Painful Experiences, Powerful Lessons

Photo by Bob Riha, Jr.

California member Amy Tsubokawa draws on painful childhood experiences--and 30 years of teaching skill--to deliver positive messages about cultural diversity.

When Tsubokawa was nine, her family--like thousands of Japanese-American families--was sent to an internment camp for the duration of World War II. While confined to a barracks in Poston, Arizona, where temperatures reached 116 degrees in the summer, Tsubokawa watched her father weaken and eventually die of a kidney ailment.

"It was a difficult and sorrowful time for us," says Tsubokawa. "But my family was luckier than most. We were farmers, and when we were released, we were able to live and work on my uncle's farm. He was an American citizen, so he was able to own his land. Most Japanese-Americans at that time were not citizens, could not own land, and found after the war that their farms had been bought by corporations."

Each year, Tsubokawa speaks on the Japanese-American war experience before the California Teachers Association Human Rights Conference. Her tireless work as a trainer in women's leadership, cultural diversity, and minority leadership development earned her the 2001 NEA Mary Hatwood Futrell Award for women's leadership.

"It's something I'm proud and grateful to be able to do," says Tsubokawa, an elementary teacher for 30 years in California's Norwalk-La Mirada School District. "I experienced injustice, but life is long, and I've also experienced the opportunity to attend college and enjoy the rewards of teaching. So I want to be able to turn my experience into positive lessons. When Japanese-Americans say, 'This happened to us,' we're helping to make sure it doesn't happen to someone else in the future."

--Matt Simon

Bowling for Fun and Unity

After teaching second grade for 40 years at Saccarappa School in Westbrook, Maine, Mary Wescott figured she'd devote most of her retirement days to painting watercolors.

"It didn't work out that way, but I'm glad," says Wescott. "As soon as I retired, my local president called and asked if I'd revive a school district bowling league that had folded years before. I hadn't bowled in 30 years, but I said 'yes.'"

From that moment, six years ago, the Westbrook Teachers Speed League has been going strong. Forty to 50 teachers, along with ESPs and school district officials, participate in the league's 15-week season--which begins each October. Thursday night bowling has now become part of the social fabric of the Westbrook Education Association, and has made for friendlier relations between the Association and the school district.

The Westbrook school superintendent has gone so far as to decree that no school board meetings will be held on Thursday nights.

"It's been a great social outlet for us all," says Wescott, who now works to perfect her bowling in the off-season and has a top score of 179. "Everyone is paired in teams of two. We all pay dues to be in the league, and at the end of each season, we all get a $50-dollar gift certificate which we can use to buy bowling balls, shoes, or our new league shirt."

And Wescott says she still has plenty of time for her watercolors, and for trips to her lake cottage with her husband, William.

--Matt Simon

Web Wizard Works Wonders

Not too long ago, George Hodnick, a former English and speech teacher, had limited computer experience. That all changed last fall when teachers in his Red Wing, Minnesota, school district went on strike.

The local president called and asked if Hodnick would maintain their Web site during the strike. He agreed, and immediately headed to St. Paul for computer and Web training. When he returned to Red Wing, he created a strike Web site that included daily newsletters and daily photos he shot at every picket line.

"There were 220 teachers striking, and I wanted them to see that they were one unified group," says Hodnick. "I set up the site so that any teacher could browse a little bit and see everyone involved. And I included humorous photos and captions to boost morale."

The strike lasted three weeks, and everyone agreed that Hodnick helped keep spirits high and members informed. In the end, teachers won a four-year contract that preserves their health benefits (the major issue in negotiations).

Hodnick, meanwhile, is finding new outlets for his tech skills. He recently designed a new logo for his local, and he is digitally restoring historical photos for his home town of Aurora, Minnesota as it prepares for its 100th anniversary. "All my relatives are from Aurora," says Hodnick. "At the town centennial celebration, I'll be giving my cousins restored family photos on CD. This all started as a way to help the teachers, but now it's a hobby I love."

--Matt Simon