I am the very first one to admit that if it were not for teachers, my life path could have been very, very different! In fact, I can honestly say that if it were not for one particular teacher/ school administrator, I might not even be here today.
When I was growing up, a new Junior High School opened in my area. So after elementary school, where a man named Charlie Wiser first entered my life, I went to one school for 7th grade and another for 8th grade. Mr. Wiser seemed to follow. Or was I following him?
In High School, due to some behavioral problems on my end, I went to one school but then was transferred to another. Ironically, Dr. Charlie Wiser also seemed to follow my path.
When I was in high school, I decided living on my own was so much better than living at home – hey teens, is it sooo not – and moved in with my boyfriend and his parents after a quick jaunt to live with my birth father. By the way, all of these ideas in my ‘I know everything’ teen brain, were just wrong!
But as I journeyed through the selfish acts I chose, I always had Charlie Wiser over my shoulder in school. He checked on me, pulled me aside when I started skipping school to work and pay for my little apartment – because I was no better at my boyfriend’s parents – and when I stopped going to school all together, he came to my apartment. To this day, I credit God above for how he knew where I lived.
As we stood outside of my little efficiency apartment and he pleaded with me not to throw my life away and told me about a home study program I could do that would get me to my high school diploma, I remember actually thinking, ‘This man has just changed my life.’
He stood by me every step of the way, watching me take the wrong steps, never judging me for them but guiding me back to the path that I needed to be on. To this very day, it brings tears to my eyes to think about how this teacher, this administrator over 1000’s of students, picked me to help. I give all of the credit in the world to God for making teachers so selfless and caring that even a defiant, know it all, rebellious teen like me can excel in life.
Year’s later, after I was a college graduate with a job at one of the largest brokerage firms out there, I wrote Dr. Wiser a letter. I poured my gratitude into it and told him how much he impacted my life and future. He called me when he got it and I think I heard a crack in his voice when I poured my gracious heart into his hands.
Teacher’s and administrator’s in school are so much more than the ABC’s. They are our educators, believers is us and sometimes even our lifeline.
Office Depot understands the impact a teacher can have on a child. And that they can impact us on so many levels. They are helping YOU reward them so that teacher’s everywhere have the chance to stop paying for supplies in the classroom to educate your kids. Did you know the vast majority of teacher’s pay for their own supplies?
Well, let’s help the out! Register your classroom today with Office Depot’s charity partner AdoptAClassroom.org to participate in the REAL Change Project and be eligible for funding from donors nationwide. 100% of AdoptAClassroom.org donations goes directly to teachers, so they don’t have to spend their own money on supplies!
Office Depot recognizes the contributions teachers make every day to support students:
- $1,000: Out-of-pocket amount spent by the average teacher each year on essential classroom supplies
- 92%: Percentage of teachers who report spending their own money on classroom supplies
- $1.3 billion: Total out-of-pocket amount spent nationally by teachers on classroom supplies each year
So enter your teacher or classroom to participate in the AdoptaClassroom.org program and help Office Depot help them out!
Leave A Comment