When I was in the fifth grade I witnessed one of my teachers with her clothes on fire.
In late 1975 at what was then Lutherville Elementary School, my classmates and I were being taught to make ceramics in art class. The art department was split into two rooms: one for class and project making and the other housed an actual kiln for baking our genius works of art (i.e., ashtrays and animals that didn’t look like animals).
Across the hall from said art department was Mr. Kimmel’s classroom. I had no classes under him but his was my homeroom class early each morning.
One day in homeroom the peace was shattered by horrific screaming coming from outside the classroom.
Mr. Kimmel and most of us kids rushed the door to see what was happening, an image I’ll never forget: our art teacher running down the hallway in panic with her pants ablaze. She had, we later learned, caught her pant leg on fire while handling the kiln. Her dash down the hall only caused the flames to spread as we were not as versed on the merits of ‘stop-drop-and-roll’ as we are today.
Mr. Kimmel was already in action. The teacher’s lounge was next to his classroom and he ran inside, grabbed a blanket from somewhere in there and reemerged into the hall, sprinting all the way down and tackling her to the ground, snuffing out the flames.
Our hero.
Quite a traumatic sight for anyone let alone a group of eleven-year-olds.
The art teacher (whose name I’m refraining from using) recovered from her burns after what I’m sure was a grueling process, especially back then. She returned to work the following school year.
Epilogue:
Two years ago I encountered Mr. Kimmel where I work. I hadn’t seen him in forty-six years. I recognized his full name and face instantly.
I asked him if he remembered the incident involving the art teacher. Dumb question? The look on his face before I even finished the question was my answer.
I wanted him to know I remember. I expressed to him my gratitude for what he did because I couldn’t recall if I did back then. It was important to me that he knew the impact he made. Yes, it was a horrible event, but I also took away from it a true sense of appreciation for those who are educators and everything they put into it for so very little pay and never enough glory and that, oh yeah, they’re just people too.
Sometimes heroes.
