A small private school. A smaller first grade classroom. A loud, smiling teacher standing in the middle of the classroom waiting to greet the next student. Mrs. Dana McEvoy is a tall blonde woman, beaming at her students from above, waiting to help each child to their full potential. She was my first grade teacher at St. Joan of Arc school, and even through my three years of high school, she still remains my favorite.
To find an approachable teacher can sometimes be difficult as a student, but it was clear to anyone who met Mrs. McEvoy that she was someone who would push your limits, be an at school mother, and be an ever-listening supportive friend.
Mrs. McEvoy was a friend above all else to me. Even though I was in a private school, kids were no less cruel. I was bullied and often came in from recess on the verge of crying. Mrs. McEvoy would take me aside and help boost up the fragile confidence of a six year old girl. She became a friend I could always talk to about anything that happened at school.
Mrs. McEvoy is a like a mother duck, leading her little ducklings in a line through the options of the future. Mrs. McEvoy made it her job to get to know each one of her students and lead us toward the potential she saw in us.
For me this was literary works. I grew up with a father who was never fond of reading, so naturally, I followed suit. Mrs. McEvoy, however, had other ideas. She promptly handed me a series of books and challenged me to read the most out of the whole class. She succeeded in her challenge of making me read. And I find I still have the entire series of Magic Treehouse books that my younger sisters are now reading.
Mrs. McEvoy is like a battering ram, pushing your limits to, what you think is your breaking point, but is really the potential she saw in you. In getting to know her students’ strengths, she also saw what needed to be worked on. Mrs. McEvoy saw that I was rather shy when it came to speaking out with a group of people.
So, she gave me a role in the first grade play. Being Mama Bear I had to be able to say a few lines on cue throughout the play. I was scared to death, but Mrs. McEvoy spent countless recesses with me practicing and practicing and practicing with endless patience.  When the day came for the play I did my part and was overjoyed at succeeding. She also gave me the task of memorizing a Irish poem and reciting it to the class. I still have it memorized today. From her I developed my “You can do better” attitude, and if you see me now, I have no problem speaking out and letting all know that I have a voice and am not afraid to use it!
Mrs. McEvoy is a butterfly, growing more beautiful in the eyes of her students throughout the year as her personality shines out. She would try her very best to come up with ways that kids could remember her teachings. I will never forget how to spell ‘together’ with her phrase “to get her”. She showed her excitement when reading a book out loud to the class, setting the hatched butterflies free, or talking about her hiking trips with her husband and two daughters. She really demonstrated that she wanted to connect with students when her head came down to look eye to eye with the children she treated as her own.
Mrs. McEvoy created the bookworm I am today and the undying desire to become a writer. She created the loud, confident person I am. She created in me the excitement of the learning environment. Mrs. McEvoy has always been my favorite teacher because she was a kind leader, educator, and friend. Thank you Mrs. McEvoy, you will be a role model that I carry with me through the rest of my life.