I am so excited...this is the first tag that has been passed by someone that I don't know personally...how fun is that!!!! My sister-in-law tagged Joan...who is now tagging Elaine. Who by the way sounds amazing! Thanks for tagging and sharing your story Joan! It's AWESOME! :)
Here is Joan's story...
I am tagging an amazing woman, Elaine Brooks, who has been my friend for almost nine years. Elaine and I met because our daughters were in Conakry, Guinea on the west coast of Africa at the same time. My daughter, Michelle, was on her first assignment as a Foreign Service officer in the American Embassy. Margy, Elaine’s daughter, was there because her husband worked for USAID. When Michelle’s next assignment was Tunisia, she stayed in touch with Margy. Michelle had her second daughter and I sent pictures to Margy telling her that I was having Grandma withdrawal after Michelle had to return to Tunisia after the baby’s birth. Margy’s email informed me that her mother was also suffering grandchild withdrawal and that she wanted to connect us by email. I received my first email from Elaine that very day. We have been emailing almost daily since February of 2003 and include in our emails two other women, Patty and Bertha who live in CT. Elaine and I are the only two who have physically met, but we four “sisters” couldn’t be closer.
Elaine and I have had similar lives in many respects, however Elaine has done much more traveling and remembers everything. Elaine and I both are retired teachers and, though I did work to support our Teachers Union, she was a real activist. She also did much to set up and help administer the Catastrophic Leave Policy for teachers in Oakland. Elaine is now working part-time, sometimes as a counselor and sometimes as a teacher, to put two of her grandchildren through college. Her grandson will graduate with his BA next May and her granddaughter is almost finished with her AA degree.
Elaine has been very involved in the continued education of young people who would otherwise have fallen between the cracks. She spent most of her teaching life pushing for good continuation type programs to enable students to get their high school diploma. She can motivate and excite students and bring them through the tough classes with an eagerness to learn and to make it in the outside world after graduation. She worked very hard to have real graduations for these students who might never have gotten a high school diploma if it were not for Elaine and her fellow teachers at Edward Shands Adult School. An article about her had a fellow teacher saying that, “The school was a haven of sorts for the many young and old folks who had not graduated from high school with their classmates or who had arrived in this country with limited English and were struggling to study after work, and with family responsibilities .” These were the students that Elaine fought for, encouraged, and developed as productive members of our society through her caring and dedicated hard work. She inspired the students and worked very hard to have all students reach their goals.
Elaine and I have had similar lives in many respects, however Elaine has done much more traveling and remembers everything. Elaine and I both are retired teachers and, though I did work to support our Teachers Union, she was a real activist. She also did much to set up and help administer the Catastrophic Leave Policy for teachers in Oakland. Elaine is now working part-time, sometimes as a counselor and sometimes as a teacher, to put two of her grandchildren through college. Her grandson will graduate with his BA next May and her granddaughter is almost finished with her AA degree.
Elaine has been very involved in the continued education of young people who would otherwise have fallen between the cracks. She spent most of her teaching life pushing for good continuation type programs to enable students to get their high school diploma. She can motivate and excite students and bring them through the tough classes with an eagerness to learn and to make it in the outside world after graduation. She worked very hard to have real graduations for these students who might never have gotten a high school diploma if it were not for Elaine and her fellow teachers at Edward Shands Adult School. An article about her had a fellow teacher saying that, “The school was a haven of sorts for the many young and old folks who had not graduated from high school with their classmates or who had arrived in this country with limited English and were struggling to study after work, and with family responsibilities .” These were the students that Elaine fought for, encouraged, and developed as productive members of our society through her caring and dedicated hard work. She inspired the students and worked very hard to have all students reach their goals.
These same traits have helped the four of us, who have emailed each other almost every day, keep our spirits up and our knowledge growing. Elaine is wonderful about providing background about all current events. She is supportive and encouraging, when one of us is going through stressful times. Patty lost her husband to Lou Gehrig’s disease, last year. Elaine supported me the year that I took my mother into our home when she showed signs of Alzheimer’s , and cared for her, before she passed away. I personally don’t know what I might have done without her support and good thoughts during my last nine years. She is one of the very best friends that I have and I am privileged to know her.
Elaine Brooks is an amazing lady!
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