Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
She was sitting in the passenger seat of a car at the McDonald’s in The Dalles, Ore. Suddenly the door opened and someone grabbed her.
Connie Marsh caught her breath.
“Don’t you remember me?” said the person.
She did, once she got a look at the young woman. It was one of many students Marsh taught in a 38-year career as a family and consumer science teacher in Tekoa.
“We once ran into a former student at a truck stop between here and Seattle,” said Eric Marsh, Connie’s husband, who retired four years ago from Tekoa. Eric is now in remission after a extensive battle with leukemia which involved support from Tekoa residents and former students from all over the country.
The two will now settle into retirement to travel, but not until Marsh takes one more trip with her FCCLA (Family, Career and Community Leaders of America) students to the annual national convention this July in Orlando.
Aside from teaching family and consumer economics, Marsh has been FCCLA’s advisor in Tekoa. She has guided 27 state officers over the years, along with one national officer. She has served on the state FCCLA board for 28 years, forming friendships all over the state, not to mention every state in the union through the national conventions.
Marsh’s teaching career began in 1974, after graduating from the University of Idaho with a degree in family and consumer science and vocational administration. She first took an interest in teaching as a student in a one-room schoolhouse growing up in May, Idaho.
“I was maybe 6 or 7,” she recalled. “I just didn’t know what I wanted to teach. I loved playing school, helping kids. You get to do a lot of that in a one-room schoolhouse.”
In college, she met Eric. He was hired as music teacher at Tekoa, and she decided to work on a Master’s degree.
Tekoa’s consumer science teacher was in a car accident two weeks into that school year, so they asked Connie to substitute.
“And I’ve been here ever since,” she said.
She finished the school year and remained on staff after the injured teacher found she could not resume the contract.
Marsh finished her masters in Early Childhood Education in 1975. Subjects she taught at Tekoa included physical science, photography, art, computers, annual, consumer math and applied reading and public speaking.
Her main class was family and consumer economics, which included six areas: housing, food and nutrition, consumer economics, child development, interpersonal relationships and personal finance.
“Not just the book sense, but how to relate,” said Marsh. “It’s hard to teach life skills out of textbooks.”
She also coached cheerleading for 16 years, J.V. volleyball for 10 years, drill team for five and varsity basketball for one year.
Looking back, Marsh pointed to the highlights of her time as a teacher.
“The best part is watching the kids get confidence in themselves and get up and speak in front of an audience,” Marsh said. “It’s just like a rose opening up.”
One of her current students embodies that, Marsh said. Her name is Cen’edra Homas, who will be a senior next year.
“When she came as a freshman, literally you wouldn’t know she was in your class,” said Marsh. “Today she got up and gave a speech as the new ASB president.”
Marsh’s replacement will be former student Ashley Patterson-Growe, 26, a state FCCLA officer for Marsh.
She said that the time has just come to retire.
“My husband would like to travel, and he won’t go without me so here we are,” Marsh said. “I think it’s always important to go out when you still love what you’re doing.”
They will also spend time at their place in Yuma, Ariz., along with visiting their three children, including a foster daughter, and three grandsons.
“That’s the other reason to retire, to go play with them,” said Marsh.
Their son Robert is a manager at the Tilma Seed plant while their daughter is a stay-at-home mother in Springdale. Foster daughter Donna McBride is a chief probation officer for Spokane County.
Following Marsh’s trip to Orlando in July, she will return to her classroom, the same one she’s taught in since the start, to clean it out.
She and Eric plan to leave in September for a train trip to the east coast.
Garth Meyer is a former Whitman County Gazette reporter.
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