Nine diocesan teachers receive Golden Apple Award |
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Friday, 06 June 2008 01:00 |
TOLEDO—Eight elementary school teachers and one high school teacher from the Diocese of Toledo were honored for their dedication to Catholic education.
The Golden Apple Award winners received $5,000, a certificate of achievement, a golden apple keepsake decorated with a 24-karat gold cross, and a lapel pin.
The winners were honored at a banquet June 5 at the Toledo Club with Toledo Bishop Leonard P. Blair presenting the awards.
Twenty-five teachers from the diocese were nominated for this year’s award. Teachers were nominated by a parent, a student or a fellow teacher, and each school was allowed one nomination to the diocesan selection committee.
The Golden Apple Award was established by the Jack and Rhodora Donahue Family Foundation of Pittsburgh, and has been expanded from the Diocese of Pittsburgh to include the Diocese of Youngstown and the Diocese of Toledo.
This year’s winners are:
Kathleen A. Beres
Mansfield St. Peter Elementary School
Mrs. Beres has taught in the St. Peter Elementary and Montessori schools since 1994 in grades from preschool to her current position as second grade teacher. She is a eucharistic minister at Mansfield St. Peter and an active supporter of Catholic Charities and Children’s Services.
Nominated by a student and parent, Mrs. Beres is described as a natural, “tapping into the hidden potential of her students. She patiently and carefully polishes each student like a diamond in the rough until they shine brilliantly.”
Father Anthony Borgia, pastor of St. Peter, says of Mrs. Beres, “I truly believe that St. Peter’s Parish and School are blessed to have Kathy as a teacher and active parishioner.”
Charlotte Best
Toledo Central Catholic High School
Mrs. Best has faithfully served Central Catholic High School as a teacher for the past 35 years in the subjects of American and British literature, English and film study and mass media. She integrates service projects and social learning into her classroom having organized canned food drives three times a year for the past 10 years and by encouraging her students to complete random acts of kindness throughout the year.
The students who nominated Mrs. Best describe her as a caring and compassionate teacher who “puts her heart and soul into what she teaches.”
Michael Kaucher, principal at Central Catholic says, “She truly believes that those entrusted to her are not only students, but children of God.”
Melody M. Curtis
Rossford All Saints Elementary School
Mrs. Curtis has been teaching at All Saints since 2005 in grades two through eight, and recently took on the role of assistant principal in addition to her full-time teaching duties.
Outside the classroom, she is active in parish life as a member of the St. Katherine Drexel Change team, as a eucharistic minister and as a volunteer with the Parish Food Pantry. The family that nominated Mrs. Curtis expressed their gratitude for the individual attention she showed not only their child, but every child in her classroom.
All Saints principal, Teresa Richardson, says Mrs. Curtis has “touched the lives and shaped the future of many students and families in our community, both inside and outside the classroom.”
Marcia Estep
Toledo Our Lady of Perpetual Help Elementary School
Mrs. Estep has taught second grade at Our Lady of Perpetual Help for the past 19 years. She is also a board member for the American Cancer Society, a food coordinator for the Relay for Life in Perrysburg, a volunteer for Daffodil Days in Wood County and has previously served as a board member for the Victory Center in Toledo.
Mrs. Estep is described as a “top-notch” teacher whose versatility allows her to work not only with her second-grade students but as an advisor to the junior high student council.
Those who nominated her note her ability to empower students to leadership roles. As a second grade student who nominated Mrs. Estep says, “She is just the best.”
Thomas E. Farrell
Whitehouse Lial Catholic School
Mr. Farrell has taught throughout northwest Ohio since 1988 and has been an intermediate Teacher (grades four, five and six) at Lial for the past 11 years. He is also the advisor of the science club, astronomy club, chess club and service club.
Nominated by students and fellow teachers, Mr. Farrell is said to be a perpetual student himself, “seeking truth and sharing his love for learning with his students and colleagues.”
Fellow teacher Notre Dame Sister Cheryl Darr says Mr. Farrell “is committed to Catholic education, assisting students to become the best they can be.”
Louise Hoschak
Toledo Blessed Sacrament Elementary School
For the past 30 years Mrs. Hoschak has served the Blessed Sacrament community as a teacher in kindergarten through eighth grade, as an assistant principal and in her current role as a middle school religion teacher. Since 1982 she has been a part of the Child Conservation League and has served as past president, secretary and chaplain for the organization.
Nominated by a fellow teacher, Mrs. Hoschak is described as a teacher who makes faith come alive for her students. “She wants her students to realize that everything they do they should do, in God’s name,” says teacher Kathleen Ansted.
Carol Lindsley
Sylvania St. Joseph Elementary School
Mrs. Lindsley taught at Toledo St. Charles from 1974-1978 and has taught at Sylvania St. Joseph for the past 13 years as a third grade teacher. She contributes her services to many aspects of the community including the St. Luke Teacher Inservice Committee, the Toledo Area Council of the International Reading Association and the Respect, Literacy and Social committees at St. Joseph.
Current students, parents and fellow teachers nominated Mrs. Lindsley saying she is a teacher who lives her faith inside and outside the classroom.
Father Richard Wurzel, pastor of St. Joseph, says Mrs. Lindsley is “the kind of person you want to stand up in front of your students and engage them in the learning process.”
Cindy McLaughlin
Norwalk Catholic School
Teaching since 1979, Mrs. McLaughlin has taught in Defiance, Monroeville, Bellevue, Norwalk St. Paul High School and currently teaches in the Early Childhood Center at Norwalk Catholic School. She is a member of the National Catholic Education Association, the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd and the Home Economics Association, Phi Upsilon Omecron.
The parent who nominated Mrs. McLaughlin notes the way her calming nature helps the children she works with grow and develop.
Amy Hurst, director of the Early Childhood Center, echoes this sentiment. “The patience she exhibits when working with her students as well as the encouragement she offers them helps them to be successful in their studies.”
Catherine Ujvagi
Toledo St. Pius X Elementary School
Mrs. Ujvagi has taught throughout northwest Ohio in grades three through eight and currently teaches grade six math and religion, and grades six through eight science and health at St. Pius X. She serves on the national, state and local councils of Teachers of Mathematics and has been a presenter for the Greater Toledo Council.
Nominated by families of current students, Mrs. Ujvagi is described as an enthusiastic teacher whose patience and creativity help all her students thrive.
Oblate Father Richard Morse, pastor of St. Pius X, says “Cathie stands out as exceptionally gifted and dedicated to bringing the best out of her students especially in the faith and academic areas.”
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Last Updated on Wednesday, 27 August 2008 08:46 |
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