SAINT MARIES, Idaho — Heyburn Elementary School in Saint Maries is celebrating its centennial, and teachers and staff going back decades returned to the school to honor the occasion.
Some of the staff members at the school thought they would never end up teaching and working at the school they went to when they were kids. But the ability to make an impact in the community they grew up in is what draws many educators to the school.
“I had the opportunity to teach with some of my teachers and that was amazing,” said 5th grade teacher at Heyburn Elementary, Kristin Burns. “I’ve been able to give new teachers a bit of background to our community and how things work here in Saint Maries.”
In an age where almost everything is new, it’s rare to see a building stand for a century. But for the community of Saint Maries, supporting the work that’s being done at Heyburn Elementary is something they’ve done for generations.
“It’s just really a testament to how well people care for it and what it means to them to have gone to Heyburn and have their children and their grandchildren go to Heyburn,” said Heyburn Elementary principal Bridgit Arkoosh.
Many of those teachers stay for decades and said the community support and lifelong connections are what’s most meaningful to them.
“It’s wonderful,” said Charlotte Applegate who taught at Heyburn for 33 years. “I like looking for pictures of my daughter or looking for my class pictures and former students. I see them as adults very often around the community and it’s heartwarming.”
Many of the families in Saint Maries had the same teachers for generations, including School Board chairman Jody Hendrickx.
“We’ve got roughly 150 staff members throughout the district,” said Hendrickx. “30 percent of those are Saint Maries graduates.”
The current chair of the Saint Maries School Board said there are five members of his high school class back in 1990 who still work for the district. He said Mrs. Applegate taught him, his wife and their daughter during her time at Heyburn.
It’s lifelong connections like those that made teaching at Heyburn so special for Applegate over the years she was there.
“It’s everybody. It’s the teachers, it’s all the workers, it’s the board, it’s everybody. It’s the community support that has allowed this building to still be here 100 years later,” Applegate said.
Even for people in the School District and the community that haven’t been there very long, Heyburn still stands out as the heart of Saint Maries.
The fact that so many staff members in the district are Saint Maries natives is one thing that makes the school and the district unique.
“It speaks to how special or proud they are of the community and each other,” said Saint Maries School District superintendent Teresa Rensch.
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