I taught briefly at Morgan Park but long enough to grow fond of a lot of that school’s middle school faculty. After I got elected to the Duluth School Board, on my fourth attempt, I was particularly enthusiastic about the MP faculty’s attempt to remodel the whole school and its approach to teaching as a collaborative enterprise. They got a little, very little, extra money from the District budget for this work but they plunged ahead anyway.
This was a wonderful set of teachers many of whom moved on later to Denfeld High where Alanna Oswald was when her Mother committed suicide. Alanna counts them as her saviors. Alanna is the young woman I’ve suggested consider running for the School Board. After I asked permission to upload her first long email she sent me another email stressing her gratitude for their nurturing. I asked Alanna if I could post this email as well including one redaction. Alanna agreed.
From Alanna:
I can tell you story after story of wonderful teachers. Some of the most prominent are Ron Bergman, science teacher, who I was allowed to spend half of my day with the rest of the year following my moms death, and would give me rides home nearly every day after school. All but about 5 minutes of 1st hour (I had record keeping as an elective. I was too smart for that class and normally had the assignment done every day before the announcements were over… Before the teacher explained the assignment. I had a permanent pass out of that class once my work was done) 2nd hour when I had his science class. And 5th and 7th hours when I was his cadet. Then I’d help him with his athletic director duties after school and he’d drive me home as it was on his way home anyway.
Jill Lofald, Denfeld debate coach and English teacher, who threw me my first birthday party after my mom’s death, and it just happened to be my 16th birthday. Lucky for me, Bobby McFarrin’s song Don’t Worry Be Happy was huge right then, and that was the theme of the party. She’d tuck me in bed on debate trips at night and tell us all bedtime stories. She drove me to grief counseling appointments at St Marys grief center during 7th hour when my dad couldn’t or wouldn’t. I never knew If she ever actually had permission to do that or not. She just did it. (She had 7th hr prep)
Dick Swanson, basketball and softball coach. Along with all his assistants, Frank Huie, ******** ********* (who unfriended me on facebook after I expressed my frustration over the boards treatment of Art). Swannie went above and beyond involving me in his life outside school and letting me hang after school with him until I had to go home. I never wanted to go home. I can’t count the number of meals he bought for me as he took me out to eat all the time. We spent endless hours on the phone when I was home and was lonely. Even on most holidays. And late at night. My dad started working the midnight shift at Diamond Tool in my 11th grade year, as he couldn’t sleep anyway. He’d leave at 10pm, and return at 7 am. I’d call Swannie often just because I was scared. I was home all alone during those times.
Ed Felien, science teacher, who invited me to his home often and tried to show me what a family really could be. He would take me places just because, like sailboating on Lake Superior with a friend of his, or to go tap maples to make syrup at John Moeller’s (another science teacher) house in the woods. He’d let me walk his dogs, help him tend to his bees that he harvested honey from, and was always just there, with a life lesson. He told me near graduation that no other person made Gene Grembowski a better teacher in his entire teaching career. Before me, Gene was a no nonsense fact based teacher. After 3 years with me hanging around, he learned how to connect with students, and actually enjoy the student teacher relationship experience he had always been terrified of developing with his classes. Ed said I taught Gene more than Gene could have ever taught me, and he knew as Ed was mentoring Gene.
I can’t name them all, without forgetting someone. Dick Gastler (who always reminded me my mom was a cadet for him way back when), Linda Soderstrom home Ec who gave me an I Am Loved button because she said I needed to be reminded of that. , Joan Fisketti counselor who took me shopping for my ninth grade dance outfit, Thomas Bersell counselor who is still in my life now and has always made a point to make me feel cared about, David Hieb social worker who was only allowed to work with SpEd kids, but I was his special project and once told me, when I was in my teens, that he has never known another person with a better gut instinct than me and I always amazed him at how accurate I was at predicting people’s behavior in situations. (I think you just saw that with this whole job interview thing. I knew something was wrong and not going to be favorable to me) he was the very first person I called when my mom died, and the very first person I verbally said the words to: my mom is dead. He had called IIU earlier that day and tried to get my mom help. I had four big exams that same day. I aced them all even knowing my mom was unstable and was going to be put in the hospital as soon as they could get a hold of her. Ellie Martin counselor who always made time and space for me to cry, Lisa Mitchell who overlooked attendance, rules, and trusted me enough to know I was a good kid and would always make the best choice possible, Rodger Maida math teacher who let the football co captain drag my desk over to his and the FB caps and I would do our pre-call together with his arm around me every class period. No one said boo about it in class, and it was the first time I knew someone could flirt with me and like me. (He had a girlfriend too, who he is married to now, and ironically works on occasion with Mike, the guy I married as mike’s conductor on the railroad) Jim Phelps shop teacher who allowed my BFF at the time Lisa and I to stay after school and hang out in the shop woodworking room with him every Wednesday night, for 7th, 8th, and 9th grades.
this list can continue forever, and is one of my top 5 losses when it came to my basement flood now. This is because each of these people took meticulous time to write in my yearbook encouraging notes and letters that helped me through some very dark times. And those notes, yearbook messages, and cards given to me were all lost in the flood, completely destroyed.
A friend suggested I get a copy of the yearbooks from the school if they had them. I told them it wasn’t the books that I missed, it was the people who made it a point to become a part of my life then and left their various marks that were stored within my yearbooks or part of the books themselves.
It was the only times I ever heard good things about myself, and helped me believe I was worth something.
Just more irreplaceable things lost that nothing can make better.
Education supported this girl to help me see more possibilities in this world that I never would have been exposed to had I been left adrift in my multigenerational poverty family where I already knew I didn’t belong. who’s basic life consists of working because they had to while they wait for the moment they can go party and drink and drug and have random sex partners to take away their stressors. I was very lucky to have each and every one of those teachers in my life at that time to support my choice to not do those things.
Thanks for giving me a reason to revisit all these memories of important people in my life. I’m not sure you wanted to know so much, but now you know the education system I experienced from 1986 – 1991. And I wouldn’t be who I am without every one of them.
Alanna Oswald
