Shiela MacArthur:  

Life Well, after graduating from LCHS, I attended SMU for two years and completed my BA in English Education. I married in my Jr. year in college, had a son when I graduated, and was on a fast-track to a divorce. The highlight of my Sr. year was doing my student teaching under Miss Whitten's guidance. And when I began teaching, I tried to model her example. When my son (Charles) was almost three, I divorced. My teaching career spanned 36 years, and had I not been diagnosed with breast cancer, I might still be teaching because I adored it. I taught English and Speech from 1965-2001 at Sulphur HS, Marion HS, Archbishop Rummel HS (Metairie,LA), an all-boys Catholic HS, and Slidell HS (Slidell, LA). I remarried in 1970, and my husband, George W. MacArthur, adopted Charles when he was 6 years old. I continued my education throughout the years and earned an MEd, Specialist degree, and PhD. Occasionally, I taught adjunctly for Southeastern University (Hammond, LA), University of Southern Mississippi (Hattiesburg, MS), and Tulane University's Northshore Campus (Covington, LA). Out of the blue (no history and no warning) my husband (age 54) died of a heart attack in 1997. My mother died in 1999, and in 2000 I had a mastectomy and reconstruction (using my own body tissue). Uncertain of my future health, I decided to retire. I had taught Sr. English (British literature) for a long time, and I didn't feel it was fair to seniors in high school to hang on when I might not have a healthy future. As it turned out, my cancer was a late Stage 1, and as of October 2006, I have made it to the magical year five of being cancer-free. And I am finally content with being r...Expand for more