Crestview Elementary School teacher honored for long-lasting impression
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COLUMBIANA -- Sometimes, it is the briefest of encounters that have the most lasting impressions and decades do little to dull connections.
That was the lesson learned at Crestview Elementary School on Valentine's Day when former student Jason Larimore presented teacher Mikki Shaffer with a Beacon of Light Award to honor her the lingering role she has played in his life.
It's been 33 years since Jason Larimore spent less than a year as a student at Crestview Elementary School. Crestview became 10-year-old Larimore's seventh new school. He explained that while he had grown accustomed to being the resident "new kid", it didn't make trying to fit into his new surroundings any easier and the process of starting over again any less scary.
"Needless to say, I was feeling rather anxious and overwhelmed," Larimore said. "But just as the nervous energy was just about to consume me, I was introduced to my new friend and teacher."
First-year teacher Shaffer, through kindness and compassion, was able to put Larimore at ease. He felt welcomed and wanted. Any apprehension he felt dissipated in Shaffer's presence.
"She genuinely loved being there, sharing, and teaching," Larimore said. "She could sense that I was going to need a little extra attention, which I thrived upon. She was always incredibly kind and generous to everyone."
Larimore loved being a student in Shaffer's class, so, when a few months after enrolling at Crestview, his mother told him they would be moving again, his heart hurt. He broke the news to Shaffer.
"Nervously, I called her to the side and shared the dreadful news," he said. "The sadness in her eyes, I can still see today. She was genuinely going to miss me as I was her."
The next day, fate would keep Larimore in Shaffer's class a little longer as his family's plans to move were put on hold. Larimore said he rushed to tell Shaffer the good news -- only to discover a "going forward party" awaited him.
"She was looking at me and started talking about my abrupt entry into her class, her very first year ever teaching, and how special it had been that we crossed paths," he said.
Larimore would leave Crestview the next school year, but he didn't leave empty-handed, taking with him the lasting impression Shaffer's warmth and kindness made upon him. He would try to follow Shaffer's example as he went off to carve out his place in the world.
Larimore said Shaffer is the only person to ever surprise him with an act of generosity like she did during that school year in 1990. He wanted to return the surprise. Shaffer was presented the Beacon of Light Award -- an honor Larimore established "to celebrate and pay homage to those who left a lasting positive impression on him as a child and throughout his adult life" -- after being called to the gymnasium with her class. A video was played before Larimore revealed himself and the impact Shaffer made on him.
"I believe I received the most meaningful education from her that year, not as it was part of her curriculum, but because it was her own example that has been an inspiration to me for over 30 years," he said.