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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nThe students\u2019 growth, safety, and well-being have been central to the library\u2019s mission. Watching them learn and seeing their self-confidence build has been rewarding \u2013 light-bulb moments that reflect connections and possibilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She said, \u201cRalph Askins has so many great teachers that work hard every day to help the kids be the best they can be. I\u2019ve always felt that educators are given these little minds to mold for the future, and we can have so much influence on them. Over time, I\u2019ve seen more and more students from all walks of life, and some of them are dealing with outside forces we don\u2019t even realize. I think they need more from us than subject matter. We have a job to build their self-esteem and confidence, too. Things we do for them now can have a great impact as they grow academically and socially. Teachers have a lot of jobs to do at this stage, but it\u2019s a great opportunity for us to make a great impact on them in a lot of ways.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Running into her prior students affirms this impact. One of Pittenger\u2019s favorite things is reminiscing with students about their past and their memories of the library. As they enter college or the workforce prepared to thrive, their enthusiasm and ambitions bring her great joy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ralph Askins is written on most of the pages of Pittenger\u2019s life story. She attended school there as a child, as did her children. It\u2019s more than home; it\u2019s a place in her heart. It\u2019s a connection passed along to her eight-year-old granddaughter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe live so close to the school that sometimes she would go with me. And it\u2019s been the best thing for her, too.\u201d Pittenger said that her granddaughter doesn\u2019t focus on technology. \u201cShe\u2019s just very interested in the literature and the informational books, and she gets lost in it,\u201d Pittenger said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She didn\u2019t realize the strength of her granddaughter\u2019s ties to her library until recently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pittenger\u2019s career as the school\u2019s librarian closed with the 2021-22 school year. Her retirement will begin with the usual transitions and include more time with her family, but her granddaughter will miss her library.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pittenger said, \u201cMy retirement was a hard decision, but I\u2019ve been excited about it. My family\u2019s excited that I will have more time to spend with them. But my granddaughter began to cry. I couldn\u2019t figure out why. I wasn\u2019t expecting her response, \u2018I love that library. That\u2019s one of my favorite things to do is to come to spend time with you in that library.\u2019 That caught me off guard. I know she\u2019s right. It is a special place, a very special place.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And it will continue to be a special place as the new librarian opens the doors this fall. Pittenger knows Mrs. Brittany Barnett will be a blessing to the children, and she\u2019ll support her through the transition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From there, she will ease into the next chapter of her life. Pittenger looks forward to family time, including more fun times with her three grandchildren. Some travel may be in her future, too. But if her heart longs for home, she\u2019s close enough to return from time to time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pittenger said, \u201cI could not have asked the Lord to put me on a better path. He put me on the path with the support system of the wonderful teachers and administrators around me that let me do what I have loved for so long. Seeing students as adults thriving in their lives with their own families and in the workforce or whatever they\u2019re doing is such a blessing to me. It makes me feel that I\u2019m a very lucky girl.\u201d GN<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" RALPH ASKINS School has been Karrie Pittenger\u2019s second home for most of her life. A safe, inviting environment is the heart of any home. It\u2019s the same atmosphere Pittenger wanted for students and always worked to provide. Pittenger is from a family of educators. That bloodline and her love for children fueled her desire to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":11530,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11495","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cover"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/DSC04664-683x1024.jpg\")
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