The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

economist sunsuntribune teacher of the year saturday april 122003 erabanner editor tracy kibble presents the york region newspaper groups teacher of the year plaque to newmarkets meadowbrook public school teacher marianne langford i chosen by senior editors from the groups five newspapers along with sponsors john and barbara sibbald who offered an allinclusive week end getaway for two to their prestigious resort and spa the briars located on lake simcoe in jacksons point ms langford also receives two passes to a play at the red barn theatre giving students a voice best teacher quality by mitchell brown staff writer to be perfectly honest its really not much of a couch its brown its square and theres a certain lop sided quality to it that might make an overly cautious sort opt for one of the classrooms sturdier chairs instead even its owner is upfront about me furnitures lack of shall we say visual appeal the caretakers always tease me about its condition teacher marianne langford laughed but for the students in ms langfords meadowbrook public school classroom the privilege of sitting on the couch is not taken lightly the students choose one or two people who they think worked very hard in class and should have the honour of sitting on the couch she said we use it when we have our talks those talks also known as class conferences allow the grade 5 stu dents to express their thoughts oh just about any topic provided they are holding the stuffed ladybug that signals whose turn it is to speak last year one of those students expressed her thoughts to this newspaper about why ms langford should be considered teacher of the month for march 2002 this year that letter earned ms langford the title of york region newspaper groups first teacher of the year ms langford has touched the lives of many wrote chelsea kuhlmann sometimes i wonder why shes on earth youd think to be like her youd have to have seen and known god of course i like her here way better but that was just a thought the classroom couch sessions are- just one way in which ms langford reaches out to her stu dents shes also involved with the schools chess club crosscountry running team and spelling bees drama however has a special place in her heart this past christmas all 35 students in her class took part in a classroom pro duction of a christmas carol and she just directed a stage production of peter pan for theatre aurora but its hard for even a seasoned performer such as ms langford to hide her enthusiasm about teacher of the year honour i rejoiced she said i dont know iwas so excited just kind of shocked i think perhaps whats more shocking is how a piece of advice almost kept her from pursuing her drearivof a career in teaching in the first place in 1972 when ms langford approached her high school guid ance counsellor for career advice she was told ah excess of teachers in the system as sure a sign of how times change as there ever was meant she would never get a job she tended up studying public relations instead and plied her trade at queens park while raising three children but i still in my heart wanted to be a teacher she said so once her children were a little older at age 34 she went back to school to complete her ba and teachers certificate she has been teaching at meadowbrook for the past three years following seven years at a school in lake wilcox she clearly has no regrets about her midcareer change i think it worked out for the best because i have a real apprecia tion for it at ah older age she said i love coming to work every day ms langford received a plaque from the york region newspaper group and an allinclusive week end getaway at the prestigious briars resort and spa on the shores of lake simcoe in jacksons point including meals compliments of owners john and barbara sibbald this exclusive package also con tains two tickets to any theatre pro duction at the red barn theatre while ms langford is over whelmed by the attention the ama teur thespian is especially excited about receiving theatre tickets yeah thats so tool she said adding it was her husband who suggested she take chelsea an amazing actor in her own rightto the show with her but not to the briars she gig gled that would be with my hus band staff photossusie kockersheidt the briars resort shown from the back is exquisite spa manager terry cranswick below stands in the lounge of the enhanced spa for more information on the briars or to book an appointment at the spa call 9057223271 teacher deserves trip briars owner says by mitchell brown staff writer without hesitation john sibbald owner of the briars resort and spa in jacksons point can rhyme off names of teachers who taught him in grade school miss latimer miss evans miss colburn miss hawker and i think that was pretty well it he said he added its unlikely few oth ers would remember those names today and he may be right after all those teachers taught at sutton public school more than 50 years ago in the years since mr sibbald has studied business and engi neering at the university of toronto moved back to jacksons point got married took over the family business raised three chil dren and watched those childrenu raise families of their own today more than 50 years later the fact he still remembers the names of his first teachers speaks volumes about the impact they had on his life recognizing that impact is why mr sibbald says he was honoured to meet marianne langford york region newspaper groups teacher of the year for 2002 particularly when i found out she had basically been chosen by the children he said if the kids had all said she deserves it because shes popular and the students like her she must be doing something right when ms langford visits for her weekend getaway mr sibbald and his staff will be ready weve really done a major maintenance and refurbishing he said pointing out renovations to the main building and cottages the resort has also enhanced its spa program with such activi ties as stress release through guid ed mediation and chakra balanc ing in addition to its array of holistic and hydrotherapy options as for himself mr sibbald already looks in shape for the upcoming season thanks to a recent twoweek florida vacation i justhad to getaway it was so cold this winter v- fly to ottawa or sutary from 99 one way ist bearskinirllnes discover the convenience of toronto buttonville airport located at hwy 404 and 16th avenue take advantage of free airport parking connections to sault ste marie north bay or thunder bay and collect aeroplan miles every trip the sooner you book the less you will pay let the bear take you there call 905 4778035 or 1 8004652327 or book online at wwwbearskinairlinescom your travel agent can also tell you about all our great services aerowlari 5k