual friends we know who were her pupils. One was my mentor, Lee Walburn, an award-winning editor, writer, and author.
“Please tell Lee I am so proud of his accomplishments in writing.”
She recalled entering a classroom where Lee was busily typing a paper in a corner, probably for the school newspaper. “He was so immersed in his work; he never noticed me watching him.” She continued, “I never doubted his God-given talents.”
Ms. Sarah is 98 years young and still adores her students.
We talked about another friend who also taught at the same high school. A teacher who, like Ms. Funderburk, believed in a student more than the teenager believed in herself. Mrs. Lorraine Smith changed my life.
When your mother is intellectually gifted, your brother is a student at Georgia Tech, and your best grade is a whopping average, sometimes the family might conclude some potential is lacking. I realized in first grade that I could never match the brain power of those closest to me.
Mom was very concerned my senior year that I would not be accepted to the college of my choice. Even though my mother was never one to meddle in school affairs, a note accompanied me the day I registered for my 12th-grade classes. She knew I needed to raise my GPA and wanted to ensure I opted for the less challenging courses offered. The note was a list of her preferred choices.
As a sophomore, Mrs. Smith was my biology teacher. I did well in that class because I adored her and my brilliant, helpful lab partner, Sally. When I saw her registering the seniors, I approached her with a broad smile and handed her Mom’s list of classes. “What’s this?! She exclaimed after reading it. She tore it into tiny pieces when I answered and threw it in the trash.
I didn’t close my mouth for a full minute.
“Lynn, you will be enrolled in my chemistry class and government, English, sociology, and economics.”
“Mrs. Smith, I can never pass chemistry. I have met the required sciences to graduate, and your class is well-known as the toughest in this high school! I will fail, and Mama will kill me!” I pleaded.
“Let me talk to your mother and Lynn, you can do anything you put your mind to, but you must first believe you can.”
After their conversation and with much hesitation, Mom left me in Mrs. Smith’s hands. I was doomed.
“Here’s what we are going to do,” Mrs. Smith began, “you will stay after school with me in the beginning for tutoring. After speaking with your other teachers, you will sit in the front of every class to avoid distractions. We will develop proper study habits, and soon, you will see yourself as I do.”
At first, I thought she needed better mental glasses, but after working with her, I began to change, and so did my grades, attitude, and belief in myself.
Years passed, and when I returned for a class reunion, Mrs. Smith was an honored guest. She was in her 80s by then, and once I saw her, I ran to her chair, kneeling to clasp her hands.
“Mrs. Smith, there are not enough words to express my appreciation for you. I doubt I could raise my children, succeed in any job, and be self-reliant if it weren’t for you. You spent your time, energy, and skills on me and countless others because you cared. I will always love you.”
Teachers are America’s most valuable undervalued, unappreciated resource because they help shape our children into productive adults. When an educator is free to teach instead of worrying about unruly parents with undisciplined children, lives flourish, and a person’s purpose is revealed.
As a society, we fail our teachers in many ways. With students carrying guns to class and parents and children abusing and disrespecting educators, it is a wonder that any teachers remain. Dedicated and determined educators paying out of their pockets for school supplies when they earn far less than other college-educated professionals is abysmal, shameful, and inane.
We must provide our children with smaller, exceptional, safer schools with abundant equipment and resources to lessen youth crime and death. Give a child something to believe in, like themselves.
The future of America can change by giving priority to the very thing that will shape it, education.
In memory of Mrs. Lorraine Teaver Smith 1907-1991
