Santa and friends visit classrooms

  • Matt Caban • The Madill Record Students from Mrs. Cook’s first grade class meet Sant Claus Dec. 17 during the Madill Public Schools’ Eighth Annual Joyce Coleman Christmas with the Kids.
    Matt Caban • The Madill Record Students from Mrs. Cook’s first grade class meet Sant Claus Dec. 17 during the Madill Public Schools’ Eighth Annual Joyce Coleman Christmas with the Kids.
  • Matt Caban • The Madill Record Ann Hartin reads to students in Mrs. Patton’s Pre-K grade class during meet Santa Claus during the Madill Public Schools’ Eighth Annual Joyce Coleman Christmas with the Kids Dec. 17 at the Madill Early Childhood Center.
    Matt Caban • The Madill Record Ann Hartin reads to students in Mrs. Patton’s Pre-K grade class during meet Santa Claus during the Madill Public Schools’ Eighth Annual Joyce Coleman Christmas with the Kids Dec. 17 at the Madill Early Childhood Center.

A tradition of Christmas cheer continued December 17 as volunteers gathered at the MPS Administration Building for the district’s Eighth Annual Joyce Coleman Memorial Christmas with the Kids.

The event is named after Joyce Coleman, a long-time second and third grade teacher at Madill Elementary who died after an illness in 2014.

The 37 volunteers who came from Madill started the day at administration building their classroom assignments before going to either Madill Elementary School or the Early Childhood Development Center to read to a class.

Elissa Cox, ECC principal, said the goal was to have a guest reader in every classroom from PreK to third grade.

“It takes at least 30 volunteers to read to all classes Pre-K to 3rd grade each year,” she said. “It takes an additional seven to plan and organize the event.”

Before volunteers headed out, Beard, on behalf of the Madill Rotary Club presented one dozen books as a Christmas gift to the ECC Library.

Joyful faces

Cox said her favorite thing

about Christmas with the Kids is seeing the students’ eyes light up when a visitor enters the room to visit and reads a story.

“I also love hearing the memories and stories held so dearly from those that knew Joyce,” she said. “It truly seems to be a magical time and I believe is part of the reason the Christmas season was Joyce’s favorite.”

The event is Cox’s favorite of the year, she said. “It truly takes the entire community of supporters to make it happen and it’s so very wonderful to see people involved within our school.”

First grade teacher Emily Burns said she has seen the holiday cheer in her students for weeks.

“Whenever we have an elf in the classroom,” she said. “Whenever the elf moves. Whenever we talk about Christmas, their eyes just light up and they get so excited talking about their family and what they do at home and different traditions that they have.”

The event has an even deeper meaning for Burns, who is Coleman’s daughter. Burns originally went to Southeastern to be an optometrist.

“Once I went to school I took a few education class and once I did I knew this was right where I wanted to be,” she said. “Now being in here, it’s a dream.”

A teacher remembered

Cox, who started at MPS as a teacher 16 years ago, said she cherished Coleman as a colleague.

“I did have the honor of knowing Joyce,” Cox said. “She was one of the first teachers that I met when I first began teaching at Madill Elementary sixteen years ago. I will always remember that she made me feel welcome to the district. She also always had that smile on her face. Furthermore, I knew that if I ever needed anything I could go to her and she would help me. She always had wonderful advice.”

Burns remembers her mom teaching nearly until the end.

“She taught all the way up until she got sick,” Burns said. “Once she got sick she went home for a little while and then she actually worked in the new admin office, but she was very involved in Madill Schools.”

Burns acknowledged following in her mom’s footsteps but shuttered at the term legacy.

“Oh gosh,” she said. “I mean she was a good one. I don’t if I’ll ever live up to that.”

Burns, who said she didn’t ask her mom about teaching since it wasn’t in her plans. She suppressed a tear as she recalled a friend’s tribute to her mother.

“This is so hard, Burns said. “She was always so happy and in her classroom. I’ve seen some of the people that had her. My best friend had her. Her older brother had her in second grade and that’s when she moved to third grade.

“And my best friend was always jealous cause he got to have her two years. I wish I would have known I was gonna be a teacher at that time, so I could’ve asked more things on what she did and how she did it.”

Volunteers

Cox thanked all the volunteers. They were: Jackie Watson (Little Law Firm), Herschel Beard, Travis Williams, Ann Hartin, Mike and Christie Mathis, Jenn Phillips (KXII), Rick Lane (First United), RaeAnn Cook (sister of Joyce and a Madill Middle School teacher), Maddie Cook, Alvin McGahey, Melanie Keck (Wal-Mart), William Coleman, Jerry and Lucille Coleman, Pam Lee, Lynda McDaniel, Ray McGahey (Madill Police Department),

Andrea Porterfield (First National Bank), Chance and Courtnie Combs (Hobo Joe’s), Tabatha Scasta (Amazing Grace Boutique),

Bre Eppler (Marshall County Health Dept.), David Dunn, Doug Crowson, Margaret Miller (Corner Drug), Jackie Matthews, Father Oby Zumas (Holy Cross Catholic Church) Dennis Self (Madill Fire Dept.), Kyle Kennedy (State Farm Insurance), Robert Holliday (OG&E), Judge Gregory Johnson, Representative Tommy Hardin & Carol Hardin, Randy Kendrix (First Baptist Church of Madill), Will Bain (Banc-First), and Matt Caban (The Madill Record).