Wishing Them Only the Best

With just three weeks of school to go, many of us eagerly anticipate summer and the change of pace it brings. But summer often brings other kinds of changes, too, and this can be especially true for members of our staff.

Thankfully, Proverbs 19:21 reminds us that, “Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand.” Transition can be scary, but we can be confident the Lord is not wringing his hands about what is going on; rather, he is very much in the midst of the changes, guiding our plans according to his will.

With this reassurance in mind, I’d like to tell you about what’s on the horizon for five of our staff and ask you to pray for them and for our school in the midst of their upcoming transitions. We love and wish them only the best as they seek God’s purpose in their future endeavors.

Secondary Humanities/Latin teacher Thomas Banks is in the process of packing his bags for a move east to North Carolina, where he will wed his bride-to-be, Angelina Stafford, after having taught 10th grade Humanities and Secondary Latin for nine years at Petra. Our seniors have asked Thomas to give the commencement address at graduation this year, so we look forward to hearing from him before he heads out in June.

Office Manager Karen DeGroot has served in our Petra office for 12 years and is one of the few staff who has worked with all three headmasters at two different locations (Discovery Drive and Classical Way campuses). A mother of three Petra graduates, Karen is looking forward to spending more time with her husband, Tad, as well as being able to more fully enjoy her hobbies and interests when she retires from Petra later this summer.

5th grade teacher Kate Gannon is planning a move to Salt Lake City this summer, where she will be pursuing further training in the field of special education. Kate started at Petra as a long-term maternity substitute before becoming our 5th grade teacher for two years, and while she is looking forward to the next chapter, she says the transition is a bittersweet one as she leaves Bozeman and Petra.

Pre-K teacher Joan Kempf is looking forward to watching her daughter, Hannah, walk across our graduation stage later this month, and with that an end to her time teaching at Petra. Joan has taught Pre-K at Petra for five years and is looking forward to a new challenge in moving from Pre-K to possibly working with MSU college students as she pursues helping them personally prepare for the future.

Secondary Spanish teacher Giuliana Rodriguez is taking a break from teaching to pursue new career options to allow her to invest more time for her art after 13 years of language education (including running her own Spanish tutoring business out of her home). Just last week, Mrs. Rodriguez took and passed her citizenship test and is soon to become an official U.S. citizen. We are glad to have had her teach Spanish to our Secondary students for the past two years.

As I tell staff and families in the midst of transitions like these, roles change but relationships don’t have to; yes, such anticipated departures will be bittersweet, but that’s exactly how we want them to be (after all, who cries over a place and people you won’t be sad to leave?).

To honor these departing staff, we’re planning two special gatherings: the first is an after-school reception on Wednesday, May 22, from 3:30-4:30 p.m. in the Cafeteria, during which parents and students are invited to come and go to say thank you and goodbye; the second is as part of our Final Assembly on Friday, May 31, from 10:30 a.m.-noon in our Petra Performance Hall, during which we’ll honor these departing staff in front of the entire student body.

We’re grateful for the contributions each of these staff members has made and encourage you to express your own gratitude, either by attending the reception or by writing a note or email (you can click their names to email them directly). We’re in the process of hiring for their roles for next year and are encouraged with the progress we’ve made (more to come on that), but as you might imagine, they are big shoes to fill!