Dear Friends,
What’s in
the name? Well, let’s ask Steve Hartman. When folks in Swedeborg, Mo.
decided to name their elementary school building, everyone knew it had to be
named after someone truly special.
When you
have your name on a building that’s huge. The name would have to be named
after someone who was significant, right? .
Throughout
history there’ve been many national figures who fit that bill. Also, there are
lots of famous Missourians who would have been great choices to have their
names inscribed over the front door of the school. But in the end, they went
with Claudine Wilson.
Who is
that, you might ask? Meet school custodian, Claudine Wilson.
One of
the school students said of her, “You can get her a vacuum cleaner, and she’ll
appreciate it because she really likes cleaning.”
Another
student commented, “Yeah, she’s like in the zone. She focuses, and she just
really dedicates herself to the school.”
Her
principal said, “She has given so much to the school, and over the past 30
years, she has taken on a busload of additional responsibilities from
transportation coordination, often driving a bus when needed, to filling in for
absent secretarial staff.”
From
lunch duty to landscaping, from facility operations to fill in operator, she is
always doing something to make the school better.
Claudine,
Swedeborg’s school janitor does it all. Her “How can I help you,” is a
constant reminder that she is always seeking to help make things better for
others.
She says,
"I just keeps finding ways to serve others and the next thing I know, I
was leaving at 6 in the morning and getting home about 7:30 at night.”
And
what’s your motivation for doing all that?” she was asked.
“The
kids, the kids; they are always in your heart.”
That’s
what makes Claudine who she is, a servant of others.
School
board president Chuck Boren says, “When these kids get sick, you think they go
to the nurse to start with? No, they go to her. If they’ve had a bad night they
go to her. I mean, she’s there for each and every one of them.
And after
all, that’s why the school board voted unanimously for the new name of the
school to be the Claudine Wilson School.
There’s
really only one person in this whole community who remains unconvinced that
Claudine deserves this honor: it’s Claudine!
She says,
“It touches your heart, but I don’t think my name needs to be up on a building
somewhere.”
So,
we’ll add humility to one of the reasons why her name needs to be up there.
In
America, names on buildings often inspire greatness. The Swedeborg educational
leaders define greatness a little differently than most people do.
“Would
you want to be like her,” a student was asked?
“Yeah, that’s
what everybody should want to be, you know, that’s what I would want to be,
also.”
When I
heard this news story yesterday morning on one of the news' channels, I thought
it was just too good not to be shared.
Claudine
is an example of a servant leader, who like Jesus, came to serve and help
others,
Claudine,
is more than just a successful person with a building named after her, she is
significant, notable, and unforgettable,
It has
been said “a leader serves by leading and leads by serving,” and a leader she
is. She is the kind of servant leader who places others’ agendas above her own.
Servant leaders always give more than they take, and they are always looking to
serve and add value to others. They make others better.
An English, nobleman Sir Bartell Fere, served as governor of Bombay, India, in the 1860’s. He was known by both family and acquaintances as the ‘helpful man.’ On one occasion when he was returning from a long trip, his wife sent a newly hired servant to meet him and help him with his baggage. "How shall I know Sir Bartell?” asked the servant. The governor’s wife responded, “Look for a tall gentleman helping somebody.”
Let us
never forget that like Claudine, “serving (and helping) others prepares us to
lead others.” James Autry, from Practicing Servant Leadership.
Yours in
faith and friendship,
Tom
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