Sharon Camacho, Centerville Elementary

“When I heard about this on the radio, I thought: Sharon Camacho is THAT teacher! The teacher that all my kids (almost) have had, and they all still talk about. She makes such a difference! My current 4th grader comes home laughing to himself about things she says. She makes school cool with her honesty, vibrancy, directness, grace, and sense of humor. And that twinkle in her eye! My kids never ask to skip a day of school when Mrs. Camacho is their teacher. That means a TON as a parent!

Sharon’s second husband died last year of cancer. This has been heartbreaking, and she has had to take a second, and I think also a third job to earn the money she needs as a mother of 2 (maybe 3), because we know teachers don’t earn enough (especially her, for what she does)! Even with this heartbreaking experience and financial strain, she has been an incredible example to the kids of how to deal with a hard situation as they’ve watched her do so with courage and with her chin up. She deserves all the generosity we can give her–for she is so generous to her students by not only teaching them core content in an engaging way, but also by sharing of herself, openly and candidly, every day.”

-SalliJune Allred