Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9, NIV

When I was a child, I knew a phone number by heart.

It was the number I dialed almost every night. And every time I called, the same voice answered:

“Pioneer Club!”

That was the local bar where I could reach my mom.

Sometimes I called because I had a question. Sometimes I just wanted to say goodnight. 

Most afternoons when I walked in the door after school, I was alone. There was no one there to greet me or ask how my day had gone.

You see, I was that kid at school.

The one who talked too much.
The one who got in trouble for eating the teacher’s snacks.
The one who got sent home—again—because I had head lice.

I loved my mom, and she did the best she could. But she was a single parent who struggled with alcoholism.

So school became my safe place.

School was where I knew I would get breakfast and lunch.
School was where I had friends.
School was where someone would listen to me talk.
School was where I felt seen.
School was where I felt safe.

Fast forward to today…I work in an elementary school as a Behavior Intervention Specialist. It is one of the greatest privileges of my life to give back to the kind of school community that gave so much to me.

Every day, I walk into that building hoping to be for my students what so many educators were for me—a consistent, caring adult in a world that felt unpredictable.

I never told my teachers about what was happening at home. I never said thank you.

So today, I want to say it now.

Thank you.

Thank you for showing up every day.
Thank you for caring about children whose stories you may never fully know.
Thank you for the patience, compassion, and consistency you give so freely.

You may never realize it, but you are someone’s hero. You are making a difference every single day.

I know that because I am living proof of it.

Lord, help us remember that every child who walks into our classrooms carries a story we may never fully see. Give us hearts that lead with compassion, patience, and love. Help us not to leave Jesus in the parking lot when we enter our school buildings each morning. Instead, help us carry His light into every hallway, classroom, and conversation. Remind us that one of the greatest gifts we can give a child is helping them feel safe, seen, and deeply loved. Even when we never hear a thank you, and even when we cannot see the fruit of our labor, give us faith to trust that You are working through us. We place every child, every educator, and every moment of this day in Your hands. Use us as Your light. May the love we show never be forgotten, and may it make an eternal difference. Amen.

Copyright Candace Clair.

Candace is an elementary school behavior intervention specialist in Vancouver, Washington.