June 29, 2006 at 8:54 a.m.
Decades of service remembered as CL District employees retire
Decades of service remembered as CL District employees retire
Sue Skare
Primary School teacher Sue Skare retired after a 34-year career which included: 7 years teaching fourth grade in Forest Lake, 13 years owning and operating Learning Lane Pre School, and 14 years teaching kindergarten for Chisago Lakes.
A highly regarded teacher, Skare is noted for the fun and messy hands on activities, via stations, that she planned and executed with the help of parent volunteers. She believes that if it is fun for kids they learn more. Sue especially enjoys watching the growth of students who enter kindergarten knowing a few letters and sounds and leave as emergent readers. A special joy for Skare is seeing former students return to the Primary School as teachers and parents.
After retirement her immediate plans are to take a trip with her cousins to their ancestral homeland, Germany. Also on the list is a road trip along Route 66, reading and volunteering at school. She expects to miss seeing the children every day (especially former students who stop by regularly), the people she works with and the work itself.
Sharon Madison
Sharon Madison, an employee of Chisago Lakes Area Schools and the former Taylors Falls School, will be retiring at the end of the school year after 15 years of service. She most recently worked as a media paraprofessional at Taylors Falls Elementary.
Mark Erickson
Mark Erickson retired as an English teacher at the senior high. His exemplary career spans 34 years from 1972-2006. Erickson has taught a wide range of classes including writing, speech, theater arts and literature. He became well known and respected by many in the Minnesota State High School League for his coaching and teaching in the areas of speech and theater. His students consistently received “starred” performances at state competitions. These “starred” ratings were the equivalent of being state champs. Several of his former students went on to professional acting careers in television and the movie industry. Most recently, Brett Rickaby had a leading role in the television series “24.” In his retirement, Erickson plans on traveling, camping, and trout fishing with wife Debbie.
Lee Ness
Lee Ness served the Chisago Lakes Area Schools as a social studies teacher at the middle school for a total of 36 years. Along with a colleague, he developed the Twentieth Century Challenge course and taught the required Geography class to Chisago Lakes Middle School eighth graders.
Ness is an avid hunter and fisherman. He is active with “Ducks Unlimited” and has assisted in the development of several new chapters across the state. Ness is looking forward to spending time at the cabin he is building in Northern Minnesota with his wife Meredyth and their two children and their families.
The students and staff at CLMS will miss Ness and his sense of humor. He has left behind a fine program that he helped initiate. It will continue to benefit the community in the years to come.
Dave Swanson
Dave Swanson began his career in the Chisago Lakes School District in 1972 and has taught eighth and ninth grade math. He grew up on the east side of St. Paul, graduated from Johnson High School and then from Hamline University.
Swanson enjoys playing tennis, hiking, biking, camping and is an avid golfer. His daughter attends the U of Montana and is on their golf team. He and his wife enjoy watching her play and we’re sure that will be part of his retirement plan.
Mike Savold
After 34 years of teaching, performing and entertaining in the Chisago Lakes Area Schools and community, Mike Savold retired this year.
His career path led and provided him with many rewarding moments and memories. He has had the opportunity to teach many students while at the same time learning from them. Savold built and maintained a quality Instrumental Music program that the district and community can truly be proud of. Under his direction, students have received superior ratings at the Minnesota State High School League Music contest, performed on public television, public radio and recorded a record, cassette and CD.
Sue Holliday
Sue Holliday began her teaching career in the Chisago Lakes District 27 years ago. She brought energy, enthusiasm, exceptional teaching skills and a great passion for teaching to our district. Holliday has been dedicated to making the middle school a great place for students to learn through her active participation in numerous curriculum and building committees.
In 1986, Holliday was named Chisago Lakes Teacher of the Year.
Mary Anne Mattson – District Benefits Coordinator
Mary Anne Mattson started with the Taylors Falls District in November 1979. When Chisago Lakes and Taylors Falls combined in 1993 to become Chisago Lakes ISD #2144, she had been working as the Superintendent’s Secretary for Taylors Falls. With the combination of the two districts, she became Payroll Coordinator and has worked at the District Office ever since. Mattson most recently handled all of the insurance and other employee benefits, and served on the Health & Safety Committee.
Mattson and husband Bud live on their farm in the Taylors Falls area, have raised four girls and have five grandsons and two granddaughters. In her retirement she plans to spend more time quilting, baking bread, gardening, and having grandchildren for “Granny Camps” during the summer. She looks forward to the freedom and flexibility in her schedule for connecting with friends, spending time enjoying her farm and all the “farm critters.”
DeWaine Hischer – Maintenance Supervisor
DeWaine started with Chisago Lakes in March 1991. Positions held included: delivery truck driver, sub bus driver, groundskeeper, Head Custodian and Maintenance Supervisor and also serving on the Health & Safety Committee. He has been a real asset, helping with major renovations and projects.
Hischer, his wife Joyce and dog, Maggie, plan to enjoy RV’ing after his retirement. He plans to spend more time fixing things, fishing, snowmobiling and hunting. He might even stop by the District Office once in a while to lend a hand.
Comments:
Commenting has been disabled for this item.