Debra Robole:  

Life On December 31, 1954, I was born in Menomonie, Wisconsin, the youngest of 14 children! People have always asked me if I am Catholic because my parents had so many children. To which I respond, “"My parents were working on perfection, and when they FINALLY had me they said, 'Okay, we can stop now!'" At any rate, it was an experience being from such a large family. I learned early on how to share and how to be a team player. I also learned about hand-me-downs and waiting for my turn in the bathroom! I loved being raised in a small town! Some of my fondest memories are of the days that I attended school in Elmwood, and the summers in between. I loved learning how to read so I could then spend hours in the tiny town library reading about the adventures of the Hardy Boys, while listening to the crackling of the potbellied wood stove in the corner. I loved memorizing the multiplication tables in fourth grade so that I could later goof off in Mr. Bjurquist'’s Freshman algebra class because I had a good foundation. I loved being chosen early on for athletic games at recess because I was just as good as the top male athletes. Women power at 9! What did I love most about Elmwood as a kid? I could walk all over the town and feel safe. I knew most everyone that lived in town---what they did for a living, how they treated their neighbors, and when I needed to respect their privacy. I loved the striped barber shop poles, the grocery stores, the hardware stores, the restaurant, the auditorium, the creamery, the gas stations, …the Christmas trees along Main Street, the town celebrations, the park full of butternut trees, the school. By the time I was in third grade, I knew that I wanted to go to college to be a teacher. I had no idea then of the variables involved, mostly money; but with the innocence of youth, I went after the dream. It’'s been a few years since then, but those years have brought me three degrees, numerous jobs in education, and the chance to make a difference in the lives of others who may have followed their own third-grade dreams. The solid educational foundation that each, and every, teacher at Elmwood Area Schools helped me develop is being passed forward in my own work. That is what I love most about being from Elmwood. Do you remember these: cruising down Main Street seeing if you could coast from the south side to the stop sign in the center of downtown? paying 35 cents (or less) for a gallon of gas? sitting on Grumpy's Corner chatting with friends? walking to the "Little Store" (...Expand for more