“My birthday will be when I am in first grade. I am excited! I will be 6. And this summer, I’m going to Florida to go to Disneyworld. We’ll take pictures like last time we went.”

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“This summer I am going to Morocco. I saw this Global Navigator program and thought I would apply. Why not? But there was no way I was going to be able to go if I didn’t get a scholarship. I applied for Morocco and for the scholarship, and I got a scholarship for the full experience. It’s all paid for. And, to me, it’s more than just getting to go on a great trip. I hope I can use it in my future because I want to study health and Middle Eastern relations. We’re going to be learning Arabic. I’m so excited! I want to inspire other people to apply. People should be applying for these things because nobody applies, and it’s an amazing opportunity. I think everyone should get to travel abroad. We’re going to volunteer there and do fun things as well. Traveling opens your mind to new cultures, and especially the Middle Eastern cultures which are so complex and interesting. I think it’s really worth everyone traveling there.”

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“For the summer, I’m just going to hang out with friends, but I’m also going to take a class online to help my GPA and study for next year so I can start the year off next year as good as I did this year for college and everything.”

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“I love cars and family. I buy and sell cars. I go to car auctions. I got my little one-year-old grandson and take him everywhere I go to see any kind of car:  antique cars, muscle cars–anything that’s old and fast. I love it.”

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“I always say, ‘Art is everything and anything.’ Everywhere you look there is always art. It could be a stool or an actual painting. Everything in this room is art. Art is important to me because it helps me show who I am as a person. If you look at all my art it has a theme to it; it’s always about the beach somehow. In every single piece I always include something about the beach because I love the beach and that’s who I am. I even go there to create art because I always get inspired there and at the boardwalk. I also get inspired by other people around me, especially my friends and the art program and my teachers. When you create art, find something that is very inspirational to you.”

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“I am retiring after 42 great years. The best part of my job over the years has been the relationships made with the staff and especially the students. It has been gratifying to see how students mature and become responsible young adults from their freshman to senior years.”

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“The best part of my job for 40 years as the art teacher is that to most elementary students, I am a rock star! Kids love art and love to experience whatever you have for them on that day. How could it get any better than that? That is certainly a contributing factor in connecting with the students. Seeing their bright excited faces and the thrill they exude when experiencing the manipulation of materials and techniques is probably the best part of the job. Working in a superior learning environment with colleagues that are talented, dedicated teachers who are excited to collaborate, and administrators who are respectful and support the art program, has been instrumental in making my 40 years of teaching rewarding and the best job ever.”

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“For 40 years, I emphasized the love of learning over a lifetime. I wanted the children to be readers and writers. I wanted the children to enjoy good stories and to connect the stories with their world. Foremost, I wanted children to reach and stretch their learning as far as they could in a challenging environment. I will miss the challenge of figuring out what makes each child ‘tick.’ I consider myself a keen observer of children and tried to gear the program and even my interactions to meet the needs of the children. I wanted to make sure that each child received a daily dose of encouragement, smiles and understanding. When a student needed more encouragement, I tried to be there for the child.”

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“My 42-year career has always been to make things better for others and to make their jobs easier. As a teacher, make school better for my students by working to make my classroom exciting and educational at the same time. As principal, to make school safe and welcoming for my students and staff.  As the Director of Employment Services, to serve all VBCPS employees and future employees to help them carry out the mission of VBCPS…You could not ask for a better employer. VBCPS is a nationally recognized school division that treats its employees with respect and honors their role in providing the best educational experience for the children of Virginia Beach.”

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“For 39 years, the best part of my job has been seeing the academic and social growth of my students from September to June. The transformation from a first grader to a second grader is amazing.”

Is there an accomplishment that you are most proud of?

“The accomplishment I am most proud of is, hopefully, positively, affecting the lives of so many children I have had the joy to teach over the years.”

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“I’m retiring after 41 years of teaching elementary school music. The best part of my job over the years has been selecting shy students who are unsuccessful in the academics, and when given an opportunity to shine in front of their peers by singing or playing a musical instrument, it builds their confidence in other areas. I am proud of the fact that there are thousands of young people who love and enjoy music today as a result of being involved in the music program of my school and other schools that they have transferred to. I will miss coming to school daily and being energized by my lovely students who bring me so much joy and laughter. I will miss my wonderful administrators, staff, parents and other colleagues that I consider to be a part of my extended family.”

What advice do you have for those you leave behind?

“Advice?  Continue to love and respect each other as colleagues, working harmoniously together for the success of our students who are depending on us to equip them for their future. Remember, it truly does take all of us to care for these precious ones who will make us proud in the future.”

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“I’ve been a physical education assistant for 41 years. The best part of my job is to have students come back after high school and ask if I am still there or they come by the gym and say hello and some even tell me they have children at the school where I am teaching and please look out for them. Even some parents come back and say take care of the grand kids now. When I tell them I’m retiring they said, ‘No, you can’t go, I have another one for you to look out for.'”

“I’ve played all around the world, but playing the bagpipes at graduation is a rare privilege. I’ve been doing it for 20 years. I started it as a Kellam parent when I was still in the Marines. Mr. Biehl called me one day and said that the senior class wanted a bagpiper and he’d heard I was one. That first year, my son graduated and my daughter the year after that, so I got to play for them both before I started teaching here.”

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“(Graduation) really showcases how far I really came. Coming from New York to now living in Virginia. Now, graduating, I can say I found myself and I know who I am as a person…It means a lot to me. My mom sacrificed a lot. To be her first graduating high school and representing her, I’m really proud and I can tell she’s proud of me too.”

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“I’ve been a part of VBCPS for the past 12 years. To me, graduating is just basically a mark in the road as to how I’ve grown and progressed to where I am today. You know 12 years, a lot can happen in those 12 years, especially as you’re going from 6 years old to 18 years old. There’s so much you can change and so much you can transform as a person. Starting from elementary school, you really just want to fit in and be like everyone else. And, then in middle school, it’s kind of the same thing and there’s even more pressure on top of that. But, then, once you get to high school, you really just find your clique and who you belong with. And, you really grow as a person and find who you really are and who you want to be. I think that’s what graduating means. It’s having that confidence in yourself and becoming who you really are and who you want to be in the future.”

“Being a graduate means a lot to me because I’m one of the first in my family to graduate with honors and to go off to a university and study nursing. It honestly took a lot of work. There were many struggles with difficult classes, but I pushed through and I got through it.”

What kept you motivated during high school?

“Being the first person to graduate with honors (in my family). Having my family be able to come here. My dad was somebody who really pushed me – Hearing from my dad and getting words of wisdom from him really helped me out.”

“My last name is Zeigler. I’ve always been last. Best for last, you know.”

What do you think it will be like when they call your name?

“I think it’s going to be wild – all the applause. It’s the end of the year. Everyone will be excited.”

“The first time I sang at graduation it was because I wanted to do something different for the seniors. Lisa Corprew was the only one who knew I might sing. I had no music. I had nothing. But I love the lyrics to “Believe in Yourself” from The Wiz. So I started to read it and thought, ‘that’s the only thing I could do for them that’s different.’ And so I did it. I sing every year now. Believe me, I would not sing in front of 5,000 people for anyone but these students.”

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 “My sister was a freshman this past year so I’ve had experience giving someone advice for high school. My advice was to be more involved. I feel like a lot of people don’t enjoy high school because they don’t really get the full experience. They just get the go-to-school, go-home, do-homework experience. I really feel like they need to realize how many opportunities are here. That’s what I love about Tallwood. We have so many clubs and so many teams that you can get involved with. It really makes all the difference. I only did sports freshmen year. And that’s all I did up to junior year. And last year I went to leadership workshop and it is just changed my view on school and I really wanted to get involved with SCA. I did apply for SCA Executive Board, got that, and it’s just kind of opened up a whole new realm of high school for me. That’s the advice I would give to incoming freshmen. Get involved.”

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“What I’m most passionate about is dance. That’s how I communicate to people, that’s how I come closer to people and it’s what I love to do.”

“This summer I will spend time with my family because it will be my second-to-last summer with them before college. I’m a triplet and I’m super close with my two brothers, so I’ll spend time with them. We’re going on a summer trip – just the three of us. We’re going to California or Mexico. We’re not sure. It’s not planned yet, but it will be very fun. I’m excited to just spend time with them.

It’s fun being a triplet. I wouldn’t have it any other way. I like that we always understand each other. They can tell what I’m thinking – moods and everything.”

“I read the whole entire Pete the Cat book. He’s at the beach. It’s my favorite because I can read it.”

“My favorite book is this dino book. It’s called Dino-Basketball. So, these dinosaurs play basketball and one pterodactyl gets hit by a basketball on the wing. But it didn’t break open. Then this T. Rex, he couldn’t get the basketball in the hoop because he these little claws.”

“I would like to learn to play violin because music makes me not nervous. It keeps me calm and, by showing that I have learned something, it will help me be more confident.”

“It’s not a superhero; it’s a supervillain. I like villains, even though they always lose. He has six heads. He smashes people and eats animals.”

“I take jazz, tap, ballet and lyrical. I like to dance because I like to get up and move around. It helps me relax after a day of school.”

“So, we’re making a vanity out of an old trunk. We’ll put a mirror inside the top. There will be a shelf and a drawer and on the bottom, cabinets.”

So what happens when your project is finished? Does someone get to keep it?

“One of us could probably keep it.”‘

“Or sell it!”

“Yeah, sell it.”

“If I could talk to everyone on the road, I would say, ‘Please pay attention to our signals, our lights.’ Everybody stop because there are little ones getting off the bus. You don’t know what direction that they are going to go in. Everybody is supposed to stop.”

“The best thing on the lunch menu?  The cheesy breadsticks because they don’t taste like they are freezer burnt.”

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“I actually ended up with a career in music and film, and I think that working with scripts and screenplays helped lead me to where I am today…I have always shared stories with (my children) that teach valuable life lessons and help to develop good character. I squeeze in a little history, some sports trivia and a bit of math in every story, and the fellas love it. Everybody has a story to tell. Sure, you can use your imagination, but sometimes kids get hung up on that. People’s lives are interesting, and with a little creativity, there’s a story.”

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“Reading gives us more information and helps us expand our knowledge, plus it’s fun and adventurous.”