Tea With Donna: A Passion for Education

By Jon Martinson

What are the teaching skills and personal characteristics that distinguish truly remarkable teachers from the many "good" teachers? Clearly, the answer goes beyond knowledge of subject matter and love of teaching. In fact, great teachers make a personal connection with their students that is meaningful, impactful, and heartfelt. Donna Stack was that teacher who, over the course of her thirty-four years as a high school and college teacher, was able to reach the heart and soul of her students. With her combination of demanding high academic standards while offering encouragement and support, Donna valued her students, and they knew it. She modeled the behaviors she expected of her students, and they loved her for it. In today's changing and challenging world of education, the talents, values, and behaviors she embodied are timeless and are needed now more than ever. Through her own words and with comments made by her students, colleagues, friends, and family, readers will gain numerous insights about how a master teacher was able to cultivate an extraordinary legacy that transitioned over time from teacher to mentor and, ultimately, to lifelong friend.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Covenant Books, Inc.
• Release date: Sep 27, 2019
• ISBN: 9781644717455

Book preview

9781644717455_cover.jpg

Tea With Donna

A Passion for Education

Jon Martinson

ISBN 978-1-64471-744-8 (Paperback)

ISBN 978-1-64471-745-5 (Digital)

Copyright © 2019 Jon Martinson

All rights reserved

First Edition

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Covenant Books, Inc.

11661 Hwy 707

Murrells Inlet, SC 29576

www.covenantbooks.com

Table of Contents

Snookie

Finding Your Voice

Seasons of Life

Beginnings: The Red Pen

They Named a Library After Her

Back to the Chalkboard

Timeline 1945 to the 1980s

Timeline 1980s to 2019

The Campus on the Hill

Leading by Example

Helping Students Succeed One at a Time

Pinstripes and Polka Dots

Here’s That Rainy Day

Furry Family

The Thrill of Victory and the Agony of Defeat

Put Me in, Coach

On the Road Again

From Shakespeare to Billy Collins

Perfectionism

I Never Made a Bad Call

Lessons Students Taught Me

About the Author

For my wonderful teacher friends,

Tom and Anita Decker,

Tom and Carolyn Hesford,

and Dan and Pat Klein

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank those people who have assisted in this project. To Donna’s family members as well as her students, friends, and colleagues who either participated in an interview or submitted their story and reflections in written form.

Thank you to the gifted and talented Linnae Brew who served as proofreader and copy editor. My appreciation to professional photographer, Kyle Martin (kylemartinphoto.com), for his outstanding photos and his willingness to scan and catalogue visual materials for this book. Thanks to Andrea Blessum who was there from the beginning with her encouragement, creativity, and good cheer.

Also, special thanks to Elizabeth Jahner at Image Printing for her talent and patience with me as she put all the pieces together to make this book.

Mostly, my thanks to Walt and Donna Stack for giving approval to tell their story.

Some people,

when they hear

your story,

contract.

Others,

upon hearing

your story,

expand.

And

this is how

you

know.

—Nayyirah Waheed

Preface

It was in 2015, at the funeral of my friend Susie Jakes’ father, when I ran into Donna and Walt Stack. It was typical of them to attend a service to show their support for one of Donna’s former students. Susie is a 1971 graduate of Bismarck High School. She was busy talking with friends, family, and relatives which gave me a chance to visit with Donna, my high school speech and English teacher. We rarely ran into each other since my graduation from Bismarck High School in 1970, despite living in the same city. On those previous occasions, we greeted each other warmly, talked briefly, and went about our day.

Our conversation after the funeral service was different than our previous visits. It was more meaningful. More heartfelt. More impactful. Perhaps the difference was due to a funeral setting. Funerals have a way of confronting us with our own mortality and with what’s important in life—other people and the love we have for one another. After Donna and I visited for a few minutes and it was time to leave, I became teary-eyed. We hugged—that was a first—and we promised to have coffee sometime, so we exchanged our email addresses and said goodbye.

This chance encounter was with someone important to me, someone who had an impact on my life, and someone I have always admired and respected. As I got into my car, it hit me like a freight train. I had an idea.

After running a few errands, I returned home and checked my email. There in my inbox was an invitation from Donna to have coffee with her at her favorite place—Starbucks at Barnes & Noble. Within a week, we met for tea and a hot chocolate. It was then that I shared my idea. I told Donna that I wanted to write a book—about her.

Are you serious? she asked incredulously.

Absolutely, I replied.

To say that Donna was reluctant to participate is to understate her reaction. She is a private person, so she had concerns.

What will the book be about? she wondered.

I explained that she had much to offer—especially to other teachers—and perhaps we could start there, with teaching and an opportunity for her to pay it forward to other teachers. That concept was intriguing to her, and she agreed to put her big toe in the water subject to further discussion. There were many further discussions.

During one of our subsequent visits at Starbucks, I asked Donna if she remembered an assignment she gave to her senior English class in the fall of 1969 that required us to write a short article.

Yes, she said, I remember.

I could immediately tell that she knew why I wanted to talk about it. Yet we hadn’t discussed the incident with each other in forty-five years.

My memory of that high school experience is still vivid. One day, as a student in Mrs. Stack’s English class, I didn’t receive my article back. Donna handed papers back to everyone else, except me. At the time, I didn’t think I was in trouble. After all, what were the odds that she had actually discovered my fraud?

After school was out for the day, I went to Mrs. Stack’s classroom and found her at her desk.

I didn’t get my paper back, and I was wondering if you forgot to hand it back to me, I said.

I didn’t forget. I wanted to talk to you about it.

She handed my paper back and told me I had done outstanding work. I noticed the A+ on top of the first page. Proud of my grade, I thanked her and left for an athletic activity in the gym. About thirty minutes later, I returned to find her still at her desk.

She greeted me warmly and said, Hello. May I help you?

I told her that I couldn’t accept the grade she had given me, and she said, Oh, why not?

"Because I copied an article out of Reader’s Digest and handed it in as my own."

I see. What do you think we should do about that? she asked.

Nervous, fearful of the consequences, and embarrassed at getting caught, I was unable to think of a remedy, so Donna suggested I write my own article this time and hand it in. She was giving me a second chance.

All these years later, over our tea and hot chocolate, I asked Donna if she had any recollection of the incident.

Yes, I do, quite clearly, she said. You copied an article about how men should dress with style.

Oh my, I thought, she even remembers the subject matter after all this time. How is that possible?

What tipped you off? I asked.

Two things. First, it was written at a level beyond anything you had turned in up to that point, and second, you didn’t seem that interested in men’s fashion.

You gave me an A+ on the paper. How did you know I would come back? I asked.

I didn’t. But I knew you would have to live with the deception for the rest of your life and what you did with that lie was entirely up to you.

Having been a teacher for twenty-three years, I am aware that Donna had multiple ways to handle this incident including giving me a failing grade or a note that said, See me after class. Yet, she did neither. Instead, she wanted to talk to me privately, one-on-one.

For Donna, the grade was less important than the life lesson she was teaching me. And this teacher who was tough and demanding with high expectations for her students was willing to bend her own rules to teach me something much more important than a grade on one paper. And while doing so, she treated me with dignity and respect. That was remarkable—especially for a teacher in only her second year.

Throughout Donna’s thirty-four years in the classroom, her role as a consultant, and her involvement with sports, I figured there must be others who have stories to tell about the impact she has had on their life through her unique balance of demanding good work combined with support and encouragement. It turns out I was right.

What follows is the story of a remarkable master teacher, her inherent goodness, and the impact she has had on the lives of her students, friends, and colleagues.

Jon Martinson

Bismarck, ND, 2018

Snookie

Having just arrived at the University of Mary to begin her day of teaching, Donna was walking to her office where she encountered a young female student sitting on the floor in the bathroom. She was crying.

I didn’t know what was going on, but I sensed a need to do something, so I sat on the floor too and asked is there anything I can do? The young lady said nothing, so I just let her cry. Gradually, she began to talk. She was away from home, alone for the first time, and was a phone call away from telling her parents she wanted to come home. Donna offered comfort, encouragement, and a friendly voice. I don’t think she would have made it.

Donna in Mott, age 4, 1949

This student and I saw each other many times during her years at the university, but she never came to talk again. Apparently, she needed help this one time, and she made a successful adjustment to being away from home, and that was it. I think we realized that was a one-time thing and she was finding her way. She ended up graduating from the University of Mary.

You find these kids all over the place. Kids have problems. They no longer have their friends or parents to help them through the tough times, and they need somebody.

Donna Stack’s willingness to sit on the bathroom floor that day provided support that was needed, and it made a difference. Where does that sensitivity and compassion come from?

An answer lies in Donna’s family background, experiences, and growing up in small towns in North Dakota. She was born in Elgin on October 13, 1945, the first of Herman and Norma Baumgartner’s three children. Donna attended school in Mott for her first two years of education.

The following year, the Baumgartner family moved to Dickinson so Herman could complete his bachelor’s degree in education at Dickinson State Teachers College. He majored in history and minored in education/coaching. Donna entered third grade at St. Joseph’s Elementary School and met new classmates, two of whom would become lifelong friends. Sandy Ficek lived on a farm twelve miles west of Dickinson. She and her five siblings were driven to school each morning by her parents. Donna’s other playmate was Susie Berger. Both children would play a role later in Donna’s life.

Season’s Greetings, 1955; Norma, Todd, Donna, Susan and

Herman Baumgartner

Upon graduating from Dickinson State, Herman accepted an offer to teach history and coach basketball in Hettinger. Donna, leaving friends behind, entered fourth grade. Their home in Hettinger was the Ray Motel due to a housing shortage. At the end of the school year, Herman accepted a position in his hometown of Strasburg, teaching history and coaching baseball, along with other coaching duties. Leaving friends behind once again, Donna entered fifth grade in a new town. The family remained in Strasburg for many years, and Donna and her siblings had the stability that comes from growing up in one community.

Strasburg was a typical small town in North Dakota. There were no street signs and no house numbers, only a mailbox at the post office. In the 1950s and early 1960s, it was common in rural areas to make phone calls using a party line in which eight to ten households shared the same line. Since copper was in short supply during and after World War II and each connection required miles of phone line to reach remote areas, a larger number of homes could be reached with fewer wires. This system was the only option until the telephone companies could catch up with the demand.

Strasburg was a nice place to grow up. Dad was a coach and was well known. There were lots of Baumgartners in town. I have fond memories of Lawrence Welk coming home every year, and Donna winning the talent show when she was in eighth grade. I had tears in my eyes—she was so good! I am six years younger than Donna, so we didn’t spend a lot of time with each other as kids. Donna was busy with her friends, and I was busy with my school activities like cheerleading. But I remember that Donna liked to suntan and spend time at the pool.

—Susan (Baumgartner) Miller, Donna’s sister

There was no privacy on a party line. Others sharing the line could listen in on your phone call, and no one else could make a call. Common etiquette required brief calls so other parties could use the phone. It was courteous to hang up when you heard a particular ring tone signaling that another party wanted to use the phone and to hang up if someone else was on the line when you picked up the phone. Eavesdropping on another’s conversation was frowned upon.

Grandma’s garden, 1955

Another issue that made Strasburg a typical community in the United States at that time was a religious one. The divide between Catholics and Protestants was in full force. To put this issue in its proper perspective, people of a certain age will remember the 1960 presidential election between Democrat John Kennedy and Republican Richard Nixon.

Kennedy’s speechwriter and close aid, Ted Sorenson, once said, The single biggest obstacle to his election was his religion. You should have seen the hate mail that came in, both from rednecks and from liberal intellectuals who should have known better.

JFK was forced to address his Catholicism head on during the campaign. In a speech on September 12, 1960, at the Crystal Ballroom at the Rice Hotel in Houston, Texas, sponsored by the Greater Houston Ministerial Association, Kennedy stated that, Contrary to common newspaper usage, I am not the Catholic candidate for president. I am the Democratic Party’s candidate for president, who happens to be Catholic. I do not speak for the church on public matters, and the church does not speak for me.

Sorenson said it was one of the most important speeches of his life. To this day, Kennedy remains our only chief executive who was Roman Catholic (Source: Sorenson, Ted. Counselor: A Life at the Edge of History. New York: Harper Collins, 2008).

In Strasburg, Catholics and Protestants did not date each other, and they certainly didn’t marry outside their faith. The decree was not written down. It was simply understood. Everyone knew the faith of families in the community. Strasburg was settled predominantly by immigrants from Germany; they were Catholic. They had last names like Klein, Volk, Wagner, and Baumgartner.

Protestants living in the area included the Dutch who were called Hollanders. They didn’t live in town. They lived in Westfield and other rural areas. They, too, had recognizable names like Van Beek, Van Boven, and Vander Vorste.

At the time, Strasburg had only one school, a public school, so all students were thrown in together