CARIBOU, Maine — The Caribou Middle School cafeteria was filled with Eastern Aroostook RSU 39 staff, family and friends on Friday night as the schools that make up the RSU recognized employees who have reached a milestone year of employment with the district.
After dinner was served to the guests, Superintendent Frank McElwain thanked the honorees for their years of service and handed out awards to those who were present to accept.
Milestones were reached by the following RSU 39 employees:
• Forty years — Mike Gardiner and Cheryl Martin.
• Thirty-five years — Neal Genz.
• Thirty years — Beth Alden, Rodney Bourgoine, Carla Cote, Carol Cote, Lori Haines, Helston Jackson, Alva King, Randy Mulherin and Diana Pelkey.
• Twenty-five years — Bruce Brown, Debbie Plourde and David Wakana
• Twenty years — Laurie Cavagnaro, Tim Collins, Bill Gehring, Mark Jones, Sue Lockhart, Donna McCrossin, Frank McElwain, Mark Pinette.
• Fifteen years — John Barnes, Troy Barnes, Andrea Bragdon, Michelle Branscom, Chris Casavant, Peggy Espling, Lynn Hebert, Allison Ladner, Gail Lyford, Linda Martin, Fran Savage, Bethany Thibeault and Linda Tupper.
• Ten years — Kim Austin, Steve Austin, April Belyea, Michael Bouchard, Nicole Carpenter, Ralph Conroy, Paula Gorence, Gillian Laird-Sleeper, Diane Norton, Kristie Pelkey, Sharon Pelletier, Heidi St. Peter, Melissa St. Peter and Pauline Sweetser.
• Five years — Cindy Campbell, Melinda Clark, Andrew Kirby, Sarah Lajoie and Jennie Valentino.
McElwain presented Tim Poitras of the Limestone Masons with an Outstanding School Contributor award for their yearly donation of bicycles and helmets to Limestone second-graders.
According to McElwain, the Masons have provided over 70 children with bikes and helmets for dedicating 1,000 minutes to reading beginning in March.
Recognition was then given to those who would be retiring at the end of the school year.
Retirees Tom Hale, Cheryl Martin, Leona Michaud and Pauline Sweetser were present at the ceremony.
The first retiree to be honored was Martin, a second-grade teacher at Hilltop Elementary. Cindy Albert, a literacy specialist at Hilltop, read a speech prepared by Martin’s fellow second-grade teacher Gayle Smart.
Through Smart’s speech, Albert referred to Martin as the “organization queen,” and spoke about her abundant collection of earrings and love of the color purple.
“The actual color, not the book,” Albert clarified.
Smart’s speech made mention of Martin’s hearty “good morning” and ended with a poem written by Martin’s sister.
The next retiree to be honored was Sweetser, an ed tech at Caribou Middle School. Jennifer Michaud, the special education teacher that Sweetser has worked with, gave the speech to honor her co-worker.
“Pauline is kind, patient, giving and fun,” Michaud said, praising Sweetser as easy-going with a calm demeanor.
Michaud told stories of Sweetser accidentally grabbing a beer out of her refrigerator at home to bring to school with her lunch instead of a soda, and a false ticket that she found on her car after work to remind her that her registration had run out. Michaud also mentioned that Sweetser’s father was Leopold of the legendary Caribou business Leopold’s Sub Shop and that when Sweetser was a child, she had a cow named Sir Loin.
“The kids loved you and will miss you,” Michaud concluded.
Tom Hale, the agriculture and natural resources instructor and FFA adviser at the Caribou Technology Center, was honored by graphic arts teacher and former student Darick Williams.
Williams shared fond memories of being in Hale’s FFA program
“He is an icon of Caribou,” Williams said of Hale. “There was never a dull moment on FFA trips. He taught his students in a way they will never forget.”
Williams spoke about Hale’s strong religious convictions and his determination to teach his own children a strong work ethic on the Hales’ Christmas tree farm. He praised Hale for challenging others around him to do good work.
“He leaves a void and some huge shoes to fill,” Williams concluded.
Hale addressed the audience himself, thanking God and his family for their support over the years.
An avid motor sports enthusiast, Hale concluded his comments by donning a racing jacket and exclaiming, “I’m going racing!”
The final retiree to be honored was Leona Michaud, a mid-level language arts teacher at Limestone Community School.
Fellow LCS teacher Cindy Edgecomb created an acrostic using the letters of Michaud’s first name to describe her co-worker.
L stood for longtime leader; E stood for exuberant educator, O stood for outstanding orator; N stood for notable nurturer; and A stood for avid agriculturist.
Edgecomb called Michaud a treasure, gem and solid rock.
“They’ll be better people because of you,” Edgecomb said of Michaud’s students.
Others retiring at the end of the school year but not present at the dinner were Mike Bouchard, Mary Margaret Jerram and Brent O’Neal.
