Cullman Senior Magazine Summer 2020 | Page 19

make a difference in our lives. When I started fifth grade at West Point School, I met such a per- son. She is a teacher I will always remember: Ms. Gerdye Howell. “Today as I look back, I realize that she had very little state or county money to spend in the class- room,” Harbison wrote. “I am sure she spent much of her own money to meet our needs. Through her creativeness, she instilled in me a desire and love for learning. She showed patience, kindness, and encouragement, as she so faithfully taught from day to day.” Harbison said that her former teacher let her know that she was extremely strict in her teaching and, that as a student, she must always do her best. “She would accept nothing short of this,” Harbi- son penned in her article. As a child, Harbison said, she kind of thought her mentor was “called” to teach, much like a preacher is “called” to preach. “I noticed that this lady didn’t just teach the Bible, she lived it. Many students soon found that she believed, very strong- ly, in Proverbs 13:22 : ‘He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is careful to disci- pline him.’” Harbison said her former teacher also let her students know she loved them. “Building good character and getting along with others were very important to her,” said Harbison. “She never read the Ten Commandments to us, as I remember, but now I understand where she got her rules. We were not allowed to steal, give false testament against others, misuse God’s name or use other bad language. We were taught to treat oth- ers as we wanted to be treated. Within her was the desire to make a difference in educating children. “I was very fortunate in being able to do my student teaching with her 33 years ago,” she said. “It brought back so many precious memories. But in working with her, I also learned many things of practical use that were never covered in textbooks. I learned the importance in helping each child to do his or her best. Her classroom management and control was just as emphatic as it has been when I was a fifth grader. Just as in my days, the students loved her dearly.” Alice Harbison as a child. Harbison said after spending nearly 36 years in a classroom of her own, she found herself using some of Howell’s methods. “I put forth the effort to read to my students every day because that was my favorite time of the day when I was in her class- room as a student. “Ms. Howell, not only made a difference in my life, but she made a difference in hundreds of lives through her many years dedicated to teaching,” she said. “I often thought that when she arrived in heaven she would wear a crown with hundreds of jewels to represent the many lives she has touched.” Harbison also won many awards over the years for her outstanding service as an educator—the plaques displayed elegantly on shelves in her home library. As Harbison recalled the impact her teacher had on her, she couldn’t help but reflect over how much teaching has changed since she taught school. “There is so much more that teachers can do technology wise that they couldn’t do when I was teaching,” she said. “Take Pinterest for example; this source of technology provides a gateway to cre- ativity that we didn’t have back then.” CULLMAN COUNTY SENIOR MAGAZINE SUMMER 2020 | 19