“Mrs. Cron! Mrs. Cron! I need your help!” As a second grader at West Elementary in Jonesboro, Arkansas, this plea was sure to draw a reaction that we all loved: the “Mrs. Cron spin.” Whenever a student asked for help, Mrs. Cron would spin around in her high-heel shoes and attend to the needs of her students.
Mrs. Cron had taught most of my older cousins and she always told me how she loved the “Walker boys.” I loved the way Mrs. Cron taught our class.
Mrs. Cron was a disciplinarian and always in control, but she was also gracious and attentive to the individual needs of her students. I had barely passed the first grade, so when I arrived in Mrs. Cron’s class I was behind and struggled in my reading skills. Mrs. Cron worked with me one-on-one to improve my reading skills, always taking the time to help me. She also guarded me from the teasing of my classmates when I struggled.
As I moved on from Mrs. Cron’s class, she continued to check on me year after year.
When I entered sixth grade, Mrs. Cron’s best friend, Mrs. Spence, was my teacher. I later found out that Mrs. Cron had talked to Mrs. Spence about me, explaining that she saw something in me worth investing in. Mrs. Spence’s room was always decorated in the most vibrant colors and, just like Mrs. Cron, she was very active with our class.
Mrs. Spence was always kind to me, even welcoming me into her own family as her “adopted” son. When I was invited to Mrs. Spence’s home, I was treated like a son. She personally made sure all of my needs were met as it related to school supplies and funding for extracurricular activities.
At home, on my great-grandmother’s porch, I loved to play school with all the neighborhood kids. When Mrs. Cron and Mrs. Spence learned about this they saw to it that I had all the resources I needed to have the best play school. They supplied me with old books, decorations, worksheets, and chalk for my chalkboard. While I was “playing school” I was actually learning and becoming a better student.
My attachment to Mrs. Cron and Mrs. Spence continued through college with both of them inviting me back to their classrooms each year to speak to their students. This was an annual opportunity to pay it forward, encouraging the next generation of students to stay in school, go to college, and believe in themselves. I learned a valuable lesson from these two women: it doesn’t matter where you start as long as you were determined to finish well.
Mrs. Cron and Mrs. Spence made sure I finished well.
Today I am a pastor and an advocate for education, specifically drawing attention to the power of a teacher. A few years ago when Mrs. Cron passed away, her children asked me to deliver her eulogy. It was an honor to offer the last words over a teacher who meant the world to me. Mrs. Cron believed in me through her calling as a teacher. She spurred me on to complete my education and to finish well.
At Mrs. Cron’s funeral I was asked to demonstrate the “Mrs. Cron spin.” The church was filled with former students who had stories just like mine. It was then that I realized how Mrs. Cron’s years of spinning had launched several generations of kids into high achievers.
Brandon Walker is the pastor of New Shelby Missionary Baptist Church in Collierville, Tennessee and the Project Director of Clergy United for the Memphis Schools.