Were you born in Bluffton? When did you graduate from BHS?

I was born on May 26, 1975 at Bluffton Hospital. My mom went into labor at our family cottage two hours north in Michigan. She and my dad drove all the way back! I graduated from BHS in 1994.

Tell me some favorite stories about growing up here. Who were some of your childhood friends? Favorite teachers?

I blame this all on Becky Reineke Boblitt! As my neighbor and bestie, Little Miss Junior High Basketball Star, convinced me to go out for the 8th grade team. Let me be blunt--this was not a good fit. Forget the fact that I could barely run up and down the court in those old, moldy gyms without stopping for a puff on my inhaler, I also had a limited sense of the rules, no shot, poor understanding of the plays, and zero inherent skill. But Becky and the other girls, Missy Pearch Moskau, Janis Badertscher, Angie Klausing Hartman, Christa Badertscher Woolum--also basketball stars--and Coach Cindy Badertscher Lee, never made me feel bad, and just kept putting me out there to play. In fact, there was one game that we were winning by some unbelievable margin. Seriously, 86-6, or something!  Throughout the entire fourth quarter the Lady Pirates ran one play. I was to get to the top of the key, someone would pass me the ball, and I would try--TRY is the optimal word here--to shoot a basket. I missed, I missed again...I kept missing. Then, by the grace of God, one ball fell through the hoop. BOTH sides of the stands, filled with parents and friends of two small towns stood and screamed their heads off when this awkward preteen finally produced two points. I think I scored one more basket that year, and Becky tried her best to encourage me to continue on with the team into high school. I made it to the first day of open gym in 9th grade...and never stepped foot on that court again...except to cheer on that great team of girls...with my piccolo in the pep band!!

I feel so lucky to still be close with my childhood friends. I loved running through the neighborhood yards playing all kinds of games, make believe, and roller skating with, Becky, Kim Benroth Worcester, and Chad Mathewson. Laura Edwards Leeper, Katie Chappell Lakin, and I spent many weeks during the summer at Camp Friedenswald. Swimming in Jannie Barhost Derstine's pond was also great in the summer.

I sincerely liked all of my teachers, but some of my favorites were Dawn Buroker, Steve Amstuzt, and Wendell Miller in elementary school, and Alva Wright, Duane Bollenbacher, Nancy Armour, Connie Good, Jeanne Jeffs, and Rachel Lewis in high school. Bluffton Schools has always had great teachers!!! Go Pirates!

What were you involved in growing up? Music? Sports? Clubs?

While basketball didn't work out, BFR soccer was something that I loved! Dave Lee and Mustaq Ahmed were my coaches growing up. What patience! When we had outgrown the rec league, a bunch of us still wanted to play, but this was right before girls' teams were being formed in the local schools. We convinced Tim Barhorst to coach an all-girls team and we named ourselves The Bluffton Brutes. There weren't very many other girls' teams in our age group, so we ended up playing against a number of high school aged boys' teams. We didn't care. We really wanted to show them we could play just as hard as them. I think that need to prove ourselves drove us harder than anything else.

In terms of music and clubs...I think I tried everything! I played piano, cello, bassoon, drums, flute/piccolo in the bands and orchestra. I was involved in student government, the theater productions, the yearbook, the quiz bowl team...as I always tell people who are not from Bluffton, with a school this size, everyone had to participate if anything was going to happen. They never believe me when I tell them that the cheerleaders who played an instrument marched with the band at halftime, and that the biggest, baddest linemen on the football team also had lead roles in the school musical!

Is it true that your dad dressed up as Santa Claus every Christmas and made a bunch of noise that sounded like he was landing on the roof? Or did he make up that story?

Totally true! He would get up there regardless of the weather...ask him about the year there was an ice storm...and talk to us through my bedroom window. One year, he dragged my brother Barger up there with a red-filtered flash light and told him to flash it on and off like Rudolph! It was super special, and it took me a long time to figure out why Dad always missed Santa's visit.

So....with a dad who was a dentist, were you allowed to eat sugary stuff?

We weren't supposed to. No sugary cereals for sure. But, my dad actually has quite a sweet tooth...especially when it comes to homemade pies, cobblers, coffee cakes, and sweet rolls. Dessert wasn't at every meal, but we definitely enjoyed it now and then. And remember, we lived within view of the Dairy Freeze...so slushies and dipped cones were an easy treat to come by. Shhh. Don't tell.

What was your first job? What did you learn from that experience?

One of my first jobs was actually working at The Bluffton News when it owned the Linking Ring magazine. Marilyn Edwards needed to get the latest edition out and to the post office by a certain deadline. Laura, Jonathan, Adam, and I would be assigned a region of the US and we'd have to organize each copy by zip code order! To this day I can see a zip code and have a general idea of what state it's going to! I also really loved working with all the elements it took to produce a magazine, like copy editing, layout, and advertising. It made me think about doing something with publishing or graphic arts later in my life.

What car did you take your driver's test in? Who took you -- mom or dad?

I took my test in my grandmother Weisenbarger's Dodge 600. My mom took Jannie Barhorst and I over to to complete the test. Jannie had been practicing in my car because she usually drove a truck and didn't think it would be a great idea to take the test in a pick-up! I aced the driving part, and epically failed the "maneuverability" portion; the instructor had to dig a cone out from underneath the car. Jannie passed both. In my car. It was a long ride home.

After graduation, you headed to Danville, KY, for college, right? What made you choose that school? You were an English major? Did you always plan to teach?

My dad had gone to University of Louisville for dental school and Barger and his family were living in Louisville, so I had had a connection to Kentucky for a long time. I knew I wanted a small, liberal arts school and that I wanted to go away for school. Like all other high school kids, I was getting information in the mail from lots of places. We got a brochure from Centre College and it looked perfect. We booked a visit in the spring of my Junior year and that was it. You have to imagine the rolling hills of Kentucky filled with red bud and dogwood trees, groomed horse farms and tobacco fields. I fell in love with the gorgeous campus and the great programs on my first visit and only applied to one other school as a back up.

Even in high school I knew I wanted to major in the field of English. I always loved to read, and analyzing literature and poetry is such a great way to see how authors use their craft to respond to the world around them. I never wanted to do anything other than be able to show students how writers and poets change the world with their words and hopefully inspire them to do the same.

What was your first teaching job?

My first teaching job is still my current job. I'm starting my 15th year at Canton High School, at the Plymouth Canton Educational Park where I've taught courses like the 9th grade World Literature class, American Literature, Reading Writing Workshop, and Multicultural Literature.

How did you end up in Ann Arbor? What do you like most about Ann Arbor? Are you friends with any others who have Bluffton connections?

I came to Ann Arbor to complete a Masters in Education and Certification program at The University of Michigan (Sam Reineke still won't let me park in his driveway with my Michigan plates!). I love all the cultural diversity, in terms of people, entertainment, food, and awareness. Yet, it's really a small city, so getting around and feeling like you're connected to others here is easy. Coming from Bluffton, that sense of community is important to me. It's like the best of both worlds. A few years ago, Katie and Mark Chappell-Lakin moved here after Mark completed his chiropractic schooling in Georgia and they only live a few miles away. Our kids even go to the same school, so it's wonderful to have someone who understands how I feel about my new hometown.

Where did you meet your husband? Tell us about him and your children. What does your family enjoy doing together?

My husband's best friend and I were hired to teach together the same year at Canton High School. I met Darren at a weekly "meeting" (okay, we graded at a bar) of teachers who graded papers together. Darren isn't a teacher, but he'd work on his paperwork too. We got to be friends, then one time he asked if I wanted to get dinner sometime. I called and told Becky Reineke about the invitation and she immediately proclaimed, "You're going to marry him!" She was right. We celebrated our 10th anniversary on November 16th.

He's a wonderful guy. Lots of fun, super kind, and nearly always willing to try out my crazy ideas for adventure. Early on we packed up his Ford Escort and started driving east. Two weeks and a couple of ferries later, we ended up in Newfoundland, Canada eating fried cod tongues! Our kids are at such amusing ages. Marek is six and Stella is four. When Marek asked what I was doing while typing up these answers, I told him they were for The Bluffton Icon. He said, "I've always dreamed of being in the newspaper!" Then he texted GramPam and Grandpa Phil to ask that they send him a copy. It's fun how different they are. Marek is our thinker. He loves maps, thinks that MapQuest is a video game, and has a great memory. He reminds us so much of my dad. Stella is our little actress...everything is full of drama and imagination.  I don't know where she get's that! ;)

Together we love to spend time at our cottage on Devil's Lake and Darren's parent's house on Lake Belaire (Darren's parents recently moved back to Michigan from Florida). We also try to get to Detroit Tiger's baseball games and visit Greenfield Village at The Henry Ford. Now that the kids are a bit older, I'm hoping that we get to try snow skiing this winter in northern Michigan

You now teach in a school district that includes three high schools on the same campus, correct? Does that mean you teach at all three schools or are you just in one of them? What courses do you teach? Describe the student population. Must be quite different from the school situation in which you grew up.

Canton High School, Salem High School, and Plymouth High School are the three separate high schools that make up The Park. For the most part, the teachers stay put and it's the students that move among the buildings to get to class. We have around 6,000 students total and pride ourselves on the offering a large amount of choice in the curriculum, especially for the juniors and seniors. This makes us almost like a college campus. Just in the English department we have classes like Tao and Thought in Literature, Early British Literature, Advanced Science Fiction, Creative Writing, Poetry Seminar, Modern Lit and the Arts, and a new Graphic Novel class that's paired with the Art Department, as well as our required core courses like English 9, American Literature, and Composition classes. But, we also have a student run radio station, a nationally award winning culinary department (complete with a student-run in-school restaurant), and a four bay automotive shop. Because of the set up, the upperclassmen may have me for Multicultural Literature in Canton, but but be in an science or math class offered in Plymouth or Salem. We try to keep the freshmen and sophomores in their home schools for all their classes to build community when they first get here and have been working with the Link Crew program so that a small group of freshmen each has a junior or senior student mentor who meets with them at various points during the year to touch base, provide advice or a listening ear, and answer questions.
The student population is very diverse, both ethnically and socio economically. We have large populations of Asian, Indian, Middle Eastern, and African American students. I feel lucky teaching the courses I do as they lend themselves to exploring the similarities and differences we all have.    

What do you enjoy doing when you're not teaching?

I love to cook...and therefore eat, especially when I get to try new things. A good meal with friends is one of my favorite activities. I also try to plant a small garden every spring so that I can get as much fresh produce as I can into my recipes (I think there's a direct correlation between this hobby and having grown up with Suter's U-pick strawberries and sweet corn every summer!). I also really love to read, and don't get to do as much as I would like to during the school year. I've tried my hand at knitting, and enjoy the peacefulness of it, but I'm not very good at finishing projects!

Where are your brothers by now? Do you get to see them often?

Barger (does anyone call him Charles in Bluffton?!) lives in Louisville, KY along with his wife Jennie and their three kids...er, young adults (Emily 20, Matt 19, and Lillie 14). Seth also lives in Louisville with his wife, Amy, and their daughter Anna 3, and Clark 10 months. Adam lives in the Cleveland area with his girlfriend, Monica and their daughter Ezda 3. Given our distance, we actually do try to see each other as much as possible. During Christmas or Thanksgiving, we pack all 18 of us into my parents' house. Christmas morning looks like a tornado went through the entire house! In the summer we all try to get to the cottage for the Fourth of July...there is no air conditioning, and the kids are lined up in cots like army barracks, but when the croquet course is set up, or the boys are off surprising someone with a water balloon launched from the roof, we agree that nobody would want it any other way.

Where do you expect to be 10 years from now? Any big items on your list of "things you want to do...visit...see....someday?"

Ten years from now I'm guessing we'll still be in Ann Arbor. We've been really happy here, and I can't imagine up and moving anytime soon. Marek and Stella will be teenagers (so hard to believe) and so we'll be deep in the throes of driver's ed, extracurriculars, and all the drama that comes with high school. I think my biggest goal is to do some traveling with the kids and show them lots of amazing people and places in the world. I've been following Mike Powell (former Blufftonite and BHS class of '95) and Juergen Horn's travel blog "For 91 Days" and learning about all kinds of possibilities here stateside, as well as exotic locations. Of course that means I'll have to try all the local food...!