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Former Students Who Live Lives of Greatness
I am not sure if anyone is interested in hearing about some of the students that our school helped nurture, but I intend to post the stories of some of them. Some are recent graduates, but some graduated before I ever began teaching decades ago. One place that I intend to look for ideas is our alumni association Hall of Fame.
The one former student who is interesting me tremendously right now is 85 years old. He is fairly unknown to many who live in our town, but he is included in a book about the 23 most amazing business leaders in America. He just published a book called If Not Me, Then Who? The subtitle is "How you can help with Poverty, Economic Opportunity, Education, Healthcare, Environment, Racial Justice, and Peace Issues in America." I just bought the book; I will let you know how good it is.
Another is a student who I knew at the beginning of my teaching career. Of all the thousands of students who dreamed of playing professional sports, he is the only one who actually ever had a real professional career. He was not considered to be the best athlete in his class.
One more is the son of a minister and elementary teacher of many of my students. He dreamed of being President of the United States. He is our school's only Rhodes Scholar.
Still others that I may consider mentioning include those who left the safety of their own country and served in the Peace Corps and in the military. All lived lives that are remarkable because they overcame the odds and took the opportunity to seek their destiny and impact eternity. The thing that is so compelling about their stories is that they sat in the same desks that my students use now, or they still live in our town, or they grew up on the same streets where my students live now. These are stories with which my students can identify. They are stories to build a community and grow a new generation of heroes.
The one former student who is interesting me tremendously right now is 85 years old. He is fairly unknown to many who live in our town, but he is included in a book about the 23 most amazing business leaders in America. He just published a book called If Not Me, Then Who? The subtitle is "How you can help with Poverty, Economic Opportunity, Education, Healthcare, Environment, Racial Justice, and Peace Issues in America." I just bought the book; I will let you know how good it is.
Another is a student who I knew at the beginning of my teaching career. Of all the thousands of students who dreamed of playing professional sports, he is the only one who actually ever had a real professional career. He was not considered to be the best athlete in his class.
One more is the son of a minister and elementary teacher of many of my students. He dreamed of being President of the United States. He is our school's only Rhodes Scholar.
Still others that I may consider mentioning include those who left the safety of their own country and served in the Peace Corps and in the military. All lived lives that are remarkable because they overcame the odds and took the opportunity to seek their destiny and impact eternity. The thing that is so compelling about their stories is that they sat in the same desks that my students use now, or they still live in our town, or they grew up on the same streets where my students live now. These are stories with which my students can identify. They are stories to build a community and grow a new generation of heroes.
Comment
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Comment by Scott Habeeb on January 25, 2009 at 4:34pm
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I think we'll all benefit from hearing these stories, but even more importantly from hearing how you use them in the classroom. Looking forward to hearing more!
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