The school year is about ready to come to a close, so I would like to dedicate this week’s column to great teachers.
Do you remember your teachers? All of them? Some of them were special ones.
Do you have a favorite teacher or person who taught you more than ordinary book learning?
Two things came up this week that gave me pause to think.
I happened upon a familiar story on the Internet.
It's the story of a nun and a precocious little boy, Mark, who was forever getting into mischief, and when she would discipline him he always said, “Thank you for correcting me, sister.” She taped his mouth shut. He winked at her. She couldn't help but laugh.
Six years later, she had him in her math class. One day, sensing her class was frustrated and edgy, she asked them to list the names of their fellow classmates on a sheet of paper. Then she told them to write the nicest thing they could say about each one next to their name.
The following Saturday, she wrote their names on separate sheets of paper and listed what everyone else had said about that individual. On Monday, she handed out the lists that she had made for each one of them.
Upon receiving their sheet of paper, they all smiled, and said, “I didn't know that I meant anything to anyone.” No one ever mentioned the papers again.
Some years later, Mark was killed in Vietnam. She went to his funeral and all she could think of was how she had used masking tape to take the boy’s mouth shut, and how she would give anything to have him speak to her now.
After the funeral, one of the pallbearers told her how often Mark had talked about her. Mark’s father said, "I want to show you something we found in Mark’s things." It was two pieces of notebook paper that had been taped, folded and refolded many times. It was the list.
"Thank you," Mark’s mother said, "You can see how much he treasured it."
Hearing the comments from Mark’s father and mother, Mark’s classmates gathered around and one by one said, "I still have my list."
The purpose of this is to encourage everyone to compliment the people you love and care about. That nun was from Morris, Minn., and yes, the story is true.
The second story is about someone even closer to home, a teacher who taught in Ellendale 50 or 60 years ago. Elementary classrooms back at that time usually held two different grades and about 40 children.
Teachers had a hard job. There was no special education, music or physical education programs. They did it all.
Mrs. Anderson was "just an ordinary school teacher," but she was much more to James Hanson.
There was an inspirational poem called, "The Touch of the Master’s Hand," by Myra Brooks Welch. Fifty-seven years ago, Mrs. Anderson read the poem to her fourth-grade class.
I mentioned the poem and Jim Hanson was able to come right up with the name. Mrs. Anderson certainly made a profound effect upon him!
That is not all he remembers.
Mrs. Anderson also taught WWI history. In 2001, Jim was able to visit the Somme in France and made a point of looking for the “Devonshire Trench” and “Trench of the Bayonets” Mrs. Anderson had talked about in class. It took Jim a whole day to find it, but he did.
He was able to go back to France last year with more information, and again this year with Victor and Kelly Mrotz and others.
Jim showed them the area, as well as where they could look for artifacts. Victor found the hilt of a trench sword, and someone else found the very trench that the Devonshires had left.
With the information he had learned from that teacher 57 years ago, and combining it with a desire to make the connection with her teaching, Jim was able to come up with the position of the Devonshires and their attackers that Mrs. Anderson mentioned.
He also was able to discern the field of fire to locate bullets from that very machine gun that caused the carnage in the history books. He and his brother Bob actually found two German machine gun bullets from a war almost a century ago, verifying the information Mrs. Anderson had taught her class over a half century ago.
It was almost like a crime detective novel – a “cold-case” mystery played out in almost a century in being solved – using information given to a boy over half a century ago, who used it to reconstruct the crime scene 4,500 miles from where he heard the information.
You never know when you might have an influence on other people. Mrs. Anderson certainly did!
Look for an addition to this story in a later issue of the Star Eagle.
Some of our Star Eagle readers have commented they like to read about events such as family and school reunions, birthdays and anniversaries, and birth and wedding announcements. In order to read about these important things, we need our faithful readers to pass along the information to us. If you have news, please contact me via e-mail, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; by postal mail, P.O. Box 192, Geneva, MN 56035 or telephone, 507-256-4405.
Birthdays and anniversaries:
• Thursday, May 16th: Ron Kubicek, Mark Reistad, Mark Skroch, Vernie Stieglbauer, Kim Lageson, Doug Lembke, Judy Karsjens, Anne Larson, Allycia Zinke, Becky Phagan, Bev White, Annie Larson, Christine & Brian Carlson.
• Friday, May 17th: Laura Caroline Deml, her 6th; Caitlyn Nelson, David Thompson, Dale DeRaad, Rhonda Lund Thevenot, Jerry Blouin, Robert Briggs, Dyne Thereneau, Kay Barclay, Darlyne Paulson, Luella Reiman, Judith Hatch, Thomas Shawback, Rose & Carl Glienke.
• Saturay, May 18th: Blake Ihrke, Zachary Jacob Dau, Cory Bailey, David Farr, Arlene Busho, Arlene Cummins, Xan Johnson, Mandy Muri Johannsen, Charlie Hanson, Dan Schember, Hank Thompson, Carol Stohr, Roger Draayer, Kelly Krumwiede, Rod Serdahl, Dan & Val Schember, Sue & Dean Westrum, Ken & Pat Sable.
• Sunday, May 19th: Christina Hill Berry, Madison Schweirjohann, Summer Schember Schultz, Mike Rysavy, John Oolman, Dawn Parks, Tim & Tiffany Hanson.
• Monday, May 20th: Oakley Baker, Kaye Schember Cady, Laureen Hohansee, Kathy Hanson, Hannah Ashton, Carrie Thorstenson, Penny Nordhorn, Haley Collins, Scott Stohr, Kevin Peterson, Kent Lageson, Josh Kelly, Virginia Jensen, Cynthia Butler, Jay & Marsha Neitzel, Ed & Camille Nelson, Hannah Ashton, Adam & Kristen Arends.
• Tuesday, May 21st: Tony Dodge, Christopher Flim, Tom Wilker, Joel Cooper, Ryan Parks, William & Marvel Beiser.
• Wednesday, May 22nd: David Eliason, Christine Thompson Krause, Lori Lembke, Scott Dirksen, Pat Horan, Mark Christensen, Jim Obermoller, Michael Sarver, Roger Thompson, Andrew Grunwald, Karla Hanson, Dick Swift, Chuck & Susan Grubish, Toni and James Perschbacker.
• Thursday, May 23rd: Stephane Paul Martin, her 4th; Will Richard Utpadel, his 6th: Ilsbeth Wayne, Jeanne Simonson, Melissa Shaunce, Burton Borchert, Orville Langlie, Karen Quam, Rodney & Peggy Sorenson, Duane & Janice Morreim, Jeff & Sara Miller, Rebecca & Tim Brekke.
• Friday, May 24th: David Christensen, Marlyn Swearingen, Reta Draayer, Nina Widlund.
Celebrating with you as you mark another year. Hoping that your day is filled with family, friends and cheer!
