Mrs. Hanna

Mrs. Hanna

In 1963, after having spent the first four years of elementary school at all black Lincoln School in Leavenworth, Kansas, our family moved to the south part of town and I started fourth grade in a new school. The school was called Third Avenue School and it was all white except for three black families. We were the ones fortunate or unfortunate enough to live on the wrong side of Ohio Avenue. So instead of attending Fifth Avenue School, the all black school on the south side of town, we were integrating Third Avenue nearly a decade after the Brown vs. The Board of Education case that desegragated schools.

Being a black kid going to an all white school had all the horrors that you would expect in 1963. There were bullies and racists, kids cheating at games and me not getting picked, name calling, prejudice teachers and all the rest.

But there was one bright spot at that school that changed the direction of my life. That bright spot was Mrs. Hanna. She was one of the most educated black people in Leavenworth and she was teaching fourth grade at the all white school. She was a member of our church and a long time friend of the family.

Mrs. Hanna was the first one to tell me that I would have to work harder than the other kids to succeed. She was the first to tell me that I was as smart if not smarter than any kid in the class. Since they were all white, she was telling me that I was as good as any white kid. That was a message a little black kid needed to hear in 1963.

Mrs. Hanna didn’t let up on me because I was a black kid in her class. No, she pushed me extra hard. And she would report to my parents if I strayed. And I’d see her at church every Sunday. And finally she lived in the neighborhood only three blocks away. I couldn’t get away with a thing with Mrs. Hanna.

Before Mrs. Hanna my sister Becky had instilled a great love for learning in me. But Mrs. Hanna kicked things up a notch. She made me want to excel. She showed me the beauty and the benefits of doing your best.
I’m so glad I had Mrs. Hanna in my life and I try to tell her every time I go home. Everyone needs a Mrs. Hanna in their life. And if you’re a grown up maybe you could be someone else’s Mrs. Hanna.

No one makes it in life alone. We all need someone to push us and support us. I’m so glad I had someone like that in my life. How about you? Do you remember who turned you around and got you started on the right path? Say a prayer for them. Be thankful for your “Mrs. Hanna.”