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Health & Fitness

Local Voices: Going Above and Beyond

Just a little blog about how some Mehlville School District staff and others in our community go above and beyond in their jobs and in life. How can you do the same?

Just this past weekend, one of my daughter’s teachers from reminded me of how important it is to go “above and beyond” in your job, no matter what that job is. 

This teacher came to the Oakville Junior Tiger football game to support his students.  He brought his little girls along who looked in wide-eyed wonder at my little cheerleader when she said hello to them.  Just as that simple gesture meant a lot to those little girls, my daughter’s teacher made a statement to my kid about her worth when he took the time to invest in her life outside of the classroom.  That’s what good teachers and administrators do.

There have been so many examples of that in my experience in the Mehlville School District.  From the teachers and other staff members at Wohlwend who participate in the school’s lip sync event each year (which happens at many schools I know since I used to do the same thing with the teachers at Point when I taught there) to the art teacher at my son’s school who came to see him in a play that he was in in Webster Groves.

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Those are the little things that go unnoticed by many in our community every day.  Recently a lot of negative comments have been written about teachers and administrators in our district, but I know many people have experienced this same level of dedication from people throughout this district.

Another example that comes to mind are the principals at Oakville Middle School.  These men show the students daily how much they mean by the amount of time they invest getting to know their students on a personal level.  My daughter says they are always in and out of the classrooms just making sure that things are going okay. 

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I love that they participate every year in the students versus staff basketball game.  It’s just another example of them going above and beyond for our kids.  Sure, they get paid to keep an eye on what’s happening around their school, but they consistently do more than is in their contract for the betterment of their school.

It’s not just in education that you see people going above and beyond either.  There’s the insurance agent who helps you with a claim after hours (that’s my sister!), and the nurse who comes back to check on you that extra time just because she cares. 

There’s the bagger at your grocery store who always says hello and “See you next week ma’am” (you know him at Dierbergs, right?) and the hair stylist who makes you feel like a friend (that’s a shout out to my favorite gal at Illusions!). 

You all know the stay-at-home mom who helps take care of the kids of working parents or who makes a meal for those in need, and what about the IT friend who always helps you with computer problems because you can’t figure it out yourself? 

Do you know a neighbor who mows a lawn for an elderly person “just because” or that physical therapist who stays a little longer to cheer up a patient when they’re “down”? 

How about trying to be that person who makes an impact and does something just because it’s the right thing to do?  One of my favorite moments teaching has absolutely nothing to do with what happened in the classroom. 

My teaching partner and I shared a kindergarten classroom with this wonderful kid named Noah.  Every day he’d ask us when we were going to come to his house. 

What a surprise he had on his birthday when he looked out his window to find both of his kindergarten teachers jumping on his trampoline singing “Happy Birthday.”

We weren’t paid to do that, but hearing that little boy say, “I knew you’d come” was the one of the biggest payoffs of my teaching career.  What do you think he remembers about kindergarten?  I’d like to think it would be something about how his teachers went above and beyond what was expected.  Those things matter in life.  Get out there and make a difference today!

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