Mug Shot

Teachers know that life happens. That their students, so bright and promising in the classroom, may make mistakes, some so serious that it will derail their lives and be difficult to come back from.

Such was the case with Spencer, a student I had in the very first 4/5 class as a 5th grader. He was one of those bright and promising students, and one who had my complete trust. Spencer always did excellent work and in addition to being gifted, he was a strong leader, kind and loving to everyone.

I last saw Spencer at his high school graduation party and he was excited about heading off to college and beginning the next phase of his life. He has stayed in touch since, but I noticed that he was posting less and less frequently on social media and that something seemed off.

I heard some passing talk that he'd gotten into drugs, and then his mother posted on Facebook two years ago that Spencer had been missing for two weeks, asking if anyone had heard from him. She ended up flying out to California and found him, and subsequently wrote that they were spending quality time together. At the time I thought that that was odd and figured something deeper was going on. (He had bounced around several colleges, too.)

Sunday morning, Spencer posted this picture on Instagram.

My heart shattered when I realized that it was a mug shot of him and that he had been in prison, but in all honesty, I was not too surprised. I had thought the drug rumors were probably true.

I sent Spencer a message of encouragement, wondering if he would respond, but he did, thanking me for my concern and asking how I was. We have entered into a bit of a correspondence and I am hoping to hear that he is working to get back on his feet and get back on track. No doubt he has a very difficult road ahead.

Like I said, life happens to us all, and I am so sad to hear about Spencer's incarceration. But I will pray for him that he will move forward and leave the drugs behind. He has so much potential - I hope he puts those leadership skills and academic talent to good use.

Remembering an Old Colleague

I worked with this lady for eight years, and she was truly something. Several times she spoke to my class about her experiences marching with Dr. Martin Luther King, holding her head up while being jeered by the crowd, with a tomato or two thrown at her for good measure. She held her head up high.

The students saw "their" librarian in a whole new light after her visits, realizing that she didn't just say words about equality, she was willing to endure the scorn and catcalls of others in pursuit of fairness for all.

Dorothy was one of the most intelligent people I ever worked with, and a very dear friend. I am so glad she received this honor. (Article from The University of Illinois, the iSchool at Illinois.)

Vickers-Shelley remembered for librarianship, social justice activism

TUESDAY FEBRUARY 19 2019

Dorothy Vickers-Shelley with students at Yankee Ridge Elementary School in Urbana

The lessons that Dorothy Vickers-Shelley (MS '75) imparted to students still resonate nearly a decade after her death. Vickers-Shelley was the head librarian at Yankee Ridge Elementary School in Urbana for 33 years, retiring in 2003. In 1976, she wrote a short phrase to teach her students about discrimination and understanding:

Life is short; therefore I shall be a crusader in the fight against ignorance and fear, beginning with myself.

Every student, in kindergarten through sixth grade, learned and recited the quote at the beginning of each class in the library.

A lifetime member of the NAACP and a charter member of the Champaign County Chapter National Council of Negro Women, Vickers-Shelley influenced hundreds of students to ask questions about racism and inequality throughout her career as a school librarian.

In 2015, the Champaign Unit 4 School District named the school library at Booker T. Washington STEM Academy after Dorothy Vickers-Shelley. According to the Unit 4 press release announcing the library dedication: 

Ms. Vickers-Shelley challenged her students because she believed it would make them better people, neighbors, and citizens. She read books to children as young as six and seven about the lives of actor/activist Paul Robeson, teenage diarist and Holocaust victim Anne Frank, slave liberator Harriet Tubman, and workers’ advocate Cesar Chavez, among others. By the 1990s, Ms. Vickers-Shelley was teaching her students to ‘recite’ the ‘Life is short’ phrase using American Sign Language. Her former students include business executives, government officials, farmers, lawyers, activists, moms and dads, and teachers. While they represent varied ethnic, racial, faith and political perspectives, Ms. Vickers-Shelley's former students share common values of acceptance and understanding.

Through the lessons Vickers-Shelley taught her students, she made a positive impact in the world that continues today. In honor of her achievements and the countless lives she touched, the iSchool celebrates her life and legacy of social acceptance.

"Let's Keep This Rolling!"

I was an avid reader of Horse and Rider magazine for many years, from high school and on into adulthood. A lot of my early knowledge about horses and horsemanship came from that magazine.

In the late 1960s/early 1970s, the magazine carried a column for pen pals. You could send Horse and Rider your name and address and request that it be added to the numerous others in the column, most of whom were young girls like me looking to find like-minded friends.

My address appeared twice, and at one point, I had around 100 people with whom I was regularly corresponding! Two of them became life long friends, Sue Seese and Beth Dickinson. Both were part of the early days of the model horse hobby, and Beth is still very active in it. Sue moved on to high end quarter horses and showed on the Quarter Horse circuit. I am still in touch with both women.

Shortly after we began writing to each other, Sue and I got our first horses.

  Sue and Stormy, Reseda, California, 1972.

Amy and me, West Lafayette, Indiana, 1972.

Sue's mare, Stormy, had a lot of Thoroughbred in her - perfect for Sue who loved the breed. She also founded a hobby club and registry for model Thoroughbreds that ran for many years.

Stormy and her filly, Stormy's Santana.

Our letters flew back and forth, with a letter being received in the afternoon mail, responded to that evening, and then mailed out the next morning. We knew when to expect each other's letters, and it was a real thrill to see Sue's distinctive handwriting when I opened the mailbox after I got off the school bus.

Sue and I became best friends despite the distance between us. After nearly five years of weekly letters, our parents allowed us to get together. I flew out to California in June after I graduated from high school.

Sue and me at the Jaws exhibit at Universal Studios, 1975.

There was no awkwardness between us when we first met face to face. After all, we knew each other so well from the hundreds of letters that we had mailed each other!

Sue made arrangements for us to ride while I was there, borrowing horses for me to use. One of them had been owned by Bob Denver, the actor who played Gilligan on the popular TV show, Gilligan's Island. That was a big thrill for me - I mean, how many people can say that they rode Gilligan's horse? I can!

We also competed in a horse show during my visit, with me riding another borrowed horse. I took home a ribbon which still hangs here in my office where I can see it.

Sue and I each went off to college, got married, and she went right into the work force upon college graduation while I started raising my big family. Through the years we continued to correspond, although the letters slowed down to just a couple of times a year due to the busy-ness of our lives.

Adulthood for both of us had its ups and downs, but Sue really took some hard knocks - her husband died of brain cancer and then, after remarrying many years later, she developed breast cancer.

And through it all, the letters continued.

I got one from her in the mail yesterday.

Typical Sue, it was a three pager, single spaced!

I waited until I had a quiet moment to read it, wondering especially about her cancer treatment and if things were still going as well as they had been at Christmas. To my delight, she is healthy and nearing the end of two long years of treatment. Yay, Sue!

Sue (middle) with her niece (left) and sister (right) last Christmas.

Sue's words at the end of the letter were touching. Referring to the fact that I was now retired and had more time to write her, she said, "Let's keep this rolling," referring to the more frequent correspondence that we had begun again and which was so, so similar to our teen years when the letters came weekly.

There is a real joy in a long term friendship, a friendship with someone who has known you even longer than your husband. We've been friends since 1971, just shy of fifty years.

You can bet that I am going to "keep this rolling!"

HASTI/Pollinator Project

Tim Gibb (who owns the barn where I keep Abby) is  a Purdue University entomology professor. About two years ago, he received a significant grant from the National Science Foundation to create a free curriculum for all high schools in Indiana. Called the Purdue Pollinator Project, it is designed to raise awareness and educate students about the need to protect our state's pollinators.

The high school curriculum for the Purdue Pollinator Project was introduced at HASTI (Hoosier Association of Science teachers, Inc.) in Indianapolis yesterday.

Since I am writing the elementary curriculum which should be rolled out next year, I went along to watch and to see how the high school lessons compared to mine.

Craig came with me - I had had four (yes, FOUR!) migraine headaches Sunday and then one that morning. (I had another after we got home.) He drove, just in case I got sick on the road.

 There was good attendance and I felt the presentation went well.

The lessons were outlined and a brief explanation given about each one.

Purdue's Envision Center had created some games. I though the one titled "The Plight of the Foraging Bumblebee" would work well for elementary kids - it was an interactive game where you could fly the honeybee all over the countryside with the goal to make it back to the hive with pollen.

Tim was there (he is the one who wrote the grant for Purdue) and was handing out flyers for the summer seminars.

Everything is being made available to teachers for free, even attending the seminars.

I have been splitting my time between working on the elementary curriculum and writing the history of Great Lakes Congress, the longest running model horse club which is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year. I will polish the final draft of that today and send it to the printer, and then begin devoting all my writing time to the Pollinator Project.

It's a good thing I like to write!

Jay Alan's Debut Concert

As a teacher, I wonder each year just what the future holds for my current students. Who will they grow up to be? (Or even, will they grow up? I have had two students die that I know of; perhaps there are more.)

Jay Thoennes came into my classroom as a quiet, gentle nine year old. I'd had his brother Drew, so I already had met Jay and knew him to be just as nice as his brother. (It's a family trait - the entire Thoennes family is terrific.) Jay was with me for two years and then moved on to East Tipp. 

A talented musician, Jay started a YouTube channel in 2015 that quickly went viral and now has over 64,000 subscribers. One thing led to another, and last summer he flew out to LA, signed a contract, and recorded his first album. To celebrate, Jay and his family held a debut concert for friends and family, with proceeds going to Hoops for Hope. I was invited to come as his guest.

Jay and me just before the concert began.

Jay wrote many of the songs he performed.

That's the promo photo behind him from Cold, the name of the single that was released February 1 on Amazon, Spotify, iTunes, and Apple Music.

Craig (also the Thoennes family's guest), Vanessa, and Curt joined me for the evening.

It was good to see big brother Drew (who I had for 2nd, 4th, and 5th grades) who is off at college but was able to get away from his studies and attend the concert.

Mark Thoennes, Paula Thoennes, and Drew Thoennes.

Best of luck, Jay! I hope you find success and happiness in your music career. And may I have your autograph? Silly me never saved any of your homework papers that had your name on it. Hah!