On November 3, over 50,000 runners took to the streets of NYC for the 49th annual New York City Marathon. Among them was Ashley Hickey, a 3rd grade teacher from Denver, Colorado, who currently serves in Scholastic Book Clubs’ Teacher Advisor program. But throughout the race, Ashley wasn’t alone. While she ran 26.2 miles, her fellow teacher advisors traveled thousands of miles to cheer her on along the course and meet her at the finish line.
Back in March, Ashley and 15 other teachers traveled to New York to attend a weekend-long teacher conference held by Scholastic Book Clubs at Scholastic HQ. The group of educators quickly formed a tight bond and ever since have stayed in touch to regularly share teaching tips, advice, successes and other life updates with one another. When Ashley shared that she would be running the New York City Marathon, the group immediately rallied around her, and when she arrived in New York a few days before the big race, she was met by Kerry Ann Whilby-Reeves, 4th grade teacher from New Rochelle, New York; Nadya Abu-Rish, 2nd grade teacher from Falls Church, Virginia; Kelsey Anderson, 1st grade teacher from Kent, Washington; Andrea Childes, 4th grade teacher from St. Louis, Missouri; and Niki Shafer, 5th grade teacher from Baraboo, Wisconsin.
The teachers enjoyed a fun-filled weekend in the city, and even stopped by the Scholastic building for lunch! On Sunday morning, as Ashley set off from Staten Island, the other teacher advisors—along with a few Scholastic Book Clubs employees—gathered with signs, balloons and lots of energy to help her get across the finish line. Ashley hit her goal time, and the entire group gave us a lesson in why supporting one another is one of the most important things we can do.
These teacher advisors reminded us all that a teacher’s support extends far beyond the classroom, that there’s no better excuse than a marathon to travel across the country and cheer on a friend, and that teachers really CAN do anything!
