Our daughter recently learned she has to wear a cumbersome, uncomfortable back brace to help curb the progression of scoliosis. Her teacher at Veterans Park Elementary, Pam Bradley, and assistant, Valerie McCaw, have been extremely supportive through the entire process of doctors’ appointments, missed school and learning to wear the brace. They allowed me to speak to their class, teaching a little about scoliosis and sharing that my daughter would be wearing a brace to school. On the day my daughter was absent from class to go to her brace fitting, the students made "Welcome Back" cards, and Ms. Bradley called to check on our daughter. The day our daughter first wore her brace to school, Ms. Bradley, Mrs. McCaw and many of the students wore UnderArmour and other athletic shirts in support of my daughter, who has to wear that type of apparel under her brace to protect her skin. Ms. Bradley even took a class photo of all the students in their special shirts and posted it on her Web site! Also, during the first day our daughter wore her brace to school, Ms. Bradley allowed her to take time to show her brace, having each classmate decorate the brace with a sticker so that each student has seen and touched the brace up close, and there are now no mysteries about this medical appliance. As our daughter has adjusted to wearing the brace, we have had to pop in and out of school, giving bathroom breaks, checking for pressure sores and making sure she stays healthy. Every time we walk into the classroom, we are greeted with welcoming smiles. Sincere thanks to Ms. Bradley, Mrs. McCaw and to all the upper primary students in their class. You have made something that could have been a horrible experience into something that’s not so bad – and actually kind of fun! We appreciate you!

-- Submitted by a grateful parent

-- Submitted by Amanda Xenos, parent

Our daughter entered kindergarten at Veterans Park Elementary this year. We have another, older child who attends the school, so we were already comfortable with the process, and had heard good things about our kindergartener's assigned teacher – but we were still misty-eyed and a little worried this morning as we walked away from the school building. Before noon today, however, we had an email update from our child's kindergarten classroom. While the students were at lunch, Rebecca Puckett took time to let the parents know that their children were faring well on this first day of school. In addition to that, she included a list of conversation topics in the email to help initiate conversation with children who are sometimes reticent – or too overwhelmed – to discuss their school experiences. In the paperwork sent home today, Mrs. Puckett included another list of activities from the school day, a personal note in an interactive journal for the parents and sent home homemade modeling dough for the students. When my daughter proclaimed school to be "great," that capped a day of wonderful experiences for her parents. Thank you to Mrs. Puckett for going above and beyond our expectations. She has set the bar high for the rest of the year, but you know what? I expect she can raise it even higher as the days go by! I certainly am going to enjoy watching and participating as she attempts it!

Submitted By: Tammie Marsh, Parent

I just wanted to let you know that your school Web site is great! To be able to see what my daughter Ellen is doing in Ms. (Rebecca) Puckett’s class is the highlight of my day.

Being deployed to Kuwait and away from home is not easy but having the ability to stay connected with Ellen and her school activities makes me feel not quite as removed from everything. When we talk during the week I can then ask her about specific things she is doing at school. I try to spend a few minutes each day visiting the Web page as it always lifts my spirits.

I miss family, friends, KY and the good ol’ USA immensely and count the months until I can come home. Thanks for everything that you and your staff do.

Submitted by: Major Bradley D. Harrington, U.S. Army, 377th Theater Support Command (FWD) - G1 Section

Well wishes make illness go by faster

In October, when my daughter was at home sick with pneumonia, her Kindergarten teacher Mrs. Rebecca Puckett called her several times to wish her well and offer encouragement. Madison was so anxious to go back to school I had to beg her to stay home until she was better! My daughter has had an awesome experience with Mrs. Puckett at Veterans Park Elementary School – we love her!

Submitted by Millicent Carmouche, Parent

Fire doesn’t destroy kindness

Our family had a house fire in December. My little girl’s first grade teacher, Andrea Gilliam at Veterans Park Elementary, evidently contacted parents and/or other teachers and staff about our loss. I’m not sure how this was orchestrated, but we received bags upon bags of clothing for the kids, gift cards for food at local restaurants, new clothes, gently used clothes, coats, toys, stuffed animals, and the list goes on. It was like Christmas every day! This thoughtfulness really made the transition through the fire as smooth as possible. We are blessed to have Ms. Gilliam as a part of the VPE family.

Submitted by Jared Combs, Parent
Veterans Park Elementary

Fred helps child excel

I am Muqi Qiu, father of Maxwell Qiu, who is attending Veterans Park Elementary. I think I spotted a Fred at your school. That Fred is my son’s teacher, Mrs. Andrea Gilliam. I hope it’s not too late to let you know this. Maybe you already knew through other parents that she is a Fred.

I have been hesitating about sending this email out ever since I saw this request on your McVey’s Message of Decemeber 2005, because my son wasn’t her best student yet. But he made a great progress last semester and that has a lot to do with Mrs. Gilliam.

In August 2005, I wasn’t sure if Max was ready for kindergarten because he spoke very limited English at the time. He turned out to speak a much better, though not perfect, English, write much better, understand the language much better, and behave much better.

In the very few times I was having lunch with Max, I was surprisingly impressed with how well her students behaved outside their classroom, how orderly the line of their class was, and how quiet they were when they were eating in their classroom. I was surprised because those happened in the very first weeks of the semester. Mrs. Gilliam must have some magic so that the students were well trained in a short time. Besides the school open house, I had two teacher-parent conferences with Mrs. Gilliam. Each time, her classroom looked neat and well organized. She knew everything Max learned and performed at school everyday, his weekly progress, and things that Max needed to be emphasized from time to time.

Her teaching was interesting and innovative. The insect project at the beginning of the semester attracted all 27 curious and knowledge-thirsty young minds. It turned out to be very successful, because at least Max and our whole family learned many, many things from it. There’s one thing that must have to do with Mrs. Gilliam’s teaching and/or her magnetic personality: whenever Max was sick and stayed at home for more that one day, he always asked if he could go to school because he was missing Mrs. Gilliam very much.

Mrs. Gilliam is also very caring. Whenever Max was sick at home, she always sent him wish-well cards and called him to wish him get well soon. To help Max with his language learning and to make up the work he left behind due to sickness, Mrs. Gilliam made phonic charts and flash cards and personally brought them to our house with additional educational toys.

She did go extra miles to deliver to Max. And I am sure she delivers to all her pupils everyday!

Submitted by Muqi Qiu, Parent
Veterans Park Elementary School

Unlocking each child’s potential

Leslie Nuckols and Kay Isaacs at Veterans Park Elementary School have gone out of their way to help my son overcome his ADHD and demonstrate his true potential. They worked with him and gave him the extra attention and materials he needed to qualify for the gifted and talented program for middle school next year, even when he had trouble getting some of his work done in time. I remember as a child what difference teachers can make, and these two have probably had a lasting effect on my son’s future.

Submitted by A Grateful Parent
Veterans Park Elementary

Extra effort ensures child’s safety

A Fred Sighting goes to Janet Jones at Veterans Park Elementary. When school was dismissed early because of approaching bad weather, she made several phone calls and sent me an email trying to get a hold of me to confirm that my son would not arrive to an empty home. In fear that I would not get through to her on the school’s phones, she even left her personal cell number in her messages so that I’d be able to get back in touch with her to confirm he’d be OK! She truly is a wonderful and thoughtful teacher, as is everyone at Veterans Park Elementary!

Submitted by Paula Howard, Parent
Veterans Park Elementary

A shared enthusiasm for kids

As the homeroom parent for a Kindergarten/first grade class at Veterans Park Elementary, I needed to plan the winter party for a class of 24 lower primary students. Because it was for my daughter’s class, I needed a FUN theme. Because I am a former teacher (and still a teacher at heart), I needed a theme that would be educational, too. Knowing that VPE music teacher Mrs. Laura Bosworth had taught the lower primary classes about The Nutcracker ballet, I decided to piggyback onto her teaching with a party loosely based on The Nutcracker. When I began the party with a retelling of The Nutcracker story, I was amazed at how much the students knew! They pitched in to tell even more details than I had planned to include in my retelling, and were excited about sharing what they had learned. Mrs. Bosworth clearly had gotten their collective attention and had shared her love of the ballet with them. The afternoon of the day school got out for winter break, I couldn’t contain my enthusiasm any longer. Although I knew that all the teachers would probably be hustling and bustling around to prepare for the upcoming holidays, and the last thing they would want would be a call at home from a parent, I called anyway. Mrs. Bosworth took time to return my call, and talked to me extensively about The Nutcracker, her lessons and the party. Far from seeming upset that I had interrupted her cherished vacation time, she shared my enthusiasm for the students’ learning AND thanked me multiple times for calling to share my experience. Mrs. Bosworth truly went above and beyond my expectations and I appreciate having someone with her enthusiasm (and graciousness) working with my child at Veterans Park Elementary.

Submitted by Tamela Marsh, Parent
Veterans Park Elementary

Teacher’s work goes beyond the classroom

My son had Mrs. Christi Lindeman last school year for kindergarten and I can not say enough wonderful things about her. She is an incredible teacher. He learned far more than I ever expected. She is the most dedicated teacher a parent or student could ever ask for. Not only did she spend numerous hours in the classroom, she also attended one of my son’s basketball and tee ball games. I know she has a family of her own, yet she took the time to watch my son’s (and many other kids in her class) games. Words can not express what it meant to my son to see his teacher in the stands cheering for him. She definitely cares for the kids and goes above and beyond the call of duty. I was so impressed by the number of hours she spent working on the “Wack-a-Doo Zoo” play. We had several family members come watch and they were all in awe of the wonderful job the kids and teachers did. I was also overwhelmed by the incredible scrapbook she gave to each child at the end of the year. This scrapbook is something our family will always treasure. Once again, Mrs. Lindeman went over and beyond the call of duty.

I am sending you this because I want you to know how much we appreciate her. Many times teachers do not get the proper recognition and appreciation. I just want you to know how much we love Mrs. Lindeman. I am so glad my son will be in her class again next year. We feel so blessed and fortunate to have had such a great start at VPE. The school is absolutely incredible and I know it starts at the top. Thanks very much. Have a great summer.

Submitted by Lee Walker, Parent