Post-High School Important Life Events (0h 30min, may 16, 2011 y – 16h 56min, aug 24, 2016 y)
Description:
Freshman year- my papa was diagnosed with cancer.
Sophomore year-my papa died of cancer.
The next 5 years I was grieving extensively, and it effected every part of my life.
Senior year (plus one extra year) I had a professor named Christine Tokonitz at Warner Pacific College. I was almost done with college at this point, but made me want to switch majors and become a teacher. She was inspiring and all around amazing and I wanted to impact students like she did. However, I was so close to graduation I stuck it out, and graduated May 2015. That August 12th (my birthday) our cohort gets an email saying she has cancer and is going to fight hard and she cares about all of us. We try to go see her, but she is too sick. August 17th, one week later, she died. I am grieving another loss.
May 2016-My husband and I become emergency placement foster parents for twin 21-month old’s.
I included these post-high school experiences because I think they were the biggest reason I decided to go back to school to even become a teacher, and will help shape me to be a better teacher. Before my grandpa died I don’t know if I could relate to how deep a person can and does grieve a loss of a loved one. And the unfortunate truth is some students will experience this loss much earlier in life than I did.
Christine Tokonitz inspired me like no teacher has before. I was majoring in Healthcare Administration, and those are the courses she taught, but she inspired me to be a teacher. And again, I had to experience grief of someone I truly looked up to.
Having foster kids taught me a lot. I think I understand the trauma some kids go through on a more real level now than previously. It was also the last straw in my decision to go to grad school to become a teacher. I knew after having them in my home that my place was as a teacher, as a voice, and hopefully one day as an inspiration to my students.
Added to timeline:
MAT 548 Timeline
Timeline of life events
Date:
