Author Archives: Terry Lee Marzell
New York’s Joe Lamas: Teacher, coach, NFL player, US veteran
Many former athletes go on to successful careers as educators and coaches. This is the case with Joseph Francis Lamas, a New York teacher who formerly had been a player in the National Football League (NFL).
Joe Lamas was born on January 10, 1916, in Havana, Cuba. As a young man, he attended Straubenmuller Textile High School in New York City, New York. Following his high school graduation, Joe enrolled at Mount St. Mary’s University, a private Catholic institution of higher learning located in Emmitsburg, Maryland. There he played college football.
Following his education at Mount St. Mary’s, Joe played one season in the NFL. In the 1942 season, he played on the offensive line with the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he started in eight games. During the game against the Detroit Lions on November 8, the 5’10”, 216-pound guard scored a spectacular 29-yard fumble recovery touchdown, leading his team to a 34-7 victory. Joe is also a United States veteran. When the 1942 football season ended, he served in the military during World War II.
In 1952, Joe accepted a teaching position at Iona Preparatory School, a private Roman Catholic boys’ school located in New Rochelle, Westchester County, New York. He was also the school’s assistant football coach for five years, and then he was named the head coach in 1957. He held this job until 1961. During his years at Iona, the former football player also coached baseball and worked as the school’s athletic director, and he also taught courses in Latin, history, and health. This accomplished educator retired from teaching and coaching in 1979.
Joe was 80 years old when he passed away on April 22, 1996, in Manhasset, New York. To learn more about him, you can click on SportsLifer Weblog.
Joseph Lamas: A Chalkboard Champion, certainly.
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Nebraska educator Esther Pilster earned many accolades
Elementary school teacher and principal Esther Pilster of Omaha, Nebraska, earned many accolades for her work in the classroom and her community service. Photo credit: Omaha World Herald
Many fine educators earn recognition for a lifetime of work in the classroom and in the community. One of these was Ester Pilster, an elementary school teacher and philanthropist from Gage County, Nebraska.
Esther was born on Nov. 11, 1916, on a farm near Wymore, Gage County. After her high school graduation from Otoe Consolidated High School in Barneston, she attended Peru State College. Eventually she earned first her Bachelor’s degree and then her Master’s degree from the University of Nebraska, Omaha.
Once she earned her degrees, Esther inaugurated her teaching career in a one-room schoolhouse in Gage County. In the 1940s, she moved to Omaha to teach at Jungman, Jackson, and Belle Ryan Elementary Schools. She also taught sixth grade at West Ward elementary in Chadron. Eventually, she was appointed to the position of principal at Boyd Elementary School, a position she held for over 21 years until her retirement in 1982.
Throughout the 1940s, Esther was a featured speaker at the annual Rural Teachers Institute held in Gage County. In the 1950s, she taught at a summer reading clinic for gifted students in Omaha. In the 1960s she was elected president of the Nebraska chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma Society International, a prestigious organization that continues to provide professional support for women educators to this day. In fact, she once served as the society’s state chapter president.
In addition to her work in the classroom, Esther contributed her energy and resources to numerous community service projects. She was active in the local chapter of the Friendship Force, attending their leadership conferences as a participant and presenter. She hosted many international guests as part of the Friendship Force. In addition, she served as a Congressional Senior Intern to Washington, DC in 1984. In 2006, Esther donated over 3,731 acres of ranch land for the creation of the Mari Sandoz Heritage Center, an enterprise that focuses on teaching agricultural skills and supports an agronomy research center. She was also involved in the Great Plains Welsh Heritage Museum and the Welsh Society of Nebraska.
For her many accomplishments, Esther earned many accolades. She was named “Queen of Keystone,” an honorary title given to notable people in Keystone, Omaha, in 1979. In 1997, Omaha named a park in her honor. In 2006, the city of Omaha honored her with the key to the city in recognition for her years of dedication to the community. In 2008, she garnered an Outstanding Educator award from the Omaha World Herald.
Sadly, Esther Pilster passed away on July 20, 2014, at the age of 97.
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TN teacher Raeven Brooks earns prestigious Milken Educator Award
Second grade teacher Raven Brooks of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, has earned a prestigious 2021-2022 Milken Educator Award. Photo Credit: Milken Family Foundation
I always enjoy sharing an inspirational story about a talented educator who has earned accolades for work in the classroom. Today’s story is about elementary school teacher Raeven Brooks from Murfreesboro, Tennessee, who has garnered a prestigious Milken Educator Award for 2021-2022.
Raeven teaches second grade at Black Fox Elementary school in Murfreesboro, the same school she attended when she was a child. In Raeven’s classroom, every learner is fully engaged in high-level which emphasize reasoning and problem-solving. In addition, she runs an intervention math group for students who are one or more years behind grade level. During the pandemic, Raven worked with a colleague to create a camping-themed video lesson incorporating reading and writing skills. The lesson was televised on Murfreesboro City TV for students who were engaged in remote learning.
In addition to her work in the classroom, Raeven co-leads and coordinates district-level data analysis for the school’s Response to Instruction and Intervention-Behavior (RTI2-B) team. She also helps recruit new teachers with the Job Fair team, she mentors new teachers in the school and district, and she supervises student teachers from Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU). For two years, she has participated in professional learning workshops through Project Inspire, a joint project of Murfreesboro City Schools and MTSU.
Raven earned a Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education from Middle Tennessee State University in 2015. Currently she is enrolled in the university’s Administration and Supervision Graduate Program.
The Milken Educator Awards have been described by Teacher Magazine as the “Oscars of Teaching.” In addition to a $25,000 cash prize and public recognition, the honor includes membership in the National Milken Educator Network, a group of more than 2,700 exemplary teachers, principals, and specialists from all over the country who work towards strengthening best practices in education. To learn more, click on Milken Educator Awards.
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Teacher Ann Turner Cook: The baby face of Gerber Foods
Did you know that the iconic image of the healthy, happy baby with the sparkling eyes and the inquisitive look on Gerber baby products grew up to become a high school English teacher? That’s right!
Teacher Ann Turner Cook: As a baby, she was the face of Gerber Foods.
The name of that irresistible baby is Ann Turner Cook. She was born on November 20, 1926, the daughter of Leslie Turner, a syndicated cartoonist who drew the comic strip Captain Easy for more than a decade. In 1928, when Ann was only five months old, the Gerber company announced they were seeking images of a baby to use on the packaging of their upcoming line of baby foods. Artist Dorothy Hope Smith, a neighbor of the Turner family, submitted a charcoal sketch of Ann, promising to finish the drawing if it was selected. Smith’s drawing competed with thousands of entries, including many elaborate oil paintings, but the judges fell in love with this baby’s cherubic face and, when choosing it as the winner, insisted that the simple illustration remain a sketch. The image was trademarked in 1931, and it has been used on Gerber baby food packaging ever since.
When she grew up, Ann attended the University of South Florida and other post-secondary schools, where she studied education, English, and journalism. She earned several degrees, including a Master’s degree in English Education. After completing her education, Ann became a teacher at Oak Hill Elementary in Tampa, Florida, later transferring to the English Department at Madison Junior High School. In 1966, she accepted a position at Hillsborough High School, also in Tampa, where she taught literature and creative writing. In 1972, her students dedicated their school yearbook, the Hillsborean, to their beloved teacher, who had personally sponsored the book. In it, her students described her as “a teacher who really communicates with the students,” and who, “without any complaints, has stayed late, worked nights, and with quiet efficiency supported her staff in their monumental task.”
Ann’s career as an educator spanned twenty-six years. After retiring, this talented teacher became a successful novelist. A member of the Mystery Writers of America, she is the author of the Brandy O’Bannon series of mystery novels set on Florida’s Gulf Coast. The adventures of Florida reporter and amateur sleuth Brandy O’Bannon are described in Trace Their Shadows, published in 2001, Shadow Over Cedar Key, published in 2003, and Micanopy in Shadow, published in 2008.
