Dad’s miracle, cross-country bike ride and a child’s garden help teacher to serve God

Christy Schmeckebier of St. Charles Borromeo School in Bloomington has been chosen as this year’s recipient of the Saint Theodore Excellence in Education Award, the highest honor the archdiocese gives a Catholic school educator. (Photo by John Shaughnessy)

By John Shaughnessy

BLOOMINGTON—There was a time in her life when Christy Schmeckebier measured success by her accomplishments.

She competed in the Little 500 bicycle race at Indiana University in Bloomington.

She rode a bike 3,300 miles across the United States one summer—averaging 80 miles a day—to raise funds for the American Lung Association.

She also was selected for the prestigious Lilly Endowment Teacher Creativity Fellowship Award.

“These were tangible achievements, easily measured and celebrated,” she notes. “Now, my perspective has changed. My biggest accomplishments are more about everyday acts of service and faith. They involve waking up each day ready to serve the person in front of me and saying ‘yes’ when opportunities arise to be a vessel of God’s love and grace.”

That’s why there is something different for her about the latest honor she has received—being chosen as this year’s recipient of the Saint Theodore Excellence in Education Award, the highest honor the archdiocese gives an educator.

“I’m grateful and humbled by it,” says Schmeckebier [pronounced Schmeck-a-beer], the science teacher for 6th-, 7th- and 8th-grade students at St. Charles Borromeo School in Bloomington. “You never expect those things.”

Beyond the gifts she shares as a teacher, she has her own flair for the unexpected. It’s there when she choreographs an entertaining dance for the Christmas program, or when she enthusiastically takes part in a staff-versus-students’ tug-of-war, or when she shares one of the deeply personal moments from her life with her students, like the story of the moment involving her dad that she considers a miracle.

The hand of God, the touch of a teacher

“I always share the very first miracle I ever witnessed,” she says. “I was in fourth grade at St. Bartholomew School in Columbus. My dad built houses, and he was building one that day. He had done the blue foam on the exterior of the house, and he was standing on a ladder up near the second floor. The wind began to blow the ladder backward.

“He punched a hole through the foam, to try to hold onto something, but he wasn’t able. The ladder fell backward. They had rebar set for the foundation of a walk-out basement. He landed on a rebar. It went eight inches or so into his back.”

She takes a deep breath before continuing, “I remember the doctor saying that if it had been one centimeter to the right, it would have hit a vital organ and killed him. And if it had been one centimeter to the left, it would have hit his spine and paralyzed him.

“I remember being in the hospital room and my entire extended family was around his hospital bed, praying the rosary. It was such a powerful moment, and I think about the impact my dad has had on the world with his great gift of building homes for people.”

Her colleagues say the 47-year-old teacher has her own ways as a builder— building up students and building community within the school.

“Through hands-on science labs, thoughtful questioning and real-world connections, she inspires her students to explore, imagine and persevere,” wrote Tori Arther, St. Charles’ principal, in nominating Schmeckebier for the Saint Theodore Award. “Her ability to balance high expectations with genuine support ensures that every child feels capable and confident.”

Fellow middle school teacher Michelle Goetz noted, “Christy embodies the heart of Catholic education. She lifts others up, leads with humility and radiates a joy for teaching that is contagious.”

These qualities shine through during a visit to her classroom and in conversations with her students.

“She’s nice, and she always has fun activities to help us learn,” said Brody Johnson, a sixth-grade student.

Sixth-grader Ellie Ohlrich added, “She really helps us to have a deeper understanding of what we’re learning. And she always makes sure that you’re OK. If something is going wrong, she’ll make sure you’re better.”

The teacher’s gift of compassion is especially evident in two defining moments, including during a time of heartbreak in the St. Charles community.

‘To experience a deep, profound hope’

After 10 years as a Boy Scouts leader, the mother of two sons and a daughter signed up last summer as a volunteer for the No One Dies Alone program at Bloomington Hospital.

“I was with my grandfather, my stepsister and my mother when they took their last breath,” she says. “I just know the value of having someone present because that is such a sacred moment when the soul goes on to the next heavenly realm.”

She also organized a memorial program at St. Charles in December of 2024, in response to several heartbreaking losses the school experienced in a short time.

In 2023, the school community mourned the death of 8-year-old Iris Laughlin, the daughter of the school nurse, Susan Laughlin. In 2024, Braden Urbanski, the oldest son of kindergarten teacher Jennifer Urbanski, died. That same year, Michele Graf, a beloved,

long-time preschool teacher and the mother of third-grade teacher Madeline Graf, passed. In 2024, there was also the loss of Vera Miller, the infant of first-grade teacher Amy Miller.

In organizing the memorial program, Schmeckebier viewed it as a reflection of the close-knit community at St. Charles, a place of “family” where joys and sorrows are shared deeply together.

“It just really helped us all to focus on honoring the gift of our loved ones’ lives and really being grateful to God for the gift of heaven and salvation and the hope we have in Jesus,” she says. “It just really united all of us and gave us a safe place to grieve but also to experience a deep, profound hope.”

That hope is captured in one of Schmeckebier’s favorite places on the school’s campus, Iris’ Garden, named in honor of the 8-year-old girl. It’s a scenic setting for prayer and meditation marked by a statue of the Blessed Mother.

“Hope” is also the gift she strives to share with her students now—and for their future.

“I want them to take away the message that God works through all circumstances,” she says. “He can use pain and suffering for his good and his glory. And I hope they are also inspired by the topics we study, to think about how they can use their gifts in future careers—to go out and serve the world and make a difference.”

She has set that goal for herself, too, a goal that’s reflected in the intriguing ways she is putting her Lilly Endowment Teacher Creativity Fellowship Award into play.

A journey to the heart of God

She used the first half of her fellowship award to travel to Ireland last summer with her father, her stepmother and her three children—a time of faith and family.

In 2000, she had spent eight weeks as a student teacher in Ireland, a setting where, she says, “my initial passion for science education was ignited.”

She wanted to return to the school where she trained, to visit the host family she lived with, and to draw close emotionally to her late mother for the memorable times they shared in Ireland.

There was also the desire to be spiritually renewed, “to pray along the Cliffs of Moher and the shores of Donegal once again.”

And to do it all with her children, Connor, 17, Anna, 15, and Luke, 12.

“As the mother of three uniquely different children, I have developed a profound appreciation for the distinct gifts and designs God places in each life,” she says. “One of my greatest accomplishments is raising my children to understand that their worth is not defined by worldly success, but by the fact they are deeply loved and created by God.”

She will use the second half of her fellowship award this summer to travel to France, Germany and Italy. There, she plans to explore historical sites related to several world-changing scientists with Catholic ties, including Galileo, Mercalli and Pasteur.

She views it as “a sacred pilgrimage,” one that “bridges the realms of faith and science by connecting to the legacies of Catholic innovators.”

Combined with her journey to Ireland, she believes both experiences will continue to help her transform the lives of her students.

She already knows that God has transformed her as a teacher, a mother, a person.

“I do not have all the answers or solutions,” she says. “God has taught me to walk humbly with him, praying in adoration, praying the rosary, meditating on his word, and striving to live the life he has called me to live.

“I have learned to persevere and maintain hope even when circumstances fall apart. I hope that my compassion for others and my genuine love for every human being can serve as a light that draws people closer to Christ. I know that I can’t accomplish anything on my own. Yet, as Philippians 4:13 reminds me, ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.’ ” †

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Four other educators were finalists for archdiocese’s highest honor for education

While Christy Schmeckebier of St. Charles Borromeo School in Bloomington received this year’s Saint Theodore Excellence in Education Award, the archdiocese’s Office of Catholic Schools also recognized the four other finalists for the highest honor for an educator in the archdiocese.

The four other finalists were:

• Brittney Belt, a teacher at Pope John XXIII School in Madison.
• Maria Alejandrina Caldera, a teacher at Holy Spirit School in Indianapolis.
• Sally Meyer, a teacher at St. Jude School in Indianapolis.
• Kate Vu, a teacher at St. Gabriel School in Connersville.