A message from POE State President Sarah Hicks
I cannot believe it is November. As we enter this season of thanksgiving, I have to be honest with you. I am so thankful for electricity. We were without electricity for four days following last week’s ice storm. Like so many, we had severe tree damage. I live in an older neighborhood and we have a lot of mature trees. I have a pecan tree that’s a hundred feet tall and it fell on my house. No one was hurt and I am thankful everyone is safe.
If you are having a difficult time recovering from the ice storm, I would encourage you to lean on your faith and lean on family, as well as work family. I don’t have immediate family who live nearby and so I lean on my church family and school family. I’m thankful to have them to help get through the storm. I am also thankful for my husband who has been a blessing in the cleanup, dragging tree limbs to the curb.
As for school, 2020 has been tough because we have been hit with one thing after another. The constant changing of virtual and in-person schooling has been a challenge. And, as I think about that challenge, I can’t imagine being a new teacher during this time. I want to encourage our more experienced teachers to check on our newer teachers and see if they have the support they need. It’s so important to check on each other, helping each other to stay focused and stay positive. As always, you can reach out to your REP at POE. I am so thankful for the wonderful REPs we have a POE.
I want to wrap up my President’s Message by reflecting on the Thanksgiving holiday. I grew up on a farm and Thanksgiving was always a working holiday. Pecans were one of our cash crops on the farm. Along with my five sisters, we harvested pecans during the holiday. We were always working; however, we were able to take some time to go to our grandparents for Thanksgiving dinner. Despite working, being with my sisters is a memory I will always cherish.
I hope you have wonderful family memories to cherish as well and I hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving.