Remember When. . . I Taught a Georgia Teacher of the Year!

Kristen Ellsworth Applebee was my student in 7th and 8th grade home economics, and she participated in my after school gingerbread house building. She is second in a family of 6, each of whom is remarkable, kind, creative former students. Their mother was soon to become my teaching partner, and because we were so different, we made a good team that was a real benefit to our students. Eventually, I was made an honorary Aunt and have been connected to the family ever since.

cKristen now teaches Art at the Georgia Academy for the Blind. Did you catch that? She teaches Art to visually impaired students! That statement alone is mind-boggling, but if you check out Kristen's Blog you will be really impressed. It is an excellent resource for any art teacher, parent, or crafter.​

So, I was not surprised to hear she was selected in the top 10 for Georgia Teacher of the Year (GTOY) and was later chosen as National 2019 Outstanding Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments! Woohoo! As soon as I heard about the GTOY, I headed to the grocery store and filled my cart with our native foods; Hershey, Dove and Wilbur chocolate. When I realized that by the time it got to her in Georgia in May, it would be a delicious puddle, back on the shelf it went and I settled on making her piece of stained glass instead.​

On her blog, I found two pieces of student artwork that would translate to stained glass well. Of course, I asked Kristen if she would like me to do this and which would she prefer. Her response was, "Yes, please!" and she chose the butterfly. I was excited about the challenge of the butterfly, but when she explained that it was a group project and done to honor a student who had passed away, it seemed a perfect way to honor her dedication to her craft. She also discussed the size she wanted because, of course, she wanted to hang it in her classroom.

 Design in hand, I headed to Rainbow Vision Stained Glass in Harrisburg. Lynn, the owner, is always so helpful, but when I explained what I was doing, she went above and beyond. She gave me a one and half hour master class on how to design a stained glass piece. Her help dramatically improved the quality of the end piece, and I walked away with skills I will use over and over again. I can't thank her enough.

Stained glass comes in many colors and textures. It also varies in clarity from glass that allows light to shine through to totally opaque pieces. More than anything, I wanted to give her students the chance to see this piece, so I choose glass that allowed as much color to come through as possible. Rainbow Vision had a great selection of beautiful glass that would do the trick!

The finished piece turned out great, and I got to give it to her in person when she visited this July!

Congratulations, Kristen! You have always been an outstanding teacher in my book, and I am glad you are receiving the recognition you deserve. You are truly a blessing to your students and always help them to fly!