Mrs.Gardner

The following post was written by Trina. She has worked with Charlotte at Thomas Edison Charter School in the Special Education Department. The two of them have also successfully run the last 4 book fairs for the school. She has been instrumental in planning and organizing all of the events for Lotte's of Love fundraising and has put everything together for the Pool Party.

I HATE MATH! Just hearing the word Math males me cringe and get uncomfortable. Charlotte on the other hand LOVES Math! We worked together at Thomas Edison Charter School in the Special Ed Department. She taught 2 different classes of Middle School and Junior High Math. There were several times when I would be in her classroom preparing other lessons while she taught and I would have to giggle at her excitement over a concept she was teaching. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone talk about Math with such Joy. I know, it sounds odd. But she truly loves Math and she excels at helping others understand it.

She and I were talking the other day about how we ended up as teachers. It was never planned for her. In fact, she changed her major in school because she DIDN’T want to teach. Then she came to Thomas Edison and started volunteering in the classrooms, which evolved into substituting. She was so good with the students that they offered her a position in the Special Ed. Suddenly she was a teacher and a darn good one! I think that Char has found her calling. She has so much patience and really cares for the kids. I think one of the hardest things for her with this battle with cancer, is knowing that she has to take a year off from teaching. I’m sure in her mind, she feels that the cancer has won in a way because it takes her away from what she loves. But what Char doesn’t realize is that this Cancer battle is her chance to teach SO many others!

I know that in the 6 months since she found out she had cancer, her friends and family have learned many lessons from Charlotte. Her patience with the billing and medical run around she was put through, he courage when facing surgery, her overall positive attitude about EVERYTHING. She is one of the most positive people I know. I feel so blessed to have become her friend and feel that she is an anchor for so many people. It is about time that the rest of us get a chance to serve her for once instead of the other way around.

I don’t have ANY pics of Charlotte teaching. So I figured I’d give you dum dum dum daaaaaa