On the last day of February 2019, I lost my best friend, Carolyn Waugh. We were elementary school teachers in Montgomery County Public Schools, Maryland, and we were the only New Englanders in our school. We became fast friends from 1958 to the present day, perhaps because we had the same accent and enjoyed our conversations each day. They reminded us of home and our loneliness was less each time we talked. Of course, we could understand one another.

Few people know how generous Carolyn was to others, especially school-age children. She made hundreds of mittens and an untold number of shirts and hats, she paid for their lunches when no lunch money was available, and she bought school supplies when the school funds had run out.

Not once did she tell anyone of her generosity. She was the great example of a teacher you would want for your child. She was their friend, the mother substitute for the one that had left the home, the father substitute for the one who was no longer in the home. She dried their tears and told students how important and worthwhile they were. And she never missed a day of school except for severe illness.

Today as we ponder the loss of a dear friend and colleague, we are reminded that very good people have been among us, near us, and we should not forget to celebrate their life’s efforts.

 

Edie Adams

Laconia, New Hampshire


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