X Online Chat
close window

Stories

Do you have a Be The One story to share? CLICK HERE to submit your story.

Louise Bement was my 4th grade teacher. Sometimes school was difficult for me. I was a day dreamer. I liked daydreaming and I liked to to write. When I was in her class she would give what might be considered a straight forward assignment- and to be honest I can’t remember what the directions were (I bet she can though) where newly introduced words were to be used in sentences or story. I’m writing story here because that is what I wrote. Did she suggest story? Maybe. Regardless she accepted my stories. They were looooong. Rather than encourage me to not ramble or to be concise she allowed me to write to my little hearts content. I began looking forward to getting my work returned back to me. Mrs. Bement was effusive in her praise! I remember feeling so PROUD. To my delight she even mentioned my work to my parents when she ran into them outside of school. Through them I learned that she would read my stories to her husband and that he enjoyed them too!
If asked I expect that most of Louise Bement’s former students would tell you how valued she made them feel~ and how ‘seen’ they were. We were so fortunate to have had her as a teacher.
So what is my Be the One up to these days? Louise Bement serves as the Lansing Town Historian. She also continues to be my One. She illustrated this to me during our recent visit. How? By gently encouraging me to share the stories I’ve written as an adult...

Lisa Grimm Campbell
My fourth grade teacher and I reconnected after 20 some years. As a fourth grader I'd been happy and alive. Not so as an adult— I felt boxed-in and very very sad.

Mrs. N and I got into a pattern of visiting every week. I could tell her anything. Sometimes we sat and said very little. At one point she said to me, "I'm not worried about you, B. You have such vast inner resources."

That was lifeline!
I have struggled with previously undiagnosed bipolar II disorder for half of my life and always thought it was major depressive disorder. It's hard for me to look on the sunny side of life. So it's incredibly helpful to have my mom, with her constant sunny disposition, despite having her own troubles, to always have a smile, a joke or a song to put me in a better mood. She listens to me and always manages to make me take a deep breath and re-evaluate the state of things. She is my one. When I heard about the campaign I gave her the bracelet and since then (about a month ago) she hasn't taken it off, not once.

Dana darling
I had just moved to Washington, DC, completely new to the area, pregnant, with a toddler, and just beyond TIRED.

I opened up to a mom I'd met on the playground a couple weeks earlier to let her know I was stuck for childcare one day the following week due to a daycare closing, simply to vent. She absolutely INSISTED I drop my son off with her for a 5 hour play date the following day. She would not let it go....even though I barely knew her.

That act of seeing me in my hour of need and truly coming to the rescue solidified a friendship instantly that I now know I can call on in times of joy or sorrow... or indecision. She's one of my ONES, and certainly the first to make me feel like our new location was really HOME.

Jamie Levinthal
When I was a junior in high school, my parents divorced after 30 years. The next year, my mom had a heart attack and bypass surgery. Mrs. Jean Martin was one of my favorite English teachers. Throughout these tough family events and more, she checked in with me, listened to me, comforted me, gave me pep talks. She encouraged me to apply for a full scholarship at a local state school, which I was awarded. She held me to the highest standards, always! I saw her recently in her assisted living residence. She recognized me immediately. She said to me, "I love you and respect you." Nothing could mean more to me! She was "The One" for me!

Edna Brown