Retiring educators share bond of making a difference
By John Shaughnessy
They share a bond for wanting to make a difference in the lives of their students.
They share a sacrifice, willingly accepting less so they can give more to others.
They share a belief in an education based on faith and values.
Combine those qualities and you have the essence of a person who becomes an educator in the Catholic school system.
They are the qualities that mark the lives of Richard Powell, Barbara Leek and Mary Ann Sullivan, three of the longtime Catholic educators in the archdiocese who are retiring this year after dedicating their lives to their students and to Catholic education.
Here is a brief glimpse into each of their careers and the difference they have made.
A teacher of faith and passion
The first sign came in an e-mail—one of the many notes, cards and calls that Richard Powell has received from people who want to thank him for his 43 years of teaching at Bishop Chatard High School in Indianapolis.
“The e-mail was from a former student who is a second-grade teacher,” Powell said as he sat in his classroom on May 30, the last day of school. “She said, ‘You have been my inspiration.’ She said I wouldn’t remember her, but I did.”
The second sign came at the end of the graduation ceremony for Bishop Chatard’s Class of 2008 on May 29. All the graduating seniors had seemingly received their diplomas and yet one was left over. As the longtime religion and philosophy teacher for seniors, Powell worried that a student had been overlooked or forgotten.
Then Bishop Chatard president Bill Sahm stepped to the microphone and announced that there was one more diploma to be awarded. After he listed the praises of Powell, Sahm presented him with an honorary diploma. The crowd rose in unison, giving Powell a standing ovation as he tried to hold back his tears.
“I got emotional,” he recalled. “I almost couldn’t get through the alma mater.”
Both moments show the impact of Powell, a teacher who touched lives and hearts at one school for 43 years.
“He saw a student as more than someone who came to class,” said Benedictine Sister Louise Hoeing, a longtime friend and the director of guidance at Bishop Chatard. “He wanted them to take the knowledge, build on it and be confident that they had something to offer society. He made an impact.”
For Powell, there is joy and pride in knowing he has made a difference. There is sadness in knowing the career he loves has ended.
“I’ll miss the students. I’ll miss the parents, the fellow teachers and the staff. But most of all, I’ll miss the teaching,” he said.
He taught with a keen intelligence, a sharp wit and a deep passion.
“We try to instill in the students the teachings of the Church,” he once said. “Then you take that teaching and ask, ‘How do you apply it to your life?’ ”
Powell then offered the answer that has guided his 66 years of life so far and his 43 years as a teacher: “Search for the truth, find God, live the message and be happy. Find God in the Scriptures and in your life, but more so in your fellow human beings. And recognize that aspect of divinity.”
Sitting in his classroom on the last day of school, Powell offered a lesson that he hopes lasts with his students:
“Take care of one another. Watch out for one another. Be concerned about one another and love one another.”
They’re the lessons that define Powell’s life.
Two snapshots, two pieces of advice
One of the snapshots is flattering, the other amusing. Yet both capture the mark that Barbara Leek has made as an educator.
The first snapshot comes from 2004, showing Leek—the principal of St. Christopher School in Indianapolis—celebrating with students and teachers as the school community received the news that it had been chosen as a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence by the U.S. Department of Education.
The second snapshot captures Leek wearing a rain poncho as she takes a pie in the face from a student who sold the most pies in a school fundraiser.
“It just shows she cares enough that she’ll do just about anything for the good of the school,” says Debbie Guenin, the school secretary.
Now, after 39 years of caring for others as an educator, Leek will retire in June, knowing it’s time to take care of herself.
“There’s the realization that at age 60, I’ve been going to school since I was 6 years old,” she says with a laugh. “I think it’s time to slow down because the pace is ever increasing. I have my health, and I’d like to enjoy it for a few years.”
Leek began serving the archdiocese in 1973. She has taught at St. Christopher School, the former St. Ann School and St. Simon the Apostle School, all in Indianapolis. She also served as principal of St. Michael School in Greenfield for three years. She has spent 19 years as the principal of St. Christopher.
Through her career, she has followed the advice that she received from a mentor teacher when she was student teaching.
“She gave me two pieces of advice that have always stuck with me,” Leek recalls. “The first thing she told me was, ‘Be kind, be firm and be sincere.’ She also told me that I would be the best mother that some of the children I worked with would ever have. It just meant for me to be a calm, steady, caring influence that a child could rely on. It’s still great advice for today.”
That approach has led to many rewarding moments for Leek.
“Some of my favorite moments are when students who have been through the school come back when they’re in high school, college or after they’ve married,” she says. “In their reminiscing, it’s very clear how meaningful their elementary school years were to them.”
In her last newsletter to the St. Christopher school community, Leek shared her emotions about leaving a place she loves.
“The memories can bring tears to my eyes, but more than that, they bring fullness to my heart. In this world that moves so fast and is so crazy, I can rest in the belief that somehow, somewhere, and with someone, I have made a difference. Please know that each of you has made my life richer, fuller and so much more memorable. May the grace of God be with you always.”
A picture of faith in action
The one thing you need to know about Mary Ann Sullivan is that she has kept every picture of every class she has taught.
“I have about 30 classroom pictures,” says Sullivan, a longtime teacher, principal and director of religious education in the archdiocese. “The kids I taught are important to me. I get the class pictures out once in a while. I like looking back at the kids.”
Sullivan hopes to have extra time for reminiscing now that she is retiring after dedicating most of her life to Catholic education and religious formation of young people.
She started as an educator in the archdiocese in 1966. For the past eight years, she has been the director of religious education at St. Ambrose Parish in Seymour. She served as a teacher and principal at St. Mary School in North Vernon from 1975 to 1998. She also taught at the former All Saints School and St. Christopher School, both in Indianapolis.
“I tried to pass along the love for the Church and some knowledge of the Church,” says Sullivan, 64, a mother of four and a grandmother of four. “I always wanted to impart the importance of the liturgy, of prayer and of trying to live as a disciple of Christ.”
Sullivan mirrors Christ’s love for others, according to Father Todd Goodson, the pastor of St. Ambrose.
“She does a lot of great work for us,” Father Todd says. “She goes above and beyond. She’s always been committed to the education of children. She’s very good at speaking to them at their level and engaging them.”
Even with all her efforts in education, Sullivan wanted to do more with her life after she pursued a master’s degree in theology at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College from 1999 to 2003.
“The whole focus was, ‘If you just have the faith but you don’t put it into action, what good is it?’ ”
That’s when she started her involvement as a court-appointed special advocate for children.
“There’s a need to help children who get into the court system, generally because of neglect or abuse,” she says. “It seemed like something I could do to live out my faith. Being retired, I’ll have more time to dedicate myself to it. These kids need people to look out for them.”
She also wants to spend more time with her husband of 38 years, James, and their four grandchildren. She wouldn’t mind having extra time either for reading, sewing and traveling.
“The time has certainly gone fast, and I’ve met a lot of good people along the way. I’ve loved working with the children. But I’m old enough and tired enough that I’d like to be on summer vacation the rest of my life,” she says with a laugh. †