UNSUNG HEROES 2022
Getting that honor this year especially means a lot .
“ I actually questioned , especially after this year , like maybe I ’ m supposed to move on and find something else , maybe God has another road for me to go down . So , I was nominated and I told my family , I ’ m going to put out the fleece and say ‘ alright God , if I make it to a semifinalist , then I know you want me to stay .’ So this summer , I ’ ve just been waiting and praying for God to open that door if that ’ s where I was supposed to walk through and he opened it and it ’ s a miracle . It ’ s just been such a confirmation to put it very lightly , that he did put me in this position and validating that what I ’ ve done over the last decade of my life has meant something and I have been doing what I was supposed to do and I was created to teach kids .”
Preston said she was born to be a teacher , following in her mother ’ s footsteps .
“ My mom was a teacher for 31 years and she always says even when she was pregnant with me , when she was teaching , I would go wild in her stomach ,” Preston said . “ She was just this phenomenal teacher . She would sing opera and juggle her shoes and dance on the desks . She actually danced on the desks while she was pregnant with me .”
“ I had considered other careers but none of them felt like a calling but teaching did ,” Preston added . “ Even when I was a little girl , I played teacher with my cousin and I tutored her and things like that when I was young . Then , when I was in middle school — I had the most phenomenal teachers all through school but in middle school I had Coach Jackson and I can remember sitting in his classroom and thinking ‘ I have to teach middle school , I have to .’” Preston has been teaching alongside some of her favorite teachers for the last 10 years , something she said has been a really special experience .
“ The teachers that I work with and the teachers that I had in school are just
the absolute best ,” she said . “ I can ’ t state enough how blessed I have been to have the most phenomenal teachers to empower me . They have been really good to show me how to best serve my students .”
Over the last 11 years , Preston has worn many hats . She currently serves as a sponsor for First Priority and has a girls leadership club that meets on Friday mornings called “ More than Rubies ,” in addition to several other extracurriculars . In her role with First Priority , Preston has been able to wit-
Morgan Preston has been teaching alongside some of her favorite teachers for the la
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