Will Work for Beer

Teacher Appreciation Week always gets me thinking about the educators that influenced me. This week, I remembered a teacher and coach that inspired me a lot, even after I graduated. Mr. Baker was my AP US History teacher and cross country coach. No doubt, I took a lot from him since I became a history teacher and cross country coach myself. He was a mentor and guide through most of my high school years, but at times, his students struggled with where to place the line between mentor and friend. All teenagers push that limit and good teachers show us where it is. 

In my Senior year, our cross country team had been pretty successful. Coach Baker was driving us to a regional championship and a graduated member of our team had decided to follow the bus to come to cheer us on. Our coach always tried to get us in the right mindset before a race. He wanted us to be serious about it and even had a "silent within 10 minutes of arriving" rule. But with a friend driving behind us, the 17 to 18-year-old boys just couldn't pass up the opportunity to flash our "best sides" from the back of the bus. And wouldn't you know it, Coach Baker caught us from the rearview mirror. He immediately pulled the bus over and fussed us out better than we could ever remember. In frustration, he tore his hat from his head and broke the snaps on the back. When the bus started again, there was no need to remind us of the silent rule. 

We ran pretty well that day if memory serves me well. On the way home, we stopped at a gas station for snacks. Behind the counter, there were hats for sale and the team thought we needed to replace the hat that our coach broke as a sign of peace. Now if you're wondering what kind of hats are sold at a country gas station, you're thinking in the right direction. The most appropriate hat we saw had a patch that read, "Will Work for Beer." We pitched in a couple of bucks each and presented him with the hat at the bus. Coach Baker broke out in laughter and it seemed that somehow, we had restored that relationship. He wore the hat the rest of the way home. 

Today, I preach a lot about building relationships because I believe it is just as important as curriculum. But there's a wise saying in education: "You can't love them into being stupid." Good teachers care for us, maybe even love us, but great teachers remind us of why we are really there. They teach us purpose. If Coach Baker had not broken his hat in an effort to set us straight, we probably would not have done well that day. He had to set us straight, but despite that, we knew he still cared for us. And we cared about keeping that relationship enough to buy a him a silly hat. So for Teacher Appreciation Week, here's a big thanks to the teachers that care enough to teach students the important things in life. I can tell you from experience that those lessons carry on much farther than your classrooms.