- April 30, 2024
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Put most simply, education is about one thing, according to Lynn Bender: passing things forward. Sharing knowledge, sharing experience and even sharing curriculums — that’s what her career has been about.
Bender has always thought so, but she did even more so Wednesday afternoon as she dug through old filing cabinets and desks in her office, pulling out items she didn’t even remember she had as she packed for her impending retirement. Her colleague, Diane Whitt, sat in the same office.
When Whitt attended Flagler Palm Coast High School, Bender was her math teacher. They planned the senior prom together. Now, they’ve both clocked decades of experience in the Flagler County School District, and they’re both retiring this year.
“It’s the greatest compliment when you have a former gradate come back and work with you as a colleague,” Bender, now the school’s guidance counselor, said. “You were a good student.”
The two reminisce on their prom-planning days. They spent the entire day decorating the school’s gym, and Bender found a band that would play all night. After Whitt graduated and finished college, she knew she wanted to come back to Flagler County because of the strong sense of community she’d enjoyed while there.
Of course, things have changed. Palm Coast wasn’t yet a city when Whitt was in high school, so the area has lost some of its small-town feel. But one thing has remained stable: The legacy of sharing and handing things forward is alive among faculty in the area’s schools.
By now, both women know dozens of former students who now work in Flagler’s schools, and handfuls who work in the same building as they do. Their last days at work are bittersweet, because while both of them are excited for lives after retirement (Bender wants to travel while Whitt plans to pursue her financial business), they’re leaving careers that challenged and rewarded them daily.
“You are always leaving a legacy, and I think that’s why people teach,” Whitt said. “You’re making such a visible difference in people’s lives.”
Bender started working in the school district in 1977. Whitt has accumulated 30 years of teaching experience as well. As the women talk, their colleagues stopped by to wish them a happy retirement. One, Diane Odum, is also retiring after 13 years of teaching special education and reading.
She became a teacher because of Bender. Years ago, Odum began to work as a substitute teacher and discovered that she loved it. As they got to know each other, Bender discovered that students were drawn to Odum, so she encouraged Odum to go to college so she could work as a full-time teacher.
So Odum did. She was 50 years old when she enrolled. Once she got her degree, she began to teach full time.
“It’s amazing how connected people are, in education especially,” Whitt said. “A story like this — it isn’t unusual.”
Now, the women are eager to see what their lives will look like after retirement.
“I’ve still got a lot of life in me,” Bender said. “I’ve taught many of my former students’ kids, but I’m glad I won’t be here to teach their grandchildren.”
This year's retirees:
Kathy Aylwin
Lynn Bender
Eugenia Blanton
Cassandra Bowen
Wellington Breed
Al Castle
Sharla Cill-Kraus
Anthony Ciulla
Dorothy Colletta
Janet Cotter
Jacqueline Dewhirst
Nestor Diaz
James Dimaggio
Daryl Dolderer-Ielardi
Maureen Faleri
Helene Garcia
David Griffis
Nancy Griffis
Jane Howels
Chenita Johnson
Rita Jones
Jean Josey
Rosemary London
Stewart Maxcy
Debra McGregor
Carolyn Medearis
Barbara Melendez
William Miller
Herminia Mora
Gary Nesser
Diane Odum
Nicholas Petraglia
Kimseng Phan
Carl Pierre
Kathleen Powell
Paul Ressler
Dorothy Shelton
Judy Simmerman
Mennen Smith
Al Trimmer
Marsha Walker
Bessie Wall
Joyce Wegener
Carol West
Diane Whitt
Nancy Willis
Linda Wilson
