On Monday, February 28, longtime county educator Glenda May submitted a letter announcing her retirement, effective at the end of the school year.
For May, who is in her tenth year of teaching first grade at Marietta, the letter ends of a career that has spanned over two decades in two county schools.
May began her career in education at Turner, quite literally. She graduated from high school there, and then later was working as a teacher’s aide in the classroom of friend and mentor Robin Mayes.
“I had a great mentor in Robin Mayes,” said May. “When Robin was absent, those kids didn’t get a substitute, they got me, and I went right on like I was filling her position. One day, I decided that I wanted to teach. I believed I could, and I had a great support group encouraging me, so I did it.”
Mayes remembers May’s love for the students and her ability to see the potential in each one.
“I knew Glenda would be a teacher who would motivate students to do their best both academically and personally,” Mayes stated, “and she has proved me right again and again.”
Earning a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education with an Early Childhood Endorsement from Southeastern Oklahoma State University in 1996, May got her first teaching job in her alma mater, Turner, where she taught kindergarten, first, second, and third grades over a 14-year tenure with the district.
“Teaching is a big responsibility and should be taken seriously,” May explained, “because we hold their futures in our hands. In teaching, I always wanted to inspire and make a difference in my students’ lives.”
May has taught many of Love County’s children during her career, and she says she has loved them all. She considers being a teacher to be one of her life’s greatest accomplishments.
“I am forever grateful for the administrators who believed in me and gave me the opportunity to pursue my career,” she said. “All those years ago, being a teacher was my dream, and that has been fulfilled. The past 24 years have been a wonderful experience for me.”
May’s current administrator, Ann Rutledge isn’t looking forward to trying to replace the woman she refers to as an amazing teacher and colleague.
“We will miss Mrs. May not only because she is an incredible teacher, but also because she is an incredible person,” Rutledge said. “She gives not just 100 percent, but 1,000 percent to make sure her students are learning and takes on new challenges without hesitation. She is truly one in a million.”
May and husband Jim, a retired pastor, have been married for 42 years.
“I have two daughters and sons-in-love, Krisi and Montre Douglass and Tiffany and Daniel Williams, and four beautiful granddaughters, Kaylie, Kaiya, Jade and Aubrey,” said May, who looks forward to having more family time.
Another possibility for retirement is travel, but not the kind you do on a cruise ship.
“My husband and I go on mission trips,” explained May. “Jim has been a total of 26 years and I’ve been 18 years with him. We’ve worked in Mexico and Africa.”
The Mays have planted 25 churches in Malawi, Africa.
“We have fallen in love with those people and Africa is like our second home,” she continued. “I stay in contact with my African friends, and many of them call me Mum.”
May treasures the relationships she’s formed with the people in Malawi. The mission trips might entail travel, but they’re anything but a vacation. The Mays and those who go on the trips with them have a limited number of days, so they spend long hours sharing the gospel with people.
“It’s so different there,” May elaborated. “The people are hungry for the word of the Lord. These people have no running water, they sleep on mats, so many don’t even have shoes. My heart breaks every time I leave there, and I wonder why God has allowed me to live in this land of plenty.”
Some retired teachers spend their days substituting, some travel, others spoil their grandchildren. And it’s possible that May will do those things. But the big picture for her might be a little different.
“We are planning on going on more mission trips,” she said. “We go wherever God leads, and our goal is to win one more for Jesus.”