Charles Walker
Awarded, 2006
Charles WalkerAwarded, 2006 |
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Presenter: Sean Berrodin
Mr. Walker is my friend, colleague, mentor and teacher. From seventh grade all the way through my senior year at Revere High School, I was fortunate enough to have had Mr. Walker as my teacher. In seventh grade, he opened the eyes of a very ill behaved student to the wonders of art. During my freshmen year, Mr. Walker was tutoring and mentoring me every day after school. He did this on his own time. He discovered something in me that others had not noticed, and then directed me through education towards a sense of success and accomplishment. The gift of art, that Mr. Walker gave me has inspired continuous goals and has been a fountain of extreme pride.
Throughout school, I have had many obstacles with learning disabilities. Art helped me to engage my focus. It gave me a venue in which I could succeed for the first time. Mr. Walker was my guide along this difficult path. The confidence I gained in art seeped into every aspect of my life. This happened because at some point Mr. Walker saw my potential and intelligence then gave me a channel and means to expand and reveal it to others.
As some of you may know, I am now an art teacher myself. Throughout my five year career as an art teacher, Mr. Walker has continued to provide me with encouragement and wisdom. Every year I came back to Revere to visit, talk and show him my progress as an artist. He encouraged me to pursue a career in art education. And it is he that provided the role model I use every day, as I aspire to be like him in caring for my own students. In this way, Mr. Walker’s efforts have come full circle, and are now multiplying in the lives of the students in my classroom. I admired him for his teaching and the efforts he puts towards his students. I respected his knowledge and ability to pass it on to his students.
I believe the purpose of schooling is to provide resources that allow students to make personal and creative choices in order to discover, experience and learn throughout their education, which is life long. Mr. Walker is a powerful resource and deserves praise. Who knows—maybe there will be more Sean Berrodins out there—I only hope that when I come across them, I will be as unselfish and dedicated and wise as Mr. Walker was with me.
To say that I admire him would be an understatement. I aspire to be like him, as a teacher and as a human being. Thank you, Mr. Walker, for all you have given me!
