I would like to thank a Star Eagle reader for their thoughtful and appreciative note they included with a recent subscription renewal. It made me smile, and no, I will not include your note in the paper, per your request. As well, if I haven’t already, thank you, Bob, for your kind note regarding my fishing expedition, which read something like this, “A good fisherman tells you what he caught. A great fisherman just tells you he went fishing.”
I have been musing lately as to how to best deliver a thank you in the proper way. Throughout my time at NRHEG, I received an education that went above and beyond that which was required.
During my senior year I struggled a lot. It was the only year in which I didn’t just simply breeze through my schoolwork. There were a lot of reasons for this, some of which included my taking almost entirely college courses, as well as the stress of senior year. I can recall a massive pit forming in my stomach as my final season of baseball came to a close. These situations presented a challenging conclusion to my high school education.
My point here is to express my gratitude for the educators, para professionals, and really the entirety of the staff at NRHEG from the top down. I have been fortunate to work closely with the school, some more than others, since my graduation nearly five years ago. I can’t believe my five-year class reunion is this summer.
Two of our writers at the Star Eagle are also educators at NRHEG, Deb Bently and Mark Domeier. As a result I have had the fortunate opportunity to work with them. Deb runs the Panther Press at the school and occasionally works on other pieces. And Mark is a columnist and occasional fill in the blank, does whatever work he finds for himself; I can recall him covering sports, spelling bees, as well as simply submitting articles he himself put together.
I want to expressly thank these two individuals. I don’t know where to begin. Both were former English teachers of mine, so I guess I’ll start there. They both were incredible educators and taught me more than I can communicate here.
I was working with Deb on a story recently and I mentioned something I remembered from Domeier’s 8th grade English class. Deb responded with, “Oh, I haven’t heard that one before. I like it.” I felt clever and immediately told her who my 8th grade teacher was.
Deb has gone above and beyond what I could ever have asked or expected these past couple months. I can say, without a doubt, that her help has made me a better writer.
I can also say, without a doubt in my mind, that NRHEG has one of the best education systems in Southern Minnesota. This isn’t a drag on other schools, as I have covered them as well, but rather that, during my time as a student and reporter, NRHEG has simply gone above and beyond what is required. Our Veterans Day program immediately jumps to mind, along with school trips, including the Washington D.C. trip.
These are just a couple examples of what made my education at NRHEG so special. But first and foremost I need to thank the educators at NRHEG. Teachers try hard to connect with their students to provide not only a quality education, but a place to feel safe. I am aware this describes teachers everywhere. As my former teacher Terri Engel said, “You don’t go into teaching for the money. You do it for the students.”
I would simply like to say thank you to everyone at NRHEG. I know these times have posed new challenges, but I am confident that NRHEG has, and will continue to handle these situations in the best way they know how.